Handbag Essentials

Hey :). I've recently downsized to a smaller bag for my Europe trip and I have had to cut out the insane amount of lip products I usually carry around with me.

iPhone Face of the Day

I thought I would snap a few pictures of what I'm wearing on my face today since it is a little new and exciting. These were taken with my phone so if the quality is not amazing sorry! Is it really annoying or okay?

Anyways, on to the face...

New Nail Polish

Hey :).

Yesterday I got my order in from nailpolishcanada.com. I paid for everything and have no affiliation-I am just so happy to find a Canada-based website with some great nail polish brands like China Glaze, Essie, OPI, A England, Zoya, Butter London, and so on. I got free shipping and received my order in a week (it will be faster if you live closer to Vancouver). The prices were reasonable and the collections were really new and finding all of these brands under one site in Canada is so convenient.

(without flash)

Laura Mercier Mineral Powder

Hey guys, hope you all had a great weekend! As promised, here are some before and after shots of the LM Mineral Powder, which I absolutely love. My main concern with face makeup is concealing the redness on my cheeks while keeping a natural, glowy finish that doesn't accentuate my dry skin and this foundation does an amazing job. Alone, it doesn't give me an absolutely flawless face but it provides a nice amount of coverage (you can still see my freckles).

Adventures in Bakeland...

Hey guys, today I baked something without a recipe. Aren't you proud? I've always been one to improv when cooking and I've even played with spices and flavouring with baking recipes before but until today I was one to stick to the letter of the law when baking. I had some old bananas and an avocado sitting on my counter and I thought...why don't I make avocado banana muffins? I googled away and came up with nada, so I decided to make my own and they turned out fantastically :). I find myself running out the door each morning and love having muffins that are decently nutritious to take on the go. I used white whole wheat flour, a little brown sugar, and canola oil to make these and they definitely can hold up to some substitutions. I added dark chocolate chips and cut back on the sugar, and I would be interested to try substituting honey and adding some nuts. I also used just one bowl and the prep time was only about 5 minutes. The avocados have monounsaturated fat and allow you to cut down on the oil, which is great and they make the muffins really moist.

An Ode to John Green

                    Hey guys, happy Friday! It's Canada Day weekend over here and I can't wait to get to the beach :). Today I wanted to share one of my new favourite writers. I have read all of John Green's work (five books in all) in the past couple of months and have fallen in love. Since I'm studying English Lit and Writing at school, I sometimes get sick of reading massive bricks of literature and want something a little more readable. John Green is classified as YA (Young Adult), which can be vague and alienating to different types of readers. I would recommend his books to anyone high school age or above, but age is really not a factor I consider for books.

Kale and Quinoa: Making Healthy Food Taste Good 101

Hey guys... it's my first post ever! So be nice. I'm new at this. I thought I would do my first post on what I had for dinner tonight. I, like mostly everyone, am constantly trying to eat healthy, fresh food on a regular basis. Lately I have been trying foods that my eight year old self would turn her nose up at. I never thought I would be someone who would try dark leafy greens like kale, but I gobbled them up, thanks to Joy the Baker. I have been reading her blog for ages and when I was thinking about what to make for dinner tonight, her Kale and Quinoa cakes popped into my head. They aren't the simplest weeknight meal...it really helps to have the quinoa pre cooked and in the fridge though. One major tip is to use a mini ice-cream scoop (I used a coffee scoop) to form the "patties" and be very gentle because these babies are fragile! I topped them with a dollop of sour cream and they were gone faster than I could cook the next batch! Here's a link to the recipe (I added some corn instead of the sun-dried tomatoes) So, without further ado...