Title:	My new country collection
Topics:	by the branch, country home, laura ashley, via ljapp
Date:	2009-09-15 @ 11:14
Security:	public
Location:	Singapore, Singapore
Mood:	ecstatic

It has been a long time since I last shopped for decor for my country home or bought things from eBay.

Last Saturday, I went country shopping with Valerie, a good friend who also have a cosy country home in the west. I've been raving to her on and on about the beautiful flowers and shabby chic items at By The Branch, a flora shop at China Square. But cos she live so far away, we never found the chance to meet & shop there.

However last weekend, we made it an effort to visit the shop. I've not been there for an least 4 months. My! I was really glad to find new & pretty items there which I simply adore! There were shabby bird cages I've been looking for and not forgetting, new flora arrangements. My only complaint is that the things are overpriced, as I could easily ship them from eBay at a fraction of he price. Nevertheless, it's always pleasant to be there, as I just enjoyed being surrounded by beautiful things. I eventually bought a small white rattan basket I've been eyeing for a long time & a bunch of pretty hydrangeas. As we were leaving, Valerie spotted a vintage 3-arm candelabra which she was looking for the longest time, and finally succumbed to her temptation to buy it.

Our next stop was the Hua Rong shop at Tan Boon Liat Building. Though the shop is hot & stuffy, they sell many country vintage items at bargain prices. Some items sell for like only a third or quarter of the price at By The Branch! I really like all their hand-painted rose furniture. If not for their poor quality, I would really love to buy the furniture for my place, as price is really reasonable. Well, we pay for what we get, and we all know that country style furnishings never come cheap. I bought a vintage rose metal wall hook & Valerie bought a bunch of hydrangeas. We both saw a wooden chest in our favourite sage green. Something worth considering!

Our last shopping stop was Laura Ashley at Great World City, which is within walking distance. LA has always been my favourite store as things sold there are simply so irresistable! I just don't feel like leaving whenever I'm there. Haha! From their chic upholstered chairs, to scroll-armed sofas, to candleholders and photo frames, everything present could easily find a place in my country home! However, things there are really beyond my budget, so I would usually just browse & drool. Though I might occasionally splurge & pamper myself with one of their beautiful treasures. Really wanted to buy one of the candleholders which I've been eyeing for a long time. They are having a 30% sale now and going for $35 as compared to usual price of $49. But cos i've spent quite a bit today buying other items, I decided to kiv again. :(

I just found a new place last night for my basket and hydrangeas from By The Branch. Decided to place them at the bottom of the bedside table in my room. Wanted to put them on one of the tables in the living room or the window ledge in the study but I knew they would collect dust big time!

Just yesterday, some items which I bought from USA arrived! I had them consolidated at Borderlinx, then shipped over. The shipping took faster than I expected, as I had just released my shipment last Fri. The item I was really looking forward to was the inspirational framed picture from my favourite artist, Thomas Kinkade. He's well-known as the "Painter of Light" and I really love his renditions of country cottages.

The item is totally gorgeous! His paintings & artwork are very expensive. If not for the 20% discount, I would never have bought it. I could not afford to get his original oil paintings, hence I'm fine with the smaller version lithograph which I bought.

Other items which I also shipped over include a jar candle, wax tarts, essential oil & tart warmers.

All these additions to my country collection over the past few days really lifted up my spirits! :)

Posted via LiveJournal.app.

I finally took the plunge to do something that I've always wanted to do today...donate blood. It's not that I'm unaware of the importance of blood donation or how this altruism is so precious to saving lives. It's just the thought of my fear of needles that is making me procrastinating, again and again. I've been looking for a "golden opportunity" to donate blood or the right reason to donate blood. However, if we don't take the first step or find a conviction to do something, that something will never happen.

As luck would have it, the "golden opportunity" came today. As part of my organisation's National Day celebrations, there was a blood donation drive for staff. I jumped at it, knowing that there are no more excuses!

I half expected not to qualify due to my hb level, as I have a history of anaemia. Surprisingly my hb is more than 12.5dL! First hurdle passed...

Then came my next hurdle...my fear of needles! As I would soon realize, it wasn't as scary & painful as I thought. In fact, it didn't hurt at all during the blood donation process. It took only 10 minutes, and before I realized, it's all over!

Well, I would like to declare that, my first blood donation experience is a very pleasant one. No pain, no mishaps, no problems finding my veins to draw blood! In fact I felt really good. Probably blood donation does activate the endorphins in our bodies to make us feel good abt ourselves!

This experience really made a difference to the stressful week I had. Knowing that I've saved three lives today just made me forget abt all my stress & fatique!

If u ask if I will donate blood again, my answer is yes! In fact I will try my best to donate blood regularly every 3 mths and I definitely look forward to my next donation! :)

Posted via LiveJournal.app.

Today is a very special day that Edith and us are looking forward to.  She has been rehearsing very hard for CHIJ Kellock's 45th anniversary musical drama "The Little Blue Pinafore" for the past few months and tonight is finally the opening performance at Victoria Theatre.

Even though this is a school performance and Edith is only performing as a role in the choir, I'm very proud to see her performing on the big stage at Victoria Theatre!  No doubt she's been through many tiring weeks of long hours of rehearsals, I'm very glad to see her enthusiasm and love for performing!  Hoped this is something she has inherited from me...my passion for the performing arts and desire to excel in the arts scene.  It doesn't matter if she has the talent for the performing arts or not.  What's most impt is her love and passion to pursue her dreams in the arts.

"The Little Blue Pinafore" is a very light-hearted and heart-warming production.  It chronicles CHIJ Kellock's journey from 1964 to the present.  Using a missing pinafore, it brings out its significance to the lives of different people.  I'm sure it would have brought a smile to old Kellock girls who were present and veteran teachers who were privileged to walk this journey since the early days.

It might be a mere school production and nowhere near the standards of a professional theatrical company.  However, in my opinion, the production was excellent, judging from the way everything was put nicely together, amidst the simple props.  Because it's not about how much was spent on the production or how expensive the props or costumes look.  It's all about the enthusiasm and hard work put in by the teachers and students that make the production shine!  I would really like to applaud the teachers for doing such a good job in the choreography.  Surprisingly, even one of the songs of the production "Who Stole the Pinafore" was written and composed by one of the school teachers!  Such productions that are created from the heart, will always not fail to touch all who are present.

Kudos to all teachers and students of CHIJ Kellock who have made "The Little Blue Pinafore" a successful production!  Looking forward to the next one!
 

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I've been searching for a suitable cover for my piano since I moved in a year ago. Knowing how dusty my place is, it's something I can't do without, cos it's really tough having to dust it every few days, only to see specks of dust again the very next day!

People must be wondering what's wrong with me? Why can't I just walk in to a music store to buy a cover? Why do I have to keep
complaining & put up with the dust & take so long to buy one? LOL! Well the problem is cos I'm such a country lover freak, and everything in my home has to fit into my theme...EVERYTHING!

There is this lady Liew Tee who moves from malls to malls every mth selling country style items. As I buy from her regularly, I asked her to help me find a suitable piano cover. Just yesterday, she told me that the cover I want has arrived! You can imagine my excitement! The feeling it's like I just struck a million dollar Toto! Hehe. I know this is exaggerating, but it's exactly how I feel.

Hence I can't wait but rush down to her stall at Tiong Bahru Plaza during lunch time yesterday to pick up my precious cover! Gosh, it was prettier than I imagined it to be! It's made of a soft lacy fabric in my favourite pink rose shabby print. The double layer of white lace gives it such a nice romantic feel!

Obviously, the first thing I did when I got home, was to drape my piano with it's new cover! I was simply speechless with what I see! This exquisite cover really adds so much country flavour to my living room, complimenting all the little pretties I already have. :)

Posted via LiveJournal.app.

I'm doing testing of my first LJ posting using my new iPhone. Hope it works! :)

I've been too lazy to update my blog for the longest time. Hope I will be able to do so while on the move with this new baby ;).

I had problems with the batt life of my iPhone during the first 2 wks. Even went to Singtel to exchange for a new handset. After some trial and errors and advice from the Mac forum, I realized that it's not a handset issue. Rather, it's got something to do with my settings.

Have deactivated some settings like 3G, push services, wi-fi etc. Such services, though convenient, and are what make the iphone live up to its expectations, depletes the batt life really quick! It used to take just less than 4 hrs to run the batt flat! But I'm really glad everything is back to normal now.

I charged my batt 2 nites ago, but I still have abt 40% batt life as I'm posting this blog. Just have to take the extra trouble to turn those services on as and when I need them.

There is a little price to pay for advancements in mobile technology, no doubt.

Posted via LiveJournal.app.

Title:	Christmas celebration @ Tanglin Halt
Topics:	christmas, christmas dinner, christmas home decor
Date:	2008-12-25 @ 23:59
Security:	public
Location:	home
Mood:	happy

This is our first Christmas in our lovely home at Tanglin Halt and we celebrated it with a difference!  Instead of spending $200 on a christmas dinner outside, we decide to prepare our own on Christmas eve!  It was quite impromtu actually, as we didn't think about how to celebrate but something just came to our mind to do it our own way, just to make this occasion extra special!  :)

We had baked chicken in spices and pumpkin soup, which took me more than two hours to prepare.  I would have made the dinner more sumptuous, if I had made preparations beforehand.  But for this limited amount of time, think what I had done is not bad already!  :P  It was a warm and cosy dinner no doubt, as we basked in the ambience of this joyous occasion.  Most importantly, we enjoyed each other's company!

Pity is, nobody enjoys pumpkin soup except for me, and I ended up finishing the whole pot!  I don't mind actually...cos it's so lustrously creamy and yummy....hehe...

Here's a closer look at some of our Christmas decor around the home...





This is my uncompleted table runner quilt for the coffee table, can't finish it in time for Christmas cos started sewing too late!  Nevertheless, I've decided to display it anyway as it really adds on to the warmth and cheer although it's uncompleted.  :P