boots // obsessed

I'm a creature of habit. Most of my boots have been well loved - but lately I have been obsessively looking for a new pair that will join in on the boots party in my collection. Here are five of my top picks. Which ones do you like the best? (Yes, I know - I'm slightly delusional about the fifth choice.)

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5

New Adventures!

I'd like to introduce you all to an exciting new job that I have taken - I am officially on staff at Oh, Hello Friend! If you haven't heard about this amazing little gem in Downtown Fullerton, click on the store's name for a direct link to check out the shop. Also check out Oh, Hello Friend blog - where shop owner Danni Hong posts daily on any topics from her shop, DIY projects, to special workshops!

It's been a pleasure working for Danni this past month. I cannot wait to see what is in store for the future at Oh, Hello Friend!

Oh Happy Day!: A Celebration in the City

Last month my friend and I took a much belated trip to San Francisco for my birthday. It had been over a year since the last time I was in the area - so I was beyond ecstatic to come back "home". Living there for two years had given me so many wonderful memories and a "local's inside" to all the great places in the city. I was so excited to share my favorite spots with my lovely friend. Here are some photos from the trip. Enjoy!
*Notes and details are below after photos

*Photos 1-3: My friend and I had to make a pit stop in Berkeley. Since going to college there I always feel this overwhelming draw to the charming city. We went to a local gourmet ice cream shop that is frequented by locals and college students. Everything on the menu changes daily in accord to the local ingredients - ice cream made fresh daily! [Ici Ice Cream - Berkeley, CA]
*Photos 4-5: Since we were in Berkeley I thought it necessary to show off my favorite library and gate on campus :) ! [University of California, Berkeley - Berkeley, CA]
*Photos 6: Tartine Bakery! No words can describe how much I love this spot in San Francisco. It is the cutest little french bakery right in the heart of the Mission. I use to go to this place practically every Sunday morning - I order a morning bun and a Four Barrel Coffee every time! [Tartine - Mission District, San Francisco, CA]
*Photo 7: Dolores Park - home of the trendy coffee drinks and recreational sports enthusiasts. We walked here from Tartine and spent a good time people watching and enjoying the rays!
*Photo 8: We drove towards the other side of town to Crissy Field- a wonderful spot to picnic underneath the Golden Gate bridge. That is, if you can handle the wind ;)
*Photo 9-10: Heading back to the Sunset district near Golden Gate Park, we decided to grab a coffee at Trouble Coffee and take a peek into General Store. After obsessing over these spots from afar (at home in Orange County), I finally made it out to these amazing little gems. [Trouble Coffee & General Store - San Francisco, CA]
*Photo 11: I had an amazing birthday dinner at Uva Enoteca. If you are ever craving Italian in the Haight/Ashbury area make sure to check out this spot. [Uva Enoteca - San Francisco, CA]
*Photo 12: No birthday is complete without dessert. This amazing ice cream spot is a favorite of mine and to many locals who live in Hayes Valley. This little gem makes the ice cream with liquid nitrogen right in front of you! Not convinced yet? They make their ice cream only with the best local ingredients -yummy! [Smitten Ice Cream - San Francisco, CA]
*Photo 13-14: You haven't lived if you haven't tried Philz Coffee. I first was introduced to the amazing coffee shop in Berkeley. With many locations in the Bay Area - it has become a great hit. We made sure to get our last cup before heading back on the road again to Southern California! [Philz Coffee -San Francisco, CA]

Beauty! Beauty! Beauty!

Anyone who has been around me for the past year can affirm in my slightly off putting and highly manic obsession with all things beauty. Whether it is in my subtle change in conversation about make-up or my my straight up over zealous enabling, I constantly find myself either selling my lastest favorite beauty product to a friend or sporadically bringing up, oh lets say, "the Rimmel Kate Moss lipsticks" into a conversation.

Above all, anyone who knows me well can assure you that I can be quite transparent. With that said, I give to you a sneaky look into my current favorite beauty products in my make-up bag. I change it up every now and again, but there are certain staples that stay all year round. This adorable make-up bag from Anthropologie sits in my handbag and saves me during the day whenever I need to touch up! I have also given each product a "Connie-approved grade & review" - which lets face it, doesn't mean a whole lot, I am no expert (transparency, remember?)!

Cheers! xx

Nivea Vanilla & Macadamia Nut Lip Butter // A+
I seriously cannot love this product enough. First off, it smells like a freshly baked batch of macadamia nut cookies. Secondly, it straight up feels like butter on the lips. Thirdly, uh, what a bargain! The texture leave my lips feeling so lovely and smooth. The best part is that it really has nourished my lips far beyond the instant gratification. Its no gimmick.

Benefit "Hello Flawless!" Powder Foundation // B
I keep this in my make-up bag to touch up my face. There really is nothing majorly special about this product. It performs well, but no better than any drugstore pressed powder I've ever tried. Basically, the price of the product is not worth it to me. It does the job, but I will not be repurchasing this.

Maybelline "Full n' Soft" Mascara - Waterproof // A+
This HG worthy product has been around for ages. All I got to say is: nothing compares to this formula - no drugstore or high end mascara has beat this product for me. It keeps the lashes curled and gives volume like no other without leaving the lashes stiff and dry.

Revlon Lip Butter - "Creme Brulee" & "Juicy Papaya" // A - A
Obsessed doesn't even begin to describe my feelings toward the Revlon Lip Butters. Creme Brulee is the perfect nude for me. It may not suite all skin types, but I feel it compliments mine pretty nicely. Juicy Papaya comes off more sheer than the other one, which is nice because the color gives off a perfect tint. Can't wait to get more...someone better stop me before I get all the colors in the range!

Nars Cream Blush "Orgasm" // A
This cheek product is just so cute and compact - perfect for on the go. I don't bother with carrying any brushes with me in my handbag, so this blusher is perfect for me to touch up during the day. Even more lovely is that I use the same shade in the powder formula quite often, so everything is seamless!

L'Occitane Hand Cream // A-
Though the product's formula is top notch, the minus point is for the unpleasant smell. Some of you may like it but I am not particularly fond of it. It has kept my dry hands moisturized nevertheless, so it stays in the bag!

Cargo Lip Gloss Quad "Naples" // A
I seem to be having an epic love affair with this lip gloss quad. Maybe that's a little dramatic! Regardless, the quad is amazing. I love all four shades - which  always is a pleasant surprise when it comes to any "palette"-type of product. You ladies know what I mean... there always seems to be that one shade that is left untouched. But for this product, every color gets some love. Texture is nice - not sticky feeling.

Revlon Matte Lipstick "Strawberry Suede" // A+
It seems a bit selfish to even review this because this is a discontinued product. But here it is - I have always loved this red/coral shade. The formula is wonderful and it is the only red lipstick that I own  which is wearable during the day! If you're lucky enough, this little baby may be available on Amazon or eBay.

I hope everyone found this post enjoyable, I know I loved writing it. Many more to come!

Next Big Purchase

I've been drooling over this iPhone Gramophone ever since it hit Restoration Hardware's site. It is everything I need in life (not really, but still amazing). It is modeled off of the classic 1800s gramophone speaker horn and updated to play any music our little Apple gadget desires. It runs on no power and its purely acoustic! I've research this product like a mad man and have heard how beautiful the sound is.  Can't wait to purchase this bad boy and try it out for myself!

Au Revoir, 2012!

When I sat down and reflected on 2012 I felt overwhelmed and understandably sentimental. The whole of last year was a milestone for me. Parts of it was spent abroad, meeting new faces, and moving into different cities. Other parts were spent trying to discover what I really wanted out of life, which brought me to the biggest highlight of the year: graduation! I often look to the future and spend most of my days planning and planning what to do next, but I felt a need to look back and see how this past year has blessed me with new friends, exciting adventures, and incredible opportunities.

Here is my 2012 (in a nutshell).

Fresh Beginnings

A new year and a fresh blank page. I've debate for awhile now, trying to decide whether or not to get back to the blogosphere world that had consume up most of my adolescent years! It wasn't until recently when I visited back on this page that I realized how much I've missed it and more importantly, how I've changed. So in my nostalgic love for this humble site I bring my blog back to life, purging it of old clutter and beginning it in a sort of pseudo tribute to the beloved American expat writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and the love of his life, Zelda Sayre- their complicated but passionate relationship has given inspiration to several of his works. In the spirit of the forthcoming Gatsby film, I've been re-reading a lot of Fitzgerald's novels and have fallen madly for them all over again. They lived the most amazing lives - not to say that it wasn't without fault. I hope to live my life with as much passion as they did.

So with a new- kinda old, blog I am continuing my random musings on life, fashion, beauty, music, and everything in between. Here's to the first entry of the year!

Hello beautiful friends,

I've been neglecting this poor blog and have currently been wandering in the world of Tumblr. I would like to redirect you to my new page and hope that all of you will be fond of my new adventure, meet me by the water. I will definitely continue to keep this blog and may return in the near future!

Life explained:

The difference between man and woman.

My trip to India

Hello all! I want to share with you guys something very exciting, just a few weeks ago I accepted an offer to travel to India with a team of 14 people to do some extraordinary work! Through Yorba Linda Friends Church our team will be partnering with Operation Mobilization and the Dalit Freedom Network.

On July 17th, we will set off to travel to Hyderabad and Bangalore, India for two weeks. While in India, we will go into the slums and villages with hope of creating relationships with the Dalit people.

The Dalit people or “Dalits” are considered the “outcasts” or the “untouchables”. They are denied access to public wells, public parks, basic medical services, and education. The ruling caste tells them that they are Hindu, yet they are denied access to the temples. Seventy percent of the Dalits live below the poverty line and only 10% of rural Dalit women can read and write. Dalit women and children are also often sold into prostitution as early as the age of eight years old. The Hindu scripture tells these people that it would be better if they were never born. Our team’s desired goal is to help end this abuse and liberated the Dalit people. Our purpose is to bare the love of Christ to the Dalit people.

Team members have been asked to raise the finances necessary to cover the expenses of the trip: approximately $3,500 per person. My team and I would greatly appreciate your help in raising this support. If you are unable to contribute financially, I ask that you would please pray that all the needs of this team will be met. Prayer is so important for this trip and for what we will be doing there.

You can donate financially by clicking the button below & setting up a PayPal account. There you can donate any amount using my email address (shown below).The money contributed can go to me personally or the team as a whole. All funds are tax-deductable, this is non-profit.

For those who indicate an interest to support our team, I will personally keep you informed of our progress in reaching our goals. If you would like more information about what we will be doing in India and the Dalit people, you can visit these sites http://www.dalitnetwork.org/, ylfc.org, and http://www.om.org/. If you have any questions or would like to hear more about our trip, please contact me at connie11dn@yahoo.com or call (714) 494-5354

THE EARTH IS AWAKENING

Give me odorous at sunrise a garden of beautiful flowers where I can walk undisturbed. -Walt Whitman

Spring is here.