surprise...surprise

I am now a mother.

Alhamdulillah, Praised be to Allah. There's no greater joy and happiness in the world that could compare to holding a baby, YOUR baby in your arms, to have her tiny little fingers wrapped around your finger, to have her look into your eyes and to hear her coo for the first time.

I guess i'm starting again as i want to remember the fleeting memories of my baby(more of them in the future InsyAllah :) and the urge is strong that i find myself at times thinking about writing those sweet moments of my child.

So, here we go again and i hope i stick around this time.

Let the steam out

You know the phrase 'peer pressure'. For a bride-to-be, b2b, once-a-bride...everyone must have gone through this phase if not chronic than, a mild peer pressure.

Being a bride, we want THE BEST that we can get on one of the most happiest moments in our life.There's engagement, akad nikah, reception and bertandang. Some have the experience to all four events, some three or even two. It doesn't matter how many events we have just as long we have the best we can afford.

Allah s.w.t works mysteriously, some are granted with wealthy parents, some make a fortune early in life, some work very hard to earn their wages and some are content with what they have. This are called Rezeki...and yes it can be changed with doa, hardwork and tawakkal.

That alone can be a topic by itself but i'm not writing this entry to preach.

I'm trying to remind myself that even though i want my happy ending... one of the happiest moment in my life to be perfect(read: perfect as in according to what i want, regardless of cost), i must pull myself back down to earth and knock some sense in my head that is to spent within my means and even if i can afford it, i'll (try to) question myself, what worth does it bring to my happiness.

*Voices in my mind i'm trying to hush*

"Yes, the pelamin will look pretty like this...i just gotta add a couple of thousands...."

"Ooooh! The veil is soooo pretty, tambah sikit duit and you gotta have what you always dreamt off (in a veil)"

"Make up pengantin ni pretty sangat Mashallah...i want it i want it!But it's additional 500rm if i want to book the MUA...patut ke? ke tak patut?"

hehehe...there're a lot more i tell ya. i'll prolly bore you with the details or someone might take me as derailed. But yeah, i'm not 100% successful in this, in telling myself i don't need that extra things. I'm taking baby steps...the most important thing is that, i'm trying.

I'm not saying that you can't have that designer dress...shoes....pelamin and all the works. You can, after all, like i said, it's YOUR day(and your money might i add :) This is just a sole reminder to myself.

Come to think of it... maybe i do need the MUA and to change my veil ;p What worth it'll bring me, you say? Shallow as it may sound, i want to look beautiful! Yeah, beauty is from within and all those words. But still. I want them. I guess these voices are more powerful than my will.

We shall see :)

Part of my list

I've been putting off the idea of jotting down the prep list for my nikah. Been jotting them down in my trusty silver notebook now and then and i carry it everyyyywhere!

I'm gonna have a simple akad nikah so bear in mind that this list covers nikah prep only.

Documentations & Legal Stuff
Kursus Kahwin
HIV Test
Groom's Kebenaran Berkahwin
Bride's forms and stuff

Attire
Modern Kurung
Scarf
Veil
Tiara
Heels

Make-Up etc
MUA
Accessories

Eats & Drinks
Menu
Caterer

Photographer
TBD

Videographer
Booked! Deposit to be paid.

Deco
Mini Pelamin - meet up this Saturday -

Hantaran
DIY

Bride & Groom Sanctuary(ceh.padahal bilik pengantin je.hehe)
bedding set
new curtains
deco

Fresh Flowers
to be ordered by Saturday after meet-ups with the pelamin decorator.

Hand bouquet
DIY

Ohemgee. i hope i can strike it all of at least a week before the nikah!Good Luck to me!!!

The Egg White Mask

Here's a simple and economical mask that i tried and recommend!!!

THE EGG WHITE MASK

How many of you knows about it? Tried it before? Someone 'reminded' me about this last week and it suddenly clicked that i saw my kakak applied this before. SO, If you haven't try this out than this is the time to do it. It's cheap and so easy to prepare and apply besides you won't have any break out as the side effect.

Here's MY TAKE on this after 1st time application(after eons of years since i last applied it) :

Skin Condition : Combination(oily T Zone/dry the-other zone), few acne marks, few chicken pox marks(just got them last month :s), oh and blackheads.

My How-To :

1. Washed the egg and I broke it gently by hitting at the sides with a spoon. Once there's an opening, i cracked it open with my fingers.

2. I then separate the egg whites and the egg yolk by putting the egg white in a small bowl.

3. I wash my hands and put on some sanitizer! *kebersihan itu penting!*

4. I use my hands to spread the egg whites all over my face excluding the eye area.

5. Halfway, i put strips on tissue paper on top of my slimy-with-egg-whites face and put on more egg whites on top of the tissue.

6. Wanted to wait until it dries off but was too sleepy to wait so i rinsed it off at half-an hour after applying.

7. Too sleepy so i just hit the bed and did not apply any toner/moisturiser after cleansing *This is a must to further seal off your pores*

Pros : Skin feels firmer and softer, looks brighter and reduce oiliness.
Cons : Slimy(hehe), didn't see improvement on the blackheads.

My Review:

I am 'blessed' with a combination skin, meaning some parts of my skin can be dehydrated, some oily and occasional breakout. It was an immediate effect on me! The skin feels softer and supple to touch, looks brighter and there's a bit of a glow to it and as i went out the day after, my skin did not pump out oil like a petrol station. Of course lah, ada sikit oily but at least i wasn't shining like a beacon!

However, it's a lil bit slimy la masa nak apply so i'd buy a brush and just brush it on my face the next time. I was expecting a 'fishy' smell but tak ada pun bau. yay! And i thought it would pull my blackheads out when i wash it off but nope, no improvement on my blackheads. Maybe because i didn't wait until it dries off.

Also, i'll keep this in mind that the next time, i would only apply to the oily areas. Since it'll make my skin tad drier. It's good if it can reduce pore size and hence control oil 'spillage' onto my skin. But not so good lah if my dehydated part lagi bertambah dry.

Since it's all natural so there'd be no breakouts InsyAllah as long as you obey the hygienic rule. Clean the egg AND your hands thoroughly! If ada sanitizer, than sanitize dulu. Now you can try this easy-peasy and purse-friendly beauty tip! :)

The Veil

Last weekend, i went to Shah Alam to FINALLY meet this highly sought after designer. She's very much in demand that her schedule is already full for this year since last year! Crazy! I stumbled upon her blog last year and immediately emailed her. Obviously to curahkan my isi hati to donned her creation on my wedding day which at that time tak tau bila pun aku nak kahwin. She replied saying she's already full until march this year so and adviced me to mail her back when i've a date ready.

This year, when the date has been picked, i immediately sent her a fb message. I befriended her thru FB,silently 'stalking' her latest baju(oh cantik gila nak nangis). At first i kinda waited for her reply. Kejap2 bukak fb tgk dia reply ke tak...but after 2 or 3 days, i gave up. Knowing that she must be extremely busy. I was a lil bit sad lah at first tapi i take it as it's not my rezeki.

Anyway, just recently she replied!!!! I was so happy i did a Tom Cruise i.e. jumped-on-the-couch thingie-on-Oprah. She apologizes for the long-lost reply and for not having the time to make my baju...i replied saying it's ok, i loved her baju still, she replied back immediately saying thanks, she loved me too(eh?! ni tipu hehe).

I know she's busy but i tried my luck in asking whether she'll be able to make a veil for me. SHE SAID YES!! Terus buat appointment, and jumpa dia last weekend! She's so nice and friendly...and giggly.

The thing is i already have a veil. A week before she replied my msg, i went ahead and bought a ready-made veil in Jln Tar. It's RM50. So , yeah...sayang la pulak. Tapi at the same time, i really really like her work, so my hati went "Takpe!! since you suka dia sangat and she can do the veil and than GO AHEAD!!" but my thoughts were like 'tapi dah belikan...rugi la tak pakai'. Obviously, i ikut hati lah sebab i pergi jugak jumpa dia.hehe.

The ready made veil is mid-length i guess...it falls at half thigh, made with net with beads as the border of the veil. Nak beli veil tu pun kena pilih2 because they campur the kinds yang soft and kejong type. If you tak pilih properly, you might end up with the kejong type and you'll look like a samosa on your wedding day. Tanak kan?So do i.hehe

So, she suggested to just use it since i dah beli and she'll patch laces to match my baju! Setel.

TAPI yesterday i saw this veil. It's prettyyyyy. Macam nak tukar design la pulak. But then kene spend some more to buy the net and lace.

via here

hurm...decisions...decisions....

Day 1

Last year, around this hour...i was dropped dead tired, asleep on the bed with a big happy smile smacked on my face. Of course la, it ended soon after i smelt something weird. Turns out my lil nephew left his 'custom' bantal busuk near my pillow. -_-

But i just pushed it aside and continued my smile until i fall into dead sleep and dream of MY dream wedding. Baru nak sampai part best...*knock on the door!!!* "Sha! bangun!! dah subuh!!!"

So, anyway, i was engaged the day before!!! Itu je nak cerita pun. hehehe...

My Akad Nikah will take place in 34 days. THIRTY FOUR DAYS! *breaks into sweat now...deep breath...and repeat*

With the start of this blog, i hope to document my journey from anak dara days to isteri orang days. The journey includes excited-ing over wedding dress, makeups, pretty deco things, dais, anxious-ing over 'ka-ching', boleh-ke-orang-ni-buat-macam-yang-aku-nak...and all those rants, whine, wants and needs...you get the picture la kan? AND The days are numbered down to 3-4....THIRTY FOUR! *breaks into sweat now...deep breath...and repeat*

On a much happier note, here's the lovebirds goofing around on their Engagement day. Anak siapa la ni? ;p