Thursday, May 29, 2014

Outfit Inspiration: Captain America

I am a little frustrated right now. I'm really tired and didn't want to write much anyway. But I still did. And even after I clearly hit save . . . everything is gone. Everything. Here's an abbreviated version of what I wrote: Blah blah blah, I love Captain America. Can I be done now? 

Dress // Coat // Ring // Unable to locate boots and belt


I guess I'll write a little of what I had. It can't be too hard considering I just wrote it--should be fresh in my mind. Who am I kidding. My memory's terrible. So we'll see how this turns out.

I was definitely basing these outfit more on the first Captain America movie (2011), but I have seen Winter Soldier and it was amazing. Back to the first movie though. Two things: I love Marvel and I enjoy watching movies that are well done. This was Marvel and it was really well done. So I really enjoyed watching it. Also, it takes place in the 40s so that just made it even more fun!

There's not really anything to complain about in regards to the movie. Great script, music, costuming, effects, etc. The cast was fantastic too. Chris Evans, Sebastian Stan, Hayley Atwell, Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving--everyone did a wonderful job. And Dominic Cooper was great as Tony Stark's father, Howard Stark. The similarities between the father and son are hilarious at times. 

Oh! For some reason I didn't even notice this until the last time I watched the movie (which was two days ago). So, Jenna-Louise Coleman (Clara - Doctor Who) has a small part in the movie. And so does Richard Armitage (Thorin - The Hobbit // Guy of Gisborne - BBC Robin Hood) who also made an appearance in last week's Robin Hood post! Well, I thought that was cool.

Well, if you haven't seen Captain America yet I would encourage you to do so! And if you have seen it already, tell me what you thought!

There. I wrote everything(ish) a second time. I hope you're happy, Blogspot.

Friday, May 23, 2014

Blue Gingham - eShakti Review

Dress - c/o eShakti // Shoes - Hotcakes // Hat - Target // Necklace - Walmart

Pictures taken by Laura

Near the end of last month eShakti contacted me asking if I'd be interested in reviewing a product for them and I was more than happy to oblige! If you haven't heard of eShakti before, they offer beautiful custom clothing in sizes 0-36W.

I've spent a lot of time looking at their dresses, but, due to limited funding, I hadn't purchased one. Needless to say, I was very excited to finally have an eShakti dress! I chose this blue gingham one because it really reminded me of Dorothy from Wizard of Oz (which is why I had to pair it with red shoes). Now the color is slightly brighter on the dress than what it appeared on my screen, but I think that's the fault of my computer 'cause I've had this issue before with my darn screen. And it's still a nice color, just brighter than what I was expecting. The dress comes with cap sleeves and hits below the knee, but I customized it to have short sleeves and to hit above the knee. The sleeves were a wee bit too long, but I folded them over once and ironed them to stay and now they're perfect!

The dress is comfortable and very well made. I haven't had the dress for very long, but at this point it looks like it's going to last a long time. Which is good, 'cause I like the dress and I already have plans to wear it a lot this summer. Right out of the box the dress was a little wrinkly, to be expected with any clothing in the mail, and it took awhile to iron the wrinkles out. But, the fabric itself does not wrinkle easily so once it was ironed it was all good!

Oh, and did I mention the dress comes with pockets? I love a dress with pockets! Like I said earlier, I customized the dress a bit and if you didn't want the pockets, you could actually order the dress without them. (Although I can't imagine why someone would want a dress without pockets) You can also adjust the sleeves and length of the dress like I did. Or you can purchase a completely custom size. I just ordered a standard size and it fits perfectly! Really though, the dress does fit perfectly--it's very flattering too! The side zipper makes getting the dress on and off easy. Also, there's some elastic in the back to ensure a good fit.

So yes, I'd definitely recommend both eShakti and this dress to everyone! Don't forget to visit eShakti's website and here's a link directly to this dress. Also be sure to check out eShakti on Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook.

Also, if you order from eShakti before June 17 (of this year) you can use the code ‘findes‘ and you can get 10% off!

Code has to be entered in the ‘promotional code’ box.   It is not case-sensitive.  
Code can be used any number of times until the validity period. 
It can be clubbed with any other promotional offer, gift coupon or gift card in the same order unless explicitly specified otherwise in the offer conditions.
This discount code is not applicable on clearance / sale, gift cards & overstock categories.
Not applicable on previous purchases. 

Well, I hope you have a wonderful holiday weekend and I hope you'll also check out eShakti!

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Too Much

Shirt - a.n.a // Skirt - H&M (Thrifted) // Cardigan - Mossimo (Thrifted)  // Belt and Shoes - Body Central

I've gone through my closet several times over the last few months and I've gotten rid of so much stuff and yet there's still so much left! I've been taking my unwanted clothes to a mission nearby so I'm glad that at least they'll be put to good use. Still it makes me think--even after removing excess I still have excess. And it's kind of disgusting really. But it does make me be thankful for what I have.

Monday, May 19, 2014

Outfit Inspiration: Robin Hood

So, for fun I often put together outfits while I'm watching TV or something. And I happen to have a lot of these outfits so I thought Hey, I should post these! . . . and actually sort of put them to good use. Anywho. I've been watching BBC's Robin Hood recently. Can't say I absolutely love the show, but I do like watching different adaptions of Robin Hood. And I guess if I get my inspiration from either TV or a movie I can also give a short review of it as well. Do let me know if you'd like to see more this feature because I do have a lot of these outfits (and I watch a lot of TV, haha) so I'm considering making this a regular feature! (Since I didn't make these with posting in mind, I'm not sure where all the items came from, but I'll do my best!)

Dress // Boots // Socks (similar) // Necklace // Ring // Cuff

For this first outfit I wanted to go with some of the colors you'd think of with Robin Hood--forest green and dark brown. Green dress, for obvious reasons, and brown boots like those often worn in television adaptions of Robin Hood. Knee socks 'cause, well, I like knee socks. Bow and arrow jewelry 'cause . . . duh. It's Robin Hood. And then some woodsy jewelry reminiscent of Sherwood, the location of Robin's secret camp.


I honestly don't like this second outfit as much, but I was determined to use this dress! Since it's navy and tan, it was a bit of a departure from the green and brown, but it still has a woodsy look to it. Same as above with the jewelry--arrows and nature.

On to the show. As I said before, I've been watching BBC's 2006 Robin Hood. I'm currently on episode 10 of the 3rd and final season. I've actually been trying to watch this show for years, but I just kept watching the first three episodes and then getting distracted with another show. This time though, I was determined to keep watching! Obviously, since I tried so many times to watch this and never really got too into it--it's not a particularly amazing show. Still, it's been pretty fun to watch. I'll give some reasons why I both like and dislike this show with (but no spoilers!).

So I do like the sets--very well done. And Richard Armitage (you may also know him as Thorin Oakenshield) does a fantastic job as the very complex Guy of Gisbourne--his costume in season 3 is pretty amazing too. And, I must say, season 3 is so much better than the first two seasons. Friar Tuck joins the cast in season 3 and it's one of the most interesting (and awesome) portrayals I've seen of Friar Tuck. And Sam Troughton is hilarious as Robin's friend Much. The story's been interesting so far--nothing really stands out in regards to the plot as particularly good or bad. But it has been enjoyable.

The costumes for the most part are alright. But, there are a few that are just so bad! In one episode a character actually wears camo pants. Modern day camo pants! Another character wears what looks like a screen print T-shirt underneath her dress. But again, like everything else, the costuming gets much better in season 3. They also use a lot of modern language and phrases in the show which bothers me a little bit. Also, some of the makeup is a bit modern (and Joanne Froggatt's thinly plucked eyebrows).

Robin's arrows have plastic nocks--though they are barely noticeable. Lastly, while I like Keith Allen's acting (also, he's Lily Allen's dad! Whaaat?) I don't like him as the Sheriff of Nottingham. He's too comical (not in a good way, in this case) and childish. He sometimes reminds me of Tim Curry. And I really really like Tim Curry, but I wouldn't have cast him in this part either.

So, would I recommend this show? Yes and no. If you're a stickler for historical accuracy, you'll hate it. But, I've enjoyed watching the show, and it's BBC, so I would definitely encourage you to give it a try. What about you? Have you seen Robin Hood? What did you think? Do you want to see more of these posts? Let me know!

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Don't Ever Lose a Spider

Dress - Freeway (Modcloth) // Cardigan - Old Navy (Thrifted) // Tights - Walmart // Shoes - Payless

I can think of some weird places I've seen spiders in my house, but I'll never understand the ones that decide to make homes in my shower! The other day I looked up and there happened to be one curled right up in the corner near the ceiling. Now for some reason my bathroom ceiling is really high and this part is over the shower . . . so there's basically no way to reach this part of the ceiling to rid my house of of this spider. Obviously this really bothered me. And now, after visiting my parents' house for a few days, I don't have any idea where this spider went. So . . . I lost the spider.

Still on showers and spiders . . . you know how you come up with the most random/weird thoughts in the shower? Well, as this spider was ruining my shower, my cat was trying to claw her way into the bathroom (Why do cats do that?). And then I thought Hey, what's the difference between cats and spiders. (I believe I already prefaced this with "Shower Thoughts" that should explain things). Anyway, first off, both cats and spiders remove unwanted pests from your home. Second, they both like to find one comfy spot with a good view of the entire area. Third, they sometimes like to stare at you and make you feel very uncomfortable. Fourth, they're both fuzzy. And lastly, they're both clearly evil. And yet, at least in my house, cats are very welcome, while spiders are definitely not. Maybe it's the extra legs. I seriously have the heebie-jeebies just from writing this and I keep feeling phantom spiders crawling on me. Well, here's hoping I don't run into any more spiders today!

Friday, May 9, 2014

Don't Spring Clean During Finals

Dress - JCPenney // Cardigan - Old Navy (Thrifted) // Shoes - Body Central

Well, I finally finished finals! I was planning to blog as I didn't have too much work to do, but I was favoring going to bed early and trying to get a good night's sleep over spending time blogging. I think finals went well, but I won't know for sure until I get all my grades back.

So, for some strange reason I decided to start Spring cleaning in the middle of finals. I don't know why this struck me as a good idea, but it did. After everything was all nice and clean I decided to do something even dumber thing (during finals week, that is) and bring up everything I owned from the basement and sort through it. It didn't really affect the amount of time I spent working on final projects, but that was still a rather dumb idea. My dining room now is completely full of containers and stuff I'm getting rid of. I must say, it's nice to not have all that unwanted junk laying around (and bothering me 'cause even though it's in the basement and I can't see it . . . I know it's there). But I still think I could have picked a better time to do this. The job is still unfinished and I'm planning to spend a few days back at my house next week finishing everything up. The sad thing is that I am going to need to Spring clean the upstairs again after this just 'cause all the basement stuff was so nasty and dusty.

Anyways, I'm definitely glad to be done with school for the summer!

Friday, May 2, 2014

The Week Before . . .



Skirt - Charlotte Russe // Shirt - J. Crew (Thrifted) // Cardigan - H & M // Socks - Target // Shoes - Payless

I tell you what. Finals week ain't got nothing on the week before finals. It's so much crazier and there's just so much more to do. But I did it! Finished my last class for the semester! I still have to go in for two finals next week and turn some stuff in, but other than that . . . I am very much done. You know what my favorite part of being done is? Not setting my alarm for tomorrow. NOT SETTING AN ALARM. People, I do not have to get up tomorrow. And most likely won't be.

Welp, in celebration of the end of the semester I am going to Netflix binge for a bit. Oh! And I'll probably waste a bit of time on Pinterest. I . . I can't believe I've avoided Pinterest for so many years. It's awesome! The amount of homework I was avoiding may have contributed to an increased interest in Pinterest. But still, I think it's pretty cool!

Anyways, if any of you have finals soon, I hope they go well! Have a great weekend!