My 7 Days Caribbean Cruise in Pictures

Hey everyone! Recently I went on a 7 days Caribbean cruise with my boyfriend and his mom. Ever since, I've been preparing a travel series (packing, beach essentials, in-flight essentials, etc.) for you guys. I thought I would also share a few of my favorite snapshots in case you all are interested!

The cruise was 7 days with 4 stops : Grand Turk, St-Thomas, San Juan and Half Moon Cay. This was my first cruise so I did loads of research before hand to help me pack and know what to expect. We had a fantastic time and I would definitely love to go cruising again!

We chose to go with the Eurodam from Holland America. I truly enjoyed my experience and I would like to try other cruise companies in the future to compare and chose my favorite. (Disney being high on the list!) One of the big plus I found while cruising was the amazing food everyday on the ship. I decided not to include any pics of the food in here because I know not everyone is into that. Instead I'll dedicate a full separate post on the food so if you're not interested, you can skip it!

Setting sail on the first day 

Pretty sunset at sea from our balcony 

 Right after a tropical shower on Grand Turk

 The beach on Grand Turk

 Our ship, docked in Grand Turk

 I really love this picture of the boyfriend and I! It was at the pier in San Juan

 The streets of San Juan

 Pretty view of the sea in San Juan

  Myself in San Juan

 Right before we sailed off, a view of San Juan in the evening

The pier in Saint-Thomas. This was the catamaran we went snorkeling on that day. 

 Saint-Thomas

 Me holding my hat in Saint-Thomas after a day of snorkeling

 Saint Thomas again

The amazing sea at Half Moon Cay with our ship in the background

Colorful private cabanas on Half Moon Cay

That's pretty much it! I have over 700 pictures of the trip, but I tried my best to select just a few. Also I didn't include any with my mother in law because I'm not sure she would like to be on here, but I do have a few of my favorite pictures with her in it. I might add a few in the future if I get her ok! Let me know if you've ever been on a cruise and what your thoughts were! Would you ever go again? Hope you all enjoyed this post and have a wonderful week!

Crazy Food Tag

Hey everyone! Here comes another tag! I've been slacking and not posting these for a while, but I had them all written down and everything for you. Here's another one that is pretty old by new, but since I love food so much I thought I would post it anyway. This one is for all the other food lovers that are reading this, hope you all enjoy and I tag you all to do it as well!

♥ Questions ♥
1. What food could you eat everyday? Sushi and probably ramen

2. What's your favorite restaurant? That's a really tough choice! If I'm really treating myself then I would say Yasuda in NYC. If we're thinking local, I guess Kimono here in Quebec City. I also love Ramen Ya, Le Pied de Cochon and Kanda. Argh I can't choose!
3. What city has the best food you've ever had? NYC
4. What do you get on your sub? Lettuce and cucumber, pretty boring huh?
5. What do you get on your pizza? pepperoni, bacon and mushrooms
6. Is there a food you've always wanted to try? pumpkin pie! I think I might have had some when I was little, but I can't remember the taste 
7. Tell me about your worse restaurant experience. Having backpacked a lot, I've had quite a few aweful restaurant experiences and I can't remember one in particular that was the worst. There was also this place in my city which does Libanese food. First off, the authenticity was severely lacking (Lebanese place serving brown gravy anyone? Also the execution was terrible. I can remember distinctly how much my mom was appalled by the placed even being called Lebanese - not that I'm an expert or anything, but this place is really bad people)
8. Who's a better cook; your mom or dad? My mom does most of the cooking
9. What is one food you just fail at making? Eggs over easy, I always break the yolks -_-
10. Name your least favorite foods. raw tomatoes, tapioca (or rice pudding) and relish
11. Raw or cooked veggies? Both!
12. How do you like your steak? Rare
13. Do you enjoy cooking or baking better? I love the idea of baking, but I'm not that into sweets, so in reality I much prefer cooking. 
14. What's your fav fast food place & can you name 5 items off of the menu? A&W! And no I don't think I can name 5 things because I always order the same thing, the Mozza burger :)
15. Name a food place you wish was closer to you. All the ramen shops in NYC ♥ Also I wish there was a good Lebanese restaurant closer. I really miss it since I used to eat it all the time back home.
16. Ultimate fav desert. Cheesecake
17. What food do you gravitate more towards at a party or get together? Bread XD I have a serious problem with bread, I simply cannot stop eating it.
18. Favorite food to eat at Christmas? Meat pie :)
19. What's the first food that comes to mind... NOW? Tikka Masala chicken, because that's what's cooking in the slow cooker at the moment and it smells delicious in here.
20. Do you have any weird food habits? I like to put pepper in my soup for some reason. Other than that nothing I think.
21. What holiday is your favorite for food? Definitely Christmas
22. What's one food you would NEVER try? Anything pertaining to bugs, yuck :/
23. Do you know your best friends favorite food? Well I'm not sure he has a favorite food per say, but he's a huuuuge fan of ramen.
24. What's the best thing your mom makes? That's a tough one! I love her stew, her gumbo sandwiches, her glazed carrots, her lasagna, her lemon chicken, her banana bread, There's too many to choose from :p
25. What's your favorite style of eggs: Scrambled, boiled, poached, over easy or sunny side up? Over easy all the way for me
26. Name your favorite restaurant that closed down. The steakhouse where I got engaged and went to my three first valentine's day with the boyfriend closed a few years ago and I was really bummed out about it. Not only was it a place filled with memories for us, but the food and service was also great. At home I'm not much of a red meat eater, but I do enjoy a good steak when we eat out and they did a great fillet mignon. They even had a kick ass cheese fondue one year. I really miss the place.
27. Do you like your bread toasted light or dark? Light!  I prefer when it's still quite soft and not too crunchy.
28. Do you like spicy food? I love it dearly :)
29. Seafood? Nom ♥ I've discovered a very fond love for scallops recently!
30. First food that comes to mind that is green? Asparagus

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That's all for this food tag! Hope you all enjoyed and have a wonderful week!

Beauty Scenario Tag

Hey everyone! Quick tag for you all today! I'm quite late on the bandwagon with this one, but better late than never right?


THE QUESTIONS: 
1. You have to get rid of all your foundations and you can only keep one high end and one drugstore, which do you keep?

The question is pretty easy for me as far as high end goes. I don't own any high end foundations. For the drugstore part of the question, I think I would go with Covergirl Stay Fabulous foundation. I love the coverage and finish and I could always mix it up with some moisturizer to make it more sheer.

2. You go for an interview and the lady interviewing you has lipstick on her teeth. Do you approach the subject or ignore it completely?

I depends how comfortable the person makes me feel, but frankly I would have to feel very comfortable to bring that up which is unlikely to happen in an interview.

3. You're not feeling yourself and need a pick me up. Which lipstick do you put on to make yourself feel beautiful?

Lip balm! I'm really not much of a lip person. I always feel like it makes me look odd. I would chose a slippery balm that looks a little shiny on the lips. Other than that I rarely go for makeup on the days where I need a pick me up. I'd probably do a spa evening thing at home (bubble bath, face mask, candles and a drink) or have a nice meal instead.

4. You go back in time for a day to your teenage years, how would you do your hair and makeup differently?

I would part my hair to the side and stay away from home colorations. For makeup, well I wasn't wearing any. I did have a small phase where I would put white liner on my top lid which looked hideous. I would definitely stay way from that!

5. You ask your hairdresser for a shoulder length Pixie Lott hair cut, but they hear wrong and give you a pixi cut. Do you a) Smile, say thank you, leave and call your mum hysterical b) Cry in the chair and things get awkward or c) Complain to the manager and demand a refund.

Definitely complain. That is a very big mistake. However, I don't see how that would happen. I'd definitely stop the hairdresser when I saw where things were headed so I wouldn't end up with super short hair.

6. Your friend surprises you with a 4 day city break and you have 1 hour to pack. Which 'do it all' palette do you pack in your makeup bag?

Urban decay Naked Basics for sure. I has everything I need for simple day time looks. I might also bring the Smashbox Full Exposure Travel palette for some shimmer. That's what I did recently when I went on a cruise and it was a great combo!

7. Your house has been robbed, don't worry everyone is safe, but your beauty stash has been raided. What's the product you really hope is safe?

That's kind of a silly question :p I guess I would be most sad if any of my high end products went missing (I don't have many and I cherish them!). So probably my Naked Palettes of my Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette.

8. Your friend borrows your makeup and returns it in awful condition. Do you a) Just pretend you haven't noticed b) Ask them to repurchase it or c) Secretly do the same to something of theirs 

I don't lend my makeup to other people, so that solves the issue :p

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That's it for this tag! Hope you all enjoyed reading it!

Me Time Tag

Hey everyone, today I'm doing the me time tag! For me, me time is an integral part of my weekly routine. It helps me unwind, beautify and de-stress! I do it as often as I can and it helps tremendously. I feel pampered after and it seems like a real treat to myself. Usually I will do a spa night complete with face mask, hair mask, nails, bubble bath, tv, etc. 

TAG QUESTIONS:

What do you watch or read during me-time? I usually catch up on my shows or read my current book (right now I'm watching : Buffy, Gilmore Girls, The Originals, and I'm reading : The Infernal Devices series)

What do you wear during me-time? #nobra I like to wear a plush robe with comfy pjs. Sometimes I also wear hoodies with animal ears :D 

What are your me-time beauty products? Lush bubble bar, a scented candle, Lush face mask, redken all soft shampoo and conditionner and a good lipbalm

Current favourite nail polish? I haven't been wearing any lately. I wore a forest green one from Revlon that I loved, but it stains like crazy so I'm not doing that again.

What do you eat/drink during me-time? It depends on my mood... sometimes I'll have tea, or wine/sake, but most of the time I like to have an alchool free beer because I love the taste! I don't tend to eat anything when I do me time.

Current favourite candle? I don't have a favorite candle right now, because I've only got one left, but I've been liking manly smelling candles and citrusey scents.

Do you ever have outdoor me-time? I didn't know that existed, lol. It's much too cold in the winter time to do that over here. All in want is come back in as quickly as possible!

Would you ever go see a movie alone? Probably not. Not that I would mind being on my own, but I'm a home buddy so I'd rather wait and get the DVD or watch it on Netflix in the comfort of my home :P

Favourite online shop? I've tried buying clothes online and it was a disaster - nothing fit me right. I don't buy that much stuff online, but I do like Sephora and Amazon.

Anything to add? What else do you do during me-time? nah that's pretty much it :P

That's all for this tag! Hope you all enjoyed reading it! I tag everyone who hasn't done it yet to do it also on their blog. If you do, go ahead and post it in the comments! I'd love to read yours :)

My New Makeup Set Up

Hey everyone! Today I'm sharing my updated makeup set up! So I've been playing around with my makeup set up for a few years now because I'm never quite 100% satisfied. I've had the MALM vanity table from IKEA for about two years and while I love it, I was starting to outgrow it. I was putting more and more stuff on top of the vanity to make space in the drawer and it looked a little too cluttered to my liking. So I went out and got the ALEX 9 drawer system by IKEA. I know, not very original. Everyone and their mother has this thing, but it's really perfect for my needs. Anyhow, here's how it all looks now.

In case you were wondering, I moved all my hair products to the bathroom which is where I do my hair anyway. The rainbow unit is now used for school supplies/arts and crafts storage.

I set out all my perfumes on a little glittery tray on top of the drawer unit. (the tray is from Dollorama) The perfumes used to be inside a drawer, but I always forgot to put it on. Now it's right in my face when I get ready! I also put all of my perfume samples in a cute bowl so that I can use these up too (also from Dollorama). Last, I have a dish that contains all my earrings (from IKEA).

I've put away any brushes I don't use regularly and consolidated all my brushes into two pots instead of three. This way, the top of my vanity is less cluttered and I have more space to work with.

The drawer is now completely reserved for my main obsession : eyeshadow! I've kept the ice cube tray system for my singles and use a plastic drawer organizer from IKEA to hold my small palettes. The large palettes are on the left side and are all easy to grab. I've decided this was the easiest and safest way to store my palettes. While it does take up a lot of room (which I don't mind), it's out of the reach of my cats, which like to rub themselves on stuff and send them flying to the floor. I've had this happen in the past (thankfully it was an inexpensive palette), but I do not wish to live through that again. So now they're tucked away and safe in a drawer!

This is the nail drawer. I keep in here anything that pertains to nails that isn't nail polish. 

Here's the bracelet/watch drawer. I really love my arm candy so I've got a bunch in here. The divider is from IKEA.

Here's the liner, base and mascara drawer. It's divided to help me find what I'm looking for easily. I'm not 100% happy with this drawer yet. I find that there is a lot of wasted space and the products are stacked on top of each other so this might change in the future.

The powder drawer is on of the fullest and also one of my favorites. I've divided it in categories. Face powder, bronzer, highlighter and blush.

I'm so glad I can finally fit my nail polishes into a drawer! It's probably one of my favorite drawers just because of that! Now everything fits and is easy to find. There isn't a whole lot of place for my collection to expand though. I think it will be fine though since I haven't been buying much nail polish recently.

The lip drawer is also one of my favorites. Since the drawer is deep, I can fit my lipstick holders in there so the drawer is super organised! Everything is easy to find and I'm really happy about the way this one turned out.

Another drawer that I really love is the foundation and skin care drawer. I'm not that big of a fan of the way everything is organised at the moment, but I love that everything skin related is in the same spot. I have all my foundation, sponges, bases, concealers and skin care in here so everything is handy when I do my face.

There is two other drawers, but one is just full of cottons pads, face wipes, q-tips, that sort of thing. The last one is a junk/false lashes drawer which looks terrible at the moment. I'll try and make them look better eventually and I'll show you then!

So that's it for my new makeup set up! If you are interested, you can also check out my older set ups here, here and here. Hope you all enjoyed :) Have a great day!

Happy New Year!

Hey everyone! Hope you all had a very nice holiday season! It's 2015 already! This year has really flown by for me. I can't believe I graduate in only a short 4 months. I'm really pumped about that! On this first day of 2015, I wish you all a wonderful new year filled with love, joy and anything else you desire! ♥ Thank you to all those of you still following and reading me even though I've been quite MIA these past months. Still, 2014 has been a year filled with milestones for me. I got to 500 posts as well as 100 000 views! I was incredibly excited about both and it's you, the readers, that I have to thank for that. So thank you all so much, it means a lot to me ♥

I thought I would share a little collage of 2014's best makeup moments on the blog. I feel like the quality of my work has really increased in 2014 compared to other years and there are so many looks that I am really proud of. Anyway, enjoy!

That's all! Have a great day everyone :)

Merry Christmas + Last 10$/Week Challenge Update

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you all have a wonderful day filled with fun and good times with your families. If you don't celebrate Christmas, then happy holidays, or simply I hope you have a great day! :)

So you all probably have noticed that I have been quiet for the last two months. I hope to start doing more posts again during the new year. I'm sorry for my silence, and I really don't have much of an explanation to offer as to why I haven't posted. I simply wasn't feeling motivated or inspired. I actually hadn't worn any makeup in 6 weeks until yesterday! Anyhow, hopefully you will be seeing much more from me on here soon. I'm leaving for a cruise in less than two weeks so I was thinking I could start with a pack with me cruise edition kind of deal. Let me know if you'd like to see that :)

As far the 10$/week challenge, I've been doing quite well. In fact, it ends in 6 days, and unless I do something terribly stupid until then, I've managed to stay on budget for the whole year! I'm incredibly proud of myself and I can hardly believe it's already been a whole year. Anyway, enough with the rambling, here are the latest and last items that I bought this year :

MAC Moisture Cover Concealer (23$), Smashbox Full Exposure Travel Palette (23$), Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pommade (23$)

Sorry for the crap quality of the picture, I'm not home and all I have is my phone with me. :/ At least I'm posting something right? :p

So the total is 69$, which I'm basically rounding up to 90$ (or 9 weeks) because of sales taxes. So this concludes my resolution for this year! Hope you all enjoyed this and have a nice week everyone!

Beauty Empties Number 6

So I finished a few small and candles and a big one! The Winter Cafe candle was great, but I don't think I would buy it again. It's just not that special. Same for the chocolate mint and the hot chocolate ones (they don't make them anymore though so it's kind of a moot point). The Pumpkin Cupcake and White Barn ones I would definitely get again tough :)

1) Cover Girl Clump crusher X2 (expired) - I got a value pack at Costco to replace them. More info on my thoughts here
2) Maybelline Great Lash Clear Mascara which I use as brow gel. I also have already repurchased this.
3) Red Cherry Lashes in 119 and 28. I quite like Red Cherry lashes and would repurchase, but I feel like they don't last as long as some other brands.
4) Last for lashes I got two pairs of Ardell lashes. One of them is really old and has been well loved. The other one is it's replacement, which is terrible quality. I don't know what happened with Ardell lashes, but they're not the same anymore (happened to me for two different pairs).  As I was peeling them from the packaging, the lashes were pulling apart, essentially destroying the lash before I even got to use it once. So it was a nice waste of 7$. I'm really disappointed, let me just say I won't be buying any more Ardell for the time being.

As far as samples are concerned I have three perfume samples which were all nice, but I wouldn't get the full size of. I also have two Laroche Posay products : the cicaplast Baume which helps heal scars. The tube was too small for me to notice a diffence, but I'd like to try it for acne scarring. It's super expensive tough so I'm on the fence about that. The other one is the Toleriane Ultra Intense Soothing Care. The sample is tiny which means it's kind of pointless in my opinion. I do have the full size though and I love it.

1) Bioderma x2 - Check this post to see what I think!
2) Bath and Body Works shower gel in Honeysuckle Amore - I feel the same about this shower gel than the other one I mentionned in my last empties. Read it here
3) Bath and Body Works hand soaps - While I find these drying, I cannot keep myself from repurchasing. The lovely colors and scents just keep drawing me in over and over again.
4) Lush Fresh Face Masks - These are my new obssession! They feel so great on the skin and are all natural. They do not irritate my sensitive skin and I really feel like they do something for my skin as opposed to most cheap face masks you can get at the drugstore.
5) Neutrogena Oil Free Makeup Remover - I've had at least 5 or 6 of these. Really love this makeup remover. More info here
6) Glysomed Hand Cream - My favorite hand cream, more details here
7) Sensodyne Pro-Namel Toothpaste - My toughts here

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That's it for these empties! Hope you enjoyed all the quick product reviews! I tried not to repeat myself too much so I linked the products I reviewed in earlier posts as much as possible :) Hope you all don't mind, but my opinion hasn't changed so I thought it would be better this way. Let me know how you feel about that!

Recent Beauty and Random Favorites

Hey everyone! Today I'm sharing my current and recent favorites! I used to do these every month, but I realized that it was getting a little boring with the same products repeating over and over again. I've waited a little too long to do this one so I have a bunch of things to share now! I especially have a ton of random favorites because I've been really into reading and watching shows lately :)

So without further ado, let's proceed with the favorites ♥

 ** BEAUTY **

Laura Mercier Matte Radiance Baked Powder in Highlight 01

Golden toned extra shiny highliter. It's super pigmented and looks great on the top of the cheekbones.

L'Oréal Colour Riche Balm in 818 Nourishing Nude

Great feeling on the lips, sheer natural color and beautiful shiny finish. It's really moisturizing too! It's really perfect for my dry chapped lips.

OPI Dulce de Leche Nail Polish

Probably not the first time I mention this one, but for me it's the perfect nude, wearable, work appropriate color!

Lush Fresh Face Mask in Love Lettuce

I love all the Lush masks that I have tried so far, but I've repurchased this one twice. I love the feeling of my skin afterwards and it's quite soothing. Great to pamper yourself during the weekend.

Tony Moly Party Lover Liquid Liner

Super black, really thin brush and very easy to control. I love the results and I'm glad I finally found a liquid liner that I love besides the Elf 1$ liner.

Urban Decay Naked Basics

Tiny little palette, but so practical and versatile! I love to pack this along with a few shimmery shadows when I travel. It contains all the basics that you would need to do a well rounded makeup look. Also, the color Naked is perfect for my brows. Love!

EcoTools Eye Enhancing Duo Brush Set 

I love this double ended brush set. The angled brush is super fine and perfect for precision work and I love the blending brush. As with all other EcoTools brushes, they are soft and great quality too.

Lush The Olive Branch Shower Gel

Wonderful Scent, gentle on the skin, I couldn't ask for more from a shower gel! The small bottle lasts quite a long time, but the size is perfect for travel which I always appreciate.

Le Petit Marseillais Body wash in White Peach and Nectarine 

This is the first time I try this brand, but I'm already sold! The scents are to die for and the formula is extra gentle. I also have a raspberry one which is incredible.

Toleriane Ultra Intense Soothing Care moisturizer and Toleriane Dermo-Cleanser

I think I'm going to review this in-depht soon, so I'm going to be brief. This skin care line is gentle, moisturizing and perfect for my allergic skin. The products are expensive, but really worth it for me.

Urban Decay Pulp Fiction Palette 

Incredibly cool packaging. As soon as I saw it on the Sephora website I knew I had to have it! The shadows themselves are very basic, but the quality is unparalleled. Great palette!

** MUSIC **

Zomboy

I love a lot of Zomboy's music, but lately I'm quite into the Dead Symphonic E.P :D

Dj Bl3nd
I've been listening to Dj Bl3nd Freakshow Vol. 8 a lot! Really great music :)

** TV & MOVIES **

- Hotel Transylvania

- Witches of East End

- Veronica Mars

- Once Upon a Time

- Prison Break

** BOOKS **

- Divergent Series

- Razorland Series

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That's it for my current favorites! Let me know if you have any recommendations for me wether it be beauty, books, tv or music! I'd love to hear it :)

Current Beauty Wishlist

Hey everyone! Today I'm just doing a quick post to share my current beauty wishlist! These items won't be purchased this year for the most part (gotta keep my 10$/week project in check!), but I'm probably going to get them in the future.

For the remainder of my yearly makeup budget (6 weeks, so 60$), I'm still undecided as to what I want to spend it on. As much as I'd like to get more eyeshadow, I've got so many palettes now that I feel it might not be the best choice. I am debating on getting more Darling Girl Cosmetics shadow though. Another option is getting a BB cream and other Korean products that I want to try. Other than that I was thinking of getting a Christmas set at Sephora. I'm not sure what to do! What would you guys get?

Current Beauty WIshlist by luhivy featuring origins skin care