(Marie Claire) Nine Vines Launch at Ayala Museum

Got the text and email from marie claire that I got an invitation for three people at the Nine Vines Wine Tasting event at the Ayala Museum. I brought Nicco and Mama Rollz along. I should've realized that it's going to be sort of formal, or at least a smart casual affair (since it is all about wines) but we got there straight from school so we were in our geek outfits. Anyway, Mama Rollz just said, "Carry na yan! Maganda naman tayo. And Nicco has the face value!"

Charing!

One minor problem we encountered was that my name was not in the list even though I had emailed back saying that I'd be getting my ticket on the day itself. I probably should have called. In any case, they still let us through because they seem to know what had happened here.

Mama Rollz: Todo Project!

Nicco: Munch munch munch.

Me enjoying my wine...

Anyhoo, earlier that evening, I was trying to take a pic of editor-in-chief Myrza Sison because I was too shy to approach her. I'm a huge fan of this brilliant, classy and beautiful lady. (Palanca 2nd place awardee, anyone?) And goodness, is she tall!!! There are a lot of sophisticated women out there, but rare are the ones with the kind of aura she carries. It's gotta be the brains and boy, is she creative! Anyhoo, when Rowena arrived, she and Mama Rollz tried to convince me to approach Ms. Sison and since I really felt like I'd look like a worn-out rag beside her, it was Mama Rollz who approached her instead. I also got to meet Nicole Bulatao that evening and finally saw the face behind the correspondences I used to exchange with her when I won my first few MC contests.

 My idol is so tall!!

Rowena's turn to pose with them. :D

Rollz and Nicco seemed to have enjoyed the food and the wine. I absolutely adored the loot bags! It contained two film blotters, an alcogel and an olive oil liquid soap...all from Rustan's Essences. Oooh, I can use the MC bag to school, too!

As always, I got tipsy on my second glass. I was ready to hurl before the night was even over. In fairness, I loved the pink wine. =^.^=

Prelude to an Article

She sat there, sipping her green tea while contemplating his finely chiseled features.  He wasn't exactly staring back, just gazing -- with avid fixation -- at something to her right.  The man had that nasty habit, of not looking when he was intensely looking and looking when he seemed like he wasn't looking. For the last few months, she had come to enjoy this rather confusing non-relationship relationship she had with him.  It had been a wild roller-coaster ride.  But something had to be said.

She waited for a few seconds before finally daring to speak: "You know what?"

His forefinger pushed his eyeglasses upward before raising a single eyebrow.  She took that as a sign that he was prompting her to continue.  Resisting the urge to adjust her own eyeglasses, she went on.  "You are probably one of the rare reliable men I've met and I could say that I could probably fall for you."

He smiled, cocked his head to one side and said, "But?"

"I don't trust you."

And they both laughed.  All the way to next Tuesday.




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NOTE: I was actually asked to write an article about conflicts by  _bump! magazine's editor-in-chief. This mini-story played in my mind while I was searching for the right words. This is not the article, though. Haha!

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COMMENTS from the old blog:

Women are processed goods!!!

(Got that line from Doubt manga.)

Meep. So my sister already divulged my recent shenanigans in her LJ so I'll just come out and confess: YES. I spent 36K on beauty products (majority of them I have no idea how to use) in two weeks.  Blame it on my determination to cure my skin allergy.  Masakit sha noh! Well, I'm cured, thanks to Clarins facial treatment and their super effective Repair Serum. Now all I have to get rid of are the stress-induced pimples.  Origins Spot Remover is doing a pretty good job at it.

In any case, I've contacted my cousin Mother Plucker and Kikay Queen Raissa over YM and even came over yesterday so that I could sort out the stuff I bought.  She taught me how to use the Metallic Yellow Shu Uemura eyeshadow. Again, I was thinking of giving this to my sister Alex because I bought it on impulse and then decided I didn't know what to do with it.  Anyhoo, my discussion with my cousin narrowed everything down to: cleanse, tone, moisturize.

I didn't even know that you needed to tone. I just knew that I should've moisturized at an earlier age (I began at 27, which is pretty late).  I also asked Raissa what else I needed because I don't want to put too much gook on my face.  I hate routines and knowing that, I'd probably forget to use cream X or cream Y when I go about the morning ritual. 

Anyhoo, with SDA building being so far from my place, that means I spend 20 minutes walking underneath the sweltering heat. Sun damage is your skin's number one enemy.  I'm trying to look for a product that has everything in one application so that I don't have to do too many things in the morning and put too many stuff on my face.  In the meantime, here's the ritual for those who want to start taking care of their skin.  There are stuff like these for men, too. Just visit the 5th floor of Rustan's.

Evening
Cleanse: Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil
Tone: Origins Light Years Ahead Toner
Moisturize: Origins A Perfect World Anti-oxidant Moisturizer with White Tea and Origins Eye Doctor

Morning
Cleanse: Likas Papaya (Hahahahaha! My sister swears that this beats out her pimples!)
Tone: Origins Light Years Ahead Toner
Sun Block: VMV Armada Face and Body Shield with SPF60


Protectives
Foundation: Clarins Extra-Firming Foundation with SPF8.
It acts as my semi-moisturizer. It's already hot in the morning so you don't really need to moisturize. Your skin will hydrate all by itself, provided you also drink lots of water (which I don't). The key is not to put too much stuff on your skin during the day because the hot weather will open up your pores and they might end up clogged. Got this tip from Rowena and my mom.

Eyeshadow: Shu Uemura NEW Pressed Eyeshadows.
I normally use two earth colors and cover that up with Shu foundation so I don't look heavily made up. Got this tip from Barbi Chan's article.

Concealer: Clarins Instant Light Perfecting Touch.
It has a built-in brush that I find too small, but it helps in giving me just the right amount.  I'm not the type to actually use a concealer, but I found that this brightens up my face even on an especially gloomy day.

Eyeliner: Shu Uemura Drawing Pencil in Metallic Black.
The old Shu drawing pencil I had was in brownish black.  I never liked using black because it came out too strong.  I just needed eyebrows.
But I tried this one just out of curiosity and I find myself hooked.  It's not very strong, and like the rest of Shu's drawing pencil, it glides like a dream.

Lashes: Shu Uemura Precise Volume Waterproof Mascara and Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler.
I already have long and curly, but thin, lashes to begin with. But putting mascara made a difference because I felt like my lashes just fell over my eyes. Very distracting. So I suppose the curler was there to keep the hair out of my eyes for when they become heavy with mascara coat.  I cried the few times I tried curling my lashes, though. XD Rowena says that I should shift to water resistant mascara instead of waterproof because my lashes may just fall off while I'm trying to remove waterproof mascara.

Cheek Color: Shu Uemura Color Mousse in Air Bronze (Limited Edition).
I love the fact that it doesn't look so unnaturally pink.  I hate that.  I don't like looking like I had my cheeks pinched till they're swollen.  I have naturally rosy cheeks, but the natural rosy colors are not in the right location (translation: not contour-friendly) so I re-adjust the coloring with this.

Lips: I don't wear lipstick. I just use balms or glosses.  Right now I'm using Nivea's lip gloss, but that's going to change once Kiehl's opens in Greenbelt 5 in October.  I need more SPF to protect my lips from the sun.

Whew!  And all these began with my paranoia over skin cancer and sun overdose.  The important thing is that I chose products that are very very light and not makeup-ey. In fact, you'd hardly notice these protectives are all over my skin.  Heck, it was funny when Mike Mariano, a photographer colleague who's very keen on details, asked me if I ever wore make-up.  Nge!!!

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COMMENTS from the old blog:

Updated Resume

Updated my resume to include my new title:
Beatrice Margarita V. Lapa, MIM

I just graduated from my masteral studies last May 12, 2007 and though there was only one awardee for our batch (that award is bestowed upon the highest in the graduating class), I did graduate third. I hope that speaks a lot about my determination, my struggles, and my journey. I'm off to another round of studies because I do want to pursue a doctorate degree. It's not really the degree I'm after, but the knowledge that I'd need in order to improve the project I started from my Innovative Development class, which I also am doing at my work in the School of Multimedia Arts in Asia Pacific College.

Many people do not understand why I have such an insatiable hunger for knowledge. I have a vision for the future, not just for myself but for what I can do to return the many blessings God has bestowed upon me. I want to make a difference. I want to revolutionize education. I want to know that someday, I may have helped in getting those children off the streets and that empowering them with knowledge would someday benefit our country. I know the dream sounds like I'm going to shovel through a brick wall with a spoon again, but it's not going to be the first time I've had to do that.

Idealistic? Maybe. My boss, APC School of Multimedia Arts Director Gerard Cadlum, once told me that I still have this sense of idealism at work that balances his leadership style. I never really thought about it that way and I was surprised that this word would even be used to describe an aspect of me. It's funny, though; my professional work life is probably the only thing that's idealistic about me.

As for this portfolio...I know I have not been updating it, not since I've gone into creative direction. (I sometimes catch some broken thumbnails in this site, even.) I had become so busy with an academician's matters that I'd rather you look at my students' portfolios instead. Many of them are hardworking and extremely talented. If anyone needs multimedia artists, just holler and I can point you to the right people. I'd always be glad to be of help.

And to all the people who have helped me stay strong: THANK YOU.

=^.^=