Lucia, Lucia

Today I am going to do a book review :) about 'Lucia, Lucia', a novel that is written by Adriana Trigiani, the author of the 'Big Stone Gap' series.

    

Um... I think this is the best love stories I have ever read actually. :)    Some people don't really like it because it sets place in the 1950s America and this is quite old-fashioned. >< (The fact that I am very old-fashioned is exposed.... XP)    I suddenly decide to write a review of it because I need a book to do my 'hot seat' in my ESB exam. ><''    I didn't want to use this book at first but later I decided to use it because I knew it really well. :D

I read this book last year because my school had a 'Big Read' program for us and we needed to choose a book to read.    I chose it because I am obsessed with love stories (especially Chinese ones). XP   It has around 300 pages and the first chapter is quite boring indeed.    However, as I started to read the story of Lucia, the main girl character in the book, I fall in love with this book and I keep crying when I read it - the story was really sad. :'(

Here is the brief summary of the book.    Lucia Sartori was a clever and ambitious girl.    She had a decent, well-paid job and was always followed by a herd of followers since she was the most beautiful girl in the area she's living in. XD   Lucia also had a fiancé whose name was Dante DeMartino (very very handsome *.*) and belonged to the best Italian family in New York.  She however decisively broke their engagement when she knew that she couldn't go to work anymore after their marriage (even though Dante loved her very much :( ).    Lucia met a mysterious and attractive man who called John Talbot later on and she fell for him desperately at first sight.    However, the arrival of John actually brought miseries and problems to Lucia and her family and an unexpected and horrible secret of him was revealed.

The reason I am recommending this book to you is that the story is very touching.    You can feel the same feelings as Lucia does because the author's words are so powerful.    The book contains a lot of 'hopes' of a young girl too, for example her desires of being financial independent, having the same freedoms as men do and meeting her 'prince charming'.    The story also shows the contrast between the reality and her dreams, as many of her 'hopes' will definitely not come true. :'(    The story mentions about the relationships between families and friends as well and also the problems encountered, when you need to accept a new family member.    It's a very good book (although my summary of the book is not very attractive) and I hope you guys will have a chance to read it. ^ ^

Um...this is the end of my post today!  Please feel free to leave your comments below and see you next time! :DDD

My last presents review

><  Finally, this is my last present review!!!  Thank you for looking at my posts :D and please continue to support me! >///<  Today, I want to introduce these presents to you... 

1. CK eye shadow and lip gloss!!!

 This set of present is given by Jasmine to me... she is an expert in cosmetic stuff.  :3

This is the CK Tempting Glimmer Sheer Creme eye shadow, #302 sheer nectar.   It has a brown-purple colour and the colour shows quite well when you wear it. :3    It is really creamy, very easy to use and suits people like me who doesn't know much about make up...  ><   There are also some shimmer inside this eye shadow. *.*

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This is the CK Tempting Glance eye shadow, #124 myrrh.    Unlike the one above, this eye shadow has a pure brown colour.    It's relatively powdery compare to the one above and also has a solid and intense colour.    Again, it contains some shimmer as well and Jasmine, you really understand me! (I really like sparkling stuff XD) 

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 This is the CK Delicious Pout Flavored Lip Gloss, #420 breathless.   It's a very sweet lip gloss - the colour is sweet and the flavour is really sweet!  XDD I like it!   I like the design too and this lip gloss seems quite elegant. XP    The colour is not as pink as the colour shown in the photo when you put it on; it's very natural and soft. :D

The order is (from left to right) Tempting Glimmer Sheer Creme eye shadow, #302 sheer nectar -> Tempting Glance eye shadow, #124 myrrh -> Delicious Pout Flavored Lip Gloss, #420 breathless. :)   

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The second one is...

This is the Crabtree & Evelyn Nantucket Briar hand therapy.    My friend who brought me the nail polishes gave this to me.    This was what happened:

One day, at break time...

Me: Wu... my hand is sooo try....... so painful..... wuu......

Baku (her name... of course it’s only a nickname XD) : Aiyo you can use mine!

Um... just take it! I have two of it!  (The other one has a lavender flavour. :3)

:DDD Thanks~

This hand cream is quite good and is quite moisturizing.    The smell is nice too and it is said that the flavor is 'a blend of briar roses, bergamot, fresh greens, amber and vanilla' on the advertisement.  (XP I actually didn't realize there is so much fragrance.)  Anyway, it's a nice and lovely hand cream. :)

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This is the end of my post.... thank you for reading it.    I will start a new topic next time and hope you guys will like it.  :)    Best regards to all of you. <3

Sheep, Food & Music

Haha~ I am still introducing my presents!!!  XPP  The first one I want to introduce this time is...

 THIS!!! <3

Resting on a comfortable bed... ~.~

 Isn't this sheep soooo cute?  This is a hand-made present from my cousin and is made of cotton.    Some people say it really looks like Shaun the sheep but I think this one looks cuter!! >///<  I haven't decided what does it calls yet and if you guys have any ideas, please tell me!!! :DDD   Thank you so much my cousin, I receive the warm greeting and blessing from you!!! <3  I really really like it and I think I will put some photo of it on my blog later on. :)

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The second one is.....

<3

This is a pair of indoors boots brought by my friend for me. :D She says it just looks like a 'sheep feet' when I wear it! XD  It's really comfortable and soft and the colour is quite nice too.    There're two really fluffy balls attached to the boots and they are really adorable too. <3  I will definitely wear it in my boarding house if the weather gets colder. :DDD

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And the third one...

This is a box of chocolate that calls 'Nestle Quality Street' and is also one of my presents. :D  It actually tastes quite nice (yum yum...) and there are 12 flavours of chocolate inside.    *.* Um... I think may be I will buy this chocolate box when I go to the supermarket next time. XP

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In fact, apart from introducing my presents, I also want to show you a video...

Um... I don't know why the link seems a bit odd.... ><"""" -.-'''  Anyway, this video is about this song 'Le carnaval des animaux' (The Carnival of the Animals) and is where I get the idea of this blog's title from!   The video clip is veeerrry loooong and if you are interested in classical music, please feel free to watch it. :D    This suite is actually very cute as it uses the sounds of different music instruments to represent the animal voices.  The order is like this:

1. Introduction and royal march of the lion ~ 2 Pianos & Strings

2. Hens and roosters ~ 2 pianos, Bb clarinet (the instrument I play :D), violins & violas

3. Wild asses; quick animals ~ 2 pianos

4. Tortoises ~ Piano & Strings

5. The elephants ~ Double-bass and piano

6. Kangaroos ~ 2 pianos

7. Aquarium ~ Strings without double-bass, 2 pianos, flute, glockenspiel & glass harmonica

8. Characters with long ears ~ 2 violins

9. The cuckoo in the depths of the woods ~ 2 pianos & Bb clarinet

10. Aviary ~ Strings, piano and flute

11. Pianists ~ 2 Pianos & Strings

12. Fossils ~ Strings, two pianos, Bb clarinet & xylophone

13. The swan ~ 2 pianos and cello

14. Finale ~ full ensemble

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Well, this is the end of this article!  Hope you have enjoyed reading my blog and see you next time! :DD

UNT nail polish

Waaaa~ so many nail polishes.... XPP   Well, sadly, they are not all of mine and can you guess which ones belong to me? ;)   I am going to do an overview of nail polishes from a Taiwan brand which calls UNT today. :)     These nail polishes are said to be acetone and formaldehyde free (even pregnant women can use it :O)  and I am very interested in this brand :3 so I ask my friend to buy this for me as a birthday present.    We brought it online together so we end up having many nail polishes. XDD

These are the top coat and base coat I am using.    They are both from Eveline and the base coat (the left one) is really good. :D    It actually calls 'diamond hard and shine nails' and it really strengthens your nails and prevents your nails from turning yellow.    Another reason I really like it is that it's really cheap.    When I brought this in Hong Kong, it was only £2-3!!!  I was very satisfied with its quality and therefore I also brought the top coat from Eveline.    I can't remember how much was it but it was also really cheap and it worked well too.   This top coat is thicker than normal nail polishes so it makes the nails looks very shiny and it can last for a week (only with very little chippings). :)

Cheap price, but with an excellent quality!  The brush is very easy to use too. :3

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Well, I have to admit the fact that I was attracted by the fabulous advertisements of this brand.    The Chinese adverts were especially good so I will also put the Chinese names and adverts of these polishes out.

I will first compare the light colours and then the dark colours. :)   If you want to know the order, it's shown in the first photo and is from left to right.

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NL010 ~ from 'The nutty love chronicles' - 愛的小發癲事件簿系列

PANIC ~ 心慌 

You are like a ring missing its finger whenever I'm not in sight.

我一走出你的視線，你就像戒指遺失了手指。

The look of this nail polish! 

The back of it!

The bottom where it shows its number!

This is a warm and pale pink colour and is beloved by my friend, who brought me these nail polishes!  This colour would make your fingers look clean and tidy XD if you put it on.    The only bad thing of it is that this colour would make your skin look darker if you have a tan or yellow skin tone.  But anyway, it's a cute colour and would attract many people who really like pale and light pink nail polishes! 

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LJ035 ~ from 'Gem of caprice' - 慾望珠寶系列

HEPBURN ~ 赫本

I had breakfast at Tiffany's on Monday, a Roman holiday on Tuesday; a Hepburn in me all week.

星期一是第凡內早餐、星期二是羅馬假期、我整個禮拜都是赫本。

This is a very good colour and I think it is the most popular UNT nail polish! :3    It is actually a nude colour so people wouldn't really realize it even though you put it on!!    However, this nail polish would make your hand look really elegant if you wear it and it's very suitable for wearing to school or to work (looks decent : >) !     The real colour actually looked lighter than the colour in this photo... sorry that the lighting wasn't very good. ><

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LJ035 ~ from 'Gem of caprice' - 慾望珠寶系列

Socialite ~ 豪門

Studies have shown that 98% of the lucky ones (girls who marry rich husbands) own at least 3 bottles of this colour.

傳說中，好命貴婦們最愛的幸運色！

This nail polish is one of my favorites! <3    It has a peachy pink colour and it captures my heart in just a second because I really like pink colour! :3  It also looks good if I only put one layer on and can be used in French nail art as the base colour (the colour is quite light actually).    >< Although some people think this colour only suits the people with fairy skin, I think it looks good on other skin tone as well because it actually has the colour of sweets!! :D   There are also some tiny sparkles inside this nail polish too and they makes this colour looks really unique and delicate. >///< :)

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NL015 ~ from 'The nutty love chronicles' - 愛的小發癲事件簿系列

TAG ~ 可愛的惡魔

Tag, you're it! Why am I always the first one you're after?

為何你當鬼的時候，總是第一個抓到我？

This is another nude colour nail polish and it's actually a bit different with LJ035.  (This will be explained in the following paragraphs!)   It looks good as well and some people would really like this colour because it is really creamy.    It actually has a milk tea colour and is quite popular among teenagers (also because of its name XD).

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Well, I will first compare these four colours as they are warm and light colours. :)

In fact, if you look carefully into the photo, you can see there are two nail polish designs.    Two of the nail polishes are taller and two of them are shorter.     It's because UNT redesigned their nail polish bottle and changed the layout of it.    The shorter one is the old design and the taller one, also with the brand UNT on, is the new design.

The biggest difference between the new and old nail polishes is that the brush is different.    From the photo above, we can see that the new brush (the top one) is longer and bigger than the old brush (the bottom one).    Some people find it's easier to use the new brush but some people don't like using it.    I personally prefer the new brush because you only need to do one stroke for each nail using it. XD :P

Another comparison of the two brushes. :)

Well, it's time to compare these two nude colours - NL015 (the left one) & LJ035 (the right one)!!!  Let's look at the photos! :D

The main difference between them is that NL015 has a reddish brown colour while LJ035 has a light brown colour.    LJ035 also have tiny sparkles while NL015 doesn't have. :3

Can you see the sparkles? :)

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Let's return to the comparison of the four nail polish colours! :)  Here is a photo to remind you what colours we are looking at:

The order of them is (from left to right) NL010, LJ025, LJ035 & NL015. :3

Um... these colours are quite close to the real colours actually... :) except that NJ010 should be pinker in real life. ><"""  Please forgive me that the quality of the photos is not very good. :(

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Anyway, let's compare the dark colours! ^ ^

The first one is...

NL060 ~ from 'The nutty love chronicles' - 愛的小發癲事件簿系列

ME ~ 這樣的我

Like a hot apple pie straight out if the oven.    That's how much you like me.

你會多喜歡這樣的我？像剛出爐的蘋果派10秒內被吃掉那麼喜歡？(燙)

Can you see the sparkles?? <3  This is the other colour that I really like because it looks like chocolate milkshake when you put it on!!! (Why am I always comparing things with food? ><"")   This colour is actually quite common but the sparkles makes it become very special.    Another good thing of this colour is that it would make your skin colour look lighter! ^ ^

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NL070 ~ from 'The nutty love chronicles' - 愛的小發癲事件簿系列

THUNDER SHOWER ~ 一場雷陣雨

I'm the shower and you're the rain.    Apart form you, there's no meaning to my existence.

我以為我是個少女在等雨停。結果我是那把傘，你是一場雨，讓一切都變得有意義。

This colour is called 'Turkish blue' by some people and it's very cute.    To me, I think this colour is - sorry, I really can't stop comparing them with food XP - macaron blue!!!!!!!!!  It's a very bright colour and everyone would notice when you wear it! * . *    I think it is also a trendy colour and surprisingly, it can actually match with NL010, the pale pink nail polish. ;D

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NL075 ~ from 'The nutty love chronicles' - 愛的小發癲事件簿系列

SUMMER CHRISTMAS ~ 夏天的聖誕樹

Remember that Christmas when we met?    That Christmas tree in the forest told me this was forever.

就像12月遇見耶誕節，我遇見你。在我們的森林裡，有一顆夏天的耶誕樹。

This is called Tiffany green!  Some people think it is just like the colour of Tiffany & Co. but I think the colour of it is actually a bit lighter. >:<  Anyway, this is another lovely colour and people who is obsessed with bright green colour would definitely buy it. :D  The advert is also really cute and I feel that I am being tempted by it to buy this colour. XD

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Well, let see the differences between NL070 and NL075 as they look sooo similar. XD

The one on the left is NL070 and the one on the right is NL075.    We can see that actually NL075 is greener and darker than NL070 and NL070 is really, a bright blue colour.    NL075 is a bit yellowish too. :3

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Let's look at the comparison of these three colours!! :D   This would be the last comparison so... ENJOY! :)

The order is (from left to right) NL060, NL075 & NL070.

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This overview is finally finished!!!!    It actually took me two day to write it.... ><   Hope you enjoy reading my blog and please tell me which colour you like the most!    See you next time! :D