-
Recent Posts
Recent Comments
Archives
Categories
Meta
Category Archives: Lifestyle
Let me start by saying holy crap. This was my first time at any sort of music festival and I’m glad Lolla was my first. If you don’t know about Lollapalooza, it’s a huge music festival occupying Chicago’s Grant Park. It is four days long and there are 100 plus acts. I attended Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I also had the privilege of backstage/ VIP tickets which made the experience even more amazing.
On the first day, we went around 6 pm to check it out. We saw Future perform as well as Major Lazer later in the day. During Future’s performance, he brought out Chance the Rapper and I got so excited. There were SO MANY people it was insane, but the atmosphere of the whole place was amazing. When you stepped through the gate it felt like a whole other world. You completely forget you are in the heart of Chicago.
The next day, Saturday, we went around the same time and saw Vic Mensa perform. I hadn’t ever really heard his music, but It was really good. He’s very socially conscious and his lyrics actually mean something unlike a lot of the rap I have heard, so I appreciated that. Along with that he is super energetic and had dancers and the crowd was so energetic.
The last day, Sunday, we went earlier around 3. I was extremely excited for this day because two of my all time favorite artists were performing- Halsey and Flume. We made our way to the Samsung stage which hosted most of the headlining acts. Halsey came on first and I was pretty close to the front (refer to the picture). It was my first time seeing her perform live and she was breathtaking. I have been a Halsey fan for the longest time and to see her there in that atmosphere was the best experience I could’ve had. She sounds beautiful live and she looked great too. After Halsey came Flume which I was just as excited for. We moved up to a grassy area where we had a much better view of the stage and screens, and t was a lot less crowded and more chill. He also did such a great job. The crowd was super enthusiastic and energetic throughout his set. Watching the crowd from afar was incredible- with every beat drop every arm and head would just bounce in sync (keep in mind there were probably 100,000 plus people in this crowd).
All in all this was one of the most memorable and incredible experiences I’ve ever had. If you are wondering whether or not it’s worth the money- IT IS!!! I think any music festival is. If you even have more local festivals, go! They are so much fun with friends and the experience is great.
A few tips- try not to carry too much, you don’t want to be weighed down. Make sure you don’t loose anything- it’s nearly impossible to get it back. Also, make sure to keep your phone/ valuables close to you and always check to make sure you still have them- people WILL steal anything they can get their hands on. Bring cash! It makes stuff a lot quicker and easier for you. If you want merchandise make sure to get it the first day- most of it sells out by the third/ fourth day. Most of all, don’t go alone!! It’s SO much more fun with friends.
If you want to see videos, go check out my youtube channel, CorrinesTV! I put up a vlog with all my videos of the concerts.
xoxo
Something I’m constantly on the look out for is new music. I listen to music nearly 24/7 and hearing the same things over and over get boring, and I’d assume you feel the same. Here’s a list of some new favorites of mine that I’ve put into a playlist perfect for summer.
- Froot – Marina and the Diamonds
- No. 1 Party Anthem- Arctic Monkeys
- The Run and Go – Twenty One Pilots
- Runaway – Ed Sheeran
- Jackie and Wilson- Hozier
- Mind Over Matter- Young the Giant
- Rise- Selena Gomez
- How I Want Ya- Hudson Thames
- Feels Like We Only Go Backwards- Tame Impala
- Teenage Dirtbag- Wheatus
- Wild- Troye Sivan
- Kanye- The Chainsmokers
- Left Hand Free- alt-j
- Colours- Grouplove
- Modern Jesus- Portugal. The Man
- Under The Bridge- Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Burn the Pages- Sia
- Waves- Kanye West
- Semi-Automatic- Twenty One Pilots
- No Problem- Chance The Rapper
- sHe- Zayn
- Girls- Beastie Boys
- Sad Boy- G-Eazy
- Treat You Better- Shawn Mendes
- Say It (feat. Tove Lo)- Flume
What’s on your summer playlist?
xoxo
School stress. Work stress. Family stress. Whatever it may be we are all constantly surrounded by it. It creates such negative energy and nobody needs that in their lives. Currently I’m stressed about AP tests, finals, getting a job- all the typical teenage stresses. We could all use a little relaxing, so here are some of my favorite things to do to help me relax.
Lay in bed and breath. I like to just sit and do some breathing excersizes such as taking ten deep breaths. Something as simple as this and just thinking about all the things you have to be grateful for can lift your mood as well as taking away a ton of stress.
Get outside. If you have a favorite place outdoors go there. Go for a walk. Go on a run. Any of these will help you clear your mind and boost your endorphins which in turn reduces stress hormones! My favorite thing to do, especially as it gets warmer, is sitting out on my balcony during sunset with a cup of coffee- it’s amazing how peaceful it is.
Draw. Something really popular is coloring books (funny). I see them everywhere! Pick up one of these and a pack of colored pencils, sit at your desk, play some soft music, and just color. Or draw, whatever floats your boat. You focus more on what your drawing rather than that essay that’s due in three hours and although I don’t recommend procrastination, this method is very de-stressing.
Step away from the electronics. Extended computer use has been linked to severe stress and even depression, shown in a study done by the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. No one wants this! Turn it off and put it away. This applies to your phone too! Nowadays people are so dependant upon their smartphones- they’re like a security blanket for us. Now yes I am guilty of this, BUT it’s so nice to just turn it off and put your energy into other things. Also, talking on the phone raises your blood pressure!
Treat Yo’ Self! Stress eating is bad, but when done in moderation it’s quite helpful. A chocolate bar or a scoop of icecream wont hurt.
Write it out. When you are stressed or sad or anything writing out your feelings and experiences helps so much. It’s like venting, but you won’t get crappy advice from the friend who could care less. Your notebook listens and it also helps you sort out and make sense of your feelings. Knowing where these feelings come from help you resolve them.
Surround yourself. Call up your best friend, boyfriend, girlfriend, or even your mom or dad. Surrounding yourself with the people who love you and people you love takes your mind off of whatever was stressing you out. Be with people who make you laugh as laughter is the best medicine.
Create. Remember that DIY you wanted to try three months ago? Now’s the time my friend! As aforementioned, focusing on creating something can really take your mind off of whatever your feeling and once you are finished, you will be proud of whatever you made. Show it off! Share it with your friends! Get that recognition you deserve! you’ll feel accomplished and happy you made something super cool.
Save these methods and try at least one of them whenever your stressed or sad. I pinky promise one of these is bound to help you out. What do you do when you are stressed? Share it in a comment!
Thanks for reading ♡
xoxo
Recently I have tried my absolute best to not buy anything tested on animals whether this be a makeup brand, cleaning product brand, hair care brand etc. I had an english project that required research in the animal rights field and through this research I saw all of the terrible things these lab animals go through against their will. I suggest you take a look at some of the statistics and photos of these lab animals and hopefully you too will stop supporting this crime against animals.
You might be wondering, “How else are we supposed to know if something is safe for our use or consumption?”. Well, through more research I found other ways to test the safety of a product. One way that has proved successful is testing products on artificial human cells and skin created in state-of-the-art science labs (also known as In-Vitro testing). Through this type of testing it has made disease research, toxicity testing, testing the safety of chemicals in cosmetics, etc. all much easier and has been less expensive and more humane than using an animal as a test subject.
Another method that has been proven more efficient is research with human volunteers. The method of “microdosing” is used where an extremely small amount of a certain drug is administered to the volunteer and the body is monitored to see how the drug reacts through imaging. This has helped eliminate certain drugs without the use of any animals.
Drugs can be tested through the use of computer programs that have been created recenlty to predict how the body will react to these drugs. Certain computer programs can also provide models and simulations.
There are so many benefits to non-animal testing besides the obvious. First off, animal tests are not always effective- something that may not harm the animal can easily harm a human or even be deadly. Second, non-animal tests are more cost efficient. Lastly, cruelty-free products are not only better for the sake of animals, but for the sake of the earth too- the process in creating something cruelty-free creates less waste for the earth and also is usually more organic and contains less chemicals.
So, saying all this I have put together a list of a few brands that are 100 percent cruelty free. There are plenty of other lists out there that go into much more detail about the specifics of these brands and include more brands, but these are the most common brands I see and use daily.
Cosmetics
- Anastasia Beverly Hills
- The Balm Cosmetics
- BellaPierre
- Benefit Cosmetics
- Beauty Blender (Only sponges and cleansers)
- BH cosmetics
- Bite Beauty
- The Body Shop
- Burt’s Bees (owned by clorox who is not cruelty-free)
- Carmex
- Charlotte Tilbury
- ColourPop Cosmetics
- Dermalogica
- Eco Tools
- ELF cosmetics
- First Aid Beauty
- Hard Candy
- Illamasqua
- Inglot
- Jordana
- Josie Maran Cosmetics
- Jane Cosmetics
- Kat Von D
- Kylie Cosmetics
- Lime Crime
- Lush
- Makeup Geek
- Milani
- NARS
- NYX Cosmetics
- Ofra Cosmetics
- Pacifica
- Physician’s Formula
- Pixi
- Pure+Simple
- Sigma
- Soap & Glory
- Softlips
- Sonia Kashuk
- Sugarpill Cosmetics
- Too Faced
- Urban Decay
- Ulta Collection (store brand)
- Wet n Wild
- Yes to (Carrots, Cucumbers, Grapes…)
Hair Care
- Dry Bar
- John Masters Organics
- Kevin Murphy
- Manic Panic
- Moroccanoil
- Oribe
- Paul Mitchell
- Wen
Nails
- Butter London
- Deborah Lippmann
- China Glaze
- Julep
- Zoya
House Hold Products
- Better Life
- Biokleen
- Clean Via
- Dropps
- Earth Friendly Products
- Martha Stewart Clean
- Method Products
- Mountain Green
- Mrs. Myers Clean Day
- Trader Joe’s Company
- Ecostore
So next time you are out shopping refer back to this list, or just google it. But please, try to the best of your abilities to go cruelty-free (:
xoxo
Sources:
http://www.neavs.org/alternatives/in-testing
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/338051515760523991/
This is something I have struggled with for a long time. I must say, I have improved the past three years, since my move to California, but there’s still a ways to go. I accomplished this level of confidence through the people I surrounded myself with- positive, never putting each other down. That’s the key to confidence, as well as happiness. Saying those things, confidence also has to come from within. I heard a quote once, “Confidence is not walking into a room and putting others down to make myself feel better, it is about walking into a room with my head high, not caring what others think.” or something along the lines of that. I go by this quote daily. Confidence can be mistaken for arrogance a lot, which is explained in the first part of the quote. We need to realize the true meaning of confidence, before you can actually understand how to attain it. I was scrolling through tumblr and came upon this gem:
“How to Fake Confidence”
1. Hold your head high, and look others in the eye
2. Smile
3. Stop apologizing
4. Relax and be quick to laugh at yourself (but not at others!)
5. Dress in a way that indicates you have self worth
6. Use good manners (like saying please and thank you) as this is actually
a mark of self respect
7. Expect other people to believe in you, and to see and appreciate your
good qualities.
8. Before you know it, it’s no longer fake
This post seriously helped me understand what confidence was and how to obtain it, and I hope it will help you as well.
xoxo
Reading is one of the most relaxing activities while also a learning experience. Books have taught me some of the most important lessons yet. I have read tons and tons of books in the past few years, and I wanted to share with you some of my favorites so you can enjoy them as well.
- Boy Meets Boy- David Levithan
- The Fifth Wave (series)- Rick Yancey
- I’ll Give You The Sun- Jandy Nelson
- Everything Everything- Nicola Yoon
- The Glass Castle- Jeanette Walls
- Fangirl- Rainbow Rowell
- All The Bright Places- Jennifer Niven
- Night- Elie Wiesel
- Lauren Conrad Beauty (self help type of book)
Now a lot of these are young adult/romances, but if you have some free time they are most definitely worth the read. I also have a few books and series that I want to read and have heard great things about, so I’ll share those too.
- The Heart Goes Last- Margaret Atwood
- The Sweet Trilogy- Wendy Higgins
- In the Woods- Tana French
- The Passage- Justin Cronin
- Into the Wild- Jon Krakauer
- Girl, Interrupted- Susanna Kaysen
- Letter to My Daughter- Maya Angelou
Happy reading.
xoxo
Welcome to my site. Here I’ll be talking about everything from beauty tips to relaxation methods to lists of my favorite books. Stay tuned. (Visit the “About Me” page to have a look into who I am.)
xoxo