Falling for fall

Skirt Piperlime, Top Victoria's Secret, Necklace c/o Kristin Hassan, chain ring Tiffany & CO, Belt MNG by Mango, shoes Jessica Simpson

Happy Halloween!!!! I hope everyone had a fun and safe weekend, we sure did over at my house!

These pictures were taken last weekend when we had that beautiful 60 degree day. I decided to get my family all dressed up and we headed over to a forest preserve by my home. I set up the tripod and took pictures of us under this tree. The pictures turned out better then I could have imagined and my Christmas cards have already been ordered! I also took pictures of each of the kids so we can have some awesome holiday gifts for the grandparents. Mission accomplished! See, having an great camera comes in handy for more then just my blog! ;)

Ravioli With Seafood Cream and Butter Sauce

It has been awhile since my last recipe, so I thought I'd do a new dish over the weekend, and inspired by something that Masterchef Peter did.

It is actually one of my simplest recipes, and this can be quickly done in less than half an hour, and very sumptuous at the same time.

The dish is a simple ravioli dish with a rich butter cream sauce to go along.

To begin, simply boil some ravioli which you can get from NTUC finest. They come in various stuffings, and for this recipe, you can use any variant.

Usually, you will need to boil for between 7 to 10 minutes and add in some olive oil to the water to prevent any sticking of the pasta.

In a pan, add in a knob of butter and let it burn until it is liquid and brown. Quickly add in some chopped leeks and garlic and fry until the flavors are extracted.

Add in chopped crabsticks (or crabmeat) and scallops and let them quickly sear. Add in a dash of white wine and let the alcohol burn and infused with the mixture.

As the seafood begins to cook, add in cream to make the sauce and bring it to a high heat and let it reduce. As it reduces, the sauce will thicken up nicely.

Once it has reduced by half, bring it to medium heat and add it in the cooked ravioli and toss. Season with some grounded pepper.

For one final touch, add in some freshly chopped basil for the added aromatics.

And there you have it, in less and 30 minutes, a delicious ravioli dish!

Paper Magazine + Giambattista Valli event

Last week on Wednesday Oct 26, I attended Paper Magazine's event/party for Giambattista Valli in celebration for the launch of his collection for Impulse Macy's. Models Jessica Stam, Chanel Iman, and Hana Ben Abdesslem were present in addition to a few members of the press as well as others in the fashion industry.
Here are just some shots of the gorgeous (and affordable!) collection, taken by my friend Pranesh Barua - who also helped me out during NY Fashion Week. (By the way, if anyone is looking for a fashion photographer, Pranesh is definitely interested & you can email him at pbarua00ccny@gmail.com)

It was a great evening of socializing, networking, and shopping. Special guest DJ Harley Vera-Newton was there spinning tracks while appetizers & drinks were being passed around. Even Olivia Palermo made an appearance!
I had the lovely opportunity of mingling a bit with editorial director of Paper Magazine, Mickey Boardman and designer Giambattista Valli! Such fabulous men!



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Party All Night

Today's song is "Party All Night" by Sean Kingston.
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Recipe: Sugar and Spice Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

The beautiful Veronica over at Girl in Closet wrote about eating pumpkin seeds with sugar, butter, and cinnamon. Of course I wrote her on twitter asking for the recipe! I've only ever eaten them with sea salt! It was super easy to do and I hope you try it this weekend or next year for sure (sorry for sharing it with you guys so late in October!).

ps-sorry for the cluttered counters, real life is not always neat and tidy ;)

Ingredients:

1 cup pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon melted butter or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon granulated sugar, or more, to taste (I used raw sugar)
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon allspice

Preparation:

Rinse seeds well and get as much of the pumpkin pulp off of them as possible. Some of the small pieces are going to adhere, but they won't hurt the seeds at all, and might even add a little more flavor. Pat dry with paper towels. Don't let them dry completely on the paper towels, because they might stick!
Toss seeds with the butter, sugar, and spices.
Heat oven to 300°. Spread coated seeds in a shallow baking sheet (I line a baking sheet with nonstick foil to make cleanup easier), turning from time to time, for about 45 to 60 minutes, or until nicely browned and crunchy.

this weeks "I want what she has!"

This weeks first "I want what she has!" goes to Michelle McSweeney. GUSH GUSH GUSH!!!
This dress is BEYOND amazing! And the back is FAB!

Dress: $40 (on sale) BeBe

I am so mad you got this dress 3 years ago Michelle!! I was going to leave the wedding you wore this to and run to BeBe to get my own! lol
If I ever fit into your clothes, this will be my first choice to borrow!



My second "I want what she has!" goes to Blaire Dalton. I am loving her look head to toe, but that cuff and those shoes are amazing!

Cuff: $39.95 Shoedazzle
Shoes: $39.95 Shoedazzle

Okay, now I'm sad I canceled my membership. This is the third time since I've canceled that I've seen something that I really want! Maybe in the new year I'll have to join again. You look amazing Blaire, love your Shoedazzle picks!

Pronovias Bridal Event

Last week, there was a wedding event at Pronovias, one of the world's leading bridal houses. Many guests & brides-to-be attended to hear the latest trends in the bridal world, meet with vendors, and spectated an absolutely gorgeous fashion show. I was unable to attend the event (and no, I'm not engaged just yet either), but just seeing a few images of the exclusive runway show - featuring bridal collections from Elie by Elie Saab (one of my favorite designers) and Manuel Mota, I just had to share! Below are some images from the show (click to enlarge):

All images are taken by Turn Loose the Heart.

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Uncover

Today's song is "Uncover" by Lindsey Ray.
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65 degrees in late October

Top Stylemint, Jeans E Street Denim, Shoes Blowfish, Ring Threadsence, Sunnys Target, Nail Color Sally Hansen Commander in Chic and OPI Bring on the Bling

What a beautiful day we had this past weekend! I had a great family day filled with pumpkin carving, a walk to the park, and time outside back.
I was excited to wear my new Stylemint top. I paired it with dark wash jeans, a big ring, and for a pop of color, my blowfish canvas shoes. It took all of 5 minutes to get ready and that's just what I needed to not take any moments away from my family day!

on a different note, how amazing are the colors of fall?! I seriously wish I could live somewhere where it was fall year round! Which obviously is not possible because if the leafs were falling year round we'd have a lot of bare trees! ;) So maybe I'd settle for a place that has LOTS of multi colored trees! Something about the greens, oranges, reds, and yellows...they just put me in a good mood! OK, who knows were that might be? ;)

Belle Etoile Press Preview

On Tuesday, Oct 25, I was invited to Belle Etoile's press preview. The lovely ladies of Belle Etoile walked me through multiple collections of the jewelry line which included: Color Stone, Italian Enamel, Italian Resin, Italian Rubber, and Seashell Pearl.

My favorite pieces from the Color Stone collection - click images to enlarge

The Color Stone collection showcases CZs and synthetic stones. What I did not know prior was that CZs also have different cuts. Sometimes CDz can be rare, high-quality, and more expensive than genuine stones. The stones in the Belle Etoile collection are either hand-cut or laser-cut, then polished with the finest tools & technology available. They're also carefully set into jewelry and never glued in.
The pieces from their Italian enamel collection are all hand-painted. It's amazing how intricate some of the designs are & the stunning array of colors the pieces come in. Belle Etoile uses a state-of-the-art cold enameling technique as opposed to the traditional hot or baked enamel process. It allows the enamels to remain thick and gives the coats durability and color consistency, which can last owners a very long time. I had the pleasure of even receiving one of the enamel pendants, and it's absolutely gorgeous (shown on the left)!


I was very intrigued with their Italian Resin collection. Just the shapes of the pieces are interesting! The resin is carefully sculpted in a special molding process that gives each jewelry piece its unique & remarkable shape. It's surprisingly very light and comfortable.
Their rubber material are all imported directly from Italy. It provides superior smoothness, flexibility, durability, color consistency, and comfort. It currently comes in colors of chocolate brown, copper brown, adobe brown, jet black, winter white, and royal blue.

The Seashell Pearl Collection (a few pieces shown in the first image of this post) features onyx, mother of pearl, and the finest seashell pearls. The inner nucleus of the Belle Etoile seashell pearl is carefully carved & polished from giant fossilized deep sea oysters. It's then coated with a mixture of crushed mother of pearl and pigment to give the pearl its luster, hue, and sheen.

Belle Etoile is French for "beautiful star" and they create jewelry with the utmost quality provided for every type of woman of any style and price point.

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Sleep

Today's song is "Sleep" by Azure Ray.
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