Author: Simonette

A year and a half ago my husband and I moved to Korea. I wanted to write about my life and experiences in Korea along with my current interests. Initially we came to Korea to use it as a stepping stone to immigrate to another country. But now since we’re here we are thinking of making it our new home even if it is just for the next few year as no one knows what the future holds. If you told me ten years ago I will be living in Korea now I would have called you out for bullshitting me. My brother always quotes Robbie Williams by saying “I sit and talk to God and he just laughs at my plans”. This is absolutely true. We have made so many plans with our lives but in the end its not up to us, no matter how much you try to take it into your own hands. So… here we are in Korea, living it up

5 Easy Fall Picnic ideas.

October 6, 2016October 2, 20167 Comments

Summer picnics are all the rage but little thought is given to the Fall picnic. In fall the temperature has come down a bit and in humid countries having a Fall picnic is much more favourable than a Summer Picnic. In addition, Fall is the last time we can spend some time outside before winter shows up.

Here are some of the best Fall picnic ideas.

Pressed Italian Sandwiches

Recipe HERE

German potato Salad

Ingredients

2 pounds red potatoes
1 teaspoon salt (for boiling potatoes)
12 ounces bacon
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic (about 3 large cloves)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Recipe HERE

Spiced sweet potato and bacon skewers

Ingredients

2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1½” chunks
1½ tablespoons olive oil
1 pound sliced bacon
¾ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cloves
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Recipe HERE

Nana’s Fall-Off-The-Bone Ribs and “Barb”-ecue Sauce

Ingredients

For the ribs:

heavy foil
2 racks of ribs* (about 7-8 pounds)
Applewood rub (or your favorite dry rub)

For the sauce:

2 cups ketchup
2/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons chili pwder
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoons celery seed
2 cups water
1/4 cup brown sugar
4-8 drops Tabasco sauce

Recipe HERE

Salted Caramel Banana Pudding

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup instant vanilla pudding mix
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
3 cups heavy cream
1 (12-ounce) package Nilla wafer cookies
3 bananas, sliced
1 cup caramel sauce
2 teaspoons sea salt flakes

Recipe HERE

There are other great Fall Ideas on the like apple pies, apple spice tea and cranberry, apple and almond coleslaw.

Wedding ideas – Secret Garden

October 5, 2016September 22, 2016Leave a comment

When we are little girls we often dream of our wedding day. We dream of walking through a wood and come across a secret garden and there, in the garden stands ‘prince charming’ the man or our dreams, the man you want to spend the rest of your life with

The Bouquet

No matter the shape of your bouquet the flowers will represent a mix of flowers that you picked on the way to your secret meeting place, hidden in the lush gardens.

The destination

Whether inside or outside the wedding hall and reception should reflect the wild nature of a garden. This includes many flowers or draping to give the effect of a hidden garden

Reception

Decorating ideas should include lots of different colours.

Table arrangements

Depending on your own personal style you can choose one large arrangement per table or 3 vases of flowers. It is always important to remember to keep your arrangements in odd numbers as these appear more appealing to the eyes.

Wedding of Jasmine Shah and Gautam Sudhakar at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, DC Saturday, June 4, 2011. (© 2011 Michael Connor / Connor Studios)

Bridal party

Choosing bridesmaid dresses for this theme can include light or dark colours of pink, purple, red, orange or green or any other floral pattern. A nice tough is flower garlands in their hair so they look like fairies in your secret garden of love

Perfectionist Personality style

October 4, 2016October 21, 20161 Comment

Today’s post is part 3 of my 5 part series related to how personality traits influence or style. (See previous posts here and here)

Perfection is Key when it comes to a perfectionist style. Those with perfectionist traits like to follow the rules and be in control of themselves and their surroundings. You will not find a hair out of place with them. Everything is planned in an exact fashion… because everything has to be PERFECT.

Perfect waves

Perfectly starched/pleaded silk shirts

The Perfectly Pleaded skirt

Nothing more perfect than a perfectly pleaded skirt.

or….

Pants

Matching accessories

As a perfectionist they may even go for matching accessories to complete the perfect look.

Kitten heels

Not too high, not too low, just perfect.

blahnik-patent-leather-mary-jane-black-496

We all have a little perfectionist hiding inside us, whether it is manifested in your hairstyle, nails or outfit. It is important to try and look your best. As long as it doesn’t interfere with your life. Enjoy being perfect.

Fake it till you make it

October 3, 2016October 2, 2016Leave a comment

One of the most valuable sayings I’ve ever learned was ‘Fake it till you make it’. The first time I came across this phrase was in ‘Superflirt‘ a book by psychologist and relationship expert Tracy Cox. In her book she suggested that you should ‘fake’ being confident by acting confident. Its all about body language and the message you send to the world.

It comes from the idea that if we’re having a bad day, we will frown, slouch our shoulders, avoid eye contact and maybe even wear black or dark clothes to represent our mood, but if you walk tall, wear bright clothes and smile a lot you are most likely feeling confident about yourself and other people will notice this. What others think of us may not be important to you but it will determine how they approach us.

Don’t get me wrong, ‘faking’ it does not mean that you are fake or that you are no longer yourself. It requires a few small changes in the messages your body sends to the world. By faking it for a while, your body will get use to the changes and your mind will follow. Over time you will become the confident self-assured person you are ‘pretending’ to be.

Fake it till you make it is a principle that I have applied in my life personally and although I also sometimes have my down and out days. Acting more confident and self assured helps me to have the confidence to do things I might otherwise have not done.

Simple tips to boost your own confidence

Smile. Don’t fake the smile. Make it genuine. The kind that reaches from the corner of your lips all the way to your eyes.

Eye contact. Try and keep eye contact with the person you’re talking to. Also if you are intending to talk to someone, make direct eye contact and hold it there for a few seconds.

Get your head up. When you’re walking don’t stare at the ground, there is nothing but dirt there ( unless you’re walking somewhere dangerous of course :p). Pull your shoulders up and back. Stop slouching and you will already start feeling more confident.

How to pull off a Pink Wedding

September 30, 2016September 25, 2016Leave a comment

Bouquet

For a bride the bouquet is an important accessory. . Whether you choose a simple rose bouquet or a wild bunch of flowers, the type of flowers and colours you choose is often an extension of your own personality and flair

Low Table arrangements

Any good reception will need proper adornments. When choosing a table arrangement always remember that your quests will want to be able to talk to each other across the table and therefore don’t want to struggle to look past the arrangement in front of them. For table arrangements you can either do a low arrangement or a high arrangement

Extravagant Table arrangements.

Bridesmaids

Choosing a bridesmaid dress design is just as important as choosing your bridesmaids.When choosing a bridesmaids dress you can either choose the same color and style for all your bridesmaids or you can choose a whole palette of pink. Both these options look equally beautiful.

How to incorporate your colour into your food and drinks

Its not always easy or practical to make all your food pink but there are some options on how to add colour to your feast. Try using pink drinks or deserts. You could also add cute little table snacks like macrons or coloured popcorn.