Happy Chinese New Year 2012!

Hiya!

Just wanted to wish all my readers, especially those who are also celebrating this holiday:

I had honestly meant to do a eCard for Christmas and New Year's, but time got away from me in the end ^^;;;

Happy Holidays to those of you who are lucky enough to get public holidays :)

Belated Happy New Year

Ah, I hadn't realised that nearly three months have passed since I last posted!! I had meant to put up a New Year's greeting post, but I guess I'd completely forgotten ^^;;;

So....

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

The year of the Dragon (that's me!) will also be starting in less than a week's time according to the Chinese calendar, so a very Happy and Prosperous New Year to all of you celebrating CNY as well :)

Not many updates on life outside of this. The only real highlight was that I'd spent Christmas and New Year's with my family at my brother's flat in Cambridge.

Our excuse was that we needed to decorate the flat - we just wanted to go shopping :P But I didn't buy that many clothes this time around! Instead, I splurged on household stuff hahaha. Now my brother has a Hello Kitty mixing bowl in his flat and a miniature rolling pin for no reason XD;

I've also been keeping up the hunt for a houmongi or tsukesage that's appropriate for my age, has a design that I like, can actually fit me, and is in my spending range :/ Unfortunately, nearly all those that I've come across meet all requirements except the last hahaha. So I've turned to expanding certain parts of my lolita wardrobe instead XD;;; It's going to be a pretty fun year in terms of clothes!

Toodles guys :) Once I clean up my room in time for CNY, I should have enough space to dress fully in kimono again!

Back~!

Hiya!

It may not actually seem like it, but I've actually been away for a few weeks - been travelling in UK and Portugal for our annual holiday :) I had a really great time, and I think I fell in love with Portugal haha. Really charming place, and with great food!

I apologize for the late replies to all the comments (which I dearly thank you for, by the way! <3) but I had almost no internet access for those few weeks. My blog posts only continued by virtue of "Scheduled Posting"... So I'd actually pre-written nearly everything and posted them two days before leaving ^^;;;

Anyway, when I was in London, I managed to attend the Kimono de Jack UK! Really nice catching up with Hong and April, and meeting new members :) I didn't take any pictures, but I'll probably steal some from April and post about the event ^^;;

Till next time!

Blog Layout (again!)

Haha, seems like I went overboard with the restructuring... I had honestly only meant to edit the side bar a little, but then I started exploring a little more when I was bored and next thing you know, I was adding all sorts of things to my blog ^^;

The pages at the top are still incomplete (I still have to add one for Kimono Knowledge and another for Know-How) but at least the template is there for me to start off with. I'm also looking into changing the font for my pages... That one will take longer in coming because it's quite far down my priority list.

For now, I'm just happy with cleaning up my sidebar and adding a signature and a LinkWithin widget :) I've also added a new Contact Me form that's pretty easy to use, but I've left the link to the old one just in case it fails or something.

Of course, now my blog takes pretty long to upload so I may end up removing LinkWithin and leaving my Pages font as it is.

Let me know of any complaints? ^_^

Edited to add: Okay, so it was getting a little too slow so I removed the Search bar and LinkWithin. The signature does make it slower, but I really like it... :/

Blog Restructuring

My T&T post on kimono fit is moving on really slowly (can’t tell you how many times I’ve rewritten the thing only to delete it all and start over again ^^;) so I thought I’d just move on and post about something else instead.

I got bored over the weekend and did up a table of post ideas – and I have to say that I have a lot of ideas on what to post, and no idea on where to start! So I figured reorganizing everything so that my blog is more structured would be a great place to begin with, and it’ll certainly help me see what areas I ought to work on first.

As such, I’m now in the middle of reorganizing my blog – adding new tags, editing titles, etc. I’m also updating my sidebar to reflect some of the changes.... Although I'll have to continually update my Tips & Tricks series and the upcoming Kimono Knowledge series as I write and post them, which will eventually happen (in like maybe ten years or so, at the rate I’m going XD;)

Anyway! I’m looking forward to having a more organized blog XD; Maybe it’ll inspire me to write more or something as well haha.

Ta~!

New Layout~

I've done abit more tweaking with my blog layout!

I couldn't really be bothered figuring out how to get my background to fit perfectly for all screen resolutions and web browsers, so I decided to scrap the idea and keep a plain white background, but change the header to suit the new theme.

I've also changed the fonts for my post titles, dates and side bar titles. Unfortunately, it's made my blog a little slow to upload, so even if it does look rather nice, I think I'll keep it a few weeks as a test and see how it goes. If I still don't like how slow it is, I might scrap it and see what else I can do with my layout.

I've tested the new layout on IE, Firefox and Safari on iPhone... It looks fine on IE and Firefox, but the new font for my post titles, dates and side bar titles don't show up on iPhone... Got to check up on how to fix that.

Any opinions on the layout so far?

New Layout!

Hiya~

As you may have noticed, I've decided to change my blog layout a little!

I was actually pretty happy with the old layout, but the IG forums has now adopted a new feature that flashes banners of members' blogs, and I was quite interested in joining, so I created a banner!

After looking at it, I figured I ought to change my blog layout to reflect the new banner, so I've started with the most basic part: the background and colour theme. I wasn't quite sure about the red font at first, but I think it turned out rather well.

What do you think of the background image? Computer illiterate as I am, it took ages for me to get the size of the image right, and the girl in the exact place I wanted her to be... XD;;

The next part is to change the header so that it's in the same font my banner is in. I may create a new avatar for my profile as well.... Hmmm I wonder if I can change the font for all the headers.....

Well, I guess the next week will be spent slowly figuring this out XD;

Take care, and hope you like the background and colour scheme! I can't wait to finish my blog layout!

*phew*

I'm still alive! Feels like alot of things have happened since my last post~ ♥

1. Went to a few places. I think we were in Singapore at one time last month... And Johor the month before that..
2. CNY came and went! Surprisingly, it was a rather quiet one this year.
3. Our annual CNY party was.... wet XD Felt like we were in a typhoon taking shelter under flimsy tents hahaha. Everyone got wet, I think! About 300+ people turned up despite the weather...
4. I got to see Liss!! We met up once in January and another time at my CNY party :) Absolutely great to catch up!! Especially since she won't be home for another 18 months :/ *sighs* Time to plan a trip to visit her, I think XD XD
5. Our new maid ran away! Just a few days before CNY too :/ No big issue has come out of it other than the police reports, and since she was here for less than 3 months the agency is getting us a new maid. The family has been spending alot of time cleaning the house. One more month...
6. Finally cleaned up my room!! Now I have the time (and inclination XD) to dress up, do outfit snaps, take pics of the clothes I want to sell... My mannequin is really coming in handy here :)

I feel like dressing up in one of my new kimono~~♥ I've already put together an outfit! Now's just a matter of finding the time to dress up ♥ But it's been getting busier at work, and looks like it won't ease up till Invest Malaysia is over (that's in mid-April lol!), so I'll most probably stone alot at home till then XD;

Hmmm sleep sounds like a good thing right now....

Christmas Wishlist

Every year, my family always asks me what I want for Christmas. This year, I thought I'd make it easy and put up a few things that I'd really really like, even if it's a battered second-hand copy :)

1) The Atlas of Middle-Earth, by Karen Wynn Fonstad
2) The Maps of Tolkien's Middle-Earth, by Bryan Sibley and illustrated by John Howe
3) The Complete Guide to Middle-Earth, by Robert Foster
4) The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, by Christina Scull & Wayne G. Hammond
5) Any of the History of Middle Earth series by JRR Tolkien
6) Any books at all on Tolkien and/or his works

^_^ My Tolkien collection is quite a small one, but I haven't read through all of it yet. Still, I'm looking forward to expanding it! My most recent acquirement is the 50th Anniversary one-volume edition of Lord of the Rings, which my sister gave to me for my birthday. I'm contemplating getting that leather-bound copy of The Hobbit that I saw as well....

It's such a pity that it's so hard to find good second-hand books in KL :/ Most of my LotR collection are actually from the UK, where I can raid second-hand bookstores or flea markets easily. Any suggestions on where in KL (besides Amcorp Mall) that I can go hunting for second-hand books?

Quick Update~

Eh just a quick update to let you guys know I'm alive (I think). Been busy these past few months!

1. Went to Europe for a 2-week holiday (Florence, Rome, Cambridge, Edinburgh & London) to send my brother off to Cambridge (*coughs* just an excuse to go there *coughs*)
2. Continued holiday with a week-long working trip (Norwich, Bath, London, Berlin & Amsterdam)
3. Spent 2 mad weeks at home preparing for a conference in Beijing
4. Was in Beijing and Shanghai for a week for work

Yeah I'm really tired ^^;;; Must remedy that this weekend by lots and lots of sleep! XD

On a separate note, Anime Festival Asia 2010 is on this weekend in Singapore... I want to go so badly, but I've got to help with my godbrother's wedding stuff :/ *sighs*

Can someone go for me and check out their Butler Cafe? XD

Toodles~

Long Weekend~~

Friday was a public holiday for Hari Raya, so we had a lovely long weekend.

I was quite productive!

1. Got my legs and eyebrows waxed. FINALLY.
2. Made an appointment for a facial.
3. Cleaned up room. Guesstimating about 30% done so far, but that's quite alot already ^^;
4. Started playing RO again. Woohoo!
5. Bought a new teacup/saucer set. Now, just to get the matching teapot....
6. Cleared out my closets. Turns out I have alot of clothes to donate to charity ^^;;;
7. Took some pics of clothes to sell~

Now if only I could fit in a hair & scalp treatment and a make-up session, it'd be perfect :)

On another note, I think I'm going to redecorate my room. I really need a proper study table, so I might get that country-style table I've been eyeing for a while.... So I've got to change my room's decor from Japanese-inspired to country home-inspired XD; I can't wait to start hunting for proper partitians!

.. But I think I can definitely wait for Monday to start ;_; Sunday, where did you gooooo?

Delays

Hmmm I'm supposed to be posting about Bon Odori 2010, but I can't figure out how to work the new Flickr layout ^^;;;; I did try taking the "tour" but it doesn't seem to work on my com o_O???

So my picture & events posts will be a little delayed till I can putter around and "fix" it ^^;

It's Alive!!

O_O It's been forever since I last posted!! >___<""" Sorry!!!

Anyway, just a quick update on what's been going on XD

1) Was busy with a conference, which explains my disappearance over March. April and half of May were purely the result of extreme laziness :P

2) Finally had a kimono meet-up in Malaysia!!!! Just three of us girls walking around KLCC :) Will post about it... eventually :P""

3) My brother came home for Easter.... Then got stuck here because of the volcanic ash situation LOL. That was one hell of a week for us...

4) Went to Melaka and Johor for a working visit, then stopped by Singapore for the heck of it. Visited Black Alice but didn't buy anything. Bought lots and lots of yarn for my sister from Spotlight.

5) My sister and I were discussing a yarn cafe. Lots of interesting ideas! XD

6) Went to a lolita meet-up~~ :) *happiness*

7) Watched West Side Story. Waste of time and money. Will post a review next.

That's all the interesting stuff I can remember XD I don't have much of a life to actually blog about lol.

I'm in the middle of typing out a review for West Side Story, so that'll be up next. Toodles!

Gluttony~

It's been a full six days in a row of pigging out, with feasting and celebrations abound! I've been having such heavy lunches and dinners lately. I have no doubt I'll be gaining a few kg just by living through this next month.

Even yesterday, which was Ash Wednesday and therefore supposed to be a day of fasting and abstinence, had two full meals! We didn't eat meat, but we sure as hell didn't fast :P

*sighs* But on the topic of Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent.. What should I give up for this Lent? I don't know... A little late to be thinking about it, but I honestly have been more preoccupied with CNY ^^; So much so to the point where I'd forgotten completely about Valentine's Day till yesterday ^^;;;;

Anyway, on a random off-topic moment, I've been trying to put together an outfit for Valentine's Day, late though it may be. It's quite alot harder than I thought, because I had hoped to combine my Valentine's Day outfit and my CNY outfit into one, and that's kiiiiiind of hard to do when I'm lacking alot of red pieces in my kimono closet. So..... that outfit may take a while in coming, but I'll make sure it comes!!

On that note, should I make another outfit for Lent this year? Or should I make one for Easter? XD

Happy Chinese New Year!

I am absolutely thrilled to finally be home and celebrating Chinese New Year with my family! It'll be the first time I'm celebrating CNY in about 5 years, excluding this one time my friends and I had a mini yee-sang and steamboat party in my 2nd year room at Concord.

Soooo..... Since I'll be kind of busy this weekend, what with the Eve of CNY tomorrow and the first day of CNY on Sunday, I thought I'd just post an early:

GONG XI FA CAI!May the Year of the Tiger bring you prosperity!

Ehehe. Speaking of tigers, I'm thinking of creating a tiger (or cat) themed outfit for this year, much like xiner did, now that the year of the tiger is about to start. (FYI, the year of the Tiger doesn't start until CNY - the weeks before that are still considered as the "tail" of the year of the Cow)

Aaaaaand, speaking of kimono.... I know my mum said I could buy a kimono if the Jakarta trip went well. But, well... My mum bought me this bag from Coach's 2010 Valentine's Gifts collection, so I won't be getting a new kimono anytime soon ^^;



Sorry to disappoint, but the bag is just too cute!! And wonderfully big and convenient too ^^; I think I'll be trying to come up with an outfit that will match this bag ehehhehe~

Toodles, people!~

*phew*

It's been a few crazy weeks at work, mostly because we're organising a 4-day working trip to Jakarta for tomorrow. Alot of it took a long time to arrange, and there were some last-minute changes that made it all a huge headache! Especially for me, since I'm the one who's organising all the small details like that ;___; I'm just glad that the main part of the organising bit is already over with - all that's left is the trip tomorrow. I'll have to pray extra hard that there aren't any major crises during the trip itself. I'm hoping my good luck will hold up till Thursday!

It's actually a public holiday tomorrow for those of us with offices in KL, but because of the Jakarta trip, I don't get the holiday :/ But it's okay - a little more work hasn't killed anyone, after all.

On a happier note, my mum said that if this Jakarta trip goes well, I can get a new kimono!! *thrilled* Not that I have to get permission to get a new one, but maybe I can get one of the more expensive ones this time~ :P

I know I've kind of been on a kimono hiatus lately, due mainly to the sudden lolita craze I seem to have caught, but a couple of new magazines (and maybe the promise of a new kimono XP) have brought me back! Yay! :D

I've been wanting to dress up in kimono for a while now, and I did have some time to myself yesterday, but I chose to clean out my room instead. Haha, when sorting out my kimono closet, I noticed that I seem to have amassed a huge amount of sakura-themed items lately ^^;;; Even the new Noren curtain I put up has a sakura theme on it!

Not so good for seasonal dressing, but I've heard that this style/type of sakura pattern is accepted as an all-seasons motif since it's Japan's national flower.

I did have time to put together a cute outfit with the new (sakura-themed :P) kimono that I got at Akihabara Japan Products in Singapore last year! I'm hoping to be able to wear it next weekend ^_^ It'll be the only free time I have before March, because Chinese New Year is on 14th February this year, so that's one weekend gone, and the next weekend, we'll be having our annual CNY party. The weekend after that will be Chap Goh Mei (the last day of CNY), so it'll be busy again. I feel exhausted just thinking about our coming schedule....

On the other hand, this will be the first time I'm celebrating CNY with my family in 5 years, so I'm really happy to be here ^___^ This is one thing I missed in the UK. It's not that I don't celebrate, it's just that I don't celebrate as lavishly. Somehow, the "right" sort of feeling just isn't there. Same thing with celebrating Christmas, I guess. Over here, I've got the right people and stuff, but the atmosphere just doesn't compare to the UK, where you can feel the Christmas Spirit running rampant everywhere and bonking everyone on the head.

Okay, I guess I've rambled on and on enough for now :P I was looking through my past posts and realised that I never put up some pictures from my Yukata Picnic last year. The new pics are from Mich's camera, and I stole them off her Facebook a little late ^^;;; But here's a taster of my next update :)



With a small Hummingbird Bakery Red Velvet cupcake to last you till I update :P

Ta, people! ^^

It's Official

I HAVE GRADUATED!

My graduation ceremony was today in Southwark Cathedral. As of approximately two hours ago, I am now an official Cass Business School, City University graduate. WOOHOO!

Btw, yes, that does mean that I'm in London. We took a night flight on Monday November 30th and arrived here yesterday. We've been eating alot and have already hit Farmer Brown's twice. Later tonight, we're going to go to Il Bordello for dinner! Yum!

I've already met up Mel (meeting her again tonight, actually!) and have caught up with some of my uni friends at the ceremony, but now I'm really really looking forward to meeting up with my kimono gang! XD XD Woooohoooooooo!

I can't believe how much I've missed London. It feels like I've come home haha!

Toodles people! I'm off to enjoy myself more in the lovely cold winter air! XD

*grumbles*

My goal for December is to get all these damn business cards sorted. I want them arranged alphabetically according to company, branch/division, and name. And to start with, I'm going to need to buy more business card holders.

I swear, even trying to sort this stuff out is going to kill me.

Back from Singapore!

I'm baaack! It was a lovely, relaxing holiday. We shopped all weekend and I spent soooooo much money it isn't even funny! >_<"" Anyway, I'm abit tired and lazy to really post much, so it's going to be in point form, again. This post is mainly for pics. I would post alot more, but it's taken me 2 bloody hours to upload 5 tiny resized pics, and I'm so fed up with the internet here that I can't be bothered to post more. I miss Singapore already. 1) About a month ago, my camera died on me right smack in the middle of a working trip, so my mum got me a new camera. Say hi!

2) On my last trip to Singapore two months ago, I had a day off, so I spent the whole afternoon wandering around Singapore and looking for all the yukata shops I'd seen on SGCafe.net. It was fun! In terms of kimono, I bought a lovely blue hanhaba obi with matching thin obijime, and a reddish sort of obijime.




3) This trip to Singapore, we were given prime rooms with a "great view" in Swissotel! I don't think Singapore is all that pretty in the morning, but at night, when everything is plunged into darkness and the city comes alive with bright lights and music, the view is breathtaking. Singapore is also currently preparing for their F1 Night Race, so the spotlights are all up and everything. On Saturday night, they had a test run of the spotlights, and we could see it from our rooms! Here's a wee picture:


4) I spent soooo much money this weekend. Srsly. Three months' salary wouldn't cover it. Akihabara Japan Products should love me. Here are my spoils! :D

I bought a lined kimono, a yukata, a kasane-eri, a hanhaba obi, a basket bag, one pair of women's geta, one pair of really cute skull men's geta, one tsuke eri, and (not shown in this pic) two obiage. Feel my happiness!!! XD XD XD

I'm very tempted to wear the yukata for this Saturday's TAF event, but I'm not sure... Pink doesn't seem to be much of a night-time colour to me. I think I might finally wear that hanabi yukata ensemble I was meant to wear to Bon Odori all those months ago. Or maybe I should wear that false rose shibori yukata I bought for my sister...? Decisions, decisions!

That's all for now! Toodles! XD

Off to Singapore~

I haven't updated in ages! I'm sorry it's once again a random rambling sort of post, but yeah...

Anyway!

1) Been busy making and delivering hampers, layer cakes and mooncakes out to clients.
2) Going to Singapore tomorrow, coming home on Monday. I'm looking forward to helping the Singaporean economy XD
3) I've got a permanent job in my office now. Woohoo. Stupid paperwork D:

Oh yeah, and Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri to all! (And I kind of just realised I forgot to wish everyone a Happy Merdeka Day all those weeks ago. Oh well!)