16 December 2019
haystack
I think this photo could look much better if I had the patience to manually dodge and burn, and also probably a tighter crop:
14 December 2019
12 December 2019
skincare routine: almost 2020
(last update was in Atlanta, and also looking back at my goals for 2019)
My routine has seen some minor changes outside of my core products (marked with *), and I'm quite happy with how it is now. There's not too many steps, but I manage to fit a lot of product types in:
My routine has seen some minor changes outside of my core products (marked with *), and I'm quite happy with how it is now. There's not too many steps, but I manage to fit a lot of product types in:
- Cleansing oil (evening only): Kose speedy, I've dug out my limited edition Alice in Wonderland bottle *u* The performance is still my baseline for comparing other cleansing oils to, and so far the only one I like more is Shu's anti-oxi cleansing oil, but the difference is price is too much. I am (slightly) trying to buy more locally (to reduce some carbon emissions, although it's hard to make a blanket statement of this behaviour's impact), so will try Muji's cleansing oil next.
- Second cleanser (evening only): Hada Labo foaming cleanser*, I do need to buy more refills of this, but it seems like my trusted eBay seller for Hada Labo was/is hospitalized and have put his shop on hiatus :(
- Acid (evening only, on non-retinoid days): I was using some BHA pads in the summer, but have now switched to using TO's 10% mandelic acid. I find it difficult to notice the effect of acids, actually all actives, until you don't use them. Unfortunately or perhaps fortunately, my skin enjoys having lots of actives applied to it, and does respond with better texture.
- First toner: Etude House soon jung toner. this is a new step I introduced for the cooler weather. I wanted a non-hyaluronic acid toner to as the step before so there's more water on my skin for the HA to hold onto. I'm half way through the bottle of EH toner and quite like it. It's very watery and light-weight, doing exactly what I need it to do. I already bought another bottle, but am looking for a cheaper option.
- HA toner+oil: Hada Labo shirojyun toner* + Komeyu rice oil. Will go back to rosehip seed oil after.
- Moisturizing toner: Laneige cream skin toner. I just ordered this and haven't actually received it yet, but this is intended to save my skin during the freezing temperatures in Jan/Feb.
- Vitamin C (morning only): Melano CC serum, this is my preferred Vit C in cooler weather since the formula is oil-based. I did try Timeless' serum while in Houston and liked it, it smelled fine and didn't oxidize too much when kept in the fridge. I would re-purchase it for warmer weather if it had free shipping in Canada. Instead I got TO's Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate due to Gosthamista's good review, specifically that it selectively acts on pigmentation.
- Essence: Scinic snail essence or Tosowoong tea tree essence during active breakouts, although LGH tea tree essence still reigns supreme. Will be trying Purito's green buffet serum next.
- Retinol (evening only): TO 0.2% retinol in squalene, so I finally tried a retinoid product! It's only been a month, so there's no results to report. Perhaps my skin texture as improved? The squalene does take a long time to absorb, so I take the change do a little bit of facial massage. It double dose of oil has worked well to prevent my skin from feeling dry so far. Not sure if I'll find a non-oil based retinol for the summer, or just use TO's niacinamide serum.
- Moisturizer: Hada Labo shirojyun milk* I did buy EH's soon jung cica balm just in case my skin is feeling extra dry or irritated.
Total morning steps: 5
Total evening steps: 7
I don't foresee much change to my routine in 2020, aside from trying out Stratia's products the next time black friday rolls around, and trying Hera's moisturizing cushion if a pretty limited edition case comes out.
In terms of goals for the latter half of my 20s, it would primarily be maintenance and secondary be fading hyperpigmentation from the inevitable hormonal breakouts. It seems to take about 5 years to stabilize a major improvement to my skin, I started doing a consistent-dish routine in my late teens, which eventually balanced out my skin's sebum production such that I'd say I now have normal skin with an oily t-zone. But I also had a lot of breakouts which resulted in lots of PIH, uneven skin texture, and "enlarged" pores around my nose. These got resolved in my early 20s when I discovered and consistently used actives. So now it'll be continuing those actives, and starting some non-active anti-aging products (peptides, anti-oxidants), while keeping up the baseline of hydration, anti-inflammatory products, and sun protection.
In terms of goals for the latter half of my 20s, it would primarily be maintenance and secondary be fading hyperpigmentation from the inevitable hormonal breakouts. It seems to take about 5 years to stabilize a major improvement to my skin, I started doing a consistent-dish routine in my late teens, which eventually balanced out my skin's sebum production such that I'd say I now have normal skin with an oily t-zone. But I also had a lot of breakouts which resulted in lots of PIH, uneven skin texture, and "enlarged" pores around my nose. These got resolved in my early 20s when I discovered and consistently used actives. So now it'll be continuing those actives, and starting some non-active anti-aging products (peptides, anti-oxidants), while keeping up the baseline of hydration, anti-inflammatory products, and sun protection.
10 December 2019
sense
I finished sniffing through my Amouage samples, and I feel the hype (not really hype, but good reputation) of the brand is well deserved. All of the fragrances are layered and full bodied, with good projection and longevity.
Amouage Lyric Women
Woah the opening is a heavy, dense floral blend. Very intense but also quite good. 5 minutes in the florals sheer out a little bit and let’s some creamy base through. As more time goes on, the creaminess starts to overtake the floral notes. I pick up some incense notes if I smell really closely. Although the incense note is not individually discernible from a farther distance, it does temper the creaminess into something I enjoy. Overall I like this scent a lot, especially in the cooler weather when I want a cozier floral.
Amouage Lyric Man
I get a very feminine floral opening, an initial burst of roses, then a more generic green and fresh floral. There’s a...grainy undertone to the floral, as in wheat or oatmeal. The grain note is gaining more prominence and also taking on a plasticy aspect. Kinda like the feel of instant oatmeal compared to steel cut oats. There’s also some musks that I’m smelling after the grains. But the strongest notes are a powdery floral. Perhaps I’m sensitive to musks? Had to scrub this off after an hour since it became nauseating.
...
Amouage Fate Women
Ohhh this is a floral that’s...a bit incense-y, spicy and creamy. There’s also an aromatic top to it that appears a couple of minutes in. The multiple aspects of the scent seems layered. My impression of this is similar to Lyric Women. There’s not much change in the scent for the remainder of time that it lasts on me. I have noticed that I find the vanilla in Amouage scents more pleasing than other scents vanilla. It’s not as cloy, and more like vanilla the plant rather than an ingredient?
I did a side by side with Lyric women and they indeed are similar. The aromatic floral opening is very similar, although then they split into a lightly spiced cream (Fate) and fresh and powerful floral (Lyric). Interestingly I don’t think I’ve smelled this part of Lyric the first time around. Overall, I would like a full bottle of Fate over Lyric, and that’s almost purely because the bottle and outer presentation is gorgeous. But if money and space aren't constraints, I would like full bottles of both.
...
Amouage Journey Woman
Oook the opening is a beautiful soft white floral, I think it’s gardenia? It smells better on the sheerly applied arm versus the concentrated arm, which has a hint of plastic to the floral note. Hmm perhaps the plastic-y note is more like a...diluted stale milk smell? Not like milk gone bad, but definitely not the fresh creamy milk. Maybe a bit like oreo’s filling, tho you have to interpret that as someone who dislikes the filling. I also smell some jasmine joining in the gardenia. There’s not much change after this, aside from the aforementioned 3 notes varying in strength. Longevity is great tho, I can still smell this on me after waking up. Reading the official notes, it seems the plastic-milk note is likely leather, and what I thought was gardenia is likely osmanthus? The other osmanthus centric perfumes I’ve sampled certainly smelled differently, but I do hope this is what osmanthus smells like because it’s much more to my liking. I didn’t get any of the spice, but that may be more apparently if sprayed. Overall this scent smells less complex, and changes less, compared to the other Amouage scents, although its richer than the run of the mill white floral (tho I have a small sample size). I do like most of this scent, but unlikely to purchase a full bottle.
...
Amouage Reflection Man
A very fresh opening, huh. Actually not purely fresh, there’s musk underneath. I also caught a whiff of orange, but that lasted for literally a second. The feeling of walking through an evergreen forest in winter, all bundled up. I’m tempted to say there is also a strong licorice note? After an hour or so, it dries down to warmer woods, tho with a slight aromatic note. The woods then become buried in a powdery note. After reading the official notes, I’m surprised that I didn’t get any of the florals except the powdery iris. I’m not into the musks or licorice-y opening (not sure what I’m actually smelling since the official notes don’t mention them) of this scent, will pass.
Amouage Lyric Women
Woah the opening is a heavy, dense floral blend. Very intense but also quite good. 5 minutes in the florals sheer out a little bit and let’s some creamy base through. As more time goes on, the creaminess starts to overtake the floral notes. I pick up some incense notes if I smell really closely. Although the incense note is not individually discernible from a farther distance, it does temper the creaminess into something I enjoy. Overall I like this scent a lot, especially in the cooler weather when I want a cozier floral.
...
Amouage Journey Man
Woah the opening is strong, a sweet and spicy floral with a slightly incense-y wood note. There is a lot going on but every note is also playing nicely with each other. As the scent develops, the woody aspect is gaining more prominence, with the florals falling to a support role. About 10mins in, it is fully an incense-y wood, quite pleasant. Unfortunately I didn’t smell the sichuan pepper in the top notes, which is the whole reason why I got a sample of this. Will try a tester in store with a spray, since I think it’s hard to smell the top notes with the wand format. The projection of this fragrance is very good, I can clearly smell it an arms length away. A swipe of this also lasted a whole 5 hours. Overall very good performance, but I’m not into incense woody scents enough to purchase a full bottle. I do see myself using up the sample tho.
...
Amouage Journey Man
Woah the opening is strong, a sweet and spicy floral with a slightly incense-y wood note. There is a lot going on but every note is also playing nicely with each other. As the scent develops, the woody aspect is gaining more prominence, with the florals falling to a support role. About 10mins in, it is fully an incense-y wood, quite pleasant. Unfortunately I didn’t smell the sichuan pepper in the top notes, which is the whole reason why I got a sample of this. Will try a tester in store with a spray, since I think it’s hard to smell the top notes with the wand format. The projection of this fragrance is very good, I can clearly smell it an arms length away. A swipe of this also lasted a whole 5 hours. Overall very good performance, but I’m not into incense woody scents enough to purchase a full bottle. I do see myself using up the sample tho.
...
Amouage Lyric Man
I get a very feminine floral opening, an initial burst of roses, then a more generic green and fresh floral. There’s a...grainy undertone to the floral, as in wheat or oatmeal. The grain note is gaining more prominence and also taking on a plasticy aspect. Kinda like the feel of instant oatmeal compared to steel cut oats. There’s also some musks that I’m smelling after the grains. But the strongest notes are a powdery floral. Perhaps I’m sensitive to musks? Had to scrub this off after an hour since it became nauseating.
...
Amouage Fate Women
Ohhh this is a floral that’s...a bit incense-y, spicy and creamy. There’s also an aromatic top to it that appears a couple of minutes in. The multiple aspects of the scent seems layered. My impression of this is similar to Lyric Women. There’s not much change in the scent for the remainder of time that it lasts on me. I have noticed that I find the vanilla in Amouage scents more pleasing than other scents vanilla. It’s not as cloy, and more like vanilla the plant rather than an ingredient?
I did a side by side with Lyric women and they indeed are similar. The aromatic floral opening is very similar, although then they split into a lightly spiced cream (Fate) and fresh and powerful floral (Lyric). Interestingly I don’t think I’ve smelled this part of Lyric the first time around. Overall, I would like a full bottle of Fate over Lyric, and that’s almost purely because the bottle and outer presentation is gorgeous. But if money and space aren't constraints, I would like full bottles of both.
...
Amouage Journey Woman
Oook the opening is a beautiful soft white floral, I think it’s gardenia? It smells better on the sheerly applied arm versus the concentrated arm, which has a hint of plastic to the floral note. Hmm perhaps the plastic-y note is more like a...diluted stale milk smell? Not like milk gone bad, but definitely not the fresh creamy milk. Maybe a bit like oreo’s filling, tho you have to interpret that as someone who dislikes the filling. I also smell some jasmine joining in the gardenia. There’s not much change after this, aside from the aforementioned 3 notes varying in strength. Longevity is great tho, I can still smell this on me after waking up. Reading the official notes, it seems the plastic-milk note is likely leather, and what I thought was gardenia is likely osmanthus? The other osmanthus centric perfumes I’ve sampled certainly smelled differently, but I do hope this is what osmanthus smells like because it’s much more to my liking. I didn’t get any of the spice, but that may be more apparently if sprayed. Overall this scent smells less complex, and changes less, compared to the other Amouage scents, although its richer than the run of the mill white floral (tho I have a small sample size). I do like most of this scent, but unlikely to purchase a full bottle.
...
Amouage Reflection Man
A very fresh opening, huh. Actually not purely fresh, there’s musk underneath. I also caught a whiff of orange, but that lasted for literally a second. The feeling of walking through an evergreen forest in winter, all bundled up. I’m tempted to say there is also a strong licorice note? After an hour or so, it dries down to warmer woods, tho with a slight aromatic note. The woods then become buried in a powdery note. After reading the official notes, I’m surprised that I didn’t get any of the florals except the powdery iris. I’m not into the musks or licorice-y opening (not sure what I’m actually smelling since the official notes don’t mention them) of this scent, will pass.
With this batch of samples done, I'm finally finished with a first pass through all of my perfume samples. Will be taking a break from trying new scents and observe which samples I actually end up using more.
08 December 2019
adhere
Some food photos that've slipped through the cracks:
The menu said "boneless chicken", which was not a lie, but I struggled with the occasional tendon and cartridge ;o;
Finally made it to Bar Isabel, but Thursday evening is apparently a very busy time so I could only admire the wood ceiling from the outside patio :( Tho my non-alcoholic cocktail was very tasty, it's a very herbal forward drink, which provided a much needed relief under the intense infrared heat lamps.
Jeff has doing most of the cooking, so it's been a long time since I've made some sichuan dishes.
Neo Cafe opened a second location near me, and holy their roll cakes are actually the best I've ever eaten. The cake is not the usual soft spongecake, but rather a breadier version which works so well. This flavor is pistachio and raspberry, which is a surprisingly good combo.
06 December 2019
aged
Its been a while since I fell in love with a teapot at first sight. But this little eggplant style pot from YS is soooo adorable!
Sadly there is zero reason for me to get a new teapot. I barely use any of my existing pots, and I have enough pots that I can assign each one to a type of tea that I usually drink. Overall I do want to avoid being a collector in any of my hobbies (perfumes is another slippery slope).
04 December 2019
I guess I'll never understand
Ok I think I'm losing my ability to listen to songs on repeat one and not get tired of them within a couple of days. I revise my choice of favourite song in Peachy!'s new album to this one. The instrumental sections and vocal sections are both superb!
You know I'm trying to see a new side of things
and I need you to go with me
[Scared] and I can't do this alone right now
[Oh no am I] going backwards
[falling] into my emotions
[that] I'll never understand
[Oh well] I think I need to stay up
above my own head
my god why can't we be friends
I guess I'll never understand
But yeah that's how life goes
Dark thoughts they come and go
So we make characters that look like us to feel less alone
I'm sorry, and I wish that
I could be there right now
But you can always reach out
I swear I'll come running
I'm half way across the world
but you can feel my heart
beat to your drum
To me you're not just anyone
Not just anyone
Maybe it's meant to be
that I can be happy
in Southern California
writing these songs about us
And when I'm all alone
my mind plays tricks on me
I don't know if I'm happy
I just know
I'm sorry, and I wish that
I could be there right now
But you can always reach out
I swear I'll come running
I'm half way across the world
but you can feel my heart
beat to your drum
To me you're not just anyone
I'm sorry, and I wish that
I could be there right now
But you can always reach out
I swear I'll come running
I'm half way across the world
but you can feel my heart
beat to your drum
To me you're not just anyone
I tried very hard to note down these lyrics by ear :< and then I searched for lyrics again just in case...and they exist now -_- Words in square brackets are words I did not correctly identify.
You know I'm trying to see a new side of things
and I need you to go with me
[Scared] and I can't do this alone right now
[Oh no am I] going backwards
[falling] into my emotions
[that] I'll never understand
[Oh well] I think I need to stay up
above my own head
my god why can't we be friends
I guess I'll never understand
But yeah that's how life goes
Dark thoughts they come and go
So we make characters that look like us to feel less alone
I'm sorry, and I wish that
I could be there right now
But you can always reach out
I swear I'll come running
I'm half way across the world
but you can feel my heart
beat to your drum
To me you're not just anyone
Not just anyone
Maybe it's meant to be
that I can be happy
in Southern California
writing these songs about us
And when I'm all alone
my mind plays tricks on me
I don't know if I'm happy
I just know
I'm sorry, and I wish that
I could be there right now
But you can always reach out
I swear I'll come running
I'm half way across the world
but you can feel my heart
beat to your drum
To me you're not just anyone
I'm sorry, and I wish that
I could be there right now
But you can always reach out
I swear I'll come running
I'm half way across the world
but you can feel my heart
beat to your drum
To me you're not just anyone
I tried very hard to note down these lyrics by ear :< and then I searched for lyrics again just in case...and they exist now -_- Words in square brackets are words I did not correctly identify.
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