Valen’s Vanity Square

I get to wear my high-heel sandal to work today because hubby drove me. On days that I have to take the train, I will just wear my good old black pumps from Santa Barbara, which allows me to walk up and down the stairs with ease and comfort.

Due to my knee problem (and hip problem too?), high heels can’t be my best friends these days, although I have a number of nice pairs in the shoe cabinet. They shall remain in the box, and only worn by me once in a blue moon when there is some special dinner function that does not require me to walk much.

Even my boots get neglected these days.

This is to save me from unnecessary knee pain, muscle ache and soreness at the hips.

If I didn’t have these problems, I would have bought one of those leather ariat boots for ladies. Best worn with jeans and a casual top. Put on a smart-casual jacket, the attire is fit to wear to work, for a person who has a job like mine, that is.

Jeez, I think I might just want to give up losing weight. The needle on the scale seemed to be pointing at the same number for months!

Actually, nobody will say that I’m fat if they don’t notice my bulging tummy, haha! Perhaps all I need is to shape up, tone up my ab muscles, always maintain an up-right body posture so that I look taller and slimmer, haha! Simply put - I need to exercise a lot!

For ladies who are not keen to become sweaty and sticky, or too busy with work and dating, they can try one of those body-sculpting corsets, convenient but can be costly if you want to get a tailor-made corset, which is supposed to be more comfortable than the one-size-fit-all versions.

If you don’t want to wear a body-sculpting corsets everyday, but need to look slim in a body-fitting evening dress for a party, then just get one of those fashion sexy corsets. At least for an evening, you’ll get all the back and breast support you need, and have other ladies cast their envy eyes on your slim waistline and accentuated breasts.

If you want to learn more about buying corsets, different designs of corsets, how to wear and how to care for them, make sure you drop by CorsetsDiva.com.

Every woman deserves a pair of beautiful shoes. Agree? No?

May be I should say – Every woman deserves MORE than a pair of beautiful AND comfortable footwear. That sounds more like it, huh?

If you agree to that, then you should check out the large collection of shoes and sandals from Beautifeel, which believe that modern women footwear should be a combination of comfort and beauty, health and aesthetics, natural feel and advanced design, quality materials and craftsmanship. Their shoes are made from high-quality soft calf leathers, latex soles and leather insoles to help take care of your feet.

Visit their website to view their shoe collection.

Want to know which bras have been chosen by thousands of American women as the Best Summer Bras in The Undie Awards? No, the voters are not women with model-like figure. They are just ordinary ones like you and me, with an average or a full figure.

Here are some them…

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For average figures

Wacoal Slimline Seamless Minimizer Bra

Chantelle Body Sculpt T-Shirt Underwire Bra

Elita Silk Magic Crossover Bra

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For full figures

Olga Sheer Tapestry Full Figure Minimizer Bra

Enell Sports Bra (the sports bra that Oprah and Drew Barrymore wear)

Fantasie Smoothing Seamless Strapless Bra

To see more American women favorite bras, just hop on to the Undie Awards site.

For those of you who are into horse riding, and is planning to give your equestrian clothing wardrobe (and your horse as well) a new look, search no more because TheEquestrianCorner.com is your one stop center where you can get both horse riding apparel an equipment – riding boots, show clothes, riding helmets, horse blankets, saddles and lots more!

On and off the horse, I’m sure ladies you all would want to be spotted with the latest equine trends and styles with, say, a tote? A bucket hat made with exquisitely designed ribbon, coordinated with couture ribbon belt on your waist?

How about some equine designed bath towels for your husband or boyfriend who is a horse lover himself?

For more selection of horse riding apparel and equipment, why not just gallop over to TheEquestrianCorner.com now?

Discovered something funny when I was in the shopping mall during the weekend – even mannequins have different bust size!!

I noticed the difference between mannequins from two fashion boutiques. One apparently displays mannequins that have A cups, the other seems to prefer C- or D-cups mannequins, haha!

Anyway, for real women like us, I mean human beings, no matter what bust size we have, we will need to wear bra for support and protection and, ahem, give ‘them’ a lift.

Bustiers are also good for supporting our breasts and creating a slender body shape. As a bustier extends down to the waist or hips and fits tightly to the torso, it creates a structure that slims the waist while supports and enhances the bust. While bustiers have been worn by women for centuries as undergarment, nowadays pretty lingerie can also be worn as outerwear.

Check out these bustiers from LingerieDiva.com. Aren’t they beautiful and sexy?

Bustier range from Lingerie Diva. From sweet to wild and sexy; to go with bridal wear, or simply to prepare the mood for a hot date.

You definitely should drop by Lingerie Diva, not only to check out the bustiers and lingerie wear. They have hot, sexy party fashion too!

Oh man! I just found the ultimate online swimwear store! Gals, if you are heading to the beach for a holiday, you MUST, MUST, MUST check out InStyleSwimwear.com!!!

I’m going crazy by just browsing through their catalogue!

One-piece swimsuit, two-piece swimsuit, monokini, tankini, kaftan, tunic, dress, flip-flop, sandals, tote, skirted bikini, string bikini, Brazilian style swimwear (ooooh), …. and lots of lots of exciting styles and options!

Items above and more are available at InStyleSwimwear.com.

Their price tags are on the high side because they are all designer brands. If you can afford, great. I know I can’t afford, but surfing through their catalogue already made me feel very happy as if summer was all around me right now.

AirAsia just had their fly free promotion recently, and guess what? I will be going to Langkawi Island again next February! Yoohoo! I had a short holiday there with hubby early this year; the next trip will be more like a family vacation with my mom, sisters and brothers.

Hubby and I stayed in a hotel in the town during our trip, but this time we will try to get chalet-type rooms right next to the beach. I don’t think we need to read up any travel guide this time, because hubby and I can actually be the walking guide for them, haha!

I know it’s still more than 6 months to go, but I’m excited about staying by the beach, and already started to think about what kind of beachwear and other ‘necessary’ things to bring, so that I can look spectacular under the sun, haha!

I will try to find something similar to one of these from Elizabeth Hurley’s Beach Collection.

Paris Bikini with python print
This bikini looks great, but don’t think I want to spoil it by putting it on my body. So, not in my must-bring list.

Carissima Tankini in chocolate
This one looks more like what I will wear while strolling down the beach.

Keira Towelling Jacket in pink
Put on a pink jacket and short pants for a sporty look.

Seahorse Kaftan in white and pink
I think EH looks totally sexy in this white and pink kaftan… I wonder how I would look in it.

Trinny Sundress in petal pink
Hmm, dare I wear this out to the town for shopping? To bring, or not to bring?

Other than the necessary beachwear mentioned above, I must not forget also to throw into my luggage a beach hat, beach bag, sarong, a pair of flip flops and sunglasses, a couple of bottles of suntan lotion, … Ah, the list just goes on.

For more beachwear selection, visit elizabethhurley.com.

Apart from golfing, I suppose another exorbitant, but in my opinion is a more interesting and physically challenging, hobby will be horse riding. Put aside the fees of joining an equestrian club and taking up horse-riding lessons, and buying equestrian equipments, horse-riding apparel is also something we cannot dismiss in the expenses involved in this hobby.

Yeah, I’m talking from a women’s point of view, hehe. If we are going to ride a horse, we’d better ride it in the smartest horse-riding outfit we can get. Even the saddles have to look cool. Not only that we want to be a skilled horse rider, we also need to be fashion-conscious one, right, ladies?

Look smart in one of these horse-riding ladies shirts, show coat or show shirt

If you are interested to view more horse-riding apparel and equipment, do check out theequestriancorner.com.