Fancy Chinese Cuisine

Had one of those epic, multi-course family dinners for Mid-Autumn Festival this evening at Fancy Chinese Cuisine:

Roast duck, BBQ pork, steamed chicken, pork leg, jellyfish noodles, and seaweed salad

Glazed pan-fried shrimp with broccoli and cashews

Scallops with glass noodles, fried garlic, and green onions

Shark fin and shredded chicken soup

Steamed chicken with ginger and scallion sauce

Two types of mushroom with baby bok choy

Crab with garlic and green onions

Steamed grouper with sweet soy sauce and scallions

Braised e-fu noodles with mushrooms

Fried rice with roasted duck, shrimp, and fish roe in an egg "blanket"

Tofu pudding with sweet syrup

Chinese butter cookies and deep-fried sesame balls with lotus seed paste

Excellent food; the portions were generous and everything was fresh and tasty. And we actually had a great variety of dishes this time rather than the numerous "green and brown" dishes we typically get. This was my first time at Fancy Chinese Cuisine, but I have a feeling this will be our new restaurant for the big family dinners given our collective raves about the place. Aside from the delicious foods, the place is clean, the staff is efficient, and the bathroom is top-notch, complete with automatic paper towel dispensers! Fancy, indeed! I always miss these dinners because of work, so it was really great being able to see everyone, too. A most joyous occasion! Hope everyone had a great Mid-Autumn Festival. (If you don't know what it is, then I hope you enjoyed the autumnal equinox!)


Fancy Chinese Cuisine
7750 Kennedy Road, Unit 4
Markham, ON L3R 0A7
(905) 475-2822

Sunday Video Love: Closer

It has been three years since Tegan and Sara have released a new album. Sadly, their new album doesn't actually come out until next year, but they have released this gem of a single so we can get our fix until then. It sounds dancier and more upbeat than their old stuff, but the more I listen to it, the catchier it is, and now I basically can't get it out of my head. So it is somehow different and yet very Tegan and Sara at the same time.

NARS Fall 2012 Color Collection: Outlaw Blush

NARS Fall 2012 Color Collection sees the release of nine products, of which two are new and limited edition, and the remaining seven are new and will be made permanent (as far as I know). Fall 2012 Color Collection contains one shade of powder blush, which is actually the only product I picked up from this launch. Each blush is housed in a regular matte rubberized rectangular compact, contains 4.8 grams of product, and retails for $32.

Outlaw is a medium-dark raspberry pink with soft gold shimmer-sheen. It is a new and permanent shade. It has a fairly dry, stiff texture, and as a result, goes on a bit patchy and unevenly. It has medium pigmentation and semi-sheer to semi-opaque colour pay-off. It is layerable, but the more opaque the colour becomes, the harder it is to blend out because of the texture. It is more pink than Dolce Vita, softer and less red than Crazed, softer and more plum than MAC Breezy, brighter and more pink than MAC Plum Foolery, and brighter and less plum than TheBalm Cabana Boy.

NARS states that this is a new blush shade, but I'm pretty sure there was a shade called Outlaw in their permanent range before. I never owned it, so I'm not sure if this differs from the old Outlaw or if it is a re-release. Outlaw is a gorgeous shade for fall, but the texture is a major letdown. It's especially disappointing since NARS is known for their soft, smooth, ultra-blendable blushes, and Outlaw is so dry and hard to use. On the bright side, it's harder to over-do on the cheeks (this type of colour can go terribly, terribly clown-cheeky if used too heavily). I love the shade, so I don't regret getting it, but it's definitely not a must-have; you're better off getting one of the dupes.

Friday Five: Bookish

This week's Friday Five:

1. What's your favorite book you've had read to you? I haven't had a book read to me in a long, long, long time. I actually can't recall any books that have been read to me in the last 20 years, but I do remember my kindergarten teacher reading us Goodnight Moon... So I suppose that's it by default.
2. What book (or series of books) would you like to see turned into a film? The Jessica Darling series by Megan McCafferty, as well as The Maze Runner series by James Dashner. I would say the Divergent series by Veronica Roth, but it's been announced that a movie is already in the works.
3. We often complain about movies not being as good as the books upon which they are based, but what's a movie that was as good as (or better than) its book? Fight Club. And it might be blasphemous for me to say this, but I really loved Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet.
4. Songs often take us back to specific times in our lives, or remind us of specific people. What book does that for you, and what's the explanation? The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky will always remind me of middle school and all that awkwardness and teenage angst, and realizing that all of those things we think are so important and life-changing when we're teenagers are so trivial in actuality. It's a very poignant coming-of-age novel, and I remember it having a profound effect on me.
5. What book do you know well enough to quote from once in a while? Probably Sloppy Firsts and Second Helpings by Megan McCafferty. I must've read those at least 20 times each. I often spout one particular quote, which I actually find are words to live by: "The best you can do in life is not piss yourself off."

100 Degrees Hot Pot

The gang and I went for some late-night all-you-can-eat hot pot at 100 Degrees. I hadn't eaten hot pot in over a decade, so you can imagine how excited I was. So excited, in fact, that I may have gone a little overboard with the photos:

Tray of condiments for making custom dipping sauces

Iced Chrysanthemum tea

My dipping sauce: A raw egg, soy sauce, satay sauce, peanut sauce, garlic, and sesame seeds

Satay broth and clear broth

Beef slices

Cuttlefish balls and beef balls

Beef ribeye

Lamb slices

Beef tongue

Chicken wings

Fish paste balls

Wontons and water dumplings

Udon noodles

Watercress and Chinese spinach

Boil, boil, boil!

Just one of many, many bowls of deliciousness

Coconut ice cream (with actual coconut chunks!) for dessert

Since I'm a newbie at going to hot pot, I'm not sure how this place rates in comparison to other hot pot restaurants, but I was pretty damn impressed with the selection (and we went when they were serving their late-night menu which doesn't come with a lot of the offerings from their regular menu). They only have three or four broth choices during late-night, but the satay and clear broths worked perfectly fine for us 'cause coconut fungus and American ginseng sounded a little too fancy, anyway. I really like that they give you a tray of condiments to customize dipping sauces, too. And they serve sweet iced Crysanthemum tea in lieu of water or regular jasmine tea (like at typical Chinese restaurants), which proved to be much more refreshing and tasty alongside our hot pot. The restaurant was clean and organized, and given how busy it was, the service was pretty decent (there was only one waiter serving half the restaurant but he was efficient enough and pretty polite given his limited English). Oh, and did I mention that it's only $13.99 per person after 10:00pm? So worth it.


100 Degrees Hot Pot
650 Highway 7 East, Unit 102
Richmond Hill, ON L4B 4A7
(905) 370-1981

MAC Office Hours: Pro Longwear Lipglasses

Last week, MAC released a new collection called Office Hours, which features a total of 25 products — two of which are new and limited edition, two of which are permanent, and 21 of which are new and will become permanent. Office Hours sees the release of eight shades of Pro Longwear Lipglass, five of which are new and permanent, one of which is new and limited edition, and two of which are permanent (which will not be reviewed here). MAC describes Pro Longwear Eyeshadow as "a long-wearing Lipglass that goes on smooth and lasts for up to six hours! Envelops lips with shine and colour and prolongs the hours between re-application." As with all of MAC's lip products, these are vanilla-scented, but taste-free. They come in regular clear packaging with soft pinched sponge-tip applicators. Each Pro Longwear Lipglass contains 1.92 grams of product, and retails for $22.50.

Boundlessly Beige, Persistent Peach, Everlasting Nude, Forever Rose, Next Fad, and Long Love Love

Boundlessly Beige is a pale beige with gold and beige shimmer. This is a new and permanent shade. The texture is creamy, though the consistency is on the thicker side, and it goes on smoothly and evenly. It has low pigmentation and semi-sheer colour pay-off. It is more beige than Instant Gold Lustreglass, and is lighter than Moth to Flame Dazzleglass. 

Persistent Peach is a is a medium pink-peach in a cream finish. This is a new and permanent shade. The texture is creamy, though the consistency is on the thicker side, and it goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is lighter and milkier than Pink Lemonade Lipglass, and pinker and more opaque than Richer, Lusher Cremesheen Glass. 

Everlasting Nude is a medium-dark peachy brown in a cream finish. This is a new and limited edition shade. The texture is creamy, though the consistency is on the thicker side, and it goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is slightly less pink than Show Me!, and darker and more opaque than Overindulgence Cremesheen Glass. 

Forever Rose is a medium-dark brightened strawberry red in a cream finish. This is a new and permanent shade. The texture is creamy, though the consistency is on the thicker side, and it goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is pinker and more opaque than Double Dare Cremesheen Glass, and much more pink than Russian Red Lipglass.

Next Fad is a light-medium neutral pink with white shimmer. This is a new and permanent shade. The texture is creamy, though the consistency is on the thicker side, and it goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It is less bright and cooler than Viva Glam Nicki Lipglass, and brighter and more opaque than Floating Lotus Cremesheen Glass. 

Long Love Love is a pale cool-toned lavender-pink in a cream finish. This is a new and permanent shade. The texture is creamy, though the consistency is on the thicker side, and it goes on fairly streaky and unevenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is lighter and cooler than Infinitely Likeable.

I've never been a huge fan of the Pro Longwear Lipglass formula for one reason: It is extremely sticky. Almost glue-like, really. Because of the texture, I find these to be really high-maintenance, because if you press your lips together, it will bunch up and ruin the evenness of the colour. If you thought MAC's original Lipglass formula was tacky, you haven't felt these yet. Moreover, the lighter shades like Long Love Love and Patience, Please (which is a permanent shade that has been released with this collection) look really streaky on the lips because of the tackiness combined with the full opacity, and so they are better off being layered on top of lipstick. Now, that having been said, these really are quite long-wearing. The lighter colours will wear about four to five hours, but the darker or brighter colours will wear the full six. For many, the stickiness is a trade-off for the wear-time, which is quite impressive for a gloss.

MAC Office Hours: Pro Longwear Eyeshadows

Last week, MAC released a new collection called Office Hours, which features a total of 25 products — two of which are new and limited edition, two of which are permanent, and 21 of which are new and will become permanent. Office Hours sees the release of nine shades of Pro Longwear Eyeshadow, eight of which are new and permanent, and one of which is new and limited edition. MAC describes Pro Longwear Eyeshadow as "a unique long-wearing eyeshadow with a silky, creamy texture formulated for maximum colour impact. Easily blendable and buildable; lids are visibly smooth no matter how intense the application. Lasts eight hours." They come in regular black packaging with clear lids. Each Pro Longwear Eyeshadow contains 3 grams of product, and retails for $25.

Ever Ivory, Always Sunny, and Uninterrupted

Ever Ivory, Always Sunny, and Uninterrupted

Ever Ivory is a pale ivory white in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and limited edition shade. It has a soft but powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered easily but it does take on a more chalky look as you add more. It is better padded on than blended out as it has a tendency to fade and disappear. It is similar though less pigmented than Blanc Type, and lighter and more matte than Shroom. 

Always Sunny is a light-medium orange-tan in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is slightly darker than Samoa Silk, and lighter and more orange than Soft Brown. 

Uninterrupted is a medium-dark orange-tinted brown. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is darker and more yellowed than Texture, and more orange than Saddle.

Bloom On, Endless Passion, and More Amour

Bloom On, Endless Passion, and More Amour

Bloom On is a pale rose pink in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered easily but it does take on a more chalky look as you add more. It is better padded on than blended out as it has a tendency to fade and disappear. It is slightly darker and warmer than Yogurt. 

Endless Passion is a medium mauve-rose pink in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is cooler and brighter than Girlie, and darker and brighter than Pink Venus. 

More Amour is a medium-dark reddened pink in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is more pink than Passionate.

Mauveless, Fashion Fix, and Linger Softly

Mauveless, Fashion Fix, and Linger Softly

Mauveless is a medium-dark reddened mauve in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is more reddened than Haux, and darker than Quarry.  

Fashion Fix is a medium-dark taupe-brown in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is lighter and less frosted than Satin Taupe, and lighter and more grey than Blackberry. 

Linger Softly is a medium blue-tinged grey in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered easily but it does take on a more chalky look as you add more. It is better padded on than blended out as it has a tendency to fade and disappear. It is lighter and more blue than Scene, and darker and more grey than Moon's Reflection.

Okay, let it be noted that these are completely different than the Pro Longwear Eyeshadows that launched last year with Styledriven. The Pro Longwear Eyeshadows launched with Office Hours all have semi-matte finishes, and so we cannot really compare the texture with the much more frosted finishes of the Pro Longwear Eyeshadows that launched with Styledriven. That having been said, I found these to be more powdery and harder to really layer and blend out than many of MAC's regular eyeshadows with similar finishes. They don't necessarily feel dry, but they can look dry when applied. I don't find that these wear any shorter or longer than many of MAC's other eyeshadows, but I do recommend using a good eye primer to help the eyeshadow from looking too powdery. I don't think any of these are really must-haves, but I can see many colours being staples, and those who like more matte eyeshadows may want to take a look at these.

MAC Office Hours: Pro Longwear Blushes

Last week, MAC released a new collection called Office Hours, which features a total of 25 products — two of which are new and limited edition, two of which are permanent, and 21 of which are new and will become permanent. Office Hours sees the release of eight shades of Pro Longwear Blush, all of which are new and will become apart of the permanent range. MAC describes Pro Longwear Blush as "a lightweight blush with extreme colour perfection and non-fading, eight-hour wear. Ultra fine, silky powder glides on and blends easily to provide a moist, flawless, natural finish or with layering, a brighter, more dramatic look." They come in regular black packaging with clear lids. Each Pro Longwear Blush contains 6 grams of product, and retails for $28.

Clockwise from left: Stay By Me, Baby Don't Go, Blush All Day, and Eternal Sun

Stay By Me, Baby Don't Go, Blush All Day, and Eternal Sun

Stay By Me is a light peachy beige in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is more peach than Tenderling, and much paler than Melba. 

Baby Don't Go is a is a light beige brown in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is more brown than Tenderling, and lighter than Prism. 

Blush All Day is a light-medium browned pink in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is darker and more pink than Tenderling, and lighter than Blushbaby. 

Eternal Sun is a medium-dark softened orange-brown in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is less brown than Coppertone, and darker and more orange than Gingerly.

Clockwise from left: Rosy Outlook, Stay Pretty, Whole Lotta Love, and Stubborn

Rosy Outlook, Stay Pretty, Whole Lotta Love, and Stubborn

Rosy Outlook is a light warm pink in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is warmer than Well Dressed, and lighter than Pink Swoon. 

Stay Pretty is a light-medium cool-toned pink in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is lighter than Dame, and darker than Well Dressed. 

Whole Lotta Love is a medium-dark brightened candy pink in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is cooler than Dollymix, and lighter and less bright than Full Fuchsia (PRO shade). 

Stubborn is a dark raspberry red in a semi-matte finish. This is a new and permanent shade. It has a soft but slightly powdery texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium-high pigmentation and semi-opaque colour pay-off. It can be layered and blended out easily. It is slightly lighter and more pink than Fever, and darker and more pink than Breezy.

Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the texture of these blushes. They are more powdery than MAC's regular powder blushes, so some of the lighter shades can look chalky on the skin, but in general, they go on very smoothly and are very blendable. Those who have paler, more porcelain complexions that have found most of MAC's blushes to be too dark or bright have some more blush options with this launch with Stay By Me, Baby Don't Go, and Rosy Outlook. That having been said, those with medium to dark skintones will find these shades difficult to show up without layering quite a lot of product, and even then, it will look chalky and possibly ashy.

On the opposite end, this launch also features some brighter and darker shades such as Eternal Sun, Whole Lotta Love, and Stubborn that give more options to those with dark to deep dark skintones. Similarly, those with pale to light skintones may find these shades too intense, but again, they are very blendable and can still be wearable. I don't personally find these to be that much longer wearing than MAC's regular powder blushes, but I don't generally have problems with wear time. I typically get about six to eight hours of wear before they start fading, with brighter or darker shades wearing longer. I don't find these to be better than MAC's other powder blushes, but for those looking for matte blushes that look more natural on the skin, these are good options to look at.

Butter London 3 Free Nail Lacquer in Trustafarian

Every season, I always anticipate what Butter London will come out with for their new nail polish collection. There have been some disappointments in the past, but there is usually one or two exceptional shades from each season. For their Autumn/Winter (can you believe we're already talking about winter?!) collection, Butter London released five new shades of nail lacquer, of which I picked up three (though I may be tempted to pick up one more). Of those, this one is by far the most unique and in that regard, I see it as the "star" of the collection.

Trustafarian (natural lighting)

Trustafarian (under direct sunlight)

Trustafarian is a light warm-toned sage green with holographic shimmer. The holographic shimmer is obvious in all lighting, but its dazzling, in-your-face, rainbow-sparkling abilities really show in direct sunlight. It has a fluid consistency without being too thick or too runny. It goes on smoothly and evenly, without any pulling, bubbling, or streaking. It has medium pigmentation, and will go opaque in three medium coats. I cannot think of any dupes at this time. I do think that this shade is a bit of an odd choice for this time of year as it really seems more appropriate for Spring, but it is a truly gorgeous shade and fans of holographic polishes need to snatch this one up.