Unfolding June's Folder

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Octa Hotel after work

I met up with reg babe after work one day at Octa Hotel. It was my first time there as I didn't join her and karen the other time.



Octa Hotel is a misnomer since it isn't a hotel. Instead, it's a cafe cum shop à la Japanese-Parisian fashion.



[Photos courtesy of karen who snapped them the other time]

The place looks so quaint and pretty, it's definitely a cute little hang out for the gals to bond over delightful tea and cakes. Once you set foot in there, you could almost assume the role of an aristocratic lady (or an atas tai tai in local lingo), sipping fine tea from exquisite tea cups and adopting an accent so high class the unseasoned ears cannot discern.

With the atas tai tai in mind, Octa Hotel offers in-house designed apparel, intricate accessories, unique bags, homewares and many others imported from all over Europe in their boutique section.

The menu isn't extensive especially since we were there for dinner instead of tea.



I forgot which main dish belonged to whom for we shared them. The Parisian hotdog looked so good but never judge a hotdog from the way it looked. The taste was alright and the bread was so hard, it was impossible to slice through it with a knife. I kept sawing at it only to penetrate till the crust. Hence, I tried biting bits of bread off, feeling pain in my incisors thereafter. The triangular piece of bread up there was very hard too but at least it was thinner and easier to bite off.

I feedbacked to the staff about the bread and I really hope they do something about it.

reg said the mushroom soup was good the last time she tried but it wasn't as good that evening. The royal milk tea was frothy and creamy. I liked that quite a lot, only that I accidentally added too much sugar.


A parting shot of us




She gave me a belated birthday gift in the form of a comme des garcons T shirt.




While I usually see people clad in the iconic single heart logo T shirt, I actually like the play bird series with black birds which resemble the crow --a bad omen-- leaning a little towards the unconventional which I'm absolutely fond of.

Thank you babe, for knowing my taste!


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The Cellar Door with bei & xtina

xtina wanted to meet us and have a last group photo taken with us before she shaved her head for the Hair for Hope event the following month. We decided to meet up at Vivocity for dinner and bei suggested The Cellar Door.



As its name suggests, The Cellar Door is a supplier of wine and is also one of Singapore’s top cheese and gourmet food wholesalers in addition to having its very own acclaimed restaurant & delicatessen.

We didn't have any wine coz we weren't really in a wine-sipping mood. The food was deliciously healthy. Who says health and taste do not go together?



I lurve the shaved ham and the sauce that drizzled in between. The bread was a tad hard though. After encountering an aching incisor the night before (from devouring the hot dog bun), I wasn't quite ready for another round of bread biting. Have I already mentioned that I've got very weak teeth?

When I feedbacked to the waiter about the bread, bei giggled at me and said the bread was meant to be like that and that I should not have asked them not to toast it too much the next time. But, my teeth seriously could not take it.


My teeth would crumble like dinosaurs' bones after this.




bz bz bei on the phone for work




xtina trying not to look sad




We decided to arrange a lounging and dipping in the pool session at bei's house during the day time for we haven't once been to her place in the day. That would be the very last time we would see her beautiful house for her family would be shifting.



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The impromptu prawning session

One Friday night after work, I checked my hp only to see 2 of my bimbos asking if I was gain to join them for a late night prawning session.

Thinking that the whole jin gang was there, I hurriedly rushed home to change into comfy T-shirt and shorts and scooted off to Hai Bin U Enterprise at Bishan even though I had to work early the next day.

The whole jin gang wasn't there but half of them were, plus two other of gera's frenz who were friendly peeps.

It was a fruitful prawning session. Tiffy caught so many prawns; she was practically casting her line and plucking prawns from the hook every other 5 minutes while jq and I who were flanked on her left and right respectively just stared befuddled at the whole scene.



After that, I got lucky and started catching quite a few. I even caught the biggest one. [Refer to the one with the biggest head in the photo that says "prawn monster".]



From experience, freshwater prawns NEVER EVER tasted good when bbq-ed at the place itself for there was no seasoning available. However, nobody wanted to bring the prawns home so we had to bbq and eat the prawns there and then.

Fortunately for us, someone left a packet of salt by the pit and so we had a fun time "marinating" and cooking the prawns. The prawns were sooooooo good! That was the best bbq freshwater prawns I've ever eaten.


jq always does funny things when we least expect...




The dog there gave birth to a litter of 3 and I managed to "catch" one innocent-looking puppy which could remain still and not appear blurry for the camera to capture w/o flash. I strongly believe in refraining from using flash on animals.


Smiley puppy left its dirty paw print on my thigh





It is obligatory that I post this coz tiffy and gera said I had to announce on my blog that wet tissues are definite life-savers in grimey situations like catching, bbq-ing and eating prawns.




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Father's Day dinner

It's funny how mummies are always pampered on Mother's Day and birthdays but daddies are conveniently forgotten.

My dad is one no frills man. Whenever we want to arrange an elaborate dinner, he would insist on eating zi char at some smokey hawker centres or coffeeshops.

Everyone loves eating zi char so nobody would insist otherwise too. We ate at this place which my parents termed as "Serangoon block 151".



It was such a long wait that every dish tasted delicious due to our sheer hunger. As usual, I would always call the shots for greens and so my favourite dishes are the simple stir fried dou miao with garlic and the broccoli with scallops. Oh, but I do love the toufu minced meat and beans as well as the salted egg crab too.

My dad used to look sleepy-eyed for flash photography so he decided to deal with this by opening his eyes real big and asking whoever's behind the camera if he looked sleepy before snapping. The result was looking like Joker from Batman.

My dad wanted to pose with a thumbs up to say that the food was good so my mum had no choice but to follow suit. *LoLz*



While my 2 sisters didn't wanna join us coz they think it makes no sense taking photos at the "Petwalk" sign.

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1st ever departmental lunch at New York New York

It was the first time the dept was at its biggest and so we requested for permission to have a longer lunch out to hold a farewell lunch of our temporary 小弟 and 小妹 staff.

Sigh... The longer I work here, the greater the age gap between the temp staff and me. The next batch would be born in the 90s! My gawd.




I feel so blessed to have such nice colleagues in the Eng Dept.




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A splashing good time

The long awaited R&R day has finally arrived. I can't believe how we could all meet up on my weekday off! Thanx bei and xtina for arranging your schedule to fit.


Lounging around indoors... being surrounded by water and lush greenery all around really soothes the soul.





Love you gals!




Attempting a quirky arty shot... bleah... failed miserably.




After that, we went to chill on the jetty in the backyard. Only then did I realise that the water was crystal clear and small fishes could be seen darting about the rocks. I guessed we talked and laughed too loudly for the next moment, people opposite came peeking out of their windows. This ang mo set up his deck chair opposite and spied us spying on him.







Time for splashing fun! It was just the 2 of us as bei had to prepare for a dinner event in the evening.





Could you see that it was an infinity edge pool on the other side? It looked like we were swimming in the jetty!






What fun a fallen flower could bring!




bei was all dressed up...



... while we warmed ourselves and got ready to shower




After that, we went our separate ways and I met up with tiffy at vivo for a very belated birthday dinner.


We decided on Marché.




I haven't had Marché in at least 2 years and I miss their rosti and savory crepe. Yes, I know that it's really easy to make rosti but I just wanna eat rosti can? Tiffy recommended their pork knuckles which was supposedly good but I personally don't quite like pork knuckles after taking a few bites of it. For drinks, we ordered root beer for it seems to me that it is almost a ritual to wash your food down with Bundaberg rootbear at Marché.




My camera battery died and the following shots of us were taken using i-phone photo apps


BFF since 7 years old!




She bore an uncanny resemblance to Ah Ya (阿雅) that evening with her hair all tied up.



I know she doesn't like to be called 阿雅 but she's really cute and funny as a host in Guess Guess Guess (我猜我猜我猜猜猜). The show is just different w/o her around.





My reaction when I opened the bag was "WAH! Why you gimme so many things?"




And she said something along the lines of coz I deserved it and that there's no price tag to friendship.

[Tiffy, what exactly was it that you said?]





I lurve how smooth Estee Lauder Perfectionist makes the skin feels.

The coach lanyard is currently strapped around my neck during working hours.

I haven't used the Slatkin & Co Island Margarita as well as the CyberWhite mask but the refreshing lime cocktail scent of the former is currently perfuming my wardrobe unwittingly.


2nd batch of gifts which she gave me the next time we met up after her Japan trip. I think she's really crazy but I do love crazy people.




Outfit for the day



I paired the edgey print shirt reg gave me with a girly frilly skirt. It's a clash but do I look as if I care?


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The story of EOA Day & the kitties that accosted me

Whenever I walk to the bus stop, I would cut across the playground in the estate.

And whenever there were these 2 particular cats around, I would be accosted by them.


Here goes the 1st part of the story:



curled up on the sit up bench

leapt down

"goreng goreng" my feet

leapt up again

purred non stop in a cute gurgling manner

gave an affectionate rub to my hand

and then pretend to look so cute

Then, it decided to follow me as I walked, stopping as I stopped and trotting along as I walked.




2nd part of story:




cutie



After that, "moo moo cat" followed me till the road and I had to run when there wasn't any car. Usually they won't cross the road but they did once so I didn't want to take any risk.

And so, I was super late to meet my eng dept colleagues to make a very quick "banner" for our 小弟 and the other 2 HQ temp staff in the same team.


Behind the scenes...










The finished products


Let the games begin...




Our company's version of Don'f Forget the Lyrics




Blue is good...



Not sure if you can view the gif which shows pass and fail in Chinese characters.


Some highly entertaining copy-the-leader game.




A series of obligatory group shots...










Look alike? I drew that, so please tell me they look alike.




When I returned home that night, out popped these 2 sneaky little cats again, from the drain this time. No doubt, I was accosted by them once more.




outfit for the day



My mum-in-law is so cute. Sometimes when she comes across cheap (definitely less than $10) but somewhat fashionable clothes which she thinks would suit me, she would grab them.

Her mentaity is:
Buy first coz so cheap.

She always maintains that even if I do not like them, she will find some use for them and it's no harm buying since they're cheap. Most of the the time, I would wear them but there was once or twice they didn't fit me. She very easily found someone who could give the clothes better days.

Unfolding July would have to wait coz I've not even started on editing the photos. There are really other more important thngs to do.

The chronicles of the army gals, a zombie army boy and a misshapen gaga

Greetings from the warriors!



For a preview of my look, click here.

This year, we ditched our usual hitting the clubs for some island spookfest in Sentosa Spooktacular.

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Some snippets of information for my international readers and the uninitiated locals:

Sentosa, which translates to peace and tranquility in Malay, is a popular island resort in Singapore. Attractions include pristine white sandy beaches, the Imbiah look out, Fort Siloso, two golf courses and two five-star hotels. It is also where the Resorts World Sentosa (where the casino is) and Singapore's only theme park --Universal Studios Singapore-- are located.

Click on the Sentosa official site to see a beautifully illustrated 3D map of the island.

Now a beautiful attraction, Sentosa is rumoured to be haunted at certain areas. Its old name, Pulau Blakang Mati, which in Malay means the "Island (pulau) of Death (mati) from Behind (blakang)" does sound ominous, don't you think? Historical accounts suggest rampant piracy, murder, diseases and infertile soil as the reasons for its name.

This is just my personal opinion but I do hear that most of the ghostly sightings come in the form of WWII ghosts.

During the Second World War, the island was a British military fortress. Following the surrender of the Allied Forces on February 15, 1942, the island became a prisoner of war camp, housing Australian and British prisoners of the Japanese. During the Japanese Occupation, under the Sook Ching Operation, Chinese men who were suspected, often arbitrarily, of being involved in anti-Japanese activities were brutally killed. The beach at Pulau Blakang Mati was one of the killing fields.

Over the years, many sighted soldiers marching out from nowhere and disappearing. Well, I do hope people that night did not see other soldiers except for us. Anyway, I do love Sentosa since young because I had many fun-filled excursions there as a young child. I loved it whenever, my school organised such events at Sentosa. The whole island has certainly changed a lot since then and many of the old attractions are now defunct or demolished to make way for the resorts.
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For the Halloween Spooktacular event, the highlights included turning some places at the Imbiah Lookout into ghosts trails.

Haunted Trail 1 -- The Merlion
Ordered by the first late ruler of East Asia, a powerful curse was cast upon the forbidden island of Pulau Hantu to prevent the theft of the world's most sought after treasure. For centuries, many have battled through raging storms, death traps and unknown mystical creatures to steal the treasures but all have lost their lives. Will you be next the next to sink or swim?

Haunted Trail 2 -- Images of Singapore
Since the 1950s, there's been a wax museum that's rumoured to be haunted. Inside, a disfigured wax artist is said to be turning people into wax figurines. They say that there is nothing scarier than being waxed alive, but it's up to you to find out. Only if you dare.

Haunted Trail 3 -- Images of Singapore
Back in the 1960s, there was a local village with a Bomoh who was obsessed over finding a cure for her mentally ill husband. She experimented on villagers using black magic and witchcrafts. The nightmare began when both she and the village turned crazy. Do you have the guts to fight off the insanity?

Haunted Trail 4 -- Tiger Sky Tower
They say that something terrifying is in the air. The higher it gets, the more the horror escalates. Get ready for a truly haunting experience of sight, sound and light!

[Credit: http://spooktacular.com.sg/index.html]


Putting some "hallo" into the "ween". How could we give up dressing up just coz we're not going to a party?






The making of SALT.







My edible fake blood recipe:

1. Cochineal liquid food colouring.
   They don't call it red! I had a hard time looking for RED colouring in all the supermarkets.


2. Karo Corn Syrup
   It's totally clear unlike using corn starch


3. Corn Starch (optional)
   I tried this with the red first to see if the chalkiness would affect the effect of the blood. It did somehow.


4. Hershey's Chocolate (in a squeeze bottle)
   This thickens the blood and adds a hint of brown to the otherwise bright red solution.

My wound recipe:

1. Plain flour dough
   You do know how to make dough from flour and water right? When dough is elastic, pull some amount out, spread and shape it over the part of your skin where you want the wound/ scar to be. Remember, it doesn't have to be uniformed. No scars are.


2. Red, yellow & blue body paint and brush
   Paint on the colours till you get the wound effect.


3. Eyeshadow of various bruise and wound colours to blend
   The wound effect may look a little 2D. Use eyeshadows to create depth.


4. Liquid glue
   To hold the dough on and to make sure it doesn't fall off when dry.

Disclaimer:
The dough method was not thought out by me. Most of the videos I watched on youtube used theatre wax and rubber prosthetics for wounds. We had no time and had to improvise. Then, I stumbled onto a girl's video where she suggested using dough. She cautioned about the risk of having the dough dropping off when it dries. Hence, we improvised by smearing liquid glue over the whole wound, followed by fake blood. Our wounds lasted quite long as you can see.


Voila! We're done!


Next 2 shots were taken by my little (19 years old but little in my eyes) brother-in-law who was quite amused by our enthusiasm.


We look cool so now what we need are cool codenames.




Our codenames for the night



Don't you know? You can't address one another by name or the ghost would call out your name too.


Finally we reached our destination.





The island was teeming with humans of all shapes and sizes, races and religions, young and old. It was the first time I saw so many people at one location in Sentosa. There were snaking queues for the trams and buses. Many were wowed by our themed dressing and wounds. As it wasn't a partying event, 98% of the visitors were not dressed up and so we stood out like a wounded thumb.

Pun totally intended. I know it's supposed to be sore thumb

We do see some people wearing various hats and headbands. I recall a huge guy who wore fairy wings. A group of cool people dressed similar to gothic Visual Kei with darkly lined eyes. A huge entourage of 15 wore black cloaks, one of whom called out to me before I realised it was the sister of my buddy.

Some kids were scared by our wounds and we had groups of parents approaching us and explaining to their kids in closer proximity to us that our wounds were not real while requesting for us to tell the kids ourselves as a proof that they weren't lying. I thought it was hilarious.

Most people just pointed at us and went "Army girls" or "GI-Jane". Some could actually whisper among themselves if gera was "Lady Gaga" while Tiff was ecstatic when someone called her "Lara Croft". For that whole night, she was so proud of her outfit.

Funny incident #1
The girl manning the tram queue asked, "Are you girls from the Spooktacular team?"





We finally met and recruited zombie army boy into our team




Funny incident #2
Army zombie boy was sitting against the pillar waiting for us and people actually wanted to take photos with him thinking he's part of the Spooktacular team.


The Spooktacular journey begins...




As no photography was allowed in the "haunted"trails, you only get to see photos of us while in the queue.



When every meamber of the team was present, we embarked on a perilous journey to take on the ghosts and ghouls. First stop was to comb the haunted asylum, not knowing what to expect.



There were some house rules to follow like no snapping pictures of the ghosts or they would follow you home, no touching of the ghosts as they would not touch you as well (BIG FAT LIAR!), covering your head and squatting down if you're afraid and could not bear with it while help would be on the way.

I hated all the sudden jumping out from nowhere and ear-piercing scream and would jump up when these happened. However, I kept myself sane by reminding myself that these were just people in disguise and after that I was pretty fearless.

I hated the creature that looked like one of the undeads from Will Smith's I am Legend. We used our guns to mock-shoot it and it pretended to fall down dead. When we continued walking for at least 6 metres, it suddenly stood up with a hunch, screeched and sprinted towards us in a werewolf-like manner. CHL and I were the last in the line and we actually ran. Zombie boy came to the rescue by planting himself in between us and that vermin and I dunno what happened after that for CHL and I had since ran out of that area into the next room.

That was the only time I felt my heart in my mouth. Salute that actor!


This is a triumphant shot of us after taking on the ghosts and ghouls.




Everyone wants a piece of zombie boy. He's like Frankenstein, parts sewn together and could blend in with the other beings without notice. In fact, he even pretended to be the ghost in the trails. He was so into character and did not laugh a single bit even when we were all laughing away hysterically.




A group shot before scaling the Tower of fear



The queue was even longer than the asylum due to the limited number of people the ride could hold at any given moment.



We got so bored in the queue that we decided to die of boredom by killing ourselves.




This was totally not scary at all. We were half expecting ghosts to crawl under the seat or all over the window but there was nothing of that sort. Instead, we were treated to the beautiful city nightscape of Singapore while thrilling music crescendoed in the background, coupled with a play in lighting. However, we were more of looking at our reflections and doing actions in accordance to the music. It was a downer ride but we were cool coz it usually cost $28 to take the Tiger Sky Tower ride on normal days.







Next on our list was the Wax Museum trail where needless to say, there was an extremely long queue. When the attendants suggested for half the people in the queue to visit the Merlion instead as the queue was shorter, we insisted that it might not have been that haunting and hence the reason for the short queue.

We lamented that we were disappointed by the Tower of Fear and did not want to be disappointed again too soon. The attendant himself blurted out, "No la. It's not as bad."

"Not as bad?" We were even more determined to stay put after he uttered that. If the time ran out, at least we would not feel unjustified forgoing the Merlion trail.




Everyone said the Wax Museum was really good so I went in with high expectations. I felt the wax figurines were more eerie than the actors. The former simply looked like they had a live of their own too. There was a part where there was a bottle-neck effect so we could hear the other groups screaming in the rooms ahead.


Sick of our cool look? We'll smile for you.




Last stop was the Merlion. It was way past the closing time stated on the ticket but we went there all the same. There was a non-existent queue and one of us asked if it was closed. To which the attendant said,

"If you're ready, we are ready for you."

Yippee! So we needn't forgo anything after all.



It was quite a fun location and seriously underrated. The ghosts were so bored with the lack of queue for this location that they even answered us when we talked to them. By right, the actors had to get into character and were not allowed to talk to visitors. However, the ghosts there were all rule-breakers. Me likey! I screamed at one of them right in the face in a taunting manner (Yes, I know I'm very annoying) which led it to follow me all the way. I felt somthing tapping me continuously but I refused to turn. When it got impatient enough, I heard someone calling my name!

Then, the "tapper" drifted past me, stood in front of me and glared angrily. So I asked politely, "Excuse me, can you let me pass?" He did not budge. I tapped his left arm motioning him to move aside. He then drifted behind Lara and I kept hollering to her not to turn since she would have assumed that I was safely behind her. She kept her head down and refused to look at him too. I pitied that ghost for all his scaring efforts were futile. In the end, he stopped and held the the door open for us to the next room.

If you're wondering about the calling out of my name, it was actually one of my frenz who wanted me to see the dejected look on the "ghost's" face since his attempt to get me to turn was fruitless. Haha... Did you just think that the "ghost" knew my name? =D

The ghosts in the next room were topless (they were all guys...duh) with disshevelled long hair and had eyes painted all over them which glowed under the UV light.. They moved in a trancelike manner as if under a spell. They started crowding around us as if to "devour" us.

I peered at their faces and suddenly exclaimed, "I love your eyes! Are they painted onto your lids?"

All along, no ghosts answered me whenever I spoke to them. To my surprise, they answered in a hissing growl, "Nooooooooo..... They are opennnnnnned....." They then blinked their eyes a few times for us to see the difference.

"Cool!!! How do your real eyes glow like that?" I enthused.

"It's the lights..." moaned one of them in slow mo.

They then started pulling lightly at and twirling Gaga's hair moaning that they loved her hair as we slowly made our way out.

Love the ghosts there! We even bade one another goodbye.


One of the few "outside" ghosts who got accosted by us



I dunno why we didn't really accost the other outside ghosts to snap pictures. We were probably too enthusiastic to reach the queue.


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Pre and post thoughts:

The majority of us hadn't planned to forgo clubbing entirely and thought that this event would be a prelude, with the actual partying as planned on the 30th since most clubs usually hold their halloween event on the Saturday itself.

As there were only limited dates available and one of us could only make it on the 30th which rules out any partying, there was some accomodating to be done.

All of us knew that the fun in all our halloween comes during the making up process. It was an unspoken tradition to gather at my place (currently my parents' home) every halloween. We could spend 3 to 4 hours dolling up and helping one another with the make up while laughing hysterically till our sides split due to all the funny little comments that we made. I really relish these moments. My family members would be very entertained by us and would constantly popped in to see what we were up to. My amused sisters would start snapping pictures of us, adding to our storage of memories.

I felt a little disappointed at the turn of events but was determined to keep up with the tradition. I started pondering about whether we should include dress up this year. I discussed with tiff and we kept thinking along the lines of island theme, comfortable outfits that would not cause too much perspiration in humid places, comfortable footwear for trekking and something cheap and practical.

Then one fine day, "army" just popped into my mind. It matched all the criteria and the best of all, we could still look cool with bags to put our stuff. Moreover, most of us have existing army green stuff and only needed to add on some accessories. Army-related "costume"could also be worn out on normal occasions so no worries on wasting money on costumes. Plus I got to use my black lipstick in the end.

The rest was history.
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How did you spend your Halloween? Did you dress up? Did you go for some haunted trail? I would love to hear from you!

Halloween 2010 Preview

Here's a preview of my look this year.

Theme: Army

Code name: SALT (Slashing and Lashing Terminator)

Brief summary: A group of army gals, 1 zombie army boy and a misshapen Lady Gaga went on a mission to Pulau Blakang Mati, which in Malay means the "Island (pulau) of Death (mati) from Behind (blakang)", to annihilate the ghosts, ghouls and walkng deads there. More on their adventures later! SALT has to recuperate from her injuries while waiting for her comrade to send her the photos from last night.


Mission accomplished!



Injuries sustained from a night of slashing and lashing:


scratch marks and a deep slash from some creatures


Those evolved undeads were highly intelligent. They actually knew how to make bombs. I got struck, landed on my right with thigh and face disfigured. Just the perfect excuse to go for plastic surgery.

unflashed


flashed


nasty wound on the thigh


MEAT


Side Note:
#1 These were taken at the end of the night and hence the peels and cracks.
#2 I'm not able to view some of the pictures on my laptop saying I've violated some photobucket terms of use. Not sure if you're able to view the photos.

Ba Ba Black Lips

The other night, I was fiddling around with my anna sui black lipstick and decided to attach some dramatic lashes to be bottom lash line too just for fun.


flashed



unflashed



I can't imagine myself wearing this colour for it stained my teeth, my hands and whatever that brushed past my lips.

For this year's halloween, we are not doing the usual dressing up at my place and going to some clubs thereafter. Hence, the black lipstick would have to wait for the next time.


Why do they have such perfect black lips???

Wedding Ang Pow Guide 2010

I found this wedding ang pow guide from 8 Days magazine (Oct 7 2010; the one with Jacelyn Tay's wedding on the cover) really useful. I hope that my local blog readers who don't read 8 Days would find this useful too. For my clueless non-Chinese international readers, giving a red packet (ang pow) with a token sum is imperative when attending a Chinese wedding. Ah, you learn something new today! =)



The information is extracted from the magazine with minor expressions changed while trying to retain its sense of humour. Words which are of my own are indicated clearly in brown italics.


Venue & type:
Atas coz it's new or kinda new

For example:
Marina Bay Sands, Capella Singapore, St Regis Singapore

How much to give per person:
$170
(as it costs about $1700 per table)

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Venue & type:
5-star hotel acting like 6

For example:
Fullerton, Mandarin Oriental, Resorts World Convention Centre, Ritz Carlton, Shangri-la

How much to give per person:
$130 -- $160

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Venue & type:
5-star hotel

For example:
Conrad Centennial, Four Seasons, Fullerton Bay Hotel, Marriott, Grand Hyatt, Grand Copthorne Waterfront, Pan Pacific

How much to give per person:
$100 -- 130

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Venue & type:
4-star hotel

For example:
Furama Riverfront, Parkroyal on Beach Road

How much to give per person:
$80 -- $100

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Venue & type:
Lunch reception

For example:
church buffet, hotel buffet

How much to give per person:
$60 -- $80 (catered buffet)
$80 -- $100 (hotel buffet) *

*Jo's views:
I've had friends holding wedding luncheons at hotels and such luncheons could cost as much as the dinner banquets. Not many people know this and make the mistake of giving too little. With that, I reckon it would be better for you to find out the rates and give accordingly if you're the kind who follows the "market rate".

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Venue & type:
Chinese restaurant

For example:
restaurants under Tung Lok group

How much to give per person:
$70 -- $80

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Venue & type:
Others

For example:
non-chinese restaurants or a rented venue with sit-down western meal

How much to give per person:
$100 -- $120
(These are generally ala carte, not package deals, which rack up costs)

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Further notes

1. The above rates are based on banquets held from Friday to Sunday which is considered as prime period and thus more expensive.



2. Many hotels have a wide price range. The Ritz Carlton for example, has tables costing from $1300 -- $1500. Since there is no way of knowing if a wedding couple has opted for high or low-end menu, the calculations above are based on an average. Whether you want to give a bigger ang pow or smaller one depends on your reationship with the couple and your um... generosity.



3. For the very kiasu/ kiasi, call the hotel to ask for rates when you get your invitation cards. Prices are based on estimates; please take this guide with a pinch of soya sauce.

Variable factors

Wedding is on Mon--Thur:
Give 90% - 95% of the weekend rate.

An immediate family or BFF:
Add 50%.

A hated sibling or frenemy:
Subtract $50 but add $20 for his/ her other half since they're doing you a favour by extracting that person from your life.

The wedding couple gave you peanuts for your wedding:
Return the favour but check the inflation rate. Upgrade from cashews to macademia if necessary.

You're obviously a last minute, seat-filler:
Deduct 30% and make sure you eat more

You RSVP-ed but can't make it at the last minute:
Give the full amount -- ask a friend to deposit an ang pow on your behalf

It's the wedding of your ex who got away:
Don't go. Add 50%, then send an ang pow as above. Keep yourself very occupied that night

It's the wedding of your ex who cheated on you:
Go but give nothing

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Other Things to Know

What inflation?
We expected prices to have gone up this year. Surprisingly, they mostly stayed the same

$150 is the magic number
As a general rule, give at least $150. Anything below that might not cover for a wedding dinner at a decent hotel, once you throw in other things such as photography, a good wedding band, and the premium tipper.

Write your name
According to Chinese tradition, you're required to write your name on your ang pow, say wedding planners. It's also nice to write a simple wish, such as "Congrats! This is the end of your life as you know it."
Don't think about slipping that anonymous red packet into the box at reception -- we know brides who go through the ang pows and check who gave how much. She'll either think you didn't give an ang pow, or figure out you're the one who gave the paltry 50 bucks.

Jo's views:
Since I'm at the age when people around me are all getting married, it would be good to use this as a rough gauge of how much to 包 for the wedding couple.

Of course, some of you may argue that it is the obligation for the couple to throw a banquet and they should not be expecting the guests to help cover their costs/losses (whichever way you want to term it). However, I always believe that we should "懂得做人" and try as much as possible to help the couple cover their costs for at least the banquet portion.

I do take into consideration the financial status of the couple too. If they're rich enough and could afford to throw their wedding at a 6-star hotel that costs a lot per head, I feel that guests are not expected to give accordingly to cover their costs for the banquet. Similarly, if a less well-to-do couple hold their banquet at a Chinese restaurant or even cater for buffet in their homes, I wouldn't simply follow the rate but to give more to them instead. Of course, relationship with either of the couple counts so I tend to give more for good friends too.

I know of friends who have to attend so many weddings in a year that they think they would go quite broke should they follow the market rate so closely. In cases like this, I would always suggest giving within your means and not to worry so much coz really, it's the thought that counts.