Britney Spears - FEMME FATALE Premium Fan Edition

Hello y'all! How are you doing?

Well, I'm fine and I'm finally blogging about CDs for the first time on "word shutter"! Are you excited because I am!

Tried taking photos using my newly created light box but I don't think it worked out very well so the pictures here might not be my best because I'm still getting used to controlling the lighting so please bear with me.

Anyway, as you all should have known, Britney Spears, Queen of Pop, released her seventh studio album titled "FEMME FATALE" on March 25, 2011 and I know, it's an extremely overdue post because I only received it last Thursday because the Premium Fan edition was only released on April 22. Weird, no? But I think it's worth the wait because it's simply gorgeous!

TA DA! The album came in a 9.5" by 9.5" gorgeous hardcover book featuring some of her never-before-seen photo shoots and luckily, it barely fits inside my lightbox so I was able to take a photo of it. Heavily edited photo above but it captures the pretty font, no? :) Just feeling the solid book in my hands made me feel that the long wait for this legendary album that I personally feel is her best since "In The Zone" worth it.

Well the pretty uninteresting back of the book - in case you want to know.

It's Britney, bitch! One of the pages of her photo book. As y'all know, I'm a sucker for good packagings and limited edition stuff so you know you know... :)

Here's when lighting starts to become difficult for me but anyway... This is one of her first photos in the photo book. There was this photo with her hair all over her face until you can't recognize who she is but I didn't bother taking a photo of that because it's a little stupid. Doesn't she look pretty here? Leon said he can see some of her wrinkles in the photo but I guess that's fine - shows that she's growing.

Another one of her photos. I think she's pretty honest with her body because well, you can see that her body is getting a little out of proportion but I admire her honesty for being herself and loving her body. I still remember she did a promotional shoot some time back and requested for an unedited version of the photo to be posted with the edited one which made her look more slender. Britney embraces her body and that's commendable!

She changed her look a couple of times in the photo booklet and this is one of them. The photo shows how she cleverly hides her flaws to make herself look more flattering - the position of the clothing and the arching of her back. Tip: If you want to take a photo of your back and look slimmer, arch your back backwards and show that neck! Sure will make you look more sexy and taller! And yes!! Ain't the blue simply GORGEOUS?!

This is how the CD is packaged in the album - slotted into one of these hardcover pages. Not my favorite means of packaging the CD because that means the CD will be prone to physical damage but compared to the normal digipaks, this packaging is slightly more sturdy so I guess it should be fine. Plus, it's so good looking so I can forgive them~

Hello fierceness!!

I think this is one of my most-failed photo in recent history because somehow, even after editing, I cannot get the photo to look right. Anyway, this is how the limited edition CD look like. Apparently (I'm not sure though), the CD in the regular ones are different from this. Oh yes! It's a good thing I got this Premium Fan Edition because this version includes a 17th track - Scary!! It's only released in the Japan version as well as this one so there's no other means (other than the illegal ones) to get this track!

Along with the CD comes a vinyl disc of her hit single - Hold It Against Me! Not like I have a vinyl player but the disc is really cool!

 This is how the A-side looks like. Basically, this vinyl has 2 sides - one side with the original version of the song and the other side the Instrumental version of the song. It's a pity I can't listen to the instrumental version because I don't have the player. :( But she looks GORGEOUS here so that even things out~

The Instrumental Side (I believe) of the vinyl. Really cool fonts!

More limited edition goodness!!

Well I say, FEMME FATALE is one SOLID album because it packs so many nice songs. Here are some of my personal favorites and why. Just so you know, I actually listened to this album even before it arrived at my house because the moment I clicked on "Purchase", they gave me the digital download of the album straight away so I could start feasting on Britney's marvelous creations!

Till The World Ends - Probably because this is a single and it's really catchy? Plus it's a song about "HECK ABOUT THE END OF THE WORLD" 

Hold It Against Me - Because it's the first song I ever heard from on this album and probably because of Sam Tsui's awesome cover. 

How I Roll - "Dum dum dum dum dum dee dum dum~" Really cute song!! 

Big Fat Bass - Honestly, I don't know but it's really catchy plus bassy~ Makes me feel like dancin'~ Though it would be a disaster if I did... 

Trouble For Me - No idea why I love this song but I do!! Really addictive piece!! 

Criminal - Probably because it's nearly a ballad and the lyrics actually makes a little sense as opposed to the other dance tracks. 

Scary - Because it's LIMITED EDITION STUFF BABY!!

All in all, I think this album is really worth the money and anyone who had grew up listening to Britney should get it to see how much she had changed (well, this album's definitely for the better). Though it's not like her older classic works but this album really breathes fresh air into her career once again. I enjoyed this album very much and I hope you do as well~!!

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Unboxing the Presents - PART 2

making of | PART 1 | PART 2 | Presents (Part 1) | Presents (Part 2)

Was meant to post this entry a few days back but I was extremely busy because as y'all know, I'm now not in SAFTI and that goes to say that I will not be as free. Well, I wouldn't say my new place is horrible since I have lots of friends over there (not new ones though - some new people are just plain annoying) but that story's for another day.

FINALLY! The last post for TOY MUSEUM since I started out this new blog. Okay. Let's start already!! Do take a look at the previous post to see where I left off~

This has got to be the most...shockingly dangerous?? present I've ever received in my entire life and it came in these 2 innocent looking brown boxes. Presented (there was really a presentation "ceremony" on the actual day but it was kinda private) by Zhi Kai, Kevin and Haikal.

A pair of Wakizashis (Japanese short swords)!! Before you correct me, I know~ I placed the swords the wrong way. They should arc the other way round as opposed to in this photo so stop correcting me! Don't worry~ They are not sharpened so they are legal, I hope. They are really beautiful, no? :D

WOOOO!!! A black and "white" Wakizashi~ I feel like a ninja now! These swords are now sitting on their stands in front of the TV in my living room, in case you're wondering. Zhi Kai and the rest were actually planning on getting me a pair of sais (yes, the Elektra ones) but good thing they didn't because I already have a pair. Somehow, I think I like weapons that comes in a pair... Like these, sais, Tomb Raider's twin guns, etc.

Moving on to the next present. DISCLAIMER: This plain looking package is a SHOW STOPPER. You'll see... :) The following presents (including this one, of course) is from Daniel, Yin Zhi, Chong Yee, Hazel, Ain and Yahya.

I think this bar code belongs on this white package because I found it in the plastic bag where I put all my presents inside that night. May have dropped off from the package and it's a little crumpled. :( But this bar code idea is really cool, no?

TA DA!! Presenting to you the SWEETEST PRESENT AWARDEE, this black booklet given to me by the marvelous friends above. I saw them making this booklet during my party itself and they were constantly shooing me away so that there's still that element of surprise. And it certainly touched me~

Some of the pages inside this booklet featuring some of the photos that I took! Even I'm not bothered to develop my own photographs to even keep them but these people were so hardworking to look through my collection to pick out nice ones to present them back to me! I feel so honored that people goes through my photos and it motivates me to take even better photos~

The shots that we took during the 2010-2011 Countdown at Woodlands Waterfront - my first countdown event ever outside my own home! If you want to see all the contents of this booklet, visit my facebook album - they are all there! I just had to show off their hard work and creativity!!

A short note at the end of the booklet. AWWWWWW~~~ Sweetest thing ever! I disagree with some points inside the note though because I think the booklet is extremely well made (Hello! From scratch!! The whole thing was glued together from scratch!!) and it definitely reminded me of a lot of good memories I had with these great friends.

Stuck on the back of the booklet... Made for ME!! :D

Besides the heartfelt booklet of marvelous pictures (because I took them :P) and memories, they also gave me this notebook with my name on it. Nice colors!! I like~ This notebook consists of calendar pages and blank pages so it's basically for me to write on. Yes, that kind of notebook, just personalized. :)

AND besides the 2 books, they gave me this present wrapped in a teddy bear wrapping paper. The shape is pretty obvious now, no?

A PICARD wallet! And I love the texture too~ Another gang of people who knows that my wallet is was breaking apart. I'm currently using this wallet right now because it's so cool!

While I was taking photos of my presents, I did not go through each and everyone of them because there were so many subjects to be shot. It was until my father looked through some of my presents that he discovered that Daniel and all had included 20 dollars in this wallet. I was extremely shocked because I had never expected that! Aren't they fantastic? Surprises after surpries~!!

And as if they were running for "Most Number of Presents Given", they gave me this shirt as well! Hmmmm~ I wonder when I'll wear this shirt though. Maybe they are like "Broy's always wearing the mono-colored oversized T-shirt. Maybe we should give him something else~" When I get the chance, I'll definitely try this shirt out! :D

They were not the only ones to give me clothing. Chua Ying Ying gave me this pink T-shirt (apparently from UNIQLO since she works there) because she said that she wants something to rival my lime green T-shirt in terms of boldness and I think she matched it. I wore this shirt on the spot that night and I thought it was quite comfortable and the color made my skin look so much fairer. I wonder if that's a good thing though but something's for sure~ It made me look thinner! :P

Next... Bing Ru gave me this elegantly wrapped purple box with a small card on it.

Adidas spray and deodorant! There were times when I stopped in departmental stores to consider whether to try these out or not because they look so cool but I dismissed the thoughts most of the time because I didn't want to waste money and on top of that, I don't always smell awful. Now that I have these, maybe it's time to experiment! :)

An unexpected present from Kaka. She suddenly gave this to me days before TOY MUSEUM because she knew that my birthday was coming even though I did not tell her directly. Very thoughtful!

Ferrero Rocher~ One of my favorite kinds of chocolates. Though this present is simple, it's really significant because it proves that people remember me. Thanks Kaka!!

The following presents gave given to me by Alvin and I titled this the BIGGEST PRESENT of the bunch because it was really huge. Good thing he left these at my house before we went to set up at Downtown East because otherwise, I would have to carry this home and that wouldn't be very convenient.

LITTLE BIG PLANET 2 : COLLECTOR'S EDITION!! Comes with a Sack Boy along with the game as well as 2 book/game holders in this big box! Really cute, no? Must have cost a lot though... :S

This edition of Little Big Planet 2 also comes with downloadable costume packs such as THE GREEN ALIEN costume! Another Green Alien under my belt~ Other than the Green Alien, there were costumes from Tron and other popular Sony games. And of course, you can more or less guess which one I'm currently using, no? :)

The book stand and Sack Boy included inside the box. Like I said, I was too busy trying to complete photographing everything so I haven't really had the chance to take photos of the contents so forgive me. Maybe I'll take them when I have the time. :)

Besides the game, Alvin also gave me this Parker pen with my name engraved on it! How awesome is that?!

Not only is it a pen, it's a fountain pen! I used to have this fountain pen back when I was in primary school. I remembered saving up for it but it wasn't very good because it leaked constantly and my hands were forever black whenever I use the pen. Threw it away eventually. Now, at least I know for sure that this pen won't leak because it has a proper ink mechanism as opposed to my previous pen. In case you want to know, it writes like a normal pen just that you have to angle it in certain ways to make the ink flow. Really cool stuff~

Third present from my best friend came in this box and no matter how hard I guessed, I couldn't guess what's inside because the shape doesn't feel familiar - or does it?

The Gilded Tarot deck! I always wanted this deck because its artwork is GORGEOUS! Furthermore, the imagery is less threatening and serious as opposed to the Rider-Waite ones so they are great for readings in parties and light hearted events. This box set comes with the cards (duh~), an companion book as well as a black organza pouch - saves me the trouble of having to sew another pouch to keep the cards. :) Thanks Alvin for reading my mind~ :D

And finally, the last present to be posted from Leon. He gave it to me after TOY MUSEUM. I think he forgotten about it and kept it inside his cabinet. -_-

It's a Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L USM CUP! Well, if it was the real thing, I would be over the moon because this lens is good~~ Vera and Rena told me that Leon's going to give me something that I would probably not use and hmmm... I think that's true to a certain extent but this cup does make a very good decorative piece on my table.

The cup itself. The plastic is a little too thin for my liking and that's the main reason why I wouldn't use this as a drinking cup. Furthermore, the base is not very wide as it tapers to the bottom and that means that this cup will topple over very easily. The replica is quite accurate, no? :) I like it~ But I wouldn't use it. :)


YES! Finally at the end of this post. Was extremely distracted because I was blogging this while watching Ellen Degeneres' biography on cable TV. Anyway, this concludes the whole TOY MUSEUM Special and I'm glad it's over because it's well overdue. Be sure to read the other parts because I put in so much hard work writing them~

Later on, I have to book in and that feeling sucks. But oh well~ Life there isn't exactly hectic but I wouldn't say that I love it a lot as well because people there are not the nicest people you'll meet but I can live with that. 2 medical appointments next week... Wish me luck!

Okay~ Off to find something else to do~!!

making of | PART 1 | PART 2 | Presents (Part 1) | Presents (Part 2)

Click to visit other parts of the ~TOY MUSEUM~ Special

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Unboxing the Presents - PART 1

making of | PART 1 | PART 2 | Presents (Part 1) | Presents (Part 2)

Maybe I should change the title of this blog to "TOY MUSEUM happenings" because other than, well, TOY MUSEUM happenings, I haven't been blogging anything else.

But look! I'm at the second last post for probably one of the biggest days of my life - my 21st birthday~ This unboxing post was supposed to be done in a single post but when I went through the photos, I simply couldn't help myself but to include lots of them inside. Because to me, if people took the effort to buy the present and to wrap it up nicely (or not so nicely, you'll see) for me, I think they deserve the due credit, no?

Without further ado, let's start, shall we?

The very first present I've received even before TOY MUSEUM arrived in the mail and it came from my mother's friends/colleagues and they are so sweet! I invited them to my party but because of their hectic schedules, they were unable to attend and so, they sent me a package! We love packages, no? :D And for obvious reasons, I removed my address.

The contents of the box less the scissors (that belongs to Vera); a lovely pink note, an ang pao and another smaller package wrapped in Isetan's wrapper. Was extremely delighted to read the note because it's so adorable~ I wonder if you can see the words from this photo though.

And beneath the Isetan wrapper is a wallet-purse! It's huge!! Comes with lots of card compartments, a coin compartment (a must have for me) and you know, normal wallet stuff. It's a little big though so I'm keeping it aside for when I need a bigger wallet. But it's really thoughtful of them because somehow, they magically knew that at that point of time, my wallet was dying already.

The second present which I unwrapped before TOY MUSEUM was from Vera, Aik Hin and Nick and it came in this really cute wrapping paper. However, it's more than just cute duck and teddy wrapping paper though. When you feel the present, you'll somehow feel that it feels funny.

That's because a whole day's worth of newspaper is wrapped around the present!! I swear that this is the most irritating present to unwrap in my entire life because after that, the whole living room was littered with shreds of newspaper and my hands were covered in yucky stuff. A WHOLE DAY'S WORTH! That's pure evil!

And finally... The present shrunk down to something 70% of the original size, no thanks to the endless layers of newspaper. I'll definitely take my revenge one day. I won't use "The Newpaper". I'll use "The Straits Times". But you have to give it to them for spending so much time and sticky tape to put this present together.

AN INSTAX MINI 7S!! *holy Ahhhhhh~~~~~~!!* Well, Vera knows that I wanted an instant camera and she also wants an instant camera so what better thing to get for me but an instant camera (the words "instant camera" appeared 3 four times in a single sentence, how 'bout that!). So, she bought this camera so that we can share it. Thoughtful, no? But I love it anyway~ :D

And now... *drum rolls* These are the presents I got from TOY MUSEUM! Just one glance and you can see lots of Green Aliens but that's not the main point. Unwrapping the presents wasn't easy you know~ I had to go through each and everyone of them and take photos of them and Maomao was constantly messing up the mess. Now~ For the individual shots...

Okay. The first present which I unwrapped was from FATTIES! I wonder who's idea it was to stick the "21st" because I think it will take awhile to tape those letters up, especially the "ST"; so tiny! Just looking at the wrapping, you can more or less guess what's inside.

The FATTIES!! Of course I don't mind the design~

Either my friends or family knows me extremely well or I'm not shy when it comes to announcing my hobbies but I think everyone managed to give me something that's according to my personality! The fatties gave me a really helpful book on Light & Exposure in Digital Photography and it covers lots of things that I always wanted to learn more about! :D Jum even told me that they picked his book because the photos include the technical specifications. Meticulous~

Along with the book, they also gave me this smaller package wrapped in... I don't know~ But I wonder if the names mean anything though.

White Sony Earphones!! When I saw this, I went "Oh no~!!" because I just bought another pair of earphones not long ago. These earphones are really gorgeous but I'm keeping them for the future because I don't want to get tangled by too many wires. And the fatties know me well because they know I love my music~ :D

Mystery solved. They used some sort of SP magazine to wrap the present. Not bad considering I couldn't recognize that it wasn't wrapping paper in the first place. At least they were not as cruel to use a whole day's worth of newspaper to wrap the gift...

A silvery chromish "box" from Rini. Nice wrapping paper~

WOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! National Geographic photo book! The magazine has some of the most stunning shots I've ever seen and this book packs all those works conveniently together for my viewing pleasure. And do you know that the cover photo actually won an award? Stunning eyes, no? Haven't really found time to read it yet but I definitely will!

Somehow, I have a feeling that Nicholas was like "What should I get for him? This is cute... This too... HECK!! Just get everything!!" and ta da~ GREEN ALIEN OVERLOAD! Best room mate ever gave me 3 green alien organizers and a memo sticky pad - all in this Mickey Mouse plastic bag. I hope it didn't cost too much though... :S But I love these because they are all smiling at me!

I'm really really really sorry because I forgot who gave me this one but I gave it be "BEST WRAPPED PRESENT" award on facebook. Please tell me who you are and yes, you can yell at me for being so forgetful. :S

More Green Alien goodness - a 3D Green Alien Jigsaw Puzzle! I saw one of these at Jurong Point once and went like "Green alien!!" but I never expected someone to give this to me. Okay~ I was half expecting it from my Tango friends but they admitted that it wasn't them. Then who managed to read my mind?! Tell me!!

The puzzle in its assembled form is now sitting on my shelf in my bedroom. So cute these little green aliens~

Kenvin also managed to find out that I like Green Aliens and he got me a Green Alien plushie! See~ My friends know me sooooooooooo well!

I opened up Nicholas' Green Alien stool box to put some of the stuff inside. Useful gift right? A gift that takes care of itself in terms of storage. Surprisingly, the box held up when I sat on it, proving that I may not be as fat as I thought I am.

I HAD TO TAKE THIS SHOT! I placed all the Green Aliens I can find in my house inside this box and took this photo. Pixar should be so happy that they have such a huge fan like myself. Thanks y'all for the green aliens! I will keep them company for sure.

Another present which came from people who can read my mind - Benjamin and Ronald!! I've been eyeing this yellow toy gun for very long and I ALMOST bought it days before my party so that I have yet another toy as a prop but luckily, I didn't! Thanks for reading my mind!

Chocolates... Mmmmmm~

This weirdly shaped package is from my cousins (Sheena, Rena and Laura) and it felt suspiciously soft. My first impression of this present was that it's probably going to be some kind of clothing or something-or-nothing...

...NOT AGAIN!! Newspapers again! I swear I will take my revenge one day. Instead of wrapping it up neatly like how Vera and Nick did it, they chose a messier approach. Probably because the irregular shape will throw me off guard because it indeed did~

If you put this package out in public, people might mistaken it as some dangerous substance because it looks so extremely suspicious! No clear tape? Use masking tape cut in weird shapes. Feels as though they were low on tapes to hold the present together. Or is it a creative direction? Hmmmm....

I recognize this box~ It's Rena's hard disk's packaging and she shamelessly used it to hold this envelope. Recycling? Maybe... When I unwrapped this present, the first thing I saw was "Samsung" and I was wondering what this was but I was cheated... Again...

At least it was worth the effort~ $60 (not $50 because I missed one in the photo) worth of HMV vouchers! They know me so well~ They know that I will definitely buy CDs from HMV so what better present to give me right? Thanks cousins for knowing me so well!! Judging from the date, you can tell that this present is a last minute gift because it was issued in April and my party was on the April 2nd. Meaning they either got it on the day itself or the day before the party. I should be a detective.

A sweet letter from my secondary school friends / poly school mates - Peggy and Peijin.

A home made card with my name on it! And I wonder how much time they spent to make this~ It's a little crumbled though but I think it's probably because it was placed in their bags and before coming to my party, they went cycling. Purple against black - not bad~

A pop-up card featuring toys~ They sure know the theme! "Stay happy & Young..." YES!! I still look young!

The card's not the only thing they gave me~ They gave me HMV vouchers as well! Another bunch of people who knows me very well! At least you can tell these are not last minute ones... :P




So touching right so far? I didn't expect so many people to know me so well! At least I know I'm loved~~ *sob sob* So touched...

Anyway, that's all for this post. I'm probably in camp right now doing god-knows-what because I set this post to update on itself. Part 2 will be coming soon~  Turned out the scheduled post didn't work so here I am, posting this in the middle of the night after I just finished bathing.

Stay tuned for the next post, simply because I'm so committed to blog everything~!! :)

making of | PART 1 | PART 2 | Presents (Part 1) | Presents (Part 2)

Click to visit other parts of the ~TOY MUSEUM~ Special

Read more...