Tag: trendy

Posted on in Personal

Waikiki Staycation

Olive + Oliver

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.

Posted on in Uncategorized

Fall-friendly leftover trends

If I were to sum up the major trends I’ve indulged in this past summer, I’d say they would be ombre, hi-low tops/frocks/dresses, Aztec prints and vintage leather. I always go back to past shops on Etsy to see what else these awesome designers have come up with. Take Brooke Fung’s Peeko Apparel, she’s listed some new duds for the fall season. I really like how she took the ombré to a wine shade and gave the hi-low top some shape with extra frills on the side.

As you can see from my previous posts, leather is a good investment. At Pascal Vintage, these rough, classic boots caught my attention and I’ve had them in my favorites list ever since. They’re a bit pricey for me, but that’s what’s expected of vintage clothing and accessories. You get that worn out feel.

Lastly, I saved these in my faves list just because they’re fun and colorful. I’ve been wearing a lot of black and grey lately for work so I figured that these would work well to break up the boring neutrals on Mondays. They’re pretty cute and made from real leather (according to the designer).

You can find more of these leather earrings and other goods by Tovi Sorga on Etsy.