S'more..

The release of the second ad for bags by Fastrack coincided with the release of more bags, which have been grouped under the not-very-imaginatively-named collection, 'New Bags'. For some weird reason, all of the bags in this collection, including handbags have been labelled 'Unisex', a mistake that I hope Fastrack will rectify soon. I am not feeling any of the messenger bags, duffel bags or backpacks in this collection. The range of handbags however is very exciting. Here are a few of my favorites..

How hot is this little number in Red? It is just as tempting in Olive..

This handbag in Purple is sure to add some zing to any outfit. Office goers take note.

The asymmetrical emerges in bags too.. How unique is this Blue shoulder bag?

The White handbag which will fool them into thinking you are a 'grownup' ;)

Check out the entire collection here.

Chow time.

I had Knorr Soupy noodles for the first time today, the Chinese Chow flavor to be precise. The noodles were really light, the flavor was good and the soup was nice and thick but some more and bigger veggies would've been nice. The concept of soupy noodles is really good since the starchy noodles thicken the soup some more and the soup gets infused into the noodles and makes them more flavorsome. It is a nice, filling meal on the whole.

Knorr soupy noodles may not be my new favorite snacks but when I'm really hungry and I want a quick, hot, complete meal, I know what I'm gonna cook..

Image from here.

This review is only my personal opinion of the product and does not represent an expert opinion. I have not been paid to review this product by any individual or organization.

I still ♥ F*****ck but..

This new ad for the Fastrack bags began airing on tv today. Now, I love Fastrack and this seems to be a 'cool', new way to use your Fastrack bag but seriously?

CASUAL SEX AND CHEATING ON YOUR GIRLFRIEND IS SO NOT COOL.

Nailed it..

What does someone with a fractured right thumb and plenty of time on her hands do in the sleepy, monsoon afternoons? She paints her nails with two different colors.. Sea foam green and Sky blue to be exact.. :D

I love to paint my nails with really unusual colors and during the monsoons, I love to paint them with bright and cheerful colors that pop.

Here are some of my favorites from Lakme's True Wear nail colors-

N231 from the Pinks.

N236 from the Mauves.

527 from Gold in the Metallics Bridal Sutra Winter 2008 collection.

040 from Nudes in the Metallics Bridal Sutra Winter 2008 collection.

and 041 from Blue in the Cremes Glamor Winter 2009 collection.

Although Lakme has a decent collection of nail colors, I think it would be nice if they would introduce more fun and fresh colors like maybe more pinks, greens and oranges in more fun and vibrant shades.. The kind of shades the college going crowd would love.. Just a thought..

You can find the entire collection here.

I ♥ F*****ck

for their amazing collection of bags. There are two collections actually, Core and Sport with truly hip bags for Guys, Girls and both (Unisex- reminds me of Joey's line in Friends.. U-N-I-sex.. Can't say no to that.. Tee hee). The following introductory commercial starring Genelia has been airing for about a week now.

Here are some of my favorites-

The perfect girly tote, in my favorite color- Red.

Another tote with removable laptop sleeves. Perfect for work, that is if you work in a place that's not too stuffy and formal. I loved the design of this tote but didn't like any of the color combinations. This one was the most decent looking among the lot to me as Orange is another favorite color of mine.

 The messenger bag or the ubiquitous (in India) 'college' bag. Wish I had this cool one while attending college. Love the subtle color combination.

Wouldn't have minded having this cute drawstring backpack while attending college either.

This one's actually meant for guys but what can I say? I'm a bit of a tomboy at heart ;)

Check out the entire collection here.

New pinch!!!

Check out the new jeans and tee I bought today.. I admit the picture quality is crap since I clicked this with the cam on my phone but I'm so excited with this buy because it was a total steal.. The jeans cost me just 520 bucks and the tee? only a 150 bucks ladies, that's right.. And where in the world did I manage to find this great price, you ask me? At the worst kept best secret in town.. The Jayalakshmi cloth store in Udyavar.

This (Konkani owned and operated) cloth store has been in business for more than 25 years.. I first visited them only about three years ago though.. Then, they were located in a single storied structure right beside the Udyavar bus stand.. No matter what time of the day or year you visited, you would always find crowds of shoppers there.. Stand near the till and you could see whopping bills of thousands going through at a time. The only thing lacking in that store was adequate number of trial rooms.

But I guess it got too crowded in there. So now, the store has moved 50 meters to the right and opposite side of the road. The swanky new showroom is probably the biggest show room in all of the Udupi and Manipal area. It is still single storied but with two huge U- shaped counters on each floor that sell every thing from undergarments to wedding sarees and yes, they've got more trial rooms now. There are now two billing counters and a separate cash payment counter. Another novelty is that they now have two tailors who do on the spot alterations. The only thing that hasn't changed though are the crowds. There is the same bustle and excitement anytime of the day or year. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that latest fashions + affordable prices= roaring business but Jayalakshmi was the only one to figure that out. Kudos..

This is my personal opinion of the place and does not represent an expert opinion. I have not been paid to review this place by any individual or organization.

I wish.. Part 5

I visited the Reebok exclusive store here in Manipal today to grab me this cute, girly 'Sing it loud' tee from the Indian Idol collection. Unfortunately they didn't have it in stock just yet but the guy at the counter promised they will be in stock first week in August onwards. So, any Manipalites visiting this blog.. Now you know when you can get your Indian Idol tees..

I loved the tee for the girly color and the fun graphic.. Every wannabe singer would love to have this tee but I was a little disappointed that there isn't a more rock chic(k) kind of option for girls in the collection. The only other tee for girls is one with a white background and a saxophone graphic in pink on it ('Play the best' tee). Girls like me who like to flaunt their tomboyishness sometimes would've appreciated something in black with maybe some rock inspired graphics on it..

Guys have a (relatively) wider selection but in terms of graphics only.. There is the 'Music' tee for the sensitive guy, the 'Rock Star' tee which looks like it would appeal to rappers, the 'Rock' tee for fans of Rock and the 'RBK singer' tee for every-kind-of-music-lover guy.. The basic colors for guys in the collection are limited however.. Blue and white with just one tee having a hint of red on it.. 

All considered it is a pretty good collection though.. There are some cool graphics and themes going on there and the price is pretty great too.. With a 30% discount thrown on top of that, the collection is too good to miss..

Check out the complete collection here.

This is my personal opinion of the product and does not represent an expert opinion. I have not been paid to review this product by any individual or organization.

Pimple yahan.. Dimple?

I never had acne problems as a teenager unlike my siblings. I used to be so grateful to that miracle of genetic lottery that gave me the kind of skin that would hardly erupt except for maybe a lone pimple during that time of the month. Little did I know that my euphoria would be short lived.. In the recent months, with a change in my sleeping patterns (staying up till 4 in the morning and waking up at 12 noon) and with all the stress that I am experiencing, my skin has begun to rebel. I have had clusters of pimples break out on my cheeks and forehead.

Though the most popular and for many years, the only acne cream available in India was Clearasil, I used to avoid using it since the one and only time I tried it in my teenage, it lead to the drying and peeling of the skin in the area of my face where I'd applied it. I don't know if Clearasil has since refined their formula and I haven't dared to try and find out.

So, what next? I had a wicked, huge pimple coming up on my cheek and I didn't know who or what to turn to, to make it go away. Enter- Himalaya Acne-n-Pimple Cream.

It really works!!! :)

Himalaya is one of my favorite and most trusted brands. Almost every beauty care product that I use is a Himalaya but more on that later. Coming back to the pimple cream, not only did this cream get rid of the pimple in two days, it also did not harm my skin. More good things about the cream?

• The smell is really great which is an important factor when you have to leave the cream on for a whole day or night. It doesn't have that strong, medicinal smell that other acne creams have.
• A very little goes a long way. Just a smidgen was enough to cover a sizeable portion of my cheek.
• It spreads beautifully and is not too sticky. So, you could apply the cream and dust some powder on during the day and no one has to know ;)
• It is available in a cute and handy 20g pack which easily fits in your handbag.
• The cost is just Rs.45 which considering bullet no.2 is very reasonable.
• And best of all, the very reason I love Himalaya- It's herbal.. Made from natural ingredients.. "Completely safe. No side effects." (To quote Himalaya)

The only drawback that I noticed was that it tended to make my skin more oily. However, the oiliness subsided when the cream was not applied for a couple of days. So, although Himalaya advises me to 'apply over affected area twice daily', I think I'm gonna apply it just once a day and if the acne is not too severe, maybe just every other day. 

This review is only my personal opinion of the product and does not represent an expert opinion. I have not been paid to review this product by any individual or organization.

Saffron

Isn't that a lovely name for a restaurant? I attended the opening of this restaurant and that of a residency, Ayaan comforts today. The decor was truly vibrant and cheerful and the lighting was of the kind I usually prefer in restaurants- not too glaring and harsh on the eyes. There were some truly pretty curtains too. Near the entrance was a feature that I liked very much.. A wall hung with some very pretty and cheerful prints. Unfortunately, we couldn't taste the food since the opening was scheduled for evening and the menu was more suitable to lunch and dinner. I'm hoping we'll be going there to try the food soon. Meanwhile here are a couple of pictures of the restaurant.

The feature near the entrance

I liked the rooms a lot too.. So much in fact that I was busy admiring them and forgot to take any pictures. Unlike conventional hotel rooms, they have been divided into a sitting room and a bed room with the toilet in between. The sitting rooms have a nice, comfy couch and a wall mounted, flat screen TV in them. The bed rooms have a huge, comfortable looking bed and a mirror.

There were a few drawbacks though. One of them was that the bathroom, though possessing all the requisites like a shower, western style WC etc. was really tiny. Secondly, there didn't seem to be a dressing stool or any place like a cupboard or a rack to keep the luggage. It's possible that they are yet to receive some of the furniture that they might have ordered. I'm hoping that this is the case but since this hotel is right here, in my town and I am unlikely to ever stay there, I'm not too bothered with that ;)

This review is only my personal opinion of the place and does not represent an expert opinion. I have not been paid to review this place by any individual or organization.