Asian Barbie takes over the world

Remember how excited I was about the new Asian Barbie doll, to the point that "Lea" even became the face of this blog and my Instagram? Well, something must be going on at Mattel where they are marketing Asian dolls like hot pancakes! I was beyond thrilled when I noticed a plethora of Asian Barbies lining the racks at my local Target stores recently. This is just bizarre and joyous for the little girl in me! Times are changing! Wish they had these when I was a little girl 20 years ago! (Then again, my parents probably wouldn't buy these for me due to their frugal living situation back then, so maybe the timing is just perfect right now!) 

 

1. Barbie Nurse ($9.94 at Walmart) - same face and black hair as my Made-to-Move Lea, but with a career in nursing.

2. Barbie Fashionistas Chic ($19.99 at Target) - same face as my Lea with browner hair color. This box includes 3 city chic day-to-night outfits. 

3. Barbie Fashionistas Ruby ($7.99 at Target) - same face as my Lea with brown hair and bangs, and red lipstick. I bought this to be Lea's sister! 

4. Barbie President & Vice President ($24.99 at Target) - for the Asian girl with bigger eyes and bespectacled. Also cool highlights in the hair. 

5. Barbie Fashionistas Pink Pizzazz ($7.99) - this is the new body-proportion style of dolls in "Tall". Based on the double-eyelids and height, not the stereotypical Asian features, but she looks fresh with the mid-length hair and great smile! @dolliemine makes her super stylish! 

Goodness, it seems like I'm more consumed with Barbie dolls as my hobby now instead of "all-things-purple." But I did spot a PURPLE-haired Barbie at Target that was breathtaking...

Barbie Endless Hair Kingdom Purple Princess ($8.89) - isn't she the prettiest! 

Edible flower in a lolliop

Most genius idea ever! And the purple & yellow pansy is my favorite flower :) 

My first purple carrot

Checkmark off the bucket list! Funny to think last year I had never seen purple carrots before, and now I see them everywhere! Great thing about that is, I was able to taste my first purple carrot without traveling far distances or expending too much. Found these rainbow colored carrots at my local Albertsons (on sale nonetheless):

Funky how the insides of the purple ones are actually yellow:

Different-looking, but taste like normal carrots.

Organic purple carrots must be the new "it" vegetable, even in baby food! I've also been seeing the ingredient as added coloring for juices. 

Put a lavender fur ball on it

So unnecessary but pretty.  

Kit Kat Purple Sweet Potato flavor review

Our newest tradition among my siblings during Christmastime is to exchange yummy snacks and sweets. Of course, I received a bunch of funky purple treats. First up, let's talk about these Japanese Kit Kat bar, Beni-imo (purple sweet potato) flavor...

Packaging is appealing (especially if the recipient is a lover of pink and purple girlishness). Although I do wish it had more English words on the nutrition and ingredients label. No clue what's in this! But it does taste like purple yam, earthy sweet flavor. The actual coloring of the Kit Kat is a bit muddy lilac, not as pretty as illustrated on the package, but still a sweet surprise in an unusual way. Since I'm not a huge fan of sweet potato or yam taste, I probably wouldn't buy this again for myself. But fun idea though! 

Asian American Barbie Lea taking over this blog

This year is definitely the year of the Barbie doll for me. Ever since I discovered Barbie Style on Instagram, my inner child "really really really wants a Barbie doll" again, and especially when I spotted the Asian model! First time ever Mattel came out with a doll with an Asian complexion without the heavy too-glamorous eye makeup. I owe it to my little-girl-self wish come true. I decided to buy myself my very first Barbie (at the age of 33, ha!) Of course they don't stock the one I wanted at my local stores, so I went on Ebay and ended up buying two for over $50! A little bit crazy, but I can afford it now! Yay! But of course, a few days later after I purchased my dolls, I noticed ToysRUs  (and Amazon) began selling the same doll on their website for only $14.99. Yes, I got jipped. Oh well, that's how life goes when it comes to wishes. But I'm happy with my "Lea" Asian Barbies, definitely worth the $50's! This one can do yoga and wears a PURPLE top! I'm so excited about this, I'm revamping this Blog and my Instagram for Lea to take over and be my spokesperson from now on! Also changing the title to "Búp Bê Life" (meaning "doll" life in Vietnamese). 

Purple potato chips kettle cooked style

Remember my excitement over the discovery of the PURPLE POTATO in Portland, Oregon? Well, I'm over the moon when I found these Lay's Kettle Cooked Medleys (limited edition) at my local grocery store. Made in purple, red, and gold potatoes...best part is no food coloring! 

I'm happy to report they taste like normal potato chips, crunchy and salty. The red ones are actually more like a magenta hue, and the purple ones are a dark vampy purple (perfect for the Halloween mood today)! The colors are so much fun! I'm surprised there aren't more companies making natural colored potato chips a staple. Well, maybe not, I can think of one reason...I did find that the darker chips may leave little visible bits on the teeth (like spinach or Oreo cookies), risking embarrassment in social situations.

Click on picture for larger details.