8.

First off, I'd like to apologize for the complete lack of makeup and those atrocious dark circles...yikes! So earlier this evening, I was stuck in night class and the professor started rambling about one thing or another. You remember how in Charlie Brown the teacher is always just saying, "Wah wah wah wah wah"? Well, it was just like that. So as you might imagine, my mind started to drift on about happier things like makeup, blogging, and nail varnish. Luckily, I was seated far enough in the back of the lecture hall and managed to snap a photo of something that has kept me smiling the last few days: candy corn nail art!

Keeping in the spirit of autumn and trick-or-treating and all things good and Halloweenish, I thought it might be fun to try these nails and truth be told, I've NEVER gotten so many compliments! All it takes is a few coats of white nail varnish, orange and yellow up top, a mildly steady hand (or in my case, my Mother's), and a lot of patience. The colors are bright and they pop, and so many people instantly get what they are suppose to be! The first time I spotted these nails was on Post Grad Crafts blog. Just found her blog the other day and can't get over all her nifty ideas! ou should try this one out, it is so simple and cute!

7.

top: converse

fur stole: h&m

shoes: charlotte russe

lipstick: diva by mac

At long last I've purchased the faux fur stole I've had my eye on for the last month and a half. After shlepping my bags through the door and dumping them on the floor, I immediately yanked out this bad boy and started playing dress up. So far it seems to work really well with black, deep reds, and denim. Regardless, I am in love.

What do you think?

6.

Things to smile about this week:

01. I have a handful of beautiful fashionistas following and I couldn't be happier! Every one of your blogs is lovely and it is a pleasure to read them all. Despite being leagues away, it is wonderful to think we all have a common interest that brings us together. :)

02. All our Halloweenie decorations have been put up and the house is looking quite festive! I can't wait to drive around at night and look at the houses in town that go all out with lawn decorations and inflatable pumpkins! All that is left is pumpkin picking and deciding what to be on Halloween. Any ideas on what you're going to be wearing for a costume?

03. Gal pal from uni days has flown into town from the Big Apple and will be visiting a week! She is very much involved with the fashion industry and used to always prod me to swipe on lipstick or look presentable. Believe it or not, it was only a few months ago I started to seriously get into fashion. But that's a story for another day!

04. Anddd, drumroll please.....as of yesterday...I am employed! In celebration of said employment, roused a few chums and dragged them to the shopping centre where I had a heyday in H&M: combat boots, faux fur stole, suede dress, & leather shorts. Photos to come this week!

5.

October is without a doubt my most favorite month of the year. Who can resist little munchkins dressed up like ballerinas and ghosts? Or the mahusive buckets of sweets at the grocery stores? Or carving jack-o'-lantern carving, scary movies on the telly, leaves changing colors...I'm getting so excited just thinking of it!
So in honour of all this festive wonderfulness, here are a few nail varnishes that have been helping me get in the spirit of things! Warning: I may have had a little too much fun photographing these.

Max Cherimoya "White" and Borghese "Stellare Notte"

Borghese "Expresso Brown" and Essie "Sew Psyched"

Essie "Lilacism" and Sally Hansen "Peachy Keen"

Até logo, friends!

4.

Phew, what an incredibly long Tuesday, I'm completely pooped! Holding true to my self-promise, I've abstained from purchasing any of the aforementioned goodies and instead, went on a lovely interview today. As it has been unfittingly warm for October, I've been chucking my messy locks into a disheveled braid of sorts. It gives the illusion of being less frazzled than one actually is.

Here is a Essie's "Sew Psyched," a lovely shade of muted sage.

On my feetsies I sported Ann Klein loafers that are a little worse for wear, but still functional. I dread the day when we'll part, these little guys have been just about everywhere.

Até logo!

3.

In between doing the gazillion loads of laundry that have somehow accumulated over the last few days (seriously, how many socks can one wear over a weekend???) I managed to whip up a tasty tidbit for lunch and thought I'd share.

1. To start things off, I dug out some corn tortillas and tossed them on a cast-iron comal. For anyone who isn't familiar with a comal, it is a flat griddle used to cook tortillas. All you have to do is let it heat up, chuck on a tortilla, flip it a few times, burn your fingers once, and walah! you've got the base for any number of delicious meals (quesadillas, burritos, soft tacos, etc.)

2. Since I am fairly impatient, I like to nibble on a little something something while cooking. We usually have queso fresco lying around so if you break off a few wedges, pop them in a warm tortilla, it is so absolutely perfect.

3. Here it is, the grand poobah: leftover bow-tie pasta reheated in a bowl with potato quarters, spanish rice, cooked/diced green beans, steamed spinach, parmesan cheese, and crushed red peppers. It was a tasty way to clear out all those leftovers from the fridge and hunker down for my noontime telenovela.

Until next time, até logo!

1. Hello! Olá! Ciao! Hola!

Welcome to Strung Up and Laid Back! Here you'll find a hodgepodge of things that tickle my fancy: beauty, fashion, politics (brace yourselves), music, food, people...the list goes on! I've never tried my hand at blogging so please bear with my primal computer skills and clumsy photos. Let's get started!

It's finally autumn so I've crawled into the deepest corner of my closet a pulled out my most favorite boots of all time. They are made by Sanzia and I bought them a year ago off Ebay or Amazon. What is so wonderful about these is if you have monster calves such as I, they have that lovely adjustable strap so you can easily slide your dainty toes in, zip up and roll out!

As many of you do, I like to pair my knee high riding boots with a pair of form fitting jeans. Throw on a white shirt (this one from Old Navy for $4.99!), a chunky gold chain, and you have a casual, chic outfit.

Yesterday I had a little orientation session for an art program and managed to snap a photo of my makeup before skedaddling. If your looking to add some pizazz to an outfit, swipe on some red lipstick. Instant elegance!

That's it for now, hope you enjoyed! Até logo!