Wednesday, July 6, 2011

I'm back!

Say hello to a brand new College student! *does an excited little dance*

I just came back yesterday, happy and just so HAPPY. We had a little party at home where we all drank to my getting into the College I wanted. (Psstt...it's one of the best Colleges in the country! :D :D) I know this is silly but I am SO glad I have boys in my College. *does another excited little dance*

I did LOTS of shopping in the month that I was MIA and I'm so excited to share them with you! Right now, they're all in the washing because I've worn them so many times, I fear they've already lost their colour. -.-

Anyway, before I get into my usual posting run, I wanted to let you all know the winner of the Kardemom giveaway! 

...A big congratulations to Violet

You have won the skirt of your choice!

An email will be sent to you shortly regarding the address details. Hoping to hear from you soon!


In case the winner does not reply in 42 hours, a new winner will be chosen.

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Kardemom Skirt GIVEAWAY!

Well, folks, after that first giveaway, I think I've become addicted to hosting them. Honestly, people go on and on about wasting time on Giveaways but I seem to enjoy them thoroughly. When I click the final button to find the winner, I feel awesome. :)

(That's my God complex talking.)

Anyway, here's my second SUPER-AWESOME giveaway!

Introducing the face behind the amazing Kardemom Etsy shop:

Dress made by her

Skirt made by her


She's super-talented and has the most gorgeous clothes ever. When I approached her about the giveaway, she agreed immediately and I had the best time ever discussing about the giveaway with her.

Here's a few things you should know:

About her designs:


K: When I make a garment, usually it starts with finding a fabric. I love to browse vintage and thrift stores, and buy all the fabric that catches my eye. For some reason, I always buy striped fabrics and shades of blue and green. I have them on shelves in my studio, and decide from there what I want to make. Usually I see the image of what item I should make, like a picture or a movie still in my head. And then I just follow that. I love combining vintage fabrics into one lovely, ruffle, doll-like dress.


About the type of women she makes her designs for:

K: The type of women I have in mind when I make items is a girl that is both strong and innocent. She likes to read and wander in forests. She believes in fairytales and maybe doesn’t like reality that much. At the same time she is not a child, she has lots of ideas and opinions and is a bit of a rebel.

About herself:

K: I’m a 25 year old girl, living in the north of the Netherlands. I live with my husband and a cat called Fred, in a very small house with a very small garden. I studied art history and now try to get by by sewing clothes, writing freelance for magazines, organizing exhibitions, and bartering things. Currently I’m dreaming of living in Venice, Italy, and I want to go there this winter. I have no real plans for my life except read as many books as possible. I spend most of my time reading, sewing, gardening, and dreaming big dreams about the future. I love to make clothes mostly because I love colours and the way some fabrics feel.



Doesn't she seem awesome? I'm one of her biggest fans! I drooled over almost everything that was on her shop website. I wanted to have them all! Unfortunately, sigh, that's not how the Universe works and that's why I'm sitting here, giving you the wonderful opportunity to...

...win a beautiful skirt! 

Initially, we were worried about the size so we came up with a simple solution: The Winner gets to choose between two skirts, any one skirt which is nearest to or is her size!

The two skirts are:

Waist: 82-95 cm / 32-37 inch
Length: 40 cm / 16 inch

Waist: 90-110 cm / 36-44
Length: 53 cm / 21 inch


Aren't they a beauty? See how you can win them!



Here's how you enter:




Mandatory Entry: 
1. Like me on Facebook/Follow me via GFC 
AND
2. Go to Geerte's Etsy shop and come back and comment on your favorite item. 





This is not necessary but will be appreciated:
1. Follow me on Twitter.
2. Follow me on Bloglovin




Please include your email id when you comment so I can contact you if you win.



ONLY ONE ENTRY PER PERSON which means you can COMMENT ONLY ONCE!




Contests ends on 3rd June 2011.
Open Worldwide. 




Goooooood luck, ladies!

Saturday, May 28, 2011

We like to move it, move it.

Okay, so I know I just posted a very sorry message apologizing to all of you about my upcoming absence but the thing is, th moment I clicked on 'Publish Post' my eyes did the 'twitch'. If you know me in real life, or if you've ever met me, if I get unhappy about something, my eyes start twitching. This is a boon apparently, according to my mother.

"That's how I caught your lies when you were younger, you know!"

Whaa--Is that how---Oh. Damn.

Anyway, so with another episode of the 'Twitch', I spent the rest of my day wearing my super dorky sunglasses that my mother bought for me long, long ago when she had to shop for me. I took a walk in my colony wearing the slightly pink, horrible rounded sunglasses. I unfortunately don't possess an oval/heart shaped face, instead inheriting a rather round, moon face from Dad Dearest (And HE calls me round. Hmpf. He doesn't seem to realise we're identical in shape) and wearing those super round sunglasses, I rather felt like a miserable flat pancake.

My mother had kicked me out of the house earlier, demanding that I walk and not sit in front of the computer and wear out my credit card, and so the evening found me trotting very miserably around my area, avoiding anything that had eyes, including the very adorable retriever that lived a few blocks down my place.

Fifteen minutes into my walk, I had cheered myself up, imagining the weight loss and thinking of the next Modcloth sale. I began to take a more daring course, even going past the Cute Guy's house (notice the caps) and shaking my head in which I thought was a cool way to some weird rap music on my mobile that I had never heard before--

Hang on. Weird rap music? On MY mobile?

I'm going to kill my brother.

So while I was doing the head jiggle, my feet began to move on their own, I swear. I am not a dancer, far from it but I suppose rap music does that to you. I even pumped my hands up and did a strange move which involved crossing my leg over the other, waving my hands around the head and trying to bend. You'd think I'd stop there but oh, no. I had to show off my new-found gymnastic skills and so I attempted ANOTHER step which involved jumping with legs entwined.

And then I tripped.

JUST. When. The. Cute. Guy. Said. Hi. From. Behind.


Google Images



All I can say is I hope he enjoyed the lovely view of my huge er, curvy behind.

At least the eyes are stable now. I blogged! 

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Giant Cloud in the sky

Hello, lovelies!

Sorry for the hideously late post but I've been super busy...sleeping. Yesterday I crossed my own record by sleeping for twenty-two hours. ZZZzzzzzzzz....

BUT, I have some very exciting news to share!

I just got my results for Grade 12, CBSE, with 92%! *does an excited, happy squeal* Those of you who live in India would already know what CBSE is but for the people everywhere else, it's basically the most important, centralised test that you have to appear for AND pass to qualify as a school graduate. The grades decide which College you go to in India and you need the grades even you if you're appearing for SAT or whatever else. I'm planning on taking up History as my major subject for College. Hopefully I get into some good ones. :)

The next month will be spent trekking from College to College, gathering forms, filling them, sending them and hopefully receiving the Interview call. Which brings me to a painful halt.

I will be so busy the next month and the month after (first semester starts from 21st July) that my Blog will definitely suffer. It will be on temporary hiatus for two months and I already shudder to think of losing all my lovely readers. I hope and I hope you'll stick with me till the end and forgive this slight bump on the road.

But don't worry, I will definitely be posting the name of the winner of my Giveaway! So people are still welcome to enter. Giveaway ends 3rd June, everyone!

Love,

P.B.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Old Magazines: The Dilemma

Courtesy: Google Images 


The man who buys the old/used newspapers in my colony just went away from my doorstep, occasionally looking back to send a glare or spit angrily on the floor. He was also muttering something as he left and I tried not to listen too closely, knowing very well it wasn't very complimentary.

It all started very innocently, let me tell you. He was passing by my house and I remembered my huge stack of magazines that I really needed to sell before heading off to College. I ran to the balcony and beckoned him with a large yell. My dog, Lucky, who had trotted into the balcony after me also began barking loudly which resulted in a shouting match between the both of us.

Me: YOOOHOOOOO! HELLLO, NEWSPAPER MAAAAAN!

Lucky: BARK! BURR! BARK! BURR! RAAAAAAWWR!

Who won?
Well, I prefer to think of it as a tie. (You would too if you lose to your tiny dog. I mean, how embarrassing is it to lose to fairly small white dog?)

Of course, the man HAD to come then. He couldn't very well ignore the war cries. He turned towards the entrance and I flew towards the door, gasping for breath and clutching my stomach as I opened it.

"You called?" He asked sarcastically.

I straightened myself from the undignified heap and nodded, "Yes. Yes, yes, I did."

I went back inside, and collected a pile and deposited them at his feet. It took me FIFTEEN, yes, you read that right, FIFTEEN trips to place all my magazines in front of him.

"Didn't take you long at all." The old man commented, ergo destroying all my beliefs that old men were like grandfathers, sweet and absent minded. Huh. I really did not like this guy.

So we sat down and calculated the amount and I was a little upset with the price (I had visions of buying another dress with the money) but I consented to his final price and it was all dandy...

...till he began placing the magazines in his cart. Every time he lifted a pile and threw them carelessly on the cart, a part of me cried. I mean, they were MINE! My magazines that I had bought lovingly and treasured till the next issue which would then end in them being shoved to the Store Room but mine nonetheless. I think I had three years worth of magazines; Vogue, Seventeen, People, The Economist, you name it, I subscribed it. I even wanted to subscribe to the Russian Vogue if it weren't for my mother.

"BUT YOU DON'T EVEN SPEAK RUSSIAN!" My mother had croaked hysterically.
"See, that's the thing. If I subscribe to it, I could learn how to speak Russian! Imagine!" I exclaimed excitedly, mentally imagining myself in St.Petersburg, amazing everyone with my fluent Russian language skills.
My mother raised an eyebrow. "How? By reading how to bikini wax?"

Honestly.
Mothers are such spoilsports. No imagination at all.

By the time the man was done, my heart was literally on the floor, trampled and butchered mercilessly. It gave a final weak beat and just...stopped.

That's when I cried out loud. "Wait!"

In less than two seconds flat, I was next to his cart and unloading what he had JUST loaded. One after another, I began pulling out all my magazines from his cart, ignoring his yells and determinedly carrying on with my mission. It took me fifteen minutes to take everything out and when I was done, I carried them to my room and handed him some money. I had wasted his time. "Sorry," I said guiltily.

He gave me a final glare and stalked off, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like, "Idiotic, stupid, flighty, feather-headed moron."

But I could be wrong.


So now I'm sitting in my room, surrounded by a sea of old magazines, blogging, sipping coffee and reading old articles now and then.
And you know what?

I wouldn't do it any other way.


P.S. I found a lovely way I can use my old magazines. More on that later. 

Thursday, May 19, 2011

And the winner is...

I'm so thrilled my first Giveaway went off so smoothly! Thanks guys! It was great seeing the comments! 


Without further ado, the winner of the Mstalker402 Giveaway is...

Berendina.D!

Congrats, girl! Check your email and send your reply back asap. 
(Check your spam folder if you still haven't got it)



If the winner doesn't reply in 48 hours, I will pick a new winner. 

I'll be having my next giveaway very soon. Stay tuned and stay pretty! 

Love, P.B

Lovely Little Treasures Come in Tiny Packages

You know those boring days when there's nothing to do other than Facebook? Well, honestly, I'm quite thankful for those. It's better than NO Facebook. Yes, I'm a Facebook addict and yes, I'm one of those reasons why Mark Zuckerberg is currently one of the richest men alive. No, but really. I'm not selling Facebook (you're probably a FB user too) but it's a fantastic opportunity to meet new people...

...and that's how I met Vinita. Or more exactly, Tiny's Lovely Little Treasures. It was a page on Facebook that said, on it's info page, "Tiny brings style to you, right to your door step at the most reasonable prices ever". Well,  as you may have guessed, I clicked on Contact immediately and sent quite a demanding email requesting her to please send over her latest collection! (All done very sweetly, never fear. I'm a professional. I am!)

I got an email back almost instantly and here's what was in it:

Antique Queen's Crown, white rhinestones and black bow. $8/400INR

Charm Bracelet, $7/350INR

Charm Key Ring, $7/400INR

This is just a teaser of all the goodies that I wanted so desperately. I finally settled on two-three things and I just got them yesterday! I am NEVER going to the malls again. It's all handmade for me now! The accessories I got were super-cute and adorable and AFFORDABLE, though smaller in size than I had imagined. But after trying them on, I decided I like them better that way. She even added a small gift which I LOVED! I'll definitely show you the pictures in an outfit post that I will do once I get a DECENT camera. I think I'm still stuck in the 80s. :(

Vinita was friendly and so, so helpful during the transaction. I had a couple of doubts and she sorted them out almost immediately. She even came in the city newspapers:



I had a small interview with her too:

1. Tell us something about your designs...

Most of my inspiration comes from nature, butterflies, flowers, stars, leaves, you name it. I also get inspired by my friends, their personalities, their likes and dislikes. I also adore rhinestones, I love the shine and sparkle they add. I wish to use swarovski crystals soon... (Pretty Blushes is certainly excited about that)
 All our designs are hand-made, stones put by hand, hand welded. Each one of my designs is unique and special.


2. What type of girls/women do you keep in mind when you create them?

Young Women. With tight pockets. Those who want to look stylish without emptying their wallets.


3. What's your personal style?

I love bows! You will always see me with hair bows, bows on my bags, bow charms, rings. I also love acid colours and polka dots!  Stripes and textures too.
 I believe in keeping one accessory the center of attention. Most of my outfits are muted, mostly shades of blue, grey, violet. I like my accessory to have that pop of colour or interesting design...


Want to get hold of her pretty accessories? Here's how you can contact her:

Email: vinita_jayant@live.in
Phone: +91-9930398311
Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/tinyslovelylittletreasures
She also has a personal Blog: http://boldwithbows.blogspot.com/

Psst. She made this gorgeous bib which I've got reserved for ME! Isn't it just gorgeous and drool-worthy?



What do you think, blushers? Definitely drool-wrothy?