Sushi chic (a complete guide to sushi etiquette)

The oldest main stream in this town is eating sushi. The instgram photos, the facebook statuses and the tweets always makes me feel that a person who's eating sushi did an achievement. Not to sound like a judgmental b*tch, I love sushi; however I am talking about the uncanny trend of our bourgeois generation. If you're a real fan of the japanese cuisine and of course you're fabulous - cause you're reading my blog, then you're about to learn what will differentiate between you and sushi posers. Here is the scoop:

Veggie Sushi

First of all , when ordering sushi, don't be ashamed to ask the waiter about the components of anything that might look interesting. You're not japanese and you're not an expert so you have the permission to ask; at least so you won't order something you regret. If you're in an ethnic place, chances are you'll be served saki; be ware it's alcoholic unless you're a drinker don't put yourself in this situation and politely refuse.

Unlike Egyptians, Japanese like to share food; so you might not want to order a plate for each person, you order for the table collectively and then you pick what you want to go on your plate. It's ok to munch on some of the small appetizers you get before the sushi, however you need to slow down on them so you can enjoy your actual meal.

Nigiri Sushi

Sushi can be eaten by chop sticks or hands. Japanese usually eat Nigiri sushi with their bare hands, it's not considered wrong to eat them with chopstick, however Nigiri is tricky as the rise might fall out of it's place if you're not a chopsticks wizard. I am just saying that because I know how to use chopsticks, I was taught how to do it by Chinese and japanese friends when I was in India, however what I see here in Egypt is a complete bull. Other types of sushi is usually eaten with chopsticks, it can't hurt if you use your hands. One important tip; you may not and can't take a bite of a sushi piece and return it to your plate, it's just not polite. Ideally you should have your sushi piece all on one bite, however if you're playing cute or it's too big for your mouth - doubtful; you can have one bite, chew then swallow and then eat the rest while it's still in your hand or your chopsticks. And don't divide your sushi with a knife or even your hands, you should enjoy the whole taste in one bite. Just don't let it touch the plate as soon as you pick it up.

There will be a warm towel in front of you on the table, it's called Oshibori. You use your Oshibori to wipe your fingers if you're eating with your hands or if you just feel like it. Don't follow the 70's Egyptian movies where they wipe their mouths with towels on the table after eating, that's considered not polite in Japan. Never rub the chopsticks you're given, that means you're removing splinters or cleaning them and it's very rude to accuse the place such a dreadful silent accusation. Of course the usual dining manner apply like no elbows on the table, don't chew with your mouth open and don't make a sound with you're chewing.

Soy Sauce

Wasabi

In Japan, chefs actually make the soya sauce and each chef has his own recipe. In the rest of the world or at least in Egypt, we're just served with a bottle of regular soy sauce. It's known that a sushi guest should use soya sauce sparingly, don't put too much soya in your saucer as it's considered rude to leave the table with leftovers soya sauce in your saucer; it means you didn't like it. I've seen some people mixing wasabi in soya and that's an even more rude thing to do, it ruins the taste of both and you probably end up with a weird looking sauce that you don't want to taste. The wasabi should be used very carefully, ideally the chef knows the right amount of wasabi to put and the guest isn't served any extra; however it's not tokyo.

Maki Sushi

When you're eating any kind of sushi, you're going to want to add some soy sauce to it. Don't dunk the sushi piece in the saucer, instead carefully let the fish on your sushi touch the surface of the soya, the rice can fall apart with soy sauce going through it. If you're eating a Maki sushi or any roll, you can let the sea weed touch the soya surface, as it's going to be hard to let the filling touch the soy sauce without hurting the rice in this case. When putting wasabi make sure you put it on the fish not the rice as well.

Pickled ginger

Usually sushi is served with amazing Pickled ginger. The pickled ginger shouldn't be put on the sushi piece, it's supposed to be eaten in between sushi pieces. It's also possible to dip the pickle in the soy sauce and move it over your sushi piece so you can enjoy soy sauce on both sushi and the pickle. When eating Nigiri sushi, it's usually served upside down with the rise touching the plate, However when you eat it; the fish should be the first thing to touch your tongue not the rice.

When you're picking up the sushi out of the main plate on the table to your plate, you use the bigger end of the chopsticks - the one that you don't eat with. In the middle of the meal you may rest your chopsticks on the small sticks holder known as Hashioki. When you finish eating you should rest the chopsticks next to each other on the soy saucer with each end facing it's similar one.

Enjoy your treat ... xx

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May Collective haul

Hello ladies, welcome back to my blog, this post is just a collective haul for May. I went shopping and I got random things mostly bargains. First here is a collective picture of everything I got ..

I went to the body shop to get my dose of my sulfate free shampoo Rainforest moisture. I was having doubts about it because my stylists has been telling me that my hair is oily, so I looked for an oily hair alternative and I got this beauty, Rainforest Balance; it's still Sulfate free, silicon free and parabin free however it has oils that balances the oils your hair produces. It is the same price as Rainforest moisture, the shampoo is 65 EGP and the conditioner is 65 EGP.

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Another bargain was the least expected place, ALDO. I went in just to check out the new summer collection; the shoes are some what over priced, however I found some accessories. I am a big fan of cheap sunglasses; cause whenever I got expensive sunglasses I would either lose them or smash them by accident. The thing with cheap sunglasses that you won't cry over the 1000 EGP after you break or lose them. So I got this oversized beauty for 99 EGP only. I found a set of 5 rings, I think they were made for a finger's size 6 anyway I used them as knuckle rings, cause I have been obsessed with them only for 69 EGP. I know these are four, the fifth one had on stone in the middle so obviously didn't look like knuckle ring so I gifted them to my friend who has slim fingers.  

I know I have reviewed 7elua.com service as bad, however I got these strips from them that I thought we can buy some where else later cause they are great. I don't know about you, however I have been advised over and over again by mom not to peal my heels in pedicure cause that causes more dryness, so I am trying this new Botanical Choice heel patches for 20 EGP. It has Jojoba oil and tea oil which I think will do great; I will review it when I use it. The nose Patches are green tea I used on already and it was that amazing/disgusting feeling when you peal it off only 20 EGP as well.

Shame on me, but I didn't have the basic black blazer I should have, I got statement blazers that I fell in love with and I forgot to get the basic black one. Good news I found one that fit me perfectly very basic and elegant from H&M at 349 EGP, it's an investment that I am happy I did. While I was in H&M I got this fabric cleaning sticker roll, I finally found it in all pink at 29 EGP only. Another bargain I made was actually guided by my own piece of advice from Babe on a budget article. I dug into the Egyptian chain stores; it's hard to find something that is elegant and fits, however I did. I went to Source after 4 other shoe stores and got this black ballerina. I love pointy ballerina shoes cause I have big feet and I never fit into pointy ones, this one was only 120 EGP. I got this amazing chiffon maxi skirt from Terranova only 199 EGP, it's also available in black and grey.

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Miss Vogue Launch

In a new initiative for young fashion,
Vogue has done it again. Vogue UK is launching it's first ever magazine that will be targeted at a younger audience. Something like Teen Vogue US, however for a much wider age spectrum and with much more sophistication. The point of the magazine is to have more hip content, more daring editorials and much more budget aware items, as they know that younger audiences are still at the beginning of their careers and don't have the luxury to spend as much as an older audience. For Vogue UK that's a very smart move, as ELLE has earlier released a magazine named ELLE Girl, that left quite the positive indication on the audience, however the it closed down. In a way or another the magazine has an already tested audience. Alexandra Shulman -Vogue UK Editor- said "We know how much they love the magazine, and so I wanted to produce something that would have bespoke content for a younger audience". The first issue hit stands in the UK today May 6th 2013 with the regular issue in the same package with no extra fees. Miss vogue first issue is some how smaller than any other Vogue, only 124 pages. Guess Who's the cover girl of the first issue? or as they call her who's the first Miss Vogue? Non other than UK sweet heart and Super Model Cara Delevingne. The cover is lively and says YOUNG without speaking, Cara in with her long blond locks and thick signature eyebrows looking amazing in pink outfit and a grey crop top, bright lips and lots of knuckle rings. The cover itself reveals what's happening inside, all trendy, young and hot things.

The odd thing is, I got last March issue of Vogue UK and Cara was the cover girl, I think that's a quite risky move from Vogue to do that, what message are we sending here "We are not creative" or "There is no difference between the 2 magazines, we just want to make more money" or "We couldn't afford it, so we paid for one model to do two covers" .. I hope there a different message. It's important to mention the fire Liz Jones, The daily mail UK opened on Miss Vogue. Liz  is angry, the editor of Vogue is the same editor of Miss Vogue and she's in her 50's ... her approach is basically, when you're 50, how can you write for teens. I sort of agree with Liz on this, now that the world is open for us young ladies, all of these blogs and youtube vloggers, we're not easy to please crowd and Vogue advertisers better realize that before placing channel ads and D&G outfits in the editorial the team needs to remember that the budget awareness doesn't mean 50 $ less, more like 1000 $ less. I haven't read the magazine yet, so I can't really judge it; however these are pieces of the editorial and the cover, I hope I get my hands on it soon and for these lucky ladies in the UK currently, run and get your Vogue package starting today to see and judge for yourself.

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Discovering new Egyptian brand : Mahberry

Macarons & Cream - Cafe De Paris photoshoot

I had the chance to meet up with Rehab Nour, the designer behind the fresh new brand "Mahberry". Rehab is only 24 years old, working as a freelance journalist at Hejab Fashion Magazine. After studying mass communication, rehab started self-educating her self on fashion and taking several short design courses and workshops. Mahberry as a brand came to life after Rehab won the first place in the Next-styler international competition with her simple chic dress "Macarons and Cream". Rehab gave us some of her time to tell us more about her journey and the brand ...

Tell us about, how you started your designing journey ...

Bride mate wining dress

My journey with design started in my early childhood. Since I can remember fashion was a passion to me, my favorite game as a child was making dresses out of mum’s old veils and clothes. In prep school the dream of becoming a fashion designer became clearer and I began sketching in a very primitive way. Over the time I tried to improve my skills through tutorials and watching thousands of designs and illustrations. But the true beginning was with the FDC (Fashion Design Center) bride’s maid dress contest which I won and the prize was a short fashion design basics course, which set me on the road of beginning a career in fashion design and encouraged me to do so. 

Tell us about your brand? 

Mahberry is a name taken from a very old Persian legend – similar to Arabian Nights for us -. Mahberry was an enchanted princess whose name means “that who has the beauty of the moon and the purity of an angel” I was captured by the story and the name so much that I became convinced that it’s the most suitable name for my fashion brand as it represents a mix between fantasy and orientalism which are my two main sources of inspiration.  

What was your inspiration for the brand logo?

Rehab working

As for the logo, I didn’t actually reach a final version of it yet. However the one present on the page (the profile picture) is a trial to incorporate an oriental symbol into a dress design which captures the spirit and concept of my emerging brand.

Do you intend to design pret a porter only or will we see couture?

In fact when I started thinking about establishing my own fashion line, I thought of couture and evening gowns, then actually I made sketches for a collection. However, I was advised by several experts to start with casual wear as it’s easier to execute and to market. But one of my main goals is still to produce a Mahberry’s evening gowns line.

You're releasing your first collection, Tell us about it..

My first collection which is to be launched next winter is a smart casual collection of feminine tunics with an oriental touch. It’s made of high quality and light weight suede. The tunics are all ornamented with embroidered suede appliques of oriental graphical symbols. The colors are mostly earthy, taken form natural autumn and winter colors. They include orange, teal, brown, café, and dark olive green.

What was your main inspiration behind your first collection?

First collection sneak peak

The inspiration behind this collection came from a group of oriental graphics that I found while browsing the internet. They attracted my attention with their intricate design and beautiful curves and I found it very interesting to play with and implement them into fashion designs.  

Tell us more about the photoshoot and it's relation with the collection ...

The photoshoot of the collection was an adventure between al Azhar Park and Salah Al Deen’s citadel in Cairo. Both places have a historical and oriental atmosphere that represents a complimenting background for the pieces of the collection. It was a hard day but the results were good.

Macarons & Cream

You've participated in Next Styler, how was it?

I found about NextStyler contests while I was browsing the internet.The website’s idea seemed great and I decided to participate. I drew several sketches and sent them, some got accepted and others didn’t till I could capture more about what they want in the submitted designs and finally sent the lucky “Macarons & Cream” sketch.

We want to know all about "Macarons & Cream" ..

As the name suggests, Macarons (French cookies) and whipped cream were my sources of inspiration for this design. The cropped jacket with its brown and rounded edges was inspired by chocolate macaroons, while the dress was inspired by the flow and ripples of whipped cream. It’s a mixture of the smoothness and delicacy of the cream represented by chiffon in the dress, outlined by the structure and somehow solid shape of the jacket.

Macarons & Cream at the cafe de paris collection

How was it wining first place in an international contest?

I don’t know exactly how I won; I just spread the word and asked people to vote for me in every way possible. At a certain time I lost hope, but I was happily surprised at the end when the results came out and my dress won the 1^st place. I really couldn’t believe it at first, it felt great, but the best moment was when I received my executed design, it was a dream coming true - literally.  The video of the whole collection is here.

Where can we shop for Mahberry designs?

Mahberry’s collections will be available soon through my website and selected stores in Cairo, we are still in the planning stage now, but we sure will let you know as soon as it’s decided. As for "Macarons & cream", it’s sold through Nextstyler website – which is now called Maison Academia and this is the Link to it.

Currently Mahberry offers a new custom designing service, which enables the client to send us whatever she dreams about in a dress or clothing item and I will make a sketch specially for her and give her directions and recommendations about where and how to execute it. 

What does the future hold to Mahberry brand and you?
Who knows what the future holds.. we all wish we do know. For Mahberry, it’s still an emerging brand but my dreams for it are limitless. Collections every season, fashion shows, participating in other international competitions and eventually having my own show room.... you name it;  it’s all included in our future plans.

Rehab

What's in your purse?

Since I usually carry huge purses you’ll find so many things in there. Wallet, mobile, headphones, ID cards and lots of tissues are the basics. But you will surely find many others. Several notebooks of various sizes and colors, pens, pins, scraps of colorful paper and embroidered fabrics, a mirror, a small perfume bottle, lipstick, eyeliner, maybe some shopping receipts and one or two candy bars, the list can actually go on and on but I guess those are the most frequent items you’ll find in my purse.

I really like the concept of this new brand, the collection look very well crafted and promising. I was so happy and honored to see an Egyptian wining the first place in an international contest. You can get inspired with Mahberry facebook page and update yourself with Maison Academia Facebook page.

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Tweenage years style inspirations

This a nostalgic/fun post, I do realize I wrote tweenage, tween is the pre-teenage years; from 10 to 13. I am quite young right now I am 21 so these years were 10 years ago at least that means we are talking 2003, 2004, 2005. Before anything was anything, we were listening to music through the radio, waiting for video clips on Zen, Melody hits and Mazzika. Watching movies on MBC1, MBC2 and LBC. I didn't have a cell phone at the beginning and when I got one, I used to send cute messages with hearts to my friends. When going to McDonald's alone was a blast, and we waited for the school trip to dream park. When we did naughty stuff with friends to go to detention together and skip the classes. These days I was getting style inspirations from totally different place, I didn't know Vogue existed, the internet was yahoo and msn chat with friends to me and I worshiped these ...

Katia Harb

Katia Harb was like an amazing muse to me, that vampire look inspired me a lot. The look was created by nadine labky, which explain why it's unique and the song itself was quite catchy, I listened to other songs by katia, however that look was the one the inspired me the most.

Pale skin, green eyes, heavy smoky eyes and red bloody lips .. better than any twilight stuff. The great thing about her was her attitude all of the video, she was done with the guy, not only the lyrics said that, but her attitude and facial expressions. In the days I thought I would do that when i breakup with a guy.

The black outfits had a major impact on my clothing, any gothic outfit had been a worship for me these days, I still have a thing for them till now and her hair was just a blast for me, so wavy and free, it still inspires me.

Shakira

I didn't know what the hell was shakira swimming/dancing in but i sure as hell loved it. The black minimal outfit she had on was for me such an inspiration and her dancing moves, of course that hot Alejandro guy was an inspiration as well.

Ripped stockings, Long blond/black hair and ripped black dress, that was my idea of sexy. I actually would dance in front of the TV on Shakira songs and I actually bought one of these "dirty" jeans she started.

Her gypsy outfits, her long wavy hair and the tiny braids in her hair were always an inspiration. I used to makes tiny braids in my hair and my friends' hair just because I was so fascinated by her style.

Mean Girls

I wanted to be one of them, as mean and crazy as the movie was, I wanted to grow up; go to high school and dress in short skimpy outfits, look all fab and make guys chase me. I remember actually I bought Teenstuff magazine back then and it had a poster of the map of the school in mean girls I had the poster in my room.

For me Rachel McAdams or Regina George was the star not Lindsay. I hated her, but I loved her. I loved that she was such a teenage princess, with everything always pink, fierce and fab.

We didn't celebrate Halloween, but I loved their Halloween customs, I wanted one of them. Later I got the mini ears and  I would wear them with a short dress and pretend to be a mouse. I loved that latex outfit by Gretchen Wiener.

Christina Aguilera

Who didn't switch the channel when Christina Aguilera was on TV and their mom was in the room, I know I did. I also wanted these pair of jeans so bad, that I saw some girl I didn't like so much wearing something close to it and I actually went to ask her where can I get it!!

The piercings were my dream, it was impossible to get my parents to go on with it. I was crazy about the tan, the smoky eyes and the hair that looks like it wasn't been washed in ages. Christina was the reason I bought my first lipgloss, I wanted lips like these, and I would get stick on charms and put them on my nose and under my lip to look like her.

Rania Kurdy

This one might not be so known for people, this girl is known more for her role in that 7th sense movie, but for me, I was like why is she keeping her hair short when she looks like this with long hair.

I was crazy about that style, wrapping necklace and arm bracelet was amazing. It was the first time for me to see toe nails and anklets and I loved it. I loved the whole mood of this video and I loved her hair color, I was dreaming for a while to have long red hair.

What I loved and still kind of love was the arabian fantasy and bold colors, pure blue or pure dark red.

JLo

Cause my hair looked exactly like this, kinda still does, I related to JLo, was the first dancer I saw on TV who wasn't skinny and still looked amazing, I was crazy about the over sized sweatshirt and the knee high socks.

Am I crazy? I still want this look with the fur hat and everything, maybe not the bug hoop earrings, but this is still a fantastic ageless look. I loved it and the tan was perfect.

Other than the fact that she doesn't age, cause this was 13 years ago, I used to LOVE that song. Her look is still ageless, I loved the nails, of course I couldn't achieve them cause I bit my nails back them. I loved her dancing moves and I still love that peach bra.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S girls

The 90's and early 2000's were marked down by these girls, they were the hottest thing around, I loved the sitcom so much and I was in love with their style, they might now seem average, but for me they were amazing.

To be honest my favorite one was always Rachel, she was so cute. I loved her fashion evolution, starting with the cute shorts, jumpsuits and short waitress apron and ending up with pencil skirts. and That hair.

I wanted Rachel hair, Phoebe's crazy accessories, all these rings and the necklaces and Monica's legs.

Hala Sheeha

She's an average girl, she was the girl next door for Egypt, for me she was a style icon. I loved her minimalistic approach, was hard to find in Egyptian icons and still is, of course at the time I just called it simple and stylish cause I had no idea what minimalism is.

I seriously had a thing for this outfit, I would still wear it, simple stripped tank top paired with jeans and hair braids. I had a thing for this neutral makeup with a little bit of dark around the eyes, still was a huge different approach than Egyptian actresses.

Hair, necklace and green dress, I wished to grow up, go to a wedding and get that dazzling look -that's what I had in mind back then-.

Anastacia

Now I would think, why can't she wear a bra that's her size, but back then I thought Wow she's so hot. Still respect for the toned flat abs, layering necklaces, I loved the sunglasses, but now not so much.

That video I loved because of the fur, the sunglasses and the funky hair do, I am still in love with the funky hair do and still quite an inspiration to me, I let go of the fact that I wanted to be blond like her.

When she turned more simple and less edge, she tried at least, I still loved it. I loved that top, I still love it but not crazy about it. 

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