What difference does it make?

I'm putting myself on the stage here.
This is a very risky topic.
I know.
But, I just had to let it out.
I'm the open minded type.
The type that will speak out when I feel the need to.

I know this came too late.
I should have just fired it up at that particular instance.
But somehow my mind was too occupied with work at that time and just couldn't blurted out my come-back points.
A dear colleague of mine was carrying a fake Coach bag to work and somehow challenged me to identify the authenticity of it, right in front of everybody.
I'm not gonna elaborate what happened then, but now I realised I was being too polite to have kept my silence.

If I was given the chance to turn back the clock, I would have said;

"How do you feel about your 8 year old daughter working in a dirty-crowded factory, sleeping on the cold cement floor with other children, getting raped and molested, just for $60 bucks per month to sew and glue together fake luxury-brand handbags?"

No, I'm not making this up.
This is real.
This is what's behind the production of fake bags.
You don't have to go to Guangzhou to see it for yourself.
Just google it up and try to get it into your thick skull, that this is a serious matter.
Not just a gossip whispered from ear to ear.

 

(picture taken from here)

Don't get me wrong, I am not implying that you have to eat oats daily, drink plain water, use clothes inherited from your siblings and wear flip flops to work, just to save thousands of dollars to buy a Coach handbag!
What I'm saying is, don't buy fakes! (and let alone be proud flaunting it!)

Even if it is a fake of non-luxury brand (such as Guess, Fossil or Quicksilver), it is still a FAKE!
And behind the productions for fake products are all the same!
Yes, not just fake handbags, even fake clothes, shoes, accessories and even CD/ DVD too!
They're all using children, underpaid, and the profit goes to funding crime syndicates.

 

(picture taken from here)

Vinci, Nose, and Memory Lane crafts shop sells beautiful bags.
Even the pharmacy stores have cute canvas totes for about $9.90 on the shelf.
Why can't you just get that instead?
I know you must be feeling so thrilled of getting a beautiful fake bag that has the logo prints at $50, and maybe you feel like you will not give any impact at all to the counterfeit industries because after all, this was just one purchase.
But have you thought that what if everybody on earth thinks like you?
Wouldn't this increase the fakes 'supply-chain'?
So, when will it end?
It's more noble to just use the recycle grocery enviro bag, rather than carrying a fake. 

 

(picture taken from here)

No, I am not perfect either.
I bought a fake Coach bag in 2006, at a night market Batu Feringhi, Penang Island.
And I admit, at that time I was very naive and I didn't know about what's behind the productions of these fakes stuffs.
I'm not kidding, I really didn't know about it, nor did I bothered to google it either.
But what I remembered was that it lasted for only a month as the quality was very poor, and there went into the dustbin my $40 bucks fake Coach tote!  Yeah, it wasn't cheap either for a fake.

There you have it.
And since now you are a little smarter, and aware of what's behind all these, it's never too late to change!
Let's join forces to dry-up the supply-chain and drive the counterfeiters bankrupt!
Stop supporting fake bags!
We can make a difference!

p/s: special thanks to Dana NYTimes for such an inspiring article!

How lost can you get..

... after watching this?

 

me?

completely at lost..

but, I still keep on following it..

why?

enough said.. 

he's the reason why! 

ohhhh look at those steamy eyes!!! aahhhh....

*I heart Josh Holloway*

Stokke Xplory

What the hell is that?
Well my friend, if you don't have kids, then you may not know about this.
But if you do have kids but not that crazy about strollers, then, you too may not know about this either.
Never fear, coz I am here, to educate you!
Stokke Xplory is one of the most innovative stroller ever designed by mankind!
Yes! It's a stroller!
As seen used by Heidi Klum, Minnie Driver and Tory Spelling (pictures found in babychic101)

 

About two years ago, only one boutique in Malaysia that was selling Stokke, which was the Bebehaus at 1utama, and they don't have many in stocks, so if you wanted to buy one, you had to pay deposit and wait for it to arrive.  But today, Mothercare and Planet Enfantes/ Mamours also selling Stokke Xplory, which makes it easier for you to purchase it.

At that time, I was very impatient and was badly infected by the pramaholic disease, whereby I just had to have this Xplory by hook or by crook and thank god, Nad was there to help me get it, all the way from UK.

So what is it about this that makes it very popular (and expensive too) ?
Is it the high-chair-look-a-like features?
Is it the elevated functions?
Is it the ergonomic handle design?
Is it the funky bright colour options?

To prove how obsessed I was with the stroller, I have personally made a review of it, yes, all by myself.
Please head on to Strollers and Prams for the in depth analysis!
You will be surprised!

Sharing our Hong Kong vacation - Day 3 night and Day last

Since the Disneyland post was too long, I've decided to split it up.

Here's us after the Disneyland trip, we spent the last night in HK to once again roam the city with the trains, of course.
Here's us in the crowded train on the way to dinner..

 Waiting for our Briyani rice at a Turkish restaurant located near the Times Square area.

 Here's us on the way back to hotel.. not many people in the train as it was already after 10pm..
This was our last MRT ride here.. as tomorrow we will be going back to beloved Malaysia!

The last day, at the airport, boarding to take the MAS Airbus 777 on 20th May 2009 2.30pm.

 

Oh and remember the Buzz lightyear gun that we bought for Amin's at Disneyland? Well, guess what, we almost got held by the authorities as they detected a "gun" while scanning the bag and that particular luggage had to be tagged and escorted separately by the security themselves into the aeroplane! Goshh.. it was a panic moment for us, but kinda hilarious too.  We wanted to hand-carry it but the security said that is a no-no.. haha..

  

There are plenty of shops at the airport, including the Disneyland store.. So, if you happen to have missed out shopping at Disneyland earlier, no problem! You can shop here and believe it, the prices are indeed the same as sold inside Disneyland itself!  

 

That's all about our trip to Hong Kong.. May we be blessed with health and wealth, for us to embark on another vacation in the future.. Till then, thanks for reading!
Over & Out !

Sharing our Hong Kong vacation - Day 3

Continuation of our HK trip..

Third day - yes, DISNEYLAND day!
Oh yeah, mommy was more excited than the kids allright!

We managed to catch the Simba show!

 

 

Amin and me on the space pod.. haha..

 The classic carousel! not to be missed, by hubby, my sis, and Amin of course.. me and Arif, we sat on one of the chairs, instead of riding on the horses..

 

  

 

Hubby took a picture of toilet signboards!

Amin shopping for buzz lightyear laser gun!

..while Arif's enjoying his afternoon nap.

  

 As we were waiting for the parade to start at 3pm, Amin fell asleep and totally deep sleep!! We tried very hard to wake him up for the parade but he was completely knocked-out!  He missed the entire whole parade! And ended up sleeping till the tour van came to pick us back at 5pm! Ahhh.. bummer!

Last minute shopping inside the Disneyland.

At last! We finally managed to take a picture with mickey and minnie, right before exiting the park!

Panas?

Nope.

It's Pannaz!

 Located at Damansara Perdana, it's definitely the best place to get your lamb chop..

 

or maybe tenderloin steak..

 

bbq chicken, perhaps..

  

and never underestimate the spaghetti meatballs..

  

but oh wait,don't start on the meals yet, until you tasted this!

 

 and gulp them all down with cooling longan berry!

aaaahhhhhhh... burp!

Still about Miss Francine

Just thought of posting these pictures for comparison size and in case you're wondering about the size of it.. (and also because for the fact that I 'heart' bags! hehehe)
I'm 5ft 3inches by the way..
Enjoy..

Fish or Apple?

Can you imagine a blue turquoise fish swimming in white milky water.
hmmm...definitely sounds weird, huh?

But, what about this?

Ta-daaa!!

No specific reason, just want to share one of my Coach collection.(while it's still here with me and not been sold yet **wink**)

Presenting the gorgeous Coach Legacy Francine Patent Leather Ivory, style # 12295.

As usual, must flaunt its fabulous Coach Legacy Stripe Sateen fabric lining. 

 

And just for your info, here are some of its features;

• 6" drop rolled leather handles with Brass "O"Ring detailing
• 46" detachable strap with dog-leash clasp to enable cross-body sling, by clipping it to the brass ring on the sides of the bag
• Zip Top Closure with dual Leather Zipper Pull
• Front pocket with Brass Turnlock Closures
• Exterior Back Slip Pocket
• Large Interior zip pocket
• Two Cellphone/multifunction pockets
• D-Ring to clip an accessory or keyfob
• 4-bottom feet brass studs for protection
• Matching Coach ivory patent leather hang-tag and the Coach medallion antique brass charm
• Size 16" (L) x 12" (H) x 6" (W)

This Francine is huge and it can be shoulder carried by the double handle due to the long drop-length.  The extra strap is adjustable to enable also shoulder carry and cross-body sling.  I have to say that the strap is way too long for me even at its shortest setting!
Another point about this bag is that although it is made of patent leather which means it is not as heavy as its Legacy sisters that were made of thicker leather, this bag still weighs a lot by itself, due to the heavy duty brass hardware.
So if you're the type that carries tons of stuffs inside your bag, then you might want to buff up those shoulder muscles!

Oh and a side note, a little accessories can go a long way in transforming a look..
Apple, anyone? hmmm.. yummy...

Sharing our Hong Kong vacation - Day 2

Continuation of our HK trip..

Up next, the second day..

Oh, let me remind you the main transportation here is using the train and walking, walking, walking.. which I believe I have lost 4 inches of fat around my thighs due to the vast walking!
From the hotel, 15 minutes walk to the train.. walking up and down the stairs, buildings, pavements..
And let me stress the point that HK is NOT, and I repeat, NOT disable friendly!!
I have not seen a single person on wheelchair going about in HK!
There's practically no ramp at all!!
Purely crazy sense of manoeuvring the strollers!
But, hooraaayy for the lightweight ILY MAC, of course!!
And let me tell ya, some of the escalators at the train stations and malls are so narrow that I can't put my Skiphop Saddlebag at the sides of the stroller! And the ILY MAC just fits slightly to be wheeled up and down the escalators, and in between the train ticket checkout counters!

Opss.. Sorry for the emotional vent..
Ok, back to the 2nd day story..
We started the day by going to Hong Kong Peak!
No, not walking all the way to the peak of the hill top, but, almost lost a leg walking up to the tram station! Serious work out I'm telling ya!

Here's me, looking for directions to the Peak Tram station with baby sleeping in the Ergo Carrier..

Here's one of the HK major landmark, the Bank Of China building.  It's huge and tall, and unique architectural design, located pass this beautiful Charter Garden, where we stopped for a little biscuit munching moment .

Here's the tram at the Peak Tram Terminal station heading up to Victoria's Peak.

 

 

 View from inside the tram.

 Here's us on the Sky Tarrace on the Hong Kong Victoria Peak!

The weather was perfect, bright and sunny, hence we got the perfect view overlooking the whole Hong Kong!

The rest of the day, we spent by taking the trains to several stops around HK to visit the shopping places, malls, stores, and more shopping areas..
Oh, have I mentioned that there's nothing much you can do in HK except for shopping? hahaha
Here's me and Arif after dinner and still walking around in shopping malls..

Arif's hanging strong in there! Good boy!

Hold on for Day 3, up next!