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every day life

Exploring the backstreets of Omotesando

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ドミニク　アンセル　ベーカリー　表参道

The weather is absolutely gorgeous right now in Tokyo. Cherry blossom trees are in full bloom, and people are out and about, enjoying much needed Vitamin D! I went out with a friend to explore Omotesando the other day and wanted to show some shops I discovered. I had never really gone into those small backstreets, which are set off from the main avenue (similar to Fifth avenue in NYC, with high end brand shops). I was pleasantly surprised to find tons of stuff which had previously not been on my radar.

ドミニク　アンセル　ベーカリー　表参道Dominique Angel Bakery
5-7-14 Jingumae, Shibuya (東京都渋谷区神宮前5-7-14)

This place, located in the narrow street off the main Omotesando street, is a child’s dream. Even though we visited there on a weekday afternoon, people were lining up to get in. They have a “cookie shot” which is a cup made out of rich cookie covered with chocolate with almond milk poured in. I can imagine my girls going crazy with the thought of drinking milk and eating the cup too. They also have a chiffon cake in a big balloon, called “zero gravity chiffon cake.” You  have to pop the balloon to eat it. The other stuff I wanted to try were  fronzen s’mores, and Paris Tokyo. More menu here.  The café is pretty spacious and has upstairs seating too.
ドミニク　アンセル　ベーカリー　表参道 ドミニク　アンセル　ベーカリー　表参道 ドミニク　アンセル　ベーカリー　表参道 ドミニク　アンセル　ベーカリー　表参道cookie shot空飛ぶシフォンケーキ

Maison Miyavie
5-3-12 Jingumae, Shibuya　（東京都渋谷区神宮前5-3-12）

I always enjoy a free gallery! I could not help but step into a strange house with mirrored slide door and multiple golden triangle decorations in the window. It’s a showroom of Koichiro Kimura. He designs furnitures out of recyclable polyethylene. The gallery is both first and second floors, and the entire place is decorated with white ceramic pyramids.メゾン　ミヤビメゾン　ミヤビ メゾン　ミヤビ メゾン　ミヤビ メゾン　ミヤビ メゾン　ミヤビ

Yes!

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Winter 10 x 10 Challenge Day 6-10

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ootd geek sweatshirt

Winter 10 x 10 Challenge Day 6-10

Check out my 10 picks in my previous blog post. My day 1 – 5 post is here.

winter ootd

Day 6:
January 26, 2018
Red turtleneck + GEEK sweatshirt + dark red maxi skirt + jean jacket (not in 10 x 10 challenge item) + Zara boots 

Today was cold. A Russian friend of mind told me that Tokyo winters are colder than Moscow winters, which makes it really horrible since I’ve also met an Indian person who told me Tokyo summers feel hotter than Indian summers. Anyway, I needed to really bundle up. This was a day that I worked and took my kids out for a play date. Later in that evening, I had a friend’s exhibition in Sangenjaya. For that, I decided to switch up. I took off the sweatshirt, and pulled up the maxi skirt as if it is a strapless dress, which made the length of the skirt to be a little below the knees. I wore the same Zara boots in the evening and marked my waist with black leather belt. I’m really happy with the discovery of new way to wear it. I’ve never thought of putting together an outfit this way before this challenge. This challenge encouraged me to play with the pieces that  I already have in my closet. 

red turtle neck and pleated skirtDay 7:
January 27, 2018
Red turtleneck + pleated midi skirt

Similar to Day 1, but just a different top.white button down and ribbed skirtDay 8:
January 28, 2018
White button down (self-made) + dark red maxi skirt (wearing as a dress like day 6) + thrifted belt + Lands End canvas tote

Two more days to go! I feel like I can just keep going on wearing the same things over and over again the rest of the winter. Kind of getting used to mixing and matching the same items. Nothing much going on today. Just work. I was going to go to Herme’s exhibition in Ginza, “Greenland by Fujiko & Ukichiro Nakaya“. The exhibition is free. Unfortunately, my friend got sick and we had to cancel but If you are around Tokyo, you should check it out! 

Day 9:
January 29, 2018

For some reasons, I cannot find the photo for Day 9. Although I do not remember what I wore this day, I swear I did keep within the 10 x 10 challenge.

striped shirt and levis denim

Day 10:
January 30, 2018
White button down (self made) + GU stripe sweater + Levi’s mile high super skinny jeans

Today’s outfit is basically the same as the Day 2, but instead of putting the shirt over the sweater, I wore it underneath. Does this count as a new outfit mix? 

Overall, I’m really glad that I did this challenge. One of the benefits to this challenge was it gave me a chance to review my closet and purge some items I no longer wear. During this challenge, I ended up selling two cashmere sweaters I was not wearing anymore, one watch and one purse. I clung onto those items since I bought the sweaters myself and the quality was good. Those were the only reasons I kept them in my closet and  I did not love them. So I’m glad the challenge trigger the purging process. By selling those items, I made some money, so I bought new sandals (for my vacation)! 

Would I do this challenge again? Maybe in the summer. It is a good challenge to do periodically to face what you have bought or made. This put me in the mindset of what I should buy instead of binge buy to satisfy the urge of random spending. Whatever you bring in in your closet should be a good friend with other items in the closet; meaning the color should go with existing pieces and the style should compliment them as well. 

Winter 10 x 10 Challenge

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I’m doing a 10 x 10 challenge! I came across this idea on Instagram via @maya_sewinzen feed. You can check out Style Bee for more info. Here is the general concept:

“The 10 x 10 Challenge is an exercise I established in 2015 to help encourage myself to get more creative with my clothes during a 30 Day Shopping Fast. The concept is essentially a micro capsule closet that you work with for 10 days, trying new looks and styling your clothes in ways you might not otherwise try.” (via Style Bee)

So you pick out 10 different pieces of clothes and mix and match the clothes for the next 10 days. Choosing the first 8 pieces was fairly easy. Four bottoms, two pairs of shoes, and two tops. But the last two, was much more difficult. There were clothes I wanted to add to the mix but their versatility was questionable so I went back and forth…In the end, here is what I came up with:

Style Bee 10 x 10 winter challenge bottomsBottoms

  1. skinny jeans (Levi’s Mile High super skinny)
  2. tweed wide legged pants (self made)
  3. knit maxi skirt (100 yen, thrifted)
  4. pleated midi skirt (A gift from my sister)

10x10 winter challenge topsTops

  1. red turtleneck sweater (100 yen at thrift shop)
  2. stripe bottleneck sweater (GU, but thrifted for 100 yen)
  3. white buttondown shirt (self made)
  4. GEEK sweatshirt (100 yen at thrift shop)

Shoes

  1. beige suede long boots (Zara, about 5000 yen)
  2. Superga sneakers (7200 yen on Shopbop)

I did not include coats to this 10. I’m fairly happy with my picks. Each has a different style. The tops have four different necklines (bottleneck, turtleneck, button down and round neck) so you don’t have to stick with turtlenecks all week long. Same for pants. I have skinny jeans, wide leg pants, maxi skirt that is fitted style and pleated midi skirt. 

My plan is to document this everyday for the next 10 days. I’ve already found some benefit to this challenge. First, I think this method is very useful when it comes to traveling. We do two-week trips to the U.S. every year. Whenever we go back to the States, you have  limited luggage space and access to laundry. So this method of four bottoms, four tops and two shoes, including one sneaker (can be used for workout) and one dressier shoes, can come in handy. Of course, I would have to revise it a bit if we were to travel in the summer. I would add more items since you might go through more since it is hot. Second benefit is that this forces me to think about every piece of my wardrobe to see if I really need them. I have some pieces in my closet that I kind of hold on to it but should let go. When I was thinking of what items to add, I found some clothes that I just did not want to add in the mix. I just could not imagine being stuck with it for 10 days! I have not let go of them maybe becauase I bought it and it was expensive, thus I should like it still. Or it was given to me from a friend and I feel bad about letting it go. If this challenge goes well, I might do another set of 10 that are completely different from this 10, so that I can wear every pieces of my clothes in my closet and review if I really need them.