Rediscovering My Blog: A New Beginning

Hello Friends,

It’s been a while, hasn’t it? I can’t believe how much time has passed since my last post. When I first stepped away, I never imagined it would take me this long to return. Each time I sat down to write, something would distract me, pulling me away from the words / images I wanted to share. Life, in its unpredictable way, has been keeping me busy.

I want to start by apologizing for my absence. I know some of you have been following my blog for a long time, and I truly appreciate your patience. Your support means the world to me.

At times, I’ve felt lost, unsure of what to post about or how to begin again. But today, I’m here to say hello. How are you all doing? I hope this post marks the beginning of a new journey—a step towards rediscovering my blog, logging in more often, and falling in love with blogging all over again.

Life has been happening in all its chaotic glory, but I’m hopeful and excited about what’s to come. Warm regards from Ota Dream—I hope we continue to dream, to live the life we’ve been given, and to enjoy it. Even when life gives us lemons, let’s find the silver lining.

Thank you for sticking around, and I can’t wait to share more with you soon.

Wishing you sunshine and Roses.

Damaris

Five Minute of Happiness Vol.1

At the Balcony

“Be happy for this moment.”

— Omar Khayyam

Five Minute of Happiness- is born out of the need sharing moments in my life that bring me joy and happiness. it's a small reminder to myself to be grateful for every moment it’s a gift. Here is to day one.

Teatime

When I hear the word “ teatime” … it brings back so many good memories . Growing up and having afternoon tea was a very important ritual we did and still do. I remember teatime was always at 4 pm after school. We had our tea with some cupcakes (muffins), popcorn, nuts, biscuits (cookies) or other traditional snacks. The one thing I remember is a host saying, “A good host always offers tea to her guests be it rain or shine ”.

You might ask why tea out of all the beverages in the world? I remember someone saying “whether you are well off or not, everyone has water, tealeaves and sugar at home, and tea brings everyone together.” 

Having my daily cups of teas is one of the things I have carried from my childhood to adulthood. If you ask people close to me about my tea intake they will say, I am “90 percent tea and 10 percent water.” It does not matter what time of day or season we are in, you will find me with a cup or two of tea without skipping a beat. 

Why do I love tea so much? My tea addiction started when I was very young.  I remember my mother always giving me a sip of her tea when I was a baby, and I have been in love ever since. Why do I drink tea so much? For me a good cup of tea represents so much: it’s a warm hug, it sooths the soul and warms the body, it offers some type of comfort whether I am happy or sad. It’s also sign of welcoming someone to your home and finally it brings so many happy memories.

Favorite tea and brand here

I know for some people when it comes to tea they can either take it or leave it.  My hope is that people who dislike it will give tea another chance. There are so many wonderful flavors and blends out there. Some of  my favorite hot teas are: black masala, Jasmine, chai Masala, and Early Grey. For iced tea I like: Pineapple tea with spices, mango passion fruit with lemon and ginger tea (if you want to call them a tea hahahah) but also very refreshing. 

Recipes: 

Black tea: 

Black tea leaves
Ginger 
Water 
White pepper corns 
Cardamom

Clove 
Cane Sugar or sweetener of your choice (optional)

Bring water and your ingredients to a boil for 3-5 minutes depending on how strong or light you want it. 

Chai Masala 

1 milk or plant milk 
1/4 cup water 
Ginger 
Cardamom

Star spice 
Masala spices (could be bought online or local Indian store) 
Clove
White pepper 
Cane Sugar or sweetener of your choice (optional)

Pour your milk and water into a saucepan on medium heat. Add the rest of your ingredients and bring it to a boil for 5-7 minutes depending with how dark you want it. Please watch out for the milk as it will spill over if left unattended. 

Happy Teatime

Weekend Drama “Story of Minglan"

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Weekend Drama “Crush”

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Cleansing Oil

Happy Monday friends, I hope you all are doing well. I have been thinking about starting “One product Monday” for a while now, and today is the day. You might ask what does that mean? I will be sharing my thoughts about any products that I have loved, used or I think is worth sharing with you all. For the next couple of weeks it’s all going to be skincare related, because for so long I have been wanting to share my skincare and the products that I have been using and has worked for me. In the beginning I was going to share all of my beauty products in one big post, but I thought it would be a very long and no one has time for all that reading. So to start this week I will be talking to you about Double Cleaning.

Double Cleansing:

By now we are familiar with or have heard about double cleansing – which is one step to your two-step cleansing process. Some people use micellar water, face wraps, balm and in my case, I love a good old oil cleanser. Whatever works for you is all that matters. The most important thing is to always listen to your skin and what works best for you. What works for me, may not work for you.

For my Double Cleanser, my product for the past five years has been a gentle cleansing oil. Why this oil and so many other products from Sulwhasoo you might ask? The simplest answer is that I trust this brand. It’s a Korean product and one of the best on the market. They have been in business for a very long time. (Link with more information about the Brand). To me Korean Brands have always been pioneers when it comes to skincare and other beauty related items. Double cleanser came with the Korean wave in 2000 and gained attention in recent years. To me, Korean brands have had time to perfect their products

How I use it:

I always use one pump on the days when I have SPF only and two pumps the days I have on lots of makeup on. I massage it on my face for one to two minutes (think of it as a face massage). Afterwards I wet my hands with warm water and massage my face, which helps dissolve the oil and breaks down to milk texture. Then I rinse it off and follow up with my favorite face wash.

Things I love about it:

It’s gentle, smells amazing (like a spa), it hydrates my skin and also does what it is meant to do - which is removing makeup and other impurities without leaving a greasy feeling on my skin.

It can be used twice a day, in the morning and at night before your face wash without stripping your skin. What I love about my oil cleanser is that it helps break down markup, SPF and other environmental factors that my face gel might have missed.

Con:

The product is expensive and the price is always changing

Tip:

This product is available at Sephora, Nordstrom and other online stores. But the best place to buy it is on their website. You will get more for your money, like points every time you shop, which can be used for future purchases. Exclusive offers with purchase (that means you get to try new products without spending a lot of money for the full size and with every purchase you get four free samples).