Leaves and Pages

Hi! Lately, I've been reading a few good books that I'd like to review a bit, here. 

So, first, we have The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho....and I'm sure that just from he symbol you can tell what book is behind? Darn straight, it's Divergent, by Veronica Roth! 

Divergent: At first, the majority of the novel describes Tris, the main character training to become a member of the Dauntless class in society, a daring and rough group...Tris came from Abnegation, a group devoted to selflessness and a plain lifestyle. I understand that the descriptions might be necessary, but I feel that this portion(all the training talk) goes on for too long, and considering hat the style of writing is rather sparse (just my opinion), I was itching for some real drama! However, near the end, sort of, it got intense! I found the principles of this societies government to be really interesting...i don't feel that it was really dystopia, as I 

thought it'd be, but more like a slightly flawed 

government/society that started on good values...and there were definitely issues, like there are today...on respect, the poor, striving for individuality, etc. So, I found that interesting. I also loved the romance between Tris and Four...it was so cute! Aaaannnd, of course, Tris was a really tough girl~ All in all, I liked divergent, and will be getting Insurgent soon! 

The Alchemist: I saw this book in Barnes and Nobles and it looked really interesting...I found the whole Alchemy idea interesting, and it seemed to be an adventure story. Now, the flow book reads in a very mellow and elegant way, which makes it a great read for a relaxing summer day with a cup of tea~ It's about a Shepard boy, content withy his life, who suddenly receives a dream about finding a treasure near the pyramids, far from his home in Andalusia. This dream, is his Personal Legend, his goal in life. He meets a number of mysterious characters along he way as he journeys on with 

faith that the universe guides those who seek their Personal Legend. This wise boy finds an unexpected, yet familiar 

treasure at the end, and learns of the connections in the world, through a 200 year old....Alchemist. The story reads like a fable, but is relatable to anyone's life (at least I think so), and full of quote able lines. Paulo Coelho has written such an inspiring story in this book! 

So, I hope you'll be interested to read these books if you haven't yet and form your own opinion!

Now that we've talked about the "pages" part of his post, let's talk about "leaves"! Here are photos from a recent, summery park visit.

The trees had such uniquely bright flowers irl! 

Outfit:

shirt- Monki...it had strange animals printed on it, and a very breezy and cook fabric! From Asos.

dress- it's not a skirt, it's my Unif dress from Buffalo Exchange underneath.

socks- Asos

flats- f21

headband- Claire's 

scrunchie- American Apparel

pleats and petals

Cutest daisies

Daisies in my hair

Have a great day, read books, get some of dat Vitamin D....whatever, yahhhh....:)

Go Ape for Monki!

Hello again! Today I really want to talk about the Swedish brand Monki! Now, if you read my bio, you'll know that I speak Finnish (I'm part Finnish). So, I have a great appreciation for the unique creative, yet simplistic ness of Scandinavian design! I myself found out about Monki from Asos, who carries them, by the way. I bought this dress you're about to see here. The prices are reasonable, by the way, some around the twenties (both in dollars and euros). 

Sorry about the blur-factor...it was getting dark out and very crowded due to the bar goers for the World Cup!

Outside Three Twins...with cookies and creme~

                                             

Walking the pooch....

Outfit:

Jean jacket: I'm sorry, I'm enamored with it, here it is again...Juicy Couture from Crossroads

dress: Monki

socks: Asos

belt: Genius Outfitters Hawaii (I guess I don't have many belts?)

flats: Old Navy

headband: ....Claire's to be honest!

So isn't the dress great? It has a thin cotton material(you might need a slip or shorts and a cami), and is sleeveless. The design is very modern-art...it may look like a bunch of lines...but they're abstract faces! Here are some of my pics from the site!

nternetz...such a fun shirt!

is it a tee? A button down? varsity? A cool hodge podge!

short b and w top which interesting sleeves...I like the boxy cut!

such a cool skirt...I'd love a length like this...plus, it actually consists of small images! Reminds me of flashing NYC billboards...or tumbrl!

I am super....motivational beanies, anyone?

http://www.monki.com

check out the site if ya like~

So...Monki's really great! The designs are unique and graphic!

Hey, here are some clips from my day!

A super good panini with Orangina at Spazzio cafe

Sweet Lady Jane's cakes (I'm sorry guys, I always post dessert!) with chai latte(same goes for tea...)

Random selfie from a day earlier (I have f21 dungarees!)....my new Blick sketchbook....so smooth! And that paper smell (ooookkkk, creepy art geek!) I was so happy to get a new one!

Have a nice day~

Hey now, hey now~

I'd like to have lovely, deep, diverse song lyrics and book/movie quotes adorning the tops of my blog posts....but all the good ones just won't fit the moods I'm in while I write! For example, Purity Ring's "lofticries" which is so amazing and is so quoteable....but it has this wistful, weepy feeling (in my opinion) despite its catchy vibe and melody. Um, just not feeling wistful, ok? But, you should totally listen to the song! But yes, I still seriously need to work on my titles. For now, you get "Lizzie McGuire"! Anyway, what I wanted to talk about were: A few of my faaavoriiiiteee thingssss~ *getting a little sound of music there, but how can you not thing of it when you say that phrase!?* I really enjoy these sorts of posts, so here we go!

List time! From left to right, sort of!

- eyeliner that brightens your eyes

- browsing an inspirational tumblr blog while watching a movie~

- drinking cups upon cups of hot tea!

- cozy sweaters (ignore me awkwardly trying to duck-face, or something) 

- wildly growing daisy patches

- scrunchies!

- having a stack of voluntary reading material!( pictured are Nat Geo and The Help)

- sun glowing on he fruit of pomegranate seeds

- fun socks (pictured are from Asos)

- reading manga online late at night! ( geeeekkk)

Note: the tumblr logo belongs to tumblr and I found this one on Logopedia. Also, the anime girl in the corner is not mine, but found at <http://otakunewby.blogspot.com>

Some bonuses that I couldn't find pictures for, or didn't have pics for:

- the perfect music on YouTube, found accidentally

- chocolate truffles

- the right art reference

- finding a cute street to stroll

What's a nice, small thing that's making you happy?

Windblown Locks and Flowered Frocks

(and Brandy Mellvile)

I rhymed...ehehehe~ It was veeeeryyyy windy...I kept getting a mustache of my hair every time i turned around! Well, I took photos outside again! It was worse this time, since there were actual people about! 

ach, see how windy, I'm laughing because of my hair whipping into my face!

jean jacket: Juicy Couture, Crossroads

dress: you've seen it already, but bought at Genius Outfitters Hawaii

bobby socks(first pic): Asos

shoes: Old Navy flats

and that Gap belt...sorry but it's so versatile, I wear it all the time.

my hair's down again...whaaaattt

So, I mentioned Brandy Melville...I'd heard a lot about it, and I finally popped in to window-shop, just to see what the fuss is. Now, the USA store does have mixed reviews on sites like yelp, but is quite popular nonetheless...which is evidenced if you set foot in one of the brick-and-mortar locations. The one I went to was PACKED! Mainly with teen and up girls. The style of clothing is that typical "California Girl" style, with breezy little cotton outfits in lighter colors and graphics bearing things like...well, geometric hipster patterns, buddha, and flowers. 

http://www.brandymelvilleusa.com/

my one complaint so far is that all the models on the website are caucasian...nothing against THEM, but I mean, they have a wide range of DIFFERENT customers....

http://www.myretailmedia.com/blog/10248/brandy_melville_opens_new_flagship_store_in_london.php

the store I went to was tiny on the outside....and bigger on the inside! 

The stores are full of nice woods, soft lighting, and cute displays of pastels and dried plants, etc. So, I was impressed with their cute and casual style, with lots of drape-like fabrics and smock dresses that remind me of The White Pepper (check it out, but its pricy!). The prices were pretty decent with really cheap but nice looking jewelry! Here are some of my picks, all from the site:

cute, unique graphics

overall simple design

smock-style dress!

Love the gingham...summer tank

school-girl skirts ftw!

soft looking, nice pastels

reminds me of a cheerleader top

"vodi" shorts...cute and ruffly...might be nice to wear under a dress...ya know, for the windy days

fuzzy! the fuzz reminds me of the amazing Meadham Kirchoff

Whaddya think? You like? 

Now, to close this post, here's some of my day!

from the cutest British-themed shop....these cups would be great for my evening wet-leaf! haha, i mean TEA of course!

from the shop....Cadbury Milk Chocolate Fingers! addicting...

food! Tried a grain called "Bulgur"...I don;t know why. Any way, it's good, as grains go. served with pesto-chicken.

Straciatella gelato with Aranciata (orange) San Pellegrino! Ohoho, so Italian! i liked the flashes of orange in this picture!

Toodle-oo! Have a nice day! yay!

Blue Babe

Hey! So, here's a recent outfit for ya! This is my first shoot outside, and its actually much more fun and visually pleasing! However, I'm too scared to take photos with many people around to stare! I just went to Baby Blues BBQ...and it's the best pulled pork sandwich I've had! It has a nice charred yet soft bun, full of coleslaw with some sauce in it, and the smokiest pork, perfect with sweet tea~ They had the nicest mural outside, which happened to match that blue Superman shirt I got from Goodwill with its color! 

the mural they did for the sign

matchy shirt color! And I have a ponytail, for once!

    I zoomed in a bit more so you can see better...would you like me to make all my photos a bit bigger?

                                                                      Outfit Rundown:
                                                       tee- Goodwill, DC certified!
                                                       shorts and flats- f21 (they're corduroy!)
                                                       belt- Gap
                                                       socks- Asos
                                                       headband- claires..it has skulls, but you can't see
                                                       scrunchie- actually a plaid American Apparel
                                                     

me an my sweet tea~

the cool walls!

                                            swap meet across the street...I liked the sign~

sooooo yummy...and with a little cornbread for the fixins'!

Asos socks....I love Asos, they ship really quickly and have nice clothes

Thrifty Findings

Hi, that title was supposed to sort of seem like alliteration....it really doesn't, sorry. I said I'd work on my title skills, and this is my finest work! Ta-da~*sarcastic tone* The "th" sound and the "f" sound are NOT the same, Eila... Anyyyywayyy, from the title, you can guess that this post is about my thrift and clothing resale finds! Now, of course I'm not trying to brag, and am very happy about my finds and grateful indeed! But you see, I always enjoy these sorts of posts and videos on YouTube, so I thought I'd try! I apologize if these posts irritate or offend. Now, shall we see?

Note, these photos are at a medium size to preserve space, as this post is a bit photo-heavy!

Banana Republic sweater- Goodwill for about $7 or so

Shiny buttons and super soft salt and pepper fabric

Random Goodwill sweater, classic cut, creme color...don't remember price..maybe 2 or 3 bucks...sale item

sweaterish military cut jacket...maybe about 7 bucks, but I don't remember exactly

It's supposed to be a deep navy color, but the camera messed it up

Forever 21 from Goodwill- soft coco cotton with cats on it, slouchy fit...$7, maybe

Superman tee for $1, about, Goodwill

Now for the resale shop clothes: these are both from Crossroads....

Old Navy jeans for about $6...sale item

Actually a much nicer, dark wash...they fit skinny, but comfy and soft...plus with real zippers on the ankles!

Juicy Couture jean jacket for $18!  

details....it's a crop fit with tons of buttons

the faded back, with more buttons yet!

I really like stores like these because they reuse, so you're helping the environment, and Goodwill works to help others. Also, the prices are very reasonable~ Hey, you might guess that I really like sweets, and Trader Joe's...well I just wanted to recommend to y'all to try their own brand of peanut butter cups! They're dark chocolate, but sweet, with real peanut butter...they're tiny and cute too!

Only about $4! 

My fingers look weird here...oh and look, my foot in a corner, sorry

Yuuummmm

Serving size says 3 peices...HAHAHAH, that's funny!

Oh ya, if ya care to see,I did a watercolor and ink sketchy thing recently...sorry, so random, but have a look~

It's daisy from the recent Great Gatsby movie!

Look what happened while sketching the first outlines....any art-folk understand this terrible sight? Hehe~ That, friends, is pencil on my finger...it smudges my hand and the paper..tsk tsk.

Hope this post was nice~ Have a nice day!