December Photo-a-Day Challenge 2012

(source)

This immediately caught my eye on Pinterest as I was doing my daily browsing. I rarely say no to a photo challenge and thought this one was extra cute for the holiday season.

Lianne from A Content Housewife created this December Photo-a-Day Challenge and now we can all join in on the fun.

All you have to do is take a photo every day and post it on your blog, your Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest or Facebook. Don't forget to include the hashtag #ACHdecember so that we can look at each other's daily pics.

If you're thinking of doing this, please leave a link to where you'll be posting your pictures in the comment section.

Have a lovely weekend, everyone!

November Favorites 2012

Well, hello there winter! I can't believe it's already the holiday season! Where did the year go!? I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving? I'm not American, but I do support any holiday that involves food; and LOTS of it.

It was easy to pick my favorites for the month of November, so without further ado:

1. Abercrombie & Fitch hoodie 

This hoodie from Abercrombie & Fitch is amazing! Their hoodies are by far my favorite, and I basically live in this one and another red one I have. They are good quality, nice and warm, and the fit is comfortable. I'll definitely get more next time I go to the States.

2. Celine Paris t-shirt

I've wanted to buy this shirt for so long, and finally found a shop on Etsy.com that prints these Celine Paris t-shirts. Obviously not the real deal, but the quality of the white shirt is really good, which is all that really matters to me.

3. H&M maroon scarf

I bought this maroon scarf from H&M in Dubai back in August, but have only really been able to wear it this past month. The scarf is quite light, but will still make you feel toasty warm.

4. Isabel Marant sneakers

I've been a wee bit obsessed with these sneakers from Isabel Marant for the past couple of months, but didn't want to spend all that money on a pair of sneakers. Luckily, I stumbled upon a store here in Taipei that sells a much more affordable knockoff, so I scooped them right up. I love these, and am thinking about getting it in red as well.

5. Chunky cable knit sweater

It's no secret that I'm a big sweater fan. But I didn't have an off-white one!(?) This past month I bought a chunky cable knit sweater from Vero Moda on Asos.com (not the one in the image, I couldn't find an image of that one. But it looks similar.) Great for wearing under a blazer or coat!

6. H&M tote

I got this tote from H&M back in August in Barcelona. It was so inexpensive, but the quality is amazing. The bag is quite big, and it's nearly impossible to find anything in that abyss.

What has been blowing your hair back this past month?

My In-Ovation C braces treatment

The one and only post-braces photo I have so far

Yes, I'm finally free. No more brackets, wires and elastics, and no more carrying around a toothbrush in my clutch. Can I hear a hallelujah!? 

After exactly 14 months, I finally have perfect pearly whites. I couldn't be happier with the results and I still find myself licking my, now, smooth teeth and smiling weirdly at myself in the mirror.

Even though my orthodontic treatment was relatively short compared to the usual 2 to 3-year treatment, it felt like a really long time. It was totally worth it though, in spite of all the bad experiences that came along with it.

I lost 7 kilograms (about 15 pounds) throughout the course of my treatment, which I'm sure many girls would love, but I can do without the "you've-lost-so-much-weight-you-look-so-skinny" comments. Yes, thank you, I know I lost weight, because I can't freakin' eat properly, that's why.

I know everyone's treatments are different, but I thought it would be a good idea to share mine, for those of you that are interested, or are thinking about getting braces as well.

My In-Ovation C Braces Treatment Timeline: 

Before treatment (July 2010)

June 2011 - I told my dentist here in Taiwan that I was interested in getting braces. He introduced me to a wonderful orthodontist and before I knew it, I had an appointment to get x-rays, molds and impressions done.

I did a lot of research on different types of braces, and even checked out Invisalign. After having a consultation with my orthodontist and discussing my options, we decided on the clear In-Ovation C braces. Even though she could have put on the braces that next week, I was heading to the States for summer vacation and thought it would be best to get it when I got back.

September 2011 - My orthodontist fitted me with bottom braces and said that my teeth needed to move a little before she could put the upper ones on. It didn't really hurt, it was just uncomfortable. Read more about my experience with braces during the first two weeks.

November 2011 - I finally got the upper braces, which was extremely painful for the first few days. I was the biggest baby! Read all about my upper-braces fiasco.

February 2012 - The orthodontist put white elastic bands (not sure of the actual name) around all my teeth, which was really tight and hurt a lot. Throughout the rest of my treatment, she took it out and put new ones around my teeth every time I had to go for an adjustment.

March 2012 - I hit the 6-month mark and wrote a detailed post about my first 6 months' experience with braces.

April 2012 - I had to get dental skin graft surgery because of receding gums on one of my bottom teeth. This was the most pain I was ever in throughout my entire treatment. The surgery wasn't successful, unfortunately, and I wrote a post about this painful experience.

June 2012 - I had dental skin graft surgery for the second time, and again, the surgery wasn't successful. This surgery wasn't as painful as the first one, but it still hurt a lot and I couldn't talk, smile or eat properly for two weeks.

During treatment (August 2012)

September 2012 - After a year with braces, the orthodontist started doing the finishing touches and filing my teeth to align them. Here is the post I wrote about hitting the 1-year mark.

November 2012 - At the beginning of the month, she put permanent (fixed) retainers behind a few of my upper teeth and behind some of my lower teeth. This is to ensure that my teeth won't move back after the removal of the braces. They were taken off on November 19th, and it was the weirdest feeling. It actually sounded like each tooth was cracked into hundreds of pieces as she was taking off the brackets. She also filed my teeth to get rid of the glue and then cleaned it. After that, they took photos and impressions again.

After treatment (November 2012)

Even though my treatment is finished, I still have to go and pick up my retainers, which I've promised myself to wear religiously to avoid having to get braces again in the future, and I have an appointment to get a wisdom tooth extracted this weekend. I'll also have to have another skin graft surgery in January. But after that, I'll be finished! Forever! I hope...

Thanks to everyone for your kind, supportive and encouraging words throughout my orthodontic treatment this past year. I'm really glad I made the decision to finally get braces, and I'm extremely relieved that it's all over now, and that my teeth look even better than what I could have imagined. If you've been thinking about getting braces, just do it, you won't regret it. Now is the time, what are you waiting for?!

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask me in the comments below, or you can email me at liesl@pretty-random-things.com

My Top 5 online Black Friday deals

Even though I think it's absolutely ridiculous how people turn into animals and trample each other while shopping on Black Friday, I do participate in this madness... not in person, though, but online.

I'm not American, and I don't live in the States, but I do like to shop and I can't say no to a great deal. Even though my sister will be in Los Angeles on Black Friday and will do some shopping for us, I still want to get my fix online and get in on the action as well.

I poked around and found some awesome deals for us online shoppers. Here is my pick of Top 5 Black Friday online deals:

1. Shopbop.com
clothing, accessories, shoes, bags

(click image to go to shopbop.com)

Valid until: 
Monday, November 26

Deals: 
Spend $250+ and get 20% off
Spend $500+ and get 25% off
Spend $1000+ and get 30% off
Spend $1500+ and get 35% off

Code: 
Enter code BIGEVENT12 at checkout

2. Asos.com
clothing, accessories, bags, shoes, beauty

(click image to go to Asos.com)

Valid until: 

Sunday, November 25

Deals: 
20% off sitewide

Code: 
Enter code BLACKFRIDAYBONUS at checkout

3. RevolveClothing.com
clothing, accessories, bags, shoes

(click image to go to RevolveClothing.com)

Valid until: 
Sunday, November 25

Deals: 
up to 50% off sitewide

4. Amazon.com
books, magazines, clothing, accessories, electronics, cosmetics

Valid until: 
Sunday, November 25

Deals: 
Up to 50% off


5. Feelunique.com
cosmetics

(click image to go to Feelunique.com)

Valid until: 
Thursday, November 29

Deals: 
10% off gifts for men (code: SNOWMAN)
Spend $32+ and get $5 off (code: SECRETSANTA)
Spend $80+ and get $7 off (code: XMASLIST)
Spend $160+ and get $16 (code: XMASLIGHTS)

Are you going out shopping for Black Friday this year, or are you getting your fix online? Also, if you know of some other great deals, please share it with us in the comments.

Michael Kors giveaway WINNER

Let's just get to it, shall we?

A huge congratulations to HILARY ADAMS, you are the lucky winner of the Michael Kors golden oversized runway watch! 

Hilary, I can't message you on Facebook, but I have sent you a friend request. Please send me a message so that I can get your shipping information. I'll be waiting for your reply. If I don't hear back from our winner before November 28th, 2012, I'll draw another winner.

A huge thank you to everyone that entered the giveaway and that has been so supportive of my blog. Your lovely comments inspire me so much and I'm so grateful to have so many wonderful readers here on Pretty.Random.Things. I really appreciate all your kind words, and that you take time out of your day to comment on my posts.

If you didn't win this time, don't be too disappointed, I have another giveaway coming up soon!

Here's how I picked the winner for this giveaway

I know that there are other ways of hosting a giveaway on your blog and generating a winner, but I'm not 100% sure how to use that yet, so I decided to do it the old-school way this time.

List of entries

First, I went through all the comments on the giveaway post, and copied and pasted your GFC (Google Friend Connect) and Facebook names on a list. If you Tweeted, Pinned or Blogged about the giveaway, you got extra entries.

Then, I went through the list and double checked whether you are actually following my blog with GFC and if you liked it on Facebook, which were the requirements. If you claimed to have Tweeted, Pinned or Blogged about it, I also checked out those links. (Yes, it took quite some time, but I wanted to be sure an honest person won this giveaway.) I deleted your entry if you entered yourself more than once, or if you didn't follow this blog with GFC or liked it on Facebook.

In total, there were 494 entries.

Choosing a random entry number

Lastly I went on Random.org and generated a random number to get our winner. And voila!

Once again, a big thank you to all my loyal readers. Stay tuned for another exciting giveaway coming up soon.

Top 10 Tuesday: No-more-braces food

"What is the first thing you want to eat when your braces come off?", has definitely been the most-asked question by my friends and family recently. I'm extremely happy to announce that I'm officially braces-free since last night.

This week, I'll write all about my treatment and experience. But for now, let's talk about the most important thing; food.

Throughout my treatment, I would fantasize about certain foods, which I had to give up while I had my braces. Now that there are no brackets, wires and elastic bands holding me back, I can indulge myself in all the fabulous foods that I couldn't eat for a year.

Here is my list of Top 10 foods that I can't wait to stuff my face with now that my braces are gone:

1. Popcorn

I'm such a big fan of popcorn, so I did have it occasionally during my treatment. But when I ate it, I could only put one in my mouth at a time and had to concentrate on not getting a popcorn kernel in between the brackets, which would risk it coming off and would mean a trip to the orthodontist. No one wants to concentrate that hard when eating popcorn, especially when all I really want to do is to mindlessly stuff a handful of popcorn in my mouth and enjoy the movie.

2. Apples

Of course I was able to eat apple cut up into small pieces, but I just can't wait to hold a juicy green apple in my hand and take a huge bite out of it.

3. Nuts

I love snacking on nuts, especially almonds, and have missed it so much this past year. The Boyfriend and I went to Costco yesterday, and I almost couldn't keep myself from doing my happy dance in front of the nut selection.


4. Cookies

I was able to eat certain cookies, but not all of them. And there's really nothing worse than than when you think a cookie is going to be soft, and then you can't bite into it, and then you're stuck with a soggy cookie and a mouth full of saliva.

5. Biltong (beef jerky)

Even though I haven't really been eating red meat the past year, I've craved traditional South African biltong. I know that I could possibly have had it shredded, but I prefer eating a big chunk at a time.

6. Granola

This was definitely a no-go for me during my treatment. Even though I basically lived off cereal after adjustments, when my teeth were sensitive, I couldn't even dream of having a delicious bowl of mixed nuts and oats.

7. Chewing gum

For someone who always carried a pack of gum in her bag, not being able to chew it was a big change for me. I did switch to mints during my treatment though, but really missed being able to chew gum. Buying a packet straight after work today!

8. Potato chips

Just like cookies, I was able to eat some softer chips, like Lays, but I also couldn't eat all of them. Being an around-the-clock snacker, this was a huge problem for me.

9. Hard candy

I have a sweet tooth and have missed being able to eat candy mindlessly. I did eat a lollipop once and one of my brackets came off.

10. Corn on the cob

Ooh, I absolutely can't wait to have corn on the cob with some melted butter...mmm...

Have you ever had braces? What was the one food that you couldn't wait to eat again after they came off?

Top 10 Tuesday: My Favorite Posts

Have you ever found an old diary of when you were younger,  read some of the entries, and have that oh-my-word-what-was-I-thinking-I-was-so-stupid feeling? Even though it's embarrassing, it's also kind of cute to see what was important to you when you were 12. Right? No wait, actually, it IS just downright embarrassing...

Sometimes, when I read older posts on my blog, I get a similar feeling. But although I'm not embarrassed by anything I've posted here on my blog, I do still have posts that I'm prouder of than others. Ones that make me laugh, make me think, make readers laugh or think, or just make me feel good in a way.

Being a teacher, I know it's bad to have favorites. But I do. Bad teacher? So here is a list of my top 10 favorite posts on my blog so far.

1. Things I'll teach my children

2. Pet Peeves

3. Favorite Chick Flicks

4. What's in my bag?

5. Dear Me

6. What the duck?

7. Favorite Online Shopping Sites

8. What's in my shower?

9. Quotes I love and live by

10. Things I love about living with The Boyfriend

Which post has been your favorite so far? Any that aren't on my list?

Michael Kors GIVEAWAY update

Yes, dear readers, we are super close to 500 followers on Pretty.Random.Things. now, and that means that I will be able to draw the winner of the Michael Kors watch very soon. My level of excitement is through the roof, I don't know about you?

Thanks to everyone that's entered so far, and has shared the giveaway on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook and your personal blogs. And for those of you that haven't entered yet, you can check out how to be entered into the giveaway over HERE.

On the day that I hit 500 followers, I will close the giveaway and announce the winner as soon as possible here on Pretty.Random.Things. and also on Facebook. The winner will also receive a personal message from me on Facebook.

Please keep sharing the giveaway so that we can get to 500 followers in the next few weeks, because wouldn't a beautiful gold watch just be the perfect accessory for your Christmas party? 

Have a lovely week, everyone!

Cheers to the freakin' weekend!

Damn, I'm so happy it's finally weekend. What a busy busy week it was. So, what's everyone planning for the weekend?

Sorry for the lack of action here on Pretty.Random.Things. I've just been going through a little uninspired phase lately. I'm sure I'll snap right out of it when things start to get more exciting around here. With Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Eve coming up, there'll be plenty to ramble about here on the blog.

I hope everyone has a lovely weekend. Have fun and be safe!

Top 10 Tuesday: Funniest YouTube videos

You know how things work on YouTube. You start off by looking for a preview of that movie you thought about seeing this weekend. You innocently click on a video in the sidebar that tickles your fancy. One thing leads to another and before you know it you've seen five videos of news reporters making mistakes on live TV and you end up watching a video compilation of people falling off boats... I know, that's probably not funny... okay, no, it is really funny...

Well, that's how it happens for me, at least. Although there are literally thousands of hilarious videos on YouTube, I have some favorites that I turn to for a good laugh once in a while.

Here are my Top 10 picks of funniest YouTube videos:

1. Antoine Dodson warns a perp on live TV



I know this one is an oldie now, but to me it's still a goodie. I remember the first time I saw this video I literally couldn't stop laughing, and had to watch it ten more times. The Boyfriend and I still use quotes from this video in our everyday lives. "Well...(pout)...obviously..." and "you can run and tell THAT...homeboy..." are favorites!

2. "Calming the baby beast"



This video is just so freakin' adorable and makes me happy.

3. Ultimate dog tease



Honestly, I don't know how I find these videos. I'm a big dog lover and this is just hysterical.

4. "The Nervous Kid"


I get tears in my eyes when watching this video. I don't know whether it's because I'm laughing so hard, or if I actually feel bad for the little boy.

5. 2 girls 1 cup Grandma's Reaction


This poor grandma's reaction to the infamous "2 girls 1 cup" video is absolutely hilarious. I love how she is totally disgusted by it, but still keeps watching.

6. "Talking twin babies"



The twins talk in their secret twin-language, which is so cute. But it's the subtitles that they put in that really made the video.

7. "I don't like you Mommy"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8aprCNnecU&feature=related

This boy is so cute, and honest. His poor mom.

8. "Which is the guilty dog"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kLdO3EsECs&feature=related

I cried from laughter the first time I saw this. I grew up with poodles and they used to do this when they were in trouble.

9. Whistle Tip Mufflers


Don't ask me why, but for some reason The Boyfriend and I can't stop laughing about this video. He regularly shows me the ridiculous videos he finds on YouTube, but the people in this video are just hysterical. We also use quotes from this video often. "It's only in da marnin'..."  and "it's just for decorations...".

10. Top 7 Scary Maze Compilation


To be honest, my reaction would probably have been way worse than these people's. Love it!

Which of these videos do you like? And feel free to share some of your funny YouTube finds.

October Favorites 2012

Bye bye, October! You were a lovely month indeed. My sweaters and darker nail polishes have started making more frequent appearances, and I have officially packed away my summer shorts. Hooray for being able to wear jeans and scarves again, finally!

Here are some of my favorites from the past month:

1. Lancôme Hypnôse mascara

I'm back to using my faithful Lancôme Hypnôse mascara. I stocked up on some Lancôme products this past summer during our cruise in the duty free shop, and have been using Lancome Hypnose mascara again this past month. I have now officially decided that this is my holy grail mascara. I've used some of the other ones from Lancôme, and although they are nice, too, this one makes my eyelashes look even longer and thicker. Also, it stays on the whole day, but it's still easy to remove.

2. Steve Madden "Croquetl" skull loafers

I walk past a Steve Madden store every day after work, and have seen this pair of Croquetl skull loafers on display, but never thought to try them on. Recently, we were wandering around a department store and they happened to have a sale on Steve Madden shoes. so I decided to get this pair. I'm such a big fan of loafers, and the rhinestone skulls were too cute to pass up.

3. Dainty gold ring

This past month two of my friends from South Africa came to visit me in Taiwan. They gave me a beautiful dainty gold ring as a gift. The one I have has a light blue/green stone, but I couldn't find it online, as I don't know where they bought it. It's almost identical to the one in this picture though. I really love it and I'm definitely on the lookout for more stack-able little gold rings.

4. OPI "Miami Beet" nail polish

I've used so many new nail polishes this past month, but OPI "Miami Beet" was my favorite. I bought this one last year and only used it once, as it needs at least three coats to be completely opaque, and most of the time I don't have the patience to do three coats. It actually looks darker on my nails than it does in the bottle, and it's a gorgeous dark burgundy color with a blueish-purple undertone.

5. Soap & Glory "Clean on Me" body wash

For two months in a row now I've had Soap & Glory products in my favorites posts. This Soap & Glory "Clean On Me" body wash was one of the products I bought at Boots when I was in Dubai and used it this past month. I'm really bad at describing smells, but this one leaves my skin smelling clean and fresh, and the fragrance will stay on me for a while. I adore this body wash and will buy it again in the future.

6. Skull print scarf

Obviously, I've been a little skull-obsessed this past month. I absolutely love my white, skull print scarf and it's been perfect for fall; very light and sheer. I'm thinking of getting some other colors, too.

What has been your favorites from the past month?