Archive for the ‘New Products & Reviews’ Category

People use various kinds of cosmetics for many reasons but usually it’s all about promoting attractiveness. Some rely on cosmetics to alter their physical appearances, but on my case, I use cosmetics because I cannot live without it.

Cosmetics has become a part of my everyday. It boosts my self-esteem and makes me feel gorgeous. I feel so bare and incomplete without my lipstick and eyeliner on Not only that, I am such a lotion junkie that I could consume a 200ml bottle in a month. I’d put on lotion after every bath and many times during the day. It keeps my skin hydrated and my mind sane. Call it addiction hehe

And if there’s one company that I rely on when it comes to my skin, it’s gotta be Avon. Here are the reasons why I’ve been using Avon for so many years now:

1. Reliable
2. Affordable
3. Available everywhere!
4. The company’s been helping fellow moms earn a living

The pack has:

1. Avon Advance Techniques Straight and Sleek Smoothing Creme – the best for the hair! it makes my hair soft and shiny the whole day.
2. Avon Skin so Soft soft and sensual whitening and firming hand and body lotion
3. Avon Super Curlacious mascara – a must try!
4. Avon Ultra Rich lipstick in red karat – have I told you that I am so into lipstick? and I don’t go for nude or pink hues, I want red, slutty red!

Fellow mommy Mel, also an Avon suki and little Charlee, my inaanak

I used to have a lot of pimples. I suffered for years and my loyal knew everything I went through and every single product I used just to get rid of pimples. I tried Thanakha, which worked wonders by the way, Cetaphil, Celeteque, Ponds, a local product of mineral makeup because I thought my powder was causing the allergies, and many others.

And guess when did the pimples stop? When I got pregnant! hehe When I gave birth however it started coming out again due to stress and some other factors like hormonal changes and lack of sleep. Brought this topic to my my doctor and she advised me to use Dove Extra Sensitive bar for my skin and my daughters. Her exact words were “Try Dove and you won’t use any other soap again.” I used it immediately and saw a HUGE improvement on my skin. SHE WAS RIGHT!

Our whole family now uses Dove Extra Sensitive Bye pimples and skin irritations!

I was calling myself a baker until I met Top Pastry Chef Franck Geuffroy. He was just too good that I felt like a dot compared to him

Chef Franck is the training chef and consultant of Alain Ducasse Formation et Conseil.

This novice baker just got invited to a live pastry demonstration held in Enderun Colleges –  the L’art de la Patisserie (The Art of Pastry). Why would I say no to this once in a lifetime event? of course I said YES immediately Chef Franck demonstrated advanced techniques in making various pastries including the eye-catching all-edible sugar sculpture.

During the demonstration I learned that a Pastry Chef does more than just bake, he is capable of creating masterpieces. Pastries and desserts should not just be delicious, they must also be artistic, creative and pleasing to the eye.

Here are some of the traditional French pastries fusioned with local flavors giving classic pastries a Filipino twist:

Paris-Manila Brest

Paris-Manila Brest is a ring of golden brown pâte à choux pastry that sandwiches praline cream and sliced almonds. It was created in 1891 in honor of the Paris-Brest-Paris bicycle race.

Kouglof

Kouglof is a brioche-like coffee cake from Alsace—lightly sweet and studded with raisins.

Tropézienne

Tropézienne, from Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera, is a rich orange blossom water scented brioche that oozes buttercream.

St. Honoré

St. Honoré has a base of puff pastry topped with a ring of small, caramel-drenched cream puffs; the center of the cake is filled with clouds of whipped cream.

Citrus Entremet

Citrus Entremet is a confection of coconut mousse, citrus crème, white chocolate brownie and grapefruit.

Intense Raspberry Chocolate Brownie

Intense Raspberry Chocolate Brownie a rich concoction of chocolate brownie and raspberry marmalade.

Enderun Entremet

Enderun Entremet, a playful dessert of buttery shortbread, sour calamansi, intense chocolate biscuit, gingered milk chocolate, and crunchy peanut praline.

As you would notice, Chef Franck has been using various local fruits to flavor his pastries. This is so because this chef just loves our fruits!

“The flavor of calamansi is so strong and so fresh!” he exclaims.  “It is a pure gift from nature.  And the mangos and pineapples here are so flavorful and sweet that they are so much better than what we can find in France.”  He also loves working with coconut paste, saying that the amazing taste of roasted coconut can be used to give classic French pastries a Filipino twist.

L’art de la Patisserie (The Art of Pastry) launches Enderun Colleges’ 3-month Pastry Arts Certificate, which will begin in November 2011. The comprehensive course is ideal for home cooks who want to increase their knowledge in pastry and bread-making, professionals who want to update their knowledge, and anyone considering a career in professional pastry. Students will be given hands-on instruction in basic and advanced techniques to equip them with the skills necessary for mastering French and international pastries, confectioneries, and breads. The program also gives students the opportunity to take further studies at Ecole National Supèrieure de la Pâtisserie, the pastry arts training center of Alain Ducasse Formation.

More importantly, it gives students a chance to discover if they have the passion, creativity, stamina, and skill to be a pastry chef.

For more information about this 3-month Pastry Arts Certificate, please contact:

Enderun Colleges
1100 Campus Avenue
McKinley Hill, Fort Bonifacio
Taguig City 1634 Philippines
Telephone: (632) 856 5000
Facsimile:   (632) 856 4656
www.enderuncolleges.com

I never thought lactation was hard until I started breastfeeding my youngest daughter, Lana. Sure it’s natural and free but nobody said it is easy. I went through hell before I gotten used to it. Now I can nurse with ease, thanks Medela and muscle memory LOL

But hey, everything’s not perfect as it seems. I am dealing with a few issues right now like watery milk, less milk than before and dehydration. ProMama will address these issues, thanks to Wyeth.

ProMama, helps women meet the increased nutritional needs of pregnant and lactating women. Only ProMama contains Pro-Nutri Builders, ingredients that support the health of both mother and child during the delicate journey of pregnancy. These include Maternal Immunity Enhancers like Beta Carotene, which has antioxidant and immunostimulatory properties, and Vitamin C, E and A, which also helps promote good vision and cellular growth.

ProMama’s Pro-Nutri Builders also include Fetal Mental Enhancers like DHA, a nutrient important for a child’s visual and mental development. Folic Acid, which is essential for the development of the nervous system and in preventing neural tube defects, and zinc are two more ingredients in ProMama that help in fetal neurodevelopment.

ProMama also contains Fetal Bone and Muscle Builders like Vitamin D, important for calcium metabolism and to support fetal bone and teeth development; Protein, the building block of all tissues; Iron, which helps in the generation of red blood cells that carry oxygen to all parts of the body and Calcium, which supports bone development.

Just 2 servings of ProMama daily can help promote appropriate weight gain during pregnancy.

By supporting the nutritional needs of pregnant and lactating women, ProMama helps mothers-to-be and their babies stay in the pink of health and fully embrace the gift of motherhood.

So aside from taking lots of soup, moringga capsules and rest, I’ll include ProMama on my diet. Thank you Wyeth

In this age when our kids would normally stay indoors and play with their gadgets, it is every parent’s dream to involve them in sports. I still remember when I was my daughter’s age, I was already “out there” playing patintero or habulan with cousins, all sweaty. These days my daughter would rather stay at home and play games on her PC than go out (which I think is better than seeing her being bullied outside – protective mom I am!)

There would be times when she would ask her dada to accompany her outside, to jog or walk around the village and sometimes she would ride her bike – so for added protection, I brought her character kiddie protective helmet and pads:

The helmet is one important piece of safety equipment that your kids need when they ride the kiddie bike or scooter. Of course we would want them to have the protection of Arai Motorcycle Helmets but usually they are heavy and not kid-friendly. These kiddie protective hekm

Get these kiddie protective helmets for only P399. Available in Disney Princess and Go Diego Go designs.

My mom is turning 53 end of this year and I guess she’s very near her menopausal stage. Given this, she’s very emotional most of the time and her crankiness sometimes eats the best of me

Most of the Filipinos that I know of just treat this phase as a very common one, natural but the richer ones and the ones in the US says otherwise. Women nearing the menopausal age undergo Bioidentical Hormone Therapy. The term “bioidentical hormone therapy” is often used to describe a medication containing estrogen, progesterone, or other hormones that are chemically exact duplicates of hormones produced by women, primarily in the ovaries. Many of these bioidentical hormones (eg, estradiol, progesterone) are commercially available in several well-tested, FDA-approved, brand-name prescription drugs.

I learned about this when I searched the Bioidentical hormone therapy austin for a research. Further study about this topic is still on going but I hope we have this therapy here in the Philippines. Women belonging to my mom’s age bracket will benefit mostly from it.

Remember: a happy mom = a happy home.

Disclaimer: This is not a paid ad.

I used to have dry skin and one factor that I am considering is my fondness of softdrinks. My skin, especially my feet were always dry and makalyo. But things have changed when I got hospitalized and was required to drink more water. I now consume more than 8 glasses per day One thing I noticed was how my skin has changed, it’s now softer and don’t tend to dry easily. Aside from that, my face became clearer too! No more pimples from now on. Before, I’d use lots soaps to clear my face and treat my body acne

Another thing, I stopped using soap on Yona’s skin. Her skin tend to dry easily because of soap. One friend recommended Human Nature products for kids. “It’s cheaper and really effective!”, she said. And two more things – it’s all natural and they help a lot of people while making this product. I gave it go! And I couldn’t argue more with all the positive things I’ve heard from fellow bloggers.

Yona tried the Human Nature Watermelon Shampoo and Body Wash for kids. The 500ml just costs P274.75!

Get your kids to look forward to bath time with this yummy-scented 2-in-1 shampoo and body wash! Convenient to use, cleans effectively yet gently and is completely harmful chemical-free. So the bath chores are done and they’ve had their fun and you’re a Super Mom!

I immediately saw it’s effect on Yona’s skin, it has become softer, like baby’s skin! I still have to try the other products of Human Nature but I can firmly say that I am one satisfied customer

I’ve always wanted to start scrapbooking but like everyone else who have no extra money, scrapbooking is already a luxury so I ditched this plan and instead focused on its digital counterpart. Just install Adobe Photoshop, buy or download free kits online and voila! Scrapbooking na!

But recently, a fellow baker from Filipina Homebakers Online introduced me to Lasting Impression, a scrapbooking store located in San Juan, Metro Manila. They have all sorts of scrapbooking materials, from papers of different textures, cutting tools, punchers, ribbons and what-have-yous.

For my first purchase, I got the Fiskars Squeeze Punch in scallop (P875) and the Fiskars Squeeze Punch in round (P735).

For sure I won’t go full time in this line, with all the garbage at home and how pricey these stuff are, I doubt it! But for sure I’ll order again from Ms. Vivian, she’s so nice and very accommodating.

Lasting Impression
Website: http://www.lastingimpressionph.com/
San Juan, Metro Manila

I am not a successful businesswoman yet so my ideas are still open for new businesses (but it all depends on how much money I have to invest, LOL)

Right now my sister and I are planning to venture into printing business cards, photos, stickers, PVC IDs and invitation cards. We already have a printer installed with continuous ink system, the papers we use, a few clients and a facebook page We are planning to sell it at a very low price. We already have the things we need and we no longer have to rent a space so I guess it is just right to pass our savings to our clients.

I am no business guru but I want to share some tips to fellow stay at home moms like me.

• Research. Before starting anything, RESEARCH. Make a feasibility study and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Anyway, Mr. Google is only a click away
• Know what the people around you needs. Like for example, on my case, my blogger friends and fellow sellers are always in need of business cards, my mommy friends are good market for invitation cards so I am positive that this business will prosper.
• Love what you do. In any business it IS important that you love what you’re doing to avoid burn out.

These are just basic tips. When it comes to costing, project plan preparations, do’s and don’ts in businesses, it is best to get knowledge from business gurus like gordon brent pierce.

Gordon Brent Pierce specializes in the following areas:

• Asset and investment assessment
• Business development planning
• Business staging
• Business implementation
• International Business strategies
• International business relations
• Corporate start ups
• Mergers and acquisitions
• Investment portfolio management
• Financing via debt and equity markets
• Finance syndication
• Public relations, media, and promotion

Investing on companies that will help know what to do and what not to do especially on the paper works (which can be a little time and money consuming) is one good move if you want to start your business right.

When I started blogging back in 2004, I maintained a blog in multiply, a free site then migrated it to blogger.com, still a free platform. It was just in 2009 that I got curious about being paid that I decided to give domains and hosting a try.

When I was a newbie I still don’t know what those words were, “what is domain?” and “What is Web Hosting?“ were just two of my so many questions, but thanks to Mr. Google, he explained to me the meaning and how to’s in buying and maintaining a website. During my first try in migrating my blog, some of it got corrupted and I was on the verge of giving up but I never did, so I’m still here, blogging.

Looking for the best cheap hosting can be a bit tricky, you need to weigh the pros and cons in maintaining your own website. You also need a company like Gobbler Hosting.

Gobbler Hosting’s website is complete with information that newbies and ‘oldies’ need when it comes to hosting. Here’s why Gobbler Hosting is your one stop-web hosting site:

• The commonly asked questions are posted on the top left portion of the website
• A comparison of the best cheap web hosting for 2011 is posted
• Compare plan deals easily with a click on the Web Hosting Comparison
• They offer FREE website templates
• Their hit counters are free, yay!
• and their website is clean, yes, no eye-straining popping ads on the sides.

So before you jump into anything when it comes to web hosting, visit Gobbler Hosting to give you an idea on how to start building your own website and how you can maintain it.

Remember, self-hosted websites get more offers from clients. More clients = more $$$!