Spoilers

Okay, so we need to talk about that little Christmas Special that happened yesterday...

IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE DOCTOR WHO CHRISTMAS SPECIAL YET THEN STOP READING NOW, LOADS OF SPOILERS LIE BEYOND THIS POINT. 

Very well then, let's continue.

If you are a Whovian, then you know that yesterday marked the end of the era of the 11th. Yesterday we said goodbye to an icon, a hero really, we said good bye to our goofy and perfectly mad, raggedy man with a blue box that stole our hearts all those seasons ago.

And Moffat... well, he sure knows how to rip out a heart. He pulled some things in that episode that should never have happened, but boy was it brilliant. That man is so incredibly talented, but I am certain that if he isn't the devil incarnate, that he at least plays chess with Satan himself every Thursday. Regardless, that episode was absolutely fantastic and our man went out with a bang.

Now I'm going to talk about the things that had me bursting at the seams. At first I was kinda like "well this is slow..." but things quickly picked up pace whenever the Doctor and Clara got to church. Naked Matt Smith,.. I must say that I did not see that one coming. They started running into all of his old enemies, one of which was the Angels, who almost got Clara. I was going to flip if they took her. All I could think of was how Matt must be feeling, seeing another person he holds so dear in the grips of an Angel threatening to take his Impossible Girl away from him. So there was scare number one...

But then he sent Clara away, for her protection of course, but like most companions her love for the Doctor blinded her senses and she eventually made her way back to him by clinging to the outside of the TARDIS as it flew threw the time vortex. When she returned Matt was older. This is when things started getting out of hand for me. Once Clara returned after he sent her away for the second time, he was on his death bed and was as frail as ever. After some help from Gallifrey, he was able to regenerate just one last time. I was not about to have him leave with a face I didn't recognize. That would have been a horribly cruel act on Moffat's part. I was bawling because I thought that was the last time we would see Matt and it wasn't even him. Well it was, but you know. I didn't hear 11 when he gave his farewell speech right before he had one hell of a regeneration (like oh my lanta that was huge), I heard Matt, and that broke my heart. That was scare number two...

The the feet on the stairwell of the TARDIS. I was expecting Capaldi, but NO! Moffat had to make it a little more painful. The 11 that we knew came down the stairs and I was like "WHAT IS THIS? SOME KIND OF CRUEL JOKE?!" He answered by saying it was a reset before he could finish his regeneration. I'd been crying for a good 7 minutes straight by this point. At least I got to see his face before he left.

The real kicker though... the references to his beginning. The fish fingers and custard, and oh no he didn't... little Amelia Pond running around the TARDIS. The look in his eyes when he saw her shattered my heart. I started screaming "That's not fair! That's not fair!" They got more dramatic as I saw who he brought in next. I couldn't believe it. There was Amy Pond, just as he left her, saying "Raggedy Man, good night." I lost it. That was a low blow Moffat. So low, but so good. He got to see his first friend again, his family again and that was a beautiful thing.

Oh... and the whole bow tie falling to the ground thing. Ouch.

I have a theory though... a theory that I pray to God is wrong. When Capaldi showed up he looked entirely confused, as if he didn't know who Clara was... Matt had just got done making a speech about how he would never forget this, the words he was saying, all of his memories. Then he asked "Do you know how to fly this thing?" I got to thinking... that regeneration that was given to him, didn't belong to him. It wasn't his to have... so, what if that caused him to I don't know, not be him? Same body, well relatively, but different mind... Which means none of what we know has happened to this man. No Rose, no River, no Ponds, no Donna, no nothing...

However, if Moffat did this he would not only be destroying 50 years of history, but he would be destroying the fan-base as well. People are against Capaldi already, I am actually quite excited to see him in action, but there are those that are not happy with the choice to have him follow Smith. If he did this, then people might stop watching, so I highly doubt this theory is correct, BUT nothing is impossible when it comes to Moffat, so I'm just throwing my ideas out there.

I guess we'll find out in August...

I would love to hear your ideas and thoughts on the special! I'm sorry that you had to suffer through that, I know it was not easy.

Best,

xx Caitlin.

Happy Christmas!

Just popping in to say Happy Christmas!

It's been a fabulous, but rather uneventful day over in my neck of the woods. Woke up to some scrumptious monkey bread and Doctor Who (which our telly has been stuck on all day), then we opened presents and I am pleased to inform you all that the picture quality will be MUCH improved from here on out! We just got home from dropping my little booger off at the airport and now we are making some Portuguese soup and mentally preparing ourselves for the Doctor Who Christmas Special tonight. Only Moffat/ Gatiss/ Davies/ etc. could ruin even the happiest of holidays. You will be missed Matt. *cue the water works*

ANYWHO!

 I hope you all are having a wonderful day and that it is full of joy and laughter. If you're a Whovian like my family and I, then I apologize, for I fear your evening is not going to be as cheery. Try and make some good memories though, eh?

Much love,

xx Caitlin.

A Perfect Evening Out

So the semester has ended and I just barely survived... seriously, that was hell. Anywho, it is in the past now and I now have until January 13th to not think an ounce about school. Huzzah! To celebrate the end of finals my man friend and I decided we needed a nice evening out. We had originally planned to just go out to Pei Wei, one of my favourites, and then maybe go on a walk and just spend some quality time together, but as you can guess that is not what ended up happening. 

The night before I mentioned that we ought to dress up super fancy, like evening gowns and suit fancy, and then go to a good ole fast food joint someday, not necessarily tomorrow, but just someday. Much to my surprise he replied with "my suit is pressed and ready to go." I for some reason figured I might randomly need evening gowns one day, so I brought two with me to college. Good thing too, because as it turns out I did need them. The next obstacle was deciding which classy fast food restaurant we would go to, and we juggled with places like Taco Bell and the Subway in the gas station across from campus, but ultimately opted for the outdoor seating at Sonic. 

I felt as if I were getting ready for prom, which was a little odd, but boy was it fun. There is nothing quite like getting this gussied up. It just makes you instantly feel eons better, and believe it or not it can make you forget just how crappy and torturous finals week is. I had two of my very best friends, Kilah and Grace, and my fantastic roommate Kathryn helping me every way they could. Kilah being the wonderful human that she is with wizard magic skills with a needle saved the day by taking out some previous alterations on the dress ( I wore this dress when I was unhealthy skinny, like a whopping 100 lbs), so it needed a little help to get it back to its original size, my current size. A big thanks to those brilliant ladies for helping transform me into, as Grace likes to put it, Lana Turner. 

Enough chit-chat though, here are some pictures we snapped throughout the night.

My man with exceptional taste is wearing an incredible suit from Express. I am wearing a Calvin Klein evening gown that I got for a sweet bargain. For those of you that don't know my nickname, especially in the marching band/ color guard world, is Calvin because my last name is Kline, so when I found this dress I kind of had to buy it. 

Every date he brings me beautiful flowers that apparently he picks out all by himself. I got a good one. 

We accidentally made the same face when Grace told us to give her a funny face. Oops.

The feast. I hadn't had sonic in quite some time, so it was surprisingly delicious. 

My beautiful princess. I can't tell if he is trying to wink or if he is in pain. I'm going to go with both, both is good. 

He also gave me my Christmas presents a tad early. In case you didn't know, I have an odd obsession with Alice in Wonderland and I collect the books. I had been looking at this copy for years, but could never bring myself to purchase it due to the price. So thank you again Nicholas for getting this beautiful copy for me. It is so nice to see it sitting among my collection now. 

After pigging out in the classiest way possible at Sonic and running around Target, getting stares every step of the way, we went to one of his favourite spots on campus, a quaint little dock on the Brazos. Please forgive me for how cheesy I am about to get, but we went there and danced under the moonlight...and it was absolutely perfect. *ahem* There I said it. Though I should point out by dancing I mean I tripped and got my heels stuck in the cracks of the dock, basically making a fool of myself as he was all smooth and laughed at my awkwardness. Regardless it was definitely the best date I have ever been on and it was easily one of the best nights of my life. 

So let this be a lesson to all of you lovely ladies, keep at least one evening gown on hand because you never know when a dashing young man will want to take you on a fancy Sonic date. 

Thanks for toughing out my sappy post! 

Stay Golden,

xxCaitlin.

Going to the Dark Side

 As you might have noticed posts have been few and far in between as of late. I've gotten surprisingly behind in school, and my studies do have to come first. However, I just got out of a stupid final and I'm treating myself to a post. I'm just happy I survived the first one, a few more to go still. Mehhhh.

Anywho, a big change occurred over the almost two weeks that I have been gone... my hair is no longer red. I dyed it over Thanksgiving break and it was supposed to be a nice chocolate brown, but since my hair was so light it was like DEPOSIT ALL THE COLOUR! And well, it turned out almost black. I was furious and I wanted to cry. I even contemplated just shaving it all off because anything was better than the colour I ended up with. I washed it nearly 8 times with Head and Shoulders because it strips colour like none other and tried several other colour fading remedies I had found. It wasn't budging and I thought all was lost, but once I realized that nothing could be done to fix it, the colour slowly began to grow on me. It has thankfully faded a bit since then and I love it now! Funny how things work out.

Enough talk though, I put together a rather glamorous outfit to showcase the change for you guys. My mother recently gave me this gorgeous vintage jacket and I have been dying to wear it, so when I woke up obnoxiously early on my own accord the other day I decided to build an outfit around it. I had also done my make-up pretty dramatic this particular day, so I had to have the outfit compliment that. Here is what I came up with! Hope you enjoy.

Cat-eye and a berry lip.

 

Dress: ModCloth// Jacket: Vintage// Tights: Forever 21// Heels: Thrifted// Lipstick: NYC Mahogany. 

My boss asked me if I was in some sort of theatrical performance. I wasn't sure how to take that at first, but I eventually decided it was a compliment. I felt snazzy and that is all that really matters! (: 

Thanks for reading and best of luck on your finals to those of you who are currently suffering through those as well!

xxCaitlin. 

A Thought

Well November officially came to a close yesterday, crazy I know. It is hard to imagine that 2013 is almost over, and now there is just one more month standing in between us and 2014. But holy nonsense CHRISTMAS! We have our tree decorated and the Christmas jams on repeat. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

However, Christmas is not what I wanted to discuss today. I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what it means to be truly thankful, or rather how much I take for granted.

The nail-biting game between my Baylor Bears and the TCU Horned Frogs took full advantage of my entire range of emotions. I have never been more angry at some of those refs, aghhh do not even get me started on some of their calls, but I have also never been more happy or proud as when I saw our guys continue to fight and eventually win the game. It was emotional... wow, never thought I would be saying that over a game of football.

And I prayed... a lot. But the thing was that I only prayed when the going got tough for Baylor, and of course it was silly and stupid things I was asking for the whole time. And not once did I take the time to thank God for listening to my rather petty prayers. I asked for something, which he gave me, and I never said thank you. 

I realized that I do this a surprising amount in my day-to-day life, whether I'm asking for guidance on a test, or to survive an obstacle that seems impossible to overcome. I don't know if any of you have been asked whether or not you pray, but I have and most of the time my response- in my head at least- is something like "Oh yeah, I totally pray. Like all the time." And though that is technically true, I only do it when I need something and apparently I need quite a few things. But I never say thank you. I do this every day, and every day He continues to forgive me and keep providing for me. 

It amazes me. He just sits there listening to me, answering me, while He gets nothing in return. Not even the slightest thought like "Hey Big Guy, thanks for delivering once again! You're a pretty rad God in case you forgot." Or something like that, I do believe I have actually started a prayer off with 'yo' as if God is my home boy or something. Yeah... MOVING ON.

It just bothers me knowing that I continuously do this, and it bothers me even more that I never took notice until yesterday. You would never do this to a tangible human being, like your parents, friends, or a stranger, would you? Normally -unless you have absolutely no manners- you express appreciation and thanks towards someone that has followed through on a request that you had made of them. You might even do something for them in return, thus building up trust. You end up knowing that you can always rely on the other person and vice versa. 

I feel that the same goes for the Man Upstairs. He does things for you, so why not show a bit of love and appreciation in return? When you make an effort to seek God in return, you begin to trust Him more and your relationship will grow stronger. Which is one thing I personally struggle greatly with. I never take the time to listen to Him, or to at least do something else besides ask a favor of Him.

The point is that there is so much that He does for us that we should be thankful for, even the small things that we often overlook. The going may get tough every now and then, and it is okay to ask for help, but just remember to show Him a bit of love in return and at least say thank you. He definitely deserves to hear it after putting up with us.

Just a thought. Hope you all had a marvelous Thanksgiving.

Thanks for reading!

xxCaitlin. 

Collars and Lace

Hello lovelies,

Sorry it's been a couple of days since I lasted posted anything for you guys, I'm still trying to recover from The Day of the Doctor (50th Anniversary Episode). I really think Whovians deserve a week off after that brilliant, but so incredibly heartbreaking episode. *MOFFAT!* Unfortunately Baylor didn't catch that memo, so here I am sitting in one of the campus libraries, venting my frustration and admiration to you guys until I have to go to my next class.

On a lighter note, I have a personal outfit post for y'all today. I was feeling particularly creative, and considering I was looking for an outfit I hadn't worn yet, that proved to be a rather helpful mood to be in.

I had this dress with a darling lace peter-pan collar that I absolutely adored, but I personally found the length of the dress to be a little too short, thus I never wore it. I was determined to wear it though, and I did! And to top it off, it was styled in a completely different way than I had ever worn it before. I owe it all to those little magical things of stretchy wonder called tights! I found that if I tucked the too-short dress into the tights, I could put a skirt over it to make it look like a top and I wouldn't have to worry about the dress poking out while I made my trek from one class to another. I threw on my over-worn black cardigan as it was quite chilly outside, some Alice in Wonderland themed necklaces (because why not?) and I was ready to head out the door!

I love the simple detailing on this skirt.

I carried the pink aspects of this outfit into my make-up with a light pink blush on the cheeks, and yes, on my eyelids too! Blush works phenomenally as an eyeshadow and it has a hue that no pink eyeshadow can really recreate. You can read more about it here. 

No particular reason for this picture. I am just rather fond of it. 

Top (Dress): Forever 21// Skirt: Thrifted// Cardigan: Thrifted// Tights: Icings// Shoes: Urban Outfitters// Chair Necklace: Walmart// Alice in Wonderland "Drink Me" Necklace: Etsy (Similar).

A big thanks to Grace over at My Spare Oom for taking these lovely photos.

Thanks so much for reading! Until next time,

xxCaitlin. 

Pretty in Peach

Last, but certainly not least in the line-up of outfits that I styled for the radiant Spencer Anderson, is this pretty peach get-up. [There is one more outfit that has not been photographed yet, so I will share that one with you all as soon as I can.] I normally would have carried the pretty and feminine look throughout the entire outfit, but something about the sharp, black lines of the skirt kept calling my attention. I went with my gut instinct and paired the two together, and I was pleasantly surprised with how well the black maxi complimented the softer aspects of the top half of the outfit. You can see the other ways that I styled this particular skirt here.

This outfit ended up being one of my favourites from the shoot (I tend to have a lot of favourites), and I hope you enjoy it as well!

Gold accessories for the win. 

Can we just talk about this brooch?! So precious!

Top: Forever 21// Peach Cardigan + Owl Brooch: Gift (Original origin is unknown)// Maxi: Kohl's// Loafers: Urban Outfitters

All photos were taken by Grace over at My Spare Oom.

Thanks for reading!

xxCaitlin. 

Scarves and Specs

Salutations!

If you've been following Beauties, Bliss, and Bears as of late, you would know that I recently had the opportunity to style some outfits for my good friend Spencer. You can check out the previous outfits here and here. Today's outfit is a little more cozy/ relaxed than the previous ones, but still super stylish. Scarves are a HUGE staple for me -and most other girls in the world- once the cooler weather hits, so I figured this shoot would not be complete without featuring one. I'm also a sucker for mustard yellow, so as soon as I saw this in her closet I knew I would be using it somehow. Upon further investigation I found this heather green top that complimented the mustard colour perfectly and some brown riding boots that simply completed this classic look.

This is such an easy outfit to recreate and it is perfect for this lovely fall weather.

Fun Fact: Those are my glasses that I basically threw at her right before we took the pictures. They were like icing on the cake.

Top: Old Navy// Jeans: Kohl's// Scarf: Forever 21// Boots: Gift // Glasses: Warby Parker.

All photos were taken by Grace over at My Spare Oom.

Thank you for reading! 

xx Caitlin.

Twice as Nice

It always amazes me how something as simple as accessories can take an outfit and give it two entirely different looks. That is what I love about styling clothing and accessories; the possibilities are seemingly endless, all you need is a little creativity! So today I have the same outfit styled two completely different ways: a comfy/casual daytime look, and an edgier, nighttime look. Hope you enjoy!

In order to create a more casual, fun, and effortless look I threw a bright coral cardigan over an all black and white outfit. Adding a pop of colour is an easy way to make any outfit more exciting.

Changing the make-up a bit. You should have seen the looks we were getting.

I ditched the coral cardi and said hello to a classic leather jacket, turned the slit in the skirt more towards the front, added a chunky pearl necklace and BAM! Same outfit with an edgier feel.

Skirt: Kohls // Graphic Tee: Thrifted (Originally from Forever 21)// Leather Jacket: Target // Coral Cardigan: Old Navy // Wedges: TOMS // Necklace: Forever 21

All photos were taken by Grace over at My Spare Oom.

Thank you for reading! Stay golden my friends,

xx Caitlin.

Go Bold

Good Afternoon!

As I previously mentioned, I recently had the opportunity to style a photo shoot with the lovely Spencer Anderson. In case you missed it you can see what I wore for this occasion here. This first outfit is probably one of my favourites from the entire shoot. This dress is so much fun with it's bold print and gorgeous cut, but the most important aspect is that Spence looks positively stunning in it! I am a firm believer that you should always style for the person actually having to wear the clothes, and not for yourself. People obviously wear certain things differently and there are some cuts that just work better for certain people, so there is no use in making the person feel uncomfortable by forcing them into an outfit they would never wear if they had option not to. That being said, I tried to make Spencer feel as fabulous as possible. I wanted to make sure that she was wearing these outfits and not the other way around. And from the number of wolf whistles and cat calls she was receiving from people, I think it is safe to say she was wearing these outfits! 

So without further ado, the magnificent Spencer Anderson.

Dress: Wish// Wedges: TOMS// Leather Band: Thrifted// Earrings: Claire's

I just love this picture. (:

All photos were taken by my brilliant friend and fellow blogger Grace. 

I hope you are all having a stupendous Saturday! Thank you for reading.

xxCaitlin

Styling: What I Wore

Hello all!

This past weekend I had the opportunity to style a fashion photo shoot for my dear friend Spencer Anderson. Let me start off by saying, holy nonsense that girl has a wardrobe that could make even the most fashionable of ladies jealous, and to top it off she is such a beautiful person inside and out. I absolutely loved this experience and I cannot wait to style more shoots in the future. It is quite refreshing to get to work with other people's closets and test your limits in ways that you cannot necessarily do with your own.

I cannot wait to share the results with all of you, but first I am going to share what I wore to style the shoot. 

The shoot took an unexpected turn and ended up being in Austin (funny how I always tend to randomly end up in Austin), right next to the good ole capital. Knowing that I would be running around all day trying to find the perfect location for each outfit while carrying the massive bag that contained all of the necessary items for the shoot, I opted for a VERY casual, but still cute look. Since I wasn't having to constantly make sure my dress or anything wasn't askew, I was able to focus all of my attention on her. I was comfortable and ready to work, so this outfit ended up being exactly what I needed.

I opted for my black TOMS, which as you can see probably need to be retired soon. Surprisingly enough this pair is one of my better pairs. 

 The cami is in a fantastic shade of red and the scarf is hands-down my favourite one that I own. Not to mention all of it is super comfy, thus I tend to run to this outfit when I need to look cute, but do not feel like dressing up too much. I wear this outfit more often than I care to admit, but oh well. *sigh*

Cami- Old Navy// Cardigan- thrifted// Scarf- gift (I have no clue where it is from)// Jeans: Forever 21// Shoes: TOMS// Glasses: Warby Parker

In action. Just a little preview of what to expect from these outfits, which I will be posting soon, so stay tuned! 

All of the photos were taken by my lovely friend Grace. Thanks again for helping out and tagging along with us last minute. 

Stay Golden,

xx Caitlin. 

Splinters

To say the least, this semester has been the hardest one yet. Trying to manage 17 hours, a job, marching band, bills, and actually converging into adulthood is EXHAUSTING, 

not to mention stressful.

I am a Studio Art Major with and emphasis in Graphic Design, and I absolutely love it. Coming to Baylor, I was prepared artistically for the classes, but not the work load. I like to think I did pretty well in my beginning classes my Freshman year, but I was not prepared for the

 challenge that is Wood Sculpture.

First of all, I NEVER would have picked this class for one of my studio electives by myself, but after some convincing, I signed up. Every expectation for this class that I had in my mind was shattered when i walked in to class the first day. I knew no one, I had no idea how to use a saw, how to sand, and I definitely was not confident in my klutzy self enough to trust the fact that I wouldn't cut my pinky off the first time i used a saw.

At first, I absolutely hated this class. The work load seemed a little ridiculous, expectations were outrageous, and i was not the biggest fan of my professor. Simply put, I wanted to quit.

My mom always tells me that I am very hesitant to trying things that I have doubts about, and I need a push (sometimes a swift kick) in the right direction. Since she wasn't there to kick me, i did it myself. And it felt pretty good.

I am in the middle of my third sculpture project, and I actually enjoy it. Granted, sculpture is NOT my thing, but I am happy that I can now cut triangles and circles with the best of 'em

( maybe not the best, but hey.)

For years, I have lived in the area that is just outside the comfort zone, but not quite willing to be positively adventurous.  I've made good grades, i've tried to get the easiest Professors, and I've made excuses as to why I 'couldn't' do something. To be honest, I feel like my sculpture class has taught me how to make mistakes and be okay with it. Perfection is IMPOSSIBLE, but the best way to aspire to it is to keep trying. I probably remade this last project at least 5 different times before i found one design that worked. Yes grades do matter to me, but what matters more is that I actually learn in my mistakes, even if that means messing up 10 times on cutting wood.

Sometimes i feel like I'm a tough girl when I go into the wood shop. Literally, some of the thoughts that go through my internal dialogue go like this; 'Look at me cut this Mahogany, with this saw. Look at my splinters! I rule.' And sometimes it's nice to think you're awesome, even if you only admit it to yourself. So when I go home covered in sawdust, hands full of splinters, and arms full of bruises I can be proud of myself, and others can think I'm just a klutz who has bad dandruff.

Thank You all for reading!

- Jessica

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year... Well Almost.

Happy Halloween! 

Halloween is one of my favourite holidays, rivaled only of course by Christmas. There is just this sense of joy in the air during the holiday season that I am absolutely in love with, and it makes it incredibly difficult to choose a favourite. Thus, they are both my favourite. Solid logic, I know. ANYWHO, in honor of the Halloween spirit I thought I would share these lovely photos from an Alice in Wonderland themed photo shoot I had with my brilliant friend Grace.

I followed the white rabbit and fell into a world of wonder.

"Drink Me... this bottle was not marked 'poison,' so Alice ventured to taste it, and finding it very nice, (it had, in fact, a sort of mixed flavour of cherry-tart, custard, pine-apple, roast turkey, toffee, and hot buttered toast,) she very soon finished it off." -Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

TEA TIME...

...With the maddest of all Hatters. 

But seriously. 

I fit in quite nicely here.

Thank you my darling friend for taking these brilliant photos. I had so much fun.

A very big thank you to Charlie Evans for helping us out at the last minute and being the white rabbit. I seriously could not think of anyone more suited for the part, so thank you. He has a blog full of wise words and his musings as of late. They are definitely worth the read.

I hope you guys have a spooktacular Halloween!

xxCaitlin