sakura

(all photos by me)

I know it's cherry blossom overload on my blog right now, but... I can't help it! 

It's my first time experiencing sakura season in Japan :)

I finally made my way to Meguro Bridge in Nakameguro, a well-known spot to view the beautiful cherry blossoms. I was quite amazed at the  beauty before me - whatever I saw on TV was nothing compared to what I saw with my own two eyes. 

Even though it was a Tuesday, there were so many couples and families enjoying the cherry blossoms, eating delicious street food and drinking beer or other alcoholic beverages. I wish it was like this all year round. 

I ended my afternoon with a nice cup of sakura cappuccino from Hidari Pocket. :)

I hope you enjoyed my photos! Have a great week!

Love,

Samantha Mariko

springtime

View through my lenses right near my work :)

Happy spring!

Love,

Samantha Mariko

just for fun

(jacket and jeans: Le Ciel Bleu; shirt: wego; heels: 

Target; sunglasses: H&M; bracelet: gift)

Today was my first day working in Shibuya, and since my photographer and I had some off time during the photo shoot, we decided to do a mini photo shoot totally unrelated to work. 

Just for fun:)

Love,

Samantha Mariko

Tokyo Runway 2013 SS

With Amy & Julie Ota

(leather jacket: uniqlo; skirt: H&M; T-shirt: Le Ciel Bleu; sandals: Target; rings: Topshop)

I had the pleasure of attending Tokyo Runway 2013 SS today. What an exciting day! First of all, my good friend and fellow model Amy Ota made her debut at Tokyo Runway - I am so proud of you Amy, you rocked it!! Second of all, I got to see amazing artists perform live such as Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and Rita Ora, and view a live filming for an upcoming TV drama. Not to mention being able to check out the spring and summer collections of popular Japanese brands and the models wearing the clothes! I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

Being exposed to so much amazing fashion & music got me really pumped!

Happy first day of spring everyone<3

Love,

Samantha Mariko

healthy eating x Gina

I don't think I've ever written a post about dieting or eating healthy, but I thought I would share what I've learned by changing my eating habits. 

2 months ago, I had exactly 1 week to prepare for an important audition. But when I looked at myself in the mirror, I realized how much weight I had gained over the holiday season with all the carbs and sweets I was eating. With the help of my friends, I dramatically changed my diet and eating habits - for that one week, I cut out bread, pasta, rice, sweets and anything else that would put on unnecessary weight. My new diet consisted of plenty of water, tea, fruits, vegetables, seafood and meat, etc. I also started exercising more and in one week, I noticed a huge difference. Basically, it worked. 

2 months later, I'm still following this diet, but I started eating bread, pasta, rice and sweets, but to a healthy minimum. When I want to snack on something, I opt for unsalted nuts, granola or fruit instead of cookies, chips, or pastries. I also decided to substitute milk with soy milk. I try to eat as healthy as possible so that when I go out with friends, I can splurge on food that I really like, and even sweets that I crave :) Here are some of the types of meals I eat:

for breakfast: plain yogurt with a sprinkle of granola with dry fruit, black sesame kinako (soy flour) and one banana

one bowl of brown rice, one egg, red miso soup, pickles

rice, miso soup, fish, and a small Japanese dessert :)

A few days ago, I picked up the newest issue of Gina magazine and I was pretty excited to find an article about dieting. Almost all of their advice coincides with what I'm currently doing. 

Here are the 5 important rules they list:

1. Cut back on the carbohydrates 

(meat, seafood, eggs, butter, oil, soy, mushrooms, seaweed, and leafy greens are good; bread, cake, pasta, white sugar, candy and carbonated drinks are not; and be careful when consuming rice, soba noodles, pumpkin, potatoes, dairy, and seasonings with sweeteners.)

2. Avoid white sugar & artificial sweeteners

3. Choose foods that have a good chewing consistency

4. If you are consuming carbohydrates, choose (brown) rice

5. Eat your food in the correct order

(soup -> salad -> main dish -> rice)


I am not going to lie though, while healthy eating is addicting, it's also hard not being able to eat whatever I want. But I feel good from the inside out I don't regret this healthy lifestyle:)

Hope this post was helpful in any way! Happy [healthy] eating!



Love,

Samantha Mariko

brights & prints

Some of my most recent purchases steals from H&M and Forever 21. I can't help but reach for the bold colors and prints whenever I go shopping. Hopefully I'll have outfit posts with these pieces soon :)

Happy spring shopping!

Love,

Samantha Mariko

Asia Collection VN Fashionista

Finally some pictures from Asia Collection in Ho Chi Minh! A few behind-the-scenes photos plus photos from the actual show that were taken with several diffrerent iPhones (sorry for the bad picture quality!)

It was a huge honor to be a part of this fashion show - it was my first big show in a different country. There were 2000+ audience members in Nguyen Du Stadium! 6 of us appeared as guest models from Japan, and we modeled popular Japanese brands such as LIZ LISA and Duras. I hadn't felt such a huge thrill from being onstage since my last piano recital, but it was an amazing feeling. I also had a great time bonding with the girls and meeting the Vietnamese models (they were so pretty!) Apart from the fashion show, there were several Vietnamese artists that performed in between each stage. 

You can check out more photos of the show here on Yan News online, and also a short clip on NHK NewsWeb here.

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Samantha Mariko