Beautyholics Anonymous » General

Are You A Made-In-China Snob?

Tine — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:30:08 +0000

This is a topic I’ve been mulling over for a while now, and I’ve been contemplating on posting it because of the repercussions it might cause. I cannot help but think that I am not the only one who thinks this way. I think I can safely say that most, if not all, of us own something that was made in China.

Here’s a funny story about something I have that’s made in China. I purchased a beautiful Coach leather tote in the US on my honeymoon a few years ago. This wasn’t bought at a flea market, but at a proper retail outlet. After I brought it home, I found this in the bag.

Was I disappointed? To tell you the truth, I was a little. I shouldn’t be surprised that a lot of brands now outsource their luxury leather goods to China for manufacture. Still, it was a bit of a letdown. Nevertheless it’s a beautifully made bag in buttery-soft leather, so I soon forgot about it.

A year later, when I was in Malaysia for my annual vacation, I happened to be at one of the flea markets in Penang, which is very popular for selling fake designer bags. Louis Vuitton, Prada and Coach were aplenty. I had a look at one of the “Coach” bags, and I was very amused to find a similar tag as shown above sewn into the lining the bag. However, this time, it said that the bag was “made in the USA”. So, real Coach bags are made in China, and the fake ones are made in the USA!

I’m a snob when it comes to skincare products and where it’s made. Many months ago, I was sent a product for review, a very expensive night cream I might add, and on the side of the box it was stamped “Made in China”. I was apprehensive in slathering that on my face, so it’s currently going on my neck. I’m glad to say that my neck did not break out in hives, and the cream is working well. But I did judge the product initially because of where it was made.

A Juicy Couture merino dress I bought from Net-a-porter

A similar issue that irks me is purchasing clothes in Australia. As many of you know, Australian brands like Portmans, Sportsgirl, etc are expensive compared to brands like Zara, Topshop, ASOS, Forever21 etc. However, when you check the Aussie labels, you’ll find that you’re paying a premium for clothes made in China. I’ve seen this on Australian designer labels as well, and it’s something I don’t understand. If the clothes are made in Australia, then yes, I understand why we pay a premium, because labour costs are high. However, labour costs are significantly lower in China, so why are we paying so much for designer goods that are outsourced to China?

You’ll think that this whole post in about China-bashing. I don’t oppose to the fact that yes, it is far cheaper to outsource products to China to be manufactured, but it stings greatly when we have to pay a premium for them when it only cost them a fraction of the cost to make.

Still, you cannot beat globalization, and I simply cannot avoid the fact that if I wanted something, 90% of the time, it will be made in China. I’ve made my peace with that. As long as I don’t have to pay an arm and a leg for it, I”m good. But I do draw the line at skincare products.

What about you? Are you a made-in-China snob? Does it matter to you where the product is made?

Recommended reading: Deluxe – How Luxury Lost Its Lustre by Dana Thomas

Update: I’m afraid I wasn’t clear as to the objective of the post, which also means I have inadvertently caused offence to some. It should have been worded better and explained further. My apologies.

I know what the Chinese are paid for their labour; a mere pittance, and it’s a sad and cruel fact. It isn’t a practice we should condone.

However, I was writing as an Australian consumer, and I question the reason we pay a premium for things here that are made in China. The old saying “You get what you pay for” doesn’t really work here. E.g if I were to pay $100 for a dress from a popular Australian high-street label, I expect good quality wear, right? That’s often not the case. Many-a-time, the fabric is cheap, the sewing shoddy, and lo-and-behold, the label says “made in China”. But it’s not a designer label! So why does it cost $100? I don’t know.

As a consumer in Australia, I often find myself on the short end of the stick, because I find that I have no choice but to purchase low quality items at high prices. Surely I can buy something else; buy Australian-made goods then, if I’m too big for my britches to buy China-made goods. I would love more than anything to support the local industries and buy locally-made goods, but that’s not always possible as Australian-made goods are expensive.

We don’t know what goes on behind the scenes (and we’re not supposed to know!), but at the end of the day, our hard-earned dollars should go to something that is of good/reasonable quality. And if it’s high-priced and low quality, my answer is no. Regardless of where it’s made.

Celebrating the Chinese New Year with Red and Gold Nails

Tine — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 21:30:00 +0000

Happy Chinese New Year from Beautyholics Anonymous! Today marks the first day of the lunar new year, and this year is a particularly auspicious one as it is the year of the Dragon.

As Chinese New Year celebrations aren’t that big a deal in Australia (no public holidays. Boo!), this year’s festivities (in my house, at least) will be kept to a minimum. Maybe a new outfit or two is all. Still, it’s nice to wear something more festive to celebrate the lunar new year, and for this, I’ve done up my nails in red and gold.

I can’t do nail art, so this is the best I can come up with. I was thinking of drawing a dragon on my nails, and remembered that I can’t even paint my nails properly, so … nah

I used OPI Bogota Blackberry and Face of Australia Molten Metallics in Gold

If you’re single, I wish you lots of angpows (red packets) this year. If you’re married without children, here’s wishing that you don’t have to give away many angpows. Last but not least, if you’re married with children, here’s wishing you get more angpows than you have to give.

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

Happy New Year from Beautyholics Anonymous

Tine — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:00:08 +0000

May each day in the week be a good day
May the Lord always watch over you
And may all of your hopes turn to wishes
And may all of your wishes come true

May each day in the month be a good day
May you make friends with each one you meet
And may all of your daydreams be mem’ries
And may all of your mem’ries be sweet
- Andy Williams

Here’s wishing you a very blessed 2012. Stay healthy, stay safe.

Love,
Tine xx

2011: The Year That Was

Tine — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:00:03 +0000

I was going through my archives contemplating on doing a wrap-up post for 2011, and I realised what a truly eventful year I’ve had. The exciting parts mostly came from blogging, and the opportunities I’ve had were amazing. I’ve met more people in a year than I normally would in three. I’ve done stuff I haven’t done before and discovered some really good products (and some duds) along the way.

So here’s what my 2011 was like.

Jan: A wee mention on Vogue Australia. Lost weight during CNY as I was sick.
February: Discovered NARUKO skincare and love it.
March: Met Kelly Cutrone in Melbourne

April: Had my first surgery under general anesthesia. It was a bit of a health scare when I discovered a big lump in my left breast a couple of months back, and finally had it removed.
May: Beautyholics Anonymous turned 4.
June: Discovered the Holy Grail of foundations. Well, for me, that is. Started the Bloggie Wednesdays series. Received my first trinket that comes in a little blue box.
July: I literally flew to Sydney to get my hair done. Attended the Nuffnang Blogapolis 2011. It was my first big blogger’s event, where I was in the minority group of beauty bloggers
August: Had the awesomest (and longest) makeover and watched a fab musical. Interviewed the brand guru of Soap & Glory.
September: Had my face lasered for the first time. Attended the inaugural Australian Beauty Bloggers Weekend and finally met the beautiful bloggers I’ve been tweeting, whose blogs I’ve been stalking, face to face. Wrote an article of IMATS 2011 for Beauty Directory.
October: Tried my hand at microdermabrasion and loved it. Went to Sydney for a P&G event at Barney Martin Hair Studio once more. Had a taste in what making a shampoo TV commercial was like.

November: Attended one of my favourite events of the year – the Melbourne Beauty Blogger Event 2011. Met Kate Morris of Adore Beauty and was starstruck by her awesomeness. Started doing FOTD posts more regularly.
December: Holiday in Malaysia and Singapore. Caught up with ParisB and Beetrice. Almost had a chance to finally meet Nikki of Askmewhats but missed her again (I’ve known her ever since I started beauty blogging and yet I’ve never met her in person). Gained all the weight I lost beginning of the year back. Ugh.

2011 Trends I Love:

Minimal colour blocking. I once saw LeGeeque wear OPI’s Mermaid’s Tears on her nails, against her bright coral shorts and plain white tee.It worked beautifully.
Bright coral lips
Reverse french and half-moon manicures.
Leopard-print. Actually, any form of animal-print. Faux, of course, darling.

2011 Trends I Don’t Get:

Colour-blocked shoes.
Platform open-toed wedges, especially the bright-colored suede ones.
Crackle/shatter nail polish (I think it makes the nails look dirty)
Leggings as pants. Not a particular 2011 trend per se, but it’s one that should die. Repeat after me: leggings are not pants. I don’t want to inadvertently see your camel toe or VPL. And for heaven’s sake, don’t bend over!

Beauty Treatment Discoveries:

Had my face lasered, peeled and did a bout of microdermabrasion, first time this year. Not all at once, of course. Gave me better results than heaps of facials did. I’m a convert
My hair fell to the hands of Jacky Chan of Oscar Oscar Salon and it has never looked better. I have found The One.
All hail the eyebrow queen, Allison Browning, for giving me amazing eyebrows, when before, they looked like bushy caterpillars residing on my forehead.

All in all, I think I had a pretty good year, don’t you think? I just know 2012 is going to be even better.

Happy New Year, folks

I’m Back Baby!

Tine — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 03:28:51 +0000

Hi lovelies!

I’m finally back from my month-long holiday in Malaysia. Can’t believe I’m actually saying this, but man, that was one holiday I wished was shorter. Suffice to say, half of it was really good, and half of it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea (halfway I was already wishing I was home). That thing about needing a holiday from the holiday? Oh yeah I’m wishing for one right now.

Posts should resume very soon. At the moment, I just need to clean up the house (Tim living as a bachelor for the week I was gone meant that there’s quite a lot of tidying up to do), get everything sorted before I go back to my routine, which I’ve been craving for the past two weeks. I’ve been unpacking and realised I may have purchased too many beauty products this time (if there’s even such a thing ). You’ll know what I mean soon.

The amount of mail I came home to. It felt like Christmas again

I hope you’ve had a wonderful Christmas and am looking forward to the new year. I sure am!

Catching Up

Tine — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 23:00:04 +0000

I’m giving myself a bit of a break from Bloggie Wednesdays for today. I’ve had quite the past few weeks when the parents were in Melbourne for a visit. Four people sharing one tiny bathroom and toilet? Not fun. But other than that, I had a great time with them, and I’m missing them heaps already (they left for Malaysia yesterday morning).

Here’s what I’ve been up to in short:

Went to Chadstone Shopping Centre a lot with the parents. It was too hot to bring them to the city, so we enjoyed free air-conditioning at Chaddy. Hey, I’m Chinese and I’m cheap like that
Last weekend, we spent a couple of days at Tasmania, specifically Hobart. It was a good time to show Mum around the city, especially since my brother used to study at the University of Tasmania. I absolutely enjoyed Tassie. It’s an underrated holiday destination, and I’ll definitely be back to check out the east and west coast.
I finally managed to pack every item received at the ABBW away! This was a big feat, as you saw how much stuff were given to us. Just don’t open the drawers in the study, be extra careful sliding the wardrobe door open, and never ever look under the bed, okay?
I was up in Sydney yesterday with Val and Amy for a Proctor & Gamble event at the Barney Martin Hair Salon. Guess what? We actually had a chance to recreate the Pantene Aqua Light hair commercial you see on TV, and this time, it’s us swishing and swooshing our hair!

That me doing my thang!

It was also good taking a bit of a break from the blogging front. I felt like I needed to recharge the blogging batteries for a short while. For some reason, I don’t feel 100% charged yet, but I’m getting there

Before I leave, here’s a photograph I took at Mt Wellington overlooking the city of Hobart. I snapped a few pictures, stitched them together and formed a panoramic shot. ‘Tis a pity I didn’t do this when I was there last winter. The mountain looked more beautiful with snow on it. Still, it was a lovely sight to behold.

Click image to enlarge

Have a good hump day!

I’m Back From The ABBW!

Tine — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 12:30:53 +0000

Hello all you lovely beautyholics!

Just a very quick and short note for now, as I just came home from what was one of the most awesome weekends I’ve had in I-can’t-remember-when. It was the long-awaited Australian Beauty Bloggers Weekend (ABBW), and let me just say, I’m overwhelmed by all of the beauty bloggers I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. I kid you not, they are such gorgeous people in real life.

I’ll do a wrap-up on the weekend very soon, but for now, I need some sleep. And to unpack.

Stay tuned!

Another Year Older

Tine — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 00:03:56 +0000

I turn 31 today

Beautyholics Anonymous On Facebook!

Tine — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 23:06:12 +0000

Whaddyaknow? Beautyholics Anonymous now has a Facebook page!

I’ve been contemplating a Facebook page for a while now, ever since I see all the awesome beauty blogs out there which have Facebook pages too. Yes yes, call it bowing to peer pressure, because I too caved

Come to think of it, it’s a great place for me to upload all the photos I haven’t had the chance to show you before. There were events which I attended that I’m afraid I missed the boat on blogging about it (some events should have been blogged about right after, which I obviously did not. My bad), and with the events come the photos. I’m uploading pictures as we speak, so please do check it out.

I will also be posting any news of launches and giveaways on the Facebook page, so you’ll know about it first.

So do come check out my Facebook page, and if you like it, please well, “like” it!

On another note, who’s watching the Royal Wedding today?

*sheepishly raises hand*

Greetings From Malaysia!

Tine — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 08:35:48 +0000

Hello hello and a very happy Chinese new year to all!

Just a short note to let you know that I’m still in Malaysia for the holidays (in case you were wondering if I have fallen off the face of the earth). It’s been a roller coaster of a couple of weeks, with a couple more to go. As much as I enjoy my time here with family and friends, I’m pretty homesick and am quite ready to go home. Many thanks to LeGeeque for checking up on our house for me during the storm and flash floods last week.

A few updates:
- The inevitable question looms “So, when are you having kids? You’re not getting any younger. So and so already have two/three/four. When you conceive when you’re older, your kids aren’t going to be that smart“, etc. Yes, complete WTF-ness to the last comment. My answer? “I want a dog. Period.”

- Fell sick on the first week of the holidays. Haven’t had a cold in over a year, and I get a full-blown one on the first week. No Chinese New Year goodies for me this year. Sigh.

- Shopped a storm and given a LOT of pressies. Mum gave me two bottles of Chanel No. 19 (one eau de toilette and a miniature eau de parfum). Love!

Can’t wait to show you what I bought and my holiday photos when I’m back in Melbourne. I didn’t bring my laptop back with me this time, only the iPad, so blogging with photos is a bit of a problem.

Hope you’re all doing well, and to those celebrating the lunar new year, you have ’till the 17th (the 15th, and last day of the Chinese New Year) to keep eating before you go on that diet

tine xx