Not part of a "sea" or an "ocean" this time, but part of a galaxy. #exo #exoluxion

A photo posted by Athena (@agothena) on Jun 12, 2015 at 8:31am PDT

THIS IS REAL, YES, IT'S HAPPENING. I AM GOING TO WATCH EXO LIVE IN MANILA. THIS IS NOT A DRILL, I REPEAT THIS IS NOT A DRILL.

When rumours of EXO'luXion coming to the Philippines first came out, I was pretty skeptical because Manila already missed out on The Lost Planet, and the encore concerts in Seoul were slated for this December. Precisely the reason why I made sure that I would watch the Taipei leg of the tour. So can you imagine my outrage and excitement when the announcement for EXO'luXion in Manila came out? Probably not. But I can tell you it was full of "THEY'RE COMING HERE OH MY GOD DO I HAVE MONEY NO WAIT I ALREADY WATCHED EXO BEFORE SHOULD I STILL WATCH WHAT IF THEY SING ANOTHER FILIPINO SONG?" and a bunch of other incoherent, overly dramatic gurgling in front of my poor, poor laptop.

I was torn, of course, because I've already watched EXO twice– once in 2012 during SMTown, and once last June for the Taipei run of EXO'luXion. Do I really need to watch them again? And once again, my brain fired back with "WHAT IF THEY SING ANOTHER FILIPINO SONG" and I am weak. SO WEAK. So naturally, faced with a dilemma, I turned to my trusted friends hoping that at least one of them would be my conscience. 

I quickly learned that none of my friends are conscience-material.

With advice ranging from "Manood ka na." and "You have the money, the time, people to go with, and you want to go anyway, so go." to "THEY'RE ALREADY COMING HERE NO NEED TO GET ON A GODDAMN PLANE" (Toreja, 2015), I realized that literally, nothing was holding me back and YES. I WILL WATCH THIS CONCERT. 

Psyched as I was, I completely forgot about the torture that is TICKETING. Getting tickets for EXO'luXion Taipei was a nightmare, considering how Taiwanese fans are much more enthusiastic than Filipino fans and that I spent HOURS going to 7-11 and back home because only a limited number of tickets are released per hour. At some point I gave up buying tickets, but at around 7pm, I lucked out and still managed to get not-entirely-terrible seats. 

Luckily (?!), the concert was sponsored by Globe, so subscribers were given a chance to register and get promo codes to the ticket pre-selling a day before the actual ticketing. So, obviously, I registered as fast as I could, and glared at my phone whenever a message that had nothing to do with the promo code came in. Luckily enough, my friends and I all received our promo codes on time.

I bought my (and my friends') tickets at SM Masinag, and it was a much more pleasant experience than buying in Taipei. Okay, so I was stressing out a lot, but who can blame me? There was this one lady who was insisting on buying tickets without a promo code that she spent 10 minutes arguing with the ticketing lady, WHO PROBABLY HAD ENOUGH ON HER PLATE DEALING WITH OVERLY EXCITED AND FRANTIC FANS ALL MORNING, and all I could think of was the seats slipping through my grasp with each minute wasted. Eventually, she left and well, I was left worrying about the other fans who took a REALLY long time to choose where to sit. You know that feeling when you're in a really long queue in McDonald's and then when it's the turn of the person right in front of you, that's when they start thinking about what they want to get? It was that kind of feeling. 

So here I am with an important piece of advice to fans who plan on going to concerts: Have a plan. A Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, and so on. Chances are, if the artist or group you want to see are pretty big acts, tickets will sell out fast. The more time you spend thinking of which seats to get, the more seats are getting snatched up by someone else. Also, it's consideration for those who are queued up behind you. Got it? Got it. 

Moving on, though I was late to the ticket pre-selling by two hours, I still managed to secure tickets in our preferred area. Lower Box B, holla. Honestly, any other seats would be too far, or too expensive. Yo, EXO, I love you with all my heart, not my wallet. 

So here I am. Way, way too excited at the prospect of seeing my boys again. The Taipei concert was fun, but honestly, as a Filipino fan, it would be much more AMAZING to watch here in Manila. Though Filipino fans don't really get to do successful fan projects during concerts like the Korean, Japanese, or Taiwanese fans do, the Philippine crowd is unparalleled when it comes to sheer energy and volume. Forget fanchants. We'll sing along to the whole song, because that's how we do it. Orayt. Rakenroll to da world.

event kpop

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Hello everyone! This time, I'm doing a favorites post! I've been meaning to do one, but for a long, long time, my favorites didn't really change much from the contents of my make-up bag. But a over a year has passed, and I've acquired quite a number of new things in my make-up collection that I really, really love.

Smashbox On The Rocks Photo Op Eyeshadow Palette

Eye makeup is my favorite, so of course, topping the list is the On The Rocks Photo Op Eyeshadow Palette from Smashbox. I've been eyeing this particular palette for months before I finally decided to buy it. I was apprehensive about it at first, because what the hell was I going to do with 28 new shades? Shades that I really, really liked? But it was the same price as the Full Exposure Palette from Smashbox and twice the amount of shades how could I resist? Drama aside, the palette comes with 28 shades, a mix of matte, satin, and glitter finishes. I really love how smooth, buttery, and not to mention blendable these shadows are. The shadows are all very pigmented, and don't let the bright colors fool you- they're all very wearable. I've worn all these colors at least twice, and that's saying something considering how many eyeshadow colors I own. For my last trip to Taipei, I brought this with me because it has a wide spectrum of colors and finishes, so it's easy to use for whatever look you're going for. 

 Double Wear Hydrating CC-dation in Nude Beige from 1028 Visual Therapy

Next on my list is the Double Wear Hydrating CC-dation from 1028 Visual Therapy. For a drugstore brand, 1028 Visual Therapy really is something! I have yet to try something from 1028 Visual Therapy that disappointed me.  Prior to this, I used 1028 UV White CC Essence, but it ran out because I would lend it to my younger brother whenever he needed stage makeup. Upon hearing that I was out of CC Cream, my aunt gave me her Hydrating CCdation in Light Beige, and from them on, it was love. The CCdation is a combination of CC Cream and foundation. The coverage ranges from light to medium, but what I love most about it is that it doesn't dry my skin out. In fact, I feel like my skin is even moisturized after using it. The "hydrating"part of this CCdation is extremely helpful, and I have taken to alternating this with my bareMinerals Foundation as the powder tends to dry my skin out. Much like a regular CC Cream, it does even out my skin tone very well, and covers up the redness around my nose. And though the consistency of the CCdation is a bit watery, it does last for over eight hours, even when I think that I have sweated it off. This is a blessing considering I live in the Philippines. (SPF25, too. Orayt. Rock and roll to the world.)

bareMinerals Blush in Beauty

I got this blush as a free sample along with the bareMinerals Foundation set from our family trip to Osaka last March, and it's the only blush I've used since then. It's a teeny-tiny container, but it's still pretty full even with my mom and I sharing it. I love how pigmented it is, and a little goes a long way. It's really lightweight and easy to apply. At first. I thought it would be difficult to not overdo blush with this, but I've found that it was pretty easy to control how pink I wanted my cheeks to end up.

bareMinerals Warmth All Over Face Color

The first time I got my hands on this was when my aunt gave my mom a bareMinerals Foundation set, and I ignored it because (1) I had no idea what to do with it and (2) I thought the shade was too dark for me. Now, I've taken to using it as a bronzer, blush, contouring, or just lightly dusting it over my face whenever my foundation leaves me looking too pale. It's so versatile. A little also goes a long way, and I do have to be careful not to overdo things with this powder.   

Ultimate Oil Control Powder from 1028 Visual Therapy

I know I've written about this before, as it's always been in my makeup bag, but I just have to rave about this. This is my HG pressed powder. It's light on the skin, absorbs oil really well, and leaves my face feeling softer after use. That's what I love about 1028, to be honest. It's beauty and skincare rolled into one affordable package. In the picture is actually my third purchase of this powder- it's just that good. It also works pretty well at setting my makeup, almost on par with my Guerlain Meteorites Finishing Powder.

Nyx Extra Creamy Round Lipstick in Pandora

Now, I'm not much of a lipstick person, as I find it a bit of a nuisance when I'm eating or taking a drink, but this frosty, purple color just caught my eye. This was originally a gift to my mom, and I asked if I could try it. Once I did, I knew I wasn't going to give it back. (Thank you, Mama.)  It applies really smoothly, and the touch of shimmer is just  right. It's a bit sheer, but buildable if I want a more intense color. I was also surprised at how resilient it was! Really, minimal touch ups needed through out the day. It's moisturizing. too. Yes, I know it's purple. A really pretty, purple. Yes, I know it makes me look like a Disney Villain. And yes, I do want to look like a Disney Villain.

Last on my list is this unnamed/no-brand puff which I bought from Sasa at Taipei. I first bought this on a whim, because I was looking for an alternative to the Too Cool For School Marshmallow Puff I once owned. My experience with the Marshmallow Puff did not end well, and I'm not exactly willing to shell out big bucks for a Beauty Blender. I'm not a fan of using brushes with liquid foundation as the results usually ends up looking streaky, so I gambled on this puff I randomly saw at Sasa. And I hit the jackpot. It wasn't really much of a gamble, as it only cost around 150Php and works just as well, if not even better, than the Marshmallow Puff. It's much softer too, so it's easier to bounce the round end on my face for a natural, even coverage. The tip also makes it easier to get foundation under the eyes and around the nose.When I use it with lighter shades of foundation, like the CCdation in Light Beige, it blends the foundation so well on my skin that it's as if I didn't put on foundation.

That's it for my favorites (for now). Hopefully, the Christmas Season will bring me more favorites to come. Teehee. <3

beauty

Friday, December 04, 2015