A Littel Guilty Haulage

I have a confession to make..... I shopped again...... Actually, I returned something and bought 2 cosmetics product w/ the store credit.... Does it still count? But I simply couldn't pass these two babies......


Nars Blush in Deep Throat












And Nars lipgloss in Striptease









To make buying these products even more legitimate is that I found them at TJ Maxx. You never find NARS product at TJ Maxx. Even if there is, it would be like bath gel or something. I swear that these two are the only makeup products I purchased since I entered the Project 10 Pan. Together they were $30.






Next, Ross was having Shoes Week last week. There were a lot of cute shoes. I initially bought three pairs, and came home to find that two pairs weren’t the greatest fit. So I went to return the shoes at another Ross.



Then I saw this pair of Steve Madden grey faux leather pump that I wanted really bad. I actually had tried them on three times before at two different stores. They were around $50 at those stores. Since I probably won’t have that many opportunities to wear them, I just set them down. Guess what? I saw them again at Ross, only for $15.99!!!?!?! What?!?!?!? But it was ok, I was hunting for more practical shoes. Out of five or six pairs of cute shoes, I had narrowed down to only two pairs. I really behaved myself, aren’t you guys proud of me? Haha….



This was the first pair that I bought. Had been wearing them ever since the day I got these….. Very comfy. The “leather” looks a bit fake though….. $14.99










I also got this pair of Nine West flats. My first impression was that the “leather” was a little stiff, but these are actually quite comfortable. I like Nine West shoes =) $14.99











And finally got a pair of black/grey flats. Initially, I wasn’t too impressed by the patchy design. However, I can’t deny that these are super comfortable and extremely wearable. I also like how the shoe embraces my fat feet very well. XD $11.99










And last, not least, I’ll leave you a picture of my little hero/warrior- Diamond. I’m so surprised that the little shy Diamond can be so brave in front of the bad kitty. These days, whenever I’m cooking in the kitchen, Diamond would walk out of my room and go straight to confront that kitty. Sometimes, she’s so close to the kitty that I’m afraid she might get hurt. She would choose a perfect spot and just sit right in front of the kitty. Other times, when the bad kitty wants to sneak into my room, Diamond would jump down from my bed and sit right in the middle of my door frame. She would guard my room until the bad kitty runs away. Isn’t she adorable?!?!?! Everyone in my family is very passive, and my mom was saying that Diamond is definitely our little role model. =)

Last Haul for a While (Picture Heavy)

So as I mentioned, I went to Ontario Mills Mall yesterday (Ontario as in the one in Orange County, CA =P). There is a Lancome outlet store, which I rarely walks into. However, I always go to the CCO inside of the Off 5th. They always have a lot of great stuff. There are some mineralized eyeshadows, Dame Edna highlighting powder, blushes from Color Forms collection, and some more limited edition stuff. I was only attracted to the pigments, since I didn't have any. They were 13.75 each, and I got two.




The first one is called Blonde's Gold. When I opened the jar on the way home, my heart just skipped a beat......






The pigment only filled 60% of the jar...... I was so heart broken!!! Anyways... it looks quite dark in the jar, but it's a gorgeous pale gold/peach color. Potential use: browbone highlight, inner corner highlight, all over lid color, as well as cheek highlighter color. LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!!!! Hate that I only have so little left!!!




The other one is Cocomotion, it was about 98% full, which made me feel (just a little bit) better. Seems like a quite popular color, and I've always wanted to get my hands on it. Cute name as well. It's like a dirty gold color. Potential uses: all over lid color and all over face bronzer (by adding a little bit to liquid foundation).







Here are some swatches...


w/ flash. Top = Blonde's Gold. Bottom= Cocomotion









w/o flash











Went to Nordstrom Rack and spotted this nail polish. It's Pedal to Metal by Savina, never heard of this brand personally. I'm very into neutral but shiny colors lately. haha.... It's a very pale pink color w/ shimmery/metallic finish. Again, looks quite dark in the bottle, but it's not pigmented at all.





Quick swatch on my nails






I also grabbed a pair of high heels. Probably my first pair in many years. They are by Soft (again, never heard of this brand). $39.99. Not too bad.








They are definitely not the most stylish high heels out there, but they are sooooooooo comfy. So comfy that you are not even aware that you are wearing high heels. Some of you might know that I'm always concerned that I'll appear as a giant in high heels. But my mom told me that I don't look too tall, so I must get them~~~










While I was standing in line, I saw this jewelry hanger/display. There were several different colors, but I liked this copper-ish one the most. I have so many earrings and they are just all tangled in a little drawer. So I just wanted something that makes organization easier, and I would wear them more often. This was $12.99. The downside: you can only hang earrings w/ hooks. Most of my hooked earrings are quite long, thus they don't really fit into the space provided. But it does look quite nice.... I don't know, a keeper or not?









Then I went to another shoe store, there were hardly anything worthy of trying on. My mom was looking for a pair of comfy shoes for my grandma. She too, couldn't find anything. So I was wandering around the discount racks, desperately trying to find something. And I saw this pair of short boot heels by Steve Madden.








I actually saw these at my local TJ Maxx, but they were not my size and also missing the shoelace. As soon as I saw these, I snatched them immediately. Guess what? They were in my size, there are shoelaces, and best of all...... they are only......










$8.99 after the discount!!!!!!!







I was furious!!! I was hugging them in my arms the rest of the time until we went to the register to pay. LOL.






I think that's about all I got.... Oh, I actually bought my mom a pair of Coach sunglasses. Her eyes are really sensitive and strain a lot when she's wearing sucky sunglasses. I shall steal it away and take some pictures later when she comes home. hehe.....



My mom had ran out of her Aveeno Ultra-Calming Foaming Cleanser, which was won Allure's best of beauty award before. She loved that cleanser. I made a special trip to Walmart just to get that cleanser, but they ran out of stock!!!! Curious to find a replacement for her, I saw this new Olay Regenerist facial cleanser. It also has that pump that produces foam. $8.99





I tried it once, and it's so fun to play with. You shake the can, them press on the pump. What comes out is not just foam, but it's mousse. It feels so wonderful and soft on the skin. I think it cleans a little better than the Aveeno one. My mom's verdict so far is that it's not as "good" as Aveeno.... in what ways? I'll have to ask her later.








Last, but not least, I'll leave you a picture of my FOTD. I got this blue dress yesterday also, from Papaya. Imma in love w/ one piece dresses.












Phew.... that was a long post. Thank you for reading~~~~~ I'll talk to you guys next time~~~

Pleasantly Surprised

Remember when few weeks ago, I was complaining about the necklaces I got from ebay and how it broke upon arrival? Since Ebay wouldn't allow me leave a negative rating for Power Seller w/in 7 days of transaction, I messaged the seller and complained about the packaging. And because I only paid like 2 bucks and some change for the necklace, I didn't really care if the seller doesn't respond me or doesn't send me a replacement. But better watch out for my NASTY rating and comment!!!









Few days ago, the seller finally got back to me saying that she was out of town and she will send me a replacement if it's in stock. I thought "Bleh, it'll probably be a false promise that keeps me hopeful for now." So yesterday, when I received a package, I was pleasantly surprised.








The seller placed each necklace in a little pouch, tighted two knots, and then put them in a huge bubble envelope. The shipping alone costed $1.22......











I'm usually not an outspoken and assertive person. But I'm glad that I complained. XD

The Only Thing I Got from Color Craft

There were so many things that I wanted from the Color Craft collection. All those pretty mineralized blushes and skinfinishes..... But I've managed to narrowed down to either Porcelain Pink and Smooth Merge. Sigh.... envy those ladies who can collect them all......














Yesterday, I was at Macy's swatching the colors. Since Porcelain Pink is a re-promote, I was sure it must worth the hype. However, when I tried it on my cheeks, I see absolutely nothing. I'm not sure if it's because of the lighting or because the particular msf didn't have much gold veining. Then, I swatched Smooth Merge, which looks just as beautiful as all the color swatches I've studied before. The two lighter shades look very promising as warm and cool toned highlights, while the middle deep mauve color would serve perfectly as a blush. So I bought it on a whim, well.... everyone is raving about these msfs and I know if I don't grab one now, they'll be gone fast....



































So after I got home, I swatched it again. I realized that it's very very shimmery under the light, more shimmery than pigmented. I tried it again today on my face, all the shimmers just sank into my pores and looked so disco-ball-ish. So I'm a little ambivalent now..... I want a msf, specifically for highlighting. Smooth Merge would have been a very multi-purpose blush/highlighter, only if there was not that much shimmer. Should I return it? Should I exchange it for Porcelain Pink?










Here are some pictures....










Under diff lighting








w/ flash












w/o flash

Everyweek is a new test!

I hate how I have a CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart close to my house, so that I go there at least once every week..... And I hate how drugstores have diff bogo sales every single week!!!! So yesterday I was reading about Almay Bright Eyes Base+Concealer on mua. A lot people left good reviews for this product even though it's relatively new. So naturally, I went to CVS website immediatley to check the weekly ad. And guess what? Almay was on BOGOF sale!!!! I was soooooo tempted to ditch work and snatch it right away.







Jessie: But.... I mean I already have a lot of foundations and concealers, right?



Echoli: But not anything that works well?



Jessie: I was going to join lollipop26's 10 Pan Project....



Echoli: No, you should do 10 Pan Project AFTER you find all your HG products.....















So the struggle goes on...... In the end, Jessie, the more rational one, won. haha...































HOWEVER, I had to go to Walmart w/ my parents....... Yup, you guessed it!!! I had to buy something beauty related at Walmart. Nah.... passed on the Almay concealer because the retail price is just a little too steep. Have to wait for another BOGOF sale. I did grabe 3 mascaras.....










First one is Max Factor 2000 Calorie Mascara... $5 Heard soooo many good things about this mascara, but never had a chance to get my hands on it. When I saw the half empty MF rack, I realized immediately that it's getting discontinued..... How disappointing... I still want to try the Volume Couture Mascara....

















Second one is the Loreal Collagen Mascara, 2 for ~$7. Not bad. Loreal mascaras always seem to hold up its name. I'm loving the Loreal Voluminous right now. The formula is just sooooo creamy and smooth. So we'll see how this one is.

Today, I tried my NYX Doll Eyes Long Lash Mascara for the second time. So far, I really love it. It's even more natural than Maybelline Define-A-Lash, which I just tossed out yesterday. So I will do a review on NYX mascara soon...

That's all for today. Gtg watch Public Enemies. I adore Johnny Depp!!!!

I'd love a diamond wedding ring from my future husband, but for now, I'll settle w/ CZ rings.....

In my latest haul video, I mentioned that I So in my last haul video, I talked about how I went ebay crazy. Well.... the craze did last me a while... .Here are three more items that I just received this week.





First one is a stretchable ring w/ cubic zirconia (aka fake diamond). I paid $1.25. Muhahah!!!! Ebay rules. It's very pretty and wearable. My only complaint is that sometimes my skin and hair get caught between the stretchable chains, and it's a little uncomfortable.





w/o flash









w/ flash
















Second item is a necklace w/ a heart shaped pendant. Eh.... it looks alright. Definitely worth the $1.25.


















The third item is this necklace w/ an odd shaped necklace. But the reason why I like it is because it looks like my initials "JS". Do you see it?















However, the seller taped the necklace to a piece of paper. When I was so anxious to detach the necklace from the paper, the pendant just broke apart. I was so heart-broken!!!!!!!!!!! I was gong to leave a neutral (cuz I'm nice like that XD) rating. But because the seller is a power seller, and I can't leave a neutral/negative rating w/in 7 days!!!!! So I emailed the seller about the problem and complained his/her poor packaging method. Hopefully, he/she will be nice enough to give me a replacement. Or else, Im gonna leave a negative rating after 7 days!!!! Haha... j/k This was only 99c...... So it's no biggie.... but it would have been so cool to wear a necklace that happen to have my initials on it.




















Overall, pretty good, right? They are pretty.... hmm... shiny? Kinda like diamonds???? <-------------------This is how a poor student tries to comfort herself and fulfill her thirst for jewelry.

Bargain Alert!!!

So today I was at Costco, and I saw this Elizabeth Arden package. It comes with a Skin Protectant, Sunscreen lotion, and Lip Protectant. The package was $14.99, so I snatched it w/o a second thought. Just checked the retail prices of these three items 17+17+30 = $ 64!!!!

I haven't really tried out the products. But if you like EA products or if you can stand that pine-y fragrance, you might want to check it out.

The first impression of the Skin Protectant is that it reminded me of Eucerin Aquaphor Healing Ointment. The main ingrediant is petrolatum. You can apply it over chapped, flakey or sunburned skin or over your dry lips. Multi-purpose, check. My hands and lips have been really dry lately, this might be a remedy for moi.

The lip protectant has a slight peachy color, but it applies translucent. It feels very smooth on the lips. Pretty moisturizing. It's like a solid and more portable form of the Skin Protectant.

The sunscreen has SPF 50 and protection against UVA. Big +! The consistency is a little liquidy. It's easy to spread, and takes about 30 seconds to 1 minute to be absorbed into the skin. So far, it seems quite promising.

Ah!!!! It's been so hot in SoCal. It feels like an oven at my work place, and sauna at home. So basically, I'm being cooked the entire time. What sucks is that whenever I blast the AC, my joints (elbows )would start to hurt...... o___O