Hey guys! In my last post, I mentioned having a life-changing event which is one of the reasons why I missed updating my blog in the past couple of months. You might be wondering what it was but I guess seeing the image above already gave you an idea. Yes, I got married to my fiance of 5 years on December 6, 2014 at Fernwood Gardens. 

This lovely creation was by Global Invitations and I really love the way it turned out. I wasn't expecting it to be so intricate yet simple and classic.

We stayed at Luxent Hotel, a fairly new establishment in Timog Avenue, Quezon City. Luckily, we got hold of the Luxent Suite which includes this expansive living room, a dining area, kitchen and mini bar. 

Living Room

They have such lovely decorations that I can't help but take pictures. 

Dining, Kitchen, Mini Bar, Powder Room

The Luxent Suite also has 2 master's bedrooms, each having a vanity area, office space and private bath. 

Master's Bedroom #1's Private Bath

Master's Bedroom #2

Master's Bedroom #2's Office Space

Master's Bedroom #2's Private Bath

Oh did I mention the outdoor jacuzzi? Just what every stressed individual needs before a big event. 

Here's a view of the city at night from the living room and below is how things look like on a good day.

My wedding gown and mothers' gowns were created by Edward Teng who took the time to swing by the hotel the night before. This guy is really a professional, so friendly and accommodating to all his clients. I will be doing a tell-all about how we came down to the final design of my wedding gown really soon. 

The gowns included several accessories for the ceremony like the veil, cord, arrhae, ring/bible pillows and a very lovely pouch. 

The morning of our wedding, my mom, brother and best friend had a few minutes to lounge around. You might be thinking how on earth did we manage to look so unstressed. Well, we just allowed the day to pass and went ahead with the flow. 

The first ones to arrive were Edward Teng's crew and they immediately went down to business and unboxed my dress. By the way, I was strictly told not to open the box the evening before so I only got to see my wedding gown in the morning. 

So that's what gowns hide underneath. No wonder they stay fluffy the entire time. 

I was already having my makeup done when the crew finished putting my gown on the body form. I can't remember who took this shot but good thing it was on my phone. This awesome creation and craftsmanship never fails to make me gasp. 

My lovely friends and family who stood by me through it all look so gorgeous don't you think?

My equally fabulous "ninangs" also stole glances with their beautiful aura. 

I would love to share more pictures of us with our families but my phone only have these shots. I'm guessing the battery went dead early but I'm still very thankful the one holding my phone took the liberty to capture every moment. 

If you're planning your own wedding and you want to ask anything about preparations, I might be able to help so just comment down below and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Thank you so much for reading my post and have an awesome weekend!

♥♥♥

KIEHL'S: Midnight Recovery Concentrate

Hey guys! I hope you miss reading my posts as much as I miss doing reviews at my usual pace. I recently started a new chapter of my life and got so hooked that my blogging days were put aside temporarily. Anyway, this post is all about a skin care regimen I started sometime November of last year. I've been reading great reviews about Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate that I decided to save up for it. Good thing Kiehl's Holiday Collection went out a bit early so I had the chance to grab one that included both the serum and under eye concentrate. 

The Midnight Recovery Concentrate is housed in a 30 ml glass bottle with a screw-on cap which also  doubles as a dropper for dispensing the product.

The dropper looks really fancy being made of clear glass making it easier to see right through and know how much product you're dispensing. 

This is a clear serum that has the consistency of oil but thinner. It has a distinct herbal and subtle menthol scent that's quite soothing yet doesn't linger. The label says to use 2 to 3 drops to cover your face so I apply a drop each on my forehead, cheeks and chin. It may appear and feel a bit greasy on application but it gets easily absorbed by the skin leaving it supple to touch. I love waking up to a healthy-looking skin the next day. I also noticed how this night ritual kept my skin looking refreshed and hydrated. It has totally improved the overall condition of my skin in 2 weeks of continued use.

The Midnight Recovery Eye comes in this 15 ml tube. 

It has a tapered nozzle that works so well in dispensing just the right amount of product.

This eye concentrate is opaque white in color and shares the same scent as the serum. It applies smoothly on your skin and gets absorbed after a while. It's lightweight and gentle on your under eye area that you won't feel a sting. The Kiehl's sales rep suggested to put just a tiny bit (half a grain of rice) on each area so this tube will definitely last. I love having to wake up with less puffiness. Though I haven't seen significant results with regards to reduction of fine wrinkles, I love that it somehow made my under eyes look lighter after a month's use.

Overall, I love both products that I intend to make them part of my night ritual. I recommend it to everyone who wants to improve their current skin condition especially those who want to delay signs of aging like dryness. You may get these wonder products from all Kiehl's branches nationwide. 

Any thoughts on these products? Do share them on the comments section below. Thank you for visiting and have a great week ahead!

New Year: Gifts of Beauty

Image courtesy of fun2smiles.com

Hey guys! How's your new year so far? I hope you had a wonderful vacation with your loved ones the way I did. There's something about holidays that makes us all feel thankful for the year that passed and feel hopeful for the next. This is exactly what sets the new year apart from all other occasions in the calendar. The delightful feeling of gratitude for all the experiences brought by the previous year and that feeling of excitement over starting another year with a clean slate can really jump start your day.

Speaking of being thankful, I would like to make a shout out to all my loved ones who generously imparted their blessings. I would very much like to feature every single gift I received but I narrowed them down to skin care and make up for the benefit of my kikay readers like you. I'll be mentioning the items in the order of when I received them. 

Michelle Phan Make Up: Your Life Guide to Beauty, Style and Success -- Online and Off is my very first beauty related book. This was a Christmas gift from my loving husband who back in December was still my fiance. 

Michelle Phan is a beauty guru who became a YouTube sensation for her make up tutorials. She has come a long way since she started making videos in 2007. Apart from having written her own book, Michelle currently has a make up line called em and a beauty subscription box named ipsy. I've always wanted to have a beauty related book and getting Michelle's for Christmas is really a treat! 

I've been a skin care advocate since the day my pimples got out of hand in my teen age years. I tried almost everything just to keep my break outs manageable and one of my most trusted brands is Clinique. Receiving the 3-step skin care system in full and travel sizes plus freebies of their cosmetics is a dream come true! Kisses to my loving husband for spoiling me this Christmas. 

I'm not so much adventurous when it comes to fragrance and I often stick to one scent. Good thing my cousin gave me something new to try from United Colors of Benetton Let's Love for women. It has a fruity floral scent that lingers decently.

Another thing I always fail to do is use a face mask. It's something that I wish I could do more often to pamper my skin. Thanks to a good friend, I can try one that contains collagen from Etude House. 

I'm excited about this gift from a friend, Tony Moly tony tint. I'm not fond of using tints because I find them hard and quite tricky to blend. Despite that, I'm still looking forward to giving this a try and probably I can make it work this time.

I love a good hand wash by my sink and this Bath & Body Works gentle foaming hand soap in Warm Vanilla Sugar given by a friend came just in time to replace my old one. 

Last but not the least is a gift I got from our annual gift giving, the original beauty blender. I've been meaning to get one but the hefty tag that comes with such a tiny and simple tool kept me from buying. I remember having second thoughts every time I go to Purebeauty. Good thing I thought of putting it on my wish list. Thank you to my mommy!

That's about it. I feel so blessed being given these amazing gifts. I'll be posting separate reviews on some of them soon. Thank you for taking the time to read my post and have a great day!

♥♥♥