Tunesday: I've Just Seen a Face

So I'm about to drop a truth bomb on you...
I really didn't like Across the Universe :(
I know, I know. I love musicals and colorful cinematography and all that.
And I really like The Beatles too.

But I really REALLY hated Across the Universe.
It came out when I was a junior in high school, and I was so excited when I saw the trailer for the first time.

But then when I saw the movie, I couldn't have been more disappointed.

And everyone (including myself) couldn't believe it.

 

But I've been obsessed with this clip for the last few weeks:

 

"I've Just Seen a Face" performed by Jim Sturgess

This is by far my favorite Beatles' song and I stumbled on this clip when I was looking for the original.

I figured what the hell and watched it, and now I'm torn.
Jim Sturgess's face and voice REALLY makes me want to give the movie a second chance (was I too young to appreciate it? ) but at the same time I'm nervous that it'll let me down again.
What should I do?

But anyway, enjoy this little ditty for today's Tunesday :)
See you soon :)

30 Day Disney Challenge: A Quote about Dreaming

Day 22:
your favorite new movie (2000+)

Turns out I'm a liar.

Sorry this is late guys :(

Alot has happened this week:
I got a hair cut (trim actually).
I went and saw Godzilla (look out for a review ;)
I started the second season of Bates Motel (OH MY GOD)
I had Noodles and Company for the first time (YUM!).
I got everything I need to plant my balcony garden (minus the plants...)
I went to an all you can eat sushi bar (and almost died).
aaaaand
I started riding my bike again :)

But that's not what this post is about...

I've decided to go with Tangled.
I know I know, I just saw if for the first time a couple weeks ago.
But I REALLY REALLY liked it.
It's like, all I've heard about for the last year is Frozen Frozen Frozen (which is also amazing, don't get me wrong), that I didn't really think Tangled could ever compare.
You know when you haven't seen the new popular movie that everyone else has seen, and everyone keeps telling you how awesome it is so when you finally see it it's kind of meh because it's been completely over hyped to you? Yeah, it's kind of like that, but the opposite.
Am I making sense?

If you haven't seen Tangled, I'm going to do my best to describe why it's awesome without actually giving anything away (I'm trying to come up with a nifty little rhyme about the evil that is spoilers, but I've got NOTHING.)
Basically, it's got a little bit of everything that makes Disney movies great.
It's got action, adventure, a great villain, a leading man that actually has a personality (unlike most of them), an adorable silent sidekick, a great love story, and (most importantly) a lovable main character.

And the lanterns. The lanterns are cool as shit.

What's your favorite new Disney movie?
See you soon :)

Braid-a-Day Challenge

As I mentioned in my April Favorites post,

I've been OBSESSED with braiding my hair lately.

My hair is the longest it's been in AGES, so now I can finally do the more complicated stuff.

Which is why I was so excited when this little beauty arrived:

I need to hunker down and actually learn new ways to do my hair, and I think I've found the perfect way to inspire myself. I'm going to try to master a new braid every day and post the pictures here in a weekly post.

Here we go:

Braid-a-Day Challenge

week one

Scarf Pigtails^^

difficulty: medium

I don't think I could ever pull these off in life, but it's still a cool thing to learn to do just in case. I could use it for Halloween or something :)

Angel Braid^^

difficulty: medium

I LOVE this braid. It's a great way to dress up a normal bun or ponytail.

And it doesn't take long to do so I can do it before work :)

Mermaid Braid^^

difficulty: easy

Fun fact about me, I kind of suck at using bobby pins.

I don't know why, but I always have to use loads of them and they never work as well as everyone always tells me they can. So thanks to that, I kind of sucked at this braid. It's supposed to be 2 normal braids bobby pinned together to look like one big thick braid, but thanks to the fact that I'm pin inept and that my braids weren't the same length (my fault, easy fix), this braid didn't turn out quite the way it was supposed to.

 

Braided Headband^^

difficulty: medium

This one is also fun, it was just surprising how long it took to braid the tiny sections that make the band.

When I braid all of my hair at once it takes me less than a minute, but when I'm working with tiny little strands it takes much longer. It makes sense, I just didn't think about it until I was doing it.

Basic Braid^^

difficulty: easy
A new all the time staple for me. I'll braid it like this before bed so it doesn't tangle, I'll do it like this for work, or basically just anytime I want my hair out of my face. Ponytails look weird on me (my hair is too long and straight, I feel like Madonna) and buns tangle the shit out of my hair. This is a nice alternative :)

Fishtail Braid^^

difficulty: medium
One of my favorite things ever. Not just because it looks cool, but because I actually figured out how to do it. I've been trying to learn how to fishtail for years and I just couldn't wrap my head around it. But once I got it, it became second nature and I do it all the time. The only sad thing is it's kind of a delicate braid (especially if you have layers), so you can't move it about that much without it starting to come undone.
Meaning this one is a no no a work :( Boo.

 Lace Braid^^
difficulty: medium
This one is essentially an angel braid that just never stops.
And like the angel braid, it's a great little garnish to your normal hair style.
As much as I love curling (or mermaiding;) my hair, it takes heat and time and this time of year the humidity can be a real curl killer. Meaning that most of the time when my hair is down, it's just down, and that can get boring.
This braid is a great way to add a little oomph, and it doesn't take long to do so it isn't a hassle.

They're getting harder so doing one a day is probably a little ambitious, but I'm going to give it my best shot ;)

See you next time!

30 Day Disney Challenge: An Odd Couple

Day 21:
two characters you would pair together

There's a reason why it has taken me so long to post this one.
And it's not one of my usual reasons (TV, friends, TV, ect.)

This one is legit...

I had NO IDEA what characters to pair together.
I've been wracking my brain trying to come up with some brilliant combination of unlikely contrasting characters and coming up with bupkis. 

But I was determined to figure it out, so I called in the troops.
While I was out with my friends this weekend, I told them about my predicament.
Within seconds they were hurling combinations at me:
Hans (Frozen) and one of the ugly stepsisters (Cinderella), Esmerelda (The Hunchback of Notre Dame) and Aladdin, Pocahontas and Tarzan, it goes on.

But the one we all liked most (meaning the one that got the most "aww"s) was The Sultan (Aladdin) and Mrs. Potts.

These characters would be WONDERFUL together.
I mean, think about it: they are both ridiculously supportive, sweet and kind of have a silly innocence to them. They wouldn't even have to be a couple, they could just be awesome friends and have adorable conversations and make life better for one another.
Like Oprah and Gayle.


Who would you pair (it's harder than it sounds;)?
I should be back on track now, so see you tomorrow :)

DIY: Scrapbook Heart Envelopes

I know that it's rare to send letters through the mail in this day and age.

But about a year ago, Alyssa, Kelsie and I decided that we couldn't let it fade out completely, and started corresponding back and forth the old fashioned way ;)
We all lead busy lives, and of course we keep in touch through Facebook and Skype, but every few months we'll sit down, pick up a pen and start writing.

It's really never anything extremely important, just little musings here and there, whatever pops into our minds. And since it's meant to be a treat, I like to make my letters as cute as possible.
That's where these little babies come in:


DIY Scrapbook Heart Envelopes

I saw this on Pinterest forever ago and FINALLY got around to giving it a try.
It's super easy but I took a crap ton of photos, so hopefully I don't make this look more complicated than it really is.

What you'll need:
square scrapbooking paper
(I'm sure other paper would work too, this is just what I used)
scissors
pencil


Step 1:


The first thing we're going to do is make a stencil.
This isn't 100% necessary but I chose to do it so my finished envelopes wouldn't have creases all over them.
Start with a piece of scrapbooking paper that you aren't crazy about (this is going to be a stencil so it doesn't have to be pretty). Fold it in half.

Create a nice hard crease and make sure that the corners line up with one another.
If the stencil isn't shaped properly, it will affect ALL the envelopes you try to make.



Take your scissors and cut out the shape of half a heart, just like grade school.
If you aren't comfortable doing this free hand, use your pencil and lightly draw a line to guide you.

You now have your stencil (yay!:)

Step 2:

Pick out which pieces of paper you'd like to use as envelopes.
Trace the shape of the heart onto the BACK of the paper and then cut out the new heart.

 
You could cut them out one at a time or cut out a bunch of hearts at once, it's really up to you ;)

Step 3:
 

Now it's folding time.
Take the heart at its widest points and fold the sides into the center.
The curves of the top should line up with each other and the new creases should be parallel.

Please keep in mind that this takes a little bit of practice.

I wasted 2 or 3 pieces of paper trying to fold these correctly.
Just be patient and maybe practice on some other not-so-favorite pieces of paper until you get it.

Now, with the pointed end up, fold the bottom half up, letting the curves of the heart line up at the bottom of where the paper overlaps.

It will look like this ^^

Now fold the pointed end downward, forming a crease that touches the curves of the heart and viola! :)




Here are a couple of my finished envelopes :) ^^
The only down side to these is that they don't have adhesive on them, so you have to find a way to seal it yourself.
You could use stickers or a glue stick, hell, you make your own wax seal if you wanted :)

But yeah, I thought these were adorable and I can't wait to send them to my friends :)

See you all soon!

30 Day Disney Challenge: Here Comes the Smolder

Day 20:

a character most like you

I'm terrible at finding characters that are like me.

I'm sure there are a handful of fictional beings out there that bear a strong resemblance to me or my personality, but I can never identify them.

So whenever I get a question like this, I ask my friends.

I asked both Alyssa and Erin which Disney character reminds them of me, and they both said the same person: Rapunzel.

Confession time...

I hadn't seen Tangled when I asked them this question.
I know, I know, I'm a terrible person. But when both my friends (who knew me from two completely different walks in life) said that she was the character most like me, I had watch it.

And oh. my. GOD.
You guys it was so good!

I liked it even more than Frozen (yeah I said it!).

I loved Rapunzel's character so much and love my friends for comparing me to her :)

They clearly haven't seen my dark(ish) side ;)

I'll probably be talking about Tangled a little bit later in this challenge, so I can gush about how much I loved the movie then :)
Spoiler: it's alot.

Which Disney character is the most like you?