bride's hairdo

met up with my makeup artist, Mariana, at La belle last friday for my trial makeup.... i think i am not used to thick makeup so i felt i look kind of weird.... so anna asked me what kind of hairdo i want for my photoshoot & i was like er..... ok.... something nice? i know it is very vague so i went back to do some research online & send pictures to anna to give her some idea about what kind of hairdo i like.... below are some of the hair styles i like....

really pretty braids

simple & nice

looks really complicated

lovely flowers

backview

simple low bun

back view

sideway braids

lovely flowers again

nice curls

up buns

i guess i am more into those braids & buns kind of person.... they always look so pretty to me.... really excited to see how will my hairdo look like!!!! hopefully i will look lovely in them =)

gel manicure @ enchanted nails

*back dated entry*

as i am going for my photoshoot tomorrow, i went to do my nails on friday.... cheapo me went to look for cheap deals online for manicure... after looking for awhile, i decided to try enchanted nails because my jiejie should have went that outlet before & she said it was not bad.... so i bought the groupon deals which cost $23 for one session of gel manicure + return soak off within a month.... i think is a pretty good deal so i arranged the appointment...

enchanted nails

price list

the store is located at raffles place, the arcade level 2... is pretty deep inside the building... i arranged the appointment at 5pm but i arrived like 10min earlier & thought of starting the session ahead of schedule but nope... the whole store is filled with patrons... the store is actually pretty small, it only has 5 seats... & judging from the people conversation, they are like regular customers there... since the place is full, so i had to walk around & wait for my turn....

like all manicure, they will start by trimming the nails & removing those dirt on your nails... for my deal, i can only chose a single colour, for french/gradient i need to top up $20 & other special designs will charge per nail... so cheapo me only go for single colour & i  chose a light pink with sparkles....

before manicure

for the passed week i have been trying very hard not to chip my nails but sadly some parts still chipped off slightly.... & next time i must keep my nails longer, after trimming, my nails got shorter =(

after gel manicure

close up on colour

i must admit i chose a very light colour but i think the colour is more obvious under indoor lighting.... but i like it... i want to keep it simple & neat to match my gowns =) as for service wise.... i would say is normal lo.... i guess they have insufficient staff so the beautician is like rushing to finish off my manicure... since it turn out fine so i guess on the whole it is ok for $23 =)

tricks to perfect poached egg

jamie oliver is definitely my favourite chef, i have been watching his show since young... & the amazing thing is that, it was actually my grandma who first saw jamie on tv & she was telling me that she too watch jamie's cook show.... she would call him "fat boy", i must admit that jamie was a bit fatter last time but still cute... i really love the way his show run... very casual & friendly... & the way he cooks is more natural, i really dont like those chef who like weight out everything then just pop the ingredients in the pot, that's so fake to me....

anyway... today i came across his video on how to cook a perfect poached eggs.... for those who watched masterchef, you will know how difficult it is to cook a perfect poached eggs.... i for one has never tried one before but the runny yolk always look so nice on tv!!!! i tried the egg benedict at swensen (changi airport outlet) before & it was horrible... egg overcooked & most importantly, the sauce crack!!! like omg!!! how lousy can it get.... BUT BUT BUT... with the help of some useful tips from jamie's video, we can all cook a perfect poached egg!!!! enjoy =)

a touching wedding video

just came across this video posted on my friend's facebook page.... at first i thought it was some unique things that the couple did for the wedding, like skydive together or underwater wedding.... but i was wrong... it is much more than that.... the first few seconds look very normal but at 20sec onwards the video start to puzzled me.... like why is it showing it patient on bed!??!?! a joke?!??!?! the mystery unfold shortly after that & i finally get the picture.... it is about this cancer patient getting married... & according to what i read online, the patient actually passed away 10hr after the wedding.... it is just a short 3min video but it really touches my heart...... i always thought such a wedding will only happened in drama but hope.... it does happen in real life.... i feel sad for the couple as they share so little time together after the marriage... but i guess time dosent matter in true love... do cherish your love ones =)

useful kitchen tips & tricks

stumbled upon this page ( 36 of BEST kitchen tips and tricks that nobody told you about) while surfing facebook so want to share these useful information with everyone.... i think some of the tips are quite commonly known to everyone but some of them are really simple yet amazing tips that i didnt think about it... i want to share a couple of them which i think are really useful & the rest of them, you can slowly read from the page (all photos are taken from the original website)

1. scooping up egg shell

scoop up egg shell

i always use my fingers or chopstick to pick up egg shell but it is so troublesome that sometime i just leave the shell there since you wont die from eating it...

2. Egg freshness test

egg freshness test

again... another useful information but i guess we can only test on the eggs at home... i doubt if the supermarket will allow you to test every egg before you buy especially when they come in packs....

3. how to peel an orange

how to peel orange

this is really genius.... personally i am not a fan of orange especially so if i have to peel it cause i dont like the leftover citrus smell on my fingers after that.... i have yet to try this trick but if this work then i might actually like oranges more

4. no more rock hard ice cream

nice & soft ice cream

seriously MUST try this trick the next time when mama buy ice cream.... really hate to scoop out rock hard ice cream... & by the time i managed to scoop 2 cups, the whole tub start to melt!!!!

5. easy way to grill fish

easy grill fish

definitely have to try this cooking method during my upcoming BBQ in july.... disintegrating fish is a big NONO but if this trick solve the problem then grill fish will be a new item on the BBQ menu

personally, those are my top 5 favourites among the kitchen tips & tricks.... do read the rest of the useful tips from here =)

NEW phoon huat outlet @ bunoa vista!!!

for those who are into baking, phoon huat has opened a new outlet at buona vista mrt!!!!

Address: 100 North Buona Vista
#02-01 Buona Vista Mrt Station
(10am to 10pm Daily)

fyi... phoon huat sells a large variety of baking needs like different types of floor, nuts, baking utensils & some outlets hold cooking classes!!! is like your one stop supermarket to get all your baking ingredients.... i used to visit the clementi outlet since i stayed there but i am really interested to check out their new store.....they have taken over the space from art friend... so you have to get out of the station, walk along the shops at level 1 towards starvista... then half way, there will be a escalator going to second floor & then you will see phoon huat!!! i have yet to visit the store but from the pictures online, the place looks amazing!!!

different types of icing material

this outlet sell more heavy duty machines

chips & snacks.. like a supermarket =)

pretty mixers!!!

decorating sets for pretty cakes

 all the photos were taken from their facebook page.... for more pictures, can check out the page..... & do check out the place, i think it will be a heaven for bakers =)

free recipes from magazine

saw some interesting & yummy recipes as i was browsing magazines while dying my hair.... all the recipes were taken from the march issue of simply her...

curry pork cheek

roast pork belly with shrimp paste

stir-fried pork shoulder with mushroom

grilled beef topside with mushroom cream

chowder in bread bowl

strawberry swiss roll

luo mai kei (steam glutinous rice with chicken)

pan-fried marinated flank steak with roast potatoes

mango pudding

above are the recipes that i gotten from the magazine... i apologized for not taking photos of the dish itself as i want to maximize the focus on the recipe itself..... but i haven gotten to try them myself... the luo mai kei is the one that caught my attention... is kind of tedious but look really yummy.... perhaps you guys can try out some of the dishes over the weekend =)

dye hair @ the scissorhands clementi

*back dated entry*

since i am going for my wedding photoshoot soon, i have to dye my hair again since much of the colour has faded & hair in quite a mess.... so i was looking at those online deals & came across 1 from groupon = the scissorhands deals......

deal details:

• For $28, you get Hair Colouring or Creative Highlights and Basic Treatment (worth $250).
• For $35, you get Hair Colouring or Creative Highlights, Basic Treatment, and Shiseido H20 Water Hair Spa Treatment (worth $319).
• For $33, you get Hair Colouring or Creative Highlights and Basic Treatment with an Additional Hair Cut (worth $305).
• For $40, you get Hair Colouring or Creative Highlights, Basic Treatment, and Shisedo H20 Water Hair Spa Treatment with an Additional Hair Cut (worth $344). 

since i needed a hair cut to trim off those split ends, i opt for the $40 deals since it has everything at a relatively cheap price.... so after i bought the coupon, i made the appointment at clementi outlet since it is near school & i can just go over after work....

can see the different colour at the tip of my hair

the scissorhands @ clementi

i booked my appointment at 5pm but i reached there about 4.30pm as i hoped to finish earlier to meet my bf earlier for dinner... i thought it will take about 2hr but i was WRONG!!! the whole process took like 3hr+!!!!! & i shall elaborate later on.....

sitting down while waiting for stylist

my stylist is sandy... i would say a middle aged aunty... at first i was abit skeptical about her skill but i should not judge people by their age/look.... she is actually kind of pro wor.... & she is quite friendly too =)

then as usual, the staff will promote us their products & additional top up services.... so for the groupon deals, according to sandy the hair dye they used contained chemicals but if i top up additional $68, i get to use chemical-free hair dye which contain macadamia oil... fair enough, you want to top up for better quality stuff then you have to pay more & $68, isnt say alot of $.... but i was quite disturbed by the saying that the hair dye is chemical free.... i sort of give the roll eyes face to her.... cause ALL hair dyes CONTAIN chemicals!!! depending how you define chemicals... chemicals dont necessarily has to be a synthesized product, natural products like macadamia oil is a kind of chemicals... so far, according to my knowledge, henna is the only so call natural hair dye.... those whatever oils they add in for those "chemical-free" hair dyes will still have to contain some sort of chemicals in order to cause colouration of the hair.... i would think that those "chemical-free" hair dyes would mean they contain lesser chemicals & in turn cause lesser damage to the hair..... so me, being skeptical, i rejected her offer & just stick to the normal hair dye.... at first, i thought she will give me this black face & anyhow dye my hair.... but surprisingly, she didnt... she still exchange random small talks with me during the dying process.... which i quite appreciate that....

so she spent like 15min+ on that "chemical-free" hair dye & me filling in some survey forms for some groupon thing.... after that i went on to choose my hair dye colour... i want something on a darker brown as i dont want to act ang moh for my photoshoot... blonde hair & black eyebrows is a BIG NONO!!!! i choose 4/77 colour, which is a dark brown shade... sandy went to prepare the dye which took like another 10min+... so i kind of start the dying process like 5+.... sandy was really patient when she applied the dye on my hair... due to the large volume of hair i had... i think she spent almost 1hr to complete the process....

hair with dye

wrapped in cling wrap

after applying the dye & wrapped with cling wrap, the dye was leave on for like additional 30min.... another thing i like about sandy is that she uses the ear cap thing to cover my ear to prevent dye from colouring my ear....

ear cap

i think this ear cap thing is important.... i went to several salon before & i think so far scissorhands is the only one who used the ear cap for me... as all hair dyes are toxic to skin so we should minimize contact with skin as much as possible....

so after 30min, we went to wash hair, do that water spa treatment thing which is actually putting treatment on the hair & soak in water for maybe 10min or so... like oooookkkkaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyy... very literal water spa....

by the time i sat back on the chair to prepare for hair cut is almost 7pm!!! i was like omg long.... sandy asked me how i want to cut the hair, i just say give it a trim & she suggests me to snip off like 3inch+ of ends... without hesitation, i just give her the green light.... then she also kindly help me blow straight my hair since i have natural wavy hair....

dyed hair =)

tada... that's the final product after 3hr+... i would say the colour is more of the red side... slightly lighter than what i expected it to be.... but i guess is still quite nice.... just need some time to adjust to the new colour....

the new dyed hair

sandy also suggest me to use their shampoo & treatment as the ends of my hair are quite dry.... 2 bottles for $20.... quite ok price.... so i bought them & mainly because she didnt hard-sell me the products, so i give it a go =)

scissorhands recycle bag

the $20 shampoo + treatment

in conclusion, i would say the scissorhands is ok... services is not too bad, colour also turn out quite ok.... but meanwhile i want to try out other salons so i didnt sign on any additional packages with them....


Near Clementi MRT
Blk 446 clementi Ave 3, #01-193 Singapore 120446
Tel: (65) 6774 2103
Operating Hours:
Tue – Fri : 11am – 9pm
Sat/Sun & P/H : 11am – 7pm
(Closed on Monday)

more details can be found from their website here....

FREE JM florist voucher to give away

people, i have a FREE voucher from JM florist to give away!!!! no gimmick or whatever.... it is because my bf & I went down for the wedding roadshow at orchard hotel last year and we won a lucky dip & the prize is the free bouquet from JM florist!!! but there is a catch, you must hold the wedding at orchard hotel before Oct 2014.... we considered having our wedding at orchard hotel so we hold onto the voucher but after that we changed to fairmont cause orchard hotel is full & then we forgotten about it till recently..... if i didnt remember wrongly, the voucher will entitled you a free hand bouquet worth $100 or something... but hey, is free & an extra bouquet is always nice..... so if you girls or friends are holding wedding at orchard hotel before Oct 2014, do leave me a comment & i will mail you the voucher... i am absolutely NOT earning anything from this, i just dont want to waste the voucher.... however, i only have a copy of the voucher, so it will be first-come-first-serve =)

xia ku cao recipe

recently i ate really too much fried food that many pimples pop out at my chin area!!! so kns ugly!!!! so in order to counter the heaty-ness.... i must drink herbal tea!!!! of cause you can get those bottled herbal tea from any chinese herb store but i felt that those kind is never as good as your DIY version... so today i will share the recipe on how to boil herbal tea = xia ku cao

xia ku cao aka selfheal spike/prunella/Spica Prunellae is a type of chinese herbs and it is commonly use to "drain fire" from your body.... usage includes
1. Clears liver and brightens the eyes - ascending liver fire with red, painful, swollen eyes, headache, dizziness
2. Clears heat and dissipates nodules - neck lumps, scrofula, lipoma, goiter, swollen glands due to phlegm fire.
3.Hypertension accompanied by liver fire or yang rising.
information taken from here....

i am not so sure about the 2nd & 3rd benefits but it is definitely good to drink when you are heaty.... mama also say xia ku cao can boil with meat & pig spleen then it is actually good for the eyes too..... the usage of meat may not be suitable for our halal friends out there but just the sweetened herbal drink is good for everyone =)

ingredients (amount for 2-3pax):
xia ku cao             75g (per pax dosage is 37.5g according to the packaging guildeline)
water                    3L
brown sugar         1 piece (i gauge about 60g of sugar)

brown sugar... you can use other brands too... or granulated sugar is fine too... photo taken from here.....

xia ku cao

xia ku cao can be bought at almost all the chinese herbal stores... mama bought it from eu yan sang...

Steps:
1. soak the xia ku cao in water for about 10min

dried xia ku cao

2. drain water & gently rinse again with water

wet xia ku cao

3. drain all the water

drained xia ku cao

dried vs wet xia ku cao

you can see the difference in size after washing... you will also notice that alot of the leaves & seeds will be lost in the water while washing but that's normal

4. boil water
5. add in xia ku cao & boil at big fire for 10min
6. turn down to small fire & continue boiling for additional 40min
7. add sugar (can adjust the amount of sugar depending on you liking but try not too add too much since sugar will make you fat)