WeChat x Secret Recipe Buy 1 Free 1 Cake Promo

I'm pretty sure Secret Recipe is no stranger to us all. This cafe franchise has been around long enough for us to have at least been to once, if not many. My personal favourite has to be their cake varieties, from Oreocheese cake, blueberries and now my all time favourite Red Velvet is available too! Kudos to keeping in trend with the cake fashion (oh yes, Red Velvet is definite THE CAKE that everyone dreads for). Well, at least I do. I'm a total sucker for red velvet cakes. 

Anyway, in conjunction with Secret Recipe's 16th Anniversary, they are celebrating their long streak of success with some really sweet deals! 

Attended the launch of their promo last Friday with some of my blogger friends. It's been a while since I've been involved in the blogosphere, but it was definitely great to see so many familiar faces, and even more new ones! We were invited to the Secret Recipe branch in Oasis Square, Ara Damansara and I must say, I really liked the ambience. Should definitely check it out if you haven't already. 

I was told that this is their first ever "Buy 1 Free 1" cake deal and needless to say, the red velvet cakes are gonna sell like hot cakes! I still remember when they first introduced the cheese cakes, they literally took the entire IPOH (yes, that's my hometown if you're wondering why I'm inserting a non-relatable town haha) by storm! I would walk over to the closest Secret Recipe, at that time it was located right opposite my school - for the cakes, and the lasagna, every week without fail!  

In collaboration with WeChat, this deal entitles the user/diner to buy 1 cake and redeem another cake (similarly priced) for free. Go download your WeChat if you haven't already! With deals like these, no reason not to join the bandwagon.

Here's how you do it.

1) Once you've downloaded the WeChat app, you'll need to create your ID. Once you're done with that, search for "SecretRecipeMY"

2) Follow them!

3) You will see this visual on their WeChat account - that's the ongoing deal.

4) Click on "Redeem Now" if you're ready for your cake galore ;) 

 5) Well, if you're sure.. click "YES"! and you'll be given an e-voucher. The visuals are easy to follow and as soon as you've followed them on WeChat, you'll figure out what to do. Hope this helped! x

The deal is only valid from 16th Nov until 30th Nov 2013 so, waste no time! Go download your WeChat app and head on over to the nearest Secret Recipe outlet. 

For more information, 

check out their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SecretRecipeMsia

If you have instagram, do hashtag #WeChatxSecretRecipe 

McDonald’s Begins Fairy Tale Adventure With Hello Kitty

Lo' and behold!

The Hello Kitty Craze is making a comeback! 

I'm pretty sure Hello Kitty is of no stranger to anyone of us. Hello Kitty ( ハローキティpronounced as Haro Kiti in Japanese ) is a fictional character produced by the Japanese company Sanrio, first designed by Yuko Shimizu. Hello Kitty is portrayed as a female white Japanese bobtail cat wit ha red bow and the character's first appearance on an item, was a vinyl coin purse, first introduced in Japan in 1974 and brought to the United States in 1976. Needless to say, Hello Kitty goes wayyy back in time. Definitely 'older' than most of us, or at least anyone who would be reading this post ;) 

Good news to all Hello Kitty fanatics! ( I noticed a few on my Facebook timeline already *wink)

Relive popular fairytales from your childhood with McDonald’s Hello Kitty Fairy Tale Series featuring the iconic plush Japanese white bobtail cat! In April, McDonald’s brought back Hello Kitty after a seven year absence with the McDONALDLAND series, and come 7^th November Hello Kitty fans are in for another treat! With five exclusive limited edition plush toys to collect, the McDonald’s Hello Kitty Fairy Tale Series is poised to excite collectors of all things cute and lovable with their arrival in Malaysia.

This time around Hello Kitty is set to entertain you and your friends by taking on the guise of characters from five popular fairy tales around the world: 

*make sure you mark these dates on your calendar! 

7^th – 13^th Nov         : The Ugly Duckling story by Hans Christian Andersen, Denmark

14^th – 20^th Nov       : The Frog Prince story by the Brothers Grimm. Germany

21^st – 27^th Nov       : The Wizard of Oz story by L. Frank Baum, United States

28^th Nov – 4^th Dec  : Little Red Riding Hood story by Charles Perraut. France

5^th Dec – 11^th Dec   : Singing Bone story by the Brothers Grimm, Germany

Each design, which comes in a special collector’s storybook-themed box, will be launched every week beginning from 7th November 2013, Thursday.

“At McDonald’s we are constantly attuned to what our customers want - providing the best value and dining experience for Malaysians in a way that is unique to us. The popularity of the McDONALDLAND designs earlier this year proves that Hello Kitty has always been popular – generations of Malaysians have been entertained by the Japanese bobtail cat,” said Stephen Chew, Managing Director of McDonald’s Malaysia.

 “Fans of Hello Kitty in Malaysia, the wait is finally over. For the next five weeks beginning 7th November, you have five good reasons to enjoy a great, wholesome dining experience with your family, friends and a limited edition Hello Kitty plushy at an affordable price of RM9.95, only at McDonald's,” he added.

The Ugly Duckling

Little Red Riding Hood 

Singing Bone

The Ugly Duckling 

The Wizard of Oz 

‘How do I get ‘em all?’

These exclusive official Sanrio Hello Kitty plushies are only available for a limited time and in limited quantities and are exclusive to McDonald’s. Each of the McDonald’s Hello Kitty Fairy Tale plushies are available for only RM9.95 with the purchase of any McValue Meal.

Purchasing Mechanics

• The McDonald’s Hello Kitty Fairy Tales Series promotion is available at Front Counter, Drive-Thru, McDelivery 1300-13-1300 and Web Ordering Service.

Availability of McDonald’s Hello Kitty Fairy Tales Series Promotion

• Toy designs will be available starting Thursday, 7 November 2013 from 12.00 midnight onwards for 24-hour McDonald’s restaurants.
• For the rest of our restaurants, the toys will be available at the start of its business hour on Thursday, 7 November 2013.
• The Hello Kitty Fairy Tales Series plush toys are only available WHILE STOCKS LAST.

I sure can't wait to get my hands on these Hello Kitty Tale Adventure collection! My personal favourite would definitely be The Wizard of Oz story by L. Frank Baum from the United States! Too cute to handle. 

Well, what else are you waiting for? Head over to your nearest McDonald's branch and get hold of these gems while stocks last! Only available for a limited time only ;) 

Comeback.

11.51pm, monday night with my never-ending responsibilities (wait, 'never-ending'? that's an understatement). The XX [Night Time] playing on repeat. Don't quite remember the last time I actually spent time with you my friend. Last post was on Bella's exhibition; everything seemed so perfect then. Well, almost perfect. Time passes by like a blazing storm; the next thing you know, it's gone. Far from gone. Hence, my hiatus. I've been spending so much time on myself. Yes, MYSELF. Self-discovery and lots of self-loving. Haven't done that for a while; a long while. So far so good. 

I am quite swamped with my trail of thoughts at the moment; I'll try to break it down, baby steps.

Life can be so brutal sometimes. Yes, I said brutal ; can be worse. Say like.. merciless, ruthless, heartless, remorseless, I don't wanna go on. The excruciating pain seems to be making a come back everytime I think about it. Drop that. You know, someone once told me "the one you want may not be the one you need"; but then, think again. Why would you want something you don't need? I need you, hence I want you, hence .. forget it. 

This isn't be best state of mind to be writing; no writer's block tonight but I just felt like it. Like, a part of me has long gone and I'm just trying to search for it. And if you're wondering, yup I'm still searching. Sucha hard to get lil brat. Darn it. 

[photo above] are my sentiments exactly. speaking what my mind can't figure out.

I torn between.. going on, rambling about things that will come to no end and stopping, here. Right here. And you know what, I'll just stop right here. Nope, this ain't going nowhere. 

Not the kind of blog entry you would probably expect from the usual me. I'll definitely be back for a (less) rambling post. Promise. 

Back to The XX. Here's some if you're keen too ;) x

Papillon 2013 | An exhibition by Isabella Tan

I meant to do this much earlier but so much has been happening on my side. Pretty insane I must say. Anyhewww, life goes on and it's an inevitable cycle that we all go through. That aside, the ultimate objective of this post isn't about me but a very dear friend/sister of mine who's organizing her very first photography exhibition - 'PAPILLON', which means butterfly in French. 

"A butterfly is a symbol of metamorphism and transformation. Its an idea of growth and emergence on beauty into the World". 

I will keep this really short and straight to the point. Just need to make sure we get the message across. Simple - do support her and show her some love by just attending the exhibition! That would mean the world to her, your presence :) This girl has worked so hard and has definitely come a long way. I've worked with her and I must say, she's one of the most professional and detail-oriented photographer I've seen. Despite her young and tender ( tender? haha! :P ) age, I can safely say .. she knows what she's doing. I mean, let's admit it .. she's definitely one of the many elite photographers to date. I'll let her photography speak for itself alright? x 

Here are a few of my favorites from our collaborations and some of her recent work that I found really impressive. There will be a lot more new artworks displayed during the exhibition, so do feel free to pop by! I was told that Dato Jimmy Choo himself will also be paying a visit tomorrow. So, more reasons to come by, no? ;) x 

This would be her very first photography exhibition, and probably the last one in Malaysia before she departs for New York to further her studies. I am beyond happy and excited! I guess everyone who knows Bella personally .. would know how much this means for her, and how much effort she has put in to make this happen. To put up an exhibition this huge, single-handedly? That's definitely not something a typical 19 year old would/could do. Two thumbs up for you hun! xx 

This exhibition records her growth as a young artist and the development of her creativity since 2011. She shares her behind the scenes work, never seen before images and what inspires her to become who she is today. I am glad that I am a part of this exhibition and I really hope the world/everybody else could see how I see Bella ; so much potential, so much talent .. and ( I'm sorry, I'm lost of words). I'll sum it up in 5 words? SHE'S A BALL OF JOY, if that even makes sense? Haha. 

Come join us at Papillon at Whitebox in MAP, Publika, Solaris Dutamas from 6th August to 8th August 2013. Admission is free and her work will be up for sale. 

Her conceptual pieces are really worth buying. You should really see it for yourself. But hey, I shan't keep you guys any longer. The anticipation awaits. Come and see the world through Bella's eyes. It's gonna be quite a ride ;) 

For more information, log onto: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/xbellanotte.photography

Website   : http://www.xbellanotte.4ormat.com/

Run in the City featuring Nike LunarGlide+5

It seems to me that most people today are striving towards a healthy and fitter lifestyle. Or at least, most people that I know of. We try our best to ensure a balanced meal, a 20-min workout a day at the very least, constantly motivate ourselves with fitness magazines, bottom line - everybody is striving to look good, physically these days. Sounds very much like myself, actually. Well, the bottom line is - working out is one thing, doing it right is another. 

To those who know me very well, should know that I am a total gym junkie. Anything to do with fitness, I'm definitely up for it. A marathon, a jog by the park, dodgeball, any sports or form of exercise for that matter. I never knew how important a shoe can be until I sprained my ankle during an incident months ago and I was inactive for a good one month. Trust me, it sucked. I felt so uneasy, fatigue and all I wanted was to get back to my second home (gym)! And when I did, the first thing I did was to run. And bam, I fell. Ankle weaken and I crashed. 

Then, I realized how important it is to actually have a shoe that supports you well. You need to get the right shoes for the right agendas. Some shoes are made for the gym, some are made for outdoor activities. Hence, you need to know what you're really looking for. 

From my personal experiences ( and common sense, of course) ; shoes with flexible soles/platforms are best worn for gym because in general, gym have wooden/carpeted floors that can absorb impact much easily. On the other hand, shoes with harder sole/platforms are best suited for outdoor activities where you move and get active on hard grounds (tar roads, grass etc) that are often rough and uneven. 

This post in particular, is about the newly introduced NIKE LUNARGLIDE+ 5. I was invited by Nike Malaysia along with another blogger friend, Esther Ng from youresty.com to try out their latest shoe technology. Prior to the event, we had a couple of surprises and I must say I was really impressed with their PR skills. Kudos to Milk PR and Nike Malaysia! From macaroons to gifts, which girl wouldn't enjoy surprises hey? 

The meet-up was held at KLCC Park and surely, there was no better place to try out the Nike LunarGlide. I felt like a kid getting cotton candy. Plus, the shoe we received was in my favourite purple /peplum colour. I couldn't be more excited. 

The LunarGlide+ 5

For runners with a midly to moderately overpronated gait, the Nike LunarGlide+ 5 delivers the stability and responsive ride of Dynamic Support, a two-part midsole system where opposing wedges of foam (Lunarlon and firmer carrier foam) move the runner from soft to stable as the heel lands and the foot flexes down. 

The shoe provides exceptional cushioning and support through the Lunarlon and Nike Flywire technologies. The Lunarlon system features a soft, light yet resilient foam core within a supportive foam for plush cushioning, springy response and needed support. Nike Flywire delivers an adaptive, glove-like feel and the Fitsole sockliner molds to the shape of the foot for a custom fit. 

Nike LunarGlide+ 5 for Women 

Nike LunarGlide+ 5 for Men 

Tried it, Loved it. 

My personal thoughts on the new Nike LunarGlide+ 5? I find it really solid, for a shoe. Stable platform and has a very good supportive system (especially when I know I'm having a weak ankle now). It has a pretty thick cushioning which explains why its so stable and comfortable. Stable landings and dynamic support system, plus plush cushioning - that makes up a perfect pair of running shoes. So, if you're looking for a running shoe, this pair should definitely be in your MUST TRY list. It fits me perfectly and I've been wearing it pretty often especially during outdoor sports. What I also love about this shoe has to be its lightweight and of course, the vibrant color is a plus point! ;) 

Well, need I say more? Go to any Nike outlet and try it for yourself! Sole Mate, now or never ;) xx 

Special thanks to Nike Malaysia and Milk PR for having me. It was a pleasure meeting everyone at the event and I definitely look forward to see everyone soon! Thanks again for letting me find my SOLE MATE! Till then! x