Love: Case de Lorenzo Castile Soap

Our little baby’s skin is so sensitive and he’s had a neck rash since we’ve brought him home from the hospital so we always stick to unscented, hypoallergenic and for the most part, organic, in the products we use on his skin. We’ve started him off on Castile soap when he was still very small and have since moved on after a few more months, always steering clear of the sulfate-based ones.

December has given us a chance to get back to using pure Castile soap on him once again, liquid version this time. We actually haven’t used up on the soap we used to use on him before that but I couldn’t resist the lure of 50% off on the Case de Lorenzo soaps so I decided the old soap was for adult use and he could use up the 1 litre soap I got. Yup! I got a litre of their unscented version. They offer COD for an extra P20 charge and that was a plus for me as I’m really bad at catching the bank before they close. (I prefer bank payment over other payment methods.)

Ordering and delivery was really easy. They even answered my mail in the middle of the night to inform me that delivery will be on the day after. There were no unforeseen delays and they kept me informed on delivery through the mobile number I provided.

What do you do with a litre of Castile soap? We poured a bit on a separate container with a pump for baby’s wash. We used a capful for laundry when we ran out of baby’s laundry soap. We used a pumpful on a litre of water for baby bottle washing. We poured a bit on a separate container, added a few squirts of virgin coconut oil and/or almond oil, a few drops of essential oil scent and used it as body wash for the adults.

I like how easy it is to wash off. I do believe it helped with baby’s rashes and it has healed up some. For those who like suds, better use a bath pouf, otherwise don’t expect much. I prefer bath poufs. I like bubbles and I don’t use up a whole lot of soap when I use one. I tried it for shampooing on myself but I got a bit of dandruff so I gave up on that.

As they extended the promo in January and there can never be enough of a good thing, I got a gallon of the soap. It gives me a thrill to buy soap by the litre and gallon. I’m weird that way.

All in all, I’m very happy with the unscented soap and even got their Valentine-themed soaps this month as they sell both for the price of one. A rose-scented Castile soap and a chocolate-scented old-fashioned soap (a blend of Castile, coconut and palm oil-based soap) that supposedly suds more. I’ve been using the rose for hand washing. I’m not a fan of the scent from the bottle itself but it lingers in a milder form once washed off. I don’t use a whole lot when washing my hands, using only a third of the usual soap I use but it cleans just fine and does not dry my hands. I’ve got the chocolate soap in stock as really, we have a whole lot of soap to use up who knows when.

Love: The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil and Tea Tree Blemish Night Lotion

Tea tree oil is as effective as benzoyl peroxide in the treatment of moderate acne. As my hormones are out of whack lately, I’ve decided to try the Body Shop’s 15% formulation. It has become an everyday essential and my acne sure dried up fast after using this. I let about three drops on my fall on one hand and apply it with a finger directly on problem spots with the other. I could use a cotton bud tip but I’m lazy and the method works fine with me.

I’m getting another one as I’ve still got the acne problems and my little boy played with the bottle once and I haven’t seen it since. Thank goodness it’s got a child-proof cap so I know he didn’t chug it. Warning: It’s toxic when swallowed so please get it away from children and pets.
Hubby tried it as well before it disappeared but he’s a baby when it comes to stings and he refuses to use it again after trying it once. His skin really is too sensitive.

I also tried the Tea Tree Blemish Fade Night Lotion. I’m a sucker for blog reviews and this one got tops. Personally, I’m liking it as my blemishes don’t darken as much as they used to. That’s as straightforward as they come. I don’t have dry skin and I add another night-time moisturizer so I can’t vouch for the moisturizing property. One pump is good. Half-pump does as well, in my opinion.

I’m loving these two so much I’m considering getting the Tea Tree Pore Minimizer next time I stop over the Body Shop. The reviews on that one is great as well. We’ll see. I’m so lazy to shop lately but I'll gladly get off my butt for a great deal.

Looked Up: Samsung WB100 and WB150F Smart Cameras

Our camera has given up the soul less than a year after we bought it. Yes, we still have the warranty but the tech people from Sony would like to charge us roughly 80% of the camera price for having put it underwater or some such. No such thing happened so I'm going to give up on that brand and move on.

 

Samsung has some amazing deals at their mid-range cameras. These aren't the average point-and-shoot and at the price point they are currently being offered, I've started bugging hubby over it and have convinced him to come over to the dark side of spending. Also, we really need a good camera for taking pictures of our cute little baby. It's been a while.

I would love to get the WB100 though it's big and not too handy because the zoom is amazing at 28x. If I have that much zoom power, I can spy on the neighbors across the street and more. Not that I have any plans of doing so but you get the gist, right? I also like the Eneloop charger with 4 batteries included. The price for these are steep already and they come free with the camera. I've been wanting a good charger for a while.

 

The other lovely choice is the 150F. It's more portable and has WIFI. Hubby likes it better because it's got a li-ion as compared to the usual AA batteries of the other model. I'm willing as they've got white as a color option, and there's a thousand pesos off when we fork over cash, which we always do anyway. Also, I have no plans of spying on our neighbor and as long as the photos come out pretty in most light conditions, I'm game.

 

 Promos are with Picture City. Pictures are from the product website.

Share: Nutella on Palitaw

Not the best shot, I know, but heavenly nontheless. Nutella is well-loved while the humble palitaw has been a hit or miss, personally. Combined, these two are second only to the Nutella mochi by Sophie's Mom.

What is palitaw? It is glutinous rice flour mixed with water and formed into little flat cakes. Water is heated and once boiling, the little cakes are carefully dropped into the water. Once they float, they are done and ready for some nutella spread. This will change my new year.

Wish List: Hair

I definitely need to take better care of my hair as it’s not the wash and wear kind. It’s my fault for not taking care of it for the last few years. It’s got style damage and root damage.

I’m hoping to stock up on hair masks. I like Neutrogena because it’s cheaper and bigger while I like the L’oreal lines because they are sulfate and silicone-free.

I'm looking for moisturizing, smoothing and damage-repair. So I'm willing to try a bunch out to check which ones will work.

I was born with curls but I’ve never embraced it before so I’d like to try Tigi Curls Rock to try to get bounce and style into the curls. This line is ridiculously overpriced in the Philippines, by the way.

Bed Head from Tigi has always been something I’ve wanted to try but even when it became a price point I could afford, it grates that it’s got such a big overhead. Nevertheless, it’s a salon favourite that promises to last a long time and I've always been easily swayed by hype.

Small Talk isn’t for me. I’d like to give it to hubby as a gift. I’m loving the packaging though. But then, Tigi has always had the funky-cool packaging down.

Lastly, I’m considering buying a heat-styling guard as my current one leaves me quite frustrated. I used to be able to blowdry my hair into something that resembles styled hair but my old product got discontinued and the latest one I've tried has left it into a greasy frizzy mess that I'd rather leave it alone by its non-greasy still-frizzy self.

I'm pinning my hopes on Chi. They've got great hair irons so they would have some of the best thermal protection right? Whatever else, the reviews for these products are great.

Wish List: LeapFrog

I wanted to get this list out before Christmas comes. I’ve got loads of lists from different products but this particular one isn’t for me as I love the LeapFrog toys for baby. It’s overpriced in the Philippines but it’s one of the best, in my opinion.

First off, I’m hoping my child would be able to read as soon as possible because the joys of reading are infinite and the Tag Junior would help start him off as it reads the books to the little one. We can start with letters and move on from there. Storytime is going to be so much fun with this. It’s cute too.

My Pal Scout is another cutie. It’s not just a cuddly toy but it also says the child’s name, favourites and plays your choice of music, including the spelling of baby’s name. I’m hoping my son learns a lot from Scout.

My baby loves music, and he loves pushing buttons. These are perfect. It might even save our phones, remote controls and camera from being thrown all the time.

Baby loves laptops too. Out of all the other laptops I’ve tried, the My Own Leaptop has the best possibilities. It’s not that it’s got the best and most games but the fact that it’s perfect for the age group it’s being marketed to.

I like piano portion as well as the alphabets in the Touch Magic School Bus. It’s touch screen so it's easy to clean. So many fun things in this baby for baby.
There are lots more from LeapFrog I want but these are the ones that are appropriate for little baby’s age group. Once he gets older, there are many more possibilities. I don’t want to rush it. I enjoy watching him grow and learn.

Share: Inside My Bag

I was hoping to get a satchel bag but things didn't fall through. Long boring story so I'll share my new bag and its contents instead.

To start off, this is my new Secosana bag. it was on sale. It’s roomy and not so wide. It’s the kind of bag that I can chuck everything inside without feeling too overfull. Not too structured but not that saggy either. I like using the shoulder strap instead of carrying it by the shorter handles. Hearts and pink ribbon and yet not too loud. It's so girly it embarrasses my hubby to carry it but he still does and that's love.

The contents are the kikay kit (cosmetics and other girly stuff), sunglasses case, spoon and fork container, techie and ballpen kit, iPod touch, company ID, journal half with black pages, cellphone, wallet and coinpurse. I like using the mesh containers for the small stuff so I can put similar items in a container and see what's inside without needing to spill them. I think I'll get another one for some of the other stuff.

I've had my sunglasses for a while now. They're wide and they're girly and dark but not black. I use the shiny flowers at the side as a small mirror sometimes. It's a definite essential when I'm on night shift.

  

My kikay kit contains two lipsticks, two lipglosses, a mascara, a BB balm, neutral eyeshadow, two lip balms, an eyeshadow primer, baby wipes, a comb, a mini hairbrush, eye gel, pencil sharpener, brow brush, lotion, toothbrush, dental floss and toothpaste. I'm missing the toothbrush holder as my little one played with it earlier before the shot. I'm hoping to include face powder and a retractable brush but I'm still looking for the perfect ones as I want them to be small but serviceable.

My tech kit contains the plug for the usb connectors, the iPod connector, the phone connector, my ballpens (3 metallic gels and black), a girly essential in the wrong bag, pink earphone buds and my earphone case. I sometimes throw in my cellphone and iPod inside this kit.

Should I talk about these more?