Win Free Passes to BU9xSmart on June 6

BLOGGERS UNITED PARTNERS WITH SMART PREPAID FOR #BU9xSMART

Connecting with your favorite bloggers is easier with Bloggers United and Smart!

Be always in and live all out this June 6, Saturday, at the most anticipated bloggers event of the year: BLOGGERS UNITED 9, which will be held in Whitespace, Makati! Oh wow! How quick time flies! Haha. I can't believe that Bloggers United is already on its 9th installment! YAY! Congrats BU Bloggers and Organizers!

Are you ready to SHOP? :) Join your favorite fashion bloggers and online celebrities as they, again, hold their traditional get-together. Shop their closets and bond with them from 10am until 9pm! Mark your calendars and get ready to Live More on a full-day of activities, games, shopping, and meet-and-greet as we partner with the #1 telecommunications company in the Philippines, Smart Communications.

As a community of writers and readers, we are supporting DiksyonaryoAtbp Inc. as our charity partner this installment. We are all for education and this is our way of raising social awareness and social responsibility. This non-profit organization's mission is to bring dictionaries to every remote public elementary school and indigenous community nationwide, raising literacy one child at a time.

Tickets will be available at P100 on the event date, or catch the many free passes contests from Bloggers United accounts, the BU Bloggers, and our event sponsors. 

Last BU8, I had fun being part of the BU Angels Team (yes that's us in the reg, production, etc). I had lots of fun and of course was able to do some shopping! (Duh.. BU is one of the best places to get awesome stuff at an affordable price!) 

This is what I got last year.. a pink tote bag that I  bought from Christine Liwag! Super useful yung bag nung summer.. hehe. I can't wait to see what other awesome stuff our favorite BU Bloggers are selling! Excited ka na ba? :)

AND this BU9, I'm back again as part of the BU ANGELS Team! Yay! I hope to see you all there again.. and yes, I'll be there greeting all of you at the gate. Welcoming committee este... sa REG as usual. hehe. Oh and because of that, I've got some TICKETS to BU9xSMART to give away! 

I'm giving away 5 PAIRS of tickets to BU9xSMART! 
To join, here's how:

1. Follow me on twitter and instagram. 

2. Tweet this: Join @kai_sensei's giveaway to win passes for #BU9xSmart on June 6! http://www.kaisensei.net/2015/06/get-ready-for-bu9-with-smart-prepaid.html

2. Comment below with your name, twitter and ig username and email so that if you win, I can contact you. 

Contest ends on Thursday, June 4 and I will be choosing the winners and announcing them on that day. :) Good luck and see you there!

For more information and updates, follow:

Bloggers United

F: https://www.facebook.com/bloggersunitedph

T: @bloggers_united

I: @bloggersunitedph

Official Hashtag: #BU9xSMART

Smart Communications:

F: https://www.facebook.com/SmartCommunications

T: @smartcares

I: @smartcares

Official Hashtags:

#BU9xSMART

#SMARTAlwaysIn

SPONSORS

Co-Presenters

OLX.ph

iflix.com

TheShop.ph

Major Sponsors

YSA Skin & Body Experts

Meister Watches

Glutamax

Nice Day Coffee

Minor Sponsors

Fly Shades

Media Sponsors

MEGAstyle.ph

MEGstreetwear.ph

When In Manila

MadHouseMNL

FemaleNetwork.com

Little White Box - Save My Bag is now open in SM Makati!

Hey dears! Have you heard? Little White Box has already opened its first store in SM Makati! I was pretty happy that I got invited to the "opening" of this nifty chic little store, the first of its kind in the Philippines. The Little White Box is actually a store within a store, conceptualized to house international brands not found elsewhere in the country. These brands have different varieties and categories – all under the accessories line. From colorful eyewear to cheeky yet functional bags, Little White Box has a broad range of stylish surprises in store that customers can keep coming back for.It's situated at the 2nd Floor, East Wing of the SM Store. 

The Little White Box at SM Makati is now open!

The design of architect and artist Carlo Calma served as the inspiration for the store’s overall look and feel – modern and minimal, allowing the merchandise to be displayed and highlighted in a variety of interesting ways.  His fresh approach at visual merchandising treats products as elements of art. Aptly so, as first to be featured in Little White Box is the Italian brand Save My Bag, with its wide spectrum of colors in various styles.

 

Stefano Agazzi and Valentina Azzia, a young couple from Bergamo, Italy, founded the brand in 2013. Made of poly-lycra, a material lighter and more durable than neoprene, Save My Bag was conceptualized as a stylish protection for luxury designer bags. Celebrities like Patricia Field have recognized its style potential and began to use it as a regular bag. Oprah herself even remarked that they should be called “Save My Back,” due to the lightness of the material.

I personally was able to check out some of these bags and was amazed indeed by the lightness of the material. I think you can also have it washed in the washing machine or hand wash it as long as you use a cold wash. I love also how there are all sorts of sizes.. for me I'm a big fan of big bags (haha yes coz I got a big.. HEART! nyeh! hehe) so there's an option of a big travel bag which I think is pretty cool.

 

A lot really liked this cool comics design bag!

The event was attended by quite a number of people! They also had a lil fashion show to display all the Save My Bag items available. Here are some of the photos during the event. 

 

 

Save My Bag is available at Little White Box, now open at SM Makati. New locations are opening soon in SM Megamall and SM Aura. With new Save My Bag collections and other product ranges to be introduced in the coming months, good surprises await every one inside the Little White Box.

Bright, colorful, and lightweight bags - Save My Bag is currently available at Little White Box!

Little White Box is located at the second level of SM Makati. 

Follow @littlewhiteboxph and hashtag #littlewhiteboxph on Instagram for more updates.

Join the TOMS WithOutShoes Campaign!

Hey Coffeeholics! Have you ever tried going to school barefoot? Without any shoes? (if not.. try to imagine na lang.. hehe) Well I tell you, I only tried to walk without shoes in the house and it can end up being painful especially if you accidentally step on something sharp! And that's just the basic benefit of shoes. Do you know that SHOES CAN INCREASE ACCESS TO EDUCATION? Providing children with school uniform, which often includes shoes, can increase school attendance by up to 62% (Source: Evans, 2009). And definitely, there are a lot of children who are in need.

And you know what? We (yes that's YOU and ME!) can do something about it! All you have to do is take a photo of your bare feet, post it on instagram with the hashtag #withoutshoes before May 21. Each photo = 1 pair of shoes that will go to a child in need! How cool is that? 

 

Let's join TOMS in this campaign! I already did! :) It's one photo per person on instagram = 1 pair of shoes. It will only take a small amount of time to do this.. promise! And in that one snapshot..  a child will be blessed! This summer let's not just enjoy our vacation but also spread happiness to others. I already posted mine! hehe.. so if you haven't yet.. please do! Oh and if you go to http://www.toms.com/one-day-without-shoes on May 21, you will find out how many shoes was "raised" :) Don't miss out!

Proactiv Renewing Cleanser Product Review

Having beautiful, clear, and acne free skin is a wish any girl would have. Well, I've been wishing for that ever since I hit my teens. Now that I'm in my early 30's (huhu yes birthday coming up in several days from now... :P) I had kind of hoped that I will eventually get over the acne dilemma. Ever since last year, I learned so much from Proactiv and realized that the acne doesn't all go away. BUT you can control it with the help of Proactiv. So I was pretty much excited that I was able to personally try out and test their amazing product -- the Proactiv Renewing Cleanser! 

So if you haven't heard about Proactiv yet, well THIS is supposed to be the answer to your acne woes! The Proactiv Renewing Cleanser is an oil free, soap free medicated formula contains advanced micro crystal benzoyl peroxide in combination with mild cleanser that lightly washes the skin. Tiny beads gently exfoliate dead cells and impurities so they can’t clog pores. The benzoyl peroxide penetrates the pores fast while being gentle to the skin. It attacks, kill acne-causing bacteria and reduce the number of acne pimples.

Key Ingredients

Benzoyl Peroxide This is the key anti bacterial agent to fight  acne. The 2.5% concentration is just effective as 10% solutions in controlling the majority of acne cases and much gentler to your skin. This low concentration gives it the acne-fighting benefit of even higher concentrations, but not the side-effects!

Other Ingredients Include

• Sodium Hyaluronate. This mucopolysaccharides act as humectant to draw moisture to skin. Mucopolysaccharides are gel like substances surrounding the collagen and elastin in the dermis layer of the skin. 
• Polyethylene. These small round beads have no sharp edges that can tear and scratch the skin while they gently remove old, dead cells. 
• Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract. A botanical extract known for its soothing properties.

  

I couldn't wait to try out the Proactiv Renewing Cleanser. Of course before anything else, you must know how to use it. Here are the directions.  

1. Use morning and night. Yes like any cleanser, you can use it twice a day. So clean face before you sleep and clean face before you face a brand new day. :)

2. Now as part of my routine, I normally remove my makeup first before using a cleanser. :) Now if you don't use makeup or if you are going to wash your face in the morning, you can skip this step. 

 

I just came from a long day of work and commute. So I've got my makeup on on the LEFT photo there. Yes, it kinda smeared.. coz of the oiliness of my face and well commuting in the heat of the afternoon didn't help either, So the RIGHT photo is after I had used my makeup remover. On the surface it does look a bit clean (less shine on my face) but you and I know that that's not the complete story. It still needs a thorough cleaning so that acne will not populate my face. hehe. 

3. Then apply a small (dime-sized) amount to damp skin and gently massage for 1 to 2 minutes.

So basically that's how much I use on my face. Yes it doesn't look a lot but I tell you, it packs a punch! I mean, it's definite enough for it to make it's magic on my face. While applying the product to your face, DO NOT EXPECT FOAM OR BUBBLES. Yes, don't look for it coz it's not gonna happen. The Proactiv Renewal Cleanser doesn't work like that. And later on this post, I will explain why that's a good thing. 

Here's a tip someone taught me on how to wash my face -- don't use your point fingers. When you wash your face, be GENTLE. And you can achieve that gentle washing by using your last three fingers. Di masyadong madiin ang dating pag ganun. Then what I do is just use upward circular strokes while massaging the Proactiv Renewal Cleanser on my face. This kind of motion helps maintain the firmness of your face. Downward direction will only help in the sagging of your cheeks.. now we don't want that to happen diba? :)

After a minute of massaging, you can definitely feel your face reacting the product. Don't be alarmed. In my case, I could feel a slight tightening on my face. I figured that means.. it's working. YAY!

4. Then of course, rinse thoroughly with warm water. 

5. And finally, pat dry

**Please take note that if bothersome dryness or peeling occurs, reduce application to once a day or every other day. And of course, if going outside use a sunscreen

For me, one of the immediate results that I can sense from the Proactiv Renewal Cleanser is my amazingly super smooth face. YES! I swear my face becomes softer and smoother as compared before any other face cleansing product that I've used. I've never felt this level of smoothness to my face IMMEDIATELY after the cleansing. Kaya pala medyo rough or magaspang yung face ko before is because of dead skin cells. When I look at the mirror, I feel it lightened. (hehe or feeling magaan ang face kasi no more oil.. no more dead skin cells). Now it's all clear!

Well it looks like that indeed, Proactiv Renewing Cleanser is superior than regular cleanser or soap. While it may seem counter intuitive, harsh scrubbing does not unclog your pores any better than 

gentle cleansing, and may actually worsen your acne. That's why ang advise ko, gentle upward circular strokes! Cleansing and scrubbing only reduce surface oils and dean skin cells. Many people use harsh products, laden with alcohol and foamy surfactants (detergents) somehow wash the acne off their skin. However, these actions produce irritation and worsen acne. Now with Proactiv Rewnewing Cleanser, it is possible to gently unplug pores with fine polyethylene beads that gently relieve impacted pores without irritation

Look Ma, no pimples! hehe. Yep, the dark spots are just dark or red spots of where I used to have pimples. As of three days of using, no pimples have surfaced. Hopefully, this will be the good report I will be sharing as I continue using the product. 

One thing that I really appreciate about the Proactiv Renewing Cleanser is that it does not contain any surfactants that can harsh the skin. Proactiv Renewing Cleanser is formulated without the harsh detergents known as surfactants found in many other cleansers. Surfactants, which are responsible for a sudsy foam and lather, strip skin of its essential oils. As a result, the skin barrier becomes damaged and vulnerable to irritation and impaction. That's why when you use the cleanser, you won't see any suds or foam. While massaging it gently on your face, you will feel tiny tiny beads (the Polyethylene) rolling on the surface of your skin. It's not harsh but gentle. If you have heavy acne, then that means less irritation to your skin. :)

So to sum it up, what is the role of Renewing Cleanser in Proactiv Combination Therapy? The Renewing Cleanser help removes dead skin cells and impurities which can clog the pore. The advanced microcrystal benzoyl peroxide in the Proactiv® 3-Step System kill acne-causing bacteria while the glycolic acid and other exfoliants reduce excess oils and dead skin cells. If this just Step 1 to an acne free skin, imagine how much more effective the whole Proactiv Combination Therapy will be to you. I've been using the cleanser for several days already and can feel the results. So far no pimples have surfaced. YAY! I've tried it.. and loved it! I really really recommend this to you if you have acne. Hope you will also feel and enjoy an acne free summer (yes yung weather na natin ay parang summer na! hehe). 

The Proactiv Renewing Cleanser is included in the Proactiv Solution 30-day and 60-day kits. 

Proactiv Solution kits are available at: 

a. Proactiv Online Shopping: http://my.proactiv.com.ph 

b. Proactiv Delivery Door–to-Door Hotlines:

c. Proactiv Mall Kiosks

d. Watson and SM Department Stores (Beauty Section) nationwide

Metro Manila Landline: (02) 729-2222

Globe Provincial: 1-800-8-729-8888

PLDT Provincial: 1-800-10-889-4444

Mobile Number: 0917-801-888

Glorietta, Ground Floor

Trinoma, 2nd Floor

Nicole Scherzinger Sizzles as Proactiv's New Endorser

Hey coffeeholics! Guess whose Proactive's brand new endorser? Well who else but the very lovely Nicole Scherzinger! And well who hasn't heard of Nicole Scherzinger? Her fabulous face and equally wonderful voice is definitely memorable especially when we all found out that she's one of our very own kababayan. Nicole is actually of Filipino/Hawaiian/Russian descent and her charisma knows no bounds. Her international sex appeal needs no translation. Bet you didn't know that her rise to fame and success wasn't always smooth and easy. She was raised in a modest household by her mom and German-American stepfather, her humble upbringing didn’t deter her from pursuing her burning ambition to become a singer. She exploded into the pop scene as the lead singer of the Pussycat Doll. I was pretty impressed with her awesome vocals and she just exuded this aura of exotic beauty and confidence. One of my favorite songs that she has rendered as part of the Pussycat Dolls was Jai Ho. Absolutely loved her vocals there! Then she embarked on a solo career as a recording artist, selling a total of 60 million records. She also has film experience, won Season 10 of Dancing with the Stars and was a judge at the UK and US editions of The X Factor.


Her Proactiv Story

So how did Nicole got to know about Proactiv? It all started with one of her friends in her band. She must indeed be a good friend because we all know that even if someone has radiant, glowing skin like Nicole, you must still work hard to maintain it that way. Her friend had really bad breakouts and blemishes that really scarred her skin. But then her friend discovered Proactiv and blossomed.

“I feel like in my line of work, I’m always under the microscope. It’s quite traumatic when you have an acne breakout and blemishes because you wake up and you’re hoping that your face is clear,” she shares. Fortunately for Nicole, she found a beauty ally, which allows her to emphasize her personal philosophy that sexiness starts from having clear, blemish-free skin. In no time, she grew to be a Proactiv lover as well.

“They say that the eyes are the windows to our souls, right? But when you have an acne breakout, nobody’s looking at your eyes. They’re looking at your appearance. But when you get clear, they can see you for who you really are,” Nicole says. “With Proactiv, I’m empowered now. I can hold my head up higher. I can smile bigger. And I can put the energy on other people.”

Why Nicole chooses Proactiv over other acne medication

 
Nicole chose Proactiv because of the benzoyl peroxide formulation found  in Proactiv’s 3-Step System. It works safely and more effectively than other products claiming to have benzoyl peroxide in the market. The Proactiv Combination Therapy acne management system combines finely-milled, prescription-grade benzoyl peroxide with sulfur and soothing botanicals like allantoin, panthenol, aloe and chamomile. Together these ingredients gently exfoliate your skin, unplug your pores, attack acne-causing bacteria and soothe inflammation.

Here is what Nicole Scherzinger, certified beauty icon, wants you to know about Proactiv:

“What would I say to somebody who has gone through breakouts and blemishes? That there’s hope. That you can take control. That you can do it. That you can change. Proactiv gives you clear skin. It gives you clarity of mind and self and spirit. I would say that you can take charge of your life again. You can be empowered. You can be who you are meant to be.”

So my dears, if you have been lamenting about all those breakouts and blemishes, Nicole herself said it. There is HOPE. :) You too can have clear beautiful skin. All you have to do to get your hands on Proactiv Solutions is to drop by the nearest Watsons and SM Department Stores (Beauty Section). Or better yet, you can order online and have it delivered to you! Just click this link. Have a great weekend!