Coldstone Ice Cream Cupcakes

One day, while we were packing up everything in our old house, I caught an ice cream cake craving. Now this is nothing unusual... but it was a persistent one. Know the feeling? Well, after talking about it for two days, Jacob figured out that this one was serious. He has a few gift cards, courtesy of his mom, so we grabbed one and headed to Coldstone.

Now here's the thing about me and Jacob. We have very, very different palettes. He loves Oreos and chocolate chocolate everything. I happen to be much pickier about my chocolate - I pretty much only like pure dark chocolate (unless desperate, I prefer no milk chocolate, no chocolate ice cream, no chocolate cake). I also love cookie dough and all sorts of ice cream flavors he won't eat. This made it very difficult for us to agree on a flavor.

Behold! The Coldstone cupcake six pack! Three flavors, two cupcakes of each flavor. Sweet cream, cake batter deluxe, and oreo. I've been eyeing the cupcakes whenever we're at Coldstone, but we always end up with a full ice cream cake. We decided to try it this time, agreeing that he would take both chocolate cupcakes, I'd take both cake batter cupcakes, and we'd each take one sweet cream cupcake.

Left to right: sweet cream, cake batter deluxe, double chocolate devotion

The cupcakes consist of a crisp dark chocolate edible wrapper, encasing a very thin layer of cake, then a scoop of ice cream, topped with frosting that had the consistency of whipped cream, and sprinkles, chocolate shavings, or half a chocolate-covered Oreo.

Our thoughts? Jacob absolutely loved the chocolate cupcakes and he was a fan of the sweet cream. For me, they were mostly good, but the cake batter deluxe and sweet cream cupcakes were just too sweet. Too much frosting/whipped cream and the ice cream was very sugary, even for me. That is usually my issue with Coldstone in general - it's not my favorite ice cream place due to the super-sweetness. However, the chocolate shell was absolutely divine. Anyone know where to buy those? Or maybe I could find a mold and make them myself... so good!

Anyway, that was my first experience with ice cream cupcakes. I also just tried a strawberry one from The Ram, a brewery. It was delicious! I would love to try making my own version of ice cream cupcakes sometime. I feel like it would be less daunting than another ice cream cake.

Have you tried ice cream cupcakes? What did you think?

P.S. Due to the hectic process of moving in, I'll be skipping a few features this week. Unfortunately, I still haven't found my art journal yet (I put them in a "super safe spot" and then promptly forgot where that was), and I won't have time for Thoughts & Things Thursday tomorrow. I really, really hope to start them both up again next week! This weekend will involve catching up on blog reading, unpacking and getting things ready. I've set up/built most of the furniture in my studio and I'm ready to make it mine! Stay tuned for a big post on Friday!

It's Paper Dear Review: September 2012

You may recall that a few months ago, I tried out NatureBox (reviewed June and August), my very first subscription box. I mentioned that I had a hard time finding a box that suited me. As much as I loved the concept of NatureBox and a few amazing snacks they featured, I ended up canceling it. For me, it wasn't worth the price. I think the concept of the subscription box is a lot of fun, so I was pretty disappointed that it didn't work out.

Jenny to the rescue! She posted about It's Paper Dear, a cute little paper store run by super-sweet Zie. One of the items Zie sells in her shop are paper goods subscription boxes. Score!! Exactly my type of box. I signed up for the three-month subscription, and my first box arrived yesterday!

My Review - September 2012 It's Paper Dear Box
Check out these goodies in all of their glory! The background for the pictures is actually the pretty tissue paper that everything in the box was wrapped in. The yellow polka-dotted bag is hiding more inside. There were tons of cute things in the box, so I grouped them into general categories and took detailed shots so you can really see everything I got.

Sticky Notes & Pen & To-Do List
The little kraft folder holding a mini-pen and colorful sticky notes was super cute. I actually have a lot of sticky notes in various colors already, so this wasn't the most exciting thing in the box for me. But it definitely gets points for cuteness and I'll add it to my collection or give it to a friend. I adore the mini patterned sticky notes (white with orange & blue). Even though I do have tons of post-its, I really like collecting unique/patterned ones. The pen is pretty standard but the mint green color is just gorgeous! Plus the shop's name is so cute that the branding actually makes me like the pen more. Love the design of the To-Do List printout, although it might be one of those things that's so cute I don't want to use it! At least not for every day stuff... but maybe for a "life to-do list" type art/scrapbook project. Possibilities!!

Pretty Papers & Cutouts
I am a total sucker for pretty papers. Of any kind, really. I probably wouldn't choose these designs for myself at the store, but that's kinda what I love about a subscription box. Honestly, when it comes to paper patterns, I will find a use for everything - and sometimes interesting papers are what inspire my cards or art journaling pieces. So in summary, I like it! Also love cute cutouts - they are double-sided, making them more versatile. I'm not really sure what to do with the S, so I guess I'll have to be creative on that one.

Notecards & Tag & Postcard
Never hurts to have more pretty notecards! I love the striped mini-notecard. Gotta love anything with that many colors! It's the perfect gift tag size, but I'll probably be selfish instead and use it for an art journal spread. The papaya pink tag is pretty, but I was more excited about the chevron wax paper bag it came in! The paws print postcard (from one of the September It's Paper Dear sponsors) is not exactly my thing (although I really like some of the other postcards in her shop), but I can always send it to a friend I think would like it more.

Stickers
Apparently I never grew up, because I LOVE stickers! The sheet of label-like stickers will be perfect for all sorts of things. So pretty! I am a huge fan of stickers with some depth, so the pretty patterned "n" (which could also be a "u") will get used somehow. The kraft sticker has a cute silhouette but wasn't anything special. Bird? Very pretty! But my favorite is that bear... it's hard to beat red + black + predator for me!

Embellishments & Business Cards
The fun minty green lace doily gets points for being my current favorite color! Loving the gold sequins and the detailed think pink plastic heart. Flower button was cute too. And the pretty, delicate ribbons will definitely get some use - I love those colors! Yeah, yeah, I know... business cards aren't "supposed" to be part of the gift. But they totally are for me... I collect them. The cards were from this month's featured vendors, who contributed items to the box. The Little Pink Studio contributed the pretty ribbons, while Nature's My Friend contributed the postcard and bear sticker.

Pricing / Options

One month - $20 + $6.20 US shipping

Three months - $54 + $18.60 US shipping total ($2 savings per box)

Zie makes a set number of boxes each month. You purchase ahead of time for the following month (or three months). If you're interested, just be sure to purchase a listing early as it could run out. She also ships internationally - if your country isn't listed, you can contact her. Box ships the second week of each month.

You should always check the It's Paper Dear shop for most updated pricing & info. Zie also posts updates on her blog.

Overall

I am very happy with my September box! Unfortunately, the sticky note booklet was probably what you'd consider one of the larger items for the month (I think it counted as this month's journal?), and as I mentioned, I have a lot of those. Not the box's fault, I just have too many. I appreciated that everything was packaged very nicely, and I'll certainly re-use the wax paper bags. Overall presentation was great, with a consistent color scheme while still providing a wide variety of products. I was very happy with the sheer number of products included, and liked or loved almost everything in the box. Based on the number of products and careful selection, I think the pricing is reasonable.

Bottom Line

I would definitely recommend this box. Looking forward to the October box and to using everything in I got this month! I'm hoping for a washi tape next month! =D

Indie Spotlight: The Caramel Jar

Today, I wanted to share with you an awesome shop I discovered a little while back. I actually found them through a Fab sale and man, I am so glad I ordered! The shop is called The Caramel Jar and, as you may have guessed, they make the most delicious caramels. I tried the vanilla and fleur de sel - both are incredible, but I think vanilla would be my personal preference (by a very slight margin).

I ordered a 1/2 pound of each flavor, which arrived in adorable mason jars with ribbon adornment. The caramels themselves are individually wrapped in eco-friendly wax paper. I wasn't sure how much 1/2 a pound would end up being, but I thought the quantity was quite substantial.

The Caramel Jar also offers party/wedding favors. I'm usually nervous about trying foods from Etsy (although I always end up liking it) since you can't really sample it first. But I promise you'll like these caramels if you give them a try. Now excuse me while I go drool over their site some more. =)

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Indie Spotlight is a feature where I share a cool independent artist or small business. If you know of any artists / shops (could be your own) that you think fit my style, leave me a comment & link or e-mail me and I may feature them / you in a future post. =)

NatureBox Review: August 2012

Last month, I wrote about NatureBox, a subscription service delivering healthy snacks. Because I signed up between snack cycles, I ended up with the June box last time (even though it was July). This time, I'm back on the normal track and received my August box on Saturday. If you recall, last month's review was mixed, but I wanted to give it another shot. Here's the result:

My Review - August 2012 NatureBox

Top (left to right): Dried Fancy Figs, Far East Rice Crackers, Bombay Curried Cashews, 
Bottom (left to right): Maui Onion Crunch, Mexicana Mango

The theme of the August box was "Snacks From Around the World."

Far East Rice Crackers

This was a mix of various Japanese crackers, sprinkled with dried peas. I have had lots of these snacks before, so they weren't anything new to me, but I imagine they would be novel to some. It was good! I have always liked these kinds of snacks, and this was a relatively mild mix, which I consider a good thing because I'm a spiciness wimp and other times you get really weird flavored crackers. Not the case here. Good, solid snack, and I love how (like all NatureBox snacks) it contains no high fructose corn syrup, no partially hydrogenated oils, no trans fats, and no artificial sweeteners, flavors, or colors.

No sugar, fat, or cholesterol. Serving size: 1/4 cup.

35 calories (0 from fat), 55mg sodium, 8g carbs, and 1g protein.

Maui Onion Crunch

The only way I can think of to describe this snack is: savory almonds covered in a light, powdery sweet Maui Onion dry marinade. Crunch and flavorful and so, so good. Definitely a hit in the salty snack department. Jacob loved this one too. I had to hide it because, well, it's mine!!

No cholesterol. Serving size: 1/4 cup.

160 calories (130 from fat), 14g fat (1.5g saturated), 460mg sodium, 8g carbs, 3g dietary fiber, 2g sugar, 5g protein.

2% vitamin A, 2% vitamin C, 8% calcium, 6% iron.

Dried Fancy Figs

Okay, I'll admit it. I really dislike figs, so this was not my snack. I left this unopened so I can give this one away.

No fat or cholesterol. Serving Size: 40g.

132 calories (2 from fat), 6mg sodium, 31g carbs, 6g dietary fiber, 23g sugar, 1g protein.

5% calcium, 1% iron.

Bombay Curried Cashews

This was definitely the "interesting" snack of the bunch, to me. Curry flavored snack? It does have a strong curry flavor, which was a little odd to me on fruits and nuts, but it wasn't bad. I would say this was a medium snack in my book - I wouldn't buy it specifically, but I will probably eat most of the items in the bag.
No cholesterol. Serving size: 1/4 cup.
140 calories (90 from fat), 10g fat (1.5 saturated), 35mg sodium, 12g carbs, 2g dietary fiber, 5g sugar, 4g protein.
2% calcium, 6% iron.

Mexicana Mango

Definitely my favorite snack! I am a completely mango lover. I've tried all sorts of dried mangoes. These were divine. I used to go for the Philippines brand dried mangoes, which are delicious but have tons and tons of added sugars. These were light, natural tasting, and delicious. The snack was gone within two days of opening the box!

No cholesterol or sodium. Serving size: 3.5 pieces.

130 calories (5 from fat), 0.5g fat, 34g carbs, 4g dietary fiber, 30g sugar, 1g protein.

30% vitamin A, 90% vitamin C, 2% calcium, 2% iron.

Each NatureBox comes with a little description card, including a recipe and snack details.

Overall
Once again, the snacks were a little hit or miss for me, but I preferred these overall to the snacks in the June box. Two soaring favorites, two good but not exceptional, and one miss for me. Not too bad for a blind subscription box.

Bottom Line
I will give this box at least one more month and decide then.

Signing Up
I wrote about how to sign up along with additional information and a coupon code in my June box review.

Tried any new subscription boxes lately?

Myung Dong Tofu House - Seattle

First, thank you so, so much for your encouraging and sweet comments on Monday's art post! Reading them really made my evening! I will definitely be posting more of that in the future. =) Now, on to the food!

As a student at the University of Washington, I lived in Seattle's University District for four years. Restaurants and businesses would come and go frequently on the Ave (main street in the U-District). Someone once told me that businesses on the Ave only last an average of 10 years.

During my junior/senior year of college, a new business opened that completely changed my eating habits. The U-District was full of Thai, Japanese, Greek, Indian food, and more... but not Korean food. And then Myung Dong Tofu House opened just off the Ave, on 42nd & Brooklyn. Delicious food, cute little family-owned restaurant... and it was less than a block from my apartment. What's not to love?

I started eating there. A lot. At least once a week. Just to clarify, the food options are not limited to tofu. They do specialize in tofu soup, though, which is one of my favorite foods in the world. One thing I love about going to Korean restaurants here is the little "appetizers" of sorts that they bring out before your meal. All complimentary.

David, one of my best friends from high school, moved to the Seattle/Tacoma area (okay, he moved a year ago but we keep forgetting we live in the same area now). We decided to catch up over dinner, so of course I picked the Tofu House! I've missed it tremendously since leaving the U-District.

Clockwise from left: Two types of kimchi, bean sprouts, potato in sauce (tastes like soy sauce), green onion pancake

I ordered the vegetable tofu soup. I used to get the beef tofu soup before I stopped eating meat (other than seafood) - so good. With the vegetable tofu soup, they asked if I wanted water instead of the beef broth, and I said yes. It was still good, although not quite as tasty. However, I did also ask for mild spiciness since I'm a total spiciness wimp. So it would probably be tastier with more spice. They drop a raw egg in (if you want), which you mix into the soup so it cooks and looks a bit like the egg in egg drop soup.

 Can you tell it was really hot? It was hard to take a picture through the steam!

David got a mixed bowl dish with beef. This bowl was huge! You can't really see but it also has a purple rice in it... taro rice maybe? (If anyone knows what it might be, let me know.) The rice is so, so good. I got a bowl of it on the side of my soup too.

Our meal was delicious! They brought us a second round of the appetizers too because somehow, David was still hungry...

Can't wait to go back! Yum! Have you tried Korean food/tofu soup?

NatureBox Review: June 2012

Subscription boxes have made frequent appearances on various blogs this year. They seem like a fun idea - get a surprise box of different goodies each month. However, none of the well-known boxes sounded quite right for me. While I love eye makeup and am getting back into nail polish, I rarely use other beauty products, so while GlossyBox and BirchBox sound interesting, it didn't seem worth the investment for me. I love the premise of UmbaBox - delivering handmade goods each month. However, My style is dissimilar to the creator's, so I am not sure how well the delivered items would suit my taste.

(Note: A few other new box subscriptions I might enjoy have recently come to my attention, but they were unknown to me at the time of this purchase.)

Enter NatureBox: healthy snacks delivered to your door each month. Bingo! Sounded perfect for me. I have always been a snacker, but made a conscious decision to start bringing fruit and healthier snacks to work in the last few months. Recently, I switched to working four 10-hour days each week (and having Fridays off). I leave work at 6:30 and get home by 7:30, so I am usually starving by the time I get home. I tried bringing more snacks, but I was quickly getting sick of my options. See, I find a snack I like, get instantly obsessed, buy a ton of it, and then get sick of it within a few weeks. Then it sits around in my pantry until its turn comes back around. Bad habit, I know.

Case in point: KIND bars. I was starving and decided to try out a cranberry bliss bar at work one day (our cafeteria has a focus on healthy foods). It was so good. I went online and bought four full boxes of bars in different flavors. After several weeks of having a bar daily, I got tired of them. We have since reconciled and I am working through my boxes at a slower pace, but still. There are a lot of bars left. That's me.

When I read that NatureBox delivers five different full-sized healthy snack packs each month, checked some reviews online (all very positive), and looked through what snacks they provided in previous boxes, I was sold. I signed myself and my parents up (I knew they would love it - especially my dad).

My June box actually arrived in July, since I signed up in late June.

My Review - June 2012 NatureBox

Top (left to right): citrus kick almonds, harvest fruit granola, organic mighty mix

Bottom (left to right): apple rings, sun-ripened white peaches

Apple Rings

The apple rings are delicious. Sweet and chewy, just as described. The box also came with a recipe for cinnamon apple ring muffins, which sound delicious... but I'm not sure there will be any apple rings left by the time I get around to it!

No sugar, fat, cholesterol, or sodium. Serving size: 28g.

90 calories (0 from fat), 23g carbs, and 2g dietary fiber.

Sun-Ripened White Peaches

These were soft, chewy, and unsweetened. I was not a fan of the dried white peaches. Then again, I am fairly picky about my dried fruit. But I didn't like the texture and these weren't really sweet enough for my taste. This was my least favorite item in the box.

No sugar, fat, cholesterol, or sodium. Serving size: 1.5 pieces.

95 calories (0 from fat), 25g carbs and 3g dietary fiber.

Harvest Fruit Granola

Best thing ever. Seriously. This granola is so, so good. There were nuts and dried fruit mixed in - it was so soft and delicious. I really hope they follow through with their idea to offer some popular snacks for sale in larger quantities, because I would buy this. Tons of it. Definitely my favorite in the box - it was hard not eating everything at once!

No cholesterol or sodium. Serving Size: 1 oz (28g).

120 calories (60 from fat), 6g fat (1g saturated), 16g carbs, 2g dietary fiber, 7g sugar, 2g protein. 

Organic Mighty Mix

This was a mix of raisins, dried fruit, nuts, and other seeds. This was honestly not my favorite - it was a bit of a weird mix of sweet, salty, chewy, and crunchy. I'm not keen on raisins and the other mystery dried fruit was just okay. The seeds and nuts were decent but I think they would have been better as a separate snack. It is nice that these were not sticky at all, so they would be nice to bring as a trail mix of sorts on a hiking trip.

No cholesterol. Serving size: 1/4 cup (30g).

130 calories (70 from fat), 8g fat (1g saturated), 15mg sodium, 14g carbs, 2g dietary fiber, 10g sugar, 4g protein.

Citrus Kick Almonds

These almonds are covered in a citrusy coating - they look like sugared almonds but they definitely don't taste like them! "Citrus Kick" is the perfect way to describe them - they pack a punch. Jacob didn't like them, but I actually did enjoy them. I wouldn't say they were among my favorite snacks, but they are interesting for sure.
No cholesterol. Serving size: 1/4 cup.
170 calories (130 from fat), 14g fat (1g saturated), 280mg sodium, 7g carbs, 3g dietary fiber, 2g sugar, and 6g protein.

Overall
As you can see above, the snacks were very hit or miss for me. I think it would be perfect either for someone who is less picky than me, or for a family/group of people with different tastes - that way none of the snacks go to waste. You can see the contents of their other past boxes here. I am not sure if I will continue my subscription - I may try another box and see how I like it before making a final decision.

The size of each snack package was decent - midway between sampler size and chock-full. Each package had 3 - 4.5 servings (you can see the serving sizes above).

Possibly because shipping is built into the price, the snacks are on the pricey side. $19.95 for 5 snacks equates to $3.99 per bag, which is about what I would expect to pay at Whole Foods or (insert name of fancy/organic grocery store). Then again, they pick a variety for you and ship it directly to your front door, so there is something to be said for that. Also, with the discount for multiple months, it will cost less per bag overall.

I was impressed by their customer service - friendly, helpful, and professional. I had quite a list of questions for them and they were all answered satisfactorily.

Bottom Line
I would probably recommend this for those who love everything granola/nuts/dried fruits. For someone like me who is a little pickier, I'm not sure it's worth the money.

Notes About Dietary Restrictions
- I called to inquire about if the boxes are vegan/vegetarian. The friendly lady who answered informed me that while the next few boxes are scheduled to be vegetarian, there is no guarantee. They also contain some honey/dairy products so some snacks will not be vegan.
- However, they are looking to provide customizable boxes for these types of restrictions - vegan, allergies, no nuts, etc. Contact them directly to be put on a list, and they will notify you when these options are available.

Pricing/Options
- $19.95 / mo for month-to-month subscriptions. Use referral code "REFER25" to get 25% off your first box for monthly subscriptions only.
- $99.75 / 6 mo - essentially you get one month free.
- $179.55 / 12 mo - includes three months free.

Want to Sign Up?
You can sign yourself up through their website and they recently added a section for 3 or 6 month gift subscriptions here. You can also sign someone up for a gift subscription and keep paying until you choose to stop. Shipping is included in the price, except for the 3 month gift subscription. Please note that this is a relatively new service and they are frequently changing their policies/features, so be sure to check their site for the most updated information.

If you want to order your own NatureBox or find out more, visit their website here.

Have you tried NatureBox or found any other interesting box subscription services? Let me know if you decide to sign up, and how you like your box!

Note: This is my personal opinion and is in no way sponsored by NatureBox. Just like every review I write, I will always provide my 100% honest thoughts.

Greek Gods Yogurt Review: Epic Deliciousness

This post could also be called "Breakfast for Night Owls Working Day Jobs." Yeah, that's me. I (should) wake up at 6am and leave for work at 7am to arrive by 8am. I am also, definitely, a night owl. If left to my own devices, I will almost always go to bed around 2am or later. Thus, 6am is painfully early for me, and the last thing I want to do is scramble around to find a decent breakfast.

Previously, I "solved" this problem by simply not eating breakfast. Unfortunately, this generally left me starving at 10am, or just snacking all morning. It is hard to think and work effectively when all you want to do is eat something. I also find that by skipping breakfast, I end up eating a lot more food throughout the day. I had to think of some options.



Yes, there are bagels. Occasionally, not a problem. Every day? No thanks - for one, I would get sick of them in about a week. And of course, I would prefer not to have a carbo-loaded breakfast every day. Then there are bars - quick, easy, and convenient. But bars for breakfast never really appealed to me - they seem more like afternoon snack food. I suppose in the end, the biggest problem is that I really just don't like breakfast unless it's a fancy omelet or french toast.

That is, I didn't like any simple breakfast items until I tried that Starbucks Greek yogurt and honey with granola parfait. Wow. Realistically though, I did not want to spend $3.45 and a trip to Starbucks (there goes time I could spend sleeping instead) every morning. I started trying out different brands of Greek (and Greek-style) yogurt from the grocery store. Some had unpleasant textures - others had a strange taste. Trust me, I tried everything else available (Oikos, Fage, Chobani, etc.), and even tossed some of them partway through. That's saying something since I really hate to waste food. I was not impressed... until I tried Greek Gods yogurt.

Well, I should have known. With a name that epic, how could it disappoint? I tried the honey flavor at first and loved it, but decided to try the other flavors available as well. Here are the results.

Overall
Price: More expensive than most yogurts (I have seen price ranging from $1.50 - $2) but less expensive than some traditional Greek yogurts. I generally stock up for a week or two when they go on sale.

Flavor: Honey and Vanilla Cinnamon Orange are excellent, but the Pomegranate was inedible, in my opinion. Honestly, the Pomegranate yogurt was a sickly pinkish (with a grey tinge, if that is possible) color that really did not appeal to me. The taste was not pleasant either. Other flavors (Fig, Plain) were not available at my local store.

Health Benefits: Greek Gods yogurt (which is labeled as "Greek-style yogurt" rather than just "Greek yogurt") has slightly less health benefits than the more traditional strained Greek yogurts such as Fage. There are still plenty of benefits, as with any yogurt. Personally, the "Greek-style" yogurt is fine with me as I am more concerned with the texture than how "authentic" it is.

Suggestions: As mentioned earlier, I get bored easily with breakfast items. I like to vary this up by mixing in small cut-up strawberry pieces and/or granola (certain cereals like honey-bunches of oats work for this too). Obviously, this would be overkill for the honey yogurt, but you could add a bit of honey to the vanilla or other flavors.

Bonus: Greek Gods was founded a group of friends in Seattle! Extra love.

Have you tried Greek Gods yogurt? What do you think?


P.S. Today is photoshoot day! You'll hear plenty more about that later, of course. =)

Lunch, Dessert, and Brunch in Portland

The weekend of the photoshoot was a crazy one. Jacob and I flew home from vacation in Carlsbad on a Friday afternoon. I stayed up to finish making the jewelry for the photoshoot and work on other preparations for my blog launch. The next day, I packed a bag quickly and made the three hour drive from Seattle down to Portland. Arrived at my friend Zoe's house around 2:30pm. We immediately headed over to the Lippman Co., the balloon/party store in Portland. Picked up balloons, stuffed them in her car (quite a task), then decided to try the restaurant next to the balloon store for lunch.

Boke Bowl was trendy and delicious, with a menu primarily featuring ramen and rice bowls with quirky ingredients. I am a total noodle fanatic and would typically select a ramen bowl. However, it was a surprisingly warm day (considering Portland's usual May weather) and noodle soup sounded less appetizing than usual. I ordered the tofu rice bowl, which came with lightly friend tofu and various vegetables. It was delicious! Zoe enjoyed her dish as well. I would definitely recommend Boke Bowl and I would like to try a ramen bowl next time I visit.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in a frantic rush of getting dressed up and made up... and then walking and driving around various places for the photoshoot before the sun went down completely. My brother Corbin flew back from college that day, so we went to pick him up from the airport. On the way back, we took a detour and stopped by Pix Patisserie for desserts.

Look at that mouthwatering display case! So many desserts to choose from, including the amusingly named "Big Cheryl's Ghetto Cake"... but we knew what we wanted.

We ordered a bag full of macarons. They were all delicious! Pix rotates its macaron flavors regularly, so we were able to try a few new flavors.

From left to right, below: fleur de sel, lime, pistachio, moscato (a sparkling wine), violet, and raspberry.

The next morning, before my drive back to Seattle, we had brunch at Broder.

The menu was full of scrumptious and complex-sounding breakfast items with interesting ingredients, cooked in unusual ways. We finally settled on two dishes to share, the first being a veggie 'omelet' of sorts with walnut bread, and the second being Danish pancakes with a choice of two side sauces. We selected maple syrup and lemon curd.

I always face the same conundrum at breakfast: savory or sweet? Sharing these dishes was a perfect solution. We also each ordered a dark hot chocolate. Everything was so good! The Danish pancakes were fluffy, delicious, and surprisingly filling - especially when paired with the two sauces.

On the way out, I noticed a cute pink bike rack outside. Art + bicycle accommodations? Very Portland.

If any of you happen to live in or visit Portland, I would highly recommend all of the three restaurants above. Granted, I have only been to each one once, but the food at each place was well cooked and tasted exquisite. Great work on restaurant choices, Zoe!

Thanks for joining me on day 8 of launch week!

XOXO

Kelsea

Sugarpill Heart Breaker Palette: Review, Swatches, and Look

Today I have a review, swatches, and 'look' to share with you from the much anticipated Sugarpill Heart Breaker palette! If you have not heard of Sugarpill, it is a cosmetics company started by Amy Doan (aka Shrinkle) on Valentine's Day in 2010. Sugarpill is all about bold, bright colors. The current cosmetics lines include pressed eyeshadows, loose eyeshadows, and false eyelashes. In the 2+ years since its beginning, Sugarpill has quickly risen in popularity, with nearly 250,000 facebook followers as of today. Sugarpill is my favorite makeup brand due to the vibrant colors and high quality of its eyeshadows, so I am very excited to be reviewing the newest palette!

The Heart Breaker palette was released on May 18. I purchased it immediately and could not wait to try it out! I created a 'look' using all four colors in the palette. Read on for my review of the colors, 'eyelid swatches', and my Heart Breaker look. Enjoy!

Admission: I ordered more than just the Heart Breaker palette. =) The false lashes are for an upcoming photoshoot for my online jewelry shop website launch... more on that later. Here's a little view of my haul and the gorgeous palette packaging.

 

The palette itself comes with four huge eyeshadow pans - 4g of each color. For reference, a MAC eyeshadow pan comes with 1.5g of product, so these are hefty sized pans.

Front of the palette + flattened packaging box.

 

The gorgeous artwork on the box (girl + kitty) is by Miss Kika, my favorite artist! You can read more about the new Sugarpill palette packaging at this post on her website.

Palette Colors

Upper left: Acidberry

Upper right: Velocity

Bottom left: 2AM

Bottom right: Mochi

Personally, when reading eyeshadow reviews, I always come across posts with 'swatches' of the colors, usually shown on the arm. I have to say that while I appreciate the intention, arm swatches do not help me much in determining whether or not I want to buy a product. Often times, it is just too difficult to picture what the product will actually look on my eyes. As such, I decided to do 'eyelid swatches' instead, where I use one color on my entire eyelids so you can see what the product will really look. It is substantially more time consuming, but I hope it will be helpful.

For all photos, the only other products used on my eyelids were MAC primer, The Body Shop Carbon Black Eye Definer, and Maybelline Great Lash mascara in 'Blackest Black'. All eyeshadows were applied with a brush from The Body Shop.

ACIDBERRY

Color: Acidberry is a matte, wasabi green color. I expected to like this color least but ended up really liking the shade, mostly because it is quite different from most other greens I have encountered.

Texture: The texture of Acidberry is a bit chalkier than I would have liked. However, the color applied fairly easily. Applying it to the lid was a quick process and I did not have too much difficulty blending it with other colors.

VELOCITY

Color: Velocity is a matte, bright but deep, ocean blue shade. It is an intense shade. It looks a little more electric blue in the photos above - it is a little darker in person, as shown in the 'look' photo below.

Texture: This color applied smoothly but was a little difficult to handle when I tried to layer it for a more solid effect. Using just one sweep looked thin and uneven so it definitely needed to be layered to look decent. Once applied, it layered nicely.

2AM

Color: 2AM is a matte, pinkish purple color. It was my least favorite color of the palette, but mostly due to how it handles.

Texture: This color was similar to Velocity - smooth application but difficult to handle when I tried to layer it. Like velocity, using just one sweep of 2AM looked thin and uneven so it definitely needed to be layered to look decent. I found this color most difficult to spread evenly and blend, even on top of other colors.

MOCHI

Color: Mochi is a matte, green-blue / light turquoise shade. It is my favorite color in the palette by far! I was most excited to try this color and it did not disappoint. I have a lot of blues, but this is different from everything else I own. The color is vibrant once applied.

Texture: This color was very easy to apply and blended well with other colors.

THE HEART BREAKER LOOK

I created this look over Acidberry, which I eyelid swatched last.

     

Upper eyelid, inner to outer: Mochi, Velocity, 2AM, Acidberry

Lower eyelid: Acidberry

Eyeliner: The Body Shop Carbon Black Eye Definer

Mascara: Maybelline Great Lash in Blackest Black

Overall Review

This was a fairly intense look in person, but on camera it appears more subtle. Trust me, the colors are strong! Also, if you are curious, the dress I am wearing is by Jessica Louise, my favorite clothing designer.

Most of the colors in this palette were more difficult to apply than the colors from the first two Sugarpill palettes. However, once applied, all of the colors were vibrant and appear highly pigmented, as I would expect from any Sugarpill color. I was a little disappointed by 2AM, but more than pleased by Mochi. I did not have any problems with the colors lasting, when worn over primer. I like the design of the palette - the only difficulty is keeping the shades from mixing and keeping the area around the eyeshadows clear of powder. Overall, I would not rate the palette as high as the first two Sugarpill palettes (Sweet Heart and Burning Heart), but if given the option for a do-over, I would purchase this palette again.

Where to Buy Heart Breaker
If you want to purchase the Heart Breaker palette for yourself, you can find it here for $34. The individual shades are also available for $12 each on the Sugarpill site. Personally, I think Sugarpill eyeshadows are a great deal for a few reasons - the pans are huge so the colors will last for a long time and the colors are unbeatable.

I hope you enjoyed the review, swatches, and look! Leave a comment letting me know if you would like to see more beauty reviews.

Thanks for joining me on day 3 of launch month!