New Year, New Opportunities

I know some of you may think the whole concept of New Years Resolutions to be lame and pointless, but I've thought about it and think its a good idea for implementing new habits in 2011. I never really made solid resolutions before, so I might as well try it out, right? After some careful thought, I've narrowed down my resolutions to:

1. Get fit: I know this resolution has been beaten to death and a lot of people have never succeeded in achieving this goal, but I kind of made this resolution last year and it worked out pretty well actually (I started including the gym as an activity 2 or 3 times a week. I might not have stuck very closely with this, but improvement was made!) This year I'm going to make it a habit to go to the gym at least 3x a week, make healthier food choices and to opt for walking instead of taking the bus.

2. Stay positive: It can be so easy to go into worst case scenario mode, but keeping a positive state of mind will do wonders for my mood. 

3. Stop caring what others think: I fall into this habit sooooo often that I need to remind myself that other people's thoughts and opinions shouldn't and will not affect me.

4. Develop a sense of personal style: I fell victim to a few, okay, a lot of fashion faux pas in 2010, so I want/need to start thinking critically in terms of what I'm wearing and what I want to express to the world.

5. Get a job: Any job that will garner an income. Bonus points if I enjoy it!

Well, that's about all I can think of. I kept it pretty short because I find that if people make a lot of resolutions, it can be overwhelming and have a higher risk of failure. 2011 will be my year, I have a good feeling about this. Eeek, New Years Eve is tomorrow, I need to find something to wear! :)

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Winter Chic

Need a little outfit inspiration during the cold winter months? I know I do! I was flipping through the fashion section of Glamour when I stumbled across this picture of Lauren Conrad rocking a perfect winter look. All you need is a slouchy sweater, black tights or skinny jeans, black boots and a beret. Pretty simple!

photo: Glamour Fashion

Sigh No More

I hope each and every one of you had a great Christmas! Yesterday I made the mistake of going Boxing Day shopping at the mall and got to witness all the deal-grubbing people first hand. I ended up finding a good pair of winter boots, but I'm not sure if I'm completely in love with them, so I might return them, we'll see. For Christmas, I received a bunch of stuff that I had asked for, and a few gag gifts as well:

1. Knit Sweater Boots from Old Navy.
2. A Starbucks gift basket with a mug, coffee, hot chocolate and tea (from my bro).
3. Subway giftcard.
4. A leather Pandora bracelet with two charms.
5. A Sony Reader.
6. Clothes from H&M.
7. Giftcards for H&M that I have yet to use (!)
8. Diamond hoop earrings.
9. Curling/Waving Wand.
10. Money.

And the gag gifts that I received included a pack of 3 Bumpits and a Shake Weight, hahaha. I'm kind of intruiged by the Shake Weight, so we'll see if it actually works come spring and summer time. I'm hoping to go shopping tomorrow to use my H&M giftcards so I will share what gems I (hopefully) find.

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Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you all have a fantastic day and get to spend it with people who mean the most to you. Let me know what you got :)

Rachel xo

Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)

I can't believe that it's Christmas Eve tomorrow! If I had my way, I would push Christmas over to next week, to extend the Christmas hype and also so I can listen to my songs a little longer. One thing that I don't like about this time of year...the crowded malls, yuck! It seems like people are in a hurry to get their shopping done and will give you death stares or growl at you if you get in their way or get between them and their shopping items.  It's also sad to see people get caught up in the hype so much when they don't even take a moment to donate money (even if it's just a few dollars) to the Salvation Army. I feel that people these days get caught up in the money and the toys and they don't stop to think about the more important meanings of Christmas, one of them being helping out others in need, whether it be food or other essential needs like a clothes or a place to sleep.

Anyways, I was going to write about something else, but I forgot! I suppose it can wait until later. Please take the time out of your day to donate, every little bit counts! Have a fantastic evening!

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It's All In the Details

I can't believe it's so close to Christmas, it just snuck up on us out of nowhere! I managed to get a portion of my Christmas shopping done today with my friend Roland, however there were a few instances where we were cornered into store isles by soccer moms and teenagers.  Luckily though, Roland is pretty good at chartering an escape plan, and we made it out of the mall safe and sound, haha. Anyways, I thought I'd share a few pictures I took to help any of you out there in need a little holiday inspiration:

Airplanes

In addition to my previous post about my recent love for anything grey,  pink and creme coloured, I picked up a few items from H&M that I just have to share. I picked up a black skirt, a grey knit v-neck sweater and a beautiful light pink clutch/purse (the colour is kind of wonky in this picture). Here's a picture of my clutch!

Also, here's a little something I picked up a few days ago. I love the smell of Yves Saint Laurent Parisienne perfume! It's my first bottle of expensive perfume (eek!) so I'm going to have to make sure to use it in small quantities ;)

Light It Up Like It's Dynamite

It's pretty snowy at home, we have about 15cm of snow and the weather has been tame, averaging about -3°C. With all of this snow on the ground, it's really affecting my outfit inspiration, my latest love being anything grey. A lot of people think that grey is such a blah colour, but it's definitely one of my favourites because it's so versatile and looks perfect paired with creme and pink colours. Here are a few pictures that are inspiring me right now:

All images from weheartit

We Gonna Party Like It's Your Birthday

Today is my 22nd birthday! It's so surreal and it just feels like a regular day! I ended up going out for dinner the night before with family, and it was a bundle of fun. I got the new 4th generation iPod Touch which was a great surprise. I'm still in the stage of drooling over it and squealing at all the fun things it can do. It turns out that I can blog from my iPod, and can take pictures and video on it, which will be a new added feature on the blog. Get excited! I'm off to bed, to begin my birthday with sleeping in :)

Girls and Haircuts

I found this picture on weheartit and had to share. This rings so true. When I cut my locks in February, I was so happy with the result, until the novelty weared off and when I realized I couldn't fully put my hair in a pony tail. Live and learn, right?

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Subterranean Homesick Alien

I can't believe that it's already December 10th! This  month is just flying by. Classes ended and I just had my first exam on the 9th, which wasn't as bad as I was expecting. It's weird to think that this is my last fall semester in school. I kind of don't want it to end, because the next little while is kind of unknown territory!

On another note, I want to learn to speak German. It's such an awesome language and sounds amazing. I'm going to see what German summer classes are offered at the school, and if there are any available, I'm going to take one or two just for the heck of it. 

Also, here's a little sneak peak of what I looked like this week in preparation for my exams:

Just the Way You Are

I've had a fairly low-key weekend so far. I went Christmas shopping today and I am now watching Bridget Jones Diary and Love Actually (as well as studying for German) to get in tune with the holiday season. I now want to watch one of my favourite Christmas films The Holiday. Watching these movies makes me want to take a long vacation across the pond, but in the meantime I can just swoon over these beautiful pictures.

Christmas Lights

I woke up this morning to this cute video in my inbox. Coldplay and Christmas music is the best combination ever, in my opinion. Enjoy! Ahhh <3

November Was White, December Was Grey

Even though I've been looking forward to it for months it seems as though December creeped out of nowhere. November went by so fast. It doesn't even feel like December though, which is a little sad, because I was picturing at least a few inches of snow staying around, and instead it was 10 degrees outside, humid and raining. Ick. 

This week has honestly been the worst for homework, my stress levels climbed up, and after today, they're slowly going down again. This weekend is going to be filled with study notes, coffee, and on Sunday, all things filled with Christmas!

In the meantime, I feel like doing a snow dance.

1983

I'm going to be so glad when this semester is over. I'm enjoying my film classes tremendously, but am not completely loving my public relations class. It's so hard to find motivation to work on projects when I don't enjoy what I'm learning. I thought I would really enjoy this class and thought about exploring it as a career after graduation, but it turns out that the field is definitely not for me. It's all about creating a positive image for a company and strategies to help achieve that, but the bottom line is basically how to cover the company's corporate butt and how to make more money. Ick, not for me thank you very much! On a lighter note, the class will be finished in about a week's time. Fingers crossed everything goes okay!

Finals are just around the corner and I can already feel the stress accompanied with it. I'm probably going to start hibernating in the library soon getting everything prepared for my written and take-home exams. I just know that I'm going to be hyped on caffiene, and getting my daily jo fix at the local Starbucks. I'm going to need it for the all-nighters I forsee in the near future!

Apologies for the long rant. As a gift, here are some pretty pictures to pick you back up again.

Winter Song

Oh my gosh, it is so so cold outside! Last night was so chilly that I had to bust out my winter jacket. And this morning was wonderful waking up to a blanket of snow covering the ground. I had to snap some pictures to document. 

I'm going to be making a few changes here the next few days. Things like fonts, html coding and also looking into installing a little music player in the sidebar. I'm kind of clueless when it comes to finding which music player to go with, so I'll have to do a bit of research and fiddling around. Have a great weekend and Happy Thanksgiving to those in the US!

Oh My Darling, Clementine

There's a light at the end of the tunnel! Classes are finishing up within the next two weeks and I'm excited for everything to be done. It's hard to believe that this will be my last fall semester in school, and I'll be graduating in less than a year. In a way it' seems so surreal and unbelievable. Even though I'm excited to start the next chapter of my life, at the same time it seems so daunting and scary.

Anyways, onto a more positive note: About a month ago I discovered this home planetarium by Gakken. I think it's the most pretty thing ever. When trying to come up with a wish list for Christmas, the only thing I keep thinking about is this darling planetarium to geekify my room. How adorable is this gadget? I think it casts a very beautiful light in a dark bedroom. And I wannnt so bad! I seriously drool over these pictures every few days.

Swallowed In The Sea

Lately all I've been thinking about is braids. French braids, fishtail braids, distressed braids, you name it. Right now with the state of my hair, I can only pull off a short french braid that nubs at bottom of my head. I can't wait until I can pull of these looks. Hopefully in two months or so!

All Good Things

It has been pretty warm the past few days, but in mid-November, it feels a little wrong. Next week the weather is going to dip back down to 2°C. Gosh, there is so many Christmas hype going on right now in flyers and commercials! Next week it's supposed to snow finally, which will be nice. To get into the mindset of the colder weather, here is some outfit inspiration from Lookbook hand (picked by yours truly!) to help get into get the winter vibes going:

Day 8: Just the Way You Are

Day 8- A picture that makes you laugh

The Diamond Sea

The weirdest thing happened to me last night. My computer died on me! At first I thought it shut down because it needed to install some updates, but I couldn't restart it. I checked to see if it was plugged in properly and it was, so I concluded that it went to computer heaven. I guess I could see about getting it fixed, but there are so many other things wrong with it that I don't think it's worth it. Lucky for me, I have my little Dell net book to use until I get a new one. 

Ideally, I would love to get a mac, but the mac world is uncharted territory for me. Don't get me wrong, I know the general ways of using a mac, but as a potential buyer, I'm lost. If I did get a mac, it would probably be the regular white macbook. Is mac really better than PC? Are there any mac users out there that could share their experiences with Apple? Please let me know :)

*I also created a Formspring account, so feel free to check that out in the right column of my blog!

California English

So I thought about doing a huge post about the days I missed during the 30 day challenge, but that sounds painful and tedious, so I'm just going to start where I left off and hopefully be able to keep the daily schedule in order. Without further ado, here's day number seven:

Day 7 - A picture of your most treasured item

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If I had to narrow down to my favourite item, it would have to be my iPod. I've had it for so many years, I got it for my 17th birthday back when I was in high school. I remember being so thrilled when I got it. It has acquired a few scratches and war wounds over the years, but it's still working (for now)!

Prospekt's March

Only one post this week? Terrible! School has been really stressful this week, I had a major essay to write that was due yesterday. I ended up getting it done in good time, but I hated having to do it all last minute. Unfortunately, school takes precedence over this blog, so my posts this week have had to wait. I have a lot to catch up on for the 30 day challenge! I'll probably end up doing a huge post to get caught up. I also need to blog about my recent shopping expedition and what I purchased from my favourite store H&M! 

I'm back in the city and the weather has been pretty dreary, cold and wet. I'm not really loving it. I really would like a long and drapy sweater to bundle under. Can we just fast forward to winter plz?

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Baby It's Cold Outside

So, I had planned on waiting until November 15th before I started listening to Christmas music, but like the impatient person that I am, I started listening to holiday songs today.  How could I possibly contain my excitement for winter when it had already started snowing? On Halloween, I noticed that were a few flurries in the sky, but then a few minutes later, it changed to thick flakes of snow. They immediately melted when the hit the ground, but it got me so excited. 

I know that I have been slacking on my30 Day Challenge, but this week has been the worst. I have a huge paper due on Thursday and like the procrastinator that I am, I hemmed and hawed and waited until yesterday to start it. So apologies for the lateness and the lack of posts this week, after Friday I will have everything finished and can get back into the regular schedule of things.  Until then, here's a pretty picture to get you through (hehe!):

Day 5 & 6: Impossible Soul

Day 5 - A picture of your favorite memory

I don't know what it is about the winter, but everything looks so magical and ethereal when a blanket of snow covers the streets and sidewalks. One of my favourite things is walking outside when it dark outside and the street lights illuminate the thick flakes of snow. I'm not sure if this makes any sense, but snow makes everything look closer together, and I feel more grounded to the earth.

Day 6 - A picture of a person you’d love to trade places with for a day

Kate Middleton. Who wouldn't want to know what it's like to 

date a prince and rub elbows with the British Royal family? 

Heima

I want to see this movie so bad, it looks so interesting.

Day 4: Sail to the Moon

Day 4 - A picture of your night

My night consisted of watching a sci-fi film, reading vogue 
and drinking delicious hot chocolate (and blogging, of course!). 

Just A Boy

Ever since I started living on my own, I've been searching for ways to decorate my room and apartment. As a student, it's really important to find inexpensive ways to decorate, and as a renter, decorations that don't damage the walls too much. After living at my apartment for a few years, I've found a few trusty ways to decorate on the cheap. 

One of my absolute favourite ways to decorate is the use of Christmas lights. I used to have a string of white lights on my headboard moved them outside for summer decoration (and I'm pretty sure they're damaged now because it has been outside in the rain). Now that the Christmas hype has started, I'm hoping to find a longer string of white lights to put on my walls to give my room a magical and romantic glow. Here are a few pictures I'm using for inspiration:

Day 3: Hearing Damage

Day 3- A picture of the cast from your favourite show.

Grey's Anatomy. I've seen every episode and adore the music. 

I race home from class to watch it every Thursday night :)

Day 2: The Violet Hour

Day 2 - A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest.

Kate (she's on the right, I'm on the left). We've known each other since we were little humans.

Day 1: No Sound But the Wind

Day 1 - A picture of yourself with fifteen facts

1. I can knit. Yes, I am probably about 90 years old.

2. I have a serious soft spot for intellectual, geeky guys. Think "The Big Bang Theory".

3. I wish I could sing.

4. I want to travel the world, and find a super handsome European man who will sip coffee and tour art and history museums with me. A girl can dream, no?

5. I love live theatre and musicals. I have a bunch of show tunes on my iPod. I also performed in two theatre productions when I was in high school, it was one of the best times of my life to date.

6. I would love to learn a couple of languages after I graduate. Preferably Dutch, German and maybe French. I feel so ignorant for only knowing how to speak one language.

7. My favourite seasons are fall and winter. 

8. I sometimes have those "what if" moments when I think about the past.

9. I want to get "love" tattooed on my wrist.

10. My favourite colours are purple, grey and blue (obvs, because of my blog layout).

11. I worry about the length and healthiness of my hair a lot. I'm vain like that.

12. I wish I could be less inhibited and be overly loud, energetic and crazy.

13. I want to learn to play the piano and the cello.

14. I have a crazy obsession with 90's music. Love, love, love.

15. I'm constantly learning, growing and being inspired.

Thirty Day Challenge

I decided to take part in the 30 day challenge that has been making it's way around the web, a la InezCaraxx on Tumblr. I'll still be posting my regular ol' stuff, in addition to the challenge. Enjoy! Here's the premise of the challenge:

Day 01 - A picture of yourself with fifteen facts

Day 02 - A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest
Day 03 - A picture of the cast from your favorite show
Day 04 - A picture of your night
Day 05 - A picture of your favorite memory
Day 06 - A picture of a person you’d love to trade places with for a day
Day 07 - A picture of your most treasured item
Day 08 - A picture that makes you laugh
Day 09 - A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most
Day 10 - A picture of the person you do the most weird things with
Day 11 - A picture of something you hate
Day 12 - A picture of something you love
Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist
Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without
Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die
Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you
Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently
Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity
Day 19 - A picture and a letter
Day 20 - A picture of somewhere you’d love to travel
Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget
Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at
Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book
Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change
Day 25 - A picture of your day
Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you
Day 27 - A picture of yourself and a family member
Day 28 - A picture of something you’re afraid of
Day 29 - A picture that can always make you smile
Day 30 - A picture of someone you miss

Colour Blind

Apparently Ottawa got it's first snowfall of...fall? It's kind of early for that kind of weather, but I remember last year watching the snow fall in mid-October. Most of the leaves have fallen off of the trees already, leaving the tree branches bare and exposed. As much as I love seeing the intricacy of the branches, without the leaves, it seems a bit naked. 

After the trees are bare, I like to see a little snow on the ground. I think it has to do with my love/hate affair with November (love being my one of my dearest friend's birthday!). It's kind of an "in between seasons" month, no leaves and no snow. So to get things started, I've selected a few of my favourite snow pictures. 

I find that Winter is the most romantic season. The landscape looks so beautiful with a blanket of snow over it. Winter nights are one of my favourite things in the entire world. I have so many happy memories about winter, ice skating, crazy carpeting, cold ears and noses, rosy cheeks, candy cane hot chocolate, fresh air, big snowflakes, mittens.  I could go on forever. I would be so happy to live somewhere where it's winter all year. Yes, I know, I'm weird.