Hello, lovelies! How was your Thanksgiving? I hope that it was absolutely wonderful. My day was filled with watching the parade, spending time with family, stuffing myself with cream cheese pie, and screaming over games of Jenga. In other words, it was pretty perfect. 

Once more, I've decided that it's time to throw it back to my beauty blogger roots. Beauty blogging seriously is one of my favorite things to do, and I really want to come back to it more often. I just never seem to have the time to put together an outfit that I like, and then I end up feeling bad for having to drag my sister outside and forcing her to take photos of me.

Thus, it never happens.

But on Thanksgiving, we experienced a true holiday miracle. Outfit photos were taken.

And so here we are.

I apologize in advance for the amount of photos I'm about to spam you with. Honestly, I'm low on posting material, so you're having to resort to seeing photos of my face. I didn't think to take photos just of my outfit, so you're stuck with me here. Again, I apologize for that. 

I would be lying if I said I wasn't trying not to laugh the entire time my sister took these photos.

#selfiefortheblog #I'msorry

"Act like you know what you're doing"

The attempt not to laugh failed

"Do your little smirk thing!"

Sit on the ground. Be one with nature.

What's that? A crayon? A ghost? A piece of paper? Nope, I'm just pale.

Some of this stuff I bought a while back, so I'm sorry if I can't link the exact item!

Beanie: JC Penney's

Top: Target (similar)

Jeans: Target

Boots: TJ Maxx

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!! A N N O U N C E M E N T !!

BEFORE YOU GO- My wonderful-super-fantastic-coolness-remarkable friend Morning over at Ups and Downs is putting together a blogger yearbook, and it's going to be THE COOLEST THING EVER!!! We want to involve AS MANY BLOGGERS AS POSSIBLE, so click HERE to learn more!!!!

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What's your current favorite outfit? What did you wear on Thanksgiving? Any autumn style trends you've really been loving? LET'S CHAT!! ♥

My Annual Autumn Baking Fail

HELLO MY LOVELIES!

How have you been? I've been wanting to post for days now, but I haven't had a chance. My college teachers decided that they were going to assign everything at once, so I've been somewhat dying. I've also ended up in this major blogging rut- I can't come up with anything to post for some reason. I feel like all I ever do on here is ramble, and I know that has to get boring. So if you know of any particular posts you'd like to see, let me know!

Nothing too interesting has been going on around here. Just lots and lots of school, meetings, flu shots, and novel work. I'm slowly but surely getting past it all, though, which is making me happy! As long as I survive the PSAT next week, life will be good.

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So now that that's done, let's get down to business. Circle up, everybody. It's storytime.

Now, we've been over this many times before.

Baking and I do not get along. At all.

A couple of years ago, I shared my first fail on the blog. It wasn't absolutely horrible, but let's just say it was definitely a mess. I don't know what it is about autumn, but I always get an urge to bake. I blame Pinterest- there are so many cute desserts, that I'm naive enough to say, "Why not? Let's try to bake!"

I need to learn that this is not a wise decision to make.

This past weekend, life actually calmed down a bit. I had most of my schoolwork under control, and honestly I was just so tired that I didn't feel like blogging. Creativity was at a definite low. But my sisters and I had been talking about making some Halloween-themed desserts, so we decided to give it a try. After some in-depth Pinterest scrolling, we landed on a recipe that looked easy enough. Famous last words.

Simple, right? Make some brownie mix, make some cake mix, pour them in a cupcake liner, pipe on some frosting and bam, you have an awesome cupcake.

Or so we thought.

It started off pretty well. I worked on the brownie mix while my sisters worked on the cake mix. They added some orange food dye to make it nice and festive, and everything was great. I poured the brownie mix into the bottom of a cupcake liner, and then we poured the cake mix on top. It's not a hard recipe, so there shouldn't have been any problems.

(We had some extra cake batter so we decided to make some little heart cakes)

We put the cupcakes into the oven and baked them at the temperature that the recipe called for. When we pulled them out, they looked great. They had puffed up and looked really pretty- I loved the orange color! It was so autumnal and festive. We let the cupcakes cool, and once they were ready, we piped on the frosting. Decorating cupcakes is always so much fun- my sisters and I always tend to go crazy with the sprinkles!!

(Don't judge the icing, some of them are kind of messy haha. Although I'm quite proud of the one next to the bag of chocolate chips tbh.)

So everything seemed to be great. The cupcakes were beautiful. They smelled fantastic. We were all super excited to try them!

My mom cuts one open, because obviously we have to look to see how pretty the layers are. Upon cutting it, she noticed something odd.

"Guys...I don't think the brownie cooked."

We were all super confused. We baked them at the right temperature for the right time. What could have gone wrong? But sure enough, every. single. brownie. was too gooey and raw.

Like, what the heck?????

We still can't figure out what happened. Personally, I blame it on my baking curse. I'm pretty sure that I can mess up every single recipe, no matter how easy it is. Who knows? Whatever the reason, I have to say, I was pretty disappointed that the delicious brownie turned out not to be edible. -_- That should be illegal.

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Thus ends the sad story of my Saturday night. I'm still kind of bitter, really. I mean, a brownie/cupcake hybrid- what could be better??? I'll have to try and make them again sometime. Maybe bake them longer? I don't know. It's worth an experiment!

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So tell me- don't you agree that this is TRAGIC?? Can YOU bake?

Weekly Wrap-Up

Hello, lovely people! How has your week been? Mine has been busy, but it's been a good week. Lots of school, lots of rehearsal, but lots of fun. Isn't it crazy that October is almost over? The months seem to go by faster and faster lately.

Today is really a lovely day, weather-wise. The temperature is absolutely perfect, not cold or hot, and it's really cloudy. The leaves are changing and all of the trees are orange and yellow. I'm not a huge nature person, but I've got to admit, it's gorgeous out. We went on a walk with a friend today, and I took a ton of pictures. I also somehow ended up accidentally taking a couple of videos while my phone was in my pocket, one of which is just a three-second snippet where you can hear me say, "I am literally obsessed with the Sound of Music," before it cuts off again. Haha, if one video sums up my existence, it would have to be that.

I spent three hours doing the Charleston yesterday, and I'm definitely feeling it today. I'm so sore! If anyone ever says that dance isn't a workout, please send them to me. I'd love to bring them to one of my rehearsals... DANCE IS A SPORT, GUYS!!!

I'm trying to think if I have any other interesting snippets to share with you all, but I'm coming up a bit blank. My life isn't all that interesting, I suppose. I'm going to a murder mystery party tonight though, so I'm excited for that! Those are the best. : )

Made Me Smile:

MY BRACES ARE OFFICIALLY OFF!!!!!!!!! That's right guys, I'm officially free of my metal teeth-cages. FIVE YEARS LATER. Agh I'm so happy about this!! I don't think that I stopped smiling/jumping up and down all day. My family kept commenting that I'm never that hyper! I went to get my flu shot that day too, and I was still in an ecstatic mood. It's kind of hilarious when not even needles can dampen my happiness.

My friend gave me this ring that wraps around your finger and looks like a cat, and it's literally the best thing in the entire world. No kidding. It's perfect.

Playing games with friends outside in the pitch-black darkness.

Taking the craziest selfies ever with some of the craziest, best people ever.

Re-reading Harry Potter.

Long walks around the lake.

Ugh:

Is it seriously almost Halloween? That is absolutely insane I swear October has flown by. 

I've been crazy busy lately and school is kind of drowning me. I WILL GET AHEAD AGAIN, I SWEAR.

I'm really frustrated because I feel like I'm not blogging enough and I really need to get better about that. I've been posting twice a week but I really want to post more than that. I'll work on it!!!

Cold weather. It seems like I'm cold constantly, which isn't exactly my favorite thing. 

Loving:

The Bonnie and Clyde soundtrack. I'm literally obsessed with it oh my gosh.

Hand-lettering. I hadn't done it in much for a couple of weeks but I've been working on it again, and I really love it. 

LOOK AT THESE DOUGHNUTS! I really talk about doughnuts too much...

My army green jacket from T.J. Maxx. It's super cute and it's also really warm, so it's kind of perfect.

Pinning:

I seriously love these watches so much, they're so cool!

Anastasia and Dimitri are one of my favorite fictional couples gah I love them so much.

This outfit is impeccable..

This little bird is adorable!

I will forever love ballet..

I actually lettered this the other day and it didn't turn out half bad, I was happy.

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How was your week?

Happy October!

October.

Wow.

First off, sorry that this post is a day late. I had to wish Julie a happy birthday!!!!

While September is a bit of a transition month, October is a full-blown "Hey it's Autumn again!" month. Even though I'm sad that summer is over, I'm trying my hardest to enjoy the fact that it's fall. The way I'm looking at it, fall is here whether I like it or not, so I might as well get festive and enjoy it! *Deep breath in* Okay. I can do this.

SO, since I'm not a huge fall person myself, I need some help. What are some fall blog post ideas that you'd like to see? I'd love some suggestions!

I'm also looking for some good fall crafts, so any ideas would be appreciated! I want to make some wooden signs, but I'm not sure what else. I'll definitely be perusing Pinterest for some ideas!

One thing that I always love about October is Halloween. It's such a great holiday, and the preparations for it are so much fun- we already have our decorations up! I love the costumes, and the pumpkins, and of course- the candy!!! Ahh. I have a major sweet tooth, so any holiday that celebrates sweets is a great holiday, in my opinion! I'm going to try to do some Halloween-themed baking, so that should be fun.

We're still enjoying some warm weather here in the South, which I'm loving. Hopefully it stays this way! I think it's cooling down a bit this week, but it's still not getting cold. I'm thrilled! That's always nice. If you ask me, the weather is always best when it's above sixty-five degrees.

I remember that when I wrote my Happy September post, I was super excited about getting my braces off. *Lucky* me, I still have my top braces. They're supposed to come off this month though, which is good. I WANT MY TEETH BACK!!! (It feels so weird not having braces on the bottom. Like, I have teeth now? What?!)

School's picking up, and things are getting busier and busier. Homework has been a bit crazy, and when you add in rehearsals, life gets hectic. I've been getting kind of slack about using my planner, which hasn't helped. That's my resolution for the month- to use my planner more!!

I also really want to do more baking this month. On top of Halloween baking, I love just finding great recipes, and having yummy things to eat for days afterwards. Does anyone have some good recipes that I can try?

I'm excited for this month- hopefully it's a good one!

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What do you like about October?

Weekly Wrap-Up

Hello, lovelies! How are you all? Personally, I just had a bit of a freak out moment because I realized that it's September 26th.

That's really not okay.

October is on Thursday.

Urg. Didn't I just write up my Happy September post a week ago? Okay, okay. I'm not going to go into my "blah blah blah time is going so fast blah blah" rant that I do like, constantly. I promise. Ugh who am I kidding I just did.

This past week has been kind of crazy. Between classes, and school, and appointments, things have been pretty busy. I'm glad that the weekend's finally here, I finally get a bit of a break! I'm planning on trying to get my life together a bit this weekend, do some rehearsing, cleaning, catching up on school, etc. I WILL FORCE MYSELF TO BE PRODUCTIVE. Let's be honest I'll probably just get distracted 10000 times.

Made Me Smile:

Spending an afternoon baking cookies, and then watching a Hallmark movie that night. Sometimes, you're so burnt out from school that it just needs to happen.

I finally picked my audition pieces! I have an audition for a musical on Monday....agh. I suppose I should file that part under 'Ugh'.. Auditions are scary, guys.

Earlier this week, it was "Pirate Day" at Krispy Kreme! Some of my older readers may remember my post on it last year, and I went again this year! The boxes were seriously adorable. 

Ugh:

Gigantic history tests. I swear, I'm going to fail...

It's fall. It's o.f.f.i.c.i.a.l.l.y. fall. I will be positive about this!! I will!! I promise!! The fact that this is under Ugh shows just how positive I am.

Loving:

Chocolate peanut butter spread. It's seriously the most amazing stuff in the world.

Working on my novel. It's so much fun!! I'm doing a ton of character development right now, and I'm getting a bit obsessed with it. I'm dying to start actually writing!

Dancing With The Stars! As y'all can tell from my posts, I love that show so much. I'm so glad that it's back!

Pinning:

Oh my gosh, I can't stop laughing...

This is such a cute and comfy outfit!!

I love this hairstyle so much! I wish that my hair was thicker so that I could pull this off. I tried it the other day, and it didn't look too bad. I'll just have to practice!

I love this collage so much..

^So true. Lately I've been super obsessed with hand-lettering, and Pinterest has some fabulous tutorials!

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How was your week?

Happy November!!!

Wow! I can't believe that it's already November! I'm kind of sad to see October go, to be honest. I love all of the Halloween preparations in October, from the costumes to the food to the crafts. It's all just so much fun. My Halloween yesterday was super fun, with dressing up, and waaaay too much sugar! ;) I ended up going as Cruella DeVil.

Do you like it? I changed it a bit from the fifteen minute version that I posted yesterday, and I'm really happy with how it turned out. I have to say though, there was one part of yesterday that wasn't quite so fun.
I was betrayed.
Yep, I was completely and utterly betrayed by some of my closest friends yesterday. So that hurt. I'm sure all girls reading this blog know exactly how that felt. I thought that we were friends, guys. We spent so much time together. Did that mean nothing to you? You deserve to be punished.

By this point, reader, you're probably laughing at me. But booties, I am hurt. After wearing you for the last month, you betrayed me. My feet now have SIX painful blisters from you, one of which was to the point of bleeding. So yeah. That was fun.
Anyway, I swear, I AM sane. Somewhat. ;) So, back to November!!!!!!
I've got a bunch of fun posts lined up for November, and I'm really excited about them. I am determined to become a good blogger this month. I'm trying really hard to get my posts lined up IN ADVANCE, so I'm not scrambling around trying to put something together for you lovely ladies. :)
Like I said back in my first October post, this isn't exactly my favorite month. I just can't quite get into fall as much as I can, say, July. BUT, there is one thing that November has in its favor.
HOLIDAYS!!!!!!!
I admit it. I was already singing Christmas carols today. "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!!" We've had a really cold day where I live today, and I'm in a very Christmas-y mood. The air is brisk, and it just smells like the holiday season outside. I'm starting to work on Christmas presents for my friends and family, and brainstorming Thanksgiving recipes. What can I say? I love the holidays!
Gosh, I'm rambling today. Sorry about that, girls. So anyway, all this to say, Welcome, November!!! Stay tuned for some wonderful November posts!! :)

~Grace Anne

Cats + Pumpkins = Amazingness!

Oh my goodness. It's a jack-o-lantern. And it's a cat. All at once. If this isn't fall amazingness, I don't know what is! If you don't know me, (in which case, welcome! Nice to meet ya!) then you should know something. I absolutely ADORE cats. Like, to a point where it's almost obsessive. I only have one cat, but I have the feeling I'll end up alone, with my cats.... Just kidding. Kind of. ;)

Anyways, so, needless to say, I love this jack-o-lantern. I mean, Halloween and cats-what could be better? :) ^.,.^

Decorating

Did some Halloween decorating this afternoon! Gotta love pumpkins! :) 

Happy October!! <3

Happy October!!!! Gosh, I can't believe that it's already October...kind of scary, to be honest. Before we know it, it will be Thanksgiving, and then Christmas! Agh, let's not think about that. Let's think about October!

First off, I just want to apologize. Frankly, I haven't been a very good blogger lately. I've barely been posting lately, and I'm sorry. I've been either crunched for time or lacking ideas. Still, this blog is important to me, and I'm hoping to do a better job with it this month.

Now that I have that off my chest, back to October! Now, fall honestly isn't my favorite time of year; I tend to enjoy spring and summer a bit more, however, I'm trying to have a positive outlook on the month. I do have to say, October does have some pretty good aspects. Pretty soon, sweater weather will be starting up, and who doesn't love an adorable sweater?? It's starting to get a bit chillier here in the south, with just a bit of a nip in the air that makes you think of crunching leaves and evenings by the fire. The leaves have even begun to change! One of the trees in our yard is beginning to take on its orange tint, a sure sign that fall is upon us.

I have to say, October does have one major thing going for it- Halloween!! I don't know about you, but I adore Halloween. I have a severe sweet tooth, so the thought of free candy is extremely appealing to me. (Yes, I still trick-or-treat. Am I too old for it? Probably. Do I care? Nope!) Plus, I really love dressing up. It's so much fun! I suppose it comes from my obsession with all things theatre, but I think that it's a ton of fun to create a costume, do the hair and makeup, and then get to show it off. So Halloween holds a lot of appeal to me. :)

I'm beginning to plan out some of my blog posts for the month as well. *Sigh* How I wish I was one of those bloggers who has her posts planned out months in advance, just waiting to be posted. Alas, I'm just not that organized. I'm thinking of doing a bunch of Halloween posts for you all, with costumes and recipes. What do you think?

Well, thank you all for reading! I hope that your October is absolutely fabulous!!! :) <3

~Grace Anne