FINAAAALLY! This post has been requested a million, trillion, gazillion times. If you've been following me for a while you guys might have seen the ask.fm widget in the sidebar of my blog. If you click onto that link and open up my profile you can see that I've answered over 6,000 questions from curious anonymous people. I get quite a few repetitive questions so here's a post with some of the most popular questions asked. I'll also be making this an additional tab on my blog page so that it's easily found in the future.
Personal and general blogging related questions
Where are you from?
Both of my parents are Vietnamese but I was born in Brisbane.
How tall are you?
Around 170cm.
How much do you weigh?
Currently 53.5kg.
Do you get paid for blogging?
I used to get paid via Nuffnang but not so much lately.
What camera do you use?
I usually use the camera on my iPhone 5s or my Canon 600D. Earlier I used to use a Samsung ex2f but it's currently in repair. Both the Canon 600D and Samsung ex2f have flippy screens.
What apps do you use to edit your photos?
On my iPhone I'll either use Afterlight, Faded or VSCO Cam. On my laptop I'll use Photoshop.
Can you recommend any similar blogs to yours?
http://asia-zhang.blogspot.com.au/
http://sincerelyfromvivien.blogspot.com.au/
http://www.jesslovesfred.com/
http://www.silkybow.com/
http://saltskinned.blogspot.com.au/
http://1hundredramblings.blogspot.com.au/
http://hernameisgone.blogspot.com.au/
http://www.blog.ophiee.net/
http://angelafa.blogspot.com.au/
http://thestoicpeach.blogspot.com.au/
Food
Can you recommend any nice places to have a birthday dinner?
Wagaya, Vapiano, Jojos are the first places which come to mind if you have friends that are minors. If you're all 18+ then you have a whole world of roof top bars to explore!
Where do you recommend having brunch?
Campos, Dee Dot, Pablo, Plum Tucker, Shouk, Rogue, Tazza Coffee, Roastery, Era Bistro. You can also check out my Bao Bae's/Brunch Queen's Instagram for a whole load of food recommendations!
Where do you usually eat with friends?
Madtongsan, Seoul Bistro, Midam, Oishii, Vapiano, Kinn Thai, various yumcha places, Fusion, Thai Siam, Maru, Wara Wara, Peony, New Shanghai, Beach House, Hogs Breath, Mos Burger, Mazri Kitchen.
Favourite foods?
Sweet and sour pork, creme brulee.
My Job
Where do you work?
I currently work as a dental assistant (just celebrated my two year anniversary earlier this month!). Also I'd like to clarify about this question - a lot of people get the idea that I work as a receptionist in the dental clinic but I'm actually in surgery 90% of the time I'm at work. I'm the girl who sits on the side and sucks up your saliva through a straw!
What does your job involve?
Light reception work involving receiving calls and booking/rescheduling/cancelling appointments. I don't do any type of account processing. Most of my job involves sterilising instruments, setting up procedures and chair side assisting.
How did you get your job?
I'd literally been hounding my dentist for a job for about a year until a position finally opened. He actually offered the position to my little sister when she went in for her check up (I was overseas) but she was still in high school so she passed the job offer onto me and I've been working there ever since.
What type of training do you have?
I got trained on the spot which means they taught me everything as I went. You can get certificates from Tafe though.
How many hours do you do a week?
It varies since I'm a casual. It's usually a minimum of about 12 and a maximum of 35.
How many days do you work a week?
3 days during uni semester and 4-5 days during the holidays.
How much do you get paid as a dental assistant?
My clinic works off award rates so I get paid around $20. I get a pay raise for every year when my birthday passes and also another for every year I've been at the clinic since it counts as experience or something like that.
What is your opinion on whitening your teeth? Have you done it?
I don't really trust anything you can buy off the shelf. Generally they have such a low percentage of the whitening chemical that the result is quite minimal and just end up making your teeth more sensitive over time. I've gotten my teeth whitened at work before using the Zoom whitening system and loved the result! I'm not sure how much it usually costs but at my clinic we advertise it for $695 + a rebate only check up and clean.
Beauty related
What is your day skincare routine?
I cleanse my face with the Evelom Morning Time Cleanser, tone with the Aesop B and Tea Balancing Toner, moisturise with Eve Lom Day Cream, use the Khiels Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado, and prep my lips with a thin layer of Carmex.
What is your night skincare routine?
I remove my makeup with The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil, Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water, and Swisspers Natural Aloe Perfecting Facial Wipes. I cleanse my face with my Clarasonic and Korres Milk Proteins Foam Cleanser or Mario Badescu Enzyme Cleansing Gel. I tone my face with the Aesop B and Tea Balancing Toner. I moisturise with the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion +. I use the Khiels Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado. I finish off my using the Mecca Cosmetica Lip De Luscious Treatment.
What is your current makeup routine?
After completing my morning skincare routine, I prime my face with the Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer with SPF 15 and a few sprays of MAC Prep + Prime Fix +. After that I use either Stila Stay All Day Foundation and Concealer or the Perricone MD No Foundation Foundation. I pop on Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer to highlight and MAC Pro Longwear Concealer to cover up blemishes. I set all my makeup with the Too Faced Primed and Poreless Powder. I bronze and blush using the Nars Laguna Orgasm Duo. I fill in my eyebrows with an eyeshadow from the Stila Eyes are the Window Shadow Palette called Being. I set my eyebrows with the 3CE Eyebrow Mascara in Brown. I prep my eyelids with the bareMinerals 5-in-1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow in either blushing pink or soft linen. I use eyeshadows from the Stila Eyes are the Window Shadow Palette. I use the Maybelline Master Precise Liner, Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner, and Face Shop Face It ExtremeEX Brush Pen Eyeliner. I finish my eyes off with the Kevyn Aucoin Volume Mascara before setting everything on my face one more time with a few sprays of the MAC Prep + Prime Fix +.
What is your hair routine?
I don't have one!
How do you keep your hair in place?
I have mad problems with a crazy cow lick. I've just learned to embrace it over the years and keep it in place with Batiste dry shampoo and Bumble and Bumble Thickening Dry Spun Finish (love this).
What do you use to curl your hair/straighten your hair?
I use a hair straightener from GHD and the Nume Lustrum to curl my hair.
Where do you get your brows done?
I get my brows threaded every 3-4 weeks at Get Threaded inside of Queens Plaza. Ask for Tegan and have your life changed forever.
How much does it cost you to get your brows done?
$25 the first time then $20 for a clean up (every ~4 weeks).
Where do you get your haircuts?
I recently went to ID Brisbane to try it out and absolutely L O V E D them. I get my hair cut my Scott and plan to return on either Tuesdays or Wednesdays to receive a $50 student cut.
Thoughts on eyelash extensions?
I haven't gotten them enough times to really give any proper recommendations but I usually get them done once everywhere with Hot Stuff Beauty because they do a birthday promo. They're good but some people might not be a fan of them because instead of using individual lashes they use clusters of 2/3 lashes. Mine lasted for about 3-4 weeks before I started picking them off because they got annoying. They're not too difficult to maintain but you just have to be careful what makeup remover you use with them or else they'll come off quite quickly.
Shopping
Where do you recommend shopping for semi-formal/formal/party dresses? (without a doubt the most commonly asked question).
ASOS, ShowPo, Dolly Girl Fashion, Stelly, Mura Boutique, Sabo Skirt, Sheike, Beginning Boutique, Princess Polly, Missguided, Dissh, Bardot.
Where do you shop online?
Everywhere above + Glue Store, Shop Market HQ, eBay, Supre, Ally, The Iconic, City Beach, Shop Bop, Urban Outfitters, Beauty Bay, Nasty Gal, Dotti, Cotton On, Glassons.
Where did you get your Prada bag from?
Reebonz.
How much did it cost?
Around 1.5k.
Do you have any gift recommendations for a girlfriend?
Clothes, makeup, perfume, shoes, bags, Glasshouse Candles (Tahaa), jewellery.
Do you have any gift recommendations for a boy?
Clothes, cologne, shoes, bags, jewellery.
Fitness
How did you lose weight?
I used the Kayla Itsines BBG. Yes, I actually bought it even though plenty of people have made me well aware that I can torrent it. I also changed up my diet A LOT.
How long did it take you to lose weight?
I dieted for about 4-5 months and trained up to week 9 in Kayla's guide.
How much weight did you lose?
I originally weight 56.5-57kg and ended up around 49.5kg. I stopped training early November last year and now currently maintain my weight at 53.5k.
What did you eat while you dieted?
I ate a lot of berries, mandarins and oranges. For snacks I'd have lite cruskits with either smoked salmon or canned shredded chicken. The way I dieted was pretty much behaving really well during the day and then eating a regular meal at night. I'm well aware that many people believe in being strict on your diet from day to night but one of the things my friends and I love to spend time doing over everything else is eating food.
What equipment did you get for Kayla's guide?
I only bought a yoga mat and a set of 20kg dumbbells from Rebel Sport. I use piano stools and chairs for everything that requires an incline or just do the exercises without equipment if I don't have it (i.e. medicine balls and bosu balls).
Are you going to start again?
I've been wanting to but the timing doesn't feel quite right at the moment.
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Phew! Done and dusted. If you guys can think of any other FAQ which I forgot to include in this post then please do let me know. In the meantime I hope you guys are having a fantastic evening.
