Tuesday Favourites: June 11th

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Clinique Moisture Surge 72-Hour Auto-Replenishing Hydrator

Hey guys! I’m back!

So to take a break from all the travel posts (I hope…I wrote this super far in advance and scheduled it for when I’m away so let’s hope this all makes sense) I thought I’d share a new Tuesday Favourite with you!

Sooooo, for those of you who know I have combination skin that is WAY more dry than it is oily. So moisturizing is super important to me. That being said, I tend to hate the texture of cream moisturizer — I find it to be super heavy on my skin, as well as it often takes forever to dry. Because my skin is so dry, light creams don’t really work for me — I much prefer gel formula moisturizers.

Which brings me to this product–The Clinique Moisture Surge Hydration Gel! I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ve been using this product religiously for like, five years. I love trying out new products and have considered switching occasionally to see what else is out there, but why mess with a good thing? (Read: I’m scared I’ll waste a lot of money on something new and then my face will break out and I’ll hate it).

This stuff is super lightweight, quick-drying but still packs a lot of punch. Furthermore, it doesn’t really have any kind of residue so your face feels pretty normal after. This makes it super easy to apply before makeup, midday (if you forgo makeup for the day), or before bed! Really, this stuff is amazing. I just keep coming back for more.

Anyways, if a lightweight product and hydration are what you’re looking for, be sure to check this product out! You can find it at Sephora here.

Much Love!

Meredith

Things To Do: Chiang Mai Edition!

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Hey friends!

I’m back with my second instalment of my travel blog series: Things to see and do in Chiang Mai! We have a pretty jam packed few days here, but here’s a low down of my favourite things I’ve experienced in this beautiful city!

Visit the Old Town

All of Chiang Mai is lovely, but the Old Town in particular is beautiful! Not only is it full of adorable restaurants and plenty of tourist-friendly things, but it also has loads of culture and temples you can visit.

Visit The Temples!

This city is literally packed with more beautiful temples than you could count. When I came here a few years ago, I saw the Wat Phra That Doi Suthep temples, which were absolutely stunning but also completely overrun with tourists. This time, I stuck to temples in the Old Town and saw the Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Phra Singh Waramahavihan temples, which were both so incredibly beautiful but even more importantly, not at all crowded. This made the overall experience like 200% better as me and Nylah actually got a chance to walk around and really take everything in peacefully, without having to mill through massive crowds. 10/10 would absolutely recommend checking out some of the smaller temples if you visit.

Visit An Elephant Sanctuary!

This was honestly one of the days best spent in my time in Chiang Mai. The Elephant Jungle Sanctuary is in the business of rescuing elephants from tourist elephant ride attractions, circuses, and other areas that abuse these creatures. When you spend a day here, you get to feed, play with, and wash the animals in a space that keeps them safe and happy. It is so clear that they love these animals and put their needs first, and all the elephants were so friendly and gentle. When I came here a few years ago, sanctuaries like this did not exist and instead there were parks where you could ride the animals, such as the one this sanctuary rescues their elephants from. The difference in the happiness of the elephants is clear as day. I’m not even sure if you can ride elephants in Thailand anymore, however, if you’re considering it, please think about this instead. You still get to spend a whole day with the animals and it was honestly such a highlight of the trip for me.

Hit up the Night Market!

Chiang Mai offers two night markets, one on Saturday and one on Sunday. Me and Nylah went to the Sunday market, which was in the centre of the Old City and absolutely packed with hundreds of adorable little stalls. They offer art, clothes, food, desserts, fresh fruit, and more! Not only was it super fun to just walk and look around, they had all kinds of cool stuff to try. I had some durian for the first time, which was super interesting, and some sticky rice with mango which is hands down one of my favourite foods. Overall, it was a 10/10 experience.

Take A Tour Of Doi Inthanon National Park!

Oh my GOD was this place ever magical. If you’re going to go, I would highly suggest taking a tour as it’s both likely cheaper and easier than making your way there yourself. We stopped at two waterfalls, a textile village, and a lunch break on our way to the peak of Thailand’s tallest mountain, where we did a nature walk through the rare habitat of the cloud forests. On our way back down, we visited the two Chedis pictured above, which were honestly two of the most beautiful temples I have ever seen in my life. This was honestly one of my favourite places on our trip so far, and if you’re ever in Chiang Mai it’s 100% a must see.

Check Out The Street Markets!

The street markets, or anywhere in Chiang Mai really, have the most AMAZING fruits you will ever eat in your life. Seriously. You haven’t lived until you’ve tried some. If you’re ever in Thailand, be sure to stop by your local market and pick some up. Trust me, you’ll thank me later.

So that’s all for now! I hope you’re all having a lovely week and enjoying my little travel series. Be sure to keep checking in for adventures, recommendations, updates and more!

Xoxo,

Meredith

Spend A Day With Me In Bangkok!

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Hey everyone and welcome to my first travel blog!

Soooooo to kick off our South East Asia trip, me and my best friend Nylah arrived in Bangkok, Thailand for a quick first stop before we get going. We’ve mostly just been getting our bearings and acclimating to the time difference, especially since we’re going to come back to Bangkok later on for the bulk of exploring this city. Also, this is my first time blogging from my phone so please bear with me through whatever technological struggles I encounter!

B Story Cafe

This cafe was honestly one of the best little places I’ve ever discovered travelling. Not only was it ADORABLE, but the food was amazing (and not just because it was my first meal in like twelve hours). The fried rice I got was honestly out of this world, plus the Thai Tea I ordered with it was quite possibly the most refreshing drink I’ve had in my life. If you’re ever in Bangkok and need a quick, easy, casual place to stop in for food check this place out, seriously. 10/10 would recommend. They have so many food options as well, both Thai and Western, so there’s something for everyone here.

Hungry Nerd Restaurant

For dinner we followed a recommendation and tried out the Hungry Nerd restaurant. It was kind of nice as all the food was pretty Western influenced so it wasn’t too hard on our stomachs as we get used to the sudden dietary changes, however it was all almost 100% meat and therefore not vegetarian friendly. However, it was still great and exactly what we needed after a long day.

Sights

We didn’t have much planned for today as we’re heading back to Bangkok later on in our trip; we figured it would be good to take some time to relax and get ready for our next stop, so we kept it simple and just did a little on-foot exploring. Walking the streets of a new city is one of the easiest ways to take in a new culture, as a lot of culture is made up in the little things. Some of my favourite little differences were the fruit stalls, the tuck tucks, the motorbikes and most of all, the street cats! Everyone who knows me knows that I’m a sucker for cats and the area around our hostel in Bangkok literally had unlimited cats. It was amazing.

Anyway, that’s more a less it! We’ve already left for Chaing Mai and have a jam-packed few days so the next post will certainly be more exciting. Be sure to check back for more travels and reviews over the next month!

Love y’all endlessly,

Meredith

Tuesday Favourites: June 4th

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Origins No Puffery Cooling Eye Gel

Hey friends!

Gonna keep this Tuesday Favourites short and sweet. No matter how much sleep I get I ALWAYS seem to have issues with under-eye bags. It’s one of my biggest pet peeves. Nothing really seems to get rid of them. But applying this before doing my makeup really does seem to help! It’s super easy to apply and helps reduce under-eye puffiness.

That being said, I still always look like I’m exhausted no matter how well-rested I am. If anyone has any suggestions for DIY cures or products that help with dark circles I’d love to hear them! While this product is great for puffiness, I still have constant dark circles that I can never seem to get rid of.

However, if you’re looking to reduce puffiness, be sure to check out this product on Sephora here!

Love you all!

xoxo,

Meredith

FUNCTION OF BEAUTY: Love It or Leave It?

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Customized Shampoo and Conditioner – Function of Beauty

Hey guys!

So today I’m gonna be sharing my review of Function of Beauty’s customized shampoo and conditioner. I’m gonna do it in two parts — my immediate reaction as well as results after a week. I feel like shampoo/conditioner is the type of product where you have to wait and see results with time, so I want to be able to share both parts with you. I’ve been seeing ads for these products all over the web and have been waiting for my old products to use up for months before purchasing these, so I’m super excited to try it out!

So to start off, obviously these products are highly personalized and the results will vary depending on what you choose for yourself. For mine, I chose volumizing, strengthening, hydrating, shine, and root nourishing. For my hair type, I put fine, wavy and dry. As for scent, I went for pear — I love the ability to choose your scent so you can switch it up, but so far I have to say the pear scent is lovely!

Obviously, the real test will be how this stuff holds up to the weather in South East Asia, which at the time that I post this will be starting tomorrow (!!!) but I have faith. On top of the customizable aspect of these products, they’re also vegan, cruelty-free, sulphate-free and paraben-free, meaning that they’re both excellent for your hair, AND our planet.

First Impressions

Okay so after my first use, I have to say this stuff seems pretty legit. I’m always nervous about trying new stuff out on my hair, as it’s so damaged after bleaching it for so many years. However, the products certainly FEEL high quality, and there doesn’t seem to be anything weird happening with my hair yet. One thing that threw me off was how thick the shampoo was, versus how thin the conditioner was. I’ve been using the same shampoo and conditioner for about 4 or more years now, so I’ve gotten pretty used to their consistency. I was kind of worried the thin conditioner wouldn’t provide enough moisture for my dry ends, but so far it actually seems to have worked just fine. However, I guess we’ll just have to see how it goes over the next week!

One Week Later: Impressions

Okay, sorry about the delay with this post but this week has been crazy. Overall, my impressions with these products are still pretty great. My hair has increased in shine so much, as well as feeling nice, clean, and moisturized without feeling greasy at all. I do kinda find my hair has been looking (slightly, slightly) frizzier but I’m really not sure if it’s always been that way and I just noticed or not. Either way, it’s still so far so good with this stuff. If you’re looking to upgrade your hair routine, or have very specific hair needs, be sure to check this brand out!

Xoxo,

Meredith