"Wear your heart on your sleeve." / Date Night Look

Hi Everyone!

    I wanted to show that you can look cute yet still be polished. Black and white outfits make great date night or special event outings more refined. Depending on the black to white ratio, your outfit can be more serious or laid back. I matched my heart top from a previous(link), more playful coordination, with a flared black skirt and boots. A good button up shirt can be really versatile.

Thanks For Reading!

Hearts and Denim / Late Summer Fashion

Hi Everyone!
    I'm back at it again with my fashion posts. Finally got caught up with some things, life, and I'm feeling ready to go. I really love doing these posts and I hope you like them too. The weather is changing slightly, on the east coast that is, so I've had to dress a little warmer but today we had some nice sunny day. I always take advantage of good weather. This look is just so sweet and comfortable; perfect for a fun day with friends. My short overalls once again make an appearance.

Shirt: Forever 21

I'm holding my Instax Mini 8 Camera

Thanks For Reading!

Recipe #4: Homemade Pickled Vegetables

Hi Everyone!
    Today's recipe is a healthy snack that you can make using any vegetables you want. It's easy, delicious and goes great with other foods. They are sweet, sour and crunchy! And also a great way to reuse a glass jar.

Ingredients:

Onion                                            1 Tablespoon salt                      *optional- red chilies
Cucumber                                      1 Cup sugar
Carrot                                            2 Cups vinegar
Daikon Radish                               2 Cups water
1 or 2 Garlic cloves

    First wash and slice onion, carrot, cucumber and daikon any way you like. Place them in a bowl with salt, mix well and let them sit for 20-30mins. The salt is going to pull water out of the veggies and make them more crunchy. In the mean time, peel and smash garlic. Mix sugar, vinegar and water together until the sugar is completely dissolved.

This is how I cut my veggies

    Drain the extracted water from the vegetables and rinse them in water. Transfer the vegetables to a salad spinner and dry them really well! 

Salad spinner

  

  Now you can place the veggies in a jar. Arrange them nicely, layer in the smashed garlic, and then pour the vinegar solution over it. Close the lid and place it in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Now you have homemade pickled vegetables! Crunchy and fresh. Perfect snack in any weather.

Pickled Vegetables also make a great gift!

Hope you Enjoy and Thanks For Reading!

Learning how to ride a bike/Poleroid Pictures/HUGE CARROTS and cookies

Hi Everyone!
    Here's a little life update. I've been busy lately: opened up two online shops, my mom visited me, my webcomic, art collaboration projects and I still have to clean the house and make dinner every night! haha. And if you're wondering, I'm still going to do fashion posts. 
    As the title says, it's true, I never learned how to ride a bike; until last week. As a child I had a traumatizing accident that included a very steep hill and an iron gate. I'm sure you are all aware about the laws of gravity. So ever since then I dreaded bicycles and thought I'd never learn to ride one. However, my husband was determined to teach me; I learned in less than two hours. Now I love my bicycle and I've even customized it with cute stickers.

Bicycle stickers

    I have this really cute mini Polaroid camera that I got in April, for my birthday, and I've been trying to take it with me everywhere. I finally took enough pics with it to make a photo "clothing-line" display. I set it up in our stairway, and now I'm really distracted when I go up and down the stairs.

My photo "clothing-line" and some favorite pics.

    

    Going to the Asian Market is one of my favorite activities. Nothing beats the produce section, especially the ginormous carrots! It's like buying two-three carrots in one. Cheap and delicious. I always buy some no matter what. I don't know why these carrots are so big. Maybe it's a different variety? If you know why please tell me. 

Huge carrots!

 

    I have lots of old cookbooks that I pick up from thrift stores. The older the better because they usually have really funky food. Recently I've been wanting to make more desserts from scratch instead of buying a box mix. So I picked out a recipe for chocolate chip cookies and they are seriously so yummy! It's a soft, cake-like cookie rather than a crunchy one. Maybe I'll make a separate post for the recipe.

Thanks For Reading!

Cartoons of the Month/ June-July

Hi Everyone!
    I completely forgot that I was doing these posts about cartoons haha. Good thing I remembered, and I'm not embarrassed by the whole thing yet, here is my list for June through July! This time around I'm just going to put descriptions of why I like the show. This is sorta like a cartoon time capsule, huh?
    Last time I had quiet a few shows on my list but that was back in winter. I could hardly do anything except stay warm and keep from getting cabin fever. As a result of warmer weather, now my T.V. time has diminished drastically. And I'm very grateful. 

 1. Chi's Sweet Home

I love cats; I always have. This anime is simple and sweet and just so adorable. I love Chi and his cute, stupid little cat problems. The episodes are short, sometimes under 3mins, so I can watch a couple with out wasting valuable time. 

2. Samurai Jam Bakamatsu Rock

Traditional Japanese time setting but with rock&roll and some modern technology mixed in. Also, there is a pop idol duo who are the bad guys. And the main character loves to eat margarita pizza. Have I said enough to peak your interest? This is a crazy mishmash of a show but it's really cool. It's like Samurai Champloo but instead of hip-hop it's rock music.

Thanks For Reading!

Artist Trading Cards

Hi Everyone,

    For two weeks, in my spare time, I was drawing up some cards for a fun little project on Tumblr called Artist Trading Cards. I pretty much just doodled what ever came to mind. it was really fun to do and I'll definitely be participating again in the future. All of my cards are traditional hand drawn on card stock paper and colored with Copic markers and color pencils; plus washi tape for added decoration. 

    If you're interest in participating, here's the link to the page with info about the project.

Thanks For Reading!

Art Festival / Sunday Funday

Hi Everyone,
    Today I woke up to the sound of food trucks parking outside my front door! Not only is it Father's Day but it's also the Beekman Street Art Fair! As an artist myself, I was super excited. If you don't know, Beekman Street is Saratoga Springs art district. Vendors of different crafts came out to show and sell their creations. My husband had to work today, sadly, so it was just myself. But he did eat at the food trucks with me before he had to take off; I got him some more treats and put them in the fridge for later.
    I took some pictures and got to talk with many different artists. All artists shown are credited. 

Let's Start with the food! 

My neighbor Ralph owns this cute little vintage truck. That's his son in the truck.

    Grasso's Italian Ices has been around since the 1930's and was started by my neighbor's father Ralph Sr. The Ices served on the truck today is still the same recipe and it's served from the same little truck. It kinda takes you back in time. Today the truck is operated by Ralph Jr's son, Ralph 3rd, and his granddaughter Sophia. I got a lemon and a strawberry ice.

Original American burger slider

Chicken onion buffalo ranch slider

    I'm a sucker for a good burger and little burger sliders make me hungry just thinking about it. I don't eat cheese but today I lived a little; special occasions call for indulgence. Both of these burgers were ordered from the Slidin' Dirty food truck(link). We enjoyed these with smoothies.

Sticky Bun

     I had to get a toasted, sweet sticky bun from Eat Good Food; a new food truck that just recently started. It came with some extra butter on the side and walnuts on top.

Cronut and a classic cannoli 

    I've never heard of a Cronut until today. What it is, is a croissant and a donut in one; A donut shaped croissant. I got mine with raspberry jam and it was so delicious! Almost like a jelly donut. It has a little bit of saltiness from the croissant dough. 

Knitting Nellie. Plush toys.

   I saw this booth and immediately had to get one of these plush toys! Just look at them. They are super adorable and they are all unique; no two are the same. There are turtles, elephants, both lady and gentlemen gnomes, and owls. I took a long time to decide. It was between either the turtle or elephant. I choose an elephant. I really wish I could have bought another one. Maybe next time. Thanks again Knitting Nellie! I hope you see this post. If you want a cute plush of your own, here's a link to her Etsy Shop.

My sweet little elephant plush

    I also bought 3 of these really delicate wooden ornaments. One is for myself and the other two are gifts. These were made by Barbara Boughton, she doesn't have a website but has an email.

This beautiful handmade wooden snowflake/star 

This is how close I was to the food trucks! That's my front door!

    If I had anything to sell I could have set up shop on my front porch. 

    That was my Sunday Funday. I had a really great time and it was fun getting out of the house for a few hours. Seeing all the crafts inspired me and hopefully one day I'll sell some of my own creations at a fair. But for now I'm gonna snag some food from the trucks before they're gone!

Thanks For Reading!

Saturday Ethnic Food Paradise

Hi Everyone,
    As a native of Southern California I'm used to having really good ethnic food. Here on the east coast it's really hard to find decent Mexican food, that isn't tex-mex; and that alone can make any Californian go crazy! Well, I did some research and found myself a little Mexican market in Albany, NY. It's literally called the Mexican Market.

To start we ordered a chicken tamale. It was wrapped in a banana leaf. 

My food. I got 3 Carnitas(shredded pork) tacos. They were so delicious!! 

My Husband ordered the tongue burrito. Delicious and massive!

Here is their menu. Already thinking about what I want to try next time!

Of course I had to get my Mexican candy fix. They had a lot more but these are my favorites.

     If your in the Albany area next time and want some good food, stop at this place! If your a SoCal native living on the east side and haven't had a good taco in ages, stop here and you won't be disappointed. It's a little hole in the wall but don't let that scare you. Grab some chili watermelon candy or a Jarritos soda on your way out.

   After our pleasant experience at the Mexican Market, and with full happy bellies, we went to our favorite Asian Market to get some groceries for our second meal of the day: PHO! My husband is Thai and he makes Pho almost every month. If you don't know what Pho is, it's a beef noodle soup and it really delicious!

Giant Eggplant

Bitter Melon. It's really good in stir fry.

Giant carrots and Daikon. Two of my favorite vegetables :)

Asian snacks. They had a whole isle, both sides, filled with snacks.

Milky Chocolate is always so cute

We bought some Japanese beer

I finally got myself a Durian fruit. I've been dying to eat a fresh one. It might have a funky smell but it's delicious.  

Some more alcohol. Plum wine is sweet and very concentrated. I think it would go well with dessert.

My little treats from the Asian market. Meiji brand dark chocolate and mango Hi-Chew.

 Finally, we got back home and ate Pho. Delicious beef, noodles, meat balls, onions and cilantro swimming in a big bowl of beef broth. Some Sriracha, hoisen sauce and fish sauce to add more flavor to an already perfect day. I'm in ethnic food heaven.

Pho. 

Thanks For Reading!

Recipe #3: Sloppy Joe Sandwich made from Scratch!

Hi Everyone,
    I think the sloppy joe sandwich is just as American as the burger, and I know I've eaten a lot of these sandwiches as a kid. Most people buy the mix from a can at the grocery store but you can make it from scratch at home! It's really simple; I think it's better than the canned sauce and is more rewarding. Because you decide what goes in it, you can customize the recipe. This can be made in minutes, and is a fast and tasty dinner.

Here are the ingredients that you'll need: 

• 1 1/2 pounds of ground beef
• 1 cup of Ketchup
• BBQ sauce
• 1 heaping spoon of Tomato paste
• Half of a green bell pepper 
• Garlic powder

    First, take the ground beef and place it in a large sauce pan with a little bit of oil. Brown the meat until all of it has crumbled and pinkness is gone.

 Turn off the stove and drain what little liquid had come out. Return to stove, set the burner on medium, add the garlic powder and your chopped green bell pepper. 

Mix well. Now add in the tomato paste and ketchup. Set the burner on low.

Mix well again, then add the BBQ sauce; about half a cup.

Check the meat mixture for flavor and add more ketchup or BBQ sauce until desired taste has been achieved. 

And now you're done!

True to it's name. This sandwich is sloppy!

Add cheese and this messy sandwich becomes even more gooey and delicious.

Hope you Enjoy and Thanks For Reading!