Cherries & Cats

The whole June was mostly grey and rainy, except some sunnier days here and there. The last day of June was very stormy, but then these first few days of July has been the most beautiful days so far and to me that has really started the summer officially!

Still, I strongly believe the cats have been enjoying these warm days even more than us.

We bought the first cherries of the summer today – I just love fresh cherries and they are one of my favorite berries! They are also so intoxicatingly red (and I love almost anything red) that even that makes it irresistible not to eat all of them at once! I think I’m going to overdose with cherries before the summer is over...

... And what could be better in a hot summer day than fresh cherries swimming in chilled cherry cider?

On the other news; a few days ago, I got my beloved camera from the repair shop where it was for weeks, which means I can start to take actually decent photos again about everything around me as well of myself, as soon as I’ll just fix my hair first! Since my hair project has been delayed, there's still no outfit or makeup pictures this time because I don’t feel as presentable as I would wish myself to be at the moment... So enjoy a photo of a pile of lavishly red cherries instead:

Remember to enjoy the summer as much as you can and take everything out of it! This is an order.

My Hair Colors Over the Years

So, since I’m about to start the hair dyeing process again in the near future, I decided to make a post of all the hair colors I’ve had over the years. Before I got a red hair, I had some hair color “stages” which led me to it...

I started to want a red hair since I was a child. When I was 7-year-old I brought this subject to my parents but they took it like a joke – they did not know I would actually have a bright red one day! After bringing this request to my parents, I knew I need to wait at least ten years to get what I wanted. No parent would give a permission for a 7-year-old girl to have bright red hair!

I had desperately wanted to do something to my hair for years – anything but the regular damn sandy brown color it had always been. I've always had long hair which I think looked like pretty, golden hair for a child but when I got older the color started to look like a bucket of sand to me. So, I remember calling from the hair salon to my mom and got a permission to bleach two blond highlights on the front (with a cost so overprized it now makes me sick to even think of it)... That was in February 2006. But I was beyond happy for I had finally got something done to change my regular hair!

Besides a bright red hair, a pitch black was my second option, but that wasn't so simple either. As a minor every decision, even concerning my hair, was in the hands of my parents and I was not allowed to dye it as “radically” as I would have wanted. But going towards the black hair, I finally got to dye it dark brown at first... This was in 2007. 

But then, I finally lured my way to the black hair. It was so lovely for a long time, because that had always been my second choice whatever comes to hair colors! This was in 2008. 

At least I had started to dye my hair on my own! After the black hair period I started to go towards the red, first dyeing the two strips in front of my hair red and the rest remained black – I first dyed my hair like this on March 3rd, 2008. That was a rather difficult hair to keep up so I didn’t kept that too long, even I did like it a lot at that time...

Still, I was an idiot by going to a hair salon too often what came to dyeing my hair and paid the outrageously overprized amount of money for it. And to my experiences whatever you say to the hair dresser the final result is still something else than what you asked. 

But then, ah, I finally got red hair on 18th of August 2008 and even it was very dark, dark red I was beyond ecstatic! I had waited that day for so very long. 

After getting down from the ecstatic cloud of my dark red hair, I decided to take it in my own hands and bleach the hell out of my hair myself. After two bleaches and 3-4 packages of bleach my hair was orange but it was evenly orange and so, it was brighter it had been since it was black – not every color from dark brown to blond roots, like after being at the hair salon and simply just asking them to bleach my hair. I wasn't going for blond but something bright enough to dye it bright red, so bright orange hair was more than perfect base to put on the red dye. So, for a moment in 2009 I had completely orange hair... 

I had asked for a bright red hair at the hair salon but since I got a dark red hair, I decided to start to dye my hair myself to actually get what I wanted and to save a whole lot of money. After bleaching the hair-salon-dark-red hair dye out of my hair I found the brightest permanent red hair dye and even I liked the result, it still was too dark for my own taste. Still, I kept it for a long time, dyeing my hair over and over again with the ammonia red because I didn’t know about the semi-permanent hair dyes at the time... My brother have said the darker red suited me better than the brighter.

After bleaching my hair from ammonia red to lighter again it got an orange hair vs. blond roots massacre mess going on with my hair and my hair started to protest after so many ammoniac treatments... But then I found out about shock colored semi-permanent hair dyes and that was an epiphany kind of thing what came to hair dyes and dyeing my hair. 

When my hair was finally as red as I had always hoped it would be I just stared it for so long and looked it from the mirror and I was so out of this world because of the joy of having my childhood fantasy of having this red hair finally come true! All my “brighter” and brighter shades of red happened during 2009 and from there on I haven’t changed my hair color – and have no plans to change it! 

P.S. I usually have a semi-blond phase between dyeing my hair red... My dad liked it so much, he suggested me to keep the blond hair color and bleach it all the way. He have said he will not change my picture in his phone to a red headed one again. Ha! I kind of liked the semi-blond hair, but I didn't feel quite "myself" with it.

Tea & Sympathy (a.k.a. Lazy Day)

In between the gorgeous and warm sunny days, there are still these cloudy days when the sun doesn’t quite know whether to come out behind the clouds or not...

On these kind of days I like to stay at home, read and put on something casual but warm.

Susanna Kaysen’s autobiographical novel “Girl, Interrupted” has been one of my long-lasting reading projects which I’m determined to finish in the near future – since there has been many cloudy days, I’m sure I’m going to finish it soon... There’s not many pages left. I tend to read many books at the same time and thus, some of them are left aside while I’m reading another. Unfortunately, this book has been left behind and I’m already planning to order more books. What is wrong with me?

So, today I decided to change that and took the book in my hands and continued reading it. It is amazing how books can take you to another universe and forget about the present – I love that! My cats always come to interrupt my reading and demanding to be given attention right at that very moment when they see I'm taking any book in my hands. It’s like they know I’m trying to take the time to myself by reading and they are trying to be a part of it. Beyond cute and annoyingly adorable. 

This was my casual “I-wear-this-only-at-home” outfit. It’s also surprisingly warm, so the cold wind doesn’t give me chills... 

I found the necklace from an internet flea market. I love all things cameo (necklaces, brooches, etc.) whether they are real or not... I haven’t been able to use this that much, because I prefer silver over gold or bronze, but this matched well with the zippers of the dress and I like how elaborate it is comparing to a very simple dress. 

What I also like to do on cloudy days is to watch movies – I mean, of course, what else!? I haven’t yet decided which movie I’m going to watch, but I’m sure it will be resolved during the evening.

Now, this is what I do on cloudy days but now I’m interested in what do you do on days like these..? 

 

My first video!

So, I finally posted my first video on my YouTube channel. It is about Deathstars gig I went to see last September... It was about damn time but better late than never, eh?

I actually filmed the first version of the video months ago, but decided to do it all over again, because I wasn’t satisfied... I’m just a pedantic little redhead. It was in English and I hadn’t really planned what to say so I said whatever came into my mind, which argued with a correct English grammar. I should think before I talk, ha.

So I decided to speak Finnish in the video, but I subtitled it in English so that everyone could understand it. I am planning to do more videos in the future and who knows, maybe I'll do a video in English someday. You can subscribe me if you like. The upcoming videos will be irregularly regular. That helped a lot, didn’t it?
 

Check out my YouTube Channel HERE!

P.S. Yes, yes, yes... I’m ashamed to admit I do not own a fancy video editing program so I rape my videos with Windows’ own “video editing software” – do you have any suggestions what program should I get and use? Advices would be greatly appreciated!

Shopping Fever

I have been shopping quite a lot lately – guilty as charged!

I found these bags and a necklace from one of the second hand shops downtown:

I first didn’t see the heart shaped bag, but hopefully it caught my eye before I left from the shop.

I had made a promise not to go to the mainstream clothing shops, but there’s something magnetic in them, especially when the clothes are on sale, so I could not resist! One big Finnish clothing chain is shutting down about half of their stores around the country, so they are selling their clothes like mad, bright sale stickers glowing on most of their clothes.


I hoarded a bunch of clothes with me in the fitting room, but most of them didn’t left the shop with me... But I actually found a dress (and I never find dresses) that suits me and size S actually suited me better than size M. I have also found a shirt and two skirts. Women can never have too many skirts, right?

But now I must snap my purse to a close and not buy another thing – although all of these findings were real bargains! I’ll try to take outfit photos from the new purchases as soon as possible... Stay tuned.

Fifty Shades of Red

The winter has felt like forever, especially those days between a beautiful white coat of snow and those slushy days when the snow isn’t yet gone... I can’t wait for those actually warm days when you can put on something lighter clothing.

But now, at least the snow has melted and I can’t wait for the summer! I have been using pants (yes, pants) almost through the whole winter but now I have started to use skirts again. Oh, how I have been waiting for that.

Also, I have been able to put on my high heels for the first time since winter! I have been using high heels every day about two weeks now and I can’t even describe the feeling... No more combat boots!

Today's outfit consisted a pencil skirt with a silver zipper and a translucent top which comes down like air.

Here’s some more photos from today:

I haven’t been using this necklace for a while but I think it goes well with all the other silver details – and I like the text. 

I thought that my “basic” dark makeup would go well with the dark outfit and black nails. 

I have been enjoying my red hair more than I can put into words. I love how sunlight makes my hair shine!

Tomorrow it’s Friday and the weekend is finally here. I hope you enjoy the springtime and you have had a great week!