Wednesday 29 January 2014

wise words wednesday - oprah edition

born on today's date in 1954, oprah gail winfrey has shown that through hard work, intelligence, resilience,
faith and a positive outlook on life, one can live the life of their dreams.

so in honor of her 60th birthday, i'd like to dedicate this week's "wise words wednesday" to one of my inspirations, miss oprah winfrey.
 

  
(jeremiah 29:11, y'all)
   

:)
vanessa

Sunday 26 January 2014

currently obsessing...


just some of the items that i "can't" go a day without...

elizabeth and james - nirvana black
fell in love with this perfume over the holidays.
it comes back to sephora just in time for my brithday *subtle hint, subtle nudge.
until then, tester rollerball it is.

control of communicable diseases manual
this semester i am taking an epidemiology course and this little manual has quickly become my bff.

 
pitch perfect (movie and soundtrack)
i was gifted this dvd from my friend, lisa and am obsessed.
and, now want to join an acapella group

maybelline big eyes mascara 
i used to swear by benefit's "they're real" mascara until i stumbled upon this gem.
not to mention, it's 1/3 the price. 

mac blush - "sweet as cocoa" 
a natural, cocoa shade with very subtle shimmer.
perfect for everyday wear.

opi polish - "peace & love & opi"
 a duochrome polish that shifts to a blue/aqua, dark green or pinkish/purplish.
nars radient creamy concealer - "amande"
all these late nights/early mornings have begun to show. 
dab a little bit of this under my eyes and voila.

aldo rescue wipes (i couldn't find an image of the wipes)
 i can handle snow. 
i can even handle temperatures below freezing.
but the salt stains that appear on your boots during the winter irritate me to no end.
these little sheets help rectify the situation.

rosebud salve 
a staple in my makeup bag, especially in these cold winter months.


urban decays' eye pencils - deep end ultraviolet 
because who doesn't love a little coloured liner?

urban decay's naked 3 palette 
a christmas present to me, from me. 

what are some items you've been loving recently?
i'd love to hear!

:)
vanessa

Tuesday 21 January 2014

sushi sushi, gucci gucci

on saturday afternoon, i met up an old friend of mine and we went out for lunch at sushi inn located in toronto's yorkville area.
i've always "turned my nose up" to the thought of sushi but now understand the hype.

i went there with every intention of playing it safe and ordering my standard chicken teriyaki.
however, after seeing their lunch menu, i decided to order the "sushi inn special" for $9.50.
this meal came with miso soup, chicken teriyaki, salad, one shrimp and one crab tempura, two vegetable tempuras, one spring roll, three dumplings, steamed rice and six pieces of maki.




the food was beyond phenomenal and i will definitely be paying them visit in the very near future. 
like, this friday, haha.

:)
vanessa

Thursday 16 January 2014

photo booth fun

oh, just spending time with my favourite nephew-son...

*this fool was telling everyone he just came back from paris, lol.

love my little nicklaus.

:)
vanessa

Monday 13 January 2014

toronto raptors + ovo = drake night


on saturday night, a couple of friends and i went to the downtown core to attend "drake night".
for those who aren't familiar, a couple of months ago, toronto's very own drake was named the "global ambassador" for the city's nba team, the raptors.
well, last night was the official launch of this new partnership and was thus dubbed "drake night".

each spectator was given a limited edition ovo-raptors t-shirt and treated to a special half-time performance by drake and his resident dj, future the prince.
oh, and the raptors also played the brooklyn nets.
we won and it was great!

tickets for this event sold out in record time, so my friends and i resorted to purchasing our tickets from scalpers outside the venue.
i thought my being born in nyc would give me some sort of an edge with these guys...negative.
they drive a hard bargain and i refuse to disclose what we ended up paying for the tickets.
but i will say that we managed to shave $10 off the original asking price - not bad for some rookies.

all in all, it was a great night with great company.
i'm really enjoying this whole "buy memories, not things" mindset i've adopted for 2014.

:)
vanessa

ps.
yes.
yessssss. 
and, yessssssssss!

Monday 6 January 2014

music monday: yuna

i'm a big lover of music - i count my ipod as one of my most prized possessions.
so, i'm always looking for new artists and/or music to obsess over...

well, today was a great day because today i discovered yuna, a malaysian born singer-songwriter.


i have no words to describe her sound but if you're a fan of fiona apple, janelle monae, erykah badu or lana del ray, i'm sure you'll love yuna!

i'll leave you with this performance of one of my favourite songs off her new album, nocturnal.
girl can sannnng AND she's fully clothed - a rarity these days!

someone who can 

i'm always looking for new songs for my ipod.
if you have any good ones, send away!

:)
vanessa

Thursday 2 January 2014

two thousand and fourteen :)

i hope you all had fabulous new year's celebrations - i spent mine at home with my sister jennifer
we ate pizza, drake wine and had a "suits" marathon. 
i had a great time and am now officially hooked on suits - thank you jennifer and netflix.

now, i'm not one for resolutions but i am a strong believer in writing down your goals. 
i read somewhere that those who write down their goals are more likely to achieve them.
i tried out that theory last year and successfully crossed off the vast majority of them off my list. 
so, i'll definitely be doing that again this year. 

last week, i read an article about the importance of writing a personal manifesto.
a manifesto is basically a declaration of ones values, beliefs and intentions. 
typically, you write it out and then post it somewhere where you'll see it often - your bathroom mirror or your phone's background.
however, this article stressed that manifestos are most powerful when presented to someone, as it then becomes a binding agreement between the writer and the universe. 

so, i present to you all my manifesto for 2014:


so, there you have it!
hopefully the universe reads my blog, haha.
but just in case, i printed my manifesto on some colorful cards to post around my house:


have any of you ever written out a personal manifesto?
if yes, i'd love to hear your experiences :)

happy new year, once again - cheers to 2014!

:)
vanessa