September Favourites

Andddd... another month is gone. Where is time going!? It seems like just yesterday I was basking in the glow of early summer, and now here we are getting into the throes of fall. Cold temperatures, shorter days... barf.

This September was unseasonably warm here, though, so I can't complain. The leaves have barely started to turn, which is both amazing (because it has fooled me into thinking that summer is not over!) and slightly disconcerting. I mean, it is pretty much October -- you would think that we would be seeing at least a little yellow and red!

But anyway, September favourites. I need to stop yammering on about the weather and, let's face it, crap that you guys could probably care less about ;)

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Fall Recipes: Pumpkin Pull-Apart Bread

With working full time, I haven't exactly had as much time as I would like to try out new recipes as well as blog here! By the time I get home it is dinner time, and I would rather relax than dirty up a whole bunch of dishes.

Alas, days off are my only days to bake, and usually my only days to update (today is an exception; I work the late shift and do not go into work until five. Yay?). Last Wednesday was pretty rainy and a day that I happened to have off, so I figured that trying out a new recipe was an excellent idea!

Pumpkin Pull-Apart bread. With butter rum glaze. Yes, it is every bit as delicious as it sounds.

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Nail Polish Review - Nars Night Rider & OPI's DS Magic

I am a self-professed nail polish junkie. My history with it has been somewhat conflicted -- as a child and a preteen, I loved the stuff. My first ever nail polish was a Tinkerbell peel-off kind, which I lovingly painted on to my nails with utmost care, only to peel it off a couple of hours later. Then I went through a no-nail polish stage, where I think I owned maybe one bottle that I shared with my mom. Over the years, that one bottle slowly became four or five, until a little over a year ago. Soon I found myself slinking over to the nail polish display in drugstores. Stopping dead in my tracks and turning around whenever I passed a salon. Finished my midterms? Reward myself with a new bottle. Having a crappy day? Make myself feel better with a pretty new shade. Got an A+ on an important paper? Yay, new nail polish!

Now that I am taking a break from school and working full time, I don't feel that I need an excuse (haha), and I am also more willing to splurge! Hence the reason why I am reviewing these two polishes. Both have price tags that are a far cry from your average Sally Hansen or Revlon polish, but does the quality make them worth it? 

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Song Spotlight - August

It has been too long since my last update! I meant to post this exact same post up earlier, actually, but things have been kind of crazy with me lately. Last weekend I took a trip to what I consider my second hometown to visit friends (friends who are staying, and a friend who has since returned to Korea), and then this week I started back at the 9-5 day job that I had before I went back to university, which involved turning my sleeping schedule nearly upside down. So needless to say, it has been a bit of an adjustment, and this blog kind of fell by the wayside for the past 11 days. Boo! 

Anyway, on to the song spotlight for August! I have decided that from now on, I will choose both one "foreign" pick, as well as one "domestic" pick, because I realized that if I didn't? There would be a whole lotta kpop posted here. And contrary to popular belief, I don't just listen to kpop! (I swear!)

Pick number one is by Xiah Junsu, a member of JYJ, who I have been a fan of for nearly seven years now. The song is called "You Are So Beautiful" and is featured on the Scent of a Woman OST. This song is gorgeous, with Junsu's unique vocals, as well as overall lyrics and arrangement. Love it. Definitely one of my favourite releases of the summer. 

My second choice, the "domestic" (or English language choice) is a song that I didn't particularly listen to a lot to in August, per se, but one that I discovered in August, and have been listening to a lot more lately, haha. And that is "Titanium" by David Guetta, featuring Sia. I first discovered Sia about 

three years ago after watching her performance of "Soon We'll be Found" on David Letterman, and was taken to her voice right away. It has a really interesting quality to it in the fact that it is very distinctive -- there is no way that you could mistake her for another vocalist. This song is a really interesting mash-up of electronic sounds and Sia's trademark style. It's not really a mix that I would have ever really thought would work, but it totally does in this case.

Actually, it was somewhat difficult to pick the second choice for this month, because I don't have any set criteria in place for determining the song spotlight, and well :p I am not quite as enamored with it as I am my first pick. But in any case, I think that it is a good listen and definitely an excellent addition to my iTunes library. 

I can't believe that August is over and that September is also nearly halfway finished! In a way I am looking forward to it, because it means that I can start baking again (yay for more posting material for this blog!), but at the same time I am in mourning for summer as the days grow shorter and the nights chillier. :( 

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Summer 2011 Dramas

screencap courtesy of dramabeans

So, summer isn't quite over yet. It is only the end of August, but there are signs that fall is just around the corner. School has already started or is starting soon for those who are going back (I'm personally taking a semester off, so for me this means going back to a 9-5 day job). It is September 1st tomorrow, there is a certain chill in the air at night, the scent of apples when you drive by orchards...

Ok, so it's like that where I live, anyway. Which has put me in the mood for some end-of-season, end-of-summer related posts. And I figured that HEY, this would be an excuse to recap all of the dramas that I have watched over my 4 month summer vacation!

Since I am learning Korean and like the overall format, I pretty much only watch Korean dramas. I know, I know, call me picky :p But if anybody has any recommends for other AWESOME asian dramas, let me know?

For the tl;dr crowd, if you scroll down to the bottom of the jump, you can see which ones were my favourites and which ones sort of fell flat for me. But I hope that at least someone reads through this post, because it took forever (and I mean forever) to compose.

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Urban Decay 15-Year Anniversary Palette Swatches + Mini Review

As promised, I bring swatches of the Urban Decay 15 Year Anniversary palette! When this first came out, I thought for sure that I would have issues getting my hands on it. One, it sold out ridiculously fast on the Urban Decay website. Two, I did not have the money to spend on makeup. Three, it's limited edition. Ahh, the woes of the broke university student who is slow on the uptake, haha.

Needless to say, I was super surprised to find that Sephora had this sucker in stock online, and it just so happened that my mom wanted to order the Naked palette, so I snatched it up without a second thought (and with an IOU to mommy dearest ;) ).

Description from the Urban Decay Wesbite:

"It’s our party, and we’ll launch 15 NEW (and only in this kit!) eyeshadow shades if we want to! With just the right balance of neutrals and brights, darks and lights, the 15-Year Anniversary Palette is both versatile and the ultimate UD junkie collection. Shades like “Junkshow” (a bright pink), “Evidence” (a deep metallic blue) and Midnight 15 (an oyster pearl shade) mesmerize the eyes. The collectible gunmetal outer box features a luxe faceted jewel “UD” on the cover and an eye-grabbing laser-cut filigree design on the sides. Inside, the shadow tray pulls out to reveal a velvet-lined compartment that can be used to stash jewelry or personal mementos."

On to the swatches!

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Urban Decay Naked Palette - Swatched and Reviewed

I originally was not planning on swatching this palette, since it's so ridiculously popular that it has been swatched a million times, and well. I am lazy. BUT, while talking makeup and pretty packaging with my friend Susan, she requested a swatch, so I figured why not? This blog needs more content (haha), and it is not like swatching is an all-day task or anything :p 

So, after receiving my Urban Decay 15 Year Anniversary limited edition palette today, I figured that I would get 'er done. Swatches of the 15 Year Anniversary palette are still a work in progress though, so they will be in a different post!

Anyway, description of the Naked palette from the Urban Decay website: 

"You can look great NAKED! This long, lean, seductive case is packed with TWELVE gorgeous neutrals. Shades range from delicate champagnes to dark, gritty gunmetal, and feature FIVE NEW shades with names like Darkhorse, Virgin and Buck. We've also included a range of textures: everything from glitter to shimmer to matte. The chocolaty velvet case is emblazoned with the word "NAKED" in gold foil lettering. (Just wait 'til your friends see you pull this sexy thing out of your bag. Jealous!) The mirrored case also includes a professional quality, cruelty-free Good Karma Eyeshadow Brush, AND a travel-size Eyeshadow Primer Potion in original formula. This is a shadow palette EVERYONE can use, and a truly spectacular gift. Experiment with office-appropriate neutrals, summertime bronzy looks, or sultry smokiness. With such a diversity of neutral shades at your fingertips, there's more to neutral than meets the eye."

Alright, now that we've gotten the introduction out of the way, let's get reviewing and swatching!

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