DIY Plastic string bracelet.

Lately I have been feeling creative and up for do it yourself projects. I have seen so many of these bracelets online and I must admit I never thought I would find a purpose for plastic string. These bracelets are adorable and I thought to give it a try and make my own. First, I had to find plastic string, which you can find online anywhere but I bought a pack of various colors at a near dollar store. Then I had to learn how to do "Cobra" stiching and then the "King Cobra" stitching. Tutorials for these forms of stitching can be found here and here. Then, I found a few pieces of jewelry I had that I did not use anymore, such as a long necklace that I broke to get the metal piece you see in the mint colored bracelet. After that, it's stiching away and connecting pieces to obtain a bracelet look.

Here is the end result for two different bracelets I made:

Summer readings.

 Today I am going to talk about a few books I have read since the last book post here.

First, I finished the Hunger Games Trilogy by reading Mockingjay. I hate to admit this but Mockingjay was my least favorite book from the series. Yet, it was still very good. The story is a bit different but it all comes together in the end. It was melancholic, tough and serious, with that amazing side of it that the Hunger Games has. Although it was sad and most people complain that they cannot read the series due to its sadness, there was a lot of happiness to it as well. I had a very good time reading the series and would recommend it to anyone. It is definitely worth the commitment!

 Secondly, I read The Virgin Suicides. What an amazing story. I had heard about this for a long time and have always wanted to read it. The story always sounded so delicate and extreme to me. This is definitely a book that I am interested in. However, I did not love the way the story was told. There were not that many details, but the tragedy of it was amazing. To imagine that this could happen to a family or anyone is insane and extremely sad. I would recommend this book to those who like to read tragedies and abusive stories. If you are a romance person, stay away!

 Third I have a great reading! If I Am Missing or Dead was another story about abuse. In this case, a woman who is abused by her significant others. I loved this book very much. It teaches you a great deal by showing you what others go through on a daily bases. This is my favorite book of this list, and although a little out of my league because there was some romance and things like that, it satisfied me very much and I would recommend it to any woman. Truly an amazing story that could happen to any girl out there looking for love.

Last, but not least is Fifty Shades of Grey. I was a little hesitant to talk about this book because of all the drama and dilemma out there but I decided it would not hurt to just post my opinion here.

I bought this book thinking it would have a bit more sexuality to it, but I have to confess, aside from a few parts, the story is pretty much a romance. I am currently on the second book of the series and I still feel that way about the romance of it. It was still a good story, even though it can be a little silly at times, the character of Grey is truly the reason why I am still reading it and would recommend it.

Nail polish summer trends.

I have not been very creative with my nails lately. Just never seem to find enough time to do different things. However, I still maintain them and make sure they have a cute color on. Lately I have been very into coral and nude colors. Mint and lilac colors are also very in for this season and the summer. I shall try them very soon, but for now I have a few examples of what I have been doing with my nails lately.

Essie "Cute as a button" and some gold glitter 'ombre' style from the bottom to the top.

To obtain this effect (which I found a bit hard) you must start from the bottom and brush it towards the top making sure the bottom has the most amount of glitter and the top the least.

Essie "Brooch the subject" and Martha Stewart glitter.

Essie "Cute as a button" plus a gold polish I got from Aldo.

DIY Braided bracelet.

A while ago I started seeing these cute chain bracelets that had thread braided through them. I thought I could definitely use this as a do it yourself project because it looked easy and doable. So I went to the dollar store and bought a chain. The only thing they had available was one of those pants chains boys use on their jeans, so I had to break the chain into the size I needed and add the clasp, so it is much easier if you already have a chain bracelet and want to give it a new look. I found a tutorial with steps on how to braid it here.

I picked a pastel pink and a bright orange to make sure the colors were good for the summer. Make sure that you cut the thread very long because as you braid it will get shorter and a had to do it over because I ran out of thread.

Here is the end result, which i absolutely love:



All neon everything.

This Spring/Summer is bringing neon back to our outfits. Such risky colors, work best when paired up with nudes and whites. They add a pop to any outfit and somehow make whatever you chose to wear fun. I truly love neon, and although it can be tacky sometimes, if picked right, it can be chic yet spontaneous. If you fear neon, then start off by adding an accessory to your wardrobe. You will see that after wearing it a few times, you will want to add more and more. Below are some affordable cute neon items to give you some idea on what to pick.

1. Bracker Sandals - $48.74 at Aldo

2. Cambridge Satchel - $155 at Shopbop.com

3. Noir Jaipur Bracelet - $125 at Endless.com

4. Neon Scuba Skater Dress - $92 at TopShop.com

5. Skinny Leather Belt - $34.50 at J.Crew

6. Neon Yellow Vest Top - $11 at Debenhams

7. Moto Neon Leigh Jeans - $76 at TopShop.com

8. Helium Yellow Strap Gladiators - $60 at TopShop.com

Lipstain.

It feels good to be back. I have to confess I felt guilty all this time for not posting and putting my hobby on hold for so many months. However, I started graduate school and felt very overwhelmed by my new schedule/routine. Now that I am finally on my summer break from school, I would like to get back to this little old friend of mine and I hope you all will join me once again.

Today I’m going to talk about my favorite lip stain. I have been on the hunt for a long lasting lip makeup for a long time now and I could say that I am still always looking, but I seem to have found the best one so far. This marker style lip stain is very easy to apply and lasts for hours on end. The first time I used it was on New Year’s Eve and I did not have to reapply it at all. My lips stayed red the entire night, through eating and drinking. Although I had to apply it a few times when I was doing my makeup in order to obtain the color I wanted and to make sure the upper lip was even with the lower lip (the upper lip always seems to need more layers), it was all worth it because I was able to have color on my lips all night long. Below is a picture of one of the times I wore this lip stain. So for those of you, who have been looking for a good long lasting stain, invest on this one and you won’t be sorry.

You can buy this lipstain on their website here.