My week in pictures: Dec 3-9, 2012

 Because of Typhoon Bopha school and work was cancelled. The city had to take down the billboards to prepare for the typhoon. Thank God the city was prepared this time and no casualty was reported.

Ready for dance practice after work. Check out my skeleton shirt pretty funky eh? It also glows in the dark! 

 Painting my nails bright corally pink makes me really happy.

 Flower Girls! All dressed up for the Oro Banker's Luau Christmas Party.

 Sting fetched me from the party... So sweet!

 Rocking the dance floor with my girls!

We did not go home after the party empty handed. We won some of the raffle prices. I'm a happy girl! Until next Oro Banker's party!

Booked: Current Kindle Reads

Ever since I got my kindle, I was totally excited and happy that I spend most of my free time reading books on it. In fact I've already finished two books and I'm about half way through my 3rd book.

I downloaded the whole Percy Jackson series because I was always been fascinated with the Greek Gods and Goddesses and I saw the movie before and it made me really want to read the books. As usual the book was so much better than the movie which is why I always want to read the books first before seeing the movie. There were so many important parts that were not included in the movie which was somewhat disappointing but that how it goes usually. This book was so so good! I love reading it with my kindle because whenever I encountered a word that I don't know I can immediately look it up just by touching that word for about 2 seconds and the dictionary would immediately pop up. 

I am a huge house of night fan. I immediately downloaded a copy of this book once I found that it was already out. I really got into reading this book and this booked made me feel really happy and pissed at the same time. I was really into it that it affected me when Erin (the fledgling with water affinity) betrayed her friends. Well, if you followed this series that you will know who I'm talking about. There was a lot of characters changing sides and this book was really all about the Aurox (the bull or beast boy) finding himself.  In the end he found out well they all found out that he has Heath's soul through the ancient magic of the Seer stone.  I was happy of course that Aurox and Zoey's team defeated the evil Neferet but since Neferet turned immortal I don't think that was the end of her. She did disappear into a million spiders and scattered but I think she will be back to seek revenge. I was glad that this time no body had to die and it seemed that Zoey and the rest of her gang are more aware of how to use their Nyx given gifts.

Local BB Creams: Purederm and Pinkie Swear

For the days that I don't have anything important to go to and I don't feel like wearing foundation, I like to wear tinted moisturizers and BB Creams. However, access to cosmetics in the Philippines especially in my city Cagayan de Oro is quite limited compared to other parts of the country. I have been on a hunt for a BB cream that is inexpensive and that would work well with my skin. I purchased these two BB creams a long time ago and after ample testing period I finally decide to do a review.

Purederm 3 in 1 Magic BB Cream claims to protect the skin from UV rays, improves fine lines and wrinkles and brighten the skin tone. It has a SPF 30 PA++ which definitely double blocks UVB ray and UVA rays. It also claims to be waterproof and will stay on the skin against water and sweat. It come in a 50 ml tube and it has only one shade.  It was also really cheap compared to other mainstream BB cream. It was no more than Php 200 if I'm not mistaken. 

This BB Cream does indicate in the label that It should not be used on blemishes, pimples and irritated or sunburned skin. It should not also be used on skin which is sensitive to bandage or tapes and usage should be stopped if skin becomes red and irritated. 

I found this BB cream to be too light for my skin tone and it does not blend well. I can see the product settling on pores and it is not attractive. Since it also has high SPF content it is not good for flash photography, you will definitely look like a ghost in pictures. However, I will say that product is good for days at the beach for added sun protection on the face. As for the other claims to brighten skin tone and lessen wrinkles, I did not see any change on my skin.

This BB Cream in made in Korea

 Pinkie swear BB Cream foundation 

It comes in 30 ml tube and it has three different shades. I have the BBCD-02 the middle color. This BB cream is priced at Php 300 and it is made in France. This BB Cream does not have any outrageous claim stated in the packaging. It simply says BB Cream Foundation.

This is a very straight forward product. I would say it more like a foundation but it does not feel as heavy. It gives you a natural look while perfectly concealing blemishes and evening out your skin tone. This does not have any SPF in it so it is good for flash photography.

Left: Purederm 3 in 1 BB Cream

 Right: Pinkie Swear BB Cream Foundation

As you can see the Purederm BB cream has a very liquidy consistency while the Pinkie swear BB cream foundation has a thick gel like consistency.  

 When swatched

It can get a little bit messy with the Purederm BB cream because the product is quite runny and it is difficult to control squeezing the right amount of product out from the packaging. The pinkie swear BB cream foundation on the other hand, has good packaging and product formulation that enables precise product extraction and mess free application.

When blended

Because the purederm 3-in-1 BB cream comes in a universal color it is difficult to blend and match it with my skin tone. While the pinkie swear BB foundation blended perfectly to my skin. It gives medium to full coverage while having a natural look. The BB foundation also has a cooling effect when applied to skin much like the Maybelline Aqua gel foundation. For both BB Creams, I always set it with a translucent powder since I have oily skin.

Verdict:

 If you would like to try out some inexpensive BB creams found in the Philippines I do recommend trying out the Pinkie Swear BB Cream foundation. This product does not have outrageous claims but it does provide you with good coverage while still looking natural. I've tried using this BB foundation while doing some dance rehearsals and I'm happy to say that the product did manage to last on my skin.