HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I celebrated Halloween this weekend with a small get-together of close friends and new friends. I had a lot of fun spending time together with everyone. It was so much more intimate and relaxed than the party I went to last year. It's nice being able to be around people that are very loving and accepting of who you are.

I made pumpkin spice cupcakes for the party and they were delicious! I was really doubting whether or not they'd be any good while I was making them but everyone seemed to think that I did a really good job :)

I hope you guys had a lovely Halloween weekend and have fun tonight, but just be safe out there!

GARETH PUGH MAC COLLECTION

This collection is killing me! I was so ready for it to come out whenever I first heard news about the collaboration in the summer but I'll have to remain patient until November 23rd when it hits stores. I knew that Pugh would have to include some sort of dramatic false lashes and purples, and the photo above is stunning. The geometric lashes look great paired on the top and bottom, and I'm in love with those glossy ombre lips!

According to vampyvarnish.com, these are the collection's products. All I can say is WOW. WOW. WOW. The color palette is absolutely perfect and looks so versatile - great for day and nighttime wear. The collection includes 3 nail polishes, 2 lipsticks, 2 lipglasses, 1 studio fix mascara, 2 technakohl eyeliners, 1 buffer brush, 2 pigments, 3 cream eyeshadows, 1 translucent powder, 1 powder blush, 1 pair of false lashes, and a makeup bag.

Judging on the product photo, I'm definitely going to need to get the greyish-nude lipstick, dark purple lipglass, and all of the nail polishes. I love all of the eye colors as well and I'm going to have to swatch them when I see them in person to get the full affect. 

And let's take some time to appreciate the nail polishes. Needless to say, I need them all.

Somehow I'm going to have to deal with my excitement for another month. I'm going to get up the day the collection is released so I can make sure I get everything I want before things star selling out!

LIFE AS I KNOW IT, 2

Later on last week I had to talk in front of my interpersonal communications class and discuss an assignment I did. I don't know what it was but I felt just fine; I wasn't nervous at all and there's twice as many people in there than in my French culture class (the one I gave the terrible presentation in). Whatever it was, I'm just glad that I didn't freak out like I did the last time.

Friday night I went to a midnight showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show! I love going to these because it's so much fun getting all dressed up, the movie's awesome, and there's so many cool people and good vibes. I think this year's was better than the previous and it might have something to do with the fact that there were some new cast members. The new Brad Majors was perfect for the role. I remember him coming up and talking to me last year and he just seemed so hyperactive; he took that energy and put it into the show and gave a really great performance. I'm highly considering going again this weekend or next and bringing a friend who's never been to a midnight showing.

I dressed up as Frank n Furter again this year but as a more feminine version. I used the same colors in my makeup as Frank's but decided not to go with the drawn on brows and extra black eyes. Unfortunately I didn't have time to take a picture of the final result, but here's a picture of me and my friend Emma from last year:

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I'm not looking forward to tomorrow being Monday..

THE ADDAMS FAMILY

Tonight I stayed in to watch the Addams family movies on ABC Family with my kitty cat. The Addams' are definitely a huge style inspiration, I mean how could they not be? Black and white stripes and layers upon layers of black are so simple but so perfect. This winter you can expect a very monochromatic wardrobe from me, but that's nothing new ;)

SOMEBODY THAT I USED TO KNOW

Thanks to coutequecoute I've discovered Belgian/Australian singer-songwriter Gotye and am now hooked. This song is so catchy and really tickles my fancy; immediately after hearing it I knew that I needed to download the album. I love how the song starts out so quietly and then turns into such an explosion of emotions. I feel so powerful whenever I listen to it and I can really relate since it almost perfectly describes a certain I was recently involved with, or somebody that I used to know, if you will. This song is a great reminder that there are some people that I'm really better off without.

You can listen to Gotye's new album Making Mirrors in its entirety here http://www.songoperated.com/features/gotye-making-mirrors-album-stream/

PUBLIC SPEAKING: AN INTROVERT'S WORST NIGHTMARE

Today in one of my classes I had to do a short presentation on anatomist Andreas Vesalius. I put together a powerpoint with the basic facts and some images, and had other points I wanted to discuss written down on a sheet of paper. I knew my material well enough that I could recite it from memory and went through many practice presentations in my bedroom.

But as soon as I got in front of the class, I choked. I instantly felt short of breath and jittery. It was really obvious that my nerves were getting to me and my presentation suffered. I rushed through it and left out more than a few details that I had made note of. I figured I'd feel relieved when I was finished, but instead I was so embarrassed and upset.

I don't know what it is, but there's something about people who I don't know in school settings that make me anxious. I'm mostly and introvert but also have a lot of extroverted characteristics. Being around people I'm unfamiliar with or being the center of attention in a social gathering doesn't bother me at all. The difference in environments may be the cause of this anxiety, though. Social settings are so laid back and if someone makes some sort of error in conversation, everyone brushes it off and moves on. School settings are much more uptight and I can really feel the pressures of having to do your absolute best at everything.

There haven't been too many times that I've had to publicly speak, but there will be more in the future so I need to be able to overcome this fear as soon as possible. I know I'm not the only one who's like this; public speaking is what's most feared among people, even more than death. It's something so simple and yet I turn it into a traumatic experience.

Fears don't just disappear overnight so there's going to be a lot of work required on my part. Hopefully I can get over this sooner rather than later; being scared is no fun!

LIFE AS I KNOW IT, 1

I figured I should take some time to write about what's up in my world every once in a while, so here it goes.

I got advised on Tuesday for my second semester of college and I'm starting to wonder if this whole college thing is right for me. I'm feeling some added stress because I don't know what I want to minor in (my major is psychology). College is also really starting to kill my desire to learn. You're forced to learn things so quickly and I feel like I'm not learning some material as well as I could because there's so much pressure to learn it by a certain time. Hopefully this is just me being a baby and going through a slump right now because I don't want to drop out. I want to be able to finish what I've started and if I decide not to go to grad school, I'll be okay with that. A bachelor's degree wouldn't be hindering at all, so I'm going to try to stick it out.

A few nights ago a newly formed acquaintance of mine told me that his friend has a bit of a crush on me. This is really funny because the only encounter I've had with this guy was whenever we had a collision at my friend Emily's apartment. If you've seen the new Freaky Friday movie, it was a lot like whenever Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan try to get back into their own bodies by running into each other. Maybe I'm magic and knocked some feelings into him. Haha, who knows, but he seems like a cool guy so I wouldn't getting to know him.

I'm going to wrap up this post by talking about...FALL! The weather here is really starting to cool down and many of the trees are changing colors and losing their leaves. I love seeing how everything starts to diminish and seeing it all come back to life in the spring. My favorite things about fall are seasonal coffee flavors, long sleeves and sweaters, the smell of leaves, Halloween excitement, scented candles, carving pumpkins, costume parties, and spending time outside admiring the world. What's your favorite part about the season?

ONLY POSERS DIE

"Oh, fuck. God… Fuckin’ poser. Only posers die, you fucking idiot! Now what am I gonna do for a friend? You’re my only friend! Please, wake up now! Please, I’m sorry! Oh, fuck. Oh, jeeze. Oh, my god! I wasn’t ready for this. I wasn’t ready!"

This has got to be the most tragic and heartbreaking scene to ever exist in a movie. I fell asleep watching SLC Punk one night and woke up right as this came on and I just started bawling. I was so delirious and I couldn't fathom what it'd be like wake up one morning and find your best friend dead. Life can be so scary when stuff like this happens and it all reminded me that the people I'm close to are so precious and that I really need to cherish what I have while it's still here.

THE HORRORS - NEW VIDEO & LIVE EXPERIENCE

video directed by White Rabbit

This is probably my favorite song from the Horrors' new album Skying, so I'm thrilled that they made it a single. The video's full of amazing visuals and is just so captivating. Can this band do any wrong?

A few months ago I found out that they'd be touring to support the new album. They've never played in my area so I figured that they wouldn't this time around either, but I checked the tour dates just in case. Crazily enough, St. Louis was on the list and I was ecstatic. Whenever the band released their first album they were going to play here but had to cancel their US tour because it ended up being too expensive. After that and the multiple tours excluding my city I figured that I'd probably never be able to see them live. The fact that I actually did blows my mind.

I saw them on the 23rd of September and it was perfect, better than I ever could have imagined. They played for a little over an hour and all of the music came to life in a completely new way. The whole time I felt like I was dreaming; the music took over everything. I was really curious to find out how they'd recreate some of the sounds they use, but they did to my surprise and sounded even better than the CDs. 

After the show, my friend and I got the chance to say hi to them and have a chat with Tom and Faris. I felt that it was necessary to say thanks for playing here and that the show was well worth the five years of waiting. They were both blown away that we had waited that long to be able to see them live and actually thanked us. They were so pleasant, sweet, and charming; just all around good people.

I still can't believe that this concert really happened. They've been one of my favorites ever since their early days of garage rock and they just keep getting better with each new album and new sound. It's really rare that I'm still interested in something after that long but the way they're constantly evolving, keeps me drawn in and never bores me. It's really funny to look back and see how different I am now than how I was when I was in 8th grade when I first discovered the Horrors; the same goes for how much the band has changed. 

I'd definitely recommend that you see them live if they're ever in your area or take a listen to their new album if you haven't yet!

BLACK MILK CLOTHING

I've recently fallen in love with Black Milk Clothing, especially their prints. The clothing is definitely more suitable for warmer weather and a little bit on the pricier side, but I really want to get my hands on one of the bathing suits for the summer. Maybe I'll befriend someone with a pool before then so I'll have a reason to buy one...

http://www.blackmilkclothing.com/

REQUIEM FOR A DREAM

I just saw this movie for the first time a few weekends ago and, wow, this was such an emotional film. The characters' lives spiraled downhill so quickly and at the end things are just awful for them. It really had an impact on me and I felt extremely upset, like I felt like I needed to cry or something. It's so crazy how the world of drugs changes people. Jared Leto gave a great performance, which led me to find a new appreciation for him. He's more than just the blonde guy in Fight Club or the frontman of an awful band; he's actually a really talented actor and I'd be interested to see him play more roles.

GLITTER SKULLS

This has been something that I've wanted to do for a while and I finally got the stuff I needed to make them. I've had one of the skulls for a while and I got another for a friend to make her a house-warming gift for her new apartment (she absolutely loved it!). I originally wanted hers to be white but it turned out that the white glitter I got was actually clear with pink shimmer, which I didn't realize until I had covered almost half of the skull with it. I think the silver looks great and I'm really pleased with how they turned out! They were so messy and a lot of work to make but definitely worth it.

GARETH PUGH S/S 2012

Some of my favorite pieces from Gareth Pugh's new spring collection. I'm a total sucker for draped and flowing fabrics, especially when they're black, and these are to die for. The geometric elements of Pugh's pieces are always exciting to me. I can't help but wonder how he'll incorporate shapes and silhouettes into his pieces and I love that he always keeps me guessing. His work is surprising, yet remains consistent.

ZEVS

ZEVS is a French street artist who's mostly known for his liquidated logos. His website even features a faux Google search and when the colors are finished oozing down the screen, the site redirects to his portfolio. While in Hong Kong for an opening of an exhibition of his, he painted the dripping Chanel logo on the side of an Armani store and was arrested. How ironic. I love his varying styles as well as his signature liquidation technique. He's one of those artists that I just can't get enough of.

check out his website: http://gzzglz.com/