Friday, November 30, 2012

Bag Lady: 3.1 Phillip Lim 31 Hour Bag



This looks like just the bag I need to carry the inordinate amount of stuff I seem to be lugging around every day. What do you think? Available for HK$7,990

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Thursday, November 29, 2012

SHOErotica: Alain Quilici for David Koma Greyhound Boots


Hahaha. What's not to love? Mesh, boots and a puppy, these are a few of my favourite things...

Get them at Luisaviaroma.

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Cafe Deco Launches Afternoon Tea



Have you checked out the newly revamped Café Deco yet at the Peak? If not, there’s now an additional excuse to stop by. Café Deco has launched an all new afternoon tea set created by Executive Patisserie Chef, Julien Gourmelon. Boasting a background of having worked in Laduree in Harrods and creating 120 Afternoon Tea Sets every day in The Dorchester Hotel in London, Chef Julien promises that this tea will be tantalizing our tastebuds.

So what is on offer? There will be two kinds of freshly baked English Scones served with homemade Red Berries and Rose Jam, Seasonal Stone Fruit Jam and Clotted Cream as well as Chocolate Ganache Cake, Mandarin Orange and Fruit Tartlets, Strawberry Truffles, Caramel Profiteroles, Lemon Cake and different flavored Macarons. On the savory side, there are Ham and aged Cheddar Sandwiches, Smoked Salmon on Pumpernickel with Rock Chives, Quiche Lorraine, and Pigs in a Blanket as well as a Mini Beef Burger with Tomato Jam.

For reservations, call 2849 5111 or email cafedeco@cafedecogroup.com.

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Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Back to Black


By now we've pretty much missed out on all of the Black Friday sales. And the cyber Monday sales. And the 24-hour extensions. Even with the time difference between here and America. Awww. Really kicking myself for not spending more time browsing the Pixie Market outerwear sale. Waiting for net-a-porter to start its international sale! Why is shopping so satisfying?

Above and below variously at Pixie Market and Asos.

sale.

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Take Five: Homeware



I’ve got home decoration on my mind recently and it’s mostly because I have no idea what to get my secret santas for Christmas. I figured I can’t go wrong with stuff for the home right? Here are five things that have caught my eye.

Bonsai Jewellery Stand from GOD (HK$280)
Dim Sum Rice Noodle Roll Dinner Set from GOD (HK$355)
Vogue Mirror from Homeless (HK$398)
Carrier Freres candles from Eclectic Cool (HK$440)
Woodstock Containers from Homeless (HK$150)

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Tuesday, November 27, 2012

A Subversive Supper


I'm envisioning these perfect plates by The New English come next Thanksgiving, to replace the sad Park 'n' Shop plastic ones I've been using with complete disregard for the environment. Sorry, Earth.

If you barely eat at home or think it's a bit of a waste to eat off these beauts, you could of course explore the option of hanging these up as decorative pieces instead. You know which one I want, right?


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Logitech UE4000



The folks at Logitech were kind enough to send me a pair of UE4000 for review and while I'm not particularly knowledgeable about the technical specifications(cue gasp!), I do know enough about what I like and don't like. So when the UE4000 arrived, I was quite keen to try out the sound. Unfortunately, it took me a good week before I got my hands on the headphones, not because it the folks were slow in sending it to me but because my brother stole the headphones as soon as they arrived.

Apparently to audiophiles, UE is a pretty good brand and after testing the headphones against his existing UE earphones, Beats earphones and a-JAYS (I'm still not sure how many pairs of earphones a guy needs), he was quite pleased with the sound of these headphones. After wrenching it from his ears and giving it a spin, I can see why. He was using them to play Black Ops 2 and the bass was quite intense via these headphones giving the gameplay a mucho realistic experience. Music wise, the headphones do its job especially with bass heavy songs. However, when I was using these headphones as a mic (note, it's only iPhone compatible and with Samsung Galaxy, the mic doesn't work), the sound was a bit muffled and echo-y.

What I do appreciate about these headphones was that the cable is detachable reducing tangling and friction, a key pet peeve of my headphones. For those who need to know, specs below:

Headphone type: On-ear
Driver diameter: 40mm
Impedance: 32 ohms, 1 kHz
Sensitivity: 92 dB SPL (50 mV, 1 kHz)
Frequency response: 20 Hz - 20 kHz
Connection: 3.5 mm (1/8 inch)
Noise Isolation: 7 dB

Price: HK$889

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Monday, November 26, 2012

Escada Sample Sale

Shop The ESCADA Sample Sale

Up to 90% OFF Original Retail Prices, 28-30 Nov (Wed-Fri)

29 Nov 2012 (Thur) 10am-7pm (Opens to Family Members & Friends)
30 Nov 2012 (Fri) 10am-6pm (Opens to Family Members & Friends)

Venue:
ESCADA HONG KONG LTD.
20/F WEST Warwick House, Taikoo Place, 979 King’s Road, Quarry Bay, HK

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MAC Holiday 2012 Collection





When I received the MAC Holiday 2012 collection products, I fell in love. This collection is all about the pretty packaging. I was never one for bows but these adorable cases in pink and green with little black bows had my heart giving a little flutter. Needless to say, the colours are amazing per usual. There's the Fabulousness collection which offers three types of eye palettes in warm, neutral and smokey (HK$440).

The Primped Out Lip Bags (HK$440) which include a full-size lipstick, Cremeshene glass, and a mini lip pencil, while the Eye Look Bags (HK$540) come with a dark eye shadow duo, a tube of Opulash Mascara, a Powerpoint Eye Pencil, and the 275SE Medium Angled Shading Brush.

For those looking for the perfect brush set, check out the Perfectly Plush brush kits (HK$520). I highly recommend the Essential kit which comes with the 129SE powder/blush brush, 190SE foundation brush, 275SE medium angled shading brush, 226SE, small tapered blending brush and 266SE small angled brush which is a MUST for those who like to use gel eyeliner.

Then three is the Divine Desire/Sinfully Chic palette (HK$600) which comes in a cute clutch compact and comprises a powder blush, lipstick, lipglass, and eyeliner.

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Saturday, November 24, 2012

Warehouse Sale: Chloe

Our awesome reader Wanda just shared with us this flyer about a Chloe sale this weekend. If you're in Causeway, be sure to check it out.

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Friday, November 23, 2012

Thanksgiving


Most everyone I know celebrated Thanksgiving ON Thanksgiving...but since I'm a slowpoke I do it on the Sunday following. Super excited for turkey and all the fixings, and especially excited to start shopping Black Friday online sales when I get home tonight! In the meantime, I shall whet my (and your) appetite with foodporn from last year's extravaganza...


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Bag Lady: Jimmy Choo



Everyone has jumped onto the panda bandwagon showing that Christina had amazing foresight years ago when she loved these furry creatures. I can't decide if I like or hate these Swarovski crystal panda minaudières. I like the angel and devil concept but yet there's something off putting about these being from Jimmy Choo. Thoughts dear readers?

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Thursday, November 22, 2012

SHOErotica: Valentino Rockstud


About damn time this shoe appeared in this column. I'm fascinated by the ways in which Valentino has continued to reinvent this shoe in subtle ways, whether it's texturizing the leather or doing tone-on-tone studs -- always staying in tune with the Valentino brand values but at the same time pushing forward and giving the customer something to look forward to. So, maybe having studs the same colour as the leather on your shoe doesn't mean that much to some people. But it certainly does here.

Get them at Neiman Marcus.

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Disney and Barneys Crossover Holiday Campaign



There's been lots of controversy in the online fashion world about Barneys' 2012 holiday campaign which features Minnie Mouse going supermodel skinny strutting down the runway. While I don't condone extreme makeovers and in fact am very anti uber skinny girls (if you see us Geeks in real life, you know we are just regular size girls who love fashion and definitely the food), I still think there was a bit of overreaction. It would have been nice if the spirit of the campaign was taken the way it was meant to be, with a smile and a dose of Disney cheer. After all, I couldn't help but smile when I saw the cartoonified Alber Elbaz and seeing how other fashion icons were Disneyfied. What do you think? Overreaction or justified outrage?

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Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Liquid Gold


Very much enjoying the run of golden girls we've been seeing in the last week. Left to Right: Elisha Cuthbert in Editions by Georges Chakra; Kate Moss in Marc Jacobs; Kristen Stewart in Elie Saab.

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Central's Next Culinary Gem


Food guest blogger hkLifestyleGeek visits l'altro and give us her thoughts.

The L Place is fast becoming a new dining destination in Central and the latest addition is l'altro, which is Italian for "the other".

It's called that because two-starred Michelin chef Philippe Leveille is a Frenchman who has worked in Italy for more than two decades. The result is a fusing of the two cuisines to create new flavours. And if his retention of two Michelin stars since 2001 isn't any indication of his pursuit of creativity, taste and quality, I don't know what is.

Leveille will be coming here periodically, but the restaurant is ably helmed by Antimo Maria Merone from Naples. He too has worked in other countries, most notably Berlin and is enjoying his move to Hong Kong.

Hong Kong is Leveille's first location outside of Italy and the restaurant is small and intimate with 64 seats, with window views looking down on Queen's Road while the semi-open kitchen is at the back where guests can watch the action going on inside.

The decor is quiet and minimalist, though the atmosphere gets distracted by the pounding from the upstairs gym. We've been told the restaurant has tried to get the gym to turn down the volume, but it seems like it'll be an ongoing challenge to the otherwise elegant place.

But we're not here to gripe about the surroundings but to rave about the food.

Best to sample l'altro from its set menus -- four courses for HK$880 or six courses for HK$1,080. The latter includes two desserts.

We sampled the four-course dinner which was plenty. To start we had an amuse bouche of ricotta cheese wrapped inside smoked salmon topped with caviar and surrounded by sea water emulsion.


It was an interesting combination that whet our appetite for more and next came the one side roasted scallop on a bed of marinated vegetables and confit tomatoes. Presented on a large shell-like plate, the plump scallop was partially cooked and retained its sea flavour and had a tempura string bean on top for an Asian finish.


Next came one of our favourite dishes of the evening -- homemade spaghetti with clams and Pantelleria capers, seawater emulsion. The presentation is cute with the spaghetti rolled up. The pasta is cooked perfectly and has a great texture ensuring its provenance is definitely from the kitchen. We like the small plump clams and the brininess from the olives.

For mains, the one side grilled pigeon, squid and chorizo brunoise, light sauce of foie gras and crustacean reduction is delicious and tender. The sauce is an intriguing combination of foie gas with a bisque, but it works well, not to heavy and complements the pigeon quite well, if only a tad salty.

Finally the piece de resistance is the homemade gelato Miramonti. This is unlike any gelato you've tasted and has a unique presentation too. The 50-year-old recipe is apparently a secret, but we could discern custard and lemony flavours in this refreshing dessert that was scooped into glasses tableside and cooked strawberries on top.

Yes it's a bit expensive for being on the edge of Central, but the quality of the food is worth paying for. Just hope they can sort out the sound problem upstairs...

l'altro
10/F, The L Place
139 Queen's Road Central
2555 9100
www.laltro.hk

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Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Consolation Prize


Probably nobody celebrates losing a phone by buying shoes. And no, neither did I. I didn't even celebrate by upgrading to the iPhone 5. I hate technology. I actually bought these Loubies at that Louboutin sample sale a couple of weeks back, thanks to Mandy's friend Liz for finding them (AND more importantly for letting me and my cousin cut the line).

Purple glitter d'orsays are, strictly speaking, not the most practical of footwear. But Mr Louboutin is hardly a maestro of practicality. He's more a master of making you spend your money. As for comfort, these rank something like a 5 of out 10. In other words, not very. Which really makes you wonder, how far have we really come from days of foot-binding? I'm definitely one of those girls who would happily bend my sole in half and spend the rest of my days being waited upon by servants.

Progress.

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Baccarat Variations Collection by Patricia Urquiola



I'm always a fan of customisation so I was pleasantly surprised to see that Baccarat has launched a collection called Variations comprising of stackable vases that allow you to personalise displays. As a kid, I never quite understood why my parents loved their crystal displays so much but now that I'm getting older, I'm starting to see the appeal of just having pretty things lying around the house. It's basically another excuse for my mom to shop. Back to this collection, designed by Patricia Urquiola, Variations features multiple stackable forms in clear or coloured crystal that is pleated and smooth in different diametres and heights.

The Variations collection comprises 9 crystal centerpieces and is based on the multiple combinations of 7 interlocking vase bodies by piling-up. Each element is signed Baccarat & Patricia Urquiola and numbered. The range is priced individually at HK$31,600.

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Monday, November 19, 2012

Hacked in Hanoi


This would have been a cheery tale of my adventures in Hanoi... but instead it's a sorrowful cautionary tale of how I was at the night market and my bag was slashed open and phone stolen. No biggie -- everyone loses their phone now and then. But hopefully no one else has five untranscribed interviews with international designers, artists and/or chefs on it. Arrrrgh. Soothed my fried nerves by clicking into Luisaviaroma's winter 20% off pre-sale emailer, and somehow ended up confronted with this rather serious image... which just about sums up my attitude right now.



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Giorgio Armani White Night Holiday Collection



Christmas is always such a money sucker for me. Not just on buying seasonal gifts but more the fact that all these brands come up with awesome limited edition collections. I can never resist buying these holiday items especially beauty products. I was just perusing Giorgio Armani's Holiday Collection and their White Night make-up palette is just so pretty. These palette comprises of shades for the eyes, face and lips where the first tier is the frosty highlighter, a face powder that gives your complexion a nice shimmer. The second tier is an eye and lip trio with two eyeshadows and matte lip colour. I don't think I can quite carry off that bold red but the shopping Geek in me just want it coz it reminds me of peppermint and Christmas snow. The palette is available at Giorgio Armani boutiques and counters for HK$650.

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