theChas

Dior Event

2010-05-27T02:34:00.000-04:00

So a Dior National was at our store the other day, and I got my makeup done. It was pretty cool learning some tips and tricks from him! Plus, he was such a sweetie too!

I got the Airflash put on me...it gave me some awesome coverage, but man! that stuff is thick! I don't think I can wear that at all; it's just too much for me. I guess I'm spoiled with the Face Fabric, but even the Luminous Silk doesn't feel like that. I like coverage, but I also like to feel like my skin can breathe...

The MUA artist also did the SoCal thing and put way too much, and I'm talking a sheet load of bronzer on me. I did see his point though..if I'm going to be working under fluorescent lighting, I've got to play the makeup up a bit, but dizamn! The highlight, Radiance Booster Pen, was awesome though; I really want to get it! It's water based so you can really layer it on, and it won't give you that porous look which is a problem I have with highlighters. It's a very nice finish and absorbs into your skin moisturizing it as well so it doubles as a skincare product.

I also loved the brow pencil which has a powder finish and is waterproof so it finishes like you're sculpting hair and won't smudge. It's kind of an ouchy price on your wallet though, so I'm still contemplating that one and waiting for my Kate one to come in the mail from JPN.

Another product that really surprised me is the Diorshow Iconic. I had no idea it was a lash primer, assuming it was a mascara this whole time. Apparently though, it's just a lash primer with black pigment in it. It contains rosewater so it's hydrating to the lashes, and helps to keep the lash hair strong. It also has a gel-like primer in it and has a curling effect for your lashes as well. The MUA didn't use a lash curler at all on my lashes and they actually curled! This never happens as my lashes are straight straight straight. I was really surprised so that ended up being one of my purchases. I don't have to layer two mascaras anymore as I can use this primer instead. I find with the white primers, they tend to straighten out the lashes that I just curled but this does the opposite. I pair it with my Imju Fiberwig, and it works really well! Granted, it's not as much of a curl as it would be if I used a lash curler, but it does the trick, and I can give my lashes the break it needs. Will do a full review with pics on it later methinks...now onto the pics!

Without flash...oh! I almost forgot. Another thing that I was kind of ??? About was he put this...non lipstick on me that pretty much wore out by the time I got home. Sad :( because I love dior lipsticks and glosses so I was kind of excited about seeing what he'd pick, but I guess because the eye was so heavy he went...er.uber natural on my lips? But it wore off by the time I got home so I just put some chapstick on...

He also didn't put eyeliner on me. Kind of shocking since I'm so gung ho about eyeliner, but it softens up this look a bit and kind of works. What does everyone think? Would it have been better with eyeliner?

With flash!

All in all, it was good learning a little more about Dior and some tips. I also put on colors that I normally wouldn't wear and got out of my comfort zone a bit.

Tokidoki Weekend

2010-05-26T23:47:00.000-04:00

Tokidoki weekend came and went and now we're gearing up for Temptu weekend, but here's the past looks anyway:

TEMPTU

2010-05-13T03:19:00.000-04:00

Heya Peeps!

So I was fooling around at Sephora today and got to try out Temptu. I've always been curious about airbrushed makeup, but didn't want to bother anybody about it to get the machine out, or never came in early enough to try it on my own...voila! I got it done today, and I must say, it is quite nice. I pretty much did my whole face in 5 min or less (that's including the time it takes for it to set and dry a little). It's quick, easy, and goes from very sheer to a buildable full coverage. I also got my blush and highlighting done as well. It usually takes me 10-20 min (depending on the kind of coverage I want) for me to do skin/foundation so this quick method is very convenient. The pods are pretty easy to change out (they basically pop on and off), and they've got a variety of shades to match. What they DO NOT have a variety of, however, is color such as blushes and no shadows, but I think those are probably going to come out at some point or another.

The finish is very dewy/glowy which is nice for cameras, but if this isn't the look that you're used to, then I'm gonna say that you're not going to like it. I'm on the tip of the iceberg when it comes to dewy and my skin. I love the dewy look, but I feel like on my skin, it can look like I'm just getting oily...I think I could rectify this with a little powder to set it though. It also doesn't dry matte, it remains just a tad sticky hence another reason why I would finish off with some powder.

You do not need a primer or concealer with this foundation as there is already primer within the foundation, and since it's so buildable, you don't need concealer.

I also had to buff it in a bit with a stippiling brush after it had dried on one side of my face because I had more put on one side than the other, but other than that, it has a very nice finish. I can see why it would be great for photos and events.

It IS quite expensive though. I feel like my Armani LSF and Armani Face Fabric (also already expensive foundations) does the job pretty much just as well as Temptu. The only difference is that it's not as easy and fast to apply as the Temptu. And if you're anally retentive like me, you spend all that time blending and shizz. Pretty fun though, I can see myself going into work and just spraying it on!

Here's some comparison pics:

Also wearing one of the blushes and the highlighter....

Wow the rain made my hair look awesome, lol. Also wearing NARS's new lipstick: Love Devotion with a mix of some kind of BUXOM gloss that I can't remember haha. And this is the Armani Face Fabric (excuse the nude lips, I was playing around and trying to find a good nude shade)

It's probably the flash that's making them look the same, but I feel like the coverage is pretty similar. The only difference is that I have powder on with the Armani and I didn't put any powder on with the Temptu although I definitely would so you don't have the kind of sticky finish. Hopefully, I'm going to get trained in Temptu this month so if you guys have any questions, let me know.

DUN DUN DUN!

2010-05-08T02:43:00.000-04:00

I LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVEEEEEEEEE! \^0^/

Hello Everyone (Who May Still Read This?),

I know I've been seriously MIA...and there's nothing I can really say to excuse it. =/ Life got pretty busy, went through a lot of changes, and I just couldn't keep up with blogger anymore. Not like none of you ladies (and gents) have busy lives, but I just couldn't find the time to blog. Hope everyone's doing well and that you'll forgive me for my absence!

As far as makeup goes, for the past year or so I haven't really been wearing much makeup at all (also contributing to the lack of posts). I wasn't really feeling it with the posts. My skin had gotten so bad that every time I'd make a post, I just didn't feel confident enough posting on my blog anymore. It made me really lazy with my makeup. Pretty much, I'd slap on some powder and eyeliner and call it a day.

I'm still no less busy than I was before. In fact, I'm even busier. I've got two jobs that pretty much eat up my life, but it leads me to this very important point:

SO one of the jobs that I have is at Sephora!! YAY! I'm only on cashier, but they're moving me up to color STAT I've already started doing mini makeups on people and haven't been Sephora trained yet. ^_^ I'm seriously loving working there and, since I can't afford to be lazy with my makeup anymore, I've been doing quite a few FOTDs lately. I thought I'd share the quick pics that I've taken here and there of some of the looks that I've done so far. I'm going to try and do more mini posts so keep your fingers crossed and lemme know what you guys think!

Alright...so I caved, jumped on the bandwagon, and did a really toned down version of Lady Gaga's Grammy's Look. This is me sans lipstick because I had to go find the color in the store lol:

And this is after coming back from work late at night so I had to use flash :( I did find the lipstick though!

With crappy light lolol:

I guess if I wanted to glam it up some more á la Gaga, I would've put heavier liner all around my eyes and slapped on a pair of falsies. I also would've put on some more blush and make it more angled as well as amped up to hot pink in the lip department...

Here's another FOTD I liked (again, sans lipstick):

I normally don't wear colors this bright!

And here's my most recent one:

I didn't really know what I was doing when I did this, but it was too late to change it by the time I was finished...fun tiemz!

Alright! That's pretty much it! Until next time...

P.S. - I'm going to really try and read my ladies' posts, but I can't promise that I'll catch 'em all (like a Pokemon). I'll try my best though and leave comments when I can. :) So sorry! I know this is sucky!

Random FOTDs etc.

2009-02-15T03:00:00.012-05:00

Is anybody having trouble with their layouts when posting? My pictures won't resize properly for some strange reason so I apologize for how big and out-of-sorts they are, but they just refuse to be fixed!

Anyways, thought I'd get this started again with some FOTDs from the weekend. Unfortunately, both these looks were taken at the end of the day so my makeup looks a little worn off. I apologize! It's taken me a while to work up the courage and actually post full FOTDs here again because my skin has been a big ol' piece of crap lately =/. I'm thinking of using EDM, but don't really know what colors to pick from the free sample set you can get. Anybody have any suggestions?

Okay, on to the FOTDs:

Just another black and red pretty much the same as this.

And another NARS Demon Lover look:

And, even though I REALLY hated the pics that I took, this one's a black smokey look from an Inaugural Ball that I graciously got invited too during the inauguration of President Obama. DC was throwing inauguration parties left and right! The city was insane, lol.

Ewwww, I look pasty and shiny lol.

...and from waaaaaaayyyyy back when (before the epic hiatus) I told arashi I would post some concert pics so here they are =) :

In the disgustingly hot summer...

In the horribly frigid winter...

Again...please please PLEASE excuse my horrible, horrible ~~face~~/skin. D: I've just been really hatin' on myself lately. It needs to stop.

Alright, so that's it for now. I'll do more legit posts soon; I promise. Thanks for still bloggin' with me! ^_^

P.S. - I am using MAC's Dazzle Lash on top of my Etussais Separate mascara...what do you think? I think it's made my lashes a little more wispier. I'm rather liking it, though I wouldn't recommend wearing it alone if you have straight lashes, hence the layering of mascaras.

P.P.S.- Anna, this is for you!

My Gizmo! <3

**Concert photos and Gizmo photo courtesy of Michelle, thanks!

Did you miss me?

2009-02-05T03:08:00.002-05:00

I'm back and I has a new domain courtesy of a wonderful friend! =)

clickme!

Update your pages/bookmarks/whatever and updates to come shortly!

Belated Ode to Summer Lost

2008-10-03T04:49:00.004-04:00

As the title says, this is a severely delayed FOTD from some of the summer looks that I had lined up. Alas, I didn't do all that I had planned, but, who knows, maybe I'll still do them anyways hehe. Fall is by far my most favorite season of the year, not only for the weather, but also for the colors and the fashion! I want to pimp out the brown faze I'm currently fixated upon and come up with a bunch of looks for the season! =)

Anyshoe, here is the last FOTD that I did prior to my brief hiatus. You can really see how long my hair has gotten, o_O and it's even longer still. I swear, my hair grows like an effing weed...

As you can see...I don't think blue shadows are the greatest color on me.... =/ Still trying to make it work. I think it's because I have a lot of blue undertones in my skin and it washes me right out. Light blue is my worst enemy, even though I love the color.

If I remember correctly, here are all the products that I used:

What I Used

Face
Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation Primer
Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation SPF 15 - Porcelain Silk
Arman Microfil Loose Powder 1
NARS Orgasm/Laguna Duo

Eyes
MAC Shadestick Beige-ing
MAC Shadestick Sea Me
MAC p/g Sunpepper
MAC p/g Dazzleray
MAC e/s Parrot
MAC Powerpoint Eye Pencil - Engraved
NARS eyeliner pencil - tourquoise
Stila brow duo
Etussais mascara
Too Face Lash Gel

Lips
Burts Bees lipwax

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also, I might, keyword MIGHT be applying for another job at a beauty store! I need all of your ladies' (and gents?) help! I'm thinking of making a folder of some of my FOTDs to show them since I have no official beauty experience or experience in retail. I would love your suggestions as to which picture you think I should use...if they're good enough. =/

I'm Back...Again

2008-10-01T23:39:00.002-04:00

HelloooOoOoOoo~

*echo*

*echo*

My lovely bloggers! I am back! Sorry for the two month hiatus...I fail at life! Sort of. I had a bunch of things going on all at once and before I knew it, so much time had passed by. I am so sorry to those of you who probably have given up on reading this because of my lack of update. Thanks to those of you who poked me about it and wondered where I went. I live! So now that it's a new month I thought I'd start fresh again so be expecting more updates soon!

To those of you who are on my blog list: I'll try to catch up with as many posts as I can, but for time's sake (which I unfortunately have none of) and for the prevention of me starting to sound redundant when I comment, I don't think I'll be able to comment on all your posts, but I will read them all! <3's.

I hope people still read this thing. =(

Hair Tip Numbero Dos and Mini Haul

2008-07-25T03:00:00.000-04:00

Hair looking gross? A little stringy and in need of freshening? Well fear not! Because I bring forth this Oscar Blandi dry hair shampoo to save the day!
(Hahaha, I sound like a bad infomerical)

No, really though, if you're like me and color your hair nine ways to hell, then you probably don't wash your hair everyday. I used to before I went to college, but alas, those days a long gone. Instead, I wash my hair every 2-3 days and I noticed that during the end of the last day, it will look disgustingly oily and separates into a bunch of pieces. Yeugh!

I remember browsing through a Sephora catalogue and noticing a section on dry shampoos and thought that the next time I'm around a Sephora, I would check it out.

I tried the tester in the store on a piece of my hair, and liked what it did so I bought the small travel-sized can to take home with me and see how it held up.

The results: fabulous!

I love this shampoo! Upon spraying it into my hair, I noticed a slight...kind of citrus-y smell and tingly sensation along my scalp, very fresh. And after I combed the powder through, my hair was no longer as oily and piecey as it was before. One thing you DO have to be careful of though, is that if you don't let it sit long enough, or don't work the powder through well enough, there is a slight risk of it looking a bit like dandruff. Also, if you have a habit of running your fingers through your hair/scalp, then it's going to come away with all this powder in it. But, if I were to compare it to the fact that it helps my hair last longer on it's last day, then I think it's well worth the trouble.

This shampoo is by no means a replacement for the normal shampooing that you do in the shower. I feel like the ad in Sephora is kind of falsely advertising because it says it can make your hair last 3 more days than the norm. Indeed, this is NOT the case. This spray is for people who don't wash their hair everyday, but find their hair getting icky before they wash it and therefore need a kind of spritzer to make it look decent to get through the day before you actually DO wash it, or, if you need a touch up before heading out after work or school.

I haven't tried the other dry shampoos that they have there, but I am pleased with this one for now and feel like getting a large can the next time I am at the mall. It's in a standard spray can, like hairspray, so there's nothing particularly unique about the packaging, but It's a good investment for hair like mine, I feel.

Here is a list of the ingredients:

ISOBUTANE, SD ALCOHOL 40-B, ALUMINUM STARCH OCTENOL SUCCINATE, ISOPROPYL, MYRISTATE, STEARALKONIUM HECTORITE, POLYURETHANE-14 (AND) AMP-ACRYLATES COPOLYMER, MAGNESIUM STEARATE, CYCLODEXTRIN, CYCLOMETHICONE, PANTHENOL, TOCOPHEROL, HYDROLYZED RICE PROTEIN, WHEAT, AMINO ACIDS, PROPYLENE CARBONATE, SILICA, FRAGRANCE.

The price is doable, $11 for a 1.4 oz. can and $21 for 3.2 oz. I like the smaller can to take along with me in my purse, but I find that the larger can would be a better investment because I have so much hair and use more of the spray than somebody with fine hair.

And for you visual people out there, here are some pics/a tut of how I use the Pronto Dry Shampoo Spray:

Yea...that's a pic of my stringy, oily hair...lovely....

The directions are to "shake well. Hold can 6-8" away from head and spray product onto scalp and hair, especially at roots. Allow to dry before using fingers to shake out excess product. Brush out thoroughly. Style as desired."

Well...don't freak out when you see the white spray come out onto your hair. Just let it sit there and settle so that it can absorb all the oils before you rough it up a bit and shake it through your scalp.

Like so. Except, don't cross your eyes and make a silly face, unless you really want to. Then, by all means do so! After you do that step, take a brush and brush the spray through your hair. Your hair should smell nice and fresh and your scalp should feel a little tingly.

Voila! No more stringy hair. :)

Like I said before, be cautious of how much you spray in, and give it time to settle in and absorb because there is a risk of the powder looking like little bits of dandruff. Also, it can get a bit messy, so make sure you do this before you dress or when you're not wearing dark colors because when you shake it/brush it out, it gets all over the place. It may be best to bend over a trash can and do this.

Overall, I'd give this product a 4/5.

Best of luck with your hair!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also while at Sephora, I went a mini-hauling! Hmmm...I don't really haul to begin with, just buy a couple things here and there spreading out over time. I keep a mental list in my head of things to collect, lol. Anyways, I used my birthday money to get me the new Vera Wang perfume, Bouquet.

I'm a sucker for Vera Wang's fragrances and use them religiously. I own them all except for the Sheer Veil and Princess (I don't care too much for Princess). Gorgeous scents! Especially if you're a floral type of person. There is a new design to the bottle that is different from the rest, yet it still retains that classiness and elegance that is associated with the brand. The light green color reminds me of gardenias and spring. It's a very light, sweet floral scent that is wonderful for summer. Definitely on the fun side.

And, since I have that rewards card or whatever it's called, I'm too lazy to look up the name, haha, I qualified for enough points to get a free sample gift. I chose the Kiss Me mascara since my cousin has raved about it, and I've seen it in a couple blogs here and there.

I'll probably take this home with me when I go back to the west coast in August so I'll let you know how it goes then.

Until next time!

Smokey FOTD Silliness

2008-07-16T08:00:00.000-04:00

Remember this post from waaaaay back? I remember Lurve and Arashi inquiring about MAC e/s in Sketch because I love it so much. Well, this is a smokey look that I tend to repeat occasionally using Sketch to really bring it to life.

A hint of warning though, extreme Photobucket Phuckery ahead. I seriously had too much fun with the photo editing features since I don't have PS :P. I was also covering some stuff up because these were previous pictures that I had taken for a friend as a sort of favor, so I got a little silly happy covering it up. Despite everything, I think they are good pics of the makeup, lol.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I look so sad, haha.

What I Used

Face
Armani Designer Compact Foundation 2
Armani Microfil Powder 1
Armani Skin Retouch 3
Armani High Precision Retouch 2
NARS blush - Orgasm
NARS bronzer - Laguna

Eyes
MAC e/s Vanilla
MAC e/s Gleam
MAC e/s Honey Lust
MAC e/s Mulch
MAC e/s Sketch <3333
Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner - black
Etussais Separate Mascara - black
Too Face Lash Gel
Armani Brow Defining Pencil 2
Stila Brow Set

Lips
NARS lip gloss - Tempest

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you liked!

And now, time for more 4th of July silliness...

Peace out homeslice ^_^v

Hair Tip Numero Uno

2008-07-15T12:00:00.001-04:00

Remember my high end haulage post? I'm coming back to it because I've had the chance to try out a bunch of the stuff I got. One of the products that grabbed my attention, especially since my hair stylist sprayed it in my hair when I got it cut, was Bumble and Bumble's Surf Spray.

On their website, the description says it's to get that "sexy, salty, wind-styled texture...with plenty of hold and matte finish." I can see this spray working excellently for wavy hair, and is wonderful for people with a lot of choppy layers (like myself). It has a very light hold and isn't as hard as typical hairspray so there is definitely room for movement in your hair. You can use it on both dry and damp hair, depending on how you want to style it, and I find it really brings out my layers.

I seriously love this spray. The only complaints I have about it though, is that it really is what it says: surf spray. It's salty and kind of leaves a mild salty residue in your hair. Also, don't count on this as a hairspray because it only has a gentle hold. Rather, think of it as a styling product.

Here's a basic rundown of how I go about shaping my hair with the Surf Spray:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- First, I start off with freshly washed, and usually blow dried and straightened hair.

- Then I take the B&B Surf Spray and spray it on my layers, usually at the ends (I have really short layers)
- After that, I kind of run the spray through my hair like so:

- Then I take a blow drier and dry the spray while scrunching up my layers to give it some body (blow drier not pictured)

- NOT PICTURED: After that, I take my straightening iron again and flatten out the pieces that have become too rounded to give it a little more of a choppy look, then finish it off with a polishing spray and some hair spray...

End Result:

Tada!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also wanted to add that I've been using the S Factor Shampoo and Conditioner, and am not all that impressed with it. Not bad, but not amazing either...nothing to write home about, except for the fact that it smells overbearingly fruity.

I am totally sold on the MD All in One cleanser though...that stuff is amazing! You get a seriously clean feeling and it really takes everything off. However, I'd only use it once a day, and I'm going to wait till I exhaust my other cleansers first before investing in this.

The Caudalie Cleansing Water is nice and gentle, but doesn't give me that clean feeling that the MD ALl in One does. I can see it being excellent for traveling though.

I have the same reaction with the Skin Ceuticals Clarifying Clay Mask that I did with the S Factor Shampoo and Conditioner. Not bad, but not great, just an "eh." I am, however, loving my samples of the MB Cucumber Mask. I find it really tightens my pores and has a refreshing feeling to it. I want to get it, but I also want to try their Whitening Mask for the pigmentation and scaring that I have before making a decision. I heard you can get samples online?

The MD Oil Free Hydrapore moisturizer is very nice and light...at first, but I find that after you wear it for a long time, your skin will get a little oily.

The NARS Violetta duo is pretty pretty pretty! Will do an FOTD on it later...

Ciao! Ciao!

Some Non-summery FOTDs

2008-07-14T22:14:00.006-04:00

A little late (as always), but did everybody have a happy 4th? I went to the waterfront in Gtown and then celebrated back at my apartment, setting off illegal fireworks on the balcony. :P Okay, not really illegal, but they were pretty sparklers!

We can takez silleh piccus too!

Hahaha, okay...aside from that, I have a couple FOTDs that I've done in the past couple of weeks to show you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FOTD #1

First is the purple look from the previous post, just in case any of you were curious about the products I used...

Yes...I too, take retarded pictures when I'm bored, lol.

What I Used

Face
Armani Designer Compact Foundation 2
Armani Microfil Powder 1
Armani Skin Retouch 3
Armani High Precision Retouch 2
Lancome cream blush - Freeze Frame

Eyes
NARS c/s Penelope
NARS e/s Himalaya
NARS e/s Night Fairy
NARS e/s Strada (<3)
NARS e/s the reddish color from the Night Collection
NARS glitter pencil - Xenon
Bobbi Brown gel liner - black
NARS cream shadow - Zardoz
Etussais mascara
Too Face Lash Gel
Armani brow pencil 2
Stila brow set

Lips
Burts Bees Lipwax

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FOTD #2

You know, I never thought I'd actually really like anything in the Naughty Nauticals collection from MAC, but after wandering in to buy some palettes a couple weekends ago, I saw this face chart that I thought was wispy and ethereal. My roommate bought the colors, and now I want them too! Lol, anyways, I "borrowed" the colors and here is my recreation of the face chart:

Oh haiz! Look who it is! Did y'all miss Michelle? Don't worry, she hasn't gone anywhere! Hehe :P

And here is the look on my eye:

What I Used

Face

(Michelle)
Armani Face Fabric 8
Armani High Precision Retouch 2
Armani Microfil Powder 0
Armani Master Corrector - 2
Lancome cream blush - Freeze Frame

(theChas)
Armani Designer Compact Foundation 2
Armani Microfil Powder 1
Armani Skin Retouch 3
Armani High Precision Retouch 2
Lancome cream blush - Freeze Frame

Eyes
MAC e/s Phloof (on the face chart at the store, it was Shoreleave)
MAC e/s Illegal Cargo
MAC e/s Meet the Fleet
Lancome e/s Daylight
Bobbi Brown gel liner - black
Le 2 de Guerlain mascara
Armani Brow Defining Pencil 2
Stila Brow Set

Lips

(Michelle)
Armani lip gloss 25

(theChas)
NARS lip gloss - Striptease

w00! More to come now that my face has calmed down.

VAMPS: Love Addict

2008-07-09T00:03:00.006-04:00

Ah, what can I say? I've been waiting to review this single for lyke, evar! I JUST got my shiny new CD in the mail today from yesasia even though I've already listened to this song about a hundred times over. ;P I can't help it...L'Arc is going on a 3 year hiatus, and Hyde's solo project is the next best thing I can get.

Speaking of which, let me introduce you to Hyde's newly named band, VAMPS.

Right now, it's only him and Kaz who are the members, probably because they both took equal parts in creating Faith. Faith was such a beautiful album and remains as one of my top albums of all time. Anyways, even though it has been a couple of years since Hyde (now VAMPS) has released anything, this single didn't disappoint me in the slightest. It's upbeat, catchy, still has that grunge-y edge reminiscent of the music in Faith, but is still fresh and fun. I am reminded of how long both members have been in the music business and that, yes, they've still got it going on.

The PV shows off Love Addict's heavier side. A lot of head banging, breaking of instruments, throwing shit around...Hyde's gratuitous fanservice with the microphone...and then a Nosferatu-esque vampire dude lurking about with bats...on fire! A little silly, but really something you can rock to. And is that Ju-ken as the bassist or am I trippin'? o_O

One thing I was a bit surprised by, though, was Hyde's English. It isn't bad, no...not at all. At least the lyrics have some sort of coherency that you may not find in a lot of Japanese songs these days, but it seems to me that Hyde's pronunciation has fallen a little to the wayside. Maybe it's because he's been doing L'Arc for the past couple of years, or that he's got fancy braces, who knows? lol I'm not that upset by it, it's just that whenever I think of the songs on Faith and compare it to this one, I feel like it's gone down a little. Other than that, I love LOVE this song!

Time Goes By is a little slower, and more complete. It has a well-roundedness to it that is pleasing to hear. I am a bit at odds with these two songs because at times, with the lyrics and the catchy melodies, I am reminded a bit of his 666 days, and yet it still has that grundginess from his Faith days. I guess it's a sign that he is growing with his music, being able to fuse the two elements together.

I must admit, however, that I sorely miss his political undertones that were visible in 666, but blatantly apparent in Faith and Awake. :( I don't know...I guess I just found so much more meaning to the songs and his messages, plus it really showed off Hyde's lyrical compositions. Oh well, I guess it can't all be heavy and depressing topics all the time. In that sense, Love Addict's message also follows that of L'Arc's KISS. It's happier and has a more positive outlook on life.

I know that a lot of people are 50/50 when it comes to his voice, but I simply love it, so do give it a try.

Overall, I'd give it a 4.5 out of 5 stars, especially compared to how disappointed I was with D'espairsRay and the Meevs...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Media!

Love Addict PV:
Love Addict - VAMPS

Time Goes By:
TIME GOES BY - VAMPS

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And for you non-Jrockers out there, a random FOTD I did last weekend:

Drug Store (and then some) Haul: Image Heavy!

2008-06-26T11:00:00.001-04:00

I've not just been high end haulin' but a drug store haulin' as well! O_O I dont' feel as guilty about buying these products because a lot of the stuff I actually needed considering I was running out of what I already have. Plus I have this certain paranoia to have back stock of items just in case I am left with nothing...yea, I'm weird like that. :P

[EDIT]: I actually got this stuff a while back, but since I've been so behind on my posts lately, I'm still going to mention it.

First off, sunscreen! I've been going through it like crazy this summer, probably because I spray it on everyday. I've discovered the joys of spray-on sunscreen and don't think I could ever go back to the lotion, unless it was for my face or something. The spray just reaches all those places that you can't seem to reach on your own...like your upper back and...you general area from behind. By recommendation of Michelle, I've been favoring the Aveeno Continuous Protection Sunblock Spray in SPF 70. Beat that!

The only thing that I don't like about it, is that it leaves a tiny bit of an oily residue. So, if you have normal-oily skin, like me, then you might find this a little off-putting. But for those of you with dry skin, I wouldn't worry too much. The way in which this can sprays is also very direct, so you better have some good aim (which I don't). This leaves me to the Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist Sunblock also in SPF 70.

I like this one better ONLY because the spray is much more controllable than the Aveeno. Consistency-wise, it's very similar to the Aveeno spray so I find them to be interchangeable. I think, though, that you can go longer without reapplying with the Aveeno spray.

I got his little mini tube as a bonus, lol. It's great to keep in my purse for touch ups around my arms because that is where I tan the easiest apparently.

Speaking of Neutrogena, I also got ther Triple Moisture hair products.

The shampoo, conditioner, and the deep conditioner. I used this back in May when I went back home because it was in my mother's shower. When I stayed over at my cousins' house, they also had it in their shower so I got to try it consistently for that week and, I must say, for a drugstore brand, this line is pretty damn good...maybe because it's their "professional" line? *shrugs* Either way, it's VERY conditioning, which is wonderful for my overly-processed, brittle and dry hair. It's not too heavy though, and detangles my hair.

I have tried almost every drugstore waxing product under the halogen lights, and I still keep coming back to this one. The wax is nice and thick, therefore removes easily. It's not overly sticky, like honey wax, yet still perfectly functions. Plus, it's smells nice, that's always a bonus in my book.

I love this Aveeno Ultra-Calming Shave Gel...even if it's for men. It's so thick, creamy, and smooth and you can really feel/smell the soy.

I haven't used nose strips in ages, so I decided to give them another go. I heard Biore's was nice...and wow! Does it really do the job! I forgot to take pics of my waxy plugs clinging to life on the strip after having been ripped out, but I don't know if you'd really want to see that anyway. ;P It contains menthol, so it does double duty by clearing my pores and clearing up my sinuses as well. I only use it about once a week and have noticed a difference in the amount of stuff that is removed from the strip.

A pumice stone! I've been meaning to buy one for a while now to use with my home made sugar scrub.

Ah yes...you can never have too much brush cleaner.

And as a plus, free Crema Nera from Armani! Just a sample of it, but hey, I'll take a sample of that $400 cream any day, lol. The original volcanic ash-based product:

Haven't tried it out yet. I figure this will be another thing to come home with me mid-August, so I will report back to you later.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And lastly, my friend/now ex-roommate made a painting for me! I should've bought more canvases so he could make me more. Oh well....

See? Not all my stuff is high end... :Pn

D'espairsRay: Brilliant

2008-06-20T07:40:00.001-04:00

Hay gaiz!

Sorry for the lack of posting again. I suddenly got busy with finals and tons of hw. Plus, it's that special time of the month for me, so it's not like I could make any FOTDs without my face looking tres disgusting. Anyways, on to the post:

Totally forgot to even post my review on the latest single by D'espairsRay...probably because it's barely worth mentioning. =/

Compared to their breakout album: Mirror, or their beautifully sculpted: Coll:set, I fear that this single may be leading us down the murky and dismal path of generically constructed rock tracks. There is nothing special about this single at all. The song isn't horrible per se, but you find yourself instantly forgetting it. It doesn't hold the listeners attention, and makes me anxious about the future of this band. I'm not going to criticize their new "look" even though they've drastically shed that VK look that I've found added to the darkness of their music. I'm just worried about the direction they're taking in their music. Actually, I'm all for artists changing, if it's for the better, but Brilliant is so...blah. Also, one would think that with such a blase song, they would at least make up for it in the PV, but, alas, this is not so. The PV is everything about Girugamesh's PVs that I absolutely dislike.

Concert footage.

Painstakingly boring concert footage...

*le sigh*

Thankfully, I remember them playing Kamikaze, the next single to be released, at Taste of Chaos which sounded much better than this one so I have that to look forward to. Cocoon is marginally better, following along the same pattern as the songs released in Mirror. There is a powerful drum line and growly chorus that fits in more with the D'espa style. I guess I'm just worried about what's going to be on the album...but then again, it would be hard to top Mirror.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Brilliant PV:

Brilliant - DespairsRay

Summer Nights FOTD

2008-06-18T01:09:00.004-04:00

Another look for you guys! I thought this one was more of a night look than a day look even though I wore it out all day anyways, lol.

What I Used

Face
Laura Mercier Mineral Primer
Laura Mercier Mineral Powder SPF 15 - Soft Porcelain
Armani Micro-fil Powder 1
Stila blush - Persimmon

Eyes
UDPP
MAC pigments - Sunpepper
MAC pigments - Gold Mode
MAC e/s - Greensmoke
Stila e/s - Buff
MAC Powerpoint Eyepencil - Engraved
Etussais Separate mascara
Too Face Lash Gel
Armani Brow Defining Pencil - 2
Stila brow set- dark

Lips
NARS lip gloss - Tempest

Hope you enjoyed!

Btw, where has everybody gone to? Like peach? :( I know lurve has been bombed with feeds and christiana's been busy with finals...oh well.

EDIT: Sweet Jesus! My hair looks really black here O_O

Beachy FOTD

2008-06-14T08:00:00.000-04:00

I've got a ton of summery FOTDs that I've been thinking about lately, and I thought it's about time I put some of them in action to see how they turn out! :P This is a first of summer FOTDs that I thought looked fun and playful. Plus, it reminds me of home. :P

What I Used

Face
Laura Mercier Mineral Primer
Laura Mercier Mineral Powder SPF 15 - Soft Porcelain
Armani Microfil Powder 0
Stila blush - Tint

Eyes
Stila e/s - Buff
Stila e/s - Twig
Stila e/s - Amber
MAC pigment - Gold Mode
MAC Shadestick - Beigeing
Some light blue color in a cheap palette I got at a hyakuen shop
Armani Smooth Silk Eye Pencil 12 (a dark kohl brown)
MAC Powerpoint Eye Pencil - Engraved
Etussais Mascara
Too Face Lash Gel
Armani Brow Defining Pencil 2
Stila brow set - dark

Lips
Stila lip glaze - Grapefruit

High End Haulage

2008-06-13T01:23:00.003-04:00

So, for the past few weeks I've been doing some major haulin'. The reason is because there's been a lot of development in my neighborhood lately so I find myself wandering there every weekend or so. Extremely dangerous stuff, let me tell you, especially when there is a new Blue Mercury 5 minutes away from where I live. -_______- Don't know what Blue Mercury is? Well, here's a handy link to their homepage. Basically, they carry a number of skincare, makeup, and hair brands as well as an in store spa. At first, I wasn't having so great of an experience there because a lot of the sales ladies were incredibly snooty and age-ists. Recently, though, a couple of women my age have been hired/transfered and they were very helpful. It's one aspect of non-online buying that I really appreciate, being friendly with the sales reps. I have one makeup artist that I go to on a regular basis; she used to work for NARS and now she works for Armani which is part of the reason why I end up purchasing so much of their stuff. :P

Anyways, the two sales reps were very nice to me and my friends and were really helpful. You can get free samples of anything that they have marked with a blue sticker as a tester, so if you're ever in there, be sure to ask for some samples. Here is a catalog of the thing's I've purchased:

(Again, I am going to warn you that my pictures SUCK! I'm working on it, I promise...=/)

MD Alpha Beta Daily Facial Peel

Okay...so I got a little sold on the MD Skincare line. UGH! *groans* It's a hefty price, but as far as I'm concerned, I'm not that far off from calling up a dermatologist (again) and going in for a consultation because my skin is the worst that it's ever been. I figure that this is my last resort before going and spending even more money for whatever the doctor might prescribe me, peels, and so on. The sales ladies, however, wouldn't stop raving about these pads so I decided to give them a try. I went online and did a little research, and it turns out that this is a top rated product. I couldn't find a full list of the ingredients, but here is a direct link to the peel along with more info.

I've only used it a few times so far, having used it in the AM by suggestion, but since you are supposed to keep swiping the pad on your face till it's dry, I thought, 'I don't have time for this," so I decided to wait a day and switch the regiment to PM. Since it does contain salicylic acid, I wouldn't recommend this product to anybody with dry or extremely sensitive skin. After the third time using it, I could definitely feel a little sting from Step 1 as I wiped it on my face. I have combination/oily skin so I am prone to peeling but, so far so good; I'll report back in a week or two if I start to notice a real difference, along with some pics if I feel brave enough. Right now I just feel kind of desperate because I've tried so many things and none of them seem to be working. :( Hopefully, this works! *crosses fingers*

For those of you who are wondering, they come in pads in two steps. You can buy them in containers or individualized in sets of 30 or 60. I bought the individually wrapped pads:

The MD Skincare line is quite nice; I also received some samples of their MD Powerful Sun Protection, All-In-One Facial Cleanser With Toner, Skin Clarifying Clay Mask, and some Hydra-Pure Oil Free Moisture.

I got a few samples of the All-In-One to last me a couple of weeks which I thought was really nice. Actually, I REALLY like the All-In-One because it really does what it says: it completely removes your makeup while cleansing AND toning your face. I didn't believe it at first because I'm one of those people that believes in removing your makeup first THEN cleansing but this really does it all. It's a little odd because the application process is putting the solution on a dry face, then rubbing it in for about 20 seconds then using some lukewarm water to rub it in again before washing it off, but it really does remove everything! The only thing that's putting me off about it is the price but, who knows, maybe the more I use my samples the more I'll be convinced, lol. Right now, though, I need to use up all my cleansers first before I think of buying a new one.

The clay mask is nothing special. I don't know, maybe I'm not an expert on masks but I feel like it works the same as any other mask. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't "zomgs!" either.

Also not pictured is a couple samples of the Cucumber Mask by Mario Badescu. I've been a little curious about it since nic nic gave a positive review on it and I must say, it is a very refreshing mask. ;)

The oil free moisturizer is wonderful, especially for the summer because it's very light yet hydrating. It's got a very fresh, clean scent to it that is not overbearing, much like the moisturizer and I wake up in the morning with my skin feeling rejuvenated.

I have yet to try the sunscreen packets. I think I am saving them for an occasion where I am going to really be in the sun all day which hasn't happened yet, but here are the directions/list of ingredients:

Another sample shown in the picture is the Caudalie Cleansing Water which I have also yet to try because I've been trying to stick with one particular thing before trying another. From what I was told, it's great for lazy people because it essentially does the same thing that the All-In-One does except you use a cotton ball on a dry face instead.

Just some quick info. about Caudalie: organic and vine (grape)-based, so ideal for sensitive skin.

FYI: Both Caudalie and the MD Skincare line can also be found at Sephora. In fact, Sephora sells MD Skincare packages for a VERY reasonable price considering it's a high end line. I wish I knew about it before I purchased what I did but...oh well. Links can be found here and here.

I also was given a TON of Bumble and Bumble samples. *!!!* I <3 style="font-weight: bold;">

Thickening Shampoo and Conditioner

I don't know if I want to save it (like when I travel) or to try it, but I think, for the sake of this blog, I will try it all! Mwahaha! I have the thickening spray, but have yet to try out the shampoo and conditioner so we'll see how it turns out. The thickening spray only gives me a touch of volume, but, since I have a lot of poofy, thick, Asian hair already, I don't think it's that big of a deal, lol.

Creme de Coco and Deep Hair Treatment

Ah, how I love the Creme de Coco and Deep line from Bumble and Bumble. I've used the Deep hair treatment for quite some time now and it is excellent for dry/damaged/colored hair aka my hair. These hair treatments are like hair masks that I like to use in the shower and leave it in for about 15 minutes. A little goes a long way since you comb it into your hair so I think it's worth the price. I've used the Creme de Coco shampoo and conditioner before, but the masque is new so I'm anxious to try it out! Plus, it smells really nice... :P

Seaweed Shampoo and Conditioner

I did not like this line at first because I found it to be very drying, but upon talking to the sales lady, she said that it's good to deep clean your hair about once a month which is what the seaweed line is good for so I think that I'll be using the sample for just that purpose.

Gentle Shampoo, Tonic Shampoo, and Grooming Cream

I don't know much about the Gentle line, but I do know that the Tonic shampoo is similar in use to that of the Seaweed shampoo and conditioner. You only use it about once a month for some deep cleaning. This is not to be confused with B&B's Hair Tonic which, by the way IS THE MOST AMAZING STUFF FOR YOUR HAIR ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH, EVAR! *coughs* Yea... the grooming cream is like a styling cream. It's nice, but I feel like you can get away with using any styling cream and it'll pretty much do the same thing.

Okay, so apart from the samples, I did end up purchasing the Surf Spray, and I am completely falling in love with it. It's a extremely lightweight hairspray that gives you that "windswept look" like you just spent hours at the beach. Personally, I dislike that "windswept look" but man, this little spray does an excellent job of bringing out all my choppy layers! I'll do a better review on it in another post. ;P

Another purchase I made (because I am such a sucker for such great customer service) was, surprise surprise, a new NARS eyeshadow duo, Violetta! I had these shadows put on me while I was in Tokyo over winter break and I just fell in love with that purple. It has a pearlescent sheen too it and the matte, lightly taupe color is a wonderful balance.

Here are some (crappy) pictures of swatches:

Aside from Blue Mercury, the salon under the tunnel of my school was having a sale! I couldn't resist PLUS I needed some new hairspray since mine exploded all over itself when I flew home to LA so I picked up some more.

The S Factor line from TIGI is awesome stuff let me tell you, very conditioning and the best part, everything has micro glitter in it! *shiny!* I use their Smoothing Lusterizer every time I wash my hair. It's a leave-in conditioner of sorts that leaves your hair shiny and silky. The Chic Shine hairspray is light, yet gives a firm hold. It's doesn't clasp your hair together into hard sections either so there is movement. It's a good every day hairspray.

Since I like the Lusterizer and the hairspray so much, I decided to purchase the shampoo and conditioner as well:

Color-safe (like B&B) so I'm excited to try it out when my Tsubaki is finished.

I know I haven't been blogging as much lately, but I've got summer FOTDs, reviews, and a drug store haul lined up along with some music reviews so it looks like I'm going to get busy again, lol.

Hope this was helpful... =/

A Change For the...???

2008-06-07T17:44:00.002-04:00

Goodbye old, grown-out hair. *waves*

Hello, new (day after I got it cut) hair,

Miyavi World Tour Concert Review

2008-05-23T04:59:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone,

Yet again, I've been absent from blogging...obviously, I fail. But I don't come without bearing a good excuse! For the past two weeks I've been preoccupied with school, and flying back home to the West Coast. :P Which brings me to what I did while over there...like going to a Miyavi concert! This review is especially for Sami and Rue, since they demanded pics and such. <3

If you've been following my blog, or are a fan of JRock, then I'm sure you've heard of him. He's recently started a world tour and his first stop was at the Anaheim House of Blues in Downtown Disney. My friend, David, flew down from NorCal to go with me (what a nice guy!)...thank you Dave! =) We spent practically all day waiting in line, but it was well worth it because we ended up in the front row! During the day, we chatted with various people, some of whom were very cool and took the time to pick on the crowd with us while drying up in the blistering heat. Global warming = not on, thank God I had my parasol with me. >_< A couple of my other friends were able to make it as well, but unfortunately, they didn't want to do the Jump the Line thing that HOB had going on, so they were behind us. I got to step out of line now and then to chat with them though, so it wasn't that big of a problem. In general, the concert was pretty good.

I went in a little skeptical because I wasn't impressed with Miyavi's new CD, however, the man can put on a good show and was very entertaining. He did his Neo Visualizm versions of Ossan Ossan Ore Nanbo, Kimi ni Funky Monkey Vibration, Shouri no V Rock, Rock no Gyakushu~Superstar no Jouken~, JPN Pride, Boom-hah-boom-hah-hah, 21st Century Tokyo Blues, Saikihokoru Hana no You Ni, Subarashiki na Kono Sekai~What a Wonderful World (cringe), Kabuki Danshi, Hi no Hikari Sae Todokanai Kono Basho de, Are You Ready to Rock, and everything else I'm forgetting, not in that particular order. From my understanding, he has been changing up the setlist a little for every show.

Aside from Subarashiki na...I was pretty happy with the setlist. I actually found myself enjoying some of his old songs Neo Visualized, and I thought that he did a healthy mix of his new tracks and old tracks. I was particularly happy that he played Rock no Gyakushu and Kimi ni Funky Monkey Vibration since they are some of my favorites. Kind of sad that he didn't play Selfish Love or NOWHEREGOD... also, he didn't play shamisen for JPN PRide. =/ Oh well, you can't win 'em all, right?

What is also enjoyable about a Miyavi concert, is that he tries to get everybody moving. I would've danced the night away if I could if I wasn't being flattened against the barrier. -_- Some of his Kavki Boyz were different too, namely the DJ who, all of a sudden, became ZOMGS really pretty! o_O There was a brief intermission where he did some mixing of Miyavi's songs techno style which I actually rather liked.

The tap dancer, one word: awesome. He was incredibly entertaining. So much, that in fact, I think I was looking at him almost more than I was looking at the meevs. He just appears to be really into the music and really happy to be there. His dancing made everything so much fun and really got the crowd moving. Of course, I'm not too keen on DJ Tyko, but, I recognize the fact that he is a good beat boxer. I didn't mind him much when he and Miyavi were doing a guitar/beat boxing battle, but again, I'm glad I wasn't on his side because I think it gets to be a bit much when everybody is put together.

Miyavi himself, was quite enraptured with all the attention being showered upon him. Oh, how he makes them girls scream. ;P There were small bits during the songs where the group would do a sort of interlude and get the audience to chant back what they were yelling, i.e.

Kavki Boyz: "Are you ready to rock?!"

Audience: "Are you ready to rock!"

Kavki Boyz: "Are you ready to rock?!"

Audience: "Are you ready to rock!"

...it's fun for the first 15 seconds, but then it started to get annoying. I'm probably still scarred from the S.K.I.N. concert and Gackt's 30 minutes of yelling names, but hey, wouldn't you be?

Aside from that, Miyavi was his energetic (and dare I say slightly coy?) self throughout the entire concert which was good enough for me. He even stepped on the barrier and allowed the audience to touch him (something Hyde never did, probably because he wasn't tall enough XD). So yes, I got me a piece of Miyavi shoe akshun! It was a little odd that he did costume changes about three times though. Not very rockish, but whatever. Much of the items that he was wearing was up for sale so I guess it's a good marketing tactic, seeing as how the merch table was completely swamped after the show. Luckily for me, my friend went ahead of time to grab me wrist bands and a couple shirts.

The one big deterrent for me about this show was the fangirls. I know, I know, it's a Miyavi concert, it's inevitable that they'd be there, but seriously, I feel like the audience actually took away from the show. What with the shrill screaming that reminded me of being at an NSYNC concert and the fact that people were practically lying on top of me to aggressively get to the front row and the throwing of items onto the stage. Fangirls are scary, scary people, but I'm not so easily pushed around, kthnx. Also, people are INCREDIBLY stupid. I remember a girl complimenting my outfit in the bathroom adding that it's so nice to meet fellow Miyavi fans because, in general, there are so few. When I agreed with her and said that yes, it's not like he'd be well-known in America or anything, she mentioned that she liked Miyavi NOT BEING POPULAR because she felt that it should be exclusive to the "Japanese community."

Um, excuse me? I almost rudely pointed out that she wasn't Japanese, therefore, her reasoning made no sense whatsoever because she's not a part of that community either. And if she was referring to it on some otaku/anime level, then, I'm sorry, but Miyavi has never done a song for an anime show or has anything to do with anime at all. Really, how selfish could you be? Not wanting an artist you like to not become successful just because you think you're so special and elitist. -_- Like I said, some of Miyavi's fans are just not cool people. Too bad for the meevs because he put on a good show. Anyways, it's a little late for American fans, but for anybody in Europe, he's coming! Try and go see his show! I'm sure you'll be entertained. =)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, as promised, here are some pics I took of the outfit that I ended up wearing. WARNING: My pictures are made of Epic Fail. D<

Outfit pics:

Yay! I finally got to wear my corset! People were looking at me funny while Dave was lacing me up, saying that I was going to pass out. Mwahahaha, silly people, little do they know that I've had much practice wearing an obi all spring, and am used to wearing a lung-constricting device for several hours. In fact, I'm glad I wore it, since it's steel boned and all. It was like some type of armor as people attempted to crush me. >_<

Makeup pics: Stupid flash. Not behaving one bit, nope. :P

Payce, peoples!

Shion 志恩

2008-05-12T07:00:00.000-04:00

L'Arc's grand Paris concert was on Friday...*sadness* Oh how I wanted to go to that concert oh-so-very badly. Alas, yet again, it was not meant to be. One day, ONE DAY, I will go see you L'Arc, and it will be magical.

Despite all appearances here, this is not a post about L'Arc, but a sad little lament and yet another album review. Do you guys get sick of these? Should I post less of them? *ponders*

Anywho, it's a band you've heard of quite a few times on this blog: MUCC! This is an incredibly late album review, considering their album, Shion, was released on the 26th of March but, eh, better late than never, right?

In fact, I'm kind of glad I took so long to review this album as I've listened to it many times over, each time cultivating a different opinion for it. I must admit, I was a little skeptical of this album upon its first listens, but throughout the month, it has grown on me (a hell of a lot better than Miyavi's).

We begin with an intro song, typical of the band as it sets the mood for what's to come. This intro is all sorts of different for MUCC because of its odd usage of sound effects that blend into the music and leads quite spectacularly into the second track: Fukuro no yurikago. The heavy usage of the synthesizer to mix different sounds is not typical for the band at all, and it had me a little surprised at first. The song, like their visuals, seem to focus upon Hindi/Indian Buddhist aspects with the use of the sitar. Actually, this song turned out to be pretty neat, and by the end of it, I thought it pWnd. Definitely one of my favorites off of the album.

The second track, Nuritsu busunara enji (try saying that five times quickly), takes me back to old school MUCC with its heavy vocals and growling courtesy of Tatsurou. Miya's guitar riffs again leave me amazed at his musical genius, and dare I say it gets a little heavy metal during the middle?

Fuzz, the third track is a nice parallel to this song and presents the new style that is evolving for the band. A rockin' dance beat is the main feature here, with Yukke's double bass and Tatsurou's swanky harmonica skillz. I fell in love with the song the first time I heard it, and it gets better every time. Hearing it live was certainly quite an experience.

This album doesn't slow down at all as we are led into the epic, Game, with its high-powered vocals and smooth guitar. It's definitely a powerful ballad that is becoming another MUCC staple.

Flight- album ver. - was a song off of the FUZZ single. The mood of the album steadily progresses with this upbeat tune. It's got a sweet guitar solo that only Miya can pull of and brings things up to a happier mood after Game.

The next song is the fan favorite: Anjelier. What a chorus! It's catchy and very likable, no wonder people like it so much.

Chiisana mado brings it down a little bit. Truly, it's a beautiful song, and I find that I enjoy it on its own, but within the album, it became a forgettable track. I felt like my mind would blank over. The acoustic guitar is very pretty and a nice surprise, however, and I think that if I were to listen to this song on a separate occasion, I would very much enjoy it. I know that might sound a little odd, but...oh well. I also think that this song still contains a little bit of MUCC's older style which is nice because we get an evolution of music, but with a hint of the old MUCC blended in.

Semi shigure is probably one of my least favorite tracks off of this album. It's not that it's a bad song, but I don't feel that it really stands out like the other previous tracks have done. Again, my mind wanders and I kind of grow a little bored here.

The next song, Shion, however, instantly grabs my attention. South East Asian instruments and beats are brought back again, and mixed with heavy riffs and some stellar vocals. The heaviness of the drums ties it all together to make a powerful track.

Sorawasure again surprises me with it's use of string instruments. Different, and kind of leaving me in a state of indecisiveness as to whether I like this song or just pass it off as "ok." I feel that I'm leaning more towards the "ok" bit though.

Shiva brings back the heaviness yet again. The style is reminiscent of Libra with periods alternating between dark melodies to an uplifting chorus. But, in comparison with Libra, well...there is no comparison. Libra is simply amazing.

Speaking of Libra, that is the finishing song of the album. I have yet to meet a person who has not enjoyed the awesome ness that is Libra. Powerfully epic, yet rocks hardcore all at the same time. The level of badassed -ness is too much to handle sometimes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Overall, I feel that this album really grew on me. It's nice to see that MUCC can change their style, but still maintain the essence, the core that is MUCC. I'm not all about remaining within what the band used to be; bands need to change with the times. It's just a matter if they can change for the better rather than for the worse, and this album has certainly proven that MUCC has achieved just that. :) If you are a lover of heavy rock music, then I would definitely check this album out.

Media

Nuritsubusunara enji:

Anjelier:

Shion:

Cherry Blossom FOTD

2008-05-10T08:00:00.000-04:00

So I do this look every now and then, but I was just thinking the other day while applying the eyeshadow that it's very cherry blossom appropriate. So, in light of the past recent events and spring being fully here and all, here's my cherry blossom FOTD!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My skin has been looking mad disgusting lately, another reason why there has been a serious lack of FOTDs. :(( My deepest apologies...

Um...nice chas, real nice. The red shirt goes swimmingly with this look, don't you think?

Much better...but oddly shiny. Blargh! Stupid skin did not want to cooperate.

What I Used:

Face
Armani LFS #3
Armani foundation powder #2
Lancom cream blush in Sheer Pink

Eyes
Lancome single e/s in Daylight
MAC e/s Petalscent
MAC e/s Stomp
MAC e/s Star Violet
Bobbi Brown gel e/l black
Etussais separate mascara - black
Too Face Lash Injection
Stila eyebrow duo for dark hair

Lips
Zomgs! I forgot lipcolor! O_O Just wearing chapstick in this one, but I would've used Stila's lipglaze in Grapefruit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Don't often wear pinks, so kind of unusual for me. :P Hope you liked!

My Beauty Secrets(?)

2008-05-09T02:11:00.005-04:00

I've been tagged by lurve! :) Here are my not-so-secret beauty secrets:

Foundation: I have two foundations. O_O Usually, if I am going to work or just having a blah day, I'll wear my Laura Mercier mineral makeup. It actually provides some decent coverage, and doesn't make me get that "cakey" feeling that I sometimes feel when I'm wearing liquid. I guess buffing on powder always makes you feel like you're wearing something light. I like Laura Mercier because I trust them, and it's available in stores. I can't buy mineral makeup online because I usually try things on first before I purchase it. I also like Laura Mercier over Bare Minerals because I've found that Bare Minerals can give me that porous, cakey look that has made me avoid mineral makeup for quite some time. On the weekends or for a special occasion, I'll bust out my Armani luminous silk foundation. I absolutely LOVE this foundation. Not only for the vast array of shades that they carry, but for the buildable coverage, which amazes me everytime I wear it. I know a lot of Hollywood stars and makeup artists use this brand because it's got some kind of silicon based gel in it that makes it buildable without looking like you're wearing layers upon layers of makeup. The only down fall is the price.

Mascara: I have tons and tons of mascara that I am always trying out. Currently, I use two mascaras, Etussais separate (Japanese brand) and Too Face's Lash Injection. I like to blend different mascaras together for the effects that it will give. In this case, Etussais is one of the first brands that started to use a comb-like wand, so I can separate my lashes easily while still coating them with mascara. The lash injection builds and keeps my mascara from running while also giving it some nice volume which for me, is always a must since I have tiny lashes.

Blush: I used to hate blush and never wore it...until maybe some four years ago? I never realized the contouring that you can do with blush, and that it can highlight my cheekbones which I get complimented on from time to time. I never used to until I wore blush! Haha. I was also never used to appreciating the beauty in strong/high cheekbones, but now, I'm all about them. I use the duo blush palette that NARS makes for Sephora in Orgasm and Laguna on a regular basis. Those colors are my staple. Sometimes, if I'm feeling particularly dressy/creative, I'll add on some NARS Nico as a highlight. Using multiple colors for your blushes all at once creates dimension to your face.

Eyeshadow: I have tons of eyeshadow. Tons. It's kind of sad. Although I keep saying I'm not the biggest MAC fan, I have a lot of eyeshadows by them, two palettes worth! But I'm sure some ladies out there have way more than I do; it's just a lot for me IMO. My first eyeshadow brand was Stila, so I have quite a few shadows by them too. I personally will always hold Stila to my heart because they were my first. :P You can use them dry or wet, and the pigmentation is great but you can apply it light also, very versatile shadows. My current love is NARS. Their shadows are wonderful, especially the Night Collection. MmMmm...all that glitter. Night Porter is my absolute most favorite shadow, ever! Strada runs a close second, and it's definitely my favorite purple. Don't forget, that NARS shadows don't really come to life unless you get a cream shadow to go under it. Not only will it help it to stay, but the colors just pop.

Day Cream: I'm a big fan of Shiseido's White Lucent moisturizer with SPF 16. I find that for day creams, it's not really important what brand you wear just as long as you use what's best for your face, but please, PLEASE use one with some type of SPF in it.

Lipstick: I'm not big on lipsticks unless I'm going to top it off with some gloss. I am a BIG gloss whore. If you want something light and pretty, I'd go with Stila's lip glazes. They smell delish, and come in so many different colors, there's bound to be one for you. Moisturizing too! I also have quite a number of NARS lip glosses, but I feel that they are hit or miss. For example, Striptease is a gorgeous nude color, but is sticky in consistency so I always have to warm it up before applying. Turkish Delight and Chihuahua, however glide on quite smoothly. My absolute favorite gloss of all time and my current obsession is Armani's lip shimmer in #44. Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! It looks like nothing, but seriously, it looks absolutely stunning on, by itself or layered. I've only done half of a swatch of it, but I've been meaning to put it on here.

Beauty Product Brand: Depends on how much you're willing to pay. For a drugstore brand, I tend to enjoy Maybeline while high-end brands I tend to use Stila, Laura Mercier, MAC, or Armani. For the most part, I feel like you get what you're paying for. Also, if you have the confidence, you can make almost anything work.

Essential Beauty Product: Eyeliner. I can't live without it.

Favorite Beauty Product: That Armani lip shimmer in #44 that I mentioned!

Perfume: I love florals, so Vera Wang is my staple, in the regular and Truly Pink, which is a gorgeous scent.

Nails: Glittery or dark. I use a lot of OPI but secretly have a crush on Anna Sui's polishes.

Feet: Need a pedicure liek whoa right now. They are made of suck.

Hands: Aveda's Hand Relief. Amazing stuff, and it smells nice too.

Three Products to Bring on a Deserted Island: Products? Aside from essential things such as food? Hmm... I dunno... haha

Woman I Adore for Her Beauty: Lots. Cate Blanchette, Audrey Hepburn, Anjelina Jolie, Koyuki, Kate Winslet, my grandmother, and my mother.

Woman With the Best Sense of Style: Does it have to be a woman? Lol, I personally love Sugizo's sense of style and would totally wear his clothes if I could. Oh, and Hyde...give me his clothes any day, man!

My Ultimate Dream (but I do not believe in selling my soul to the devil for it): My sould's already been sold...jkjk, I have a lot of dreams.

How Do I Define Womanhood: Modesty. I hate it when women or people in general, get too full of themselves. Too me, it makes even the most beautiful woman turn ugly.

My Favorite Fashion Publication: The Internet.

TAG! You're IT! My bloggers!:
1. wuzzy
2. peach
3. arashi

Er...if you haven't done them already. XD

Portishead: Third

2008-05-05T08:05:00.001-04:00

Alas! Another album review, and for once, maybe twice? It isn't a Jrock artist. *le gasp*

Instead, I bring to you Portishead, a UK-based trip-hop band formed in 1991. The members include Geoff Barrow, Beth Gibbons, and Adrian Utley working together as they form interesting mixes, synth and haunting vocals.

I am a giant fan of Beth Gibbons's voice because it is incredibly unique. It isn't so much her vocal range (which is still amazing), but what she can do with her voice that truly astounds me. Her eerie vocals, coupled with the solemn notes of the synthesizer, result in some of the most beautifully tormented pieces that brings out heavy emotions within any listener. This music is chilling to the soul and just so moving.

You may recognize a song or two that pops up every now and then in commercials or movies, but it's a shame that so many don't know who they are.

1997's self-titled album, Portishead was the last studio album released by them, and fans, like myself, have been waiting for years to see a new release. News of a new album has been floating about, and on the 28th of April audiences were able to purchase the long-awaited album aptly titled, Third. Last.fm held a launch party for the album where fans were able to listen to the full album tracks, which is what I've been enjoying for the past couple of weeks.

However, Third has left me in a state of confusion. It is definitely progressive as far as Portishead goes, but I feel that it may be a little too different. Maybe I'm still getting used to it?

The album opens up with Silence, a strong number in my opinion. A tad upbeat yet it contains a strong melody with all the sound elements typical to the band's image. This intro leads into Beth's vocals, melancholy and gorgeous. "Wounded and afraid inside my head...falling through changes. Did you know when you lost? Did you know what I wanted?" A beautiful piece, fresh yet still containing Portishead's image.

Hunter, the following song, is moody and somber with a focus just upon Beth's vocals with minimal synth and a tiny guitar solo. Another solid song that leaves the listener with a sense of withdrawn, sedate sentiments.

Nylon Smile picks up the pace a little bit, with a bossa nova-esque beat. Different, yet not out of place I feel. Considering Silence had some Portuguese in it, I am left wondering if there is going to be a Latin theme throughout the album. The ending of this song is my favorite as it finishes with just vocals and smoothly leads into the next song:

The Rip. An accoustic guitar melody is the focus as Beth's vocals are smoothed over. I am at odds with this song because this is the point in the album where you can see Portishead taking a different direction in their music. At first, we don't have the mixing that is typical in the band's songs, and the song gradually builds itself up half-way through. This would've been neat, except I'm not feeling Beth's vocals for once. I like the lyrics well enough, but the melody is rather boring. A shame, since I love the song so props to Adrian and Geoff on this one.

Plastic is a typical Portishead song, and easily one of my favorites off the album. I've been missing the usual mixing elements that I feel have not been as strongly present throughout the album coupled with odd vocal melodies. The erratic sounds utilized create a cacophony of elements that somehow come together and make it work. However, it still pales in comparison to the utter masterpiece that was Glory Box.

The marching beat of We Carry On brings us to the next song. Different, yet still somehow fitting. However, even though I enjoy it every time for the first minute, I find it becomes tiring throughout the entire song. I feel that this is another experimental track in terms of sound mixing for the band.

The next song, Deep Water, takes me by surprise. A ukelele? Background harmonizing? o_O While cute, nice and uplifting, I find this track to be severely misplaced amongst the rest of the songs in the album. It's too random, and just not their style at all. It also breaks up the entire mood of the album and plunges us into another experimental track.

Machine Gun. Upon hearing the beat, you can see why this song is named so. I feel like people can take this song two ways: either you love it or you hate it. This is probably the first experimental track by them thus far that I love. I can see where people will find this beat exhausting, but it oddly synchronizes with the chorus and the singing.

Small is another track with minimal mixing and synth. Oddly enough, I'm not a big fan of this and I have the same reaction that I had with Deep Water. I only find myself liking this song more because it isn't as peppy and out of place like Deep Water was. It is a very modern song, but just doesn't match up to Like a Fire or Mysterons.

Magic Doors again reminds of a samba dance mixed with Rent. I like the piano chords that they've incorporated, and the song isn't bad, but again I just don't feel like it matches up to the power of their previous music. Not a bad song, but not great either.

Threads, the last song of the album, has an odd tango beat to it courtesy of the guitar. Compared to the rest of the album, it is one of the few songs that I do like and will probably find myself going back to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To me, this album feels a little boring compared to their previous works. The tracks aren't strong enough to make me want to come back to this album and listen to it time and time again, especially if I have the option to listen to Dummy. I feel like one could listen to this album, and easily forget half the songs. However, the other half that you do remember, strikes a deep chord within you. Not the best of Portishead's works, but I could see these songs having a stronger impact played live.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As always, I've included some media for the curious. The first three tracks are from Third, and I've included my favorite song of theirs, Glory Box.

Sakura~ Sakura~

2008-05-01T00:42:00.007-04:00

Wondering what theChas has been doing in the past month? Well, if not, too bad, because I'm going to post about it anyways. Yet another foray into the personal life of theChas :P :

As some of you may already know, I play the koto which is a traditional Japanese instrument. Spring time is very busy for the society that I am in because the D.C. area has National Cherry Blossom festivities that take place for the month of April when the cherry blossoms bloom here in our nation's capital.

This year has been pretty hectic with my society because my sensei's (teacher in Japanese) husband had fallen ill so we were playing things by ear until the last minute. In the end, we managed to scramble together quite a few performances at various events. Some that I took part in included high tea at the Willard Intercontinental hotel, the Stone Lantern Lighting Ceremony, Sakura matsuri (cherry blossom street festival), and our University of Maryland Concert.

This, along with school, has eaten up my life because we had practices every Sunday since February that would run for at least 5 hours, if not more. I think it showed at the end though because friends have told me that our concert was enjoyable. I wish things weren't as hectic as they've been because it began to wear down on my face. My eyes were getting puffier by the minute, and they still are! *shakes fist* Also, my skin wasn't so hot, but eh...that's life and the show must go on, right? Anywho, that is my excuse for lack of FOTD's but here are some photographic memories of the past month for me:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FOTD for Stone Lantern ceremony...you can see why I gave up on these, yeugh!

Sakura matsuri! The largest cherry blossom street festival in the nation. Filled with lots of yummy festival food, performances, booths, music, cosplay (why?)...you name it! It was there. Although it's insanely crowded and gets worse every year, I rather enjoy sakura matsuri. What I did NOT enjoy, was the schizo weather we were having. It couldn't decide whether it wanted to rain and be cloudy, or pour down some sun upon us. The result: humid! And wonky pictures because my camera just couldn't adjust quickly enough. Boo... (That's me and a couple other koto society members playing btw if you haven't guessed) ;P We were the first people to go on the main stage and we started late because they were already having problems. :( Oh well, I thought we did well considering there were only three of us and we played a few songs. Nice and short.

*twang ... twang twang!*

Geisha! One of the few perfor- mances that I saw. They were here last year as well, and they were beautiful and graceful as always. A rare sight to be able to see, since a geisha performance is costly.

There facial expressions were most amusing and I'm always impressed with how they carry themselves. Their hand movements, their poise, it seems like they float sometimes while they are dancing.

This woman here is wearing a gray color to signify that she is playing the role of a male while the ones who wore black were the customary females. It was interesting to see how they interacted with one another and how each adopted their own role as they told a story through their dancing.

A festival dance that I thought was quite lovely ...

Here, this dance was about two lovers under the cherry blossom tree and this particular geisha took on the role of the coy flirtatious woman.

Another perfor- mance that I saw were the Tamagawa University's taiko drummers, always a big hit for the crowd...

They also include some dancers, which are the girls. I'm not a fan of modern odori (Japanese dancing) but it is fitting for a festival since these dances were very lively and engaging.

Also, my camera decided to finally not be a douche and start working properly. It was short-lived, however... :(

Michelle came along! And I put her in one of my yukatas (informal kimono usually worn during festivals) to walk around in. Very fun! We stayed there all day, and were pretty worn out. One of the koto society members builds Japanese-style rooms and he had a display booth set up. We wandered on in there at the end of the day to sit in the shade and rest because it was so humid. We chatted with friends and had some tea. All in all, it was very nice, except for the fact that a bajillion people decided we were part of the display and started to randomly take pictures of us. -_-

Ah well, what can you do? This pic is from my big concert o'doom that is held at the University of Maryland were the koto society members and the university students that my sensei teaches come together and put on a 2 hour performance.

I ended up doing most of the girls' makeup as fast as I could since we were pressed for time. I don't understand how some people could come to a concert and look like they rolled out of bed and left. Some didn't bother to do neither their hair, nor their makeup. I guess I can understand if you don't know how, but then, what do you do when you go out? At least make some kind of effort... -_- All the girls looked very nice though and the performance went well. Sensei appeared to be happy in the end. =)

Note to self: never stand next to Kyle. He's so tall! Well over six feet!

I also decided to bust out the red lipstick here, which I think worked nicely! Sensei's always getting on my case about how I never wear dark enough lipstick, and that it has to show from onstage. She has a pointl I'm just always afraid to wear such dark lipstick, haha.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So there you have it. That about wraps up the month of April (and February...and March...) for me in a nutshell. Sorry I pic spammed. :P

Not Dead Yet

2008-04-30T05:40:00.004-04:00

I live!

theChas would like to apologize for her absence in blogging as of late. RL is a betch, but things are finally starting to wind down, so I can start up blogging again. Fear not, I have not forgotten about you lovely readers, but have you forgotten about me? *hopes not* Enough excuses, now on to the post!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I realized that I haven't done a food post in quite some time, and that people seemed to enjoy those. I took some pictures a while back of an infamous Peruvian dish that I love to make, but I do not take credit for it. Props goes to my mother for this recipe.

Lomo Saltado

Lomo is one of those dishes that varies with each household. Everybody has their own way of making it or seasoning it, but the base ingredients are the same. Here's my family's take on it:

First, a list of ingredients, you will need:

Beef - any kind will do, but mostly boneless steaks
Tomatoes
Red Onions
Cilantro
Potatoes
Soy Sauce
Red Wine Vinegar
Cooking Oil
Garlic
Salt

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Prep

1. After washing your meat, cut them into small, long pieces

2. Season the beef with the soy sauce and the red wine vinegar (I usually put more soy sauce than vinegar, but it's all up to your preference...I also go by smell):

3. I let the beef sit soaking in the refrigerator until I cook it. Actually, if you can season the beef the night before you make this dish, it will taste loads better.

4. While the beef is soaking, I start washing the rice since it takes some time to cook it. Peruvian food always tastes better with garlic rice or salt rice, so after washing the rice, I put about 1 tbsp of oil into the pot.

5. ...and about 2 tsp of salt as well:

6. Also, peel a couple cloves of garlic and slightly smash them with a flat end of a knife to bring out the flavor, and start the rice!

7. After that is done, I start on prepping the vegetables. First I cut one whole red onion. A good fact to keep in mind is that the more onion and tomato you have in your lomo, the better it's going to taste, so I usually count about 1 onion for 2 people:

I cut them into long thin strips and afterwards, I wash the onion with salt. This is good to do because it softens up the onion and helps it to absorb flavor in whatever you're cooking.

8. Next, I wash, peel, and cut potatoes. I measure about 1 potato per 2 people as well, and cut them into French fry shapes:

Like so...

9. Then I wash and chop up a bunch of cilantro. How much cilantro you use is up to you.

10. Can't forget the tomatoes! I measure about 1 tomato per person and you cut those into long slices as well...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cooking time!

First, we're going to make the French fries. Personally, I find home-made French fries to cook better in the lomo:

1. Pour a s@#t ton of oil into a frying pan. I was running out of oil, so I don't have nearly as much oil as I would've liked in my pictures. After the oil heats (be careful!) slowly dip in your potato slices into the oil to let them fry.

2. When they start to turn a brown-ish color, they're ready to be taken out. I put them in a bowl lined with paper towels to soak up the excess oil, and then season it slightly with salt.

3. After your fries are done, put the oil in a container to cool down and please, don't throw it down the sink! That's going to screw up your pipes. Instead, put it in a plastic bag and throw it in the garbage. Also, you can use a little bit of the oil to cook your meat, which should now be seasoned and ready to be cooked(not pictured).

4. After the meat looks like it's about 3/4ths done, you're ready to stick in the tomatoes and onions (also not pictured)! I wouldn't stir as frequently because you want the tomatoes to get soft and well-cooked, but you don't want them to break apart, so gently stir occasionally. Also, it's best to add in some more soy sauce and vinegar at this time.

5. Once it looks like your tomatoes and onions are well-cooked, a nice juice will come out, and you're ready to add in your cilantro.

Nice and colorful! :)

6. French fries go in last!

7. Once the fries have soaked up some of the juice and looked cooked, you're done!

Mmmm....

8. Serve some rice (on the side, or in a bowl, whatever you prefer) and then you're ready to eat!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'd say these portions comfortably serve 2 people, allowing for seconds and a tiny bit of left-overs.

There it is, lomo saltado!

Please, if any of you try this out, let me know how it works out! And if you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask. :)

FOTD

2008-04-09T06:44:00.002-04:00

April is a busy busy month for theChas...but I remembered that I did Michelle's makeup a few weeks ago with the intent to put it on here. I need moar faces! Lol. Anyways, she's so kind to let me do her makeup, w00!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anyone know of the Hollywood collection by Armani? You can see the awesome, glittery mascara in this pic that I've been waiting eons for to get and FINALLY DID! WOOO!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What I Used:

Face

Armani LSF 0 and 2
Armani Microfil Powder 0
Armani High Precision Retouch 2
NARS - Zen and Nico

Eyes

Armani Single Eyeshadow #10
NARS - Ashes to Ashes
NARS - Tibet
Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner - black
Stila eyebrow shader
Stila white eyeliner
Armani glitter mascara - black

Lips

LE Armani lipgloss - pink with turquoise glitter
I forget the lipliner :P

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So what do y'all think? I think the taupe-y color really brings out blue eyes. The only thing I regret is not using a cream shadow base like NARS Corfu, but I can always try it next time. :P I also think that this is a nice day look, but can totally be amped up for a night look if it is darkened a little more...maybe I'll do the night look to this pair...*ponders*

5 Beauty Crimes

2008-04-01T06:39:00.003-04:00

These took me quite a long time to think about, but I've been tagged by Arashi and Wuzzy! So here we go:

My 5 Beauty Crimes:

1. Don't wash my brushes for extended periods of time
I'm really bad about this... :P Maybe if I washed them more, I'd have nicer skin.

2. Picking at my lips when they're chapped
I can't help it! When they're chapped and peeling, it just bothers me to have the dryness there

3. Not changing my bedsheets often enough
I know this contributes to breakouts, and yet I don't change my sheets out for like, a month or so, eek!

4. Having makeup on my face for over 24 hours
Sometimes, when I stay up all night, I'll forget to wash my face, which I know is very VERY bad...

5. Not washing my hair often enough
I think I got in the habit of not washing my hair very often when I had purple hair and didn't want the color to fade as quickly, because I still don't wash my hair often enough, and it'll get grotty...

Hm...I don't know who to tag that hasn't been tagged already...I need more friends, lol. Also, I need to stop being so lazy.

The Meevs....THIS IZ THE JAPANESE KABUKI ROCK

2008-03-29T05:09:00.004-04:00

Haha, sick of him yet? I didn't want to do a review on every single that he's been coming out with and decided to save a review for when his album came out...

...which came out about 10 days ago. I think I've had a substantial amount of time to listen to it, process it, and develop some opinions on it, so here we go:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First off, if you haven't read this post, and don't know a thing about 雅-miyavi-, then you're going to be clueless about a number of things that involves him and his interesting persona. All things aside, I'm only going to talk about his music in this post which is currently what he has dubbed as Neo Visualizm. One of the things that I DO respect about 雅-miyavi-, is that he is in constant pursuit to find and develop a style of music that is wholly his. His origins may have lain in visual kei, but he refuses to remain within the boundaries of that particular genre, leading to a new, fresh, style that is avant-garde and unique.

Or so I thought. For all the hype that he has built up for his neo visualizm, this album falls short of the mark. Yes, he brought in different elements (a turntablist, a tap dancer, a painter, beat boxer, bassist, drummer, and him, the guitarist and vocalist) but he didn't really end up with something different. Rather, practically the entire album can be categorized as pop with repetitive melodies and too many choruses in the major key. If you couldn't tell by now, this isn't going to be a happy review, so all you hardxcore 雅-miyavi- fangirls, avert your eyes, please.

The album is titled, This Is the Japanese Kabuki Rock, denoting that there are going to be a lot of...well, Japanese elements in this album. Another thing that I admire about 雅-miyavi- is his pride in being Japanese, but this album barely reflects that.

The first track: JPN PRIDE was initially my favorite song of the album. Here we see the shamisen that 雅-miyavi- has shown an ability for at the S.K.I.N. concert being incorporated into the music. It follows the theme of the album, especially with him including a revised rendition of the classic "Sakura Sakura" melody with the guitar reminding us of his dokusou days. However, what was off-putting was when I actually tried to decipher the lyrics. At first, I thought my ears had deceived me...

"Sukiyaki teriyaki harakiri geisha... sushi soba tenpura fujiyama ninja."

That's right folks, you heard it right. A big WTFBBQSAUCE!!!!1!11! from theChas... I guess I can get over it though considering it IS 雅-miyavi- and he is prone to crack-filled moments. It's fitting of his wacky style and actually, becomes quite catchy after the 10th time you've listened to it. :P

After JPN PRIDE we've got 21st Century Tokyo Blues. It's one of the better songs off the album, being aptly named with an electronic voice overs and turn tabling that is actually not distracting. It's got a peppy dance beat and swanky guitar, defnitely a song you can dance to. 雅-miyavi- vocals also fit in well, considering that he doesn't have the greatest voice. You can tell he's working hard to improve it though. I haven't really worked on trying to translate the lyrics yet, so who knows. It could be like the previous song and the lyrics will make me go O_O.

Some synth and trumpets in the next song: KABUKI DANSHI-Kavki Boyz-. Also, one of the B side tracks that was released with the single, Sakihokoru... Like with Tokyo Blues, it's very upbeat and dance-y. Despite it's pop-y sound, I kind of like this song. There's a pretty sweet guitar solo and some rapping by Yours Truly.

The next song is a classic Meevs song in my opinion, if not, at least the title is: BOOM-HAH-BOOM-HAH-HAH. You can really hear the tap dancing going on in this one, but I think the song could've been better if there was less rapping and more guitar and singing. It has the potential of being a blues track, but all that turn tabling and rapping really detracts from the song.

The interlude, Memories of Bushido (Instrumental), has got some odd chanting that I think is supposed to be representative of Buddhist monk chanting, but reminds me more of that funky horn that comes from Australia. It's got some cool traditional instruments incorporated into it that reminds me of a temple and a kabuki stage mixed together. I think that this helps with the overall theme that 雅-miyavi- seems to be trying to achieve, and fits in nicely with the album title and track 1.

It's also a nice tie-in to the next track: NOWHEREGOD. I am puzzled by the track title since it deviates from the theme of the album, but, then again, I haven't tried to listen to all the lyrics to this track, so it could have some kind of significance. What really bothers me about the song, is all the mixing that is going on, especially with TYKO? Is that the rapper's name? Anyways, I really REALLY don't like his voice. It bothers the s*&t out of me. One thing that did amuse me was the random guitar solo at the end. Even though it really has no business being in the track, it reminds me that yes, 雅-miyavi- can jam, and that he can actually play the guitar like the rock star he's meant to be. However, I do think it would have fit better in BOOM-HAH...

Ah, yes, this is the point where we being the slow descent into the bottomless pit of despair within this album. His single, Hi no Hikari Sae Todokanai Kono Basho de. feat. Sugizo... freaking hell, why does any song title of 雅-miyavi-'s that's in Japanese have to be so long? It's Gackt-esque. Not only is this song popxcore, but it's schizo as well. Yea, it's pretty...yea, it's got a nice melody, but seriously, it's boring. It's not going up there on my list of Miyavi favorites, and I think Mina has forever ruined it for me by saying that the PV looks like a Backstreet Boys video...which it totally does. XD I get the feeling that Miyavi didn't know where to go with this song, and Sugizo's rock style is out of place and random. A shame, really, considering who he is, and that he took part in the music.

The following song is Sakihokoru Hana no You Ni-Neo Visualizm-, the first single to 雅-miyavi-'s new style. The album takes a drastic turn into pop from Hi no Hikari onwards and this song is no exception. It has some pretty cool lyrics though, which is about the only thing that I like about the song, a critique on what the visual kei genre and what it has become today, and what it means to live passionately through music (the meevs should take his own advice, methinks). Miyavi's got a cool guitar melody again, but it's overpowered by Everything Else. There's too much going on in this song to really pay attention to anything. I find my mind wandering, and moving on to the next track...

...which is the most godawful song of the album. How this even got released as a single is beyond me seeing how the PV was made of complete fail. I think I was too generous with the review I gave, because this song is as abrupt on the album as it was on it's own. I don't know if it's because the song seems to be incomplete or what, but is sounds so random. The lyrics still make me cringe every single time I listen to it, which isn't very long because I promptly hit the "next" button on my music player, not wanting to suffer through the rest of the track.

Tsurezure Naru Hibi Naredo is the first and only slow song of the album. I'm not counting Hi no Hikari because of its split personality. It's got some string instruments playing in the background and a pretty guitar solo. Two minutes into the song, I found myself tensing up in anticipation for another upbeat tempo change a la Hi no Hikari, but, it stayed solid on till the end. Lyrics are boyband material, but it I'll give it a plus for its continuity. It's no Onpu no Tegami though.

We finish off the album with Thanx Givin' Day. Are you tensing up at the way all these song titles are written btw? Because I sure am. Net speak is decidedly not cute, and makes you sound like an idiot, 雅-miyavi-. XP Back to the track, we are treated to an acoustic song. I've said it once, and I'll say it again... 雅-miyavi-'s strength lies in his acoustics. It's a cute little ending all things considered, and a nice break from his posse. Did I mention how much I don't like that beat boxer/rapper dude?

Overall, I think this album had some potential, but that's about it. A lot of the songs were lost in the mess that the Kavki Boyz created. I don't think they contributed much to the music at all. There's just too many different sounds going on in each track, and it just takes away from the music experience. Maybe if 雅-miyavi- didn't overabuse the Kavki Boyz elements, like less turn tabling for one track, or less rapping/mixing for another, it wouldn't have been so bad, but, unfortunately, a lot of the songs didn't really have much focus.

I don't think that the Kavki Boyz are bad per se, as I did enjoy the 7 SAMURAI SESSIONS-WE'RE KAVKI BOYZ- album despite the fact that it was just a bunch of 雅-miyavi-'s old songs that were remixed. I felt like there was more of a certain style to be found within that album rather than this one which just doesn't have a lot of congruency.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Overall rating: =(

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sorry, 雅-miyavi-, I know you tried, but you're better than this.

I think that what frustrates me the most, is that if you listen to 雅-miyavi-'s music, you know the boy's got talent. It isn't just another pretty face. He lives for the music and owns on the guitar, but these tracks don't reflect much of his abilities. But, I guess, if he's satisfied with it, then we'll just have to go along with it till he finds something else. His style is ever-changing; I think he's still trying to find himself.

That being said, I would only recommend this album to either die-hard 雅-miyavi- fans, or somebody who is looking for a more pop-y, upbeat album rather than a rock album. If you're looking for old 雅-miyavi-i, the only place you're going to find it is in his crazy sense of fashion, lol.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Media:

Red Lipstick FOTDs

2008-03-26T18:28:00.003-04:00

I have these two gorgeous red lipsticks that I've only put to use once. A shame, really, considering that not too many people can pull off wearing red lipstick on a daily basis anymore. Red lipstick is finicky like that, but unlike many, I believe that it can be worn with heavy makeup as well as light makeup; it just depends on the look you're going for. I especially loved Armani's Leatherette collection and Black Gem collection, but they are no longer on the site so I don't have pictures of those to show you. :( Anyways, I decided to experiment and see what kind of eyeshadows I could wear that would work well with the colors that I have, and I came out with two looks, one for each lipstick. This was also during a brief period of insomnia where I couldn't sleep so if these FOTDs look a little sloppy, I apologize.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First Look:

*Notes: I know, I know, it doesn't look like I applied my lipstick fully on my bottom lips, but really, I did! It's just the way my mouth sets, and if I put it on there, then whenever I would talk or smile, it would get on my teeth, yeug! But, I was experimenting with lip stick application and how you can get different lip shapes with how you apply your lipstick. You'll see a difference in the next look. I also know I've been on a brown eyeshadow binge lately, but this is my favorite brown eyeshadow look by far. It's basically my FOTD with the face chart from NARS played up with a little more darker brown.

What I Used:

Face
Laura Mercier Mineral Primer
Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation Powder
Armani Microfil Loose Powder #1
NARS blush in Orgasm

Eyes
UDPP
NARS eyeshadow duo in Bellisima
NARS cream shadow in Corfu
NARS cream shadow in Cosmic Girl
NARS eyeshadow due in Star Sailor
Armani brown eyeliner
Etussais mascara
Too face mascara
Stila brow powder

Lips
Armani Silk lipstick #30

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Second Look:

*Notes: I filled out the outer edges of my lips more in this one so instead of having that painted doll look in Look #1, it looks like my lips are fuller here. I did very light shadow here...I'm not quite used to it, lol. Now that I'm looking at it, I think it would have looked cooler if I did the Lurve thang and put white eyeliner on my lid. I think it would've made my eyes pop more. Hmm...maybe I'll redo this look. Oh, and yea, you don't have to tell me, I know my eyelashes have shadow on them, I was just too lazy to wipe my mascara completely off. ;P

What I Used:

Face
Same as the first look

Eyes
UDPP
Stila single eyeshadow in Moonlight
Stila single eyeshadow in Launey
Stila single eyeshadow in Terra
Stila white eyeliner
Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner in black
Stila brow powder
Etussais mascara
Too Face mascara

Lips
Armani Shine lipstick #8

Has anybody tried Armani lipstick? They're WAY expensive but they are seriously the nicest lipsticks I have ever worn. When I wore these lipsticks out, I didn't have to reapply for the entire evening, and it really conditions your lips. Like I say with all things Armani, it better be magical, right? If you're paying that much money...it's a bad addiction because I can't afford this.

Coppery FOTD From a While Back...

2008-03-25T19:15:00.004-04:00

Just a FOTD that I did a while ago. I liked the color combo's...

What I Used:

Face

Laura Mercier Mineral Primer
Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation Powder - Soft Porcelain
Armani Microfil Powder 1
NARS Orgasm/Laguna Blush Duo

Eyes

Lancome Single Eyeshadow in Daylight
MAC Honeylust
MAC Sketch ( I love love LOVE this eyeshadow!)
MAC Cranberry
Armani brown eyeliner
Stila eyebrow duo for dark hair
Etussais mascara
Too Face mascara

Lips

NARS lipgloss in Striptease

(Slumber) Party Like a Rockstar...

2008-03-23T21:52:00.003-04:00

This is, by far, the best slumber party in the history of slumber parties:

5 Beauty Must NotHaves...

2008-03-23T01:23:00.002-04:00

I've been tagged! By Arashi...

So here are my top 5 beauty not have's....

1. Christian Diorshow mascara

In short...it sucks! It doesn't stay on and runs onto the bottom of your eyes and smudges really badly. It also does nothing to thicken, and flattens your lashes out. It also gets kind of flakey at the end of the day. I don't know, maybe I had a bad batch, but I really don't like this mascara.

2. Stila Smudge Pots

They start out alright, but they dry up really quickly and get all cakey. I'm not the only one who's experienced this as both of my cousins and a friend have complained about the same situation.

3. Proactiv Toner

This toner doesn't do anything at all. I'm not even sure if it works or not. It's not cooling or refreshing, doesn't tighten your pores...nothing. It's just putting liquid on your face.

4. NARS Makeup Primer

It looks nice. It feels nice...but it doesn't do anything in the way of prepping your skin for foundation. It's like adding extra moisturizer onto your face. A complete waste of money, seeing as how expensive it is.

5. MAC Pro Palettes

I...really don't like these palettes other than the fact I can depot eyeshadows into them and get that Back 2 MAC deal. I've had two break on me already...my roommate's broken one. They're made so cheaply! Stila's is constructed better in my opinion, AND it comes with a mirror and a brush.

I....don't have anybody to tag! *le gasp* Unless I do a double tag...so...free for all I guess.

Three Days of Not Being at the Reunion Concert...

2008-03-22T21:22:00.004-04:00

So, the long-awaited, infamous X Japan 3-day reunion concert is next weekend at the Tokyo Dome. Too bad I didn't move to Japan sooner, seeing as how there is a lot of activity going on music-scene-wise in 2008. Oh well, the tickets are about $300 a pop anyways, and hell if I'm going to pay that much money to see X Japan.

I'm kind of torn, because X was before my generation, therefore, it would be incredible to see them perform their songs live. On the other hand, while they'll probably have a lineup of some of the best guitarists that Japan has to offer, it's still not hide that is going to be playing with them, and for me, hide was pretty much X Japan and not *gasp* Yoshiki. Speaking of which, there is going to be a HUGE tribute concert for him that same weekend, a 2-day festival consisting of some of the most influential visual kei bands of the scene. Now that concert, I would absolutely love to go to. =(

*mopes*

So in honor of this concert that I am not going to be present for, I bring you a brief review of X Japan's newest single, I.V. (if you haven't heard it already, that is).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For those of you who may not be familiar with the band, X Japan started out around 1982 with much skepticism and controversy .Japan's music scene was quite different from what it is today, and X Japan's flamboyant outfits and gravity-defying hair was looked down upon in the industry. Yoshiki started his own music company, Extasy Records, in order to get them produced and signed, since nobody would contract them, and thus became their headstrong leader. Their music and image was modeled after the band KISS, to whom the members greatly admired, but they incorporated a lot of Japanese elements in their style as well, creating the genre that would become known as Visual Kei.

X really took off in 1985, when the illustrious Hide Matsumoto began to play for the band. With Toshi's heartbreaking voice, Yoshiki's effeminate qualities, Pata's quiet but sturdy support, Heath's sexiness, and hide's spunky and lovable personality, X Japan soon rose to the top of the music scene to become immortalized as one of the most influential bands in Japan. However, the band's history is riddled with tragedy, because, as quickly as they rose to fame, they fell ten times as hard.

With Toshi's allusions to being affiliated with a cult to his inability to handle the fame, X Japan disbanded in 1996. Yoshiki continued to produce under his label while the remaining members took part in various solo projects. hide enjoyed quite a successful solo career until his tragic and unexpected death in May of 1998. Heath and Pata were engaged in several band projects, while Yoshiki moved to California, undergoing severe depression and has remained there ever since. Quietly taking part in various projects such as producing soundtracks for movies and composing a classical piece for the emperor of Japan, it was until recently that he has been taking part in more public activities such as drumming for the super group, S.K.I.N., producing Violet UK and the reformation of X Japan.

Seeing as how X Japan hasn't performed together since 1996, this is a momentous occasion for fans worldwide. With the release of the new single I.V. on iTunes in January, things seem to be picking up again for this band. The question is, are they ready to take on all the anticipation and expectation that is brewing around them? I guess, it is just something that we'll have to see, or hear, about for ourselves.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unlike most people, I am actually quite fond of I.V. Granted, it isn't anything like their older stuff, but how can you expect it to be? 80's metal is a movement of the past, coveted by people who are die-hard fans, but, if you're appealing to a general audience, then I think a more modern song would be more appropriate. It's still got some of the epic qualities that X Japan engages in, a la Yoshiki. There's a haunting piano intro...background orchestra... some heavy guitar... over the top drumming... I'm not quite digging the backup vocals though, nor the distortion of Toshi's voice throughout the song. I do think it's cool, however, that this is an original band recording, meaning that it was recorded when hide was still alive and therefore, he took part in the song.

As for the PV, I'm tres disappointed. For a reunion of one of the biggest VK bands of all time, I seriously expected something more than a rooftop peformance on some skyrise building in the middle of Shibuya. The stage is boring, and yes, granted it IS a song off of the soundtrack for Saw IV, so flashes of the movie are to be expected, but the search lights, and the ultimate cliche of cliche's, random rainfall, isn't just doing it for me. And I know that they are an established essence in the Jrock community, and therefore entitled more leeway than everybody else, but they have no coherent look. Yoshiki, even though I love the man to pieces, is blatantly emo with his emo nailpolish, while Toshi kind of looks like a bum. Pata is wearing the most hideous, polyester pants that looks like birthday gift wrapping paper, while Heath is the only one remotely resembling the rockstars that they are. hide's guitar looks pretty cool, but alas, he's not there for obvious reasons.

All in all, I think of the song as :) while the PV is a :(.

Taste of Chaos

2008-03-19T15:41:00.011-04:00

WARNING: LOTS O' PICS AND DETAILED CONCERT REVIEW
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Happy belated St. Patty's day everyone. Hope everybody had a wild time and stayed safe. As for me, I spent my St. Patrick's Day in a state of badass-ed-ness.

Like the title says, I went to the Taste of Chaos tour in Virginia/Washington DC area, and, time issues and such aside, it was a concert of pWnage proportions. I think I may have mentioned it briefly in my MUCC post, but if I didn't, it was a rock concert tour of quite a few bands, three of which were Jrock bands: MUCC, D'espairsRay and The Underneath. I'm really pleased that, despite all the issues that Japanese music has to encounter in the states, it's slowly getting recognized and making it's way over. It's pretty nice that they got invited to play because of the amount of exposure that they're going to get, whether it be to the fans or to the media.

Since she's been floatin' about in the past few entries or so, those of you regular readers may recognize Michelle, who usually accompanies me in all my endeavors. When I found out that the tickets were going on presale in January and who was going to be playing, I basically told her that we were going and wasn't going to take no for an answer. I remember both MUCC and D'espairs from JRev I's Night 2 which was, in my opinion, the better night of the two of that concert. They had incredible performances, so I really didn't want to pass up the chance to see them again.

We prepped about a few weeks in advance... trying to decide what to wear, what our hair and makeup was going to look like. Visual kei concerts are serious biznoz, and hell if I'm going to look half-assed at one. Plus, in my opinion, it's part of the fun of it. What other concert can you put your creativity to the test and get to look quirky and fun like that? And yea, I guess we're both anal enough that if we were going to do something, then we were going to do it well and look good in the process. :P

I decided to try and copy a mix of Aoi looks from theGazettE, and for Michelle, we were going to do hyde from Kagen no Tsuki hair and Miyavi Neo Visualizm makeup.

We practiced a couple of times, which I think helped it to go smoothly the day of. We basically got ready in a couple hours and then flew into the car and I drove like a mad LA driver to the Patriot Center in about 25 minutes. We were running late! As a result, we missed the opening local band (thank god, because I heard they weren't very good) and a song or two of D'espairs'. :( That, I was kind of sad about, because I don't remember the setlist and was still trying to fully get into concert mode. I also forgot my camera! I thought we weren't going to be allowed to take them in, and I didn't want to waste any more time or get it taken away, so...yea. I gots no pictures for you except for the ones on my camera phone, and I don't have internet for that, sorry! :(

First, a couple of complaints from theChas. Not only were there an overabundance of bros and bro-ho's, but it was like a gathering of all the horrible stereotypes that go along with a concert like this. Granted, the headlining bands were Atreyu, Bullet For My Valentine, and Avenged Sevenfold (who the f@#k ARE these bands?!) and therefore, where else would a mass congregation of emo kids, ig'nant bros, mall gawths, and scene kids be able to come together? But still! It's just a setup for some epic failure and some serious stupidity. That, and gods! Don't people know the meaning of a shower? There was some bad B.O. going around. D:

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming:

Despite being a little late, D'espairs Ray was awesome, as usual. I know I haven't done a review of them, but Mirror is seriously one of the best Jrock albums that came out in 2007. The whole production of the album was just put together so well with the songs flowing so smoothly into each other. I respect D'esRay for keeping the true elements of VK in their music. It's hard and dark, yet they can bring some beautiful pieces together as well. It's a well listened-to album on my mp3 player.

Hizumi is, for a lack of words, a talented vocalist. He sounds pretty spot on live and can growl perfectly. His voice isn't as good as, say Hyde's, but he's a really good live singer...moving. Another thing that's impressed me about D'espairs from the start is that they make good music. Meaning, their songs have a sense of completion about them, utilizing a variety of components on top of the usual guitar, bass and drum trio that goes alone with all rock music, so the compositions themselves are done very nicely. Kudos to them. They are pretty hardcore...they never really lose face and you can tell that they eat, sleep, and dream music. It's part of their style. All of them were in pretty casual-wear. Kind of sad, I wish they could have glam'd it up a bit like they did at Jrev, but I guess they were scared of being made fun of or something.

The only songs that I can remember them playing off the top of my head were Angeldust, Mirror, a new song called Kamikaze, and Infection. Gods, Infection was awesome! Not only is it one of my favorite D'espairsRay songs, but it was beautiful, and moving, and I think I was one of the few that was singing along. And, since it's from their older album, Coll:Set, I'm really glad I got to hear that live. On top of it all, the pit was pretty lame-looking..AKA it was empty. Probably because people were coming later and skipping all the bands playing at the begining, i.e. the Jrock bands and couple other bands that were made of Epic Fail. The good thing about an empty pit, is that Michelle and me were able to get pretty close for the D'esRay set. This isn't to diss the Jrock fans that were there though. We were all cheering and trying to show our support, which was way awesome. All in all, my only regrets were that we got there late, and they didn't play SCREEN, but I'll take Infection.

Next came a band on Taste of Chaos's really, and I mean really sad-looking mini stage: Idiot Pilot. I mean, the name is obvious enough, isn't it? Epic EPIC Fail. I don't think it helped either that they had funky, out-of-place electronics in their music that I jokingly danced to, and the fact that the guitarist had a serious case of epilepsy known as Not Being Able To Dance. I mean, wtf man. That doesn't even look cool...that doesn't even look uncool in the cool way. You just looked like you were mentally challenged.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I distracted myself by focusing on the main stage, where MUCC was setting up. They were wearing a mix of billowy, South East Asian- influenced clothing that actually, worked pretty well on stage as strange as it looks in photoshoots. I purposely placed myself in front of Yukke, because I wanted to see him pWn on the bass. I swear that man is so flamboyant, but that's besides the point. He moves beautifully and hot damn! He can play the bass. He also had the most gorgeous double bass I have ever seen in the existence of double basses. I...don't really know how to describe it in words, except that maybe if you imagined an electric double bass (it could've been one, I don't know, I've never played double bass before) but, instead of a plastic body it still had the wood body.

I also had a pretty good view of SATOchi and Tatsurou. By the time they came on stage, Michelle and I had squeezed to about 2nd-3rd row and he was all up in my face. The only person I didn't have a good view of, was Miya. Sadness, because he's an accomplished guitarist. On the other hand, I'm kind of glad that he wasn't in my direct line of view because he had the most hideous mullet. I don't know if he was going for that "E-mur-i-kan" look or not, but he was sure successful. By the by, SATOchi, REALLY good-looking in person. Tatsurou was entertaining because he's just so...weird. Haha. The way he moves, his gestures, sometimes you'll kind of think, "That man is a little off...but in a good way." His Engrish was hilarious and kind of cute. Totally reading off some paper on the floor, or memorized before he went on stage, but hell, at least he tried, which is more than I can say for some people in the audience, who would say the most ignorant and imbecilic things. To the point where I was embarrassed to call myself an American. And people wonder why these bands never come...

I THINK they played Ranchu... and... Shadan? Ahhh, I can't remember, I have such a bad memory. Definitely Fuzz and Libra were the highlights of their set because of the way the crowd just got so into it. Fuzz is just so fun live. You can dance, jump, scream and sing along to it all at the same time. It was made to be played live, and Libra is just a classic. So many people (including myself) were singing along to the chorus. The very definition of that song is badass and I've yet to meet a person who hasn't liked it. They also played a couple new songs, which was very energetic.

After they left the stage, I was able to squeeze into the front row WTF?!?!?!? XD I saw a crew member hand the guard in front of me SATOchi's drumstick and immediately a bunch of people threw out their arms desperately grasping for it. I don't know if it was because I was away from that little crowd, or because I made eye contact, posed, and smiled at him, but he ended up handing it off to me. :D Moral of the story is that it pays to look good at concerts. I held onto that drumstick for dear life. Michelle almost stole it from me, until she realized that I was the one holding it and not some other uber fangirl chick. Haha.

The Underneath was next, taking on the mini stage with much more grace than Idiot Pilot. I can understand why a lot of reviews on online 'zines and such have been much more favorable towards them than D'espairsRay or MUCC because, while they still maintain that VK look, their music is more similar to American music than the other two bands, making it easier to relate to. Taka was, like everybody and their mom's been saying, pretty sexy. I think it's the way he'll grasp the mic or whisper huskily while he's talking...but eh, I think there's more to being sexy than that. Kyo from Diru was way sexier in my opinion, and the man isn't even good-looking. Hyde from L'Arc tops it for me. His very presence = sexiness and no, I'm not biased. Not at all.

Music- wise... it was okay. I wasn't blown away or anything, but they have talent and weren't made of fail, so I wasn't about to complain. The only song I really liked was the last song they played, but he didn't say the name of the song so, :(. I'll find it though. One thing I did notice, was that somebody in the pit threw something onto the stage at him while they were in between songs. What a complete douche bag! That's just poor showmanship; he or she should've been kicked out of the arena.

There was a girl standing next to me who told me that MUCC was doing a signing at 8, so I tried to buddy up to her so I could follow her to wherever it was that MUCC would be doing this. Michelle and I decided early on to check out after The Underneath finished so the girl came along. This massive chunk of a man AKA one of the bodyguards was able to grab me and lift me over the barricade like I weighed 0 pounds. We all left that way instead of pushing our way back through the pit, which would've been stupid. Our new acquaintance introduced herself as "Sakura....".

Um....yea...I'm right with you on that one. Aside from all the issues that I have with people picking Japanese names and going by them in public just because they think it's cool (or without another valid reason otherwise), of all the names that could've been picked, she picked Sakura?

O-T-A-K-U

She also dropped us like it's hot and ran for the anime booth that was there. *sigh* It's okay, because Michelle and me found the merch booth just fine on our own kthx, along with the booth where D'espairsRay was going to do a meet and greet WHUT?!?! We both ended up getting a shirt of both MUCC and D'espa along with a D'espairs wristband. I also snagged a free program for us so that the members would have something to sign.

While we were waiting in line, I could see where all the awkwardly social people started to come out. This one guy who stood behind us, I felt bad for him because he was alone. I almost went alone and that's no fun, but he was trying oh-so-very hard to talk to us. I don't mind at all talking to people in line. Hey, that's how you make friends! But he would say the lamest things. =/

D'espairs were very gentle, quiet people. Very different from their dark, fierce persona's on stage. Except for Zero (the bassist). He's just as quiet and shy in person as he appears on stage. Tsukasa (the drummer) took a double take when I shook his hand, hopefully not thinking I looked mixed, but cute ;P, and asked Michelle if she liked the show. If people weren't rushing us along, we should've put our game on a flirted some, haha. Karyu (the guitarist) and Hizumi (the vocalist) were polite and had firm handshakes.

Next came the waiting in line part for MUCC and another adventure in Ignorant Americanism. Some bro passed by and stopped to ask me what band we were waiting in line for. The conversation went a little like this:

Bro: "Who is the band you guys are waiting in line for?"
Me: "MUCC"
Bro: "Who?"
Me: "Mu'koo"
Bro: "...Are they even a band?"
Me: *raises eyebrow* "Yup, they're a band. They played tonight in fact."
Bro: "And you want to wait in line for these people?"
Me: "I'm standing in line, aren't I?" *gestures with hands* "Move along."

Seriously, wtf man. If I wasn't out-numbered by ethnicity and number of fans, I would've thrown something at him. A-hole.

Another unfortunate occurrence would be that Michelle and I were attacked by a case of encountering a fangirl...up close and personal. Not only was she all but 12 years of age and brought her mom along with her (lamexcore), but I thought she was going to pass out from her recounting (randomly) every detail of her encounter with the D'espairsRay meet and greet.

"A-a-a-nd I got to h-h-h-ug them and OH MY GOD!!!! I was SHAKING! XD"

o_O

She also had copper-dyed hair and was wearing green and looked like a leprechaun. And couldn't stop rambling about theGazettE omg! What bands did you just see? Props to her though for recognizing my hair was like Aoi's.

We did meet a cool girl though, who was rolling her eyes at the overabundance of ignorance floating around.

MUCC were pretty chill guys. So nice! I had them sign the drumstick that I got XD and they signed a poster for me as well. Yukke and Tatsurou drew little pictures on it. Yukke drew a silly-looking face ad Tatsurou drew a fish. XD Miya and SATOchi put their names on it. I had an amusing encounter with Miya where I told him that we had the same name and he went, "uso!" ("no way!").

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Drumstick:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was amused at how fast both bands de-makeuped and de-costumed, and Michelle and I found Ryo from The Underneath hanging about where he signed a couple things and took pictures with people. He was really hyper, haha.

After that, things started to wind down, our stomachs grumbled in hunger, and we checked out into the cold and made our way to the car. Overall, it was a good experience and a lot of fun. Michelle thoroughly enjoyed herself which I was happy about, and we had yummy food at Tasty Diner! MmMmMMm...till the next concert!

...which is Miyavi's. I just gots me 3 tickets to the Anaheim concert today WHUT!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also, what would this post be without makeup and clothes pics? Hair courtesy of Michelle, makeup courtesy of...myself. Haha. And Aoi and Miyavi for being the inspiration:

Pre-hair with makeup halfway done... =P

Voila!

Michelle's makeup stayed on like superglue all night!

A satisfied, and happily-fed Michelle. Also, a great view of the makeup with a closed eye... ;P

AND, just to show you readers how well the Urban Decay Prime and Prep potion works...my eyeshadow didn't come off at all except for some smudging on the bottom where I didn't put any of the potion. This is after being in a pit at a rock concert, being sweated on and jumping around:

My hair also stayed in place, wow. :P We DID hairspray it lyke whoa.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And, last but not least, the media! What would a post of mine related to anything to do with music be without it?

D'espairsRay

Here is a clipped version of a D'espairsRay concert (Liquidize Tour to be exact) of their performance of In:Vain and Infection. Both songs oWn:

Also, from the same concert, their performance of Reddish~DIVA ver~, simply because the song kicks ass:

Here are also a couple of tracks from their Mirror album:

Screen, a fave

Angeldust

And, randomly, [PIG]headed

MUCC

If you haven't checked out my review on FUZZ (which you should if you haven't) here's the PV again:

And a reposting of Libra:

I also feel like this song doesn't get enough love, but I absolutely adore it:

25toki no yuutsu

The Underneath

Okay, so I wasn't terribly impressed with The Underneath's live performance, their CD is rather enjoyable. It's ironic that the one particular song that struck me during their set was Gekkoh, which actually sounds better live than on the CD. Haha. I know, that was confusing. Anyways, here's Gekkoh:

And a couple of other songs that I liked from the CD: Moon Flower.

Bite the Bullet

The Prayer

Zomgs, actual English and not Engrish! Taka's English is pretty impressive so I have a sneaking suspicion that he's either Japanese American, or the band has been living there for quite some time.

And holy hell, this post was long. Longer than the Dir en grey one I believe. For those of you who stuck to this to the very end, I love you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

P.S. - Photoshoot scans of the band are courtesy of Jrock Scans, watermarked pictures are personal pictures.

Yet Again, Another FOTD

2008-03-14T01:35:00.002-04:00

Last one for a while, I swear, lol. I've just got a lot lined up. ;P

A while back, I did a look for my lovely friend, Michelle, who's graciously volunteered to let me do her makeup. I think it's good to get in the practice of doing makeup on different faces so you can get used to different eye shapes, planes, face shapes...etc. So anyways, don't be surprised to see her face pop up here and there on my blog.

So here's a Michelle FOTD for you! :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

With flash:

Without flash:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What I Used:

Face

Armani Luminous Silk Foundation - 0 and 2
Armani Microfil Powder - 0
Armani High Precision Retouch Concealor - 2
NARS blush in Zen and Nico

Eyes

Stila Fall Palette - I don't remember from what year, but it came in a brown leather case is basically a petal pink, deep purple, and matte brown/purple
Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner in black
Stila due eyebrow shadow for dark hair
Too Face mascara

Lips

MAC lipliner pencil in Oak
NARS lipgloss in Striptease

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you enjoyed it! Questions, comments? Please drop one to let me know!

Another Day, Another FOTD

2008-03-12T02:28:00.004-04:00

I've got a whole bunch lined up for you, :P

This one is blue-ish, even though you can't really see it. I really need to work on my camera-taking skillz. =/

Oh yea, and please please PLEASE ignore my nastyxcore skin. I know it's gross...in fact, it was a lost worse and therefore, part of the reason why I haven't done these in a while. This winter weather made my skin go le crazy.

Pajamas FTW!

What I Used:

Face
Laura Mercier Mineral Primer
Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation in Soft Porcelain
Armani Microfil Powder 1
NARS Blush duo in Orgasm and Laguna

Eyes
Armani 2006 Limited Edition palette
(basically, a soft petal pink, shimmery white, violet blue, and dark navy blue)
Bobby Brown gel eyeliner in black
MAC powerpoint eyepencil in Engraved
Etussais separate mascara
Too Face mascara
Stila eyebrow duo for dark hair

Lips
Clear gloss

Hello????

2008-03-11T04:01:00.005-04:00

Anyone there? *cricket sounds*

I know I know, I've been very...absent from blogging as of late, but, alas! I am still alive so fear not. I just haven't really been using my time to blog...it's a pretty busy semester for me. Also, I haven't really been doing anything fun with my makeup lately, so nothing there. But it has been brought to my attention from a couple of people that my blog has been severely lacking in updates, so, since I am on spring break, I figure it's a good time to start blogging again. ;P Glad to know people are still checking up on this thing...sort of.

Anyways, I bring y'all a FOTD that I did in Japan. Well, more precisely, that I got done at a NARS counter in Japan. It's very simple, and you can't really see the colors because I took it at the end of the day, but I really love the look and use it as one of my 'everyday makeup' looks.

And here's the face chart:

I effing love this lipstick. You can't see it on my face because it wore off, but it's beautiful.

Oh, and P.S. - Looking back on the last two posts...I cringe. Please excuse my horrible writing/English. I guess not using English everyday, and struggling to use Japanese and on a daily basis, and incorporating it with Spanish, will do that to you...

Akeome

2008-01-05T13:23:00.000-05:00

Is apparently, the shortened way to say "Happy New Years" in Japanese. You know how them Japanese love to shorten everything. ;P

I've decided to move on from my Dir en grey post...I hope you all enjoyed it because it's been edited like hell and I added more songs to the playlist (I'm probably going to go back and edit it again). I'm going to put it on my side bar since I worked on it for so long so that a part of it will remain for quite some time. Yes, I'm a dork, I know. :P

But moving on, I've decided to make this post about traditions, since my new years was spent with so much duality. I spent the night in Shibuya and Roppongi partying like I've never partied before(if any of you out there know me personally, that's not very much) and I spent the day partaking in Japanese customs, which I've grown up with my whole life here and there.

It makes me wonder what kind of traditions do the people who are reading this right now involve themselves in, if any? There are so many, be it little or grand so I thought I'd share a typical new year's experience in Japan...with lots of pictures and music of course!

Are you ready? I bring you a rare, personal post of the chas:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first sunset of the first day of the new year (I hate sunrises btw)...isn't that a beautiful view? I am jealous of the view my friends have right outside of their balcony. That's Tokyo tower right there! Right before me and Nori make our way to Meiji jingu shrine, a famous shrine in the heart of Tokyo, really close to Harajuku.

The common practices that accompany holidays and festivals in Japan involve booths that line the streets and, especially for new years, which is the biggest holidaybtw, stopping by a shrine to offer up a prayer to the gods. A lot of these booths, or stands, will contain lots of food that is commonly sold at festivals, like takoyaki which are breaded octopus balls, chicken karage (fried chicken), Yakisoba (roasted noodles with veggies), and a special for new years and what I went looking for, oden. The Wikipedia definition is "a winter dish consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs, daikon radish, konnyaku, and processed fish cakes stewed in a light, soy-flavoured dashi (fish) broth." Yum!

A couple winters ago, in o5', I also spent the new year in Japan, but it was a quieter new years and I went to a smaller shrine closer to my aunt's house. They served oden right there in these huge pots along with sake in a special cup made out of wood. I didn't drink any sake this year, I had just spent the whole night drinking! Since Meiji jingu is more famous, it was more crowded and tourist-friendly, but not overly so, and the people were so friendly. Everybody was just so happy it was the holidays, I guess.

And, since it's Japan and I'm in the Land of the Crazy, what would it be without an equally crazy story to tell, but one of Takoyaki.

Takoyaki is usually cute-looking, like so:

It is fried and battered and made with lots of love and attention in these cute little pans and has to be turned approximately every 15 seconds. Believe me, I've seen it. So along my way to Meiji jingu, I see this one takoyaki stand that has a very long line. Curious I step up to have a look and immediately take a step back, astounded because, protruding from these takoyaki balls are huge octopus tentacles!

Don't get me wrong, I love octopus...I've eaten it raw...I've eaten it cooked...I've eaten tentacles...I have absolutely no problem with it. In fact, I love to bite off the little suction cups first and have them stick to your tongue and then chew the leg later. It's a favorite childhood past time of mine, but to have them sticking out of your takoyaki ball is just...odd, and kind of monstrous, in a morbidly fascinating way. I think that if I wasn't so hungry, I probably would have waited in line too, haha, but I didn't, so all I have are these pictures for you:

Too fascinated! lol

Plus, I had my mind set on the oden:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After some customary cuisine, it was time to take the long trek into a random, blocked off, secluded area in the middle of Tokyo towards Meiji jingu. There were...for a lack of a better description, a lot of people there. They herded us in like cattle, quite literally, and we were let in in packs every 10 minutes or so.

Another event you see quite often during the new years celebration is a lot of young girls is kimono because that is when they celebrate their hatachi. Hatachi is kind of like Sweet 16, except you celebrate your 20th birthday instead of your 16th, and you get to dress up in a beautiful formal kimono (usually rental, unless you are rich) and are professionally dressed, and get to walk around all day and get your picture taken with family and friends, etc. It's fun, I imagine, I never got to celebrate my hatachi. :( I saw some girls in gorgeous kimonos though. Last time I was in Japan in the winter, I went to Kyoto, and you'd think that I'd see some beautiful kimonos, but this time around they were much prettier, though sadly, fewer. There was a girl who passed by in the prettiest red kimono I have ever seen, and I usually am not fond of bright colors on kimonos. Sadly, I didn't snap a picture, but Noriko got one of a pretty purple kimono at the shrine. I liked her obi more though. I was befuddled with the tying technique! How?! It had two bows!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next, comes shrine etiquette, just in case any of you happen to ever visit. ;) Before entering a shrine, you'll see a little basin or water that looks like a fountain with bamboo cups. That is where you're supposed to wash your hands. It is a sort of cleansing ritual before you enter a place of spirituality.

Then, you pass through the gate, stepping over the door. In Japan, we follow the Chinese zodiac, and this year it is the year of the rat. Hence the paintings of the rats eating radishes that you see adorning the gate up there. Why radishes? Don't ask, because I have no clue, lol. Look at all those people!

That is the inside of the shrine, where the monks pray. You can't see inside very clearly, but there is an enormous taiko drum that the monks were ringing as they were making their prayers. It was a very powerful and festive moment. This is also the time where you give an offering to the gods, often 5 yen, that you toss into a box, and you ring a bell. Since there were so many people, however, we all couldn't ring the bell. :( Then you clap your hands twice and say your prayer. After your prayer is done, you bow and clap your hand once, and then you can leave. That is the new years ritual! It's an ecclectic mix of Shintoism and Buddhism, but mostly Shinto.

Afterwards, you buy your little trinkets that bring you peace and good luck. I bought little mice trinkets to keep in my apartment and one for my mom, since she was born in the year of the rat. That means she is completing another cycle of her life, so it is a very special year for her. My friends bought arrows that are blessed by the monks of the shrine carrying pictures corresponding to the year of the animal to which it represents. I didn't buy one because I was afraid it would get crushed in the luggage...anyways, the purpose of these arrows is that you keep them in your house all year long for protection and peace until the commencement of the next year. Then you go to the shrine again and get a new arrow with the new animal on it and burn the old one. At the shrine, they have these huge pyres where you burn the arrows. It's supposed to represent you putting the past behind and getting ready to start fresh again.

People also buy little fortune papers from the priestesses. If you like your fortune, you tie it to a tree branch, and they say the stars will make your fortune come true, like during the star festival (Tanabata). It gets quite competitive for a good spot though, haha.

After all is said and done, the lanterns are there to light your way home. Shinenakemashite omedetou!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They only thing I missed this year, is eating the really traditional food, osechi. Each dish that you eat represents something for the new year. Like eating noodles will give you longevity, rice, prosperity, special prepared black beans will bring you intelligence, lotus root, beauty, etc. I love it! It's tasty too. =D But it takes a long time to prepare....

So everybody, what's your story?

10th Year Anniversary: HUGE MUSIC POST LYKE WHOA

2007-12-29T03:46:00.000-05:00

I say it once and I'll say it again:

ZOMGS! BIG ASS MUSIC POST FROM HELLZ!!!11eleventy-one! MEDIAZ LYKE WHOAZ

*coughs*

That being said, I think that this long-awaited post (damned internet) is much deserving of one of my favorite bands, Dir en grey, who are currently celebrating their 10th anniversary. I guess they are not counting their years as La:Sadie's, pre 1997, which would make sense considering the current lineup wasn't the same as it is now, but band members tend to come and go...so let us take a little trip backwards in time to recount all the long, hard years that made Dir en grey the band that they are today. Don't worry, I promise it won't be painful.

First off, let's start off with some introductions for my lovely readers (if there are any) who may not be familiar with the band:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kyo 京 (Vocals)

What isn't there to say about Kyo? And yet, words utterly fail me in trying to describe him to you. I feel like no matter how many times I will try in this post to emulate his personality and stage presence in your mind, and many times hereafter, I will never be able to come close in describing how he is in reality. Nevertheless, I'm still going to talk about him because I think he's an incredible person with a wonderful gift. He is one of those rare people that 99.5% of his fans admire him for his talent rather than for good-looks, because, let's face it, Kyo does all that he can to look unappealing. He writes all of the lyrics for the band's music, and whether you agree with his message or not, you cannot deny that it is unique.

His stage presence is another special aspect that belongs wholly to Kyo, garnering mixed reactions from his audience and critics. I must admit, the fish hooking and bleeding is a little flinch-worthy at times, but when you understand the music and the message that he is trying to convey, it can become quite powerful. And it is not only the "blood" factor that grabbed my attention, but rather his movements and gestures. A lot of VK vocalists can look awkward or jerky on stage, or look boring standing there with the mic, but Kyo fuses with the music. The way he moves his hands is spell-binding, and his dancing seems so natural for him. He has beautiful stage presence.

Kaoru 薫 (Guitar)

Also the band's leader, Kaoru is the main composer of the band's music. He tends to give Die a lot of the guitar solos, but, if you look hard enough, his solos define Dir en grey and are the core of the band's music. Even though I'm no expert on the guitar, I think that his riffs are actually more complicated than Die's, lower register tends to be...it's underestimated and less noticed because it does not carry the main melody. I may also sound a little shallow here, but I also think that he picks out/designs beautiful guitars. I mean beautiful. I only wish in my wildest dreams that I could own one like his; we share a purple fetish I suppose. He doesn't move around much on stage like Die or Toshiya, but he does headbang and revs up the crowd if they're not lively enough for his standards. He's also quite an intimidating fellow I've heard. You wouldn't want to mess with Kaoru, he knows how to handle his business, even Kyo was a little afraid of him when they first met. ;P His musical compositions are eccentric, yet they fit for they band. It makes them stand out and has set a standard for creating Visual Kei music. All in all, what more in a leader could you ask for?

Die (Guitar)

Dir en grey's second guitarist and other main composer for the band, Die is a spritely fellow. He keeps the band chipper with his laid-back attitude and his signature smile. He is most recognizable for his flaming red hair and flaming red guitars, and all the jokes that he likes to play, especially with his partner in crime, Toshiya. He loves to pick on Shinya, but that's probably because Shinya's so susceptible to teasing because he's quiet and shy. His friendly demeanor makes him the most approachable of the band, especially for his international fans...that, and he is really good with his English I've heard. Joker attitude aside, Die can play a mean guitar (IIID Empire) and owns his solos (Bottom of the Death Valley). In his VK days, he wore outfits that made him seem like the alpha male of the band even though Kaoru was the leader, and wears a deadly panda eyeliner to rival that of hide from X Japan. Watch out now!

Toshiya (Bass)

Said he was "stolen" by other members of the band, Toshiya is the newest member of Dir en grey, and the best dressed I must say, only to be rivaled by Kyo. As a one-time VK band, outfits are a must, and Toshiya's were landmark occasions in the VK community. His style is still copied by many today, and with only half of what he had. And I know I've said this about every member, but gods he is a great bassist. Every member is amazing, and Toshiya shines as one of the best bassists out there (even once admired by the meevs, where do you think meevers learned slap guitar? Toshiya plays slap bass). The man's got mad skillz, burning energy, and he does it all in style. I once read on another person's website that even though he's not standing in the front of the stage, it doesn't matter because he still has a strong presence. He prowls.

Shinya (Drums)

Ah, Shinya. The pretty one of the band, though, amongst the fans, Toshiya is also quite the looker. Regardless, Shinya, you are the delicate flower...the deceivingly delicate flower because the man (yes man) can drum for a 20 + set straight for days. Believe me, I've seen it. How he does it all weighing 80-something pounds is a complete mystery to me and probably everybody else.

I must admit, that at first, I was not very fond of Shinya. Maybe it was his style...maybe I was being shallow and judging him for his past bad hair and bad style...who knows, but I didn't like him. That is, until I saw him live, and now I have a complete new-found respect for the guy. He is my favorite drummer, ever. Over Yoshiki, over Yuki...*pauses potential fan girling* Yea...well, all I can say is that he, like Kyo, is something else to see live. PV's and recordings do not do this man justice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

While I could ramble on about each member, let's move on to some short info. about their past, shall we?

Does anybody know Kisaki of Phantasmagoria fame? He used to be the original bassist of Dir en grey, when they were known as La:Sadie's that is. Kyo and Shinya have known each each other since their school days, and they gathered Die, Kaoru and Kisaki later to form La:Sadie's. When the band wanted to move on to bigger and better things, Kisaki left and was replaced with Toshiya (or he was "stolen" whichever way you want to look at it). Either way, it was a good move in my opinion, Toshiya is a way better bassist than Kisaki could ever be and was the finishing touch that Dir en grey would need for their music. And as they say, the rest is history.

The band lineup has been the same ever since, renaming themselves Dir en grey, a mix of languages meaning "a grayish coin," and have enjoyed considerable success since its inception.

Their music, while interesting, is definitely rock, but what they do with it is what makes it really interesting, like what Kaoru does with Karasu, or they can simply just bang it out hardcore, like in Ugly which is one of my favorite songs by the way. That drum and bass is just hawt. A lot of people like The Final because it's an overall pleasing song to listen to. It's well-rounded, and the lyrics are gorgeous. Plus, everybody loves an emo song about suicide. ;P Kodou, another personal favorite, has some of the best screaming I've ever heard while Mr. Newsman and The IIID Empire's got some cool guitar riffs, making them concert favorites. Yokan ventures into a more pop-y tune and Hydra even gets a little techno. In short, Dir en grey knows their rock and has a grasp of the broad spectrum with which they can extend into the genre.

Notable attributes include Yoshiki of X Japan fame producing their Gauze album, a fan favorite, while Macabre is the highlight of their visual kei days. Vulgar is a progressive album because it is a mixture of American metal and VK, signifying Dir en grey's transgression into metal and punk music while they leave their VK days behind. Six Ugly is a wonderful mini album albeit just that, a mini album and too short. Each song is ultimate pwnage though and Withering to Death is simply beautiful. I quote Kaoru by saying that Marrow of a Bone is Withering's evil twin brother/sister because of its hardcore death metal and, with the preview that we have with Dozing Green, I can't wait for the new album that awaits us in 08'.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As the years go by, Jrock, I feel, is starting to become more well known. A good thing in my opinion, but Dir en grey has been one of the first to have started the crossover from Japan to overseas. They have had the privilege to perform with many well known bands (Nine Inch Nails, KoRn, Deftones) and have also had the chance to play at many famous venues and tours in Europe and America (Wacken Open Air, Rock am Ring, Family Values), setting the stage for other Jrock bands to be able to perform overseas as well. In fact, MUCC and D'espairs Ray have been invited to play in the Taste of Chaos Tour with Avenged Sevenfold and Atreyu along with many other bands next year, and Girugamesh are playing in Wacken Open Air in Germany as well, congrats to them.

As for Dir en grey, they've already had their own tour in America, and have co-toured with the Deftones. They've won numerous awards that include MTV 2's Headbanger's Ball, Kerrang, and Billboard, so what is next really? So many possibilities...

The band has already toured endlessly for several years, completing over a hundred shows within this year alone along with releasing a full length album. They work hard, they rock hard, and they deserve every amount of success that they've earned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What I like about the band, is that they are a band that clearly cares about the music more than money or fame. They have a passion that few can claim in the industry today. It is so raw in its dirtiest, ugliest form that it's almost beautiful if you listen carefully. The music is constructed so meticulously in this way because each member has a part to play. You could listen to each song a hundred times and still find something new to listen to because it's almost as if each person has their own solo, and yet the song fits together in harmony. One moment, I'll spend the whole time listening to Shinya's drumming, and then I'll go back and listen to Toshiya's bass. Next I'll listen to Kyo's singing and so on and so forth, then the whole song altogether. You could also talk about Kyo's vocals in a similar fashion. From the way he harmonizes with the music, to the way you pay attention to the lyrics, to his pauses, to the way you see him move in the lives; it all just fits and comes together.

That is the key element of visual kei; the live really brings out the music, the passion, and the message together. So, yes, listening to their music is one thing, but if you have a chance to see them live, and you probably will at one point or another, then I HIGHLY recommend that you do not miss this band because it will bring out the music so much more for you than just listening to it ever will. At the very least, buy a DVD.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So as the year comes to end, I am proud to conclude it with this band, having worked on this post for several days. :P I congratulate you, Dir en grey, for ten years of well-earned success and wish you another ten in the future (if Kyo makes it haha).

I feel like there is still so much more that I have missed about this band, so much more left to say, and yet, everybody's experience with them is different so like always, here comes the media part of my post:

This time, I made a playlist of songs since I uploaded so many. I called it "my version of their decade album" that was recently released, but really, it's just a shorter version of their album. They really know how to pick their songs, lol. Aside from a few here and there that differ, the list is pretty much the same, only not as many songs. Although, I may keep updating it from time to time since there are a few more songs that I want to add to it.

In particular, even though I've probably mentioned it before, some of my favorites are Ugly, not only because it's a kick ass song (Shinya made an awesome beat) but because you can really see what Kyo can do with his vocals. If you research a little about Dir en grey, you'll find that many sites will say that a lot of Visual Kei vocalists will try and imitate Kyo's vocal techniques...with little success. Ugly is a perfect example why few can do what he does. That's why I've included a youtube performance of Ugly so you can see/hear it live as well, to see how he bends his voice along with the synchronizers to make it sound so...odd.

I also really enjoy Kyo's fervent screaming in Kodou and Namamekashiki...because it isn't just blatant screamo music. It's a part of the lyrics and adds so much to the emotion of the song. Maybe I'll up the acoustic version Namamekashiki just so you can see the parallel between the two, or am I just weird that way? Anyway, because of this, these two songs are also Dir en grey features for me...ones that I constantly have on repeat, but the whole list consists of my top Deg favorites.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I've also included some of their PV's...really, how could I not. Dir en grey's videos should be near famous in their obscenity, and don't think I upped the censored versions either here kiddies. Not for under PG13 eyes.

Zan

Cage

Aint Afraid to Die

Obscure - Average Psycho ver. uncensored

[KR]Cube

Kasumi

The Final

Dozing Green

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And some videos I've found on youtube of their live performances...really, watch it. I only wish I had better quality versions to show you.

Ugly

Dead Tree

Awesome accapella...

This next vid exemplifies exactly what I was writing earlier about Kyo's showmanship. His hand movements are so beautiful and passionate.
Amber

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cheers to you, Deg! And may everyone have a safe and Happy New Year! or...since I'm in Japan, "Shinenakemashite omedetou!"

sigh Clothes...How You Tease Me

2007-12-26T00:57:00.000-05:00

Did everyone have a nice holidays? I am le stuffed full of Argentinian BBQ, yum! :P***

Sorry for the absence of posts lately, I've had very limited internet access, being back in my hometown of Los Angeles, and when I am able to access the internet, it's not with my computer so I can't upload all the fun music that I've been planning to write about, nor FOTD's. And there's so much too! :( But back to business...

A little late, but here nonetheless. h. NAOTO had his recent showing at Japan's Fashion Week in Tokyo and with much success. I absolutely adore his clothing...well his couture styles more than the punky ones, but the brand is fresh and fun regardless. I was able to purchase a sweater in Shinjuku over the summer (cost me a pretty penny too >_< but it was so worth it)

h.NAOTO runs along the lines of the gothic lolita and Visual Kei genre, mostly promoted by a lot of VK artists that wear the clothing. (Yoshiki of X Japan fame wore the brand in a recent photoshoot that he did for S.K.I.N.) Because of this, a lot of VK and gothic-loli people tend to follow suit and love the clothing as well. If you do not fit into either category though, do not be deterred because h. NAOTO runs from darkly gothic to punk so there is a wide variety. Plus, I don't really consider myself to be truly either, but there are certain items of clothing that I will pick out to mix and match. Remember, YOU wear the clothes, the clothes do not wear you. ;P

And for those of you who are curious, here is a video that I found of Mr. Naoto's spring line that he showed at Fashion Week:

I especially liked the odd music which was very fitting with the clothing. :D The witchy, wood-nymph theme that he's got going on is very pretty, and, like always, I admire his ability to "artfully" use rips and tears combined with lots of stitching. The unique way he layers his clothing is what really caught my eye.

Unfortunately, h.NAOTO isn't sold outside of Japan...yet, but the good news is, is that the website is working on a U.S.? International? One or the other...website for people to buy outside of Japan. So if you love the clothing, you'll be able to buy it! (eventually) Save up your money though, it's expensive.

h.NAOTO

My personal favorite line is the "sixh" brand, a men's clothing line, but when it comes to VK, that doesn't really matter. Take a look around. There's something there for everybody with a gothy style.

If you want to really go VK, or gothy / gothic-lolita, there's another brand that I love even more than h.NAOTO and that's Black Peace Now. The clothes are too awesome for words... I practically want everything that they make.

BPN

I'll try and make at least one more post before Thursday, but for those of you who don't know yet, I am leaving for the Mother Land aka Japan on the 27th! This might mean limited posting because I'll be staying at a cousin's apartment and he doesn't have wireless or anything. I'm bringing my computer though just in case I can steal wireless or something, but the most I'll be able to do is use his computer. I don't know how much posting I'll be able to do out of that, but we'll see.

Until next time!

1 Up For the Prey

2007-12-20T20:59:00.000-05:00

They just get smarter and smarter...those damn squirrels. ;P

The Golden Compass Book and Movie Review

2007-12-16T03:49:00.000-05:00

I both finished reading and saw The Golden Compass today, and I must say that my takes on the book and the film are drastically different.

I'm on Goodreads! Everyone should join, since people have profiles everywhere and all (myself included ;P), and I posted a very brief, spoiler-free review on my profile:

Check it out!

While mostly pleased with the book, I regret to say that I am not pleased at all with the movie.

S
P
O
I
L
E
R

W
A
R
N
I
N
G

First off, I am curious to know whether this film had an actual screen writer and film editor. I cannot stress how much the script was poorly written and how elementary the editing was done. I felt like the whole movie was terribly rushed, which it was, being 2 hours long, and it was just statements of fact after fact with no explanation or some semblance of detail at all. The dialogue made me cringe at the obvious one liner attempts to get such and such character to set up plot here, and such and such character to give you basic back story there. It made me really appreciate the fact that I read the book before seeing the movie because I would have been completely lost. The editing never made it past the first cut; it was unfinished and too basic.

Another thing that bothered me about the film was the soundtrack. Good God, who made it? It was distracting and irritating, completely missing the emotion of the scene instead of highlighting it. Where I could have been sad, I felt indifferent. Where I could have been horrified, I felt confused. It entirely missed the mood of the entire movie, and the ending theme song left me stunned and irritated.

If you haven't guessed by now from all my posts, I feel very strongly about music.

The actors I felt were hit or miss. I personally liked a person's comment I saw on a forum that likened Christopher Lee to appearing "embalmed" while the child actor who played Roger had me consistently focused upon his buck teeth. Daniel Craig's sorry attempt at a British accent was off-putting and while I am a big fan of Nicole Kidman, I wasn't entirely pleased with her portrayal of Mrs. Coulter. Yes, she's beautiful and charming, sly and cunning...everything that Nicole Kidman could be, but what really strikes me about this character is the underlying darkness beneath her appealing exterior that is somewhat suspicious, evil, and, dare I say it? Scary. Nicole Kidman, talented as she is, didn't give me the heebie jeebies like Mrs. Coulter did in the book.

I was, however, pleasantly surprised with Dakota Blue Richards, who had that look of prissy school girl about her, but played the part of bratty rebel quite nicely. She passed for a good Lyra.

Eva Green was another pleasantry considering how much I disliked her in Troy. She made for a good Serafina.

Aside from a badly-written script and choppy film editing, the sets were absolutely beautiful. I actually didn't mind the grand scale of the gyptian ship because of it's quirky and fantastical construction. The Magesterium was grand and imposing...loved the zeppelin and minuscule things such as the carriage. It added to the universe that Pullman created.

The graphics weren't so bad either, and I thought the daemons were charming, especially Pantalaimon, but really, it's difficult not to love Freddie Highmore. Ian McKellen did an excellent job as the commanding Iorek, but the film didn't take the time to build up his character at all. You don't feel the fondness that you do for Iorek Byrnison in the book because of the jump/switch scene of the panserbjornes and his fight with Iofur. It was completely glazed over, again with a poor script and some serious mixups, of Iofur's character and his desire for a daemon and desire to be more human.

This, paired with the fact that all the activity at Bolvangard was the last and highlighting scene was a complete throwoff. Again, the set was gorgeous. It looked like a no-no place for questionable activity. They could have played up on that darkness, but since they were squeezing it into 30 minutes, Lyra practically flies in (voluntarily I might add), doesn't spend any time with the children, only to fly out after having almost been cut from Pan...and then the "great battle" between the gyptians, witches, and the Turks begins. This all in the course of one night. O_o

There is no daemon house or captivity, really, in Bolvangard, and while I understand that not every aspect of the book could make it into the movie, the production team really missed the point of development. It was really annoying for me to see the bad one liners of Faa as he prompted Lyra into exposing the alethiometer, therefore leading to Farder Coram to explain it. Such painful obviousness is only suitable for people under the age of 8, and these situations happened repeatedly throughout the film.

I also agree with a close friend of mine that switching Tony Makarios for Billy, and not killing him off, was a complete cop out. I could be a little biased though because that scene where Lyra finds Tony in the book was the point where I became fully intrigued in the story. It was a very moving moment, again, completely lost.

Before I suffer to repeat myself more than I have already, I'm just going to wrap up here by saying that I'm glad I saw the movie, but I probably wouldn't see it again. It was interesting to see Pullman's creation come to life, but it fell a little short off the mark. If you're in for some fantasy action, then please do go see the film, but don't expect any grand comparisons to the book. It's blatant that they didn't try and keep to the story as much as they should have, And, knowing me and my anally retentive self, if they do end up releasing the other two followups to this film, I'd probably go see them too.

Moment of Relapse

2007-12-12T05:40:00.000-05:00

As I much as I utterly loathe the likes of Justin Timberlake for multiple, and I mean multiple reasons, I must admit that his Lovestoned music video is....well it isn't half bad.

Online Videos by Veoh.com

Pro's:

1. It's fluid; there's just so much movement going on and it brings together the choreography, the graphics, and the music. Props to you director.
2. Minimalism
3. The lack of JT's face

Cons:

1. It kind of reminds me of a Window's Media Player skin
2. Justin Timberlake and a guitar should never be had...ever.
3. WTF! R-A-N-D-O-M scene at the end. D: It just ruins all the effort they put into the video, and it really emphasizes the fact that they're trying to bank on his face rather than his talent, or lack thereof.

LOLLerSKATES

2007-12-12T05:23:00.000-05:00

The Onion.

Enough said:

Ninja Parade Slips Through Town Unnoticed Once Again

Rasputina Again

2007-12-10T01:40:00.001-05:00

So, I've just returned from the concert with my good friend, Michelle, and I must say that it was quite full of awesome win. Sorry that the last post was so ranty, btw, I just wasn't a happy person in the morning. ;P I'm generally not happy in the mornings at all to be honest.

But back to the concert, it was so much fun! :D I've never had less trouble standing in line, ever, and the staff was so friendly and organized. Mucho props to you, 9:30 Club, but, next time, please turn down your AC; I was a frozen cube of ice in there!

The Mathematicians were the opening band. I've never heard of them before, but they were entertaining. The band was dressed like super geeky nerds with Velcro shoes and high-water pants. The drummer was insane, jumping all over the place and playing in whitey tighties. The synth's hair was long and frizzy and the bassist's grandpa sweater was a nice touch to it all. It must be fun to dance like that around the stage, like an orangutan on crack with random spasms. The only thing I can think of to describe their music, is that it sounds like old school Beastie Boys and old school Weezer meshed together. The lyrics had me laughing through pretty much their entire set, what with them singing about fractions and long division, and titling their song "The Hypotenuse of Love (a love triangle of sorts)." XD Overall, I was amused and they were SO much better than Dir en grey's opening bands.

Rasputina are incredible live. GO SEE THEM if you have the chance; their live versions of their music is so creative. Melora sounds just like she does on the CD's, and Sarah Bowman just...blew me away with her backup vocals. Really, it added so much to the music without much effort at all, and you really appreciate it seeing her live. It was one of the most impressive moments of the evening for me.

Costuming was, of course, fun with Melora in a cream tattered skirt and similar corset. She had on nude leggings and plain makeup, but it accented her strange hair, which looked like a men's colonial style wig half-way done. Or perhaps Beethoven? A mix of both? *shrugs*

Sarah's outfit I enjoyed the most, because her corset was gorgeous, a mix of shimmer and black along with a long tattered black skirt and a slim netted, long sleeve top with laced sleeves. She also had feathers in her hair similar to the Elizabethan era.

Jonathan sported a very swanky, fancy colonial coat with shoulder trimmings.

Fun costuming aside, Melora's voice was perfectly haunting and doll-like, and she gives new meaning to "rocking out" on her cello. It's bad ass. Her MC's were full of eccentricity...describing her music as having a "genus" in the separate categories of "animals, history...etc." I especially enjoyed her intro to Draconian Crackdown, saying she took a speech by Osama Bin Laden and translated it directly into English.

Jonathan's percussions enhanced the cello melodies, however, I wish he wouldn't play so stiffly. That could also be because I couldn't see his face at all...but I'm not sure. He plays like the drummer from Buck-Tick; it's hard to connect with him, or to really appreciate him live.

There were a fair number of people there, but it was a seated show so there wasn't much room for movement. As always, it's fun to people-watch and find the person to my left being unable to find the beat and bouncing around like he's got a crick in his neck. Or the couple in the front head banging like they would at a metal concert...the hipster flailers were the most interesting though, I think...ah, I can't decide. The funky ren fair costuming, raver's pants, and industrial clothing might top the list as well.

The set list was a healthy mix of old, but concentrating on the new. A lot of songs came from Oh Perilous World, but I feel that the classics really brought out Rasputina's flavor. Hunter's Kiss, my favorite, was the "song about a buck in rut," and Thimble Island was a strong opener. Saline, the Salt Lake Queen sounds better live than the recording, and High On Life was catchy. 1816, the Year Without a Summer was gorg. You've just got to love the cello melody AND the backup vocals.

Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures of our hawtxcore outfits...I've only got a couple of myself for you, and the pictures really suck. :(

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bleh...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the other hand, got some more Rasputina tracks for you to check out. :D

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And on a random note, if I were to ever get a katana, I'd want one like the one Uma Thurman uses in Kill Bill Vol. 1.

Okinawa dragon WHUT!

Kiss My Ass Fall Out Boy

2007-12-09T08:07:00.000-05:00

WTFBBQ!

I read this article on AOL Today or whatever...Peter Wentz you FAIL at life. Please take your emo haircut and bad eyeliner and GTFO kthx. DDDDDDDDD:

Seriously.

"Guyliner?" Wearing women's jeans? (hipster) and making out with your male band members on stage? Let me introduce you to X Japan, sir...

They've been doing it since the 80's, and without cramping their style. Plus, you date Ashlee Simpson.....enough said. And you're doing all of this because you want to break down homophobic stereotypes?

Puhleaze. What complete bullshit. If you say "you're not gay" but you "wish you were," then it sounds to me like you need to get a better publicity stunt, because you're a cheap wannabe.

Oh, btw, AOL...you fail at life also. It's called fanservice and Fall Out Boy can kiss my big, yellow ass. D:

In fact, let me introduce you to His Royal Gacktness.

And his infamous Vanilla Live concert:

Online Videos by Veoh.com

That a little gay for you? Hmm? Yea, well, he's been around since the mid 90's and "gay" since day 1.

I don't understand it when people can look at two "hot chicks" make out together, and people don't shit themselves going "OhHHhHH, that's SO gay!" But when two guys do it, people flip a f**ken cap.

Lame.

P.S. - Peter Wentz only wishes he could look as "hot" doing this, AND I'm not a supporter of fanservice to begin with. And to think I was going to make a post about Gwen Stefani and her "Harajuku" Girls, but for now, this takes the cake.

P.P.S. - Actually, I'm still going to rant about that one too. ;P

Holiday Look FOTD

2007-12-09T03:29:00.000-05:00

Eh...not sure what to think about this one, but I entered it in a makeup challenge and I don't really know if some people liked it or not. : /

What I Used

FACE:
Armani LSF # 3
Armani HPC # 2
Armani SFP # 3
NARS blush in Orgasm, Madly, and Laguna
Stila brow powder

EYES:
NARS cream shadow - Klondike
NARS single eyeshadow - Fuji
NARS single eyeshadow - Night Porter
NARS due eyeshadow - Wicked
Maybeline black eyeliner
NARS glitter pencil - Roxburry
True Colors - green glitter
Etussais mascara
Armani black gem mascara

LIPS:
NARS lipstick - Flaming Dust

Just Another Pretty Face

2007-12-06T00:39:00.001-05:00

Just another pretty face indeed. The handsome and oftentimes, beautiful Orlando Bloom has scored a Men's Shiseido commercial in Japan for UNO hair products.

Ever wonder how some boys can get their hair to defy gravity while other can not? Well look no further because UNO hair pomade... wax... whatever, will do the trick in a pinch. Don't believe me? Well Mr. Bloom will prove you otherwise...

Supremely popular amongst the Japanese, this British-born actor sails through the CM changing his hair and thus, fooling secret agents about 5 times in the process of 2 minutes.

Now if only his acting skills would level up to match his chiseled face and defined brow bone, then perhaps he could be moved out of "pretty boy" category and into "someone with an ounce of talent."

http://www.shiseido.co.jp/uno/

It's That Time of the Year...

2007-12-05T10:48:00.000-05:00

To Moisturize!

First snow of the year today in D.C., and with the winter comes some advice for you to take care of your skin. Protect it from the harsh winter cold no matter what your skin type may be.

Moisturizing is key to keeping your skin healthy, and exfoliating will give it that little bit of glow that it needs. May I recommend:

Caress's new cream oil body wash. Don't be turned off by the "oil," it's actually just a very thick, silky kind of soap, and it comes in two scents: Moroccan and Japanese. I like both very much. The Moroccan has more woody and floral scents incorporated into the body wash while the Japanese scent has a hint of incense.

I like to pair it with this wash cloth:

It's Japanese made, and you can find it in just about any Asian market. It has a certain texture to it that my cousin has described as being close to "steel wool," but I think she's exaggerating a bit. Although, the original is made out of a plastic-y, rough material.

It's exfoliating powers, however, are second to none, and I think it can really get that moisturizing body wash deep into your skin. If your skin leans more towards the sensitive side, worry not for these wash cloths come in different degrees of "roughness." I also have one that is very gentle. Another plus is that they're very economical and sanitary, and come in many different shades to suit your personality. ;P

Seriously, my skin has never looked greater. My face...however...that's a different story. : / That one's a constant battle.

So will you not give this a try? I'm eager to see how this works for others...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And, just for fun, a FOTD:

What I Used:

Face

UDPP
Armani Luminous Silk Foundation # 3
Armani High Precision Retouch # 2
Armani Master Corrector # 4
Armani Silk Foundation Powder # 3
NARS blush in Madly
NARS bronzer in Laguna

Eyes

Stila single eyeshadow in Kitten
Stila single eyeshadow in Twig
Stila single eyeshadow in Espresso
Stila single eyeshadow in Ebony
Cargo - Carmel
MAC - Reflects Gold glitter
Bobbi Brown liquid gel liner in black
Etussais mascara
Too Face mascara

Lips

Stila lipliner # 1
Stila lipglaze in Mango

That's it for now, have a lovely day everyone!

We're Men! Manly Men! (We're Men In Ti~ghts)

2007-12-05T05:41:00.000-05:00

I have no life it seems, and my fellow Japanese and their affinity for effeminate men and kawaii girls never ceases to amuse me, probably because Western ideals can be so radically different (and ignorant). There is no right or wrong, it's just that I wonder if I grew up in a completely different place in the world, what would my persona be like? Would I be a completely different person from the one I have grown into today?

....most likely so.

On that note, here is a commercial I found of the super pop star, Japanese boy band KAT-TUN advertising lip balm: (I hate them btw, but it's amusing nevertheless)

If you buy one, you get a picture of your favorite KAT-TUN member on it! :D < / cheesy sarcasm > Obviously, it's targeted to the female audience...

Also, here's a spiffy Mario DDR commercial that they did as well:

PPP

2007-12-04T18:42:00.000-05:00

Zomgs! Potter Puppet Pals strikes again! ^_^

For those of you who do not know, I adore the puppet pals, even though this one isn't quite as funny as the last:

I Think...

2007-12-03T06:43:00.000-05:00

I would be lying if I said that I didn't love Miyavi's makeup artist(s). In almost every picture he takes, I get severe makeup envy...

Picspam like whoa...

Shameless Plug and ZOMGs Movie Review

2007-12-01T02:40:00.000-05:00

I know that I make a lot of posts about music...but I can't help it! I LOVE music. If I had the choice, I'd be a musician...am taking it into consideration actually albeit with heavy skepticism. I'd feel so lost without it.

That being said, I am going to insert a shameless plug here having to do with me and music, my koto society infact.

For those of you who don't know, I've been playing the koto here in a D.C.-based society for about three years now. The koto is a traditional Japanese instrument that resembles a zither. Six feet long, and made of paulowina wood, the koto has 13 strings that are plucked mostly with three fingers. It varies, however, depending on the different types of sounds the player can make for the music.

It resembles and has its origins in the Chinese guqin, but, unlike the guqin, its structure has pretty much remained the same. I believe that the guqin actually has strings made of metal now, and is made of a different kind of wood whereas the koto's strings has progressed to plastic instead of nylon, but the wood and structure of the body of the instrument has remained the same.

Originally played by blind monks, the koto progressed to a court instrument mostly played by women. But today, you'll find that both men and women play the koto, and it's slowly making its way into modern music. Few Western artists will occasionally use the koto in their music, like David Bowie and Queen, but you'll usually find the koto in the genre of experimental or new age.
Even though the koto hasn't changed much over the centuries (7th and 8th), you'll find that there are some alterations being made among the modern artists. The 17 string bass koto (jyuushichigen) has found its way into most koto music, and some artists even play with a 25 string koto and lasers.

The pieces can vary from very traditional with vocals, to melodic, to very modern. I saw a piece played once that included the bass koto and double bass which was odd but very cool at the same time. The koto is usually played in ensemble music with a high register and a low register. It is also mostly accompanied by the bass koto and the shakuhachi which is a Japanese-type oboe. Often you'll also find the shamisen which is kind of like a banjo, only x3000 more awesome.

My group, the Washington Toho Koto Society, plays throughout the year for varies events, charities, or concerts. Our busiest time is the cherry blossom season in D.C. where we take part in playing during the festival, opening ceremonies, Union Station, Kennedy Center, etc. It's all voluntary (the cherry blossom performances) which I think is amazing because we put a lot of time and effort into those performances. Our biggest concert is the University of Maryland spring concert because our president is a professor there, and her class gets to join the society and we put on a big performance.

This past spring, I was able to get a hold of a copy of the DVD and CD of the concert. It's very exciting, because I think it was our best concert since I've been playing for the society. The programming was thorough and the selection of music just flowed very nicely and made for a very pretty presentation. My sensei had been planning this concert for about a year before it was all put together.

Unfortunately, I do not have any video clips for you of the concert, which is too bad since we were all dressed up in pretty kimonos done by professional dressers. However, I do have a set of tracks to post. I'm a big fan of world music, because it is so embedded into different cultures. You not only end up learning about the music, but about the lifestyle and traditions of different countries as well, so please give this a try.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I thought I picked a nice range of our concert; I didn't upload all the tracks, goodness no, but I did pick some of my favorites of the evening.

First, is our opening song, Yachiyojishi Henkyoku (Lion Dance), because it has a great intro with the drum, and displays the vocal aspect of koto music as well. Next, I picked Yukige Shizuku which means Drops of Melting Snow in Harmony. It's a beautiful duet between my good friend, Eddie, and another koto society member, and it's a more modern-type piece. After that is Henkyoku Genroku Hanami Odori (Dancing Under the Cherry Blossoms). I picked this piece because it was the one I worked the hardest one because it was so damn difficult. =P And lastly, my favorite, Tanada no Sato (Rice Fields on the Hillside) because the shakuhachi has a gorgeous melody, it's more modern, and just beautiful all around. I only played in two of the tracks listed, Henkyoku and Tanada, but check them all out regardless. For fun, I'm posting the PV of Kagrra, called Utakata. Kagrra, is a Jrock band that incorporates a lot of traditional instruments, mostly the koto, into their music which I think is bad ass. Plus, it doesn't hurt that Ishii has a beautiful falsetto...

J-food Part II (Image Heavy)

2007-11-28T22:15:00.000-05:00

Did anybody try the first recipe I posted? I hope so...

Anyways, I've got a similar, yet slightly different meal here for you. I had a whole bunch of chicken in the freezer and wanted to use it up, so I hope you enjoy!

I call it Asian Chicken Noodle Soup and Chicken With Rice, lol.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients

Napa cabbage
Bok choy
Carrots
Celery
Potatoes
Chicken breasts
Somen noodles
Garlic
Lemon pepper
Adobo
Olive oil

Chicken Noodle Soup...

Take your chicken breasts, and wash them thoroughly. A little trick that I like to use, is to sprinkle salt on the chicken, rub the salt in, and then rinse...

Take a few pieces, and cut the chicken into moderately sized pieces. Then put the cut chicken into a boiling pot of water...

While that chicken is boiling, I also like to prepare the rest of the chicken by sprinkling some Adobo...

...onto the chicken.

Adobo can be found in the International foods section of any grocery store. It's kind of like Mrs. Dash seasoning with a Latin kick. Also, cover, and I mean be generous here, the chicken in lemon pepper...

Mix the Adobo and the lemon pepper into the chicken and set it aside so that the seasonings can soak into the chicken...

Also, wash one potato and peel it. After peeling the potato, cut it into cubes...

I...have no idea what this is called in English, but my mom calls it "spuma," so that's what I'm calling it, lol. So strain the spuma with a strainer after boiling the chicken.

That white stuff. =P After that is done, put in your chopped potato slices into the pot as well. Basically, after the chicken, I put in the vegetables in order of how long it will take for them to cook.

While the potatoes and the chicken are stewing, wash and chop the rest of your vegetables.

Cut the bok choy and the napa cabbage at angles that look like the top of a triangle, separating the leaf from the stalk.

Like so...also cut the celery into horizontal slices....

Chop the stalks and the leafy parts of the bok choy and the napa cabbage into diagonal slices and separate. After washing and peeling a carrot, cut that into diagonal slices as well...

Boil the celery, carrots, and stalks into the soup next...

Add salt to season...

While that is boiling away, peel a clove of garlic and heat some olive oil in another pan...preferably a pan and not a pot, but since I couldn't find mine, I made do.

Add in the garlic slices once the olive oil is heated...

Add in your seasoned chicken that you set aside earlier...

Let the chicken cook in the pan...

Till it becomes brown...

In the meantime, put in your leafy tops from the bok choy and the napa cabbage into your soup...

Take your somen noodles (you can get these at an Asian supermarket; it's like thin, white noodles made out of wheat flour) ...

And put them into a boiling pot of water...

Let that cook for about 5-8 minutes...

Till the noodles are soft, then strain into a sink and rinse with warm water...

While the noodles are straining, grab little handfuls and pull upwards to separate. That way, when you're done rinsing, you won't have a massive clump of noodles...check on your chicken, and if it is slightly brown around the edges, serve onto a plate with some rice!

What is Asian food without rice, lol. Then take some somen noodles that you separated and put it into a soup bowl...

Turn the heat to your soup off, and pour some into the bowl along with the noodles. The reason why I cooked the noodles separately aside from the soup is because the noodles tend to absorb all the soup.

Tada~ two dishes done!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Comment if you have any questions, and, as always, enjoy!

Double Threat Numbero Dos

2007-11-27T20:07:00.000-05:00

For some odd reason...my second entry didn't post... =(

Anyways, my second music post brings to you the band, Rasputina. One of the many reasons is because they are currently on tour, and they are coming to Washington D.C.'s 9:30 club! I think it's on the 9th of December, but I would double check just to make sure.

They are an awesome little band, the two main members consisting of first chair cellist, Melora Creager, and Jonathan Tebeest, who does mainly percussion. They ususally have a third member who plays second chair cello, but, unfortunately or fortunately, they haven't been able to get a permanent third member. Their latest second chair cello was played by Sarah Bowman on their summer tour.

With cellos and percussion, you might find it odd for me to say that they are a rock band, but oftentimes, that is what they are. Their genre is very difficult to place because they range from gothic rock, to instrumental, experimental, alternative...the list can go on and on.

Hailing from New York City, the band was originated by Melora Creager, who's creativity continues to make Rasputina wholly unique and innovative. Rasputina's purpose is to further enhance and inspire the love for the cello, having some considerable success with their fanbase. If you couldn't tell from their pictures, the members share a love for the Victorian era, often sporting corsets, petticoats and braided hair.

I loves this band. They are rapidly becoming one of my top listened to artists because of their fresh and fun sound. Melora's voice is haunting, and her cello is a perfect match to her sometimes silly and artistic lyrics.

They've been around for quite some time, 1996 I believe, gaining popularity amongst other artists who have invited them to play on their tours...artists like Marilyn Manson and Pornos for Pyros. They have also had to privilege to work with a band member from Nirvana who helped to add distortion sounds to their music. They've also made appearances on Neil Gaiman's tribute album with "Coraline," and have had a brief spoof on Buffy the Vampire Slayer with Transylvanian Concubine, of which they are probably most recognized for.

Oh Perilous World is their sixth album, just being released this past summer. Surprisingly, I think it has a lot of pop sounds throughout the tracks, which is different for Rasputina, but adds to the hard-to-define genre. The album is embedded with heavy lyrics as well, to which Melora claims to have been influenced by America's media and politics. Considering this, I think that the slightly pop sound is very fitting. "1816, the Year Without a Summer" is my favorite track of the album because it contains all my favorite Rasputina elements, the funky lyrics, the prominent cello melodies, and bits and bots of distortion elements.

Overall, it's a jumpy album, but I don't think it lives up to the jumpiness of Frustration Plantation, or the gothy-ness (is that a word?) of Cabin Fever, which are my favorites. If you have a love for the odd, or simply want something just plain different, then I would definitely check them out.

You'll encounter a variety of themes in their albums, from the eerie Thanks For the Ether, the electronica How We Quit the Forest, gothic Cabin Fever, to the folk-like Frustration Plantation. And *insert shameless plug here* if you're in town, come see them on the 9th! If not...check your local listings to see if they're playing in your town and go have an experience.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As always, I've included media for those who are new to any of the artists I write about, or for those who are simply curious:

I've included Rasputina's latest single, "1816, the Year Without a Summer" since I'm enjoying it so much, and "Transylvanian Concubine," the single from Buffy. "Hunter's Kiss" is my favorite song of theirs, albeit it's a little short, and "Sign of the Zodiac" makes an appearance because it's simply a kick ass song. And, finally, there's "The New Zero" which is nothing short of tEh awesome.

There was also this cool music video that I think was fan made, but Melora enjoyed it so much, she posted it on the website:

Happy listening!

Double Threat Numero Uno

2007-11-26T16:37:00.001-05:00

Zomg! Two music posts today! O_O

*bombards you readers*

I seriously could've added a couple more artists to the list, but I guess I'll have to put them off and save them for later. These two couldn't wait, lol; I'm so excited! XD

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First on today's list is L'ARC~EN~FREAKING~CIEL!!! ZOMGWTFORRXxXXxXxXx *end caps*

Okay, I'm done freaking out for real. But seriously! Their album came out on the 20th...it's their first album to come out in three years (that's a long time for Japanese artists), and I was impatient to get my copy of the album in the mail so I went ahead and downloaded it (hey, I supported the artist already anyways).

Like always, I'm impressed with L'Arc's publicist. They must have a damn good one with all the different means they've gone through over the years to promote themselves. Tetsu is a great band leader.

Their advertisements for 109 (Ichi Maru Kyuu) are tres interesting. Shit is quite literally hitting the fan and people are going nuts. It certainly catches the eye, and is a great advertisement, I think, for a men's department store. Ken cracks me up, lol.

But let's not even get me started on this whole view of male aesthetics in our world today. It's always fascinating to me how different people's morals, opinions, and viewpoints are about certain things. I find it odd that Americans, men and women alike, think that it is perfectly okay for women to suddenly perform bisexual acts for their male counterparts because men think it's hot to have "two hot women together," but put the same concept in a different context, like two hot men together, and it is heavily criticized and "gay." The fact that there are tons of women out there who think it's hot is looked down upon and disregarded. See? You've got me started already, and here I go a ranting and a raving. I just find it interesting, is all...anywho, back to L'Arc...

They've released 4 singles and an album in the span of 5 months give or take, and before that, they were on a summer tour which I unfortunately missed to say the least. They've been on numerous television shows, and have another tour lined up for December/January entitled "Theater of Kiss Tour." Insane I tell you, but L'Arc's hard work shows consistently on Japan's Oricon charts as they repeatedly hold the number one spot with every release they make (Oricon is the equivalent to America's Billboard charts btw).

L'Arc has been around for ages, 16 years to be exact, establishing a solid reputation for themselves as one of the most influential bands in Japanese modern music history. They have a very appealing pop rock sound that almost anybody can attatch themselves to at some point in their career, blending lots of guitar riffs with melodic vocals. They've had a very shakey past throughout the years, but the fact that they've overcome their obstacles proves their strength and solidarity.

The band's lineup consists of hyde on vocals, tetsu on bass, ken on guitar, and yuki on drums, and yes, the names are lowercased on purpose. Tetsu is the band leader, having originally formed the group with hyde when they were still indies. I feel that he is a solid bassist, constently trying to improve himself while keeping not only the band in line, but the music as well. He gives the songs an overall completeness that is subtle, yet builds a nice foundation.

Ken composes most of the music for L'Arc, and in almost every song, you can hear his signature guitar solo in the middle. He creates beautiful melodies for such a goofy dude, but I read in an interview somewhere that he is actually pretty intelligent.

Hyde is Laruku's front man, composing most of the lyrics which can vary anywhere from beautiful to political. He may be small in stature, but he has a dominating presence and a powerful voice to match.

Yuki is the ever-quiet drummer with the mysterious personality. He hardly talks, but when he does, his Inner Wild Self seems to come out with his funky electro vocals and rare smile. Let us not forget his drumming, which has kept L'Arc in line through many a year. He doesn't do a lot of fancy drumming, but he does have a lot of strength and plays on one of the biggest drum sets I've ever seen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kiss, I feel, is an album that grows on you. The more you listen to it, the more you like/love it, and it's such a stark change from their last album: Awake. I actually adore Awake, but that's probably because the album was riddled with heavy and dark lyrics. That, and it was very political. Awake was edgier, and had the harder rock sound that blended so nicely with hyde's pleasing vocals. Therefore, I feel that it is possible that Kiss may be the more upbeat, bouncy sister to Awake. In fact, it seems to match Smile in that it includes a little bit of everything that is classically L'Arc with a modern twist.

There's your ballad, "Yuki no ashiato" (Footprints in the Snow) which includes a tortuous violin melody and simple bass and guitar line. It allows for hyde to really croon his little heart out.

There's the random experimental track, "THE BLACK ROSE" which I think has a great opening, but kind of loses it's funky, slightly modern twist of traditional Japanese chords in the end.

Uber pop-y tracks, of course, have to make their appearance with tracks such as "Seventh Heaven" and "Link." They make me wanna dance, lol. =)

"Sunadokei," "Spiral," and "Pretty Girl" display a classic L'Arc rock style. I thoroughly enjoy all three. What I enjoy the most about this album, however, is the old school style songs "Umibe" and "My Heart Draws a Dream."

"My Heart Draws a Dream" is my favorite track of Kiss. It's a wonderful fusion of old style L'Arc, which I think we haven't really heard since Heart was released, and the style that L'Arc has adapted from the Real album onwards. The guitar has a beautiful melody and hyde's voice is stunning. You'd think since the man smokes at least two packs a day that his voice would be shot to hell, but it only seems to be getting better, especially during their live performances.

Daybreaks Bell is the classic anime song...what's L'Arc without an anime song?

The only song I have serious mixed feelings about is "Hurry Xmas." Considering that Christmas music stresses me out, I'm tempted to say I am not a fan of this track, but the song is swanky and even pop jazz in a way, so I feel a little torn. It's just so out of place in the album. I feel that if they had just kept "Hurry Xmas" as a single release, and, on the album, switched it with Shine instead, the album would have been a little more complete.

Overall, I think it's a good, solid album. It's fun and easy-going...an odd thing to say about a music album, I know. I wouldn't rank it on my top list among other Laruku albums though, but this band is one of my all-time favorites since I was 13, so they've carved a nice, safe little niche in my heart.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For your listening and viewing pleasure, I've included quite a few things from the Kiss album.

First, my favorite of the album, "My Heart Draws a Dream," then the rocky "Pretty Girl," and lovely "Sunadokei."

For the PV, I chose Daybreaks Bell, because it's dark and so very L'Arc.

Hope you enjoyed! I sure did. :D

Hey-ho to the Bottle I Go...

2007-11-26T01:59:00.000-05:00

Did everyone have a nice Thanksgiving?

I hope so.

Sorry for the absence of posts; I've been Internet-less for the whole weekend. But I come bearing a peace offering: a new post! =)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This time it's all about skin, NARS skin products to be exact. I love NARS; they're an excellent makeup company although a bit on the pricey side. And even though I have a plethora of eyeshadows, lipsticks, and glosses from the company, I never really paid attention to their skin care line. I've had my makeup done several times at the NARS counter here in D.C., and I noticed every time that the MA (makeup artist) would use the skin care products before applying the colors on my face.

Somewhat recently, the MA applied the milk cleanser to my face, and I went home that night noticing that my skin looked and felt better. I'm not talking about a complete 180 degree turn around here, but a very marginal difference. Nevertheless, it was within the period of a single day and I was impressed.

After much "hmm-ing" and "haw-ing," I decided to fork over some cash my next pay period to purchase the product, and I must say that my face feels great! In the in between-time, my face broke out considerably due to stress and lack of sleep from school. =( Being sick doesn't help either, but that's neither here nor there.

I do highly recommend this cleanser to anybody...that's right, anybody out there because this cleanser is great for all skin types. It's gentle, yet invigorating with its citrus extracts which helps to brighten up the skin. The amazing thing about it, is that you can use it with or without water so it's a great cleanser for those in a rush in the mornings, or those who are constantly on-the-go. You just lather a pump (or two, depending on personal preference), and then wipe it off with a cotton pad. For those who prefer cleansing with water, that's perfectly fine as well. It's also a great makeup remover for the entire face, eyes included, so feel free to massage away into your skin. Once done, your face is left feeling smooth and hydrated.

For those with combination or oily skin (like me), I recommend also pairing this with the NARS Purifying Soap. Don't be put off by the bar, it's wonderful! Plus, it's incredibly condensed so I recommend cutting little pieces off and using it little by little. This is well worth the investment because it will last you forever, and it gently deep cleans your face. I use it everyday with the milk cleanser, but for those who have more sensitive or dry skin, I would recommend using this three times a week max, give or take, you are the one who knows your skin best. It leaves your face feeling smooth and soft as well...not too harsh on the skin I would say even though it's quite powerful. I like using the bar in the shower because of all the steam, plus, for those who have body acne, you can substitute this as a body soap.

I was skeptical about using NARS skin products since I haven't heard much about it, but it turns out that the skin care line are products of Shiseido. Considering that Shiseido is one of the oldest makeup companies in the world and Japanese-based, I feel like it is a trustworthy brand. The only thing is the price. If you're used to cleansing with drug store brands, this might be a little bit of a shocker for you. : /

The Softening Milk Cleanser runs at $35 while the Purifying Soap is $22.

But take it from me, someone who has atrocious skin and has yet to find a suitable cleanser, this is well worth the investment.

Dark Purple FOTD

2007-11-20T23:53:00.000-05:00

Ho-hum, I am supposed to be cleaning/packing for my flight in 3 hours....but I am not, lol. Actually, I'm almost done packing, I just need to tidy up a bit before I leave.

Decided to play with my camera some more, but with poor results. :( I seriously fail at picture-taking. Whatever happened to my yearbook skillz?

Anyhow, here's another FOTD. The look is almost entirely NARS with a few exceptions here and there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Face:

UDPP
NARS makeup primer
Armani Luminous Silk Foundation #3
Armani High Precision Retouch #2
Armani Master Corrector #4
Armani Silk Foundation Powder SPF 15++ #3
NARS blush in Madly
NARS blush in Nico

Eyes: (all NARS unless specified)

Maracaibo cream shadow
Demon Lover due eyeshadow
Ondine single eyeshadow
Night Star single eyeshadow
Santorini single eyeshadow
Kaliste eye pencil

-Optional - Roxbury glitter eye pencil

Too Face gel mascara
Armani brow pencil
Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner in black

Lips:

MAC lipstick in Frou
MAC lip liner in Oak

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Grrrrr! I STILL can't take good shots of my eye close up. I can't get those eyeshadow colors to pop! *cries*