October Posts You Might Have Missed & New Layout!

Trust me, I know...I'm the most indecisive person when it comes to my blog's layout. I spent a good part of yesterday working on some new coding and this new layout, though! I like how it turned out and honestly it was so much trouble, I feel like I should force myself to leave it up for at least two months. Haha!

Posts like to get lost in our blog feeds, so here are a few from my blog last month that you might have missed.

Posts You Might Have Missed:

• October Blog of the Month - read here.
• Beautifully Disney Love First Kiss lip gloss - read here.
• InstaFriday Casual OOTD Edition - read here.
• Style Inspired by Movies: Bad Grandpa - read here.
• Sephora Holiday Wishlist - read here.
• Pumpkin patch and Corn Maze - read here.
• Currently Loving: Fall Edition - read here.
• October Wantable Box - read here.

Picture from my Flickr

Hope you all have a lovely weekend!

Ice Cream Date!

My husband had a team outing at his work on Friday. They decided to do a team-building exercise and went to throw some axes! Isn't that an unique idea? It certainly would not have been first on my mind of things to do! He even hit the bullseye a few times and better yet, he came home in one piece and not several! Since he got home a little earlier than usual, we took the opportunity to go out for an ice cream date.

There is a place in Toronto that used to be called St. Clair Ice Cream, but they have since changed the name to Maple Leaf Dairy. No one really calls it that though, as it will always be St. Clair's to us. They kept all of the original signs, which is a lovely touch! This place is legendary. I'm not kidding. The prices are cheap (bring cash- they do not accept credit or debit) and one of their scoops is like three scoops anywhere else. They do not skimp at all! Plus, they have interesting flavors you may not find elsewhere. My husband's favorite is grape, but they were sold out of it already when we went.

Sadly, it is only open during the summer. It closed for the season yesterday, but the factory is next door. And they allow you order from there all year!

Keep reading!

Tag: Holly Jolly Holiday

I was tagged by Christine to do this tag. So why not?! :)

^photo taken by me in 2009

1. Do you start your Christmas shopping on Black Friday or wait until the last minute? -Normally pretty close to the last minute, but this year we started around late October. We just finished with everyone on Monday, though!

2. If you could be in any Christmas movie what would it be? - Ah, I love so many Christmas movies. I'd have to say Love Actually, even though I've never even seen it (despite owning it on DVD for years...note to self to finally watch it this year!). I just really love the idea of being in London at Christmas. Otherwise, I'd totally love being an elf in The Santa Clause movies!

3. Which do you like better: Christmas Eve or Christmas Day? -Christmas Eve! In my family, we opened the majority of our gifts on Christmas Eve with the special "Santa gifts" being saved for Christmas morning. Christmas Eve was also the night of our family dinner, so everyone could do their own thing Christmas Day.

4. When does your family put up your Christmas tree and who decorates it? -Normally it is after my American Thanksgiving. This year saw us doing it at the beginning of November, but only because every weekend after was booked with plans. I'm not complaining because I enjoy having extra time with the decorations! Both my husband and I decorate the tree. I take care of the other decorations around the house.

5. White lights or colored lights? -Colored lights. I just love color! But honestly, any Christmas lights are pretty. I'm such a sucker for Christmas lights. If we were in a house instead of a condo, I'm not certain that I wouldn't be an honorary member of the Griswold family! ;)

6. Are you guilty of peeking at your presents or do you like the surprise? -I peek and I beg for hints. And I'm happy to say that over the years, I have become a master sleuth at determining what a good amount of gifts are. I hate surprises, but I do also love guessing what things are!

7. Would you rather live in a gingerbread house or in Santa's Workshop? -Santa's Workshop! I'd want to be the reindeer keeper. :D

8. Tell us your Christmas Eve traditions! -I mentioned my family traditions while growing up above. Here, my husband and I open our gifts to each other on Christmas Eve and then spend Christmas Day with his family for a dinner and to open gifts to each other. Now when I go home, I try to spend Christmas Eve with my dad's side of the family and Christmas Day with my mom, stepdad, and little brother!

9. If you could be under the mistletoe with anyone who would it be? -All I need is my husband. ♥

10. What tops your tree? -Santa Claus this year. Last year was a snowman. I think I'll get a star or an angel for next year. I like to switch it up a bit! I keep them all and just rotate them. Sometimes we put up two trees, so I'll have two different types up.

11. Can you name the 12 days of Christmas? -The song? I know a few of the days, but I don't think I could do all twelve from memory. BUT I love Straight No Chaser's version...hilarious!

12. Have you ever gone Christmas caroling? -In elementary school with Woodmen of the World, we went to a nursing home and sang for the elderly. WOW have a lovely children's program that involves different activities through the year and a fun summer camp.  

13. Do you countdown to Christmas? If so, how many days are left? -Absolutely. My countdown starts wayyy early. One week!

14. What are some foods and treats you can count on having every holiday season? -In Canada, my MIL's homemade bread and cabbage rolls. In South Carolina, my aunt's banana pudding that she makes because she knows I love it.

15. How has Christmas kept its magic for you as you've grown older? -I have never lost the magic. Like I've said, I'm the annoying person listening to Christmas carols at any time of the year. Christmas is one time of the year that I feel like my home life was consistent. The fact that I have many good memories from past Christmases get forwarded on each year. Thinking of happy times and adding to them each year just makes the magic grow.

I tag: Kerri, Seonaid, Romz, Emily, Michelle, Emily, and you! :)
 

2 Posts Today? Yep! :)

I know I have a few readers who read my blog through Bloglines. Well, Bloglines is closing at the beginning of October. I suggest moving over to Bloglovin'. Both of my blogs (this one and my photography one) are on there, as well as many other wonderful blogs that are just ready for you to follow! It's along the same lines as Bloglines. Otherwise, I'd just do the Google Friend Connect method. Just letting you guys know!

Also, I'm thinking of doing a small giveaway on Facebook! So if you're on Facebook, I'd love it if you'd "like" Fashionable Heart! And feel free to start up some discussions on the board. :)

So this isn't text-only, I'll just share one of my random photos. Have a great night!

4 Things Tag

I was tagged by Raech to do this tag. I will apologize in advance now, but I will not be able to post tomorrow. We have people coming in to move our old furniture out in the morning, an appointment in the afternoon, and a concert at night. Busy, busy, busy!


4 things in my bag: (I'm going with an overnight bag on this one, but I assume bag is for purse and purse is actually wallet on the tag?)
Well, I'm actually packing a bag to stay at my MIL's. I was really smart and planned for our old mattress to be moved out on Thursday with our new one not arriving until Saturday morning. So we're staying over at her place. Silly me!
- my stuffed polar bear. I am not ashamed of this! :) He's one of the first things my husband got me when I came to Toronto. ♥ He goes where I go!
- my laptop
- makeup bag
- a magazine


4 things in my purse:
- lipgloss
- iPod touch
- Blackberry
- house keys


4 things in my bedroom:
- a handmade pillow a friend made me
- a fan, because I don't sleep well without one
- Nintendo DS Lite (*pictured is my old one, now I have a pink one)
- a record player


4 things I've always wanted to do:
- be a published photographer
- get over my stage fright
- take some more school courses
- travel to more countries


4 things I'm currently into:
- photography
- makeup
- blogging
- home decor


4 things I bet you didn't know about me:
- I am completely ambidextrous. I can do anything with either hand. While I might be better at something with one hand, I can still do it with the other. I go back and forth.
- I play the flute and piccolo. I was in the marching band in both high school and college.
- I've been to more visitations and funerals than years that I have been on this earth. I'm 26! I went to my first funeral at age 4.
- I love languages. I took seven years of French and two years of German. I'm thinking of learning some Spanish next! I love being able to travel places where it comes in handy to at least know enough of the language to get by. If you do not use it, you lose it. :)


4 songs I can't get out of my head:
- Jar of Hearts by Christina Perri
- Hey, Soul Sister by Train
- Alejandro by Lady GaGa
- You're Not Sorry by Taylor Swift


Rules:
Once tagged you must link the person who tagged you. Tag four bloggers and let them know they have been tagged. Give 4 answers to each question asked.

This time I'm breaking the rules. I want YOU to do it! If you're reading this, you're tagged. Link me to your answers so that I can get to know you and comment. :)

Would You Rather Tag

I was tagged by Linh to do this! I could have made a video on YouTube to do it, but I'm way too lazy to get my camera out and film. :)


1. Would you rather go out with messy hair and nice make-up or nice hair and no make-up?
Because I rarely have a nice hair day, I'd definitely take the nice hair and no make-up. I go out without makeup all of the time. :)

2. Would you rather shave your eyebrows or have your eyelashes fall out?
Eyelashes. I'd get really tired of having to draw in my eyebrows everyday. And quite frankly, I never notice anyone's eyelashes unless they are ridiculously long.


3. Would you rather be forced to shop at only MAC or Sephora for the rest of your life?
I'm surprised that I haven't heard a single person choose MAC for this. I am going to have to go with Sephora. While I absolutely love my MAC, I don't think I could stick with just one brand. I'm much too fickle of a consumer! :)

4. Would you rather wear lipgloss/lipliner look or 80's perm?
80s perm. Heck, maybe it would give my thin hair some volume!

5. Would you rather leave the house with an obvious foundation line or overdone blush?
Oh man, neither? Haha! I guess I would choose the foundation line because I don't pay attention to that sort of thing. Overdone blush just screams clown to me...and I'm afraid of clowns! :P

6. Would you rather wear MC Hammer pants or biker shorts in public?
I'm a big girl. To make me wear Hammer pants would be cruel to both me and the rest of society. With biker shorts, I could put a dress or a long tunic over them. As a matter of fact, I do that already. I don't need everyone and their brother seeing my knickers. True fact.

7. Would you rather have a bad orange-y spray tan or really weird tan lines that can't be covered?
Weird tan lines. Been there and done that. I don't think I'd want to walk around looking like an Oompa Loompa.

8. Would you rather have a bad haircut or bad hair color?
Bad haircut. I've had so many in my life. After awhile, you become a pro at hiding them with changing the part, throwing it up in a ponytail, etc. It's a little more difficult to hide the color.

9. Would you rather have youtube or twitter taken away forever?
Ooh, I'm addicted to both. I would have to go with twitter. I could watch YT videos all day long and never grow bored.


10. Would you rather give up using makeup brushes or mascara?
Mascara! Oh man, I would kick someone really hard if they tried to take my brushes away! :D They are one of my prized possessions in my makeup collection!

If you do this tag, please link me to your post in the comments section! I tag all of my readers!

Recent Pictures

Thought I would share a few of my recent photographs that I took. Nothing special, but I like how they turned out. :) If you click them, it takes you to the bigger ones on my Flickr account. Also, I do update my photo blog from time-to-time!







If you have a photo blog or a Flickr, do feel free to link to it. ♥

Maybelline Eye Studio Survey

Hi guys! I'm finally starting to feel a little better! After almost two weeks of being ill, I'm ready to feel 100% better. I'll try to post up a blog tomorrow, as well. I'll go ahead and say that I will not have time to post on Monday. It's a holiday here and my husband's birthday. So I'll be out all day! :)

You know how I was sent the Maybelline Eye Studio Collection? There is a survey to take that will only take around two minutes of your time. The best part? $2 will go to a charity (The Redwood) with every completed survey! It's for a great cause and it gives the company feedback at the same time.

Click here to take survey!

So this is not all text, here's a picture of some macarons for you! So yummy!

20 Things About Me

Currently eating: a cherry popsicle!
Currently surfing: youtube
Currently feeling: crafty
Just another one of the tags going around! :)

1. Things you cannot leave the house without
purse, camera, keys, iPod Touch, cell phone
2. Favourite brand of Make Up
Anything at Sephora (especially Urban Decay and NARS) and MAC
3. Favourite flower
Roses (specifically yellow roses with red tips or pink English Roses), Cherry Blossoms, and Tulips

4. Favourite clothing store

Everyone who follows or knows me knows the answer to this one. Old Navy! Great quality for a bargain!

5. Favourite perfume
Marc Jacobs Daisy
6. Heels or Flats

Flats. I love heels for style, but I love comfort more. Plus, I'm 5' 9" barefoot so I don't really need them.

7. Do you make good grades

N/A at the moment, but I did. I was in all honors and AP classes with close to a 4.0 GPA in high school. Not great, but not too bad either. In college, I was burned out from high school. My grades definitely slipped.

8. Favourite colours
Pink,red and purple.
9. Do you drink energy drinks

No. They taste horrible.

10. Do you drink juice

Not usually.

11. Do you like swimming

Absolutely love it! I'm a dolphin in the water. I'm a Cancer, so I'm a water sign. :)

12. Do you eat fries with a fork
The only time I wouldn't is if I'm eating something with my hands like a burger. If the ketchup or toppings are on top of them and not to the side, I will use a fork.
13. Favourite moisturizer
Soap & Glory Righteous Butter
14. Do you want to get married later on in life
I already am!

*photo credit to my wedding reception photographer: Danielle Lawrence
15. Do you get mad easily
Yes. I have anger issues, I'm pretty sure.
16. Are you into ghost hunting
Yes. And I have! I love everything supernatural.
17. Any phobias

Spiders, needles, blood, doctors, and a lot of other things!

18. Do you bite your nails
Yes. I have done so since I was around three because I'd see my mom do it. It's really annoying! The longest I've been able to go without biting is about two weeks, sadly. And that nasty-tasting nail polish does not work for me. I just get used to it!
19. Have you ever had a near death experience
Yes, I almost drowned at age four! After that it took me until age 10 to learn to swim and leave the shallow end. I now love it. I faced that fear and overcame it!
20. Do you drink coffee
Yes, hot and cold! I love coffee. Mmm...

If you do this on your own blog, link me to it so I can find out more about you! Or just do it in the comments. I would love to know more about my readers! :)

Struck by a High Beam

Currently reading: UK Cosmo
Currently drinking: Diet Coke
Currently feeling: creative

Here is my review for Benefit's High Beam!

This product is one of those that I took my time purchasing. I don't know why, but I had my eye on it for awhile and just never got around to buying it until a month or so ago. I read some reviews of it on Makeup Alley, which I absolutely suggest that you do before splurging on any makeup item. The girls there are great!

I rather like High Beam. It's an excellent highlighter. There are multiple ways to use it. You can mix it with your moisturizer or liquid foundation for an all-over glow and dewy effect. You can use it just under the eyebrows to highlight your brow bone. Personally, I use it to highlight my cheeks, right down my nose, and the part of my chin right under my lips.

For my cheeks, I draw two Xs. One bigger one near the nose and a smaller one directly down from the outer corner of the eye. Then, I use a foundation brush to blend it in going outward. Afterwards, I draw a slight line down the bridge of my nose and blend in. I use what's left on the brush and blend it in on my chin. Basically, you want to put it anywhere that the light will hit your face. This chart shows how I do it!

XOXO ♥

Update Friday

Currently drinking: water
Currently listening: Walking On Broken Glass by Annie Lennox
Currently feeling: creative

New layout! After around three months, I decided it was time for a change around here. I loved the Gossip Girl layout (which is why I kept it around for so long), but sometimes I just want to see something new. :) So I hope you like the new look!

I added a new video to my youtube channel, as well. So if you have a youtube, come check it out, comment, subscribe...I'll return the favor. Unless you are going to be rude, which is why comments are only by approval on my channel. I don't put up with rudeness.

Friday Five

1. It's the last night of the world, and you've only just found out. What five things will you do in these final hours? eat a delicious last meal, cuddle with my husband, face a fear or two, pray, and visit family
2. How do you feel about our American Flag's design? I like it. Not sure what is not to like.
3. What pets have you had? Dogs, cats, a rabbit, two iguanas, some fish, and a snake.
4. What was the last activity you wore a wristband for? Hmm...I think it was for a football game last fall. It might have been something else, though.
5. What song changed your life? Kelly Clarkson's Breakaway. I relate to that song so much.

I might be making more changes to the blog later on. So don't be surprised if something changes!

XOXO ♥

Flower Power

Currently watching: Murder, She Wrote
Currently doing: working on a batch of icons for my graphics community
Currently feeling: blah

I didn't get to post on Friday. I went to my MIL's for the weekend and it just never occurred to me that I did not have a post ready!

Today's entry is about inspiration. Lately, I've been getting a lot of inspiration from flowers. I'm really into lilac purples right now with my makeup and wardrobe. There are so many things to draw inspiration from! Is there something that you are getting inspiration from and showing it through your style? Here are some recent pictures of flowers from my Flickr. :)

XOXO ♥

Easter Break

Currently looking: at my pretty tulips
Currently singing: You Really Gotta Hold On Me by She & Him
Currently feeling: cold feet, warm heart

Ok, so I'm on hiatus until Tuesday! My husband has Friday and Monday off, so those days will be spent with him. I hope you all have a fantastic Easter weekend. Eat lots of chocolate eggs! :)

XOXO ♥

Macarons are <3.

Currently reading: Gossip Girl- It Had to Be You
Currently listening: The Day We Fell Apart by Kelly Clarkson
Currently feeling: girly

I have a new obsession! I had never tried macarons (not to be confused with macaroons that involve coconut) and I decided that this past weekend would be the time to try them! The chocolate ones were so amazing. I found this amazing French bakery in Toronto called Patisserie La Cigogne. I did get some at two other bakeries- La Bamboche and Thoror. I found that La Cigogne has a lead on them, though. They are expensive little treats, but they are very worth it!

*The picture takes you to my Flickr. If you have one, let's add one another. :)

XOXO ♥