Impressions of the Eurodance Beachparty

What happens when you give your camera to a 10-year old longboard gal? She's shooting some impressive pictures of longboards at the beachparty the night before the very first European Longboard Dance Contest. Yes, it is the first one ever!!! :)  It's all happening in Berlin sponsored by Funky Summer and I'm super glad to be here to watch, taking pictures, help and just enjoy the longboard community. 

I'll post about the big Contest this weekend, so stay tuned :)

And if you're also happen to be in Berlin, come and join us! 

We'll be at Landsberger Allee, Berlin.

Love, xo

Meanwhile: Read my longboard story and enjoy the few summer days left ;-)

Breaking Out of your Style Ruts

Do you also have some very comfortable clothes? The ones you'd always wear, every single day? I think everyone does. So, for example, when I'm really busy and do not know what to wear, I'd always go with everything black. Yep! Why? Just because it always fits and it always works, right?

Sometimes it occurs that you'd see me three times a week with all black everything and it wouldn't bother me, of course not the same ones ;-)  but it's so easy to yes, also in fashion, to fall into a routine. Maybe I need some spice up! Refinery 29 calls this a style rut and senior global editor Connie Wang gives us some advice how to break out of these! What's your rut?

Mine is definitely the black rut, so I'll try to add some colour here and there ;-) And yeah, I have to say, back in the U.S. being in New Jersey on weekdays, my fashion rut was the gym-all-over-look :) Furthermore I honestly think that there are a lot of gals out there who would just like to change up their style. You can do this by just adding a bit of colour, a bit of jewelry or even just the shoes! Click through the gallery designed by Ammiel Mendoza and check out the other outfit options.

Food Friday: Granola Bars!!!

When I was travelling through California last year we took a roadtrip with a guide and a group of cool Internationals. Hiking and camping in the woods, we ate a lot of granola bars and yes, our group name was GRANOLA! :) Haha, super funny!

How come that I made some? Well, working in the office eight hours a day, I always have a down-point in the afternoons. It's like I'm totally unfocused then and not as creative as in the mornings, additionally I'm super tired and tend to drop off into dreams. The solution: maybe a bit of sugar would help: fruits, nuts, dark chocolate and a cup of green tea are my go-tos. This time I've wanted to try out the no-bake granola recipe from Mind Body Green, but of course I did transform it.

Recap: Mulack-Street Festival

As you might know, I like to spend my weekends with street festivals, good eats and yeah, a bit of shopping if there's something special going on. Last saturday then there was the Mulack Street Festival here in Berlin the shops were opened but had some special sales outside on the street. It's definitely worth a shot because in this street there are stores like: Lala Berlin, adidas SLVR, C'est tout, the Green Tea Mamecha Café, The Shit Shop, World's End and many more. 

Strolling through the streets we've stopped at a shop called: Das Neue Schwarz. It's a vintage shop with well-known brands and they've had a small sale in front. I was lucky and found this: An American Apparel skirt in bright orange red which looked very familiar to me. Why? I've bought the same model in an olive green in a Vintage shop in Brooklyn actually one year ago! And yes, I just had to have it because this skirt is just so comfy and a good summer-go-to. I just love everything vintage :) but I try to stay away from handbags and purses since my collection of old bags is becoming bigger and heavier. When I'm back home, I will show you some of them ;-) 

So, let's see if the weather allows me to wear it this summer.

Some Power for Yoga

 

It occurs that once in a while my body does not feel strong enough to go for a run or to do an hour of strength workout. Then, I try to do some stretches and add some power to my yoga exercises. These days I really feel like I need some stretches in the a.m. since I'm sitting all day in front of the computer.

So, this is just a yoga video to help you get started in the mornings. Only ten minutes per day can help you to stretch out and start the day right.

Have fun with yoga! :)

Style Hunt brought to you by Pharrell Williams

I have the feeling that this blog is turning into a food blog since I've been posting a lot about food, recipes and restaurant reviews. Well, how come? I'm eating out and cook every other day, that might be the case! So, since this should be an actual sports-and fashionblog, I'll try to focus more on those topics, but will of course still share my eats and mind thoughts ;-)

Following Pharrell Williams on Facebook his video show 'The Style Hunt' popped up and then, I watched this video about the street style of Berlin. Watching it again, it's so funny how the host is asking the people about their styles and how they feel. And indeed, Berlin is super-duper black! How did this stylist and individualist (6:11min.) said? Black represents clinically depressed, haha =D =D 'All black everything.' I'm sharing this thought a lot, back in the U.S. I'd do all colours, bought pinkish stuff and then coming back to Germany and being in Berlin, I was just drawn to black everything please! :) What am I going to do with those pink dresses and shirts now? 

Style Hunt can be found on the youtube channel 'i am OTHER' which is dedicated to all Thinkers, Visionaries, Innovators and Individuals, just others. Check out the videos of Style Hunt and let me know, if you like it.

Bread x Seeds x Nuts x Quinoa

I just LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe, maybe one day I'll open up a health-store selling my own bread and health-foods like green juices and stuff! Haha! Anyways, super easy, super fast, use this signature recipe:

3 and 3/4 cups OR 500g whole-grain flour

2 cups of different seeds (pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds) and nuts (almonds)

and I'd say 2 small cups of uncooked red quinoa

1/2 liter water

1 package active- dry yeast

2 regular teaspoons salt

2 regular tablespoons vinegar.

Just wanted to try out some quinoa, more seeds and nuts in my bread. Friends and I loved it! You should go ahead, make some bread and experiment with different add-ons!

Enjoy some Breadlove! ♥

The Swoosh

Everyone is going short-hair and yes I'm honestly thinking about it, too! Rihanna just cut her hair and Beyoncé did it these days as well. Additionally strolling through one of my favorite fashion news blog Refinery 29, I came across the trend of the 'swoosh'. The swoosh just means that big wave or curl by running your fingers through your hair.

Model Daria Werbowy has it for a long time now and founder of Into the Gloss Emily Weiss did it the same way. Oh my, I really do like this trend but I'm not sure if I'm brave enough to cut my hair off since it is 10 years or more ago that I had a short-cut. I might just do it because I have the feeling that I'd be content with it and hey, you're only young once, right? And hair grows anyways.

Well, I'll let you know, because since my last hair-cut I've told myself to wait until September, when my internship and three-month stay in Berlin ends. Maybe a new beginning for me? Who knows, but a little change will spice up everyone's life ;-)

Flexible Mind

Today I'm sharing with you one of my biggest weakness and I'm still learning. It's a long process and I learn from myself every single day. Do you know these moments when you get angry or irritated by such small things like: someone walking too slowly in front of you, friends turn you down one hour before a meeting or your loved one is saying something and you just freak out, get angry and react explosive? Yes, I admit, sometimes it happens to me, too! I'm not always stable and when things get in your way because you cannot control things outside of yourself, my system breaks down. 

What do you do then? For my part, sometimes I'd not think much, react too fast and might hurt people. Other times I just leave, go away and run. Then I have some ME-time and try to focus and think before I take sudden decisions.

The other day Leo Babauta had a new post online: The Flexible Mind. I was so blessed and since then I write this down on my wrist every single day to remind myself to practice a flexible mind. This is a paragraph of the whole post:

Why Develop Flexible Mind

The root cause of frustration, irritation, anger, sadness is an inflexible mind — one that wants to hold onto the way we wish things were, the ideas we’re comfortable with. When things don’t go this way, we are then frustrated, angry, sad.
So developing a flexible mind is a way to be open to anything, happy with change, prepared for any situation. Think about it: if there’s a major disruption in your life, it’s only a bad thing because you’re holding onto the way you wish things could be, what you’re comfortable with. If you let go of that wish, the change isn’t bad. It’s just different, and in fact it could be good if you embrace it and see the opportunity. It’s about developing the ability to cope with change, to be flexible, to simplify.

Feel free to read the whole article here and to write down the same things on a sheet of paper, in your calendar, in your diary or on your wrist as well to remind you to practice. So far, it does help me a lot and I can say that I'm more calm now. I'll see, but for now, I've decided to do this every single day. 

Love,

Minh

86,400 seconds every day

Food Friday: Couscous Patties x Ratatouille

Do you know these days, when you come home and just want to chop and cook? Yeah, that was Monday night when I came home from work and was lusting after burgers. You'd say: How, you've just had some last friday! Well, yeah, but I was lusting after VEGETABLE burgers, the ones, which a good-friend's-mum made out of millet. This time I didn't have millet, so I did some with couscous. 

Sitting in the kitchen and talking to a friend I've just started chopping up some vegetables and the night ended up having friends over who stayed and a big meal with more additions like ratatouille and stir-fried chicken. Haha, I felt like a mum feeding all her kids, but why not? Cooking is just so much fun for me, I want to share with everyone :) Click for the recipe!

Yay or nay? Golden Zara Sandals

In my lunch break I've joined my colleague for some window shopping actually! I didn't find anything interesting at H&M, but see there's ZARA, and then there's still this huge SUMMER SALE -.-' Additionaly there were this GOLDEN sandals! =D Haha, they were reduced from 70€ to 20€, I bought them. Now, I don't really know if I should keep them or not. Why? Well, I do not need those right? The whole afternoon in the office I was like: Okay, let's return them tomorrow! They are too golden! I do not feel much happier with them, so why keeping? 

And then later in the afternoon an outfit option popped up: these sandals, a boyfriend jeans, a male tee and my Zac. Hmm.. don't know, what do you guys think, should I keep them or not?

Frozen Berries and Orange Juice

Need some vitamins? What about a dose of antioxidants paired with a fresh orange and some currants? :) For many people orange juice is essential for a good breakfast and most of the time they'd get the store-bought one. My question would be, why not make your own juice because then you wouldn't have any added sugar. 

On sunday mornings when I'm having a big breakfast or brunch - oh yeah, I'm totally a breakfast-gal - I always need some fresh fruits. This time I went for some juice. Just throw some frozen berries, a peeled orange and other fresh ingredients in your mixer and there you go: A cold summery juice to give you a kick in the morning and start your day right! Simple as that, just try it!

My health and food-tip: If I cannot get fresh berries I always try to have a bag of frozen ones in my freezer since it's so easy to just make some juice or even dessert in the summer. And yes, the berries will still have their vitamins and antioxidants, do not worry: read the difference between fresh, dried and frozen blueberries here at the NY Times health section.

Duct Tape Surfing

Listen to and watch this video about Tyron Swan helping Pascale Honore to follow her dreams. Strolling through one of my favorite blogs about 'simple wisdom for complex lives': Tiny Buddha I came across this inspiring video of those two.

Pascale Honore has been on a wheelchair for more than 18 years now due to a car accident. She was diagnosed paraplegic and wasn't able to walk anymore. Her two sons grew up surfing in the ocean and she was always watching them until one day a family friend came up with an idea. Tyron Swan, professional surfer, was thinking of duct taping her to his back and to surf with her. As a result they are now travelling through Australia, surfing the coast and trying to spread out the word: Have a dream and make it happen!

Follow their Facebook page and see what they are exploring on their travels.

It is possible to reach your dreams regardless of any limitations. - Pascale Honore

Magical Summer Nails

The other day I wanted to paint my nails and noticed in my beauty bag that I've never used the Del Sol nail polish before. I've got it last year when I was travelling through the U.S. Westcoast. In Venice Beach I got stuck on this lacquer they were selling on the boardwalk. Small girls had it on their nails and I was fascinated by it. Why? Well, putting it on your nails, it will turn out translucent, but going into the sun, the colour will come out.

It's like magic right?! :) When I put it on I was like: Okay let's see what will happen when you get out to the sun. First moment in the sun: Where is the colour? Okay, let's not be impatient, spread out your fingers and give it some time: Et voilá! There it was, the bright red on my fingers :) Love it! 

The more sun your fingers get, the more colourful your nails will turn out. Swimming in the lake, your nails will be red since the sun shines through the water :)

Where to get it? I'm guessing on your next U.S. or Canada-trip? Unfortunately you can just get it in the states, they also sell shirts and bracelets. Next time when I'm there, I'll definitely get some more colour variations!

Beat the heat with Frozen Bananas!

Yesterday I was putting some bananas into the fridge, don't ask my why I came up with this idea. I've read about this in several food blogs living in the U.S. that this is such a healther choice comparing to ice-cream. Indeed!

I've put them cutted up in the middle for like 2 hours in the freezer and there you go: Frozen Bananas! Peeling them might be hard, I did it with my teeth and a knife =D But for next time, I might peel them first and then put it in the freezer but when I had my first bite: it was love!  Haha, yeah love at first bite! It's super duper delicious!!! Try it and have some healthy frozen banana to beat the heat in the summer. Swap it for ice-cream and popsicles, this is natural sugar, guys, you cannot beat this! I think kids will love this, too ;-)

Since I love ice-cream, especially chocolate or fruity flavours, I've tended to eat a lot in the summer. This here is just the perfect substitute for sugary ice-creams. I could imagine doing this again with some dark chocolate or coconut sprinkles on top :) Will try and then post it ;-)

Happy summer! xx