Moroccan Oil

You've probably heard about Moroccan Oil, the latest product the beauty editors are all excited over. But at just under £30/100ml is it worth the price?

My lovely mother-in-law-to-be spoilt me on my birthday and bought me a bottle to find out for myself if it lives up to the hype.

After washing my hair as normal, I applied a small amount (one pump's worth) of the oil to my hair, working through with my fingers to make sure it was evenly distributed. I then combed my tangle-free hair through and blow dried and styled as normal.

My hair does feel much softer than normal, I was worried that the oil would weigh my hair down or it would become greasy more quickly, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

Moroccan oil seems to be the ultimate leave-in conditioner, and as I highlight, blow dry, straighten, backcomb etc my hair, I think it deserves a little treat. You can also add a few drops to dry hair to prevent frizz and add shine.

The blurb from the Moroccan Oil people says that you can also use the oil to prepare your hair before colouring to 'enhance shine, elasticity and depth of colour' I will be taking my new turquoise friend with me to the salon next appointment to see if this works!

Buy Moroccan Oil at lookfantastic.com

Supermarket chic

The weekly shop isn't exactly a glamorous trip, however, with more and more supermarkets increasing their beauty department, it's becoming less of a chore (especially if you can pass off a purchase on the joint account).

What has also excited me is that supermarkets are producing their own brands, and the lovely George at Asda ladies have sent me a selection to try out.

My absolute favorite item has to be Shimmer Me Brush on Powder in Cupid. I was worried that it was going to be far to sparkley and OTT, however, this cute brick bronzer added just enough shimmer to my cheek bones. £4.50/10g

I also tried their Ultra Sheer Foundation in Ivory Beige, which suited my skin tone well. Its not the most velvety soft foundation I've ever used, but it applied well and smells expensive! £5/30ml

I love Cheeky Tint in Rose which reminds me of Benefits Benetint, a stain for lips and cheeks and at £3.50/8ml an absolute steal!

The light and non-sticky Get Glossy in Cheeky Chops is a slightly sparkely red lip gloss, which will be perfect for the winter months. £3.75/5ml

I also had a play with a couple of their Velvet Eyeshadows, again, I was expecting a cheap, synthetic feeling product, but the shadows are soft and last all day. I liked lining my eyes with the pink Punk Rocker and silver Disco shades. £2.50/5g

I must sound like such a snob, but I was really expecting cheap and nasty product that were overly sparkely and sticky and I really was pleasantly surprised - and at the prices, a guilt free splurge.

Think I might be offering to go shopping without the boy more often... x

Check out the rest of the George at Asda range for yourself here.

Ballet Beautiful

After the release of Black Swan, I became a little obsessed with the ballet trend, and this has been re-awoken since I've purchased a new pair of ballet pumps.

So here are my top three looks which gives a nod to the ballet look but won't get you directed to the nearest dance studio.

A pretty pink nail vanish is the easiest way to add a touch of ballerina chic to your look. I love Revlon's frostiest pink shade, but it does need a good few coats.

Another subtle ballet look can be achieved using a shimmery pink eye shadow. Clinique's pink chocolate quad shadow offers a few options, just sweep across the pink shade for an express look, or use the cream and brown coordinating shades to add depth and drama. £23/4.8g

To create a messy bun even Darcy Bussel herself would be proud of, follow these steps using a hair dougnut:

1. Sweep your hair back into a pony tail at mid-height on your head. I like to backcomb my hair at this point to get a messier look.

2. Pop your pony through a doughnut (you can buy these for a few pounds at boots, superdrug etc)

3. Splay your hair over the top and use a hair band to secure

4. Use bobby pins to tiny the end under the bun and secure the doughnut to your head

5. Spray with hair spray to finish

...and tada!

Buy hair doughnut at boots.com

Hoola - best bronzer?

Having a tanned face makes you look healthier and skin looks radiant, however, we all know how damaging and aging UV is on the face. I slap on SFP moisturizer every day and on holiday I up my factor and team this with a shading hat, so my skin has no chance of even the slightest change in colour.So, faking it is the only option for me. There are loads of great bronzers on the market, but whatever else I try I always come back to my favourite, Benefit's Hoola.

It does look a little dark, and is easy to over-do, but if you dab your brush on your hand, before sweeping across your cheeks, forehead, nose and chin, this will remove the excess. The result is a natural, matte sunskissed look.

As you'd expect from Benefit, the packaging is super-cute and has been recently updated to include a mini mirror, to aid on-the-go application and a hinged lid, I like.

At £23.50/8g it itsn't a bargain, but a little goes a long way and I haven't found a bronzer to rival it...yet!

BenefitCosmetics.co.uk
Buy Hoola from Amazon

Super soft hands

Beautiful, soft hands is one of the features that helps define us as the fairer sex, but, as with most things, requires some maintenance.I've never been a hand cream obsessive, with most of the products I've tried either leaving my paws greasy, or making no real difference after its soaked in. However I have recently discovered a dream of a cream in the form of Elizabeth Arden's Eight Hour Hand Treatment.

It melts into your hands instantly and leaves them feeling supple and moisturised for hours with none of the greasy residue. Bliss. (£24/75ml)

Buy at lookfantastic.com

Hot Chilis Shellac

I am obsessed with Shellac manicure as you can see from my previous review. As I'm off to Italy on sunday for a wedding, I've just got my talons painted again. But choosing one shade that will last you for up to 3 weeks is a massive desision.

I narrowed it down to a choice betweem tropix and hot chilis - the latter being the final winner. What do you think ladies?

ring from Oasis FYI...

 

CND’s Shellac manicure www.cnd.com cost me £27 from my local salon (House of Beauty Cambridge www.cambridgebeauty.co.uk)

Full blown volume

great hair pixie

If you've read my blog before, you know how much I love locks with loads of volume and shine, so I'm going to share one of my best tips to help you create that look.

I first discovered Bumble and Bumble's Thickening Sprayat the hairdressers a few years ago (I always like to ask what products they use in my hair in case I love the results). I left the salon to go to a wedding with great volume at the roots and fabulous curls, but I didn't expect it to last all day. Low and behold, as we waved the bride & groom off, my hair was still looking voluminous and the curls hadn't fallen out, and the next day my hair felt much less greasy than normal. The secret is in the wheat protein and lanolin which adds moisture but absorbs the oil your scalp naturally produces and weighs down your locks.

So I decided to invest, and have never looked back since - get involved ladies! It is a bit pricey (£20.50/237ml), but a bottle tends to last me about six months. For the ultimate blow dry, you can spritz your hair with a little Bb Prep first. Bumble and bumble also do a shampoo and conditioner in this range, but I didn't notice a marked improvement using them as well as the spray.

Buy at lookfantastic.com

Fish pedicure

Nail colour is Revlon Tropical Temptation FYI...

So what did you do on Friday night? Dinner? Drinks? Well, my lovely ladies and I had other ideas and headed to Anesis for a Piscean pedicure.

Around the country shopping centres have become filled with fish tanks with shoppers dangling their feet in, so we decided to see what all the hype was about.

Being watched by a gaggle of passers by wasn't really pushing my buttons, so we headed to the luxurious Anesis in Clapham which is favoured by the likes of Alexis Jordan and Denise Van Outen.

When we arrived our feet were cleaned by the therapist and then we nervously dangled out tootsies heels first into our tanks.

No, it didn't hurt, but it was very ticklish to start with as the Garra Rufa Fish nibbled away at the dead skin.

Me and the gorgeous Suzie

At the end of our 30 minute session, the therapist dried us off and I inspected my feet ready to feel the baby softness we were promised. My feet did feel nice and smooth at this point, but I think it was more to do with the soak than the fish doctors. It wasn't the miracle I was hoping for, but 24 hours later, I think there is less dry skin on my feet.





So, would I recommend? Yes for a fun evening with the girlies (cocktails followed, obviously...) or as a relaxation treatment, but not just for sorting out foot problems... Would I go again,? Yes, and the Indulgent pedicure including a glass of champagne sounds right up my street...

http://www.anesis.uk.com/

Love a freebie!

I couldn't contain my excitement when my copy of ELLE magazine popped through the door last week, not only for my monthly update on all things fabulous, but a mini bottle of Mavala nail polish was popped in the bag too.

So I've brushed the exclusive 'Elle Orange' onto my nails to show you all, it isn't too in your face and is more of a warm coral than a bright tangerine.

There is a choice of three exclusive colours, the orange, red and grey, which would you choose?

Instant Golden Glow

How much do we want Jessica's skin tone?

A trip to the south of France promised a gorgeous glow a la Jessica Alba, however, due to an unprecedented about of rain, I returned slightly paler than I have hoped for and with a duo of weddings to attend over the weekend I was slightly down-beat.

Help is at hand however, from Rimmel in their Sunshimmer Instant tan, which when applied to the face and body adds a gorgeous, natural, sunkissed glow and also makes your skin feel cashmere-soft. It comes in a light and medium to suit different skin tones, and a matte(my fav) or shimmer style.

I have been a little obsessed with this product for years and have become somewhat of an expert at applying it. One of its advantages is that it dries really quickly and won't rub off on your clothes, however, this does mean that you need to work fast to avoid streaks.

The other issue is that you can end up with monkey paws, to prevent this you can wear fake-tan-applicator-gloves. If not, I find washing it off with soap and cold water gets the majority of it off, hot water seems to make it stay put for some reason!

At about £6/125ml it is much cheaper than a holiday, and without the worries of excess UV damage, so maybe the lack of sunshine wasn't so terrible... x

Buy at Boots.com