An Interview with Silverkis

Today's post is a rather special one. Because its going to be like a post-cum-dedication kinda thing and the person that i want to make special mention is the uprising local Make Up & Skincare Blogger, Silverkis! 

To be honest, i was really contemplating for a long while as to whether i should return to the blogging world or not. And one of the person that really inspires me tons is her. Her spirit of excellence, consistency and never say die attitude amazes me and inspired me to return to the blogging world. So this post is dedicated to anyone that has a dream but have no courage to live it out yet! 

We know each other through our hubbies. They are buds. My first impression of Linda is that she is very classy and more of the 'Ang Moh' type, which might be tough for us to really communicate as i am not as fluent at English compared to her. But her warmth and friendliness melted my heart! Somehow there were common topics and we hit off...not too bad! Haha... 

And suddenly one day, i was told that she started blogging! To be honest, i was skeptical abt the blogging world. Because it depends on who your targeted audience is. If ur audience is you, you & yourself, then thats not hard. But if its people outside your circle of immediate friends, thats tough. And so she started her blog and of cos as a supportive friend, i signed up for post updates sent via email by her blog. I remembered receiving a few emails (even now still! ) on new posts from her blog, on a weekly! And then in her IG, her followers were also increasingly increasing! From hundreds to one thousand to two thousands and now in  the three! I finally realised what it means to live out one's dream. She was consistent & determined. So i decided to have a mini interview of her. 

(TGS - This Gal Shines, SK - Silverkis)

TGS: Its an apparent fact that you love comestic and skincare. So how did it all get started?

SK: I was born with very sensitive and easily irritated skin… growing up was tough as I was always suffering from bouts of eczema all over my body and face.  So I learnt at a very early age the importance of taking proper care of my skin.  Also, I was blessed with a mother who also believed in using proper skincare – she bought me my first facial wash from Shiseido when I was 10!   

TGS: Were there any difficulties at the initial stage of setting up the blog and getting everything going? What are they?

SK: Setting up a blog isn’t hard these days given the number of free hosting sites around.  But getting some sizeable traffic was certainly a challenge.  I researched and tried all the “tricks” out there… how to get the search engines to crawl my site, getting my site rankings up the search results, etc.  There are quite a number of things you can do, but if you picked a good blogging platform to begin with, most of that is already taken care of for you.  Ultimately, it is about generating the right content that people want to read, being timely in releasing updated information, and being good to your followers.  It also helps to be active in other platforms such as forums and social media sites like Instagram and building up a reputation as somebody who really knows what she is blogging about!

(Source: silverkis IG)

TGS: Any interesting experiences on blogging to share?

SK: I still work a full-time job in a very boring industry that is totally not beauty-related.  And sometimes the lines get blurred between the roles – when to switch into beauty blogger mode versus work.  When I first started blogging, I was so intent on getting as many people to visit my site that I was not very careful about segregating.  And then later on when my search rankings started creeping up, if you googled my name my beauty blog pops up.  It never occurred to me until one day a colleague stopped me in the corridors and asked me for recommendation on eye cream!  And along the way she mentioned that xyz from another department told her that I blogged about eye creams! 

TGS: You have been invited to a few events and they looked so fun! Who are some of the famous blogger(s) that you have rubbed shoulders with so far?

SK: Umm…. I don’t really get starry-eyed around “famous” people… they’re all just people to me, and I am more interested in getting to know everyone on an individual level rather than by their Instagram followers or blog subscribers.  So I can’t really name names la!

TGS: List 3 things that keep you going, even til now. 

SK: (1) Getting to know my readers well really drives me on!  It is the best feeling when a reader leaves me a comment to tell me they liked what they saw, or they appreciated my frank opinions… I sometimes get readers who hop over to my Instagram and leave me comments there as well.  I’ve also gotten to know some much more established bloggers overseas who I am big fans of, and they have started to follow my blog… it lets me know that I’m doing something right after all!

(2) I love seeing how the beauty industry evolves… it sounds geeky but I love checking out new product innovation (e.g. this year we saw a whole bunch of liquid cheek – lip dual-use products launched, and this summer a whole new formulation for eyeshadows, etc etc).  I also love discovering new brands such as Neuth that is just starting out but already I love their products!

(3) Of course, being recognized for my work really fuels me.  The other day I was at a Chanel event for customers (not a media event for bloggers) and somebody turned to me and asked if I were Silverkis!  I was embarrassed of course, but it really feels good to be gaining recognition.  And more brands are starting to reach out with invitations and product samples… it lets me know that my blog is finally reaching a critical mass and the industry is starting to take note!

(Source: silverkis IG)

TGS: What are the future plans for your blog? 

SK: Only God knows… ;)

TGS: What advice would you give to anyone that has a dream but doesnt dare to step out into action yet?

SK: Well… then it’ll always remain just a dream wouldn’t it?  Dreams are nice… you just have to decide if you want to actually live it.  Little steps aren’t hard… so just take it 1 baby step at a time, and trust God to pave the way!

So for all YOU who has a dream,  its never too old or too young to realised it. Start by taking baby steps and you will be one step nearer to realising them! 

If you would like, pls follow Silverkis at her IG name, silverkis . 

And also follow her blog (silverkis.com) , she gives honest reviews on skincare and cosmetics and there are even giveaways from time to time! 

Lastly, to Linda, keep on keeping on, for you'll never know who you impact tomorrow! 😘😘

Nails Candy

I love manicures. Irregardless of the colour and/or design you choose, it still brings therapy by just looking at them. And i love that feeling. ☺In the past, a typical manicure (and pedicure included) can probably last only 1-1.5 weeks, however with the advancement in nail polishes ingredients, we now have what we call the gelish mani/pedi. This typically last up to 4 weeks, depending on how rough you are. My longest lasted 4.5 weeks! Gelish are typically more expensive, considering that it will last longer. So nowadays, i only opt for gelish manicures.  

If you ask me what my standard gelish mani, it would look like this: 

I love nude/ neutral colours!! They just make ur hand and fingers look fairer and smoother! Lol.. 

But generally, i am pretty much attracted to designs that are bling, crystal and related,  like the ones below: 

Infact, my very first gelish mani wad an ombre warm pink glitters & i still could remember how satisfied i was aftr the mani session! I kept looking at it and showing them to mk..lol! 

This is so dain-tily sweet...

Oh this above design; i have done it before! Just that its not the sharp tip but squarish. Squarish makes one's nails look classy and stylish. 👍

This above ombre black with glitter is very well done up! The ombre shades looks naturally nice, making the black colour not so dull and boring. 👍👍

This design does look a little too mature, but if you would look closer, you will realised that its glitter used is abit reddish/pink kind, which makes it lool special and leas dull looking. Good match. 

And like i've mentioned earlier that nail polishes formulas are more advanced nowadays. And thus they can give a different kind of feel like the ones below: 

This should be the matt finish polishes. Nice green... 

Here's another one... Wow. 

As of today, my nails are pretty 'cleaned' because helper went back and so i foresee me doing more chores, so no point get a pretty design and then i destroy them aftr all the chores. But, my next design after helper comes would be the following: 

Tiffany colour! How gorgeous is that! Somemore with my favourite glitters! Yayness! 

And beside Tiffany colour, i would also want to do up another design which carry my favourite brand of them all... Yes! You are right!! Chanel!!!

Nice right. :) 

How about one with their Camilia flower? 

Nice? Nice?? 

And of course, nothing can beat the classic forever RED: 

This is THE color that every lady that does mani/pedi should at least choose once in her lifestyle! Lol.. So classic and stylish! 💅

And so, i hope you have enjoyed reading and looking thru my type of designs as much as i have enjoyed sharing with you all! To end it off, whats the best design you think that we can all do, esp living in the 'now' days? 

No idea? Well, i recommend the following: 

For the social media engaged YOU. :) 

Flowery Powdery

Personally i am not a big fan of prints or floral designs, but to be honest, some of these prints or florals can make one look really classy and stylish. So today's will be floral. 

Some pink tulips to start off my flowery powdery post! ✌

Like i've said, if you choose the design of the apparel in floral prints carefully, you wont look too 'auntie'. Just like the one below: 

This is a gorgeous piece. Floral with some bold red flowers here and there to create that Oriental effects. The black background makes the flowers stand out. Satin material makes it look classy too. I love this! 👍

If i have to stay in a garden or some forest, i would choose this piece. It gives off the "flowers slowly flowing down your body" kind of feel.. Very garden-y feel! 

The feel of this look is a bit similar to the first set i've showed earlier. Big flowers on blue satin background and its very Oriental. Love how she paired with a plain black top to show the contrast of the skirt! Also, if its me, i would go with a neck candy to complete the look! 

Another big flowers print look. Just that she decided to go with a more neutral colour top so that it gives off a pastel and sweet feel. Good matching! 

Okay, i know that even though Singapore is a tropical island, the locals seldom dress up looking like this above picture, because its simply too warm! But to be honest, this is a 'hot' look! Its just SO 'island', 'by the beach' kinda feel. Imagine you sitting by the beach or poolside, with a glass of tropical drink and a straw hat, looking away at the beautiful scenary........... Not too bad ah? 😁

This has to be my favourite look of this post! Can i dont say much abt this please? I just wanna invite you to admire this look together with me. So sweet, so dainty. 🌺🌺

This is my 2nd favorite look of this post! Very minimum floral design, yet it brings out that dainty feel, love it! 

Model is really model. Such floral pants can easily make one look very 'auntie', but yet she makes it look very casually comfortable and chic! I think i wouldnt be able to carry it so well! 

This is another example of big floral designs. Just that this one has a bit more of the smaller florals surrounding the big ones, hence making it look more cluttered. But to pair with a navy blue, i felt was a good choice as the bigger florals are blue. Good job! 

And so with this, i will end here. If you know how to carefully choose your florals, it will not bring out that 'auntie' feel, instead, it can make you look sweeter and more dainty. So try floral designs if you haven had the courage to do so ya. :) 

And before i go, let me leave you with this one final look: 

Big florals. Maxi. Sweet. Dainty

Let Me In

I struggled for a few days as to whether i should blog on this or not. Because its such a controversial and sensitive topic. Afterall, beauty, to begin with, has no definite definition. It is very subjective. Some people strongly believe that beauty is from the inside, while some think its just skin deep. Unfortunately in the society we live in now, it seems like there are more people going for the skin deep beauty. In any case, what i am going to blog about is purely my own opinions and thoughts. When you are reading, do keep in mind that i am not an expert in any field related to beauty and i always believe that balance is the key to life! 

Topic: Cosmetic Surgery

Recently i am quite hooked up in watching this Korean television show on cosmetic surgery call Let Me In. This show claims to help women that struggle with very very low self esteem due to the way they look. So the participant that made it to the final round usually have very bad case of low self esteem. There was a girl has only one eye and another who looked like a witch, while theres another that looked like man and all these are born naturally. 

Honestly speaking, i am not pro cosmetic surgery neither am i against it totally, because i believe there are some special cases where some help is obviously needed. I mean you cant say to the girl who had a witch face, "Oh too bad, you are born just like that. If a man truly loves you, he will love you no matter how ugly you look." 

This is not helping the person at all. So when i decided to blog abt cosmetic surgery, its not for the purpose of becoming more vain, but to feed the basic self esteem hunger & love that the girl greatly lacks. Afterall, we are all naturally attracted to things beautiful, isnt it. :) 

So these are the various host and co-hosts to the show: 

And below are just a few examples of how Let Me In has helped the girls: 

This is the case whereby this girl looked more like a man. His features, sorry, i mean her features are more manly in that sense and because of this, she gave up dressing like a girl. So her dressing has always been more manly. I think the good thing about her is that she is still very much straight, thats why she decided to get some help. The picture on the right, apparently is her 'after' look. Still short hair, but doesnt she look more SHE now? 

Now this is also another case of a girl, yes its a she, that born with the looks of a man. If you dont hear her speak, you would believe she's a man! Poor girl! Suffered for soooo long. I rememberd her case as hormones gone haywired and if i didnt recall wrongly, she only had her menses ONCE in her entire life! She didnt want her family to worry for her and thus kept this to herself. Thru her puberty years, her haywired hormones made her body grow hair all over! And all these years she just kept it to herself. 

See what i mean? Cosmetic surgery at times really is very much needed for cases like this. Such people need help! And just look at her 'after' photo, wooo, so sweet and girly! I hope she does feel more confident now! :) 

I didnt manage to watch this episode but its very obvious that this girl has no right eye. I am not too sure the reason why, but i do feel for her. I believe her surgery would be one of the toughest and most costly but the doctors are still willing to help her. She looked so decent after the surgery. I pray that her life will improve after this. 

So i do feel that cosmetic surgery for such purpose is totally meaningful. Of cos i am not talking about a girl who is already decent looking but still went to enhance her looks, etc. i am not God, i dont wanna judge. I guess as long as it helps people improve and move on, why not help? 

Once again, i need to reiterate that i am NOT for cosmetic surgery neither am i against it totally; its all about balance and appropriateness. 

Lastly, i leave you to think about how 

you would live your life if you are this girl below. And by that, i refer to having just a normal life to finding someone that love her, settle down, have kids and even in the area of career. Her 'After' photos definitely helped her in a big big way. 

No, shes not hideous definitely, but her life can be better with some help. 

Hope you have enjoyed reading! Til my next post! :) 

Chanel Bags (Thy favourite brand of all)

This post should have been written much earlier, but because i was settling some stuff at home and therefore, late in posting. My bad. 

But i am excited to be able to finally share with you all thy favourite luxury brand of them all! And it wont be difficult to tell that thy brand is indeed my favourite-est (if there's such a word hehe) brand. Well, even though i dont breathe, live, eat, drink and even walk this brand, but i do talk abt it, or at least make mentions, erm, many many times. And yes, Chanel is thy favourite-est brand of them all. 

To be very honest, i have never ever imagine or dream about me going goo goo ga ga over luxury brands. Never. Serious. But Chanel is just different. If you love Chanel, you will know why. Its just like Accounting; if you understand the concept, you kinda got it, if not, dun force. I feel its the same for Chanel. You love it, you will LOVE it, if you dont, hmm, so be it. No issues with Chanel i'm sure, lol. So, enough of all these wordy wordy words, lets get into some visual therapy! If today's title is abt their bags, i'm just going to show their bags. For other Chanel stuff, maybe another post ba. :) Lets get started:-

Chanel is famous for their ever stylish, ever classic flap bags:

Could be a small double flap in GHW. 

Might be a Maxi in SHW. 

The thingy about Chanel products is that every one of them makes your heart beats faster, and maybe wallet bleed faater too, lol! Isit true? Just looking at their classic flap bags, already make me go Awww over it, literally! 

I saw this at the boutique the other day and tried it on me and then when i looked at the mirror, i really wanted to take my credit card out and just BUY IT HOME! 😱 Of course i didnt eventually. But my point is on how beautiful any random Chanel bag is, until you just want to bring it home with you! 

Nautical theme is definitely the IN fashion now, even in apparels. 

How about their bags in pastel colors? :) 

Not that my favourite colour is pink, but i definitely heart their bags in pastel pink. Sweet. :) 

Classy. 

And as much as i love them in pastel pink, i dont mind having one that blings, like these: 

Sequins. 😭

Gorgeous. 

This should be a clutch and i just love the way the Chanel logo is on it. It looks like their pearl brooch pinned on the clutch, simply classic! 

Chanel latest IN bag is the Boy version: 

They dont really look formal formal, and is more toward everyday style, best paired with jeans, rompers, etc. But they definitely stand out. I was in hospital the other day and this lady who was there visiting, passed me by with her black Chanel boy with GHW, and i felt the whole ward atmosphere was changed at that instant! Literally! So i saw it and really, it was a gorgeous piece of design!! 

The whites. :) 

If i were to get a boy, this is what i probably will get: 

I dont know how to describe but this definitely makes my heart beat faster! 

A few more 'random' ones: 

The very expensive lego clutch andy current HP case is an inspiration version of it. 

Wallet on chain, pastel pink. #heartmelts

Another black classic flap bag. Nice not? 

To be honest, there are still a lot more Chanel bags to be shown, and i dont think this can be covered within a post. If possible, i may do like a part 2 in future. No promise though. :) 

Last few pictures for you: 

I imagine all these bags are mine and i get to choose which one to take with me whenever i'm out. I think i will probably take all! Lol... Simply LOVE to core Chanel. 

Anyways, i hope you have enjoyed this post as much as i have enjoyed writting. And before i say Chaos, heres a little reveal of my very first CC certified bag & i can only thank God for it. 

Its a Limited Edition classic flap in Jersey. Small size and in black. 

Love it. 

Heart it. 

Thank God.