RIP Oscar de la Renta

Fashion icon Oscar de la Renta will always remain a legend

 

 

This week, the world lost a legendary man, Oscar de la Renta (1932-2014)

Oscar de la Renta, born Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo was first trained by designers
Cristóbal Balenciaga and Antonio del Castillo. His works became internationally known during the 1960's as being one of the designers to style Jacqueline Kennedy. In 2006, the designer diversified his portfolio and took on bridal wear. The designer told many sources that his goal was to make woman look and feel beautiful in everyday. His talent and unique taste has transformed the fashion world and will always be remembered.








Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_de_la_Renta 
http://thisbluemarble.com/showthread.php?p=478547 
http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/20/living/oscar-de-la-renta-death/index.html 
http://www.glamour.com/lipstick/blogs/girls-in-the-beauty-department/2013/02/a-tie-dye-nail-art-how-to-insp

Bring your love baby I could bring my shame

 The Weeknd in San Francisco

 

My long awaited dreams have come true to finally see this amazing artist live at the Bill Graham Civic Center in San Francisco. Although the tickets were a little outrageous, the concert was well worth the wait. The Weeknd is not only a phenomenal songwriter, but his presence on the stage and vocal range gives chills to anyone watching live. He might not be corrupted by the music industry just yet, and this could be a reason why his voice sounded so raw and passionate. Or he could actually be one of the best artists, killing the game. His lyrics are truthful and resonate with his fans in a way other R&B artists seem to lack. The Weeknd originally stopped in San Francisco for only one day on the tour, but after selling this out so quickly, they added an additional three days in the SF Bay Area.

I have no doubt in my mind that The Weeknd will continue to change the R&B music industry through his collaborative and creative work. If you haven't heard him yet, I'd recommend downloading his first few mixtapes.

Discography:

House of Balloons (2011)

Thursday (2011)

Echoes of Silence (2011)

Trilogy (2012)

Kiss Land (2013)

 The twenty-four year old Grammy nominated singer and song writer originates from Canada and is best known for his R&B/hip hop vocal teachings. Many people would best recognize him as being featured on Drake's album, Take Care, along with being his opening act during the concert tour, "Would you like a tour?" Within the past four years, Abel Tesfaye aka The Weeknd, recently blew up his career by posting videos onto his Youtube channel. The power of social media is the reason why he is such a success today. Through word of mouth and the world of blogging, he received coverage on the New York Times and thus creating his claim to fame. Through a few mixtapes and the amazing cover of Michael Jackson's "Dirty Diana", he landed a recording contract through Republic Records. The long awaited debut studio album titled, Kiss Land was released September 10th. His current tour, King of the Fall, features opening acts by ScHoolboy Q and Jhene Aiko.

Resources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake_(rapper)#Discography

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Weeknd

http://www.theweeknd.com/

http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/code/6205405/code-picks-of-the-week-weeknd-sam-smith-more 

Hamburger Cupcake Recipe

Hamburger Cupcake Recipe

A friend of mine was having a bake sale and needed help with a project she found on Pinterest. Lucky for her, I love baking! She showed me this recipe and I went crazy. You can't even tell me these aren't the cutest little cupcakes you've ever seen. Ahhh, love at first bite. 

 Ingredients:

Yellow Cake box

Brownies

White frosting

Food coloring

Sesame seeds

1. Bake yellow cake cupcakes. Follow directions on the box. Once they are cooled down, cut the cupcakes horizontally. The cupcakes are used as the 'hamburger bun'.

2. Bake brownies. Dark chocolate brownies work the best, but it's really up to you. Once they are cooled down, use a circle cookie cutter or something similar to cut the brownies. These will be used as the 'hamburger meat'. 

3. Grab 3 small bowls and pour the frosting evenly in all 3 bowls. Use red dye in one bowl for the 'ketchup'. Another bowl should have yellow dye for the 'mustard'. And the last bowl is used for the green dye, which is the 'lettuce'. Once you have mixed the frosting, place the designated colors into separate plastic bags. This will make it easier when you are putting them on your hamburger bun.

4. Take off the top part of your already cut cupcake and place the brownie circle on the bottom. 

5.Gently squeeze out the ketchup and mustard first and then top it off with the lettuce. The pattern should look like a squiggle design. Please refer to the pictures below. 

6. Once you have finished, put the hamburger bun on top. Brush the top of the bun with a little bit of water and sprinkle a few sesame seeds on top. 

BOOM! You have just finished making the cutest hamburger cupcakes in town. 

They also happen to taste FABULOUS!  

                               

photo: http://www.recipestap.com/fast-food-fun 

Recipe courtesy of:  http://www.recipestap.com/fast-food-fun

Sassy sighting in Boston

Sassy sightings in Boston 

I know I haven't posted in months!!! My life has been so crazy but I'll be making more of an effort to sit and write my blog posts a little bit more. To catch you up to speed with the sassy life of Kastania; I've been working a ton, reading more, writing music (what?!?), taking more pictures, staying up to date with my pop culture gossip, building on the relationships I have, drinking more coffee, more concerts and I'll be in a fashion show?! So many fun things coming up! 

But first, I have a week of time to kill as I've traveled across the country to visit my best friend Chelsea in the gorgeous city of Boston, Massachusetts. I fall more in love with this city every time I visit. I've been here three times in my life and I love it. Granted, I'm only here during the amazing fall weather and not the stormy snow, regardless, this city is beyond anything I've seen. The architecture is phenominal with the brick, ivy and heart of this country wrapped up in the small streets and statues of our founding fathers. Every corner is picture perfect as the leaves are changing colors, the boats take off on this Saturday morning and the people are smiling as they walk by. As I sit here, sipping on my oh so sugary Dunkin Donuts coffee  at the edge of the Boston Harbor, I can't help but reflect on how I got to this point in my life. As the cliches roll around in my mind, I take in the beauty and thank God for this beautiful day with my amazing friend and a loving family to come home too. Wherever life takes me, if it's half as amazing as this view, I know it will be great! 

I decided to roam the city a bit for some inspiration in my life and came across the Freedom Trail that leads tourists from one historical spot to the next. I walked up Bunker Hill (almost 300 stairs!), walked into an open house in Charlestown, munched on cannoli's in the North End, sat down and enjoyed some coffee in a lovely park and even ended up somewhere near Fenway! Stay tuned for more pictures and posts to come soon! 

4 ways to rock that leather skirt

How to rock that leather skirt

So you just bought a leather skirt because you saw some Kardashian wearing it in your InStyle magazine. Now you've probably been looking at it in your closet with the tags still on and have no idea how to wear it. Well luckily for you, I came up with some real ways to rock that leather skirt!

 

 

At the office:

During the day:

Date night:

Cocktails & Dancing: 

 

I feel it on my skin, warming up my mind. Whoa let it shine

 

Hat: Forever 21

Camera crop top: Brandy Melville

Sweater: H&M

Jeans: Joe's 

Leopard belt: Forever 21

Snake ring: Charlotte Russe  

Booties: Boutique

Bracelets: Alex & Ani

Sunglasses: Ray Bans 

 

Live 105.3 presents BFD 2014

Live 105.3 the Bay Area's alternative radio station presented their 20th annual BFD music festival this past weekend. 

With over 25,000 people in attendance, this sold out crowd enjoyed a wide variety of musical artists. Five stages were set up around the Shoreline Arena for this event which included performances by local bands, upcoming artists and big name musicians. 

As a lover of all types of music, I couldn't help but get excited for the artists that were about to hit the stage. This was my first BFD music  festival I've ever attended and I have to say that this was quite the experience. It was a different experience attending the event as a staff member instead of as an artist or guest but the memories are still unforgettable.  
I was working at the promotions tent for the majority of the festival along with getting to interact with our listeners. I also had the pleasure of announcing a local band to the stage. Later in the night we had the opportunity to watch the acts from backstage which was by far the best experience of this entire event.
This job has been nothing but a blessing in disguise and I hope to continue my career in the music industry in one way or another. You know you have a passion for something when you don't feel like it's work; it's just fun.








***Disclaimer: This blog post is depicted on my experiences alone and does not depict the values or standards of anyone working for CBS radio.***