Skincare in your 30s

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days was on TV last night and you know how Kate Hudson's character, Andie Anderson works at a women's magazine called Composure?  There's that scene early in the movie when they're having an editorial meeting brainstorming ideas which, if you've read a women's magazine, you'll know that the ideas aren't really all that creative or new.  Women's magazines were amongst the first to go green because they recycle stories like nobody's business (speaking of nobody' business, where did this expression come from?)  Anyway, this is my poor effort to segue to the many skincare by decade articles I've seen through my many years of magazine reading.  The most recent iteration was in Fashion Magazine's October Issue:

30s: PUT ON THE BRAKES
File under "The crucial decade for slowing down your skin's aging." Keep slathering on the sunscreen and use a moisturizer packed with vitamin C or glycolic acid to even out skin tone...Think of your neck and decolletage as part of your face and apply sunscreen and moisturizer there daily. "Women take great care of their facial skin but forget about the neck, which can brown and wrinkle with age..."

I already use sunscreen every day.  SPF 50+ no less!  But what struck me most was that last sentence which made me think of Susan Hay, a veteran broadcaster on Global News who is, without question, a beautiful woman.  However, I can't help but notice of late the aging that is showing in her neck:

So I thought to myself: OK, gotta start taking care and begin to moisturize beyond my face. So I moisturized and what happens? I break out with 3 white heads! NOT COOL!  So screw it. Skincare is not one size fits all.  We'll revisit again next year. My neck is fine, at least for now.

Oh, Joe!

Aren't these colours delightful? I'm thinking perhaps I should visit Joe Fresh for a look-see...

Bangs 'n' Layers

I PVR'd Ellen on Oprah tonight and was completely diverted by how great Portia de Rossi's bangs looked with her hair straightened and pulled back in a ponytail.

I've been flirting with the idea of cutting my hair for the last few weeks now and have gone so far as to entertain a short bob...but I'm not quite ready for such a drastic change. Not when winter is around the corner - I need all the hair to keep me warm...so I'm thinking long-ish bangs are just the thing. They're not something I haven't done before...but hers are quite a bit shorter than I'd normally go.

Bangs and more layers...ya...I'm thinking that'll keep my hair boredom at bay - at least through the winter, anyway....

Chanel No. 5

While searching for the Coco Avant Chanel trailer for my last post, results came up that included the new Chanel No. 5 film starring Audrey Tautou, who looks absolutely stunning in it. Now I'm girl-crushing and wanting to splash on some Chanel No. 5 myself!



And since we're talking Chanel commericals, the 2005 spot with Nicole Kidman is another fav, but more for the hottie, Rodrigo Santoro who first caught my eye in Love Actually:

Travel-worthy

I'm leaving on my first ever business trip tomorrow night - and it's an international one at that all they way to Sao Paulo, Brazil!

I spent about 5 hours at the office this afternoon finishing up a document, printing off stuff for my trip binder and backing up all our files onto a USB for easy-access the 4 days we're there.

Before that though, I made a stop at Sephora to pick up my Beauty Insider birthday gift, a trio of Shimmer Lip Glosses perfect for travel, as well as their retractable foundation brush and angled eyeliner brush. I don't know why I hadn't gotten them sooner since I travel so much - they're certainly much more convenient then my full-size MAC equivalents!

There's more last minute prep to get through but first...dinner calls!

Oxymoron: Straighten to curl

You know how you always want what you can't have? Well, when I was young, I wanted curly hair. Maybe it was because the dolls I played with had pretty ringlets and I wanted to be like them, but I'm Chinese. My hair's straight and it was never going to be curly, no matter how hard I tried...and believe me. I tried.

I remember the first time I ever got a perm. I must have been about 7 or 8 and it was an awful experience because I came home from the salon and cried because my dad hated it as soon as he saw it. I think I went back crying the same day to the salon and my mom's friend who did my hair relaxed it for me and undid the damage, so to speak.

Through the years, I've tried various ways to achieve those perfect curls...perms never did work - I was ever hopeful each time but finally swore off "permanent" solutions after the perm from hell in high school. It's funny since I can't even remember now what grade I was in but it was horrid and I thought my life was over because my hair was poofy and fried. But I did live.

I tried curlers too - the old-school pink sponge ones. I'd roll them in my hair carefully and hopefully before bed but again - big, frizzy poof. Velcro rollers were good for giving my hair body and a bit of a wave, but never the ringlets I craved.

Curling irons didn't seem to work too well either because while my hair came out curled, it was only ever the ends that were curled, no matter the size of the barrel - 1" or 1.5".

It wasn't until I got my haircut last summer the day of my friend's wedding that I finally got the ringlets I always wanted as a kid. Eva styled my hair afterwards and curled it with a straightening iron. Yeah. That's right. A straightening iron gave me curls. Oxymoronic, right?

I went in for my semi-annual-ish haircut yesterday and she styled it again with the iron. I wasn't crazy the first time since the curls were a little too tight, but this time around, they were just right. This is me, right after my appointment - I took this in the change room since the salon was so busy and I didn't want to hold up Eva's chair with her next client waiting:


I thought for sure my perfect curls would be goners when I woke up this morning since I threw my hair up in a loose bun before going to bed but they survived another day! If anything, they looked even better:


So I've decided maybe it's time I invest in a straightening iron for those days when I feel like being a kid again. I've seen some in professional hair & beauty supply shops here but am going to wait and see what the prices are like in the US since I've got a trip planned to Philadelphia the next long weekend in a couple weeks. My little mental shopping list is slowing growing!

Retail Therapy

I just arrived home from a couple hours of retail therapy on Queen West and the one basic item I really wanted - a black and white striped T - eluded me.

But! I did not return home empty-handed. I left the Gap with this pretty silk-blend ruffle camisole in "rosey blush," inspired in part by Erin's recent hot pink post over at Elements of Style.

Visits to Zara, H&M, Aldo, Urban Outfitters and American Apparel yielded zip. Tonight's shopping was all about cheap and cheerful buys, which was great because every store had sales on.

I stopped in a couple of home decor shops for a quick browse and was sad to see that Rumah was closing! I've always loved their gorgeous wood tables and have always thought that they would be perfect for my "grown-up" house. They also had lovely accessories, most of which were sourced in Asia. It was closed by the time I got there tonight and the earliest I'll be able to return for a look will be Saturday. Wonder what, if any, great buys will be left?

My last stop on the way home was at Outer Layer, a jewel of a shop where I picked up the Sula perfume oil set because
a) I couldn't decide which one I wanted
b) I've always liked the idea of layering different scents and this was an affordable way to do it
c) I will not lie: it came in pretty packaging. ,-)

Etsy Finds

I was checking the status of my latest Etsy buys and ended up browsing a bit as I'm wont to do - it's hard not to stop in for a bit of a look-see once I'm on the site...anyway, I found these cute finds:

Poppy Pins by Foundling

Sweet Heart Necklace by LA Valley Girly

Close call!

I went in for a haircut with my stylist in Yorkville and even though she took off about 6 inches, my hair is still just past shoulder length. I feel like I've lost 5lbs! Anyway, because I had extra time on the meter, I decided to do some shopping. I'd stopped in the HMV on Queen West last night and picked up some DVDs and CDs on sale and wanted to see if there was anything different at the Bloor location. Well....I happened to pass by Holt Renfrew along the way and noticed the signs for their Now or Never Sale...so after a moment's pause to consider whether or not I wanted to tempt myself, I walked in. There was an amazing Bottega Veneta shoulder bag in an extraordinary purple patent leather but even on sale it was about $1000 - more than a mortgage payment! So I had to put it down.

BUT! There was a brown Coach leather bag that caught my eye and I walked around with it for a bit before one of the sales associates offered to hold it for me. So I put my name down and wandered around a bit...and in that time, I asked myself if I really truly needed another purse. And the answer was no. So I escaped unscathed...with just a teensy bit of regret because it was a really nice purse. I just need to be responsible now. sniff sniff.

Mad! Mad, I say!

It was a mad week that saw the last 2.5 months or so of work culminate in a 1.5 hour meeting Friday morning that was attended by about 30 people, including a dozen of the key people on the strategic team (yours truly among them), 80% of our executive committee as well as the members of the committee that meets to approve capital expenditures. I was making changes to the business model Thursday - even though the numbers were supposed to be "locked and loaded" by end of business Wednesday - and revising the presentation 30 minutes before our 9:30 start Friday - not ideal, but not surprising either considering all the moving pieces. In a nutshell, the meeting went really well, and by 11am, I was relaxed, bouncy and smiley - a dramatic change from the tense, busy-bee rushing from meeting to meeting of late.

We had our monthly team status meeting afterwards and my manager and big boss made a point of calling out all the time and effort that I'd been putting in the last while so it was gratifying to know that the long hours were not unnoticed. I celebrated the pat on the backs by taking off a little early and indulging in retail therapy!

I hopped on the subway and headed up to Yonge and Bloor where I picked up essentials like MAC's StudioTech and Studio Moisture Cream, I stopped off at Sephora for Philosophy's Purity Made Simple Cleanser which I was test-driving, and even though I hadn't intended to, I picked up a pair of new Citizens' jeans at Aritzia.

I also stopped at Tiffany, where I picked up this round pendant for my sister, who will be turning 30 during my visit in a couple weeks. I am so excited about this visit, partly because it's a very welcome break but mostly because I'll finally get to meet EMC and hear her coos and giggles up close and personal, instead of over the phone in the background! I know every aunt thinks their niece is the cutest thing but this little girl makes my heart melt every time I look at her picture - and I do NOT consider myself a baby person:


My final retail therapy fix was at Belle Epoque, a lovely little shop filled chockablock with beautiful things, including a mirrored jewellery box that had caught my eye last month. I didn't get it at the time but I had promised myself that I would go back for it, and if it was still in-store, then it was meant to be mine...clearly it knew that too, since I brought it home with me. :)

S, W and I caught up over wine and cheese at Carens, an unassuming wine and cheese bar in the heart of Yorkville, and stayed for dinner. We rounded out our evening at the Avenue Bar at the Four Seasons where we went in search of Creme Brulee but ended up sharing a yummy warm apple cinnamon pie and pecan tart. All in all, a lovely way to celebrate the end of a work week. :)

WAAAAAAAAAAAH!

I just called my salon and my worst hair nightmare has come true: My stylist isn't coming back from maternity leave and I don't know where she's gone to.

Maybe you think I'm being overly dramatic, but I had been going to S since I graduated from university - a 6 year relationship that I hoped was just on a break for the past year while she tended to her baby boy. Having tried 2 other stylists while she's been away with very mixed results, I'm wary of auditioning a new stylist because I just don't have the patience for the new candidate to get to know my thick, straight, Asian hair.

After 6 years, S knew my hair so well that even when it was growing out, it looked great because she knew just where to snip the inner layers so that my thick hair didn't grow out like a triangle at the ends. This last cut isn't growing out well and for a girl who prides herself on having great hair (despite the grays, but that's what colour's for, right?) it's distrubing and frustrating. What am I going to do?!?!

This is a sad, sad day.

My apologies...

First off, my bad for not posting pictures from my trip as originally promised. The only excuse I have is that I haven't gotten all my pictures in order, i.e. I'm waiting for wL to compile everyone's photos onto a CD so that I have pictures from all 4 days of the Inca Trail hike accounted for. The reason I don't is because I didn't have a spare battery for my camera and I didn't want to run out of juice part-way through the hike and be without a camera when I arrived at Machu Picchu so I didn't start taking pictures until day 3, and the scenery from days 1 and 2 are pretty amazing.

Anyway, I've been back from Peru 2 weeks now and aside from a nagging sense of restlessness that is due in part to my usual bout of moody blues in the weeks leading up to my birthday, I'm just about over the need for a vacation from my vacation - although the retail therapy over the last few days might also have something to do with that!

This is what I mean when I say I needed a vacation from my vacation:


That my friends, is the dresser in my bedroom. As you can see, just about every inch of its surface is covered with stuff. To be honest, it was like that before I left, but I had every intention of sorting through it when I got back. Except that I didn't. I only added to it with the bottle of water I got on the plane (it's been sitting there for the last 2 weeks, unmoved), an empty bag of Chicha Morada candies that I should really toss, and more mail and papers. I'll get to this eyesore eventually...like maybe tomorrow...or not...

On a more happy note, here's the sassy little black dress I bought on sale at Club Monaco yesterday:

It's cotton so rather wrinkly from the shopping bag but it's really comfortable and the empire-waist is super-forgiving. I also bought a couple of fall sweaters that were on promotion at the Gap, and picked up my complimentary birthday gift from Kiehl's, which was one of the main reasons for being on Queen West in the first place.

This morning, I dragged myself out of bed only to dilly-dally for an hour and a half before going on a 5K run because I felt guilty after having pigged out at dinner last night. I then got ready for the first day of mandarin class and as I was walking to the parking meter, a nice lady who was leaving kindly offered to give me her paid ticket, saving me $4 in the process. How lovely!

I also shopped after class - but for more practical things, like new running shoes that were also on sale, and exactly the same as the pair they're meant to replace; hair colour to cover my grays (and there are many as I found my first when I was about 12); nail polish; facial scrub; ketchup chips; and a tube of La Roche-Posay Active C eye gel which the cosmetician at Shopper's had recommended because the skin around my eyes looks thin and that's one of the first signs of aging(!!!) I promptly called my aesthetician when I got home and arranged to meet her after dinner for a facial. I'm in for some more pampering tomorrow as I've a 1.5 hour massage booked in the afternoon.

I know. I lead a tough life.

P.S. Sorry too, for the many run-on sentences that litter this post.

Feeling lightheaded

I met S&W for brunch yesterday at Tequila Bookworm before heading to my hair appointment.

I got there about 15 minutes early and sat with a coffee flipping through magazines before my stylist, J, arrived to greet me. I was glad to see that he was Asian, only because I figured he'd understand how Asian hair behaves (my hair is typical in that it's straight, very thick, and grows out). Oh, and he was very cute, which was a nice bonus.

The salon's signature hair service includes a "stress-relieving head, neck and shoulder massage, makeup touch up for women and a skincare hot towel treatment for men." I've gotta say, in that moment, the head massage was the best thing EVER. The neck and shoulder were blah, but the head massage? Wow.

After explaining that I needed the weight taken out of my hair and a style cut into it after 6 months of neglect, he got to work. I said bye-bye to about 4 inches overall in length and probably at least twice as much of that in the layers he cut in. Even with all the hair cut though, I still managed to give him quite the workout (his words) when it came time to blow it dry with a big, round brush. He did a pretty good job...but I can't say unequivocally that I'm thrilled with it.

The experience wasn't what I was used to. For one thing, he barely spoke to me while I was in his chair. I'm used to catching up like girlfriends do with my regular stylist, S, but with J, there was none of that, which was kind of disappointing...not to say that I expected him to ask me about my love life or work or whatever, but some conversation would have been nice. He just seemed really focused in the task at hand.

The mark of a great haircut for me is how it looks the day after. S is a genius with the shears because my hair looks just as great, if not better, the day after it's been slept on. The layers are cut so that there's even more body and wave to it the next day, just from how I've slept on my pillow. Like magic! J's cut is good...but not quite the same. If S decides not to come back from maternity leave (please please please come back from maternity leave!) I'd go back to J again.


I indulged in some retail therapy afterwards and picked up these cute (too cute?), casual shoes at Aldo, and a couple CDs: The Reminder by Feist and Michael Buble's Call Me Irresponsible. I'm listening to Feist right now, and I think as a whole, I prefer Let it Die...it's early days yet. I think it will grow on me.

Random Tuesday

I woke up to the sounds of heavy spring rain but by the time I left the house for work, it had calmed to a drizzle. The sun peeked through the clouds by late morning so I went out during the latter half of my lunch hour for a walk.

My office is located near a neighbourhood of million dollar homes so I like to walk and daydream about one day living in such a home. This one here is my favourite:

It's certainly not the largest home in the neighbourhood but there's an English charm to its formal manicured hedges that I love.

Also, my hair is beginning to annoy me. This is the longest it's been maybe ever and since it grows super-fast I'm seriously due for a cut. My stylist has been on maternity leave since January and I called the salon today to see if they had any news on when she would be back. When I saw her last in December, she said she might take 6 months instead of the full year off, so I thought I'd just wait it out. But my hair has grown 6 inches since then and as they don't know yet when she'll be back, I can't wait another month or 2.

So, I've decided I must take action: I am going to cheat on my stylist. The same stylist who took me from long to short to long to super-short to long again in our 6 year relationship. I hopped on the internet for salon recommendations and reviews and made an appointment for this Sunday afternoon.

I feel guilty already.

In search of my HG

My skin is totally out of whack. I have always had combination/oily skin with the occasional breakouts, but lately the breakouts have been stubbornly persistent and it is causing me a small measure of distress. After all, who wants to suffer the indignity of acne at the age of 30?!?! This can NOT go on.

I've been thinking about it a lot and I suspect the culprit is my skin care regimen: I've been using Clinique's Turnaround Concentrate since May as I got a sample with my bonus while in London. It was featured in In Style and Fashion magazines as this great product for oily/acne-prone skin so I decided to give it a try. I had good results in the first couple weeks using the sample as it seemed to smooth out my skin, so I forked over the $50+ for the full-size product. After a while though, I noticed flaking and just attributed it to the "visible" effect of the skin renewing itself. Now, I think it's just too strong a product for my skin--so much so that the dry skin is clogging my pores and causing break-outs. So good-bye Turnaround Concentrate and hello ???

I've never been the kind of girl who was really into beauty products and make-up--maybe it comes from not having girlfriends who are particularly superficial that way. When I find a product I like that works, I generally stick to it. And because my skin care products have often been recommendations by aestheticians, the idea of going to beauty counters to find new products is rather foreign to me. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

I was at the Kiehl's store a few weeks ago and picked up some samples there, including the Sodium PCA Oil-Free Moisturizer, which I find has just exacerbated the problem. I read the reviews for the other Kiehl's samples I got on MakeUp Alley and given the mixed reviews, I am very wary of giving them a try, so back to square one.

I went to the MAC counter after work yesterday to pick up some StudioTech (my all-time favourite make-up to date!) and ended up with some skin care samples, including their Day SPF 15 Light Moisture and Studio Moisture Cream for night. I knew that they had a skin care line but it's their cosmetics that are top-of-mind for me so I had no expectations for their efficacy. Imagine my surprise upon reading the great reviews for these products online--80+% would buy again! Now I'm hopeful that these will be my HG.*

To hedge my bets though, I stopped by Sephora and scored some samples there too, including Dr. Brandt's Poreless Moisture and Philosphy's Hope in a Jar. These latter two products weren't as well-reviewed so I'm not as keen on them. (Although I'm as much a sucker for good marketing as the next person, and I've always loved Philosphy's branding so I almost wish Hope in a Jar will live up to it's name.)

Keeping my fingers crossed....

* HG = Holy Grail as per MakeUp Alley.