Tokidoki Barbie and New Tokidoki Bag

Way before the controversy over the Tokidoki Barbie erupted in the US media, I've been wanting this for my Tokidoki collection.

Thanks to a stroke of luck, I managed to snag it for the original retail price on Ebay shortly after it was released. Just mere days later, the prices on Ebay increased several fold and the Mattel website promptly sold out after the furor over her tattoos.

Certainly, the hot pink micro-mini and leopard print tights aren't exactly the definition of class and elegance but that's not what Tokidoki is about. I wouldn't dress like that personally but that doesn't stop me from loving all the whimsical design details of this Barbie, from her shellacked pink bob, coy sideways glance to her glittery silver stilettos and Bastardino pet on the golden leash.

The Tokidoki Barbie is a Gold Label production meant for the adult collector, which means no more than 7400 units were produced.



With my MAC Barbie, another treasured collectible from 2007.

At the Takashimaya sale in Ngee Ann City level B2 today, I found the white Tokidoki cross-weave bag going for S$119 (about half its original price).

When I first saw the bag at Tangs Orchard several months ago, the soft white material and sakura motif appealed to me immensely but it looked tricky to maintain, plus the girl looked like an alien with her olive green skin and purple hair and lips!

This is actually two bags in one as the inner organiser can be removed and comes with its own detachable strap.



Some of the other designs on sale.

The latest collection of Tokidoki bags on level 2 of Takashimaya.

Stila All Doll'd Up Eye Shadow Palette

The All Doll'd Up Palette from the Barbie Loves Stila collection was released in the fall of 2009. The first shipment at the Escentials boutique at Tangs Orchard sold out very quickly but I was fortunately able to snag one from the second shipment sometime in early 2010. This week, I finally broke it out and have been using it for the past three days. I always meant to review it but other new stuff kept getting in the way. Plus by the time that I purchased it, it was already quite hard to find.

I paid S$70 for the palette at Tangs, quite a big mark up from the US$28 retail price in the US. Nevertheless, the palette was still well worth the price given the number of shades and the top-notch, buttery smooth quality of the eyeshadows. The palette is made in the USA. Stila now sells similar eyeshadows trios in a black pot packaging for US$20 each on Sephora.com. Of the shades in the All Doll'd Up palette, it looks like only the violet/gunmetal grey/teal trio ("Afterhours") made it to the permanent line.

For the first look, using Too Faced Shadow Insurance as the base, I applied the gunmetal grey along the upper lashline, the bright violet shade at the inner half of the lid, the teal at the outer half, the pale beige over the browbone area and the pink shade at the inner corners and along the lower lashline.


For the second look, I applied the gunmetal grey along the upper lashline, the pink shade at the inner corners and along the lower lashline, the silver shade in the crease with a touch of the light blue blended at the outer corners, and the light beige shade over the browbone area.


For the final look, I used the gunmetal grey along the upper lashline, the pink shade in the crease and along the lower lashine, the bright violet in the outer half of the crease ad the light beige shade over the browbone area.

The rest of the makeup was kept the same: Guerlain Prarure Pearly White Fluid Foundation 01 topped with Jill Stuart Loose Powder, MAC Wicked Ways Lipglass (from the Venomous Villains collection), Esprique Precious Gradation Cheeks #2 Pink Rose and Tarte EmphasEYES for brows.

This will be excellent for travel as one can create a good number of different looks with it. I also like the simple metal case (with the Barbie winking!), which is much sturdier and more compact that the colour wheel palettes that Stila released in the recent holiday collection, which just looked very unwieldy to me.

Barbie Loves Stila

The Escentials boutique in Tangs Orchard has put up a Barbie Loves Stila window display!

Judging from the display, it looks like they only have the Lip Enamel set, Lip Glazes, Smudge Pots and brush eyeliners left. No sign of the Barbie Loves Stila palette, which sold out quite quickly.

If I had more money (and a much larger house), I would love to collect Barbie dolls. As a child, I would spend countless hours in the Barbie aisle in department stores, just checking out all the dolls that we could not afford to buy at that time. Finally, when I was ten, my mom bought me my first Barbie (Peaches'n'Cream) when I did well on an exam.

I only ever owned two Barbies with the other being an astronaut Barbie with the cutest fuchsia mini skirt and metallic silver tights. And my childhood friend got her parents to buy me a Barbie convertible car (in hot pink of course) for Christmas one year :-) Those were good times. Then I got too old for them and gave them to a young cousin. It broke my heart years later to see how badly she treated them (as she had dozens) with one even losing its head!

One thing I've noticed about the newer generations of Barbie dolls is that the faces of the Barbie dolls are not as pretty as those in the late '80s which had much more delicate features and smaller heads.

Barbie Loves Stila @ Tangs

To my surprise, I found the Barbie Loves Stila on display at the Stila counter (in the Escentials corner) of Tangs Orchard! According to the SA, the collection arrived twelve days ago. They had also brought in the holiday 8-lipglaze set but it had already sold out but it may be restocked closer to Christmas.

As I had some Tangs vouchers to spend, here's what I came home with (my first Stila haul in two years!):

The Lip Enamel Trio (S$74): Tickled Pink, Joy and Happiness.


Joy looks like a crazily intense cranberry red in the tube but when applied, there is actually more of a bright pinkish red. It gives a lovely pop of color that brightens up the complexion.

Tickled Pink is a glossy Barbie pink while Joy (below) is a peachy light pink.

I have been lemming the Barbie Smudge Pots for months now and was very excited to find all of them available. I decided on Little Black Dress (S$48) which is a gorgeous metallic deep purple with pink shimmer.


I also picked up the Smudge Pot Collection of four mini smudge pots in Kitten, Starry Night, Violet and Black (S$58). It's quite odd that the Smudge Pot Collection and Lip Enamel Trio both retail for US$32 in the US but in Singapore, there's a S$16 difference in the price of the two sets. But I figured the Lip Enamel Trio is still quite worthwhile as one Lip Enamel usually retails for more than S$35.


The SA also gave me a very generous gift with purchase! There were two sets available: both had a lipglaze (in Cranberry or Raspberry), a fragrance sample and then you can choose either the Montmatre eyeshadow quad or a mascara. (These are not displayed so I'm not sure what is the minimum purchase that one needs to qualify for the gift.) For me the natural choice was Montmatre as I love purple eyeshadows. I also picked Raspberry lipglaze as Cranberry is very similar to Joy Lip Enamel.


And I have to say the service at the Stila counter was outstanding. The SA was knowledgeable and very helpful, without being pushy. I was glad to learn from the SA that there are no plans for Stila to pull out of Singapore, unlike Japan and Taiwan, and that the brand remains popular with customers here even though the counter does not carry the full range of Stila (for example, they stock only 30 of the 50 eyeshadow shades that Stila has). The prices are of course more expensive compared to the US, but I get a 10% rebate with my Citibank Tangs card. Plus the generous GWP more than made up for the price difference. By the time you add in the shipping costs, sales tax and hassle of getting a CP from the US, it's just easier and not that much more expensive to shop at the Escentials counter instead where you can try out the products first (and enjoy great service!).

There is currently a promotion going on whereby if you buy 3 items (the sets are not included, such as the Smudge Pot Collection), you can get the third item at half price.

Barbie Spa

If you're in Shanghai, you may want to check out the Barbie flagship store which features a Barbie spa on the second floor. (Pics from Biteki.com)


This wallpaper is hilarious!


The spa also carries its own cosmetics line.

Stila x Barbie Japan

The Stila x Barbie is set to be launched on 13 March in Japan, which is getting different items from the US release. Instead of the 4 paint can sets, Japan will get only the Pony Tail paint can set, plus the following items:

Eye Mousse Pot: 2 shades (3360yen)


Cheek Mousse Pot (3360yen)


Face Shimmer Powder: 2 shades (4410yen)


3-Pan Palette: 2 palettes (5775yen)



Makeup Pouch Swimwear (6195yen)


Pouch and Scrunchy set Silhouette (7245yen)


Clutch Pouch (5985yen)


GWP mini bag with purchase of 6300yen.