books – The Big Hair Diaries

Cake Pop Magic, a Prairie Blouse and a Glimpse of Graphic Design from the DPRK

Published on October 6, 2020 by hellosamanthadear6 Comments

Have you seen the new Starbucks commercial where the lady touches a hologram-like screen in the air and takes out a pink cake pop from it to go along with her drink, and then smiles before carrying on with her day??? I feel that commercial in my soul. I got this cake pop for free with my Starbucks Rewards, to go with my iced mocha. 😉 I actually had forgotten how yummy these are, and when I took that first bite, I thought: I FEEL LIKE THAT LADY. (Starbucks, your marketing is working like magic!) ✨💜

Recently, I modified another blouse I own, and with the added lace it has a prairie look to it now. I’m really happy with the final outcome! I love the mix of really feminine pieces (the blouse) with a darker accessory (the choker).

On Sunday evening, I found myself flipping through a photo book called Made in North Korea: Graphics From Everyday Life in the DPRK by Nicholas Bonner. This is definitely one of the most interesting books I own, I can honestly say! It’s not every day one gets to see what graphic design/product design is like in this mysterious country, or get a look at North Korean propaganda.

Me being in the graphic design field, I was highly fascinated by this book, and there’s also the side of me that is fascinated by countries shrouded in mystery. Another example are the countries that were previously part of the Eastern bloc (my next blog post will be dedicated to this very topic, as I’m patiently waiting for a vintage garment to arrive in the mail that…*hint*…has to do with the Eastern bloc!)

The massive history nerd that I am, I found myself wondering as I flipped through the pages, whether there will ever be a chance that North and South Korea will someday reunite, like when East and West Germany reunited in 1990?

Here’s a look at just a few photos featured in the book – some are postcards, posters, product labels and stationary. I thought it’d make for a great blog post, since this is not something most of us will ever get to see…

See ya next time!!

Feel the Heat!

Published on June 6, 2019 by hellosamanthadear16 Comments

Happy beginning of June!! ❤️

The heat is on in good ol’ central California (in fact, it hit 100 degrees today and the party got started by there being a three-hour-long power outage across parts of the city. Heat-related electricity issues, which tend to happen when we hit the triple digits here!)

But I didn’t mind. It was quite the beautiful day (I love the heat) and I had iced coffee this morning and then meandered over to my favorite organic market and ate a refreshing salad on the patio, watching the towering, puffy clouds off in the distance over the mountains. 💜

With the heat, I thought it was a great time to finally wear this cute, handmade off-the-shoulder top I bought at She’s a Mermaid Cat over on Etsy. I bought it months ago but at the time it was too cold to wear. It made its debut today, and I looooooooooove it!

Along with my vintage floral skirt, I think it turned out to be a super cool outfit, with the ladybugs sealing the deal!!

In other news, I reached my goal of finishing D-Day by actual D-Day, June 6th!!! It was an amazingly detailed book that I learned so much from. I had no idea all that was involved: the events leading up to it, the training involved, reading the stories from the veterans who were actually there to experience it. 💜

And now? I’m going to re-read Band of Brothers. Because it made me want to read that one again, on a related note!

See ya next time!!

Meeting a Peacock, a Tea Party for One and D-Day Thoughts

Published on April 29, 2019 by hellosamanthadear9 Comments

Hi!! As you can see, my blog post title doesn’t lie. Featured here is me with a random peacock that was hanging out in the shade at Casa de Fruta in Hollister, CA earlier today. 😀

My friend and I went for a drive this morning to have coffee in Modesto, then spontaneously decided to drive to Casa de Fruta. ❤️

💕 I paired the outfit with my pink heart barrettes, which I find myself wearing quite often. 💕

Today was really exciting, going for an out of town trip for the day! This past week was super quiet, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. The greatest part was that my sister and I have been going for walks together (she uses a walker, so getting exercise helps her build muscle). It’s good for me too because it’s additional exercise, apart from my regular workout routine I do at home in the later evening. 😀

I went for my favorite tea at Teazers on Tuesday and Friday evening: tiger spice chai. Friday night, the shopping center its located in was bustling with activity; apparently, a new movie called Avengers came out. There were so many people everywhere, but not inside Teazers. I had the back seating area practically to myself for the longest time, while I read the above book and watched people go by next to the floor-to-ceiling windows. It’s lovely because I go in the early evening, and the sun slowly starts to lower in the western sky and casts a pretty golden glow onto everything on my table.

I’m reading D-Day by Stephen E. Ambrose. I have waited SO LONG to start this!!!! I finally finished The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio, which took me waaaaay less time to finish than I expected (it was 800 pages, and I started it in February. I thought it would take me like six months to finish, but nope, only two!)

Pass me my book…and my tiger spice chai pleeeeeeeeease

I really love Stephen E. Ambrose’s writing style; I’m familiar with his work, as he wrote Band of Brothers, which is one of my all-time favorite books (I love anything about the 101st Airborne Division). I’m only 65 pages into this one, but apparently there are excerpts in D-Day from Band of Brothers, so I know I’ll enjoy that. 😀

HOOKED. D-Day is an outstanding book thus far and I just can’t seem to put it down. The writing style makes me feel like I’m literally there in the action – like I can imagine hearing the C-47’s flying overhead. I also enjoy reading about the strategies and planning that went on behind the scenes from the perspective of the Allies and Axis Powers, which the book goes into. I’m a fast reader but I’m trying to read it more slowly so it’ll last longer!

See ya!! 💜

Florals and 800 Page Books

Published on February 21, 2019February 21, 2019 by hellosamanthadear7 Comments

Happy day to you all!!! I hope you’ve been enjoying your week. 💜 Today is a fun floral outfit that is just wishing for spring to be here already. 🌸

I figured, let’s brighten up this otherwise cold and cloudy day where I live and put on some brights:

The skirt is a thrift find and the cardigan is from New York & Company!

I’m still trying to be somewhat warm by wearing my boots (if my feet are cold then I feel miserable!) and since I don’t own a pair of pants, boots are a must for me this time of year. 😀

In other news, I’ve began this book that will probably take the rest of my life to read considering it’s 800 or so pages. The Decameron is a collection of one hundred stories in one book, though!!

It was written in 1353, and the author survived the Black Death (hence why it’s considered such an important piece of literature, because he gives an extremely rare first-hand account of what it was like in the beginning of the book).

The basic premise of the book itself? Ten young people run away from medieval Florence, Italy during the plague to take refuge in the countryside, where they distract themselves from reality by telling each other ten stories for ten days.

Collectively it comes out to around 800 pages (at least the edition I have is around that number!) It will be a long read that will take me through the remainder of the winter, then through spring and summer. I’ve never read a book this long so I can’t tell how long it will take to get through! 😜

What’s the longest book you’ve ever read?! This is definitely the longest for me… 😝

Seeee you next time!

January Friend

Published on January 1, 2019January 1, 2019 by hellosamanthadear6 Comments

Hi!! 💙 I hope you are having a great start to your new year, 2019! ⭐️

Did you all enjoy your New Year’s? I really did; I had a little New Year’s Eve party with my mom and sister at home. We had cheese and crackers with a bottle of root beer, and watched the Rockin’ New Year’s Eve countdown. 🎉 Fun fun fun…

Here are two outfits from last week!

I really love exploring the world of colors, and what pairs with them. I remember how much I enjoyed taking Color Theory in college. I could easily spend an hour browsing color palettes on Pinterest, getting ideas for outfits. 💜

I really don’t make New Year’s resolutions, but I have started a tradition where I pick out three books to launch the start of the year! And the above book is my first and current read to start off 2019: The Cistercian World: Monastic Writings of the Twelfth Century.

I didn’t know what to expect with this, but I wanted to immerse myself in something that was, hopefully, profoundly spiritual. And boy is that what I got. It’s actually becoming one of my favorite books.

The book is a collection of writings penned by monks, and it’s actually very easy to understand, which surprised me. It’s mostly their thoughts on spirituality and their personal experiences in a monastery. I feel like this book is a gem, like I found it nine centuries later hidden in a tree or something, and I’m getting to see a glimpse inside their world and their thoughts—like a secret friendship.

I wandered around Barnes & Noble a few nights ago, sipping a hot peppermint mocha from the café and perusing the aisles. You wouldn’t believe my surprise when I came across a book for beginning Norwegian!!!

I was so surprised to have found it that I had to get it; I actually plan to study Norwegian after I finish my Swedish course, so it’ll be of good use. The nice thing is that both languages have strong similarities, so I already recognized a lot of Norwegian words.

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My newest illustration: Coffee with Friends. This wonderfully weird gal has insects, a rat, and a plant that is apparently alive and drinks coffee too as her friends. Cute, no? 💜

See ya next time!!!

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Bringing Back the Gloves

Published on November 8, 2018November 8, 2018 by hellosamanthadear8 Comments

Happy November!!! ♥

I don’t know about y’all, but I am a really big fan of gloves. I’m aiming to incorporate gloves more into my outfits with the coming cold weather. Although, these really aren’t for warmth as you can see; I wore these this past weekend when it was warm (like 80 degrees).

They’re just added for an extremely old fashion look. And I think I succeeded! The skirt is a hand-me-down (my mom wore it in the 80’s).

I’m going to take a wild guess and say that my inspiration came from watching some 1930’s films as of late. Gloves were a staple back then (as a fashion accessory)…

I like it, I love it, I want some more of it…. *Tim McGraw voice*

I ordered a pair of light pink lace gloves, as well! Can’t wait for those to arrive.

I feel like gloves add such a ladylike look to a dress or skirt ensemble, that you don’t see much of anymore. It’s definitely old school but I say, wear what you like! Whatever that may be, whether it’s something super trendy or extremely outdated! Just dooooooo eeeeeeeeeeet!!!!

It has been a delightfully quiet week, which is nice because next week will be much anticipated!

I ended up with quite a bit of vacation days left, it being the end of the year and all, so I took all of next week off. That paves the way to the GHOST CONCERT next Thursday (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).

Anyway, that is a LOT of time off, and I’m not even sure what I’m going to do with myself. But that’s the fun part. I will just take it one day at a time… 😃

Other fun stuff from this week…

I finally found a book about the Gulf War. I have wanted to learn more about Desert Storm for WHO KNOWS how long now…finally picked one! I heard this one is really good. Can’t wait to start it soon!

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This is so random, but I ended up going through the entire discography of Sugar Ray this week. LOL!!!

I listen to Spotify a lot at work. Up until now, I’ve only known of Sugar Ray’s famous 90’s hits, but listening to their albums start to finish was pretty darn good, I have to say! Glad I listened, two thumbs up 👍🏼👍🏼 .

In retrospect, I’m going from listening to every Sugar Ray album to being catapulted to the polar opposite end of the musical spectrum and will be under the same roof as Ghost next week…someone pinch me because I feel like I’m dreaming!!!

‘Til next time!!!

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Little Red Coat

Published on October 6, 2018 by hellosamanthadear9 Comments

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♥♥♥ Happy October!!! ♥♥♥

Well, the month has arrived! Let the fun holidays of the ending half of the year begin. I wore these on the second day of October, so I didn’t waste a moment to get started on Halloween. Nice touch, no?

And the spider background is a foreshadowing to my Halloween costume…muuahahaha.

Pumpkin cookie from Panera…yumm. 🎃

We had our first rain this week! It started at a whopping 6 a.m., in which I heard the distinct sound of rain pouring down on the roof. I was ridiculously excited; it doesn’t rain here at all during the summer, so this is truly a reason to celebrate. 😉

Rain, at the beginning of the week.

End of the week.

The rain didn’t last long, unfortunately. I managed to see a huge lightning storm that was happening to the north while I was driving on the freeway at night, though. 🌩

Since the cooler weather is on the way, I’ve brought out some jackets. Here’s a red one I wore this week!

I’m really glad I have this little red jacket. It’s quite warm, and I also have a new khaki jacket that’s similar in style that’ll be great to wear when it rains. I could’ve worn it this past week during the rain, but it hadn’t arrived in the mail yet. Next rain storm and it’s onnnnn!

My current read!!! After being knee-deep in a book about the Black Death for the past few weeks, there’s only so much of the bubonic plague a gal can take. Hence, a light-hearted and happy read was a must after I finished the book. I chose wisely!

I love the show, so it’s easy to love the book.

Here’s a favorite passage I came across:

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I hope you all are enjoying the start of this beautiful month and getting into the festive spirit! I’ll be going to the pumpkin patch this weekend, so I’m super excited about that. There will be photos and a blog post, naturally. 😜

‘Til Then! ♥

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Golden Hour

Published on June 26, 2018 by hellosamanthadear6 Comments

Ahh…summer evenings. ♥

There really is something lovely about golden hour, especially in the summer. Despite how hot it was here (a little over 100 degrees or so), I still enjoyed sitting out in my backyard on Saturday evening before I made the short drive to Barnes & Noble later on.

Out here, I get to hear all kinds of things. Mostly the rustle of leaves from the gigantic tree that shades the backyard, and then the hum from the cars on the freeway. It’s a perfect blend of nature and city life. ♥

Just sitting out in my backyard for a little while feels like a full recharge. As much as I enjoy being out and about, I definitely enjoy moments of complete solitude as well. My tiny backyard feels like a secluded corner of the world where I can admire the greenery and be alone with my thoughts. 🙂

My outfit, incidentally, went along fittingly with golden hour on Saturday evening!!!

This is probably my favorite go-to wrap dress. It’s light, comfortable, and simple! I love the color so much. It’s from Forever 21.

Paired with a bow, it makes for a very retro-casual look. And perfect for frolicking around the bookstore, no doubt!

I made this bangle bracelet awhile back. ♥

I got my nails redone!!! This time, much much shorter (well, to me they are short compared to what I previously have had!). I decided to be a risk taker and let the manicurist create whatever design she wanted. Thus, I ended up with an artsy, almost animal-like print on my nails. It’s very different for me, but I love it!

Golden hour…how I love you!!! I managed to take these outfit photos at just the right time, no?

So after this, I went to Barnes & Noble. There’s nothing like ordering a cold drink at the café there and browsing through the store aimlessly, stopping to look at books that catch your eye…

Like this!!!

By the end of the evening, I looked through books about unicorn-inspired food, wolves, and serial killers. A pretty strange mashup but, rather interesting reads nonetheless.

My week has started really nicely! I had a conversation with one of the regulars I see at my favorite coffee shop before work today, and we were discussing creativity. He was talking about how he has learned to appreciate art much more as he’s gotten older, and that ‘creative people make the world a prettier place’.

I love that! ♥ How inspiring!

See ya next time! 😉

Le pique-nique

Published on May 11, 2018May 11, 2018 by hellosamanthadear7 Comments

I’m not actually going on a picnic. But this outfit looks like I am, huh??

Gingham! A print I truly love and find oh-so-charming is coming back into my wardrobe, with summer rolling around soon. It just has that summer feel, so this is the time of year I tend to start wearing it.

It is from H&M, but I bought it last year, so it’s been awhile. 🙂

First off, I hope everyone’s been having a good week! Mine seemed to fly by in a blur. Although, it was a quiet week at work. I’ve been reading a lot, on my own time. My current read is a historical non-fiction book, and actually I’m just about wrapping it up…

This book is soooooooo fascinating, albeit very creepy at the same time. It’s just an eerie subject because the author is concluding that no one will ever truly know what caused this, and I also learned a tremendous amount of things about this time period…some of it, I kind of wish I was still oblivious of.

It mentions the writings of the Brothers Grimm in a theoretical thought, which I found to be super interesting:

So fascinating to think the dancing plague could have been an inspiration in the original Snow White story!

All-in-all, it’s a fast read that pulls you in and keeps you engaged throughout, and I have truly been enjoying it!

Outfit time. 🙂

Ahhhhh…blue and white gingham: Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz vibes! I’ve always been fond of her dress in that film, since I was little. It has such an old-fashioned, demure look to it.

And if you add a little floral tie headband in your hair, you’re definitely stepping up the retro look.

Doesn’t the backyard look cute? It’s funny how the entire look of it has changed since it’s been painted green. I absolutely love it.

There was a two-lane highway of ants on that tree, by the way. Silly me had my hand on it until I realized I was not alone. Fortunately I was spared from having any ants get on me…hahaaaaa.

Well folks, I hope you enjoyed this post and thanks for reading!

‘Til next time! ❤

Pink Yarn & Navy SEALs

Published on February 26, 2018 by hellosamanthadear10 Comments

Welcome back! 🙂

Crocheted rose pins have made a frequent appearance on my last few blog posts, I know! My sister has been so generous to voluntarily make me a few sets of them. The latest are these light pink roses that will go with a lot of my outfits!

I think these are my favorite! Soft pink is just one of those colors that I gravitate towards, as you all know by now if you’ve been following my blog long enough. 😉

Here’s a nice blurry hand photo…

These are my new favorite shoes, I think! I just got them from B.A.I.T. footwear, and they’re a dream. They’re extremely comfortable and I really didn’t even need to break them in. I have a feeling I’m going to be wearing these a lot. ❤

I know I mentioned in my last blog post that I wanted the next book I read to be something on the Gulf War; however, I couldn’t find a whole lot to choose from on the subject matter. Perusing Barnes & Noble last night, it didn’t take long for me to stumble upon this one: The Last Punisher by Kevin Lacz. I’m already hooked!

Why am I so into military books, you might ask? Well folks, I live a very quiet, peaceful life. Imagine a quiet lake with no ripples on the water. I’m happy and feel blessed that I live such a peaceful life! However, some adrenaline-fueled reading is a nice change of pace to such tranquility. ❤

Tag: books