Christy @ Kidsrsimple, Author at Kids 'R' Simple

Easy cooking with Modori Goodle Collection pans

It’s the time of the year to host families and friends in our humble abode. Keeping to 5 guests means we need to scale down our parties. While we miss extended families parties, we also enjoy the closeness and attention for a smaller group of guests. Big on the list of preparation is always food. And I like to leave that to the chef in the house. This year, I gifted the chef with a set of Modori Goodle Collection pans for Christmas and immediately, they came in at the right moment as a good cookware and for presentation on the dining table. And you will see why is that so!

Modori Goodle pans are terrific for cooking both Western and Chinese food. First of all, it combines all the advantages of coated, stainless steel and cast iron cookware, and at a lighter weight, they are easy to handle on the stove. I love that the pans adopt a special Inoble coating, a patented oil road method, and are made of fine coating particles, which enhances the long lasting non-stick effect and makes it easier to clean after use. You will see that the bottom of the pans are not smooth, and that helps in the non-stick frying. The totally no-rivets on handle to body including pan lids will guarantee that there are no oily residue anywhere after repeated use. This is the first time I know of a no-rivet pan!

What is Inoble coating?
Unlike other thin coatings, it uses low-pressure spraying with countless tiny dot-like particles. Repeat the same process 6 times to enhance the durability of the coating. Generally, the thicker the coating, the more cracks will appear, but the Inoble coating will not crack and is 7 times thicker than the ordinary coating.

We have 3 types of pans and we find the design of each pan suit a wide variety of dishes.

I used the 18cm saucepan to cook my kids’ favourite Carbonara. The heat retention was great and even after I leave it on the table while I cook another dish, it was still piping hot. This size pan will certainly be my favourite and most used pan since the depth and size of it can cater to many quick dishes. It is easy for my children to handle when they cook their instant noodles and Korean Ramyun.

In my kitchen full of different cookware, I would say non of them are as presentable as Modori 24cm frying pan which can move from stove to table looking so good! My hubby whipped up the sesame chicken wings using this big base pan which helped to achieve even cooking for each of the mid-wings. It was a breeze to cook this dish using the pan since it guarantees that every mid-wing will be cooked evenly. You don’t have to transfer to another plate and risk losing the heat while waiting for dinner to start. Just place the lid and serve on table. One less plate to wash!

Sesame Oil Stir-fried Mid-Wings in Modori 24cm Frying Pan

The 3rd pan is what I have always wanted for my tamagoyaki. Well, we decided to try something different and cook another all-time favourite in our house, fried shrimp paste. Since shrimp paste can take any shape, we then made a rectangular version. The square egg pan has a slight slant on the front side that facilitate scooping or pouring of the dish in it, however, with a handle that looks so sleek and unique shape of pan, we just needed to trickle garnishes and serve it right on the table!

Pan-fried Shrimp Paste in Modori Square Egg Pan

The thoughtful design from safety of material using PFOA free high-purity aluminium to the wooden handles that are made from the wood of the Korean Somei Yoshino cherry tree, and thus made it comfortable to hold and grasp, I have no doubt these 3 pans will be our frequently used cookware and will make it to our hosted dinners from now on.

In fact, I have these Modori Goodle Collection of pans make very good gifts for parents and friends. You may view more dishes and use of the pans on Modori instagram and facebook. Do hashtag your creation with their pans if you decide to get them too: #modori #modori_sg #modorireview #newcollection #goodlecollection

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/modori.sg/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ModoriSG

Disclaimer: All opinions are mine and we have cooked the above mentioned dishes with Modori Goodle Collection pans for the purpose of this review 🙂

A Professional Corporate Headshot makes a huge difference

From my observation, Asians tend to use less of formal corporate headshots in their professional profiles. Maybe many of us think that this is unnecessary as long as we give our best in our jobs. While there is no right or wrong in using a photo from our stash of selfies or one that is taken in the studio as corporate profile picture, the impression that one portrays on professional network platforms would make a difference.

I used to put my passport photo in my LinkedIn profile. Simply because it was taken against a white background, it looked more formal and appropriate than using an OOTD. However it lacked the professional look. I have never considered going for a Corporate Headshot. I tend to think those are for people of higher positions. But as I build up my professional network, I find that my self-taken portrait paled in comparison with the many professional profile pictures on LinkedIn. If I put on the same glasses as the recruiter, on the basis that first impression is important, I would probably judge 2 equally qualified candidates through coloured lens on their photographs. Would the profile picture that I put on LinkedIn make or break my chances?

It seemed to be the right time to make a small effort to complement my many years of experience. To motivate myself to schedule a time for a Corporate Headshot, I asked a good friend along. It happens that both of us are on similar career stage and keen to build up a more professional image. Plus photoshoot sessions are usually fun when you are with friends or family. So, we arrived to the home studio of the head photographer, Tim, and to our pleasant surprise, we were greeted by a team of 3 cheerful youngsters and had a welcoming tour of the beautiful and tastefully decorated house to make ourselves at home.

The team ensured we were relaxed by chatting casually with us and that helped to soothe whatever uneasiness we felt before the photoshoot. While we were amateurs in posing in front of professional cameras, we were able to follow the cues given. It helped that my friend and I were able to help each other fix a stray lock of hair, adjust creases in our outfit and do a last quick glance before the camera clicked away. Tim was quick to capture the golden moment of our most natural smile which is just a split second before we froze in our smiles. That was evident in the images that came up immediately on his MacBook. Even when we, ladies, are usually critical of how we appear on photos, we were pretty wowed by how good each image came up on the screen.

After we were done with the photoshoot, Tim asked us to choose the best photographs so that he could work on some technical touches. That would include refining flaws like pimples, removing stray strands of hair from the background, etc.

It took Tim just about one week to send us the final touched up photographs despite his busy schedule. Through the short time that we know him, we were confident that these photographs would turn out awesome because he is meticulous and ensures customer satisfaction. True enough, both my friend and I were happy with how the photographs turned out and we used them on our LinkedIn profiles.

I find the entire experience a really pleasant one and immediately recommended a good friend to the same Corporate Headshot Singapore team. To prepare for the shoot, here are some tips to share on what we did.

Corporate Headshot Preparation Tips:

Choose a plain top that goes well with grey or white background. The collar matters and it is good to check if it goes well with a blazer. (This applies more to ladies tops which have V-neck, round-neck, frills, formal collar and such.) I wore a white blouse and my friend wore a dark blue one. Both look good against the white background. If you have fair skin, the dark top accentuate your fairness which looks really good in my opinion.
Check the sleeves of your blouse. As the sleeves would show as you will turn your body slightly sideways, it would be good to do a check on the mirror to see how you’d look on the camera.
Choose a blazer that goes well with the top. Black will almost not go wrong. You will be amazed how a blazer creates an immediate professional look.
Book a hairdo appointment for a few hours before the photoshoot. Tell your hairdresser that you are having a corporate photoshoot so that he will know what look to create for you. I had a simple C-curl styling.
Put on a slightly heavier than regular office make-up. This will put some colour at appropriate tone when you are in the spotlight. Otherwise you may appear paler than you’d like to and may have to depend on technical touch up.
For ladies, you may want to avoid days when you have your menses as you do not want to risk pimples popping up and looking tired.

I hope this sharing of my experience would help you to decide to go for a corporate headshot or not. To encourage you further, my friend received interest from 2 recruiters one week into putting her new corporate headshot photograph on LinkedIn. While it has not happened to me yet since I only put up this week, I feel much more confident building connections on LinkedIn now. You may view Bespoke Photography Corporate Headshot Singapore page to check out some of their works. And good luck with your career!

Disclaimer: This is a collaboration with BeSpoke Photography. All opinions and views are based on my personal experience.

Don’t overwork yourself, WFH Mums

Before the start of the Circuit Breaker, I was enjoying the new found flexibility of working from home. It was always my dream combination of staying at home 24/7 with the children and still able to contribute to the economy. I appreciated the time saved in commuting, daily breakfast with mum and the flexi-hours to steal in a nap before lunch. Most of all, I am very happy to be there to welcome the children home from school and at the dining table to ask them about their day while they chatter the fresh memory of happenings in between mouthfuls of noodles. In the evening, I shut down the computer and bring the youngest to the playground and enjoy the neighbourhood children’s laughter as they run haphazardly chasing each other like random particles movement in a volatile state.

When the Circuit Breaker started, all of us stayed home and the nation stayed home. All outdoor activities came to a standstill. We tried to maintain a healthy lifestyle and mental health in the house the way everyone was doing: youtube exercises, family bonding through games, home-cooked food, Netflix and all. It brought an opportunity to spend time with people we love. It was almost perfect. The only flaw was that work and life blended and blurred the lines.

When work got busier, and not needing to ‘pack up and go home’, I find that I stretched the working time bit by bit and into dinner time. Night meetings took over after the kids sleep, sometimes they started before bedtime. No matter how late I worked the night before, I would have to wake up at 6am to prep the kids to school. Very soon, fatigue latched on to me and my immunity was low. It was not a healthy life anymore. Time spent with children became lesser. This is not what I want. How do I get back my life?

I gave myself some time to sort out work till end of 2020 and took a slightly long break into the new year. Transitioning to 2021 was a perfect excuse for me to renew determination, refresh resolutions and start new habits. That’s exactly what I did.

It helped that the kids are back in school and I resumed my morning walks. I was determined to get back into good health. The morning breeze, beautiful scenery and loosening of tight muscles displaced the negativity that comes with fatigue. If you ask me, I wouldn’t exchange this for an extra hour of sleep.

At work, I did some changes too. I decline unnecessary meetings especially late night meetings that I could view the recordings. I delegated more and suppressed the guilt of doing so. I try to be more FOCUS and am still learning to say “No” to things that stretch my bandwidth too much.

What really got me determined in prioritizing my life over work is knowing that no one at work except myself will prioritize my health, my family time, my well-being, my happiness. Work is endless and the company will continue to run well with or without me sacrificing personal time. But my family and I will suffer if I don’t take good care of my health.

With the lesser time that I wish to put into work compared to last year’s overstretch, this will bring me more into focus. I still work late nights when I have to, but I am now more mindful of not overworking and taking breaks or even a lunch time nap if I need to. I love working from home and also love the interaction with colleagues at work. In the next few months, I hope the Covid situation in Singapore will be even better so that we can have a blended work arrangement for the best of both worlds.

Yoon Salon: What’s Your WFH Hairstyle, Mum?

For years, I have been one who alternates the length of my tresses regularly. Each time it grows long, I get sick of it and look forward to a fresh look. But when I got the snip, I longed for my long tresses. Women are fickle-minded, aren’t they? Then when the pandemic emerged, I started to work from home. Thinking that I am not really seeing my colleagues and saw no need to dress up, I thought a nice hairstyle is not important. But I was so wrong. My spent time on the view cam increases and it matters more to me how I look on screen. This is especially so when there is not much movement to flaunt my tresses, plus the big ear cushions of the headset could make my look unflattering. I begin to pay attention to my mane. So then, what hairstyles work for Work From Home Mums?

1. Time-Saver Styles

Ever since I work from home continuously, I wear multiple hats in a day. I need to do house chores, fetch kids, check-in on them while working full time and attend meetings from morning to late night. Sometimes I get a last minute notice to turn on my camera for a meeting, and I need to run to the mirror, comb my mane with my fingers, change a bit of parting, put some styling cream to make my tresses look presentable. Having ‘easy-to-manage’ hair is all the more important than before. Depending on what kind of look you like, choose one that you can manage easily in a jiffy with minimal hassle.

2. Versatile Styles

I find that I can don a variety of looks with long tresses. At work, I can let them down so that my face does not look too big with the headset on compared to tying my locks up. Doing house chores, I can tie it into a slightly messy bun to have a little more sassy look to hide my tired face after work. At the park, I can tie it into a ponytail that swings about when I run. After work, I can let my tresses down, curl it a little, or put on a nice hairband to meet my friends. There are simply more options with a longer length and it makes it fun too. It is pretty essential to have a hairstyle that varies for different occasions.

3. Easy Maintenance

The most difficult hairstyle to maintain, to me, must be a layered shoulder length. It not only tends to curl out unsightly, it is unpredictable and hard to tame. I would not be able to tie it all up due to the uneven lengths too. If I needed to tame it by curling the ends every morning, it takes up time which I am just not one who likes such hassle. I do like to snip it short for the sake of easy maintenance. It not only saves shampooing time, my bottle of shampoo can last more weeks. Moreover, we need to highly consider the extremely humid weather in Singapore. Short length helps to keep the scalp healthier by not stressing it with unnecessary weight. Long tresses do require little maintenance too if you are lazy like me. I can tie it up all day, let it grow long and visit the salon infrequently every 4-6 months. It really depends on one’s lifestyle and character. If you are a trendy mum, likely you take more effort to upkeep your image. Then it is down to understanding your hair well to derive the most efficient maintenance routine.

4. Complement with Accessories

I find that working from home gives me less chance to show off my hairstyle. You do not have much chance to let your colleagues see the different styles, what accessories are pinned behind your head, unless you show them your back of the head on the camera. But that does not mean you should throw away all your accessories and revert to black bands, black scrunchies and pins like you were back in school days. The deprivation of feeling pretty with more time spent at home can push me to splurge on pretty dresses, tops, beauty essentials and unnecessary accessories. These gave me feel-good moments akin to wearing beautiful and expensive lingerie but only I get to see it. Why not invest in some lovely clips, pins, ties or bands that can adorn your look even if your audience may only be your family members, or neighbours. It helps to create a quick transformation to an otherwise boring look. Most importantly, it does give you a good feeling to feel pretty.

5. Pampering Yourself at Yoon Salon

With more time spent at home and not meeting friends and colleagues often, it is still important to go to the salon to continue maintaining a healthy scalp and upkeep your image. Recently I came across Yoon Salon which is a premium and leading hair salon in Singapore. If you are new to them, I urge you to visit their website and you will be impressed with their free tips column. They have various articles that educate us on what would suit different face shapes, how a salon would prep for the wedding day, what are the differences between hot and cold perms and why you should care for your tresses. I learnt a great deal from the article that spoke about varying styles for different face shapes. I even took out a measuring tape to measure my forehead, length and width of my face to check what kind of styles would suit my round face.

A Buffet of Yoon Salon’s Services

If you are deciding to go for a perm, but not sure which perm to go for? Their website will spell out the types of perm and procedure complete with some FAQs to answer your doubts. Upon your visit to the salon, a professional hairdresser will advise you on the best option suited to you. Isn’t this such a good and reassured professional service that everyone would like to have? Tell your girlfriends and redeem this excellent deal!

You will be pleased to know the salon uses premium products and offer a comprehensive range of professional services listed below:

Check out Yoon Salon Services at just $28!

One super good deal that I cannot miss to share with my readers will be you get to enjoy ANY services listed on their website at just $28! I typically spend at least $100+ for a nice colour or perm. Imagine you get to do a S Curl perm at just $28! Tell your girl friends and redeem this excellent deal together to any of the 3 salon outlets to pamper yourself. A sales consultant will be in touch with you regarding your booking. Terms and Conditions apply.

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post by Yoon Salon. All opinions and views expressed in this post are based on my personal view.

8 Crabs – A Convenient and Tasty Dish for Special Occasions

Our family are crab lovers! We have various experts in the house from the elder man who can choose good crabs to the man of the house who can cook restaurant standard crab dishes to teen crab critics. In almost all special occasions, you can place a bet that we have a crab dish on the table. On this Father’s Day, the men in the house took a break from the crab chores and simply sat back to enjoy the Extra Large Crabs from 8 Crabs.

Why No Ammonia Smell?

8 Crabs promised us that they only sell authentic grade AAA premium wild crabs from Sri Lankan. Not only these are air flown daily to ensure the freshness of the crabs, they are really bigger, meatier and tastier as they claimed. We ordered one Large and one Extra Large crab cooked in black pepper style. The meat was succulent, and did not shrink from the shell upon serving. There was no ammonia taste which further confirms that these crabs were not farm grown. The reason for the ammonia smell and taste is usually due to the production of ammonia by crabs that are stressed in captivity in farms, and is also a sign of decomposition of seafood. Crabs like to live alone and overcrowding in such environment induces higher stress in them and more ammonia would be produced. No wonder we sometimes taste ammonia in crabs which are likely bred in confined spaces.

Delivering Crabs from Sea to Your Table in 12 hours

8 Crabs also pride themselves in the process of delivering the crabs from the sea to your table in 12 hours which, to me, sounds really amazing. They are able to do this with stable resources of fishermen who go out to sea daily to catch crabs and deliver to 8 Crabs Sri Lankan premise to be approved by experienced crab graders. Due to proximity of this premise to the local airport and a short packing process of only 45min, this minimize the stress of the crabs away from their natural habitat, and hence further reducing the risk of ammonia production. Once delivered to 8 Crabs’ 12 kitchens in Singapore, they have 1 driver dedicated to each kitchen to guarantee cooking and delivery within ONE hour to your doorstep. Such is the efficiency of ensuring the best and freshest crabs on your table. Impressive!

Online Ordering is a Breeze

We placed our order via 8 Crabs online platform and it was really a breeze. A few clicks to choose the menu, size and quantity of the crabs, and it should take you to delivery address and payment. There is an on-going discount of 16% off the crabs. Depending on the size that you choose, it varies from $68 for a 900g large crab to $125 for a 1.1-1.3kg XXL crab after discount. If the website would take you slightly longer for orders, it must be the rest of the menu that keeps you undecided which to order. Not only does 8 Crabs sell crab cuisines, they also have other Zi Char regular items to go along with your crab dishes. I would say it is a very convenient one-step option for a special occasion dinner to consider.

But… one not so good comment

There is only one thing that we feel that did not give the big, meaty and fresh crabs justice. The black pepper crabs that were delivered to us did not meet our high standards of black peppery taste. It lacks the pungent black pepper aroma and the oomph taste of what an excellent chef would prepare it to be. Nevertheless, we were prepared to forgive the culinary skills and give the benefit of the doubt of “award-winning chefs” in consideration of the really premium quality crab meat we received. 8 Crabs were well-taken to feedback and apologized for our less than perfect experience. They gladly accepted any type of honest feedback even if this is on media or a blog like here. For this, they deserve a thumbs-up to their customer service and genuine effort to improve.

Look at the size of the pincer!

Now, check out 8 Crabs website here and try it for yourself to believe the premium triple A grade Sri Lankan crabs. Perhaps, you may not want to settle for a farm grown crab after 🙂

Disclaimer: This is a collaboration with 8 Crabs and all opinions are mine. We paid for any excess of the sponsorship and thank 8 Crabs for the wonderful Father’s Day special for our family.