#when going out

(Excluding the regular phone, keys, and wallet shebang. Of course I'll bring those. It's a given.)

- When I was younger, I had a grey leather jacket that I wore all the time. After I grew out of it, I didn't bother to go looking for another one. I just didn't feel the need to get one. Back in October, I bought a leather jacket originally because I needed it for my punk rock costume. Since then, the leather jacket has become a holy grail of mine. I wore it every day when I was in New York, and I still continue to wear it almost every day, whether I'm going out grocery shopping or I'm out with friends. It has kept me warm and has helped me specialize in badass-ery.

- My black Topshop leather knapsack has become a great must-have of mine ever since I got it back in New York. Not only is it stylish and sleek AND chic, with it's gold embellishments and silky (faux) leather finish, it is practical. It's small so it's not considered a backpack (I wouldn't be able to fit all my school stuff in it) but it's enough for me to fit things like a jacket and my other essentials when I'm going out. Before, I continually wore my Michael Kors Hamilton bag because it was big and cute and stylish, but it soon became a hassle when I didn't have free hands and it was hanging loosely on my arms whilst I knocked into people in a huge crowd. Not to mention it was brown leather, and every time I wore an all black outfit - which happened quite a lot - the brown leather stuck out awkwardly like a singular pimple right in the middle of your nose. With my black leather knapsack, I can continue to be sleek and chic without having to worry about hitting people. It has a pocket on the outside that fits my iphone 5s, although the iphone 6 would definitely fit snuggly. There's also a pocket for you to slip in your current lipstick, a row of leather strips for you to hang your pens, and even a small cardholder so people know who's the owner of the bag. I even recently wore it to a semi-formal dinner and to church, and I still fit right in. It was originally $58, but I ended up getting it for $30. It's a complete catch and if you're ever in a TopShop I do recommend you get it. It's a one of a kind bag in Topshop, and I'm sure you'll know what it is right away. Unfortunately I couldn't find it on the Topshop USA website, but if I do ever find it, I'll be sure to let you all know.

- Lipstick. I've recently become quite obsessed with lipstick. I used to be a lipstick hater, believe it or not, but I've recently noticed how brown and sad my natural lips actually are. Not to mention they're always chapped, and I had always slathered on an unhealthy amount on my lips. So I wouldn't blame myself for not putting on lipstick. But as previously stated, I realized how brown and sad my natural lips are, and I had wanted a still natural but pink color to my lips. After buying the Laura Mercier lipstick in Café, I had fallen in love. It's natural and it's refreshing and everything I had always wanted to make my lips look how I wanted it to look. After using it and falling so in love with lipstick, I decided to branch out. I had bought Mac's Diva, a dark red color that had a matte finish. I also bought Mac's nude color, Velvet Teddy, and what I did to make my lips not look too nude is use the benefit tint, benetint, on my lips before applying the nude lip. A current favorite of mine, is also the Revlon color, Berry Haute, which was gifted to me. Although it has a pink/purplish tint, it contrasts nicely with my brown skin and doesn't make it look like an outrageous color on my skin, like other pink purplish colors have before.

- A pen and a notebook. You never know when you're phones going to shut down, and you never know when you just need to let things out and not have them take up storage on your phone. These two have come in handy when I'm on the phone in public and I've had to write some important information down, and it has also come in handy when my phone has shut down and I've decided to play pictionary with my family.

- My earphones. I used to never bring this out, but I've noticed I've needed it recently when people around me are too loud and annoying. The music that flows out of it soothes my soul and it is also helpful when I'm trying to watch a video in public.