Morning Thoughts

(me and my morning tea)

Well, the weekend has come and I am middle of my paycheck (the worst time in my opinion) and all of my plans are coming out of no where. It's funny how when you plan a day, I mean actually plan the details, nothing goes as planned. It's the humor of life I suppose. I did however get a new writing assignment from a Houston clothing company that I am excited to do. It is really nice to get outside of your normal structure every now and again. It shows you a more informed look at your talents; sink or swim. When I get the go ahead from them, I may post it for everyone to see along with a few other articles that I have done in the past. 

As well, I normally wouldn't post a picture without make up if you had asked me a year ago. I guess with growing up, you learn to embrace who you are naturally. So for those lazy mornings when I am in no mood to put on eye make up, foundation, etc.. some dark lipstick will do for me. You should try it one day this week. It's liberating. 

Red Hair & Feathers

Yes, I have red hair and yes, I found red feathers. I don't even think I am fully satisfied with it all at this point. I wanted a more genuine, fire red color. I love how it looks against my hair. Turquoise tones as well. I can pin my hair up in a bun, which is my hairstyle of choice on lazy days, and it helps a little pop to my entire look. That is essential for me to fall in love with accessory.

Theophilus London

 I have always really liked this song. I think its the sultry feel behind it and even more so the video to match every note. Enjoy.

Lipstick Battles

I love my lips. I know that some women are said to have too large a set of lips, but I embrace mine. At the same time, they can be a little overwhelming so I have to be really careful with what I do to them. Females always talk to other females about what they think looks good and well... sometimes I really just want a guys perspective on things. I decided to ask five men of various demographics, "How do you feel about girls wearing lipstick?" Each of them gave these responses:

Vee (22): I feel indifferent about them, but like everything else, as long as the chick doesn't over-do it, I'm cool with that.
Jayson (25): I love lipstick over lipgloss any day. It gives girls a classic, sophisticated look. The brighter the better!
Nabeel (21): Personally, I don't mind the lipstick. If a girl can do anything to enhance her apperance for the better, then I prefer to be around that. So if that means sexy red lipstick with a short black dress, count me in.
Damiano (18): It really depends on the girl. I mean, some girls wear it in a seductive manner, or for seductive purposes... Whereas, others wear it in a classy manner. Personally, I prefer it, but it can backfire.
Gary (23): Don't think they need it and if they do wear it, it has to be a color that blends. Hate like red or bright lipstick.

Bikini Wax

I have never been a fan of waxing but I am a fanatic about the end result. It feels irresistibly smooth and its a result that shaving cannot match. I went to a professional wax studio and got a full bikini wax. My third, the first being a full Brazilian.
Let's just say, even after this experience two times before, I feel bruised. It is half my fault since the hair wasn't the full quarter inch that they would like to see. Nonetheless, the woman sold me this serum for post-shower use. It reads, "eliminates, treats, and prevents ingrown hairs and razor bumps. calming and soothing exfoliating formula infused with anti-oxidants, vitamin e, lavender, and tea tree oils." I am only on Day 1, but I will be updating on if it's worth the investment. Only $25 and if it can do what it claims, its well worth it.

Ingrown Hair Serum - European Wax Center - $25

Fashion Conversion

After stumbling across an article, Counterfeit Fashion Meets High Art, I feel like fashion has this undeniable ease of becoming art. For example, and something most fashion lovers can agree on, you buy new apparel and it certainly doesn't come to life until you are wearing it actively, putting your own breath of style into it. I feel the same goes for these fashion logo converters who so many seem to hate. I see their conversion as nothing different from when I take an old designer piece and choose to alter it in my own way. The reason these people stand out is because they do not try to sign it off as genuine or authentic. They clearly say, this is what I was given and this is what I have created. An interesting point brought up, “These people are hijacking signs of wealth, bastardizing logos and turning them into something completely unique.” What is the harm in that?

In Action

I had to do it. I had to wear it. And so I did, all day. It has a perfect fit and I love how the collar contrasts against my hair color. I guess when my fall attire comes out, I will have a better idea of its use. 

As for the week, I have neglected all of my work this weekend and didn't even manage to fit in relax time. How sad. Its strange living in my city alone now without my other part to make up for my short comings. I have to constantly be reminded to slow down for a moment and enjoy life or at least to remember school needs to be in my priorities along side work. That's life. 

One last note, I am finally creating my blogroll here and if you want to be on it, and we visit one another's blog mutually, let me know by emailing me and I can remember to include you. I do not want to leave any of my lovely friends out who have great projects, blogs, and companies.

FNO & New Additions

I saw this in Cotton On and I stopped and nearly had a heart attack. As my friend began to exclaim, "Ew, Janiece, it's so ugly" I continued to try it on and when I noticed it was a perfect, and I mean perfect, fit, I proceeded to the cashier. I didn't need to hear it from anyone else. They shall see in fall that it was one of the best additions to my closet. What do you think? Is the collar too much for your taste? 

Either way, last night was Fashions Night Out and Dallas, my hometown, happened to have North America's longest run way which was a quarter of a mile long if I remember correctly. I did get to see tons of pictures from friends who live in New York and a couple home town friends in Dallas. I look forward to seeing everyone's pictures from FNO from last night and I know that some events even extended into today and the weekend. 

No need for me to fret, there will always be next year. 

A Little Different

I absolutely love these shoes. They are my 70 degree fall heels. Not to mention that I can practically run around town in these all evening and not be in pain.

Red, White & Black

by Janiece via Polyvore

It seems that recently so many people have become concerned with the most bizarre patterns and colors, and while it captures even my attention, nothing makes me happier than a basic black or grey top. On a more personal note, I know I always loved black but I recently saw a close friend in a basic black tee for the first time. After a few lingered looks, I realized black is just attractive on everyone. For those days when you are running a little behind and haven't found the time to fully do hair and makeup, black apparel seems to make up for quite a bit.

What About The Men

There is something about male fashion that draws me in although I know it has no actual relevance to myself. I am beginning to think that it has a little something to do with the beautiful men that they choose to model. While, I love women's fashion, male's fashion and image portrayal grabs my attention just the same. Ignacio Valenti Lacroix is the most perfect example I can think of. As well, Mario D'amico never lets me down, as well.
All said, I feel like men's fashion can sometimes be pushed into a corner and hence men's hesitance to actually embrace some type of style. With fall and winter just around the corner, my favorite seasons for fashion, I am waiting to see how the men pull it all off this year. A Dsquared2 Men's Fall Winter 2011-2012 fashion line caught my mind and I knew I had to share.

Wub

Full screen and vibe to it.

Back When

Since I have been moving everything from my old blog, I came across this from BYOW Pt. 1 and it seems I haven't changed too much since I wrote this:

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2008

 "I cant tell if I am just very tired or I have a lazy mind right now. Im in New York this week trying to take a small break from Texas stress, but this is the first time I have been out of town and can't find the least amount of peace. I walk down the streets and see men slapping everyones umbrellas out the way so that they can get through. I get hawked at by men working on the streets. I have 3am phone calls from students back home that I tutor asking for help. Im beginning to realize, vacation really does not exsist, it's all life in the end, you just give it a better name and seclude yourself in a single location. It is all a personal choice of how much of the stress you will ignore for that short time. On a brighter note, I can not think of one race that I havent seen today alone. Diversity is so beautiful. For people too nearsighted to see past race, imagine all of the things you are missing more in the distance and inside of the person, not just the surface color. I do not believe all predjudice is wrong (and I mean that word as "pre-judging"), street smarts is a necessity. If you judge at all, judge on attitude, not on color or origin. Even the seemingly ideal on the surface will stab you in the back, and use your near-sighted oblivion against you."

Old stuff I would make back in 2007-2008; its only fitting.

We Left Our Hearts

Every time this song comes on my iPod, my feet and head start bopping super hard until the rest of my body has to rock and join in. I love Rufus, definitely under-rated. I know that most people don't like to really bother with anything that wont end up on the radio within the next month but how I see it is, the Top 100 is about 1% of everything out there. I use music to match my moods. I don't quite know what this does for me but I do know it does something positive inside of me.

Euro Treasures

My mom just got back from a little vacation and I always get excited because I know my mother never fails to bring me home simple little things that make me light up! Here is a quick picture I took of the new things she brought home for me. Now, for those who do not know, I collect coffee cups. Why? Because I used to spend long hours in various moods staying up late at night and one thing came in common with it all. I always had my coffee in hand. Every time I go to an airport, coffee is the first thing that I am trying to find. It has this warming effect and no matter what country I go to, we all share the espresso appreciation. It only seems right.

1. InStyle Magazine

2. Celebrated Living Magazine

3. Ring from Edingburough Castle in Scotland

4. Chai Tea

5. Country Dress with High Neck Lace Collar

6. H&M Magazine

7. Two Skinny Belts - Braided & Straight

8. Coffee/Soup cup from Ireland

9. Pink Top with Shear Sides

10. Pumps!

11. Belgian Choc Samples

Last Night

I recently watched this movie and I dont think I so much liked the ending but the whole entire plot was so specific and interesting. I would recommend it to anyone, even the men out there. Both sides appeal to just basic gender temptations. As much as I hate to admit it,  I am human and I very much so believe that no matter where you are in life, there can always potentially be that person who will just have a certain, unmatched, place in your heart and can return at any point. I dont know how more people haven’t seen this but definitely it is worth the preview. Plus, Ms. Knightley is all woman! Geez, she is beautiful.

Portfolio

I finally got the first stage of my portfolio finished so now I am headed to just straight edit and rip through it. Then I can focus on the fun stuff like printing and binding. As for the week, I had to reward myself with two new dresses and a shirt before my classes begin again. I thought the dress was a gorgeous color so I had to just take it home with me.

Coffee Wars

Everyone always jokes with me when they can tell I am in one of my moods, “Oh, maybe we should get her some coffee.” Coffee is simply the best part of my morning…afternoon…2am… really any time routine. For most people, they only assume that it has a strong taste and it turns your teeth yellow or even worse, brown. Far from it. And for those of you who choose to not drink coffee for teeth whitening reasons, I will tell you what my dentist told me: “Drink your coffee with a straw.” Trust me. You will not get that chalked feeling afterwards. As for the rest, I decided to share a few convincing points as to why coffee may want to be on your radar.

Increases Alertness- Caffeine is a well-known stimulant and is known to increase alertness in individuals.
Weight Loss – Coffee can help burn extra calories by boosting your metabolism.
Treating Migraines – Caffeine has analgesic properties, and is even a common ingredient used in over-the-counter painkillers.
Cancer - As per a study conducted by the Harvard Medical School, regular coffee drinkers are 50% less likely to suffer from breast, colon and prostate cancer.

 So – before you knock joe, I say reconsider and if not for health benefits at least for the morning aroma.

Morning Mates

Woke up at 9:02 and I see that it’s perfectly overcast. If you don’t already know, that is definitely my favorite weather. I am not a sunshine type. I prefer the calm daytime yet not glaring view. I knew it’d be perfect. For today, I am headed to the city and going to attempt to get back before the work rush begins. Chances of this happening, slim to none but it’s nice to dream. I will say, breakfast this morning was like an epiphany. I feel like I found out not just the secret, but the very function of getting into a man’s heart. BREAKFAST is that key. In addition, I did get some pretty interesting heels yesterday so I had to include that. 

Hard At Rest

Oh the pain. My feet are aching and I am only 20. Last time I checked, that was not what is supposed to happen. The irony that I bought a pair of “comfortable” high heels today, as well….. a long with two tops.

Wait For It

I know I am a grandma on vacation the first day. In my mind, why go on vacation and then go stress your body out running around. No. I shall rest the first day and then exert, and rest on my way back home. That is how I like things. I spent my first night overlooking the view and I felt so comfortable, I didn’t even have the will to grab my camera for a picture. I used my phone instead. There’s something about overlooking a city. It’s not a luxury thing, its just the view of a city at life, with lights representing humans… There’s just so much activity from my one little spot from which I stand or lie.

Travel Day

I had a nearly 24 hour travel day. In total I went from Houston to Dallas to St. Louis and finally arrived to Philadelphia. 20 hours from the start to when I got my first chance to lay my head back down once again. I suppose watching the lightning storm from the airplane view didn’t help me stay awake. Peaceful doesn’t even begin to describe.

Sunrise, Sunset

With every sacrifice, you gain something you didn’t have. In my case, waking up at 5am for city transferring, I’m greeted with a sunset that warmly stretches over the full eastern horizon. Some days it simply looks like the earth is cracking it’s eyes to wake up while other days, I realize it’s the heavens coming back to life. I need things like this to put my life back into perspective. We focus so much on stressing about the unknown and forget about the elements of life to be known. The design of nature, for instance. No matter what I could possibly stir up, a new sunrise will forever be there the next morning. It may not be a second chance, but a new canvas to paint my day on is good enough for me.

A Life Away

I love these rough abstract pieces of videos that Ju Et Colette puts together. He is truly one of the best men that I have met in a long time. Connection doesn’t even begin to describe. He makes me jealous with his pictures, videos, and stories knowing that I am stuck here in school unable to visit Spain anytime soon.

Berlin Paint

Can we kidnap performance artist lepe B. T. Rubingh and bring him to Texas? This was so dope to me. This would never fly in America, though. They used water based paints and so it was environment friendly, wasn’t much of an issue. Of course this isn’t something that would solve world hunger but can you imagine if it happened to you? The rest of the day when you’re asked about your day, I’m sure you would mention the brilliant colors all over an intersection you use daily. Just the simple idea of a road you cross every day had something a little different than usual is brilliant to me. It’s a literal expression of putting the color back in life.

Hospital Beds

While the idea of ranting about my day is childish and irrelevant, I am breaking the rules. Yesterday, in the evening, I was experiencing horrible pains and long story short, I go to the emergency room. After they checked my vitals and fluid samples, I find out that I have a bladder infection. I remember lying in the little hospital bed waiting for a nurse to bring me a blanket and it dawned on me, “Wow, a warm blanket is actually an option.” Later, a woman came by from discharge to let me know what my bill would be for the visit. With my insurance attached, I thought it was amazing that filling out the insurance forms was a luxury, not a pain. The whole night all together ended with me smiling. I may not have been in the best comfort of my life and I will have this bad little bladder issue for a good while, however… Even with an infection, I had the most pleasant experience that the world could offer. I walked into an air-conditioned hospital, insurance card in hand, with a twenty-minute wait, and was diagnosed and treated within two hours in the most sanitary of conditions. I remember lying in my hospital bed thinking, “Even my misery is bliss.”

Vibe

I am one of those do-a-little-too-much types. I hooked this video to my flat screen television, turned the lights out, and watched everything in flying technicolor motion haha.

Emerson

So shall we come to look at the world with new eyes. It shall answer the endless inquiry of the intellect, -- What is truth? and of the affections, -- What is good? by yielding itself passive to the educated Will. Then shall come to pass what my poet said; "Nature is not fixed but fluid. Spirit alters, moulds, makes it. The immobility or bruteness of nature, is the absence of spirit; to pure spirit, it is fluid, it is volatile, it is obedient. Every spirit builds itself a house; and beyond its house a world; and beyond its world, a heaven. Know then, that the world exists for you. For you is the phenomenon perfect. What we are, that only can we see. All that Adam had, all that Caesar could, you have and can do. Adam called his house, heaven and earth; Caesar called his house, Rome; you perhaps call yours, a cobler's trade; a hundred acres of ploughed land; or a scholar's garret. Yet line for line and point for point, your dominion is as great as theirs, though without fine names. Build, therefore, your own world. As fast as you conform your life to the pure idea in your mind, that will unfold its great proportions. A correspondent revolution in things will attend the influx of the spirit. So fast will disagreeable appearances, swine, spiders, snakes, pests, madhouses, prisons, enemies, vanish; they are temporary and shall be no more seen. The sordor and filths of nature, the sun shall dry up, and the wind exhale. As when the summer comes from the south; the snow-banks melt, and the face of the earth becomes green before it, so shall the advancing spirit create its ornaments along its path, and carry with it the beauty it visits, and the song which enchants it; it shall draw beautiful faces, warm hearts, wise discourse, and heroic acts, around its way, until evil is no more seen. The kingdom of man over nature, which cometh not with observation, -- a dominion such as now is beyond his dream of God, -- he shall enter without more wonder than the blind man feels who is gradually restored to perfect sight."