Korea2013 part2

Hey everyone! I want to share with you 5 things that I brought/packed with me to Korea that I used almost every single day!

#1: Shrunken Trooper Jacket - Aritzia - small 

I made this purchase before I left to South Korea and I am so happy I did. It came in two different lengths, of course I opted for the shorter one because I  felt like the longer one over powered me. I am so happy that I bought this because not only did it look stylish but it carried my camera in one pocket and my phone in the other. It came so handy when I needed to snap a picture fast, I didn't have to go digging through my bag. Love this jacket from Aritzia!

#2: Michael Kors Charm Moc Loafers - Cognac - size 5

I packed two pairs of shoes and one pair of sandals. I kind of wish I brought more because I didn't find any footwear that I really liked in South Korea. But I was so thankful that I brought these little babies! First off, they are the comfiest shoes my feet has stepped into. The leather just molds to the shape of your feet and its like walking on a memory foam bed. I got no blisters or sores from these loafers. These shoes saved my life because the other shoes I brought basically bruised my Achilles heel and some days were just too cold to wear flip flops.

#3: Zara Tote Bag

I bought this bag to use in Korea because I needed a bag that was strong and big enough to hold my lap top. I find that when going on vacation its very important to bring a bag that is comfortable and easy to through over your arm and shoulders. Otherwise, you'll end up getting frustrated very easily when your hands are full and your bag keeps sliding down your arm. 

#4: EOS Lip Balm - Sweet Mint

 I won't leave the house without lip balm cause I can't stand dry, chapped lips, especially when you're eating spicy food! Yikes! I find that eos lip balms are super moisturizing and I don't need to reapply as much. Sweet Mint is definitely one of my favorite out of eos lip line.

#5:  Ray-bans RB3025

Some days I just didn't feel like doing my make-up, I just threw on my glasses and went out the door and no one could tell! 

That concludes my post. Tell me, what are some things that you absolutely need on vacation?

Korea2013

KOREA2013

If you read my last blog I mentioned that I went to South Korea for 3 weeks. It was amazing. I had so much fun and am so antsy to go on another vacation. I loved South Korea so much I would fly back in a heart beat. Not only was the shopping incredible, the food and site seeing was really wonderful too.

A lot of people have asked me why I went to Korea and the reason is since I was in elementary school, I've always been in love with Korea. My childhood best friend is Korean and I grew up embracing her culture, everything from the food, music, and traditions.

So after many many...many years of planning and failed attempt trips to South Korea, this year we were finally able to make it happen. Yay! And it was well worth the wait! 

My friend was fortunate to have family in South Korea. We stayed at her Grandma's sister's house in Daegu. Her home consisted of a large foyer/living room/dinning room, two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a bathroom without a tub. I wish I took a picture of her bathroom but I completely forgot. It was basically a room with a toilet, a sink, a washing machine and a detachable shower head. My reaction at first when I saw her bathroom was, "How am I going to survive!" Believe it or not, I gradually adapted to the f lifestyle and felt at home sooner than I thought I would. 

Strolling in Daegu. The weather in Daegu was pretty much the same as it is in Vancouver during March.

Surprisingly, the weather in Busan was so warm! So warm and nice, all beautiful cherry blossoms were beginning to blossom.

Seoul had to definitely be the coldest out of all the cities I visited. The air was brisk and nippy, especially at night. It was so cold I couldn't stand being outside after 8pm, I wasn't prepared and my fingers felt like they were going to fall off! Despite the cool weather, Seoul was one of my favorite parts of the trip! The food was delicious and the shopping was totally worth a plane ticket there!

 

Me and my best friend in Korean Hanboks.

I was so lucky that my friend's uncle was able to take us all around South Korea. We stayed mostly in Daegu but also stayed in Pohang, Seoul, Pusan, and passed through several other little cities and towns in between. I had so much fun and am so excited to share the awesome products I've purchased, but that will be in an another post. My overall experience was unforgettable and I am counting down the days till I'll visit the wonderful country again!

A video that I put together of my trip to South Korea! Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTx-WHfzu2I

Smack Those Pink Lips!

Hi everyone! I'm back from traveling and boy does it feel good to be home. I spent all of February up north in my small dinky little home town and spent most of March getting lost in South Korea! I'll post pictures of my trip to South Korea once I organize all my photos but in the mean time I wanted to share with you how to get the perfect pink lip with a few of the many products I picked up in South Korea!

My eyes are fairly bloodshot in this picture because its pretty late, I am still quite jet lagged. But anyways, I've tried quite a few different lip products and glosses to get the perfect "pink lip" and I think I finally found what I personally think is the perfect shade of pink on me. 

First of all, what I think you need to know about shopping in Korea is the products there are amazing and affordable. I was more drawn to products and brands that are not available in Canada like Skinfood, Innisfree, Banilla & Co, and the list goes on. I personally really like the brand called Skinfood; I liked the whole concept of their brand and the overall quality. Here is the link ----> http://eng.theskinfood.com/

So these are the 3 lip products I use to get that perfect bubble gum pink!

1. peripera - Peri's tint #5 It's actually a bit more hot pinkish in life. Lip tints are very popular in South Korea, it's basically a watery like liquid that stains your lips temporary. This is the first thing I apply to my lips, just my bottom lip and then I smack my lips together. A little goes a long way with this stuff! I paid about ₩6,000 which is almost equivalent to $6 Canadian.

2. TONYMOLY - Prestige # 1 I really love this lip stick, I wish I bought another one! The color is so pretty and goes on very smooth. Another thing I love about it is, it has SPF 13. I can't remember how much I paid, but probably around ₩7,000.

3. SKINFOOD - Vita Tok Lipgloss #4 This is what gives my lips that perfect bubble gum pink finish. Its amazing and smells really good. I actually got this lip gloss for free, along with a few other things because I spent over ₩30,000 ($30) The Vita Tok Lip gloss at SKINFOOD is ₩8,000. 

Just wanted to show you how the applicator looks like.

1. peripera - Peri's tint #5 ₩6,000 ($6)

2. TONYMOLY - Prestige # 1 ₩7,000 ($7)

3. SKINFOOD - Vita Tok Lipgloss #4 ₩8,000 ($8)

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed my post!

Arm Candy!

How do you store your arm candy? I use to store all my bracelets and bangles in a drawer in a basket but recently a friend showed me a really neat way to store them. All you need is a clean empty bottle, like this!

 Once the bottle is empty, wash it and soak it in a soapy bath for about an hour or so, just until the label slides right off. When they're dry, you can start stacking!

Ta Da!

Happy blogging, till next time!

My Pastiche

So you're probably wondering what a pastiche is right? For those of you who do know what it is, you can just skip this part! But for those of you've never heard of it before, stay tuned. Basically a pastiche is a piece of art, literature, or even music that is done by borrowing or using the same techniques from a different source. I guess you can say its like copying. 

Copying other people's work that you admire can help you become better at what you do, just make sure to eventually find you're own techniques and motifs that reflects who you are as an artist. 

I did my pastiche on David Downton's painting of Twiggy. Mine is on the right. I'm still new when it comes to water color & Gauche; so I don't know very many techniques. However, doing this piece taught me the contrast of thick and thin lines. It showed me how to bleed my color on the paper better and definitely made me realize that painting with water color isn't easy!

Left: (David Downton) Right: (Mine)

Anyways, please give it a try. I guarantee that you will learn something new!

BMC Fashion Show, 2012

Hey everyone! I promised I would share with you my end of the year collection and portfolio. If you follow my illustration blog, I mention that my collection is based on Art Deco. If you're a little unsure of what Art Deco is think of The Great Gatsby, flapper girls, prohibition, and anything to do with the 1920s.

The cover of my portfolio

I used col-erase pencil crayon in lavender and several different prismacolor pencils.

These are the favorites from my portfolio. We were aloud to pick three looks to construct. I only had two looks in the fashion show and decided to pull my third one because I didn't like the way it turned out.

 The silver dress is made out of silk satin and was very hard to work with. I cut the fabric on the bias making it even more difficult to handle because not only was the fabric slippery but now I had to worry about the fabric stretching! I was literally working on this dress the day of the show and finished two hours before the show started! It was really intense. During the show, I was super nervous because I was afraid the chain would be all tangled, but it wasn't. The dresser who dressed my model in my dress did a great job! 

 This dress took me the longest. I had to bead every single bead by hand and tack them into the seams of the dress. The chain on both gowns were hand tacked as well. With all the chain and beads in tack this dress is actually fairly heavy. When I had to alter the dress to fit my model, I actually had to re-bead and redo nearly the entire back of the dress. Overall, I was really lucky to find my fabric and chain for my dress.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed my post! Please message me if you have any questions, I love feedback!

Product Addict?

Would you call yourself a product addict? If so, relax. Its OK, you're not alone. As a matter of fact there are a lot of people in this world who love to try and buy new products. I'll admit, I use to be pretty bad. But I've learned to control my inner urges to splurge on products that I really don't need. 

However, during Christmas there are too many great deals to pass up so I couldn't resist buying a few new products to try during the holidays.

 The body shop always has great deals, they have an awesome "spin the wheel" promotion which allows customers to get awesome deals. I was lucky enough to get 50% off on all my goods. So I picked up theses two lovelies. I haven't used the Body Shop's body butters in a long time since high school. But I'm glad I gave it a try, it isn't very oily and smells really nice; plus this body butter is paraben free!  The tea tree face mask works well too. I'm already quite familiar with their Tea Tree line so I knew I wouldn't be disappointed. When applied, the mask will begin to tingle your face, this might not be for everyone, but I really enjoy this facial mask.

Tea Tree Face Mask

Vineyard Peach Body Butter 

I decided to buy this one because I liked how it had SPF 30 and the smell was quite nice. It smells like oranges. Its a little sticky at first but that is pretty normal for most moisturizers with SPF. But overall, it is fairly good. I wear it under my make up it doesn't feel heavy. 

Vitamin C Daily Moisture Lotion SPF 30

 I'm sure everyone is familiar with D&G's fragrant, Light Blue. Its been very popular the last few years. I absolutely love this perfume. I've been using it since I was thirteen. I like the size of the spray bottle, makes it convenient enough to carry in my purse. 

 D&G Light Blue 0.25 oz Eau de Toilette Spray

Essie -:- Shop Till I Drop

I actually got this as a stocking stuffer and its actually not that big in real life. Its solid perfume and it smells AMAZING! I love it, I'm actually kind of obsessed. I've been rubbing it all over my neck, under my ears, over my wrist, everywhere!

 L'Occitane en Provence -:- Cherry Princess Solid Perfume

I hope you all enjoyed my post, I'll try to update again really soon. Until then, take care!