Feeling overwhelmed... Or underwhelmed?

While I love social media (I'm literally all over it, just look above at all those sparkly buttons!), it really can get me sucked into this vortex of nothingness made up of a bit uselessness, woeful and a whole lot of "What am I doing with my life?!".

I think this is typical for students though. I've literally spent 18 years (yes, it took me a while to work that one out) in full time education, constantly learning and constantly being asked, "So what do you want to do with your life/when you leave school or uni?"

Back to the social media. Over the last few weeks, my personal Facebook feed has been littered with statuses such as 'OMG GOT A NEW JOB WAHOO!', 'JUST BEEN ACCEPTED FOR AN INTERNSHIP!' and 'OMG GOT SO MANY EXCITING SHOOTS LINED UP'.

The most exciting thing in my life right now is that I've been working quite a bit so I have a bit more of a disposable income and I treated myself to a family size packet of ginger biscuits.

Please don't get me wrong and think I'm a total grump, I'm so happy for those who post these statuses. I really really am. But sometimes, I wish it were me.

I'm not really too sure what this post is all about really. Just life things I guess. I wanted to share how I'm feeling in the hope that if you might be feeling that way too we can help each other out, or have felt like this before and can offer some advice.

I have so many dreams, but just don't know where to start or even how to?

I really hope you understand what I'm trying to say :)

Autumn Polkadots

Nail art is a big thing in beauty right now and its a great way to jazz up your nails with more than one colour. We are creeping closer to Autumn months so here is a look suitable for the colder months but still catches your eye. Plus, who doesn't like polkadots?!

To prep, I trimmed and filed my nails. You wouldn't believe how quickly and long my nails grow. They are made of steel, I swear! Next I popped on some top coat which doubles as a base coat too from Leighton Denny available here.

For the base colour, I used a much loved colour from Essie, Bahama Mama, available here. I love plum-toned nail varnishes for Autumn/Winter. The formula of this and other Essie polishes are just lovely. They glide on like a dream. I have a good 2 coats of this for full opacity and it didn't get gloopy or streaky at all.

Once that had 90% dried (I started to get impatient and wanted to polkadot!!), I blobbed a generous amount of Barry M's Matte White, available here, on a piece of card with a cuticle stick armed at the ready. 

For the polkadots, its very simple. Literally, dip and dot. I started off with two dots then three dots and carried on across the whole nail. So easy.

Once this had all pretty much dried, I put on another coat of the Leighton Denny top coat and that was it! 

How long does it last, you say? A couple of my nails have chipped but I think thats due to rigorous washing up. I know, I'm quite the glamour puss! I reckon this will last about a week. I'll let you know!

What do you think of this nail design? Are you excited for Autumn/Winter?

Watch this space as some more A/W14 posts are coming your way!

Boots Haul (+ First Impressions!)

So I went to Boots with a rather hefty 'to-buy' list and spent a hefty amount. It's only fair that I share with you what I bought and my first impressions of them. It also relieves my conscience a little as I feel I'm being somewhat productive in my spending. Reviews of those that particularly impress me will come in due course, rest assured!

Soap and Glory's Solar Powder Bronzer

A lovely looking duo bronzer with very little shimmer to it. Do not be discouraged by the pink overspray, that will disappear after the first stroke of your brush. The Soap and Glory products were all part of a 3 for 2 offer and is also my first dipping of feet into the make-up line First impressions: Love this. I find it to be much more subtle that my Benefit Hoola Bronzer so will be great for Autumn/Winter where I want just a hint of a glow. Having two colours gives you more control in how much you put on.

Soap and Glory's Sexy Mother Pucker in Nudist

A product loved by one of my favourite bloggers, Fleur from www.fleurdeforce.com, this is essentially a tinted lip balm in a twist up stick. First impressions: THIS SMELLS AMAZING. It also packs a lot more colour than I thought, automatically a winner and now a handbag staple. Highly recommend.

Soap and Glory's Kick Ass Concealer

Again, a duo (or triple with the finishing powder?) product from S&G. This features two concealers; one pink toned for cancelling out blue tones in the inner corner of the eyes and one green toned for cancelling out redness from pigmentation and spots. Also comes with a nifty little finishing powder to set everything into place. First impressions: Very nice. Great little compact to keep in the make-up bag to touch up any flare ups and the finishing powder is surprisingly very good! I wonder if this is a smaller version of their One Heck Of A Blot? If so, definitely purchasing!

No7 Instant Radiance Bronzing Highlighter

This caught my eye whilst I was late-night perusing Boots online and I had a voucher for £3 off No7 make-up (fabulous!) so decided to give it a whirl. First impressions: Again, lovely. Great alternative to powder bronzers and/or highlighters. Glides on lovely, blends well and gives a very natural glow-ey finish. I expect it would be great for holidays as it will sit better on the skin and is quite compact without the need for a brush.

Seventeen Falsifeye HD Mascara

This mascara was recommended to me by a friend of my sisters whilst at my sisters hen do. She said it is a dupe for the Benefit They're Real Mascara for a snip of the price. I haven't used that mascara before, have heard great things so decided to give this cheaper alternative a go. First impressions: The brush is quite deceiving. It's a thinnish plastic wand (not my favourites- I love a fibre wand personally) but it really does make lashes very doll-like. The first coat is fairly normal but the second coat is where the real monty comes in. Very impressed. Definitely give it a go if you see it!

Seventeen Eye Eye Crayon in Jewel

There was a buy one get one half price offer on Seventeen products and my boyfriend actually steered me away from my usual gold toned eyeshadows and said I should get the blue. First impressions: Boy did good. I love this, very creamy and stays on pretty well. I pinched a look using this colour from Pinterest for a night out and loved it. Maybe I'll recreate it for here? We'll see :)

Here are links to where you can buy everything mentioned:

S&G Solar Bronzer: http://www.boots.com/en/Soap-Glory%C2%99-Solar-Powder%C2%99-Bronzo-9g_1238296/
S&G Sexy Mother Pucker in Nudist: http://www.boots.com/en/Soap-Glory-Sexy-Mother-Pucker%C2%99-Gloss-Stick-3D-Super-Colour-Volume-Lip-Shine-2-72g_1277067/
S&G Kick Ass Concealer: http://www.boots.com/en/Soap-Glory--Kick-Ass-Concealer--Three-Piece-Camouflage-Kit-2-x-2-6g_1243294/
No7 Instant Radiance Bronzing Highlighter: http://www.boots.com/en/No7-Instant-Radiance-Bronzing-Highlighter_1475889/
Seventeen Falsifeye HD Mascara: http://www.boots.com/en/SEVENTEEN-Falsifeye-HD-Mascara_1502635/
Seventeen Eye Eye Crayon in Jewel: http://www.boots.com/en/SEVENTEEN-Eye-Eye-Crayon_1427550/

Fitness Friday #3: How To Get Motivated For The Gym!

Having been going to the gym regularly for about 3 months now, I have come to understand and experience for myself the peaks and lulls in working out. I like to go to the gym 2-3 times a week and work for about an hour. I absolutely love and relish the times where I feel really energetic and am powering through my workouts very sweaty but not like I'm going to pass out. I feel great afterwards and this gives me a massive confidence boost. However, there are times when I really don't want to go to the gym or when I'm there, I just don't have the energy to go hard like I usually do. This is both tiring and frustrating. 

Here are my (realistic) tips for staying motivated with your workouts...

Tip 1: Pinterest

Like the digital kid I am, I go to the internet. You know how much I love Pinterest and you can look at all my boards here. Pinterest is full of health and fitness tips, tricks and most importantly, motivation. All you have to do is type in 'gym motivation' and you are presented with a plethora of quotes and pictures psyching you up for your next workout. I've included one of my favourite motivational quotes here for you and why I love it...

This is a very encouraging quote for me. There are a load of magazine articles that claim to 'BANISH', 'BURN' and 'SHRED' your extra pounds, love handles or bingo wings. That's a little too aggressive for me. Now, this may sound a little preach-like but I believe you should love your body and want to 'SHAPE', 'PERFECT' and 'FINESSE' it to its best potential. "Workout because you love your body, not because you hate it", such a positive and motivating outlook. 

Tip 2: Keep track of your progress

There is honestly nothing more rewarding than seeing your weight loss written down in front of you. Be it in a journal or on a graph, it's a big deal. After my first month of working out, I lost a stone. Yes, a whole 14lbs! As well as being elated, I realised too that the reason why that weight literally fell off of my body is because it wasn't supposed to be there. So with that significant weight loss under my belt, I could believe that I can really shape my body and become healthier. Once you start to see results, it just spurs you on to maintain that through toning or to carry on to achieving your goal weight. 

Tip 3: Plan your workouts

If you go to the gym without a clear idea of what you want to do, you won't push yourself to your ultimate goal. Jot down on your phone a clear and realistic work out routine that you can power through and that gets your heart rate going and that sweat dripping! 

My work out routine still needs some adjusting as I need to work harder and sweat more but here it is for a rough outline. It's also a good idea to set specific days/evenings to working out. So you could go on a Monday evening to get your week started and release some of the stress of Mondays, Wednesdays to keep you on track and then Saturday morning to make sure you keep on track for the weekend but have Sunday as a rest day to chill out and even have a naughty roast dinner at your local pub!

So there are my top 3 tips for getting motivated for the gym! Tell me what yours are in the comments!

Thank you for reading!

Throw Back Thursday: Prom Edition!

It's prom season and I've seen so many pictures of girls (and guys!) all dressed up to the nines for a glamorous night with all of their friends. It's lovely to see all the different gowns that girls wear for the night; sparkly, sequinned, lace, corseted, long, short, you name it, I've seen it! 

My Year 11 prom was 5 years ago now. FIVE YEARS! I can't believe it was that long ago, I remember the whole day getting ready with my Mum like it was yesterday. She had freshly bleached my hair (I was platinum blonde many moons ago), applied my fake tan in the garden, took me to the Body Shop to get my make-up done, done my hair for me, helped me into my dress that we chose and lent me some of her jewellery to add some extra bling! 

Even though I had two other proms after my Year 11 one, this was by far my most favourite look. I guess Mum's really do have that touch. I would definitely recommend keeping make-up very natural and bronzed. Your dress is probably a statement enough so let that do the talking!

I've trawled my Facebook and found this photo of me all those years ago. The more I look at this dress the more I want to go to my Mum's and dig it out and wear it again (if it still fits, that is!) I had an absolutely wonderful night with all my friends, taking lots of photos and if you have had your prom or it is coming up, I hope you have a wonderful time!

Thank you for reading and I hope you found it fun to go down memory lane with me.

REVIEW: NYC EXPERT LAST LIP COLORS

I love a bright lip for a night out and in the summer when I'm a little bit bronzed so am always on the lookout for something affordable, that I can chuck in my bag and if worse comes to worse and I lose it, I won't be completely heartbroken. I don't usually look to NYC for make-up purely because I haven't heard enough about them. However, I was swatching some of their lipsticks on a whim and I was really surprised! They initially looked very pigmented and soft so I grabbed two shades; 404 AIR KISS and 402 RED FLAME.

404 AIR KISS I really really like this shade. It's a lovely dark pink with blue undertones. The colour is extremely pigmented on the lips but doesn't make my lips feel dry or chalky. It's quite the opposite actually. The formula is very creamy and does not feel sticky at all. There could however, be the potential for transfer. This lipstick would not be a wise choice if you are wearing white or even giving your loved one a cheeky kiss. I would definitely not wear this on a first date. Nothing is less attractive that smearing pink lipstick across your face. 

402 RED FLAME As you will notice, the pictures of this lipstick look different to the previous ones. I had to do some colour setting changes to get the truest visuals of the lipstick. 

Red Flame shares the same characteristics as Air Kiss in the sense that it is creamy, does transfer and is very pigmented. However, it is not as stark as Air Kiss. It's a much more subtle red compared to pillar box red. It has a shimmery/metallic finish which is a upcoming trend for Autumn/Winter. This is because it has slightly golden/pink undertones to it that catch the light. Unlike Air Kiss, it does show the creases of the lips, so may be a miss is you have very chapped lips. This colour would be just lovely with a golden/coppery eye and bronzed complexion. 

Overall, I do really like these lipsticks and for the very affordable price of £1.99 each, they are definitely worth grabbing to stick in your bag on a night out or even on holiday! I would definitely recommend these to anyone looking for bright colours and is prone to losing things! The one thing I really do not like about these lipsticks is the packaging. You cannot wind down the bullet all the way so if you haphazardly put on the lid, you could squash it. The lasting power is also not great, they are completely gone after eating except for a faint outline around your lipsticks; not a good look. 

Have you tried the NYC Expert Last Lip Colors? What did you think of them?

Thank you for reading!

Get The Look: Kim Kardashian's Airport Chic

Hi, my name is Paris and yes, I am a fan of Kim Kardashian. 

Image from Daily Mail Online

I await the comments berating me for liking her but that's okay, I know she is not everyone's cup of tea. I wouldn't say I admire Kim, but I definitely look to her for style and make-up advice. I love a good contour and I think she (most of the time) dresses very suitably for her body shape. I do not by no means have a rear like her, but I have curves too and we are a similar height. That makes me sound like I've met her... I haven't, though I'd like to!

I have loved watching her style evolve over the years of watching Keeping Up With The Kardashians and seeing her splashed across internet sites. Though I do not have her wealth; nor access to fabulous designers such as Roberto Cavalli, I can definitely take some inspiration and incorporate into my wardrobe at a fraction of the price.

Kim has recently been snapped waltzing through LAX in a very casual but still very chic and put together ensemble. I really like this outfit for everyday and when thrown with some heels and a whack of hairspray, it can also double as a great evening dinner outfit. 

Partly because I don't even want to devote brain cells to work out how much this outfit may have cost, I have found some high-street and online pieces that can recreate this relaxed chic look. By clicking on the image, you can go straight to the product webpage for more information.

Black Satin Feel Bomber Jacket from missguided.com - £24.99

Starting from the top down, I have found a few different bomber jackets. For an almost identical option to Kim's, I have found this plain black satin feel jacket available for £24.99 from missguided.com (right). This piece is very versatile and can be paired with any outfit and is a great transitional piece to take you from Summer to Autumn! 

Onto the simplest part of this outfit; the white tee. I haven't included any dupes for this as almost everyone has a white tee and/or they are widely available in Primark if you are really in a pinch. My only piece of advice would be to make sure it is not see through especially with a tight tee; bra outlines are not classy! If you are conscious of wearing a tight tee, go for an oversized one! Versatile, see?

Grey Ripped Jeans available from ASOS.com - £21

Now for the jeans, I have found this pair available from ASOS and currently in the sale for £21 down from £30... I love a good bargain. These aren't an exact copy as they aren't as washed out on the fronts of the legs and they also have ripped knees. However, this is a trend that Kim has been seen wearing recently. 

Shoes, shoes shoes! Kim loves her heels but the heels I have found are a little more snazzy than Kim's but I really love these and again like the jacket, they are very versatile. They are available from River Island for £50. Try not to be put off by the price as nude heels are such a staple item in any woman's wardrobe, I can assure you that they will go with any outfit. They are also a great alternative to black heels in the summer when you've got a tan!

And there you have it! A replica of Kim's airport chic for a fraction of the price with some key pieces that you can mix and match with your entire wardrobe to create a variety of cute outfits!

Shoes available from River Island - £50

Fitness Friday #2: Dinner & Dessert Under 550 Calories!

As well as a love for make-up and fashion, I have a very hearty love for food and cooking. This stems from years of being fed good food from my Mum. She is a wonderful cook who loves experimenting with different recipes and flavours. She makes a rather delicious chilli con carne and very famous bruschetta- my friends love it and she makes it especially for them when we visit. I did actually film a vlog of her showing how she makes it which you can watch here (it's quite an old vlog so prepare for some shaky filming haha!) I guess I have inherited this same love for experimentation. In my food. A love for solely experimentation could be perceived somewhat differently haha.

When it comes to food, I generally go for more red meats like beef etc. However, on this new healthy lifestyle I'm on, red meat isn't the healthiest of protein choices I could be making and have gone back to chicken. I usually like chicken but do not love it. I find it can be very flavour-less and bland. To add some flavour to my chicken, I concocted (great word) a rather tasty marinade that consisted of the following:

2 tbsp of vegetable/sunflower oil

1 tbsp of tamari

1 crushed clove of garlic

1 good shaking of paprika

1 tsp of mixed herbs

and another good shaking of black pepper

I then added my 2 chicken breasts making sure each side was well covered in the marinade and I left it to soak in all those flavours for around 45 mins to 1 hour. Of course you can leave it for longer as I normally would but I just didn't have the time. It still packed a lot of flavour though so don't worry if you're pushed for time like me.

Instead of pan frying, I popped the chicken underneath the grill for about 14 minutes in total (7 minutes on each side) and sliced through the middle to ensure it was all cooked and there was no pink left. Salmonella is no fun so any hint of pink means more time in the heat.

Whilst that was cooking, I boiled some water and threw in a cup of frozen peas. These were done by the time the chicken was done so timing was on point. Try and refrain from slathering on butter onto your peas, its unnecessary calories you don't need. Buttery peas are nice on a Christmas dinner, not on your weekly meal.

Everything done and dished up and you should have a little something like this...

Looks good right? And it's only 376 calories!

Now onto dessert which is a recent favourite of mine. I'm not normally one for cereal at all (I was more of a marmite on toast kind of girl back in the day) but I've really been loving Cheerios with soya milk and fruit. I made the switch to soya milk from semi skimmed cow's milk a few days ago and I LOVE it. It's much sweeter than cow's milk but it is less creamy. 

With my cheerios, soya milk and some cut up strawberries, I enjoyed a rather delicious dessert that was just over 150 calories! God, I love eating healthy and I don't feel like I am starving myself at all. I'm still able to enjoy something sweet in the evenings without feeling guilty amongst a mountain of Daim bar wrappers. 

I hope this post hasn't made you too hungry but gives you some ideas on how to spice up a piece of chicken or how to satisfy that sweet tooth whilst trying to be as healthy as possible!

Let me know what you think and of course any recipes you have tried that you really enjoy!

Thank you for reading!

Fitness Friday #1: Long Walks & Apps!

Hello there and welcome to my first Fitness Friday blog post!

This is a new series born out of my desire and goal to become fitter, healthier, stronger and slimmer! Every Friday I will sharing with you my tips and tricks that I've picked up to really boost the benefits from a healthy lifestyle.

Kick starting this series is a post all about how you can visually see how a long walk can help you burn those calories!

Living in London it can be difficult to find 'peace and quiet'. I hear ambulance sirens and people shouting all hours of the day. With all that rustling and bustling, complete relaxation is a near off impossibility, making me a recluse with my laptop permanently attached to me. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that this is not healthy nor am I losing weight.

I did some browsing on Google Maps (as you do) and found there was a huge park about 10 minutes from me so I decided to devise a 2 mile walk that I could track on my phone and keep track of calories lost.

I downloaded this rather nifty little app from the App Store called 'MapMyWalk' and the first thing I noticed about it is that the interface is very similar to Facebook. Therefore it is really easy to get used to as you can like and comment your friends progress. 

Image from Google Images

To start, you simply click 'Record my workout' then 'Start Workout' and a map of your location will be shown. As you walk, the app will create route line calculating your distance, pace and calories burned. 

On my first walk, I clocked a distance of 3.32km in just under 40 mins burning 134 calories. It was also quite humid that day with very little of a breeze so I sweated quite a bit (sexy, I know). I felt awesome afterwards because it was a relaxed type of exercise where I wasn't staring at the timer on a treadmill, but the nature around me. 

Here are a few snaps I took whilst on my walk. I just fell back in love with the colour green!

Another feature I really like on this app is that you can pause and resume your workout if you stop to have a sit down in the sun or chat to someone. 

I'd highly recommend this app if you are looking for a great exercise if you are away from your gym or in the countryside but don't want to get lost! It's also great if you are not into very rigorous exercise but still want to keep fit and get your blood pumping. 

Do you use any other apps to record your fitness or eating? Let me know in the comments!

Thank you for reading and check back next Friday for another Fitness Friday post!

Dehydration And Headaches

DISCLAIMER: This is a health blog post borderline medical. I am not a medical professional so if you are experiencing anything of what I am going to mention in this blog post then please go and see your GP or health professional. Also, refrain from doing online self-diagnosis', this is very dangerous and could cause you a lot of worry over something very minor. I am aware that this post contains sources from the internet but I have visited my GP and will continue to do so if the symptoms persist. This blog post is firstly; a way of me recording how I feel and what I've done to try and remedy the pain and secondly; offer advice to anyone who may be experiencing the same pain and has the same habits as I. With that being said, I hope you find this blog post interesting and helpful. 

As I am writing this, I have a pain in the back and front of my head. 

Recently, I have been experiencing this pain every day. I did wonder if this could be due to my contraceptive pill as this is a common side effect (said pill should cease to be taken if this occurs). However, I am on my pill-free week and I am still experiencing this pain. I also thought it could be down to me not wearing my glasses enough. Again however, I have been wearing them every time I use my laptop and the pain is still there. 

I was told 2 weeks ago by the nurse at my doctors surgery that I was dehydrated. This wasn't a great surprise to me. 

For as long as I can remember, I have been awful with drinking water regularly and I got into a habit of going a whole day without drinking a thing. I do not advise this type of behaviour, it's very dangerous. I do not have this habit anymore but I am still not drinking as much as I should be. 

Anyway, back to the headaches. I was researching the causes of headaches and couldn't really decipher what was going on until I typed in 'Dehydration and headaches' into Google. I found this article here and quite a lot of it made sense to me. I feel pain in my head when I bend over to pick up something (almost like I am going to fall over) I also felt pain in my head when I was at the gym a week ago and I had to stop my exercise. This could be down to what the article mentions as lost electrolytes that haven't been replenished after heavy sweat loss. I went to the gym last night and felt fine afterwards despite sweating a lot and drinking about a pint and a half of water during and after my workout. This may not be enough and I need to up my fluid intake. Another tip the article gives you is to take electrolytes in your water after every workout. These are small dissolvable tablets that you pop into your water and they are packed with sodium, magnesium, potassium and calcium. All of the ium's. 

Here is a link to where you can buy these tablets from Holland & Barrett (they come in all different flavours) :http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/shop/product/high5-zero-citrus-60098125

Amazon: http://www.amazon.co.uk/High-5-High5-Zero-Citrus/dp/B003AIMQ38/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1403698347&sr=8-2&keywords=high5+zero+electrolyte+tablets

Also, this morning I slept in and I read elsewhere that oversleeping has the potential to cause headaches. Your body functions just as it should on 8 hours of sleep so I need to get into the habit of going to bed and waking up at a sensible time with 8 hours in the bank. This also means that you have more time and can be more productive. 

It has also been very hot where I live right now which does contribute to headaches, whether dehydration caused or otherwise. Maybe I should buy a hat.

As I have mentioned, I am awful at remembering when to drink water. In the digital age, technology has been created to help curb this habit. I have found a useful app on the App Store (I am unsure if it is available on other platforms- have a look!) called 'Waterlogged'. This app gives you the ability to record a measurement of fluid intake be it 500ml, 1 litre or more. You can also set reminders to ensure you are drinking regularly as drinking large volumes of water in one go is actually not very hydrating at all. Every time you log water intake, the bottle (or snowflake in my case!) will fill up. I really like this feature as I can visually see what I've achieved and what I have left to achieve in my day. 

Here is a link to the iTunes Store website where you can read up about this App and pictures of what it looks like: 

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/waterlogged-drink-more-water/id352199775?mt=8

Now I have come to the end of writing this blog post, my headache has subsided after drinking about 750ml of water. I am going to walk down to Holland & Barrett now to pick up some electrolyte tablets and have a chat with the staff about other things I can do to help. I will check back with an update in about 2 weeks or so. 

UPDATE: I am drinking my water now with one of the electrolyte tablets I just picked up from H&B. They didn't have any of the ones I featured in this post in stock so I went for the EXTREME ones. Added to 500ml of water, it tastes like watery palmer violets sweets.

I know this hasn't been my typical blog post but if you have found it interesting or you have any tips for me, please comment below :)

Thank you for reading!

REVIEW: Charles Worthington Volume and Bounce Range

A year or so ago, I used the Charles Worthington Salon at Home Melting Balm which was an intensive hair mask and I absolutely loved it. However afterwards, I didn't continue to test out the other products Charles Worthington had to offer. Until now. 

I'd heard great things about the Volume and Bounce range, specifically the Texturising Spray. As some of you will know, I wrote a blog post here about a Vo5 Texturising Spray that I didn't love so I thought I'd give this one a go.

Eventually I had accumulated the entire range except for the Thick & Full 3D Boosting Créme. So I thought I'd give you an honest and in-depth review of each product with what I thought and liked (as well as disliked). 

First up, the shampoo and conditioner. It promises volume from root to tip and thicker appearance thanks to the Collagen enriched formula. It also claims to have 'Heat Protecting Conditioning Complex'. All very hefty promises to it's customers, but was I convinced it did anything for my hair?

I love the smell of them both, very luxurious and alike to being in a hairdressers. The shampoo is very light (as specified) but essentially this means that a typical amount used doesn't lather up a great deal. I wasn't really keen on this and found myself adding a bit extra so that it did lather up, not a great sign as it means it doesn't last me as long!

The conditioner is just lovely. Very creamy and very softening. I always made sure I really slathered it onto the ends of my hair and left it to really penetrate the strands for a good few minutes. 

Would I say this combo helped with adding volume and bounce to my hair? I didn't see a drastically noticeable change in my hair that really wowed me. 

However, I was wowed by the styling products in this range. As I mentioned, I was interested to try the texturising spray as I had heard it was a dupe for the Oribe Dry Texturising Spray which is an eye-watering £39 (!!!) I was not disappointed by this product by Charles Worthington. It is fabulous. It's great to spray onto the root with a quick 'jouge' for volume and hold. I also like to spray it like a hairspray, boosting my hair as I go and setting any pesky pieces of hair that just won't stay. I would really recommend this product!

I was equally impressed by the 'Body Booster Mousse'. I am a fairly recent convert to putting mousse on my roots to add some longer-lasting body. This mousse did give my hair noticeable body and lift at the roots and through the strands also. The texture when applying is not too wet or sticky, just the perfect smooth consistency. When blow-drying, my hair didn't feel crispy at the roots at all. Both this mousse and the texturing spray smelt wonderful. Think of that salon finish smell and fresh berries, YUM!

Overall, I would recommend taking a look at this range next time you need to buy shampoo and conditioner. If you're like me and generally disloyal to a particular shampoo and conditioner then give this a whirl and see what you think. As for the styling products, I would thoroughly recommend both of them if you are looking for extra volume, body and most importantly long lasting hold. 

If you have tried this range or other ranges by Charles Worthington, what did you think?

Here is a link to the Charles Worthington website where you can read about each product:

The shampoo and conditioner are available for 

Thank you for reading :)

Summer Fashion Haul | New YouTube Video!

Summer is OFFICIALLY here! Celebrate by watching my new YouTube video where I show you some of my favourite summer-staple pieces that I have bought in the last few weeks!

Click this picture to go straight to the video!

Or click here

Please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE to my channel (it's free and I'd really really appreciate it!)

Tell me what your summer finds have been this year!

Thank you for reading!

REVIEW: Tanya Burr Lipgloss in ‘Afternoon Tea’

I’ve been a loyal subscriber and follower to Tanya Burr for around 2 years now. I really enjoy her make-up tutorials especially and when I heard she was releasing a lipgloss and nail polish collection, I was very excited. Now I know that these came out a few months ago but I wanted to hear some feedback from other bloggers and also have a good think about what I’d like to try. I decided that my first purchase from the Tanya Burr collection would be the lipgloss in ‘Afternoon Tea’. 

I was pleasantly surprised at how big the actual product is. For some reason, I had it in my mind that they would be tiny with very little actual gloss in them. The packaging is cute with Tanya’s signature logo on with sturdy twist lid. The applicator is something I’m not too familiar with. It’s not a brush nor a doe foot applicator. It’s ever so slightly wider on the end and flatter. I wasn’t sure at first but turned out to really like it.

I chose ‘Afternoon Tea’ because I wanted to get a colour that I could wear everyday and wouldn’t clash with any intense eye make-up as I usually like to make a big deal out of my eyes. It’s a really nice pink-nude colour and what I found with this gloss is that it goes on paler than what you can see in the tube. However, after a little while the gloss just melts into the lips, adapting to your natural lip colour and gives them a really beautiful colour. 

The colour pay off is pretty impressive too! Some glosses can be a little to sheer and just add a shine to the lips. This gloss is quite opaque but still has that shine. It isn’t sticky or gloopy either which is a bonus. I’ve always steered clear of glosses for many a year in fear they make my lips so shiny that they look less pouty or big. I’m a full lip kinda gal ;)

Selfie time! Told you I like a pout ;)

The smell of this lipgloss too is incredible. It smells just like sweeties! It was honestly so tempting to just lick it off!

Overall I am really impressed by this lipgloss and will definitely want to try more in the future. I will probably end up purchasing the rest of the pink/nude ones as they are the colours I wear on a day to day basis. 

For £6.99 each, they’re definitely worth a try! If like me, you wear a lot of neutral tones on the lips then go for this gloss or similar colours. However, when the autumn time comes I will definitely be exploring the darker shades. 

Have you tried any of Tanya’s lipgloss or nail polish collection? What did you think of them? Comment below :)

Tanya Burr’s lipgloss and nail polish collection is available at selected Superdrug stores or online at Superdrug, FeelUnique for £6.99 and £8.99 respectively.

Thanks for reading!

REVIEW: V05 Give Me Texture Dry Texturising Spray

I'm always on the lookout for products that give my hair a boost in volume and texture. I have quite thick long hair but it still can look a little flat on top. Browsing the blogging world and YouTube, I found a few people had tried out the V05 Give Me Texture Dry Texturising Spray and I thought I'd give it a go!

First of all, I love the bright pink packaging. This was part of V05's re-branding move and I think it's a winner! 

Ok, onto the product itself. I found that it put body into my hair initially but lacked holding power hours after. This could be down to the aerosol being slightly too fine in dispersing enough texture into the hair. The texture did remind me a lot of a dry shampoo, particularly the Batiste ones, but without the white residue. I think a product that has more grit to its formula will work a lot better in creating lasting body. One thing I did notice is that my hair went back to how it was after about 20 minutes of walking to university when it was slightly blustery outside. Not great.

Would I repurchase this? No, I don't feel like it did very much for my hair other than just a quick fix that only lasted an hour or so. 

Would I recommend it? No, I think there are others on the market which are better value for money. 

The V05 Give Me Texture Dry Texturising Spray is available from Boots for £3.79 here and from Superdrug for the same price here.

Have you tried this product? What did you think of it?

What is your favourite product for texturising and putting body into your hair?

Thank you for reading! 

Current Skincare Favourites!

My skincare routine is really starting to build now and most importantly, clearing my skin! As with pretty much every product I use, I put a lot of research into what to use on my skin. I stopped using face wipes to remove my make-up after a few beauty bloggers and skincare experts comment on how little make-up is actually removed from your skin. Make-up left on the skin will simply sink into the pores, clogging them up and producing lovely red spots for you. I still get the occasional few hormonal spots but nothing like what I had before.

So, here is a run down of the products I use day to day to keep my skin clear and smooth and why I love them!

The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil

A year ago, I would never have dreamed putting oil onto my oily/combination skin. No way, José. However, a lot has been written and spoken about this product for a few months now particularly by those who have a similar skin type/skin problems as me. I'm so glad I decided to pick this up. I have been using it every night time to remove my make-up or even just to deep cleanse my skin on no make-up days. I tend to not use this in the morning as I use another product (spoken later on in this post) that is a little lighter on the skin that just helps to get rid of any dirt whilst I've been sleeping. This oil does a fantastic job of removing make-up and I cannot tell you how good it feels to take a hot flannel and just wipe the product and all the make-up away. Thanks to the camomile, it doesn't irritate the skin which makes it great for sensitive skin. I have definitely noticed a difference in my skin and have had far less breakouts (hurray!)

Here is a link to the Body Shop website with information about the cleansing oil: 

http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/shop-by-range/camomile/camomile-silky-cleansing-oil.aspx

The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter

Moving on to the product mentioned earlier, I use this balm/butter in the morning to remove anything that may have collected on my skin whilst I am asleep. It shares many of the same properties as the oil. It is really smooth in consistency, leaves my skin clean and soft and does not irritate at all. However, if this product or the oil does get into your eyes, it doesn't sting as such, your eyes just feel a bit misty and your vision is temporarily blurred. After a good rinsing with some water and a cloth, you'll be good to go!

Here is a link for more information on this product:

http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/skincare/cleansers/camomile-sumptuous-cleansing-butter.aspx

The Body Shop Tea Tree Facial Toner

As I do have the occasional breakout that stick around, I like to zap it with some tea tree to get right into the pore and keep it clean. This toner again from the Body Shop (I promise this blog post is not sponsored by them!) and is quite, what's the word, zingy? It really tingles on the skin and removes any dirt you may have missed with (dare I say it) face wipes or micellar water. Because of the tingling feeling, I tend to not use this in the morning as it can make my face red especially if it is feeling particularly sensitive. I am on the look out for a more gentler toner to use in the morning, do you have any suggestions?? 

Here is a link to the Body Shop website for more information on this product:

http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/shop-by-range/tea-tree/tea-tree-facial-toner.aspx

So there you are, my current skincare favourites that just so happen to be all from the Body Shop! :P

I am definitely looking to expand my plethora of skincare to eye creams, a gentle toner, serums and a moisturiser that doesn't break me out NOR SHED ON MY SKIN, see Monday's post here for that story. 

Thank you for reading and I hope you have found it interesting! Let me know what your skincare favourites are in the comments :)

REVIEW: Botanics Mattifying Gel-Cream | FAIL PRODUCT

Bonjour my lovelies and welcome to another skincare review!

Many many moons ago, I wrote a blog about my then skincare routine. Now I don't expect you to trail through my blog to find that post so here is a quick profile of my skin...

• My problem area for rosacea/redness and spots is my chin. I occasionally get them on my forehead but not in as much of a crowd.
• My t-zone is very oily but my nose is often dry.
• When a spot is finished with disrupting my face, it leaves a rather lovely red mark behind. 

Now, I want to point your attention to the 2nd point I made. Oily AND dry patches on my skin. I really struggle with finding a moisturiser that doesn't break me out by contributing to the oils already in my skin but also that keeps my skin hydrated, especially the dryness around my nose.

I bought the Botanics Shine Away Mattifying Gel Cream a few weeks ago to test out. I'd heard great things about the brand and was tired of rich creams that constantly broke me out. I thought the gel formula would be a good alternative.

This unfortunately, is not the blog post where I tell you that I have found my holy grail, prayer answering magic in a bottle. Alas, my quest for an amazing moisturiser that ticks all the boxes with its bells and whistles jingling is still in full motion.

Sigh.

What I would like to inform you of is how much of a FAIL this product is. This gel cream seconds after application literally shed off of my skin like a nasty sunburn. It left a tingling sensation on my skin which I wasn't too keen on as I already get that from my tea tree toner. It doesn't moisturise at all. Yes, it mattifies the skin, but no greater than a good setting powder and/or blotting papers would!

I really tried to persevere with this product, wondering if it were just my skin being off for a couple of days. Needless to say, after about 2-3 weeks of use it was clear to me that this product just did nothing for my skin.

So ultimately I was left pretty disappointed with this product. It did cost me under £5 so I can't moan too much but I think even for that small price, its still such a disappointment. 

Would I recommend this product? Absolutely not.

Have you tried any other products from Botanic's? What did you think of them?

Thank you for reading!

21st Make-Up Tutorial | New Video!

As some of you may know, I celebrated my 21st birthday last weekend. The celebrations spanned 3 days with an amazing dinner at a very fancy restaurant with my boyfriend, Dad and his girlfriend on Friday,  an amazing party with all my friends and family and then a smaller party on Sunday with my Mum and her family. Fab-u-lous!

The theme for my big party on the Saturday was the colour purple. It's my favourite colour and I wanted to incorporate this into my make-up. Here is my latest video on my channel of the make-up I wore that night.

Please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE to my channel, letting me know what you think of the look :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMf7lIza2oc

Thank you for reading!