Fashion Friday: No to that Dress

Posted on April 29, 2011 // 1 Comment

In-between sips of wine overlooking the Tuscan hillside, I have to weigh in on that royal wedding dress. I’ve read that it’s been viewed very favorably by most fashionistas which makes me wonder…why?!

If your wedding dress made in the year 2011 is almost an exact replica of a Grace Kelly dress from more than half a century ago, then you shoulda just got the damn thing from a high-end vintage store versus spending hundreds of thousands of dollars and months of labor on one of the most important wedding dresses of all time.

And also, why in the hell would you choose the fashion house of Alexander McQueen who is known for being edgy, over-the-top and extremely contemporary to make your dress that could’ve been made by showing a bunch of Filipino seamstresses Grace Kelly’s dress?

Gag! I was so disappointed. For one, Kate chose to be so classic that she copied a previous style. Two, that she misaligned the style she wanted with the designer she eventually picked. Three, the dress made her look like she was 39 years old and not 29 years old. Anyone with me on that?

All in all, she looked fine, but I think she could have looked so much better and dressed it up with a modern style. Here’s a sketch I found from a website that gave some potential royal dress options. How gorgeous would this have been–the dress on the right. Still covered up but sexy, with a long train, and rosettes and lace that actually show! Everyone was talking about all that lace on the bottom half of her dress and I couldn’t see that intricacy! What a waste!

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Florence: Where Everyone Recommends, but I Do Not

Posted on April 27, 2011 // Leave a Comment

If I had to plan another trip to Italy or if I had to do it all over again, I would have skipped Florence. How many of you completely disagree with me? I know, I am completely going against the norm, but I like Venice more than I like Florence. Here’s why. Venice is cute and different. Florence….oh my God, I felt like I was back in college hanging out between classes at Cafe Strada. Florence is over-run with tourists and students studying abroad. Every other person on the street spoke English. American English as in they just got off their flights and headed straight to the Florence museums. I read a statistic in my book that there are 7 tourists for every 1 Florentine and that does not count the tourists who only come for the day! For me, it simply wasn’t authentic Italy.

I did not realize that it’s also mosquito season. On our first night, I got a bite on my knuckle that swelled up so badly that I got an allergic reaction with a rash that spread down past my elbow. Right now, I’m suffering from two twin mosquito bites on each thigh. They have not gone away. My knees feel like they’re running fevers. That’s how allergic I am to those damn suckers!

But our best meal thus far was at Acqua Al Due in Florence so I shouldn’t complain too much. That is the only restaurant out of all the meals we’ve had that offered a salad. Hallelujah for something other than pasta!

While the food isn’t my favorite, the desserts are to die for! Gelato every night! And check out the dessert sampler from Acqua Al Due.

Pics from Florence.

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2 Californians in Venice for 2 Days over Easter

Posted on April 26, 2011 // Leave a Comment

Greetings from our honeymoon in Italy! We have been busy walking all over Venice and Florence, eating lots of pasta, and drinking so much Chianti. It’s been a very active four days. So much so that we are in heaven now doing nothing in the small town of Greve in Chianti. We are in a remote villa high in the hills overlooking wine country. Love the Villa Bordoni for upgrading us. This place is gorgeous, but more on that later.

The highlight of Venice was our gondola ride along the Grand Canal. The city was overwhelmed with people for the Easter holiday so it was nice to escape the crowds with our own gondola. We celebrated Easter in St. Mark’s Basilica. Had no idea it was a latin mass. As you can imagine, we understood nothing. The funniest thing was the people next to us asking to point out where we were in the hymn book and we shrugged and laughed. We had no idea! They also did not serve communion which was really weird. I have never gone to mass and not received the body of Christ. Ummm, isn’t that the most important part of the mass? Not sure if it was because there were so many people.

I had a feeling prior to the trip that I’d be disappointed with the food and wine. I am that girl who pumps pepper and spice into everything I eat. Sadly those fears have played out. Nothing has been tasty enough here. And the wine…I would bet on bottles of Alameda Rosenblum wine over Italian wine any day. Any day! The wines here suck. They’re bitter, inconsistent, and every glass has quite a bit of residue filtering to the bottom.

Here are pictures from Venice.

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Money Monday: Get Rich Quick Scheme

Posted on April 25, 2011 // Leave a Comment

I’m giving all y’all an opportunity to cash in on my business idea. I’m not creative enough to make the product so I cannot execute. However, this is something I want which means there is a market out there! It just needs a creative hand.

Here’s the background. You know there’s this trend of British stuff. Pillows and posters etched with ‘Keep Calm and Carry On.’ Blankets and rugs with the British flag. It’s all UK, every day. It’s maddening. Dean’s British so you’ll see some of these items in our house.

What’s missing? Filipino flair. I’d like to have a cute pillow with the flag of the Philippines displayed on our couch. I’d like a mug that has a Filipino catch phrase like ‘Got Rice’ or ‘The Blacks of Asia.’ I don’t know. Something, anything. What’s great about this concept is that it can apply to all the countries in the world. Wouldn’t it be cool to go to an Etsy store, select a country like Eritrea or Peru, and purchase household items showing some allegiance to your heritage?

Can someone get on this stat, then let me know when I can buy some Filipino decor. Not a picture of the Last Supper or the big matching wooden spoon and fork, but design-worthy Filipino flair.

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Leggo My Eggo

Posted on April 23, 2011 // Leave a Comment

I am queuing up a few posts before our vacation. I don’t think our first two hotels have wireless, but our third hotel in Tuscany definitely does. I will be blogging from the pool in Greve in Chianti.

Remember that Eggo’s commercial with the catch phrase “Leggo my Eggo.” Eggos were a big treat for me as a kid. I have rediscovered them and if we don’t go out for brunch on the weekends, I am digging into blueberry waffles. The more butter the better. Butter makes it better!

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Fashion Friday: Animal Print

Posted on April 22, 2011 // Leave a Comment

Martin Schoeller for Time

Did you see that Amy Chua made it into Time’s 2011 list of 100 most influential people? I think she looks fab in this picture. Smart, disciplined, and fashionable. What’s not to like?

Also, her write-up was done by Sheryl Sandberg, the always put-together COO of Facebook who is the yin to Mark Zuckerberg’s yang.

It’s a well-deserved accolade for Chua. As Sandberg says, “Few have the guts to parent in public. Amy’s memoir is brutally honest, and her willingness to share her struggles is a gift. Whether or not you agree with her priorities and approach, she should be applauded for raising these issues with a thoughtful, humorous and authentic voice.”

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What’s Become of Them?

Posted on April 21, 2011 // Leave a Comment

I’ve been having a lot of vivid flashbacks lately. I remember walking from school to Dr. Parker’s orthodontist office and having my braces tightened. I remember opening and closing my locker as a freshman. I remember babysitting kids who weren’t too much younger than me, now that I think about it. I wasn’t even an adult, only a teenager. Yet I fed these kids cereal, kissed away their booboos, read them their favorite books, and rocked them to sleep. All for $5 an hour.

I babysat and tutored almost ten children during my teens. When I’m on Facebook connecting with people from my past, I wonder what those kids are up to. Did they become what I thought they would become? Some dumb, yet born into money. Others bratty and spoiled, yet smart and coherent even at a young age. Their names are too common for me to pick them out. Susan Cortez. Try to find the one Susan Cortez with blonde hair and hazel eyes, who lived in Alameda from approximately 1990-1994, went to St. Joseph’s Elementary, and loved peanut butter. If you were her, would you ever wonder what happened to that Asian girl who used to come over and babysit? Would you even remember my name?

I really did care about those kids. It was my job to make sure they were safe while their parents were elsewhere. Susan would ball herself into my lap and hug me tight. She was practically as big as I was, but I realized that she needed me. Which is why I wonder. Did they get everything they needed? Are they ok now? What’s become of them?

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Fastie vs Foodie

Posted on April 20, 2011 // Leave a Comment

I follow this blog This is Indexed because I like how it’s so different and unique. I love that some other part of my brain (don’t ask me which part) is getting worked because I’m processing something besides words and pictures. After a while, reading blogs can get so taxing. Reading graphs, what a concept. Love, love, love!

Every post is good, but every so often there’s a true gem like this one.

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Book Review: When You Reach Me

Posted on April 19, 2011 // Leave a Comment

I read this book When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead in two nights which isn’t at all impressive because it’s young adult fiction. The only reason I read it is because it came highly recommended by adults and it won the Newbery Medal. Yeah, I’m a sucker for award-winning literature. Helps me when it comes to making decisions with the vast quantity of good books out there.

I hated it.

This plays to my theory that there is something for everyone and writers should not get discouraged. Someone out there is really going to relate to you and love what you write. For me, the prose flowed fine, but I couldn’t relate to any of the characters, and the plot was confusing. If I were a kid, I’d promptly bring the book back to the library in exchange for Anne of Green Gables, Little House on the Prairie, or even Sweet Valley High.

I’m curious as to how children’s literature has evolved through the years. If this is it, then I’m glad I’m an adult.

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Money Monday: Sell Stuff

Posted on April 18, 2011 // Leave a Comment

I discovered the best places to sell your clothes and books.

Until recently, I had been selling my clothes at Crossroads Trading Co. on Fillmore. They always take a few items and I feel they pay more than the high-end consignment boutiques like Cris on Polk. She is a rip-off. When you hand over your clothes for consignment, you agree that if your clothes don’t sell by a certain date, they will be continuously discounted until they do sell. Your clothes could very well be selling at top dollar, yet the boutique could be scrimping on what they fork over to you. You have no way of knowing.

Crossroads will pick through your clothes and quote you a total price. But I’ve now discovered Buffalo Exchange. I went to the location on Haight and they took a bag full of my clothes. What’s even better, they talk you through their process. They say why they’re passing on certain items (outdated style, looks too worn) and how much they’re pricing for each one.

I’ve never sold my books before (except back in college), so I went to the trusty Yelp reviews, and decided on Green Apple which happens to be my favorite book store. I had two stacks of books and they bought a stack full.

Go and make some extra cash this weekend or after work. Both Buffalo Exchange and Green Apple are open fairly late on week nights.

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