北極星の食堂

♥ kinda back~

2011-11-28T00:52:00.001-05:00

hello lovelies~ ♡ i apologize that i've been MIA: unfortunately a lot of things happened these past few months.. sadly i was in a car accident so it's quite difficult for me to walk/sit up straight, etc for long periods of time ;___; i'm getting much better however between wedding planning & physical therapy it's been extremely hard finding time for updates! but thankfully i'm back & with tons of new make-up to boot~ ♥

♡ cell phone goodies

2011-09-14T19:47:00.001-04:00

lucky for me, i received my mini-haul from strapya after work today~ ♡

strapya world is a japanese cell & accessories webshop that's been around for a very, very long time. ･:,｡ﾟ･:,｡★ﾟ･:,｡ﾟ･:,｡☆ i've been ordering from them for years now and they've always provided exceptional service and quality items. recently my old phone died so i picked up one of the newer blackberry curve models ♥ i snagged a couple adorable cell charms, namely the "walking cat" strap and the useful black cat-in-a-sock which also doubles as a lipstick/gloss cozy~ of course when i saw they had k-on!! privacy blocker sheets, i immediately had to buy one. sadly it's made for longer screens but i can easily cut it.

lastly, i recently started a new job that requires a special pass to enter & exit the building.. i decided to go "bold" and also ordered the flashiest nekomura iroha w/hello kitty pass case i could find. it also happened to be the last one available.. о(ж＞▽＜)ｙ ☆ ﾟ i would most definitely try ordering from strapya.. of course EMS shipping can be a little pricey but it's 101% worth it considering they don't upcharge items from their original yen cost.

NARS "Striptease" Lip Gloss

2011-09-13T21:29:00.002-04:00

named InStyle magazine's best lip gloss back in 2009, NARS' Striptease is truly a gorgeous nude colour from outside the tube... if not a little bit of a hot mess. while us darker or olive-based chicks can rock a beige or nude flecked lip as well as any other lovely lady, it's certainly a little more difficult to find the perfect shade that doesn't entirely wash our faces out. this colour is totally understated sex appeal and absolutely PERFECT on nearly every skin tone.

the formula feels simply amazing; unlike other nude lip products that i've found to be either overly sticky or extremely drying, NARS once again, hits the nail on the head with a smooth, silky feel straight from the applicator. even when applied over highly pigmented lips (ahem), the colour soaks right in for maximum coverage, glitter free. sadly though, overall i was left feeling mad disappointed. despite all of its charming points, NARS really dropped the ball regarding Striptease's scent and consistency.

typically it takes a lot for the smell of a lip product to seriously offend me. fake fruit, plasticy type whiffs and everyone's favourite medicinal cherry scents aren't quite deal breakers for me especially when the product is of otherwise superior quality. surprisingly in this case, it was bad enough that i actually made a run for sephora today to return it. (☆▽☆);;; imagine spoiled concealer, oily yogurt and the slight after-mist of an ominous fishy odor rolled into one saintly, dazzling $25 lip tube. while i wasn't able to snap a pic, around the top of the tube i could even spy a ring of separated mineral oil from the rest of the colour (you can faintly see this in the photo above, toward the cap). shaking, heating or rolling didn't budge this at all. note that i also snuck a peak at a few of the other tubes and it appeared that yes, this is the norm.

man did this make me sad. very. NARS' lip glosses are a few of my favourite and personally, i have no idea how this slipped past their quality control. naughty, naughty. i'll definitely be sticking with canmake's nudy glosses from now on.

revlon ♡

2011-09-11T00:31:00.000-04:00

from l to r; colorburst, super lustrous & moon drops~

absolutely in ♥ w/revlon lipstick. normally chanel or dior has my ♡ but seriously, revlon's gorgeous formulas and mad ridiculous line of shades is simply amazing for the price & availability.

from l to r; ♥ #070 Soft Nude, #240 Sandalwood Beige, #613 Just Enough Buff, #120 Apricot Fantasy, #668 Primrose, #430 Softsilver Rose, #674 Coral Berry, #702 Blase Apricot & #704 Peach Silk.

their moon drops line (green tubes on the far light) are INCREDIBLY bright, pigmented & packs a punch to your face. "blase apricot" ironically, is one of the flashiest corals i've ever seen while "peach silk" has a little less of a red undertone and more of a pink making it slightly more wearable for every day use at work or errands. my favourite coral shade is definitely "coral berry" from their lustrous line as it's 101% appropriate for daily use & reminds me of that gorgeous orange-pink combo they use for the j.crew catalouge models ♥ their shades come in "creme" or "pearl" although even the creme shades still may have a shimmer or two depending on the colour. i LOVE their nudes and neutrals to death. "soft nude" is the only shade i've snagged from their colorburst collection & despite the very light, chalky colour, it feels lightweight, silky and applies smooth.

normally at wal-mart or target, their lustrous line is around $4-6 a pop while drugstores tend to charge a standard $8.99 or so. however i would recommend checking swatches online as US drugstores don't have samples. also, revlon's colour previews on their website & even the sticker at the bottom of the tubes are NOT accurate. at all. "blase apricot" is presented as a neutral, peach-brown but trust me, it's near fluorescent! thankfully the caps have a little window but it's difficult to tell just by peeking in.... ♥

freakin a-mazzzzing~

2011-09-07T00:26:00.000-04:00

a-freakin-mazing. ♥

i highly, highly, highly recommend picking up chanel's vitalumiere aqua perfecting make-up. as opposed to using primer, concealer, foundation & powder, this relatively new formula is like a second skin eliminating the need for multiple products. both foundation & a tinted lotion in one, its extremely gentle and spring water-like mineral texture applies easily with fingers & smooths out pores, fine lines and blemishes. after getting a quick colour match at macy's, i've been using it since sunday with simply amazing results: a gorgeous, matte finish throughout the entire day, rain, humidity & all.

combined with blush, mascara and a quick fix of lip colour, this is totally going to simplify my work-morning make up routine ♥♥ sooo worth the $$!

maury show taping ♥

2011-08-30T23:00:00.000-04:00

to celebrate my birthday last week, we finally went to see the maury show live (in person). for those unfamiliar or not residing in the US, the maury show is the epitome of the american way: tons of random debauchery, ignorance and of course, lie detector/DNA test madness. it's not so much an actual talk show as it is a circus-like madhouse of idiotic ranting and screaming. sadly, it happens to be the highlight of my morning while getting ready for work every weekday (lol).

i ordered tickets a month or so for free in advance and received them about a week before the taping. located in downtown Stamford, CT, its location was literally right off of I-95 so it was quite easy to find. since the show was early friday morning, we rented a cheap motel room about nine minutes away for convenience sake.

despite reserving a seat, technically the tickets were still first come first serve, so we arrived around 8am (doors opened at about 9am). thankfully we did leave early as there was already quite a line of 100+ people out the door!

after patiently waiting, we made it through the initial bag check/metal detectors & were seated in a waiting lounge with several flat screen tv's airing classic maury moments. ;;;

around 10:15 or so, we were led to the set's entrance and called in 50 at a time. (charlie & i were numbers 140-141). thankfully we actually made it in as afterward, we noticed a good number of people didn't make the cut. charlie & i found great seats in the back so we could easily see everything around us.

for those thinking about scoring free tickets, do know, this is NOT a quiet event to attend: before briefing the audience on proper behavior, they pumped us up with blazing club music, dancing and general rowdy fun.

while it was glaringly obvious that the show is definitely meant to egg on & instigate the guests, i can 101% assure you, it's real. oh my. is it real. despite the producers/directors having directional cards in hand to arouse anger in the more quiet guests, most of the people on the show were incredibly obnoxious/loud and generally.. insane. (one woman was STILL yelling so loud back stage that she had to be escorted out.) being in the audience also had its fair share of responsibilities: we were prepped beforehand on when exactly to stand, yell, cheer and boo. however the excitement of being there was honestly enough for most of us to jump to our feet every 2.5 seconds.

maury is exactly the same in person as on tv. if not even more hilarious between guests.

sadly since we were a little behind schedule, there was no time for pictures with the audience as he usually does.

(can you find us? HINT: next to the tallest guy in the room. lmao)

overall, it was an incredibly fun experience. ♥ i would honestly recommend it.. sure some consider the show sheer exploitation/trashiness, but as far as i'm considered, ya'all can keep your housewives/sex in the city/jersey shore & i'll hit up 800-MAURY anytime~ it was an unforgettable birthday!

bday haul~ ♥

2011-08-29T00:11:00.000-04:00

So, Friday was my birthday. Thankfully I had the weekend off & had a blast. We scored tickets to see the Maury Show live (more on that later) in Stamford Fri morning and it was so worth the troublesome NYC traffic~ ♥

Even though my bro had to head back home to Japan the week before last, he surprised me by leaving an awesome haul of cosmetics & gifts for my bday!

August's issues of steady. & Sweet magazines came with adorable バッグINバッグ style pouches~ These are incredibly handy for stashing things in my purse on the go. He also grabbed two 7-11 brand exclusive ParaDo items: an eyemake palette (GN01) & a lip rouge (BE07). I'm totally amazed by the surprisingly high quality as I could almost swear the lip rouge was NARS or MAC. (☆▽☆)

Also, I winded up with goodies from Sephora thanks to the giftcard he purchased for me: I've been DYING to grab NARS bronzing palette which includes their award winning blush, highlighter and Laguna bronzer. As a bonus goodie I also decided to try PACIFICA's new coconut scented bronzing lotion which is as delicious smelling as it sounds.

A huge thanks to my brother for the wonderful gifts~ ♥ I have to admit he was pretty brave to wonder into the cosmetics section ;;;;

shop spotlight ☆彡 ~KANFUL

2011-08-21T17:13:00.000-04:00

today, lovelies, i'd like to mention one of my favourite online shops, KANFUL. an online (& physical) consignment mega store, they cater to the savvy fasionista watching her wallet.

including a laundry list of brands from cher to chanel, marc jacobs to moussy, rebecca taylor to rich, it's a one-stop shopping experience for both japanese & western brands alike. surreal & almost mind blowing to see gelato pique and prada side by side, their prices are even more head spinning, nearly bordering on insanity. 3,990 yen for a gorgeous marc by marc jacobs tunic? well, i never!

even more outrageous is their quality ranking criteria. a couple weeks ago i found this gorgeous rich (リッチ) quilted chain purse. one of my absolute favourite brands, rich is a more upscale, expensive name that caters toward us fabulous ladies with elegant and classic taste. retailing for well over $150 USD, KANFUL had it listed for around ~30 USD at a "D grade" ranking. willing to take the risk, i quickly ordered it & was shocked when it arrived in new-like condition. the only, barely, visible traces of its second hand origin i could find were a tiny scratch on the front logo plate and a teeny stain on the inner lining.

their customer service deserves a gold star for prompt and friendly attention while the shipping & handling charges were EXTREMELY reasonable. sadly, overseas sellers tend to ship things less than economically in huge, bulky boxes adding to the shipping costs beyond reason. (i'm lookin' at you, ROSE FAN FAN & Makiko Online Shop~) for EMS i only paid around 20 USD (which generally SOUNDS expensive.. but trust me, for a heavy, padded chain purse sent via express mail from japan, it's not). in person, this is actually a very, very large bag & not at all what i thought by the original photos! ♥

i would 101% recommend giving KANFUL a shot for those looking to score an awesome deal on gently used designer goods. they have a very large selection of japanese brands not listed on their front page (use the search box).

argh ★

2011-08-02T23:03:00.000-04:00

it's been a long day. (ﾉ_-｡)

shop spotlight ☆彡 shibuya closet

2011-08-01T16:30:00.000-04:00

if there's one thing that frustrates me, it's dropping loads of $$ for shipping/handling charges, especially for a single tiny item. far worse, is the wait for overseas items, especially when ordering via airmail to save a buck or two. never mind the hassle of second party middleman services which typically charge fees that quickly add up (sadly, the US dollar is pretty weak compared to Yen..).

today, i'd like to discuss one of my favourite stores, Shibuya Closet~ located in costa mesa, CA, they have a web store in addition to the physical shop. which is an extremely lucky thing for us gals across the US! ♥ i've been playing orders via the web & phone for about a year now & i can honestly say i have had the b e s t experience everytime! reiko, the shop owner, is quite a lovely person and you can tell that she, and the staff-chan, really put forth a lot of effort and passion into picking out pieces straight out of ViVi/Sweet, etc with an japanese sensibility that would still cater to american buyers.

i adore the overall style of the shop: granted brands like MA*RS, Sly, dreamV, etc are flashy, fun and glamorous, it's significantly more difficult to find fashionable and sensible coordinate items wearable to the office or for someone my age~ (although, gal is neither age or number!) for example, lovely beberose retro shoulder bag from earlier this year above! they carry a wide range of brand & off-brand items, namely my FAVOURITES, beberose, DazzliN', Spiral Girl, Cecil McBee and so much more.

the selection on their website is updated frequently with much care. ♥ while some of the items may seem a little pricier than shopping directly in japan, you must consider the shipping is significantly cheaper, the difference of yen > dollar is vast and you eliminate the steep middle-man fees (assuming you don't have relatives or friends to purchase for you). also, as opposed to purchasing items from many of the rakuten sellers, these are 100% brand name or designer names. i jumped on the DazzliN' straw bag above as soon as i saw the post ☆

also, they have many perfect items not listed on the website: if you e-mail or call they're always willing to send you pics of pieces in stock for your choosing! please take a look at their shop blog as well and definitely give them a try!

♥ fashion whoring

2011-07-31T20:31:00.000-04:00

i ♥ retail therapy.

yesterday after work i stopped by the new marshall's in swansea, ma. it's probably the best location i've seen so far for the brand: 2.5 seconds after stepping into the store i fell in absolute love with this gorgeous kate spade chain purse. the leather is buttery soft with tiny flecks of sparkle. *____* while it's a little small & i'm not 100% sure where i'll wear it to, i couldn't resist the price tag~ (approx. $70)