Friday, April 28, 2017

Stella Wellness Centre


Went down to Stella Wellness Centre for a 90 min full body massage the other day; it was the 2nd time in my entire life trying out a full body one even though I've been to numerous foot massages.





The interior of Stella Wellness Centre was appropriately lit, setting the mood for customers to start relaxing and enjoy the session.

The centre offers foot, body, upper back massages.There is also free wifi, good for those who are doing their foot massages!


They have many massage rooms in the centre, and there were fairy lights in mine! I found the lighting too bright and they tweaked the brightness to make it more relaxing; coupled with the soft music playing in the background, one can probably fall asleep while having the massage! You can change into the kimono provided while waiting. There was also ahem, paper underwear that you can wear during the massage.



I tried their newest massage: "Emperor Massage", which essentially meant that there will be the movement of 4 hands on you, done by 2 massage therapists at the same time.

The massage therapists were reassuring and asked me if the strength exerted was enough or too much, many times throughout the session.

One thing I liked about the massage was that they could tell about a health issue I was constantly being bothered by - backaches.

My backache is so bad that my lower back hurts so badly even after a 2h-movie in cinemas. That's how bad it is.

The massage therapist said that I had many knots on my back and butt area (due to prolonged sitting, sad OL life), which led to the intense backaches. So she tried her very best to massage and loosen the back area.

I have a high pain threshold but it was still soo painful! But I like pains that come from massages very much.

They also did a hot stone massage on my back to remove dampness from the body. There are of course a lot of other health benefits from hot stones - they encourage blood flow throughout the body and promote deep relaxation, just to name a few.

I've been to too many bad massages overseas, where sometimes you would know that they are just going through the motion, and not really pressing on the right points? And then there are some foot massages where they keep massaging the calves instead of the bottom of your foot and toes?

I didn't feel that way with the full body massage from Stella Wellness Centre though. Every movement and pressure applied felt authentic, and that the therapists knew what they were doing.


There was a private bathroom in every massage room where you can shower before and after the session. Of course if you do not want to shower after the massage, it is fine too. I didn't as they had already wiped off most of the excess oil. However, I smelt like a giant walking rose (it's a hit or miss kind of smell) cos of the pink rose essential oil used for the session. Usually, they would use the normal oils for this massage but I chose a pink rose essential oil instead. They have so many different kinds of essential oils for the aromatherapy massage so you can choose the one you like best. Most popular ones are lemongrass and lavender.

Two things to note for every massage session:
1. Do let the massage therapists know if you are uncomfortable with the level of strength exerted anytime during the session
2. Drink lots of water BEFORE and AFTER the session

I forgot to down lots of water after the session and ended up with a headache. But my friend reminded me that one has to replenish with lots of water after massages and I gulped a lot down the rest of the night, and the pain miraculously went away.

Price List

Traditional Full Body Massage
Duration
45 min
60 min
90 min
Individual
$50
$70
$95
Couple
$95
$135
$180

Aromatherapy Full Body Massage
Duration
45 min
60 min
90 min
Individual
$55
$75
$100
Couple
$100
$140
$185

Foot Reflexology
Duration
45 min
60 min
90 min

$30
$45
$60

Back Walking Massage
Duration
45 min
60 min
90 min
Individual
$50
$70
$95
Couple
$95
$135
$180

Upper Back Massage
Duration
30 min
45 min
Individual
$30
$45

Emperor Massage *new! Prices shown below are already discounted due to new promotion
Duration
45 min
60 min
90 min
Individual
$80
$120
$170

I think massages are a very important part of our lives that a lot of people do not think much of. A bad massage session does nothing much except to relax your mind. A good massage however, not only relaxes your mind, but also brings numerous health benefits to your body. Going for massages consistently with the right massage centre will definitely improve your general health in the long term.

The fact that this place is in the east side of Singapore meant that easties like me could go there regularly. Tourists can also come down and try the authentic massages they offer since it is in close proximity with the airport.

Stella Wellness Centre
No 1 Netheravon Road, #01-03A Village Hotel Changi, Singapore 508502
Opening hours: 10am to 2am daily
*There is also a 2 hour complimentary parking

Thursday, April 06, 2017

ELLE Spring/Summer Fashion Photography Experiential Workshop

Once again, it is Spring/Summer season and ION Orchard has done it again with many promotions and events during Mar and Apr.

ELLE Singapore has teamed up with ION Orchard again to bring you the Spring/Summer’17 Fashion From The Front Row this April.


It's my 3rd year joining in the IONxELLE events and still as excited as ever, cos ION Orchard would also be celebrating their 8th year anniversary this year!


First up, you can tell from our happy faces I was elated to join the OOTD workshop held by ELLE. This year, they invited the renowned fashion stylist Furqan Saini, and Mediacorp's in-house photographer Kelvin Chia to share with us top tips for nailing great fashion shots.



If u think OOTDs are just about looking pretty, think again. It's time we all level up and take care of lighting, composition, pose, and even lenses! If you missed this session... wait for the one next year then!



The complimentary drinks and cupcakes we got.
It was my first time trying the cupcakes from Plain Vanilla and omg it was soo good!

Anyway, after their presentation, we were split into 2 groups and my group headed down to level 3 for a light graffiti shot. 


Due to time constraints, we could only take a group shot. It took quite a while at the light graffiti studio as the photographer has to teach u how to control the light stick, and after that pose for the photo.

This was our shot. ahem as u can see, the light stick drawers didn't position correctly and the word overlapped with the heart shape. But it's ok, I'll still be going back for another shot when I have the time!

Afterwards, we headed down to the ION fashion garden at level 1 to put our skills learnt to good use.

Unedited photos:



And this one I had to tweak the warmth on my phone cos it was a weird colour at first, but didn't realise it was too blue until I saw it on my computer. (forgot to turn off the blue light filter on my Samsung!)


I'll need to go back again as the backdrop lights up at night! Think pretty fairy lights and garden all in one! Just look at the hashtag #ss17xIONxELLE on Instagram to see what the rest posted too!

There will be a series of fashion workshops this April - the Spring/Summer’17 Roving Fashion Masterclass, where we join the fashion stylist in visiting two fashion and one skincare/cosmetic boutiques at ION Orchard.

Thank u for having me, ELLE Singapore!

Till then, will update on that again!