Antique Mall Close-out and GTOTM

Konnichiwa!

I just want you all to know that I am making great progress in learning Japanese through my Human Japanese software. I've really enjoyed drawing the little characters (Japan really is all about cute!)Also I FINALLY fixed my blog so that it is easier to read. Anyway, I'm straying from the topic. Sad news: the antique mall near my house is closing :'( This is extremely disappointing, not only because it's a good place to find cool Japanese stuff, but also because it is a great place for thrifting and buying gifts. As a tribute to its final days, I will show a few other cool Japanese items I found on sale there recently.

Interesting and ornate egg-things. Seriously though, can somebody tell me the purpose of these?

Japanese vase. This one was actually cheap enough for me to purchase. It is currently sitting on the dresser in the front of my room. Hopefully after Valentine's day I can fill it with some flowers ;)

last but not least, tea set!! I am quite fond of tea-pots with bamboo handles like this, as opposed to the traditional Japanese teapots that are dark-colored, ceramic, very wide/round, and flat. I think there must be a difference in eras between the two styles. The kind I like are much more difficult to find. I already have a tea set that I received for Christmas, as you may have read. However, it only contained 4 cups and a pot whereas this one basically contains a whole kitchen! Overall though, I like the way mine looks better and that is more important

Since I'm lazy, I'm combining this post with my Green Tea of the Month for the Month of February. I would have used Lemon Green Tea or Kapchorua Green Tea as my GTOTM, but since I already described those in my Christmas post, I figured it would be a bit redundant to appraise them again. Plus, those are running out, and I've been using the kind that a picked for this month far more often. Drum roll please....

Decaf Green Tea!!

A bit anticlimactic? Sigh, I know. But really, this stuff is great! Second semester has been kinda crazy, and sometimes I'm so busy that by the time I get around to drinking my 3rd green tea, it's too late for any caffeine. This has definitely been my saving grace.

So if you have a fantastic antique mall nearby, raid it while it lasts! I think I'm going to go cry now

Keep it kawaii folks!

-Ainsley

Christmas/GTOTM

Konnichiwa!

... and Happy New Year! My friend Ayana let me know all about the Japanese new year. They go to the shrine and buy charms, and then have a big meal. The meal includes kamaboko, which is a really weird [pink and white-striped gelatinous fish puree (not interested :/)The holidays have left me SO behind on this blog, and life in general. So I apologize in advance. But if you're still with me then you might just be interested in some of the many cool Christmas presents I got from my mom, hmm? Thought so :) If you're an avid reader (and of course, I hope you are), you will recognize some of these things from previous posts, before I owned them. Let me show you some pics

 Does anyone recall the sushi shorts my mom bought me from Hawaii? Well these are the sushi PANTS. 

 tea set from The Spice Merchant- LOVE IT SO MUCH

 Three types of tea from Chelmsford Tea & Gift: Kapchorua, Vanilla, and Lemon. All are types of green tea. The Kapchorua has a very strong earthy traditional green tea flavor. When you take it out of the package, it kinda looks like the pellets you feed to fish. The other two are probably both forms of sencha green tea; one with vanilla blossom petals and the other with lemon peel shavings. All are very soothing and delicious, but my Green Tea of the Month has got to be the vanilla green tea. It is AMAZING!!! Sorry I didn't give it its own blogpost, I forgot to take pictures of me steeping it (I use the new tea steeper from my boyfriend, which works fabulously) plus I didn't want to do two blogposts in one day (bit of an Ainsley overload for you pals)

 sushi erasers from World Market ( ^-^)

and here is the one my mom was most excited to give me. It's a legitimate antique kimono that she had shipped in from Japan (my favorite part was probably seeing the Japanese characters on the packaging, I'm so lame) This picture was taken before we watched the video tutorial on how to properly wrap it (but this way shows off my curves, eh?). You basically pull up the ends until they are at your ankle then wrap both sides around you. Next you pull the belt around the front, cross over the ends in the back, and then tie it in a bow in the front again. You tuck the bow under. After that you pull up the fabric at the chest until it is billowing over the belt so much that you can no longer see the belt. Voila you're in a kimono!

Hope you all enjoyed, and I'd love to hear what you did or received for the holidays.

Keep it kawaii folks!

-Ainsley

Boyfriend Christmas Exchange: Matcha Tea Set

Konnichiwa!

It's that time of year again... hence my posting this one day late :P It's Christmas! Definitely my favorite holiday. Obviously, my boyfriend and I spend Christmas with our families, so we exchange presents early. And he got me the COOLEST traditional matcha tea set ever, some matcha tea (hello lattes) and a new tea steeping ball, because mine broke. The tea steeping ball is actually shaped like a tea pot ( ^-^)

Here are some pictures

 Isu Matcha (powder green tea)

 adorbs tea steeper

 bamboo tray

 tea set box

 tea set

 bowl

 scoop

whisk

And here are some pictures of me making it for the first time

 filling the teapot with water (yes, my pot is Irish. Hoping for a Japanese one as a Christmas present)

 heating the water

 filling the bowl

 gettin a scoop :)

 dumpin that scoop!

stirring...

 Almost done!

 Yum yum soothing ( ^-^)

So basically I have the best boyfriend ever<3 Let me know what you get for Christmas, and what your favorite present is! And please, inform me if I'm making this incorrectly; I didn't look up instructions online, I just winged it. 

Keep it kawaii folks!

-Ainsley

Green Tea of the Month: Matcha

Konnichiwa!

So this title may be a little bit deceiving, but that isn't entirely my fault... When I bought this set of matcha green tea at Chelmsford Tea & Gifts, the lady selling it sold it as "matcha", even commenting that it is delicious as a latte. So naturally, I was under the impression that it would be a can of some lovely green powder for me to scoop into milk, like at Starbucks. WRONG. It is little tea bags filled with half normal green tea leaves and half matcha powder. Although it is refreshing steeped in water, I bought the stuff for lattes so I thought "dangit, I'm going to find a way to make a latte with this stuff." And it worked :D

(^tricky right?)

So here's how the latte is made

1. pour skim milk into teapot

2. microwave the pot of milk for 2 minutes on high

3. put two bags of "matcha" in a mug

4. when the microwave finishes, pour it on the tea and then steep for 2 minutes

5. remove the teabags

6. stir in stevia swettener (i do two packets tehehe)

7. snuggle up in bed, drink, and enjoy :) (and maybe even procrastinate from homework a little...)

Despite the deception, I'll give it up to Chelmsford for providing me with one hell of a latte! It has a slight hint of vanilla flavor, some good calcium,is relatively cheap per cup, and is only 80 calories. Beat that Starbucks! I'd really like to try making this with coconut milk instead of regular. I'll let you know how a real matcha latte goes when I get to making one.

Keep it kawaii folks!

-Ainsley

A Day at World Market

Konnichiwa!

If you are an American you know yesterday was the infamous... Black Friday. Getting up extremely early and heading out for good deals is what I was all about. As part of my "holiday" experience, I took a trip to a store called World Market. They have products from around the globe: Italy, Sweden, Germany, Indian, Chinese, Thai, Japanese- you name it. While I enjoyed browsing all of these cultures I mainly, of course, enjoyed the Japan sections. Here are pictures of some goodies I spotted while shopping.

 Hello Panda & other treats

 mochi & other treats

 ramune drinks (I spy a Hello Kitty ramune)

 traditional Japanese teapots with steepers inside (i find their extremely flat and round shape rather intriguing)

 the picture says it all

 teacups with lids

 a kokeshi Christmas ornament- bringing something Japanese into an American tradition. And its adorable!

 and my personal favorite... SUSHI ERASERS. Definitely want for school

 sushi stapler

sushi rolling mat with chopsticks and a rice paddle- perfect dining packer

So if you're looking for a gateway to the rest of the planet, check out World Market. Clearly it has captured other cultures with class! (props for alliteration there hmm?)

Keep it kawaii folks!

-Ainsley