Solo Lisa

Solo Lisa Reads: August 2021 (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 31 Aug 2021 07:00:00 +0000

I promise you that despite all appearances, this blog is not turning into a full-time book blog! Admittedly, I've been in a blogging and IRL slump with beauty, skincare, or fashion. Makeup? Never wear it while WFH. Skincare? After my stress- and hormone-induced acne cleared up, I've been sticking to the basics. Fashion? Still living in the same pandemic comfy clothes I've been wearing for the last 1.5+ years. Now, books, on the other hand...my TBR list is ever-evolving as new releases come out and my public library ebook holds come through. That explains why there are crickets where these other blog subjects are concerned, but when it comes to books, I had to split up my August recommendations into 2 posts. (Click here for Part 1.) If you're looking for something to read during the last long weekend of summer, here are 9 new recommendations!

1. Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne

Sally Thorne's latest rom-com is another enemies-to-lovers tale, and while it doesn't crackle with the same wit and sexual chemistry as her smash hit The Hating Game, it still has its own charm. Ruthie Midona has always been a tidy, play-it-safe, old-before-her time type of girl. As an employee of Providence Retirement Villa, she seems to relate better to the elderly residents than her twentysomething peers. A girl like Ruthie should know better than to be attracted to Teddy Prescott (the handsome tattooed son of the wealthy developer who buys Providence), and she knows that his job as the assistant to two wealthy and eccentric female Providence residents is only temporary until he can open his own tattoo shop...and yet. Quirky characters and a wholesome story with real heart.

2. The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent

Gotta admit, I spent most of this book being extremely frustrated with its protagonist, Birdy Finch. It was such a strong reaction that it really speaks to Dent's strengths with characterization. Birdy can be funny and charming and generous, yes, but she also makes terrible decisions, self-sabotages, and lies. For much of the book she has a terrible work ethic and often lashes out at people undeservingly. However, during a summer when she impersonates her brilliant sommelier BFF Heather and takes a job at a remote Scottish hotel, Birdy slowly undergoes a journey of personal transformation. She starts off not knowing anything about wine or fine food, and finding herself in over her head, puts in the work to learn. Along the way, she befriends her fellow employees and even sparks a romance with a handsome chef. Read The Summer Job for the escapism, but don't expect to love its heroine 100% of the time.

3. Isn't It Bromantic? by Lyssa Kay Adams

I can always count on Lyssa Kay Adams's Bromance Book Club series to deliver the laughs and the feels in equal measure, and Isn't It Bromantic? is no exception. This time around, she takes the Russian, a character who has always been a punchline in the previous books, and puts him front and centre in his own story. It turns out his name is Vlad and he has a marriage of convenience with the gorgeous Elena, a childhood friend he has loved since forever. Ever the romantic, Vlad had hoped their marriage would ultimately lead to genuine affection, but alas, Elena wants to end things and return to Russia. What'll it take to bring these two lovebirds together? A hockey injury that sidelines Vlad; an unfinished manuscript; a plot involving a human trafficking ring; plenty of Russian home cooking; and of course, the bonhomie of the Bromance Book Club.

4. While We Were Dating by Jasmine Guillory

Jasmine Guillory romances are like chicken soup for the soul when the state of the world gives you anxiety. The characters are so good and kind, there are yummy-sounding food references, nothing particularly bad happens, and the main characters always get together in the end. Her latest is a commoner-dates-VIP rom-com about Ben Stephens, an ad executive who's working on a big campaign, and famous actress Anna Gardiner, who isn't looking for love when she starts filming the commercial but finds it anyway. This book takes place in the same universe as her other books; longtime fans will have fun spotting references to other characters.

5. The Ivies by Alexa Donne

After the sweetness and goodness of the preceding romances, I needed some Teens Behaving Badly action and The Ivies definitely delivered. Think of it as a cross between Pretty Little Liars, Heathers, and that one episode of Gossip Girl where Blair and her minions sabotage Nelly Yuki before the SATs. Scholarship student Olivia is part of the Ivies, a clique of overachieving girls at the exclusive prep school Claflin Academy. They have a pact to help each other get into Ivy League schools: Each girl has her assigned school so that they're not directly competing with each other, and they sabotage classmates and competitors to better their chances. When one of the Ivies gets into Harvard over the clique leader and ends up murdered though, it's up to Olivia to uncover the truth behind her death.

6. Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous by Suzanne Park

I loved, loved, loved this YA rom-com! Sunny Song is a Korean American teenage girl from LA who aspires to be a famous social media influencer. Years ago, her mother's mommy blogging turned her into a viral sensation. These days, she has a YouTube channel and aspires to crack 100k followers. When a livestream gone wrong lands her in hot water, Sunny's parents send her to a digital detox camp in Iowa. The writing is genuinely funny and I LOL'd a lot as I was reading. I also appreciated Park's nuanced exploration of the ups and downs of social media. As someone who has often wondered how the kids of influencers and mommy bloggers will feel about having their entire lives posted online when they're older, it was fascinating to read a story told from the perspective of one of those kids.

7. Serena Singh Flips the Script by Sonya Lalli

Is it still a rom-com if there is very little romance to speak of? Serena Singh is a badass Indian woman living in Washington, DC. She has a lovely apartment and just landed her dream job in advertising. Her only problem? As the years have passed and her friends have gotten married and had kids, Serena (who doesn't want to do either) has found her friend group dwindling and her loneliness increasing. The novel follows a year in Serena's life as she opens herself up to the people around her, makes new friends, and learns to forgive loved ones. I related to many aspects of this book, from Serena's friendship conundrum to her focus on her career and her trials and tribulations as a first-time manager.

8. The Perfect Family by Robyn Harding

Robyn Harding's thrillers are always summer must-reads for me. Her latest novel delivers a satisfying, twist-filled story that guarantees you'll be turning the pages late into the night. The Adlers look like a perfect family and live in a beautiful home in Portland, Oregon. Under the facade though, they're all a mess in their own way. Thomas, the husband, is being blackmailed. Eli, the son, has dropped out of school and nobody knows why. Tarryn, the daughter, has a secret double life as an online cam girl. Even the wife, Viv, has her own secrets. One of the Adlers has gone too far in their secret lives and crossed someone though, because now they're being harassed and their house is targeted.

9. Whisper Network by Chandler Baker

After finishing The Perfect Family, I was in the mood for another thriller. Whisper Network follows four women—Sloane, Ardie, Grace, and Rosalita—who are longtime employees of Truviv. When the CEO of Truviv suddenly passes away, their colleague Ames Garrett is tapped to be his replacement. Ames does not have the greatest track record with female colleagues, to put it mildly, and rumours and whispers have dogged his reputation for years. Baker's book jumps back and forth between the present day, when characters are undergoing depositions for a traumatic incident, and the the weeks leading up to it. What I found most intriguing about this book is how it touches on the #MeToo movement and illuminates the "death by a thousand cuts" sexism that women encounter in the workplace.

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Solo Lisa Reads: August 2021 (Part 1)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 18 Aug 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Greetings, dear readers! I hope you're all having a good summer so far. Mine has been pretty meh, truthfully. Between heat waves and wildfire smoke, the depressing news cycle and working long hours for a July deadline, I'd say this summer has been more of a downer than usual and I haven't felt like blogging very much. To combat my flagging mood, I'm trying to exercise and read more and limit my doomscrolling. With all that said, here's the first of two book review round-ups! Gotta take advantage of that summer reading time while it lasts.

1. The Dating Plan by Sara Desai

Sara Desai's second novel puts a charming spin on the fake relationship trope with an appealing and diverse cast of characters. Daisy Patel is a software engineer fed up with her family's matchmaking attempts, so she enlists the help of Liam Murphy, her brother's friend and her childhood crush, to play her fake fiance. As it happens, Liam is in line to inherit a family-owned distillery if he gets married by a certain date and agrees. I loved Daisy as a character; the descriptions of her workplace ring true to my experiences in software, and her love of Marvel and quirky sense of fashion made me wish I could be friends with her in real life.

2. A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers

The entire time I was reading this novel about a female food critic who's secretly a serial killer and a cannibal, I couldn't help thinking of that infamous Hannibal Lecter quote ("I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti"). A Certain Hunger recounts pivotal moments in Dorothy Daniels's double life, juxtaposing a satire of foodie culture and the media industry with graphic descriptions of violence. Is it disturbing? Yes. Is it mordantly funny? Also yes.

3. Love at First by Kate Clayborn

Is it possible to fall in love at first sound? That's what happens to young Will Sterling when he and his mother visit an estranged uncle at his apartment building. Near-sighted Will hears a girl but can't see her, and he has never forgotten the sound of her laughter or voice. Flash forward several years and Will has inherited his uncle's apartment. Will doesn't want to live there and intends to fix it up as an Airbnb, but these plans clash with the desires of the apartment's elderly residents and Nora Clarke, the girl whose voice he heard all those years ago. This is a sweet, charming, heartfelt romance.

4. Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry by Joya Goffney

This is such a good contemporary YA romance! Quinn keeps a journal of highly sensitive, super private lists. Shortly before graduation, the journal goes missing and an anonymous Instagrammer starts posting photos of her entries online, much to Quinn's mortification. The anonymous Instagrammer also starts blackmailing her into completing items on her secret to-do list. Her only hope of getting the journal back is teaming up with her classmate Carter Bennett, who was the last one to see her journal...and yes, also happens to be really cute. While the premise is breezy and the characters are likeable, Goffney's debut novel also treads more poignant territory in exploring what it's like to grow up as a Black girl in a privileged environment of mostly white people.

5. Don't Hate the Player by Alexis Nedd

I've followed Alexis Nedd on Twitter for a while now because of her hilarious hot takes on Marvel, so of course I was excited for her YA debut. Don't Hate the Player follows Emilia and Jake, who met as children at an arcade birthday party and bonded over their love of gaming. Flash forward to high school, and Emilia is now a star student and field hockey player who's still secretly into gaming, while Jake is a bit of an underachiever in everything except gaming. The two are reunited when their eSports teams enter a high-stakes tournament. This book is every bit as charming and hilarious as I expected, and had me hooked from beginning to end even though I'm not a gamer.

6. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Doesn't that turquoise blue book cover just scream quintessential beach read? Reid's latest is about the Riva siblings, the notable offspring of legendary singer Mick Riva. The eldest, Nina, is a model; brothers Jay and Hud are pro surfer and photographer, respectively; and the youngest, Kit, is a female surfer to be reckoned with. The novel toggles back and forth between the present (when Nina is reeling from the dissolution of her marriage to a tennis pro and getting ready to throw the infamous annual Riva summer party at her Malibu mansion), and the past, recounting the fateful first meeting of their parents and their tumultuous upbringing. If you're into beaches, surf culture, and 80s California/Hollywood nostalgia, this book hits all the sweet spots.

7. People We Meet On Vacation by Emily Henry

I loved Emily Henry's Beach Read so much that I prepurchased People We Meet On Vacation...and then held off reading it for as long as possible so I could "save" it. Does anyone else do that with books they look forward to? I knew that once I started this sweet friends-to-lovers rom-com, I wouldn't be able to stop reading. Anyway, People We Meet On Vacation follows Poppy and Alex, longtime friends who have always vacationed together up until a couple of years ago, when an incident in Croatia prompted them to stop speaking to each other. Now, Poppy feels as though she has everything she wants in life but is unhappy. Thinking of the last time she felt happy (while on vacation with Alex), she reconnects with him by inviting him on a trip to Palm Springs. I really liked Henry's concept of millennial ennui (a feeling I've had a lot lately) and the fact that a vacation spot in my neck of the woods (Tofino and Vancouver Island!) made an appearance in the book.

8. It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey

Tessa Bailey's latest rom-com novel is like a mash-up of Deadliest Catch and Schitt's Creek. Socialite Piper Bellinger has caused one scandal too many in LA. Her stepfather's response? Send Piper to the small fishing village of Westport in Washington state, her birthplace and the hometown of her late father. It is there that Piper refurbishes a dive bar, befriends the locals, reconnects with what truly matter in life, and kindles a romance with a handsome captain/king crab fisherman.

9. If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane

Fake Relationship Turned Real might be my favourite rom-com trope of all, and boy does this one deliver. 36-year-old Laurie is thrown for a loop when her longtime partner of 18 years suddenly breaks up with her. Even worse? It turns out he was having an emotional affair turned real affair with someone else, they are expecting a baby, and Laurie and her ex are coworkers, so every day she has to confront him and her coworkers' pitying looks and gossip. How humiliating. Her solution to her problems is to start fake-dating handsome office scoundrel Jamie. Jamie, in turn, is intent on a promotion and thinks having a steady girlfriend will give him a stable, reliable image and impress their bosses. Although the rom-com tropes are predictable, McFarlane imbues Laurie and Jamie's characters with such pathos that you can't help but be drawn into the story. I was also really impressed with how this book delves into office politics and sexist workplace dynamics.

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Q&A with Lauren Ho, Author of Last Tang Standing

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 17 Jun 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Photo from Lauren Ho's IG

The Internet can be a magical place sometimes. Case in point? Shortly after I posted this book review round-up featuring Last Tang Standing, the author herself, Lauren Ho, reached out to me via DM! I loved LTS so much that I bought my own copy after borrowing the ebook from the library. I also gifted it to one of my BFFs and recommended it for my workplace's book club, so you can imagine what a treat it was to connect with her. Despite the time difference between Vancouver and Singapore, working on her upcoming manuscripts, and taking care of a two-month-old baby, she kindly agreed to answer a few questions for our book club—answers which I'm happy to share with you all today. Enjoy!

Prior to writing and publishing Last Tang Standing, you were a lawyer. What prompted the career change and how has the experience of being a published author been so far?

I wanted to transition back to working in the non-profit space, which was partially the reason why I went into law in the first place, and after I left the legal sector, I never went back.

As for my experiences as a published author, so far it's been very surreal. I keep waiting for some ancestor to appear in my dream and tell me they are “surprised” by my bold move to become an author, then lament that they wish I had stuck with law before asking me for a list of critics, influencers and movie producers they have to “subtly influence” for various reasons.

I've loved connecting with fellow authors, readers, bookstagrammers on social media though, in this Year of the P.

I loved the humour in the book from beginning to end and related so much to some of Andrea's inner monologue rants, particularly about crowded public transit and how easy it is to be unhealthy working a sedentary office job (lol). Have you always been funny or drawn to humour in writing?

Yes, I've always loved comedic writing (I was an amateur stand-up comic for 2 years in Singapore, and I love the craft). One of my all-time favourite books is A Confederacy of Dunces, which is a tragicomedy that is just brimming with wonderful observations and wit.

There's a lot of overlap between your author's bio and Andrea's life: "reformed legal counsel," Malaysian Chinese roots, Singapore setting, and a hilarious reference to your mother(!). How much of your own life did you draw on to create Andrea's world?

An author never tells. But my party line is: All my characters are works of fiction, decidedly not based on anyone I know. Especially my mother.

Andrea is often compared to Bridget Jones and is even blurbed as such on the cover. At the same time, in recent years, there has been a lot of conversation around Asian representation. What does it mean to you, and what do you think it means to your readers, to have a Bridget Jones-esque heroine whose story is rooted in a specific Asian experience?

Very important. I am Asian and I grew up in Asia, having access to media that depicted people that looked like me. However, as a native English speaker, I did not have access growing up to English books that featured Asian leads, or even Asian casts. In a way, I wrote LTS for the younger me. So while LTS is marketed to an international audience, it remains a decidedly modern Asian tale, set in Asia and featuring an Asian cast, and I'm happy to contribute to the representation. I see more and more of such books featuring BIPOC leads in non-"Western" settings, and am glad "Western" publishing is taking more chances in publishing diverse voices.

If LTS were optioned for a Netflix rom-com, who would you dreamcast as Andrea, Suresh, Eric, Linda, and Mama Tang?

Hmm. I can't answer that. There's just so many good Asian actors I can see in these roles. But I do think that Dr. Rupy Aujla (@doctors_kitchen on IG) is how I pictured Suresh to be!

Product Review: Fresh Vitamin Nectar Vibrancy-Boosting Face Mask

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 15 Jun 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Pandemic living hasn't been kind to my skin, what with all the mask-wearing, over-working, and up-and-down stress and hormone levels. No wonder I've been dealing with more breakouts than usual! Fortunately, using my topical skin prescription twice daily as prescribed helped a lot, as did streamlining my skincare and minimizing potential irritants. The happy result is that the frequency and severity of new breakouts have decreased dramatically in the last few months, so much so that I'm now focusing my full attention on fading the hyperpigmentation and scarring left behind by old blemishes. I've been applying SPF and niacinamide serum daily, and twice weekly I exfoliate and apply the Fresh Vitamin Nectar Vibrancy-Boosting Face Mask ($35 to $83 for various sizes, purchased by me).

The Fresh Vitamin Nectar Mask is not a new or new-to-me product (I've used up a smaller jar of it before), but it worked well enough to warrant a re-purchase during Sephora's big sale so I figured it deserved a shout-out on the blog too. Vitamins C, E, and B5 combine with AHA fruit acids from a concentrated fruit paste of oranges, lemons, and clementines. The result? A face mask that has a consistency halfway between gel and marmalade, and packs a serious glow-enhancing punch. (Side note: It's so marmalade-y I have whimsical visions of Paddington accidentally eating a jar of it whenever I use it.)

As with all things Fresh, the pleasure of the product derives as much from the user experience as it does the efficacy. The green-tinted glass jar has weight and heft. The mask has an invigorating citrusy scent and chunks of real fruit and peel in it. It only has to stay on for 10 minutes, so it's more doable and less of a commitment on a weeknight. For such a short active time though, the fruit acids sure do work their magic. I usually feel a slight tingling at first, and when I wash it off my skin looks noticeably brighter and more even-toned.

A couple of extra usage tips, in no particular order:

This mask is more of a brightening mask that improves overall skin tone than an exfoliating one, so if you crave a bit more exfoliation you can do that beforehand.
Regardless of whether you exfoliate before or not, don't leave it on for more than 10 minutes max! The actives could irritate skin.
This is a messy mask to wash off. Use a dampened paper towel or a face cloth that won't show stains.
Once opened, you should probably use it up ASAP instead of letting it sit in your medicine cabinet and rotating through other face masks. The actives will lose their potency after a while.

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Solo Lisa Reads: May 2021 (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Mon, 31 May 2021 07:00:00 +0000

As promised in my last book review post, here's part 2!

1. Last Tang Standing by Lauren Ho

This is basically Crazy Rich Asians meets Bridget Jones's Diary; it's so much fun and just laugh-out-loud hilarious from beginning to end. Protagonist Andrea Tang is a thirtysomething single Malaysian Chinese woman living in Singapore and working as a lawyer at a top law firm. The novel follows Andrea's misadventures over the course of a year, through dating ups and downs (culminating in a relationship with billionaire Eric Deng and a more-than-friends flirtation with her colleague and rival, the handsome Suresh), long work hours as she tries to make partner, encounters with her overbearing mother (who wants her to get married and have kids ASAP), and a constant cycle of binge drinking and hangovers. Somebody please option this book for a film.

2. A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey

Lila Reyes feels as though her life is falling apart. Her grandmother has passed away, her best friend is moving away after graduation, and her boyfriend has broken up with her. Concerned about Lila's mental health, her parents send her to England to live with an aunt for a summer, and it is there that Lila's journey towards healing begins. This is a sweet and cozy YA romance with plenty of baking references and Miami flavour, and although I was skeptical that I would enjoy the book initially, its storytelling rhythm eventually lured me in.

3. A Pho Love Story by Loan Le

Another sweet YA romance! Picture Romeo and Juliet as the children of rival pho restaurant owners who despise each other, and you have A Pho Love Story. Bao Nguyen is perfectly average in every way and trying to figure out his passion in life. Linh Mai has already figured out her passion, art, but is too scared to go against her parents who want her to go into a more stable profession. Bao and Linh bond over their common background as the children of Vietnamese immigrants and restaurant owners, and they both encourage each other to pursue their dreams. Le's details about life as restaurant kids have an authentic ring to them, as does her depiction of how the adults are caught up in family secrets but won't reveal anything for fear of losing face.

4. This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens

I love charming and heartfelt British rom-coms like this one. Minnie Cooper has always felt that her birthday was unlucky. It started on New Year's Eve 1990, when her mother was in hospital about to give birth to Minnie and win a major contest for giving birth to the first baby of the decade. Not only did her mother lose the contest to another woman in the same hospital, the other woman stole the baby name that was intended for Minnie as well: Quinn. The years unspool and serendipitious encounters keep bringing Minnie and Quinn together, but it isn't until New Year's Eve in the present day that they meet face-to-face for the first time. Minnie has always resented Quinn as someone who is rich and privileged, someone who stole all the "birth luck" Minnie should've gotten when he got her name, but truth be told Quinn's life hasn't been as charmed and easy as she thinks it is. I started out annoyed with Minnie and her lack of self-awareness, especially her terrible decision-making and tendency to blame everything on bad luck, but by the end I was charmed and rooting for her and Quinn to get together.

5. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

I read this for book club at work, and although this isn't normally the type of book I'd pick up I really enjoyed it. Addie LaRue begins life in a sleepy French village in 1714. One night, fleeing a marriage she doesn't want, she prays to the wrong god and ends up with immortality. But there's a catch: Nobody remembers Addie's face or meeting her within moments of encountering her, and she can't leave any trace of her existence. Schwab's premise allows her to sidestep the standard tropes (i.e. the immortals can't be caught by the authorities and they have to keep it a secret) and ask more intriguing questions. What does it mean to live a life worth living, to leave a legacy, to be remembered by those who love you?

6. Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas

If you've read Angie Thomas's debut novel The Hate U Give, you were probably as charmed as I was by the rich characterization of Starr's father Maverick, especially all the details that hinted at a rich and storied past. Well, this novel is that past, recounting the months leading up to Starr's birth when Mav is still in a gang. He's struggling with the recent death of his cousin, the birth of his son Seven and suddenly becoming a father, and paying the bills. Mav starts a part-time job at the local grocery store where the elderly owner becomes a surrogate father figure to him and sets him on a better path. It's interesting to see Thomas write first-person from a male point of view and she nails it; Mav's inner monologue feels authentic and three-dimensional.

7. Milk Fed by Melissa Broder

[Trigger warning: This book deals with eating disorders.] Rachel is a 24-year-old lapsed Jewish woman living in LA and working a dead-end job at a talent management agency. Every day, her food rituals, calorie-counting, and overexercising give her a sense of control over her life. But this careful control unravels when she decides at her therapist's urging to cut off contact with her mother, and when she meets Miriam, an Orthodox Jewish woman who works at Rachel's favourite frozen yogurt shop. Miriam's friendship opens Rachel up to all the sides of her character that she has been repressing--her appetite for food, her longing for familial connection, her Jewishness, her latent homosexuality. There is nothing sweet, cozy, or feel-good about Milk Fed which makes it very different from the type of book I normally gravitate towards, but I admired the specificity and detail of the story Broder weaves.

8. Life's Too Short by Abby Jimenez

Abby Jimenez rom-coms are must-reads for me. They always have charming characters, genuine laughs, emotional moments that'll tug at your heart strings and leave you close to tears...and dogs! This latest one is no different. Vanessa is a travel influencer intent on living life to the fullest before her 30th birthday; her mom and sister both died young from the same hereditary disease that Vanessa suspects is lying dormant in her genes and she feels as though she has no time to waste. But when her half sister abandons her baby with Vanessa, she suddenly finds herself a captive in her own apartment. Luckily, Adrian, the hot lawyer next door, is there to help. Vanessa and Adrian find themselves falling hard for each other, but can Vanessa really start a relationship with him when she knows she won't be around?

9. The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

The Secret Commonwealth positively crackles with excitement from the beginning. The story picks up years after the events of His Dark Materials; Lyra is now a 20-year-old scholar, deeply insecure and melancholy, no longer the confident happy-go-lucky child she once was. What's more, she and her daemon Pantalaimon have had a rift and don't get along anymore. One night while out on his own, Pan witnesses a man being brutally murdered. Their investigation brings them into the fold of political conspiracies and strange new characters, and takes them from the gyptians' boats to far-flung destinations. If you're a longtime fan of His Dark Materials like I am, it's more than a little sad to see Lyra and Pan not getting along and being separated, but damn if this narrative conceit doesn't make the book more intriguing.

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Lazy Girl Approved: Garnier Serum Cream SPF 30

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Fri, 28 May 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Lazy Girl Approved highlights long-lasting, goof-proof, fuss-free products that can fit into the most minimalist of regimens. If you consider yourself a low-maintenance beauty lover, these product reviews are for you!

Pre-pandemic, one of my favourite evening activities was lining up my entire nighttime skincare routine on the coffee table and doing it bit by bit while watching Netflix. It felt like such a treat to have this moment of stillness and homebody coziness between work, barre, and chores. But now that we're over a year into staying home so much, what was once a pleasurable routine has become kind of a drag. I've been looking for ways to streamline my morning and evening skincare routines wherever possible, embracing skinimalism and multi-purpose products like Garnier Green Labs Brightening Serum Cream SPF 30 - Pinea-C ($22.99, available at London Drugs, purchased by me).

What it is: This 3-in-1 product promises to replace your moisturizer, serum, and sunscreen in the mornings with just one easy step.

Packaging-wise: The 72 ml pump bottle contains just a little bit more product than standard 50 ml sizes. Also, kudos to Garnier for going with a pump dispenser that twists to the left or right to close. It's a small detail, but I hate the pumps where you have to pump down and screw the nozzle back in to close it; they always waste so much product in the process.

Formula-wise: There are 3 formulas for different skincare concerns. The Brightening formula contains vitamin C, while the Replumping formula contains hyaluronic acid and the Pore Perfecting formula's hero ingredient is niacinamide. I picked the Brightening formula because I wanted the extra bit of antioxidant protection that vitamin C provides in conjunction with SPF. The chemical sunscreen blend features octocrylene, homosalate, octisalate, and avobenzone (incidentally, the same active sunscreen ingredients used in the pricier Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen). All three formulas are free of controversial ingredients like mineral oil, parabens, and dyes. There is a bit of a pineapple-y fragrance.

Performance-wise: This is an incredibly lightweight SPF moisturizer that blends into skin quickly. Even when I follow the two finger rule by applying two finger lengths' worth of SPF to my face and neck, it blends in seamlessly and feels like practically nothing. My husband has issues with sunscreen texture and hates the feeling of any product on his skin, but he'll specifically request this sunscreen. If that isn't a glowing testament to how invisible it feels, I don't know what is! I haven't noticed any dramatic brightening benefits from the vitamin C, but then again I wasn't expecting the vitamin C in this product to deliver the same results as a premium vitamin C serum. I really just wanted it built into the sunscreen for antioxidant protection and convenience. Because the formula is so lightweight, if your skin is on the dry side, I'd suggest applying hyaluronic acid serum to any spots that need the extra hydration before applying the Garnier Serum Cream.

Lazy girls will like it because: Garnier Serum Cream is a godsend for WFH mornings and days where I don't leave the condo. The SPF 30 provides just enough sun protection to tackle the UV rays coming in through my windows. (I reapply a mineral-based SPF 50 on top if I go outside.) I love the convenience of an all-in-one formula for when I've hit the snooze button one too many times, I don't want to fuss around with layering multiple products and waiting for them to absorb, and my first Zoom meeting of the day starts in 5 minutes. Once I resume in-person barre classes, I can also see myself tucking a spare bottle in my gym bag because it's so convenient, portable, and affordable. As I write this review, I've used the bottle photographed here for a couple of months now and it's almost empty. You bet I'm going to be picking up another.

Solo Lisa Reads: May 2021 (Part 1)

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 13 May 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Before I launch into my latest book review round-up, I want to say a huge thank you to anyone who read, commented on, or shared my post about my own experiences with anti-Asian hate. That was an intensely personal and difficult piece to write and publish and the entire process left me feeling more emotional and vulnerable than I anticipated. As I noted on Instagram, I've taken actions when and where I could, but in the last while I've also found that I needed breaks, both for my own mental health and to free up bandwidth so I could focus on a big deadline at work.

Now, onto the books. Because of the aforementioned breaks, I've built up quite a backlog of books I enjoyed and want to feature! I'm hoping to give them all a well-deseved shout-out, which is why I'm doing two book posts this month. These reads are notable in that they offered me moments of joy and forgetfulness, especially as BC enters the third wave of the pandemic and restrictions have become stricter again. May they do the same for you.

1. Super Fake Love Song by David Yoon

Yoon's sophomore novel is about a geeky high school boy who inadvertently lies to his crush about being the frontman of a rock band, then has to follow through on his lies by actually performing in the school talent show. It's good gentle fun, and while it didn't have the layered complexity and tender nuances of Frankly In Love, it had enough humorous one-liners and moments to keep me smiling the entire way through.

2. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

I'm a strangely contrarian reader when it comes to bestsellers. If something is wildly popular I'm more reluctant to pick it up, which explains why I didn't read Homegoing until I joined the book club at work and this novel was its inaugural selection. Gyasi's debut novel starts with two half-sisters in Ghana. One is a renowned beauty who marries a British slave trader and stays in Ghana and enjoys a relatively privileged socioeconomic positon, while the other is captured and sold into slavery in the United States. From there, the stories of these two half-sisters and their descendents diverge, spanning centuries and covering key historical moments for Black people in American history. Elements of the book reminded me of other novels I enjoyed, namely The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (also about two sisters whose fates diverge) and Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (also an epic tale about a family dealing with racial discrimination across multiple generations). I loved Homegoing and my only regret is that I let my contrarian ways self-sabotage me into not picking it up sooner.

3. Three Perfect Liars by Heidi Perks

You know when you feel like you have the attention span of a goldfish, nothing on your TBR list appeals to you, and you just want a read-in-a-day thriller as a palate cleanser? Three Perfect Liars was exactly that for me. This novel alternates between three unreliable female narrators who all work at the same advertising agency: Laura, who has just come back from maternity leave and is paranoid that her replacement will take her job permanently; Mia, who was supposed to be Laura's replacement but is now staying on permanently for unknown reasons; and Janie, a stay-at-home mom who is the wife of the advertising agency's CEO and has secrets of her own. One night there is a fire that completely destroys the building that the ad agency is in and a body is found. What happened? Who's responsible? And what secrets are all three women hiding? The pages practically turn themselves.

4. Not So Pure And Simple by Lamar Giles

As a vehement defender of "light and fluffy" books, one of the hills I will die on is that it's much harder to do light and fluffy well while making acerbic points than it is to do faux profundity. Lamar Giles pulls off just this balancing act in Not So Pure And Simple, and wow does he make it look effortless. This story about a Black boy who accidentally signs up for his church's teen purity pledge while pursuing his lifelong crush is hilarious, but also has thoughtful points to make about evangelical Christianity, teen sexuality, toxic masculinity, and female consent. Del is such a winning and sympathetic protagonist, and his descent into toxic "Nice Guy" territory so gradual, that I didn't see it until three quarters of the way through the book...and then I was glad to see the people in his life calling him out on it. The dialogues between Del and his parents and sister should function as a conversational blueprint for any parents of teen boys, proving that YA is not just for teens.

5. The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Me while reading The Guest List and telling my husband about it: "It's a murder mystery/thriller set at a wedding on a remote island off the coast of Ireland." Him thinking of Foley's other novel The Hunting Party: "Weren't you reading this before?" Me: "No, that was a different one, that one was at a New Year's Eve party set on a remote estate in Scotland. Completely different." Him (laughing): "Completely." All of this is just to say, this novel is great escapist fun if you enjoyed her other work.

6. Love Is A Revolution by Renee Watson

Nala doesn't consider herself an activist type; she'd much rather spend her summer watching movies, trying new ice cream flavours, and just hanging out. But when she meets the adorable Tye at a Harlem youth event, she finds herself telling a few tiny lies and playing up her community involvement and activism to impress him. This is a gentle and winsome novel that also feels quietly radical at the same time, and that all comes down to Nala's characterization. Watson presents Nala as she is in all her glory and her flaws. She's a plus-size Black girl and she has some insecurities, but she is confident in her looks, loves music and making lists, and has loving relationships with the people around her, particularly her grandmother and the residents of her grandmother's retirement home.

7. Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy

Molloy's sophomore novel is an entertaining and well-crafted twist-y thriller about a pair of newlyweds, a handsome psychotherapist and his wife, who move to a sleepy town in upstate New York. He is there to care for his aging mother and set up a new practice; she is lonely and bored. One day she discovers that she can hear every word of her husband's sessions with his patients through an air vent upstairs from his home office. I won't reveal any spoilers here, but I will say that Molloy pulls off some major surprises by upending readers' expectations. The book has shades of Misery and Rear Window about it, and there's a clever allusion to Charlotte Perkins Gilman's short story "The Yellow Wallpaper."

8. Happily Ever Afters by Elise Bryant

If I were to describe Happily Ever Afters in one sentence, it'd be "Portrait of the budding romance novelist as a young Black woman." For 16-year-old Tessa Johnson, the words and love stories have always come effortlessly, but when she gets into an alternative high school for gifted arts students, she suddenly finds herself struggling with writer's block. Her plan to get the words flowing again? Turn her life into the perfect rom-com by pursuing a broodingly handsome classmate. Little does she realize that the perfect guy for her lives just down the street. Rom-com storyline aside, I really enjoyed the joyful details in Happily Ever Afters and Bryant's nuanced depiction of Tessa's relationship with her brother who has disabilities. There were also aspects of Tessa's characterization that made me nostalgic for my past as a high-schooler who was super into creative writing and in a gifted program.

9. Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade

This delightful rom-com novel is a love letter to fanfic culture and it stars a plus-size heroine. April is a geologist by day; by night, she's a superfan of a Game of Thrones-esque fantasy show based on Greek mythology, indulging in cosplay, writing fanfic, and corresponding with one particularly thoughtful and mysterious fanfic author who just seems to get her. When a photo of April's latest cosplay goes viral and online trolls attack her, the handsome star who plays Aeneas on the show, Marcus, asks her out on Twitter. Little does April know that Marcus is also her fanfic friend. The fanfic bits had me laughing me out loud, while the insecurities and secrets April and Marcus struggled with had me rooting for them. I'm already looking forward to the sequel.

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#StopAsianHate

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Mon, 22 Mar 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Illustration by mailinhstudio

Last Tuesday, a white gunman in Atlanta, Georgia targeted Asian-owned businesses and killed 8 victims, 6 of whom were Asian women. The sadness of this tragedy has been sitting heavy in my body throughout the week, especially after months of reporting (mostly in Asian-centred media and resources, rarely in mainstream media) about anti-Asian racism during the pandemic. I've been retweeting and sharing information in between bouts of crying on the couch since the shooting. At the same time, I've been reluctant to speak about my own experiences until now. The instinct to always be the model minority, to brush things off and keep my head down and quietly succeed, runs strong.

******

Before I begin, I need to lay out some context. My parents immigrated from Guangdong, China to Canada in the early 1980s. Like many immigrants, they didn't know English upon arrival and they immediately threw themselves into working as hard as possible to make a living in a strange land. Over the years, my dad worked 7 days a week as a contractor (he "cut back" to 6 when he got older), while my mom struggled with debilitating health problems as she raised 2 young children. The opportunity to learn English dwindled in the face of everyday life. That's why when I started kindergarten, I didn't speak a word of English and I spent the next 3 years in ESL.

Once I emerged from ESL though, something clicked. The English language became easy. I still have a vivid memory of my teacher in grades 3 and 4 lending me her daughter's old Baby-Sitters Club novels and how they became English textbooks, in a way. I studied the simple sentences on a meta level, deducing the rules of punctuation and basic grammar and storytelling, looking closely at how words were spelled. I began to write my own stories. By the time I was in grades 5, 6, and 7, my teachers declared that I was a gifted writer. I continued to excel in high school; my best subject was English and my teachers were encouraging, sensitive, and kind. I earned a full scholarship to UBC where I double-majored in English literature and international relations. These days, I work in software and I make a comfortable living distilling complex concepts and procedures into simple, easy-to-consume content.

******

I'm giving you all these details because I realize that, compared to the victims in Atlanta, I come from a lot of privilege. My parents' story is the typical model minority immigrant success story. ("They came here with nothing, and now they have a house and cars, and their kids are college graduates, all because they worked hard.") I was educated here. I have a better-than-average command of the English language. I grew up in a multicultural city with a large Asian population, surrounded by people who lived similar experiences. I have a white-collar job. I live in a comfortable bubble. I've never had racial slurs yelled at me. And even then, I've had my brushes with anti-Asian racism and "Did that just really happen?" moments of microaggression. Many of these experiences are rooted in the fact that I excel in an area not stereotypically regarded as "Asian."

******

The most common microaggressions I get are of the "You speak English so well!" and "Where are you REALLY from?" variety. The last time "You speak English so well!" happened was 4 years ago, when my husband and I were traveling in Italy. We were on a train going from Cinque Terre to Rome and we'd struck up a conversation with a white couple from Port Coquitlam of all places. We immediately bonded over our shared Vancouver roots and the fact that it was also their first time in Italy. The wife thought she was paying me a compliment when she said, "If I close my eyes, you sound like you could be a California blonde." Not knowing how to respond in the moment, I smiled awkwardly.

******

In grade 9, I was inexplicably placed in remedial English classes. My teacher at the time said, "I don't know why you were selected." Details gradually emerged from the rumour mill. The school administration had allegedly over-reported the number of ESL students to get more funding. When called upon to prove the money was being used for its intended purpose, they pulled up old student records and stuck anyone who had ever been in ESL in a one-time series of 3 remedial English classes. The fact that I was literally at the top of my class didn't mean anything—I couldn't get an exemption. It was humiliating and a complete waste of time.

******

The mother of an ex-boyfriend once said to my face that being a "double minority" (Asian and a woman) helped give me an edge in getting my scholarship. I remember at the time being completely frozen and thinking "Did she really say that?"—especially since she had always been very warm towards me. Now I think about this incident and contrast it with the grade 9 memory, and I want to laugh at the absurdity of it all. None of my excellent work counted because I was ESL...but somehow I had it easier because I was Asian and a woman. That's some model minority bullshit right there.

******

In my last year of university, I took a Canadian Lit class with a tenured white male professor, Richard Cavell. I'd put my hand up to contribute something to an in-class discussion—I can't remember the exact text we were discussing, but I used the word "fossilized." This man didn't know who I was, or that I was on full scholarship and had been nominated for English department awards several times (and won once), or that I had placed in a campus-wide poetry contest in my freshman year. He eyed me coldly in a way he never did with the white students and said, "'Fossilized' is a good word. Is it yours?" God forbid someone who looked like me could possibly have smart, insightful things to say on a subject like English literature. All of my accomplishments and excellent work were for naught. This felt like grade 9 all over again.

Later in the term, he withheld my grade on an assignment (after forgetting that he'd agreed I could do an alternate assignment I felt more passionate about), and insinuated that I had plagiarized. I had submitted original work and had not plagiarized at all. The whole experience was deeply distressful. I remember being in tears for several weeks and speaking with instructors whose classes I'd aced and asking if they'd be character references if worse came to worst. I learned through speaking with others in the English department that my experience was not isolated (he had a history of incidents with POC). At the same time, his tenure meant nothing would happen to him, and as a scholarship student with limited resources, I didn't feel like I had any recourse. Besides, I was this close to graduating and I had a job lined up. So I did the model minority thing and kept my head down and got on with it, jumping through his stupid face- and ego-saving hoops.

The incident tainted what was otherwise an amazing undergrad experience at UBC and put me off academia for a long time. Ironically, the paper I turned in was on Disappearing Moon Cafe by Sky Lee, which Cavell had excerpted for our syllabus. This white man had essentially bullied an Asian-Canadian student while teaching an Asian-Canadian text. How fucked up is that? [EDITED TO ADD: I Googled the guy out of curiosity while writing this post, and yep, he's still a jerk.]

******

At the beginning of the pandemic, I was speaking with a white woman and saying how I was nervous about going out by myself and taking the SkyTrain on my own because of the increasing frequency of anti-Asian racist incidents in Vancouver. She was quick to reassure me that she herself had never seen anything and always felt safe on the SkyTrain, and the cars were practically empty when she took it. This is someone who has always been kind to me, and I think she meant well and wanted to reassure me, but the comment felt dismissive of my (sadly valid) fears at the same time. A while after that, I found out someone I was close to had been the victim of an anti-Asian assault.

******

As hurtful as these experiences could be, at least I have the privilege of being fluent in English. I have the comfort of knowing I can bend this language to my will, wield it like a sword or a scalpel when I need my words to cut deeply. I can't imagine what my parents had to go through, the number of times they've had "Speak English" or "Learn English, you're in Canada" comments lobbed at them.

I used to feel shame and embarassment when I'd have to translate for my parents as a young kid: letters from the government, interactions at the passport office, getting a refund from the store. They, in turn, were impatient with my shyness. "Why would you be shy?" my mom demanded. "You can speak English and you have a voice. Use it."

Then there were the times I wished I could be there to translate and defend but I wasn't. When I was a teenager, my dad got into a fender bender with a white guy who was in the wrong. Rather than admit he was at fault, he yelled at my dad and bullied his way into looking at my dad's insurance papers so he could get his version of the story in first. My dad was tongue-tied with rage and his lack of fluency—all he could do was auto-dial me on his phone and I listened to the whole exchange, powerless to do anything.

******

I've noticed a tendency in white rhetoric to recoil from the word "racist," as though that is the most hurtful and offensive thing you can accuse a person of being. The immediate, almost Pavlovian response is "I'm not racist." And that's it, the discussion is shut down. Well, alright then. What if I didn't use the word "racist" and used other words instead? Words like thoughtless, careless, rude, insensitive, discriminatory, biased, reckless, violent? Would you listen then? Because these words apply too. I've spent my life keeping my head down and not causing trouble, swallowing my feelings. These things all happened to me, and as I keep reiterating in this post, I am a relatively privileged Asian-Canadian living in a multicultural city. I can guarantee that if you talk to your Asian friends, they will have similar stories, if not more painful. Please listen. Don't shut down. Reflect on how you can do better.

Solo Lisa Reads: February 2021

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 24 Feb 2021 08:00:00 +0000

My reading habits took a post-New-Year nosedive. Work dominated for 3 weeks, and after the anxiety and adrenaline of meeting my big January deadline wore off, I found to my dismay that I had the attention span of a goldfish. Some of the books on this list date back to Christmas break, but I stand by all the recommendations here wholeheartedly. Do you see anything here you want to add to your reading list?

1. Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson

Aspiring young Black singer Enchanted thinks her dreams have come true when she's discovered by legendary R&B artist Korey Fields. Korey takes Enchanted under his wing and seems romantically interested in her, but it quickly becomes apparent (to the reader, at least) that this relationship is abusive and he is grooming an emotionally vulnerable, underage girl. Fast forward to the present day, and Korey Fields is dead in the other room; Enchanted is covered in blood and has no memory of what happened just as the police are knocking on the door. What led up to the fateful night of Korey's death, and who killed him? This was a riveting but emotionally disturbing read that prompted me to look up the new-to-me term "misogynoir."

2. The Love Square by Laura Jane Williams

Talented chef and unlucky-in-love Penny Bridge goes from having no boyfriends to having three men who all want to date her. Love square indeed! What follows is a meandering tale about falling in and out of love over the course of a year, and figuring out what the heart truly wants. I always enjoy a good lighthearted English romance, and this one definitely delivers on the cozy vibes and warm characters.

3. Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

This book is basically an incredibly sweet YA twist on You've Got Mail and the enemies-to-lovers trope, starring two teens who run the Twitter accounts for their families' rival food businesses. Pepper is a consummate overachiever and perfectionist, and the snarky voice behind the Twitter account for Big League Burger, her family's mega-successful fast food chain. Jack, the class clown, tweets for his family deli, which has been a beloved NYC institution for decades. When Jack starts an online feud with Pepper/Big League Burger and accuses them of stealing his grandma's grilled-cheese recipe, it's only a matter of time before the tweets spark something else. The devil's in the details when executing predictable romance tropes, and Lord does a beautiful job here with the food references and the genuine warmth in the characters' interactions.

4. Eat A Peach by David Chang

I love David Chang's Netflix shows and admire what Momofuku has accomplished in the culinary world, so of course I was intrigued by Chang's memoir. This book covers a lot of ground, from his formative years as a golf prodigy and feeling like an outsider growing up in white America, to his first manic episode, his food and travel experiences in Japan, and the early days of the first Momofuku. Eat A Peach is full of remarkable details, but the thing I was most struck by was how Chang managed to find success in an incredibly stressful industry despite his mental health struggles. I also liked how he reflected on past mistakes and misguided attitudes (like the boys' club approach to cooking and the lack of diversity in haute cuisine) with increased self-awareness.

5. If Only by Kate Eberlen

This is such a tender love story about two damaged individuals moving on from past traumas. 22-year-old Letty and 19-year-old Alf are both English speakers taking an Italian class in Rome. Alf is attracted to Letty right away, but Letty is very reserved. The only thing that connects them is dance: Alf was a former teen ballroom champion and Letty was passionate about ballet before a career-ending injury in her teens. The book goes between the present day and Letty and Alf's past lives, moving through the many serendipitous moments, near misses, and coincidences connecting them both. I can't say any more because spoilers, but it's a lovely novel. Plus, it takes place in Rome so that's one way to satisfy your wanderlust. UPDATED TO ADD: In the book, Alf has an Instagram account featuring Rome travel photos and oblique references to his feelings for Letty. When I shared this post on Instagram, Kate Eberlen DM'd me and informed me that Alf's IG account exists in real life. Delightful!

6. Self Care by Leigh Stein

First of all, isn't that a great book cover? I started reading Self Care expecting a lighthearted satire of the fitness and wellness industries like Fitness Junkie (which I reviewed here). Wow, that was not the case at all. Stein's take has bite; it doesn't hold back as it skewers the ways these industries are predicated on putting privileged white womanhood on a pedestal. The characters aren't very likeable, but there are enough details in Stein's sharply observed (albeit brief) novel that will make you smile wryly with recognition.

7. The Last Story Of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim

The Last Story Of Mina Lee jumps back and forth between the 1980s, when Mina arrives in Los Angeles as an undocumented immigrant and begins a new life after a devastating loss, and the present day, when Mina's adult daughter Margot is trying to piece together what happened in the days leading up to her mother's sudden death, and all the secrets Mina kept from her. Kim's novel is a remarkable feat of storytelling; it feels epic and expansive even though the story is intimate and small-scale in its focus. I also find it interesting how this book takes someone who would normally be a side character(an immigrant working as a grocery store cashier, an elderly Korean woman on the bus) and puts her story front and centre.

8. White Ivy by Susie Yang

White Ivy ticks a lot of boxes for me: it's set in Boston; it's an Asian immigrant story; it features WASP-y Boston Brahmin types; and it deals with issues of race, class, and privilege. Ivy Yang manipulates, steals, and lies. She's a social climber who wants to escape the desperate poverty of her family's early years in America, and she does so by becoming engaged to Gideon Speyer, a golden boy descended from a wealthy political family who also happens to be Ivy's former childhood crush. Ivy's journey has whiffs of The Talented Mr. Ripley and Becky Sharp from Vanity Fair about it, with an engrossing and twisty thriller feel. I couldn't put it down.

9. Simmer Down by Sarah Smith

Another enemies-to-lovers rom-com, this time set in Hawaii and starring rival food truck owners! Nikki DiMarco is struggling financially and emotionally: Her father's sudden death prompted her to leave a dream job in Portland and move to Hawaii, where she runs a Filipino food truck with her mother that's just barely staying afloat. Things become complicated when a British food truck, run by the handsome Callum James, starts parking in the same location. Nikki and Callum make a wager: The winner of the Maui Food Festival gets the spot and the other food truck has to move. Too bad they didn't wager on the sparks that would fly between them. The enemies-to-lovers trope can get tired, but Smith keeps the story fresh with food truck and Filipino cuisine references galore.

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2020 Reflections and 2021 Goals

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 08:00:00 +0000

A very belated Happy New Year to you all, dear readers! I did not anticipate publishing my annual reflections/goals post so late into 2021. We had a very safe and cozy COVID Christmas where we had a prime rib dinner, watched a lot of TV and movies, slept, and went for long walks when the weather permitted. But as soon as Christmas vacation ended, it was back to work; I spent the next three weeks consumed with a huge deadline. Now that the deadline has passed though, I'm glad to have a chance to sit down and write this post.

Looking back at 2020

In the New Year's post from January 2020, while looking to the year ahead, I wrote: "In past years, I would come up with one or two key words to guide my goals and intentions for the year, or have a whole list of resolutions that I was keen to tick off one by one. This time around though, my mind drew a blank. All I could think was that I wanted to just be instead of do, so I'm kicking off this decade in a state of contemplative stillness and appreciating how I have the space in my life to do so. After all, who knows what the 2020s will hold?"

Wow, did I curse myself? Was that a Monkey's Paw-style wish? Because 2020 was filled with a little too much time being instead of doing what with the pandemic, things closing down in March, and WFH full-time.

That being said, as I look back on the year, there were a lot of things I was grateful for both big and small. In no particular order:

Reading! Books were one of the few immersive and COVID-safe pleasures I had available to me, and there were countless times I was grateful for OverDrive access via the Vancouver Public Library. In 2020, I reviewed and recommended 70 books on the blog and read many more. I also made a conscious effort to start reading and reviewing more books by Black authors, and I'm pleased that I'm still keeping that up.
Bar Method at home. I did 158 barre classes this year, which averaged out to 1 class every 2.32 days. Looking back, the studio did an amazing job of pivoting to online classes. The worst of the pandemic shutdown happened in March and they adapted so quickly, I didn't miss a beat with attendance, still managing to do 17 classes that month. I was grateful to have this physical and mental outlet for my stress and for how it helped me stay connected to the barre community. P.S. Major kudos to Sheila for keeping me motivated and accountable when it comes to class attendance.
Conversations with friends! Whether it was over FaceTime, text, DMs, or phone calls, reconnecting made me feel much more grounded during an uncertain time.
All the movies and TV shows that provided many, many hours of entertainment.
Some travel. We were able to take a long weekend trip to Seattle in January 2020 before COVID hit, and went to Tofino in the summer.
Exploring local museums, parks, and attractions.
Good health. My father-in-law had heart surgery at the beginning of the year and my mom had dental surgery. Both recovered just fine. Our friends and family have been safe and sound during this pandemic. And hey, on a lighter note, I haven't had a cough, cold, or flu since last March. *knocks on wood*
Being gainfully employed at a job where I can safely WFH, and feeling like I'm valued at a company that is growing and going through exciting changes.
Our home's capacity to shelter us and provide for our needs. Despite my occasional griping about us being in a one-bedroom condo 24/7, we have fared remarkably well. This place has become our office space and workout space, we cooked more meals in our kitchen than ever, and it still feels comfortable for the two of us.
Yummy takeout! There were so many moments where being able to get our favourite Korean fried chicken wings, ramen, aburi sushi, and gourmet pho, and eat it safely at home, lifted our spirits.
The hope of getting the vaccine later this year.
How wonderful Lawrence has been this entire time.
Walks!

Looking ahead to 2021

My guiding word for this year is HEALTH. I was listening to an episode of the Bad on Paper podcast, during which Grace Atwood said her goal was to do one thing daily that would benefit her financial health, physical health, and mental health. This way of looking at health goals resonated with me so much that I've started thinking of my 2021 goals using this framework, trying to come up with specific, achievable intentions for each category of health.

I don't know what 2021 will hold, but at least I have some semblance of control over these goals:

Get the vaccine when I'm eligible.
Eat better. I tend to subsist on takeout for weeks at a time leading up to a big deadline. I've also been eating too much salt and sugar and having really carb-heavy meals, all of which have not been helping me feel as good as I could be. I won't be making drastic diet changes or anything, but I do want to watch my salt and added sugar intake, and increase the portions of veggies and proteins on my plate and decrease the portion of carbs.
Make all the medical appointments I've been putting off, like get an eye exam.
Start counseling! I've done counseling a couple of times in my life, and with the past year of pandemic and work stress, I feel like I could really use the mental tune-up it provides.
Get outside and go for a short walk at least once every day.
Stretch every 1-2 days. Even if I don't have a full hour to devote to stretching my entire body and using props, I can still do 5 minutes and stretch my shoulders, spine, and hips.
Sort out what I'm going to do with my RRSPs, TFSA, and mortgage this year.

Solo Lisa Reads: December 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 30 Dec 2020 08:00:00 +0000

We're now in the lull between Christmas and New Year's where we have no idea what time it is, let alone what day it is. So what better time is there than now to get lost in a book? Reading was one of the few bright spots in a bizarre and difficult 2020 (there were many moments where I was intensely thankful for my Kobo reader and OverDrive access via the Vancouver Public Library), so it seems fitting that I close out the year with one more book review round-up and 9 new recommendations. Fingers crossed that 2021 is kinder to us all.

1. Love Your Life by Sophie Kinsella

In the age of online dating apps and algorithms that can pre-screen romantic prospects based on the tiniest things, is it better to know everything at the start or nothing at all? That's the question posed by Sophie Kinsella's latest rom-com. Aspiring novelist Ava is on a writer's retreat in Italy where she's not allowed to share any details from her personal life, including her name. She goes by "Aria," and while there, she meets and clicks with handsome "Dutch" (whose real name is Matt). Aria and Dutch fall madly in love over a whirlwind couple of weeks, but when they both return to London and their real lives as Ava and Matt, they discover much to their dismay that they don't have very much in common...and that's when the real laughs of the book begin.

2. The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons

This book's premise reminded me of an Albus Dumbledore quote from Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone: "To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure." Eudora has lived what she views as a very full life, and at 85, she'd rather take control of her death instead of suffering the indignities of old age. While putting her affairs in order and planning for her end at a Swiss clinic, she befriends the 10-year-old girl next door, Rose Trewidney. Rose's friendship opens a whole new world for Eudora and helps her realize that perhaps she has some living left to do after all. This is a cozy, heartfelt novel about a touching inter-generational relationship, second chances, and the power of kindness.

3. Eighty Days to Elsewhere by KC Dyer

The premise of this book is deliriously fun, especially if you're a travel-loving book nerd. Romy has never left her hometown of New York City and spends her days working at her uncles' used bookstore. But when the landlord raises the rent to an impossible sum, Romy finds herself leaving her sheltered life behind to compete for a dream job with an even dreamier salary, money which she hopes will save the bookstore from closing. The job? With ExLibris Expeditions, a bespoke travel company that arranges luxury experiences for rich clients inspired by their favourite books. The interview? A round-the-world trip to create an itinerary inspired by Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days. The catch? There's a handsome rival competing for the same job. One of the things I miss most about my pre-pandemic life is travelling (I've basically stayed in Vancouver all year aside from a long weekend in Tofino), and reading about Romy making her way from one exotic locale to the next really scratched that itch.

4. Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein

If COVID-19 hadn't happened, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics would've gone on as planned; that's the alternate universe that Orenstein's novel about the world of competitive gymnastics occupies. Avery was once a star gymnast and national team hopeful, but a disastrous accident at her Olympic trials put an end to her career. Now in her 20s, unemployed, and floundering after a humiliating break-up, Avery has returned to her hometown to start fresh, working at her old gym and teaming up with a former crush to coach a promising young gymnast. Orenstein herself did competitive gymnastics for many years, which shows in her attention to detail and all the shop-talk, but at the same time she makes this niche world accessible for the uninitiated.

5. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

At 16, beautiful identical twin sisters Stella and Desiree Vignes run away from their small southern hometown to start new lives in New Orleans. As a light-skinned Black woman, Stella decides to pass as white and runs away, cutting off all ties with her sister and family. Desiree, who still identifies as Black and rebels against the colourism of her hometown's townsfolk, marries a dark-skinned Black man and gives birth to a daughter; the marriage goes south and she and her daughter go home to live with her mother. These decisions have a ripple effect for years to come, over multiple generations, in a story that goes from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s. This is a beautifully told and unforgettable novel about the face we show the world and the facets we choose to hide, about the ugly decisions that somehow also feel inevitable when the system wears you down. It deserves all the accolades.

6. The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

Combine a hunting lodge in the Scottish highlands, a group of posh London friends with seething resentments, and a fateful New Year's Eve trip gone awry. What do you get? A murder mystery reminiscent of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express. I don't know what's more fun: the setting (again, the wanderlust in me wishes I were in Scotland right now), or how Foley's skillful storytelling will have you guessing the identities of both the murderer and the victim until the very end.

7. The Chicken Sisters by KJ Dell'Antonia

Evidently I've been watching too many Anthony Bourdain and David Chang shows on streaming, because the first things that drew me to this novel were the fried chicken and the small-town Kansas setting. In Merinac, Kansas, Chicken Mimi's and Chicken Frannie's—purportedly started by feuding sisters over a hundred years ago—have been rivals for as long as the townsfolk can remember. But when Food Wars, a reality TV restaurant competition show, comes to town to film both chicken shacks, the stakes go way up, especially with a $100,000 prize up for grabs and a new generation of feuding sisters helming the competition on both sides. This latest Reese's Book Club pick is as feel-good as it gets.

8. Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao

Gloria Chao's latest novel is based on a recent phenomenon in Asia: Young women renting fake boyfriends to take home on Lunar Near Year, in the hopes that it'll get meddlesome relatives off their backs and silence the "When are you going to find a boyfriend/get married?" inquiries. Except in this case, the setting is California (where there's a sizable Asian-American population) and the renting is done through an app, Rent For Your 'Rents. Chloe Wang rents Drew Chan to impress her traditional Taiwanese parents over Thanksgiving weekend, passing him off as a University of Chicago pre-med student with wealthy surgeon parents. The truth is, Drew is a college dropout and aspiring artist who's currently estranged from his family because of his life choices, and he's doing Rent For Your 'Rents to make ends meet. What will happen when Chloe and Drew start falling for each other for real and the truth comes out? You'll have to read and see.

9. Dear Justyce by Nic Stone

You don't have to read Dear Martin to enjoy Stone's follow-up novel, which deftly explores how systemic pressures cause a promising young Black man to become incarcerated for a murder charge. In flashbacks and letters written to former classmate Justyce McAllister, Vernell LaQuan Banks (or "Quan") reflects on the circumstances that led him to where he is today: an unstable home life, a lack of support in school, poverty, a yearning for family and acceptance that leads him to crime. The book really picks up when Quan and Justyce (now pre-law at Yale) connect and there's a chance Quan can go free. Quan's narrative voice is so vibrant it leaps off the page. There are so many aspects of Quan's story that will tug at your heartstrings, but what's most heartbreaking is the one thing Stone took fictional liberties with: The amazing support system Quan has when he's incarcerated is a far cry from what's available in reality.

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Drugstore Delight: Derma E Hydrating Eye Cream

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 17 Dec 2020 08:00:00 +0000

Another quick Drugstore Delight spotlight to close out my product reviews for the year! Truth be told, this pandemic funk + thinking about work + staying home all the time + not wearing makeup = not a lot of mental bandwidth left to think about beauty. Instead of testing lots of things, in the past couple of months I've switched up my skincare once, tried a new-to-me body butter...and used up two tubes of Derma E Hydrating Eye Cream ($23 at London Drugs). The fact that I haven't deviated from it for months on end should tell you how good it is.

Hero ingredients include hyaluronic acid, green tea, vitamins A, C, and E, and Pycnogenol, an antioxidant meant to reduce puffiness around the eyes. But there are other skin-loving ingredients as well: glycerin, cetyl alcohol, aloe, jojoba seed oil, provitamin B5, just to name a few.

The result? An affordable natural eye cream that works just as well, and has just as lovely a texture, as eye creams that cost twice as much. I use it night and day. It's light and non-greasy, but goes on with such a lovely glide that I can't help doing a few massaging motions around my brow bone and under-eye area whenever I apply it. It doesn't sting my sensitive eyes or cause puffiness or watering, and it's not so slippy-slidey or greasy that I keep inadvertently blinking product into my eyes (all issues I've encountered with eye creams before). And best of all, it delivers long-lasting hydration. The two tubes I've used so far are both PR samples, but I'll definitely be repurchasing this.

Drugstore Delight: Weleda Skin Food Body Butter

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 15 Dec 2020 08:00:00 +0000

Beauty blogging tends to focus on the new and the buzzworthy. Weleda isn't new (they've been around since 1921), but their longevity, their status as a natural beauty pioneer, and their upcoming 100th anniversary should be buzzworthy. My friend Anya swears by Weleda Skin Food as a winter staple, which was what inspired me to pick up Weleda Skin Food Body Butter (approx. $22, available at London Drugs) when my last body moisturizer ran out.

This stuff is so good it makes me wonder why I've been sleeping on it all these years. It's dense and rich and does an incredible job of keeping my skin soft. A small dab warmed up goes a long way, stretching and gliding over skin like a silk stocking. Cocoa seed and shea butters, glycerin, natural extracts, and other skin-loving ingredients give the formula its denseness and whipped texture, as well as its pale green hue and distinctive scent (almost like an orange creamsicle but not quite). It's such a sensory delight that I always look forward to applying this after a shower. Weleda Skin Food may not be new or buzzy, but it's tried-and-true, affordable, natural, and available wherever Weleda is sold, making it a true Drugstore Delight.

In-Depth Review: My WonderSkincare.ca Experience

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 10 Dec 2020 08:00:00 +0000

How many times have you had a skin issue during this pandemic and wished for a virtual face-to-face with an expert, right from the comfort and safety of your own home? Newly launched Wonder Skincare does just that. The brainchild of experienced medical aesthetician Sarah Kurmis, this Ontario-based online business offers online consultations and product recommendations, and is a one-stop shop for well-known medi-spa brands like SkinCeuticals and Colorescience. I was recently invited by Wonder Skincare to try their end-to-end virtual consultation and online retail experience firsthand. So how did it go? All the details after the jump!

My virtual consultation

My Wonder Skincare experience began by booking a 30-minute consultation on WonderSkincare.ca. The process was easy. On the day of, Sarah and I both hopped on the virtual call. I walked her through the products I was using currently (there were so many in my medicine cabinet!) and my current concerns (breakouts on my face and near my hairline, hydration). My biggest takeaways from the call were: 1) I was doing a lot of things right and I knew a lot about different ingredients and products; 2) my routine could do with a lot of simplifying; and 3) the breakouts that I was attributing to maskne were, in fact, likely caused by hormones and allergic reactions to new haircare products.

That third point was the biggest "Aha!" moment of the entire half-hour call. In my case, I had gotten so caught up in "maskne" as a byword and explanation for my breakouts that I was forgetting the basic acne triggers that existed before COVID-19 and continue to exist: stress, hormones, diet, allergies and sensitivities to new products. Even beauty bloggers can get caught up in their own heads trying to diagnose their own skincare issues, so it helps to have an expert third party swoop in and assess the situation. Right after the call ended, I assessed my haircare products and eliminated anything beyond shampoo and conditioner, including a heavily fragranced hair mask and a new dry shampoo. These changes decreased the new breakouts along my hairline.

But that wasn't all. Sarah also promised to send me a new skincare routine to try. A parcel full of Skinceuticals products arrived approximately 2-3 weeks later. Everything was beautifully packed with a zip-up canvas cosmetic case, and accompanied by a handwritten note with instructions for my new AM/PM skincare routine.

Virtual consultations are free, but customers pay for any products purchased. (The skincare products in this post were kindly provided for free for review purposes.) Based on this business model, you'd think Sarah would be pushing products on me like mad and getting me to scrap everything and start from scratch, but that was not my experience. In fact, the new routine accounted for and incorporated products I already owned. Because of this, I really got the sense that she was trying to make thoughtful recommendations based on what I needed versus simply selling.

Although booking the consultation was straightforward, the booked appointment was entered as a $0 purchase transaction on the website. Consequently, while I had the receipt in my email, I had to manually create a calendar reminder for myself so I wouldn't forget when my appointment was. It'd be great if the platform automatically did that for you. Along a similar vein, Wonder Skincare is a very new business (they just launched October 2020). While the online experience is pretty painless and bug-free, they're still working out some kinks with their web developer. In the time between my first and second virtual consultations, they had switched from the doxy.me booking system to Jane Video, which had a downloadable app. During my first session, I kept accidentally hanging up on the call because of the platform's controls; in the second session, I had lag issues while trying to use Bluetooth ear buds. Despite the technical difficulties, Sarah remained professional and helpful throughout both consultations. What's more, as someone who works in tech, I was heartened to see her noting these issues so she could pass the feedback to development.

My new skincare routine

Based on the consultation and the products Sarah selected, this was my new skincare routine for at least the next 4 weeks. My goals were to minimize current breakouts and help them heal while preventing new blemishes, and to boost hydration during the winter months.

Morning:

Cleanse with my current anti-acne salicylic acid cleanser
Tone with my current exfoliating toner
Apply 4-6 drops of SkinCeuticals Blemish + Age Defense serum
Apply 4-6 drops of SkinCeuticals H.A. Intensifier serum
Apply my current eye cream
Apply 1-2 pumps SkinCeuticals Face Cream
Apply SkinCeuticals Physical Fusion UV Defense Sunscreen SPF50

Night:

Same as above, but omit sunscreen and use my current rosewater toner instead of the exfoliating one.
Add my current retinol oil to the SkinCeuticals Face Cream on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

Spending the next month evaluating and using 4 new SkinCeuticals products gave me a lot of time to form opinions. Keep scrolling!

SkinCeuticals Blemish + Age Defense ($110)

The label isn't kidding—this stuff is potent. And yet this serum is so lightweight, clear, and quick-absorbing you'd think it was water except for the nostril-singing odour. The formula includes 2% dioic acid to clear excess sebum, 0.3% LHA (caproloyl salicylic acid) to exfoliate and decongest, 1.5% salicylic acid, 3.5% glycolic acid, and 0.5% citric acid. Because this stuff was so active and chock full of acids and I wanted to minimize sensitivity, I started subbing in the rosewater toner for the exfoliating toner much more often. I felt like this serum worked and started delivering results much faster than a typical anti-acne serum with only salicylic acid as an active; it's a good option for a radical skin reset if you have persistent issues with breakouts, which I have been struggling with for the last couple months. However, the potency of the actives would make me think twice about repurchasing. I'd probably switch to a gentler anti-acne serum for long-term maintenance. The apothecary-style brown dropper bottle made it easy to dispense just the right amount of product each time, especially since the formula was so watery.

SkinCeuticals H.A. Intensifier ($130)

You might be asking yourself, "Why would I pay $100+ for a hyaluronic acid when there are more affordable options out there?" To be quite honest, I'm still on the fence about whether this product is worth it. This hyaluronic acid serum is supposed to be better than others because the secondary ingredients (licorice and purple rice extracts) increase the star ingredient's absorption rate. I liked how soothing and instantly hydrating it felt, especially when applied on top of the Blemish + Age Defense. I liked how the formula—a thick grape-coloured gel straight out of the dropper—absorbed remarkably fast and didn't leave any lingering residue on skin. However, I wasn't crazy about how the formula's consistency made it hard to dispense; somehow I had too much or too little product in the dropper every time.

SkinCeuticals Face Cream ($145)

This face cream contains soy isoflavones to stimulate collagen and hyaluronate production, vitamin E for emollient and antioxidant benefits, and silymarin for even more antioxidant protection. I was skeptical that a face cream that felt so lightweight and absorbed so quickly would moisturize sufficiently, particularly in the winter, but I was pleasantly surprised. 1 pump spread in a thin veil across my face and neck was just enough, maybe a small dot more if I was feeling dry (2 pumps felt like too much). I felt like the thin, quick-absorbing textures of this face cream and the serums preceding it helped my retinol oil absorb and work on my skin better and faster, which was really nice. That being said, the biggest downside of this face cream is the price. $145 for a small bottle that lasts about 2 months is a bit steep.

SkinCeuticals Physical Fusion UV Defense SPF 50 ($46)

I'd mentioned to Sarah that I was using a mineral sunscreen I wasn't crazy about, so she sent me the SkinCeuticals tinted mineral sunscreen. This was an SPF I'd tried ages ago and liked, but for some reason never repurchased. Well, the last 4 weeks have been a delightful re-introduction. It truly is a Holy Grail face sunscreen: mineral filters (zinc oxide and titanium dioxide), paraben-free, non-comedogenic, tinted (so no bluish-white cast), and it's such a nice, lightweight, matte-finish fluid that feels like nothing once it's on. Definite re-purchase.

Final takeaway

Overall, I really enjoyed my Wonder Skincare experience. The free virtual consultations turned out to be more valuable than expected. I can see how useful and convenient they'd be, especially during COVID. Even post-pandemic, they'd be a great resource for someone who's pressed for time. My consultation with Sarah also led to me (re)discovering a forever-fave mineral face sunscreen and trying a slew of new-to-me SkinCeuticals products which performed well, so her product recommendations were legit.

After more than a month, what were my two biggest takeaways from this experience, the lessons that I'll be carrying forward with me? One, it's not always maskne. The acne triggers that existed pre-pandemic are still around and just as likely to be culprits. And two, even if I'm not repurchasing the SkinCeuticals serums and moisturizer, I should really look for skincare with thin, quick-absorbing textures to let my retinol absorb and work better.

At my 4-week follow-up virtual appointment, Sarah and I chatted about the improvements I'd seen in my skin (fewer new blemishes, the old blemishes were healing, the retinol was working better). I mentioned that it was taking me less time to do my skincare mornings and evenings because the products absorbed faster and my routine was simpler (bonus!). We also talked about possibly being able to re-introduce a once-weekly exfoliation and a face oil (if it didn't clog pores or trigger breakouts), maybe vitamin C or another antioxidant boost in the future once I was done with the Blemish + Age Defense. After all, one's skin is changing all the time, and knowing that you can turn to someone for an expert opinion whenever you need it—that's priceless.

Solo Lisa Reads: November 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 08:00:00 +0000

This month I watched a lot of TV (hello, The Queen's Gambit and The Crown season 4) in between barre, work, and the stress of living in 2020. It was hard enough to focus through the brain fog, let alone pick up a book. That's why November's book review round-up only features 4 reads, and for each one, I couldn't help thinking of a corresponding movie or TV show. This post marks my first time making streaming recommendations alongside the mini book reviews—kind of like a pop culture wine-and-cheese pairing. Enjoy!

1. Crazy Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

The latest installment in Adams's Bromance Book Club series delivers the laughs, the romance, and the emotional up-and-down journey I've come to expect from these books. I will never get over the brilliance of the central premise: A secret book club of men who read romance novels and use them like relationship manuals to troubleshoot their own love lives. It's a plot device that allows for insightful meta commentary about romance novel tropes, even as Crazy Stupid Bromance deep-dives into them. This time around, the story follows Alexis (the owner of a cat cafe) and Noah (resident computer genius, Alexis's best friend, secretly in love with Alexis). One day, a strange woman shows up at Alexis's cafe, claims to be her long-lost sister, and tells Alexis that their father is in need of a kidney transplant and Alexis may be a match. Talk about an emotional minefield, but at least she has Noah—and by extension, the other members of the Bromance Book Club—to help her through it.

If you enjoyed this book, you should watch: The movie that inspired the title of this book, Crazy Stupid Love (Netflix).

2. If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha

Depending on your place on the socioeconomic ladder, life in South Korea can be a far cry from the glittering world of a K-drama. The women in Frances Cha's novel all live in the same low-cost apartment building. Their situation isn't as dire as the one depicted in Parasite, but each of them is hyper-aware that the system seems rigged against a woman who isn't born rich, privileged, and beautiful. Kyuri goes into debt for multiple painful plastic surgeries; she now works as a room salon girl pouring drinks for wealthy businessmen and the money is good, but she knows that her livelihood depends on fleeting youth and beauty, as well as the whims of her clientele and the salon's madam. Her roommate Miho grew up in an orphanage and is now a New York-educated artist dating a chaebol. Ara, the hairstylist who lives down the hall, has a disability that makes life hard and lonely; she develops an unhealthy obsession with a boy-band member to cope. Downstairs, newlywed Wonna is trying to get pregnant but knows she and her husband can't afford a child. The intertwining stories add up to an engrossing read you'll want to finish within a day.

If you enjoyed this book, you should watch: Hello, My Twenties (Netflix), about four young South Korean women from different walks of life living together as roommates.

3. Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky

I don't normally read non-fiction, but this book has called out to me for ages and I'm glad I finally picked it up. Salt is, as promised, a world history of humankind's relationship with sodium chloride, chronicling how the search for it has driven empires and economies, shaped society and culture, and made the world what it is today. I enjoyed this book for the fascinating trivia and the stories about ancient cultures and food. For example, did you know that the word "salad" comes from the Roman practice of salting greens? And that there's a salt mine in Wieliczka, Poland, where miners carved chandeliers and an entire ballroom out of salt, and to this day an orchestra plays underground there because the acoustics are so good? Partway through the book, Kurlansky's focus shifts from salt as sodium chloride to salt as the byproduct of an acid and a base, which I didn't enjoy as much. I kind of sped through the chapter about the chemical manufacturing industry to get back to the foodie trivia.

If you enjoyed this book, you should watch: The "Salt" episode of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat (Netflix).

4. A Duke, the Lady, and a Baby by Vanessa Riley

Here's to more diversity in Regency romances! West Indian heiress Patience Jordan loses her home, her freedom, and custody of her baby Lionel when her English husband commits suicide. Busick Strathmore, Duke of Repington, is now Lionel's legal guardian . Patience disguises herself as a nanny to be close to Lionel, to find the financial documents that will let her access the funds her father left for her, and to find evidence of the truth behind her husband's death. What she doesn't count on is falling for Busick, an ex-rake and a veteran of the Napoleonic wars who is adjusting to life post-injury. Riley's book is so well-constructed and researched, it made me wonder why there weren't more Regency romances in a similar thread. Financially strapped English gentlemen married heiresses from the colonies for their fortunes all the time, so it's not a huge reach to imagine there could've been an English gentleman who married a biracial heiress. Similarly, there were probably loads of Napoleonic war veterans with injuries and PTSD--why aren't there more stories about them?

If you enjoyed this book, you should watch: I haven't seen Bridgerton (Shonda Rhimes's latest show, coming to Netflix Christmas Day), but it promises to be another fun and diverse Regency romance.

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Solo Lisa Reads: October 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 07:00:00 +0000

Without meaning to, I've let almost 3 months go by without doing a book review round-up because I was stressed out of my mind with work. During that time, I've been going to a lot of barre classes (exercise was one of my few healthy stress relievers), ordering a lot of takeout (cooking and meal planning felt overwhelming), and obsessively seeking out nostalgic and/or feel-good pop culture. That meant a Sex and the City rewatch and Baby-Sitters Club reread, as well as as inviting YA novels and romances when I was in the mood for something new. May this reading list bring you a few moments of joy and escape as they did for me.

1. The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

17-year-old Jo Kuan is a ladies' maid by day. By night, she's Miss Sweetie, an advice columnist writing under a pseudonym in the local paper, known for dispensing witty, modern, and controversial responses to the social dilemmas of Atlanta high society. Lee's book is an entertaining look at a little-known slice of post-Civil-War Southern history, when Chinese workers were brought into Atlanta, Georgia, to address labour shortages during the rebuild. You can't help but root for Jo as she navigates the realities of life in between the white and Black communities without fully belonging to either, and carves out a path toward happiness.

2. The Marriage Game by Sara Desai

After losing her job and her boyfriend in New York, Layla Patel returns to San Francisco, where her father has promised she can use the office upstairs from the family restaurant to get her recruitment business up and running. The only problem? Layla's father has also rented out the office to Sam Mehta, the CEO of a corporate downsizing company who refuses to relocate. Sparks fly as Layla and Sam learn to work in the same space, and Sam helps screen Layla's potential husbands for an arranged marriage. The ending is predictable, but a loveable cast of supporting characters makes the journey worthwhile.

3. I'll Be the One by Lyla Lee

Plus-sized Korean-American teenager Skye Shin is a talented singer and dancer who wants to be a K-pop star, even if the fat-phobic beauty standards in Korean culture make this dream seemingly impossible—that is, until she aces the audition for a talent search reality show looking for the next great K-pop idol. As she works hard to survive the show's challenges and elimination rounds, Skye gains friends, a potential love interest, and a newfound sense of self-acceptance, but she also has to deal with a mean judge and her own mom's lack of support. Highly recommended if you watched the BLACKPINK documentary on Netflix and you're craving more K-pop goodness.

4. Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power

All her life, Margot's relationship with her mother has been fraught, their bond overwhelmed by secrets and the mental health demons her mother battles daily. An old family photo leads Margot to the farming town of Phalene, where she finds a grandmother and a family home and past she knew nothing about. But her quest for answers only leads to more questions: What's the story behind the uncanny resemblance between Margot, her mother, and her grandmother? What happened on the Nielsen family farm that still has the Phalene townsfolk wary of them? And why does a girl who looks exactly like Margot's twin die on the first day Margot arrives in town? Power's sophomore novel is a hallucinatory fever dream of a book that will leave you feeling uneasy.

5. With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

As an Afro-Latinx girl from an underprivileged household and a teen mom, Emoni Santiago is used to making hard choices and juggling competing priorities. But Emoni is also a talented home cook who wants to become a chef, and when her school establishes a culinary arts class with an exchange trip to Spain, she feels like this may be her chance. Acevedo's book seamlessly blends contemporary social issues with foodie references and a touch of magic realism, for a read that's as comforting as it is inspiring.

6. My Summer of Love and Misfortune by Lindsay Wong

No model minority behaviour here: Iris Wang is a walking disaster of a Chinese-American teenager. Iris's boyfriend is cheating on her with her best friend; she has racked up thousands in credit card debt that her parents don't know about; she is flunking out of high school and got into zero colleges; and she throws a wild house party during which she backs her parents' car into the garage door. In a fit of despair, Iris's parents send her to China to spend the summer with family, where Iris discovers much to her surprise that the other half of her family is Crazy Rich Asians levels of wealthy. Iris is pretty irritating for most of the novel—there were so many times where I just wanted to give her a good shake because of her stupidity and complete lack of self-control. But Iris's redemption arc, and the warm fuzzy feelings it elicits, make up for her initial selfishness and carelessness.

7. Tools of Engagement by Tessa Bailey

This is the third and final novel in Bailey's romance series about a family-owned house-flipping and construction business in Long Island. The romantic leads this time are Bethany Castle, an interior decorator and stager who's heading her first house flip and struggling with her tendency towards toxic perfectionism, and Wes Daniels, a Texan cowboy who quit the rodeo circuit to move to a small town and take care of his niece. I have to admit, I didn't enjoy this book as much as the first two, but I did like returning to a familiar world and seeing what has happened to the first two couples since.

8. A Rogue of One's Own by Evie Dunmore

I was blown away by Evie Dunmore's first romance in this series, Bringing Down the Duke, and the second book does not disappoint. Lady Lucie has big plans for the suffragist movement in England, starting with buying 50% of a publishing house and advancing her political agenda in the publishing house's ladies magazines. Too bad the co-owner is Tristan, Lord Ballentine, a handsome and notorious rogue who wants the publishing house to remain palatably conservative so that his poetry volumes sell well. Tristan proposes giving Lucie one of his shares so that she becomes majority stakeholder, if she agrees to spend a night in his bed. You'd think this would be a predictable romance with a predictable outcome, but Dunmore does such a great job setting up the characters and their disparate circumstances that there are moments where I genuinely had to guess exactly how they would end up together. Plus, the historical references and details are top-notch.

9. Stand Up, Yumi Chung! by Jessica Kim

A wholesome YA novel about a middle-schooler Korean-American girl who wants to become a stand-up comedian? Yes, please! This book is the soothing balm I didn't know my post-deadline brain needed. Yumi Chung thinks she's in for a boring summer of cramming for a scholarship exam at a private prep school. That is, until she pops into a new comedy club nearby, meets her comedy idol Jasmine Jasper, and is mistaken for absentee student Kay Nakamura at a stand-up comedy summer camp for kids. As Kay, Yumi starts to come out of her shell and seriously considers pursuing comedy, especially when she learns of an opportunity for kids like her at a new performing arts magnet school. Now if only she can persuade her strict immigrant parents.

My At-Home Barre Setup

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 07:00:00 +0000

This post is for the fellow Bar Method enthusiasts working out at home and trying to figure out an optimal setup! As I mentioned in my last post, I recently upgraded what I use for livestream classes. Before this, I was MacGyvering with whatever I had around the condo: a chair instead of a real barre, throw pillows instead of risers and mini mats, an old yoga mat that wasn't cushy enough for my joints. That was okay for the short term, but over time these improvised solutions didn't support me in trying to get into my best form. I could feel myself holding back (not great for maintaining strength and trying to get stronger), and the limitations of my equipment were starting to create bad muscle memory habits and imbalances. The new gear definitely helped me achieve a more intense burn in tilted seat, a more balanced posture in foldover and arabesque, and a deeper ab contraction in curl work.

Bootykicker portable barre

Before the Bootykicker, I used a chair with a curved back as my makeshift barre. It was well-balanced and roughly the right height, but I only had a 6" clearance in the middle of the chair back where I could prop my leg up for stretch. Any further to the left or the right and my ankle would slide right off the sloped side. The curved back also made getting into proper form for foldover or arabesque tricky; my hands had to be in exactly the right place so that one shoulder wouldn't feel higher than the other. Oh, and did I mention that the edges of this curved chair back were squared off? Wow, did it ever dig into my Achilles tendon during stretch.

My husband bought me the Bootykicker as an early birthday present after I'd read about it on a barre fitness subreddit. It has only been a few weeks but I already love it. No more awkward hop-shuffling to shift my leg forward during stretches, no more bruised Achilles tendons, no more crooked shoulders! It's also the perfect solution for those of us living in small spaces, as it folds up flat for storage and doesn't require drilling holes into the wall.

If you're considering buying a Bootykicker, here's what you need to know:

It's regularly $99.99 USD, but on sale now for $79.99 plus shipping and handling. The latter costs about $50 USD per unit. There are no additional customs or duties when shipping to Canada. All told, my husband spent approx. $178 CAD on it.
The assembly instructions are rubbish (and I say that as someone who writes instructions and manuals for a living!). Don't waste your time trying to parse the grammatical errors and bad diagrams. Just watch the assembly video.
It takes me less than a minute to pop it up and take it down.
The height and length are not adjustable.
It's best used on a hard smooth surface. The rubber stoppers at the bottom give it grip and stability.
The weight racks at the front also give the Bootykicker a lot of stability, especially if you rack heavier dumbbells.
The Bootykicker is rated for 250 pounds of downward pressure. It's great for any moves where you exert force straight downward on the barre or hold onto it for balance, e.g. stretch with your leg propped up, foldover, arabesque, most thigh work and standing seat exercises. It's stable enough for any moves where you lightly pull away from the barre, e.g. waterski exercises, toe taps in tilted seat.
However, because it's not mounted to the wall, I don't recommend doing any exercises where you pull away using your full body weight like chair or zinger. The backs of the legs lift up and wobble slightly during exercises where I push downward on a diagonal (heel lifts in a push-up position).

Mats and risers

It didn't take long for my wrists, elbows, and knees to feel the difference between the Bar Method's cushiony carpeted studio and my hardwood floors. I started off with an old yoga mat, then bought a slightly thicker yoga mat, and when that still wasn't enough, I sprang for a 1.5" tri-fold mat similar to ones used for martial arts and gymnastics. It's lightweight and faster to set up than a yoga mat I'd have to unroll—all I have to do is carry it into the living room by the handles and unfold. The smooth surface is a cinch to wipe clean too.

For riser and mini mat substitutes, I ordered 2 large foam balance pads and 1 XL one. If you can't decide which size to order, I suggest going for the large. The height of the large foam pads is very close to the height of the mini mats and risers in studio, and because they're made of a high-density foam with very little give, they feel a lot more supportive. I'm usually a "one riser and two mini mats" girl, but I can achieve the same level of mid- to upper-back support with two large mats depending on how I staircase them and how they hit my back.

The bargain buys

At less than $20, adding these items to the mix was a no-brainer:

During the height of quarantine, instructors suggested using a towel stuffed into a pillowcase as a ball substitute during high curl. That was okay in a pinch, but a real pilates ball is so much more supportive and only $14.99. For reference, the balls they use in studio are 7" in diameter.
The best deal I found on weights was at Canadian Tire of all places. When I bought my neoprene dumbbells back in March, they worked out to $1 per pound. My 2-, 3- and 4-pound weights came to less than $20 total. The price seems to have gone up since then, but not by much.
My stretching strap is an old yoga strap that came with two foam blocks (free is definitely less than $20!). But if I were to buy one today, I'd probably go to Winners; there were a whole bunch of yoga straps in the fitness section the last time I was there.

Quarantine Life Lately

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 15 Sep 2020 07:00:00 +0000

Looking back at recent posts, I realize that I've done a lot of grumbling about work and being at home 24/7. But hey, life wasn't all bad! I'm grateful that I'm still gainfully employed, my loved ones are healthy, and I can WFH safely during a global pandemic. Plus, there were a few bright spots this summer. Here's a quick look at some highlights that occurred away from the laptop and the Zoom calls.

Tofino

You've probably seen me mention our long weekend in Tofino ad nauseum here and on Instagram, but in my defense it was: 1) the most incredible 3-night stay at the Wickaninnish Inn; 2) a mini trip to celebrate Lawrence's birthday; and 3) probably the only vacation we're taking for a looong time. We splurged and booked ourselves a couples' hot stone massage at the Ancient Cedars Spa, and had a birthday dinner and departure day brunch at The Pointe Restaurant. (The rest of the time we ordered room service. A hot carafe of strong coffee, bacon and eggs, a view of the ocean—what a way to start the day!) It was such a treat to be able to have this luxurious experience and be right next to the ocean. We popped down to the beach for socially distanced walks whenever we could. The sea and sky, the rocks and waves—it all looked so different from one day to the next, when the sunny blue skies gave way to fog and light misty rain.

Vancouver Art Gallery

If you're looking to escape for an afternoon, might I suggest the 'Modern in the Making: Post-War Craft and Design in British Columbia' exhibit at the Vancouver Art Gallery? I went recently with my BFF and it was fantastic. This comprehensive look at midcentury modern design in BC is on from now until January 3, 2021. Everything was laid out beautifully, especially the furniture. At one point I joked to my friend that it was "like walking through IKEA, but make it art."

More exhibits were on the upstairs floors, including an installation by Douglas Coupland called "Slogans for the 21st century" which made a nifty background for the 'gram, ironically enough. My bestie and I practically had the whole place to ourselves, and we felt safe the entire time with the VAG's mandatory mask and timed entry policies. This is an excellent idea if you're looking for something to do indoors when the weather changes. Looking at art, and engaging with something outside of my normal everyday routine, definitely lifted my spirits.

Ramen eggs and salad days

No sourdough in this kitchen—in fact, it has been way too hot to turn on the oven! Our dinners lately have been salads with mix-and-match ingredients meal-prepped in advance, including ramen eggs. I've always loved these savoury, marinated, light-brown-on-the-outside, soft-yolk-on-the-inside eggs from ramen shops, and as it turns out they're ridiculously easy to make. My go-to method involves 6.5-minute soft-boiled eggs. For the marinade, I pour 1/4 cup soy sauce and 1/4 cup mirin into a large mason jar, and then fill it up halfway with water. I make 8 eggs at a time for salads and quick lunches. One batch usually lasts 2-3 days. The longer they sit in the fridge, the more flavourful they get.

Barre

Yes, I'm still doing Bar Method classes via Zoom! I can't begin to describe what a stress reliever this has been. Every day I'm so grateful that I can get my workout in at home, that it can challenge me as much as an in-studio class, and that the Vancouver Bar Method studio has done such a great job making us all feel connected even in these trying times. Since it looks like I'll be working out at home for the foreseeable future, I decided to invest in a serious equipment upgrade. The biggest and most expensive purchase was my new Bootykicker portable barre, which Lawrence got me as an early birthday present. I'm planning a detailed post on my at-home barre setup soon, but (spoiler alert!) I love the Bootykicker so far.

I've been watching so much TV, I feel like we've scrolled to the end of Netflix. Here is what we've enjoyed over the past 6 months, separated by streaming service, in no particular order. Do you have any recommendations?

Netflix:

Indian Matchmaking
Selling Sunset
Cobra Kai
The Baby-Sitters Club (LOVE. In fact, not only is it my pandemic comfort re-watch of choice lately, it also sent me on a nostalgia trip downloading and rereading the books, which explains why there was no book review round-up last month.)
Never Have I Ever
Crash Landing On You
It's Okay to Not Be Okay
Tunnel
Kingdom
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
The Old Guard
#Alive

Amazon Prime:

Little Fires Everywhere
The Great
Blow the Man Down

Disney+:

Hamilton

Product Review: AG Hair Natural Collection

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Thu, 10 Sep 2020 07:00:00 +0000

While WFH and riding out summer's heat waves sans air conditioning, I've been air-drying my hair whenever possible, and reaching for the AG Hair Natural To Go Kit ($29.95) to keep it from turning into a frizzy mess. Full disclosure: I received this gifted PR sample ages ago—so long ago, in fact, that AG has since changed the mix of products in their Natural To Go Kit. (The newer version includes the same shampoo and conditioner, but different styling products.) This kit may have languished in my beauty stash for eons, but good products speak for themselves no matter when you get around to testing them and these AG haircare products are incredible.

Described as "natural hair care for the modern minimalist," the AG Hair Natural Collection features formulas with up to 98% plant-based and naturally derived ingredients. Hero ingredients include apple cider vinegar, coconut oil, mango seed butter, rosehip oil and hydrolyzed quinoa. The formulas are also vegan-friendly, silicone-free, and scented with essential oils.

So much of this is right up my alley. Natural hair care? Yes. Modern minimalist? Sounds like a more editorial way of saying Lazy Girl Approved. The apple cider vinegar delivers a pH-balancing cleanse that feels gentle yet thorough and clarifying. (In fact, since I started testing AG Hair, I've stopped using a separate scalp scrub.) When used together, these four products accentuate and define the natural waves in my hair. That's on wash day as I let my hair air-dry. The day after washing my hair and sleeping on it, the waviness relaxes and my hair just looks soft, healthy, and shiny. Also, gotta give the stylish plants-on-pink packaging high points.

If I had to pinpoint a downside to this collection, it'd be cost. My hair actually does pretty well with drugstore products, so I'm not used to paying salon hair care prices. (Hairstylists always compliment the health of my hair and then wince when I tell them I use drugstore shampoo and conditioner.) I can understand why AG Hair is pricier though: It was founded in Vancouver and the formulas contain a lot of naturals and very few fillers. Plus, the scents and textures feel luxurious and instantly make an ordinary shower feel more spa-like, and the packaging looks so good in the bathroom. Maybe I'll treat myself to the 1L shampoo and conditioner bottles for my birthday.

Let's look at each product individually, shall we?

AG Balance Apple Cider Vinegar Sulfate-Free Shampoo ($30 for full size)

If you're used to natural sulfate-free shampoos not producing a satisfying lather, you're in for a pleasant surprise with this one. A quarter-sized dollop creates enough suds to cleanse my roots and scalp and rub through the ends. Apple cider vinegar is touted as the hero ingredient of this formula, but there are plenty of other natural ingredients that work together to cleanse, nourish, and promote scalp and hair health: aloe, argan/sunflower/olive oils, a litany of essential oils and natural extracts. The deep but gentle clean that Balance delivers almost feels like a clarifying shampoo. It does a good job of getting rid of dirt, oil, and sweat at the roots without drying out my scalp or my hair. What's more, it rinses away easily and doesn't leave behind silicone build-up.

AG Boost Apple Cider Vinegar Conditioner ($30 for full size)

This conditioner complements its shampoo counterpart perfectly: lightweight, non-greasy, no silicone build-up, detangles and softens, rinses out easily. (You don't have to stand under the shower head forever!) It's full of nourishing, natural, good-for-hair ingredients. I adore the scent too—a blend of rosemary, lemongrass, clary sage and vanilla essential oils that reminds me of tart candy.

AG Remedy Apple Cidar Vinegar Leave On Mist ($26 for full size)

I don't know what sort of witchcraft AG Hair pulled off with Remedy because it's lightweight and silicone-free and smells incredible (an intoxicating blend of something vaguely herbal and coconut-y), but still softening, smoothing, shine-enhancing, and moisturizing. The spray bottle produces a fine all-over mist that dispenses evenly over wide sections. I only need about 8-10 spritzes for my whole head, even with how thick my hair is. The formula doesn't feel heavy or oily at all. With Remedy, my hair air-dries into frizz-free waves with subtle definition. It also purportedly doubles as thermal protection when heat styling.

AG Rosehip Balm Hair Dry Lotion ($28 for full size)

The Rosehip Balm is a heavy hair cream ideal for medium to thick hair. Its star ingredient, cold-pressed rosehip oil, promises to smooth the hair cuticle and eliminate frizz when air-drying. I like spritzing with the Leave On Mist first, and then rubbing a pea-sized dab of this into the ends of hair for better wave definition. I've also tried using just the Leave On Mist or the Rosehip Balm by itself, and while I prefer the Leave On Mist for summer, I can see myself reaching for the Rosehip Balm more often in fall and winter. This is a very emollient and thick product, so a little goes a long way. On occasions where I've used too much (especially on top of the Leave On Mist), I've found myself breaking out, probably from my hair rubbing against my face and pillowcase and causing pore congestion.

Empties: August 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Mon, 31 Aug 2020 07:00:00 +0000

Ugh, this year. Before I recap the empty products I've used this summer, I need to get something off my chest. When the pandemic started, I have to admit, the bizarre novelty of the situation didn't faze me. Asking an introverted homebody to spend even more time at home? Okay! I still had my job and could WFH; I could do barre classes over Zoom; and my husband and I were spending more time together than ever. I found ways to fill my time, from reading more books and discovering new TV shows to trying different recipes. But as time wore on and the novelty faded, between the perpetual stress of 2020 humming in the background, and the work burnout I alluded to in previous posts, I've been pretty depressed this summer.

My mental health has definitely taken a hit being at home 24/7 for live, work, and play. Some days are okay, and some days are really not. When the anxiety and sadness start creeping upwards like a steadily rising tide, I have to let myself sit with it and just rest and retreat—sometimes for an hour, a day, or two days. Then I focus on small, achievable tasks that act like stepping stones back towards feeling normal. A shower? Yay, tiny victory! Making the bed? Yes! Not canceling a workout? You are a star!

Sitting down and writing this blog post is one of these tasks. Sure, I could've just rinsed out and recycled all these containers and scrapped the empties post entirely, but the flow state I've been in for the last hour as I've edited photos, put in HTML tags, and drafted this post with Spotify's Mood Booster playlist on in the background—this is the most inner calm I've felt in weeks. Maybe you'll spot a product that you want to buy the next time you're at the drugstore (and there are a lot of affordable drugstore gems here!); if not, that's okay too, because this post is for me.

Nivea Pure & Natural Body Milk (previously featured here, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Affordable, effective, and easily available. I finished the bottle, but I found myself missing the essential oil fragrance of my usual go-to natural body lotions.

Would I repurchase? Yes, if I'm in a pinch.

Garnier Whole Blends Almond & Argan Riches Shampoo & Conditioner (purchased by me)

Quick notes: I bought this at the beginning of the pandemic when we were stocking up on essentials. It's not as good as the Legendary Olive shampoo and conditioner from this line. The almond and argan oil formula left a lot of build-up on my strands and scalp.

Would I repurchase? No. We're still using up bottles of this stuff, but after that, never again.

Herbal Essences Cucumber & Green Tea Dry Shampoo (PR sample)

Quick notes: I've never met a dry shampoo I really loved. I don't like the feeling of excess product in my hair, or the gritty texture that most dry shampoos leave behind. This one has a nice scent and it's paraben-free and affordable. It got the job done when I was desperate for a quick fix. If I was careful to hold the bottle about 20cm away from my head and move it around while spraying, it would not leave white residue in my dark hair.

Would I repurchase? No. Maybe I should take this as an opportunity to find a forever fave dry shampoo formula.

Not Your Mother's Naturals Blue Sea Kale & Pure Coconut Water Butter Masque ($2.99, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Smelled great and intensely moisturized locks without weighing them down. 98% naturally derived and free of many controversial ingredients like sulfate surfactants, silicones, parabens, dyes, gluten or phthalates. One pouch contained enough product for multiple uses.

Would I repurchase? Maybe.

BVspa by Bon Vital Grapefruit Salt Scrub (purchased by me)

Quick notes: 9 empty tubes in the history of this blog and counting!

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Woodlot Unscented Soap (PR sample)

Quick notes: This was a PR sample from ages ago—so long ago, in fact, that Woodlot no longer makes unscented soap. Locally made, all-natural, and very moisturizing and gentle. The bar was a blend of nourishing oils (olive, coconut, avocado) and butters (shea and cocoa seed). The only downside of this soap was that I found it clung to my skin; rinsing it off took ages and a lot of scrubbing.

Would I repurchase? Maybe.

Herbivore Bamboo Charcoal Detoxifying Soap Bar ($16, PR sample)

Quick notes: I'm pleasantly surprised by this soap bar. It thoroughly cleanses and deodorizes without leaving skin feeling stripped or dry; a godsend for sweaty summer days! Rinses off easily. The bamboo charcoal doesn't stain white towels or shower curtains either.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Rocky Mountain Soap Company Lavender Body Butter ($15, purchased by me)

Quick notes: A forever fave; I honestly don't know how many tubes of Rocky Mountain body butter I've gone through! Relatively affordable, all-natural, great scents, and I love that the company is Canadian. I wish they had more sustainable packaging/refill solutions for repeat purchases though. I go through them so quickly and the plastic twist-up containers add up.

Would I repurchase? Already have!

Trader Joe's Ultra Moisturizing Hand Cream (purchased by me)

Quick notes: An affordable, effective, naturals-heavy hand cream that goes on ultra-thick and emollient. Loved it in the winter months and during all that pandemic hand-washing.

Would I repurchase? I would if I could.

Bliss Foot Patrol (previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: File this under "Products I reviewed and forgot about, then rediscovered recently." The peppermint-y formula felt so refreshing on tired feet, and the AHAs gently exfoliated my feet over time and kept them feeling soft.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Garnier Bio Organic Argan Multi-Use Rescue Balm ($24.99 at London Drugs, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: Natural, ultra-moisturizing balm for all-over use. I was mostly using this as a hand lotion, applying a little extra around my cuticles and nails.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Garnier Bio Organic Cornflower Micellar Water ($12.99 at London Drugs, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: It was fine as far as micellar waters go. However, it didn't have the same effortless slip and glide that my all-time fave Bioderma boasts.

Would I repurchase? No.

Derma E Vitamin C Concentrated Serum (previously featured here, $34 at London Drugs, PR sample)

Quick notes: Lightweight, quick-absorbing, natural formula. I loved using this during the day under sunscreen because of its hydrating and antioxidant benefits.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Fresh Vitamin Nectar Vibrancy Boosting Face Mask ($33-80 for assorted sizes, previously featured here, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Loved this gentle, hydrating, glow-boosting mask, especially after exfoliating.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Fresh Umbrian Clay Mask ($30-77 for assorted sizes, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: This really did help clear congestion around my nose and make pores look smaller, but I hated how it stained my washcloths.

Would I repurchase? Maybe.

Garnier Bio Organic Lavandin Smooth & Glow Facial Oil ($24.99 at London Drugs, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: Adored the soothing lavender scent. A lovely, affordable, all-natural facial oil available in drugstores.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Rocky Mountain Soap Company Deep Sleep Wellness Balm ($18, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: Not as effective as Tata Harper's aromatherapy sleep remedy in relaxing me and sending me to sleep.

Would I repurchase? No.

Saje Quick Study ($20, purchased by me)

Quick notes: This aromatherapy remedy is supposed to perk you up and promote mental alertness as you work. I kept it on my desk and would apply a little on my pulse points and temples and right under my nose when I felt myself dragging.

Would I repurchase? Already have!

Garnier Bio Organic Lavandin Anti-Age Eye Care ($24.99 at London Drugs, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: I really liked this eye cream.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

The Face Shop Real Nature Aloe Face Mask ($3.50, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Light, hydrating, refreshing, affordable.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

The Face Shop The Solution Moisturizing Face Mask ($3,50, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Same notes as above. I don't remember much about the first time I used this, but the second time around, the fragrance bothered me a bit.

Would I repurchase? Maybe.

Product Review: Mamonde Rose Skincare

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 11 Aug 2020 07:00:00 +0000

In mid-July we were lucky enough to go to Tofino, where we stayed at the Wickaninnish Inn and celebrated Lawrence's birthday in style. Long walks on the beach, a couples hot stone massage at the spa, a romantic dinner and brunch at The Pointe and room service in between...it was exactly the restful and luxurious reset we craved. (The trip highlights are saved on my Instagram if you want a peek!)

When it was time to pack skincare for the trip, I reached for the Mamonde Rose Trial Kit ($22). This trio of mini K-beauty skincare goodies seems tailor-made for summer weather thanks to lightweight textures and rose-infused scents. I'd originally bought the kit for my workout bag, but with the pandemic and my barre studio closing, I stopped using the products in mid-March and hadn't had a chance to revisit these products until now.

Mamonde has been on my radar since the grand opening of Vancouver's first and only Aritaum store in 2016. Their brand focus is formulas that showcase florals, naturals, and botanicals. While the Mamonde Rose line isn't 100% natural, it features roses and rosewater as hero ingredients, putting their soothing and hydrating benefits front and centre. Where possible, the formulas steer clear of controversial ingredients like parabens, sulfates, mineral oil, and ingredients of animal origin. Here are some quick notes on each product in the kit.

Mamonde Petal Spa Oil To Foam Cleanser ($21 for full size)

This oil-to-foam cleanser's innovative texture is designed to deliver a double-cleansing experience within one product. Intriguing, right? In reality though, the oil texture is sticky with very little slip. The first few times I used it, I used much more product than I should've because I was craving that classic slippery cleansing oil texture. When the cleanser became wet, it foamed up so much and produced way too many suds. Eventually I settled on swiping a pea-sized amount onto dry skin and skipping the massage while it was in the "oil phase." Then I'd wet my face and rely on the lather to do the intensive cleansing. It gets dirt, oil, sweat, and sunscreen off, but does it replace my usual double-cleansing routine of micellar water followed by water-based cleanser? I'm skeptical. Bonus points for being paraben- and sulfate-free.

Mamonde Rose Water Toner ($23 for full size)

This toner boasts 90.97% real rose water and is a sensory delight: light and hydrating, with a delicate rose scent. To avoid wasting product, I usually splash this into my hands and press my palms into my face instead of using a cotton round. Bonus points for being vegan!

Mamonde Rose Water Gel Cream ($26 for full size)

This gel cream delivers a divine rose scent and all-day hydration thanks to its 68.7% damask rosewater formula. It's light and refreshing and feels great for summer. However, if you have very dry or mature skin, or you want a thicker moisturizer for winter, I suggest looking elsewhere.

Final verdict

Overall, I like Mamonde Rose as a cohesive basic skincare line. The products deliver on their promises of hydration and mood-boosting florals, but the formulas don't have enough potent actives to address specialized skincare concerns like acne, tone/texture, hyperpigmentation, lines, etc. Mamonde Rose is suitable for post-workout grooming and a solid option for travel, but not my first pick for daily use or for thirtysomething complexions.

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Solo Lisa Reads: July 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Wed, 29 Jul 2020 07:00:00 +0000

This month has passed by so quickly: A huge software release at work, vacation days, a quick getaway to Tofino, and now a heat wave as we both WFH. I've just been trying to relax as much as possible and curl up with a good book in between, which explains why this month's round-up contains 9 recommendations. And true to last month's pledge, I'm trying my best to diversify my picks. July's round-up contains books by a Black writer (Jasmine Guillory, a recurrent favourite in these book review posts), an Indigenous Canadian writer (Waubgeshig Rice, who might be the first Indigenous author I've featured here), and two Asian writers (Kelly Yang and Min Jin Lee, who have written two very different novels about very specific Asian experiences). I hope you'll find something intriguing enough to add to your reading list!

1. Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore

I have to thank my friend and former coworker Theresa for this recommendation! It's 1879, and Annabelle Archer has just been awarded a scholarship from a women's suffrage group to be one of the first female scholars at Oxford. This is Annabelle's chance to escape the Kent countryside and leave behind the misery and drudgery of being her clergyman cousin's spinster ward. The only catch? Annabelle must contribute to their protests and activism efforts—including petitioning the ultra-conservative Duke of Montgomery, strategic advisor to the Tory party and a favourite of Queen Victoria. The Duke of Montgomery is intent on rebuilding the family legacy that his profligate father lost, and although falling for a beautiful suffragist is not part of his plan, he finds Annabelle impossible to resist. History nerds will relish Dunmore's references, which range from illustrious philosophers of the day and key moments in the women's suffrage movement, to obscure terms like "rusticate." Usually I feel like the main characters getting together in a historical romance is a foregone conclusion, but these characters were from such different class and political backgrounds that the obstacles they faced seemed legitimate.

2. The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley

What's your secret, most authentic self, the one you keep hidden from everyone else? A notebook titled The Authenticity Project, left behind at a London cafe, asks everyone who comes across it to write down their stories inside its green covers. As the notebook passes from one person to the next, the lives of a motley crew of local neighbourhood residents become intertwined. There's Julian, once a glam fixture of the London 60s and 70s art scene, now a lonely widower; Monica, the cafe owner, who yearns for a husband and family; Hazard, a City banker and addict trying to clean up his act; Riley, a young Aussie transplant whose sunny demeanor hides a guilt-inducing secret; and Alice, an Instagram influencer and new mom who's struggling. The Authenticity Project is a cozy, feel-good novel about how powerful vulnerability can be in helping us connect with others. The drama is low-stakes, the characters are quirky, and seeing how their lives transform for the better is an utter delight.

3. It Sounded Better In My Head by Nina Kenwood

Nothing groundbreaking happens in Kenwood's coming-of-age novel, but for its 17-year-old protagonist Natalie, everything groundbreaking is happening. Her best friend Zach (whom she once sort of had feelings for) is dating her other best friend, Lucy; her parents are divorcing; she is in limbo waiting for her university acceptance letters; and there might be a burgeoning romance happening with Zach's popular older brother, Alex. This is a lot of change for any teenager to handle, but for Natalie it's even more stressful because of her insecurities over her chronic acne (a symptom of PCOS) and her social anxiety. Natalie is a vividly drawn character with a funny, self-deprecating voice, often teetering between raw-edged sensitivity and naive teenage narcissism. Adult YA fans will probably alternate between exasperation at how self-centered Natalie can be and wanting to give her a hug. She's not always likeable, but she feels very real.

4. Party of Two by Jasmine Guillory

I have now read every Jasmine Guillory book and featured them all in my book review posts; does that make me a superfan? The earmarks of a Guillory romance make it soothing reading for these tough times. There is always a Black female protagonist, and a cast of kind and gentle supporting characters that remind you there is good in the world after all. And although there are some swoon-y moments, the most romantic moments are inspired by the things that mature adults in healthy relationships do, like communication and compromise. Party of Two follows Olivia Monroe as she moves from New York to LA to open her own law firm with her friend Ellie. On one of her first nights in town, she meets and clicks with a cute guy at a hotel bar. That cute guy turns out to be Max Powell, a handsome senator who's considered one of the most eligible bachelors in DC and California. Olivia and Max are both driven in their careers, they care deeply about giving back to the community, they both love cake, and they've never felt this way about another person. But is that enough to sustain a relationship in the face of media scrutiny?

5. The Swap by Robyn Harding

In the past few years, Robyn Harding thrillers have become my must-buy summer beach reads. They often deal with sexy and topical issues (in this case, partner-swapping and the artifice of social media influencer culture), they have so many fun twists, and because Harding is from Vancouver, there are Pacific Northwest references aplenty. The Swap is essentially about two couples who decide to swap spouses one night after a drunken dinner party, with disastrous ramifications for all of their lives. However, the emotional centre of the story is the desperate yearnings of its three female protagonists, all of whom live in a remote town on a Pacific Northwest island: Low, a misfit teenager who becomes obsessed with beautiful newcomer Freya; Freya, once a model/actress/artist/influencer from LA, now disgraced and lying low after a scandal involving her ex-NHL-player husband; and Jamie, who wants a baby above all else and is dismayed when her best friend Freya becomes pregnant after that regrettable night.

6. Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice

An apocalyptic thriller by an Indigenous Canadian author, set in a remote First Nations community up north? Yes, please! When a mysterious event in the south knocks out power, Internet, and cell service for days, Evan Whitesky and the members of his Anishinaabe community are more confused than anything else. But as weeks pass and none of the services are restored, the confusion gives way to fear and death, as well as growing concern about outsiders with malicious intent. Rice gives stale end-of-the-world tropes a fresh spin with his vivid descriptions of First Nations traditions, like moose hunting and smudge ceremonies. I found it deeply ironic that the challenges of "res life"—unreliable heat and power, spotty cell service, having to hunt and fish because of the high prices of grocery store staples—made Rice's characters better suited to adapting and surviving in the post-apolyptic world. My only criticism of Moon of the Crusted Snow is that the ending felt too abrupt, but there's plenty of rich inspiration in its pages if, ahem, CBC wants to adapt it into a TV series.

7. Beach Read by Emily Henry

January Andrews writes romances with happy-ever-after endings; her neighbour and former creative-writing-class-in-college rival, Augustus Everett, writes bleak literary fiction. The only things they have in common? They happen to be spending their summer in beach houses next to each other and they're both struggling with writer's block. To work through the block and prove to Gus that romance novels are harder than they look, January proposes a bet: Each writer has to produce a novel in the other person's genre, and the first person to sell their manuscript wins. As part of the bet, January and Gus also go on weekly research dates. (January: a romantic date for two at the carnival. Gus: interviewing surivivors of a suicide cult.) Are you smiling in anticipation of the delightful rom-com set-pieces yet? Beach Read gets a few good digs in at how literary fiction is put on a pedestal while romance is denigrated, but at its core this is a story about sweet, sincere people who are each struggling with their own insecurities.

8. Parachutes by Kelly Yang

Parachutes lures you in with a Crazy Rich Asians-like premise, promising to be an inside look at wealthy Chinese high school students living and studying alone in America (aka "parachutes"), but this book treads much more poignant territory. Claire Wang is sent from Shanghai to California and enrolled in an exclusive prep school while her parents remain in China. Although she's staying with the De La Cruz family, Claire feels like she's free for the first time in her life—she's making friends, coming into her own, and she's piqued the romantic interest of a handsome and wealthy classmate. Dani De La Cruz is a scholarship student from an underprivileged family and a debate star at the same school, and resentful of Claire for her privilege and obliviousness. As the school year progresses, each girl faces her own set of challenges: racism at the hands of classmates and teachers, the vulnerability of their respective situations (Claire living alone in a strange country, Dani living in fear of losing her scholarship), and dealing with the gut-wrenching aftermath of sexual assault. Yang's depictions of the repercussions and hurdles survivors face will have you raging. Sadly, the novel's authenticity comes from personal experience: Yang reveals in the novel's afterword that she herself was the survivor of a sexual assault that occurred at Harvard Law School.

9. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

This gorgeous epic novel—about four generations of a Korean family living under Japanese imperialism and systemic racism—took Min Jin Lee almost 30 years to write and it deserves all the accolades (including its status as a National Book Award Finalist). In the 1900s, Sunja, the teenaged daughter of a crippled fisherman, falls for a wealthy stranger in a small seaside town in Korea. She becomes pregnant. Instead of becoming the mistress of her baby's father (who reveals he has a wife and family in Japan), Sunja marries a sickly but genteel minister from her mother's boardinghouse, and the newlyweds resettle in Osaka. This decision has repercussions for years to come, as each family member deals with the hardships of WWII and post-war life, and the barrage of racism they face as Koreans in Japan, all the way up to 1989. I devoured Pachinko in one weekend and was so obsessed that I kept giving Lawrence unsolicited status updates on all the characters. The subject matter can get heavy, but the language is fairly simple and the chapters flow easily from one to the next. Before you know it, you'll be pulled into the world of the Baek family.

Drugstore Delight: Summer Skincare

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 14 Jul 2020 07:00:00 +0000

When I pictured my 2020 summer, I did not foresee so many long WFH days and so little travel or vacation time, nor did I anticipate how tired and burnt out I'd feel. It seems as if all my brain bandwidth has gone towards work and just getting through the days and not much else. To save myself from daily decision-making fatigue, I've defaulted to variations on the same lounge-at-home outfits (Roots sweatshorts with a tee, or a loose and flowy T-shirt dress), and I've forgone experimenting with tons of new skincare. Instead, I've opted to add just a few products to my routine that are making my summertime complexion happy. Think lightweight textures, SPF protection, and an antioxidant boost. The best part? These products are affordable and accessible Drugstore Delights.

Trader Joe's Nourish Hyaluronic Moisture Boost Serum

I picked up this hyaluronic acid serum during a cross-border Trader Joe's run a couple of years ago, applied it once or twice, and then dismissed it because it left a sticky film on my face. Fast forward to June 2020, and I was looking for a gentle serum to layer under face oil and retinol at night when I fished this out of my beauty stash. Evidently I was applying too much the first time I used it because this time around I used a small pea-sized amount all over my face and neck; there was no stickiness or residue at all. This is a straightforward hyaluronic acid serum for less than $10 that is also dermatologist-formulated, fragrance-free, and suitable for all skin types. I layer this with a couple spritzes of Avene thermal spring water spray so that the hyaluronic acid has some water content it can pull into skin. So far it has kept the fine lines in my forehead (which get more pronounced when my skin is dehydrated) at bay. The gel texture is lightweight and non-greasy. For an extra-refreshing feel, you can even keep this serum in the fridge!

Derma E Vitamin C Renewing Moisturizer ($24 at London Drugs)

Derma E makes a delightful vitamin C serum that I reviewed here and can't get enough of. Its sister moisturizer shares many of the same traits that make the serum so great: a natural formula that consists of 100% stable vitamin C, probiotics, and rooibos to brighten skin; a lightweight, fast-absorbing, non-greasy texture that layers well under sunscreen or makeup; a citrus candy scent that delights the senses; and an affordable price tag. The one I'm using is a sample that Derma E kindly sent me, but I can definitely see myself repurchasing this in the future. I wear this under sunscreen during the day so that I have antioxidant protection beneath my broad-spectrum SPF, and so I get the skincare benefits of vitamin C in my routine without worrying that it might "clash" with the retinol I've been using at night.

La Roche-Posay Anthelios Ultra-Fluid Lotion (~~$29~~ on sale for $23.90 at London Drugs)

I received this La Roche-Posay sunscreen as a sample during the last #LDBeauty event and have been using it on and off for the past couple of months. Although this sunscreen is new to me, it's a cult fave beloved by many and I can see why. Fragrance-free, paraben-free, quick-absorbing with a matte finish, non-greasy, no white residue. The ultra-fluid lotion is more like a sunscreen liquid than a cream and truly feels like nothing once it's applied. I have textural issues with sunscreens that feel too tacky or sticky or oily, but this one is so comfortable for all-day wear. It also doesn't sting my eyes when I sweat, which is always a plus.

I should note here that the sample featured in this post is La Roche-Posay's old formulation, which features a specific blend of chemical sunscreens (homosalate, oxybenzone, octisalate, octocrylene, avobenzone, ecamsule mexoryl SX) under the DIN 02364700 and an SPF rating of 60. La Roche-Posay has since changed the packaging to say SPF 50+, and the active ingredients list is also completely different (albeit still consisting of chemical sunscreens) and registered under a different DIN. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that if the new formula is under the "ultra-fluid lotion" label, it probably feels just as good on skin as the old formula. (P.S. For those of you who are uncomfortable with chemical sunscreens and want a mineral one, La Roche-Posay's Ultra Fluid Lotion comes in a tinted mineral version too!)

Empties: June 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 30 Jun 2020 07:00:00 +0000

I meant to post this empties round-up in May, but, well, life happened. In total, there are 26+ products from a mix of Korean, natural, drugstore, luxury and French beauty brands. As you can imagine, most of them are skin and body care, including plenty of moisturizers, sheet masks and hand lotion. Ready?

MIFA Natural Body Wash ($35, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: I enjoyed this body wash while it lasted. Good to the last drop.

Would I repurchase? Maybe. Lately though, I've been favouring bar soaps (which MIFA also makes) because they're more eco-friently.

Scentuals Orange Geranium Exfoliating Handmade Soap ($5.50, PR sample)

Quick notes: Really enjoyed the light orange geranium scent and millennial pink hue. The lather cleansed well without stripping skin and rinsed away cleanly. The exfoliating granules are large and sparse, so this isn't as scrubby a soap bar as you'd think.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Mistral Soap Hand Cream in Cranberry and Vanilla (purchased by me)

Quick notes: Nice scents. Thick and rich. A little went a long way.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Lavanila Vanilla Grapefruit Deodorant ($14, previously featured here, purchased by me)

Quick notes: I was impressed with this formula's lasting power (24 hours!) compared to other natural deodorants.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Santa Maria Novella Hand Cream (purchased by me)

Quick notes: Santa Maria Novella hand cream remains one of my all-time favourites for its lemon scent, rich texture, and quietly luxurious packaging. I bought my first tube in Rome 3 years ago; this one was from last year's trip to LA.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

TONYMOLY I'm Pomegranate Mask Sheet (purchased by me)

Quick notes: Fruity scent, thick sheet, not a lot of essence.

Would I repurchase? No.

The Face Shop Real Nature Aloe Sheet Mask ($3.50, gift from coworker)

Quick notes: Light, refreshing, moisturizing, affordable.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Innisfree My Real Squeeze Rice Mask ($2.50, gift from coworker)

Quick notes: Creamy essence, good for winter or dry air conditions.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

TONYMOLY Master Lab Intensive Brightening Vitamin-C Sheet Mask ($4, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Citrusy scent, thin, fit poorly around mouth.

Would I repurchase? No.

The Face Shop Real Nature Rice Sheet Mask ($3.50, gift from coworker)

Quick notes: Although I usually hate the stickiness of sheet mask essence, I left the essence of this mask on instead of wiping it off immediately. It brightened my skin after one use.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Mamonde Brightening Flower Essence Mask ($3, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Niacinimide and magnolia were high up on the ingredients list, which was a good sign. The mask was a thick sheet and fit poorly on my face (the edges didn't reach all the way). Watery essence.

Would I repurchase? No.

Not Your Mother's Naturals Activated Bamboo Charcoal & Purple Moonstone Hair Mask ($2.99, purchased by me)

Quick notes: This is the companion mask to the hair scrub I reviewed here. Like the scrub, hero ingredients include activated bamboo charcoal and purple moonstone. It's designed to nourish and moisturize hair without weighing strands down. Good, but not good enough to make me pledge my undying loyalty.

Would I repurchase? No.

Rocky Mountain Soap Company Peppermint Lip Butter ($5.95, PR sample)

Quick notes: A tingly whoosh of peppermint with every swipe on the lips!

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Dermalogica Antioxidant Hydramist (Available at Varnish, PR sample)

Quick notes: This ultrafine mist is supposed to deliver hydration, antioxidants and firming benefits with every spritz. It smelled and felt nice, but I didn't think it performed over and beyond other face mists I've tried.

Would I repurchase? Probably not.

Caudalie VineActiv Energizing and Smoothing Eye Cream ($47, purchased by me)

Quick notes: I bought this while in Paris last year. This eye cream has a nice light texture that absorbs quickly, and the formula lives up to its energizing and smoothing claims. It doesn't sting or trigger puffiness or sensitivity. Out of Caudalie's eye creams, this one is relatively inexpensive.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Caudalie VineActiv Glow Activating Anti Wrinkle Serum ($62 for the full size, purchased by me)

Quick notes: A lightweight, quick-absorbing, day-or-night antioxidant serum. Its texture complemented the VineActiv eye cream and moisturizer well.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Moisturizer SPF20 (purchased by me)

Quick notes: I bought this SPF moisturizer while in Paris. At the time, it seemed like a convenient and versatile addition to my barre bag for after-class grooming. In reality though, this moisturizer was insufficient for my dry skin and the formula would pill if I applied more. Hard pass.

Would I repurchase? No.

Caudalie VineActiv 3-in-1 Moisturizer ($53, purchased by me)

Quick notes: The scent and texture complement the rest of the VineActiv line well. I liked how lightweight this was, but it still moisturized effectively and was great under sunscreen.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Ulta Ultra Slim Brow Pencil ($10, previously featured here, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Super affordable compared to the Dior brow pencil I used to use, and it gets the job done. New forever fave.

Would I repurchase? Already did!

Bioderma Sebium H2O Micellar Wipes (PR sample)

Quick notes: Appealing fresh scent. Cleansed effectively without stinging skin or eyes. Biodegradable.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Uriage Eau Thermale ($21 for the full size at London Drugs, PR sample)

Quick notes: Refreshing thermal spring water spray suited for sensitive skin. Compared to my usual stand-by Avene though, it didn't seem noticeably better.

Would I repurchase? No.

Biore Baking Soda Micellar Cleansing Water (previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: I think this product has been retooled since its initial launch and now contains blue agave? I've been using up my PR samples so they don't go to waste, but this is not my first choice micellar water.

Would I repurchase? No.

Pixi DetoxifEYE Depuffing Eye Patches ($24, previously featured here, purchased by me)

Quick notes: Still a forever fave.

Would I repurchase? Already have!

Dermalogica Rapid Reveal Peel ($12 per tube or $116 for the kit at Varnish, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: Love. Each tube has enough product for 2-3 uses.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Dermalogica Ultracalming Cleanser ($55, available at Varnish, PR sample)

Quick notes: Good gentle cleanser option, but expensive and not noticeably better than other, more affordable cleansers I've tried.

Would I repurchase? No.

Avene Eau Thermale Thermal Spring Water ($16.25 at London Drugs, previously featured here, PR sample)

Quick notes: Forever fave.

Would I repurchase? Yes.

Solo Lisa Reads: June 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Lisa) — Tue, 23 Jun 2020 07:00:00 +0000

My social media and blog have been pretty quiet lately for a number of reasons. I've been WFH all this time, on a team that is committed to delivering a lot and understaffed for what we have to do, and I've just been feeling burnt out from 2020 overall. I've also been listening and learning as much as possible about Black Lives Matter and anti-racism, reflecting on my own behaviours and possible biases and where I can do better. And while learning to become a better ally can be a lifelong journey, I immediately identified one small area where I could improve right away: Featuring more books by Black authors in these monthly round-ups. Going forward, I'm going to try to feature 1-2 books a month by Black authors, and true to my literary tastes, the books will probably be a mix of YA, romance, and pure escapism. So if you're looking to add something light and joyful to your summer reading list, might I recommend these 6 books?

1. Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn

Meg Mackworth, dubbed "the Planner of Park Slope," spends her days hand-lettering and illustrating everything from custom journals and planners to wedding stationery for her clients. A year after Meg finishes a suite of wedding stationery for investment banker Reid Sutherland and his wealthy fiancee, Reid himself—now single, having not gone through with wedding—shows up at Meg's Brooklyn stationery shop and demands to know why she embedded a hidden message in his wedding programs, a message that accurately predicted the end of his relationship. What follows is a story about two people who learn what they want out of their lives, careers, and relationships, and who give each other the strength to go for it. I loved the references to fancy stationery and typefaces in this novel. Truly, Love Lettering is the ultimate soothing rom-com if you're into bullet journals and paper planners and calligraphy.

2. The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

Tiffy is weathering a bad breakup and needs an affordable place to live. Leon is a hospice nurse who works nights and weekends, and he needs money for his brother Ritchie's legal bills. Leon places an ad for an unusual roommate arrangement seeking someone who works a standard 9-5 Monday-to-Friday office job and is willing to share his one-bedroom flat. Because their hours don't line up, only one person would ever be home at any given time and they could even sleep in the same bed—sort of like having your own apartment but at half the rent. Tiffy and Leon never meet as roommates, but through a series of increasingly friendly and then flirty notes, they find themselves slowly falling for each other. The Flatshare is a sweet and whimsical romance, but it has its darker moments too, like Tiffy's emotionally abusive ex and Ritchie's case. Although O'Leary never explicitly states Leon and Ritchie's ethnicity, references to their skin tone and hair imply they're POC and that this is a contributing factor to the injustice facing Ritchie.

3. The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton

Juliette is hellbent on reinventing herself as the perfect girlfriend and making her ex Nate regret breaking up with her. She's training for a new career as a flight attendant at the same airline where Nate works as a pilot (although he doesn't know it yet). And she'd do anything to get back together, from breaking into his apartment when he's not there to hacking his phone and infiltrating his friends' and family's lives. Hamilton's first-person narration from Juliette's perspective makes The Perfect Girlfriend an eerily hypnotic thriller that also somehow feels...cozy? I can't explain it, but something about the rhythm of the prose and the way the story bounces from one of Juliette's machinations to the next makes this novel feel like you're sinking into something and you don't want to get out. Before you know it, you'll find yourself racing through the pages in one sitting, equal parts repulsed and fascinated by its anti-heroine.

4. You Should See Me In A Crown by Leah Johnson

Liz Lighty is as smart and sweet as YA heroines come. She also feels as though she's "too black, too poor, too awkward" to fit in in her small hometown of Campbell, Indiana, and she dreams of escaping by attending Pennington College. The only snag in her life plans? Pennington's financial aid fell through. With no other options, Liz runs for prom queen in the hopes of snagging the big scholarship awarded to the winner. You'll have to read the book to find out if she succeeds despite the mean girls and the social media trolls, as well as her burgeoning crush on fellow prom queen competitor Mack. Johnson's debut novel is gentle and winsome and already has me wanting to see more from her. Although Liz's situation is rooted in the intersectionality of her experience, her dilemma (being able to afford college) is relatable for a lot of teens today. I also really enjoyed the loving dynamic between Liz and her friends and family.

5. The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

Five years ago, Lina Santos was left at the altar when best man Max Hartley talked his brother out of walking down the aisle. But she's mostly over it these days: She has a thriving career as one of DC's premiere wedding planners and she's up for a sweet gig as wedding director of a boutique hotel chain. At least, she thinks she's over it until she finds out that as part of the job interview, Lina has to team up with Max (who's part of the hotel chain's marketing agency) on a big presentation for her potential boss. Sosa's rom-com novel feels fresh thanks to her Afro-Brazilian heroine and all the glimpses into Brazilian culture (the Rio de Wheaton grocery store! the food! the snippets of Portuguese!). Amidst the frothy rom-com scenes and fantastic set-pieces, there's also a superb teachable moment where Lina calls out Max on his white male privilege and explains how she, as an Afro-Latinx woman, cannot afford to be seen as overly emotional.

6. The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez

I adored Abby Jimenez's The Friend Zone (which I reviewed here) and its sequel does not disappoint. 2 years after Sloan loses her fiance Brandon in a tragic motorcycle accident, she is still deeply depressed and unable to move on. That is, until a strange dog jumps through her car's sun-roof while she's stuck in traffic. Caring for her new pet awakens something in Sloan and sets her on the path toward healing. As the weeks pass, Sloan is all set on keeping the dog—until someone named Jason calls and says he wants him back. Jason is a talented musician who's about to hit the big time, and as their conversations about dog custody turn into flirty texts and marathon phone calls, he finds himself falling hard for Sloan. Can she work through her inner demons and find love again, and can they both weather the obstacles that Jason's newfound fame throws at them? The chemistry between Sloan and Jason is off-the-charts adorable, and Jimenez handles Sloan's emotional journey and grief with sensitivity and grace.

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