“There is nothing sexier than a woman with a beautiful glow after an amazing vacation—and nothing complements that glow better than shimmering gold jewelry and a hint of fragrance that feels just as opulent and glamorous.” –Michael Kors

When it comes to fragrances, my favourite smells are undeniably those with florals and soft musks. I love smelling light and fresh, like the whiff you get during spring time in Europe when flowers line the streets.

If I am heading for a special occasion such as a wedding or an important function, I prefer to spritz on something classic, stronger and of course, womanly. Just like my clothes, there are special fragrances meant for certain events. I never walk out of the door without a fragrance as it acts as a finishing touch, as important as my accessories, and it is these little details that someone notices and remembers.

Here, Michael Kors shares with us the Golden Rules before going out!

Nothing is more alluring than the rich indulgences of Gold. It is the colour of luxury and glamour and definitely one of my favourite colours to wear.

Opulent, luxe, glamourous and bold are some of the vocabulary I would use to describe Michael Kors' latest fragrance collection, the Gold Collection. Gold is one of Michael Kors' signatures and there truly isn't another colour that reflects glamourous more convincingly. This Fall '15 collection consists of the White Luminous Gold (sparkling and sensuous), Radiant Rose Gold (tantalising and hypnotic) and 24K Brilliant Gold (feminine and seductive).

For a casual day out or when I'm feeling playful, I would choose to match my mood with the White Luminous Gold. With its light mix of pear, jasmine and amber, the smell is crisp and fresh. I don't see why wouldn't anyone like it. 

For an important event or a wedding dinner, I would reach for the 24K Brilliant Gold. The creamy notes of wood with the fresh florals are both womanly and glamourous. After a few sprays, I'd instantly feel more confident to put my best face forward.

And my favourite out of the three is the Rose Radiant Gold. I was naturally attracted to it because of the enticing notes of rich florals and soft musks. It smells romantic and classic, which makes it the perfect finishing touch for a date night or an evening out with girlfriends. With bold red lips, no less.

It is possible to have a little glamour in your daily life and there is a scent for every mood, occasion and personal aesthetic. This collection shows us just that. 

All Michael Kors' Gold Collection fragrances are available at Michael Kors' stores, Tangs Orchard, Tangs VivoCity, Robinsons Raffles City, Robinsons JEM, Robinsons The Heeren, Takashimaya & SaSa outlets.

Home Tour

H and I have moved into our (not so new) place for almost 7 months now and it is about time I get down to a home tour else the next thing you know, we'll be listing this apartment up for sale hahaha. We have settled in and no longer as fascinated whenever we enter the front door but I am still very much in love with the simplicity and clean design. Timeless neutrals definitely go a long way!

As mentioned previously (here, here and here), the main colours we decided on were white and grey with touches of soft wood. Though I would love to have black, we omitted it as it might seem a little too harsh for the overall soft and cosy look that we are going for.

We use grey homogenous tiles with subtle swirls for the living area and kitchen since we have an open concept kitchen.

Curtains are in white, of course ;) We have unobstructed view from our living area and no nosy neighbours so we opted for curtains with a little bit of sheerness 'cause sunlight is still very much appreciated!

My ceiling fan is from Spin Fans and it is superrrrr pretty!!! I had a hard time searching for a ceiling fan that is
- white in colour
- plain looking
- at least 50" in diameter
- and doesn't come with a light in the centre

So, so glad I chanced upon Spin Fans. It comes with a DC motor which helps to save up to 80% electricity by the way! It operates very quietly and comes with 6 fan speed. We set it to the highest speed since our living area is rather spacious, and it is windy enough for the both of us.

If you're wondering, our living area is bright enough if we switch on both the track lights since half the bulbs are facing opposite directions.

The mantelpiece is almost like my Paris altar lol <3

Our view from the couch looks like this:

Yup, the photo frame is left on the floor because the frame is in black...and I'm still not sure if I wanna hang it up and where exactly to hang haha.

The shelf and clock are from HomesToLife! I recently replaced the plant with a terrarium (see previous photo) as that's more suitable for indoors, and it requires almost no care.

This wall is directly opposite the kitchen/island.

The sideboard was custom-made and the colour of the light wood matches our shoe cabinet.

The lamp on the left is purely for display purpose because I ordered it from Taobao and realised how useless it is after I switched it on. I can't tilt the lampshade any higher so it doesn't brighten the house in any way so ahhh, I just left it there to look pretty. At least it's contributing in another way hahaha.

My cute teardrop vase in pink is also from HomesToLife and the wall flowers are from Francfranc!

The kitchen is still a little bare 'cause to be honest, we only cook a maximum of 3 times a week...which isn't very frequent. Besides, there's only 2 of us, I don't see the need to have a crazy amount of cutleries/kitchen accessories. What we have currently is really sufficient to survive!

Moving on to our bedroom...

We used this (not too dirty looking) white vinyl to fit the theme. It adds a little more character and texture to the overall clean concept.

For our bedroom, we chose to have day and night curtains (with approximately 80% blackout effect). The ladder is purely for hanging towels haha and I got it from Taobao as well. Our bed frame is custom-made. Maybe I didn't look hard enough but simplicity (when it comes to interior design) seems to be dead in Singapore. Our bed (frame + mattress) is the most expensive item in the house so I intend to use them foreverrrrrr. I better like the design forevaaaa too 'cause I'll upholster the frame when we move lol.

Also, please ignore the un-glam state of my nightstand. Don't ask me why I have so many bottles of moisturiser hahaha. Most nights, I use 3-4 different types of lotion (for whitening, Bio-Oil, hand cream and fragrance free body cream), taking longer and longer to prep for bed each night lol. #mad

Favourite pillow cases!!

And opposite the bed, this is what it looks like:

Our standing fan is from Dyson and there are 10 fan speeds! I love the blade-less design.

Our feature wall facing the bed. Previously shared about the Nippon Paint we used in this entry. I talked a little awkward in this video I did with Nippon Paint but you can find out the exact colours I used for my Momento walls here.

There is a little corner beside the bathroom which was the perfect spot for my dresser. The standing lamp is from HomesToLife, laundry bag from Stockholm, stool from Hipvan, dresser was custom made and mirror from IKEA.

Our shoe wardrobe. And there's the entrance to our wardrobe on the left.

If you're wondering why you don't see any men's shoes, *ahem* that's because H's shoes are on the bottom 2 shelves which are not pictured, AND he has his own shoe cabinet at the entrance. #defensive hahaha

My shoes are arranged according to height 'cause each latch is adjustable. Also, if you put your shoes one side facing in and the other facing out, you'd be able to squeeze in more shoes in each row!

Contrary to popular belief, I did not just leave a small corner space for H to house his clothes. He occupies quite a significant area which he cannot even fill up. #verydefensive hahaha

We have roman blinds for the wardrobe (white) and guest room (dark grey). Our wardrobe was built from scratch and yay to having lots of storage! The cute stool I'm sitting on is from HomesToLife as well. Sometimes when I'm packing the wardrobe or using the full-length mirror, I prefer to sit down haha.

Pictures by Vivien Tan for Scene.sg, and me (the uglier looking ones lol).

The History of Whoo Skincare

Gone are the days when I smack on matte skincare and makeup products for a matte flawless finish. These days, I try to achieve the dewy Korean look (which is not the same as looking oily okay!!) as it tends to make me look younger with super healthy looking skin. Other than using a BB Cushion as foundation, I found out that the secret to having the dewy look is actually in the skincare products.

A typical Korean lady follows a 10-step skincare routine DAILY. When I first heard it from Yoon Eun Hye's assistant earlier in May, I was appalled. That is A LOT of time spent on skincare, and I thought my 10-15 minutes routine was frightening enough. Anyhow, I'll be sharing about my 9-step daily skincare routine today!

The History of Whoo preventive ageing and hydrating skincare range + Bichup range I'm currently using.

When I was introduced to The History of Whoo's ("Whoo" for short) skincare range, I realised, the 9/10-step skincare routine is actually essential. Before I breakdown the steps to my skincare routine, I'd like to share with you the informative consultation I went through at the History of Whoo flagship counter at Tangs Orchard with Mannde.

Mannde brought me through the different product ranges Whoo carries and then we discuss about the problems my skin faces.

The History of Whoo is a relatively new skincare brand in Singapore. For the uninitiated, Whoo is a luxury skincare brand that fully embodies the Korean traditions. The concept of the brand revolves around providing self-care and self-regeneration beauty remedies for women using premium eastern medicinal herbal ingredients in their patented and signature herbal complexes that enable skin cell self-regeneration for powerful and effective anti-aging benefits.

One such complex is the Gongjinbidan (供辰秘丹) Complex, present in all The History of Whoo’s skincare and makeup products, is formulated by combining 6 different precious herbs; Siberian Deer Antler, Angelica Roots, Cornelian Cherries, Acanthopanax Root Bark, Asparagus Roots and Wild Thyme. Through modern technologies, The History of Whoo created a single complex that increases energy flow in the skin while balancing the Yin and Yang energy, improving every product’s efficacy while inducing self-regeneration by triggering skin cell activities.

And so, what we have today is a very traditional yet luxurious skincare line that contains ingredients adapted from royal court remedies that were used by empresses from the Eastern Royal Courts, and the products are, literally, fit for a Queen!

After we found the right skincare range for me, Mannde sat me down and we went through the products individually. The whole consultation took approximately 30 minutes.

So now, back to my daily 9-step skincare routine (2x each day)!

The first step is always cleansing. I always break that down into two steps: 1) removing makeup kinda cleansing and 2) washing your face kinda cleansing, or exfoliating, which happens once a week.

Then I'll normally move on to toning for my second step BUT for Whoo's skincare, it is a little different. Instead of toning, I am recommended to use the Bichup Soon Hwan Essence right after my face is thoroughly cleansed as it helps to prep the skin and enhances the skin’s ability to absorb nutrients from the next skin care products. 

The Soon Hwan Essence contains multiple herbal complexes that synergises each other to improve our internal Qi & Blood circulation. You cannot see it from the picture here but there are very tiny white beads in each pump that helps to maximise the skincare products efficacy AND reduce facial water retention.

The essence is actually very light, with very water-like texture when spread on the face. The recommended usage is 2-3 pumps and I found that 1.5 pumps work best for me.

Step 3: Toning
I'll drip a few drops of the Soo Yeon Balancer on my palm, then pat it all over my face for quicker absorption.

Also part of the Bichup range is the Bichup Ja Saeng Essence. This is Whoo's best-selling essence, and rightly so. What this essence does for the skin is powerful. Formulated with numerous herbal complexes, the main ingredient, the Plant Placenta, provides energy for skin to self-recognise individual skin concerns and activate the right skin cells for self-heal/repair.

How the Ja Saeng Essence works:

It is a 3-step self-regeneration essence. First, the plant placenta derivatives help the skin cells to identify skin concerns. Then, the Gongjibidan, Gyeongokbidan and Cheongsimbidan complexes activate cells for cellular repair via improvement of Qi & blood circulation, moisturizing and soothing functions. Lastly, the plant placenta will provide energy for the skin cell to conduct repair.

Our skin knows itself better than what we see on the exterior so I find the abilities/functions of the Ja Saeng Essence super amazing!!

The texture of the Ja Saeng Essence is a little thicker and more sticky so a pump is more than enough to go around my face. With oriental herbal medicine as its main ingredients for all of Whoo's products, the scent is surprisingly non-herbal. In fact, I couldn't even detect a teeny weeny bit of those Chinese medicine herbal smell that I'm used to. The scent is very refreshing, with hints of floral notes - just really pleasant smelling!

To achieve the best results (think glowing, dewy, hydrated skin), I would recommend using both the Soon Hwan Essence and Ja Saeng Essence together.

Step 5: 

Back to my complementing skincare range, the Camellia Moisturising Oil provides instant moisture for my skin - very much needed for my dry skin. However, I make sure to use it only once a day (instead of day and night) as my skin doesn't take well to products that are too rich.

The Camellia Moisturising Oil is THE secret to having the Korean dewy look! Just mix 1-2 drops of it with your foundation ;)

Step 6:

If you've noticed, this is the 3rd essence for my daily skincare routine. Layering of essence/serum is nothing new. Our skin has many needs (brightening, anti-aging, hydrating, etc) and if each essence provides different functions, I'd say, layer away with the essences/serums!

Part of the Gongjinhyang (preventive aging and hydrating) range, the Soo Yeon Essence supplies clear moisture to the skin and my skin feels hydrated for a long time. If I did not use the Camellia Moisturising Oil in the day, I would mix it with the Soo Yeon Essence at night and apply them together so I can save a step haha.

Step 7:

The Gongjinhyang Gi & Jin Eye Cream contains "Gongjinbidan" and Wild Ginseng which are excellent for removing wrinkles. The cream is thick so a little goes a long way.

Step 8:

It is either the day moisturiser or night cream in this step. I use the Soo Yeon night cream (gel texture) and I always wake up to hydrated and glowing skin the next day!

And of course, step 9 is either the sunscreen or sleeping mask (on alternate days).

The History of Whoo would like you to try out their star product - the Bichup Ja Saeng Essence!

Flash this blog post or my Instagram post at The History of Whoo’s flagship counter located at Orchard Tangs to redeem a complimentary Bichup Ja Saeng Essence Experience Kit from 18 Nov to 31 Dec 2015.

I hope you like the product as much as I do :)

And remember to stay updated with The History of Whoo's latest news and promotions at their Facebook page (www.facebook.com/thehistoryofwhoosingapore).

My Clothing Label, SOIGNÉ

Where did the month go? It really doesn't feel like I haven't dropped by in such a longgggg while. So what's up was my clothing label, SOIGNÉ (pronounced "swan-yeah"), had a launch party followed with a pop-up store at Monochrome Fusion Bistro last month. I've never planned for something as large a scale as the launch party so that was a first and I'm glad it was a success :) You can read more about it at this Dayre post.

Invited guests were treated to a short runway show and canapés (came in very big portions so I'm not sure if they should be called canapés hahaha) were prepared by Monobistro. It was actually quite fun, the crowd was interactive and engaged, we had a blast! I'm gonna share some photos taken that night by our official photographer, Tim Boey.

I've also been wearing some of my own designs to death.

This is white/grey but I also really love the black/white version which I wore it while on duty at the pop-up store hehe.

Everyone and my favourite top in white and nude :D The maxi skirt in black and nude was a hit among shoppers too!

Our Tailored Striped Pants which I've already worn it thrice!

This unique Peplum Sleeve Crop Top comes in pastel blue as well ;)

My favourite vest!! I've worn both colours (comes in black and white) countless times but I never got round to taking pictures for the black one. But I will this weekend!!

Yup, wearing the same pair of pants again haha.

I hope you girls like what you see! There are more previews over at our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/soignethelabel) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/soignethelabel) so you can check out both platforms :)

Our first collection will be launched online this Sunday, 15 Nov at 8pm. Sign up for our mailing list to be updated: http://soignethelabel.com

Lastly, a huge THANK YOU to all of you who came down to check out SOIGNÉ's pop-up store at Monobistro last month. Thank you so much for your support for me, I really appreciate it! :')