Hello again! Before I dive into the sea of entries to come / clear, let me just do a quick update on what's up with my life as of now. I will keep it short but I cannot promise that it would not be at least a tiny bit rambly!

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It is so cliche but true, time flies!

In the blink of an eye, 16 weeks had flown by just like this and here I am, out of maternity leave, back at work.

:(

Well, work is work, nothing new and most have been doing it for a long time without a complaint yet I can't help but pull a sad face at that thought. Aside from the usual I'll-miss-my-baby thing, I had finally gotten the hang of my 4 month routine and am now asked to re-adapt to a whole new one. A new one that involves very, very little sleep on top of the little sleep I already had.

Though such is life and I guess I can't complain. Besides, many (m)others have done this and gone through it just fine so it really is no biggie. I assume?

Regardless, my point of this quick entry is also to 'forewarn' you guys that while I did establish a bit of a rhythm in blogging again, that may be lost with this new schedule.

After all, once I get home from a long day of work all I really want to do (and have to do) is tend to my little one. Hence the amount of time I can dedicate here (be it photo taking, editing or writing) will lessen no doubt.

All in all, I think all the rambling above sums up my situation very well. If you were not very interested in the words, here's the keypoint to take away — I am back at work, boohoo.

Though just for kicks, here is a preview of some entries to come!

I have snapped and edited (resized) most of these pictures and am mainly short of the write up, which I will manage when I get some time on my hands.

So... do stay tuned for these!

Thanks again to all for sticking by my inactive periods and there are so many things that I would like to post on here but as of now sadly, time does not permit. I do hope that along the way I can, eventually, get into the swing of things and start putting up more entries aside from the ones I have lined up to write about!

For now, this is definitely what I am missing the most about the last 4 months: 24 hours with this little being!

If any of the above 'previews' interest you more you can drop a remark and I will see to drafting that one up first! Else, it is whatever comes to mind when it comes to mind.

Thanks for reading!

As always, do follow me over at instagram (icyabstract) for quick pictorial updates of what is going on with me!

Hello everyone!

Once again posting up a quick mention as part of a favor to a really nice blogshop I came to know about awhile ago.

The blogshop in mention is myMannequin.sg!

Sarah, the owner of the blogshop, is closing it down and clearing the stock on there hence...

The sales itself is a good thing but yet it's quite a pity that myMannequin.sg is closing down because I really like the style of the clothes on there and I think the pieces are really nice too!

It's a little preppy, a little dressy and overall back when I had to pick a few pieces for an advertorial, I know I had a pretty hard time deciding!

Here's a quick peak:

And yes, as per the banner at the start, everything is below S$15!

Such as how the lovely teal / red dress is only S$15 and how all the collars are below S$10.

There's loads more on the site but of course I am not copying their whole inventory over so, if you see what you like, do hop on over to myMannequin.sg and help Sarah clear her stock!

Click here to shop :)

And that's my quick shoutout! Since I didn't manage to do an advertorial for her (because I started showing when the clothes arrived), I thought this shoutout was the least I can do as the blogshop owner, Sarah, is really a nice person!

Well, thanks for reading and I hope everyone's busy getting into the festive swing of things! Catch you all around when I can!

Hello everyone!

Okay, I am officially on hiatus but I wanted to clear up this post first because it is duly belated.

Technically I have more Poh Heng x Minnie Mouse Limited Edition pendants to play around with and showcase and my original plans were to perhaps amp it up and mix some colors in with Gold and Silver (representing White Gold) looks as opposed to my initial smokier ones.

However, on the day I set out to do those looks, the little one decided to see the world so... plans were changed. While I'm home all the while, it's almost impossible to throw on even simple looks now, much less complicated ones so a close up feature / mention is all I have for you all right now.

Though do carry on reading the post if you are interested to find out how you can snag 1 of the 3 Limited Edition Minnie Totes that I have to give away!

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So for this second feature, I was presented with the Signatures Limited Edition pieces, which is a real shame because I only wore this out once! Both are pretty statement pieces and at 4cm in length, they definitely draw some attention!

Of the two, my favorite is the 18k White Gold Minnie Stellar pendant just because of Minnie's super playful stance on the pendant and not forgetting the sparkly diamonds!

The 22K Yellow Gold Minnie Fashionista is actually a little 'loud' for me. I don't mind little pieces of gold such as the rose pendant or as arm candy but on the neck, this 4cm pendant pulls too gold for my liking. Though those who favor gold would find this perfecto.

As mentioned, the Signature Pieces are Limited Edition and there are only 100 pieces each!

While pricey, they are definitely something precious to gift for that someone extra, extra special!

Now if you happen to be looking at something more petite that will be around for you to ponder your purchase, why not the Bow pendant.

While a seemingly simple bow to represent Minnie's trademark hair accessory, this pendant is probably my favorite of the whole lot.

It is dainty, simple and yet detailed enough with the diamonds around the heart of the pendant. Maybe it is just my jewelry preference but while I loud statement pieces are fun, these smaller and simpler ones are easy to pair with any outfit and rather timeless too - like Minnie!

On my nails - MAC Mean & Green (chopped down at the hospital, ha!)

Well, now that I have gone through these lovely pendants and while it is a pity I couldn't showcase them better let's not dwell on that sad bit because it's....

GIVEAWAY TIME!

So I have three Limited Edition Poh Heng x Minnie Mouse Totes to giveaway! The totes I am giving away are brand new, not the one pictured below :)

(oops, didn't manage to get a better shot of the tote after all the busy-ness!)

These totes are only available via this giveaway and also a giveaway on Poh Heng's website (giveaway is going on till 19th December on there). They are otherwise not available or redeemable at Poh Heng outlets so, in a way, these are also Limited Edition and only available in select quantities!

Here's how you can take part to win 1 of the 3 totes up for grabs:

• Answer this question:
  Which year did Poh Heng partner with Disney as the first official jewellery licensee in Singapore? (ahem, hint here)
• Leave your name & email address
• Only 1 entry per person
• Open to those residing in Singapore only

Example:
[the correct answer]
Sara, icyabstract@gmail.com

Winners will be drawn at random from the pool of right answers!

GIVEAWAY ENDS 22nd DECEMBER and I'll be sure to contact the winners the minute I can!

Due to my slightly random schedule, don't worry if I haven't announced the winners the minute the contest closes!

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So phew! This post was partly done via my phone, partly done on the few minutes I have on my computer so I hope I didn't overlook any typos etc!

Feels a bit like Mission Impossible each time I open my laptop up!

But anyway, I'll leave you all now and see you again! Do take part in the giveaway (totes are forever handy to have, ha!) and good luck!

A bit of an On My Nails entry and a bit of a Hello, whatsup post.

Last week I had the chance to meet up with some long time beauty pals that I have not seen in for-ever – Mag, Sarah and Sophia! Boy was it good to catch up with them all again even though it was for a brief period and over dinner but it is almost like having a social life and I definitely missed that, and them!

With the meetup, Mag had also handed me a loot I troubled her to pick up on my behalf along with some extra items thrown in! Thank you Mag!

One of the items happen to be the MAC Mean & Green polish, which to my knowledge was released with Venomous Villians.

I love such 'oil-sleek' tones that flash various shades when it hits the light. I had contemplated this beauty but never got it because I already have Space Cadet which is almost an exact dupe.

Though thanks to Mag I now have both this and Space Cadet!

I doubt I would have to introduce this popular beauty very much but Mean & Green flashes crimson, magenta, olive and all with a tinge of gold, depending on how light reflects off it.

Above were shots with my phone and here are some camera shots where you can see the sparkles in greater detail.

Such beauty!

Polish aside, here are some random little snippets that the lovely ladies had put up on instagram! Snagging them for my entry, hope you don't mind :)

From Sarah's instagram:

From Sophia's instagram:

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The latest update would be if I don't disappear at any random time within this week, I would most certainly be 'gone' next Monday. By gone I really just mean transitting into a whole new part of my life which is all of a sudden making me feel nervous.

I don't think that I would have zero time for my blog after but I presume I may be MIA for 1 to 2 weeks at least and that makes me feel like churning out as much as I can, while I still can!

We'll see how it goes but if this space suddenly becomes silent... you might just know why ;)

Thanks for reading this brief update!

p.s. Today is the boy's birthday but due to a teenie-tiny surprise I have in store for him, I seem to be more excited than he is! ha!

A little late on sharing this information but incase you didn't already know...

You can now buy NIP + FAB online via their website!

NIP + FAB is already rather accessible via selected Watsons stores so some may wonder why an online purchasing portal is even necessary but if you ask me, it's quite handy!

When the makeup range first launched, I honestly hunted down a couple of Watsons close by my area (because I just didn't have the time to head to the bigger Watsons e.g. town area) and didn't manage to find NIP + FAB amongst the shelves, which is quite frustrating, trust me.

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But anyway, that's a mini-ramble to accompany the more important announcement that NIP + FAB is now available online. On top of that, orders over S$30 qualify for free delivery (within Singapore).

I have previously done a brief coverage of their skin and body line if you haven't read it yet!

My favorite products from them would definitely be Dry Hand Fix and the Multi-Fix Oil. I am intrigued to give Sheer Make-Up Fix a try but I am still contemplating adding to my stash.

Has anyone tried Sheer Make-Up Fix? Do you like it?

Thanks for reading!

Hello!

So sorry that I have been disappearing from here or just not entirely exciting of late. I know the beauty realm is abuzz with new brands that are making or have made their way to our island. Along with beauty spaces being revamped, fun launches and all that fancy and exciting stuff. In fact, I have been living vicariously through twitter and instagram with regards to these, which sounds kinda sad... I know.

As of now, my life (sadly but excitingly in its own way) is revolving around a different kind of buzz and it's the whole last minute jitters, making sure all is in order and prepping so I don't forget any essentials.

Amidst all that, I have been trying to grab some me-time when I can; allowing myself to slack around for a bit, just laze in bed, have masking sessions and all that frivolous stuff. I don't believe that I can't catch a breath after (amibitious?) but it really is all about enjoying the calmness and I suppose peacefulness of things right now before everything changes!

After all, according to the doctor, it can be anytime now!

Of late I haven't been in much of a blogging mindset of late and I do draw a blank when I hit 'New Entry' but I'd like to think it's just a phase and that words will return to me? ha!

Though honestly, you know that feeling when you write something and just keep deleting it? Yes.. that's happening to me. Bleh!

Actually, this was part of an intro to another entry I was doing up but I figured, an intro this length is madness so I extracted the whole life update bit and decided to do a .... life update!

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I know it's not much but to let you know that I'm alive, well, and still have an active little kicker trashing around in me making it her mission to prevent me from sleeping at night.

But throwing a little beauty / makeup relation on here, here's another sneak peak at the messiness that was my dressing table earlier today.

Dundundunnnn~

Hope everyone is having an awesome weekend!

Mine would most likely be spent pram-hunting along with a trip to the airport to pick someone up. While I am itching to go on a holiday, that is not going to happen anytime soon but oh well, airports are fun regardless!

Thanks for reading this random update!

I don't often switch up the contents in my makeup pouch because everything in there is essentially what I would need already.

On occasions I may throw in an extra lip gloss, lip stick or maybe facial mist though if I don't need them anymore, I usually remember to take them out.

If anything, the one category that 'builds up' the most within my makeup pouch would be lip stuff, for varying reasons. Sometimes I simply forget to take them back out and other times I would deliberately bring them along in an effort to give them more love and (hopefully) use them up.

Nonetheless, here are the items I lug about:

A rundown of items in here (somewhat left to right):

• Anna Sui Oil Blotter
• Gatsby Powdered Oil Blotter
• Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream (travel size)
• Revlon Eyeliner Pencil (which I should throw out...)
• Maquillage Glossy Perfect Rouge in RD306
• Maybelline Moisture Extreme in Natural Nude
• Revlon Colorburst Lipstick in Soft Nude
• Lip Smackers x Paul Frank lipbalm
• Bvlgari Perfume (small sample / travel vial)

I have a couple of items which I photographed separately and listed in this entry but those are mainly a powder compact, spft protection, 1 more lip item and liner / brow stuff.

I know the first question I may get is... why do you carry around two oil blotters?!

Well, because the Gatsby powdered oil blotter is the ultimate oil blotter by ridding the icky oil feel and setting the skin, making it feel smooth and fresh again. The Anna Sui oil blotter is non-powdered and reserved for situations where I get nit-picky and feel like my skin is oiling up a little and feeling blah yet it's not oily enough to justify using the Gatsby blotter.

I know... it's strange but does anyone else get what I mean?

As for the lip stuff, I find carry neutral tones would be the easiest so if I am heading out with a bold lip, I would bring that along for touch ups. Otherwise, I would solely rely on what I have in here though of late, the most popular thing I slap on when I need to touch up my lip color is the Maquillage Glossy Perfect Rouge; I am almost out of it!

Everything else is really in there... just cause.

A perfume incase I run out without perfume or my perfume fades away by mid-day, a handcream incase my palms get dry and liners incase I want to intensify my eyelook after a day out.

So do share, what do you carry around in your makeup bag? Do you prefer to be prepared or travel light?

Thanks for reading!

Hello again, I disappeared off here for a little while.

Work has consumed me and work-aside, I have been 'laborously' (only because it's not exactly that labourous) customizing my new device to take over the world.

If you follow me on twitter, I have officially swapped over to the Android. Finally.

Alls good and nothing has changed much as I have a slight inkling of how Android works, thanks to my LG stint from a few years back but there are some discoveries to be made with all the updates and such.

Being my OCD self, I had to get a case and 'beautify' the outlook of my phone before I started using it so here's how my SIII looks now.

Sidetracking but can I just gasp at the quality of Samsung Note's pictures? I used the boy's phone to take a shot of my phone and the quality is kinda awesome.

This make-shift phone get-up is sitting on the cutesy, girly side but I have some 'simpler' cases coming my way and a super cute dust plug I can't wait to use.

Just wondering, is anyone else as OCD about this as I am? You must have a phone cover before you start using your phone?

That aside, I will have some stuff for you guys soon!

Not too much makeup in terms of LOTDs since my makeup life has been a bore lately.

I have been a little lazy with my contacts and would rather sleep that extra 15 minutes and head out with glasses instead. The weekends have also been demoted to makeup-less periods instead of the color experimentation period it once was.

Regardless, I still have posts covering hauls, some makeup mentions, skincare, bodycare and more coming up soon!

I have the pictures taken since it is another OCD of mine to snap pics before I use anything. All I need now is to find time to sit down and write them all up.

Bare with me a little through this barren blog period!

Alrightey, all that aside, I finally caught Batman! I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it but I really liked the show. It's a lot darker and more storyline driven though what really got me most hyped up was the end of it. I was a little anti-Anne Hathaway playing Cat woman and while I still don't think she was the perfect choice, I think she did a good job.

And a random statement... I knew that good guy was that. I knew it! He just looks it! Okay, I'll leave that ambiguous statement there. Those who have seen the show would know what I am talking about!

Until next time, thanks for sticking around and I promise proper updates soon!

I'm still on the look out for Android apps so if you have good task ones / twitter apps etc, do recommend!

Maybe I cheated a little and threw the LOTD mention into the header to keep this post semi-beauty relevant.

Either ways, there is a LOTD mention but also a sum up / round up of some stuff going on in life and a funny happening at the simple birthday dinner yesterday.

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So... first a quick 'life mention'. I never broadcasted this but some of my makeup pals might know.

I have moved in with the fiance, moving over to his place with his family that is. For a couple of reasons, one of which, probably to accustom myself first, since I will have to eventually? And another is that it is more convenient for me to get to work and home from his place.

Hence, that would explain all the makeup moving I have talked about and the new backgrounds you see in some of my LOTD posts.

But point being for this mention, I got to head home-home over the start of the weekend and just stay the night, somewhat a little birthday privilege. As simple as that may seem, it was really nice to be home again with my family and all in the environment I spent most of my life at. Thankfully I didn't have to pack much since I didn't move my whole life over to the fiance's place and have everything that I would need at home.

To prepare for dinner, I simply carted over the basic stuff (foundation, brows, mascara I'm loving now) and rummaged through my home-stash for the rest.

Here's what I brought over:

Items:
- Biore Aquarich UV SPF 50 PA+++
- Canmake Pressed Powder (in shade 02)
- 0kuma Undereye Concealer (in shade 01)
- MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer (in NC20)
- Urban Decay Primer Potion, housed in Clinique jar
- Kpalette Lasting 2 Way Eyebrow in 01
- Maquillage Brow Wax in 77
- Black Eyeshadow (to set  liner)
- CLIO Professional Brush Liner in Black, buried below
- Helena Rubinstein Lash Feline Macara Waterproof

I brought along a couple of brushes too but nothing fancy and really simple basic ones.

Brushes:
- 2 x ELF Blending Brushes (looove these and they are so inexpensive)
- 1 ELF Crease Brush
- 1 brandless fluffy blending brush
- 1 artstore brush (to set my liner)

Okay... maybe after listing it down it does seem like a lot but it's a lot in a compact manner. I managed to squeeze and fit all these into my trusted Lancôme makeup pouch.

From home, these are the items that I fished out to use

From home:
- Models Prefer eyepalette (from a pal in Australia)
- LA Girl Platinum Blush in Semi-sweet
- Everyday Minerals Yard Sale blush (used as a highlighter)
- Anna Sui eyelash curler
- Essence of Beauty blush brush (from the duo)

The unseen-unmentioned items would be skincare, body lotion, makeup remover and all that, which I thankfully have at home.

Makeup-wise, I didn't find something to my liking to contour with so I did what I haven't done in awhile - contour with blush!

I must say I really like the effect. So maybe my tan-ish blush shades will get a couple of uses now!

I never mentioned anything about lips but I have on Lancôme's Rouge in Love in 365N, something I dug out from my makeup touch-up bag. So that's technically a cheat sneak but goes to show I have enough lip products dumped in there from neutrals to 'bolds' that I need not fret to bring a lip item along.

Here's a close up at the eyelook, though it's really nothing to shout about. Yet another neutral, yes.

The shades that I used from the palette:

Shots were all taken with my iphone so they aren't super fab but good enough representation shots!

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Speaking of phones.... I have somewhat announced it on my instagram but thanks to my parents, I may be (as my friend calls it) switching over to the 'dark side'.

In truth, I have been eyeing the S3 for a good while now. It doesn't help that my dad and the fiance are both Samsung Note users and trust me, my dad is very good at selling a product so this has been on my mind. I still love Apple but I have gotten a little bored with the iPhone, plus the whole customizable point of the android platform is extremely alluring!

Well, I'm talking this much but still holding on to my iPhone because... having to switch over your whole life from one phone to another is quite a process!

Anyhoo, I'll do it eventually and would be fab if Android users out there recommend apps or little neat tricks to learn! I am a total android noob.

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Last but not least, to end it off in a rather comical happening. I love Japanese food and opted to have simple dinner with both families at Yayoiken, which the boy was constantly raving about.

When it came to cake-cutting, they gave us cute little side-dish plates instead of flat plates and we actually ate cake with chopsticks! They said they didn't have forks... which I kind of doubt but eitherways, it makes for a fun memory - cake with chopsticks...

So that's my loooong post summing up a couple of things from a look to what's going on with my life right now. This weekend sure was fun and I wasted spent a good part of Sunday just slacking and lazing around.

I think it's harder to recover from a fun-filled / slacked out weekend as opposed to a busy and bustling one! Either ways, hope everyone doesn't get the Monday Blues tomorrow!

Thanks for reading and thanks everyone for the birthday wishes via Instagram, Facebook or Twitter! I truly appreciate it all :)

Can I just share how absolutely stunning Mila Kunis looks in this teaser video for Miss Dior Autumn Winter 2012.

I admit to raising an eyebrow when I first caught word of Mila Kunis being the face of Dior's line of bags because my impression of her will always be that dorky, comical 'That 70s' girl.

However, I love the elegant styling, black and white treatment to the video and how there is almost a whiff of twiggy and Audrey Hepburn in this. It's a modern elegance yet in an old-hollywood fashion.

Very captivating!

If retro isn't your thing, here's Mila Kunis looking serene in the modern variant for Dior.

Love Mila's transformation for Dior?

Thanks for reading!