April Favorites

I can't be the only one out there that goes through phases.
You know, that thing when you discover (or rediscover) something and it becomes your new usual for a bit. It could be a TV show, or a beauty product, or maybe even a sandwich.

You become obsessed just for a little while, and then it goes up on your shelf (metaphorical shelf, if it were a real shelf it would have capsized by now...) as an old favorite.

That's what this post is about.
I've decided to do a wrap up at the end of every month describing my new infatuations.

Here goes nothing ;)

1) Sherlock

Okay, so you remember my friend Kelsie, right?
Well she and her family really enjoy the BBC and started watching Sherlock when it started back in 2010 (or maybe 2011, I'm not positive). They told me how amazing it was and told me to watch it, to which I replied with "meh". This went on for YEARS, and every time it was brought up I would just kind of shrug my shoulders and tell them that I would get around to it eventually. 

Well, I finally watched it this month and OH MY GOD.

It's SO good you guys, and I kind of hate myself for not watching it when they told me to watch it.
I watched the entire series in less and a week (which yes is only 9 episodes, but they're each an hour and a half long). And I may or may not have watched seasons 1 and 2 twice since :/ I have a problem.
I'm not going to say a word about the plot, just know that it's awesome and I love it and I'm never going to doubt Kelsie and her sister again.

2) Candy Camera

 Candy Camera is a photo editing app, and it is awesome.
It has filters, you can adjust contrast and saturation, it even has different light effects.
I've spent HOURS messing around with this thing, there's just so many different options and possibilities.




Obviously it isn't something that you would want to use for ALL your pictures, but it can be really entertaining :)
My only complaint is that you have to take the photo IN the app, or you can't edit it.
You can't choose from your gallery or anything like that, which is boo.


3) Braids

I've been OBSESSED with braids in the last few weeks.
My hair is the longest it's been since I was 8 or 9, so now I can actually do things with it.
I finally mastered the fishtail braid the other day and I was RIDICULOUSLY proud of myself.

I just ordered book with a shit ton of hair tutorials, focusing mainly on braids.
I'm SUPER excited.


4) Bud Light Margaritas

OH MY GOSH.
These things are deadly and delicious.
I loved the lime ones that came out last year, but they just came out with new flavors: raspberry and mango. There was a lady at the grocery giving out samples and we HAD to try them both (obviously).
Erin and I ended up getting 10 and drank them all that afternoon.
Awesome ;)


This concludes my little wrap up for the month of April.
I'll be back next month with more of my new favorite things :)
I'll be here in between too of course, don't be crazy.

See ya ;)





ps: I'll be continuing my Disney challenge tomorrow ;)

Tunesday: Mr. Zimmer

I don't know about you guys, but I needed this today:

"Gumption" by Hans Zimmer

"The Holiday" is by far one of my favorite movie scores.
I've always loved Zimmer, and this is one of his bests in my opinion.

He was a wonderful way of bringing the emotions to the music, and that's why I love this piece in particular.

In the movie, "Gumption" is played when Kate Winslet (love her) finally stands up to the person that has walked all over her for years. It's a beautiful moment of strength and self confidence, hence the name of the song. Whenever I hear it I feel empowered, like Iris Simpkins is my spirit guide and I can do anything.

I thought I was going to fall over after work today, so I listened to this on my way home and it perked me right up :)

Enjoy!

Skinnies To Shorts

Summer is on its way, and we all know what that means...

SHORTS :)
This is a pretty big deal for me because I HATE wearing pants.
Seriously, if it was socially acceptable to wear long tee shirts and boy brief undies out in public, that's what life would be like for this lady (errrrrday).

I usually have a couple of staple pairs to get me through the summer, but this year I'm determined to add to my collection. And what a better way than making shorts out of old pairs of pants that I never wear anymore?

Skinnies to Shorts

I've tried to do this before and it NEVER turns out well.
It's such a simple project: mark, cut, wear.

But whenever I've done this in the past something always goes wrong.

I'll cut the legs at jagged angles or way too short, or that thing when you cut one too short and then try to make the other one even and then cut that one too short and it's never ending.

But now I think I've found a full proof way to convert old pants into new shorts with very little effort.

It took me less than 5 minutes.

What you'll need:
-pants 

(anything but jeggings)

-scissors

-marker

Step 1:
Lay your pants out on the floor (table? whatever).
Fold them so one leg is on top of the other (I suppose that that's hotdog style?)

Step 2:

Decide how long you want your shorts to be.
If you're going for a bermuda style, you'll want to cut a few inches above the top of the knee.

If you're more into daisy dukes (bold, I salute you;) a few inches below the back pockets.
And of course, anywhere in between.

Since I tend to cut them too short, I aimed to make them a little longer and planned to roll them to the length I wanted.

 Step 3:

 

Once you decide on a length, 

fold the bottom of the pant legs upward to create a straight crease where you plan to cut.

Bring the pant legs back down and mark where the crease is.

You only have to mark one leg.

Step 4:

Cut along the crease on the top leg.
Whatever you do, DON'T try to cut both legs at once.
It won't work, it's like when you try to cut a stack of paper all at once. The top piece will be fine, but all the others will be crooked and messed up.
Just cut the first leg first, line it up with the second, and cut the second one along the cut of the first.
They'll be even this way.

Voila ;)
Super easy.

I've found that different types of pants work better for different styles (looser pants are easier to roll, tighter pants make better bermuda shorts, ect.) but the biggest thing is making sure you get the cut and length that you want and that the legs are even (unless you're going for a crooked look, in which case, go nuts! ;)
After that, you're free to get creative with it :)
Fray the ends, rub them with scissors and sand paper to make holes, you could even paint them!
 Just have fun and feel awesome because you MADE THAT SHIT.

See you soon!

30 Day Disney Challenge: A Little Mermaid

Day 19:

an old disney photo of you

Sorry I'm a day late, I needed my mom to send me this photo ^^ ;)

So that's me (yes, I'm adorable) singing "Part of Your World" at my second grade talent show.

(The picture says that it's 1994 but it wasn't, this is from 1999 I think)

I remember that I signed up to sing the second the talent show flyer was posted, but I had nothing prepared. I must've picked up procrastination early in life because I remember it being only a few days until the show and still having no idea what I was going to do.

My mom stepped in and told me I was going to sing "Part of Your World". I'm guessing she chose this one because I watched The Little Mermaid on a loop in my even earlier years.

I spent the next few days listening to the song over and over and over and over, determined to kill it at the show.

 And we came correct. We dyed my hair and dolled me up; I even wore a swim suit with my fin because I thought it was more authentic (though I still felt the need to wear my little rubber rain boots... little Kat's common sense wasn't quite there yet...).

But yeah, I got up there and sang my little 8 year old heart out, and I remember it going really well :)

It's one of my favorite early(er) memories :)

I also dressed up as Snow White and Jasmine for Halloween (different years) and played The White Rabbit in Alice In Wonderland when I was 10.

Kudos to my mother, I had to have her look through all of our photo albums to find this ;)

See you guys tomorrow :)

30 Day Disney Challenge: High Hopes

Day 18:

a film that makes you happy

I can't believe I forgot about "A Goofy Movie".

Well, I didn't really forget about it, but for some reason it didn't occur to me that it was a Disney movie (cause I'm full of smart).

But yes, this is a movie that ALWAYS makes me happy :)

I think it's because I can totally identify with both Max and Goofy at different points in the movie. I totally get Goofy's desire to bond with his son, but I also can completely understand Max's wish to grow up and do things on his own terms.

Not to mention the fact that it reminds me of way too many family vacations.

I will say though, this movie made me think that high school was going to be WAY cooler.

I mean, can you blame me?

And I will admit that I totally have that and the other Powerline song on my iPod, and I may or may not listen to it on le regular.

But yeah, if you haven't seen it (I've actually met quite a few people that haven't) you definitely should.
It's a great coming of age / father and son bonding movie with lots of shenanigans mixed in.

Also, dancing bigfoot :)

Which Disney movie always makes you smile?
See you tomorrow :)

30 Day Disney Challenge: Long Live the King

Day 17:

a movie that makes you cry

I don't know if I've ever mentioned it on here before, but I am a straight up weeper.

Movies, TV shows, the occasional music video (seriously, go watch the Mirrors video and tell me you didn't sob a little), anything that's incredibly sad or overwhelmingly happy, I cry.

Sometimes a little, sometimes alot, it really depends on the situation.

So it can't be surprising that there are several Disney movies that make me a little misty.

But the worst one of all?

No question.

I can't even THINK about Simba finding Mufasa without wanting to weep.

I used to watch The Lion King all the time as a kid, but stopped when I was like 7 and didn't watch it again until I was 13 or 14. And even though I knew everything that was going to happen, I was NOT prepared for the tidal wave of sorrow that hit me when Mufasa died. It was like... I had seen it before, but I didn't really understand until that moment. And it was HORRIBLE.

But if I keep talking about it, I'll probably cry so...yeah.

Which Disney movie is your emotional kryptonite?

See you tomorrow!

30 Day Disney Challenge: Simply Meant To Be

Day 16:

favorite disney couple

Of course I had to go with Jack and Sally :)

Like I said yesterday, I LOVE Nightmare Before Christmas.
I watched it all the time when I was a kid and Bryan surprised me with the DVD when it was re-released;

so it can't be too surprising that the Skellington and the Rag Doll have clutched the best couple title ;)

 

 

Jack is absolutely wonderful.

He's curious, imaginative, determined and a great leader.

It's no wonder why everyone in Halloween Town is in love with him :)

And that brings us to Sally:

I'm a bit of a sucker for unrequited love, so I loved Sally right away.

 She's sort of a trapped character, always looking for ways to be normal (which is pretty much impossible when you're the female version of Frankenstein's monster...).

Jack, being the "king" of Halloween Town, is completely unobtainable to someone like Sally, someone who spends most of their time hidden away from the rest of the world. He barely even knows her.

So of course, he's the man she falls in love with.

I guess they just won't ever be together...

Oh wait:

I'm also quite fond of a good old fashioned happy ending ;)

Which couple is your favorite?

See you soooooooooooooooooooon ;)