3 Tricks to avoid eating mindlessly

Before I get started, let me just say it means so much to me that so many of you have been showing support and giving me feedback about my blog. It's very sweet and thoughtful! Oh and sorry for the absence, I've been super busy these past 3 days but I'm back.


I know everyone eats mindlessly, whether it's because you have nothing to do or because you catch yourself finishing a whole bag of party size chips while watching television. I also find myself to crave food even after eating a meal. Here's some advice on how to avoid that unwanted and undesired eating:

1) Chew gum: this helps a ton. It gets your mouth moving and keeps it busy, therefore you don't feel the need or urge to eat. Plus the slight flavor of the gum may satisfy some craving your brain might be looking for

2) Exercise: you may be "hungry" because the reward pathways in your brain are starving of dopamine, thus working out can work as a reward to your brain and satisfy that unwanted craving. Not only does this reward your brain, it'll leave you happier and healthier.

3) Eat food with a high water content such as celery or apples: the fibrous texture of these foods will keep your mouth busy and burning calories and quench any bad cravings you may be seeking. Plus some studies show that you burn more calories chewing celery than you eat when eating celery.

5 Delicious Drinks that stimulate weight loss

These are my go to drinks on an everyday basis, they boost metabolism and help to burn fat. The best thing about these is that they are extremely delicious!

1) the obvious one: cold water! The chilling effect causes your body to warm itself thus boosting metabolism; the same goes for showers, if you start your shower with 30 seconds of the coldest water possible, your body will boost metabolism and you'll see results if you do this everyday.

2) watermelon juice: perfect for the spring time, watermelon contains arginine which promotes fat burn and prevents fat storage! And it's totally delicious!

3) green tea: this has many provided benefits like fat loss, cancer prevention, and proper brain functioning; it contains antioxidants and nutrients that help build your body! I like mine iced with pure came sugar and honey

4) a banana smoothie with cinnamon: this is one of my top drinks! It's sweet, contains my favorite fruit, and makes your body feel good. Banana contains vitamin b and magnesium, which helps weight loss while the cinnamon hypes your metabolism! 2 birds, 1 stone

5) berry yummy smoothie: this one is a special of mine; 1/3 raspberries, 1/3 blueberries, a small banana, 1/3 pineapple and water depending on how thick you like your smoothies! This has antioxidants and contains nutrients that block fat uptake!



That's my list of healthy/delicious smoothies! They really do work! I have tried and fallen in love with these 5 :D let me know what you think lovelies

Oh and if you haven't yet, the post before this one has a list of tips on how to lose weight effectively so feel free to read up on that :)

Simple tips on dieting and losing weight

As many of you know, I used to be obese. Even though I was bullied for it, I didn't start wanting to lose weight till I realized how unhealthy I felt about myself. I figured I'd list out some tips and tricks to losing weight effectively. Hopefully this will change someone's life :)

I know at first you may seem skeptical, but take it from me. I used to weigh 170 lbs in high school and now 6 years after I first started losing weight, I've constantly remained at about 100lbs.

1) Change your outlook. Stop being pessimistic and take it a day at a time. Wake up every day and tell yourself you can change and you will change.

2) Drink more water. I know there are some people out there that say they drink enough, but regardless, increase your water intake. Drink AT LEAST 8-10 glasses of preferably cold water a day. I say cold water because it tends to make your body work to keep yourself warm thus giving yourself a mini calorie boost.

3) Reduce meal size and increase frequency. Try to eat 5-6 small meals instead of 3 large ones a day; try to have dinner by 8, at the latest. My usual meal plan used to be:
-Quaker Maple & Sugar Oatmeal with Almond Milk, and 1 cup of whole milk with 1/4 cup of coffee, and a fruit of some sort (apple)
-Scrambled eggs and a can of tuna with black pepper and chili flakes with an orange and 2 cups of water
-handful of almonds and a salad with honey
-roasted turkey sandwich on rye bread, with white american cheese, lettuce, tomato, and peppers
-baked tilapia with onions, lemon zest, and cilantro

Yes, I would eat this every day. Not the same thing, sometimes I'd substitute salmon for tilapia, I would eat a Boca burger from Publix instead of the turkey sandwich, I would add meat to my salad, or whatnot. But the general gist of it is: EAT HEALTHY.

4) Make sure you're getting enough proteins and carbs in your diet, and good fats. If you decrease your fats too much, you'll be prone to weight gain later on.

5) Give in to temptation. If you crave sweets or junk food. Give in. Eat a tiny piece of chocolate (not the whole bar), eat a handful of chips (not the whole bag). Or you can just eat a sweet fruit to trick your mind into thinking it got what it was craving. In the long run, you will be happier with your weight loss and more efficient at keeping at it than if you were to completely cut out sweets from your diet.

6) Workout. Cardio. Muscle. Combo. It doesn't matter. Switch it up from day to day to keep your body confused. Run on the treadmill for 30 minutes one day and then do squats and abs the next day. Always keep your body guessing because the last thing we need is hitting a weightloss plateau.

Remember: it takes 28 days to form a habit, so keep going :) you'll see progress eventually.

P.S. I will be writing more in depth about weightloss so keep your eyes out!

Tarte Tartelette Palette Review, Swatches, & Tutorial

Today's review brings to you the new Spring 2015 Tartelette Palette by Tarte. This palette consists of 12 beautiful, versatile, highly pigmented matte shadows that range from white to black. The only things missing are shimmers and satins which I don't mind because the Naked palettes give me an excess of those.

This palette can be purchased at Sephora and Ulta for $44.00 which is great for the quality and amount of product you get with this palette!

It comes in a travel-friendly compact case and includes 12 beautiful eyeshades; they range from cool neutrals to warm neutrals and essentially makes up for what Urban Decay's Naked Palettes lack in matte shades.

SHADES:
Free spirit: yellowish cream matte
Force of nature: peachy matte
Dreamer: light chocolate brown matte
Multi tasker: dark chocolate brown matte
Caregiver: powdery pink matte
Natural beauty: taupe plum matte
Best friend: puple plum matte
Bombshell: a deep plum matte
Super mom: cooler toned pinkish cream
Wanderer: neutral cocoa brown matte
Power Player: grayish taupe matte
Fashionista: flat black matte

The Palette also comes with two suggested looks for beginners which is great!

Swatches

Bottom to Top(Free spirit, force of nature, dreamer, multi tasker, caregiver, natural beauty, best friend, bombshell, super mom, wanderer, power player, fashionista)

Swatches with flash 

I also came up with a look with this Palette which showed up very well on me!

How to create this look: 

Prime eyes (ELF eyelid primer)

Use a medium eyeshadow brush and sweep caregiver all over the lid

Use a blending brush and thoroughly blend best friend and natural beauty into the crease

Take fashionista on an eyeliner brush and buff it into the lower lash line along with wanderer

Sweep super mom onto the brow bone

It's a super simple look!

I would HIGHLY recommend picking this palette up due to the amazing arrays of mattes in this palette; it's perfect for creating a day or night look but if you need satins or glitter, then you'll have to buy another palette to pair with this. 

Thanks for reading!

---Mehrab Hashin <3

Naked 3 Palette Swatches, Review, & Tutorial in honor of Galentine's Day

Galentine's/Valentine's is in about 2 hours. The chocolate. The flowers. The romance. The desperation. The tears. It's finally here! So I've created 2 looks using the beloved Naked 3 palette, one for day and the other for night.

As you all know, Urban Decay has come out with 3 Naked palettes known for there neutral shades. The Naked 3 contains 12 neutral rose gold shades that look amazing on nearly every skin tone. I've heard that people with pink undertones have a difficult time sometimes but I can assure you that the looks I've created won't magnify that "pink eye" problem.

THE BASICS:
Naked 3 Palette ($54)
Comes with 12 neutral rose gold shades
-Strange: a matte cream
-Dust: a very chalky glittery pink (use with a wet brush unless you want to be a disco ball)
-Burnout: a satin taupey pink
-Limit: a matte taupey pink, Nooner's lighter sister
-Buzz: a beautiful rose pink shimmer
-Trick: a subtle rose gold with little sparkles
-Nooner: a darker taupey pink, very beautiful matte crease color
-Liar: a taupey pink like Burnout but a tad more pink
-Factory: a shimmery taupe with dark brown
-Mugshot: a silverish taupe
-Darkside: a brownish shimmer
-Blackheart: black with reddish pink glitter, makes it look like a purplish red (my FAV)
It also contains a double-ended shadow and liner brush

Top to Bottom: Blackheart, Darkside, Mugshot, Factory, Liar, Nooner, Trick, Buzz, Limit, Burnout, Dust, and Strange

L to R (Strange, Dust, Burnout, Limit)

L to R (Buzz, Trick, Nooner, and Liar)

L to R (Factory, Mugshot, Darkside, and Blackheart)

Hopefully you can see from these unprimed swatches on my arm that these rose gold colours show up quite well even on medium skin tones. My initial thought when I bought this palette was "Oh oh..I'm screwed, I can't wear these shades," but after playing with them I realized just how beautifully they can appear on indian skin despite the pinks being a little shimmery.

I highly recommend this palette for people with the darkest, lightest, and anything in between skin tones because UD did a really amazing job coming up with a palette that contains rose gold neutrals suited for many skin tones. I am in love with this palette.


TUTORIAL on creating this look:

Steps:
I primed my face with ELF lavendar primer and then used Revlon Colorstay's foundation to suit my skin tone. I primed my lids with ELF's eyelid primer.

Take your eyeshadow brush and apply Trick, the gold shade, all over your lid.
Then take your blending brush and apply Limit on your crease, blending it back and forth
Afterwards take your blending brush again and apply Nooner to your crease but try to keep the depth of Nooner towards the outer end
Apply Strange with either your finger or angled brush into your inner eye
And last, take Blackheart on an eyeliner brush and smudge it into your lower lash line

I completed this look by tight lining my upper eye with eyeliner and then adding mascara.
My lips have been outlined with Jordana's lip liner in berry to create a fuller look, I then applied Mac's Mehr, and dabbed on Mac's Ruby Woo on top to create a bit more reddish color
I contoured my face with Anastasia Beverly Hill's Contour kit in light to medium
I also filled in my brows with the Lorac Pro's brown shade of eyeshadow

Tutorial on creating this look:

The foundation and priming steps are the same as the above look

First apply Burnout with an eyeshadow brush all over your lid
Then gently brush Buzz, into the center of your lid to create a pop of glittery pink
Next, take an angled brush and apply Blackheart to your inner and outer eye very carefully, try to slowly brush it upwards towards your crease
Take a blending brush and buff it out to create a smokey allure
Then, take your blending brush again, and using Nooner, blend out your crease
Complete the look by going in once again with Buzz and making sure it's popping out of the black
I ended up lining my lower lash line with UD's Electric Palette's Savage and their 24/7 Perversion liner in black

My lips are lined and filled in with Jordana's lip liner in berry

I really hope you find these looks useful :)

Thanks for reading!

---Mehrab Hashin :)

Fun Valentine's Day Snacks (Recipes included!)

Valentine's Day is around the corner if you haven't noticed, and even the single people want to be festive! Btw Happy Friday the 13th!

So I came up with 3 simple, healthy, and cheap snacks for this Valentine's Day that'll get you through the weekend:

1) The Strawberry Milkshake: bring all the boys to the yard with this healthy and tasty milkshake!

Ingredients:
5 Strawberries (washed and make sure to cut off the leaves)
1 cup of any kind of milk you'd like
1 and a half tablespoon of sugar (only if the strawberries aren't sweetening enough)
1/2 a cup of ice
A can of whip cream

Steps: It's simple! Blend it all together and serve with a heartening dollop of whip cream

2) Fruit Kabob

Ingredients:
Watermelon
Cherries
Blackberries
Raspberries
*honestly you can use any fruit you like
Skewers

Steps:
Skew the fruits onto a skewer, I personally like to cut my watermelon pieces into little heart shapes

3) Strawberries & Creme Crepes (my personal favorite)

Ingredients:
1/2 Tablespoon of butter
2 eggs
1/2 a cup of flower
1 teaspoon of sugar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
3/4 cup of milk
A medium sized pan
Cooking oil

Steps:
1) Place the butter in a bowl and heat in the microwave for about 15 seconds
2) stir the butter till it's completely melted
3) Add the eggs and whisk together
4) After thoroughly mixing, add the flour, sugar, salt, and milk
5) Continue to whisk till the mixture has a smooth consistency
6) Set the pan on the stove with a slight sheen of oil to low to medium heat
7) Take around a 1/4 cup of batter and pour into the pan and rotate till the batter is spread out thinly
8) Cook thoroughly so that they should brown a little, in the end, your crepes should be thin
9) Bon Appetit! I ended up adding some whip cream and strawberries as topping to my crepes but you can always put bananas and chocolate syrup or other goodies to mix things up

I hope you enjoy these sweet treats as much as I do!
Thanks for reading and hope everyone has a nice day! :)

---Mehrab Hashin

A Quick & Tasty Ramen Recipe for the Starving College Student

In my freshmen year of college, life was full of tests and deciding whether or not I wanted ramen or Jimmy John's for dinner. And when you're a broke ass college kid, the only possible answer is either ramen, or getting a side job working the street corners to support your living that consists of all-nighters, paying for textbooks that you'll never need, and your obsessions of illegal things(whatever that may be).

I thought this would be my opportunity to help some people out there that may want to "fancy" up their ramen, eat something that doesn't taste like cardboard noodles with MSG's, or is looking for a new recipe to try out.

So if your tummy gets excited by looking at this, then keep reading!

You'll need:

A pan
A pot
1 diced onion
2 thinly sliced medium sized russet potatoes
2-3 chilis to add spice (this may be subbed w/chili powder or you can skip it)
3 sprinkles of basil, parsley, and chives
2 eggs
1/4 cup of minced garlic
3 tablespoons of oil
1/2 cup of water
2 packets of any flavored ramen


Steps:
1) Bring a pot, filled halfway with water, to a boil
2) While you wait, add the oil to the pan and set to medium heat
3) Add minced garlic and potatoes, stir occasionally
4) After about 2 minutes of stirring, add the onions
5) Allow them to simmer while you add JUST the ramen alone into the pot
6) Wait till the ramen is ready and then drain the pot
7) Add the ramen to the pan along with the 2 flavor packets
8) Add the water and stir thoroughly while raising the heat on the stove till it has evaporated
9) Add your chili, basil, parsley, and chives
10) Continue to stir thoroughly
11) Crack in the eggs and make sure to cook thoroughly
12) Enjoy!!! This typically serves 3-5 people

This is a super simple recipe, you can add different veggies like bell peppers or cilantro to spice things up; you can also add meats for that savory flavor

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading and as always take care!
P.S. I hope to post something every night :) let me know what you'd like to read
P.P.S. this recipe is the reason why I survived Freshmen year

---Mehrab Hashin <3

Valentine's Day Gifts for Him & for Her

So I was thinking about the immense dilemmas and crises girls and guys experience every year around this time: Valentine' Day.

Now if you don't have a significant other in your life, that's cool too. If I were you, I'd either stay at home and pamper myself with all the foods I love and all the tv I could watch or head on out with some friends to celebrate the single life.

However, I thought I'd write this post to help a guy or gal out there that has no idea what to get their significant other for V-Day! I'll try to keep everything in the affordable range so don't clutch at your wallets just yet!


UNISEX GIFTS:

Lush Cosmetics Body Care is a very nice option if your guy or gal likes to keep clean and smelling fresh! You can buy a small tub of Strawberry Shaving Cream which retails for about $10 or one of their soaps which range from the clean smelling to the fruity smelling! Lush is an all vegetarian company with some very fun and friendly products that make great gifts.

If your guy or gal loves to be fashionable or is searching for that piece of jewelry that'll achieve nirvana then try the Lokai Bracelet! If you haven't heard of this, the idea behind it is pretty cool! It's a bracelet with a bead that holds water from the highest point on Earth (Mt Everest) and the lowest (mud from the Dead Sea). It's a very thoughtful and unique gift without breaking the bank. It retails for $18 and can be bought here:
http://mylokai.com/shop/lokai-bracelet-clear.html

If you spoil your significant other and have been with them for a while now, then the simple chocolate and flowers may be a good idea. I've been with my boyfriend for over 4 years and love getting simple gifts because sometimes less is more. You can also substitute the chocolate for those lovely festive LE Red Velvet Oreos that have gone viral which can be found at your local Walmart or Target!

If your significant other is sporty or loves to hit the gym a lot, then yurbuds earbuds may be a good item to get for them because they are designed to fit and shape to different ear sizes. I own a pair and absolutely adore them because they work so well!

FOR HER:

If your girl adores makeup, then you cannot go wrong with Mac Cosmetics Russian Red, Ruby Woo, Diva, Rebel or Girl About Town lipsticks! These 5 are suited for essentially any and every skin tone and makes any girl feel beautiful and sexy. Plus, I feel like everyone should own at least one Mac product if they enjoy wearing makeup. You can get these lipsticks at $16 each. If that's too steep then there are plenty of dupes out there. Just search them up :)

I personally love it when my room smells good, so Bath & Body Works candles are always a good idea. They are currently having a promo for $10 candles, one of which is called "Love," and smells like pink lemonade! If she doesn't like candles to set the mood, then the "Mad About You" body care line might be a good alternative. It smells fruity, floral, and a bit musky; a sexy sweet perfume perfect for dates.

If surprises aren't her thing, then maybe take her to a mid end store like Forever 21 or H&M and take her shopping. Buy her a dress or cute outfit to wear on V-day to show off to you! But beware because this may get expensive.

FOR HIM:

If your man loves to grill or cook, then a fancy pan or skillet might be a great option! Walmart has an awesome variety of chic looking cookware that is perfect for the guy that loves to work in the kitchen! Prices range anywhere from $15 and upwards.

If he's a gamer then he probably knows or plays Minecraft! I would suggest the Minecraft plushes or mystery keychains found at Walmart or Target usually in the Toy aisle by the Pokemon stuff; they retail anywhere from $5 to $20 so it's a very caring yet affordable gift.

If your guy is a car guy, then I would suggest those amazingly scented car jars from Yankee candle! They come in some amazeball scents and are cheap too! I'm pretty sure you can get them 3 for $12; correct me if I'm wrong.

I thought I'd throw in an extra one, if your guy likes to keep track of the day or is always finding himself late, then check out Macy's and their amazing variety of watches! They have tons of designer brands always on sale; they range from $25 and upwards depending on your budget.

IF YOU AREN'T IN TO GIVING GIFTS:

Just go watch Fifty Shades of Grey this weekend. I don't need to explain. Just go watch a sexier knockoff of the Twilight series and have fun with it!

Or bake something new! Macarons! Cupcakes! Cake! Go crazy with your sweetheart and spend some time getting messy in the kitchen.

Stay in and play board games or talking about what you love about one another; or take a small adventure out to your favorite park or waterfront area. You can never go wrong with something simple. 

Or even write each other letters. Be old fashioned for once. Valentine's Day is just a commercialized day designed to boost sales in my opinion; but I celebrate it because I'm into the fad. 

Remember to show your loved ones that you love them everyday!


That's my V-day gift guide for Him & Her :) let me know if this helped and what you're doing for Valentine's Day!!!

---Mehrab Hashin <3

Review & Swatches on the Urban Decay Electric Palette

Let me introduce myself: I'm a college student that has a crazy relationship with makeup. You can call it unhealthy, but what girl/woman doesn't have an unhealthy obsession? 

Anyways, I thought my first post should have something to do that may peak interest in some people so I thought, why not a review on a product of a brand that is a cult favorite?

Urban Decay's Electric Pressed Pigments Palette is TO DIE FOR! I purchased it and received it today from Ebay just because I was able to get it at $40 as opposed to the retail value of $49, which is still a great price for such an amazing palette of 10 eyeshadows. It comes in a super compact and travel friendly palette. The design on the outside reminds me of the Rorschach inkblot tests but with NEON colors which are so beautiful. 

THE EYESHADOWS:
You get 10 eyeshadows, 8 of which are exclusive to this palette:
Revolt: a shimmery silver
Gonzo: a cool mid-tone blue
Slowburn: a neon orangey red
Savage: a bright hot pink
Fringe: a teal blue green
Chaos: a dark blue 
Jilted: a neon fuchsia  
Urban: a beautiful dark purple
Freak: a mint shimmery green
Thrash: a goldish vibrant yellow

PROS/CONS: 
These eyeshadows are safe to use around the eye area; however they do stain so be careful! Fortunately, that's the only con I can think of. Other than that, this palette is not only a must have for the makeup fanatic that loves to create crazy looks, but a great addition to the neutral eye lover that would love to add a pop of color to their makeup looks. They are SUPER pigmented and can be used without a primer. 

WAYS TO USE THE PALETTE: 
These shadows can be used for the lower lash line as an eyeliner, a pop of color on the lid, or as a crease color along with a black to smoke out your look. They can even be applied on the lips for a crazy fun pop of color to catch attention!



 SWATCHES!!!! Keep in mind these were swatched on unprimed skin with just one swipe; I did not rub the shadows to pick up product because they are super pigmented and staining!

From L to R (Fringe, Savage, Slowburn, Gonzo, Revolt)

From L to R (Thrash, Freak, Urban, Jilted, Chaos)

Now my question to you, is which is your favorite and whether or not you'd like to see some looks with this palette? Personally mine are Slowburn and Urban!

Thanks so much for reading!

---Mehrab Hashin