Domesticity Moments: My First Day in Sydney

I loved this outfit so, so much.

Taken at the lovely Holiday Inn Potts Point in Kings Cross. 

The sweater and the scarf is from Giordano; the black pants are from Gap. Look closely in the back and you'll see the black tote that I scored from Just Jeans in NZ. (And also the fact that I, uh, forgot to make my bed before stepping out of the house in this outfit. Lame.) 

I wanted to step out of the hotel wearing this whole thing, but it had been quite cold outside and I had to wear a jacket over this anyway. My plan that day was to walk all the way from Kings Cross to the Royal Botanical Gardens (the full story on that will be posted in a future edition of Domestic Travel), so I threw the jacket on and kept myself as warm as possible. Then I got to the Gardens, and the weather shifted back to "warm." D'oh! If it weren't for the fact that I had to walk home before the Gardens closed their gates for the evening, I would have been way past upset then. 

Upside: At least I had comfortable shoes. 

Domesticity Moments: Queenstown, NZ

For those remaining readers of Domesticity whom I have not alienated after that last entry about The Hotness and Captain Tightpants, I give you... one of the less-sexy photos taken of myself during this whole entire trip.

Breakdown, from the feet up: Running shoes by Reebok (now totalled, RIP); men's jeans by Levis; Gore-Tex parka by The North Face; scarf and hat from an NZ chain store that had them in sale (2 for NZ$10). The green suitcase is mine, and the red one belongs to my cousin JuniorMei.

I look like I'm going snowboarding here, but let's face it: Queenstown at this time of year is cold. As in, bone-chilling, sweater-layering, cannot-be-cured-by-a-Starbucks-hot-cocoa cold. (The Hotness was never an option, but even if he was... hello, still colder than a deep-freeze.) It may be warm and toasty in the hotel room - warm enough to convince you to ditch that parka - but step outside and you'll be forced to run in and throw on the bulkiest layer in your wardrobe. The only thing missing here is an awesome pair of gloves, which sucks because I still don't know how to shop for 'em.

But seriously: This is what one gets when one travels to a resort town that's practically a stone's throw away from Antarctica. 



So how does one cope with cold weather like this - besides copious amounts of hot tea, throat lozenges, and an awesome pair of gloves?

Domesticity Moments: Wellington, NZ

Just for the record: I HATE THE YANKEES. And I replaced this one with an All Blacks cap anyway.  

Ignore the hellish state of my skin here for a moment, because it's all about the lips and lashes here.

The retouched version. (No, I didn't crop out the Yankees cap here; it just happened that way.) 

The lip gloss I'm wearing here is Clinique's Long Last Glosswear SPF 15 in Kissyfit, which was basically the only gloss I wore throughout the trip - and, heck, the only non-balm product that I sported during all my jaunts. (This, by the by, will be reviewed in an upcoming Glosswatch Extra; it's about time, too, since I've had this one for a while.)

The mascara I'm wearing, on the other hand, is Maybelline Lash Stiletto, which was a grab-and-go purchase that I made at the Duty Free Philippines store in NAIA-1 before leaving for Auckland. I purchased this for US$7.50, but it has turned out to be one of the best purchases that I've made for this trip. While it's not exactly my holy grail of mascara - that one will always be, now and forever, Cover Girl's Lash Blast - I've actually grown quite fond of Lash Stiletto throughout this trip. The pointed brush does get those little lashes in the corners, and the formula itself does lengthen like nobody's business, so it actually does give that doll-eyed effect that most folks usually get with false eyelashes. Plus it lasts all day, so I don't have to worry about waking up with runny black eyes. If there is one complaint that I can make about this mascara, though, it's the clumping; as much as I like how it lengthens and lasts, it does look and feel like asphalt going on, and could get even more asphalt-like throughout the day if I'm not careful. That means I have to do the extra "work" of wiping the brush and applying the mascara in thin coats rather than going all-out in one swipe, which is something I can't faff with if I don't have the extra hours in the morning. Other than that, though, I'm actually quite happy with this, and I might actually consider this as a repurchase. 

Domesticity Moments: Bondi Beach, SYD

I was just looking at this picture the other day (because I'm vain like that - hello, would I be a beauty blogger if I wasn't?) and I immediately thought, "Hey, my skin looks pretty good here."

My secret? THIS:

Yes, SUNSCREEN! Or, to be specific, NIVEA Sun Moisturizing Sunscreen Lotion. The version I have at home has an SPF of 50 PA++, which means that the stuff is highly capable of filtering out UVA rays on top of providing regular sun protection. Perfect on a day like this, where the crazy combination of bright sunlight and a brisk cold wind can do a number on one's skin.

A caveat, though: This sunscreen also contains titanium dioxide and bismuth - both excellent physical sun-blocking ingredients, but could also be potentially irritating to the skin, on top of making darker-skinned folks look chalky. I personally didn't mind them in this context, but anyone who has a problem with these ingredients may want to take that into consideration.

I'm Back.

And I really need to moisturize.

More pictures from the trip later, including some prime Domesticity Moments and a few product reviews.

Also, there might be a Hotness post sometime this month. Hint: There's a reason why The List just got reconfigured.