Buying a drone was exciting! Getting a painful ear infection wasn’t!

I was home both months – no travel, no weekend trips or anything. But I vlogged like crazy (every day in June, more below) streamed copious amounts of TV & movies and even cooked a little.

Vlogging My Life

In addition to my main channel, I’ve had a vlog channel for a couple of years now (it’s called #MagaliVlogs because apparently I’m captain obvious?)

I do Travel Vlogs on my main channel. I always make an effort to make them look more cinematic & aesthetically pleasing. But vlogs on my vlog channel are more natural – no staging, no makeup, no filters, just a real look in my day to day life, whether it’s attending events, errands or just life at home with three cats.

I always try to vlog at least 3-5 times a month on average, but at the end of May I started thinking about doing VLUNE, a popular challenge where vloggers vlog every single day in June (the word itself is a portmanteau of Vlog + June, there’s also Vlogtober in October & the most popular, Vlogmas in December!)

At the end of May, everything seemed perfect. The weather was changing, I didn’t have too much of a workload & I felt just ambitious (crazy) enough to take a month long vlogging challenge. I’ve done a month long blogging challenge (completed successfully) & a 365 photo a day challenge (abandoned after three months, I think?) so this shouldn’t be too much harder, right?

Well, it was.

A lot of fun stuff happened in June though…

We took our eldest & youngest cats for their last walk in the garden before the rains properly set in.

In case you’re interested, I’ve written a comprehensive post on walking a cat outside – the how, why & everything in between.

I bought a drone! (DJI Mavic Pro) & took it on it’s nervous first flight in the garden. Just about 12 feet of the ground. It was so scary but exhilarating & I can’t wait to take this out of the city & really see what it can do.

Mom & I attended a crazy grand Big Fat Indian Wedding over two days. It was so insanely large & decadent – a very unique experience, if nothing else.

I attended an Aqua Aerobics session with Speedo & dressed like a literal embodiment of summer for the Lakmé X Masaba lipstick launch!

If interested, you can watch all my Vlune Vlogs on one handy playlist.

I’ve also been vlogging a fair amount in July like this fun party I attended with Rydell.

Etc.

Listening To

Nothing new to report here. Although I’ve just begun to properly revisit David Bowie’s discography for the first time in a year or so & it’s just making me intensely sad.

Watching

Some people stress eat & it seems I stress watch. June & July were so busy & overwhelming, but I watched an insane amount of movies & TV. The first two were at the cinema but everything else was streamed online.

Wonder Woman

I’m nerdy but not much of a comic book geek. When it comes to superhero movies, I’d always chose marvel over DC. Wonder Woman wasn’t even on my radar until a few days before the movie released, when I woke up one morning & saw a whole crop of growing reviews on sites I trust.

Watching it was a revealation. I’m never going to be able to talk objectively about what seeing it meant to me. It’s a work of perfection, I can’t fault it in any way. I’m afraid that no future superhero film will top it, ever.

Spider Man : Homecoming

Handsome: A Netflix Mystery Movie

Anchorman

Rizzoli & Isles

Brown Nation

W/ Bob & David

The Keepers

This was terribly sad but important to watch. Warning: It will leave you emotionally drained.

Angie Tribeca (season 3)

Master of None (season 2)

GLOW (season 1) ‍

Chewing Gum (seasons 1-3)

Broadchurch (season 3)

Rick & Morty (season 1)

Archer (season 1)

June & July Favorites

The post Looking Back | June & July 2017 ️🚁🌳 appeared first on Magali Vaz | Fashion, Lifestyle & Travel Blog.

Zara trafaluc flame emoji tee // Zara x Maui & Sons embroidered mom denim shorts // Ray-Ban round (RB3447) – red mirror gradient // Daniel Wellington classy sheffield lady watch // Good After Nine tuxedo cat ring // Lavie sandals

lips- MAC lady danger  | nails (fingers) Lakmé Absolute Gel Stylist – Gold Dust (toes) Nykaa Nails Matte – Strawberry Shortcake 

Photos by Anushree Gavas at The House, Versova

Summer in a tropical country is no breeze. We photographed this look a couple of weeks ago, when rain was still sporadic & the temperature was in the late thirties everyday. The look’s quite simple; you might have already seen a couple of these things in my recent fashion haul video – a light oversized tee with bleach denim shorts in my fave silhouette (#momjeansforlife). I think the sequins on the tee & the cute shark embroidery just adds something fun to the look. I gotta say, I’m loving this patches / embroidery on your tits trend – makes it that much easier to go braless if you so desire. 😉

It’s monsoon now & dressing up is a whole other challenge. Hopefully I’ll do a monsoon OOTD super soon.

June was a bit quiet on the blog, what with me doing VLUNE & all (I vlogged every single day!) But now that it’s July, we’re back to three posts a week here on the blog. I hope you have a great week, & month ahead… x

The post On Fire 🔥 appeared first on Magali Vaz | Fashion, Lifestyle & Travel Blog.

The video description has all the outfit details, but I thought I’d break it down further here on the blog – tell you more about each look, some of the items featured, where we shot them & where I wore them (just as I did with the Fort Cochin Lookbook).

Look One

Koovs longline bomber jacket // Koovs K Active mesh panelled tshirt // Topshop moto denim skirt // Ray-Ban round – red mirror gradient sunglasses // Daniel Wellington Classy Sheffield Lady watch // Fjallraven Totepack no 1 // Vans x Disney Toy Story collection classic slip on sneakers

Makeup |   Lakmé Matte Mousse Lip and Cheek in Crimson Silk

Filmed near the King Rama VI memorial outside Lumpini Park

Worn to the Thai Tourism Festival at Lumpini Park & Yaowarat Road (Chinatown)

This is what I wore for our first proper ‘out & about’ day in Bangkok. 28th of January was the start of the Chinese / Lunar New Year festivities. Since India doesn’t have a sizeable Chinese Population or Chinatown anywhere (except for Kolkata, & I haven’t been there) I was really excited to experience what the festival would be like, & of course I had to get in the spirit by wearing a lot of red! Also débuted my new Ray-Ban round sunnies, I’m obsessed with this shape, so of course I had to buy one in my favorite colour.

We started our day dropping by the Thailand Tourism Festival. I had heard about the festival but it didn’t really interest us at first, but May (the wonderful lady that runs Cooper Bangkok, the hostel we stayed at) strongly recommended it, so we decided to go. It was certainly nice to see the really large selection of food & wares from around the different regions of Thailand. Although it soon became apparent that it was a very hot day & wearing a heavy bomber jacket wasn’t the smartest move.

After that we proceeded directly to Yaowarat, Bangkok’s Chinatown. Said to be the largest chinatown in the world, it was teeming with people hawking food & curios, other tourists like us & Chinese folk buying gold. We ventured off the road & even chanced upon the Leng Buai ai Shrine (considered to be the oldest Chinese shrine in Bangkok!) All in all a very superlative day, the only major disappointment for me is that I was too tired to wait till the sun properly set so I could see all the neon signs in Chinatown light up!

I vlogged that day!

It’s definitely one of my favorites from the trip & I hope you enjoy it.

Look Two

Zaful rainbow patch cropped sweatshirt // Zaful accordion pleat velvet skirt // Cath Kidston x Disney Mickey Mouse tote bag // Casio vintage style digital watch // Vans x Disney Toy Story collection classic slip on sneakers

Makeup |   Lakmé Matte Mousse Lip and Cheek in Crimson Silk

Filmed at the roof garden of Cooper Bangkok hostel

Worn to the Mall / Moomin Café

For me, this look is comfort dressing at it’s best. I am enjoying jumping on the velvet trend bandwagon, there’s just something very luxurious about it. This piece from Zaful is fabulous. The weight, the fall, the colour & also the subtle sheen-y finish. I love the shine because it’s sort of metallic but still daytime appropriate, you know?

I paired it with a cropped sweatshirt that is just so easy to wear & some fun Disney themed accessories, because why not? 

I wore this to the Moomin café, you can see glimpses of it in the video. It was so good, we went twice – I’ll be doing a separate post sharing my experience there.

For now, can we just take a moment to appreciate Strawberry Fanta? Indian carbonated drink flavours seem so boring now.

Look Three

Zaful owl print swimsuit (worn as bodysuit) // Topshop mom jeans // Ray-Ban round silver mirrored sunglasses // Leo Mazzoti bracelet (nautical knot) // Wanderer bracelet // Fjallraven Totepack no 1 // Native shoes

Makeup |   Lakmé Matte Mousse Lip and Cheek in Blush Velvet

Filmed outside the entrance of Cooper Bangkok hostel

Worn to Chatuchak Weekend Market

I think that wearing a bodysuit (or in this case, a swimsuit) is the ultimate way to look bomb with minimal effort.  The bird motif on the suit is what attracted me to it. It has a V-Neck & a verrrrry deep back. Wearing this much blue always puts me in a good mood.

I first visited Chatuchak Market (or JJ Market) 7 years ago, on my first trip to Bangkok & I’ve been obsessed with going back ever since. I wanted to go on my short solo visit last year, but unfortunately I had a very small window of a few hours and it started pouring on the way, so I thought it would be wise to not go to an outdoor, open market on such a rainy day & headed to the mall instead.

Maybe thinking of this market the way I did was only setting myself up for disappointment, but it was a pleasant day nonetheless. It was devilishly hot, but then we had lots of iced drinks & this delicious coconut ice cream too!

I also vlogged at Chatuchak market…

Because how could I not, really? It was a little too noisy There’s even footage of my first ever visit to a Cat Café in the very same vlog, so check it out, will you?

Look Four

Zara trafaluc tshirt dress // Ray-Ban round – red mirror gradient // Fjallraven Totepack no 1 // Wanderer bracelets // Vans x Disney Toy Story collection classic slip on sneakers

Makeup |   NYX Liquid Suede in Loud Mouth

Filmed at the Surasak BTS Station

Worn for another visit to the mall

Anti fit clothing forms such an integral part of my wardrobe & when I saw this Zara tshirt dress, it was love at first sight! It was the most hardworking dress in my luggage too. The perfect dress to just chill in, you can dress it up & down according to your preference. I accessorised with my new favorite sunglasses & a dark blue lip & this was the perfect look to just pop into the mall for some Korean food.

Look Five

Zaful Rosé all Day swimsuit (worn as bodysuit) // Vero Moda patch denim shirt // Marks and Spencer relaxed denim shorts // Liten earrings // Jeep Kongdechakul ceramic eye brooch // Lavie bag (also here) // Casio vintage style digital watch // Vans laser cut leather slip ons

Makeup |   Lakmé Matte Mousse Lip and Cheek in Blush Velvet

Filmed on Silom Road

Worn to Ratchada Train Market (rod fai 2 night market)

Another super easy, laidback look featuring a swimsuit. This suit actually says Rosé All Day but I’d much rather just prefer a cool beer. I wore this to Ratchada Train Market, this market wasn’t even on our agenda but May (from Cooper, our hostel) highly recommend it, so we had to check it out. It turned out to be one of the absolute highlights of our trip. I did vlog that day too, it’ll be up on my YouTube channel soon!

Look Six

Zaful velvet cami dress with rose appliqués // Daniel Wellington Classy Sheffield Lady watch // Steve Madden darcie sandals – red suede (also here)

Makeup |   Lakmé Matte Mousse Lip and Cheek in Crimson Silk

Filmed in the lobby of Cooper Bangkok hostel

Worn to… nowhere. I changed because this seemed too fancy for a regular dinner

The final look is perfect for evenings, especially a party or dinner date. I don’t usually wear fitted or bodycon dress but this one was just perfect from the first time I tried it on. The black velvet feels absolutely lovely & the rosé applique takes things to the next level. It’s so easy to accessorize too, I just went with a black wrist watch, a red lip & red shoes.

We shot this in the beautiful Cooper Bangkok hostel lobby which is just so chic. But I ended up changing before going out to dinner because it was just ‘too fancy’. Maybe I should have kept it on, nothing wrong with being overdressed once in a while.

I discussed in my previous travel lookbook blog post how I always try to reflect the place I’m travelling to in my wardrobe choices while there. One of the best things about Bangkok is how liberal & chilled out the place is. Coming from a country like India, it just so refreshing to be able to wear whatever I want without being leered at or harassed, even if I’m alone.

This post wouldn’t be complete without giving a big shout out to mom, who patiently helped me photograph / film all these looks & just generally put up with me on vacation.

Bangkok will always have my heart & I can’t wait to go back really soon!  x

The post What I Wore in Bangkok | A Lookbook 🚕 appeared first on Magali Vaz | Fashion, Lifestyle & Travel Blog.

When I recently heard that Lakmé was launching their own Blue Mascara, I was ecstatic. It sounded promising, is easily available & most of all, pretty affordable. But is it any good? I’ve been using it for a week now, & here’s what I think of it-

Lakmé Eyeconic Curling Mascara – Royal Blue

₹ 350 for 9ml | Buy Online: Amazon / Nykaa

What they say: Giving your eyes an edgy makeover is one of the hottest new trends seen across international runways, and now it’s your turn to don the trend! This season, liven up your eyes with the deep colour pay-off of the new Lakmé Eyeconic Curling Mascara in Royal Blue.

This new mascara is packed full of color and gives your eyes a vibrant and distinct appearance. The shade is bold, extremely versatile and will glam-up any kind of look, making it a definite makeup must-have.

The Royal Blue shade enhances and also intensifies the colour of your eyes, making them pop. The mascara is equipped with a smart curl brush for easy application and is completely smudge-proof, waterproof and long lasting. Go on, give your eyes an Eyeconic makeover.

First Impressions / Packaging

Mascaras either promise length, volume, curling or a combination of all three. This one, as the name suggests, focusses on the latter. The packaging of this mascara is exactly the same as the regular Lakmé Eyeconic Curling Mascara (black) which has been around for a few years. In fact, if you have the original one it might be difficult to distinguish at first sight, although there is a colour coded sticker at the bottom. I never tried the original one though, as I tend to go for thickening / volumising mascaras most of the time.

My natural lashes with no added product. Please ignore the less than perfect liner application.

The brush is the typical shape that I see on all curling mascaras. My lashes are fairly straight & do benefit from curling, but I am too lazy to use an eyelash curler most of the time. This did give me some ‘lift’, it didn’t really compare to what a curler would do, but obviously better than nothing.You do have to take some time to see that the lashes are properly coated, but the final effect is quite stunning & very visible.

Makeup | Maybelline Hyper Glossy Liner, Colourpop Ultra Satin Lips in Frick N Frack, Nykaa Nails Matte in Blue Jellybean

Outfit | FILA Black tshirt dress, Wanderer Anchor wrap bracelet

I quite like the effect of this mascara. Like my Inglot one, it doesn’t do much to enhance thickness, but it does lift. The Blue is vibrant & bold, & it shows up pretty well even on naturally dark eyelashes.

On some days when I want very voluminous lashes, I’ll use a very thickening mascara first (I’m currently crushing on the Maybelline Barbie Big Eyes mascara) & layer this on top. However, when layering on a jet black mascara, the blue doesn’t stand out as much.

I’m really happy with this mascara, & if you’re looking for an affordably priced blue mascara in India, I would defintiely recommend it! I secretly hope they release more shades too, like purple! You can buy it online here. x

The post Lakmé Eyeconic Curling Mascara in Royal Blue Review appeared first on Magali Vaz | Fashion, Lifestyle & Travel Blog.

Travel Lookbooks are a blend of two of my very favorite things & I love doing them whenever we’re travelling. I’m a very slow traveller & on personal trips planned with my mom / parents, we prefer to spend more time in just one place, exploring on our own. I also really love walking & prefer booking accommodation in central areas, so I have a lot of interesting areas in walking distance.

While you can watch the whole lookbook above, I thought I’d share a breakdown of the five looks below. That includes outfit details as well as where I shot & wore them.

Look One

Max Fashion velvet babydoll dress // Hidesign sunglasses // Leo Mazzotti braided nautical bracelet // Steve Madden sandals

Makeup |   Lakmé Absolut Shine Line – Sparkling Olive  |   NYX Liquid Suede – Soft Spoken

Filmed at Maritime Hostel (we stayed here for the first week)

Worn for the first day of exploring around the Chinese Fishing Nets + lunch at Cochin Club

I wore this look on our first proper day in Fort Cochin. We had seen the nets from afar & been to Cochin Club for dinner, but this is the first time we were seeing the coast in the daytime. Velvet is a huge trend this season & this babydoll marks my first ever velvet piece of clothing. It was a serious throwback moment for me because the last time velvet was on trend I was probably… eight? Yep I have distinct memories of three of my older friends turning up at one of my birthday parties all wearing new dark coloured velvet dresses! I probably still have those photos somewhere.

I liked that the velvet isn’t too shiny on this dress so it’s a nice piece to get if you’re on the fence about the trend! I also liked the autumnal colour scheme & the vintage tapestry print. Overall a very easy dress that I just paired with subtle accessories in the same colour palette, since the print is already kinda busy.

Look Two

StalkBuyLove top // Topshop black mom jeans //  The Bombay Store Kashmir suede bag // Daniel Wellington Classy Sheffield Lady watch // Lavie flatform sandals

Makeup |   Lakmé Matte Mousse Lip and Cheek in Fuschia Suede

Filmed at a cute wall on TM Muhammad Road, outside the Kochi Biennale Foundation

Worn for a very long day of exploring the area on foot

I put this look together for a day of exploring new areas. We were headed to the museum that day but we took a super long route & ended up reaching just before their lunch break. We also dropped into a bracnh of my school & got lost more than once. It was a very exhausting but satisfying day!

Look Three

bhane. dress // KOOVS studded tote // Ray-Ban round (silver reflector) sunglasses // BCBGeneration sandals

Makeup |   Lakmé Matte Mousse Lip and Cheek in Blush Velvet

Filmed at Burgar street

Worn for a laidback day of visiting cafés & petting cats

I bought this bhane. dress quite early in the year, even took it with me on earlier trips but I never wore it out. It’s like I was saving it for the right occasion. I wore this on the day we finally visited Kashi Art Café – there was no better day to début it. Princess Street & Burgar Street (the latter being the road Kashi Art Café was on) were without a doubt my two favorite streets in Fort Cochin – they felt like they were from another place, in another time. Also, there were so many semi feral cats! They weren’t too up for being petted but they did accept little snacks from us.

Look Four

KOOVS sequinned shirt //  Topshop mom jeans // KOOVS studded tote // Ray-Ban round (silver reflector) sunglasses // Daniel Wellington Classy Sheffield Lady watch // Steve Madden sandals

Makeup |   NYX Lip Suede in Kitten Heels

Filmed on the cobblestone sidewalk by St Francis Church

Worn for some exploring & lunch at Cochin Club (again)

I wore this look for yet another very relaxed day. The oversized silhouette, sequins & raw hem really attracted me to this shirt. And what can I say about mom jeans, other than the fact that I haven’t worn my skinny jeans all year? That’s one fashion statement I’ll happily carry over to 2017 as well.

Look Five

StalkBuyLove errand dress // Dhora earrings // Fjallraven Totepack no 1 – red // Leo Mazzotti rope nautical bracelet // Lavie flatform sandals

Makeup |   NYX Lip Suede in Vintage

Filmed at Bishop’s House / Indo-Portuguese museum garden.

Worn for our first visit to Mattancherry

Fort Cochin has been occupied by many different colonial powers over the years. While there were a lot of crappy downsides to all that imperialism, one of the tiny positives are the beautiful architecture in many of the churches & other buildings, built by the Dutch & Portuguese. This was the most vintage inspired of the five looks, shot at the most beautiful location. I wore this during our first visit to Mattancherry – it’s technically not Fort Cochin, but adjacent. I loved the mix of cultures there & this outfit was perfect for visiting many places of worship there, such as the Jain temple & Paradesi synagogue.

When I’m visiting a new place, I try to carry clothes & accessories that match with the vibe of the place. I like to look well put together but don’t like to stand out too much or attract unwanted attention. I think shorter clothes like my first look are totally fine if you are roaming near the beach or Chinese Fishing Nets. For venturing more inwards towards Mattancherry, it’s best to cover up a bit more (especially if you plan to visit the synagogue, museums etc.)

Winter in a tropical destination is still pretty hot & I think all of these looks were perfectly suited to the weather. If I could change something, I probably would’ve carried at least one pair of sneakers – all I carried were (flat) sandals but it would’ve been nice to have better support & cushioning on days we walked 5-6 kms! Unseasonal rains aren’t uncommon, so carrying an umbrella would be wise. We were lucky that our hostel had one we could borrow.

Mom & I have shot travel lookbooks previously- we did one for Pondicherry, Ooty & a dress lookbook in Goa. I want to say a very big thank you to mom who patiently filmed this for me on our trip. This is definitely my favorite video that I’ve ever done. I cant wait to go on more trips & document more personal style ♥

I hope you enjoyed the video, do tell me which look was your favorite in the comments! x

The post What I Wore in Fort Cochin | A Lookbook appeared first on Magali Vaz | Fashion, Lifestyle & Travel Blog.

109°F dress // Daniel Wellington Classy St Mawes // Forever 21 clutch // Steve Madden sandals

on my face: Lakmé Absolute Precision Artist Eye Liner in Blue Sapphire // Lakmé Absolute Illuminating Lip Shimmer in Pink Flash // nails: Lakmé Absolute Gel Stylist in Blue Royale

Photos by Sheila Vaz

The temperature is soaring here in Mumbai & I was in the mood for something tropical, which is why I wore this dress by 109°F! It would like right at home on the beaches of Goa but it’s still not so casual I can’t wear it for meetings in Mumbai. It’s breezy & sheer, while also being lined, everything I look for in a good summer dress.

I paired the dress with Lakmé’s makeup from their latest Illuminate collection. Muggy Indian summers usually make me overdose on all matte makeup & skincare but the illuminate line with jewel toned liners & shimmery lips is really helping me embrace the glow.

109°F recently sent me on a girl’s trip with my friend to Goa, so you can look out for a travel post (+ video!) very soon… x

The post The Perfect Storm appeared first on Magali Vaz | Fashion, Lifestyle & Travel Blog.