Join Me at the Old Lady Hobbies Club

Happy Nov 2nd (the end of daylight saving)! The temperature down here actually got pretty cool. So right now I am laying bellying down on my bed, wearing my questionable outfit (tweed sweater from free people, monkey tee, bagging red plaid pants that look like picnic blanket and no-bra) have the warm sun dusted on my body and typing this up...

A few week ago while I was link hopping, I noticed that there is a new Autumn Tag going around this year (saw it on Rocaille Writes, Beauty Reductionista and Auxiliary Beauty) and decided to steal the questions and tag myself. Those make great topics for those I-want-to-post-something-ramdom blogging days. Let's roll them out, my used-to-be-weekly random picture dump!

1. What's your favorite seasonal drink from Starbucks or another coffee shop?
You probably all know I don't do Starbucks (or coffee, for that matter). Dalenna saw that I have just gotten into tea (back in summer), she revealed her secret tea-fanatic identity and sent me several (that's an understatement) samples of her favorite teas and I have been a happy brewer since...

 
Since it would be a little psycho to take pictures of all the sample baggies on the grass outdoor (Sony cameras only function when there is a full blast of natural light). Here is my tea infuser/strainer I found at TJ-Maxx (it just looks like a big brother of my jade fish). It's by Joie (product link here) and comes with a plastic cat on top to hold onto the tea mug. I took the chain/plastic cat out and just dump the whole thing in boiling water (because it's too big to fit in my glass bottle).

Admittedly, the quality of the tea-strainer was alright (the plastic cat part could done a better job of painting the eyes and whiskers and the fusing...), this is as close as it gets if you want some affordable and adorable kitchen wear without having to order from Japan, Joie even has pig faced egg/omelet pan! Actually I am still going to get some tea strainer from Lupicia (they also have a US site but the Japanese products are much cuter).

What I brew yesterday - Silver Tips Pheonix

What I am sipping on today - American Tearoom Oh Cananda (our home and native land...Not)

Of course, I have also gotten a few boxes of bagged tea myself. Just for the sake of convenience (so I don't have to face withdrawal if I ever get attached). They are no where as complex/niche-y as the loose one from Dalenna but they are still pleasant, comforting and not like Lipton. Since I have gave each several tries, here are my mini reviews.

a) Krom Land Farm Organic Rooibos Sorry, didn't open this since I have another just Rooibos opened (that one has only filter bag without paper package so I don't want it to get affected by humidity). Umm, I like the packaging?

b) Tega Pure Red Rooibos. A warm, woodsy herbal tea. The smells of just the tea bag reminds me of a mellower take on cigarette leafs (not necessarily unpleasant like smoke) and those Chinese herbal tea people drink during summer "to cool down the internal fire" (Apparent various foods are given the so-called temperature in China, it's a ancient medicine kind of thing)...Anyway, I feel this is more of warming blend and great for evening. Unfortunately, I found out that I am the few percentage of people who get headache from Rooibos, at first I thought a got a mild cold which went away after sleeping, then I noticed that it was the tea...The headache was not bad and it appears few hours after drinking so I ended up only sipping it in the evening, in that way I will be in my sleep..

c) Tega Orange Spice Rooibos - Taste wise, this is predominantly citrus and ginger with just a warm woodsy base by Rooibos. It's quite comforting for the chilly night and doesn't induce headache!

d) Pukka Elegant English Breakfast - It smells like that typical English Breakfast? (Haven't tried much of this) I like to keep it handy when I need a caffeine boost through through out the day.

 Enough with the health food, here is some cheap, junk-foody (not the real deal) powdered matcha drink from a Taiwanese brand Casa, served with milk and lots of swirling. You also got a glimpse of my pretty rosy mug (bought it on clearance somewhere, 8 years ago). The "Fine Bone China, Made in England" is able to cause some mental short circuit upon my less intelligent of friends. I am kidding (she reads this blog).

2. Accessories - what do you opt for: scarf, boots, or gloves?

My answer is hats! While I love scarf and boots (maybe not gloves because I wear latex ones all the time...). Hats are much more fun to knit (more suitable for more short attention span) and a great way to use up the single-ball yarn I have hauled. Not to mention, they are great for gifting.

My 10th (?) hat of the year since June and also my 5th Rose Red, this purple one is for myself. I finally get the sizing right (small version, 5-petals with size 6 needles) so I don't look like a smurf wearing this.

The yarn is plushy Grignasco Knits Merinogold that's a treat to my hands. The yarn might be waxed since it's not as glossy after a rinse.

Other single balls in my stash are  

a) Berroco (Bama?) Folio in Peaks (a soft nude beige. Vicki at Loopy Yarn gave me a birthday discount while I got this during summer. I am contemplating on a second or maybe third ball for a medium-to-large Wheaten) 

b) Rowan Fine Lace (forgot the shade name) from Yarnbow. I bought it on clearance at a Austin-based store Yarnbow. Planned it for Orchid Theif because I like to read the O'Hare airport code ORD as orchid.

Also, I took pictures of these purple flowers on Michigan Avenue while I was holding bag of yarn. I like to associate items with pieces of fond memories.

c) d) Misti Alpaca Lace (oh, all these are mostly alpaca)  - For...I don't know yet. Alpaca yarns is my hands' favorite because not only they are soft and slightly fuzzy, they are also give me a perfectly innocent excuse to release some profanity in Chinese (Because the slang for alpaca sounds like F-bomb). I have not started on any of these since it's hard to knit with Japanese bamboos when you are used to jabbing them with the German Steels (addi turbo needles) . Anyway, I have bought some longer circular and they should arrive tomorrow!

3. Music - what's your favorite music to listen to during Autumn? (Why yes, I am still doing the tag!)

Now I know I am not the only psycho who listens to specific type of music for each season. Every fall I like to go through The Tales of Hoffman at least once, in my evening stroll/bike ride. Right now I am going through Mahler's and Schubert's symphonies, with Lena (a fellow beauty blogger . Admittedly, I hate this title for myself)'s jazz songs (click to hear) sprinkled in between...

My favorite J-pop group Flower also has a habit of doing seasonally matchy songs. This one is the newest Autumn Wind's AnhSA (OK...Answer). Note since it's a Japanese girl group so it can get a wee squeaky (much better than other ones out there). If anything, mute the thing and admire the costumes, choreography and cinematography. Washio Reina (main vocalist) is making me wanting to chop down my hair again...

 4. Perfume - what's your favorite scent for this time of year?

 
 Once I got bored by the smell of crisp smell of nothing. I start spritzing on the Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Honey Suckle (which lingers around like a floral cloud of gloom during humid summer). It's simple and spot-on and I feel it goes well with my baggy brown sweater/jacket and simple jade accessories.

5. Candles - what scents will you be burning this season?

I prefer the smell of crisp air (I use candle for craft projects so I buy whatever is on clearance at TJ-Maxx). No candles because fire hazard. 

6. What do you love most about Autumn?

The wholes bags of oranges are getting cheap at the market! I should pick something more outdoor (but back in September somebody cut the brake off my bike, now the back tire was punctured)...Autumn is pretty great season for both American series (Gotham and American Horror Story) as well as Japanese dramas/anime (Doctor X, Dear Sisters, Kiseijuu/Parasite). Too lazy to link them because if you don't want them, you don't watch them...

7. Favorite makeup look?

Normally, I just do the normal warm coral/peach and apricot (goes well with the browns clothes I wear), shades that I didn't get to wear when it was too hot. This year, I have also starting to like the wind-blown cheeks and looks-bare but moisturized lips (because tea drinking). Yeah, it's still very predictable.  I will put some (one) FOTD once I figure out how to take selfy with bigger camera, without making me looks like a round-faced alien (my point and shoot got drowned by leaky lunch box).

NYX Pink Poppy, Milani Bella Rosa, Milani Mai Tai, Revlon Charmed, Majolica Majorca Cherry Macaron, Essence Renesmee Red, Essence Groupie at Heart, Milani Sweet Rose 

8. What are you looking forward to most in Autumn?

Who ever make up tags need to avoid these repetitive questions (see 6). 

Sorry if I tricked you into reading this novel. For the few people who lasted this far, do you know if there are something must-buy in Korea (like equivalent of Rilakkuma/Kumamon kitchware or other cute-and-useless stuff)? Mom is going there for a trip and she offered to hoard some (she calls them) craps for me.