DIY Swan Pumps

I actually noticed the Manolo Blahnik Swan Pumps (online shopping is just evil) before finding out that they are related to Twilight. Whether you are a Twilight fan or not, you cannot blame me for being obsessed with THE wedding in Breaking Dawn.  It's just soooo dreamy and perfect (plus or minus the vampires depending on if you are a fan).  But not every one is married into the Cullen family (they are rich for ridiculous reasons).  And not every one can afford the $1200+ price tag.

So to further indulge my obsession with rhinestones and crystals, I decided to set out and make my own Swan-like pump. I searched online for shoes suitable for the project.  I actually ordered three pairs (and returned two) before deciding to stick with white satin (by Badgley Mischka).

Then came the most difficult part of the search.  I had to look for lace appliques that would give me shapes similar to the ones on the swan shoes.  Instead of going creative, I decided I should play safe and base the DIY version on the original shoes.  From the pictures online, the stones on the shoes seemed to be sewn in, but I figured I should stick to my routine and use the trust-worthy glue (industrial strength of course).

And after one night of magic - I am proud to present my own pair of special occasion/not-sure-for-what-function-yet shoes (definitely not for my wedding because according to my mother, I fantasized too much about my future non-existent wedding)!

Kitchen Experiment: Banana "Ice-cream"

Although I love to eat, I don't think I would make a very good food critic.  Even if I have the amazing ability to discern different tastes, I am much to emotion.  I can go from loving to hating in a blink of an eye.  Banana is on the top of the love-hate list.  I love bananas - it makes a quick and easy breakfast when I get up 5 minutes before the bus arrives; it's sweet and you can't go too wrong with anything sweet (and anything fat for that matter). But I also dislike bananas sometimes to a point that it disgusts me just to see their yellow skin.  One of the most hypocritical thing I do is to recommend people adding fruits such as bananas into their cereal or oatmeal in the morning (which I totally won't do at home).  Please forgive me because that was the most standard and easy answers to too many situations.

Anyway, when I came across this idea of blending frozen bananas to make ice-cream, I was very skeptical.  But as a dietitian, I have to say - whoever invented this was a genius!  Because I personally know people who love ice-cream, but they really shouldn't be having ice-cream too often. And there's really no such thing as healthy ice-cream because ice-cream by nature requires fat to give it the gooey texture that a lot of people love.  So here comes this healthier one-ingredient ice-cream (it might not be the exact texture, but it satisfies the craving):

Ingredient (just one): Bananas!
Steps: Peel and cut up bananas (I froze the whole banana the first time. Trust me, it's not a good idea). Freeze the bananas for 1-2 hours. Throw them into a food processor or blender and blend until it's creamy and gooey (almost soft-serve-like texture).  Enjoy!

Jewelry Display Board

Because of my recent summer holiday/unemployment period, I have the luxury of doing projects that have been on the back of my mind.  So today, poor Kenny had to get up early to drive me around to gather "ingredients" for making this board.  I couldn't decide between painting the board and using fabric, but since I love the natural cork color, I decided to go with the latter (maybe I will paint it when I get board again). 

Things needed: Corkboard (from TJ Maxx ~20USD), Lace (1/2 yard, ~2USD), Thumb Tacks and Push Pins (~2-3USD each)

Now the board is proudly displayed next to the vanity table.  Would everyone agree with me that the board needs more statement necklaces? *wink*

Shopping: Forever 21 Elephant Ring Holder

I have always wanted a ring holder ever since I saw the ones from Anthropologie.  Those bunny ones were so cute that I got one for my friend's birthday because I needed an excuse to buy them.  Then I saw this elephant ring holder over the weekend at Forever 21.  They are only $4.50 plus they are super adorable.  This made my day so I wanted to share it on the blog! Happy shopping/blogging/holiday in case I forgot on July 4th! 

Loaves of Bread Etsy Shop

Here's a few of my recent projects available on Etsy! Glitter rose thank you card shown above.  And other rhinestone projects.  I wish I have better lighting in some photos. 

Broadway Prime - Burlingame, CA

I thought I ought to write about this place if it was the reason (okay, this is an exaggeration) for going back to the bay area last week!  Although The Capital Grille here is awesome, it comes with a huge price tag $$$$$$ if you order traditional (non-Asian sharing) style.  What I love about the Broadway Prime is that you don't have to pick! It specializes in prime rib so you only need to pick the size.  It's 33 dollars to have the smallest version (shown below) and it comes with a salad, creamed corn, creamed spinach and your choice of mashed or garlic mashed or baked potato.  Rumor has it that the owner of this place used to work for the House of Prime Rib in San Francisco.  This place seems to be slightly cheaper but without the old-fashion glamor in SF (unless you are trying to impress you date, who cares?) The good news - it's also easier to get a table here!

Restaurant Detail:
Broadway Prime
1316 Broadway Ave, Burlingame, CA 94010
(650) 558-8801
http://www.broadwayprime.com/

Sky Project

Presenting my project of the coming year - The Sky Project.  It has been one month since starting the blog now; and I have enjoyed updating each day.  So far I have never missed a day, but I can foresee how difficult it would be when traveling between time zones. 

Here's my photo of the day! Please visit my other blog to read more!

My Sky Project - myskyproject.wordpress.com

Poor Mr. Clock-Turned-Mirror

Hello Summer!  Summer is the time for home improvement right? Maybe I will come up with a project or two myself later.  Recently, it has been rhinestones and rhinestones and rhinestones for me.  And did I mention I sell my first item on Etsy? *clap clap clap* (Maybe I will share some products I made up here later!)

But today I am sharing a photo of my new decorative mirror.  It was a beautiful clock, as you can probably tell with the silver studs.  Poor Mr. Clock fell down from the wall last year and ended up with twisted arms.  He had to go through emergency surgery to remove his arms and replaced it with a new mirror face.  It took me a while to locate the right size mirror AND figure out how to glue it firmly enough (glue gun failed me so this is now glued with superglue for glass).  Now Mr. Clock-Turned-Mirror finds his purpose again!

Kitchen Experiment: My Life in Green Juices

I have been contemplating about doing a little juice experiment for a while.  I had a juicing machine for a while but I was not very happy when I had to throw out a lot of pulp.  Firstly, that was not very cost-efficient (my whole bag of carrots disappeared after 2-3 days of juice-making). Secondly, I wasn't happy with the amount of food waste.  Thirdly, my inner dietitian screamed at me for wasting the most nutritious parts of everything I put into the juicer (there goes all the fiber in your vegetables!!! unacceptable). 

After a long internal debate between the inner dietitian, experimenter and financial chief, the Oster blender proved to be a pretty good investment (depending on how long it lasts). 

Blending fruits and vegetables into juices/smoothies is good because (1) you don't kill the enzymes with all the cooking; (2) the action of the blade when blending may actually release or activate anti-oxidants; (3) combining a variety of fruits/vegetables can be beneficial - say spinach and orange - the Vitamin C in oranges actually aids absorption of the Iron in the spinach; (4) no waste as in you actually consume everything you put into the blender!

I usually just let my creativity decides what to put into the blender that particular day.  But some good things to stock in the fridge are carrots, spinach, cucumber, stalks of celery, apples, oranges and bananas.  For the juice of the day (pictured above), it has spinach (a handful), cucumber slices (another handful), two oranges and one banana (peeled, of course). 

It tastes good and you get your daily dose of fruit/vegetables - that makes a happy me!

Sequin Heart Brooches

I am attracted to things that sparkle.  After rhinestones, sequin seems to be the way to go.  I first saw these sequin heart pins on pinterest or someone's wedding album (I can't remember).  It's such a cute idea to wear these as brooches.  The only thing that kept me from starting this little project was that sequin trims in different colors took me some time to find (even online). They turned out to be harder to make than I have imagined.  So after battling with the sequin trims and my glue gun, I have my first two sequin hearts!  They say practice makes perfect; so more sequin hearts to come in the future! :p

Bunny Mason Jars

I got these mason jars from TJMaxx to get rid of the annoying resealable bags on the bathroom counter top.  And then for the sake of color-matching/getting rid of leftover spray paint, I sprayed them white (not quite perfectly).  I thought they looked okay but wanted to do something fun with them.  So when I saw these cute bunnies from a toy shop during a road trip, I brought them home.  After leaving them in them in the glass cabinet (on display) for nearly half a year, I finally glued them to my mason jars tonight!  Hopefully, these "bunny on snow" jars (yes I named them..) will add a little bit of life to my dull daily routine.

Yume Wo Katare - Cambridge, MA

The name Yume Wo Katare (夢を語れ) means talk about a dream.  Such a pretty name for a ramen shop.

It all begins when I heard from a friend who goes to Lesley University next door that there's this new ramen place with lines all the time.  We decided to give it a try last week when my friends and I overestimated ourselves by ordering the option with 5 pieces of pork.  Some of us even ordered "extra everything".  None of us finished everything in the bowl and we could barely walk out of the place (So uncomfortably stuffed that I had to leave a tip on Yelp telling people not to make the same mistake).

So when another friend suggested that we try the place out today.  I learned from my mistakes.  I ordered the 2-pieces of pork option with a little bit of extra vegetables and finally managed to enjoy the noodles. 

To summarize my visits: 

Tip 1: Order the 2 pieces of pork option on your first visit UNLESS you are known for eating a lot. 

Tip 2: Order extra vegetables (that will absorb some of the fattttt).

Tip 3: If you love garlic, definitely ask for extra garlic. The chef would even serve it on the side (It's free! and the garlic complements the soup perfectly!)

Tip 4: Also, we noticed the chef portioned the noodles based on gender/looks. If you are know your appetite is not as big as it seems, you might as well ask for less/more (see the pictures below!)

Tip 5: There's no vegetarian options.  If you are super health conscious, don't bother going, it's just not for you. 

 My 5-pieces pork noodles

My guy friend's 5-pieces pork noodles with extra vegetables (note the portion difference)