Beauty bright

Continuing with some loot from London, I had to share these crazy earrings with you guys.  Aren't they gorgeous?

My mom and I found a stall where this lady made some very delicate and unique silver jewellery.  Among the pieces were these beautiful lillies with a long, curving stem that acts as an earhook at the same time.  You slide the flower in up to the top and the beautiful, sterling silver stem curves out from under your ear.

I secretly really wanted them, but sterling silver is expensive so I kept my trap shut and watched as my mom haggled with the lady over broaches.  Imagine my delight when she picked out the earrings herself and held them up to me saying "these would be perfect for you"!

Blouse - Dorothy Perkins.  Leggings - Uniqlo.  Vest - Mother's.

Earrings - Camden.  Black flats - Mimosa.

Estimated temperature : 12 degrees.

I wore them on a trip to town the other day with a butterfly covered top, vest and crazy leggings from Uniqlo.  Everything is fruiting crazily in autumn, bushes burst with tiny red berries and this tree outside my dorm is covered in pretty orange fruit. 

Luckily, I have (more or less) outgrown the habit of putting anything that looks remotely appetising in my mouth.  Or else, the NHS would have a serious case of food poisoning on their hands.

I'm off on a trip tomorrow, in particular to look for some really cute little things for the upcoming Claire's giveaway!  I'm beyond excited because I know they have some adorable acessories and it will be such a treat to give them away to someone I know will love them too!

Hang in there for the giveaway soon!

Soapsuds and Doodles first giveaway winner!!

Hi everyone and thank you so much for participating in this blog's first giveaway!  The comments were a hoot and I had so much fun conducting it that I've thought of conducting giveaways once every two months or so... I just like giving friends and readers nice things!

SO... I have random.orged the comments and I would like to announce the winner....

Comment number #5!!!!  (The irony is that she pestered me the most to win on Facebook and in person, and I was like, fuh, random.org will never choose her after all this!  Hahahah)

Congratulations to kokolicious aka katemoss, I hope you enjoy the prizes!

And once again, thanks so much to everyone for taking part.  I'd like to keep doing these and I'm now on the hunt for something even better for the next one!

(This post is brought to you by my very unglamorous photo booth photo, red spongebob sleeping shirt and NEW GLASSES!!!)

Confusion

Just a quick note for everyone who has commented for the competition so far, thank you so much for your comments, they are all hilarious and I would love to reply to them individually, except that would mess up the randomised counter that picks the results.

So I have decided to make my replies once the competition is closed.  For now however, thank you once again, your comments mean a lot to me and they were so much fun to read!

Another thing I wanted to say was that there appears to be some confusion about what the winner gets, so let me set it straight, you my friend, get ALL FOUR ITEMS.

I'm just asking you to name your favourite because 1)  I think it's nice to have a more specific comment and 2) it's good feedback for the next set of jewellery or whatever that I would like to give away so that I know what people like.

Did you think I would show you four cute things and deprive you of the other three?! 

I'm far more benign than that!  Righty-ho.  Back to business!

My first giveaway: Handmade jewellery -NOW CLOSED-

I am so excited right now, probably more than I should be.

Welcome to the Soapsuds and Doodles' first giveaway!  

As I've been mentioning over the previous few posts, I'll be giving away jewellery that's been handmade by my mother and designed by me.

One thing about the way my mother makes jewellery is her perfectionism, so I can tell you that the workmanship on these is pretty good, and if you live in the same country, you could even bring them back for fixing, she has very kindly told me.

So!  Let me show you guys what you could win:


1)  Long, gold, four leaf clover necklace

This sort of the same design of necklace that I was wearing in this post and I have to tell you, it's really beautiful.  For the giveaway version, my mother used two chains of varying thickness, which gives it an even nicer weight than the one I own and it sat beautifully on my neck when I tried it on.

The little four leaf clover stones are from a vintage bracelet she took apart, and they're semi-precious stones.  For example, the brown one in the picture is a tiger's eye and there's some quartz on there as well.

The whole thing is one long strand which you could loop over two or three times if you like, and goes great with plain tops or dresses with simple necklines.

2)  Monkey Wrench Earrings

These adorable silver wrenches have a slightly oxidised detail and are adorned with a deep green crystal.  They're super delicate and super fun.


3)  Ruler Earrings

These ones have large blue crystals and they look really cute on.  The chain is also a nice, delicate chain with links of varying sizes and I love how it complements the markings on the ruler.

4)  Hammer Earrings

Finally, you get these brass-coloured hammer earrings with a red crystal - the finish makes it look more old school, I feel and these are more subtle on than the other two.

I cannot tell you how excited I was when I found all the little tools because I think they're so cute and unusual, and the earrings swing very nicely when worn.  SO.  If you guys would like to win them, here are the rules!


Rules:

1)  The giveaway is open from today to midnight next Tuesday, the 14th of September.  So, roughly a week.  Any comments that come in after midnight on Sept 14th won't be counted!

2)  You can enter one of two simple ways:

a)  Leave me a comment on which piece of jewellery here you like best and why.  Fill in the option "name/url" and under the "URL" blank, leave me your email address so that I can contact you if you win.  This option will allow me to get in touch with you much more quickly and with fewer steps on your part as well!

OR

b)  If you are uncomfortable with leaving your email information on the blog, leave me a comment on which piece of jewellery here you like best and why.  Then, check back on the 15th of September, Wednesday, when I have announced the winner and I will tell you how to email me directly so that again, I can send you your prize!

3)  If the winner does not get their contact information to me by the 18th of September, I'm afraid I'll have to give the prize to someone else who commented (because, y'know, it's not fair to leave everyone waiting around, if you get my drift).

4)  One comment per person only!!!  The winner will be picked via random.org, through a completely randomised process.

That's it!  All you have to do is leave a comment!

Ready?  Go!!!

Giveaway announcement!

I just had a fun night with Dhany and Rudi at the Night Safari.  We got rained on a little and couldn't watch the remainder of the animal show because apparently the animals cannot be exposed to rain (yet in the wild, they don't have little huts to shield them from monsoon storms?!).

However, most everything was out to play, from elephants to lions and even a tiny 120 gram tarsier.  Have you ever seen a tarsier?  Because if you haven't, get thee to the zoo and marvel at these wonders of nature.  We even saw the leopard stalking its enclosure not a foot from our faces.

Anyroad.  I just came online briefly to announce that the giveaway will be tomorrow!  (Or later today, that is, Tuesday afternoon-ish.)  

So stick around for contest rules and a look at what you could win!

Also as a teaser, these two pictures of my mother in the basement, working till her fingers bleed while my monkey minions flog her ceaselessly.

At this point, readers around the country (all five of them) are doing a double take.  Yes, that is my mother, no, I am not adopted, yes she is as Chinese at the Great Wall. 

Unfortunately, I did not inherit her pre-disposition to skinniness, but our shared love of coffee, jewellery and all things small and cute should be DNA enough.

Mixing prints, Volume Two: Stars and stripes

Before I start this post, I would like to announce something very exciting:  My mother, working in her overheated sweat shop with my whip on her back, has finally finished making all the jewellery for the giveaway!

She gave it to me to wear and test and I personally think it's really cute and unique.  I'm hoping you will too!  So check back in the next day or two because the giveaway will be up by then! 

____________________________

For the longest time, I have been jonesing for a pussy-bow top.  I saw some beautiful ones in Topshop with butterflies and dragonflies on them, and right now, there seems to be a pussybow trend of sorts going on.  You can't click on Asos without stumbling on a shirt with some sort of bow detail at the neck.

The downside is that such dainty blouses come with a not so dainty price tag - the Topshop pussybow tunic alone was in the region of the seventies, if I remember correctly.  Certainly high enough that I wistfully put it back on the rack.

The other day however, I came upon a sudden idea - the D-I-Y pussybow! 

I simply used a cheap-ish, longitudinal scarf I'd recently bought, tucked it under my dress collar so the ends came out at the front and made a bow.  Viola, instant pussybow!

This probably seems really elementary to you, but I was hopping with excitement.  I mean imagine, now I can customise any shirt or dress with a collar and I can change the colours and prints according to my mood or other accessories.  I am beyond thrilled with this idea and plan to continue using it every time I want to lend a delicate touch to a slightly severe collared outfit.

Dress - Cineleisure booth.  Scarf  L'arc en ciel.  Flats - Mimosa.

Bag - my mother's.  Skinny belt - Marks and Spencers.  Bangle - Present.

Photos by Dhany

The last time I wore this dress, I wore it plain, with simple silver jewellery, so this time around, it was fun to put little accents like stars and a skinny belt on.

Also, how cute is my mother's smooshy Longchamp bag?  She's lending it to me for the time being, because she thinks it's too "young" for her (my mother looks nowhere near old) so until she changes her mind, I'm delighted to get the chance to use it.

I wore this look to go shopping - Sook was very kind to let Dhany and I into a special sale at which I bought a couple of really cute things - and it was comfortable and practical.

Thanks very much Sook!  You guys will probably get to see what I got soon-ish.  Till then, stay tuned for FREE JEWELLERY!

MUAHAHA!


________________________

Other ways I've worn this dress:

Seeing stripes

What's in my bag: Travelling light

I just got this ADORABLE Tokidoki bag as a present from Dhany, because I lost my wallet and I was grumbling about never carrying a wallet again and just stuffing my cash into my bag.  So he got me a wallet-sized bag with slots for cash!  HAH!  HAH!  HAH!

(I've said it before and I'll say it again.  Dhany has wonderful taste.)

I just love it because 1) I love all things Tokidoki and it reminds me of the Toy and Comic Convention every time I look at it and 2) it has these funny details on it that I keep looking at and laughing. 

I love that Simone Legno packs his work with details so that you can look at the little things in it and discover something new each time and I love how he always has a sense of humour in his drawing.

For example:

This dog with a dollar bill in its mouth...

... this unicorn drinking water, which just kills me...

... the little donuts with sprinkles and that little cloud puff thing in the bottom left hand corner...

... the little green apple core.

All of which add up to make the final product, a riot of colour which makes your eyes wander busily back and forth.

It's not quite true when I say this bag is wallet-sized, I quite comfortably carried my life around in it for half a day, quite a feat considering that it looks about the size of a small notebook and appears quite flat.

Here's an example of what I can fit in it, and this is pretty much all I need for the whole day when I'm not being ambitious and carrying around whacking great novels, water, a jacket and a pouch full of random toiletries.

1)  Burt's Bees shimmering lip balm in Fig.

2)  Extra sugar free chewing gum (I don't know if anybody else carries gum in Singapore, but if you do, tell me, does it have a nasty habit of going all limp and sweating peppermint oil out the packet?!)

3)  Nokia E71 mobile phone.  iPhone blah blah biddy blah.  Give me actual buttons I can press anytime.

4)  Clean and Clear Johnson and Johnson's blotting paper - the pink pack smells of grapefruit!

5)  Debit card.

6)  Cold, hard cash.

7)  The Body Shop Moroccan Rose Perfume.

8)  Hairpins.  Bobby pins.  Kirby grips.  Whatever you'd like to call them.

9)  Refresh for contacts eyedrops.  I don't wear contacts very often and when I do, I like to make sure my eyes don't dry out.

10)  Spare Acuvue Moist contacts.

11)  Uniball pen.

12)  And most impressively, not pictured, my camera which actually fits inside that bag with all that crap such that I can do the zip up without any trouble.  My camera is not one of those cigarette-pack-sized things which fit inside your pocket like a charm.  More accurately, it is the size of about half a brick and half the thickness.  I assure you I was utterly gobsmacked.

I don't know about you, but I was thoroughly amazed that so much could go in, considering that the bag looks about twice the size of my phone!  Also, I've learned that there's an art to fitting things in like the pieces of a puzzle so that you can maximise the space and things don't knock and rattle about.

Like most girls, I LOVE carrying my whole life around with me, but when push comes to shove, I can downsize quite easily and it's very liberating going hands free and being able to run and jump without a hefty piece of arm candy all day. 

I could travel light all day long.

Loose fit shirt - Zara.  Cutoffs - DIY from a pair of jeans from Series.  

Cutout sandals - Dr Marten.  Necklace - Made by my mother.

Bracelet - Pandora.  Hoop earrings - Bits and pieces.

As I did with a thin top, cutoffs and leather sandals for Baybeats.

PS  If you're loving this starfish necklace, as some of my friends are, it was made by my mother with a Swarovski crystal we bought from the bead shop she goes to. 

She makes some great jewellery and if you like it, stay tuned because she is, as we speak, MAKING A SET OF JEWELLERY FOR MY FIRST BLOG GIVEAWAY.

True story.  So if you guys want to win some cute, handmade, one of a kind jewellery, check back in a week or so, because I should have all the details ready and, considering that the number of readers is not that high, the chances of any one of you winning are like, cubed, or something. 

So, watch this space! 

PS

I'm just curious:

If I had a giveaway of some kind, would you, readers, comment to win something in it? 

Because I know there are people who read this blog lots and I'd love to give away some nice jewellery or a bag or cute accessories that the winner could enjoy, but I'd feel kind of silly putting up a giveaway if no one commented to win it!

So if you would, let me know and I'll get on that shit, stat!