Birthday - Then and Now (February 14)

I happened to find a pic of my birthday 10 years ago and decided to do a "Then and Now" picture.

Any difference? Besides the obvious of weight gain :p

It was a wonderful day, spending the time with friends and family. The only thing that marred the day was me coming down with an inflamed throat. So the food was not as enjoyable as it should be.

With two days sick leave, I am recovering but not at 100% too. Will post more on the actual day celebration when I am better.

P.S. The strawberry cheesecake from the American Club was awesome. Soft and moist and not super cheesy, it was way better than the other cheesecake which was too hard and dry and rich. Thank you :)

Smashbox Burlesque Collection

I happened to see the Burlesque Collection from Smashbox at Sephora and was immediately smitten by the entire set. For S$99, it seemed like a very good deal as it includes a full size eyeshadow palette in colors which suit me, 2 ended lipgloss, black liquid eyeliner and a small pot of shimmer powder for the face/eyes.

The eyeshadows are very pigmented and a light hand is essential for a day look. It can also be built up to create a dark smoky look for night. Maybe I am not used to using a jet black liquid eyeliner but it certainly defines the eyes so well that I would only use it at night when I want more emphasis on the eyes.

The loose shimmer is Golden Pink and is lovely to add some sparkles on the brows area or to create some light outside the eyes.

Surprisingly I love the lipgloss colors. I use the Cotton Candy when I want to tone down the lips, especially for the day look. And when I want to amp it up, I use the Sparkling Raspberry. It is not bloodred but it certainly adds a new dimension to the lip color.

I simply adore the eyeshadow/liner quad. I use the Shimmery Pink, Shimmery Pink Beige and Deep Eggplant for the eyes and the Cool Grey as the liner. The Cool Grey texture is not powdery. It has a thicker sticky feel which made the color adheres to the edge of the lid better.

The only thing missing from this collection is the blusher. I guess one can always use the loose shimmer powder to double up as a sparkling blusher powder.

This is truly a very good buy, especially if you are living in the States as it is actually going for only US$35 for this set. Yes, Sephora in Singapore has done a ridiculously high mark up at S$99.

AVOID: Spa D'or

I had a nasty and trying incident at Spa D'Or last week and I am still waiting for them to resolve the issue. Till now I have not received a phone call from them about it despite them reassuring me that they would call me within the week.

When I called back at the end of the week, the person (office manager or what) was clueless and she was the one who told me they would call me back. I had to refresh her memory several times before she finally remembered. But since she is not the decision maker, I am still waiting for the problem to be ironed out and still waiting for the boss to call me. My calls to the boss went unanswered and she did not return my calls.

At this moment I have lost faith in Spa D'or and its management and ability to provide basic customer service. What I have received so far are conflicting answers and seemingly concocted stories and lies.

So for now I would just say "enter at your own risk".

Spa D'or, Raffles City

After resisting signing up for packages at spas, I finally caved in and took up a mini package (5 sessions) at Spa D'or in Raffles City outlet. I was one of the customers who was hit by the spate of spas closure, starting with Wellness Village at Pan Pacific Singapore. So I was a bit leery of signing packages with spas which specialize in running many promotions. But the price was right and it was just for 5 sessions, so hopefully it will not close down.

There are two outlets with the main one in Orchard Hotel Shopping Arcade. I always passed by the main outlet when I used to go to Elements Spa over there, but somehow never tried it. The outlet at Raffles City is much smaller, with only 4-5 rooms, and so it is pretty cramped.

It is quite a no-frills sort of place with no locker or place to put your things. There is a hanger for your clothes to be placed on the hook, plus a stool for your bag, and that was it.

I was lucky to get a therapist who did not chatter incessantly and actually know what she was doing.

I think for a basic massage at a decent price, Spa D'or fits the bill. Don't go expecting a nice place with a relaxing ambience. I find this is a place which is solely meant for a quick fix right in town.

With all the promotions Spa D'or is running, it can be quite trying to get someone to answer the phone or get an appointment. So maybe I will not renew my package after it is over.

Rabbit Yusheng

We always have home-made yusheng made by my cousin and this year, in honor of the Rabbit year, the radish is shaped into a rabbit. Isn't it cute?

Happy Rabbit Year, everyone!

Benefit Cosmetics Bathina

I simply adore this cream to powder shimmer body balm from Benefit Cosmetics. D got this for me for Christmas.

The scent reminded me of Maybe Baby body lotion with a lingering musky vanilla-y light fragrance. It feels pretty decadent to use the velvety puff and apply the balm on the body. So far I have used it on the legs and I don't really see any "golden pink sheen" as stated in its website. But who cares about that when you have such a lovely plaything to mess with :)

Happy Rabbit Year ~ Chanel Look

Happy Lunar New Year! It is the year of the Rabbit. May it bring abundance of good fortune and joy to everyone.

After dithering over the Chanel Spring 2011 Collection, particularly the Limited Edition Ombres Perlees de Chanel Eyeshadow Palette, for a few days, I finally decided to just bite the bullet and get it. Thankfully it was still available when I made the decision as it was completely sold out at the regular stores within days of launching. I had to get mine at DFS and there were only a few pieces left.

One reason I was hesitant to get it was the colors looked very light on me. Then I read that it was inspired by the iridescent glow of pearls, which the entire Spring collection is built on, and so it was supposed to be a pearlized effect.

I do love all the colors in there and the texture was amazing. Almost like cream and powder. Apparently it had silicone ingredients in there to achieve it. I will be using this for CNY Day 1 visiting.

I also like the rest of the collection, especially the Black Pearl nail polish and the lipstick (Jersey Rose, Flamboyante) and lipgloss (Nakkar) and another limited edition item - Powder compact (Rose Merveille).