Actually truth be told I don’t have much time to read chick lit anymore so I have to reach back a few years and show you what I was reading in high school during my spare time. But yes, the valedictorian-with-crazy-asian-parents read gossip mags and juicy teen chick lit under the covers at night and fretted about boys in her diary, didn’t we all?

So here are some of the favs from bygone days. A few of them, for some crazy reason, are still being produced in a seemingly never-ending series, which is great news for gals like me because it means there’s hope for delicious guilty pleasure teen chick lit without coming off as a behind-the-times old fart. Britney’s comeback is definitely helping.

(Warning: I did not read  Gossip Girls nor do I watch the Gossip Girls TV show, I’m a horror of a girly girl I know, so someone ought to comment about its existence as a book series) More »

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Saturday night was anything but live with Sarah Palin as the guest. It actually very was lame. It was so obvious that she was on there trying to get some cool points, but it ended up being really awkward. It was, in my opinion bad timing and planning on the McCain/Palin team’s part. If they were looking to boost their standings with the young voters, they should have done this earlier in their campaign before the damage was already done by Fey and team.

The bit where Mr. Baldwin “confused” her for Tina Fey was really bad acting, and her three minutes spent at the newsdesk was also really cheesy. Amy Poehler’s rap was funny and kinda annoying too. And I like Amy! More »

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CuteOverload.com is one of my greatest guilty pleasures. Yes I do love animals and all things cute. So while reading the blog awhile ago, I stumbled onto this little critter that is just the most adorable thing ever!

I have no idea what it is, but from what I can see it seems like a baby anteater or sloth. I asked the other GirlyBubble girls and they’re stumped too. But really who cares. Whatever it is, I want one to cuddle forever. I’ve actually watched the video more than I would like to admit but hey you know you’re just as hooked as me. More »

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My iPhone is pretty damn sexy, that’s why I bought it, and I can’t stand those awful, awful cases, sleeves and skins. Would Madonna wear Old Navy? I don’t want to hear anything but “NO!” come out of your mouths. You want to accessorize in style? Well skip Best Buy where style means an oversized blue polo shirt (OMG awful) and add some chic programs from the iTunes App Store! Remember, your mind CAN be sexy!

I found iNeko in my favorite section of the App Store: FREE. (I’m not ashamed. I schedule my year around the Barneys Warehouse Sale. Saving on Helmut Lang leaves me more for A.P.C., and my A.P.C. jeans make me look like a superstar from the waist down.)

Neko runs like his little life depended it on it where ever your finger touches the screen. Leave him alone, and he scratches himself and falls asleep. Your iPhone will make the softest purr sound. Wake his lazy butt up with a poke and he meows and runs up and down the screen like a crazed kitty. You can do all the cool iPhone tricks that make life more fun like pinch to zoom in and out on Neko. I prefer Neko to be teeny tiny. It’s when he’s at his cutest. Then I shake the iPhone to have these brilliant colors splash around. It makes for a great party trick at the club. Likewise, Neko can be enjoyed over a nice dinner party with friends who will pass him around the table with the curiosity that only the cutest virtual kitten can create. Girls, this is the only kitty I play with.

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I work from home so I barely ever leave the house much less pamper myself. This past week I’ve been complaining that I’ve lost my beauty mojo in that I’ve become really sloppy with my looks and haven’t been taking care of myself as well as I should have. So while searching around for tips to keep myself looking decent, I found these sexy ponytails.

I love to tie my hair back when working but the usual ponytail isn’t going to cut it for me anymore. Looking at these photos compiled together by TotalBeauty, I was completely enthusiastic about how to do my hair every morning. While it does require an extra step, it is recommended that you act as if you’re getting ready in order to help jump start your day. Taking that advice would really help me out because I’m almost completely let myself go. /Shame.

The ones I picked are the ones I’m truly interested it and will try out. Once I get the hang of it, I’ll share you with you guys. More »

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Who needs the hassle of a real boyfriend when you can have a virtual one? In Japan, girls are going crazy over a new website that combines social networking and an online game where you have to try to hook up with one of four boys (maybe you can do more than one).

The website is called WebKare (online boyfriend in Japanese) and after two weeks of launching, it has accumulated 10,000 members and over 3.5 million page views. Just goes to show how boy crazy Japan is or just how lonely everyone is. The game requires you to interact with these virtual hotties through short cartoon sequences that don’t leave much room for actual interaction. Boo! But all the events in the storyline are saved digitally in an album on the site. Note that there are a few a games like this for the Nintendo DS; however, like WebKare they are only in Japanese.

Also with your WebKare profile, you can “life stream” (aka Twitter) in addition to interact with other players and their bfs which helps you advance in the game.

While I love the idea of a boyfriend who doesn’t give me a headache, realistically it can’t replace the void I feel when I’m not cuddling something adorable and warm. Although I can always get a dog if I get sick of my bg. JK!

Source: Washington Post

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According to the recent news, Britney Spears’ newest single “Womanizer” has topped the charts. It just goes to show that she still has it even after all the drama the past few years. I guess there really is no such thing as bad PR.

While I love the Britney (specifically the old Britney), her recent songs aren’t anything special. I’m really surprised that she’s doing so well especially after the MTV Music Video Awards where she won 3 awards. Congrats to her but did she really need to be naked in the video? There was absolutely no point of the sauna other than to show that she’s slimmed down from her pregnancies. Although I would have preferred if she did it when she performing “Gimme More” at the MTV Music Video Awards in 2007 wearing nothing but lingerie.

Anyways, go her for bouncing back but is it just me or does she still seem a little angry about Kevin? More »

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If you’re into cute and irreverent clothing/accessory designs such as David and Goliath Tees and Angry Little Girls, then you’ll love Modondi, a company whose t-shirts, buttons, and pins are adorable, fun, and sometimes downright hilarious. I’m putting this “Spaced Out” fitted T on my wishlist because it’s SO me!

Renee Lau, co-owner of Modondi and the brainchild of their delightful designs was kind enough to do an interview with me about the secret behind Modondi’s success!

Ming Min Hui: Modondi’s tagline is “An expression you can wear.” Can you elaborate on that and what Modondi’s all about? Renee Lau: “An expression you can wear” is something my partner (Peter) and I came up with since the beginning. We wanted to take emotions/expressions that are wacky and funny found in anime and manga and make it come alive. We try to make emotions that people can wear such as a popping vein Emoticon pin (on your hat or a bag) or if you feel like you have nothing to say, you can wear a Dot Dot Dot t-shirt to express that. We like making products that everyone can have fun with such as the “poop on a stick” t-shirt which has been well-received. As a company, we’re very laidback and we try to have fun while doing what we like at the same time. More »

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I’ll be the first person to admit that “girly” is not a word to describe me. I don’t like make-up, shopping, and the colour pink. I stay away from those products that makes me look like a clown, I shop like a man who hates shopping, and I like the colours blue, black, and white. However, I was into the typical “girly” stuff when I was younger. Even now, no matter how hard I try to deny most of the girly stuff in the world, there are a few things that bring out the “Curious George” in me.

Lately, a bunch of Nintendo DS games have piqued my curiosity. I’ve tried such games like Imagine: Figure Skater and was met with disappointment and a regret for even bothering to try them. However, I think through all the pains I went through trying these games geared for the younger female audience, I finally found a winner with Princess Debut. More »

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Last night I got a henna tattoo (they were giving them away for this shopping event called “College Night” in New Haven). I’m really into tattoos but haven’t been able to commit to a permanent one yet so this is a beautiful and completely organic temporary alternative.

Henna tattoos (aka Mehndi) are essentially done using a paste made from the henna plant and artists use a tool that allows them to squirt out a very thin amount so that they can draw intricate patterns with it on a client’s skin. It can go pretty much anywhere on your body, but its roots are with the hands and feet of Indian brides, so hand designs are the most popular. Because it’s derived from organic materials and Indian tradition, these kinds of floral designs like the one I got are also the most popular.

At first the paste is wet so you have to let it harden and then sit for as long as possible, and then eventually the dried paste starts coming off by itself and you’re left with a tattoo of the design for about two weeks depending on how long you left it on and where on your body it is. More »

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I need a new face wash. The one I currently use makes my face all itchy and dry, which of course is not good. I saw a commercial for Neutrogena’s new Pink Grapefruit line and I want to try that. I’m such a sucker for citrus-smelling concoctions, so I’m gonna give it a shot. Neutrogena is supposed to be really gentle, which is a plus.

Dry itchy facial skin is NOT a good look. lol Before I run to the pharmacy and pick up the Neutrogena, what else would you girls recommend? My skin type is normal (for the most part). Or better yet, which products do you think I should steer clear of?

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Who doesn’t love things that are sweet and make you feel better? This past week my workload has hit an all time high and as such, I’ve been feeling miserable. So late last night I decided to take a break (let’s say around 4AM) and go out to a dinner to get some food. Not the brightest idea considering the hour but it really helped boost my morale which got me on the idea of what my favorite comfort foods are. More »

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Recently my much loved homepage iGoogle just got much better on  both the design and practicality fronts.

The artist themes that you can select for personalizing your homepage now include a whole slew of my favorite musicians (Radiohead, Coldplay, Gnarls Barkley, etc.) and fashion designers (Gucci, Burberry, Dolce and Gabanna, Michael Kors, Vera Wang, Jimmy Choo, Diane Von Furstenberg, Herve Leger, Vivenne Tam, etc.) - there are so many great new designs that I keep changing my preferences around so I can get to all of them!  At the moment I’ve selected BCBG Max Azria (screenshot here) because it’s lovely and I’m a huge fan of his line. Other great girly themes include Anna Sui, Sergio Rossi, Stella McCartney, and Sara Bareilles just to name a few.

The other great change has been the movement of tabs to the side and the introduction of canvas-view gadgets. Now all the apps I have are dropped down in a way that makes them all much easier to access (it’s like a new set of bookmarks/toolbar links within your iGoogle page). The canvas-view also means that I can look at everything on a wide page within the iGoogle page itself and not have to open it up in a new tab - a browser within a browser if you will. As an example, here’s a canvas-view of New Haven weather. More »

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Yeah I know I’m kinda late and all, but I just found out about the Flip. It’s one of the cutest, coolest mini video cameras I’ve seen! It’s got three versions of it: the Mino, the Ultra and the Video.

The Mino is the smallest of the group weighing only 3.3oz. It’s also the only version that’s customizable, which is really cool. The Ultra, while it isn’t up for customization, does come in white piped with bright colors like lime green, fuschia, and a shocking orange. The original Flip Video is probably my least favorite because it only comes in black or white, and it doesn’t have a rechargeable battery but it’s still kinda cool. Check out the website for more info on the specs and stuff if you’re interested in that sort of thing. For me it just has to work (and be pretty).

Also on the website, you can find demo videos for each version in different lighting and situations to get a good look on the quality, but if you’re like me and don’t trust the company “brochure” fully, you can watch this youtube  video of New York Times reporter David Pogue, comparing the Flip Ultra’s video quality with a traditional video camera. More »

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In the most recent episode of Paris Hilton’s My New BFF, Paris goes off to Tokyo, Japan to present at the MTV Video Music Awards Japan ’08. She takes 4 of the contestants with leaving the remaining 8 to bite the dust.

Before the trip, the contestants had to do a challenge where they had to look their best while riding a roller coaster. All except Onch take on the challenge who ends up crying and over dramatized the situation. He begs Paris to be left out and she lets him off the hook. After the challenge, Paris announces her trip and she takes Brittany, Natasha, Brian and Sinsu. They weren’t able to pack so they left immediately in the same clothes.

While in Tokyo, they enjoy the cuisine which turned out to be quite freaky. They went to a teppanyaki restaurant which fried live shrimp. Gross! Next they are given $500 to shop for a new outfit for the awards AND told that two of them will be eliminated. While everyone else enjoyed the free shopping spree, Natasha bitches about the fashion. Talk about being ungrateful. They then meet Paris at the awards who then invites Brittany to join her on stage after she asked if she could go with her. All the other contestants get jealous (so am I) but then move along to the after party. They get mobbed by fans and party with Simple Plan leaving the night very memorable.

Back at the mansion; however, a cat fight breaks out after Corrie makes a racism remark about Onch being able to do nails because he’s Taiwanese. The girls gang up on her and it easily turns nasty as Zui threatens to stab Corrie. I guess we have an idea about who gets eliminated next!

Till then, the 4 in Japan are up for elimination. After much consideration on their behavior, Paris decides to eliminate Sinsu and Brian for having a drinking problem and not standing out (respectively). Honestly she should have cut Natasha and Corrie who have obvious attitude issues.

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I took these photos during the Little Italy festival in September. I love chunky jewelry like this and I was really tempted to splurge on these over priced bracelets but the vendor looked a bit creepy.

Jewelry is probably one of my biggest weaknesses because they’re the easiest way to glam up a dull outfit. While I lived in Korea, the majority of my money was spent buying all sorts of jewelry because it was so cheap. We’re talking cheaper than Claire’s (roughly $1 - $3 for a pair of earrings). My entire Prom jewelry set for my sophomore year cost $15 all together and they were beautiful (I still wear them from time to time).

I really miss how cheap it use to be and how there was always a big selection. Now, it’s hard to find a good place that sells jewelry for a decent price that isn’t crappy quality. I heard Ebay is the best but you can’t always guarantee the quality.

Where do you buy your jewelry? More »

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9:00pm - I feel terribly ghetto, I’m literally sitting in the gym watching this and leaning against a treadmill to type this. But here we go!

9:03pm - Jesus these girls are SKINNY… and Leanne is going for the alienish ones, how appropriate.

9:05pm - Kenley is such a bitch. End of story. She never takes Tim’s suggestions and there has almost been a good result from not listening to him (especially not with the self-righteousness she has).

9:07pm - Apparently I’m missing the presidential debate for this. No big deal, I’m not a swing voter. I’d only be watching for entertainment purposes. Fashion trumps politics =P

9:09pm - Model booty! Model booty alert! Very fugly and skinny though yuck.

9:10pm - Hm, I actually agree with both Kenley and Leanne. Leanne’s color palette is a wee bit boring and Kenley’s is a bit too childish.

9:17pm - Korto is crazy for trying to pull off two new looks in such short time. But they definitely look better than the last version.

9:18pm - CUTE PUPPY ALERT CUTE PUPPY (screw Kenley for being bitchy and Leanne for worrying about dog crap).

9:20pm - Hrm prepping prepping… I’m hungry…

9:22pm - BOOBIE ALERT. Again, boring model boobies =P

9:23pm - Poor models getting squeezed into clothes or falling out of them. Poor audience for waiting so damn long (I remember waiting a whole freaking hour for the Thuy show to start). More »

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Yep! I’m going to introduce to you guys my favorite fictional people. I’ve always loved characters who are well written. Who doesn’t? I especially love when the author really gives thought into making the character(s) believable, no matter how unlikely their circumstances actually are. Because I’ve read several books that were definitely worth my time, but I can’t really recall any of the characters themselves. Ya’ know? However there’s those characters that you just SWEAR up and down you know as if they were real. HA! and so without too much rambling, here are my favorite fictional people:

More »

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Random trip to the mall, I noticed the Steve and Barry’s was closing down. It’s really unfortunate but then again who can deny the sales? All the shirts throughout the store were going for $5 or less – and there were a lot of shirts. Not only that but jeans, sneakers and everything else were considerably cheap.

While there were numerous shirts, I noticed these particular shirts from Amanda Bynes’ clothing line Dear. I really love her style and she’s one of the few celebrities that haven’t gotten sexual or crazy. Looking through the racks of clothes featuring her line, they really do represent her taste in fashion which is super cute and girly.

While I was going to buy the shirt, I thought to myself “what if GirlyBubble did shirts like this?” DUN DUN DUN! Not that I’m hinting anything but who doesn’t love a cute graphic tee?

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The finale of Project Runway Season 5 is tomorrow and the contestants have been narrowed down to three girls: Leanne, Korto, and Kenley. This is exciting since there’s only been one female winner before and this is the first time all of the finalists are female!

So I’ll be blogging live tomorrow night, meaning that if anyone else is watching be sure to have the GirlyBubble page up and refreshing every so often so that you can see what I’m thinking and leave your own thoughts/exasperations/predictions. Until then, here’s a brief analysis of each paired with my favorite look from their finale collection before I unveil my predictions:

My personal favorite is Leanne (left) because her looks are always very structured and architectural embellished with romantic and organic detailing. It’s a very soft and sweet and serious aesthetic without being boring, which is how I like to think of my fashion tendencies. More »

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