The Big Move

Hey, guys. :) I haven't been on this blog for the longest time because I've moved to a new domain. I wasn't able to get my winawonders domain renewed so I had to get another domain. :D You guys can now find all of the things I wonder about at winapuangco.com! I would appreciate it greatly if you guys want to follow me on there or whatevs.

I'm currently working on a lot of fun projects aimed at growth in personal style and well, improving my overall outlook on life. See you guys on there and definitely let me know over there if this is what lead you there.

Thank you!

Wina

Oversized and Overwhelmed

 One of the things I love about living in Manila is that even when the weather is "cloudy", it's still almost always weather you can take photos in. Class is out today because there's a storm coming (it isn't here yet though--not that I'm complaining) so this outfit's going to be worn walking around the mall with my sister, most probably. This shirt is from F21, I think? (I can't remember) Whatever. As I've been progressing in my quest for fitness and shiz, most of my shirts are now oversized shirts; that definitely doesn't mean that I'm not going to wear them (because then I'd have to rebuild my wardrobe, which frankly I don't have the cash for) so I decided to rip off the Marks & Spencer mannequins in Glorieta and tie the bottom of this shirt in a knot. I think it looks pretty aright! :)

Wearing:

top, (I think) F21 | forgot!

jeans, Street Code | P250 (reduced from P800)

sneakers, Vans P2,800

Also, I realize that I look ridiculous in these photos. I swear, I was not dancing. But you guys are probably used to me by now. I'm kinda a klutz and refuse to apologize for this anti-fashion type of posing. Normal peeps have to settle for poses ripped off of exercise vids. HAHAHA

String Me Along

 I spent today running around and helping my dad out with medical things: we went to the hospital for his check up and then walked around the mall for a bit for his regular "cardio routine" (which mostly involves us walking to and from Fullybooked). If there's anything that I think I may be an expert on, it's geriatric health care. And one of the things one must ensure when taking care of your very own beloved senior citizen is that you're comfortable. So I wore one of my favorite but (surprisingly) underworn outfits: this dress from Forever21 with a loose, cotton croptop thrown over it. 

Wearing:

dress, Forever21 | P499 

top, tiangge | P100

shoes, gifted

I started wearing this with a croptop instead of a hoodie because the weather in Manila just isn't conducive to anything with long sleeves and this dress is a bit too big for me so...yeah I can't wear it alone without showing the world my lalas (which both I and the world would like for me to keep to myself). My favorite thing about this dress is the criss-cross straps that it has on the back; I think loose crop tops provide good coverage while allowing just enough skin to show.

July 2013 Favorites

Soooo I know I didn't do a favorites post for June and May, mostly because a lot of the products I was using last month were either already old products or stuff I'd just started trying but I'll try to be more consistent with this, from here on in. I like doing these posts mostly because I do use a lot of cosmetics and if I don't write about it then it seems kind of like a huge waste of knowledge I could otherwise be sharing with the collective cosmetic unconscious.

 

I tried a lot of face products last month because I'm always on the hunt for good, non-sticky/non-greasy face products that either will help improve the over-all health of my skin or at least not damage it. First off is the Lancome Pure Focus Moisturizer for Oily Skin. This is hands down the best moisturizer I've ever used. (Shout out to my sis-in-law Ate Audrey who gave it to me!) It really sinks into your skin and leaves your skin feeling smooth and silky without having it feel greasy. It gets the job done and it works really well under make-up because it keeps your pores from clogging without leaving your skin feeling dry or flaky. :)

 Next is the Ever Bilena Advance Perfect Concealer. Okay. This is probably the best value for money product, ever. EB is impressing me more and more, these days: this concealer is perfect. It stays on all day, it doesn't clog your pores, it doesn't cake or make you get those weird lines under your eyes and it gets the job done. Dark circles, blemishes: BAM, concealed like a mofo! I like it way better than other more expensive concealers I've tried like the Cinema Secrets one or the Collection Last Perfection one. :)

 It's been raining like crazy lately but it's also been insanely humid, so I've refrained from using any muskier or heavier fragrances. I've been using Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau So Fresh because it's light and stays on for a pretty long time (although not "all day" by any means). I could sniff this shiz forever.

 I don't think I've mentioned it on here, ever (mostly because I'm also a little embarrassed by this) but I'm a huge lipstick junkie. Lip things (although I must say, lipsticks in particular) are definitely my favorite make up bits. This month, I've been a lovin' the Pure Gloss lipgloss from Collection. I have the one in the color Lollipop and I love, love, love it. Of all lip products (balms, glosses, glasses, sheens, sticks, liquid lipsticks, tints) lipglosses are probably my least favorite. I don't like how they get all sticky and bothersome--mleh. That being said, this is one of the few glosses that don't do that. It's a really pretty, sheer pink color and it isn't sticky or too much. It sinks into the skin but still gives your lips a noticeable little lift and (obviously) gloss. :) This was P169 at the Metro Department Store.

Next are two lipsticks from Avon's new collection (click here to see the TVC--Avon names their collections and lines with really not catchy names--aka Ultra SomethingSomething and Ultimate Something--which doesn't bother me too much but they're just so difficult to remember!). I have them in the shade Crush (left) and Hot Pink (right). Beautiful!!!! I love how they go on (the formulation) and I love how they look on the skin. I had some of their Totally Kissable lipsticks too, but I found that while those felt moisturizing, the pigment just sort of sat on top of the lips and got really drying throughout the day. These don't do that and have a lot better (in my opinion) shades than he last collection. These go for P249 each. :)

 Aaaand, that's it for this month! :) Tell me how you guys like this post (either here on Twitter or message me or whatever--ya'll know where to reach me).

Acid Wash

Today is going to be one hectic son of a gun; I can tell. I just got back from getting vaccinated (it's flu season again!) and after lunch I'll be off to school for my Trig long test (wish me luck). Wahoo. Here we go, double and half identities! I'm going to kick your ass--in these awesome jeans. 

From the minute I laid my eyes on these pants (that were on sale) I knew I had to have them. The color, the fit--everything about these jeans is desirable to me. Acid wash is a tricky thing and when you see something so well-done, you just can't not get it. Especially when it's on sale. I also may have overworn this shirt, but whatevs.

Wearing:

top, tiangge | P100

jeans, Zara | P650

shoes, Shoebox | P899

Time Goes By

Time flies. I looked at the calendar today (because I have a test tomorrow and am again, trying to buy more study time) and realized that it's been 2 years since I was in Harry Potter class (that was August 2011). Hot damn, time flies. In honor of that, I decided to wear my Ravenclaw shirt with one of the only pleated things I own: this floral skirt. I thought that this'd be a playful take on the whole school girl thing but part of me regrets not wearing this with my black skater skirt. 

Wore: Ravenclaw shirt, Perfect White T | P 350

skirt, Just G | P650

shoes, Shoebox | P899

I will be honest: it was a hassle walking around in this outfit today because it was freaking windy and you know what happens to pleated skirts in the wind (insert highschool flashback here). But, whatever. I only had one class today anyway so it wasn't too bad. Although no, I definitely wouldn't wear this again. :)) Anyway. I must get back to a'studying. Night, ya'll!

Leotarded

 It's taking all my will not to start this blog post with "dahurr". Anywho. It's Monday again. August is here, dontcha know it. Before we know it, it'll be holiday/birthday (for me and my friends)/celebrating shiz season again. So I decided to go into mourning for the following illusions that I thrust myself into last January: a) "This will be my year!" and b) "The year's just starting: let's start it right!" by wearing black. I don't wear black very often. In fact, I think there might be less than 5 photos of me wearing black on this blog. And I must say, after wearing this leotard-reminiscent shirt from Cotton-On, I may look into wearing black more often.

 

I have to apologize, as well for the uneven sizing of the photos: I seriously do not know what is up with blogger, but yeah: I didn't want these to go to waste, because well, it's a bitch to shoot yourself (whichever way you take that phrase) so it damn well better be worth it. :) This is one of the most expensive outfits I own, probably--but I figure no one's a cheapskate all the time, right? Right??

 

Wore: Top, Cotton On | P450

Jeans, Nafnaf | P1,200

Shoes, Shoebox | P 899

 Glasses, Giordano | P 2,500

And, yeah! :) Hope you guys had a rockin' Monday!

Happy Thursdays, aka The Skyway, Drinking & Duck Dynasty Re-Runs

I never thought I would  use the term "Happy Thursday" again, ever because a) the older you get in the educational system, the more alone you are and so even if your Thursday is happy it's not like you have a friend somewhere staking out an awesome drinking place so that if you get out early you can start getting a'wasted while the sun's still up and b) my university has switched our weekly schedule system thing around (MWF/TH; MW/TH; MH/TF) so many times that I really don't want to get attached to any "day" system or have forgotten how to be attached to a "day" system thing. But. Goddamn, this week was stressful. Two mini Trig tests and one Chem long test plus new lessons in almost all my subjects. All-in-all I've had to memorize a little over 35 formulas this week.

So when I got out of Chem early, all I could think of was: thank GOD it's Thursday. Plus, I'm learning to appreciate my new route, indeed. I fucking love that I can be home in 40 minutes when it isn't rush hour. Thank you, Skyway!

Later in the afternoon, I went to the mall near my house to meet with my friend who just got back from Europe and that was lotsa fun. We hung out at San Mig and there was a show band playing really old songs--songs I haven't heard in years like Bic Runga's Sway and Leavin' On A Jet Plane. Plus, we got there in time for happy hour and so I treated myself to two rounds of Southern Comfort on the rocks and (ok, this might be a bit much but you'd do it too if you were studying how to synthesize Aniline and Trinitrotoluene all week) a pint of light beer.

And. Yeah. As soon as I got home I flipped my computer on and started watching Duck Dynasty re-runs. I thought it'd be alright to skip exercising today for the first time in almost two months because--everyone needs a break once in a while. So. Yes. Goodnight, world!

Run, Run, Runaway Run

Goddamn, if I could run away from anything it would be this week. Tests, tests, tests. My 'rents were nice enough to get me a new pair of running shoes (because my ancient ones broke last week while I was doing jumping jacks) to reward me for being their secretary last week and there is no torture greater than having awesome shoes and not being able to do samurai squats. But ah, well.

These particular shoes are from Mizuno (as were my last pair, rest her soul); Mizuno shoes are amazing: they're comfy, super lightweight and they provide lotsa support. I love the measuring thing that they do where they make you stand on this reflective sheet thing to see what kind of arc your feet have. Anyway. Back to studying for me. Have a good week, ya'll! More tomorrow (hopefully).

Oldies But Goodies

Today, I decided to (after 4 years) pull this shirt out of my closet again. I can't remember why I stopped wearing this: I think it might have been because of laziness to shave my pits (I got a little carried away with no shave November a few years ago) or because something bad happened to me in this shirt (I'm also superstitious, along with being disgusting--apparently). But it was sitting there, in all its turquoise glory and I just thought wow: this is the perfect shirt for today. My life involves a lot of walking and a lot of conforming to the rules of institution so I figured this top would be a win-win. It's jabar-proof, it's stylish, it's just-sexy-enough and it fits within the limits of the dresscode. Hellzyeah.

Wore:

Top: can't remember

Jeans, Zara

shoes, gifted

 I've been wearing flats/sneakers all week because I've had to walk so much. Even if I initially hated what they've done to Manila's transport system, I do appreciate the extra cardio. 

And. That's it, really. Uhhh. There's only so much you can say about an outfit. :)) No frills: this shirt was just really, really great for Manila weather and I think it looks pretty good on me. I hope you guys had a good day! And for those of you whose lives were affected by the traffic re-route, I hope you guys are adjusting well.

Gloom Bloom

I love this skirt. I got this at an ukay-ukay for 50 bucks two summers ago. I love this skirt. Okay. Now that that's done with, I will start this post off the way I do most of my posts (I just realized): talking about the weather. Damn. This is the weirdest rainy season ever. It's hot, it's cold, it's a Katy Perry song. It's raining but it's sunny but it's humid but it's breezy. Cripes. So the important thing about dressing up nowadays is to have an outfit you can disassemble. Thought employed in today's clothing choices.

Wearing:

Purple cotton top, tiangge | P100

skirt, thrifted | P50

GAP cardigan, thrifted | P250

shoes, gifted

Sweater Weather

I really, really loved the weather today. It was gloomy, but not raining very hard. I got to wear my favorite stockings and my favorite sweater (that I steal from my mom, harhar). 

 Also, I decided to wear these vans that I got in Vietnam because they're pretty thick-soled and that's always good when it's raining. Admittedly, I did look a bit crazy today--but what's new. :D

Playsuit: online-thrifted from Lula Bop's | P350

Stockings: SM Dep't. Store | P 300

Sneakers: Vans | P 2,600 (1,300,000 VND)

Sweater: Zara | priceless, aka stolen from my mother's closet

 I'm really hoping that the weather decides to stay this way for longer. I know I promised I would stop wondering about the weather and whether or not it'll be to my liking, but sometimes I just cannot help it. I will elaborate on this in my next Coffee & Flowers post. 

 The only thing that I disliked about today's outfit was that this playsuit has gotten really baggy for me since I've gotten back into doing yoga and circuit training--that's one downside to getting into fitness, I guess. The sleeves kept threatening to fall off the whole day; I suppose soon I'll start wearing full-on sweaters over this. Oh, and also it's a bitch to go to the bathroom if you're in a hurry and wearing a playsuit. Apologies to the girls in line at the Miguel first floor bathroom earlier today!

And now, apologies to you for having to look at this odd mid-macarena photo of me. HAHAHA I set my camera on timer when I film and just walk around doing silly things--so, yeah. :)

Hope ya'llz had a good day!

Cake, Ethan Hawke, Bare Legs, This Song & Then Some (C&F, Post 2)

Today was a pretty good day. Not much was stressful about it other than it was unbearably warm during the day. I was wearing tights (as you can see in the photo below) today and I just could not bear it.

 I ended up removing my stockings and buying socks right before hopping on a bus. BAM. Bare legs like a boss--with the nerdiest exercise socks ever to top that awkward look off. :)) Give me easy breezy any day. Also, I've been obsessed with this song by The National called Humiliation: it's so freaking catchy!

 I got my rings around me,

I got baby to pound me.

Tucking Tickets (C&F, Post 1)

Today, I was able to catch a bus that was U-turning--it was empty and I had the luxury of picking my seat. Even if I know it's supposedly bad for you in the case of an accident, I decided to sit in front because I love the view that the bus's big windshield allows; I don't have to choose between the blue tenement houses and pretty abandoned buildings (to my left) and the ocean (to my right). To make up for this "risky move" I chose the side behind the driver so that if my head doesn't (in the hypothetical scenario of a bus accident) go through the windshield, hopefully the driver will try harder to save the side he's on (given that his head is in tact as well). 

There are a lot of things that can ruin a bus ride: some days the conductor is lazy to count on the spot so he doesn't give me my change ASAP which means I can't relax throughout the ride and on some days I'll sit next to someone who will be too touchy-feely or too pushy and their skin against mine will make me want to punch someone the whole hour and a half. There are also days when the bus smells weird or  when there are bugs on the sill--there are days when you get on a crappy liner that gets you where you have to go but offers shit experience. Plus, sometimes I don't get to sit by the window which brings on a bout of claustrophobia. Some days, my phone will run out of battery and I'll have to listen to noisy people talking. Other days, I'll be so tired that I'll fall asleep before the tenement houses and wake up near my stop, which upsets me for a reason I have yet to identify: I don't know why I'm so attached to those damn houses.

Today, there were none of those things. I got my change on time. I was seated by the window--and then some. I didn't fall asleep. The sun was setting as we drove by the ocean. 

Me To Know, You To Make Up

The neglect with which I've been treating this blog is horrible. I feel like I may as well not have it, but I don't feel like that's an option so I'm going to start treating this with more TLC instead. :) 

Today, I decided to take the first outfit post in ages--partly because I found my tripod and also because I had time today. I will try to upload at least twice a week--it's been a real challenge balancing this bit and The Torture Sessions but if there's a will, there's a way!

I'm not sure when, but it was probably when I started shopping online and thrifting (both at thrift stores and overrun stores) that I began to find it unbearable to shop at the mall for clothes. It just seems completely unreasonable to go into a store and buy something for a five times the price of something you could find elsewhere--and everyone'll be wearing that, too. Ick. 

To prove my point, I've decided to outline the prices of everything I post about from now on. Also, please ignore the only strip of colored hair from I attempted to dye my hair Targaryen-blonde. I'll do something about that soon. :))

This entire outfit was bought for under P500. So. Yes. Let's get on with it.

Jack Daniels crop-top: P150 | UM tiangge

a-line skirt: P150 | UM tiangge

gator-skin sneakers: P199.50 | SM Department Store

Project: Room (Found Objects Project)

So, I've been away from this blog for--I'm not going to lie--more than a couple of days because between school, writing, exercising, reading and trying to remain a social being there just hasn't been a lot of time. (I've also had one too many Duck Dynasty marathons, I will admit.) But I'm back on today because I thought I'd share a little project that I've been working on: my room.

For the most part, my idea of "cleaning my room" is making it so that I can find whatever I wanna find, ASAP: which means it's all on the part of the bed that I don't sleep on. But yesterday I figured hey, I'm growing up and I suppose it's time to make my room somewhere that I can get serious work (and working out) done, because there's just so much to do and I can't afford the inefficiency of living like a hoarder anymore. So I cleaned stuff up, moved shit around and hung up a lot of art work and found objects. The only things that I bought were the wall hooks from Daiso and mounting tape from Ace Hardware. :) 

 The white towel on the right-hand side of the photo above is where the door is (the towel is hanging on the knob). I decided to put the coffee table/photo pinboard right by the door so if I'm going, I can grab whatever books I need from the coffee table and if I'm getting in from a busy day, I can get a boost of happy energy from the old photos and the bright painting. 

 This is the view from the door/photo pinboard area. Before yesterday's cleaning time, the middle part of my room was occupied by the coffee table so I didn't ever work out in my room. Now I can work out (see the yoga mat beside the bed?) and study and do pretty much anything I want here. 

As I mentioned, this is a Found Objects project, so I decided to use a lot of old things like broken jewelry, extra book covers and things as decoration. :) Click below to see the wall art, etc. in detail!

Not-So-Quiet Company

I had a really good, tiring day today. My eyes are droopy from reading and my tummy is filled with gas from laughing like crazy for hours, but it was worth it (despite the physics paper I'm cramming, at the moment--evidently, not fast enough as I'm here typing this).

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 Trizha and I hung out at our friend Josel's condo with a couple of other friends because he was having a pizza party--although we ended up leaving before the pizza party, it was still a really good time.

Not much to say since that's really all we did: laugh, read, write (for me), draw (for them), eat, repeat but it what else do you need, really? :)

There Is Comfort In the Sound

Today the sky down south looks like the underside of a comforter when you've just woken up and it's too early to get up so you just lay there and figure out things you know all the time (almost unbearably so) once you're awake like what day it is and where you are and what it is you're supposed to accomplish today. There's thunder rumbling in the distance and I'm waiting for rain. 

I just got back from bringing Keavin to the bus stop and on the drive back home, I felt something shift inside me, like thunder--goodbye, love I said and found myself headed back home so that I could (as on every Sunday) sit on the fence between the languid weekend and the busy weekdays ahead; I'm standing on the edge of the summer and anticipating the new term--new pencils and notebooks and things to fill my head with. The weather seems to reflect all of this; we're transitioning between rain and shine as well. 

 One of the things about trimestral life that always gets to me is how things are always changing so quickly and at the end of every term you find yourself forgetting both your schedule for the past term and every term since so that you feel like you need to get used to your schedule but at the same time can't remember what it is or was exactly, that you'd gotten "used to" in the first place. It's like you're transitioning into something, from nothing. I hate the first day of class more than anything. And so, yes. Tomorrow's going to be another day of trying to normalize.

Photo c/o Keavin Mutuc

That said, I had an exceptionally good weekend and week. Hopefully some of that good juju carries over, whatever "good juju" means. 

Chemical Dependence

I was almost tempted to call this entry "My Chemical Romance" but I don't think I'm ready to live up to that kind of cheese just yet (not that I don't love me some MCR), so yeah. Today I satisfied my need for a lot of things that I'm chemically dependent on.

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 For instance, I ran out of coffee grinds here at home and had to go to a cafe this afternoon with Keavin because I was getting a headache (I suspected) from not having drank any coffee and damn, that was some good shit. I realized today (not that it was too big a realization lol) that my personality is extremely obsessive/addictive and there are days when I just have to get my fix of whatever it is that I'm craving for (coffee, a cigarette, yogurt). 

 Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of restraint as well: I know that you can't get your way all the time and that if you try and get everything you want, every time you want it, you'll end up fucking your life up but you also hold off for too long and you miss out--and then the pain of restraint isn't worth it and kind of defeats itself. I spent today lazing around my house with Keav and watching Duck Dynasty (good show, I swear), then getting some coffee, spending a couple of hours in the bookstore and then heading out for (the very rare) drinkaritas with my girlfriends (and Keav hahaha).

 We hung out at our favorite Pub (with entertaintment that doesn't disappoint--although I've been going there for ages and every time the band doesn't know how to play Don Henley's Heart of the Matter, which I've been requesting for months) and just had a great time catching up. I'm a pretty straight-up rum or wine kind of girl myself, but I must admit: the occasional skinny bitch drink is definitely refreshing.

At the moment, Keav and I are sitting on the living room floor, waiting for Game of Thrones to download. Sleep < Westeros. Aaand there's another battle lost to chemical dependence. I figure, if it's worth it and you don't die, then go do it. Goodnight, folks! I hope this made sense. :))

Kinda Bought A House!

So. As some of ya'll might know, I started up a Tumblr that was supposedly for my writing, but I felt limited by the layout and felt slightly uncomfortable with the reblog format with regard to full-length pieces of work, so I've decided on a compromise: I'll be uploading excerpts on Tumblr which will link to the full-length work over at my new online writing home of the same name: thetorturesessions.com is now live! :) I'm not sure why but putting it up feels like I bought a house or something. Weird. 

Anywho, I feel very comfortable with this arrangement and am sticking to posting up new work every Tuesdays & Fridays. I'll also be announcing cool stuff about events I'll be at this June and stuff I'll be selling, then. :D I hope you guys enjoy!

Also, I've decided that while this blog started out as a Fashion/Beauty type endeavor, I don't really have time to do that stuff anymore so I'm going to be instead focusing on events and more personal things. I will take outfit shots and do reviews from time to time but that'll no longer be the major focus of this blog. So. That's it, pancit!