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Celebrity Makeup Artist and Lifestyle Blogger Share Her First Christmas In Hawaii

img_3567Merry Christmas Everyone!!!! This was our first Christmas here in Hawaii and it couldn’t have been any better. We stayed home the entire day and my daughter and I stayed in our PJ’s all day. 3 out of 4 of us were still under the weather. Because we all work with the public we definitely picked up some type of virus. Because of my Lupus I always do around this time of year. Now that I’m working with international customers and they come to Hawaii sick wearing mask’s and shit that still doesn’t keep me from picking up something. The doctor said I had a Swollen Lymph Glands in my neck and a Viral Prodrome. I managed to do the tradition for the babies, cranberry muffins, cinnamon rolls and mimosa’s, for lunch we had seafood; crabs, crawfish and spicy potatoes. Us girls we stick to the bubbly’s and the guys like to do eggnog with brown liquor. Around 2:45pm I had to take a quick nap, my body needed more rest. While we were gifting I put the roast in the crock pot and sauteed the vegetables. Before movie time we ate dinner and snacked on a pumpkin pie while watching 2 movies.

The biggest gift my husband and I received was having our daughter fly in from Connecticut. It was definitely a treat to all be together here in Hawaii. Even though the boys, Miko and Ani are no longer with us we still put there little stockings up and we have their ashes joining the family every holiday.

 

 

 

 

The bubbly’s started to kick in so the pics stopped here (lol). I hope everyone had a lovely time with their families and friends on yesterday. I know I’m so blessed to have mine, it’s the best feeling ever. We work hard, we play hard and we love on each other hard. Merry Christmas Guys!

 

 

Honolulu Hawaii Lifestyle Blogger and Makeup Artist Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu Island but you can find her working doing makeup in Waikiki, Waipahu, Waikele, and Kapolei. Being Hawaii top social media influencer & a Hawaii blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles anywhere in Hawaii and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu or Haleiwa…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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Relaxing At Home After Going Through Pre-Op To Remove Fibroids And Polyp Tumors

img_0090I’ve been through my pre-op, now I’m home just sitting here patiently waiting for the big day. I have only been coming outside after 6pm when the sun goes down. The doctors told me to stay out of the sun and because of my Lupus I have to not get a lot of sun on my body without being covered.

I never had surgery so I didn’t know what to expect at the pre-op. For me it was broken up in 2 days. The first day was blood work and urine testing.

The second day was my pre-op clearance with anesthesiologist. About 2 hours of questions asking me about my health history then they did an EKG and another urine test. My doctor went over my lab work from yesterday blood work. It’s very detailed. Because I’m anemic my blood was a little low, it was a 10.2 and she need me to get it to 11.2 before surgery. So that meant eating a lot of protein to get my iron up. So that meant no processed food which is hard for me

Then I was sent home with special instructions such as;

Do not eat or drink anything (even water or chewing gum) after midnight.

Do not take aspirin or aspirin for at least 1 week before surgery. (say what, nah)

Avoid soda and alcohol (oh lord, this is all I drink)

Avoid sun

Bathe with the special Hibiclens wash they send you home with the night before and the morning of. Use clean soft towels, do not scrub just softly wipe and pat dry.

No makeup, no nail polish just on 1 finger (this was the hard part)

Eat healthy food drink 8 glasses of water a day (this was hard cuz I don’t drink water daily)

Brush your teeth four times a day and before bed

No smoking no street drugs no vitamins and herbal supplements (didn’t pertain to me)

Try to not get a cold/flu, fever, sore throat or cough. (this is why I had to stay away from people cuz of my Lupus I pick up germs instantly)

 

 

The best part about this down time is I’m able to focus of my future. I have been working a lot on my book because this entire experience has given me a lot to write about.

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I also finished working on my blog and managed to get a nice nap with all this wonderful breezy coming through. The next time you will hear from is after the big day.

See Ya Bye & Luv U Mean It!

Honolulu Hawaii Lifestyle Blogger and Makeup Artist Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu Island but you can find her working doing makeup in Waikiki, Waipahu, Waikele, and Kapolei. Being Hawaii top social media influencer & a Hawaii blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles anywhere in Hawaii and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu or Haleiwa…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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It’s Tea Time Somewhere, What’s Your Favorite Tea

 

img_8582For  me, having my morning tea, afternoon tea, a relaxing cup of tea when reading/working on articles, or my big mug for when I have a cold/cramps tea. It’s something quite fabulous about my setup. Brewing, then the add-ins (lemon, honey, stevia, mint, cough drops, rum) to making my tea perfect.

My add-ins definitely gives me a different experience with my tea. Be creative with them because there’s no right or wrong way to  drinking your tea. It’s all about what you like. I find tea to be healthy for my body, caffeine free and so damn soothing.

I feel that I’m a serious tea lover who will never ever convert to coffee. The most you will ever get me to drink is a StarbucksStarbucks, Caramel Frappuccino with extra caramel which doesn’t happen often.

I know some call it high tea or low tea, shit I just make myself tea whenever I want it. And I have different types of mugs depending  on my mood of when I’m drinking my tea’s.

Here’s are the teas and brands I have in my kitchen cabinet today; Lipton, Teavana, Triple Leaf Tea, and Celestial Seasoning.

What about you, what’s your favorite? Maybe I’ll get it a try.

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Lipton Greentea Superfruit Orange Passion Fruit Jasmine

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Teavana Lavender Dream

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Triple Leaf Tea Cold & Flu Time

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Teavana Silver Vin Zhen Pearls

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Celestial Seasoning Honey Vanilla Chamomile

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Teavana Serenity Flavored Herbal Infusion

 

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Can’t forget your tea filters for your Teavana tea’s

Honolulu Hawaii Makeup Artist & Lifestyle Blogger Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu island in Ewa Beach but you can find her working doing makeup in Waikiki, Waipahu, Waikele, and Kapolei. Being a top influencer & blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

 

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Hawaii Beaches Is Not Just For Surfing

img_5864I walk down to the beach at least 3 times a week if my schedule allows it. Whenever I do come down to the beach I always bring my Microsoft Surface Laptop with me. It’s my life, I work on my blog, I do my invoices, I work on my calendar, I make videos, I watch TV and I listen to music. So, I don’t leave home without it.

I know many would disagree with me that the beach should be a place for relaxation. I should be surfing or enjoying some type of water activity at the beach. I do get in the water, my body love that magical turquoise healing power Hawaii beaches has. But I work better when I’m on the beach by myself. I feel like I don’t have an interruptions like I do when I’m home. I get distracted with house stuff, ladies I know you understand. I start thinking about all the things I SHOULD BE DOING! As I’m typing I can see from the corner of my eyes that the floor has sand on it from yesterday visit at the beach, or I think about those dirty towels from yesterday at the beach that need to go in the wash, then dinner and so on and so on. As my son calls it (his office) the beach is my place for me to not just zen out, not to heal my body but also a spot for me to work.

 

I pack myself a little bag and my hoodie because it gets windy later in the evening and I just enjoy getting work done. Not too shabby of an office I must say.

Do you have a unusual spot that you like to go to when you work from home?

 

Honolulu Hawaii Makeup Artist & Lifestyle Blogger Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu island in Ewa Beach but you can find her working doing makeup in Waikiki, Waipahu, Waikele, and Kapolei. Being a top influencer & blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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I Love Going To The Farmers Market In Hawaii

img_4723Aloha…I look forward to Wednesday nights at home because I don’t have to cook, ain’t that something. But it’s the truth. On Wednesday, from 4:30pm-7:00pm we are blessed to have the Farmer’s Market on the property. Many local vendors come through and they have great food, great drinks and great music.

This week I made it home just in time to partay, I got off at 6pm so I was moving fast. Ran over to put my food order in, then my drink order. I wanted those large turkey legs but that vendor didn’t come this week. My mouth was watering all week for it but that’s ok, I was able to get my hands on these delicious wings from Tasty Kreyol.

Over at The Bar with D’lish on the beach I order my new favorite drink. Betty is such a sweetheart and she’s a great mixology. My two Mai Tai had me nice the rest of the evening. Let me go enjoy my date…See Ya Bye & Love You Mean It!

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Sorry guys I went in before taking a picture. I ordered Jerk and Lemon Pepper with Plantains. OMG!!! #Delicious

 

Honolulu Hawaii Makeup Artist & Lifestyle Blogger Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu island in Ewa Beach but you can find her working doing makeup in Waikiki, Waipahu, Waikele, and Kapolei. Being a top influencer & blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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How Hawaiian Locals End Their Sunday Evening

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After a full day of work it’s always nice to come home and enjoy a few minutes of the beach. Like so many in Hawaii after work I like to head over to the beach at home. I don’t even change into anything comfortable I just go as is.

My son Jordan met me at the beach, his office like he calls it. He spends a lot of time on the phone catching up with friends on the mainland, he make all of his personal calls at the beach and research schools for the upcoming semester.

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So this is how I will end my evening, it was so needed especially my feet.

 

 

Honolulu Hawaii Makeup Artist & Beauty Blogger Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu island in Ewa Beach but you can find her working doing makeup in Waikiki, Waipahu, and Kapolei. Being a top influencer & blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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Our First Saturday At Home In Hawaii

img_2997It’s a beautiful Saturday morning. I find myself waking up early just listening to the birds, writing beauty articles and enjoying my new life here in Hawaii.

Still can’t believe that I’m calling Hawaii home. The Hawaii locals are all amazing, we have met some really chill peeps and I look forward to meeting more and doing things in the community just like I was doing on the mainland.

Today we were invited to see this young surfer compete at Surf Grom, I think we will go check it out tomorrow in Waikiki. Today I just wanna spend my day on the beach with my son creating some new content and just enjoying my new lifestyle.

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As you know I’m from NOLA so I’m always craving seafood so while we were on theimg_3713 beach we started looking up what seafood joint was near the house and we found a spot called, Da Crawfish and Crabshack. Sounds like my kind of place, so New Orleans. So after we left the beach we washed up and went to Da Crawfish and Crabshack in Kapolei. The owner was so very kind to take us because they stp seating at 8:45pm the hostess said but he came over and said that we could stay, just place our order fast so the cooks can wrap up for the evening. Now that’s what I call GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE. Just because of that I will talk about how great this place is to anyone that ask me about a seafood spot. So, let’s talk about this menu of Da Crawfish and Crabshack. Everything sound good, and we decided on Combo 1 and Combo 2. Can I just tell you how impressed I was with the portion and the taste of the Cajun Sauce. My mouth is still watering just thinking about it. Our server Jacob, was excellent. He was on his job making sure we were ok, that ou drinks were filled.

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Da Crawfish and Crabshack Combo 1 consist of; Snow Crab Legs, Clams, Mussels, Shrimp, Crawfish, Potatoes, and some type of Sausage.

Da Crawfish and Crabshack Combo 2 consist of: Dungeness Crab, Clams, Mussels, Shrimp, Crawfish, Potatoes, and some type of Sausage.

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It was so much that we had to bring half of our food home to finish it. It was so worth the market price and we definitely plan on returning. So, if ever in Kapolei, Hawaii you have to stop at this restaurant, just call to get the correct hours. I don’t want you to miss out on GREAT SEAFOOD.

 

 

Honolulu Hawaii Makeup Artist Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu island in Ewa Beach but you can find her working doing makeup in Waikiki, Waipahu, and Kapolei. Being a top influencer & blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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Celebrity Makeup Artist And Beauty Blogger Moving From The Mainland To Hawaii

 

img_1666Today is a big day for the Gomez-Duplessis Family. We have shippers coming through all day to give us estimates for our move to Hawaii. This is the most expensive part of the move and the most stressful part as well. But at the end it’s going to all be worth it. Because I’m getting my health back. This is really the reason why we’re moving. My Lupus, RA and Asthma is kicking my ass up here so I need to be in a warmer climate with better air quality.

We decided to go with Hawaii Moving Pros to ship our furniture. Our Moving Coordinator from Hawaii Moving Pros has been very efficient and accessible throughout the entire planning.

So, how do you pack a 5 bedroom home and make it fit a pod for a studio/1 bedroom home? You need lots of alcohol and you cry, shit you need an entire bottle of alcohol. Let me tell you, this is so hard purging and deciding on what to ship to Hawaii. It’s not the same feeling when we lost the entire home to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans but it’s high on the emotion list. I tell you what, because of this move I’ve learned that we’re hoarders, no really. I think because of Hurricane Katrina that I try to keep everything pertaining to the kids, my husband and all of my achievements and awards. The great thing is I can just google myself to see things that I’ve done. So, when I look at it that way, it makes it easier to throw away things away about myself. 

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My Soul Sista Buddha, we don’t know yet if she’s able to travel with us due to her size.

I have managed to do a lot online with setting up the family lifestyle for success. Things like digital interviews with Field Executives for Estée Lauder, virtual tours of the house with Angela our Leasing Professional, getting eRenterPlan Insurance, and setting up cable/wifi service with Spectrum. The next thing we have set up is for Queen B, my car to be picked up this week.

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I’m a fan of Z Gallerie home decor and stylish chic furniture store so I have a lot of great pieces from there especially wall art and large wall mirrors. I’m not ready yet to part from any of my things from Z Gallerie but unfortunately I have to. Because it’s costing me so much to ship my really big pieces. So, on Saturday, I’m giving them away to a few families from Columbia who just moved to Connecticut. So I know they will appreciate these fab pieces but it’s going to be hard to part from them.

I’m not shipping any of our outdoor living set up either. In Hawaii we will have a nice yard to start all over with so thinking about that project make it easier to say goodbye. I’ll be able to plant exotic flowers and have more trees and even a beach to enjoy daily.

So, if anyone from the mainland wants to know how we managed to move to Hawaii just shoot me a comment and I’ll answer them for you. I’ll continue to share about our Pro’s vs Con’s of moving to Hawaii and I’ll link the companies that we used along with feedback. This is going to be a great chapter in my book.

ALOHA

 

Hawaii Makeup Artist Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu island in Ewa Beach but you can find her working doing makeup in Kapolei. Being a top influencer & blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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A Lit Easter Egg Hunt With My Adult Kids

 

This is how we do it on Easter in the Gomez-Duplessis family. Since they were babies it’s been our family tradition to have a Easter egg hunt in the yard. Now that everyone is of age and this year is our last Easter together in our Connecticut home we decided to add a little libation to this egg hunt. This year concoction was made by my son, I saw Svedka Vodka, and Finlandia Vodka but I’m not sure of his mixture. It was actually DE-LISH!

After the egg hunt we sit at the table, we eat and drink while enjoying each others company.

Then watch a few movies outside. Usually the kids will pick a movie and hubby and I pick one movie. I don’t usually make it for the bonus one. Either I have fallen asleep 😴 💤 or I’m cleaning my kitchen. And it goes a little something like this….

Do you have any fun family traditions on Easter Sunday?

 

 

Hawaii Makeup Artist Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Brandy is located on Oahu island in Ewa Beach but you can find her working doing makeup in Kapolei. Being a top influencer & blogger don’t be surprised to see her writing beauty articles and taking selfies for her 60K followers on Instagram on the beautiful beaches in Honolulu…and YES, there are black people living in Hawaii. 

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New Orleans Makeup Artist Love Yankee Candles During The Christmas Holidays At Her Connecticut Home

 

It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas…well smell like Christmas, I should say. During the year I love to buy candles from Yankee Candles and for the Christmas holiday I really enjoy my home to smell like a Christmas tree. My favorite Yankee Candle this season is “Balsam & Cedar” candle and it’s a 22oz in size.

The fragrances are Balsam, aromatic cedar wood and juniper berry blend together in a fresh forest scent. And the fragrance notes are; Top: Crisp Citrus, Herbs, Red Berry
Mid: Pine Balsam, Cedar, Sandalwood
Base: Vanilla, Warm Amber, Musk
Top note is the initial impression of the fragrance, middle note is the main body of the scent and base is its final impression.  This candle will give you about (110-150 hours burn time) which is about 14-19 days of amazing aroma in the your home. This is why I love buying Yankee Candles because I feel like I get a lot of days and normally candles don’t last that long.

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As you know I lost the sense of smell due to my Lupus. But I recently got it back so I went ham at their store and treated myself to some goodies. I love candles its definitely a treat for the house. Like on non holidays I pick candles that represent my mood and energy.

How about you do you love Yankee Candles and do you have a favorite candle from Yankee Candles that you like?

New Orleans Makeup Artist Brandy Gomez-Duplessis has 22 years of experience in the Beauty & Entertainment industry. Gomez-Duplessis is a wife and a mother of 2 adult kids living in Connecticut. In 2014, Brandy was diagnosed with Lupus, Lyme & RA.