March Favorites

 

Are you curious enough to know about my favorite items of the month? if so then stick with me and if you don’t then .. well i wasn’t prepared for this part.

Let’s start with my favorite song of the month which is Arsonist’s Lullabye by Hozier. So i first heard this song in one of the episodes of the walking dead and i got HOOOOOOKED. It’s creepy, hunting and beautiful and when i listen to it a certain fictional character pops up in my mind and that’s when you know that this song is good.

I got those two masks from lush to try out and i really loved both of them. The first one is the “Cupcake” mask and it’s for oily skin and spotty skin, it calms your skin and it’s supposed to smell like chocolate and mint but i feel like it smells like chocolate and roses so i do recommend you sniffing it before getting it because you wouldn’t want to put something on your face that you don’t like the smell of specially that the scent kind of lingers on your face for a long time.

The second mask is “Don’t look at Me” mask and its for all types of skins. It exfoliate, moisturize and brighten face. Its made of lemon juice and ground rice and when you wash it off the ground rice scrubs away your dry skin. I love the smell of it and it’s fun to put it on because your whole face turns blue.

So i haven’t had the legit time to watch any tv shows this month. However i got like a couple of hours every now and then and i watched some real-life shows(?). It’s just easier to watch those kind of shows when you’re busy because you don’t have to really “get” into it, you can watch it while doing your home works or cleaning your room and you won’t miss out on anything.

So i kept on watching dance moms every weekend simply because i love dancing and choreography and I’ve been watching it since it begun so it’s really hard to stop plus nobody can say no to the free drama and craziness that comes with this show.

The Voice, when they announced that Christiana Aguilera is going to be in this season i just knew that i had to watch it. Yeah i love her to the point where i’d watch a whole show just to see her in it plus i usually watch The Voice till the blind auditions end so it wasn’t that big a deal for me.

Dancing With the Stars, now i know that the stars in this season are not that great but the only reason why I’m watching it is because i feel like theres a chance that Mark can win this season because they partnered him up with a really good dancer and it’s fun to watch.

I know what you’re thinking, what are we exactly looking at? I choose this granola as my favorite snack, it’s weird because that’s just … HEALTHY. I’m trying to eat healthy and I’m a really picky eater so i bought this granola just to see whatever i’ll be “okay” with eating something like that or not AND DAMNNNNNN i didn’t think that i’d enjoy it that much but i found myself munching on it this whole month because its yummy! and healthy! and that’s just crazy.

My favorite drink of the month is Earl Grey Tea and I’ve been looking for a good brand and i think that that Two Leaves Tea Company is really good. The reason why i liked it more than any other brand is because the taste is so balanced, it’s not too dark or too floral it’s just perfect and it’s also organic! plus it’s in a satchel and that’s just fancy.

Now if you know me you probably know that i am obsessed with candles and this month i kept on lighting this baby up because it’s delicious! Twue Wuv by Frostbeard Studio is a sweet scented candle that smells like a wedding cake with the real yummy frosting and not the too sugary kind but the legit frosting. So this candle is actually limited edition and i think that they will stop selling it soon so i went ahead and ordered another one because i know for sure that i’ll never get enough of this scent.

This is weird but i love stationary and I’m obsessed with list pads because I’m always planning my day and this is the perfect to do list pad because it comes with different pages and they’re all just so cute. I got it from Paperchase but sadly i can’t find a link to it however i think that you might find it if you visit a nearby store.

D’iris by Prada is my current favorite fragrance. It smells like baby powder and something really clean. I know it’s like weird to say that but it really does smell like a just bathed new baby born and i love scents like that.

I’m sorry that this picture is not that clear but I’m simply showing off my FAVORITE pj of the month which has the most famous female disney villains on it and that’s just WICKED! plus it matches my cup of coffee. I got this pj from Women’s Secret and they have this whole collection of villains & princesses.

I’m also holding up my favorite book of the month which is THE CONSPIRACY OF US by Maggie Hall, if you’re interested click here to know more about the book.

The Last thing that i want to talk about are those hair products. So I’ve been using this “Magic Elixir” and the cream next to it regularly and i can see the difference and effect it has on my hair. My hair is a bit dry so those products are hydrating my hair. First thing you need to do is put some of the oil on your scalp and message into your scalp and leave it for about 10 minutes then wash your hair like you usually do and after drying your hair with a towel you can put on some of that cream.

I hope that you enjoyed this post and found something useful in it.

 

Owlcrate’s March Box

I finally got my Owlcrate box and i want to share the contents with you guys, fair warning though there is going to be some major spoilers in this post and this video.

First of all, for those of you who don’t know what Owlcrate is. Owlcrate is a young adult book subscription box that gets sent monthly to your doorsteps. Each month has a different theme and inside the box you will find a new released YA book and 3 to 5 kickass bookish things (more details at the end of the post).

Starting with my favorite thing which is the CARD that gets send monthly but obviously it’s different each month because it explains the different things inside each box.

I simply adore the details on their cards and how much effort they put into making those

So the theme of the month is “Writer’s Block” which is really creative and fun, it’s definitely one of my favorite boxes ever!

In this box you get a pair of Banned Books Socks from out of the print because one of the ways that an author can be blocked is by banning their books from being published even though the books they’re trying to publish are awesome.

Bookworm Boutique is one of the best stores that sell bookish merch so i was glad to hear that its partnering up with Owlcrate for this box! These are the pins that were exclusively made for Owlcrate and they’re beautiful.

The “642 tiny things to write about” notebook by Chronicle Books that will help you come up with awesome stories to write about specially with the cute quill pen from Kikkerland that i adore.

AND THE BOOK OF THE MONTH IS .. THE SERPENT KING BY JEFF ZENTER! Now this is a coming-of-age novel that talks about the obstacles that the main teen characters are facing in their life, including their past/future and their own creative struggles. This book also comes with a letter from the author and a postcard (i think).

So the cost of the box is $29.99 without the shipping and it ships internationally, if you’re interested in getting one you can use the 10% discount codes in bio of owlcrate reps.

Eggs in a Nest Cupcakes

So around this time of the year i get in my “Baker” spirit and I’ve been seeing lots of different types of cupcakes but i settled on making something similar to those cupcakes, the recipe was easy and the results were delicious so i thought I’d share it with you guys.

Theres also a video on how to make those, just click here!

 

Ingredients for the cupcakes:

•  429g all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 375ml of milk
• 125ml vegetable oil
• 125g softened unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp greek yoghurt ( you can use sour cream instead)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• Chocolate eggs to put in the cupcake
• Yellow food coloring

Ingredients for the buttercream frosting:

• 500g softened unsalted butter
• 1020g soft icing sugar
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Green food coloring

Things you need for decorating:

• Colored chocolate eggs
• Shaved Dark chocolate

 

First thing you need to do is preheat your oven. Then add all of your cupcake dry ingredients and mix it for a couple of minutes. Afterward add your softened butter to the mixture and mix it till you get a crumbly sand-like texture.

In a measuring cup (or bowl) add all of your cupcake wet ingredients and whisk them together. Then pour in your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients in a slow steady stream and beat it till everything is fully combined.

Fill in your cupcake liners with a scoop full of the batter then add in your chocolate eggs and bake it in the oven for about 20-25 minutes. After it’s done baking let the cupcakes cool on a cooling rack.

Pipe your frosting in a swirl like motion and then sprinkle your chocolate shaving. Finally place 3 of your chocolate eggs in the center of the cupcake.

To Make the frosting:

You need to mix the butter in a mixing bowl till it’s fluffy and pale. Pour in half of your icing sugar and mix it with the butter until it’s fully mixed then add in the rest of your icing sugar with the milk and vanilla. You can also add in your food coloring while it’s mixing or after .. it’s really up to you.

The Fill-in Boyfriend

The Fill-in Boyfriend by Kasie West

5/5 Stars

To say that I was expecting this book to be this good is an understatement, I’ve never thought I’d say this but this book is even better than I was expecting, I think mostly because I enjoy books like that. You know those cute scenarios that u make up in your mind and then you’re like I want that in a book well this book was filled with those. It’s a bit predictable but it’s a fun book and honestly I don’t think that effected it in any way. I love Kasie west and now I love her even more and I can’t wait for her to write another book. the characters in the book are just lovable and somehow I felt like I’m in a similar position to Gia’s situation with her friends and somehow that made me connect with the book even more. Hayden is one of my favorite (if not THEE favorite) fictional boy character, he’s just adorable and geeky and that’s so beautiful.

Here’s the spoilery section guys so watch out!

At the beginning Bradley seemed like a genuinely nice person which made me think that he’ll come back in her life in a way that would demand a love triangle but then she started saying about how she haven’t met his friends and he haven’t met her friends which made it seem like she’s his dirty secret, honestly I don’t give a damn about Bradley he wasn’t that important to me at all.

Jules is exactly like someone I know so I loathed her with all my heart, I get it that she’s going through some stuff with her mom but that doesn’t make it okay to act like this, she’s just way to possessive of Claire and she needs to chill, I just don’t get how Claire can’t see right through her, Gia has been her best friends for years she should have known better, she can’t simply throw all of that away because of a stupid mistake, I don’t get it honestly because I don’t think that what Gia did is huge or unforgivable specially with her reasons, Bec is just awesome and I love her relationship with Hayden and honestly I love her whole family, it’s true that sometimes Bec can get on your nerve but she’s just honest and gia needs that because she’s absolutely clueless, and I love how her friendship revolved with Gia it’s just adorable.

Hayden Hayden Hayden, can I have him for life? He’s just Perfect, so easy going and fun. I love how he takes his acting seriously and how polite he’s, and everytime he’s like trying to make “Eva” jealous by touching Gia my heart melts, I love the whole let’s make her jealous part because it wasn’t all an act there are parts where they did it because they wanted to, and I love how he offered to take her to the banquet, I won’t be able to stop talking about him lol.

Drew is a douche till the end, I know that they somehow made up and all of that but I still feel like what he did is going to effect Gia forever specially since he is her brother.

Well I’d love to go on and on and on but I really have to study because my finals starts on Tuesday and I’m super nervous.

If you have read the fill in boyfriend tell me who’s your favorite character? And what was your favorite part?

Map of Fates

Map of Fates By Maggie Hall

5/5 Stars

Let’s be honest here, squeals usually are dull and less interesting than first books which is why I was so afraid of starting this book but I am more than pleased to announce that the second book is just as good (if not even better) than the first book. I was so hooked from the very beginning, I couldn’t even fathom how creative and awesome this series can get and I’m still speechless

In the second book of the conspiracy of us series we get to meet many new characters, explore more countries and learn more secrets 🗝 there are some shocking plot twists and there are some heartwarming parts that will have you swooning.

I loved this book to the point where I want to bottle up all that I’m feeling right now and reopen this bottle right before I start the last book 💔 I honestly can’t wait a whole year for the third book, the thought of that is killing me but we can’t do anything about that but wait .. I’m also determine to reread the whole series next year and it’s so weird that I’m looking forward to that when I just finished the series

BTW the reason I read this book as an ebook is because I just couldn’t wait for my physical copy to arrive 😅

The Conspiracy of Us

The Conspiracy of Us By Maggie Hall

5/5 Stars

Do you see that puddle in front of you? Yeah that very happy looking puddle is me after finishing this book. I honestly think that I’m pure liquid right now because this book melted all of me .. Emotions, organs and bones. Okay I am exaggerating but I seriously can’t help it 💔
This book is about a girl called Avery who lived her whole life moving from one city to another with her mom but in Minneapolis she meets someone and discover something that changes her life forever. Now Avery has to meet her family and her family is a part of a secret society called the circle. In this book u get to travel from country to another trying to unravel a mystery with two extremely hot guys 😍 I find the whole storyline fascinating because it has that “Cinderella” feels to it that can seriously make any girl swoon, there’s mystery in it which is something that I love and ofc the two hot guys, As simple as that. I don’t want to spoil anything but I really loved the characters and the way the first book ended, I’m sure that this series is going to be one of my favorite series ever

Now for those who have read it, who do YOU fancy more .. Jack or Stellan? It’s no surprise that I love Stellan and I could literally spend hours justifying why I love him.

HappyHelloCo BookMarks

In the past couple of months I’ve been seeing a lot of people posting pictures of those “reading partner” bookmarks and i was like WAIT, WHAT! WHY DONT I’VE ONE OF THOSE? and i got me one of those bookmarks .. okay not one i got like 20 but can you really blame me?

So HappyHelloCo is a small business owned by a bookworm who has a talent to draw and design. She draws characters from different books and turn them into those cute-little-book-marks-reading-partners. I just thought about showing you all what i got and i’ll be adding links to each item in case you want to know about the prices and where to get them from.

Starting with my harry potter bookmarks. These are two sets the first one is Harry, Hermione and Ron. The second one is Hagrid, Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall. There are also two more sets but sadly they were sold out.

I love the details in the back  of each character.

And thats what they look like from the inside (In case you were wondering!)

That’s Feyre from “A Court of Thorns and Roses” there is also another set with Tamlin, Lucien and Rhysand and it’s so cute!

Cute, they’re just so cute. Let’s start with the top left side .. so this is a 3 bookmarks set. You get Rowan, Dorian and Chaol but as you can see my Chaol didn’t make it to the top lol. Next you have The Assassin and each one of those is sold separately. Finally the ones on the right side .. well those were quite a mystery to many people however if you haven’t read the third book you won’t know who they’re and if you did then you can probably figure out who’s who. I’m not going to leave you hanging there without any clues so first clue is the first two at top are the same character and she’s a female. Second clue is that the third bookmark represent a male character. There’s no need to say anything about the fourth bookmark because the cape gives it all. Now the last clue is that the last character is really pretty.

Daemon Black and Kat from the Lux series. I love how Kat’s tiny shirt has “My blog is better than your vlog” on it.

Now i’ll be honest with you, i don’t know who those are because i didn’t even know this series exist till i saw the bookmarks and then i bought them and bought the book afterward. i just had to get them because this fella in the middle with his hair covering his eyes is definitely a character that i’ll love to pieces .. call it a fangirl’s instinct.

If you have read Stephanie Perkins books you can already tell who’s who because it’s THAT obvious. There’s a set for each single book however you can get them all at once.

The Lunar Chronicles is one of my favorite series ever so i was very pleased when i found out that those bookmarks are still in stock.  So there are also two sets in this picture, the first one is Kai, Throne, Wolf, Cinder, Scarlet and Cress. The second set is Winter and Jacin.

I’m not really sure about this one but for me it looks like America and Prince Maxon but some people are saying they’re not .. i think that it’s them because of what this set is called in the website anyway they’re so cute.

This final set is from the Six of Crows series and it melts my heart every time i look at it. JUST LOOK AT HOW CHUBBY AND CUTE THEY’RE!!!

If you didn’t find a link to the bookmark that means that it’s actually sold out so you have to check her store on Etsy every now and then because she usually restock but they sell out really fast.

I really hope that you enjoyed this post and found it useful, if you have anymore questions just ask me and i’ll try my best to answer.

How to Make Old Faded Papers

I love to have a theme when I’m taking a picture and i love historical things so i really enjoy taking historical themed pictures. Now when you are taking a historical themed picture old faded papers add something to it and I’m going to teach you how to make old-looking-faded-papers .

The things that you will need are:

• Papers .. any type of papers that you want
• Instant Coffee
• Hot Water
• Paper Towels
• Baking Tray
• Lighter (optional)

 

First thing you need to do is to add your instant coffee to the hot water, you don’t need any kind of measurement for this and you can also use your “leftover” coffee and get the same result. The reason you need to use hot water is because you want the coffee crystals to completely dissolve but you can also use a bit of hot water and then add some cool water afterward if you’re afraid of burning yourself. Don’t forget to save some of your instant coffee crystals for later.

The next step is to dip your paper towel in the coffee and then dap the paper. This process can take a while because you need to drench the paper completely and you also need to let out any air bubbles that formed underneath the paper by pressing on those with the paper towel you’re using or simply by using your fingers.

This is what your papers are going to like after finishing the second step.

Now you add the rest of your coffee crystals randomly on top of your paper and press on it with you paper towel so those crystals would also dissolve. The reason why i do this is to give the paper some dark spots that old papers usually have. This step is actually optional but i really like the way the papers turn out after doing this step.

As you can see i didn’t really melt all of the coffee crystals because honestly i didn’t have the time to do that and they turned out fine… i think.

Afterwards, you put the papers in the oven on low heat for about 6-7 minutes. Some ovens work faster and some work slower but you can always know that your papers are done when they are completely dry.

 and BAAAAAAAAAAM you have your old looking papers.

Now if you’re going all out on this one, you might as well start burning parts of the paper. Please be careful while doing that, I’m sure firefighters wouldn’t be pleased with the fact that you burned the whole house down because you’re making “old faded papers”.

So i wanted to darken a spot in the middle of the paper and i ended up burning the a large portion of this paper 😂 Just don’t do that and learn from my mistake.

And that’s the final result 📜 I hope that you guys enjoy that and if you ever make one of those papers just let me know because I’m dying to see how yours turn out!

Favorite Animes

I got asked a couple of times to recommend some Animes so i thought i’d write a whole post on my all time favorite Animes

Starting with Fruit Basket .. its an Anime that I’ve been watching my whole life. So the story is about a 16 years old recently orphaned girl who lives under some very harsh life conditions until one day she got asked to move in and live with two of her classmates, they’re both very handsome boys and they live with their uncle (guardian?) and they’re all part of the Sohma family. What’s different about this family is that they’re cursed, if they got hugged by the opposite gender they transform into animals of the Chinese zodiac. Now if you’re thinking that its just a romantic series then let me tell you that its absolutely not, in this anime you meet many characters who faced many obstacles in life and you actually do learn some life lessons from them. It’s beautiful, touching  and simply creative. It’s also very funny. It’s a 26 episode series and each episode is about 24 minutes.

Vampire knight, obviously it’s about vampires but Japanese people wouldn’t stop at that, would they? “Yuki’s earliest memory is of a stormy night in winter, wherein she was attacked by a vampire… And then rescued by another. Now 10 years later, Yuki Cross, the adopted daughter of the headmaster of Cross Academy, has grown up and become a guardian of the vampire race, protecting her savior, Kaname, from discovery as he leads a group of vampires at the elite boarding school. But also at her side is Zero Kiryu, a childhood friend who’s hatred for the creatures that destroyed everything he held dear, is now determined never to trust them. This coexisting arrangement seems all well and good, but have the vampires truly renounced their murderous ways, or is there a darker truth behind their actions. Is Kaname’s infatuation with Yuki the beginning of a forbidden romance, or is it something in her forgotten past that draws him to her. Because in this world of secrets, nothing is as it seems. And the price of misplaced trust may even be worse than death.” (AnimeNewsNetwork.) so this anime is a mixture of love triangle, vampires and some very kick ass action moments. However, theres a sequel to this series and its “Vampire Knight Guilty” Shocker, i know. I know that the plot sounds cheesy but it’s really interesting and I’m sure you will end up watching both seasons in one day.

Now this Anime is a must-watch Anime series because its absolutely hilarious and you can never get bored while watching it. Ouran High School Host Club is about Haruhi who is a poor tomboyish student at a school for the ultra-wealthy, able to attend because of a scholarship, and unable to even afford a uniform. One day, she stumbles across the decidedly peculiar but very popular Ouran Host Club. She tries to leave, but accidentally breaks a vase, and unable to pay for it, she’s told that she’ll have to stay and do odd jobs. That is, until they decide she would be more valuable as a club member. Not realizing she’s female due to her appearance, they fix her up and give her a male uniform. She’s an instant hit, so they decide to have her keep up the charade even after they find out the truth. Now i think that host clubs are something common in japan but if you’re like me and you have no slight clue on what host clubs are, don’t worry this anime will explain it so well and you will be able to keep along. You will laugh, laugh and laugh while watching this and its the perfect cure for a bad day.

Kamisama Hajimemashita or Kamisama kiss is an anime that i watched recently and i absolutely adored it. It’s about a girl called Nanami who doesn’t have anywhere to live due to the fact that her father gambled away all of their money and she got evacuated from the place she lives, now since Nanami doesn’t have anywhere to live she meets a stranger who tells her his story and then he gives her a map to his place and asks here to stay there if she wants to because she saved him and he’s going somewhere so the place is empty. Now although this sounds extremely scary and creepy, Nanami does go to his place because she’s that desperate but when she arrived she found out that his place is actually a rundown shrine .. Now the crazy thing about this is that by going to this place and accepting the strangers offer she’s actually the new land god of this shrine and that’s when all the crazy creatures start popping up and by crazy creatures i mean other gods. It’s funny and adorable because theres a love-hate relationship between her and her “familiar” and just seeing a human being who lives a normal life suddenly being turned into a god is fun. The story does sound kinda crazy but it’s addicting. There’s a sequel to this anime as well and it’s just as wonderful as the first season.

Now if you don’t watch Animes and you simply wanna know what they’re and whatever you will enjoy watching it or not, you can simply start by watching anime movies. Studio Ghibli makes the best anime movies and my top two favorites are “Howl’s Moving Castle” and “Spirited Away”.  I think that there are trailers out there because this production company worked with Disney and it’s really famous. I really recommend watching Howl’s Moving Castle because its fantastic.

You can watch animes online or you can buy them. You can also choose between the Dubbed and Subbed version. Dubbed means that the characters are speaking in english or any other available language that you choose and Subbed means that they’re speaking in Japanese with the choice of subtitle that you’re choosing.

Many people think that watching anime is lame because they think that Animes are cartoons, they’re both motion pictures but the difference is that Animes are more for older people because the stories they tell are deeper and consist of life issues and human emotions. Animes also differ from cartoons in the way they’re drawn, the characters are more realistic and their facial expressions are more accurate. You’re basically being offensive to the whole Japanese cultural when you say that but lets face it, who cares about what others think? Now the reason why i love watching Animes is because its the closest thing to books, when a book gets turned into a movie or tv show you kind of lose the elements of imagination but with animes you don’t. I grew up watching Animes like detective Conan,  Naruto and CardCaptor Sakura and i thinks that another reason why I’ve this “connection” with Animes.

Thank you so much for reading and don’t forget to comment the titles of your favorite Animes so i could watch them. Also if you want me to review an anime just tell me which one it’s and ill be happy to do so.

Book Reviews

• And I Darken by Kiersten White
• Assassin’s Heart by Sarah Ahier
• Better off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg
• Boys, Bears and a Serious Pair of Hiking Boots
• Broken Prince by Erin Watt
• Da Vinci’s Tiger by L.M. Elliott
• Defending Taylor by Miranda Kenneally
• Doon by Carey Corp & Lorie Langdon
• Dreamology by Lucy Keating
• Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes
• Frozen Tides by Morgan Rhodes
• Geek Girl: Head over Heels by Holly Smale
• Getting Over Garrett Delany by Abby McDonald
• Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard  
• Hearts, Fingers And Other Things to Cross by Katie Finn
• Hotel Ruby by Suzanne Young
• It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
• Little Black Dresses, Little White Lies by Laura Stampler
• Map of Fates by Maggie Hall
• My Fair Princess by Vanessa Kelly
• My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows
• November 9 by Colleen Hoover
• Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakley
• Rebel Spring by Morgan Rhode
• Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier
• Ruined by Amy Tintera
• Stealing Snow by Danielle Paige
• The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall
• The Crown by Kiera Cass
• The Crown’s Game by Evelyn Skye
• The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead
• The New Guy (and Other Senior Year Distractions) by Amy Spalding
• The Queen of Tearling by Erika Johansen
• The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L.Armentrout
• The Shadow Queen by C. J. Redwine
• The Sirens by Kiera Cass
• The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdien
• This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab
• Paper Princess by Erin Watt
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin
• Red Velvet Crush by Christiana Meredith
• Winning by Lara Deloza
• Worlds of Ink and Shadow by Lena Coakley