FILM: À la folie... pas du tout (He Loves Me... He Loves Me Not)

'À la folie... pas du tout' is just about the most psychotic film, and thus, freakiest film I have ever watched. I have no idea why the sister said I would like it. The story tells of a budding artist, Angélique played by Audrey Tautou, who became obsessed with her neighbour, Dr. Loïc Le Garrec played by Samuel Le Bihan, whom she hardly knew.

The way the film started, with a song so full of hope and love and with the loveliest red roses, I thought it was going to be a sappy love story. But heck no, techno. It was a ride into hell. The core of the story is found in the condition, erotomania. Angélique was suffering from said illness. She was under the delusion that Loïc was in love with her. It showed how she torpedoed down into self-destruction when Loïc failed to turn up for a trip which she had planned in her head. I was certainly fooled by Audrey Tautou's stellar performance. Her sweet, innocent smile, all wide-eyed... I really thought that Loïc was one of those cheating scumbags *shudders*.

But anyway, I love the way the story played out. It began with a scene where Angélique rode off to the right and the delivery boy rode off to the left and we followed Angélique first. Midway, everything reminds to the first scene and we then, followed the delivery boy. And the way the happy song contrasted to the hell that was seething beneath... It was amazing.

Bien que mon amour soit fou,
ma raison calme les trop vives douleurs
de mon cœur en lui distant de patienter,
et d'espérer toujours...

- Une érotomane internée pendant plus de cinquante ans.

REVIEW: Skin Inc's Okinawa Deepsea Hydra Mask

I bought Skin Inc's Okinawa Deepsea Hydra Mask last August (Read about my haul here.). To date, it is my most expensive one-item haul but the stars aren't aligned right for me; it wasn't a miracle in a tub that I was hoping for.



Housed in a 100ml tub, this mask comes in a transparent gel. The tub's rather heavy and bulky. A spatula is provided so that you can scoop the mask out with it and not risk contamination of any sort. I like that it's hygienic but after a while, such a measure becomes troublesome.

It contains

Okinawa Deep Sea Water: Chock-full of nutrients like zinc and magnesium, which regulate sebum production, repair the skin's natural barrier and aid in the improvement of eczema symptoms.
Soya Bean: Brightens up your complexion
Hyaluronic Acid: Hydrates your skin.

It is gentle enough to be used daily on all skin types. After cleansing, spread a thin layer all over the face for 30 mins or leave it on overnight.



This little pot of gold cost me $188. It is supposed to be used up within 6 months but come August 24th, I'll be celebrating its first-year anniversary (I'm really hoping that I'll finish it before mid-August!). If I remembered it right, the lady told me that the tub's good for 72 applications, making each one $2.61. That's equivalent to 2 My Beauty Diary masks. Price-wise, it is alright, though shelling out $188 at one shot really hurts the heart.

I usually leave the mask on overnight. It isn't entirely absorbed into the skin because when I wash my face in the morning, I can feel the layer of mask. I wake up to moisturized skin but the thing is, I get the same effect with My Beauty Diary masks or with my Hazeline Snow, for less.

There isn't any immediate brightening effect. But neither do I notice any long-term brightening. That could be because it takes place gradually and I mask only once or twice a week but my Vichy Bi-WHITE REVEAL Skincare Range seems to be doing a better job at this.

The lady mentioned that many of SKINC's clients were ex-SKII users. I have no idea how much truth is in that statement but from my brief encounter with SKII, I actually think SKII's more of a 'miracle' than SKINC.

I think this would be good for people with dry skin and are currently using masks which are more expensive and want to save on that. But if you're looking for more than hydration, nuh-uh. Give this a miss and go spend your moolah somewhere else!

HAUL: xoxo, Topshop.

So last night the cousin, ZT, got me all excited about Topshop Make Up by showing me some awesome videos. It isn't that I haven't got any Topshop Make Up. I have quite a bit (Click here.) and I have clearly forgotten about them. :\ Well, actually I just kind of threw them back into the dark recesses of my mind when the crayons went all smudge-y on me.

But I haven't bought makeup for a really long time, not taking Lioele's Water Drop BB into consideration because well, B.B. creams are a necessity and moving on with life (Heh.)... The videos got me into such a frenzy that I had to go down to Topshop today. Had to.

But sigh. There were many things which weren't there. I wanted the Blushes in Butterscotch and Nutmeg but they aren't even available online. Are they all out of stock?!?

And it's high time for me to zip up and show you photos! :D





These are Cheeks in Prism and Luminescence. Recently, I have gone all gaga over highlighters (Canmake's Highlighter in Baby Beige 05 is so pretty!!! I have been spamming it so much so that I look like I left my eye area behind when I went swimming. Or that I wear goggles 24/7. Yeah, whatever. SO PRETTY.).



So anyway, yes, that explains Prism, which is so pretty! And this is my first highlighter in cream format so I'm really excited! I feel like my insides are bubbling with happiness! So SO pretty! And I got Luminescence because I thought it was cute to have a highlighter-cum-blusher product! I mean, I haven't got anything like that, so it completely justified my buy. *nods seriously*

The first one is Ray, which I gave a miss. I think it will be perfect for ladies with darker skin tones. These pretty, albeit bulky, sticks can be used on the lips and body. They are not to be used on the eyes. Take note!



The only blushers which are available are Pinch and Head Over Heels. I got the latter, which is a pretty coral! Perfect for spring! Even though umm... Well, fall is the one that's approaching. Haha. Whatever. No. 1 perk (Or maybe not.) of living in Singapore... SUMMER (Which is sorta close to Spring. Sorta. Heh. Okay, whatever. Haha!) ALL YEAR ROUND, YO! XD



Head Over Heels on your left and Pinch on your right!

And lastly, these are the videos that got me all flushing with absolutely undiluted excitement!









Is your heart thumping now? Heh heh, if it is! Haha! And umm if it isn't, well... Good day to you! Heh!

RAMBLINGS: Meet the amusing friend.

There's this friend of mine who amuses me till no end. Unintentionally. Sometimes, it annoys me but when I look back on it, I find it so funny. I used to have a massive crush on him because he looked like Benjamin Heng. But not anymore though. I think. Well, it's an on-off thing. He's really quite blur.

Here's how last night's MSN conversation went (Edited to cut the story short.).

Friend: Hey. You were wrong.
Friend: The school is kind. They added the modules for me.
Friend: Haha.
Me: What was I wrong about?
Friend: Hm.
Me: Lol.
Friend: You said they wouldn't.
Me: I did?
Friend: I think so.
Me: Lol. I'm pretty sure I didn't. I know the school is kind.

I know the school is kind because I emailed them to death about my Entrepreneurship class last semester. It clashed with one of my lectures but I was adamant about taking it. Back and forth, our emails went like ping pong balls and they gave it to me eventually. And I dropped it after like 3 days.

Haha. Anyway, it's amusing because he's really tall and doesn't look blur and he's older than me. But he's like... Haha. I don't know man. It's cute. Haha. I'm so amused.

HAUL: Shoes to die for.

From F21, $39.



I like the smell of fresh hay
I want to stop right now to inhale
I have got some brand new flavors
Going in and out of my mind

FILM: She's All That

Decided to make 'She's All That' the movie of the night because of Anna Paquin. Her role is small but I love every bit of her screen time (By the way, Sookieverse Blog does awesome analysis on True Blood. Every episode. It's amazing.).

The story's your typical high school Cinderella story and I'm a sucker for them. Or rather, I was. I guess with all these vampires flying around nowadays and werewolves growling (Sookieverse described Alcide as Ken doll. Haha. I was so amaused!), I'm a little tired of this formula. Or maybe I have grown up.

I still remember when I was 19, I ran to the parents' room the moment I got home and asked the daddy if I could watch a show. The daddy was a tad taken aback by my 'ferocity' and was like "Okay." and he stayed in the room to watch it with me.

And I happily switched on Disney Channel and watched 'Princess Protection Program'.

The father: Uhhh... This is a high school show?
Me: (completely absorbed) Uh huh.
The father: Uhhhhh... Aren't you a little too old for this?!?
Me: *HOLLERED* I LOVE HIGH SCHOOL SHOWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The father left the room.

Yeah... Haha. Oh well. At least, I have grown out of them. Even though I'm a little late.

Anyway, Rachael Leigh Cook is gorgeous! I had no idea that she was Josie McCoy in 'Josie and the Pussycats'. I didn't watch the movie and don't think I ever will but I read a lot of Archie comics and saw the ads for it and I was like 'Josie's prettier than Melody!' and we all know that Melody's the gorgeous one in the comics.

And Cook's married to Daniel Gillies, who's Elijah in 'The Vampire Diaries'!

I love all these links! *claps in delight*

Just like how Paul Wesley, Stefan Salvatore from said show, is married to Torrey DeVitto, Melissa Hastings from 'Pretty Little Liars'!

And right, what a frivolous entry but I really haven't got much to say about the movie other than the fact that I wish Anna Paquin had more screen time.



Kiss me out of the bearded barley
Nightly, beside the green, green grass
Swing, swing, swing the spinning step
You wear those shoes and I will wear that dress.

I'm going to bed with this song in my head.

LOOKBOOK: I've got dragonflies all over me.

It has been quite a while since I last posted a 'Style Book' entry. I have been boring all summer because SG's heat is too much to bear. I just want to wear paper-thin tees (White. I'm always in white. Dark colours absorb radiation.) and shorts wherever I go. I decided to amp things up a little by wearing dressier paper-thin tops.



Here's F21's Foil Dragon Fly Top, $31.

And you can see the pigsty that is the corner of my room. I'll get round to it, before school starts. I hope.



When I saw those glittering gold dragonflies, I knew I had to get the top. I'm no insect-lover but I'm a Sophie Kinsella one. It reminded me of Sadie's dragonfly necklace in 'Twenties Girl'.





And here's me pretending that the sister's heels aren't killing my feet. They are one size too small and I wobble in heels.

And my mirror is dirty. Stained with Hazeline Snow.



Last but not least, I'm featured in the July copy of Aesthetics & Beauty Guide! I went for a Personal Style Consultation with Ms. Teo Ser Lee, founder of Protocol Academy, in early June. And woots! According to measurements, I have an hourglass figure! Heh heh.

But I have grown one size bigger over the hols. Oh well. I think Anna Paquin has the most gorgeous figure on earth, so stick thin isn't pretty to me. I'm just a little sad because I had many pretty XS American Eagles shirts (Some were unopened!!!), which I couldn't wear anymore. GLOOM.

HAUL: Those insanely expensive feathers... Well, they are here.

I bought Lioele's Water Drop BB after reading Cheryl's entry. This was $11.40, with an additional $3 for postage from Secretive.

Though my product came nicely wrapped and I got it within 4 days of making the order, I wasn't exactly happy with their service. A lady called me on Tuesday to inform me that the last tube that they had was opened and so, they couldn't send it to me. And that they didn't do refunds. I was rather displeased because I didn't want to buy something which I didn't need and then, have to shell out another $14.40 when it came back in stock. And it wasn't my fault here. I didn't see why they couldn't give me back my money. The lady apologized (Thank you for that.) and then, replied that she would check the warehouse. After a while, she called to tell me that they had stock in the warehouse.

Question: Why didn't she check out the warehouse in the first place?!? If I hadn't shown my displeasure, I would have ended up with something which I didn't need.

I really don't get it.



The above is the number of samples that are lying on my bay window. My fairy lights have been swept aside in the name of beauty. I'm sorry!



And lastly, here are the insanely expensive feathers which I ordered last month. My friends were all laughing at me for shelling out so much for friggin' feathers. But guess what, darlings? I have the last laugh. They are all out of stock!!! On Sephora, on Sultra website itself! *cue: evil laughter*

(We really wanted Boho Breeze. But we weren't quick enough. ):)

Haha (At my bimbo-ness and sillyness.). But really, I'm wondering how many Singaporeans watch Pretty Little Liars. I mean, if anyone has seen Aria sporting them feathers in her hair, they would want to get some NOW. It's a huge fad in the States currently (Probably helmed by Aria darling, though she isn't the first to wear them.) but it's almost non-existent here. I haven't seen anyone, besides the sister and me, wearing feather earrings even though Accessorize, F21 and Topshop have got them.

Or maybe I just haven't gone out enough.

Or maybe everyone thinks they are silly (The daddy sure thinks so.). Except for the sister and me. Mmhmmm.

Anyway, I got these for US$25 a pop (I know, heart pains.) from Sephora via a spree held by Crimson Rose. Crimson Rose holds sprees and have instocks as well, from NYX to Benefit to Urban Decay! Prices are slightly higher but the service has been most satisfactory! (: Everything's really chop chop. I make my orders and I get my items in the evening (Meetups.). Completely fuss-free.

An outfit post is on the way, so hold your horses! :D

RAMBLINGS: Of rooms and Humpty Dumpty

flangesandibeams@tumblr

This is exactly what I want my room to be like. Minus the clutter that are the (random) cupboards. And probably a bar at the end of the bed for me to hang my fairy lights and prevent me from pulling a Humpty Dumpty.

All of the king's horses and all of the king's men
Couldn't pull my heart back together again
All of the physicians and mathematicians too
Failed to stop my heart from breaking in two

Which reminds me of 'The Humpty Dumpty Love Song' by Travis.



And this is exactly what I not want my room to be. Me, being me, will probably cause ten thousands of Humpty Dumpty-s to fall on me. Already, my little bottles of perfumes come tumbling down when I push in my chair oh-so-gently. Thank goodness, they are sturdy little beings.
-

I like sneaking into the brother's room in the wee hours of the morning, after he has left for school, and snuggle under his duvet. His bolster and pillow feel like clouds and I feel like I'm in a puddle of pureed rainbows.

I really need sleep but the Z monster's being really unkind to me. But thank goodness for Lancôme's Visionnaire. My skin has never looked healthier. Seriously.
-



And this is what I want to ink on the inner side of my left arm.

FILM: 40 Days and 40 Nights

I had no idea why I wanted to watch '40 Days and 40 Nights' before I started the movie. And now that I have finished it, I think it has something to do with Shannyn Sossamon, whom I saw in 'The Rules of Attraction'. Except that I have no idea why I even watched 'The Rules of Attraction'. But I did remember my amusement at a younger and much skinnier Ian Somerhalder.

Anyway, I think it's a little sad that sex has lost its meaning, that it has become something that needs to be done. That it has become sex and not making love. I had a conversation with a friend once about pre-marital sex and the friend went something like "You know, everyone is doing it.". But commonplace does not equate to right.

But oh well. I guess we'll see when the time comes.
-

Oh yes. I don't know if there are any True Blood fans who are reading my blog, but when it comes to Eric Northman/ Alexander Skarsgård, the distinction doesn't exist. Haha! And there goes the chastity ring.

And heh, heh. I had no idea that he and Kate Bosworth had broken up! Someone on Tumblr said 'Now Alex please give many skargasms to many women.', which I found very amusing.

I think Tumblr people are hellishly cool.
-

"I'll talk to the bagel guy when he gets here."
"What does the bagel guy have to do with this?"
"The bagel guy knows everything. The dude's incredible."
"Then how come can't he get here on time with the bagels?"

I found the above hilarious. Go figure.

RAMBLINGS: Things of sorts.

I took this before I slept last night. I almost convinced myself that I was in fairyland.

About 4/5 of me wants to head down to IKEA and stock up on them. But Charlene, fairylights aren't makeup. No one stocks up on lights. They will still be around when you're 40 (I hope I don't jinx anything by 'saying' this out loud.).



I'm a proud owner of 33 nail polishes and 11 mini ones in various colours of the rainbow and I even have colours which don't belong to the rainbow. And all that my nails ever see is red. I couldn't bring myself to paint them pink last night.

It is this 'struggle' within me (Whether to paint them nails red or not red. And then, deciding to paint them red. And then, regretting it terribly because I'm not being fair to the non-reds, who are almost all brand new.) that keeps my nails bare most of the time. First world pains, aye?



I got these (pretentious) YSL stickers to glam up my nails but I can't bear to use them. Perhaps it has got to do with the fact that I know and own absolutely nothing about and from the brand.

It's just like how I refuse to wear a guitar pendant because I can't play the guitar. I own several Tinkerbell ones. The mummy asked if I thought I were a fairy.



And say hello to my new tin of Steam Cream! It's green and bright and I love it!

The sister said the original one was nicer. 'Vintage' was her exact word. But it isn't like me to pick 'accessories' plain. My 'base/ foundation' is usually plain. So that my 'accessories' can go all funky.
-

The other day I wanted to cancel my hair appointment and I thought really long before making the phone call.

'Should I say my name first and then, explain what I want?'

'Or should I explain what I want first and then, say my name?'

It seems to me that the latter makes more sense because if you did the former, the person would most probably have forgotten your name by the time you were done with your explanation. But then, the latter seems really rude. Like "Eh, hello. I want this and that. And oh! By the way, I am blah blah blah.".

I blame my Starbucks upbringing for this. We were supposed to drink call in a manner that would be easier for the baristas at the bar to cup mark. I did't really memorize the order (In which we called the drinks.) because I don't do memory work, as much as I can help it. I just asked myself what I thought the baristas needed to know first.

And now, I'm stuck with it. In every aspect of my life. For life.
-

The sister doesn't want to live in a world where the Biebs exists. Hmmm... Kinda tough. I had no idea that bedspreads and wall stickers had his face plastered on them.

Anyway, the impending semester is tickling my bones! Last year!!! *throws confetti*

And I'm sort of falling for a guy in my French class, who's on my Facebook but whom I have barely spoken 2 words to, parce que les mots de lui (I hope I got that right.).

EVENT: K-Palette's Eyes On You Beauty Bloggers' Workshop

On July 10th, I was invited to K-Palette's Eyes On You Beauty Bloggers' Workshop by The Sample Store.

The event was held at Fika - Swedish Café and Bistro. Whimsical and cozy, you and your lovelies can find it on the corner of Beach Road and Arab Street (No. 257 Beach Road/ Arab Street).



I have been waiting for this event since I got the invitation in the middle of June!

Last summer, Mich and I worked as part-time promoters for Japalang, which is K-Palette's exclusive distributor. It was a wonderful 2-week stint! (:

This was K-Palette's very first event, with Canon as its official partner. We got our pictures taken and printed right on the spot! :D



I went with Fel and bumped into Lynn, who just got back from the States!

I also met Yina, who is Fel's friend. (:



Since I made the switch from pencil eyeliners to liquid ones, the 24H Real Lasting Eyeliner is all that I have been using!

Sharp and thin, I can decide on the thickness of my liner with ease and it doesn't go all flaky on me. It doesn't smudge on my oily eyelids too, which is the main reason why I ditched pencil and went liquid.

Read my review here. (:



The Lasting 2Way Eyebrow is K-Palette's newest product to hit our shores!

It has liquid and powder tips to ensure perfect and natural-looking brows! It is highly resistant to water, sweat and sebum. (:



There's Mr. Soh in the top picture. He's the head of Japalang. Sharon's the one with the mike and Ariel's the one in the white-dotted dress. Mariko-san, in the striped tee, was the makeup artist for the day!









Mariko-san taught us how to do Glamorous and Kawaii looks. Check out my friends Eunice and Mich sporting the 2 looks here!

The latest makeup fad in Japan is to draw bottom lashes right at the corner to give your lashes a fuller look (Now you know!)!



After the makeup demonstration, we were treated to a splendid lunch! For the main course, we had a choice between Rosemary-grilled chicken or Pan-fried Dory Fish and our whole table picked the fish! I had no idea that pomodoro sauce is a type of Italian tomato sauce (I don't really like tomato by-products.) but it was still good! And it came with potatoes (Big potato fan here.)! *squeals*

It was great fun catching up with Lynn, who was wowing me with all the sales and slashed prices in the States (Why, SG, why do you not have sales like that?!?)! Go stalk her blog for her US tales! :D



Lastly, thank you K-Palette and The Sample Store for a well-planned and very enjoyable event! It was fabulous to know how the Japanese ladies do their makeup. :D

And of course, there's you! Thank you for reading! :DDD

RAMBLINGS: Do things the old-fashioned way.

maudelynn@tumblr

And who still write love letters in this age?
And who will tell the girl her smile is sweet?
And who will tell her that he was happy when she spoke to him?
It's no one but you, A.
And I wish I could find you again.

HAUL: New additions to the room.

The baroque photo frame was from a long time back (Read the entry here.).

The one that looks like it has got pearls adorning the perimeter of the photo is from IKEA. It was $8.90. I love pearls. It houses a photo of the cousins, sister and me. You have seen the cute little boy all-grown-up in the previous entry. I'm in the hideous neon orange jumpsuit... Or whatever it is.

The 'Keep Calm and Carry On' metal sign is a gift from the sister. She got it when she was in the UK.



FAIRY LIGHTS!!! I cannot be a happier child!!! *dances around*

These are from IKEA too, around $20. I was a little hesitant to get them because they were in purple.

I used to love purple a lot because purple sweets were so good! So each time I got to eat coloured sweets, I always chose purple. Then, one fine day, I decided to break the monotonous rhythm of habit and picked a red one (Cherry-flavoured.) and I was incredulous that it tasted better. I rarely pick purples now. I feel cheated by it. It's like 'Because of you (purple), I missed out on so many years of other coloured sweets! Grrr!!!'. Very petty, I know.

But these fairy lights look like gems. I decided to make an exception and bought them.



Please don't have the impression that my bay window is as clean as a whistle. I have relegated the things which were making it a pigsty to the floor.

So now my floor looks like a pigsty.



This is the whiteboard of my desk. Having gone on massive shopping sprees this hols, I have acquired quite a number of tags (I just realized that one has got its bottom facing us. Ah. I'm too lazy to take another one. Maybe tomorrow. Or later. Or maybe never. Depends on how anal I get. Which depends on my mood.).

I love the Pull & Bear ones.

RAMBLINGS: Abbreviations for the win.

The awkward moment when you tap your ez-link card on the shuttle bus to IKEA and the reader beeps like hell. And you don't get it and tap again. And the reader beeps like hell. Again.

People 'FML' their lives for no apparent reasons. I believe that (above) was an appropriate FML moment.
-



That said, it was a splendid time at IKEA with the cousin, who's a budding architect. Well, starting on August 11th anyway.



I was very tempted to buy this bed for my soft toys. But sensibility and rationalness won the day. GLOOM!



I bought candles (amongst other stuff) so that my room could smell like fresh apples and I regret it. I should have got potpurri instead.

I have no idea how to use a lighter and the matches won't light up either. Oh hell.

The above's from the cousin's garden party on Saturday. The sister blogged about it here.
-

10 minutes later.



OH GOSH! *jumps around* My first LIGHTED candle! Unadulterated bliss!!! And I did it the old-fashioned way with matchsticks. Lighters, BLAH!