Knitted coziness

(clockwise: H&M;  Dolce & Gabbana; Marc Jacobs; Paul & Joe;)

Local radio stations are slowly starting to play Christmas music, even though Thanksgiving hasn't even passed yet. Although it may seem kind of early, there is no shame in starting the Christmas season a couple of weeks earlier than usual. Holiday cheer always adds a warm feeling in the cool, almost-Winter wind. Though it has been rather warm in Philadelphia these past couple of days, and I must say that I am a tad bit disappointed. After all, it is mid-November, and sunny 60ºF days are hardly season-appropriate!

I can't wait until the weather starts to really cool down (whilst not raining!), so I can have a legitimate excuse to buy a fair isle sweater. Usually I am not one for holiday-themed clothing, but not only are these knits comfy and warm, but they are also cute and subtly festive. Dolce & Gabbana has incorporated chic fair isle prints in their latest fall/winter collection. Unfortunately, their gorgeous sweaters are sort of out of my budget, but I'm determined to find cheaper fair isle sweaters that are just as comfy and practical for future cold, winter days. 

Much procrastinating within procrastinating.

My weekend mornings are usually as follows: wake up, clean up a bit, get breakfast (coffee + some form of pastry), and then return back into my warm, toasty bed with my Macbook up and running. That, my friends, is my preparation for game time.

If you have not gathered from my previous posts, I am a huge, huge soccer nut. I've grown up with memories of World Cups from yesteryears, and my family has always consisted of great soccer fans. I absolutely love the sport, and although there are always matches to watch on weekends, there is only so much time I could afford to spend watching soccer. After all, I'm inundated with reading and things to study. But of course, that doesn't mean that I am actually doing all the things I should be doing. I've tried to curb my procrastinating ways, but quite frankly, old habits die hard. Hours upon hours of possible soccer watching are surefire ways of procrastinating for me.

But whether I am cheering on my lovely gunners or I'm neutrally watching a La Liga match, I still find a way to procrastinate more within my procrastination! As of recently, it has been internet "window shopping." Because on a college student's budget, I surely cannot afford to buy the amount of clothes I was able to when I had a steady income. My favorite thing to gawk at as of recent is Lanvin's new collection for H&M, which comes out on November 23. Although quite pricey for H&M items, the collection is very fun and has great key pieces that are very "Alber Elbaz." With dresses going at $250 a pop, perhaps it's not plausible for me to get my holiday dress from this collection. But there are other great pieces that are cheaper and just as chic. My personal favorite is the yellow ruffled one-shoulder dress, though I wouldn't be able to buy it without crying from shopper's shock (and using my empty wallet as a tissue). Other pieces I love include floral bow pumps and a zebra print coat.

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The collection can be seen at hm.com. 

Going One Direction

Like many young girls back in the day, I was in love with *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys and would obsess over their fun, catchy songs. Although I've certainly grown up, my youthful heart still enjoys old boy band albums. In fact, I've even branched out to UK-popular boy bands like Westlife and Take That!

Another up and coming British pop group is One Direction, a group contestant of UK's singing competition The X Factor. All five members auditioned for the show solo, but were put together as a group at the boot camp stage, after failing to go through as solo acts. Since then, they've seemed to gel together quite nicely and are one of the favorites to win the competition this season. Not only are they immensely talented, but the guys (Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson) are absolutely adorable! British teenage girls are swooning over them, as well as international female X Factor fans.

Even though I am older than these guys (the youngest one, Harry, is 16!), I can't help but adore One Direction. They can rock upbeat songs like Viva La Vida and also ballads such as Total Eclipse of the Heart, and have consistently been strong throughout the whole competition thus far. The group is super talented and have a bright future ahead of them.

Perhaps their strongest performance as of yet is their most recent performance of Elton John's "The Way You Look Tonight." Their singing talent was truly highlighted in this performance, and I can shamelessly say that my heart melted upon watching them sing (just having to ignore the cheesy projections above them).

Although there are other talented contestants on the show with great chances of winning, One Direction have a fantastic shot at making it to the top. Will they be the first group to win X Factor? Their infamously fickle and blunt mentor (as well as X Factor judge) Simon Cowell seems to think so. 

Having a shot or two. Of coffee, that is.

Nothing says the holidays much like seasonal Starbucks drinks. Well, to me at least. Ever since starting school, my caffeine addiction has gone haywire. Not that I was ever put off by caffeine before, as a matter of fact, I've always loved coffee. But nowadays, having two cuppas a day is not uncommon. I suppose it is because delicious drinks are easily accessible here (there are a good handful of coffee places around campus), and perhaps also because I actually do need the caffeine in order to sustain myself during these hectic days.

I couldn't suppress my glee upon seeing that Starbucks has whipped out the holiday cups recently. Which only means that the delicious holiday drinks, which are only available for two months out of the year, are back. I frequent Starbucks quite often (waaay more than I should, really) and I'm determined to try all of the drinks available at least once. Though I can say that my preferred drink at the moment is the peppermint mocha. I'm not usually one for the mint/chocolate combo, but it is so fantastic that it's the only thing that I order now.

I spent my Friday afternoon in comfort and happiness: reading a good book and sipping on some peppermint mocha. Can't get any better than that.

Tickle Me Red

The trend has been around what seems like ages, and some could debate that the classic look hasn't ever gone out of style. I've always been rather prude with my lip color choices. However, there was something about red lips that always interested me, despite its brightness and boldness. I end up admiring the array of red lip colors in make-up aisles from afar, since I've always been too scared to give the hue a try. Not only did it seem to be too "attention grabbing" for my personal taste, but it also seems to be quite a pain to keep the pop of color lasting all day.

Lately, I've been having the urge to actually give the red lips look a go. Frankly, I am getting quite bored of my soft pinks and neutrals. A new, fun life calls for a new, fun look, am I right? But a problem arises: the right shade. Where's the balance between Halloween queen and circus clown? I suppose this just calls for a good amount of experimenting and researching, of which I will probably be doing when I'm not hermiting in my room and "trying" to study.

Away and back.

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The leaves are falling and the year is nearing its end. So much has happened this year, and yet...I couldn't find any time (or energy) to blog about the interesting things or thoughts in my life.

Much of the hiatus has to do with my hectic college lifestyle. But rest assured, I'm trying my absolute hardest to jot down my inspirations and thoughts. Exam, projects and essay mayhem is just around the corner, but of course my mind is elsewhere. How else will I procrastinate now? Bringing this baby back to life again.