CLOSED Bodyform Contest & LE Jemma Kidd Lipgloss

Now, when bodyform contacted me and asked if i'd like to hold a contest in order for one lucky lady to win prizes, of course i wasn't going to say no..especially when it's surrounding something almost all of us go through...

"That time of the month..ehem."





We all deal with PMS in different ways, personally, i try and believe i'm not affected by it at all...but if you asked my boyfriend & close family i'm sure they wouldn't agree with me.

To win the contest, all you need to do is leave me a comment telling me what you'd put in your



"Period Survival Kit"



Please be as creative as possible, make me laugh, make me cry...it's totally up to you.

Have fun with it :)



I will be judging the answers and the best one will win a girly dvd, some chocolates, bath salts etc..the perfect pampering kit! Everything you need to boost you're confidence.



This contest is UK only i'm affraid girlies (But for those of you in the US, have no fear as i will be holding my own contest very soon) & it will be closed on October the 12th at 6pm.



Another thing i want to mention is that Bodyform are collaborating with Jemma Kidd & as of the 12th October for a limited time, you can buy bodyform for around £1.50 with a free Jemma Kidd gloss worth £10.

A blummin good time to stock up me thinks! :)



Besides the free lipgloss, bodyform will also be feauturing useful information on the "Eve Appeal" on it's packaging.

Jemma is a long term supporter of the Eve Appeal, a charity which raises funds for research into gynaecological cancers. With Bodyform & Jemma Kidd both coming together with the Eve Appeal, it will raise awareness about gynaecological cancer & the symptoms.



Please feel free to visit the Eve Appeal website for more information, i think this is a subject that definitely is not addressed as much as it should.



www.eveappeal.org.uk



I would also urge you to go to the bodyform website and take a look at another contest they are holding where you and a friend can win a chance to have a day at the Jemma Kidd school of makeup & take away a fabulous goody bag. This contest opens on the 12th October.



www.bodyform.co.uk



I hope that you will get involved, i'm really excited to see your responses.

♥

Review: Botanics Face Balm

When i was in Boots recently, they had a 3 for 2 offer on all skincare.

After recently trying out the botanics eye makeup remover and being highly impressed with it, i went back for more and thought i would try out some other things in the Botanics range.
One of the things that caught my eye was this "Organic, Face Super Balm"


The Price: £4.88

What the box says...

"This richly hydrating superbalm is blended for the use on areas that really need extra moisture. With Argan Oil to deeply moisturise and protect, plus shea butter to nourish and condition."

What is Argan Oil?

"The Argan tree is perfectly adapted to cope with the harsh conditions of heat and the drought of its native Morocco. The oil, rich in polyunsaturates and natural Vitamin E, has been the local women's beauty secret for centuries, nourishing and protecting the skin."

(I love that they explain the main ingredients on the back of the boxes. I wouldn't have had a clue what argan oil was had it not been there! Thumbs up Botanics!)

What I think...

During the winter, i get awful dry skin..not all over, just in patches..making my skin combination, and finding it hard to keep both the oily and dry areas at bay. I have been looking for something exactly like this to rub onto the dry skin.
I have already started getting winter skin, and its only september...how depressing, summer is now officially over in my books. I have been using this for the past week or so, and its become my new best friend. The pot is small enough to chuck in your handbag or makeup bag to take it with you and apply whenever needed. It's very concentrated and so you don't need much. I love the consistency of it...i always feel like lotions dont moisturise my dry skin well enough, or i have to apply it alot more regularly. When i apply a fingertip amount of this, it lasts so much longer.
It's almost like rubbing vaseline into your skin, and the dry, flakiness that was once there, can no longer be seen. I also apply this before bed a bit thicker, and then when i wake up, dry skin is deminished :)

I'm so pleased i found this! I know it's going to be a life saver when it starts getting alot colder.
♥

Hair of the Day

My fringe didn't sit well today...so i parted my hair and curled it :)

I will never have gorgeous Kim Kardashian locks, but i quite liked it.
The first photo was before i left the house, and the second was a few hours later in my mums shop when the curls had dropped a bit.
What do you prefer? Big bouncy curls, or dropped, loose ones?
I think i like both!

♥

D.I.Y Ombre Hair.

Unless you've been living under a rock throughout summer (which seems to have swiftly departed) then you will know that "Ombre" hair has been a very "in" style. In very basic terms, it's a look of which it appears your hair has been sunkissed (depending on the strength of the colour) at the ends of your hair. Or that you're hair has grown out, leaving you with darker roots and lighter tips. It appears that the popular choice of colouring is brown to blonde/caramel, although i have seen people doing ombre with many different colours.

All images taken from Google. How hot does Drew Barrymore look right now?

A few months ago, i became very bored of my current hairstyle. I know a lot of you are always bigging up my long, brunette locks, but when you've had the same style for years, it does become a little mundane. I wanted something different, but i didnt know what. For a while i though of chopping it all off Frankie Sandford style, then i decided i would almost definitely miss my long hair. Then i thought of going all over caramel but i wasnt sure if i would suit it. It was then that i discovered "Ombre". I had saved various different images of celebrities sporting the ombre hairdo, in the hope that maybe, if i was feeling brave enough, i could take along a few photos to the hairdresser (who i was assuming would charge a stupid amount of moolah to essentially put some bleach and tin foil at the ends of my hair) After stumbling upon Lily's Blog LLYMLRS (which is amazing so go follow her) and finding her post on "How to DIY Ombre", i thought "This actually doesn't look all that difficult".

I pondered on the idea for a few weeks, went out and bought the dye & kept it until i felt brave enough. Saturday night, i thought "eck, why not", so i mixed the dye and tried out a strand test to see what the colour would be like after 25 minutes. If it was too blonde, it wouldnt have mattered as it was only one piece of hair. After 25 minutes, the colour wasnt really all that different. So, i knew it had to be on for longer.

L'oreal Perfect Blonde Highlighting Kit - £5.99 & HELLO BOOBIES.

I applied the dye all over the ends of my hair, making sure i really covered it all. I also put some on the ends of the hair that was closer to my face, as i wanted it to blend and feather a little more. I left that, for approximately 30 minutes. As there was a lot more dye, i think it worked a little quicker than the strand test. After this time, I washed and dried my hair, only to decide it wasn't quite as blonde as i'd hoped. It was more a dull gingery strawberry blonde, and i wanted a little more depth. So i then applied a bit more bleach but this time only to the very ends of my hair, i then put tin foil around it. I did this as i was getting ready to go out, and i didnt want bleach flicking everywhere, although i really think it helped the bleaching process along. I left this for another 20 minutes.



And this is the result. I do like it, considering i did it myself, it could have been a lot worse. I'm not planning on keeping it forever, it definitely fullfilled my longing to change my hair & i think it actually looks really nice. I have noticed it has dried out the ends of my hair pretty badly, which were already very dry anyway, unless it's just making it stand out more haha. Over all though, thumbs up for a bit of Ombre hair.

Pretty sure my friend won't be too impressed i used this picture, sorry darling! :)♥

Something A Bit Different...

I was feeling slightly more creative, and sometimes i think it's nice to experiment with the makeup you have in your collection, so i came up with this...
I'm not going anywhere, i was just bored :)
I may resemble Katie Price in a few of these, i'm putting that down to the thick falsies and hair...
Or, some may think i resemble a transexual..well..meh, i quite like it. :)
Obviously wouldn't wear it to the supermarket but it's pretty amazing for a night out.

On my Peepers...

♥ Mac Blackground Paintpot in outer 2/3rds of eye and making point/flick and through the crease.
♥ Illamasqua Sealing gel on eyelid
♥ Illamasqua Static pigment on eyelid
♥ Stila purple shadow (dont know the name - eek) over blackground paintpot
♥ Mac Carbon E/S in outer corners of eye
♥ 2true eyeliner in inner corners of eye
♥ Illamasqua Liquid Metal in Solstice in inner corner, under eye and used as brow highlight.
♥ Cheryl Cole Girls Aloud Lashes

On the Smackers...
♥ Art Deco Lip Base
♥ Gosh Darling Lipstick

And here's a photo without a bright white flash...
My hair looks so long..sheesh.

Hope you like it, it's a little more out of my comfort zone, but still wearable i'd say :)
Give it a go!
♥

Reflective Monday

It's not very often that I sit down and do a "spur of the moment" blog post but I was in a reflective mood and started to think about how different things were for me this time last year. Obviously I share a huge amount of my life with you guys, and see you all as my internet buddies, but there is a massive chunk of it that only my close friends and family know about that has never been introduced online, but let's just say that this time last year I was a very different person. I wasn't as happy and I was inside a "zoe shell" as Louise called it.

I'm not writing this blog post to tell you the back story or to explain how everything got better, but what I do want to do, is reassure any of you that may be going through a hard time, that things DO get better. It may not feel like it, but with a few little changes, they will. Nobody leads the perfect life, and things that you aren't prepared for may get thrown at you, and sometimes it's really very hard to battle those problems and sticky life situations. I just want you to know that you can do it. It might take days, weeks, months or years. Everything happens for a reason and everything we go through moulds us as people and make us who we are. 

This Ellie Goulding song, is one of my favourite songs that summed up the majority of my 2012. You know those songs that just get you EVERY TIME and it's like the lyrics were MADE for your situation? I had to admit, every time I listened to it up until a few months a go, I'd cry. I don't know whether they were sad tears, or happy tears, I think possibly tears of relief? I played it over and over and I felt like it really helped. Music makes everything better.

What's your favourite song with meaning? good or bad?

♥

YouTube | Twitter | Facebook | Bloglovin' | Pinterest | Tumblr | Instagram 

Chanel Injection.

I think it's only right, that in every female's life, there comes a time when we need that tiny little top up of high end nice-ness. Something I like to call a "Chanel Injection". We don't need it daily, or even weekly in order to keep us going...just every now and then, to keep the smiles on our faces & to boost our retail therapy excitedness.

This is what I will continue to tell myself when I start to think "I possibly shouldn't have spent so much at the Chanel counter this month". But fear not, I don't do it often and injections are always beneficial right?

So, My first trip was purely to get a sample of the Vitalumiere Aqua Foundation, of which I ended up walking away with the Soleil De Tan Bronzer and another little sample of some Mascara. The lady was so nice though, and I had wanted it for ages. I'm enjoying using it, although, I do find it leaves me a little patchy at the end of the day as it's not your typical powder bronzer. Does anyone know how I can combat this? The colour is nice also and it looks pretty sat on my dressing table (please remember ladies, this is NOT a reason you should buy any product, but it is slightly more satisfactory than a boring revlon bronzer). I've not yet used the mascara sample, but it is a plastic brush, which aren't my favourite kind. In fact, I normally avoid all plastic applicators as I find bristles give a better effect in general, but this could change my mind.

Onto the foundation, and the reason for my second Chanel purchase. I used the sample (which was quite generous, you could get at least 3 applications from it) and I instantly fell in love with it and ran out and purchased it. I have however, since using it on a number of different occasions, come to the conclusion, that although it's a fantastic foundation and has everything I love about a foundation in it (natural coverage, great colour, sinks in fast, looks flawless yet natural, not too dewy, not too matte), I think it may be a bit on the drying side. At first it didn't seem at all drying, but as the days go on, it seems to cling to any dry patches on my face (just like pro lumiere did), I'm starting to think there is something in Chanel foundations that do this to my face. Is it just me? I find that I need to exfoliate more, and moisturise more, even though at the moment my skin isn't really all that dry. I still really love this foundation, albeit it a bit more on the pricey side, and slightly drying and i'll keep using it. Not too sure i'll repurchase though.

Do you ever have these naughty little splurges? Please reassure me. haha.

♥

I'm Coming To America & Canada

I'M COMING TO 'MERICAAAAA & CANAAADDAAAA

Myself and fellow YouTubers: Tanya Burr, Jim Chapman, Alfie Deyes, Marcus Butler and Caspar Lee are visiting four states across five days, so that we get a chance to see all your lovely faces. We normally wouldn't get the chance to meet any of you in these states, as obviously we live in the UK, so we're all super excited to see you all (even if it means me battling a different flight every morning haha)

I just wanted to write this quick blog post to let you all know, as the vast majority of my blog readers are actually from the US, and I would hate for anyone to miss out if it's something you are interested in. 

We will be up on stage making fools of ourselves no doubt and there will be lot's of music entertainment too, so we can all have a boogy together. 

There are a limited amount of tickets, so if you would like to pop along, do grab them now as i'm not sure how much longer they will be available :)

LET ME KNOW IF YOU'RE GOING!

Can't wait to see you if you are!

Click the below links to get your tickets:

Oct 3 - Chicago - http://bit.ly/digi2013chicago
Oct 4 - Toronto - http://bit.ly/digi2013toronto
Oct 5 - Philly - http://bit.ly/digi2013philly
Oct 6 - NYC - http://bit.ly/digi2013nyc

For more information go to: http://thedigitour.com

Shop Zoella

As of late, it has become increasingly clear i have a lot of things i just do not use. Clothes and makeup mainly and the odd accessory/electrical item. I do love having a good Blogsale but there is so much hassle involved with a massive list of items for sale on one post, i find it can get a bit much scrolling through 50+ comments to see who got what.

So for this reason, i have decided to create my very own blog shop. Don't be fooled into thinking it's going to be an all singing, all dancing proper shopping website, it has all the same elements of this blog, but im hoping it will be so much easier to maintain and sort through. Also giving you all the option of searching for something you might want. Have no fear, it shall be very straight forward, i don't do complicated. I could have chucked it all on Ebay, but i like to give my blog readers a chance to grab it first, and Ebay is the devil for selling - I dont want to pay for more than one detailed photo thankyou very much.

The same rules will apply when asking to buy an item, just simply state your paypal email and your country. Which also brings me on to say it is Interntational :)

The posts will just be in MUCH smaller batches rather than the typical 20+ items, so makes life easier for the both of us in the long run.

Click the Shop Header Below to take you to the website, or the widget to the right (which some of you have already spotted, and for that, i praise you for being alert, loyal bloggers) Please go and follow & give the info a quick read before i start putting items up for sale.



There will definitely be something for everyone, i have way too much stuff which you need to take off my hands.

I would really appreciate if you could spread the word about the shop, obviously not all of you are always interested in my blogsales but it's worth a follow just to keep updated with any new items.

Thankyou fellow bloggies.

What's On My Holiday Beauty Shelf?

One thing that I have to be very selective of, when going on a sunny, bikini-clad holiday, is deciding which beauty items I will be taking with me. I don't know about you, but personally, 90% of my holiday just consists of bare, makeup-free skin (with SPF of course). Therefore, once you have packed what you think you will need, take out at least 1/3 of the products and you should be good to go. I tried to stay very basic, and actually didn't use all of these items at all. Obviously we all have different types of holiday, some people like to really glam up in the evenings, and if that's the case, by all means, go a bit more overboard, but personally, I think the minimal the better. 

In terms of skincare, I stayed very basic, and took a RMK Balm Cleanser* (not pictured as placed "neatly" by the sink in the bathroom), Hydraluron, Murad Hydro-dynamic Eye Cream* and a Laneige water sleeping mask (which I like to use in the daytime as a normal moisturiser as it's so lovely and hydrating). I also have a teeny nivea deodorant which perfectly lasted the whole 7 days. Beats taking the full size and wasting potential extra clothing weight. I also used P20 SPF 20 for the majority of the time I was there. As I'd been in the sun a lot more this year, I wasn't planning on burning myself to a crisp, so I started off the holiday with a higher SPF and then used this for the rest of the time, giving me a lovely natural tan. I also used a Vichy 50 SPF Face Sun Protectant*. 

I took a fair selection of lip products (First fail). When selecting colours to wear on holiday with the potential of getting a tan, don't take pale colours or you will look very scary and a little ill. This meant I didn't get any use out of the Bourjois Colour Boost "Peach On The Beach". Instead, I mostly reached for my bright orange Topshop Lipstick in "Infrared" which I found complimented my skin tone perfectly. I wish I'd taken a red or a bright pink, as I think they would have looked good also. I took a Maybelline Baby Lips in "Hydrate", although it's important to remember that it's only good for when you aren't in the sun, as a lip balm with SPF is essential. I had a Piz Buin SPF30 which worked wonders, and I used Baby Lips at night. 

Other items of makeup that I used for the evenings were a dash of Collection Lasting Perfection concealer blended out with a brush, a smidgen of Rimmel Wake Me Up foundation (when it was still suitable for my skin colour - which was only the first few days), Guerlain Bronzer in Terracota* (I used this to death - some nights I only used this with a touch of mascara), Estee Lauder Tease for a touch of blush/highlight, the new blush by Benefit in "Rockateur"* (a nice mix of bronzer and blush), Urban Decay Naked Basics palette (I thought i'd use this for eyeshadow, but I only applied basic eyeshadow once, the only colour I did use daily was the matte brown in Faint for my eyebrows), Bourjois Liquid Liner Feutre* (Used this every night) and Benefit's "They're Real" Mascara* in travel sized form (too adorable). I didn't use powder as I didn't feel as though my face needed powdering as the sun made it a little dehydrated. I also didn't use my Benefit Erase Paste as it was too light in colour and creamy for the humidity. 

Other things on my beauty shelf are Oribe Dry Texturising Spray which I did use a lot as it doubles up as a dry shampoo. A teeny bottle of Tresemme Hairspray (which I didn't use very much), Some Zoeva brushes* which I wanted to give a try, as they had been sent to me a while back (I was thoroughly impressed and will review them soon) and my Soap and Glory Sugar Crush Body Butter Cream (STAPLE).

Do you often find you overpack for sunny holidays? What are your beauty essentials when going away?

♥

YouTube | Twitter | Facebook | Bloglovin' | Pinterest | Tumblr | Instagram 

September GlossyBox

After attending the GlossyBox Event, I was super excited to receive the September GlossyBox in the post. There is definitely that element of excitement not knowing what you are going to get & everything is presented so beautifully. I understand that the contents of each box may vary slightly but these are the products I received in mine:

♥ L'oreal Professionelle Mythic Hair Oil
♥ HD Brows Eye & Brow Palette
♥ StriVectin SD Eye Concetrate
♥ Mary Greenwell Plum Eau de Parfum Sample
♥ Nuxe HuileProdigieuse (dry oil)

My favourite item is definitely the brow kit. The shadows are so pigmented and easy to blend & I've really enjoyed using it, the colours will also be really good for smokey brown eyes although I have yet to try this out. Besides this palette, I've not really had the chance to try anything else in the box out yet (I'm still trialling the things from the event). I have however given the perfume a little sniff, and that one is not for me at all. It smelt a little like an older lady's choice of perfume in my opinion. Possibly a bit too floral for my liking. Although it could be someone else's cuppa.
I'm still undecided on whether to subscribe to GlossyBox or not. I think the concept is amazing, and a great oppertunity for beauty fanatics to try new, exciting products and I think that it's also a great idea as a gift for someone, I know for a fact my mum would love this sort of thing.

What do you think of GlossyBox? Have you subscribed or are you thinking about it? Let me know your thoughts :)

♥

Illamasqua Dystopia

I was introduced to this collection at the Illamasqua event a few weeks ago.
In all honesty, there were only a few things i really felt i would wear.
The collection is very different from the previous Sirens collection, which i would describe as "safe", something you could wear everyday for a summery, bronzed look.
This collection I would say is more vampy & smokey. Something i would probabaly be more likely to wear at night.

At the event itself, we were given 2 items to try out.
I was given the 2 lipglosses. One being a gorgeous milky pearlescent shade & the other a very scary metallic silver, which, i don't really think i will wear. Its a fab idea, but personally i think the only time i would ever rock a silver metallic lip is for a photo sesh. I've seen people dabbing it in the center of the bottom lip, and i agree that looks fab, but i think thats as far as i'd go.
The MA at Illamasqua suggested to use it on your eyes, i tried this & i hated it. I find it FAR too sticky to put anywhere near my eyes. Think of honey on your eyelids haha.
I immediately had to wash it off (and that took ages) I think if you want to achieve the mega metallic look on the eyes, stick to the liquid metals.

2 things i really did love from the Dystopia collection, were the pigments. I love that you can use these anywhere. Lips, Eyes, Cheekbones, Cupids bow, Collar bones, Clear Polish...etc etc.
And I highly rate the packaging idea, it has proved to be very tidy...pigments..as a rule...are not tidy..
The two pigments are "Static" & "Android".
Static being a gorgeous pearlescent shade. It pictures awfully but looks amazing.
Android is a dark grey with fine particles of silver glitter...again, very pretty.
With all pigments though..there is fall out...annoying but it's hard to prevent this.

I didn't have anything like this in my makeup collection. I have heard fellow bloggers compare Static to a Mac Pigment (which i can't remember what it's called - so that was a whole lot of good..)
The Illamasua MUA (who by the way, was one of the nicest most helpful people ever, which i hadn't experienced at an illamasqua counter before...) demonstrated the foiling effect of the pigments using sealing gel. It looks amazing, and since i didn't own Mac's version, i decided to buy it with the pigments so i could use it for liner and minimising fall out.

Above are swatches of the pigments. On the left side of my hand are the pigments without the sealing gel & on the right is with. It makes such a difference.

The lipglosses i find to be quite sticky, and i do not like the applicators. I find i have to stare at it, make sure some comes out, i go to put it on my lips and its sucked back down...mine also got messy very quickly. However, one plus point of the application is that you can layer it on top of a coloured lipstick and not have the colour rub off onto the applicator. I also think these last a reasonably long time!

Left: Explode sheer gloss, Right: Galactic intense gloss

Besides the fact i think they're quite sticky and a little messy, i really do love Explode gloss. Its one of those shades that will tone down a bright lipstick and give it a gorgeous pearlescent glaze on top. I have been teaming this with a lot of different bright colours and i have become a little bit addicted to it. Would reccommend this one highly :)

Overall, i wasn't blown away by the collection, but there are some gems in there that if you dont already own something similar, you should definitely check out.
Hope this has helped some of you!

♥

Review: Maybelline Pulse Perfection Mascara

I know there are a fair few reviews on this product, but i thought i'd throw in my two sense & give you my opinion aswell. :)

"Pulse Perfection" is the new vibrating mascara by Maybelline, which retails for around £14.99.
I never bought into the whole "vibrating mascara thing". When Lancome came out with an expensive version i didn't turn a blind eye. I was happy with the standard brush thanks!
But when i saw that a cheaper alternative had been made, i was intregued to see how vibration could make a difference to the appearance of the lashes.
In all honesty, my first thought was...
"£15 FOR A DRUGSTORE MASCARA!"
I buy my lancome hypnose in superdrug for £12, so £15 for a maybelline one, did seem kinda steep..or maybe i'm just stingy. haha

This is the wand.

It's like the "Define-a-lash" one.
I always stay away from plastic brushes, i find they clump more & dont grab each lash well enough, so usually, i will always stick to a bristle mascara brush.
However, i really like this one.
The vibration mechanism is on the end of the wand, where you "simply" press down for on...and release for off.
I say "Simply" as i know alot of people have had trouble grasping the technique. I did at first.
Yesterday my friend wanted to use it, and she went to do it, and got completely flustered and couldnt make it work...and ended up being totally freaked out by the vibration near her face. It was quite amusing.
I start from the base of my lashes with the vibration on, and when i reach the tips of the lashes, i turn the vibration off.

Before & After shots...

This was with 2 coats.

I think that this is a dramatic difference, i can see how some people may say it clumps easily, but i would never do more than 2 coats as i think this would make it slightly clumpy.
I seriously love the effect this mascara has on my eye lashes. It gives the effect i love & want with only 2 coats...usually i will achieve something like this with around 4.
It lengthens, and it thickens, and they looked so curly.
Just for reference i didn't curl my lashes before hand.
I am very very impressed with this mascara, and i will be repurchasing it when mine is finished.

♥

Under Eye Circles & HG Concealer

I don't know why i'm showing you my eye without concealer.

They are my biggest hate...& if i could change one thing about myself..(besdies my legs) it would be that i had no dark circles.
Unfortunately, it kindof runs in my family, so concealer is the only answer.

When i say i have tried loads of concealers under my eyes, that is somewhat of an understatement...

The one concealer to have ever proved just right, is ...
*Drum roll please*

Gosh Touch Up Concealer in No2


I know i have mentioned this alot in previous posts, and i have had many people asking me questions on it, and emailing me about it, so i thought it was about time i did a proper review on it.

I think what makes this concealer work so well (with my skintone anyway) is the fact it has a salmony undertone...obviously, orange cancels out blue, so the pinky-orange tone of the concealer works very well to disguise the blue under your eyes.
There is one other colour in the same range, which is shade 1, but this does not contain the same colour..so i can't say it would perform aswell. I also love the consistency of it, how easy it is to blend and the fact it has NEVER gone cakey, which so many concealers seem to do under my eyes.

I thought i would show you some before and after images to prove how much i love it...
I still can't believe i am showing you all this..haha


I know the last picture looks edited, but i promise i havent touched the brightness or the contrast, i think i was closer to the window..or the sun came out...might have to tilt your laptop screen haha

I love this stuff so much. I just find it covers the perfect amount. If the concealer is alot darker than your skintone, you can always use a touch of light reflecting concealer over the top lightly, i sometimes do this when im feeling particularly pale, or dark eyed.
My favourite under eye combo is this concealer with a touch of Benefit Erase Paste in no 1 on darker areas. I havent demonstrated that in the above photos though.

The concealer retails for around £6-7 & can be bought in Superdrug!
♥

Want Big Smexy Hair?

I've been asked loads of times how i achieve alot of volume in my hair..

First thing is first though, if you have very fine hair, and not alot of it, it can be alot harder achieving volume in your hair..not impossible..just harder.

Luckily, i have quite fine hair...but LOADS of it, so i can use many different techniques.

Volumising Products Before Blowdrying

Obviously, before you do anything with your hair, after you have washed it, you need to apply some "volumising product" to the root of your hair..
This may be a number of different things, but these are products i tend to use regularly...

♥ Mousse - I dont have a particular type i prefer over another. Mousse is something i tend not to reach for as often as i find it can get a little sticky, but it does do a very good job of lifting hair at the root, and works well in conjunction with rollers.
♥ Tigi Bedhead "Superstar" range - I don't own everything in this range, but i do own the blowdry lotion which achieves fab volume after blowdrying. Although this whole line of products are designed to reach maximum voluminosity (is that a word) haha. See my review of this product HERE
♥ S factor "Body Booster plumping spray" - This is one of my favourites, although the smell is very overpowering and often leaves me feeling sick, this product is simply just spritzed in at the roots on damp hair, and blowdryed. See my review on this product HERE
♥ Clynol "Look At Me - Naughty Styling Fluid" - This is alot like the product before, although i do think this would work alot better on finer hair as the formulation isn't as sticky/strong. Review HERE

Blowdrying Methods

I know that most of you will already know this, but for those that don't i thought i would quickly mention it...

Blowdry your hair upside down.
It really is that simple, it's the quickest most effective way of achieving alot of volume in your hair. It's probabaly bad for the hair shaft as it's in the wrong direction, and could result in hair breakage over time, so would only suggest this if you have prepped the hair well before hand with some sort of heat protectant, and not on occasions, rather than everyday.

You can also use Large round natural bristle brushes, i own one by Tigi S Factor that is huge...but it works great. You simply curl the hair around the brush, pulling the root up and away from the head, and blowdry. I find it quite difficult getting this technique right, i guess im just cack handed. :)

Velcro Rollers

If i have time to prepare myself for a night out, and want ultimate volume, i will use velcro rollers. And i like to use different sizes for different sections of the hair.
It's best to use velcro rollers when the hair is almost dry, so a bit of upside down blowdrying after the volumising serum would be ideal. Then when the hair is still a bit damp, put the rollers in. I have seen some people put rollers in where they turn the hair down and backwards...i don't know how they achieve volume this way...i pull the hair upwards and back, lifting the hair at the root. :) You can then apply a tiny bit of flexible hairspray. I say Flexible because if you use something stronger, it might leave the hair a little crispy. I like to use strong hold hairspray at the root, but not over the hair on the rollers.

[Haha - Sexy!]
Sometimes you may need to use bobbi pins to secure the rollers in place.
You can then blowdry on a low speed, low heat setting until its fully dry, although personally, i find that if you leave it to dry naturally, it has better effect.
I tend to leave my rollers in for around an hour + (so yeh, only do this is if you are planning way ahead, and being super laid back and organised about getting ready haha)

Back-combing

Let me start by saying this is the worst technique for your hair, yet we are all guilty of a little backcombing arent we?
I try not to backcomb too much of the hair, in fact i stick to the crown mainly, unless you want to get more of a Diana Vickers esq style, in which case, you'd just go backcomb crazy.
If you start by sectioning the hair from the middle of your head, then backcomb, and hairspray each section until you reach the crown or top of your head, leaving the hair on the very top, to cover the messy backcombing.
I find a tooth pick comb the easiest way of backcombing but have also heard that a natural bristle brush does a pretty good job too.
I then secure with bobbi pins for a half up do or just hairspray if left down.


Here is my mum, modelling a backcombed half up-do. As you can imagine..its kindof impossible for me to take picture of the back of my head...believe me..i tried.

Then..in the words of JPmetz...
Hairspray THE HELL

Yep, hairspray really does do a good job with volumising. Sometimes when im feeling reallly lazy, i just lift the hair, hairspray at the root and voila.

Some Hairspray favourites...
♥ Tresemme freeze hold
♥ Clynol (review here)
♥ Pantene Ice Shine strong hold
♥ S Factor Chic shine (review here)

I hope this has helped a few of you, i know it might be pretty basic to some, but sometimes i combine all of these methods when doing my hair..bad i know, and you might not...and if you want ultimate BIG hair...then you should too :)

♥

Holiday Evening Outfit | White Blazer

Blazer - Zara

Trousers - Topshop

Loose Silk Vest - Topshop

Lipstick - Topshop Infrared

Sandals - Carvela at Kurt Geiger 

One of the things about being on holiday is deciding what to wear out for dinner in the evenings as there is usually a much cooler breeze once the sun has gone down. I've had this blazer for about 3 months, and not had a clue how to wear it or style it. I found it quite intimidating and wasn't sure I could pull it off as I am only comfortable throwing on my black blazer, which tends to go with pretty much everything. With two days of tan and a monochrome outfit I decided to put it on if the evening got chilly, and I actually quite liked it. The trousers and top were quite casual but the blazer added an edge of formality. Moral of the story: Don't let clothes intimidate you, there will be an occasion where you'll be able to make it work, just be brave! :)

♥

YouTube | Twitter | Facebook | Bloglovin' | Pinterest | Tumblr | Instagram