Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Cactus

Photos courtesy of Sung Shin

Sweater-J.Crew
Pants-Gap
Belt-J.Crew
Shoes-Vera Wang Lavender Label (old)
Cuff-Hermes
Pendant-David Yurman


I've been on the hunt for a pair of loose yet fitted khaki pants (surprisingly hard to find) and was curious about the fit of the ones I'm wearing today, after seeing them look so good on my fellow petite blogger friend, Kelly from her recent post here. I ordered both the cactus and khaki colored pairs online but ended up returning the latter due to an odd fit where it was too loose on the waist yet fitted around the leg. (Kelly also had similar issues with the navy colored pair). So if you're on the hunt for for a casual pair where it can double as slim fitting pants or a boyfriend fit, I highly recommend these pair from Gap. These comfy pants are definitely coming with me on my trip to Japan this weekend;)

Have a great week. Xo.


Friday, April 11, 2014

Anorak

Photos courtesy of Sung Shin

Blouse-Joie
Jeans-Zara
Jacket-Uniqlo (similar style here)
Pendant-David Yurman
Sunglasses-Celine

I picked up this Anorak jacket at the Uniqlo store in NYC while I was visiting my sister this past February and thought it would be perfect for Spring (I encouraged her to buy the military green version of it ha!) It's lightweight, hooded, water repellant (kept me dry when I wore it a couple of rainy weekends ago), and the price point was reasonable ($79). I've always been a huge fan of this store to shop for high quality basics with an affordable price tag and am happy to include this great transitional piece into my closet for Spring. Now if they would only open up a store in the DMV....

Have a great weekend. Xo.

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

NomNom: Peanut Butter Green Smoothie

You guys have no idea how happy I am that it's finally starting to feel like spring <insert happy dance>. This winter was brutal for this area where it just seemed like mother nature just would NOT let go of winter. Rude.

It made me want to stay at home instead of venturing out in the cold and I may have cancelled out on a couple of plans with friends because it was just too dang cold outside to wanna leave the comforts of home. But my friends are the bestest so they get me. It's cool.

The polar vortex brought out the wuss in me, ok?

The freezing weather we experienced also made me want to avoid any sort of cold desserts and drinks and unfortunately my green smoothie game suffered. A bad mix of lazy and rebellion towards anything cold related.


But things are starting to get back on track and I'm back to my green smoothie regimen with a new savory, nutty, and sweet smoothie recipe. My love for peanut butter is next level (especially when there's also banana involved with it) so when I saw that it was one of the ingredients involved, I had to try it. The thing I love about this smoothie is that there are so many awesome layers of flavors that hit your taste buds starting with the banana, a hint of peanut butter, and cinnamon <----game changer for reals.

So who's with me with welcoming Spring with a super healthy and delicious drink of good-for-you-masked-greens? Let's.do.this.

Have a great week. Xo.


Ingredients (Adapted from Bon Appetit) Yields: 2
1 banana
1 cup almond milk
1 cup spinach (torn kale)
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon Chia seeds (optional)

Procedure
1. Blend in banana, milk, spinach, peanut butter, cinnamon, chia seed, 1/4 cup of ice in a blender until smooth. 

Friday, April 4, 2014

NomNom: M&M Clusters

When I first entered the working world as a pharmacist, I was very much in work mode 24/7. I'd pick up extra shifts to make extra money and had the mentality of 'work/save as much as I can while young and with out responsibilities.' I still somewhat have that mentality but I've also come to realize over the past couple of years that having balance is something that's becoming more and more important to me. Balancing work, time spent with loved ones, blogging to get my creative juices flowing, traveling the world, and practicing yoga for my well being are all things that are important to me for its own reason and I need a good healthy dose of each to keep me happy.

Food and my eating habits also involve this balance I'm talking about today.

I've mentioned in previous posts that I've been trying to eat a bit more healthier these days and not consume so much junk food (chips, fried foods, sweets, etc.) like I usually do, and instead incorporate more vegetables and fruits into my life. So far it hasn't been as bad as I imagined it to be, but I also know myself well enough that I can't give up the "bad for you foods" in its entirety. I enjoy it too much. I'm ok with eating that big slice of cheesecake…and chocolate chip cookie…and bacon…and well you get the idea. It feels so justified after eating a really good spinach salad.


So where does all this talk lead to today?

M&M clusters.

I'm not sure if it's all the carrots and cucumbers I've been snacking on as of late but I've been majorly craving something sweet and salty and this incredibly easy dessert/snack satisfies just that. I first made these clusters over the winter holiday and they have now become a staple in my kitchen because they're incredibly satisfying, easy, and includes ingredients you'll most likely have in your pantry. Warning: there's nothing low fat and healthy about this snack. Oh wait--it has peanuts! Proteins! There you go.

The hardest part about this recipe was waiting for the chocolate to set so I ate my carrots as I waited. True story.

Balance.

I promise my next recipe post will be something super healthy. Have a great weekend. Xo.


Ingredients (Adapted from America's Test Kitchen)
8 ounces of white chocolate, chopped or 1 1/3 cup white chocolate chips
2 cups salted pretzel sticks broken into 1-inch pieces (*make sure you use the thin pretzel rods)
1 cup salted dry-roasted peanuts
1/2 cup mini M&Ms

Procedure
1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Microwave chocolate in large bowl until melted, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes.  Stir until smooth and then gently fold in pretzels and peanuts until evenly coated.

2. Drop by heaping tablespoons of mixture onto baking sheet.  Sprinkle M&M’s over the top.  Refrigerate until set, about 30 minutes.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Slouchy

Photos courtesy of Sung Shin

Blouse-DVF (similar style on sale here)
Leather sweatpants-BlankNYC (on sale!)
Sunglasses-Karen Walker
Necklace-CuspNM
Bracelet-Hermes


As much as I appreciate a nice pair of well fitted pants/skinny jeans, I've always loved the look of loose/wide leg pants (same sentiment towards oversized knits). There's something very cool, unfussy, yet chic about it when worn right and these leather "sweatpants" encompass that style I love. It's a couple of inches longer than what I would like it to be on me so I'm considering getting it hemmed, but for now I'm ok with it.


Hope you're having a great week. Xo.