What's the plan, Phil??

Today's post has a very simple motivation behind it. I was watching a movie today which I was not expecting to be quite so depressing as it was, and it put me in a bit of a slump. There's really no practical explanation behind this; it centred around life events which I feel myself to already be past. . . mainly having to worry about school. I've never been a slouch academically and so these worries have been absent from my life. I tried to explain a weird feeling I have about school to a close friend recently though. I almost want it to be harder. It's not that school was just easy for me in that five-year-old-math-prodigy kind of way - trust me, I worked for every good grade I ever received - it's that I feel as though I'll never really be satisfied until I've had to go full on, flat out to get what I want. Moving on.

The answer to de-slumping wasn't going to be reading today. After finishing Dunant's Blood and Beauty, I started in on The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton. If you haven't heard of the novel yet, it's been getting major press this past year as an 800-and-some-word literary undertaking, and winner of the 2013 Man Booker Prize. At the same time, I began Alice Munro's collection of short stories, Dear Life. Please tell me you've heard of this one. Canadian. Nobel Prize for Lit. All I can say so far is pick it up. It's not a heck of a big time commitment (the stories are only around 30-40 pages), but it's so satisfying to read the work of something who knows what they're doing and can do whatever it is in a limited number of pages without you feeling that it was meant to be either longer or shorter. The ability to compose short fiction is a very impressive talent indeed.

So why with both of these fantastic works to choose from did I deem it a literature-less afternoon? Because I decided instead to look at clothes on the internet. These items are adorable and remind me that it's not always going to -39 (celsius) with windchill.

"Presentation and Accounted For" - Modcloth

"In Due Corsage" - Modcloth

"Promoting Elegance" - Modcloth

"Madeline" - Out of Print

 -Colleen
P.S. http://outofprintclothing.com/ is a website you should definitely check out if you haven't already.

Bloodline Beauty

Well ladies, it's been the better part of a year since my last post. Isn't there a movie where one woman is speaking to another and wondering what happened to make things turn out the way they did? The answer given is simply: "Life." So that's my excuse for now. Life happened, and blogging did not. For some reason though, the combination of several inches of snow overnight, a pink cashmere sweater, and the consumption of the last sweet from Christmas has made me reach once more for the pen (keyboard). It feels like time to pick up, though not exactly where we left off, and carry on. Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.

So, so much has happened in the past year. I've graduated with distinction, gotten a new job, applied for grad school, been accepted to grad school, and read an absolute tonne. Today's post title comes from my current read, Sarah Dunant's latest: Blood and Beauty: The Borgias. If you care anything for historical fiction, Dunant will have you hooked from the beginning. If you already consider yourself a mild to extreme fanatic for the genre, Blood and Beauty will practically propel you out of your seat and on a plane to Rome.

Speaking of Rome. One exciting event I'm looking forward to is my return to Italy. I was there five years ago, before studying and minoring in the language. This time I'm looking forward to more interaction in the national tongue, more cities (I'm venturing further north), and certainly more to blog about. Ai miei amici italiani: dove devo viaggiare stavolta?

The other big life event quickly coming up on me is my move into the big city for grad school. Almost immediately after returning home from il bel paese, I'll be relocating to one of my country's big centers, possibly for good if things work out in my career.

Stick around and let's see where this year goes.

-Colleen  

Beauty: Would You Rather. . .

I haven't been up to too much today so I've decided that instead of not posting (boooring), I'm going to hijack this tag from Steph over on Bonjour Belle. Feel free to do it yourself if you're interested!

Would you rather lose all of your mascaras, eyeliners, lipsticks, and lipglosses or lose all of your palettes and eyeshadows?
Mascara and eyeliner are really the only thing I use consistently, though I could care less about lipstick and gloss. I'm more of an eye makeup girl.

Would you rather chop off your hair or never be able to cut it again?
Easy, chop off my hair. . . since I basically already did! I just really hate the feeling of long hair. Something about it seriously weirds me out, and as much as I love my hair, it's not a love dependent on quantity.

Would you rather have a coral cheek or a pink cheek?
I prefer coral as a colour, but I'm not sure it would flatter me as well as pink does. Plus, I love the blush that I have right now (Sonia Kashuk beautifying blush in "Flamingo").

If you had $1000 (I'm not converting from pounds haha) to spend, would you rather buy clothes or makeup?
Definitely clothes. I don't tend to deviate an awful lot from the few specific makeup products I like, but I really love buying clothes!

Would you rather apply lipstick as eyeliner or eyeliner as lipstick?
Definitely eyeliner as lipstick, even if it had to be traditional liner colour like black or brown. I just couldn't stand the texture of lipstick on my eyelids. That would feel too awful.

Would you rather shop at MAC or Sephora?
Sephora. As much as I love certain products from MAC, Sephora would have (obviously) way more variety. . . and less expensive options.

Would you rather use only one eyeshadow colour or one lip colour for the rest of your life?
One lip colour. Like I said, I'm an eyeshadow girl.

Would you rather wear winter clothes in summer or summer clothes in winter?
This question is insane! I'd rather wear summer clothes in winter because I cannot stand being overheated.

Would you rather dark nails or bright nails all year round?
Dark nails! I usually gravitate towards the darkest colours (except for black) in any collection. Lighter colours are much more unusual for me.

Would you rather give up your favourite lip product or your favourite eye product?
Lip product. Eye makeup girl!

Would you rather only be able to wear your hair in a ponytail or messy bun?
I can't do either of these with my hair haha but I'd pick ponytail.

Would you rather never being able to paint your nails again, or never using lipgloss?
I'm actually not a particularly huge fan of either of these. . . but I guess I'd go with no more nail painting. As problematic as many glosses are, my short hair pretty much makes them a non-issue.

Would you rather shave your eyebrows and have none at all, or Sharpie them in every day?
In the interest of NOT applying a toxic marker to my face daily, I'd go with no eyebrows.

Would you rather live without makeup or without nail polish?
I'd way rather live without nail polish. Even when you take great pride in your nails, there's way less of a chance of people noticing them. That sounds like I'm going for vanity on this one, but I'm just speaking in a practical sense. Most people would likely rather use makeup in a way that makes them feel good about their appearance, and I don't see nails as a big contributor to that.

It's supposed to be fantastic weather here tomorrow, so I'll try to get an OOTD up!

-C
  

Leibster Blog Award

No quotation today, just right down to business! Carrieanne from I'mjustalittlepixie nominated me for the Leibster Blog Award which recognizes blogs with 200 followers or less. So here we go.

Requirements:
1. Share eleven things about myself.
2. Answer eleven questions provided by the nominator.
3. Nominate eleven blogs (under 200 followers) that deserve the title and let them know.
4. Think of eleven questions to ask these nominees.
5. Thank the person that nominated you and link back to their blog.

11 Things About Myself:
1. I'm an only child.
2. I'm studying Italian because I fell in love with the language after visiting Italy on a high school trip.
3. I will not eat hot dogs or sausages. For the sake of those of you who enjoy them, I'm not going to talk too much about this.
4. I think pearls are the classiest accessory.
5. I love lemon yogurt.
6. "10 Things I Hate About You" is my favourite movie of all time, not because of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Heath Ledger, or Julia Stiles, but because of Larry Miller.
7. The longest essay I've ever written was about 4400 words for a class on the Brontes (Anne, Charlotte, Patrick, Branwell, Emily, Maria, and Elizabeth).
8. My favourite flowers are poppies. Also, it's a great name in the singular.
9. The item of clothing I would most like to own is a Jurassic Park raincoat because that movie is awesome and I have no shame.
10. When I was a little girl, I really wanted red hair.
11. My favourite Shakespearean play is Richard III.

11 Questions from the Nominator:
1. What made you choose your blog's name?
Pretty simple answer for this one: coral has been my favourite colour for years and C is my first initial.
2. What's your favourite colour?
See answer #1 haha
3. Who inspires you the most?
Hopefully this doesn't come across as really self-absorbed, but I think I inspire myself the most. I'm a pretty stubborn person, so when people try to push me in a certain direction, I'm often pretty resistant. I've learnt to trust my own judgement above anything else.
4. What's your favourite biscuit?
My favourite cookie (sorry, Canadian here) is one my mom makes with chocolate chips and espresso powder. Delicious AND addictive.
5. Jumper or Cardigan?
Jumper for sure. Why fuss with buttons?
6. Favourite sandwich filling?
First of all, this is probably the greatest question I've seen on one of these, so great work Carrieanne! Why is this so hard to answer? Umm I guess either raspberry jam or Havarti cheese.
7. Tell me your favourite joke.
WARNING: this joke is extremely childish because it was told to me in second grade by my best friend. There are three brothers named Shutup, Manners, and Poo who are also avid motorcyclists. One day while travelling down the road, Poo loses control of his bike and rolls into the ditch. Manners goes to help him, but Shutup continues on, speeding. Soon enough, Shutup is pulled over by a cop and the following conversation ensues. Cop: "Sir, you were speeding. I'm going to need to collect some information, starting with your name." Shutup: "Shutup." Cop: "Excuse me?" Shutup: "Shutup." Cop: "Sir, that is no way to speak to a police officer. If you don't tell me your name right now, I'm going to have to arrest you." Shutup: "Shutup!" Cop: "I can't believe this! Where are your manners?!" Shutup: "In the ditch, picking up Poo."
8. Other than the blog what is your favourite pastime?
Reading! Yay!
9. What came first the chicken or the egg?
Going for scientific accuracy on this one: the egg.
10. Favourite beauty item?
Probably blush because it doesn't take a lot of time, but really brings life into your face. I also really like my freckles, so if I'm planning to apply something to my skin, I'd pick blush over powder or liquid foundation any day because it's flattering without covering up the freckles.
11. Your fashion icon.
Easy. Julia Roberts' character Vivian Ward in "Pretty Woman." To be clear, post-prostitute wardrobe. I did a post on it here which explains the full reasoning behind this decision. In a way more fun way than how I just said it!

My 11 Nominations in no particular order:
1. A NEW Fashion View
2. Betsy Boat
3. Charlotte Jane 
4. Floral Chaos 
5. L. loves to share 
6. Simple Charm Beauty 
7. Stephanie's Look 
8. The Nautical Owl
9. The New Pink 
10. The Perks of Being a Hipster 
11. Young Love

My 11 Questions:
1. When you were a child, what was your dream job?
2. If you could swap yourself into a role in the movie of your choice, which would it be?
3. Which do you prefer getting done: a manicure or a pedicure?
4. If you could only wear only one pair of your shoes for a year, which would they be? (weather permitting, of course)
5. Describe something you did that made you proud of yourself.
6. If you had a theme song, what would it be?
7. Tell me one random fact (about you or not) that never really comes in handy, yet you can't seem to forget it. (E.g. I know all of the main events of the French Revolution. . . not particularly useful in most social situations)
8. Who is your favourite of the seven dwarfs?
9. According to you, what is the best smell in the world? Convince me of why in one sentence. (E.g. Vinegar because it reminds you of french fries and who doesn't like those?)
10. In your favourite multiple-main-character-series (TV or book), which character is most like yourself? (E.g. are you a Tibby, Lena, Carmen, or Bridget? A Blair or a Serena?)
11. What is YOUR colour? (The one you think suits you best)

-C

Girl Trophy for Excellence in Female Stuff

Tonight's quotation comes from the show "Parks and Recreation" (still watching and loving) and is just as vague and hopefully funny as much of my life. My weekend ended up being pretty great. A friend came from out of town to visit and the highlight was watching "Jumanji" together. I think that might actually be the greatest movie ever, just don't tell "10 Things I Hate About You" I said that. Somehow "Jumanji" is just equally great every single time I watch it, plus Robin Williams is probably one of my favourite actors ever. Between this film and "Hook," the movie-watching aspect of my childhood was pretty great.

You know, 'cause no posts the last two days.

This week I'll be seeing something a little more serious. Or, as serious as a cult film/TV series can get in the eyes of a society who has basically left it to the nerds. That's right, I'm talking about Star Trek. No matter how you feel about the following surrounding this series, the most recent film (2009) had a lot of amazing aspects that I think almost anyone who enjoys actions/adventure movies would appreciate. Anyone planning to see it?

-C
P.S. New OOTD up tomorrow!

Writing in the language of hurry

Today's title is 100% accurate for me right now. I've had a busy couple of days which is why there wasn't a post yesterday. The quotation I've used comes from Forster's Howards End; funny when literature is exactly applicable to real life situations, eh? Aaanyway, tomorrow should be much more relaxing, I only wish the weather were supposed to be nicer! We've had such a great run of mid-20s temperatures for the last couple of weeks, but now we're in for several days of rain and only 10 degrees on Sunday. Yuck! I would protest in the name of Mother's Day if that would have any impact whatsoever.

China Glaze "Coconut Kiss"

On a nicer note, here's the next shade I'll be painting my nails! Odd like the weather, this colour is called "Coconut Kiss." Why do I feel like the nail-polish-colour-namer-people were sleeping on the job when they came up with THAT? Oh well, still a gorgeous purple and great colour for summer. Maybe a few coats of this will coax the warm weather back!


Any special plans for Mother's Day? I'd love to hear about them!

-C

P.S. The name of this polish reminds me that my best friend is on vacation in Haiwaii right now. Lucky, lucky girl!

That's kind of a weird way to describe me

Today's title is from the TV show "Parks and Recreation," but we'll get back to that in a minute.

Do you know what I thought when coloured jeans started becoming a thing? Nope. Not "nope" as in "No, you don't know," but rather "nope" as in "I am not ever going to wear those." Based on my last two posts (pink and lavender jeans) I'm guessing you can already tell that I've changed my mind about that. I'm afraid that I've now actually gone in the complete opposite direction and become obsessed. No. Yes. Maybe, with one pair in particular. I want these pants from American Eagle so badly. Partly because they aren't jeans (HA! They're khakis!), so I can fool myself into thinking I need them, and partly because they are the colour of a creamsicle.

Anyway, my feelings about these pants sort of mirror my relationship with TV shows generally. When a show starts to become popular, I'm likely far from interested. But after my friends wear me down over months (or years) by constantly talking about how great the program is, I typically give in and try it out. Sometimes this doesn't end well and I am simply destined to never like the show, EVEN when I stick it out and watch the full first season ("Modern Family," I'm looking at you). Today I started watching "Parks and Recreation" and I'm not loving it so far, but I'm going to try to push through once again. Luckily, this show only has six episodes in its first season so I'm actually already halfway through! I'm also supposed to watch "Community," which I'll be attempting after "Parks and Recreation."

Have you watched either of these two shows? Are there any programs that, while popular, didn't seem to live up to their hype for you?

-C