Let me introduce myself...

Hey guys, so one of the reasons we made a blog was so we would be able to connect with other people from across the world who have the same interests as we do. So far it's been great! We've been blogging for a few months now and I realized that I never really shared a whole lot about myself.
And what better way to connect with people than to tell people random and potentially embarrassing facts about myself?

So, without further ado, here are some facts about me.

1. My name is Emily, but I like when people call me Em.

2. I'm scared of grasshoppers. They jump and they're freaky and gross and ugh no.

3. I LOVE dogs. I have 2 husky/greyhound mixes named Skyler and Nikkita.

4. My birthday is May 9th.

5. I'm turning 25 this year - scary!

6. I still live at home - I don't want to rent and I plan on buying a house in a few more years!

7. I am the youngest - I have an older brother and an older sister.

8. When I was younger, I was terrified of cats. I love them now and we have 2 of them, Daisy and Calista.

9. I have 2 middle names - Natasha and Michelle.

10. I have terrible eyesight.

11. I am not diagnosed, but I believe I have a sort of social anxiety.

12. I like to go on cruises - I'm going on my 4th one this year!

13. I'm an introvert.

14. I like to sing.

15. I did musical theatre in school to try and get out of my shell.

16. I played Frenchy in Grease.

17. I've always struggled with my confidence and body image.

18. I was bullied because of my weight.

19. I've been cheated on and it's the worst feeling ever.

20. My first job was working at Walmart.

21. At another job, I pierced peoples ears. Babies were the worst.

22. I don't really like going to parties anymore - I'm well out of my party phase.

23. I've never smoked anything and never will.

24. Sometimes I can be really mean.

25. I love makeup.

26. I recently started to feel confident without wearing makeup.

27. I took dance classes when I was younger.

28. One time on a cruise, I dressed up as Britney Spears and sang in front of a shit ton of people.

29. I have a decent relationship with my parents, but we're not super close.

30. I want children one day.

31. I prefer white wine over red.

32. My fingers are really chubby.

33. I was born on Mother's Day.

34. I love to read. It's a destresser for me.

35. Doctors, dentists and hospitals scare me.

36. I have an over active imagination.

37. My BF is my bestfriend (I know, it's cheesy).

38. I think blonde hair suits me better than brown.

39. I have trust issues.

40. I believe in ghosts.

41. I believe in fate - what is meant to be will be.

42. I can twitch my nose like a bunny.

43. Lady and the Tramp is my favourite Disney movie.

44. I'm a HUGE Harry Potter nerd.

45. I cry a lot.

46. I want to get a tattoo, but I'm too scared.

47. I can't fall asleep on my back. I have to fall asleep on my stomach or my side.

48. I don't have my proper driving license yet - just my learners. 

49. My BF and I have been together for 3 years.

50. Peggy's Cove (Nova Scotia) is one of my favourite places. It's so beautiful there.

There you have it, 50 random facts about myself. Hopefully you learned a little bit more about who I am and I would love to learn more about you! Leave a comment below and list some facts about yourself!


Until next time, 

THIS or THAT: Beauty Edition

Image from Canva

Hey guys! We're back with another round of THIS or THAT: the beauty edition.


1. Bold lip OR bold eye?

Chris - Bold lip! I am obsessed with bold, vampy lips!

Em - I agree, bold lip! It's easier for me than a bold eye look.

2. Cream OR liquid concealer?

Chris - Liquid! I've never had a good experience with cream concealers. I use a green cream one under my foundation for red spots, but I always use Maybelline Fit Me liquid concealer!

Em - Liquid. I've yet to find a cream one that I actually like.

3. Fingers OR brush/beauty blender?

Chris - Fingers! I've tried brushes, but nothing compares to the control I get with my fingers!

Em - Beauty blender! I use the one by Real Techniques and I love it! Brushes annoy me a little bit because I'm picky and I don't like using my fingers much. Only if I'm just putting on a little bit of concealer and nothing else.

4. Stick OR liquid lipstick?

Chris - Stick wins, but my a very, very slim margin. I love liquid lipsticks, but I find a lot of them too drying. I've never had that problem with any regular lipstick!

Em - I think I agree with Christina on this one. I LOVE liquid lipsticks - the colour intensity and the longevity is amazing, but stick lipsticks are just easier? Ah, I don't know. This is such a tough one.

5. Concealer under OR on top of foundation?

Chris - On top! I personally find that the foundation just wipes the concealer off when I try to put concealer underneath! I like to put foundation, then liquid concealer, which I let dry a little bit while I do my brows, then I blend it in before I do my powder!

Em - On top. I honestly don't find too much of a difference except that perhaps the concealer isn't as... concealing while underneath the foundation. But it mostly comes down to my routine and I'm used to putting foundation first.

6. Matte OR shimmer shadow?

Chris - That's a tie for me! I use both pretty much every time I do eye shadow!

Em - Same here. Before I always tended to go for matte shadows, but I've started experimenting with shimmers more and more. Sometimes I like to put a bit of a champagne shimmer (usually Stila's Kitten) across my lids because it makes me look more awake!

7. Matte OR creme lipstick?

Chris - Matte all the way! Just so much more staying power!

Em - This is tough for me. Matte because of the lasting power, but sometimes I like a creme because matte can be drying.

8. Tweezing OR waxing?

Chris - Tweezing! I'm great at waxing other people's eyebrows, but I'm terrified that if I try to do my own, I'll wax a chunk off!

Em - For brows? Tweezing for sure. I've never tried to wax them and I'm terrified to!

9. Pencil OR pomade brow product?

Chris - Pomade! I have a deep abiding love for Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow!

Em - I also tend to opt for the pomade, however, pencil is great for beginners and it looks more natural!

10. Liquid OR pencil eyeliner?

Chris - Liquid! I find I get a finer line, and more control with liquid! When I try to do a pencil, it just smudges everywhere!

Em - Pencil. Surprise! I love liquid liner, but I'm so bad at it. I find pencil easier to use.

11. Natural OR Glam?

Chris - On a regular basis, natural, but I love getting glam when the occasion calls for it!

Em - Natural...ish.

12. Lengthening OR volumizing mascara?

Chris - Volumizing! I have quite a bit of length on my lashes, but there aren't a ton of them, so I love a good volumizing mascara!

Em - I mean, obviously I would want both. But I guess I'd pick lengthening. I have very hooded eyes and I find that when my lashes look longer, it opens up my eyes more.

13. Contour OR highlight?

Chris - Highlight! I CANNOT ever have enough glow!

Em - Contour. I love myself a good glow, but I can go without it. I'm not the best at contouring but I feel like my face needs it to not look like a round blob.

14. Lipliner OR no lipliner?

Chris - No lip liner! I've never really felt that it made enough of a difference to worry about it!

Em - I don't use it everyday, but yes to lipliner! It helps make the lines look more clean, it helps when you overdraw slightly AND it's perfect for when you use red because it helps it stop bleeding outside your lip lines.

15. Primer OR no primer?

Chris - No primer. I find that my foundation is too slippery with it, and I end up with patchiness.

Em - On a day to day basis, I don't always use primer. I find that my moisturizer acts as enough of a primer for my foundation. However if it's a special occasions or something, I will use some primer. I don't find it makes that much difference though. Maybe I haven't found the right one yet. Do you have any suggestions? 



Well that concludes this round of THIS or THAT. We would love for you to follow along with us, so tell us what you would pick in the comments below or make your own post with your choices!
If you have any ideas for future rounds, let us know!

Hope you're all having a great day and we'll talk to you soon!

How to beat the winter blahs

January can be a tough month. Everyone is falling fast from the high of Christmas and New Years, and its freezing cold out, and people instinctually don’t leave their home, unless they have to go to work. Who would want to? But the lack of activity and socializing can really take a toll on mental health.

I’m one of the masses that don’t want to go outside between the beginning of January and mid March. I’ve learnt though, over the years, that sitting at home in bed alone doesn’t help. Having people and heading out for some fun can really help pass the time until the warmth returns.

Below are some ideas for things big and small (and usually cheap) to assist you in bringing some joy back into the coldest, darkest months of the year.

1.  1.     Pyjama party

                Last January, I started thinking that if I’m sitting here, miserable and alone, maybe everyone else is, and so                             I came up with a super fun plan for a karaoke pyjama party. I made a huge pan of macaroni and cheese, put in a                       Sing Star disc, and we sang and ate the night away, snuggled in our pyjamas. It was a huge hit, and it was so                         great to have laughter and fun fill up my home.

2. 2.      Hit up the shopping mall with friends

It might seem simple, but just getting out of the house is a huge thing. And what better reason to get out of the house than for shopping? Making a whole day out of it can be great. There’s a mall in Ottawa with a movie theater in it, and my roommates and I have gone to the mall for lunch, seen a movie, done shopping, and went to dinner before going home. It was a great way to spend a Saturday, and it felt good to get out of my bed, and away from Netflix.

3.   3.    Have a fancyish dinner

Most of my roommates are vegetarians, but the other meat eater and I like to, every once in a while, have what I call a “meat date”. We had one this past Sunday and it included pulled pork on homemade dinner rolls, a mix of mashed potatoes and mashed sweet potatoes, steamed broccoli, and brownie ice cream sundaes for dessert. It’s another small thing, but can really cheer you up. And if you split the cost of the meal half way, it can be relatively cheap.

4.   4,    Go to a winter festival/skating rink/sledding hill

I cannot stress enough the importance of getting outside in the winter. I HATE it, but it’s a necessary evil for dealing with my depression. I have to get fresh air. Making it fun helps a lot. In Ottawa, there’s a n outdoor winter festival called Winterlude, and we’re home to the Rideau Canal, so ice skating is at easy access, but it doesn’t always need to be a big production. Plenty of towns have sugar bushes, and you can go out and visit them, or hit up the local skating rink for some fun. Sledding is also a great, cheap (free if you already have a sled) option, and can be crazy fun if you go with friends.  Topping off the night at home, with big mugs of hot chocolate can also make the night super special.

5.  5.     Galentine’s Day

What’s Galentine’s Day, you ask? Why only one of my favourite days of the year, February 13th. Since 2011, I’ve been hosting this event for all my female friends and family, all my favourite gals, inspired by Leslie Knope on the show Parks and Recreation. We dress in pink and red, eat heart shaped food (last year we did heart shaped naan bread pizzas, red punch, and heart shaped sugar cookies – I’m going to elaborate on the event, and tips to host your own in a future post), and it’s always a great way to split up the winter months.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my tips for combating the winter blahs. I know it can be a tough time of the year, but we can all get through it together. Let me know in the comments below if you have any suggestions of your own to fight the winter blues!

My 5 Year Plan

Lately I've been thinking a lot about my future and how I want it to turn out. This year I'm turning 25 and I'm not gonna lie, it terrifies me. It makes me feel pressured to figure out how my life needs to be and how it needs to turn out. Obviously I can't control the future (although how cool would that be?), but I do have an idea of what I would like to happen.

It's weird to think that when they were this age, most of our parents were married, had kids and had their career ready. These days at this age, we're just starting our adult lives and still have to figure everything out. Thinking about the future is scary because there's so much that's unknown, but it's also exciting to think about all of the possibilities. 

I have no idea how life will turn out even if I have some sort of plan. All I can do is try my best to make sure I get what I want out of life.

Right now my main goal is to start my career. I had a great office job that I liked, however, I lost my job. The building closed and as I wasn't permanent (had to work 5 consecutive years) and since I could not re-locate, I was on my own to find a new job. I really want to find something that I enjoy and I can make a career out of. Who knows that it'll be, but that's my goal for this year.

I live at home (so does my BF) and we would really like to buy a home. We don't want to rent because we figured all of that money could be put to better use. A house is expensive though and saving that much money isn't easy. We're trying though and we're really hoping that withing the next 5 years we will be able to do so.

My boyfriend and I have been together for 3 years (tomorrow!) and have discussed getting married one day. I know that this is something that I cannot control and who knows if and when it'll happen, but I'm hoping that it will. I have to say, that him and I make a pretty good duo.

All of this is kind of a stepping stone for having a family one day. We've discussed it and we would like to have kids one day. I'm personally hoping that that will happen around the time that I'm 30. I can say that, but it really all depends on when we're ready for that to happen. It's a major step for anyone. I know that we're not ready yet- nowhere near. But sometimes when I see a family, I just think that I want that one day. I want to have a family and do family activities.

Over the next 5 years, I really want to get my life together and settle into being an "adult". I want to feel like I finally have my life together. To feel accomplished.

Like I said, I know that this is stuff that I don't have total control over. I'm going to try my best to make it happen - what I can. And hope that the rest will fall into place.
Those are big goals, but all in all, I just want to be happy and healthy. I want to find my place in this world and truly get my life going.
I want to have love, friendship, travel, good health, happiness and memories. And puppies.

 It's pretty easy to get hung up on the future and forget about the now. I need to remember that while I'm working towards my future goals, I need to live in the present because these are the moments that I'll look back on.

I realize that this isn't the normal "5 year plan" like some people have- where everything year is planned out. These are just my dreams.
Do you have a plan for your future? What do you see it looking like?
Let me know in the comments below!

Until next time,

2018 life changes/plans/resolutions

2018, man. What a year it’s going to be! I just recently got engaged, three weeks ago yesterday, so there will be plenty of wedding planning, along with finally moving in with my fiancée, hopefully getting into shape, and further exploring my passion for cooking and baking (you can find some of my previous culinary endevours at rinacooks on Instagram!).

Up until 5 years, I’d never even kissed anyone, let alone had a boyfriend, so I certainly never thought that marriage would be in the cards. I thought I would settle down in a cute little house with a cute little wiener dog, and the two of us would live happily ever after. Don’t get me wrong, I still plan on the cute little house and the wiener dog, but now I’m going to be making room for one more, with the addition of my fiancée, Poya. It’s taken some getting used to, but I couldn’t be happier.

Now that we’re engaged, moving in together is the next big step. That’s something that is most definitely going to take some getting used to. I haven’t shared a room with anyone since I shared bunk beds with my sister when I was 10. My space is my space, and I don’t like it being messed with. I want to be able to leave my makeup and hair styling tools out, and I don’t want my towels left on the floor. Again, I’ve had 17 years of having my own room. Now there’s going to be someone hogging the covers, and leaving beard hair in the bathroom sink. It’s going to be a huge adjustment.

There will be a lot of pluses to living with him. Waking up every morning with him there, someone to share my cooking with, and watch Netflix with. I’m also so excited to decorate the apartment. We’re planning on moving in May, and I cannot wait. I have so many house wares (I’ll be doing a house wares round up of everything I’ve gotten, on here at some point) and I can’t wait to decide where they’ll all go, and use my new tools. I’m most excited about blush pink dishes from Ikea, and a tabletop greenhouse. It’s all going to look so cute!

The third big change is going to be (hopefully) losing weight. I say this every single year, but this year is truly the year I’m going to make a change. I want to look good in my wedding dress, but I also just want to feel better about myself, inside and out. I’ve started by trying out some healthier lunches and breakfasts, and I’m going to start soon with adding some healthier dinners, and trips to the gym. Ottawa better be ready for me and my bike, because I plan on getting real fit, and there’s nothing like a long, intense bike ride for a spring and summer workout!

My last big thing for 2018 is that I really want to expand my cooking. My goal is to try a new food, or an old food in a new way, every month. For January, I think it’s going to be shrimp pasta of some sort, as I’ve never had unbreaded shrimp before, and for February, I want to make some sort of dish with shredded cabbage, potential something with chicken and a peanut sauce. I haven’t thought too much past that, but I really hope that this can be a year of fun culinary adventures, and a year full of adventures in general!

I cannot wait to get this year started! Let me know in the comments below what your big (and little) plans and goals are for the coming year!

Current Obsessions: Skincare Edition

HAPPY NEW YEARS! I hope you guys had a wonderful Christmas (if you celebrate) and New Year! I wish you all the best in 2018!

I don't know about you guys, but where I live it is hella cold (-34 anyone?).
My skin is usually oily/combo - normal but my T zone gets VERY oily. In the winter, I do tend to get some dry patches though. So here are some of the skin care products that I am currently loving for my skin situation.

To wash my face, whether it's hot or cold outside, I like to keep it simple by using Noxzema. It's very affordable and you can find it as your local drugstore. I've used several higher end washes that I like, but I tend to come back to this one. It makes your skin feel nice and clean without making it feel too stripped of your natural oils. It could also double up as a makeup remover. I would definitely recommend this product to anyone - it's good for all skin types.

The Origins GinZing eye cream is a cult classic. It brightens your under eyes while moisturizing. It also goes very well under makeup. It's not the best at depuffing your under eyes and it can be a bit pricey. It just works so well though! I only use it during the day and opt for a different eye cream for the night.

As I said, I only use the Origins eye cream for the daytime and opt for something else for the night.
I usually go for either the Shiseido Ibuki Eye Correcting Cream or the No. 7 Protect & Perfect eye cream (which also comes in an 'intense' version.)
Both creams are very moisturizing and feel nice on the skin. They have a nice cooling sensation and opposite of the Origins one, I don't find them to be the best for brightening. The Shiseido one is quite a watery texture and feels very light. No .7 is a bit thicker in consistency but isn't too heavy.

 

Continuing with the Shiseido Ibuki line, I also really love the Refining Moisturizer and the Softening Concentrate. The moisturizer is nice and thin. It makes your skin feel nice and moisturized without going over the top. It's perfect for someone with combo skin.
The softener is similar to a serum. It's quite thin and watery. A little bit goes a long way. It could be used by itself or before moisturizing, which would be beneficial when it's really cold and windy out.

I don't use oil very often, but when I do I like this Josie Maran Argan Oil (Light).
If I happen to get a very bad dry patch of skin, this helps quench it.

As for a night cream, if I want to treat myself I love this Origins Night-A-Mins cream. It's very rich and has a thicker texture. It's perfect for when our skin is really thirsty and needs an over night fix. The citrusy smell is also nice! It feels quite luxurious.

When my skin is feeling oily and just plain gross, I go to this Body Shop Himalayan Charcoal mask.
It's a thick clay mask with purifying properties. It extracts all the excess oils and leaves your face feeling so clean and fresh. It's hands down my favourite mask of all time! Check out this post on the Body Shop for more information on the mask and home facials!

As for a good moisturizing sheet mask, I like these SNP Gold Collegen masks. I found then at a nearby T&T which sells different Asian products. The mask has gold flecks in it and feels so nice on the skin! It's cooling and moisturizing and again, feels kind of luxurious. It has a lot of product on the mask, so there's plenty to massage in afterwards. It's a nice pick me up to make your skin feel brighter and look more 'alive'.

As for my lips, I like to keep it simple and wear Blistex. You can find this stuff anywhere. It feels cooling and minty while fighting that chapped lip feeling. 



So, there you have it. Some of my current skincare favourites. Have you tried any of these products? If so, leave me a comment below and tell me what you think!

Until next time,