Peek into My Vanity Trove February

Did you order yourself or someone special a Vanity Trove for February?

My Valentine's Day Vanity Trove came smelling extra special... because there was a pink rose with it! It's a paper perfumed rose. :)

Without further ado, let's take a peek into my Vanity Trove ( and look out for the giveaway at the end of this post!).

The first thing that caught my eye were the 2 mini bottles of O.P.I. nail polish. I was like "SCORE!!!" I love nail polish, and I love O.P.I.

The shades I got were a bright neon yellow and a silver glitter. The O.P.I. nail polishes in this month's Vanity Trove are from the Nicki Minaj Collection, so expect bright and perky colours.

A sample pyramid shaped tea bag from Allerines Premium Tea. Mine was sweet and fruity. They also Vanilla Caramel, Irish Chocolate, Bohemian Raspberry and other flavours.

Mekhala Living Shampoo and Conditioner which contain Black Rice extract. Good travel size, but I've already started using it at home instead of saving them for travels. I wanted to try it straight away because it's supposed to be good for problem scalps. The Shampoo lathers well, and smells sweet. The conditioner smells like rice pudding desert to me. Not a bad set, I like this range.

Accessories from RinsieRose.com ! I got a pair of dangling earrings. All their accessories are handmade and they have unique designs. This online store does bracelets, necklaces and other accessories too.

Filthy Farmgirl Handmade Soap. 100% handmade and natural, no yucky stuff! Mine smells of Ginger and lemons, which is nice and fresh! Maybe in your trove you might get the vanilla or rose scented one.

I tried out their SkinC Eye Mask. My undereye area can look darker when I lack sleep but I'm lucky, it doesn't get puffy or eye baggy. If you have puffy eyes, it is recommended you pop the eye mask in the fridge first.

The mask itself is not made of a tissue material (like sheet masks are). It's made of a silicon like material which molds to your eye area.

It's relaxing (I love napping with masks on). I found the SkinC Eye Mask very gentle, does not sting my eyes or my sensitive skin. There's a slight brightening effect, plus my eyes actually felt less tired. Good stuff.

There's also a $50 SkinC voucher (valid for purchases over $150), and a coupon for 30% off at Natureskin Webstore.

Of course, if you want to find out where to buy any of the products you sampled in your Vanity Trove, just pop into their website.

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GIVEAWAY!!!

2 of my readers will get February's Vanity Trove sent to them Free!

You want??? :D

All you need to do is SHARE this album (https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.297569453643205.74465.216502865083198&type=3) on Facebook.

Leave a comment at the end of this blogpost to tell me ur fav product from this Trove.

Will pick the 2 winners on the 6th of March. :)

Holly Jean's New Blogskin & Layout!

I absolutely my new blogskin and layout!!!

Much better than my old one (which I did myself ... stabbing in the dark because I have no web design knowledge ... hence the mess!).

Finally, I decided it was time for a professional Facelift. And what a difference it has made!! Do you like my new blogskin and layout?

It was designed and customised for me by Carol Jade Sarah.

I think it only took about 2 weeks... from the first point of contact (via email). It was so easy for me, she listened to my preferences and needs, then she emailed me a few sort of design boards (I don't know the techincal terms, but like a rough layout which gives you a feel of what the blog will look like).

Then came the actual designing, and she updated me every step of the way, anything I didn't quite like, she tweaked and adjusted, and she also made great suggestions too.

I'm so glad I decided to go ahead with a total blog overhaul. I was worried about losing my stuff, or that it would be a big pain in the ass to revamp my whole blog.... but surprisingly, it was such a smooth and enjoyable process.

Big Big thanks to Carol Jade Sarah for your hardwork and professionalism.

p/s-

If you need any sort of photo editing (e.g. blogshops) or social media advice .... Or if you need someone to help create your corporate website, internet based business site or you simply want a new skin for your personal blog... Contact Carol Jade Sarah at her website.

FemmexFatale (And Freebies!)

My package from Femmexfatale arrived last week. I was delighted because all the goodies from Femmexfatale are professional standard beauty products and styling tools. What fabulous stuff was in store for me?

What products from Femmexfatale will I be reviewing today? The V&G Professional Curling Iron, the Collagen Hair Mask, and Professional Hair Ampoules.

Their Professional Hair Ampoules come in little bottles intended for individual use.

Their Collagen Hair Mask comes in a 150g tub. These products are made in Korea. This mask can replace your usual conditioner once or twice a week. What I do is, wash my hair, put the mask on and then brush my teeth, wash my face, carry on with my shower before I finally rinse the mask off my hair about 10 minutes later.

To use an ampoule:

Snap open the vial.

Wash hair and towel dry.

Apply ampoule liberally on hair. Perhaps if you have shorter hair, you can save half the ampoule for a second use. There's really quite a generous amount in one ampoule.

After 10 mins, rinse and blow dry. The effect is not greasy or heavy.

Feel what a remarkable difference it has made!

I naturally have very fine hair which gets damaged and dries out easily.

By default.. if I just leave it alone, my hair is unruly and hay like.

The appearance after one ampoule treatment - much smoother, and no more frizz.

Good Stuff!!! :D

The V&G Professional Curling Iron: Available in 7 barrel sizes, mine is 28mm.

V&G is a professional hair salon brand made in Taiwan. The V&G Professional Curling Iron heats up super fast (within seconds) and can reach a heat of up to 220 degrees Celsius (you can choose from 25 different temperature settings). It also has the ionic effect in which positive ions are released to prevent static and frizz.

It has a very long (2.7m) cable, and the cord swivels 360 degrees so the cable won't tangle while you're curling your hair.

This V&G Professional Curling Iron is easy to use, effective, and long lasting. Watch my video below to see the transformation.

It's a great piece to have for those that love to have temporary curly hair and don't want to upkeep a perm.

Femmexfatale will be sponsoring a giveaway for my readers! Yay! There'll be 3 batches of giveaways.

Giveaway 1: Go to my Twitter page (@hollyjean69) now and RETWEET my Tweet about the FEMMExFATALE giveaway. 10 winners will win fabulous false eyelases from Femmexfatale. Postage is free too. This giveaway is open to everyone. Ends on 29th Feb 2012.

Don't forget to follow @femmexfatalesg on Twitter too!

Giveaway 2: Between Feb 28th to March 9th 2012, Like ( and share if you can!) this picture that you will find on my FB wall. Like Femmexfatale's FB page too!

Giveaway 3: This third round of giveaways will be done on twitter from 9th March to 14th March 2012. Yay! Loads of you will be able to receive the fabulous natural, pretty and comfy false eyelashes from Femmexfatale!

When shopping for skincare, body care, hair care or any beauty tools, check out Femmexfatale for their professional range of salon quality merchandise brought to your home at affordable prices.

When shopping at www.femmexfatale.com everyone gets a Freebie with every sg$50 spent! Plus, if you live in Singapore, you will get free registered post as well!

FOLLOW FEMMEXFATALE ON TWITTER AT : twitter.com/femmexfatalesg

I AM A MOTION HERO

Last month I told you about my new love, the Nikon J1 (Click here if you missed it). Today I'm going to share with you more on what this awesome little camera can do.

Apart from coming in 5 different colours including a pure white and a sweet candy pink, the Nikon J1 is lightweight and compact.

The 1 Nikkor lenses are designed to work seamlessly with the Nikon J1. There's the 1 NIKKOR 10mm wide-angle lens, 1 NIKKOR VR 10-30mm and the 1 NIKKOR VR 30-110mm to zoom in real close.

It's easy.. just snap the lens into place.

You don't have to carry around an external flash as there's a little pop up flash! But of course, there's a complete range of accessories available for this camera to meet your every need.

Nikon J 1 has incredible features like the Smart Photo Selector which starts recording before you fully press the shutter button and continues after you’ve clicked. It shoots 20 high-resolution images almost instantly then saves your best five. You'll never miss a shot (or end up with blurry images!).

The video mode is unique. It lets you take full-resolution photos while filming — without interrupting recording — and you can film in extreme slow motion for dramatic effect. You'll see real examples of all these features on the Nikon Website.

I AM A MOTION HERO chronicles our adventures with the Nikon J1.

This is a shot of me jumping over the PK girls planking. I love the action shots, every thing is so clear and vivid.

SuperAdrianme and me snapping Miss DblChin at Marina Bay.

Haha... cute one of Peggy Heng. (The water is NOT from her mouth ah!). All these fun snapshots can be found on Nikon-asia.com.

There are videos too. This was shot using the Slow Movie mode. I mentioned this feature in my last post. It captures footage in extreme slow motion, this effect captures moments you would miss in real time.

To make a still picture come to life, the Nikon J1 has a Motion Snapshot function which simultaneously records a one second slow motion movie and a still image, then instantly combines the two to create a photo that moves!

All these functions are easily accessed via the mode dial on the camera, so all it takes is just one click... and you an instant motion hero :D

Check out the adventures of my fellow bloggers too!

I am a motion hero... will you be one too? :D

If you are one, it’s your chance to grab yourself a Nikon J1 or V1 camera simply by joining the I AM A MOTION HERO contest that was launched recently. All you have to do is submit the best photo you have taken of you or your friends planking, floating or doing creative motions, head over to nikon1.nikon-asia.com and you are done. Then cross your fingers and hope that you are the lucky Grand Prize winner. It’s pretty simple! So find out more now.

Can't Even Fix A Damn Date

So, we went down to my short listed venue last Saturday afternoon to have a look at the layout and space. I LOVE IT!!! Perfect for what I envision my ceremony and dinner to be like.

And David likes the venue too. The wedding will be this year. But we have not decided on a date yet, it's damn hard to juggle dates around and see when it is best for everyone. Set on one date, piss some people off. Set on another date, inconvenience other people. Set on this date, this other group not happy.

Some people are telling us to just set the date, and if invited guests want to come, they will come. You cannot please everyone and it's Your's and David's big day. You are marrying each other, and not marrying your guests.

Which makes perfect sense... cos it does feel rotten to be in limbo while waiting to see when would be a good time for every else ... except us. We just feel it would be selfish of us to set a date which we know is not good for some people. Yet we are finding trouble finding a date that suits every one.

Nothing can get done this way. And I really have my heart set on this venue. So if we dilly dally, and then it gets fully booked. I will be super pissed off and really kick a shit. I don't know at who though.. cos it will be no one's fault but our own. But yeah, there will be one major bitch tantrum from me.... either that or I will burst out in tears. Not sure how exactly I am going to take it.

We kind of decided on December... but if by the time we go to book the venue, and December is fully booked (very likely) then probably a Saturday in November then. I heard in the wedding forums that most hotel's December 2012 banquets fully booked already. :(

If it were just up to me, I would set a date right now. Get the venue booked, then get the Justice of Peace secured (Can't get married if we can't book a JP for the damn date now can we?!), then let people know the confirmed date early so they know when to expect it, especially since half our guests will be from overseas.

Then I can relax and just slowly work towards getting things done gradually, working towards the set date. It's really quite simple... but how come it got so complicated?

What Would You Do?

I've been watching this series (from ABC network) about staged situations with hidden cameras to see how the unsuspecting public would react to ethical and moral dilemmas.

For instance if you are walking in a park and you see a man hitting his wife, would you step it? If it were the other way around and the woman was hitting her husband, would you do anything? How about if it were a black (African American) couple?

It's interesting to see all the different reactions... some appalling, and some so commendable, it makes me cry.

Here are a few of my favs....

(Hope I don't become Bridezilla....)

Life is a Parade! ChangeParade!

Many times in my life, when I was in univerity, and then even as a teacher in school, friends and colleagues and students would comment, that they looked out for what I would wear each day, because it was like a fashion parade.

Well, Life is a Parade! Dress up... for the weekends, for parties and especially for work. Banish the dreary super boring plain navy or grey (gasp!) dresses. Perk up your Mondays with a splash of colour. Get through mid week Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday with trendy yet comfortable work dresses appropriate for any office. And then on Friday, throw on that stylish little black dress ensemble that will take you straight from the office to a night out with the girls or even a hot date.

With ChangeParade, you can do all of that affordably and conveniently. Their website is easy to navigate, with a broad range of categories and you can also specify in the left sidebar the kind of outfit you are looking for (based on your body type/style/ preferred colours) and they will narrow it down for you.

They offer FREE SHIPPING to all orders in Singapore. And if you're in another country, there's international shipping too.

I love their photos on their website. It's like a lookbook and a great place to pick up style tips or get a feel for the outfits. The red dress above is the Aphrodite Toga Dress in Crimson.

It also comes in midnight and purple. The ruched design is flattering and the asymmetrical shoulder is unique.

For a perky pick me up splash of colour, the Tyra in Tangerine Tango Dress is perfect. The shoulder has cut out detail and the rest of the dress is a simple flare cut.

It's a great length to show off some leg... but not too short. It comes with a matching belt too.

Want to turn heads and sizzle? The Rachelle Wrap Top in Steel Grey and Lola Leather Zipper Skirt in Crimson make a hot combi. Looove the skirt, clingy in all the right places. The gathers and front wrap design of the top makes it very alluring.

Feeling extra feminine today? How about the Nude Cream Low Cowl Back Dress? This dress flatters a woman's curves. The soft muted colour give it a very delicate and femine look. Also available in a sweet rosebud colour.

Do you like little details that give a dress character? The Midnight Chain Letter Dress is a little black dress with a subtle gold chain nipping in the waist. Also available in a sexy Scarlet shade.

Of course, no look is complete without the right accessories. At ChangeParade, you are spoilt for choice, especially when it comes to bags that are suitable for work (or school).

They also offer free local courier service with every bag purchase! Now you don't have to worry about your bags being crushed in the mail.

Quote HOLLYJEANCHANGE with your order and get 10% off the bill :)