Cinderella goes back to her castle

"Once upon a time in a faraway land, there was a tiny kingdom..."

Lots of little girls dream about walking into Disney's Magic Kingdom, all dressed up as Cinderella, and live the story themselves by visiting the beautiful castle in the middle of the park. Sadly, we (grownups) are not allowed to enter the park in costume, but this time I decided to do something about it.

Right before the release of Disney's live-action Cinderella film, Hot Topic (always so avant-garde) presented a collection inspired by this romantic Disney classic. The collection consisted in five items: a peasant sweetheart dress, a striped knit top, a high-waisted skirt with graphics, a Victorian waistcoat, and of course, one of the garments was an adaptation of the iconic blue dress worn by Cinderella herself.

The dress has a marvelous construction. It has a semi-boned corset bodice (with a functional lace-up back) attached to quite a full skirt, which is lined with two layers of thick tulle. The light blue fabric is soft polyester sateen, delicately stitched with a shiny damask print that features two memorable details: the glass slipper and the pumpkin carriage. This garment is incredible soft and light, making it super comfortable to wear.

The dress also has two chiffon sleeves, which you can wear on or off-shoulder. The volume and movement of this dress make you feel like you're sporting your very own small version of Cinderella's exquisite ball gown. Naturally, strolling around Cinderella's castle and Fantasyland's attractions was a must for this outfit.

Nowadays it has been discontinued, and it's only available in plus size.

Undoubtedly, this has been one of my best catches from this store. Hot Topic has been among the top 5 in my "favorite stores ranking" since a very, very long time ago. They have such a magnificent array of merchandise, but this particular dress definitely raised the bar!

My next stop is Hot Topic's Belle Ball Gown, inspired by the new live-action film Beauty and the Beast.

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Lighten up your day with Disney's "As told by Emoji"

As a Disney lover, I am a faithful reader of their weekly newsletters. Within a couple of them, I have recently spotted a relatively new set of short videos called "As told by Disney Emoji"... and they're truly a must-see for any Disney fans.

It's no secret that Disney animated movies (naming classics like Pocahontas, The Little Mermaid, Snow White, and so many others) are memorable, loveable and fantastic masterpieces, but these synthesized emoji stories are really capturing the attention of millions of YouTube viewers that slowly grow in number and hunger for more Disney emoji stories.

The video series focuses in reimagining scenes, characters, props and any other important elements from several Walt Disney Pictures movies following the style of smartphone chats, and showcasing them as a short film. The clever use of emoji-looking characters and icons, which also interact with some of the smartphone's apps and functionalities (ex: contacts and maps), are the perfect combination to develop a trendy short version of the Disney classics.

You can find the "As told by Emoji" playlist within Disney's YouTube channel, currently including 10 emoji animations about the following movies: Aladdin, Frozen, Frozen Fever, Tangled, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Zootopia, Finding Nemo, Finding Dory, Cinderella, and their latest addition, Beauty and the Beast.

The first installment was launched on February 2015, with more of them making their way until now. The Lion King and Winnie the Pooh are the next ones in line to be launched by Disney Interactive Studios, who produces these incredible videos.

If you love this series as much as I do, you can jump right into the emoji fun by downloading the Disney Emoji Blitz! game from either app store, or from their webpage. 

Did you know? #5: "The Last Goodbye"

About a week ago Peter Jackson posted on his Facebook page a video of the song "The Last Goodbye", performed by Billy Boyd. This song will be featured in the third and final release of The Hobbit saga, "The Battle of the Five Armies", as a honorable final closure for the Tolkien series.

"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" premiered yesterday at London

and will open on December 17 for USA

Long story short, this tune from the original motion picture soundtrack summarizes the long and passionate journey from the very beginning, featuring some of the best scenes from the "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" movies, mixed with behind-the-scenes footage and Boyd performing the song. For those of you who don't remember (shame on you!) Billy Boyd portrayed the hobbit Peregrin "Pippin" Took throughout the three "The Lord of The Rings" movies.

Both the melody and lyrics are powerful, evoking strong emotions from all the best and worst moments shared during the adventures that took place in Middle-Earth, and transforming the five-minute video into a heartwarming connection between the fans and the fiction. The song was composed and written by Billy Boyd himself, with Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens collaborating with the lyrics.

If you haven't watched it yet, be prepared to get goosebumps and maybe shed a tear or two.

The fact is 16 years, 6 movies and one fellowship after, the classic story is finally coming to an end. And this will be a true "last goodbye" to the Middle-Earth series.

You can read Billy Boyd's interview with Entertainment Weekly HERE.