November Favourites

November is almost over! Where did my year go?! Anyone else wondering where it went? 

So I've been loving  few things this month that I wanted to share with you because I'm completely obsessed and its become a problem! So lets just get started so you can be just as excited as I am. =)


Beauty Favourites

TheBalm has created 7 matte lip shades and I received one in my Ipsy glam bag last month. I used it once and forgot about it until this month. The shade I received is called Committed and that's exactly what I am to the shade. I've used this everyday that I've applied make up. The shade is a pinky nude that glides on smooth. The colour is very pigmented and stays on for quite sometime. Besides the colour and staying power if this matte lipstick is the smell. Chocolate mint?! Yes please!!  Check this lipstick out, I'm confident you'll love it just as much as I do! 

Morphe eyeshadows have quickly become my favourite shadows I use them every day I wear make up and am constantly buying more. The two shades I want to rave about today are Birthday Suit and Marbleized. 
Birthday Suit is a matte light brown. I use this all over my lid to add depth to my eye. This shade blends in with my skin tone so well it looks quite natural when I wear it by its self. It's an easy shade to work with and like all Morphe shadows, it blends out very well! 

Marbelized is a beautiful golden brown shade. It shimmers, it shines. It does everything a shimmer shadow should. it blends beautifully and stays where I apply it. I have no trouble with these shadows creasing which is a major bonus and I also don't get much fall out. When I use this shadow I apply it on my outer corner over top of Birthday Suit. Adding this shade to a matte shadow will instantly spice up your look and add dimension to your eye. Give it a try. I think you'll like it! 

Pur-lisse BB Tinted moist cream

I also received this in my Ipsy glam bag back in October and started using it this month because the weather got colder and the air became dry so why not use this, Cover up blemishes and moisturize at the same time? The coverage with this product surprised me. I didn't expect it to be as pigmented as it is and I didn't expect it to have the coverage it did. Personally I have to apply this at least twice a day to keep it looking fresh but for me that's not an issue since I usually refresh my make up twice anyway. Give this a try if you're looking for a lighter alternative to foundation.

Nani Long lasting lip gloss

Now this collection is a steal! Why? because I got all 38 colours for $40! These colours range from pink, red and brown. they are all matte lip glosses that finish like a matte lip stick. They apply nicely, last long and are highly pigmented. These glosses don't smell like anything and some of them are shimmer shades. Try these glosses out. You'll fall in love with the shades and be overwhelmed with all the colours! 

Non Beauty Favourites

Greek seaside candle from febreze 
Wow! Everything about this candle makes me happy. It smells like  airy seaside summers, salt and flowers. It's incredible haha. The only downfall to these candles is that they burn fast. I wish they would last longer but to be honest I dont care how many times I have to repurchase this. I'll always be happy. 

Happy planet chocolate banana protein smoothie 

 I'm obsessed and currently drinking this! I've turned away from chocolate banana anything for years and one day while at work someone was drinking this and I was curious about it so after work I bought one and I've been hooked ever since! This shake is delicious and made right here in Canada! Happy planet products are amazing and I love all their products, especially the Thai coconut soup (Thats another blog post) So if you ever see this drink, try it or the other flavours they have, I'm sure there's one for everyone! 

That's it for my favourites! a small post but full of great things I think you'll love! remember to comment if you've tried any of these products! Let me know what you think!

Happy Holidays!

Xxoo - Katie

December Favourites!

Am I the only person who feels like December comes and goes way too fast?

With that being said, I don't have many favourites this month but the ones I do have, I think are pretty great so lets just get into it!


Beauty Favourites

Chi Silk Infusion Hair Serum

Hair serum is a product I have become best friends with over the years and I think any girl with long and or thick hair  can say the same thing.Over the years I have come to find that the more money I spend on a serum, the better the results especially with serums that contain argon, moringa, and Moroccan oils.
Not only do I adore  the results I get from this serum but the smell is so warm and rich it lasts in your hair all day. I continuously get compliments on it which always results in me raving about it for a good half hour but do not worry, I won't keep you here for that long on just this one product! I like to apply a quarter sized amount into towel dried hair, blow dry and then apply a little less than a dime sized amount onto the ends of my hair. I'm sure there is a better way to apply the product to get amazing results but this is what works for me. my hair is shiny, silky, and frizz free which is so amazing when you have long thick hair like me! Now with all the amazing qualities this product has the only downfall I have with it is the price I pay around $32 for the large bottle which is a lot of money to me but the bottle will last me over a year so in the end it's not all that bad. 

Next up we have a Beauty Blender but this is not the original it is just a dupe. but honestly it works just the same! So to help any one who doesn't understand how this works, it's a foundation applicator that works when you get it wet. The Beauty Blender helps anyone achieve perfectly and evenly blended foundation. I Use the Beauty Blender dupe so mine works just a little different that the original, but that is to expected. The dupe holds more water which means adding more foundation to get an even coverage but just like the Beauty Blender it cuts your blending time in half which I really appreciate haha! An original Beauty Blender is about $20 where as my dupe was about $7. I don't mind a little extra work when I save some money especially when the two products are so similar. Cleaning this product is really simple too. I use soap and warm water just like I do for all my make up brushes and it only takes about 2 minutes to clean!

BH Cosmetics automatic eyebrow pencil - Blonde

The photo says black but I use the shade blonde. I've really been loving this brow pencil not only this month but pretty much every month and I've talked about it here on my blog before. The product is angled so you can get precision and its nicely pigmented so you don't have to go over your lines a bunch of times. What I like most about this brow pencil is the fact that it stays where I put it. the formula is so thick that it never runs off your face and even stays when applied over foundation.  A few other things I like about this is not just the staying power on your skin but the longevity of the product itself. I fill in my brows every single day and I am no where close to having to buy a new brow pencil. I've been working with this one for over a year. I would recommend this to pretty much anyone because the price is just as great as the product I paid no more than $8 on the BH Cosmetics website.

Baby Lips - Grapevine
Anyone who knows me and my make up collection knows how much I love Baby Lips and how many I own. They smell good, have a mild taste, last long and moisturize very well, and like always the price is pretty amazing too! these run for about $3-$4 and you can find them at any department store and in any make up isle. I have been wearing the shade Grapevine this month and every time I apply it I cant help but stare at my lips because in the tube the colour looks really dark and pigmented but once applied it's shiny and gives off the same colour as in the tube but with a glossy finish so it's not actually that dark which I love and have never found a lip balm to give off that effect! Baby Lips are perfect for the girls who don't want something heavy on their lips just a sheer bit of colour or shimmer. If I'm not wearing lipstick I'm most likely wearing something from Baby Lips. From scents like tangerine shock to peppermint there is a baby lips for everyone. Try this out if you love simplicity and tasty smelling lip products! haha

Non Beauty Favourites

Tetley Mint Green Tea

As I type this I currently have a cup of this tea beside me. I love green tea and mint tea is my favourite so having them together makes me oddly excited. I have been drinking this non stop all month and I have no plans to stop! What I love most about this tea is the smell. Have you ever had those spearmint leave candies? Well this smells exactly like those. The smell instantly wakes you up and the first sip is always so refreshing. I find that this tea has a perfect balance of the green tea and mint so you can really enjoy both flavours especially when you let the tea steep and leave the bag in while you drink it the flavours never become overwhelming or bitter which I find happens quite a bit with other teas especially if you don't use milk and sugar like me. If you like mint and green tea separately then definitely give this one a try and don't forget to tell me what your thoughts are! 

Elf

One of the funniest and sweetest Christmas movies around and the only movie with Will Ferrell that I actually like (I know, what's wrong with me?) This movie always makes me laugh no mater how many times I watch it. and I really love how positive the movie is. Buddy is always SO happy and I find that his positive energy reaches out to the people watching the movie and makes everyone smile! How can you not love that? If you have yet to watch this movie, go grab a drink and a snack, rent, stream or borrow this movie and thank me later! ;)

Our Collection
So this month I won't be talking about my favourite songs but a new group that has recently started recording and uploading covers to Youtube. Despite the fact they have just recently started sharing their music with the world, these 3 have have all been friends and playing music together for quite sometime. Katie - Singer Jamie - Bass And Jowl - Guitar ( If I'm not mistaken haha)  are Our Collection and create covers of old classics and upload regularly which is pretty fantastic for their viewers. In my opinion Katie's voice puts a modern twist on the songs which makes them not only refreshing to listen to but still brings back the memories each song gave too you while listening to the originals! I say well done Our Collection here are two of their YouTube videos which I think shows off their range of musical talents! I hope you love them just as much as I do, and if you do, don't forget to show them some love by liking, subscribing, and even sharing their music with your friends and family like I'm doing right now!

Wild Horses 

 Zombie

There you have it guys! December Favourites! I Hope you enjoyed this post and if you try or listened any of the products/ videos above make sure to let me know what you thought.

I hope each and everyone of you have a great holiday season with your families and enjoy any celebration you have coming up. I'll see you all in the new year!!  


                                                  Xoxo - Katie

My Favourite Healthy Meals & Snacks!

I love a good pizza and I'll usually never turn town a slice, but every once in a while I enjoy eating as healthy as I can. I admit, I don't eat healthy as much as I should and I have no excuse as to why but hey, we all have our flaws. So if I'm not craving a deliciously cheesy pizza, pasta, or fries I like to opt for these options. on this post, you will see that I have posted 2 breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack ideas. These are foods that I enjoy and consider healthy and if you wish to recreate these ideas feel free to modify them in any way that you like and be sure to let me know what you did differently and what you thought of my ideas!


Breakfast!

So for breakfast, these 2 ideas have been my favourite ever since I was a child. They are super easy to make and only take about 5-10 minutes.

Fruit Smoothie
This is as simple as it's name. Using my blender, I throw in a cups worth of frozen berries. 
a handful of raspberries, strawberries, kiwi, pineapple and watermelon.
I sometimes also like to add a scoop of flax seeds and a scoop of strawberry protein powder if I'm feeling extra hungry. Once I blend my ingredients together I check to make sure the consistency is not too thick, since I don't want to eat my smoothie with a spoon. I add small amounts of water and blend. I do this a few times to make sure it's perfect. For the days when I add my protein powder, instead of water I'll use almond milk. it makes it blend and taste better. For this smoothie I choose to exclude any kind of juice or yoghurt because they are both loaded with unnecessary sugars. and besides, there's already sugar in the fruit. the kiwi, and watermelon really sweeten this smoothie up! I encourage you all to try it! 


Avocado and Egg White Toast
Now this is something I could eat everyday
You'll need one egg, half an avocado and one piece of toast.
to start, I like to begin with separating my egg white and egg yolk. 
for this recipe, you will not be needed the egg yolk, but as always, you can keep it of you like. I would just  suggest making sure the yolk is cooked completely so you don't have a mess to clean up while eating it! =P
So, after separating my egg, I set it aside and cut into my avocado. I cut it into half and then slice it and place it on either pumpernickel or rye bread. Then I take my egg white I quickly pour it into a hot pan. Once it's done cooking I transfer it on top of the avocado and bread. I add a pinch of salt on top to give it a little flavour and that it.


Lunch!

Oven Roasted Tomato On Toast
 So for this, all you'll need is 
one small, ripe tomato, olive oil, oregano, and your choice of bread.
 I like to eat this with French baguette or whole wheat toast.
 So all I do is pop my bread in the oven which has been preheated to 350. Take out the bread after one minute. Then I thinly slice my tomato and place it on a cookie sheet and lightly drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle them with oregano, I leave them in the oven for about 3 to 5 minutes, then take them put and place them on top on the bread. And there you have it!. Simple and delicious. Tip: Some people like to sprinkle salt on the top after the oven. the choice is yours! =)

Spicy Lettuce and Turkey Roll-Ups
This is like a wrap, without the bread. All I do it take a washed lettuce leaf, place a slice of deli turkey on top and drizzle on Franks Red Hot sauce. then I roll it up and place it on a plate. I usually make about 5 of these and sometimes more, because I have a big appetite and I adore not only lunch time but hot sauce as well! So for this recipe, I always use turkey, I think it tastes best but Iv'e seen people make this with ham, roast beef, and chicken. so if you recreate this, let me know how you made it and how you liked it!

Dinner!

Buffalo Chicken Wraps

This is by far my favourite dinner that I make. I start off by defrosting chicken.(this usually takes a few hours) 1 breast per person. next I start to prep my buffalo sauce. I don't have exact measurements for this, I'v just come to know how it is suppose to look and taste. but I'll make some guide lines anyway. So I get out a bowl and put in about 1/2 cup of Low fat ranch. Then I add the same amount of Franks Red Hot. I usually add a bit more hot sauce, and taste test to make sure it's as spicy as I like, add more ranch if it's too spicy! so once my chicken is thawed, it's time to prep my veggies. I always use romaine lettuce, one to two leafs per wrap, cucumbers, green peppers and mushrooms and sometimes tomatoes if there's any available. Once I've finished slicing the veggies, I grate some cheddar cheese and then begin cooking my chicken. before I put the chicken in the pan I cut it all into bite sized cubes for easier eating. I then add a tablespoon of water to the pan and immediately add the chicken. I stir the chicken around every once in a while. once all the chicken is white, I find the biggest piece and take it out and cut it in half to make sure it's cooked thoroughly. I check about five pieces, you know, just to make sure! then I transfer the chicken into a mixing bowl and add in my buffalo sauce and mix them together until the chicken is evenly coated. So once that's done I get out whole wheat tortilla's and start assembling my wrap with all the veggies and cheese. once it's wrapped, I like to place it into the oven to heat everything up and to get some grill marks, which loo pretty fancy. This dinner is pretty quick to make. 20 minutes once the chicken is cut and ready to go!

Brown Rice Chicken Stir-Fry

This is the simplest of dinners! and it can be modified so much that everyone will enjoy it. To start I prep my chicken. I cut the chicken into bite sized cubes and drizzle General Tso over top to marinate for the day. Of course I only do this once the chicken is thawed out. when it's closer to dinner that's when I prep my veggies. I cut up peppers, celery, asparagus, broccoli, and mushrooms. then I grab a wok, heat it up and add a bit of water then chicken. I cook it until all the pieces are white, check the biggest ones to see if their cooked all the way through, if it is then I add my veggies. at this time I'm cooking one cup of brown rice. Tip: I like to over cook my brown rice a little bit to help get rid of the chewy texture. Careful not to burn yourself or your rice! so once my rice is done I leaved it covered and set it aside. I Then grab a mix of Arctic Gardens Asian style frozen veggies, which has water chestnuts, snap peas, orange and yellow carrots, and peppers. so I throw in a cup of that. once they have heated up to the same temperature as the other veggies I add in more General Tso, Mix, then add my rice. if I need more General Tso, I add it, if not I'll usually leave it or add Cajun to add some more flavour.

Snacks!

Greek Yoghurt, Berries and Granola

So for this all you need is one cup of Greek yoghurt, I like to use the Oikos Key Lime flavour. I scoop out a cups worth then add two tablespoons of granola. (I like the banana nut flavour) Then to top it off I cut up strawberries and raspberries and place them over the granola. and I'm done!

Frozen Fruit

One of my favourite snacks is frozen fruit, I love frozen bananas, mango, raspberries and blueberries. For this I usually buy frozen fruit instead of freezing it myself, store bought just turns out better! Haha. So I Just scoop out a cups worth and put it in the bowl. And I usually always go back for seconds. This snack is so easy to make and so delicious. Be sure to let me know which frozen fruit is your favourite!


All right, well I really hope you all enjoyed this post about some healthier options to try out, and if you do try them out be sure to let me know what you though and include any modifications! I'd love to see what you all created!!
                                    Xxoo-Katie