17th Asia Pacific Hair & Makeup Olympics

I've only heard Olympics Sports but little did I know that there is also Olympics for Hair and Make up! Interesting isn't it? 

The 17th Asia Pacific Hair and Make-Up Olympics Competition was held in Malaysia last Monday with support by Ministry of Tourism Malaysia, Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), InterExpo and APHCA in conjuction with the Beauty13 Expo, bringing worldwide talents and professionals together for an exciting competition. It is an event held by APHCA every year in various countries around Asia Pacific region and it was Malaysia's very first time in hosting such an event. This competition aims as a platform for international and local talents to show and share new knowledge, creativity and ideas with each other. Besides that, the competition allows the industry players to update themselves about the latest trends and styles, be exposed to huge opportunities and advancing their careers as well. 

They are a total of 300 category contestants coming from 13 different APCHA-member countries namely Australia, China, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Indonesia, Philiphines, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand and Taiwan that participated in the competition this year. There are altogether 8 categories of competitions that was held on the same day, 7th October from 10am to 6pm. The 8 categories are of the the following:

• Ladies Designer Hair Cut 
• Men’s Avant-Garde Hair Cut 
• Evening Elegant Hair Cut 
• Bridal Hair 
• Ladies Designer Make-Up
• Evening Elegant Make-Up 
• Bridal Make-Up 
•  Fantasy Make-Up

When I reached KLCC in the evening, I only managed to catch the last twenty minutes of the Bridal Make Up category which is also the last round of competition. 

The hall was filled with models, make up artists, big name hairdressing and cosmetology industry players and media.

She definitely caught my attention! 

After an hour of anticipation, the prize giving ceremony finally started around 7.45PM. 

Awards to be given away that night. 

This was personally my favourite for this category. The winner was from Korea. 

Winners of The Ladies Designer Hair Cut category. 

First and second place goes to contestants from Malaysia (feel so proud for a second OMG) in the Ladies Designer Make Up.

Winners for the  Ladies Designer Make Up category. 

Winners for the  Evening Elegant Hair Cut category. 

Another winner from Malaysia for the Evening Elegant Make-up Category. 

3rd place winner for Men's Avant-Garde Hair Cut who is representing Malaysia! 

2nd place winner from Mongolia. The make up is just whoaaaa. 

The champion goes to Malaysia's representative too! :DDD

Winners for the Men's Avant-Garde Hair Cut category. 

1st runner up for Fantasy Make-up from Mongolia. Pretty impressive, huh? 

The costume I believe made from recyclable stuff is just ah-mazing, it comes with a tail too. 

The champion for Fantasy Make Up, from China. 

Winners for Fantasy Make Up category. 

Winner from Bridal Hair category. 

1st place winner for Bridal Make-Up category from Indonesia. 

There is also an award to Malaysian Best Hair Award, Malaysian Best Make Up Award and an Overall Champion Award that goes to a representative from Taiwan. She has won quite a number of trophies from various categories. 

That pretty much concludes the prize giving ceremony for the 17th Asia Pacific Hair & Makeup Olympics.

Closing speech by Mdm Theresa Tam, country manager of Thailand. 

Before the night ends, Mdm Airene Wong, country manager of Malaysia passes over the flag to Mdm Theresa Tam as Thailand will be the next country to host the 18th Asia Pacific Hair & Makeup Olympics. 

See you next year in Bangkok, Thailand! 

xx

Rich Lash Extension | Pink Passion

For the past one week, I've been getting a lot of this, "Hilda, are you wearing falsies?" well the answer is no, I had eyelash extension instead (; Eyelash extension is nothing new in the beauty industry, but it's my first time experiencing it. I only had an eyelash perming two years back but that is totally different. I received an email from Pink Passion last month to try out their eyelash extension service, I was more than glad to accept the offer. Who on earth will say no to beautiful long lashes! I decided to have my eyelash extension done on the 1st October after a busy September, definitely a good way to kick start a new month (: So as a first timer, I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous cause I have no idea what to expect. 

Pink Passion is a well-known expert in Silk and Rich Lashes Extension for the past 6-7 years, besides that they do provide service such as facial treatments, slimming treatments, bust treatments, hydrotherapy jacuzzi, cupping and ear candling. You can check more about their services, HERE.

The waiting area.

The treatment room with dim lighting, comfortable couch and relaxing music playing in the background. 

I had Rich Lash Extension cause it's more suitable for those with short, fine and less lashes. As usual the most commonly asked question will be if it hurts, *cough* I can assure you that the process is totally pain-free and relaxing. Tape will be applied to the bottom lashes to keep the lashes out of the way during application. All you have to do is relax, close your eyes and leave the rest to the beautician. I almost dozed off halfway cause I barely feel anything. The whole process took around 45 minutes and...

this is the end result while waiting for the glue to dry off. 

All the eyelashes and eyelash glue used in Pink Passion are imported from Korea, thus the lashes are more light-weighted and long lasting compared to others. For Rich Lash Extension, they have three different length of eyelashes which is short, medium and long respectively. Since I've never had eyelash extension or the habit of wearing falsies, my beautician suggested a combination of short and medium length eyelashes for a more natural look. 

In Pink Passion, they also have colourful silk lashes for those who wanted to have a dramatic look for dinner or certain events. They even have silk lashes that comes in different types of curls and thickness.  

I guess most of you would be wondering as well how long would the eyelash extension last.  It normally lasts up to 3-4 weeks, depending on how you take care of it and your day-to-day activities. It's advisable to go for touch up in every 2-3 weeks.

Ready for some before and vain selfiesafter photos? TEEHEE

BEFORE | AFTER
Needless to say, the difference is pretty obvious since everyone questioned me when they see me.
I have longer, thicker, curly and volumized lashes now!
After I had my eyelash extension, I prefer taking photos of my eyes closed :P

[FRONT | BOTTOM VIEW]

[SIDE VIEW]

My verdict: What I love about it the most is that it's weightless and it creates a semi-dramatic look. I can even go out without any eye make up now. Guess what, you can put your mascara away for some time HEHE and it certainly does feel awesome waking up without the oh-I-just-woke-up look. You no longer dread looking at yourself in the mirror in the morning while brushing your teeth. Trust me, you'll love it. But of course with these beautiful lashes, there's a price to pay to. It took me around a week to get used to the feeling of having these eyelashes, it may be quite a nuisance at first (especially when it comes to washing my face and removing makeup) to be honest. It causes discomfort when you're wearing your glasses and sunglasses cause of the length. They acts like windshield wiper on your glasses LOL Since the glue is waterproof, it's totally fine to wash your face or involve in any water activities but not for the first 24 hours after application to allow adequate bonding time for the lashes. 

Just a few tips; 

• Avoid using cotton wool to remove eye makeups, use cotton buds instead. 
• Avoid oil-based make up products around eyes. 
• Avoid hot steam or sauna.
• Do not perm or use mechanical eyelash curler. 
• Be gentle with no lashes. No pulling, excessive touching, rubbing. 
• Do lie and say they are yours (; 

It's been a week and the lashes are still in good condition even after a day at Sunway Lagoon last Saturday. Now I'm starting to wonder how will I look when I no longer have these extensions. Last but not least, thanks again Pink Passion for these much needed boost of confidence *bats eyelashes* Couldn't be more flattered with the compliments I get :P not self praise okay. 

You know they say sharing is caring, so here's a little something for you! Just print out this voucher and you'll be able to enjoy Rich Lashes Extension at only RM88 (NP: RM228) and a free touch up within 7 days.

Been wanting those long beautiful lashes, don't hesitate to visit Pink Passion today!

Pink Passion 
No. 37-1, Jalan PJU 1/3C,
Sunway Mas Commercial Centre,
47301 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
Tel No:  03-7805 7285
Operating Hours: Tue - Sat: 11:00 am - 7:00 pm
                           Sun: 11:00 am - 6:00 pm
                           Closed on Mondays.
Website: http://www.pinkpassion.com.my/
Facebook Page: Pink Passion - The Signature Salon 

P/S: Hope you guys enjoy reading this and find it helpful. Feel free to ask if you have any questions regarding eyelash extensions in the comments section!

xx

Benefit Cosmetics Malaysia 1st Birthday Bash

Back to the weekend after my birthday, I was invited to celebrate Benefit Cosmetics' first standalone boutique first anniversary. Well, all good things happened in the month of September (; It was a pretty exclusive event cause it's only for selected bloggers who are born in the month of September but the best part is you'll get to bring along 5 guests! Of course, being a big fan of Benefit Cosmetics, I agreed without hesitation and brought along my elder sister and Joeann with me.

In case you don't know, Benefit Cosmetics boutique is in 1 Utama Shopping Center.
Located on the same row with Topshop, it's impossible to miss this shop with the truckloads of pinkness. 

Love how most of the decors and furniture are in pink too (✿ ♥‿♥) 

Yummy mini beef pies and pink guava juice were served.    

What's a birthday without a cake right? And this my friend, is the beautiful birthday cake! Perfectly done with the tiniest details, so cute that even it's edible, I don't think I want to eat it. 

Once registration is done, the event started off with the traditional candle blowing ceremony for the September babies.

Felt like celebrities surrounded by paparazzi with the camera's flash flashing at us and having our photos taken when we blew the candles teehee (*ﾉωﾉ) 

The compulsory shot with the birthday cake :D 

We had this astonishing magician to entertain us with his jaw-dropping magics. It was really impressive!

Little birdy wanna join in the fun as well :P 

After the exciting magic show, we had an opportunity check out their new product, Gimme Brow which is also one of the main highlights of the birthday bash.

Introducing Gimme Brow, brow-volumizing fiber gel that comes with two different shades (light/medium & medium/deep). Now available at all Benefit counters and official retailers in Malaysia selling at RM85 each! 

The make up artist briefly explained the product before demonstrating on how it works.
 Model of the day: Kahmon.  

Working on the magic wand....anddddd be prepared to be amazed by the result!

TADAAA! You could see the instant effect on the right brow where it appears fuller and more voluminous. It's easy to apply and most importantly, it looks very natural, no?
I shall do a review on Gimme Brow in a separate post (: 

After the demonstration, it was time for the beauty bloggers to experience The Great Browzini themselves.
While waiting for my turn, I took the opportunity to walk around the store and check out the cosmetics they have.

The best selling POREfessional, Benetint and How to Look The Best in Everything kit. Don't you secretly wish you can bring back all of these home? 

All hyped up for my brow makeover.
To be honest, I've always neglected my eyebrows when it comes to eye make up cause I have zero idea how to do it or even worse, where to start. The most I'll use usually would be just eyeliner and mascara. My Benefit Assistant was very helpful indeed, answering my questions and teaching me how to draw my brows. She even shared some brow tips with me (:

Before | After
Having well defined and perfectly shaped brows that suit your face does make a huge impact to your appearance. This look was achieved by using the Instant Brow Pencil and High Brow.
My verdict: Loving it ♥♥♥

My brow makeover doesn't just end here. There's more...

Each of us were given this coupon to claim a free brow wax worth RM42 and my BA offered to do it for me right away so I thought, why not? #challengeaccepted I usually have my brows trimmed and tweezed 
so it was my first time to experience brow wax. 

Feeling a tad nervous, the first question I blurted out was " Is it painful? " She said it is less painful than tweezing ಠ_ಠ ಠ_ಠ ಠ_ಠ ಠ_ಠ No, that's not true. HAHA Well probably it's not applicable to me in the first place cause I have low tolerance towards to pain. 

Looks like some minor surgery is going on with all the waxing tools.
Before waxing your brow, the BA will ask you a few simple questions and test the wax on your hand.

Hi Shin Chan! I love those words on the cape I'm wearing :P
Besides brow waxing, Benefit Cosmetics provide body and also facial waxing services. 

Knowing that Benefit Cosmetics has always been the brow expert since 1976, I know I'm in good hands.
I'll just have to sit back, relax and let the experts do what they do best. 

Look at my wide grin, well I'm actually screamng in the inside cause of the pain HAHAHA jkjk

There you go, my unwanted brows T___T NO PAIN NO GAIN yaw! 

The aftermath // Goodbye untidy brows,  hello clean and sleek brows!
The whole process didn't take long, less than 15 minutes.
Fret not if there's redness around the eyebrow areas after waxing, it's totally normal (:My verdict: Worth the pain ♥♥♥♥

Other September babies getting their brows makeover too (: 

Just some final touch up with eyebrow and I'm good to go. 

My final look ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ What do you think? 
One my friend commented that I have the Korean eyebrows. 

Group photo with all the September babies :D 

Doing what girls do best, SELCA! ヽ(＾Д＾)ﾉ
It's been a while since I last attended event like this, so it was delightful to see some familiar and new faces.
Top row (L-R): Wilee, Kahmon, Carolyn Tay, Ysquare
Bottom row (L-R): Jennifer, Iris, Yuhjiun 

Joeann and I (: 

Pardon me, I obviously can't have enough of my new brows HEH

Thanks Benefit for having us, we girls sure had a fun time together at the birthday bash! 

Not to forget the goodie bag as well, 5 full sized items including the new Gimme Brow! How generous (≧∇≦) There's even a happy birthday note with my name on it. Thanks so much, again!

Ending this post with another vain selfie :P
Beautiful brows courtesy of Benefit Cosmetics. Trust me, you won't regret!

For more details of their stores and products and beauty tips, feel free to check out their official FB page HERE and oh you might wanna follow their instagram page too, @BenefitCosmeticsMy (:

xx