Limited Edition Gift Box Design

All purchases from Purple Anemone are packaged lovingly in a royal purple gift pouch.

A customer, Sam, requested for a gift box for a necklace to a friend instead. Hence, I created this unique box design especially for her using a transparent box, black velvet ribbon, maroon ribbon with gold trimmings and 3 frosted floral beads.

I'm always happy to create new gifting designs! :)

Chloe Sally Bag

This Chloe Sally bag is so beautiful in its simplicity. The shape is chic and goes perfectly with the leather and metal strap. The purple calfskin leather is gorgeous and soft. There is also a smaller version with an additional zippered opening on top at the local Chloe boutique although I just can't find a picture of it online. The last I checked, it was available in white and red calfskin and in a beige snakeskin version.

The service at the Ngee Ann City Chloe boutique is also superb!

Sequin Cap

I've been extremely busy these few weeks and am glad for the opportunity to shop around last and this Sat for a short while. I tried on a white sequin jacket from Zara's Studio range but unfortunately the size M jacket was too big for me (surprise, surprise). The jacket is so beautiful and it has rekindled my love for all things sequined.

Happily, I found this sequin cap from The Hereen instead! It's ultra-bling and with a pair of sunglasses, I can pretend I'm a celebrity moving around incognito.

This cap is also available in silver and gold.

The Dressing Salon

Get ready to charge at Wing Tai's Dressing Salon (at 105 Tampines Road) for some bargains on Karen Millen, Maxstudio and Warehouse.

Pedder Red - Drop off your Business Card

If you're in Ngee Ann City or Vivocity or if you are a fan of Pedder Red, you may like to walk into the stores to drop off your business card and score a chance to win a handbag. It's simple and easy!

Other Juicy Charms

My small collection of Juicy Couture charms, which consist of the gum ball machine in the previous entry, a lipstick that can be rotated up and down to reveal more or less of the pink part and a cheque book:

The cheque book can be opened to reveal a cheque inside. I wonder how Banque De Juicy is doing in this global financial crisis:

Bubble Gum Charm

I love Juicy Couture charms! This is the latest in my very small collection: a bubble gum charm with interesting details. Don't think I will be using this anytime soon, just going to have fun looking at it for now.

The Teenage Textbook and Workbook

After reading Fashion Nation's entry about The Teenage Textbook ("TTTB") movie last night, I promptly searched for the book and its sequel, The Teenage Workbook ("TTWB") from the study for a dose of nostalgia. I'm so glad to be able to find them, even though they are in a tattered condition and some pages have already come undone. It evoked a strange feeling when I see in childish handwriting my name and the date "10 September 1988" written on the first page of TTTB. It's been a long while.

The books are about life in junior college for a few students (and their teachers) and their adventures and misadventures on Valentine's Day (coincidentally, today is Valentines' Day, so have a great day!). An except from the Introduction of the TTTB:

"They say growing up is hard. That's rubbish. Anyone can grow up. Most people do (except perhaps DJs).

The problem is Teenhood.

That's right. Teenhood - that period of life between your tender 13 years and your naughty 19s. Everything is a mess. You have crushes. You have pimples. You have crushed pimples.

Worry no more. These books are for you.

Books? That's right...this book is actually a combination of two books.

One is a true story about some people I once knew at school. Some were nice, although one was a real creep. They were very unique people, mainly because they were perfectly normal, typical teenagers.

The other book is called The Teenage Textbook.

It's a book that teaches you how to survive your teenhood. It answers each and every one of the most important questions a teenage would everask himself, like"How will I know if I'm in love?" (p.56), "Why is there so much pain and suffering in this world?" (p.256) and "if there is intelligent life on Earch then why do people still watch wrestling matches?" (p.205)." "

It's not as funny as I remembered it to be (have I became more humourless?) but I still enjoyed the feelings of nostalgia reading about the trials and tribulations of the characters late into the wee hours of the night.

Information about the books if you are interested: Both were written by Adrian Tan and published by Hotspot Books.
TTTB: ISBN 981-3002-21-2
TTWB: ISBN 981-3002-28-X

Studs

Right after Christmas on the 26th of December, I went out, all ready to charge at the post-Christmas sales and promptly bought from River Island a studded headband which was NOT on sale. Haha

Punk Revival

Love this yellow studded belt from Forever21. I wore it yesterday with a black and white outfit and the Day-Glo yellow is simply striking. This reminds me of a Kate Spade clutch in a similar color which I didn't buy eventually. At only S$13, this belt is definitely a more economical option and achieves the same punk graffiti look. The studs are an added bonus!

Also available in Day-Glo pink and orange, red and black.

Face Roller

I bought this face massage roller at a shop in Far East Plaza yesterday. By rolling this religiously around the jaws and neck for ten minutes every day, the face will supposedly become slimmer and dreaded double chins will be prevented from appearing. I have a friend in Taiwan who swears by this and indeed she has a very slim jawline.

According to the instructions, the roller is supposed to be rolled up and down the jawlines. However, I would suggest rolling it upwards only as rolling it downwards seems contrary to the objective of achieving firmer skin.

The shop also sells arm rollers and leg rollers that will supposedly improve blood circulation and reduce cellulite. All these rollers are retailing for less than S$10 each (except for the leg rollers which cost more than S$10) and I think, worth a try. Aaah, the things we do in the name of beauty.

Planner 2009

My Hello Kitty craze has struck again. It's an on-again-off-again affair with the cat with no mouth. This 2009 planner (or Schedule Book as the Japanese call it) has a red PVC cover with an machine-embroidered outline of the feline on it. The corner of each page shows Hello Kitty and her sister playing in the park, on the swing, and playing on the see-saw in a frame-by-frame mode. Just flip the pages and the cartoon can be seen!

My Outfit Today

I wore this to a cocktail cum Thomas Wee preview last week. A black dress with a ruffled front, a pink shawl from Pedder Red to add color to an otherwise safe dress, a limited edition pink Purple Anemone clutch and my favourite Purple Anemone chunky bracelet.

I'm not usually a shawl person but couldn't resist buying this shawl a few months ago as the color was just so alluring. I have debated internally and with friends if I should be wearing one to a cocktail (is it a faux pas or only something only older women wear?). In the end, I just wore what I wanted!

Cheery Backpack

I have not used a backpack in years; the last time I used one was during my Uni days. However, I bought a Yak Pak recently to carry my gym gear and shoes around. This limited edition Yak Pak (everything and anything can be limited edition these days haha) is so cheery that it brings a smile to my face whenever I see it! I'm not a fan of smiley faces but I just love this print! My favourite rainbow and flowers! I love the colors of this bag! I even feel younger carrying this. :)

I'm Thankful

I had too many complains and grouses. I flared up too fast and forgave too slowly. I got cynical too easily. Despite reading books about being grateful for the abundance in one's life, I became too unhappy too fast and too soon.

During my last holiday in China, we went up the Kanas mountains and the beautiful scenary was majestic. However, it was at this place in Xinjiang that I breathed in the fresh air and suddenly felt thankful for everything I have and resolved to be a better person. It was at this place where out of the blue I experienced an epiphany after climbing up the steps to reach the top of the hill:

Today, I remembered a couple of charms that my parents bought for me a few years ago. The charm was in the shape of a vaseful of flowers with the words "Thank You" engraved on it. Instead of being appreciative of the charms, I told my parents that I did not know what to do with them. Who would want to wear charms with the words "Thank You" on them?

Just inspired today, I made a necklace this evening with the floral "Thank You" charm to remind myself to be thankful for all I have. I am grateful for my family and boyfriend, friends, colleagues, and even basic things like shelter and food. I'm also thankful for everything that I can do.

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity....It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." - Melodie Beattie

" I will forget the happenings of the day that is gone, whether they were good or bad and greet the new sun with confidence that this will be the best day of my life." - Og Mandino

My Outfit Today

I wore this black crystal skull dress from Shanghai yesterday. It's super comfy! Wore it with a pair of with black and grey wedges from Pedder Red.

Went for the SGX Bull Charge run yesterday and a primary school class gathering after that. It was our 2nd gathering in 20 years! It was hilarious that most of the girls wore black (we think that that's because we want to look slim for a class reunion after 2 decades! haha). Our conclusion was also that guys tend to age slower than girls - guys seem to look younger!

My Fantastic Xinjiang Trip

I loved my holiday trip to the Xinjiang Autonomous Region, China, 2 weeks ago. Besides the beautiful scenary at Buerjin and Kanas River and making a lot of interesting new friends, I had quite a bit of fun, ridding a (very smart and tame) horse by myself up to a waterfall, a camel for the mandatory tourist photos and driving a 4-wheel terrain vehicle at the beautiful and scenic Ghost Town (so named because of the sand dunes that are naturally formed by wind movements - you need a lot of creativity to imagine the sand dunes as demons and ghosts).

At the Wuyi night bazaar in Urumqi, I ate mutton, grilled fish and other seafood from the road stalls and quite a fair bit of fried silk worm cocoons as well. That night I ended up with swollen eyes and a blocked nose as a result of a food allergy or food poisoning (I was very thankful that I could still breathe through my mouth otherwise there would be more adventures to the local hospital). As my mom was saying back home, why did I have to eat 8 pieces of the insect when 1 would do to try the taste (Ans: I did not want to waste so much food).

I bought dried raisins and walnuts but my favourite purchase is this brand new pair of velveteen mid-heeled Mary-Janes from a stall at the Wuyi night bazaar. The shoes are labelled as "gong yi bu xie" i.e. handcrafted fabric shoes. It's comfortable and so economically priced that I didn't have the heart to bargain for it (only S$3). This will look wonderful on its own or with a pair of colorful striped socks. I only regretted not buying a few more pairs since I've only seen them more commonly as flats.

Away on Holiday

I will be away in Urumqi from today onwards till next week! Blue skies and greenery! See you all when I'm back!

My New Hairstyle

It has been a long 3 weeks for me and finally the mad rush is over (sort of lah)! Hurray! Took time out to relax and got a new haircut. My hairdresser suggested a short hairstyle with a dark blue base and electric-blue highlights. He's the only guy I have never been able to say NO to and ta-da this is the result:

I'm still trying to get used to this!

Classic Accessories

My personal favourite accessory for dressing up any outfit is surely the classic pearl necklace. Swarovski pearls come in various sizes but I especially love the chunky big ones. Beige pearl necklaces are great for dressing up for important meetings and dates! This is truly timeless appeal in a small package. What is your favourite easy-to-wear accessory for dressing up?