Happy 2016!

I'm going to be honest: writing, right now, is hard. I've had a laptop-less two weeks while I did nothing but lounge around, cook, eat and just hang. It was glorious and, in my opinion, well deserved. But it's back to the grind today and the grind is not easy. I've been MIA on the blogosphere for the past few weeks and it's not easy getting back. I feel like I've forgotten how to write and I know it's going to be a bit tricky to get back into balancing work, school, blogging, tutoring and life in general. But here goes.

A happy 2016 to each and every one of you. I hope you enjoyed your holidays and I sincerely hope you're having an easier time getting back to reality.

I'm not big on New Year's Resolutions mainly because I feel like any and everyday is a good day to become who you want to be. But here's one for me: be better. Be better as a person and try harder for everything. I want to be one of those people that give everything my 100% and so I want to genuinely and honestly try. I want to be focused on the moment and the task at hand - my wandering mind is not always a good thing. I want to be present, be happy and be better.

Do you make New Year's resolutions? What are your goals for the year? Comment below or tweet me @SundayWardrobe. And thanks for sticking with me during these lazy times - the sense of family is why I love being a blogger and I know it's what's going to get me back up on the blogging horse!

5 Tips for Avoiding the Morning Rush

Once you hit a certain age, every second of sleep is precious. From hitting snooze multiple times to not wearing make up to work, I will do anything to get those extra minutes of sleep. But I've been getting better at the whole "morning" thing and I boil it down to these few tips:

1. Just wake up earlier. Easier said than done but I find that when I know I have an early morning, I try to get to bed much earlier than I normally would. This means I can wake up fairly refreshed and not have to run around looking for things.

2. Dry Shampoo the night before. If you've been reading this blog for a few months, you'll know my dry shampoo tricks - baby powder brushed through my hair the night before absorbs all oil and, as a bonus, there's no white residue in the morning.

3. Organize your make up and outfit the night before. I can spend countless minutes deciding on an outfit so I try to check the weather and plan my outfit the night before. This saves me from staring at my closet and frantically throwing together something haphazard. Don't forget shoes and any jewellery!

4. Make sure any bags are packed the night before. The worst thing you can do is worry about packing your bag when you're in a rush; you're more likely to forget half the things you need! Keep everything you need for the day all together so you can just grab and go.

5. Quick breakfasts that can be made and kept the night before or are quick to assemble are key to ensuring you don't skip that important meal. Granola bars are a life saver as they're quick to throw into your bag and easy to eat during your commute.

It's all about prep when it comes to being more organized in the mornings. If you work a little the night before, you're rewarded with a few more minutes to sleep in the morning after and that is gold. What are your tips for avoiding the Morning Rush? Comment below or tweet me @SundayWardrobe!

image source: weheartit

6 Easy Tips for a Better Sleep

I am one of those people that wakes up several times in the middle of the night. I don't get a proper, deep sleep and I'm always tired. Or at least I was. Lately, I've been fortunate to get much better sleep. I still wake up at night, sometimes, but not nearly as frequently as I used to. I've spent a long, long time monitoring what I do and I've narrowed down my better sleep to six things:

1. Exercise: I'm sure there's a chemical reason as to why exercising helps you sleep better. I also know there's a scientific reason as to why it gives you more energy during the day. But I find that days I work out in the evening, it just exhausts my body and gives me a deeper, more intense sleep.

2. Warm Shower/Bath: Cold baths are great in the morning because it jolts you and wakes you up. Likewise, I find a warm shower or bath a couple hours before bed does me wonders. I feel warm and clean, and I do it so frequently that my automatic response is to go to bed!

3. Warm Tea: Nothing makes me feel warmer, cosier or sleepier than a warm mug of tea (decaf, of course). My favourites include vanilla, camomile and apple cider.

4. No Screens: This means my laptop goes away at least a half hour before bed. The backlight on screens like your computer and phone tell your brain it's time to wake up rather than wind down. I'm still working on putting my phone away before bed but my night owl friends have me responding to texts later than I'd like!

5. Reading: The easiest way to follow the "no screen" rule: I try to read a book in bed. Not only does reading help me sleep, it gets me through my reading list faster!

6. Night Mask: This is probably my favourite sleeping tip as the night mask blocks out any and all lights making sure nothing disturbs me at night. You can get expensive ones on sites like WildFox but I got mine from Michael's for less than $5.

Not getting a proper night's sleep is probably one of the most frustrating things (sleep deprivation is actually a form of torture). I really hope these tips help you - let me know if they do! And leave your tips for a better sleep in the comments below or tweet me @SundayWardrobe!

Image Source: weheartit

What's in My Bag

I've had a revelation lately where I've just started writing things that I want to read. I read a lot of blogs and while I love the content and reading other styles of writing, there's been a few things I'd like to read that I couldn't really find. So I thought, why not create the content I want to read and hopefully it'd inspire others to do the same!

I love having a nosy around other people's purses - there's a lot you can tell about someone and there's a lot to learn from peering in other people's handbags. I find that while a lot of "What's in My Bag" videos are quite similar, there are always one or two items that I suddenly realize are essential for everyday use and I need in my bag. I don't like carrying big bags as they're quite heavy and easily knock things down in small, crowded stores, so I've streamlined my purse to the bare essentials. Just an FYI, my purse is from Charming Charlie.

In terms of boring, sensible bits: obviously there's my phone and wallet. This is really a card holder that I got from ASOS. I got it because, as you can tell, my purse is really quite small and my large wallet was a tad too chunky for it. Unfortunately, I didn't read too closely into this card holder and it is genuine leather (I feel awful every time I glance at the label). However, there are many animal friendly, non-leather card holders on the site and I'd encourage all of you to get one!

I usually wear contacts and by the end of the night, my eyeballs are so dry, they're ready to pop out of the sockets. Given that pleasant mental image, I carry around eye drops and my glasses so I can slip out my contacts when they're getting unbearable. I also carry hand sanitizer (you would not believe how many times this has come in handy) and hand cream (for when my hands get dry from the sanitizer). Tissues are another essential that we often overlook but is a great emergency tool. And gum is a must for me - I love garlic-y, fragrant foods that aren't so kind to my breath.

In terms of makeup and beauty, I'm fairly low key - a mirror to check my face, chapstick because I have the driest lips in the world and only two (!) lip products. The colours of the lip products change depending on the lip colour I'm wearing that day but generally Rimmel's Kate Moss in 107 and Buxom's True Nude Lip Foundation in Revealed do the trick! And of course a hair tie and a few bobby pins are thrown in for good measure (and bad hair days)!

There you have it, a pretty wordy post for something that can easily be seen in a picture. If you needed absolutely one thing in your purse (phone and wallet aside), what would it be? Comment below or tweet me @SundayWardrobe!

The Sunday Mind: Racism in Beauty

I feel like The Sunday Mind is going to be a Save the World Wednesday type series where I think out loud. I know that it's probably better for the blog that I keep it beauty and lifestyle but at the same time, this blog should represent me and I have thoughts independent of beauty that I want to speak out about. But to tie it all in, here are my thoughts on racism in the beauty industry.

I don't know if many people have realized this (not sure how many people of colour read this blog or are having this problem) but there are not many darker shades of foundation. Going into Sephora, I can see a plethora of  lighter foundations and concealers but each brand seems to have 3 darker shades. I don't understand why - if anything there's a wider spectrum of shades and colours in darker skintones but why don't more companies cater to it? Why can I only find maybe 3 brands that carry my colour but every single brand (it seems) has the exact same shade of a pink under-toned, cool, light foundations.

And it's not just foundation and concealers, I can't seem to find any shade of bronzer dark enough to contour with. Do darker skinned individuals not need to contour? The cruel reality of racism even when it comes to beauty. If anyone has any recommendations for darker or mixed skintones, please comment below! I could just be looking for them in the wrong places (though I do believe the standard of beauty is geared towards European/whites).

This is also the case for nude lipsticks (or nude anything). They may be nude for lighter skintones but definitely not for darker ones. I posted my favourite nude lipsticks a few days back - hopefully they help someone who's having trouble finding a good, darker nude (I know it took me a while to find those three).

This may seem trivial to most (especially if you don't share the same problem) but I do think it's subliminal, subconscious and subtle racism (a little alliteration for ya). The standards of beauty are very much skewed towards lighter skin tones and I think it's a shame considering all the beautiful shades of white/tan/brown/black there are out there.

Do you ever find it hard to get makeup for darker skin? Or am I looking in all the wrong places? Leave any recommendations or comments below or tweet me @SundayWardrobe!

5 Years of Q&A

I really want to do a "What's on my nightstand"/"My night time ritual" type post but I'm currently in between nightstands. What that means is that my mom took my nightstand because she decided it went well with our redecorated living room and so now I use a chair as a nightstand.

So in the meantime, I thought I'd do a post on a night time ritual I've been doing for a few months and have really been enjoying - it's writing in my Q&A a Day journal. I have seen this journal in bookstores for years and didn't quite understand the point of it but then my friend posted a picture of her writing in the second year of this very journal on Instagram and I wanted it so badly. The previous year she'd answered one of her questions on where she'd like to travel and the question came up again and, turns out, she had travelled to those destinations within the year. It was cool seeing her change over the year and so I wanted to do that as well, hence the journal.

This journal is really interesting; there's a question each day and you have space to answer the same question on the same day over five years. It's a way of seeing how you and your answers change over time and a great way to reflect on memories of the previous years. I do it every night before bed and it's become a very cherished few minutes. I love reflecting over my day and my thoughts and surprising myself. I try to answer as quickly as I can at first because I feel like my first thought is the most honest and then write my answer down when I reflect on it. It's a calming process and I love that it's a few minutes of me-time after a usually hectic day.

Do you have a journal like this? What is your reflecting ritual? Comment below or tweet me @SundayWardrobe!

May Favourites

May has been a great month so far - the warm weather has opened up weekends of adventure; I've gone hiking, to the beach, walking around downtown Toronto. All things that put  me in a great mood. I've (re)discovered quite a few favourites this month though not all beauty but what's life if it's only about makeup?

My Brother, My Brother and Me has become one of the high points of my day. I listen to this hilarious podcast on my commute to work since driving over an hour everyday has made me sick of the radio. These three brothers answer questions from listeners and on Yahoo Answers for an entertaining time.

Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless Mascara was an impulse purchase from Target when I went to Buffalo a couple months back and it's blown me away. The brush was interesting - the short stubby bristles intrigued me as I've never used something like that but the formula was fantastic. It was long lasting, didn't smudge and gave my lashes length and volume. Only thing was that it was a little stubborn to remove - my regular cleanser would take off majority but not all of it.

I rediscovered my Tarte Amazonian Clay Foundation after needing a good foundation that wouldn't make me too greasy during warmer days. I've raved about it before and my feelings haven't changed much - a foundation with great coverage, it doesn't wipe off easily or slip around and it doesn't make you look greasy. Again, the fact that it doesn't have my exact shade really bothers me but the one I've got is close enough and will probably match better once I tan.

Hey Claire is a YouTuber I've recently started watching and she is fantastic. I love her style (though I could never pull it off), how she talks and her videos. She's easily one of the more talented YouTubers when it comes to ideas and editing and she puts in so much effort in all her videos. Definitely been binge-watching her!

Last but certainly not least is my favourite primer, Neutrogena Shine Control Primer. I've spoken about this and other Neutrogena products before and you'll know how much I love this. This is the perfect summer primer as it's so absorbent without making your skin look dry or cake-y. I put this on before my foundation and I've rarely had to powder after a few hours (I think I've had to powder on three separate occasions and that was after 8 hours).

What are your May favourites, beauty or otherwise? Leave your recommendations or links to your posts below or tweet me @SundayWardrobe!

Loves Lately

Binge watching Game Of Thrones

I love posting monthly favourites but they're almost always beauty related. I've been so busy these past days which is a blessing but it's given me the opportunity to appreciate non-beauty things that relax me (Game of Thrones), excite me (blogging ventures) or make my life easier (the Ikea laptop support). Sometimes it's nice to appreciate the little things that you use or see everyday that you wouldn't ordinarily think of as favourites. Happy Monday!

Exciting blogging opportunities - check out part one here! 

Hilarious podcast I was introduced to this week: My Brother, My Brother and Me 

Greatest Invention for blogging in bed: Ikea's Laptop Support

Succulents from Ikea - low maintenance and plants just make me happier!

5 Things I've Learned About Life

 In 4 days, I'll be turning 22. 22! I realize it's still very young but I feel as though 22 means I'm an adult and no longer under the forgiving umbrella of age. That's deep.

I decided for this week I'd throw out my scheduled beauty related posts for something about me and related to what I've learnt in my 22 years. So without further ado:

1. There will always be someone better than you. While this is a depressing thought, it's certainly humbling. There will always be someone smarter, prettier, taller, richer, etc than you. But that's okay - do the best you can do given your means and circumstances. While life makes others prettier or taller or smarter than you, you can work harder than anyone else, you can be nicer than anyone else. Just do what you can to be who you want to be and the rest will fall into place. Which brings me to my next lesson...

2. Don't worry about the things you can't control. There really isn't any point in wishing you could change the things you can't. What has to happen will happen and while you can (and should) try your best, there will always be things you can't do anything about. No amount of guilt will change the past and no amount of worrying will change the future.

3. It's okay to be sad. This has been a common theme lately but I can't stress it enough. I've had hours and days and months of being sad - it comes randomly, in waves and it can't always be explained. A close friend of mine died in a tragic accident over a year ago and I was sad every night for months. But sometimes I'll get sad just because it's dark outside! Sometimes I'm just in a funk and that's okay. As long as you realize how blessed and loved you, it's okay to not always be happy all the time.

4. Life goes on. Whatever you're going through may seem like the end of the world at the time but it never is. Breakups, failed tests, lost friendships - they're all a part of life. Look around you, life goes on. The drama I cried over in high school seems so trivial now. Had I realized when I was younger that everything will always be okay in the end (it really and truly will), I would have been a much happier teen!

5. Be humble, be grateful, be kind. Be humble to know that everything you have is a result of someone's (or your) hard work and isn't something you deserve just because. Be grateful for everyday you spend in good health and with loved ones. Be kind to everyone around you and strive to be the bigger person at all times. Being kind (and still strong) will always be the right decision.

If you have any tips or life lessons, please let me know below! Let's all help each other out for a happier, kinder world. 

Review: Ultrabland Facial Cleanser

The Ultrabland Facial Cleanser was my first Lush product and the main reason I bought it was because I was tired of using make-up wipes and wanted something a little more environmentally friendly. I read reviews and finally made the plunge and forked over CAD 29.95 for the larger pot of the cream cleanser.

Firstly, I thought the price tag was a bit too steep. I was always a run to Wal-Mart and pick up a Neutrogena face wash kinda girl and I wasn't accustomed to spending 3 hours of work for soap (I price things according to a state-of-the-art method I invented known as "The Number of Hours I Would Have to Work to Afford This". It's supposed to make sure I don't spend too much money on one thing but, clearly, doesn't work).

To use this, you:

1. Take a small dollop and massage it onto your dry, made-up face.
2. Wet a face cloth with warm water and wipe the cleanser off.
3. Look at your face cloth with shock and horror as you realize how much make up you slathered on your face this morning.
4. Realize how moisturized and smooth your skin feels.
5. Smile.

What I love about this cleanser is that it is so moisturizing. It really balanced my skin out and I didn't feel the need to apply moisturizer or oil after using it. It was especially great during the summer because my skin wouldn't be shiny and greasy from the additional moisturizer. I know this quality is what others may not like about this product; when I first used this, I felt like the moisturizing property made my skin feel unclean rather than hydrated. But once you get used to this feeling, it's all good.

I would definitely be buying this product again and I encourage you all to try it out. Let me know what other Lush products I should try out!

*I have combination skin with a slightly oily T-zone all year round  and dry spots around my mouth/chin during the winter.