1433 AH: New Year, Same Hopes

It seems like only yesterday I was writing last year's Islamic New Year post. How an entire year has passed us by is inexplicable to me. Where has all that time gone, I'm not sure.

It pays to ponder upon the year's happenings and examine what our experiences have taught us and whether we are closer to 'where we want to be' or should be.

A year ago, in my new years blogpost, I shared a few Qur'anic quotes that encapsulated my hopes for the upcoming year. Looking back, those quotes maintain their relevance as life goals once again- to be ascertained over the years. I won't re-post, but be sure to scan through them if you have a chance.

This upcoming year, I continue to hope for good health, for world peace, for increased humility, for greater communication between people, justice for the oppressed and the humanization of the 'other', which I believe to be the root cause of most evils.

Personally, I hope this year brings some professional stability, an opportunity to meet inspiring people, the chance to increase my knowledge and reading, and an increase in my blog readership :-P

Peace.

Bargain-surfing!

I've never been one to waste exorbitant amounts of money buying clothes, electronics, etc at regular price. Some may call it cheap, I choose to define it as being budget-conscious!

Recently, more and more companies have been offering online shopping and shipping to Canada (Gap, Old Navy, etc) and with the tough economic times, it feels even more important now to save $$$ wherever possible.

Enter the goal of this post. There are a few websites that I frequent that advertise in-store and online deals/promotions/freebies at different retailers across Canada. Apart from these websites, I rely on subscriptions to e-mail alerts from the companies I usually shop at, so that I can take advantage of reduced merchandise, when the wardrobe needs to be spruced up!

One of my top favourite website for promos and freebies, is SmartCanucks. Presented in a very simplified blog, deals are posted multiple times a day! SmartCanuck blogposts have gotten me a host of samples! My travel-size Motrin being one of the highlights!

BargainMoose is another good website, but not a site I visit as frequently as SC. It has a similar format to SC, with a very straightforward design.

RedFlagDeals is another great site- which is probably more well-known for its awesome forums! It has compiled a great list of retailers offering Black Friday sales, fyi.

I've used coupons from Save.ca on a few occasions. Just recently, I used a $2.00 coupon for my Cetaphil face cleanser, at Rexall! Yippee!! They've got some great coupon offerings at the moment, so be sure to check them out. There are a ton of these types of websites online. I will post more once I get a chance.

GroceryAlerts is a website I came across yesterday. I'm not too sure if they are a good website to follow just yet. The bloggers behind the website put together this great book of coupons/deals for use on one's birthday! Take a look.

Any useful websites you visit for deals? Care to share?

DIY: Sewing buttons onto my reusable bag

I came across a DIY blog recently, whose link I can't find! It inspired me to sew buttons onto my reusable fabric bag I use for my lunch, for work.

One problem I was having with my lunchbag is that it would flop around quite a bit while on my shoulder. Last week, I sewed on a few snap buttons that were lying around the house. I only sewed on a few buttons initially and am planning to add a few more to keep it properly shut when I get the chance. Bigger snap buttons might give a stronger hold, so hopefully I can pick some up soon.

Take a look!

Working on any DIY projects of your own?

Blog re-Design!

In my blog's almost two year existence, it has undergone three major face-lifts! I felt that the initial design didn't reflect the sometimes serious subjects I addressed in my blog. While the second design wasn't accessible enough. I always had a problem with the font colour in the tabs section and don't know how to work my way around the coding to have been able to change that.

I'm very happy with the site's update, as I now feel that the design more accurately represents the blog's identity. Increasing the accessibility was important to me. I wanted to make it as easy on the eyes as possible, so hopefully you'll like the changes!

What are your thoughts on the re-design?

Great make-up sale for Canadians!

Hey guys! I meant to post this a few days ago, but got a bit busy with some other stuff. There is an awesome sale going on this week at Rexall. At the moment, they are offering 50% of all cosmetic face products, including foundations, powders, concealers, correctors, bronzers and blushes. You can search for your flyer here.

I've been wanting to pick up a liquid foundation as I do not have one at the moment! I threw out all the foundations I had been using before after my major breakout in February.

I had read quite a lot of good reviews for L'Oreal's True Match Foundation, so yesterday I picked it up in W6 (sun beige). I am between MAC's NC35-40, for reference. I am happy to report after an initial test, the colour match is perfect and the texture feels incredible! Stay tuned for a full report once I've properly tested it.

Natural vs. (Un) Natural Deodorants: Which is better?

More than a year ago, I decided to swear off synthetic/chemical laden deodorants in favour of a natural deodorant,  called Crystal. With previous skin issues, and a desire to minimize the negative impact of  chemical buildup in my body, this seemed like a good idea at the time. I thought I would share my experience with this specific product in case anyone was interested in knowing what it was like.The cool hypoallergenic, fragrance and paraben free solution felt nice being applied to my underarms after showering. Gone were the times of applying a thick, waxy substance to my fresh and clean underarms!

After initially testing out the product, I didn't notice any difference in perspiration levels. It is only in the past few months that I realized that Crystal's formula wasn't really working for me, at all! I just assumed that I was a heavy underarm sweater and that regular deodorants didn't do much to reduce my sweating previously.

I clearly had some memory issues as I must have overlooked the usefulness of conventional deodorants in controlling perspiration, because I felt good using a natural product in such a sensitive area.

Last week, I decided to do a little experiment. I used a a mini Dove deodorant I had previously acquired for travel, but had not used. The results were drastic. If I had to quantify the percentage of how much I perspired compared to the amount I usually do using the natural deodorant, I'd say it was about 5-10%. Needless to say, I've switched over...for now. I don't have to tell you that excessive underarm sweating is embarrassing (ie. having visible sweat marks when you aren't exercising, etc!) and this is something that I'm wishing to avoid henceforth!

To be clear, I don't think natural deodorants are not good products because I am planning to continue my search for a natural deodorant that is effect at deodorizing and reducing perspiration naturally, if possible! I saw a recommendation online for this product but, I need to do some more research before committing.

Crystal brand deodorant is not very good at deodorizing or reducing sweating (at all.) If you are looking for a natural deodorant, I would look further than this product because I am sure there is something out there that balances our need for fewer chemicals and is also an effective deodorizer/anti-perspirant.

If you've tried out a product like this that works for you, I'd love some suggestions!