Hair Today, Gone in 60 mins

I only let competent (and of course, real) dermatologists work on my skin, who touches yours?  

I first heard about Clarity when my friend back in ANC recommended it since I needed a go-to doctor in case my allergies decide to attack my skin. (My go-to doctor's on a 2-year study thing in Japan). But I never got to try it (since I hadn't had a skin emergency since my doctor left) until Lhara of PRCinc asked me to review Clarity for OK! magazine.

I chose the laser hair removal since I'm too scared to try anything that requires puncturing my skin. I meant what I said on my first review and now that I'm paying for succeeding treatments, I stand by what I said about the procedure.

After the first treatment, only half of my leg hair came back. I used to wax, but I noticed whenever I get goosebumps, even if it was just a day after I waxed, the hair would come back - that wasn't the case with the laser hair removal. I purposely waited more than a month to see how much hair would grow back after the treatment.

But what I cannot believe is that I was still scared the second time around. Dr. Haidee did try to chat me up to take my mind off the procedure, which is generally painless but parts that are closer to the bone would hurt a bit, but I'm ridiculously scared I don't know why. The pain, if any, would sting for like a second. If you're used to experimenting for vanity's sake, this shouldn't be a big deal for you.


Michellan rating for Clarity's Laser Hair Removal:

A bit pricey, at about 20,000 for the full leg, but the fact that you can be totally hair-free in a few sessions, I think it's worth it. I was also told they used a different machine, so I guess that's the reason why my leg hair hardly grew back.


- Kristine

Goodbye VPL!

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If you've never met a figure hugging dress you didn't love (oh me me meee!!!) then HerLook's Commando line is your best bet. Click this link to find out more because I don't want to photograph my own underwear collection.

This Hollywood favourite is available locally at Rustan's at about 1300php for the thong and the almost 2000php for the Cover Your Ass kind. (Go with the thong).

I think Emma Watson was wearing the Cover Your Ass kind when she had a wardrobe malfunction at the London premier of Harry Potter 6.



Michellan rating for HerLook's Commando line:

Invest on neutral colours such as black, white and nude.

- Kristine

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Even with all the tough times we've been through this year, we still have something to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.



Love,

Michelle & Kristine

Gobble Gobble!

Merry Cranberry!
Originally uploaded by themichellanguide

I know this is The Body Shop's signature Christmas line but I've always associated cranberries with Thanksgiving...
and my aunt who tries different diets all the time (you name it, she's done it!). I think cranberry juice is a figure-friendly juice, but I digress.

Anyway, the lovely Body Shop ladies sent me the whole line while I was working on a magazine's annual gift guide. (Thank you very much, you guys!)

The Cranberry line had that yummy berry scent, unlike those headache-inducing "fruit" scents of drugstore brands and even with its scent, it doesn't smell like you're wearing food.

Use the lotion, with just right consistency - not watery like most supermarket brands, for warmer days. But if you're headed to colder places or if the Siberian winds come visit us (Please do!), switch to the body butter.

If you don't like fruity scents, you can try the Nutmeg and Vanilla line, which I also love.

Michellan Rating for The Body Shop's Merry Cranberry line:
Reasonably priced products made with fairly-traded ingredients, 'nuff said.

- Kristine

2012

Yet another in the long line of disaster movies in the vein of Deep Impact and The Day After Tomorrow. 2012  centers around the idea that the world as we know it will end in 2012, as predicted by the ancient Mayans.

The first thing I'm going to nitpick is the fact that the movie's reference to the infamous Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar date is so slight, that they may as well have named the movie Solar Flare Survival or The Day the Poles Shifted or Microwave: Earth! (okay fine, those titles aren't as catchy but you know what I'm getting at). The second thing (and this is for disaster movies in general, really) is that this movie depicts the Vatican, the Christ the Redeemer Statue in Brazil, and a Buddhist temple being destroyed. In the spirit of equality, I would like to see a disaster movie where other major religious sites are wrecked, like the Meenakshi Temple or something.

The visual and sound effects are great. The CG is so good in fact, that it feels like the writers just sat down and said "You know what, that wave effect looks awesome. Let's not think of a coherent storyline anymore - let's just build one around the effects!". However, my husband thinks that it failed to reach the "epic" effect found in the best disaster movies, because it felt too digital, and had a 'made for TV movie' effect. "Parang video cam yun ginamit," he commented. Turns out they did use a video camera instead of a film camera (The Panasonic Genesis HD Camera or something). I didn't notice until he pointed it out, so normal moviegoers probably won't notice either (production and post-prod people might though).

Oh yes, the story. Well... hm. I wasn't expecting a complex or thought-provoking story, and like I said, it's a movie that basically showcases the wonders of CG. The most meaningful thing I can say is that the story lacked heart. As the world was falling apart, I wanted to feel something for the characters - empathy, affection, anger, pity, anything. But I couldn't because the characters:

1. Were two-dimensional/stereotypical
2. Didn't get enough screen time for me to form a bond with them, or 
3. Felt too deus ex machina-ish (like Woody Harrelson's character).

It's a shame about #2, because the movie was pretty long. I could talk more about the movie's flaws, but ultimately, I admit that 2012 was an entertaining movie. I didn't have to think much, and I like seeing roads getting ripped apart and buildings crashing.

Michellan Rating for 2012:

Watch it in the cinema once, with friends. Don't bother with the DVD unless you have a kickass home theater where you can relive the end of the world on Blu-Ray.

- Michelle

Very Berry Dissapointing

Very Berry Dissapointing
Originally uploaded by themichellanguide

I wanna know what Selecta meant by "generous" because 6 Baguio (read: miniscule) strawberries in an 800ml tub doesn't count as generous, at least for me.

But then why am I surprised, I remembered when this ice cream came out a few months (?) back, I wondered how long will it take for this to devolve into pink-coloured vanilla ice cream.

OK, so i can still taste the "strawberry purée" in the ice cream but I still want more strawberry bits in there. At 160/800ml it's not so bad, I mean, for that price that's like a scoop at Haagen Daaz, so I don't completely hate Selecta's Very Berry (?) Strawberry. It's not completely pink-coloured vanilla yet so grab one now while it still tastes (somewhat) like strawberry.

I still prefer Haagen's strawberry ice cream though, even with the ridiculous prices (let's all blame the taxes) just cos I get strawberry bits in every scoop, with Selecta's I went through a third of the tub before finding the real fruit.

Michellan rating for Selecta Very Berry Strawberry:

Get this if you don't want to spend obscene amounts of money for you ice cream - it's almost as good as Haagen Daz's strawberry ice cream, but not as good.

- Kristine

Buh-Bye Nasties

VMV Hand Sanitizer
Originally uploaded by themichellanguide

My friends all know I'm OC and I love baby products (because that means it's safe enough for me), so I was glad I found VMV Hypoallergenics Kid Gloves Hand Sanitizer (about 450php for the 75 ml bottle, and 750php for the 200ml bottle). Not only is it anti-bacterial, but it's also anti-fungal, anti-yeast and all other nasties.

I use this as, of course, a hand sanitizer to disinfect my hands or my toes when some idiot steps on it. But one time my cousin got this red patch on his ear and it was driving him nuts 'cos it was itchy as hell. So I thought I'd test all these anti-whatever and dabbed a bit of the sanitizer on his ear, it did sting (the literature did warn me). Sorry, Mig, but the you gotta admit the itch was gone as soon as the sting wore off.

Now if only this sanitizer would also get rid of toxic guys...

Michellan rating for VMV Hypoallergenics Kid Gloves Hand Sanitizer: 

The price is pretty steep for a sanitizer, but the fact that this sanitizer can kill all other nasties and still be safe enough for babies - that is a great product for me.
- Kristine

The Skinny on The Michellan Guide...

Hello everyone! We've decided to create a blog because we've been disappointed one too many times with the reviews we've read online or otherwise. We also felt that some reviews insult our intelligence and some are just downright press release. That is not to say we don't (sometimes) make irrational choices, but we promise we'll let you know if you can't figure it out yourself.

Cheers,

Michelle & Kristine