Musings

Giddy Tiger told us how vain she was (89%!) and then tagged me to see how vain I am on the vain-o-meter.

Are you surprised at the results below? I mean I do run a beauty site and all…

You Are 47% Vain

You’re a little vain, but more than anything you have a healthy amount of confidence.Thinking the world of yourself is great. Just don’t think less of those who aren’t as pretty as you!

How Vain Are You?

Honestly, I’m not hehe… I’m vain to an extent but I’ve pretty much gotten more comfortable with me in recent years. That is, in my view, more important than anything you can put on your face or body.

Here were my answers to the questions:

1. You check out your reflection in windows. – Sometimes. I check to see my hair isn’t sticking out in 20 directions as its wont to do but otherwise I don’t primp 😉 Part of the reason is because windows aren’t reflective enough. Now, give me a shiny surface and you can bet I’ll be checking me out in it. LOL…..

2. Your closet is chock full of the latest styles, even if your credit card suffers for it a little. -Never. I love my money too much to spend it on trendy items. I prefer to go for classic designs but I will sacrifice for bags.

3. You buy tons of personal care products, from expensive moisturizers to specialty shampoo – Always. Ah! Guilty as charged! I have boxes (yes, boxes) of bath and body stuff, skincare stuff and I’ve gone the gamut from high end to low end everything. Ask me and I’ll probably have tried it at some point LOL… I’m now on a “use-it-up” challenge so will be using up all my stuff before buying.

4. You dream of being a movie star or model – Never. I think I’m too jaded for this.

5. If you started to lose your looks, your self esteem would likely suffer – Never. I was never much of a looker before in the conventional sense, so I’m pretty happy being me right now.

6. If you weren’t happy with your looks in some way, you would consider cosmetic surgery – Never. I’m too scared of pain.

7. You wear designer underwear – sometimes. Hey, a girl’s got to feel sexy on the inside even if you are in staid corporate clothes on the outside 😉

8. Besides showering, it takes you at least 20 minutes to get dressed and primped for the day – Always. Ok guilty again. I spend the most time trying to get my eyeshadow right. I get paranoid if it doesn’t look right, and mascara takes ages as well because I’m a doofus. But like Giddy Tiger, I do tend to forget to touch up my lipstick (I don’t like gloss – too goopy and I hate how my hair sticks to my lips when the wind blows) as the day goes by. I guess I’m not that vain after all.

9. You enjoy getting your picture taken – rarely. Haha… I’m camera shy, that explains the mysterious Paris B eh? 😉

10. If you see someone of your gender who is hot, you immediately start silently critiquing them- Always. Sigh. Sorry. I’m a bitch that way. 😉

I know some other vain-pots who should tell us how they score on the vain-o-meter:

Tine – she runs a beauty site too!
PinkElle – Vain pot!

Heavens! Sooyin tagged me on this and seriously, you do not want to see my dressing table because its a mess. But here are my answers to the questions posed.

What five beauty products could you not live without?

Honestly, there’s nothing I can’t live without. Everything is replaceable to a degree and I have replaced most of them. So, what I’ll do is choose 5 of my favourite beauty products.

1. L’oreal UV Perfect SPF 50 sunscreen
2. Bobbi Brown long wear gel eyeliner
3. Make Up For Ever Full Cover concealer
4. Kanebo Faircrea UV Pact 2 way foundation powder
5. Vasline petroleum jelly to keep my lips chap free and glossy

The best part is that I can go out with just those 5 things on my face and feel pretty good about it!

What’s the worst beauty mistake you’ve made?

Letting a facialist have her way with trimming my eyebrows. I ended up with little squiggly sperm wriggling above my eye. Ew…

What’s your skincare regime consist of?

The brands of products I use vary from time to time, but these are the types of products I use everyday.

AM
Cleaner
Tone with Apple Cider Vinegar toner
Moisturise
L’oreal UV Perfect Sunscreen

PM
Eye and lip makeup remover
Oil cleanser
Cleansing foam or scrub (alternate days)
Tone with Apple Cider Vinegar toner
Moisturise

Favourite beauty treat?

Facials. They work wonders for my skin. I try to schedule an appointment every 3 weeks but I’ve been slacking and it shows on my skin. I just went for one last week and my skin has been looking radiant for a week! Imagine just how much better I’d look if I was more regular?

What’s your favourite beauty store?

Nothing specific. Probably Strawberrynet LOL!

Favourite budget brand?

For makeup found in Malaysia, I’d say Silkygirl. Don’t thumb your nose at this local brand. Their funky eyeliners are excellant and comparable to none. Their eyeshadows too are adventurous in colour and good in texture. The blushes look nice on. The 2 way foundation powder is great too as are the moisture lipsticks. There are some duds, but overall, its a pretty good brand that’s cheap!

Favourite premium brands?

I don’t have one. I don’t really do premium brands due to budget constraints but for mid-high end range, there’s always something good and something bad to pick out from every brand 🙂

What’s your every girl must own one item

Sunscreen. For those living in the tropics, its a MUST HAVE! SPF50 is the way to go for the face. I know people say you are ok with just SPF15 but I went out in SPF15 in this tropical weather and before long I was wishing I had used my usual SPF50 sunscreen because my face felt like it was burning up!

And what about skin care: Favourite premium and budget brands?

I’d go with Kanebo for premium and L’oreal for budget because both work pretty well for me.

And hair care?

I wholeheartedly believe in Redken. I stopped for a while and my hair is a tangled bird’s nest! 

And finally, best beauty tip?

As Soo Yin said, sunscreen is a girl’s best friend. It protects your skin from the UV rays of the sun and is the best anti-aging product to use that really works. Use it everyday, whether you are in or out of the house. Even if you are just staying in, the UV rays know no barrier unless you are in a cube with no windows. So, slather it on. Your skin will thank you when you are 60.

Also, get lots of sleep. When you sleep and rest, your body regenerates and recharges and renews itself. To quicken the renewal process of your skin, you need to get as much rest as you can. That’s probably why babies have such soft smooth skin! 😀 So, sleep early at night.

And on that note, its beddy byes for me! 🙂

My taggees are:

• Tine’s beauty site
• Beetrice’s Reviews
• Pretty Beautiful
• Women only!

Yesterday I took the lift up to my office with 2 other cleaning ladies. They were quiet the whole trip until the doors opened. Then one of them turned to me and said (in Malay)

“You look like a Japanese!”

The other one immediately countered with:

“No! You look like a Korean!”

I was bemused because I am neither. I am a 3rd generation Malaysian of Chinese heritage. From what we could trace, the line has been pretty unbroken so it always amuses me to have people mistake me for a Japanese (in the past) or a Korean (presently).

I think the perception is such because I’m quite fair, and I do a full face of makeup every day. Lately, I’ve learned to finally apply mascara that doesn’t make me look like a panda in 2 hours and which opens up my eyes a lot more giving me the impression of having larger eyes than  I really do. From what I see and have been told (having never been to Japan or Korea yet) the Korean and Japanese ladies place a lot of emphasis on their looks and take great pains to put on their makeup everyday. I read somewhere once that a Japanese woman would wake up a full 2 hours earlier than she has to, just to make sure her “face” is put on for the day. Its impressive to me because I’d rather spend the 2 hours sleeping!

By contrast, many women on the street here don’t bother too much with makeup. Many office ladies I have seen only use powder and some lipstick and that’s it.

So I think that’s part of the reason why I’m being mistaken for a Japanese/Korean everywhere. The other is probably due to my rather wide face that is reminiscent of Korean lineage. All pretty fun until traders try to fleece me because they think I’m a tourist!! 😀

So, do people confuse you with someone form another heritage?