The Middle

 

             Every Wednesday night the hit sitcom The Middle airs on ABC. The Middle is a show that focuses on the Heck's an average family in Indianapolis who has hard times coming up with money for Christmas or can't afford to renovate their house which are problems that everyday family including mine faces.

 

             Many hit shows now are about rich families, and it doesn't apply to the average kid, and many of these shows are actually on Disney Channel including the show Jessie. Jessie although she does go through average problems is about a live in nanny who works for famous director by watching their kids in their penthouse in New York City. Another one called Suite Life of Zack and Cody where two twins grow up in a hotel, because their mom in a singer and when that show was over Suite Life on Deck emerged where those same twins lived on a cruise ship. 

 

             On the other side the recent episode that I watched was of course a Christmas episode, because it is only a few days from Christmas. In this episode the mom Frankie played by Patricia Heaton is going to have a minimal Christmas meaning no crazy decorations, or cookies, because she feels like she is the only one that contributes, and pays attention. Many families including mine have this same struggle being that one or a couple family members contribute while others don't, making this show really relatable to the average family.

 

             So what do these shows about well off families show kids. Growing up watching shows such as Hannah Montana, Suite Life of Zack and Cody I had false expectations. I expected that things would just happen to me such as I would become a famous singer, or happen to walk down the street, and picked up as a nanny for famous directors, or that my dad would be picked up to be a cook for the President where we would go stay, and live in the White House. Okay maybe that is a little extreme, but I did feel that things would just happen. The Middle however made me realize it's okay to be average, and to have your sink break down, or many other problems, and that in the end all that really matters is family.

 

Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame Inductees

 

 

             Tonight as I was scrolling through the channels I came across the ceremony to induct the rock and roll artists into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Tonight the inductees include KISS, Nirvana, Hall and Oates, E Street Band, Cat Stevens, and many more.

         

             Watching the show made me both wonder, and realize many things. The first thing I discovered is that the KISS members are looking rough without heir infamous stage makeup. Another thing about KISS is that I was surprised at how long it took for them to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, because they are such a known band especially for their crazy makeup, and stage performances. Even though I don't know all their songs word for word I know who they are, and could carry a tune of one of their songs. I also know a couple of their names such as of course Gene Simmons (because I used to watch his reality show), and Ace (I don't know why I remember his name, but it just stuck.) I'm not the only one who feels this way many other people have wondered why it took so long for KISS to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, but even though it took a while they finally are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and 100% deserve it.

 

             Another couple of things that I discovered were about the hit band Nirvana. The first thing although it's not that important is that Dave Grohl drummer for the Foo Fighters was a member of Nirvana as well. This made me wonder, because I'm not a know-it-all when it comes to rock and roll can a person be elected into the hall of fame more than once? Another observation was that since Kurt Cobaine was not there, because he passed away they had other singers perform their songs. This included Lorde, and others. Although I like Lorde I did not agree that they should've had other singers sing Nirvana. I believe this, because since being inducted is such a big deal, and many people watching are fans they know Nirvana for the way they were when Kurt Cobaine singing. By having other people sing Nirvana's songs it kind of ruins the way people remember Nirvana.

 

            While watching this I began to wonder, Why is music such a big deal to our culture? I believe it is, because music makes us feel something. It makes us feel happy, sad, or angry all by words collected together put with a powerful melody. Not only that, but we are able to relate to the songs based on things we're going through in our lives. Regardless of what's going on in our hectic lives many of us turn to music to relate, and I think this will continue in generations to come as music styles, and famous singers change, but the impact it has on us won't.



            

 



 

 

 

The Voice

 

 

          Airing tonight is the two part season finale of the voice. This episode the top four contestants will compete to be the winner of this season of The Voice. For more information on the final contestants click here.

 

          This season all final contestants are very talented, and they all deserve to be where they are. Although all contestants are talented this season made me realize one thing...that the audience watching determine the future of the contestants, and ultimately who has "the voice." Having the audience vote for the singers to move I believe changed the outcome of the show for the reason that I believe they also vote biasedly for their favorite coaches. For example Adam still has all three of his contestants left, and while all of his team members are talented it is still possible that people are voting for his singers, because they want him to be the winning coach, because of the fact that they think he's cute or they like his music.

    

          Looking back I have noticed that this is true on other competitive singing, dancing, and talent shows I've previously seen meaning that some viewers vote for who they think are cute or who has the best personality. Is voting on personality fair though? Being a performer doesn't just mean you have a talent you also have to have  a great fan base. How do you get a great fan base? You have to have a sort of je ne sais quoi.

         
           Although the shows you are watching might not go the way you want, or the people you were rooting for did not win, but the shows still provide one thing for us...entertainment. Entertainment has been a way that our society has connected whether it's talking about your favorite television shows with colleagues at work, or playing your favorite song in  your car filled with your friends. That is why I believe shows although your favorite contestants might have been voted off you still keep watching, because you feel connected, and closer to the contestants performing in the show, and the people who watch the show rooting for the same or different people you were.

The Hallmark Miracles

 

 

          Tis' the season to curl up on the couch with hot cocoa, and cookies and watch your favorite Christmas movies. Which is also the season for Hallmark Channel Christmas movies.

 

          Although, previous to my recent experience watching a hallmark series of Christmas movies I have never watched a Hallmark Christmas movie except for Christmas Shoes, and although that's a good movie it will definitely make you cry. So this year when my aunt praised about Mrs. Miracle, and the new movie Mr. Miracle which was airing tonight I was eager to experience the greatness of what is the almighty Hallmark movies that my aunts, and grandma are always telling me about. (To learn more about the cast movies, watch previews, and view upcoming show times click the links above.) 

 

          As Mr. Miracle started I understood the plot right away, and it was easy to follow, but personally I didn't feel connected to the movie, and didn't develop an emotional tie to the backstory, and current story line of the characters. The next day after being sort of disappointed with my first Hallmark experience I decided to watch Mrs. Miracle, and it was a lot better. The storyline had in my opinion a better plot, and the storyline flowed well, and you developed empathy for the characters. Although the two stories weren't connected in any way they had similar stories that were basically an "guardian angel" is put into these families lives as a human in order to help them get passed something which in both cases was the death of a family member.

 

          While I watched both movies I began to wonder, why are Christmas movies such big part of our culture? Why do we love, and anticipate being able to watch movies about a mythical snowman coming to life, or a man in a red suit? As I finished Mrs. Miracle I realized why. They make us feel something. Watching Christmas movies makes me feel young again, and remember the times I would stay awake all night anticipating the arrival of Santa, and the presents he brought. For other people watching Christmas movies brings them closer to their families since the majority of Christmas movies have to deal with the importance of friendship, and family, and by the end of the movies our hearts have grown two times larger.

 

         Christmas moves have, and always will be a huge part of our culture not, because they tell a great story or have great characters, but they make you feel something whether it's feeling young, or joyful for the upcoming holidays, and that's what watching Mrs. Miracle made me feel.

Naked and Afraid

 

 

          A couple of weeks ago I visited Colorado. One night while my friends in I were flipping through the unknown channels we came across the Discovery Channel which happened to be showing Naked and Afraid. I know just by the title it sounds silly, and pointless, and that's what I thought when I first heard of it however I quickly changed my mind.

          Naked and Afraid is a show where two contestants a male, and a female who don't know each other are dropped off in the tropical wilderness.....naked, and are allowed to bring one thing with them that will help them survive. I know what you are thinking, and yes the show is censored. During each episode they are dropped off in the dangerous wilderness with only one camera man for 21 days where they, and their partner on the show must survive, and travel to the pick up spot that they were given on a map. 

          Each week two new contestants compete for 21 days. This aspect made the sow a little less harder to connect to, because there were new people every week after you got attached to the contestants from the previous week. Changing the contestants does make sense though, because they it's unethical to have the same contestants experiencing that harsh environment over, and over again.

          Although the show does seem weird I give the contestants a lot of credit, because I could never or would want to never experience what they experience. They have to hunt or find food to survive, make a shelter, because at night the temperatures usually drop, and become frigid, and avoid all the dangerous creatures such as snakes, mountain lions, poisonous bugs "oh my," all while being naked.

          I learned from this show how important teamwork is. In many instances they had to work together in order to survive, and that's an important message, because it does truly "take two to tango." Also when one contestant decided to leave early the other one usually followed, because it was harder. Although I do think that it was harder, because hunting is harder, making shelter is harder, etc., but they lost hope. Having another person to help you through a tough situation makes it easier, and worthwhile. They give you a sense of hope that you can get through it when they're there, and they also push you to keep going when you want to give up.

          This show even though is strange is one that I will probably continue watching. Although the show is "out there" it teaches the audience a great thing which is that no matter what situation you are in having another person there will make it easier, and worth the struggle.

         



         

Once Upon A Time

         Once Upon A Time, in a land far, far way (my living room) I sat down on my couch on a chilly Sunday night with a mug of hot chocolate, turned on my television, and watched the 2 hour long episode of Once Upon A Time.
          
          Once Upon A Time is a hit show about fairy tale characters such as Rumplestilstkin, Cinderella, and the newest members Elsa, and Anna from Frozen. These fairytale characters were transported from their magical palaces, and lands to the small town of Storybrook, where they constantly face problems such as a curse that will make them forget who they are, and currently an evil ice princess who cast a spell that will make everyone turn on each other. For more information about Once Upon A Time click here


          Not only does Once Upon A Time display my imagination of when I was a child wanting to grow up to be the princess of a magical land, but it overall is a good show. It's a diverse show from Peter Pan to Merlin's Hat, and it brings back old stories, and memories of you reading a fairytale sitting in your bedroom. It captures many emotions from anger to revenge to love in so many ways, and it's done beautifully that you can't help, but fall in love even with the evil characters.


          Watching Once Upon A Time opened my imagination, and my mind begins to wander throughout. The show makes me wonder who I am. Am I the evil queen plotting to kill someone every chance she gets, or am I Snow White who cares about others, and has a kind, generous heart. Although, I'm not sure Once Upon A Time has made me realize that it doesn't matter. In the show there are bad guys Mr. Gold, Evil Queen, etc. and there are good Emma, Snow White, and watching the show made me realize that you need both the good and the bad guys. You need the good guys to do what's right, and what's best, but you also need the "evil" narcissistic people who will save the town even if it is to just save themselves.


          There has always been good guys, and bad guys, and there always will be, but instead of trying to fix that we should somewhat embrace people different from us, because they make society function just as well.







         

Kourtney and Khloe Take the Hamptons

           
              I am a big fan of the Kardashians and have been watching it for strongest time and I am so excited because tonight is the series premiere of Kourtney and Khloe take the Hamptons. I have been waiting to watch the show since the season of The Kardashians finished.
             Overall I felt the season premiere was fairly interesting. Already you can start to see the problems that will unfold later on in the season. These things I believe include Scott due to the recent death of his parents will start drinking heavily again and go out to parties, and Kourtney will get upset. Also Khloe won't want to be there because she would rather be in the city. I bribe this will cause tension between her and Kourtney too. I'm also excited to see Khloe and her recent new boyfriend French Montana's relationship unfold.
             So what does watching these shows say about the viewer. Why are people including myself interested in people's lives? Are we that nosy? Or do we want to see how the other half lives? I believe it's probably both, but why? I believe it says that our generation loves watching other people go through bad things in their lives such as divorce, drinking, etc., and we also love seeing the highs weddings, babies, etc., especially of the glamorous Kardashians. Their lives are so glamorous and high class and I believe we our interested I. How they live their lives and more importantly how they got all that money and fame and we question this while enjoying their reality shows.
             This not only goes for the Kardashian, but pretty much every reality show that exists. We love the drama and the tears and everything in between. This says a lot about our generation including the fact that we enjoy watching fake set up shows about people's lives, because we thrive to see the ugly sides of people more than the good.
             So what will come of tv in the future? Will it be reality shows or cheesy sitcoms? Even though I don't know ill be eagerly waiting to find out while kicking back watching reality shows while snacking on some popcorn.

Project Runway

            
            
             Although I have already written about the wonderful show Project Runway I have decided to write about it again, because Thursday was the season 13 finale. Project Runway is my favorite reality competition show right now, and I'm sad to say that it has finally come to an end.
             This season was the first season I watched from beginning to end, because usually I start mid season or quit watching it for various reasons. The first part of the finale premiered two Thursdays ago where we saw the beginning of their collections, and the judges opinions of the a few looks of their collections. When the judges reviewed their looks I thought that overall Char was in the most trouble. Her outfits didn't seem cohesive to me, and they seemed to fit two different scenarios a working woman, and then a woman out at night. Kini, however, received the worst treatment. His collection was torn apart, but I still believed he would be able to come back.
             When part two aired I was so excited to see the final looks. Overall my favorite collection was Kini, because he used denim throughout his looks, but he made it look classy, and timeless, and that's amazing to me. I liked Char's look, because it appealed to the "average woman" and isn't for an editorial shoot or on the red carpet it was something that most women would by for a daily outfit, and I was also shocked how much I liked it, because at her critique I didn't. I also liked Amanda's because her looks appealed to my sense of style. She has a more bohemian flare with her clothes, but her looks looked relatively the same to me. They were the same few patterns, and they had the curvy pieces of fabric, but I still loved her collection. Sean's collection was probably my least favorite. I thought it was cool that his collection told the story of the betrayal of Caesar, but he used too much fringe for me, and his looks you wouldn't see on the streets, but more on a red carpets.
             In the end Sean won, and I was kind of upset, because I thought Project Runway was about bringing fashion to the everyday people, but they chose a winner, and they even said they chose him, because he was a more editorial designer. I was happy he won, but I personally felt Mini should have won based on my fashion preference




     Dress Code in School



             I attend a public school where the dress code rules are simply a girl's shirt can't be too low the, and it can't be too high and show your stomach, your shorts can't be too short, and you can't show too much skin (back, shoulders, etc.) Although, girls have countless rules of what are outfits should look like boys don't have a dress code at all so what is this saying about the importance of a woman's education, and rights.

             In middle school we had this rule that when you put your arms down your shorts have to be longer than your fingertips, and you had to wear sleeves, because shoulders are too distracting for the male population. I have been told by many staff members that my shorts were too short, and they were in the middle between my hips, and my knees. In high school I personally have never been called to change, but many people have, and all of them have been girls.

             Yes, I believe sometimes that there are instances when a girl's outfit can be too revealing, but most of the time it's not, but women are still taken out of class to go home and change or they will provide you with a shirt, pants, etc. I believe it is unfair that a woman has to interrupt their education, because a man doesn't know how to treat a woman respectfully. What is this saying about our education system? There is a bigger problem than too short of shorts or revealing too much shoulder. What's really wrong is the fact that schools think it is okay that instead of teaching a man how to treat a woman respectfully, and not stare at her chest, legs or whatever the problem they teach women to change, because the man gets distracted, and we can't interrupt his education, but we can interrupt a woman's.

             They claim that revealing outfits are distracting to a man, but honestly being in the actual classrooms I don't feel that it is. I mean sure it might catch their eye when someone walks into a classroom or gets up to get something, but they get over it, and I personally have never seen it where it distracts them from their education, and schoolwork. They claim a woman's outfit can be too distracting, but so can a man's. I've seen many men walk around with sagging pants, and muscle shirts that go down to their ribcage, but that's perfectly fine. Why? I don't know. Is it because as woman are less distracted by it? I don't know. Is it because men have more rights than women? I don't know, but what I do know is that women have just as equal rights as men, and that should include their education as well.

            

          Leather Jackets

 

  One trend that has been reappearing in closets is leather jackets. Leather jackets are a timeless fashion piece and have been popular in fashion of all decades. As Leather jackets are being worn more I have decided to put outfits together including two leather jackets. Although I'm only showing two leather jackets I will show multiple outfits to show the versatility that the almighty leather jacket brings. The pictures were unable to upload, but I will put them on as soon as I can figure out.

 

Brown Leather Jacket from Express                 Metallic Black Jacket from Dry Goods

 

 

 

 

 

Add some heat to some of your favorite patterned or solid tank tops by pairing it with a solid colored leather jacket. Tips: Make sure the colors in the pattern are cohesive to the color of the jacket or have the same color somewhere throughout the pattern.

 

 

Tank Top- TJ Maxx                                           Tank Top- TJ Maxx

 

 

 

 

 

 Add some flare by adding a leather jacket to a romper. Tips: Make sure the two outfits are cohesive, and keep your accessories to a minimum so it doesn't overshadow the pattern of the romper. To add more flare pair this outfit with your favorite pair of combat boots.

 

 

Romper- Forever 21                                        Romper- Von Maur   

 

 

 

 

 

 To spice up a casual look pair a leather jacket with a button up shirt. Tips: If you chose to pair it with a solid shirt spice it up by adding bold jewelery such as long necklaces. If you decide to do patterned shirts try to minimize jewelery.

 

 

 

Shirt- Express                                       Shirt- American Eagle

 

 

 

 

Add a little bit of edge to your favorite striped sweaters. Tips: Due to the pattern already in your look try to minimize any other bold patterns such as shoes, jewelery, hats, and if  you decide to wear a scarf stick to a solid or minimal print scarf.

 

 

Sweater- American Eagle                                        Sweater- Forever 21

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

               

The Controversial Fashion Question

 

One of the biggest controversies spreading across the nation worldwide comes down to one question… “Can you wear white after Labor Day?” Because this is an ongoing problem of citizens not knowing the answer I have taken it upon myself to answer. Not being able the wear white after Labor Day has many theories have how it started. Some people believe that it was a rule made by rich women who thought that by having this rule it would somehow separate the rich and poor classes even more, and put the rich women above everyone else. This is among the may theories have how this rule started, regardless of the many theories I believe that wearing white after Labor Day is perfectly fine in fact I’m wearing right now as I’m writing this, and I’m not really sure why people have followed this rule for so long. Now since that question has been cleared up I have also taken it upon myself to put together some looks involving white articles of clothing that will stop traffic. The pictures weren't uploading, and because of that they don't have pictures included in with the description.

A white knit sweater featured in my blog before is from Forever 21, and is one of the most versatile sweaters. If you want to dress it up you can pair it with a black skirt, or if you want to dress it down you can pair it with your favorite pair of jeans, and a colorful scarf or jewelry.

The next article of clothing are white skinny jeans. These particular ones I got at Aeropostale, but you can find similar ones at numerous amounts of other clothing stores. Since these are a solid color pant I recommend pairing it with a colorful patterned shirt of your choice, but if you do decide to wear a solid bright neutral colors such as sky blue are my favorite. If you do wear a solid try adding a personal flare with colorful shoes, jewelry, scarf, or hat to make the look more unique to your personality.

The next article which has been featured in my blog before is a long white Bohemian cardigan from Hollister. This is one of my favorite articles of clothing, because it fits one of my many styles perfectly. This cardigan like many things is very versatile. You can pair it with a floral print dress or a patterned shirt, and jeans.

Are You the One?

As I was flipping through the channels and shows on my TV guide I noticed that Are You the One? Season Two was on. The show aired last year, and of course I watched it, and was actually intrigued, and wanted them to continue, and do a Season Two, and they finally did. Although the show premiered a week before I recorded it, and was very excited to watch it.

                Are You the One is a competition reality show where 20 contestants meet, and tests and experts as cheesy and unrealistic as it seems have found them there perfect match who is one of the other contestants. They have 10 weeks for all 10 20 contestants to find their perfect match, and if all contestants do they win $1,000,000.

                When I first heard what the show was about I doubted it. How could tests find someone’s perfect match out of only the people who were willing to do the show? Especially since it airs on MTV I thought it was all for the drama, and the views. When I finished watching the show I definitely knew that I was right. Out of all the couples paired up only two couples remained together in the end. All the other couples couldn’t stand one another and their “relationship” had ended badly. The show is something different than anything I’ve seen on tv. So, did MTV create the show for the views and put people on the show that will create drama and spike their views or was their objective in mind to find the contestants “true love?”

                This season they’ve added a twist, because one guy had to “perfect matches.” Whoever the guy chooses as his perfect match, and is right the other girl has to go home. I don’t like this new rule, because I believe it’s unfair to the girl who is paired up with her because only one will end up with their “true love” and the other will pack up and be sent home. This made me question the show once again, because this rule will create and already has created drama in the house, and when one of the girls is picked there is bound to be a fight.

                Although I’ve questioned the objective of MTV I am overall excited to watch the season unfold. Although finding true love based on tests might not be real it is still a cheesy dramatic reality show so of course I’m bound to watch it.

Dance Moms

 

 

             Although I have already written about Dance Moms I still can't get over the 2 week season finale where the ALDC traveled to Los Angeles, and competed in Nationals.

            The first half of the finale started in Los Angeles where Chloe, Kendall, and Kamryn received a solo, but Maddie didn't. For once I actually sided with Abby with something, and that was not giving Maddie a solo. It's pretty obvious Maddie is put on the pedestal, and is Abby's clear favorite, and always receives solos, because she always wins, but I think she doesn't give the other girls a chance, and when she does I feel she gives them lower quality choreography compared to Maddie and sets her up to win. The only thing I didn't agree with is when she said that Maddie doesn't get a solo, because she's busy with Jimmy Kimmel. I know she most likely is too busy to learn a new solo, but the way Abby said it was almost rubbing it in the other girl's faces that Maddie was going to be on Jimmy Kimmel. Even though none of the solos won I was much happier that they got a chance than them actually winning first.

             Of course no reality show is good without a little drama, and thanks to Cathy from Candy Apples Dance Studio there wasn't a shortage during these episodes. Maddie Ziegler from Abby Lee Dance Company was featured in a music video of a song by Sia called Chandelier, and the song, and music video became a worldwide hit, and Cathy decided to have her dancers dance to this song for Nationals. Overall I had mixed feeling about what Cathy did, because yes she does have the right, and did pay the money so that her dances could dance to that song, but I feel like why she did it was wrong. To me it didn't seem like she wanted to do it, because it was a good song she wanted to do it in hopes of having her student's perform better than Maddie did in the music video. Her dancer's did do have an immaculate performance, and it was overall very cohesive, but I feel like no one could have a better performance than Maddie, because the music video was amazing!

           Over the course of the show it had become apparent that Abby is not the nicest person....okay let me rephrase that it has become apparent that Abby is the least nice person. Over the course of the show she has sabotaged her own dancers, and ridiculed them, and out of all the dancers Chloe has received the worst treatment from her. During all seasons of Dance Moms, Chloe has been compared to Maddie countless times, and when she is she is usually compared as being worse. At the end of the show Chloe said "I still want to dance, but not with her anymore." referring to Abby. I've been wondering all series long how any of the girls, and moms put up with Abby, and why none of them have left yet, because Abby treats them horribly. I was proud of Chloe for finally sticking up for herself and deciding that enough is enough, and I could tell that because of Abby's treatment Chloe was losing her passion for dance, and didn't seem like she wanted to dance anymore. Chloe has been my favorite since the beginning, because she's the underdog of the show, and I'm sad because I'm not sure if she will still be on the show at another studio or what the future holds.

            Overall this season has been filled with twists, and turns and I'm excited to see what the reunion on Tuesday night will bring.

 

 

 

 

 

 



Halloween Wars

               

 

            This week as I was scrolling through the channels to find a show to write about I came across one that caught my eye. It’s a show called Halloween Wars which is a cooking show where teams compete to win $50,000. In Halloween Wars there are teams and on each team there is a professional pumpkin carver, candy maker, and cake artist, and these teams work together to create displays based on Halloween.

The episode that I watched aired in 2013 with the final four remaining teams. At the beginning they have a small challenge where they have 45 minutes to create a display, and this week they had to design a display based on a scary Greek mythology character. Teams created creatures such as Medusa, a Cyclopes, Griffin, and a Minitar. I thought that 45 minutes was not enough time, because as I was watching most teams had to hurry to finish what they were going to do. Each team I felt did a great job representing the character, but I felt the griffin which is half tiger half bird wasn’t scary even though the challenge said it was supposed to be. I wasn’t able to tell that it was half tiger half bird, and the creature was almost cute. In the end the team who created the Cyclopes won which I agreed with, because not only did they create a Cyclopes, but they  created a scenery around it showing the Cyclopes escaping which I thought was unique, and they had a lot of detail on the Cyclopes’ face. The team that won received an extra assistant in the next challenge which I felt would benefit the team.

              The next challenge called the “spine chiller” was the ultimate challenge, and the teams got five hours to complete it. They had to create a display based on a kid’s nursery rhyme, but give it a Halloween twist, and create a twist on a kid’s snack and put it somewhere in their display. I thought this challenge was cool, because it allowed the team to really show their creativity by creating a scary twist. One team was based on the rhyme Patty Cake, and instead of a bakers man they used a witch instead. I thought this was cool, but it seemed far from the traditional baker’s man story, because it had nothing that connected the two stories. Although they had that problem I felt their display had a lot of detail in it, and probably the most detail out of all the teams. Another team did Ms. Muffet, and the spider is killing her instead of befriending her. I didn’t really know the story of Ms. Muffet before this, but I thought it was a cool twist on the traditional story once I did learn what it was. Even though they did provide a cool twist their display was pretty simple compared to the other teams. The other teams included Three Blind Mice, and placed a Butcher’s wife instead of a farmer’s wife, and Mary Mary Quite Contrary, and instead of watering a garden she was watering a graveyard.

For the snack three out of the four teams did a twist on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich which I thought was comic, because I felt that there are many other kid snacks that they could have made and incorporated it into their displays. Once the competition was over the winner of the show was Mary Mary Quite Contrary, and I agreed with this, because it showed the skills of all the team members. The losing team and the team that was eliminated was the team who created the Ms. Muffet display, and I agreed with the judges on this as well. Although there were some cool aspects such as the spider web that the candy maker made out of sugar, and the spider legs made of pumpkins it was simple, and didn’t have a backdrop or anything like that which I thought it should’ve.

                The next season is premiering tonight on the Food Network at 9/8c and I’m eager to see if the season will be a trick or a treat.

 The Voice

 

Another competition show I’ve been watching is The Voice. The Voice is a show where four judges are turned away from the stage when someone is singing to not judge their voice based on their appearance. If they decided they like their voice and potentially want to coach them they turn their chairs around. Once all coaches teams are full they then compete against each other until there is one winner from one coach. I’ve been watching the show since the beginning and they’re constantly changing the judges just when I’m starting to get used to them.

At first there was Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, CeeLo Green, and Christina Aguilera. I like this group of judges, because I liked all of them individually, and not only that, but they worked well on the show, and you could tell they all liked each other, and there wasn’t some hidden dislike between the judges. After a couple of seasons they traded CeeLo and Christina for Usher and Shakira and out this was my least favorite group out of all three. It’s not that I didn’t like them I did, but it seemed like the show wasn’t as “fun” as it was before, and I know the show is a competition show, and it doesn’t need to be fun, but it was more entertaining to watch when the judges joked, and messed around. They have gone back and forth between these two for a couple seasons, but now they’re changing it up. Instead of Usher and Shakira they are now having Pharell, and Gwen Stefani. I like Gwen, because everyone that chose her as a coach she gave them a t-shirt she had made that said Team Gwen, and I thought that was cool, because it showed the contestants that she does truly care.…..

 Out of all the changing of coaches two coaches have never left Blake and Adam. I think they haven’t left yet, because the viewers of the show love them. Adam and Blake are great friends and you can tell by how they act on the show. They are constantly fighting, and picking on each other, but you can still tell they’re really good friends, and I think that’s why they’ve stayed on the show for so long, because viewers love to be entertained while watching a show that doesn’t have to do with entertaining. Another thing that I’ve noticed is that some of the contestants seem to avoid Blake, because he is known for being a country singer, and people who aren’t country singers tend to go for people like Gwen or Pharell. I think that if it was up to me I would chose Blake, because although he is a country singer he is still a singer, and still knows how to sing and the technique of singing. Not only that, but since he does tend to go for country singers and if I was a powerhouse singer I would go for Blake, because you would stand out in his group instead of going to another team where you sound just the same as everybody else.

I like the voice, and what it stands for, because they judge them on their voice, and not their look which nowadays you get into show business if you “have the right look,” and I think that’s wrong, and I like how people who have never been confident about themselves can go up there and just sing, and not be picked based on their look. Since the show just started I don’t have a favorite out of the contestants, but I’m excited for the show to continue, and who will be the next voice winner.

             Comfy Cardigans

             A trend that is great for fall this year is long cardigan sweaters. I have a lot of these and decided to share my favorites and what I usually pair with them to inspire you to create your own cardigan looks this season. 





             One of my favorite cardigans is this grey knitted cardigan mixed with black and white. Since the cardigan already kind of has a pattern to it I wouldn't pair it with a patterned shirt instead I would pair it with a plain black or white tank. My favorite thing to pair it with is this polyester loose fitting tank that is shorter in the front then the back. Sometimes when I'm feeling daring and decide to pair it with a patterned shirt I pair it with a loose black tank with white crosses across the front that way it still goes with the black and white in the sweater. For pants I usually wear medium colored skinny jeans with holes.

Grey/Black/White
Forever 21

Black Polyster Tank
TJ Maxx



 

            A sweater that's been hibernating in my closet for fall is this long blue sweater from Hollister. This sweater is probably my most versatile cardigan, because it goes with a lot of shirts in my closet. I've worn it with many tanks, but never completely fell in love with a match until I was digging through my closet and found this shirt with a cream shirt that is kind of an "ombre" of aztec pattern along the front of the shirt. Since the cardigan does go with many shirts I don't have to strict of suggestions of possible options, but my favorite are shirts that have hints of blue throughout it that way the cardigan brings out the cool patterns in the shirt



Aztec t-shirt
Target



Another one of my fall cardigans is this long beige cardigan from American Eagle and to add my own personal flare to this cardigan I roll up the sleeves a bit. I like this sweater, because it's just one of those cozy sweaters that you can dress up or down. I wear this with a paisley patterned shirt and I recommend wearing a pastel patterned tank/shirt since it is a light colored solid cardigan. I usually wear dark skinny jeans or capris with these depending on the weather.



Beige knitted cardigan
American Eagle



Cream shirt with paisley design
American Eagle







On a warm fall day when I feel like dressing up I will wear this colorful aztec dress with another one of my favorite cardigans. This cardigan is one of my favorites, because of all the detail in it. The fringe and the different designs throughout the sweater are really cool. Speaking of cool if the turns out to be chilly that particular day I was looking forward to wearing my cardigan I pair this cardigan up with a blue floral tank or shirt and some skinny light or dark skinny jeans. Since this is a solid color cardigan pairing it with a solid tank would make the look more boring that's why you want to pair it with a nice patterned tank or shirt, but not too bold of a pattern or color and the look clashes.  







         

Dance Moms

             Last Tuesday night on Lifetime I sat down grabbed some popcorn and watched Dance Moms since I didn't record it on my tv I had to wait a week to watch it. That week Nia, Kendall, and……… were given solos to see who would be “Maddie’s replacement” according to Abby. Kendall was given Maddie’s old solo which I think was unfair, because then Abby and all the other moms would be comparing her performance to Maddie’s and that’s unfair, because she shouldn’t dance like Maddie, because she is Kendall. Nia’s received a solo which was a tribute piece to Maya Angelou although Abby complained and took away her solo the week before. I really liked Nia’s solo, because they added a cool element to it which was spoken word where she talks on stage different parts in the dance. It was a cool element, because the spoken word was poetry, and it made the connection between Nia and Maya. Then there was the group dance. To me the group dance was very cheesy. All the girls represented one of the seven dwarves with a twist. Their names included slouchy, snobby, etc. The number was very sub-par and even childish to me. The person who can agree with that is Cathy from Candy Apple’s Dance Company who is Abby’s “evil” nemesis. Sometimes I like when Cathy comes, because it definitely adds more drama, and funny remarks exchanged between the dance companies on the show, but this time her team wasn’t even competing she just showed up to watch Abby Lee’s girls compete which was a little odd to me. In the end the group number one too which got me thinking, Did Abby place them at an easier competition where she knew they would win or do the judges know the show or know Abby and judge in her favor. I’m not sure, but many questions were left unanswered.

           

Dancing with the Stars

 

            Last night was the second week of the hit competition show Dancing with the Stars. The cast ranges from a 17 year old Sadie Robertson from the hit reality show Duck Dynasty all the way to 76 year old Tommy Chong who is from the hit movies Cheech and Chong and everywhere in between. I started watching it last week and overall agreed with the judges and the scores they gave the contestants.

             My favorite competitors this season are Janel Parrish from one of my favorite shows Pretty Little Liars who is partnered up with Val and I don’t know if it was just me, but last week they seemed to be a little friendly, but maybe it’s nothing. I’m also rooting for Bethany Mota partnered with Derek Hough who is a beauty guru on YouTube, and she has her own clothing line in Aeropostale where I purchased my favorite cardigan. Bethany is only 18 and has accomplished so much in her life from having over 7,000,000 subscribers on YouTube to having her own clothing line she designed, but not only that, but she’s a great dancer. Lastly, I’m rooting for Alfonso from Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He is obviously a fan favorite, because he has had experience dancing, and not only that, but he’s actually really good, and if people vote on who dances the best then he will make it far in the competition. There are many new professional dancers that I like so far, but a fourth judge has been added to the judges' table and that's former Dancing with the Stars pro Julianne Hough. So far I like her as a judge, and I'm sure she'll be the most fair, because she has been in the competition and knows what it's like week to week.

 Although, it was the first week of Dancing with the Stars a dancing couple still had to be eliminated and last week it was Lolo Jones. Based on her dance that week I will have to agree, but I still wanted her to stay and see her improve throughout the weeks. Also I liked her story which basically was that her prom date in high school said she was a bad dancer and she wanted to prove him wrong and I think many girls can relate to not being the best dancer. Last night the stars took to the stage again bringing back even more talent than the first week.

The second week some of the dancers improved, but for the most part they stayed the same and the scores showed that. As far as my favorite dancers they did really well. Janel Parrish's dance was amazing and it didn't surprise me when Len wanted to see them perform it again Tuesday night. Bethany also did really well despite being nervous about certain parts of the dance, because she had an injury, but you couldn't tell throughout her dance that she was hurt. While Alfonso still did really well he had some minor slip-ups throughout the dance, but still got a high score of 32 which I agreed with, because he is a strong dancer just lost connection with his partner.

With elimination night comes performances by singers, and one of my favorite songs and music videos Chandelier came to life when Sia and Maddie Ziegler performed. Maddie Ziegler from hit show Dance Moms and hit singer Sia created a music video that was amazing and when they were asked to perform one of the pros Allison danced with Maddie, and it brought a cool, new element to the performance that was very interesting. Although the show was entertaining and fun someone had to be eliminated. The bottom three were reality star Sadie Robertson and her partner Mark Ballas, talk show host Tavis Smiley, and his partner Sharna Burgess, and race car driver Michael Wartrip who's partnered with new pro Emma Slater. Based on their dancing and scores this week I agreed with the bottom three, and in the end one had to go. This week it was Tavis Smiley which I didn't really know much about coming into the show.

             Next week I predict that since 2/3 of my favorite dancers have been asked to perform again the next night Bethany will outshine the competition and I'm excited to see if I'm right.

 

Jamberry Nails

 

 

This week I decided to try out a product called Jamberry Nails. Jamberry Nails are stick on nails with different designs that are supposed to last up to weeks. I tried them couple of weeks ago and they didn’t work at all, but I was determined to have a stylish manicure so I tried once more. Each set comes with enough stickers to do two manicures and two pedicures. The pattern that I tried this time was Emerald Palm which is a pattern with an ombre backdrop of white, light green and dark green and palm trees.

 Before you start you have to remove any nail polish you have on and clean them off with rubbing alcohol which I didn’t do the first time around. Then you pick the sticker that best fits your finger  and the thing I didn’t like was that some of them didn’t always fit your finger perfectly not that I expected it to, and they were hard to cut to better fit your fingers, because they were stickers and they stuck to the scissors. After that you had to blow-dry the nail to make it soft and easier to apply. Applying them was the hardest part of the process last time because when you did apply them they would sometimes have wrinkles or air bubbles and once you put them on they were stuck so you couldn’t fix them. This time it was different I kind of knew what to expect and if they had an air bubble I would carefully take it off and place it again and it still stuck to my nail when I pulled it off many times to fix it. Once I had them applied I had to blow dry them again and apply pressure to make sure they stuck which was in the directions, but I clearly didn’t pay attention last time. Then I had to trim them up to meet the length of my original nail. You first have to cut it which can be difficult because the scissors don’t always cut it. Then, once you have it cut you have to file it down to your nail to smooth it out. Maybe I’m doing this step wrong I don’t know, but I always have trouble with this step with any stick on nails I’ve tried before. They don’t always file down right and leave the ends bumpy and rough.

Overall compared to other stick on nails these probably work the best and I like the designs a lot and there’s many to choose from compared to ones I’ve tried before. If they don’t work for you the first time don’t get discouraged just try again, because I believe that you need many trials and errors to execute them perfect and make sure you’re not like me and actually read the instructions, because they would have made the process a lot easier the first time around.