Lash Extensions: My Newest Addiction

Those of you who know me know that I am a classic low maintenance, natural girl. I only use natural skincare and cosmetics, I can't stand the feeling of polish on my fingernails, and I never flat iron, colour, or even blow dry my hair. So when I decided to get lash extensions, it felt a little out of character, but as a person with little brows and lashes I have always wanted long, luscious lashes.

It sealed the deal when I saw photos from the ACCE awards in which I looked washed out despite having a lot of make-up on. My friend Lisa looked fabulous in every shot - with great definition around her eyes but not looking too made-up. So when she pssst in my ear and gave me the number of the place she gets her lashes done, and I took it.

Now I dabbled in getting them done a while ago, but because they always ended up clumpy, hard and took out my natural lashes when the synthetic ones would fall out. I also was never wowed by their result because I was told that I couldn't get many put on because my natural lashes were so pathetic and sparse that they could not support many fakes glued to them. But when I saw Rebecca at Kathy Nail and Body Salon, not only was she so much gentler and thorough (taking double the amount of time of the other salons I have gone to), she used a new lash adhesive called Extreme Lash and made my lashes so full that I couldn't help but feel a bit like Tammy Faye Baker (in a good way?). "When I am done, you won't even be able to see your natural lashes," Rebecca said to me.

And she was right. $165 and an hour and a half later, my lashes looked amazing. They actually fit into my no-fuss lifestyle because with my new lashes, I wouldn't need to use as much eye make-up.

While at first I was a little self-conscious (I feared they were too much and that no one had the guts to tell me I looked like a drag queen) - all my girlfriends wanted Rebecca's number, so I figured - the bigger the better. My friend Emma even asked me what I had done differently "...you look more - I don't know...polished?" And I smiled because that is exactly what I was going for.

But to keep batting my lovely lashes, I needed to follow a few simple rules:

1. No oils or oil-based products around my eyes

2. Do not stay in a sauna for more than 10 minutes

3. Pat, don't rub your eyes

4. Come for a touch up in 3-4 weeks ($65 approx)

Unfortunately, I am married to my cleansing milk and face oils (but I tried to avoid the eye area). I also didn't stop going to Hot Yoga three times a week, and I found it hard not to rub my eyes when they were itchy.

So if you, like I, are not made for this kind of maintenance, keep this little tip only for that extra something on special occasions. Wink.

Below - in my lash extensions with no mascara on.

My Boyfriend Snacks and I'm gonna be in Trouble

Its hard to stay on a good diet plan when you are in love - every night becomes date night. And it becomes even harder when you move in together. What was once an evening treat has just become a sweet fourth meal.

When I first moved in with Ben, I was on a strict diet of no meat or dairy and low sugar, low starch. But now, I'm a chip dipping, gelato devouring, ice tea drinking little piglet.

I have heard the same from countless girlfriends of mine. Unless you are lucky enough to hit it off with a crunchy granola type, its so easy to slip into bad habits. Its kind of like the freshmen fifteen. The common-law ten? Doesn't have the same ring to it. And while Ben will deny this to the death, when we first met, he was pretty much a meat and potatoes guy (we have even argued over if potatoes are vegetables).

So recently, I decided that enough was enough. I was going to kick it off with a cleanse and get back to the real me. So for those of you in the same situation, I found the following steps have helped immensely:

1. Put your foot down - my therapist says in every healthy relationship the woman (or feminine energy) dictates its direction. He says in all of his years of practice, he has observed that the most functional relationships have occurred in the ones in which the female is clear and reasonable about her requests while the male complies. You know why I like this therapist eh? So I made it known: All shared meals had to follow my diet's guidelines or at least have options that would.

2. Give them a drawer. Or in my case, a three-shelf cupboard - Now, I couldn't strip Ben of all his treats just because I have, so I gave him a snack space to call his own. Somewhere he could stash his Oatmeal Cookies and Miss Vickies, and I don't go into...ever.

3. Keep tabs on yourself - My uber-healthy co-worker gave me this tip of keeping a food journal. Many Naturopaths have made me do this as well to track my eating habits. It is an excellent tool which can provide many insights like: I overeat when I eat too late, or Gee, I really don't drink much water. It is also best for your body to eat at the same times everyday to regulate digestion, so this also helps you keep track of if you have eaten at the right times.

4. Buddy up - It is so much more motivating when you have a friend who is doing the same thing you are, and feels less bad when you cheat together... When Kat and I did our cleanse together, it was not only great to swap recipes, but also more fun. We made an activity of lamenting about our cravings together as well as discovered purple quinoa together.

5. Send them to your Naturopath/ Eastern Medicine Doctor - I paid for a consultation with Dr Sharma and it was the best $90 I spent this year. I have been telling Ben to lay off the bread for years (not for his weight - those who know him know he's a strip of paint, but for his dehydration), but when it came from Dr Sharma, something new resonated with him. He has completely cut out drying breads and opted for Oatmeal in the morning instead of toast as well as hydrating, nutritious soups instead of sandwiches. Its also way easier for me to cut out bread because we no longer have delicious ciabatta buns around the kitchen.

Cupping battle: Me vs. Gwyneth Paltrow

Gwyneth Paltrow and I are in competition to see who is more alternative.

A few years ago when I decided to become an Ayurvedic-inspired vegan, she went Macrobiotic. My neighbour Kat and I got really into the Hot Yoga studio up the street, she and her best friend Madonna became spokespeople to the yoga trend and were shot by the paparazzi on their way to downward dog together. I started stewing apples as a healthy breakfast option, she named her first born after one (she wins the last round). But when I saw the photo of Gwenyth's back after cupping on the Internet, I thought to myself "those small cups? I can beat that - no problem."


Now since becoming an Ayurvedic Practitioner, I have become a little obsessive about my blood. Sounds odd, but, since the blood nourishes and transports waste away from all of our tissues and circulates our entire body, the its quality is extremely important. While, heat in the blood will cause skin sensitivity, impurities in it can contribute to acne.

So, many a time, I have gotten a treatment touted by Traditional Chinese Medicine called "cupping" in which glass cups are made into suction cups as fire is applied to the air within them, and these suctions are placed on our fleshy parts - most popularly the back. This draws up impure blood, promotes the circulation of fresh blood, clears heat and stagnation as well as opens our channels. Its also good for pain relief as it draws toxins and turbid fluid away from the muscle area.

Ayurveda also has a treatment similar to this, but instead they use leeches for suction. But I opt for cupping because I cannot find a practitioner in the city who uses leeches, as well as I would have to do many grounding mantras to get over the idea of those slimy slitherers being placed all over my body. Shiver.

So, determined to top a turbo celeb, I went to the Xiaolan Health Centre to get another round of cupping. And while I paid double what I usually do for acupuncture and cupping, stepping into this clinic is like stepping into Shangrila. And my body thanked me too -- as my CMD, Amanda, applied the cups, they didn't hurt but felt good in a squeezing, stimulating way. Now I won't lie and say it is a relaxing treatment, but it definitely is satisfying (like how a deep massage can be uncomfortable but relieving). I also asked Amanda if this could be good for cellulite as cellulite is simply toxic fat that has impeded circulation and therefore water-retention, and she cheerfully replied absolutely! I note that I should try a series on my thighs.

Cupping also gives you insight to your internal body. Where the suction marks are darker indicates which organs need the most help. For me, it showed that my lungs and kidneys were weakest as those cup markings were a deep red on the back where my kidneys and lungs are. Now, the only downside to this service is that you should only do this when you are not planning to wear any backless dresses or you will look like you have rows of perfectly circle-shaped hickeys down your back. We could call them Hickeys for health - sounds like a charity I could support. But as they usually only last 3-5 days, its not a major inconvenience.

Check out my pic below. Take that Gwyneth, I think I won round four.

Steamy Nights for the Cleanest Pores

When I had acne my mother used to joke that some of my pimples were so big they seemed to cry "pick me! pick me!" (she would raise her hand in the air and fluttered it frantically while doing this). But while her blemish comedy was not only embarrassing, it caused confusion.

You see, in my pre-esthetician days I was torn about whether to pick or not to pick my spotted skin, and when I did, I often bruised it. I would become so attached to digging it out my face that my technique lacked the gentle care it does now. This is a dilemma that many of my clients have - and I can see their struggle as they come in with scars and scabs.

Now if we have clogged pores or pimples, they need to removed - but how do we remove them if we have neither the time or the budget to come in for a full-length professional facial? Well, I will let you in on a little secret: warm steam (You'll thank me for scraping the line: "...a little secret that is more than just hot air: warm steam"...I have a tacky streak hence my love for costume jewellery).

Yes, steaming your skin is an excellent way to unclog your pores without picking at it. And even for those of us who don't have blemishes (I love being able to be put into this camp now!), it helps infuse moisture, mobilize circulation and blood flow, sweat out skin toxins and prevent a build up of blackheads. Even the colour and tone of our skin improves from this simple at-home treatment.

How to do this properly:

Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil
Take it off the hot plate
Hover your face at least six inches away from it with a towel over your head to entrap the steam
Relax here for 5-10 minutes

You can add loose herbs, tea bags (herbal tea) or essential oils to the water for a more therapeutic effect. Sage and rosemary are good for disinfecting the skin, chamomile and rose are best for a soothing effect, and lavender is an easy-to-source skin balancer. I find that these are good to include because our skin absorbs much more deeply as our pores are open.

Initially, I recommend doing this every night for one week to see results of a smoother, less angry complexion. After this, you can decrease down to twice per week until your skin re-balances - or for those with rosacea or broken capillaries, only start with twice per week and hover even further away from the hot pot (8 inches away or so).

Now, after steaming it is very important to follow up with a nourishing moisturizer or hydrating mask to prevent dehydration. If you would like to make it a full evening of skin pampering, exfoliate before the steam, and mask afterward for a mini-facial experience.

Unlike me, you will avoid ugly scars and learn that you don't need to teach your skin tough love, a little TLC will have your complexion clear, clean and positively glowing.

How Hot Yoga Saved My Life

I have a confession to make: I hate doing yoga.

Now it hasn't always been this way, but in the past two years, I find practicing yoga frustratingly slow. Its not as bad while I'm away and I'm nice and relaxed (in India I did yoga daily and when I was in Byron Bay, Australia I even participated in medication circles) but in the city, I end up thinking about tasks I've neglected at work and this week's meal planning while in lotus position. And I usually walk out of class annoyed.

But I feel like a hypocrite because I recommend a good Hatha class to my clients for stress management, but ignore the fact that I, myself, am so ungrounded that I can't hold enough focus to so do myself. But when my Ayurvedic doctor told me that my muscle quality was low and that the only exercise he recommends is yoga -- I had to re-evaluate how I felt in downward dog.

You see, according to Ayurveda, most of us do not have the constitutions for intense cardio or heavy weight lifting. Those of us with high Vata (air) get easily depleted, while those of us with high Pitta (fire) promote internal inflammation with too much stimulation. And slower paced work outs like weights without ample cardio are actually said to push toxins into our muscles and disrupt our muscle metabolism. I recently saw a lecture in which the Ayurvedic doctor speaking plainly said that weights-only fitness regimes were just stupid (atypical lingo for an Ayurvedic doctor, so it had me thinking).

So when a new hot yoga studio opened up less than two blocks away from me, I decided it was an omen.

Now, I had been feeling so cold this winter and there was much heaviness and swelling in my body - what we refer to in Eastern medicine as "dampness" -- so the idea of heat actually appealed to me as I figured that it would help enkindle my body to decrease this imbalance.

I enrolled in an unlimited introductory week for only $20 at I AM YOGA and spent that first week in high planks and chaturangas (which seem to me to just be push ups) in a 40 degree room with lovely hydrating humidifiers.

After my first class I was hooked - my body immediately felt lighter and as if I had better circulation - almost like a tingling sensation. My edema had gone down and I felt deflated but activated. And it was grounding to feel this way without having to exert myself to the point of panting. I really liked how you felt like your body was still engaged even when you are in child's pose as your blood is pumping and your pores are sweating. I also loved that you are much more flexible as your muscles are moist and warm. And with this comes a sense of accomplishment as you can get into the positions and release much deeper than usual. As a Pitta I am highly competitive and detest most things I do not excel at.

I will mention that after that first class I broke out in a rash all over my body. But oddly enough since that initial reaction, I have had no problems since. Perhaps is was simply purging (?) because now I even apply a heating concoction of sesame oil and mustard seed oil to the back of my thighs and tummy (as this oil is good for cellulite and the heat will help push it deeper into my tissues) without any inflammation.

And not only does my body feel better, but my new warming work out also has helped emotionally. As Linda the founder of the studio said "Yoga helps bring you back to the present. We spend so much time in the past or the future that we often find it difficult to just be". (That's me! I wanted to exclaim) "...But how can you think of anything but being in your body when your body is being challenged and your thighs are killing you? Yoga is meant to strengthen that connection between body and mind". She also said that the more we practice being in a peaceful place, the easier it will be to call upon it during stressful situations and therefore we would be less reactive. I really appreciate her very spiritual yet straight forward approach.

And I have actually found it very helpful in how I deal with stress. Any of our staff can vouch that I am very particular and that can make me very high-strung.

But last week we ran out of sample containers, and unlike my usual agitation, I simply saw it as it was - an oversight that we need to prevent from happening in the future. They were ordered before the problem was even presented to me, and we would simply have to deal with this for the next week. There wasn't a lot that my moaning and stomping would do about it. I know you may think this is common sense, but eventhough I know better, it is easy for me to become very attached to these mishaps.

I think that now I can start to re-incorporate regular yoga again, and doshically will have to as heat in the summer climate will not be conducive for my body type (I will probably alternate with Kula Yoga in the Annex for this as they do both hot and not hot yoga).

But with a newly grounded perspective and a re-introduction to stretching out my body, hot yoga has not only helped my regain clarity of thought, but probably kept the worry wrinkles on my forehead at bay. A true life saver.