Where's your hair now!

Hello my lovely readers, Today i am in a really chirpy mood, probably due to the fact that tomorrow i am heading off on a weeks holiday to Newquay.
I am really not prepared so the rest of the day will be spent frantically packing and then panicking thinking Ive forgot things ha.

Tonight i need to colour my hair as its looking a bit dull and the dark roots are not a good look. I thought I'd have a look back at the various stages of my hair to see how they compare:

Becoming a teenager and the cult of the perm lured me into this shaggy dog perm with a fringe. My preferred style for everyday was the sides pulled up in a high pony tail. I don't know my exact age here but I'm probably about 14.

This next photo is one that i really hated at the time but now i just look back and smile. I don't know what happened, a mix of puppy fat, extra pale foundation and a nearly black hair colour left me looking like this :) I was about 16/17 going on 30.

Fast forward about 10 years and my hair was longish black with extensions and a few white blond additions ( I don't know why i thought this was a good look but i did )

A few years on and i had my youngest son. I decided i wanted a drastic change so went for highlights and lots of them. I didn't keep this for long as it just looked ashy as you can see from the photo.

However it didn't put me off colour and i just had different warmer colours put through my hair and a long sweeping fringe.

Then i grew the fringe out and wore clip in extensions for a while as i had a fair amount of hair cut off due to damage from all that colour.

By the time i got married i decided to go back dark with a sweeping fringe and i also wore clip in extensions which i curled in with my hair. I just felt more like me this colour and style.

Not long after i went for the full on fringe look. I quite like my hair like this but it was a pain to have to style my fringe every morning and have it cut every 3 weeks.

So i clipped my fringe back while i grew it out to a long sweeping side fringe that i could easily tie back when i wanted.

Then i went to the salon and had it coloured Red. I really love this colour now and i think it is much warmer looking than any of the other colours that i have had. I also look after my hair so much more these days which I'm sure helps keep it shiny.

Unfortunately for me the upkeep of the roots every 6 weeks is just too much for me so I'm having a go at colouring it myself. Eeeek.

I have to say i love my hair this colour and i cant imagine going back dark now. My next mission is to get some great hair extensions that clip in and colour them to match my hair. I will probably use these when my hair is straight and needs a bit of thickness adding.
Hope you all have a great week and i cant wait to catch up when i get back xx

Book me in please!

Yesterday for some unknown reason i decided it was time to join the library.
As i wandered into the building in our little town center i was amazed at how far things have come since i last stepped foot into one.

I was totally shocked at the 4 levels containing not only thousands of books but CD's, DVD's,  Free computer Internet access. A huge kids area with a massive cushioned area to sit. An area to draw with crayons, and even a few toys.

On the bottom level there is even a small cafe with comfy seats where you can just relax or sit and read and have a cuppa. Brilliant.
Why have i never ventured in here before? I spent about 2 hrs in this place and came out with some fabulous reads. Here's what i picked up:

Makeup Is Art by Jana Ririnui & Lan Nguyen

When i spotted this book i was really excited as I'd heard it was a great book. It only took a quick flick through to see how amazing and inspirational this book is. Take a look at a few of the stunning makeup looks:

Bobbi Brown Makeup Manual

Bobbi Brown are known for creating beautiful looks. I thought this would be an interesting read so quickly snapped this up.

Face Up Ruby Hammer & Millie Kendall

This is another book that i have heard is a good read. I'm a bit spoilt for choice now and really looking forward to getting stuck in to these books.

 The Green Beauty Bible Sarah Stacey & Josephine Fairley

This is a book I've been wanting to read for a while. The Green Beauty Bible is packed full of tips, information and advice and recommendations from independant surveys. (I don't think i want to take this one back)

After my trip to the library i sort of got a bit carried away with the whole book thing and started looking around book shops in town. I'm a bit like that in the all or nothing category ha. Anyway I'm glad i did as i stumbled upon this next book reduced to just £2.

Lessons of a Lipstick Queen Poppy King

I thought I'd have a little read last night of this and i couldn't put it down. It's such an inspirational story where Poppy King tells how she started her company aged just 18 with a love of lippy.

I'm going on holiday on Saturday and will be taking some of my books with me. Are you a big reader and have you read any of these books?

If at first you dont succeed!

As the saying goes if at first you don't succeed try and try again! I often use this motto when applying makeup.
Take this morning for instance i tried a purple and white eyeshadow look with deep pink lips but it just didn't suit me so i ended up applying a grey colour on top and then a bit of black in the corners of my eyes. Then i put a really pale lippy over the bright one to tone it down a bit and when I'd finished i really liked the end result.

Prestige petulant rose looked too deep so i added Barry m 101 over the top

Hair left messy with a good spray of hairspray 

I thought it was quite funny that my eyeshadow seemed to go particularly well with my latest nail polish from Leighton Denny Leading Lilac. Which i really love.
Thanks so much to the lovely Jan from Beauty Diarist as she kindly sent me it :)

So my question is if it all goes wrong do you try and try again till you end up with a result that you like?

Evening Skincare Routine! 23.08.11

I thought i'd break down my skincare routine as i have changed what i use quite a lot recently and it would be just too much to fit into 1 post.
It's quite hard to stick to the same routine as im constantly testing out new products and tweeking what i use to try and get the best possible results.

Night Time Products!

Makeup Removers & Cleansers!

 Botanics Soothing Eye Makeup Remover £3.05 from boots

This eye makeup remover is brilliant and at such a fab price. It removes all my eye makeup easily even water proof mascara and it leaves eyelashes soft and moisturised. The ingredients are super effective but also very gentle. It's one of the few eye makeup remover products that causes no stinging.

Botanics Face Soothing Cleansing Balm £6.63 Boots

I purchased this cleanser after reading lots of rave reviews and rightly so. It is a thick waxy balm that melts on skin contact. It smells beautiful and feels so luxurious on the skin. It does a great job of removing makeup when used in conjunction with a muslin cloth.
I love how soft my skin feels when i use this and it never aggrivates my spot prone skin. I alternate this with the Liz Earle cleanser.

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish £13.25 100ml

If i could have a long term Love affair with a cleanser then this would be the choosen one. When i use this cleanser not only does it remove my makeup but it really feels like i am giving my face a thorough deep cleanse. I like to massage this in for a couple of minutes and enjoy the Eucalyptus and Rosemary scent.
This is so gentle yet really works. It's my holy grail of cleansers.


Toners!

La Roche Posay Thermal Spring Water

Ok so i know this is not a toner as such but it really makes a great refreshing spray which my skin seems to love. The product contains a combination of minerals and trace elements which feels really soothing and cooling on the skin. I have been using this for a while now and love the way it makes my skin feel

Alpha H Liquid Gold £28.50 QVC

I use the Alpha H Liquid Gold 3 times a week after my thermal spring water and it really is an amazing product. I'm sure you will of heard about this product as so many people have been raving about it.
I apply this with a cotton wool pad at night ( No moisturiser afterwards )
This wonder product is described as a multi action formula with silk protein and licorice extract to refine the surface of the skin. It contains glycolic acid which exfoliates the skin and leaves me looking brighter and fresher and has definately helped prevent as many breakouts. It's quite amazing.


Moisturiser

La Roche Posay Effaclar K £13 Boots

 I use this moisturiser on nights when i dont use my liquid gold. This moisturiser is made for spot prone skin. It feels gloriously light and has a really fresh lovely scent. It makes my skin feel really clean and soft.

Eye Care 

Elemis Absolute Eye Serum on offer at feelunique for £20.99

This serum is ultra light in texture but seems to do a great job of keeping lines at bay and helping with dark circles. I've always used some kind of eye cream as i think its so important. This one can be used under a heavier cream if you wish but i feel its enough at the moment for me.

So thats it for night time. I know it looks a lot but its actually only 4 or 5 products at the most. Unfortunately for me my skin is really tempremental even at my age and i still get outbreaks quite regularly. Having said that my skin is looking better than it has done for a long time so it goes to show that finding the right products that work for you can work wonders.

Just a quick note to say that botanics is on 342 at boots at the moment as well and in my local boots La Roche Posay was half price ( Although not online ) Just in case you were thinking of buying anything.

Look out for part 2 My morning regime xx

Caudalie Tinted Moisturiser !

Since i came back from my holidays i have been loving my tinted moisturisers. I have had a few people ask me to review this one by Caudalie which i picked up from TK Max a while ago.

Caudalie Tinted Moisturiser £15.30 Feelunique.com

This comes in 2 shades Fair/Medium or Dark

Blended swatches!

The first thing i have to say is if you are fair skinned i cannot imagine either of these shades working for you which is a shame as its a brilliant product but really needs a lighter colour as well.

The Dark shade is really dark as you can see from the swatch on my face below & perfect for those with a tan or natural olive complexions.

However once blended it looks like this:

 With some natural makeup added!

The Caudalie Tinted moisturiser is brilliant for enhancing a tan. You don't get any streaking or orange tones ( Providing you choose the right colour)
It looks so natural and really gives a gorgeous healthy glow to my skin. It feels ultra lightweight and not at all sticky.

Perfect for when you get back from a holiday and you want to enhance the colour a little bit but without adding bronzing powders etc.

There is little coverage so if you have any visible spots then concealer is a must with this and its great for sensitive skins as it's full of natural ingredients and free from toxins such as parabens etc.

This is the first product from the Caudalie range that i have tried and I'm really impressed. Has anyone else tried anything from this range?

Sunday Challenge Request!

The other day Liloo requested that i do a bit of a Rock Chick look and although i am getting on a bit to be rocking this look i thought why the hell not.  I'm always up for a challenge.

So just for fun i tried to look stern and get in the zone to look like a bad assed Rock Chick ha.

Heavy eyes with Mac Blackground paint pot and a blend of dark purple & Grey

Sleek Contour palette ( I have cheekbones hidden in there somewhere )

Clinique Nude Lipstick

I have serious flashback face on these photos. I'm not that pale honestly!

Hahaha it doesn't look that bold in the photos but in real life the eyes look a lot lot darker. Hmmm think i need to play around with the settings on my camera.
I had fun doing this, it makes a nice change to do something a bit tongue in cheek. Any other requests just let me know and check out the lovely blogger who asked for this look here xx

Sleek Makeup Nude Collection! What's the hype?

Sleek Makeup have come up with lots of different palettes but this next launch is looking to be the most popular yet.
The Nude Collection boasts the type of colours that will enhance everybody from porcelain beauties to bronzed babes.

I was very excited to be sent a preview of the new products:

 Nude Palette £6.49

This palette is quite different to anything else i have. For a start it has a lot of matte colours in it which i am really pleased about. Secondly the top row of shades have some really good basic neutrals and highlighters which are somewhat lacking in my collection.
Thirdly the bottom row has a few nice deep colours to create a more smokey eye as well so its a really versatile product.

Suede Blush £4.29

It's no secret that I'm a big fan of the Sleek Makeup blushers and this one is no exception. The colour although a pretty taupe neutral is really pigmented even on my tanned skin. This is quite a matte shade as well and makes a nice everyday cheek colour that goes amazing well with the rest of the collection.

Bare Minimum Pout Polish £4.29

The pout polish smells amazing and feels beautiful and moisturising. The problem for me is that my lips are quite pigmented and the colour in this is very subtle. Therefore it looks pretty much like a clear gloss on my lips unless i put a bit of a neutral lipstick on underneath.

Of course i had to try all my new goodies out immediately and so tried two different looks.

The No Makeup Nude Look!

For the first look i used the matte subtle shades on my eyes Nubuck and Cappuccino, mascara a sweeping of the Suede blusher and the Bare minimum Pout Polish. 

2nd Look Soft Smokey Nude!

This second look is adapted by adding the shade mineral earth to the lid and smudged under eyes. I also added a tiny amount of Noir to the outer edges for a bit of definition. I went heavier on the cheeks and added a more neutral lippy under the Pout Paint.

The Nude Collection launches on the 31st August and be purchased from Superdrug or online at Sleek makeup.
I'd put money on it that these are going to be flying off the shelves. What do you think of the colours? Are you like me, a nude girl at heart?