Happiness Habits

Do you ever notice that really happy people have a lot of similar habits to one another? If you are a happy person, you probably have some of these habits: - "Working" in a job/career you enjoy - Having hobbies you love - Helping others - Surrounding yourself with positive people - Taking care of yourself However some people have a hard time becoming or staying happy with their lives or circumstances, for various reasons. After all, I have heard of depression and anxiety described as "the common cold of society". I think the key to developing happiness habits is to take one thing on at a time and give it several weeks of focused attention. It will eventually develop as a habit (I hear 6 weeks is the magic number). Make a schedule including your new habit and don't be hard on yourself if you fall off the wagon and revert to old habits. Just dust yourself off and get back on the horse! A great way to start happiness habits is to volunteer for a cause you believe in. Not enough time? Many organizations need people to help with specific events that last z day or just a couple of hours. Start walking to work (if it is close enough), or take a walk every weekend. My point is that there is always a way to do what makes you feel happy, even if it isn't as often as you originally planned. It will eventually fit itself into your schedule. An important part of developing happiness habits in my opinion (and I believe this because I have made this mistake myself!) is to not get hung up on the "happiness" part of life, but rather just enjoy each moment as it comes. I would love to know what happiness habits you have! Have a great day!

The weight on fitness

I was always thin, from a little wee child until adulthood. I'm 5'3, and typically range between 105 and 125 pounds (I know it's a wide range but I have IBD which can have an affect on weight gain/loss). Then about a year ago I started to gain a lot of weight. I got to the point that I went to my doctor and told him about my concern. He said he noticed the weight gain and said "I don't want you to gain any more weight either.". No one has ever said that to me before, so at this point I knew that I had started to lose control over my weight. I'm used to eating whatever I want and not having to excercise to keep thin but I suppose that's changing! So finally he weighs me and the scale says (keep in mind I had a full outfit on, including my shoes), 154 pounds. Yikes. I'm definitely overweight. Even if you take off a couple of pounds due to my clothing, I'm still at least 20 pounds overweight. My BMI (body mass index) is 26.9 if I punch in 152 pounds. Overweight begins at a 25 BMI. (To calculate my BMI I went here.).

Here are some pics of me over the last few years from when I started to gain:

It's hard to see how thin I am here but I'm probably at a perfect weight, on the low side of a healthy BMI. I would like to get back to this if not a little heavier.

Here I believe I started to be overweight. I don't think I look that big at all, but I am all fat and no muscle.

This is me last November, probably about 10 pounds lighter than I am now.

Fashion Note: I haven't been the most fashionable person as you can see, but my blog is about learning from my fashion icons, which is a post that will be going up soon. Reinvent your style with me!

I dont have a current pic of myself but I think it is really visible, especially in my face! Soon I'll be posting a new photo of myself along with my goals for this year.

Is anyone up for a fitness challenge?

My Favourite Products Right Now

I have a good bunch of products right now that I want to rave about. Ive been using them for awhile to get the full effect of how they will stand the test of time, and these all passed with flying colours!

Now let's start with makeup:

Liquid Gold Triple Benefit Tinted Moisturizer. SPF30.

This cream is amazing. I cannot praise it enough! I don't need a foundation at all. It does everything I need for my skin. For details go here.

MAC blush

MAC blush has great shade options and goes on the skin so well. I use a MAC blush brush to put it on. Not much is needed as it has quite a bit of pigment. To look into MAC blush and other cosmetics, go here.

Perfect 10 Hair Colour.

I rarely use chemical hair dyes, but when I do, this is what I use. It does a great job every time! The only complaint I have is the strong chemical smell which happens to be in most dyes. To check it out go here.

Here goes Hygiene & Misc Items I love:

Seabuckthorn Berry Bar

This particular product actually changed my life a little bit... I had horrific acne for 2 years until I started using this Seabuckthorn soap. I can't speak for other brands, but this is the exact brand I use. My skin is clear, smooth and bright now. It changed my morning routine and even my confidence! http://www.seabuckthorn.com/

T for Toes foot/shoe powder from Lush.

I put some of this powder in my shoes & never have foot or shoe odour problems. It has a gentle but lovely smell. This powder will last months if you regularly powder your shoes. To check it out go here.

Pure Essential Oils from Fruits & Passion.

These aren't cheap but they are 100% pure and amazing. The oil lasts a long time as you need very little at a time. I've tried cheaper oils and they do not have the same effect as this brand of oils. Pure essential oils help with different ailments. Not to mention that you can use them in many ways (ex. in the bath, in a diffuser, etc.). The purer, the better. I couldn't find a direct link to this product, but the Fruits and Passion website is here.

Rotadent Plus.

I purchased it from my dentist. It's great! It has a small head that can get in all of the little spaces in your mouth. The brush turns 360 degrees. Every 30 seconds it pauses to give you a sense of timing. 3 speeds. I think this can only be purchased by your dentist. For more info, click here.

VOSS Water.

Love the water, love the bottle! The bottle is reusable, the lids seal very well and last very long. The Voss website can be found here.

Reebok RealFlex for Women.

This is truly a product that I highly recommend. It may not be for everyone but this is the best running/walking shoe I have ever had in my entire life, by far. They fit so well around the foot, which is great for my narrow feet. Unfortunately I couldnt find the exact link for this. This website featured them at one point though.

So, some of these products are not well known but they are very well liked by the people who use them. These items are also in my Pinterest Page. Have you tried any of these products? What do you think of them?

xoxo

Michelle



3 Hygiene / Beauty Products I Won't Use Again

Product #1

After using this first product for about 6 weeks I have decided that I should cut ties with it completely and throw it out. It pains me to do this but the product is that useless (for my skin anyway). It is Exact Cleasing Cream, Original.

The reason I will not be using this product again is for a couple of reasons.

1. The cream isn't as creamy as it is chunky. When I take the cream out of the container and put it on my face, most of it falls off in soft chunks. In order to turn the chunks into "cream", you have to squish each chunk separately. A real hassle.

2. The second point is the worst point. This cream turns into a thick film on my skin. It doesnt rinse off without the aid of another soap. The film is so thick that if I try to rinse it off and then wipe my face with a towel, I can see the film dragged across my face. This happens whether I use very little or a more generous amount.

Product #2

Unfortunately I don't have a photo of this as I threw mine out and couldnt find a photo online. Normally I love Shoppers Drug Mart Products, but their white plastic nail brush is not worth buying! It is made in two parts and in my opinion, cheaply put together. So after just a few times cleaning your nails, the brush part falls away from the handle part. The brush part is unfortunately too small to hold onto while cleaning your nails. If I can find a photo I will certainly post it!

Product #3

Note: this only applies to people with allergies/sensitivities to eye makeup.

I LOVE MAC makeup, but I can't use their eyeshadow anymore. I started to get really bad allergic reactions to it, so I tried other brands and didn't get as a severe reaction to it. If you have sensitive eyes, this might not be the product for you.

I still use Coquette for my brows and various blushes without a problem.

Has anyone else out there tried any of these products with or without a problem?

xoxo

Michelle

Vacation, Vacation, Renovation..?

I've leared a few new things in the last week that I've been on vacation.

1. Although it's good to make plans for vacation, make time to relax.
2. Although it's good to make time to relax on vacation, make some plans.
3. I really really love fashion & home decor, but I don't put enough time into it in order to let my style evolve.

The first two items on that list are so true. I believe most people need to have some plans for vacation (I didn't make enough plans), but don't over plan (which I also did). You see, I am renovating my home. I have been doing so for nearly one year now. Although it is an adventurous endeavour to say the least, I must say that it does become tiresome to live in this "state" for so long. I've got to quicken the pace, and this is why I have invited friends to visit for dinner for the first time in many months. Yikes! The main challenge is of course, the financial one, which is why I have done more tearing down of things than putting up. In fact I don't believe I have put anything new up at all. It is a disaster, but it will look amazing once I find my bearings again and put my style dreams from imagination to paper to reality. But I digress. This is really about vacation, right? Well, yes and no. When on vacation (if you are a renovator like myself), don't make plans only for renovation-type activities. Make plans to relax out of the house. Escape can be total bliss, even for an introvert like me!

Here are some pictures of my home-sweet-home before I started to renovate:

Dining Room

Living Room

Foyer, Front Closet & Bathroom

There are also 2 bedrooms, the kitchen and a storage closet but I dont have very good pictures of those.

So my question to you is if you have renovated, how did you keep yourself organized and sane through the entire process?

Thanks for reading!

Michelle