Mid-Holiday Crisis

I'm at that point again.

Woke up this morning feeling that tight grip of sorrow on my heart.

Such a familiar feeling.

"Am I back here again?" I asked myself.

Bee said if I feel so strongly about leaving each time, maybe I should seriously consider coming back for good.

Maybe I should.

I just don't feel like leaving again.

Right Back At Home

I'm back in Swan City. Just flew in tonight, actually.

No matter how often or how long I've been away, the moment I change into the old t-shirt I've been wearing since I was 13 (yeap, I haven't grown much since), and follow my mum around the kitchen when she's cooking supper, I feel like a little girl all over again.

There's no place like home.

Bvlgari Engagement Ring

I think I'm in love.

It was love at first sight, yes it was. The moment I slipped it onto my ring finger, my heart instantly knew.

"This is it." I heard it whispered.

The Griffe platinum ring with two lateral diamonds and a central round brilliant cut diamond.

Perfection.

Bvlgari Engagement Rings

My favourite range of engagement rings by Bvlgari.

Apart from round brilliant cut, the same engagement ring also comes with either an emerald cut or an oval shape diamond.

Griffe platinum ring with two lateral diamonds and a central round brilliant cut diamond

Griffe platinum ring with two lateral diamonds and a central emerald cut diamond

Griffe platinum ring with two lateral diamonds and a central oval shape diamond

Not a big fan of the oval shape, but the emerald cut is stunning!

However, I've always believed that emerald or any square cuts requires a much bigger diamond since they tend to be less 'fiery' and show less brilliance compared to round brilliant cuts.

Therefore, for an 1-carat, the timeless classic round brilliant cut is the answer.

Faking It

Bee and I have been arguing a fair bit since I got back.

I guess that's one of the reasons why I can't make up my mind to leave Melbourne and to come back to Malaysia for good. Because if I'm here, then all our problems become real.

Sounds like I'm running away, I know.

Sometimes I feel like we're a fake. We look perfect on the outside, but only we know what's really going on in our relationship.

That's how all couples are, some say.

Maybe it is.

Maybe all couples are just faking it. Faking to people around us, faking to create the image of a perfect couple, and most importantly, faking to ourselves that we're happy.

How many of us are convinced ourselves? How many of us are truly happy?

Or rather, can we ever be truly happy in a relationship?

Coast Yellow Chiffon Tiered Dress

My trip back to Malaysia normally translates into an out-of-control shopping spree.

Well, not this time.

To my surprise, I don't have the slightest interest to shop. I can't even think of anything I feel like buying. Now if you know me, you'll know how abnormal that is.

The only thing that I've actually tried on this time round is this yellow chiffon tiered dress by Coast (minus the belt). And that's because it was in the window display at Robinsons.

The colour is absolutely gorgeous, and the dress looked great on me. Except it was 2 sizes too big. :|

I'm a size 4, or maybe a small size 6. But the smallest size it comes in is size 8. The staff mentioned that they could have it altered for me, but I decided to pass.

It's a beautiful dress, and reasonably priced. I would normally snap it up right away but I guess I just wasn't in the mood.

*Shrugs*

Not in the mood to shop. Now that's something I never thought I'd say.

Asscher Cut Diamond

I first wrote about my desire to have an asscher cut diamond on my engagement ring 2 years ago here.

After a lil shopping around, I realised that it's gonna be extremely difficult to get hold of one at this stage. Even if we could, a reasonable stone will be way out of our current budget.

So I'm putting this on my wish list, in hope that someday, someday I'll have one to call my own.

Asscher cut is a stepped square cut, sometimes referred to as the "square emerald cut".

The original "Asscher cut diamond" was developed in 1902 by the Asscher Brothers of Holland. Technically, the asscher name should only refer to diamonds cut by the Asscher brothers themselves. However, the name is now commonly used to refer to square emerald cuts that are cut today.

The main difference between emerald cut and asscher cut - shape of the latter leans more towards squarish, rather than rectangular'ish of the former.

Also, asscher cuts have 74 facets, while emerald cut diamonds have 57.

The asscher cut diamond is one of the greatest cuts of diamonds ever created.

It is a brilliant modification on the most popular cut of previous century, the cushion cut. The Asscher brothers invented a cut which was square to rectangular with a flat table (top surface), many small step cuts along the top area and larger longer facets underneath the diamond.

Like the cushion cut, the asscher cut has an open culet (the point on the bottom of a diamond's pavilion), and a facet plan to draw the eye into the diamond and to give the diamond depth.

In fact, the beauty of an asscher cut is how the eye "dives into the center of the diamond", which contradicts today's modern "brilliant cut" diamonds in which the facets and cut of the diamond repel the eye.

Asscher cut diamonds are called "step cuts", referring to the linear cuts following the shape of the diamond. This faceting is similar to the faceting on emerald cut diamonds. With stepped facets, the sheen tends to be large flashes of the stepped angles on the pavilion of the stone.

Step cuts are comprised of larger facets which act like mirrors. The facets are broad with flat planes resembling the steps of a stair. That's why it is referred to as a "step cut".

However, because of the angle, size, and shape of the facets, the asscher cut shows less brilliance and fire (dispersion) than the other brilliant cut stones.

Personally, I think an asscher cut requires a bigger stone with top colour and clarity to produce the desirable effect. Which is precisely why it's currently out of reach for us.

Do it right, or don't do it at all. Right?

A 3-carat, maybe? In a classic 3-stone setting with tapered baguettes.

Now that's something worth waiting for. :)

(I can't find an exact picture of what I have in mind, so these will make do for now.)

Sleeping In

Today is the first day in the last 117 days that I get to sleep in.

That's how long I've been working straight without a day off.

I love my job, and I love going to work. But sometimes it's nice to have a break, and to be able to wake up whenever you want to without an alarm clock.

Of course, it was only perfect because I got to sleep in my bee's arms.

The perfect sleeping in.

A lil Pampering

This holiday started with a mad rush.

With all the end-of-month paperwork to be finished and start-of-month stock ordering to be settled, I worked till 6pm on Friday before I rushed home to pack and then rushed to airport in a pouring storm to catch my flight.

So the sweet boyfriend treated his overworked girlfriend to a lil pampering with a manicure and pedicure session.

As un-feminist as it may sound, it's nice to have someone paying for you and to make you feel that you're being taken care of.

Or maybe I've just been on my own for too long.

I miss being pampered.

Hiatus

The long silence is because I've been working everyday since Queens's Birthday. 7 days a week.

You get used to it after a while. To wake up everyday to go to work. To not have time for anything else.

The weird thing is, I kinda like it. I must be a born workaholic.

The sudden appearance now is because I'm back in Malaysia for a brief holiday.

4 weeks.

Not quite long enough.