I was staring at my very limited collection of nail polishes (because I’m not at my family home where the major treasury is) the other day and realized I either did something with them or let them congeal into a gooey mess. The reason why I have to stress that the ‘collection’ is limited, if it can even be called one, is because I only have a selection of 2 nude colors, 1 black crackle polish, several similar shades of red and one ugly shimmery brown that I haven’t found a use for. Just in case anyone is going to think I’m a spendthrift for buying something that is ugly and that I possibly might never use, I didn’t. It was a freebie from a hair dye I bought.
So, while I was staring at the vast sea of options I had (yes, that was slight sarcasm at my plight) and tearing my hair out at how to achieve a semblance of Spring-like nails, I had an epiphany. Just because it’s spring doesn’t mean I (or you, for the matter) had to go all sherbet-y and flowers. I decided to use the only shade I had that was closest to Spring, which was a pale pink, and create banded stripes on my nails with crackle polish. The result was a sweet yet slightly edgy look. Extremely easy to co-ordinate with any outfit and also a breeze to interchange the colors I have on to any polishes you prefer. Which I’m betting is a lot more than what I have now.
If you’re thinking of recreating this set of nails, here’s what you need:
Base coat. Top coat. Base color (I’m using OPI’s Bubble Bath NLS86). Crackle Polish (I’m using black but feel free to play around with your colors). Left over sticker paper cut in thin (0.5cm) strips or tape cut in thin (0.5cm) strips or sticky side of Post Its cut in thin (0.5com) strips or french nail guide stickers.
Notes: I used french nail guide stickers as guides for the crackle bands since I don’t use them to draw french nails. If you’re using anything but the Post Its, remove some of the tackiness from your tape by sticking it on the back of your hands first. You don’t want your base color to stick to your guides.
Step One
File, shape and buff your nails. Next, apply your base coat followed by 2 coats of your base color ( OPI’s Bubble Bath NLS86 used here). If you have any quick dry drops, you can use it at this stage. Allow your nails to dry for at least 15-20 minutes.
Step Two
If you used any quick dry drops, wipe it off with a cotton pad. Stick on your guides at approximately 0.5cm intervals. If you are using sticker paper or tape, remember to remove tackiness by sticking them on the back of your hands first.
Step Three
Apply your crackle polish in the un-covered gaps. You can apply the crackle polish on the gap left at the tip at this stage or peel of the guides and apply the crackle polish as a french tip, free hand.
Step Four
After peeling of the guides, you will notice that some of the edges might have come off with the guides so using the edges of your crackle polish brush, touch up on any obvious spots. Don’t worry about getting the lines perfect though, this look isn’t meant to be immaculate. Finish off with a top coat and you’re done! Have fun with this look, until next time,
One thing about being Southeast Asian, is the fascination we have for spicy food. In many western cultures, hearing the term ‘spicy food’ is very different from what we get in Asia. Unless you’re in Southeast Asia, the word spicy is normally associated with seasoned, pungent, aromatic, savory and even tangy dishes. Here, the simple word is hot, and the hotter it is, the better.
Of course, not every one of us can take the heat of chillies and dishes laced with the inconspicuous red fruit but for those who do, Thai food tops most other cuisines. Our favorite haunt in Singapore for authentic tasting Thai food that is not only affordable but incredibly satisfying in terms of ‘heat’, is Nakhon Kitchen. They are already a very popular food joint and what we love is that they’re the sort of place that became renowned almost solely based on word of mouth, or in this case, blogs. There are already plenty of bloggers who have had their say in what they love or hate at Nakhon Kitchen but we thought we wanted to share what our favorite dishes are instead of the usual food/restaurant review.
Pandan Chicken
We love the tender chicken that’s superbly marinated. It’s got an addictive smoky flavor and fats mixed in with the meat that makes it all the more fragrant. Pandan chicken isn’t commonly found in Thailand but most restaurants here serve this dish and it’s something we almost always order. Must try!
Sambal Kangkong
Singapore’s all time favorite vegetable. Silky leaves and crunchy stems combined with any form of chilli makes this green an irresistible complement to fragrant steamed rice. Nakhon Kitchen’s sambal isn’t the usual thick, spicy chilli paste. Their sambal is more ‘watery’ and we like the balance it gives since you taste more of the vegetable. Also, the sambal has a very savory/sweet note. We like!
Tom Yam Prawn (Clear)
It’s hard to find good tom yam soup in Singapore. Many places serve up versions of Thailand’s signature soup but Nakhon Kitchen has it to a tee. The soup is extremely flavorful with just the right touch of sourness and has the perfect blend of spices. Plus, the chilli kick is crazy. At first taste, some might find it too spicy but trust us, it gets very very addictive. Also, they’re pretty generous with their ingredients.
The Star
Obviously, the picture above isn’t taken by us but because we forgot to take this very important picture, we had to Google for the best picture we could find that brings the little dispenser of chilli condiments to justice. The chilli condiments here are so good, we are always tempted to steal the holder. Except if we did, we would have to go back to get refills. That’s too embarrassing of a situation. Each one of the four chilli sauces hold a potent blend of chillies and condiments that gives your already fantastic meal more depth. It’s a pretty strange way of describing simple chilli sauces but that’s how we feel. Each of the different sauces can easily transform your dishes and we like how we can control the spiciness of our dishes.
Thank you Daniel Hung from Memoirs of Food for the picture of the chillies. Honestly, there isn’t any pictures of them that is killer. Probably because no one has discovered their magic or maybe no one appreciates them like we do. Haha. Anyway, if you guys would like a review of Nakhon Kitchen, check out Daniel’s review!
Let me be your wing woman and give you some tips on ways to attract women without looking too desperate as well as how to get her, keep her and leave her wanting more.
BEFORE THAT
Let’s talk about attracting women, the best way to attract women is…
BEING YOURSELF.
I know this may be the most annoying phrase ever but once you tell yourself that, you would be more comfortable and confident to bring out your BETTER SELF in front of the ladies. Bring out the POSITIVE and KNOWLEDGEABLE version of yourself. When you are totally free from self judgement, when you are free of putting pressure on yourself to approach or having an outcome, there’s no pressure on yourself. You are completely free because you’re at your most natural, you are being YOURSELF.
1. APPROACH
One of the biggest mistake I see men making is that they don’t approach! Instead they would mentally reject themselves before giving the woman a chance to possibly reject them.
Wing woman tips for you :
PRACTICE ON APPROACHING PEOPLE YOU’RE NOT ATTRACTED TO. Simply start off by saying ‘Hi’. No cheesy pick up lines, nothing. Just a simple ‘HI’ or ‘HELLO’. Don’t ever force the outcome, your 1st success is simply by approaching.
2. Confidence/Body Language
There are many times when a guy comes up to me and he’s looking at me with his hands and body really off, being awkward and uncomfortable. That’s when I know he’s not being comfortable nor representing his best self.
Wing woman tips on how to CONTROL your body language :
PUT YOUR HANDS IN YOUR POCKET. Stand tall, lower your shoulder so you seem more comfortable, lean back a bit and angle yourself 45 degree towards the person that you are talking to. If you’ve your body straight on, you may come off too aggressive or eager.
3. Rules of Conversation
Here’s one rule that I have, the 30%/70% RULE.
Wing woman tips on conversation rules :
WOMEN SHOULD BE TALKING 70% OF THE TIME. Which means you should be talking 30% of the time. I know tons of guys out there agree with me and believe that you shouldn’t be controlling the conversation and talking ’95% of the time’ BUT you want to get the women to talk as MUCH as possible.
YOUR ROLE :
Is to lead the conversation not dominate.
4. Body Language/Touch
Touch, make sure to incorporate touching her during your interaction with her. If you are having a 2-3 minutes conversation with the woman, I would say to incorporate touch at least once or twice, and no, touching doesn’t mean touching her hair, face or hands.
Wing woman tips on TOUCH :
TOUCH MEANS GENTLY, FOR NO LONGER THAN 2 SECONDS MAX. It would show her that you’re interested. What touches actually says to a woman without screaming out loud that ‘I AM ATTRACTED TO YOU’ is saying ‘I am not talking to you because I want you to be my friend, I am talking to you because I see you potentially as something more.’
5. Engage & Disengage
Another thing you can do is to Engage and Disengage. When talking to a woman, a lot of guys are afraid that if they were to disengage from her, some other guy would scoop in and steal that woman away. Worst, if the woman completely forgets about you and spoil the attraction.
Wing woman tips on making her want more :
DON’T BE AFRAID TO WALK AWAY. In fact, It’s quite the opposite. If you disengage from a conversation with a woman, it would actually make her want you more. The best thing for you to do is engage a woman in a conversation and after 2/3 minutes, find a way to disengage.
Take a breather, relax, leave and get a drink or go to the bathroom. Then come back and engage her again if you WANT to. Because this woman you just met, is not the number ONE priority over the rest of your interactions. The engage and disengage helps you send the ‘I am interested in you/I think you’re cool but I have a life and did have a life before I met you that I am going to get back to and maybe I will see you around some time.’ message to her and that to a women, is extremely SEXY.
Remember,
So, what challenges do you face when approaching women?
I’m not sure if it’s obvious yet but, there are a few things in life I just can’t get over. Things that make my mind reel and that I’m obsessed over. Beauty, accessories, Japan and food, some people live to say…juggle, or sing, or get smashed, but those are the things I live for instead. I’ve been on a Japanese food streak lately so I thought I’d share the top 30 Japanese food I would probably, maybe, quite possibly, die without. I’m not exaggerating, I get doses of the following in regular intervals. I just sounded like a sick animal. Err…yeah. Sometimes I hunt down restaurants, sometimes I cook. I’m going to put up links of where I get what or recipes I use so if you’re anything like me, feel free to give it a try. Warning: This is a v-e-r-y long post.
Number One
明太子 Mentaiko
What it is: Rich, fragrant spicy marinated roe of Pollock.
How to eat it: Topping for steamed rice, filling for onigiri (you can mix it with mayo and cheese too), as a pasta sauce, topped on seafood and grilled or mixed into salads.
Number Two
烏賊飯 Ikameshi
What it is: Tender, slightly sweet, simmered squid stuffed with glutinous rice.
What it is: Ramen served on the side with a rice dipping sauce.
Where to eat: 風雲児 Fuunji in Shinjuku. You have to try their 特製つけ麺 tokusei tsukemen. Go for the regular size (futsu). Adventurers, gluttons and eating competitors, go for the large. Or two. Worth the queue regardless of weather , travel and plane ticket.
Ingredients: Bottled Teriyaki Sauce or 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 1/2 tbsp mirin, juice of half a yuzu. Two slices Mackerel. Oil to cook. Salt to season.
1) Lightly score mackerel at 1.5cm intervals, skin side. 2) Mix ingredients for teriyaki sauce and marinate mackerel slices for about an hour. 3) Heat oil in a pan. I normally use a brush or cloth for this to get a very light coat of oil. Cook both sides for 8 minutes. 4) Add in the teriyaki sauce used in marinating the fish and allow to caramelize. 5) Serve with steamed rice.
Number Eight
納豆 Natto
What it is: traditional Japanese food made from soybeans fermented with Bacillus subtilis. It is popular especially as a breakfast food. (From Wikipedia.)
How to eat it: Topped on rice, with sushi, with soba, with pasta, mixed with leeks and other vegetables or mixed with chicken and stir fried with sesame oil, ginger and garlic.
Number Nine
桜海老 Sakura Ebi
What it is: Very small (maximum 5 cm) crustacean caught in the Suruga Bay of Shizuoka Prefecture. (From Shizuoka Gourmet)
How to eat it: As sushi, topped on rice and steamed, filling for onigiri, mixed into kaki-age or mixed into and topped on rice crackers.
Number Ten
東京ばな奈 Tokyo Banana
What it is: Japanese banana flavored sponge cakes with a velvety banana filling.
Where to buy: Get a friend to buy it for you if they live in or is visiting Japan. Tokyo Banana has a two week expiration date so be wary of online resellers.
Number Eleven
カレー Curry
What it is: Curry derived from the western style. Japanese adopted their version of curry after being introduced by the British Navy’s style of cooking stews mixed with curry powder.
What it is: Japanese version of the hamburger. Similar to Salisbury steak with roots to steak tartar. Appeared in Japan during the Meiji Era (1868-1912).
1) Saute onions to golden brown. 2) Combine minced meat with 1% of salt, quickly mix meat well (with hands). The salt breaks down proteins and helps the meat ‘stick’ together. 3) Moisten breadcrumbs with water squeeze excess liquids out. 4) Knead all ingredients together and season with spices of choice ( Play around with the spices to create your own blend. Nutmeg, pepper are the most common spices used.) 5) Divide mixture into four portions and shape each portion into a patty shape by tossing between hands (this will release air trapped in the patty). Keep the thickness of each patty to 1.5cm – 2cm. 6) *Optional* Coat patties with breadcrumbs, avoid over coating. 7) Create an indentation in the centre of your patties to prevent swelling of the patty while cooking. Cook with medium to medium high heat. Ensure you are using enough oil, oil should reach slightly above the edges of the patties.
Points: Don’t press the meat while cooking, doing so will cause the meat juices to seep out.
P.S I went through hell and back to translate the recipe. Invalid, irrelevant and unnecessary points have been removed. I almost died.
Number Fourteen
お握り Onigiri
What it is: Japanese rice formed into triangular, oval or sometimes creative animal shapes. Usually filled with savory bits of ingredients and wrapped with seaweed.
What it is: Simmered beef with onions served over rice.
Recipe!
The video is super detailed, accurate, well presented and also entertaining on so many levels! Cooking with dog. ROFLMAO. Please, please, please watch the video! Even if you can’t cook to save your life.
Number Sixteen
たこ焼き Takoyaki
What it is: Round dumplings made of batter and filled with octopus, tenkasu (tempura batter bits), pickled ginger and finely sliced green onion. There are variations with other ingredients as fillings.
What it is: Fresh water eels grilled with a soy based sauce.
Where/How to eat: Chako Japanese Restaurant. Not only are the dishes authentic and absolutely delicious, there’s just something about ‘home cooked’ dishes that makes you feel warm and fuzzy.
Number Nineteen
ラーメン Ramen
What it is: Chinese style wheat noodles served in a soup made of meat or fish stock. It is usually seasoned with miso or shoyu (soy sauce) but there are many variations for the soup broth. The dish is can be topped with cha-shu- (Japanese braised pork roll), kamaboko (type of Japanese fishcake), menma (fermented bamboo shoots), ajitama ( marinated half boiled eggs), roasted seaweed, green onions, corn, or bean sprouts.
Where to eat: Santouka’s Tokusen Toroniku Ramen. (I normally choose the spicy miso broth)
Number Twenty
白桃 White Peach
What it is: Japanese peaches are generally larger, softer and more expensive than Western peaches, and their flesh is usually white rather than yellow. Peaches are commonly eaten raw after being peeled. Japanese peaches are in season during the summer. (From here) Japanese white peaches are seasonal so keep a look out for them during Spring/Summer (March to August).
How to eat: Fresh, steeped in flavored syrup, as a topping for pastries, as a filling for jellies, made into sorbet.
Number Twenty
焼き肉 Yakiniku
What it is: Marinated barbequed meat with dipping sauces and side dishes.The dish has roots to the Korean bulgogi and was adapted by Koreans living in Japan to Japanese tastes.
What it is: Skewers of bite sized meat, innards or vegetables with either shio (salt) or tare sauce (mirin, sake, soy sauce and sugar) grilled over charcoal.
What it is: Tarabagani or Red King Crab is caught in Autumn and Winter.
It is the most coveted of the commercially sold king crab species, and is the most expensive per unit weight. It was named after the colour it turns when it is cooked rather than the colour of a living animal, which tends to be more burgundy. (From here)
How to eat: As sushi, raw as sushi, boiled and topped over steamed rice, mixed with vegetables or seafood and topped over steamed rice, in soups, in chawanmushi (Japanese steamed egg custard), grilled, as nabemono (Japanese hot pot).
Number Twenty Four
お茶漬け Ochazuke
What it is: Japanese tea poured over steamed rice with a variety of toppings. Delicious and light meal during hangovers, as a quick snack or when sick.
I love Cooking With Dog!
Number Twenty Five
おでん Oden
What it is: A light winter stew with a variety of ingredients including hard boiled eggs, radish, fried beancurd skin, konnyaku, beef tendons, kelp, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, cabbage rolls, different types of tofu, different types of surimi (Japanese fishcakes),and tsukune (fish or meat balls). It’s a light and gratifying comfort food.
What it is: A type of Japanese hot pot with thinly sliced beef as the key ingredient. There are many types of Japanese hot pots as it is a very popular winter dish. I don’t want to get into too many details about the differences so you can get more information here!
What it is: A cross bred variety of grapes that resulted in one) extremely easy to remove skin, two) incredible sweetness and low acidity and three) giant fruit. Chilean grown Kyoho grapes are in season from February to April or May whereas Californian Kyoho grapes are in season around late July – early August to early September, sometimes late October. Kyoho grapes grown in Japan are in season during late summer to early autumn.
How to eat: Peel off skin and serve chilled. Peeled and de-seeded and layered between parfait layers. As a filling for jellies. As accompaniments to savory dishes. Made into granita. As a sauce to drizzle over desserts.
Number Twenty Eight
心太 Tokoroten
What it is: Firm, noodle like jelly dessert made from agar.
What it is: Traditional Japanese confectioneries that are normally served with tea. They’re normally made with natural ingredients. There are more than twenty types of wagashi (each with different variations of designs and/or flavors) that are made with different ingredients. They are grouped into 3 different categories based on the degree moisture they contain. Wagashi isn’t only pretty to look at, their names are beautiful too. Their names usually consists of one word from natural beauty and another from ancient literature.
Where to eat: Unfortunately, Singapore doesn’t have much options for Wagashi and the only one I know of is Minamoto Kitchoan. The confectioneries can’t be compared in any way to those found in Japan but if you’re curious, this is a decent way to start.
For the chefs, patissiers or adventurer, here are some simple wagashi you can make (or attempt to make) at home. These are simpler recipes and shapes. If you can’t find some ingredients locally, you can probably find them online. Good luck!
P.S If you decide you’re into the art of wagashi making, there are loads of books online as well as ready made molds if you aren’t good with your fingers.
Number Thirty
シュークリーム (Shu Kurimu) Japanese Cream Puff
What it is: Japanese cream puffs that have a crisp, fluffy exterior that is filled with rich custard cream and dusted with icing sugar.
Where to eat: Singaporeans will likely know or have tried Beard Papa.
I’ve always had the most obscenely feminine and romantic imagery of Spring. Baby animals being born, flowers exploding into bloom just as fast as they fade, crystal clear blue skies, beautiful lilac hanging wisteria and an explosion of pastel hues.
For the sake of aww-factor, here’s a eenie weenie baby swan! Yeah fine, it’s a cygnet.
I have officially failed in keeping my hair long. Got a hair cut while I was in Kuala Lumpur last week and guess how much was it. 30 Ringgit! And It was under ‘professional cut’
I think I might wanna consider in moving there!
But now,
I miss my long wavy hair.
So, what do you think about the new hair?
P.S I apologize for the bad quality of the pictures! I am using my Mac web cam, too lazy to charge my camera.
Anyway
Have a fantastic weekend ahead y’all! Remember, the Uni-verse loves you so be good!
I feel like it’s been quite awhile since I’ve talked about things that I’ve been doing or that I’m loving at the moment. In that spirit, and also because of restlessness, I’ve decided to share some new animes that I’m in love with…that I finally caught up to. For those who think the concept of watching, enjoying or understanding anime is profoundly weird and should only be kept to the weird, I shall declare that I am indeed described as weird. However, there is much to be said for people who have that train of shallow mindset simply because you are only proving yourself to be either a) lacking imagination, b) a prude or c) incapable of relating to anything else but what is within your own minute snow globe of existence. Sorry for the random rant, but I’ve been on a streak. I also felt like that needed getting off my chest. I hope fellow anime fans feel like something has been said for them and that maybe you can come out of hiding? Jokes.
Girls who secretly like having an attractive butler who has supernatural powers that would give his life to protect you and save you from all evil (and that you can also have a crush on).
Feel so fat these few days. Just bought subway for dinner tonight to make myself feel *not so guilty* ( -__-) 51 minutes ago
Whenever I delete an App on my iPhone, The shaking icons make me feel like they're all panicked over who's getting deleted. Haha :D 5 hours ago
Lunch with @kelllytannng . Why would I even suggest lunch at Tampines Mall. ( -__-) hard to find good food here. 5 hours ago
Purrrfect! RT @WomensHumor: #ListofTurnOns eyes of Ryan Reynolds,dimples of Joseph Gordon-Levitt,ass of Ryan Gosling & humor of Jason Segel 7 hours ago
HOLY SHIT. RT @tengkuadil Noel Gallagher joins Singapore entertainment line-uphttp://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/5/13409.html 21 hours ago
File, shape and buff your nails. Next, apply your base coat followed by 2 coats of your base color ( OPI’s Bubble Bath NLS86 used here). If you have any quick dry drops, you can use it at this stage. Allow your nails to dry for at least 15-20 minutes.
If you used any quick dry drops, wipe it off with a cotton pad. Stick on your guides at approximately 0.5cm intervals. If you are using sticker paper or tape, remember to remove tackiness by sticking them on the back of your hands first.
Apply your crackle polish in the un-covered gaps. You can apply the crackle polish on the gap left at the tip at this stage or peel of the guides and apply the crackle polish as a french tip, free hand.
After peeling of the guides, you will notice that some of the edges might have come off with the guides so using the edges of your crackle polish brush, touch up on any obvious spots. Don’t worry about getting the lines perfect though, this look isn’t meant to be immaculate. Finish off with a top coat and you’re done! Have fun with this look, until next time,
