But I turned the next corner and almost thought I had walked into an Apple convention.

And when I finally stepped into Sitex, I found that Sony had occupied almost the entire first row of booths. There was a booth for Sony Bravia, a booth for Sony PSP, and a humoungous, never-ending booth for Sony itself.

I guess these three brands must be the biggest investors in Sitex this year.

Some of the deals that made me feel like clutching the signboard to my chest:-

Microsoft Office Home Edition, S$159 for 3 PCs. I am not sure of the original price in Singapore, but I saw that the original price from the Microsoft Office US Website is US$159 for 1 pc.

HP Notebook 12-Cell battery for S$175. Correct me if I’m wrong but I think this is around 50% off. The 6-cell battery next to it is S$150.

Norton 360°, the  best antivirus software there is, is selling at 30% off. I didn’t know that Norton softwares ever get discounted. I know there are free antivirus softwares in the market but I truly believe that Norton is a giant leap ahead of any of them.

Asus Eee PC S$398. I wasn’t looking for a netbook but this price tag feels like pocket change. I think it really tempts people who already own a laptop to buy an additional lightweight Netbook.

Surprisingly, there weren’t many sexy showgirls around. The only ones I saw were these three ladies hired by Intel.

Instead, I saw showboys.

Haha, okay, may be they were not really showboys. They were male signboard holders.

In all honesty, I think showgirls are not good for both men and women. Showgirls are hired because research have shown that men are more likely to pay for big ticket items when there are women lingering around. I think it is not nice to keep showgirls at your booth so that men will be tempted to buy something they otherwise wouldn’t, don’t you think? If you must compete, compete in terms of quality and price.

At the same time, I think showgirls are not good for women because women ought to be loved and cherished. When a man is ogling at sexy showgirls, he is far from loving or cherishing the real women in his life.

So, I love the girls but I am not for the job.

Some booths had tireless emcees shouting out the latest deals and persuading the crowd to draw nearer to the goods. It must be physically strenuous to be an IT fair emcee for 4 days straight, and to shout from morning till night each day. I really respect these hardworking people.

Oh and I must share with you one simply adorable gadget that I found. An Apple-shaped TV for S$299.00!

Open it up and the cover hovers at its sides as speakers. Close it and it looks just like a crunchy red Apple! Isn’t it cute?! If only it was S$0.29 *sigh*

Confession: I used to host an army of blackheads on my nose. They were so stubborn, it was tortuously painful at facials when the beautician tried everything she can to get them out.

Thankfully though, I have found a gentle but noisy way to brush them out. It sounds like this, “Brrrrrrrrr!” Roll your tongue and say it with me. “Brrrrrr!”

It is a facial massager from Watson’s and it costs SG$19.90. Just switch it on and the brush head will twirl.

Here’s how I use it.

First, I wash my face the usual way with my usual cleanser except that I don’t splash the cleanser off.

Then, I switch on the massager and run it all over my face. It’s like how the guys polished my marble floor.

Here’s a good tip: Do not wet the brush before you use. I know you like to wet your toothbrush before brushing your teeth but this does not go inside your mouth. If you wet this brush, the water that’s caught between the bristles will splash all over your clothes, neck, shoulders and even into your eyes!

See how I can keep my eyes wide open when using it? That’s the comfortable way. The bristles are so soft that it feels soothing to have it brushing your face.

I was taken by surprise at how effective this is. The gadget has saved me from a lot of expensive facials.

PS: I am not showing any before and after pics. Believe me, my nose is perfect now!

When I was in college, I went crazy for heels. I had rows and rows of Vincci heels. They were only RM45.00 each but the quality is so shoddy that I kept having my heart broken when they broke.

When I was in university, I had a culture shock when I saw that many Australian girls don’t wear heels. Even when they are dressed for work in smart suits and pencil skirts, they wear sneakers! To be fair, they keep a pair of kitten heels in the office which they slip into once they arrive, but when they are out and about in the city for breakfast, or travelling to and from work in trains and in trams, they pair their gorgeous outfits with sneakers. Isn’t that a huge fashion faux pas?!!!

But I learned to appreciate the laidback Melbourne culture and soon, I too was treating my feet to comfortable shoes. I bought from Nike and Nine West but not a lot. On weekends, I would scour their warehouses for good deals.

Over the years, I have learned a few things about buying shoes. Mistakes I have made:-

Sliding slings

I bought a pair of slingbacks from MNG for a wedding dinner, but when I got out of the car, discovered that the sling kept sliding down my heel! I had to hobble into the ballroom while trying to look natural. And after the dinner, I couldn’t dance on the dance floor. Thankfully, my dinner companions were wonderful. We took a lot of photos. :)

 I have tried to fix them by sticking foam strips onto the strap, it didn’t work. I have tried to latch it on so tightly that it couldn’t possibly slide but it cut into my skin. Ouch!

Later, a friend gave me another pair of slingbacks as a gift and I had the same problem. If you are buying a pair of slingbacks, thoroughly test them out in the shop first.

Dirtifying foam

Never ever buy shoes or sandals that uses light-colored foam insoles. I bought a pair of adorable foam slippers. After the first wear, the shape of my feet were imprinted as a grey-brown stain on the foam. It looks so revolting, I couldn’t bear to let my feet touch that stain again. it was only ever worn once, sigh…

Peeping at the wrong place

If you are going to be waltzing about in your office, this pair of super low peep-toes will look great as long as you have painted your toenails.

But not if you are going to be walking down the grimey streets of Kuala Lumpur.

Notice how the front of the shoes are so low that your exposed toes are almost touching the ground? Street dirt gets on them and even into the underside of your toenails.

I found that out when I got home and kicked off the shoes. I found a crescent-shaped stain on my toes! Horrifying! It took a night of vigorous scrubbing with my nailbrush to clean off the dirt but the crescent mark is also partly by the sun’s tan. It took only a few hours for the sun to tan a crescent-shape onto my toes but almost a month for my skin color to match again, lol!

Triangulizing the toes

I know there are a lots of girls who can wear pointed-toes without grimacing all the time. I have seen you and I can only gawk. Are your toes triangular and not round(ish) like mine?

With the heel at the back, that means almost your entire body weight will be squeezing into the narrow front. For me, that will be carrying 45kg on the very tiny tip of all toes!

I have “only” ever bought two pairs of pointed toes. The first pair is tall like the one pictured here. It completely numbed my brain. My entire face was red from wearing them and when some one complimented my glowing complexion, grrr!

The second pair I bought is about an inch high. It still hurts but less. I can carry out a decent conversation while in them as long as I can snap my teeth and grit at every end of sentence. I wore them till they wore themselves out. :D

Skin out, flesh exposed

One shoe-shopping mistake I have made countless times is buying a pair where the upper is not made of a soft material. It could be made of plastic, synthetic leather or even genuine leather that haven’t been processed enough to be supple. The hard material cuts through the skin and exposes pink flesh. Then, as you walk, the shoe rubs itself against the raw wound. Then, a fly sticks itself onto the open wound.

Joking about the fly part, heheh.

So there you go, a few shoe-shopping mistakes I have made.

I am definitely a lot more cautious now when it comes to buying heels. I basically live on one pair – my well-padded Hush Puppies heels. I’ve also become a fan of short and sweet kitten heels. The spunkier ones, I put on for special occasions and to places where I know I will be with a gentleman whose arm I can lean on in case there is a need to hobble.

For my new room, my dad got a very special desk. It is a normal work desk but the top is a lid that I can open up to instantly transform it into a vanity.

Tada!

Here’s how it looks when opened up.

I threw all my beauty products in there so it got messy. I didn’t like that though so I walked to Japan Home to find a tool that can keep them organized.

At Japan Home, I bought two packets of white drawer organizers for SGD$2.30 per pack. You fix them at the width that you like, it’s a lot like Lego, kinda fun. :)

Now, it’s not such an eyesore anymore, everything is prettily arranged. Do you like it?

Top row from left to right: Make up palettes, every day make up, lip balms

Second row from left to right: SK II Miracle Water, Estee Lauder toner and a silver bag filled with make up for special occassions

Third row from left to right: Nail care, pwetty flower and assorted perfumes

Forth row from left to right: tissue paper, skin care, fun costume jewellery

Ever since Stephanie Kok who blogs at http://exploremelaka.com asked me to help buy Food Picks from Daiso, I’ve become addicted to shopping at Singapore’s $2.00 shops.

This week’s fabulous find:

Notice the button at the side that says, “OPEN”? Click on that and…  (Refer to the photos below)

Tada!

The whole thing unfolds itself and switches on!

Makes me feel like Ali Baba. Ali Baba had the power to open caves. I have the power to open the Robotic Reading Light.

You can clip it to the back cover of your book so it becomes a hands-free reading light.

The Robotic Reading Light is powered by a button battery, the kind that you use for watches and calculators.

Buy it from Japan Home shops at S$2.90. Alternatively, you can get the Energizer Reading Light which isn’t even robotic for USD$10.00. :P

I’m loving it because now I can read on the bus even when the bus driver have turned off the lights. Also useful if you share bedroom with a sibling who is sensitive to having the lights on at night.

What are you waiting for? Go get it now!

If you would like to go out in a skirt every weekend, you will still need…

to shave!

Just rub on some Vaseline, place the razor above your ankles and slide it up. I found these for only $1.90 at the ABC Bargain Store.

Yep, I just discovered $2 shopping in Singapore!

*grin* *grin*

What about you? Bought anything valuable for $2 lately? Do share at the comments section below.

I was browsing the Ikea catalogue for ideas when I saw a toy storage in this bedroom design.

It’s the KORALL STJÄRNA toy storage. (Try to say that ten times really fast)

This is the one I am talking about.

It caught my attention because I have the exact same one at home. :)

The difference is that mine is blue in colour and I use it as a laundry hamper instead of toy storage. I love it for a few reasons:-

• It is strong. I’ve been using it for a few years and it haven’t even stretched a bit.
• It doesn’t take up valuable space. I hang it under a beautiful glass rack where I keep my shampoo, conditioner and shower gel.
• It doesn’t touch the floor. You won’t have to worry about it getting wet when you shower even if the floor fills up with water, and you won’t need to move it out when you need to clean the bathroom floor
• It is lightweight. When it is full, simply unhook it and carry it to the washing machine. You won’t need to drag a heavy basket out or hug dirty laundry in between your arms.
• It is big. It can store a machine load of clothes.
• Mold can’t grow on it. Since this is a polyester net instead of a cloth, even when your clothes are damp, you can chuck them in. You won’t ever see mold growing on the net.
• It is affordable. I don’t remember how much I paid for it, and that’s because it costs too little to remember. If you like variety, you can even get it in a few colors.

Clever eh?

But imagine my surprise when I arrived home and saw these in my room – shoes, shoes and more shoes!

A family friend works for a shoemaker. She had to buy so many pairs for work, it is cluttering her room. Poor girl.

Brand new shoes that have never been worn. Guess who became the lucky recipient?

I’ll be wearing the black one tomorrow. :)

I don’t know what to be more thankful for – reading light or shoes!

I brought back a few to try and totally fell in love, I don’t even have the words to describe how excellent they are. Too bad Thailand is so far away, how I itch to fly there again. :smile:

Today I discovered an all natural spf 30+ Zinc Oxide Sunscreen online which sounds like another excellent product.

The UV Natural Sunscreens received the highest rating from the Environmental Working Group for both safety and efficacy. It claims to use only natural ingredients, there’s even formulations for babies and sports enthusiasts. The Sports formulation claims to resist sweat and/or water for up to 4 hours.

UV Natural Sunscreens promises each bottle is filled to the brim with moisturizing oils that protect and moisturize skin. Does that sound good to you? It sure sounds good to me!

Today, I’m adding to her list, The Honest Salesgirl.

Some time ago, I approached a dressmaker in Melaka. She didn’t like the design that I wanted.

She said, “You can’t wear this, you have such a big tummy!”

I was shocked.

“No, I don’t!”

“Yes, you do,” she said. Then she poked my belly with her finger to prove it.

Of course my flesh bounced back! Whose wouldn’t?! Omigosh…

Yesterday, I tried on this dress at a lovely boutique…

The sales girl took one look at me and said,

“You know what’s the problem? You need a push up.”

I am stumped. I don’t know what to say.

I think I need a lawyer to go shopping with me!

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