Beauty and Lifestyle Archives - Page 15 of 15

mia_Gordon April 5, 2017

Places in the 6: Mascot Brewery/Odd Thomas

I have been living in Toronto for the last 5 years and during that time I have discovered my favourite restaurants and bars. I am a creature of habit and always seem to end up at the same handful, and so I am almost ashamed to say that I had never been to Mascot Brewery or Odd Thomas before a friend had invited me out for their V.I.P experience and how could I possibly turn that down.

I must say that I am so glad I decided to venture outside of my regular spots, because Mascot and Odd Thomas are truly hidden gems in this city (expect for the cool people who already knew about it and kept it hidden from me).

Mascot is located on the lower level with Odd Thomas upstairs. Their location is right in the heart of downtown Toronto but tucked away on the quieter and smaller Mercer St. therefore if you aren’t looking for it, it may be a little tough to stumble upon.

Mascot Brewery is the restaurant located on the lower level and it offers a delicious menu variety as well as a slew of tasty local beer options. The restaurant is a really laid back atmosphere, and quieter than I expected so it was easy to have a conversation with my friends. The menu offered shareable, appetizers, and main course so whether you are hungry or just want a nibble there is something for you. I tried the Fried Brussel Sprouts which were actually to die for ( I could of eaten 10 of them not a word of a lie) and the Buttermilk Fried Chicken which was finger licking good, I literally licked the hot sauce off my fingers.

The beer menu has its own separate spot on their website because there are just so many amazing options. I wanted to try something local a little outside of my comfort zone and so I gave the Collingwood Saison a go. It was the perfect introduction to the Saison, light and easy to drink.

After finishing up dinner and drinks, we then went upstairs to a booth at Odd Thomas. The bar had two booths behind the DJ booth and then two on the side with a dance floor in the middle. What I loved about the space we had was it was big enough for all 12 of us, and we were also right by the dance floor because we all know I love to show off my finger dance moves.

The D.J. for the evening was one of my favourite in the city, Conor Cutz. He played an amazing mix of old school favourites. I don’t think there was one song that came on where I didn’t have my hands up in the air. In fact for the first time in a long time I actually stayed at a bar until it closed.

Overall between the delicious food downstairs at Mascot combined with the great music and casual vibe upstairs at Odd Thomas this spot really impressed me. I will for sure be coming back for round two sometime soon.

I highly recommend Mascot and Odd Thomas for anyone who is looking for a more casual and laid back bar scene in downtown Toronto where you can wear your sneakers but also dance the night away.

mia_Gordon March 15, 2017

Mary Kay Spring Collection

I know with the recent snow dumped on the grounds outside, it may not feel like Spring is in the air, but trust me, April showers and May flowers are right around the corner.

As we get ready for the change of season, it is also time to change up the colours in my makeup bag. Time to put away the dark reds of the winter months, and trade them in for purples and pinks. So to help me get ready for the change, I have turned to the Mary Kay Spring Line.

Some of you may remember my smokey eye make-up tutorial that I posted using Mary Kay’s beautiful eye palettes not too long ago. Well now I cannot wait to share their beautiful and appropriately colourful spring collection. I don’t even know where to begin on this one.

Eye Shadow Palettes

To be honest, I was a little nervous when I first opened their palettes since the dark blue was the first colour that I noticed, but then I realized they had a lot of neutral colours and tones to compliment the blue.

I had recently met with a makeup artist who said that red and orange tones would complement my green eyes and so I was ecstatic to see the earthy tones in their Sunlight palette.

I have already started the transition of mixing these colours in on air and I am absolutely loving them

Left – Glistering Horizon – $26

Right – Sunlight Palette – $26

Lip Oils

I nearly screamed with excitement when I saw the beautiful lip oils. As an on air host and reporter with the National Lacrosse League, I need my lip colour to stay on all day long, and what I love most about these oils, is they really moisturize your lips and the colour really sticks. They are made to last I promise.

What I loved about the colours is they weren’t too much if you know what I mean. I am not the kind of girl who can pull of the bright red or deep orange. These colours were a little more subtle, but at the same time fun to play around with. Because they are oil based, they may seem drastic, but they actually go on pretty subtle. They aren’t in your face, but still will have people staring all day long.

I never thought I would be addicted to any lip colour that has a purple undertone, but I cannot get enough of the brilliant violet shade.

Botton- Sheer Pink – $19

Middle – Magenta Ray – $19

Top – Brilliant Violet – $19

Nail Lacquer

I have never been one to wear nail polish because I would always go and get my nails done, and then in a day or two they would chip and I would never have the same colour to fix them.

Yet once I opened the box, I didn’t know which colour I wanted to try first. Each one bright and brilliant. I reached first for the

The best part about the polish, is they don’t chip. I had mine on a week before I needed to retouch. In fact I was changing the colours before they chipped because I wanted to try all of them.

It would be an understatement to say I am obsessed with these nail polishes. I am currently rocking Vivid Sunburst on air

Left – Vivid Sunburst – $10

Middle – Brilliant Violet – $10

Middle – Luminous Mauve – $10

Right – New Blue – $10

For more Mary Kay products make sure to check out their website. You can catch me wearing their makeup and nail polish on NLL TV’s The Box.

mia_Gordon February 1, 2017

Top 6 in the 6 with Cabbie Richards

Christmas 2.0 is here, or should I say the Big Game! That is right it is that time of the year again where the football king will be crowned. While my Miami Dolphins didn’t quite make the cut this year (thanks third string QB) I will most definitely be watching the Patriots and Falcons in action Sunday February 5^th. Now the question is where?

In the past I have done the whole home party, but with a hectic work schedule it has been tough to plan having the gang over. So I sat down with TSN’s very own Cabbie Richards to find out the top sports bars to watch to cheer on your favourite team (for any sport you choose) in this edition of Top 6 in the 6.

Amsterdam Brewhouse: Cabbie says this is one of his favourite places to watch sports during the summer. With a massive two story patio down by Lake Ontario the views are perfect and there are giant TVs. While it may be a little chilly to catch the game outdoors, indoor football watching is just as great. There are giant TV’s around the bar area and according to Cabbie the Smokehouse burger is legit. Plus, you can enjoy a craft brewed beer made in the Amsterdam Brewery.
The Fox and The Fiddle: This bar is in a prime location, very close to the Sky Dome and the ACC so you are right beside the game action. According to Cabbie, the lamb burgers are his personal favourite. Also the décor is more upscale than a lot of sports bars.
Jack Astor’s (John Street): Cabbie loves the atmosphere at this bar. This location is right in the heart of the entertainment district, and during the summer the perfect location to catch the Jays game on their patio, which is heated in the winter time. There is also a giant big screen inside so you will almost feel like you are at the game itself.
Dog & Bear: This bar is located in the very trendy area of Queen West and is always filled with die hard sports fans on game day. There is an old school feel to this bar with wooden booths and large wooden pillars holding up the roof. Cabbie highly recommends the Chicken Quesadillas and says they have an amazing drink menu at a reasonable cost.
Speakeasy 21: This bar is located right in the heart of the financial district with huge TV’s inside to catch the big game. Make sure to try the beef tacos and fried chicken, Cabbies personal favs.
1. Dublin Calling. This bar has the big TV’s and the sound to watch the big game, but there is also so much more. Feel like a game of darts? Check. A round of pool? Check. A ping pong show down? Check. Soon the game on the screen won’t be the only game going down

Would also love to hear your recommendations of great spots in Toronto to catch the big game? Happy Day of football everyone!

XO

Mia

mia_Gordon January 28, 2017

The One Thing I Learned From My Makeup Artist: Smoky Eyes

I should start this blog off with a disclaimer, I am no make-up expert or beauty expert and I am not going to try to pretend to be. As a competitive tennis player I was a bit of a tomboy growing up. I hardly wore makeup and when I did the blush was way too pink and the eye shadow way too blue.

Having worked in TV for the past five years, I have had the opportunity to work with various makeup artists and I have picked up a few tricks of the trade.

A few tricks to the point where I have been asked by friends, colleagues, and even strangers how I do my on camera smoky eye. So I decided to share my very easy, very simple steps to how I do it.

If you are a visual learner check out my YouTube video here:

Still reading? Well, the first step is finding the right colours for your eyes. I have green eyes, and so I have been told by makeup artists that the best colours to use to make the pop are purples and greys. Want to know what colour eye shadow would be best for your eye? Well it all goes back to the basics of the colour wheel and using contrasting hues that complement each other.

Enough of boring science, let’s get into the fun makeup. To create my smoky eye look I am going to use some beautiful Mary Kay products and colours including their two palettes Moroccan Dunes and Paris Starlight

Get your brushes ready ladies because here we go!

Step 1: Eye Concealer

I don’t know about you but no matter how much beauty sleep I get; I always seem to have dark circles or bags under my eye so the first thing I do is always conceal them. I use the Mary Kay Perfecting Undereye Corrector

Step 2: Primer

It is very important to prime the eyes to make sure that the makeup will stay on all day. I love the Mary Kay Foundation Primer with SPF 15. All you need is a few dots and it covers your whole face. It is so light and goes on so smooth.

Step 3: Highlight

Now for the fun part, the actually colours. The first step is to highlight with the lightest colour you are going to use. For this I use the light highlight from the Moroccan Dunes palette. I sweep it just under the brow and also in the corners of my eyes to brighten them up and make them look bigger.

Step 4: Colour your Eyelid

The next step is to choose the main colour you are going to use on your eyelid. Like I said since I have green eyes, I use a purple colour to cover my eyelids. I love the light purple from the Moroccan Dunes palette.

Now comes the va va voom. Again I am going to use a purple, but this time a darker colour from the Paris Starlight palette. I always start at the edge of my eye and then work my way with a soft line above my eyelid. I start at the end because I want to get rid of most of the colour so it doesn’t overpower the colour you have put on the lid. What I really love about the Mary Kay products is they go on so smooth and light, that you don’t really have to worry about making it too dramatic. I also like to take this darker shade under my eye like an eyeliner to really up the drama.

Step 6: A little more drama.

If I am going out with friends, I wouldn’t add this step, but when you are on air, you sometimes need to over exaggerate the colours so the camera picks it up. So just on the outside of my eye I am going to add a darker colour, usually a black or dark grey. I love the dark grey from the Paris Starlight palette.

Step 7: Liquid Eyeliner

Warning: go with the lightest line you can possible do on top of your lid. Because you are going with such a dark smoky eye, adding a cat eye or line would just be overpowering. Start small and build your way up. I love the thin line of the Mary Kay Liquid Eyeliner Pen

Step 6: A little more drama.

If I am going out with friends, I wouldn’t add this step, but when you are on air, you sometimes need to over exaggerate the colours so the camera picks it up. So just on the outside of my eye I am going to add a darker colour, usually a black or dark grey. I love the dark grey from the Paris Starlight palette.

Step 7: Liquid Eyeliner

Warning: go with the lightest line you can possible do on top of your lid. Because you are going with such a dark smoky eye, adding a cat eye or line would just be overpowering. Start small and build your way up. I love the thin line of the Mary Kay Liquid Eyeliner Pen

Step 8: Eyeliner Pencil

You may not even need this step, especially if you used eye shadow underneath the eye in step 5, however if you haven’t figured it out yet, I love a more dramatic look so I will also just line my lower lash line with eyeliner, the Mary Kay Eyeliner to be exact. Again what I love about this eyeliner is it goes on so smooth and not too dark.

Step 9: Mascara

In my opinion this is the most important step in any eye look. The bigger your lashes the bigger and wide your eyes look, which is a necessity for any look you are going for. Even if you don’t wear any makeup at all, use mascara! I use the Mary Kay Ultimate Mascara. I always coat my top lashes twice for extra lift and my bottom lashes once.

Step 10: Finishing Spray

Congrats, you survived my smoky eye steps. Now to finish it all off you just need to spray so it stays in place all day long. I use the Mary Kay Makeup Finishing Spray. You just hold it an arm’s length out and spray twice and you are ready to hit the town!

Well ladies congrats, you are all expert makeup artists now! Just kidding but I really do hope this helps simplify the smoky eye for you all.

Xo

Mia