Handicraft Time with Pretty Lovely Crafts

I thought it would be cool to launch a new series on craftwork which some of you may be interested. :)

Amigurumi has been pretty in lately, so today we have Fiona from Pretty Lovely Craft to teach you lucky readers how to make a very adorable cupcake bear. So without further ado, let's get into our craft mood.

1. Using brown yarn and a crochet hook, make a ring.
2. Use single crochet in ring method to make the start of the bear's head.
3. Continue to crochet as the bear's whole body is formed.
4. Just before closing up the hole, prepare fiberfill for stuffing.

5. Use fingers to stuff fiberfill into bear.
6. Close up the hole after stuffing with fiberfill.
7. Using embroidery needle, weave the end of the yarn through the bear, exiting from another side of the bear.
8. Crochet the two ears.

9. Using embroidery needle, sew on the two ears on top of the bear's head.
10. The bear with ears sewed on.
11. For the eyes, use pins to position beads and sew on using needle and thread.
12. For nose, cut a small triangle of black felt. Glue on nose and you cupcake bear is completed!

Tada, presenting the end product of the cupcake bear. Isn't it lovely? For those who aren't too keen to make it yourself, you can visit Pretty Lovely Craft to place your order. Each bear comes in a box and even being mailed out, mine came in perfect condition! Not even a dent in the box.

By now, Fiona has really nimble fingers. I am sure you would want to see more of her works on ForFunk. So do like her Facebook Page - Pretty Lovely Craft and show her some love as well as see more of her crafts!

I hope you like the cupcake bear she has for you now. Till next time :)

Review: Tell Time with Time Empire

Lately, looking at the time has been a really lovely thing to do. I have never done any review on watches to date. So for you girls out there who are wondering when will I share with you a nice place to shop for your watches...Today is the moment you have been waiting for :)

Courtesy of Time Empire, I was sponsored 2 really nice watches! One was the paddle pop (transparent strap) watch while the other was the world map (synthetic leather strap) watch.

You will be pleased to know that Time Empire has a good selection of fashion watches at very affordable prices. Each watch is around $20++ and is not more than S$30. There are different straps selection from transparent plastic strap, synthetic leather strap, stainless steel and even friendship band straps.

For now, you can't mix and match your desired straps but I am sure in future you will get a chance to do so. :) Generally, I treat my watches as accessories, so I would stack them up with something chunky, either with my Charm Bracelet or my magnetic hematite bracelet. But honestly, it looks good just by itself too.

 Time Empire was perviously known as GLH Closet, which may be a more familiar name to some of you. Time Empire is founded by Gary Tan and Zhu Li Hui, with a simple goal of making customers happy through shopping. This dedicated pair believes in running their business with sincerity, hard work and good faith and this is proven by many good reviews they receive, which I can vouch for.

I was actually sent the wrong watch for review. They did offer to change it. But I thought it was ok cos the world map watch looks pretty classy as well. So I gave their kind offer a pass.

Some of the watches are pre-orders. So, to know what is instock, you could go to their instagram @timeempire or just check #timeempireinstocks. I have summed up above some of my personal favourites.

If you are a working executive and would want to go for a more polished look, I would suggest their Geneva watch or Marc Jacob selection. For something more causal, you can try the flora or friendship band watches. The plastic watches are very suitable for school children. But after wearing it for a few days, I find them a pretty chic fashion accessory. Functional as well, since it tells time.

"Whoever said that money can't buy happiness, simply didn't know where to go shopping" - Bo Derek

Their website is not up at the moment, so do visit them at instagram @timeempire

Review: Reflect your Style with Ditto

Christmas is like coming soon! Yipee... I always think that the best Christmas gifts for loved ones should always be customised and personalised to an individual just to tell them "Hey I got this specially for you!"

And thus, I am having a series of review on customised items so that you guys can have your pick on what to pick for the special people this December. :)

Leather Customised Products, how does it sound to you. Today, I have Ditto with me and the cover many different goods which you may consider gifting. Passport cover (2nd most popular item), wristlet clutch, notebook cover, key chain holder (most popular item) and even tissue cover.

I picked to review the passport holders (couple pressie) cos I like to travel and having a neat cover would let you breeze through the customs. I did consider reviewing the tissue cover cos you could actually use it to chope seats during lunch time. But then, it looks so good, I am super worried people might just take it :(

With 9 name tag colours, 17 passport cover colours (if you check out their FB page, there is even a character analysis on the colours which is pretty accurate!) and more than 52 charms in Ditto's collection, I was at a loss. To be honest, I had a hard time picking. Initially, I wanted it to be a surprise for my BF but then I didn't want to customise something he didn't like so he picked his cover colour and name tag colour, I only picked the charm for him Hahaha. I even got my Mum to help pick the charm he would like best!

And then it came to the arrangement of the name tag and charms, I only had one name tag, one dangling charm and one big charm, thank god Ditto's owner did the few arrangement for me. I just might go crazy if I had to do it myself considering I am really bad in spatial art. 

There were even the choices of big and small lettering for the wording. I opted for big. And you can't emboss Chinese characters on it. I thought of embossing mine in Chinese. Haha. Anyway, the owner is a really sweet lady. Despite my endless question, she did not flare up at me or was irritated in anyway. Really nice customer service!

So after rounds and rounds of picking and choosing, we finally got our passport holders. Yeah! And it is very very gorgeous! My BF passport holder has more texture while mine is a smooth pink. I really like the dangling money pouch we had at the side of our names. :P I don't know why when I saw it I was like too cute. Haha!

The design of my passports are a little on the simple side. But if you go to their Facebook photos, you will find a lot of different designs available, some which are really very fancy and nice.

The design of the holders are really nice. When you open, there is 2 compartment, 1 to slot your passport and the other to put some small documents you might sometimes receive at the customs. Even after putting in the passport, it doesn't look or feel chunky at all. And there is also a strap to allow you to secure the holder. Overall, I think it looks professionally chic 

I guess it is your lucky day, dear readers. Cos if you quote "XiaoCai", you will get 10% discount for every passport holder and unlimited number of name tags!!! 1 Passport Holder + 1 Charm + Name Tags will now be be only at S$13.50! And for each additional charm, it is only at $1!

And of course, there are many other stuff from Ditto so you don't have to limit yourself to the passport holders! So Ho Ho Ho, I think I just gave you people a reason to smile this Christmas! Discount Code, you lucky people!

Period Care Companion: PS Love Review

During that one time in a month, the thought of being a woman sux would run through my mind. Periods...sigh...where hormones run wild.

Male readers may not understand, but let me share with you a little more about the agony during this month, and perhaps you would treat the lovely women in your life a little more gently and give her a little more love during her rough days!

During my period days, honestly I don't even know what I am feeling. One moment, I am depressed, the next moment I am murderous, ready to kill any creature, dead or alive who cross my path. During my heavy flow days, I have really bad cramps. Like my bunny, I don't want to do anything, I just want to lay down, sleep and occasionally weep to my pillow and sometimes throw her a few punches.

I am just crazy and I know that! And I don't take selfies during these days...Zzz...

But this month, I have PS Love to make this experience a little less bad. *weak smile*

In Singapore, there are many subscription box projects going on. But, this one is a little more interesting which every women would need. PS Love is spearheaded by 2 high school students who wanted to reduce the friction and stigma of people talking about Periods. The vision of PS Love is simple - to chase away the periodic blues and automate this very mundane and repetitive cycle of a woman's life (which lasts about 38 years in a woman's lifetime!!!) 38*12, that's a lot of low points I have to go through. Sigh.

For me, I dislike the discomfort and just need something - a reminder maybe to tell me that hey, this ain't that bad. For other women, you could probably dislike queuing for your supplies and the search for remedies for your cramps every month. (Or you could be like me, feel bad about yourself and not search for any answer to the pain)

PS Love is a really nice surprise parcel for me. It came a good 2-3 days before my period. I usually forget the date, so it warns me that the monster inside me is coming. It was personally delivered in an extremely secure box, I even had some problem struggling to open it. The sticker "Hey, you are looking at my bottom" made me laugh. You should really notice it when you receive yours! :)

It came with a good supplies of pad for a month (you can even select the brand and type -with/without wing/ day/night etc!) Like magic, no more stocking up, and pads appear when you need them. But I really love best was the snacks that came with it.

Maybe it because I am more of a comfort food person. Here are some of the healthy goodies (may change every month) that came in my box which I really appreciated. (If left on my own, I just might binge on unhealthy snacks)

• PMS Tea Cinnamon - I like it quite a lot, I might even drink it when I am not having my period *chuckles*
• Dry Roasted Edamame
• Anti-Cranky Cranberry Meets Honey Almond
• Sea Salt Caramel Apple Chips
• Hanuta Minis
• Reese's Peanut Butter Cups - FAV!!!
• Witors Praline

Hope you enjoyed the video, to know more about PS Love, you can drop them a visit by clicking here. For those who are very concerned about the cost, there are different types of subscription and so you will likely find something that suits your budget. 

P.S. they don't over-charge the pads too :) I think that is really one good thing about them plus of cos the hand delivered service. Thank you PS Love, I can't say period is fun now but at least I found a period care companion that will go through these stormy days with me.

Pretty Little Things Part 6

It is Part 6 already...wow wow, how time flies :P

This time round, it is not as avant garde but is sweeter and daintier, for the ladies out there. Enjoy!

First up, I have Holly Molly. I know I previously introduced you guys to House of Stonez, which is of quite a similar concept and has a larger selection. However,Holly Molly is local based. And I wanted to show our local artisan some support so I decided to feature her.

If you are also from Singapore and you would like to save a little on postage and exchange rate, you might consider Holly Molly. I do foresee in future she will be growing to those artisan you see in Etsy store. So do keep a look out for this up and coming baby! :)

For the most amazing bows, you got to check out Katie Craft Shack. They do have other hair accessories such as hair ties and scrunchies, but their bows selection is the most impressive. They have so many designs. Lace, glitter, and even puppies.

Whether you are a young girl or mature woman, you will definitely find something that match your style. Super OMG! Just click the link and take a look, nuff said! :P

ForFunk is trying to promote active living. I am trying my best to move more instead of sitting in front of a computer all day. Some orthopaedics told me I have some severe posture issues. I am not sure whether it is true. But I will definitely see a doctor and stop slouching :(

Anyway, sad stuff aside, for those who are into Yoga, I came across Vivre Activewear and they have quite a nice selection of fashionable attire. Best of all, they are very affordable too :) I only chose my favourites to make the collage but the designs available doesn't end there. So go have a look, alright!

I needa start moving around soon. So take care and have an active weekend! XoXo.

Essentials Review: Care for your Glory

Many of you may not know, but I am an avid user of Essential's hair masks and treatment tube! I usually use the orange- coloured product for rich premier treatment for silky straight hair. My reason for picking Essential was because it was affordable and easily available and most importantly, it was a product which deliver results for me.

You must have seen Essential in your nearest drug store and supermarket. Essential is a popular haircare brand from Japan. Essentials offers a variety of products to get rid of every girl's hair woes, ranging from the basic care like Shampoo and Conditioner to treatments like Hair Masks and Leave on Serum and Lotions. This October, Essential relaunches with brand new packaging, improved formula and a new variant!

Being a lucky girl, I had the opportunity to test out their range. Based on my hair type, I was given the pink Frizz Free category. Compared to their previous hair mask, you are no longer required to leave it for as long as 10-15 minutes. Just 3 minutes! And you can rinse it off. For me, it is perfect because I don't enjoy long baths! And as usual, it allows me to have manageable hair for the next week!

It was my first time trying the basic care products and I love the lingering sweet scent in my hair. I may consider switching cos it is easy on my pockets and I think it improves the effect of the hair mask when used together!

1. Essential Moisturising Frizz Free Shampoo - S$4.50 (200ml) / S$11.50 (750ml)
2. Essential Moisturising Frizz Free Conditioner - S$4.50 (200ml) / S$11.50 (750ml)
3. Essential Moisturising Frizz Free Hair Mask - S$9.90 (can last up to 3-6 months depending on frequency of use)
4. Essential Moisturizing Frizz-free Treatment - S$7.90 (I think that was the price when I last bought it :)

How to Choose the Correct Variant for your Hair Type

Ask yourself the two questions and choose from the matrix below:
1. Do you have oily hair roots/scalp?
2. Do you have dry/damaged hair ends?

• Nourishing Breakage Defense (orange) – for weak & damaged hair
• Moisturizing Frizz Free (pink) – for dull & rough hair
• Light Finish Volumizing (yellow) – for flat and limp hair
• Deep Cleansing Care (blue) – for oily scalp & dry ends (new)

Hair Mask

The richest formula Nourishing Breakage Defense (orange) variant for treatment and mask is the most suitable for people with dry/damaged hair. The rest should use the Moisturizing Frizz Free (pink) variant which is comparatively lighter.

I am sure many of you have heard of combination skin type, but do you know there is also combination hair. The needs of our hair roots and ends are very different as such we should use right products that would answer to their needs. New Essential Light Finish Volumizing (yellow) and Deep Cleansing Care (blue) variants have the optimum combination of Smart Cuticle Care & Sebum Cleansing Technology to target both problems of roots and hair ends. As a result, consumers experience the best of both worlds with one product - airy light roots and moisturized ends.

Out of the 4 new variants in the new relaunched range, the yellow and blue variants contains technology that caters to people with combination hair - oily scalp/ roots yet dry ends. So those of you with such problems, you may want to try out their products. There are free samples available at their Facebook

Never ever settle for a product that never answer to your hair needs. After all, the mane is a woman's greatest glory :) Maintain a breathable, refreshed scalp and you can retain this glory for a good many years!

Review: Jar of Jubbs

If you realised a certain trend by now, I have been working a lot more closely with Singapore artisans as well as small companies :)

Partially, it is to show my support for local products, I know it is not easy to start-up and any exposure is always good :) Also, I love nothing more than customised products :)

You know, lately I am into unicorn and anything mystical. So when I came across, Jar of Jubbs, they had this collection of whimsical stuff that I must review them for you.

They have like cute little robots, mystical droplets, Aladdin's lamp, they just opened a whole new world, didn't they...(laughing at my own bad pun)

I am sure you guys must be curious what Jubbs stand for (it reminds me of Jub Jub from Hi5 Hehe). It actually means Jewellery & Unique Bits and Bobs. Each little trinklet is passionately made. The collection mainly consist of bracelets, necklaces, earrings, key chains and also lanyard straps. You could either get those pre-made or assembled to your own desire. :)

I must have been a good girl this year cos Christmas just came early for me. I was sponsored some nice candy canes, a good luck four leaves clover and a bracelet inspired by nature. 

Yup, for the first time in ForFunk history, it is my bunnies doing the review. Surprise Surprise, maybe next time round it would be my unicorn. Lol. Okay, she was sitting down there giving me the, "Let me review it please" look. I couldn't reject her.

As you can see, my cheeky little bunnies have arranged my candy earrings into a lovely heart shape (if you can see it). The candy are shimmery and very gorgeous. They came with the plastic stud at the back which I really appreciated.

The 4 leaf clover necklace as you can see came with different details on the back and the front. This means dual use :P The bracelet came with 5 charms. Honestly, for the price, 5 charms is super worth it!!

The Christmas collection is also now up and available. Generally, the prices are very reasonable, roughly between $3 to max $12. So they make really good gifts for colleagues and friends. You don't have to worry about breaking your wallet yet not look like a cheapskate *Thumbs up*

And to make sure you really have a lovely Christmas, for my readers only, you are going to get an additional 10% off and free postage if you quote "ChaaYen" for any online orders from now till 25 December. (Sometimes, I really don't think it is fair you guys are riding on my success..sigh)  

For those who are not comfortable with online shipping, you could also drop their box a visit.

Junction 8 Level 4 Peek-a-box
Opening hours: 11am - 10pm daily

However, there won't be additional discount. So, I really think it would be so much better if you use my discount code! Click here to visit Jar of Jubbs!

Free Samples with Bunny: Sample Store Part 2

It has been a long time since I went to redeem samples. Usually, I only do that when I travel overseas and these sample-sized products would come in very handy. Just use it and toss it, easy peasy!

Tada, so my happy bunny went to redeem the samples. I don't know why, but I received 2 packs instead of 1!!! OMG! #Happy. For those who are not aware, there are some changes in their website, but still it is very easy to navigate. And yeah, I just applied to be part of their seeder's programme too! Another milestone reached. Hurray!

So, I tested out by redeeming all free stuff - just to be very sure that the system is working perfectly fine. Haha.

1. Itoh Collagen Powder
2. Nivea In-Shower Whitening Skin Conditioner
3. Biore Micellar Cleansing Water
4. Bioessence Face Lifting Cream with Royal Jelly & Atp

For those who are going overseas, there is also a "small contest" whereby you can win a S$50 Watsons voucher! I am assuming by now, all of you my dear readers have an account with Sample Store. If you don't, no worries, just click the link here to sign up! It is free! Yup, free, you didn't see wrongly.

And lastly, hehe, check out my Mum and my new nails. Was contemplating doing M&Ms but in the end opted for dual colours. And my mum followed suit. -.-

By the way, For Funk is open for nail sponsors now. Cos my Mum and I are both nails fanatic but we can't do our nails for nuts. Sad, isn't it? :( I hope my BF notice my new nails :P Seeya next time