Feat. Non-Christmas-y Songs.

 I'm not a big fan of Christmas songs. I'll admit that. Sure I liked the classics: Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer, Santa Baby ect, but I was never one of those people who started playing Christmas songs in August. I was never one of those people wh
o played Christmas songs in December either. For those of you who are looking for something new (or something not Christmas related), heres my December playlist!
All links go to Youtube!

Playlist:


Just as a side note, I don't really listen to K-Pop but I do have some favorites that I like to listen too. 

XX 

(P.S. I started a new story on Wattpad. Click me to read it :) )
Since I had just recently gotten a new iPhone, I decided to do a mini 'What's on my iPhone? (Blogger Style)' Post.

I know I haven't posted anything lately, and I'm very sorry, but for the past few week I simply couldn't find anything to blog about.

I own an iPhone 5S in Gold. I did get this off of a Verizon Black Friday sale a few weeks ago, and I'm not exactly sure on the price/deal specifications but it was some sort of two-year contract deal.
On the Apple website [apple.com], it is listed for $99, for the 16 GB (what I have). The latest generation is the iPhone 6+, which is possibly even bigger than the 6 (if you have seen it).

**I will also include a picture of my screensavers at the bottom.

Why I didn't get an iPhone 6/+
The biggest issue I had with the iPhone 6 was it's size. I thought that it was to big for my liking, and I didn't like the slightly bulky size.
Some of my friends own the 6, and it can barely fit in my hand, and much less my pockets. Especially with a case, the phone could easily fall out of my back pocket.
I also didn't really like the design of the back either, for some reason I preferred the back of the iPhone 5 over the 6.

First Page/ Home Page + Bottom Bar


 In my first page, I have Messages, Phone, FaceTime and Contacts. I just thought that I'll dedicate it to all the basic phone usages so I have them at my fingertips. They also just sort of remind me that this is what my phone is used for: to call people and to text them. I shouldn't focus too much on the social media or games aspect of my new phone.

At the bottom, I just have Kik, Settings, Safari and Music. My four basic apps that I possibly frequent the most often. Kik being the main social app that I use to contact my friends (second to text messaging), Safari, Settings and Music for easy access.
[Although I might change Kik out for Wattpad]

Second Page - Social Media


 My pages are set so each has a sort of 'Theme'. I have Instagram (@QueenAudity), Blogger, Wattpad, Skype, Twitter (@Waterqueendom), Tumblr (tohellandheaven), and We Heart It (@waterbluewings).
I had more earlier, but to clear up some space, I deleted the ones that I didn't use at all on my phone.

Third Page - ???


 Although there are 'Themes' per page, they aren't set, and I didn't want a lot of pages on my phone either.

I have Spotify and Pandora on there, two music apps that I use the most often. After Taylor Swift announced that she will no longer release her music to Spotify, I already had her entire new album downloaded onto my phone, so I have been listening to my bought music more often.
Whitagram is an app that allows you to create the popular white borders on your Instagram posts.
Dots and Two Dots are the only games I have on my phone. I'm so obsessed with them, and I think that they're absolutely adorable.
Last of all, I'm trying to workout more, so I have Nike Training and 7M Workout on there in hopes that I'll get more fit.

Fourth Page - Misc.


 My first group of apps are general apps that I use. Such as Reminders, Notes, Weather and Camera. The second group (with only one cloud) are the apps that I don't use as often, such as: Stocks, Voice Memos and Passbook.
The Third group has money related things such as BOFA, and the App Stores.
The fourth group is my school-related stuff with Google Translate (for Spanish and Chinese), Calculator and an mobile app for my grades.

Screen Savers:


 Lock Screen: I found this picture off of Twitter from one of @LaurDIY's reblogs. I thought that it was really cute and Christmas-y so I saved it.

Home Screen: From Dots, there's this option for a Winter theme. So I quickly snapped a photo of the little digitalized snow falling on the screen and saved it as my background.

Thanks for Reading,

XX Aud

For a long time, I despised breaks because I had nothing to do. For me, it was just an empty slot of time that my parents took advantage of to push me towards more workbooks, study my foreign language, or to play piano. But now, I've been finding other ways to occupy myself during this one week.

1. Make Your Wishlist
I know this is really controversial (it's thanksgiving break), but it's a way to fill up loose time. You could also plan Christmas presents for your family or friends.

2. Bake Cookies
Winter always meant that I was allowed to bake again. My father didn't like me baking in the summer because he said that it was too hot to bake anything. During the fall and winter season I produce batch after batch of chocolate chip-cookies. 
For the longest time I've been using this one recipie from APinchofYum for the perfect chocolate chip cookies. 
For an easier, not-much-hassle instant dessert with as much gratification as something homemade, you could go for microwave desserts. Buzzfeed gives you a list of Microwaveable Desserts in a Mug and I've tried this one microwave cake. 

3. Start reading a book. And hopefully finish it.
Ever since school started, I've been having less and less time to read books. During breaks, I use this time to attack the library and hoard books. Even though I know that most will be returned without being touched or kept in the corner until the overdue fines suffocate me, I still like the feeling of having a good story on my bedside table. 

 4. Start a Workout
Go running. Do scrunches. I don't have a set workout plan since my daily Phys. Ed. class usually does the trick, but during breaks I like to keep that up.
I usually run a mile a week, 25 sit-ups, and do some wall sits while reading a book. 
Although my 'workout' may not seem thorough enough, it's enough to keep me feeling alive and healthy. 
Begin your day with a quick 5 minute work-out, or even something at your desk. If you have a little bit more time, you could go 10 minutes with this 'Victoria Secret Workout'. 

5. DIY Some of Your Items
Lately, I've been all about mason jars. Even though I haven't gotten around to buying a few, but anything you put in them could possibly come out adorable. This is a list of DIYs you could make (and then put in Mason Jars). 
Washi tape has also been really big lately, especially when Back-To-School season was here. It's an easier alternative to spray painting or designing. Here is a compilation of Washi Tape DIYs you could tackle this thanksgiving break. 

~~Or Maybe..

6. Tackle Homework
We all know how much High School teachers love to pile on homework during breaks. Might as well get it done earlier than on Sunday night...

7. Play Video Games
What else are breaks for then?

8. Finish up the rest of your Halloween Candy
If you didn't go trick-or-treating, finish up all the sweets in your house.

9. Play Clicking Games.
Lately I've been getting addicted to Clicker Heros. It runs in your cookies, so it should still be working even if your wifi is down.
(I have ascended twice!) 

10. Sleep
Of course. 






For some reason, this year I'm so excited for the holiday season. It might be because everyday has been consistently too warm for my liking and I'm desperately waiting for December in hopes that it actually rains for once.
I've been hoping to do the DIY Sharpie Mugs that I've been seeing everywhere on Pinterest and I'll post something about that closer to Christmas time.

But since this project is going to take significantly longer time, I had decided to start it now.




B e g i n n i n g  N o t e s :
My How-To book is on how to draw Anime or Manga characters (in a very 'Audrey-like way'). So for this purpose, I bought a sketch book.
Your How-To book can be on anything. You don't have to buy a sketch book, you can create your own book, use a notebook, or just bind a few sheets of copy paper together.



I bought my sketch books from Barnes and Noble. Their sketch books are cute and are usually under 15 bucks.

M A T E R I A L S :

For this project I used these colorful gel pens, a standard black pen, a pencil and an eraser. 

The reason why I'm using a wooden pencil is that it usually writes lighter, so it erases better. It also produces thicker lines, which I think would be helpful for the reader to see and understand. 
The black pen is used to write paragraphs of information. Whereas the color pens I use to color code certain words, or just to make the page look brighter and more welcoming. 
You also might want to throw in a ruler or straightedge if you can't write straight or you require one to work on your book.

What I did: 

Since this is a very individualized, creative present, I can't exactly give you a set of steps to follow. Instead, I can offer you a list of tips. 

Decorate The Front Cover: Make it fancy, colorful and inviting. Since my cover was originally black and white, I filled in some white space with some Sharpies.
An Intro Page and Table of Contents: Easy navigation is always a helpful thing. If you're out of ideas, you can use the ToC to take up some space. In the Intro, you can leave a small little note of happy holidays or give a reason to why you made the book. 
Separate Sections with Tabs: Use colorful tabs to make a statement. I'm using neon colored paper tabs to color code certain areas. I couldn't find the exact one that I bought myself, but there is a similar more durable type here.
Quick DIY/Alternate Idea: 
Buy colored post-it notes and cut them in thirds. 
Have Sections and Sub-Sections: Organize your thoughts into categories, make large general sections and set smaller more detailed spaces



As sort of a little tid-bit: 
My mother brought home some Beijing Yogurt, and they're one of the best things you'll try. They're sweet unlike the plain yogurt that you buy here. If you buy them in Beijing, they sell them with straws (I know it's kind of weird) but you actually 'drink' your yogurt. 

I'll be posting within a few weeks on possibly more DIYs for Christmas presents!

XX, Audrey







This DIY was taken from Pinterest (and we all know how hard Pinterest DIYs can be to complete), I found out this one to be relatively easy and do-able. Although this DIY is slightly time-consuming, the product is extremely cute.

DIY: Heart-Shaped Papercips



Materials:
  • Paperclips (any color, mine are the standard silver)
  • Wire Pliers
  • Sharpies (optional)

Steps:
  1. Take your paperclip and locate the longest end (shown by arrow above)
  2. Use your pliers and clamp over the wire at the middle
    • You might have to fit the pliers in between two of the wires
  3. Using your fingers, bend the two ends of the paperclip up until the paperclip resembles a heart




I'm not strong enough, so to make the paperclips bend the whole way, I used the edge of the table to help me. 

These paperclips look adorable, and can also resemble a heart when you clip them. Although some of them may not clip easily, they are really cute to keep on your desk. Some of my paperclips also clip differently, which I found was really interesting.


Sharpies: Because my paperclips were silver, I decided to color them using Sharpies. It's harder than it seems, because your fingers get stained with the color, and within the first few minutes it's easy for the ink to rub off. It's also pretty hard to try to get the edges of the paperclip to make it entirely red, or else you'll see bits of silver poking out of the corners. 





I originally wanted to create a binder cover with various tissue paper that I had slowly accumulated over the years. But after a few weeks of desperately taking photos and recreating the same one for my Spanish binder over and over again for a blog post quickly became old, I decided on a new idea.

Minimalist Quote Binder Covers
Materials:
  • Ruler (optional)
  • Fine Point Sharpies (in multiple colors)
  • Copy paper
  • Binder
  • Quotes
  • Pencil (optional) 
I chose my Sharpies in complimentary colors, or similar ones so they would look better together. I also had some according to the design I wanted to make.
Any size paper is fine for this, but I used the classic warehouse paper. Make sure your binder has a clear plastic covering in the front so you can slip your cover in there.

Finding Quotes:
I chose four quotes; two song lyrics and two book quotes.

Song quotes: Go through your playlist, or a list of songs that you like and choose some of your favorites. I googled up their lyrics and chose a few of my favorite lines from each.
Book quotes: I went to goodreads and went through a bunch of quotes from books that I had already read previously.
Quotes from people: Try Brainyquote, Goodreads, or Great-quotes. Goodreads gives you a list of the most popular (or most liked) quotes on the site. Brainyquote and Great-quotes allow you to search through quotes at either people or topic.

It's pretty simple...

  1. Take your paper
  2. Smack your quote on it in fancy colors and fonts with your sharpies
  3. Decorate around it
  4. Done

Designing it?
I used my ruler as a tool to create cool geometric patterns. Both of mine were dealing with lines, but you can use triangles, oddly angled squares (for a more interesting effect), octagons, parabolas and anything else that you come up with.

Color Combinations that I used:
*Color names are not accurate.

Green:
Olive green, Forest Green, Light green, Lime green, Yellow


Pink / Purple:
Red, Pink, Baby pink | Purple, Light purple


Blue / Orange:
Light blue, light purple | Peach, Light Orange, Orange, Gold


Misc / Other Colors:
Silver, Black


Since I didn't have another blue color that went nicely with light blue, I chose a light purple and that definitely works. You don't have work with similar colors, you can definitely choose crazy, clashing colors. 
You can go all dark colors, or all pastel colors too. Another idea, is making your cover rainbow.  

My designs: 





Thanks guys~ 
I hope this helped you a lot. I really loved these binder covers and I hope that you'll find them cute and usable too!
I first got this lipstick a few weeks ago, and I wanted to some sort of 'first impression', but after a few days of laziness, I gave up. But now, I'm here with a review of the Elf Lipstick. 


This product is actually the first one that I have used from Elf. I had originally bought it along with a package of oil blotting sheets at Target. The color I own is in Pink Umbrellas.
Price: 2 dollars
Size: 2.8 grams



In this light, it looks slightly orange, but it's actually a really delicate pink.


It's not an extremely harsh color, but it's actually a few shades lighter than my actual skin tone. When I wear it, it doesn't bring a lot of color in my face, but washes it out a bit. 
But it does give your lips a lot of moisture
When I put it on, it doesn't bring me a lot of pigment, and it usually lasts up to two-three hours.

With Lipstick


Without Lipstick


The lipstick itself has a slightly minty smell, and it has a really nice application. But I tend to use the sides of the stick instead of the top, so sometimes the lipstick will get onto the edges of the lipstick tube. 
It does twist up, and you have to be careful with the clear lid in case you accidentally stick it onto the actual lipstick or get it stained. 

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Too many things to do. Too little time. Who knew Halloween could be so stressful?

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