NailArt: Diagonal and Holos

I've been into nail art lately and I have increased my stash bit by bit. I am not in any way doing this professionally but this is mostly for personally gratification :) I will be sharing some photos of what I have done, sharing only those I think can be visually friendly hahah!

For this nail series, here's my nail art inspired by diagonal lines and holograms using two cute colors.

Pink is LA Colors' Summertime; bottom half is LA Colors' Fuji Purple. Hologram diagonal stripe is Color Club's Blue Hologram.

Chocolate Lava Muffies (cookie+muffin hybrid)

Lately, weekends meant laboring in the kitchen for me. And since my body clock's all twisted due to my work, I wake up in the middle of the night and bake! Then baking it is for me! Oftentimes, I bake for little orders that come by and mostly for personal consumption at home. I'm not a big batch baker, you see. The most that I did was for four dozens of cupcake for a birthday celebration in the office. Here's how the cupcakes looked like:

The past two weeks, I was all about cookies! Chocolate chip cookies to be exact. My series of cookie baking started with actually started with 2 layers of cookies, baked on top of each other :) Take a look:

All you need are the generic ingredients for a chocolate chip cookie. Look for one online that would work best for you.

Here are the stuff that I needed. I used Belgian hard bake chips so the chocolates are still in their form after baking.

And here they are after about 20 minutes of preparation and 10-15 minutes baking time. How do taste? Read for yourself:

Chewy goodness!!

chocolate laden creation!

So how did I make these gastronomical babies? All it took was any regular chocolate chip recipe which you can easily find online. But please, this idea did not originate from me. I borrowed it from my favorite blog: www.kevinandamanda.com. Hop on and take a look! But first, scroll down just a wee bit more and you will find youself:

1. Hungry
2. Salivating
3. with Panic-stricken-grip-in-your-tummy-Please-give-me-some-of-these-cookie-wonders!! 
4. or All of the above!! 

hahaha! that was literally what I was feeling when I first saw the recipe on Amanda's lovely blog. I was at the office and I cannot stop thinking about them cookies!! I just had to make it!

Making them was a process I totally enjoyed. I made a mess but my house smelled divine!! ok, going back. Let me build up the excitement further and show you some photos from the preparation stage:

first layer of cookies!! It felt like starting to build the foundation hahaha!

them comes the melted Belgian chocolate that's sandwich between two sinful cookie dough then place another later of the dough.

Waiting, waiting, waiting. Can you feel that I was getting impatient and excited while taking this photo??

Patience paid off, big time!! This is what was waiting for me. Best. Reward. Ever.

I would have wanted to share some but I can't really post an edible one here on the blog hahah! Go visit Amanda's blog and get the ingredients and bake! Link is posted above. Happy baking!! and don't forget leave a comment here and share your baking experience!

My Perfect Porch...

Not exactly. I don't have one. But I dream a lot. At this point in my life that's what keeps me entertained during lull hours. I dream and this doubles as "life planning". Productive, eh? lol. Well, since I do not have the resources to carry out my dreams, might as well stack more and more to the ever growing inventory of what I want to do.

A house. Yep, I want to have my own someday. A house with a real lot, not on some building and the deed of the land where it stands is not under my name. On my previous post, I shared some bedroom inspirations. Now, let's take a step outside the imaginary house and look at some covered porches. With the tropical weather in my country and probably the lack of space in the city, it is rare to see covered porches or even the concept of porch alone. What is  a porch, by the way? According to the ever reliable M-W, a porch is defined as a covered area adjoining an entrance to a building and usually having a separate roof. Modern times has seen variations to this definition. It would be nice to have this space in the house, with a swing, where you can sit, prep your feet up and have coffee upon waking up or spend a quiet afternoon with a good book and tea. What a life!

In the future, resources and opportunity willing, I would want one someday in my own home. It would be a quaint little piece of corner in the house! My imagination is on overdrive as I think about how to design it. Here are some photos I found online and would serve as my personal pegs :)

The city dweller in me is oozing with envy just looking at these photos!! (photos are not mine by the way, photo sources are posted below).

This porch is an indoor one -- a screened porch to be exact! Since it's indoors there's no need to worry about dried leaves or twigs landing on the flooring plus it would still be a cool, breezy room with the goo ventilation! Kudos to the creative concept of the owner/designers.

Now, this lovely porch has an unbelievable summer time vibe to it. I love this! With just a creative punch of colors, here and there, you can simply achieve this look.

 
This is the all classic lovely porch: a wooden bench placed right by the window, potted plants and wooden slats as flooring.

 

This has got to be one of my favorite designs. Lounge chairs in rattan material plus pop of colors from the throw pillows, a rug that fits just perfectly... sounds like a wonderful porch to me!

And this one below has a more modern feel with the homey vibe to it with the installed porch swing. The pop of yellow is very welcoming too, amidst the straight lines borrowed from the wooden boards and the domination of white and dark green.

Don't you just love all these inspirations? Makes me want to start making my own. But first, I need space and a home of course. My current condo space is not exactly a porch material haha!

However, a porch doesn't necessarily have to be outside! With limited space, you can even create a screened porch that acts as an extension of a room! Just like the first photo I posted. One major element that need to be present is ventilation or circulation of air. It wouldn't be a porch if it's a tight fitted space right? It doesn't have to be extravagant or expensive. Creativity and imagination and knowing what you like is  all you need to get that porch started. Get online and start researching, scour for materials and inspirations! Happy planning!

Random Ramblings: on Beauty

I feel hesitant as I write this post but I feel that I have to after reading a recent entry from a blogger that I really look up to. She has a point and I was moved by the video she posted at the end of her blog and I thought of sharing the same on mine too. But before that, let me write a few a lines first.

I'm 26 years old, stands 4 feet 11 inches and I am underweight. Que horror! There. That description is far from what we normally hear on pageant announcements haha! But that's how I am physically. I honestly am unforgiving of my height and weight before but as I grow older I have come to realize to look past what I see in the mirror. Before, I used to hate it when someone would ask me about my height but then again, looking back, I take pride in the fact that I have been consistently in front of the line at school and take first dibs on birthday cake slices that they distribute during birthday celebrations. At least I don't have to worry about not getting my share!

I went through a phase where I hated how I look but I am over it. I have come to realize that I wouldn't be who I am if God has made me svelte at 5'10" with cheek bones that everyone will envy! I would be a super model living a hectic life and be pressured about looking perfect in front of people. I don't have anything against people who are blessed physically because I am blessed physically, too! I have complete arms, limbs and legs that function perfectly. I have eyes that can appreciate the beauty of the world, nose that can still smell my freshly baked goodies and mouth that appreciate good culinary creations :) Don't get me wrong, I hate the occasional presence of pimples in my face and unruly hair on some days but I just complain and really forget about it.

Despite my flaws and imperfections, I guess the biggest compliment I have ever received is that I don't look a day over 20. :) And that made me feel good, unexpectedly. Feeling good about yourself really does wonders for your self esteem. And I plan to keep it that way forever.

Here's the video that I mentioned at the start of this post. Feel free to share :)

Instagram Week : April 29

Top, L-R: The crazy roller coaster in Enchanted Kingdom + I am a sunset chaser, purple hues of my favorite scene Bottom, L-R: one of the hidden islets in Camsur + Palm trees outside my office. I wish I can say I was in vacation surrounded by these trees, but I am not :)

Yes, I bake cupcakes and I tried recreating them on my nails! Cupcake on my nails :) 

 Top, L-R: Top, L-R: One of the lines in his letters to me + Peace (May Photo A Day) during sundown Bottom, L-R:Dipping dots nail art + the peaceful afternoon walk in UP Diliman + Cupcake nail art

Top, L-R: Cuppy cake art (Chocolate Cupcake with peanut butter filling) + California Maki!! Bottom, L-R: White cupcakes + My favorite Chocolate brand that's proudly Filipino made + Gen San pasalubong from Ging