Getting a tattoo in Hong Kong

Since I last posted on here, I got a tattoo! 

Although now I love it and sometimes even forget it's there, due to it being behind me...literally. It took quite a bit of time and some panic to get used to it. 5 stages to be exact. 

Almost backing out 

Making the artist draw it out at least 5 times until it was 100% acceptable for that needle to even come near me.   

Panic stage 1 

The moment I stood up from the chair I suddenly realised this is forever, there's no going back now. 

Panic stage 2  

Once unsupervised, I somehow had to make sure this tattoo didn't turn into a blob.(A tattoo blowout as they call it) 

Relief 

After the 3 days of stress, I could finally take that *now* gross bit of tape off and see the results of my care.

Acceptance

After a couple of days of being taken aback and scared by my own reflection, I finally forget about its whole existence. 

Where to go 

I tried to do as much research as possible before choosing a place, but to be honest there's only so much I could understand about the tattoo lingo. As long as it looks good and I don't die from it, it'll do. I chose Star Crossed Tattoo in TST. 

Although I booked the appointment 2 weeks in advance, they seemed to have forgotten about my entire existence when I walked in. After waiting (and panicking) for half an hour someone finally bothered to show up. 

While I wouldn't say it was the best service, my tattoo came out perfectly and with pretty minimal pain - the most important element. 

Other shops recommended around HK 

Zinc Tattoo shop  

Blackout Tattoo

Dragon Lair Tattoo 
  

Top Tips 

• Since you're not allowed to go swimming for a few weeks after, it's better to ink up in the cooler months to avoid being a sweaty mess. 

• Choose an artist who's style is similar to what you're looking for. A shop that specialises in sleeves probably won't be able to give you the tiny tattoo of your dreams. 

• Try not to go on a hike or anything too sweaty during the 3 days of wearing tape, you'll constantly be worrying about it. 

HONG KONG's most Instagramable café

If you're looking for the perfect place to get that #foodie #flatlay post, then Fara xoxo is the café you need in your life. With its pastel pink and mint green themed walls, white marble table tops, hot pink furniture and an array of different props to use, from palm leaves to inflatable unicorn cup holders. It's every instagramers dream. 

 The pastel coloured walls are also covered with cute artwork, neon signs and a notice board filled with postcards and unique summer themed bits and bobs, to really give you that instagram hipster vibe. Because who doesn't love hand drawn cacti and an inspirational quote to get them through the day? 

The interior of Fara xoxo is spacious, yet still has enough room to fit their many customers during the lunchtime rush. As well as the location looking good, the food they produce is also very photogenic. With pasta dishes that are perfectly plated and iced coffees served in an ombré formation. The food is also reasonably priced with the cafe offering special lunch sets which include a meal and drink from just HK$50.  

The café has been open for less than a week, but has caused quite a sensation online amongst the HKfoodie community. By getting free publicity from many of their customer’s social media posts, this business has tapped into the online buzz, which I'm sure many other restaurants and cafe's will soon follow. 

FARA XOXO is located at: 565 Fuk Wing Street, Cheung Sha Wan, Hong Kong.  

XX

Outfit Of The Month | March | Urban Vibes

To my surprise when I arrived home for the Easter holidays, Hong Kong was a little chillier than I expected. Usually I'd be practically living in a bikini at this time of year, but instead I was extremely unprepared and a little bit cold. 

The vibe of this city always make me want to put a little more effort into my outfits, dressing a casual playsuit with some heels and statement jewellery gives you a smart casual look, or how I like to call it...smasual perfect for a lunch date with an obscene amount of cocktails! 

Playsuit: Urban Outfitters 

Heels: Forever 21

Necklace: H&M 

Bag: H&M 

The said obscene amount 

of cocktails 

xx

Hong Kong Rugby 7's Survival Guide

The Rugby Sevens is one Hong Kong's few big events, especially for expats and is a weekend people look forward to all year! From flying beer jugs to people dressed up as every character you've ever known, the sevens sees a new crazy each year. 

Now I'm not really a sports loving kinda girl, but I never want to miss out on a great excuse to get drunk and party all day. So I thought I should make a survival guide to all of you out there who are more in it for the party then the actual rugby. 

1. Dress Up 

About 30% of the fun is seeing everyone in crazy costumes, taking pictures and laughing, if you don't dress up you'll feel like you're missing out on some of the fun. Try and be as creative as possible but if you've left it a bit too last minuet theres always that one halloween costume i'm sure you can wear. 

2. Prepare To Lose Your Voice

Whether you're screaming at the game or you're trying to talk to your friends over the music one way or another your voice will be gone by the Sunday night. Everyone ends up sounding rather similar to Darth Vader on Monday morning. 

3. Grab Some Drinks at 7/11 Before 

Unless you come to the sevens with an unlimited supply of money, you will use it all up halfway through the day. With overpriced Pimms and food being the only thing you can get in the stadium, you will burn a hole in your pocket much faster then you think. So on your way to the stadium pop in to 7/11 and down some drinks to give you a pre game buzz....who cares if its only 10am!? 

4. Prepare not to eat 

This may just be me but when it comes down to the decision of food or alcohol, alcohol always wins, Vodka is made of potatoes is it's not too bad right? Back to my point about the overpriced food, if you want to pay double the price for a McDonald's then be my guest. 

5. Get To The South Stand Early 

The South Stand is the most exciting, wild and fun stand in the whole stadium, which is why so many people want to get in and there can be almost an hour wait in line on the more popular days like Sunday. You have to be 18 and show your ID (only HK Id's are excepted) or your passport to get it. But once you're in you won't want to leave for the rest of the day but you can't really leave anyway because you will have to queue up to get back in. 

6. Don't spend the whole time trying to get on the screen 

It's like being famous for 5 seconds, the whole stadium will see you. But seriously though don't waste so much time dancing in front of the cameras to get on the screen because the moment you stop trying to get on, you'll get on, it's just how things work! 

7. Prepare to run into everyone you've ever met 

Especially if you are an international school kid, you will pretty much know everyone there because almost every expat goes to the Sevens. So be ready for lots of catching up and maybe some awkward encounters with your "favourite" people... 

8. Stick With Your Crew

It's so easy to get lost and loose people and with loud music and busy crowds. Attempting to hear anyone on the phone is a challenge so stick together or at least mention where you're going, unless you are all dressed the same then it might be a little easier to spot each other in the crowd.  

9. Going Out After Will Be Packed 

If you still have enough energy after a day of drinking and dancing to hit Lan Kwai Fong or Wan Chai afterwards, be warned it will be crazy busy and attempting to walk is hard enough, let alone trying to dance. 




10.Enjoy Yourself 

The sevens only comes once a year and if you live abroad, you might not get to go for a while. Drink, party and let loose and if you have time maybe watch a little bit of the actual rugby.... ;) 

xx

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BLOG!

It's my birthday it's my birthday I'm gonna party like its my birthday! I've officially had this blog for a year and I'm so pleased with what it's become. It's a little place that I have on the internet where I can chat to invisible people and hopefully make them happy for the time they read a post. I've learnt a lot about myself from doing this. Since the summer every time I return home to HK people have come up to me and mentioned my blog in some way, it honestly makes my day! It's something I love and if other people love it too then that's amazing :) 

Here are a few of my favourite posts so far! 

 Considering that the date is New Years Eve, you can probably tell that this blog was my New Years resolution. I have never actually gone through with one of my resolutions before, normally by the end of January I just can't be bothered. But this year has inspired me to make more resolutions which I will try my hardest to follow. I used to create unrealistic or unhealthy goals which I wouldn't even start, my advice is the create resolutions that you want to do. Don't say you're going to stop drinking coffee when you can't function first thing in the morning without it. Make it doable!

Unpopular opinion alert: I don't like New Years Eve. I say it all year but as soon as it gets past Christmas I make it another day to look forward to because you might as well be festive for as long as you can! But I'm always disappointed, you're pressured to get drunk and party your way into the New Year. When I drink there's a 70% chance I will cry and have a mental breakdown just because I'm THAT drunk girl. Thats a very bad way to start a nice new clean fresh year, and to make it worse you wake up puking everywhere the next day.... not a very inspiring start to the year. So I just want you guys to know you don't have to pressure yourself to have the best night ever and start the new year off great.

My resolution this year is to be happy with myself. It's so hard not to overthink your life, there's so much pressured to have fun, get a good job, experience the world. Just focus on you. I get my happiness from people around me, this year I'm focusing on getting my happiness from me. 

Thank you for a years worth of support and I hope next year brings you lots of happiness xxxxx

3 Party Outfits For The Holiday Season

December is a month of parties, dinners and a whole lot of fun. Don't let the cold weather ruin your sparkly spirits!  It's time to get your glad rags on ;) 

Here are a few ideas for some festive outfits you can wear for christmas eve, new year or everyday in-between. I've chosen 3 very different outfits as I know everyone has different styles and clothing preferences, I hope this can help you decide what to wear for your christmas and new year.

A Pop Of Colour 

I am very guilty of grabbing every black piece of clothing I own and wearing them all winter long, with this outfit you can. Just make sure your accessories have a perfect pop of colour and if your feeling really christmasy add a little sparkle in there too. 

Skirt: Forever 21, Shirt: New Look, Necklace: Monsoon, Clutch: Forever 21, Shoes: Steve Madden

I am so in love with this skirt, It's not usually a length I would wear but the sheer floaty over skirt makes it very girly and classy. This skirt would be perfect for anyone who is a little more pear shaped as it is extremely flattering and the floatyness hides any sneaky muffin top. 

Statement necklaces are everywhere at the moment, they add a touch of fancy to any simple shirt or even jumper. 

This bag is just so cute that I couldn't resist not featuring it on the blog! You can use any clutch just as long as it's not black to stand out against your outfit. I personally love the black and pink combination but it would also looks lovely with a gold or silver one. 

The perfect shoes can complete any outfit. I've had these for about 3 years but they alway make an appearance in the festive season because it's the only time of year you can get away with an excessive amount of glitter! 

Let it Sparkle 

Jacket: Cotton On, Top: Forever 21, Shorts: Forever 21, Boots: Steve Madden, Bag: Market.

Told you that I loved glitter!If you can remember way back to my first ever post "New Years Get Ready With me" You'll recognize this shirt ;) This outfit is so simple yet the sparkly top makes it so much more dressy. The best advice I can give you for wearing a sequin top or skirt is to keep the rest of the outfit plain otherwise it will be just too much. This outfit would be perfect for a night out in the holiday season. 

 

Since the top is such a statement in itself, I kept the accessories rather simple and just added bag to throw over my shoulder. A necklace would just get lost amongst all the glitter but if you did want to add a little more bling then a few bracelets or rings.

I've dressed it down by wearing boots but you can pair it with some heels or flats to give it a more formal look. Boots and shorts go together so well because they really flatter your legs. 

Keep It Christmasy 

Jacket: H&M, Playsuit: Zara, Necklaces: Forever 21, Tights: Forever 21, Shoes: Forever 21

This outfit is a little more christmasy with the festive red tights and a nice woolly jacket. The red tights add also add a pop of colour to what would have been a very black outfit. Not only does the jacket keep you nice a warm, but it also adds a cute touch to a fancy outfit. 

Layering necklaces also gives you a statement necklace, the gold goes beautifully against the black and white and it doesn't clash with the red because they are both Christmas colours. 

I decided on a gold clutch to go with this outfit because it matches the necklace, you could also choose a red, white or black bag to match. 

Although flat shoes arn't usually my first choice for party wear, I thought these were an exception as they look so elegant that the fact they're not heels isn't too noticeable from the front. They also stand out beautifully against the red tights. 

Which outfit do you like the best and what will you be wearing this holiday season? Have a very Merry Christmas everyone xx 

The Makeover

 If you read my blog you'll notice I did a complete overhaul of it. But if you're new then HELLO heres a little context. Firstly my URL and my blog title has changed from "nicolealexandraslater" to "thathongkonggirl"- probably the biggest change you can make to a website. Next you'll see the traditional red background and pink writing have been replaced with a very noticeable black and gold theme. You can spot more changes as you read but I wanted to make this post to explain why I have chosen to change the blog's identity. 

I made this blog in January last year, I was still trying to keep that fact that I was from Hong Kong on the down low. But recently It's been hard pretending that my whole life hasn't happened. The people I care about most know everything about me and that is all I should think of. Why should I keep the most interesting aspect of my life, the thing that most describes me as a person a secret because I don't want to make people angry? To be honest being raised in Hong Kong is the only exciting thing about me. Why should everyone else get to show off their best qualities, when I have to tell some boring story? - rant over. 

But back to the blog change, I'm also thinking about changing the content a little. Of course i'll still do beauty and fashion posts but I would also really like to do some personal ones. Like this post! You'll see more of my personality (if you like this new/unfake me?) I hope you do. But we'll see how it goes.

Also I did a little photo shoot for my friend and me being the vain person I am, want to show you them!

I really appreciate all the support you guys give me and hope you're okay with this change xx 

Fantastically Fake: Nails

For the past couple of months i've tried out a range of fake nails from the cheapest to the semi designer, to see if it's worth investing on nails that you'll only wear for a day. I was originally going to do a post on "The perfect nails for summer" but since there were so many brands and price rangers to choose from it made me curious to know if there is a dramatic difference between them all. 

Being a fake nail virgin, it was difficult to choose what nails to test but I eventually decided upon the brands Primark, Boots own, House Of Holland and Ted Baker. Although there are many more brands out there, this selection gives me a good range to test out and see if I love them or hate them. 

Primark: £1.00

Brought from: Primark

When I first saw these £1 nails I was a little taken back and to tell you the truth they are what gave me the idea of making a post on nails. But although you're saving money, you are giving up quality. They were extremely plasticy (I know they are supposed to be plastic but I don't want people to know they're fake!) Although I filed them down quite a bit, they still looked and felt like claws. They made the simplest things such as changing clothes a difficult task. Removing them was a messy process as they became very slimy but only took about 2 minuets for each hand to come off. 

Boots Own: £5.50

Brought from: Boots

The next cheapest brand I could find was Boots Own and being 5x more expensive I had higher hopes for them. But they were rather disappointing, filing them was difficult and made them lose their smoothness and shininess (WORD OF WARNING: don't attempt to cut the nails down once you've stuck them on because they will be ruined!) but the colour looked very similar to nail polish, so at first sight people won't notice they're fake. They were much longer than I expected and trying to type out a text took a lot of patience! They were also very hard to remove as the glue was so strong which is good for keeping them on longer. 

Ted Baker: £8.00

Brought from: Boots

Ted Baker is what i'd call semi designer because its not as expensive as brands like Prada and Gucci but it is still very well known and has a good reputation. So when I saw that they did a fake nail collection the glamor girl inside of me squealed with excitement. It means you can be a part of the Ted Baker society without spending a lot. There is really nothing bad to say about these nails, they are the perfect size, they are very natural looking and I was very comfortable wearing them for over 3 days. But if I must critique these perfect nails the only thing I can say is that the glue wasn't as strong as other brands. The nails didn't stick as quickly as others so make sure you hold them down for about 10 seconds on each nail. My thumb nail came loose after the second day but after a quick glue fix it stayed in place for another day. 

House Of Holland £8.99

Brought from: Boots

Since all the nails I previously tried on were square I decided to step out my comfort zone and try the new craze of pointy nails that all the celebrities are sporting. Before putting them on I was worried that they'd be very impractical and since I didn't like the primark and boots own nails for being long these would be worse. But I was very surprised, although they're long they felt extremly comfortable as well as looking super cute (who wouldn't want mini ice creams all over their fingers?!) They came with a free nail file which was thoughtful of them, the glue was also super strong so they almost instantly stuck onto my natural nail and stayed put all day.  

Overall my two favorite brands would have to be Ted Baker and House Of Holland because they looked gorgeous and were very simple and comfortable to work with. While Boots Own and Primark were still pretty but too uncomfortable and impractical to wear for longer than a day. So yes I would agree that spending that bit more gives you better looking nails. 

What's your opinion on fake nails? Love them or hate them? xx