Korean Beauty Haul & etc

Long time no see! I apologize for not updating while I was in Korea, If you followed me on instagram you might have caught up to it through my story and updates. I’m bringing the complete story in my next three post but for now, let’s start with my Korean Beauty Haul and some more.

Even though Korea is famous for their makeups and skincare, they’re not my main shopping priority. Still, as a beauty enthusiast, I cannot help but pick up a couple of items, mainly skincare product since they’re a lot cheaper here compared to if I buy them locally.  That being said, I found that the price of Laneige Water Bank Gel Eye Cream doesn’t differ much from from the local price. I’ve been wanting to invest on good eye cream for a while, and with how consistent Laneige has been performing on my skin me, I think they’re the best place to start.

Innisfree is one of Korean brand that I’m always curious of, especially their ‘Jeju Volcanic Line’ which is said to work magic to unclog pore and control sebum production. I picked up Jeju Volcanic Toner from this line. Their Green Tea Fresh Cleansing Oil is also said to be good for oily skin, it smells refreshing as well. The last one is Innisfree Perfect UV protection cream long lasting SPF50+ PA+++ for oily skin/50ml, I’m going to confess my sin; I never have separate sunscreen for my routine despite living in tropical country, it’s about time to change that.

Before leaving, I picked up Urban Decay All Nighter Spray in last attempt to use my remaining won. This is an item that I meant to get last year in Singapore, later pushed to my birthday, then ended up not getting any at all. Consider this a late purchase instead of impulse buying, please.

I also picked up bundle face masks from Innisfree (Rose) and Nature Republic (Orange) as souvenirs for my friends. Myeongdong is perfect place to shop for Korean beauty products, the whole streets have makeup stores of many brands that always offer good package deal of sheet mask, hand creams, and sometimes cleansers.

Due to little time we had, I didn’t have much chance to buy cute snacks for myself, but I picked up some goods from SM Coex Artium (which sweetly bid me goodbye with SHINee’s MV when I left). Many items that I intended to buy were not available when I visited SUM Market such as SHINee’s square mirror and their passport holder, but I picked up SHINee & NCT fanbook stickers. While it looks like a very vain products, I actually intend to use this to décor my phone case, I have a clear case so I can swap the stickers inside depending on my mood.

I also completed my discography collection by getting SHINee "Misconception of Us" album, then quite impulsively, I ended up buying NCT 127 “Limitless” as well, which came with abundant of bonuses like stickers and post cards.

SUM Café & Market also didn’t stock the popcorns I wanted, so I only bought NCT Strawberry Almond (which is another vain thing) from the market. As for the café, I finally managed to try SHINee Green Tea & White Choco Ice cream, SHINee lemon ade, and NCT 127 Mango Ade. The ades were super refreshing (I’m sucker for cold, juice water), and the ice cream was delicious though I personally think they can taste better if they deepen the green tea flavor and lessen the sweetness of white chocolate coating.

While the beauty product I bought wasn't much, overall I love every single bits product that I bring home with me. What’s your favorite?
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Seoul Travel Bag Essentials

Tomorrow night, I will be leaving for Seoul. It’s going to be my first time there, so I’m really excited. Thus, I found myself slightly over-packing things in my bag (yes, I’m that person who packed at least 3 days before the actual trip). I hope I’m not the only person with tendency to carry too much things when she’s excited. In the end, I decided to stream-line my belongings and ended up with these things as my travel bag essentials.

My rucksack from Coach (not exactly this one but similar) is a splurge of my life, but it’s so worth it. I swear I wear this almost all the time (except when I’m not bringing too much items), and it hasn’t shown any sign of wear. What makes me love this bag in the first place is how HUGE it is, it fits literally everything that I need (and maybe not), including my DSLR camera and lenses. Made of leather, this bag can stand any weather, and the superb craftsmanship makes this one very durable, and comfortable to lug around despite its size.

As mentioned in my previous post, I’m not bringing much makeup so I will store them in this bag. Jill Stuart hand cream is mandatory item in my bag to keep my hands well-moisturized, for Seoul weather is going to be quiet dry and cold when I arrive (around 1~7 Celsius). Another thing that’d save me from frosty weather is Lip balm from Kiehl’s with its minty taste and Jurlique Rose Face Mask for in-flight pamper.

Sunglasses is the cliché of all travel cliché. This rose-gold and bronze lenses pair come from Forever21, and while it's currently not it stock, they have a couple of similar ones. they’re effortlessly chic, plus they can protect my eyes from the bright sun (I’m quite light-sensitive). Another thing that goes inside my bag is my houndstooth scarf, an old one I bought at thrift store in Shibuya. 2 years later and this scarf is as soft and warm as ever, plus it’s a style that never goes old.

Long flight means hours of doing nothing if you ended up with boring In-Flight entertainment. I did suffer that back in my Japan trip last year and I’ve learned my lesson. Again, I’m bringing another Japanese book that would surely engross me throughout the 7 hours flight. My phone, earphones, and USB cables are my holy trinity to keep me away from boredom, I have prepared some interesting movies in case the ones provided aren’t interesting.

And finally, camera! The camera that I'm using is Canon eos 600D, as for the lens, it's everyone's favorite nifty fifty; the shallow depth of field can give me nice, romantic bokeh for night photos. I'm taking my kit lenses as well for family shoots since it gives me wider frame. I changed my phone recently and it enables me to take much brighter, clearer photos. You may tune in my instagram for some #tukiseoulstory updates!

What are your travel bag essentials?
ps. I won't be updating until late January, enjoy you days!

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Seoul Travel Beauty Essential

 It's less than a week until my Seoul travel. The last time I check, the weather is almost zero degrees and it's gonna be dry with lots of wind. I will be going to place with snow as well, so it's important to keep my skin well moisturized to avoid dry, flaking skin. Since I'm a fuss-free person, I try to keep things as simple as possible. Here are my Seoul travel beauty essentials.

My oily skin is a little bit difficult when it comes to cold weather. There was a moment when it turned unflattering-ly flaky, and I assumed it was from the shock of suddenly being in dry weather. 

Jurlique Rose Cream Mask has been my staple for supple, well-moisturized skin in the morning. I'd pop this on my face at night before going to sleep. I will be popping some of it to a small jar container for in-flight skin pamper as well, you know how evil plane can be to your skin. Another essential for winter season skin is Argan Oil, not only for hair, this dry oil can be used for skin as well before or after shower.

My regular skincare products from Kiehl's such as their Midnight Recovery Concentrate, Oil-Free Cleanser and Toner will find its home in my travel bag as well, all depotted into Muji acrylics travel set.

 I really want to go the most simple with makeup. Laneige BB Cushion is still the best base for traveling in my opinion because of how compact and long-wearing it is. On the cheek, I'd pop Jill Stuart Blush for healthy flush and use shade Silk Teddy from Too Faced Palette for extra glow.

For eyes, I'll be using the same palette, with 9 selection of neutral, easy to wear shades, I can create a simple, effortless eye-look in less than 5 minutes. On the brow, I will be popping shade Sexpresso with my Zoeva Wing Liner brush. Lastly, a coat of Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara for fluttery lashes.

I fear for my lips, so I prepare extra lip care. From Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask in another travel pot, Kiehl's Facial Fuel Balm, and the creamiest, dry lips-friendly Clinique Pop Lipstick, anything to keep my lips happy and healthy!

I cannot be without The Body Shop Body Butter when I need extra moisture for my skin. It melts and smells like dream, keeping my skin properly hydrated so I do not have to worry about parched skin. Me and my mom have agreed to share perfume, so I will be wearing her classic, signature scent; Estee Lauder Pleasures. With the freshness of floral in its top note balanced by the sandalwood as base, this perfume is uplifting while keeping a hint of warmth in it at the same time, perfect for winter holiday!

What are your travel beauty essentials?

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Looking Forward in January

I have shared with you my blogging goals in 2017 in my previous post. Last year, I did the 'to do' post to start every month. This year, I'd like to continue the tradition but with a little tweak. Instead of only writing about things that I want to do, I will be adding things that I'm looking forward too as well, hence the title. So here are what I'm looking forward in January.

1. Seoul Trip. You might be sick of hearing it already, but; Seoul. Trip.
2. Which means Korean Street Food. Which means piping hot, spicy-sweet and sour tteok, and melting cheese on top of kalbi.
3. Experiencing winter again after two years. It gives me excuse to layer my clothes, boots, and wearing thick, comfy coat.
4. Taking lots of photo with the I-am-tourist-excuse. Even now, I'm still conscious over taking photo in public space.
5. Still photography related, I want to practice more of the new flat-lay photography style that I 'accidentally' discovered last December. I really love how it turned out.
6. Finalizing my beauty & skincare wish list for this year
7. Popping that wish list onto my sidebar so you can get a peak of them
8. And finally, another batch of product empties buys me reason to try new products

 What are you looking forward in January?

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1 Year of Selene Addicted and Blogging Goals

Today marks 1 year since I started 'reviving' this little space of mine. I had written on why did I pick up blogging again and my decision to change the direction of my blogging activity in general. I didn't really have specific goal last year since I was more intent on blogging consistently to keep this place alive than anything else, but looking at how far I've come, I think it's okay to be a little bit 'ambitious' this year. Here are my blogging goals for 2017.

I've been thinking on getting a new logo since the one I'm currently using is not a logo per se. Plus, it's quiet essential for branding. I have many designer friends that I can count on to, think of this as my way of supporting them.

Other than technically optimizing my image by compressing its size to ensure the loading speed of my blog, I'm also talking about creating different kind of images for different platforms. I used to post 1 image to all platforms, but actually, it's better to create different one for each since every platform have their own rules. It will be more tasking for sure, but hopefully, it will bore fruition in the end.

 I was in the 'finding stage' last year, but lately, I think I have finally got the exact image of what aesthetic I want to pursue; the classic bright and airy. Before, I love to make an image with white, bright, and stark background. However lately, I realize sometimes I made the photo ended up too contrasting or over-exposed, with can be unkind to some eyes. With some neat tricks I've learned and found such as planning the image before and literally chasing after the light, I hope I can make my image came with 'practiced ease' as opposed to 'spontaneous'.

While I have no particular problem with my current side-bar, I feel like I can do more about it. There are so many things a blogger can do with his/her sidebar, like popping on wishlist box or displaying their most popular post. I'm still in the process of tidying spaces up, hopefully, you can see my new side bar by February.

These are two kind of posts I've always wanted to try writing but never did because I simply feel inadequate. However, I can actually use that aspect to create a 'different' kind of helpful post. I'm still at learning stage, so I can easily relate with problems that the others are facing.

 I never really tell anyone around me that I do blogging. If they knew, they did it because the accidentally stumbled upon some posts I shared on facebook, not from me directly. To be honest, I wasn't comfortable on letting people around me know what I'm doing, but reading other people's stories inspired me. There's nothing wrong with what we're doing, so there really is reason for me to be ashamed. For now, I will be promoting more regularly via my facebook (though I also consider making an account for Selene Addicted itself), increase my pinterest activity, and optimizes my instagram by writing some short reviews in the post.

I always feel flattered whenever a blogger reply to my comment, and while I did reply to each and every comments all of you left (seriously, thank you!), it can take me a week since the entry was posted. This year, other than wanting to get back to you faster, I want to engage more with the other bloggers either via the blog itself or social media like instagram.

for each and every single of you who had kindly spare some of your precious time to visit this 'little garden' of mine. I wouldn't be able to be here if not for your support, and I will continue to make better content that hopefully you can enjoy even more.

What are you blogging goal this year?

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Best of 2016

I'm here still sitting on my bed, laptop in front of me, a plate of leftover cookies from NYE on the right, and desperately trying to deny new year's holidays are over. Today marks the third day of 2017, but I feel like a large part of me is still stuck somewhere in 2016. While my memory is still fresh, let's recount the best moments that happened in 2016.

I first created this blog back in 2013 with intent of documenting my stay in Japan and anything related to it. It didn't go as well, sadly, and I only grew passionate of it on the latter half of the year when my Liz Lisa kick was at its highest. I rarely updated it in 2014-2015, but I really want to pick up blogging again since it was something I always love doing. This time, I want to be more 'serious', and with that in mind, I made 'revamping my blog' my personal goal in 2016. This little space in the internet has grown so much, for that, I have all of you, lovely readers to thank!

My journey to Tokyo was documented in these two posts. Sincemy study there, it has been 'another home' for me. It's a city full with people whom I love and very dear memories, so being able to visit again itself is a blessing. Tokyo is an incredibly busy city, while I'm basically not a fan of crowd, the bustle of Tokyo is surprisingly pleasant. It's like 'organized chaos', so many things happening at once but in harmony (I'm sorry I'm not making sense). The sense of freedom that I felt is unchanged even after 2 years, same with the people; my friends are just as lovely - if not lovelier - as always. I have this plan of making Japan Trip an annual thing, but let's see if my budget allows.

I have a creative outlet for my writing somewhere in the internet. While I did write back in 2015, I feel like 2016 gave my writing a more defined style & identity. I discovered that I love writing long narration, I love using simile, I love decorating my sentences with cheesy, flowery words.

As for photography, last year I started investing in photo props and backgrounds. Before, I only used a white blanket and shot in my room, never bothered to learn about composition, and edit different photos with only 1 action. I'm still struggling with composition, but lately, I feel like I'm getting there. I definitely need to work more on it so it comes with 'practiced-ease' instead of 'spur of the moment'. Another thing I need to work on is to define my style. I love stark-bright white background, but lately, I realized it can look overexposed.

By the way, you can see the how my photos grow on my instagram.

While the last quarter of the year I spent largely uninspired, SWC V was definitely the highlight - or dare I say - the BEST thing that happened in the last half of 2016. SHINee is my favorite band, I've been following them since 2009, and they never let me down, not even once. They're 5 talented people, known for high-quality performances, and they certainly live up to their fame. I'd say even that 2 hours and a half watching their concert gave me almost equal pleasure to my 6 days Tokyo Trip. They're that magical!

What were your favorite moments in 2016?

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