Tag: black girls blog too

Bookish

BLACKATHON TBR!!

India
Hi everyone and welcome back to my channel. My name is India and today we are going to be doing my TBR for Blackathon, which started at the beginning of the month, but that I’m finally getting up now. If you’ve been following me on twitter then you know that I had a difficult time getting some of these books and went ahead and started reading some other books. Let me know what you’re  reading during this challenge!
I’m really excited about this read a thon because it is centered around books written by black authors and/or books with black main characters. This read a thon is hosted by Francina Simone over at Francina Simone, Lauren over at The Novel Lush, and Jessie over at Bowties and Books. They have decided to do this with reading challenges to help pick out your books and to force you to try to read more diversely, which I think is awesome! I know that I’ve picked way too many books for this read a thon and probably won’t get to a lot of them, but I decided to aim high. It also gives me a lot of variety to read, so I can go from book to book. What are some of the books that you’re reading? Below are some of the books that I have chosen as well as a couple that I have read and loved that fit into the categories
1. FEEL THE LOVE. Read a book (any genre) featuring romance between two black people (or one black person + a person of color).
An American Marriage, Tayari Jones
Recommend A Princess Theory, by Alyssa Cole
2. WAKANDA FOREVER Read a graphic novel or comic series with a black or African MC
Kindred, Octavia Butler
3. HEAR US ANY work by a Black or African author
Dread Nation, by Justina Ireland
Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany Jacksonn
Let’s Talk About Love, Claire Kann
Black Enough, Anthology by multiple authors
Well Read Black Girl, Anthology by multiple authors
4. FEEL THE BEAT. Spoken word: listen to these 4 poems and share your favorite on social media or with a friend. Discuss what this poem means to you and why it matters.
Balaenoptera by Joshua Brandon Bennett https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9TWj…
What I’ve Learned by Aja Monet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8byI7…
“Waiting” by Jasmine Mans, Alysia Harris, and Jennah Bell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgxU7…
Cuz He’s Black by Javon Johnson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9Wf8…
5. MORE THAN A COLOR. We house complexity within us. Read a book starring an intersectional black character (black & LGBT, black & neurodivergent, black & disabled, etc)
Let’s Talk About Love, Claire Kann
Recommend: Odd One Out by Nic Stone, Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert
6. IN THIS TOGETHER Read the group book with us! Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Coffee Break

Kelly Moore Wearable Wallet and Gadget Clutch

India

I did it. I bought another Kelly Moore bag. I believe that it is going to be my last one for awhile. I bought the two smallest bags and most affordable ones on the website.  Let’s get into it and talk about the Gadget Clutch first.

First, let’s talk about price. The Gadget Clutch comes in at $69. I definitely believe that there are cheaper and better options out there, like the one here, but if you have a Kelly Moore problem like I do you might want to buy it.

The Gadget Clutch

The Gadget Clutch, GC, can be carried by itself as a clutch, for a night out or an afternoon walking around, but its main purpose is to organize your items. It is best for your extra cords, hard drives, and other items. I don’t really like the loop aspect of the cords, it doesn’t keep them in well when moving it around.

Inside of the Gadget Clutch

If you start to add too much stuff in it, it does get hard to close. It is a good size though to slide into any other bags or backpacks that you might carry around. Because I don’t use it as a wallet I only put business cards in the card slots mainly because I don’t see me just carrying this around on a day to day basis. As one of the more affordable items I couldn’t pass up getting them to try and add to my organization because I do love pouches.

How I stuff my gadget clutch

I’m not very good at looping the cords around those snaps and I haven’t figured out a better way, so everything still seems like a mess to me and doesn’t hold as many cords as I need it to. On top of having my Apple Mouse on one side I often times have my external hard drive on the other. You can see my battery pack hiding in the back that I keep on me as well. It is a good place to store extra memory cards and filters for your lenses as well. As I mentioned earlier I do believe that there are better alternatives that fit my needs that I linked above.

 

Other organizational alternatives found on Amazon

If you like Kelly Moore bags then this might be a great present for yourself or for a loved one. It gets the job done and fits the Kelly Moore aesthetic completely. With its leather and canvas material it is sure to last for a long time.

Now moving on the to the Wearable Wallet. The Wearable Wallet is in essence a fanny pack, an $89 fanny pack. I very nice fanny pack, but could possibly even not be as practical as a fanny pack because you can’t dump nearly as much stuff into it. It looks almost like the Gadget Clutch, but it has a strap that you can either wear cross body or around your waist. I like to wear it around my waist and slide it into one of my belt loops if I’m wearing jeans. The strap is adjustable, so that it can fit any size waist.

Kelly Moore Wearable Wallet

It is made with leather and canvas just like the Gadget Clutch, but it doesn’t open all the way, so that you can keep whatever contents inside of the bag. It just has the top flap and a zipper with an outside pocket that you can slide small thing in as well.

The front of the Wearable Wallet by Kelly Moore

The inside of the fanny pack also has the card slots that we see in so many Kelly Moore bags. There’s a small mesh pocket with a zipper that I have kept chapstick and lipstick in before. The inside is large enough for me to carry my phone and an external battery pack as well as my GoPro and a kindle. If you have any sort of point and shoot camera like a Sony RX100 or a Canon G7X those will fit nicely inside as well.

The inside of the Wearable Wallet by Kelly Moore

Both of these bags would be great gifts for anyone. They’re a good introduction to the Kelly Moore brand and their quality of bags. I would definitely recommend these as gifts or something to treat yourself with. I’m not going to say that they’re the most economically friendly option because they’re not, and there are other options out there, but they are made with great quality and look good while using or wearing them. Below you’ll find an unboxing of these items where you can see them in some more detail. What did you think of these items? Anything to add to your wishlist? Have you tried any other Kelly Moore products? Let me know down in the comments! Until next time,

Keep Turning the Pages

India

Bookish

Do you have to be a writer to be on Booktube?

India
The short answer to this is no. No you do not, but you’re looking at this post for a reason. It’s because you see so many of your favorite booktubers talking about writing their first book, trying to find a publisher, “querying” – whatever in the world that means- , and getting an editor and so many more things. You see them getting excited to be a part of the world that you love so much in a different aspect. You see them becoming the hyped book that you want to add to the top of your TBR list. But where does that make you fit? It makes you just like the rest of us. Readers! Readers and critics and free media advertising for your favorite booktubers. Now, I’m not a writer by any means, and I’m pretty sure there are probably so many grammatical errors in this post alone, and it’s because of all of those things I know that I don’t want to be a writer. So don’t let those writing marathon thingys – looking at you NaNoWriMo – convince you that you need to try it out.
Don’t get caught up in the authortube or the how to write your first book videos if you don’t want to be a writer. For some people that’s going to make you anxious thinking that, well if I want to grow in this community I have to be writing a book, and that’s not true! Without readers, writers would have nothing and be nothing, so don’t be afraid to just be a reader. That’s all I am! I read and I enjoy reading! Maybe I’m writing this post to convince myself of that even though in my heart of hearts I know I don’t want to be a writer, and I’ve never wanted to be a writer.
Forever a reader
I guess what I’m saying is that it’s okay to just be a reader and never ever want to write your own book. It’s okay to want to be a consumer and to take the time to read a book. If you want to be a reviewer it’s okay to be a reviewer for pleasure and it’s okay to be a critical reader.  You get to make those decisions for yourself and always chose what makes you happy. I hope this helps to keep you true to what you want to do and not make you feel like you need to be anywhere else, but on Booktube as a reader. Has booktube ever made you feel like you need to change?  Until next time,
Keep turning the pages
India
Coffee Break, travel

Kelly Moore | The Scout Review

India

Hi,

I’m India and I am addicted to bags, camera bags, and more importantly Kelly Moore’s bags. To say that I love her bags is an understatement. I have been buying Kelly Moore bags for years! Ever since the b-hobo bag, which she doesn’t even sell anymore! Even though that’s my ride or die bag right there and I will never get rid of it.

The Kelly Moore Scout holding up my Kindle like a champ

I wanted a bag that could replace my daily purse, but also looked like it because I love my daily purse. I’m trying super hard to carry my camera around more, so that I can get more practice in. Of course that means that I have to have a bag that I’m willing to carry around as well. Well enter The Scout!

I’ve got my Olympus in tow and I’m ready to shoot!

The Scout is a part of their heritage line of bags and features an all leather bag. This one being a messenger style bag. I had to wait for a long time for this bag because it was sold out, but it was well worth the wait. This bag is the perfect size for my mirrorless camera set up with extra lenses. I can also put my wallet in there as well as other things necessary for my day to day activities. I.e. snacks, kindle, gum, extra lipstick, and my kindle of course!

Everything is packaged neatly inside, including this mason jar mug I got from an Owlcrate Box

In normal Kelly Moore fashion the inside bucket that holds your camera gear is removable, so when you don’t want to carry your photo stuff you can take it out and just use it as a regular awesome purse.  Some of the reviews on the bag say that it’s a little stiff, but I enjoy that of the bag, and know that it will ease up a little bit with use. Also because it is real leather the bag will patina beautifully. It’s got enough pockets to keep your extra batteries, lens caps, and memory cards organized and your snacks away from things where you don’t want crumbs. I of course made a whole unboxing video of me fangirling over this bag, so you can watch it down below if you so choose, or you can click here to go straight to youtube!

I’m pretty sure that I did manage to spill ice cream on my bag

I took this beautiful baby out for a spin on National Ice Cream day and have since been using it regularly as my purse. The only thing I truly wish that it had was a top handle, so that I could easily pick it up.

If you’re looking for a compact leather camera bag this is a great bag for you! It looks great on both men and women, and has some awesome features that I think make it a better bag than its ONA equivalent. To truly look into the bag you can check it out below! Until next time,

Keep Turning the Pages

India