Gino's Brick Oven Pizza

I've finally been able to try Gino's Brick Oven Pizza at Podium Mall!

Gino's Brick Oven Pizza

I've been curious about this restaurant ever since C recommended it, but I've only been able to try it recently. So far I was able to try the following:

SMEGG, P420

 A pizza composed of sausage, mushroom, egg, gouda and cream. Very good by itself but I think it works better with their Spicy Honey.

Salted Egg, P190

Salty, delicious and interesting. I'd try this again.

BOMB, P420

Balsamic onions, mushroom, blue cheese. My favorite pizza of the night. The mushrooms had just the right level of sweetness and the blue cheese complemented nicely.

Aglio Olio Pasta, P170

A bit too heavy on the olive oil, probably wouldn't order again.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza, P395

Tomato sauce, mozzarella, buffalo chicken, blue cheese. A lot of my companions loved this, and I liked it too (especially with the super generous mozarella serving). It was a bit too spicy for me though.

I loved the pizzas I've tried and would probably return for the same or other varieties. Each pizza is sliced into 6 generous slices, and I'd honestly be able to put away half a pizza because of how good it is.

Something to try is the dalandan pitcher for P170 because it's pretty rare to find in a restaurant. It's pretty sweet and the pitcher serves around 6, diluted in ice.

Gino's has pretty great value for pretty good pizza. Service was decent, and the place looked well enough with metal and wood furnishings. The only problem I had was the prevalence of backless chairs, which could be replaced with normal dining chairs.

I highly recommend this place.

DIY Hair Bleach Hortaleza Professional

Before you start DIY Hair Bleaching, you should either know what you're doing or accept whatever mistakes you make. Color correction is expensive and you're better off going to a salon if you aren't willing to laugh at and live with your mistakes. There are some great, inexpensive salons out there and vouchers are available for some others. If you still want to try DIYing your hair bleaching, then continue.

You will need:

1) Bleach Powder - Hortaleza Professional Hair Bleach Powder (below)

2) Developer - Hortaleza Oxidizing Lotion 12% (below)

3) Tinting Brush - brand forgotten (unknown)

4) Non-metal Bowl - repurposed Victoria's Secret Body Butter tub

5) Gloves - I used latex gloves, but vinyl prefereed

6) Clamps - not pictured

7) Shampoo - not pictured

In addition, I'd recommend having:

1) Hair treatment - Cream Silk Hair Treatment (a remnant of years ago before a packaging change, maybe I should review this in the future)

2) Cape - I recycled the capelet from the Richenna Bubble Dye set. Also, use the grottiest clothes you own while doing this.

3) Detachable showerhead - makes clean-up easy

4) Good ventilation - to get rid of that ammonia-bleach parlor smell

5) Friend - to help with the hard to reach areas

Get all your things ready. Make sure to prepare your bathroom by taking out anything that you don't want bleached or laying out newspapers to catch anything as you would by dyeing.

Put on gloves and mix your bleach powder and developer. The Hortaleza Professional Hair Bleach Powder is a blue tinted powder, though it can't be seen well in the picture. Empty a single packet for short hair reaching around chin level. You'll need more for longer hair.

Hortaleza Professional Hair Bleach Powder

Make sure you have your ventilators on as you add the developer with a 1:1 ratio.  I used the 12% because I have very dark hair. Mix with the tint brush.

Hortaleza Professional Hair Bleaching Powder + Oxidizing Lotion 12%

Use the tint brush to apply on hair. Ideally, you'll have person help you reach the back areas, else you might miss areas of your head. Apply around an inch from your scalp, using clamps to segment your hair. Go back for the roots after 15 minutes.

I followed the instructions on the back of the packet, but realized the time wasn't long enough to bleach my oily roots. It's better to judge by the color - I removed mine once I saw lightening at the roots by rinsing until the water ran from blue to clear, and then shampooing once. The bleaching process turns your hair into straw so make sure to use a good hair treatment both immediately after and the weeks to come.

The Hortaleza Professional Hair Bleaching Powder and Oxidizing Lotion bleaches well. Unfortunately, it does this by damaging hair and your sense of smell. If you don't mind the hassle, the set cots less than P200.

Vaseline Itch & Dandruff Free Milk Nutrient Shampoo

I'd never thought I'd end up reviewing something like this, but this shampoo was a pleasant surprise. This caught my eye as I was looking for an anti-dandruff shampoo. I'd gotten tired of the most popular options here in the Philippines, Head and Shoulders and Guard, and this one caught my eye for the "New!" tag it had on its bottle.

I've forgotten how much this costs, but it was less than P200 for a 275ml bottle. As shown in the cover, it's meant to be a family shampoo and has a gender neutral, but distinctively strong Vaseline scent. I like the strong fragrance in this weather because it doesn't fade and doesn't turn rank or "amoy araw" due to the heat.

It also does what it's meant to do, after 1-2 weeks of 4x week of use , I was 100% itch and dandruff free. As with most OTC shampoos, zinc was the active ingredient responsible for it.

If you have dandruff and live in the tropics, and don't mind the strong scent, I'd recommend you give this a try.

Nestea Red Tea

It's been a long couple of weeks, and I haven't been blogging because of everything that's been happening in my life. For now, I just want to make a quick post about my favorite powdered drink, Nestea's Red Tea -  a limited edition drink whose run has ended quite suddenly.

Summer Powdered Drinks

Pictured above Nestea Honey Tea, Tang Apple, Tang Four Seasons, Nestea Red Tea Sachet Packs

For the past few months, I bought this by the sachet, each sachet giving one liter of sugary goodness with a taste of raspberry. Unfortunately, I thought it would run through summer and failed to hoard enough to last me through it.

It is now no longer available in my grocery, replaced by a honey flavor (backmost in the picture).

I'd really like to know if anyone knows where to find the last of this goodness.

Rexona: Whitening Deodorant

Rexona's whitening deoderant promises lighter underarms in two weeks. While I was unable to see this effect, Rexona still didn't let me down as an anti-perspirant/deodorant.

It's active ingredient is aluminum chlorhydrate, second after water. While it does contain sunflower oil, ranked fourth after glycerin, and licorice root extract as the final ingredient, I was unable to appreciate any whitening capabilities.

The scent is on the sporty side, though not as intense as Skin White's deodorant. While I rank its antiperspirant capabilities as good, lasting around 24 hours of the 48 hour claim, the deodorizing capability is much weaker lasting 10-12 hours.

In other words, it's good at keeping the area dry, but not so good at keeping it stink free. If your problem is simple sweatiness, I'd recommend this product.

I probably would like to try other products, since I'm looking for an HG underarm product, but this is a good anti-perspirant/deodorant at an even better price point.

Saizen Instant Noodles

The country is crazy about ramen. Unfortunately, there few sources of ramen that can be considered both good and affordable. One of the best instant noodles I've tried is from Nissin and are found in Daiso/Saizen Japan. I bought these when they were 70% off and about to go off but they retail for P88 normally.

This is the   noodle bowl I'm talking about. Each cooks for around 3 minutes, use 420 ml of water and contain a whopping 497 Cals. The red one comes with a little tempura piece and a spice packet set. To make, put 420 ml of boiling water in the bowl along with the bigger half of the spice packet (the one on top of the fork).

I love the Nissin soba noodles because they both look and taste good. I like it more than the ones at Family Mart, and for around the same price. After three minutes, you should see the results below:

They look great, and taste quite differently from local instant noodles. It's not quite as good as the real thing but the price and energy value is quite nice.

Add the tempura piece and the smaller half of the spice packet:

Eat and enjoy!

Saizen Natural Pack (Charcoal Mask)

If you've used this tube, you've been a fan of the Saizen Natural Pack mask since it was launched! This is such a late post, but I've deferred blogging about this mask until I finished the last of my stash. The current packaging is a bit fatter, but it's the same product. This product costs P88 at Saizen, and while I've seen it go out of stock, I've never seen it go on sale.  

Saizen Natural Pack (Charcoal Mask)

The Saizen charcoal mask is a black peel-off mask to be used after cleansing. Each tube will last 5-7 applications, depending on how generous you are. I like to use a lot of product because it makes it easier for me to peel off. However, this method insures a longer drying time of around 25-30 minutes. Alternatively, use only and the nose and have a 15-20 minute drying time!

I've tried to take it off in the middle of drying, and it's very difficult to clean off with make-up remover and impossible with cleanser. Make sure you're ready for at least 30 minutes of a black face with limited mobility!

I've found that it's possible to peel off this mask in one piece. It is a bit difficult, but you can just roll the peeled off mask into a ball and dab on those missed pieces. Peeling isn't painful but may be uncomfortable as I've found it to be on the adherent side.

Afterwards, skin feels clean and on the tight side with some dirt/whiteheads visible on the mask. This won't work miracles but it's a good weekly maintenance mask. Make sure to use a non-comedogenic moisturizer afterwards for best results.

I've gone through 3 bottles of this product and I'm contemplating getting another if I can't find anything that catches my eye soon.

April Empties: Watsons Hand Soap Refills and Herbal Essences Color Me Happy

Last April, I was finally able to finish my hand soap refills from Watsons from their P109 BOGO promo and my Herbal Essences Color Me Happy shampoo and conditioner! It's not much but I was really happy to get rid of some stuff in my bathroom.

For the hand soaps, I got the Lavender Gel and Honey and Cream Cream (not pictured) 500 ml refill packs. I like the Honey and Cream soap more because it's a more unique scent and since it's a cream, it leaves my hands more moisturised. I like that it's quite cheap compared to other hand soap options (especially as a refill), but it's not quite as cheap as Daiso's* P88 for a 1liter bottle option. I find that I get tired of having the same hand soap after a while so I'll probably buy more from the brand, especially their creamier options, if other scents catch my eye.

Herbal Essences Color Me Happy

As for the shampoo and conditioner, these were inherited from M when she realized I kept using hers. They've been with me for a while, but I've been using them only when I had my hair colored since that's what it's labeled for. I think the packaging has changed, but I do like the way this set looks and pairs together in the bathroom. The set contains Morrocan Rose and Passion Fruit extracts and it smells quite nice - floral with fresh tones. The shampoo contains sulfates that make it lather quite well (something I do love), but might bother those who prefer their hair products sulfate-free, especially for those with color treated hair. I'm not particularly bothered by it since I don't believe in sulfates lifting color, but I do tend to wash my hair more on this product (because it smells so good), which does the opposite of preserving hair color…

I really like how this product smells, and it does a decent job of conditioning my hair without leaving my scalp either dry or oily. I would recommend this product for anyone who loves rose-floral scents, but not particularly for hair color preservation.


*Edited to Daiso, originally Saizen. I get confused :D

Summertime: May Days!

Summer is definitely here, and while some people are going to the beach, some are stuck with the daily grind. Either way, the hottest month(s?) of the year is just beginning. This is a friendly reminder to:

1. Stay hydrated! Drink enough water that your pee runs clear. I prefer plain water, iced due to the heat. However, if you find that you sweat more than usual due to exercise and the like (IMO, unthinkable in this heat), you might want to consider adding the water and electrolytes you lose back with additional sports drinks or even ORS.

2. Keep cool! Avoid things that will make you retain heat such as occlusive ointments and tightly woven fabrics. Let your body sweat and let that sweat evaporate to cool you even further. It may not look that good, but it's good for you. Did you know that sweating keeps you cool?

3. Avoid the sun! As I said before, use a broad spectrum sunscreen - with at least SPF 30. If you can stand it, chose clothes that will hide your skin from the sun. At the very least, avoid the sun from 10 am to 3 pm. Umbrellas and wide brimmed hats are your friends.

The youngest and oldest members of society are more prone to heat stroke. If you see someone getting dizzy due to the heat, bring this person to a shaded area, hydrate and try to cool him or her off. Please consult with a medical professional when more serious events such as fainting or seizures occur.

Shu Uemura Ultime8 Sublime Beauty Cleansing Oil

I got a few samples of the Shu Uemura Ultime8 Sublime Beauty Cleansing Oil a year ago when my friends and I went to the Japanese film festival. Luckily, I was the only one interested in the products. :) Since I still had my Bifesta (and I can't seem to find my review on this, so I'll be doing one soon, late as it is -_-), I ended up using this when it wasn't available. This is the pic of my last sample. I've tried a few of the Shu Cleansing Oils (yellow, green and pink variants) and I find this the best of the bunch.

Shu Uemura Ultime8 Sublime Beauty Cleansing Oil (sample)

Why? Among all the Shu Oils, this gives me the softest skin - moisturizer and second cleanser no longer required - while leaving my skin feeling very clean and residue-free. I have no make-up left on my face (admittedly using a BB cream instead of a foundation) with the toner test after using this. With the other oils, I still feel the need to do a second cleanse to get the residue off.

Unfortunately, the price of this cleansing oil (a bit more than their regular oils) is too steep for me, especially since bottles should be used within 6 months of opening - and I'm not a frequent make up user (yes, I know I'm supposed to double cleanse after sunblock… but I often don't). While it would look very nice, it would probably end up going rancid in my dresser. If you regularly use make-up, you might want to give this a try.

I'd recommend this product for those people with dry skin that need a moisturising make up remover.

Saturday Salads

I've been eating more salads this summer. By choice. And this is not to lose weight, but because I've found that I get tired of eating hot food on hot days. Salads, with their crisp crunchiness and pops of color, are a cool alternative for those who just can't bear the heat.

A basic salad has ingredients that all come from the ref. Fancier options may involve heat, but laziness and a lack of cooking skills prevent me from doing so. Unfortunately, my basic  salad consisting of pretty leaves + tomatoes + dressing don't really keep me full long so I usually add more protein to the mix.  

If my salad is a snack between meals: add olives and/or cheese.

If my salad is a meal: add tuna.

Salad Lunch

I like putting everything on a plate so that I can see exactly what and how much I'll be eating before I mix it up. It makes my eyes full as well as my tummy.

I never thought I'd see the day where I'd actually like salads, but here we are.

Summer is now a time for ice cream, iced drinks and salads.

Human Heart Nature Acne Defense Solution Gel

Since I've been trying to get rid of all the clutter in my room, and save some cash, it's been more and more difficult for me to justify buying products. However, one thing I'll need probably forever are anti-acne products and at P200 ($4-5), the Human Heart Nature Acne Defense Solution Gel was something I couldn't pass on.

Unfortunately, as I've lost the box, I've taken the ingredients list from their website.

Ingredients as taken from the website: aqua (water), Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) leaf essential oil, levulinic acid (rice/corn-derived), glyceryl caprylate (coconut oil, palm oil and glycerin-derived), glycerin, dehydroxanthan gum, zinc lactate, Aloe barbadensis (aloe vera) leaf juice, p-anisic acid (anise seed-derived), phytic acid (rice-derived)

At first glance, it isn't expensive, but it actually comes out at P10/gram, so this isn't exactly cheap either. I used to use tea tree oil spot treatments either from zen zest or a private supplier and I'd consider this midpriced, though very affordable.  The pump bottle is a bit strange with the actual dispenser sticking out of the cover. It's not as hygienic but since I leave it on my dresser, it's not a big issue. I wouldn't recommend sticking this in your bag because while the cap insures that it won't spill, it could end up touching other things.

The gel looks cloudy when thick (as seen in the right side of the pic) but it's quite clear when thinner. It is easy to apply as it doesn't run at all, and I've had no problems controlling the amount of product dispensed from the bottle. While it takes around 10 minutes to dry fully, it does dry clear as a thin plastic-like film after dabbed on. However, I recommend using this product over a clean face since I can't really put anything over it after it dries.

It fares well enough on smaller zits and helps heal them a bit quicker than they would alone and with lest pigmentation afterwards. It is not very helpful for the larger ones though. The best thing about this product for me is that, unlike other spot treatments which remain wet for long periods of time (oils), bleach everything (benzoyl) or give weird colors (mario badescu/murad), I'm not afraid to go outside with this on. However, it does magnify larger, pus-filled zits in an unflattering way.

I don't think I'd rebuy this product simply because I find that the oils themselves have more uses than this gel does for the same price, and I'd like to find a product that targets both large and small zits. However,  I'd recommend this product if you're simply looking for a spot treatment for mild acne at a decent price.

Colgate Optic White

Summer is here, and aside from the standard body shaping and hair removal, teeth whitening is one of the IN procedures people want. It may seem weird to include teeth in the beach ready body… but I guess tanned faces look nicer with whiter smiles.

I on the other hand got this toothpaste + toothbrush combo of Colgate Optic White because it was on offer for P99.

I began using both toothpaste and toothbrush twice a day after meals and after 4 days...

I got noticeably whiter teeth!

Now, this version of Optic White doesn't seem to have any optic brighteners, but the toothpaste does contain hydrogen peroxide, good for bleaching. I haven't tried the newer variants (with stated optic brighteners) and other brands with optic brighteners, but I'm quite happy with this one. However, since unlike other versions, this doesn't promise to keep the stain off so I can't drink my tea and coffee as I usually like it if I want to preserve the color.

I don't recommend this product for long term use. Even though it says its enamel safe, it could weaken both teeth and gums. Currently, I use this 4 days a week and switch with a non-whitening toothpaste for the other three days. I've seen a slight improvement since the first week but it's not very drastic.

I will finish this tube, but I think next time I need a whitening boost, I think I'd go for the one with stain protection.