Saturday, July 28, 2018

My Study Space + Vanity


Is it almost August? The summer flew by so quickly, that I just barely got myself grounded and prepared for the coming school year. The small summer reprieve did allot myself a small window of opportunity to set up my study space in a way I envisioned and just in time for fall semester!

I was definitely inspired to share my vanity with my study area by a specific line from the Legally Blonde musical, a song called “Chip On My Shoulder”, in which Emmet recites to Elle,

  “Ya know, this vanity’s real picturesque but it started it’s life as a desk
Clear it off, and find some room for books instead ”. 


My whole return to schooling has been to the tune of the Legally Blonde musical soundtrack, and that line stuck with me and definitely persuaded me to modify my vanity to be my desk.

So, let me give a rundown of what creates my study space!


My main tech is my iPad Pro and Apple Pencil. I not only use it to take down my notes, but I create my PowerPoint presentations, write my papers, access my courses and submit all my assignments though it. I decided I enjoy a tablet more than a laptop and have successfully been able to complete my first 2 semesters using it.

I do have my own portable keyboard, but I decided I wanted to have a beautiful at home keyboard that gives me joy to use at home and for my long papers and assignments. With endless searching all this year I finally came across the Penna keyboard by Elretron. I immediately donated to their fundraising campaign and got my keyboard mid spring semester and it was just as wonderful as promised! Its a beautiful soft pink, I opted for mx cherry blue switches, which make for an amazingly satisfying click with each keystroke, and diamond keycaps that look similar to my ideal keyboard from the movie Populaire. I may have been heavily inspired by the movie Populaire this past year too, if my keyboard and iPad background doesn’t give that away. Excitingly, the Penna keyboard smashed their fundraising campaign and is now available on Amazon HERE!

To store my keyboard, and to raise my iPad to a comfortable level, I commissioned a riser from  ThePaperSkiff on etsy. I realized this year that I find it more comfortable to view my screen if it’s at eye level to me, so a riser was a necessity to maintain my concentration and tolerance working for hours seated in front of a screen.

Additionally, I use an Element Digital stand to support my iPad upright, which has a convenient gripped base, and adjustable neck to tilt my tablet to a comfortable viewing position.

I also decided to invest in a desk mat, from Empressionistar, to keep my area clean and protect the desk from my makeup. An additional note, the Penna anti-grip pegs like to stain my white tables a yellow color, the mat helps to protect against that and acts as it’s own stabilizing surface to keep items from sliding or rolling off my vanity.


Behind where I sit, I contain my other supplies within easy reach. Usually, I may move aside other things on my vanity when I need multiple things laid out in front of me, but when not in use, its nice to have things put aside and not creating extra clutter.


The switch from study area back to vanity is quite simple. With removal of my tablet, I conveniently can place a small mirror on the stand which helps with small detail makeup like lash application or eyeliner. The riser I have also serves as pretty storage for my keyboard (it fits fully under but I forgot to move my extension cord behind it, oops), but also works as a nice display surface for my makeup brushes. 

Since I’m taking photos of my desk set up, I can also take this time to give a light tour of what is inside my vanity!   


On top of my vanity, store my most used items, my main skincare items [comprehensive blog post on them here], and also my most beautiful makeup pieces which I like to display for aesthetics.


My top drawer, I keep items I like to have quick accessibility too, which would be hair clips + ties and other hair accessories, my favorite false lashes, lash glues, lash curlers, tweezers and pencil sharpeners.



Taking a peek into right terminal of drawers, I store accessories, more skin care, eye care, ribbons, and all my hair tools. 



In the left terminal of drawers, I store all my makeup, perfumes, hair oils, deodorants, sheet masks, and a whole drawer of lashes. 

I find that with drawer dividers, organization of my vanity is much easier, I bought mine [here]. It was definitely a game changer in regards to my tidiness!  


I hope that the look into how I created my study area was insightful, maybe something that was a bit more unique in choice of set up. Maybe down the line things may change and evolve, but for now I find my desk to be ideal in what I need and for my lifestyle.

<3CarisseIris  



Saturday, July 21, 2018

Hello Summer, Hello New Car!


Perfectly timed for summer, my old/ first car decided to give out on me so I finally got the chance to car hunt and find my perfect new ride. Once finding my new baby, I figured it was finally time to have a bit of fun and decorate it. My car has always been the transportation of choice when it comes to road trips and heading out with friends so I happily justified the pink takeover of my vehicle.


Starting from the front, the first item I bought to keep my hands from burning on the steering wheel was a pink steering wheel cover, which has a pliable leather feel and adds texture for my grip. I also have a faux sheepskin seat cover so that I don’t burn my legs on my seat and so that my bare legs don’t stick to the chair, since I only seem to wear miniskirts. 

The main, and most striking decor in my car is my pink car seat covers from SeeMeHappy on Amazon. They were quite kind and double checked for me that they would fit my car, and answered any questions I had regarding them. The installation was a bit tricky, but with some maneuvering and selective tucking, they fit my car perfectly and look so sweet in my ride. The car seats also come with ribbon pillows and neck rests (my friends seem to adore the neck rests and say it makes car seats much more comfortable). The front seat covers also have convenient pockets in front which I tend to store my phone and keys. 


In my backseat I decided to add in some throw pillows, since two of my friends tend to fall asleep in the backseat whenever we go on trips, but when I have more than one passenger in the back, I can easily store them in the trunk or bring them into the house.


In the back, I also have tsurikawa, or train handles. When I used to be more involved and obsessed with gyaru, I saw one photo with some girls with similar ones dangling from their vehicles years ago and knew I wanted a set in my car one day. I bought mine of eBay. Googling the origin, it seems that having these on one’s vehicle represents rebellion, since people would steal them off trains and show them off on their bikes or cars. 


In the back of my car, I also store a few extra amenities and extra gadgets. 


Behind the drivers seat, I have two bag holders, one for me and a passenger if they would like to use it. It makes keeping my bag in place and within reach quite convenient. 

My car does have cup holders for the back seat, but the process to open it is a bit annoying and it takes up space, so I decided to install a simple cup holder that attaches to the back air port for easier accessibility. 

Some of the additional items I have stored in the back is an emergency light and knife, which my mum gifted me and a low profile anti-theft device that has an additional feature that can break open a car window in an emergency. 


I also decided to switch out my car’s original floor mats for a fun matching set, I bought these cute marble and pink floor mats from Zazzle, and they come with front and back mats that seem to be universally sized.


I thought a peek into my trunk would be fun to include, so far I seem to take along spare umbrellas, gym gear and my gym bag, a spare shopping tote, and a ton of board games along with me. I’m pretty much prepared for any occasion and at any time.


I don’t have much in terms of outside decor on my car, but I did decide to put a subtle decal on my window. I bought a ‘second star to the right’ decal, inspired by Peter Pan from EverlyAfterStudio on Etsy. The decal is actually iridescent and appears pink, blue or yellow depending on the light and looks quite impressive on my car. 


The final accessory is a bit hidden, and it serves as a nod to the name that I chose for my car. My car is an ‘eco’ car, and conserves gas by turning off the engine whenever I sit on the break for longer than a few seconds. When I release the break the car seems to reluctantly wake up and turn on the engine before moving forward. Its actions made me keep referring to it as a cat being forced  to wake up and yet insisting to nap in odd and sometimes precarious spots. So, I lovingly chose the name Muta, from the Ghibli film, ‘The Cat Returns’. I found a perfect enamel pin from VectorPenguin on etsy that perfectly represented how I see my car and makes me happy to see it whenever I open my sun visor. 


I believe that was a fitting introduction to my new portable pink wonderland. (Also, as a way to share where I purchased the items I have.) 

I promise I’ll try to keep a regular update schedule, at least to the best of my abilities, haha!

<3CarisseIris