Things that Rock: YSL Easy Liner

My latest find--YSL Easy Liner!

It apparently has been around for a long time, but I happened to run into someone (stranger!) that swore by it at a makeup counter yesterday. I've been a faithful user of eyeliner pencils because I've always ended up with the panda-bear eyes every time liquid or gel eyeliners were applied. My unsteady hands and heavy Asian lids don't help either!

However, this one comes out very little at a time, and it's super easy to control. The brush dispenses the liquid evenly, and the thin liquid formula allows me to apply once for a thin line that looks almost gray or multiple times for more dramatic look.

If you've been frustrated with eyeliners, definitely try this one!
I love it!!

Breakfast That Rocks!

Some of you know that Russ "gets into" things very easily.
He would find his thing, do his thing, perfect his thing, and then move onto his new thing.

His thing at the moment: Æbleskiver!
It's a Danish (I believe?) pancake puffs with fruit filling.

We love it when "his thing" coincides with "our thing."
This morning, the whole Schroader clan had a very sweet start.

For those of you who are in Japan, you can definitely use your Takoyaki-pan.

Fresh blueberries instead of pie filling would be yummy too!

2 egg whites

2C all-purpose flour

2tsp baking powder

1TBSP white sugar

1/2tsp baking soda

1/2tsp salt

4TBSP butter, melted

2C buttermilk

fruit pie filling

Vegas, Baby!

A couple of weeks ago, my girlfriends and I took our first annual girls' trip to... Viva! Las Vegas!

I had not been to Vegas for quite a while; it'd been almost 5 years?
There were a couple of note-worthy events:

1. My first Blackjack experience!
I'd have to dedicate this life-changing experience to my gamble-guru, Meredith.

She pep-rallied before we left for the trip, constantly reminded us the importance of finding a reasonable blackjack table during the trip, and cheerfully escorted us out of posh Venetian resort where we were staying into the wilderness of TI.

After several (...okay, many) rounds of frustrating rookie mistakes, I finally got a hang of it, and it was very fun! It really got intellectually challenging once I got a couple of Cape Cods down somehow. Weird.

2. I became Brazilian!
I had to. After such an awesome night at SushiSamba Strip, I willfully surrendered my Japanese citizenship and started claiming my inner Brazilian-ness. Okay, I need to practice that a bit more.


But seriously, everything we had there was beyond fabulous, ranging from simple Miso Soup to robata-grilled sea bass. (Although I wonder if it really was sea bass--I heard many restaurants are serving white fish as Chilean sea bass everywhere... However, being a proud Brazilian that I am, I'm sure Brazilians would know the difference!)

For those of you who are on the east coast, they have a couple of them in NY as well as one in Miami. I believe their original location is in Chicago. Click here for more information.

3. We met a couple of cool entrepreneurs, with the emphasis on cool.
Hem Jeans
At the blackjack table in TI, we met Amy (aka: our bad luck!) who co-owns a tiny specialty-jean store with her sister in Austin, TX.

If you are a jean enthusiast, like me, Hem is like a mecca of all awesome jeans. What I didn't know is that they do in-store alterations right there, which is sooooo important for a little person, again, like me.

If you live in the area, or if you are traveling to the area, or if you just want to visit the store, check it out at the corner of 12th and Shoal Creek.

Claudio Riaz
Last but not the least, I cannot end this post without mentioning our awesome find: Claudio Riaz brushes!


These are way better than any other brushes I've tried so far.
Claudio mentioned that these are imported from an art-brush maker in Tokyo.

I purchased his concealer brush. It is kind of wide, but pointed in the middle, which makes it very easy to apply concealer right up to the lash line precisely. Because it's wide, it blends in no time as well. It works much better than the Bobby Brown brush, which I used to think was so awesome.

Michelle bought the angled gel liner brush, which I'm kicking myself for not getting. It had very good firmness to it, but at $65/brush, I didn't feel that it was unique enough. Wrong! Apparently, from Michelle's rave review, it performs above and beyond. She loves it, and she's a pretty tough critic.

Here's our before & after pic:

The man in the suit is Claudio himself. Isn't he the most gorgeous man alive? ...Well, beside my Sweetie, of course.

For those of you who are interested, you can purchase any of his brushes from Barney's New York. He mentioned that he was going on a promotional tour to Tokyo--I'm not sure if his stuff is in Barney's there yet. If any of you happen to see those, definitely try them out and send me your review!

Tchau!
Keiko

Best Comedy Ever!

Russ and I went to see Tropic Thunder last night at the Alamo Draft House.
It was the perfect movie to watch at the Alamo--it was so funny that I even forgot about the nasty cold I was coming down with, and I completely feel better today.

Laghter is the best medicine.

THINGS THAT ROCK - Pretty Pineapples

If you are a wannabe Queen of Entertainment like me, check out this post by Julie. It's a good thing.

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Pretty Pineapple

When I teach my kids a certain technique, pertaining to chores, I like to start with, "I learned this in the Navy," which is supposed to conjure up a certain amount of interest. Plus, my dad used to say it. "I learned this in the Navy." So, in keeping with tradition, I thought I would begin my Pretty Pineapple lesson with, "I learned this in the Navy." But, I can't use that phrase anymore because my kids always say, "Mom, we really thought you were in the Navy." Incidentally, I was never in the Navy, and neither was my dad. It was an expression, okay?! If I try this expression on my kids now....well, it has the opposite effect of the original intention. Since honesty is the best policy, and my kids prefer it to fictitious expressions, I will preface this Pretty Pineapple lesson with the truth.

I learned how to cut Pretty Pineapple in college. Every Friday I would ride my bike to campus at 3 a.m. so I could begin preparations for the Skyroom's gourmet buffet. I dressed a fish, boiled a huge vat of shrimp, fixed Kiwi Chicken, and prepared Pretty Pineapple. In fact, when I first laid eyes upon Mr. B. (my future husband to be), it was on a Friday. I was concerned about meeting him that particular day because I smelled and looked like a boiled shrimp. He didn't seem to mind, because shortly thereafter he asked me out. But, that is another story.

I think the pineapple pictures speak for themselves. Be sure to use fancy toothpicks - the kind with colored cellophane, frayed and fanning on top. And use a formal platter - one that will compliment and support the palmy leaves.

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This Is What You've Been Waiting For!

Sorry it took me forever to post this!
Here's the footage of our little shining star!

THINGS THAT ROCK: Fiber One Muffin Mix

Being a daughter of an accomplished baker, I'm usually not a big fan of boxed baking products that we see at grocery stores, and I try my best to bake from scratch as much as possible.

But recently, Rachid purchased a Fiber One muffin mix, which turned out to be excellent.
Not only it is so super easy to make (add the mix into milk, oil and eggs!), the tiny slices of apples taste great and you can't complain about the fiber content in each muffin. But most amazingly, kids really love them--for the Sunday breakfast, the boys chose those muffins over the sugar-sprinkled doughnuts that were displayed in the bakery!

THINGS THAT ROCK - Kyocera Ceramic Peeler

I am not sure what I used to do without this thing.



It is one of those items that I have not had for that long, but yet, I cannot imagine my life without it.

...Ok, that may have been a bit over-dramatic, but that's almost how passionately I love this tool. I must admit, being Japanese-made myself, I am a little partial toward Japanese products. But this thing really rocks!

You can purchase it from Sur La Table for $20 or from Amazon.com below.　
It will truly be the last peeler you'd ever purchase.