Outfit du jour: Qingming long weekend

Wearing:
3.1 Phillip Lim sheer silk top, cigarette-cut jeans (not pictured), blue satin flats bought from I.T (not pictured), Chanel Le Marais flap, Erickson Beamon necklace

The weather is getting warmer so I decided it was about time that the Outfit du jour section makes a comeback

It is Qingming long weekend (a Chinese festival - though nothing festive about it - where people tend to the graves of departed family members / ancestors) and I took a day off work yesterday to have tea with my bff. About time hey! It's been like AGEEES since I last had a proper high tea. I missed it so much - you know, just a lazy afternoon sipping tea and indulging in date scones with clotted cream (major weakness!)

So off we went to The Peninsula, which is still my all-time favorite tea place cos everything is just downright decadent - in the English old school sorta way. I feel like I'm having high tea with a friend at The Ritz in London hehehe. Hey, let the girl dream a little yea? And in a crazy city like Hong Kong, this is probably as close to The Ritz as it can get I guess!

We were seated right next to the main entrance. It was kinda windy and chilly :S
Good thing I brought a shawl!

First outing pic for my Chanel Le Marais flap hehehe
(which is sitting shyly against the backrest )

Then we made a 180-degree change and had Vietnamese for dinner. Look, big primary / high school reunion . And until last night I hadn't seen some of these people for more than 10 years. Time really is a scary thing - well and before we know it, it'd be another decade!

************************************************************************

And these are the pics I didn't know I had in my camera. The pics in my previous entry aren't any good and I think these have captured the beauty of this baby better . Let me indulge a little yea?

************************************************************************

Product review du jour
(Warning: patience required - it's awfully long!)

I've been waiting for SO long to write this review. I don't wanna make the mistake of over-glorifying a product and then the post-purchase glow/excitement wears off and realize the product isn't really all that great. But after waiting patiently for 6 looong weeks, I'm finally able to say this, namely Guerlain Orchidée Impériale serum, is THE skincare product to get!

Before I delve into it, let me give you some background info on my skin...

Before I started Dan Kern's Clear Skin Regimen about 2 years ago, I had acne-prone skin that broke out pretty easily, especially a week before my period, ie. the horrendous hormonal flareups. Clear Skin Regimen, like, really saved my life (Do I sound like Jessica Simpson gushing about ProActiv? Except it's not scripted and I really mean e.v.e.r.y single word I said!!!) and I haven't been more proud of my skin my entire life. But since using a large amount of benzoyl peroxide 2.5% ("a large amount" - which is the gist of the regimen) tends to dry out skin pretty badly (yes, even with only 2.5% concentration which is the mildest you can get), I realized I could not neglect moisturizing. Strangely enough, while my skin was suffering from constant peeling (especially around mouth where the skin there gets stretched most from talking/eating/other daily oral activities), I had to keep blotting my face constantly so I didn't wind up looking like a total oil slick by the end of the day. My skin was so taunt and delicate, which is normally a good thing except it was also dry as hell. I wanted something that could improve my skin condition as a whole - texture, radiance, pigmentation, everything. That's right - I wanted the whole package!

Then Guerlain's new Orchidée Impériale range sprang to mind. I use Guerlain's skincare every now and then and I have faith in their quality. So naturally I logged onto the good ol' trusty Makeupalley.com and did some much-needed research on the range. Turns out, probably because of its hefty price tag, not many reviews were found on certain products of the range. Digging a little deeper, I realized the cream has received a lot of mixed reviews which is not too good of a sign. But then I'm more of a serum girl anyway. Unfortunately there were only 3 reviews about the product. Although, all 3 of them have given a full 5 lippies! They were all singing praises about this serum and saying how much they regretted about spending all that money on the cream/fluid because they just didn't live up to their promise and expectations etc etc.

Having read all these reviews, I took the plunge and bought the serum for about HK$2,600 (which works out to about US$360) - ouch I know! And the commission-hungry SA kept trying to talk me into getting the cream/fluid as well but I told her flat out I wanted to try a sample first. I ain't no fool hehe. This is the great thing about MUA - I know exactly what I want when I go to the counter cos I've already done my research on there, therefore less likely I'll get swayed by pushy SA's .

But I digressed. So I've been using the serum every night after the benzoyl peroxide 2.5% on my face dried thoroughly, then dusting my face with Ettusais' Nighttime Defense Powder (another god-sent for acne-prone skin). The result so far: Every morning I wake up with rested, supple skin. Old acne scars are fading and I use much less concealer now (which used to be a staple in my makeup routine). Because I work at a newspaper my biological clock is pretty screwed up - I have dinner at around 10pm and don't hit the sack until like at least 3am. Anyone who knows better would tell you this is going to wreak some major havoc on your skin right. But so far my skin looks healthy and flawless with a capital F. Amazing yea?

Having said that, for US$360 a pop, I don't think I will shell out this much on a continuous basis. Maybe I will switch back and forth with Success Future Serum (picture at bottom), another Guerlain winner?

All in all, this serum has my stamp of approval and is definitely the re-buy material *thumbs up*