Paranormal Activity

I just got back from Illinois. I had no idea a three day trip could be so action-packed with horror.

I just had to share with you what happened:

As soon as my parents and I arrived to town after an eight hour drive, we discovered the hotel had given away our suite. And they had no other rooms left! Pissed, we went all over town looking for a hotel room. Every other major hotel in the city was booked for that night as well. Eventually, we managed to find two rooms at a shady little motel by the highway.



I was very distraught by the situation. My room looked like something straight out of a horror film. There were giant dark stains all over the carpet, the comforter, and the walls. The lamp kept flickering on and off, like a strobe light. I was too scared to sleep in the bed because I was worried it may have bed bugs or bodily fluids inside of it. I got no sleep.

The next day, I was exhausted. The funeral was lovely and had included a couple Swedish songs and funny stories about my great-aunt. Her son, my mom's cousin, is the COO (one step under CEO) of one of the biggest pizza chains in the world. To surprise him, 20 top executives from the headquarters flew the corporate jet and took chauffeured Escalades to the funeral. It was impressive.



The reception was held at an adorable Swedish restaurant where we all feasted on Swedish pancakes with lingonberry sauce, Swedish meatballs, pickled herring, and apple cake.

That afternoon, I went shopping with my cousin and aunts, but I was too exhausted to be any fun, and unfortunately, it showed. So we called it a day and went our separate ways before the evening.

To my delight, my parent were waiting with good news. The hotel which had lost our reservations the night before felt so bad about it, they were giving us two honeymoon suites FOR FREE that night!



Overjoyed with the news, I immediately gathered my belongings from the scary motel and I rushed to my new suite. I spent an hour soaking in the suite's heart-shaped jacuzzi with a glass of white wine and my mystery novel. It was like being in heaven.

Of course, things took a turn for the worse.

Snuggled on the couch in my big fluffy white robe, I was watching Criminal Minds and all of the sudden, the channel switched to CNN. I hadn't even touched the remote! Confused, I switched it back. But then, the channel switched, by itself, to the History Channel. Before I could reach for the remote, the volume on the television turned all the way up by itself!

I was so freaked out, I shut the television off and ran into the bedroom. I rationalized that the living room television was broken.

So, I started watching a Hilary Duff movie in the bedroom. But again, out of nowhere, the television turned off on its own and the lights in the bedroom turned off! I was officially scared. I ran out of bed, turned all the lights back on and called Rian, stuttering what was happening. He insisted I was overreacting and perhaps the electricity wasn't working. In the middle of his trying to comfort me, the clock radio turned on by itself and blasted an Usher song. I went to the clock radio and discovered that it was turned off but it was still playing music somehow! Shrieking, I unplugged the clock radio and the music stopped.



Rian was tired and I reluctantly got off the phone with him. A few minutes later, the hotel phone rang. I picked it up. There was nobody on the other end. All I could hear was static. My heart pounding, I unplugged the phone and submerged myself beneath the covers of the king bed.

I was so incredibly frightened. I wished with all my heart that I had been sharing a suite with my parents that night. It was that bad.

The next morning, I woke up after a restless sleep and went into the shower. I was going over the previous night's incidents in my head, when I looked through the glass door and saw a figure in front of me. I let out a blood curling scream and the figure screamed as well.

After a minute of hysterically screaming in the shower, I realized the figure was my mom. My parents had been trying to call me that morning but were worried because I wasn't answering my cell and the hotel phone was off the hook. So my mom got a key from the front desk and came in to check up on me.

It only took me five minutes to get dressed, quickly gather my belongings, and get the hell out of the suite that morning. What a nightmare!

And after an eight hour long journey, I am finally back home.

I need a drink.

See you soon...

Well, I'm heading to Chicago for my great-aunt's funeral. So I will be gone for a few days.

I will probably be back on Friday.

In the meantime, check out my post below.

Also, on the right, I have included a link to my blog's facebook page.

Have a great week!

Prom Dress 911

I hate to say it, but I barely remember my high school prom.

I didn't have a romantic date. I didn't have a lot of friends who attended. All I remember is riding around in a limo with a boy I barely knew, taking photos with his friends I didn't know, and eating a disturbingly slimy pasta dish at an overpriced restaurant.

The actual dance is foggy to me because I may or may not have spent the entire night in the hotel lounge nursing spiked punch.

The one prom memory I will never forget, however, was my dress.



My dad gave me two stipulations. The dress had to be less than $300 and it could not be "sexy." The latter didn't phase me. Despite a healthy apetite for alcohol and a burgeoning pill problem, I was still fairly innocent. The $300 limit, however, seemed unfair.

Because let's face it, I have always had expensive taste.

I was also determined not to repeat my Homecoming dress experience from the previous year. I had let my mom buy me a turquoise and yellow dress from J.C. Penney for $35 (on sale). It was hideous, but I was desperate to attend the dance. As soon as I entered the darkened gym, I started glowing. And that was when I realized the stupid dress was GLOW IN THE DARK.

A girl never forgets a lesson like that one.

Well, after months of shopping with my father, I was about to give up. We simply could not agree on a prom dress.

Finally, a week before prom, my dad took me to a mall in Cleveland, which was about an hour away. The plan was to look for a dress and grab dinner.

The first store we went was Cache. As soon as we entered the store, I saw it: the most perfect dress I had ever seen. It was my favorite shade of pink and just the right amount of puffiness. It was a dress fit for a princess. But it was $350.

I begged my dad to let me try it on. Maybe if he saw how cute I was in it, he would change his mind about the price!

I entered the tiny little dressing room with the dress and put it on.

It was magic. I looked STUNNING.

I reached for the door handle, to fling open the door so I could showcase the fabulousness...but the door wouldn't open.

I tried opening the door again. Nothing. I twisted it harder. Nothing.

I was stuck in the dressing room.

Normally, I would have crawled underneath the door. I was five feet tall and 93 pounds. Not a big deal.

But the door went all the way to the floor. And the walls and door of the dressing room almost went all the way up to the ceiling.

I started screaming. And all of the sudden, for the first time in my life, I became claustrophobic.

My dad alerted the sales clerks and they were flummoxed. They couldn't open the door and they had no idea how to get me out! They called mall security and those guys didn't know what to do either.

Finally, it was agreed to call the fire department.

I spent 30 minutes alone, hyperventilating in the tiny dressing room, wearing the dress, while all this happened. I was crying. Strangely, more and more people kept crowding around my dressing room, talking loudly and laughing in disbelief. Apparently sales clerks and customers from other stores had heard about my situation and came to witness it for themselves.

Since it was nearing dinner time, my dad came back with some hamburgers and after a few attempts managed to throw a hamburger to me over the giant wall. It was a small comfort in such a stressful environment.

When the firemen came, I could hear them arguing over who was the smallest and thinnest man to be hoisted over the giant walls and lowered into my dressing room.

Before I knew it, a cute 20-something-year-old fireman was being lowered into my dressing room with a harness.

He seemed initially startled at the sight of a tiny brown girl who was stuffing her face with a hamburger between sobs while wearing a giant pink prom gown. But he collected himself gracefully and soon became very charming and even complimented my dress. It was awkward being pushed against him in the tiny dressing room as he used some tools to pick the lock.

When he opened the door, I was greeted by a crowd of dozens of people who started clapping. It was like being a celebrity! I didn't even care that I had crumbs all over my dress and mascara running down my face.

In the end, the store ended up giving me my dress for free. If I had been smarter back then, I would have sued the store for thousands of dollars because of the emotional damage. (I have become extremely claustrophobic since the incident, to the point where I can't even be in elevators).

But at the time, I was happy to simply have the dress I wanted for prom.

Sadly, the dressing room incident was way more exciting than the dance itself.

But dammit, I looked good.



And isn't that all that really matters?

Review: Corioliss Curling Wand

I'm sorry for the poor quality of the photo, but I had to show you: this is what my hair looked like last night. And I had curled it yesterday morning!

Awesome, right?

This is the result of a fabulous product I was sent to review: the Corioliss curling wand.

After my review on a hair dryer I did a month ago, the awesome people at Misikko sent me this new hair instrument to review.

I will admit I was a bit skeptical at first. I don't have very good luck with curling irons. It usually takes a night's worth of uncomfortable foam curlers to make my hair stay bouncy and curly for a long period of time. My hair tends to fall flat from curling irons after a few hours.

The Corioliss curling wand is another story.

Unlike most other curling irons, the curling wand does not have a clamp. It is basically a long stick. Apparently I'm kind of ditzy, because I had no idea how to use this product at first. I stared at it for a really long time, perplexed, until I decided to take the curling wand to my parents' house. My mom, a licensed cosmetologist, patiently explained how to use it and I felt really silly afterwards.

Because a curling wand is fairly easy to use. You basically just curl your hair around the stick. Duh.

What I loved about this curling wand is that it took only 30 seconds to heat up, once plugged in. That's an awesome time saver for all you students and working girls.

Plus, it only took TEN MINUTES to curl my hair. And as you can see from the photo, I have long, thick hair. That's kind of a big deal.

If you're a safety freak like me, you'll be happy to know the curling wand comes with a heat proof glove that you can use to spiral your hair around the stick. I found it incredibly helpful, as I don't like to burn myself.

This product is amazing. The only drawback is the price. It's not cheap. The Corioliss Curling Wand is $99.99. And that's the sale price. If you're pinching pennies right now, like me, you may have to think twice.

That being said, you definitely get your money's worth. Plus, the curling wand is one of the bestselling curling irons on the Misikko website, which says a lot. So, if maintaining your hair is a high priority and you love quality products, this curling wand may be worth every penny in the long run.

I would definitely think about purchasing it, especially if you long to have bouncy curls that last all day.

And while you're on the Misikko website, be sure to check out the Chi flat iron (I own the pink one and I am a HUGE fan) and their Corioliss flat irons.

I hope you have a great weekend!

Falling Down the Staircase

Now that fashion design school is winding down for Kerrie, she has a lot more time to hang out with me!

This week we went shopping at a place downtown we normally don't go. It was a refreshing change of scenery.



Kerrie wore her new H&M shirt and a skirt she recently made.



I wore my favorite sun dress from Target and my Banana Republic denim jacket.

We then tripped down a staircase in front of a group of businessmen who were in town for a conference.

We felt the pattern of the carpet was too busy for a staircase and therefore, it was not our fault that we fell.



We came across a wishing pond. We both wished to become rich and famous within the next year.





And then we had lunch in a fake train.



And had giant ice cream cones for dessert!



It was good sober times again. Aren't you proud of us?

St. Trinian's

Sometimes a girl just needs a piece of candy.

St. Trinian's is the movie equivalent of a Starburst.

It's sweet, tangy, flavorful, and has absolutely no nutritional value whatsoever.

But is it really so bad to enjoy a little piece of deliciousness once in a while?

Of course not!



I don't know why it took me so long to jump on the St. Trinian's bandwagon. Maybe because this 2007 gem was not released in the United States (or, at least not in my neck of the woods). I accidentally found out about it when Netflix suggested I add it to my queue.



Because Netflix knows me better than I know myself, I took the site's advice. I was not disappointed.

The film is practically a balanced combination of two movies I secretly adore: Harry Potter and Mean Girls.



St. Trinian's takes place at a posh boarding school for young ladies. The ungovernable teenage students have taken over the school, turning it into a wild, anarchic paradise for misfits.

Things take a turn for the worse, however, when the girls realize they need to save their school from bankruptcy. Otherwise, it will be shut down.



This British film has an all-star cast. Each actor brilliantly plays their role.

Some of my favorites included the adorable Russell Brand.



The hilarious Rupert Everett.



And the dashing Colin Firth.



The film also re-introduced me to a very grown up Talulah Riley. She plays the new girl at school, from which the point of view throughout the film is set.



Isn't she gorgeous?!



I barely remembered her from the 2005 film adaptation of Pride & Prejudice. I had no idea she had become such a big star in the past six years!









She is utter loveliness in this film and absolutely adorable!

If you love movies like Clueless and Home Alone, you will adore St. Trinian's.

(There is even a 2009 sequel, which looks equally fun, but I have not seen it yet.)

St. Trinian's is the perfect film for a girls night in!

The Road Not Taken

Kerrie and I took a mini road trip this weekend.

We were invited to attend her friend's Indian festival in a nearby college town. We were really excited.

Unfortunately, we got somewhat lost and ended up in a tiny little farm town. So, we did what any girls would do in that situation and had an impromptu photoshoot!



(Do you like my feather earrings? I recently won them as part of a fabulous giveaway by my darling friend, Erika at Cafe Fashionista!)



(As usual, Kerrie couldn't stay on the ground. Haha.)



(We were delighted to see this unusual contraption called a mailbox. Apparently people used to write their e-mails down on paper and put it in this device!)



(Kerrie's outfit was inspired by a meeting she had with designers at the Ralph Lauren offices in NYC two weeks ago. She may intern there soon!)

When we finally arrived at our destination, it was too late to attend the festival. We were three hours late! So, we decided to grab a pizza and have a picnic in a park.

Unfortunately, we were not aware of our surroundings. Giggling and gossiping, we marched right into the middle of the park and set up our picnic. Right when we started eating our pizza, we noticed a group of really hot frat guys staring at us. Flattered, we waved charmingly at them and batted our eyes. But the boys didn't wave back...or even smile. They just looked at us dumbfounded and pissed. We then noticed they were holding frisbees. And then we noticed a lot of people standing around us in a giant circle...stunned.

Apparently we had parked our picnic right smack in the middle of a frisbee tournament! To make matters worse, the guys decided to play anyway. Frisbees were flying at us in all directions. Kerrie was genuinely frightened and tried hiding in the blanket, whimpering. I started screaming.

Humiliated, we frantically picked up our picnic and ran away as fast as we could.

We moved to a nearby skating park, where we were surrounded by a handful of 12-year-old boys. We were worried they were going to harrass us, but they didn't seem interested in girls.

The boys just asked us for some pizza and we said no. Discouraged, they skateboarded away and left us alone to finally have our meal. What a relief!





(Kerrie changed into her casual clothes beforehand, so she wouldn't dirty her cute outfit).

We then decided to go to yet another park because we were bored. It was the first time in a very long time we had been sober together and we wanted to keep it that way for the rest of the evening. It was refreshing being in a college town and not going out drinking in bars or clubs. We thought it was very mature of us.







To keep the trip innocent, we stopped for custard before heading home. We wanted to hit the road before midnight in case we got lost for three hours again. But luckily, we did got home without a hitch.





It was such a fun trip!

How was your weekend?