Since I first scrubbed in for a plastic surgery case and saw for myself how horrendous and gory it looks like, I vowed never to get one for myself at all cost. Yesterday, I went on duty at a clinic in Ayala Alabang and met my co-duty doctor who just finished his two-year training in cosmetic surgery. Over lunch, there was a lot of talk about local celebrities who allegedly had their time under the knife such as K.C., A.L., C.R., H.E. and C.B. After going on and on blurting out their names and what they had done one by one, my initial “oohhhs” and “aaaahhs” became “what?!” and “no way! you’re kidding!”. It suddenly dawned on me how these beautiful faces and bodies I once adored and yes, envied so much are all apparently in our local term “retokadas”. Someone just bursted my bubble. Boo!

The old adage goes this way: Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. These days, however, this saying no longer holds true because beauty is now apparently in the eyes of the cosmetic surgeon – and more importantly, in the pocket of the beholder.

Now, excuse me while I check out besteyelashenhancer.net.

Angel Locsin is one of those rumored to have gone breast augmentation surgery. Seen here is a photo of darling Angel as featured in Chizmosa Lounge in an article in 2009.

I must admit it: I am addicted to cracking nail polish. After coming across a really cheap white one at a stall in Ever Gotesco Commonwealth, I found myself buying a more expensive bottle of black cracking nail polish at a Nail Up! stall in Robinson’s Place Ermita just two days later. I just couldn’t help myself from trying it out after I saw how a metallic nail polish underneath a cracking nail polish actually looks good from the sample palette they had at Nail Up!:

For the base, I used Bobbie Nail Polish in Blue Sleigh (right) and topped it with Nail Up! cracking nail polish in Black (left).

What I like about this fad is that it’s like bringing a whole nail art salon right at your doorstep. You can change your nail color from plain fab to fantabulous in a few coats and a matter of seconds.

I used to just pass by the Nail Up stalls that seemed to litter Robinson’s Place Ermita without even stopping by to checkout their goods. To me, it was just a stall with probably overpriced nail polishes like the ones being sold at Face Shop or Skinfood. After I had tried a white cracking nail polish a few days back, I was so eager to buy another one that for the first time in months, I actually stopped by Nail Up and looked if they were selling any. To my delight, they were. And not only that. They also had a number of really interesting nail polishes that tickled my fancy. Among others, they had matte and metallic polishes in really cute colors you probably wouldn’t find elsewhere. I find the price reasonable too at around 80 pesos for a pop of color. (Cracking nail polish, however, is being sold at 120 pesos per bottle). I’ve already spotted a number of colors I am looking forward to try soon especially after receiving Rehearsal Dinner Invitations for a glam party soon. Looks like someone has been converted recently eh? =)

I unearthed an interesting thread on fake Benefit cosmetics being sold over at Ebay.ph. Apparently, less popular brands like Benefit are also now being imitated to be sold as “authentic” to the unassuming consumer. And so Benefit joins the bandwagon of popular cosmetic brands being counterfeited by unscrupulous criminals like drugstore brands such as Maybelline and Cover Girl to higher-end, luxury brands such as Mac and Dior.

I couldn’t believe how I almost fell victim to this. A few months back, I almost bought a Benefit Benetint online after finding them being sold way cheaper than their Beauty Bar counterparts. The transaction almost pushed through but I forgot I had put the item in my watch list then someone else beat me to it. Looking back now, I’m thankful I didn’t get to buy the item and saved myself from what would have been a deep regret on my part.

Three or so years ago, I fell victim to an online seller at Ebay who claimed she was selling authentic, US-bought cosmetics. That time, I was so inspired by a friend who loved wearing shocking red lipstick so I thought of doing the same. I was very keen on getting a red lippie that I pounced on a Royal Red Maybelline lipstick the said seller had put up for sale. The price I had paid for the item should have been a red flag on my part but the naivete in me prevailed. So when the package arrived, I took one look at it and I knew I was scammed.

Signs of a Fake Lipstick:

1) The plastic wrapper hugging the lipstick had poorly-printed text and uneven cut.

2) No batch number on the sticker at the bottom of the lipstick.

3) Wrong font size and word spacing.

4) Lipstick texture? Come on! An authentic one wouldn’t look as chalky as that after a year!

The rule of thumb in buying online is this: If it’s too good to be true, then it probably isn’t. Please be aware that unscrupulous sellers may sometimes use pictures of the real thing but send you a knock-off. Sometimes, they might even threaten you if you as much as ask for proof of authenticity of their items. Imagine that? Just be wary of buying things online especially make up. Most of these are mass-produced in China and might contain harmful ingredients such as mercury and the like (remember the Melamine scare?). So please… please be careful in buying online. If in doubt, then don’t! It’s better to shell out a few bucks more at the mall or at the store than spend a ton on a piece of crap. =)

XS: I hope they don’t sell fake fiberglass storm shelters in China! But who knows?!?!

In the past few days, looking at the mirror has been unbearable for me for various reasons:

1) The sorry state that the toxicity of a month and two weeks-long pre-residency has left my acne-prone skin.

2) And the even sorrier state of a peeling, acne-ridden skin post-glycolic peel.

I ditched my monthly diamond peel session for the meantime because I think what my skin needs at the moment is a die-hard, cold-blooded acid peel. For the uninitiated, both glycolic peel and diamond peel do the same thing: they both speed up the turnover of the upper layer of the epidermis for a younger and brighter-looking skin. For people like me who have oily and acne-prone skin, a glycolic peel is recommended over a diamond peel because not only does it speed up the removal of the old upper layer of the epidermis, but it also helps control the skin’s oiliness in the long run. A diamond peel, however,  is often recommended for those blessed with less problematic skin types. Often, after a number of sessions of glycolic peel, once the skin’s major problems have been addressed (like blemishes and oiliness), a monthly diamond peel  session is advised to keep the turnover of skin going. Skincare can sometimes be a pain in the butt especially for people like me who didn’t get the better set of genes for a better skin type. Often, we end up hoarding skin products left and right straight into our leather backpacks out of sheer desperation. A trip to the dermatologist’s office may sound expensive but when you realize how much unnecessary skin care stuff you’ve stashed in your bathroom cabinet, you’ll see how an expert’s advice becomes less pricey than you initially thought. =)

After such a long time, I finally paid a visit to my dentist this afternoon. Doc Mary Grace was not around and I was told she recently gave birth (Congrats!) so I was seen by the more senior dentist attending the clinic today. If there is something I am really very anxious of doing, going to the dentist is one of them. I had such a horrible childhood experience with the dentist that the memories of my visits to the dentist as a child continue to haunt me to this day. Anyway, today, I finally mustered enough courage to visit one. I had oral prophylaxis and dental filling of my two incisors done. The dentist remarked on how good my teeth were naturally aligned with each other but… (of course, there’s a “but” in here) she also remarked on how I had an “overjet”. I just nodded in agreement despite not knowing what the hell she meant. LOL.

I looked up the word in google and my teeth fit the definition alright:

overjet [o´ver-jet]
extension of the incisal or buccal cusp ridges of the upper teeth horizontally (labially or buccally) beyond the ridges of the teeth in the lower jaw when the jaws are closed normally.

To give you a better understanding of what an overjet is I also managed to get a picture from the internet:

Of course my teeth aren’t in such a sad and sorry state but I had also inadvertently discovered how something was going wrong with my teeth over the years. Being a nail-biter, I noticed how I had been having increasing difficulty biting my nails over a certain portion of my upper and lower incisors! How’s that for a eureka moment? LOL.

My dentist told me that the only way to get around this is to put on braces to slowly correct the problem. I can almost imagine how my teeth would look like in ten years or so and the outlook is very grim so I’m bracing myself for the possibility of wearing braces soon. I’ve learned that braces would cost from 15,000 to 30,000 but it’s not the cost that bothers me. It’s the unsightly appearance of having metal wires on my teeth whenever I flash that smile. Then, I learned that lingual braces are now available in the Philippines. Unfortunately, it costs an arm and a leg so I better hurry up getting a job or a good-paying residency training somewhere if I want one. *sigh* Either way, I can almost hear the POS system at my dentist’s clinic doing a kaching.

Grrr… why does looking good have to be so expensive?!?!?!

Feeling like we’re a bunch of high schoolers instead of 20-something medical interns, Mela and I had a sleepover bonding two nights ago. Nope. We didn’t study together like we’re supposed to but we did go to this posh nail salon just outside their village gates. The destination? Chic Nails Salon along Holy Spirit Drive at Don Antonio Heights. When I told her I just had a manicure and a pedicure done on my birthday, she said I could just try their massage instead. But when I learned where we were going, my hopes went down. I’m not keen on going to a nail salon for a massage. After all, they won’t call it “Chic Nails” if massage was their specialty right? But honestly, I was pretty satisfied with their massage service. And that’s coming from a spa semi-addict.

The place looks superb. From the outside, the place looks rather small to be offering from nail jobs to facial spas and relaxing massages but what did they say about the book and it’s cover again? Ah. Never, ever judge a “salon” by its facade. I was pleasantly surprised when I entered the “salon”. Lovely interiors I must say. The couches look terribly inviting for someone under so much stress like me. Mela plopped down in one couch and gladly waited for her footspa while I was ushered in to a small cubicle for my massage.

For a salon that specializes on nail jobs, the massage rooms are pretty comforting. Unlike in a number of spas I’ve been to, they have actual cubicles for massage areas instead of a number of beds separated by some flimsy curtain. That’s a plus for people who are very keen on privacy (sometimes I wonder what’s gonna happen if one of those curtains give way. LOL.) My therapist gladly assisted me while I prepped up for my one-hour swedish massage. Ms. Hilda is perhaps one of the most accommodating and courteous therapists I ever had. She was even the one who asked me to tell her if the pressure was to my liking. When I told her I once experienced going out of the spa feeling more tired than when I entered, she assured me that I’ll be more relaxed when our session’s through. My verdict? Ms. Hilda stayed true to her word. Her every stroke and pressure was indeed very relaxing and for a moment I regretted not living somewhere nearby. And did I mention she’s one of the most courteous therapists I’ve ever had? She even excused herself before she tinkered with my lingerie and started massaging my hip area. Talk about being respectful. I remember how my ex once complained how a therapist just suddenly pulled his boxers low for that part of the massage. LOL. And for that, I give Ms. Hilda some plus points for customer care.

The massage was over in an hour. When I got out, Mela was done with her footspa and was waiting for her pedicure to start, Although I was not able to experience first-hand their footspa, Mela said she liked it a lot ‘coz they also paid attention to her overused calves.

Then after a few minutes of chit-chat, a familiar face entered the salon with his family.

Clue: He’s a Taekwondo medalist, an actor and a model. Any guesses?

So how would I rate my Chic Nails experience? From a scale of 1 to 5, I’m giving it a 3.5. It ‘s supposedly a 4, if not for the long wait we had to endure after my friend’s GCs turned out to be expired without her knowing it. Mind you, there were no expiry dates on that GC or any indication whatsoever that it has to be used up 6 months after being bought. Good thing the management still honored the GCs (They should. It was their fault anyway.)

Location (Accessibility, Parking): -It’s located along the main road. Looks small from the outside. There’s a chance you’ll miss it. Parking space may be a problem but the street is a long and spacious parking space.
Ambiance: -Love the interiors! Sunshiney and bright! Very homey and relaxing. The cubicles are small but clean. Limited slots available at one time ‘coz there’s just around 3 or so cubicles I think.

Value for Money: - Swedish Massage and Shiatsu Massage are at 350 pesos for an hour. More types of massages available for one or two hundred bucks more. I didn’t notice if there was a shower area. Better take a shower at home instead just to be sure. No sauna too.