Category Archives: Top Five

Each month I have  a list of things I’d like to try, including fashion accessories, beauty products, gel nail design, and etc., This 5 Things to Try This Month category has a collection of my monthly columns on the top five things I’d like to share with you.

All Posts, Fashion, Handbags, Top Five

The Red Versatile Marc Jacobs Tote Bag for Spring

Red is my all-time favorite color for accessories and nails. When it comes to purchasing red handbags and shoes, I prefer a bright red color. In recent years, I’ve been looking for a new red handbag, but I couldn’t find the exact red color I wanted.  

The other day I came across Marc Jacobs’ Small Leather Tote bag in True Red color online. The red color known in the retail site seemed a little bit darker than I usually prefer, but I love the size and the design. I decided to give it a try. 

When the handbag arrived at my home, I was very happy with the bag and the red color. It’s a perfect handbag for everyday use.  And the bag is perfect for vacation too.

Below are some of the reasons I liked my new Marc Jacobs’ leather tote bag. 

The Marc Jacobs’ Small Leather Tote bag has a perfect size (8″H x 10.25″W x 5.25″D). It gives me just enough room for everything I need, without looking like I am going grocery shopping. The bag stays in shape. I can easily find my wallet, cell phone, sunglasses, lipstick and hand lotion.  

The Marc Jacob’s Small Leather tote bag is versatile. It comes with a removable strap. I can hold the bag in my hand, put in on my shoulder, or wear it as a cross-body bag 

The price of this Marc Jacobs leather tote is more affordable than the other designer brands I looked at. 

If there’s anything I wished I could have changed on this bag, it would be adding four studs on the button of the tote bag. Without the studs to protect the button of the tote bag, I’d need to be a bit mindful on where I lay the bag down. I have several pet peeves when it comes to using any of my handbags. I never ever put them directly on the ground, no matter where I go. 

This Marc Jacobs Leather Tote bag came in several sizes and colors. If you like a summer color, you could consider getting the bag in pink, light purple, or white.  

Shirley Style new tote bag for Spring
Shirley Style new tote bag for Spring
All Posts, Lifestyle, Top Five

The Classical Piano Songs of the Romantic Period

I recently purchases a new classical piano music book with songs from the Romantic period (1830 to 1900). In the book there are many of my favorite classic piano songs by famous composers, including Chopin, Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky, etc.

The Romantic Era Piano Album
(My new piano book with sticky notes on the songs I want to learn.)

When I received the book and scanned through the content I felt like it was Christmas arriving early for me. There are so many songs I wanted to learn how to play. And I found myself putting sticky notes all over the book. It was impossible to contain my excitement of knowing that I have access to these music pages on my finger tips.

There are a total of 51 songs in this book. It would take me years to learn all the songs I wanted to play in this book, but I have my entire life to learn and play at my own pace.

Instead of focusing on learning one song at a time, I decided to start  with multiple songs and make some progress everyday. I think this will make learning new songs less challenging and more fun.

Right now, I am learning Tchaikovsky’s June: Barcarolle from The Seasons, Op. 37b, and Chopin’s Étude Op. 10, No. 3., Nocturne Op. 9, No. 2 and Prelude Op. 28, No. 15 (aka Raindrop). These are some of my favorite songs. The process of learning how to play these songs and hearing myself playing them gives me a thrill and great joy.

Frédéric Chopin's Tristesse - new song Shirley Style is learning for February 2021
(A picture of the song I am currently learning; taken with the flowers from my garden.)

I enjoy learning and playing these songs. I’d play them right after work and on the weekends. Sometimes I’d take small breaks (if time allows) during work to practice. I think I am very lucky that I can play these songs when I want to. And I can’t wait to learn more new songs from this book.

Beauty, Fashion, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – March 2021

Have you ever seen any house plants that die completely and regrow months later?

Right before last Christmas holiday I bought a fresh catnip plant for my cat, Inca. The catnip plant died a few days after I bought it. I’ve bought numerous catnip plants in the past years, but none of them died on me that quickly.

After the catnip plant died, it was forgotten and left in the corner by the window. Fast forward two  months later, and I noticed a tiny green catnip leaf sprouted out of the the dirt in the small pot of the dead catnip plant.

I decided to do a little experiment and feed it with water every few days.  And guess what? The catnip plant actual grew from a tiny leave to an actual plant. (See the cover picture of this post, taken two weeks after it came back.)

For someone who doesn’t know how to take care of plants, it sure was an unexpected miracle.  I was given a second chance to take care of this catnip plant who died under my watch.

In life, we don’t always get the second chance, but when we do, we definitely should hold on to it and try our best.

Below are the five things I am trying on this month. For sure, it won’t involve ruining my new catnip plant.

Nails

I could never get tired of red nail color. If I could come up with 365 designs for red nails, I’d have red nail colors all year long. For this month, I have red sequins over the red glitter nails,

Nails for March 2021
(My red glitter nails with red sequins.)

Coffee

I drink coffee or Caffè Americano everyday, but I usually only add some milk without any sugar. I saw Nespresso’s Irish coffee recipe for March and it inspired me to make my own version of sweet latte drinks.

Below is a picture of my new afternoon pick-me-up drink, made with Nespresso’s Peppermint flavored coffee, Double Espresso Scuro and hot frothed milk, then garnished with whipped cream and peppermint chocolate. This is the best afternoon pick-me-up drink to get me through my work meetings.

Shirley Style March Pick Me Up Coffee
(My afternoon pick-me-up drink.)

Accessories

It has been a while since I bought any high heels, because I’ve been staying home to avoid the pandemic and there’s no immediate opportunity to wear any fancy shoes. However, when I saw these red platform sandals “Dania” by Rene Caovilla (covered with red crystals) online, I couldn’t resist the temptation to add it to my own collection.

I don’t know when I will be able to wear them, but I definitely enjoy trying them on at home and admiring my new addition.

New Rene Caovilla Sandals
(My new red Rene Caovilla shoes covered with red crystals.)

Piano

A new song I am learning this month is Chopin’s Op. 28, No. 15 Prelude in D-flat Major, also known as “Raindrop”. I love the first section of this song. The melody give me a sense of calmness and reminds me of why I like the classical music. In my opinion, the second section of this song is a bit challenging to master, because it takes some practice to play it well enough to convey the beauty of this song.

Entertainment

I’ve seen some great reviews about the show, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. I finally start to watch it. I was hooked after the first episode.

The show is about a  sunny, energetic and well-off Jewish housewife who lived in a perfect life, but it all changed overnight. She was a supportive wife to her comedian wannabe  husband (who failed miserably on this), but he walked out on her. She had to regroup her life and eventually became a successful stand-up comedian herself. Of course, there were plenty of challenges she had to overcome to get to where she wanted to go.

Another thing I really like about this show is the fashion, the silhouette. I love many of Mr. Maisel’s dresses and her lipstick colors.

Entertainment for March 2021
(The show I am finally have time to watch and can’t stop.)

The Cover Image: This is the catnip plant that regrew in the small pot from the catnip plant that died last during the last holiday season.
Shirley Style February 2021 Cover Picture

All Posts, Beauty, Fashion, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – February 2021

When I think of February, I usually immediately associate it with birthdays for my brother, friends, colleagues and myself.

However, this year when I think of February, I think about traveling. In fact, I think about Las Vegas, the last place I traveled to in February 2020, exactly 12 months ago. And I miss traveling; I miss the time when I could go anywhere without worrying about the pandemic.

Although I can’t go anywhere just yet, I can still fill my staying home with things I enjoy. Below are the things I am doing this month.

Nail

Instead of my usual red nails, I decide to go with orange color for a change.

February 2021 Gel Nails
(The nails for this month.)

Painting

I had so much fun working on my first paint-by-number art project last month. I am going to  work on my 2nd one, Venice by Night, in February. Below is what I draw so far. I am looking forward to see my final product.

Venice by Night Painting Project
(This is the second paint-by-number painting I am working on. This will keep me busy for a while.)

Piano

The new song I am learning this month is Frédéric Chopin’s Etude, Op. 10: No. 3 in E Major. This song is also known as “Tristesse” or “Farewell”. Some sources claim that Chopin believed that this song is the most beautiful song he ever composed. I think this is a beautiful song, but I found it to be challenging to learn (especially the middle section of the song).

Frédéric Chopin's Tristesse - new song Shirley Style is learning for February 2021

(This is the new classic piano song I am learning this month.)

Accessories

I haven’t had any chance to dress up or wear any stylish boots since the pandemic started last year. But when I came across Stuart Weitzman’s red tall boots with skinny heels I knew I wanted to add it to my “to be worn” collection. I love the red color and the sexy skinny heels. I can’t wait to break into this pair of boots when we can resume normal social life again.

Shirley Style New Boots for May 2021
(My new sexy red tall boots to go into my boots collection.)

Beauty

I  am about to finish the Bobbie Brown eye cream I use. I want to try something new. After doing some research I decided to try BeautyBio’s “The Quench Eye Reviving Eye Balm”. It has nutrient-rich lipids to minimize the appearance of lines and improve hydration retention.

New eye cream for February 2021
(This is the new eye cream I am trying this month.)

The Cover Image: This picture was taken last week; the first time I seeing a few of my close friends in over a year since the pandemic started.
February 2021 Birthday

All Posts, Fashion, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – January 2021

We are now beginning a new year. I hope everything will be better for everyone. If there are any take-aways from Year 2020, I’d summed up mine to two things: 1. life is unpredictable and 2. don’t take people you have in your life for granted.

Growing up I’ve always known or was told about how life doesn’t always turns out the way we want, and we have to cherish everyone and everything we have. However, as I got older, everything that went on in our daily lives seemed to validate these ideas even more so.

I don’t have any New Year resolutions for this year. I can foresee my stay-at-home life will continue for many more months this year. While I am home, I might as well utilize the time to do things that I enjoy.

Below are my five things for this month.

Nail

For me, when it comes to the nail color for the beginning of the year, there’s nothing better than red.
Gel Nails for Holidays 2019
(Red nails for the January; hope for a great new beginning.)

Painting

I recently purchased some paint by numbers painting kits. The kit comes with a canvas marked with numbers and areas. Each number correspondeds to the paint labeled in the kit. The one I am working on is an Italian landscape. I plan to finish it in January. Once I am done with this painting I want to frame it and hang on my home office wall.

Italian Landscape Painting
(My first paint by numbers project – Italian Landscape.)

Piano

I’ve learned how to play many of my favorite piano songs in the past few months. I want to learn more classic songs this year. I bought a new piano book, The Romantic Era Piano Album. This books has 51 songs from famous music composers, such as Chopin, Schubert, and Tchaikovsky, etc.

When the book first arrived to my home I had so much fun just to scan through the book put sticky notes on the songs I want to learn for now. It will take me months to learn them, but I am so excited to start my new learning journey.
(Here is my new piano practice book. I can’t wait to learn all the classic songs.)
The Romantic Era Piano Album
(My new piano book for this year.)

Accessories

It’s no secret that I love accessories with sequins and glitters. I used to love wearing UGG boots when I went out in the cold weather. Since I am staying home everyday I rarely get the chance to wear UGG boots. My feet get cold in the morning when I’m sitting in my home office working.  Nothing can beat the cozy short sequins UGG boots. If I need to light up my work mood, I know exactly where to turn my eyes to.

March 2021 Glittery Accessories
(My new cozy glitter boots to keep me warm.)

Reading Material

It’s always fun to start the year with a new book. The new book I plan on reading is “Meditation & Mindfulness” by Andy Puddicombe. For years, I’ve heard many people talking about how meditation help them with their well-being and health. I don’t know if meditation is for everyone, but it doesn’t hurt to understand what this is about and try to practice it to see if it makes any difference for me.

January 2021 Reading Material
(My very first meditation book.)

The Cover Image: This picture was taken the last time I saw my nieces in person, right before the pandemic. It was a wonderful time, which I hope to resume to, soon.
Cover Picture for January 2021

All Posts, Beauty, Fashion, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – December 2020

It’s hard to imagine that we are already in the last month of 2020. I used to travel to somewhere else every other month in the past, but I have gotten used to staying home for social distancing since March of this year. The downside of “caving” at home is that I can hardly feel any holiday vibes at all.

My solution to the lack of holiday vibes is turning on a lot of Christmas lights at home, enjoying Eggnog liqueur and Ginger Bread liqueur with my coffee, and playing piano to make this holiday season memorable.

Below are five of the things I am doing this month to keep up my holiday spirit.

New Nails

No holiday is complete without red nails. For this month I have my nails done in red color covered with gold glitters on the thumbs, middle and pinky fingers. I used the pink glitters on my ring fingers and I also used the pink glitters on my index fingers.

Nails for December 2020
(Red nails with gold and pink glitters for December 2020.)

Coffee

Nespresso released a new Chocolate Fudge coffee at the end of November. I am so glad I received it just in time for my holiday season treats.  Below is one of the ways I drink the Chocolate Fudge coffee – pour the Eggnog milk in the glass first, brew the coffee over it, add whipped cream, and top it with a honeycomb cube.

To my surprise, the honeycomb cube was too dense; it sank to the bottom of the glass instantly and created the middle special layer. I guess in exchange for the perfect holiday drink picture, I got an unexpected “special effect” view.

December 2020 Holiday Coffee
(Nespresso’s new Chocolate Fudge coffee with Eggnog, whipped cream and honeycomb, which sank to the bottom of the glass.)

Piano Practice

For this month, I am learning the song, Rhapsodie on a Theme of Paganini, by Sergei Rachmaninoff. The first time I heard this song was in the movie Somewhere in Time. I think Somewhere in Time is a great love story and the Rhapsodie on a Theme of Paganini is a beautiful song that complements the movie well.

Somewhere in Time Cover
(This is the cover picture from one of the song tracks for the Somewhere in Time movie.)

Drink

I love to drink Ginger Bread latte during the holiday season. I got this Ginger Bread liqueur from the Trader Joe’s yesterday. I’ve had it straight over ice; it’s a bit too sweet, but I love its Ginger Bread flavor. I’ve also tried the Ginger Bread liqueur with my Nespresso Vanilla Custer Pie coffee, which was delicious. It’s even better with whipped cream on the top.
Holiday Drink - Ginger Bread Liqueur
(My must-have drink ingredient for this holiday season – Ginger Bread liqueur.)

Beauty

No holiday season is complete without some new holiday beauty products. One of my favorite makeup artist, Pat McGrath, released her holiday collection, including the eyeshadow palette – Mothership Mega: Celestial Divinity. Playing with the colors in this eyeshadow palette will be a great fun activity for this month.

Pat McGRATH Celestial Divinity Eyeshadow Palette
(The new Pat McGrath’s holiday eyeshadow – Celestial Divinity.)

All Posts, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – June 2020

What do I like about June? Well, for sure, I like the sunny weather. And the second thing I like about June is the flowers blooming in our yard.

Before this year, I didn’t pay much attention to the plants we have. But staying home in the past few months gave me the opportunity to appreciate the pleasant view we have. When I need a mini-break from doing whatever I am working on, I’ll walk to the backyard and look at the roses, peonies, and water lily. It’s amazing to see their transformation from tiny buds to  fully bloomed colorful flowers.

Below are five of the many things I am doing in June.

New Nails

The salons in our area are now open. Although I miss my beautiful gel nails, I still prefer to staying home to be safe. So I did my own nails again.

I used bright pink nail polish as the base color. I put blue and pink glitters on most of my fingers. On my ring finger I used gold glitters just for fun. Overall, I am actually very happy with my own work.

Nail Design for June 2020

(Picture of the nails I did for this month.)

Cooking

I love to eat any kind of pasta. I’ve been craving for spaghetti carbonara and found the recipe online. I was surprised at how easy it was to make it from scratch. All I needed was the garlic, bacon, Parmesan cheese, egg, and spaghetti.

Homemade Spaghetti Carbonara

(My first homemade spaghetti carbonara.)

New Toy

I haven’t played piano for a long time. I learned how to play piano when I was a child and I quit when I was 13 year old. In the past year, I was contemplating on the idea of getting a piano and playing again. But I was afraid that I might not be able to remember how to play the piano.  I finally bought the piano and have been playing it everyday.

Music Sheet and Flowers
(This is a picture I took today; my old music sheet book with the flowers from our backyard.)

Beauty Products

I really enjoy using Charlotte Tilbury’s beauty products. For June, I am going to try her Goddess Cleansing Ritual cleaning products to see if it does really hydrate, clean, and give my skin radiant-looking complexion.  As always, I know I will have fun trying new products.

Charlotte Tilbury Goddess Cleansing Ritual
(Picture of Charlotte Tuilbury’s Goddess Cleansing Ritual cleaning products.)

Reading Material

I always enjoy reading biography.  I find it interesting to read other people’s life story, how they get to where they are today, and how they overcome the obstacles in their life and the lessons they learned along the way.

The new book I am reading is called “The Ride of A Lifetime”, by Robert Iger, the Chairman and CEO of the Walt Disney Company. I am only on the first chapter of the book and I am already looking forward to reading the rest.

New Book to Read for June 2020

All Posts, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – May 2020

We are now officially in Spring. It seems like a great time to try new skin care routines at home. After using the new night serum last month and seeing my smiling line wrinkles become a little bit less visible, I am motivated to try a new skin care product that might give my dry skin the hydration it thirsts for.

Here are some of the things I am doing in May.

New Nails

I used to get my gel nails done in the salon every four weeks in the past year.  It has been two months since my last gel nails appointment. I am not quite used to seeing my nails without any colors.

I bought some new regular nail polish last week and I am ready to keep up with the nail color work myself until I can get to my next appointment.

Nails for May 2020

(My nails in red and glitters.)

Baking

There’s a shortage for baking yeast right now, because more people are baking at home now. Since I am short of yeast, I am switching from making bread to baking cake. This will cover my daily breakfast with my morning coffee.
Homemade Cake for May 2020
(My homemade white cake with colorful sprinkles to cheer my morning.)

New Entertainment

A few months ago Nintendo released a new Switch game, called Animal Crossing New Horizons. My brother’s family has been playing this while they are staying home. They’ve been telling me how great the Animal Crossing game is and they bought me the game, so I can join them for the family fun. Both the new game console and game will arrive in the next few days. I can’t wait to start to play.

Picture of My Animal Crossing New Horizons Island

(Picture of the the residents in my Animal Crossing New Horizons game.)

New Beauty

Charlotte Tuilbury is one of my favorite makeup artists. I’ve been using her Magic Cream as makeup primer and Multi-Miracle Glow Cleanser, Mask, and Balm as night mask in the past two years. I’ve heard a lot of good things about Charlotte Tuilbury’s Magic Night Cream and I plan to use it as my night moisturizer this month to see if it’s as hydrating as it advertises.

Charlotte Tilbury Skincare Products
(The picture of Charlotte Tuilbury’s Magic Day and Night Cream.)

Home Improvement

I never pictured myself as a capable home improvement person. However, I recently managed to fix a leakage in my toilet tank myself vs. hiring a plummet who gave me an estimate of $500. The cost of fixing it myself was $8 for the replacement parts and a couple hours of my time. I now have a functional toilet, and I also gained some confidence with fixing minor problems at home.

I just discovered there’s a minor flushing issue with another toilet at home. My plan for this month is to buy parts and try to fix it myself. It’s going to be a fun challenge while staying at home.

Home Improvement Project for May 2020

(Picture of the parts for my May home improvement project.)

The Cover Image: This picture was taken in my backyard. I was wearing a purple sweater with a fuchsia lip gloss and drinking my favorite Long Shadows Cabernet Sauvignon Feather.

Cover Picture for May 2020

All Posts, Beauty, Fashion, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – April 2020

April marks the beginning of the second month of pandemic social distancing. I am very grateful that most of my friends and I are home safely with our loved ones. But my heart goes out to the people who are being affected by this unfortunate event, especially to those who lost a family member or friend.

While I am sheltered safely at home with my elderly parents, a couple of my friends have family members working on the front lines, such as hospitals and essential businesses. They are risking their health and lives to save people and provide the services that keep us going. I can only imagine how difficult it must be for anyone seeing their loved ones go out for work and face uncertainty every day.

I really hope this pandemic transmission will slow down and be under control soon, so people can feel safe to resume their regular lives again.

Below are some of the things I will be doing this month at home. Most of them are related to what I can do while I am staying home.

Baking

I am so glad I bought a new bread maker machine during the past holiday. We eat a lot of bread at home every day, so I’ve been making a new loaf of bread every two days. My recent favorite bread to make is oatmeal with raisin.

Homemade Oat Bread
(This is the oatmeal bread with raisin, my latest favorite.)

New Beauty

I could never resist the temptation of the new lipsticks, especially when it comes to glitters. Dior recently launched new Addict Stellar Halo Shine lipsticks and lip glosses. These new lip products have extra shimmering and shine. The must-get signature color in these collections is “Be Dior”, which was first released last year for the Addict Stellar Shine lipsticks.

New Dior Addict Stellar Lipsticks and Lip Gloss
(New Dior Addict Stellar Halo Shine lipsticks and lip glosses.)

Concert

Last October I bough tickets for my mom, aunts, and I to go watch Celine Dion’s concert at the Tacoma Dome (in Tacoma, Washington)  scheduled for April 15. Due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, the show has been rescheduled. I am so glad that I went to watch Celine Dion’s show in Las Vegas two different times last year and recorded most part of her show on my phone. Although I can’t watch her in person this year, I have the ability to watch her fantastic show at my fingertips.

Celine Dion Concert
(The picture of Celine Dion I took during her concert in Las Vegas. I was standing right in front of the stage at that time.)

Reading Material

There’s no better time for self improvement than now.  For this month I am reading the book, “A Mind for Numbers”. The author of this book explains how our mind works, and emphasizes the most effective and efficient techniques for learning. The techniques can be applied to anything you want to learn, not limited to math or science only.

Reading Material for April 2020
(The book I am reading this month.)

New Beauty

As I age, it’s impossible to avoid getting facial wrinkles. However, there are skin care products we can use to make wrinkles less visible. For example, BeautyBio’s “R45 The Reversal” three-phase serum. The product is intended for nighttime use. Each phase of the serum lasts about two weeks. Once you finish the phase 1, you move on to phase 2, then phase 3. I am currently using this serum. It will be interesting to see if it makes any difference after I finish using this product.
BeautyBio Serum
(The BeautyBio Serum I am currently using.)

The Cover Image: I am wearing Chanel’s Rouge Allure Velvet Luminous Matte lipstick in color “347 Camelia Fuchsia”. I love this fuchsia/bright pink lipstick as well as its camellia motif embossed on the bottom. For the day time look, this lipstick color goes well with this See by Chloe jean dress.

Wearing New Chanel Lipsticks

All Posts, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – March 2020

It seemed like Year 2020 just started a few weeks ago, but we are already in March. During the first week of March I took a trip to Las Vegas. I had the chance to meet my friends for afternoon tea and eat at my favorite restaurants.

Little did I know all of the places that I visited in Las Vegas would all be closed due to the coronavirus outbreak. I’ve been staying home with my family since I returned from my Las Vegas trip.

With everything that is going on, I am grateful that I can be home with my loved ones. Thanks to all the people working in the health care for risking their life to save people. Please be safe.

For the rest of people, if you have no essential business that requires you to go out, please stay home.

Below are the things I did this month, before the pandemic quarantine. I plan to do more cooking and baking while I stay home everyday.

New Nails

Last month I had red glitter nails with gold accessories and one gold glitter nail with red crystals on each hand. (Click here to see the picture.) I think the red crystals stand out more when they are placed on the gold glitters instead of on the red glitter nails, which I had back in November.

For this month, I wanted more gold glitter nails with red crystals than my usual favorite red nails. In additional to red crystals, I have light pink crystals on my index finger and pinky. To showcase the crystals, I decided to go with plain red instead of glitter red nails on my thumb and ring finger.
Gel Nails for March 2020
(My gel nails for March 2020 — I have more gold glitter gel nails with crystals than last month.)

New Coffee

Nespresso just released new flavored coffee and espresso. As usual, I want to try each new flavor. The new flavors for the Nespresso’s Original line are Cocoa Truffle, Caramel Crème Brûlée and Vanilla Éclair. And the new flavors for the Nespresso’s Vertuo line are Hazelino Muffin, Caramel Cookie and Vanilla Custard Pie. My favorite picks are Vanilla Éclair for the Original Line and Hazelino Muffin for the Vertuo line.

Morning Pick-me-up for March 2020

(My morning must-have drink — Nespresso coffee.)

Afternoon Tea

In the beginning of March, while I was in Las Vegas, I met with my friend who lives in Las Vegas. We had the afternoon tea at the Tea Lounge in the Waldorf Astoria. My overall experience of the afternoon tea there was great. Everything was delicious and the company was wonderful, as always.

Afternoon Tea with Friend
(Having afternoon tea at the Tea Lounge in the Waldorf Astoria, Las Vegas. On the right is the dessert portion of our afternoon tea.)

New Beauty

Pat McGrath released a new Opulust Gloss. I bought this new lip gloss in Venomistress (which I wore in my picture below) and Glowing Garnet. The formula of this Opulust Gloss is not sticky, but they stay put on the lips surprisingly well. If you are into sparkles and shimmering lips, you’ll like these as much as I do. I plan on getting more of it in both Lavendering and Dreamcatcher.

Trying on New Lip Gloass

(Picture: Use the latest one taken in Vdara shows the lip gloss.)

Cooking

My family has been making homemade dumplings from scratch since I was a child. To make dumplings, you’d need to make the filling with meat and vegetables, knead the dough, and roll the dumpling skin, then wrap the filing in the dumpling skin. The only thing I I knew how to do was to roll the dough into dumpling skins and wrap the dumplings with filling.

This month, I wanted to learn how to make dumplings from scratch all on my own.
Homemade Dumplings
(These are my homemade dumplings. It’s my first time making them from scratch on my own.)

The Cover Image: I was getting ready for the dinner at Harvest restaurant in the Bellagio hotel, Las Vegas. In the picture I am wearing Pat McGrath’s Opulust Gloss in Venomistress. I think this purple/fuchsia glitter lip gloss matches well with my Self-portrait sequined minidress in black and green pattern.