To Infinity and Beyond

The one thing I really like about Singapore is that we are a melting pot of different culture. We are multi-racial society. But how truly aware are we on the culture of the other races around us?

It is very unfortunate but during my school years, I only had 1 Indian close buddy. My group of friends (all Chinese) referred to her as my "Indian friend". And her close girlfriends (Indians as well) would know me as "that Chinese friend". I suppose it is convenient and very intuitive for us to immediately to identify who they are referring to. But hey, maybe it just slipped out our mind, we both have names. LOL.

Today, something happened and it dawned on me that I have changed...and not in a good way. I received an invitation for a Malay family's Open House. After years of "Racial Harmony Day" don in ethnic costumes, I actually know nuts about other cultures/ religions. And the first thought that hit me was "Maybe I shouldn't go because..." You can insert a million reasons after.

I used to be bold and fearless, empowered by youth (not irrationality and recklessness). But lately, I find myself shackled by invisible threads. So thin yet so tight. But eventually, I chose to not to let fear hold me prison. Never go, never know. 

Even though I was the only Chinese and I think I accidentally broke some rules (oops), I enjoyed myself. Nope, it wasn't as awkward as I thought it could have been. (My bro went along cos it is not every day someone invites you to their family's open house.) And the food was delicious. I think I overate cos the host family probably worried I may feel uncomfortable and kept egging me to have another.

I am ending with this interesting typography I saw online. What I saw was "Make your Mind Move" if you re-arrange it a bit. So, shake up your life. I challenge you to do something you wanted to do or never did had the courage to do so. Or just do something way out of your comfort zone for once. (Of course, I am not encouraging foolhardiness.)

I think sometimes we forget that self-development comes through new experience. Living your life in a routine manner restricts your exposures to the wonderful world around you. It is like standing at the same spot. You can't see over the horizon. To know what is beyond, you need to journey forward. Just some random thoughts as I seek new inspiration to vamp up my blog a little. (It needs to grow up with my audience doesn't it?)

Pretty Little Things Part 13

The installment came a bit early. It is the unlucky 13 so it is better to get it fast and over with. Let's not drag this too long. Hopefully, 13 is no curse to our longest and one of the most popular installment to date. It's longevity is pretty amazing, isn't it? So keep reading, so that we have a reason to keep writing :D

I have never written anything for the Muslim ladies in particular, so this time round I thought I will start off by introducing you to Chalala. If you looking for scarves in particular in local blogshops, I suggest going to shops owned by the Indians and Malays cos they usually have way nicer designs and a lot more variety than the Chinese.

Lately, I am also exploring more conservative fashion for work. And I do think some designs by and for the Muslimah are really suitable and gorgeous. Sometimes we do think if it is not designed for my race, I am not going to wear it. But, we are in very multi-cultural world. Especially for fashion, it is always good to be more open-minded to not miss out a good deal. :D 

Second, I have up for you all to gush over are the sock pals. It is basically crafts made of socks. It is not the most difficult craft to make. And yea I know what you are thinking, the cuteness is making you wanna make some yourself. That's great because most of have spare fabrics waste at home. Upcycling project!!

If you are hoping I am going to give you a short-cut and introduce you a store who sells them, unfortunately this is no longer the crafter's main focus. But you still can look at their pictures for inspiration at Azazoo Sock Pals. Hopefully, this will inspire you guys to do some crafts yourself! :D

The last store I am going to introduce you ladies to is - Maggie Haute. If you are more of an adventurous dresser and intro runway fashion, this is one place you should go to. The prices of their apparels are very very affordable. You would have expected them to be like over hundred dollars a piece, but nope you can get something decent at less than hundred.

I have been secretly stalking them for a while now, but I still feel they are quite under-rated. So do show them some big love :D There is no harm in learning how to strike a few good poses for your LOTD. Hehe. So that's it for this round of hot deals. I am like having less time to surf the line. So if you see any shops worth the hype, do feel free to drop me an email on them. Cheers.

Review: GoPro Hero4 Silver

So, it seems I have been neglecting this little space of mine. If you are wondering why, I have a new toy and it sorts of distract me from a lot of things :D This toy is no way new in the market, cos there are people that have in way before me. 

It just took me a while to finally realize luck really isn't on my side. I am definitely not winning this. And since the BF offered to get me as an anniversary gift. I was like "Yea"!!! Finally I can vlog (Lol!)

So, this is my GoPro Hero 4 - Silver. I didn't exactly do a lot of homework on it. I just picked Silver cos it had a screen at the back for me to review the captured footages. I don't think I am that great a videographer anymore. It has a shorter battery lifetime so it just means more conservation of energy, more prudent filming and just drag a good power bank around. LOL!

I got this "miniature unheard-of camera" (as my Dad like to put it) at a quite steal. Initially, we decided to go to Changi to get it (cos no GST charges), which let you save about 7%. Was asking around to gather more information on the GoPro (which the BF wanted), so C told me about the Double 7% discount at Changi over a particular weekend.

This was when I heard about this free card - Changi Rewards Card. For any of you living in the East, this is one card you should really get. With this, you get to Enjoy 7% GST savings at participating outlets in the public areas of Changi Airport. Particularly for cosmetics and electronic products, it is really kinda of worth it to make a trip down even if you live in the West.

It happened to be one of college friend's birthday that month, so yea it makes quite a lot of cents, I mean sense to go Changi for that weekend. Haha, usually I would suggest other places so they were pleasantly surprised when I offered to go East. The girls also did their shopping there after hearing my savings. (Actually they made up a shopping list on the spot).

For the GoPro, we cant' use our normal memory card, maybe cos it is capturing videos with lots of action? So we invested in SanDisk Extreme. Got it from Lazada as the savings are more substantial than buying at Changi that day. For me, I am a buyer particularly concern about warranty. So, I am willing to pay a slight premium for warranty. Otherwise, you can find cheaper options at Lazada (Not an affiliate of them by the way)

Plus if you buy from Shopback, you get extra rebates on top of the credit card you use. Plus you may additional interest if you hit certain minimum spending. I am not sure how much I saved with all these, but you can follow my steps if you wanna save some money too :D Here's the first GoPro Video!

Ora2 Smile Contest: You are not Fair!

Some media companies dissed me off and this one really pissed me off big time. Lately, I joined this Ora2 Smile ambassador Contest because I am such a big fan of their toothpaste.

But after today, instead of making me feel absolutely clean and fresh. I look at the Ora2 toothpaste with disgust (not because it is a lousy toothpaste) but because your media/ public relation team sucks.

When creating creative work, whether it is writing or photos, I hate "plagiarizers". Plagiarizing doesn't mean you copy word for word or pose for pose. If the outline/ theme is almost the same (especially in the setting of a same contest), errr...the copycat shouldn't have too high hopes to win or even shortlisted.

But the organisers decided to shortlist her as well. So, I guess their stand is "Support Plagiarizing!" Some Smart Alec may retort that "Hey, imitation is the highest form of flattery, ya know." Not a person that revel in flattery I guess, cos apart from irritation, I feel repulsion.

So why am I so angry? Because

a) I spend an hour taking eons of photos in different poses before shortlisting this (cos I thought this was the most creative, my bangs didn't look weird and I had no double chin.) Yes, that's the effort I put to each and every media contest/work I join. So shut up, haters!

b) For those curious about how this photo is taken, I had a photographer (basically my brother) and even a stylist (my mum). So much time of the assistants wasted because the organiser favoured copied work. Why rack your brains in future, just copy lah!

c) I had to send 3 reminders on different platforms of Ora2 before I could get a response from the organisers. Maybe I should have just emailed Ora2 direct. And when I received an response, it is just half-hearted apologies and weak reasoning. :( So that's all I deserved. Ora2, do you really treat a fan like that? 

The reply I finally received, telling me there was a separate shortlist. And I was kicked out. Why "3-hearts" wasn't kicked out? I even got a time stamp to show I submitted my idea first. You come from a creative industry too. If your competitor took your proposal and modified it a little (even if it is in the name of bettering it), I am sure you would be more livid than me. 

I came out with this alternate theory for the true reason. It could be really overlooked (so they conveniently "shortlist" another person) or there was a mistake in some consolidation of the 20 photos. But what disappoint me the most was a lack of response. My first request for a reason was sent even before the first vote was cast. (Super fan or what, their post on Facebook was noticed by me so quickly).

If I were truly shortlisted, they could have taken immediate remedial action. Nope, just hide it. If I were really kicked out (with "3-hearts"), you can always tell a person sorry I shortlisted the wrong candidate. But considering how they ding-dong with me a bit when I asked questions on the data protection act, I doubt I was the wrong candidate.

But, they chose the easy route and that is to continue overlooking me (until the third reminder) and let me breed into one dissatisfied customer. 

I am writing this down instead of accepting their gift because I choose to have a voice instead of some lame-o gift. And what this voice wants to say to all companies out there (because you can learn from their mistakes even if you don't treat your customers like this): Please value your customers. I don't need you to treat me like a Queen, above reasonable treatment. But when I am feeling disgruntled, can you at least simply reply my messages? Let me know you are listening and tell me what you can/ or are trying to do to improve so that similar situations will not happen in future. 

And this applies for all industries. And this is the lucky girl that got my place. She didn't even get a shortlist comment. :(

I am not mean (even though I could if I wanted to). I blanked out every name ok! Their contest will get some traffic too. And I didn't even shame their media company too. I am now wondering if Ora2 even know what is going on or is this being swept conveniently under the carpet by the media company. I hope you truly gain 20 new customers to boast off, cos one loyal customer is gone! 

Handicraft Time with Yunie's Handmade

So you know when a girl is in love, she would always want to have similar things with her better half. “你一个， 我一个， 一人一个， 多好!” Maybe it is just me. But I do notice a good deal of couples having dolls that look like them. And it looks cute in photo shoots and shots. So, I jumped the gun and custom made ourselves one. 

I can't do any domestic work for nuts. So mine comes from Yunie's Handmade. She is very experienced in couple dolls so you and your lover are in safe hands. I don't really have much distinct features, so I am a little sailor girl. The BF is in his trademark sky blue shirt. I forgot to make his pants beige LOL. But never mind, I will buy him a pair of white shorts HAHAHA!

But the whole point of this post is not just on the couple dolls, we have another giveaway!!! Claps Claps. And we, okay is actually Yunie, will be teaching you how to make them if you don't win it. Too lazy to make it yourself or clumsy with needles like me, you can hop on to her etsy store to get one for yourself.

So as usual, we will not make our giveaway too hard. Cos we really want to make people happy in this depressing weather and economic climate. So, just

Follow Yunie's Handmade on Facebook (Compulsory)

Leave me a comment when you are done. We will give away one Octie for every 15 followers. Chances are still decently and reasonably good! I know we are just so nice people!!!

If you are a Crochet enthusiast, this are some of the items you would need to make your own. It is quite basic and you can find them at craft stores. And if you are making your own, do tagged us in your photos on Instagram, you can #yunieyarnyawn so that we can see them! :D We might even feature your crafts too!!!

So here are the instructions to help you create the parts. Looks a bit like a sperm right? Haha.

And tada, for assemble them together and you will have a cute octopus which you could make into a keychain.

For some of you who may be really crafty, you might want to check out Yunie's blog. She has free templates to share and for her past works, you should best look at her Facebook for inspiration. She makes crafting look effortless.  

And if any of you would want to showcase your craft, don't hesitate to contact me. Or if you are curious about a particular form of craft, write in to me and I will see what I can do :D Have lovely weekend, people!