Crispy Coconut Tofu Tacos

So... I'm obsessed with Hot For Food.

Tonight I made a variation on their Crispy Coconut Tofu Tacos.

Post Christmas Sephora Haul

I got spoiled for Christmas this year! The husband got a Sephora gift card, and I made the most of it. 

Vegan Breakfast Scramble

 

My first eggless breakfast of 2016! Actually, my first vegan egg breakfast ever...

New Year, New Concessions...

Happy 2016! Can't believe it, last year was a blur for me. I spent the first part of the year working my butt off, then partied all Summer in beautiful Squamish, then finished the year by moving "home" with my hubby.

A new year always brings around the idea of fresh starts. I'm not usually one to jump on the resolution train, but this year I've finally had to admit something to myself: I am allergic to dairy.

I've always been a little lactose intolerant, but I could deal with it if it meant that I would get to have some creamy brie or Half Baked Ben & Jerry's.... Over the past few years though, it has been getting worse, to the point where I get debilitating pains in my stomach afterwards. I also started to be able to pinpoint eggs as a big problem for me. Luckily, I already really like things like almond milk and coconut milk, so there will be plenty of alternatives for me.

I've also been toying with the idea of giving up all animal food products while I'm at it, but the prospect of labeling myself as "vegan" is a little scary. I don't want to upset the internet warriors :P

TL;DR: I'm giving up dairy in 2016. Stayed tuned for lots of vegan/plant-based/dairy-free recipes!

Halloween - My True Form

I love Halloween. I have moments all year round where I plan my Halloween costume. My husband wants to kill me, because in February I'll literally say "What do you think of _______ for a costume this year?" 

This year I had a bit of trouble coming up with inspiration/motivation, because we just did a major move October 1st, so I decided to go easy and be a classic, Elphaba style witch. 

I recently picked up some Kryolan Rubber Mask Grease Paints and a Skin Illustrator palette, so I did a light wash of green on my skin before sponging the Mehron cream paint all over. Then I set it with the NYX pigment and the rest is just regular beauty makeup. 

I found I needed to add in quite a lot of dimension to my face after painting it all flat green. So I did a pretty heavy contour with a mix of my regular NYX Taupe blush and a black eyeshadow. I also did a matte highlight under my eyes and along my nose with a white eyeshadow. For my lips I used the single greatest black liquid lipstick of all time: Lime Crime's Black Velvet.

And of course I couldn't stop there so I went ahead and painted my hands, with just the Mehron cream paint, and set it with the green powder as well. Setting is the key when painting yourself a different colour. Otherwise you'll be all patchy and it will start coming off during the night. 

Can't wait til next year! Already saving ideas for my costume :)

Drugstore Concealer Review - Nars Dupe?

Like nearly everyone who has ever been inside a Sephora, my favourite under eye concealer is the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer (I use the shade Chantilly), but sadly, its a little out of my price range at the moment. I've started searching for a drugstore dupe for this glorious product, and so far nothing is exactly like it. But I did find one that comes close: Revlon Age Defying Concealer (I use the shade Light).

On first inspection, I was so so excited, because it is thick and creamy like Nars. I find many drugstore concealers to be WAY too runny, to the point that they barely cover to begin with, and if they do, they are subject to some major creasing. The Revlon one is not like this. It has some MAJOR coverage. That's the whole point of concealer, is it not? Who wants a "sheer coverage" concealer? Thats an oxymoron IMO.

Let's get the elephant out of the room though and talk about the applicator. This thing is garbage. You think its going to be a soft, squishy sponge, but nope, its a weird hard white fuzzy dome thing. It sucks. I don't bother with it, I either use a brush, my finger, or (dirty little secret) my doe foot applicator from my last tube of Nars (WHY OH WHY ISN'T THIS CONCEALER FREE ILOVEITSOMUCH).

So this Revlon concealer glides on beautifully, BUT! It sets like a mofo. Like, so fast. To the point that I literally have to blend out one eye before I even apply it to the other one. However, this turns out to be a good thing later because it does not crease. At all. I've even forgotten to set it with powder before and it still does not crease. As it sets, it kind of seems to tighten a little, and its almost like a mini lift for my puffy under eye. Its magical. 

Its one fault though, might actually be that its too thick. I can't use it on blemishes around my face, because it just cakes up. So I'm now one of those people who needs a different concealer for my face than for my under eye, (high maintenance much?) but still. Its the best thing I've found at the drugstore to hide my bags. 

All in all, is it an exact dupe? No, but it does have some of the same features that I love about the Nars one, and for the price difference (Nars is $36 for 0.22 oz, and Revlon is around $14 for 0.25 oz) it has a home in my daily makeup bag for the time being!

Travel Makeup Essentials

I'm off on a mini vacation this weekend to Calgary to visit one of my besties. I thought I might as well get my travel makeup items down pat, and share a post about it!