In honor of the new month and the seasons beginning to change, here are eight things I’ve been absolutely obsessed with in the month of August.
1. KATSEYE
My girls! Of course, I’m starting out this list with perhaps my strongest obsession at the moment. I watched Dream Academy on Netflix on a whim last summer after hearing people talking about it online and quickly became obsessed. It started as a Hybe/Geffen Records training program to create a global girl group adjacent to the K-Pop industry, which later became a survival show where the trainees were eliminated in order to build the perfect group. Eventually, six girls were chosen: Manon, Sophia, Daniela, Lara, Megan, and Yoonchae, all from different parts of the world with a unique it-factor to bring to the table.
While I originally found the music to be a little elementary, a few hits here and there have caught my attention, but what mainly kept me in the fandom were the girls themselves. With their personal style, goofy humor, and synchronization in their performances, I have been absolutely gagged for the last year.
Recently with their Lollapalooza set and GAP commercial featuring Kelis’ “Milkshake”, Katseye has completely infiltrated every corner of my brain. As a retired One Direction fan girl, this filled that pop group shaped hole in my heart <3.
2. The 7 Virtues Cherry Ambition perfume
Now, listen. I am not someone who switches up their fragrance rotation very easily and I’ve always leaned more vanilla/gourmand when it comes to body care, no fruits, no florals. Itching for a change recently, I purchased a fragrance discovery set from Sephora and was completely gobsmacked that I was leaning most towards the cherry scent in the bunch.
With key notes including cherry, saffron, and vanilla, I now smell like cherry cola in the most alluring way possible. It’s giving sultry, it’s giving rich, it’s giving delicious. Sorry to my old tried and true, but I’ve found a new signature scent. And it smells even yummier paired with my Josie Maran Vanilla Vibezzz body butter.
3. Big, Chunky Purses
I’ll admit it, I used to be a big purse hater. I love my sleek collection of handbags that strictly fit one lip combo, my wallet, and maybe my phone, each of them unique in color and style so I could match them to my outfits. But for some reason lately, I’ve been feeling called to big shoulder bags, effortlessly slouchy and chic in a 2011 Miley Cyrus way.
I scoured Depop for weeks, looking to curate this very vibe as my everyday purse. Somehow and someway, the Depop Angels showed me a beautiful pink Isabella Fiore purse in near perfect condition, slouchy but still structured, a pop of color but not overwhelming, and big enough to store all my essentials. I genuinely have not put down the bag in the week I’ve had it, bringing it up to anyone who will listen. I’m so obsessed with it, I’m now looking for another in black.
4. Marina’s album “Princess of Power”
Anyone who had a Tumblr account in 2013 should know Marina (& the Diamonds). I hadn’t been keeping up with her music releases since Froot (2015), but once I heard the leading single, “Cuntissimo” from her latest album, I knew I was back.
“Princess of Power” makes me feel so feminine and free, each of the songs almost campy with Marina’s whimsical lyricism and production. The album’s playful nature paired with the themes of love and liberation have made me come back for more all summer long. A beautiful mix of seventies disco and modern pop, I’m surprised more people aren’t talking about it! If you enjoyed the general sound of Sabrina Carpenter’s new album, I think you’d also enjoy this one.
My favorites right now are “I ❤ You” and “Je Ne Sais Quoi”.
5. Casual Social Media
Can we be so honest? Social media is all so performative nowadays and reads as inauthentic. To the girlies who were around for the first couple of years of Instagram in 2011/2012, we remember what it was like to take a selfie in the app, put up a peace sign, and then immediately post it to your feed without much thought at all, then quickly following it with a meme, also posted onto the feed. Now, it takes weeks, months to construct the perfect photo dump, posted, deleted, then reposted because the like count was low. I miss not caring about how I’m being perceived and actually interacting with friends’ posts.
Seeing people embrace the spontaneity, focusing less and less about the perfection of it all makes me so happy. Nothing makes me want to interact with a post more than authenticity across all social media platforms. Bring in the chaos! Screw an aesthetic! I’ve definitely been embracing this lately on my TikTok.
6. Oversized glasses
There is something about wearing glasses that are half the size of your face that just makes an outfit a million times better. I’ve been into accessorizing a bit more overtly lately and was at first overwhelmed by the sheer size of them, but once you get over the hump of discomfort, trying something new, it suddenly becomes the coolest thing ever.
The ones I haven’t been able to put down are from Urban Outfitters. I totally bought them thinking they were blue light glasses, but even with that disappointment, I ended up loving them more than I thought and am now in the market for more pairs. Tell me I’m not giving cool, hip librarian in these glasses—you literally can’t!
7. The Upstairs Neighbors podcast
Dom and Maya, if you’re reading this, I love you. This podcast is what my inner monologue sounds like on a daily basis, filled with too many internet references and brain-rot TikTok slang. These two hosts have some of the quickest wit I’ve ever seen with perfect comedic timing, never failing to make me laugh out loud shamelessly. The show is majorly pop culture centered and feels like you’re in a room with the hosts, gossiping with friends.
I’ve been watching them casually for a while now, especially when their takes come up on my For You Page on TikTok, but after their episode with Mickey Gordon, I was completely enamored with Dom and Maya, their humor, their style, and their personalities. As a young black woman myself, I am always happy to see other black women thriving and doing what they love, and it is very evident that they are passionate about their work.
8. Julia Fox’s Down the Drain
I read Julia Fox’s memoir at the beginning of the month, then promptly spent the rest of the month thinking about it. My sister recommended this book to me a million times over the last year or so and I finally made the decision to read it on vacation, going into it with low expectations (as I usually do with celebrity memoirs). Very early on, I quickly found myself impressed by both the writing and the depth.
In a complete rollercoaster of a story, touching on love, familial distress, friendship, class, addiction, and identity, Julia Fox adds a completely new layer to her image by controlling the story. As of late, I knew she possessed some sort of female-gaze allure with feministic commentary online that I’ve enjoyed over the years, but I never knew her life was so jam-packed with chaos and hardships. So many situations were layered with nuance, making me view some of these gray area circumstances with a totally different lens. There was so much happening that the “alleged” Kanye West segment was the lest enticing of the book. It completely changed my view of her, feeling so proud of a total stranger for how far she has come. I would definitely recommend to memoir enthusiasts, or readers looking to branch out!
Thank you for tuning in.
xoxoxoxo
★ kyra ★ chanel ★ hill ★ 