My American Market is an online store based in France that imports goods from both America and Canada. It’s a communicative store and ultra easy to order from. Let me share what I indulged in on this order. Yes, this order, because I’m sure I will order more in the future!

The Goods

ACT II MICROWAVE POPCORN – BUTTER
I grew up with this flavor of popcorn and I’m so excited it was in stock. Our local store has two flavors for popcorn, salty or sweet. I’ll eat the salty one but I refuse to do the sweet. It feels nice to have buttered popcorn in the house again! Popcorn has always been my favorite snack so we’re going to pop the first bag this weekend and watch something juicy. We finished Unsolved Mysteries and we’re dying for more. I watched the show growing up so it’s been a huge nostalgia fest in our home!

CRACKER JACK POPCORN BAG
Cracker Jacks were something that will contradict the first item… These are caramel coated popcorn pieces. And I said I don’t want sweet popcorn but these are caramel coated! They aren’t sweet. They used to come in a box with a little toy and that pretty much sums up what it was like growing up in American in the 1990’s. Everything is unhealthy and comes in a box with a toy.

STASH TEA PUMPKIN SPICE DECAFFEINATED TEA
I’ve has Stash brand tea before and it’s not the strongest tea but this is pumpkin spice flavored. Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed making my own pumpkin spice. But there’s something about waking up in the morning, on a cold winter’s day, and pouring yourself a ready made cup of pumpkin spice. It’s about having the easy way of doing things and premade tea mixes are right up that alley.

MUNCHIES CHEESE FIX SNACK MIX
Oh boy, this took me back real far into my childhood. All the goodness of the ultra cheesy chips I grew up with, this bag contains it all. It’s nostalgia in a bag but I have to limit how much I eat. More than a few chips and I feel sick! I wasn’t expecting that! It’s because it’s been ages since I’ve had junk food and my body isn’t used to it. Ah, oh well.

CHEETOS CRUNCHY FLAMIN’ HOT
It’s no secret that Americans love them Spicy Hot Cheetos… And now I found a place that sells them for a reasonable price! The flavor is so damn good and I can’t resist making a sandwich with some chips on the side. The sad thing is that these guys are junk food… And I feel sick after eating them. So while I enjoy stuffing them into my mouth, I can’t say my stomach appreciates it. I guess it was about time that I stop loving the junk food of my 20’s. I’m not young anymore and it’s healthier for me to stay away from them… But man, I still love that flavor!

MCCORMICK’S TACO SEASONING MIX
I haven’t used this yet but I hope that it will add some flavor to our tacos. The Dutch flavoring we buy isn’t as good as the stuff we get in America. I’ll try and update this post when we do use it!

KELLOGG’S POP TARTS FROSTED COOKIES & CREAM
Oh boy, the memories with these! Remember when I said I wasn’t eating chocolate? Well all that went out the window when I saw these on the site. I love me some cookies and cream and Poptarts? Get outta here! I was in heaven from the first bite but I know I can’t order these again. It’s got so much sugar, it’s too much for this 32 year old!

CHIPS AHOY! CHEWY REESE’S PEANUT BUTTER CUP COOKIES
Anyone who has ever tasted Chip’s Ahoy knows that familiar flavor they all have. While these cookies were super tasty, the peanut butter was difficult to taste. But I love these cookies to begin with so it wasn’t too much of a disappointment.

MEIJI HELLO PANDA BITE SIZE CHOCOLATE COOKIES and MEIJI CHOCOROOMS STRAWBERRY
I got this for Sander because he’s a huge fan of cookie and chocolate snacks. These were on sale so I got a ton of them for him. He enjoys them as an after dinner snack when he plays racing games with his gamers guild.

Ordering and Shipping
My American Market is like any online store. Search the site, order up, and wait for the package to come in. Ordering, payment and processing was easy and quick. I ordered on a Sunday and was able to get everything but Saturday. This store is in France so it was pretty fast for it to come in! And our order was over a certain amount, we got the My American Market Collector’s bag and a Harry Potter creature Gummy for free!

Please note this isn’t sponsored. Everything was better than expected and you bet I’ll be back around autumn time for all those Halloween goodies!

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Beauty
The time has come for me to take next step on my skincare journey. There’s some redness on my forehead and around my nose that I’d like to banish. I’ve done a bit of research and decided I’d like to try the Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% by The Ordinary. I’ve had great success with a few of their items already so why not try one more? I’d like to make an updated skincare post for spring so it would be nice to try this out before then.

There are also a few Lush items I’d like to take a look at but I’m not sure if they’ll be in stock. They’re Valentine’s themed products and we’re going a little too late! I don’t think Super Milk is available in The Netherlands yet but I know at least Almond Blossom will be there.

Fashion
Sander and I went out to lunch with his parents and we stopped in at H&M after the meal. There I was able to snag this Oversized Denim Jacket for 50% off! I’ve been searching for a heavier jean jacket since I have one for summer but nothing for spring or fall. This one is perfect! The fit is great and it’s toasty on the inside. The weather here has been out of control lately so this jacket will have to wait a bit before it can make its debut.

I also placed an order for Cirque Colors’ Beatnik (which is a gorgeous shade of green) and for Emily de Molly’s Flexible Morality (I’m obsessed with that green to pink shift!). I was worried I wouldn’t be able to buy it since the Winter 2019 holiday season is over but it went up for preorder on Hypnotic Polish and I jumped at the chance. One last purchase I made was from a lovely Etsy store. N1MH has a beautiful aesthetic so picked up a few stickers and a keychain too!

Reading
And last but not least on my February shopping list are the books I’d like to pick up. We go to Amsterdam specifically for me to grab the latest issue of Snotgirl and Volume #15 will be in stores. I also have to keep a look out for Koimonogatari. I have most of the other books but I’m missing a few volumes. Can you believe this novel series is over 25 books long?! Most of them are still in Japanese but I can be patient. I also want to start picking up the art books from the TV show Steven Universe. There are a few volumes but I need to start at the beginning with Steven universe: art & origins

I think that about wraps up my February shopping list. There are quite a few things I’d like to get this month! And of course when we go, we have to stuff our faces at Ramen-Ya. I’m so excited and I can’t wait!

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It’s a small even so there’s not too much to do at Tomofair. There’s the huge gaming hall where people can play Dance Dance Revolution and just chill out. Then there’s the main stage for live performances. The food hall always has delicious things to eat. But Sander and I spend all of our time in the dealer’s hall. There are only a handful of stores we’ve discovered that cater to our interests. Sander and I are avid Anime fans and we enjoy browsing stalls that sell merchandise. Thankfully we have a good idea of what we want to buy. So on top of a few other things we picked up, here’s a look at some of our Tomofair haul.

Tonymoly – I’m Hand Cream in Rose
Oh boy, I’m picky about my hand creams and this one is amazing. The smell of roses is light and not overwhelming. The texture is creamy and it doesn’t leave behind an oily residue. I’ve heard a lot of great things about Tonymoly and this is my first buy. So far so good! I would love to go back and pick up a few others for the next Tomofair haul since they’re super affordable too!

Etude House – Moistfull Collagen Cream
I’ve got a lot of Youtuber’s recommending Etude house but I never saw too much that I wanted from the brand. I’ve been looking for a new facial cream since I’d like to try new things. I found this one on sale and decided to give it a try. It’s got a light fresh smell, similar to clean linen. It goes on smooth and dries to a healthy matte. I like it for now and I’ll see if I feel the same way in a few weeks!

Morinaga Ramune Soda Candy
Oh boy, I don’t drink sodas but Ramune is one I’ll stop for. Since the drinks are expensive here, I don’t mind getting the candy instead. These citrus flavored balls are delicious and pretty close to the real flavor. I picked up one bottle for this Tomofair haul and I hope it lasts until the next convention!

Chocoball candy
This is one of the things that Sander picked up but I love it so much! I’ve given up eating chocolate (it’s been breaking me out) but that doesn’t mean we can’t have it in the house. These adorable little balls are the perfect snack any of the day. They’re crunchy and come in a ton of different flavors too. So far we’ve tried the milk, dark, and strawberry flavors. All of them are amazing.

Re-ment Pokemon Petite Fleur Perfume Bottle with Eevee
Sander and I are huge Eevee fans and I’ve been looking for this little guy for ages! I was so happy to have found him this time around.  Eevee comes in a little plastic bottle surrounded by flowers. It reminds me of the vintage perfume bottles and how classy they used to look. He’s got a place right on my vanity so that I can see him every day.

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Gathering their assets
Global Garden uses their products and to build elaborate displays and holiday scenes. And they do a damn good job at it. Each sectioned area is a magical wonderland that takes families through various Christmas themes. While each scene is a physical commercial, it works. Not only did I find myself drawn into each part of the walkthrough, I wanted to take a few pieces home with me! Now that’s some good advertising!

Appealing to all ages
May of the winter wonderland areas had seating for photo opportunities with children. There was so much to see and take in that lines would form and crowds came to a standstill. It’s normal to not enjoy standing in line while shopping. But I understand why families flock to stand around and gawk at holiday decorations. Imagine being a 6 year old child and staring up at rows of towering Christmas trees. No two trees look the same! There was plenty to see for the adults as well.

Scenes for every theme
Every area featured a theme and color scheme. My favorite was the pink and white area with hundreds of ponies, horses, unicorns and pegasi. You’ll have to believe me when I say it was impossible to get a photo of the display. It was unapologetically loud and the children loved it. There were so many people in this particular area that I couldn’t even get a single photo!

Product placement
One marketing strategy that Global Garden loves to use, is the creation of home settings. I enjoy household staging (decorating a space like a lived in home) so it appeals quite a lot to me. Most of the scenes are open and allow people to walk through. And there were still a few stages areas that I swooned over. I’m glad I didn’t have my wallet otherwise I would have itched to pick up a few things!

Tugging on heartstrings
Many Dutch are fans of the little Christmas villages. You know, the tiny houses and holiday scenes that get set up above the fireplace. The Dutch go wild for those! There were not one, but three areas for these tiny villages! Most of the larger pieces were sold out as well. Now don’t get me wrong, these displays are adorable and fun to look at but the larger pieces were going for €70! I can only say this tradition is one often splurged on if that’s the case. Sander’s mom has at least 15 pieces of her own but nothing so expensive! Either way, people are allowed to celebrate how they want to and I’m sure their villages look amazing!

I enjoyed touring the extensive displays that the Global Garden team took months to create. This is our second year visiting the store but my first year writing about it. The holidays should be for supposed to be for family and friends… But sometimes it’s nice to get into the holiday spirit through looking at decorations. I’m sure Sander and I will head back next year to see the lights and trees again!

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Lush
Oh boy, Lush is my biggest sin. I always have to think hard about what to buy when I enter a Lush. I know I’ve had my eye on the Lord of Misrule perfume. The scent was a Halloween limited edition item that I fell in love with a few years back. It’s a beautiful and spicy scent that I missed terribly. Now it’s finally available as a perfume!

I also picked up Drummers Drumming soap for myself. Sander’s not a fan of the jelly soaps and it’s all I use! I also grabbed a small pot of Once Upon A Time for my desk. There are some days I need more moisture for my hands and this fresh apple smell is amazing. I also picked up a bottle of Snow Fairy for the soap dispensers in the house. I also picked up another bottle of Wasabi Shan Kui because I love it so much!

ABC
Years ago I fell in love with The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. She’s finally got a new book out called The Starless Sea. I had to grab a copy while I was in the American Book Center and was lucky enough to grab the UK version of this book!

The Ordinary
My skins has been a bit dry with the drop in temperature. I decided to pop into The Abnormal Beauty Company store for something to help. Amino Acids + B5 was the recommendation and I grabbed a bottle to add to my routine.

We also hit up a few other stores for hobby things. I got some paints from a huge art store called Van der Linde. It was a new store on our list and it blew me away! One of the last stores was A Space Oddity. It’s a beautiful store for toys, collectibles, and other nerdy stuffs. Our Amsterdam shopping was pretty good this time around and I can’t wait until next time!

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It’s also the place where Sander’s parents were wed! How wonderful is that? The interior was breathtaking. Sure there were lots of shops that took up most of the floor but the wallpaper was a total mood. Photos were so hard to take and I wish I had gotten a better shot!

Vendors line the paths around the castle and sell their wares to the crowds. Items this year ranged from candles and Christmas decorations to skincare and household goods. I’ll admit I bought much more than I had hoped to. But in my defense, I can’t pass up tea I’ve never heard of! I jump at the chance to try out new and interesting tea flavors.

It’s normal for the Dutch to travel outside of The Netherlands to visit these elebroate markets. The markets in Germany seem to be the most beautiful. Sander’s sister loves to frequent them. Infact, she’s in Dortmund right now! The photos she sent where unbelievable. The Dutch markets are less about fancy decorating and more about selling.

We also ended up buying a Dutch holiday staple, oliebollen. It’s a fried ball of dough and can come with currents inside as well. We decided to get some of each. I’ve believe that oliebollen are a New Year’s tradition. But I always see them come out around Christmas time and at festivals.

There were two main areas to explore, inside the castle and the castle grounds. We were lucky that the weather had improved over the week. There was a lot of rain throughout the week and the sun was a blessing. The idea behind these markets is to enjoy the holiday and buy gifts for the family or friends. Of course you don’t have to do that! I ended up buying a beautiful piece of canvas art because it spoke volumes to me!

It was also perfect weather to enjoy traditional Dutch eats. We saw smoked salmon and bread baked in huge stone ovens. It was a smell I’ll never forget! That’s one thing I love about the Dutch. Their traditional food is still celebrated and served after all this time. All in all this Christmas Market was a wonderful time. I would love to go again! I’m not if we have more markets planed for this year but there’s always something new and riveting to see!

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I spend a lot of late nights looking at crystals on my phone. It’s just so that I can fawn over the beautiful rocks. But it makes no sense to me to order them online. So when I found out that the International Minerals Fair was going to be coming to The Netherlands… You can bet I jumped on those tickets right away.

Picture this: Rows of booths filled with glimmering rocks, crystals, gemstones. The hall bustled with busy vendors and customers that needed a closer look. It was difficult to move on some cases because of some of the more popular booths.

But the items on display were something else… We saw rows of glittering crystals, polished stones and precious gems on display. There were gigantic geodes that had cracked open to expose tiny caves of amethysts. I saw tables filled with thousands of necklaces, mandala beads, and jewelry making materials. We even found vendors that sold unique fossils in all shapes and sizes.

My main reason for going was for a himalayan salt lamp. I love the way the light bulb glows from within the stone. I had been searching for months. And low and behold I was able to grab a beautiful lamp!

I also ended up with a few beautiful rocks and crystals that stood out to me. Of course I had to pick up some amethyst and rose quartz but other stones also caught my eye. I loved the look of amazonite and celestite, to name a few.

What I love most about collecting these few stones, is that there are no rules. It’s about finding what speaks to you and how they make you feel. For me I enjoy looking at my stones and admiring them. It’s the similar feeling of going to a beach and picking up a beautiful rock. These rocks were shaped by time and the earth into what it is now. It allows me to ground myself in the here and now.

Some people with anxiety like to use different methods of dealing with it in public. I read that keeping a pocket stone is a good way to stay grounded. The unfortunate thing for me, is that even though I picked up a few of these pocket stones… They’re too beautiful to keep in my pocket! For now they sit on my desk where I can look at them and admire their beauty! I’m not sure if I will buy more crystals in the future but I had a great time at the International Minerals Fair.

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I don’t mind though. I love this location because it reminds me so much of my days working in a bookstore. There’s the smell of fresh books, the tucked away location, and the endless rows of unread titles. When I would read about far away bookstores, I would picture something like ABC. There are shelves from floor to ceiling. A winding staircase leads up to the 2nd floor and a super tiny one leads to the 3rd floor. Books on all topics occupy the shelves too. Art and fashion call the 1st floor home. Children books and all fictional books cover the 2nd floor. The 3rd floor lends the space to non-fictional titles.

The American Book Center covers all sorts of material too. I’ve found older publications and brand new titles for sale inside. There are also maps, travel books, calendars and other items one would expect in a bookstore. I’ve never been disappointed though. I think if you’re looking for a book, they’ll probably have it.

It’s so hard to take a photo inside because of the crowds and the layout of the store. Trust me though, this is one bookstore that every book lover should visit at least once. I’m excited to say we go every time we visit Amsterdam. Even if we don’t buy something I love the atmosphere of ABC. It’s homey and nostalgic for someone like me.

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I’ve written about A Space Oddity a few times but today I want to examine what this store has to offer. There’s no lack of nerd culture! From Nintendo mementos to Gundam girls and beyond, A Space Oddity has it all. The first floor caters to plush animals and character key chains. The lower floor has action figures of all sorts, Hello Kitty goods and movie collectibles. Sander loves to take his time and pick through the Pokémon figures for his favorite ones. There’s so many on display!

The upper floor is divided into sections. There are more Pop! figures up here along with Anime figures and hobby building kits. Many of these are Mecha figures but there have been a few garage kits too. There’s also a decent selection of blind box items like Tokidoki and Re-Ment boxes. It’s so easy to get lost in the store because there’s so much to look at. The last time we went was around Christmas time so we went all out and bought all the things we had been holding out on. Sander got a few figures and I got a beautiful little music box. It’s truly a nerd haven and I can’t wait until we go back to see what’s new in store.

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Our trip today was for a few items that were on my list for a long time. We were there pretty early because we wanted to be in and out. It was not too crowded and we could find what we needed! There are a few highlighted items from this trip though.

Light it up
Our house is too dark once the sun sets. We’ve been looking for a simple and practical light that would fit our space. The HEKTAR light ticked all our boxes. It doesn’t seem out of place at all in our home and it’s bright! We want to upgrade a few other lights in the house but that will come eventually. I know I have my eyes on a NYMÖ / SEKOND but Sander loves the IKEA PS 2014. We’re going to have to sit down and talk it out!

Shine bright
I’ve been loving the idea of having more candles around the house. While it’s not practical to keep them lit, I love how they look. It makes the place look cosier and a little more lived in. As soon as I saw the FÖRETE I knew I wanted it on my entertainment system. We got a single FENOMEN to keep inside. I doubt I will light this but I love the way it looks.

New greens
It’s so hard for me to say no to plants. I’ve been doing a good job at keeping my current ones alive. So I decided to pick up a box of CACTACEAE. I haven’t had a lot of luck in the past with cactus plants but I think I’ve turned over a new leaf (haha). I decided to stay with the white pots. They’re beautiful and simple and I hope I can keep them alive!

The essentials
We needed an upgrade in the bathroom and in the kitchen so we opted for new soap dispensers. Our bathroom is white and has light wood accents so we got a DRAGAN soap dispenser and toothbrush holder. For our kitchen we got a BALUNGEN. We also picked up new light bulbs, a few toys for the dogs, and a few Christmas gifts.

All in all the hour and a half we spent there was well spent! We hardly ever venture into Ikea because it’s crawling with so many people. The last time we were there was to upgrade our closet. Our house is coming together. We still have a lot to do but it’s looking a little more polished each day.

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