St. Louis Bar & Grill

Even though I ate two burgers and two hot dogs at last night's BBQ, I still went to St. Louis to devour a pound of my new favourite buffalo ranch wings (with fries and dill sauce!) today. And it was worth every single calorie and fat gram.

Summer Barbeque

A bunch of us went over to our friend Sherwin's house for a BBQ party this evening, where there were plenty of freshly-grilled burgers, hot dogs, and wings. I made up for not drinking by eating way too much. It was awesome. Happy long weekend!

Lush Ocean Salt Body Scrub

My Lush haul from this week included a tub of their Ocean Salt Face and Body Scrub. Ocean Salt is made of sea salt, fresh lime extracted in vodka, lemon and grapefruit juices, avocado butter, coconut, and violet leaf and seaweed absolute. Lime is used as an antibacterial agent, and the vodka helps with blocked pores, blackheads, and blemishes. The minerals found in sea salt softens skin, though the abrasive quality of it helps with dirt and blockages. The avocado and coconut help keep the skin soft and hydrated, and the violet leaf calms the skin. The scent of this product is something that I'm kind of indifferent to. It's mostly citrusy and also kind of herbal, but there is that lingering aroma of vodka that makes it almost slightly bitter. It doesn't bother me, but I can see it not appealing to others.

Firstly, I must note that I use Ocean Salt only for the body because I feel that the coarse sea salt is too rough for my face, so I don't know the effect it has on facial skin. The main reason I picked up this product is because I have keratosis pilaris (KP) on the back of my arms, and I wanted to use a fairly abrasive scrub that would help with the texture and appearance of the bumps, and my co-worker suggested this one. I usually scoop up about a tablespoon of the concoction, spread it on my arms, and scrub with my hands for about a minute on each arm. After four consecutive uses once a day, I have found that the back of my arms do feel much smoother, and are significantly less red. I do, of course, follow up with a good moisturizer, but so far, this scrub is working quite nicely for my KP without irritating it at all. The scrub will set you back $30.95 for a large (250g) tub, but it's been worth it for me and my purposes so far.

Kelsey's

Shawn and I went for a late dinner at Kelsey's tonight after I was done work. We ordered the steak fajitas for two, which were mediocre; filling, yes, and my craving for fajitas was satisfied, but they weren't fantastic. I took some pictures of them, but they didn't turn out very nicely (fajitas aren't really that photogenic, as it turns out), so I'm not going to bother posting them here. For dessert, however, we ordered the deep-fried Mars Bar. And while that sounds gross (like deep-fried butter or deep-fried Oreos), let me tell you, people: it is awesome. Heart attack waiting to happen or not, it is damn delicious. I tried a deep-fried Mars Bar once before, at the CNE last year, but their batter was totally inferior, reminiscent to that of a Pogo (which is great with sausage, but not so much with a chocolate bar). To make it even more delightfully fattening, it comes with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, drizzled in chocolate syrup! Epic, right? I would definitely order that again. Also because I'm not sure where else you can get a deep-fried Mars Bar all year round.

Red Lobster

Shawn and I went to Red Lobster for dinner!

Cheddar Bay Biscuits (a.k.a. the most divine things on Earth)

Lobster, Artichoke, and Seafood Dip

Savoury garlic shrimp

Seaside Shrimp Trio: breaded shrimp, savoury garlic shrimp, and shrimp linguini alfredo

Okay, so any meal that starts with those Cheddar Bay biscuits is going to be a phenomenal one. Really. Like, I could have just that basket of biscuits and be a happy camper. Sadly, you can't really get the free biscuits without actually ordering something. So Shawn and I decided to get the Lobster and Artichoke Dip to start. It's ridiculous. The dip is made of artichokes, spinach, Maritime lobster meat, and seafood in a three-cheese blend. It's served with tortilla chips, which are okay (some of them were soggy from all the grease sitting on them, though I'm not sure where the grease came from in the first place), but you try it with the biscuits? Holy moly, what was that? Oh, yeah, that was your tastebuds having simultaneous orgasms.

I then ordered the Seaside Shrimp Trio as my main course, which includes breaded shrimp, savoury garlic shrimp, and shrimp linguine alfredo, along with your choice of side (I had the baked potato). Too much shrimp, you say? Never! If there is one thing I have to complain about, though, it's the breaded shrimp. It's all breading and almost no shrimp. I wouldn't order that again. It doesn't really matter, in any case, 'cause I couldn't finish it. After the linguine and the garlic shrimp (and the dip and um, three biscuits), I had one breaded shrimp and was like, "Nope, can't, gonna explode." So, Shawn doggie-bagged it, 'cause he doesn't mind the breaded shrimp. (Gross.) Next time, I think I will ask for an extra basket of biscuits and at the end of the meal, just be all, "Whoopsies, couldn't finish them!" and get a take-out container to take them home.

China Glaze Nail Lacquer in Four Leaf Clover

I wanted to go back to crazy brights for my nails this week, but didn't want something that was too predictably "summer-y." So in came China Glaze's Four Leaf Clover, which was launched with their Up & Away collection for Spring 2010. This colour is spectacular. It's a bright mid-tone emerald green with a subtle teal edge in a cream finish. It's richly pigmented, super-smooth, and thick without being goopy. This formula is probably my ideal; it's similar to Butter London's better shades. It's not streaky at all, it went opaque in one coat, and it's definitely one of the more unique colours I've come across. It's like a brighter, more teal version of Essie's Pretty Edgy. If you like green nail polishes (or brights in general), this one is a must-have.

Lush Whoosh Shower Jelly

Last week, I went with my co-worker to Lush on our lunch break so she could return her five containers to get a free fresh face mask (which is similar to MAC's recycling program). The aforementioned co-worker loves everything about Lush, and owns nearly every single product they've ever created. I've used two or three of their products many years ago, but I was never smitten with anything, so I figured I would talk to the girl who worked there to guide me through some of their products. With every product I asked about, she would tell me what it does, who it's for, and what it's made out of. She even scrubbed my arm down with one of their Buffy bars at their in-store sink so I could see how smooth my skin was afterward (very smooth). She then gave me one of their newspaper catalogues to take home so I could read further into their products.

After perusing their catalogue, I decided to go in today and pick up a few goodies, one of which was a large tub of Whoosh Shower Jelly. It's quite possibly one of the most fun shower/bath products, ever. The consistency is literally like Jell-O. Bouncy, squishy, slippery. And it's turquoise! But you put a tiny piece in your bath pouf, and it foams up like crazy. I know, I don't exactly get "foaming" from "Jell-O," but seriously, just that little piece of jelly created a massive storm of foam! That having been said, I do recommend using a bath pouf instead of just your hands, because the pouf foams it up way more. (What can I say, I like my cleansers to be foamy. It's the only way I actually feel like it's cleaning.)

The product is called "Whoosh" for a reason: it's like an instant pick-me-up. It's made with lemon, rosemary, and geranium essential oils, and lime and grapefruit juices. As a result, it has a bright citrus scent with a clean herbal edge, almost ocean-y, and I can see it appealing to both girls and guys. Especially great for those who shower in the morning, I reckon. It's very refreshing, and my skin feels clean but not dry at all. Considering the small amount you need to use per shower, I would say that the large tub I bought (240g) would last around four months. I would never describe showering as particularly fun, but shower jelly makes showering that much less tedious and that much more awesome. Definite re-buy!

Chanel Rouge Coco Shine Lipstick: Antigone and Fétiche

Having tried two shades of Chanel's Rouge Coco Shine lipsticks a couple months ago, I decided I liked them enough to buy another two, this time in Antigone and Fétiche. Chanel Rouge Coco Shine is a semi-sheer, high-shine, hydrating lipstick. There are currently 18 shades available, and you can find them at all Chanel counters as well as Murale in Canada. Rouge Coco Shine lipsticks feel very much like lip balms: smooth, soft, and emollient. Because of the semi-sheer coverage and the hydrating formula, they don't last longer than perhaps two or three hours, but they aren't meant to be long-wear lipsticks. They feel very comfortable on the lips, and while I wouldn't say they're the most moisturizing lipstick I've ever tried, they are fairly hydrating and are great for those who tend to have drier lips. This is also great for those who like the look of gloss but not the tackiness. Each tube contains approximately 3 grams of product, and retails for $39.

Antigone and Fétiche

Antigone is a raspberry pink with plum undertones and raspberry micro-shimmer. It's a gorgeous colour for that "just bitten" look. It runs very slightly cool, but this would work wonderfully on both warm and cool undertones, as well as fair to medium-dark skintones. Due to the sheerness of the product, this might not show up as well on dark skintones; perhaps a hint of deepened pink. I can see this shade being a staple for fall and winter. Fétiche is a light pink-mauve with gold micro-shimmer. The gold micro-shimmer makes it look almost peachy in the swatch above. It's very much like a mauve version of Boy, which leans more beige. They are, however, the same in lightness. Like Boy, it looks like a better version of your natural lip colour. It does add a tiny hint of pink/mauve, but it's still very natural. This shade will work on both warm and cool undertones, and fair to medium skintones. On medium-dark to dark skintones, this will look like a clear gloss/balm. Because of the neutrality of the shade, however, it will work all year round. All Rouge Coco Shines are scent- and taste-free.

Matsu Japanese + Thai

Met up with Mary for all-you-can-eat Japanese dinner tonight at Matsu, and we had ourselves a feast:

Seaweed salad and Thai mango salad

Thai seafood egg drop soup

Kalbi beef ribs

Matsu Roll: soft shell crab, shrimp tempura, fish roe, avocado, cucumber, asparagus, green onion, and mayonnaise wrapped in BBQ eel slices

Black Pearl Roll: snapper tempura and avocado wrapped in BBQ eel slices and topped with black caviar

Salmon and Cucumber Roll

Jungle Roll: fried yellowtail, fish roe, avocado, and mayonnaise

Submarine Roll: BBQ eel, fish roe, and avocado wrapped in salmon slices and topped with gold flakes

Rock 'n Roll: green onion, avocado, crab meat, cucumber, and teriyaki sauce wrapped in tuna slices and topped with tempura crumbs

Salmon and tuna sashimi

Salmon, yellowtail, and snapper sashimi

Yellow curry with beef brisket and roti

Deep-fried coconut shrimp

Needless to say, Mary and I were dying full by the end of the meal. But it was totally worth it! We were originally going to order from the à la carte menu, but soon realized that it would be cheaper to order from the all-you-can-eat menu ($24.99 for dinner on weekends), and with more variety, too. The food was fresh and tasty, the service was attentive and efficient and friendly, and everything was well-presented. Furthermore, the restaurant is beautifully decorated and perfectly lighted. We were both really impressed with everything, and decided we'd have to go back again soon. So glad we tried this new restaurant; it seems like Toronto has a plethora of mediocre all-you-can-eat Japanese restaurants, but Matsu is quite exceptional.

Thursday & Taking Back Sunday @ Kool Haus

Thursday

Taking Back Sunday

Taking Back Sunday

Had a ridiculously fun time tonight. The crowd was receptive and energetic, singing along to every song played, and the bands were interactive and played with passion and vigor; it's how all rock shows should be. Highlights include: "Understanding in a Car Crash" and "Jet Black New Year" from Thursday, and "Make Damn Sure," "Cute Without the 'E'," "There's No 'I' in Team," and "One-Eighty by Summer" from Taking Back Sunday. Oh, and not to forget Taking Back Sunday's beautiful cover of Straylight Run's "Existentialism on Prom Night." It's like I was in high school all over again, but in the best way possible.

(And, no, my iPhone does not take good dark indoor pictures.)

Rolling In The Deep

As if I didn't already love this song. Chester's voice is just perfect.

Essie Nail Colour in Silken Cord

I decided to try out the Essie nail polish that was included in my Luxe Box this month, called Silken Cord. It's a bright poppy red in a cream finish. Now, it must be said that I am not a red nail polish person. I know it's classic, but it's just never really appealed to me. But this red is just such a happy colour and makes hands look so instantly groomed that I may have changed my mind about reds. Plus, I like that you can wear it any time of year (Silken Cord actually debuted in Essie's Winter 2010 collection). It looks really classy on trimmed nails, and reminds me of chic Parisian ladies. And the application is phenomenal. Most Essie polishes I've tried take quite a bit of work because they go on watery and streaky, but Silken Cord went almost fully opaque in one thin-medium coat. If only Essie could make all of their shades with this consistency.

Go For Tea

Once in a while, my inner Asian will come out in full force and my craving for iced taro milk black tea overtakes me, and I will go to Go For Tea. So, Wynnie and I decided to go there for dinner and make a date of it.

Go For Tea recently introduced a specials menu, which feature nine or ten different dinner sets that include a main dish, two side dishes, and a bowl of soup for $10.99 a set. I decided to get the lamb with cumin, which came with a bowl of rice, a bowl of winter melon soup, a side of corn salad, and a side of some sort of bean curd with celery. Everything was actually really quite tasty and definitely worth $10.99, especially since a lot of the regular menu items already cost that much or more. The lamb was great and just spicy enough, but I could've done with less onions (which takes up about 40% of the dish). You totally have dragon breath afterward, but it's worth it.

Monster

One of my favourite songs of the year.

Like Sunset

Found these lovely lilies growing in my front yard today. I can't believe I didn't notice them until now, because they had to have been growing for a few weeks now. It's like time is going by so fast, I don't even notice the small things... That having been said, it's melt-tastically hot today. So I'm staying inside.

Friday Five

This week's Friday Five:

1. What is the longest distance you've traveled (in one trip) by foot? When I was 16, I spent a summer in New York City to study at Parsons School of Design, and I remember my roommate and I walked from our dorm (12th St. & 3rd Ave.) to The Met (80th St. & 5th Ave.), so roughly four miles (or 6.4 km) in one go.
2. What is the longest trip you've taken by car? The road trip Shawn and I took to Boston last fall, which is a driving distance of 883 km (or a nine-hour drive) one way.
3. What is the longest trip you've taken by plane? The flight from Toronto to Hong Kong, with a lay-over in Vancouver. I believe it was a total of 18 hours.
4. What is the longest trip you've taken on some kind of water craft? When I was 12, I went on a cruise that started in Barcelona, went around the Mediterranean, and then back to Spain.
5. What is the longest trip you've taken aboard a bus or train? Probably the train ride from Toronto to Montreal, which is about six hours.

Luxe Box

I received this month's Luxe Box in the mail yesterday. For those who don't know, Luxe Box is a monthly service that offers a box of three to five deluxe samples of different cosmetics products for $12 a month. The idea of it is to discover and try out different brands and products (which includes make-up, skincare, body care, nails, and hair). It's sent directly to your home, and is beautifully packaged to boot. Inside this month's box, I found a full-size 15 ml bottle of Essie Nail Polish in Silken Cord, a 15 ml bottle of Proclaim Hair Oil Treatment, a full-size 1.1-gram Trucco Pro Lip Liner in Russet, and a 1.2 ml sample size of Stella McCartney's Stella in Two Peony perfume.

I absolutely love the nail polish, which is a fun, bright cherry red, but I'm kind of indifferent to the other samples I received. The Trucco lip liner is nice, but the dark berry colour is not really one I'd wear. I would have preferred something a little more summery, like a coral or a fuchsia. I don't use hair treatments, but I feel like I'll get some use out of this one because I've been straightening my hair a lot lately, so this might help repair it. Perhaps I will use it instead of my Biosilk and see how it performs. The sample size of fragrance was the most disappointing, since it's something I could get at any perfume counter. And that having been said, I already have the full-size bottle of Stella in Two Peony. I like the scent, but the sample just seems... cheap. I guess the two full-size products kind of make up for it. Overall, I was kind of disappointed with this month's Luxe Box, as the only product I really like (and will use) is the Essie polish, but I guess I can't complain, 'cause I did get two full-size products for $10. I'm still looking forward to what August's Luxe Box will bring.

MAC Cine-matics: Eyeshadow Duos

MAC released a collection called Cine-matics on July 7, available exclusively at The Bay in Canada, which includes lip sets, brush sets, and smoky eye kits. Cine-matics also sees the release of eight new and limited edition eyeshadow duos, called Double Features, which will be widely released in a collection called Colourizations in August. I got four of the eight so far, but it's unlikely that I will pick up the other four, so this is all you will see of the Double Features here. The duos do not have individual names, and are only numbered. Each eyeshadow duo is housed in regular black packaging, and contains approximately 2.6 to 2.8 grams of product. Each duo retails for $30.

Double Feature 2

Double Feature 2

Double Feature 2 includes a bright chartreuse lime green in a Veluxe Pearl finish and a deep grey with silver shimmer in a Frost finish. The green shade had great pigmentation and colour pay-off, as Veluxe Pearls usually do. The closest shade I can think of is Bitter, which has been discontinued. It's like a lighter, more neon version of Lucky Green. The grey shade was a little more finicky, and goes on rather patchy and sheer, though it is buildable. It's like a shimmery version of Print.

Double Feature 3

Double Feature 3

Double Feature 3 includes a mid-tone bright teal in a Matte finish and a deep chocolate brown in a Satin finish. The teal shade applied beautifully, very pigmented with great colour pay-off. It wasn't powdery or patchy at all, which some Matte shades are prone to being. It is very similar to Surf USA from the Surf, Baby! collection, but with no shimmer or sheen. The brown shade was harder to work with, being more sheer, but it is buildable. It is similar to Charcoal Brown.

Double Feature 4

Double Feature 4

Double Feature 4 includes a medium-dark green-teal in a Veluxe Pearl finish and a medium ochre brown in a Matte finish. This duo is the best of the bunch, with both shades going on smoothly and evenly, very pigmented and with great colour pay-off. The teal shade is like a darker version of Steamy, and the brown shade is like a darker, matte version of Cork. There's honestly nothing I don't like about this duo.

Double Feature 7

Double Feature 7

Double Feature 7 includes a bright fuchsia pink in a Frost finish and a muted cool black in a Satin finish. The pink shade is pigmented and has good colour pay-off, but I felt it was a little powdery. It is like a brighter, pinker, and more intense version of Stars 'n Rockets. It is similar to Romping, which was discontinued. The black shade was much harder to use. Like the grey shade in Double Feature 2, this goes on patchy and sheer. You're much better off using Carbon, which is a truer, more intense black.

Overall, the only eyeshadow duo that's worth $30 is Double Feature 4. The other duos have nice colours, but because one shade is always significantly worse (in terms of texture and blendability), it ends up not being worth the money. Either way, a lot of people will not find the duos very wearable on their own. I can see a lot of people using one shade of the duo at a time, rather than both of them in a single look, unless they blend in a few other shades. The Double Features are worth taking a look at, but unless you really love both shades that are in the duos, you may be better off buying a customizable MAC palette.