Wednesday 1 January 2020

Announcement

This will be where we chuck the important stuff at so it'll always remain as the top post. To read updated posts, you'll have to scroll past this one!

Contact us at Domokie@gmail.com should you have any requests / advertorials / events / product sponsors / ETC!

Should you like us to review anything or if you have any questions on your mind, feel free to post them on our FB wall!

Updates :
  •  Cavewoman Domo finally found the blogger app! *Trial in progress*
Please note that should you wish to reuse / copy / borrow any of our published post, pictures, reviews or even just the way we do our reviews, please seek our permission or at least credit us. Please do not plagiarize, thank you very much!

All contents copyright © Cookie and Domo

Love,
Domokie ❤

Tuesday 15 July 2014

Domo Diaries : Mobile Blogging!

Annyeong! Long time no see everyone. I've been feeling super guilty as Cookie has been the only one blogging. I've been soooooooo lazy to transfer the photos to my lappy :/ BUT IN MY DEFENSE, when I tried to transfer my pics the phone wouldn't connect to my pc...

On a whim today, I decided to search for the blogger app and here I am! I'm not very sure as to how it works yet... This is basically a trial post along with a fotd for some content lollol. I don't even know how to add in pictures!!! .___. Okay I do but I don't know how to position them but it's just my face. No harm in it being randomly placed!
Re-positioned it with chrome browser!

If this works out you can expect to see a looooooot more posts on Domokie just because blogging has gotten more convenient!
Love,
Domo

Thursday 3 July 2014

App Review: My Favorite Free Android Camera Apps

I've been downloading and playing with quite a few android camera applications these days, and these are the few that I really enjoyed. They're relatively popular so you might have had downloaded it before already, but if you haven't, I think they're worth a shot.



Selfie App: MeituPic

link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mt.mtxx.mtxx&hl=en




The first photo was taken with the front camera so pardon the blurriness. MeituPic, better known as 美图秀秀 is an application that works specifically well for selfies. It has dozens of filters, the ability to sharpen and crop an image, as well as selfie-specific functions such as manually removing acne (similar to Photoshop healing brush), eyebags, enlarging eyes and a tool similar to Photoshop liquify.

There's also special effects such as bokeh and sparkle brushes as well, but you can't adjust the brush size like the rest of the tools so it's easy to overdo the effect like I have below.


My only complaint about the app is that it downsizes the photo when it's edited and every round of editing saves another copy of the image in the folder. Those who are familiar with jpegs would know that how the image quality would drop after many rounds of compression, so I wouldn't recommend this for people who want high-res quality photos. The Meitu FX camera isn't all that great compared to the default camera software provided in my phone either.





Film photography experience: VSCO Cam®

link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vsco.cam&hl=en 





Unfortunately, my phone is fairly old and lacks the technology to fully utilize the camera app. Mine doesn't even have white balance adjustment and the ability to select object for exposure settings. The UI of the app is wonderfully sleek and appeals to my graphic design aesthetics. Upon starting up, the app will automatically calibrate its settings to suit your phone model, and has geotagging function as well. It has its own publishing platform like instagram does, but is more popular with photographers: http://grid.vsco.co/.

The filters are all modeled after traditional film photography look, and are more subtle. It would work well for scenery and objects more than portraits I think, but they do provide a free downloadable tool preset for adjusting skin hue. I think this app works better with cameras that have better specs, but the filters alone is worth the download.





Stamps/ Purikura: DECOPIC

link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cfinc.decopic&hl=en


❤ Domokie ❤ · Post





I personally don't really use stamps as much because they can be slightly tacky, but I think the decorations in DECOPIC is pretty cute. It resembles what you'll find in a purikura machine, perhaps even better. You can earn candies simply by logging in daily, and buy prettier decorations, but some of the best ones like the sanrio series can only be bought by cash.

However, like a game, they reward you with various decorations every time you complete certain 'tasks', and it's a rather fulfilling feeling. I'm not too sure how much storage this app would take up after a long while though, it does seem slow in loading compared to other apps. But it's worth a try if you like purikura.


Signing off,
cookie


Friday 27 June 2014

Food Recipe: Bacon Caborana & Ebi Zosui


Hi all, Cookie here, it's been a while since I've last posted. Honestly, my skincare regime is woefully basic these days so I'm afraid I don't have much products to review. I've been sticking to dermatologist's products and a basic eye cream + sunscreen, and that seems to work alright for me.

So instead, as a self-proclaimed social recluse who cooks all the time, I'll be sharing two basic recipes for lazy people like me -- with as little preparation and cleaning up as possible.



Time: 15 - 20 mins

Ingredients (for one):
Spaghetti (a bunch < one inch in diameter would do/ 60 - 80g)
Cream cheese (a tablespoon dollop, add heavy cream if you want a creamier texture)
Miso paste (a teaspoon -- I use this to replace salt and get a slight umami taste)
Garlic (2 - 3 cloves)
Bacon (1 - 2 slices, try to get fresh from a delicatessen in cold storage for example )
Herbs/ Spices (To taste. I like Italian herb mix + a teeny bit of tarragon but parsley and oregano is great too)
Asparagus (a bunch)
Egg (1)

1. Boil a medium/ large pot of water with a tablespoon of salt in it. (Use an electronic kettle if you are in a rush.)
2. While waiting for the water to boil, cut the aspharagus, garlic and bacon (in that order).
3. Fry the egg sunny side up with a bit of olive oil.
4. Cook the spaghetti until al dente, according to package instructions. (4 - 6 mins)
5. Blanch the asparagus with the pasta during the last few minutes.
6. With the same frying pan you fried your egg, cook bacon and saute garlic until lightly brown.
7. While doing the above, drain the pasta until a tiny amount of water remains. Separate the pasta from water and asparagus.
8. Mix miso paste and cream cheese into the pasta water until dissolved. Mix the pasta with the garlic, olive oil and bacon mix (if there's too much oil, get rid of some first).
9. Pour the pasta onto a plate, and place asparagus and cream cheese + miso 'gravy' on top. (Mine was at the bottom).
10. It should be salted just enough from the bacon and miso, but add extra salt and pepper if needed.

This tastes like a creamy carbonara with a slight Japanese twinge to it.  Make sure the bacon isn't too salty (as prepackaged bacon tends to be). If it is, blanch it first. Make sure not to use too much olive oil or bacon oil.



Time: 30 mins

Ingredients (for one):
half a cup of Japanese short grain rice
leftover vegetables (from nabe, for eg) like carrots, mushrooms, onions, napa cabbage, japanese cucumbers
japanese silken tofu (I recommend unicurd)
peeled small prawns (4 - 5)
miso paste w dashi or dashi and chicken stock (to taste)
seaweed furikake (sprinkle to taste)
salt, umeboshi (to taste)

Traditional zosui is usually leftover cooked rice and nabe vegetables cooked in nabe broth, but you can cook it from scratch using a claypot and save up on cleaning.

1. Pour half a cup of rice into the claypot and wash the rice till clear.
2. Measure one cup of water for rice and cook the rice with a lid on.
3. While cooking, cut all the tofu and vegetables.
4. Put hard vegetables like carrots into claypot. Put more water in claypot when needed.
5. Keep layering different vegetables in order of how long they need to be cooked.
6. Add in chicken/ miso w dashi stock.
7. Add in prawns and be careful not to overcook.
8. Add in tofu and vegetables like cucumbers last.
9. Sprinkle furikake, salt and chopped umeboshi to taste.

I find seaweed furikake to be the binding component of the dish. If you can't find or don't like the sour + saltiness of umeboshi, you can skip it. I find that it adds a special kick to zosui.


Wednesday 12 February 2014

Food Review : Tenkaichi [Wagyu Beef Buffet]

I haven't touched this blog in awhile. But every once in awhile, I feel the need to EXPOSE certain things to the public so they can stop getting scammed. I'd have to say beforehand though that although I'm not a professional food blogger, I am human. I eat. I love good food. What do I love even more than good food? Cheap AND good food! Who doesn't like a cheap deal?

And so I learnt a lesson from this. On my birthday, my bf brought me to Gyu Kaku to have some of the finest beef I've ever tasted. We had both wagyu and normal beef that day and it was so very good. The feeling of the perfect combination of meat and fat melting away on your tongue. It was heavenly. So was the bill (lol). It's affordable but nonetheless still rather expensive, something that you wouldn't be able to eat all the time unless you're damn rich. If you are, good for you.

We both got "addicted" and craved for the beef... Naturally we searched for more wagyu beef restaurants that are hopefully just as good and more friendly on the wallet. That's when my bf stumbled upon Tenkaichi, previously known as Daidomon. It had a wagyu beef buffet promotion going on for $59.90++ per person for dinner. It SEEMED to have good reviews. So we went for it with a group of friends.

Allow me to show you the power of promotional pictures vs reality.

Please click HERE for photos from Tenkaichi. Take note of how they had to specify that pictures are for ILLUSTRATION PURPOSES only. (They didn't use to do that till our comments about the beef pictures.)

In case they edit their posts, here's an example of how they usually do it.


Here's the food that we were served.


A messy pile of dull looking meat. How appealing.


Gyu tan, or ox tongue. Just as dull.


The sushi was alright, but how wrong can you go with sashimi?! The butter fish is nothing special either. It's just tuna. It was neither significantly buttery or fragrant.

Last but not least, here is a comparison of the "wagyu beef" they serve vs the wagyu beef we ate at Gyu Kaku.

 

Above is from Tenkaichi and the pic below is from Gyu Kaku


I'm sure that even without my comments, the difference is obvious. Just look at the color!!! Both pictures are taken with the same camera okay. Tenkaichi's wagyu was just... The fats overwhelmed the meat and the meat had no taste anyway lol. It was just... Meat. There was no melting, no heavenly feeling nor any sense of satisfaction. 

We thought we were smart. We thought we found a good deal. But we were outsmarted. We paid more than $60 for something that isn't even worth half the amount. I'd rather eat steak at a coffeeshop or something. but you know, bad experiences happen in life. We simply left feeling disappointed. 

A while later, my bf commented on their facebook page about the photos taken by a regular consumer in comparison to the pictures they upload. (That's why they started adding those disclaimers lol)



I don't think a simple comment on how the meat looks different warrants such a sarcastic reply from their supposed boss? Or moderator or something. And very obviously, He realized his mistake after. The coward deleted his comments but not before we took some screenshots. Our comments are still there on the facebook page but his isn't. You can check there to verify.

In conclusion, this post is meant to express my displease towards Tenkaichi AND expose their attitude + poor quality beef. If you want to eat nice beef but you have a small budget, go to Gyu Kaku and try their normal beef. Their non-wagyu tastes even better than this shop's wagyu. Don't waste your money or your time travelling to this restaurant. You can score a better deal somewhere else.

Love,
Domo

Disclaimer : This review is based on my first hand experience with Tenkaichi and I am in no way related to them or Gyu Kaku. Should you feel displeased with my review or if you beg to differ, you can always close your browser :)

Friday 27 September 2013

Product Review : 3 Concept Eyes Full Cover Concealer

*Waves hysterically* Hello Domokies! It's been a super long time since I blogged again :( Not as long as when we went MIA but well... Still kinda long. Apologies but I have been packed with courses and work. I have no offdays!!! *Tugs at hair dramatically*

Ok, I don't have much hair. Shall not do that.

But anyway, I'm back with a review! And it's a cosmetic product :D

Today's review will be on the 3 Concept Eyes Full Cover Concealer~

Left - #2 / Right - #1

They're kinda tiny because I bought the miniatures to try out first. Got it in both shade 1 and 2 as I could NOT determine which shade suits me from the picture they provided. I have swatches of both below!


Oh and it comes with your regular doe foot applicator. Picks up product well, quite a lot at one go actually so don't accidentally slap a whole blob on.

I have attached pictures of the ingredients list. Picture credit : stylenanda. Please click to enlarge.

Top - #2 / Bottom - #1
There! The swatches. I promise you this is quite accurate. Like 99% similar as to what I see with my eyes IRL.


Say hello to arm mole! It's been an extremely long time since it last showed up in  a post!

My thoughts :

If you're looking to cover a zit, this sucks. As you can tell from the coverage test above, it fares pretty badly. As an undereye concealer? Yes! IF your dark eye circles are not severe, you can definitely use this as an undereye concealer / highlighter. It gives a beautiful dewy finish that looks amaaaazing and natural, as long as either one of the shades suits you.

I have been using the darker shade (#2) to conceal the inner V of my eyebags/circles. It's only very slightly lighter than my dark eye circles. I then use the lighter shade (#1) to highlight a bigger V from the inner portion of my cheeks all the way to my eye bags. This highlights the area and creates the illusion of fuller cheeks and hides the eyebags more. By having fuller cheeks, you'll look younger. I do not mean swollen cheeks uhh so don't get me wrong. The lighter shade (#1) is perfect for natural highlighting due to it's dewy finish and that it's only slightly lighter than my skin tone.

On a totally random note, this concealer smells nice lol. Also, you have to set this concealer with some loose/pressed powder if you want this to last. It's not very long lasting and I'd say it wears for about 3-4 hours on oily skin. I guess if you want something that's natural and dewy, you can't really expect it to be a long lasting product. This one's perfect for those with dry under eyes as it's a very liquidy product. Kinda creamy but not sticky or anything.

I love this item and I'd recommend it if the shade suits you. I have purchased several back ups of shade 1 already :D

Texture: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (AWESOMEEEEE!)
Coverage: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ (Covers some but just the minimal stuff)
Lasting Power: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (Average wear, take another star off if you're oily but don't powder.)
Overall: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ (I absolutely love this. It's affordable and not cakey! But one star off for the coverage and another off because it's definitely NOT a "Full Cover Concealer")

I got mine from a seller on Qoo10. Please note that he/she is only selling the mini sized concealer so it's only $2.


If you want the full sized one, you can try this seller. ***Please take note that I've never purchased anything from this seller before.


Alternatively, you can always join a stylenanda spree and get the items directly from stylenanda.com

Love,
Domo 

Disclaimer : I purchased these products with my own money and am not related to the sellers above in any way. The review is 101% honest and based on my own experience with the product.

Thursday 12 September 2013

Food Review : Tsukada Nojo Bijin Nabe

Hello again! Blogged this in advance as I'll be having a busy month!

So, I don't know if you've heard, but apparently there's a beauty hotpot that's all the rage in SG. When I googled it, it was as though it's a pot of liquid gold that everyone loves. Even my bff told me she and her bf loves it. They've gone there on multiple occasions because they love the Bijin Nabe a lot.

After hearing and reading such positive reviews, I had to try it out!

Is it worth the hype..?

Here are the pictures.


You'll get a pot with some tofu looking thing in it. That's the collagen jelly that's supposed to slowly melt into a thick creamy broth.


After roughly 2 minutes or so, the jelly has fully melted into a milky broth, revealing chunks of chicken along the way. At this point of time the server will ladle a small amount of soup for you to taste the original flavor before adding any other ingredients.


These are the ingredients that come with the hotpot. I would say it's 80% vegetables. You'll get a short bamboo stick of meat. I don't know how else to describe that lol. You'll also get 4 prawns. The rest are... Veggies. And that's not a watermelon.


It's a radish! Cute! (But tastes bad to me :/)


You also get to choose from 3 different kind of noodles. I apologize but I've forgotten the choices except the one I chose, which is the thick mochi mochi noodles.


This is the final product. The server will add the ingredients into the pot for you so no worries about wondering which goes in the pot first. The prawns are left alone though. You only cook it when you want to eat it otherwise it'll go hard.


This seaweed paste is served while you're halfway through your meal, specially made for you. (Every table has it though so I don't see the special in this.)

What I think of this :

Well... You must know that if you're a #foreveralone, you probably would skip this as the minimum order serves two. Of course if you're a big eater then go ahead.

I'll talk about the food first. I love the broth. It's very creamy and savory but it's also slightly too salty for me. But it's still addictive as I'm the one who drank most of the soup. My bf hated this soup as he felt that not only was it salty, it tasted milky. He hates milk. I'm not sure if any milk was added into this though I highly doubt it. Maybe it was just really creamy.

The chicken in the soup is supposedly, no ordinary chicken. It's "Jitokko", chicken that's raised in an organic way. Rare chicken. Yup, it's really tender. But then again it's as chicken as the chicken you get in SG. I can't taste anything rare about it. Don't hate me, I'm just being blunt.

The veggies are just veggies, nothing special. The prawns however are really juicy, sweet and fresh! My favorite! But only 4 comes with the pot :(

That's about it for the food. Service was great, the staffs were all polite and friendly. The way they operate however, is just STUPID. Not to be rude or anything but the person who came up with the idea of NO RESERVATIONS must be "square brain". Now I don't visit the Chinatown branch as it's not as accessible as the PS one. The PS outlet is really small so it's really easy to achieve a full house. This Bijin Nabe is only served after 5pm. That's when most people are out to get dinner. You can't reserve seats. So at 5pm, you MUST be there to "chop" your seat. Imagine you're damn unlucky and people do actually start queuing as early as 4pm. You might just have to wait till 8 plus or 9 plus for your dinner. (I went there at 5 plus once and was told that they will be full till closing.)

If they're afraid of no shows, why can't they be flexible and allow reservations and cancel if the patron is 10 minutes late? I have absolutely no patience to be hungry and wait till night for a pot of soup filled with veggies. This concept pisses me off. And honestly, the meal for two without any other order adds up to roughly 30 per pax which is sooooo expensive! $30 for a soup filled with mostly veggies is just unacceptable for me. It's overrated and overpriced. I would rather take the money and go enjoy several plates of sashimi. And if you're eating it for the collagen, I'd advise you to spend your $30 on actual collagen drinks or powders instead. One pot isn't gonna do you any good.

In conclusion, I will not return unless someone's treating me to it. It's just not worth it and I can eat a cheap buffet with that amount of money. I have no patience and a hungry me is an angry me.

Also, here's what you're eating.


Heh. It's full of fats! With collagen of course. (It will look like this when it's cooled so if you don't wanna lose your appetite, keep the soup cooking.)

Love,
Domo

Disclaimer : This review was based on MY opinions. Don't hate me if you feel differently as we all have different tastes. I'm not a professional food blogger or critic. I'm just ranting/reviewing away based on my thoughts after consuming this.
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