A Day at Cat Cafe

I'm a huge animal lover. HUGE.

Now in a fight between cats and dogs, I would definitely choose dogs because of their personality (plus they don't give me bad allergies as cats do) but this does not mean that I don’t love cats as well.

Just recently, our pet cat passed away (we suspect that he had been poisoned), and my sister and I miss him terribly so we decided to visit the cat cafe near our place (which is literally just a few minutes walk from our place).

The place is called Miao Cat Cafe and is located along Congressional Avenue above or next to Cake2Go (they're at the second floor of the same building). Because their signage is just a simple painting plus it's relatively small especially compared to the logos of the different establishments within the area, Miao Cat Cafe isn't really something you would notice unless you were walking past the place or were caught in traffic along the area. I hope they would upgrade to a light up signage so that it would pop out more. The doorway and stairs leading to Miao Cat Cafe are pretty dim so I initially thought that they were closed at the time that we inquired.

My sister and I first went to Miao Cat Cafe last Sunday to inquire. Apparently the customers are asked go in 2 hour shifts so that the place would not be overcrowded. You could make reservations through their Facebook page, or come at anytime and declare yourself as a walk-in customer as long as you follow their schedule below:

My sister and I visited Miao Cat Cafe yesterday at 2PM, November 20. I feel the need to mention that going up to the cat cafe, even just a few steps up their stairs, you'd definitely know that there are a lot of cats up there. The smell is so strong. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't too foul of a scent, but if you're someone who's actually had a cat, the smell is all too familiar and it isn't exactly something you would want to wear as a perfume unless you're a crazy cat lady (emphasis on crazy).

There's a 300-peso fee for adults which is inclusive of 1 order of food and 1 drink of your choice. For kids, it's only 150Php but it's only inclusive of 1 item from their menu. There a set of rules that you're supposed to follow at Miao Cat Cafe (ie, sanitize before entering the area, do not carry the cats, do not play with them while they are eating or sleeping, etc). Pretty much basic rules on how to keep the cats from being aggressive.



Their staff are very accommodating and friendly which is perfect because I'm the type of person who would always ask for recommendations before actually ordering anything. Because we already had lunch prior to our visit, I decided to try out their desserts while my sister decided to go for their Party of Fries with Chicken Fillet. I ordered their Cake of the Day which was a cute slice of rainbow cake. For drinks, I got the Strawberry Milkshake (their bestseller) while my sister went for the Tiramisu Frappe (an additional 20-peso charge was required for their Frappes). The food was fine, nothing spectacular, but good enough for the price considering you get to hang our with dozens of cute fur-babies.

As a pet lover, I personally loved Miao Cat Cafe. There were so many cats to play with. It just sucks that you aren't allowed to pick up the cats because I wanted to cuddle with them so badly. One downside to cat cafes are that cats are pretty fickle and are almost always napping. Keeping their rules in mind, there aren't really much cats to play with and not a lot of them are in the mood to play. There are only a few cats in the cafe that are actually in to hugs. My sister and I got lucky because one cat walked up on us for a cuddle. Cutest moment ever.

If you're the type of person who isn't too fond of kids or would want a more peaceful atmosphere, I'd recommend you visit them at their later time slots because when we visited Miao Cat Cafe at 2 in the afternoon, there were a lot of kids in the cafe, which could get real rowdy but I don't really mind since I love kids. However, I would understand why people would prefer not having a lot of kids around since the area of the cafe wasn't exactly big and having kids run all around the place is kind of distracting for you and the cats.

They also have a whole wall of merchandise for you to choose from which is purrfect for every cat lover (see what I did there? Sorry.). Wasn't able to take a picture of it all though, sorry 'bout that.

My sister and I absolutely loved Miao Cat Cafe. The only problem we had was that my sister and I have allergies, and my sister had it worse. Her skin got red and blotchy and her nasal passages were partially blocked. However, she felt the experience was worth it and she loved Miao Cat Cafe so much that she still wants to visit them again, so that's something to consider. I mean the cats looked like stuffed toys! So cute and fluffy!

Review: Essence Fix & Matte Translucent Loose Powder

Do you have oily skin? Because I do. I can't use liquid foundation alone. I always have to top it off with powder. I usually use my Maybelline Clear Smooth All in One Foundation for more coverage, but I've heard that loose powders work best since they're finely milled.

I've tried the Nichido Finishing Powder and I think it's okay but it doesn't really last that long and it may fade away in blotches so it looks weird. However, when you use the Nichido powder alone, it's great. It has that milky smell that I actually like. I sometimes even use it for my hair when my roots are oily.

So I've researched about mattifying loose powders that are affordable but are still of good quality and I found that this Essence Fix & Matte Translucent Loose Powder and the ELF HD Powder had great reviews. However, some complained about the ELF powder since it caused them to break out or that the velvety finish would not last long and would instead make them look blotchy or something. On the other hand, I wasn't too sure about the Essence one either since there weren't too many reviews BUT all the reviews that were available gave it a perfect score.

I had the option to either buy the ELF powder from a seller online since it was not available in the Philippines or to go to SM Makati and buy the Essence powder. Of course I ended up getting this one since it was more available, it had better reviews and it was much more affordable. (the ELF powder was over 300 pesos while the Essence one was around 250 php)

SO HERE'S MY REVIEW:

I LOVE IT. It is finely milled so it makes pores less visible and it is just easy to apply. It does last long. However, it's incredibly hot here in the Philippines right now so it does not completely keep the oil at bay but it still does the job. IT DOES NOT COME WITH A POWDER PUFF. This means that it's gonna be messy when you bring it with you everywhere since holes inside the jar will not be sealed or covered. However, you can buy your own powder puff and just put in the jar. I actually used the one that was included in my Nichido Finishing Powder. 

Like I said it is affordable at only around 250Php and it's available in SM Megamall, SM Makati, and SM Mall of Asia so it isn't available in all SM branches BUT it is a new brand here so they might open stalls in different malls soon as well. *Here's to hoping* Also, this product did not break me out. YAY!

You can apply this with either a flat top brush or a powder puff, but I like using a powder puff for a more even distribution, plus I think that doing so may distribute more product on to your face. But don't worry, it isn't cakey at all. 

I'm actually using the powder in this pic but I didn't realize that it was blurry til now -_-

PROS AND CONS:

PROS:

• finely milled
• easy application
• affordable (below 260Php)
• long lasting
• comparable to MAC's Prep+Prime Translucent Powder
• did not break me out
• no weird smell
• easy to apply

CONS:

• no powder puff so it may be messy to carry it around 
• not available in all department stores (yet)

RATING: 9/10

I am loving Essence right now btw. <3
I hope they open more stalls.

ONE EYED MONSTER

Over a year ago, we did this a play at school where I played a ghost who had no eye. So the makeup is pretty bloody, but despite my weird fear of blood, I ABSOLUTELY LOVED DOING IT. I won't be able to post the tutorial today, but I'll show you the finish product. Note that these pictures were taken over a year ago. I also did my friend's makeup but I didn't have to cover her eye.

This is how it would look like minus the overly dramatic fake blood

I also drew the poster for the play by the way :)

IRRELEVANT: Macky Art: Mermaids

Finished Product (AFTER)

I used Photoshop to color this out.

Here's the unedited version:

BEFORE

I used permanent markers and sharpies for the unedited version and shaded some areas with a normal mongol no.2 pencil. :)

I actually have another version where I used watercolors and white textile paint (I ran out of white watercolors, so I had to work with what I had haha)

Please comment below. :D

I'd love to hear what you think about it. :)