Monday, January 31, 2011

MUSEE CRYSTAL TOKYO at Plaza Singapura - Underarms Hair Removal Package

Signed up for this underarm hair removal treatment by Musee Platinum Tokyo (PS) in Nov 2010 for $138. I first spotted the advertisement in My Paper and contemplated for quite a while before deciding to make an appointment for consultation as well as 1st treatment together with Sis. I figured out it might be better and safer to have someone for company in case they hard sell and also to prevent myself from making any impulsive decisions.
Source: http://www.musee-pla.asia
During the consultation, a few interesting facts were brought up, such as: we should not epilate/pluck as this damages our hair follicles. When the hair is plucked out, it leaves a 'hole' where new hair follicle will grow out again. After the 2nd and subsequent epilation/plucking, we will find that some hair follicles seem to grow closer n closer to the extent that they seemed to grow out of the same 'hole'. This is because epilation/plucking damages the 'hole' when the hair follicle is being plucked out. As we tend to epilate/pluck in one direction, the 'holes' will also tend to move towards one direction, resulting in clusters of hair follicles after numerous sessions of epilation/plucking. 

The consultant also pointed out that females suffering from irregular periods might have to wait longer for the effects of the treatment to take place as the regularity of the period will affect the hair growth cycle in the same manner.
So far, we have finished our 2nd treatment and I would say the amount of underarm hair seemed to have decreased. 

At times during the light exposure process which last around 2 mins (refer to http://www.musee-pla.asia/treatment/default.htm for the full treatment process), it feels like tiny ant bites. Other than that, the entire session is quite enjoyable. 

Clean rooms, no males around, no pushy sales, polite staff =)

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Furnishing The Kitchen Part I ~ Ikea, Takashimaya, Tangs, Isetan, JohnLittle

Up till date, we have bought tons of stuff for the kitchen, such as:

1) WMF 5-pc cookware set (out of which 2 pcs I will be passing to my mom) ($129)

Source: http://www.home-essentials.co.nz
2) La Gourmet 3-pc cookware set ($99) - I simply love the pour rims which would allow me to drain away water/soup when necessary. No need for an extra 'separator'.

Update: I don't think the quality of the pots are good as the edges are turning brown (something like rust). In comparison, the WMF pots do not have such issues.

Source: http://lagourmet.org

3) Chopper ($20.40 after 20% discount) - Chosen by the husband as I felt quite nauseous just looking at the display.

4) Neoflam Slicer (FOC) - Selling price supposed to be ard $32.90 but the saleswoman offered to us FOC if we buy items 5 & 6.


5) Neoflem Cutting Board ($27.93 after 30% discount) - 2 pcs
Source: http://www.neoflam.sg

6) Neoflam Nature Cook Suelo 18 cm Casserole ($41.93 after 30% discount) - In blue
Source: http://www.neoflam.sg

Sunday, January 23, 2011

The Art of Mattress Buying - Sealy, Simmons, Serta, Dunlopillo etc

Recently, we are starting to hunt for a mattress for the new place.  We hope to get something that is comfortable and yet within our budget of $4K inclusive of bed frame. We are starting to realise the process is going to be a long and arduous one. The process of choosing bed frame is so much simpler than choosing the mattress.

One difficulty we faced is that we simply did not know where to start. There are just too many brands with different materials, different firmness, different prices. Not to mention, we have to lie down on the mattress to really get a feel of how it is like. To me, it is a mental hurdle as I will tend to think of what the previous customers might have done to the mattress and also the fact that I do not feel very comfortable lying down on a bed in such a public place. 

Worse still if the salesperson keep pestering us to look at various mattresses or trying to push us to place a deposit using reasons like last day of offer, locked in prices etc. 

Furthermore, mattresses that we shortlisted in one shop might not have the same name in another shop. Example: Sealy Laissez at Sealy boutique @ IMM is actually Sealy Castle @ Courts Megastore (Tampines).  Super annoying! Already having trouble choosing what we want and still got to think of ways to remember the characteristics of the mattresses we have shortlisted.

Our ideal bed frame is one with sufficient back support that allows us to read comfortably in bed. The colour and material is also quite important. 


Thursday, January 20, 2011

LovesCoach Kate Spade - Candy Darling Rosalie wristlet

Bought this item from http://loves-coach.blogspot.com/ for the 1st time and received it yesterday by courier. Initially I was quite excited as the item has arrived ahead of schedule and it was a 3rd month wedding anniversary present from the husband.
Source: http://loves-coach.blogspot.com/


Once I opened the parcel, I was quite disappointed. There were areas where the threads were puckered and furry. In addition, there were also areas where it looked like threads was pulled out with quite an obvious  'missing line' in the material. These are some of the 'defects'.

Front View Left Portion


Front View Right Portion


Back View Centre Portion


Back View Left Portion


I emailed LovesCoach Singapore the same night with the following query and guess what was their response.

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My Email

Hi,

My father received the parcel on my behalf today.
Thank you for the quick delivery.

However, there seems to be a few 'defects' on the item as my father was not informed about helping me to check the item on my behalf (we assumed the item would only be arriving on 20 Jan). My apologies if some of the images are not very clear. Are these 'defects' generic? Does other pieces of the same item have the same 'defects'?

Thank you.

LovesCoach Singapore's reply

Hi

All the pieces are the same.

It is the fabric  and not considered a defect


Regards,
LovesCoach

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I admit I am someone who is quite picky about the quality of things I am going to buy. I will QC etc to make sure the item is in good condition before paying for it. In this case, I assume LovesCoach will be doing the QC on my behalf as it is going to be an online purchase. In any case, their generic answer was not quite what I expected from a service provider. I do understand that there might be cases where the fabric is of such quality. But in this case, the defects are so apparent! Even if they are not able to do an exchange, their reply was quite a disappointment.

After reading tons of good reviews on LovesCoach website, I must admit other buyers were much more fortunate than me =< I guess this is going to be the last time I am buying something from LovesCoach or even any online store selling Kate Spade items. It would be better to go to Kate Spade outlets even though there might be limited designs.