Friday, February 28, 2014

Weekend Trip to London

Last month we spent a weekend in England.  I had a friend to visit there so it was a perfect excuse to take a weekend trip and visit the country's capital.

Here are a few things we did, saw and ate while in London.

Day 1: Londe Eye, Westminster and Buckingham Palace

Our first day in England actually started very early in the morning.  We took a Ryanair flight from Marseille to London Stansted, which meant we had to take an hour and a half long bus ride to London from the airport.  We landed at 11pm and after a longish wait at border patrol we made it out of the airport with our luggage and unto the National Express en route for London.  The ride itself took close to 2 hours and we were quite tired when we eventually made it to our hotel room. 

After sleeping in til about 10am we set out for our first day in the English capital. Our first stop was the London Eye, because I wanted to indulge in the wonderful view of the city and get the long wait in queue over with.  The wait was about 45 minutes and it was worth it.  It was a beautiful sunny day so the view was amazing! 

After having seen the city from up above, we made our way over to Westminster Abbey and paid the extremely high entrance fee of 18 pounds.  I would say it is worth it to do once and take in the grandeur and history of the place.  My favorite part was the poet's corner where many famous poets and authors have been buried or memorialized there. They include Jane Austen, Lewis Carroll, Shakespeare, Robert Burns, the Brontes and many more. 

We also took a few snaps of Big Ben while in the area of course. 


Then we strolled through St. James's Park and saw all the ducks, swans, geese, and pelicans that live there. Being an absolute lover of all animals, this was of course really fun for me! 




After a ten minute walk with all these great winged creatures, there stood the place everyone wants to see when they visit London, Buckingham Palace.  

It was then time to grab something to eat. It wasn't quite supper time but we were famished.  That's the thing about traveling, you never end up eating at normal hours. We found a quaint coffee shop in Shepherd's market and had some tea and paninis. I chose a tune melt, which was either really good becaue I was just that darn hungry or it really was the best tuna melt ever.

That evening we went back to the hotel, relaxed for a bit and then went out to a nearby pub for a quick supper before going to bed.

Day 2: Meeting up with Kelly, Hyde Park, Camden Market, Afternoon Tea, Shopping

The main reason we went to London that weekend was to visit with my friend Kelly, who had been living on the outskirts of London for the past couple months.  

Our hotel was located right next to Hyde Park, so that is where our day began. We strolled through the parkon another beautifully sunny day in the city where it "always rains". 

We saw but did not visit Kensington Palace (Princess Diana's home). We passed by Prince Albert's memorial and admired Princess Diana's memorial fountain. 




Before leaving Hyde Park we saw a few swans and ducks that of course had to be photographed.



After the park we made our way to Camden market to enjoy the lively atmosphere there. Camden is very different from the areas of London we had visited the previous day so the contrast was quite flagrant, but not at all negative.


In the afternoon we walked around Piccadilly circus and into the giant M&Ms store. 

One of the highlights of the weekend for me was having an authentic English Afternoon Tea.  It was so satisfying after a morning and afternoon of walking around. Yum! There were tiny crustless sandwiches,  warm scones and sweet pastries. 


After the tea we did some shopping, some stores are just a must-see while in London such as Topshop, Primark, Selfridges, Spacenk. 

Day 3: Canadian Gold medal final, Trafalgar Square, Tower Bridge, fish'n chips

Being there during the Olympics made it essential for us to be able to watch the game.  Although I must admit I am not the biggest NHL fan, Olympic hockey is an a whole different level and therefore very enjoyable to watch. My Canadian friend and I set out of Sunday morning in the hopes of finding a seat in a bar/pub that was open and would air the game. Our mission was successful and we sat down to witness yet another victorious gold medal game. 

After that we had to keep visiting the city, we walked quickly through Trafalgar square, snapped a few pics and headed to the nearest tube station en route to Tower bridge. 

(Note the Canadian embassy on the far right:) ) 

That day wasn't quite as nice as the previous two, but it wasn't raining, so no one was complaining. 


Walking across such a mighty bridge, we were famished and needed sustenance stat! So we stopped at a nearby pub and I was able to sample some delicious English fish n chips! 


We then checked the time and realized we hadn't visited the famous Harrods and there was merely one hour left before it closed, so we hurried to the tube and made it to Harrods in the nick of time. We were able to take the Egyptian escalators to the top and back down before exiting the enormous shop and snapping some nighttime pics of the iconic building. 


That evening we said bye to my friend and headed straight to bed, because our flight was at 7 the following morning and we needed to catch the 4 o'clock bus to the airport. 

Overall our trip was fantastic! I don't think I could've asked for a better weekend in the English capital. There are still many things I haven't done and definitely want to go back again and again! Maybe next time I'll get to see the Queen ;) 

My favorite online shopping websites

My name is Adèle and I'm a shopaholic, and more specifically, a deal-a-holic.  Whenever I'm on some website and there are sales, deals, promotions and any kind of gift with purchase, points, rewards, etc...

Online shopping is great for many reasons. For one, you can shop in your PJs, on the couch, with a cup of tea and some popcorn and have the TV playing your favourite movie or show.  I mean what can possibly be better than that?  I'm not saying that trips to the mall with my girlfriends isn't fun, but sometimes surfing the web and ordering that purse or dress and waiting for it to arrive is just as thrilling.  Plus, you can't beat the day your packages arrive and you get to see your purchases first hand. 

It's always great to save money, so here are my favorite websites to shop on and find great deals :

- Beyond the Rack (http://www.beyondtherack.com/event/calendar)

This is a Canadian website where one can shop for everything from clothing, shoes, beauty products, home decor items, kids stuff and more.  Everything is discounted and the prices are usually pretty great.  The only catch is that the items are not available for very long, there are only up for 3 to 4 days and then they change the event and make room for more items.  So if you see something you like, act quickly because it may be gone within the day or the hour.

- HauteLook (https://www.hautelook.com/events/all)

This is another great website to find discounted clothing, accessories and beauty products. Very similar  to BTR, but with different brands and more choice in beauty products.  I also prefer this website's layout to BTR's layout.

-Dailylook (http://dailylook.com)

A website to find reasonably priced clothing, shoes and accessories.  The special thing about this site is that every day there are new outfits put together from head to foot with the items sold on the site.  It's a great way to get inspiration for outfits and also to get a better idea of how the item looks paired with different elements.  There is also offer a points system, which gives you discounts when you reach a certain number.

-FTBeauty (http://www.ftbbeauty.ca)

Being canadian, it is often difficult to get ahold of many american brands.  This site has these products and more. The prices are great and they ship very very quickly.  I received my orders within 2 to 3 days. 

-Amazon (https://www.amazon.ca)

When it comes to makeup storage and tools, amazon is the place to go. They have it all and at very good prices.  Plus you don't have to search numerous stores to find all the items you need.  This is the one-stop site for anything you need.

There you go, have fun shopping ladies! :)

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Battle of the concealers



There is one product that is essential to almost any beauty routine, whether it is extremely elaborate or super simple, and that is concealer.  Let's be honest, most women have something they want to cover up and most of them will use a concealer to do the job properly and quickly.

Concealer is a wonderful little gem. It can be used for spot coverage, under eye brightening, highlighting, contouring, and more.

Having a concealer handy at all tines is without question one of the most important things in a woman's daily beauty needs.

I, being prone to spots on my face, am no stranger to having a concealer with ne.  That also means that I have tried my fair share of concealers over the years, many different brands, consistencies, packaging, etc.

Here are my top concealer pics:

1) NARS radiant creany concealer, $32



This might be my favourite concealer of the bunch, and for now, my favourite concealer overall.  It is thick enough to cover blemishes on the face and smooth enough to put under the eyes to cover dark circles.  I LOVE this product, even with its $32 price tag.

2) Bourjois Healthy Mix concealer, $14


This is a great drugstore option, although in Canada it is not sold at drugstore prices.  I love this concealer for everyday use, it stays in place, covers well and overall is a great product for the price.


3) Tarte Maracuja Creaseless Concealer, $29



This is a really thick concealer that will definitely cover everything you need to cover. Pesky spots be gone with this product.  I find it a little thick to place under the eyes, but it still works.

4) Rimmel Wake Me Up concealer, $7



I love this concealer for under the eyes.  It brightens and stays in place very well.  A great buy, and for less than ten dollars, it cannot be beat.  You can also use this to highlight because of its laminating qualities.  You cannot use this to cover spots, though, because no one wants to bring attention to unwanted blemishes on the face.

5) Maybelline Dream Lumi touch highlighting concealer, $10



This product is absolutely amazing for highlighting and bringing an extra little something to the face. It has also often been compared to the ever popular YSL Touche Éclat highlighter pen, which costs a whopping $50, and many people love the Maybelline dupe better.  I love this product because it works great under the eyes and the texture is easy to work with.