Wednesday, September 30, 2009

~ PAWS 4K Walk ~

This past weekend, while I was gorging myself with food in New York City, my brother and sister-in-law took their boys on the PAWS 8K Run/4K Walk. Thanks to all my wonderful customers, I was able to donate $50 to them. Here are some pictures from my brother.


Aren't these cute??

Sister-in-law and her best friend walking the boys...my brother was just going around snapping pictures. Lazy butt....

This is the oldest one...Miko. He refused to walk after a while.


After the walk, there was an agility course for them to play with. How fun! I wish I can let Momo try something like that. This is Milo. He was adopted from HALO.




Special thanks to my brother and sister-in-law for giving me the opportunity to help PAWS. By the way, I used to think I will never get a dog. Then, I met Miko and he is just such a cutie~! So, I couldn't resist and went searching for a Havanese and found Momo. So, if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have my big bundle of joy waiting for me at home :)

Sunday, September 27, 2009

~ Crystallized Heaven ~



I was in New York City with my fiance, just hanging out, chilling. We were walking around on Broadway and guess what's new there....the Swarovski Concept Store!!!! Oh my god! I walked in and I was in felt like I was in heaven! I love how they display all the crystals and organize things by color! It's like my dream studio~!



Check out this awesome chandelier!


And the crystal studded ottoman. How much do you think one of these will cost?


That's just a display at the cafe, but wow! How many mms is that?


If I ever win the lottery, I want to set up all those drawers with the crystals out the outside, all lit up like this store. I am busy this week, so I probably won't have time to make anything. I feel very inspired though! I hope I can keep this motivation till next week!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

~ Detox Phase 2 Completed ~

detox tea blend from thelooseleaf on Etsy (note: this is not what I am using to detox right now)

After living through 2 days of fasting for phase 1, I was ready for phase 2. Phase 2 involves juice, milk shakes, regular food and metabolism accelerating pill. Yay for real food! Surprisingly though, I didn't even eat when I first got up. I just had the milk shake and waited till lunch. Not even one snack.

If you are using this detox regimen for weight loss, then you are only supposed to have 1 full meal a day. The other 2 meals, you have the shakes instead. Do I want to loose weight? Sure, but I want to eat. Food is my friend. So, I had light lunches and dinners along with the shakes. It's not my fault really. My friends just happen to schedule outings at Timpano and Yuraku while I am in phase 2. I can't just say no!

Can you eat anything you want? Well, you can. But, the program highly encourage you not to eat a lot of sugar, fats and carbohydrates. So, I just cut back on the rice. I actually had a brownie yesterday. I couldn't resist.

So far, I have lost about 5 pounds. I don't see a difference in my body but I don't really notice these things. No headaches so far. No asthma symptoms (I have seasonal asthma, very mild). Everything else feels normal. Just two more days for phase 3, which is identical to phase 1. That means no eating again today and tomorrow. Argh....and I forgot the snacks at home today so I just didn't eat anything at all today. I am feeling a little bit hungry, so I think I am going to reward myself with 2 snacks when I get home.

Just some more results. My fiance's brother completed the program and lost 10 pounds. My fiance completed the program and...I don't know what happened there. He didn't weigh himself before he started. I did take a picture of him, topless though. We will compare later :) My mom is on her last day and she said she lost about 5 lbs also. Stay tuned for more results after the weekend!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

~ Timpano: Italian Chophouse ~

Last weekend, my beautiful girlfriends and I headed out for a little fancy dinner at Timpano. Now, I am not a big Italian fan, but this place is pretty good. It is a little fancy place so feel free to dress up. We did. :D


Now, the food. If you go to Timpano and don't order Black Skillet Roasted Mussels, you may as well not have gone there. It's so good! I usually dislike black mussels (I am a New Zealand green mussel kind of girl...), but this is so good. Nice and buttery, but not too heavy. It is a little bit on the salty side, but just a little bit.


Look at the oil splattering onto my camera lens. Good thing it was only the Canon.


As a chophouse, I actually am not impressed with their steak. I have had it a few times, but it was just mediocre for me.


Now, this was really, really, really good. This is the BBQ Short Rib Flat Bread. OMG, it was great!!! It's very flavorful and the pork is very tender.


I actually had the Seafood Cioppino. It was good, but not as good as the flat bread.


Another thing that's really good? Surprisingly, it was the mac and cheese with truffles. It's a side. I was so surprised because I usually don't care for mac and cheese. But, it's very different from Kraft stuff. Definitely will get more of that next time.

We were too full to eat dessert this time, but I usually do get a little something. They have the cutest cheesecake lollipops and yummy tiramisu shots. So, yeah, check out Timpano. It's on Rockville Pike, where Barnes and Noble and Target is.

I love girls night out! It's so much fun to dress up a little bit and just relax. Enjoy good food and good eye candy. Yeah, I have some hot friends!

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

~ Good Bye Obi ~


By the time you read this, Obi is probably home with his family and Momo is probably moping on the couch, not understanding why his playmate is gone. It's true. Obi is going home in about 30 mins. I will be mopping the floors tomorrow because he has peed all over the place. It's ok. He's not used to my place so it's forgivable. At least he has learned to circle by the door to indicate that he needs to poop. I would also like to thank Momo for letting me know when Obi peed on the floor. Thanks Momo, for running into your crate whenever Obi had accidents. Makes it so much easier to avoid stepping into puddles.

In the short 2 weeks, he has claimed his favorite napping spot under the dining room table. This is really how he sleeps. And he has dreams! He is always yelping and twitching when he's napping. Maybe he's dreaming about chasing Momo around.


This reminds me of the days when Momo used to nap under the table too.


When Obi first arrived, he doesn't like his crate. It took me 15 minutes to put him in his crate the first time. Now, he will go in if I put him in front of his crate. He actually goes into Momo's crate sometimes too....when Momo is in it.



Obi is also very strong and brave. I don't think Momo learned to jump on the couch till he was close to a year old. Obi can jump on and off as easily as Momo now. Ok...Momo is a wimp. I admit it.


And this is what happens if they are not sleeping......constantly wrestling each other! Sometimes I get scared that they are going to hurt each other, but not one scratch on them...that I can see anyway. (Facebook friends, please view original post to see the video. It's cute!)


Well, it's been fun. But, I have decided that I am not getting another dog till Momo is gone. Potty training sucks!

Monday, September 21, 2009

~ Tag Heuer Link Automatic Chronograph ~

Yay, it's here! After shopping around for a little bit at the mall and online, I found that Amazon has the best deal on this watch. I was so surprised! It was fast shipping too.


I even wrapped it since it is a birthday present.


I don't know much about watches, but this one is a little bit thick! Supposedly, it's because it is automatic so it has that extra stuff on the back.


Look at that...box within a box.


And what's with this thick manual? It's just a watch!


Looks nice doesn't it :D


The only down side with ordering online is that we have to figure out how to take extra links out because it's way too big as is. He says he likes it though and that's all that matters.

Friday, September 18, 2009

~ Detox Phase 1 Completed ~


Just something I found when I Etsy-searched Detox. Click on picture to go to the listing.

I started a detox regimen. Why? Because two of my friends tried it and they said they haven't had migraines since the regimen. That's a huge plus for me. Side effects? Weight loss. Ha. Ok, I think they sell this as a weight loss/detox thing, but I am just doing it for detoxing. I don't have the perfect body, but I won't torture myself just to be thinner. Wait, I didn't mean to say that detox is torture...Seriously, I do believe that detoxing is good for people. So, I figure I will try it out. It's a 9 day treatment and it costs money. I won't tell you what it is till after I am done and I see the results.

Basically, for the past two days, I didn't eat regular food. I drank this juice 4 times a day, had chocolate-flavored snacks 6 times a day, plus 2 pills that is an "accelerator" to "kindle your matabolism for burning fat safely". Oooo and I drank like gallons of water. About 250mL an hour.

The Good
First, the positives. I actually only felt hungry twice. Maybe it's because I am drinking so much water. But, honestly, I really didn't feel that hungry. When I did feel hungry, it's mostly when I am thinking about food, like making dinner plans for tomorrow and playing Restaurant City on Facebook. I wanted to eat for sure, but not like starving hungry. But, keep in mind that I am the kind that can skip lunch because I forget to eat.

I don't feel as tired as I usually do. About every other day, I get really, really fatigued in the middle of the day and I can seriously fall asleep sitting up. Didn't feel that way for the past two days.

The Bad
Ok, it's not really bad. But, the juice does not taste good. It doesn't taste horrible, but I won't drink it if I didn't pay for it and it isn't good for me. It's slightly tart, not sweet at all. If you ever tasted raw aloe, it's like a very watered down version of that. It does have aloe in it, so maybe it's good that it tastes like raw aloe?


Yesterday, 3 bright red pimples showed up on my face. I don't know if it's related though. I do get pimples every once in a while and I think it's just hormonal. But usually, they are not this angry red. Supposedly, it is normal for bad stuff to happen to you while you are detoxing. It's like all the toxin is trying to get out and acting up one last time.

Last thing is that I feel bad for not being able to eat with my dad. That's usually when we bound and talk over what happened during the day and him bestowing onto me all his infinite wisdom. He ate in front of me a few times, but, like right now as I am typing this in the dining room, he is eating instant noodles in the kitchen. Isn't he sweet? I think he's being nice and not tempting me with food, though I know he's just lazy sometimes and like to eat from the pot on the stove.

Weight
I didn't weight myself yesterday. We don't have a working scale at home! But, I did weigh myself recently at a friend's place and I will be going there tomorrow so we'll see what it says. My mom who is also doing this detox thing said she lost 5 lbs! Yea, it can be water weight blah blah blah. We'll see if she can keep the weight off after the regimen.

Gimick?
Ok, so the cynical side of me is constantly calling myself stupid. I paid money to do this to myself. Duh. All I am doing is not eating, of course I will loose weight!!! I think part of that may be true. But, I think another part that will help someone loose weight and maintain the weight is very psychological. I heard somewhere that it takes a few days to break a habit, but those few days are hard. So, imagine you are someone who's addicted to sweet drinks or bad snacks or huge dinners. Then, you got convinced to start this regimen, you paid a good amount of money for it, so you will follow it. And given a schedule and a purpose, it's much easier to follow then just say, "don't eat snacks". So, even if the juice and pill does nothing physical for you, it helps you break your bad food habits.

Well, phase 2 starts tomorrow. It'll be 5 glorious day of regular food! Well, 1 regular meal and some light snacks throughout the day and 2 shakes that came with the package. The schedule says I am only supposed to have lunch, but since I am not trying to loose weight, I can eat more than the schedule says. My dad is already planning out what to make for lunch. Yay~!

Thursday, September 17, 2009

~ Pictures on a Cloudy Day ~

The sun just refuses to come out! I have been itching to take pictures of my new designs, so I figured I would just try it and see if I can add enough light to the pictures just through Picasa. I even used flash for some of the pictures. *gasp* That's right. I did it. I used flash when taking pictures of crystals. Guess which pictures I took with flash....answers will be revealed at the end of this post.

First, Swarovski crystal butterfly stud earrings in new colors! I have other colors too, but I think these looks the best as studs.


This picture is a little bit grainy...from the post processing...


Simple and classic champagne color.



I made a couple necklaces inspired by ying-yang symbol. Of course, there's the black and white version...



Then the fun version :)


I really like how this picture turned out.


Lastly, a moon and star necklace. I suddenly felt the urge to do this one in midst of doing the ying-yang necklaces. I tied the chain to the moon pendant instead of using a bail for a sleek, simple look.


This picture, I probably have to redo.


Ok.....so..... can you guess which pictures I took with flash?? Basically, all the ones with Yuki is done with flash (FYI, Yuki is the name of my mannequin). I am actually quite surprised that it turned out ok. Ok, so I cheated a little bit since I made the picture black and white. So, here's a look at the raw image... How's the post-processing? Is it too much?


I think the sun may come out tomorrow. I am going to hopefully make a bracelet and maybe earrings tonight so I can take advantage of the sunlight tomorrow. The dreaded winter will be here soon. I miss the sun already!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

~ Sexy Halloween Costumes ~

So a few of my sexy friends already picked out their costumes and they are tempting me to pick one out too. They pointed me to this site that has a lot of choices called Yandy.com. I like a few of them, but I think they are all way too sexy for me (well, for my fiance). I know Halloween is the time for girls to dress as sexy as they want and for guys to cross dress....but still...

Here are my choices so far:
Vampires Even before this whole twilight phase, I love vampires. They are so strong and bold and sexy. I think this one is very pretty! Love the purple....

This one is sharp.
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This one is long......that's the only reason I am considering it.

Japanese Of course....my other obsession...I think I like the pink one the most.




Yellow Belle is my favorite princess!

I am sad that there aren't more nice, yellow costumes. I may just wear something black and get some vampire teeth. Nice and easy :)
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