Pan Pacific’s The Edge 4 Hour Sunday Champagne Brunch Review

November 27, 2014 Ena Teo Leave a comment

Hi Loves!

A few months back, I completed a survey for Expat Living magazine and was kindly gifted a pair of tickets for Pan Pac’s The Edge’s Sunday Champagne brunch. So I invited my sister to come a long with me and it was such an unforgettable meal! We had so much fun indulging in wagyu beef, salmon sashimi, pork sausages, iberco ham and of course an unlimited amount of Veuve Cliquot champagne. Guests can also order a limited offering of red wine and shiraz as part of the buffet. My personal favourites would be the wagyu beef and fine du claire fresh raw oysters. The buffet spread is very comprehensive to say the least and I would highly recommend this place for fine dining and champagne lovers. Tickets are at $168++ per pax. There’s a package where 2 guests get a bed, brunch & bliss staycation with a late check out on Sunday at 5pm for $525 for 2. Perfect for a special occasion! For more details and booking you can visit Pan Pac site here.

I would love to go for another free flow champagne brunch again, let me know if you have a place to recommend!

Ena

Food

Hot Tomato & Nana’s Green Tea Review

November 26, 2014 Ena Teo Leave a comment

Hi Loves!

I’ve just got back from my BKK trip with my sisters this afternoon, it’s been a great trip and I can’t wait to share about the trip on my blog. 🙂 I’ve got an embarrasingly long list of blogging back log and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I can complete it before the year ends, hahaha! 😛

Quite a while back, the Kose cinderella contest finalists/girls and I met up for dinner at Somerset. At Gina’s suggestion, we had dinner at Hot Tomato at 313 basement and it was my first time at Hot Tomato cafe. I was quite pleasantly surprised with the taste and portion at an affordable price about $12 if my memory is right, as I’ve not heard of any reviews of Hot Tomato and didn’t quite know what to expect. I really enjoyed the mango flavored salmon pasta and would most definitely order it again when I am back. We then headed to Nana’s Green Tea cafe at Orchard Central for desserts and the green tea matcha soft serve did not disappoint and the recommended Green Tea tiramisu was also very soft and delicious. As usual, our meet up was full of jokes & laughter, love spending time with the Kose girlies. 😛

All in all it was a great dinner and meet up. Have you any good dinner and desserts recommendation? Let me know! Wishing you all a great week!

Ena

Beauty, Lifestyle

The Definitive Christmas Beauty Gift Guide for Her

November 21, 2014 Ena Teo 1 Comment

Hi Loves!

Yes, it’s the magical time of the year again! The time when we hear Christmas songs playing in the shops & at home. The time when we gather with family and friends over food, drinks & television (no fireplace here in Singapore). Yes, it’s the time for gift exchanges & secret Santa!

Are you busy working and stressing over what to get for your GF/Wife/Special Someone/ Mum/ Colleague? Fret not, because I’ve done the research at the departmental stores’ beauty counters, screened many beauty maven’s IG feeds, processed many PR releases and I’m here with what I’d like to think as THE definitive guide for ALL the ladies in your life! 😉

Christmas Gift Sets For The Special Someone aka Wife/Fiancee/GF

1. The Lancome Happy Holidays Beauty Box, $118 worth $606 with $130 purchase

If I could only have 1 beauty gift this year, this would be it! I’ve seen the set in person and the packaging and products are equally mesmerising as they are on visuals.

So, in order to bring the box home or to gift it, you will need to shell out $130 first. But of course I’ve done the research and decided what you should get:

Choice 1A: Lancome Genefique Youth Activating Duo Prestige Set $216 worth $323

I would recommend this set for ladies above 25 years old.

Choice 1B: Lancome Hydrazen Neocalm Hydrating Cream Prestige Set $98 worth $181.

I would recommend this set for ladies 18-24 years old.

Add on this Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes Mascara Set $50:

Visit the Lancome Singapore Holiday Microsite for more information.

Another prestige brand that caught my attention while walking around the departmental store is Estee Lauder…

They have seriously gorgeous Christmas packaging and sets this year! #madlove

2. Estee Lauder Limited Edition Luxe Color Set, $108 with $120 purchase

What should you get with $120? You can also use the $120 budget to buy a gift for your Mum, God-Ma, Aunty, BFF or Sister. 😉

Choice 2A: Estee Lauder Beautiful Ultimate Luxuries, $180

Choice 2B: Estee Lauder Modern Muse Trios, $168

Choice 2C: Estee Lauder Beautiful Romantic Destinations, $140
You can surprise your special someone with this gift, pre holiday trip or during a holiday trip! 😉

Another super value set is this 2D. Estee Lauder All Night Glamour, $80 with $50 purchase.
I recommend getting this Estee Lauder Dramatic Lips & Nails, $72 to go along with the set:

For a full list of Estee Lauder’s Christmas Gifts visit their FB album here.

Christmas Gift Sets For Mummy Dearest

Nothing spells extravagance in today’s beauty world like SK-II does. Their ads currently running on Youtube videos reminds us that when you gift an SK-II, you’re gifting, in their words not mine, “The Gift of Everlasting Beauty”. Well, I’ve never used SK-II before, but if there’s anyone who deserves “Everlasting Beauty” surely it’s Mothers all over the world who bore us and love us from the moment of our conception to this very day, right? 🙂

Make Mummy happy with this
Choice 3A: SK-II Revival Deluxe Set, $452.
Set contains:

SK-II FACIAL TREATMENT ESSENCE RED FLOWER LIMITED EDITION 215mL
SK-II STEMPOWER 80g
SK-II STEMPOWER EYE CREAM 15g
SK-II SKIN SIGNATURE 3D REDEFINING MASK 1pc

If your Mummy’s skincare concerns’ all about Whitening and Brightening, then this is the set of choice.

Choice 3B: SK-II Aura Glow Set, $532
Set contains:
SK-II FACIAL TREATMENT ESSENCE PURPLE FLOWER LIMITED EDITION 215mL
SK-II CELLUMINATION AURA ESSENCE 50ml
SK-II CELLUMINATION DEEP SURGE EX 50g
SK-II WHITENING SOURCE DERM-REVIVAL MASK 1 pc

If your Mummy’s tastes gear towards the finest luxury, then perhaps you might want to consider this.

Choice 3C: SK-II Finest Inspiration Set, $974
(The price tag does make me wonder if the packaging comes in real rose gold.)
Set contains:

SK-II LXP ULTIMATE PERFECTING CREAM 50g
SK-II LXP ULTIMATE PERFECTING SERUM 50ml
SK-II LXP ULTIMATE PERFECTING ESSENCE SPECIAL EDITION 215ml

Do visit SK-II’s very clever Gift Finder Microsite here.

Perhaps Mummy prefers a prestige brand’s blockbuster makeup set?

Then 4. Elizabeth Arden’s All Day Chic Holiday Color Collection Set $119 worth $1093 is something that will make you and her smile from ear to ear. With a total of 17 items including 2 makeup palette for work and play, 4 glorious lip colours, brushes and more, this is the best value for money blockbuster make up set this year – yes you can take my word for it. For more info on the set, visit my recent blog post here.

Christmas Gifts Sets for The Sister / BFF

5. Biotherm’s Aquasource Deep Hydration Set, $69 worth $121.

Don’t we just love Christmas? All these superb discounts going on! In case you’re new, Biotherm is one of my favourite skincare brand. I currently swear by their Pure-fect Anti Spot Corrector which helps to reduce my acne marks remarkably overnight. I’ve also used and loved this Deep Hydration in travel size so I highly recommend this!

Personally I don’t think any Christmas 2014 Beauty Gift Guide would be complete without this 6. Laneige Sparkling Make up Collection set, $45. It comes with 2 water drop tints, 2 nail colours and 1 duo eyeshadow in the loveliest hues of pink, rose gold and gold.

Christmas Gift Sets for Bosses / Manager / Supervisor

7A. Crabtree & Evelyn’s Home Fragrance Diffuser in Hollyberry, $98

7B. Crabtree & Evelyn’s Home Fragrance Diffuser in Noel, $98

This home fragrance diffuser is the cutest design this Christmas! This is a thoughtful gift that will make the home smell and look good as well. 🙂

7C. Crabtree & Evelyn Seasonal Spectacular, $300.

Well, this isn’t a beauty gift, but your bosses and their family/families will thank you all ~~the same~~ all the more for it. 😉

For the full Crabtree & Evelyn Christmas 2014 Catalogue, download the file here: Christmas 2014 Catalogue

7D. Net-A-Porter Holiday Kit, $100 worth US$306

“The Holiday Kit is a curated assortment of some of our favorite beauty products to give and receive during the holiday season,” says David Olsen, vice president of beauty for NET-A-PORTER.COM. “This beauty kit is our quintessential holiday edit offering the most gift-worthy items of the season. Perfect for anyone on your shopping list or for yourself to cover all your beauty needs.”

Available here. Unfortunately sold out, am checking with PR if it will be restocked. It’s way to early for your Holiday to be sold out at Mid November. Maybe they weren’t expecting a huge response for this set? Truth be told, I haven’t tried a single brand featured in this kit, much less used a single item but it looks amazing and is like an up-scale Bellabox/Vanity Trove, definitely would make an amazing & thoughtful gift set!

The Holiday Kit includes:

Erno Laszlo – Phelityl Pre-Cleansing Oil, 15 ml
o This vitamin-enriched formula removes all traces of makeup and penetrates deep into your

pores to dissolve trapped impurities leaving your face clean and refreshed.
Erno Laszlo – Sea Mud Deep Cleansing Bar, 17 g
o Harnessing the power of mineral-rich Dead Sea Mud, Erno Laszlo’s 97% natural cleansing

bar removes impurities and exfoliates without stripping away your skin’s essential oils.

Tata Harper – Rejuvenating Serum, 15 ml
o Formulatedwith29activeingredients,thisall-naturalaward-winningserumcombatssignsof

aging by decreasing wrinkle depth and minimizing the appearance of fine lines.
Verso – Day Cream, 15 ml
o A moisturizing and protecting day cream with Retinol 8 complex that helps to activate the

skin and to stimulate its natural production of collagen, reversing the signs of aging.
Earth Tu Face – Face Balm, 25 g (full size)

o Whether you’ve had too much sun or you’re suffering the effects of the winter chill, Earth

Tu Face’s concentrated Face Balm will redress the imbalance thanks to redness-reducing Rose Absolute, tissue regenerating properties from the evergreen shrub Immortelle, as well as healing Beeswax to lock in essential moisture.

Susanne Kaufmann – Shower/shampoo, 50 ml
o Susanne Kaufmann uses wild harvested and organic ingredients from the Alpine Bregenzer

Forest to craft her natural skincare range.
SHOW Beauty – Divine Thickening Lotion, 150 ml (full size)
o Thismust-haveproductaddsfullnesstoyourhairwithoutweighingitdown.WheatProtein

adds essential Amino Acids to repair and restore your locks, while Aloe Vera, Mango, Kiwi and Ginger Lily extracts add intense shine – styling a bombshell look has never been easier.
de Mamiel – Salvation Body Oil, 30 ml
o This revitalizing formula has been created using natural and organic essential oils including

Baobab, Argan, Camellia, Rosehip and Coconut for beautifully radiant skin.
Malin + Goetz – Vitamin b5 Body Moisturizer, 29 ml
o Target dull, dry skin fast with MALIN+GOETZ’s intense body moisturizer. This

concentrated combination of provitamin b5 and essential fatty acids is both oil and residue- free – it soaks into the skin quickly for long-lasting hydration that won’t clog your pores.
Renouve – Anti-Aging Everyday Defense Hand-Sanitizer No1 – Gold, 30 ml (full size)

o Renouve’s multi-tasking hand serum eliminates germs with antibacterial, certified organic Bitter Orange Peel extract. This luxurious Swiss-made formula is blended with regenerative botanicals, antioxidants and anti-aging collagen-boosting Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 that firms

and moisturizes for more youthful-looking skin. It kills 99.99% of bacteria and is 95% natural.

• This Works – Sleep Plus Pillow Spray, 5 ml
o Relaxation is essential for getting a good night’s sleep, and This Works’ pillow spray has

been formulated with this in mind. Clinically proven to improve sleep quality and daytime wakefulness, naturally. Immediate relief comes with a potent blend of Lavender, naturally encapsulated to gradually release aromatherapeutic benefits as you sleep. Wakeup feeling and looking refreshed.

Ilia – Tinted Lip Conditioner – Bang Bang, 3.5 g (full size)
o Caring for your lips with moisturising Cocoa Butter and soothing Jojoba Oil, this warm red

conditioner makes a nourishing lipstick alternative. Formulated in a sheer balm for a subtle tint, build it up to intensify the color.
Chantecaille – Liquid Lumière Anti-Aging Face Illuminator – Sheen, 23 ml (full size)
o Achieve youthful radiance while combatting the signs of aging with this lightweight velvety soft formula, crafted with Bamboo and Pea Extract to help boost collagen and elastin for

firm, smooth skin.

B the Eyebrow Experts – Eyebrow Gel, 5 ml (full size)
o Designed to sweep brows into place and hold them there, whilst simultaneously nourishing

the hair, the versatile applicator means it can also be used as a mascara.

8. The Face Shop SMIM Fermentation Concentrate Christmas Set, $69,90.

Set contains:
SMIM Fermentation Concentrate Total Treatment, 150ml
SMIM Fermented Concentrate Toner, 50ml
SMIM Fermented Concentrate Emulsion, 50ml

To put it simply, this is the Faceshop’s version of SK-II’s FTC, and I’ve been using this, now onto the second bottle and loving it thus far. To better understand this product, read my post here.

The Face Shop offers an array of attractively packaged and prices Christmas sets, check them out:

Christmas Gift Sets for Aunt / Cousin / Friends / Colleagues

9A. The Body Shop Advent Calender, $99.90.
I recommend getting this for your Aunt & Family. As a family, they can take turns to open 1 window each day and then commence to use the products in the family bathroom. Great idea? 🙂

9B. The Body Shop Glazed Apple Tin of Treasures, $36.90
Set contains: Shower Gel, Body Butter, Body Lotion, Body Polish, Green Mini Crinkle Bath Lily.

I personally think this is the Best Buy item from the Body Shop this year. It contains 5 items in the most exquisite apple tin… I want! 😀

9C. The Body Shop Polar Bear in Strawberry Body & Lip Butter, $19.90 us a practical and cute Christmas gift!

Visit The Body Shop’s Gift Finder site here & their Christmas e-Catalogue here.

Christmas Gift Sets for the Young / Young at Heart

This Christmas, Etude House has partnered with Save The Children for a “School Me’ campaign, that Etude House will donate 100 Won (S$0.10) for every Pink Wish Tree item purchased to provide educational opportunities for African girls in Sierra Leone, Liberia, the Republic of Cote d’Ivire and Uganda. Additional 100 Won will be contributed by Etude House if shoppers endorse the Pink Wish Card which comes along with every Pink Wish Tree product.

There’s a special microsite which you can check out for the Pink Wish Tree project here.

On the site, you’ll be able to click on the products for more information.

You can even see the top 5 most participants by country! Singapore has 1135 ppl which is remarkably for a country to small! 😀The Pink Wish Tree Card details updated on the site! I love the concept that Etude House has introduced for this Pink Wish Tree project to involved Etude House customers on this meaningful project to create awareness for Save The Children’s School Me campaign and to provide educational opportunities for African girls! Be sure to buy a Pink Wish Tree item and make a wish upon a Pink Wish Tree!

10. The Etude House Pink Wish Tree Collection includes:

10A. Etude House Moistfull Collagen Cream JUMBO 100ml, $35 (Pink)
10B. Etude House Moistfull Super Collagen Cream JUMBO 100ml, $35 (Gold)
10C. Etude House Precious Mineral Any Cushion SPF 50+/PA+++ 15g, $32 in N02 Light Beige (Pink) and W13 Natural Beige (Green) only
10D. Etude House Kissful Lip Care Set 3.5g x 3, $18 in Cherry (Pink), Strawberry (Green) & Peach (Gold) – I can’t make up my mind whether I like Cherry or Peach more!
10E. Etude House Petit Bijou Cotton Snow Body Set, body wash & body lotion, 100ml x 2, $19.90
10F. Etude House Hand Bouquet Hand Cream Rich Butter JUMBO (Gold) 100ml, $12
10G. Etude House Hand Bouquet Hand Cream Rich Collagen JUMBO (Pink) 100ml, $12
10H. Etude House Hand Bouquet Hand Cream Mini Set, Rich Butter (Gold) and Rich Collagen (Pink) 25ml x2, $8
Hand

Another lovely gift idea is Etude House’s My Castle Hand Creams which I’ve blogged about here.
Each 10I. My Castle Hand Cream retails for $9, when you buy 2 get 15% off and 20% off when you buy 4 + free cupcake towel!

Current Pink Wish Tree & My Castle Hand Cream Deals~

11A. Watsons’ Beauticology’s delectable Hot Chocolate and Marshmallows foot care set Slippers set, $24.90

11B. Beauticology’s delectable Hot Chocolate and Marshmallows foot care Socks Set, $14.90

Not beauty related but worth mentioning, Watsons’ having a Spongebob Squarepant’s Christmas Special, here’s some of the items available.

11C. Watsons’ Spongebob Plush Pen $6.90 each

11D. Spongebob Tumblr, $19.90

While choosing the perfect gifts for your loved ones, take some time to also share some love with the beneficiaries of Star Shelter, a secular crisis centre under the Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations (SCWO) dedicated for women and children who are victims of family violence regardless of race, language, creed or religion. Watsons is launching a series of limited edition box tissues, mini hankies and travel packs featuring colourful artworks specially designed by students from the LASALLE College of the Arts to help raise funds for Star Shelter. Through the Helping Hands Fund, Watsons aims to raise $10,000 from the proceeds.

11E. Watsons’ Hope Box tissues, mini-hankies and travel packs – retail from $2 – $4.50

I find myself visiting Watsons’ at least once a month to stock up on my beauty essentials like cotton pad, eyebrow liner and more and there’s always awesome promotions. If you aren’t, be sure to sign up to be a Watsons’ card member, all you need is to pay $5 and you can register on the spot. 😉

Ok, so we’ve covered gift ideas for Special Someone, Mummy, Sister, BFF, Aunty, Bosses, Colleagues, Teens, Friends…

Wait a minute, did you think I’d forget Christmas Gift Sets For Your Awesome Self? 😉

These are awesome gift sets from Sephora that I would pamper myself with!

12A. The Best of Sephora Box, price available in store.

12B. Make Up Forever Beauty Kit, $54

12C. Hello Kitty 40th Anniversary Collection, Hello Kitty The Red Bow Beauty Diary, price available in store.
SO CUTEEEEEE, I DIE. >.< Somebody pretty please buy this for me? *meows*

12D. Ciate Mini Mani Manor, price available in store.
Go BIG or go home, right?

12 E. Soap & Glory “Think Pamper” Set, price available in store. Honestly I have no idea what’s the scents and ingredients but I was sold on the idea of “Think Pamper”. Every girl needs to be pampered! 😀

YES. You’ve reached the end of Enabalista’s Definitive Christmas Beauty Gift Set Guide for Her with a grand total of 40 Gifts, including 31 Gifts Sets, 15 Brands & 12 Shops!

I’ve very thoughtfully indicated each set with from 1A to 12E so that you can share this link and the number in case anyone asks you what your Christmas beauty wishlist is! 😉

~ Giveaway ~

I’ll be giving away these 6 items:

10F. Etude House Hand Bouquet Hand Cream Rich Butter JUMBO (Gold) 100ml, $12
10G. Etude House Hand Bouquet Hand Cream Rich Collagen JUMBO (Pink) 100ml, $12
10I. My Castle Hand Cream x 4, $9

Details to be updated soon, watch this space!

Ena

Food, Lifestyle, Travel

Fun & Food-filling Weekend Trip to Malacca

November 17, 2014 Ena Teo 5 Comments

Hi Loves!

A few months back, my secondary school mates and I headed to Muar & Malacca for a weekend road trip and here’s a post of the food places and fun destinations that we’ve been! I personally highly recommend Malacca as a road trip destination with friends because it’s relatively near Singapore, inexpensive, has great food and overall just a perfect & fun weekend getaway destination! 😉 Following this trip, I made another similar trip with my colleagues… Which I suppose I’ll get around to blogging about it in due time. 😛 As you should probably know by now, I take forever and a day to get my blog posts up… I’ve got tons of content and I need to get them up, but man, it’s hard to find time and the mojo to blog with work and activities during the weekend (and I also need time to chill too!). Anyhoos, it’s gonna be a super long blog post with 100+ photos and captions, grab your popcorn and enjoy the read! 🙂

The skies and her beautiful clouds as I was leaving my office. <3

We’re not in Malaysia yet, here’s my clams noodles from Asian Kitchen at Bugis+ where we met up for dinner! I personally think this was super yums, maybe because I’m a huge fan of clams – especially in soup! <3

We walked past SeoulYummy at Bugis+, which I actually happened to pop by for dinner just recently, and they have all these funny & cute heart papers attached to “love locks” where couples/friends/narcissists can leave love notes to one another/themselves. 😛

And off we go! ^^

Passing by the beautiful skyline with the Singapore Flyer~ <3

And a front #wefie with the group~ Mao the super good tempered & friendly driver throughout our trip, Clinton, Jing, Lorry, Ganda & I! <3 <3 <3

Pictures taken at Muar, Malaysia, in between Singapore and Malacca:

These are fruits harvested to be threshed to extract the seeds! Not very sure what these are though. Heh.

Our super delicious lunch at Asam Pedas Parit Jawa. I thought it was traditional Malaysian food, but after posting it on Instagram, my Indonesian friends commented that these are traditional Indonesian food. So I don’t really know which it is, anyhoo it was super yummy ok!

Snaps of our view while on the road: traditional shophouses, lots of Palm plantations & telephone lines criss-crossing in the skies.

Oh look, Ma! Yunno, just a tractor refuelling at the petrol station! 😛

Then we headed to AK Extreme Go Kart & Paintball Arena at Plaza Hang Tuah (Plaza Ocean), Jalan Tun Mahmat, 75300 Melaka, Melaka for Go Kart! We didn’t know they had Paintball as well, but as we didn’t prepare change of clothes, we couldn’t play that. Now that you know, prepare change of clothes for some paintball fun while you’re there! 🙂

For Go Kart we paid RM30/~SGD12 for 10min. It might seem a short period, but it was about 13 laps and doesn’t seem that short a time! Unfortunately the one car I was on kept on stalling, but all my friends didn’t have issues with theirs. Overall, I’d still recommend this place.

Here with our handsome Gan Da aka Mr Da. Check out this budding photographer & like his Mr Da photography FB page. 🙂

Then we passed by this gorgeous hotel… Super pretty facade that made us feel that we were at Europe… #CheapThrill, lol.

So we took advantage of the pretty background for another group shot!

Then we’re back on the road to head down closer to Jonker Street area, where we wanted to be for the evening. While on the road…

Saw this cute Mamee sponsored signboard along “Little India” of Malacca!

My friends & I googled where to visit for good food and fun in Malacca and this was one of the recommended place, Nadeje Mille Crepe. Thanks to Missus Chewy! Hehe.

Nadeje Mille Crepe
G23B Mahkota Parade 75000 Melaka

Yeap, that’s us queuing for the Mille Crepe cakes!

Finally we get to the counter… Quite a few flavours have ran out, we just picked from whatever’s available left. #TrueStory #MadPopular

The ceiling is seriously decked out and pretty!

The yummy Mille Crepe cakes, which we kind of over ordered for the 7 of us. HAHA. Definitely yummy, I like the Original, Green Tea flavour & Milk Tea flavours, in this order! Hehe.

Then we headed down to Malacca’s Heritage area..

Lotsa decked out Tricycles for tourists.

At the A Famosa Fortress, which I honestly didn’t read up about before I went, and I’ve been there twice. 😛 In summary, in 1511 the Portuguese arrived, attacked and defeated the armies of the Malacca Sultanate. Then they built this fortress and it changed hands twice thereafter, first to the Dutch, then the British and perhaps an interesting link to Singapore would be found in this line: “The fort was almost totally demolished but for the timely intervention of Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of modern Singapore, who happened to visit Malacca in 1810. Because of his passion for history, this small gate was spared from destruction.”

Who knew that because of Sir Stamford Raffles’ decision, this fortress would attract to many tourists to Malacca today? 🙂

Then we decided to climb up and across the hill to head to Jonker Street…

My lovely friends while on the hill~ ^^

We wanted to check out this place “Restaurant Capitol Satay” for its awesome Satay & food. But MAN, THE QUEUE TOO LONG LAH. So we promptly decided to leave and head to ~~greener pastures~~, I mean shorter queues. >u<

While strolling pass the beautiful river walk and enjoying the scenery… Kindly ignore the man with the weird stare. >u<

A view as pretty, if not prettier than Singapore’s Robertson Quay.

Basking under the golden setting sun. <3 <3 <3

Just random street side flowers, but so pretty!

I must have mentioned Jonker Street like 2-3 times already, and it is really the highlight of Malacca, in my opinion. It’s best to coincide your visit on a weekend (Fri-Sun & Public Holiday) night, so you get to see the night market starting at 7pm! I’ve actually been there on weekday afternoons but the best experience is definitely one with the night market!!

The entire street starts with San Shu Gong, a famous traditional food snacks shop and basically we started off eating from the Satay Lok Lok food truck parked at the start and eating, and eating, and eating (yes you get my idea) all the way to the end before walking right back. #SingaporeansConfirmPlusChopCanEat

Us going crazy with the Lok Lok. We took a lot of unglam photos of us eating, but I shall not kill your appetite by posting them. 😛

I have been to Jonker Street thrice, and I have always bought this refreshing Honey Lime Juice drink from San Shu Gong (the red building in the background in the photo). I recommend this drink if you like something refreshing, or basically love the awesome combination of Honey & Lime like I do!!! <3

Now, get ready for an onslaught of delicious food!!!

Taiwan Hamburgers, it’s super oily and if you love eggs + meat, this is something you’d love.

The beautiful street market under the evening skies! That weekend had particularly awesome skies, isnt’ it?

Famous Famosa (pun not intended) Chicken Rice Ball restaurant!

Another #PrettySkies photo. 😛

Here we are!

I really do like these Chicken Rice Balls, but some of my friends didn’t. You can opt for regular rice if you prefer!

Delicious chicken too!

Famosa Chicken Rice Ball has a really cool interior and shop with all these cute and totally photo worthy backdrops!

Am I in Malacca, Malaysia or am I in Beijing, China? 😀

Back on the streets again! For more food! Wow! HAHAHA #SingaporeansReallyCanEatHor

We ordered the famous Jonker 88 Chendol for takeaway and enjoyed our normal and durian flavoured Chendols at a park nearby.Sorry too busy eating so no photos! But this is the best Chendol guys! I personally am not a fan of Chendols only except for theirs! Cause it’s super fresh and yummy.

More street food & photos!:

OH. MY. GOSH. These super delicious curry fishballs and meat balls!!! I think we ordered 1 serving and then we went back again, and again and again. I think we had 3-5 servings for 7 of us, I lost count.

Awesome looking scallops but we didn’t order any. Looks very fresh though!

This place is pretty much at the of the Jonker Street and is like a really old Kopitiam… but the Tse Char is really YUMMY. SERIOUSLY.

Omelette. I don’t remember it being super yummy, I think Feng Shan/Bedok 85 Omelette is probably better. But if you’re a huge fan, you can also have it at Malacca!

THIS ONE GUYS. MUST TRY!!! Clams in garlic. OH MY GOODNESS DELICIOUS. 😛 I think this plate was S$6? I can’t remember, but definitely affordable.

I think this was ok only.

After ALL THAT FEASTING. We walked back to our car…and came across the lovely night views and scenes:

Awesome looking ship. I think this is part of the Maritime Museum / exhibit.

There’s this fun looking ride too!

Polaroids for keepsakes! <3

The next day on the ride back to Singapore we decided to stop over at:

Shun Fa /Shoon Huat Bak Kut Teh 顺发肉骨茶
236, Jalan Sutera 1, Taman Sentosa, 80150 Johor Bahru
GPS: 1.490861,103.767779
Hours: Daily 8:00am to 5:00pm

For the record, we were there at 3pm so it was a late lunch and the lunch crowd was dying and the service took really long. 🙁 So it wasn’t a very pleasant experience but the food was undoubtedly good and I will go back again but I think best to be in the morning or during lunch timing. I’m not sure if the service is always that slow (have to wait quite long for them to refill the soup) or it’s because it was quite late so the stock was running low, but hopefully at earlier timings you get better service.

This ginger chicken is good!

You might probably thing we’re crazy cause when we got back to Singapore, WE WENT TO EAT SOMEMORE HAHAHA. Here’s our WingStops dinner at Bedok Mall. #SingaporeansCanReallySuperEat
I think that the chicken flavours were quite unique and I like the dips for the fries and I like the fries too! But I think the prices are pretty steep – $9.96 for 6 pieces, $11.95 for 8 pieces. But worth the try! 🙂

Ok, that’s all for my uber lengthy and food-fulling Singapore + Muar + Malacca + JB + Singapore again ~~food~~ weekend group trip!

Any food or destinations to recommend in Singapore / JB / Malacca? Let me know!

Ena

Beauty, Inspiring, Lifestyle

Mane Changing Experience at Revamped Chez Vous Salon

November 12, 2014 Ena Teo 1 Comment

Hi Loves !

If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’ll know that I recently had a mane changing experience; I now have shorter shoulder long hair with a red dye at the ends and beneath my hair surface.

Today I’m sharing about my experience at this marvelous salon that is the newly revamped Chez Vous hair salon!

A little history and background about Chez Vous Hair Salon before we begin. Founded by Thomas Teo & Riz Tan, they first started out at Bugis before becoming today’s 30 seat luxury salon at Ngee Ann City. Chez Vous Salon’s been around for 19 years and they’re also the only salon in Singapore with an “OHDA” policy with stands for “Only Hair Directors Allowed”. So you can rest assure that your mane is in good hands when you’re there! In fact a lot of Chez Vous’ clienteles are C-level executives, man and women who hold high level positions at work and need to maintain a professional image without any hassle.

So, Chez Vous Hair Salon’s just undergone a revamp and other than bringing in a redefined thematic layout and designer interior, part of the reason for this revamp stems from the founders & partners desire to re-inject the joy of a hair salon experience. They realized that customers are increasingly grumpy and stressed whenever they come for their hair cut and treatments, sometimes even whipping out their laptops and busy at work even while at the salon. So with this revamp, Chez Vous salon hopes that their customers can come to find joy at the salon; be pampered, feel soothed and relaxed with the services and facilities in place!

At the entrance of the salon, a wall of colourful hands welcome customers and is also symbolic of all the staff that has built Chez Vous to what it is today. Such a beautiful concept!

At the HYDRA BAR, customers can fill up with Laduree chocolates, sweets & tea, should they be required to wait when they arrive at the appointment time.

The WOW private room is decked in rainbow lights and is prepared for the most discerning of clients, it’s also fitted with hair scalp diagnosis equipment and a fully fitted room for all hair treatments.

There are 3 COCOON domes located the the center of the salon for customers who prefer a little more privacy for their treatments and makeovers.

At the back of the salon is the SPLASH room with coloured soft fabrics decking the ceiling, each Colour representing a value that the salon believes; White for Peace, Orange for Energetic, Red for Passion and Purple for Joy. 🙂

Another remarkable key design piece in the salon is this handsome wood panelled face sculpture that transforms according to the viewers’ perspective. This is evocative of Chez Vous’ experimental and innovative ways, constantly transforming and improving their skills and treatments in the hair industry that makes them one of the leading salon in Singapore.

As a show of support to the local fashion design scene, Chez Vous will also feature fashion designs from local personalities in store. At the time of my visit, they were showcasing Depression’s FW2014 designs. Coincidentally, on that very Sunday evening, I was attending Depression’s SS2015 runway at Digital Fashion Week! So I was very pleasantly surprised to find their pieces in the salon.

After a tour of the salon, I was ushered to my seat and reviewed the two books. The first serves as a guide to all the services available at the salon.

Complimentary services include wifi, Samsung tablet for games, web surfing, movies, free mobile phone charging service, pillow & newspapers.

A generous array of teas & coffees for selection. I had a latte!

You’ll find a tablet at each pod, so that each customer can be kept entertained throughout the session!

After a hair wash, hair director Jamie proceeded to chop off a substantial portion of my hair. What do you think?

A look at the Experligent Service guide book shows the types of services and treatments you can choose from, or you can simply discuss with the hair directors and they can recommend you what’s best and tailor make a treatment for you.

Next I had my hair coloured, by Slicer, whose name is inspired by “潇洒”，which roughly translates to Cool in English. He is pretty cool, isn’t he?

Then I had a hair treatment session, as per Jamie’s recommendation for my slightly dry hair.

The final result of my new hair colour & cut, under the expert hands of Jamie & Slicer! ^_^

Thanks to Eugene, Chez Vous’ brand director for giving me such a detailed tour and background of the salon and for also providing me recommendations with addresses for my upcoming trip to BKK! So thoughtful and considerate!!!

The list of recommended places to visit while at BKK.

So happy with my new hair cut & colour. ^^

The Redken shampoo & conditioner that I brought home to lock in the colours for my hair. The brown and red colours were indeed very much locked in and I didn’t have much colour fade out during the initial washes! There’s also a tub of hair masque that I didn’t capture, but it’s this really awesome hair salon grade masque given by Chez Vous that makes my hair really soft. ^^

Eugene was showing me their Amplified Hair Rebonding solution used to break the hair bonds, in PH6, unlike the usual PH9. Paper remains yellow for the PH6 solution versus paper turning green for the PH9 solution. Undoubtedly the PH9 solution is stronger but also more damaging. With this PH6, and the Amplified Hair Rebonding treatment, customers can rebond their hair up to every quarter of the year and get smoother hair yet without compromising on the health of the hair!!! I hope to be able to try this treatment the next time! ^^

Chez Vous will be introducing a Expertligent Fix You Programme! If your hair is damaged either by cut, colour or any other hair chemical services within 5 days in any other salons in Singapore, regardless if you are one of Chez Vous’s guest, Chez Vous will attempt to fix it for free. Only available for 1 customer a day from Sunday to Thursday only & you’ll have to call in to fix an appointment.

Another initiative is “Mix, Mingle & Makeover” where customers can book the salon in advance with their family or colleagues and have a makeover party with macarons, food & drinks together. I can imagine this would be a a totally cool pre wedding bride & bridesmaids party idea!

Visit Chez Vous Salon:
391 Orchard Road Ngee Ann City #05-05 Singapore 238872
Tel: (65) 6732-9388

Check out their website here, visit their Facebook page here and Instagram @chezvoushair for their latest treatments, hair initiatives and promotions!

*Reader Perks!*
My dear Enabalista readers can enjoy 10% off all hair and scalp services when you quote “Enabalista” from now till 15th January 2014. Not to be used in conjunction with other in-salon perks, offers, vouchers or promotions.

Thank you Chez Vous Salon & Heat PR for making this session possible!

X
Ena

Inspiring, Lifestyle

Firefly In The Light Musical by Prodigy Shayna Toh

November 11, 2014 Ena Teo 1 Comment

Hi Loves!

I may be an effusive writer and blogger when it comes to topics, food, music and products that I really like. But I do know that the term “Prodigy” is only reserved for a select few that truly deserve it. Shayna Toh is the prodigy in mention here:

Shayna Toh, a seventeen-year old Junior College student, has been studying and composing music since she was six. With a love for theatre as well as pop music, she is also an avid writer, having had several stories published since 2008 and in 2013, a children’s book (on urban nature deficit) published. Shayna made her first foray into the theatre scene at eleven, in 2008, when her script “Where Your Dream Takes You” directed by Singapore Repertory Theatre’s (SRT) Director, Michael Corbidge, was performed by actors from SRT and MediaCorp at the DBS Arts Centre.

Seriously, what was I doing when I was 17? I was a SAJC student busy coping with school subjects, CCA & fund raising activities. This girl is busy preparing for her debut full length pop musical! This is the kind of stuff that a full grown adult and musical talent dreams and spends half their life trying to achieve but she’s already doing it. O.O And she was only 11 when her script, “Where Your Dream Takes You” was directed and performed! Kudos to the girl!

This time around, Shayna Toh has written the book/script, music and lyrics to her new musical “Firefly In The Light”.

Firefly In The Light, a new pop musical, tells the story of Wendy, a beautiful and talented teenage school- girl, who knows she is destined for great things. In her shadow, is her childhood “friend”, Jake, unassuming and insecure – who (finally) finds his strength in Wendy. Beckoned by the brightness of a future in a city thousands of miles away, Wendy leaves her small hometown to follow her dreams.

A protective mother, her elusive husband in the entertainment business, a shrewd artist manager, amidst adoring friends and fans alike- all wittingly or unwittingly direct the destinies of Wendy and Jake as they search for themselves, love and success, finding themselves treading on similar grounds but taking very different paths, not once but twice in their young lives.

With a collection of freshly minted songs ranging from rambunctious up-tempo pieces to soft ballads, this Musical, to be staged in the historic Chamber of The Arts House, promises the audience an intimate experience with the young, budding cast and musicians as they spin this tale of youthful hopes, discoveries and pain into an ending.

The director Tabitha Loh, is yet another young talent at the age of 22:

Tabitha Loh, twenty-two, was first trained at ten, under The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art Speech and Drama Program. Completing a year under LASALLE’s Performing Arts Foundation Course and a degree in Theatre and Performance, Tabitha has worked on assistant directorships including Peter Handke’s, Kaspar (2011) with director Natalie Hennedige, Fences (2012) an original opera by Dr John Sharpley and Robert Yeo, directed by Chandran K Lingam. She directed M. Lee’s Serangoon Sunset (2012) presented at the APB Drama Schools Festival, Taiwan.

Be sure to check out the work of young musical talents this weekend, 15 November 8pm @ The Arts House Chamber! Buy your tickets from Sistic here.

Hi Loves!

How’s your week coming along? 🙂
My Monday totally felt like a “weekend coma”; post hectic weekend coma. >_< Last week was a really long week with planning and executing my blog Enabalista’s 4th Anniversary giveaways, blogging appointments as well as work packed back to back. So I felt so lethargic at work on Monday… But then I was totally excited to meet up with my girlies at work for dinner at Saveur heheh.

Before it gets too late, I’d like to share my thoughts on reaching Enabalista’s 4th Anniversary! ^^,

On my Instagram last Thursday, which is also the very date of my very first post on this blog (30th Oct), I posted a series of #TBT photos that encapsulates 4 of my passions and popular topics on my blog:

Fashion
I started off this blog to share photos and thoughts of fashion shows that I attended when I was a fashion student. I had the chance to attend many local fashion shows while assisting backstage and also as my BFF, Bini’s guest for the premium shows such as Chanel.

Beauty
Not long after, I also started to review beauty products, starting off with skincare and a ton of lip care products. In the course of 4 years, I’ve had the pleasure to review many brands, as seen in the photo and also recommended many of them to you my readers, as well as family and friends.

Travel
If you’ve been following my blog long enough, you’ll also know that I love to travel and to blog about my travels. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to travel far for 2014, apart from Malaysia and even for those short trips I also haven’t had the time to post up photos. >_< If you’re new to my blog, I hope you’ll enjoy reading about my trips to Seoul, HK, Japan & London. 🙂

Food
As a true Singaporean, I’m a big fan of fine cuisine! I love to enjoy good food and I love to share where all these delicious food are on my blog here.

USS Halloween Horror Night Review

My Blogging Philosophy
With 4 years of blogging, I’ve come to realize that my blogging philosophy is sharing about my positive experiences, whether it’s about the 4 topics above or beyond. I relish in new, exciting & enjoyable experiences. Personally I feel that the best gift one can give & receive is spending time together and what better way is there to do than to enjoy a good experience together? 🙂

Additionally, I like to think that my posts are “edu-taining”- educational and entertaining at the same time! My wish is that when readers come to my blog, they’ll soak up new knowledge about fashion, beauty, travel & food while also really enjoy my reviews and photos. Basically every blog post is crafted according to how I would enjoy reading it as a reader! 😉

Etude House Wisma Flagship Store Opening

Did I start out my blog 4 years ago thinking it’d reach where it is today?
Absolutely not. As I mentioned above, I started out blogging to post information and photos that I was passionate about. On hindsight, these information that I have are also exclusive, so blogging is really a great way to share these exciting information and meet bloggers and readers alike who are equally passionate about these topics as I am. It was only in mid-end 2011 that I started to blog quite industriously and was posting up more content in terms of events that I attended and beauty products I’ve tried.

Best Singapore Lifestyle Blog 2013
Then December 2013 came around and I still remember that I was at my church’s 50th anniversary camp at Malacca when I was in the hotel room I shared with my friend Talia and reading the email from HotelClub.com that they have selected me to be one of the “Best Singapore Lifestyle Blog 2013“. I was super stoked and I was incredibly happy, excited and thankful to be recognized for this blog that I’ve been passionately maintaining.

Kose Cinderella Finalists & Tricia Ong

Then Jan 2014 came around and I started to receive an influx of invitations from brands for events and reviews. Two very exciting things also happened for me in mid 2014, I took part in Kose Cinderella contest and OMY Best Beauty Blogs contest, one after the other. Although I didn’t win either one of it, I’m still very thankful for my family and friends who have shown so much support for me and through these contests I’ve also got to know the lovely ladies who took part in the contests and these connections are truly invaluable.

Singapore’s Lifestyle Blog
2014 also marks the year where I clearly defined that I wanted my blog to be recognized as a lifestyle blog. I am passionate about things beyond just 1 topic, and I don’t want to limit myself to be only blogging about one topic. So sometime around January this year, I set a goal that I wanted my blog to be known and ranked top as “Singapore’s Lifestyle Blog/Blogger” on Google. Lo & behold, after about 100 posts in 2014 alone, my dream came true in October this year and I was very thankful when a PR contact introduced me as “Singapore’s leading lifestyle blogger”. I don’t know if I am able to maintain my blog’s Google ranking, or how long I can maintain it for, but I know that if more readers enjoy reading what I blog about, then the easier it would be to sustain the ranking. 🙂

The future ahead
Like 4 years ago, I’m not sure where my blog will be headed to in another 4 years. But I do know for sure that I’ll continue to be passionately sharing about my positive experiences for Fashion, Beauty, Travel & Food. Currently there are 2 things that I wish to accomplish: 1. Publish a book about Lifestyle; an editorial summary of topics similar to my blog 2. Produce a series of diary/organizers. However right now I have too much on my plate for work and blogging that I am KIV-ing these goals that I wish to achieve until the time is right. If you’re reading this and would like to partner me to accomplish these goals, email me and we’ll see how we can set things in motion. 🙂

Last but definitely not the least, I want to thank God for His providence and guidance for my life and blog and my family and friends for their support and encouragement. From the bottom of my heart, thank you, my dear readers and friends for reading my blog. 🙂

If you haven’t, be sure to check out these 4 awesome giveaways that I am currently running on my IG, FB & Clozette:

*UPDATED with winners*