NYC Blogger Meet Up!!!!

Note: This is probably the first and last time a blog post will start with a picture of me doing a back flip off of a trapeze bar!


I had a fantastic time meeting up with bloggers in NYC!! Since I'm SOOO late in making this post, you've probably already read the other posts by the girls:

Read Tammy's post here
Read Diana's post here
Read Jenn's post here

Thanks so much to Tammy, Diana, Jenn, and Jenn for coming to see me!

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Part 1: Trapeze Class

I'm not sure where I learned that there is a trapeze class in NYC. I wanted to go the last time I was in NYC, over 2 years ago, but wasn't able to.  I was SO surprised when I found out that Tammy wanted to go too!

Tammy has a HILARIOUS post up about it, so I'm only going to add on to what she said!

- We were the only beginners in the class, which was good, because the teachers helped us a lot.  Since the other girls knew what they were doing, they were very quick on the bar = more time for everyone

- I FULLY agree with her that while all of the teachers were nice, some of them were much better at teaching than others

- Guys with patches of hair on their chests should not have their shirts off.  That is not to say I don't like hairy men.  Just patches of thick hair is... um... yeah.


- It was a lot of fun, but MAN was I sore!  My abs were sore for a few days afterward, and my hands were VERY sore!

- Like Tammy, I would do it again!!!!

Some more pics of Tammy and me!

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 Part 2: Dim Sum

We met up with Diana, Diana's BF, and Jenn to eat Dim Sum!!!!
When the dishes came, we all started taking pictures... except for Diana's BF!  Clearly, he isn't the "normal" one!!!!!!!

Shrimp cheong fun
I LOVE THESE.  

Har Gow

Siu Mai

Crispy Dumplings!

The weird thing about this place is the service. 

Just like Jenn said in her post, the waiter did not seem to want to let us order... He would come and ask us if we wanted more food, we would say yes, and then he would disappear!  Strange!

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Part 3: Sephora and Dinner

From here on out, Diana's BF (MG) was the one "in charge"!  He was the one helping us go in the correct direction, getting us taxis, even finding the nearest Sephora!

No pictures of Sephora since I didn't buy anything... In hindsight, we probably should have gone to a drugstore.  I realized after coming home that I did not buy nearly enough!!!

Dinner was fantastic as well:

Smoke Salmon cucumber thingy!

I had grilled fish!  The mango chutney was great!

Mona stopped by just to say hello!  I have a separate post of hanging out with her coming up!

We ALMOST forgot to take a group picture!

Thanks to everyone for coming out!

Next up: the food post!

xoxo, K

Meetup with Nic Nic & Barry M Dazzle Dusts!

I'm back from my trip to New York!  All the other bloggers I got to meet up with have made blog posts already, so I'm trying to catch up!

Day Zero began with a meet up with Nic Nic from bang bang she shoots!  Although she lives in Tokyo, this was our first time meeting up.  We had a FANTASTIC time chatting about just about everything!  I really enjoyed meeting her and I hope we can meet up again!

Nic Nic was a such a sweetheart and gave me GIFTS!

(Excuse the poor quality of the pictures!  I took them in my Tokyo hotel room with VERY BAD LIGHTING!)

Silk Whitia masks!  I love them!!!

Shiseido Samples!

These came in handy during my trip!

Bath bombs!

A GOOD bath is one thing I really love about Japan!

Fun & Games blush from the MAC Hello Kitty Collection!

Thank you SO much for a great time, Nic Nic!

I really wish we lived closer, so that we could hang out regularly!

Hope to see you again SOON!!!!!

I also pressed my Barry M Dazzle Dusts before I left!
I am REALLY bad with loose eyeshadows, and I can never seem to make them work for me!

Barry M Dazzle Dusts are fantastic!
They are super pigmented, and really cheap!
They are 5 GBP (less than $8) and each little pot is STUFFED FULL TO THE TOP!
I pressed a full pan of each, and the pot is still half full!


39 - Tan

24 - Old Gold

51 - Mushroom

97 - Dark Chocolate

Swatches!
From left - Dark Chocolate, Mushroom, Old Gold, Tan

I really recommend you pick them up if you are in the UK!
Otherwise, you can get them on the Barry M website (which charges SUPER HIGH shipping), or on Jamilla's site!

Stay tuned for more blogger meet up posts!

xoxo, K

Thank you - Presents from Jamilla!

Jamilla sent me a generous birthday gift!

Jamilla always sends such cute cards!

Everything came in this cute pouch!

Zhen Light Diffusing foundation in Bamboo!

Click here to read Jamilla's review on it!

You can also buy it from her site!!

A very pretty Zhen blush!

Maybelline Eye Studio Diamond Glow in Bronze Drama

The colors remind me of this Guerlain palette!

Chanel Essential Regenerating Cream!

Jamilla knows I'm trying to take better care of my skin now!

Guerlain samples!

I'm using these on my NY trip!

And finally...

Oh WOW, my first Chanel nail polish!

This is in Trapeze!

Thank you SOOOOO much for these gifts!!!!
You are such a sweet lady!!!!

xoxo, K

Review: The Diva Cup

This is my rave about the Diva Cup, a reusable menstrual product.  If you are squeamish, please feel free to skip this post.

A few weeks, Mel posted about the Diva Cup.  This product has seriously changed my life, and I felt so compelled to write about it.

The Diva Cup is a reusable menstrual product.  It is a silicone cup which sits inside you and collects menstrual fluid.

Yes, you have to pull it out and dump your blood out.  I guess this is why people are grossed out about it.  For me, the pros FAR outweigh the cons.  I've had my period for over 15 years, and handling menstrual products is just a way of life.

There are several similar products out there, but this will be specifically about the Diva Cup since that is the one I use.

I get asked a lot of questions when I tell people I use a menstrual cup.  Here are some of the questions I get asked, and my answers:

Q: When did you start using the Diva Cup?
A: I have been using the Diva Cup for 4 years.


Q: What made you decide to buy one?
A: 2006 is the year that I started working at a job which required me to spend months at a time in China.  I knew that most of my female colleagues brought boxes and boxes of pads/tampons with them on these business trips since they wanted to use a product they trusted.  Not knowing how many months they'd have to spend in China meant bringing A LOT of products with them.  I did not want to have to bring that much with me, and so I started researching online for an alternative.

I also disliked that little box in the corner of any ladies' room (including my bathroom at home).  Used menstrual products start to smell, and I really wanted to eliminate that from my home.

Q: Isn't the cup expensive?
A: I found the Diva Cup online for about $35.  I know you can find it cheaper in the US. Tampons are fairly expensive in Japan, being about $8-9 for a box of 30, which I go through in less than one month.  The Diva Cup paid for itself in less a few months.

Q: How do you get it inside you?
A: The Diva Cup comes with instructions, but I really suggest you do your research online.  There was a livejournal community which was very active (here's the link) which had a lot of tips on insertion methods.  Just find one that works for you.  I use what is called the 7-fold method.

Q: Isn't it messy?
A: I really recommend practicing.  Unlike tampons, it is perfectly safe to do dry-runs with a cup, that is, to try them out when you are not on your period.  This is a great way to figure out how to insert/take out your cup without risking getting yourself into a mess.

Q: Doesn't it hurt?
A: If it is properly inserted, it shouldn't hurt.  This is the same as using a tampon.  There are a lot of tips/tricks in case the stem is too long for you.  Again, try a few dry-runs.

Q: How do you clean it?
A: I wipe it down with a paper towel every time I dump it.  I also wash it every day in the shower.  I boil it at the end of every period to sanitize it.  Yes, it will still stain.  I personally don't care too much.

Q: Is it safe?
A: Unlike with tampons, there are no reported cases of TSS with menstrual cups.  You can leave it inside of you all day.  How frequently you need to take it out depends on the amount of your menstrual fluid, and you'll be able to figure out a good frequency after a few tries.


Q: Does it leak?
A: Not for me.  If it does, this link has a ton of info on what you can do.

A lot of the menstrual cup companies like to give out info... which may or not may not work for you.  This is a great link which has a lot of opinions.

Finally, what I wrote above is purely my own opinion.   All women are different and what works for me may or may not work for you.  I am not being paid by the Diva Cup to make this post.  It is rare for me to find something which I absolutely adore, so I really wanted to share it with you!

Here some other great links which may be of interest to you!

Wardrobe Oxygen (this is one of my most favorite blogs!)
Wikipedia

xoxo, K

Thank You - Birthday Presents from Dina!

Some more birthday gifts!

These are from Dina!

Thank you so much!

NYX round lipstick in Thalia

A pretty mauve nailpolish from the Face Shop!

I love these notes she put on everything!

The Body Shop Shea Body Butter

I really like the scent of shea butter too!

The Face Shop face masks!

Samples!

Tea!  Candy!

Thank you SO much for your generosity, Dina!

Tired of these birthday present posts yet?  Hahaha, I'm OVERWHELMED by the love and kindness I've gotten from blogger girls!

xoxo, K

PROJECT 20 PAN!!!!

I finished my Project 20 Pan, just in time for my trip to NY!

This was originally a Project 10 Pan, but for some reason I turned it into a 20 pan!  I guess I am so used to a no-buy situation that it really isn't hard for me.  I like to really enjoy what I've got versus trying out whatever is new.  There is a lot less temptation here in Japan since there aren't THAT many new products all the time!  Yes, I realize that there are a lot of things here that all the rest of the blogger world wants... Obviously, what everyone else has looks a lot nicer!!!

Here we go!

MAC Lipgloss in Pink Grapefruit!

This is from one of Mona's blog sales!

Facial Wash!

I have no idea where this from!

This is a mineral eyeshadow that I pressed.

You can barely see the pan, but I wanted to take a picture before the eyeshadow broke apart!

EDM Light Golden Intensive!

Skinfood Banana Yogurt Wash Off Mask!

This is from a swap with Blair!

This was REALLY popular last year in the blog world!

A Molton Brown body lotion from Jamilla!
This smelled SO nice!

Again, I took a picture of this bronzer when I hit pan (before I finished it up) because I knew it would break up!

A Vidal Sassoon hair mask!

A leave-in hair treatment!

This was a really interesting emulsion!

Belo Facial Wash!

This is a gift from Iyah!

L'egere White BB Cream!

This is from one of my first swaps with Diana!

I must be one of the few people who didn't really like this...

Skinfood Agave Cactus Sun BB Cream

I bought this while I was in Seoul.

This was twice as expensive as their other BB creams, such as the Mushroom BB Cream and the Aloe BB Cream, but I didn't think it was all that much better!

Bath & Body Works White Tea & Ginger Shower Gel!

This is a gift from Wuzzy!  The smell reminds me a lot of lemon ice tea!

It was nice, but I really should stick to the travel size bottles - this full size bottle took a LONG time to finish!

Lush Angels on Bare Skin

Yes, I'm getting another one of these when I get to NY!

Etude House Precious Mineral Essence

This is that primer that looks like the one from Guerlain.

I got this when I was in Seoul.  I liked the light feeling of it!

Bath & Body Works Moonlight Path Body Lotion

Yes, the travel size is just the right size for me.  I LOVE how this smells!

The Face Shop Oil-Free BB Cream
Anastacia kindly sent this to me!
The words "oil-free" are a bit misleading, though.
It contains no mineral oil, but it does have other oils!
I liked the coverage and the color!

Lioele BB cream

I loved the pump!  And this pink packaging is so cute!

Fair & Lovely Skin Clarity moisturizer

Blair kindly sent this to me, and it's LOVE!!!

I wish I could get another one!

Yes yes, I'm hauling in NY!!!

Please let me know if you're on a no-buy / Project whatever pan /etc!

We're all here to support each other!

xoxo, K