Friday, 29 July 2016

Back to School Shopping

Back in the day, I remember the best thing about going back to school used to be excitement of getting new books, uniform, bag and what not. But not only did we have limited options also they last-minute rush at the shops used to frustrate my parents beyond measure. All those childhood memories came rushing back to me when last night me and my sister went to get our nephew his school accessories.
That was a complete disaster. Not only the shops were filled with people but the shop keepers were charging double the price for everything. Instead of fighting our way through that madness we stepped back and went home.

During all this chaos my nephew who is only 6 years old was upset because he couldn’t get hi new school things. So instead of letting the poor kid down I opened Yayvo.com and decided to do his shopping with him in peace.


We got his B-first school shoes & uniform from Liberty also a very cute school bag. It was a hassle free  experience which I would  recommend all the parents to go for. The best part from online shopping is we were able to get stationary as well!



Sunday, 3 July 2016

Karachi Salon Hopping

It has been quite some time hence I have been regularly going to salons/spas for various treatments in Karachi. In my purist to find the perfect spot I came across many but unfortunately none of the places I have been are able to satisfy me 100%. One thing or another always legs behind. Salons & spas in Karachi are generally inconsistent. If the facility is having a bad day, you for sure are going to receive not so good services.

However to make your life easier I am jotting down some of my experience for some of the services I have received.

Note: The routine services I get are

  1. Wax
  2. Manicure (OPI/Essie/Salon specialty)
  3. Pedicure (OPI/Essie/Salon specialty)
  4. Facial (Janssen/Guniot/Dermalogica/Salon specialty)
  5. Body Massage
  6. Hair Protein 


Raintree Spa
Hands down they have the best massages in town. The spa gives the ultimate feeling of relaxation to the customer and has good services as well. Their manicures & pedicures are worth trying as well however you will have to instruct the girl doing your pedicure to take that dry skin off your feet properly.

Their facials always give me a breakout so now I avoid them. FYI I have super oily skin.

Their prices are steep but it’s ok to indulge once in a while. Also with an SCB card you get flat 20% off on the bill.

Overall 8 out 10.


Sedusa

Sedusa
They receive a special shout out as it is my now to go place usually. You will love  Zita’s waxing there for sure. Their Janssen cleansing is superb & I rather enjoy their manicures & pedicures.
Only if they would properly scrub my feet it would be awesome. I am a little skeptical about their herbal treatments as once I got their herbal treatment for my hair & that didn’t do much good. Their staff is super friendly & the little salon itself is rather cute.


They have monthly deals which make their prices within the range if compared to other spas & salons.

Overall 8.5 out of 10







Serenity Spa

Serenity
The good part about this salon is that they keep on offering discounts & deals. Previously I used to enjoy their mani & pedis but recently their service is not upto the mark. They don’t have a big collection of nail colors sadly.  I would rate their facials as decent enough.

Overall 6.5 out of 10


Peng’s

Shabi (a beautician at Peng’s) lives up to her name in every way. Facials at Peng’s are expensive but they are worth every penny. They do not rush to end the service and make sure you are fully satisfied.  I haven’t tried their mani & pedis but the people who go their swear by it.

Overall 9 out of 10


H&S Salon

Near to my home, super affordable & very friendly, H&S salon is what you are looking for if you need quick waxing done or a nice facial easy on the pocket. Also if you want a basic mani & pedi along with protein treatment I would recommend this place.

Overall 7 out of 10


Rashid Salon

Rashid Salon
Salmoon is a gift from God for my hair. I do not trust anyone except him when it comes to blow drys, protein treatment & haircut. He doesn’t chop of more than you want & stylizes accordingly. The people at Rashid’s are amazingly friendly. Also they have pedicure experts inhouse. And believe me or not after getting done a pedicure from them you wouldn’t want to go anywhere else.

Overall 10 out of 10


Toni N Guy

It is a one stop solution for hair if
  1. You are willing to spend ton lot of money
  2. You have not any other option in the city.



Foot Comfort

Foot Comfort
I honestly failed to understand what the hype is all about. Yes they did remove the dead skin completely but no it doesn’t give you that nice spa feel. The massage didn’t even last for full 5 minutes and neither there was any scrubbing. I had to take my own nail color!

Overall 5 out of 10



Karachi Ladies Club

Won a free back massage & blow dry from them. I loved the massage and hated the blow dry.

Link:  www.facebook.com/karachiladiesclub

Hina Khan

Really very bad experience. The services are hurried & the place is always cramped. Not worth spending your time and money on.

Overall 3 out of 10




The places I am dying to try out but I feel they are way too expensive are

MINT Solutions

Amethyst by Roohi


And the next salons I will be hopefully trying out

Blush Salon

Mirrors Salon

Nadia Hussain Salon

#Karachi #Salon #Spa

Saturday, 2 July 2016

Learning Islam

I rather avoid getting in religious debates & discussions because we aren’t taught about religion in depth and usually the debates are based on personal opinions instead of authentic sources & references.

The problem of us, Pakistani’s, in majority is that since childhood it was sufficient for families to teach their children how to recite Quran Shareef in Arabic, finish Quran Shareef at least once, offer prayers & keep fasts. That’s it. End of story. The other source of religious knowledge is either Islamiyat textbooks or what our grandparents have to say.
Not once are we introduced to the translation of Quran Shareef. We never listen to tafseer, we never know the context of Ayats & God forbids if any amongst us even question anything regarding religion. We don’t even read the books of Hadith.
Please break this culture. Quran Shareef was sent to Nabi Kareem S.A.W in Arabic because the language of the people at that time was Arabic. Allah wanted the people to understand & take lessons from the book. Instead of forcing your child to re-read Quran Shareef in Arabic, introduce them to Quran in your language, The language that they understand & can take lessons from. If you like any Surah, do listen to tafseer of it. If you have any questions regarding faith, don’t rest till you have got your answers.
Our nation has such extreme behavior towards religion because of the dictatorship attitude towards it. Islam on the other hand, is beautiful. It is welcoming & has a way out for every problem for those who seek solutions. Don’t make Islam a matter of burden. I urge you, we are the future of this nation & we will shape the upcoming generation. Set a good example for them.
I have been listening to lectures of Nouman Ali Khan and feel we have so little knowledge regarding our very own faith. Please don’t limit your understanding and keep on exploring. May Allah bless us all with his wisdom.



Tuesday, 21 June 2016

Life Made Easy with National

Dahi Barey
For working people who love to cook Ramadan already is a tough time of the year, add summer in the equation and all hell breaks loose. However this year I decided be it Sehri or Iftar I am going to live off cereal and fruits because I didn’t want to go through hours and hours of torturing myself in oven hot kitchen cooking.

But behold I came across www.madeeasy.com.pk and everything is back on track. Quick & simple recipes catering to our Pakistani tastebuds, you will find this website a job well done by National Foods. I have tried a couple of recipes using National masalas and am absolutely satisfied!

Cheese balls

Mint Lemonade

Bombay Biryani

Hari Chutney

Seekh Kebab


It’s not just about good taste but also about efficiency. Check out the website to make yummy easy recipes. They have recipes for almost every occasion and every taste.

Monday, 2 May 2016

Reasons why I love Harry Potter - Part One Characters

The main character went through major transformation throughout the series. From being a naive boy to young man,
Harry showed his anger, his weakness & worked hard for his strengths. He did not have it all easy. He taught us it takes a team to get through all the difficulties. He taught us compassion, to understand need of someone else before your own.

Ron was as human as possible. People are not perfect and this character was perfect example of it. Though his heart is pure & his will determined, he can’t help himself being jealous and insecure at times.

Hermione taught us all that it’s wonderful to be ‘Know It All’. It’s fun to learn and library isn’t such a bad thing. Kids these days who think being brainy is not cool, she taught them brains will get them out from tight corners.

Neville, a boy who was consumed by fear & self consciousness did not give up on life. He grew up to be stronger & braver than ever. He taught us it doesn’t matter if you are not good at everything as long as you are passionate about something.

Snape taught us never judge a book by its cover. You don’t need to parade your goodness, kind heart & soul as long as you are doing the right thing. From Snape we learnt we have to be careful or else no mistake can ruin our lives.

Dobby taught us everyone deserves freedom, no matter how different they are, no matter what they do.  He taught us to be gracious to those who helped us during the time of our need.
Sirius taught us that strength comes from within if you know the truth. No matter how frustrating circumstances get but if you have clear conscious you can survive the worst.

Draco taught us it is never too late to leave the darker side. Goodness will always brace you live an 
old friend. Your only task is to accept your faults and move on.  

Dumbldore taught us to trust. To think beyond boundaries & give leverage to those who desperately need it but never ask for it.

J.K.Rowling taught us no one is perfect. Every story has darkness and every character has flaws. It’s ok to be weird as long as you have a pure heart. Family is important, even if it is large, loud and poor it still is family. True friends are not all, they are rare. Hold on to them as they will stay with you till the end.


Harry Potter series taught me life is beautiful even though when it going through the darkest times, there are always those out there with whom you can share laughter & joy. 

Sunday, 1 May 2016

Nutrilov Granola Bars


I have a terrible sweet tooth and almost after every other meal I crave for dessert. One feels the need to have dessert especially in office with tea. Instead of opting for cookies & cakes recently I have started munching on granola bars. I usually buy Nature Valley’s bars but I find the slightly pricey and not so chewy as they aren’t fresh.

Recently the team of Nutrilov sent me samples of their homemade granola bars by the name of Nutrilov. She sent me two flavors, chocolate chips & coconut and peanut butter & raisins. I was a little skeptical earlier but after trying the bars I came to the conclusion that they tasted great. The experience of both flavors was wonderful. Loaded with chocolate chips with right amount of coconut, the granola bar had the right sugariness via honey to satisfy my sweet tooth.  Peanut butter and raisins granola's smell was something I am sure all the peanut butter fans would enjoy the most. Both bars were chewy & not dry at all.


Both the bars were less than 190Kcal which is a plus! 

There Facebook page link: www.facebook.com/nutrilovpk



Monday, 21 March 2016

Things you get to hear when you are working for a Digital Advertising Agency

What exactly is your job description?











Using Facebook is not real work.















My 5 year old can do what you are doing.

My dog can do a better job.
















Why don’t you make TV ads? TV is more important.

How do you guys even make money?















Your job is so easy.. Just make a competition on Facebook.















Why are you guys staying so late? You don’t even have any work to do.

This is not a serious career I tell you.














Thank You for your stupid questions and comments.. I am totally judging your intellect.