The student-run news site of H. B. Plant High School

PHS News
The student-run news site of H. B. Plant High School

PHS News
The student-run news site of H. B. Plant High School

PHS News
Nicole Prus

Nicole Prus, Online Editor

Nicole Prus is a senior who is the online editor for the Pep O’Plant newspaper. When she is not busy posting articles on the news website, she is writing fashion blogs for her website Young & Fashionable. She also occasionally writes celebrity fashion reviews and fashion trend articles on the newspaper. Also, she is currently working on getting a fashion club at the school to be approved so students can have the opportunity to be able to be creative with fashion and learn from it. Nicole plans on becoming a fashion stylist after she graduates.

All content by Nicole Prus
How to make sugar cookies tutorial from home in a fast and easy manner.

How to Make Sugar Cookies

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
April 16, 2020
Best online stores to shop around while stuck at home.

Places to go shopping without leaving your couch

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
April 16, 2020
This year marks the 92nd year of the Academy awards ceremony. The Oscars were held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

Oscars Fashion

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
March 11, 2020
Valentine’s Day is supposed to be a holiday filled with love, but instead it is a day filled with stress and pressure trying to impress your significant other. This holiday sets an expectation for people to prove to others how much they love them. Why can’t you prove how much you love someone on any day of the year? Valentine’s Day is a consumerism trap. Many companies promote to consumers that the more you spend on a person the more they will love you. That is awful advice to follow. People should love you for you, not for your gifts. If they love you only for the expensive presents you give them then that just shows that they are materialistic. Materialism is very unattractive quality when choosing a significant other. It makes no sense that you have buy your girlfriend/boyfriend chocolates and flowers on Feb. 14. Why can’t you buy flowers for them on any day of the year to cheer them up and show that you’re thinking about them? It’s unsettling to see people obsess over making this day so special for their significant other. People stress over finding the perfect romantic restaurant, gift etc. They plan everything to the last detail. The only thing that should matter is the company you provide for each other. This holiday can be miserable for people who are single. Single people can’t escape from seeing couples kissing, holding hands and hugging everywhere they go on this day. However, single people could to choose to hide at home and watch Netflix until the day is finally over to distract themselves of their feelings of loneliness. This day serves as a reminder to single people that they are alone. Some people before Valentine's Day make sure they have someone to spend it with them because the thought of being alone scares them, making them settle for someone who they really aren’t attracted to. There are single people out there who treat themselves with buying themselves gifts on this holiday. It’s good to have a self-care day on Valentine’s Day because before you give others your love, you must first love yourself. Whether you’re single or taken, Valentine’s Day is pointless to celebrate. People should just do whatever makes them happy on that day not what companies and movies promote them to do. Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

Valentine’s Day: a lame excuse to spread love

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
February 14, 2020
Gasparilla which is the country’s 3rd largest parade serves as the perfect opportunity to get with friends to celebrate Tampa’s history with pirates. Parade viewers can spend the day catching beads from the invading pirates. The parade will be on Jan. 25, so now is the time to start shopping for the most festive and pirate-themed outfit to wear for this spectacular occasion. The clothing items required to appear like a pirate are probably already in your closet. The first pirate classic look consists of a white ruffled crop top, black fitted shorts, fishnet tights, black knee-high boots and a red headscarf. Don’t forget props to complete the look, such as a sword, pirate hat, eyepatch, fake bird and beads. There are customized Gasparilla shirts on Etsy, which are unique and can serve as a souvenir to remember the parade. If you choose to purchase a shirt, there are many ways to style it. Pair the shirt with a black leather skirt with leather boots to match. For jewelry, anything skull-themed would work. This outfit would be considered a modern dark pirate look. Another outfit idea to look the part involves wearing a striped black and white shirt with a red miniskirt. Wear gold jewelry to look like treasure. To finish off the look, add a pirate hat to seem like the real deal. With these outfit ideas, it is essential to do makeup like a pirate. Remember, pirate makeup is not supposed to look perfect. The more smudgy the eye makeup, the better. Use black eye shadow and eyeliner around the eyes to create a smoky eye look. You can also use eyeliner to create scars on your face to resemble what happens after a sword fight. For lips, red lipstick is ideal to coordinate with the outfits. Lastly, pirate hair is a must. The messier the hair, the better. Curl your hair and then brush through the curls for pirate hair. Then add tiny braids to your locks. All these looks are easy and cheap to recreate to unleash your inner pirate at Gasparilla. Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

Dress your best for the pirate invasion

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
January 17, 2020
Altar’d State is a bohemian boutique that sells clothing, accessories, home décor and gifts. The boutique was founded in 2009.

Shoppers obsess over Altar’d State

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
January 16, 2020
DIY clothes are inexpensive and not very hard to make. YouTube and Pinterest have been excellent sources for clothing DIY inspiration. Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

How to release your inner DIY queen

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
January 9, 2020
Thrift stores carry many wonderful timeless clothing pieces for reasonable prices. This floral skirt featured above was purchased from the thrift store Avalon in Savannah, Georgia originally from Banana Republic.

Out with the old, in with the new

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
December 6, 2019
Singing her song Moonlight from the “Dangerous Women” album, Ariana Grande performs at Amalie Arena. Grande had to cancel the original concert due to coming down with a illness hours before show.

Ariana Grande impresses fans at concert

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
December 1, 2019
Singing in Tampa, Post Malone performs his new album “Hollywood’s Bleeding”. He released his third album on Sept 6, 2019.

Post Malone delivers a showstopping performance

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
November 7, 2019
Trends to fall for

Trends to fall for

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
October 14, 2019
Gliding down the ice, senior Hamilton Reese eyes the puck in a player’s stick Feb. 6 at AdventHealth Center Ice. The hockey team placed third at States last year.

Ice hockey club places third in states

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
April 26, 2019
Tim Burton directs the remake of Dumbo which features feel-good moments and is family-friendly. The film featured an elephant named Dumbo which used a feather that helped him become courageous throughout the movie.

‘Dumbo’ remake turns out successfully

Nicole Prus, Online Editor
April 24, 2019
Many students attend college right after high school graduation, but they should reconsider taking a gap year where they can travel, work or volunteer. It has been proven that students who have taken a gap year have been more successful in college.

Gap years provide benefits for students

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
April 1, 2019
Across campus, teachers label “Hard Corners” for the protection of their students after the Jan. 29 meeting regarding school safety. Similar meetings on school security have taken place around the country.

 School security requires updating 

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
March 27, 2019
Oscar stars wear crowd-pleasing looks

Oscar stars wear crowd-pleasing looks

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
March 7, 2019
Winning two Grammy awards, Lady Gaga wears a stylish silver sequined dress from Celine by Heidi Silmane Jan. 10. She won best song for the song “Shallows” in a "Star is Born" and best pop duo performance for the song “Shallows” with Bradley Cooper.

Celebrities flaunt style down Grammys’ red carpet

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
February 15, 2019
Donald Trump and Nancy Pelosi decide on Feb. 5 as the new date for the State of the Union address. It was originally scheduled to be given Jan 29.

State of the Union address undergoes unnecessary postponement

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
February 4, 2019
Opioids are pain relievers that can cause addictions amongst teens. Opioid addictions have risen a substantial amount due to dentists who prescribe the drug to patients to ease the pain from wisdom teeth removal.

Opioids require need for regulations

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
December 19, 2018
The wildfires in northern California cause destruction which results in a lot of money being spent to pay for damages. People have donated money, food, clothing, personal hygiene and first aid items to help the victims recover.

California residents need help after tragic wildfires

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
December 18, 2018
The three featured drinks on the Starbucks website for this holiday season are caramel brulée latte, peppermint mocha and toasted white chocolate mocha. These drinks have been available since Nov. 1.

Most Starbucks holiday drinks disappoint consumers

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
December 3, 2018
Animal prints are trending on all types of accessories such as purses, shoes, belts and fanny packs. Coach recently released a collection of handbags that consist of an animal print pattern.

Animal print rises in popularity

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
November 30, 2018
According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, the number of Americans with obesity continues to grow over the years. Studies shown by National Center for Biotechnology Information state that obesity has caused many negative outcomes on people’s health such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, a raised blood pressure and some types of cancer.

Obesity causes harmful impact on health

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
November 27, 2018
Some companies continue to do animal testing as a kind of legal protection against a lawsuit if a product harms a person. Studies shown by PETA revealed that each year more than 100 million animals are killed in U.S. laboratories for biology lessons, medical training, curiosity-driven experimentation and chemical, drug, food and cosmetics testing.

Product testing harms innocent animals

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
November 16, 2018
Hosting their first club meeting of the year, Best Buddies members celebrate Halloween with a piñata, a mummy wrap game and pizza Oct. 14 at senior Andrew Bensonoff’s house. Bensonoff said he felt that the Halloween matching party was important because some members of the club are not as involved or don’t have time during school to stop by the Best Buddies room, so this event allowed them to personally meet their buddy.

Best Buddies celebrates Halloween

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
October 21, 2018
Floating throughout all oceans, trash is abundant, affecting marine life and the environment. It is predicted by the Center for Biological Diversity the amount of plastic will exceed the amount of fish in oceans by 2050.

Oceans waste away due to pollution

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
November 2, 2018
Jennifer Lopez shines brightly in her dress designed by Versace at the VMAs. Lopez performed her classic songs "Waiting for Tonight," "On the Floor," "I Ain't Your Mama," "Love Don't Cost a Thing," "Jenny From the Block" and more.

VMA stars look bold and bright

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
October 18, 2018
The Netflix film "Sierra Burgess is a Loser" appeals to a high school audience due to the message about personal appearance. By the end of the movie, the main character Sierra Burgess learned to embrace her true self.

“Sierra Burgess Is a Loser” teaches valuable life advice

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
October 13, 2018
Used with permission: Pexels

Eye-catching accessories stand out in New York Fashion Week

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
October 7, 2018
Among many Halloween costumes this year, Archie Andrews from the TV show “Riverdale” is displayed at a local store. Other Halloween costumes that were available include those of a classic genre such as a vampire and one from “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” on Netflix, whose main character is Lara Jean.

Halloween-goers seek entertainment-inspired costumes

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
October 7, 2018
Black dresses are a classic, but they can be plain sometimes. An exception to wearing black is wearing a dress with intricate details like lace, velvet and mesh.

Homecoming dresses attract attention this fall

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
September 30, 2018
Sitting among plants and cushioned chairs, John DeOrio tries to make his classroom as enjoyable as possible, and comfort is his tactic. Being passionate about what he taught, he strove to be welcoming and accepting.

Teacher shares career-changing experience

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
September 11, 2018
Modeling her jean jacket, sophomore Maggie Rowan says she enjoys shopping and looking for clothes. This “blast from the past” look was one of many students have been seen wearing this year.

Oldies but Goodies

Nicole Prus, Staff Writer
September 6, 2018
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