[CLOSED] Urban Decay x Sugar for Spike Giveaway

Hello! For this post, I present you guys something new and exciting-- a giveaway!! Well, it's not exactly my giveaway per se, but I've teamed up with Sugar For Spike to spread the word about this! 

Sugar For Spike is a new Singapore-based online store. For their launch, they are giving away $100 worth of Urban Decay vouchers each to five (5) lucky winners! 

Itching to join? Head to the bottom of this post and click on the giveaway photo.

But before that, you'll find my favorites shots from their first lookbook! (Oh how I'd like to have a photoshoot like this haha!) A promising store, if you'd ask me.

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Sugar For Spike is pleased to announce the release of its debut collection editorial lookbook.

The inspiration behind the lookbook comes from two friends, looking for an escape from the perfectionism and commercialism of their city, where they stumble into a “secret” underground hangout to have a little carefree fun. 

Dancing and twirling throughout the night, and forgetting whom they are and what the world deems as appropriate behaviour, they end up discovering that the liberation from the night out will be one of the memories they will treasure about their youth. 

The collection is slated to release at select retailers and online at sugarforspike.com on 7^th August 2014. The line is also available for pre-order now, with free international shipping. Closing date for pre-orders is 10^th July 2014.

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OR SIMPLY CLICK THIS LINK: http://launch.sugarforspike.com/?kid=3EW7J

The winners will be announced on July 11, 20:00 GMT+8.

Good luck with this contest! Spread the word and share the link!

--- EDIT Jul 12 2014 ---

Congratulations to the winners! (Grabbed from Sugar for Spike's Facebook page):

1. @styleworthwhile
2. @californycrystal
3. @lienicetta
4. @puttheradioon
5. Melissa Lee

Check your emails for a message from them regarding your prize. Spend well!

--- END EDIT ---

x Erika Rosales

The Mid-Year Instagram Recap / Liebster Blog Award

Hullo!!! It's already June 14, and that means: we're just about halfway through 2014! Unbelievable, isn't it? So did you guys have any resolutions when you welcomed the new year? How've you guys been accomplishing them?

I'm not exactly the kind that makes it a point to set goals at the beginning of every year. But this year was different, for instead of the usual zero, I actually ended up with quite a lot! One is with regards to my photographic skills. For 2014, I decided to work on my picture-taking chops by trying to be more "artsy-fartsy". I also made it a point to post more OOTDs! (That's the part where this blog comes in, actually)

I don't frequently post on my Instagram profile, but I hope that the ones that I've been posting lately show that I'm doing well on my new year's resolutions. I may be biased when I say that I think I am doing a great job so far, so here's recap of all the photos I've taken since the beginning of 2014! You guys be the judge and let me know what you think!

From left to right, top to bottom: (1) New Year's day outfit, complete with polka-dot shorts haha! (2) Make-your-own pizza at Project Pie (3) Raided mom's closet for this outfit (4) Feeling tough (5) Sneak-peek of my blog before I launched it! (6) Went on my first ever fun run ever! (7) Summer festival-esque outfit (8) Wandering Chinatown (9) Black and white party OOTN with my Lanvin x H&M skirt (10) Sick-day dressing (11) Spring dressing AKA first blog post ever! (12) Photoshoot for a summer party (13) Elsa-inspired getup for a debut (14) Throwback to my high school graduation ball (15) Texture and print (16) Sweets from The Box (17) Obligatory mirror selfie at the gym after Strength and Conditioning (18) First time wearing a midi skirt (19-22) Albay adventures (23-24) #TeaForThoughtByErika (25-31) Snaps from Seoul (32) #RamenRavesByErika (33) Korean throwback (34) At the Lee PhFW show (35) Another ramen rave (36) First time wearing a mullet skirt ever (37) Make your own Magnum ice cream (38) Ramen rave, again (39) Lace and denim kind of day

So that's my midyear insta-recap! Do you guys have any favorites among all the photos? Do let me know!

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In other news, I actually got nominated for the Liebster Blog Award back in April! Huge thanks to the lovely An-Katrien of Teacups & Dresses for this! I haven't gotten around to posting about it until now though. In case you guys aren't aware of what LBA actually is, it's actually a sweet thing given to starting out bloggers (normally those with less than 200 followers). So anyway, here are the rules:

1. If you are tagged/nominated, you have to post 11 facts about yourself.
2. Answer the 11 questions the tagger has given you & make 11 questions for the people you are going to tag
3. Tag 11 more starting bloggers.
4. Tell the people you tagged that you did.
5. No tagging back.

So anyway, here goes! I'm pretty random so excuse the trivia and questions haha!

11 THINGS ABOUT ME

1. I am an only child.
2. I love houndstooth.
3. I stand at roughly 5'1" only. (I know, I'm short creys)
4. I am currently on my third year as a university student.
5. I have an irrational love for the Windy City. Yes, I love Chicago!
6. I took ballet lessons when I was really young, but eventually stopped after I got into a related accident that ended up with me in an arm cast.
7. I am fond of Greek mythology.
8. My favorite ice cream flavor is strawberry.
9. I don't eat squid.
10. I have a bit of Japanese blood (my great-grandfather from my father's side was pure Japanese).
11. I have this crazy dream of wanting to dye my hair blue!

11 QUESTIONS FROM AN-KATRIEN

1. What is your dream vacation?

My dream vacation would be a trip to Europe!! The continent boasts a lot of wonderful places, but if I had to be more specific, I'd like to go to France or UK the most.

2. What do you love so much about blogging?

The thing that I love the most about blogging would be that by doing it, I get to be many things all at the same time. In my own way, I'm like an author-- I get to write stories about myself and other things; a stylist-- to myself, specifically; a model (lol)-- of the stuff that I wear. Though I haven't exactly made a name for myself, I hope that I can add being inspirational on that list! (One can dream, right?)

3. What's your favorite designer bag?

I don't own for myself, but I've been longing for a Chanel 2.55 for so long, so I'll go with Chanel. I think Prada is nice too by the way. 

4. What's your favorite snack?

Oohh this is a tough one! Do fruits and yogurt count?

5. Which color is your favorite one for summertime?

I have to say blue is my favorite color of all time. But for summertime, I'll probably go with its pastel shade. Or maybe its lovechild with green, teal.  If it counts, I also think white is perfect for summer!

6. What do you do next to blogging?

Well blogging isn't the main thing I do in the first place. I'm a student above all else, really. So yeah, I engage in extra-curricular activities from time to time, but that's pretty much all I do lol.

7. What do you prefer: dresses/skirts or jeans/pants?

Practicality aside, I choose the former! I think one can never have enough dresses or skirts. I have more jeans in my closet though haha!

8.Name the 3 most important things you really can't miss in your life

Not sure how serious I should be in answering this one, but here goes: (1) water (2) my senses; and (3) my sanity.

9. What's your favorite movie?

I don't really have a favorite movie. But I guess I can share with you guys the latest movie I watched that I really loved, and that's X-Men: Days of Future Past (okay, I just watched How to Train Your Dragon too and it's just so adorable!!!)! I'd also like to share this one movie that holds a special place in my heart because it stars one of my favorite actors, Chris Colfer (who also wrote the movie!)-- Struck by Lightning.

10. What's your favorite low budget brand/store?

I guess this can be pretty subjective, but I'd go with Forever 21. It's prices are relatively lower compared to other brands. And they offer a lot of choices of items!

11. With which designer would you want to collaborate?

Oh  my! This one's hard. I think I'd go with Donatella Versace! Seeing as I have some dreams of becoming a fashion designer too, that would totally be a dream come true if it did at all.

MY 11 NOMINEES

1. Herringbone Heroine by Brianna
2. Infinite Dreams by Chrissean Mae
3. Steal the Style by Lou
4. Dimitri's Code by Enrique
5. My Life Would Suck Without Fashion by Livia
6. Five Feet of Awesome by Angela
7. The Faceless Style by Louise
8. Floral Constellation by Christel
9. Coco Colo by Coco
10. Blossoming Wallflower by Sarah
11. SapeToiBien by Cecile

*I know not all of you guys have below 200 followers but I'd like to know about you all still!

11 QUESTIONS FOR MY NOMINEES

1. What is the most expensive item of clothing (clothes, shoes, accessories, etc.) that you own?
2. What is your biggest fear?
3. Name a celebrity that you have a crush on.
4. If you were to be a part of any TV show, which one would it be and who would you be (can be an original or actual character)?
5. What is your favorite part of the day?
6. What superpower would you like to have?
7. Which season (winter, spring, summer, fall) do you love the most and why?
8. If you were to wake up as someone else and be that person for a day, who would you want to be?
9. What song is stuck in your head right now?
10. What is one trend that you would never/never did follow?
11. Which decade/era do you like the most and why?

To my beloved nominees (the word "liebster" actually means "beloved" in German!), do let me know once you've posted about this. I'd love to know your answers and get to know more about you! x

PS: It would be great if you used the same button that I'm using for the LBA! I made it myself so I could put it on my website. I'd love to see it on yours too!

x Erika Rosales

Casually Chillin'

Just a quick outfit post here to let you guys know that I'm still alive! (Though it sure might have been the opposite even though I'm just barely two weeks in as a third-year college student-- whoa, time flies by so fast!!)

When the rain falls, it seems to throw a blanket of laziness on people too, doesn't it? That's pretty much what I felt last Saturday, when it was pouring in the afternoon. I usually plan my weekend outfits ahead, but the weather was too gloomy for my original idea. Actually, my goal for that day really was to wear my new Birks (from my Seoul haul) for the first time. So I took it from there, and eventually ended up with this. I have a tendency to go on extremes when it comes to what I wear-- either I really dress up, or really dress down. Well, lazy dressing usually equates to slouchy clothing in my head. In fact, I was so lazy that I just decided to wear the cardigan that I also wore the previous day. (That's not really a fashion no-no, is it? I see it as a cover-up only anyway.)

Nothing much has happened during the past days, except from the fact that, for tonight, I get to take a breather from the intense classes. Also, I've created a Tumblr account! I've missed writing (not this kind of writing, but the creative kind), so that's where I'll be dumping my poetic attempts. Aside from that, you'll actually find out a lot about me just by looking at my posts there! I'm a bit of a fangirl myself, so that side of mine will be reflected there a lot. There's not much there yet though because I just started out. But feel free to follow me!

Also, I just watched Maleficent today. To be honest, the storyline seemed a bit anticlimactic to me. But being the stylephile that I am, I can't help but marvel at Ms. Angelina Jolie's costumes in the movie!! Especially that. catsuit. Talk about fierce!!

And because I'm incredibly smooth with transitions, here's a sidenote on the photos: Used Adobe Lightroom for the first-time in processing these photos! I used to use Photoshop, but man, Lr is so much easier and faster!! You might notice that I've also added watermarks on the photos. I discovered that Lr can do that automatically so I decided to give it a shot!

Cardigan: Aeropostale || Tank top: Uniqlo || Shorts & necklace: Forever 21

Midi rings: Aldo Accessories || Watch: Casio

Sandals: Birkenstock (Rio style) || Nails: L'Oreal (Club Prive color)

Can I also share how proud I am of actually maintaining my manicure properly for more than a week??? I love the shade of my nail polish! (It's brighter in reality.) I bought it for myself, so it's about time that I used it again. 

Before I wrap this post up, I'd like to share some realizations I had while looking at these photos: (1) I clearly do not know how to model from H2T; I need tips from Tyra lol. (2) Perhaps I need to inject more color into my wardrobe???

Anyway, so that's it for this post! Please be sweethearts and leave some comments below, would love to hear from you guys! Will try to get back to y'all as soon as I can. Also, follow me on GFC, Bloglovin, Instagram and Lookbook!

x Erika Rosales

PS: Thinking of giving my blog a revamp sometime! Also, I still have to post about the Lee PhFW show haha! Please bear with me and my backlogs in the future.

Seoul Haul

Annyeong haseyo! (Did I get that right? I hope I did!) How've you guys been?? Well, I just went back to school last week. It's overwhelming to be swamped with information and work right on the first day, but that's life for me. Normally, the first few days would still be chill, but that's not in my case (which is why I barely managed to sneak in this post) In line with that, I would like to say that I might be posting less frequently from now on. But I'm definitely not ditching this blog! I'm totally sticking with this one now (not like my previous failed attempts). Wish me luck though haha!

Anyway, I'll be telling you guys about the stuff I got while I was in Seoul! I've definitely looked forward to writing this post because (1) the title rhymes, and (2) I'm just really happy with my purchases. I've separated them in categories for this entry. Aside from pictures, you'll also find where I got them and for how much!

Feel free to read my photodiary (in two parts, part 1 & part 2) to get better ideas on where I got these things exactly!

Note: 1 Korean Won (W) = approximately .0001 US Dollars or .05 Philippine Pesos

*Purposely filled my nails with paint using Photoshop bc terrible manicure*

CLOTHING

Embossed top (H&M Noon Square) - W25,000
(Noon Square is a mall in Myeongdong, across Lotte Young Plaza!)

 Denim shortalls (H&M Noon Square) - W39,000

(Shortalls, dungaree shorts, whatever you call them-- I'm so glad I finally got myself one!!)

Striped sweater dress (WHO.A.U Myeongdong) - W19,900

If you go to WHO.A.U in Myeongdong, do check out the 4th floor! You'll find the "Orange Outlet" there, where all the marked-down items are!

Printed dress (Edae) - W10,000

(In case you've forgotten, Edae is the area of Ewha Women's University)

 

Fluted skirt (Edae) - W5,000

I've had my eyes set for a white skirt/skort ever since! So glad I found this one (especially for a cheap price). Some stores sold this in other colors, and some also sold it at a more expensive price (like W25,000). It really was just a matter of finding the perfect piece at the perfect place!

Trench coat (Edae) - W30,000

This outerwear is definitely all the hype in Korea! It was originally selling at W39,000, but my mom managed to pull the price down! It's made of a light material which makes it still quite appropriate to be worn here in the Philippines. Also, it's material is water-resistant; talk about fashion and function! (You can see me trying it on for fun here)

BAGS

Crossbody bag (Edae) - W10,000

A white bag, finally! I'm a sucker for satchels and other long-strap bags. Bought this at a bag store that sells everything for W10,000! There are a lot of them in the area, so you won't have a problem finding one.

Schoolbag (Edae) - W10,000

Square-shaped backpacks are definitely trending in Korea. I'm now using this in school! It's very spacey, so it can fit all my books. Unfortunately, it doesn't have pockets inside its main compartment. But it's cool nonetheless! Got this too from the same store as the other bag.

SHOES

Birkenstock Rio sandals (Sperry Top-Sider Myeongdong) - W85,000

Birks aren't just popular in Korea, but also all over the world! It seems to have made its comeback in the fashion world. It's so in that it was hard for me to find the perfectly-sized pair! The other stores I went to were more or less out-of-stock.

By the way, some stores in Korea offer tax refund for tourists! Sperry is one of them. Just keep your eyes peeled for signs. We got W5,000 back when we presented our receipt at the airport! So these Birks come off now as W80,000, technically. Isn't that great?!

New Balance 501 (Lotte Department Store Jamsil) - W89,000

You guys have no idea how I've been dying to have red sneakers!! Rubber shoes are definitely the predominant footwear of choice of Koreans. You'd often see them walking in NBs, Nikes or this other brand with a curly W-like logo (forgot the brand-- Prospect, I think?). This applies to men and women of all ages, no kidding! I've also wanted to own a pair of New Balance shoes ever since the sneaker trend kicked in. So you can just imagine how happy I was to find this pair! Haven't seen anything similar in any other store. (It has hot pink details too, btw!)

MAKEUP

Too Cool for School Dinoplatz Cinema City/CC Concealer (Too Cool for School Myeongdong) - W25,000

Of course I wasn't going to leave Seoul without hoarding makeup!! I first heard of TCFS when they came to the Philippines; I was amazed with their products because they all came off as witty and artsy and all that. But I figured their products would be cheaper in Korea, so I waited until we finally got there.

I've been using BB (Blemish Balm) cream on my face, but I'm running out on my stock soon Therefore, I decided to buy from TCFS! I ended up getting CC (Color Correction) cream instead though. I figured CC cream would suit me better. This is because my face tends to get oily and dewy (although the shiny face is a makeup trend as of the moment) throughout the day. Also, my BB cream doesn't exactly cover up my blemishes, unless I pile on unnatural layers.

So this is why this Dinoplatz CC is perfect! It's a 2-in-1 wonder. Aside from its liquid CC cream, it also comes with a concealer stick! The concealer can double as a contourer, too. And why, it comes in a very cute box too!

Etude House Drawing eyebrow in shade 03

& Drawing Show brush liner (Etude House Itaewon)

My eyebrows (or the slight lack thereof) are terrible, like I said before. I've been using Etude House for my eyebrows (their Easy Brow pencil), but now I decided to try their chisel-tip one. As for the eyeliner, I always like using the brush-type for my upper eyelid.

3 Concept Eyes Powdery Lip & Cheek in Tibet Orange (Style Nanda Lotte Young Plaza Myeongdong) - W16,000

This one's at a tie with my TCFS CC cream as "favorite makeup purchase". Been wanting to own something from 3CE! I've been partial to cream blushes over powder and tint, really. That being said, I knew I had to get their Powdery Lip & Cheek, in orange! Can't wait to use it hihi.

FOOD

Oreo wafers (Lotte Mart Cheongyangni)

Yup, totally got this one. One thing about me is: it's actually my self-imposed life mission to try every variant of Oreo existing!

Market O Real Brownies (Lotte Mart Cheongyangni)

Saw this in pretty much every convenience store, so I was curious. Inside is 1 individually-wrapped brownie bars. I've tried it, and it's just okay.

MISCELLANEOUS

7 pairs of socks (Namdaemun market) - W10,000

Swooning over these!! You guys should've seen me all starry-eyed over all the designs. I made sure to choose those that had unique/pretty "hem" designs because after all, they're the ones that'll be peeking out of my shoes. 7 for 10,000 (W1,500 each, but on a bundle promo) seemed like a good deal to me at that time, but when I went to Edae, they were selling at W1,000 per pair aww!

Snowglobe (Insadong)
I collect mini snowglobes from different places I've been too :) (Sungnyemun is Namdaemun, by the way! *I Googled it hehe*)

BONUS - Freebies!!!!!!111!
So the lovely people from Too Cool for School and Etude House sneaked these goodies in the bags! Honestly, I don't know what at least half of them do lol. But that baby CC cream aaaa!!

So those were the stuff I brought home from Seoul! I definitely had fun shopping, if you can't tell. To be honest, the prices are quite high. It also doesn't help that the amounts are tailed by many 0s. But hey, it's not every time that I get to go there, so (like they say) yolo! I shall abstain from unnecessary spending for a few months (or at least try to, lol).

Thanks for reading this post!! Feel free to leave a comment below; I'm quite busy with school as of the moment, but I'll make sure to respond as soon as I can! xx

x Erika Rosales

PS: I went to Lee's 125th Anniversary Fashion Show at Philippine Fashion Week! That's one post that I'll be putting up soon, so do watch out!