a package from korea.

I met Danielle while on exchange in the Netherlands. When thrown into a situation like being plopped down for six months in a country you've never been to, where another language is spoken, and where you know no one, some of your deepest, closest friendships can develop. Such was the case with my friends Ashley, Nora, Kayla, and Danielle. We were an inseparable group of girls making the most of our small town, on another continent. I still recall our time spent together as some of the happiest days of my life. I will never forget our experiences in Leiden.

Anywho, Danielle, being the amazing and incredibly intelligent woman she is, was awarded a Fulbright to study in Korea. Also being the kind and thoughtful person she is, she sent me a few makeup products to review on my blog!

I might like Korean stationery even better than Japanese stationery, although they're obviously both amazing.

Yummy. (:

Both makeup products Danielle sent me are from Nature Republic, a company which specializes in products that only contain natural ingredients. 

The blush is in the color 03 pink rose.

The little puffer pad the blush came with is sooo cute! I'm afraid to use it and make it dirty.

The color is a lovely coral hue, reminiscent of Coralista by Benefit, but with a matte finish.

The lipgloss she gave me is also a coral color, but brighter (practically a neon). However, it is not quite as reddish as it appears in the photo below. When you put on the gloss, it is a lot less saturated than you would think. I love that it gives you a healthy flush and sheen, but does not make too loud of a statement.

To be completely honest, I've been using these products on almost a daily basis. I wanted to use each of them several times before posting my opinions on them and now I feel I can say that if I ever find myself in South Korea (which I truly hope I will someday), I think I'll seek out this makeup brand.

Many thanks to my lovely Danielle for being the fabulous friend she is. xoxoxoxo

accent wall.

Our new apartment is amazing/wonderful/beautiful, situated on the second floor of a historic home on the park in Albany. I don't feel trapped by my new room, the ceilings are so high. Because of the overwhelmingly large surface area of the white walls, I decided to paint my room to keep it from looking too stark. I chose a Tiffany blue color because it never fails to make me feel inspired and comforted. I figured going with an accent with the best choice seeing as it wouldn't be overwhelming and it also wouldn't really make the room seem smaller.

I must say I am very content with the way the color came out! It makes me happy to look at every single day. 

more photos from a friend's visit.

One of the great things about having a friend from out of town come to visit is that you feel inspired to do the things you take for granted in your own hometown. I also tried to bring Jill to some of my favorite cafes in the Albany area. Basically, each day was filled with a pleasant combination of adventure and comfort/familiarity. Needless to say, we ate a bunch of scrumptious food, drank yummy drinks, took long strolls, and saw some amazing friends.

Let's begin with the truly tasty part: food.

On Jill's first morning, I decided to bring her to one of my favorite places in all of Albany: the Iron Gate Cafe. This place is such a beautiful little getaway from the city. We sat in the front garden and it was gorgeous. And Bear joined us!

The bagel sandwiches from Uncommon Grounds shown below were so incredibly satisfying and delicious. I got my standard BLT on a sesame bagel and Jill tried out the pesto bagel which apparently changed her life.

Another day, we visited one of my new favorite cafes to go to for some breakfast food: the Daily Grind in Albany. They offer a breakfast sandwich and coffee combo all day long! Perfect for late-risers like myself. Tim and I went for some breakfast this weekend and they had specially brewed ice coffee infused with cannoli flavor and scent. So delicious!

Om nom nom nom nom.

One night, we decided to get all dolled ("dawled") up and go to the Merry Monk for tasty food and drinks.

Oh, hey girl!

And here are some random photos from walking around.

This is the inside of a car we came across.

We got mani-pedis! Haaaay!

I'm pretty sure my next post will be about the accent wall I painted in my bedroom.

Thank you for reading! Let me know if you have anything in particular you'd like me to post about!

xoxo

Cara

Hudson for a day with a friend from far away.

This past weekend, my friend Jill came to visit from Toronto. Jill is one of my very best friends from college, so it was such an amazing experience to reunite with her after about a year of separation. I will be making another post with the rest of the photos from her visit, but I thought I'd post the photos from our day-trip to Hudson, NY separately.

I had heard great things about Hudson before and had high expectations, which is usually not a good thing. However, the little city really exceeded these. Hudson is filled to the brim with quaint vintage shops, various art galleries, and small, kitsch, independently owned cafes. A friend once described the place to me as "Albany's Brooklyn" and I couldn't agree more with this description.

It was so pleasant to walk around the streets of Hudson, punctuated by old houses and privately owned businesses. If I had to use one word to describe the city, I would certainly use "charming."

Our first destination was the thrift store named Five and Diamond. Everything about this place embodied a thifter's paradise, even down to the window displays. Vibrant and pastel colors spilled out from every nook and cranny of the store. The inventory was masterfully organized considering the small floor-plan of the store.

Looking back on it, I kind of wished I had tried on and bought the shoes pictured below.

A couple of adorable finds from the thrift store across the street:

Simply walking around the streets of Hudson is worth the visit. Vines crawl over every which way and each house seems to hold its own very special story.

Having gone too long without coffee, I developed the standard caffeine-withdrawal headache, so we ducked into this adorable coffeeshop named Swallow Coffee (pun intended, I'm assuming). Honestly, this cafe reminded me so much of my favorite cafe in all of Montreal: Café Névé. The interior was wooden with white walls, creating a homey yet minimalist feel.

We were two very happy campers!

Thank you so much for reading! Have a lovely day and hopefully I will have time to post the remainder of the photographs tomorrow!

Bisous xoxo

Cara