Starbucks Candy Cane Frappucino

Christmas is indeed the most wonderful time of the year - especially for peppermint lovers like me! During the holiday season, Starbucks revives their well-loved Peppermint Mocha drink. But then, I don't really drink coffee so I decided to try a drink from the secret menu, the Candy Cane Frappuccino!

I tried this drink for the first time at Starbucks in UP Technohub. It was the barista's first time to hear of such flavor, but the recipe is quite easy to do!

Starbucks Candy Cane Frappucino (P155.00)

from Starbucks Secret Menu

Recipe:

• Vanilla Frappuccino
• Peppermint syrup
• Recommended: 1 pump tall, 1.5 pumps grande, 2 pumps venti
• Peppermint sprinkles (optional, but free)

My customized order of the Vanilla Frappuccino was in the size tall (P135.00) plus 1 pump of peppermint syrup (P20.00).

It's sweet, creamy, and minty at the same time, and the crushed peppermint candies on top of the whipped cream makes it extra special! If you love the Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino, then this is a great non-coffee alternative. If you like everything peppermint, then you'll love this! As for me, I am definitely going to buy this again. ♥

Have you tried drinks from the Starbucks Secret Menu? ;)

Love,

Helen

Why Get a Starbucks Card?

Okay. I've finally jumped in the Starbucks Card bandwagon! Early this month, November 1 to be exact, I dropped by Starbucks during lunch break to buy a cup of hot peppermint tea just because I was feeling sick. (Yes, their peppermint tea is really good!)

While ordering, I asked the barista about the Starbucks Card. I found out that the card comes for free when you load a minimum of P300.00 in it, so I immediately said yes and got myself one!

 

I originally wanted the tea version of the card, but it was out of stock so I was given the coffee version. Little did I know that the next day, they released the Christmas edition cards! o_o (More on that later!)

The Starbucks Card is a reloadable prepaid card which you can use to purchase drinks, food, and merchandise from any Starbucks store in the Philippines. The card is reloadable by denominations of P100.00.

So why get a Starbucks Card?

You'll earn 1 Star for every handcrafted drink of any size, 250g of whole bean coffee, or 12-pack of Starbucks VIA Ready Brew purchased with your Starbucks Card.

• Get a grande handcrafted drink for every 12 beverage Stars
• Get 250 of whole bean coffee for every 10 whole bean Stars
• Get a 12-pack Starbucks VIA Ready Brew for every 10 Starbucks VIA Stars

If you register your card to a Starbucks account at www.starbucks.ph/card, you get a FREE Grande beverage of your choice. This free drink is redeemable within 60 days from the date you registered your card. This alone makes the card super sulit, since a Grande Peppermint Mocha Frappe already costs P180.00. (I've already redeemed mine, and I wasn't able to sleep until 2:00 AM, since I'm not used to drinking coffee. Haha!)

Starbucks will also treat you to a complimentary slice of cake on your birth month (with any purchase of a handcrafted drink). Sweet! :)

Photo Credit: Starbucks Philippines

These are the limited Christmas edition Starbucks Card! They're so cute that I regretted getting my card in a classic design a day before the released these babies. But not for long...

...since I realized that I wouldn't love my Christmas-y Starbucks Card when it's already summer next year. (Yeah, way to justify and defend my coffee card!) :D

Do you also have a Starbucks Card? What design did you get?

Love,

Helen

Haul: Birthday Gifts ♥

It's now time to unwrap the presents I got for my 24th birthday!

Nah, I've actually unwrapped and ate most of them a few weeks ago, but they're worth sharing so here goes! ;)

A portrait, letter, and The Body Shop Colour Crush Eyeshadow from Dawn

This one's probably one of the most priceless and sweetest present I received! My friend actually drew me! Haha! :D I'll be putting this in a frame, that's for sure! Dawn and I both love The Body Shop, as you can see. Don't forget to join our giveaway! :D

Cara Mia Brazo Gelato cake from my colleagues

Christer, Jeffery, Kurt, Bailey, Ness, and Anne

My teammates/lunch buddies surprised me with this during the weekend before my birthday. They're as sweet as this gelato cake. :D

A birthday card also from my colleagues

The card design is so me, don't you agree?

Figaro Devil's Mocha Cake from my boss, Achi V

I've already told you before, I've got cool boss. :D

Cosmopolitan dress from my sister, Melissa

Since we like the same clothes, she has another dress like this, only in a different color. Don't worry, we won't wear it both at the same time!

Starbucks tea tumbler from my sister, Vivian

My sister hates the ancient water bottle I use at the office, so she gave me this! She was planning to give me a regular coffee tumbler, but then she remembered that I'm more of a tea person, hence this one! I love that it has a leaf design where I can fasten the string of the tea bag.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Inspiration for Writers from my sister, Cindy

She got me this because she knows that I want this, but I won't be buying this for myself anytime soon. (Hey, I was waiting for National Book Store to go on sale so I could get this at 20% off!)

OMG Nail Colors by Klik in Tiara from my sister, Ann

This was a half-hearted present from my sister! I just know. Haha! She got this for herself, but then she remembered it was my birthday that day, and handed it to me instead, and borrowed it right after a few minutes. (I said no! No using until I've taken a picture of it.) But still, thank you!

Krispy Kreme doughnuts from my friend, Pan

I love Krispy Kreme. You've witnessed it all in my blog. If you're curious, my favorite doughnut from them would be Original Glazed.

Frostings cupcakes from my friend, Lala

She's as sweet as these cupcakes! ;) This came as a surprise during our dinner at A Veneto, where the crew couldn't even sing a decent birthday song. My friends sang instead.

The Body Shop Vitamin E Skin Essentials also from my friend, Lala

Because she know that I love The Body Shop! I'm excited to try this new skincare set. And it's pink - what's not to love?

Beauty Bar's Lavender Luxury Hand Cream from my friend, Jeanne

My friend was thinking if she would give me another lippie, but figured that I already had lots. (Good thing!) She gave me a fancy hand cream instead. Much appreciated! :D

Green Tea Kit Kats from my friends

Because they know what my all-time favorite chocolate is. :D

Uji Matcha Green Tea Kit Kat from my friend, Jat

He found this in a Japanese store. Now, I want to go there and hoard!

Matcha Green Tea Kit Kat + Ghirardelli chocolates from my friend, Tope

This pack is similar to the one I received from Hong Kong, only this one he got from Japan.

Birthday cake from HEAT

Last but not the least is this birthday cake from HEAT, where my family and I celebrated my birthday dinner.

That's all for now! This one's probably my favorite haul posts, since everything here are special and from my loved ones.♥

Love,

Helen

Starbucks Hot Cocoa Mix: Peppermint & Salted Caramel

Have you seen these in the supermarket lately? They're Hot Cocoa Mixes from Starbucks, and I think these would make for lovely gifts this Christmas.

My team at work decided to have an exchange gift, and we were to buy a unisex gift worth P300.00. It was so hard to think of what to give, so I immediately thought of food! Most yuppies love gourmet coffee, so maybe they would also appreciate a box of gourmet hot chocolate. 

Starbucks Hot Cocoa Mix

I've seen these being sold in Duty Free and in Landmark Supermarket and these are being sold at approximately P350.00 per box. Not too pricey, since it contains 8 sachets inside.

Starbucks Peppermint Hot Cocoa Mix

Starbucks Salted Caramel Hot Cocoa Mix

I picked Peppermint because it's the perfect flavor to remind me of Christmas, plus it's part of Starbucks' seasonal Christmas drink lineup. I also got Salted Caramel mainly because I loved their Salted Caramel Frappuccino (which was also seasonal and is now discontinued), so I bet this one is good too. There are also other flavors like Toasted Marshmallows and Double Chocolate.

Next time you drop by the supermarket, do check out the hot chocolate shelves for these! 

Love,

Helen

23: Food | Gifts | Haul

Exactly one month after my birthday, I will finally get to share with you some of the stuff that I ate, got, and bought for my birthday! (This is such an overdue post.)

My family and I had dinner at Mesa in Tomas Morato for some delicious Filipino dishes. We fell in love with this restaurant at the first try, so we went back!

My team ate out for lunch since it was my teammate's despedida. We went to Ral's in UP Technohub for a lunch buffet. Look at how I eat during buffets. I had to stuff my plate with rice or else my meal would be incomplete! A few more plates followed after, but I wasn't able to take pictures anymore since I was so busy eating. Haha!

Before we headed back to work, my colleague surprised me with this cute little cake from Starbucks!

My college friends had a reunion/sleepover a week after my birthday. We had home-cooked fried chicken and hotdog. These kind of food remind me of children's parties, but I liked it a lot! Fried chicken is actually my favorite thing in the world. Haha!

Then they surprised me with a hate cake! :O Haha!

My mom gave me an SM gift card so I could choose whatever I wanted. I got a nude-colored bag from Parisian (just because I love neutral-colored bags), and a gray-colored slippers with butterfly detail from Toeberries. I bought a new pair of slippers because it was flood season then, and I could wear it on my way to work (if ever it gets too rainy for my shoes to function). Gray goes with everything!

My dad got these cute Frostings cupcakes for me and my sisters.

This has to be one of my favorite presents - a Forever 21 makeup bag from my sister! I wanted this but couldn't get myself to buy it since it was too pricey, but my sister gave it to me! Yey! My makeup now has a new home. This one is soooo roomy, which means that I can get more makeup to fill it up. :D

The following gifts I received from my officemates came in pink. Oh they knew me quite well! A pink kikay kit, a pink Michaela umbrella, and pink-and-purple flats from Tomato!

This one is my gift to my darling baby niece - she turned 2 last August. The colors remind me of the Tomato flats above!

This one I also consider as a birthday gift, since I won it on my birth month! I got a P3,000 GC from Melissa shoes from Maven magazine. But I have yet to pick my perfect pair!

The last 2 kikay stuff, I got for myself! I repurchased the Snoe Magic Apple Whitening S-rub from my favorite Snoe counter in Landmark Trinoma. This stuff works like magic. It instantly brightens my skin!

I also bought this new book, Seventeen Ultimate Guide to Beauty! It's my favorite beauty book since it has a lot of makeup and hair pegs. It's very inspiring! (Will share what's inside soon!)

Hope you enjoyed my birthday haul post! ♥

Love,
Helen