101 Beauty Tips Ever Girl Should Know: Tips 21->17

So I am still alive and well after my three days of parties in a row. I slept in Sunday night since I was so sleep deprived. I have to tell you, my parents had the best stories when they came back from New York City (NYC). They went there for my mom's friends wedding. They went all over NYC; Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn! My mom is hilarious. She told me during the reception all the DJ played was "black people music". Uh Mom....you were in Queens, what do you expect? She wanted to dance but she doesn't know how to dance to that type of music. I asked her how the people danced to "black people music", she didn't say anything. So then I asked "Did it look like sex on the dance floor?". She had no comment. Usually when she has no comment, she is agreeing with me. Awww my poor mom's eyes!

One more thing that NYC has that I wish Toronto has is more ethnic food trucks! They had a Banh Cuon food truck! To all my fellow Vietnamese/Oriental people, you know what I am talking about. For those who don't know what Banh Cuon is, here is the Wikipedia definition of it.

My mouth is watering.....

21) To create a lived-in look for your hair, use thickening or sea-salt mist before you blow-dry. Follow by running a volumizing or texture cream through hair.

I am personally not a fan of the lived-in look. I like to look as polished as I can when going out in public. But if you are a fan of the lived-in look, these tips are great! Side note: I was Google image searching "lived in hair" and it all looks like "after sex" hair or "I just got out of bed and I don't care" hair.....is that the "live-in look"?

20) When using an eyeshadow primer, only place the primer where you'll be adding colour.

I think this is pretty obvious but there are people who don't know this! So there you go!

19) "Cream rouge (blush) should be the first thing that touches your cheeks when you want to project an image of healthy and pinched cheeks" - Pablo Manzoni, former creative director for Elizabeth Arden

I have naturally high cheekbones so it is really easy for me to locate where my cheekbones are. If you have trouble finding it, do the puckered lips/fish face and you will see the bone that projects out. That is your cheekbone. Apply your blush there! It will also give you an instant face lift without the surgery!

18) If you choose to use false eyelashes, remember to use the dark glue as it will blend in with lashes.

Most lash glues come in the clear formula. You don't have to use a dark glue but if you wear false lashes often then I do recommend using a dark glue to save you the time and hassle of covering up the clear glue areas. The dark glue I would recommend is the Duo Lash Glue in Dark-Tone. It can be purchased at MAC counters/stores and at your local drugstores.

17) When buying "organic" beauty products, make sure to check if they are FDA certified organic. This will prevent you from getting scammed. 

Since the whole organic/green movement, a lot of companies are jumping on the bandwagon without even being certified organic. So be careful of this! I am not a huge organic person but I do know of people who are very careful about what they eat and such so please read the label before you buy anything. The last thing I want you is to be scammed. I am here to tell you the truth!!

My 25th Birthday Celebration!

Cutting the cake that my part co-worker got me!

OBSESSED with my new hair!

Place we went to for my birthday dinner. It was good but not great.

Cupcakes Shawn got me from Swirls. I DO NOT recommend them.
They screwed up 2 of my birthdays in a row. 

We totally forgot to take a picture of us together all night so we got it at the end!

My salmon entree at Joey Eaton Centre.

My $7.99 birthday cake. They supposedly said it was "on the house" when they gave it to me.

Me explaining to my friends how much I am in love with this eye-makeup remover.
Too bad it's DISCONTINUED!

My reaction to my friends' birthday card to me.

Me and Arie Luyendyk Jr. = LOVE

MY NEW OMBRE HAIR!!!

Thanks so much for Monica for doing this for me! You did am amazing job and I got tons of compliments!

My hair is so big because it's full of secrets!

My nervous face. I was kind of freaking out since I never dyed my hair before!

SCARY!!

My new hair curled on my birthday

101 Beauty Tips Every Girl Should Know: Tips 26->22

It's going to be a busy weekend for me! I got three parties in a row to go to starting today! Tonight I am going to an event that Bourjois Paris is holding in Downtown Toronto. If you are in the area you should stop by! To RSVP, e-mail info@bourjois.ca to get on the guest list. It would be awesome to meet some of you viewers/readers there! Their ad is down below. Tomorrow night I am going to a grad party for one of my friends and then on Saturday I have a birthday party to go to for a family friend. Sunday will be my rest day! What are your plans for this weekend?

26) Try out the funky hair colour trend without dying your hair. Instead, dust bright blush in your ponytail for the same effect. - Refinery29

I never tried this before but I think this is very similar to using loose pigments in your hair. Do help the coloured powder to stay on your hair, spray some hairspray on your hair after applying the powder.

25) "Foot perspiration is typical in the summer and can lead to fungal infection and unwanted odor. Wash feet daily, and let them dry thoroughly before putting shoes on" - Dr. Leslie Campbell, DPM

I usually wash my feet in the summer when I have black flip flops on. They leave a black stain on the bottom of my feet so I have to clean them. I do this at the end of the day once I get home.

24) Splurge on items that are important to you. "If mascara is really your thing and fall in love with a mascara that's $40, buy the mascara." - Raychel Wade, founder of Cheek to Chic and La Prairie's colour ambassador

I splurge on skincare. I do this because to have makeup look flawless, it's best to work on a smooth canvas which is your face. My most expensive skincare item is my face serum. It's expensive but it's so worth it since my face feels like a baby bottom.

23) "Don't be too serious; It's only makeup!" - Francois NARS insists you play around with new colours

I really do believe in this tip. Some people take makeup so seriously. It's something you put on in the morning and take off at night. It's like playing dress up, so go nuts!

22) To reduce unwanted shine, use a moisturizer that mattifies, that way you get the moisture your skin needs without looking greasy.

I use a mattifying moisturizer during the summer since I tend to produce oil during the summer time. You guys probably know what moisturizer I am talking about by this post. Brownie points if you can figure out which moisturizer I am talking about!

September 2012 Haul Nail Polish Swatches

Top: OPI - Last Friday Night

Bottom: L.A. Girl Glitter Addict - Eutopia

101 Beauty Tips Every Girl Should Know: Tips 31->27

I hope all my fellow Canadians had a good Thanksgiving long weekend! I had an eventful one. Both good and bad. I don't want to get into it (I will in later posts and videos) but I will tell you about the good. I celebrated my 25th birthday with friends and it was so good reconnecting with my friends who I have not seen in awhile. Once you reach my age, it gets hard to visit your friends because they are literally all over the place. And since I don't drive yet, it makes it even more difficult to see them. Basically what I want tell you is, cherish what you have now with your friends because later on, things do get more difficult.

My family's Thanksgiving feast!

31) To contour cheeks, use a matter powder (a few shades darker than your skin tone) with an angled brush. Blend on temples and under cheek bone. 

I am obsessed with contouring my cheeks. Since my face is kind of wide, I like to sculpt my cheeks to make my face more slim. I am currently using the Coastal Scents 6 Colour Blush and Contour Palette to contour my face. You can also buy this palette on eBay. It's way cheaper.

30) When using a cream product, lock it in by using translucent powder over it.

For eye shadow creams, you will put eye shadow over it anyways so that is not a big issue. But with blush creams or foundations, always set it! You can use the same coloured powder or a translucent one. Not a big deal on which of the two colours you use.

29) Get quick volume by using a root lifter, then a hairspray to set hair. This will prevent it from falling flat during the day.

I never used a root lifter before since I just tease my hair if I need volume. The root lifter is probably less damaging than teasing the hair so I will have to give this tip a try.

28) For makeup that lasts all day and night, use a makeup-sealing product.

Popular makeup-sealing products are Model in a Bottle, Skindinavia sprays and the Urban Decay ones. Just an FYI, Skindinavia makes Urban Decays sprays. It's just a different label and name. All the contents are the same. It's a marketing strategy. Trust me, I took marketing in university. Basically all these products are like hairspray for your face. It keeps everything in place throughout the day and some of them even have special ingredients in it to help your skin type.

27) To help you find the right shade of foundation, choose a product you think is closest to your colour and try it on your jawline in natural light. You will be able to easily compare it to your neck's colour to see if you need to go for a different undertone, lighter or darker.

This is a great tip for those who do wear foundation. I personally myself don't wear foundation since I like to spend my money on good skincare so I don't have to wear foundation. I do wear concealer and a light face powder though.

Seattle Day One and Two Vacation Pictures and Experience/Haul Video!!!

Day One and Two Experience and Haul video:



Here are some pictures of Day One and Two of mine and Shawn's trip to Seattle!!

Pretty clouds!!

Waiting for the train at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport

Navigation post near Pike Place Market

Menu of the place where we ate brunch.

Crabs at Pike Place Market

Back view of Pike Place Market

Self-explanatory

Columbia Tower where Christian Grey's nightclub was!

View of Downtown Seattle from the 73rd floor of Columbia Tower

Workstations in Seattle Public Library

AHHHHHHH!!! 

I tried taking a picture of the lobby from outside...

Escala!!! So pretty!!

Isn't this so cool??? Depending on the flow of traffic, each lane has a different speed limit!

Me and Shawn at dinner! We went to Koral Kitchen & Bar in Bellevue

Dahlia's that Shawn got me for our two year anniversary (Sept 24, 2012). Two flowers for two years!