The Shopping Diaries: LUSH

Hello all! Did you guys have a wonderful 4th of July weekend? Luckily I was able to spend a lot of time with Jason so that was a major plus :)

About a month ago, I paid a visit to Lush just out of the blue and it just so happened it was their 7th anniversary being at Ala Moana and they were having some in-store demonstrations. This was my second time going into the store. The first time I went, no one bothered to help me even though I was curious about some of their products, so I just left. I decided to give the store another chance and this time I was assisted.

Dark Angels (1/4lb): This was probably my favorite product. It is a facial cleanser for dull, oily skin. I have normal-oily combination skin, so it is perfect for my skin type. This cleanser is made up of sugar and charcoal, the latter in which it's supposed to extract the oils from your skin. My skin feels really nice and soft after using it. My only concern is that I'm not sure if it really gets rid of my acne. I began using this twice a day and, at first, it seemed to be doing all right, but then I noticed I started breaking out a lot and I knew there was a chance that it might cause breakouts for the first couple weeks of use. But, my acne didn't go away after continuous use. I ended up reverting back to my regimen with my Clarisonic and my skin calmed down quite a bit. I don't think this product causes breakouts. I think it just doesn't cleanse my skin the way my Clarisonic does and therefore, my acne reappears. I'll still continue to use this every now and then though.

Tea Tree Water ($9.99): I've heard great things about their tea tree products, especially the toner. It's supposed to be great for acne-prone skin. Once again, I'm not sure if it has helped a lot. I was using this twice a day and yet I started breaking out more than usual (but it may have been due to my change in skincare). I don't think this would cause anything as it is a toner. What I do now is use this in the morning before makeup. I have my other toner from Nature Republic that I love and I use that for my nighttime regimen.

Grease Lightning ($13.95): I was also excited for this product because of the tea tree elements and that it's supposed to be a spot treatment for acne. Like before, I'm not sure if it has helped, but right now I'm trying it out differently so hopefully it'll work.

Ocean Salt ($35.95): Now this product is pretty good! The salesperson demonstrated the product on my hand and the skin felt so smooth and supple. This can be used on your face and body, but you should only do it, at most, twice a week because it basically is a dermabrasion product and it's not good to over-exfoliate. I think this might be a little too tough on my face, even though that's the reason I bought it, but I would definitely use this more for my upper arms because I have keratosis pilaris. This might help to exfoliate my pores and smooth out the bumps.

I hope you enjoyed my Lush haul! To be honest, I'm a bit sad that these products didn't deliver the results that I was hoping it would. I'm not sure I would purchase from Lush again, but that's just me. Everyone has different skincare needs. Lush is an all-natural company, so there aren't any harsh chemicals that many popular brands have. If you're looking for skincare solutions and haven't tried Lush yet, give them a try! Their products come in different sizes, so you can buy smaller portions and try them out.

Thanks for reading!
-LAUREN

TSD The Weekend After SF Edition: Forever 21, GUESS, Brandy Melville

Hello all!

I'm pretty proud of myself for popping out these posts pretty quickly hehe! So this post will be about my little shopping extravaganza the weekend after coming back from San Fran. I don't know if it was because I restrained myself in SF or what, but I ended up getting more things when I came back. I think my purchases were somewhat warranted since I was on the lookout for more crop tops...yeah lol. Anyways, let's get on with the haul!

BOSS Logo Crop Top: I was immediately drawn to this because of the logo print. Who doesn't want a top that says you're the boss! I do dig the block logo print and I think cuffed sleeves on t-shirts are super chic at the moment. This was $12.80.

Metallic Claw Necklace: I wanted to pick out a cool accessory that wasn't so boho-like since I tend to gravitate towards that. I thought the claw-like pendant was really funky and chic. I like the two-tone metal and this goes great with a lot of monochromatic coordinates, as seen above!

Military Studded Vest: I had actually tried this same vest in San Fran and for some reason I wasn't really feeling it, but I ended up trying it again since my GUESS had it in my size and the extra 50% off was still going on. When I tried it on this time, I still wasn't absolutely blown away, but I figured that I should just get it anyway for the great price and design.

Mr. Bunny Tee: I follow GUESS on Facebook, so the moment I saw a post about their animal print sleeveless tees, I knew I absolutely had to have this. Luckily, I saw the post the day I was going out to Ala Moana and I got it immediately. I love bunnies so anything bunny-print or bunny-themed it makes my heart go a-flutter! Also, I'm digging his little faux collar :D

Blue and White Crop Top: While I admire American Apparel's crop tops, they are $28+ depending on the style and such, so I wanted to see if I could find a cheaper option. I know that Topshop crop tops are quite reasonable and almost half the price of American Apparel's at $16. But my best deal was at Brandy Melville and their's were $15! They fit really nicely and the length is great for a crop top on my torso size. 

Triangular Necklace: When I go to Brandy Melville, I always look at their accessories section because I think they have great stuff for really cheap! It's slightly painful at times because they have such cute rings and with my skinny fingers, I can't fit them :(. But, they also have cute necklaces and I found this cool 3 in 1 triangle necklace. I literally wear this necklace at least 4 times a week because it makes every outfit look so much more boho-chic!

Next post, hopefully up by tomorrow, will be my first ever purchase of LUSH and some reviews about the products!

Thanks for reading!

-LAUREN

TSD San Francisco Edition: UNIQLO, H&M, Snidel, GUESS, Forever XXI

Finally another shopping haul and this one comes especially from San Francisco! Now, I usually go crazy when I go shopping but because I was with my mom, I had to exercise great restraint as she does frown upon crazy shopping habits like the ones that I possess lol. But despite that, I was able to get away with some great finds!

Basic Tanks and Seamless Underwear: This first batch was from UNIQLO, a Japanese brand which I liken to the Gap here in the U.S. I really like this brand for their basics, especially their seamless underwear, which are TRULY seamless and goes great with leggings. Of course, I had to snatch up two pairs of seamless undies ($7.95 each I think) and I decided to go for some basic tanks that were $9.95 each. I didn't get a chance to try on the tanks since there was a special event going on that was going to close the store super early. The white and black tank fits really nicely and the fabric is great. The more beigey-tone one on the far right is a little more loose fitted but still a great layering piece.

Black Leggings: I was super tempted to buy a whole bunch of things from H&M since it is such a great store, but once again, I was with my mom and had to exercise severe restraint. Instead I picked up two pairs of their black leggings since I fell in love with them when I got pair in Vegas a month before. They're only $9.95 and I think that's great for the quality of the fabirc.

Logo Print Tank: I actually got this as a furoku (付録) from the most recent issue of ViVi magazine from Kinokuniya in Japantown. It was ViVi's 30th anniversary and so they teamed up with Snidel to create this collab item! I've been a fan of Snidel, but never got anything because it was quite expensive. I was surprised at the good quality of the fabric for being a furoku. This tank encompasses one of the trends happening in Japan, which is block print logos with random English words.

White Fringe Sleeveless: Before leaving for SF, Guess had notified me by email saying that they were going to have an extra 50% off of their reduced prices for the Memorial Day weekend. I was worried I wouldn't find a nearby Guess but there was one conveniently at the Westfield Mall down the street. Everything I picked out was on extra 50% off, so I got a great deal. Also, I applied my $15 credit for being a Guess List member to my purchases! This first piece was from their music festival collection. I got it because I love the fringe detail cascading down the chest into a V-shape. Not too crazy about the actual material, but I figured it's a great piece for the the price.

Sheer Black Shirt w/ Royal Blue Trim: I absolutely love this because of how sheer the fabric is. I do have a lot of sheer black shirts, but this is even more sheer and I think you can tell by the picture. What sealed the deal was the royal blue trim on the collar and inside the sleeve cuffs. Yeah you cannot really see it when I'm wearing it, but I may roll up the sleeve cuff to show the underside. Also, the triangular studs for buttons is a cute edgy detail.

Blue Plaid w/ Studs: Except for one plaid shirt that doesn't really fit me well, I didn't have anything like this in my closet. To be honest, when I tried it on, I was on the fence with this, but decided to buy it because it was in my size and it was on extra sale. Plus, if I truly wanted to return it, I could do so at my local store. I think this ended up being one of my favorite pieces from this trip because it did fit pretty well for a plaid flannel shirt. They usually don't look right on me because of the fit, but this was about 90% perfect. Also, I love using this as an accessory piece by tying it around my waist! Then when it gets a little cool during the evenings, I can easily slip this on.

Star Patterned Knit: Now this was in the Forever 21 store; it was in the Forever XXI store. Now for someone like me, I would be like what is the difference? It's the same name but one is in roman numerals. According to my cousin who goes to USF over there, XXI is supposed to be better quality and more classier. I definitely got the better quality part. I saw this knit and knew I had to have it. While I'm not a big fan of star-patterned prints as I believe they look kind of juvenile on me, which is ironic as I got all star-patterned print items for XXI, this seemed to suit me well. I think that F21 knits are, for the most part, good quality and this did not disappoint.

High-Waisted Star Patterned Denim Shorts: This is my other favorite purchase of the entire trip. This is what got me into the store. Actually, the mannequin was wearing a slightly different star-patterned denim short than this one, but I ended up liking this one much better when I found it. I think the trend of high-waisted shorts and pants is super cool and chic, but when it comes to shorts, all the ones that I've tried had been too cheeky for my taste. When I tried this pair on, it was on the verge of being too cheeky, but I found it to be acceptable enough. The fit and quality is superb and I plan on wearing this for 4th of July!

Thanks for sticking around for this ep of the Shopping Diaries. I have a few more to post, so look forward to that!

Thanks for reading!

-LAUREN

Travel Through Photos: San Francisco Part 3

Hello! Sorry for the lack of activity on my blog all of a sudden. I got lazy, but I'm glad to be back and finish up the rest of the San Francisco pics! To be honest, I didn't take a lot of pictures after Monterey Bay. I did take a lot of pictures at the California Academy of Sciences and Alcatraz, but I ended up making some combination clips so as not to overwhelm this post. This will be the last SF post as I am eager to share with you some shopping hauls, especially from SF, and just a wrap up of June! I'll also try to get a June Favorites post out there too :)

I wish I had taken more pictures at Japantown since it was one of my favorite places in San Francisco. I really liked the touristy Japanese shops, which made me wonder why we didn't have more of these in Hawaii lol. Probably because most of our tourists are from Japan and they don't want to see stuff that they can get at home hehe. Anyways, here's a pic of my Mom.

Lovely Union Square facing Macy's.

The SF Taiko Club, or something like that, put on a demonstration for the crowd. I always enjoy taiko performances!

From the top of the Mark Hopkins hotel. I can't believe my Mom made me walk up Mount Everest just to get to this damn hotel -_-

The reef environment at the California Academy of Sciences! This place was super cool as each section was stimulated to recreate the natural environment.

They also had some cute penguins too! I forget what breed this was but they were originally from Africa. On the left, the caretaker was in the midst of cleaning the glass. Their oldest penguin was 30+  years old. Normally, a penguin's lifespan is 15-20 years, but this is due to scarcity of food and predators in the wild.

(top) The albino alligator was in the swamp section of the Academy. It took me a while to realize it was real because it was so still lol. There were some huge turtles as well in the same tank, which made me wonder how they survive. But I suppose as long as they're being fed, he has no need to eat his neighbors. (bottom) I thought this guy was so cute! I've always thought pig-snouted turtles were on the cute side and seeing them in real life established my thought :)

I'm glad that I got to visit Alcatraz. Yes, I was afraid of those humongous sea gulls crapping on my head since this place doubles as a bird sanctuary. The prison, of course, was the most interesting part. I didn't realize how tiny jail cells could be and that you really don't get any privacy. A cool fact about Alcatraz is that there were two people who "escaped" from Alcatraz, but one ended up getting recaptured and later released and jailed again for something else in which he spent the rest of life in prison. The other made it all the way back to SF but nearly died and was recaptured.

Of course, I need to end this post with a fashion pic! I missed Uniqlo since coming back from Japan in 2011, so I was ecstatic to enter the store again. I love their basic tanks and their seamless undies!

Finally we're finished with SF! I can't wait to go back again as there were so many things that I didn't get to see. The next post will be my shopping haul from SF, so I might get that up later today or tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!

-LAUREN

Travel Through Photos: San Francisco Part 2

Hello all! Welcome to Part 2 of my San Francisco trip. This section will include pictures from our day trip to Monterey Bay and the 17 mile drive. This tour also included an hour stop in Carmel, but I didn't take pictures :(. I totally feel like kicking myself for not taking any pictures there, but my mom has a couple snaps that I may include later. Until then, please enjoy these pics from Monterey!

This is the AT&T Stadium where they were having a baseball game that day. I'm not into baseball, but I do believe it was a semi-final or final game between the home team and someone else.

This was along the road to Monterey. It's called Restless Bay or Beach because the waves never calm down. It was quite windy!

              

(left) The jellyfish display at Monterey Bay was very lovely. I thought that they were beautiful and luminescent against the lighting. The little baby jellyfish were super cute too! It reminded me of the one from Finding Nemo hehe! (right) I absolutely love the avian life too! I already thought that penguins were cute but I also found the puffins and other marine birds to be cute and pretty. Actually, when I took a picture of the marine birds, it looked like they were fake instead of real lol.

I think sea otters are the cutest things ever! We caught them during feeding time and the lady explained that these sea otters couldn't be released back into the wild due to health or behavioral problems. She also mentioned that they de-shell their food before giving it to them because they will go up to the window and try to crack it open against the glass.  Also, they stick the food in this red container, as shown above, and they shake out the insides to get their meal.

The sea horses were an absolute joy to watch. While they were quite idle, their beauty was something to admire. I took a close up of these little guys who are actually quite minuscule. I love how they like to attach themselves to the seaweed branches.

I think the Leafy Sea Horse is one of the most beautiful creatures ever. I never thought they'd be this beautiful because I always imagined them to look like rubbish because of the seaweed camouflage. Instead I found them to be very graceful and lovely to view.

The view of Monterey Bay from the Aquarium.

Check out the otters feeding time at Monterey Bay Aquarium!

This was store nearby the aquarium. I was super tempted to buy a shirt just because I found it so adorable!

 I think this was called Seal Rock or something along the lines of that. It was quite stinky because of the direction of the wind. I thought there were seals on top of the rock as well, but I think they were sea gulls. If anything, I think it was the sea gulls that made the area stinky hehe.

This was along the 17 mile drive to Carmel. There were lots of redwood and beech trees. We were planning on going to Muir Woods, which has some of the tallest redwood trees, but because we saw so much trees on this drive, I decided against going hehe. Maybe next time!

This was one of the most interesting stops on the 17 mile drive. It's the most photographed cypress tree because it's a 250 year old tree growing out in the middle of nowhere. I found it to be quite eerie! Our tour guide told us that not too long ago, some kids tried to burn the tree down. Luckily, they were unsuccessful and people tied ropes on the tree to help support it due to the damage it incurred.

Thanks for reading!

-LAUREN

Travel Through Photos: San Francisco Part 1

Hello all! I was in San Francisco for the first time from May 22nd to the 29th. I must say that it's really nice to have traveled somewhere different besides Las Vegas or Japan, the only two destinations I've been traveling to for over a decade lol.

San Francisco was, amazingly, a culture shock for me! Yes, it's America, but there were so many things that made me go "what?!" To be honest, I understood Japanese culture better than San Fran culture! Anyways, I'd go again in a heartbeat. There are so many things to do in this city that I don't think a week suffices. I felt like we did a lot of things yet my cousin, who is studying at USF, mentioned all these places that we didn't even hear of. Probably because we did all the touristy stuff that we never heard of it hehe.

I think I might have to make one or two more SF posts because I took a lot of pics. So enjoy!

 

On the far left is my mom standing in front of Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill. The tower was donated by Lillie Hitchcock Coit and the tower is supposed to look like a fireman's hose nozzle. It was something like firefighters saved her life when she was young, so she wanted to show her appreciation such. The other picture is the view from Coit Tower. It was a lovely day, as most of our days were!

Of course you must go to Pier 39 to visit the sea lions! It was windy so the stink wasn't that bad hehe. I visited these guys 3 times because I adored them that much! I especially love the chubby ones that lay on their backs and sunbathe. I affectionately call them the "orkies" due to the sounds that they make :).

Random picture of a carousel at Fisherman's Wharf.

I seriously thought we'd never get to ride these damn cable cars because there's always a long ass line to get on them. Luckily, we ended up catching them in the not so crowded areas. It was actually a cool experience! I was glad that I always got to sit down because I'd imagined myself slipping off the pole hehe.

I was excited to visit Ghirardelli Square. Literally, this entire area smelt of chocolate! While I'm not a major chocolate lover, it was a cute area and they even had a little area to show how they make their chocolate. Yes, it's quite touristy, but I remember this place being mentioned in my retail marketing class so I had to visit it!

Stay tuned for the next batch of photos!

Thanks for reading!

-LAUREN

In the Kitchen: Beef Flavor Ramen w/ Fresh Veggies

Hello all! Welcome to another episode of In the Kitchen. Now I know this isn't really cooking but I thought why not do a little show-and-tell about how I like to prepare my ramen. By all means, ramen isn't the most healthy thing for you. It's packed with a lot of sodium but it's such a convenient food to make in minutes. Plus, it's also like comfort food! Now, I usually like to use the Japanese Myoji brand ramen because the quality of the noodles is quite good and the broth tastes like it has more oomph in it compared to your usual Ichiban Ramen brand. Since I'm in a bit of a Korean mood of late, I decided to try this 5 pack of Sam Yang Beef Flavor Ramen from Palama Market as pictured below. The flavor is quite nice and has a bit of spice to it. I can't have anything that's too overly spicy since I have a sensitive stomach, but fortunately this was bearable!

This time around, I used won bok or Chinese cabbage (left) and kai choy (right). I thought I had picked up choi sum, but only realized it was kai choy when I started chopping it up hehe! Actually, I don't think I've really ever eaten kai choy, but I'm glad I got it. To me, it's not as dense as choi sum, although I do love choi sum. Below, I have pictured the amount of veggies I decided to put into my ramen. I like to put an ample amount because the veggies do tend to shrink.

Finally, after waiting 4-5 minutes, it is finished! I like my veggies al dente so I put them in a minute or two after the noodles have been placed in the boiling water. Then afterwards, just pour the contents into a giant bowl, or just eat it out of the pot, and enjoy!

Another tip to making this an even more healthier meal is to not drink all the broth. I usually just eat the noodles and veggies since it has soaked up the flavor. Maybe I might drink a couple spoonfuls but not more than that. 

出来上がる～<3
-LAUREN