MAC Cosmetics Store - Pavilion Shopping Center

I just want to make a short posting on something I was quite surprised with. A few months back, I bought a lip gloss from MAC Cosmetics from their Plushglass range. I decided to try this range because it was supposed to plump your lips, or rather, make your lips look plumper than usual and it contained peppermint as part of its ingredient (and it makes your lips tingle when you have peppermint in any lip product).

Anyhow, my lips felt funny the first time I used the Plushglass but I didn't think too much about it. It felt like there were small, tiny rashes on my lips (invisible to the naked eye but you can feel it) and the lips felt rough in texture. I decided to then take note and put on the Plushglass again, and this time, the same tiny rashes on my lips appeared and it took about one week for my lips to go back to normal! I was so freaked out and was telling a friend of mine about it. She encouraged me to go back to the store and ask for a refund or an exchange since I was obviously somehow allergic to the product.

Now if I was overseas, I would have definitely gone back to the store and asked for a refund or exchange but as we all know, it's difficult to do so in Malaysia. Anyhow, since I had plenty of time on my hands, I thought I would try by first calling up the store and telling them my story. I was pleasantly surprised as the store manager told me to bring the product back along with my receipt and that they would gladly exchange it for another product.

So off I went happily to the store and all I had to do was fill in a form which actually had questions like 'What was the result of using the product?' in it. Does this mean lots of people have allergic reaction to their products? It was quite a long form to fill up but I was glad to do it. Better than having a brand new lip gloss lying around going to waste right? :)

Co-incidentally, I have to say that the MAC Store in Pavilion is the only one that I like going to. Why? Because the people at the other MAC Stores make you feel like an idiot that shouldn't be buying MAC stuff if you don't know how to put on make up. And they are usually not very polite when they are doing so. However, the service staff at the Pavilion store seems more polite, not pushy and very helpful, especially a girl called Chloe. So anytime I want anything from MAC, I will make the effort to go all the way down to the Golden Triangle. :)

Has anyone ever had the same experience that I had shopping at other MAC stores?

Sephora in Singapore

This post is about my recent visit into Sephora Singapore at ION Orchard during Merdeka Weekend. This is actually not my first visit to Sephora as I had already visited the Sephora in New York about 10 years ago. Only then, I was much younger and wasn't really interested in cosmetics so, did not think that Sephora was a big deal. Hahaha.

Anyhow, I was not allowed to take pictures of the inside of the Sephora store. Yes, I was a geek and asked the store people if I could, and they said 'no'. So, here's a picture of the store front.

It is actually a very spacious store and I hope that in the future they will choose to bring in more brands. For now, they have the following brands (I will try to list the brand names from Memory):

• Sephora (in-house brand)
• MAC
• SK II
• Pop Beauty (UK brand)
• Smashbox
• Too Faced
• Clinique
• Clarins
• Kose
• Bare Minerals
• Bliss
• Burt's Bees
• Makeup Forever
• Dr.Hauschka
• Federik Fekkai
• Nvey
• Dior
• Sisley

There's more but that's about all I can remember. They also sell perfumes by a lot of brands so Sephora is not only for skincare and cosmetics. :)

Basically I was only interested in Burt's Bees and Bare Minerals products as I have heard good things about it and wanted to try Bare Minerals foundation powder. There were many sales assistants around and I would say most of them were very polite except for the one that attended to me at the Bare Minerals counter. Anyhow, I bit my tongue and walked away with only one product (if she had been nicer to me, perhaps I would have walked away with more). Hahaha.

I apparently have yellow toned skin so the SA matched me with the mineral foundation in 'Light'. I have been browsing bare minerals online but was quite shocked when I saw the size of this thing up close. The above only contains 2 grams worth of powder and costs SGD48 (about RM 118). Although on the upside, it provides you with a sun protection factor of 15 (i.e. SPF 15).

I must say though that after trying the mineral foundation, I really love it. It gives my skin a natural finish with some coverage and on the overall, you get a glowing look. If you want light coverage, use a normal powder brush to apply it on your face. However, if you want a little more coverage, then use a kabuki brush to really buff the powder onto your face. The only downside is my pores becomes a little bit more apparent than normal but no one has commented on that fact yet! ;) I will be going back to Singapore in October and thinking if I should try something else from them. Hehe. You can read more about Bare Minerals cosmetic line by Bare Escentuals here.

I also got some brushes from Sephora's own line of brushes. First was the angle brush for cheeks, then another flat round top brush for either blusher, bronzer or powder and a crease contour brush. The brushes range from SGD20 to SGD35 and they are made of natural hair (whatever that means). Hahaha. But they are very soft although I haven't used it yet...Still too new. Hehehe.

I also bought a lip balm from Burt's Bees and another eyeshadow palette from Pop Beauty. I would say that the eyeshadows from Pop Beauty are pigmented and very smooth to the touch. I have not used them yet so I can't comment on whether it's long lasting or whether it goes on nicely.

I just wished that Sephora brought in Urban Decay because I really love the eyeshadows and eyeshadow primer potion! We can remain hopeful. :))

Feel free to leave me your thoughts on Sephora Singapore!

Comparison between Nail Salons

This post is going to be a little boring as I have no pictures to accompany it but felt a need to write about it anyway. I have been going to the same nail salon for about two years (I think), as I followed my manicurist when they decided to open shop on their own. Anyway, the place I normally go to is called Nailz Spa and it is located in Desa Sri Hartamas. However, recently my manicurist decided to call it quits and re-open in Sunway instead. I NEVER go to Sunway unless I have to so this time, I thought I'd try out a new place - Glitters Nails and Waxing Salon in Bangsar Village II.

I wanted to just have my nails buffed (without a manicure), a pedicure and paraffin wax treatment for hands and feet. However, the manicurist did not hear my properly and went ahead to do a full manicure. Also, out of 4 therapists there, only one was a local. Anyhow, that does not matter so long as they are skilled right? But I must say, I was very disappointed with the nail buffing. Not much effort was put in and my nails did not look buffed at all. I was so disappointed with them that I did not bother complaining about it (yes, I'm strange like that 'cos sometimes I can make a big fuss).

When it came to the paraffin wax treatment, I feel that they did not know how to time the heating of the wax as by the time they brought it for me to dip my hands in, a layer of wax was already starting to harden on the top. They also did not have enough wax to allow my feet to be covered fully and ended up having to ladle the wax onto my feet. I like having the paraffing wax treatment done because I have cracked heels and I find that the moisture is effectively kept in by the waxing treatment. However, compared to the previous nail salon I used to go to, I'd say the waxing at Glitters was not as effective. Also, they did not proceed to put any lotion on after the wax was removed.

The paraffin wax treatment for hands and feet cost RM 55. The manicure plus buffing cost RM 38 and the pedicure cost RM 43.

Well, maybe I'm being fussy but all in all, I'd say, I would not go back there again. Guess I'll have to look for a new alternative. Anyone has any suggestions?? Feel free to leave it in the comments section!

Restoran Fish & Noodle House

For those who read the previous posting, the upside of today was having breakfast at the Fish & Noodle House. Basically, this restaurant is famous for its Fish Head Noodles. Now, I have always been a fan of the SOUP of the fish head noodles but not the fish head itself. Too many bones and takes me forever to finish as I have to pick out the bones one by one. So this is one of my new favorite restaurants as it gives me good fish head noodle SOUP and I can have a choice of having it with FISH FILLET. Hahahah. Love it! The soup is very tasty and I'm kinda addicted to it at the moment.

Some people might probably find their pricing a little on the high side for a bowl of noodles. The fish fillet noodles I like cost RM9.50 per bowl whereas the ones with the fish head costs RM11.50. I have attached a picture of the restaurant's full menu for your reference. I believe if you double click on the picture, you will be able to see a clear picture of what's on the menu and the pricing that goes with each. The restaurant gets pretty packed during lunch hour but as the food comes out of the kitchen quite fast, you should not have to wait too long for a seat.

Apologise for the lighting on the photos. Did not realise they had turned out so yellow!

Fish & Noodle House is located at :

No.77, Jalan SS 20/11

Damansara Kim

47400 Petaling Jaya

Selangor

Business Hours : 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Closed on 1st & 3rd Monday of every month

Marmalade - Bangsar Village II

This is just a short rant of what I had today for lunch. I was at Bangsar Village and my sister and I decided we would go to Marmalade Cafe for lunch. Personally, if it was my choice, I would never volunteer that place as a choice location. Why? Well, the first time that I went, I ordered a Greek Salad. Now the essential ingredient of a Greek Salad is Feta Cheese, so lets say, I was not impressed that I could possibly count the number of Feta Cheese they put in that salad on one hand. If you get my drift.

Then today, I wasn't feeling very hungry so I decided to order a Mushroom Feta Bruschetta. When my order arrived, surprise surprise, it was ONE measly piece of bread with whole bunch of mushrooms on top with some Feta Cheese. Come to think of it, I think the amount of cheese on this bruschetta was all I got when I had a full size Greek Salad. *Rolls eyes*. It costs a whopping RM11 before tax!

Needless to say, I will not go to Marmalade again unless I'm overruled by a majority. LOL.....

Dian Xiao Er

Interior of Dian Xiao Er

My all time favorite restaurant in Singapore is Dian Xiao Er located in Vivo City. My hubby and I actually chanced across this restaurant when we were wandering aimlessly for the first time in Vivo City. Since then, everytime we make a trip down to Singapore, we will stop by Dian Xiao Er to have lunch before we leave for home. Again, I forgot to take a picture of the restaurant shop front (I was too busy taking pictures of the food), so please visit Dian Xiao Er's website here to learn more.

This restaurant's specialty is Herbal Roasted Duck with either Angelica Herbs, Ten Wonder Herbs or Wild Ginseng. If you ask people who know me, I do not typically like to eat duck at all. But something changes in me when I'm at this restaurant and I can eat a whole lot of duck! This time, we ordered 2 portions of duck (each portion is a quarter of a duck). One prepared with Ten Wonder Herbs and the other with Angelica Herbs (or Tong Kwai). The food looks too good to collate into one picture so this is going to be a 'long' posting.

Herbal Roasted Duck with Angelica Herbs

Herbal Roasted Duck with Ten Wonder Herbs

The ducks are uber yummilicious of course, but also very tender and juicy. If you are not fan of Chinese herbs, then you might want to skip this one. But if you are, try it and you will not regret it.

We also ordered 'Dong Po' pork this time (we were just too greedy) as it was supposed to be a Chef's Recommendation on the menu. I found the pork to be fatty (as it has to be for this particular dish) but there was a lot of lean meat as well.

Dong Po Pork

And finally, we must have a vegetable dish right? :) So we ordered Baby Kailan with Salted Fish. This was also very well prepared and was very tasty.

Just look at what we ordered just between the two of us!!! So sinful!!!

Oh, did I mention that all these dishes took less than 10 minutes to arrive from the time we ordered?? That's the other reason I love this place. Good food, great service and efficient as well!

If you are the first 10 diners between 11.30 a.m. and 12 p.m., they will give you 15% off the entire bill.

The restaurant has many outlets but if you're in Vivo City, it's on the 2nd Floor next to the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Parlour. It's opening hours are as follows:

Monday to Friday : 11.30 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. and 5.30 p.m. to 10 p.m.

(last order is at 9.30 p.m.)

Weekend and Public Holiday : 11.30 a.m. to 10 p.m.

(last order is at 9.30 p.m.)

Bon Apetite!

New Collection by Edera Jewelry

Clemence Earrings

Anya Earrings

Thetis Earrings

Delphine Petit-Four Earrings

I was so excited when I found Edera Jewelry as it was exactly what I had been looking for. Edera Jewelry is the brainchild of Ivy Long, who has been creating unique and meticulously handcrafted jewelry for ten years. Her signature craft involves meticulous interweavings of silk, gold and silver thread, embroidery, semi precious stones, vintage beads and handcrafted chains.

Edera Jewelry has created 4 pieces exclusively for Serenity Gemz (as pictured above) and is currently not available for sale anywhere else in Asia. For more information about the individual pieces and for the prices, please visit Serenity Gemz.

You need only to have a closer look and see all the work and love that has gone into the weaving and beading of these creations. Truly an exquisite, one-of-a-kind piece of wearable art.