Let's Venture Together: Memorial Hermann Park

Although Houston is not known for its natural beauty, the city has a gorgeous park that is just simply alluring on days like this and I couldn't resist. A friend and I wandered around the park taking selfies, staring at random people, and all around acting like goofs. It was the best. Sometimes you just need a change of scenery and the most simple of things, like a day in the park, to hit the spot. Here are some lovely shots from our adventure. Enjoy!

Must get that OOTD in

The contemplative bench

The walkways and bridges here are gorgeous

Look at that sky. Its practically begging you to be outdoors

We fed ducks. Because we secretly believe we're twelve. Who cares.

Yes we're cute. I know. (Just kidding)

Who doesn't love cotton candy? Definitely not me!

Korean selfie for the win!

I may not look like a model but I definitely felt like one in this pic

Okay this sign made absolutely no sense. If I wasn't born yesterday or going to die tomorrow I'm not allowed to swim??

Memorial Hermann at its finest

A shameless selfie

The cotton candy must be eaten

A squirrel stole some of my cotton candy. Then I chased him. And of course no one stared 

Look at him. Cool as a nut. Eating my cotton candy. How rude.

Why squirrel why.

Apparently beavers broke into the park and built a dam when we weren't looking. Just kidding. I have no idea what this is.

Excuse the hair. I forgot to care.

Inside the Japanese Garden

Another touching tree photo. Because that's just how we roll.

King of the world!

A picture of serenity

Hope you enjoyed these pictures an whenever you find yourself with a gorgeous day with nothing to do take yourself to your local park. You might just be surprised what you find!

A Lazy Girl's Guide to...Default Outfits

So it's no secret that I'm a person that likes to dress well. I do believe that your clothes and hygiene make statements about you that no words convey. That being said, I also think that it's not very hard to actually dress well. If you put in a little effort up front, like buying classic pieces that will always be in style, and taking care of your clothes, such as washing/hanging/folding them correctly, you guarantee that whatever you pull from your closet always makes you look good.

Now I have a formula that I have been using for years which I like to call the Default Outfit. The Default Outfit is basically an outfit that you know you will always look good in and can fall back on when in doubt of what to wear. These outfits are comfy but classy and you can have one for every occasion. The goal of a Default Outfit is to be able to let you walk out of the house in 15 minutes flat but looking like you've put hours of thought into your clothing choices. And that's simply because you've put in the work up front. So scour your closet for combinations that look good for the event you have in mind but are also comfortable. That way whenever these events come up, if worst comes to worst and you have nothing left to wear, you always know you have a Default Outfit to fall back on. I've listed a couple of occasions and examples of Default Outfits down below. Hope these help :)

Default Outfits

Casual Day Out

For a casual day out I like to wear my favorite pair of jeans that are not too tight and comfortable enough to move around in, paired with a flowy top that shows off your figure and my favorite flats. When it gets colder throw on a sweater and swap out the flats for booties and voila, you're all set to go!

Jeans: American Eagle, Shirt: Francesca's Collections, Flats: Urban Outfitters, Sweater: Lavo Collections, Boots: Forever 21

Night Out

Outfits for dinner with friends and such are always fun because you can really play around with colors and styles and put your best fashion foot forward. I like to usually go with alot of basic pieces and use one statement piece to really make the outfit pop. My Default Outfit consists of a black blazer (these are great for any occasion), a halter blouse, pink skinnies to stand out, with a pair of black pumps.

Pants: Target, Blazer: Lavo Collections, Top: Forever 21, Shoes: Charlotte Russe

Special Occasion

Special occasions usually consist of a wedding, a ceremony, or a fancier dinner and although they are always alot of fun to attend you don't get as much wear from your outfit because they don't come around as often. Although you don't want to repeat your outfit too often you also don't want to break the bank so make sure you choose something that can be styled multiple ways to get the most out of your outfit. My go to outfit consists of a lace dress that's not too long and not too short, a simple belt, and some black lace heels. I love this outfit because you can dress it down or dress it up by either adding a coat/blazer and changing up the shoes. 

 Dress: Forever 21, Belt: Shasta, Shoes: Forever 21

Here are just a few ideas for different Default Outfits. I would love to see how you would style yours and for what occasion! Enjoy!

Movie Review: Pacific Rim

Summer time usually means time to hit the movie theaters. Because of school I don't usually get as much free time as I would but during the summer months lets just say I go a little movie crazy. I've watched most of the big summer blockbusters that have come out so far but one that I particularly liked  was Pacific Rim. So here's a little movie review on it if you're thinking about watching it.

Pacific Rim

Synopsis

The movie opens up in a time on earth where there is a breach in the sea floor which allows huge Godzilla sized sea monsters, called Kaiju, to come out and attack mankind. So the countries of the world band together and come up with a program to battle these monsters by creating huge Transformer like robots called Jaegers which are controlled by two pilots to fight and kill the monsters. Unfortunately the sea monsters are getting smarter and adapting and the governments refuse to fund a failing program, so in a last stand the Jaegers have to battle the sea monsters and attempt to stop them completely. 

Okay let me just say I thoroughly enjoyed every freaking minute of this movie. It had the perfect balance of action and plot, where there weren't too many mindless fight sequences but there also weren't too many slow points in the movie. All of the actors did a pretty good job and if you're familiar with TV shows such as Luther or Revenge you'll see some familiar faces. The script was witty and clever and there were definitely moments where the whole theater was laughing out loud. The action scenes.....stellar. The CG effects were really really good and had you hooked without rolling your eyes at how lame the scenes were. The sound track was simply perfect. The rise and swell of the music coincided perfectly with each and every scene without being too distracting. Although the plot was somewhat predictable there were enough unexpected turns to keep you interested. 

I don't want to give too much away but I think this movie would be enjoyed by both girls and guys. There's a cute male lead (aka Charlie Hunnam) with one or two shirtless scenes and a somewhat budding romance. There's also sci fi and anime influences not to mention all the action scenes. So there's a little something something for everyone. The banter between the two scientists is hilarious and my favorite part is their handshake (you'll know it when you see it). Don't expect to come out of this movie with deep thoughts that will have you questioning your way of life, but do expect an enjoyable two hours with light laughter and great action. Enjoy!

Castles, castles, and more castles

So if you know anything about me you know that I love Ireland. I mean I LOVE Ireland. There's just something that's absolutely mesmerizing about that country. Not only do they boast some of the most beautiful landscape in the world, they produce some truly beautiful people (hello Catherine Zeta Jones), house my favorite author, AND could potentially have fairies. Enough said. On top of that they have castles. Absolutely gorgeous castles. More on the other awesome aspects of Ireland but today let's look at some of the beautiful castles of Ireland.

Kylemore Abbey

Hilton Park

Waterford Castle

Hillsborough Castle

Markree Castle

These are just a top few of my favorites but, seriously, how amazing would it be to live in a beautiful castle like this? It would be like my little Downton Dream. Enjoy!

Thai Tea Recipe

Aaaand let the party begin! Just kidding. What I really meant was welcome to Christalina's Corner. And as the official first post I want to share one of my favorite things...Thai Tea. I absolutely love Thai Tea and have tried it at various places. Some places are great, some...not so good. Suffice to say, my love for Thai Tea has definitely motivated me to try it out at home. At first I couldn't manage to get the tea strong enough but after many test trials I think I've finally perfected. Below is a recipe for Thai Tea that I've found works for me.

Thai Tea Recipe

What You Need:

French press (or pot)

2/3 cup of sugar

1/3 cup of loose leaf Thai Tea

4 cups of water

Half and half (or whole milk) to top off

Directions:

Pour in the tea leaves and sugar into the french press. Heat up the water and pour into the french press. Let the tea brew for about five minutes and make sure that the sugar is completely dissolved. Now if you don't have a french press you can put the tea, sugar, and water in a pot on the stove and boil the tea for about 15 minutes. After the tea is brewed and strained, you can either drink it hot or refrigerate if you want to drink it chilled. Pour the tea over ice and then add a little half and half according to your preference. Now you have your very own glass of homemade Thai Tea. Enjoy!