July 4th!

To all my American readers out there, Happy Independence Day! Amidst all the fireworks, barbecues, and other festivities, it's important to note that our young country is turning a solid 237 years old. (Funny how my last post was about our lovely neighbor, Canada.)

I made a little gif showing our national colors through a few makeup products. Didja miss them?

L-R: NARS 'Flamenco', MAC 'Transparent Teal', Harajuku Lovers 'G'.

Anyway, I'm off to spend time with my family. I hope you're having a great time too! :)

Merry Christmas!

I hope you're all having a lovely holiday/day off with your loved ones. I'm going out to watch Les Miserables today with my family. A really unorthodox, and kind of...y'know sad, celebration but hey, we all love the book so dearly, so we gotta make seeing the movie a family affair! I'm excited.

This Christmas was a lot more low-key and a bit rough (emotionally) for us, but the important thing is that we have each other. For better or worse. 

Didn't really get to photograph any festivities, so here are some recycled snapshots from last year. I've also been too busy to even touch my camera (it's been so neglected this past month).

Merry Christmas! Have a wonderful day, and I hope Santa brought you bountiful gifts. Let's hope you don't get a case of Present Face, though. ;)

Rosettes, Transepts, and Groin Vaults!?

Foreign terms to you, perhaps?

Well, they were pretty foreign to me before I started taking art history this year. I'm not really a religious person either, so churches were pretty far away from my designated niche. However, I've become fascinated with churches as of late. The architecture of these buildings is truly spectacular. There is so much attention to detail in almost every inch of these churches. And so many of them were built a long time ago (some nearly 1000 years ago!), so I am so shell-shocked by how amazing and well-built they are. They are so magnificent and just so beautiful to look at.

Anyway, we were assigned to pick a church in Boston and analyze it. I chose the Old South Church, which was built in a Gothic revival style in 1874. The exterior isn't very impressive, but I found the interior to be quite lovely. It was intricate, but muted. It was simple, yet beautiful. Something I'm inevitably drawn to: simplicity. This church, in my opinion, was the perfect blend of traditional and modern architecture.

In this "Color Play," I wanted to emulate the warm browns and vibrant jewel tones of the church. These colors in the church itself created such an inviting and welcoming atmosphere.

1. Stila Charmed Eye Palette: Jewel tones and warm coppers? This is basically the church in one palette.
2. L'Oreal HiP Pigment in Valiant: I wanted to imitate the stained glass windows, and this blue was the one for the job. It has such a pretty multi-dimensional effect.
3. MAC Eyeshadow in Moth Brown: This complex purple-gray-taupe was the perfect match for the exterior of the church.
4. L'Oreal Infallible Eyeshadow in Smoldering Plum: Y'all know I love this eyeshadow. It's exactly the color of the regal purple robes in the stained glass windows and icons!
5. Covergirl Outlast Lip Stain in Plum Pout: What's Christmastime without a little red?
6. L'Oreal Hip Eyeshadow Pencil in Unmistakable: And some more red!
7. Revlon Beyond Natural Eye Pencil in Brown: The rich, reddish browns of the Cherrywood furnishing.
8. MAC Fluidline in Rich Ground: Another warm, cozy brown that reminds me of the nave of the church.
9. Revlon Matte Eyeshadow in Rich Sable: There were darker brown bricks like this peppered throughout the faces of the church.
10. L'Oreal Infallible Eyeshadow in Sahara Treasure: To mimic the intricate caen limestone-carved screen, I decided to use this. The sheen adds some nice extra umph.
11. L'Oreal HiP Eyeshadow Duo in Gilded: A church has got to have some gold, so of course I added gold to my colors. In the church here, the gold is focused in the chandeliers and the cross hanging down from the ceiling.
12. MAC Blush in Loverush: This deep, maroon-y red is another jewel tone color that was used on the stained glass imagery and on the walls.

I thought it'd be nice to share these pictures since it's near Christmas! Like I said, I'm not really a religious person, but I've fallen (hard) in love with church architecture. Growing up I was a little creeped out by churches, but now I've come to really appreciate them! From an architectural and artistic standpoint, they are simply ah-may-zing. Unlike modern-day skyscrapers, these structures have been around for over a thousand years -- that in itself is something. Are you a fan of church architecture?

Giving Thanks

Today was Thanksgiving for us Americans. My relatives came over to our little apartment to take part in my mom's annual turkey feast. The air was filled with warmth, conversation, and laughter. I always look forward to this day every year. I'm so very thankful for my family, friends, food, and the roof above my head. 

My mom's never-dry turkey.

Accidentally bought pre-sliced ham this year, oh well.

Surf clam sashimi and garlic + sesame oil-tossed green beans -- there's always a few Asian dishes.

My brother carving the turkey.

My little plate of food.

Almost full!

Cousins brought over homemade creme brulee, yesss!

Of course my brother and I had to do one of those "re-do" photos. I was probably 4 or 5 in that picture. I crouched instead of tip-toeing hahaha. My, have we grown.

It was nice to take a day off and just cook and eat and relax. I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving with your loved ones (that is, if you celebrate it). What are you thankful for?

Rawr, I'm a...

Happy Halloween, ladies! For those of you who celebrate it, that is. :D

I just wanted to share with you my costume this year. It's my last "kiddy" Halloween, so I decided to go out with a mature and tasteful bang. I put together the costume myself...can you guess what I am?

The red strap's a backpack by the way.

What's black, white, yellow and sips lattes at cafe-bookstore hybrids? Did you get it now? I'm a HIPSTER PANDA! I knew I wanted to be a panda, but I wanted to give it a little twist too. A clever twist, hehe. 

First, I bought a white men's v-neck from H&M. Then I painted the sleeves black. I cut up an old black shirt, filled them with cotton balls, and sewed them onto a black headband as my panda ears. I was so proud of myself because I am not a sewer. Lastly, I slapped on some black skinnies, hung my faux wayfarers on my collar, et voila! A contemporary (hipster) panda. Whaddya think? :D

Loafers from this post.

It was definitely a step up from last year, when I dressed up as Senor Chang (played by Ken Jeong) from my favorite TV show, Community. To the say the least...I was pretty damn attractive that day. I don't know what I was thinking.

Though I do still have that mischievous state of mind?

If you didn't notice already, I parted my hair in the middle (strange!!!) for a more hipster-y look. I dare say, I don't think I look too bad with a middle part. I also curled it myself for the first time ever! I borrowed a curling iron from my friend. These pictures were all taken at the end of the day, so they'd become waves by then, but I still like it! Need to invest in a curling iron/straightener now, I'm hooked.

For extra panda-ness, I put on a ton of eyeliner. I used the Dollywink liquid liner and patted on some black eyeshadow to set it. I don't own a plain black eyeshadow, so I had to use one with gold glitter, which gave a pretty cool effect.

This was taken at the end of the day, held up pretty well!

And so, I bid my last kiddy Halloween farewell. Peace! 

(Yes, this post would not have been complete without a .gif :D)

Horror-ish, Halloween effect? Eh, I tried.

How was your Halloween? What did you dress up as? Or do you not like Halloween or was too lazy to dress up? Do tell me in the comments! I'd love to hear.