Nippon Adventure V

Besides the scenery, we had the best mochi ever at a little tea place at Matsushima. It was so soft and the sweetness was just right.We had been sampling a lot here and there. These rolls of cake were sooo good. I have to confess that I did get more than one sample. =P

And these almond cookies were so delish too. The whole box was mostly gone before our next stop.I like the size of the Japanese snack. These mini cheesecake bites made a great munchies on the train.

The Shaka Shaka Chicken and Bacon Potato Pie from McDonalds. The Shaka Chicken included a piece of fried chichen breast and a choice of seasoning powder of lemon, cheese and ? I forgot. And the Bacon Potato Pie was a deep fried one (like the good old apple pie). It was delish.

Happy Wednesday!

Feature of the Week

This lovely Red and Blue Dress is our latest creation. I'm glad that the dress turns out nice because I wanted to a pleated skirt for a while. Those flower buckles are so adorable and cool. And finally, I can make use of it.

Happy Wednesday!

Nippon Adventure IV

I hope you are not tired of this whole Japan tour yet. =)

Trying different food has always been one of my favourite part of traveling. As long as there's no insects involved, I will try to sample everything. We had been pretty much having buffet breakfast every morning, mostly Japanese and Western style. I was surprised that the rice in Hokkaido wasn't as good as in Kyushu. But I had the best udon there at one of the buffets. It was cooked to al dente and served cold with cold soba sauce and finely chopped green onion, bonito flakes and wasabi. It was so good that I couldn't wait and finished it like an oyster shooter, so I forgot to take a picture of it. But here's a sample of the rest.Yummy Japanese curry chicken with riceTwo of the dishes from the crab feast, baked crab legs and stuffed crab.This was a traditional style Japanese banquet meal. It contained many many small dishes. Trying every single dish reminded me of the blind tasting challenge of Hell's Kitchen. The fun part was we couldn't figure some out even without the blind fold. =)Seafood barbeque
Happy Tuesday!

Nippon Adventure III

Another great thing that we would probably have never done if it wasn't for the tour was to visit the Towada Hachimantai National Park in northern part of Honshu. It was just the right time to see the fall colour. We made a stop at the Shirogakura Bridge. It was magnificent and speechless. My dummy digital camera didn't really capture a fine shot to share with you, but it was exactly like those fall colour postcards.We took a short hike by the river. It didn't have the charm of the fall colour there but it was embellished with bare tree trunks, falling leaves and moss. Various beautiful mushrooms had caught my eyes.

Happy Monday!

Nippon Adventure II

The nicest thing about joining a tour is that you don't need to worry about planning anything at all. All you need to do is just ride along and enjoy the journey. And that's what we did. =) Seafood is one of the most famous specialty of Hokkaido and it's everywhere.
The small crabs at the bottom (photo above) are like the size of the ones we usually see in here. These extra-large legs (photo below) are way longer than my arms.Even the dried squid and octopus are gigantic.Besides seafood, there are a few things they're famous for, like milk, corn, potato and melon. Their melon is like our cantaloupe but bigger, sweeter and look nicer.
Happy Friday!

New items of the week

I've added a little twist on the ruffle shirt. Please welcome little strawberry and little mustard. =)

Happy Thursday!

Katie's Little Adventure

Katie seemed to enjoy the trip quite a lot. She was very curious about all these new places and met some new friends. This is a little big cuddly bear from Otaru.more photos on flickr and will post more =)

Happy Wednesday!

Nippon Adventure I

Time flies, it feels like we've been gone for a month. So we're finally back and mostly recovered from the adjustment of time difference. Overall, we had a wonderful time exploring a tiny part of the Northern Japan this time. We ate a lot of seafood, saw the fall colour on the mountains and dipped our feet into a few onsens (hot springs). My favourite little shop was the Otaru Natural Crafts in Otaru, a little town by sea in Hokkaido. It has a lot wood and glass crafts.

Extra large version of the little wooden figures.Little parts for decorating your own treasure box.One of my favourite things in the whole trip. A lovely postcard by Takata Noriko.Tiny little milk bottles, less than half an inch tall, and wood tray made with clay.Little glass coffee table and a tiny slice of strawberry cake.More Nippon adventure to come.
Happy Wednesday!

Ruffle Shirt Tips

I felt in love with the little ruffle shirt since the first sample was completed. It is so elegant and romantic. There are a few things I would like to share on wearing and taking care of this lovely little creation.
The cuffs are little tighter than other shirt because of the thickness of the ruffle. When you put it on your girl, put it on 3/4 way and gently push the cuffs up the wrist(mainly to get the thumb through). It will make it much easier than pulling it from the shoulder, and most likely it doesn't work that way with this little thing (because I tried it)!After that, you can gently pull the shirt up to 80 to 90%. Then, swing the girl's arm back and forth, around 30 degree angle, the shirt should be sliding up in place at the shoulder.Gently press the collar with fingers when the shirt is wet. This way it will keep the collar kind of floating in between when dry. You can also use iron to press it all the way down.Fraying is unavoidable because of the raw edge but it is also the beauty of it. To keep it from fraying, most important is to be gentle with the edges. Also, you can apply fray check to the edges, which can be easily found in sewing isle in craft stores. The only thing is it smells a bit strong which I'm allergic to (most chemical smell). So just keep that in mind.Other than these little things, enjoy the little ruffle shirt!

Happy Friday!

Fast Food

We eat fast food quite a bit here and there. Not only for the convenience, nowadays there are so many great choices which actually taste good. Chipotle is the one we consume most. Their burrito is huge. But still I always ask for extra salsa and cheese to make even gigantic! It may sound silly but I like watching the staff wrapping the burrito because they need some good skills to wrap that gigantic thing together. Chicken is my favourite because of its grill flavour.In and Out Burgers is another great place. It is not a place to look for a big patty of meat. It's a place more about the freshness and quality which the lettuce in the burger is always crunchy and you don't need to try your luck between getting fresh fries or dark fries.

I don't even remember since when pizza has also became one of the most ordered fast food. We used to order Pizza Hut but pan pizza has became too rich for us. Their hand tossed crust is not bad. Red Brick Pizza is our usual choice nowadays. Their crust is light and sauce is not too heavy.A local deli is also a terrific option. Finding a good one is the fun part. There're always some specialities to try and sometimes a little story behind the little place. Somehow, it always feels cozy in a nice deli even they have the simpliest setting. Also, it feels good not being rushed so we can sit back, enjoy the delicious food and talk.

Happy Thursday!

Event Report

Our Feed the Hungry has finally come to an end. Thank you so much for your generous help. Together, we've raised a total of $45.8. We've rounded up the total to $50 and donated to Feeding America. With Macy's matching donation, it will be enough to feed 700 meals to those in need. Consider this is our first little big heart event, it was not bad. =)

I'm very grateful for all your support. Once again, from myself and on behalf on those to be benefited, thank you very much.
Happy Wednesday!

Halloween Photo Shoot

It has been a while since we started to plan a Halloween photo shoot for Puchi. The theme has been changing from witchy, to autumn and finally to gothic. There were a lot of fun in preparation because we needed to hunt for different props from quite a few swap meets, craft stores, and of course the Halloween stores. And for lighting, we decided to use the simple best natural daylight. It turned out the photoshoot morning was a bit foggy which was perfect.

Puchi was patiently waiting when we were setting up.I wasn't the photographer this time. My duty was keeping Puchi in position which means I need to run back and forth, go up and down behind the camera, and make sure she gets her share of pay, treats. I was lucky to take a decent shot in between.

Happy Sunday!

Halloween Fun

I love shopping in the Halloween isle because there are so much creepy funky little things. Isn't this the perfect time for the Skelanimals to show off? These plushy candy buckets are so adorable. I can see them around the house even after Halloween.
These little candy boxes are creepily cute.
The hologram tissue box is awesome.The pumkin Domo kun didn't photograph so well, which turns out more like a carrot. =PI've never thought of the squareness of Sponge Bob is perfect for a Frankenstein face.

Happy Sunday!

Hooray!

October is finally here! It means autumn has arrived (even though it is still warm here) and most importantly, Halloween is around the corner! I've waited to share with you the Martha Stewart Halloween Magazine. It includes pages of crafty demos and foodie recipes, everything in a Halloween way. It will make a great help if you're planning for a Halloween party. =)

Photos from Martha Stewart Halloween

Happy Thursday!