Here's how you can stand the chance to win more than $200 worth of wellness coaching, a make over, financial planning or even a fitness regime all planned out for you! It all depends on WHAT your resolution is!
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The most deserving and/or creative wins!
Contest runs from now till 7 Jan 2016. Winner(s) will be announced on 8 Jan 2016.
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HAACH has invited Master Lam Cheung, founder of Hong Kong Permanent Soft Stitch Make-up Artist Association, to Singapore for an exclusive workshop on your perfect eyebrows for your facial features as well as how it will affect even your luck and fortune!
Topics to be covered are:
The Perfect Pair - importance of matching Brow trends and shape with your face type
Learn how your brow shape could affect your luck and personality
How your eyebrows can improve your looks and overall features
Shaping the Perfect Brow - for your facial features, eye shape, age and career
Understand the art of eyebrow embroidery - including picking the right colour and technique
To register for FREE, all you have to do is purchase ANY trial treatment from HAACH as listed on Pásshen!
Master Lam at a previous workshop
About Master Lam
Founder of Hong Kong (H.K.) Permanent Soft Stitch Make-up Artist Association, Master Lam Cheung is renowned for his expertise and fortitude - constantly bringing innovation to the world of beauty and make-up. Since founding of HKPA in 1998, apart from conducting several eyebrow embroidery workshops in HK island-wide, Master Lam Cheung has brought the art of Permanent Soft Stitch Make-up to Germany, Korea, Thailand, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and has ventured into the Chinese and European markets too.
We humans love to eat and any festival or holiday is a sure good reason to FEAST! Needless to say, that may not bode well for our waistlines. Also, imagine the amount of work that we will have to do come January to shed those extra kilos! I know how it is and here are my top 5 tips for surviving the Christmas bulge:
1. Never fill your plate till it's full
This is a good trick to prevent yourself from eating. Its the same psychology behind eating with a smaller plate. It's all about portioning. This also prevents you from looking like that kiasu and greedy Singaporean who has a mountain of food on your plate. Besides, if you have to walk or move to get a second helping, you're burning that little more calories than having 2 servings worth already in 1 seating.
2. Eat your veggies first
Someone once told me that eating food in the right order is essential in weight maintenance. Others have also told me that it's all because of nutrition and how fruit and vegetables should be consumed first so that the body will digest it first etc.
I'm not going to tell you too much hog wash. Simple fact - vegetables are FULL of fibre. Eating fibre first ensures that you're a little more filled up so that you don't eat so much fatty foods and even if you do eat a lot of fatty foods, the fibre will soak up some of the fats so that it'll pass out from your gut.
Please lay off the salad dressing. I normally go for half the usual or none. If there are roasted or steamed vegetables, I'd go for those.
3. Choose your proteins next
Ham, turkey, roast beef, chicken, roast pork...I think you guys know what to choose (lean and less processed). Reminder to hold off on the gravy as most contain a lot of animal fat (drippings) or butter or cream.
4. Watch where your sugars are coming from
If you're drinking wine, you may want to eat less carbs as alcohol does contain quite a bit of sugar and therefore, calories. However, the wine is probably a better choice than the soft drink.
I normally will try to avoid the staples totally during all the various Christmas parties because with the wine and cakes that are bountiful, I do not wish to get a sugar high and then a sugar crash where one will start craving more of that delicious chocolate log cake.
5. Plan your exercise
Know that you'll be having a party that evening? Schedule a workout in the morning or afternoon or perhaps the day before. Got a whole week full of parties? Party hard means that you've got to do more high intensity workouts then (saves time!). If its a potluck gathering and you know what's on the menu, you can also gauge how long you have to hit the gym. Simple input output of calories here.
Also, studies have shown that someone who walks about 90min the day before will have about 30% less fats in their blood stream the following day. Also, general exercise will improve blood insulin sensitivity, allowing you to not get a crash but a sugar soft landing. Makes you feel less guilty about eating that extra slice of cake too ;)
Now that you are equipped with the top 5 tips on how NOT to put on too much weight during this Christmas season, go forth and feast!!
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If you're wondering how can a facial cost $800, you're not alone. Another thought that probably popped into your head was, "What's inside? Gold? Caviar? Diamond?" Well...you're not too far off. Perhaps you're also imagining some fancy schmancy science stuff or tools that are involved.
HAACH has recently launched its latest luxe professional facial - the Diamond Age-Defying Marine Miracle (90 min). When I was given the chance to try it out, I naturally jumped at it. Who wouldn't? Especially when the tagline is to make your skin "Shine Bright Like a Diamond".
The facial was held at HAACH's new concept store as well as Singapore's first seamless curation of both beauty and wellness. Called HAACH Curation, it is conveniently situated in Wheelock Place and houses both their chiropractic, physiotherapy as well as spa services under one roof. The overall feel of the place is comfortable and pleasant.
Front view of my face before the treatment
Left view
Right view
How timely this facial was! I suddenly had a pimple that popped on my nose so it was a plea for some professional intervention.
The beautician explained to me that for this Diamond Age-Defying Marine Miracle facial, there are no machines involved because all the natural ingredients used will help to exfoliate gently, lock in moisture, rehydrate skin and encourage the strengthening of the skin's elastin and collagen. In other words, it's a lot of massaging of my face with their advanced skincare products.
After cleansing came the exfoliating. Instead of a normal scrub, a serum-like gel was used. The gel contains nano-fine diamond powder that helps to remove the dead skin cells while the rest of the ingredients will help to pull the dead skin cells together until it clumps together.
Doesn't it look like I suddenly have dust over my face or dandruff? Anyway, the beautician said that my skin is quite well taken care of (thank you Clarisonic) and although I have quite a bit of dead skin, it's not dark coloured. Ladies, please remember to scrub your face at least once a week. Otherwise, please invest in a face cleansing tool like Clarisonic or HAACH's equivalent, which costs only S$60 and the brush head is made up of super fine hairs (even finer than Clarisonic's). Do remember to ask the HAACH ladies about it.
Once that gunk was removed, my blackheads were removed and after which, came the mask part! That's where the Marine Organisms, concentrates and seaweed extracts that are rich in vitamins and minerals come in! In addition, there are 20 herbal extracts (each with its own skin healing properties and one of them is called the Melissa plant *wink*) in this power packed mask.
For every person, one such tube is cracked open just before the mask is applied. This means that the product is fresh and all the vitamins are still active.
The marine and herbal mask
I could smell the algae!!! Add that to the intense wet herb smell and my nose was completely offended. Brain had to tell the nose to bear with it. Beauty comes with a small dose of sacrifice. After letting my skin soak in the concoction for a few of minutes while I received an awesome shoulder and décolletage massage, a gel mask with the diamond powder was soon placed over it.
Herbs used in HAACH's Diamond Age-defying Marine Miracle Facial
Beauty Tip: when you open your gel/paper mask, keep the excess liquids first. Apply some more onto the mask as this help you push out any bubbles as well as to massage the liquid in a little. Then, massage that excess liquid over your neck and décolletage. It is a moisturiser after all, so good to rub it into areas that are usually neglected but are sure signs of your age. After a few minutes, there will be areas that dry up faster for sure and the top up from your excess liquid would also be rather beneficial for your face.
After 20 or 30 minutes, the masks were removed and TADAH:
My face definitely was cleaner and brighter than before the facial! It felt quite moisturised too but that would be quite natural after a facial, no? I'll tell you later why you can push aside the cynicism.
So how does a $800 facial feel? Perfectly normal - relaxing (awesome massage) and moisturising. What you're paying for is for the sheer quality of ingredients used in the products. The proof in the pudding came only a day AFTER the facial. Remember that red spot that you saw on the left side of my nose? Normally, it would take a few days for it to heal and disappear but because of the facial, I was pleasantly surprised that it was completely healed the next day!
The beautician warned me that due to the strengthening of the elastin and collagen as well as the natural healing properties of the mask, it is normal to see white and black heads popping up the next day as they get pushed out of the pores from within.
I can only imagine that with prolonged usage of such quality products, one's skin will definitely get smoother and nobody will be able to say that you look old!
If you'd like to go for the Diamond Age-defying Marine Miracle treatment, HAACH is offering a special trial price of $99 for my readers! You can either book through www.passhen.com if you are a member or quote the promo code "PASS_MM" when you call HAACH's outlet directly for an appointment. For those who would like something a little more affordable, Pásshers get special prices off selected treatments that have also won recent awards in Harper's Bazaar! To find out more, click here.
Look at the wall of ear buds!! Was invited to Happy Plug's launch in Singapore held at the luxury boutique hotel Klapsons and what was immediately noticeable about this Swedish brand is the simplistic but yet fashionable way of packaging simple ear buds.
The candy colours scream out to you and you just want to hold the box containing the ear buds and wonder why nobody else thought of packaging earphones or ear buds this way. If monotone bright colours aren't your thing, they also have the more 'wild' versions:
I love how they have the full matching set for your phone, tablet as well as ear piece! As you can see, Happy Plugs are positioned as a fashion accessories brand rather than pure electronics. It's quite funny that the brand started when the founder, Andreas Vurul, spray painted his girlfriend's plain white ear buds pink. I hope for the girlfriend's sake that she's now the wife or she's cashing in on this some how. Hahah!
I managed to get a pair of Happy Plugs ear buds and I can't wait to try them out for sound. But as Happy Plug's tagline goes..."What is your colour?" I shall wait until I feel orangey to try them on.
Happy Plugs definitely wins hands down for best packaging. Look at how cute their cables are packed! Mind you, it may look short but each cable is 2m long. I don't think you can tell from the lighting but this series comes from their latest metallic range and I love it!
However, the main event was the real launch of the brand's latest flagship products – Sound Piece and Sound Piece Mini.
The brand story and the launch of the latest flagship products was presented by Hermine Bonde, Global Sales Director of Happy Plugs. She explained how the Sound Piece and Sound Piece Mini have grills that could be changed to suit either your mood or to blend in with your interior decoration.
Marble top
Hot pink
Leopard prints anyone?
Gold!
The various grills that you can purchase separately
I love the idea of changing the grills to suit your decor because that is a problem with a lot of electronic equipment. They either come in white/black/grey but your furniture in your home/room comes in a lot more shades than that.
Sound Piece Mini with the Rose Gold grill
Lime Green limited edition grill on the Sound Piece in another room
Luxury boutique hotel klapsons was aptly chosen as the launch venue as all 17 rooms in the hotel, each uniquely designed, have been outfitted with a set of Happy Plugs Sound Piece Mini speaker for guests to enjoy as part of the tailor-made klapsons’ experience. Just like each room at klapsons is uniquely designed, each Happy Plugs Sound Piece Mini’s front grill is customised to match the room’s interior style.
Besides the look of the Sound Piece, it has to be good as an actual speaker, right? Check out the short video that I took with the Sound Piece Mini playing Adele in the outside jacuzzi (yup, klapsons as an outdoor one in their executive suite).
I was impressed by the quality and I love how compact it is! I was sold and I really bought a mini for myself. I can't wait to get it next week and I also am getting the rose gold grill so that I'll have a classy piece to match my room's decor! It's my Christmas present to myself.
The Happy Plugs Sound Piece ($329) and Sound Piece Mini ($139) are now available through the Atlas e-store and selected resellers island-wide. For more information, visit www.soundpiece.sg
Have you ever wondered what is "semi-permanent make up" and "eyebrow embroidery"? Look no further as we break it down for you.
"Semi-permanent make up" tends to refer to "make up" applied onto the eyebrows, eyelashes, eyeliner and even lips that tends to last more than 1 week. As this often involves needles and/or glue, it is highly advisable to go to a reputable therapist or salon such as Highbrow.
Entrance of Highbrow's salon located at Capitol Piazza
Highbrow specialises in hair but not the ones on your head but rather the other parts - eyebrows, eyelashes and hair removal from various body parts (wax on, wax off). For this visit, we shall concentrate on getting the eyebrow embroidery done.
Check out the leopard print blanket in the room! I think Highbrow is one of the few places that I know that can pull off leopard prints without it looking tacky. In fact, the blanket was so plush that I was tempted to bring it home. Very comfortable settings which made you feel at ease right away.
Normal brows before embroidery
The therapist who attended to me was Thai and she was trained by instructors from China as well as Korea so I felt quite safe in her hands. Before anything else can happen, the therapist would draw on the eyebrow shape first so that you'll be happy with it. My problem with my eyebrows were the sparse 'tails' and a couple of spots that were not as full as it should be.
Tada. That's the drawn eyebrows. Looks pretty natural, right? Just a bit fuller. My therapist said that my original shape was already very good (thank you Leticia) but apparently, this thicker eyebrow shape is the current Korean trend and is supposed to make you look younger. Ok...I decided to go with it.
Numbing cream will then be slapped onto your brows for the next 10-20 minutes. Why numbing cream? Now, let's explain the 'embroidery' side of things.
The tip used in eyebrow embroidery is made up of several fine needles. Some therapists use latest nano needles that vibrate like a tattoo machine. In this case, it's done more manually.
Organic ink dye
The therapist then dips into the ink before 'drawing' into your skin where your eyebrows are. I find it quite funny how a lot of people in the beauty industry will vehemently tell you that eyebrow embroidery isn't like tattooing but the needle tips are essentially cutting into your skin such that the ink is able to penetrate the top layer and therefore, last for a year or so. Tattoos just go a further layer under the skin. Same difference.
That's why you really need the numbing cream. Nonetheless, I could feel some of the cuts towards the end of the procedure and because it doesn't go as fast as a tattoo machine, I felt that the pain (when I did feel any) was a bit more shocking to me. Don't be scared. It's really not painful. Especially if you have an experienced therapist who does it in a jiffy.
After my therapist finished, she put some more colour dye onto my brows and left them on for another 10 minutes. This is to ensure that the dye gets into the skin.
This is me just after the procedure. I thought that the brows looked really natural but super dark. I was warned that the colour will lighten within a week. Thus, you wouldn't want to do a light colour at first.
Is this procedure safe? Yes if you go to a reputable salon and make sure that they use a new needle/blade just like what Highbrow does. If you have sensitive skin, you should ask the salon what kind of dyes they use and whether they provide aftercare products.
Highbrow provides 2 types of aftercare products - a Nourishing Essence and a balm that reminded me a little of petroleum jelly. The aftercare is VERY important when you're doing eyebrow embroidery. Your skin has been 'traumatised' so it needs to be soothed so that's where the nourishing essence comes in. Furthermore, it's now going to be a bit more sensitive while it heals. This means no sauna, no swimming, no water and no vigorous perspiring to touch your brows. That's where the balm comes in. It acts both as a soothing agent as well as a barrier to water.
Day 2 after eyebrow embroidery
The day after was the worse because my eyebrows stung but I couldn't scratch it. Plus the whole 'no water' thing? Tough to follow when it came to washing my face.
Day 4 after eyebrow embroidery
Peeling skin with drawn on brow hair
On the 4th day, the peeling started. I was warned that this would happen but I didn't think that it would happen so soon. I don't think the colour has faded by 50% as what the therapist claimed but it is a shade lighter than before (thank goodness!).
1 week after the treatment - perfect looking brows!
I'm overall quite happy with the results and those who happen to notice the difference in my brows have also complimented me on them! I'm also glad that I no longer have to draw on my eyebrows overtime I leave the house. That saves me a lot of trouble for the next year and just in time for CNY too.
If you would like to know more about Highbrow's services or to book an appointment with them, click on this link: http://www.passhen.com/group/highbrow. As usual, Pásshen members get a slight discount for eyebrow embroidery specifically.
As the saying goes, "You are what you eat." Which is why over the years, I've been more aware of what goes into my mouth and even to a certain extent, what comes out (no constipation etc).
I must thank the BBC for being the constant reputable source of my documentary 'addiction' and I just watched this one on food! The title caught me..."The truth about food: How to stay young and beautiful". Now, who wouldn't want that? Moreover, knowing BBC, there will definitely be interesting scientific tests to prove or disprove popular claims about diets etc.
I'll summarise a few key takeaways but I do recommend that you watch the documentary in its entirety.
1. Eat more tomatoes
Tomatoes are rich in lycopene which is an antioxidant that helps your skin from getting burnt so easily! The study done by the University of Manchester over 3 months showed that people who eat tomatoes have an average 30% less damage from UV. Time to load up on that juicy fruit. Oh, it also makes a great facial mask as Su Lee mentioned during our "Beauty Secrets From The Kitchen" workshop at Beauty Week.
2. Eat more berries
Just like tomatoes, berries such as strawberry and blueberry contain loads of antioxidant. Besides the skin, the antioxidants in berries are shown to greatly help slow down the degeneration of the ocular muscles. As we often are staring at our computer screens, I do suggest eating a cup of berries everyday to prevent any eye problems when we hit our 60s or 70s. If you have trouble getting the actual fruit, try Unicity's Probionic which is a supplement that contains both berries and probiotics to support a healthy gastro-immune system.
3. Detox diets are a myth
Alas, despite how many people say that they feel energised/ lighter/ slimmer etc after going on a detox diet, the controlled experiment clearly showed that our bodies' natural detoxification organs work just fine. No real improvement or efficiency in the detox department after going on a detox diet.
4. Drinking extra 2L of plain water a day is not necessary
I was a bit shocked about this one. Turns out that all we need is to consume 2.5L a day and this comes from our foods and any sort of beverages. This isn't to say that we shouldn't drink water when we're thirsty, just that your coffee/tea/soups do count into your daily intake!
Nonetheless, if your current diet and health regime makes you feel tip top, don't think too much and just carry on! However, if you think that you need help, we have a whole directory of fitness locations for you to choose from or get in touch with our Wellness Coach to get you on track!
I'm Melissa and this is where I like to share my travels, thoughts, ideas and review about things/places that I come in contact with. Besides that, I'm also the COO of SAUCEink - bringing you the juicy content that women love!
