Looking In the Rear View Mirror

I'm moving on to greener pastures my friends. Image from Falsompastor.

As all of you may have noticed. This year is coming to a close, and fast. Not only am I required by my grade to write this post, but I feel like it's good way to close up this blog. I could make promises to keep writing, and to stay updated, but I feel like after this post, the magic will be lost. And let's all be honest, my readers and page views will go with it soon after. While I am definitely go to miss it, all things must end. Good things don't last forever, and they shouldn't, for that matter. The fact that they end is what makes them special and precious. I'm sure you will all forgive for getting all mushy right there, as it is the last time it will happen.

Looking back on my earlier post it's like I can feel myself holding back a little. I was afraid to share the personal little pieces of me that I give to you in my writing. Of course I was excited to write about things I thought could help people, but I was scared of making a fool of myself. In contrast, I am now a proud "goof up". This is because of you guys, my readers. I saw and heard my friends' interest in my posts and topics,  I realized I had slowly started accomplishing what I first set out to do. To have something so personal be the cause of someone else's joy created more fuzzy feelings than I can describe. And slowly over this year, I felt like I have opened up to you.

I keep talking about how personal this blog was to me, but how can that be? I am literally posting on the world wide web. Emphasis on world wide. Despite all that, my writing style is unique to me, and although I had not explored it very much at the beginning of this blog adventure, I was sure nobody was going to like it. Slowly as I gained more confidence, so did my writing. If you look back, you can start to see me bursting out of my bubble, and using more pop culture references, along with the always important figurative language.

I know I couldn't have done this without the inspiration provided from some other bloggers. Specifically Alexa, and my brother Charlie. I love all the blogs I read, but I always felt more creative, and determined after reading each and everyone of their posts. Speaking of creativity, I might have let mine run a little too free when it came to keeping to the theme of this blog. Originally, the majority of the posts I wanted to make were going to be about school, and balancing the different aspects of life as a teenager. Well, I did some of that, but I also spent a lot more time than I originally planned on the things I do to relax. In a way, I still accomplished my original goal. Through this blog I was able to relieve a lot of stress, and anxiety. So in the end, this blog helped at least one person balance their life.

For the last time, I wanted to say thank you, and good bye.

I've kept it PG all year, but just his once I thought it was okay. Image from QuotesBlog.

Throwing it All the Way Back

Recently I have been looking at old pictures from when I was younger. I'm going to say this in the most modest way possible, I was adorable. I honestly don't know what happened. Life was so simple and magical back then. I honestly believed in the mythical, spoiler alert, Santa, tooth fairy, and Easter bunny. Not only that, but it seems like I had no concept of embarrassment. Now I'm grown up, and am constantly feeling the reddening of my cheeks that occurs with an awkward moment. In this time of great stress and worry, I've decided to throw it back a little to some of my favorite memories of a simpler time. Besides, Thursday, as in throwback Thursday, is the fourth day of the week, and hey, it's fourth quarter!

Me running from a bear... probably

The first memory I'm going to share is of my family's so called "bear hunts." I have no idea how our parents thought of the idea, whether it was a tradition passed down from their childhoods, or we just had too much energy one night, but every once in a while all five of us would grab a flashlight, and head into our large yard at night to look for bears. We sing a stupid song that was both short and repetitive until we made it all the way around the house. Some nights we would even do multiple laps. Despite the lightness of it all, I was always certain that we were going to catch a bear. Even after an abundance of bear hunts where we came back empty handed, I felt there was no doubt that we would run into a bear in the middle of our yard. Looking back, a couple of questions come to mind. Specifically, Why did we want to catch a bear? When we were to encounter said bear, we would be empty handed, save for a flashlight. How were we going to capture/protect ourselves from this bear? Not once did we find a bear (thankfully), but I will always have fond memories my determination, and feeling of invincibility that came with hunting dangerous beasts with my family.

Second is another story from my backyard. After all,  backyards are places of infinite wonder and possibilities to younger kids. So in my backyard, we have a sand box. I'm almost debating putting that last statement into the past, because slowly it has become nothing more than a litter box for the neighborhood cats. Despite that, back in the glory days my siblings and I spent a lot of time there. And out favorite sand box activity? Flooding it. My brothers and I would build an elaborate kingdom, and then starting with just one small lake or river, we would start adding water features until it looked like the set from Water World. If you haven't purposely flooded, and in turn ruined, a small sandbox, I am tempted to say you haven't lived.

Lastly, I remember the nights I pretended to fall asleep at random locations in the house just so my mom or dad would carry me to my room. For example, one night I couldn't fall asleep and I heard my mom in the kitchen. I decided to get out of bed and lay on the kitchen floor with my eyes closed until someone carried me back to my room. All was going as planned, I was about to be picked up by my mom when Charlie (my twin brother with a most excellent blog) sleep walked his way to where we were standing. We asked him what he was doing, unaware that he was unconscious. He then turned around and walked right into our kitchen counter. Being young and short at the time, he hit his head pretty badly. I faintly remember him crying as my mom carried him back to bed, but by that time most of my surroundings were blacked out by my rage. I didn't care if my brother had hurt his head! I just wanted to be carried back to bed. Me being the ridiculous child I was, I stood there waiting for about another five minutes until I realized that my mom wasn't coming back for me. I still hold a grudge to this day. I'll never forget.

You think we are sleeping? Nope. Acting.

Sorry for the long post. I hope you make it through the large amount of stress these coming weeks. Just take deep breaths and try to remember a time when your biggest problem was getting the wrong flavor of popsicle.

The Key to Craftastic Chords

We all remember my snazzy friendship bracelet style headphones I shared with you guys right? Well, I thought you might want something similar to that. Especially now that summer is coming along, its time to break out the hot pink nail polish, and open toed shoes (boys included). And by that, I mean it time to let the light and bright things back into your life. How we are going to do this today is decorate some charger chords. Some of its pros are: makes you a positive and optimistic person by just looking at it, protects your chords, works on headphones too, and it makes the chord undeniably yours (in cases of sibling theft). Another added bonus, this DIY is even easier than the aforementioned headphones project! With a little time, and a very small supply list, no one will be able to deny your arts and crafts swag (it's a real thing, I promise)!

No Charlie, these are not your chargers. Yours are not nearly as fabulous.

The things you will need are very few: a chord of any kind, perler beads (bringing back those childhood memories), and small scissors (I used my mom's sewing scissors). Now that you have all you supplies it's time to start designing! Pick the colors you want, and decide on a pattern (like alternating, or just random). Remember, the more colors you pick, the less sorting out you will have to do to get enough of them. Speaking of sorting the beads out, I got efficient by using the self designed technique I like to call "insert creative name here." It just consists of grabbing a handful of beads out of the bucket, take the ones I want out of my palm and into the bucket lid, and placing the unwanted colors into a separate bowl.

A picture showing many of the techniques
described. Ten points to me for that photography
 skill! And five points to Gryffindor.

Now that you have the beads you want, it's time to put them on you chord. Use your small scissors to cut an opening in the bead, and then use the same scissors to hold the opening wide enough to push your chord into it the bead. Repeat these steps until your chord is covered. It may seem slow at first, but as you work out a process, you will soon get to a speed worthy of the Flash. I was able to finish mine in, give or take, an hour and twenty minutes. Try to beat that! Despite the blisters, it was a fun thing to do with my free time. Added bonus, binging on some Netflix is a perfect way too multitask while doing this DIY.

I hope you enjoyed what will probably be my last DIY as this year comes to a close. Just a reminder, there is still time to stalk, I mean follow, me and this blog. I still have at least one more post coming, and I would love to see your comments and suggestions. I hope you all live through the stress of the coming weeks, and let's be honest, the coming lifetime. Don't stop being incredible, and yes, that is an order.

Living Life In Color

Excuse the cheesy title, but I have been waiting to use that one for a while now. So on Sunday, March 29, I attended the festival of colors, otherwise known as Holi, at the Krishna Temple in Spanish Fork. This, if you do not know, is a celebration of good over evil, love, and equality among all. It can be considered a religious ceremony, but I think everyone should go at least once in their life. It begins with a bonfire the night before, which I did not attend, but the following event the next day is when the clouds of color begin to form. People come and buy a colored powder of the same consistency and taste as flour to throw at each other. I can tell you this from personal experience. Speaking of experience, I wanted to share mine with you, along with a couple tips.

My title for this post does not get more literal than this. Image courtesy of Wikipedia.

As I mentioned before, this is essentially a festival of love and happiness. The moment you walk through the entry gates, you can feel people sharing that with you. I mean that literally, the moment you walk in, there is welcoming committee of people with the colorful dust ready to ruin that perfectly white shirt. The cleaner you are, the more of a target you become. This, despite what it seems like, is not a bad thing. The more you embrace it, the more fun you will have. The best way I can explain it is that you start as a blank canvas that everyone contributes to. Not to mention the large number of works of art you will contribute to. Nobody likes an uncompleted work of art with white spaces, so don't expect to come out clean (my dad bet ten dollars to anyone that could). Never have I been so happy to have my face continually hit with rainbow dust.

Taking a selfie with my mom after getting powder in face at least five times.

Another one of my favorite parts is the atmosphere of the place. No I don't mean the cloud of dust continually drifting above. I loved how genuinely happy everyone seemed to be. The good mood was contagious, and I was still feeling blissful for the entirety of the next day. It felt like everyone knew they were sharing something special and unique, and just being there made you part of some exclusive club.

So artsy. I couldn't help myself.

The festival of colors is fun, but there are some things you need to do to make it that way. Th most obvious is wearing clothes that you don't care about (preferably white). While the rest of my family and I were able to brush most of the dust off, some was still left in my shirt. You should also where easily washable shoes like flip flops, or Crocs for the brave. When going to the festival, you may not be planning on getting hit in the face, but other people might have different plans. This means you should bring sunglasses for eye protection. Bandannas to cover your mouth are also an option, but I was fine without one. Also a must, a bag for your phone. You need to protect your phone while taking those artsy selfies.

I hope you decide to attend this awesome event in the future! Something that is also awesome is you people! That's right, you! Thank you for reading my blog! Challenge for the break, let go of your reservations, and have fun with something you wouldn't normally do (stay safe though, I need your page views).

Easter is Coming

While Easter may not be the biggest holiday such as Christmas or Halloween, I have always loved its bright colors, joyful energy, and not to mention it abundance of amazing candy. My favorites being robin eggs, and cadbury creme eggs. Back on topic, I thought that this year I wanted to be a little more festive than usual. I don't plan on going all out, but just small things to brighten my day. Then I thought, "Hey, I wonder if my readers want to be more festive too!" And so this post was born. So today (as in the day you're reading this), I'm going to share a few small ways to be festive in your everyday whereabouts.

1. The Computer

My desktop at this very moment.

So assuming that all my readers have some sort of device connecting them to the internet (kudos to those that don't and are somehow managing to read my blog. MAGIC), then that means you have a desktop, or phone background of some sort. Something you might already know about these backgrounds, is guess what! They 're customizable! In the spirit of Easter merriment, I have changed my backgrounds to things such as flowers, colorful Easter candy, and my favorite, bunnies! I can't handle it, it's too cute. Now opening up my computer to complete that Vital Vocab is as hard as I thought it would be.

2. The Room

If you are like me, then you might spend a good amount of time in your room. That also means your room is the perfect place for some Easter festivity. As you can already tell, I love Easter candy. Anyway I can convince my mom to buy more of it, I will do. So my first idea is, no surprise here, a jar full of candy. It's colorful, cute, and delicious. My only suggestion think about buying a candy you don't like, that way you aren't tempted to eat your new decor. Not a candy person? Try anything with flowers. You can put them in vases, or make paper flowers for a garland to decorate your walls.

3. The Bag

You take a bag or backpack almost everywhere you go. So why not take some Easter enthusiasm along with it. I'm not asking you to make a world class, hand sewn bag made from just scraps of cloth laying around your house. Just small things like tying colorful hair ties or ribbons to the zipper. The hair ties are perfect for controlling you hair in the ever changing weather that arrives with spring. That is, unless you like that windswept look.




You guys know the drill. Comment, follow, suggest, all that good stuff. Just make sure to share all your newly found gusto with all those around you. And while your sharing, share how amazing you think my blog is. They say there is nothing like "the word of mouth," except for maybe Easter candy. Help, I'm obsessed. I wish you all luck in these final days in the quarter, I'll see you all at the Easter candy obsession support group.

Pecularily Passionate

I don't know about you guys, but there are things that I get weirdly passionate about. Things that, as my can mom tell you, I can rant about for hours. And because my family is tired of hearing about the same irritating topics all the time, I thought I would share it with you, the internet. Because that has never gone wrong before for anyone else. Not to mention, talking about what bothers me often gives people an idea of my weirdest parts, and hey, what's just a little bit more widespread embarrassment right?

Pretty much sums it all up. Image courtesy of Tumblr.

Well, one thing I never understood was why people would stop trying in school. I am not talking about one person specifically, but I'm always confused when people don't even try to complete an assignment. I completely understand if you got confused on how to do the assignment, if you forgot about it, or even if you were absent. I do both of those things regularly. What makes me rant is when people knowingly take the zero. Is it that hard to just try it? And keep in mind,  you're going to have to know this information for the test anyways. Getting that zero now is just asking for another one later on. Besides, any amount of points is better than a zero for your grade. Just suck it up, and do the assignment. Most of the time, it's not half as bad as you think it will be.

While the last paragraph may outline something irritates me beyond belief, it does no affect my behavior like competition does. No matter how small, or pointless the competition is, I aim to win. This wins me glares, stares, and laughs from other people at times, but I am usually oblivious to all of that. While competitiveness isn’t always considered a bad thing, it can lead to a lot of disappointment for me. Especially when we are playing against other people in P.E. There is a saying, “Calm down, it’s P.E, not the Olympics.” Hearing this only encourages my determined behavior. Why should I have to calm down? Is it a crime to try? I understand if you don’t care, but don’t go criticizing me for putting in effort.

I could continue on that topic for a whole blog post, but we have to move on. The last irksome thing that we are going to talk (I say we, but it's really just me talking to myself) in this post is when people take authority. I don't mean teachers, or public authorities like the police or government. I mean when students are asked to lead. A recent example, if you're confused, is in ballet class a couple of weeks ago. My teacher couldn't make it to class so she appointed to other students to be in charge. I have no problem with that. The problem is when someone who I consider to be on an equal standing with me decides that they get to tell me what to do.  So, probably because I was jealous, I started trying to annoy this new leader in as many little ways as I possibly could. Upon reflection of my actions, at the break in the middle of class, I realized how terrible I was being. I apologized, and improved my attitude for the rest of class, but I still proceeded to complain about it to my mom afterwards.

Me during the second half of ballet class. Image courtesy of Pinterest

Moral of the story, I'm insane, and get set off about small, pointless things. Now if your not done judging me, continue to my other posts for more embarrassment. I hope you all have a relatively rant free day!

A Guide To Gifting

Believe it or not, but birthdays, and holidays tend to be an annual thing. The annual part can be hard when it comes to getting gifts for the different people in your life. I have trouble especially when it comes to unknown relationships. Gift giving is dangerous territory, but with this guide, and practice you can become the non-mythical equivalent to Santa. All this for only a payment $99.99 a month for 9 months. Just kidding, it's all free, you're welcome.

Possible reaction to a mediocre present. We can do better than this people. Image courtesy of Elfarandi.

1. Best Friends "Five-Ever" ( Get it? It's bigger than "four-ever.")

Don't let this title mislead you, this section of our guide is not only for very close friends, but also family. This grouping of loved ones can is most of the time either the hardest, or easiest to shop for. While these are the people you know the best, the pressure is on to get them the perfect gift. My suggestion, make it personal. I have gotten my "bestie" a variety of gifts customized to reference our inside jokes. This can mean customized phone cases, headphones, or even t-shirts. Also a possibility, make something yourself. DIY's are fun, and are often the perfect gifts, and guess what! I have posted pages of ideas for you to choose from. Other ideas I have include a surprise room decoration, planning activities to do together like planning a whole day together. The reason you are close with this person is because you love them so it's important that these gifts come from you, not from a store.

Results may vary. Image courtesy of Elloecho

2. Just in School Friends

This section should be used as help when deciding on a gift for an acquaintance. I use the word acquaintance very specifically here. This section is for those friends you aren't extremely close, and maybe don't know as well. Here it is more acceptable to buy things from a store. I commonly go for gift cards, or clothing and accessories if I know their style. Gift cards are perfect because you can  buy one from a store they like to make it personal instead of just handing them cash. Another good idea could be a colorful box or basket full of candy they like. This is inexpensive, but anyone you give it to will love it!

3. That Special Someone

Now you know you've done it right. Image courtesy of Popsugar.

Before you get too excited, I'm not going to talk about what to give you boyfriend or girlfriend. I have no experience in that area, and my advice might do more harm than good. While that may be the case, I know what having a crush feels like. I know that getting a gift for someone you like can be a tricky subject when they don't know about your feelings. So, my suggestion for these gifts is to do it casually. The gift shouldn't be really expensive, or big. Making it really personal might also freak them out. My go to is to make a batch of cupcakes for all your friends, and just happen to have an extra one when you run into him or her.

Well guys, I know was a random time for this post. It would be better received at Christmas, but recently I've felt like a gift guru. So, no more judging for today, unless you decide to look at my other pages, and posts, and also decide to follow me. I promise I won't file a restraining order, even though stalking someone is really creepy. Have a great life, and I'll blog again very soon because I love you all. (Honestly it's because I need more posts to get an A in English.)

Oridinary Miracles

This post may not be relevant to anything I originally set out to do in this blog, but I thought you might enjoy it. After all, laughing is the best form of therapy that doesn't cost ridiculous amounts of money. So to make you laugh today, I thought I would share with you some of my favorite ordinary miracles.

1.  Well, Maybe You Should've Looked Harder

How does she do it? Image courtesy of Elfarandi.

Everybody loses things, and when the time comes that you need them, a chaotic mess is created by your frenzied search. Even if you have checked every nook and cranny, no matter how improbable they may seem, some items may only be found by none other than your mother (take a moment to enjoy that rhyme). Some may say it's a keen eye that evolved through the process of being a mother, but I have a more simple theory, magic. It's the only reasonable explanation. This miracle does become a thing to keep in mind if you're mother, like mine, doesn't like to look for my things when I've lost them. That may be reasonable, but in my opinion, if your are granted such a gift as my mother's, you should use it for the good of others!

2.  Weight Lifting Wonder

While the title of this section may make this seem active, don't let it fool you. This phenomenon occurs in presence of extreme laziness. Picture this, your mom just got back to the store with a car full of groceries. She brings the majority in, but just asks you to take the remaining bags inside from the car. At this point it doesn't matter if there are two or twenty bags left, you are going to make only one trip to carry them in. You are never at a stronger point in your life than when you don't want to make more than one trip, which is generally always. While your at it, enter a weight lifting competition, or audition for superman before the adrenaline like feeling dissipates.

3.  First Try

My face every time. Image courtesy of BookBloggersInt.

Nothing makes you feel more like a boss (check out that hip vernacular yo) than turning to the right page in your textbook on the first try. If this isn't a miracle than I don't know what is. The only thing that may be more spectacular is if anyone witnesses the action happening. If so, be sure to revel in the widened eye contact that ensues because that my friend, is an improbable event. Although I wouldn't draw too much attention to it, or you may get a more common look from your teacher, the death stare.

If you want more miracles to brighten your everyday life, checkout my other posts (I flatter myself). Also, if you want to make my day better, comment or subscribe. Also, I have a page full small projects for you crafters to do in your free time (if there is such a thing). I hope you all have wonderful days and weeks to come, and I'll blog you later.

All Aboard the Struggle Bus

Come join me in my struggle today as I talk about what I hope is a shared helplessness. Today I wanted to talk about that one class we all have where we feel like Miley Cyrus will become clean and wholesome again before we do one thing right. This is going to be general advice for literally any class because if Brian from "The Breakfast Club" taught us anything it's that there is no such thing as "easy A" class.

To get the ball rolling, I'll share my experiences that inspired this post. It could've been a subplot in a mediocre high school genre film, an intelligent girl who never had any real problems with her core classes (me) decides to take a Jewelry class just for fun. As the class begins working on projects, she slowly starts to realize that she is really bad at drilling, and then sawing, and later filing. She tries to correct her mistakes, but nothing is making a large difference. The hard truth of it is, she is struggling in this class. She feels incompetent, and embarrassed. The academic confidence she once had has dissolved into nothingness, leaving her feeling seemingly weak and alone.

Me in jewelry class. Image courtesy of Barkpost.

But seriously guys, I am terrible at jewelry making, and the drill press is the worst part. As my friend Natalie nicely put it "The drill press is the bane of Allison's existence." How should I put this, I would rather write a twenty page essay on my experiences with watching paint dry than use the drill press one more time. It doesn't help that when I'm using it people are usually forming a line behind me. Those people are not really interested in how big of a challenge it is for me, they just want to drill there holes and get on with their lives. I mean who cares if I'm completely paralyzed by fear of the power tool they entrust to 9th graders (because we are supposedly so mature now. I'm trying really hard, but I'm not even living up to my own, now severely lowered, standards.

What I imagine my conversations with my art teacher are going to be like. Image courtesy of EpicPinterestFail.

  So clearly I'm having problems, but how do I, or you for that matter, fix that? my suggestion, find one part of it that you can do even slightly well, and maybe something that you enjoy. If you can focus on that, your life int that class might be easier (no promises in cases like mine), and less miserable.

This beacon of hope for me in my jewelry class is refining our pieces. This means sanding by hand for literally over an hour, and then using the buffing machine, which, by the way has scalped people. All this, just to make it look shiny. Sounds terrible, but I love it, I might even go as far as saying that I'm good at it. On a more social note, I also have good friends in that class (shout out to Sam and Franzi). They keep me from going insane, or should I say more insane.

Well, this is the end for now, but kudos to those who actually made it to the end of this post. Special thanks to my mom for at least trying to understand why I continually embarrass myself on the internet. And finally, none of this would be possible without viewers like you, thank you (PBS reference). Talk you you dorks later (even sooner if you comment on this post)!

The Only Good Reason To Destroy a Book

As the title of this post may tell you, at this point in time I believe there is only one good reason to destroy a book. Give me some time, and I could probably think of more, but for now the only reason is for it to be in the name of arts and crafts. You might be thinking, "That's nice Allison, but what does that have to do with us?" Well, today I'm showing you what I think is the book DIY to end all other book DIYs, the jewelry box book! This project is a little bit challenging and time consuming, but worth the effort.

Also a great for hiding that stash of junk food your parents don't know about.

First, you're going to need some supplies. The most obvious of course, is hardcover book you are willing to cut apart. Mine was a discard from the school library with about 300 pages. Keep details like these in mind when picking your book, it needs to be deep enough to hold your jewelry, but it can be hard to make if the book is extremely long. Next, you're going to need an x-acto knife to cut out the center of your book. You can find them at Michaels, but if you have never used one before, watch this safety video (you can skip the first part about the parts of the knife), and use this practice sheet first. I'm not going to get into the graphic details, but x-acto knives are dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. Last on our mandatory list is mod podge. As always, there are infinite possibilities for other supplies to decorate your book including: patterned paper, stickers, and ribbon.

Next, measure an inch border around your pages as an outline for where to cut. I was able to cut through at least five pages each time, and more if I went over my cuts multiple times. Try to keep all the pages lined up as you cut to keep an even border. Use a binder clip to keep the pages you already cut out connected to your cover, and out of the way. Also, once I got about half way I decided to start working from the back so I didn't have to worry about the pages I already cut getting in my way. This is the most time consuming part of the project so stay patient. Your inside may not be perfect, but that's okay.

I don't even think I need a jewelry box, but I guess it's never really about what I need.

Now, if you wanted to put patterned paper over the cover, this is the time to do it. I like to cut mine about an inch longer than what I need around each edge so I can fold them down and glue them to the other side to prevent the paper from peeling up. Next, glue all your pages together with mod podge by coating all the sides including the newly created inside. Make sure that while your back cover is glued down to create your bottom, the front cover remains unstuck. I coated everything twice just to be sure. Wait for it to dry, and your done!

I hope you enjoy your jewelry box, and if you want to see the original video click here. Check out my new page filled with other things I have made, and watch out for the occasional poll. Feel free to comment, and leave suggestions. See you wonderful freaks later!

Polished to Perfection

Only some of my many creations.

So, If you guys know me, then you you might know that I really like doing nail art. It might've been frustrating for me at first, but the more I got the hang of it, the more calming it became for me. Not only that, but I love the satisfaction it gives me when someone asks me where I got my nails done, and their amazement spreads through their eyes as I tell them that I did them myself. I don't pretend to be an expert, but I think I have gotten pretty good at creating fingertip masterpieces. I did not however start out that way, it took a lot of practice, and a lot of failed attempts before I was able to make creations like those to the left. Working my way from easier designs to harder ones was really good practice, so I wanted to share some of the designs that got me started. And for you male readers out their (here I am hoping you exist), don't be afraid to grab you sister's nail polish and try it out, it may not seem like it, but it is an art form, and girls will be impressed by your nail painting skills.

1. Seeing Spots

I lined my dots up in an alternating pattern, but you can also make it random.

To start, I would like to apologize for using fake nails to show these designs, I didn't feel like taking off the design I already had on my fingers. Plus,  it was easier to take pictures that way. First paint your nails a solid color of your choosing (I feel that goes without saying for all of these designs). Then, to create the dots, you can put a blob of polish on a napkin, or any piece of paper, and dip the end of a bobby pin in. You can also use a tooth pick by repeatedly dipping the end in polish and letting it dry to create a rounded tip. To make your dots look three dimensional, start by placing black dots first, then placing more dots slightly offset of the black ones to make it look like a shadow. I use white dots on top for the best results.

 2. Beautiful Burst

I have loved this design with every base coat I've tried.

 This design takes very little time, and looks beautiful after a little practice. After your base color is dry, begin your burst by making a a curved line from the corner of you nail outwards using a striping tool, thin craft brush, or even a tooth pick dipped in polish. Repeat this to make the burst. After my first color, I added to more layers in different colors (white, and gold glitter), alternating where they were placed.

3. Fancy Flowers

I made this one simple, but you can add more flowers, or even vines.

This design is almost a combination of the last two. Start by adding five dots in a circle on top of you base color. To make the lines in the center of the petals like you see in real flowers, drag a toothpick, or a pencil through the polish, starting in the middle of the petal and ending in the center of the flower. Make a dot, or add a rhinestone to the center of your flower, and add leaves on the sides with a toothpick to complete it.

I hope you try all of these, and play with these ideas to make them even better. It can be frustrating at first, but the more you try, the better you will get. If you want more beginner's nail art designs, MissJenFabulous on YouTube has an entire playlist, and adds another video every month. Make sure to vote on the new poll on my sidebar, and check out the new page filled with DIYs I made that are too easy to blog about. Thanks for reading!

Vacation Procrastination

We all do it. In fact, that's exactly what I'm doing right now. I am in Las Vegas until Sunday for a dance competition (Youth America Grand Prix), and I have decided to write in impromptu blog post instead of finishing the essay due in just a couple of days. When you are on a vacation, you put off doing your homework as long as you can, and often times until the journey back home. This is the definition of unnecessary stress. While I understand wanting to relax on your vacation, ruining the end by cramming all your homework into the last day puts a negative spin on those good vibes you had during your trip. Here are some of the best ways to keep up with school and paradise without one dominating the other. Bonus, I am determined to only use images from Ferris Bueller's Day Off, so enjoy.

1. Find The In Between Moments

Image courtesy of The Prospect

During a vacation you will always have those moments of pause before you head to your next adventure. If you have half an hour because your mom couldn't stop taking pictures around the hotel, then use that time to read your textbook, finish an essay, or hey, write a blog post. Even if you only have two minutes you can finish a math problem or two. Little by little your workload is lightened and your sense of accomplishment grows. I know I am proud of myself when I finish my homework early (for me that means not in the last minute before class).


2. Car Rides

Image courtesy of Blogramme.

Although I just said no to leave all you homework for the car ride home, I didn't say you couldn't do some of it then. Not to mention, if you are capable of completing assignments on your way home, then you can do it on the way there too. I don't recommend this if you get car sick easily. Also and advantage of the road is the constant access to gas stations and their candy. Sometimes I will reward/bribe myself with candy to get my homework done. One Reese's Piece at the end of each paragraph sounds like a good deal to me. I don't recommend that if you are allergic to peanut butter.

3. Makeup Work

Bueller? Bueller? Image courtesy of Bitcointalk

This is a big one guys. I know it's hard to accept the consequences of playing hooky, but unless you want to spend the rest of the quarter digging yourself out of a hole, it has to be done. Of all my vacationing sins, this is the one I am most often guilty of. Half the time, I don't even check Canvas before I go back to school. This always backfires, and is one of the most obvious things that needs to be done. I understand the frustration that comes with being sick, and not completing your math assignments while feeling like you've just eaten a carton of rotten eggs and went back for seconds. I understand that, but everyone is guilty.

Well I hope you all keep these tips in mind for the upcoming winter break. I also hope you aren't getting tired of Ferris Bueller, I know I'm not (please help, I may be a little obsessed)! Also, if you want to prove to me that you readers are existent, and are not just ghosts, then try commenting, or following this blog.

Just kidding, you guys should go read my other posts. Image courtesy of Wikia .

Five Movies I Watch On Loop

There are some things that just never get old. No matter how many times I watch these five movies (five like five out of five stars), I can't wait for the next socially acceptable time to watch them again (My brothers keep track of how often I watch them). If you haven't seen these, I know all of them are on Netflix, all praise the mighty god of procrastination.

1. Rent

Original image courtesy of Theater Mania, super cool quote added by yours truly.

 How do you measure a year? I personally think you can measure it in how many times that song has gotten stuck in my head. I just recently watched Rent for the first time over break, and I have already memorized the lyrics to all the songs. First on Broadway, this musical is about eight people struggling to live their lives in New York. With AIDS, drugs, and swearing, this is an inappropriate movie at times, but it's worth watching if you haven't.

2. Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Crushable, you're my hero, for providing this image.

Has anybody else seen this movie? Anybody? Bueller? This is the story of a senior in high school who takes an unscheduled ditch day with his best friend and girlfriend, all while avoiding the determined principal. It is incredibly clever, and I appreciate its humor more each time I watch it. If you haven't watched it you are missing out on a classic, not mention all references you haven’t understoood. Stay until the end of the credits and there is an extra scene that made me laugh the first time I saw it.

3. Phantom of the Opera

Original picture from Love to Know

Yet another classic. The story follows a girl who has a unique bond with the so called "Phantom of the Opera." Who knew murder and love stories went so well together? Trick question, everyone already knew that. My two favorite parts are the Phantom and the music: the music will haunt you for hours after you watch it, and the Phantom's complex character will give you conflicted feelings that will last twice as long.

4. The Breakfast Club

Original image courtesy of MyBlogTho.

A band of high school students from all different social groups are all called to detention. While all seems stereotypical on the surface, each has something they are struggling to deal with inside. You don’t know how involved in the story you get until suddenly it’s the ending. On the topic of the ending, it's perfect. Just when you think that there is so much left to say, all is resolved, and you will want to begin clapping (even though you’re alone in you house watching Netflix).

5. Grease

Let's go get this from IAmTypeCast

 You all know the story one way or another, The popular, cool guy meets the innocent new girl. They find what looks to be love, but in order to keep it they must overcome their social status quos. All this, and it's a musical! This movie gives you the full high school experience with prom, spontaneous music breaks, and teen pregnancies!

I hope you all decide to check these movies out. Quick warning, make sure you know what you're watching; some of these movies if not all are inappropriate and have swearing. Be sure to add me to your blogger reading list to know exactly when I post, because that isn't creepy. I'll see you all after this weekend's movie marathon! (P.S. If haven't viewed at least three of these movies by Monday then you're not even allowed to look at me.)