Dazzle Me Lens Contacts Review

In my last post I hauled my goodies from Bangkok. I purchased 6 pairs on contacts from Platinum Fashion Mall's "Dazzle Me Lens" store. I absolutely love the lenses. I purchased 3 blue, 2 gray and 1 green. Photos are below:

QUEEN BLUE

HIMALAYAN BLUE

JEWEL 4TONE BLUE

PUFFY GREEN

COROCO GRAY

LILLY GRAY

Not only are the lenses comfortable but the lady at the shop was very nice. Here is the Dazzle Me Lens shop address:
Room 441, Oxford 2, 2nd floor, Platinum Fashion Mall, Bangkok, Thailand 10400

Bangkok, Thailand Haul 2015

If you read my previous post you know that I recently visited Bangkok, Thailand. Here is a breakdown of the different malls I visited and which I preferred.

1. Siam Paragon: My favorite mall that we visited. This is a more high end mall that has 10 floors. Amazing food court with reasonable prices.
2. Platinum Fashion Mall: Didn't find any clothing here, but LOVED buying colored contact lenses here.
3. Terminal 21: Cute place to go, has a lot of different stores (not ones you would normally find in the US) and has themed floors (San Francisco, Istanbul, etc.) Wasn't my favorite for shopping but was definitely worth checking out.
4. Central World: Probably the best place to do actual shopping. Great restaurants (AKA, Nobu Shabu, Harijuku Crepes) and standard stores like ZARA, Forever 21, etc. Note that prices for those stores you can find in the US are might more expensive when you do the conversion.

This is what I ended up buying - two tanks for Chatuchak weekend market, 2 beauty masks and a maybelline powder from Boots, several cute little trinkets (Totoro mostly) and 6 colored contact lenses from DazzleMe Lens in Platinum Fashion Mall.

I will be doing a separate post on the colored contacts I purchased from Dazzle Me Lens!

My First Time in Bangkok, Thailand - Tips & Advice

My boyfriend and I have been dying to visit southeast Asia and finally made it to Bangkok Thailand. We were there for 10 days in the end of August. I thought I would share my first impressions and some tips that could potentially help you if you are traveling there in the near future. I will put up more posts with shopping hauls - shopping in Bangkok is amazing.

When we arrived we took a taxi to our hotel - big mistake! I cannot stress enough - avoid taxis / cabs at all costs. The drivers are crooked and they try to scam you. Generally they will not even use a meter but we were "lucky" ours did. He then took the longest and most traffic-filled route to our hotel. We were staying in Sukhumvit and it costs us 525 baht (should have been around 400). There is a 75 baht toll you will pay - just give the driver the money and he should give you your change. Our driver gave us our change less 50 baht which is the airport fee (that is accurate). At the end of our ride it was around 450 on the meter. He asked for 500 (again trying to trick us into paying the 50 baht airport charge). We said we already paid that and let him off with just 450 on top of the 75 and 50 for toll and airport fee. This was our last time and only time we used a taxi in Bangkok. I refused to pay these crooked people any more money. Which leads me to my next point - BTS (train system in bangkok).

Although the streets are very smelly and quite dirty, the BTS is amazing. Trains moving constantly, cheap rates and air conditioned transportation. We were staying close to the Nana station and most places we went to were between 15 and 30 baht for one-way. You can also get a day pass for 140 baht but I wouldn't recommend it unless you are traveling quite a bit that day. It does get busy at times (see photos below) but there are arrows and signs in English that help you navigate your way around the BTS stations. Lines do form and it gets a bit crowded during rush hour (~5pm).

Choosing a place to stay was a challenge considering there are so many options and Bangkok is such a large city. We decided on Adelphi Suites which is on Soi 8 in Sukhumvit. It is extremely close to the Nana BTS Station (1 minute walk literally down the road). It was rated well on Expedia and it was classified as 4 stars. It was horrible! Do not stay there... Bugs in the bed, horrible breakfast and smelly rooms. Coming from Las Vegas, when you say 4 stars I am thinking it will be pretty nice. We stayed in the "Executive Suite" and the room was horrible. Stay at the Sheraton in Sukhumvit or the InterContinental. Those places looked really great. See below photos:

Our favorite thing about Bangkok was the people. The Thai people are so kind and sweet to foreigners. You really feel welcome there and everyone speaks English! There are so many signs and directions in English that navigating the somewhat intimidating Bangkok went really well. We have a wonderful time in Bangkok and my haul posts will be up shortly! xoxo

My Favorite Red Lipsticks for Brown Skin

Finding good red lipsticks for my skin tone has been a challenge. I just wanted to share some of my personal favorites. Four are drugstore and one is MAC.

From left to right: Revlon Black Cherry, Wet n Wild Stoplight Red, Wet n Wild Cherry Picking, Revlon Cherries in the Snow, MAC Diva

A brief description of each:
1. Revlon Black Cherry: deep burgundy color that is perfect for fall or a formal evening out. Not a true red - but in the red family and looks beautiful on tan skin. Purchase HERE!
2. Wet n Wild Stoplight Red: The PERFECT classic red lip for tan skin. Best part - I paid around $2 for this! Purchase HERE!
3. Wet n Wild Cherry Picking: This is a gorgeous red with a HINT of pink. Gorgeous and affordable. Purchase HERE!
4. Revlon Cherries in the Snow: Almost an exact DUPE for the Wet n Wild Cherry Picking but this formula is MUCH BETTER. Cherry Picking is very drying whereas this one is a bit more shiny and is super moisturizing. If I had to choose one, Cherries in the Snow for sure. Purchase HERE!
5. MAC Diva: The best Bond-Girl gorgeous deep deep red. This is a little bit drying but it looks so chic and formal, I absolutely love it. Purchase HERE!

See below Cherries in the Snow vs. Cherry Picking - total dupe!

Nude Patent Tieks by Gavrieli Review

I think every working woman should have a nice pair of flats. After reading so many rave reviews about Tieks by Gavrieli and the "Ballet Flat - Reinvented" I decided to order some and see for myself. The Nude Patent Tieks I ordered are $195 including free two-day shipping and tax.

The flats are gorgeous and come in such cute packaging:

The idea behind Tieks is brilliant. Tieks are foldable ballet flats that are perfect for travel and perfect for a "these heels are killing me and I don't want to walk barefoot" moment. Tieks come with a compact foldable bag for your heels (blue shown below) as well as a black pouch that fits your Tieks. You can conveniently keep Tieks in your clutch and make the switch if necessary. Or in my case, just wear the Tieks as ballet flats.
The pouch and blue bag that come with the flats:

They have several prints and colors it was impossible for me to choose. I ordered the following colors:
1. Lemon yellow - this was my second favorite pair
2. Lavender - tied for second I loved these as well
3. Fuchsia - didn't really care for these as they are matte instead of patent leather
4. Pop Pink - TOO BRIGHT! YIKES!
5. WINNER - Nude Patent - timeless and gorgeous
Although I cannot comment on their durability (YET) I really like the look and feel of them so far. I will do an updated post in a few months! PURCHASE TIEKS HERE!!!

Conair Compact Hairsetter, Blue Review

The idea of putting my hair in hot rollers doing my makeup and having perfect hair by doing nothing was really appealing to me. So I purchased the Conair Compact Hairsetter (Hot Rollers) from AMAZON. They were only $17.94 + tax - quite a steal. I was skeptical given the low price point. I wasn't sure if the rollers would be sufficient for my long (elbow length) thick hair. They are fantastic. My hair looks gorgeous after I set them with these hot rollers and the price was right.

Comes with:
20 rollers (8 small, 6 medium & 6 large)
20 color-coded clips (which work great btw)

There is a light in front of the case that lights up when you plug it into the wall. In addition, the roller in the middle has a red light that turns white when the rollers are ready (takes about 10 minutes). There is not auto shut-off so please be cautious and be sure to unplug when finished. The only other advice I have is to be careful when you begin rolling them in your hair. The rods are very hot so when you reach for a roller in the back don't burn your hand on the empty rods. Some photos:

One thing I love about these is that the clips are great and there is a cute little place to put them. They have color coding so you can match the clips to the right size barrel:

I used these the other night before attending a show, and this is what it looked like (got several compliments and my friends couldn't believe I used hot rollers):

Purchase these awesome rollers HERE!

Basin White Review & Haul Cruelty Free, Paraben Free, Made in USA

I have lately been on the lookout for some bath bombs, bath salts and luxury bath products in general. Baths relieve stress so they are my best friend. A friend of mine recommended Basin White. First question I asked was "Are they cruelty free and paraben free?" YES. I was very happy to know that they do not test any of their products on animals and that all products are paraben free. Their website states: "Basin White products have no parabens, alcohol, or mineral oils and are not tested on animals. All Basin White products are made in the USA. We are committed to using the best ingredients for your skin."

My first trip to the store was a pleasant experience. All of the sales associates are helpful and they have sinks along the side of the store where you can try all of their products. They even use clear glass bowls and fill them with the bath milks so you can dip your hands in and feel how soft they leave the skin. A great selling technique if you ask me - don't take my word for it, i'll just show you how the products are and you can see for yourself. I saw for myself - beautiful and wonderful smelling products. I should mention there are only two stores in the USA. Las Vegas in the Venetian Grand Canal Shoppes and in Orlando at Disney World. They have an online shop but the shipping is ~$12. Here are some pictures of the shop. Nice clean design.

My latest haul includes:

I have also heard rave reviews about the shampoo and conditioning bars although I have never tried them before. Here are some photos. I imagine that they would be great for traveling:

PRICES & PRODUCT REVIEWS:
1. $30.00 Almond Coconut Milk Bath: By far the most gorgeous scent I have ever smelled. Makes a lovely milk bath that leaves your skin so silky smooth. HIGHLY recommend. Packaging is high quality (glass jar).
2. $35.00 Satsuma Shea Salt Scrub: If you have any sort of dryness or dead skin, I would give this a try. I was really skeptical but once I tried it in the store on my hands I was sold. It smells citrusy and amazing. I imagine it will last me a year or so to finish the entire jar. Packaging is also a nice glass (feels luxurious and high quality).
3. $20.00 for 7 bath bombs. I got: almond coconut, oatmeal honey, japanese cherry blossom and several others but I do not remember the names. Smell them for yourself if you have a chance. Or else, just buy some they are fantastic.
**UPDATE ON THE BATH BOMBS: The almond coconut smells amazing but it leaves huge gobs of coconut oil in the tub (do not recommend that one!); my favorites are: the blue one (turns the tub a gorgeous deep blue and smells really fresh) and the OATMEAL HONEY WAS AMAZING! If you can only buy one - get the Oatmeal Honey!