Friday, December 30, 2011

Favorites of 2011


My favorites of 2011

I've been enjoying the 2011 lists that various bloggers have posted, so I thought I'd contribute my own.

The products mentioned here are not necessarily products new to 2011, they are just the products that I loved the most this year.

* Shiseido Shimmering Eye Colors
http://www.shiseido.com/shimmering-cream-eye-color/9990000000076,default,pd.html
http://www.jp.shiseido.com/sc/product/view.asp?S=10786

I have BR709 Sable and SV810 Tin. I hope to get BK912 Caviar next, but OR313 Sunshower is looking lovely too!

This is my favorite new product of 2011. The texture is delightful - silky and light, and it's pretty easy to layer. Lovely pigment and a bit of sparkle but nothing over the top. I find Sable wonderfully subtle for work. It wears all day; I haven't had a problem with creasing but I think there'd be an issue if you pack too much on at once. I haven't had an issue with layering if I let each layer dry properly.
This product is a delight to use and there are so many unique colors in the line! It's a bit expensive - in Japan they charge 3150 yen per 6 g. But it's totally worth it - even better if you can buy it in Taiwan or the U.S. where the cost is a bit more reasonable. I don't know if I'll be able to use a pot up ever, but I hope to collect more of these colors.
The packaging is sleek and easy to use too.

* Kate Supersharp Liner in Brown has been the same reliable mainstay for me this year. I've been using this one liner for at least 2 years now, and it's still going strong! The silver paint has come off so it looks a little sad, but what a workhorse! I've already bought one in Black but haven't needed to use it. Kate is available for 30% off in some Japanese drugstores.

* I rediscovered Beaute de Kose Rouge Fantasist Aqua Vinyl Plump Shine Lip Color - BE366 is a great beige-rose color with tiny gold shimmer that looks polished and professional. The slightly thick formula is really comfortable especially during the dry winter.

* I'm quite impressed by Banila co banila Kiss lip jelly gloss - pigmented, with a light, comfortable texture.

* My Inoui ID eyebrow liner is still going strong! The perfect color, texture, and lasting power.

* Feather Flamingo eyebrow shaver - works great and easy to use. I haven't needed to buy new ones this year.

* I really like the Crest cross-action toothbrushes - soft and really get inbetween my teeth.


My least favorites of 2011

* In contrast, I'm debating whether to just toss my MAC paintpot - the texture is hard and the shade is frosty and I can't apply it smoothly for the life of me. Should I just throw it out?

* Also, my MAC penultimate Eye Liner is just not working - it smudges even when I set with eyeshadow, unless I apply it very very lightly. I will say that it's very pigmented and black, but who needs liquid eyeliner that smudges?

* The MAC concealer isn't working either - it's just not enough coverage for my undereye shadows. The packaging isn't very good either - the base of the applicator is always collecting lots of liquid - annoying.

So far the only MAC product that I would repurchase is the beauty powder - it doesn't show up at all in my swatch, but it's a perfect, subtle blush on me. So natural all the time!

* Missha BB creams make my skin feel a bit itchy

* Opera MyLash disappointed me by going dry, but I'm sure a new tube of mascara will fix this problem. First I'm going to try the other exciting mascaras out there to see how they fare.

Thursday, December 29, 2011

銭湯:寿湯

http://www.city.meguro.tokyo.jp/shisetsu/shisetsu/koshuyokujo/kotobuki/index.html

目黒区上目黒

料金:450円

お風呂は42度Cで、マッサージジェットがついているお風呂2つあります。とても気持ちよかったです。
そこそこ人気みたいです。行った日には6-7人ほど女性側にいました。

年末年始の営業に関して、1/1と1/2は休業です。

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

銭湯:大黒湯

目黒区上目黒

料金:450円

お風呂は44度Cで、私にとって暑いです。
フロントの方たちはとても暖かい挨拶で歓迎します。

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Annie's island fresh burgers

By the way, I give Annie's Island Fresh Burgers a thumbs uhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifp.
The fries are awesome and the cookies are delish. Burgers are pretty good too, heh.

Thursday, December 08, 2011

missha bb creams

Missha bb creams are nice but they all seem to irritate my skin a bit - it gets a bit itchy when I wear them. A pity, as I had a nice little sampler set of the creams.

Givenchy's Radically No Surgetics (what is this English?) Age-Defying & Perfecting Foundation also had the same issue. #2 was a bit pale for me anyway.

Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Tiger Mom and the shallowness of American reporting

Yet another article on Asian Americans and education invokes Tiger Mom in an ostensibly unrelated topic; the article mostly discusses http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifthe choices of various college applicants of partial Asian descent when faced with the "Ethnicity" application question.

"Grades and SAT scores = effort therefore Americans are lazy!"

It annoys me that the article doesn't raise any detailed discussion, but rather just repeats applicants' opinions and snappy quotes from Tiger Mom and and leaves it at that.

The Time article linked above does a bit more analysis. But it annoys me that "Tiger Mom" Amy Chua has become the one and only voice on the topic; I suppose it's better than before her book and feature - before Asian Americans were hardly even a topic, despite all the valiant efforts of organizations such as the 80-20 initiative to raise the profile of Asian American issues.

Also, why does no one talk about the utility of these standardized tests? Test scores are not a full evaluation of any educational system, they're just a single marker in a 3-D system. We know that they're not intelligence tests; there are better ways of measuring ability.

Saturday, December 03, 2011

Addiction lipstick 006S Day Trip swatch


A swatch for you. It's quite natural-looking; not exciting but it's flattering and has enough slip and pigment to be easy to wear for me.
It's not frosty at all - that's just the shine of the formula.