Sunday morning rain is fallin..

This past Sunday it was gloomy and rainy all day, and it sounds like this weekend will be more of the same. Those kinds of days are best for studying Japanese and weekly planning. 

 Studying is not that fun to begin with so having cute stationary always is motivating in an odd way. Lisa Frank helps me out in that department. 

I have this thing......let's call it an addiction...yes ...that's it, and addiction to Japanese stationary. I collect and am a small scale hoarder of the stuff. I can't get enough, but then when it arrives, it's so cute  I can't possibly bring myself to use it. Alas.. off it goes into a cute box to sit until I want to look at it again..... hey I did mention it was an addiction.  

Back to studying! I'm equipped with a jumbo Lisa Frank pencil...mostly for looks, my Japanese book, the oh so necessary electronic Japanese dictionary, my notes that are hiding in that colorful Lisa Frank folder, and the pencil case which houses actually functional pencils.   

Next up is my weekly planning. Three calendars..... My phone, my Barbie schedule book and my Gaspard and Lisa schedule book. Both schedule books are from Japan which I bought on the Rakuten site with all the points I've racked up buying stationary. 

That purely divine pen... was given to me by the girl who ran the wedding dress shop where I altered my dress. 

I like to see what's coming up for the week...usually the same old but it's still a nice activity... pair that with some cinnamon tea and it makes for a relaxing morning. 

Fashion Show: AKIRA The Last Dimension

Okay... so this post is really late as the fashion show I went to for AKIRA was about 6 months ago but anyway here we go...

I was invited to attend the 12th annual AKIRA fashion show 2014 "The Last Dimension". It was held at the Grossinger City Autoplex in Chicago. I attended with a few friends, and was able to meet up with one of the Managers of Akira. 

Before the show there was a bit of a meet and greet with an AKIRA pop-up store selling all of their latest pieces. They served drinks and had local restaurants with little pop-up stands serving amazing food. We chatted, walked around, checked out the store and found a photo booth set up by Action Booth and hopped in on a few photos!

Then it was time for the show. The vibe of the show was a mix of grunge, chic, boho, and tailored. There were so many different pieces for both men and women. 

It was really dark and I didn't get such great photos or footage so I am including this video made my The Columbia Chronicle so you can see what the show was like!

Excuse these blurry photos, but I wanted to pop them in here as well!

If your wondering what I am wearing, I will include my outfit details below.

Black Bodysuit: unknown designer

Leather Jacket: Zara

Shoes: Nine West

Black ruched skirt: Top Shop 

I had such a great time at the show! I can't wait to find more shows to attend!

I hope you enjoyed this post.

That's all for now

arrivederci

Dabbling In Deviled Eggs デビルドエッグ--卵タイム

I had far too many eggs in my refrigerator so I decided to make deviled eggs.

I had about 20 eggs I used to make this recipe. You by no means have to use 20 eggs, just however many you prefer.

INGREDIENTS: (for about 6 eggs)

6 eggs　

ゆで卵

1/4 cup mayonnaise to taste　　

マヨネーズ 1/4カップ

1 tsp white vinegar

ホワイトビネガー

1 tsp yellow mustard to taste 

マスタード小さじ1

Freshly ground black pepper　

塩コショウ 適宜

Kosher salt 

Paprika for decoration

パプリカ粉末    飾り用

DIRECTIONS:

1. Boil eggs for about 15 minutes, and let cool. 硬ゆで卵を作る。

2. Once the eggs are cooled, gently peel the shell off.

冷やしたら、殻をむき、半分に切ります。冷やしたら、殻をむき.

3. Cut the eggs in half lengthwise and remove the yolk.

半分に切ります。黄身を取り除き、ボウルに入れて混ぜる。

4. Place the whites on a plate.

5. In a separate bowl mash the yolks with a fork.

6. Mix all ingredients together  with the yolks except paprika.

7.  Place the mix in a ziplock baggie and cut a corner off.　

8. Squeeze the mix into the egg whites. 星形の絞り金を付けた絞り袋で中身を戻します。

9. Lastly, sprinkle paprika on top.

FINISHED!!　出来上がり

Playing with my Nikon

This past weekend I decided to invest in a shutter remote and a tripod for my Nikon D5100 DSLR camera.

I haven't use the camera nearly as much as I should be, but at least this will be a good start.

I have the Nikon D5100 DSLR camera, which I bought a few years back. 

Actually, this camera is the one I brought to Seattle and shot the photos for my previous blog post with. 

The remote I bought was from Best Buy and it is the Insignia Wireless Remote here

I liked this remote a lot. it was small enough to hide in pictures and easy to setup.

Setting up your camera to use the wireless remote just takes a few steps.

1. Turn on the camera and push the menu button.

2. Select the Shooting Menu option on the left hand side with the camera icon.

3. Select the Release Mode option.

4. Then you will have the option of 2 second delayed remote or the quick response remote. (I used the 2 second delay to give me time to hide or drop the remote so it didn't show up in the photos)

5. Once you have selected your remote option you are ready to shoot. 

6. After you have set up your photo go ahead and press the button and wait for the shutter.

In order to steady my camera and get a clear picture, I also purchased this tripod so I can take fashion pictures or any kind of still photo, as my hands aren't always steady. 

I purchased the Sunpak - PlatinumPlus 5858D 58" Tripod - Black from Best Buy here

It's easy to use and when I am done I can fold it up and put it back in the box or and easy to carry bag.

Last but not least I have a photo from my first try with the remote and tripod.

Overall I was happy with the results of the photos I took with my new tripod and wireless remote!

That's all for now!

arrivederci