The Monthly Gram: August 2013

Hey all! Here is your Monthly Gram for August! Sorry for uploading this after August hehe. I got slightly lazy and I'm stuck on A Game of Thrones, but no worries :)

I always like going into Sand People at Ala Moana to admire this piece. I really gravitate towards beachy decor and I'm so in love with this picture. I love the two seahorses sharing a martini. I really should just get this because I'm going to be devastated when I don't see it there anymore.

(left) My birthday breakfast with Mike at Moke's in Kailua. I got the Loco Moco and I think those are lilikoi pancakes?
(top right) My lunch at Tango Market before getting my haircut at Salon Blanc. Tuna melt with a side salad :9
(bottom right) My absolute favorite place that makes the best eggplant parmegiana: Paesano

(top) Mixed salad with lettuce, beans, shiitake mushroom, and sweet potato. I liked the balsamic vinegar, but I definitely didn't like the fine salt they sprinkled on top of it
(bottom) I forgot what this was called, but it literally reminded me of the roast beef that my Grandpa makes and unfortunately this was forgettable :(

Even thought dinner was sub-par, it was still nostalgic for me :)

Mini haul from TJ Maxx: red tumbler, Sweet Maui Onion chips (a bit on the sweet side lol), a round brush, and hair mousse.

(left) I already mentioned this in my favorites but this veggie tofu pho was bombtastic.
(top right) Also mentioned earlier, the haupia sweet potato pie that my Aunty made was heavenly.
(bottom right) Hiyashi tantanmen from Ezogiku at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center. It wasn't as I'd thought it be, but it was still good. It could've been colder lol.

I usually (well, always) dislike taking pictures of myself, but I really liked my haircut from Salon Blanc. It's pricey, but the value is definitely there. Marissa did my hair so definitely book her if you want the best haircut ever!

Thanks for reading!
-LAUREN

The Monthly Gram: July 2013

Hello all! It is close to the end of July, which means a lot of monthly-themed posts :D. I had to compact a lot of my pictures this month so that it didn't overwhelm this post, although even with the combining there are still a lot of pics! It seems like all I did this month was eat and drink lol. I promise you this isn't the only thing that I do, but yeah, I do love taking pics of my diet. I need to crack down on eating healthy though. I am getting a little poofy around the middle ^^;

Some masks that Jason gave to me. He orders a whole bunch from Amazon at great prices! It's better than buying singles at the store though :)

(left) My first time at Taste Tea near Ala Moana! This is the milk tea with the bubbles. I don't like bubbles, but the person taking my order didn't want to listen to me that I only wanted the tea. That was a bit annoying.
(top right) This is from a coffee shop in Kailua called Chadlous. It's my favorite place to get bubble drinks even though I really don't eat the bubbles. I like this place because of the flavors they offer. My two top flavors are passion fruit, which is pictured above, and guava.
(bottom right) San Pellegrino's Blood Orange Soda is da bomb. It is the perfect summer drink and also refreshing. I like to wait for them to go on sale at Costco hehe.

(left) Mapo Tofu at Gomatei in Ala Moana. This is the first time in how many years that I didn't order a tantan ramen. It was good, but I think I'll stick to my usual next time ;)
(top right) I've been loving my veggies more than usual, so I ordered a Primavera angel hair pasta from Auntie Pasto's.
(bottom right) Some summer nights can be warm over here so zaru soba from Matsugen hits the spot! They make their soba from scratch and thus I can't eat the dried kind found in stores anymore. I've been spoiled rotten :3

(top) Chinese Chicken Salad from Cafe Laufer in Kaimuki
(bottom) A mixed salad consisting of romaine, spinach, carrots, red onions, cucumber, grape tomatoes, korean watercress, and red cabbage.

My cousin's rabbit Pierre. He's so adorable <3

I've been craving shave ice literally for this entire month. My favorite spot is Ailana's near Ala Moana. This combination is li hing mui, melona, and lilikoi with condensed milk and ice cream at the bottom.

Cactus in Kailua is a great spot for Mexican and the only thing that I really like is their rolled quesadillas! This is just a veggie quesadilla. You can add roasted veggies or a meat, but to me, it's perfect as it is. Also, you get to choose a side dish for free! I also tried their frozen sangria and it was pretty nice. Strong, but nice!

I've been going to my friend's band's (Broke Aesthetic) performances for a while and this month was his last time performing since he's going to Japan for JET. I'm going to miss him terribly, but I'm so glad that I've gotten to know him throughout the years. He's a great guy and I'm really happy that he's finally going to be able to do JET. I don't know if he'll read this post but if he does, I just want to say that I'm not the best when it comes to making friends with guys. Heck, I just feel awkward lol! But to be honest, you are one of the few guy friends that I have that I truly feel like we're friends and that I'm comfortable with. I hope you find everything that you're looking for and don't forget to keep on drumming!

Thanks for reading!
-LAUREN

The Monthly Gram: June 2013

Hello all! I know I said that I was going to try to get up monthly favorites, but I realized that nothing really changes in my makeup or beauty routine. My fashion crushes do change somewhat frequently, so I'd probably mention it on a haul. Anyways, I have just decided to do a recap of Instagram pics of each month, which seems a bit more doable for me and is kind of like a monthly favorites ;). I love the convenience of posting pictures on IG rather than on Facebook. So here are a few pics that were taken in the month of June:

It was super hot that day, so after my first purchase at Lush, Jason and  I stopped by our favorite tea stand at Ala Moana called the Tea Place, which is across from Neiman Marcus. I've been going to this place for years after classes at UH. Recently, I've been constantly ordering their Hawaiian Pineapple Ceylon Tea Float with pineapple gelato (right). Their gelato is all homemade and it's delicious. Jason's usual is the Dragon Phoenix Jasmine Tea Float with jasmine sorbet (left).

This was taken on Ward Ave. Hawaii always has beautiful sunsets, but this one in particular seemed  picture worthy! 

This is just a simple strawberry parfait from a gas station, but the reason why it was extra special was because Jason got it for me after dropping me off at home. It was a tiring day for him that day and I just happened to mention that I was craving a piece of cake. I was surprised that he returned with this! It made my heart flutter a bit (o^-^o)

I think Rilakkuma has got to be one of the cutest characters ever. I don't know why I never bought a plushie in Japan (actually I was too busy buying clothes >->). This was the window display of Hakubundo, a Japanese bookstore at Ward Warehouse. I always slow down to admire the cuteness, but then Jason starts pushing me away in the other direction >:(

(top) Mini Mochiko Chicken plate (one of my favorite eats from Zippy's)
(bottom) Tonkatsu Teishoku from Kimukatsu at Shirokiya. I have been wanting to try the famous Kimukatsu  tonkatsu. Honestly, it isn't as good as Ringer Hut in Waikiki, so I'm glad I never paid the expensive price at their Waikiki location.

(left) $3.90 Kirin at Yakiniku Glad. They have three different sizes of beer and they're all $3.90, so you might as well get the large!
(right) Loving the Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher for summer, although my drink of choice nowadays is the Cotton Candy Frappe :9

(left) Fringe Top: GUESS, Pants: Pacsun, Necklace: Brandy Melville, Ring: H&M
(top) Vest and Mr. Bunny Tee: GUESS, Camo Pants: Brandy Melville
(bottom) Sheer Shirt, Pants, Booties: GUESS, Necklace: Brandy Melville
I'm thinking of doing a separate OOTM post for July instead of mashing it all up in one post. 

Thanks for reading!
-LAUREN