.:: victoria’s secret ~ layers of love spell ::.

today my friend, di,  who lives in singapore mentioned that she saw victoria’s secret lotion in watsons. i wanted to show her the ones that i’ve been drooling over for a while, so i browsed their website and voila! i found three new scents in their secret garden collection ( i don’t know how new it was, since it’s been quite a while since the last time i visited victoria’s secret website, but at least it’s new to me! haha.. )

the range is called layers of love spell, and three scents are meant to be mixed, matched and layered to create our own unique version of vs’ best-selling fragrance, love spell. gasp. how cool is that?

the three new scents, soft raspberry, fresh cherry blossom, and warm coconut, come in the sweetest packaging ever. soft, delicate colors and logos dominated the packaging, and it kinda reminds me of crabtree & evelyn ( am still regretting the fact i didn’t grab one of those c&e perfumes and lotions while i could! ). i’m hooked!

these are limited edition, so i’m trying to figure out a way to grab it, fast!

forget the fact that i have at least 10 bottles of body lotions/creams. i want these!

the original love spell

soft raspberry

plays on the sweet fruitiness of Love Spell

it’s pink.

ITS PINK.

I.T.S P.I.N.K.

need i say more? the packaging is totally appealing. and i’ve always loved fruity scents. so this one is definitely interesting!

fresh cherry blossom

plays on the light floralcy of Love Spell

cherry blossom has been one of my favourite scents of all time.

and i would definitely love to find out vs’ version of cherry blossom.

warm coconut

plays on the indulgent sensuality of Love Spell

this is my least favourite one, i still can’t imagine layering a coconut-smelling lotion over my hands and legs.

but i would probably still like to try it out if i have the chance.

.:: winter candy apple ::.

semenjak gue liat limited edition BBW yang ini, mata gue langsung pink. iya lah kalo ijo mah duit jadi winter candy apple ini salah satu wangi  di edisi khusus natal. setelah berpikir keras dan menimbang-nimbang, akhirnya gue pesen juga di FD market plaza. dah menjelang akhir desember tuh, jadi cuman kebagian mini size nya aja. isinya sih dikit banget, cuma 2 oz, alias seperempat full size nya. tapi ga apa deh daripada ga kebagian hehe.. gue sukaaa wangi nya. manis banget kaya permen gitu, cocok sama namanya dari segi tekstur, keawetan dan lain-lain sih sama aja sama lotion BBW lainnya. ga lengket, dan tahan lama. saking sukanya gue sama lotion ini, jadi sayang dipake hehe.. abisan kecil banget sih, ntar cepet abis kan sayang. hehe.. tapi ukurannya yang mini ini jadi cocok buat travelling or dibawa-bawa di tas. sayangnya, begitu gue dah beli, ketemu orang lain yang jual dengan harga jauh lebih murah. huhuhu.. telaaat…

.:: more body shop haul ::.

baru pake raspberry dua kali, dah diracun lagi sama diana… ada koleksi baru di SG : wild cherry. duh.. pengen!

.:: the return of oceanus ::.

waa.. oceanus beneran balik *pinch self* kemaren-kemaren masi sangsi karena blom liat langsung, dan hari ini kebetulan jalan-jalan sama miss o, pastinya tujuan utama gue ya toko the body shop. dan yang pertama gue cari tentu saja oceanus.. karena gue cinta mati sama range ini. dulu pas masi kuliah sempet abis beberapa botol EDT nya.. padahal jarang banget gue beli parfum berulang-ulang! sayangnya, range oceanus yang sekarang ini ga terlalu lengkap. contohnya EDT nya ga ada yang ukuran besar, tapi cuma ada ukuran 30 ml seharga 149k. yah, demi mengenang masa lalu, jadi gue beli deh mumpung diskon 15%, walaupun kecewa juga ga bisa nyetok ukuran gede nya. hehe.. ga lupa gue juga sms cinde onde, soalnya dia dah titip mau EDT nya juga yang ukuran gede. tapi cinde ga jadi karena ga mau yang kecil ( emang gatelan pake yang ukuran kecil ya cin? hehe.. ) selain itu body lotion dan shower gel nya, cuma ada 1 ukuran. 400 ml! gila mau diminum kali ye… kapan abisnye kalo segede gitu.. hehe.. jadi bener-bener ga ada minat beli itu selain itu juga ada body mist nya, kalo ga salah 109k. ga minat juga, mending EDT nya kemana-mana.

trus lanjut sama range raspberry yang juga sama-sama baru “terbit”. ada body puree, body butter, body scrub, n shower gel. gue cobain body puree nya di lengan gue. kesan pertama, ringan banget dan keliatannya ga bakal tahan lama. gue jadi ga terlalu minat. ternyata pas dah di mobil dan sampe rumah, wangi nya malah makin kecium. enak banget deh wangi nya.. hiks.. jadi kepikiran, mumpung masi diskon kan? haha..

selanjutnya japanese cherry blossom yang ditunggu-tunggu. di deket kasir, dah dipajang tester nya. walaupun belum boleh dijual. ada body butter, EDT, body puree, dan shower gel. kayanya reed diffusernya ga keluar disini? atau mungkin sekedar belum dipajang aja yang paling bikin gue nyaris melonjak kegirangan yaitu harganya. ga ada label harga sih di testernya, tapi berdasarkan info dari SA nya, body puree nya 139k dan EDT nya 229k. not so bad, eh? seneng juga, karena gue kira bakal jauh di atas itu harganya. hehe.. sayangnya, kata SA nya juga, yang diskon nanti EDT nya aja trus ada paket-paket gitu aja. moga-moga dia salah info ya. tadi si keliatannya dia ga terlalu yakin jawabnya.

karena si miss o mau beli moroccan rose, jadi gue “dipaksa” beli satu barang lain, soalnya diskon 20% all product cuma berlaku kalo beli 2 produk. bimbang deh, karena banyak banget yang pengen dicoba! pengen ini, pengen itu. akhirnya settle di tea tree oil aja, yang jelas-jelas keabisan

abis itu buru-buru kabur seribu langkah sebelum tergiur lain-lainnya ( terutama sih vit c micro refiner nya, lagi 25% ).

pulang, diceritain diana yang baru aja dari warehouse sale TBS di sing. ampyun.. mending jangan disebut deh detail harganya disini. sakit hati banget saking irinya hahaha… bener-bener sedikitnya diskon 50% aje.. salah satunya vit c skin boost nya kira-kira jadi 120k ( kurs 8000 ), separo harga disini! huhuhu.. sayang diana baru pulang ke jakarta, jadi blum ada rencana balik sini lagi.. kalo ga dah gue titipin!

sebenernya tujuan utama ketemuan sama miss o itu bukan buat shopping tapi memanfaatkan voucher sushi groove yang waktu itu dapet. yah mayan lah jadi ga terlalu banyak keluar uang buat makan. hehe.. tapi sialnya lupa bawa kamera! kenape ye gue kaga jodoh banget poto-poto sama miss o. HIKS! anyway, gue pesen chicken katsu don, gara-gara baca ulasan kiyadon diblognya onik hehe.. tapi gue ga terlalu doyan ah yang di sushi groove ini, asin bener.. dan cepet bikin eneg. masi enakan chicken katsu curry don nya

ngiler deh liat di periplus banyak mass paperback baru. ada the other queen – philippa gregory yang dah gue incer-incer selama setengah taon! ada sundays at tiffany’s – james patterson! de el el! tapi masi inget tumpukan buku di rumah

.:: JCB, finally here ::.

di negara lain, JCB ( Japanese Cherry Blossom ) ini udah sampe muncul-ilang-muncul lagi, disini kaga muncul-muncul. parah bener kan TBS indo. tapi akhirnya mereka sadar juga kalo orang sini banyak yang minat. berdasarkan artikel di Cosmo ( gue sih kaga baca juga, tau dari fellow FD-er aja haha.. ) katanya TBS Japanese Cherry Blossom ini bakal di-”terbit”-in 16 Maret! yippie yippie yaay yee.. it’s about time!

karena gue dah ada EDT nya, sekarang gue ngincer body puree nya biar klop :

berapa tuh ya nanti harganya.. nyesel abis ga beli di UK, jelas-jelas disana harganya cuma 8.8 pound.
disini ntar gue prediksi 229rb ato bahkan! semoga aja kaga mahal-mahal biar gue bisa beli

kepikiran juga si body butter nya.. tapi ga ngerti dah harganya berapa ya tuh ntar *lol*

.:: cherry blossom ::.

when i first found TBS Japanese Cherry Blossom collection, it was love at first sight. it has a sweet floral scent, with key ingredients :

Top notes of:	Fuji apple, chinese magnolia and osmanthus flower
Heart notes of:	Star jasmine, japanese cherry blossom and japanese persimmon
Base notes of:	Sandalwood, hinoki wood, and fruity musk

i have a bottle of Japanese Cherry Blossom EDT, and i think it has a very flowery scent, very feminine yet lively. the scent is just amazing. and the packaging is just C.U.T.E!

downside : the range never reached Indonesia, and now i can’t get any of those stuff though i’m longing for the body puree and body butter! *smashing head to the wall* i don’t have the heart to use this on daily basis, as there’s no way i will be able to repurchase it!

to make amends to the bad bad decision i’ve made several months ago, i bought a Cherry Blossom body cream from Bath and Body Works. there are actually quite some range of cherry blossom fragrances produced by BBW, including Cherry Blossom, Japanese Cherry Blossom, Blushing Cherry Blossom, etc. i settled with the Cherry Blossom one because among the three range, it was the only one that has quite a similar smell with the TBS i have at home. or at least, i thought so

key fragrance notes include Cherry Blossom, Dewy Watermelon, and Red Plum, and upon application, i could smell the scent of flower pods. fragrance is very light, not overpowering and leaves skin fragrant, supple and well-moisturized. plus, it leaves no trace of greasy or sticky feel to skin. yet, the creamy texture hydrates skin just as any body lotion would. it’s neither better nor worse.

oh how i wish there are BBW and VS stores here!

.:: friday nite out with friends ::.

jumat kemarin, gue janjian ketemu lia, reth & lei, my best buddies in 2nd and 3rd grade of high school. kira-kira terakhir ketemu mereka hmm… 5 or 6 months ago?? hahaha.. dah lama juga ye. dan seperti biasa juga susah banget ngumpulin empat kepala ini jadi satu. akhirnya setelah perencanaan mendalam, akhirnya kita sepakat buat berkumpul di (mana lagi) gading. jam 5 teng, gue cabut dari kantor dan langsung melaju ke arah kelapa gading. lucky for me, jalanan bebas macet. yaay! sekitar jam 6an, gue dah menginjakkan kaki di area la piazza, dan langsung menuju ke dalam mall.

berhubung yang lain belum dateng, akhirnya dimulailah acara window shopping. setelah keluar dari farmer’s market tanpa menenteng apa-apa, gue melaju ke watson. di watson, masih berlangsung acara lebaran sale, walau lebarannya dah kelar dari kapan tauk.. ga masalah juga sih buat gue inceran gue : body scrub vivelle yang banyak disebut-sebut di FD dan membuat gue penasaran. kebetulan gue lihat lagi diskon 20% dan jatuhnya juga lebih murah dari farmer’s market. setelah memilih-milih dari aneka “rasa” yang tersedia, gue ambil “rasa” avocado dan papaya, walau maksud hati pengen juga sekaligus nyamber semuanya sekaligus hehe… selain itu, gue juga ambil body scrub merk vienna, “rasa” coklat, karena tergiur wanginya yang bener-bener persis es krim coklat!

setelah keluar sambil menenteng kantong belanjaan, gue melanjutkan acara (window) shopping gue ke sogo, yang notabene sedang menggelar sogo big sale, up to 50%. belum banyak baju yang gue sentuh, telepon berdering menandakan teman-temanku yang sudah tiba. akhirnya gue pun berlalu dari sogo buat menemui mereka.

dinner kali ini, atas persetujuan sepihak, kita makan di sushi tei yang terletak di area mkg 5. ga pake lama, kita diantar ke meja dan sofa empuk di area pojok. dekor dan suasana restoran ini, boleh lah.  cukup nyaman dan sofa-sofa nya yang tinggi, plus pembatas di atasnya, cukup memberi privasi buat pengunjung. di masing-masing meja. karena gue anti-sushi, jadi gue langsung aja bolak-balik menu-menu “normal” yang ada di sushi tei ( normal as defined by me ). langsung mata gue tertumbuk di menu chicken katsu curry, yang biasa gue makan  di noodle bar semasa di perantauan jadi langsung gue pesen menu itu, sekaligus iced lemon tea. tergiur sama dessert-dessert nya yang menarik hati, tapi karena takut kekenyangan, jadi gue skip dulu.

selagi menunggu pesanan makanan, kita, seperti biasa, bertukar gosip-gosip ga jelas, sambil cekakakan ga tentu arah, sampe-sampe pengunjung yang duduk di belakang gue protes, dengan men-sssssssttt-in kita. duile… maap de mbak. situ juga bacotnya gede, kita ga protes! mau duduk sepi sendiri, makan noh di rumah huehe..

ga lama, pesenan kita dateng, dimulai dari aneka minuman, dan diikuti yakiniku don reth, chicken katsu curry gue, dan sushi-sushi pesanan lia dan lei. sedikit berkomentar tentang penampilan makanan gue, sushi tei can do better, surely! piring yang digunakan, ga beda jauh sama piring di warteg, mengutip komentar reth. bedanya, cuma motif jejepangan yang terlukis di atas piringnya.  separuh piring terisi nasi, sementara separuh lainnya terisi chicken katsu yang disiram bumbu curry plus dua potong wortel dan dua potong kentang. tentunya, mereka setidaknya bisa merapihkan penampilan bumbu curry nya yang ga bisa dibilang rapih. porsinya juga cuma sekedar cukup, timpang banget dibanding harganya (IMHO), apalagi kalo inget porsi yang biasa gue makan semasa di perantauan, yang bisa  2-3 kali porsi di sushi tei ini kalo dari segi rasa, gue patut mengacungi jempol buat rasanya. kalo belum pernah makan makanan serupa, mungkin sedikit iiigh sama tampilannya. tapi sekali coba, pasti suka sama rasanya yang nyam-nyam.  at least, itu yang terjadi sama gue. hehe.. satu jempol boleh deh.. ga perlu dua

selesai menyantap porsi masing-masing, akhirnya kita memutuskan buat memesan dessert. aneka wafer ice cream udah kita tunjuk, dengan jawaban yang sama dari pelayannya. abis.. abis.. itu juga abis.. akhirnya kita pesen pino dan coffee ball, yang ga sepenuhnya coffee, karena.. lagi-lagi.. abis! pino,  satu porsi berisi enam potong dark chocolate truffle berisi es krim vanilla. rasanya, hmm yummy! sementara coffee ball ga kalah enak. semangkuk kecil penuh berisi aneka bola-bola es krim aneka rasa. sepatutnya ya es krimnya cuma rasa kopi, tapi karena abis, jadi dicampur-campur sama green tea, coklat, dan entah rasa apa lagi untung, rasa-rasa dessert yang kita pesan cukup enak, sehingga mengurangi kekecewaan kita atas habisnya menu-menu dessert lainnya.

ngomongin tempat-tempat dessert yang enak, sempat terpikir buat mampir lagi di cafe du chocolat. tapi rasanya, perut ini dah ga kuat menampung makanan lagi. walaupun itu seporsi dessert yang gue cinta..

.:: my haul, this week ::.

fiuh, selain belanja buat keperluan lapak, tentunya harus belanja buat diri sendiri juga duonks jadi inilah hasil belanja gue selama hari sabtu, minggu dan rabu kemaren :

per-wajah-an :
- RoC Minesol SPF 30 *diskon £5*
- Prestige Skin Loving Minerals Foundation in Fair
- Bourjois Blush Concealer in Beige Clair *love at first sight*

per-pipi-an :
- Ruby & Millie Duo Blush On *dapet voucher £5 gara-gara beli RoC*
- Wet & Wild Rouge Powder Blush in Heather Silk & Pearlescent Pink *very cheap*

per-mata-an :
- Urban Decay Primer Potion
- Maybelline Great Lash Mascara in Brownish Black
- 17 Eyeshadow Trio
- Barry M Dazzle Dust in Aqua Gold, Coral, Khaki, Cherry, Bronze

per-bibir-an :
- Rimmel Moisture Rich Lipstick in Mulberry Silk

per-badan-an :
- TBS Japanese Cherry Blossom EDT
- M & S Cocoa Butter & Vanilla Body Lotion
- M & S White Peach & Almond Body Lotion

per-kuku-an :
- Barry M Nail Paint in Turquoise, Spring Green, Navy
- Sally Hansen Nail Colour Thinner

per-alat-an :
- Vital Radiance Eyeshadow Brush
- Active  Brush *dirt cheap*
- Sun Kissed Brush *dirt cheap*

.:: st. ives, and what i think about it ::.

sometimes, price matters. some products from high-end brands may be better than those sold in drugstores. but i say, it’s not entirely true. i’m sure that there are plenty of effective products that won’t break the bank. these newfound love of mine are another cheap products that shows significant result! i bought these about a month ago, and kept using it regularly, not only because these are the only ones i had in my bathroom just now, but because i really like these products. both are st ives. the first one i’m going to review is radiance cleanser apricot cream wash *what a looooong name..

this product contains micro beads that would exfoliate and remove the dead skin cells on the skin. it isn’t likely that i scrub my face everyday, but the beads are not that much, and they’re tiny. so i suppose it’s safe for everyday use, as suggested in the tube this cleanser is said to be suitable for combination skin -which is exactly why i purchased it! – and i must say it does live up to what it claims. when used regularly, it reduces the breakouts caused by products that didn’t suit me, which was exactly the problem i’ve encountered before i used this cleanser. so far, i’m quite happy with the result.

although it says apricot scrub, i don’t really feel it smells like apricot  not that it doesn’t smell good, it’s just that it doesn’t smell right, like some other apricot scrubs i’ve tried previously *maksa.com*  however, i didn’t find it annoying so let’s continue with the review. i bought the “blemish fighting” one, and the tube says it gently removes the surface oil, dirts and dull skin cells. i quite like the mini beads. it does a good job, and it’s not too harsh on my skin so i can use it more frequently than Skin Food Black Sugar Mask, which has lately been a little forgotten :p and just this morning, i tried to prove the effectiveness of this product when used as a body scrub. well, since it only contains teeny meeny beads, i think it’s not so great as a body scrub as it is as a facial scrub. good, but not great. but i like it nonetheless

wish i know where to buy them in indo. i’ve never seen these for such a long time ( i think they did sell these in indo once upon a time! ). anyone knows?

pics courtesy of Superdrug

.:: drugstore diva::.

here comes the drugstore diva. as i went to mangdu and gading yesterday, i found some interesting products :

- rosary nail polish remover *yaay.. i can now go try my red nail lacquer ^_^

- dove fresh touch body lotion *i’m almost running out of my jergens ultra healing. so i grab this one since it has a fresh scent of cucumber and green tea. love this..

- vaseline advanced formula *in the hope that it does have an advanced formula and may give better result than my ordinary petroleum jelly*

- la tulipe eyeshadow base *i think there’s nothing to lose since it’s so inexpensive. update!! i love this! its balm-like texture gives a creamy base to my e/s and make it more pigmented and long-lasting.. and it’s only 20k!!

- la pensee cheek mousse *just because it was cute. despite the seemingly pigmented cream, it blends easily with my skin tone and looks natural and almost invisible ^_^’

- garnier self-heated mask *because i haven’t got the chance to try out skin food’s hot mask ^_^’ totally hate the it! it has a funky smell. eew… i couldn’t stand it so much that i washed it off soon after i put in on my face. a total nightmare…

not bad. all of these didn’t cost me too much damage, which is good, coz my wallet needs to rest sometimes ^_^