When Tara Met Blog

Nutrilite media day and AC Milan soccer meet

2009-07-19T22:29:00.000-07:00

Today, along with a handful of other bloggers from New York, Michigan, Vancouver and all over, I took part in a special digital media day at Nutrilite's Center of Optimal Health out in Buena Park for their VIP Health and Soccer Event. The vitamin, mineral and dietary supplement brand brought us all to their research center to discuss health, to do a personal fitness assessment and for a meet and greet with the famous soccer team A.C. Milan, which are like the Yankees and Cowboys of the European soccer world.

As the team's official nutritional supplement, the company provides regular genetic and nutritional intake testing for each player in order to tell them how they could change their performance with health supplements and a different health regimen. We also got to take a fitness assessment that measured our body fat percentage, bone density, flexibility and so forth all but the genetic testing part and my results showed that I was within average for my age and so forth, but I was inspired by the presentations to do some more physical activity each day. Note to self: next time do not wear a dress and heels.

In their auditorium we also heard from doctors, scientists and employees in several short presentations about the company and overall health information. I learned more about phytonutrients (plant compounds) and the importance of doing a 10 minute circuit workout each day with interval cardio (1 minute super fast, then a minute at a slower pace), which can be done on an elliptical machine even and exercises that can be done at your desk.

All the general health talk then segued to sports nutrition and athletes. At this point we were introduced to Marta Viera Da Silva, the L.A. Sol forward and three-time FIFA World Player of the Year. The Portuguese athlete is easily regarded as the best female soccer player, but I was surprised at how down-to-earth she was and that she was my height (5'2).

The most exciting part though was meeting the A.C. Milan team and later going VIP to the L.A. Galaxy vs. A.C. Milan game at The Home Depot Center. We were also given jerseys to get signed by the team. Their most popular player is Ronaldinho, who signed my jersey, but we also posed with several other good looking players too :)

The game meanwhile ended in a tie at 2 to 2.

Also, at the digital media day was my bloggy friend from New York, Aly Walansky of SheKnows, SplendiCity and so many other blogs.

Walk a mile for new shoes

2009-07-17T10:50:00.000-07:00

Last week, I was alerted via email to another TOMS Shoes Sample Sale. The last time I went it was small and American Idol's Jason Castro was there. This time, however, post TOMS Shoes fame in the AT&T commercial, there was a three hour long wait! Apparently, they alerted their Facebook community about the sale, which explains the half-a-mile long line. Since I was expecting the little room of shoes like last year, I was definitely not prepared so I ended up burning my arms and buying whatever drinks we could find nearby. RedBull reps kindly stopped by and were giving out samples to the long line though.

By the time we entered their outside pit with boxes and boxes of shoes, all the 8's were gone so I couldn't pick up one for my friend, but luckily there were plenty of my size 5's. In the end, I cleaned up, purchasing three pairs of shoes (gold glitter, picnic canvas plaid, brown cords) and their awesome brown wrap boots. So, I now own eight pairs of TOMS, wow. Raphael also scored four pairs of the guy styled ones too.

So, although my feet were tired and my arms burning from the sun, I think it was worth it. Plus, remember for every pair of TOMS Shoes purchased, a new pair goes to a child in need.

A wiener on wheels

2009-07-15T09:57:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon, I found myself lost in the massive Griffith Park hills on a 90 degree day looking for a wiener mobile per this twitvite tweetup. The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile is exactly that, a big hot dog on wheels, which journeys across the country and tweets and blogs along the way @wienermobile.

This time, the truck was in Los Angeles and selling $2 hot dogs and $5 raffle tickets to benefit the Liz Logelin Foundation, which assists families who find themselves in the heartbreaking, catastrophic situation of having lost a spouse, life-partner, and parent. The Foundation’s goal is to financially assist these families as they deal with the loss of their loved ones, and struggle to move forward. The Foundation was established by blogger Matthew Logelin, who lost his wife Elizabeth the day after the birth of his daughter Maddie :( When we were there I asked how much they had raised so far and we were told they were at $400 already and still had another hour to go.

The hot dog crew, called "hotdoggers" were also taking free photos of people in front of the truck and giving out a code to grab them online. Oh, and Raphael told them that we follow them on twitter and he scored a cool twitter tee shown in our photo below:

Although a rope blocked people from going inside the truck, the door was open allowing for people to peek in. Take a look:

Also, I saw my bloggy friend Katelin a.k.a Pretty Sandy Feet there too.

Note: Oscar Mayer is a PR client in our Chicago office, but I do not work on the account.

Partied like it was 1984

2009-07-13T20:18:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, I hit the 80s Prom Party at The House of Blues. I had so much fun, I immediately wished my prom was as cool.

Why was it better than my Senior Prom?
a. I had a date
b. I could drink
c. Live bands
d. Better music
e. Didn't pay for a limo

Check out our awesomely rad portraits:

We also snuck upstairs to the members only Foundation Room where we lounged on the comfy sofas. I might have took it a little too far though...

Twitpic of my 80s makeup

One prom down, one more to go...9 days til Blogger Prom! I'll have cheesier more prom-like attire on then.

Workin' at the car wash

2009-07-12T17:05:00.000-07:00

Did you know that washing your car at home uses about 116 gallons of water? So, when I heard about Lucky Earth waterless car wash, I thought it would be a fun eco-product to try out. I don't own a hose to begin with anyway and my car is always dirty.

My car's been so filthy that people have written notes on it from the collected dust and dirt. Sometimes it's me writing When Tara Met Blog though, lol. My first car always had messages scribbled on it by random people, but I was in college and going to the car wash wasn't on my list of priorities or in the budget. One time, someone wrote "Wash me, I'm dirty" on the back of my hood. I was annoyed and didn't want to give in to the mean-spirited people or clean my car. So, I simply wrote next to it "I like it dirty!" with a wink smiley face and drove around another week like that.

I digress, back to actually cleaing my Jetta for a change. Another green reason for me to use this Lucky Earth spray, is that it does not use harmful fumes, or toxic residues. Instead of water, this cleaner works with two reusable microfiber towels--one for buffing and one for scrubbing. The solution is made from organic coconut to break down dirt and contains water-soluble silicone, which captures dirt so it doesn't scratch your car. A 32-ounce bottle lasts seven to 10 washes and costs $14.99. You can buy it online or at a Whole Foods. They also sell a tire shine, but I haven't tried it. Next time.

Sure, it wasn't as easy as throwing buckets of soapy water on your car and quickly spraying it down, "but let me tell ya it's better that diggin' a ditch!" Sorry, I just had to throw in that Car Wash lyric. Anywho, yes, this earth-friendly way of cleaning my Jetta definitely required more elbow grease, but my car looked incrediably shiny after, like it just got detailed. I also spent a beautiful day out in the sun and felt pretty accomplished.

Before:

After:

Today's delivery fills the Gap

2009-07-09T20:06:00.000-07:00

When I got home today I was surprised to see a big package outside my door. The address label read Born To Fit, Gap 1969 Premium Jeans. I hadn't ordered anything from Gap and despite being addressed to me, my cat, Patches, thought the package was hers.

First she tasted the curly confetti that spewed out of the package when I opened it. She then investigated more and unearthed a blue striped canvas tote and discovered a welcome letter for me.

The letter read that I was selected to be a Brand Enthusiast for Gap and would be getting soe Gap goodies over the coming year. The first cool perk is that I get to throw a party for my friends with tons of Gap goodies including new Gap jeans "born to fit" before they're available in stores. So more to come on the party as I figure it all out. In this package though was bottle of Close perfume, the aforementioned tote, mini glosses and a white tee that reads "Born To" on the front and "Blog" in the back (yay, another blogger themed shirt for me to pack to BlogHer).

Drink pink

2009-07-08T08:04:00.000-07:00

I'm not a big fan of sweet or white wines and I generally tend to dismiss Rosés as being too sweet for me. However, after attending a Rosé & Fromage Tasting at Maison 140 (a chic boutique Beverly Hills hotel), I realized that not all blush wines are sweet. In fact, one was too strong and peppery for me even. My favorite was the Jaboulet—Côtes du Rhône, Parallèle 45, 2008. It has a floral and cherry scent and although sweet and light it wasn't very sweet, but super refreshing and perfect for summer.

The tastings are available through the end of August, for $35 per person on Wednesdays from 6-9 p.m. I think it's a pretty good deal since you get to sip three Rosés from the South of France paired with artisanal cheeses, meats, fruits and breads at Maison 140’s chic, Parisian-inspired Bar Noir lounge. The black and red colored room is small and intimate with comfy French chairs and is perfect for after work drinks, a date or catching up with friends. Personally, I was there chatting it up with fellow Blogger Prom committee members and quickly lost track of time as my face became as pink as the drinks.

Oh, and before we drank the Rose's I had absinthe striaght for the first time. They poured the green colored liquor from a cool dispenser and over a sugar cube which then caught on fire and melted into the drink. It was quite strong and tasted like the licorice flavored Italian drink, Sambuco. My only other absinthe drinking was in New Orleans gulping down a grenade, which apparently has absinthe and lots of other stuff as you can tell by my hazy look in this pic.

You can also check out e*star's Flickr photo stream from the tasting too.

A Land of Giants

2009-07-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

For 4th of July weekend Raphael and I along with two friends randomly planned a trip to Sequoia National Park, just three days before the holiday. It was a fun road trip with stops in Fresno to sip some fab reds at Water 2 Wine and then to a lodge up in the second established U.S. national park, after Yellowstone. The Sequoia Nat'l park is most famous for its Giant Sequoia trees, including the General Sherman tree (twitpic photo), which is the biggest tree on Earth, due to the volume of its trunk and not its impressive height of 275ft. The tree is believed to be between 9,300 and 30,700 years old and the Calvary used to guard it, thus the Civil War name. The Giant Forest also contains five out of the ten largest trees in the world, in terms of wood volume.

Here are some silly tree hugging photos that we took at one the many giant trees:

The lodge where we stayed meanwhile, Montecito Sequoia Lodge, is where they filmed the original Parent Trap movie with Haley Mills, which of course I loved hearing about as I'm a HUGE fan of the classic Disney film.

Our cabin-sans bathrooms provided some extra excitement with the addition of some uninvited guests--field mice. We managed to scoot two of them out the door with a broom and lots of squealing and directing by me.

Hope you all had a happy 4th!

Tea & Cupcakes

2009-06-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

It's no secret that I'm a fan of cupcakes and I've also blogged about my love for whole leaf tea, so when I met Ebony at Layers Cupcakes I asked her if she could make a green tea cupcake for me. She said she'd work on it. A few months later she partnered with Naja Tea to come up with five tea-infused cupcakes. I actually liked all of them, but below I've put them in order of preference:

Sassafras
Sassafras tea infused French Vanilla Cupcake filled with wild yam mousse. Frosted Cinnamon Swiss Meringue Buttercream and finished with dramatic explosions of torched cinnamon Meringue. Who knew yam would be good in a cupcake? But it is and tasted just like pumpkin pie.

Crimson Berry
Crimson Berry infused rasberry/strawberry cupcake filled with a four berry mousse. Frosted with Blueberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream and topped with a simple quartet of fresh berries. This was wonderfully colorful, sweet and moist. I also could taste the roobios tea in this cupcake.

Tahiti
A Green Tea infused cupcake filled with fresh papaya mousse. Frosted with Pineapple Swiss Meringue Buttercream and topped with dried pineapple and papaya. This one is very tropical and summery.

Allure

This citrus tangerine cupcake is filled with tangerine creme. Frosted with Tangerine Swiss Meringue Buttercream and topped with tangerine zest and a candied tangerine slice.

Mix and Mingle

Mix and Mingle tea (vanilla, toasted coconut, chocolate roobios tea) infused coconut cupcake filled with Coconut and Chocolate creme. Frosted with Coconut Swiss Meringue Buttercream and topped with toasted shaved coconut and chocolate powder. Great coconut flavor. If you could smell this loose leaf tea, you'd recognize instantly how dead on the flavor of these cupcakes are.

I especially liked the moist mousse and pudding inside and the overall light and fluffy textures of each cupcake, after all, I hate a dry cupcake. They also smell amazingly fruity.

Layers Cupcakes is a cupcake catering and delivery service, but they also make appearances at Thursday's Farmers Market on 7th and Fig in Downtown LA at the Naja Tea Booth and Saturdays at Americana at the Glendale Tealandia Booth. Coming up in one month's time they will also be in South Pasadena, Brentwood and Larchmont Village.

A Fresh & Easy pool party

2009-06-29T07:30:00.000-07:00

Literally that is. Last week after work, Raphael and I headed to a pool party at The Roosevelt Hotel and hosted by Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market. The party was in honor of the market's Hollywood store--which I blogged about when it opened last year--receiving a liquor license like their other locations. Now the store can sell its 200 wines, many of which are under $10 and 70 of them are exclusive to F & E. Thus, watch out Trader Joes! Unlike TJ though, I find that F&E is more modern and less of that country feeling (IE the place my mom goes to get cheese spreads and dips in fancy jars for her boating friends).

Out of the wines that we tasted Raphael liked the Fresh & Easy St. Helens Riesling (only $4.99 a bottle!) and I liked the F&E Napa Family Vineyards Cabarnet Sauvignon ($11.99, yup I have more expensive tastes ;). There was also this sparkling wine, La Gioiosa Prosecco ($7.99) that provided me with a sweet peach & pear buzz. I'd especially go back to purchase that bottle since nothing goes to my head like Champagne/sparkling wine.

I also love The Roosevelt Hotel's pool side bar and lounge. Usually the only way to get in though is if a friend is staying at the hotel or via some party like this. The party was made even more fun by hanging with Linday and Zach from LAist, Elizabeth of Traded My BMW for a Minivan and Noelle.

The folks at Fresh & Easy meanwhile will be donating two of their wine varietals at Blogger Prom next month and providing their canvas totes to hold all the swag we'll be giving out. Yay!

Pinkberry's new summer flavors

2009-06-26T06:44:00.000-07:00

Today Pinkberry launches their new summer flavors--coconut and passion fruit and you can also get them swirled together for a tropical mix. In honor of the announcement, all Pinkberry locations from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. today will be giving away a FREE small cup of either of their new flavors (more here).

Yesterday though, I got an exclusive “sneak tasting” of their new offerings. I thought the coconut was subtle and tasted and looked a lot like the original, until I swallowed and then I could taste the coconut more. The very pale yellow colored passion fruit flavor though was my favorite. It's nice and refreshing and unlike their other flavors. Perfect for summer, like a tart and satisfying lemonade. The swirl was nice too, but the passion fruit overpowered the coconut when swirled together like that. For toppings, I chose mango (super fresh, I’m not normally a mango fan either), pineapple and my favorite—mochi. These summer flavors along with their pomegranate one will be available through the summer, temporarily replacing their green tea flavor, so get it while you can.

Pinkberry also launched their new Pinkberry Fruit Parfait, which I also tried. I can so see having it for lunch sometime because it was very filling and fresh. Basically, it's layers of fruit, granola, a little Pinkberry yogurt with a topping of Pinkberry at the top (you can select the flavor of yogurt and specify the fruit too). Apparently, they are hoping people will start ordering it for breakfast—move over Jamba Juice.

Other special summer options include the Bing Cherry topping, at first I thought it would be a hassle because of the pits, so I was really surprised to find out that they remove the pits, thus pitiless Bing cherries.

Here I am in all my Pinkberry glory, trying all of the above:

Ed McMahon's Hollywood star desecrated

2009-06-25T14:58:00.000-07:00

While walking on Hollywood Blvd yesterday evening, I was shocked to see that tar and newspapers were spread over the recently deceased Ed McMahon's Hollywood star.

Here are the iPhone shots that I took:

This isn't the first Hollywood star in ruin that I've seen though, He really doesn't get any respect.

Update: LAist says it has now been cleaned up. Glad to hear that.

Fat Burner Energy Lip Balm?

2009-06-25T08:31:00.000-07:00

Another odd product that I had to try and review for ya'll is Burner Balm, a chapstick that supposedly boosts your energy level and helps control cravings.

Since I'm a lip balm addict as it is and because I do not drink coffee, I thought the combo might be interesting especially on tiresome days. However, caffeine can sometimes make me shaky when I do have it and I feared that side effect. Luckily, this balm didn't make me too caffeinated, but did provide a quick pick me up (doesn't last too long though). It also feels like regular chapstick, no burning of the lips or tingling like with lip plumpers.

They claim that "putting on the flavored lip balm with Green Tea Extract could be a distraction from eating, similar to chewing sugar-free gum.” I'm not sure if it was just a placebo effect and that I willed it to work, but the balm did distract me from snacking at work, plus who wants to ruin a nice shine on the lips with crumbs and food?

Burner Balm is currently only available online for $5.99 (Amazon and at burnerbalm.com) and comes in five yummy flavors, acai berry, original, strawberry, vanilla and pomegranate. I have the original and strawberry and both taste and feel nice, but I have my eye on the vanilla as well.

Xooro churros (say that 3x fast while doing a shot)

2009-06-22T11:36:00.000-07:00

Last week, the Blogger Prom committee and I stopped into xooro (pronounced Sure-oh) in Santa Monica by the 3rd Street Promenade for some special flavored churros, "Spanish fritters." They of course offer the classic fried dough sticks with cinnamon and sugar, but this specialty churro shop also has more exotic flavors like maple bacon, cream filled, chocolate covered, raspberry filled, nutella and many more. They are also looking to make some more savory flavors soon. Best of all, the churro's are nice and warm when served and are made using authentic ingredients and healthy frying techniques (rice bran oil). A gluten free xooro is available for those with a wheat allergy too. They come in one size and range in price from $3.69 to $4.20, thus not some cheap street eat anymore.

Xooro just held a sneak peak opening party for their new second location on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles/Hollywood area, only a few blocks from where I work. The event included some yummy samples and I got to hang out with Caroline on Crack who was also there.

Also chatted and took a pic of the husband and wife team who founded xooro--Begonia Amaya and Vicente Cisneros from Mexico City.

Officially, opening day at the new store is on Wednesday June 24th where they will also be offering free xooro’s to all guests from 5:30- 7:30 p.m. The new xooro is located at 8360 Melrose Avenue, between Orlando and Kings Road. Street meter parking available.

Le Whif: breathable chocolate review

2009-06-20T21:04:00.000-07:00

When I first heard about Le Whif, an inhalable chocolate, I knew it was something I just had to try and blog about. From Paris, this canister of chocolate air is marketed as chocolate without the calories and was invented by a Harvard professor.

You have to hold the tube horizontally and then inhale through your mouth. Fine chocolate powder then enters your mouth. You can close the container and whiff again later for a total of four whiff's per Le Whif tube. It comes in four flavors: mint chocolate, raspberry chocolate, mango chocolate, and plain chocolate. A pack of six Le Whif tubes though will run you about 10 euros so $14 via their Website.

When I inhaled, little bits of chocolate powder hit my tongue, reminding me of the cocoa powder from a packet of hot chocolate. It's definitely not as filling or as satisfying as eating a chocolate bar, but it does fill any sweet cravings you may have and without the guilt. It's also fun taking puffs from the tube, like smoking a cigar. It reminded me of those Bubble Gum Cigarettes as a kid and something out of The Jetsons (remember their food would come in tablets?). I favored the chocolate and raspberry flavors the best.

You can't go home again?

2009-06-16T10:22:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, I traveled back home to New York for my Nanny's memorial service. I was planning on being strong and read the poem that I wrote years ago, which she asked for me to read when she passed away. I figured that I had dealt with my feelings after saying goodbye to her at the hospital, however, I started thinking about all our earlier memories and how close we were and all my emotions came back up to the surface.

I first started crying when I saw her friends that she used to play cards and seeing the sadness in their eyes. Then memories of joining them in their card games with my Nanny flooded back. I started crying much harder though during her son's beautiful speech about Nanny's ability to bring people together, our bond and that words like "hate" were not in her dictionary. I barely managed to read the poem, but my voice cracked throughout. The weirdest part was being all together without her. Being insider her home (where I grew up on many weekends and summers ) without her was another shock. It was like a body without its soul. No more spirit, just an empty house.

Things picked up though the following day when "the boys" (my psuedo-brothers that my Nanny and I babysat) and I went out for a ride on a very fast cigarette boat from Sutphen Boats. The river was super flat and we skipped like a stone up the Hudson River, under the Bear Mountain Bridge and passed West Point reaching 61 MPH. It was like a roller coaster ride, the winds pushed at my face like a facelift and my hair was whipping me.

Here's a video of the experience. The audio is loud though due to the wind and us speeding:

Start em young

2009-06-11T12:08:00.000-07:00

Get your kiddies reading blogs as early as possible and preferably When Tara Met Blog. Below is Thomas Caesar Rock and he's an avid When Tara Met Blog reader, as you can see by his fashionable onesie. OK, he's also my godson, but it counts!

Today Tom-cat turns 1-years-old ... and he already has longer eyelashes than me. Thomas, if you're reading this ... Happy Birthday!!

Liquor Review: TY KU

2009-06-09T19:45:00.000-07:00

Over the years, I’ve blogged about wine, doing a vodka taste test, tequila and now there’s a new liqueur in town to talk about.

TY KU is a clean and crisp low calorie, low carb, low sugar liqueur that’s a blend of Asian spirits and superfruits and teas including:

Yuzu–Asian citrus, vitamin C
Honeydew– source of potassium and vitamin C
Green Tea– antioxidants, cholesterol reducer
Mangosteen– Asian superfruit, contains antioxidants
Goji Berry– Tibetan wonder-berry, contains 18 amino acids, antioxidants and vitamins
Ginseng– providing energy
Soju– low calorie Asian vodka, no added sugars

Sounds yummy, right? You can taste the melon flavor of the honeydew and other botanicals. You can drink it chilled on the rocks (this is how I first tried it) or in many crafted cocktails to make yummy martinis, margaritas and mojitos. I also tried it with Sprite, which made it even sweeter and a little too easy to drink at 20% alcohol.

When it comes to wine and spirits, I must confess I often judge a book by its cover and the TY KU bottle is really cool looking. In a triangle like shape, it’s “the world’s only illuminating bottle,” which somehow makes the cool green-colored liqueur glow like kryptonite when the light hits it. It’s very cool and the bottle is smooth like weathered sea glass. It retails for $32.99, but you’ll see it more and more at bars and in cocktails that you can order.

The brand also makes a TY KU Sake, which we have too. I’m not a Sake fan though, due to a very bad second date back in Manhattan. Anyway, Raphael is a fan and I poured him a shot in a little Japanese red tea cup and tray that I was happy to utilize. He said it's "uniquely good," and that it tasted high-quality and expensive, "not something you'd find at a local sushi restaurant."

Apparently, premium sake is best enjoyed chilled and usually poor quality sake is heated to mask undesirable flavors, so beware. TY KU Sake is made from only four all natural ingredients: rice, water, yeast & koji. Throughout history, the Japanese have referred to sake as “The Drink of the Gods,” thus the perfect drink for my hubby (Note: I’m sucking up because he sent me flowers at work today! ;).

Giveaway: $85 Tolani Scarf

2009-06-08T08:19:00.000-07:00

Speaking of scarves, Chickdowntown.com is letting me giveaway one of their fashionable Tolani Scarves valued at $85 each. The bold colors clash in kinetic zigzag patterns across the ultra-soft, stretchy scarf.

To enter simply comment here with how you typically like to wear scarves and with what. Also, if you Tweet This you will automatically be entered into the drawing twice. As always, please remember to add your email address or link to a blog where I can grab it. I'll randomly select a winner using Random.org on Friday 6/12 end of day. Good luck!

Also, while you're surfing their site they also carry stylish Giuseppe Zanotti shoes. The Italian born Zanotti's shoes are elegant, creative and made from quality.

Update: Congratulations to Ashley!

All tied up - how to tie a dress scarf

2009-06-04T11:00:00.000-07:00

The new must clothing accessory, is not a new necklace, but a colorful scarf for an instant wardrobe update, especially in "chilly" LA. While I always love looking at the brightly colored dress scarves on display, I never buy them, because I was never sure how to wear them and with what. Outdoor winter scarves, no problem. Dress scarves? That's a different story. After all, there's silk, cotton, pashminas, long, short, how do I knot them, can I wear them with a tee, a dress? Ah, better stay away is what I thought.

This week though, I finally picked up a purple pattern linen scarf from Gap for $24.50 (some of the ones hanging in the photo on the right were only $19.50 though). I also carefully studied the many different knots, bows and ties on the different mannequins in the store and apparently you can wear a scarf with a strapless jersey dress.

"Silks are very appropriate to wear with sweaters and suits, but the newer wrapping scarfs are the way to go with tees and summer dresses," says Lynn Roberts at Echo Design. She went on to share with me that their Tribal crinkle scarf is a popular seller. She also has her own How to Tie tips.

I started off easy though and settled for wrapping my new scarf around my neck once and bringing the ends back to the front, but then tied knots at the ends that were hanging. Voila!

Next time, I'm going to try one of the examples found in the below video from ModCloth.com, which shows you how to tie a long rectangular scarf. They also have three additional videos on scarf tying available. It's good to see I'm not the only one confused as these videos have over 40,000 views.

SheFinds.com also recorded a short video on how to create a braid-like knot:

While Shauna Smith (pictured right), Store Manager of jbandme.com writes, "My latest idea is to wear TWO light-weight scarves wrapped together. Intertwine the two to create a brand new scarf! I like to mix prints and fabrics. You can begin by braiding the two scarves together BEFORE you put it on, or you can tie the first and weave the second through, making up the style as you go! Brilliant!"

Worst case, I could always buy an Adi Bakshi Scarf, which wraps around the neck and comes to a close in the front with a detailed button so that you'll always get the perfect look every time you put it on.

Designer Sam Kori George also advises that, "One should wear their scarf, shawl or stole to the left side always because it’s more flattering. Just remember over your heart." He also warns not to mix animal prints and absolutely no scarf over a turtleneck unless you want to look frumpy. "Trend or no trend, do not wear a scarf with shorts and a vest." Good to know.

LA Times: The cupcake abides

2009-06-03T09:24:00.000-07:00

The day before I was leaving for vacation, amidst my packing, I received a call from Los Angeles Times food reporter, Mary MacVean, who said she was doing a story about cupcakes and how the fad won't go away. She wanted to ask me my opinion and to hear more about my LA Cupcakes MeetUp Group, which I more than gladly did. We discussed how I believe cupcakes remind people of childhood and happy birthday classroom memories. I also shared that they are popular because it allows you to indulge without eating or baking a whole cake. Now, cupcakes aren't small enough though and mini-cupcakes are becoming the standard at cupcakeries.

Anyway, I went on and on and luckily one of my quotes ended up in her final piece along with my friend Nichelle at Cupcakes Take the Cake.

Food

The cupcake abides
By Mary MacVean
June 3, 2009

Like a Hollywood ingenue, cupcakes have been exposed every which way -- high-end and low, fancy and down-home. But unlike those pretty young things, the cupcake's time in the sun goes on and on.
Cupcakes may seem so 2004, but these little paper-clad stars just keep soaking in the love.
"They're even more popular. I think it's just going to continue," says Nichelle Stephens, who with two friends runs a blog called Cupcakes Take the Cake.
In fact, their popularity may even outlast the star who helped set off this craze: Sarah Jessica Parker, whose "Sex and the City" character -- Carrie Bradshaw -- is seen wearing knee socks and devouring a pink-frosted cupcake outside Manhattan's Magnolia Bakery.
"I don't think you can be angry eating a cupcake," says Tara Settembre, who once lived near the Magnolia Bakery. Since she moved to L.A., she has organized 25 meet-ups at "cupcakeries" around Los Angeles. Her online cupcake group has nearly 500 members.

Read the full article

Back in the USSR

2009-05-31T18:42:00.001-07:00

The most anticipated stop on the Scandinavian cruise we took was seeing St. Petersburg, the former capital of Russia. The city only gets about 60 sunny days a year and luckily we had two of them during our two day visit where we toured several palaces, museums, churches as we tried to soak in as much as we could. Although seeing the remnants of the days of the Tsars was amazing, the majestic palaces and artistic steeples sharply stood out amongst the former plain Soviet Union government apartment buildings, which was very surreal.

My three favorite sights included the summer palace, The Hermitage Museum/Winter Palace and The Church of Spilled Blood, which you can see in the following video I put together and features works by Picasso, Michelangelo, Monet, Raphael, Van Gogh and more:

Besides seeing the sights we also drank sips of their popular vodka, ate Russian blinis (pancakes with yogurt and caviar) and purchased several Matryoshka dolls (wooden dolls that fit inside each other and get smaller and smaller with each layer).

Tallinn, Estonia

2009-05-26T21:59:00.000-07:00

I'm back from the Scandanavian cruise and it was amazing!

One of the most unexpected surprises on my trip was visiting Tallinn, Estonia, which was the city I was least looking forward to seeing, but ended up being one of my favorite stops. The medieval old town looked like a town in a Disney tale. It's a corny comparison, but I couldn't help but think it looked like the town of Far Far Away from Shrek.

While walking the cobble stone streets, Raphael and I tried their local Saku beer and had thin crust salmon pizza (every corner seemed to have either a cafe, pub turned pizzeria) outside Town Hall Square.

We also walked up the many steps of St. Olav's Chruch tower for some magnificent views of the city.

Never been to Estonia? Well, take a look at my video for a view into this wonderful city:

Steve Martin's Big Bad Banjo concert

2009-05-21T06:13:00.000-07:00

Last week, I attended Steve Martin's Big Bad Banjo and Conversation with humorist Dave Barry at Club Nokia in LA Live downtown. I'm not necessarily a banjo or bluegrass fan, although I don't dislike it either. After all, the kid on the banjo in Deliverance had a good tune going. I am, however, a big Steve Martin, the Renaissance man. We all know he can do comedy and act, and he even wrote the witty film Bowfinger too. A few years ago, I saw his paintings at The Belagio in Vegas and have been reading his witty articles in The New Yorker for years. I became a true admirer of his though after reading his novella Shop Girl and The Pleasure of My Company. I especially like how he describes different characters, very unique. For example this is his description for just a supporting character:

I see something that describes her more clearly. It occurs in the pauses in her speech when her eyes fix on an air spot roughly waist-high and she seems to be in a trance. And then suddenly it's as if her mind races, trying to catch up to real time, and she continues right where she left off. If you saw her in these moments, you might think she was collecting her thoughts in order to go forward. But I see it another way: her mind is being overwhelmed by two processes that must simultaneously proceed at full steam. One is to deal with and live in the present world. The other is to re-experience and mourn something that happened long ago. It is as though her lightness pulls her toward heaven, but the extra gravity around her keeps her earthbound."

Anyway, back to the banjo and the concert. If all the above wasn't enough for Steve, he has also won a Grammy Award alongside Earl Scruggs, and recently released an album, The Crow (listen here). At Club Nokia he performed and picked along with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's John McEuen and the Steep Canyon Rangers to songs that he wrote himself. The music was fun, foot stomping and surprisingly pretty. The best part of the night though, was that it started with an interview with Steve discussing his music and how he picked up the Banjo. Turns out he's been playing since he was in high school at age 17 and he keeps a banjo in several rooms throughout his home. The interview was infused of course with funny quips, the best being his Billy Bob Thornton-like response when asked how it was playing with Dolly Parton to which he said "Would you ask Tom Petty that question?" lol. I was in the standing area only, which kind of sucks since I'm not six foot tall, but we elbowed our way up to a good spot. Proceeds from the concert benefited the Los Angeles Public Library.

Video: Dueling Banjos - Steve Martin & The Muppets

LA Cupcakes: Buttercake and Polkatots

2009-05-19T06:47:00.000-07:00

For my most recent LA Cupcakes MeetUp a group of 15 of us hit up Buttercake Bakery again, but this time we tried their new digs in West Hollywood, which just opened on April 14th. The owners were recently at the cupcake challenge and invited my group back to try their mocha, butter cream, peanut butter, coconut, chocolate and red velvet cupcakes once again. They still have their original shop in West LA too, but their new one on Sunset Boulevard is much larger and in a very chic neighborhood. What I like most about this bakery though is their wide selection of baked goods that go beyond cupcakes (lemon bars, petit fours, chocolate espresso cookies), but I also like their cream cheese cupcake frosting on their coconut and red velvet cupcakes. Even better is that they offer both standard sized cupcakes for $2.25 and mini cupcakes, which are only 75 cents! By far the cheapest minis that I've found.

In March meanwhile, we ventured up to Pasadena to try Polkatots Cupcakes, which also makes cakes and sells candy in their welcoming and vibrant shop. Some of their everyday cupcake flavors include coco-loco, vanilla princess, dalmatian, lemonade, happy monkey, strawberry shortcake, red diva and bunny hop. According to their two professional female chefs, Melany and Alma, they are enemies of shortening or artificial flavorings since they love the real stuff! My favorites were their strawberry shortcake, strawberry lemonade and Dulce De Leche. Minis: $1.50; regular: $3.00. A week after our meetup Polkatots won Best Overall for their Dulce De Leche cupcake in the cupcake challenge. Congratulations!