xoliana
Member Since: July 31, 2016Reviews
Professor Layton and The Curious Village
Professor Layton and The Curious Village is the first game in the series that was released for the Nintendo DS, back in 2007. However, chronologically speaking, it is actually the fourth game in the series. This is a mystery game with interactive... +
Professor Layton and The Curious Village is the first game in the series that was released for the Nintendo DS, back in 2007. However, chronologically speaking, it is actually the fourth game in the series.
This is a mystery game with interactive puzzles. The story follows Professor Hershel Layton and his apprentice, Luke Triton, as they investigate a little village in the countryside in search of a lost artifact. They soon come to realize that something strange is going on with the village and its inhabitants, but it will take some sleuthing to find out what it is!
Being that this was the first game available in North America, it's also the first game in the series that I played. I'm a fan of puzzle games so this one was a real treat. It's definitely a family-friendly game, but the puzzles can be challenging, not too easy considering how approachable it is for younger gamers. It's something that adults can enjoy as well, and if anything the series gets more difficult as it goes along. This is one of the easier games by far.
The story and characters are very charming. I was immediately sucked in, so it's no surprise that I ended up playing all of the other games in the series. I look forward to every new game as it comes out.
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Black Swan (2010)
Black Swan is a 2010 psychological thriller directed by Darren Aronofsky. It stars Natalie Portman, who won an Oscar for this role, as well as Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, and Barbara Hershey. The story is about a ballerina named Nina, who has been... +
Black Swan is a 2010 psychological thriller directed by Darren Aronofsky. It stars Natalie Portman, who won an Oscar for this role, as well as Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, and Barbara Hershey.
The story is about a ballerina named Nina, who has been training hard for years in an elite school. She finally earns top spot as prima ballerina, despite heavy competition from her rival, Lily (Mila Kunis). Nina gets the lead role in the company's production of Swan Lake, the classic tale of a girl who is transformed into a swan, but the role soon takes its toll on her in more ways than one.
This is an absolutely fantastic film. I was a dancer when I was younger, so I've always been fascinated by the art. While it's lovely to watch the dancers at work -- including Portman and Kunis, who worked hard to be able todance on screen -- it's also very horrifying to watch what these women put themselves through, both physically and mentally. I think the film captured this very well and turned it into a very powerful psychological analysis of the delicate psyche of someone who tries so hard to be perfect, and inevitably collapses under the pressure.
The film is rated R and has a running time of 110 minutes.
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Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance Eye Shadow Palette
I've never bought anything from Anastasia Beverly Hills. I had heard amazing things about this palette, and had heard that it was hard to get, but I procured mine easily from the Sephora website. The palette is beautiful. The outside is a very... +
I've never bought anything from Anastasia Beverly Hills. I had heard amazing things about this palette, and had heard that it was hard to get, but I procured mine easily from the Sephora website.
The palette is beautiful. The outside is a very pale, dusty pink shade, and the fabric feels like a sort of velvet or velour. It does show smudges easily, but I keep my fingers very clean, so I don't think this will be a problem for me personally. The inside has a very nice-sized mirror as well as a dual-ended brush -- one side is a sort of fluffy blending brush for the crease, and the other can be used to pack colour on the lid or smudge colour along the lash line. The bristles are very soft, however I don't find that the brush performs as well as some of the others in my collection -- and my brushes are drugstore brands.
The eyeshadow colours range from neutral to warm. There are fourteen shades in total, and because it is the Modern Renaissance palette, the shades are named after famous artists. Here, I have a brief description of each shade:
Tempera: The palest colour in the palette, it's a sort of the palest peach you can imagine. It's one of the ultra-matte shades and works well as a brow-bone highlight on my skintone.
Golden Ochre: Ultra-matte. This is a soft sort of sand colour, kind of like the shade of sandy blonde hair. When I wore a blonde wig on Halloween, I actually used this shade to tone down the darkness in my brows.
Vermeer: Satin. This is the palest of champagne shimmers, and works well on the lid or as an inner corner highlight. It's really, really beautiful.
Buon Fresco: Ultra-matte. This shade reminds me of the outside of the palette because it, too, is a very pale dusty pink. It's definitely a cool-toned pink, but it complements the warmer pinks very nicely.
Antique Bronze: Satin. This is sort of a purple brown, or a maroon. It works really nicely with Buon Fresco, or with some of the browns in here. It pulls more brown or purple depending on what you pair it with.
Love Letter: Ultra-matte. This is a really rich, berry pink shade. You can create some more dramatic looks with this because it's so deep in colour.
Cyprus Umber: Ultra-matte. This is a dark brown, neither too cool or too warm. You can build up to a nice smoky eye by pairing this with some of the other browns, or even pair it with some pinks.
Raw Sienna: Ultra-matte. This is a good transition shade for light to medium skin tones because it's not too dark, and it's very buildable. It's a good neutral shade to build around.
Burnt Orange: Ultra-matte. This is also a good transition shade, but compared to Raw Sienna it's much more warm in tone. This is good if you're planning on working with some of the warmer tones in the palette later.
Primavera: Satin. Similar to Vermeer, but with a touch more of a golden undertone to it. Another good one for all over the lid or as an inner corner highlight.
Red Ochre: Ultra-matte. A dark red-brown, sort of a dark rust colour. It's stunning! Looks good with browns, oranges, or both.
Venetian Red: Satin. At first I wasn't sure, but there's definitely some very fine glitter in this shade, whereas the other satin shades are just shimmer. This is definitely a fine glitter. It's more red than Love Letter, and less brown than Red Ochre, but works well with both.
Warm Taupe: Ultra-matte. Another transition shade, but this one is very cool-toned, despite its name, especially next to the other transitions in this palette.
Realgar: Ultra-matte. If I described Red Ochre as a sort of dark rust colour, then this is a true rust. It's orangey-toned, through and through. It's very unique and very wearable.
All of these shades perform wonderfully. They're all smooth, pigmented, and blendable. They do kick up some dust, but that's only because they're so soft and pigmented; the softer the shadow, the more kick-up you'll have. That's actually a good thing! If you're mindful of only picking up a small amount on your brush at a time, and always tapping off the excess, you shouldn't have any problems. This is the perfect palette.
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Shoppers Drugmart
I do like Shopper's Drug Mart because there's a wide range of products available, from beauty and skincare to wellness and groceries. It's definitely convenient in that sense, since there are so many things available in one spot, BUT -- and this is... +
I do like Shopper's Drug Mart because there's a wide range of products available, from beauty and skincare to wellness and groceries. It's definitely convenient in that sense, since there are so many things available in one spot, BUT -- and this is a pretty big but -- they absolutely gouge you on the prices. If you don't believe me, you should compare their prices to something like Wal-Mart, or certain online vendors. It's actually rather shocking how much they overcharge on many of their products. As I said, though, it's convenient; not everyone has a Wal-Mart near them (I don't), and not everyone enjoys shopping online.
When it comes to their cosmetics, one of the biggest reasons I shop there, I find that their store is shockingly unkempt. Things are torn and ripped open, testers are missing, products are open and have been handled in disgusting ways. It's like no one cares to do anything about this. I've bought skin creams that smelled like they were musty and expired. I'm starting to get more and more scared to buy anything beauty/skin-related from Shopper's. It's getting really bad, plus, as I mentioned, I can usually find what I'm looking for at a way cheaper price elsewhere. I mean, I've seen hair colour kits that have been opened, with portions missing. Who takes part of a hair colour? Frankly I don't get it.
The ladies who work the counter at the beauty boutique never seem to be doing any work, yet when you want their help, they're all too busy talking to each other to assist you. The customer service definitely leaves something to be desired. There's usually only one person working the register at a time at the checkout, which makes things move very slowly.
Granted I'm only talking about one specific location here, but I'm not impressed.
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Alcan Aluminum foil
Gets the job done, for sure. I honestly use this for so many different things, and find that I can often re-use the pieces I've torn off provided they're not really messy. I'm a big fan of cooking in a frying pan. Often times, what I'll do is... +
Gets the job done, for sure. I honestly use this for so many different things, and find that I can often re-use the pieces I've torn off provided they're not really messy.
I'm a big fan of cooking in a frying pan. Often times, what I'll do is take a piece and wrap it around the pan really tight, or even wrap a rubber band around it to keep it tight. This locks in the heat to make things cook faster (eg.eggs for a frittata). Afterwards, if no food is on it, I just fold it up to be used again later. My dad does the same thing when he cooks large batches of pancakes.
Most recently, I used this stuff to wrap around my hair straightener to prevent the panels from getting too hot, because I needed to straighten a synthetic wig. This prevented the wig fibres from melting, but the straightener was still warm enough to actually work. I may actually do this on my own hair, since my hair is very fine and delicate. And again, it's super easy to re-use it!
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National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Such a classic. I've been watching this film every Christmas for as long as I can remember, so very likely it's been over twenty years now. The whole family gathers around to watch it every year. I can still remember the old VHS tape we had! It... +
Such a classic. I've been watching this film every Christmas for as long as I can remember, so very likely it's been over twenty years now. The whole family gathers around to watch it every year. I can still remember the old VHS tape we had! It got so worn out that we eventually had to upgrade to the DVD version, and now we have two backups in case anything happens (I'm not even joking!).
I'm not sure if this film really needs describing, because if you haven't seen it by now, chances are you've been living under a rock! The film came out the year I was born, in good old 1989. It's classic Chevy Chase at his best. It's not the first National Lampoon film, nor is it the last, but in my opinion it's the best.
You have Clark W. Griswold and his wife Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo), along with their kids Russ (Johnny Galecki) and Audrey (Juliette Lewis) (and by now, it's pretty much a running joke that their kids are never the same age, and never played by the same actors). They're going to be putting up their relatives for the holidays but, being the "perfectionist" that he is, Clark goes out of his way to try to make everything amazing, from the lights to the tree and so on. Of course, in true Griswold fashion, nothing works out and massive hilarity ensues.
This is one of those films that's filled with so many memorable lines that my family and I tend to quote it all yearround. "Bend over and I'll show ya!" "****er was full!" "Hey kids, look, a deer!" "Hallelujah, holy ****! Where's the Tylenol?" Just awesome. Can't wait to watch it again!
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Brodre (Brothers)
Brodre is a 2004 Danish film starring Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Connie Nielson, and Ulrich Thomsen. The film is in Danish with English subtitles. For those interested, it was later remade into an English version in 2009 called Brothers, starring Jake... +
Brodre is a 2004 Danish film starring Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Connie Nielson, and Ulrich Thomsen. The film is in Danish with English subtitles. For those interested, it was later remade into an English version in 2009 called Brothers, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Natalie Portman, and Tobey Maguire.
The story is about Michael (Ulrich Thomsen), a family man and a soldier who is sent off to Afghanistan. He leaves behind his wife Sarah (Connie Nielson), and his brother Jannik (Nikolaj Lie Kaas). After Michael is presumed dead, Sarah and Jannik begin to grow closer and eventually develop feelings for one another, but as it turns out, Michael is still alive. This causes a great deal of discomfort when he arrives home.
The film was nominated for several Danish Academy Awards. It's a little bit slow-paced, but wonderfully acted and very gut-wrenching. It's very well-crafted because the audience is made to both sympathize with Michael, who has been through so much, but at the same time you also approve of the romance between Jannik and Sarah, because Jannik is such a great man and they've both lost someone very important to them. It then gets very tough and you don't really know who to root for in the end, so in that sense, I think the director and writer did their job well.
The film is rated R and has a running time of 117 minutes.
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Sephora.com
As much as I love going to an actual Sephora location so I can look at all of their products in person, I have to say that shopping online is a much better way to go! I appreciate the fact that I can earn Beauty Insider points online -- some... +
As much as I love going to an actual Sephora location so I can look at all of their products in person, I have to say that shopping online is a much better way to go! I appreciate the fact that I can earn Beauty Insider points online -- some rewards programs only let you earn points in store. Additionally, Sephora will email you frequently with a head's up on double points days, products that are going on sale -- particularly if these are prodhcts you currently have in your cart -- mobile offers, and more.
Speaking of mobile offers, these are easily one of the best parts of shopping the Sephora website. They always have several offers going on at once, so if you spend a certain amount (generally $25, before taxes and shipping), you get freebies. Their freebies are amazing! I have gotten a 25-shade Urban Decay lipstick sampler as an online offer for spending $25, which I still haven't used up! And on my most recent purchase, after spending $35 I received a black clutch filled with 12 different deluxe samples from various brands! That's not including the 3 free samples you get with every order.
The free samples are a nice touch. People have told me they get free samples in store all the time, but I only ever get fragrance samples, which I can't use because I'm scent sensitive. Online, you can choose your own samples, which is a much better way to go. I've gotten Dior lipsticks, Josie Maran Argan Oil, face masks, etc. So much better than an un-usable fragrance sample.
The shipping is awesome. You get free shipping on orders over $50, or there's a flat rate fee that I believe is in the $7 range. And it's FAST. You get your order within about two days, which is amazing. Returns are also veryeasy, as you can either go to a store, or ship it back. They're very lenient with returns.
I really have nothing bad to say other than that some product prices can be rather high, but it's the brand that sets the price and not Sephora. If anything, I've actually found that Sephora sells things for a few dollars cheaper than what you'll find on brand websites (eg. Urban Decay).
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Arthur Christmas
Arthur Christmas is a 2011 animated holiday film from Aardman Animations, the same studio which is famous for making Wallace & Gromit. This isn't stop-motion animated, however it does feature the same style of character and humour that their films... +
Arthur Christmas is a 2011 animated holiday film from Aardman Animations, the same studio which is famous for making Wallace & Gromit. This isn't stop-motion animated, however it does feature the same style of character and humour that their films have always had. It has the voice talents of James McAvoy, Hugh Laurie, Bill Nighy, and Jim Broadbent.
The film is about a long line of Santas who carry on the tradition of being the new Santa after the old one has retired. The current Santa has two sons whom he can pass on the torch: his eldest son Steve, an uptight fellow who is responsible for all of the technological advances at the North Pole, and the youngest son Arthur, who is clumsy but sweet, and who responds to all of the children's letters. When one child doesn't receive their presenton Santa's delivery route, it's clumsy Arthur who goes out of his way to get the gift delivered on time.
Though the film has only been out for a few years, it's already become one of my go-to films to watch every Christmas. There are very few films that I absolutely MUST watch as a tradition, but this one is just so sweet, so charming and funny, that it quickly earned a spot. There's enough there for both children and adults to enjoy. The animation is bright and beautiful, the humour is clever, and it's got a great heart.
The film is rated PG and has a running time of 97 minutes. If you haven't seen it yet, the season will be upon us soon -- why not give it a watch?
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The Last of Us
The Last of Us is a Playstation exclusive game that was released for the Playstation 3 in 2013. It was later remastered for the release of the Playstation 4, and it received universal acclaim from critics and gamers alike. The game is about the... +
The Last of Us is a Playstation exclusive game that was released for the Playstation 3 in 2013. It was later remastered for the release of the Playstation 4, and it received universal acclaim from critics and gamers alike.
The game is about the outbreak of a fungal infection called the Cordyceps virus, which takes over the brain and renders the person violent and may even warp their physical features entirely (this is actually a real virus, but in reality it only affects small insects). The story focuses on a man named Joel, as he struggles to put his life together in the aftermath of the virus, and Ellie, a young girl who is immune and whom Joel is chosen to protect against all odds.
The gameplay is in the style of a third-person shooter, which essentially means you'll be playing as Joel (with the camera angle set up behind him, instead of through his eyes), and you have to use different weapons to take down enemies. What makes this more challenging than other games with this style is because supplies are so scarce, adding to the tension and realism of the world the developers have created. You will have to search for ammo, often only finding two or three bullets at a time, and you'll have to craft your own first aid kits for when you're running low on health. When you're surrounded by enemies and running low on supplies, you really have to think about your options.
The AI in the game is excellent. Characters who join you on your journey are often very helpful, aiding you in taking out enemies rather than getting in your way, and they'll help you out when you're low on supplies by giving you whatever it is you need. Likewise, the enemies perform just as well; I've played this game about four or five times now, and each time the enemies behave differently. It's a nice detail, and one which really keeps you on your toes.
It's the story and characters, though, which set this game apart. As beautiful as it is, and as well as it performs, I don't think so many people would be praising it as highly without such an amazing story at its centre. Joel and Ellie's relationship is as real as could be, evolving and changing along the course of the game. By the time the credits roll, you'll be left feeling utterly awestruck by the truly morally grey ending that you'll probably be left thinking about it long after you've put the controller down.
This game is that rare masterpiece that's so hard to come by. Whether you're a fan of games or just a fan of a well-written story and characters, The Last of Us is an amazing experience that I would recommend everyone try out at some point in their lives.
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