Reviews and Other Stuff

Month: July 2017

Kevin Kwan’s “Crazy Rich Asians” Book Review

“I have no idea who these people are. But I can tell you one thing— these people are richer than God” – Peik Lin, character from Crazy Rich Asians.

 

Kevin Kwan’s Crazy Rich Asians Book

 

Here’s a bold satirical book that will surely crack you up. This book is purely entertaining and fun to read. It’s a romantic comedy that will not only make you chuckle but it will also touch your heart, especially towards the end of the book. It’s an interesting fast read with a no-nonsense type of writing. Each character is very well developed, so much so that even if you’re not rich, filthy rich or crazy rich, you will still find this book to be a great summer read.

 

I found out about this book when I read an article that talked about an upcoming romantic comedy film with an all-Asian cast. I thought, now that’s gonna be interesting, and of course, the upcoming film is entitled and based on this Crazy Rich Asians book by Kevin Kwan.

 

In the first few pages of the novel, you’ll find a family tree of The Young Family, The T’sien and The Shang Clan. It’s a great reference as to who the characters are, where they came from, and in which family they belong. You will find yourself constantly coming back to this for reference while reading the book. This means to show that there’s a lot of characters involved. But there’s a few main ones that are the main focus of the story. Don’t worry, I won’t be spoiling the entire story here, but I’ll give you a glimpse of what the story is all about.

 

Kevin Kwan’s "Crazy Rich Asians" Book Review

 

Rachel Chu is a Chinese-born American and an NYU Economics Professor living in NYC with her boyfriend Nick Young who hails from Singapore and is also a History Professor at NYU. Nick’s best friend Collin, is getting married in Singapore and Nick is invited, so is Rachel. She’s never been there and she has no idea about Nick’s family history nor his complete background. Meanwhile, Astrid, Nick’s cousin living in Singapore is a jet-setting lady with troubles of her own. She warns Nick to tell Rachel about who and what their family really is. Also, Eleanor is Nick’s mom who loves him dearly and only wants the best for him. She’s eager to meet her son when he arrives in Singapore but changed her mind when she found out that he’s coming with his Chinese-American girlfriend, whom she’s never met before. Su Yi is Nick’s grandma who also loves him dearly but she has her own mind and sets of standards. Peik Lin is Rachel Chu’s former classmate and best friend from Singapore. Read how their lives will come together in one big funny mess, especially when Rachel finds out who Nick really is, his entire family and relatives’ history and background.

 

Kevin Kwan’s "Crazy Rich Asians" Book

 

This novel depicts the lifestyle of the crazy rich Asians in a larger than life way, It’ll shock you to the bones and you’ll find yourself being transported to their world while laughing at the same time. It’s a lighthearted take on the lives of the people who have too much for their own good and also a tearjerker towards the last few chapters. There’s moral lessons to learn and several insights to ponder.

 

The Crazy Rich Asians Book is a trilogy by the author Kevin Kwan. It is available in amazon.com

 

The Book 2 (China Rich Girlfriend) is also available at amazon.com as well as the Book 3 (Rich People Problems)

 

For more book reviews and sneak peeks, follow on Instagram: @reviewsandotherstuff

 

 

Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care Review

Heya Guys! You up for another lip product review? come along! The following lippies that I’m about to review were inspired by the makeup of Bella Hadid during the Grammys 2016. The moment I saw her photo I was really fascinated by the way her makeup was done. Her skin looked luminous and so did her entire makeup. Yet it wasn’t extremely luminous that it looked unnatural, it was just the right blend of a healthy glow and a moderate yet strategic way of applying makeup.

 

If you google Bella’s makeup during the 2016 Grammys, you’d see that she had a nice light smoky eye, a light contour and a nice shade of lip color to match. Her entire makeup goal was all about the glow. It wasn’t trying hard, it was just about emphasizing all the right corners and angles. I love it! But more importantly, I was dying to find out what’s the color of her lipstick. It’s nude but it’s a beautiful luminous warm and slightly brown nude.

 

Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care

 

When I found out that her makeup artist used a lot of Sephora Collection products on her, including the lips, I was like I gotta try that stuff. One of the lip products that she had on was the Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care in Iced Coffee (0.18 oz for $7) which I think was used as a gloss on her. It’s like a blend of a lip balm and oil, which is very similar to YSL Rouge Volupte Shine Oil-in-Stick (reviewed HERE), but this one comes at a much cheaper price.

 

Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care

This balm and oil blend is extremely moisturizing and shiny, just like a slick lip gloss, but it doesn’t weigh on the lips. It has no distinctive scent, and it’s pretty long wearing. It does seem to transfer everywhere as expected and the lighter shades don’t seem to have a good color payoff. They also tend to settle into the lips’ fine lines but it’s only obvious up close. It’s also very softening on the lips and the overall effect is sheer and subtle.

 

Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care 09 iced coffee swatch

 

09 Iced Coffee – This is Bella’s lip color/gloss, together with the Sephora Collection Rouge Gel Liner in 01 The Nudest. I thought this color would show on me, but it did not. I guess Bella must have a very light complexion, so this shade showed better on her like a warm brownish nude. With my pigmented lips, this looks very sheer and very nude. I’m a bit dismayed, but this is also great as a gloss, given its lightweight and slightly shimmery formula.

 

10 Fresh Berries – Bought this on a whim and this is the shade of my choice because not only that it showed a subtle shimmery berry hue on my lips, this has really good pigments and it’s long lasting. It still kinda settles into my lips’ fine lines, but I love the nice and juicy berry shade.

 

Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care swatches 09 iced coffee 10 fresh berries

Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care swatch

 

I think almost all the shades in this line are quite sheer and if you have some pigments on your lips, then the shades will be almost quite translucent on you, except probably the shade No. 10 in Fresh Berries. However, this Sephora Oil Infusion Color & Care are pretty much multi-purpose; as a lip balm/conditioner, as a lip tint, or as a lip gloss.

 

Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care review

 

Overall, these aren’t bad at all, and if you’re into the juicy/popsicle lips trend, then these are for you. Also, if you’re looking for a good alternative of the YSL Rouge Volupte Shine Oil-in-Stick at a much affordable price, then you’re looking at them.

 

The Sephora Collection Oil Infusion Color & Care is only available at Sephora in-store or Sephora.com

 

Happy Monday Guys!

 

Song of the week: Coachella, by Lana Del Rey.

 

Follow on Instagram: @reviewsandotherstuff

 

Pixi by Petra MatteLast Liquid Lip Review

Hello Guys! I went Target-ing a couple of days ago with one specific mission in mind, to take a look at some Pixi Beauty products. Guess what, there were a lot of stuff I liked and I was really confused as to which product I should buy.

 

I’ve heard a lot of great things about Pixi beauty products and judging from what I saw in Target, I felt like I didn’t wanna leave. I enjoyed gazing at the sheer amount of pastel green tubes, compacts, containers, and bottles in the Pixi beauty aisle, which is a refreshing take compared to some of the ultra-glossy and saturated beauty packaging nowadays. I really wanted to take home their Highlight & Contour Palette (Strobe & Sculpt) but I also couldn’t take my eyes off their MatteLast Liquid Lip ($14). In the end, I bought three of them.

 

Pixi MatteLast Liquid Lip

 

 

Here are the swatches:

 

 

Pixi MatteLast Liquid Lip swatches

 

 

Pastel PetalBeige Nude. Slightly too nude for me, but still wearable for that edgy look, especially if you dramatize your eye makeup. This is a great shade if you have a fair to light skin complexion.

Really RoseRosy Brown. I love this perfect blend of muted rose and brown. The rose is almost like a coral-brick that looks really good on any skin tone.

Evening RoseMauve Brown. Another well-crafted shade that looks one or two shade darker than the Really Rose. This really makes for a beautiful pout.

 

MatteLast Liquid Lip review

 

The packaging is solid and well-done, except for the brush applicator that seems a little too soft for me. I find that I prefer a firm and sturdy brush applicator for any liquid lipsticks even the mattes, because it makes it easier for me to define or line the edge of my lips.

 

Pixi MatteLast Liquid Lip pastel petal evening rose really rose

Other than that brush applicator that could do some improvements, this MatteLast Liquid Lip is almost perfect. It settles like a true matte liquid lipstick and it’s not too drying. It is transfer-proof and really long lasting. It also smells like a fruity bubblegum. I also find it to be comforting on the lips and really lightweight. On top of that, it’s even well-pigmented, and even though there were only 5 shades released, the colors are universally flattering. My only regret is not buying them all.

 

Pixi by Petra MatteLast Liquid Lip review

 

Bottom line, the Pixi MatteLast Liquid Lip is a really good and well-done matte liquid lipstick. It is comparable to a lot of fan-favorite matte liquid lipsticks out there but with an affordable price tag. All the shades are gorgeous and they really look good on everyone’s lips.

 

Now, I can’t wait for my next Target escapade. Aren’t you?

 

Pixi MatteLast Liquid Lip

 

 

Happy FriYay Friends!

 

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