Get Married at An All-Inclusive Resort

All-inclusives are a good deal if you're looking to book a trip where you don't want to rack up extra dollars on your meals and alcoholic beverages.  There's definitely a peace of mind that comes with your vacation when you know your meals and drinks are included. All-inclusives are also a great option for cost-effective weddings. Your guests will be glad to know how much they will have to pay up front and everyone can eat, drink, and get totally trashed, without limits.

My friend Carolyn and her husband got married at an all-inclusive and it was basically a wedding, honeymoon, and a vacation with close friends and family in one. If you're short on time or want to kill three birds with one stone, I totally recommend it.

Here are two all-inclusives I recommend due to their contribution to sustainability.

#1) Turkoise: Club Med's Turks and Caicos All-Inclusive

Turkoise, Club Med's Turks and Caicos All-Inclusive (starting at $US150++/night) offers 290 rooms in two-story bungalows.  The resort has held a Green Globe Certification since June 2010 and is one of the best destinations in the world for water sports and scuba diving.

Located on the northeast side of the island of Providenciales in the Caribbean Sea, this adult-only (18 years and older) is located on a white sandy beach that lines the entire length of the resort next to a calm and clear turquoise sea.

Activities at the property include adventure sports such as a flying trapeze (yes, you read correct: a flying trapeze), biking,  cardio-tennis, yoga, fishing, hiking, scuba diving (at an extra cost), sailing, snorkeling and more.

A golf course is within range and guided tours of the island are available.

In order to ensure the protection of the area's coral reefs, the property has a responsible scuba diving program in partnership with the organization Beautiful Oceans.

This all-inclusive is the only resort on the island to buy locally-produced table wine (white, red, and rose) and bottles are reused. This reduces transport-related emissions and provides local jobs. It also makes the recycling of glass bottles possible, since there is no available waste treatment on the island yet.Also, through their sustainable purchasing policy, they avoid the purchase of endangered species, especially fish.Club Med also supports Provo Children's Home, a home for abused children, where they teach the children about the environment and recycling.In full support of the environment, Club Med organizes Earth Day activities in the local village and participate in the island clean-up with other hotels and local children.

#2) Palace Isla Mujeres Resort in Mexico

I really enjoyed the feel of Palace Isla Mujeres Resort, an intimate couples-only all-inclusive a short boat ride away from Cancun. It offers 62 beautiful and luxuriously appointed accommodations with double jacuzzi baths offering island, pool or ocean views and balconies, a well-stocked mini bars, 24-hour room service where you can order whole bottles of wine (both red and white if you want), wireless internet and free phone calls to mainland United States, Canada and Mexico (a huge plus!).

The property also offers a fitness center, beach volleyball court, pool volleyball, ping pong tables, and table games.

You can also take part in the daily planned activities such as theme parties, contests, live performances, as well as trips to to the nearby turtle preserve. Daily Spanish lessons are also offered for those who want a quick lesson.

Relaxing and energizing spa services are also available in four spa cabins (including a wedding one) at an additional cost. Spa treatments are not included in the all-inclusive plan at Isla Mujeres Palace, although two 25 minute massages are included if you book a Concierge Level Room.

Another perk:  Guests at Palace Isla Mujeres will also have day access to the other larger Palace Resort properties in the Cancun area (Beach Palace, Moon Palace, Sun Palace) where you can enjoy the pools and the activities offered there for the entire duration of your stay.

You can also enjoy the infamous nightlife of Cancun a short boat-ride away.

The Palace Resorts was the first group member globally to join EarthCheck – the environmental sustainability program and has implemented new systems to monitor eco-friendly approaches to operations, conservation measures and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). They are also certified under the Meso American Reef Tourism Initiative (MARTI), which awards companies which protect the region’s natural landscape through sustainable hotel operations.

Palace Resorts created the Palace Foundation, which supports the land and people of Quintana Roo, Yucatán, Jalisco and Nayarit in México and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.

The luxury amenities of the Palace Resort Isla Mujeres plus the private intimacy of this property starts at $US375+/night.

Why Everyone Should Be a FreshTraveler

I quit my full-time job in LA to travel and work freelance so that I could have a flexible schedule to work on my blog.  I want to encourage a certain type of travel - a more responsible, mindful, greener art of travel. Of course, when traveling, there's no such thing as not leaving a carbon footprint at all.  It's actually quite impossible. However, there are things we can do to travel as green and eco-consciously as possible.

I also wanted to dispel the myth that luxury travel fosters a disconnect between tourists and the land and people they visit.Luxury travel has the potential to be an intimate nature experience, culturally rich, and also environmentally responsible. It's all about finding the right travel providers and doing a bit of research ahead of your trip. My goal is to educate travelers that high-end travel does not have to be exploitative. And when it's not, your experience is all the more rewarding and special. Travelers can have a really fantastic vacation where they stay in luxury accommodations, eat fine cuisine and get the most out of the destination through adventure tours but also have a meaningful experience that does not deplete the resources of the place they're visiting. I hope you stumble upon something in FreshTraveler that will spark your interest in this type of travel and please let me know if you have any questions at all about how I can make this easier for you to travel with a lighter carbon footprint.

By supporting companies such as Coati Travel, an eco-travel company based in Costa Rica, we can travel well and travel responsibly.

In fact, they are currently offering eco-interested travelers the ultimate adventure with a chance to win an amazing Dream Green Vacation to Costa Rica. One lucky winner and three companions of their choice will be invited to experience the pristine natural beauty of Costa Rica with its lush rainforests and idyllic beaches, lodging at a boutique hotel in the hills of San José and the Cayuga Collection’s top luxury sustainable hotels, and regional flights on the world’s first carbon-neutral airline, Nature Air.

Get more information on how to enter online at www.coatitravel.com/dream

A quick glance at the ingredients of a candy bar can show you whether you're eating empty calories.  As delicious as it may appear, empty calories are of no benefit to your health or the health of the people around you and I urge you to use the same analogy with travel.  Be mindful of your travel choices and do not become an empty traveler.

As someone who has traveled my whole life, believe me when I say, eventually you will come to see that most five star hotels have the same amenities - 24-hour room service, cabanas by the pool, several onsite restaurants with a seasonal menu crafted by a celebrity chef, an in-suite jacuzzi tub, and luxe toiletries that make your skin tingle all over. After a while, keycard after keycard becomes almost impossible to differentiate.

What makes a quality place in my eyes is not the number of amenities it offers nor the number of shopping boutiques that are available onsite, but the quality of what is available. The quality of service and the quality of the food. This is why I tend to like boutique hotels over larger ones. They are small enough where you know the name of all the people who work hard to ensure that you have the best stay possible. In my experience, at a smaller place, you also get the privacy and space that you need to decompress and rejuvenate from the stresses of work or city life. However, I don't rule out larger hotel groups either. But when I choose to stay at a hotel chain, I like to know their values are aligned with mine and I stay at the ones that encourage a healthier, active and mindful lifestyle.

Yoga at Blue Osa, Costa Rica

A mindful traveler takes the time to be conscious of his or her surroundings and is curious about life beyond the walls of the hotel. I urge you that when you travel, be more mindful in your travels and expand your horizons any way you know how. I believe that if we are all mindful travelers, seeing from an ever-curious, dynamic and fresh perspective (as FreshTravelers!), tourism can be a powerful force in both helping developing economies grow and also in helping depressed economies get back on their feet.  Together through travel, I believe we can cultivate a higher level of understanding, open-mindedness and bring more peace, to both ourselves and in our world.

Biking in Delray Beach, Florida

It's as simple as biking ortaking public transportation instead of renting a car

or renting the most fuel-efficient car possible.

It's about a little prior research to find a locally-owned boutique hotel

or purchasing items from locally-owned businesses 

or supporting the bigger hotels that treat their employees well and take the time to invest in the surrounding community.

Made in Brooklyn

It's about supporting the businesses who contribute positively to their surrounding community, regardless of whether they are big or small. It's not a 'BIG versus SMALL' or a 'ME versus YOU' mentality. It's about creating a win-win situation for everybody. This is the mindful way that I explore life. This is also the way that I choose to travel.  I choose to travel to hotels and support travel businesses that are socially-conscious.

Getting my head massaged at Naked Hair Salon Delray Beach.

There has been a great paradigm shift in the last few years and I believe that the need to live a greener life is even more urgent - if we continue living and traveling mindlessly as we have done in the past, we will continue to exhaust our land and deplete our oceans. I call upon you to make more conscious decisions and take the responsibility in knowing what your money is supporting. Information is at our fingertips, and a very quick google search can show you the conscience of a company.

I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Steve Jacobus, the CEO of

Coati Travel

, an eco-travel company based in Costa Rica, on the growing influence of responsible travel in the tourism industry. In 2005, he relocated his entire family from Milwaukee to Nosara in Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula to start a travel business that has now since grown into a world class eco-adventure agency that is dedicated to sustain the local economy and the environment. A long-time advocate for these eco-travel, Steve shared with me  his thoughts on the future of responsible, green travel:

Turtle Conservation in Tulum

¨Eco-tourism is important. We need to do something different with what we do on this earth, or else we won't be able to continue. We need to travel in a way where we don't create a negative impact on the environment.  It's not just about tourism. It's also about the rainforest. If we cut down the rainforest, the human race won't survive. We need them and if we keep depleting them, we're going to run out.  We have to rethink what we do with our natural resources.  As we bring more and more people down, we have to handle nature in a respectful manner and we also have to be able to handle it more responsibly. One of the most enjoyable and easiest ways to protect our rainforest is through eco-tourism. One of the greatest things about eco-tourism is this: If people are going to use land one way or the other... whether cutting down the trees for farming or keeping the forest just the way it is to benefit the community, eco-tourism generates greater economic value to the land.

Since 2005, the adventure travel sector has grown. It is currently the fastest growing sector of the travel industry. Even during times with economic challenges, people who can afford to travel will travel... but they travel differently... for educational value, for learning, and they do it responsibly. In a way, the economy is forcing people to make more conscious choices.

Eco-tourism will continue to grow and expand. What Mother Nature offers is more fascinating than what theme parks can create. When you vacation in nature, you become grounded, your creativity increases, you are healthy and feel much better. Then when you come back to the concrete jungle, you bring what you learn back to others.

In terms of changes in the eco-travel industry since 2005, there are now more options available for luxury travel and more tourism properties are interested in getting their sustainability rating as a marketing move.  This is a positive trend, with many luxury oriented properties being serious about sustainability. Boutique travel is growing, as well as luxury hospitality with a cultural aspect to it. Another change is that there are more and more people that are interested in understanding sustainability.  Before, clients were mainly just interested in being in nature, now you have to educate your client on your sustainability practices to maintain your credibility as an eco-property. Also, more people are willing to pay for that education.¨

------ Steve Jacobus, the CEO of Coati Travel

Until August 31st, 2013, Coati Travel is offering a FREE eco-trip to Costa Rica for four people. See below for details on how you can enter!  Best of luck and I hope you win! And if you do, please share your photos or stories with me. I'd love to feature it on FreshTraveler!

xoxo

Patricia

Flying over Costa Rica on Nature Air, the world's first carbon neutral airline.

[Guest Post] 5 BIGGER Ways to Recycle

Most of us know how important recycling is to our planet. Other than just bringing a canvas tote bag to the grocery store or separating your papers from your plastics at home, here are five BIGGER ways to incorporate recycled items into an even greener life. Sophia Evans of Soph Called Life reached out to me and and asked to share this amazing guest post about recycling.  Thank you, Sophia for all these great ideas to how to make your life greener!

#1 Buy a recycled engagement ring.

Brilliant Earth is an engagement ring conflict-free diamond company that is dedicated to recycling metals like gold, silver, and platinum. They refine the metals back into their pure states, mix them with alloys, and cast them into new, beautiful fine works of art. This process reduces the overall demand for newly mined metals and helps to lessen the effects of “dirty” gold and other questionable mining practices.  So when you are ready to move on from your old pieces of jewelry, just remember they are recyclable and you will feel better about giving up those unique pieces knowing you are helping the environment.

#2 Recycle your old designer shoes. 

Nike offers a shoe-recycling program that turns scraps of rubber from old shoes into playground turf. By taking your old, worn-out shoes back to the store, you will be helping to make playgrounds safer for children and reducing the amount of new rubber that is created each year. Nike also offers organic clothing, a plan to trim waste from production, and is in the process of switching to more sustainable materials.

#3 Donate your old bike to a charity.

In most countries, bikes are not a form of recreation; they are the normal mode of transportation. Before you throw out your old bike, consider donating it to a charity such as Bikes for the World. The main goal of this company is to keep these bikes out of landfills and to put them into the hands of people in Third World countries who need them.

#4 Buy recycled furniture.

Many lotion bottles are made out of a durable material called HDPE plastic. Once recycled, this plastic can be turned into highly durable outdoor furniture. By recycling these bottles and buying furniture that is made from recycled plastic, you can help to decrease demand for new plastics and other environmentally detrimental materials.

#5 Take your own coffee mug to work.

Cutting back on your usage of disposable cups is a great way to lower your impact on the environment. The average office worker uses 500 disposable cups per year. Take your own coffee mug to work, save the company some money, and keep that waste out of the landfill.

We can do a lot to help our environment. By taking these new ideas to heart, you will be helping to impact the planet in a positive way. We owe it to ourselves, and future generations to do all that we can to preserve and protect our home.

For more ideas on how to live a greener life, check out Sophia Evans' blog, Soph Called Life.

Dominican Republic: My Bucket List of Things To Do

Since I met a super cool travel blogger at TBEX Toronto, Tasha Hacker of TurftoSurf.com, who currently lives in Dominican Republic with her husband Ryan, I've been super excited to go to the Dominican Republic. I've been doing some pre-trip research of all that things that I want to do there and wanted to share my bucketlist list with you. The Dominican Republic is a wonderful option for a quick getaway from the US or Europe. Just a 3 and a half hour flight from New York City and approximately 8 and a half hours from many European cities - like London and Madrid.

Whether you want to find a spot on a deserted beach to sun yourself and watch the world go by, or you want to make the most of your time and fill your itinerary with as many adventure activities as possible, a trip to the Dominican Republic will be able to satisfy your needs.

As a nation on the island of Hispaniola, the Dominican Republic is one of the prime destinations for people heading for a stint in the Caribbean, and rightly so. With Haiti as its neighbor, the nation is part of the Greater Antilles archipelago nestled in the warming Caribbean Sea.

Photo Credit:  greenwichmeantime.com

After Cuba, the Dominican Republic is the second largest nation in the Caribbean and offers travelers a huge opportunity to tread the beautiful white sands before taking a dip in the crystal clear, turquoise waters.

Photo Credit:  Dominicana.com

Without further ado, I present to you...

FreshTraveler's Bucket List of Things to Do:

Visit Puerto Plata for a chance to learn more about the island and its heritage.

Photo Credit: TripAdvisor.com

Visit the Brugal Rum Distillery to learn how this navy rum is made (and perhaps enjoy a tipple or two).

Photo Credit: Earthtrek.com

Take a Kitesurfing Lesson in Cabarete Bay, a location of professional kitesurfing competitions "WorldCup/Copa Mundial", Master of the Ocean).

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Dive the Marine Caves at the Gri Gri lagoon. This is the location of some of the best diving in the world.

Photo Credit:  cabareteecohostel.com

Hike Mount Isobel de Torres and take a cable car down. South west of Puerto Plata, this mountain is home to the highest manicured gardens in the Caribbean. The hike also offers breathtaking panoramic views from its peak, 2600 feet above sea level.

Photo Credit: definitivecaribbean.com

Go on a white water rafting adventure on the Rio Yaque del Norte in Jarabacoa, and tackle the bumps and twists sailing down river in an inflatable dinghy.

Photo Credit:  caribbeandreamsdr.com

Rappel down a series of 27 waterfall cascades in the Damajagua area. Guided by adventure outfitter Iguana Mama, you'll hike, climb and swim your way to the top of the waterfall chain, then cliff-jump your way back down - sometimes leaping over falls of 30-feet or more.

Photo Credit: Iguana Mama

All this bucketlist research is getting me excited! I cannot wait for my trip to the Dominican Republic!

The Importance of a Morning Ritual, Meditation and Music

Many people have asked me how I do it - travel constantly without losing my mind or my bearings. It's true my travel schedule is jam packed with so many things, at times it seems like way too many.

Grounding yourself is very important when you travel. It's very easy to go off balance and turn into a complaining [insert whatever profanity works for you here] when you're jetting from airport lounge to terminal gate, airplane to train to bus to taxi to pedicab to hotel room.

But what I've done that really works for me is to establish a morning routine or a morning ritual.  That's the first thing I do in the morning to get yourself ready to face the world - whichever part of the world I am in. I believe the reality you create on the outside is reflective of who you are inside so it's very important to check in and take care of yourself - both inside and outside.

Let me share with you what I do:

I Meditate

I do a morning meditation (anywhere between 20-30 minutes) depending on my time.  This doesn't have to be anything grand or done out loud with chants and gongs and monks or religious statues, but just simply:

I lay in bed and check in on the thoughts inside my head.  What's the topic of conversation in my head today?  I just listen to the natural thoughts buzzing inside and I let them flow... and then I let it go.

I don't question my thoughts, I don't wonder why I think my thoughts, I don't scream my thoughts on the top of my lungs. I don't do anything about them, I just observe them. I say to myself "How interesting that I feel that way." No, "I wonder why I feel that way." or I don't judge myself or try to fight them. I just lay in bed, let all the emotions and thoughts wash over me, and then I let them go. I clear my head of yesterday so that I am able to let the new day in. This is easier said than done. This practice of reseting, freeing yourself to truly be in the moment is something I learned (and am continuing to learn!) to do from the 10-Day Vipassana Meditation Retreat I did. Check out my article about the Seven Things I Learned from FREE Vipassana Meditation Camp.  This is something I highly recommend if you're able to take some time for yourself and it's 100% FREE. By doing this, I remind myself that I am in control of my emotions and I don't let that emotion dictate the rest of my day.

After my meditation, I Set An Intention.  Out of the one million things that need to be done right now, what are the two things that am going to get done today?  Then I think of one or two more pending items on the to-do list just in case I get through the two things that I am going to get done.

Once I decide on what my intentions are, I Listen to Music - My song of the moment is Modest Mouse "Float On" [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTAud5O7Qqk]

I LOVE the guitar riff!   It's also a great reminder that "we'll all float on okay... and we'll all float on anyway, well... do do do do do do!"

Yesterday, it was The Killers "Human"

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIZdjT1472Y]

And to this music, I jump around and wash my face, brush my teeth, shower, and Abyanga (self massage) lovingly.

I feel completely jazzed to face whatever the day brings.

And if things are a lot more cray cray than usual, I take a minute out of my busy schedule and sing. Yep, I belt it out and lose myself in some YouTube karaoke.  My mom's Filipina so karaoke is in my blood.  The Philippines is a nation that is obsessed with karaoke.  Every family I know in Manila has a karaoke machine and isn't afraid to use it, even early in the morning.

I made a little video for you to sing away your stresses... with me!  So whenever you find yourself discombobulated and want to sing but feel silly singing alone... sing with me!  Just play this video!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vbx06BoxQ7k&feature=share&list=UUK6vwMNGE3wtJZwk1j4LYBA]

[PHOTO ESSAY] A Weekend Eco-Getaway to Mexico: Tulum

Since AeroMexico launched their daily direct flight from JFK to Cancun (only a 4 hour flight) back in July 2012, I've been meaning to make a long weekend trip down there to get out of the bi-polar summer weather that has been plaguing New York. When I finally got the chance, I decided not to stay in Cancun but take an ADO busapproximately 2 hours south (128 km or 80 mi) to Tulum,  a pre-Columbian Maya walled city that served as a major port. It was one of the last cities inhabited and built by the Mayas. The Tulum ruins are the third most-visited archaeological site in Mexico, after Teotihuacan and Chichen Itza. They are the only ruins with the picturesque view of the Caribbean.

I was excited to see the ruins and explore the nearby small cenotes (sinkholes), but more importantly, I was happy to find that there was quite a selection of eco-lodges to stay at here all the way up to the Si'an Biosphere Reserve.

I'm not a huge fan of staying in huge hotels. When I travel, I prefer the intimacy of a boutique property - the smaller and the more unique, the better. I love connecting closely with the staff (knowing their names) and also knowing that my stay is contributing positively to the local economy.

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I decided to stay at Nueva Vida de Ramiro, a luxurious and unpretentious eco-resort on km 8.5 owned by Cancún-based architect Oscar Ortiz and his wife, Gea. One of the older eco-lodges in Tulum (located on kilometer 8.5), it opened in 1998 originally with 4 bungalows.  Built 2 years after their son Ramiro woke up against all odds from a year long coma after a terrible motorcycle accident, Oscar and Gea named the hotel in honor of Ramiro's new life: Nueva Vida de Ramiro, or in English The New Life of Ramiro.

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Today, it's expanded to 32 rooms - a combination of bungalows, newer suites and a few two-room eco-houses suitable for families with children on 7.5 hectares of preserved property.  It was really such a breath of fresh air being there. Being an eco-lodge, there is no air-conditioning, but the breeze of the sea was just what I needed to keep me cool. The rooms come equipped with fans and mosquito nets around the bed. Hair-dryers are also not allowed on the property since it the electricity on the property is run primarily on solar panels and a generator. I didn't really need a hair-dryer on this trip and since the weather was so warm, my hair easily air-dried.

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The bath products are also locally-made specially for the hotel.  I really dug their Oatmeal Soap Bar and their Peppermint Mouthwash.

Most of the staff at Nueva Vida de Ramiro are hired from the local community and are from Mayan descent.  The lush garden is kept by the very friendly Juanito, the resident gardener and local shaman.  If you want to find a natural cure to one of your  ailments, he'll gladly find you a solution in the hotel grounds.  We were happy to find that aloe vera plants were in abundance for our sunburns.

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The hotel is also very active in preserving the turtles that come to its shores to lay their eggs.  The hotel sponsors 3 turtle conservationists who live rent-free in camper vans on the property. They patrol the area for turtle eggs and if nests are laid on paths where hotel guests can step on them, the eggs are carefully relocated to a nesting cage where they can safely incubate. From May to October, 120 turtles came onto the shores of the hotel's beach to lay eggs. The hatching will occur later this summer.

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The hotel guests also receive a wooden hard-carved turtle made by Mayan artisans as a parting gift. The turtles are made of sustainably harvested wood.

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Breakfast was included with our stay and we had a selection of local fresh fruits, fresh juice and coffee/tea. My favorite was the very delicious and soft homemade bread that we had with a local fruit preserve and butter.

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We also sat on the beach and ordered from the hotel's restaurant Casa Banana. We had their lunch speciality - guacamole, chips and the seafood ceviche - which were all excellent.

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The ceviche in particular was one of the best that I've ever tasted.

Seafood Ceviche

We rented bikes from Iguana Bike Shop and explored the area and the town.

Iguana Bikes

We biked to a place called La Vita e Bella to have some Italian food (excellent penne with shrimp) before we headed to the ruins.

La Vita e Bella Tulum

Very important:Be sure to bring a bottle of water with you during the bike ride, it gets really hot! I ended up needing to lie down for a moment to recover from the heat.

Dehydration

For a taste of real, authentic local life, here's a list of local hole-in-the-wall eats in town that were recommended to us by Mariela, the Operational Manager of Nueva Vida:El Curondero (a bar), El Camello (for the seafood), La Nave and El Asadero.

There are three cenotes located only a short bike ride away from the hotel  (Cenote Encantado, Cenote Beh Ha and Cenote Tercer Cielo). Not all the cenotes were open due to the rains, but we were able to rent a kayak and snorkeling equipment for a hundred pesos (about US$10) and explore Cenote Encantado.

Afterwards, we stopped at a shop to purchase some Mayan Clay that detoxes your skin, regenerates cells, and relieves stress from Mayan Clay Spaand walked around the beach for an hour before jumping into the ocean to wash it all off. Our skin definitely felt good after being encased in sunbaked clay for that long.  It was a rejuvenating weekend indeed for our bodies, minds and spirit.

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All the photos of my stay at Nueva Vida de Ramiro were either taken by me or Daniel Para Mata.  I hope you enjoy them! xoxoxo

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FreshTraveler Beauty Review: Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette

I believe in feeling your best (and looking your best) when you travel so I asked my best friend since middle school, Achara Kirk, an actress and model based in LA who is an incredible beauty product junkie (she always had the biggest and heaviest make up bag when we were growing up!) to review some travel sized beauty products for my blog.  So watch this space for more natural and effective travel-sized products that enhance your natural beauty and you can bring with you everywhere.

Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette

Guest Post by Achara Kirk

When I heard that Uban Decay was releasing their Naked Basics eye palette I wanted to jump up and down with joy. Now here was an eye palette that featured all matte, neutral shades and didn't have all of that glitter and sparkle that seems to dominate in most make-up palettes. Don't get me wrong – I enjoy a bit of glitz and glamor in my make-up when I'm going to hit the town, but for everyday I like to keep it clean and simple and the Urban Decay Naked Basics palette delivers exactly that.

At first glance the palette is slim and sexy and the perfect size for travelling. It has a nice metallic sheen and suede like feel which makes it feel oh so luxurious when you hold it in your hand.

Inside, there is a large mirror which is perfect for on the go applications. The compact features seven beautiful complementary matte shades, including four never before seen colours.

The Urban Decay website describes the colours as follows:

“Venus (soft, off-white demi-matte), Foxy (cream bisque matte), Walk of Shame (very light nude matte), Naked2 (taupe matte), Faint (warm, dusty brown matte) and Crave (deepest, darkest brown/black matte).”

This description of the colours is spot on. My favorites are Naked2 and Faint, which I use to contour my eyes and then Venus to add some highlights to my eyelid and brow bone and finally a little bit of Crave to line my eyes. And voila! A perfectly gorgeous doe-eyed look for the day.

All of the eye shadows have the velvety smooth and pigment rich finish that I have come to love and associate with Urban Decay. The shadows blend beautifully and they are wonderful for contouring and enhancing your eyes. The colors work well for a natural day look and you can build it up with the darker shades for a sultry, smoky night time look. These shades work well on my dark brown eyes and would also compliment lighter coloured eyes and really make them pop. So basically, it works for everyone!

The Urban Decay Naked Basics palette will definitely make it into my travel make-up bag as it has everything that I need to create a gorgeous everyday look (although I will probably also pack a few other more colorful or sparkly eye shadows for those nights when I need a bit more pizazz). You can buy this palette at Sephora, Ulta and at www.UrbanDecay.com. And best of all this little beauty comes with a totally affordable price tag too – only $27! Bargain!

ABOUT ACHARA KIRK 

Half Thai half British actress and model currently based in Los Angeles. Yoga enthusiast and puppy lover. Obsessed with all things make-up and beauty related, especially products that are both natural AND effective. I believe that your make-up and beauty regime should work to enhance you've naturally got and make you look good and feel great about yourself.

My Very First TBEX Travel Blogger Conference + A Quick Guide to Follow Worthy Bloggers!

It's been more than a week and I'm already nostalgic for TBEX. It was a breath of fresh air  to be in a room of people who were just as crazy as me.  It was really refreshing to be in a roomful of other individuals who fully understood my addiction. It felt amazing to not have to explain that this wanderlust of mine was not just "a phase" that was going to go away until I finally found "a grown up job". It felt really good to be with people who understood that travel was not just a luxury, but a much needed call to be open-minded and open-hearted in an increasingly global society.

I know that this collection of ragmatag travel bloggers and video bloggers (both veteran and newbies) that I met at TBEX were into chronicling their travels because, just like me, they truly loved exploring the world and sharing all their eye-opening adventures. I can't express how lovely, accessible, and warm-hearted everyone was.

Here's a list of follow-worthy Travel Vloggers and Bloggers I admire and hung out with at TBEX. Check out their awesome stuff! (in alphabetical order by first name)

Alexandra Baackes of Alex in Wanderland, a travel and diving blog that's a guide to working and playing all over the world.

Alicia Taggio of My Life Untethered, a social media specialist and New Media producer based in Canada who is fueled by tea, travel and hustle.

Ashley Castle of Travels with Castle, an AFAR ambassador living life inspired through the lens of travel.

Brock of BackPack with Brock, an adventure coach and backpacker extraordinaire.

Calin O'Neil of Travel Yourself, a world travelers web series.

Charu Suri of Butterfly Diary, an online magazine, focusing on travel as a transformative experience.

Chris Staudinger and Tawny Clark of Captain and Clark, the one and only Modern Cartographers.

Courtney Scott Radovanovic,Travelocity Senior Travel Editor, as well as Producer & Host of Travelocity's Let's Roam Show

David Lee of GoBackPacking.com, an amazing around the world travel guide.

Ethan Gelber, founder and editor of The Travel Word, that showcases local, sustainable and responsible travel.

Gareth Leonard of Tourist 2 Townie, chronicling his quest to travel like a local.

Jessie Festa of Jessie on a Journey, a kickass girl's guide to adventuring.

Julia Rosien of GoGirlFriend.com, a blog to inspire intelligent women to travel smarter.

Juliana Broste, a travel vlogger and Denver-Based Video Journalist, Producer, Writer, Shooter, and Editor.

Jodie Ettenburg of Legal Nomads, a former lawyer from Montreal currently eating her way around the world.

Kate Thomas of TravelwithKate.com, an online host and media producer who susses out what the locals know in her travel web series.

Kelley Ferro, the Travel Hostess with the Travel Mostest of TripFilms

Kristen Sarah of HopScotchtheGlobe.com featuring travel tales from an adventure junkie and her traveling pants.

Lisa Cohen of Make Me Hungry, a fresh food blog worth salivating about.

Luke Armstrong, the vagabond behind Travel. Write. Sing.

Matt Stabile, editor of The Expeditioner, a travel mag for the avid traveler.

Maria Laborde of LatinAbroad.com, a Spanish Translator and Digital Marketing extraordinaire, this Latin diva is spreading her spiciness all over the world.

Mickela Mallozzi of Travel Bare Feet, a webseries where she penetrates into local culture, one dance at a time.

Mike Corey of Kick the Grind, the beautifully filmed video blog of a breakdancing biologist at heart.

Mike Shubic of Mike's Road Trip, where you can find hidden gems of the road.

Monica Suma of Whimsical Tales of Travel & Lifestyle, a travel writer, blogger and social media maven who can't sit still.

Nadine Sykora of Hey Nadine, a video blogger, world traveler and internet personality.

Nathan Fluellen of World Wide Nate, a lifestyle travel show that's A Guide to Living a Global Lifestyle

Ryan Van Duzer of Duzer TV, a sportsman, adventurer and of course, a paradise hunter.

Ross Borden, CEO of MatadorNetwork -- the world's largest independent travel online publisher

(if I missed out anyone, please just gently but firmly scold me in the comments section below and I will promptly add you!)

I was finally able to meet so many of the Travel Vloggers that I've only seen online. I am SUPER HONORED to be imitated in this video by put together Kristen Sarah of HopScotchtheGlobe.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/ftL-XyY0Ls8]

TBEX Takeaways

Other than the new friendships with my fellow adventurers, I made loads of contacts with tourism boards, travel companies and got loads of FREE stuff (which is ALWAYS nice). So overall, this conference was very fruitful. Check out the video (below) I edited of my TBEX experience and some of my favorite things from my TBEX goody bag. Watch til the end you'll get the chance to win one of my favorite items - a cable wrap bag from STM Bags!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWbqnHFumv0]

Hope to see you at the next TBEX!

Safe travels! (and to quote Mike Corey of KicktheGrind.tv, "but not too safe because that's boring.") xoxoxoxo

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