Carry On for International Flight

Hi everyone! In preparation for my California trip next week I have starting packing all my liquids. As you may be aware, currently carry-ons have specific restrictions for liquids due to security reasons. You may still carry liquids in your luggage but many flights require additional cost to ship your luggage. If you’re planning a short trip, there may be no need for the additional luggage. Hopefully this will help you organize your travel necessities for your vacation!

Here are some general guide lines (may vary depending on airlines):

• Max liquid capacity  - 100mL/container
• All liquids must be placed in a clear plastic bag no larger than 20cmx20cm (8in x 8in)
• The bag must be able to close completely

For my carry on, I have brought a combination of my favourite, most used products as well as some samples. The ziplock with the containers is from Shoppers Drug Mart for about $13.

Natural “No Makeup” Look

Hi everyone! I want to apologize for my long hiatus. Second semester was a lot busier than I had anticipated especially with two jobs on the side. Nevertheless it is summer time and I’m ready to update frequently :)!

Today I have a natural “no makeup” look that I have been wearing for the past couple of weeks during spring and early summer. It takes me less than 15 minutes to do and makes me look more awake and fresh. I’m very excited to share this with you! Here is the before and after look: As you can I see I look a bit tired, dull and groggy. But in the after photo I look much more energetic without looking overdone. Before we start I applied my morning moisturizer along with my SPF 30 sunscreen.

Here is a list of products I have used: 

How to Make Japanese Curry

Hi! Today I’m sharing a very simple but healthy and delicious recipe for Japanese curry :). This is something I frequently make during midterms or during exams because I can make it in bulk and eat it for multiple days (which saves me from cooking many times a day).

The curry brand I used is “Golden Curry” in “Extra Hot”. I have previously used Glico in “Medium” and “Hot” as well (you can purchase them at Oriental Mark in Kingston for $5, or for $3 in any Asian supermarket in Toronto) . I usually choose the most spicy option because Japanese curry is pretty mild to begin with. To me “extra hot” would only be considered “medium hot”. The best part about these premade sauces is that you do not have to add any other ingredients into the stew except for vegetable oil.

The overall schedule (allow for a total of 1.5h):

• Chop ingredients: 10 minutes (or less if you have someone to help)
• Stir frying ingredients: 15 minutes (10 for beef+onions, 5 extra for carrots and potatoes)
• Waiting for the water to boil: 5-10 minutes
• Shimmer: 20-30 minutes (you can do something else during this time)
• Add in curry sauce, peas, and mix: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 Medium Onions (if you don’t like onions I still recommend you to use one because the onion completely melts into the soup and the flavour becomes very mild)
• 3-4 Potatoes (I am a potato fiend, so I use 4, but you could use 3 or less)
• 3 Big Carrots (You can use baby carrots if you wish)
• 1/2 a clove of Garlic
• 1 Cup of frozen peas (Put a cup into warm water)
• 2 Pounds of beef or chicken
• 5 Cups of Water

Although it seems like it takes a long time to make, this pot of curry last for 3 days (for two)!!

Winter Skin Boost

Hey! Sorry for the hiatus. After school started, it was been a crazy whirlwind of applications, work, job-searching and now midterms -wohoo! However, to make up for it, today I am sharing some products that I have been using for the past months to re-hydrate the skin in the frigid Canadian winter.

I have written a previous fall/winter skin care blog post, however, since the Canadian weather’s been averaging -17ºC (1.4ºF), it wasn’t enough for my skin and I started to develop these hard and dry bumps on my cheeks. Here is a list of products that I have used. Please keep in mind that you do not have to get the exact same product, but it’s the type of product and the function that it serves that is important. Also for reference, I have combination skin (oily T-zone, and dry cheeks).

 (Left to right: Laneige’s Water Sleeping Mask, Vaseline, The Face Shop Jelly Apple Peel, Kiehl’s Lip Balm)

YSL Foundation Review

Hey everyone! I hope you all enjoyed Christmas and New Years :). For Christmas I received an amazing present from Amy! It is the YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat Foundation :)! Ever since it launched, I’ve been pretty curious about it. I have to say the product did not disappoint.

I have it in BD40. YSL has three categories, B for Beige or Neutral, BR for Beige Rose (pink undertones), and BD for Beige Dore (yellow undertones). Naturally I picked up the shade with yellow undertones. Unfortunately, in North America they do not sell BD 30, but BD40 is a really good match for my skin tone.

The swatch at the Top is Lancome’s Teint Miracle Foundation in Buff 2(W) (reviewed in detail here) and the one at the bottom is YSL Touch Eclat in BD40. The Lancome appears to be slightly light and too peachy for my skin tone while the YSL is slightly more yellow. When blended however both seem to match my skin colour when blended. However it does seem that the Teint Miracle seem to accentuate the bumps while YSL mutes these lines.

Schwarzkopft Dry Shampoo Review

One of my biggest pet peeves is oily hair. Unfortunately, I have oily hair myself, but even then I avoid washing my hair everyday because it strips the moisture from my hair and it tends to dry out the ends of my hair. Generally I wash my hair every other day, but even then on the second day my hair can become more oily than my liking. I decided to try the Schwarzkopft Osis+ Refresh Dust for $18. It’s a dry shampoo in the form of a spray. I only picked this up because it was recommended to me by the sales assistant at a hair products shop at Pacific Mall. At first I was skeptical of the sales lady, but decided to buy it anyways. In the end I was pleased with the product. This is the before and after photo:

Please excuse my glasses and retainers, it was my hermit day. As you can see my hair is noticeably neater and less greasy!

Guest Post: Inglot haul

Hello “Simply Becca Blog” readers!

My name is Amy, a long-time friend of Becca and a fellow makeup enthusiast who has been avidly following this blog ever since its inception. When Bec invited me to write a guest post to show off my recent makeup haul from Inglot, I happily agreed.