New interest.

I miss wearing my engagement ring. Ever since I balooned, it's been almost a year since it fit me. So, last Saturday the one and I visited DeGem at 1Utama to have it enlarged.

Before going over there, I searched high and low for the receipt just in case we could get a better price (or rather, FOC) if we had proof that the ring was purchased there. Unfortunately, I found every other receipts but that.

The sales guy that serviced us was better than the one we dealt with before. Better in a sense that not only was he obliging to search for the copy of the receipt, he was more open in sharing info and facts on diamonds, and also showed us more options just for our info... in other words, he has more flair in marketing ;P

Truthfully, I don't know much about diamonds but am surprised at how knowledgeable the one is. I should thank my dear friend, Elaine, who had brainwashed him once on the quality of diamonds he should get me (hehe...) and thankfully, the one took all those info and used it to my advantage :D

The sales guy told me that my previous ring size 5 has now increased to 10. 10?!! Ohmygawd.

With that, he took another ring with a size 10 to ensure I am comfortable with that size. But but but... he took a size 10 ring with a diamond that's 0.1 carat more than mine hehe... and oh, the diamond on the ring is a Lazare diamond as opposed to our GIA certified.

What's that you may ask... gawd... I had no idea. Such a shame, innit? Diamonds are supposedly a girl's best friend but all I know is a diamond is either certified or not. Lazare vs. GIA is something entirely new to me until I heard both men talk about the clarity and cut bla bla bla... I'm really proud of my the one hehe...

The ring look totally exquisite on my chubby finger. I even thought it looked too shiny, too glittery on me when the one corrected me and said that no diamond is too shiny or glittery. Wow... I am again awed by him. I'm even surprised that he asked the sales guy how much more we would have to fork out if we were to upgrade the ring. Dang... the price was just so much more for an additional 0.1 carat Lazare. Suddenly, I was concerned if it was blood diamond. Hehe... but if my hubby wants to get it, I'm sure I wouldn't ask any questions and would love him for it ;P (not that I don't already love him now hehe). Women!

The one already know this fact about me... that I was never really into gold jewellery. I only wear 1 ring on both hands, I have always worn this charm bracelet that my late grandma bought for me on my 1st birthday which I wore it on my ankle then, I am not so much into necklaces and most of them were my mom's. I hardly wear jewellery and that's it. The jewelleries I really got were those that I would spend for me to have something to keep for a lifetime, ie. from the hantaran money and those that I've bought as birthday gifts or baby gifts for close friends. I always thought that gold is the best form of gift since it is lasting and the recipient could do anything to it in the future.

But... since we were browsing stuff over at DeGem, I suddenly remembered that I still have the hardship allowance the one gave me just before the end of last year which I have not spent on anything. All of a sudden, I no longer have any urge to buy more desginer bags. I mean, I'm no longer working, and I don't anymore change my bags the way I used to... and so, I thought, why don't I start a new interest in gold for its lasting value.

With that intention, I decided to visit my favourite jeweller, Faiq at BSC on Sunday. Well, I shouldn't really say 'favourite' since I've only went there 3-4 times in 3 years but judging at what I could get there vs. those I got from retailers like Poh Kong, I must share with you that you'd be surprised at what good deals you can get from them. What I like most about Faiq is that they only produce exclusive designs, ie. there's only 1 unit for 1 design. Therefore, no other people would be wearing that design unless it is reproduced by requests. They are also pretty strict on their quality because of that fact.

The only weakness is probably that there might not be a variety of range as those you'd find in retail stores. What I saw 2 years ago may be different than what I see now. Still, there ought to be at least 1 that you'd fall in love with.

Coincidentally, as I thought about the purchase I'd be making, my gorgeous friend, Nicole called for us to meet and where else if not our usual hangout. Only this time, I told her I can't be long and as a mom herself, she was understanding especially since I told her that I can't say what time I'd be at BSC. It will all depend on when little jj gets hungry for lunch. All I could promise was that I'd text her just when I'm about to feed little jj and she'll have 1 hour to get ready before I am done with the lunch, milk feeding and moi getting ready to go.

All was good and we quickly met up after not seeing each other for 2 months. As always, there'd be those hand-me-down toys and clothes for little jj, and I just love them. Thanks, darling. You're such a gem. My gem!

And, with that visit to Faiq, I thought it was time for me to get rid of those rings I got from people... I even let go of my first wedding ring and those rings I got from my former MIL. There's no point of me holding on to them anyway because for one thing, I am not a sentimental person, plus, I have never had any urges to wear any of them.

The owner of Faiq, Fazal himself attended to me. That's another thing I like about Faiq... Fazal will always attend to his customers personally when he's in the store. I reminded him of the ring I fell in love with during my first visit there but since it was a couple of years ago, I had to sketch it for him to refresh his memory.

I took awhile there because I was a little disappointed that they didn't have that many yellow gold rings this time. After trying out several designs on me I fell in love with this one ring in rose gold. Since it did look like a wedding band as I consider this purchase an upgrade to my wedding ring, I was sold on it. That purchase somehow felt so good ;D

Fazal took my other rings that I wanted to let go and I laughed when told that one of the rings which I got from a loser, the diamond and blue topaz on it were synthetic. Heh... cheapo. Well, good riddance, too.

So today, I was all excited for my outing with little jj to pick up the two rings that I had re-sized. This must be my 2nd outing with her (the first was almost a disaster since she was only 3-4 months). Thank god, I had Nicole to help me out then.

I fed her breakfast and milk, and we left immediately. I had to make sure I time the outing right since I was going to 2 places - 1U and BSC. Must make sure to feed her in 1U just before leaving for BSC since the latter doesn't have a nursing room in place (I think I should write in to BRDB before they start with the renovations on the other wing).

I was contemplating whether I should just carry little jj around since I was only going to one store but then again, if I did use the stroller, I would want to carry minimal baggage. Hence, for the first time in over a year, I took out that large Burberry bag I once bought for my Vaio to fit into at work. Man... it still look really good... and I chucked in little jj's clothes, diapers, diaper cream and wet tissues, apart from my other personal stuff. The best part is that the front pockets would accommodate my house keys and car keys so that I do not have to scramble into the bag in order to find them, with little jj held in another hand.

mommy's bag is no longer glamourous hehe...

Picked up the engagement ring in DeGem and asked about men's ring too. Since I got this payment for a completed job, I thought I'd upgrade the one's ring as well. Unfortunately, they do not have any rings in suasa (electrum) but apparently, they can have one made for you. I saw some really beautiful designs and almost ordered one until senses came to me and told me to browse around before settling on something. Hehe how different I am now as compared to when I had a full time job... back then, I would just get what I like without making any comparisons. Now as I see it, I don't think that was smart.

Next, I made my way to BSC. I picked up my new ring in Faiq and browsed for men's rings as well. When I showed them the one's ring, I was shocked that they told me the ring could be repaired! Before this, the one had written about how the 'black subtance' encircling the centre of the ring chipped just 2 months after we were married. It has now about to come out completely. When it chipped just a little, Habib said it was of a hematite substance and costs as much as what we paid for the ring. Plus, it'll take months to repair as it is imported bla bla bla.

To my horror (and surprise), both DeGem and Faiq told me the black thing is 'enamel' or 'enameling'. Habib sucks! I guess this is one of the reasons why a good friend's dad once advised the one and I to not buy from retails outlets. They seriously think us customers are fools.

The only positive side of Habib is that the one's ring is still the most attractive and better looking than those I've seen anywhere. Thus, I opted for it to be repaired if the cost is reasonable, ie. if it costs as much as the ring, I might as well get something new. The guy in Faiq told me they could repair it in a week and the price they quoted was just too good to be true (sorry bee, no surprise hehe...). Again, that's why they've now become my favourite jeweller.

I returned home just in time for little jj to have lunch and quickly mashed up the banana I bought from BSC's Cold Storage.

It was a lovely outing. She was so well behaved, she warmed up to the sales personnel, laughed at my every joke and was a pretty cheerful baby all thruout the shopping adventure. We really should do this again soon...

a happy but tired baby.

4 comments:

Anis Zainal-Pacleb said...

alamak! it looks like we share the same new interest la.... gold as in yellow gold.... heheee....

the only gold in my possession are gifts from mom and sisters...u know, bila u pass SRP, you got one, pass SPM, dapat satu lagi, upon graduation another necklace .... i was just not into it and nasib baik one of my sisters suka beli gold rings for me..... heheeee......

now, baru la terkedek2 nak beli..... ;)

Chech said...

Hi Toughcookie,

I showed the picture of Jada snuggling to her soft toy to my husband and we agree that we should get one for Khalish (and the soft toy cum blanket at tinytapir.com would be a good buy, I suppose). And then, I hope he would be able to sleep as serenely in the car seat, as Jada does (in the picture).

Anyway, about handbags, I once accidentally brought Khalish's diapers to work! When I bought that particular handbag, I was thinking about practicality: one that I could use for almost any do's. However, the diaper-to-work incident serves as a good excuse to purchase another handbag for work. Heh.

Anyway, what type of banana did you give to Jada? I gave Khalish pisang emas, but he seems to dislike it.

toughcookie said...

dear anis,
i think we might be sisters (or twins) in our former life hehe.

dah mahal yellow gold ni baru sibuk nak beli, eh?

nemind. better late than never ;D

hi chech,
i went over tinytapir to see the 'zoobies' you mentioned. omg... they're so cute. when you do make that purchase, would be great if you can write a review for us mommies out here. would love to see how it looks like on khalish as well.

hehe your handbag tale is so original. unfortunately, it isn't applicable to me ;P you must miss him so much just by looking at his diapers...

on those bananas... well, i believe pisang emas might be the best since it is naturally sweet and soft. but i didn't find any pisang emas and bought those chubby ones from cold storage. pisang montel i think they call it.

i think when our babies try something for the first time, they might not like the taste because they need to get used to it or it could also be that we didn't feed them when they're really hungry. i think la... because when jada first tasted the carrots for the first time, her response was different than when i tried the second time 3 days later.

probably, if you haven't tried again, you can just try and see whether it was the banana's taste that he didn't like. otherwise, you could always get the pisang montel which i think can be found in many supermarkets.

good luck!

emly2175 said...

alamak! i'm really lost when u talked about yellow gold.. I thought that was the color of the emas..Only know about white gold and emas biasa tuh la.. aiyoh! i'm really not a gold person.Infact i've never bought any gold jewellery in my life..all i get is the hand-me-down jewellery from my mom.. I even kena marah & warning from my mom to pakai selalu brg kemas dia.. ;)

btw, so cute la that last pic!

My own cincin kahwin pun dah tak muat ..sempat muat sekejap aje before i know i was pregnant ni..