First Wedding Dress Shopping Experience in Everly Fine Bridal, Vancouver

Hi girlies!

I'm so excited to be writing my first wedding related blog post! Since I'm getting married next year, I needed to go dress shopping. My situation is especially tricky as I am planning a wedding overseas in Hong Kong. And I finally figured out what seems to be the best way to approach my dress situation - which is to rent in Hong Kong so that I won't need to bring my dress that will for sure take up the entire luggage! And even though I will be renting in Hong Kong, I still want the whole dress shopping experience in Canada as well as I want to try on a few different styles so I know what would work better on my body. When my sister came to visit, we hit up Everly Fine Bridal in Vancouver.

Everly Fine Bridal

3341 West Broadway 

Vancouver, BC

V6R 2B1

It's a super cute store - not too big and overwhelming, but still very spacious and cozy. It's the perfect store to start my wedding dress shopping experience! It is recommended that you make an appointment with them before visiting the store. They usually do one appointment at a time. Laura was super sweet and gave me suggestions along the way. Everly Fine Bridal doesn't have too much selection and the majority of the selection is trendier pieces with a lot of lace and sequins - definitely more on the romantic side. I tried on about six dresses. Unfortunately, I didn't find anything that I fell in love with, but all in all it was a super fun experience trying on the different styles. 

The appointment lasted for about 40 minutes. Laura emailed me a thank you note with details and prices of the ones I was interested in. I highly recommend to check out this store!

I hope to do more wedding related posts soon - hope some of you will enjoy it!

Much love. 

Vancouver Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge

Hi girlies!

I previously mentioned that my sister came for a quick visit last weekend. One of the activities that we did was to visit the Vancouver Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge. This is not to be mixed up with the highly popular Capilano Suspension Bridge. Both of these spots are located in North Vancouver. I've never been to the Capilano one but I can speak to some facts about it since I've wanted to visit a few times but I could never justify it in my head. Here are some of the reasons why:

1) Cost
The Capilano Suspension Bridge costs about CAD45 per adult (there are discounts if you're a student, adult, or a kid - for more information, please visit their website). The Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is free!

2) Time
The Capilano website states that you need to spend 2 to 3 hours there, plus transportation time. Since my sister was only here for a limited amount of time, we decided to opt for something that's less time consuming. We spent about 40 minutes at the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge including crossing the bridge, a short hike to the natural pool, and another short hike on the wooden stairwell up the hill and back down, crossing the bridge at the end again, and of course adequate photo time. If you plan to swimming at the natural pool, you can definitely spend more time there but remember to wear your swim suit underneath and it would be a good idea to bring a towel.

3) Transportation
You can drive to the Capilano Suspension Bridge yourself, but they do offer free shuttles from various locations in downtown. The shuttles run regularly and quite frequently. This transportation arrangement would be beneficial to you if you are staying in downtown and don't have a car. For me, since I live quite far from downtown, it would actually be more troublesome for me to drive to and park in downtown to take the shuttle. What I did to get to the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge was to drive there (about 30 minutes from downtown) and there was free parking there. Getting a parking spot shouldn't be too hard if you are a little patient. I find that turnover is quite fast as the hike is quite short and there aren't any restaurants and entertainment nearby that people would want to spend an extended amount of time there.

I highly recommend visiting this spot to get a quick taste of the Vancouver nature. As you can see, the natural pool is gorgeous but a bit crowded. There were a lot of signs warning people not to cliff jump as a lot of accidents had happened there in previous years.

Much love.

Clinique Line Smoothing Concealer Review

Hi girlies!

Today I would like to share one of the most important makeup product in my collection - the concealer. I've been a big fan of the Clinique Line Smoothing Concealer. I believe this is my second tube and honestly, this stuff lasts me a really long time - you can see that with the worn out packaging with all the words rubbed off, and I feel like I still have many uses left. 

It's perfect for concealing redness around my nose and covering pimples. Oftentimes, I just use this with a bit of BB or CC cream and I can go out the door. The consistency is smooth and thick enough to cover my problem areas. For covering pimples, I usually just dot this on the needed area and use my finger to tap it a few times and blend it into the skin. For concealing redness around my nose, I would apply a small amount and blend it out with my fingers. I love that this product does not emphasize lines and pores around that area at all! Now I don't have particularly dark eye circles so I never used this product for that purpose so I can't speak from that perspective.

The staying power is moderate if I refrain from touching my face and picking at my pimples (which I definitely should stop doing). If I catch myself doing that, usually I would need to retouch, but the packaging is lightweight and travel friendly enough that I don't mind taking this with me to go out. Actually, this is usually the only make up product I take out with me other than the occasional lip product.

Effectiveness: Perfect for concealing redness around my nose and covering pimples.
Texture: Smooth but thick enough to cover problem areas.
Packaging: Lightweight and travel friendly.
Price: Reasonable for how long this product lasted me. A little goes a long way.
Repurchase? Already did as this is my second tube.

Much love.

Easy Vancouver Hike - Deep Cove Quarry Rock Hike

Hi girlies!

I'm making an effort to explore more places in Vancouver since my move earlier this year. During this Labour Day long weekend, I've made my way to the highly popular hike in North Vancouver - the Deep Cove Quarry Rock hike! I first learned about this hike through my colleagues (I've realized that most Vancouverites are very active and love the outdoor). And a few weeks ago I saw on Instagram that my friend and her wife who was heavily pregnant did this hike. I thought if a pregnant lady can do it, I should be able to do it too! Now I'm not super active personally but I'm willing to step out of my comfort zone from time to time for amazing views and to better my health.

We arrived at the Deep Cove area at around 10:30am on Labour Day Monday. It was already very packed. It took us about 20 minutes to get a parking spot. As the main parking area was full and most street parking spots that didn't require a permit were occupied, we found a overflow parking area near Myrtle Park which still had a handful of parking spots left. It was a bit of a walk to the start of the hike (about 15 minutes) but it wasn't too bad. You also get to pass through the main strip of restaurants and ice cream stores as well as a short path near the beach. 

There are quite a bit of stairs at the start of the hike. A website stated that it takes about 1.5 hours to finish the hike. It took us about 1 hour 45 minutes. We only went up to the viewpoint at Quarry Rock and made our way back down so we didn't finish the entire hike, and made several stops for water breaks both for us and the dog. Oh, it was very dog friendly with many doggies passing by along the way. This hike tired our dog so much that he just lied on the floor for the rest of the day.

When we were finished at around 1pm, all the restaurants with patio (for the dog) were mostly packed so we decided to just grab an ice cream and headed home for lunch. Next time, we'll be sure to try to grab a bite there!

Much love.

Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado Review

Hi girlies!

I would like to share my review on the Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado today. I was first introduced to this product when I received a Kiehl's gift box during Secret Santa one year. A full sized product of this eye treatment was included in that gift box. I enjoyed it so much that I decided to purchase one earlier this year when I ran out of eye creams and this is now my second pot. I actually bought this online with my Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate in which I did a blogpost here if you're interested.

The texture is very creamy - it is definitely on the thick side, but I don't find it to be too heavy. Because of the heavier texture, I only use this product for nighttime and I feel like it keeps my eye area adequately hydrated throughout the night so that it doesn't feel dry in the morning. For daytime, I use my Boots Cucumber Whitening Eye Gel Review which I find a whole lot lighter in terms of texture and the lasting power isn't as strong. I did a review on the Boots Cucumber Whitening Eye Gel here on this blogpost.

 I paid about USD61 for 15ml of product. It's on the pricier side but overall, I think it's reasonable as a little of product does go a long way. There's a slight hint of scent that I enjoy. 

Effectiveness: Keeps my eye area hydrated throughout the night (I only use this as a night eye cream).

Texture: Creamy but not too heavy.

Packaging: In a jar. You have to dip your fingers into it. lightweight.

Price: Reasonable, but on the pricier side.

Repurchase? Already did as this is my second jar. I would like to explore other options but am willing to go back to this if I don't find other eye creams that I like as much as this.

Much love.

Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery jelly Water base Whitening SPF30 PA++ Review

Hi girlies!

I can't believe that the summer is coming to an end! Mother Nature has provided us with gorgeous weather this Labour Day long weekend and I couldn't be happier especially because my sister was in town for a couple of days. We did a variety of different activities yesterday which included a short hike. And surprisingly, I'm going on another hike tomorrow! (I'm not usually this outdoorsy)

Today I'm sharing a review of one of the best sunscreens I've ever used - the Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery jelly Water base Whitening SPA30 PA++. I actually didn't purchase this product. My finace's aunt left this at his place last year so I've been using it. Surprisingly, this product is so good! I usually use it on my body as I prefer using a thicker longer lasting sunscreen with more SPF and PA on my face. Unlike other sunscreens that generally have a sticky residue and have a strong scent after application, this product provides a light and refreshing feeling. The scent is extremely light with a hint of fruitiness. I don't believe this is water resistant so if you're doing water sports, you may want to look into a longer lasting alternative. 

 In terms of price, I believe this is a drugstore product and should be under USD25 for 90ml depending on where you are purchasing it. I highly recommend this product! Since I'll be visiting Hong Kong next month, I'm hoping to be able to stock up some from SaSa.

Effectiveness: Seems to do the job although I prefer using higher SPA and PA for my face!

Texture: Lightweight. Dries quickly. No sticky residue.

Packaging: Light. Good for traveling.

Price: Reasonable.

Repurchase? Yes! Will be stocking up during my Hong Kong trip next month!

Much love.