Metal & Rust

Hooray!!!  What can I say, I'm excited by the fact that it is officially fall, which is by far my favorite season in terms of wardrobe.  I love all the deep jewel toned shades, the elements of black, incorporation of leather, and all those other facets that make dressing for fall so fantastic.  In this look, I went with an incorporation of metallic, black, and cognac that primarily worked around the textured metallic top I got from Bamboo Sky.  Other elements of this look that really pulled everything together were the beautiful coated crystal bib necklace by Mixe Medium, the rust colored shorts by Rag & Bone, and my Alexander Wang Rocco bag.  I will be sure to get more fall related outfit and beauty posts as well as videos up in the very near future.  All photos taken by Taylor Miyashiro.  =]

Outfit Details: Textured gunmetal and black top from Bamboo Sky, rust colored cut off frayed shorts by Rag & Bone, Bag: Rocco Mini Duffel in black lambskin with black nickel hardware by Alexander Wang, Shoes: Areas boot by Jeffrey Campbell.  See other photos for accessory details.

Coated crystal bib necklace by Mixe Medium, silver stainless steel armor ring by L'Mond, tan claw wrap around leather bracelet by Kara New York, silver stainless steel mesh band watch by Skagen, gunmetal and black aviator sunglasses by Marc by Marc Jacobs (not shown in this picture).

Foodie Friday: Godmother Pasta (Shirokiya)

Insight and photo by Rowena Salanga, words by me.

A little intro...

I definitely wanted to venture into new areas in terms of variation in what I post here, so I asked my dear cousin, Rowena, to share some of her food adventures every Friday, that will now be known as "Foodie Friday."  These posts will consist of a culmination of both food that was made in her kitchen, as well as food ordered out at eateries here on Oahu.  Let's face it, we all love to look at food at least on occasion, so I thought it would break up the monotony of my style and beauty posts.  Be sure to let me know if you all like these posts down in the comments, and if there are any specifics you'd like me to address in future Foodie Friday posts.

...and on to the actual post:

This Foodie Friday we bring you the Neapolitan and the Teri Chicken Pasta from Godmother Pasta, which is located on the 3rd floor of Shirokiya at Ala Moana Shopping Center.  Godmother Pasta's food is a fusion of Japanese and Italian food, that is reflected in all the dishes they have to offer.  Rowena has eaten there a total of 7 times so far, which can attest to the overall quality of the food they have available.  For being a take out type of food establishment, the dishes come plated beautifully and presented in a way one would expect from a more sophisticated place.  Godmother Pasta definitely provides a selection of dishes that don't seem to be very commonly available at other restaurants or food establishments, especially since the food (or at least the pasta as far as I'm concerned) is gluten free.

For more great food related photos, check out Rowena's Instagram -> here
and here: http://instagram.com/roweeena

For reviews of Godmother Pasta on Yelp, check them out -> here
and here: http://www.yelp.com/biz/godmother-honolulu-2#query:godmother%20pasta

The Neapolitan and Teri Chicken Pasta from Godmother Pasta.

Beauty: My Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

As many people know, the Shu Uemura eyelash curler is iconic in the world of beauty, and deemed as being among the elite as far as beauty tools are concerned, especially in the realm of eyelash curlers.  Being the beauty crazed person I am, I felt the absolute and utmost need to have one of these illustrious beauty tools in my life, despite the luxury price.  For those of you who aren't familiar, the Shu Uemura eyelash curler retails for about $20, and is now incredibly rare to find in retailers in the United States, as it is no longer being distributed through them.  Such retailers as Sephora, carried this tool up until a couple years ago, which is when I picked up the one that I still have (and use) to this day.  Technically, the protocol for eyelash curlers is that they are to be replaced every 6 months, or at least replace the padding in that time frame.  Such was not the case for me, in that I have had mine for about 3 years now, and continue to use it frequently.  However, despite my loyalty to this fantastic tool, I think it is about time to move on and venture to find one to replace it.  I could very well get a new one, since Shu Uemura products are available to purchase online, but I want to try something new, so that'll be my mini goal for the next few months.  I heard great things about the MAC eyelash curler, as well as the one by Tweezerman, Shiseido, and Tarte, so those may be worthy of researching and trying out before I make my decision.  Definitely let me know in the comments any suggestions you all may have for the new eyelash curler I should get.  Below is a photo I took of my beloved Shu Uemura eyelash curler, that I may very well keep just for sentimental value.  =]

The Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

One Fresh Night

Happy Sunday everyone.  I can't tell you all how much I looked forward to the weekend after a pretty hectic, grueling, and stressful week.  I think I may or may not share weekend endeavors on these "Say Something Sunday" posts, but it'll all depend on if there was anything of interest that I did over the weekend.  Anyway, back to this post...yesterday (Saturday) was a pretty fun filled and eventful day, as I planned it out from morning to night.  The day started off pretty dull, in that I just laid around for majority of the morning contemplating my day's activities.  My day didn't really carry on into action until mid afternoon, when I went to stop by the iKandy flagship store, and to Target to kill time before my evening plans (there will definitely be a Target haul sometime soon). Started the night off stopping by the Fresh event hosted by the Valerie Joseph Boutique, which benefits Community Helping Schools, a non-profit organization that gives back to public schools in need.  It was definitely a lively environment that carried a very positive vibe in support of a worthy cause, particularly since it was hosted at a night club (The M at restaurant row to be specific).  After the festivities there, I went to the 1 year anniversary of Honolulu Night Market in Kaka'ako, where it was a bit rainy, which made it unfortunate as it is mostly an outdoor event.  Despite the rain, however, it was still a good time.  I was able to see some wonderful home decor and furnishings by Pad Hawaii, stop by Kira Hawaii, who makes amazing jewelry, and visited Paiko to see some lovely plants and things of that nature. All in all, I'd say it was a good day to night well spent.  Pictures below depict some of the highlights of my Saturday, feel free to leave me comments on how you spent your weekend, and if you have any questions regarding mine.  All photos (except the first one) were taken by me, other photo taken by Ericka Nicole Bueno.

Mani(c) Monday - September 16, 2013 (Late Post)

Better late than never, right?  Nonetheless, I hope y'all can forgive me for yet another late nail post.  I'm getting the impression that I should just rename it so that I would be able to post it on another day...but that would just prolong my laziness.  Therefore, I will try my very best to get these posts up on time ALL the time (fingers crossed).  But aside from all that mess of excuses, back to the nail post.  Here I am wearing Fly by OPI, a beautiful turquoise teal shade that absolutely exudes the essence of summertime.  I figured since there are a couple of weeks left this summer, I can manage to still incorporate some of the elements of it into my wardrobe before completely immersing myself in the beauty that is fall.  All photos taken by me.  =]

Fly by OPI

3.1 Phillip Lim for Target: My Picks

The 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target collection that is being released tomorrow (September 15, 2013), has to be one of the most anticipated Target designer collaboration collections that I have ever come across.  There has been lots of hype building up to the release date, mostly contributed by the heavy press and media coverage showing glimpses of the pieces that are being released.  I have to say, as a fan of Phillip Lim, this collection is very exciting, and the pieces are definitely ones that are covetable.  Based on my personal aesthetic, there are a lot items I would definitely love to add to my wardrobe, particularly the leather motorcycle jackets, as well as the great assortment of bags and color blocked garments that are part of this collection.  This is a substantially large collection, encompassing over 100 pieces that range from menswear, womenswear, shoes, bags, scarves, and loungewear.  Being that this collection has such diversity, it isn't hard for everyone to find something from it that they like, especially when the price range is from under $20 - $300, with most of the bags falling under $50 price range.  However, I do warn you all that although the bags are amazingly gorgeous, they are very affordable for a reason, and that is the fact that they are made of manmade materials and not leather (I figured I'd mention that before anyone thinks otherwise...I'm a pretty firm believer in "you get what you pay for").  Nonetheless, there are fabulous pieces in this collection, and if real leather is what you are in search for, the leather motorcycle jackets fit the bill on that.  Though they are the most expensive items being released, I find the leather jackets are the best investment worthy items from the entire collection, at around $250 for the women's version, and about $300 for the men's version.  This is definitely a Target collection I will not miss, so you can be assured I will be camping out in the parking lot at the crack of dawn tomorrow morning.  Below, I have compiled images of the pieces I was able to find that I would be interested in picking up from the collection, so you can be sure to see a follow up post sharing the items I actually picked up.  If there were pieces you were interested in getting from this collection, I would love if you shared them with me in the comments, so I can keep an eye out for those in case I haven't given them much thought the first time around.  All photos taken from Refinery 29 (I don't own any of them).  =]

My top picks from the 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target collection.

Bag & shoes from the 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target collection that I would like to get.

Clothes from the 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target collection that I would like to get.

What's In My Bag? (Alexander Wang Rocco)

Happy Sunday y'all.  This was actually meant to be posted yesterday (Saturday), but needless to say I kinda forgot.  However, here it is...a much belated post of what is currently lurking in my Alexander Wang Rocco bag a.k.a. "Zippy," which has been my everyday bag for majority of the past year.  Here I have embedded my pretty long video sharing the contents of my bag, as well as a couple of pictures of the bag itself and the items in my bag all laid out.  I will be doing a post as well as a video completely dedicated to the details, contents, and components of this bag, so be sure to check that out as soon as I get that up for you all (hopefully in the next few days).  I will probably be editing this post in the near future, so I can put numbers on the items from inside my bag, that way they can be identified in case you were wondering what they are and what not.  But for now, you'll just be able to look at them.  All photos and video taken by me.  =]

 Alexander Wang Rocco Mini Duffel Bag in Black Lambskin with Black Nickel Hardware

Contents of my bag (will edit to add more details soon).

Summer Safari

Even though summer is coming to an end, it is always appropriate to dress for warmer weather here in Hawaii.  I really wanted to end off summer sort of transitioning my wardrobe with subtle elements for fall, which is what I aimed to do with this look.  For this outfit, I paired a basic white tank with these fantastic black & white geometric printed shorts that I scored from Old Navy, and just built it up from there.  Even though it was warm outside, the fact that my outfit was layered didn't seem too bothersome, as they were not heavy layers.  Elements that I feel really pulled this look together were my vintage DKNY blazer, the woven fedora I got from Old Navy, and my Alexander Wang Rocco bag.  Fall is surely approaching, and I can't wait to start dressing for that season.  All photos taken by Reisha Sakauye.  =]

Outfit Details: Basic white tank top by American Apparel, vintage black wool blazer by DKNY, black and white tribal printed shorts by Old Navy, woven fedora by Old Navy.  Shoes (not shown): black leather loafers by Calvin Klein.  See other photos for accessory details.

 Silver stainless steel armor ring by L'mond, raw crystal necklace by Mixe Medium, triangle pendant necklace from Forever 21, silver stainless steel mesh band watch by Skagen, Arena Giant leather bracelet in Latte by Balenciaga.

Bag: Rocco mini duffel in black lambskin with black nickel hardware by Alexander Wang, geometric buckle black leather belt by Ralph Lauren Black Label.

Mani(c) Monday - September 2, 2013 (Late Post)

So so so very sorry for yet another late nail post, and for the fact that I haven't been posting anything for over a month it seems.  I have made it a point to be more adamant about posting on a consistent and regular basis, so check out my tentative posting schedule here if you're interested in seeing what I'll be putting out there, or if you have any suggestions regarding my posts.  Aside from all that jabber, back to the polish I'm wearing in this post.  This time, I'm wearing Not Like The Movies by OPI, that came out with the Katy Perry collection a couple years ago.  It is an iridescent polish that reflects purple, green, and a bit gunmetal depending on how the light hits it.  I have absolutely been in love with this polish especially since fall is approaching, and this color is really trending at the moment.  Fall is one of my favorite seasons in terms of wardrobe elements, as well as nail polish shades, so I'll definitely be trying to put up posts related to these things.  All photos taken by me.  =]

Not Like The Movies by OPI

Tentative Posting Schedule

After realizing I had only one measly post up for the month of August, I decided some change was in order, and I better get the ball rolling in consistently posting on this blog.  This being said, I have devised a tentative schedule of posts that would make up the content that I will be putting out both on my blog as well as videos on my YouTube channel.  Said schedule will go as follows:

Sunday - Say Something Sunday: Varied posts relating to any items of interest to me, whether it's a lifestyle post, rants and raves, random vlogging, or just sharing bits of information I find worthwhile. Don't worry, these posts should include pictures, so don't get bored just yet.

Monday - Manic Monday: Weekly nail post of what I'll have on my nails for the coming week.  I have already established this post, but have really been inconsistent in posting regularly.

Tuesday - Nothing unless I decide to put up a fashion or beauty related post.

Wednesday - Outfit Post: Pretty self explanatory…at least I hope so.

Thursday - Nothing unless I decide to put up a fashion or beauty related post.

Friday - Outfit Post: See explanation from Wednesday.  =]

Saturday - New Video on my YouTube channel.  Also, I'm hoping to have some kind of feature post here, where I can showcase people I admire that either share similar interest, or just have something interesting to contribute.  Feel free to message me if you have ideas, recommendations, or suggestions regarding this.

Hope my schedule goes as planned, even though I'm already behind in posting as I intended to.  I would love to get any kind of feedback regarding what I post, just so I have a sense of how you all are receiving things.  Sorry if this was a lot to read, I tried to keep it minimal.

Stylishly Yours,

-Reese  =]