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My First Amazon Shopping Experience (Free Shipping to Singapore for orders above USD$125)

Amazon.com now provides free shipping to Singapore for purchases over USD$125 (approx. SGD$160) under the FREE AmazonGlobal Saver Shipping program. The qualifying spend does not include import fees, gift-wrap charges, duties and taxes and is only applicable to products sold directly by Amazon and not their third party retailers. Also, the weight of the entire order should not exceed 20lbs (approx. 9.07kg) to qualify for free shipping. Find out more

I’m sure this is good news to many Singaporean friends who enjoy shopping at Amazon. I’ve also joined the ‘Amazon craze’ recently when I needed to get a donut pan. I spent a good half day travelling between Bake King at Haig Road, Sunlik at Seah Street and Phoon Huat at Toa Payoh just to hunt for donut pans as I wanted to try out some baked donut recipes but they were out of stock and the shops couldn’t confirm when the pans would be restocked o_O Hence I went online and found some great ones (at cheaper prices than what’s sold here) on Amazon so that’s how it got me started (and hooked) on Amazon 🙂

I’m not new to the online shopping scene (I’ve been an online seller for almost a decade too!) but this is definitely one of the most pleasant buys ever made. Check out my first and latest shopping haul from Amazon (prices in USD).

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* Wilton Non-stick 12-Cavity Mini Donut Pan $7.95
* Wilton Non-stick 6-Cavity Heart Shape Donut Pan $8.88
* Norpro 5204 Grip-EZ Citrus Reamer $7.30
* Fox Run Brands 44933 Mini Madeleine Pan, 20 Molds $7.80
* Microplane 40020 Classic Zester/Grater $12.95

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* Wilton Recipe Right Non-Stick 12-Cup Regular Muffin Pan $9.44
* Pyrex Prepware 2-Cup Measuring Cup $7.75
* OXO Good Grips Flexible Vegetable Brush $4.99

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For the husband (he’s very pleased with his toys),

* Timex Men’s T5K494 Ironman Traditional 50-Lap Watch $39.92
* WD My Passport 1TB Portable External Hard Drive $69.99

The husband asks if I’m trying to build a professional kitchen with these new tools and gadgets. I guess I am as I love cooking so much and these new babies are just a joy to have in my kitchen so it makes cooking easier and more enjoyable! With free shipping, I’ve also enjoyed a great deal of savings as most (if not all) of these items cost much more in stores here because they are imported brands. Quality items (all tried and tested) at reduced prices, I’m in for a real deal.

The weird thing about Amazon is that the prices for certain items fluctuate everyday. For example, a madeleine pan was priced at $14.99 yesterday. It could drop to $10.50 today, increase to $12.80 tomorrow and then decrease by 2 cents the day after. It’s like monitoring stocks and shares. You may rejoice today for saving 50% on an item but feel absolutely gutted for having paid a high price for something else that would be heavily discounted the next day.

All items came packed in a big, sturdy corrugated box. Even though the website states that air-filled packing pillows would be used, there wasn’t any in the box so I’m surprised that everything still came in good condition except for the madeleine pan that had 2 tiny chip offs on the surface but it’s not something major that I cannot live with. The Pyrex measuring cup was only wrapped in 2 thin layers of bubble wrap and there’s not a single crack or chip-off.

Delivery was swift too, considering it came all the way from US to Singapore. The shipping carrier used was I-Parcel. As a tracking number was provided, it was easy to trace status on Amazon site or I-Parcel website for more timely updates. It took about 12 days (including weekend) from my date of order for the parcel to reach my doorstep.

If you receive an item that’s below your expectations, you may send it back to Amazon (so long it’s new and unopened) within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. Alternatively, you can request for a replacement of an defective item or exchange if you change your mind on the size or colour for a product.

Overall, it’s a good shopping experience for me. And in fact, I’m now planning my second purchase! More kitchen stuffs to come!

Adios Amigos!

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