Archive for August 2011

1 The sunset at Kemah Boardwalk was lovely.

2 Desserts at home in the evening.

3 Little cousin loves hiding; she loves hiding her toys too!

4 Of course I can't be normal.

5 A scarf given to me by my cousins ~ thank you!

5 Our uncle works in NASA and got us these rad RIP shirts.

6 Driving to the Boardwalk on the last night.

7 It was livelier than I expected and much cleaner than our Boardwalk!

8 Super sleepy fish was nice to hang out with.

9 These wicked Piranha freaked me out a bit; I don't like the teeth.

I normally don't do full text posts but...

You're not going to believe the weekend I've had. Saturday morning I woke up early (too early) for my flight home. It was around 4 a.m. when we started driving. I said my goodbyes and left my little cousins a homemade card. We got to the airport at around 7 a.m. and boarded immediately. The flight to Ohio was normal; nothing eventful happened. When we got to Ohio we had to wait at the airport for 3 hours for our next flight home. After that time passed, the flight was delayed another hour...then another...then cancelled. Then all the flights to the Northeast were canceled. Apparently the weather was too crappy to fly in. I can respect that. 

What bugs me is that they wouldn't tell us to just get a hotel or go to sleep. They just kept saying, "We'll get you boarded real soon!" Really? You mean 6 hours later? It was pretty miserable. We changed our flight so we landed at JFK Airport. When we got there, it was crazy crowded. There's more to it but I'll just say I got home this afternoon, slept until 5 a.m. this morning, and now I need to pack all my things so I can move back to University. I can't wait till I have a moment to breathe. Normal posting will probably resume in a few days. I will post the giveaway winner then as well. Thank you to everyone that entered! 

My apologies (and love!) to you all. 

Clearly, I dislike hot weather.

While Texas has been an incredibly eye opening experience, I miss the North. It's so absurdly hot down here (for me, anyway) and I can't wait to get back to the endless sea of deciduous forest and recurring breezes. This outfit is from earlier in the summer; a dress up session of epic proportions.

Ever since Christopher Kane came out with his galaxy print collection in 2010 I've been coveting his astronomical pieces. I was hoping for a tailored galaxy print dress like the one in his collection or a maxi dress. And, I just found the most perfect dress....but it's one of a kind and sold out. 

I don't carry purses. In fact, I think I only own two satchels and one clutch (for fancy huh? events) This is my everyday satchel. If I'm awesome enough with my pockets, sometimes I don't even need to carry it. 

Here we see my trusty Blackberry, Rings, Maybelline Liquid Foundation + Mineral Pressed Powder, No 7 Mascara, Eyeliner (?), Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer, Various Societal Cards (I love Panera), 1 Pen. 

Most days, I can get by with just these things. My skin is never dry so I don't need lotion and I'm not too big of a klutz so I don't carry bandages. Occasionally I'll also bring hair pins. 

First, I'm blogging from Texas! We landed here this morning and I was exhausted. After hanging out with the family a bit, I took the most motionless nap of my life. And, if you're wondering, it's a bazillion degrees here.

Second, I wanted to share some neat dishes with you. The best thing about going home is access to ingredients beyond noodles and peanut butter...you know, my daily meals. This first dish is a variation on rice pudding. It's called M'halbi ( محلبي ) and I prefer eating it chilled. You can make it with milk only (which will yield a jello-like texture) or you can include rice, which I prefer. Add in nuts and coconut shavings and serve.  

This second dish is called Tabbouleh ( تبولة‎ ) and it is a Syrian/Lebanese dish. I'm technically part Syrian but I never really mention it because it's difficult to explain. Anyway, this is basically a salad with a parsley base, tomatoes, bulgur, lemon juice, olive oil, and sometimes mint. It's so refreshing during the summer.

Hopefully we'll see some rain here soon. I'm not used to this much heat... [Explodes]

Alainn Bella has given me the opportunity to select an item from their boutique to giveaway on my blog. I was going to select an item of clothing but I figured a clutch would be more universal and blend into the winner's wardrobe easily. Without further wait, here is the clutch you could win: 

This clutch is 100% vegan leather and comes with a detachable strap, which I love. Here are the rules...

1. Visit Alainn Bella and select your favorite item.
2. Leave a comment with that item and your email address.

3. Follow Castle Fashion on Bloglovin and like this post. 

1. Follow Castle Fashion on GFC (Link)

2. Like Castle Fashion on Facebook (Link)

3. Like Alainn Bella on Facebook (Link)

Giveaway ends Saturday, August 20, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. (EST) Leave extra entries in separate comments.

Edit: This giveaway is open to international readers!

Have you ever wanted to try every dessert on the menu? That's how I am all the time. I constantly divide my attention between so many interests. I've been interested in astronomy, animals, fashion, life drawing, manga, animation, sculpture, piano, and contemporary dance; each at some point in my college career. Let's not even get into when I was in high school. This constantly leaves me torn between commitments.

I received an invite to Rebecca Minkoff's Fall Preview tomorrow night and I desperately want to attend...but my flight is at 3 a.m. the next morning. I've been pouting about it all day. My boyfriend is tired of listening.

(F21 Frames ~ Last Seen Here, Express Button Down ~ Last Seen Here, Celebrity Pink Jeans)


For those of you that will be in attendance, please take lots of pictures! I'm sorry to Natalie! I wanted to meet you too! Don't worry though, I'll be at a lot of these things once I'm done with school. Hugs and stuff.


Yasmeen

I wrote about my love for Paprika and the wicked animation that Satoshi Kon had created and now I have another film to discuss. Tekkon Kinkreet takes place in a wondrous place called Treasure Town. I was dazzled by the animation and effort put into creating such an intricate world. Every backdrop has so many little facets. Truth be told, I like my movies the same way I like my fashion, dense with details. 

Also, this will seem very administrative but I need to mention a few things! Thank you so much to IFB for featuring me in last week's Links a la Mode. Thank you to Barbro Andersen for featuring my art on her blog! I'm glad you liked the sketch! And, finally, I have a giveaway coming up soon so....GET EXCITED.


Yasmeen

This is my second render of the Octopus Heels floating around in my head. The last render I drew was quick and messy. I'm so happy that the idea is slowly becoming more and more solid and consistent...but I'm upset because creating them was one of my New Year's resolutions; the only one I haven't done so far, I think.

1. Greg Lauren Army Tent Jacket $2,735

2. LOVE Rose Print Asymmetrical Dress $72.10

3. All Saints Woden Gilet Vest $78.45

4. All Saints Brodie Gloves $64.20

5. F21 Essential Woven Scarf $5.50

6. Shiseido Ultra Coral Lipstick $27.00

7. Proenza Schouler Continental Wallet $585

8. F21 Pyramid Ring $5.80

9. F21 Heart Ring $2.80

10. Qupid Distressed Metallic Wedges $35

On the internet, I'm not as solemn as I am in real life. That sounded awful. Let me try to say it again. I'm a pretty anti-social person in real life. Wait, that wasn't much better. Okay, last time! I tend to be more quiet in the non-cyber world. There we go! I have two really close friends and then a bunch of others that hover around here and there. This is the friend I've known since 7th grade. Her name is Mahria. She's super fun.

These photos were actually taken during this outfit shoot a while ago.

 (Thrifted Sonoma Knit ~ Last Seen Here)

She's an incredibly stylish person (in my opinion) and gives me the best advice about how to style clothes and what colors go together. (If you're a dedicated follower of my blog, you'll notice I tend to stray away from wildly bright colors and I have an irrational fear of being matchy-matchy) I think the best way to describe Maria's style is sophisticated. I remember being way too dressed down at a lot of the parties we went to and she's always yell at me. It's about time I caught up; I was a late bloomer to the world of sophisticated fashion. 

If you're reading this Maria, YOU WILL BE AN INTERIOR DESIGNER ONE DAY. 

Quadrangles...and such. 

Interestingly, I'll have a chance to return to my personal apartment for another few days before we leave. I'm all packed and I feel like I've wasted my time...This where you come in. All you need to do is leave comments validating my wasted effort.....Just kidding. Kind of.

Oh and for those of you that asked, I'm going to Texas! I believe we'll be around Dallas for the most part. Any recommendations on places to visit? Sights to see? Methods for avoiding the smoldering heat?

I've been putting off packing for a few days (coughweekscough) and this is another attempt at procrastinating. I wore this a few days ago but it was an awful decision. It's been a broiler in the Northeast for weeks. I can't wait for the first cool Autumn breeze. I'll throw on every sweater I own when that day comes.

Wish me luck. I don't like flying. I mean I do...I just don't like flying in planes. Other types of flight are fine.

Yasmeen