Edible Obsessions | Lucky's Doughnuts at 49th Parallel Main st

This is the Main St. Location! 

Hey Dolls!

Hope you have had a splendid morning. A lot of movies depict mornings with a cup of coffee and a donut in hand. I thought I would try it out this morning with Lucky's Donuts at 49th Parallel, the Main st location. I am not the biggest donut girl, in fact, I have yet to try a donut that has left me wanting more. 

All this changed the moment I bit into the Lucky's Donut's piping hot confectioner's sugar covered beignets. They were moist, chewy almost like little cakes of happiness! Every donut I have tried before this has been dry, crunchy and overall just too sweet. Never left me wanting more. 

How deliciously mouthwatering do those beignets look?!?!

The Beignets come with three irresistible toppings: melted milk chocolate, vanilla bean cream & the most amazing raspberry compote I have ever tried! The raspberry compote brought a fabulous tanginess that juxtaposed the creamy sweetness of the other two sauces. It was a lot of fun eating thee beignets as my friend and I both literally could not eat them fast enough. We were accidentally blowing puffs of powdered sugar with each hastened bite we took. By the end, we were both covered in white powered sugar, and our fingers sticky from the three dipping sauces. I definitely cleaned out the melted milk chocolate bowl with my fingers hehe. 

Since the Beignets are more of a speciality item from Lucky's Donuts that are made fresh to order, I had to try one of the donuts from the case to really judge if their donuts could really be this amazing! My friend and I shared the Peanut Butter & Jelly Donut.... and YES! Lucky's Donuts MAKE THE MOST AMAZING DONUTS KNOWN TO MAN KIND! 

Lucky's Doughnuts are 49th Parallel's creation and are made fresh daily!!!

The top of the Peanut Butter & Jelly donut was smothered in creamy peanut butter and sprinkled with raw peanut bits. I liked the crunchy peanut pieces as it was a nice crunch texture to the soft donut. Peanut Butter was on point, sweet creamy and not too salty. This donut was stuffed with jelly. I expected it to be an overly sweet jelly, but nope, of course I should not have doubted Lucky's Donuts. It was a tangy sour jelly! It perfectly balanced out the sweet peanut butter and donut. Mmmm and the donut was like a heavenly cake that was delightfully moist and chewy. .... ... .. totally drooling right now.... Somebody drop me a Peanut Butter & Jelly Donut from Lucky's at my house NOW! 

I am kind of obsessed with cool lights right now!

What really blew my mind was how Lucky's stuffed the jelly in the donut because the donut is a ring?! Absolutely MAGICAL. 

To wash it all down, I grabbed an artisanal Root Beer - yes it tastes as good as it sounds :) The perfect palate cleanser in my opinion! 

Are you all drooling over a Lucky's Donut now? Sorry! What is your favourite donut from Lucky's and what should I try next! 

BYES

Latte Moment | 100th Blog Post Giveaway Details!

Hey Dolls!

Last week I posted my 100th blog post! I never could have reached 100 blogposts without all the support from my fabulous readers! As a thank you, I am doing a small giveaway. Like I said in my prior post, I unfortunately am not financially capable of doing a cool giveaway like the youtubers and give away a Macbook or giant amazing gift cards, but I think my little prize pack is awesome tooooooo!

The winner will receive:

• Cozy Knitted TNA Socks from Aritzia
• Glittery crown from H&M
• Vancouver Candle Co Travel Tin in Mount Pleasent
• Two  Le Pens - Grey & Orchid
• OPI - Lucky Lucky Lavender!!! AKA my favourite colour!!!!
• Two really cute notebooks - one lined, the other blank
• A super cute rustic wooden owl ornament as the holidays are fast approaching

This giveaway is only open to Canadian residents.

To enter this giveaway, comment on this post answering these three questions:
(a) Which blogpost of mine is your favourite?
(b) Why that blogpost is your favourite?
(c) What types of blogposts do you want to see more of! 

It is that simple! To receive a second entry, go on over to my instagram @pinktealatte and answer these three questions in the comment section. 

The giveaway will be closing on Sunday November 8 Midnight Pacific Time. I will be announcing the winner on Friday the 13th of November hehe and I will only be picking ONE winner between my blog and instagram. 

I look forward to reading your comments!!!

BYES

Chic Finds | Vintage Vanity from L'Atelier Homes + Care for Painted Furniture + Tips on Purchasing Vintage Pieces

I cannot believe I found such a beautiful piece!!! My first vintage furniture piece :) from L'Atelier Homes in Gastown

Hey Dolls! 

If you have seen my pictures from my birthday setup, you will have spotted the gorgeous painted white vintage vanity I purchased from L'Atelier Homes in Gastown. The moment I spotted this table through the window of L'Atelier, I knew it was the one. I had to have it right then and there! At that time, the table was still not complete, it needed its final lacquer so I had to wait two anxious weeks to bring it home. Those were the longest two weeks imaginable for me.

One thing I found interesting is that antique and vintage are not the same! 
Vintage just means old, but is not old enough to be categorized as Antique which means the piece is over 100 years old. For the most part, you are going to be purchasing vintage pieces unless you know the piece is 100 years old. 

My new vintage vanity is not a restored piece. It is actually an up cycled piece as L'Atelier Homes gave it new life by cleaning and painting it. L'Atelier Homes focuses on giving pieces freshness by painting and reupholstering the vintage furniture. 

A restored piece is when it is brought back to its original state through sanding and re-staining the wood. 

Linda from L'Atelier Homes tells us on how to care for your vintage up cycled painted furniture to ensure it remains beautiful for years to come! 

First things first, what to not place on your painted furniture! All paint does react differently, but avoid putting any harsh solvents and alcohol based items on your furniture. Plus avoid ALL harsh cleaners. Some examples are nail polish remover, perfume diffusers etc. 

When you are cleaning painted furniture, just a damp cloth is good. Avoid using harsh cleaners and excess water as it will lead to your paint from wearing off. Furthermore, wood does not like water! Best to not leave any painted furniture in the rain haha. So lots of water is going to ruin all wood. Personally I just make it a point to wipe it down with a dry cloth once a week to get any accumulated dust off. Since it is an accent piece in my home, no one is eating or drinking on it so I do not see it being dirty enough to need a full cleaning. 

Do you need to worry about leaving you painted furniture in direct sunlight? Over time, sun will cause anything to fade, but if you get a white painted piece like me, I would not really worry about it. Plus the fading would occur over time. 

If you take care of your furniture, you would never need to have it re-painted. However, anything that is painted does have a possibility of chipping or peeling over time. L'Atelier home does seal all of their painted furniture to ensure there is no premature chipping and peeling, but it can still happen over time. The great thing is, it will make your piece look more distressed which can look pretty chic! 

If you are looking to purchase vintage or painted old furniture, these are some things to keep in mind to ensure you are not duped! 

1. You want a solid piece that is structurally intact - not wobbly, no broken legs, 
2. Less scratches and dents the better - they can be fixed, but avoid it if possible!
3. If you try to lift the piece and it is really heavy, this is a good thing! It means solid wood was used. No one wants to spend a huge amount of money to only end up with press board made to mimick the style of vintage furniture. 
4. Look inside the drawers to see how they are constructed. Over time, with technology and innovation, the way things are built has evolved. Older pieces will have dovetail joints instead of glue. Drawers will not be on a sliding metal track, instead it just slides on wood! 

I hope this helps you in finding the perfect vintage piece for your home! I feel a little bit addicted to up-cycled vintage furniture because I want replace all my current bedroom pieces! 


BYES!

Boutique Bliss | Vancouver's Top Shops for Gorgeous Home Decor

Hey Dolls! 

My new YP Smart List is up on Vancouver's Top Shops for Gorgeous Home Decor!!! I now have 3 published smart lists - so darn exciting! My Yellow Pages bio can be found here and be sure to check out all the other fabulous smart lists for Vancouver. 

I have been to all of these design shops and lusted over their amazing selection many a times. From some, I am a frequent shopper while at others, I am just a happy browser. But they would not be on my smart list unless I truly love what they have to offer in terms of home decor. 

As of recent, I have made my first large furniture purchase with my own hard earned money, the white painted vanity from L'Atelier Home. I am so glad I made this purchase as it is a stunning piece that can be used as an accent in your home. I also think it is just nice to pick out furniture that is unique and does not just blend into the background. 
P.S | I do live at home with my parents, but they loved the vanity very much too and we are now using it as a console table in our entrance hallway. 

Pretty much everyone has heard of The Cross Designs in Yaletown. If you have not, you are missing out! I get many decor items from The Cross to use for my picture set-ups. The gorgeous green milk glass cake stand is from The Cross and I am so happy I got it. The green is unique; however, it surprisingly complements everything. 

Brick & Mortar you must already know about since I did do a post on their Three Cheers for Three Years celebration this past spring. This shop is dedicated to selling local or canadian-made goods only. It is refreshing to see shops supporting local artisans. And when you are in New Westminster, be sure to drop by Lofty Living as it is a girl's dream come true. Think white, glitter and gold :) hehe

Some other Gastown shops I am obsessed with aside from L'Atelier Home are Old Faithful Shop and Parliament. I do not even know if Old Faithful Shop falls into home decor because they tend to have shelves of gourmet syrups and cocktail mixes, but they do have home decor tooooooo! Plus, the syrups come in such gorgeous bottles that essentially can be used as home decor. Parliament is all about modern furniture and owls. That is the only way to sum up that shop, so if you love owls like I do, then go to Parliament! 

Lastly, Nineteen Ten Boutique on Main St is one of my favourite shops to browse. This boutique supports many local artisans and who knew you had to have that lamp from there. I can never quite leave Main St without missing this decor boutique. 

Are there any decor shops you think I am missing in my life and must visit ASAP... tell me in the comments below please!!!!

BYES

7 Lattes + Wishes | November Wishlist 2015

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Hey Dolls!

On my birthday, my friends and family got me so many lovely presents, many of them were directly from my wish lists! It was really tough coming up with a wishlist for November since I have gotten everything I could ask for as well, I feel a bit greedy after just receiving so many fabulous presents! 

It took me quite a bit of time thinking of what I could possibly want, but I came up with some things! Some are silly, but I will always remain a child at heart, even at 22! 

With the start of November, sweater weather is officially here in Vancouver. The leaves are changing colour and covering the ground and the days are shortening. I want to stay cozy this fall and this gorgeous long sleeve turtleneck sweater dress from Aritzia is the way to go! Paired with a leather vest, it will give you the right amount of edge! To finish off the outfit, I want to get a pair of classic perforated slip-on sneakers in black leather by Vans. I know, a bit of an unusual choice; however, they are not only comfortable and practical when you are running errands all day, these slip-on sneakers are the new birkonstocks. I promise you! 

Now for the fun items. I have wanted a pug puppy as long as I can remember; however, my parents do not want a puppy and I live at home with them. Nothing can replace a lovingly adorable pug puppy, but this pug lamp is pretty darn rad! It will definitely put a smile on my face when I walk past it. To continue with my weirdness, I kind of want to get the wool felt Vancouver Pennant. I have one for Crofton House (my high school) and one for UBC so I might as well have one for the city I love and live in! 

Since getting my business cards, I have had no place to put them. I cannot put too many in my wallet and if I had those few out, then I do not have anymore until I grab a few more from home. I need to get a card holder - I feel so professional! - and this Hershel Oxford Wallet fits my style! Its not too flamboyant, but it is compact and chic. 

With the days getting shorter, means staying in and watching movies! Which means I need a pair of plaid flannel boxer pj shorts because looking cute is half the movie night :) 

Did any of my wishlist items make it onto your wishlist this month? Let me know in the comments below! As well if you are excited for sweater weather!!!

BYES

Gurly's Life | November Goals + October Reflection 2015

Hey Dolls

I did not get a chance to write up my October goals since I was just far too busy to even sit down and think about them.

Instead, I am going to reflect on all the positives that came from Ocobter 2015 :) 

- I got offered a fabulous position to be a smart list contributor for YP
- My first set of business cards printed
- I turned 22 and planned and executed my first solo photoshoot
- So many friends and family love and reconnecting with old friends
- I blogged tonnes!
- I reached 500 Instagram followers! (well it seems to fluctuate by the hour?!) 
- Also reached my 100th Blogpost WOWWW! 

November Goals:
- 15 blogposts
- Return to the gym and make it regular
- Put aside the negatives from birthday weekend and focus on the positives to come
- Find an awesome part time job
- Excel in my courses at UBC
- Eat healthier - three meals a day
- Put aside time for relaxing every week because I burnt myself out this October

I wanna hear what goals you have set for November in the comments below :) 

BYES

Latte Moment | This is my 100th Blog Post + Giveaway?!

I think it is time I invested in a lens with a larger aperture so I can get quality pictures that are not blurred :( 

Hey Dolls!

Can you believe it? This is my 100th blog post! This is really exciting for me as I did not know if I would even make it past one month as a blogger. But Blogging has become a really big & fun part of my life! I wonder how many of you have been following me since I first started blogging not too long ago this year. I think my blog posts & pictures have come a long way since I first started. 

Blogging would not be fun if it were not for all my wonderful readers and supporters. To show you my appreciation, I am doing a 100th post giveaway! I am really excited to do a giveaway because I get really happy when I give someone a gift because they get excited and happy. Needless to say, I am one of those gifters who will get you to open your gift the moment I hand it to you because I want to see your reaction! 

This 100th post sort of just snuck up on me during a very crazy time. I am going to be honest, I have not had time to organize this giveaway. You will need to be patient with me! Give me a week and I will have all the details on what you will win and how to win the goodies! If you have any ideas for the giveaway, I would love to hear it in the comments below :) 

Do keep in mind that I am not a popular youtuber who can afford to give away MacBooks and Louis Vuitton bags! But when I am able to do crazy cool prizes, I definitely will :) 

Thank you again for all of your support and love dolls! It really means a lot to me!!! Blogging would not be fun without all of my readers. 

BYES