Monday 30 June 2014

Getting Ready For Summer.



Here's a few things that makes getting ready for summer a little easier.


  • The first thing to know is preparing the skin is key. I use the Mandara Spa Intensive Body Scrub which I picked up at Sainsbury's. I use this in the shower to exfoliate my skin, it gets rid of all the dead skin cells ready for silky smooth legs. As the sun is out a little more it's important to keep the skin hydrated. Even using a light moisturiser all over the body instantly makes the skin look healthier.  I use The Body Shop Shea Body Butter. Also a hydrating mask will keep the face healthy and radiant for the warmer months. I have been loving Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask to quench the skin's thirst.
  • Summer sunburn is not a good look so make sure you're protected with SPF, using a foundation with SPF already in will help protect your face from those nasty UV rays. I tend to use Garnier Summer Body Self Tan Moisturiser just to add some colour to my skin and build a gradual tan ready for the sun.
  • Now for makeup. Going for a bright lipstick, will instantly give your make up a pop whether it be pink, red or orange. In the summer I tend to keep my make up simple with just a bit more colour on the eyes or lips.
  • For the hair, braids are perfect for no heat hairstyles, as your hair is already being damaged by the sun you don't want to put any extra unnecessary heat in your hair. It will cause your hair to get very dry throughout summer. Also summer is a good chance to enhance your natural hair, and to give it a break from the heat. 
  • Next is nails, this is the time to give yourself a pretty pedicure. Start with cleaning and filing the nails, then pop a colour on, either something pastel, a pink or coral are perfect for summer. Don't forget some cuticle oil, to restore moisture to the nails and cuticles.
  • Last thing is to keep them lips moisturised no one likes chapped lips. Lush lip Scrub is fab, it's just sugar and oil that you rub on your lips, which you can then eat after. Finally just don't forget to moisturise, EOS lip balms are so handy and they smell beautiful. 
  • Don't forget to drink plenty of water, you want to keep your body hydrated as well as your skin.



Tuesday 24 June 2014

Healthy Hair.

I often get asked how I get my hair so long and healthy so I thought I would share a few of the things I do.
Let's start with washing and drying my hair. Washing your hair every day will wash away the natural oils and dry it out, so I recommend washing your hair every other day, which is what I try to stick too. After washing your hair it can be fragile, so I gently towel dry and then brush through with my Tangle Teezer.
When I dry my hair I'll dry it with a round brush and a nozzle on the hairdryer to control the air flow, this helps to reduce frizz and smooth out the hair. This means I don't have as much to straighten as it's already smooth and fairly straight. I will try not to use a lot of heat on my hair but as it's so thick it can take a while to dry so most days I do have to dry my hair. If I do straighten or curl my hair I'll always make sure to use a heat protect spray, the one I regularly use is L'Oreal spray for straight hair. For the days I don't wash my hair, dry shampoo is my best friend. I have tried many dry shampoo's and have found Batiste to be the best. 


The other product I will use every time I style my hair is argon oil, I'll put this on either damp hair or dry hair after I've styled it. Oil is great for keeping my hair looking shiny but also keeping it healthy and strong. Every fortnight I will use a deep conditioner on my hair, the one I have been loving for a while is Biolage Conditioning Balm. All you do is just simply use as a normal conditioner but leave it on for a good few minutes.



I also found that when I started drinking more water daily my hair became healthier and stronger, so I now make sure to drink a bottle of water every day. A well balanced diet with plenty of protein, vitamin B and iron will also help the hair to stay thick and as healthy as possible. The most common thing I get asked is how often do I cut my hair and really t's just as soon as I notice split ends. I will then make a trip to the hairdressers for a trim, this helps to prevent the spilt ends from going up the shaft.
What do you do to your hair to keep it healthy?

Sunday 22 June 2014

What's In My Bag.


I'm always interested in what people carry around in their bag's so I thought I would share the contents of my bag with you. Recently I've been using my Longchamp Le Pliage bag, which I can  squeeze a lot into, including half of my lip products and many other essentials.
My purse is a bright pink Marc Jacobs wallet, that I recently purchased at Bicester village. This wallet is the perfect size and it's bright so it's easy to find in my bag. 


My daily makeup usually stays the same, generally I just take NARS creamy concealer, a few lip products and a hand cream. The lip products include, MAC lipstick in Syrup, MAC lip glass in Lust, and Rimmel lipgloss in Kiss Me Coral. Then of course some lip balms are always necessary. I tend to always have quite a few hair ties and grips with me especially as my hair is quite thick and long and can get a bit too much sometimes. I never leave the house without my contact lens case as sometimes my eyes can hurt and I'll just pop my glasses on instead. All of this is in a Vera Wang Lovestruck bag I received free with the perfume.


Other essentials include gum, keys (obviously very important) and my glasses. A notebook and a pen are also very handy to carry around just to jot any notes down, and pens are always useful wherever you are. I also have a pair of Ray-Ban aviators with me at all times. Then of course the most important thing I carry with me everywhere is my iPhone 5, the case is by Orla Kiely.
What do you keep in your bag? Anything I'm missing?

Tuesday 17 June 2014

Holiday things...




M&S Heels
H&M Purse / Topshop Skirt / Flowerbomb Perfume
Mango Top / Next Espadrilles

Here's just a few little things I'll be taking on holiday with me, two weeks today!




Sunday 15 June 2014

What's on my iPhone


Here's a little peek into my iPhone, I have quite a few apps so I thought I would share some of the ones I use...

Social
Twitter, YouTube and Tumblr are my most used apps. I also have Facebook and Snapchat, the usual. 

Games
If I'm not on something social then I'm most likely on a game. Currently I'm loving Cookie Jam and Bubble mania. Cookie Jam is pretty much the same as Candy Crush (which I used to be obsessed over) but instead your baking cookies and cakes, so much more cool, right? 

Photography & Editing 
Instagram is the one app I just love. There's a number of apps for editing but the main ones I use are Whitagram, which I use to put a white border around my photo's, and PicsGrid to combine multiple photos into one framed photo. I recently downloaded Afterlight, this is great for editing, from adding filters to adjusting brightness. 

Helpful
Shazam, this app is a lifesaver. There's always that time where you hear a song but can't think for the life of you what it is. Well Shazam simply listens to the song and let's you know. Another is Lloyds bank to keep track of all my spending.

Lifestyle
Bloglovin' is the app I use to follow all my favourite blog's and to see their most recent posts, I spend a lot of time on there. 
PlayMemories is an easy way to transfer your photos from your camera to your computer or iPhone, great for uploading them straight onto Instagram. Not to forget some shopping apps, such as Topshop, H&M, JohnLewis and River Island.

That's pretty much it on my iPhone, my phone case is Orla Kiely. What's on your iPhone? 



Thursday 12 June 2014

Summer Nails



I think as the sun has been shining recently, it's made me reach for colour when it comes to my nails. These bright colours are perfect for summer and here are the three I've been loving. OPI is a must have for me, with their gorgeous range of colours, and no chipping for a week or so, winner.

In The Cable Car-pool Lane / I Think In Pink / Elaphantastic Pink


Tuesday 10 June 2014

How to: Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream



If you asked me what product I could not live without, it would be Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream.
If you've never used this before the first thing to know is it's not actually a cream but a multi purpose balm and can be used for just about anything. 
The most common use is as a lip balm and I normally just apply this as I start my make up to keep my lips moisturised, and then I just apply when I need to throughout the day. Another use is to dab a few dots along the cheekbone and brow bone as a highlighter, this will give off a natural glow to your makeup, for that flawless finish. 
If you want incredible silky soft skin then apply a thin layer to your face, which will act as an overnight mask, this will leave you with a perfect base for applying make up. I also generally dab a little on spots to keep them moisturised when they're drying out. I also find it helps to occasionally put a little on my eyebrows and eyelashes overnight for a little conditioning. It can even be used to soften rough, dry cuticles to keep them smooth and beautifully manicured. Other uses include; underneath the eyes as an eye cream, an after sun soother to relieve minor sun burns and on any cuts and burns to calm irritation and reduce redness.  
I pretty much use this every single day, it's an essential item in my make up bag.
I would highly recommend this product to everyone. I honestly can’t live without it.