Winter Wonderland?

I love taking pretty pictures in the snow, but WOW! That must've been the biggest snow storm I have ever encountered! My family and I were driving back from a party and we got stuck in the middle of the road! (Thank goodness no one dared to drive in this weather)

We just had to walk one more block back to the house, but that was the hardest block I have ever had to walk in my life! The snow was about 2 feet high, plus the crazy wind, plus the freezing weather, and I think you get the picture. ;)

Don't you ever get that rush of adrenaline whenever you feel like you're about to die?

Oh, and I know I'm too late for this but...

Merry (belated) Christmas!!!

And while you're warming up near the fireplace and drinking hot chocolate, be sure to enter my New Years Giveaway! Just click in the picture at the top of my sidebar. :)

Jewels in the Sea - NOTD

Since it's nearing Christmas time, I thought I'd show you another NOTD! I've been experimenting with Konad lately, and I'm pretty satisfied with my results. :)

For the NOTD, I used 2 new polishes I got: the Sephora OPI Mermaid to Order (I fell in love when I saw in stores!) and Zoya Jo from a swap.

After using the Konad stamps, I just finished it off with a little nail sticker and revlon top coat.

Here's a close up:

Please share me your thoughts!

Also...

Jill Stuart Giveaway @ Makeup and Life!


Makeup and Life is giving away a few Jill Stuart items to celebrate the Christmas and New Year. Thank you so much! ^_^

Prize:
Jill Stuart Blush Blossom - 03 Amaryllis or 04 Seductive Rose (winner chooses one color of their own choice)
Jill Stuart eyelash curler - to enhance and curl eye lashes with extra refill pad.

Ends December 28th

Also, be sure to check out my New Years Giveaway! Just scroll up and click on my giveaway picture.

~*~*~ My New Years Giveaway! ~*~*~ CLOSED!

Today, I'm having my first giveaway to celebrate the upcoming new year!
Thank you so much to all my readers who continue to support me, this blog couldn't have existed without you guys!

My New Years Resolution: I would like to work harder in school and make and effort to blog more. :)

Now back to the juicy part...

What you can win:

~Nicola Magazine May 2009 Issue

~Victoria's Secret Scented Body Lotion

~ELF Bronzing Brush

~ELF Plumping Lip Glaze in Plum Pout

~Wet N Wild Shine in Brazed (swatched once)

How to enter:
1. Be a public follower (new or old is fine) and leave a comment about anything you want to tell me. Your resolutions, your secrets, suggestions to improve my blog, anything!

Be sure to leave an email so that I can contact the winner!
(1 entry)

Extra Entries:
2. Blog about this giveaway and leave me the link (1 entry)
3. Add my giveaway to your sidebar and leave me your blog link (1 entry)
4. Tweet about the giveaway and leave me the link (1 entry)
5. Add me to your blogroll and leave me your blog link (1 entry)

Feel free to post your extra entries separately or all in one post!

The deadline is Friday, January 7 (11:59PM est time). I will post the winner on the blog and email them. The winner has a week to reply to my email or else I will have to redraw.

Please be honest with your entries so that this giveaway can be fun for all of us!

Look What I Got!

Here's me with the two cd's (hehe, I'm in pj's!)
You might not know this, but I actually have a love for Visual Kei, which is a style of Japanese music. I love it so much that pretty much 95% of the songs in my mp3 are specifically visual kei. I don't know what it is, but the music, fashion style, and just the connection between the audience and the bands, everything about vkei just draws me in. Yep, I've got a ton of posters for various bands on my wall!

That's why when I won these two Alice Nine CD's from Kawaii Kawaii Sugoi Blog, I was happy beyond words. Although I don't really listen to that band much anymore(became mainstream), I still stay faithful to them because Alice Nine was the first that really got me hooked to Visual Kei. You could say that it changed my whole perspective on life.


That was just a little something I wanted to share to you guys, since I feel really lonely being the only one in my school interested in vkei. Just trying to spread the love. :)

Anyways, here's what else I got:



Got these in 3 Separate swaps:
-Kose Esprique Precious Liquid Eyecolor Stylish in BL900 (omg, gorgeous! I have to show you sometime!)
-NARS Orgasm Illuminator Sample (first NARS product!)

-benefit BADgal lash Mini Mascara
-Lancome Le Secret Sample Eye Powder (holy crap, best color EVER!!! Scroll down for swatch)

-MAC Pink Opal Sample
-MAC Quick Frost Sample
-MAC Pink Pigment Sample (IDK the name)
I love MAC, but I can never afford it! Luckily, pigment samples are a lot cheaper and you get to experiment with more colors. :)



Also, I stopped by Chinatown last week and discovered a tiny store that sold phone straps for insanely cheap. I got 4 for $5, what a steal! If you didn't know already, I have an obsession with kawaii phone straps and my collection is always expanding!


As promised, here's Lancome Le Secret (layered over stila smudge pot violet):


and what is looks like in light:


AMAZING RIGHT? It's sort of like a mermaid kind of color, you get what I mean?
Wow, I think I might even buy the full product in the future!

I haven't experimented this with other colors yet, but I'm looking forward to it. xD

Have a great weekend everybody! It's difficult to blog when I also have 3 tests next week, homework, and fencing practice 3 times a week, but I'm trying!

Grace~

Major Konad Fail

Wow, probably one of the worst nails I've ever done. Period.

Originally, I was planning to wish everybody a Happy Thanksgiving with a new NOTD, but I did not see this "design" coming. Since I felt like trying to master Konad stamping, I didn't think it would be so bad. Turns out I was wrong.

After hours of waiting for my nails to dry, frustrating smudges, and uneven result, I gave up trying. I basically just slashed on some white nail polish and coated with sally hansen hidden treasure to try to cover up my mistakes.

Worst 5 hours of my life.



Actually, now that I look at it, it's not too bad. The flakies from Hidden Treasure kind of saved it, I guess. :)

Oh, and before I forget:



Everybody have a great last 7 hours of Thanksgiving!
I'll be going to a party really soon!

Thanks to all my amazing readers! :)

PS. Despite all the craze with Black Friday, I'm planning on going to Woodbury Outlet that day! I'm probably out of my mind though, because I've heard cases on the internet where they had to wait 2 hours just to get out of the parking lot!

A few sewing projects I've been up to

Isn't this so pretty? The base is actually real fur, which came from my great grandmother's fur coat.

All I did was stitch a long line of fur, attach some elastic, and glued on a flower from one of my shirts.

If you're interested in making it, you can ask me to explain more in depth. :)


(excuse my blah hair ;_;)

I've always wanted one of those cute Japanese bath headbands, so I decided to make one my self!



It was really easy, since I found the base somewhere in my house (originally an ear warmer). All I did to make the bow was sew a rectangle and wrap it around the base.

Both projects were actually reconstructed, since they all came from old clothes.
I find it amazing how ugly, unwanted clothes can turn into beautiful new things!
(hehe, I think that's why I'm hoarding too many of me and my mom's unwanted clothes)

I really need to preach this more, but sewing is not only for old people!

Tatcha Japanese Blotting Papers Review

It's been a while sine I've last done a review, so I thought I might talk about this product I received from a fellow beauty blogger (oops, I forgot who I won from!).



Wow, the packaging is so pretty, I'm impressed already!

Okay, so here's what the website says:

A 300 year old Japanese beauty secret for a petal fresh complexion revealed.
Removes excess oil and sweat without disturbing makeup or stealing moisture from the skin.
A powder and primer alternative that improves the wear of makeup.
For all skin types: oily, normal, dry & sensitive.
Ingredients
100% abaca leaf, gold flake.
Fragrance-free. Powder-free. Oil-free.
All-natural, biodegradable. No animal testing.
Handmade in Japan.

One pack 30 sheets costs $12, but it is really worth it? Let's find out! x3

Here's what it looks like inside:



The inside cover has a little story about how Geishas actually get their flawless skin from aburatorigami - Japanese beauty papers, which is exactly what this product is! How cool is that!

Close up of the paper:



Do you notice this little specks of gold?

Each sheet is so pretty that I an't even bear to ruin it on my dirty face!

So...

Here are the results I came up with!



Yes, very horrifying to see how much oil there is on it, but that proves how good this product is!
Can you believe that I only used this one sheet for my whole face? (you can use both sides!)

Overall, I was really impressed with this!

Packaging: A+ - Has a really unique and natural design while still aiming to be minimalist

Quality: A+ - Gold flakes and albaca leaf. As fancy as a sheet of blotting paper can get!

Effectiveness: A+/A - It's amazing how much oil these little sheets suck in, but may not last for the whole day.

Price: A - $12 for 30 sheets is not exactly cheap for blotting papers, but it's definitely worth it considering the amazing quality and usefulness!

General Experience: A+ - If you're looking for some good blotting papers, definitely try out Tatcha!

Grace~

Happy Halloween + NYAF/NY Chuseok Festival Pics!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYBODY!

Here's some candy for all the trick or treaters! (no, not real ones, but close!)






Okay, I know I've been holding this off for way too long, but I finally posted the pictures! Uploading pics on blogger is too annoying, so I learned how to make a slideshow!

Question of the day:
What are you dressing up as for Halloween? If not, what are you planning to do?

Thats it for today!

My New Favorite Polish + a twist!

Take a look at this beauty, China Glaze Cherish!
It's my first polish from this popular brand and I'm so glad I got this!

My motto in life is to always be myself (whether it be fashion, philosophy, style, etc), so of course I had to create a twist to this gorgeous color!

Behold!



All I did was add some pretty essence nail stickers + pink rhinestone gems.
I actually kind of like it! :D

Here's just the NOTD without all the fancy schmancy stuff:



I told you this color's amazing! Now I need to go find the rest of the Romantique Collection!

PS: I know I'm really slow on the update about NYAF, but I'm just way too busy (+ I'm getting a little lazy) I will really tr to post up the pictures soon though. :)

Grace~

Strawberry Nails! (Quickie Post)

It's been a really long time since I posted another NOTD, so I wanted to make this one memorable! It's my first time trying out strawberry nails and I'm pretty happy with the results! ^_^



Wow, that was short!
I really hope to post up the NYAF pictures by this weekend. ;D

Grace~

Excited for NYAF + Chuseok Festiva!l

I'm so excited, it's my first time going to the New York Anime Festival! I'm planning on dressing in lolita, so I'll take a picture before I leave. :)

I'm only going to the Sunday, so I was so sad that I couldn't see Kanon from An Cafe or Yoshiki from X Japan. I'm such a visual kei fanatic! Anyways, I hope it's going to be really fun. If you see a girl in a blue/white checked dress and a fur vest, feel free to say hi!



Now the NY Chuseok Festival that's going on the same day!
I love Korea too, but I'm not sure if I should be happy or disappointed about this. About a couple months ago, I found out from a source that the big stars like Lee Hyori, Beast, Kara, etc were performing and I was set to go there, but as the date came closer, all of them withdrew and now they're left with stars like Son Dambi, Brian Kim, and Nora Jo. Honestly speaking, I don't care the least bit about these singers, but since I'm already going to NYAF, I thought that I might as well go just for the sake of it.

Seriously though, I blame the people who decided to release the official flyer a week before the real deal.
Even if you search it online, most sources are still talking about the original lineup. :/



Thats all for now, happy long weekend! :D

♥ A Newbie's Guide to Lolita ♥ (lot's of great links!)

It seems as if I've been getting a few lolita interested readers, so I thought I might as well make another post for lolita. I'd also like to give a little intro on it, since many newbies tend to get mixed up between all the amazing fashion styles which Japan has to offer. ;D

First of all, I'm not an expert on lolita or anything, I'm just a girl who likes dressing up in this style. All of this is just based on my own knowledge. :) If I said anything incorrect, please note it to me so that I can change it!

Basically though, lolita is a style of Japanese fashion that is based on the Victorian era (you know, those fancy, poofy dresses and stuff). A typical lolita outfit might include a onepiece (OP) - an all around dress, jumperskirt (JSK) - basically an OP without sleeves, a skirt, a blouse or cutsew (casual top), headbow/headdress/hat, socks, shoes, and sometimes a parasol.

That doesn't mean lolita is a very limited fashion, because there are an infinite amount of prints, styles, or coordinates you could dress up in. After you understand the basic concept and have a fair amount of lolita / like lolita clothes, it becomes fun!

~~~~~~~~~

If you'd like to know more about the fashion, here are some useful links:

Best Loli Comm EVER - Basically THE community for lolita, where you can meet fellow lolitas, join an event, learn the fashion, diy + sewing, and anything else you want! (btw, I urge you to check out the memories section on the left side, it's amazing!)

Lolita Handbook (great if you want to delve more into the fashion)

Lolita Fashion (another great site)

~~~~~~~~~

Okay now, let's get to the fun part!

There are lots of different sub-styles in lolita (and more to come), but the most common/popular ones are sweet, classical, gothic, punk, deco, and wa lolita.

Sweet Lolita
Lots of pastels, frills, prints, and super cute! Totally my style!



Baby the Stars Shine Bright (my favorite brand ever!)
Angelic Pretty
Maxicimam
Metamorphose
MILK (great for casual loli)
mimo. (cutest bags ever!)

Classical Lolita
This is probably the closest to the traditional victorian clothing, this sub style has a very elegant feel. With lots of antique colors, more frills, and fanciness, this is one of my favorites!



Mary Magdadene
Innocent World
Juliette et Justine
Victorian Maiden
Angel Fish (cute + affordable indie brand I just found!)


Gothic Lolita
In my opinion, I think this style is the easiest to pull off for a first timer. If you're on a tight budget even some of the most common stores (target, f21, etc) can work for your outfit. Very dark and gothic, but still makes you look cute and pretty!



Moi Meme Moite
Atelier Pierrot
H.Naoto
Suppurate System
Alice and the Pirates


Punk Lolita
Lots of tartans, reds, blacks, pinks, this is such a fun style!



Putumayo
Algonquins (not really lolita, but can work)
Alice and the Pirates

Deco Lolita
Another super fun sub style, you basically dress up in pastels, eye catching colors, and mix + match accessories. Feel free to go all out! Also one of my faves~



Chocomint
Q-Pot (also has a cute store in Hawaii, Ala Moana)
Strapya (lots of deco tools)
6% DokiDoki
Nile Perch (amazing handmade stuff)

Wa Lolita
A beautiful sub style if you're interested in more traditional aspects. :)
It's not as popular as the previous styles though, so you may have some trouble buying.



Despair
Qutie Frash (lots of cool asian elements!)
There aren't many brands made specially for wa-loli, but brands like meta and angelic pretty have a few pieces occasionally.
If you don't mind a bit cheaper quality, Bodyline offers a few great dresses!

Aristocrat
A more mature elegant sub style with lots of blacks, whites, long skirts, frills and corsets!



Atelier Boz
Miho Matsuda
Visible
Mille Fleurs/Noirs
Marble

Hime Lolita
Hime is basically princess in Japanese. Although very similar to sweet lolita, hime loli has a more cute and elegant feel, with lots of tiaras, bows, pearls, jewels, and mega ruffles! :D



Chantilly
Jesus Diamante (actually a hime gyaru brand, but close enough)
Annie Antique (gorgeous antique style jewelry!)
Most popular brands like Babyssb and Angelic Pretty typically have a few hime pieces, so you won't have much trouble finding coordinates. ;)

Where to shop for Japanese brands:
Maruione
Tokyo Rebel (I'm so lucky that they have an NYC Store!)
Laforet
Kera Shop
CD Japan

For the Budget Lolitas:
Closet Child
Alice+Fururun (crazy cheap sales)
Anna House Fashion (Hong Kong Based)
Bodyline (great site for beginners, but just be aware that not everything is great quality. I always shop here though! xD)
Paris Kids
Candy Violet (sale going on right now!)
Swimmer

The great thing about lolita fashion though, is that even the most common stores can make room for your outfit. You just need to pick and choose what works or not, and still look great!

Overseas Brands
Forever 21
Betsey Johnson (not so cheap, but they have some nice sales!)
Claire's
Gap (if you're small enough, the kids section is great!)
TaoBao Guide
Some etsy shops

Another option would be to also sew/start sewing. Believe me though, it's a really fun hobby and you can save a lot of $$ too!

Egl Loli Diy
Fabric Tales
Superbuzzy
Spoonflower (create your own print!)
Lace Heaven

For your inspiration needs:
Lolita Stock Photos
Flickr Lolita Fashion Group
Free Gothic Lolita Bible, Kera, Alice Deco, etc. scans

Also, a couple more things before I finish up the post.
Lolita is NOT Cosplay, nor is it in any way related to Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita

Hope you enjoyed the post! :)
Grace~

I'm an Artist! - Sketches and Watercolors~

Hey there, it's been a while since I've blogged (I've been so busy lately, I sleep 5-6 hrs a night. D':), so I thought I might post something a little different today. :)

I've been blogging for quite a while already, but I feel that my readers still don't really know much about me. Other than makeup, beauty, and fashion, I also love drawing! Although I'm not very creative and I still have a long way to go, I feel confident of showing you my best works.

It'd be great if I got some critiques or comments, I really want to improve!

...and voila!




One of my favorite works, I love how there are so many different colors, yet it looks amazing with all the neat layering! I love the bold and interesting fabric and also the fruits! Veggies are so fun to draw,




The next two are also some of my faves, although I usually get tired of drawing so many fruits, I feel so happy when I see the end result. Fruits and veggies are a lot cooler than you think! :)






Also one of my faves. I want a bag just like that!





Thanks for reading/looking at my works!
I really wanted my readers to get to know me more, so I hope you enjoyed this post!
Now I gotta go back to my homework, hopefully I won't have to stay up till two! =O

Grace~