Downtown Asian Delights

For a nice, inexpensive haircut that may come with the type of criticism that your mother would dish out, go to 22 Pell Street Hair salon in Chinatown. My friend Dani took me to this place and I like it because they give good haircuts for less than $30.

My main man is Nelson, a hairdresser from Hong Kong who does not hold back when it comes to hair advice. Don't be offended if he tells you your hair is "SO oirrrllly, SO greeesy", he will suggest an excellent shampoo and cut your hair so that it looks voluminous and neat. If he tells you to get the shampoo, buy the shampoo because he really knows his stuff. His remarks are truly for your benefit because he really does want the best for your tresses.

After you get your hair cut, go to Shanghai Cafe on 100 Mott street in Chinatown. I went here last night and I was very happy. We ordered the pan-fried shanghai noodle which was like crispy cantonese noodles, the beef and onion dish, the cold tofu and vegetable appetizer, and cong you bing (scallion pancake). You MUST order the pork xiaolongbao (soup dumplings). For four people, the bill came to a very student-friendly $50.

Sunrise Mart is a Japanese supermarket by St. Marks street. They stock all sorts of things like miso soup packets, sushi ingredients, bento boxes, Japanese cosmetics and magazines. It is a tiny place that you wouldn't find randomly because you have to go upstairs to get there. Definitely worth checking out if you like to cook Japanese food. I like it better than M2M, the overpriced Asian supermarket down the street.

Saigon Market on University Place between 11th and 12th is a charming and surprisingly spacious restaurant. All I have to say is that their grilled porkchop is to die for. Check out their lunch special. I feel like this would be a great place to go with a large group because they have big tables.

Pretty looks from ASOS

Here are some hot summer items from British brand ASOS.com. Free shipping on everything for those in the US and UK! However, I have read that some of their things are good quality and some are not, so just be aware of that if you make an order.

In a previous post, I posted a picture of this Asos mini.

Discounts

I have made some great purchases over the last three days in the city. On the first day, I found an delightful Alice + Olivia brown plaid skirt for $25 at Vintage Thrift Store. Even though it's a wool skirt for fall, I had to get it because of the price and since it seemed so perfect for London.

After that, I went to The Gap because I had a coupon for buy 5 and get 1 free bra. Well I only had one stamp but for some reason the lady told me I had a 100% discount. I was really confused but decided it was best not to ask too many questions. Free (possibly unethical) loot!

Yesterday I went down to Century 21 after being rejected from the post office. You can't get a passport renewed at a post office FYI to anyone who has to do that soon. Oh well, I found a really cute and inexpensive dress from a brand called Lush that I can wear to work.

Today I walked to Union Square and stopped by Nordstrom's Rack. I knew that I should restrain myself from buying more clothes so I picked up a pair of Cole Haan sunnies for $20.

Lastly, I stopped at American Eagle and found a pair of boxers (pictured above) that I wanted to buy a while ago but were now even more on sale for $8. I didn't have my AE card on me, which never works anyway, but the cashier told me to tell her my info and I got 30% off my shorts! Yipee for more discounts. Lesson learned: even when you don't have your card, see if you can get the discount anyway.

I should probably stop shopping until I start work. I must must must start saving.

Men's Edition!

Several days ago, my friend Andrew told me I should do something on men's clothing. For my potential male readers, how could I refuse? Challenge accepted. I've put together some looks that I love from Zara Men (of course). Although I would love to dress any young guy in their stylish clothes, some of their looks might be "too European" for the average American boy. I know that my boyfriend and my brother are not going to be rocking summer sandals or short yellow bermudas anytime soon, but I would totally dress them in the pieces that are classic with a unique twist. Also, don't you just love gray suits?

Discount Tip

Several weeks ago I made an order from Piperlime.com. The site has some really cute, sophisticated pieces. You won't find anything sexy on there, but everything seems to be really good quality. The best part is they have FREE shipping on everything and free returns. For your first purchase, you can get 15% by clicking a little box on the homepage that will give you a code.

I will try to post a picture of the sequined ikat tee-shirt that I got from the website asap! Happy shopping!

Beach Bum Glam from J. Crew

I wish I could go somewhere tropical this summer. Unfortunately, I'll be frantically running around in humid, chaotic Manhattan doing whatever the hell I am supposed to do as an intern. Maybe I'll make a weekend trip to a beach in the suburbs somewhere. Anyone want to drive/take a train with me?

New Zara TRF Looks

I am a little too excited to start my internship in the city because I know it means lots of convenient shopping. Uh oh, this will be a roadblock in my plan to save up enough money to travel to some countries in Europe next semester. Hopefully I will have enough sense to buy only what I really must buy...

In the meantime, a girl can dream and here are some new items from the Zara website.

Party Outfit

Tank: Target. Skirt: Asos. Tights: Urban Outfitters. Shoes: Seychelles. Silver Korean Necklace: Shanghai.

I wore this outfit a while ago for my friend's birthday party. I was SUPER excited to wear this skirt and last week I put it in the dryer and now it's very wrinkly. What a failure... I don't even have an iron in college. Oh well, I guess the skirt will just have to wait until school ends.