Discoveries of the Week: snails, handbags & Facebook

Some of you will be relieved to know that Facebook doesn't track our likes and dislikes (or anything else relevant) in order to target advertising at us. I know this because since I arrived in Singapore, I have been under bombardment from 'ultra girly' ads. And my likes consist mainly of movies and combat sports. In Europe I was merely sold credit cards and invitations to Farmville. In Singapore, it seems, there are different expectations of women, and it's pretty full-on.

The ad routine - despite my endless 'hide' tactics - goes something like this:

1. Handbags, handbags, handbags
2. Dresses from Korea
3. Designer shoes
4. Designer babies (conceiving, then dressing)
5. Handbags, handbags, handbags
6. Dream (designer) weddings (with designer groom)
7. Handbags, handbags, handbags
8. Weight loss (presumably to help procure points 4 and 6 whilst clad in designer gear?)
9. Embroidered eyebrows
10. Snail cream.

Points 1-8, pur-lease, I do have a brain. Points 9 and 10 however.. more interesting...

'Embroidered eyebrows' (sometimes even THREE D embroidered eyebrows) what these? I have never heard of this before and had visions of foreheads merrily festooned with 'Home Sweet Home' cross-stitching or cute protruding roses. (Well that's how I know embroidery anyway).

And what on earth is 'snail cream' (which I initially read as a the manicure essential 'nail cream') - cream made from real snails?

Yep, more Asian research for me!

Eyebrow embroidery has nothing to do with sewing. It is a lightweight tattoo process, to give people with fine eyebrows, erm, eyebrows. I am not sure if this would be a big seller in Europe (where we spend a lot of time thinning our eyebrows) but who knows.

Snail cream really is skin cream made from real snails, or their slime! Yum. Sometimes the snails are fed on ginseng to boost the properties. It is supposed to make you very, very beautiful. Apparently the creams have already been on sale in Europe for some years... though I suspect under a very different brand name!