WEEKEND: OLVERA STREET

Weekend travels.   A couple weeks ago, I really wanted to go visit Union Station and so Ryan and I decided to walk around downtown.  We finally stopped by Olvera Street and I completely fell in love with all the vibrant colors and decorative figurines (I especially fell in love with all the ornamented skulls).

Olvera Street is quite a small street with a lot of liveliness: you have mariachi men serenading customers in the restaurants, people sitting around and eating all types of Mexican food ie.churros and tacos, and then there's street tourists like myself rustling through crowds trying to take pictures of everything they see.  

Olvera Street is a great place to visit if you are in Downtown.  You can chomp on some churros, walk across the street to Union Station and if you get hungry, you can walk a little bit further and go to Philippe's the Original to try their french dip sandwiches.  Philippe's should definitely be on your "to go" list because as Ryan says, they have the best french dip sandwiches ever!

I hope everyone has a wonderful week as we come to an end of September.  
xoxo.

for more info:
Olvera Street: http://www.olvera-street.com/
Philippe's the Original: http://www.philippes.com/breakfast/

INSPIRE

I always get amazed how time passes by so quickly, I mean looking at my blog my last post was dated May, and it's strange how I continuously come back and promise my blog that I will be consistent... yet here I am again a couple months later....My thoughts at the moment are a little bit jumbled, but one thing I've meditated on and finally realized is that I have to stop thinking and just start doing... START NOW, NOT TOMORROW.

It might be fear, a fear of failure, a fear of not being ready, or a fear of "its not the time, just wait until its perfect..." type of internal mind-set, but I've come to the conclusion that with this fear I become dormant, lifeless and less inspired to become the person I truly need to be.  My truth becomes tainted and lost as I begin to loose faith in my own dreams.  Time, years, and dreams pass by and my tomorrow never seems to come.

With that being said, don't wait.  START NOW, NOT TOMORROW.  Push fear aside and just do it. What you do today, will matter tomorrow.   What you do today, will change tomorrow.  What you do today, will make you into that better person tomorrow.

So be strong, steadfast, fearless, and conquer your today.

I hope my internal thoughts can inspire you to do at least one thing off your list today.

xoxo.  

BREWERY ART WALK, DTLA

Brewery Art Walk.  Finally off my check list.

Ryan and I visited the Brewery with my sister and her boyfriend here a couple of weeks ago as we were both (the sister and I) going through phases of "desperately needing to find inspiration."

After visiting here, I fully realized what I was finally supposed to do with my life: I was made to create art and be around artists whom have like-minded ideas of wanting to create beautiful things and share them with the entire world.

The greatest thing about my life's journey is that Ryan has also engulfed in pursuing art.  His art is very simple and geometric; its pretty awesome, and its such an amazing feeling of sharing your passion with the person you love.  One day both of us will be show casing our art together.  Wish us luck!

If you ever need inspiration, travel.  It doesn't have to be far, just get away, for a short while, maybe to another city, up the street, or even an outdoor adventure.  I really forget sometimes how unique and fulfilling it is to see new things or better yet find new things in old places.

I'm excited to say that I will definitely come back to the Brewery during the fall season to look at all the artists spaces that I couldn't see.

For more information on the Brewery and when you can visit:
http://breweryartwalk.com/

WEEKEND WARRIOR: LACMA

 
While Ryan was off working, I spent a weekend with the brother, roaming around LA and doing what we do best: visiting museums.  LA is so full of art, sometimes I wonder if I'll ever visit each and every museum!  Honestly, there has to be hundreds of museums/galleries to go to, and just think right when you thought you saw everything, the exhibitions change!!

One thing I did get off my "to do list" was to go see Levitated Mass. I've been tracking this big hunk of rock ever since it made its way to LA last year, but evidently with life taking its toll, I couldn't find the right time to visit.  I do have to say I felt very small close to it, the rock itself was breathtaking and the mass of it humbled me because I was afraid that gravity will take control of the rock.

It was a wonderful weekend full of catching up and getting inspired... I do hope that everyone has a wonderful week ahead of them.. I can't believe its really the middle of May?!!

What has inspired you this weekend and what art shows have you seen lately?  Any great ones I just HAVE TO SEE?
until next time, xoxo.

Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time -Thomas Merton

PACIFIC PARK, SANTA MONICA

   
There's something about California that you just can't get enough of, it might be the weather, the people, the food and/or the outdoor venues...I'm not quite sure yet especially when we are paying so much more to be here, but one thing I do know is that we have beautiful beaches.

Since it's been getting a lot hotter recently, Ryan and I took a trip to our old neighborhood,Santa Monica.  We visited the pier to people watch, play some games (as you can see Ryan was in total focus mode: he won me TWO dolls, awesome!!) and we enjoyed eating churros.  The best part about this weekend was riding the big dragon, which reminded me a lot of the ride at Knott's Berry Farm and Korea.

If you're ever in the area, check out Pacific Park, its a great place to eat, visit, play and to shop (3rd St. Promenade is right around the corner).

Until my next post, xoxo.

Eat Well, Travel Often.
 

JUST FINISHED

I'm really enjoying my just finished products posts because it feels so good using up every bit of a product that I purchase. I've been trying to focus on "good skin care" so I've been purchasing products with mostly organic, natural, paraben-free, and sulfate free ingredients.

Recently my esthetician introduced me to Epicuren and so far it's been doing wonders for my skin.  I just finished up Epicuren's Acidophilus Probiotic Facial Cream and it really helped control my acne breakouts.  For those of you who want to try this product, it is a little bit drying so I would definitely suggest adding another moisturizer on top of it.  I've also used up my Ole Henriksen's Pick Me Up face mist which I used as a toner every Am and PM.  I do have to say that I liked this product but it wasn't quite my favorite because the finish was a little bit sticky.  Last but not least, I finished Vivant Skincare's Spin Trap which was an excellent vitamin-C serum.

If you have any other suggestions, please let me know.  If you're trying to use "good, natural" products for your skin, I highly recommend you start by looking over all the ingredients before purchasing any products.  Make sure it doesn't have too many chemicals you cannot pronounce and make sure they are paraben-free.

Until my next post, have a wonderful weekend.
xoxo.

A women's greatest asset is her beauty - Alex Comfort 

GIANT ROBOT BIENNALE 3

   
I can't believe we are already in April!! I think my last post was back in February...how time flies right??

I was going through my camera and I thought I'd start from the beginning and share some of this year's earlier moments with you.  As always, Ryan and I love going around Downtown LA to sight see, especially trying out new restaurants and also checking up on the new and upcoming art scenes.  I think these were taken at the end of January when we headed out to Little Tokyo to check out Giant Robot's exhibition before it ended at MOCA.  

The exhibition itself was fairly small, however the Giant Robot miniature figurines were absolutely amazing to see.  With its hypnotic colors and intricate designs, the figurines themselves had their own unique personalities.  It was an exciting moment to see and experience the growth of how Asian American art grew into such a hip sub culture in Downtown Los Angeles.

In addition to enjoying this art exhibition, I recently discovered Giant Robot's pod casts and I immediately fell in love with their interviews.  I especially enjoyed the interview with Lisa Ling and how she talks about finding her identity and owning to it as an Asian American.

If you're ever in Downtown LA, I highly recommend checking out upcoming art shows. It's an intoxicating cultural experience, especially since we live in such a cultural hub full of different types of people with so many mixed backgrounds.  By seeing and feeling various art forms, I do believe you can understand the worldliness of other cultures and really experience how history has evolved over time.

I do have a lot more pictures I want to share, slowly but surely I'll put them out there.  I hope everyone enjoys their week.  Happy Monday!

xoxo.

NAIL POLISH FAVS

(left to right: Milani Jewel FX, Maybelline 200 Pink Shock, Revlon 925 Gold Coin) 

Finally a new blog post right?! What a great way to start a new blog post by sharing beautiful colors.  Loving pink and gold right now, maybe because I can feel spring coming...

Here in CA its still breezy, and at night it seems as though winter is still crawling amongst us.  In light of it already hitting March, I hope everyone enjoyed their January, February and Valentine's Day.  I can't believe its already the end of Feb!  

If you have any favorite nail polish recommendations that I have to die over, please share them!  Until then, be brave, be humble, and push hard towards your goals :) 

  

TO A NEW YEAR... 2013 STYLE

I seriously can't believe its already the end of January! Wasn't New Years just yesterday?  As the days pass by and yearly resolutions fade away, we come into the midst of embracing a new year and creating new goals.  I never believed in New Years "resolutions" but I do believe in creating new goals for a new year.

For 2013 I wish to do many things, find the better me, create a lot of art, do adventurous things and most of all, inspire many people.  In light of fashion, I really want to embrace my personal style and discover what really works with my body.  I also want to finally figure out what my real style is.  Here are some of my style goals for 2013:

1. Quality v. Quantity.  I'm a sucker for "cheap, cheap, cheap" things so usually I buy a lot of pieces that aren't the best quality.  Now, I think I'm getting a deal when I purchase cheap, (I mean I'll buy 4 shirts for  $50.00!)  What I don't realize is that when I buy cheap, I'm actually wasting my money because the pieces I buy tend to only last a couple wears.  So, I promised myself I'll only invest in pieces that scream 'OMG' I have to buy it and I'll also invest in statement pieces that will stay in my closet for years to come.

2. Embrace prints/patterns. 2012 introduced me to colored pants.  Name a color and I swear I already have it.  From bold reds, royals blues, yellows, pinks, turquoise, green and coral, I 've already tried them and worn them.  For 2013 I really want to wear more prints/patterns!  I want to get out of my comfort zone and dive into snake print, python print, dalmatian print, even floral print to add extra character into my wardrobe.  

3. Be BOLD.  I tend to gravitate towards button downs and plain skinny bottoms, and my everyday staple pants are black pants.  For 2013 I really want to wear pieces I've never tried before.  Pieces such as short shorts, boyfriend jeans, pie hats, destroyed jeans, silk bottoms, leather skirts....

4. Stay away from "fast fashion."  Since I live on a tight budget I can't afford to buy things that fade quickly throughout the seasons.  I have definitely fallen into my fast fashion days from buy ballerina skirts, creepers, to purchasing too many faux furs, etc... But as I get older, I really want to create a wardrobe I can keep  forever. It's all about keep those basics in tact and implementing vintage items to keep your wardrobe stylish and chic.

I hope this inspires all of you to jump out of your comfort zone and put together pieces that really describe who you are.  Your style never fades, it determines who you are, what you represent and how you want to show people what you are capable of.  

Style is a way to say who you are without having to speak.