SG | Daiso Haul (July 2017)

Time for another Daiso haul post!  😍

SG | Daiso Haul (June 2017)!

As evidenced by previous posts, I love shopping in Daiso!  S$2 (approx Php68), they offer great savings and can definitely help stretch your dollar.  And considering how expensive it is in Singapore, every time the shopping bug bites me, an hour at Daiso is all the remedy I need.  😃

So in this post,  I want to showcase my Daiso haul!

SG | Tokutokuya: The Best Store Evah (Too)!

People who know me are aware how much I love shopping in Daiso.  The products are cheap (S$2 or approx Php66) and you never know what you'll find.  I guess the best way to describe the shopping experience is "you go in and come out with something you never even knew you couldn't live without."

But apparently, Daiso is not just the only store of its kind in Japan.  There's also Tokutokuya.

SOURCE: Tokutokuya Singapore facebook page

Fab Find: Daiso's Liquid Label Remover

Aahhh... Daiso.  My wonderful wasteland of every thing.  Period.  You go in and come out with something you've never imagined you needed!  Amazing!

One of the best things about living here in Singapore is that Daiso stores are humongous, offering a lot more merchandise than what you can normally see in any of their branches in the Philippines. 

My newest find?  Their Liquid Label Remover!

Daiso's Liquid Label Remover

Why am I hooked?

Experience the Power of the Ikea Bookbook™

In this age of gadgets, an item like the Ikea Bookbook™ is certainly a breath of fresh air.  Click on the video to learn more.



Simply amazing!

My Favorite Singapore Malls (A Post About my Favorite Commercial Areas in the Lion City - Part 2 of 2)

Singapore is a shopper's haven.  So it's no surprise that there are malls here left and right.  It's unnerving, really, just how many there are (and here I thought we Filipinos were obsessed).  Take, for instance, the whole stretch of Orchard Road and its surrounding streets (considered the Lion City's main shopping area) houses a number of malls lined up side by side along its stretch.  A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

In fact, the very first time I came to the Lion City, my head started spinning, taking into account all the malls there are here.  And if you're like me, you'll be just as overwhelmed, too.  So here's a list of malls in Singapore (not just along Orchard Road and in no particular order) that I love going to and my personal reasons for why they hold a special place in my uhmm... wallet heart (and I promise not to let my emotions and feelings of nostalgia run away with me here.  Well, not too much, anyway.  J)

Changi City Point Mall, Singapore

What’s Missing in our Local Philippine Malls (A Post About my Favorite Commercial Areas in Singapore - Part 1 of 2)

Like most Filipinos, I too, love going to malls.  I'm not very picky with the type of establishment I would visit.  Big ones, little ones; they really don't make any difference as long as (1) they're clean, (2) equipped with working air conditioners, and (3) are full of stalls and shops with interesting items for sale.

But ever since visiting and staying in Singapore (that mecca of commercialism and anything shopping-related) for a while, I find that there are a few, make that, a lot of things I wish we had in our local malls.  I'm not talking about the presence of more well-known international brands here (since I believe that Manila will slowly be littered with these shops very soon, anyway).  I'm talking about the installation of various conveniences and services that make it so much easier for shoppers to go about their business in the Lion City.

What am I talking about?  Well, here's just what I think is missing in our local Philippine malls.

Me in front of the old Borders bookstore at Wheelock Place, Singapore (circa 2008)

STYLE FOR LESS: Giant’s Relax Chair vs. Ikea’s Poang Chair

I love Ikea!  The products, their designs – all so simple and uncomplicated.  They’re a brand after my own heart.  I spend hours on end just going around the displays and imagining how our flat might look like with full sets of Ikea furniture and accessories (Hey!  A girl can dream, right?  J)

With such popularity, you can bet your boots that replicas will be coming out of the woodwork, most offered by discount stores and huge general supermarkets.  And surprisingly, here in Singapore, it’s not that an unusual occurrence.

IKEA Tampines, Singapore

Katipunans Filipino Mini-mart

When I first came to live here in Singapore in 2010, we were quite fortunate to have a small grocery store operating inside our estate.  Better still, they also carry a number of Filipino food and beauty products for sale.  It sure eased up on my feelings of homesickness (that time) a bit.  The knowledge that I could just as easily have longganisa (sweet and spicy sausage) or tocino (a type of sweet, fried thick-cut jerky) anytime was a relief since it was a pleasure I didn't have give up when I moved here.

Now the Husband and I have moved to different places since (for some reason or another); and now we find ourselves in a new place where the in-house grocery store, sadly, does not carry any Filipino food products.  ¡Qué horror!

Good thing, though, we stumbled upon this little gem conveniently located at Tampines Central 1, just a bus ride away from our place.

Katipunans Filipino Mini-mart

PR: Heat Wave Summer Bazaar (April 19 - 21, 2013)

Photowalk Through HortPark, Singapore

Our backyard here in Singapore's full of parks, one after another; enticing weary city dwellers with their lush, green foliage and fresh, cool breeze.

I usually do my morning jog at the Singapore Science Park (which starts right behind our home) all the way to Kent Ridge; but if I'm feeling particularly artsy (especially for a morning of photography), I go on straight till Hort Park, too.

Hort Park at Hyderabad Road, Singapore

Home Away From Home-lah

I have to be honest.  Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that I’ll be living in a foreign country some day.  It was never my intention to migrate away from the homeland, much less try to raise a family in a place other than the Philippines.

Nevertheless, I was always curious as to how other people live in another country.  So in the hopes of helping out a kindred spirit, I’ll try to best explain in this post what are the usual views and conveniences we have here in our home away from home-lah.

The Madir and the Little One lounging by the pool.

Grocery Shopping in Singapore

I've never really been much to do the grocery shopping at home in the Philippines.  I mean, really GROCERY SHOPPED as if the family's everyday nourishment depended on it.

I lived with the paternals (my Parents) for most of my life so the madir and padir were more or less in control of what type of food we'd have at home.  When I did start living on my own during my mid-20s, I'd usually opt to either eat out, have take out meals at my place, or simply survived with chicken and the makings of a lite salad in the fridge.  I knew how to cook a few dishes; but living alone made me really lazy to harness my inner culinary diva-ness.  Naks!

That being said, I've only appreciated the finer arts of grocery shopping when I moved here to Singapore to be with the Husband.  And let me tell you, it was a huge eye opener for me.

Cold Storage, Harbourfront Centre, Singapore

Ode to IKEA Singapore

IKEA -- that mecca of affordable, easy-to-assemble (relatively) furniture and home accessories store hailing originally from Sweden.  They've got almost everything you need to turn your house into a well-loved and personalized home with furnishings that simply screams you.

At IKEA our vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people.  Our business idea supports this vision by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them.  (Source: Ikea Singapore website)

That is IKEA's vision and business idea which reflects well on their products and services.  It's no wonder that it's one of the most visited stores here in Singapore!

IKEA Tampines, Singapore

How to Organize a Simple Birthday Party in Singapore

We celebrated the Little One's 1st birthday last July here in Singapore.  And although we found ourselves away from our loved ones in the Philippines, we decided that a simple celebration to commemorate her special day was in order.

But how exactly do you throw birthday parties at a ridiculously expensive city?  Simplify is the key, plus the use of a few DIY projects, of course!

Happy birthday to you...

The Little One's Photoshoot at The Picture Company

Every parent can attest to how fast babies seem to grow.  I swear the Little One grew a foot taller when my back was turned! 

Exaggerations aside, time does fly so fast and before you know it, your baby's off living her own independent life (Sniff!  L)  This is the exact main reason why videos and photos are so essential in capturing those carefree days of their childhood (although I don't know about the others, but I'm also planning to use these mementos as blackmail when the Little One does grow up and drive me completely off the wall with her dangerous out-of-this-world requests.  You can never be prepared enough.  J)

In line with this thinking (both reasons stated), I just couldn't resist not having the Little One's photo taken at The Picture Company (Mall of Asia branch) just before we left for Singapore last April.

The Favorite Nephew and 'Lil Cousin

Changi City Point Mall: A Haven for Outlet Shoppers in Singapore

One of the things I could never quite get used to here in Singapore are the abundant number of malls in almost every area.  There are tons here!  It's no wonder this city-state is such a popular shopper's haven. 

But I do, however, appreciate a good bargain.  And thank heavens, there are a number of outlet stores here to choose from too.  In fact, one of my favorite malls here actually houses quite a number.

Changi City Point Mall

Storage Solutions from The Landmark Department Store

You see, the thing with traveling with the Little One is all her itsy bitsy teeny clothes get mixed up with a lot of my adult-sized ones.  It gets really frustrating rummaging through a big overnight or luggage bag just to get to her essentials (and boy, does she have a LOT!)

So being such the OCD ridden person that I am, I decided a few storage keepers and organizers from The Landmark were just the thing to bring back order to our cluttered travel lifestyle.

Storage solutions and baggage organizers from The Landmark

Get Gorgeous and Healthy at the Ilog Maria Honeybee Farm

I've been to numerous trips to Tagaytay and yet only had just recently, finally spotted the way to the Ilog Maria Honeybee Farm, a small off-the-beaten path refuge that is slowly becoming one well-known tourist hotspot in the South.

Photo credit: Ilog Maria Honeybee Farm website

My Rogue Vintage Suitcase from SimpleJoys

I used to stash all my precious keepsakes and mementos (cards, trinkets, and the like) inside an old, and sadly now empty, cardboard box of Patchi chocolates (which, by the way, was a gift from the ex-BF, now Hubby.)

However, when the Little One arrived, I found my old keeper lacking in enough space.  I've been meaning to include some items of hers to serve as keepsakes too, and there's only so much you can stuff inside a cardboard box before it finally bursts at the seams.

Good thing I came across a SimpleJoys store one day and found this...

Simple Joys' rogue vintage suitcase