The Star has an article entitled Taking the chore out of gardening. The article mentions that Sesama Ventures has opened Secretani Green Stations in Kuantan Parade and Tesco Ampang. The company will have kiosks in all Tesco outlets nationwide by the end of August. The Green Station is a one-stop gardening kiosk selling plants and tools as well as the company's eco-friendly fertiliser and growth enhancer called Secretani.

Here is an extract from the article:
Secretani was researched and developed in Japan but it has been localised and is manufactured in Malaysia. It can be used for both decorative plants and vegetables, and comes in a convenient spray can; more than 10,000 bottles have been sold. It helps keep away pests and mosquitoes and can be used for houseplants.

Read the full article.

Also see:
Roly Poly Pot. Plant thirsty, pot tumbles
Flower Pot that Glows in the Dark - Powered by the Sun
Pot Tells Owner How Plant Feels. No, Really.

The Perfect Livin Exhibition 2008 is taking place on 7 - 10 August 2008 at the KL Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Hall 1 to Hall 5. Perfect Livin '08 is presented by CIMB Bank.

Admission is free.

Among the highlights are:

1. Over 500 booths and more than 200 exhibitors
2. Cash and prizes to be given away
3. Instant gift redemptions with Bonus Points for CIMB Bank & Direct Access card members plus exclusive privileges
4. More than 5 million CIMB Bank & Direct Access Bonus Points to be won
5. Themed zone highlights: AV & Electrical, Kitchen Solutions, Furniture & Interior Designing, Landscaping, Properties, Investment Banking and many more.

The Super Home Ideas Exhibition 2008 is coming soon. The exhibition will take place on 24 - 27 July 2008 at Midvalley Exhibition Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. There will be a wide range of exhibitors from remodeling, decorating, landscaping and design.

For more information, head to the Super Home Ideas website.

For those who yearn for high end branded home furnishings, Armani/Casa has arrived in Malaysia. Armani/Casa ("Armani Home" in Italian) is the high-end home collection by Giorgio Armani S.p.A. and they have opened a store in StarHill Gallery, Kuala Lumpur. Read on for more store details and amazing Armani/Casa product photos.

IKEA Malaysia is having a contest! The IKEA Love Your Home contest is giving a chance for Malaysians to be one of the 10 winners of RM1000 IKEA vouchers. All one needs to do is to answer 30 questions for a survey. According to IKEA, completing the survey should take about 8 minutes (uhm, due to my Streamyx connection, it took longer than that but I digress).

Why is IKEA doing this? Let's see... as quoted from their website:
Please be assured that everything you tell us will only be used for us to better understand what Malaysians love or would love to change about their homes. So please don't think we're being nosy. We just think the best way to learn is to listen.

Very nicely put. Go here to take part in the survey.

The survey ends on 11:59:59 PM, July 22, 2008.

Shopping for a new mattress and wondering if a firm mattress is suitable? Well, this article from CNN (back in 2003) reports that mattress with medium firmness may be best for back pain.

According to CNN:
Doctors have traditionally recommended hard beds for people with lower-back pain, but that advice has been based on scarce evidence. Now the first substantial study has found that people who slept on medium mattresses were twice as likely to report an improvement as people using firm ones.

Nevertheless, the study also mentions that:
...doesn't mean everyone would benefit from a medium mattress, and that trial and error is still the best way to choose.

Click here to read the full article.

A common question for Malaysian house owners is whether 3 phase wiring is needed for their homes. Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) has a guideline to decide who needs 3 phase wiring.

The information is after the jump.

The Star has an article on Malaysia's leading ceramic tile exporter, Guocera Holdings Sdn Bhd, entitled Guocera banks on life inspirations. An excerpt from the article is after the jump.