curiouslycarmen, Author at Curiously Carmen

Amie Spring Clean – Deep Cleaning Mask

May 30, 2015

Hi everyone!

Today, I’ll be going in more detail about a product I briefly introduced on my blog back in September in my Amie product post. Out of all the fantastic Amie products I’ve tried, this one has been my current favourite for the past few months and is really effective in combating pimples!

First off, can I say how much I love the packaging of Amie products?! I feel like I mention that every single time I write a post on them, but I love the girly pastel colours!

The deep cleaning mask is a deep cleansing mask that cleans deep down into your pores to draw out dirt, while soaking up excess oil. Soaking up excess oil will help prevent future breakouts! As for the texture, it has a bit of a clay consistency. The mask smells like peppermint with a hint of essential oils.

Whenever I feel an annoying pimple starting to form, I rely solely on this product to get rid of it before the pimple actually comes out!! This is a really powerful product and will combat and kill your pimples before they even reach the surface.

I prefer to only use this product on problem areas, or where I’m breaking out. I find that this mask is pretty intense (and it has to be to kill those pimples!), and it may sting if you apply it to your entire face. The peppermint in the mask may also make your face feel slightly warm.

Since this mask is pretty intense, I recommend it for those with oily skin just like myself. I’m not sure how this product works for non-oily skin types, so I don’t want you to blame me if it doesn’t work as well for you=) Let me know if you’ve tried this mask and you don’t have an oily skin type!

This is one of my favourite products of all time as it really does get the job done, quickly and effectively!

What is your go-to pimple killer?

Thanks for reading!

-Carmen

Press product featured, all opinions are my own.

Degrease Shampoo by Maple Holistics

May 27, 2015

Hey everyone!

This month, I was approached by a US based company, Maple Holistics, to review their hair care products. After reading up on the company and browsing through the products, I chose to order one of their best seller shampoos, the Degrease!

Ever since puberty, my hair type has been oily. I wash my hair each day because it becomes greasy, and feels unbearably gross if I don’t wash it. I know that some people are able to ignore that feeling, and I’ve tried to but I can’t! =(

Yes, I know that everyone says you shouldn’t wash your hair every single day as it will damage/dry/thin your hair… but when you have zero tolerance for an itchy and greasy scalp, plus oily hair to begin with – it has to be taken care of!

Plus, I have such an excess of oil in my hair so I don’t think that by washing it everyday, I am ‘drying’ my scalp out as there is SO MUCH oil =P I’m really jealous of those people who can go for days, even a WEEK without washing their hair, or simply using dry shampoo/baby powder to clean their hair – I could never do that.

With all that said, I was honestly a bit hesitant at how well this shampoo would work. I’ve tried so many different shampoos catered towards ‘oily hair’, yet I don’t really think have made a difference! =(

The ingredients in this shampoo consist of lemon, cypress, rosemary and basil, which help relieve oily, greasy hair and itchy scalp. Degrease works to remove excess perspiration without absorbing hair moisture, all while contributing natural compounds known to assist in re-balancing sebum secretion levels.

I was very impressed with their shipping times, my shampoo arrived within three days of me placing my order! Funny story, I woke up that morning with extra oily hair (bleh) and really wanted to give my hair a good wash. I decided to check on my bunny very quickly first, and noticed that I had a package delivered! Talk about perfect timing!
I was very excited to try this product because I have yet to find something that has worked for my oily hair. The instructions told me to use a quarter sized amount, then work it in your hair and wait a few minutes for the product to settle in before rinsing.

This shampoo has a very herbal and earthy scent – do not expect a perfume-y scent like the ones from Pantene or Herbal Essences (sigh, those smell so good haha!) as this product does not include any fragrance. The scent of this product reminded me a lot of the aromatherapy stores, which I personally love!

Immediately after rinsing, my hair felt very clean. I definitely felt that all the excess oils had been stripped away. I decided to test this product out and see how long it would take before my hair felt oily and gross. (Usually, that is under 24 hours – the oils in my hair work too fast!)
…..Which is why I was so shocked when I woke up the next morning, with my hair still feeling as clean and fresh as it did yesterday! That has never happened to me before and I seriously couldn’t believe it!

I went through the whole next day without my hair feeling oily or greasy – and that was seriously a miracle.

This was the first time that I purposely chose not to wash my hair the next day. I usually don’t have a choice as my hair gets so oily – and that was an absolutely liberating feeling. You may think I’m being dramatic, but when you have been dealing with oily, greasy hair your whole life, you will know what I mean.

Those with non-oily hair, appreciate little moments in life like this and don’t take it for granted! With this shampoo, I am able to wash my hair every other day without it feeling heavy or greasy – a possibility I never knew would exist knowing how much I hate that oily hair feeling.
Here is a picture of my hair in the sun! I brought the shampoo with me on vacation, as I knew that Kelowna would be hot (which equals to more sweat & oil production). I like how my hair looked in this picture, it has a nice healthy shine without looking too thick and greasy =)

I also raved to this product to the boyfriend and told him to try it since he suffers from oily hair as well. He was also equally impressed with the product and doesn’t his hair look nice and clean as well in the picture? =)

The Degrease shampoo is seriously great. I have never tried any other shampoo that has worked this well for my oily hair. If you suffer from excessively oily hair, I highly recommend trying this product. It has made my days so much easier now that I don’t have to worry about having my hair bother me the entire day.

You can buy this product on Amazon.

If you have oily hair, what are some tips/tricks that you use to keep your hair as clean as possible?

Thanks for reading!

-Carmen

Product provided by Maple Holistics for review. Opinions are my own =)

Kyo Korean BBQ & Sushi House – AYCE Dinner

May 26, 2015

Greetings everyone!

For Jerky’s birthday dinner a few months ago, a bunch of us went to celebrate at Kyo, which is mostly popular for their AYCE (All You Can Eat) Korean BBQ & Sushi dinner. I’ve been here a handful of times already in the past few years, but this was my first time coming here in more than two years.

I took this picture back in 2013 and posted it on Facebook because I thought it was funny how the timing of the bus worked perfectly! Never would I have guessed that I would be using this picture again in a blog post two years later.
We had a group of around 15 people and were split up between 3 tables. All of us were ordering AYCE, they used to allow tables to have both AYCE and non AYCE, but I don’t think they allow that anymore. They also have an all you can drink section as well, but I believe the entire table has to have it in order for it to qualify? Or maybe I am thinking of another restaurant.

I didn’t take pictures of every single dish that came since we were all hungry and impatient, my apologies!

For starters, some of us ordered the spinach gomae and miso soup. I enjoyed the spinach gomae quite a bit and was surprised at how good it tasted. The spinach did not taste old and the peanut butter sauce was a tad sweet. The miso soup was your standard instant package miso soup, and was salty.
One of my favourites that night was the chicken teriyaki, pictured in the back! The chicken was fried nice and crispy, while the inside was warm and juicy. It was lightly covered in teriyaki sauce and sprinkled with sesame. I could easily eat 3 plates of this myself, it was that good!

Unfortunately, the beef teriyaki was not as good. We found it to be a bit watered down, as there was a puddle of water at the bottom of the plate. It was also very bland and overcooked.

Barbeque! And a few tiny pieces of vegetables, hehe… Since I didn’t take a picture of all the meat, I’ll just briefly talk about them here. We ordered the beef, short rib, chicken, pork, and lamb meat. All were pretty delicious and juicy. Some of the meat was a bit too salty as it was already marinated beforehand. Not bad for all you can eat!
I found the salmon sashimi to be very bland and flavourless. The tuna sashimi was slightly better, but not the best either.
I didn’t try the nigiri pieces seen in the back since I didn’t really enjoy the sashimi to begin with. The tuna tataki was a different story though – it was amazing! It had a slightly grilled taste due to the fish being seared. The tuna tataki was soft and melted in your mouth. Combined with the ponzu sauce and fresh green onions, this was a definite winner!

All in all, Kyo is a hit or miss with their food but it is one of my favourite restaurants to go to for all you can eat. Service was friendly, although they missed a majority of our dishes from the first order. I wished that I had taken more pictures of the food! All of us ended up being so disgustingly full but hey, what is the point of eating AYCE if you don’t feel like you can ever move again? =)

Do you enjoy all you can eat, or rather have quality over quantity?

-Carmen

Travel Diaries: Horseback riding in Kelowna (Pegasus Riding School & Trail Rides)

May 21, 2015

Greetings everyone!

I’m continuing my travel journal today, with what I did during my second day in the beautiful city of Kelowna!

One of the top things that we wanted to do in Kelowna was horseback riding. Prior to the trip, I had done some research and narrowed it down to a small, horseback riding company due to the significantly lower price they offered.

We went with Pegasus Riding School & Trail Rides, which was about a 30 minute drive from the main part of Kelowna, on the other side of Okanagan Lake. You have to take some small, windy roads up a mountain to get there, but the reward is that the view is a bit nicer from up top.

A one hour ride was $40, compared to most places in central Kelowna that were around $60-80 a hour. So much cheaper! To some people, it may be a bit out of the way but we didn’t mind driving a bit extra. The only thing we didn’t like was that we weren’t able to book a reservation, so our plans were up in the air until the day before.

They also only take requests through the traditional telephone (no text or online booking), so you’ll have to call the owner and let them know which day you want and time. Even if you tell them, they can’t guarantee that time for you and tell you to wait and see if other customers call. If others call for the same time, they’ll open the spot up but if not, unfortunately you’ll have to find another time.

This got a bit tedious but oh well, we were able to save money!
After giving you a helmet and riding boots, you’re on your way! One person from Pegasus leads the way, I really liked our guide that day.

Monkey was the slowest horse in the entire group, so we were pretty behind most of the time. He also has to stay in the back because our guide told us that one of their white horses loved to bite Monkey in the back during trail rides. Now, Monkey does not like white horses or behind in front of any other horses – poor guy! Nonetheless, I really liked him – he was a very sweet, shy, and gentle horsey =)
After around 30 minutes of riding, we reached the view point! I’m glad that the weather was cooperating with us, so we had a nice clear view of West Kelowna and Okanagan lake.

Some tips I would give to others would be to wear comfortable, stretchy pants. Your legs may be sore as they get stretched out due to how wide the horse’s body is. Also, as the horse trots along, your body bounces up and down a bit so you may end up with a sore lower back as you try to balance. Personally, I was okay though!

Afterwards, we went to explore West Kelowna’s winery region, the Westside wine trail. The most popular one there is the famous Mission Hill winery, but we didn’t really have a great experience. It was too busy and staff weren’t that friendly.

Our personal favourite from the Westside region was Quail’s Gate. It wasn’t as busy as Mission Hill but had fantastic service, and one of their wines was served with chocolate – yum!!! My favourite part was the view though. They have a big, grassy hill for visitors to relax in and soak in the beautiful Okanagan view, which is what I certainly did.

Have you been horseback riding before? How did you like it?

Thanks for reading!

-Carmen

Travel Diaries: Winetasting & Hiking in Kelowna

May 20, 2015

I just came back from a nice little getaway to the beautiful city of Kelowna and had the idea to attempt travel blogging. I’ve never really done this before but I do follow my awesome friend’s travel blog, so I figured I would give this a try.

For those who don’t know, Kelowna is a small city located around 4 hours away from Vancouver, in the same province (British Columbia). It is a pretty easy drive up as you just follow the highway. This city is situated in the interior region of BC, otherwise known as the Okanagan Valley.

The Okanagan Valley is very well known for the beautiful Okanagan Lake which I couldn’t take my eyes off of and the beautiful summer weather, which in turns produces their famous fresh and delicious fruits. In particular, Kelowna is well known for their tremendous amount of wineries and outdoor activities! It is the perfect place to come and enjoy the great outdoors!
I don’t normally go hiking, but one of my best friends who lived here for 4 years recommended that we hike up to Knox Mountain. I’m glad that we went in the early afternoon, because by the time we were done the hike, the sun was directly on top of us and it was getting really hot. The hike up to the first viewpoint took around 15 minutes, and was pretty easy. There was some slight uphill, but nothing that bad.

From there, we saw signs leading to the Paul’s Tomb hike, and decided to follow that instead of going to the second viewpoint at Knox Mountain. The hike to Paul’s Tomb was a lot easier because there wasn’t much uphill, and a lot of gradual downhill! It took us around 30 minutes at a leisurely pace to get to Paul’s Tomb.

When we got to Paul’s Tomb, I was in awe at how beautiful the view was. The trail was pretty quiet, and we were the only ones there which was something I really appreciated about a smaller city like Kelowna.

We sat here for awhile, absorbing the beautiful view that was Okanagan Lake and the surrounding mountains. Waves gently brushing over the rocks, a gentle cool lake breeze gave us a break from the hot sun, and clear water.

The walk back took more effort than the getting there, but it was so worth it! We took shelter and cooled off whenever the sun would get hidden behind the fluffy white clouds. There was slight uphill as the walk there is downhill, so you do get a bit of a workout. As someone who doesn’t hike often, I certainly felt it in my calves and hamstrings after finishing the hike.

After a quick lunch, we were off to our first wine tasting! There are five main winery regions in Kelowna, which can be found on the online pamphlet or in the wineries themselves. We decided to go to the Lake Country region first. I recommend having a car in Kelowna, as many of the wineries are in secluded, hidden areas. Also, a map – we got lost a few times with all the winding off-roads!

Unfortunately, I didn’t take pictures of all the wineries as I hadn’t thought of blogging about this trip until afterwards =( My favourite winery in Lake Country was Arrowleaf! The inside had a nice, modern, clean design and had floor to ceiling windows. They also had a nice grassy area for a picnic or a patio where you can enjoy their wine.
This is the view from Grey Monk winery. All the wineries that we went to had breathtaking views of Okanagan Lake! The Lake Country region had around 6 different wineries, we went to 3 of the wineries. At most, wineries in the same region are no more than a 15 minutes drive away from each other but usually less than 7 minutes.

Never been wine tasting?

Worry not! When you arrive at the winery, one of the workers will approach you and ask if you’re interested in sampling some wine. Some wineries charge a small fee (I remember the ones we went to ranged from $3-$8), but sometimes they waive the fee if you purchase a bottle of wine from them. Others offer complementary tasting.

Then, they give you a small menu with all the different types of wine that is available for sampling, it can vary from day to day. Most places limit you to four samples. You will start with the lighest wines (typically the whites and rose) and move on to the heavier wines. This method works better for your taste palette.

Wine tasting goes by pretty fast! In each winery, we completed the wine tasting in under ten minutes and spent the rest of the time walking outside, enjoying the view, or checking out the products on sale.

Where did we stay?

We found a nice, comfortable place on AirBNB! It was very centrally located and convenient. Our host was wonderful and the place was readily stocked with all the necessities plus minor little details. We chose to go with AirBNB instead of a hotel mainly because Kelowna hotels cost significantly more in the summer due to the influx of tourists and were all sold out already, and because we wanted a full kitchen in case we decided to cook.

Thanks for reading! Stay posted on more wine tastings, horseback riding, and an outdoor high ropes/obstacle course!

-Carmen