As a first-time homeowner, my fiance and I spent most of the first few months furnishing rooms and creating a functional space. Now that we are settled in and have our essentials stocked in our pantry, we can play around with color and bohemian style elements! We wanted to start with our dining room since that’s where most people would hang out and gather at our house.
I was initially thinking of painting our wall a dusty pink or blush. I love pink, it makes me happy. But as we flipped through colors on the Home Depot Project Color app, I found this delightful teal shade called “Mermaid Sea.” The richness and darkness of it spoke to me for some reason. AND! It matches the backsplash in our kitchen! Why not be a little matchy-matchy, right?
Here is a before and after photo:
Although we are completely in love with our custom monkeypod dining table (made by local contractor Reality Construction), bench and our vintage rattan chairs, we knew the boring eggshell color didn’t truly bring out the beautiful craftsmanship of our furniture.
Our wall decor consisted of woven and carved artifact collection from around Hawaii, Saipan, Palau and Ghana. I felt they were a perfect compliment to our dining set! We had planned to have an intentionally mismatched gallery wall, but after looking at all the woven art we had, we decided to feature them on our wall.
Right when we finished our accent wall, artwork came in from Argentinian artist Ana Clerici. I had been looking at this one piece for a very long time! It makes me think of home, where fresh fish is the best thing on earth and the colorful dress makes me smile. While it was intended for the dining room, I decided to save this beauty for our living room, since there’s not much color in it at the moment.
You’ll notice other boho elements in our home like rattan and woven baskets. The baskets are a lifesaver when it comes to organizing and storing items that may not fit the vibe of the room but are needed (like snacks, cleaning items, tripods and even XBox controllers). We use them for everything from grocery shopping to beach trips and storage.
And that’s our boho style dining room! It’s now complete! We are always delighted when our family members ask to take photos in front of our wall. I think we accomplished our goal of finding that perfect boho and fun color for the most used room in our home.
If you haven’t tuned into my Instagram feed in a while, let me share that we’ve been engaged for nearly a year already and we’ve started the process of getting married in the Catholic church.
A photo from our Save the Date shoot.
Everything is up in the air.
Travel plans. Work. Education. Life events. Our wedding.
We got engaged in September last year and set a date for the wedding sometime in 2021. Then COVID-19 happened. I selfishly took a break from wedding planning since the obvious top concern during this pandemic is everyone’s health and safety. I blissfully tucked my future life event into the back of my mind and focused on other things. A few months later, we decided to still move forward with our marriage classes at the Catholic church we attend, Sacred Heart Church in Honolulu. We signed up for the Engaged Encounter retreat at the St. Stephens Diocese campus located along the Pali Highway. I thought it would be a super religious bible study type of atmosphere, but it was completely the opposite! We enjoyed it so, so, so much and it was very special.
This is the little church on St. Stephen’s campus.
The retreat was run like a classroom with workshops and workbooks. Twelve couples were in attendance, due to COVID-19. Typically, each retreat hosts about 30 couples. The social distancing and safety measures were strictly enforced, which made us feel safe. Each workshop focused on specific areas of marriage, such as conflict management, financial fidelity, personality types / compatibility and pledging to love and support your partner. It was mostly psychological, actually. Each lesson was the same, you answer questions in the workbook and then you share and discuss with your partner. Nothing too sophisticated. The topics were simple, but it managed to spark some deep discussions about the trust you place in your partner and your willingness to do anything for them. The isolated campus is surrounded by lush, trees, native, tropical plants and just silence. It was the perfect setting needed for self-reflection.
This was my beautiful reflection spot.
We were blown away that our answers were almost the same each time and the workshops revealed things that we should work on together. The presenting couples, priests and deacon that ran the entire retreat kept saying, “A wedding is a day, marriage is a lifetime.” I must admit everything sounded really cheesy before getting into the workshops, but I believe it all now. The volunteer couples that ran the retreat were from various stages in marriage, so it helped to hear their testimonies and how they succeeded or failed to resolve issues within their marriage. The main takeaway was that Kevin and I can continue to build a stronger foundation together to sustain whatever hardships come our way. We know it never gets easy, but it’s something we’ve promised to work at together throughout our lifetime.
So…the wedding? We’ll move forward with the ceremony for sure. Since the retreat, I’m more excited to make the commitment to Kevin in church and it’s become more of a priority than planning the most chill party of our dreams. Don’t get us wrong, we still want a major karaoke wedding reception, but pending COVID restrictions and the health and safety of our elderly family members, we’re waiting to see how it pans out. So…my friends, the reception, unfortunately…is still up in the air.
These past few weeks have been a bit hectic in the office and at home so I asked my fiancé if he’d be opposed to getting some sun and alone time in busy Waikiki all weekend. Surprisingly, he was so excited, he booked a room at The Surfjack the next day!
We usually like to stay at The Laylow because of the nearby restaurants and luxe and trendy ambience, but he knew I was curious about the vintage vibe at The Surfjack. They have a nice restaurant called Mahina and Suns and live music every weekend. I dig it very much.
One of my fave things about The Surfjack is their coffee shop / boutique, Olive + Oliver. Coffee is below $5 and you get to choose a cup by a famous illustrator. The one pictured above is by Kim Sielbeck, a Honolulu-based artist.
View of the pool from our room on the second floor.
The Surfjack isn’t too far from most eateries, but you’ll have to either walk or borrow a bike. We decided to have breakfast at Bills Hawaii, an Australian restaurant best known for their ricotta pancakes.
The Full Aussie from Bills
Before we get into the ricotta pancakes, I wanted to mention the Full Aussie, which is a nice heap of protein and the best miso mushrooms I’ve had. Bills has a teensy bit of local flair, serving kimchee sausage as part of their signature Aussie breakfast.
Ricotta pancakes from Bills
Cue melty buttah action! The ricotta pancakes were served with this honey butter, which resembled sporty banana slices. I was confused at first, seeing banana at the bottom, I mistook the honey butter slice for banana and accidentally put it in my mouth! Kinda gross, but not?! I spit it out and spread the rest of the (untouched) butter across the cakes and we devoured every bite. Oh, if you show your local ID, kamaaina discount is 20%! Yassss…
Tsukemen from Bario
I wish I took photos at the beach, but I was too busy relaxing and frolicking with the fiancé to stop and take photos. It’s nothing you haven’t seen before, Waikiki beach was nice, but full of tourists (shocker). For lunch, we wanted to go someplace with a kamaaina discount…so we walked over to Yokocho, my fave spot for Japanese food. If you’re local, you get 15% off your order. We got the ramen and original tsukemen from Bario, because comfort food is a must after every beach day.
Book recommendation: In the Seat of a Stranger’s Car – bought this gem at Olive + Oliver.
This is how we ended our little staycation: with a book and a matcha latte with Olive + Oliver’s homemade honey syrup. Photos of myself sleeping with my mouth open on the pool lounge chair may surface later this week, but I don’t have any regrets about taking a little break from work and family obligations! I’d do it all over again.
Christmas shopping in the islands isn’t always easy. I avoid Black Friday like the plague and opt for local craft markets or sales a few weeks after. Once I finish my shopping for my loved ones, I typically like to indulge in some new artwork or accessories. Here’s a little peek at what I picked up throughout the week.
Last weekend, I visited the Sunshine People Market at Salt in Kakaako. Artists like Heather Almeda and Kris Hawaii sold some unique pieces.
I bought these two 8×8’s by Almeda. I liked the imagery and it matched the tropical pink artwork in my bedroom.
The market also had crafty vendors like Love and Monsters, best known for her colorful rainbow coasters.
This little air plant wasn’t something I bought, but it was a gift from one of my company’s consultants. I loved that he gave something nice to add to our desks instead of the usual cookies or sweets. It’s a healthier and aesthetically pleasing gift option for fellow coworkers and friends. If you don’t feel like making these yourself, simply head over to Paiko or your local plant shop and grab an air plant.
When I feel like shopping for myself, I usually retreat to Anthropologie at Ala Moana. The inventory changes often enough that I’m still always amused by the trinkets and stationary they have there. They are also tucked away on the top floor of the mall so it’s not so crowded all the time. I picked up a little pom pom bookmark for funsies. Who doesn’t love pom poms?
Lastly, Lucky Brand had a 50% off everything sale. I’ve been hatless for quite some time. I found a sturdy, neutral hat to add to my wardrobe.
Like the scarf I used as the background? Find it at Eden in Love.
While I’m no stranger to fancy açaí or blended fruit bowls, I never used to put any effort into the bowls I make at home until recently. Honolulu’s açaí bowls are pretty, but expensive, clocking in at $10 and up and if you’re lucky, your granola will still be super crunchy.
I’ve been trying to replicate what I see on Pinterest and it’s quite fun. The ingredients I’ve used for this bowl are spirulina powder, plain greek yogurt, raw chia, grain-free granola, frozen bananas and strawberries (I’ve frozen them myself), a bit of blueberries, macnut milk (I buy the Milkadamia brand, unsweetened plain) and a bit of cara cara orange. I think it’s best to use whatever is in season so you don’t get tired of them.
Because these bowls contain a ton of sugar, I try not to eat these as much. However, when I do get to enjoy them, I’ll savor every bite. Once in a while, I’ll sneak in a dollop of almond butter to make it a bit creamier.
When I do feel like buying an acai bowl or a blended fruit bowl, there are three places I’ll go to on Oahu:
Well + Proper
Not the most accessible, but if you follow her on Instagram @well_n_proper, she’ll let her customers know when she’s in. I set a notification for her posts. Her macnut butter is amazing and her acai isn’t so sweet. I love it. She also sells fresh squeezed juices and elixirs.
Jewel or Juice
If I want really good, fresh and crunchy granola, this is the place to go! They make their own granola and sell it on the side if you want to take some home. Their bowls are consistent and very good.
Banán
This place has been around for a while. I used to go to their small truck in Diamond Head to order their soft serve in a papaya with granola and macnut butter. Now they have a convenient location in the walkways of Kahala Mall. Their kiosk is well stocked and they usually have a line and a long wait. Still great, nonetheless.
I hate that sentence. But here’s what I’d usually do: I’m going to tell you five personal facts, followed by a bunch of counteractive statements in fear of you herding my likes and dislikes into a pen. My fear of being pigeonholed already tells you a lot about my insecurities.
Can I just show you my Instagram account? It’s everything I want someone to know about me: a person with a fascination with art by female illustrators, a weakness for Asian food and disorganized tablescapes, a tendency to overshare about my loved ones and friends and a gravitation towards the color of sunsets and sunrises. It’s a reflection of my fantasy self and authentic self.
Who is my fantasy self, you ask?
Let’s define the fantasy self, first. It’s who you want to be. It could be Astrid from Crazy Rich Asians or Samantha from Sex and the City. It could be someone who wears high heels for all occasions or a self-proclaimed life coach with tons of credibility. Either way, there’s something a little false about what you put forward.
My fantasy self isn’t tooooo far from my authentic self. She’s a writer and a creative. She blends visuals and words to convey something meaningful. She’s a sometimes-Catholic with an unconventional, bohemian outlook on life. A smart, funny and loveable person whose life at home revolves around her plant babies and photographing homemade brunches. She reads, travels often, and has funny, sarcastic exchanges with bae on social media. What’s the fake part, you ask? Keep reading…
What is my authentic self like?
You’re authentic self is simple. It’s who are when no one is around.
My authentic self is a woman who travels when she can, but in the meantime, she’s out eating ramen or staying at home because she’s not as sociable in her 30s as she was in her 20s. She travels deep into her mind, revisiting memories that conjure feelings of happiness and occasionally stumble into memories of experiences that she never had the chance to digest and heal when she was living through it at the time. She finds it difficult to focus on a task like laundry, vacuuming or responding to texts about mundane things like how many eggs to purchase tomorrow or explain why she’s been tinkering around all day. She entertains herself by taking photos of meals she cooks, reading self-growth books, watching horror films and going to crossfit primarily to hang out with the people there. Although her favorite color is sunset, she wears black most days because it makes her look slimmer and she’s so lazy to do laundry, it’s easier to throw everything into the same washload. She lives to please her family, which can be a good and bad thing.
You must think I’m a fake, lazy, depressed hag right? You’re half right.
{Cue self-affirmation-esque inspirational music} I actually do experience lots of joy. I feel joy when I’m able to save more than $300 from each paycheck, get invited to get-togethers, give someone a gift or a hug and during the few times I actually make Sunday mass. I love art and I spend hours searching for female illustrators that depict real bodied, brown women like me. I love my job and what I do for work, it’s a place where I feel powerful and confident in my ability to produce good things and strengthen my skills. I love when I make my family happy with something I did or cooked on my own. I try my best to be the good child. I try to surround myself with compassionate individuals who treat people like people.
I value my selective choices in friends and I know when to be level-headed just as much as I know when I can allow myself to be an emotional mess.
The reality is…it’s a struggle to live between both worlds. So I try to blur the line as much as I can and allow my authenticity to take over as much as possible, no matter how ugly she looks.
Balancing fantasy and authenticity
said “bae” lol
In dating, I realized that my fantasy self only took my relationships so far. I was quick to put F self on and hooked quite a few good-looking ones that would only boost F self’s ego. I tried my best to be skinnier and outgoing, wear nice clothes and make as many surface level friends As I could…all to trap a God-fearing Latin man-unicorn with money. It wasn’t until I started dating a guy that didn’t care about social media, saw through my F self, slept through my snoring and reminded me how beautiful I was bare-faced, wearing a stained Saipan t-shirt, stuffing Takis and hot Cheetos into my mouth. He didn’t add value to my social clout, impress others with his multiple jobs or have a manly truck to overcompensate for anything. He’s real, deep and one-dimensional all at the same time, completely devoid of a fantasy self. His honesty and realness is the best thing to come home to.
My single friends often talk about losing weight before they find Mr. Right. I tell them that first of all, you don’t need a man to feel complete (something they already know, but I repeat anyway). Second, you’re better off finding Mr. Right in your current state, because you’re not stressing you’re A self out trying to live up to your F self. You deserve to be loved at your skinniest AND fattest. I can’t even tell you the freedom I felt the day my A self started to become beautiful to ME and started to let a little A bleed into the F.
@hawaiibusinessmagazine
In my career, surprisingly, I was quite the opposite for years. I was too focused on proving I could do something that I never really conjured up the F self often enough. I was known in the office as the girl who wears black and doesn’t even bother to wear makeup most days. I believed that my brain was enough for the job and then get upset when board members and sales reps forget my name. I just wasn’t memorable and I chalked it up to not being good enough to be noticed. I still struggle with this to be honest. Today I try my best to put on a light, natural face-full of makeup, do my hair a little nicer and incorporate some of my artistic and colorful personality into what I do at work. Now people are slowly remembering my name and what I do. I’m still invisible but not as invisible as I used to be. This month, I magically made it onto the cover of a business magazine, so I suppose it’s progress.
One thing is for sure. The fantasy will always change. One day, I’ll tire of being the “islandbohemian” and maybe switch to the “wordygypsy” or the “artsychamorrita.” You never know what I’ll be into next. However, my authenticity will never change as dynamically as my fantasy. I’ll always be myself whether I like it or not. I may improve upon a few things like being healthier (not necessarily skinnier) or being more responsible with money, but I will never, ever give up my food-stained Saipan shirts, snoring (it’s like, not that easy to control, quite honestly) or quality time spent with family.
I felt compelled to write this because I see a lot of women my age and younger fighting a battle between their fantasy and authentic selves. It’s totally okay to have both, but don’t ever be ashamed of your A self, she’s in there and the longer you repress her, the more she forgets what truly makes her happy and next thing you know, she’s a full-blown seeker of validation. Maintain that balance, know yourself and what brings you so much joy that you can’t help but smile. Be authentically you.
(Note: I am not a certified life coach nor do I have a background in psychology. I share my own thoughts based on my experiences in hopes that I have the pleasure of meeting more authentic beings out there.)
One of my goals this year is to read at least one book every month. I realized I haven’t read anything great in a while and I’ve been out of touch with what’s new and profound in the literary realm. Knowing I’d be really indecisive on selecting books, I reached out to my Facebook friends for recommended titles. Naturally, everyone responded with titles close to their heart! I specifically asked for some diversity, everything from science fiction to self help. My network of old friends, colleagues, past professors, and relatives served up a very diverse list. I’ve combed through the titles that seemed interesting and are somewhat relevant to me.
Here are the top 12 that made my list:
La Sombra del Viento / The Shadow of the Windby Carlos Ruiz Zafón – This is the first one that I bought. Recommended by my grad school professor, this is really great so far. I bought the Spanish version, thinking I’m up for a challenge, but it’s taking me longer than usual to get through a book. I highly recommend this book (it was suggested to me three times) because I’m only on page 50 and I feel like I’m in a magical world.
Who Thought This Was A Good Idea? by Alyssa Mastromonaco – I’m not going to lie, I peeked through the first ten pages of this once I received it in the mail. The writing style is honest and witty, but I’m forcing myself to finish La Sombra del Viento before I finish this.
Building A Story Brand by Donald Miller– Naturally, my boss gifted me an awesome book that would help me develop my branding and message strategy at work. This was an easy read and Donald puts things into perspective.
Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps by Kelly Williams Brown – A crossfit friend recommended this to me. We’re on the same level. I need to learn how to adult!
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – A former classmate recommended this one and I saw that it was highly rated on Amazon. It’s on my list of next books to purchase (or find a copy of at the library).
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini – This title was recommended to me three times! The synopsis and eager recommendations sealed it’s place on my list.
Ready Player One: A Novel by Ernest Cline – I asked for diversity and my crossfit friend served it up. This isn’t a title I’d pick up immediately, but I hear the movie comes out sometime next year. Plus, it looks exciting!
A Tale for the Time Being: A Novel by Ruth Ozeki – I read the reviews on this one and they are phenomenal. I can tell every person was affected by this book, even the poor ratings have quality feedback. On the list it goes…
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondō – Ali Wong was onto something. A fellow AIGA board member recommended this title and I remembered Ali’s standup.
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi – A former grad school classmate warned me this is a sad read, but it makes you think about life and death.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change by Stephen R. Covey – Recommended by a former colleague who is always trying to be better at what he does. Such an appropriate title.
Switch On Your Brain: The Key to Peak Happiness, Thinking, and Health by Dr. Caroline Leaf – My younger cousin recommended this, which I am in complete shock that she did. She’s a wildly bold free-thinker and to see her recommend a book that helps center your thoughts and incorporates a spiritual or biblical element shows me how much she’s grown. Perhaps it will help me grow as well.
This list is definitely a great start. I think my Facebook post helped some folks discover new genres and books. A couple of old classmates have even reached out saying they wanted to start a book club. We’ll see how it goes. Feel free to leave your fave titles (and why you recommend them) in the comments!
This year, I’ve made it a point to reserve Sundays for mass and a little downtime with Kev. We’ve become that subtly annoying couple that snicker when the choir hits an off note, or when the priest dozes off during the first reading. It has become some sort of entertainment for us, yet we enjoy taking an hour of our day to thank God for what we have and ask him to inspire the other to treat the next meal. Thankfully my requests to be treated to brunch or lunch at a restaurant of my choice are always answered…which is why I choose dim sum most Sundays. I suppose it’s the variety of dumplings, char siu bao, puffs, and dipping sauces that convince me it’s the more exciting, yet affordable type of meal we can get on a lazy Sunday. Plus, the wait is never out the door at Chinese restaurants.
We usually hit up the dim sum at Happy Days along Waialae Avenue because it’s consistent and affordable. We don’t feel guilty ordering more than our fair share of shrimp dumplings or taro puffs. This is our go-to in town because it’s close to the gelato shoppe, you know, just in case we’re craving a sweet treat after our crispy, hot jin dui.
When we feel like splurging, we head towards the dim sum restaurant near my house, Harbor Village Cuisine. The dim sum is nicely presented on a menu. No loud, sizzling or steamy carts around here. I fancy the spinach and shrimp dumplings and the mochi rice here because it feels like they put a little more love into making it.
It’s rare that we wake up early enough to hit up the early mass. But when we do, we end early and crave some of the “local” dim sum at Char Hung Sut in Downtown Honolulu. My extended family owns the take-out dim sum shop. They learned the recipes from my great grandmother and are best known for their manapua, mai tai tsu, and half moon. I can’t stress how tasty they make these dishes. If I had to choose a meal that described my childhood, it’d be this type of dim sum because it was like a treat to have each summer. It’s a comforting type of meal that can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Yes, in my family, dim sum can be eaten around the clock.
In my family, we call this The Good Luck Soup. It’s a Japanese ozoni soup that we eat on New Year’s Day every year. The ingredients are simple, yet so different. My aunty makes the broth from scratch, boiling kombu, clams and dried shrimp until the water turns a dark, clear brown color. Then she puts taro, shiitake mushroom, a fat piece of stretchy mochi for longevity and mizuna for wealth. She says the soup is supposed to bring good health for the entire year ahead…so you bet I had a second bowl.
It has been oh so chilly here in Honolulu and seeing the clouds hang low, covering the mountain tops behind my office remind me to take a moment to breathe through the holiday rush. Can we all just sleep in for once and enjoy this cool weather?
While I’m no stranger to fancy açaí or blended fruit bowls, I never used to put any effort into the bowls I make at home until recently. Honolulu’s açaí bowls are pretty, but expensive, clocking in at $10 and up and if you’re lucky, your granola will still be super crunchy.
Tell me about yourself.
THE ISLAND BOHEMIAN 