Addio, Diciotto!

Tonight I'm 18...

Thinking about all that's happened since this same night last year.  A lot, really.  The more momentous:

I graduated high school,

had a meaningful summer for once in my life,

became a sister-in-law,

survived a semester of college,

and started a blog. :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today mom and I have been having some mother - daughter time.  This afternoon we watched My Fair Lady.

I hadn't seen it in years!  Good movie.

Then we made a delicious dinner of chicken with spaghetti sauce and mozzarella cheese, mashed potatoes, and a lovely salad.  Well, I peeled and mashed the potatoes, anyway.  Mom did the rest...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Beach trip next week...

19 tomorrow!

Nothing else particularly interesting.

Now to do some homework, maybe watch another movie with mom, then

Buona Notte!

"Who, being loved, is poor?" ~Oscar Wilde

Ah, Oscar Wilde.  Although the quote doesn't specify who he's talking about, given his contribution to literature, he is most likely speaking of what we'd consider "romantic love".  I, however, prefer to believe that he's talking about love in general -- between friends, family, Christians, etc.

As you might have guessed, this post is about this past weekend - Valentine's Day weekend.

Well?  I mostly spent it with friends and family (in my opinion, what v-day is for!).  Thursday night my sister and bro-in-law (and dog) picked me up from school before heading to Roxboro.  We came home to a delicious dinner (meatball soup and crescent rolls!) and then visited for a few hours.  I crashed pretty early (yes, 1 AM is early).

As usual, the alarm went off and was quickly silenced ere I drifted back off for another hour of blessed sleep... or was it my alarm?  Turns out it was Catherine calling... haha... whoops....

Well, despite my hanging up on her in my sleep, we spent a lovely afternoon together, almost entirely in the kitchen.  Determined to make something special, we looked in a few Tea Time magazines and my tea party recipe book, and finally found something that we had all the ingredients for: mini chocolate eclairs.  They looked simple, anyway.

Three hours later....

(photobucket.com)

Of course, ours didn't look nearly this perfect.  But I'm sure they tasted just as good!

 That evening I had a blast at an amazing friend's birthday party.  Apples to Apples, crazy youtube vids, cupcake battles... oh yes, and cramming into a bathroom about the size of my closet.  Memories, memories, memories...<3

Then chill time with one of my favorite girls - Sarah-Marie.

We baked these:

 

And then cut them out like this...

(themomsbuz.com)

... while watching this movie:

(zone-sf.com)

That night mom and I made valentines while watching Pirates of the Caribbean 2... kind of a strange combination, I know.

And now I need to do homework, so the other half of this post shall appear at a later date.

Thoughts on hair

Have you ever noticed that women in the old days seemed to put a lot of effort into making their hair look nice? (by old days, I mean the 19th c. to early 20th c.) For example, look at this lovely lady:

(wordpress.com)

I know that we females have much busier schedules nowadays than the typical woman did back then -- I hardly devote five minutes to my hair each day. Now, I suppose this isn't true of many American women, who dutifully blow and spray and flat-iron their hearts out every morning, but I would be willing to bet that at least 50% of ladies these days are just like me in this area. In fact, it's in style to have a somewhat "messy" look.

Either way, it is still interesting to note the importance these vintage ladies seemed to place on their tresses. Even the little girls had rags put in every night before bed.

(theladiesparlor.com)

I once read that Shirley Temple's mother put 56 perfect curls in her daughter's hair every day.

(thegoldenyears.org)

Anyway, I guess the point of this post thus far has been more for interest than reform. I personally think spending hours to put 56 ringlets on your head is a ridiculous waste of time. (unless, of course, you happen to be an actress) Nevertheless, I've been convinced that devoting time and effort to femininity is a good thing. So where is the balance between obsession and neglect?

Well, I tried looking up some ideas and thinking about what I've done in the past, back when I actually took time on my hair. Here's what I came up with:
(comments for each are based partly on experience, partly on theory)

Braids:

(totalbeauty.com)

Yes, I know that looks really difficult, but I've done a similar style before and it took me about 15-20 min. The time involved in braiding really depends on your personal skill level (if you've braided so much you could do it in your sleep or are just learning), and the particular style you're going for. Simple braid styles can take as little as five minutes!!!

Buns:


A simple bun can be both fancy and every-day. Definitely a versatile option. This is also a pretty quick style-- very little fuss and, if done right, can be very comfortable. Buns are also great for adding little things like combs, decorative hairpins, flowers, etc.. just stick 'em in! Now, about those darling little curls around her face... I'm pretty sure those were photoshopped in. ;)

Hats and snoods:

(plainsimpleinformation.com)

I don't actually own a snood (I want one, and am currently attempting to understand this pattern) but I've seen "modern people" wear something very similar, so I don't think they should be thought of as costume-wear or too old-fashioned. At any rate, this one will be an experiment for me! As for hats, I want to get a few more, especially fabric ones like berets, etc.

Clips, pins, combs, etc:

Surprisingly enough, I couldn't find any good pictures for this one. These all work splendidly for the really simple styles-- as in, a minute or two required! If you simply like how your hair looks down, but want to add a little "something", these accessories are perfect.

Headbands and ribbons add a lovely touch to practically any style.

Well, friends, I believe I've come to the end of my post. Again, please note that this is all just for interest, not a challenge to reform your hairstyling ways. I definitely enjoyed looking into the subject, and hope you enjoyed reading! :)

Briefly, as the hour is late...

I'm finally back home! And, well... I kind of forgot to bring my fotocamera with me when I left for school two weeks ago. Meaning: no snow pictures! *sad moment* Howeverrr... a friend has some on hers, so I shall post a few of those as soon as I obtain them.

At any rate...

I ♥ coffee cake.

And tomorrow I want to make this:

(bettycrocker.com)

Looks good, no?