❤TheeSparkleCorner❤ xoxo, C: lifestyle

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Hi Lovelies!

With the summer coming to an end, I thought I would end it on a simple, positive note.

In the past year or so, the new "it" color have been, what I like to call, "off-neutrals." There's the off greys, the blue-greys/grey-azures, the sandy beige, the grey lavendars, the mauvy neutrals, and my favorite, blush white/blush pink. These "off-neutrals" are the basic neutrals, but with a hint of a pastel undertone. Personally, I think these are the perfect transition colors from winter to summer, vice versa. They're also the perfect neutral color in an accessory or in a closet piece that can serve as a basic neutral color but also add the perfect hint of color to everyday wear or serve as a soft touch to parties and events.

One of my favorite neutrals is blush pink. It's what I consider my "happy color." Lately, I've been able to find a lot of wardrobe pieces, accessories, and supplies for back to school season in this chic color and it's made me so happy. I have this beautiful Michael Kors Selma Bag in blush pink (that I've previously made a post on for What's In My Bag) that I've been using nearly all year because it's the perfect neutral for any outfit, but also adds a hint of my favorite shade: blush pink. Seeing this color warms my heart because it's such a beautiful, delicate, lovely color. It reminds me of the beauty of newly bloomed cherry blossoms. Whenever I'm stressed, I can look over to this color and it can brighten my day and relieve my stress.

My Clarisonic brush cleanser is also in this baby blush pink color. Since I use my Clarisonic nearly every day, every time I use it, whether it's before the day starts or before bed, it instantly brightens my day! (If you'd like to purchase some great "pink" face care collections, check out Glossier!) To see this color floating around my work space, my room, and my school environment brightens my day.

My agenda for the 2016-2017 year is in this beautiful white watercolor floral print with a base blush pink color. To write my plans for the day and check off my completed tasks in this notebook instantly lifts my mood.

Blush Pink.

It's my eye candy.

It's my happy color.

Let me know what your "happy color" is! It might be hot pink, fluorescent yellow, or a special color that only you have a name for.

PS. Heads up on one of my favorite topics that'll be posting about: Fall Fashion + Trends!

Til Next Time!

♡Keep Smiling, Stay Postive, Be Safe♡

Cathy

Hi Loves! One of my favorite videos, images and blog posts to read about are "What's In My Bag Tags." It's the curiosity of wondering what's in a girl's bag that sparks my interest in writing this post! I thought I would share with you my purse essentials!

First off, this has been my go-to everyday bag whenever I'm not in school. It's a Michael Kors Selma Bag in Blush Pink in Medium Size. I absolutely love the saffiano leather because it keeps the bag's sturdy structure and allows for the leather to be scratch-resistant. It's easy to manage, sleek to carry around, and durable! I got this in the Summer of 2016 and it was limited to select boutiques, so I'm sadly unsure if this color is still available. This is one of my favorite bags not only because it's so durable, but because the color is beautiful. It's the perfect pink for a pop of color and neutral enough to mute an outfit.

Side View

1. Prescription Glasses

2. Sunglasses: Protect those eyes from the sun! My favorites are my go-to Ray Bans.

3. ID Pouch: Keeping my school ID, work ID, and keys is essential for entering places!

4. Makeup Pouch (More on that later)

5. Wallet by Radley London

6. Tangle Teezer Brush: This is the absolute perfect brush for on the go. Tangle teezers are very gentle on the hair and makes detangling your hair an easy job to get accomplished in a minimum amoutn of time. It's easy to stick in my purse, it has a sleek design in its packaging (making it perfect to grab in your purse), and the bristles are protected by a cover! Most importantly, it's compact! I've loved the Macadamia Tangle Teezers that I keep at home. They detangle your hair, especially when your hair is wet. It minimizes hair strand breakage! The only downside from the Macadamia Tangle Teezer was that it was slightly larger and didn't have a cover for its bristles. All in all, I absolutely LOVE tangle teezers! It's magic!

7. Pink 'Warm and Cozy' Body Mist: It's a very flirty, sweet, warm fragrant that I love for on-the-go

8. Pocket Tissues Kleenex: Have to be prepared for any surprises!

9. Apple Earbuds: Personally, I love Apple earbuds. They're the only earbuds that actually stay in my ear!

10. Burt's Bee's Cuticle Cream: This cream works WONDERS for your cuticles. It keeps it moisturized and smooth! I apply this in the morning, evening, and at night. It does wonders to your cuticles and smooths out any ridged areas on your nail bed and your cuticles. For best results, use it overnight! I don't know what my cuticles would look like without this product. It's also the only product that shows results within a day. It's very affordable, sold at most drugstores.

11. Trader Joe's Organic Peppermints: Keep that breath fresh! These are pretty good, gets the job done.

12. Wet Ones: This world is filled with millions upon millions of germs. You're always exposed to them, from elevator buttons to door handles. It's always great to have these wipes or sanitizer to kill those germs.

13. 2016-2017 Ban.do Agenda + Post its + Pen: For, a quick jogging of an idea, planning/scheduling events and meetings, jotting down a reminder. I'm also very picky with my pens. These are my favorite ball point pens (not gel) because they write very smoothly, aren't heavy, are PINK but write in black ink, and get everything done. (Always use a ballpoint pen for important documents!)

My Makeup Bag:

1. ZUZU Luxe Face Powder Foundation: It's not really enough to be a foundation, so I carry it around as a regular, matte powder. I LOVE Zuzu cometics because it's a natural, organic makeup brand. It's a vegan, gluten-free cosmetics line, which is much better for the skin. Available online and at Whole Foods Market.

2. E.L.F Kabuki Brush

3. Hair Ties

4. Band-Aids

5. Burt's Bee's Chapstick in Peppermint

6. Burt's Bee's Tinted Lip Balm in Rose

7. Burt's Bee's Lip Crayon in Carolina Coast (the PERFECT summer baby pink shade)

8. Box of Bobby Pins

9. Extra Contacts

10. NARS Lip Liners in Rikugien (Sample Sized: Satin Finish) and Bahama (Velvet Matte): These are THE PERFECT mauvy tones, "My Lips But Better" tone. They last ALL DAY, have amazing color payoff, and don't dry my lips either!

That's all of it!

Til Next Time!
♡Keep Smiling, Stay Postive, Be Safe♡
Cathy

Here's my August Favorites!! (Beware, lots of foodie favs haha)

I've been LOVING frosted sugar cookies! These are the ones from target :) The pink frosted ones are even cuter...

CHOCOLATE COVERED PRETZELS!

These are a back-to-memory-lane snack because when I was a kid, I used to LOVE these giant chocolate covered pretzels that came in 10 pretzels a stack. I got them every time I went on vacation. Then, the place discontinued the pretzels... I was SO sad. BUT NOW, I FOUND CHOCOLATE COVERED PRETZELS!! Got these at Whole Foods... (they come in white chocolate, milk and dark chocolate) Just chocolate covered pretzels in general are my favs :)

Haagen-Dazs Rum Raisin Ice Cream!

When I was a little kid, there was this little ice cream store next to my building that sold like this super large cup of ice cream for a cheap price. I fell in love with Rum Raisin ice cream at that moment (especially since it was also my mom's favorite ice cream flavor). My mom could never finish one cup. Neither could I. So we would split it and it was one of the best tasting ice creams ever. But then the shop closed and the ice cream disappeared. Years later, discovered that Haagen Dazs ALSO has Rum Raisin ice cream! We were OVERJOYED. It's basically vanilla ice cream with light rum covering raisins... Still haven't discovered another brand that has this flavor!

BOOK FAVORITE: Start Something That Matters (by Blake Mycoskie, founder of TOMS)

This book is such a breeze to read, but it's such an informative, inspiring book. Not only does it have tips from Blake Mycoskie (btw, there's so many AWESOME tips in here. Highlighted so much, my goodness. And Blake is so honest with his tips), but there's also lots of mini stories of the successes of other companies (eg. Netflix!). It's an amazing, influential, self-help book about starting up your own successful company. It makes dreams possible. LOVED this book so much :)

LILLY PULITZER PLANNER! (Large)

I've always loved planning my life out, whether it be writing the projects I have to get done, or small daily tasks. Planners keep my sane. Since August is back-to-school month, I got in the groove of getting a system down for my planning!

HOBBY: Drawing/Sketching

On a regular basis, I would design. But a few days ago, I decided to give another attempt at portrait sketching. When I was younger, I used to LOVE drawing famous people... especially Taylor Swift. One of the people I met this month drew Taylor, which inspired me to see if my sketching improved. It did! I was really happy with sketching this out. But, boy, did it take long haha about 3 hours?

FAVORITE TV SHOW: TEEN WOLF

So, in the middle of summer, there's hardly any new tv show episodes that are released. By the end of summer (2 weeks ago) I wanted to pick a tv show up... I decided to go with Teen Wolf. I was in the mood for something supernatural. I've always loved Vampire Diaries, Reign (all the CWTV shows), Supernatural, Twilight, etc. So I thought, Teen wolf would be a good choice. I have to say, this show got me ADDICTED!! If you follow me on Twitter, you probably know how much I'm addicted to this show. There's so many aspects that made me LOVE this show. There's the supernatural aspect, the teenage maturity, the love and relationships, the fantastic acting, the chemistry. EVERYTHING WAS THERE! Love this show so much that I ended up buying ALL the episodes (1st time I've done that to any tv show) and watched everything on iTunes... BINGE WATCHED EVERYTHING IN 2 WEEKS and I'm all caught up. SO sad that it won't come back until January.

Also, I ended up watching interviews of the cast of Teen Wolf and I have to say, this cast is such an amazing family. Tyler Posey made me cry so hard because of his the issues he's been dealing with a few months ago... I send out all my love to him. He's such a sweet, genuine guy! Dylan O'Brien and Tyler Posey have an amazing chemistry. Arden Cho... wow this girl has such a beautiful voice and awesome acting skills. I also love how strong she is, form dealing with bullying as a young kid to dealing with the criticisms that Korea had for an actress/model's standards. She's SO inspirational!! <3

(Done with the Teen Wolf rambling... for now)

That's it for this favorites blog post! It's been an enjoying August... now back to school...

Love you guys! Spread love you guys! And good luck to my freshmen :)

♡♡♡♡♡,

Cathy

Since Back to School season is right around the corner, I thought some Freshman Advice would be the most appropriate to kick off my #BTSSeason series! Here's my advice to all you freshies out there!

1. Don't be skeptical or stereotypical! Be openminded! Not every school is the same, and you never know what type of people you'll end up being friends with!

2. Get on the right foot! CARE about freshman year! Although many people say freshman year doesn't count, IT DOES! Not only academically, but also your attitude. The good part? It's a fresh start. You can begin high school with a new personality, a new reputation, a new YOU. Cherish this opportunity because this is the year you're leaving the 1st impression of you as you (for the 1st time) actually mature. By the way, one of the worst impressions you can make is constantly being late to class (Or even worse, skipping class)... Don't fall into that category :)

3. DO NOT procrastinate. Or... at least try not to. Habits start somewhere, best to start early!

4. No need to be scared! Everyone once was a freshman, we relate to this transition and your struggles! It's not like you're walking into a cage full of lions haha. Also, don't be scared of teachers! Help? Lost? Ask them! Knock on their doors and be like: "Hi, sorry to disturb the class, but I can't find room __, can you please point me to the right direction?" It's totally understandable. (I was that kid who would always ask teachers for help if I didn't know where/when. It was either I don't know where a room was, or I didn't know how to read my schedule, or was clueless about my lunch schedule lol... It's ok!)

5. Lunch time: It's not as scary as Mean Girls depicts it. Just find an open spot or tag along with a group! (Hey, is anyone sitting here? Can I sit here) Speak up! Bathrooms are not an option. After all, it's not like lunchtime is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. You're having it EVERY DAY.

6. Join clubs, extracurricular activities or sports! Try EVERYTHING out! Then stick to the ones you love! They're a great way to meet friends and interact with people from other grade levels! You'll never know who you meet might end up being your lifetime BFF.

7. Always bring cash and toiletries. You never know when you'll forget lunch or a mishap will happen. We're just trying to prevent these sticky situations from happening.

8. There's nothing more disrespectful than using your phone in class. Although some teachers don't say it out loud, they complain about it in their minds. It shows that you have no interest in the class and don't care about school. Plus, it's very distracting to the class as well. So silence or turn it off.

9. If your school does have "haters," don't let them get to you. Haters be hating ;)

10. FASHION TIP: 1st day: ALWAYS stick to flats/sneakers/flat sandals. NEVER wear heels your first day. No matter how much a pro you are at wearing heels, you never know how much walking your schedule needs, or how much stairs you'll be climbing, or what crazy activities your teachers have planned.

11. Lockers: Keep it organized! It'll make life SO much easier to have everything easily accessible and neat. (Separate blog post on this in detailed)

12. HIGH SCHOOL/COLLEGE TIP: Always bring your student ID EVERYWHERE you go! Some places offer student discounts! Don't be afraid to ask! Some stores would give 10% off your purchase if you present them your student ID!

13. Know if your school has a library and what amenities it offers! Most libraries have computers hooked to printers. On those days when your home printer runs out of ink, or you forget to bring homework, you can have the project/homework on your email/flash drive and print it in the library!

14. Have a back-up copy of schedule, ID, and cash.

15. Don't think you're already Queen B the 1st day. Also, don't be cocky.

16. Stay balanced with a PLANNER! (Separate blog post on choosing planners) Everyone needs a planner, however systems may range from tech to notebook. THIS IS THE ONE OUTLET THAT'LL KEEP YOU SANE as high school gets crazier.

17. FINALLY, HAVE FUN! BE YOU! Nothing's better than starting this new journey with being YOU. Everyone's different in their own way! Wake up every morning saying "TODAY WILL BE A FAB DAY" and BELIEVE that you'll be fine.

Although I said freshman year should be taken seriously, stay chill and stay relaxed. STAY SANE because this is only the beginning. ENJOY high school while you're young!

STAY SAFE AND LOVE YOU!

♡♡♡♡♡,

Cathy

PS. Upcoming posts: Backpack essentials, planners, lockers, outfits!