Book Talk: May Uppercase Box Review

This post was meant to go up on my actual birthday, which would have been perfect, because what better gift to myself than an Uppercase Box? It has officially been a year since I received my first Uppercase Box and I've gotten a lot of amazing bookish goodies that I never would have even thought of getting for myself! That sentiment definitely applies to this month's box, but don't just take my word for it! (I say as you proceed to read a blog post full of my words...)

#hairoftheweek: Four Strand Ponytail

Spring has finally arrived! Or is it time for summer already? My gauge for heat has no reference anymore. Either way, I'm ready to wear nothing but dresses for the rest of forever. In fact, I can think of a few dresses that would go great with this week's hairstyle...

#hairoftheweek: Snake Braid Headband

When I really need to focus on my schoolwork, I put on songs from my childhood. Sometimes that means ABBA, sometimes that means Michael Jackson. This time, it meant Bee Gees. I spent the week grooving to my favorite disco tunes while I figured out what kind of hairstyle I wanted to do. I also had an outfit planned involving my Celine Dion t-shirt. What better way to combine my two topical interests than with the song they did together? Immortality carried me through quite the week and provided my #hairoftheweek with a lovely caption.

#hairoftheweek: Half Up Mini Fishtail

We haven't been in May for long, but it has already been so generous. We've had a handful of bright and, more importantly, warm days, but that's not to say we haven't also had our share of rain. In fact, the day I wore this hairstyle, we went from borderline summer to massive thunderstorm. Lightning and all. It was quite the eventful day.

#hairoftheweek: Black Hole Bun

Am I going to pretend that this blog post is not eight days late? Yes. Time is but a social construct anyway. Is enjoying the summer preview we've been having recently good enough reason to postpone this post? Who knows how long the warmth and sunshine will last? Carpe diem! Considering how late this blog post already is, I shouldn't delay any longer. On to the hair!

Happy Hub: Mamma Mia!, Waitress, JMac, & (a little bit) More!

I am shocked. I don't think I have ever had such a sparse Happy Hub, but I also don't feel like this month was bad. I guess it goes to show how paying attention to the little things in life can make you just as happy as the big things.

#hairoftheweek: Belle's Provincial Ponytail

So often I save hairstyles for a rainy day and then when a rainy day comes, I feel like it isn't the absolute rainiest it could be, so I suffer through it and never end up using my savings. This time I recognized that I needed a quick fix and it was the perfect time to dip into my reserves. Ironically, this all happened on the sunniest day we've had in months. Go figure.

Book Talk: April Uppercase Review

Is there any better feeling than receiving an email that says your package has shipped earlier than expected? Probably, but it was just what I needed last week when my Uppercase box arrived. I'm not going to say this was the best box yet, but... It's a stiff competition.

#hairoftheweek: Dutch Halo Braid

This week we have a spring/Easter inspired hairstyle! The sun is coming out to play more and more these days so I wanted to do a hairstyle that celebrated that. It's also a reason to play Beyonce on repeat, so I really don't see how this was anything but a good decision. 🌷🐝

#hairoftheweek: Triple Knotted Half Up

Just when you think you're finally getting some spring weather, Mother Nature hits you with a storm. In April! I'm hoping that once this passes, it will be out of the weather's system and we can move on for some consistently pleasant weather. I've forgotten what it feels like to stand under the sun.

Book Talk: March Wrap Up

So much for taking advantage of my spring break... I mean, I did, just not for reading. Prioritizing is hard. And now there aren't any breaks until Memorial Day. Looks like I'll just have to make a greater point of carving out time in my day. One day I'll restore my reading life to its former glory, but today is, unfortunately, not that day.

#hairoftheweek: Three Rose Updo

Welcome to Spring 2017! I am feeling fresh and ready to tackle another season of #hairoftheweek, despite not having any idea about what types of hairstyles I want to do. Maybe spontaneity will be the theme of this season. It's worked out so far, but with a track record of one, we'll have watch this season's progress closely.

Happy Hub: Logan, Beauty and the Beast, San Francisco, & More!

I did not intend for this Happy Hub to be so wordy but it seems it was unavoidable. What can I say? There was a ton to be happy about this month! School just resumed but I am more than willing to forget about it all for a while to focus on all the good things I experienced in March.

#hairoftheweek: Winter 2017 Recap

The beginning of this season feels like a lifetime ago. It's been one of my roughest quarters yet. Thank goodness it's over so we can start fresh after some much needed R&R. Before we jump into the next season however, let us enjoy the gallery of Winter 2017's hairstyles.

#hairoftheweek: {Bonus} Hourglass Loop

Every season I look forward to Bonus #hairoftheweek because that means I get some time off of school. Winter's Bonus only grants me a single week but, even so, the tension in my temples and shoulders have all but disappeared. Miracles do exist.

Book Talk: March Uppercase Review

The theme of this month's box was timing. Had I stuck to my original plan and actually blogged, this box's arrival would have aligned perfectly with the amount of time I had to prepare this blog post for publishing. Unfortunately, I did no such thing, but I did get to see Beauty and the Beast the morning this box arrived! You'll see why that's coincidental under the cut. 😉

#hairoftheweek: #tbt Fishtail Accent Four Strand

Perhaps I overestimated myself. While I did a great job at balancing everything else I needed to do, xo, Yvette fell to the wayside. If I'm smart with my time I'll be up to speed in a few days! Expect a lot of hair posts this week. Better hop to it then! Shall we?

#hairoftheweek: Tuxedo Fishtail

So far in my college career I've had a lot of chill dead weeks. All I had to do was make sure the material was fresh in my mind for an exam I would take on Wednesday or Thursday of the next week. No chance of that this quarter. My butt is getting kicked real thoroughly. At least now when I'm procrastinating I can open up Instagram and gaze lovingly at the Tuxedo Fishtail because it is 1) gorgeous and 2) gave me a break from the s t r e s s.

Book Talk: February Wrap Up

Another month, another Wrap Up. So soon? I don't even feel like I've read anything this month. Obviously I read some, otherwise we wouldn't be here right now. I'm going to chalk up my poor performance to the lack of 29th, 30th, and 31st days. How could I possibly read all the books I want in a month that's two to three whole days shorter than all the others?!

#hairoftheweek: Bubble Pigtails

How can each week go by so slowly and time still fly? There's no way it's already March. I can't complain, though. Every day that passes is another day closer to my vacations! Boy do I need a break. My whole body is rigid with pent up tension. At least when I'm doing my hair, my body gets to move in a way that it doesn't get to when I work on all my assignments so there is that refuge.

Happy Hub: NEWSIES, Hidden Figures, Dear Evan Hansen, & More!

Are we sure that this month is the shortest of the year? Because it has felt like one of the longest I've had in, well, months. Thankfully I had quality time with family and friends, as well as a whole boatload of music to get me through it. Where would I be without three day weekends?

#hairoftheweek: Half Up Top Knot

Despite it being shorter than normal, it was such a long week. There was too much happening for me to spare a moment to be creative about #hairoftheweek, so I didn't. This week I'll be taking a page out of Zoella's book and doing one of her signature hairstyles.

Book Talk: February Uppercase Review

Sometimes life can be hard, but these days I've always had the middle of the month to look forward to. Who wouldn't be delighted to have a book box delivered to you after a couple difficult weeks? Bliss. This month is no exception because I loved this box and I think you will too. It's a really good one.

#hairoftheweek: Lollipop Pigtails

For weeks now I have been almost literally dying to cut my hair. It was spectacularly poor timing because Chinese New Year but now that has passed, I am free to chop off all the hair I want. Since I had been longing for this for so long, I've had more than enough time to come up with a perfect #hairoftheweek debut for my new shorter hair.

Movie Moments: Top 5 Movies in 2016

I'm a little late to the party with this post. It's February and I am just now getting to a round up of last year? My January was packed full with blog posts and to be fair, I've only seen one movie so far in 2017 so it doesn't even feel like my movie year has started. Is that a good enough justification? Regardless, I need no more excuses because the time has come! My Top 5 of 2016! Here we go!!!

#hairoftheweek: Fishtail Accent Four Strand

Last week I didn't put too much thought into #hairoftheweek until the day of or the night before, choosing to prioritize my exam over my hair. I think that's fair. Similarly this week, I had went through the same though process. All the way down to having a hairstyle in mind that I thought would look great, but winding up changing course and ending up with something better. Despite the parallels in the journey to #hairoftheweek, the hairstyles turned out to be quite different, but still gorgeous in their own ways.

Book Talk: January Wrap Up

You know when you get off the freeway and you're itching to move faster because you suddenly have to drive at half the speed you were just going a second ago? Technically I wouldn't really know since I don't drive and I've only gotten off the freeway once (behind the wheel) while in driver's ed, but I'm telling you that is how this reading month felt. I went from 24 books in 31 days to 5 in 31. Quite the reduction, but I'm not mad about it.

#hairoftheweek: Messy Honey Bun

I spent the first half of my week preoccupied with my first exam of the quarter. There was not a moment or brain cell to spare to think about #hairoftheweek, but somehow that worked out in my favor. The quick thinking required of me lead me to a hairstyle that I was very, very happy with. More happy, even, than if I were eating a real messy honey bun. 😉🍯

Happy Hub: La La Land, Hamlet, Baracky Road, & More!

January 2017 sure has been a tumultuous month. There were as many highs as there were lows but today we're only going to be talking about the good stuff (like ice cream!). Nothing like going into a new month with a smile on your face! 😊

#hairoftheweek: Upside Down French Braid

Happy Chinese New Year! This is always an exciting time of year and it helps me feel closer to my roots. It's fun to come together with family and go through our traditions. This feels like another fresh start -- almost as if January is a free trial and now the new year is truly beginning.

Book Talk: January Uppercase Review

Here we have your regularly scheduled Happy Hub! Wait, that's not it. We've had to switch some things around at the end of this month because my Uppercase Box arrived a day too late but it's all good because you know what they say. Better late than never!

#hairoftheweek: Micro Braidback

Oftentimes I don't care much for trends. I don't detest them, but I just don't see any reason to follow them. Lately, I have been lacking inspiration and it's frustrating when nothing seems to work. In times like these it's trends that are my saving grace. I've seen this week's hairstyle around on people of all ages and I knew just by looking at it that it wouldn't give me much trouble.

Book Talk: 2016 Wrap Up & Top 10 of 2016

When I signed up for Goodreads in May of 2012, I set my reading challenge for 50 books. I figured I was already a quarter of the way through the year so 50 books may be a challenge. Not the case. I demolished that goal. Since then I have been working my way up to my ultimate goal of reading 100 books in a single year. I got really close last year with 92 books, but at that point, I was just worrying about getting past my 90 book goal. It is with great pleasure and sense of accomplishment that I can say 2016 was the year I read 💯 books! Now I have to tackle the real challenge: whittling down the 100 to my top 10 favorite. Oh boy, here we go.

#hairoftheweek: Sleek Headband Braid

I'm stuck in a hair rut. As hard as I try, nothing seems to work and inspiration has been doing everything in its power to evade me. I don't know how to pull myself out of this block but I'll keep practicing and holding on to every sliver of creativity for dear life.

Travelog: Malaysia

I have been pushing this back for so many weeks now that those weeks have accumulated into months. There's only one way to get this ball rolling and that's by jumping right on in. In recent years my family has been doing back-to-back trips. It keeps us on our toes. We only had a day or so after our Norwegian Escape Cruise to touch base with our beloved house before hitting the road again. Our next trip was to Asia -- a week in Malaysia and a week in Vietnam. Grab yourself a light snack and a refreshment because we are about to embark on the first stretch of our trip.

#hairoftheweek: Hoth Leia Crown Braid

Most of the time, the hairstyles I do are just because I think they're pretty or they were the most ready for #hairoftheweek when it came time to choose a hairstyle. Other times, such as this week's, there will be a lengthy thought process and we'll end up with something of a masterpiece. Based on the title of this blog post, you can probably deduce that this is a character-inspired hairstyle, and an iconic one at that.

Book Talk: December Wrap Up

Talk about a fourth quarter comeback! For the past couple months I've been whining about my dismal reading months but I have turned that around so hard I should probably get checked for whiplash. This is the best reading month of my life based on the numbers. Obviously not every book is going to be a home run when you're reading this many, but I really branched out and picked up a lot of different genres, including ones that I don't usually get to amid my fantasy and contemporary reads. I'm forewarning you right now that this is a really long post so I'm going to stop the intro here and let you get on to the books!

Happy Hub: Rogue One, Sing, the Final Burger, & More!

Welcome to 2017! I feel like I've been steamrolled by 2016 but the bright side is at this point the only thing I can do is slowly reinflate. That's how human bodies work, right? While the world has dig itself even deeper into the hole of despair, December has been pretty fun in my personal life. We have a lot of ground to cover to so let's get to it!