Category Archives: World In My Eyes

"Beautiful Lashes are a Blink Away" at Blink Lash Boutique

Last Saturday, I had my first ever experience at receiving eyelash extensions at Blink Lash Boutique. I recall reading about wonderful experiences of eyelash extensions at Blink Lash Boutique by Laura of Laura Neuzeth (here) and Paulina of Lil Bits of Chic (here), but never braved trying it out for myself. After meeting Carly of Blink Lash at a local networking event, I decided to try out the service for myself. I made my early morning appointment close to home, which was at the Little Italy location on Kettner Boulevard. After signing some important paperwork regarding allergies and previous experience with this type of procedure, I was ready to get started! I have to mention that I absolutely adore my husband and son for being so patient while they waited for me (the pictures of the process were taken by my husband). I want to thank Carly for this wonderful opportunity, and Jenavie for being so patient and kind through my first experience with this process, answering my many questions and lasting through the photo taking. If you would like to experience this process for yourself, check out their full menu of services here, and please follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Doesn’t Dominic look so excited? My awesome little boy is the most patient 5-year-old ever!

The process was actually quite relaxing. I was impressed with the how meticulous and patient my Lash Stylist was. She talked me through the process, explaining the condition of my lashes and how many she was applying and why. I chose to do the Blush set, which is about 60 lashes per eye (but I may have had slightly more due to the fact my lashes were very fine).

Check out the results! I can’t believe how pretty and natural my lashes look.

With my Lash Stylist, Jenavie. She was incredibly sweet and made this experience so wonderful!

FYI: The Blink Lash Boutique is located in a historical landmark. I love knowing this type of information because it’s always fascinating what the structure was prior to it’s current use.

(FTC Disclosure: I received a service free of charge, and was asked to review the service in return. Although I did receive a service free of charge, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.)

San Diego Style Bloggers Meet Up at C Wonder

Two Saturdays ago, I took Dominic with me to a San Diego Style Bloggers meet up at C Wonder in Fashion Valley. I had been to C Wonder before, but never all the way in the store, which was quite deep. It’s bright, clean and bursting with fantastic ideas for gifts, from clothing to accessories to home goods at amazing prices. I love all of the possibilities for personalization, down to actual monograming! It was an early morning meet up, right when the mall opened at 10:00 am. We were treated to croissants, fresh fruit and sparkling drinks to help make for a very lively event. As usual, I loved meeting up with my favorite San Diego Style Bloggers, and also meeting new and upcoming bloggers. Plus, I had a mini-haul because of the awesome sale they had going on that day. If you’re a current blogger or just thinking about blogging, be sure to join the San Diego Style Bloggers for networking, making friends and meeting up at awesome events like this. Hope you had a great weekend!

Beautiful and bright, a perfect place for SD Style Bloggers to meet up!

Yummy food and drinks. Tanya of La Bella Tanchi caught my attempt at a candid!

Paulina of Lil Bits of Chic (and one of the founders of San Diego Style Bloggers) listening intently to the story of C Wonder. C Wonder was started by J. Christopher Burch, ex-husband to Tory Burch and aims to be a one stop shop for everything a woman needs for herself, her home, and gifting. It has been hailed by The New Yorker as “the World’s Fair of retail” and by Architectural Digest as “the next generation of shopping”.

Tuyaymya of White Tee Black Dress, Karla of Karla Vargas, and Eva of The Fashion Fairytale, all listening to C Wonder story.

With upcoming blogger, Joann (sorry if I spelled your name wrong!). She wanted to check out the event and find out how to get started with a blog. We all pretty much said, “Just do it!” I know, how very Nike of us!

Bloggers all posing pretty. I think Bianca of The In Between Girls is in all of these shots, intentional or not! She cracks me up!

Photo 1 – This is going to become some kind of photo tradition with Laura of Laura Neuzeth and Bianca (courtesy of Bianca). Our first one was at my little Madewell event (picture seen here). Photo 2 – Adrienne of Pretty Chouette, Bianca of Just Ask B, Paulina and Sara of Sara’s Sweet Style.

A bevy of iPhone pictures! Clockwise from top left to right: Photo 1 – The BEST selfie ever, courtesy of Bianca; Photo 2 – With Jennifer of Malcriada, my favorite rocker-chick-blogger (we have the same musical taste); Photo 3 – The whole group of us, courtesy of Sadai of Sadai Ayala; and with Laura, another stylish blogger with great taste in music.

Dominic was such my little trooper! He did so well while mama was meeting and greeting with fellow bloggers!

Uh-oh…my mini-haul! Naughty me bought some things before Easter. The items: Portable Printed Speaker; Hashtag earrings; Printed Cork Zip Top Pouch; Mini Nylon Easy Tote in Navy

(Black) Friday, I’m in Love

I have been waiting to wear this lovely sweater coat I purchased on Etsy earlier this year, and Black Friday was the perfect day to wear it since the weather was sunny but very brisk. These pictures were taken right after our excursion, and my sole acquisition of the day was that beautiful leather and suede purse from Topshop. Being married to someone born and raised in Las Vegas allows me to see so many things outside of The Strip. This is Charlie Frias Park (located on Tropicana Avenue and Decatur Boulevard), which is en route to The Strip, as is seen in the background of the pictures below. Although we did visit The Strip to go Black Friday shopping at Fashion Show Mall, and to visit my cousin for her husband’s birthday, we primarily stay away from The Strip. Las Vegas is quite lovely as a city, and I want my pictures on our frequent trips there to showcase what else Sin City has to offer. My next outfit post and photos of Las Vegas will feature places even my husband never experienced, and it was fun for the entire family!

Outfit: Sparrow sweater coat (purchased on Etsy from Fuzzybellas as “vintage from the 80’s”); Red Engine jeans; Lucky Brand shirt; unknown brand ring from Nordstrom; Suki Bijoux necklace; Michael Antonio “Adan” wedges (full shoe seen here); Topshop leather and suede plated tote (was £85/$140, but I paid only $56 on Black Friday!); Eva glasses in Sepia Kiss c/o BonLook

Vegas Vittles: Monta & English’s

My last post about my recent Las Vegas trip will be about the two new places we ventured for noshing: Monta Japanese Noodle House and English’s Gastro Pub. Deon’s Uncle Junior has been talking about Monta Ramen for a while, and since every restaurant has air conditioning, having hot soup actually sounded appetizing, despite the heat. The restaurant is pretty close to the strip but very small, which caused a line to build quickly after we were seated. We started off fried rice and gyoza, our favorites. Apparently the gyoza is placed in a press that fries it on each side. It’s also made fresh to order, and I can definitely say it’s the best gyoza I’ve ever had. Finally, we had the ramen, which was again, the best I’ve had. If you’re willing to venture away from The Strip, this place is definitely worth it.

Fried Rice

The. Best. Gyoza. EVER.

From the Monta Noodle House menu: “Tonkotsu-Shoyu Ramen (pork bone and special shoyu base) has a cloudy white colored broth. The broth is like a mix of the Tokyo and Kyushu style blend. This style is the newer trend in Japan. Basic toppings are green onions, two slices of chashu, bamboo shoots and kikurage.”

On the Saturday before we left Vegas, Deon’s mom suggested we try English’s Gastro Pub at the Town Square Mall, also off The Strip. Being the Anglophile that I am, I jumped at the chance to bring a touch of England back into my life. My mother-in-law actually suggested we do Afternoon Tea, but since all of us were eating there for an early dinner, we decided to have actual meals this time round. My husband and father-in-law kept it simple with burgers and chips (my hubby added the house salad below). Not pictured is the child’s version of the burger meal, which was with a slider and chips, and included a drink for only $5. My mother-in-law had the cod and chips with crushed peas (aka mushy peas). I decided to go all the way English and had the Toad in the Hole. All of the food was good and fresh, and I loved the gravy of my Toad in the Hole. The last time I had tea was in London last year at Harrods (post here), and I think I’m due for another go. This visit to English’s just made me feel all nostalgic, and after seeing a few people who had the tea service, and I vowed that the next time we would be in town, my mother-in-law and I would venture on our own for Afternoon Tea.

Photo 1: House salad (leaf salad, tomatoes, cucumber, green onions, croutons); Photo 2: Burgers & Chips.

Photo 2: Cod & Chips with crushed peas.

Toad in The Hole: Mini Yorkshire pudding wrapped bangers, onion gravy, mash.

Electric Lemonade: Hot Place, Cool Vintage

As part of our Las Vegas adventures last weekend, I decided to seek out vintage stores in and around town. I convinced my husband to take me to a store I discovered called Electric Lemonade, which led to the discovery of the Las Vegas Arts District (aka 18b). When I think of Vegas, I definitely think of the nightlife and shows as it relates to what’s available on The Strip. Since I’ve been married to a Las Vegas native for the last 6 years, I’ve definitely come to know Vegas as an actual town with schools and family life. Now that I’ve stumbled upon 18b, I feel I’ve discovered a cool little secret that not many people know about. More about 18b in a later post, I promise!

Although, I have to admit it was quite hot inside because their air conditioning broke, Electric Lemonade is a cool spot for vintage (I love the marshmallow/pill couch). When it’s a bit cooler, I’ll go back because while I love to try things on, it was just too hot to try everything I would have liked to. However, my husband did find a couple of cool things. Dig if you will the awesome pattern of that floral shirt. He said that he wants to wear it with my linen fedora and shorts, for a truly tropical vintage vacay look. The best story is behind that Buddy Holly shirt. Deon found it when I was trying on clothing. I heard him telling the two people working in the store about how he saw the show in London when he was in high school. He showed me the shirt, and of course I had to add it to my vintage t-shirt collection.

Below are some pictures we took while walking towards an event called “First Friday“, which looks to be like a street fair. Although we wanted to and we did try, we didn’t stay out too long because it was just way too hot. But I’ll be sure to do another blog post about the Arts District and First Friday…when it’s cooler!

A flier showing stores in a section of 18b called “Antique Alley”.

Two more very cute vintage stores: The Gypsy Den and Glam Factory Vintage.

Art is everywhere!

LV Arts District Collage 2

Love this adorable storage unit. So happy!

The 2013 San Diego County Fair, Part 2: Fun With Food

Happy Fourth of July everyone! Right now, I’m Las Vegas visiting our in-laws, but this is part two of our visit to the 2013 San Diego County Fair, which is all about the food. But I must make special mention of the photo above of Dominic in all of his green glory. He picked his outfit that day, and what you can’t see are his sandals, which also have a touch of neon green (yes, green is his favorite color).

On our first visit, we made a stop at one of our favorite spots, Chicken Charlie’s. They always have some kind of wonderful and interesting deep-fried fare, and this year was no exception. Despite the mixed reviews of the Krispy Kreme Sloppy Joe, I actually liked it. I’m a sucker for savory and sweet, and it delivered. The deep-fried cookie dough was ooey-gooey good, but I could only eat one. I took notes from my sister and her friends, and brought Zip-Lock baggies to take home what we couldn’t finish at the Fair. I then had one of my new fair favorites: fried cheese curds. I know they’re probably best in Wisconsin, but I think the ones I had at the Fair were pretty darned good. Deon and Dominic took it easy with corn dogs and roasted corn. The biggest disappointment was the bacon cotton candy. I was expecting it to be maple flavored, sprinkled with bacon bits. But it was pre-packaged and tasted nothing like bacon. Save your $5 for something better and get a dish with real bacon at Bacon A-Fair. I can’t believe another year of the Fair has come and gone! Thank you for another fun one, San Diego County Fair. We look forward to more fantastic fair goodies next year!

“Aerial” shot of Chicken Charlie’s, my deep-fried goodness destination.

Photo 1: Deep-fried cookie dough; Photo 3: Krispy Kreme Sloppy Joe. Yup, I had them.

Ah cheese curds, how I love thee!

Deon, Dominic and roasted corn, both days!

On the Sky Ride. Our awesome “aerial” shots came as a result of this ride.

Kiddieland

Dear bacon cotton candy: I wanted to love you so much, but I’m sorry it was not to be…

Like our “Freeze Frame” shot, courtesy of Sparkling Ice? We had free tasters, and my favorite was the Black Raspberry and the Pina Colada (click on the picture for their Facebook page).

From Dominic’s point-of-view. It’s his first ever picture, taken all by himself!

Good-bye San Diego County Fair…until next year!

The 2013 San Diego County Fair, Part 1: Game On!

It’s that time again for the San Diego County Fair. I can’t believe it’s already been a year! Because this is the Fourth of July weekend and my family will be travelling to Las Vegas this week, I thought I’d dedicate this week to the Fair, and break our visit into two parts: this post will be about the sights & sounds. We bought the “Unlimited Admission” pass again, but we were able to get it at a group rate. That price brought it down to the regular price for a single day ticket, which paid for itself after our first weekend at the Fair (we went two weekends in a row). The theme this year was “Game On!”, so there were plenty of game related sights all around. The next post will be about, what else, the food! Hope you had a great weekend!

Dominic actually won a coupon for 2 pieces of fruit from 7-11!

Photos 1 & 2: A gigantic rabbit! Photos 3 & 4: Dominic getting to know a few animals.

We have entered “The Fun Zone”

Dominic’s favorite ride was from Michael Jackson’s “Neverland Ranch”, and he was just tall enough to take his first “big boy” ride! In fact, he loved it so much, he insisted to go back on during our second visit.

(This photo is from our second visit.)

“Twist to the left, back to the right. Twist and turn, til you’ve got it right…” Part of the Get The Balance Right video by Depeche Mode is at an amusement park, riding bumper cars (during that very part of the song). On this one, Dominic nearly lost his beloved Rickie Fowler Puma hat!

More photos from day 2: Deon has a love/hate relationship with the “Shooting Star” gallery game. Just a few more shots, and he would have had it!

Whew, thank goodness I wore comfy shoes (thank you Dansko)!

One last photo at the end of our first day at the fair. Part two later this week!

Bonus video: Last year, I wasn’t able to get video coverage of our zip line adventures. This year, I was able to catch Deon doing it, and pulling a “Spider-Man”!

Weekend in Pictures: In Good Company

A few weekends ago, the company I work for had a very lovely Family Day for their employees and loved ones, which included a lunch and tickets to four museums of our choice at Balboa Park. I brought my boys with me, and we started the day very early to ensure we could take in as much as we could before Dominic needed a nap. Our day started off at the San Diego Air & Space Museum with a breakfast snack and a tour of the museum before a fabulous lunch (which also included a complimentary space picture, seen above). There was a special exhibition by Ripley’s Believe or Not before we made our way through the rest of the museum. We then headed to the San Diego Automotive Museum and ended our day at The Ruben H. Fleet Science Center, where my mom and dad used to take me and my sister nearly every month when we were kids. My husband and I both brought our cameras, so it took me a bit of time to go through all of the pictures we had for this post. We had such a wonderful time, and I would like to thank my company for a fantastic soiree. Hope you had a great weekend!

The San Diego Air & Space Museum

Just a sampling of the fantastic food at the breakfast and luncheon.

The Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Exhibition. Can you believe those are Jelly Belly jelly beans?!

Very “True Blood”, no?

Impressive to be so close to a piece of history: The Berlin Wall.

Of course, Dominic finds Angry Birds!

The tallest man in the world. We are not even close!

The Air & Space Museum displays. Did you know Duran Duran’s first choice of band name was RAF, which stood for the Royal Air Force?

Check out Dominic with Snoopy and his Sopwith Camel, saving the day against the Red Baron!

When he saw the face painter, Dominic had to get his staple, Spiderman! Then he did what any superhero would do: Jumped on the moon and flew a plane. All in a day’s work!

At The San Diego Automotive Museum. Dominic’s version of what he would fill his garage with.

*sigh* My dream Vespa…

Have DeLorean, will travel…back to the future!

I think the description says it all. Check out the hooka in the front of the car!

The Ruben H. Fleet Science Center. We definitely took in more activities than pictures! The ones included are from my iPhone, except for Dominic in the fire truck at Kid City.

Weekend in Pictures: Spicy Lamb & Broadway Punk

Last Friday, I went out with the girls for dinner and a show: we had a light nosh at the God Save The Cuisine food truck followed by Green Day’s American Idiot: The Musical. Janice had turned me onto the God Save The Cuisine food truck because she knows how much of an anglophile I am, and was sure we would enjoy their fresh British menu. As we approached the red truck, I felt nostalgic for our trip last summer in London. I know most of these trucks have a changing menu, so I was quite excited when I saw the spiced lamb was available because lamb also reminds me of London (lamb burgers). The lamb was bursting with flavor and definitely had a kick to it. Once I’m off of the Whole30, I’m want to find out GSTC’s next stop so I can try the Fish-n-Chips Taco, Big Ben Burger and the Eton Mess if it’s available (from the home page: “Eton mess” Light meringue crumbled churned with strawberry compote and sweetened vanilla cream).

Top pictures: The “Tip Vote” answers can be found on their Facebook page (I voted yes to the “one way ticket to Mars” question). Bottom pictures: Very cool idea to provide blankets for a very British picnic!

I had the Spiced Lamb, sans chips. I’m doing the Whole30 again, so I only had a bit of the naan bread…but I made sure to eat everything else!

Janice had the catch of the day: Sea Bass with “Truck Cut Chips” (aka Fries)

(WARNING! This next segment contains spoilers!)

We ended the night with American Idiot at the San Diego Civic Theatre. The musical is based on Green Day’s 2004 album of the same name, and follows the lives of three men who are trying to escape their stifling suburban lifestyles. It’s 90 minutes long with no intermission, and goes through all of the songs from the American Idiot album and some songs from 21st Century Breakdown. The show is exciting with a fantastic stage set. My favorite parts: the heroin dance between Johnny and Whatshername; the songs “Holiday” and “Wake Me Up When September Ends”; and the very end where the entire cast sings “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)”. I thought I considered that a spoiler, but even I knew as a casual Green Day fan that they would play that song somewhere! One part that both Regi and I did not enjoy was the hallucination portion where Tunny is in a military hospital due to a leg injury. With the excitement and drama of the rest of the story, the floating genie seemed out-of-place. All in all, another fun night out with the girls. Hope you had a great weekend!

Top picture: The sign as we approached the entrance cracked us up to no end. I guess the show was not supposed to be for the easily offended! Bottom picture: A view from our seats.

Top picture: “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)”. Bottom picture: My program, Playbill and ticket.

Marissa, Janice, Me and Regi

My “Broadway punk” outfit for the evening: The Damned concert tee; MNG for Mango blazer; Guess jeans; Miista booties; studded cross body bag; Suki Bijoux skeleton necklace.

Weekend in Pictures: The Carlsbad Village Faire

Back on May 5, 2013, my mother-in-law came into town to pay a visit to her grandson, and also because she had an Origami Owl booth at The Carlsbad Village Faire. The Faire is the nation’s largest one-day street faire. I know it’s in the name, but I was completely unprepared for just how many streets this faire would cover! Although the weather left much to be desired (it rained at the very end), I had a great time getting to know Carlsbad. I fully intend to come back to Carlsbad and explore more of this beautiful beach side northern San Diego city. In the meantime, I’ve included a photo diary of our day at The Faire. Enjoy!