Recently the owner of the doll house (image below) contacted MIndChic Club because she was going back to London and wanted to find a new home for her beautiful Victorian handmade doll house.


Images provided by owner

It comes with gilded ceilings, wooden floors, wall paper and molding. The doll house has about USD3,000 worth of materials in it.

The owner would prefer that the new owner is someone who can appreciate all the work and continue to add on to the doll house. A donation of SGD500 is not compulsory but would be very much appreciated by the owner. She also has 3 boxes of materials and extras, including beautiful lights to go in it. 

If you love miniatures, you'll love this! Contact us using the contact form at this site or via email to Support@MIndChicClub.com if interested.

Be quick, First come, first serve!

Table Tennis for Kids - New Class opens on Jan 20!
Bishan Sports Hall on Fridays, 8pm to 10pm.

• Small Class Size (max 4 students)
• Conducted by qualified and very experienced China Coaches with competition and teaching experience.
• Your Children will love the class environment as they interact with other kids too.
• SGD250 for 5 sessions (total 10 hours) i.e. $25 per hour.
  

Sign up now! Limited seats!

No of Students

1 Student $250.00 SGD 2 Students $500.00 SGD 3 Students $750.00 SGD 4 Students $1,000.00 SGD

Or click to find out more.

It's the beginning of a new year and time for some nostalgia. Heh heh...

Remember how the MIndChic Club! website looked when we first started?

Click on image to see larger version.

- "Oi, MIndChic Club! - er ... is it for kindergarten children?"

- "You guys can't afford graphic designers, is it?" (Actually, the answer was 'Yes" <sheepish grin>)

- "Joking right? Like that, how do I even dare to tell my friends? And I don't even want to comment about those 'stick man' at the top of the page, believe me, you don't want to hear what I've got to say."

Ok, you folks know we take feedback very seriously.

SO ... we changed it to this:

Click on image to see larger size.

But then, 
- "MindChic Club! That half naked woman at the top left, ... porn site is it? "

- "Somemore "Chic" sounds like "Chick", then combined with that naked women, must be porn site lah.

- "Looks cooler than the first version, but not sure if I really like it"

Duh ....

So ... again we listened, and people, the site you are looking at right now is version 3.0.

And we still take your feedback very seriously. So keep them coming.

Then remember the fun we had?
Go-kart

"Enjoyed my session for the exciting Go Karting experience. Wish I have driven faster and better....maybe better luck next time."
- by Ng Yew Kong, who is also an excellent photographer. Click to read more.

Paintball

"Cover me!!!!” Never thought I would shout these words whilst clad in army-like outfits!
- by Tan Su-Anne, who is also a great go-karter. Click to read more.)

Red Pill

- Singapore Boring? Take the Red Pill.

- Table Tennis

Check out Legendary Table Tennis Immortals - Battle at Yishun Sports Stadium!

- Contest (remember this one?)

I turn my head to the left, I don't see nobody by my side. (Clue # 1)
Click to see the whole contest, it has dragons too. :)
Btw, that photo was taken in Singapore.

It's been a great ride. People, Thank you for your support. It really isn't easy trying to start something from nothing, and with very little funds too.

In appreciation, we're giving out Five Outdoor Portraiture Packages , each worth $350 for FREE. It can be used for casual or corporate shots, single, couple or family. Five winners will be selected randomly. Offer valid in Singapore only.

If you want the chance to win, "I want my MIndChic Club Ang Bao!" in either our Facebook Page, Google Plus Page or just send an email to our every ready support@MIndChicClub.com . Your choice. Last accepted entry is on Jan 15, 2359hrs.

What if you don't win? Don't worry, we'll have a special promo for all who entered. 

p.s. We're reactivating our "update via email", it's been out of action for the last 5 months. It goes out this saturday, if it is a super long email, please accept our apologies. It should go back to normal length after the first run. We're really sorry, programing the email list thingy is a real nightmare. Any experts out there?

p.s. Also, we're thinking of holding a Go-Kart Race, probably in 3rd week of Feb. It's been a while since the last one and I know some of you are smiling right now. :)

btw, we're open to working with other interested parties too. Let us know.

Happy Chinese New Year in Advance. Hope you like this Ang Bao.

- The MIndChic Club Team!

As always, notwithstanding the festive season, December in Singapore was damp, dark and a tad gloomy. The recent woes suffered by the SMRT didn't help a single bit.

Hmmm ... "Elephant Parade Photo Adventure@Marina Bay - Sunday 18 Dec 9am-12pm", how on earth was I going to get there with all the MRT disruptions? If you recalled, train services were only slated to resume at 11am that day.


MRT on a good day ...  faster than a speeding bullet! :)

Over the years, our MRT has become so ingrained in our lifestyles that many of us face "home imprisonment" if the train stops running.

Possible wet weather ... a really long walk from the nearest bus stop, I decided to ditch most of my gear and only brought my trusty Nikon D7000, the multi-purpose 18-200mm, a small Canon G12 and left most of the space in my backpack for wet weather camera and personal gear. 

So what's this "Elephant Parade Photo Adventure" all about?

Did you know that there are 162 brightly-painted elephants happily nesting in various parts of Singapore? Of these, 50 reside at Marina Bay, Raffles Green and Asian Civilisations Museum area! Our mission was to capture them with our lens. Five photos will be selected to win a 10cm miniature elephant and be featured on Marina Bay Singapore and Elephant Parade’s websites & the upcoming January issue of Marina Bay’s Fun Finder e-zine!

The Hunt Begins

<cue> Music from the reality show "Survivor".</cue>
Elite Photographers ... brought together in the Marina Bay area ...
faced with humogous beasts ... all will be stretched to the limits,
working to the same goal, to capture the best image of the day!

30 Image Hunters ... 50 Elephants ...
but only 5 photos will survive  ...

And so the hunt begins ... on a very cloudy day.

Photographers at the "Elephant Parade Photo Adventure" in Action!

Group Photo - back view, why must it always be front view? :)


Determination is her middle name ...


but I am just as focused ...


Aiyo, so focus and determined? Look at me, only one hand!


You folks can go duke it out, we already got our pics, heh heh. Now, if only someone could lend me a comb.

More Elephant photo hunters in action.


Hey Richard, you were supposed to be taking pics of the elephants, right??
Ok, ok, here they come ... an entire herd of them ...

The Elephant Herd Arrives.


and these are my favourites:

I just like the colors ...


Alien vs Predator?


This is part of an elephant in the parade, do you know which one?

And finally some R&R at the Fullerton Hotel after a really long photowalk! 

This was where I started to miss my faster lens and speedlight ... but still heaps of fun!

My thanks to the kind folks at Marina Bay Singapore, Elephant Parade Singapore, Asian Civilisations Museum, URA and The Fullerton Hotel, it was really fun and I enjoyed myself.

p.s. Hey David and Geng Hui, thanks for the company in the tunnel while it was raining, I would have been bored to death without you guys. :)


Well people, I'm not sure when the elephants are going to be taken down, but you might want to go grab your friends and family and create your own unique Elephant Photo Adventure this weekend or sooner!

by Richard Chai
My-Right-Eye-is-a-Viewfinder.com

Other related blog posts on the Elephant Photo Adventure:

• Elephant Parade Photo Adventure @ Marina Bay! by Darren
• Elephant Parade Photo Adventure around Marina Bay by Calvin Timothy
• Elephant Parade Photo Adventure@Marina Bay by James Moon

If I've left any out, do let me know.

Click here to know more about the Elephant Parade.

Two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Dollhouse Miniaturist Pei Li over a cup of coffee. Having seen her work before, I was quite excited at this chance to catch up with her.

Like all Decembers in Singapore, the weather was gloomy and it didn’t look like it was going to get any better soon. But when I reached Starbucks and met Pei Li in person, her  bright and cheerful personality quickly lifted the dark clouds that had earlier dampened my mood. She gamely took out her beloved miniatures and that marked the beginning of a very tight race against time to complete the photo shoot before the weather gods inevitably would pour out their grief in soulful howls.


- That's a real Singapore ten cent coin in the right corner.

Pei Li's journey into dollhouse miniatures started in 2005 when she began to collect Playscale Re-ment Toys.  Intrigued by how people could make beautiful things that were so tiny, she began to research more about miniatures and took her first class in creating miniatures using Paperclay.

Although her early attempts were miniatures that were not made to scale, she gamely kept on improving her skills.  Step by step, she eventually succeeded in creating one inch scale dollhouse miniatures, each one more beautiful and intricate than the last. Her passion ignited, Pei Li realised that there were so many things that existed in real life, that she could find joy in creating as miniatures.

- Dainty food miniatures on a push cart that makes my stomach growl with hunger pangs.

"A lot of people think that clay miniatures are just about using clay to make food items, but that is just one component. Instead, I view myself as an interior decorator in a one inch scale world. Not only do I need to learn how to make things using clay in one inch scale, but I also take extra care in visualising the theme and design so that I know how to place the items, how to build your own furniture and even backdrops", said Pei Li.

"It's almost like creating an entire room", she added.


- Ok, ok, I'm gonna forget about my diet plan. I gotta get one of these macaroons.

MIndChic Club!: "What was the first item you made when you first started creating miniatures?"

Pei Li: "I started with making a loaf of bread. As I gained experience, I began to focus on the intricacies and details of bread itself; to make it look as realistic as possible. After that, I started experimenting on "Big Set Pieces". These are a lot more challenging because colors have to match, accessories and placement has to be in balance to match the overall concept."

- Fee fi fo fum, the giant comes for high tea.

"To date, I have sold many miniatures the most expensive piece I’ve sold so far, was a display shelf with about 20 plus cupcakes, all arranged nicely, that was sold for roughly USD250.",  Pei Li revealed. For newbies, Pei Li added, "Pace yourself, I think that is very important, don’t rush. Find out what you really like in clay miniatures, and try to find inspiration from them.  Sooner or later, you will reach a point where you will need to find your own style to distinguish who you are as an artist and this becomes your brand, your style in the marketplace."



LEARN to make lovely Dollhouse Miniatures in a delightful afternoon with the ever cheerful and friendly Pei Li!

by Richard Chai
My Right Eye is a Viewfinder!
MIndChic Photographers!

Sneak Peeks of the Flower Dome, Gardens by the Bay while at the 20th World Orchid Conference!

The 20th World Orchid Conference (20th WOC) was indeed a spectacular extravaganza of flower power featuring a plethora of colors, sizes, shapes and varieties from all over the world.

For 8 days, thousands of beautiful orchids were displayed at the Marina Bay Sands convention centre. To be more precise, it was 50,000 orchids of 5,000 varieties and the event drew an attendance of over 1,000 delegates and about 300,000 visitors.

Also, 20th WOC ticket holders got to get up close and personal with Singapore's latest jewel in the Marina Bay Area and I certainly didn't miss the chance to do so. :)
Gardens by the Bay does kind of looks like Jurassic Park, doesn't it? :)

"Flower Dome @ the Gardens by the Bay"

A place where you would be enthralled by nature in its full glory, where plants bloom in perpetual spring, flowers mesmerise in seasonal spectacle and the air is scented with the sweet aroma of flowers.

Well, both the Flower Dome and the Gardens by the Bay are currently closed to the public until June 2012. Told you to go for the 20th WOC, did'nt I? ;)

In the meantime, do enjoy the 20th WOC Orchid Olympics pics below. (updated with new images!)
Related News on the 20th WOC:
20th World Orchid Conference ends on high note

After a wait of 48 years, Singapore hosts the 20th World Orchid Conference for the second time! 

For just 8 days, from Nov 13 to Nov 20, the Sands Expo and convention Centre has been transformed into a magnificent garden filled with beautiful orchids from all over the world. And if you think it is just rows after rows of potted plans, think again. Highlights such as "Orchid Olympics", "Market Place" and the "Flower Dome Preview" drew in huge crowds.

Orchid Olympics.

55 displays from 19 countries compete for the 20th WOC awards, the most prestigious awards in the orchid world!

Young or old, male or female, they were all here toting camera phones to small compact cameras, all the way to high end DSLRs. I even spotted quite a few with tripods, fully intend in their quest to capture the beautiful orchids from all over the world, at the highest image quality.

Share your photos by posting it on our MindChic Club! Facebook Page and stand a chance to win a place at a Photowalk (Buddha's Tooth Temple), guided by prominent photographer William Cho.

MarketPlace

Adjacent to the show, a floral shopping haven awaits . 80 vendors from 17 countries peddling a wide array of orchids and related products!

Flower Dome Preview

From Nov 14-20, for eight days ONLY, WOC visitors get to be among the first to preview the Flower Dome at Gardens by the Bay, ahead of its opening in June 2012!

Don't miss out on the chance to get a sneak peek, admission ticket information can be found here!

Thanks to Juliana Tan (URA),  Clara Poh and Kirsty Haken (Hill & Knowlton) for the kind invite and facilitation! And not forgetting my good friend, William Cho for the kind use of the beautiful image of the Gardens by the Bay you see above.

by Richard Chai
www.My-Right-Eye-is-a-Viewfinder.com