Goa, India

Best Lifestyle Blog of Goa

Day: June 29, 2017

A Picture Says 1000 Words – How To Capture These Memorable Moments

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

We may live in a digital age, but most of us still fill our homes with photos of family and friends. They serve as reminders of past events, happy moments, and memorable occasions. You might not spend hours staring at them, but you wouldn’t want to have a home without all those faces around you.

You might use a digital photo frame that scrolls through holiday snaps, historical shots of senior family members, and old baby photos. Or you might have the entire wall of your stairwell filled with framed pictures of everyone you love. A giant canvas art in the living room and printed pictures held up by magnets on the fridge are all common uses of photographs. So which moments do you treasure most?

The Family Portrait

This is often staged and produced at a professional studio. The photographer will position each of you, so you all fit in the frame. He might request that you all wear the same color, or choose something with different textures. This can add to the visual impact of the shots. Portrait photography like this is often digitally altered, edited, or graded to appear more art-like than your standard taken-at-home shot. This makes it perfect for a large print in a frame or a large format canvas art.

Photo at Pexels

The Wedding

This is a pivotal moment in your lives. And it’s also the day when you’ve never looked more beautiful. When you’re discussing the photography, make sure all the shots you want will be covered. You can also choose how they’re presented, although an album is most common. Why not invest in a large portrait print for the wall? Photos last just as long as the memory, so why shouldn’t you adore that day?

Picture at Pexels

The Big Birthday Bash

This might be the event of the year. Chances are a lot of planning went into this one to make it perfect for the birthday boy or girl. These are the photos you see most often on social media. Themes that involve dressing up certainly make the best shots, and everyone wants a pic of themselves in their fancy dress costume. You could hire an event photographer, or ask that everyone uploads their pics to a common FaceBook page. That way, you pick the ones you want to treasure and arrange for prints.

Picture at Pexels

Graduation

This is another fantastic photo opportunity that is often covered by the professionals. That doesn’t stop you taking a few pictures yourself in a more casual stance. It can help to show the enjoyment of achieving that all-important certificate. Bring all the family in for a group shot.

What should you look for in a great picture? A natural smile and interaction between the people in the photo always makes for a good pic. Think about what else is in the frame. Remove clutter, and try to avoid straight-on portraits. A little turn to the side helps add depth to the image. Most importantly, let what we see in the frame tell the story of the occasion.

 

I Do: Important Wedding Dos and Don’ts

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Image Source 

Planning your special day? Whilst a wedding shouldn’t have to come with rules, there are a few important dos and don’ts that could be worth considering to help your wedding go smoothly.

Do make a checklist

There’s nothing worse than getting to the wedding day and realising you forgot something. A checklist can help you to keep on track of organising your wedding. Make a list of everyone you wish to invite. Then make a list of everyone you need to hire. Will there be live music? Do you need a photographer? On top of this list out all other expenses such as venue, dress, rings etc. You may be able to save the stress by hiring a wedding planner.

Do have a budget

It’s easy to let costs spiral out of control in pursuit of the perfect wedding. Have a tight budget and keep to it to avoid overspending. This will allow you to negotiate prices and shop around more effectively. If you’re taking out a loan, make sure that it’s a loan that the two of you can comfortably afford to pay back – you don’t want to be resenting your wedding afterwards.

Image Source

Don’t drink too much too early

You’re likely to drink a lot on your wedding day, but be careful of drinking too much early on. You want to remember the day after all. People will buy you drinks throughout the night but don’t feel you have to drink them all. Be careful of having drinks before the ceremony to calm the nerves and go easy during the toasts.

Don’t be afraid to put a time limit on speeches

Talking of toasts, nobody wants the speeches to drag on. If you’ve got the type of family that will all want to contribute, don’t be afraid to put a time limit on this section of the day. Speeches that trail on for hours will eat into your party time. You may have guests that you haven’t invited to the meal, but who you’ve invited to the reception party and you don’t want them to be waiting around for you to finish your meal.

 

Adding Extra Sparkle To Your Dinner Party

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Entertaining at home used to be considered a casual alternative to a night on the town. If you wanted a low-key, easy way to catch up with friends and relax, you would get them over to your place and either order takeout or cook a cheap and quick meal. Restaurants and bars were reserved for special occasions only – but these days things are quite different. Home entertaining has not only become more common in everyday society, but it has also become much fancier. People go all-out to impress with both their hosting and their cooking skills. After all, many of us have a natural need to nurture, and providing entertainment and quality food to those you care about can be a rewarding experience. There’s also no denying that it can be a bit of an ego-boost when people enjoy something you have done for them! So, if you’ve persuaded your loved ones to come round to your place instead of going out, you’re going to want to pull something off that truly makes it worth it for them. Here are a few ideas to help you add that extra bit of sparkle to your dinner party.

Appetizers

Nothing screams ‘posh event’ quite like a selection of canapes and appetizers – so why not try making some of your own? Typical practice for home entertaining is to throw some potato chips in a bowl and be done with it, but hand-making some pre-dinner treats shows that you’ve gone the extra mile. They can be quite fiddly to make if you’ve never done them before, so don’t try anything too ambitious just yet. There are plenty of flavorful yet simple combinations that won’t take a lot of time to make, but will still whet your guest’s appetite.

Quality alcohol

‘Bring a bottle’ is the usual protocol when it comes to having a meal with friends at home. However, if you want to treat your guests, ask them to leave the bottles at home – and YOU will provide the alcohol. This way, you can meticulously match the wines (or beers) to the food you are going to serve. Plus, you may want to invest in something a little harder for later in the evening, such as kikori whiskey. The spirits market has seen a huge resurgence in Japanese whiskey recently, so if you want to impress your guests, being knowledgeable about the most fashionable spirit around will certainly make your party one to remember.

A show-stopper dessert

Even if you don’t have much of a sweet tooth yourself, simply bringing out a beautiful dessert can be enough to take your dinner party to the next level. Thanks to shows like Cake Boss, and across the pond, The Great British Bake Off, desserts have become more and more outlandish in recent years. Think of your dessert as a centerpiece as well as a sugary way to finish off the meal – there are some amazing designs you can use as inspiration if you’re not sure where to start.

Hotness at Hotmess..!!

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

So when a person like me visits Hotmess in CP, its called Hotness in Hotmess 😉

I happened to indulge in a nice lunch with some foodie friends recently and quite liked the place. It has a lounge type ambience, cool and comfortable and just apt for spending some cosy time with friends or family. The food and drinks served also good and here are my recommendations

  1. Chicken Steam Momos- really nice and juicy ones. I quite liked them.
  2. Foreign Cheese Pizza and Italian Cheese Pizza- nicely done, thin crust pizzas, perfectly spiced, and the toppings too were good. I enjoyed the chicken one a lot.
  3. Middle East Bites- a platter that comprises of falafel, hummus, lebneh, fattoush, pita and mukhalal was totally worth indulging in.
  4. Rogani Seekh Kebab- tender and juicy mutton seekh kebabs, topped with a cheesy sauce, they were delectable.
  5. Mexican Jalapeno Pop- a must try dish, very cheesy and tasty, these will be loved by everyone.
  6. Dahi Kebab Drumsticks- dahi filing like  bread rolls is how I can define these nice and delicious dahi kebabs. Vegetarians can definitely enjoy this.
  7. Cheesy Macaroni Veg Pasta- a typical mac and cheese, this was nice, but could have been spiced a little more, as I personally found it too bland for my liking.
  8. Dal Makhani and Butter Naan- good old favourite, as I was already too full with the starters, I just gobbled a couple of bites from this, but can say that the dal tasted perfect.
  9. Puppy Grilled Chicken- this was a very nicely done chicken. The flavours were perfect and must try this one.
  10. Double Dense Chocolate – its a perfect dessert for chocolate lovers. A dense and moist chocolaty cake served with vanilla ice cream.

The drinks too were good and they have good options in both mocktails and cocktails. Try the LIT Khamba, Whisky Sour, Watermelon Mojito, Summer Directions and Rang De Basanti.

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Overall it was good fun indulging in food and drinks at Hotmess, and you must give it a try.

HotMess Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Stop Hiding Your Face With Makeup! Here’s the Right Way to a Glowing Face

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Almost all of us know that makeup can do some nasty things to our face, and it takes an extremely long time to apply in most cases. However, we usually need it to look our best and hide imperfections on our face. Sadly, it can become taxing and it’s healthier and more beneficial to improve your skin underneath all of the makeup as well. Removing the reliance on makeup is liberating and can help improve your quality of life and give you more time (and money) to focus on other things than your appearance. So if you want a smooth facial appearance without relying on makeup, here is some advice.

Pexels

Understand It Takes Time

Achieving a smooth face takes time because there are both health issues that affect it and some treatments don’t give instant results. Exfoliating your face and applying some moisturiser will give you some instant relief and smoother skin, but it won’t do much for things like acne and your diet is going to be one of the main contributing factors that will help you obtain smooth skin not just on your face, but your whole body. Taking good care of your skin is vital, and it all starts from the inside.

Wash at Least Twice Daily 

Washing your face is one of the simplest ways to give yourself a clean complexion, but you need to do it the correct way if you want to achieve the best results. Find a face wash that is suitable for your skin and make sure to wash once when you wake up and another time when you go to bed. It’s a lot faster than applying and removing makeup and it’s a lot better for your skin as well. If you find your face wash to be irritating, stop immediately and try a product that’s more suited for sensitive skin. You might feel like you need to wash more often, but unless you’re working out, sweating a lot or getting a lot of dirt on your face, this isn’t needed and you may even strip your skin of natural oils that help it look smoother.

Pexels

Using Special Products

You might find that your skin has certain issues that can’t be fixed with just regular washing. For instance, if you’re prone to acne breakouts, then you may want something to help keep your skin cleansed and free from it. If you don’t like your freckles, then you may want to look at beautyambition.com for some freckle removal cream. These need to be incorporated into your skin care routine and depending on what they actually are, you need to choose when to apply them for maximum effect. You don’t want to apply them then wash them out immediately after (unless specified to do so!).

Remember to Moisturise

Make sure you try out different types of moisturisers in order to find your perfect one. Most body moisturisers have facial counterparts that usually work fine because if it works on your body, it should hopefully work on your face too. If you get pimples often, then you may want to try a moisturiser that isn’t too oily that will clog up your skin. If you have extra dry skin, then moisturisers with ingredients such as shea butter and aloe vera will help remedy the problem. This article found at webmd.com will help you pick the right moisturiser for your skin type.

Need Some Me Time? Then A Camping Trip Should Be On The Cards

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-in-black-jacket-with-knit-cap-beside-ceramic-cup-30915/

Do you ever feel like you need to step away from your normal life and just take some time out? Don’t worry, if your answer is yes, then you’re going to agree that you could do with some ‘me time’ sometime soon. It’s not always easy to know how you’re going to get that time to yourself and for a long enough period. But, one of the best ways to stay stress-free is to do something calming and enjoyable, like camping. And although you may feel like camping is a kind of vacation, it’s more than that. Camping is great for calming your lifestyle as well as a break away.

Get Away From The World

The first thing that should entice you about the idea of camping is the way that you can get away from the world in the process. When you go camping, you’re physically heading out into nature. It allows you to remove yourself from your stressful real world situation. And sometimes, that’s all you need. When you can spend a few days away from your real life, you’ll find that you’re able to keep calm and recharge your batteries.

Being Out In The Fresh Air

Then there’s also the fresh air. In today’s society, people just don’t get enough fresh air. We go from home to the office and back home again, then repeat. But, never underestimate the power of some fresh air. When you go out for a walk or head out into nature, you’ll find that fresh air can do you a world of good. So, be sure to take in as much as the outside as you can when you camp, you’ll feel a lot healthier for it.

Enjoy Being Active, Not Passive

We also find that we tend to be a lot more passive in life than generations before us. With TV and the internet, we do a lot less. We find that we’re just consuming information most of the time. But, when you go camping, you have to ‘do’. So, pack up everything you need to fend for yourself. With cooking equipment and survival kit, like this http://best-rechargeable-flashlight.cubereviews.com/, you’ll be able to enjoy being active. You’ll find that being active in nature is a great way to switch off and enjoy being out in the open.

Enjoy The Company Of Others

As well as being active, camping also gives you the opportunity to be social and enjoy the company of others. There are so many reasons why being social is good for you, like these https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/streams-of-consciousness/the-importance-of-being-social/, so now’s the time to reap the benefits. It will save you from being online and allow you to connect deeper with friends or family.

Step Back And Slow Down

And finally, you’re also going to want to enjoy the way that camping allows you to step back and forces you to slow down. You have nowhere to be, you have nothing to do (unless you want to read or explore or something), so just enjoy it. It will also teach you not to take the little things in life for granted and to appreciate what the world has to offer. And what kind of me time could be better than that?

 

 

Goa Comes to Delhi with Lady Baga!

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Even after visiting so many top class restaurants in Delhi NCR, I rarely come across places that are too perfect. Lady Baga was one such perfect experience for sure, rare but true. The ambience, the food, drinks, hospitality, everything was great. The vibrancy hits on you right from the entrance and the vibes are just too great. They have given it a rustic Goan shack feel and it yet has a classy appeal. The 270 degree projection, with beach scenes playing on the screen, and the seating with benches that even has sand underneath gives a beachy feeling, the other side has comfortable couches and on the second level, they have even recreated Goan lounge type seating. The Goan lounge seating is perfect to spend some long hours relaxing and enjoying good meal and drinks with friends.

Now coming to food, I am just naming the dishes I had because to explain each of them I will fall short of words. All I can say is that each and everything was simply great. Not even a single dish was one bit less than the other. Fish Recheado Masala, a typical Goan masala, prepared with red chillies, and other spices along with 2 main ingredients, coconut vinegar and coconut fenni, without these 2, the recheado masala won’t taste as it should. The fish was delicious to the core.

And whats a Goan food without the very famous Chicken Cafreal, a traditional Goan dish prepared with green masala made with green chillies and coriander. This too was amazing, and it tasted as good as it does in Goa.

Try the Light My Fire Masala Chicken and it will truly light your taste buds. Also go for the Platter De Friar, which includes some gherkin and jalepeno chips, piri piri paneer, recheado stuffed mushrooms( they are to die for), and potato wedges. This one is a must have for vegetarians, though being a non vegetarian, I thoroughly enjoyed relishing it.

For the mains we settled for Old Fashioned Fish N Chips, Chicken Lickin and Lamb Kheema and I can say that try any of these and you will love it. Each of the dishes was so so scrumptiously delicious.

Drinks at this place are a highlight, again ask the beverage manager for their specials, or tell them your choice and they create it. I personally recommend Fisherman’s Tonic and Baga Bong for alcoholics and Maiden’s Prayer and Gauva Marry for non-alcoholics. Finish your session with Have A Cigar, shot and you will go gaga over Lady Baga, trust me. A coffee based shot, on the lines on Baileys, but they have made their own liquor and its totally worth indulging in.

Reserve the best for last definitely applies to the desserts at Lady Baga, I tried 4 of them and they were of superlative quality. I haven’t eaten better desserts than this place in a long long time. Blindly order any and you cannot have enough of them.

Bebinca, Sticky Fingers, Brownie and French Banana, I tried all of these and trust me I am still drooling over the thought of having them again. All of them were too good and but the French Banana deserves a special mention, I haven’t eaten anything like this before and kudos to the chef for creating this magical dish. Must try. French toast, caramel, banana, chocolate-peanut butter mousse, vanilla ice cream, what more can you ask for in a dessert.

I am totally bowled over by this place and once again cheers to AD Singh for always coming up with the best possible restaurants in the country. Way to go!
Lady Baga Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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