[Tutorial Preview] Natural Holiday vs. Dramatic Holiday :)

I created two make-up tutorials:

one which is more natural

and another which is more dramatic :)

stay tuned for the review tomorrow!

xoxo

cynthia

[Weight Loss Story] How much I Lost So Far...

I'm having my final exams and essays, so I'll write this real quick (and I'll start writing my weight loss story again). I still exercised and ate as little as possible though... And, as I confessed, I started out at 70kg (154pounds...ish) a week ago (or so). 

And... I'm at 66kg (148~149pounds) :D haha I'm so happy to see some progress!
I hope everyone feels motivated to start working out!




xoxo
cynthia.

Kim Yeon Woo is the BEST

No Infringement Intended

Kim Yeon Woo (김연우) is one of the most celebrated singer in Korea.

He came back with a new album "Mr. Big". The song I posted is called "Loved You...Good Bye" (사랑했다 안녕) in direct translation. Listen to this :)... you'll fall in love with him.

xoxo

cynthia.

[Review] MAC Dazzlesphere Smokey Blue Pigments + Swatches

I finally uploaded a video on Youtube about MAC Dazzlesphere! pigments :D

I definitely sound like a robot but I hope I'll get better as the time goes by...

I know that it has been a long time since I wrote a review on products so I want to start by apologizing. 

I saw great comments on the Dazzlesphere! and I was really obsessed to get my hands on them. However, the only thing that actually attracted my attention was the Smokey Blue Ornament.

White As Snow & Silver Sleet

Winter Sky & Dark Moon

I hope these swatches and review was helpful :)

xoxo

cynthia.

[Weight Loss] Before Posting Anything About Day 5

Previous Posts on Weight Loss:
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-story-before-i-begin.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-1-meals-exercises.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-2-meals-exercises.html

http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-3-meals-exercises.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-4-meals-exercises.html


Sorry for being so long gone! 
I couldn't follow up with this meals & exercises for two days but I will come back to the routine.
I'll count today (22nd) as Day 5 and continue on with the dietary meals and exercises, so stay tuned!


xoxo
cynthia.

[Haul] MAC, NYC, Veet, Vaseline, Febreze

hey everyone, i'm writing my third post of the day (and super proud of myself)... and it's about my haul!

i went to get a new MAC Bronze since it shattered into pieces (and fell flat on the ground) and i ended up purchasing a lot of other products that i've been dying to try out : ( so here they are!

NYC smooth skin bronzing face powder in 720A Sunny

(with its useless and cheap-looking sponge...)

Rimmel Hide the Blemish Concealer in Soft Honey

MAC Club

(on the light, it looks emerald green and in the shade, it looks brown.. how cool is that?)

MAC Bronze

MAC Fix+

MAC 224 Blending Brush

MAC Dazzlesphere! Blue Ornament 

 Vaseline Cocoa Butter 

VEET Ready To Use Wax Strips For Face

  

Febreze Cinnamon Sugar & Home Candle (limited edition)

and... i guess that's...it...?

i spent about $200 and they just flew out of my hand, 

thanks to MAC... i hope you enjoyed and i'll do my reviews on them asap!

xoxo

cynthia.

[Tutorial] Taupe-Brown-Gold-Emerald Make-Up Tutorial....?

hey everyone, i want to mention that this makeup tutorial is inspired by MAC eyeshadow called 'club'.

it looks like emerald-forest green under the light but it looks deep chocolate brown when in the shade.

i don't know how to name this look but it's quite mysterious yet effortlessly beautiful.

So if you want to achieve this look, then keep reading!

1. Start by adding UD Eyeshadow Primer Potion.

2. Apply NYX 615 Slate all over your eyelid as a base colour.

3. Then take MAC Old Gold and apply it to the inner corner & the centre of your eyelid.

(Make sure to use it with a mixing medium because it really brightens up the colour of Old Gold)

  

 4. Add MAC Woodwinked on the lower corner lashline but blend it out on the middle. 

(or whatever that will give that nice gold shimmer) 

so this is the final look!

it looks emerald green and brown...

but in the light, it looks gold brown...!

or silvery brown... and yes, these shades come from the same make-up.

i swear.

so i hope you enjoyed this tutorial and want more make-up tutorials, 

please follow me on twitter or subscribe to my blog :)

xoxo

cynthia.

[Weight Loss] Day 4: Meals & Exercises

Previous Posts on Weight Loss:
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-story-before-i-begin.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-1-meals-exercises.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-2-meals-exercises.html

http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-3-meals-exercises.html

Breakfast:

    - half a bowl of spinach
   - two sirloins
   - two cherry tomatoes
   - six strawberries



Lunch:


   - a piece of toast
   - a bowl of spinach 
   - six strawberries
   - four cherry tomatoes 
   - a cup of orange blossom tea



Dinner:
   - skipped dinner because i fell asleep... (and slept 12 hrs :$)

Exercises:

   none. i lost my student card and now i can't enter our school gym :(

   i'll have to replace it with a new one......

[Weight Loss] Day 3 Meals & Exercises

Previous Posts on Weight Loss:
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-story-before-i-begin.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-1-meals-exercises.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-2-meals-exercises.html

Breakfast:
   - biobest smoothie (strawberry flavoured)
   - a piece of white bread 
   - a red apple


Lunch:
   - a piece of white bread
   - five cherry tomatoes
   - six strawberries
   - a small cup of yogurt
   - half a bowl of spinach
   - a cup of tazo orange blossom tea


Dinner:
   - two sirloin slices
   - half a bowl of spinach
   - seven blackberries


Exercises:
   - basic stretches
   - 3 sets of 30 arm-reaching crunch (http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_56045&feature=iv&src_vid=U-XWhwwJ7dw&v=UalX1Mx4XRs)
   - 3 sets of... 30 leg-lowering crunch........? Stretch out on the ground with your legs bent and pointed to the ceiling. Slowly move your legs down until the feet feel like they would be reaching the ground. come to the starting position. Repeat this process.
   - 3 sets of 60-second step acrobotics    - 3 sets of 15 triceps exercises extensions  (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhX-ph3l9K8&feature=relmfu)
   - 30 minutes of running


I hope this was helpful and sorry for the late post :(
the next posts will follow with pictures so stay tuned!


xoxo
cynthia.

[Weight Loss] DAY 2: Meals & Exercises

Previous Post on Weight Loss:
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-story-before-i-begin.html
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-day-1-meals-exercises.html

Breakfast (11:00)
   -  coffee (black)
   - a banana 


Lunch (2:00)
   - six spoons of veggie pasta salad
   - tazo orange blossom tea
   - water 


Dinner (6:00)
   - a bowl of spinach and lettuce with five cherry tomatoes
   - a grilled chicken breast
   - tazo orange blossom tea
   - tall ice americano 


I'm pretty busy especially in the morning, so I was barely available to have a banana with a cup of coffee. Make sure you don't skip a meal! ....and I was outside for the whole time and the healthiest thing  available was veggie pasta salad so I really had a minimum amount that would keep me full. 


I couldn't take pictures of these but I will try to have all of the photos taken in the future.


Exercises
   - Stretches
   - 5 minutes of running 
   - 3 sets of 30 arm-reaching crunch (http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_56045&feature=iv&src_vid=U-XWhwwJ7dw&v=UalX1Mx4XRs)
   - 3 sets of... 30 leg-lowering crunch........? Stretch out on the ground with your legs bent and pointed to the ceiling. Slowly move your legs down until the feet feel like they would be reaching the ground. come to the starting position. Repeat this process. 
   - 3 sets of 10 push-ups
   - 3 sets of 10 squats 
   - 3 sets of 15 triceps exercises extensions  (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhX-ph3l9K8&feature=relmfu)
   - 30 minutes of running 


And that's it! Thank you for tuning in and I'll see you tomorrow :D


xoxo
cynthia.

[Weight Loss] DAY 1: Meals & Exercises

Previous Post on Weight Loss:
http://benefitter.blogspot.com/2011/11/weight-loss-story-before-i-begin.html


Breakfast (9:00)
   - four cherry tomatoes
   - half a bowl of spinach (didn't finish it)
   - one-third of a green apple
   - three spoons of soft tofu with a spoon of soy sauce diluted with water*

   - four fruit jelly 

I kept breakfast veggie-friendly and still consumed some protein by having tofu. Tofu will keep you full until the next meal. I really don't like its flavour, so I added a spoon of soy sauce diluted with water to give it some taste. Let's keep the sodium to very minimum.

Also, treat yourself if you kept up with your own dietary program, so that you can remain abstinent from consuming too much sweets at once.


Lunch (1:00)
   - 3 spoons of roasted and ground grains
   - 250mL of skim milk 
   - water 

I hate grains but roasted and ground grain is in powder form of which tastes quite sweet. It's called "me-soot-garu" in Korean and you can find it in any Korean store. You can drink it like any protein shake, preferably with milk. Then, start diluting it with water little by little once you get used to its taste. If you don't like the taste of water, keep your milk skimmed. It's very healthy and important part of the dietary program.


Dinner (5:00)
   - two chicken breasts
   - five cherry tomatoes 
   - one boiled egg
   - balsamic sauce
   - two bowls of lettuce
   - water
   - two cups of coffee


I'm pulling an all-nighter so I had to keep another portion of food (I still have one chicken breast and a bowl of lettuce still with me) in case I get hungry and eat chinese food. I'll try (and you should too, if you are following what I'm doing) to minimize the last meal of the day but I have to pull an all-nighter and I had no choice.


Because I have to pull an all-nighter, I didn't exercise today but I'll do so tomorrow :)
Wish me luck and I'll come back with the next lists of meals tomorrow!
(someone gave me a nice piece of advice saying that I should, for the first week, minimize the amount of food I'm eating and the calories I'm consuming FIRST so that my body gets a chance to get used to the changes (and start exercising the week after). I definitely agree and I'm considering it but I got my friend involved into this dietary program so I have no choice but to start exercising from tomorrow and onward.

* Drinking water is one of the most important things to do! Please drink as much as possible. 4-6 bottles of water would be the best.

xoxo
cynthia.

[Weight Loss Story] Before I Begin...

                           


Hey everyone.

From tomorrow and onward, I'll be posting something that I've been promising to myself for sooo long: my own weight loss story. I know I tried to dedicate this blog to cosmetics and cosmetics only; however, I just thought it would be interesting to share because weight has been such a huge part of my life as much as cosmetics have been. I decided to post this weight loss story here because:
1) I got tired easily and my body was becoming heavier and heavier.
2) I felt uncomfortable and found myself hiding from seeing others.
3) I wanted this weight loss story to be an inspiration for others in the future; I'm not saying I want to show off, but I just wanted to demonstrate how you can lose weight in healthy way, having to consume none of "weight loss miracle" products in the market.

It's quite private side of me to share but I will post my sizes WEEKLY so that you can actually see the progression. Daily, I'll list all the food I had for each meal and exercises I did (with exact number of hours and minutes).

Sizes
Arm: 12.5 inches (31.8cm)
Waist: 36 inches (95cm)
Bum: 39.5 inches (100.5cm)
Thigh: (L) 25 inches (64cm)
           (R) 24.5 inches (62cm)
Calf: (L) 14.6 inches (37.5cm)
        (R) 15 inches (38cm)

Weight: 154 pounds (70kg)

I'll also post pictures, so that you can see the changes progressing. Wish me luck!



* I have a Youtube account now! Subscribe :D

xoxo

cynthia.

[Tutorial] Blue Emerald Make-Up Tutorial

Hey everyone!

This one will give the impression that it has some similarities to "The Heart of Eternity" look. However, you'll realize that it's nowhere close: this would be more of the warm-tone appropriate look.

Let's Begin!

Before the pictures were taken, 

I applied MAC's Woodwinked on the inner corner all the way to the centre of the eyelid. 

(sorry these pictures were taken from some other time...)

I then applied MAC's Blue Storm on the outer corner, blending softly to the middle. 

Like other tutorials, I created a sharp wing instead of blending out the edges.

If you want more drama, blend Blue Storm with mixing medium and pack it on the other corner.

I kept it natural because I like it natural.

I just thought the look is a bit too simple and wanted to add something on top.

I therefore applied Chanel's Illusion D'ombre in 84 Epatant on the centre of the eyelid.

(If you want a review on the product, please click here)

And I also had Illusion D'ombre on the lower lid. 

This method will give you that pop on your eyes and also that innocent and teary-looking eyes.

(make sure that you don't overdo it though...!)

Finish off with Blitz and Glitz.

And... that's the end of the "Blue Emerald" tutorial :)

xoxo

cynthia.