Shingles

Yup, I've been sick at home with a freak incident of shingles.

Just a heads up to people, if caught within 72 hours, the doctors can give you a very strong dose of medication that helps to dry up the blisters within 5 days. I had to take 3 pills, 3 times a day for 5 days straight. 

I was lucky enough to catch it in the last few hours of that window and my blisters remained pretty contained, except on the last couple of days on medication my skin started to feel itchy. Don't scratch, just don't do it. On the side where I had my blisters, I did feel some slight pain on my nerves and sometimes I felt things travel along the blisters as if they were popping. Interesting feeling. 

I used aloe vera to ease itchiness and drank a lot of water. I'm just thankful it didn't happen in the dead of summer because I don't' think I could have handled the heat and itchiness. 

I was lucky that none of m blisters actually popped; instead, they receded and dried up within the time I was on the medication.

That's all the insight from my bought of shingles. I hope no one I know ever gets it. 

Review: Dr. Jart+ Blackhead Master Patch - nope, never again

I originally bought the one-time use, Dr. Jart Blackhead Mater Patch because I was just shy of free shipping from Sephora. When I bought it, I didn't realize it was another Korean product, but it is! I was excited to try it and used it immediately when I got home the day it was delivered.

They're advertised as: powerful yet gentle blackhead nose patches instantly remove blackheads and unclog pores while tightening and cleansing. Complete with a dry patch and wet patch for anytime, anywhere use, this two-step system features optimal pore-purifying benefits for clear, healthy-looking skin. 

The dry strip is similar to any nose strip pore remover but these did not have the slits to make it fit properly on the nose. I had to shift it down pretty far in order to wrap it around my nose. I waited longer than the recommended 10 minutes (as I usually do with these things) before removing it. I was VERY disappointed - the strip removed 3 blackheads and nothing more. I've tried regular Biore strips that work MUCH better than this. 

The wet strip, is very soothing and I did enjoy how it felt, but I had to hold it for a while before I could leave it my nose alone. It is very wet and probably would have been better if I had lied down, but I usually like to do stuff when I am waiting for my face stuff to work haha. Alone, the strip was soothing enough that I could render myself immobile for 10-15 minutes, but unfortunately, the dry strip didn't do enough for me to want to get to this second step.

One pack costs $9 and there is no way I will be buying this again.

N's guest post! - How she cleaned out her closet

Last week me and N finally had a chance to catch up and she was telling me that she had done a major purge to her closet. Some of you may remember that N and I have been cheering each other on, on our journey towards a simpler closet and better outfits. She told me about her recent purge and I asked her to write a guest post to share, because it's amazing! Without further adieu....

Heya everyone! I'm so excited to get invited to write on V's blog - thanks V! Well, really excited to share my wardrobe cleanup with you all. 

So, I had too much stuff in there that I had not worn in a long time or were so attached to that I couldn't get rid of them and all that! I came across this book '1,000 outfits from just 30 pieces - Terrific Thirty' (by Wendy Mak) and I got really inspired to try this myself! I looked at my closet and didn't even know where to start with everything all over the place and I had also added in a number of extras during the last few seasons. One morning I woke up and took everything out of my closet. I only wish I had a walk-in closet so I could see each and every piece I have in there. Anyways, I started sorting things and kept taking almost everything out. This is the first time I've let go of almost 2 garbage bags full of stuff. I let go of some of my favourite pieces but I know I'll never wear them. Some of them were pieces like coloured jeans, some blouses, maxi dresses. Last year I was hooked on shopping at Marciano and I bought a bit too much from that store! I tell ya I felt so much better after this cleanup. The idea was for me to let go of stuff and add some really good staples for work. My wardrobe cleanup was a general one but the thirty pieces I'm putting together are for work for Fall/Winter. I think this is a good start and I feel very positive I can do this. 

This is what my collection looks like now. Not very clear but I'm hoping to put it in a better way so I can see everything.

Oh thought I mention this cool project I used to organize my everyday wear jewelry items. Made this out of cork board last winter.

Now, I'm well organized and look forward to styling my looks from these 30 pieces. I'll share these in detail when I've put it all together.

Many thanks to N for taking the time and sharing her purge with us. Stayed tuned for a future post about her 30-piece capsule! I'm so excited for it!

I'm adopting my husband's 'no sweatpants' rule

3 years into dating, I found out my husband had a 'fashion rule' - he doesn't wear sweatpants out of the house. I laughed out loud when he told me this. Why? Because this is the same man who thinks wearing foam sandals he bought at a convenient store in Hawaii, is acceptable to wear as normal sandals. You know, the type you wear at the beach, or buy in an emergency to wear when you end up going to a last second pool party. Yup. 

After I got over my shock, I thought back to the 3 years we had spent together and realized, WOW, he really didn't wear sweatpants outside the house. He said it was because as a child that's what he always wore and he just didn't think they should be worn outside. And that was that. 

I, on the other hand, LOVE wearing sweatpants. Why? Because I grew up wearing a school uniform and have to dress up for work. Recently, though, I began to re-evaluate my preferred weekend attire and think that my husband's rule has some merit. 

I started observing how we dress now, as a society, and back to how people dressed up in the past: to take a flight, to go grocery shopping, or to attend a play;  perhaps in our search for comfort, we have mistakenly replaced it with sloppiness. I've seen people wear yoga pants to work because they're black pants! Because they were "black pants" - ridiculous! 

To avoid any chances for myself to ever get to that point, I've traded in my sweatpants, for alternatives, like drape pants - I've never been so happy! I am comfortable and instead of risk mistakenly looking sloppy, I now look like I'm put together, by mistake! haha. 

Review: Tony Moly Egg Pore Blackhead Steam Balm - love it

Last week I was browsing the Sephora website and came across the Tony Moly Egg Pore Blackhead Steam Balm - since I had been experimenting with masks, I've been closely inspecting my face and felt I needed to try this (although I'm told that I don't have many black heads and my pores aren't that big, but I am a bit OCD...). It was sold out on the Sephora website, but I found it at my local H Mart for almost half the price - $12.99.

Why? It was described as: A self-heating balm targeted for blackheads that removes dirt and oil within minutes. I love anything that heats up, cools, tightens or hardens on my skin. It just feels so satisfying. 

Not to mention, it's incredibly cute looking. 

I used a small dab, about the size of a pea and it was enough to apply on the sides of my nose and across. It's easy to apply and spread around, but I didn't feel it heat up at all. Nothing. I was disappointed with that, but the smell of it is very, very pleasant and the end result was quite impressive. I left it on for a little over 5 minutes (it's recommended to be left on for 3 - 5 minutes). There was a noticeable difference in my pores and my nose felt very smooth, but it did lack the clean and airy feeling that I would get from using a nose strip. 

Would I get it again? Yes - a little amount goes a long way and I can see it lasting for a good year with regular use. For $12.99 you can't beat the value for an effective product. It's a very quick and easy, no-mess way to get results.

Sephora versus H Mart pricing for Korean skincare products

Lately I've been on a bit of a face-mask purchasing binge and while I was surfing the Sephora website, came across the Korean brand - Tonymoly. 

I placed 2 items (a blackhead steam balm, and an eye mask that makes you look like a panda  (so cute!!)) in my basket, only to find that they were sold-out. As luck would have it, I had a meeting the next day and walked passed my local H Mart and came across the exact same items (I didn't even know that part of the store had opened), selling for less than what I found them for on both Sephora websites.

The Sephora US site priced them at $18.00 and $3.00 respectively, and to account for the exchange rate, the Sephora Canada site price is selling them at $23.00 and $4.50.

I purchased them for $12.99 and $1.99 respectively.

For any of you interested in Korean products from Sephora, check your local H Mart first.

I will do a follow-up review post when I have had a chance to try these out. 

Small regret purchase

I found these incredibly cute pouches at Winners and I couldn't resist - I bought them!

Considering I spent 20 minutes in the store pondering their pros and cons, I should have listened to my gut and walked away from them. 

While I love the pattern and material, I am not 100% behind the design - you will notice that the pouches have grommets near the top, and what makes for a cute design detail, is not practical in function. 

It cuts off the amount of space you have to open the pouch with and despite the actual size of the pouch, you can't fit anything that won't fit through the opening. To me, this is a major fail. 

So why did I buy them? The patterns, the care-free material and no-fuss lining, the sturdiness of each pouch - sadly, against my better judgement, I compromised on what a 'good purchase' meant to me and succumbed. After taking them home and trying to fit the things I want into them, I knew they had to go. I was thisclose to returning them, when I had a black-out moment and cut the tags off of them. WHY? I really cannot begin to explain .... I blame it on their cuteness and my natural love of pouches. 

So now, I'm stuck with 3 pouches that I didn't need to begin with, and find a bit annoying to use the way I want them to be used. I'm sure it's not that horribly bad, but this is definitely the first purchase in a while that I'm not 100% satisfied with. It cuts into my remaining wardrobe budget too, grrrr. 

Live and learn. 

One quarter left of the year - how are my budget and goals looking?

This year, I set aside $1,000 for my wardrobe budget, not including investment pieces. We're down to the last 3 months - how's it going? It's going pretty great!

With $1,000 it gives me $250 per quarter to spend on seasonal or staple items and so far I've purchased 31 items, with $168.44 left to spend.

Most of my purchases have been for work, 8 of them being shoes. Despite purchasing 8 pairs of shoes, I've also let go of about 10 pairs and my count is currently at 47, compared to the 50+ I started with at the beginning of the year (I wish I had written down my start numbers). Even though I purchased more shoes than I had wanted to, they are all staple pairs for work and some were to replace those that were on their way out.

Aside from shoes, I've been quite successful with almost all of my wardrobe goals that I set out to meet this year - briefly, I downsized the number of coats and jackets I have, have not purchased a single bag or wallet and have been regularly rotating throughout my collection, and continued to purge my wardrobe.

How are you doing with your wardrobe goals?

September comings and goings

Coming - 3 

Technically, NOTHING (at least nothing that I bought myself) - It is my second no-spend month of the year!!

• Gifted - Swarovski necklace
• Gifted - Banana Republic earrings
• Gifted - Jeweled firefly necklace

Goings - 3+

• Necklace
• Tahari sleeveless top - actually, it will be demoted to a sleep shirt (letting go of another one of my sleep shirts which I don't log in my Stylebook App)
• Banana Republic khaki colored trousers - don't like the way they fit anymore 
• not directly from my home closet, but from my closet at my parents' house; I donated a number of work appropriate pieces. I had been hoping I would fit into them later, but my friend is involved in a program to collect clothing for women who are looking to get back on their feet, so I let them go. And I'm very, very, very close to completely having no clothing at my parents' place.