I'm sorry for the long hold up, there's been a lot of things going on in my un-excited life and most of the time I just couldn't bring myself to open the computer to blog. This has been going on for a few months now, I think ever since my dad passed away in June followed by the passing of my beloved uncle two months later. I was never really in the mood to blog ever since those two terrible moments happened in my life, I think I was in a starting stage of depression and I couldn't help but to always think negative things on my head. Then I started to freak out over anything and my mood was mostly gloomy, so I always hesitate to come near my laptop to work on my blogs. Hence, the long absence here...

Just when I started to move on from my mini depression stage, I heard another sad news about one of our beloved blogger Rini from Rinicesilia.com who also recently passed away in such a young age. She was one of the blogger that I know personally since my early days of blogging. She was one of the most sincere, most humble, and nicest blogger I know, despite of her huge success. She was gone too soon...

There were just too many death news in my life recently which maybe I couldn't bear. But Alhamdulillah now I'm trying to get back to my feet and try to live my life again as normal as it possibly could. So here's hoping to more blogging and way nicer years ahead, Amien...

Okay, now that I have expressed my emotions at the start of this post, let's begin the actual post now, shall we?

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Happy New Year to you all and happy holidays too !

We are entering the new year, and as per usual I have a regular post about my last and first purchase of the year every time the year ends. So this post is about the things that I purchased on the very last day of 2016 (^_^)

On December 31st I made it to Pondok Indah Mall to check out the sales that were flooding my IG timeline since days before. What I mostly want to check out are the Zara sale (because I saw this particular pair of shoes on my IG timeline that were on sale for IDR 300,000) and then the Bath & Body Works sale (because they have giant sale of 50-60% Off including their big candles! Say what??).  

So I went with my parents in laws because we were having lunch with them earlier at another mall. I told my MIL about the sale in PIM and she said that she would like to check it out too. So we moved from Citos to PIM despite the traffic madness and we checked out some of the stores there. Zara was unfortunately too crowded and the shoes that I want  was also nowhere to be found (probably already sold out because it was the last day of the sale). The other items on sale weren't actually really cheap (maybe they jacked up the price first before giving the sale sign?) so basically there were nothing really interesting for me from the clothes section. 

So I didn't get anything from Zara and moved out to Bath & Body Works. Now this is where the real discount really happening ! I have always wanted the big jar of BBW candle but they normally retails for IDR 439,000 so I never bought it because they were too freaking expensive for a candle! The medium ones also normally retails for IDR 259,000 so they were not really cheap either. What I usually do is just buy the mini ones to try on the scents, OR to shop at their outlet store in Gandaria City where they were always on sale price anytime of the year. In the outlet I once purchased the medium candle on a "Buy 1 Get 1" promo with an added extra discount at the cashier.

But wait til you hear about this new year sale in BBW counters that are going on until Dec 31 ! They were having up to 50-60% Off sale on a lot of their products, including their candles, handsoaps, hand sanitizers, and their travel size items. They also have sales going on for their bodycare products such as body lotions, body sprays, shower gels, etc. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the prices on the rack. The huge giant 3-wicks candle is now only IDR 175,000 from the normal price of IDR 439,000 ! The mini ones are only IDR 38,000 (Retail price is IDR 95,000), and the handsoaps are now IDR 64,000 ! Crazy, right? The cheapest price I ever paid for the handsoaps is IDR 75,000, so this new year sale is way cheaper than any other BBW sale I've ever encountered so far.

Anyway, here are what I purchased from the BBW sale :

Lush Bamboo Waterfall Gentle Foaming Hand Soap
Tiki Beach 3-Wicks Candle
"White Barn" Sparkling Limeade 3-Wicks Candle
Flannel Mini Candle

I will do a separate post if you wanna know about my candle collection and more details about each scents of the candles. But anyway, after BBW we also checked out Metro & Sogo (which I came out with empty hands because I only accompany my MIL who went looking for a blouse for her Bali trip). Then we also checked out H&M, and also Dr. Scholl (which were having up to 70% Off Sale!). I told my MIL that she should check out Dr. Scholl sandals sale because I do own a pair of their sandals and it feels like stepping on clouds everytime I use it :) 

Unfortunately they didn't have the color of the shoes she wanted at Dr. Scholl counter but I did get an accessory from H&M which wasn't on sale but I just couldn't resist it :

Yes, just a pretty black/gold bow chain to accessorize my bags :)
I just love dressing up my bags, and here it is already perched nicely on my Coach reversible bag (pic above). 

I would also write about "the different ways on how I dressed up my bags" in another post (hopefully soon). I hope you're interested :)

Meanwhile, I still have another post lining up which is about my first purchase of 2017, so make sure you watch this space and / or subscribe if you haven't already. If you're already subscribed to this blog, then : THANKYOU ! You're just the best!

 Click Here to read my previous 2016 first purchase !

Here we go again with an Empties post !

Empties post is where I listed all of my finished products so that I know which ones worked for me and which ones did not. Hopefully you would also get an overall glimpse of the products from my quick review on each items. If you have similar skin type like mine (oily combi face + normal body skin) then these mini reviews might be useful to you.

So here it is ...
My last Empties post of 2016, covering the month of November through December :

Shu Uemura White Efficient Clear Brightening Cleansing Oil

I've been using this particular brand for many months and this was my second bottle. I love using it because this was one of the best cleansing oil I've tried so far regarding the strength of the formula. It's able to cleanse off all of my makeup including my foundation and waterproof mascara as well as heavy duty matte lipstick that tends to stay on your lips all day. Would love to repurchase this but it's a little bit expensive.

> Recommended

> Replacement : currently using The Body Shop Camomile Cleansing Oil & The Skin Cleansing Oil

> Read the review of Shu Uemura White Efficient Cleansing Oil here

Nip+Fab Glycolic Acids Daily Cleansing Pads

This is basically a skincare + cleansing pads that contains glycolic acids to exfoliate your skin as it cleanse it. I have started to introduce some acids treatment on my skincare routine lately and this was one of the first acids I've tried. It was good as long as I don't add an AHA toner afterwards because then my skin would be aggravated. So I only use these pads at night when I'm not using my AHA toner.

> Recommended. I would repurchase but I would also like to try another brand such as the one from First Aid Beauty

> Replacement : Don't have any replacement for this Glycolic acids yet
> Read the Nip+Fab Glycolic Acids Daily Cleansing Pads here 

Garnier Light Complete Multi-Action Whitening Serum Cream

If you've been following my EMPTIES post you might noticed that I have finished lots of Garnier products lately. That's because I was sent some products from Garnier rep and I found them quite good for a supermarket brand so that's why I have no problem using them and I still have a couple of these Garnier products on my stock. This was my moisturizer for traveling or stay-over, and I think I've reviewed this one before, you can click the link below to read the complete review.

> Recommended for drugstore whitening cream

> Replacement : still using up my other Garnier whitening cream for my travel moisturizer

> Read the review of Garnier Light Whitening Serum Cream here

Orlane Extreme Line-Reducing Lip Care

I already put a sample size of this product on one of my previous Empties post and I have written a mini review about it too. I got a couple of these from the beauty box subscriptions a while ago. Overall it's not my favorite lip care because the texture is a bit thick and I also don't like how it feels on my lips.

> Will Not Repurchase

> Replacement : Still trying to use up my Eos Strawberry Lip Shere Balm

NYX The Blue "Smile Brightener"  Lipgloss

OMG this is soooo freaking old ! From time to time I always accidentally stumbled to find an old product here and there that I no longer used, and this one is definitely from the past, LOL. I decided to just throw this away because it's been so old and I think NYX doesn't make these anymore (so that's how old it is, Lol).

> Will Not Repurchase

> Replacement : currently using Maybelline Baby Lips in berry crush for my daily lipbalm

GAP Night Fall Shower Gel

I loved how this bottle look on my bathroom sill when it was still full. It just looks elegant and for many months I just left it standing there without using it because it just look so good with my bathroom decor :) But then I decided to open it up because I don't want it to be expired before I had the chance to use it. The scent is quite on the heavy side so I usually use this for my night shower because it would be too "heavy" for morning use. It's elegant, sensual, yet warm and inviting at the same time.

> Replacement : currently using The Body Shop Fijian Water Lotus Shower Gel & Juara Tiare Jasmine Tea Bath / Shower Gel in my bathroom right now

Bath & Body Works Twilight Woods Fragrance Mist

One of my favorite body spray this BBW fragrance mist is my travel body spray because of it's medium size bottle. I love the scent of this one. It's kinda sweet but musky at the same time. I'd say it smells like a "cool minty flower on branches of trees" :) 

> Will def Repurchase

> Replacement : right now I'm using BBW Coconut Lime Breeze Fragrance Mist to replace this as my travel body mist

The Body Shop Mango Shower Gel

I had a couple of these mini TBS shower gels that I used for my traveling and stay-over, and this is one of the last bottles that I have on stock. I really like the mango scent from TBS because it smells like a fresh mango fruit! Especially lovely for the hot weather like Jakarta :)

> Will Repurchase

> Replacement : right now still trying to use up my Cottage Caramel mini shower gel as my travel shower gel

Lancome La Vie est Belle Shower Gel

Also one of my favorite scent, this La Vie est Belle perfumed shower gel from Lancome came with a matching body lotion. I've used up the shower gel but still has a little bit of the body lotion left. The scent is one of those "expensive" type of scents ;) It's sweet, elegant, sexy, feminine, and "exclusive" at the same time. 'Nuff said.

> Recommended & will repurchase it in eau de perfume edition because I love collecting perfumes too ;)

S H E E T M A S K S

No:Hj Aqua Soothing Pack Sheet Mask

I have written about this Korean brand sheet mask before (read the review on the link below), and I've also used up a couple of these on my last empties post. I got a pack of them so currently I still have just a few of these sheet masks left so you will probably see this mask again on future empties post ;)

> Read the review  of No:Hj Aqua Soothing Sheet Mask here

Japanese Hyaluronic + Lithospermum Sheet Mask

I got this mask from Japan and it has no english name on it so I'm not sure what the brand is. But this mask is really nice and I love using it. I have made a review about this mask a few posts back, you can read about it via the link below.

> Recommended

> Read the review of this Japanese sheet mask here

The Face Shop Hyaluronic Acid Sheet Mask 

I haven't made a proper review on this one (but I plan to, I promise!) despite my dislike to this particular mask. It has lots of essence so it's gonna drip while you're wearing it so I don't suggest you walk around when you're using this mask on your face. It does keep my skin hydrated and moisturized but I just don't like how it drips so much and I also don't really fond of the strong perfume scent.

> Will Not Repurchase

> Review : Soon!

M I S C E L L A N E O U S

Bath & Body Works Cranberry Tangerine Hand Soap

I have mentioned before in this blog about my love of luxury hand soaps. I love using nice hand soaps because I washed my hands literally 8-10 times a day, so I need a handsoap that would make me happy every time I wash my hands :) This Cranberry Tangerine scent from the BBW Kitchen hand soap collection is one of those really nice fresh and uplifting fruity scent that would go perfect in the kitchen to mask that smell of food once you're done cooking and washing dishes.

> Recommended & Will Repurchase

> Replacement : right now I'm using BBW Peach Bellini Foaming Hand Soap as replacement in the kitchen sink

Bath & Body Works Twilight Woods Deep Cleansing Hand Soap

This was my hand soap for the bathroom sink. I finished both the kitchen sink and bathroom sink hand soaps at the same time. This is the exact same scent as the travel size body spray I mentioned above. The Twilight Woods is obviously one of my favorite BBW scent considering I have two products with the exact same scent without even realizing it (^o^).

> Recommended & Will Repurchase

> Replacement : right now I'm using BBW Winter Candy Apple Deep Cleansing Hand Soap for my bathroom sink

Colonial Candle in Winter Woods

Okay, this wasn't supposed to be in this post. I don't know how this candle got in my current empties bin because this was already on my last empties post. Maybe it got left inside the bin accidentally when I threw the rest of previous empties lot to the garbage, so that might be the reason why I end up with this empty candle once again in my current empties bin. But you can read about it on my previous empties post here.

Juicy Couture Perfumed Body Lotion (travel size) 

Just like the matching Lancome La Vie est Belle Perfumed Shower Gel & Body Lotion set above, this Juicy Couture one also came with it's matching travel size mini perfume bottle which I still have in my vanity because I refuse to finish it up because the tiny bottle just looks so cute (^o^). What I love about perfumed body lotion is they usually smells 2-3 times stronger than a regular body lotion, and they have the same scent as their perfume version so when you wear them together it would just escalate the scent-throw even more. Perfumes alone usually wouldn't last long on me so sometimes I have to amp up by adding their body lotion version :)

> Will Repurchase this in the future as I really like the scent of both the body lotion & perfume

So that's it guys...

My last empties post for November - December 2016, in which I managed to finished 8 full size products + 4 travel size products + 3 sheet masks = a total of 15 products ! Not bad for two months, eh?

Read my previous Empties post HERE.

Saat siang hari, terik matahari beresiko membuat kulit tubuh kita terbakar yang pada akhirnya bisa membuat kulit kusam dan kering akibat paparan sinar Ultra Violet (UV). Bukan hanya matahari saja, saat memasuki musim dingin, kulit pun juga beresiko menjadi kering. Jangan biarkan kulit kita kering, selain bisa mengurangi penampilan, kulit kering juga bisa membuat kusam seperti tak terawat. Sebelum hal itu terjadi, yuk perangi kulit kering dengan beberapa kiat berikut ini agar kulit tetap sehat disegala cuaca :


1. Pilih Produk Kecantikan yang Mengandung Bahan Pelembab 

Sama halnya dengan rambut yang membutuhkan shampoo agar tetap berkilau, kulit juga membutuhkan beberapa produk kecantikan untuk merawatnya. Pastikan produk kecantikan kamu sudah dilengapi dengan pelembab, bukan mengandung alkohol atau waterbased. Kedua kandungan ini tidak akan melembabkan kulitmu. Jika kamu tidak punya produk kecantikan yang bisa melembabkan kulit, ada cara lain yang bisa kamu tempuh yakni menggunakan obat perawatan kulit kering yang aman digunakan untuk semua jenis kulit. Di MatahariMall kamu bisa mendapatkan produk perawatan kulit untuk wajah yang kering. Tak perlu khawatir karena produk yang ada diMatahariMall aman dan pastinya bisa membuat semua komedo dan jerawat mu hilang seketika.


2. Gunakan Cream Based Moisturizer yang dilengkapi dengan UV Protection 

Jangan hanya mengandalkan pelembab saja, kulit yang dibiarkan kering akan membuat kita cepat terlihat menua, Cegah dengan memakai cream based moisturizer yang sudah mengandung UV Protection. Produk perawatan kulit ini tidak hanya mencegah kulit menjadi kering, namun bisa mempelambat penuaan. 

3. Lakukan Eksfoliasi setiap minggu 

Meskipun sudah memakai perawatan wajah, kamu juga barus tetap mengimbanginya dengan melakukan eksfoliasi setiap minggunya. Lakukan scrubbing untuk mengangkat kulit mati. Pasalnya banyak moisturizer yang berbasis minyak yang menempel di wajah sehingga berpotensi untuk membuat kulit berjerawat.


4. Konsumsi Makanan Yang Mengandung Omega 3 Dan Vitamin E 

Kalau sudah melakukan perawatan tapi hasilnya tidak terlalu signifikan itu artinya kamu harus dua kali kerja keras untuk bisa mencegah kulit kering. Caranya mudah, kamu hanya perlu mengonsumsi makanan yang mengandung Omega 3 dan Vitamin E sehingga bisa mempertahankan kelembutan kulitmu. Makanan yang mengandung Omega 3 dan Vitamin E bisa kamu dapatkan dari ikan, kacang-kacangan dan minyak zaitun.



Meski ada janji di siang hari, kamu tidak perlu cemas lagi takut kulit menjadi kering dan kusam. Lakukan keempat kiat di atas agar kulitmu tetap sehat dan lembab setiap saat :)