Headphone Cord Holder - D.I.Y

This is a D.I.Y. I have been postponing for ages! But, since not too long ago I bought me new headphones, I think it was about time.

There are two ways to do this. One is the simplest, just a cord holder with velcro, and in the other, you add a strap and make it a cell phone charm.

For the simple version, you'll need:

Can you spot the acetate?

* Acetate: thin, flat, transparent plastic. If you've ever made stencils, you'll be familiar with it.
You can also cut a plastic soda bottle if you feel like recycling :) but I don't know how easy it'll be to work with.
You'll need a rectangle of about 1 inch x 4 inches.

* Pieces of velcro: if you can get self-adhesive, even better.

* Universal glue: make sure it can glue fabric and plastic. By the way, mine lied! the velcro did not get glued, so I had to use contact cement (which to me, is like the mother of all glues)

* Pieces of fabric: big enough to wrap around the acetate strips. I recommend ironing them so they'll be easier to work with.

And, for the "upgraded" version, all of the above, plus:

* Fabric ribbon: very thin, about 0.5 cm, a tiny piece (an inch would do)

* Cell phone charm strap

* Studs, buttons, applique, or anything you want to add to it.

Steps:

* Cut the pieces of fabric big enough to wrap around the acetate. Leave about half a centimeter on the top and the bottom. You'll fold and glue these first.

Though not very noticeable, the acetate is right in the middle

* If you want to add the charm strap later, make a loop with the fabric ribbon and glue on the top corner. Use a stick to help you hold it in place if necessary.

Yes, I used a chopstick :)

* Let the glue dry a little between steps, so it doesn't get too messy.

* Fold and glue the left and the right side, one at a time (the order is irrelevant)

* Glue the velcro to the top and the bottom.

* Let dry, if necessary

* Attach the charm strap to the fabric ribbon loop and it'll be ready to hang from your phone.

Fold the whole piece, stick the two pieces of velcro and you'll have something like this

I added a stud for decoration

And that's it! No more tangled cords!

Note: in case you have to use contact cement, the right way to use it is to apply the glue to each of the parts you're going to stick together, then letting dry for about 15 minutes, and once it is totally dried, then you stick them together and apply pressure for a few seconds.
You may know this, but you'd be surprised how many people use it the wrong way.


Hope you've liked this project :)

Thank you for reading!

Fixing flip-flops - Another easy D.I.Y.!

Are you tired of this happening to you?

Are you tired of throwing away one pair of flip-flops after another because of this?
Ok, I'm starting to sound like an infomercial XD

The thing is, a broken pair of flip-flop is a chance for a D.I.Y. so you can go from that to this

I promise, this is very easy to do, and all you'll need is those broken flip-flops and long strips of fabric. As for me, I recycled an old scarf.

Then, you'll just have to knot! No sewing, no gluing.

However, piece of advice about the fabric you'll use: make sure it's not too silky or too elastic, since the basic process of this project is to tie knots, and trust me, you'll need those knots to be strong and not slippery.

So, are you ready?

Here are the steps:

First, you'll need to get rid of all the upper part to be left with only the sole.

Cut off these thingies :)

Then, you'll have to cut long strips of fabric, about 1,5 or 2 inches wide (or 3 to 5 centimeters). As for the length, it'll depend on how you'll like to tie it. I chose to make mine "ballerina style", so it was about 3 feet long. I suggest starting with this length and then cutting it if it feels too long.

Fold it in two and pass it through the upper hole. If you have trouble with this, use a safety pin. Pin the fabric and pass the pin through the hole and the fabric will follow.

Then tie a very strong knot (make sure it really is strong, it's important). The knot should fit in the hollow space but not go through the hole.

Tie the knot...

... and tuck it in

For the sides, you'll need two pieces about 8 inches long and 1.5 or 2 inches wide (20 cm long and 3 to 5 cm wide).

The process is the same: fold in two, pass through the hole and tie a strong knot.

And the rest is truly up to you! You'll pass the main two strips through each of the loops on the side and then tie it around you ankles.

Ta-da!

Side view

I chose this design because it allows you to make a few different models.

Like this

Or this

And, another positive thing, is once you get tired of the model or the color, you can just take the fabric off and do it again with a different one.

However, I don't know how long the fabric will resist. I've seen this D.I.Y. before but no one specifies on this matter.
 I've been test-wearing mine in the house for a few hours, and they're holding just fine :) (I'd test them outside, but it's winter here, so...)

I hope you've liked it! :)

Thank you for reading!

Buenos Aires' Chinatown + Hallyu Kermesse

Today I went to my first Hallyu event! It was about the whole Korean wave: K-pop, K-dramas, etc., but honestly, I went for K-pop! And the food... keke.

My boyfriend was kind enough to come with me, even though he really isn't into K-pop (he ends up learning the songs though, against his will XD)

Anyhow, the event was what is called a kermesse: there were different games you could play, which gave you tickets which you could afterwards exchange for all kinds of stuff, like coffee mugs or band posters.

Buuut... I didn't play. First, because I'm really introvert, and there were also a lot of people standing in line to get to play, and most people were much younger than me. So, I felt a bit outta place there.

However, that didn't stop me from getting a taste of kimbap samples!
                       

These are what you could call a Korean version of sushi rolls. The taste was more "western" though, since the main ingredient was ham or sausage.

 It was delicious! If you can get your hands on these, I recommend trying them.

My first pair of GEO lens!!! - Mi primer par de lentes GEO {Spa/Eng post}

I'm gonna try to make this post in both languages, since it's about how I got my first pair of contact lens in Argentina. Something that seemed impossible a few months ago, but I got them!
How about that, huh?
I apologize in advance, since it may not be a very easy read. I've never written a post in both languages, but I'll try my best.

Voy a intentar hacer este post en ambos idiomas, ya que trata de cómo conseguí mi primer par de lentes de contacto en Argentina. Algo que parecía imposible hace unos meses, pero los conseguí!
Que les parece, eh?
Pido disculpas de antemano, ya que puede no ser fácil de leer. Nunca escribí un post en dos idiomas, pero voy a hacer lo mejor posible.

For those of you who don't know, not too long ago I was a bit bummed because getting a decent pair of contact lens at a reasonable price was nearly impossible. Of course, you could buy them online, but that would involve a Paypal account linked to a credit card, which I didn't have (besides, some days ago I was told that you no longer can link a credit card if it's from Argentina! Which also means you can't add money to your account, let alone get to buy anything online)

Para los que no lo saben, hace no mucho estaba un poco bajoneada porque conseguir un par de lentes de contacto decentes a un precio razonable parecía imposible. Por supuesto, se podían comprar por internet, pero eso involucraba una cuenta de Paypal asociada a una tarjeta de crédito, la cual no tenía (además, hace unos días me dijeron que ya no podés asociar una tarjeta de crédito si es de Argentina! Lo cual también significa que no le podés cargar dinero a tu cuenta, mucho menos comprar algo por internet)

About two weeks ago, having given up hope of ever getting Korean lens, I started googling prices of contact lens, and I came across this seller in Mercado Libre (our national equivalent of e-Bay) and she had plenty of models, mostly for cosplay but also many gyaru-esque models too!

Hace alrededor de dos semanas, habiendo abandonado toda esperanza de conseguir lentes de contacto coreanos, empecé a googlear precios de lentes y me encontré con esta vendedora en Mercado Libre que tenía muchos modelos, mayormente para cosplay, pero unos cuantos estilo gyaru también!

The price was the same as Acuvue lens, except these only last for a month and GEOs last a year and have plenty of models.

El precio era el mismo que los lentes Acuvue, excepto que estos sólo duran un mes y los GEO duran un año y tienen muchos más modelos.

So, I got me the CM 901.
Así que me conseguí los CM 901

These ones! (yes, the pic is tiny)
Estos! (sí, la imagen es mínima)

Color:
These lens, I must say, are a bit darker than I expected. I actually thought the color would be radically different from mine, but it just adds a dark shade of gray, which I would call steel gray.

Color:
Son un poco más oscuros de lo que yo esperaba. En realidad pensé que el color iba a ser radicalmente diferente al mío, pero sólo suma un tono oscuro de gris al que llamaría gris plomo.

Design:
They look very, very natural!
Even though I wanted a dramatic change in my eye color, I also wanted them to look natural enough to be worn every day, and that they would blend naturally with my dark brown eyes

Diseño:
Se ven muy, muy naturales!
Aunque quería un cambio dramático en mi color de ojos, también quería que se vieran lo suficientemente naturales como para usarlos todos los días, y que el color se mezclara naturalmente con mis ojos marrón oscuro.

Enlargement:
At 14 mm, none, really, which is good, because I also didn't want my eyes to look huge. Again, this is a quite natural design.

Agrandamiento (se dice así? XD)
Con 14 mm, la verdad, ninguno; lo cual es bueno, porque tampoco quería que mis ojos se vieran gigantes. Como dije, es un modelo bastante natural.

Comfort:
After having used Acuvue, these feel like I have nothing on. They feel more elastic to the touch, and I don't feel any discomfort. Except for a bit of dryness, but I already have that when I'm wearing no lens at all.

Comodidad:
Después de haber usado Acuvue, estos se sienten como si no tuviera nada. Se sienten más elásticos al tacto y no siento ninguna incomodidad. Salvo por un poco de sequedad, pero eso ya lo tengo cuando no estoy usando lentes.

Here are some pics:
Mind you, these have filters! Still, no matter where I took the pics (kitchen, bathroom, bedroom) the light made the color different every time, so not one single pic I've taken does justice to the color.
Honestly, most pics I found online don't, since the color becomes more or less noticeable depending on whether you use flash or not and on your natural eye color.

Acá hay algunas fotos:
Aclaro, tienen filtros! Aún así, sin importar donde sacara las fotos (cocina, baño, habitación) la luz hacía que el color se viera diferente cada vez, así que ni una foto le hace realmente justicia al color.
Honestamente, la mayoría de las fotos que encontré en internet no le son fieles al color, ya que se vuelve mas o menos notorio dependiendo de si se usa o no flash y de tu color de ojos natural.

Best close-up considering the terrible quality of my camera phone.
El mejor acercamiento considerando la terrible calidad de la cámara de mi teléfono.

In this one the lens moved a little, so you can appreciate the color a bit more.
En esta el lente se movió un poco, así se puede apreciar un poco más el color.

Here you can see the difference between the lens that is receiving more light and the one that isn't.
Acá se puede ver la diferencia entre el lente al que le dá la luz de lleno y el que no.

And this is plain camwhoring XD
Y esta es simplemente camwhoring XD

About the seller:
Her name is Laura Acevedo, she's from Buenos Aires and she has this online store called Cosplay Stuff. You can find her on Facebook. She sells lens and wigs and is incredibly nice! (I asked her SO MANY questions and she always replied politely and patiently)

Sobre la vendedora:
Su nombre es Laura Acevedo, es de Buenos Aires y tiene esta tienda online llamada Cosplay Stuff. La podés encontrar en Facebook. Vende lentes y pelucas y es increíblemente simpática! (Le hice MUCHAS preguntas y siempre respondió paciente y cortesmente)

She sends her products internationally, but I think it'll be convenient to buy from her if you're from Argentina or South America, mainly because of the prices and to make sure the delivery won't take ages. And, if you live in Buenos Aires, you can pick them up yourself and save yourself the shipping costs (which is what I did)

Hace envíos internacionales, pero creo que es conveniente comprarle si sos de Argentina o Sudamérica, principalmente por los precios y para asegurarte de que el envió no tarde demasiado. Y, si vivís en Buenos Aires podés retirarlo personalmente y ahorrarte el envío (que es lo que hice yo)

I plan on buying more lens from her soon (and maybe even a wig... I've never tried one!), so stay tuned for more reviews.

Thank you for reading!

Planeo comprarle más lentes (y capaz hasta una peluca... nunca usé una!), así que manténganse conectados para más reseñas.

Gracias por leer!

My basic make-up items

I'm not sure if I'm in the position to talk about make-up, since, truth be told, I'm not really good with it.
I only started wearing foundation, mascara, lipstick and lashes a few years ago. Before that, I would only wear a bit of eyeliner (it was terrible, yes).

But ever since I got interested in gyaru style, and after watching tons of Youtube make-up tutorials and trying (and failing with) a lot of different products, here are some of some of my favorite, basic, make-up items I wear nowadays.

2NE1 has been plagiarized!

For those of you 2NE1 fans out there who are not from Latin America, you may not have heard about this: 2NE1's I am the best has been plagiarized!

Yesterday I saw on my Facebook timeline a post from 2NE1 Argentina, asking us Blackjacks to downvote this video:

The Ups and Downs of attempting to be Gyaru outside Japan

I could have probably named this post just "99 problems", now that I think of it XD.

Although many of the downsides of trying to be Gaijin Gyaru have been wisely covered in this post:
http://gyaruattitudenl.blogspot.com.ar/2013/03/gal-thoughts-7-gaijin-gyaru-hardships.html
(Which is not mine, but hell, do I agree with it!)
I would like to add a few problems I've experienced in this quest for Gyaru style:

Things I wish someone had told me when I was a teenager

Today I decided to bring you another looooong post. If you are looking for pics and such, this post will probably bore you. Still, if you are a teenager, or just any girl who's struggling with some negative things (about you, about society, about life) this post is for you.

Having gone through many of the above myself (and survived!) I wish I could tell teens a thing or two about life.

I hope you like it.

My first BB Cream - Maybelline Dream Fresh BB review

I've wanted a BB Cream for the longest time, but it was impossible to get here in Argentina.

Even though Korean brands are not available here, some western brands recently started releasing their own versions. Many blogs warned, though, that these were nowhere near eastern brands, but they weren't terrible either. Just not as "miraculous" as Korean BB creams appear to be.

A few days ago I read that Maybelline was launching their first BB Cream in my country and, since lately I've been needing a moisturizer (and the Nivea cream I had bought a few months ago was a terrible waste of money) I decided to give it a try.

My thoughts on being "ugly" and my love for 2NE1

What on earth has ugliness have to do with 2NE1???

I know, these two don't seem related at all.

Let me explain.

First off, I'm not pretty, and I'm fully aware of it. I wish I was pretty, or cute, like those doe-eyed girls I see in mags as Happie Nuts or Ranzuki, with their tiny noses and pouty lips. But I'm not.

Not that I give a crap about people thinking I'm not pretty, it's just a personal issue.

However, beauty seems to be a valued gift for those who have it from birth and for those who can afford it, because, yes, you can buy painful beauty. It is so to the point where people's whole lives revolve around it, and I see that very clearly in one of my favorite things, K-pop.

Did you know that about half of the female population of South Korea has had surgery? Even the members of one of my favorite Korean bands, Brown Eyed Girls, have had some drastic surgery, which is said to have granted them the fame they enjoy today.

But that's not the case with 2NE1.

Apologies

I was about to write the longest comment-slash-apology ever, when I decided it would be better to simply make a post.

It started with a very simple question: why I don't have any follow/subscribe buttons on my blog.

The thing is, I'm still trying to figure out how to blog, through trial and error. Bloggin' isn't something I can dedicate all the time and the money to, mostly because right now, I'm broke. I have plenty of D.I.Y projects on hold, for example.

D.I.Y. Decorated Pencil Holder. (Or how to decorate cans) - Another very easy D.I.Y

Do you have a lot of cans laying around and want some ideas on what to do with them? Here's a very easy decoration project.
Again, I can't believe I haven't tried this before.
You can do this D.I.Y. project with some materials you probably already have at home.

This is the result

You'll need

D.I.Y. Mag Cover Notepad - Very, very easy!

I'll introduce to you my first D.I.Y. It's a notepad decorated with the cover of one of my favorite Japanese fashion mags (well, with a print of a cover, since I don't currently possess any fashion mag... and if I did, I certainly wouldn't cut one)

{As usual, apologies for the low quality. HQ is not really necessary to understand each step, so don't worry}

This is the finished notepad.

I placed it next to some pens to compare its size.

What do you think? Want to give it a try? Let's go.

It's very, very simple. So simple, actually I can't believe I haven't done this earlier.

First, let's see the materials you'll need.

Of course, you'll need a printer (not pictured) to print your mag cover of choice.

My D.I.Y desk and the stuff in it

Here are some pics of my D.I.Y desk, to make up for the absolute lack of style and content of my blog :S
[At least until I get a camera and some skills to add some personality to it, it will continue to look like this. Sorry]
It's still in its decoration stage, so I hope I'll eventually get to upload some upgraded pics :) Besides, I took those pics with my phone and the light is pretty bad, so, sorry for the quality.
Most of it is either recycled stuff (the desk itself is made of fruit wooden crates), D.I.Y. items, or things somebody threw away...

My laptop, Hello Kitty keyboard and notebooks. The pencil holder looks quite crappy still, but will be decorated soon!

Front view of my desk. I'm not sure if I should call it a desk, it's more like "the place where I place my laptop and stash my notebooks and pens".

My thoughts on gyaru style, beauty and fashion in general.

I came across gyaru style by accident. I had started listening to Koda Kumi and Utada Hikaru and I gradually fell in love with Japanese culture. So, with the whole world before me behind a screen, I started to know more about Japan.

I had always been interested in fashion but with a perspective that I think most people don't have: I believe fashion is a way of expressing yourself ; like when you wear a band t-shirt, you're trying to make a statement about how much you like that band. At that level. Reflecting a piece of the inside, into the outside. But everyone I know sees fashion as: either some trend you must follow or be lame, or some trend you must not follow, because that shows banality and lack of personality.

Now THIS is some original thing no one's ever worn before!
{Don't get me wrong, I like the Ramones, and I like punk-rock. This is just an example of what those very-original not-trend-follower people wear}

Anyways, I don't know when or how, I saw gyaru (from the English word "gal") for the first time. And I loved it. Not (only) because I like aesthetics, in general – I will explain myself better later, maybe in another post- but because of the concept of Japanese fashion itself. Maybe it's only my interpretation, but I think most Japanese styles started as a way of rebelliousness, showing individuality and an alternative to boring trends, in search of creating something different.

What's the deal with natural beauty?

Everyone has an idea of right and wrong. Let's leave religious concepts for a minute and focus on morality, that "inner compass" that helps us distinguish between right and wrong.
It is wrong to judge people for what they are (what they were born with, what we didn't choose) and it's right to judge them on what they do (what they choose to do). We can't judge people because of their race or ethnicity, their religion, their nationality, their gender. We can all agree to that, right? Well, if so, my question is the following, why do we have so much respect or appreciation for the so called "natural beauty"? Being naturally beautiful (thin, or tall, or just "pretty") only means you got really lucky when it comes to genetics. You didn't have to do anything to earn it, it's just there. Aren't we supposed to not judge people over that?
Some women, like me, need to work out a lot, follow a diet, wear lots of make-up, dye our hair, pluck some hairs on our unflattering eyebrows, etc., to fit into the beauty standards of our societies. (In my case, I don't succeed completely.)
Being attractive gets you far, that's a sad truth, and whoever tells you otherwise are just fooling themselves. I mean, let's face it, if me and a more attractive girl were equally qualified for the same job, chances are, she would get the job, because beauty sells. If you don't believe me, just check out the multimillionaire companies that make money out of beauty products. (Careful here, I'm not saying that's the way I see it, but the way it is.)
Ok, I'm getting a bit too far from the topic. My point is, this whole idea of natural beauty only makes people discriminate against those who are not. There is this growing tendency to show celebrities without make-up almost in an incriminating and mocking way, like saying "Ha! You ugly liar! You're just all make-up and photoshop!". Even celebrities like Demi Lovato make these "campaigns" against wearing make-up, showing themselves au naturel, proving they can be pretty without it. Well, guess what? I can't. I have redness and pimples and allergies that make me look not necessarily ugly, but unhealthy, which I really don't like.
If you are pretty enough to feel confident (and most important, to not be looked down on by society) that's great. But making it such a big deal is plainly saying "if you're not born with it, too bad", because the truth is, there's nothing you can do about it.
So, let people be. Shouldn't it be the inside that matters? Focus on that and let them "decorate" their outside anyway they want!

Attempting to blog

Finally GFC allowed me to create an account and I've recovered my password.
Now, to the hardest part, which is bloggin'... well, trying to make a blog worth reading :)
Sooo, please be patient, I'll do my best to deliver some decent entries while I learn through trial an error.
Anyway, hope to post something soon! XO