Climbing higher

♫ Amaranthe – Afterlife

What is this I don't even... I guess I really didn't have much motivation to blog last year. I cannot even say I was so busy, although I was, but still I had the time for gaming and such.

It would be somewhat pointless to write a summary of the highlights of my 2014 since I didn't share that many details of it along the way either, but here's some insight into training and exercising.

A year ago I wrote how I would like to learn cool new tricks on the pole in 2014. Well, I'm not sure if I did, I should take another look at my actual exercise journal. Most of the time I felt like this though:

I haven't given up pole dancing. However, I haven't been doing it that much lately either, partly because the studio schedule wasn't very good for me in the autumn. I also hate to fight such things as dry skin, lack of friction and an extremely slippery home pole. I've also faced some sort of a wall with my progress since certain strength moves (and lifts in particular) have been too hard to tackle. However, I try to remind myself that however slowly I may be learning, I'm still climbing higher than anyone on the couch.

What I did in 2014, however, is something that had been haunting me for ages – no, I can say "always". I had never been able to do a handstand. In October I decided that I would try to narrow the gap between being unable and being terrified. That's right, I had been too afraid to even try (at least without a spotter). Ever since I started pole dancing, I had practised a bit by backing against a wall or a pole, but that doesn't yet put me in a perfectly upright position.

I practised handstands every day, and after 25 days, I managed to take off from the floor into a handstand against my pole. And after that, I've kept practising regularly.

(It looks like I hadn't shaved my left armpit, but I certainly have!)

I'm not yet thinking of doing a freestanding handstand, and with my shoulder structure, that may be a difficult and long journey. However, I feel quite confident going into a handstand against a wall or a pole, and it's already much, much more than I ever expected I could achieve in a few months.

And well, if you are like me and have never been able to stand on your hands, I can tell you something: if I can learn it, anyone can! Okay, not anyone, I wouldn't recommend trying if you have some problems with your wrists.

I've been slightly more excited about aerial silks lately. Soft fabrics can be much more comfortable than a cold, hard pole, and potential friction problems are quite different. This photo was obviously taken last summer, but on such a cold winter day as this, it's nice to look back on summery outdoor acrobatics sessions!

Questing the oceans and questing the seas, searching for ultimate booze

♫ Alestorm – Rum

Now that I realize how long it has been since my last post, I can only say: this is getting ridiculous. :> I've been busy, I guess, but I suppose I'll just settle for posting this rarely, yet I doubt anyone cares. (I doubt anyone reads anyway!)

However, I have several reasons to post today:
1. It's my birthday, and I think I've usually made a birthday post. :>
2. I've recently acquired something about which I posted much earlier.
3. Alcohol related posts in private blogs is a real hot topic in Finland at the moment due to the regional state administrative agency forbidding private bloggers to use a certain logo in their posts. This was the original logo for a beer and whiskey expo, and the logo (naturally) comprised the word "whiskey". The agency threatened to deny the expo their licence to sell alcohol unless these completely private bloggers, completely unrelated to the event, remove the logos from their blogs. And well, the Finnish alcohol legislation will get remarkably stricter at the beginning of 2015, and we shouldn't tell how much we like booze in the social media, so I think it's about the time to say: I bloody love rum.

It's been almost two years since I wrote about how I would like to get my hands on a bottle of Kraken rum. I figured I would have to resort to ordering from abroad since I couldn't find any when traveling. Just recently I participated in a group order from the Netherlands, and it was quite successful. Not only did I get some Kraken, but it was also cheap! And just look at that bottle! Isn't it stylish? And the label? The Kraken drawing? Oh, and it tastes good too!

Birthday was good enough a reason to have a taste of Kraken, also to offer some to my mother for the trouble and pain she had to go through several years ago to the day. (Although I wasn't her first child, I made sure her delivery was a hellish experience!)

And here's a pic of me when I actually got the bottle – which was a few weeks ago. It seems that my smile is the most genuine whenever I'm holding a bottle of rum. :) So long!

Natural is the new black, brown, red and pink

♫ Sabaton – Saboteurs

O-hai, I talked something about natural light in my previous post, it had something to do with having enough of that (as well as time to take photos and post) in order to present something else that is natural nowadays.

My hair! Okay, it's not natural in many senses – however, the colour is mostly my own now! I dyed my hair (dark brown) last over a year ago, and at some point I decided to try – and try hard – to let my own natural hair colour take over. I suppose the only reason for this is my laziness since I never bother to dye the roots regularly anyway. I also wondered whether my natural colour would be the one which would suit me best. I'm not yet sure about that.

I took those photos in the ambient light of my apartment, near the window, without a flash or any other artificial light. I edited the photos a bit in Camera Raw to make them look as accurate as my real hair colour might be. It's a dull brown, yeah, but it becomes less dull the longer it grows. Actually, it looks like the old dyed part began somewhere above my eyebrows in these photos, but that's not true, my hair has grown much more during these 15+ months. And I've learnt that it's kinda darker than I expected. When I still used to dye my hair red, the overgrown roots always looked horrifying in contrast with (faded) red – it was light and seemed only grey. It no longer seemed that bad when I started dyeing my hair brown instead. And nowadays, well... Whether I'm fine with it or not depends on the light. I die inside every time I look in the mirror in the hall of our office – the ceiling is low, and with a fluorescent tube right close above my head, my hair looks light and grey and absolutely horrendous. In the office toilets, on the other hand, I'm comfortable with my reflection.

Since my hair isn't particularly special anymore, I've started using my bright eyeshadows again – for some time I wore mostly brown, which didn't stand out much. I'm not sure how long I can put up with the hair though, but I've thought of using some direct dye next, hoping it will fade away rather than grow out. So long!

I'm not dead yet, but have a look at my bones

♫ Heavy Metal Perse – Aamunkoiton huilumies

I... don't even know what to say about my blogging habits anymore. I guess I can say I've been quite busy – I have not only been working overtime quite a lot, but I've also been trying to spend the little free time doing something nice with the nearest and dearest, or at least by taking care of myself by exercising (or sleeping).

This time I decided to show three tops which I bought from Restyle a while ago. I really liked the prints and decided to give these cheap T-shirts a try.

All the tops are size XS, which was the smallest available, and although they do have a size guide on the website, I kind of wished a top which is said to be "very stretchy and will fit to your waist perfectly" would indeed be more bodycon. However, it turns out I'm something like super small by their standards, and the tops are a bit loose – quite nice still, anyway.

This is a fangirl top. :) Anyway, there's a bigger problem than the tops not being tight-fitting. They all have a deep, deep plunging neckline! It's rare that I actually mind this – most of the time I don't, maybe because I don't have a cleavage to show anyway. However, these tops really do make me want to wear another top or shirt underneath, or otherwise I would be showing my underwear. And seriously, I don't think I can do that at work. I thought I was buying casual shirts which I could wear to work with a knit, but these tops are not so simple garments.

I had the highest expectations for this one since it was the only one with sleeves – I thought I could wear it at work on its own, but pssssh, the V-neckline is the worst – way too deep for my bust (or the lack thereof).

It's quite a pity since I really do like the prints in real life as well, not only in the photos on the website. But they do need something underneath, and it's not simple and easy either, an under-top may look sloppy or unintentional.

I wish I could pick up my blogging pace. Summer time should give me a bit more natural light and more possibilities to take good photos. That should help me to make a post about hair in the future. So long!

Yet another new year

♫ Sabaton – We burn

Happy New Year, my dear readers! I know I'm a bit late with this one as well, but I think it's alright to wish a happy New Year at least during the first week of January. :)

I was a lousy, lazy blogger in 2013 and now I'm trying to write about the past year a bit, maybe about the new one as well. I was inspired by a few fellow bloggers' New Year's posts, and thus I'm going to borrow some elements and/or questions from them. ;)

The best memories of 2013
Going abroad feels nice every time – visiting Rome was something to remember for sure. A very dear friend got married in March, and I was one of her maids of honor.

"Just as sure as Rome is falling, I'll be rising again..."

The only photo of myself taken with my own camera at my friend's wedding :x

Did you do something you had never done before?

I visited Ostrobothnia for the first time AND for the second time too. >:x The second was not naturally the first anymore, but I visited different towns (and different sub-regions!) so I suppose it does count! And the trip to Rome was my first time in Italy as well.

I also went to a real big stadion concert for the first time ever – my favourite bands have usually been way too small to perform at such venues.

I started exercising at a gym, like weight-lifting and such! And no, this was not a New Year's resolution. It seems I quit too, since I suddenly no longer had that much time. >:x I didn't like it that much either, though I did feel good after the exercise and I know it did me good, but I have other physical hobbies which I prioritized once I no longer had the time for everything.

And when it comes to doing things for the first time, I could probably list a bunch of pole dance moves which I nailed in 2013.

You can go to Ostrobothnia, but you can't get away that easily...

Trying to catch a glimpse of Iron Maiden

This is not one of those epic success pole moves, unless the miracle of having enough grip at home counts. I have no evidence of the epic success moments. :(

The biggest achievement

Getting paid for doing graphic design again.

The biggest failure

My body is one big failure! Seriously, I'm suffering from something all the time; sports injuries here and there. At least I'm not very sickly otherwise, but it does piss me off that my body can't just take certain things when it comes to exercise (for example) and thus, I also failed my previous New Year's resolution (though I can blame my head too, not just the body!) Oh well, I'm trying again this year – hopefully I'll have some achievements to boast about later!

Are you happier than you were on this day a year ago?

Strangely enough, being able to drag myself out of bed too early each morning in order to go to work does make me happier than not being able to do that.

What did you want and get?
A job.

What did you want but didn't get?

A permanent job, but I am very happy and grateful for what I did get.

A rule of life you learnt

Don't evaluate yourself based on what others might expect of you (especially if you cannot meet those expectations).

And finally, what I am looking forward to or wish to experience in 2014:

I would like to get a permanent job.

A trip abroad – I'm just curious to see foreign countries and interesting cities, and I'll have to hope I can find the time and money.

Hopefully, there will be a lot of great concerts too!

And, I wish to learn a lot of new cool tricks on the pole.

Secular haze

♫ Ghost – Per Aspera Ad Inferi

Oops again. I think I've had a good reason not to update! This time I've been somewhat busy for real – you see, I got a job recently! I've been working hard since the end of October, and although the position isn't permanent, I'm quite happy. Back in the advertising business!

In order to provide you with something visual, here is a collage of a certain outfit I've found more than apt a few times in autumn. I'm wearing a black tube dress and well, a jacket-like top, and the result is an outfit in which I feel comfortable (=I wore it to a birthday dinner with my dearest, being able to devour a lot of food easily) yet stylish enough. These photos were taken on Wednesday after a certain Christmas party. I didn't have much time to change clothes or do anything else after work before heading for the party, which is why the outfit is rather plain too, and I don't have a fancy hairdo.

Sometimes my edited colours bring out the details of (black) clothes in a more flattering way than brightness settings!

I've also been to some interesting gigs, especially yesterday. We went to see the Swedish heavy/rock band Ghost and damn, the show and setlist were cool! We'd already seen Ghost warming up for Iron Maiden last summer, but a skeleton-faced cardinal singing about Satan in broad daylight is not so cool...

How have you all been, had a busy autumn and December so far?

Another year, more precious booty

It's my birthday today, and although I don't have much to write about let alone many photos to show, I wanted to share this one photo of a present I got from a dear friend!

I really appreciate this kind of thoughtfulness! She had made a treasure chest out of paper and cardboard and filled it with RUM COOKIES. I've never, never received a present in a more perfect wrapping, this was so adorable!

Hopefully everyone else had a good weekend as well! I was busy having fun yesterday, busy doing work-related stuff today... :x I have such insane piles of dishes waiting to be washed that I guess I'll just take care of them next and then try out a pirate themed game I got from my special someone! So long!

Born with a destiny of roses

Sometimes strange things happen to me. Like just a while ago, when I ended up watching the anime series The Rose of Versailles... No spoilers ahead.

It started as an innocent experiment and search for some comedy and ended with bittersweet tears.

I have a thing for old anime titles which were dubbed and released in Finnish years, years ago in bad quality. I watched some in my childhood and loved them, and sometimes I get particularly nostalgic and want to watch them again, even though I have trouble keeping a poker face with the horrifying voice acting. So, a while ago, I took up the Finnish VHS releases of Lady Oscar (the series is known as The Rose of Versailles or Lady Oscar, depending on the country, though the former is an actual translation of the original Japanese title whereas Lady Oscar is the main character) and watched them, laughing while I did so, mostly at the wrong time. The dub quality was bad and I'm glad I never ate while watching it since I might have choked on my food more than once.

However, they never released more than three videos in Finnish, each one consisting of four episodes of this 40-episode-long series. Having watched these videos, I realized I was somewhat addicted and I had to see the whole series, so I continued in Japanese with English subtitles. Last night I found myself watching the last twelve episodes...

At the beginning I thought it was overly dramatic (even to my taste) and slightly ridiculous, especially with Marie Antoinette acting strangely. But I did my homework and learnt, much to my dismay, that many of those scenes or details at which I was rolling my eyes were historically accurate. At that point I no longer questioned the original author's, Riyoko Ikeda's sanity, and eagerly watched the story of the French Revolution (and other historical events) unfold before me.

And in the end, I cried. I thought I would only be laughing at some light-themed girls' animation badly dubbed in Finnish, but the Finnish age limits (or the lack thereof; I doubt this series was truly checked when it was released here) deceived me and left me watching the 18th century France in dire straits. And what's worse – now I'm longing for more. And it isn't particularly easy to find much evidence or information of the related anime movies...

If I had watched Lady Oscar as a little girl, I know for sure who would have been my idol.

Have you seen The Rose of Versailles and if you have, did you like it? Do you like some other old anime classics? Do you know of The Rose of Versailles anime movies, if they are available somewhere?

Instagram Sunday

♫ Blackstar Halo – Alice In Wonderland

I know it's Friday today, but last Sunday I went out for a walk and took some photos with Instagram, partly because the walk turned out to be extraordinary but also because the day was very beautiful and rather warm, in September!

There was a circus in town! I hadn't known in advance, but the brightly colored tent made me feel strangely nostalgic – considering I've never been to one. I've been to a circus only once, but it's not a touring one. A fellow designer and I had made things for the show, so we got to go see it too.

And there were camels! Dawww. I was supposed to take a short walk, but when I saw those fellows, I figured I had wandered far from home...

I went on near the shoreline and then stopped to sit on a bench to enjoy the view since it was sunny and warm too!

And finally a blurry selfie, worse quality since I used the front camera of my phone. Although my sunglasses are too loose, I like the pilot style!

Do you have Instagram? You can find mine at http://instagram.com/capt4inmarian though my photos are private – however, I'd be happy to accept followers and follow you back!

Back to school

♫ Medusa's Child – Holy Land

It only took me two years since I got my bachelor's degree to return to school. Okay, to be precise – as from today, I'm only taking an extra course in university, on photojournalism. So I'm not studying for a degree, but nevertheless, I love saying "I'm going to school", just because calling university "school" pisses some university students off. :>

I wore this top with a simple black denim miniskirt. I wouldn't have bought this shirt if it hadn't been bloody cheap, but it's fairly nice... It's not lacy, it's made of, hmm, smooth tricot or something with a pattern like that.

I also realized I really truly hate taking photos of myself. I've stated this a billion times in my blog, I suppose, but I cannot understand how it can be so difficult. I don't think I'm the worst photographer either! I might be the most critical though...

I considered purchasing this shirt in grey brownish color, but then I chickened out... Lately, I've been more and more interested in trying colors that might actually suit me well, rather than colors that please my eyes. (And I wasn't sure if that  grey brownish hue would have looked good on me, so I decided black always does... Yeah right.) I'm not sure I'll start purchasing colorful clothes any time soon though. However, I've considered letting my natural hair color grow out... We'll see how that goes! My hair is ugly brownish grey, and I'm doubtful as to whether it can possibly look good on me. Okay, I haven't really thought of staying like that for good – but I would rather dye my hair with a color close to my natural one in the future. I have a strong feeling a semi-natural-looking color would compliment my skin tone and eye color most – especially once I've let it fade, I'm not efficient at maintaining complicated hair colors!

What do you think, can a dull greyish hair color actually look good on someone? Do you generally think people look good/bad/better/worse with their natural color?

The night is dark and full of terrors

♫ Sequester – Night's Watch

No spoilers here, don't worry! I don't like to be spoiled myself, and I will protect others from it too! And the song I'm listening to is actually about this series!

I'm not much of a reader. I don't know how much I read "on average", but I'm not the type who always has at least one book in progress. However, something strange has obviously happened to me since I've already finished two books this year – well, I had started the first one last year and read the first half quite slowly... Until I got a grip of myself in spring and sped up. 

I've been reading A Song Of Ice And Fire – in other words, the Game of Thrones novel series, for a few fears I guess. It took me quite a while to finish the first book. It took me something like half a year to read half of the second book, A Clash of Kings. But as I sped up in spring, I finished the latter half of it in a few months... And at the beginning of summer, I started the third book, A Storm of Swords. It's over one thousand pages long, and I finished it a few days ago... And that is damn fast for me!

I bought the first four books in a bundle when I began because I figured I'd be a slow reader. It was true at first, but obviously something happened to me. Although all three books so far have contained some bloody boring chapters, they've been very enjoyable too – especially the third one since I devoured it with such appetite. Those of you who have watched the HBO TV series, and especially the third season, know the amount of extreme drama in the third book... But yes, it was the most interesting piece so far.

Now I'm moving onto A Feast for Crows. I think it'll be very different from the earlier volumes – I even heard a rumor it's not nearly as good as the preceding ones... But we'll see, eventually. I can barely wait for the fourth season of the TV series!

As all the fans know, it's not particularly safe to root for any character in the series as they might as well die next, but nevertheless, I support Jon Snow! Mostly in the books, though. Peter Dinklage does such awesome job as Tyrion Lannister in the show that it's difficult not to like the character, not that he wouldn't have the same wits in the book. And strangely enough, I've found myself liking Sansa Stark in the books too, maybe because her chapters have often been interesting.

Do you watch Game of Thrones or read A Song of Ice and Fire? Who are your favorite characters?

Just as sure as Rome is falling, I'll be rising again

♫ Civil War – Rome is Falling

Oh hi, it's been a while. I don't think I even need to apologize; I'm just here to tell I haven't really died away!

Since my last update, a lot of things have happened... Well, at one point in summer I escaped to Rome indeed. A beautiful and interesting city, yet an awful tourist spot as well.

Otherwise these things have kept me either busy or preoccupied; on one hand I've lacked the motivation to update my blog, on the other hand I've wanted to be where I think I've been needed more – with the near and dear ones who either needed my support or supported me.

Don't be worried – I am quite fine, and have been all the time too. The worst has befallen others close to me. And I can't help but wonder whoever it was that broke a mirror two years ago when bigger and smaller tragedies began surging over my family (and friends, some of whom have suffered a lot lately) – nor can I help but wonder when it will end.

But I will try to post something nice again – it's not like all these days had been miserable, not at all.

"I'm here to march 'gainst the force of evil 

Here to die in the pouring rain 

But just as sure as Rome is falling 

I'll be rising again 

I will return as a new believer 

Here to conquer the walls of pain 

And just as sure as Rome is falling 

I'll be rising again"

One hundred

One hundred blog posts down, can-never-know-how-many to go! Quite a lazy pace for a blog started at the very end of 2010, but well, I don't think I have to make excuses...

And one of the reasons why I don't update so often is the fact that I prefer to have some photos for the posts, but don't always have something interesting to show. And even though I love photography, I really hate taking photos of myself, it's so troublesome and difficult... Setting up a tripod and playing with the timer and all. :/ Either way, I did bother to take some photos of yesterday's outfit.

But I don't bother to put enough effort in these photos to make my wallpaper pattern match or something. :> Anyway, I had absolutely nothing to do, but I did leave the apartment dressed like this, something a bit peculiar of me. It was a nice, sunny day, but it wasn't too warm, and wearing that grey sweater was quite a good choice! It kept me warm enough but didn't leave me suffocating! The red skirt is actually a tube dress, buttoned up at the front, and most of the time I wear it without a shirt to hide it (though often with some top underneath). However, I have contradictory feelings about it... Even though it's short and can expose a lot of skin, it's not very elegant for such occasions that might call for a tiny dress. In my opinion, it's not particularly feminine, more girlish.

The shoes are nice canvas heels which are quite comfortable to wear! The only "problem" is that they're too big for me and cannot be tied tight enough. Insoles make the situation better though, I can actually walk without the shoes turning and twisting in my feet.

I also wore my hair in a very unusual way, a half braid, the bottom half open. Anything besides two braids (or pigtails) or a ponytail is exceptional for me, I'm not too good at making hairdos and I don't think my head is cut out for it either. :/

Perhaps this will do for my semiannual outfit post, let's see when we'll have another. :D So long!

Weapons of mass-confusion

♫ Dreamtale – Dreamtime

I was doing a bit of cleaning in my hall today and "came across" my interesting collection of arms – or I could say, I picked them up and moved them out of the way while dusting, but the sad truth is they've been lingering in my hall for looong, and I don't really know where to put them. I don't have any equipment to hang them on my walls, and I could barely even decide which wall. But they're cool nevertheless!

I cannot remember where I bought this coat of arms – somewhere abroad for sure. Some photos might reveal where exactly, but I'm quite sure such photos would still be on paper as it certainly dates back to 2005 or earlier, and I didn't have a digital camera back then. Too bad the shaft of the polearm extends so far that I cannot even place this on some surface to lean on something!

This is the oldest of these pieces! My very first sword, or not a sword but a dragon-shaped dagger! I'm quite sure I bought it in Greece ten years ago. I can imagine what was going on in my mind when I saw it, something like "omg-RPG-dragons-OMG-Middle-Ages-IWANTTHAT-dragons!!!" And yeah, I bought it, and I almost got to be a bit embarrassed because of it on my way back. At the airport, our luggage was X-rayed, and for some reason the monitors were turned so that while I was waiting for my stuff to go through the machine, I could also see what the inspectors were watching. And they stopped the steady flow of luggage when they suddenly saw a very suspicious black object in one bag... It actually looked quite cool, since it was turned so that its nice silhouette was what they saw. The inspectors pondered over this suspicious object for quite a while, and it was quite obvious whose bag it was that caused the stop... Yet in the end, they just let it pass, not even wanting to open the bag and see it. (Naturally it was going to the hold, so it was not like I was going to stab someone in the cabin.)

I didn't buy this one myself, but my mother brought it to me from Turkey. In case some conservative souvenir  vendor was confused seeing a girl buying a dragon dagger, I can only wonder what someone else thought of a middle-aged woman purchasing this... Or then they just thought she's going to give it to her son. I consider this my pirate sword since it's the closest to a cutlass that I have!

And yes, both swords can be removed from their sheaths, yet naturally they're not particularly sharp. The very tips of the blade could do some harm, though. I gotta be careful with myself. :x

And finally, a mystery (plastic) dagger – I don't know what it is! I don't know whose it is! Somehow it has just appeared in my apartment! It's plastic indeed, with a slightly bent blade, and I think it may have been a part of something (maybe a decorative coat of arms) since it doesn't have a rear. I guess I could use it as a bookmark since it's that much smaller than the others too. But seriously – I'm sure I haven't bought it, and no one has really given it to me either. It might have belonged to my brother (or that's what I suspect) but still, a mystery!

Now if I could only figure out where to store these weapons. I wouldn't like to hide them in a box, but I don't really have any showcase for them either!

The most honest cookie jar

♫ Battlelore – Buccaneers Inn

What a lazy blogger I've been. I suppose I've tried to be less lazy in real life (with little success).

A few weeks ago a friend of mine had a housewarming party. It wasn't particularly easy to come up with something nice to give to him; one one hand we'd been hinted that something edible would be nice, but on the other hand I also wanted to give something that'd last a bit longer. And this guy has a very elegant taste when it comes to décor, so I wanted to give something that'd look like "him".

The result: I purchased a glass jar, baked some white chocolate chip cookies and designed a sketchy blotchy poison bottle label. This was pretty much a sequel to the project I showed in the previous post. I used the same sticker paper too. The nasty thing, of course, is the fact that with the home-printed label (on a matte paper) the jar can only be washed very, very carefully on the inside. However, my friend got a spare label to stick wherever he wishes. :D

The poison label was also an efficient way to imply that everyone was eating cookies baked by me at their own risk. Cannot say they wouldn't have been properly warned!

My personal alchemy lab

♫ Sabaton – The Hammer Has Fallen

There are a hundred things I could do, should do, or would do (if) and I'm not sure if I'm good at prioritizing my projects, but when I suddenly got a strong urge to make custom labels for my spice jars, I just... well, put everything else off. Okay not really, but at least I completed this project rather fast.

Or too fast. :> The final stages, i.e. printing, cutting and sticking the labels to the jars were carried out late in the evening, and the kitchen was quite dark too when I eyed the line of my new custom jars in my cupboard and happily closed the cupboard door. And now the daylight (and especially the photos) reveal the ugly truth: I cannot cut anything even if my life depended on it. Seriously, I've never been too handy with scissors, and even though most lines have been cut with a paper knife and a ruler, the results are not too good on average. But I blame it on my desk lamp which recently resigned office.

I would have wanted to create labels which seem very old and probably bear resemblance to poison bottles and such, preferably printed on a brown paper... But since my spice jars are genuine Ikea products and don't look old, antique, vintage or whatever, I decided to go for a less extreme style. As you can see, the background isn't pure white (but I've failed to cut off the extra white paper here and there!). I looked up some instructions on how to use all those spices on the internet and put a brief description in the labels simply because I need some guidance. I am not the worst cook, but experimenting with spices isn't my area of expertise. However, I also wanted to add some useless information as well, such as the Latin names and some labels even got a suggestion for medicinal uses. (And in case you understand Finnish, don't try to use those tips! :D They may be accurate (or pure superstition) but I wouldn't really try to pour parsley tea into my eyes.) I guess pirates need medicinal herbs though...

I drew more or less accurate pictures of most spices, yet spice blends got a picture of a random spice bottle and cardamom had to settle for a pastry since cardamom seeds look too strange and I've never used it for anything but baking.

And I should have taken all the photos from this angle so that you wouldn't have seen all that salt on my shelf. Oops, I've forgotten to clean it. :x Maybe one day I can replace those Ikea jars with something resembling old apothecary jars and bottles and create labels which seem more mysterious. However, I think those are better than the masking tape strips which marked the jars before. So long!

P.S: I was positively surprised to find matte sticker paper which was very affordable too. I bought a variety which hadn't been die-cut into smaller labels of a certain size because I want to be able to use it for versatile projects. However, the backing paper was a pain to remove!

P.P.S: What is your favorite spice and why? I love the scent of cinnamon, cardamom and curry. I know cinnamon isn't particularly healthy (at least not the cheap type) but if I buy vanilla ice cream, I eat it with cinnamon (doesn't happen too often though). I would like to use (mild) curry more, but I am still not too good at experimenting. Oh, and one of my favorites: lemon pepper! It goes with almost anything. :D (Not really, but I love it anyway.) I love the scent and flavor of lemons, though I don't really eat the actual fruits.

In pursuit of a perfect dress

♫ Gloryhammer – Silent Tears of Frozen Princess

Eh, oops.
I cannot give too good excuses for not updating, except for having had a rather boring life, you know. Or well, a very dear friend did get married at the beginning of March, and since I was her maid of honor, I had a lot of wedding stuff to do. I've also spent the weeks after the event editing the photos I took there.

Anyway, the wedding had a slightly historical theme and the bride and the groom's clothes were somewhat inspired by the 19th century. I didn't want to get the most modern evening dress either, so I went online-shopping looking for a perfect steampunk inspired dress.

Both the bride and I fell in love with this one, even though it's all black. But I got the bride's special permission to wear all black since she also thought the dress was adorable. :)

Sorry about the photo. I took it right after opening the parcel and didn't bother to set up a tripod. I haven't seen (and don't have) many photos of myself at the wedding, but since they all have other people as well, I don't want to publish them here.

However, getting the dress was a pain. :D To cut a long story short: I saw it on Ebay, but spend a month considering other options as well. One night I went to see the Ebay sale again and decided I'd purchase it on the following day. As I was about to do that, I noticed the size S had sold out during the night! How frustrating (though I also learnt a lesson!). I turned the internet upside down looking for it somewhere and eventually found it in a British webstore. I shopped it, but it turned out they didn't have it in stock but could order it. I asked if they could do it within a month, and they were quite certain they could. I started to wait.

A month passed, they didn't get the dress, then another week, and another. Just a few weeks until the wedding and I had no idea if I was going to get my dress. The shop kept apologizing. One day they just said they still didn't have it and asked if I wanted to keep waiting. Before I answered, I got desperate and again turned the internet upside down – and surprisingly, managed to find it restocked elsewhere! Quickly I placed an order to another British webstore and very soon, after a few hours, the order was shipped. I was happy!
I knew the next thing I had to do was canceling the first order, asking them to return my money. However, at this point I left for the gym instead and decided to do it after getting back home. But while I was gone (for a little more than an hour), I had got a shipment confirmation from the first store too! I was dumbfounded since a few hours earlier they'd said they didn't have the dress and I wouldn't have expected them to do anything before getting my answer as they knew I needed the dress by a certain day (and if I couldn't get it on time, I wouldn't want it at all). So yeah, suddenly I had two dresses on their way to me, and I could no longer cancel either one of the orders since they had been shipped. *deep sigh*

Naturally, I thought of returning one of the dresses even though it would cost me a bit more to send it back, but fortunately, the bride wanted to buy the other one. :) It turned out to be a good dress for her to wear to the hotel breakfast on the day after the wedding! Though I joked that she should have been like some brides in America and have two dresses for the wedding party already...

The wedding itself was an amazing party. So much love and fun and overall good time. It was also a pleasure to take photos there (even though damn difficult too) since the photos turned out to be filled with such warm emotions (not only between the couple, but their relatives and friends too). So long!

Preserving beauty

♫ Theocracy – Altar to the Unknown God

Although I rarely blog about cosmetics, I thought I could do so now since I've been somehow quite happy with some new products I've tried recently. It may be that they're not any better than some others, or that their actual results are such of my imagination, but anyway...

From left to right:
1. Neutrogena: Visibly clear pink grapefruit oil-free moisturiser
Since I suffer from acne, I try to rely on special products when it comes to cleansing and moisturizing my (facial) skin. Recently, I tried a new product, and I kinda liked it! Some oil-free moisturizers seem not to be enough to fight both acne and the winter which makes the surface of my skin get dry, and well, my skin does still get very dry (and oily) too, but at least this one feels nice, is creamy with a mild grapefruit scent, and well... It's probably better than some others. Yet moisturizing my skin type is a pain in the a...
However, I also bought a cleansing gel of the same product family, and I don't like it at all. It's also the worst product at removing make-up which I've encountered for a while.

2. Cutrin: Bio+ Energen serum
This product is actually targeted for those women who suffer from hair loss – however, I bought it because it was also recommended for those who are trying to grow hair. I think my hair loss is normal, but I'm really trying to make it grow, grow, grow..! Thus, I'm applying this to my scalp after I've washed my hair. I don't know for sure yet whether it'll really boost my hair growth, but it gives a really nice refreshing sensation to the scalp!

3. Virgin coconut oil
Straight off the shelf of your local grocery store! So yeah, it's basically... food. I've never been playing with groceries as beauty products before, but I read so many good user experiences with coconut oil that I just wanted to try it. People use it for various things: some moisturize their skin with it, some remove their make-up with it, others use it for hair treatment, and some even use it as a deodorant. Personally, I've noticed that it's quite good at removing eye make-up – better than many commercial products I've used. The main purpose for it, however, is to treat my hair. I apply some to my hair an hour or two before I'm going to shower, wear it like a hair treatment mask and then wash it away. And it makes hair feel nice and soft. I even read that it's good at deep-cleansing hair, and I might even have to say that it seems to be true. :0 And some people leave it in their hair when they go to sleep and wash it away in the morning. I haven't tried that yet, but well, why not some day.

4. Freeman: Facial clay mask mint & lemon
It's been a while since I've been regularly using facial masks, and I wanted to try something potentially good for my difficult skin type. I cannot say any product could save me from my acne (my problem cannot really be solved on the outside), but at least it feels good and refreshing. This product line has so many different options that I may want to try another one too, they probably have something for every skin type. And these are not even expensive.

Painting it brown

♫ Dreamtale – The Awakening

A while ago I rummaged through my wardrobe, picking out clothes I hadn't worn lately and probably wouldn't in the future either. It hadn't actually been so long since the last time I had done the same, so I didn't find so many unnecessary pieces this time.

While some clothes ended up in the "get rid of these NOW" pile immediately, there were some pieces with different flaws which I still wanted to save one way or another. This ex-black-and-white striped shirt was one of them. As much as I would like to wear white, or black-and-white, I'm not good at keeping white as white as it should. It's a bit embarrassing to admit this because I've had to study housekeeping and such (cleaning, laundry and that kind of stuff too, on a professional level) so much in the past that washing clothes should be a piece of cake to me. :x This shirt, for example, had turned yellowish in a very dirty way merely by staying in my closet, unused for a few years.

Thus, I decided to try to dye it – a procedure I had already used to save a b'n'w striped T-shirt some years ago. I tried to turn it red and black, but it turned out pink instead. The hue wasn't too bad – at that time, when I was more into pink. This time I really had trouble deciding on the color though! I haven't felt comfortable wearing red or pink lately to contrast my mostly black wardrobe (I've even worn my pink eyeshadow quite a little lately! But it's not the problem, only such clothes are) and I didn't want to try those colors on the shirt. I'm not much into wearing orange, yellow, green or purple, even though I like every color in some context. Then I thought of blue, ocean blue. I turned the city upside down hunting for such textile dye. Eventually I found some, but the selection in the store was quite wide and I began to reconsider. I thought of all things which have inspired me lately, and dressing up in neutral tones, or muted tones, has been the thing. I thought of pirates and steampunk and such, and then picked up terracotta brown instead.

I didn't use all the dye because it would have been enough to dye 600g of fabric and the shirt only weighed 200g, and I was afraid of the result being too unpredictable. But I'm not even sure what I really wanted of it. This is how it turned out:

I figured I would try to redye it gray if I didn't like the outcome, but I'm not sure yet. I'm not disappointed, I have to wear it a bit to see if it was a good choice or not. What do you think, is the terracotta brown hue ugly or maybe nice and warm?

Harnessing my superpowers

♫ Guardians of Time – Altered in Red

At the end of last year, I thought I could give myself sort of a Christmas present and since I had managed to find something after a long search, I placed an order online and began to wait with excitement...

I thought I had finally found a steampunk-style harness in a nice color, in my size and at a reasonable price. And knowing that new customs regulations would come into effect at the beginning of 2013 (which would result in online shoppers having to pay VAT in Finland more often), I didn't hesitate to buy the harness.

And things didn't go quite as planned. The harness was shipped particularly fast (=in 15 minutes!) in 2012 but unfortunately enough, it arrived in 2013 and got stuck at customs, and I had to pay the VAT. Damn. And then, even though the product turned out to be otherwise as described, it was more or less too "big" for me. Okay, not exactly loose, but certainly not very snug like it probably should be. I guess I can still wear it, maybe with some thicker fabric underneath...

The angle certainly flatters my arm!

The color is a nice grey – I guess it might be the best for me since most of my clothes are black, and a black harness wouldn't stand out well enough. I had thought about brown, but hesitated since I don't have any brown leather / suede / faux leather / faux suede items. (The harness is made of faux suede.) The lovely details include antique keys and some gears hanging on silver chains.

I hope I can put it into good use although it doesn't quite fit so perfectly. :x It's too cute to be left to gather dust in my wardrobe.