Double Friday Favourites! 7+8

Week 7 was quite a jam packed week and so week 8 became the recovery week, justifying a double FF :D. No hangovers, just a case of being overwhelmed! I'm going to aim to get these back on time, after watch Lily Pebbles' latest video here, it has inspired me and made me realised how dedicated one must be to get a blog going (probably a big duh to everyone else!). So here I am, tired but determined to get going.. !

Music/Gig: Candy Rat Guitar night with Maneli Jamal and Owen Van Larkins

Two world-class, virtuoso guitarists on our little stage, it was an inspiring night. It was the first time meeting Maneli, and for a guy still in his 20s, he's lived. The stories he told, the places he's lived in, and his music! The ease of his skill and the lyrical flow of his songs were incredible to watch and listen. And of course, Owen. I champion Owen as he is the newer, and lesser known of the two and our Aussie! His technique inspires me, not so much to be a better guitarist (hah!) but to be so dedicated in what I do. Plus his songs are catchy.. I let these guys off a fee we usually charge (long and well justified story) and asked for their cds as compensation. Win!

Beauty. New Makeup Storage Bits

Please forgive my flamin' s*#@ photos tonight, my eyes were just not working! I picked up the plate and napkin holder in a recent Urban Outfitters Haul here and they dress up my makeup area nicely. I like this area pretty and inspiring over functional, especially since I don't have that much make-up (for a beauty lover that is!) and that's the way I feel about makeup.

Outfit. An Engagement Party

So many people are getting married this year, it's ridiculous! I'm going to be at least 30 I think! Anyway... one of my good buddies just got engaged and I had no idea what to wear until the morning of. I love clothes, but I'm not very girly so dresses just aren't my thing. I ended up ditching my initial idea of a pink polka dot dress (!!) for this long sleeve, navy dress with a cute peter pan collar. My dear cousin in Vietnam made it for me and I proudly MacGyver'ed it that morning, cutting up the sleeve stitching so I could roll the sleeves up. Might be why I like this outfit. I paired it with a pair of wedge sneakers, a belt I found in my dad's closet, black stockings and I was one happy boyish girl that day!

Moment.

I gigged again in the past fortnight, in fact I played 3 gigs in 3 days (1 was unexpected). I haven't gigged in ages since I pushed myself so hard trying to play so much last year that I ran out of steam and excitement for it. But the little flame inside me has been lit again and I'm dying to get my technique sorted and learn how to be a disciplined person (hence the current 12am clock.. :P).  I'm starting to slowly figure out about how I want to go about my life but that's another post.. 

Hope you had a fun past fortnight, what have you loved/learned in the past week?

x mai-anne

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Friday Favourites #4: Let Go

Balance Me Super Moisturising Hand Cream

Beauty.

I didn't like this at first, but now I find myself excited to use it come bedtime. This is a very thick hand cream but it is not greasy and very moisturising. Its texture means that I use it only before I hop into bed but I know it'll save my hands.  I didn't like it at first because of the smell, but it is very slight and I don't feel like I smell it anymore. This was a sample from a Balance Me kit, and the retail is 14.50 pounds which is way more than I have ever spent on a hand cream but I just might this time (cue Game of Thrones - winter is coming).

Music.

Alicia Keys - How it Feels to Fly. Was having a tiny peruse of the shops today after work and this song came on. Don't you just love those moments when a song comes on and it just describes how you feel/who you are in that moment.  This song was never a favourite before, but I think it just became one :) 

If I could touch the sky, I'd risk the fall. Just to know how it feels to fly.

Misc Item.

I had a crap week last week and I picked up this candle on the weekend. The name won me, 'silver rain'. The description and image of something unpleasant made beautiful lit up my crappy mood. The smell is very slight but that's the way I like it. I might pick up a few more of these since it reminds me to stay positive when it isn't around me.

Lesson.

The biggest lesson I needed to learn, and for awhile now was, let go. I had been having awful and vivid dreams for awhile and it made me realise that while I thought I was fine, I was holding onto something that was impacting on me negatively.  I won't go into the details (and bore you) but I had that moment where I realised I just had to let it go. And that I could. I let go of what it was, how wronged I was, any notions of redemption and when I did, I was freed.  No more expectations of people who aren't worth it and feel okay to be open and hopeful to those who are and now, one day be. :)

Hope you've had a lovely week with an awesome one on the cards.

x mai-anne

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Friday Favourites #3: A Pretty Forgettable Week

Ugh. Glad this one is over. And now, how to write about it?  *think happy thoughts*

Beauty.
Ahh thinking about something pretty sure does perk me up! I've ignored this blush for awhile, since I used to death a while back but I'm crushing on it again.  It's on the orange side of life, but deeper and with coral hues and a touch of golden sparkles. I've been using bright peachy tones lately and suddenly longed for something of that sort but deeper and Springsheen filled that sudden void. I love it!

Highlight.
No joke but it's probably my mamma's chicken kebabs. yaaarm!

Music.
Macklemore and Ryan Lewis' The Heist. I'm very late to catch onto them (I've been really out of the loop of current music) but it's been a long time since a new (ish) act has really rocked my world. I adore the production of the album and Macklemore's lyrics. "Same Love" is just, incredible. Songs don't tend to moisten my eyes but this song does. So powerful.

Lesson.
Since getting into makeup, Kevyn Aucoin's name is one that I've heard many times and yesterday I found myself watching videos about him. How he revolutionised the industry is such an incredible story but even more so is his life story. How he stayed himself despite where he was born and what industry he aspired to become a part of (or moreover, create) just strikes me. I spent so much of my life trying to be what my society told me was good and had no guts to be an individual, and my inner self wasn't anywhere near as in conflict to my surroundings as Kevyn was in his.  In this video, he stresses how important it is to be yourself, and that is the thing that makes him proud of himself, even next to his massive achievements. So when I don't feel strong about who I am, I think I'm always going to think of him, as corny balls as that sounds. And gosh, what a nice person he seems to be!

That's probably enough of this week, time to look forward now, it's the weekend! :)

How has your week been?

x mai-anne

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Friday Favourites! #1

Today I'm launching "Friday Favourites", the first series on my blog! It's a look back on the week and a small way to document 2013 and hopefully beyond.  A shoddy January set me back on my blogging ways, but I think I'm going to be back on track now. *fingers crossed*

So while it's called 'Friday Favourites', it won't be going up on Fridays and it's not just favourites! The title is inspired (or stolen) from TheMakupChair on Youtube (she won't mind right?!), because I love the alliteration and the excitement that 'Favourites' anything posts gives me (wildchild me).  I use the term "Friday" loosely as I'm most likely to post on a Saturday.  I work weird hours so I consider Sun and Monday as my weekend so Saturday is the real end of the week for me. The questions may alter week to week but here we go for week 1!

Favourite Beauty Product

I would go with Nars Sheer Glow this week, though admittedly I still haven't decided on a shade! I have 3 samples in my stash right now and I'm finding that Santa Fe is a bit orange, Deauville is a touch too light and Fiji is a touch too dark. I'm considering getting a sample in Ceylan but it seems a bit overkill to have four samples. I just like to look like one person (ie. head and body/chest match) so bleurghh! Otherwise I love the finish of this foundation, glowy but still natural and while it's a medium coverage it can be sheered out. It also interestingly rates very well on cosdna.com :D

Favourite Song/Album

Been feelin' Abbey Road this week, freaking champ of an album. I'm gonna dig through some more Beatles albums and get me some education. I love that they went wild with the instrumentation and arrangements, but the songs, the melodies and lyrics are solid.  Also have loved 'Heart of Gold' by Neil Young, since I had to learn it for our first Classic Albums gig night at the music venue I work at. I don't know much about NY but damn, he has fine lyrics and this song is just killer.

Favourite Miscellaneous Find/Item

I found this little cutie at Target in a clearance for $3.88 so I had to take it home with me. It's a coffee cannister, but of course I'm storing makeup in it. Not the most practical storage unit but I can't help it, I like my beauty area more pretty than functional :P

Favourite Blog/YoutubeChannel

Just discovered ChelseaWears on youtube. Okay I didn't just discover her, she grew on me. I saw her ages ago and thought she talked too much but now I get it, she da bomb now. She has the same love for British youtubers like me (what is it with them! So damn chic and put together!) and has a hilarious potty mouth. 

Book I'm Reading

I'm still straggling through A Clash of Kings in the 'A Song of Ice and Fire' series. I don't know why, but it is an amazing story though and I am determined to finish it.  The TV series doesn't help since I know what's going to happen, so I'm excited to get ahead of it (though the 3rd series is going to air soon..!)

Memorable Moment

I hardly want to say that this is a memorable moment, but this has been a big week for my huge Vietnamese family. My uncle passed a week ago. It's been a really sad and hard to believe. I didn't know him very well, but he was a good soul with a cool central Viet accent that reminds me of my mum's side of the family (he was my dad's brother in law). He passed so quickly it was so unfair on his family, no one saw it coming.  I hate that, he wasn't meant to go yet. Though I am glad he got to become a grandparent at least once before he went.  Rest in peace, Chu Chinh.

I'm sorry to end the first post in this series on a slightly sad note. I was supposed to start this a week ago but it wasn't the place. I wanted to now because I wanted to say something about my uncle, he was a good man.

Please feel free to answer these questions yourself in the comments section or in your own blog (link me!). While it has had a sad ending I really enjoyed writing it, or at least the first half :)

x mai-anne

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