Free butterfly enclosure in the heartland: Tampines Changkat Butterfly Garden.

Even though I didn't grow up in the Eastern side of Singapore, I married into the East and have since fell in love with the convenience and sustainability of it :)

We have everything conceivable here in Tampines/ Simei, there's really not a need to step into town at all. Banking, shopping, food, schools, library, everything is within reach.

 

As a matter of fact, the only time I need to go to Orchard is for my dental appointments once a month.

 

Recently, while looking for free places to visit during the September school holidays, I found out a hidden gem tucked in the midst of Tampines heartland - the Tampines Changkat Butterfly Garden.

 

 

It's about 15 minutes walk from Tampines MRT if you just follow the path all the way under the MRT track. It's pretty straightforward and you won't likely get lost.
However, you can also take bus 292 from Tampines Bus Interchange if you don't drive or don't wish to walk.

Location: Block 124 Tampines Street 11, opposite Qiao Nan Primary School (which had been announced in end-2014 that there are plans for the school to close down)

Getting nearer...Can see the enclosure now.

Quite a wide variety of butterfly species I must say. I wonder how many I can spot??

 

Some quick facts about Tampines Changkat Butterfly Garden:

It is currently 132sqm big and there are plans by the zone's MP Ms Irene Ng to expand it by next year (2016).

 

Visitors to the butterfly garden, which has more than 100 butterflies flitting about during dry weather, can view the creatures up close at a gathering deck.

Said Tampines GRC MP Irene Ng, who pushed for the garden in 2011: "It is the only butterfly garden within a housing estate in Singapore and is meant to inculcate among residents a love for nature and its conservation, and to provide a beautiful and soothing retreat within an estate." 

 

 

My review of this garden is that it is beautiful and well-maintained, very clean and to my pleasure, I did see many beautiful butterflies fluttering around, dancing gracefully in close vicinity around me.

I was actually expecting it to be disappointing with just a couple of random butterflies but I was so wrong.

One thing however, it is more suitable for adults and older children because young kids may not see the beauty of observing butterflies, and it is not really an enclosed play area.

If you have primary school kids who are keen in learning about butterflies for science, then this is a very nice place to visit.

 

Anyway, it is free so I don't see why not.

Perhaps can wait until the park has undergone full expansion and upgrading next year to visit.

 

Fashion for Mummy: Playing with colours in your outfits!

Happy mid-week Mummies!

I have done up another fashion-related post, this time on outfits and accessories :)

Have you ever wondered how to mix and match your accessories with outfits?

Do you love loud, happy colours but are afraid of going wrong?

If you have read Estelle's and Michelle's fuss-free makeup tips on Singapore Mom Bloggers, it is now time to complete the look with the right outfits!

 

In this post, I will talk about how to play with colours that will not make you look like you belong to the circus.

 

Firstly, we can take reference from the Colour Wheel to know what are the warm vs cool colours.

 

 

 

You can then decide whether you wanna do opposites:

ie. Direct opposite of Orange would be Blue.

Direct opposite of Red would be Green, etc.

 

 

 

Examples of Direct Opposite coloured outfits:

 

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Or you can do random pairing - pick a random colour you like (my favourite colour in the world is blue), and clash it with a bright coloured accessories like a statement necklace, shoes or bag.

 

 

In the following example, I paired electric blue with bright yellow:

Navy dress with the same bright yellow accessories:

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Otherwise, you can also do partnering of the side-by-side colours: Pink and Violet.

 

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Another random pairing, which is marrying Electric blue with pink.

 

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How about another example of Opposites - Red and Blue.

 

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You can also do the same side colours (Cool and cool; warm and warm)

 

Example of Cool and Cool outfit: Green and blue.

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Last but not least, you can also stick to all-time classic neutrals: black, white, beige, camel.

Black on gold.

White on camel shoes and bag, topped with gold necklace and bangle.

There you go. I hope you found this post useful in helping you decide on your daily coordinates.
Remember, colours can be fun! Especially for Moms, colours are the way of life.
Too bad I don't have a daughter to play dress-up and coordinate with but alas!

 

And lastly, a parting shot :)

 

 

SMB Mummies and children outing: Yakult factory educational tour.

It's Teacher's Day today and when school's out, it can only mean one thing: the little terrors are unleashed upon their poor parents!
Luckily, Mummy Evelyn from www.evespiration.com organized a group tour to Yakult factory at Senoko for a group of us Mummies & our kiddos.

With the help of GPS, I finally drove from East to North and reached without getting lost :P

My kids are HUGE Yakult consumers. They drink 2-3 bottles daily, EACH (ZzzZz).
My children are so scary to feed :P Forever hungry and thirsty one (but still so skinny).

Free Yakult for everyone!
My colleague and fellow Mummy-friend Wendy and her sons YuQi (7) and Allan (5).

PS. Ashton is in one of those phases now and no forces can stop him - he's a soldier and goes the whole day with that helmet (you'll see in  the group photo at the end of the tour).

Fellow Mummy-blogger Serene and her Mum, and Xavier (7) and Vera (2).

Very seriously attending lesson on digestive system.

Any idea how long is the small intestine?



Ans: about 6-7m long.

Every bottle of Yakult (100ml) contains 10 BILLION good bacteria.

What is Yakult made of?
Ans: Skim milk, L. Casei Shirota (the good bacteria), glucose.

Did you know: Singapore is the only country that Yakult is produced in 4 flavours: Grape, Green Apple, Orange, and Original.
Other countries' Yakult only comes in Original flavour.

Rows and rows, tens of thousands bottles of Yakult being produced on a daily basis.
Click on the video below to see the Yakult bottle mould at work. 

 

We learned so much during this tour :)

 

Do you know when the best time to consume Yakult is?

It's actually at the end of a meal. I always thought it's best on an empty stomach! *horror of horrors!*

 

P.S. Did you also know that in Japan, Yakult is not available in shops or supermarkets. You can only purchase Yakult from the Yakult lady in Japan!

Unlike in Singapore, Yakult is readily available can - petrol kiosks, convenience stores, canteens, foodcourts, supermarts, even Mama shops etc etc!

Oh, the things we take for granted in Singapore!

Mandatory group shot! So many mummies, daddies and kiddos!
Adam made a new friend and they super can click until Emmanuel's mummy suggested a playdate already!
My Ashton still in his helmet. Not hot meh? *sweat*

 

 

At the end of the factory guided tour, everyone can purchase each packet of Yakult for SGD$2.70 (UP $3.05 at NTUC, price correct as on 04 Sept 2015).

 

If you're interested to visit Yakult factory, you may contact them at:

Tel: 67561033

Address: 7 Senoko Avenue, Singapore 758300.

 

Tours are conducted Mondays - Fridays

Morning session: 10:00am - 11:30am

Afternoon session: 2:00pm - 3:30pm

Capacity: Min 25 pax - 60 pax.

Admission is Free-of-charge. Parking is also FOC.

 

 

Mummy me-time: my bag and shoe addiction.

Before I became a Mum, and way before I even became my husband's girlfriend (last time, we call em Steady, LOLS), I had a hobby of buying designer goods like bags, small leather goods, and sometimes random pieces of clothing like scarves and such.

During those days, I'm not sure if you are familiar with Jean Paul Gaultier (aka JPG, the designer, not a photo file extension!), Chantal Thomass, and Sonia Rykiel. Are these people still alive??!

Remember the signature V logo (Valentino) wallet??

And Ferragamo head bands/ hair clips... Roflsssss

Oh how Valentino and Ferragamo have evolved over the decades.

Liking higher end fashion was something I would say I was born with.

Why do I say that?

My parents are normal folk who don't buy designer goods as they wont understand why theres a need to spend thousands of dollars on something which can be bought at 1/10 of the price at Metro, so there's no way I would have inherited anything LV or Chanel from them.

My younger brothers also do not fancy designer brands. Guys being guys, as long as it looks good and is priced good, they will buy.

So other than "being born with it" like an unexplained congenital disease, I don't know  how else to describe my incessant want for high end goods.

I started out with high street brands like JPG, Chantal Thomass during my sec school days, and moved on to brands like Balenciaga and LV when I got older and more spending power.

Then I moved on to even higher end brands like Chanel and subsequently (unfortunately or not :P), Hermes.

From my years of buying and selling bags and accessories, I've come to the realization that Hermes holds her value the most, for the longest period of time.

I've bought and sold several H bags along the way, and they almost always manage to break even my cost or sometimes even make a small profit.

 

 

Allow me to share some pieces from my humble collection.

 

Clean white sheets and orange boxes make my day.

My first Birkin - a gold 30cm with PHW.



I got her for my birthday last year and my heart skips a beat when I look at her pictures now.
I've since sold her because I'm finding the gold difficult to match most of my outfits and I prefer colours, but the special feeling of buying your first B lingers :) 

Hermes scarf with a pack of knotting cards which the SA threw in for me. Sometimes it is not available so I am stoked!

 

Hermes 90x90cm scarf worn as a halter at W resort during our staycation last year.

 



Lindy 34 in Rouge Garrance with my Clover charm.

Outfit of the day throwback:
Grey top with red macaw details.
Levis jeans
Ferragamo peeptoes
Hermes Lindy in Rouge Garrance.

Outfit of the day:
Leopard hearts top from random shop
Mango MNG chilli red cigarette pants
Charlotte Olympia kitty flats with red trimmings and glasses.
Hermes Evelyne GM in Etoupe

What I wore one day:
Cheong Moschino Barbie tee from Carousell
Hermes Garden Party in white
Hermes Oran slippers in white.

All white-and-pink err day.
 

Shoes of the day:
Valentino yellow rockstuds paired with my yellow blouse and culottes which I got from a boutique at United Square level 1.
Went there for kiddy stuff but ended up buying clothes for myself too.



Soufre Toolbox 26



Hubby calls my TB the Ugly Duckling bag especially when paired with my yellow Valentino rockstuds.. But don't care :P

I really like how lightweight Swift leather is, and it holds a ton without weighing down on your shoulder. The amazon strap length is just nice, not like the Lindy 34 strap is slightly too long.
Initially, I didn't really like the toolbox. Hubby said it looks funny and I think it looks like MacDonald's Happy Meal box, but after I got it, I start loving it more and more for its practicality.

One fine day, while browsing my favourite www.deluxemall.com, the stars aligned and I found my perfect little pink bag.
My Miss Yellow ugly duckling with little Miss Tosca Birkin 30.

Hermes picotin 18 (smallest) with horseshoe charm.

Purchases from H boutique in Surfers Paradise, Brisbane, when the AUD fell to an all-time low against SGD. It was my lucky day!

 

Tips for buying Hermes in Singapore:

- You're better off buying from reputable resellers like Luxlexicon, Ciaciasg.hermes and Jael99 on Instagram, than trying to play the quota game of buying small goods at the boutiques and being put on an infinite wait list.

 

 

- (cont'd from point above...) Unless of course, you really like the small accessories like CDCs, charms and clic clacs and don't mind buying them from the boutique to build up your profile.

Sometimes, CDCs and Rodeos are much cheaper in boutiques than from resellers who mark up the price to sky high amount.

When I was in Brisbane, I saw they had some lizard KDTs and Kelly dogs available which would be much cheaper after 10% tax rebate + low AUD exchange rate than if you were to buy from resellers here.

It's really a matter of being at the right place at the right time!

 

 

- Once, I walked into a boutique asking for Lindy in size 30 (as I already have one in 34). The SA told me no shipment lately so I ended up buying other stuff. Before she was about to wrap them up, she said "Oh, maybe I have something in the back room which may interest you" and popped out a Lindy 30 in Feu.

This is how H boutiques work. The quota game suck, but you still go back wanting for more >_<

 

 

- Join www.purseforum.com and read up on the Hermes authentication threads to learn how to tell the authentic engraving and blind stamps from the fake.

 

 

- Some resellers mark up like crazy, so always do your homework on www.deluxemall.com and Carousell to know the different prices charged by different sellers.

 

 

- Don't go in debt buying these stuff. Remember, you can never out-chase fashion!

Spend within your means after you have sorted out the big ticket things already: your own home, children's education monies, and invariable expenses that you cannot escape from every month like eg. maid salary, enrichment classes, tuition, bills etc.
It's also important to set aside some savings for variable expenses like spoilt electronics, car servicing and repair, holidays.

 

 

- Lastly, these bags are only material.

I can't say the same for your children, but I do know mine will lean on my bags, step on my footwear (my first and ever pair of Chanel Aloha slippers had the petals fall off due to said children stepping on them when they learn to walk), and they aren't the most careful beings in the universe.

But it's Ok for me because I'm not one who will over-pamper my stuff like bringing a bag cover or bag hanger when going out for meals / gatherings etc.

 

 

 

If you have any expert advise on shopping which I have missed out/ don't know, please kindly email me or leave a feedback :)

Ok la, that's all before I log off and go for dinner with my family.

 

I still have photos from our Tokyo and Gold Coast trip I haven't uploaded, not to mention blogging about Ashton turning THREE. I am soooooo backlogged.

 

 

Disclaimer: this post is meant to be part of the Fashion/ Beauty posts run by Singapore Mom Bloggers (SMB) community which I belong to, and is in no way meant to represent any brand or company. All photos belong to me and objects featured in photos belong to my personal collection and are not for resale. Usage of my photos without permission is not allowed.