Friday Favorites #4

I can't really believe that this is the fourth edition of Friday Favorites I have done. It's strange to think that this means I have been blogging for a little over 4 weeks now. 4 weeks is enough time to partake in an activity that takes 4 weeks to do. Approximately. Now, let us begin this momentous (that is probably an over exaggeration) Friday Favorites.

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It is in true Alissa style that I completely disregard the seasons and search for pretty gray/black tones of nail polish in the summer. Sue me. This ombre set from Sephora is beckoning to me.

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Since we're on the topic of nails, may I just say that The Beauty Department has some of the cutest nail polish ideas. Click through for a neat trick that will create a sort of robins egg effect on your nails as well as how to make your own *cheap* glitter polish!

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I must acquire another set of crochet needles because this DIY on how to make your very own knit bow ring is totally nifty. And perfect for summer!

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This article has me itching for another thrifting adventure very soon. It teaches some great tips for all you new thrifters and even some tips that I found pretty useful!

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This place setting is classy & quirky. I can dig it.

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Kitschy Digitals just launched this past week and it is probably one of the cutest websites I have ever seen. They have downloadable patterns, fonts, and web design elements. Even some freebies. Alissa likey free things.

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I must buy these earrings. And pretty much everything else in Craft to the Radio's store. WHY MUST THE INTERNET TORMENT ME SO.

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This must be what heaven looks like. Homemade graham crackers and chocolate dipped marshmallows. Next level smores SMART.

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Rookie Mag also did a hilarious how-to guide on texting your crush. Check it out.

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Now if that Rookie Mag article gets you a boyfriend or girlfriend, try this cute idea with your significant other. A date night in a jar! All you need is popsicle sticks and a jar. And an imagination. You can even turn it into a best friend date jar, YOU DON'T NEED NO MAN OR WOMAN ON YOUR ARM. YOU GOT UR FRIENDS GURLZ.

But anyways, I think maybe I should start making these Friday Favorites a little more organized. They jump all over the place. Nails! Thrifting! Food! EVERYTHING I LOVE. Now all I need to include in these posts are more potatoes and I am SET.

Have a relaxing Friday! I know I am. With no summer school and what nots. I will see you all soon!

Until next time,

A

New Blog Design

I am officially VERY happy with this blog design. I will stop changing it around. My navigation bar is giving me a lot of trouble but I will fix that when I get home.

I am off to watch a play in a couple minutes, so I will be back tomorrow with Friday Favorites and hopefully a fixed navbar.

Until next time,
A

OOTD: I Own More Than Two Shirts, I Promise

--- Outfit Details ---

Skirt: Thrifted

Button Up: Thrifted

Shoes: Ross, several years ago

The first outfit post I did, I was wearing this denim button up as a sort of cover up over a bodycon dress that I felt made me look like a strange individual without some sort of jacket on over it. Now, I wear it as a button up with the space skirt that I sewed! More like, altered. I blogged about this pretty little number a while back but to refresh our memories, I shall explain again. This used to be a very tight-in-the-wrong-places polyester halter dress. I was not a fan of it in that form. But the print was just so amazing,  I could not pass it up. I bought it and chopped off the top and bottom and hemmed them both. I decided not to add any elastic because it was already very form fitting. A body con skirt, of sorts. And I am absolutely smitten with it.

It's pretty hard for me to do these outfit posts, not only because I use a combination of tripod and tree balancing camera strap skills to take these photos. But also because I don't dress very interestingly on a day to day basis. Being in summer school and actually seeing real people should encourage me to dress nicer. But alas, I do not. So I'm trying my best here.

Anyways, have a great Wednesday! I will see y'all soon.

Until next time,
A

Tunes Tuesday (Because I Didn't Do Music Monday hohohohoho)

Due to unforeseeable circumstances (me actually having some sort of social life) I didn't get around to doing a Music Monday. But fret not my little kittens, for I will make up for it with a Tunes Tuesday. Which will hopefully not become a reoccurring feature here on IAS.

This, my friends, is alt-j (∆). They are a band. They are a great band. I first discovered them when I was roaming on vimeo due to my interest in film and animation. I stumbled upon this video...

I was immediately in love. The music video was so inventive and the song was just so strange and beautiful. Breezeblocks has since been featured in a video I produced for Project Second Chances (see my about me for a little explanation on that) as well as many long car rides. I just can't get sick of it. Alt-j is just very dark electronic/ indie pop/ alternative GOODNESS. I have recommended them to every single person who would listen to my blabber and everyone has loved them. This is a sign. From the flying spaghetti monster (it's a real religion, google it). Check them OUT.
Now, I must go forth and study profusely for a test I have tomorrow. Oh the summer school woes. I will see y'all soon!
Until next time,A

Frurzern Yergert

My friends and I have this thing where we pronounce regular words like we have a weird foreign speech impediment (Corn= kern, Potato= perterter, People= perple, etc. etc.), hence the title. This morning we (my family and I) went to this frozen yogurt place called Tutti Frutti. Frozen yogurt is the "in thing" now I suppose, with a new shop popping up every day. I have never really liked yogurt, I am more of a sherbet/ ice cream person. However, the toppings at Tutti Frutti are amazing. They have everything you could ever want. EVERYTHING. So I did not object.

My dad asked me "So, are you gonna have any yogurt with all those toppings?" No, father, no I am not. I did have a little bit of cheesecake and cookies and cream yogurt. But I was there for the unhealthy candy things, mostly. They had a soy bean flavor which sounded cool but I was not feeling too adventurous. Also, this happened...

IT IS AN ALIEN. THERE HAS BEEN A KIWI ALIEN INVASION IN TUTTI FRUTTI HAWAII. GUYS, PHONE THE PRIEST BECAUSE THIS IS A MIRACLE OF THE GODS.

But anyways, it was good. The owner was friendly and it was clean and not crowded. I would definitely recommend it to anyone on Oahu.

So, have a great remainder of the weekend (not that it matters because EVERYONE IS ON BREAK AND I AM NOT UGHHHHH) and I will see you all tomorrow with another edition of Music Monday!

Until next time,

A

A Terrible Attempt at Vlogging

Yesterday, I went on the best adventure of my life. With Reagan and her Acid-Reflux, and April. First we went thrifting at Goodwill. Then we went to eat lunch at a random location, 49-er Cafe. Then shave ice at Ice Garden. Then Target. Then Byron's Drive-in for deep fried Oreos. Then to a cool comic book/ record store, Jelly's. And a craft store. Basically, we covered the entire island. This is a vlog of our wonderful adventures. The quality is terrible in both the audio and visuals department, but hey it's the content that counts.



I hope you all get to go on awesome adventures this summer, too. Have a great Saturday!
Until next time,A

Friday Favorites #3

First off, I would like to apologize for the silence on IAS over the past couple days. I was helping a friend with a school project and then had to study for my final and do my own project and save the world, basically. But the good news is, I finished the first semester of summer school! Only 12 more days left. I can do this. And now without further ado, LET FRIDAY FAVORITES ISSUE NUMBER THREE COMMENCE!

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Emma, whose blog "Food Coma" I read religiously, made a cool guest post DIY on how you can make your own pickles. I love pickles. I must do this.

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The walls have always looked quite boring in my room. In recent years I have hung up some of my own paintings, but I haven't been doing much art lately. This cool DIY on how to make your own yarn wall art is really neat, and doesn't require that I pick up a paintbrush. Thank goodness.

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20x200 is a great website where you can buy art prints (like the one pictured above) for a disgustingly cheap price. So your walls don't end up looking like mine.

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My friend Tess showed me Rookie Magazine. I don't know how I did not find it prior to her guidance, because it is great. Check out this tutorial on how to make your own strawberry jam, perfect for summer!

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Why am I only hearing about the Citra-Sipper now?! It's a tiny little straw that you stick into any citrus fruit of your choice, and voila, pure *insert fruit name here* juice!

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Window shopping will be the death of me. I saw that these shoes were on sale, so I automatically squealed with excitement. Well, guys. They were $170, on sale for $119. Ha ha ha I have never paid more than $40 for a pair of shoes. 

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Mignon Kitchen has the cutest kitchenware, tableware, and pantry goodies. The bamboo plates above are $5 for a set of 8 plates and $7 for a set of 8 place settings. They're organic and biodegrade in 5 months!

Herriot Grace is a short documentary about a father-daughter duo that makes cute handmade kitchen goodies. He crafts each piece by hand and she photographs and sells them. Watch the full documentary here, check out their shop here, and read how they started this awesome endeavor here.

If you're in the New York area (Long Island City, to be specific) the Cheesemonger Invitational is happening upon the morrow. There will be cheesy competitions and cheesy food and everything cheesy. Why am I stuck in Hawaii. Why.
That's it for this week's Friday Favorites. I will be back tomorrow with a vlog (hopefully) of my wonderful foodie adventures that I partook on today with a couple awesome people. Have a relaxing Friday!
Until next time,A

Pretty Food

I think I have mentioned numerous times my love for food. I like eating food. I like making food. I like photographing food. I like food. But Vimeo User "tiger in a jar" takes food videography to a whole new level.







I highly highly HIGHLY recommend you watch these videos. They put food network to shame. Just the imagination and effort put into each video is inspiring. Plus, how can you go wrong with videos about food? You can't. That's right. It's not possible.
Have a happy Tuesday!
Until next time,A

Music Monday: Pomegranates

I don't know what it is with me and these Cincinnati based bands, but whatever it is, it is awesome. The above isn't their most recent work but it is definitely super rad. I know they just released their fourth album and a pretty interesting music video for Surfing the Human Heart, which honestly just makes me so so so happy. It's a beautiful song.

Anyways, check out their tumblr, bandcamp, facebook, and myspace. Because they are really darn good.
Now it is time for me to study and finish an essay. I do not know the meaning of summer, obviously.
Until next time,A

Fire Trucks and Fathers Day

Today after 4 games of excruciatingly boring and tiring (I HAVE BRUISES ON MY FINGERS) games of bowling, I went to the fire station to visit my dad at work! Here are some tidbits from today's adventures...

I feel pretty lucky to be able to do these kinds of things with my family. I've grown up going to help cook dinner at the station, becoming closer with other firefighter's families, and watching my dad go from a banker to a firefighter; something he truly loves. 

I've always thought I was destined to ivy league colleges and pursuing majors that are of little to no interest to me, purely because it was good money and what would make my parents proud. But then I think of the poster we still have hanging by our front door, with little checked off boxes that symbolized how many days my dad had left in training for the fire department. I think of getting up at 6 in the morning to watch the Country Music Channel with him and letting him practice bandaging on my arms or legs or little noggin. I think of standing outside with him as I read off steps on a sheet of paper that were supposed to help him with studying for some sort of firefighter promotion test. 

Thinking about all these things made me realize that if I truly love something, then money should be no object. As long as I love doing it and I try my best, my parents will be proud of me. Just like we were so proud of my dad upon graduating recruit class.

Happy Fathers Day, daddy. Thank you for teaching me the importance of doing what you love, not just what is expected of you. *And I really hope you don't read this with me sitting right behind you or something. That's embarrassing.*

Until next time,

A

Friday Favorites #2

When the bell rang at the end of summer school today I was running out of that classroom like there was a wild puma at my heels. I have spent 40 hours over the past 8 days in that darn classroom. Learning about democracy. This is shaping up to be a great summer. Well, at least it's Friday. Which means Friday Favorites time! Yay how esssiting.

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This tutorial for making your own DIY chain camera strap is super cute and even more useful. I don't know how much I would trust my own handyman skills hanging a thousand dollars of equipment off my neck though...

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An entire blog devoted to GIFs of food. I am absolutely and completely okay with this.

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Keiko Lynn has the best wardrobe and blog and everything. Plus she is mega talented. I hope to be just like her. Especially since she restyled the dress in the picture above from a very drab matronly dress into this super cute lace number. Bee-yew-tee-ful.

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Cinemagraphs amaze me. I must learn how to do them myself. They are just so enchanting. Not a GIF and not a video. MAGIC. I must learn to do magic. Yes.

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I love Tyler Knott's poetry and his unconventional ways of communicating his work. Between daily haikus and his typewriter project, plus a photography business, I don't know how he keeps being so good at everything. Ugh. Just ugh.

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The heart braid! Makes me wish I never cut my long hair. I miss being able to do fun things with it. Follow the click through link to find out how to do one yourself!

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I bet I'm going to end up having Kinsey's DIYs on every single one of my Friday Favorites. There are just so many good ones. Click through the link to learn how to bleach and fringe your very own summer tanks :3

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With my sisters graduation party coming up, I have been looking for tons of DIYs around the net. I stumbled upon this one for cute feather/candle jars and fell in love. They're so dainty and cute. I might make a few for my room.



Once again, I wish I still had long hair. The high bun was my signature style when I had luscious locks. Y'all should watch this and do it so you can fulfill my dreams through your hair.



Daniel Cloud Campos is an amazing dancer, cinematographer, and screenwriter. I have mad respect for this dude. This video combines a bunch of things I hate (cleaning and dancing) yet I still loved watching it. Strange.

That's it for today! Have a wonderful Friday. Eat lots. Sleep lots.

Until next time,
A

Makeup Blogging is Hard

I thought this would be really touch and go. Sit in front of a mirror with a camera in hand and take pictures after each step of my makeup. How hard is that? Well Alissa. It was very hard. Getting the camera to focus, trying to get the colors to actually show up accurately, trying not to poke my eyes out. It was tough. So bear with me as we all embark on this wonderful makeup journey after the jump!

FOTD: I'm Tired So I Will Overcompensate With Makeup

I love makeup. What I do not love is sitting in front of a mirror for 30 minutes pasting my face on. But hey, a girl has to do what a girl has to do. So I will be starting another feature here on It's Always Sunny, where I show off my accomplishments in the world of cosmetics and perhaps teach y'all a few tricks. LET'S GO.

As the title says, I was tired. And my solution to not looking tired is to make my makeup so dark that it looks like I am purposely trying to seem tired. It works, I'm telling ya'll. I did my friend Kelci's makeup for sophomore banquet and did these eye shenanigans on her and she looked so pretty. So essentially, you can dress it up or down. Depends on your outfit (I just wore a navy blue cotton high low dress and red sweater with my hair tied up. Not fancy at all.) Now for the products I used...

Face...

- Revlon Colorstay liquid foundation

- Neutrogena 3-in-1 undereye concealer

- Maybelline Stay Matte finishing powder

Eyes...

- Coastal Scents 88 matte palette (for eyeshadow and brows)

- Sephora Limited Edition Eye Palette

- Almay Bright Eyes liner

- Covergirl Lashblast Fusion mascara

- Maybelline Colossal Volume mascara

Brushes...

- COSTCO HAS THE BEST MAKEUP BRUSHES!!! AND THEY'RE CHEAPER THAN DIRT.

But Alissa, HOW DO I DO WHAT YOU DID?!?! Well, ladies and gentledudes, I will be doing a makeup tutorial on how you can achieve this look upon the morrow. So stay tuned for that. I hope you guys weren't getting too excited about learning this today. Patience is a virtue. Har har har. 

Oh and did y'all notice that I dyed my hair black?! It was starting to turn green so I aborted that mission and had Tess dye it black for me. I love it. And I love her for putting up with me whenever I ask her to dye my hair ;)

Anyways, have a relaxing Wednesday!

Until next time,

A