0 - WELCOME

Konnichiwa

Hi everyone! How are you all doing? I, for one, am finally feeling rested after my month-long trip to China, Japan and around the US. My trip was amazing — I felt like I could have kept going, but alas, we had to come home. It’s been 5 years since I was in Asia and I’m hoping it will be far less time until my next visit there. Of course, I will be sharing travel guides and tips — so keep on reading!

Thankfully, April will be more low-key. I have some weekend trips planned, but otherwise I am staying put. I love spring in NYC — the weather starts to warm up and an energy just permeates the city.

Separately, I was reading previous newsletters and realized that I launched my personal styling services one year ago in the April 2023 newsletter! I’m so grateful to my clients who have trusted me to build their wardrobe. If you’re looking for personal styling, whether it is a wardrobe refresh or specific event, feel free to reply to this email!

1 - FASHION

Spring Jackets

Lately, spring has been teasing us in NYC with warm weather on the weekends. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to put my winter clothes in storage. I’ve also had an interesting itch to incorporate animal prints into my wardrobe. I’m still a minimal girl at heart, but sometimes I just want a little pizzazz, you know? Maybe I’ll have an animal print section next month. Anyway, here are a few spring jackets that I have in my cart:

Cuffing Season

I’m a person of habit — I wear pretty much the same jewelry every day. Every now and then, I like to mix things up, and right now I am gravitating towards gold cuffs. I find it rather chic to wear a cuff above a long sleeved shirt or sweater — even more so if there are cuffs on both wrists. I saw a woman wearing Tiffany bone cuffs in Kyoto and she looked amazing — now I am on a mission to replicate the look. Below are ones I have my eyes on:

Five Things I Bought

Below are five things that I bought and loved last month. I will admit that most of these are sold out, but don’t be afraid to put yourself on the waitlist/email alerts! Be patient and the shopping gods will bless you :)

2 - BEAUTY

Beauty Favourites

It’s time for another round of my latest beauty favourites! Here’s what I have been using (clockwise from top right):

• La Prairie Skin Caviar Eye Cream: I know this is an expensive eye cream, but a little goes a very long way. I’ve used it almost every day for a few weeks and I’m maybe 5% into the jar. The cream is very light and hydrating

• Dior Brow Styler Eyebrow Pencil: I finished my eyebrow pencil in China and was initially worried, because I am devoted to my Hourglass Eyebrow Pencil. I bought this in Grey Brown out of necessity and have been pleasantly surprised. I love the application and colour (even though it is theoretically “Grey” Brown)

• Westman Atelier Lipstick: Westman just came out with new lipsticks and I am obsessed. These are really hydrating, soft and have a matte finish. I bought Je Rêve (“blushy nude”) and Piqué (“taupey nude”)

• YSL Touche Éclat Concealer: This is the OG highlighter/concealer. I don’t know how it took me this long to try the product, but I now fully understand the hype. I don’t think I can go back to using another concealer — it has great coverage and also gives my skin an extra sparkle

• Tenoverten Skin Foot Balm: This is not a particularly sexy product, but sandal weather is approaching and I am prioritizing healthy, soft feet. I have been applying this before bed

• Augustinus Bader Hand Cream: I’ve been told by strangers before that I have soft hands (weird comment now that I think about it), but all the credit goes to my hand cream. Right now I’m using Augustinus Bader — the cream has a moderate viscosity (important that it’s not too thick or light), nice smell, and isn’t oily

3 - TRAVEL

Asia Travel Guide: Chengdu

Since I visited quite a few cities in Asia, I will be featuring a new city each month to give each one the time it deserves. First up is Chengdu, the capital of southwestern China's Sichuan province. I had never been to (or read much about) Chengdu before and was blown away by the culture, food, and overall vibe. While cities like Shanghai are rather commercial, Chengdu has maintained a relaxed environment despite having over 20M residents. I loved my time here — I will definitely be back!

Things to Do

• Chengdu is known for giant pandas, and has a panda research base in the city. Plan to spend an entire day here — it will take hours to walk through. Also, be prepared for the pandas to be 1) asleep, or 2) missing in action. Of all the pandas I saw, only 2 were awake!

• Dujiangyan is a must visit — an irrigation and flood control system developed in 256 BC that is still in use today. It was neat learning about the infrastructure

• I loved SKP, a Chinese department store with incredible store design and architecture. Most of the mall is underground, but you’ll never guess as you walk through. Regular is another underground mall that has a similar structure. I wish malls in the US (and Canada) were this cool

• At some point, you’ll probably drive by New Century Global Center, the largest building in the world by floor area. It is a pretty incredible sight

What to Eat / Drink

• Sichuan food is spicy and delicious. My favourite is spicy wontons in chili oil — I could eat bowls of these. We went to an incredible hole in the wall (Extraordinary Noodles) that I am still salivating over

• Chengdu is home to the original mapo tofu. We visited the restaurant where it is said to have originated from (Chen Mapo Tofu) and it was delicious, of course

• Hot pot is also the way to go — I love eating it on a cold day

• Coffee is becoming more popular in Chengdu. I loved Mondoli and Manner Coffee

Where to Stay

• Compared to the US, 5* hotels in Chengdu are a fraction of the price and relatively affordable. We stayed at the Kempinski hotel (which was great); all the usual chains like the St. Regis, Ritz Carlton, etc. can also be found

General Advice

• Not a lot of people know English in Chengdu. Luckily I know a decent amount of Mandarin to get around, but if you are not familiar, you may want to learn simple phrases or have Google Translate on hand

• In general, China operates on Alipay and WeChat. It was quite convenient to get around once I had the apps installed. Google (and associated apps) will not work. Instead of Google Maps, I used Apple Maps to get around. Similarly, I used Didi (through Alipay) to get taxis instead of Uber

4 - OTHER

5 - PARTING NOTE

I love documentaries and have been itching to watch some new ones. Have you seen anything good? Let me know.

Until next month, friends.