Florasia: Garden of Eden

Hello people, I truly hope you like plants because today I am doing a review all about cutesy indoor plants. When most people talk about indoor plants, the first thing that naturally pops into your head is probably Terrarium. Maybe you don't know what is a Terrarium, but you will definitely go something like "plant in a glass bottle". Yeah, no doubt about it, in Singapore that is probably the more popular choice when we think of indoor plants. 

But have you ever thought of potted plants? Today, I will share with you some alternative plants that you can try to grow at home or in the office. I know the biggest fear you have have is the Midas "Touch of Go(ld) and die". But trust me, some plants are pretty easy to maintain. I don't have much of a green thumb either.

Perhaps some of you are already aware of Florasia, and might have seen her plants in boxes all around Singapore. I did my own research and I have to agree that her plants and accessories are one of the most afforable in town. Whether you are a budding gardener or a plant hobbist, her store is definitely one good place you can visit to stock up. 

I dropped by her Peek-a-box at Bugis+ and it is really easy to find cos her boxes were facing out. The interior was gaily decorated with lots of pretty ornaments and baby cactuses as well as fittonia. She owns 3 boxes so there is really no way you can miss out the boxes. Moreover, you know how boxes are like, they are always filled with the same handphone accessories, so seeing plants are actually quite a refreshing sight!

There were a lot of options and I was very spoilt for choice - plants and pots. Took such a long time to decide on one. I was contemplating one for the BF instead, but (I can't believe I am saying this) on my way home, I decided that this plant should be mine and solely mine. HAHAHA! He can jolly well get another for himself. I wanted to choose a flowering cactus but the business was so good, it was out of stock. :( 

On each pot, there are also drawings on it, which could be removable. I was quite mortified when the owner told me you could remove the drawings if I didn't like it. It was really well drawn so I was thinking "who on earth would really want to remove it" Each potted plant cost roughly ($18 to $28) and it comes with an accessory of your choice and a stick for you to either customize your message or picked one that is actually pre-written. :) And tada, presenting my chosen plant, I have to say picking a plant is like picking a pet, you really need to find one that speaks out to you. And this little plant spoke out to me :) I picked a porcupine accessory cos one of my nick is Spiky Hahaha. And I also received 2 other ornaments which I can probably alternate so that my plant looks different every week :P By the way, each accessory cost only $5 (really lowest price in town!). Apart from using it as an ornament, you can also use it as a paper weight.

My Fittonia is one independent plant. Doesn't really need much attention, just got to water it a day or 2, when the plants look fainty. And best of all, it is a great office plant cos indoor lighting works well for her. If you have purchased any other potted plants, you can also visit this page to find out more. I think the English Ivy looks really good as well, but I didn't see it in the box that day. OOS again I think...Sigh

Also, you need any flower arrangement expertise or a bouquet to impress your loved one, Florasia also provides such service. Do note that a few days advance booking would be required. So do drop her a visit, I am very sure it will worth your while...

~~Tata~~

The PH of Health

Water is one resource which every Singaporean knows about how precious it is. It is one of the most understated elements, colourless and even tasteless most of the time. To me, water is mostly a thirst quencher. And according to my parents, the more water you drink, the better it is for your skin and health.

But do you know that there is actually different form of water! For the health conscious out there, it is time to sit up straight and listen. I bet many of you are not aware of this. 

Alkaline Water! Have you heard of it before? Cos I have never heard of it! So yesterday, I had the opportunity to know about the water ionizer by StarWater. The water ioniser actually uses a "simple" (or maybe not so simple, but I will use layman terms to make it easier for you all) technology to separate the water.

To put it simply, it  is water purification method using 2 electrodes with different polarity such that the acidic ions and alkaline ions are separated. Thus producing the acidic water (which could be used for cleaning and cleansing) alkaline water (for drinking and consumption) and lastly purified water, which basically just neutral water (for those on medication).

Honestly, I am not sure if any of have heard of StarWater cos I myself have never heard of them. Haha. It is actually a Singapore brand. And the first thing that really capture my attention on the ionizer was its sleek design. The model that we actually saw that day was the white Star 5. It kinda of remind me of my iPhone *laugh* The truth is it is very aesthetic pleasing and easy on the eye. No surprise why they won Singapore Good Design. It is just something that I probably wouldn't feel too embarrassed placing it in my modern kitchen cos it just blends in well. Haha.

I went to their website and saw that they actually have a Star 7 launching soon. It is a little bit too bulky for my liking though. But one thing I really did fall in love with was the red water ionizer. Dangerously Chic!!! I tinkered with their knobs on the day itself and I think it is quite intuitive to use the water ionizer. Nothing hated most than hassle (even if it is for my good health)!

The presentation by StarWater that day was really more like an entertaining science lesson. It was very informative and we did a few experiments just to show how acidic the fluids we take in on a normal basis are. Sprite and Coke are expectedly acidic. But what came as a surprise to me was H-two-O! I was taken aback by the amount of acid in it. Thank god, I am not that a huge fan but my BF is. Our tap water is thankfully somewhat alkaline :)

Also, we also found out that with alkaline water, we can neutralise the acidic amount of fluids or solids we consume in a day. And using the blow test, you can actually find out how acidic you are. I am quite glad I wasn't pick as a volunteer cos I am definitely one highly acidic walking human. And for those who are't aware, carbon dioxide is an acidic gas (O'levels syllabus! My teacher will be proud that I still remembered)

The next part of the programme is something that I was really eager for...cooking demonstration by Chef Anna using the alkaline water! But of course, it is not a must that you use alkaline water to prepare such scrumptious meal, it is just the preferred choice! :) As you all may know, I am like a housewife-in-training with the number of cooking lessons I have been attending. And the 3 dishes that she was going to teach us that day were healthy and not difficult at all to whip out at all! Very suitable for busy people like me!

The first dish was the Korean Pear Salad. I really liked the pear sweetness but I am not that into the Yuzu and lemony taste. Too sour for me. I am not much of a date person actually. But the dates really tasted very good and complements the pear very well.

The second dish is my favourite! I even had a second helping! It is the 4 herbal mix chicken soup! My Dad never cooks it at home so it was really a very good opportunity for me to learn it! When she started pan frying the sesame oil, I was literally drooling. It smelt so so good. 

The chicken was incredibly tender. I am more of a fishy girl than a red meat girl but this chicken was quite suited to my tastebuds! Yummy! I did contemplating having a third bowl. But I didn't want to look too greedy or hungry. It is so nice! I will probably try it at home some day and impress the BF with my fine culinary!

The third dish was the Black Sesame Rice, which I unfortunately didn't quite like. Sorry Lao Shi, it is a bit too salty for me. The organic rice was okay. I am not an Asian who is very particular about rice, so any grain would do since I can't taste the difference. But the seasoning came with salt..And OMG it was salty.

For me I would probably modify this dish a little, skip the salt and keep the sesame and I believe I would probably cook this quite often :)

Last but not least, we had our iced honey peppermint lemon cooler drink and a nice tea to go along. One thing I personally really liked about Chef Anna was her generosity. You know, when she heard that we have not tried a particular tea, or stuff before and she had it in her kitchen, she would just take it out and share it with all of us. And I think it was really very very nice of her.

The drinks themselves are easy to make. I also realised that when using the alkaline water, they actually absorb the flavor faster. It was less than a minute or so, and I noticed the water changing colour. My house doesn't use alkaline water and especially if we are using normal temperature water, I am pretty sure the flavour doesn't come out that fast!

And that summed up the cooking demonstration of that day!

I guess every event always let me take away some learning point.

Healthy Living Starts With You. Drink Your Way To Better Health! 

And that is what I took away. It is an investment and if you do not want to invest in it maybe due to financial reasons, I would recommend you to try to reduce the amount acidic food you take. And maybe drink more tap water instead of carbonic drinks. Sometimes we don't see the immediate effect now, but 10 years down the road, you may find yourself plagued with illnesses. This words of wisdom didn't really come from but from an older friend. But I thought I would share it with you guys...cos caring is sharing. 

Be a happy fish in good PH water! No need for nasty headmask! :)

Review: Sweet Stationary for you ~

Last week, Mr Postman dropped me a fuchsia coloured plastic package - one of my favourite colours! o.O I don't really receive such colours often.  

Like a cave-woman, I ripped apart the package wrapping. There is really nothing left of it.

And tada ~~ in it, I found stationary goodies from Sweet Craft. It is not just cute. It is very cute!!! You know the thing about being a female, you become a girl all over again when you see adorable stuff. You squeak, you giggle and you chatter. :P

Sweet Craft is an online store that specialises in DIY art and craft tools for card-making, crafting and letter-writing. I am not sure if kids nowadays write. But during my time (sounding real old, as I type these words...sigh), I used to write a lot to my friends. Especially for their birthdays, we girls will be writing long birthday wishes. Now, I still try to do so but of course, I don't have as much time as before :( *Pouts*

I have really good news for letter writers out there. You know most of the cute papers are usually thin and very flimsy. But not Sweet Craft paper. I was really quite shock by the quality. It was very very good. As I was arranging it to take photos of them, I was like thinking "this paper quality not bad woa!"

And I like the fact they had quite a few variety of envelopes to choose from, ranging from sophisticated to cutesy. The papers I received were black in colour. They have the normal white and brown papers. There was a point in time writing on black paper was cool. And they really look good if you have a nice silver pen or Gold pen. :)

Of cos, I tested them out writing to my lover, but nope. not going to let you guys see my message... Hehe *blush*

2 of my favourite products were the 100 day planner and the Coloured Zebra papers! The 100 day planner is particularly useful for students and people like me who are having exams soon. So you can actually plan your day using a count-down style. Not sure if you young kids are aware of this, but seeing your dreams and goals actually make you more likely to achieve them!

The coloured zebra paper is just pure cute! I saw it and I was like Awww~~~ and there is a cat version. Even cuter~~~

And lastly, the every girl must-have is cute post-it pads. I prefer the frogs one better than the bunnies. But there is so much more available. *Squeaks* 

Just a creative idea to share, if you get their cute animals or the Tribal Folks post it, you can actually cut the top up and use them for crafting. I might try them out with my frogs so stay tune for my other posts - which will be on their accessories. :)

Take Care and be prepared for my series of post *gasp*