Follow My Spring Break Home *2019*

Hey everyone! Happy Spring Break! Although many people are traveling to Punta Cana and the Bahamas, and going on service trips; I went home to New York for the break to just have some time to clear my head and see some friends. Going home wasn't a bad option for me because I love spending time with my parents, friends, and dog. Also, I live in Brooklyn so there is always new and exciting things for me to do while I am home. 

Right now is the Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden, which is a big deal at my school since Providence College is part of that league of sports. While I type this post, I am watching the Villanova University vs Providence College game. Tonight, I will be attending a networking night at Madison Square Garden while the remainder of the games play out today! I will hopefully be writing about my experience there soon...

Here's what my Spring break has looked like so far...

I love LED lights, so I made my friend take a photo of me at The Little Cupcake in Brooklyn. You can find this photo on instagram: here

 Monday 

Over the weekend, my dad and I went to the Supermarket since I was desperately in need of fruits and vegetables. At school, I do not eat as much fruit as I would like due to their limited selection (no berries at all!), so I needed to take advantage of being home and eating as much as I want to. I've been making bowls with clementines, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries. I will either eat this with my breakfast or as a dessert.

Later that day, I went to Cocoa Grinder ( a chain of cafes located in Brooklyn) for lunch. Right now, I am on a trend of eating less chicken, beef, and pork; so I ordered the vegan steak bowl. It was so delicious. The bowl had brown rice, cooked kale, tofu in seasoning, cucumbers, and tomatoes. The bowl is very filling, and I was so obsessed and will most likely buy it again in the future.

While I was at Cocoa Grinder, I was working on a blog post that will be up on Sunday! I also ordered myself a hot chai latte to go with my meal and blogging.

Tuesday

My dad and I went to the gym in the morning. I was on a grind at school for a few weeks of going often and then stopped, when I get back, I need to re-evaluate how I slacked at the gym and make an effort to go. Summer is coming up, and I really want to be working on a body that I am happy and confident in. On that note... post-breakfast I ate avocado on a baguette with turmeric, salt, and pepper. On the side, two Morning Star veggie sausage patties.

Being away from my dog, Bosco, has been hard so I have been taking so many photos of him while I've been home.

Later that day, I headed to downtown Manhattan to get lunch with my friend, Aubrey. We have a tradition now of going to Jack's Wife Freida when we are both back in the city (we both go to college in New England). This place is a Meditteranean breakfast/lunch place in Soho that I love so much! Their cappuccinos are so good!

Both Aubrey and I had Green Shakshuka with Challah Bread on the side. I've never heard of shakshuka before, but my first experience with it was pleasant. I had the option to have feta with it, and it was a nice touch. Last time, I ate the Meditteranean Breakfast from this restaurant which I also recommend.

You can see more of Aubrey and My adventures in New York City here.

We ended up walking to Washington Square Park and hanging out by there for awhile. We also went to PetCo to look at the animals, and Barnes and Noble (to skim books, sit around and talk, and charge our phones). Washington Square Park was very lively as the weather is getting warmer, but also because NYU is still in session.

We went to Cafe Reggio on McDougal street for dessert, it's a small Italian cafe with large art pieces and sculptures on the walls. I ordered Italian cheesecake, and Aubrey had Tartufo. This cafe was filled with groups of people talking, lone people working on their computers, and just all the different types of people that live in NYC. The music was very organ (the instrument) heavy, which fully does set the mood of the place.

Wednesday

I didn't take any photos, but today was my day of spa regimens. I had my hair cut & straightened (will be posting pictures of that to instagram), my eyebrows threaded, and my nails painted. It had been about two months since I've been home, and all those cosmetic routines are so much cheaper in my neighborhood than when I am at college. My hair was also too long for my liking and I would constantly be complaining. My mother and I went to get Bubble Tea after everything which was really nice. Do you have a favorite flavor of Bubble Tea?

 I love sushi. Last week, I facetimed my parents asking if we could go to this Japanese Buffet restaurant called Sake. I hadn't eaten sushi in a while, and I knew if I was coming home; that's one of the things I would want. We went last night, and it definitely lived up to my expectations. I ate some of the sushi shown but also vegetable fried rice, and miso soup.

More pictures of Bosco :)

Even though it only looks like I've only been eating on my break, I swear I have done other things. The food is just too good in New York to not take advantage of it. I've been spending the days home relaxing, catching up with people, watching Basketball, blogging, and doing homework. It was a much-needed break. 

Do you have spring break? What are your plans?

xx

Christina Madeleine

What I've Been Watching *March 2019*

Hey everyone! I am back with another "What I've Been Watching" post since I've watched quite a few interesting shows in the last few months (some have been very hyped up, so I had to watch them).

*none of these images are my own, but taken from Google*

First, let's talk about the Netflix Spanish show, Elité.

I saw coming attractions to this show on Netflix often enough to be intrigued, but then I finally decided to look into Elité. Some accounts on Instagram were posting clips of how dramatic the show is, and it's a mix of the British show Skins, which I've rewatched a few times, and Pretty Little Liars and Gossip Girl. Google's description of it is, "When three working-class teens enroll in an exclusive private school in Spain, the clash between them and the wealthy students leads to murder." The description does not show justice because it's so well directed and written. The show is produced in Spain, hence it's all in Spanish, but I have been listening to it in its original audio since I can understand a bit of the language, but with English subtitles. I personally don't like dubbed tv shows, but there's also English, German, and Chinese dubbed versions of the show. I am a very big fan of the show, so I highly recommend it, definitely, don't let the language barrier discourage watching it. 

Around December, I watched Netflix's Italian show, Baby.

I have been watching shows in English too (I swear), but this show caught my interest because 1) I started taking an Italian class in college 2) it is the in the realm of teen drama that I can't seem to get away from. Google's description of this show is, "By day, Chiara is a promising student at one of Rome's most elite private high schools; by night, she leads a scandalous secret life." There is heavy criticism for this show since it's based on the baby squillo case in Italy, which involved minors and government officials in a scandal (it's definitely a case to look into). A lot of elements of the case have been removed such as in the real case, the girls are fourteen, and in the show, they are older. As an entertainment purpose, this show nails the drama.

Comparing it to Elité (since they are both European shows), I would say I like Elité slightly better than Baby because the characters are more relatable and likable. No matter how bad the characters of Elité are, I can find more hope in them because you see their whole home lives compared to Baby. Both shows do deal with super rich, privileged kids; but, it is interesting to watch. Both shows have been renewed by Netflix for a second season. Once again, I watch Baby with the Italian audio and subtitles in English. 

The next show I've watched recently was, You (which is also a Netflix original).

Okay, this show freaked me out and made me want to delete all social media. The description of the show from Google says, "What would you do for love? For a brilliant male bookstore manager who crosses paths with an aspiring female writer, this question is put to the test. A charming yet awkward crush becomes something even more sinister when the writer becomes the manager's obsession. Using social media and the internet, he uses every tool at his disposal to become close to her, even going so far as to remove any obstacle --including people -- that stands in his way of getting to her." Note the main character, Joe (played by Penn Badgley from Gossip Girl) uses social media to stalk and find out every aspect of Beck, the other lead's, life. 

This show was incredibly hyped up, and although it was suspenseful and generally a well-produced show, I can't say I completely liked the show. It's hard to say you like a show where you watch some stalk a girl and the steps he goes through. My main issue is how annoying the character Beck is. She's a writer, but that's her defining factor. She refers to herself as a mess and instead of getting herself on a track, she tends to make everything worse for herself. Beck constantly makes horrendous decisions and almost makes you not pity her. Almost is the keyword. This show also contains cameos from John Stamos and Shay Mitchell. Personally, I think Penn Badgley and Shay Mitchell saved the show for the most part because their characters, although cruel, were written very well and intense to watch. I don't know if I will be watching a second season (when they make it), but we'll have to see...

A show I watched earlier this semester was another Netflix show called, Sex Education. 

I loved this show. There is only one season out on Netflix, but I enjoyed every episode. The show has a very strange concept, but believe me when I say this show is really good. The description from Google is, "Socially awkward high school student Otis may not have much experience in the lovemaking department, but he gets good guidance on the topic in his personal sex ed course -- living with mom Jean, who is a sex therapist. Being surrounded by manuals, videos and tediously open conversations about sex, Otis has become a reluctant expert on the subject. When his classmates learn about his home life, Otis decides to use his insider knowledge to improve his status at school, so he teams with whip-smart bad girl Maeve to set up an underground sex therapy clinic to deal with their classmates' problems. But through his analysis of teenage sexuality, Otis realizes that he may need some therapy of his own." 

On first glance, I've heard people say that they thought this was show would raunchy and disturbing to watch, but it's another teen drama, but this time it talks about real taboo topics that many shows don't discuss. Characters on this show talk about events such as coming-out, dealing with sexual assault and health, but also just the ins and outs of being a young adult. The show's aesthetic is a little all over the place because the high school is very American-ized in order to be more appealing to United States viewers (i.e jocks, popular girls, referring to the school as a high school), but is set in Wales. The main character, played by Asa Butterfield (who has been in movies such as Hugo, the Boy in the Striped Pajamas, and The Space Between Us), is dressed in a very 80s outfits. To the sum that all up, the show has a weird vibe that absolutely works. The show is raw and comedic at times and deals with real issues without making the show just about them

Lastly, I'll talk about the Freeform show, Good Trouble.

The first season of this show has been airing each week, and I have been obsessed. For those of you who watched The Fosters, this show really does all the characters justice. The description of this show is, "Good Trouble" follows Callie and Mariana as they embark on the next adventure in their lives in Los Angeles. Mariana tackles the male-dominated world of tech, and Callie faces the harsh realities of the legal system as she clerks for a federal judge. After moving to The Coterie in downtown Los Angeles, Callie and Mariana realize that living on their own is not all it's cracked up to be. Although they have new neighbors, new romances, and new challenges, the sisters must rely on each other to navigate the City of Angels."

It is very refreshing to see two female characters who have more issues than just dealing with significant others on a show. Callie and Mariana are both powerful women in the show, one working in tech and the other training to be a lawyer and actively deal with issues that affect real people. Yes, there is a lot of romantic drama, but all the screentime doesn't go to that. The side characters are all very interesting and have backstories that are very developed. Topics such as the #BlackLivesMatter movement are regularly mentioned and its importance explained quite often. Characters from The Fosters have guest-starred in the show (Noah Centineo included!), and have brought new light to their old characters. I highly recommend this show if you have the chance.

Have you watched any of these shows? What are your thoughts? Did you like them? Were some of them overhyped? Comment below! 

(All you need is an email or Twitter to comment through Disqus). 

I hope you liked this post! I will see you on Thursday with another one :)

xx

Christina Madeleine

Family Weekend 2019

Happy Sunday everyone! It's been about a month since I last blogged, and trust me it's been a whirlwind. I know that I said that I would be posting once to twice a week,  but life has been a bit tough recently and I haven't been able to post. I have a few partially written blog posts that I will be finishing up, so March will be filled with more of 'This Fashion Girl'. This weekend was Family Weekend at my college, so my parents came up and we had a very busy 24 hours. Here's a little insight into how I spent my family weekend.

Just making a call from the Dean Hotel in Providence, Rhode Island.

At 12pm, I met my parents at the basketball game. Providence College was playing Marquette at the Dunkin Donuts Center (our home arena). I had been to all the games this season except for two, but this was so exciting because it was sold out because of alumni & family weekend. Unfortunately, we lost the game, but hopefully, next season will be a lot better. Our freshman basketball players are so good. This was my parents first time at a PC basketball game, and they had such a fun time. 

Afterward, I hung out in their hotel room for a bit. My mom and I went to get my eyebrows threaded, which was such a necessity at that moment. Then we went to Friskie Fries and bought fries with chicken, parmesan and mozzarella cheese, and sauce. We might've devoured it before taking any photos...

Then, we went to the hockey game at 5pm. My school was playing UMass Amherst, and we won 3-2! This was super exciting because of the last two games they played each other, Providence had lost. The arena was filled too because of the weekend, and it was fun to have at least one win for the day. 

For dinner, my parents took me and my two friends, Colleen and Alex, to dinner. We hung out in the Dean Hotel first and took some photos before going to RED FIN Crudo + Kitchen, which is a very yummy tapas restaurant.

This phone is located outside of a karaoke bar called 'The Boombox'.

The three of us posing with the cute red phone. You can check out more of those photos on my Instagram!

 The Next Morning...

 My parents and I went to Rebelle Artisan Bagels and bought three different sandwiches to split. Above is the "Breakfast Sammi" which is a spinach frittata and bacon on a bagel. My mom got egg and bacon on a bagel (not shown, but either she or I will post it on insta).

 Lastly, we bought cream cheese and lox bagel. I have never tried lox before, and it's very good. I've been to this store twice, and have only gotten the "vegan dream," which is absolutely delicious, but I decided to switch it up this time. Rebelle is partnered with NitroBar, and so they have a cold brew tap, so I had to buy it.

Before this weekend, I hadn't seen my parents in person since January 12, so spending even twenty-four hours with them meant a lot. Although we facetime a lot, there's nothing like being present with people you care about. Also, it's so fun for them to come up here because we get to try out different restaurants and cafes for breakfast and dinner that I wouldn't have gone to. It's more of an opportunity to discover more about Providence and catch up. 

Second Semester Planning & Schedule

Happy Thursday! I've been getting back into the grind of school, so on Sunday I wasn't able to post, but here I am still on schedule (sticking with posts Sunday and/or Thursday). I've now made it a week and a half into my new semester of college. As you know, my first semester was rather rough (check that out with my posts: " Thoughts and Ramblings of a First Semester College Freshman and Whats Happened to Me in the First Month of College ). Not to dwell too much on my first semester, but I already have such a better feeling about this new semester! I was able to make my schedule myself opposed to last semester where they just gave it to me.

Here's what classes I am taking and what time's (it's slightly hard to wake up at times, but I love it).

Western Civilization (Semester 2 out of 4)
In my previous posts, I've mentioned Development of Western Civilization (or 'Civ' as everyone at Providence College calls it). This course is mandatory for every student to take, which makes the school very unique to others. It's four semesters and this semester is more focused on the Enlightenment and the high middle ages. I am currently reading The Two Lives of Charlemagne and The Song of Roland for this class. My first-semester experience with Civ was very positive, but I changed to a different team of teachers, so I still have to adjust.
My class times are Mondays (8:30am-10:20am), and Tuesday/Thursday (8:30-9:20).
This is my only class on Thursday's! So I have the day free to do work and catch up on all my readings for class.

Intro to Literature
On top of my core curriculum- my college makes us fulfill proficiencies (this course would fulfill an Intensive Writing-1), but I am also taking this course because I definitely needed to take an English class again. I am planning on pursuing a minor in writing, and this course is the first step in doing so. We are currently reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and I am so excited to be reading it again, and possibly doing a book review on it. Other books we are planning to read are Long Day's Journey into Night by Eugene O'Neill and Sula by Toni Morrison. We are also doing units on poetry and writing, which I am absolutely excited for!
My class times are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays (9:30am-10:20am)

Elementary Italian 101
My father's side of the family is Italian, and my mother's side is Irish-American; so, I've never been completely exposed to the language or culture from Italy before. I have been able to meet and skype with family from Italy, but I finally wanted to be able to learn the language. I love learning languages and I would ultimately one day want to be able to speak Italian, Spanish, and French (which I have no knowledge of ). I've been a bit nervous in class because I want to respond in Spanish, but overall I am excited to be taking a language course again. I've been even contemplating studying abroad in Italy my Junior year of college.
My class times are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays (10:30am-11:20am)

Microeconomics 101
Since I am part of the business school (Marketing major!), it's part of the Business core to take both macroeconomics and microeconomics. Last semester, I took macroeconomics and I loved that class, My teacher was so fun, and I found that I could easily comprehend the material. There was even a point in time that I considered changing my major to Economics, but alas I decided to stay in the Business school. Micro is a bit less exciting than macro, but the material is very useful. Economics helps you have a better understanding of political financial decisions and what's overall better for the economy. I recommend taking a basics course, but also Khan Academy and other free websites have great videos about the subject.
My class times are Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays (2:30pm-3:20pm)

Managerial Accounting 
Accounting has been one of my worst struggles in college. Accounting is another requirement to fulfill in the Business school (one semester Financial and one semester Managerial), and it's the hardest subject for me to grasp. My teacher is very helpful (and even make YouTube videos), and he explains everything very clearly, yet when I am on my own I can't seem to do the problems. This is definitely the subject I am going to have to put the most time and effort into. My father also studied Finance and Accounting in college, so he is always a Facetime away.
My class times are Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays (1:30pm-2:20pm)

Data Applications in Business (DAB)
This course is also a requirement for the Business school, and it's to make students proficient in Microsoft word and excel. It's definitely a skill that's worthy to learn.
My class time is Tuesdays 12:30pm-2:15pm


So... my schedule is a bit busy! Last semester, I felt as if I wasted so much time because I wouldn't have my first classes until 10:00 or 10:30 in the morning. Now, I have an 8:30 or 9:30 every day and I've been enjoying my day more. I'll wake up, make a coffee in my Keurig, and then go to breakfast before class. I also find myself planning my schedule a lot more for the week because I have my classes more frequently now. A downside is there are about three days a week where I will have four classes, but it never feels overwhelming.

I've also been making a goal for myself to go to the gym because I am more focused on taking care of myself this semester. I think going 3-5 times a week would be ideal and going to Zumba and Yoga classes, but also using the cardio and strength machines. Last week, I had gone to the gym three times and I already felt better than I had the month I stayed at home. Also, I've been sleeping better because of my hectic days + making time to workout. Although I go to bed between 10:45pm and 11:30pm I still am able to get up and feel awake (except for a few days where you can find me taking a nap in my dorm room between my last class and choir) and stay awake for most of the day with a little help of my water bottle and coffee.

I'm trying my best to achieve my resolutions, and I have the motivation so far.
What are some tips that you have to utilize your day? or to remain/get healthy? How are your resolutions going, if you have any?

Follow my new Instagram for the blog to see my life daily!
https://www.instagram.com/christinaxmadeleine/

xx

Christina Madeleine

A Quick Trip to the Met

Happy Sunday! On January 9, I was back on the Upper East Side and decided to go to one of my favorite places in the world...the Metropolitan Museum of Art! My friend, Aubrey, and I wanted to go there since it had been a while, and we were both heading to college soon (only 45 minutes apart from each other!). If you don't know, I used to go to high school right across the street from the Met, and during that time I've fostered a great love for the museum.

 My favorite exhibits in the museum are the Greek and Roman statues, Temple of Dendur, French & Italian paintings, the American Wing, and the Japanese art. In art history class, I was able to learn about the artists and types of art, and all about the time period, they were created in. A fun fact I learned in high school is that most of the marble statues in the room that I am shown in above are not the original statues, but marble replicas of bronze statues that were melted down in Rome. These marble replicas of Greek statues were recreated by Romans. The original bronze sculptures were created in first to third century B.C, but the marble statues were created between 2-5 century A.D. If you ever come to the Met, I recommend coming to this gallery!

 Of course, you have to take photos by the glass windows in the Temple of Dendur!

One of the rooms used for the Met Gala each year is the Temple of Dendur, so technically speaking, some of your favorite stars have been in this room. I love coming to this exhibit because it's super spacious, and has the real Temple that was from Egypt (you can even walk in it), and a sphinx. You have to walk through the Egyptian section of the Met to get to it, and on one of the walls is the Egyptian Book of the Dead.

 I've been to the Metropolitan Museum of Art probably around 100 times between art history courses, spontaneous visits, bringing foreign friends, and events. Aubrey and I have even realized how accustomed we are to being there that we sometimes forget that we are even in a museum. If you ever catch me there you can most likely hear me talking about how crazy it is that humans made this art, spinning around while talking about how cool history is, or trying to make the security guards laugh or talk to me by saying absurd comments about the art. It's all in good fun though :)

Aubrey and I spent some time in the American Wing (and the cafe within it). I have come to this room so many times, and I still never get tired of it. There is a skylight, so we sat there eating broccoli & cheddar soup (we had a coupon!) from the cafe and talking while within the walls of a beautiful museum. Although I wouldn't recommend always coming to the Met to eat because there are a ton of other places to go in the area, it was a nice treat!

Thanks for reading! There should be another post coming up about other things I did while back home for Winter Break. Have you ever been to the Met? What was your favorite exhibit?

xx

Christina Madeleine

Also! I made a new Instagram just for my blog! So please follow me there to see all the live updates about what I am doing! https://www.instagram.com/christinaxmadeleine/

Dorm Tour *Freshman Year at Providence College*

Hey everyone! With school starting up again soon, I wanted to show you all what my dorm room looks like! As you know, I am currently a freshman and I will be entering my second semester on January 14. I still want to decorate my dorm a bit more, but this is what my roommate and I have.

*sorry that the photos are a bit blurry, I can update this post eventually with more high definition pictures*

The dorm I am in has cork boards already installed so I printed out some photos to put up on it. I also pin notes my friends have given to me, letters, and papers that I for events on campus. My poster is the album cover of Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division. To the left (where my scarf is hung up), is a small closet that I hang up my clothes in, keep extra towels, tide pods, and shoes. My shelf was $25 from Amazon and I built it myself during Columbus Day Weekend.

On the top shelf, I keep my record player, and a cup cozy. The second shelf I keep a teddy bear that is wearing the 'M' from my high school's name. I keep half my records on that shelf (and the rest at my house). The bottom shelf, which is not shown, has my textbooks and reading books.

There are three girls dorms for freshmen, and I am the only that's all-doubles (meaning I have one roommate). But by default, I am in the smallest dorm and have a twin size bed that's lofted. I have to catapult myself onto the bed or use the radiator to get up on to it.

My comforter: PBTeen

Good Vibes Sign (Blue LED): Bath, Bath, and Beyond

Clothesline for Pictures: Bath, Bath, and Beyond

Maroon Blanket: Either BJ's or Costco

The lighting is very dark in my room, so on weekends, I keep the blue lights from my sign on. I am on the eighth floor, and you can see that my dorm room is blue from the ground. I also keep up a Providence College hockey flag.

Between my roommate and I's beds, we have our mini fridge/freezer and our microwave. We originally had a television, but we got rid of it since we didn't want to block our pretty nice view of Providence. I bought the microwave from Target for around $35. We keep bowls and water bottles on there usually. We keep cups and utensils in the fridge caddy.

I took these pictures right before I left for winter break because I wanted to post up about my dorm before I come back and inevitably make my side a mess. Under my bed, I have two sets of drawers to keep clothes in, baskets for shoes, and then huge gray containers to keep other miscellaneous and extra items. When my roommate and I are actually living in this room (notice my bags are there), we keep boxes of food by the fridge for us to microwave and such. We also have desks that are against our beds that we use the back of as headboards but is very spacious. I don't usually like to do work in the room because I rather work in the student center, great room, or library; but it does come in handy to have a desk.

On my roommate's side, we have more storage that we use for snacks and drinks, and on top of that, we have a set up for our Keurig. This comes in handy for when the Dunkin Donuts on campus is closed, or it's 10 at night and all you want is a cup of tea. My friends on other floors even come to use the coffee machines sometimes if they need caffeine.

Despite dorming in such a small room, I have made this area my space. I like coming back to the room and knowing I can take a nap or just decompress for a bit. One reason, I try to not do work in my dorm is to make it an area I can relax in and not be stressed. I sometimes will study in there, but I don't do homework if I can help it. My roommate and I live really well together and even coordinated our room to have a theme of turquoise, blue, gray, and white.

In the coming semester, I can try to do more of an updated dorm room tour (with better pictures), but thanks for checking out this post!

What is your college dorm room like if you are at college? or what was it like? Did you/do you have more than one roommate? What is your dream dorm room like?

Leave a comment!

xx

Christina Madeleine

What I Received For Christmas *2018*

Hey everyone! Happy Holidays! I've never done a "What I got for Christmas" blog post before, but I do love to watch Youtube videos of what people received for the holidays (my particular favorite is watching Olivia Jade's luxury Christmas present videos). Since I find these types of posts interesting and fun to read; I wanted to also share what I bought or was gifted. I am not trying to brag about the presents I received, I just wanted to share (since I post so much about my life on here). Also, these are just the main gifts I received for Christmas because my stocking was mostly socks, lip balms, and scrunchies.

Green Hunter Rainboots

I've wanted Hunter Rain boots forever, and when my mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas, my immediate thought was... Hunter rain boots! I've never owned rain boots before and that became a problem because I would wear my sneakers or booties in the pouring rain. Also, it rains SO MUCH in Rhode Island, so rain boots are definitely a necessity. Also, they're kind of stylish? Of course, I wouldn't aim to wear them when it wasn't raining, but how cute would they look paired with black legging!?

 Rose Gold "Love" Bracelet

I am absolutely obsessed with this bracelet. I went into a boutique in my neighborhood and saw these bracelets for $40 and begged my mom to buy it. This bracelet is based on the Cartier 'Love' Bracelet which ranges in price between $2,000 - $10,000 based on which color and style you buy. Until one day I can afford that bracelet, I am happy with my own version of it.

 Pink Handbag from Fossil 

My aunt surprised me with this Fossil light pink handbag that I absolutely adore. About two years ago, she bought me a turquoise coach bag ( as seen here ), which I use all the time. She always buys me colored handbags because I just love bright accessories. Light pink has been a staple to my wardrobe lately because since I now own Adidas pink sneakers, which a switch from my usual Stan Smith sneakers. Light pink was my grade in high school's color (class of 2018), so it's followed me to college evidently. I forgot most of my handbags in my dorm room (cons of taking public transportation home) so I will be getting a lot of use out of this bag.

AsaVea Hair Straightener

I have never been able to flat iron my own hair, and that really needed to change, so I finally invested in a straightener. My friend had recommended this straightener, so I ordered it off of Amazon for Christmas. I am super excited to try it/learn how to straighten my hair. It seems easy to use and will be great for me to keep and use at school or at home.

Beautiful Boy

My friend, Nicole, and I went shopping in downtown Manhattan at the Union Square Christmas Market to buy gifts for our parents, but afterward we decided to go to 'The Strand' bookstore. I love that bookstore and of course, I ended up buying a book. Beautiful Boy by David Sheff just became a movie starring Timothee Chalamet and Steve Carell, and now I want to read the book before seeing the movie. Funny enough, this is now the second book I have that has Timothee Chalamet's face on it since I own Call Me By Your Name (a book that I love and will talk about soon). A review on Beautiful Boy will be up once I finish reading it!

Smashbox Palette

My cousin gave me bought me a Smashbox Contour Palette, which I am super excited about! I don't know how to contour my face, but I have watched so many videos on how to do it. I have quite a few Sephora Giftcards and will probably buy some brushes for this palette.

--

If you celebrate Christmas (or any other holiday!), what did you get? Comment below!!

xx

Christina Madeleine

Two Coffee Shops in Providence & A New Blogger

Hey everyone! In the typical blogger fashion, I went to some cafes in Providence to do some studying with my friend Colleen. I had principles of marketing final earlier that day and my brain was absolutely fried, and so I needed to leave campus for a bit.

Around 1:30pm, we went to the Nitro Cart - Nitro Bar ( https://www.thenitrocart.com/ ), which is a Rhode Island coffee shop that has portable carts that come to Providence College and Brown University when it's nice out. They have nitro coffee (which is all the craze now!) on tap, and I might have a small obsession with it.

So, the Nitro-Bar is located inside the DASH bicycle store. I was able to hear the founders of the NitroCart speak at my college, and they said that the reasons were for 1) it's hard to find space 2) the bicycle store had the customer demographics they wanted to reach.

The bicycle store is technically next to the coffee bar, but some of the bikes line the walls and they sell merch as well. 

We ended up sitting at this cafe (in a different seat than where this photo was taken) for about 2.5 maybe 3 hours. What started as Colleen planning out her English final, and myself working on making a study guide for Macroeconomics ended with us drinking copious amounts of coffee and blogging! Which brings me to this... Colleen made a blog and it's really good!

 I was obviously ecstatic because I haven't met that many people in real life that blog or want to. Also, the demographics of bloggers are usually older than me and in the United Kingdom (which I absolutely love, but also means I haven't met them).

Nitro Bar closes around 5pm, so around 4, we decided to leave, as to not overstay since at that point we had been there since 1:30. We really didn't want to go back to campus yet, so we just looked up another cafe to go to!

Before we started the ten-minute walk to another shop, we just had to take a photo of this sign. I am a fan of cute signs like this!

Okay! Next, we went to White Electric Coffee (http://whiteelectriccoffee.com/#thebestcoffee), where we proceeded to both get another coffee and camp out.

The aesthetics of the two coffee shops are a bit different. Nitro-Bar has more of a clean and minimalist aesthetic, while White Electric's is warmer and crowded with lots of browns, reds, and LED lights. White Electric Coffee reminds me of a store I would find in Williamsburg, Brooklyn; so I was a fan of that. I am going back to both places definitely!

I have yet to try to food at White Electric Coffee, but it's on my to-do list for the second semester.

Above is a photo that I took of my cappuccino, but Colleen's blog is up on the screen.  next to I am literally so proud that Colleen made a blog (so catch me promoting it a bunch), but she's one of my closest friends here. So please check it out! Her link is: http://stainedpetals.blogspot.com/

We left the cafe around 6pm to come back go back to campus. It's so dark and cold out now; so it was a tad depressing to go back to the dorm, but it was time to. We were completely bundled up in our big blanket scarves and winter coats. 

I hope you liked this post! Check out about the time I went to a different cafe in Providence called Sydney (it's Australia inspired) here. My last post is about what music I've been listening to, and I actually wrote that while sitting in NitroBar (don't forget to comment what you've been listening to on it). 

If you have finals, good luck! See you in my next post!

xx

Christina Madeleine