Healthy Life!

Losing weight can be tricky. For me, the hardest part is finding a diet and sticking to it. I'm not a picky eater and I have no issue trying new foods and eating healthy. In my case, it's saying no to all the sweet things that are placed in front of me. 

For most, heading off to school in the Fall and living on campus can be difficult in the weight loss department. They constantly have fast food placed in front of them and are able to grab a quick snack in the cafeteria. This doesn't have to be the way that you eat every single day. I'm fortunate enough to have a suite at university that comes with a full kitchen. I'm able to prepare my own meals all the time and choose what I like to eat. Not all dorms are this way. You're still able to make healthy choices even though you don't have space to prepare food! Buying fresh fruit and berries to eat for breakfast instead of heading to the cafeteria. Buy a case of water that you and your room mates can share instead of sweet pop. It's the little things that make healthy eating easier. 

I love grocery shopping by myself. It allows for me to pick the foods that I want to eat and that I will eat. My grocery list usually consists of the foods that you can find on the outside of the grocery store. 

• Fruits and Vegetables: raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, premixed salads, spinach, grapefruit, avocados, onions, garlic, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, alfalfa sprouts etc. 
• Meats and Fish: pork, boneless/skinless chicken breast, salmon (my favourite), shrimp, sushi
• Dairy and Eggs: omega-3 eggs, lactose free milk, margarine (be careful with this one, look for margarine that is low in fats and calories and use it sparingly), chocolate milk (my weakness although I'm lactose intolerant), greek yoghurt
• Grains: whole grain fresh bread from the bakery and flax seed bread
• Other: almond and peanut butter, tortillas, granola, low fat muffin mix, frozen berries and vegetables

Instead of heading straight for the aisles in the middle of the store, head to the outside. This is where your foods with the most nutritional value are housed. The inside is usually just all the junk (with a few exceptions). 

You don't have to stick to a diet to lose weight. Weight loss is 80% healthy eating and 20% working out. You can lose weight simply by changing your diet - believe me! A change in your diet makes you feel amazing inside and out. 

Dorm Room Chic Day One: Bedding

I'm going to be headed off to university in a few short weeks and I'm going to be staying in residence for this year. I was lucky enough to have gotten a suite complete with a small kitchenette and dining area. I'm starting a little mini series for a little while called Dorm Chic! Like you, I hate those stereotypical dorm rooms with the cinder block walls and plain colours. Throughout the weeks leading up to university/college move in, I'm going to be showing you how you can spruce up your dorm from the bedding, to the desk area over to the walls! Your dorm will definitely not be a dull space!

Chances are, being a university/college student, you'll be spending a lot of time in bed. Sleeping will most likely be your best friend. In some cases, sleeping may be hard to come by. Ensure that your bed is comfortable by bringing a mattress pad. Dorm beds are notorious for being uncomfortable. A mattress pad will ensure that your back doesn't ache when you wake up in the morning to head off to class. 

1. Xhilaration "Bed in a Bag" Black and White Damask 59.99$ (Twin/Single)

2. Ikea Britten Nummer Fabric 3.99$ p/ meter

3. Ike Emmie Blom Cushion 7.99$

4. Xhilaration Black Fur Pillow 19.99$

5. Xhilaration "Bed in a Bag" Scroll 39.99$

The Ikea fabric above is a totally reasonably priced way to add a personal touch to your bed area. Consider making your own pillowcases or throw if you're crafty. You can save yourself a lot of cash and ensure that no one else has the same thing! 

Larger body pillows are great replacements for those hundreds of pillows you have on your bed at home. You shouldn't be moving your entire room with you to university/college. Just what you need for the time being! 

The Average Blonde: Bracelet Giveaway!

Win this gorgeous white and gold bracelet from my Etsy shop! All you have to do is follow the Rafflecopter instructions below to enter! You will receive one white and gold arm party bracelet. Bracelets are made using aluminium chain which is lead and nickel free, very hypo-allergenic! Giveaway is also open worldwide! Winners will be chosen via the Random Number Selector on Random.org. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Recent Instagrams!

I've actually been doing a lot lately but haven't been taking my camera with me everywhere I go. However, having an iPhone proves to come in handy when I need to snap a few pictures. 

I've (finally) set up my Etsy store and started listing items for all to purchase. You can visit it by clicking here! My business cards which go in with every order are super cute and they came out beautifully! The front looks like pictured, the inside has jewellery care instructions and the back has all of my info and a neat way to visit my web page. All you have to do is download "ScanLife" on your iPhone, Android or whatever other platform you use and scan the back of my business card! 

Found myself at the mall again this past week. I think my car is programmed to automatically take me there and have me buy things. This time I had some restraint and only purchased this Brett Lawrie Blue Jays shirt. I love him and the Blue Jays so to me, this was a necessity. 

Lastly, the other day I had Starbucks for lunch. It was the first time in a while that I've actually indulged in a full lunch from Starbucks and it was totally worth it. I had a mozzarella panini, some sweet potato chips that were to die for and a strawberries and cream frappuccino made with soy! The drink is perfect for summer! 

Essence + Organix Haul

So I have this problem. When I'm bored, I immediately head to either the mall or the drugstore because chances are, you can always find something that catches your eye! My latest haul comes courtesy of Shoppers Drug Mart (for American readers, it's like Walgreens). 

In total, I ended up with seven items. They were all priced under 5$ with the exception of the shampoo, but that was even on sale! Totally rare and unusual with the brand and Shoppers! 

First off, the shampoo. Not going to lie, I bought this based on the colour of the bottle and how cute it looked. I'm a sucker for pretty packaging and light pinks (as you can probably tell by my colour choices). It smells awesome, something that is really hard to fathom considering it's made with ginger. Plus, I was looking for something to repair my dull hair! Hopefully this one works out well! 

These two Essence XXXL Shine glosses were the first products to find their way into my shopping basket. The one on top being Nude Candy and the one on the bottom, Timeless Beauty. Nude Candy is a pale pink (nude) super shiny gloss. Now I'm not a huge fan of nudes. I think that they make my already fair skin look immensely washed out, but this gloss is a really sheer nude and compliments my skin. The bottom gloss, Timeless Beauty, is sheer as well. This one has some added sparkle and looks great over top of a lipstick or just on it's own for an everyday gloss. They both smell divine and don't have any icky tastes to them. 

Next up, I grabbed this lipstick in Frosted. Like the glosses, it's a sheer pink. It really goes great with the Timeless Beauty gloss over top. I'm not a fan of lipsticks that really add a lot of colour to your lips. I know that sort of contradicts the point, but there are times when I want to get the colour without the stickyness of a gloss. If you're looking for a cheaper version of the Revlon lip butters, try this!

After searching forever, I've finally found a nice neutral eye palette that went well with my blue eyes. I don't wear heavy eye makeup but I do love to do a smoky eye every now and then. This Essence Quattro is in called Over the Taupe and it features a light off white, a light taupe, an almost silver taupe-y grey and a dark grey, perfect for the crease of your eye. I also picked up a white eye liner for my inner eyes. White against the light blue of my eyes really makes them pop. The eye liner may seem like a hard pencil at first but once you've worked in the pencil a bit, it turns into a soft, easy to apply liner. 

Lastly, the 1.49$ nail polish! This one is in the shade A Lovely Secret. It's a fairytale purple with some really light purple, barely noticeable glitter strewn throughout. It takes about two coats to get a nice coverage but it dries immensely fast and is perfect for a quick polish change. The thing that I love about Essence's polishes, is that they are not overpriced and they are not in large bottles. How many of you have honestly finished off a bottle of nail polish that cost you something like 8$? These ones are perfect because they're easy to finish and produce less waste. Plus their line of colours is amazing and the polish beats out a lot of the bigger brand name polishes (in my opinion). 

If you haven't checked out Essence at your local Shoppers (in Canada) or Ulta (US), you might want to. They're a great European brand who have finally (and thankfully) broken into the North American market. I've been a loyal supporter of the brand since I visited Germany two years ago and now I just can't get enough!