Sunday, April 15, 2012

I got a Blogger Appreciation Award!

RULES FOR THE BLOGGER APPRECIATION AWARD

1. Thank the person who gave you the award with their blog link on your post.
2. Answer the following questions (down below...)
3. Award the Blogger Appreciation Award to as many reader/commenter/supporters/followers as you'd like.
4. Let the blogger know that you've just awarded them, either through comment, email, tweet.


Hi lovely readers! I am glad to tell all of you that Julia of Jewelsofbeauty (click on the link to open her page) has awarded me and 2 other lovely bloggers the Blogger Appreciation Award. I really feel that my blog is appreciated by people and the thought of all my readers reading the thoughts and ideas that I put in my blog gives me so much happiness and keeps me going. Thank you Julia!

Julia (@_JuliaChiara) is a dreamer and she inspires people by using her talent and showing her humility and kindness to her readers. I've read a lot of her blog posts and I could tell all of you that her personality is equally beautiful as her appearance.  I love genuine and inspiring people. Oh, what else can I say other than "She is beautiful"?

So, going back to the award. Upon receiving the Blogger Appreciation Award, the awardee (the recipient) have some questions to answer:

1. How long have you been blogging?

I have been blogging since 26th September 2011. So that's about 7 months now. :)

 

2. What are 1-2 reasons you started blogging?

I started blogging because I got hooked in watching Youtube videos and reading my favourite YT makeup gurus' blogs. Their blogs were really good that I just read kept on reading them everyday, over and over. (LOL, If you would give me a quiz about their blog, I would definitely get 100% correct:). I got really inspired to create my own blog so that I could also share my passion for anything beauty and fashion related to everyone.

 

3. What types of blogs do you like to follow/read?

I usually follow/read beauty and fashion related blogs and I casually read travel/lifestyle blogs too. Artsy-type ones.

 

4. What is one thing you would like to improve on as a blogger on your blog?

As a blogger on my blog, I would like to gain more knowledge in the topics that I write about so that I could continue writing more blog posts! :)



Now, I would like to share the honour and award the Blogger Appreciation Award to the following beautiful bloggers:




Thanks once again! Much love! <3


xoxo,

Pascaley

Re: Acne history and my naked face

Hello everyone! A month from now (on May 14), the blogger world will be celebrating the "Bloggers Without Makeup Day". I have just recently watched Jen's (Jen from Frmheadtotoe) Youtube channel a video of herself without any makeup on where she talked about her acne history and because of her video, I got really inspired to blog about my own acne history and show you, my dear readers, my naked face. (I know it's still a month to go before the No makeup day but I am really in the mood to write about it now. :)

Watch her "acne history and naked face" video here.

Not edited in any sort. Just added the watermark.



I suffered from acne for about 2 years ago. Although I don't have any acne or pimple bumps right now, as you can see, I still have pimple marks and hyperpigmentations on my face. I have dark under-eye circles, sparse eyebrows, and my eyelid folds are not equal. But hey, you know what, it's really okay because no one is perfect.

For about a year ago, my forehead and cheeks was bombarded by acne. They were really big, red, and painful (physically and mentally). I could say that it really affected me so much. I spent so much money in purchasing alot of products that claimed to get rid or help fight acne and I can assure you that I did try heaps of products but none of them really helped. Back then, I didn't have the courage to go out of the house without putting on makeup and I felt really conscious when people stare at my face as if they were counting how many zits I have. And like Jen, and most of the people who are suffering or who did suffer from acne, I was also that girl in my family who everyone talks to and has been told some recommendations of soaps to use and remedies ... *sigh*...

So, I really feel for those who have suffered or who are still battling acne now. I know how you all feel because I have experienced it myself. It was a really bad experience. But you know what, acne is not an incurable disease or anything like that. It's something that can be healed. Yes, It may take heaps of time to remove all traces of it from our skin but it can be healed. 

I believe that normal otc products can help solve acne problems but I also, strongly, believe that our skin (eventhough we use the products that are specifically made for our own skin type) will still have different reactions to different products. Maybe some products work out perfectly for some people while to other people it does help but with very minimal results.

The most read blog post here in my blog is my post about the Proactiv Solution. I don't write things just for the sake of writing but I write them with my true view about the topic. I used about 2 sets of Proactiv and I thought that it was really helping me. I saw my face lost some pimples but some of them still kept coming back. But anyhow, I thought that Proactiv really helped my skin. Throughout the time I was using the product, I kinda felt that If I missed a day or two of using it I would have new pimples growing on my face and that my face became more sensitive to the weather (ie. cold wind in winter) and to other skin products (ie. cetaphil, sunscreen). And after a year of using it, my face was still the same -- greasy, have active acne, and sensitive. So, maybe my skin isn't just as compatible to Proactiv as other people who swore by it.

One thing that really helped me in getting rid of acne was visiting a dermatologist. She gave me some vitamin prescriptions and did a couple of facial procedures to my face and I saw immediate results. I could say that going to a specialist really gives more chance in really getting rid of the acne because the specialist will know what to recommend to you by the information that you give them (ie. your lifestyle information: food that you eat, sleep time, habits, activities, etc.) rather than using otc products that you don't really know if it will work. And your lifestyle also affects in the healing process. Even if you take medications given by your dermatologist but you don't change your lifestyle, the acne may come back.

So yeah, I would like to reiterate that nobody is perfect. One person may seem to have a very perfect skin but we never know that person is also having an issue about something else, right? Not every model that we see online, on TV, or in magazines are all perfect. Accepting all my flaws made me the person that I am right now. I'm not saying that having acne for 2 years was not a painful experience, but people who loves you will accept you and love you for who you are. "Makeup does wonders but it is not a mask to conceal all your flaws, it should be used to accentuate your own beauty". If you become more comfortable with your skin, you will be happier and become a stronger and more confident person. There is always a solution for, almost, anything -- especially for acne. 


Every person, living creature, in this world is beautiful in their own shapes and sizes.



Thank you for following my blog and I hope you have enjoyed reading this post! :)



Lots of love,

Pascaley

Thursday, April 12, 2012

100 Ways to keep yourself happy

Hi guys! My Easter holiday is nearing its end. After the one week Easter break, it will be followed by a few weeks full of hectic and busy days. They're the weeks that I'd like to call, the "Assessment weeks". 

Anyways, I am writing this blog post of some "ways to keep yourself happy" because normal people, like me and all of you, just have to stop for a while, reflect, and think of the stuff that keeps you going. Sometimes, people just get tired of doing their everyday routine or maybe get too much stress from doing loads of work. 

We don't have to burden ourselves in making everything so perfect (ofcourse, unless you're an OC cleaning freak like me) to always be on the top. Sure, you do want to be on the top. But, for you to be happy, make sure that you enjoy the view all the way up. As one wise man have said that before calling a person beautiful, you have to see them ugly first. (Okay, what am I saying?)

I'm pretty sure I got all of the following from an internet page long time ago. I wrote them down on my diary so that I could peek and read them once in a while.

*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*

100 WAYS TO KEEP YOURSELF HAPPY


1. Never put yourself last.
2. When you extend a helping hand to one person, be careful not to kick someone else in the teeth.
3. Always own a pair of old, faded jeans.
4. Count your blessings everyday.
5. Acknowledge your success along with your downfalls.
6. Burn the candle that has been in storage for the past years.
7. Strive for progress, not perfection.
8. Remember, the voice telling you that you cannot do something is always lying.
9. Atleast once a day sit and do nothing.
10. Don't close your heart so tightly against life's pain that you shut out life's blessings.
11. Celebrate all your birthdays no matter how old you get.
12. Examine your life for limitations and ask yourself why you put them there.
13. Plant a tree, pull the weeds or get your hands dirty.
14. Diminish your wants, instead of increasing your needs.
15. Cry when you feel like it.
16. Rejoice in other people's triumphs.
17. Don't wait for someone else to laugh or express joy.
18. Forgive yourself for any mistake you make, no matter how big or small.
19. Keep good company.
20. Never take a pill for a pain you need to feel.
21. Use your enthusiasm to put yourself in forward gear and give yourself a spark to move ahead.
22. Look in the eyes of the ones you love when you are talking to them.
23. Remember that one is a whole number.
24. Walk in a summer rain, shower without an umbrella.
25. Do a kind deed for someone else.
26. Keep your eyes and ears open to get the messages you need from people and events in your daily life.
27. Be patient.
28. Eat something green.
29. Change what you can and leave the rest alone.
30. Walk hand in hand with truth.
31. Make laughter and joy a greater part of your life than anger and grief.
32. Embrace solitude instead of running from it.
33. Be zealous, not jealous.
34. Forgive anyone you've been holding a grudge against.
35. Slow down and enjoy the present.
36. Walk in others' shoes before judging the,.
37. Send yourself a kind message.
38. Remind yourself that the company you keep is a reflection of what you think of yourself.
39. Go on a picnic.
40. Accept your fears, no matter how crazy they seem.
41. Don't let other people's opinions shape who you are.
42. Say a prayer.
43. Never attribute your accomplishments to luck or chance.
44. Know when to say "no".
45. Look at the positive side of a negative situation.
46. Remember that you are a spiritual being in a physical body.
47. Avoid seeking out other people for constant approval because it makes them the master and you the slave.
48. Go fly a kite.
49. Avoid the fads and band wagons.
50. Accept the things you cannot change.
51. Look inside instead of outside for answers to life's problems.
52. Remember that all feelings are okay.
53. Shield yourself from bad influences.
54. Stand up for what you believe in.
55. Respect the wishes of others when they say "no". 
56. Seize every moment and live it fully.
57. Give away or sell anything you haven't used for the past five years.
58. Never downgrade yourself.
59. Take responsibility for what you think, feel, and do.
60. Pamper yourself.
61. Never say or do anything abusive to a child.
62. Let yourself be God powered instead of flying solo.
63. Volunteer to help someone in need.
64. Refrain from overindulging in food, drink, and work.
65. Finish unfinished business.
66. Be spontaneous.
67. find a constructive outlet for your anger.
68. Think about abundance instead of lack because whatever you think expands.
69. Think of yourself as a survivor, not a victim.
70. Cuddle an animal.
71. Be open to life.
72. See success as something you already have, not something you must attain.
73. Experience the splendor and awe of a sunset.
74. When you score a base hit, don't wish it were a home run.
75. Learn to be in the present moment.
76. Instead of believing in miracles, depend on them.
77. Take a child to a circus.
78. Change your attitude and your whole life will change.
79. Never turn your power over to another person.
80. When your heart is at odds with your head, follow your heart.
81. Always remember, the past is gone forever and the future never comes.
82. Live your life according to what is right for you.
83. Acknowledge your imperfections.
84. Plant a tree and watch it grow.
85. See "friend" instead of "enemy" on the face of strangers.
86. Watch an army of ants build their houses and cities and carry food ten times their weight.
87. Believe in something bigger than yourself.
88. Let the playful child within you come out.
89. Make haste slowly.
90. Work through your problems step by step and one day at a time.
91. Accept compliments from others so you can see the truth about yourself.
92. Sit on the lawn without worrying about grass stains.
93. Don't condemn yourself for your imperfections.
94. Do a humility check periodically by loving the truth about yourself.
95. Tell someone you appreciate them.
96. Never live your life according to what is right for someone else.
97. Admit your wrong doing and forgive yourself for it.
98. Talk less and listen more.
99. Thrive on inner peace instead of on crises. 
100. Affirm all good things about yourself.

(credits to the original owner)


Stay happy lovelies,

Pascaley

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Australis and Face of Australia

Hi guys! I went to Priceline the other day and I took a snapshot of a couple of Australian cosmetics brands: Australis, and Face of Australia.

Taken at Priceline (Westfield Pitt St. Mall)

Taken at Priceline (Westfield Pitt St. Mall)

I haven't really bought a lot from these brands but I did buy a couple from Australis, an eyeliner pencil which I used as an eyebrow liner, and a lipstick. The quality is not as bad as what I thought but the cosmetics dried out quickly. So, they don't really last long. But they're very cheap so you can just repurchase anytime if you like. Who needs to keep a single eyeliner pen for 2 years anyway?

These are just 2 of the many Australian cosmetic brands. Will show you all more of them in time! :)

Enjoy your weekend!

PS: Priceline is a really nice place to find drugstore items (cosmetics, perfume, hygiene products......etc.), they do a lot of sales and give discounts especially when there's a holiday coming up.


xx,
Pascaley