Throwback Thursday! Niagara falls!

I went on a big trip across Ontario last summer, and I never got around to blogging, like, any of it! How awful of me, I know. So, to rectify this situation, I am posting them now, as throwback posts. They will be primarily photos, and a bit of fun and/or relevant information with said photos. Sorry for taking forever with these! Sometimes, I am AWFUL!

These posts should tide you over until I get to posting the ones from the upcoming roadtrip, that I am super stoked for!

We went to Niagara Falls, Canadian side! Whats cool about Niagara Falls, besides the actual falls, is that you can do this area pretty cheap. There are always cheap rates on Groupon that include food vouchers, and a tour of either a winery or a chocolate tour or something. There are also several casinos and a lot of shopping, both high end and kitschy local crap, as well as a lot of Canadian themed things, and a Hershey chocolate factory. 

We are so cute as fuck

Canadian side is prettier, and bigger.

Look at all that mist!

Look at that cute husband!

They have all sorts of rides and games all over the place, in case seeing one of the wonders of the world isn't enough.

Vancouver PRO/AM Fit expo

I had the opportunity to go to the FIRST Vancouver PRO/AM bodybuilding competition and fitness expo. This is the first of a new Olympia qualifying competition, so a lot of big names came out to see the expo, or compete. It was cool, because there was a lot of amateur competitors there as well, so I got to see what some of the local ladies and gents look like. 

The event was the weekend of July 25-26, but I only went on the Saturday. It was actually quite a small event, but it was pretty busy, what with it being the first of its kind.

One of my favourite moments was getting to see some of the champions. Like, Flex Lewis. And Dana Lynn Bailey. Mostly DLB. Seriously. I couldn't go near her-I was both in awe, and terrified I'd embarrass myself. Which I would have. I'll have a video of some of her talk on my YouTube later!

And Rich Piana. Now, if you don't know, yes, this man is on steroids, and he promotes the CAREFUL and PROPER use of them. Despite that, it still takes a LOT of work to get, and maintain, being this big. If you feel the need to talk about how big dudes are all on steroids, or some shit-don't. if you really can;t stop yourself, go somewhere else. I don't want to hear it.

And he is fucking huge.

They also had some pretty cool demonstrations, although  most of them I didn't get pictures of. There was belly dancing, pole dancing, powerlifting, and other lifts. We watched this girl basically giver herself an aneurysm. Well, not actually, but after she got these 5 plates (just under 225kg) up, she gave herself a nose bleed. We decided to leave after that.

And one of the cool things about the expo was all the free samples we got! Don't get me wrong, we bought a bunch of stuff too. Although I forgot to buy protein, which is awful, since I'm actually about to run out. There were also lifting competitions for the guests to win prizes, like shirts or shaker cups. One of my friends had to win me a Pharmafreak tank top because my finger makes me still kinda gimpy. Its so close to being healed, but so far.

Hawaii beaches, sunsets and the pretty stuff

Hawaii is known as paradise on earth-along with Bali, Tahiti, and the other mythic South Pacific Islands. It is the only state in America that is in the tropical bands, and perennially warm. It has its own language, its own culture, and people that still exist today, and should be celebrated. Hawaii is a place to escape, nay, THE place to escape to. It offers a refuge from the dirt, pollution and bustle of normal city life, into a environment of beauty and colour. So, enjoy that beauty!

Waikiki Beach

Waikiki beach, Diamond Head Crater.

Waikiki

Magic Island

Magic Island

Magic Island

Magic Island, facing Waikiki and Diamond Head

Never ending sky

Waikiki

More Korean Beauty Products!

Maybe I should stop buying stuff online? Nah! I ordered a bunch more fun Korean products from online again. These are all from the same Korea Depart website that I posted a little while ago.

If you aren't into beauty, feel free to skip this post and move on to another one!

I got these face blotting papers ENTIRELY because I LOVED the dinosaurs. And, as it turned out, they were fantastic oil blotters. It comes with a mirror and a pad, so you don't have to touch the papers-or your face. I used all mine, and then cut my own to fit the container. I love it!

I got these with the intention of bringing them to the gym, and on vacations, so I don't have to bring my normal makeup remover and cotton pads (they never travel well). It feels great on my skin, but is not the greatest at removing eye makeup, which is unfortunate.  I still bring them to the gym though, so not a total loss.

These are, without a doubt, some of my favourite hand creams! They smell so nice, make my skin feel wonderful, and leave it feeling soft and supple, but not greasy.

These are the free samples that came with the order. I haven't actually used any of them yet  >.<

This was the ENTIRE reason for the order. I LOVE these hair masks which take away a lot of the damage of colouring my hair. You guys may have noticed, but  my hair takes a lot of upkeep, so I need to use a lot of product to keep my hair healthy, shiny and beautiful, and, seriously, these hair masks work wonders. My hair feels fantastic for nearly a week after using just one, and I will use these things until I die, or lose all  my hair. Seriously.

This BB cream is pretty meh on its own. I find it too thick, too makeup-y and just not spreadable. That said, when I mix it 50/50 with a regular moisturizer, I find it to be great. Good coverage, nice colour, not too obvious, and quite blendable. I won't buy it again, but it won't go to waste either.

Makeup from ELF

I mentioned before that I just got a debit card that I can use online, yea? Well, I've been doing a lot of online shopping (even though I really need to stop!) and much of that has been makeup, or beauty products. So, if you don't care about what I have to say about makeup, or whatever, feel free to skip this post and move on to the next one!

(Another) Throwback post! My Hometown!

My hometown of Guelph Ont, is really only famous for a few things-The University of Guelph, and the hometown of the leader of the Pot Party. I think that's about it. Oh, and the authors Jean Little and Robert Munch.
I know that I've posted pictures of my hometown before-I go there often enough, that there are lots of posts about Ontario. But, this is different. You see, this was before I knew I would be leaving forever. I also thought I could be a semi-professional photographer at some point in my life. As you can see, that never turned out. I don't mean to say I take bad pictures-I think they are quite alright-it just means that I will never make money from it. That's fine. There are plenty of real photographers out there with lots of talent, you know?
So, enjoy these OLD photos (maybe 2 cameras ago) and look forward to some new ones from Ontario in August!

Church of our lady. Religion scares the crap out of me, but the architecture is beautiful. 

Abandoned steam train

The sunsets in the winter are just beautiful sometimes

The ever-peaceful Buddha 

And you thought the church was big from the front! 

Abandoned train station

May Nail Swatches!

I've been a little remiss in posting, my apologies. Intensive classes are intensive. But, I hope to remedy this by doing this post now! I will hopefully also be writing a few more before my upcoming exams, and throw them in the queue.

But, for now, nails!
Official Disclaimer! I have been working a lot lately, so my nails have not been taken care of as well as I usually do. I also haven't been painting them that often, what with the whole kitchen work thing and all. This means that there may not be a nails post next month. You've been forewarned!

First up, a Korean brand of nail polish! I ordered this from KoreaDepart (the online store I bought all that Korean makeup from a few posts back) a long time ago. I actually specifically bought this colour to be my Avatar Aang/Airbender art colour. I never used it for that though. It is, however, a delightful spring colour. I used white cherry blossom decals that I got in Korea as well. Cute, right?
The polish is by Etude House and has a name, but I can't translate it. It also seems to be discontinued from the KoreaDepart site, but may be available from other sites that sell Korean cosmetics. If you look for it, and find it, please let me know!

 I got this one by NYC because it matched my new dress perfectly. I wanted to look coordinated for my wedding anniversary date (pics soon!) and thought the nails would be a great addition. Now, like I said, the brand is NYC, so its pretty cheap (about $1.00CDN) and that shows in the quality of the product. I had it on less than 6 hours before it chipped BIG across several nails. I was not impressed. I have several bottles of this brand, and its great for one night bouts, but not for long term wear. This colour is called Sidewalkers.

Only 2 polishes for my lovelies this time. I had 2 other colour changes this month, but both looked like crap. Maybe I'll re-do them with some nail art, and see if they look better.
Until next time!
xox

Korean Beauty products!

A few months ago, I ordered a bunch of beauty products from Korea. They arrived a few months ago (don't worry, it didn't take MONTHS for it to get here-more like a week) and I've been using them this past while, and want to review/gush about a few of them. If this isn't your kind of thing, move along and come back later, or look at my other posts!

So, of course, I ordered things that weren't just beauty products-there were a number of foods and snacks that I missed. I ordered cheese bokki and these super yummy bon bons. I wanted to order my fave Korean chips, which are honey and cinnamon flavoured, but I cannot remember the name of them-do any of you guys know?

Anyways, to the beauty products! Before we continue, I should add that all of this is ordered from Korea Depart, which is an online Korean department store. You can order food, beauty products, makeup, clothing, specialty items, and hair products all from the same site, which cuts down on shipping costs. Well, sorta. The shipping is still expensive, but much cheaper than ordering it all separably.

 First up, BB cream by Nature Republic. I actually love this brand quite a bit. They are really good about using many natural ingredients in their products, which make them small very lovely. This BB cream goes on well, gives good coverage, smells super great and lasts a long time. The price is quite good too, coming in at $5.00USD per container.

CC cream is actually different than BB cream. While BB cream acts more like makeup with skin care, CC cream is designed to be skin care that is able to smooth the skin, hide dark spots, and be a makeup base. This is a brand that I have never worked with before, and, frankly, its kinda meh. I get a nice coverage, yes, but it also makes me skin so pale, I should be in a Twilight movie. The SPF (50) and price are quite nice though-$7.00USD

Tony Moly egg pore cleaning is amazing. I LOVE Tony Moly as a brand. It is just fantastic. I love the pore cleanser series-its super smooth, super foamy and FEELS like its cleaning deep. It has nice little beads that exfoliate the skin, that are big enough to not cause irritation, and able to be used daily. Which I do.  I find my skin has been smoother since using it. At $6.00USD I call it pretty awesome.

This is a cleanser that is used for that blackhead problem area of the nose (we all have it, there's no shame in it!). This is part of a set by Holika Holika, which had a cleanser and a massage oil and a nose peel. Now, we only bought this steam starter, as we already have the sticky peel things. Now, the peels are totally required for this to be any good. Ideally, get the whole set if you can. Its a great starter kit and really works well. This item is $4.00, and the set is $8.00.

Oh Happy Days by Etude House is just fantastic. I loved the way my hands felt after using it. I actually went through this container in just over a month, I loved it so much. It smelled great as well. My husband didn't like the smell really, but whatever. It was light and floral, and super summery. At $3.00 its pretty much a steal.

Finally, another cleanser. This one is by The Face Shop, and is a lemon cleanser that is really good for more oily skin. it helps reduce redness and the acid in the lemon helps to 'burn' away the top layer of dead skin cells. I use this daily (in the morning to get off all the sleepy dirt on my skin) and my skin is super soft all day. It foams up really nicely and each bottle lasts a long time. Again, the price is amazing too-$4.00USD

I hope you guys enjoyed this little review-if you have any questions about these products, or others like it, or want me to do a video showing how to use them,  feel free to drop me a line!

10 (other) things about me

favorite fruit: ALL the berries! And apples. 

3 anime characters you’re married to: Gajeel. Natsu. Edward Elric. Erza Scarlet. 

current obsession: Fairy Tail. Obviously. Attack on Titan. 

favorite song: I never have one fave song. Terrible, right? I have songs and artists that I love, and am obsessed with.

if you had a concert ticket to see any artist/band who would it be: concerts that I want to go to, and will kill to go to: Dir En Grey. VNV nation. Nine Inch Nails. The Cure. 

first anime: Sailor Moon, but, I hadn't realized what anime was, exactly. So, the movie Perfect Blue, or Akira, I think. I don't remember which came first. 

reading or writing: Both. Forever. 

three things you cannot live without: My husband, food, adventure. 

celebrity crush: I have 2 right now: Jennifer Lawrence and Lupita N'yongo.

3 things you like about yourself: I'm pretty fond of my eye colour. My boobs are great. I love my sense of humor. BONUS!! I love my tattoos.