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  • Destinations
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      • Split
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    • Czech Republic
      • Prague
    • England
      • Exeter
    • Germany
      • Berlin
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      • Bali
      • Lombok
    • Nepal
    • Poland
      • Krakow
    • Portugal
      • Lisbon
      • Porto
    • Russia
      • Moscow
      • St Petersburg
    • Scandinavia
      • Denmark
      • Finland
      • Norway
      • Sweden
    • Spain
      • Barcelona
    • Switzerland
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      • New Orleans
    • Wales
      • Snowdonia
  • Travel Tips
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All articles filed in Relationships

Travel tip #5: Send postcards, lots of them

By: Nicole Kow Feb 14, 2017Feb 14, 2017
Stories, Travel TipsRelationships1 Comment on Travel tip #5: Send postcards, lots of them

#5: Send postcards or cards or letters or small gifts. Nothing speaks louder than snail mail in the 21st century.

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Stories, Travel TipsRelationships1 Comment on Travel tip #5: Send postcards, lots of them

About

Nicole Kow

Nicole Kow

From 9am - 6pm on Mondays to Fridays, I am a product marketer. I am also a spell chekcer and copy editor. At other times, I'm a dreamer, a writer, a traveller and a podcast addict.

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Recent Posts

  • Pandemic Diaries: Of Bak Kut Teh, plastic gloves and Starbucks
  • Put that damn camera away
  • Surviving a Christmas break-up
  • Visiting the Whitney Plantation in New Orleans
  • Switzerland travel tips: A cheaper way to explore the Swiss Alps

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I think I nailed it. This is my 364027th attempt and I think I got it. . This look and I go back a long way. I first saw it on tumblr on one of those 1960s pages that we all loved following. Back then, I thought this look was reserved for girls with deep set eyes, there was no way I could ever pull it off... And then I saw it on Greta Lee in Russian Doll. . If you look at her makeup and how I interpreted it, you'll see that the overall shape is pretty similar. I only changed the way liner winged out and skipped the dusting of blue in the inner corners as well as the blue dots on the lower lash line. . Here's how I did it: . First, make sure your brows are well groomed and defined. Do them like you usually would. Then, I drew a basic wing liner that suited me, nothing special again. . Where to start you arch: I divided the space between my eyeliner and eyebrows into thirds, and drew the line two thirds up from my liner, not my lash line. This gave me enough room to define my eyes and also give space for the arch to stand out. I also looked straight into the mirror and started the line where my pupils started. Having the lines too close towards my nose made me look weird. . I sketched out the line with a black pencil, using my eyebrows to guide the shape of the arch. I used a cotton bud with some moisturiser to thin out the line and correct any mistakes. I also sketched out the line where I wanted the arch to connect to the wing liner. This was the longest part of creating the look. . Once I was happy with the shape, I took an angled brush, dampened it with some toner, and dipped it into shadow #5 from @violette_fr's Blue Dahlia palette. I traced my sketch and again used my cotton bud to clean up the line/ thin it out. Finally, I topped it with an old @maybelline Hyper Glitz Ink blue glittery eyeliner to give it that sparkly shift. . I went back to the wing liner to lay on some matte black and dark blue shadow to also give is some blue. I used #7 and #8 from the same palette. Lastly, in the space between the liner and the arch, I used #6, the pearly shade. . I finished off the look with a natural nude blush and some lip balm. 💋 . #blueeyeshadow
I wanted to play with my favourite pink blushes so I swept them all over my eyelids. Given the stressful week I've had, this was ridiculously therapeutic. . 👀: I primed my eyes with Urban Decay's primer potion. Then, I lightly sprayed a fluffy brush with some toner and dipped into a bright pink blush that was my mother's from @esteelauder (we think). It's so old the branding has come off and it smells like baby powder. That said, it's still a really pretty bright pink. I built that up gradually, shaping and blending to get a strong pink base. While deciding if I should add a dusting of shimmer over it, I went in to the root of my lashes with a dark plum eye pencil. I decided to go ahead with another old Sleek blush with gold shimmer running through it, using the same fluffy brush to dust on pigment and blend blend blend. I then tidied the edges with a brush that had leftover concealer in it. I finished the eyes with a tonne of mascara. . ☺️: I layered the two blushes I used on my eyes on my cheeks. To make sure they didn't compete with the eyes, and that I didn't I end up looking like a clown, I dusted off most of the product before application and went in with the lightest hand. . 💋: Left them bare with some lip balm on. I tried a few different shades of lipsticks I had and nothing seemed to work. I think a nude velvet lip could've looked really nice. . #pinkeyeshadow #makeup
I've decided to start posting makeup looks because I really enjoy the process and telling people how I mixed and blended different shades to get to the final result. I'll also do my best leave these selfies of my face on my profile even though it makes me so fking uncomfortable. . I got up this morning wanting to paint myself blue and then decided on orange while in the shower. So I dipped between Huda Beauty's #TopazObsessions palette, a Revolution palette I got for my birthday and a bright MUA palette I've had lying around for way too long. . EYES: I started with a soft blend of dark burnt orangey colours mixed with rusty red from the roots of the lashes and the outer corner, and built it up @katiejanehughes style. Then came the hints of light orange and gold in the inner portion of the eyelids. I used 2 different shades of gold to brighten everything up and blended it to create a lovely gradient. Finally, I topped it all off with a light dusting of shimmery rusty orange from the Revolution palette in the centre of my lid. To finish, I went with Glossier's lash slick for a simple barely there lash. . CHEEKS: I took my eyeshadow brush and swished it into my blush brush to get the same colours all over my cheeks. Yes, I felt like a genius. . LIPS: I have a bright orange lipstick which I often use as blush. Today, I patted that down then went over top with @Glossier's Leo. . When I took a step back from the frenzy of all the mixing and blending, I decided to go into the outer corner of my lash line with the slightest bit of dark plummy eyeliner to give me a bit more definition. . 💖
I tried not to fall in love with this stupid city but I did. Can't wait to go back to Barcelona, it was a great summer. . Happy to have found people who don't mind my silly poses/ embarrassing them in public. . #notatourist #barcelona #spain
On the eve of my 27th birthday, I conquered another fear: swimming in the open sea. . I almost drowned 3 years ago in Bali (don't tell my parents) so getting over it and enjoying the cold water was a huge milestone. . Change is happening, I can feel it. Happy birthday to me. Good luck conquering more known and unknown fears. . 📸 by @nickidist . #nofilter
Reminiscing about my last hike in #Switzerland. I miss pushing my body to do more than sit on a couch or sit in front of a laptop at work. . . . #glaciertrail #zermatt #slowtravel #solofemaletraveller #hike #mountains #nature
I'm trying this new style of photography called "It's okay it's blur" and "it's cool that there are strangers in your pictures because that's real life". . Here's a shot from every single day I explored the north coast of Spain. Starting with #Zaragoza, I was caught off guard by the city's cold winds, beautiful churches and delicious performance by Allegra Levy in a jazz club RIGHT BELOW MY HOSTEL. . Then, I went to San Sebastian and kayaked for the 2nd time in my life with @emyoons, lmao. I not only hung out with the best people on the planet, they also made sure I was well fed for three full days. Thanks @jun.and.tonic and @charmainelynn for letting my brain take a vacation too. . After they ditched me, I headed to Bilbao and was reminded of how much I love art at the #Guggenheim. Then I got the rental car to head further towards the north west. I also got over a fear I didn't know I had. "Driving alone on the wrong side of the road in a country whose language I don't speak" and "oh fuck my phone isn't charging I'll be lost without it" is what I'm calling that mild anxiety that plagued me the second I got the rental car. . That said, it was a great great trip. I partied by #Oyambre beach, I drove almost 400km in two days and I even learned how to say coffee with milk in Spanish ON MY OWN! The best part of this trip is that I've proved to myself I can still have incredible adventures on my own. It just takes a little patience and a little courage to get to where I want to be. . #sansebastian #Guggenheim #gatzelugatxe #picosdeeuropa #asturia #onis #lagoscovadonga #spain #roadtrip #mountains
The countdown starts today. 3 weeks till I leave for another 3 months. Staying at home for 6 months has got me excited to leave and explore. So where should my first hike take me? . . . . . #remoteworklife #summerscoming #Switzerland #hikeinterlaken #interlaken #mountains
A snapshot of the 3 days I spent in the ocean marvelling at fishes and turtles and ONE manta ray. Those 8am wakeup calls were 10/10 worth it and I am now a certified Advanced Diver!!! . The last picture is me sunburnt, pimply and happy. 🙃 . BTW, I got the most insane toothaches underwater and cried every time it happened. Any dentists know what's up? . #ocean #blue #Bali

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