I had shopped until I dropped...

It is only May and I had exceeded my shopping limit of this year. Yeah yeah... same old me. But you should understand if you were in New York.

I had been to the States three times, in three different seasons over the past 4 years. Autumn, winter and spring. I guess the next time would be summer. But that might never happen. I have enough of summer and humidity in Singapore and I want to experience different weather when travelling to another country.

Anyway, this March and April saw me visiting Boston, Washington DC and New York. And yes, you read it right, New York for a second time. But I was in the city alone this time, trying to visit those touristy spots that I had missed last time and to have my usual shopping treat.

And of course, I wasn't shopping in Manhattan alone as I visited three cities this time. So I contributed my share of tax to three states I had been to this time. As I had not traveled anywhere in 2011, I let myself free this time. And what should have come had come. I had maxed out two of my cards and had to request for a temporary limit increase. Ha ha...

So what had I purchased during this trip?
- A pair of Chanel flats
- A pair of YSL flats
- A pair of Ferragamo flats
- A pair of Chloe platform sandals
- A Chanel brooch
- A pair of Chanel earrings
- A pair of Dior earrings
- A Chanel necklace
- A Tiffany & Co necklace
- A Tiffany & Co bracelet
- Tom Ford cosmetics
- Le Métier de Beauté Cosmetics
- A vintage Chanel tote
- A Longchamp Autour d'Ha Long tote bag
- and more

I know I should feel guilty, but I just don't feel the pinch. Not then and not even now, when I am paying for my bills. I even think I should have shopped more. And I am planning for a Hong Kong shopping trip.  This is bad...

Singapore shopping - Kenzoki and Burberry Beauty

Metro was having a 20% store-wide sale this week. Initially, I did not plan to buy anything except Chanel UV Essentiel and Givenchy Prisme Libre Loose Powder. These are two stable items in my make-up routine and stocking them always gives me a peace of mind. However, recently, I am thinking of trying out sunscreens from other brands as the price of Chanel UV Essentiel is increasing to an unacceptable level. But again, I do not want to waste money on trying new products and eventually still have to go back to Chanel. It is a very disturbingly tiresome argument I was having with myself.

Anyway, I was in a very bad mood this week due to family matters. So I knew that I would, either spend a bomb shopping or walk home empty-handed. With that kind of mood, I went into Metro Paragon and headed straight to Kenzoki. Err? That sounded so out of the blue. Well, at the time, I suddenly remembered Kenzoki also had a suncreen (which brand does not have?) and a lot of customers seemed to ask for it last time when I was there checking out its moisturizers. So I thought I might want to see if the stock had come in (it had been out of stock in July).

When I reached the counter, the SA was the one had served previously and I had felt quite comfortable with her. I asked to test the suncreen on my hand to feel texture and if it left a white cast on my skin. Even though the product looked thick at first on my skin, when I spread the liquid, it took less than a minute to absorb into my skin and leave nothing behind. No white cast and stickiness. And the coverage seemed great, just a few drops to cover my forearm. I thought to myself, maybe worth a try. I asked the SA about the price. $61, compared with $73 of Chanel. That was great. "I will take the suncreen, thanks!"

But I did not stop at that. I did not feel satisfied, so the SA recommended other products from Kenzoki. In the end, I walked out of the counter with a night eye cream (for dark circles) and an exfoliator for my face. I had some from Origins (GWP and reward points) but I was having a withdrawal from those products. And Kenzoki scrub had very interesting texture. So yep, I gave these products a try. After all, I am pampering myself so it should be money well-spent.

But that was all I bought in Metro. Amazingly, I did not think about stocking Givenchy loose powder. I passed by the counter without a second thought. I guess I still had until end of this year to buy a new box.

My next focus was Tangs and the newly-opened Burberry Beauty counter. Why? Because I wanted to take a look at Burberry Beauty products, especially its blushes. I was reading beauty blogs the past few months and got hooked into this brand. I am a sucker for clean and classy packaging. That is why Chanel, Givenchy and Kenzoki call to me. The design of Burberry beauty products could not be any less perfect. So yeah, I needed to see them for myself to satisfy my eyes, and then tested the products to see if they were as wonderful as those bloggers described them to be.

The counter was situated near to MAC and the perfume section of Tangs Beauty Hall. And it was quite empty when I was there, which made me hesitant to approach the counter. I just wanted to check out the products, but I might not buy anything. And an empty counter might make that difficult as the SAs would have more focus to push you. Again, my depressing mood prompted me to go there. (Yep, I usually do many thing unreasonable when I am stressed.)

The SA serving me turned out to be very polite and nice. She asked me if I was interested in a particular product and my answer was blush. Due to two unfortunate accidents, my eyes are extremely sensitive and dry nowadays. I cannot put on eye make-up without irritating them, which means eye shadows, mascaras, eye liners, etc. are out of my focus. So when I shop for my make-up, they usually include liquid foundation, loose powder, blush, eye brow related stuff, lip sticks and blush. Since I was sick of my current blushes at home, I looked forward to exploring some new options at Burberry.

Singapore counter seemed to carry all the light glows (that was what Burberry calls its blush) which were available on the UK website. This means more than what is offered on Singapore website. And the SA recommended Tangerie (No. 6) and Blossom (No. 5) to me. After trying both on my cheeks, I wanted to buy both colors. One interesting point about the blushes was that they looked quite different from the pan and on my cheeks. And different in a good way. The texture was another winning point, velvet and pigmented. What else could I expect from a blush? I was sold. But which color should I choose? After asking me a few more questions, the SA convinced me to take Tangerie as most of my current blushes were pink tone. Tangerie would give my blushes a variety.

So yeah, I happily took Tangerie home with me, after parting 61 bucks at the cashier. The price was high, but it was comparable with Chanel. Also, after I checked the website, the pricing in Singapore was quite compatible with other countries carrying the line, which made me even happier. And you will definitely see me at the next Tangs 12% sale.

Here are some shots I took of the blush. Beautiful, isn't it? However, due to my lousy iPhone camera, the color of the blush was not reflected well in the picture. It is the best to see it in real life.

Singapore shopping - Shu Uemura and Chanel

Even though I am under pretty strict budget for shopping recently, Chanel always manages to blow my resolution out of the window. Earlier in July, I had bought a liquid foundation from the brand, at full price, just after a makeover. It is Pro Lumiere Professional Finish Makeup SPF 15 and I have not started using it. I will change to it after finishing my current tinted moisturizer from Nuskin. Hopefully I won't need to feel regretted over buying it.

Anyway, Metro was having its 20% sale last week (end of July) and I wanted to stock my Chanel sunscreen, my holy grail product at the moment. But the price has been increased, again, which made me thinking of exploring other options. Really, from $69 in 2009, to $70 in 2010, and now, the price has hiked up to $73. That is very ridiculous for a daily product (even if it is necessary). But I am afraid of wasting more money to try other brands and in the end I have to come back to Chanel. At least right now, as long as there is a 20% discount, I feel less painful to swipe my card.

Aside from the sunscreen, I wanted to buy a couple of brushes, powder and blush. One thing I never try to save money on is brushes. A good brush makes a huge difference in your make-up. And finding a good powder brush is the biggest challenge to me. It's easier to find my favourite blush brushes. Most established brands offer good blush brushes. I'm using YSL and Shu Uemura blush brushes and they have been working well for me so far. However, when it comes to loose powder/face brushes, that is another story altogether. I have tried Rouge Bunny Rouge, Giorgio Armani and Japanese hand-crafted brushes. Even though they are not bad, I still feel unsatisfied when using them everyday. That was why I wanted to buy Chanel brushes. If they are good, I could finally stop looking around. And if they are bad, well, at least I get these products from the brand out of my system. But you know what? When I finally decided to buy these brushes, Chanel had also decided to stop selling them. Something about a new range of brushes being launched in a month or so. Damn! In the end, I had to settle for a Shu Uemura face brush. And planning to buy Kanebo's Lunasol brushes the next time Metro having its 20% sale in September.

Because I didn't buy any brush from Chanel, I felt a need to buy something else. And last week, the Fall 2011 has just arrived to the store. So obviously, I took a look at what was offered. As I don't do eye make-up and the cheek color isn't appealing much to me, I set my eyes on nail polished. Wow, that was what my first thought. At first look, I liked all three colors. They all looked beautifully when I tried on my nail (with tape underneath, of course!). However, Peridot caught my eyes and I knew I had to have it. No thinking was required. I don't have any duo chrome color in my collection and the term "limited collection" also helped to push me to the cashier. So yep, I left the store with my Chanel Peridot Le Vernis and sunscreen that night.

For the other two colors, Quartz is pretty but I don't feel it is special enough for me to fork over 28 bucks for it (that is after 20% discount). Though I was hesitating about Graphite. I really like the color but I didn't know if the Paul & Joe bottle I had bought previously could be duped for it. So I didn't buy Graphite and went home. However, I kept thinking about it. Reading nail polish blogs blogging and raving about it didn't help either. That Paul & Joe bottle doesn't seem to be a dupe either. So yeah, I went back to the store the next day to get my share of Graphite, with 20% discount still in effect. If not, $36 for a bottle of nail polish is too extravagant for me.

Above are two new members of my collection. I haven't done any manicure or pedicure with them yet. But I think it will be pretty soon. Singapore has no season so I usually wear my colors based on my mood. And right now, my mood is duo chrome and graphite.

Note: I have just done a manicure with Peridot and a pedicure with Graphite. I have no photo for you as I am no good at taking picture of my nails and toe nails. But I've gotta say I love both the colors. Peridot looks gorgeous, ever changing itself whenever the light hits. Obviously it isn't an appropriate office color but due to the nature of my job, it doesn't really matter much. I could wear it anytime the muse strikes me. Graphite is very metallic but strangely more office-friendly. Even though it's less interesting than Peridot, it's a beautiful and amazing color to have. BTW, it seems Peridot has been sold out at Takashimaya. I haven't checked at Paragon, Isetan and other places. But if you are a Chanel lover or nail polish lover, better run to those stores and grab a bottle for yourself.

Shopping resolutions for the second half of 2011

Yes, I am doing my list of resolutions this late, as I didn't know what I wanted this year in January, and right now, I think I need to write these self-made promises down so that I can keep them. Also, they will act as a memo for me, if I have any urge to break them.

- Shoes: I've had a change of mind after buying my first pair of Chloe shoes. Truthfully, I was a little disappointed when opening the package and seeing the flats the first time. The material is suede, not grain leather that I'd seen in the store. Even when I read the details on the site, it didn't state suede, just leather, though the photos indicated differently. Guess I need to trust my eyes more in the future. And the fitting is a tad tight, but that is the risk I was willing to take. Then, that disaster with the re-heeling and re-soling. I am now very conflicting. Half of me wants to run to YSL and buy that pair of Love flats. Another half doesn't want to buy any more shoes, except those Ferragamo jelly flats for Pre-Fall 2011.

And guess what? I've decided not to buy shoes until my next travel, except for that pair of Ferragamore jelly flats and another pair of Ferragamo Spiffy flats. That makes 2 pairs of flats within 6 months, which is reasonable and practical. And from now on, I think I will buy my other shoes overseas. The reasons are plenty. First, the next pair I want to own, quite desperately, is from Chanel and Ferragamo (I mean their leather shoes). And the prices of these two brands are marked up heavily in Singapore. I feel so cheated to buy anything from them here (again, jelly flats are the exceptions, I have no other choices). And when they are having sale, like now, there are nothing left in my size. Trust me, I tried to go on the first day of sale, and there were nothing left, unless you have giant feet.

So overseas is the solution. When you travel, you feel less guilty to shop. Just think that you might not have a second chance to buy them, it will help you to hand over your card/cash. I made that mistake, not buying a pair of Chanel shoes and I regret it everyday. So next time, I will just close my eyes and pay for it. After all, prices never go down, they just go up every year. And the brands to focus on are Chanel, Lanvin, Ferragamo and Louboutin.

One big note to myself: No re-heeling and re-soling in Singapore for flats. Even if it means the life spans of my shoes are shorter, but at least I feel happy when wearing them.

- Jewelry: No buying online, unless it is a designer brand, i.e. YSL and Chanel. Chanel means its vintage earrings, brooches and necklaces. But I might want to wait until I go back to Manhattan to shop in those fabulous consignment stores. YSL means its in-store costume jewelry. I'm still in love with its arty rings. Such a statement piece.

Anyway, back to the reason why I won't buy jewelry online, it is because I was badly burnt by an experience with Amrita Singh jewelry. The photos on the site were deceiving. Except for its jewelry box, which is pretty, the two rings I bought were such a let-down. Even though I knew that they were made in China, I thought the quality should be above average as they were charged with such high price for gold-plated material and semi-precious stones (US$100 for a ring before sale isn't cheap). When I saw the rings, I was shocked due to the cheap-looking metal. Gold-plated, my ass! And the craftsmanship was poor, really poor. On the way back home, I had half a mind to throw them into the bin. Yep, they were that bad! So yeah, no more online "unknown jewelry" shopping!

So what will I do about jewelry? Hand-made and order-to-make. I've just realized that Thailand is a heaven for gorgeous hand-made jewelry and I will wait for those Thai fairs/festivals to buy those. Or I can travel to Bangkok and bankrupt myself with those beautifully-made rings, earrings, necklaces, etc. For order-to-make, I have my trusted friend and our favourite shop back in Vietnam, I just need to find the designs and send them to her. She will choose the stones, adjust the designs to match with those stones and have them made. When I go back to Vietnam, she will give them to me. The cost will be definitely much cheaper than those badly-made Amrita Singh rings.

- Clothes: Massimo Dutti and Zara are the shops to go. For dresses, DvF is still my trusted brand whenever one in my size is available on sale on Shopbop (the cheapest on the net and no shipping charge). And I will definitely stock plenty of them the next time I go to New York.

- Skincare: No more buying until I finish two third of what I have in stock. No more space to store. This means no shopping/shipping the next three months.

- Cosmetics: Except for sunblocks, facial mist and liquid foundation, no purchase is needed until 3 months later.

Singapore shopping - Second pair of shoes for 2011

It is my first pair of Chloé shoes. And yes, it is another pair of flats. Out of all shoe types, flats is the one I wear almost daily. Be it weekday or weekend, it is my first choice of shoes. Unless I have a specific outfit in mind, which I usually need to go with a certain shoe type. I know it sounds boring but after spraining my ankles twice (once each side), I might have developed a phobia of wearing high heels. So until I feel my ankles are 100% back to normal, I guess I will continue to wear and buy flats.

Anyway, this pair of shoes wasn't my first choice. I wanted to get YSL 'love' flats, which was in an amazing color. And it was on sale as well. However, the sizing was a little off, plus the fact that the shoes didn't look that well-made (at least compared with my own YSL purple flats which I bought about 2 years ago). So I decided not buying it. Then... I wandered off to Chloé and tried on their shoes. Wow, "soft" was my first thought when putting on theirs. Sad to say this but YSL needs to increase their QC standard before it drops further. Back to Chloé shoes, they fitted me perfectly. I had half a mind to buy on the spot, even though there wasn't any sale at that moment. But... there is always a "but". My size was sold out for the design that I like. Damn...

Luckily, I have another way to get I want, without flying to Paris. Namely online shops. Coincidentally, one of the websites is giving out a 30% off for SS11 collection. So why should I wait for the sale? And a few days later, I received my lovely shoes.

At the moment, the shoes are at the shoe repair services shop to have their sole prepped. I've learnt my lesson with my old Lanvin flats. Now I just need to see how it's done and if it is what I think it is, I will have my black Lanvin flats prepped as well. Yep, expensive shoes definitely needs more care than your average run-off-the-mill shoes. But the reward is when you wear them and they change your outfits as well as posture entirely.

Updates on 21 Jun 2011:

I really regretted having it re-soled and re-heeled. A disaster. Shoe repair services in Singapore suck big time. This is my second time having problems with my shoes after sending them to the shops. Let's see how long I will put up with this pair before chucking it into the bin. For 424 (400 + 24) bucks, I guess I have to wear it at least 100 times. For every other day, this means around 6 months. It means until next year. Well, I can do this. But first, I need a spare nail file.

Paris shopping - Chanel 2.55 classic flap bag

I have been so behind my travel blogging that I don't know where to start again. Then I realized that what better gives me the writing muse than my favorite past time, shopping. So yes, this post is dedicated to my first Chanel bag (and hopefully not the only).

There is no question on why I decided to buy this bag. It should be more of the question: Why should I NOT buy it when I was in France? From all the information I had gathered, it would be very unwise not to buy a Chanel bag (or any Chanel stuff for that matter) when I was in Europe. The tax refund alone could justify the reason. And given the weak Euro when I went there, I would definitely regret not buying anything. Now, think about it, I feel quite sad not buying a pair of Chanel shoes. But Lanvin won at the end.

Anyway, with this in mind, I gave myself no limit for my shopping budget. Just what I should buy. How could I give myself a limit when I was in the land of Chanel, Hermes and Lanvin? But I gave myself a goal. No looking at other bag designs from other brands. And it was really a challenge as I fell in love with Delvaux. Its bag structure is so beautiful that I was literally forced myself to walk away, after purchasing a wallet from the boutique in Brugge. I felt it was time to have the first Chanel in my collection.

Also, I had made a point getting my 2.55 at the 31 Rue Cambon boutique. A lot of people said the experience itself was worth of the effort getting there. And was it really? Yes, the novelty of stepping into the store overshadowed the not-so-great service I got there. I'm not saying the service was bad. After all, I helped to increase that SA's income so she had to be nice to me. But I didn't feel the genuine happiness of giving a good service to her customers from her. Again, better her than her colleague, who didn't even have the necessary product knowledge.

Even though I had wanted a Jumbo flap bag, there was no stock at the time. And I wanted to buy the bag THERE and AT THE TIME. Yep, that's me! Impulsive with my instinct. So I settled for a Medium 2.55. But now, looking at it, I feel it is the perfect first Chanel bag to get. Beautiful and just the right size to go with any outfit.

About the price, yes, it is expensive but in comparison with how much they are selling it here in Singapore, I saved quite a nice sum actually. More than SGD1k. With this amount, I could buy a LV Neverfull PM in Singapore. And the price always goes up, never goes down for Chanel, or any branded bags for the matter.

Nothing fills the blank better than a couple of pictures.

Chanel store @ 31 Rue Cambon, Paris

In front of 31 Rue Cambon boutique with my new purchase

Unwrapping my new love

A gorgeous Medium Chanel 2.55 classic caviar flap bag

Singapore shopping - First pair of shoes for 2011

It's Salvatore Ferragamo Spiffy flats in silver. This design is so great that this pair is, in fact, my second purchase. My previous pair was bought last year for the rain season. After 6 months which I had worn it almost every other day, it had given out and broken. Even if the price is a little high for jelly flats, my cost per wear is very low.

And believe me, investing on day shoes is a must. Your health is affected partially by your posture, either walking or standing. And shoes contribute a big part in it. Again, my reason is: it is better to buy one pair of good shoes, than buy ten pairs of cheap but badly made shoes.

Singapore shopping - YSL Iconic Arty Oval Ring

I don't know if I should be proud or feel guilty. Finally, I've got myself a ring from Yves Saint Laurent.
I am a fan of the brand, especially its shoes and accessories. They are so beautifully made and reasonably priced. But I didn't have a mood for YSL accessories, just its shoes. So I didn't explore its accessories until today.

Recently, I have a passion for rings. Previously it was just earrings and necklaces. But Tracy had made me to think differently. So I blame you, Tracy, for my new obsession.

A few weeks ago, I saw this YSL Iconic Arty Oval Ring on the Internet but didn't think the Singapore store was carrying them. So it was just pure coincidence that the SA showed the ring to me. Initially, I only wanted to check out their sale items. But there were not many things I like. The shoes were on 50% discount but I didn't think the marked-down price was justified for me. Maybe I just wait until next US trip to buy some pairs of Dior and Miu Miu shoes. Anyway, I wandered to their accessories counter and tried a few pieces. But they were too normal for my taste. I guess my face showed my thought at the time. That was why the SA told me that he had a ring that might interest me. And the price was the same as the ring I was trying. Well, no harm checking it out, right? Wrong, cos it was harmful to my wallet. It was the ring I've been thinking about, but thought they didn't carry it here (no display in store) and it might be too expensive. It turned out they have it and within my budget. So what else could I do? Buy it of course!

So here are my first YSL ring and hopefully not the only one.

New York shopping - Century 21

Technically it was my second day in New York, the first day being the day I landed to JFK, aka two week before. But who cares, it was my first day in Manhattan and NYC. And managing to get here on schedule was another miracle (I hate terrorists, but that will be another story of another blog post).

After catching some much needed sleep (I think I didn't sleep a wink the night before in Canada) in the hotel room for about 2 hours and waiting for Tracy to arrive from San Francisco, we went out for some much needed retail therapy and of course, dinner. As we stayed in Tribeca which is quite near to Ground Zero, our logical shopping choice was Century 21.


(sorry, the photo was a bit blurry. I was cold and hungry.)

I'd had high hope for this department store after all the raves from other travelers, and even some New Yorkers. And yet, I was disappointed. The brands the store carried were just blah and the selection was bad. After 5 or 10 minutes in the store, I was bored even others were digging furiously. Its only saving grace was shoes, but I couldn't choose anything as there was no size for me. Really, I had had better luck at Neiman Marcus Last Call in Chicago. I'd managed to score a pair of Brian Atwood heels there.

Anyway, that might be just me. You may find the store interesting if you like those brands. But I won't recommend this for any of my friends' shopping list.

Magnificent Mile at night

If you are a shopaholic, you must visit this part of Michigan Ave. Even if you are not, you should come here as well. Especially at night. The street looks magical and beautiful. I enjoyed shopping at Saks Fifth Ave. The service was warm but not too overwhelmed.

Nail polish of the week: Chanel Illusion d'or

One of my favourite past times is having manicure and pedicure. I have my nails done every two weeks. I know it sounds luxurious outside Vietnam but I think I could forgo some other indulgences for this.

Of course, together with manicure and pedicure, my love for nail polishes has heightened. People might say it is a waste of money to buy your own if you go to the shop and have your nails done there. But think about it, sometimes you really love a particular colour, but your shop does not carry it or just finishes it. What should a girl do? Stock my own nail polishes, certainly! And once you start doing that, it is easy to get out of hand. The next thing I know, I have quite a collection. Well, as long as I feel happy, I guess I could justify for anything. Hahhaha... very lame but who cares? If I can't even make myself happy, who can?

A few brands of nail polishes that I love are OPI, Orly and Essie. And thanks to online retailers, I managed to buy them at a very low price, which I buy quite a lot every time I decided to order. But Chanel is different, and unless you want to buy from eBay with a ridiculously marked-up price, I have to buy the colors I love once they are just released (which are usually from limited collections). Yes, SGD35 for a bottle of color varnish is a bit too high, but whenever I think about Chanel Jade last year, I have a motivation to take out my card.

So... for this summer, I have bought this Chanel Illusion d'or:It is a sparkling gold color and very sheer. And I love it. I can wear it alone or mix it with another color, based on my mood. And yes, this is for my hands. I have a weird obsession, darker colors for my toe nails; sheer or nude colors for my finger nails. And if you are wondering whether I am wearing it, the answer is a big YES.

My new favourite make-up item...

... is Chanel Rouge Coco in Orchidee
My make-up routine is very simple. Foundation (liquid and powder), eye brows and blush. I don't put on eye make-up as my eyes are very sensitive and dry, and when I put on beauty products, they irritate my eyes to the extent that I might need to see the doctor's. So better safe and boring than being sorry. That's sad, I know.
Also, I am not a lipstick girl. I often forget my lipstick or gloss, feeling content with my lip balm. Not only that, the lipsticks I have are of those safe colors, which don't really inspire much.
But fortunately (and unfortunately for my wallet), I love Chanel beauty products and naturally I am very curious about whatever the brand releases each season. Last year was Rogue Allure which I really like with its abundance of moisturizer. This year we have Rouge Coco and I couldn't ignore it, could I? And I don't want to play safe anymore. I am in the mood of looking for something different, something not me (partly). And I love red (which you could have guessed). That's why I have bought Orchidee.


It is a warm but bold pink shade but looks good on me. I have been wearing for 2 days and for the first time in my life, I could see another color on my lips after lunch time. And I have the desire to wear it everyday. So yeah, it is my new fav!

My shoe collection

I have made a decision with regards to my bags and shoes. From now on, I will try to buy those with good quality. Considered these as investment pieces, this will help me from buying too many shoes and bags which don't last me more than 3 months. Also, given my limited space, I will need to focus more on building a small but well-covered wardrobe. Quality over quantity.

At the moment, I have only 4 pairs of designer shoes. These were bought from different sale events and with discount from 70% and above. I am very proud of this collection even though I haven't managed to establish a personal shoe style. Anyway, I allow myself to acquire about 4 pairs of designer shoes a year. Yes, no more cheap shoes and no more seasonal de-cluttering!

1. Alexander McQueen Mary Jane Heels



Red and brown. Suede and fine leather. Very sharp combination. Dislike its pointy toe cap though, cos it hurt my feet terribly. I have wide feet, ya see!

2. D&G buckle crunched flats



One thing I like about leather-made accessories is that the more you wear them, the more they become beautiful. This pair of flats isn't an exception. I have been wearing it for more than 6 months and it looks prettier and prettier. However, due to the crunched design, it was a pain in the ass to wear. Until I cut the rubber band and it is perfect.

3. Marc Jacobs dark blue pumps



Square toe and chunky heel, a comfortable design? Nah, dun let it deceive you. It's 4-inch high which can really kill you if you walk too much. Talking from a painful experience here! But I love the additional height it gives me and the compliments I got from wearing it. Just be prepared to soak my poor feet in warm water at the end of the day though.

4. Yves Saint Laurent Ballerina Flats in Purple



My latest addition into the collection. Actually I wanted to buy the silver cage bow heels but that pair cost over SGD1k, even after a 50% discount. And it is 4-inch high and I was still traumatized over my Marc Jacobs pumps. Anyway, I just realized I hadn't had any purple shoes before. So here it is, lovely sitting there in my shoe rack.

All in all, for this year, I have bought 2 pairs. I might buy about 2 more pairs, if there are any good deals out there for me grab! My wish list includes a pair of Lanvin flats and a pair of Christian Louboutin heels.

GSS 2009

I'm so broke this sale season! After 4 months of not-so-much shopping, GSS 2009 has been a disaster for me! I've been spending too much now, and in combination of other events, I'm nearly broke. But of course, I'm happily broke.

To keep myself in track, I will use this post to list all the good purchases I have been making. Dun read if you are not a shopaholic. You have been warned.

- 10 books (checking)
- 1 pair of Met store pearl earrings
- Zara dress
- 2 Ralph Lauren dresses
- 1 Ralph Lauren turtle neck top
- 1 pair of Tommy flats
- 1 pair of FCUK flats
- 1 FCUK dress
- 1 Island shop dress
- 1 vintage dress
- 1 pair of Marc Jacobs heels
- 1 Swarovski necklace
- 1 Kate Spade Tarrytown Quinn in Orange
- 1 Mango dress
- 2 pairs of United Colors of Benetton tights
- 2 Massimo Dutti scarves
- 1 Massimo Dutti cotton vest
- 1 BCBG dress
- 2 Zara dresses
- 1 Zara slip
- 1 Zara scarf
- 1 Zara cropped cardigan
- 1 YSL ballerina flats

San Francisco Sep 08

This was taken on 29 Sep 08 at Union Square in San Francisco. I so love the weather there! Just nice to wear light coat and boots. And introducing my lovely Furla bag.

Am I a bag snob?

I am on the 9th cloud right now. Why? It is because I just bought a Kate Spade Tarrytown Quinn for myself. For those who know about my travel plan this Sep, laugh all you want. Yes, I know I was talking about waiting to shop in the States. Yes, I know I need to save lots of money for that trip. Yes, I know this year the economy is down. Yes, I know there were many reasons that I need to save money. But really, I thought very hard before I decided to bring this bag home. I have been lusting over this bag for a year, or as long as I saw it. And when it was on sale last year, it was 30% discount and I couldn't feel justified enough, for that kind of leather, color and brand.

Time passed, this year's sale has come, I wandered to Kate Spade store again, didn't expect much. And there it was, sitting invitingly on the shelf. I couldn't help myself and took a look at it. Lo and behold, it was a 50% discount and in my favourite color. OMG, I thought to myself, "I could afford it, should I buy it?" Anyway, I walked out of the store and went to buy some jewelry at Swarovski. The next day, I was still thinking about it which meaned I really wanted to buy it. So I went back there with a friend who I wanted to give me a rational voice. And you know what? The bag was sold out at the store. What the heck? I felt so lost and so sad. And I realized I would have to buy it at all means. So I asked the SA to call to another branch to check if they still had stock. The answer was YES. I felt so relieved but it was too late to go there at that time. And today, I went to the other branch, saw the bag, checked with SA for the new piece, had my credit card swiped and BAM, I am a proud owner of a new bag. A Kate Spade Tarrytown Quinn in orange.

That is the typical story of a reformed shopaholic. And back to the question, am I a bag snob? I do not know. Truly. I just feel myself loving bags made of good materials, and at the moment, I am really into leather. I do believe that leather bags will last you very long, compared with bags made of other types of material. The more you wear them, the more they look beautiful. Long-time worn leather bags have a very particular look which make them more unique. Also, just do some simple math, if you keep buying cheap-material bags, you can only wear a few months and then you will feel bored with them, and of course, discard them. And nowadays, those bags are not very cheap either. You can spend nearly 100 bucks for them. And because you think they are cheap, you will buy more, quantity over quality. Within a year, you can easily spend a few hundred bucks on bags which you can't keep at all. Whereas, you save and buy 1 or 2 good bags a year, but you feel content and confident when wearing them. Over the time, you will have a collection of good bags which you might be able to pass down to the next generation. That is if you keep them in very good condition.

And speaking of cheap bags, they will do you no good when travelling. I had a case of bag malfunction at the airport where the handle of my bag broke. I had to run around to find a new bag, just to replace that old bag. It wasn't a pleasant experience, I must say.

Anyway, enough talking, now it's time to goggle over my new bag. Muahahhahaha....

In its shopping bag



Then in its dust bag



In its own glory



In another angle



Enough? Yes, I think so!

Indulgence of the Month

It's an indulgence to find out your purse was on sale (30% discount) and you'd just gotten your salary. Here is my brand-new purse/wallet, taken by none other than my BFF...

Guess Olympia Trifold in black

Now I feel like regretting writing down that wish list. The list seems to help me to focus on buying what I was neglecting or ignoring before. Some of them require heavy investments. And I just go and turn those wishes into realities. Who else is better in grating my wishes than myself?

Anyway, back to the main topic, I fell in love with this purse quite a long time ago. I like Guess alright. The brand's got style, I must admit. But it's too bling for me, especially its bag and wallet collections. Half of its collections are too showy and heavy (litterally). Except this Olympia collection. More of my style. Since you've seen the purse, you might get what I meant. How about a look at the bag which is now on sale on its website?

Pretty, right? It's now selling at USD48. Compared with the usual price at USD80, it's a real steal. Anyone coming back from the States, please let me know and help me to grant my 10th wish. [Edit: A guess spree was open, yet the bag was OOS. Shocked and disappointed]

I'm wandering again. The trifold was selling at S$59.9 when I last saw it in Singapore. In Vietnam, the price tage was at 599k VND. A tad expensive for a wallet, I think. So when it was on sale at 30% discount, I didn't hesitate paying for it anymore. Either Guess or Mango. And Mango accessories this season are quite disappointing, being that they are leaning toward 80s trend, except sunglasses. It came with a box which I now use to put name cards inside. Quite convenient, hohohoh!!!

I'm a shower gel freak...

that's why I ordered a total of 10 body care items...

5 of them have arrived my friend's house... Mine were the boxes which were red-circled. Other items are from other spree-ers. Mine hasn't reached to Singapore yet. Hhahaha... I might post them, though. If you request so nicely...

The parcel was so big, bigger than an A4-sized magazine

What were inside it were more special

5 paper-wrapped unknown items (to you only. Of course I knew what they are...) and a VS catalogue with a super duper sexy Alessandra Ambrosio on the cover. A bonus from Amanda babe... Inviting? Yessssss.... VS bras, I'm so expecting you...

All you need to know when shopping online at VS

Saigon ... rainy days... perfect weather to stay at home, be cocooned in thick blanket and sleep away...

But here I am, surfing around Internet just to shop. What can I say? It's raining almost everyday, and it's so inconvenient to go out shopping or doing anything. And I need to satisfy my thirst of buying something. Anyway, online shopping is just a click and some typing away.

Of all the stores, VS is my favourite webbie. Why? Because it offers everything a girl likes, i.e. undies, clothing and beauty. Furthermore, I've been trying and using its products, either undies (panty), clothing (a top) or beauty (plenty of these). And I love them. It's not because I love US goods (I have lots of clothes made in Vietnam, ya know?). It's because of their high quality, unique scents, colors and designs. Especially, they're cheap, even in Vietnamese standard nowadays, hohoho.

The 4th VS batch has been sent to my spree organizer and it was the first time I ordered panties (The one I have now was hand carried from the States). Previously, I just ordered Garden Collection sets or VS make up. And it was pretty easy to order these. The tip here is What You See Is What You Get. There's hardly a case when you find things you like go out of stock. And what you see on picture is really what you'll get once the order reaches you.

However, ordering panties is entirely a different matter. First of all, there are so many types of panties for you to choose. Bikini, hipster, cheeky hispter, boy brief. Even though I'm a girl, I feel so confused that I need to see them on models and gauge what I want. Guys, I really pity you if you need to buy these for your girlfriends or wives, hehehhe. Not only types, VS offers lots lots of colors to choose. They all look so cute and irresistable. Hey, but don't let these colors fool you. They aren't available for all the types of panties. To save yourself from disappointment of your color going OOS or unavailable, here is my tip for you. You need to choose which type of panty you'd like. Then you'll see a list of available colors which you can go back to the color chart and take a look. Now you can choose your type, favourite color, size and quantity. Remember to add to your shopping cart to check if the merchandise is available. If it's indicated IN-STOCK, tadaa, you can pay for it to be shipped to you.

One more thing, you always need to know how a store charge for shipping. Is it better to ship internationally/directly or through a concierge website? Can you save much when bundling up with others' orders? Do your homework before buying sth online! It's your money after all!

I've got a mail...

Or a parcel? My maiden spree ordered, received from VS...

Do they look VERY SEXY?

Mine are the Very Sexy Mosaic Blush in love life and Beauty Rush Lip Gloss in my cherry amour. My friend told me the lip gloss tasted like a cherry candy. Uhmmm... I don't particularly like cherry flavour... But who cares? Now I'm so happy with this that I feel my stress gone away. Talking about retail therapy...hahhaha