Prabal Gurung: Designer in the Spotlight

Posted on July 26, 2012 | 6 comments

If you have been following my blog, you know that I am a big fan of Prabal Gurung and his collections.

I am loving all the pretty prints in Prabal Gurung’s Pre-fall 2012 from sunglasses to shoes along with kaleidoscope pattern on dresses, dark and bold pattern with a mix of amazing silhouettes/textures from Fall 2012 and bright colourful candy-colour mixture of modern silhouettes, laser-sharp tailoring, asymmetry, and florals from Resort 2013 collections.

PRABAL GURUNG PRE FALL 2012

PRABAL GURUNG FALL 2012

PRABAL GURUNG RESORT 2013

Also, a lot more celebrities are wearing Prabal Gurung and I am so happy to see that. His success has rocketed through the sky in the last few years and yet he is still humble and grounded to his roots. Prabal Gurung is always eager to convey that he was incredibly proud to share his Nepalese heritage and that he never forgets his country. From press interviews to professional endeavours it is true that Prabal Gurung has maintained close ties with Nepal and  he mentions Nepal in almost every interview .

Recently Anne Hathaway wore R13 White Jersey Hand Draped Gown with Tulle Corset to Batman premier. Michelle Obama, Lady Gaga, Zoe Saldana, Barbara Bush Ashley, Greene, Olivia-Palermo, Jennifer Lawrence,  Jessica Chastain, Rachel Weisz, Hailee Steinfield,,Sonam Kapoor and Ginnifer Goodwin  were seen donning Prabal Gurung dresses as well.

One day I dream of wearing a Prabal Gurung dress as well and hope my dream will come true soon  🙂

You may also like :

*Prabal Gurung : A Fashion designer from Nepal *Love you, Prabal Gurung *Prabal Gurung made a 13 years old boy’s dream come true

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London Calling Part III

Posted on July 25, 2012 | 11 comments

Please read the Part I and Part II of my experience if you haven’t already. This is a continuation of that experience.

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London. It is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of contemporary art. The square is also used for political demonstrations and community gatherings, such as the celebration of New Year’s Eve.

Trafalgar Square is in the centre of London. Here you can walk along the famous Strand and go past The Savoy Hotel, or go the opposite direction and the Ancient Saint Martin-in The Field Church. Beneath it, is located a nice Coffee bar/ cafeteria/art shop set among original Tomb stones. The statues and fountains in it are beautiful.

There are lots of people sitting everywhere. Despite the number of people, it never felt crowded or overwhelming in any way, rather I found the square to have an oddly calming effect.

When you were there, the Olympic countdown clock was in display .

Covent Garden

Covent Garden is a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House. It’s beautiful, vibrant, and there are a lot of talents—opera, rock and roll singers, magicians, street performers, etc. very fun. There are so many things to see and do, eat and taste. We ate Paella and it was so yummy.

The little market at one end of Covent Garden is full of souvenir and little gifts. The shops themselves are more up market and you can find some more interesting stuff.

Westminster Bridge, Houses of Parliament and Big Ben 

While we were in London, we were there every day. I think we spent so much time on Westminster Bridge that I have hundreds of photos with backdrop of Big Ben, Parliament house and London eye. 🙂

 The House of Parliament looks so stunning. We got so many photos in front of it as well. The building is beautiful, inside and out with a very rich history to add character to the whole experience.

Big Ben is the nickname for the great bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, and is generally extended to refer to the clock and the clock tower as well. The clock tower holds the largest four-faced chiming clock in the world and is the third-tallest free-standing clock tower.

 Westminster Abbey

I was really looking forward to seeing the Abbey since I really liked it when I saw in during Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding.

As we had a London Pass, we had free entry to the Abbey but normally you need to pay to get in. The architecture is impressive on both exterior and interior. It is a beautiful building.

The Abby was founded in AD 960 as a Benedictine monastery and is now part of the Church of England. Each visitor is given a map and audio device at the Information Desk in the north transept. Each room is numbered to correspond with the device so visitors can meander at their own pace.

It has the tombs of so many famous royals like Mary and Elizabeth’s tomb, Mary of Scot’s Tomb, Longshank’s Tomb as well as famous poets and writers like T.S. Eliot, William Wordsworth, D.H. Lawrence. Before I went there I had no idea that it was the final resting place for so many people; I had thought it was like a church where people go to pray.

One cannot help but step on memorials as they’re laid out on the floor. Apparently Winston Churchill refused to be buried there saying “I’ve had people walk all over me in life, why have it done in death”.

We also viewed the coronation chair which is the oldest piece of furniture in Britain still in use for its original purpose. There is a little coffee bar next to the Cloisters where we enjoyed coffee and cake.

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace is the official London residence and principal workplace of the British monarch.

As we were there just before the Golden Jubilee celebration, there were lots of construction going on but I still really liked the palace. We didn’t get the opportunity to go in but the Palace is spectacular, opulent, historical and a pleasure to see.

Thames River Cruise

As part of the London Pass., we could hop on and off as many times as we wanted in one day in the Thames River Cruise boats.

We took a cruise from Westminster pier to the Tower Bridge pier. It was a nice sunny day so we had lots of fun. Along the way we saw many popular sites like 30 St Mary’s Axe (informally known as The Gerkin) and Shakespeare’s Globe theatre. The guide was funny and full of useful information.  The boat was full so it was not possible to move around but we were in the front of the boat so we managed to take lots of photos.

I really liked London and England overall and hope to go back to see more of England one day. Scotland is hot in my list for the next trip there. 🙂

Please click here for more photos.

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Dip Prasad Pun

Posted on July 25, 2012 | 1 comment

Today I want to introduce you all to Dip Prasad Pun . He is a British Gurkha soldier. Here is some information I compiled from the internet.

Dip Prasad Pun single-handedly defeated more than 30 Taliban fighters in Afghanistan earlier 2011. For his bravery, he has been awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross (CGC) by the Queen. It is the second highest bravery award in the United Kingdom, after the Victoria Cross.

He was also awarded with Pride of Britain Award for an act of bravery during the War in Afghanistan on the night of September 17, 2010.

Cpl Pun, an acting sergeant during his Afghan deployment, was on sentry duty at the time of the attack when he heard a clinking noise outside the small base. At first he thought it might be a donkey or a cow, but when he went to investigate he found two insurgents digging a trench to lay an improvised explosive device (IED) at the checkpoint’s front gate. He realised that he was completely surrounded and that the Taliban were about to launch a well-planned attempt to overrun the compound.

The enemy opened fire from all sides, destroying the sentry position where the soldier had been on duty minutes before. Defending the base from the roof, the Gurkha remained under continuous attack from rocket-propelled grenades and AK47s for more than a quarter of an hour. Most of the militants were about 50ft away from him, but at one point he turned around to see a ‘huge’ Taliban fighter looming over him. The soldier picked up his machine gun and fired a long burst at the man until he fell off the roof.

When another insurgent tried to climb up to his position, the Gurkha attempted to shoot him with his SA80 rifle. But it did not work, either because it had jammed or because the magazine was empty. He first grabbed a sandbag but it had not been tied up and the contents fell to the floor. Then he seized the metal tripod of his machine gun and threw it at the approaching Taliban militant, shouting in Nepali ‘Marchu talai’ (‘I will kill you’) and knocking him down.

Two insurgents were still attacking by the time the heroic Gurkha had used up all his ammunition, but he set off a Claymore mine to repel them. At this point his company commander, Major Shaun Chandler, arrived at the checkpoint, slapped him on the back and asked if he was OK.

In total he fired off 250 general purpose machine gun rounds, 180 SA80 rounds, six phosphorous grenades, six normal grenades, five underslung grenade launcher rounds and one Claymore mine.

Upon receiving the award, Corporal Pun said that he had no choice but to fight; the reason being that the Taliban had surrounded his checkpoint, and that he was alone.  “At that time I wasn’t worried, there wasn’t any choice but to fight. The Taliban were all around the checkpoint, I was alone. I had so many of them around me that I thought I was definitely going to die so I thought I’d kill as many of them as I could before they killed me. That incident happened in the middle of my tour and after that I thought nobody can kill us now – when we met the enemy I wasn’t scared.”

During the engagement, Pun saved the lives of three of his comrades and prevented his post from being overrun. His actions are cited as “the bravest seen in his battalion during two hard tours”.

Pun originally hails from Bima in western Nepal, and lives with his wife Shobha in Ashford. His grandfather and father both served with the Gurkhas.

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Chhaithi for my nephew

Posted on July 24, 2012 | 11 comments

AS I mentioned in my post Nwaran and Pasni previously, there a so many rituals in Hindu culture when one has  a baby. Now that I have a nephew, we need to follow the rituals and one of them is called Chhaithi (sixth day) as it is performed on the sixth day after a child’s birth. So yesterday I went to my brother’s place after work to celebrate the Chhaithi of my little nephew.

For Chhaithi, the fufu (baby’s dad’s sister, or the baby’s paternal aunt) will need to bring some koseli (gifts for the baby) which includes fruits and sweet along with a new pair of clothes for the baby. She will also bring a notebook and a pen/pencil.

So to start the Chhaithi, the fufu sits with the infant on the ground and they are be surrounded by 12 oil lamps (diyo, we used tea light candles instead) and one more diyo is also lighted for god.  A puja thali is prepared which is used to put tika on baby’s forehead. Then the baby will be changed into the new clothes.

After that everyone else (starting from the fufus) will put tika on the baby’s forehead and give some money or other gifts to the fufu. The last one will be the baby’s father who will give some gift to his sister and take the baby from her.

After the ceremony when the baby goes to sleep, the notebook and pen is kept on his bed side along with one of the candles. It is believed until that day , the baby’s fortune is not written so that night, god will come and write his fortune using that notebook and pen.

Proud Parents

It was my first experience to be a part of baby’s life from their early days. I really enjoyed it. This Friday we will be celebrating his Nwaran.

BTW, they have a name for the baby now and I will be referring him as Baby BJ from now on.

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Posted in Family, Nepali Culture, Newari Culture

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VS Sassoon Big hair

Posted on July 23, 2012 | 2 comments

First let me make it clear that I am not paid by the company to advertise this product but I loved it so much that I am sharing this with all of you out there.

I saw the ad for VS Sassoon Big hair on TV and decided to give it a shot. It cost me AU$ 89.99 and it is worth every cent. I just love the product.

I have very fine and thin hair. So after I wash my hair, unless I blow dry it properly, it remains very flat. Also as I use hair straightening iron, it becomes flat and doesn’t look so good. But when I used VS Sassoon Big hair, it really worked for me. I think it is a really clever way to add volume to the hair as blow drying on my own never gives the salon result I want. VS Sassoon Big hair gives incredible bounce and volume to my hair and is so easy to use.

It’s so much easier to dry my hair using this as it has both a dryer and brush in one. Even easier is how the brush turns for you, making it absolutely effortless to dry hair.

 Hope you guys will love it as well once you try it.

Here is some information from the website.

Featuring a rotating motorised brush, the barrel-style hair styler spins effortlessly in your hands as you take it through your hair, evenly brushing your strands and injecting volume as it goes. The VS Sassoon Big Hair Styler (VS2775A) combines the benefits of a hairdryer with a hairdresser’s skilful flick of the wrist, which means that you can kiss goodbye endless hours of straining whilst trying to blow-dry your ‘do like the pros.

The soft bristles on the brush work to create optimum shine and smoothness, while the ceramic barrel ensures hair glides smoothly over the brush, creating volume and movement as it goes.

Steps to get the perfect big hair

  1. Wash and condition your hair as usual and comb before using styler to detangle.
  2. If you have long or thick hair you may find it quicker and easier to use a hairdryer first, to rough dry your hair and remove excess moisture. For added volume , turn your head upside down as you dry.
  3. Once hair is 80% dry, you should start to create your style using the Big Hair Styler.
  4. Ensure you section your hair using clips before styling.
  5. Take a hair section approx. 2.5cm – 5cm wide to start styling with.
  6. Slide the on/off temperature switch to either the low or high heat setting.
  7. Place the styler under the section of hair, close to the roots and brush through the section to remove tangles (without brush rotating).
  8. For added volume at the root of the hair , hold the brush in place at the root (hair section is draped over top of brush) for a few seconds.
  9. Move the brush through the hair section (hair is draped over top of brush), towards the ends and as you reach the end of the hair section, start to rotate the brush away from your head by pressing and holding the appropriate rotation direction switch.
  10. As you do this it is important to resist the rotation of the brush by pulling the brush downwards. The brush should be rotating through the section of your hair (without the hair becoming wound round the brush head if you are holding the styler with the correct tension against the hair) to create a brushing effect as it dries and styles the hair.
  11. IMPORTANT! It may take several attempts to perfect this technique. If the brush spins too quickly and hair wraps around the brush head, simply release the rotation button and remove from the hair. Use the low heat setting (low brush speed) and practise rotating the brush on the lower ends of your hair until you feel comfortable with the styling action. If hair continues to wrap around the barrel you need to increase the downward tension. It is important to section your hair before styling and style section by section to get the best results.
  12. For even more volume, allow the brush to rotate, winding the entire section of the hair around the barrel, release the rotation switch and leave in the hair for a few seconds.
  13. To release the section of hair, press and hold the opposite rotation button to unwind the hair section.
  14. Repeat for each hair section.
  15. After use switch off and unplug the appliance.
  16. Allow the styler to cool before storing.
  17. Place the protective brush shield over the brush head to protect the bristles.

 Tips

  • For fine hair types or to gain extra volume use a volumising mousse in your hair while damp before styling.
  • To define layers and give shape to styles , follow step 9 and repeat through the section.
  • To add volume to the roots and body through the top section of the hair, follow steps 7 to 9 but using an upward motion.
  • For long lasting results, follow steps 10 to 14 but then slide the on/off switch to the cool setting for a few seconds, this will set the hair.

For more into please visit their website.

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