Designer Watch: Rosa Clara

Through Polka Dot Bride, I stumbled upon Rosa Clara's 2012 Soft Collection and I fell in love with each and every one of the flowing romantic gowns that look absolutely heavenly! These dresses are what I've always envisioned my wedding dress to be like so I'm over the moon to have found this designer!

Playlist #1 - Memorable Movies

I've been listening to Richard Mercer's Love Song Dedications while driving at night recently and it made me think of starting a new blog series to keep a record of all the great songs that I hear on the radio and elsewhere. Tonight, after watching the end of Dirty Dancing on TV, the infamous dance scene between Johnny and Baby gave me the idea for the theme of my first song blog...

1. (I've had) the time of my life - Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes [Dirty Dancing]
2. I will always love you - Whitney Houston [The Bodyguard]
3. Come what may - Nicole Kidman & Ewan McGregor [Moulin Rouge]
4. I don't wanna miss a thing - Aerosmith [Armageddon]
5. My heart will go on - Celine Dion [Titanic]
6. When you say nothing at all - Ronan Keating [Notting Hill]
7. Endless Love - Lionel Ritchie & Diana Ross [Endless Love]
8. Unchained melody - Righteous Brothers [Ghost]
9. Can you feel the love tonight - Elton John [The Lion King]
10. A whole new world - Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle [Aladdin]

Luck, Love and Happiness

I found this amazing proposal video and loved the whole creative concept of making a movie out of your love story. Very cleverly done, with great cinematography and music, and priceless footage of all their adventures together, inspiring me to take more videos! Watch and enjoy!

LUCK - NYC Wedding Propsal from Aria Melody DJ on Vimeo.

The Royal Wedding

Last Friday the 29th April was the wedding of William and Kate, a modern day fairytale and a historic event that captured 2 billion viewers worldwide! The best kept secret and most anticipated detail of the day was Kate's dress, a custom made creation by Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen that was tastefully classic yet modern  and drew inspiration from Grace Kelly's wedding dress more than half a century ago.

I think that Pippa Middleton, Kate's sister, looked gorgeous in her maid of honour dress (so simple and elegant, I loved the flowers in her hair!) as well as her sexy emerald green dress (love love love the colour!)

Finally, Will and Kate looked so happy on their special day! Amongst all the pressure and nerves that they must be feeling knowing that the whole world was watching, they carried themselves so well and really looked like any other loved up couple on their wedding day. She looks so happy to finally have her prince charming and he looks at her like she's the only girl in the world! I love fairytales and happy endings!

Fiji Time!

Law and I just got back from 5 wonderful days in beautiful Fiji! We've decided to blog about it on our travel blog Law and Anna Go Global so please check out all the details there. Here are some of my favourite photos from the trip courtesy of Law and his newly developed photography skills (my Sony Cybershot has become redundant and is semi retired because of his new Olympus!). We love to travel and have fallen in love with Fiji so I would definitely recommend it as a wonderful tropical island holiday any time of year!

Wedding Watch: Rebecca Twigley & Chris Judd

I think Rebecca Twigley is beautiful so I wasn't surprised when I saw her wedding photos to footballer Chris Judd. Her gown was sexy and sophisticated and I love the variety of sheer bridesmaids dresses in timeless grey. The J'Aton gowns are all intricately detailed and beautifully unique. I especially love the sweet heart bodice of Rebecca's wedding gown as it's so feminine and pretty.

The Tourist

It's been a sweltering few weeks in Sydney with temperatures reaching 40 degree highs this week. Some friends and went into town today to catch the Chinese terracotta soldier exhibition at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. We thought it'd be cooler in the city than in the west but it was still an unbearable scorcher. The exhibition was really cool with real terracotta soldiers on show, although no photos were allowed so I could only take some of the horses in the foyer. We kept the rest of our photos for the beautiful architecture of the Art Gallery, St Mary's Cathedral and Hyde Park. From the photos it looks like such a gorgeous Sydney day...until you feel the sun's rays mutating your cells into melanoma skin cancer! Next time I think we'll head to the beach!

Blogger App

Finally my dreams have been answered! Google has released an official Blogger app that will make blogging on the go so much easier! This is my first test post from my Android.

Sake

This blog is a bit overdue but I've been meaning to tell you all about the restaurant we ended up choosing for our anniversary in December. After tossing up between many hatted restaurants and pouring over their fancy degustation menus, we finally decided not to over indulge too much and settled on Sake in The Rocks, Sydney. We both love Japanese and decided that a fusion restaurant with your not-so-typical Japanese dishes would be a great way to try some new dishes that we would surely enjoy.

The service was great as soon as we walked in the door. Our waiter was really helpful in suggesting dishes and describing their qualities as well as recommending how they should be eaten. We started off by sharing our favourite sushi combination (sashimi + scallops) which was meant to be eaten with your hands using the witlof leaf as a scooping spoon - they even provided hot towels to clean our hands, which reminded me of the ones they give you when you wake up on the plane. We also shared the special pork belly skewers which melted in our mouths.

Sushi Maki - S expresss: scallops, spicy mayo, cucumber, seared salmon, witlof and sweet sauce

Kushiyaki - Pork belly: 2 skewers per serve accompanied by spicy anticucho sauce

We carefully picked our mains from the list of enticing dishes, and as were both seafood lovers, I think we definitely picked the best 2 seafood plates on offer. I loved the scallop dish I had, the miso cream sauce really soaked into the vegetables and perfectly complemented the medium cooked tender giant scallops. Law's scampi dish was they one of the softest and sweetest crustacean meat I've ever had and the green tea salt infused it with an amazing flavour, especially with a squeeze of lemon. The dishes were sufficiently filling and well worth it so we were satisfied but left wanting more.

Main - Miso-cream scallops: pan-seared scallops, baby corn, asparagus, shiitake mushrooms & yuzu miso cream

Main - Grilled scampi: grilled green tea salted scampi on daikon ribbon salad with yuzu dressing 

After all that yummy food, we were decided to share 1 dessert - which was a good idea because we'd both been eying the green apple one and neither wanted to choose another. This dish was definitely one of the best desserts I've ever had in my whole entire life. The mousse was so infused with green apple flavour that it was like a dream in your mouth! I have no idea how they got it to taste so good! Not to mention the paper thin pastry and the way it soaked up the apple vanilla syrup but still managed to stay crispy. Yummy yummy yummy, we were fighting over the last bite!

Dessert - Green-apple mille feuille: green-apple mousse with layers of crispy thin pastry & apple vanilla syrup

Overall, we were extremely happy with Sake. I would definitely recommend it if you're looking for a restaurant for a special occasion. The service and food is great and the prices are reasonable for the quality of the dishes. It's nice to eat at a restaurant that is really original in the creation of their dishes even though they are influenced by a particular cuisine. I don't think I will ever find a green apple dessert quite as perfect as this.

L'Occitane

I've always loved L'Occitane hand cream but recently discovered their Almond Apple Velvet Concentrate face cream. I bought this in America because I liked the almond-apple scent and found it to be so much cheaper than Australia. I didn't get around to trying it till now and after 2 weeks of using it, I've noticed that my face feels alot softer and firmer all at the same time! So whether you're looking for some hand cream for your purse, face cream for your daily routine, or even some perfume or soap, I would really recommend L'Occitane. Here are some of my favourites:

Almond Apple Velvet Concentrate

This velvety and fondant-textured cream visibly beautifies the face and helps the skin to effectively protect itself against the 1st signs of aging. Immediately, skin’s texture is refined and softer to the touch, day after day, skin is firmer, smoother and effectively protected against the formation of wrinkles.

Rose 4 Reines Velvet Hand Cream

This cream, enriched in Shea Butter and vitamin E, repairs, nourished and protects hands from daily aggressions. The hands are moisturized and delicately perfumed with the fresh and slightly fruity fragrance of the Grasse rose, the Bulgarian rose, the Moroccan rose, and the Turkish rose.

Cherry Blossom Eau de Toilette

A fresh and floral fragrance that celebrates the beauty of the cherry blossoms during the first days of spring.

Happy New Year!

First post for the new year and the new decade! I can't believe how fast 2010 went by, it feels like just yesterday that I was in Michigan, freezing my ass off, getting ready to start my semester abroad. This past year has been full of change, adventure and growth. I experienced challenges that have made me stronger and more independent than ever. I have learnt to take advantage of opportunities, push the boundaries and step out of my comfort zone to make dreams a reality.

What better way to kick start 2011 than to spend a gorgeous new years eve in the city to ring in the new year with Sydney's famous fireworks! I spent time with my family in Darling Harbour for the 9pm fireworks before heading across town to my friend's house in Vaucluse to watch the midnight fireworks from the amazing harbour bridge views in his back yard. It was a perfect warm summer's night and being with family and friends on the harbour made me love being back in Sydney for this new year's eve. I hope you all had a wonderful night as well and all the best for the new year to come! Here's a video of Sydney's famous fireworks this year and some photos from the night, enjoy!

Engagement Photos

I love the idea of a casual photo shoot to celebrate your engagement. It can be treated as a wedding pre shoot giving you a chance to test the waters with your choice of photographer and hair/make-up artist. It also makes for a great source of photos for use on your wedding day such as in the invitation or ceremony booklets. Polka Dot Bride has some lovely engagement photos, here are a couple of my favourites featuring a vintage picnic and a romantic stroll on the beach:

Christmas 2010

I can't believe Christmas has come and gone! After a long weekend of food, family and friends, I've finally had a chance to upload my photos and share with you my very first attempt at making Christmas dinner for my family:

Entree: Tuna & Cucumber Canapes

Side: Mango & Avocado Salad

Side: Roasted Carrots & Potatoes seasoned with Rosemary

Side: Tabouli Salad

Main: Lamb Cutlets with Caramelised Mushrooms and Onions

Main: Salmon Sashimi & Cocktail Prawns

Main: Herb and Mustard Roast Turkey Breast with Sage and Onion Stuffing Balls

Drinks: Anna's Secret Recipe Sangria

Dessert: Berry Tiramisu

After a week of planning and a whole day in the kitchen, our Christmas feast was a success! It was alot of fun and very rewarding so I can't wait to try some new recipes next year - I really wanna try making a traditional Christmas ham. 

I'd say the most important lesson I learnt was to plan ahead and stay organised. Some tips I found useful: prioritise your shopping list to buy dry ingredients first, use everything you already have in your pantry, buy fresh veges and seafood as late as possible, delegate dishes/courses (my sisters made the entree and dessert) and time your oven use well. 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas weekend filled with lots of love and of course, food! Can't wait till next year!!

Interior Design for Dummies

Another Christmas present opened early! Law got me an Interior Design and an Interior Decorating book to kick start my future career change! Foundations of Interior Design is basically a whole course on the history, concepts and principles of Interior design while Downtown Chic is more about redecoration and renovating your home. Can't wait to get into them and start playing around with the ideas. Law said he'd also get me a program to design on the computer so hopefully I'll show you some stuff when I get my head around it.