rinnah’s consumer views|what a consumer really wants and thinks about products and services

Recently, I attended a wedding function at Cititel Hotel, Mid Valley.

With no offense intended to the bride and groom, I personally do not fancy Cititel as a suitable venue for a wedding reception. My reason? Cititel is a hotel that caters primarily to business travelers and tourists looking for a centrally located hotel between KL and PJ. Also, I am not a big fan of Mid Valley Megamall and its surrounding areas. However, I was prepared to give Cititel the benefit of the doubt when I received the wedding invitation card.

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My poor experience with Cititel began the moment I drove up to Mid Valley. Following the directions to the hotel’s main lobby, I attempted to locate the entrance to the hotel’s parking. For reasons known only to the hotel management, the signages directed me instead straight into Mid Valley Megamall’s basement parking. This meant that I would not be able to get my parking ticket stamped for a flat single entry rate (MYR 6.00, I believe) and instead would have to pay Mid Valley Megamall’s hourly rates. And it was not because the hotel’s section of the basement parking was full, as I saw a number of empty spots available.

The poor experience continued at Cititel’s lobby. You know how most hotels have a little signboard telling you what kind of functions are going on for that day? Well, again I couldn’t locate one to tell me at which floor the wedding reception would be held at. Not very visitor-friendly, I have to say.

The final thing that sealed the deal for me was the poorly installed backdrop on the stage. You know how there normally is styrofoam lettering on a curtained backdrop telling you the nature of the function? Well, less than half way through the function, one of the styrofoam letters fell off into the foliage below because it was not stuck on properly. Less than half an hour later, the whole styrofoam board on which the date was printed, followed suit. So you have a bare backdrop to the stage because the sign fell off. I think it was a case of shoddy preparation on the hotel’s part.

Would I hold a function (of any sort) at Cititel, Mid Valley? If I had a choice, no.

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I was out at Mid Valley Megamall today and my, the place was packed! It could be for two reasons that I can think of : 1) The Malaysian Mega Sale; and 2) the extra long weekend due to a public holiday this week.

I actually try to avoid Mid Valley as much as possible because I dislike the road system which makes you go in a circle round around the area just to find the particular entrance / exit you’re looking for. Also, finding parking on weekends is a tremendous hassle and there isn’t anything special or unique at Mid Valley that I can’t find elsewhere. However, I’ve been forced to go to Mid Valley lately because my salon, Empro, has moved their outlet from Sunway Pyramid to Mid Valley. Needless to say, once I have finished up my remaining sessions, I won’t be repurchasing for the simple fact that I don’t fancy having to battle my way into Mid Valley once every month or so just to get my brows done.

Previously I parked with less hassle at The Gardens and today I discovered that they had increased their parking fee since my last visit! The charges for Premier parking are now MYR 7.00 for the first 3 hours. Talk about exorbitant! I could pay just slightly more (MYR 10.00) and probably get valet parking at 1Utama for an unlimited amount of time. Undoubtedly parking at the Premier parking section is plentiful and the facilities are well-kept with bright lighting, well marked parking spaces and a high-tech electronic system that tells you exactly how many parking bays are still available, but I do balk at paying such high fees and be limited in the time that I wish to spend at the shopping mall.

It looks like I have even less reasons to patronize Mid Valley Megamall and The Gardens in future.

Ingredients : Amebia euchroma, roselle, verbena, patchouli, petitgrain, eucalyptus oil, beeswax, olive oil, grape seed oil

Description : It can reduce eczema and detoxify when used externally. This soap is created for those who develop prickly heat easily and whose skin is too oily and dull. For people with acnes, prickly heat, eczema and itchiness due to unknown causes, inflammation, allergic skin and athlete’s foot; also kills bacteria, stops itchiness and heals wounds.

Recommended retail price: MYR 22.50

+++++
My review :

When one is an eczema sufferer, you’ll find yourself willing to try out just about anything to stop that itch!

I first read about Yuan handmade organic soaps on MyWomenStuff.com and immediately thought of trying it out since it was reputed to help eczema sufferers. But as it was not easily locatable at that point of time (only at selected organic standalone shops), I did not go searching for it. However, I was pleased to find a whole selection of Yuan soap being sold at BodyBar on one of my forays to Tropicana City Mall.

Originally I intended to get the Wild Patchouli soap as I had read a blogger review on this particular soap that said that it gave relief to someone with hand eczema. However, Noor, the sales assistant at BodyBar, introduced the Purple Gromwell & Roselle soap to me instead, mentioning that it had helped other customers with eczema. So that’s what I purchased instead.

Firstly, if you’re not used to traditional Chinese herbal medicine, be forewarned that the Yuan soaps give off a very strong herbal smell which lingers in the bathroom after you’ve finished your bath/shower. However, I like the smell, so it doesn’t bother me at all. Using this soap in the shower, I find that it doesn’t lather up like the normal varieties of soap, which is a plus point in my opinion. Also, it left my skin feeling clean but not tight, although I did feel that it dried out my skin more than my regular dermatologist recommended Oilatum or Eubos cleansing liquid. All those were plus points for me.

However, there was just one thing that bugged me about using Yuan soap. Technically the soap variety that I bought - Purple Gromwell & Roselle - was supposed to help with eczema problems. How did that work out for me? Not too well. I found that using the soap tended to aggravate my skin after my shower, leaving me with a strong burning/itching sensation at the areas where my skin was affected with eczema. It was totally not the kind of reaction I had expected. The burning/itching sensation would start the moment I applied the soap and lasted for up to 30 minutes after I’d stepped out of the shower. Not even applying my normal moisturizing lotion immediately could halt the burn/itch. I did find with some experimentation, that showering with hot/warm water increased the sensations whilst cool/cold water helped to calm down the skin somewhat (but still with the burn/itch sensation). Despite the irritant factor, it might be helpful to note that at all times, my skin did not become inflamed (red) nor did my eczema grow worse, just that there is the discomfort of an underlying sensation of burning/itching. Some might say that it is an indication of the healing properties of the soap at work, but I personally feel that my skin is not suited to the soap.

If Yuan soaps work for you, that’s great, but for me, the search for a compatible product goes on.

Yes factors : Unique selling point, herbal smell, all natural ingredients
No factors : Quite pricey, not easy to find, herbal smell, may irritate sensitive skin

Read other blogger reviews on Yuan soap (other varieties) here :
Paris Beaverbanks
Sesame

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It’s been little over a month since the soft opening of Tropicana City Mall, the newest shopping mall in the Petaling Jaya area. Having visited the place on four separate occasions, I feel that my thoughts and impressions of the mall are ready for publishing.

How to get there
The mall’s website offers a map on how to get there (refer to picture below) but frankly, I find it a little misleading. Why?

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One : The access road from Jalan Damansara over the Sprint highway is in the midst of construction, and therefore not usable at the present moment. By looking at the map, I am given the impression that the road is ready for use.

Two : The map does not indicate that if you’re making the U-turn from SS2 side, the road barricades actually prevent you from turning into the parking lot and there are no further signs to indicate how to get into parking thereon. I wish that the mall management would consider putting up more/bigger signs to indicate the entrance to the parking as people might miss it if they’re driving too fast.

Parking
Right now, parking is FREE and plentiful. I find parking there to be a breeze although those with larger vehicles may find the parking lots to be on the narrower side. However, there are plans by the mall management plans to charge MYR 1.00 for the first 4 hours and MYR 1.00 for every subsequent hour in the future. I have a minor gripe about the exits though. The signs telling me that there is an exit to SS2 actually works out to be a further distance in driving as compared to when I exit directly onto the LDP highway using another exit. Confused? You bet I am.

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Tenants
Main anchor tenants of the mall include Carrefour, Borders, Best Denki, Nichii City and Kitschen at the moment. GSC will be opening a cinema hall there, so that might be more incentive for me to stay for longer periods of time. I find it odd that there are NO fast food tenants in this mall save for Kenny Rogers Roasters (Wendy’s has yet to open), and higher class eating outlets like San Fransisco Steakhouse, Sushi Tei and Santini are more prominently featured. However, that being said, I find that Tropicana City Mall actually has a pretty good mix of tenants. Oh, another minor gripe of mine - why is it so hard to locate Carrefour? I almost forgot that there was a Carrefour in the mall, it is that isolated by itself.

Facilities
Having a highly visible mall directory near to exit points like lifts and escalators would be good. I spent some time wandering around the mall on my initial visit just looking for one particular store. It was a bit frustrating for me as a shopper because I want to know where I’m going to save time.

Oh and the toilets are located behind closed doors some distance down an isolated corridor away from the main mall, which is not very reassuring for female shoppers. Also, on the two occasions that I went, the toilets were extremely wet (think flooded!) and had faulty taps/pipes, which should not be the case for a new mall. For that, the toilets get a thumbs down from me. I’d rather hold and go elsewhere, it’s that awful.

Overall
I think Tropicana City Mall is more of neighborhood mall than a place of attraction mall. I’ll probably end up there only if I have an objective in mind, that is to get/do something there. Otherwise, if I had a choice, I’d rather hang out in 1Utama (same parking fee but longer hours) or the Curve (more places to eat).

Tropicana City Mall
No. 3, Jalan SS20/27
47400 Petaling Jaya
Telephone number : +60 3-7710 1818 / 0101
Facsimile number : +60 3-7710 0202
Email address : enquiries@tropicanacitymall.com
Hours of operation : 10 am till 10 pm daily
Free shuttle service available from Kelana Jaya LRT station

Read other blogger reviews on Tropicana City Mall here :
Pink Elle
william (wN) Ng

It’s a pity, really, because I have a friend who swears by their facials and I really love her clear, flawless skin. But the thing is, every time I get anywhere near a Clarins counter in Malaysia, I get very put off by their beauty consultants. They don’t seem to realize that their service is the make or break factor for customers. The break factor for me was my bad experience with one particular beauty consultant as detailed below.

Clarins recently ran an online promotion (valid until 31 December 2008) giving away two samples of their skincare line, a hand massage and eyebrow grooming. If I’m not mistaken, it had to do with their “Clarins We Care” charity promotion? Anyways, I put down my contact information and printed out the e-voucher that allowed me to redeem the items above. My voucher told me that I could collect the same from the Clarins counter in Parkson KLCC and I headed there on a weekday after work with a colleague. My colleague also had the same e-voucher, but for some strange reason, hers was printed as the Clarins counter in Isetan KLCC. Weird.

Anyway, we went over to Isetan first, being nearer there and my colleague was attended to by a very sweet girl who mentioned that she was temporarily assigned there. All went well and we (my colleague and I) were quite pleased with her service. She did say apologetically when we asked that she couldn’t assist me as my voucher was clearly printed as redeemable at Parkson KLCC but I was fine with that.

So after we were done with Isetan, we walked over to Parkson KLCC, where we were greeted with an empty Clarins counter. No beauty personnel around. We walked around for a bit before coming back to the counter and saw one of the Clarins personnel come out from the door behind the counter. When we approached her to redeem my e-voucher, she brusquely said that I could not redeem the items listed on the e-voucher as I did not make an appointment. I then asked if I could just get the skincare samples - I was willing to forgo the hand massage and eyebrow grooming as I was more interested in testing out Clarins’ skincare products - but again, the beauty personnel brushed me off, saying that I could not get anything from them because I didn’t have an appointment and she didn’t have time to do a skincare analysis for me. Instead, she told me to go to the Clarins counter at Isetan KLCC to redeem the e-voucher. When I mentioned that we had just come from there but since my voucher stated Parkson KLCC I couldn’t redeem it there, the beauty consultant then said disinterestedly that I should come back tomorrow if I really wanted the products. I had enough of her uppity attitude and we left the counter.

I just can’t help but compare the difference in attitude and service rendered between the beauty consultants at Isetan KLCC and Parkson KLCC. It is also pertinent to note that my colleague did not make any appointment at Isetan KLCC before redeeming the exact same e-voucher that I tried to redeem at Parkson KLCC. What’s also interesting to note is that no skincare analysis was done on my colleague before she was given the skincare samples at Isetan KLCC. Hmm. Was it an oversight by the beauty consultant at Isetan KLCC or merely an excuse by the beauty consultant at Parkson KLCC?

Anyway, I don’t think I will be going back to Clarins for a long time, if at all, because of the attitude of one beauty consultant.

I got to thinking about prom dresses all because of a reference my pastor made last Sunday during the sermon. He was reminiscing on how some years ago, his daughter had a prom night for her final year of school. It was a big event and the family went shopping together for prom dresses and prom advice that he wished he could give his daughter’s friend’s parents because they forbade their daughter from going to the prom because they felt it was against their religion. I heard that the poor girl didn’t manage to attend her own prom. Gosh, that’s a bit harsh, ain’t it?

I thought that was sad because I can identify with that perfectly. You see, I never had the opportunity to go shopping for prom dresses, dressing up and attending a prom because there just wasn’t one to go to! My high school didn’t have one, and when I got to university, they didn’t organize one either. Maybe it was because I wasn’t a full time student - there were very few activities for us compared with the regular students. Now I keep on wondering if by any chance have I missed out on a once in a lifetime experience? No prom means no invitation. No invitation means no date. No date means no opportunity to try on prom dresses Jovani. No prom means no opportunity to vote for prom king/queen. No opportunity to whirl around the dance floor or boogie the night away. *sigh*

But if I had a prom night to attend right now (as if I’m not too old for it already!) I’d get me down to my good galpal Joanna’s boutique (which is now open in Tropicana City Mall, so near my old university!) and check out her selection of flirty, sweet and cute dresses. I reckon they’d be perfect as prom dresses and which girl wouldn’t want to look like the belle of the ball? I had my eye on this eye-catching dress, that while a tad more sophisticated than your average prom dress, was a stunner! Think a J.Lo or Angelina Jolie styled Grecian one shouldered dress in pure white with silver trimmings. Put that on and you’d be more than prom queen/princess material!

Oh well, I guess I can always relive my unfulfilled prom dreams by doing online shopping and seeing what kind of styles are in fashion right now or watching multiple re-runs of Miss Teen USA. The evening wear section always makes me think of prom night somehow. *grin*

It’s been some time since I last posted a Shoe of the Week blogpost, and in view of the holiday/party season that’s upon us, here’s a party shoe from Nine West that I’m absolutely coveting!

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The 4 inch heel is just the thing to add height and give the impression of mile-long legs under a Little Black Dress and oh so handy for cocktail parties right up to formal dinners. Since it’s black, it could well go with anything I own (which is mostly black, anyway) and look good too!

Nine West is currently retailing the Udell at USD 135.00 (price before shipping charges).

I first read about the online boutique Paperdoll from this post on Kimberlycun’s blog. I did think that the dress Kim bought was really pretty but didn’t do anything more than that. Hahah. Lazy mah! *wink*

Then last week, I heard from Beetrice that Joanna, the babe behind Paperdoll, would be at the same do I attended last Friday. It sparked my curiousity again and off I went to see the website, which looks like this…

Image credit - screen capture pic of the Paperdoll website

If you like sweet, girly and dressy (like I do!), then Paperdoll is the place for you to shop. I think Joanna has a good eye for what sells well with the online shopping crowd, and it’s a testament to her taste that I am actually more than tempted to buy online! *wink* Normally I ooh and ahh over clothes I like and then do nothing about it. LOL.

One of the dangers of buying online is that you never know if the stuff you get will fit you. It’s a risk you have to take, and one that I’ve never wanted to take on. The major difference with Paperdoll is that you can input your measurements at the point of order and those measurements will be matched by the staff to see if the clothing item you want to purchase really does fit! That’s like 50% of your worries gone instantly. Poof!

Image credit - pic taken off the Paperdoll website

So, I’ve just put in my online order this morning for the sweet maxi dress you see above and got a very prompt response from the staff confirming my order and membership (which is free, btw).

I can’t wait to see my purchase in the flesh and try it on!

Tagline : the perk-me-up pink powder

Description : Start your day the “perk-me-up” way, and keep them guessing how you look so pretty this early in the morning. Dust on our soft, pink, perk-me-up powder for instant radiance and a youthful appearance. It’s the perfect shade of pink that brightens everyone’s complexion without looking powdery or chalky.

Tips and tricks: Sweep the brush across the powder a few times, then tap off any excess. Brush lightly on to the apples of your cheeks in an outward motion. For the final touch, lightly brush all over your complexion.

Packaging : 10.0 g net wt / 0.35 oz

Recommended retail price : USD 28 (online) / MYR 129 (local)

++++++++
My review :

Having heard so much about this product of Benefit’s from a number of beauty bloggers, I decided to give this a try-out when fellow blogger Paris Beaverbanks invited me to join in on a group online order (purchases above USD 100 from Benefit online get free shipping). I’m not sure how fuss-free the whole order process was since I was not the one shopping, but the delivery turnaround time was pretty quick.

I was very happy to note that my Dandelion arrived in perfect condition - the packaging was intact (just like brand new!), with no traces of having gone through international shipping, which was a major concern of mine because the powder is not packed in a plastic case like other brands but instead in a sturdy cardboard box. Other reviews which I’ve read (see below for links) assure me that the box will stand up to repeated daily use and not suddenly cave in on me one day when I’m using it. That’s a great relief to know but I’m not too sure that I want to carry my Dandelion around with me in my bag, knowing how prone I am to rummaging around for my keys and what-not inside.

Once you open up the box, there is a brush provided by Benefit on top of the pink colored powder. Having used it, I prefer to use a brush with softer bristles simply because it feels better on my skin and less poky/scratchy. So unless I’m rushed for time, I grab my blush brush and use that instead.

Dandelion is also lightly scented, so you get a nice pleasant fragrance when you open up the box, but you don’t smell anything after you have it on - an important plus point for my sensitive sinuses!

Now the thing that confuses me about Dandelion is whether to classify it as a highlighting/brightening powder or a blush. You see, it works both ways for me but the way I use it may not work for everyone.

I generally dust on Dandelion all over my face, after my foundation/finishing powder but before my blusher. I find that a single sweep of Dandelion gives a lovely tinge to my skin, a hint of did-she-or-did-she-not have make up on kinda look. If I want to use it as a blush, I just keep on layering Dandelion on until I get a pale pinky glow on the apples of my cheeks. It looks very natural and not at all like a blush so if you’re looking for an extra pop of color, Dandelion is not the product you need.

Dandelion is a staple in my make-up arsenal whenever I need that extra glow and I’ve gotten compliments on how well I’m looking when I use it as a highlighter all over my face. In fact, I’ve even used it for wedding dinners with minimalist eye makeup and still looked more put-together than my make-up efforts for past dinners.

Since I’ve had a good time with Dandelion, I just might pick up Georgia and see whether that suits me too.

Yes factors : Lovely highlighting effect, minimal effort required - just dust and go!
No factors : Brush feels poky/scratchy, prefer more conventional packaging, local price a bit on the high side

Read other blogger reviews on Dandelion here :
Paris Beaverbanks
Tine

It’s really very subjective to review a perfume as each person’s preference will differ from the next so all I’m going to do is talk about this particular perfume from my point of view.

I picked up DKNY’s Be Delicious eau de parfum at the Estee Lauder Staff Sales in July. At first I was a bit hesitant to buy it; not because I didn’t like the fragrance, but because the box and bottle appearance was different from what I remembered. As it turns out, this was a limited edition bottle design but the fragrance contents were the same. Keeping the same shape as the normal Be Delicious perfume, the only difference is that the lower glass half of the sphere is “wrapped” in designer art. My only gripe about this is that due to the limited edition art, I can’t see how much (or how little) of the perfume is left in the bottle.

As for the fragrance, it is refreshingly light and decidedly fruity, so if you don’t fancy smelling like fresh fruits I wouldn’t suggest that you pick this perfume. I was first attracted to this scent in a shopping mall because it smelled like apples! I have a decidedly low tolerance for strong/heavy scents so this is light enough for me. A single spritz of Be Delicious and I can smell it (for a minimum of 8 hours) all day long! I’m not too sure if others can smell it, but hey, perfume is a personal thing in my humble opinion. So for a light user like me, perfumes are very cost saving because they can last almost forever.

I would like very much to find a signature fragrance that represents “me” and for me, as nice as it is, Be Delicious is not IT for me. It is a nice weekend or pick-me-up fragrance though.

Recommended retail price : MYR 220.00

Read other blogger reviews on DKNY Be Delicious :
Pretty Beautiful