Category: travel

Beauty and the Beach: what I wore on holidays…

~ Emmie Reve ~ Leave a comment

So, for the longest time, I heard that one’s not supposed to wear make-up on the beach, because it slides, it cakes, it runs, and it’s the opposite of the beach image ideal; which is to have a no make-up, but have a fresh tanned face…but I disagree. On my first trip ever to the Caribbean this holiday season, I did wear a full face make-up and am soooo glad I did. Nobody wants to have a puffy face, blemishes, and undefined eyes. In photos, these are expensive memories, and I wanted to look my best. Here are my top tips for wearing make-up for the beach, including water proof make-ups that can be worn during dips in the sea/pool!

Tips on makeup for the beach:

  1. Foundation? yes please! Don’t be afraid of wearing heavy foundations…the reason being that it can be mixed with sunscreen for more translucent coverage and it won’t look too “done up”. I used my Revlon Youth FX foundation mixed with cream concealer (for extra coverage) since I was cutting it with a sunscreen too. After mixing the three products in my hand I rubbed it generously, but evenly on my face, being sure to smooth streaks. Then a good dusting of face powder to set the base. It looked natural and was protecting me from the sun! I didn’t reapply sunscreen to my face during the day, so I banked all my protection on a thicker, more water resistant application in the morning.
  2. Eye shadow…waterproof is hard to find! I always like a bit of colour on my eyelids because it’s just a nice accent for a beachy, but fashionable look. I couldn’t find waterproof eyeshadow, so I used an aqua colored soft pencil all over the lid and set it with aqua power shadow. This lasted me through several dunks in the sea! Just powder shadow works too, but is less long lasting,..
  3. Eye liner! Waterproof is necessary since it will run and smear everywhere if not, especially black eyeliner. I found a 24 hour water proof gel liner by Benefit that did the job nicely. I got to wear a cat eye look everyday, which made all the difference in photos by helping my eyes pop.

    After a dip in the ocean, my liner, blue shadow and mascara seem to still be entact. Score one for make-up!
  4. Mascara: Waterproof formulas are easy enough to find…I used a Revlon make for lengthening, but volumizing would have worked great too. It looked nice, didn’t flake or run at all. Mascara is very essential make-up for the beach and not something to skip. I look more awake and my eyes look wider when I wear mascara, which will make vacation photos look better!
  5. Honorable beach make-up mentions:  blush and tinted lip balms with sunscreen; blush, if done in powder form will probably wash off with enough sea water and pool water, but is still flattering on skin when the sun is out. Tinted lip balms are also amazing in that they offer moisture, shine and color in a subtle low maintenance way! Just remember to reapply.

    Here I am without bright eye shadow…but still with foundation, liner and mascara. I like that I look natural in photos, but my features are accentuated!

At the end of the day, wear the amount of makeup that is comfortable for the beach. But I wanted to say that there are no rules when it comes to the amount and kind of make-up to wear…as long as there is sunscreen and waterproof versions of basic products, why not wear a bit of color to the beach to add to the beauty of the surf, with beauty of the face.

Holiday travel: Do you need a special skincare regimen?

~ Emmie Reve ~ Leave a comment
We always get these kinds of travel tips. But the actual useful ones? Read on! (image from
We always get these kinds of travel tips. But the actual useful ones? Read on! (image from theguytravel.com)

I haven’t been travelling much lately since I’ve been busy with a lot of side projects.  But when I look back at my travels all over the world, one thing links them:  How do you arrive at your destination looking fresh, happy, and rejuvenated?  When I was twenty, I really could enter a plane and leave with perfect skin having done nothing.  Now that I am a bit older (just a bit), if I do nothing, I will have puffy eyes and dull skin after a trip.  It is a mystery why traveling on a moving vehicle brings out the worst in skin: namely bloating, dehydrated skin, eye bags, and water retention.  There is something about riding on a bus/plane/train that does this.  And every gal needs a plan to combat this.  Arriving at your destination looking well rested and fresh is important.  I want whoever is picking me up to be impressed.  Here are my tried and true tips for minimizing the damages of travel.

Do these steps during your trip on a plane/bus/train:

  1. Hydration: drink water, drink water, and then drink water.  It keeps your body fresh by flushing out toxins, and discourages water retention.  Water retention is your enemy because it makes you look super puffy.  Avoid salt, since it can make you bloat.
  2. Tea does something: A hot cup of tea steams up your face, gives your body antioxidants and soothes stomach and digestion.  It also help calm the nerves and provides hydration.  All things you need while on a plane/bus.
  3. Tone your skin:  Toxins and dirt stick to your skin while travelling.  Car and bus exhaust, recycled airplane air.  They all suffocate your skin.  Spritz a mister of spring water on your face, or do what I do and pack a bit of rose water.  Put the toner on a cotton swab and dab your way to refreshment.
  4. Moisturize.  After toning your face, put a good weigh moisturizer on your face.  I find creams to be a bit greasy for day wear, so cocoa butter and coconut oil are my go to’s.
  5. Sleep.  I can’t say this enough.  Arriving at a destination sleep deprived affects your spirit, personality and appearance.  You can’t think straight if you are tired.  I like to use a sleeping pill if travelling over night to ensure I sleep on those bumpy travel routes.
  6. Make-up: you need a bit.  Travelling while wearing too much make-up feels gross, so don’t over do it.  Just before you arrive at your destination, touch up with essentials such as bb cream, mascara and lipstick/tinted lip balm.  This makes all the difference and boost the effects of all the hard work you did during the trip for your skin.  Put in some hair salve to moisturize your hair ends.

Voila!  Arrive at your destination looking effortlessly gorgeous and enjoy the holidays!  You only live once so have fun looking and feeling your best.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! 🙂

Taking a passport/ID photo is not as easy as it seems…

~ Emmie Reve ~ 3 Comments

No smiling, no tilting the head, no posing, no hair in the face…etc. These are all the restrictions that come with the territory of taking an ID photo.  I used to think it was pretty simple, but now I realize the government doesn’t want you to look good, or look like you are having any fun in these photos.  In all seriousness, they want you to look miserable so they can capture the facial features of the face in a “no frills” kind of way.  As a result, a passport photo that you barely even like, and barely looks like “you”, becomes the representation of you for the next five to ten years.  Yes, you will have to look at it every so often, and see the unflattering lighting, how it hit your face at a bad angle, making you look not your best.  *sigh* It’s not that bad, or is it? Without sounding vain, wouldn’t you want to have the best photo you can get while still meeting requirements the government demands for formal IDs?  Here are some of my tips for making the best of a trying situation:

My Personal Tips

1. Don’t wear dark colours like black, navy or charcoal.  They weigh you down in spirit, which will weigh you down in the photo too.  I like to wear pastels and cheerful colours to reflect a lighter mood, to combat that downer feeling that taking a non-smiling ID photo can give.

2. Don’t smile, but think happy, relaxed thoughts.  Make your eyes smile.  This may sound crazy, but they can smile!  Look into the mirror prior the photo, breathe, relax, and look at your non-smiling expression.  I find practicing your “non-pose” can really help you see if you are making a weird face by default, or just looking too severe.

3. Wear your hair DOWN.  I can’t say this enough.  But for some reason, this makes all the difference.  Hair that is up makes your face look larger, because of the awkward cropping of all ID photos.  Not that a large face is bad, but in photos, smaller usually looks better in my humble opinion.

4. Make-up: Lots of people say to wear neutral make-up, and I kind of disagree.  I feel you ought to wear the make-up colours you feel like wearing.  So if you often wear bright eye shadows, why change to neutral for a passport photo? For my most recent passport photo I wore a bright fushia eye shadow in the corners of my lids and I love how they made my eyes pop!

5. Concealer and other tricks: I love the look of natural skin with its freckles and marks, and am not a big fan of concealer just because unless you have acne, what good is it really for on a day to day basis?  But for ID photos I would recommend it.  I saw the way those flashes magnify every flaw on the face…so use accordingly.  The day of my photo taking I had under-eye puffiness, so I used a bit of ice on it to deflate them before my photo.  Stay really hydrated to avoid water retention and bloat.  All these little things do make a difference to the end result.

What tips do you find help you take good government ID photos?  Is it just too much trouble to worry about these things and do you just don’t care when it comes to how you look on photo documentations?  Or do you think official documents should show a good photo of you most definitely?  During my recent photograph session, I remember a lady customer before me at the shop.  She was also taking her passport photo, and she walked into it with no prep, just dabbed some lipstick on before jumping into it.  The lady was so disappointed with her results, when the store showed her the proofs.  Don’t we all wish that it was just as easy as putting on lipstick!

IMG_2403 (2) edit
This is my new pic. It looked better in the proofs, but the reprint of it into the passport is very grainy. Still, I liked it, considering how I couldn’t smile, and the photo peeps took it in 2 seconds flat! Does it say “run away with me!”?  Hee hee.