Tiny loot, bulky ramble... Bangkok

Hihi friends of Hazelnutt House (",) 

The Hubs and I went on our annual Bangkok trip a few weeks back.   

I didn't do much hauling in terms of fashion and accessories coz as much as I would love to haul up a storm, the clothes do not appeal to me anymore.  I am sure it is coz of age ... sad but true.  Bangkok is still a fashion mecca for youngsters.

Well, instead of scouring the night markets and streets for interesting finds, I satisfied my buying urges with these lil' loot. 

First up, I purchased this Sugarlicious beauty box from Benefit @ Siam Paragon. 

After the conversion to SGD it was about $45.  I have not been to Sephora in Singapore lately, so I am not sure if the price is similar. 

I've been wanting to try the Benetint as well as High Beam but I am unwilling to fork out money for the full sized items coz with my drawer-ful of blushes, deluxe sample sizes of these two items is just perfect.  It comes with a Sugarbomb blush as well as the Sugarbomb lip gloss.

Before boarding the plane at Changi Airport, I snagged this Philosophy Miracle worker set.  There's a 'travel exclusive' sticker on the box, so I suppose it's not available at regular stores.

This set costs $59 and contains the: 

• Miraculous Anti-Aging Retinoid pads & solution
• Miraculous Anti-Aging Retinoid Eye Cream
• Miraculous Anti-Aging Moisturizer 

This anti-aging set is good for 30 days (",) 

I'm excited to try this out since I've read tons of fab reviews on the retinoid pads and also, my skin reacts well to retinol... so hopefully this works miracles if not then at least one miracle on my skin (",) 

OH yes, ... here's something that I will not leave Bangkok without.  I buy these Bayer Aspirin by the box and I usually get weird looks by the counter staff.  They must be wondering if I am nursing a permanent headache with this stash of pills.  They are about 70 cents for one full tab.

Well, I use these pills as a scrub for my body as well as for my face.. oh yes, feet included.  The salicylic acid in aspirin works really well on my skin.  My skin is always soft and ultra clean after my weekly full body and facial aspirin exfoliatoin. (yup... I scrub very gently, coz the grains from the pills are really rough... so, be warned.)

This time round in BKK, I decided to purchase some lemongrass tea. 

I bought a packet of organic lemongrass + pandan mix.  The smell is divine... *mmMMMmmm... Mmmmmmm*

I tried steeping these leaves but I find that boiling water is not enough to bring out the aroma.  So I ended up boiling the leaves as I would if I used fresh lemongrass and pandan.

Although it's handy and I'm able to store these dried leaves for a long period of time, I do not like the idea of having to boil them like I do with fresh leaves coz I get ants in my pants whenever I have to keep watch at the stove.

This box of pure lemongrass teaBAGs, however... is great to have in my tea drawer (",)  It comes in a handy triangular bag sans the string... and I was able to bring out the aroma with just boiling water (",)

So, no no to the loose leaves that I bought... but YES! to these lemongrass tea bags (",) ... They are about 65 Baht if I am not wrong.

Oh yes.... I always buy these elastic hand ties when in BKK.  It's really sad coz the lady who sets up a roadside store at the tip of Platinum Mall no longer sits there.  Coz Novotel Bangkok Platinum's security has set up post at her spot and I guess she is no longer allowed there.  

She sells these elastic hair ties at 10 Baht for a BIG packet... 

Although disappointed that I could no longer find her there, I found these at MBK.  The difference is, the stores in MBK sells them for 10 Baht for a tiny packet.... 

Each tiny packet still contains hundreds instead of tens of thousands bands in the BIG packet.  It's still a good buy coz I love the quality.  They are really rubbery and stretchy and they do not snap easily.  I've tried many random brands but they all get over stretched and eventually snap before I could secure The Kid's hair.

Someone tempted me with these coconut rolls while at work and I cannot believe that I've never tried them on my numerous trip to BKK.  This time round, I bought some and I regretted not buying more... they are soOOOooo yummy.  Lots of the shops at the airport sells these.  So, if you're thinking of getting them for relatives, you can do a last minute pitstop at the airport for these. 

Well... this is my really modest loot from BKK... nothing smashing and over the top and neither is it exciting... hehehehe.... gonna stop my bulky ramble over my tiny loot (",)

Talk to you ladies soon!!!

Magnum Cafe in Siam Centre, Bangkok

Hey hey :)  The Hubs and I were in Bangkok, Thailand for a couple of days.  I've heard quite a lot about the Magnum Cafe in Siam Centre in Bangkok.  I managed to coerce The Hubs to visit the place for some sweet treats. 

Right outside the Magnum Cafe, there's a long stretched table, the decor on the table looks very much like how The Mad Hatter's tea party would look like.

 I ordered the Brownie et conj fumee @ 160 baht.  It is a "hickory smoke brownie served with magnum green tea and thick chocolate mousse" as described in the menu.  

I thought it was gonna be a Magnum green tea ice-cream, but it was a vanilla ice-cream dusted with green tea powder.  When the dish was served, it came with a glass cover.  When the server lifted the cover, I smelled burned wood.... which is what you see in the tiny saucer in the dish.  Well, it's an interesting concept... I am really not a food critic, so all I could say was; as I was eating the sweet treats, the smell of burned wooden chips was rather welcoming!  It kinda lightly smoke over the intense sweetness of the dish.  The chocolate brownie and thick chocolate mousse topped with the ice-cream was a fab. combination... sweet, dark and creamy (",) 



 

The Hubs ordered J'adore les bananes (i love bananas) - 260 baht.  It is a 'crepe with caramelised banana served with magnum strawberry and caramel biscuit'.  The Hubs likes the strawberry Magnum and the bananas but I could tell that the dish was way too sweet for him.  

He removed the caramelised sugar coat that was on the slices of bananas and did not eat the ultra sweet caramel biscuit.

Here's some pictures of the stretched table that is outside the cafe... 

I love sweet treats and as much as I enjoyed my dessert at the Magnum Cafe, I would say it is a place I'll visit just for the ambience and experience.  The decor which I did not featured, is indeed beautiful... quirky with an Alice in Wonderland theme.  

I prefer my ice-cream straight from the tub or in the form of a simple banana split ... I don't need the fancy mishmash and hodgepodge when it comes to ice-cream.   

That said, I'll definitely take Kiddo there though, coz I know she'll like the place.  Besides, the desserts aren't expensive for the ambience.

Talk to you ladies soon (",)