Manicure & Pedicure at La Zen

Bought this groupon deal for RM60 for 2 sessions of manicure & pedicure. 2 sessions because I brought my mother along for the manicure & pedicure. It was for my pre-wedding photo shoot. I thought I found a super great deal just on time to prep myself for the photo shoot. But it was just a so-so service. 

The deal said that I'll get 74% off from normal price. Well..maybe it's cheaper than market price for manicure & pedicure at just RM30. Usually, it will cost me RM70 just for a normal nail painting. But this RM70 also include hand scrub, massage, callus removal etc. Which means that La Zen is over charging at RM115 for normal price. 

My nail color was nice..I like the light pink but it was only because the color was painted in 2 thin layers. My mom did the same color on her toes and we noticed that the color was darker and looked thicker on her. Inconsistent nail colour application from two different manicurist I guess... 

My manicurist (i think it's the boss) did the nail art on my fingers. I told her I just need simple design and it's for pre-wedding photo shoot. She drew flowers and put some glitters on my nails. The design looked alright at first but with the added crooked lines, it looked a bit too congested. And the flower petals on my thumb and little finger looked like I touched some liquid paper. (>.<) But then, I couldn't say much as I let her do the design freely. Well..she should at least showed me some designs and let me choose upfront. 

Mom had to change her nail colors and paid an extra RM12.00 because her manicurist didn't test the color on one finger nail first. After applying all her 10 fingers, she thought the color doesn't suit her and have to reapply a new color. Hmm...So in the end, we paid an extra RM27.00..RM15.00 was for my nail art. I wonder if i'll return to this shop again in the future. Well, maybe with groupon deal cuz i'm not going to pay the normal price of RM100 over which I can get at RM70 for the same kind of service.

Pre-Wedding Photoshoot Package

This is one of the most important part of a wedding - to choose the pre-wedding photoshoot package. Most people will survey a few bridal studios to compare prices, gowns and services included in the package. But my fiance and I did not take that option. At first, we wanted to check out Bridal Collection as his sister just signed the package with them and highly recommended this place. On our way to the shop, we passed by France Taipei Ipoh and the displayed gowns caught my attention. We went in to have a look at their gowns and what they could offer us. We didn't think twice and straight away, we signed with them. The package is reasonable and affordable to our expectations. Our package price is RM2,388 and include:-

• 6 gowns for photoshoot (5 indoor and 1 outdoor)
• 2 gowns for actual day wedding (include 1 designer gown)
• 35 chosen and edited photos
• 10pgs of 10x30' album 
• 10pgs of 12x16' album 
• 2 x 12x16' photo frame
• 1 x photo frame with 1x5R photos and 2x6R photos
• 1 x family portrait with photo frame
• 1 x 26x48' poster
• 1 x guest signing scroll
• 1 x DVD with 2 songs
• Car decoration, 1 corsage, 1x bridal flower bouquet
• Include eyelashes for make-up except ampoules 
• Outdoor photoshoot only Ipoh area
• Extra photo at RM30.00/pc. Soft copies of only the chosen 35 poses are given, otherwise, they are sold at RM7.50 - 15.00/pc depending on how many you buy.

I think the package is quite a good price. We do not want to hang the big photo frame in our bedroom, so we removed that. We also did not want the 'ji mui' photos. (but later on found out a lot of people want our photo to keep as memory) We replaced them with 5 more poses, a bigger album for the 2nd photo album, family portrait and 1 designer gown which we think are what we want and like to pay for.

Christy is the sales exec who serves us. I'd like to praise her for her professionalism. Her explanation is clear and she did not push us to take up the package. We feel very comfortable talking with her. Yesterday, I had my wedding gown trial. I chose my 6 gowns within an hr and 15mins. That's super fast in my opinion. But the credits go to Christy who know what I like, what will look good on me and she helped me dress up and undress in split seconds. My fiance and my best friend were very helpful. They gave the thumbs up when the gown look good on me and no-no look the moment I stepped out with a gown they don't like. So, in a short time, we have chosen all the gowns.. which include 3 white gowns, 1 light blue, 1 red cheongsam and 1 brown princess gown. 

No photograph is allowed. But my fiance managed to take one from behind.. :P but only a blur one. The nice photos will have to wait until after we have our photo shoot. ;)

This will be my outdoor gown. :D We chose a slightly different style with frills halter neck and some buttons at the front. Hope the photos will come out great with this gown.

I had a splendid time trying wedding gowns at France Taipei Ipoh. Will update more on my photo shoot experience in my coming blog post. ;D

Getaway in Cameron highland

Just came back from Cameron Highland. Haven't been up there for quite some time, notice a lot of developments going on and wonder whether our Mother Earth is able to survive all that construction work. The weather seems not as cold as before (a few years back) even in the morning at 10am. 

I was here in this Boh tea farm about 7 yrs ago and I can't remember there's this tea shop with so many tourists!! The queue to get a cup of tea is so long!! We had no chance to sip some tea and have some bread. But well..we were going to have our own English tea and scones soon. :D Anyway, it's worth the drive and climb because the scenery was superb! :D The tea farm is so pretty and perfect for a wedding photo shoot. The only turn down was the haze. Otherwise my photo will have the right sunlight. 

Came up here for a weekend getaway with my cell members. We stayed at Crown Imperial Court. An apartment can fit in 10 ppl. But we were more than 20 people and so, some had to sleep on the sofa and sleeping bags. Although slightly lack of sleep, we had so much fun together, laughing at each other jokes, having barbequed scones with cream and strawberries (we don't have an oven, just bbq grill) and english tea (brought all the way from the UK), steamboat (we brought our own fish balls and meat from Ipoh), and a lot of good food around there. 

This was my first time making scones.. Acelin helped me with the dough making. We put too much milk and it became too sticky. Added more flour in. Luckily, it wasn't too dry and the taste turned out ok. Just slightly burnt at the bottom. Will try again at home using the right temperature and oven next time. ;)

Bought some super delicious strawberries. :-)

Love these hydrangea flowers. Would love to have them in my house garden next time. :D

Of course the most important thing is to have fellowship and strengthen our friendship bonding and to learn to be more obedient disciples of Christ. There were time for fun and time for worship and bible study. Although sleep was not enough, we had a great time together away from the hustle bustle of the city life and enjoyed the green scenery. 

By the way, I saw these flowers that would be wonderful to decorate the wedding hall. :D Well, that is if they would have been cheaper and easier to transport to Ipoh... 

MaDly in LovE . . . . . .

I'm engaged. Yes.. you heard me right, I'm not joking! :D 

God is gracious to me. I didn't do enough to deserve all the blessings He has showered upon me. But His grace is ever loving and ever flowing in my life. He loves me and I know it, He understands and knows my heart's deepest desire. 

Each time I look at this wonderful man that God has put in my life, I can't stop smiling and give thanks to God. I said to my Lord, "If You are willing, I'd love to serve You and worship You with the man of my life... I'd love to build a family with him" and by God's grace, my prayer is answered, well..partly, because there's no children yet. On that part, I'll have to pray much harder! hahahaha...

At His appointed timing, I met the love of my life... in church. :P And I know instantly that he's the man whom God has prepared for me. Someone asked me "Are you sure he's the one? Are you certain to marry this man?" I said, "Yes, I'm very sure!" I don't know how to explain it, but I just know it. God's peace is with me.

By now.. You'll be asking who's this wonderful guy? :-)
I'll introduce him when the time comes. For now, I'll call him A. *wink*

The 5 Love Languages

Recently, I've discovered that love languages are actually divided into 5 different aspects. Well, sort of discover because I think I know, but I've never really given much thoughts about it and I've never really think about which of these love languages are my emotional preferences. These love languages do not have to be a romantic relationship, it is how we express love and affection with our loved ones like our families, friends, or special person.

The 5 love languages are :-

Words of Affirmation

Quality Time

Receiving Gifts

Acts of Service

Physical touch

Well..somehow, after realizing this, I have started to think about how I'll response to certain situations that will make me feel loved but still, I find myself a complicated person. LOL.. i don't really know what I prefer. So, I checked out "the 5 love languages" website and came to know that they have a quiz for you to find out your love language preferences.

All the while, I thought "words of affirmation" is my love language. But after completing the quiz, I realize I actually prefer quality time with my loved ones. ;D But yeah, our love languages may change at times depending on the situation. But all in all, I agree with what the author of the website is telling us - discovering our love languages will help us to connect with our loved ones and enhance relationships in our life. So, why not check out the quiz and find out your love languages too? ;D

Lim Ko Pi (啉咖啡)

I first visited Lim Ko Pi in March 2013. I passed by this road now and then, but I usually turn right at the traffic light and hardly notice there's a kopitiam that's calling for attention. It's so red, you won't miss it unless you are like me, only looking to the right. =.='

I was mesmerized by the beautiful interior the moment I stepped into the coffee shop. It just brings out the atmosphere and oldtown feel.. if you know what I mean..

There's even a garden for a coffee out in the sun 

Of course, the architecture should not be the only thing you are looking at. There are a varieties of food offered, which is somewhat different from the other kopitiams in town, eg Oldtown, Pappa Rich etc. They even served homemade cupcakes. I only had the cupcake on the day I visited the kopitiam.  Too busy talking I guess.. ;P For more information on their food, check this out. 

It so happened that when we were there that Sunday, there was an exhibition showcasing miniature models of Ipoh heritage buildings. Some buildings from Taiping were also featured in the exhibition. The exhibition was held on the upper floor of the coffee shop. 

  

 

They are open from Tuesday to Sunday at 7:30am - 5:00pm. Come early as they have limited servings. More information can be found on their FB page.