all about that base

Hey all!

My go-to look for this summer is all about the base! spend time on making your skin look radiant and keep the eyes and lips neutral for a flawless look. I created this base makeup using drugstore/ high street products to show it is possible to get excellent results from your local Boots or Superdrug counter easily rivalling the high end alternatives. (No edit or filter has been added to the photos, Just natural lighting!)

BASE:

Primer: Nivea Men Post Shave Balm in Sensitive
Foundation: Rimmel London Lasting Finish in 100 Ivory
Concealer: Collection Lasting Perfection Ultimate Wear in Fair (Placed under eyes, underneath contour and down the bridge of the nose to highlight)
Setting Powder: Rimmel London Match Perfection Silky Loose Powder
Bronzer: Bourjois Delice de Poudre Gold Bronzing Powder
Highlight & Contour: Collection Highlight and Sculpt Contour Kit

REST OF THE FACE

EYES:

Eyeshadow: Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise Cream Eyeshadow in Bette all over the lid with Bourjois bronzer (listed above) lightly through the crease
Liner: YSL Shocking False Lash Effect Eyeliner in Shocking Ink
Mascara: Rimmel London Volume Colourist in 001 Black
Lashes: Eyelure 107 lashes trimmed to give a cat eye look

BROWS:

Anastasia Beverley Hills Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde with the dark brown shadow from Bourjois Smoky Stories quad in Upside Down to define the outer-edge . Brows concealed and sharpened with Collection Lasting Perfection Ultimate Wear concealer in Fair.

LIPS:

Lips lined with Laura Mercier Lip Pencil in Hazelnut Tea and filled in with Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat Lip Pencil in Pillow Talk.

Blondes have more fun, but they also get damaged hair...

I'll hold my hands up to this one, when I first went blonde I decided to skip gradually lightening my hair and instead went from dark to light in one sitting. Great idea, right? wrong! They say a change is always good when you have a broken heart and my hair was beautiful when I first had it done, I swished my new freshly blow-dried locks round like a new independent women. Don't get me wrong I love being blonde, light hair suits my complexion, my eye colour and my personality but just being blonde wasn't enough for me. Oh no, I wanted to be blonder. I'd somehow got it into my head that I wanted to be Daenerys from Game Of Thrones with white blonde hair (who wouldn't want to look like a beautiful dragon mother).

Sadly, I was not prepared for a couple of weeks down the blonde timeline when I realised how damaged my hair had become. I was left with a dry, broken disaster and I found myself crying over old Facebook pictures of my long healthy hair from a couple of months earlier (RIP). Hey, at least my heart was broken for a different reason now. Think back to that clip in Friends when Monica's hair had a mind of its own and couldn't handle the humidity and you can picture what I was looking at in the mirror, quite far from the Game Of Thrones look I'd originally planned.

Two years later and after a couple of months back on the dark side (my hairdresser refused to put anymore blonde on my poor hair) my hair is now back light. Don't worry, I'm not as blonde as I used to be, but I've definitely learnt my lesson about the importance of repairing and protecting your hair. After trying many different products on the market, below are my favourites. I am a huge lover of low cost products available on the high street and I believe many products are just as good as the high end but with a much lower price tag! So if you're fighting for the blonde dream like myself, this may be of interest to you.

Shampoo & Conditioner

OGX do some incredible shampoos and conditioners that are great for rehydrating thirsty hair and repairing damage. They're available at boots and other drugstores as well as the majority of supermarkets here in the UK. They're also normally on offer! 

I personally like to alternate between the OGX anti-breakage Keratin Oil Shampoo & conditioner, the OGX coconut water shampoo and the OGX coconut milk conditioner. 

(RRP £4.66 - Boots.com)

Considering decent Keratin Oil based products are usually on the expensive side, The OGX Keratin Oil Shampoo & Conditioner are an excellent bargain and do the same job as the high end products. They are specialised to target breakage and damaged hair whilst rebuilding thick and healthy locks. the consistency of the products is thick, and I often like to leave the conditioner on my hair which I shave my legs or lie in the bath just to give it that extra time to work on my damaged ends.

(RRP £4.66 - Boots.com)

The OGX Coconut water conditioner is incredible (!!). If there's one thing I could recommend from 2015 for damaged hair it would be this product. It offers ultimate hydration with a blend of oils that quench your thirsty hair and make it super shiny. You can actually feel this product working in your hair and it smell delicious. Sadly, I have tried and tested the Coconut water conditioner and I wasn't as impressed as I was with the shampoo… but not to worry, most drugstores that have the products on offer usually allow you to mix and match!

(RRP £4.66 - Boots.com)

This product does exactly what it says on the bottle. it's milky consistency adds strength and elasticity to the hair whilst providing it with ultimate hydration. after a deep clean of the hair with the coconut water shampoo, this conditioner is the perfect conditioner to follow with. Leave it on the hair for ten minutes and not only will you smell of the most incredible beach holiday, but your hair will thank you!

Hair Oils and Treatments

(RRP £31.85 - feelunique.com)

The original moroccan oil is the best in my opinion. Although slightly on the pricey side at £31.85, it is worth every penny and the 100ml bottle will last you a long time. A little goes a long way with the product. Towel dry your hair and work the product into the ends of your hair and use the heat from your hair dryer to lock in the moisture. Once your hair is dry, work the product into the hair to hydrate the ends and add shine. Moroccan oil can be used to add a little extra touch to any hair style, I use it every day to give my hair a hydrating boost in between washes. 

(RRP £6.29 - Boots.com)

Currently on offer!

This John Frieda intense repair mask can rival that of it's high end competitors. I use this product once a week and after shampooing and conditioning my hair I leave the product on for a minimum of ten minutes. If i'm not leaving the house, I'll leave it on my hair wrapped in cling film for a couple of hours to really let it work in. I haven't tried any other products in the full repair range from John Frieda, however I shall try them soon and report back! There are plenty of hair masks available on the high street, and this is definitely my current favourite!

(RRP £9.99 - Boots.com)

Now, I have a love hate relationship with this product. I like products that are easy to use with no messing around. This product is the definition of messing around for me. In order to use the product the oil must be at a certain temperature before you're able to scoop it out and use. After reading many reviews on this, not many people mentioned this as an inconvenience so perhaps it's just me. On the plus side, the product is incredible value for money. I personally don't use it to cook with, however I do use it as a hair mask and on my skin and face. Lather it onto the ends of your hair and apply either cling film or a shower cap for half and hour before washing off. Only use a small amount of the product on your skin and face as you don't want it to go greasy, but this is an excellent product to apply on your dry patches the night before you intend to apply fake tan, it's the ultimate hydration your skin needs! 

2016, Lets do this!

It's that time of year when the hashtag #newyearnewme get's abused across social media by many seeking to reinvent themselves. Although you'll never see me use this hashtag, I am however guilty this year of using the chime of a new year as a motivator to change bad habits. I've always attempted dry January, but sadly I am called to a glass of wine after a long day like the ring is called to Mordor (my boyfriend will be exceptionally proud of that reference). It's the 6th January, and I've already failed at that one. 

My new years resolution, as you can probably tell from this post, is to relaunch my blog and use it as a platform to express myself creatively. I miss being creative, I have become so stuck in routines with both work and education that being creative in every day life has took a back seat role. It has gone from being something I loved to an inconvenience in my life, and it used to be what made me feel content and happy. It was a big part of me, and I truly miss that about myself. New year's resolutions shouldn't be about completely reinventing yourself, it should be an opportunity for you to become the best person you can be. Whether that's continuing the exact way you are, or changing the little things in your life that will make you happy. 

I'm so excited for what 2016 brings for both myself and for you all, I have both my fingers and toes crossed! 

xxxx

Studding Addiction

I've come to the conclusion I have an addiction to studding... everything. I can't walk in to a shop nowadays without seeing something and saying to myself 'I'd stud that' or feel the need to tell everyone around me my idea. Like most seasons, studs and spikes have made there way on to the catwalk scattered across both garments and accessories from many designers. In S/S11 we had studded trench coats at the Burberry Prorsum show and Punk Rock studded biker jackets and trousers at Balmain. Christian Louboutin also released studded sneakers for men and later for women that proved a massive hit and were expectedly copied by leading high street stores afterwards. 

My take on the trend is more punk rock/grunge, I love taking vintage pieces and adding studs and spikes. A couple of adjustments to a garment can change the whole concept of the look and can revamp your wardrobe at a low cost. 

I will link my previous blog post that tells you where I buy my studs etc. Just click here

Tools:

Studs/Spikes with backs.

Smalls scissors/knife or sharp point to make the hole in garment/accessories

Hard, level surface to work on (I just used an old scrap book and worked on my floor)

Method

The Method is very simple. All you need to do is take your product and mark out where you would like your studs to go. You can create scatter effects, straight lines or shapes, It all depends what look you're going for! Place the product on the hard surface and make sure it's flat. Using your sharp point carefully apply pressure to the garment until you make the insertion or a small hole. Once you have created the hole, depending on what type of stud you have, just insert it into the fabric and secure from the other side. Simple! Don't forget, the fabric that you want should be relatively thick, like leather or denim. This is due to the fact the studs will have some weight in them, Thin fabrics will struggle to keep their structure if you apply studs to them.

Here are some of my own Leather items that I have recently studded just to give you some ideas! 

Happy Studding!

xxxx

LFW Report:
Burberry Prorsum S/S 2013

Every season I always get excited for the Burberry Prorsum show, It's not just about the beautiful clothes and models, but the crowd and the theatrical atmosphere of the event. Set in a greenhouse with an interior of complete white, the seated crowd juxtapose in their blocked coloured outfits and the front row is filled with long legs crossed and the occasional lucky photographer perched on the end trying to get the first photograph of the models as they emerge on the long catwalk. It's a very mystical setting, almost like a scene from a modern Alice and Wonderland but without the annoying rabbits or Alice's horrific piny dress. The music just intensifies this, a beautiful soundtrack of especially recorded acoustic songs from young, budding artists with incredible talent. Burberry is a renowned ambassador of Britain, and everything about their show's celebrates this. It was truly beautiful and a joy to watch. With fashion royalty on the front row and some of the world's most stunning models on the catwalk donning Block colours and beautifully crafted metallic fabrics sharply cut into feminine tailored shapes, Burberry has clearly exceeded everyones expectations once again. 

View photographs, comments, music and highlights from the show on the Burberry website 

Disclaimer: All photographs taken from uk.burberry.com 

Ombre/colour-fade nails.

I decided to attempt the Ombre/Colour-fade nails that everyone has been raving about on blogs and Youtube using two of my favourite OPI colours of all time, Elephantastic Pink (the darker pink) and Privacy Please (the lighter pink). It's crucial to use a decent nail polish when creating this effect as the colour need to be both intense and easy to blend.

Although I am not 100% happy with the finish on the nail, I am impressed considering it was my first attempt. To create the look I simply painted two coats of the hot pink on the whole nail as a base coat and allowed it to dry. Then, using a small sponge, I dabbed the lighter pink on to the centre of the nail delicately and then built up the colour towards the tip to create a gradual fade of colour. 

After I was satisfied with the colour on the nails, I allowed them to dry for about five minutes and then applied a second coat of the light pink on the tip of the nail just to add more of a contrast to the darker pink. After waiting for the nail to completely dry I simply applied a top coat for extra shine and then this was the end result...

You can create this look using any colours you please. It's simple and quick to create and perfect for summer. striking nails can add impact to a simple outfit just like adding statement accessories. Try it out yourself!

xoxo

I've been exceptionally busy with work recently so haven't had any time to blog! (sorry)

I haven't done a makeup look for a while so here is the look I have gone for today! 

I created a dewy, glowing skin using MAC Studio Fix Foundation mixed with an equal amount of facial moisturiser and then applied two layers using a flat foundation brush. Jelly Pong Pong concealer was applied underneath the eyes, along the nose and on the chin and cupids bow. I tried to create a toned down cat eye look for the eyes using a range of matte shades from the Urban Decay naked palette and smudged it under the eye as well to blend and create a less sharp/more daytime look. The Brows are more subtle then usual and were created using the Jelly Pong Pong brow palette. Normally, I would prefer sharper brows and so therefore I would use a pencil. I chose to create more subtle brows for the daytime as I wanted to focus more on the lips. I used my favourite red lipstick from Topshop in the colour Hazard and created a defined cupids bow and full lip using a lip brush, also from Topshop. I used Urban Decay bronzer to contour under the chin and on the cheekbones and dabbed Topshop Hazard lipstick on the cheeks for a subtle blush.

I like wearing my hair pulled back tightly when I have cat eye makeup as I think it complements the face really well. I wore a casual outfit of a DIY cut vintage band t-shirt, rolled up jeans and high tops. 

xoxox