Rote Lippen Soll Man Küssen...

The title of this Post is in German because it's basically a quote from a popular German folk song. It says "Red lips ought to be kissed". I totally agree even though I've never been one to care much for lipstick. In fact I neither owned nor used any. I was very satisfied with my transaprent lip glosses. In my defence I have to say that I hardly put on much make-up during the day because I aim for a more natural look. Until just now, that is.

At the same time as I started growing tired of seeing the same old me in the mirror every day I noticed more and more girls wearing bright red lipstick (preferrably with an all black outfit) during the day. Me - still not entirely convinced - got intrigued and went to the nearest Douglas make-up store to have an SA put some color on me. I left the choice of brand and shade up to her. She picked a Benefit lipstick in the color "Flirt Alert". Oh, how I like the sound of the name.

At first I was a bit shocked when I looked in the mirror because it so looked like ... well, not me. But isn't that what I wanted? I left the store telling the sales girl that I needed some time to think about it. She totally understood but assured me that the color suited me. She also gave me the advice to try to leave it on for the rest of the day And that's what I did. At first I felt a little uncomfortable especially after ordering a soy chay to go from Starbucks and lost half of the color on the to-go cup. One of the disadvantages of lipstick, I thought. They just never stay on....

But the longer I had it on the more comfortable I started feeling. Even my friend - who I met to go for a walk that day- noticed my bright red lips. That's when I made my decision to go back to the store first thing in the morning to buy the lipstick. And that's exactly what I did. And I haven't regretted it since.

What is your favorite lipstick (color) and why?

Green Tea Latte

Everytime I'm in New York I indulge in pretty much everything that I don't usually get at home. And that's quite a lot. Be it brownies, cupcakes or (veggie) burgers; I can't help thinking about food 24/7 when I'm in the Big Apple.

I must admit that there aren't really any drinks that I look foward to drinking. Most of the espresso specialties sold at coffee shops such as Starbucks I can get over here as well. And there is too much sugar in soft drinks for my (European) taste. However, one drink that I can't get enough of (and is almost impossible to find in Germany) is Matcha tea. I usually shop my Rheon Café on Spring Street when I'm shopping in SoHo because that's one of the few places that offers a Matcha tea latte. I always order mine with soy milk and add a little honey to it. Yum.

While browsing though Pearl River on Brodway and looking for some gifts for my friends I accidentally found a small box of Matcha green tea powder to bring home to. It's very small because the tea is one of the most expensive ones and usually used in Japanese tea ceremonies. Unlike regular greet tea match consists of powder and not leaves.

It's definitely my newest addiction. Luckily my health will benefit from the consumption at the same time. And the green color looks so fresh and springy.

What do you indulge in?

Definition: Matcha (抹茶^?, pronounced [mat.tɕa]^[1]) refers to finely-milled Japanese green tea. The cultural activity called the Japanese tea ceremony centers on the preparation, serving, and drinking of matcha. In modern times, matcha has also come to be used to flavour and dye foods such as mochisoba noodles, green tea ice cream and a variety of wagashi (Japanese confectionery). and

Blends of matcha are given poetic names called chamei ("tea names") either by the producing plantation, shop or creator of the blend, or by the grand master of a particular tea tradition. When a blend is named by the grand master of some tea ceremony lineage, it becomes known as the master's konomi, or favoured blend.

(Source: Wikipedia.com)