tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21780153720093206312024-03-20T01:45:43.562-07:00Tezukuri TreasuresThis blog has gone through a few iterations - currently, it is the blog for the Etsy shop Tezukuri Treasures, and also my blog about makeup, kimono, all things Japanese, more than a few kitchen adventures, and a very spoiled dog. Enjoy!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-26242305068939591652018-01-17T09:12:00.000-08:002018-01-17T09:12:41.106-08:00New website!<br />
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So, in the interest of both consistent branding and creating a single, central location for my different entrepreneurial ventures, I've registered the domain tezukuri-treasures.com<br />
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Stay tuned while I migrate things over and get a shiny new site set up. :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-49350138861339794952018-01-02T17:46:00.001-08:002018-01-02T18:18:18.616-08:00Announcements! [Goodbye 2017, and good riddance.]Happy New Year! This is the year of the Dog, and "my" year as well (I'm a 1982 baby). I'm REALLY hoping this year brings far better luck than the last couple. According to Horoscope.com, I've got a lot to look forward to: "<span style="font-family: , serif;"><i>The year of the earth Dog highlights dependability, building loyalty at work and in relationships, and certainly building material wealth.</i></span><span style="font-family: , serif;">" (And hey, as a Scorpio, I'm apparently a "force of nature," too!) I may buy a lotto ticket this week, just in case! ;) </span><br />
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<i>Goodbye 2017, and good riddance!</i><br />
This past November, our ancient Peke passed away just before Thanksgiving, and we didn't really 'do' Christmas, or much of anything else to acknowledge the holiday season. On top of that, I had an expensive car repair over the summer, had to take out a loan for a long-term opportunity I've been chasing for a while (see below news update), and just this past weekend, took my ancient car in AGAIN for a funny noise.<br />
<br />
<br />
... That funny noise? The power steering lines and power steering pump <i>both </i>failing. So there's another $800-$1,000 in repairs I really didn't want -- or have -- to spend. (And as of writing this, my car is STILL in the shop and I had to borrow my mother's wheels to get to work. Not cool.)<br />
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So let's hope we can leave 2017 in the DUST and move on to bigger and brighter things, and quickly, yes?<br />
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In Etsy shop news, I took every last bauble of inventory I had to the annual craft fair at work, and put my shop on vacation mode. With all the holiday and financial stress of late, I may commit what is most likely shop suicide and leave it on vacation mode a while longer. I turned a very small profit at the craft fair, but there are some grown adults who have sticky fingers, so I need to sit down and have an apples-to-apples session with my listings versus my inventory before reopening the shop. I'm also aware some of my listings need better photos, and while I have the equipment, I haven't had the <i>time</i>. So that's still on my to-do list right now.<br />
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I have found that at least with in-person sales, the little angel and fairy earring designs I have are immensely popular; the ones that I most enjoyed making with bright colored pearls and bicones? Collecting dust. Go figure! What sorts of items do you like to see in a shop? What do <i>you </i>usually shop for when it comes to hand-made jewelry or wire work?<br />
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Where do <i>you </i>think my shop could/should improve?<br />
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<i>Hello 2018!!</i><br />
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<b><u>In other news:</u></b> I'm 3/4 of the way to being a <i>licensed kimono dresser and teacher</i>! If you're in the Southern California area and you're interested in learning more about Japanese kimono and how it's worn, please contact me. :) I will be able to teach on weekday evenings or weekends. Lessons will be in English - no Japanese fluency required. I already have an extensive background in Japanese culture with 14 years of Urasenke-style tea ceremony experience as well as time spent abroad in Japan and an Asian Studies degree from Occidental College. In sum, I know what I'm talking about. ;)<br />
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<i>I will be offering two learning paths:</i><br />
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<i>1. Casual, basic lessons</i> - how to get dressed in yukata and kimono with whatever items you have in your kimono closet, as well as some basic guidelines on how to find <i>wafuku </i>items in your size. Pricing will be <u>very</u> reasonable and lessons are <i>a la carte</i> style - schedule what you want to learn and that's what the day's class will include. Simple, right?<br />
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<i>2. Formal Shoden / Chuden certificate courses</i>, which will allow the student to become eligible to move on to the Okuden-level courses taught in Torrance. These courses will have required (bilingual) texts, lesson plans and materials per the Yamano-Ryu school of kimono stylists, as well as a different pricing structure established by the school. Be advised that because this is a formal license from an established Japanese kimono school, you must complete all sections of the course to move on - even if you already know quite a bit about kimono.<br />
(I'm not trying to scare anyone away, but the formal courses are nothing like getting a driver's license where you pass a test and you're good to go. They are much more like taking higher education classes - there are required units and texts involved in order to advance. Make sense? If you want to know more - even if you aren't in the SoCal area - drop me a line. I'll be glad to answer what questions I can!)<br />
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<i>Option 3</i> is if you don't have any interest in lessons but want to be dressed for an event (o-bon, tea ceremony, etc.) - pricing will vary with the formality level, and I have items that can be rented if you don't have a kimono or yukata of your own.<br />
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<i>Resolutions</i>:<br />
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I'm not much of a New Years Resolution type - I'll gladly adopt the make-good-changes mindset when the new year rolls around, but those resolutions last for hours instead of days. :P So this year, I instead want to try and make a list of do-able goals -- actually read the books I've bought over the last few years about making better choices and not procrastinating (irony, much?), dedicate more time and resources (both mental and physical) to fewer projects, and really focus on my health and fitness. (The one GOOD thing that happened in 2017 was a department change at work, and it was both literally and figuratively a life saver.)<br />
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This week's goal? Go through all the magazines, catalogs, etc, and clip out the 'ideas' that I'd noted - instead of holding on to the entire magazine/catalog/pamphlet. I'm still an old-school fan of paper, no matter how awesome and convenient Pinterest may be, and am quite happy with some tape, three-hole-punched paper, and an old binder to make idea boards. Besides, you can't scribble notes and doodles on a Pinterest board. ;)<br />
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What are some of your goals and plans for this year?<br />
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(Our newest family member, Mei-Li, who joined us just before 2017 ended, at least giving us one happy thing to end a rather awful year.)<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-60311503472930206362016-11-15T16:23:00.004-08:002016-11-15T16:23:56.872-08:00So, it's been an age since I've updated here - or the Facebook page, for that matter - and I just wanted to let everyone know that I have a small mountain of items waiting to be photographed and listed on the Etsy shop, and enough ideas for new items rattling around in my head to keep me busy until next autumn. :) Work (the one that pays the bills) and life have been busier than I anticipated, though, so my grand plans to be fast and efficient for the Etsy shop wound up sidelined.<br />
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But stay tuned!<br />
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There's also a craft fair coming up at work, which means there will definitely be more items coming soon, because I'll be spending all of my free time through the end of the month getting ready for that as well. Sometimes, a looming deadline is the kick in the pants I need to finish projects.<br />
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Thank you!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-8587080197533065122016-03-19T22:25:00.002-07:002016-03-19T22:39:14.049-07:00Makeup FunHad a grand time with <a href="https://bigmamatalks.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Sachiko</a> tonight; she brought out her epic makeup kits and we did some contouring and eye makeup.<br />
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I used some of the <a href="https://lagirlusa.com/" target="_blank">LA Girl</a> cosmetics, <a href="http://www.kleancolor.com/" target="_blank">Kleancolor</a> foundation (in Vanilla 1 and Bisque 2), and a touch of Hard Candy mascara, plus my own <a href="http://www.elfcosmetics.com/">e.l.f.</a> lipgloss stick and <a href="http://www.nyxcosmetics.com/" target="_blank">Nyx</a> undereye circle corrector. <br />
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Not bad for applying with my fingers, eh?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-70622086905082552662015-12-04T08:57:00.006-08:002015-12-04T08:57:51.819-08:00FYIIn the not-too-near future, I'll probably wipe out all old posts and re-vamp this space for my Etsy shop:<br />
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<a href="http://tezukuritreasures.etsy.com/">tezukuritreasures.etsy.com</a><br />
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I <i>just </i>opened it, so there are only a few listings until the at-work craft fair comes to a close, and then I'll list much more in the Etsy shop. But please take a look, and if you like what you see, share the link with your friends. I would greatly appreciate all the exposure I can get.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-26245624485934387562015-10-06T14:33:00.000-07:002015-10-06T14:33:28.380-07:00Been awhile...Well, it's been FOREVER since I've posted here, but now I'm taking online classes where the "discussion" is done via a Blogger blog, so I was helpfully reminded this exists. :)<br />
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I've gotten more into Tea, and I'm trying my hand at some craft projects...<br />
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I may post again here, for the 1 or 2 of you out there who read it at all...<br />
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(Skin still is crap: solution for the best results possible is super-gentle cleansers and as all-natural-as-possible on products, such as what Fresh, LUSH, and Silk Naturals offer. Spot treatment with harsher items like Clearasil as needed. Also, sunscreen! I have spray-on-SPF100 for body and a Neutrogena SPF110 for the face.)<br />
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Also regained the 25-ish pounds I'd lost. Trying to lose that bulk again, this time with a high-protein diet and weightlifting in addition to moderate cardio. Slow, but I feel better. (I did Weight Watchers before. I went to bed hungry every night and hated life. No thanks.)<br />
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So.... hi?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-75882474240606872492011-06-10T20:26:00.000-07:002011-06-10T20:26:18.609-07:00Best Summer Dessert Ever1 white peach<br />
2 scoops French vanilla ice cream<br />
honey, warmed in the microwave until runny<br />
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When you're done grilling your burgers and hot dogs and whatever else, slice one white peach in half (a ripe one!) and remove the pit. Place on the grill (I recommend a light brush/spray of oil or nonstick) for about 2 minutes on the cut side, one minute on the other side.<br />
Serve with a drizzle of honey and the ice cream straight from the grill.<br />
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Mom and I split one peach this way, and it's the most amazing sweet, toasty, fruity flavor EVER. Perfect for a warm summer night.<br />
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(Dinner was hamburgers, corn on the cob, and asparagus. Trick for the asparagus: double-layer of foil to create a 'bucket' shape, rather than a closed pouch - it will take on the smoky hint of the grill's flavor as it cooks. Don't close the foil pouch! Cook until just crisp-tender, no more.)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-57446629943576664722011-05-04T21:24:00.000-07:002011-05-04T21:24:36.444-07:00Summery Dessert - nearly free Points, too!I saw this idea posted over on <a href="http://www.amateurgourmet.com/2011/05/grilled_pineapple_with_cardamom_whipped.html">Amateur Gourmet</a>, and as I am a cardamom <i>fiend</i>, it immediately appealed to me. Seriously. I cannot get enough of that spice. I love it. (I blame my Scandinavian roots.)<br />
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Mom found some ready-cut pineapple spears at the store (I'd rather not lose a finger or pint of blood to trying to core and peel a whole pineapple), and as we're both on a diet, we used Cool Whip lite rather than whipped cream. And it was still DARN tasty - the tangy pineapple contrasts with the warm spice and cool cream topping. VERY delish.<br />
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* Heat a pan. I used about a tsp of butter in a heavy nonstick omelette pan we have on hand (no cast iron in our collection... yet).<br />
* Lay the spears in the pan (I cut them into 3" sections to fit), and let them start to turn golden. It took a few minutes. Turn, repeat until all sides are golden.<br />
* While your pineapple is browning and the kitchen smells like the sunbaked tropics, take 1/3 tsp ground cardamom and stir it into half cup of Cool Whip. (Or more, or less, to your preference. I was making only for two people.)<br />
* Once the pineapple is done, plate up and place a generous dollop of your spiced Cool Whip with it. Enjoy!<br />
(No pics - it didn't last long enough. Maybe someday when my plating and photography skills have improved...) <br />
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(And now, back to my usual radio silence. Once work slows down, I'll have more time to spend in the kitchen or on makeup - though I have managed to incorporate putting on my war paint in the mornings successfully for two weeks now.)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-74315286116055768472011-03-27T21:10:00.000-07:002011-03-27T21:10:36.846-07:00"Mango Lassi" Pistachio PuddingSo, as previously mentioned, I have new cookbooks and an ongoing love of learning to cook various ethnic foods. I have been poring over my new cookbooks all week; last night I spent a good two hours thumbing through Bal Arneson's <i>Everyday Indian</i>. Sunday is eat-leftovers-and-make-ahead day in our house. After a dinner of leftover roast pork tenderloin, green beans, cauliflower mash, and roasted sweet potato, we moved away from the Continental US to approach Chinese-inspired stir-fry chicken (marinated in ginger, garlic, lemon, orange, Hoisin and five-spice) for lunches later in the week. Then we backtracked to India for dessert (finally keeping in mind our waistlines, albeit slightly).<br />
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This is the result:<br />
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<u>Pistachio Mango Pudding</u><br />
1 package sugar-free Jell-O pudding, pistachio flavor<br />
2 cups reduced-fat or non-fat milk<br />
1 ripe-bordering-on-overripe mango<br />
1/8 tsp ground cardamom <br />
1/4 cup heavy cream (or Cool Whip, if you're on a tighter calorie budget)<br />
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- Prepare the pudding per package instructions with the milk. Let set in fridge.<br />
- Peel and slice the mango, being careful not to remove any fingers or significant chunks of your own flesh. Mangoes can be slippery! (Best trick: Slice off the broad end to create a flat surface. Prop it on this flat surface, and use a good vegetable peeler or be very careful with a paring knife to peel off the skin. Once peeled, slice off each side in a wide plank, careful not to get too much of the pith, then the sides.) Take your mango slices and cut them into cubes.<br />
- Toss the mango with the cardamom. (If your mango isn't as ripe as it should be, add a spoonful of sugar and let it all macerate for a bit.) <br />
- By this time, the pudding should be set. Spoon the mango into a dish and top with pudding, or vice versa.<br />
- Drizzle with 1-2 Tbsp heavy cream, or a dollop of Cool Whip.<br />
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Enjoy! (With one mango and a half a cup of pudding each, we had pudding to spare, but were greedy and the mango only made two servings. So plan on pistachio-and-fruit parfaits again later. :) Or buy more mangoes! <br />
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I should note that our favorite "diet" dessert lately is sugar-free pudding with Cool Whip and fresh fruit (berries, mango, whatever the local market had that's ripe) -- the whole thing is usually only 2-3 Points, and it's surprisingly filling and satisfying.<br />
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I have learned that I cannot succeed at a diet unless I do not feel deprived, which means that I am filling up on veggies and lean proteins (like pork tenderloin or shrimp or chicken) for two out of three meals, and loading up most of my carbs in the morning. I have lost 12 pounds without giving up my jalapeno-cheese bagel with very light cream cheese. I'd call that a successful diet. (I'm certain dance class once a week plus walks around the block twice the day have nothing to do with it... ;P ) In addition to being actually, physically FULL from veggies (I pack gallon-sized bags of carrot, celery, and bell pepper sticks to take with me to work and nosh with hummus), I have to get my sweet tooth fulfilled now and then. These sugar-free pudding desserts do the trick. Now that the weather is changing, I'm going to start using fruit-and-gelatin desserts (but they take more planning, because of how long the Jell-O takes to set up in the fridge). Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-87310252455270506502011-03-26T21:38:00.000-07:002011-03-26T21:39:36.070-07:00Lamb Kebabs (Meatballs) - Kabab LahamWith the recent bonuses paid out at work (finally! Yay!), I splurged on a few books, one of which is "<i>Cardamom and Lime: Recipes from the Arabian Gulf</i>" by <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cardamom-Lime-Recipes-Arabian-Gulf/dp/1566567254/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1301200376&sr=1-1">Sarah Al-Hamad</a>. [The other is Bal Arneson's book, <i>Everyday Indian</i> - you will likely be seeing recipes from that one, as well.]<br />
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As it's freezing outside (by California standards) and we don't have an indoor grill, I modified this recipe to be meatballs rather than kebabs. I also adjusted a few ingredients (skipped the saffron, as I couldn't find it at the store, added fresh jalapeno for a boost of bright green flavor). It's not diet food by any stretch*, but it's darn tasty.<br />
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<u>Kabab Laham Meatballs</u><br />
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Modified from the original recipe by Sarah Al-Hamad</span></i><br />
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1 lb ground lamb, 85/15<br />
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce<br />
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs<br />
1/2 tsp oregano<br />
1 tsp garlic puree<br />
1 generous tsp ginger puree (I used a microplane and a knob of fresh ginger)<br />
1/2 tsp kosher salt<br />
1/3 cup olive oil<br />
1 medium onion, minced fine<br />
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped<br />
1 japaleno, core and seeds removed, minced<br />
1 egg, beaten<br />
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Combine in a bowl and mix well. (I combined everything but the lamb, added the lamb last, and had a grand old time using my bare hands to make a squishy mass of more-or-less evenly combined ingredients.)<br />
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Heat a nonstick pan with a few tsp of oil over medium heat. Form the mixture into patties, balls, or whatever shape you fancy, and cook until deliciously golden and crisp, turning once to cook the other side to the same level of done-ness. (I also set the oven temp to 200*F and placed the cooked meatballs on an oven-proof plate to stay warm while I made the next batch, etc.) I think I made 18-20 meatballs that were about golf-ball sized or a teensy bit larger. This would also be a fabulous recipe to use to shape patties for burgers, though I'd recommend reducing the bread crumbs and using butter (per the original recipe, 3/4 cup) instead of olive oil. <br />
<br />
The original recipe calls for shaping these over metal skewers and grilling over charcoal; serve in pita or with salad. I suspect the flavor would be even more incredible if I had a grill to use.<br />
<br />
Served with pieces of fresh lavash bread from the local market and a side of steamed cauliflower. I sprinkled the meatballs with some of the leftover chopped parsley. :) <br />
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<br />
* In late January, I joined Weight Watchers, and have lost 12+ pounds to date; I have about 15 more to go before I reach a weight I want to try to maintain. Part of my success is having a larger breakfast and much lighter rest of the day. The other part is not going wild on weekends, but not counting Points, either - there's a limit to how much guilt and paranoia I can handle when it comes to my food. :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-34519017336729175272011-02-18T17:10:00.000-08:002015-12-04T09:11:10.241-08:00Grr.Well, don't expect any photo posts from me for a while - burglars got into the house and in addition to taking just about ALL of my jewelry (I have a few plastic and costume pieces left that weren't in my jewelry box at the time), a large amount of Mom's good stuff, and my late father's wedding ring (from the funeral box, no less - we are PISSED about that one), they also snagged both of my digital cameras from the shelf above my computer. Mom came home and interrupted them before they could get her laptop or my computers (I have an ancient Mac laptop in addition to the ancient IBM thinkpad I use for my internet habits). <br />
<br />
So. No camera. Bah. (Also, the graphite for fingerprinting gets EVERYWHERE and I'm still reaching into my BPAL stash to come up with black all over my fingers. And I thought I'd cleaned it all thoroughly. So.) <br />
<br />
I did hit up Sephora today on the recommendation of several blogs in the past -- snagged the Clinique bottom lash mascara (OMG, holy grail indeed!), Buxom lip gloss in Dolly (Jury's out on that one - I didn't notice any plumping and I thought it dried my lips out a bit, but the color is nice...), and the Too Faced Shadow Insurance in Candlelight, because I am a lazy sonofa... in the morning and the less my routine takes to look put together, the better. <br />
<br />
I also got hit on in the mall. ^___^ It went from "Where'd you get your boots?!" to "... do you have a boyfriend?" Nice guy, trying very hard to NOT be creepy, and the little ego boost was what I needed after a very long few weeks. <br />
<br />
So. No makeup pics (like I ever got around to them, anyway) and no kimono shots for a while. I'm considering a Nikon S4000 on sale right now and could get another memory card and a tripod for the rebate amount that's taken off the total price. It works a lot like my long-gone S360, but only comes in silver or red. I miss my purple camera. :( On the bright side, it's a touch-screen instead of all buttons, so that's nice. Either way, it's another expense, and non-essential makeup aside, I already bought some jewelry today to at least have something to wear in my ears at work, so it's going to be a pricey month. Hopefully that bonus that work keeps promising will come in...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-70397496940475152412011-01-01T22:53:00.001-08:002011-01-01T22:53:50.017-08:00<a href="http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/?action=view&current=New_Years_Ensemble2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/New_Years_Ensemble2.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a><br />
<br />
Happy New Year, everyone! <br />
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That was the kimono I wore today - a lucky motif of shime-kazari / ropes, with a punch of the lucky color red, on a blue muji kimono (since I had to go work at a Tea event, no flashy komon for me). I think it looks festive without being too flashy. <br />
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What did you wear today? Any fun outfits?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-83423953605245086662010-12-25T14:41:00.001-08:002010-12-25T14:41:31.042-08:00Happy Holidays!A Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, and a happy holiday season to all. May you have a joyous and drama-free celebration, and a safe and happy New Year.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-57423204474886194862010-12-04T22:44:00.000-08:002010-12-04T22:47:37.171-08:00Kimono for the Holidays!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/HolidayKimono2010-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/HolidayKimono2010-1.jpg" width="139" /></a></div>Finally! Pictures. :)<br />
<br />
Aromaleigh eyeshadows, Too Faced Primed and Poreless makeup, Urban Decay blush in Score, Too Faced lava gloss liner, Meow Cosmetics brow beaters to give my weird eyebrows some definition, Too Faced lipstick.<br />
<br />
The kimono was custom made for me by a nice lady, Masako-san, up in Torrance. She's a fellow customer of Kyoei Trading (whose store you can see behind me). The obi was from eBay years ago. Obidome is a poinsettia brooch pinned into place. Date-eri and han-eri are just 5" wide lengths of fabric from the fabric store; the earrings I made myself from beads and findings. (I'm planning on getting decent enough at that sort of thing to make some pocket money.)<br />
Bag and shoes from an eBay score from Ryu-Japan. :)<br />
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The hair... I read a few how-to sites on beehives and gave it a shot. It doesn't look awful, but I think I could use quite a bit of practice. Ah well.<br />
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The collars drove me <i>nuts </i>- they laid very nicely at first, but after a trip in the car, fussing with trying on kimono, etc, etc, they were a <i>wreck</i>. I should have remembered to snap a picture BEFORE going out into the big bad world. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/HolidayKimono2010-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/HolidayKimono2010-2.jpg" width="144" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/HolidayKimono2010-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/kittyblue48/Kimono/HolidayKimono2010-3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <br />
<br />
So there you have it. Actual pictures. :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-56276694954560885922010-12-02T23:20:00.001-08:002010-12-02T23:20:28.226-08:00Istanbul, not Constantinople!Found old pics from the Captain's Dinner on the Solstice Cruise we took in September 2009.<br />
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http://www.immortalgeisha.com/ig_bb/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=16538<br />
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Posted on the IG Forums.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-80007030633281859332010-11-14T22:47:00.001-08:002010-11-14T22:47:32.065-08:00New kitsuke post at IG forumsNew kimono update at the IG forums: http://www.immortalgeisha.com/ig_bb/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=16450<br />
<br />
Got myself all kimono'd up for dinner out for my birthday. :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-65563076654282000212010-11-13T11:07:00.000-08:002010-11-14T15:57:00.925-08:00Shout-out: One Hand Washes The OtherI ordered the Deep Black creme soap ("Black Magic") that we'd discussed some time ago, and as it was her birthday last week, she included a 10% off coupon. I congrat'd her on her b'day and mentioned mine was next week (hooray for November!) and she included a free whipped sugar scrub in Pumpkin Bread, gift-wrapped in gold tissue with a handwritten "Happy Birthday" tag and everything! <br />
Plus an adorable pendant!<br />
<br />
(I also ordered two more lip butters because dry winter air kills my lips, and the Maple Blueberry and Blueberry seemed the perfect cold weather pick-me-up scents... and they are!)<br />
<br />
As if I weren't hooked already, this is just one of the MANY reasons I <i>love </i>OHWTO.<br />
<br />
Becca can be found on <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/1HandWashesTheOther">Etsy </a>or <a href="http://www.artfire.com/users/OneHandWashesTheOther">Artfire </a>(the Artfire site give her better rates as a vendor, I believe, so I recommend using that site if possible).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-41632293065318028372010-10-28T21:45:00.000-07:002010-10-28T21:48:52.061-07:00Cheese Bites - RecipeI had to bring finger food for the potluck at work for Halloween, and found the basic recipe for these little cheese bites after a quick Google search for "easy finger food" (because we already had volunteers for about 15 desserts). They went over phenomenally well, though I didn't find them all that spectacular. The recipe is basic enough that the possibilities are just about endless, though. <br />
<br />
(Next time, I'm going to use Parmesan and Romano cheeses, a pinch of nutmeg, parcooked and thinly sliced asparagus, and maybe a thin piece of pancetta on top and make them snooty-patooty Bechamel bites. Or make the dough with the cheese, roll it out and bake it, and use a scalloped biscuit cutter to top it with the above garnishes. Hm....)<br />
<br />
Each batch makes a little more than a cookie sheet's worth of snack-sized nibbles (30-35), so I had a few batches to tweak as I went, and finally came up with this:<br />
<br />
<i>Your basic dough:</i><br />
1/2 cup melted butter<br />
1 cup flour (don't bother leveling off - I wound up adding a bit more flour here and there as needed)<br />
salt and pepper to taste <br />
1/8 tsp baking powder<br />
<br />
<i>Your cheese: </i><br />
1 3/4 ~ 2 cups shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar) <br />
<br />
<i>Your mix-ins of choice: </i><br />
2 green onions, finely minced (the white and light green and <i>some </i>of the darker green)<br />
1/3-<i>ish </i>cup bacon bits (I had a sack of Hormel that I ran under my knife a few times to break down neatly, but as usual, didn't bother measuring this)<br />
1 tsp garlic powder <i>OR </i>about one clove of fresh garlic (minced/mashed)<br />
1 tsp smoked paprika (the original recipe also listed 1 tsp cayenne, which I forgot to include, but I suspect it would have made them marginally more interesting).<br />
<br />
<br />
Preheat your oven to 400* F, rack in the middle (or mostly centered if you're doing multiple cookie sheets). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (or foil, but don't give yourself more cleanup by leaving it unlined!)<br />
.<br />
Combine the butter, flour, baking powder, spices in a mixing bowl and stir until thoroughly combined. Fold in the onions, bacon bits, and cheese, again working thoroughly until you have a relatively consistent dough (given that the shredded cheese I used was <i>not </i>the fancy/fine shred, it was lumpy but relatively evenly distributed after a few minutes of thorough abuse from my spatula).<br />
<br />
Use a tablespoon or melon-baller (again, if you really strive for difficult cleanup and being exact) and scoop the dough, rolling each scoop into a 1"-ish rounded ball and setting on the cookie sheet. You will have Butter Hands, so don't go and touch your face or leave fingerprints everywhere!<br />
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Pop 'em in the oven for about 15 minutes, keeping an eye on them to make sure they don't burn or stay raw or melt everywhere.<br />
<br />
They're done when they're a lovely dark orange/golden brown color (if you used cheddar). Let them cool. They make lovely, bite-sized biscuit-like nibbles. Garnish with more paprika if you're feeling fancy. (Mine went to work dumped haphazardly in a throwaway aluminum pan. It was midnight - I wasn't about to bother with presentation at that point!)<br />
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<br />
These are notably NOT healthy, and to be honest, the smell of <i>that much</i> butter coming from the microwave was rather nauseating*. I don't think I'll ever be the next Paula Deen. <br />
<br />
*I also cannot stand theater popcorn smell or undercooked microwave popcorn smell, either. There's just something about that much dairy fat in one place that makes my stomach rebel. I held my breath while mixing this all together.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-82054803903009901062010-10-10T22:44:00.000-07:002010-10-10T22:44:25.250-07:00Ridiculously Decadent Pizza RecipeThis is one of those things that you wind up making because you're feeling a yen to try something new and you're wandering Trader Joe's without a budget to keep in mind.<br />
<br />
I had never made pizza. The BF pointed out that TJ's carries pizza dough. Why not?<br />
<br />
This is the ridiculously decadent, far-too-rich result. <br />
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<u>Gouda Prosciutto Pizza</u><br />
Trader Joe's Plain Pizza Dough <br />
1/2 round of smoked Gouda <br />
1 small log fresh mozzarella (or shredded mozzarella) <br />
1 pkg GOOD prosciutto <br />
2 sweet Hawaiian onions <br />
1 pkg sliced crimini mushrooms <br />
Olive oil <br />
Butter <br />
Cognac, Chardonnay / Cooking wine <br />
1 pkg Quaker quick-cook grits <br />
<br />
Slice up the onions and start them caramelizing in a pan with some butter and a drizzle of olive oil. <br />
<br />
In a second, smaller pan, saute the mushrooms with butter and a splash of cognac and chardonnay. (Let the cognac catch fire and burn off.) Foodie BF used "Douglas Fir aqua vit" to give them added nuttiness. His pantry has <i>way </i>too much fun stuff in it!<br />
<br />
Grate half the smoked Gouda and set aside. If the mozzarella isn't sliced or shredded, do that and set aside. Slice the prosciutto into thin ribbons and set aside. <br />
<br />
Roll out the pizza dough, replacing flour with the grits for the non-stick properties. Place in a foil-lined jelly pan for baking (anything oozing over the sides will be caught.) Arrange the mozzarella in a thin layer on the dough. Once the mushrooms have been sauteed, arrange them (sans any liquid) over the mozzarella; arrange the caramelized onions over the mushrooms. Sprinkle the smoked Gouda over the top of the other toppings and brush the edges of the pizza dough with olive oil. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 450* F (or 12-15 minutes at 425) or until the crust is lightly browned. (The smoked Gouda will be crispy, rather than melty.) Once the pizza's out of the oven, sprinkle the prosciutto over the top, slice and serve. You'll want a knife and fork for this stuff! :)<br />
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Taken with the BF's phone, right before we snarfed the whole thing down... <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs4KL6-vvof_5v8fg01euZDO0oDpfyBxRtXU7lmbk9S97gYc8169n00bnW8tAgcpRMysWo9RSpkSJGYSYj_bmPn4iT9KgxNmMTvFycGlHYvMym4vgEUpjtgA_Jq2yQw9gopdGZsNGytDs/s1600/Prosciutto+Pizza.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs4KL6-vvof_5v8fg01euZDO0oDpfyBxRtXU7lmbk9S97gYc8169n00bnW8tAgcpRMysWo9RSpkSJGYSYj_bmPn4iT9KgxNmMTvFycGlHYvMym4vgEUpjtgA_Jq2yQw9gopdGZsNGytDs/s320/Prosciutto+Pizza.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-17244190090258205512010-10-10T22:37:00.000-07:002010-10-10T22:37:06.287-07:00Garam Masala Satoimo<span class=" fbUnderline">These were a hit as a side dish with the honey teriyaki chicken, so here's the <i>super</i>-simple recipe. </span><br />
<br />
<u><span class=" fbUnderline">Garam Masala Satoimo</span></u><br />
1-2 sweet potatoes<br />
Garam Masala spice blend<br />
EVOO<br />
Salt<br />
Dark sesame oil (a scant teaspoon)<br />
<br />
Preheat the oven to 375 F.<br />
<br />
Slice the sweet potato(es) (I had a large purple Japanese satoimo in the fridge) into 1/4" thick slices, skin-on. For ease of eating, I wound up halving some of the larger slices. Toss in a bowl or Ziploc with water, cover and microwave until al dente. (I used a Ziploc and a half cup of water on high for 3 minutes. Your microwave will dictate the time on this - ours is probably a 1000-watt model that's 20+ years old. It is <i>not </i>a high-powered appliance.)<br />
Drain the potatoes and set aside to cool. Once cool enough to touch, toss with a tablespoon or so of olive oil, and arrange on a foil-lined cookie sheet.(Easy cleanup!)<br />
Sprinkle garam masala over the potatoes.<br />
Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the potatoes.<br />
Sprinkle the sesame oil over the potatoes.<br />
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Pop in the oven (middle rack) for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pan at least once if your oven is finicky like ours and heats unevenly from front to back.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-64854723663222343912010-10-10T22:33:00.000-07:002010-10-10T22:37:57.668-07:00Honey Teriyaki Chicken Thighs<span class=" fbUnderline">Honestly, I do not like teriyaki.Of all the Asian menu options out there, this one always bugs me. The sauce is always a thick, gloopy, syrupy mess that ruins perfectly good grilled meats or fish (or tofu), and it tastes awful. Someone posted how to make your own, and their recipe was equal parts soy sauce, sugar, and mirin. It sounded like soy simple syrup, by the time it was done. No thank you. :( So when Mom suggested making some teriyaki marinade for chicken, I opted to go for the salty-sweet and skip the syrup. :) Given the compliments received around the table and the bragging Mom has done to the neighbors, I'd wager it was a successful recipe. (And as always, the BF gets full credit for his grillmaster skills - I'm a complete novice on the grill. Dad always did the grilling at home and Mom always did the kitchen parts, and it seems that the BF and I have fallen seamlessly into the same pattern. He plays with fire and tongs, I do my mad scientist bit in the kitchen.) </span><br />
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<span class=" fbUnderline">I used lime instead of lemon to complement the sweetness of the honey - lemon is usually much too tart and bitter. The chili oil (that bright red stuff from your grocer's ethnic aisle) is actually NOT that spicy in this probably because of the honey and citrus. It does lend a pleasant brightness, though. </span><br />
<br />
<span class=" fbUnderline">As always, measurements are approximate. :) Feel free to adjust to your own taste preferences. </span><u><span class=" fbUnderline"></span></u><br />
<u><span class=" fbUnderline"><br />
</span></u><br />
<u><span class=" fbUnderline">Honey Teriyaki Chicken Thighs</span></u><br />
<br />
1/3 cup honey (I used avocado honey, because I wanted a darker flavor than clover can give - it's up to you.)<br />
1/2+ cup soy sauce (regular, NOT low sodium)<br />
1 Tbsp hot chili oil<br />
2-3 cloves garlic, minced fine (I used a heaping spoonful of the mashed garlic from Trader Joe's - much easier)<br />
1 tsp dark sesame oil<br />
1/4 - 1/3 cup lime juice (bottled 'cuz I'm lazy, but you can sit and juice a ton of limes if you feel like it)<br />
3 green onions, chopped (green and white parts)<br />
<br />
About 2 pounds of chicken thighs - rinsed and patted dry (we used two packages of the six-pack you can purchase at Costco, and I believe each one of those is about a pound). <br />
<br />
Combine all the ingredients with the chicken in a Ziploc bag, give it a good shake, and set it aside to marinate for about 3 hours (or however long you'd like - I put this together at 3pm and we lit the grill about 6pm).<br />
<i>Fire up the grill</i>: Tonight was 60% hickory hardwood chips / 40% charcoal, with a few splashes of water to put out the flames on the wood chips now and then. (You could probably oven roast or pan-fry these, but it's still ridiculously warm for mid-October, so we're using the grill until it's too cold to bother.)<br />
Grill the marinated thighs until just done - about 10-15 minutes total.<br />
<br />
(These don't <i>need </i>a sauce, but if you're feeling swank or fussy, feel free to reduce some of the pre-chicken marinade in a saucepan until it becomes a syrupy thickness to drizzle over the cooked meat, and garnish with some fresh slivers of green onion.)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-12702980718875995562010-10-10T20:50:00.000-07:002010-10-10T22:37:31.962-07:00Kitayama Miso Sauce with steakToday's post is a shameless rip-off of Kitayama's red miso sauce, which was served with thin slices of strip steak. We dined there several weeks ago and the BF has not stopped raving about it. From what we could tell, the sauce was red miso with ginger and possibly sesame and soy. Toying around in the kitchen tonight, I managed an approximation that we agree is similar in flavor, if a little thinner in consistency. (The original was thick, almost like pudding.) The flavor is deep and roasty, with that tangy sweetness characteristic of miso, brightened by ginger. I suspect the original is probably reduced over low heat to better meld the flavors and thicken the final result, but our no-fuss homemade approximation is pretty tasty, IMO. :) <br />
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<b>Kitayama-inspired Red Miso Sauce: </b><br />
<i>I don't measure when I cook, unless I'm following a recipe, so all amounts are approximate</i>.<br />
<br />
1/3 cup Akadashi dark red miso paste<br />
2 tsp dark sesame oil<br />
2 Tbsp beef broth (you can use dashi or vegetable broth or water, if you prefer)<br />
1 generous tsp of grated fresh ginger (I used about a half-inch of a peeled ginger knob)<br />
1/4 tsp hot chili oil<br />
1 tsp McIlhenry Farms honey (You can order this from the Tabasco site - it has a deeper, darker flavor than most clover honeys. Avocado honey would also work well, if you have a farmer's market or Alien Fresh Jerky stand near you.)<br />
<br />
In a bowl, stir the miso and broth together until smooth. Add in the other ingredients to taste, stirring until all lumps are gone. Serve with steak or other hearty fare. If you're as averse to dirtying dishes as I am, don't even bother transferring to a serving dish - I just set the bowl on the table with the same spoon I'd used to stir. :) For this sauce, I skipped adding soy sauce as planned - between the salt in the miso and the salt in the broth, soy sauce, even reduced sodium, would have probably been a bit too much. <br />
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<b>NY Strip Steaks, Asian style:</b><br />
<br />
Take your 8-10 oz strip steaks and sprinkle/rub with the following:<br />
Sake (probably a teaspoon per steak)<br />
Soy (another scant teaspoon per steak)<br />
Seasoned pepper<br />
Onion powder<br />
A pinch of salt<br />
A spoonful of hoisin (per steak)<br />
<br />
(The amounts above are approximate, because the BF did the marinading and he doesn't like to measure, either. :) Just do the math for the number of steaks you're making if you really <i>must </i>dirty a set of measuring spoons.)<br />
Rub the marinade ingredients into the meat about 15 minutes before grilling to medium done-ness. The BF likes a 60/40 of charcoal and hickory chips when he fires up our ancient Weber, so that's how we did them tonight.<br />
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Garnish with thinly sliced green onions.<br />
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<b>Oven Roasted Asparagus</b> was the side dish: 1 Tbsp EVOO, a generous pinch of salt and a generous pinch of pepper, toss to coat, and arrange on a cookie sheet (I use a foil-lined jelly roll pan because I hate cleanup). Pop in a 400* F oven for 10 minutes, turning once halfway through. Easy! <br />
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Someday, I'll actually take my camera down to the kitchen to get you some pictures, but I'm not about to pretend I can do those gorgeous, perfectly exposed shots that the talented bloggers like Canelle et Vanille or Sprinkle Bakes have managed. I have an HP digital point-and-shoot that cost me $50 when it was <i>new</i> (5 years ago). No expensive equipment here!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2178015372009320631.post-84442757153427870732010-10-10T15:46:00.001-07:002010-10-10T15:46:54.758-07:00Hi!Test post here. :)<br /><br />Bear with me while I get this underway.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0