Upcycle my way here!

Assalammu'alaikum family, friends, readers and followers of this blog. I know... I have been "missing" again.. I am really sorry..

Well, while I was "missing", I found an old flame burning once again.. the flame of passion in sewing and creating something new, particularly, in upcycling old clothes that has been occupying the lowest drawers, or the highest shelf in the wardrobe.

Well I had the desire to sew, but whilst my mom was active, I couldn't as we would be fighting over the machine. PLUS, she is a perfectionist, everything has to be in a certain manner before anyone can touch her machine. So, now that she had retire from sewing for others because of her failing eyesight and sense of touch, I now have more control over the machine and can make a mess. However, I discovered that when you are into sewing, the mess really gets into you. So I ended up more and more like my mom, picking up nonsensical stash that was in the way (even it is not!) and put it into the stash trash. Then the scissors has to be in a certain way, at a certain position and if it is not, it spoils the whole momentum of sewing. This is TRUE!

I am far from a perfectionist, meticulous maybe, but never a perfectionist, so when it gets into me, I bet you it killed her when we mess her stuff while she was sewing back in the day, eh? Poor mom, sorry!!

Well, back in the day, my mom would usually watch me and breathe down my neck as I sew to point my mistakes - every SINGLE one of them! And most times, she get impatient and her OCD/Perfect self will push me aside and take over the whole project. So I learnt nothing but to complain and let her take over.

Now, it is different because of her failing sight and sense of touch, she HAVE to let me help her and she HAVE to let me learn. She let me do all the work, and if I am ever stubborn to not listen, she will still have the last laugh when I blurred myself out because it didnt go as planned. After she is all done with the cheeky smile and the evil laugh or the sarcastic remarks, she would come to me and tell me where I go wrong - AGAIN. So ya, NOW I appreciate and REALLY appreciate her correcting me. I learn a lot no matter how I deny.

So, what have I made so far? Well, apart from buying fabrics and more fabrics, I have done the following:

Pajama Pants

I have been holding on to this idea for many years! It was an almost fail - thank my mom for spotting my mistake early. hehehe.. I love this pants!!! LOVE it that I made a second pair, and probably will be making more!

Pin Cushion + Stash Trash

This is so practical! I love it and I use it every time I am using the machine. I feel that all seamstress should have this made for themselves!

Fabric Baskets

 Ah! These are my favorites! Easy (and addictive) to make and very very practical! It now holds all my sewing needs, my fabric stash, my scirssors, my rulers, chalks, pins, etc. And once I get my hands on great interfacing material, I will be making much more than just a pair!

A caddy

This I made though I doubt I'd use it (at least not yet). It is a little flimsy as I didnt have any interfacing, but a good try! This can be used on a stroller or the back of any chair!

Heat/Cold packs

My shoulder and back were aching, so I figured I neeeded these. I made two, one to keep in the office and one to keep at home. It was indeed very handy! I used uncooked rice and mixed it with essential oil (I used lavendar + lemon for home and lavendar + peppermint at office).

An instant hijab

That was a little proud moment, I shall say! Although it was not the right fabric (I bought poly cotton and it was stiff - needless to say! Not like my mom didnt warn me). I like it anyway, it proves me that I can actually sew my own instant hijab, and I will indeed make more once I get my hands on the CORRECT fabric - people are advising me to get Rosepeach, Bsline, Cotton Voile or Sildoll material. We shall see what I can get in the next fabric shopping day, okay?

And last night, I finally braved myself to get back to my upcycling habit and did this:

Old jeans = New Skirt

Yup, I upcycled an old jeans, and turn it into a new skirt, just by using 1 yard of fabric. It turns out pretty, I should say! This, my mom havent seen, she'd force me to her serger the next time I want to do this, which means I need to precut the add on fabric. That scares me! Haha.. I am always afraid of precutting my fabric and serge them in fear it became too small.. This one I cheated by placing a rectangular piece beneath the skirt, pin them all up and sew them in place and then proceed to cut the excess and sew in the hem in place. Oh wells, I guess we all have to learn when one is living in with a prefectionist eh?

So wish me luck in this new journey! I have thousands of idea in my head, but hardly any time. Led someone to say that I am way to hype!

I guess I am meant to create stuff... Just that I have not that much luck in selling anything. Most of my businesses has no sales, I couldnt even tell why.. because the next person who came to me, took my items and sell it off no problem at double the price. And yet I struggle. Even with ads, even with promotions, and engagement... I failed. I was probably just not made to sell, but just to create, and help. Maybe.. And of course, I am meant to write and share!

So.. The long weekend is here.. What's your weekend plan??

Me? I am just gonna dig up old shirts and make them into skirts, maybe? We'll see..

Have a great long weekend, and oh! Happy Labour Day!

Wassallam,
Jun

Review on Muslimah Hair Salon(s)

Assalammu'alaikum family, friends, readers and followers of this blog. I know and well aware that I've haven't been blogging reviews for awhile now, in fact I have been "missing" for 4 weeks!

Been overwhelmed with a lot of work lately which means too much of late nights in the office.. Still, it is not an excuse, right? So here's to my many overdue reviews!!

We all know, I only patron Muslimah Hair Salon since I don the hijab except for that one occassion after my accident, in which I had difficulties and resort of some place I regretted patronizing.

What makes a Muslimah Hair Salon?

Privacy 

As Muslimahs, we are to protect our aurat, and hair is one of them. We don't wish for any males to peek in and watch our hair getting done. Therefore, a Muslimah Hair Salon needs to have that privacy covered, have their doors tinted to opaque, or have curtains to cover behind the doors. It is a MUST, definitely. 

To be honest, that is all it takes to make a Muslimah Hair Salon. Everything else may remain the same as any other hair salons you see out there. 

How many Muslimah Hair Salon are there in Singapore?

Hmmm.. With Mr Google helped, it led me to this list:

Faredah Muslimah Hair Salon 
Located at Blk 824, Tampines St 81

An Nisaa Muslimah Hairdressing Salon

Located at No 726, North Bridge Road

Yasmin Hair Studio for Muslimah

Located at Blk 326, Woodlands St 32

Jannah Muslimah Hair Salon 
Located at 970, Geylang Road

Salon Khairunnisa Hair Beauty & Spa
Located atKembangan Plaza, 18 Jln Masjid

Nora Muslimah Hair Salon
Located at Blk 491, Jurong West Ave 1

I have personally been to Yasmin Hair Studio and Nora Muslimah Hair Salon ONLY. And so I can only review these two mentioned, insyaAllah, if time permits, I shall give the other salons a try. And below shall me my utmost honest comparison and personal choice, ya. Both businesses did not pay me for this review, nor was I given any free services to do this review. All visits to their salon are personally paid for by my own hard earn money. Any discounts, however, is out of goodwill and is NOT in any way linked to my intention to write about them in my blog.

Yasmin Hair Studio vs Nora Muslimah Hair Salon

Location

Yasmin Hair Studio (YHS) 

Picture is taken from Muslimah Hair Salon FB Page

Rating 3 out of 5

Nearest MRT: Marsiling, about 5-10minutes walk.

Buses: 187,856, 925, 926, 950, 960, 961, 963, 966

However, for those with accompanying husbands, the place there has nothing for the husband. No where to sit, except a coffee shop (but I did not check if there are any Malay/Muslim Stalls). So if your husband is going to babysit the child while you are it, the husband better have plans to go elsewhere and not just around the area - well unless you stay around there. 

Nora Muslimah Hair Salon (NMHS)

Picture is taken from Nora Muslimah Hair Salon FB Page

Rating 3 out of 5

Nearest MRT: Lakeside or Chinese Garden

Buses : 335 from Chinese Garden, 49 from Lakeside MRT, other buses include: 98,99,157,185,187,198,334,502,542 & 657

However, for those with accompanying husbands, the place is great! Plenty of kopitiams. If he babysits children, he has an option to treat the children for MacDonalds! It is very nearby, so for SOS cases, like in exclusively breastmilk babies, he can just run to the Salon, and call you so you can rescue the baby, in within 5-10mins, probably less considering the emergency, yes? *winks*

My personal rating for NMHS is actually a 4, as it is near me (I am residing in Clementi), and the fact that it has more amenities nearby for husband and baby/children. 

Service

YHS

Rating 3 out of 5

Liza (the salon owner) is reserved and someone of little words. It is either the TV or the radio on to keep you company. Unless you ask her, she hardly talks. It depends how you see it, some people just want to get their hair done and nothing of a small talk kindda service, then perhaps this is for you with a 5 star rating. I often fall asleep after awhile because it is very quiet and falling asleep with a steamer in your head seems to make some sense. 

NMHS

Rating 5 out of 5

Nora (the salon owner) is total opposite of Liza. She is highly service oriented, and will keep you entertained even when you really just want to sleep while your hair takes the hour to steam up. Don't worry, you can just tell her if you really just want to nap, I doubt she'd bite you for that!

She can talk about 1001 things, you name it, she can relate! Her salon has a TV as well, so we ended up talking about more than just 1001 things. Anyhoo, she is one with a basket full of advice (hair wise!), if you are torn between ten haircuts, show it to her, and she will list down all the pros and cons considering your hair texture and even goes on to tell you what kind of maintenance that new haircut would cost you. However, decision is still yours to make, so it is ultimately your choice to heed her advice or otherwise. I went ahead with my bob as opposed to the suggested concave cut Nora suggested. Oh no, she didnt bite me. 

Treatment

YHS

Rating 3 out of 5

I had only done Henna Treatment, and nothing else. As mentioned, Liza is more reserved, so I guess there is no need to suggest anything more than what I want. 

NMHS

Rating 5 out of 5

I took up her promotion for the 3 treatments as follows:

Henna Treatment: Nora uses real fresh henna leaves, pounded to paste and left overnight to sit before she uses them to treat the oily scalp - this I can tell by the freshest smell of Henna. (Powdered Henna can smell strong, but it lacks the fresh smell. This I can personally tell as we used to grow our Henna Leaves back in our Pasir Panjang house, so I still remember how it is like to have fresh henna leaves pounded, the distinctive smell, you just cannot forget that)

Tree Tea Oil: This treatment helps balances your scalp to a neutral, leaving your head light and fresh.

Pearl Masque: For the delicate hair to remain silky smooth. 

The Verdict

Clearly, my personal winner is...

She won me at her location really. Having my husband to care for Baby M with the hot weather, for over 2 hours was clearly an achievement, I have never really left my husband alone with Baby M without me on the side keeping a hawk eye on both of them. Not that I don't trust my husband to care for Baby M, he clearly has so much for her. I just wasn't sure if Baby M can put up with the hot weather and if she can communicate with my husband if she wants milk or anything for that matter. So far, she has been amazing, and for the past 2 weekend or so, she has been telling us if she wants her milk.

And of course, with her way in keeping me well awake through the 2hours, I can hardly keep myself awake at YHS. I am coming back for a second session, no doubt! 

I am not sure if I would actually try the other salons, mainly because of the location.. East is too far for me la! 

Anyways, if you have been there, or if you have done a review write up for the rest of the other salons, please do share. We have got Muslimahs wanting to try yes? 

Btw, here are their FB Page for you to take a look at 

Yasmin Muslimah Hair Studio

Nora Muslimah Hair Salon

Have a great Hair Day, Ladies! And husbands, you should really let your wives indulge in some hair theraphy. It goes a long way!

Wassalam,

Jun

EDIT:
Assalammualaikum ladies, pls note that Nora Muslimah Hair Salon has closed shop. Refer to this entry for an update. InsyaAllah a new review will follow very soon about another Muslimah Hair Salon located in the west of Spore ya.

Wassalam