Primark Haul!

It's no secret that I love a good bargain, and Primark would have to be the best known for a wide range of styles at pretty good prices. Now, some of their stuff is a bit on the iffy side, but if you check items carefully before buying (no missing buttons, straight seams, no pulled threads etc) you can pick up some neat clothes at purse-friendly prices.

Recently I was assigned back to back London flights. While I don't loooove these trips (since there is not a lot to do out near the airport, and the Tube trip can be a pain in the you-know-what) I do like the chance to pick up some goodies on the high street. (Reading UK magazines does not help to curb this addiction, lol)

On my last trip, it was cold and rainy, so I was inspired to pick up some winter woolies. Helps that currently it is 'winter' in Dubai and actually doable to wear cardis and long pants when you go to the mall or even outside.

Was happy enough to pay 16 pounds for this
snuggly cardi-scanned at 7! Win!

Wanting a black leather-look vest for ages.
Done! 15 pounds

I do love me a good graphic tee, combine it with my favourite
NYC skyscraper, cool Art Deco vibe and a 3 pound price tag- I'm sold!

Finally, who could pass up these cute Fox Sox?
Not me! Perfect, my slippers are getting daggy
and these are the most adorable replacement.

Shopping all over the world, just one of the awesome perks of my job. Love! Have you picked up any amazing buys lately? Tell me!

June Empty- Fa Silk & Magnolia

I didn't get through many empties in June, given that I was off from work a lot and not using as many products as normal. So I only have one empty for this post, which is Fa Shower Cream.

To be honest I hate paying a lot for shower gels/creams since generally they mostly do the same thing and often aren't as moisturising as they claim. This one fits the bill nicely since it doesn't cost a lot and has a nice fragrance. It's a 'Cream & Oil' so you don't need much to get a nice lather. It's not wimpy lather either, feels nice and soapy and takes awhile to wash off completely. The fragrance is 'Silk & Magnolia'. It's fairly strong and leaves traces after you shower, which I like. Doesn't clash too much with perfume though. This actually reminds me of the old Dove Cherry Blossom Shower Creme Oil which I used to use back home, but haven't seen here.

Overall I like this product and have bought it again, gives a nice smell, lathers well and doesn't set me back the earth like other brands here might.

Cost: Dhs15 (About USD$4.10)

Gettin' Savvy

Good news, Priceline fans! (Why did I think of Professor Farnsworth just then?)

Anyway, if you are a Priceline addict like me, you'll be happy to know that the brand Savvy by DB is back in stock in stores. It disappeared off shelves last year, and I was sad it had gone until one of the store assistants told me that it was for re-branding and changing of packaging, not because it was being discontinued. (Which is what usually happens to products I like.)

Aside from work, I only wear lipstick occasionally. Usually it's nude or neutral tones rather than brights, though I have been experimenting with these lately as well. My first go-to shade was a Maybelline, but when it ran out and I bought a replacement in the US, I hated it because the texture was weird and it was so hard to put it on smoothly. It dragged at my lips and made them feel gross. Since I didn't buy it again I'm not sure if it was a one-off production error or if they had changed the formula.

Back to Savvy! I really like it as a range for basics, and to cheaply experiment with colour trends as everything in the range is under $15. Most things which are over $10 are brushes or kits. The makeup items are generally about $8 at the most for fancy eyeliners. I'd been using Savvy for work shades, but since the prices are so reasonable I decided to try out some colours I normally wouldn't.

My latest purchase is their standard lipstick in "Guava". It's slightly shimmery, peachy-pink leaning more toward the orange tones. Easy to put on and I love the colour; it really picks up my complexion and gives me a pop of colour. I'd always been shy of orange/peach tones because I always thought I had yellow undertones to my skin but to my surprise they actually really suit me. The day I bought it I got compliments from three shopgirls on it, so it's doing something right!

Now of course being a cut-price product it's not super glam like department store brands, but I really couldn't tell much difference between Savvy and say, Maybelline or Rimmel. The staying power isn't horrible but not super either, but I didn't expect that given it's not advertised as a long lasting. I do need to touch up if I drink out of a glass or eat something substantial but generally there is colour still left on my lips.

My only real gripe has been with past Savvy lipsticks; after some time in my handbag the lids have become loose and tended to fall off. Since this one has the new tube, I'll keep an eye out and see if it makes any difference.

For under $5 you really can't go wrong, especially if you love to try out colours you're unsure of. The range doesn't seem to get updated hugely often but the eye products do change enough that you'd find some variety. It's also good because you can find something you liked last season and want to buy again. Most girls would find at least one lipstick they like in the range, as there's some for all skin tones and range from neutrals to classic colours and neon brights.

Now if only I can work out how to stop my lipsticks breaking in the Dubai heat...! Feel free to post your tips below.

Savvy is available from Priceline stores, range may vary between locations. This product was purchased by me, all opinions and comments are my own.

March Empty...

I've seen quite a lot of bloggers do posts about the empty jars & bottles of products they use up. I'd never bothered before but while cleaning out my bathroom recently I decided that I'd take a picture of the empties I found & do some posts about them.

This is a 'Premium Spa' Frangipani & Coconut Body Scrub which I bought from Priceline for $14.95.  I've actually been using this for about 3 years now. I know I've seen it for sale in a couple of other places, but not consistently, so Priceline would be your best bet. This is a large tub, but you can also get a travel-friendly size. When I'm next in Oz I plan to get the smaller size and refill it from my large tub to take when I go on work trips.

It's a nice consistency; not too rough but enough to do the job. It's thick enough and you can change it up if using in the shower depending on how wet your hands are when you apply. I tend to use this once or twice every week to two weeks, as a full body scrub- both with and without a brush.

The scent is gorgeous- I'm not usually a fan of coconut, or even strong frangipani smells on their own, but this combo is divine. It makes you feel like you're at the beach or just back from holidays.

The tub lasted ages- I brought the first one back with me shortly after moving to Dubai in 2010, and only bought a replacement tub last month. A little goes a long way- about a teaspoonful should be heaps for a leg/arm scrub, and a bit more if you like to use a lot.

Brand: Premium Spa

Jar Size: 500g/17.7oz

Verdict: Would purchase again. Great value scrub that lasts for ages.

(This review is my own opinion, product was purchased with my own money)

Dressing Table

I don't really have a "dressing table" as such- actually a desk & drawers in my room, but a few months back I bought a set of shelves for extra storage. Here's some of the things I have sitting on top to make it pretty :)

I like to display cute things in my room.

On the left I have (out of shot) an oil burner from the Body Shop & some of their fragrance oils. My favourite two are Strawberry & Satsuma, both hard to find in Oz. Next is my In Essence candle in 'Zanzibar', a very exotic African-inspired fragrance. I'd left this behind at home and regretted it, so brought it back with me when I went home on leave. These are normally about $40 but I got this one for $20 on clearance at Priceline.

Behind the candle are two ceramc birds I picked up in Turkey. One of my favourite colours is blue and I'd noticed a little theme starting to occur of both blue and birds, so I've been consciously adding to it since I noticed the little collection begin on its own. The framed picture is by Matou En Peluche, a Sydney based illustator who is also on Twitter. I love the whimsical designs & I've also got two of her Deco Girls which I'll post about later.

It's a little hard to see but under the picture is a small square porcelain box; this was bought in Shanghai & holds some small jewellery items. The Matryoshka doll is from my trip to Prague. My O.P.I. polishes already featured in another post; the box they are sitting on is a gorgeous game board purchased in Turkey which also deserves a post of its own. I had to haggle hard to get the price down but in the end I won, very happy with this purchase!

Far right are some fragrances; a French perfume from Fragonard, Benefit 'Your Place or Mine Gina', Elle by YSL EDP, Miss Dior Cherie, a mini Lanvin and a Korean hand cream. I'm planning to post reviews about the Fragonard perfumes and the hand cream at a later date.

Finally at front is my cheap but super cute tree-print necklace. I love this to death & call it my "Lord of the Rings" necklace as it makes me think of the tree carving on the entrance to Moria. Hope you enjoyed some of the cute things that make me smile.

Have you bought anything lately, just because it was cute? Leave a comment & tell me what you got! :)

O.P.I. Lineup

6 so far with probably more to come!

On my recent trip home I finally succumbed again to the temptation of the '2 for $25' offer in the Aussie duty free stores. I usually wistfully gaze at the basket of colourful polishes as I walk by toting my crew bag, but never stop to buy any. Red is very high maintenance for work and I used to think it was too much hassle to change the colour for days off. However, I'm lately back into my love of all things colourful, shiny and cosmetic. I picked up two new polishes on my arrival (one for my sister) and then again on my way back to Dubai- how indulgent!!

The lineup as follows L-R:

#NL H19 "Passion" Nude Pink
#NL G01 "Aphrodite's Pink Nightie" Shimmery Light Pink
#NL B31 "Flashbulb Fuschia" Metallic/Shiny Hot Pink
#NL R53 "An Affair In Red Square" Metallic Deep Red
#NL R54 "Russian Navy" (A cult OPI Shade) Dark Shiny Blue
#NL Z21 "The Color to Watch" Shimmery Blue/Purple

I also purchased "Shatter" in Black for my sister, as she always wears dark nails & loves to try new things. I also have my eye on "Melon Of Troy" and "Blush Pink". I've tried other polishes, and several friends have recommended me to try Essie polishes, but I really love the range of colour that O.P.I. has. If I'm good and do the proper maintenance, the colour seems to last quite well. My job is quite hard on the hands so some chipping is inevitable. I really must practice some more as my DIY manicures just never look as good as the ones done by someone else.

Do you have a favourite polish/colour? Which do oyu love but never think you'd wear?

Beauty Goodies & Why So Expensive?

This afternoon when I woke up from my post-flight nap, I was in the mood to tidy up my room, and settled on cleaning out some of the bags stored in my closet which contain some of the stash of goodies I've picked up on my travels. I just love buying makeup & beauty items, but being the hoarder that I am, I hardly ever actually get around to using most of them. It's such a shame because there's some really great items out there.

Beauty haul!! :)

Being that I'm pretty much a novice at anything complicated when it comes to applying makeup, my current range is pretty limited and I don't really get too adventurous with my makeup. I decided that I will have a little giveaway soon of some products. Since I saw today that my blog has 41 followers, once it gets to 50 then I will have a giveaway. I have three lots of items planned for giveaways so there will certainly be more coming if I can get my blog revamped and a bit more interest in it.

In the photo above, the row of nail polishes at the bottom is a local brand I picked up in Bangkok called I-Hana. I hadn't seen them before so I took the chance to grab a few. The range of colours was amazing from glitter polishes to metallics and even matte pastels. Wish I'd thought to take a photo of the table setup as everything was in colour-spectrum order and it looked really cool! These six are marked for giveaways or gifts for friends but I will definitely be picking up some for myself next visit so I can try them for myself and see how good they are.

Other items in the photo include a Heroine Make (Japanese) mascara I've been wanting to try for ages, cute animal-shaped hand cream pots from Etude House (Korea), my regular CoverGirl foundation and Nivea moisturiser and my two newest O.P.I. polishes. I love that you can get 2 for $25 in duty free in Aussie airports, when normally they retail between $20-25 each in Australia.

I really do think that we pay far too much for makeup in Australia; I didn't know any better until I visited the US where I bought a NARS blush for $26, and my sister's MAC foundation for the same price. Both retail for well over $65 in Oz and I cannot find a decent reason why that should be the case! Importing products does not cost THAT much that things should cost double to triple the price in certain countries. Anyone know why this is the case, I'd love to find out! Luckily for me, I can travel often enough that I can stock up and save when I go to the US.

What foreign products do you love but don't buy because of the markup in Australia?

Mixing It Up

A week or two back. my friend Robyn came through Dubai on her way back to Australia for holidays with her family. Now Robyn actually is qualified as a raw chef and makes lots of yummy things that are also super-healthy for you. Me, well I'm a bit of a sweet tooth and have found it very hard in the past to stick to a healthy diet as I just love my sweets too much!

Lately though, I've been managing to get to the gym quite often (at least once every three if not every 2nd day or even oftener) and I wanted to have the right food to go with working out more.

Robyn & I went for lunch while she was here in Dubai, and afterwards we traweled the mall as all good Middle East-dwellers do ;) The fruit & veg section of Carrefour was duly visited (and raided!!!- I bought lemons, oranges, and some fresh mint) and then I decided that I was finally going to stop putting off getting a blender!!!

I settled on the Kenwood 3-in-1 Wizzard, as I wanted something that not only would blend but I also could chop with. It wasn't the fanciest model but at 129dhs instead of about 179, it was a good price.


Really glad I got it, have used it a few times already now, and it's very easy to use and the attachments it comes with are just what I wanted.

So, here's a recipe I thought I'd share with you, for a yummy cold juice.

1 orange
2 or 3 slices of pineapple
1 or 2 kiwi fruit
ice cubes
lemon or lime to taste

(I don't have a juicer yet but I used the old fashioned hand juicer. The Kenwood comes with a big measuring/smoothie cup so as I mixed things in the chopper part I'd put the blended fruit in the cup to mix more later...)

So:

1. Juice the orange and put juice in the cup
2. Trim the skin off the kiwi and blend it, add to cup
3. Blend the pineapple and add to the cup
4. Add a squeeze or two of lemon or lime juice if desired
5. Add a small amount of water to thin out the mixture
6. Use the hand mixer to blend the ingredients together in the cup



You could pour the juice over ice, but I was naughty and used the hand blender part to crush two small ice cubes into the mix (I shouldn't really as the manual says it won't do ice but it seemed okay, but I'll limit this as much as possible.)

This was so refereshing in the summer heat!! Next time I might try adding some strawberries or mint too if I have them on hand.

Burgundy & Gold (Outfit Post)

I've always liked the combination of burgundy & gold, especially when accented with black and/or white.

I remember seeing Nicole of Gary Pepper Vintage wearing an amazing burgundy pleated skirt in one of her posts, and when I was last in Sydney, pleated skirts were popping up everywhere in the store windows including Dotti and Valleygirl. Sadly, they looked kind of wrong on me.

While on my visit to AdelaideI was very happy to discover a similar, non-pleated skirt in Supre. It also came in black, bone and a tan colour. I really liked the tan and if it's still there next time I get to Sydney I think I'll buy it as well. In the last couple of years I've thought Supre clothes are quite expensive for what they are, but as I wear long skirts all the time in Dubai this purchase would be worth it.

Today I wore it for the first time in Dubai, this test run was to the mall for a nice dinner on my own.



Detail Shot:

This shows what I like to call my 'Lord of the Rings Tree' necklace. I can't recall where I bought this but I know it was $5 or less. I LOOOOVE this necklace & have been wearing it to death lately.



These are also the first pictures of my new hair colour. The lighting is not that great but it's quite red now. Last time I got it coloured it was more a darker, red-brown than a true red-copper brown.

Skirt: Supre
Cardigan: Crossroads, about 4 or 5 years ago
Belt: ICE Brisbane, about 3 years ago
Necklace: Bargain, probably Diva or similar
Shoes: Forever21 New York City
Hair Colour: L'Oreal Excellence #44 ;)
Makeup: Dior Lip Glow, Maybelline Colour Sensational #55 Pinkalicious & Dior Addict Ultra Gloss in #557 with CoverGirl TruBlend Mineral Powder (no longer on sale) :(

Tee Vee

After convincing myself for ages that I didn't *NEED* a tv, at least not for a few more months, the searing temperatures in Dubai finally made me cave & I figured summer & right before Ramadan is as good a time as any to get a tv. So, I went out and got myself a nice shiny 32-inch flat screen tv. The good thing is, I can connect my laptop to view photos and videos, and watch all my DVDs that I have in a list waiting to be seen.

The tv I got is a Sony Bravia, I had wanted a Samsung but it didn't have a VGA port for my computer (which doesn't have HDMI) and it didn't have a headphone port either. I prefer to have the option in case I want to watch movies in the middle of the night, I won't feel bad about making any noise!!

Next time I go home on leave I'll probably bring back my Nintendo 64, or if I can find one for a reasonable price online, a Super Nintendo. I love me some retro games!!!

Tick Tock...

Since my last post I've done two trips; one to Manchester and one to New York. Of course I took lots of pictures in New York, so a post for that will be following shortly. Manchester was fairly quiet but still worthy of a post so hopefully I will be able to write about that on my next days off.

Of course the big news this week was the floods in Brisbane. It's been quite surreal to see something like this happening in my own country, albeit only on tv. It almost doesn't seem real, but for the emails & Facebook posts from my friends from and in Brisbane.

Luckily the worst of it seems to be over, but the cleanup will take a long time. Now I've logged onto Google and seen that Victoria is now under threat of flooding. Actually, some areas are already cut off by floodwaters. What on earth is going on???

As the authorities are asking for us NOT to donate physical goods at this time, I made a small donation online today. This is the most immediate need- financial aid to get the recovery & cleanup efforts starting immediately. Material supplies aside from food can come in later on. I'm planning to sort out some of my things in storage when I go home on leave and donate the excess. I also have a large stash of hotel toiletries which I collected during the flooding in Pakistan last year, but by the time I got back from my trip the company had asked for no more as they had received more than they could handle. Hopefully I can take them with me when I go on leave, or get someone taking a Brisbane flight to take them for me.

If you want to make a donation too (however small or large) go HERE- every bit helps!!!

I'll leave you with a photo of the retro airplane clock I bought on my travels... cute no??

Sunnies

During the time when I was having a crappy few days last week (homesickness, mainly) I was a bit naughty and succumbed to retail therapy.



Since I wear contact lenses when I fly and mostly during my layovers, I have some cheap'n'cheerful sunglasses as my good (read: expensive) ones are prescription. During my shop, I spotted some cute retro-style sunnies. I like some vintage styles, but they always look stupid on me; also, I tend to shy away from overly large styles. I saw a cute pair with stud detailing & liked them. When I saw the price was 30 dirhams (about $10 Aussie) I snapped them up!!


I love them!!! (However, I think I need to wear my hair out with these, as having it back combined with the large size of the glasses doesn't seem to be so flattering, haha)

I also bought a pair of aviator style glasses



(but not in the cobalt blue/silver tint I've been lusting after), this shirt from Zara- which looks way cuter in my pic-



and some new towels & bath mat for my bathroom. (That last one is boring so I won't show you!!)

Oh yeah and a Grazia, a Kinder Bueno (yum!) and some rose face cream (for half the price it'd be in Oz!)


Yey shopping! Now, I'm eating tinned soup until payday in 4 days' time... hehehehe

Off to Manchester...

Earlier this month, I had my first trip to Manchester. I must admit I'd heard a lot of stories from other crew and wasn't entirely thrilled to be doing the trip, but decided that I should wait and see for myself before having an opinion about the kind of flight we would have.

Of course, the flight was busy, but I didn't find anyone rude and while yes, they loved a drink (or four), people were for the most part friendly to us and we didn't have any trouble. I always love going to the UK, as a bit of an aviation geek, I always find interesting aircraft or airlines to look at.

One of the interesting ones is BMIbaby, which of course has a cartoon baby as the logo, but I didn't see them this time to be able to take a picture. I did see this Thomas Cook 767- WITH WINGLETS!!!


I always wished our 767 had winglets when I flew on them. Yes, I'm easily amused!

One cool thing about this trip was that I got to fly with a girl whose blog I regularly read, I found it right before I joined the airline & it was great to get an idea of how the trips and lifestyle were. (So hi to Krysta if you're reading this!!!)

After we arrived at the hotel, it was decided that a group of us would make the trek into the town nearest to the hotel and indulge in a little bit of shopping. I headed to my room, laughing because Krysta & I had been put across the hall from each other. At least if either of us fell asleep while getting dressed, we could wake each other up for the shopping trip. (Not sure what would have happened if we BOTH fell asleep?!) I unpacked my bags quickly, and got changed, taking a minute to snap the obligatory "I'm staying in a new hotel" photo.

Mmmmm, comfy bed! I do like the mattress toppers & I WANT ONE! So much nicer than my company issue bed back in Dubai.

Since we were all in a sleepy mood, we decided to pay the 7 pounds a piece and take the hotel car driven by the hotel driver, Neil. He'd drop us in town and pick us up later. I warned him that we'd be going to Primark & it was quite possible we'd be calling to extend the time :P We spent the car trip chatting quietly, until we finally arrived in the town centre. I was happy to see a variety of stores as well as some nice buildings. Of course, I snapped a few pictures.




As we walked along, our sleepy conversation was quickly replaced by excitement when we saw this:


PRIMARK!!!! Now I know it's mostly cheap and all mass-produced and not at all eco-conscious (well, maybe some of it) but it's Primark!!! If you know what to look for you can get some awesome stuff. We all decided on a time to meet back at the main entrance and then we were off! This was the mother of all Primarks (that I've been to) -three floors of clothes, shoes and homewares. Since I am only using my allowances on layovers, I knew that I couldn't shop a lot. At first I was caught up in the excitement, grabbing things left and right and putting them in my basket. I probably had a hundred pounds' worth in 5 minutes! Then reality sunk in and I knew I should shop sensibly. I should buy things I needed, but hadn't found in Dubai.

In the end, I bought one long dress, some belts (I never seem to have the right one that I need), stocked up on cheap undies, some pretty bras and a mid-range "in-between" jacket in a military style. Also got some ultra-cute laundry bags to put my smalls in, so next time I go through Customs in London, the entire crew doesn't get to see my dirty laundry! (Honestly, they seem to think I'm a criminal as I get selected EVERY single time in Heathrow for the 'random' check!!) I had wanted to buy a hooded casual jacket, but they only seemed to have coats or workout wear.

Checking my watch, I actually had half an hour until I had to meet the others. I was starving, so I grabbed a Burger King small burger and fries, and ate them sitting outside Primark on a park bench. There was an old man one seat over, who possessively placed his half-full can of Coke on the empty seat between us, as if to stake his claim on that seat too. Pretty soon, two of the girls arrived to wait with me. We decided that it was too cold, so took our huge shopping bags back inside Primark and sat with everyone else on the low ledge near the doors until the rest of the group joined us.


All that shopping made us hungry, so we headed to a nearby food court for some eats. I got Subway, because I love being able to buy Subway with REAL SALAMI & HAM in it!! Dubai Subway is fine but an Italian BMT just isn't a BMT without actual pork salami. There was a bit f drama when a woman collapsed near the Burger King, there were some security guards standing around not doing much, we offered our help but they waved us off and left the woman on the floor while radio-ing someone for help. Shrug. Off we went, what could we do? While the others were eating, I quickly ran to the newsagent to buy my trashy UK magazines (Closer & More!) Love the fashion pages more than anything, as I don't know any of the celebrities aside from Kylie and Cheryl Cole. Then we succumbed to Mickey D's dessert & I convinced the girls to try the limited-edition Aero Mint McFlurry (Sadly, it's discontinued now, waaaaahhhhh)

As fatigue was hitting in, we decided to call it a day as it was almost time for our van pickup back to the hotel. As we were walking to the pickup spot, we passed what we thought was some statue or installation art. Then we saw a guy was peeing on it! Was actually a new-fangled arty outdoor urinal. EWWWWWW! And there was nowhere for them to wash their hands! We burst into hysterical laughter at the thought of pee-covered man-hands touching all the ATMs and railings around town after visiting this strange toilet! Luckily, no one was taking any photos at the time before we realised what it was. Imagine explaining that away...

Waiting for our van pickup...



Once we got back to the hotel, I just geeked out on the internet, checking my emails and catching up with friends on Facebook before heading to bed. Next morning I stuffed my face on the buffet breakfast before getting ready for the trip home. It was still really hectic, so by the time I reached my apartment I was so ready for some sleep!!!


Yay for Primark! I don't think a (female) crewmember exists who has had a layover near Primark and hasn't gone! :P

That's it for now, I have some more photos up my sleeve I'll try to post over the next few days. xo

Coat: Glassons in DFO Melbourne
Scarf: Cotton On, years ago

More Shopping In Seoul

Hello again!!!

Yesterday I got back from a trip to Seoul, South Korea. As we arrived just after 4am, it was straight home and to bed for me. I slept until 3pm and then was a good girl and went to the gym, thinking that I'd have a relatively healthy dinner of Subway (seeing as my cooking skills have not yet improved sufficently to make me brave enough to attempt using the stove again). However they were closed and in a fit of hunger I resorted to good old local Delma Delivery and got a chicken and salad roll. Accompanied with watermelon & kiwifruit, so not too bad I guess.

Seoul was a fun trip, although the flights were quite busy. One of the crew doing duty free was so sweet. Like me, she was new at it and so we were exchanging questions and I helped her with a few things and told her some of my tips to make sales. At pickup time in the lobby, she gave me a cute little parcel from a Korean makeup store- she'd bought me a nail polish as a thank you for helping her. Awwww! It's a nice brown shade which I don't have any of so will be nice for winter.

As usual in Seoul, I stocked up on cheap beauty loot. I also visited the Face Shop and got a few face masks, some nail polish & the very cute BB Balm.


Pink makeup brushes, some nail supplies, bag clips in the shape of frogs & masks from Daiso.


Nailpolish in an awesome blue-purple iridescent, a clear with pink hearts in it & the BB Balm, which is just like Benefit's Bathina but a LOT cheaper (even if the container is smaller)


Could not pass up this eye mask, which at first glance appears to be just eye shades. BUT- inside it is a gel eye pack so you can heat or cool it for headaches/tired eyes etc. Totally cute & soft =)

Here's some pictures I snapped while walking up to the CoEx Mall a few blocks from the hotel.






It was a long walk, so on the way back I decided to brave the metro system, and I didn't get totally lost, yay me!! Foreign metros always scare me at first, but then I ride them and think, "What was I worried about?"



They had station guides in English, but the attendant didn't understand my awful accent when I pronounced the name of the place I wanted to go in English. So, I went to the map, took a photo of the Korean station name and showed it to him. I reckon this is one of the best travel tips when you're dealing with foreign subways. Take a picture of the station you left from (and one you need to get to). That way if you DO get lost, you know where you need to go back to.




I actually ended up one stop further down than my hotel, but it was okay as I actually had wanted to go to the shopping district, but couldn't remember the station name and didn't want to get lost. So it ended up perfectly. I didn't need to take a long walk from the hotel AND I had more shopping time =P Hehehe




How funny is this- in the rest rooms they have an "etiquette bell". You press it and music comes out to cover the tinkle noises when you use the bathroom!


So it's not only the Japanese people who don't like sharing their toilet habits with everyone else. I actually kind of like this, as I hate being in the bathrooms and hearing someone else not caring how noisy they are, gross! :P

Of course I had to take a photo of this building. It's some sort of airline staff training academy. I can still remember when the A380 was called the "A3XX" but they've changed the tail to their acronym. Cute!


These jazz-style singers on a building reminded me of all the cool vintage blogs I've been reading lately, especially "Gatsby & Me". (Honestly, go read it, the photos are awesome!)





WANT!!! I always wanted a bike like this when I was a kid, and luckily this one is girly enough without being too childish for a grown woman to own. (Yes the owner was a woman)


Q-Garden, the vintage store I discovered on my last visit. No luck this time, as all the things I liked were WAY too small for me, but still fun to browse nonetheless. I always like to see what they have in the windows and they have some AMAZING (but expensive) shoes from a




In other news, I'm thinking about doing a new layout for the blog. I liked the pink & blue, but it doesn't really fit with my blog any more. I'm not entirely sure which direction I'll go in, but I'm sure it will be fun!

Finally I got myself a plant. Actually, two plants. One is a tiny baby cactus and the other one is- well, it looks like an aloe plant actually. I bought them in the Daiso shop in Korea (my favourite) and carried them carefully in my cabin bag so they didn't get squashed.

Meet Spike II.

My sister had a cactus called Spike but our flatmate killed it (funny story but not repeatable here) so this one is named after the first one. Haven't thought of a name for this aloe-looking plant yet, so if you have any suggestions, leave me a comment! :)

Finally I found a comapny that does some sightseeing tours of Seoul, so on my next trip I'm planning to do a half-day tour to go and see the palace, North Seoul Tower, Namdaeung Market and all the rest. Yay, can't wait!!!