I really wish i could be in Singapore for all of this that’s happening NOW.
Fashion Steps Out @ Orchard (FSO) 2012 is a 6-week event from 16th March till 29th April that’s gonna be jam-packed with fashion shows galore, MasterCard shopping rewards and activities that will involve both fashion insiders and public alike!
Also, for the FIRST TIME EVER, the whole of Orchard Road will be closed to vehicular traffic so that ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY (i just had to write it in caps) models will walk for a spectacular runway show, that is the opening event for Fashion Steps Out.
Imagine 170 models. Wearing the latest styles from international and local designers. Strutting down a road that’s converted into a runway. Even the buses that go along that route are to be diverted!
The event is open to public viewing and I think it’s awesome how such a grand event is accessible to everyone and anyone who loves fashion. If you don’t want to miss this fashionable momentous moment, make sure you block your calendar for this Saturday evening, 17th March!
To kick off Fashion Steps Out to a bright and blazing start, there are already larger-than-life 3D fashion and light installations being exhibited along Orchard Road! Called The Lighter Side of Fashion by Raffles Design Institute, students from said institute have converted their imagination into giant light installations that capture classic silhouettes in fashion history.
> When: now till 1st April
The Fashion Bazaar is something i’d love to go for… it promises to be a chic and trendy bazaar filled with high street brands and stylish food. Brands on website mention Topshop Print Shop, Ms Selfridge Candy Store (i want!), Diva Garden, What Women Want Styling Shop and many many more.
> When & Where: 23rd – 25th March @ Mandarin Gallery
> Tip: The first 300 shoppers to charge a min. of $50 to their MasterCard gets a free April copy of Harper’s BAZAAR
To preview Spring Summer collections from the likes of Ermenegildo Zegna, Maria Grachvogel, and Calvin Klein Jeans; you can check out Paragon for Spring 2012. There will be over 4 glamorous weekends of runway shows.
> When: 16th March – 6th April
> Tip: Visit www.paragon.com.sg for show details
At Orchard Central, A Colourful Affair will be taking place – featuring brands like Ashley Isham, Desigual and Levi’s®, as well as local designers Blackmarket No. 2, SABRINAGOH, The Reckless Shop and many more.
> When: 31st March – 22nd April
> Tip: There will be 2 shows per weekend at 3pm and 7pm
Of course… with a lot of fashion shows, there’s going to be a lot of SHOPPING. It’ll be like going to an amazing restaurant and not eating if you don’t! Because MasterCard is the official card for Fashion Steps Out, there will be deals and privileges for its cardholders.
The MasterCard Spend & Redeem lets you redeem a $30 shopping voucher every time you spend $300 with your MasterCard. To know its participating outlets and details, click *here*. Even if you spend at least $50 with your MasterCard, you still get a chance to enter the FSO Lucky Draw where the prize is… a brand new Citroën DS4 worth $90,000.
> When: 16th March – 29th April
There’s a lot more stuff i haven’t included above… like how you can style yourself at Fashion Gets Real and have a panel of fashion experts decide whether you get to keep the outfit; or how you can win $3,000 worth in prizes for What’s Your Fashion Alter Ego? There’s even the Imagining Fashion contest run by Canon IXUS whereby if you’re one of the winners, your photos get blown up and displayed outside Mandarin Gallery.
For a WHOLE lot more info, visit the Fashion Steps Out 2012 website *HERE*
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An event that i’m familiar with with and hope to attend again is the Asia Fashion Exchangethat’s happening from 14th – 20th May 2012. Trust me… i was so keen on this that i googled the dates for it a few months ago when they weren’t even released yet!
The whole point of AFX is to position Singapore as Asia’s leading fashion hub, and consists of four key pillar events:
1. Blueprint: a trade show that positions itself as the fashion trade gateway to Asia which creates business opportunities between international buyers and promising design players. I blogged about attending Blueprint in 2010.
2. Asia Fashion Summit: a premier business conference that generates thought leadership content and insights on fashion topics for industry professionals.
3. Audi Fashion Festival Singapore (16th – 20th May): a showcase of world-class collections by top and emerging designers and labels, both international and Asian, and like, one of my favourite events. Ever. I’ve attended and blogged about a few shows (click on link to read):
Last year Audi Fashion Festival streamed live shows to over 500,000 viewers in 91 countries. It subsequently won the Singapore Experience Award for Best Lifestyle Event by the Singapore Tourism Board. This year the festival will offer new innovations i.e. MasterCard will be launching a digital platform that will connect with millions of fashion consumers from all across the region to interact with and support leading designers in contemporary fashion directly.
And last but not least, my FAVOURITE shows to watch are under the fourth pillar of Asia Fashion Exchange: 4. Star Creation, a regional fashion design competition to spot budding talent.
Malaysian Daniel Ngoo was one of the three winners at last year’s Star Creation. Honestly, i was blown away by so many of the young designers’ work and wanted to BUY so many of their pieces!!
All 12 finalists will be facing off on the runway on 14th May @ The Tent at Orchard to be among the three selected winners who will each receive $10,000 cash, a coveted one-year work attachment with FJ Benjamin and the chance to launch their own capsule collection at Audi Fashion Festival 2013 and Blueprint 2013. (Which reminds me, i hope i can buy 2011′s Star Creation winners’ pieces at this year’s Blueprint!)
I love Johnnie Walker. I just bought myself a Green Label at the airport and meant to keep it to enjoy slowly. I say ‘meant’ because a couple of friends came over and that was it. Finish.
Lucky for all of us, the JOHNNIE WALKER® Black Circuit Lounge VIP Race Party is back in KL next week! This year, some of us get to Step Inside The Black Circuit Lounge with Jenson Button for insider access into the stylish and sophisticated Formula 1 lifestyle.
Just take a look at last year’s party pix i took:
Absolute. Mayhem. I foresee this year will be the same madness! You can read my blogpost about last year’s Johnnie Walker Black Circuit Party *here*!
This year, the event will be hosted by E! News Asia’s Dominic Lau; Miss World Malaysia 2009 Thanuja Ananthan; and singer/actor Hannah Tan. Also watch out for World Champion Magician Shawn Farquhar.
Date: 21st March 2012 (Wednesday)
Time: 8pm
Venue: Hall C, M.A.E.P.S, Serdang *For map click here*
DJs from USA and HK have been flown in to pump out the music this Wednesday:
DJ Smith Agent Smith from USA
DJ Nadine Ann / Miss Malaysia Universe 2010
DJ Politik from USA is headliner for the night
DJ Dim Sum from HK
As i mentioned in my post title, i’m giving away 2 VIP passes to the ultra-exclusive JOHNNIE WALKER® Black Circuit Lounge! Watch the video below to get excited then read on!
Question: Tell me why you think that JOHNNIE WALKER® Black Circuit Lounge VIP Race party is THE party of the year and why you should be invited in no more than 50 words.
You may comment on this post or send our answers to joycethefairy@gmail.com with the title “JOHNNIE WALKER® Black Circuit Lounge“. Deadline: 12 noon Monday 19th March 2012
I’m really lucky to have a handful of good friends, and i don’t like to overdo this whole BFF thing by saying i have five BFFs or whatnot. (Besides, BFF = Best Friends Forever which is like jinxing yourself if something happens!) Instead, i categorize each close friend to their specific and best roles in my life. Like Best Drinking Friend (Aps), Best Friend to Play With Like Little Kids (Cammy), Best Oldest Friend (Ashley), and the list goes on and on. There are even certain categories that have Best Male and Best Female for them.
My Best Traveling Friend is a very important title cos it’s someone i can hang out with for days and weeks on end without irritating each other. To travel with someone without fighting requires both people to have the same priorities when it comes to budget on what we want to spend on most, and all the things we want to do. I’ve heard of difficult travel partners who INSIST on only seeing/visiting what they want (horror!).
After summer of 2010, Yishyene and i dubbed each other our Best Traveling Buddies. We didn’t even plan it… just admitted to each other that we told others how we traveled with each other best!
First and foremost is that we both have the same priorities that we want to spend on: FOOD, and FASHION (in that order). Third priority is accommodation and we always have the same budgets in mind when we book a place. Another characteristic that we both possess is the penchant for colourful, kiddy, and funny things or toys.
Yishyene brings just as many toys as i do, so they can be friends with my toys!
Something i have is something she would probably want. And something she has is usually something i have my eye on too. Even our fashion sense is almost similar. But because we (still) have our manners around each other, we don’t fight over fashion finds with an unspoken give-and-take system. Like when we were in Amsterdam rummaging through a flea market and found a few pairs of crazy vintage tights – only one pair per pattern!
Besides fashion, we also like very similar music which means we can go to music festivals together and dress all happy!
It’s also pretty awesome that she takes good pictures too, so she can be my photographer for crazy pix while traveling. It kinda sucks when people miss the shot and you give up on them after three tries.
The important thing about a travel friend is that they don’t BORE you. And it’s quite impossible to be bored around Yishyene…
She’s someone who takes stupid pictures with no conscience that your family is there with them.
She’s someone who finds trampolines as much FUN as i do and will play on it for HOURS with me!
Someone who convinces you to put your head next to a flower, ‘just to see’ which one is bigger -_-
I’m good at contributing to holiday antics, though not as much as her! The only one i recall is me being quick enough to laughingly take out my camera when she got shat on by a bird in Bali.
I’m pretty sure that if we lived in the same city, we’d be a lot closer to each other. We’ve known each other since we were 15 and were already doing the stupidest things you could think off back then to entertain ourselves. (i won’t embarrass us by saying what.)
Because i’m in KL, and Yishyene’s in London, we make up what time we don’t have with each other by going on holidays together! (Oh i forgot to mention that she spends just as much of her salary as i do to TRAVEL!)
Since she loves traveling so much and i have so many great memories of us exploring new places together, i can’t help but think of her when i’m somewhere new and end up buying her little gifts from different countries. She does the same too. (I remember at 17 when i was in London and she was in Japan, she sent me toilet paper from there -_-)
More recently i got her a coaster from Singapore, a hand stitched purse from Laos, and a little mouse from Sri Lanka (Maurice’s brother!)
I just HAD to buy the coaster for her cos it was SO APT.
When she was in KL for Chinese New Year, i really wanted to take Yishyene to Seremban, where i’m currently addicted to the trees and tranquility. We set up a sunbathing spot right on the doorstep cos that’s where the sunshine was. Made a structure as per instructions from this book i bought (1 copy for her and 1 for me!)
I also made sure there was a lot of food for us like BBQ chicken wings & lamb, turkey ham sandwiches, smoked salmon, Maggi curry, and Dove chocolate.
I’ve got a habit of carrying Dove chocolate with me on every holiday i go to now (like in Laos with the girls, Rawa with Sa & Nadia, or in Sri Lanka with Clem). You never know when you just passionately WANT a smooth piece of chocolate melting in your mouth to make that moment wherever you are ever sweeter. Or when you’re desperately hungry, and the easiest and nicest thing to eat is a bar of Dove choc! Like in the office.
I must admit that my office drawer is stuffed full of Dove chocs and i eat a few pieces every single work day (if not every other day). Once, i even committed the sinful act of scoffing a whole big bar in an hour. Had to be stern with myself after that.
Yishyene and i have no qualms with stuffing ourselves… in fact, love for the same food definitely brings people closer!
Summer 2012 will be another awesome period when we’ll both we reunited for our ADVENTURES through Europe! I can’t wait. Time to pack all the crazy into our bags.
I don’t believe that Valentine’s Day gifts have to be expensive. I just think they need to be a little show of extra love (because every other day should be a show of love anyway!).
Instead of just giving chocolates, something you could do for your special someone is bake a little chocolate tart for them! It’s really easy, and the point of it is that it took EFFORT and LOVE to do!
It doesn’t even need to be for just one person, the beauty about little tarts is that you could bake a small batch for your family members, housemates, or colleagues that put that bit of brightness into your everyday!
I’m not used to making desserts, so this is new for me too. The first time i baked a dessert was Dove chocolate hot pots for Yishyene, Sa and Nadia when they came over for dinner. It was then that i thought baking with chocolate is pretty easy… you CAN’T go wrong with a mixture of chocolate, butter, flour and sugar!
For my second attempt at baking, i’m using Dove chocolate again. Decided to do it for Clem seeing i’ve never baked for him in my life. He got really excited smelling the melting chocolate from the kitchen. (Btw, he loves chocolate. I was shocked when he wrapped a piece of bread around a whole bar of Dove chocolate and ate it for dessert one night. A chocolate sandwich, he says. -_-)
I got the recipe below from the official Dove website but edited it slightly to our metric system. This should make you 12x Dove chocolate tarts if your tart pans are as small as mine (see pic below).
INGREDIENTS
For the crust:
- 130 g thin chocolate wafers
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 6 small tart pans
- 1 cookie sheet pan (i just put baking paper in a metal pan)
STEPS OF LOVE! Sorry for my corniness, i’m allowed to be corny for Valentine’s Day! I even played love songs while baking this so i’d feel all lovey and imagined focusing my loving energy into the process.
1. Combine ground chocolate wafers with butter and sugar.
I used a blender cos it’s so much easier than by hand.
2. Press mixture into sides and bottom of greased tart pans.
3. Preheat your oven to 180°C. When hot, place tart pans on cookie sheet and bake for 7-10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely.
4. Melt DOVE® chocolate in microwave, stirring every 15 seconds until smooth.
Dove is already a very smooth chocolate, so imagine when it’s melted and whisked gracefully in a bowl..! The smell of melted chocolate is one of the BEST things you can smell in the kitchen!
5. Prepare pudding following instructions on package. Whisk melted chocolate with pudding, and refrigerate until set.
6. Before serving, mix half the whipped cream you have into your chilled chocolate + pudding mixture.
7. Fill tart shells with them.
8. Spoon remaining whipped cream into little plastic bag and snip a corner of it, so you can pipe your heart design on top. Or in my case, i thought i’d drip them in pseudo abstract art with the whisk. Cut the strawberries into half and shape them into hearts.
Serve with love!
Clem said it was ‘really good’. And he’s very straightforward with me when it comes to my cooking.
Excuse my appearance! I baked on a public holiday and didn’t bother with make up at home (who does?!).
Good luck with it! Though you don’t need too much luck – just time and effort!
An article i wrote about working for a second income is up on the R U Ready MY facebook page!
I wrote about all the jobs i’ve ever delved in (including some really strange ones that i’ve never told anyone before!) and how making my passions into financially rewarding activities is helping me live my life to the fullest!
Please LIKE my article! And please LIKE the R U Ready MY page too! They’re doing a bunch of activities to inspire youth, such as an entrepreneurs workshop (called How To Be Your Own Boss) that will be held on the Feb 18th in PJ Live Arts, Jaya One. Sign up for it quick as i heard seats are flying fast! This workshop offers insights from young entrepreneurs like Nuffnang bawse Timothy Tiah on how to start your own business. Not to mention you get to rub shoulders and meet equally inspiring young leaders of our time!
I made my way to the KLCC a few weeks ago for what i expected to be an extremely crowded event. Judging from last year’s turnout for the iPhone 4 launch @ Gardens, i thought it smart that Maxis moved the launch to a bigger venue this year – the KLCC Convention Centre. I arrived promptly at 8pm to see a long queue stretching across a few Halls. I thought, “This is crazy..! People are nuts..!” as the new iPhone 4S was only going to launch at the stroke of midnight, so they had 4 more hours to wait!
The media gathered in Hall 2 for the speeches and Q&A session.
Speeches were to start at 8:30pm, then dinner at 9:30pm.
I was hoping everything would run on time cos i WAS STARVING and a hungry fairy is a distracted one!
Thankfully, everything went according to schedule and the speeches started on the dot.
Besides having brought in the first iPhone to Malaysia in 2009, Maxis continues to offer a whole range of smartphones to customers which has resulted in more than 7.5 million active mobile users.
Sandip Das, Chief Executive Officer of Maxis, said, “Having an iPhone is one thing, but to experience it on Maxis is something else.” He then went on to elaborate on Maxis’ support of its customers’ continued demands, how they were improving data network experiences, and the wide range of data packages available to everyone’s needs.
Maxis is offering four new iValue plans for customers, with the highest combined mobile & WiFi data of up to 11GB. Of course, if you don’t think you require that much, you can just go for the other iValue plans. View all the plans *here*
Also included in the new iValue plans are:
- increased data quota
- free WiFi connection of 4GB per month across Maxis hotspots nationwide
We can download the Maxis WiFi app for free to find out the nearest WiFi hotspots at any time. Besides the aforementioned app, i was interested to know that Maxis has launched a Customer Service app – the first for any telco on the iPhone in Malaysia. This app will allow customers to easily access their account and bill info, subscribe/unsubscribe to services and contact Maxis’ Customer Service. If this is going to help me keep track of my bills, i’m all for it.
T. Kugan, Vice-President and Head of Products, Devices & Roaming
Most of us know that the iPhone 4S’ most interesting feature is Siri – the first Personal Assistant software that is available to us on a commercial phone. I watched this video some months back, when i was researching what Siri was about:
It’s pretty crazy right? Imagine not needing to manually key in what you’re searching for! The iPhone 4S is seriously the future in our hands.
Besides Siri, the iPhone 4S is includes:
- Apple’s dual-core A5 chip for blazing fast performance and stunning graphics
- an all new camera with advanced optics and full 1080p HD resolution video recording (i’ve seen amazing comparisons online bout this cam!)
- iOS 5, the world’s most advanced mobile operating system with over 200 new features
- iCloud, which means no more plugging USB cables. It automatically and wirelessly syncs your iPhone, iPad, Mac or PC devices together.
After the speeches and Q&A sess, all the media were treated to a buffet dinner. It felt really good to have some smoked salmon & salad, fried rice & chicken curry, and two cups of hot black coffee thrown in to last me till past midnight.
After dinner, i was walking around thinking i should look for Kenny to catch up, when he appeared right in front of my face! So we both headed to the VIP Launch Party at Hall 4, to have some drinks, chat and wait till midnight.
The Launch Party was set up all swank, with enough space and drinks going around constantly for a large number of people!
Performances were going on back to back so people were well-entertained while they waited.
I was wearing flats that night and told Elaine how i look like an absolute SMURF next to her in the picture -_-
Julie & i
Jayaram + i
JJ and Jayaram – i feel the love!
After a few hours of drinks and chatting, Kenny and i hurried back to the Hall where the FIRST people were going to be let in to buy their iPhone 4S. The queue that i observed at 8pm had multiplied by then from Hall 1 – Hall 4!
[pic courtesy of Maxis]
Just LOOK at how crowded it was!
We still had a few minutes to go so we took pictures of ourselves Hey, we rarely see each other anyway!
Even the payment counters seemed to be holding their breaths… all still and waiting for the barrage of people to enter in a short while.
All the photographers were poised with cameras in hand… waiting…
The Maxis head honchos all waiting by the door to personally greet and congratulate the first customers to walk through that night…
A massive countdown was going on outside, led by Henry, and we could all see it from the huge live screens in the hall. 5 seconds! 4… 3… 2… 1… 0!!!
It was one of those occasions being short was not so great.
Some of the first people in Malaysia to get their hands on the brand new iPhone 4S with Maxis!
Every customer who had been queueing got a number which flashed up on screens coupled with counters they should be heading to. Talk about efficient!
Sandip Das, Chief Executive Officer; Raja Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Arshad bin Raja Tun Uda, Chairman; Fitri Abdullah, Head of Enterprise and Government Business; and T. Kugan, Head of Product, Device, Innovation & Roaming showing the new iPhone 4S.
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Customers will enjoy a 0% interest installment plan and existing customers will be able to conveniently upgrade to new plans which features enhanced data and WiFi. They will also be able to extend their contract with Maxis, making it possible for everyone and anyone to own an iPhone with Maxis.
The iPhone 4S is available at all Maxis Centres and Maxis Exclusive Partners (MEPs) nationwide from today!
Hey, we rarely see each other anyway!
