Unicorn Hair | Purple Ombre/Dip Dye | Fudge Paintbox - Blueberry Hill

I have Purple Hair :D !

Like a magical pony/unicorn. It was a toss up between going back to this lovely purple do or going back to feathers. Purple won! (obviously)

I think ombre/dip dye is one of those hairstyles that will always be around, for me anyway, mostly because I can't be bothered parting with lumps of money on a regular basis to get my roots done. Cheap on trend hair right there - Score! Also, it’s really easy to do, and if you decide you don’t like it you can bleach it out of get it cut off.

But in terms of up keep, it's super simple. Although for the first few washes I do have to crouch in the shower gollum style to rinse the shampoo off, otherwise it looks like a real live version of 'Grape Escape' has attacked the bath/shower curtain. (Kudos if you remember the game) Minor thing for the colour pay off I think.

 

 

Tips!

 

- Put some conditioner in a travel bottle and add a tiny bit of dye, use this to keep the colour vibrant

 

- Apply hair oil or serum to the ends of the hair after washing, and every other night

 

- Use an intensive hair mask once every two weeks

 

- Try and use as little heat as possible on the ends, but if you do, Always use a heat protectant!!

 

 

If you want to give it a go, I've done a tutorial :] You can also make your dip dye a pastel shade by using more conditioner and less dye when you mix up your colour!

 

I used Fudge Paintbox in Blueberry Hill, and really liked it :] The staying power is fairly good, considering I didn't use it straight, I mixed it with conditioner. The most important thing is the colour! It's the most lovely, vibrant violet. I'd definitely recommend the Paintboxes if you want to try it. You can get them here for £6, in a tonne of fab colours. All you really need after you've got your colour, is a plastic bag, comb, bobbles and a tinting brush and bowl. You can get them in Boots (UK) or off Ebay. Don't forget to wear old clothes, and use and old towel!

Go become a real life My Little Pony  :]

 

 

Gem

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The A,B,C of Beauty Vitamins | What Do You Do Vitamins!?

I always see a beauty product with claims of a billion helpful vitamins to make my face perfect, but I never really know what I’m getting in to. So I figured I’d do some research and share it :]

White coat | Check.  Geeky glasses | Check.  Alluding to a typical scientific stereotype | Check.

So in the words of Joey Ramone, 'Hey, Ho, Let’s Go!'

 

So I think first it is important to define ‘vitamin’. Its alright saying what each one does to make us pretty, but what is it?

Vitamin - any of a group of organic compounds which are essential for normal growth and nutrition and are required in small quantities in the diet because they cannot be synthesised by the body

 (oxforddictionaries.com)

 

Vitamin A/ Retinol

Essential for growth, skin cell repair and for night/dim light vision. If you eat a carrot, your body can process and turn carotene in to vitamin A, so that old wives tale isn’t far off.  It’s absorbed by the skin, and may also play an important role in learning and....err....wait...oh yeah! Memory.

- Skin repair and growth keeps up the elasticity, take that wrinkles!

Found in: Oily fish, eggs, broccoli, sweet potato, mango and cheese.

 

Vitamin B

A crowd of substances vital for the working of certain enzymes in the body, so basically the bully of the vitamins, or maybe more like a traffic warden. It goes around, making sure everything’s in check, poking and annoying the other stuff inside you to keep it all moving in the right place, never stopping in the wrong places. It also creates red blood cells, which are like little cars full of oxygen whizzing round.

- Increasing blood circulation is good for looking rosy cheeked and healthy

Found in: meat like chicken, eggs, fish and broccoli

 

Vitamin C/ Ascorbic acid

Oranges. Yes, that lovely citrusy fruit, needed to make collagen, which plumps up your skin keeping you looking young, and evens out skin tone. It also aids in the formation of liver bile, which helps to detoxify you after a heavy night out.

- Getting rid of the bad stuff on the inside, to keep your skin plump and even on the outside

Found in: Kiwi, broccoli, oranges and sweet potato

 

Vitamin D

The DIY vitamin. You can make this one yourself in your body, as long as you’re in sunlight, like a plant with photosynthesis. It helps you intake calcium to keep your bones and teeth good and strong.

- keeping your peggies strong and chomp-able and holds up the internal structure, so you’re not like jelly

Found in: Liver, Oily fish and eggs

 

 

 

Vitamin E/Tocopheral

 

When you cut yourself and oxygen makes contact, oxidation happens and new cells replace the dead cells, healing the cut over time. But cells can be damaged during this, and they turn into free radicals. Vitamin E combats free radicals and protects the cell membranes, keeping them stable (no insane in the membrane), and gives you nice soft skin at the same time.

- Stops free radicals in the name of beauty, and makes your skin supple

Found in: Nuts, seeds, plant oil and soya

 

Vitamin F ? G? Well, they’re both part of vitamin B, so is vitamin H, which is also called Biotin. Vitamin I? Part of B again, and then J just doesn’t exist.

 

Vitamin K

Extremely important for the blood-clotting process! And because of this, it helps with circulation and can reduce redness and dark under eye circles.

- Bye death circles under the eyes, and it also stops you from dying when you tweeze/wax to vigorously

Found in: Leafy greens like spinach or broccoli, cereal and egg yolk.

 

Vitamin L is nowhere to be found, vitamin M is also Folic Acid, which is found in....surprise surprise – Vitamin B! And O, well that's just imaginary.

 

‘Vitamin P’

It’s not a real vitamin! It’s a bunch of compounds found in citrus fruits, and referred to as Bioflavonoids. Different bioflavonoids have different roles, but essentially ‘P’ is vitamin C’s BFF. Wherever you find C, ‘P’ is not far away because it’s responsible for helping the absorption of C.

 

And then Q,R,S,T,U,V,W,X,Y,Z have no business being here in the vitamin list!

 So, to recap: Even though our bodies hardly make any of these essential vitamins, as long as you have a healthy diet, and get outside once in a while, you should be good to go. They are very important to our health, and can have a massive impact on our bodies both inside and out. There’s more info about vitamins and minerals here.

Hopefully this was a little helpful, so next time you see a magic potion with ‘Contains Vitamin E’ on the label, you can wow someone and say “ That will make my skin soft and kick out all the free radicals :] “

 

Gem

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Vampy Autumn/Fall Lips | Topshop Beguiled

Photos, swatches and stuff

 

 

I must admit, I'm a fan of the Topshop make up, especially the cream to powder blushers, nail varnish and kohl pencils. The lipsticks seem pretty awesome too, a nice range of colours from the conventional to the slightly more out there, and at £8 a pop, not too expensive.

 

'Beguiled' is my only Topshop lipstick, but its been my go to lip colour for this season we call Autumn/Fall but what is actually Winter in England! It's much sheerer than it looks, and much more red I would say,  with little shimmery flecks in it. (Top right picture shows one swipe, and then 3 layers) On me, I find it a fairly matte finish, and for that reason not as moisturising as it claims to be. However, as long as you exfoliate and moisturiser your lips before hand, it goes on fine. Staying power is average, defiantly have to reapply after food/drink unless you make a really good stain and add a few layers on top of that.

 

Overall though, I quite like it for the price and results :] nice little bargain! I'm eager to try some more of the Topshop lipsticks, any suggestions welcome.

 

Gem

 

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Hair That Squeaks | Organix Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo & Conditioner Review

Quick Hair Profile

 

Cut: Longish length, long layers and feathered.

Natural State: A slightly wavy or flicked end with some fizz, natural colour is a mid brown/dark blonde.

Current Status: Hi-lighted (very out grown!) and ombre – bleached.

 

Routine: I try and wash it every 3 days, use heat about once a week on average (hair dryer OR hot tool, unless it’s a special occasion!)

 

 

So, that’s my hair’s current condition and routine. Over all, it’s been damaged from colour and junk but it’s still pretty healthy looking. I’m not too fussed on fancy shampoos and stuff, I’ve tried mid range brands like Tigi Bedhead, John Freda, Fudge, and cheaper high street stuff like Herbal Essences, Lush and L’Oreal. To be honest, I’ve never really found much difference, so I usually have a couple of cheap combos that I rotate through. What drew me to ‘Organix Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo & Conditioner’ is the argan oil. If you’ve watched any of my hair tutorials then you will definitely have seen me use ‘Macadamia Healing Oil Treatment’, I am obsessed with the stuff because it’s awesome (review to come!) So I thought I’d give this combo a try, as it’s also not overly pricey at £6 a bottle. I’ve been using it for just over a month, and I think I like it, but still have really mixed feelings...

 

 

Shampoo

The shampoo doesn’t froth and bubble on the first wash, but does on the second, which is fine and common with more natural stuff. It doesn’t strip your hair, but it gives that ‘squeaky clean’ feeling, which I’m not really a fan of. I know it means your hair is super cleansed, but it just feels too resistant when your try to run your fingers through it, makes me scared my hair might just snap off!

 

 

Conditioner

Now, you know when you use a hair conditioner and you lather it on, and after a minute your hair feels super soft? Yeah, well this didn’t do that for me. I found it difficult to comb through, and no matter the length of time it’s on the hair, it only softens it slightly. It does smell lovely though, quite a soft, fresh scent, kind of like sweet grass (makes me think of Willy Wonka’s factory haha)

 After the in shower trauma of hair that squeaks and won’t be softened, it actually leaves my hair so healthy looking, and shiny that even the boyfriend notices. When my hair has dried, it’s a dream. I assume this is down to the argan oil. Argan oil comes from the Argan tree, shocking! It has a tonne of vitamin E in it, which is good for healing and moisturising.  Also, Organix is sulfates and parabens free :]

So for me, the washing process isn’t my favourite but the results are worth it. I don’t regret buying it, but I don’t think I’d be rushing out to repurchase it once I’m done. If you’ve tried it let me know what you think!

Gem

 

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So, Like I Was Sayi- OoH! SHINY | Twilight & Burt's Bees

You’re (I’m) in mid conversation with someone or doing some important task and then BOOM! Something sparkly catches your (my) eye and you’re (I’m) Distracted. Sadly, this is a common occurrence, I call it ‘Magpie Syndrome’. It happened just earlier today, I’d been to the gym, come home, showered, randomly picked up one of the many lotions and potions for body moisturising, applied it and BOOM! I was stuck, unable to look away, just stood there, staring at my arm and the precious sparkles for a good few minutes. Now, the reason I’m sharing this is because I’m off to see the very last Twilight film tonight (not as sad as the end of the Harry Potter films/my childhood, but still a little bit heartbreaking), and I thought this was a very happy accident. Shimmery body, off to see Twilight...Vamps that sparkle in the sunlight!?

The product in questions is ‘Burt’s Bees Radiance Body Lotion with Royal Jelly’ I think I got this off the website a good 5 months or so ago, they were selling goodie bags for £20 and this came in it with a bunch of other stuff. I do like Burt’s Bees as a brand, the lip balms are fab (naturally, I have about 3 rattling around my handbag as we speak/type/read) it's made with highly natural products, and smells ‘leafy’ but in a good way. There's a whole 'radiance range' so you can layer up the glitter! Also, it's £8-10 for 175ml, you can't grumble at that!

 

 

The body lotion is moisturising, soaks in quickly without leaving a film or any funky residue. I slather it on once I’ve hopped out of the shower and my skin is still damp, and it still works fine. The most important point though, is that it leaves B-E-A-Utiful shimmery sparkles on the skin! Sadly my camera wouldn’t pick them up, but it looks lovely in natural light.

So yeah, if your off to see Twilight and fancy imitating a vampire for the night, I’d go grab a bottle of this :]

Gem

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Bepanthen | The Wonder Cream!

 

 

This is not by any means a new discovery to rock the beauty world, but using Bepanthen as a lip balm is the best thing I've found in a long time!

Sounds weird doesn’t it? Bit odd to be using nappy/nipple cream as a lip balm, (not that I need any more lip products) but since I tried it I haven’t used anything else. I mean, don't get me wrong, Vaseline is still handy to carry round and you might get a few odd looks if you whip out your nappy cream on the train. The fact that it leaves a white film on your lips too makes me think it's best used as a night lip treatment.

So, why does it work so well? Throw on your white coat and glasses, we’re about to get scientific...

Pro-vitamin B5 (also known as Panthenol) – This stimulates skin healing whilst being awesome at moisturising too, which is why you’ll find in it hair products. It helps keep the moisture in, which causes a plumping effect.

Lanolin – Thank the sheep! This is a waxy ingredient found in their woolly coats, and when it rains (which seems constantly in England) it creates a nice little waterproof jacket for them...like a woolly cagoule, so basically it protects skin/hair against the environment.

Petrolatum – Helps keep the moisture in by making a film, just petroleum jelly or Vaseline.

Paraffium Liquidum – Or liquid paraffin, this is just highly refined mineral white oil. Also used as a laxative. Lovely.

Cetyl Alcohol – A fatty alcohol used as an emollient, emulsifier and thickener which can be found in the wild, for example: coconut fatty alcohol.

Aqua – Just water :]

 Plus, it doesn’t have any rubbish fake perfume scents, colours, antiseptic or preservatives. So now after I’ve washed my face and done my normal nigh time routine, I smoother my lips in nappy cream, and get some beauty sleep. Cut to the morning, and waking up with super soft chops. Amazing. It's also multi-use:

 Cuticle cream

Cracked heels

A very small amount on the ends of your hair is moisturising

Dotting some on the top of the cheekbones makes a nice high light

Taming eyebrows, it also darkens them slightly

 

I hear it’s good for new tattoos

 

And, obviously, an intensive lip balm

 

If you haven't already, you should try it. For £2.50 for a big tube you can't really go wrong :]

 

Gem

 

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Meep!

Sooo, It's been over a week since I blogged...All for good reasons though, promise! I've been trying out a lot a lot of stuff annnd I don't want to review until I have true and clear opinions. Besides that life have been the same old stuff, so nothing much to put out there into the blogosphere that would be interesting.

 

I've done a couple of hair videos and I do go to see Frank Turner on Tuesday night and I'm super excited!! Yay! But yeah, getting back to normal after being away seems to take me ages.

 

I'll be back Arnie style with a vengeance soon :]

 

 

Gem

 

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Concert / Gig | Outfit, Hair & Make up

Set Scene

 

Location: Computer | Time: 8:30am | Mood: Eager/Excited/Anxious

Purpose: Purchase tickets for favourite band/person - on sale at 9:00am

8:30am - Get out of bed. Make cup of tea. Turn on computer. Go to ticket page...Wake up
8:58am - Stare at computer screen obsessively hitting refresh O_O *click click*
9:00am - Site crashes *curses*
9:20am - Now in a queue of 4521569746541231 people (Damn them all!)
9:30am - Finally get X amount of tickets and proceed to payment *squeal*
10:00am - ...Still filling in the form which asks you things about yourself you don't even know - Favourite film!? I can't choose right now!
10:10am - Failing to get the word verification right 50 times because it's so damn blurry
10:30am - 2hours later and it is done!! Purchase complete. Awesome! *bask in glory*
10:31am - .....'Wait...what do I wear!? I have nothing to wear!...Ahhh' *freak out*

 

This is normally how it goes for me whenever I try to get tickets, (even thought they're on sale months in advance of the actual event!) but I think I've got the attire down now. A lot depends on the type of gig/concert your attending, but I figured I'd just share my tips anyway, and you can tweak as you please :]

Bag: Boohoo / Cross Tshirt & Jeggings: Topshop / Hoody: Topman / Boots: River Island / Cardigan: New Look
Nails: OPI - Ink
Eyeshadow: Urban Decay - Sidecar

 

So, the pictures show what I wore when I went to see Ed Sheeran! I had standing tickets, so ideally wanted to get there early to queue to get near the front. Seeing as it was in Manchester, in November, the chances of it being dry weather were slim, so I tried to cover all bases with outfit, face and hair.

Clothing

Think onion! Onions have layers! (Yay Shrek!)

I had a black vest on under the cross T-shirt, then a cardy, and sleeveless hoody, and I also wore a black woolly scarf. This covers all the bases of possible English weather, and I could gradually peel off my layers as I got acclimated.

Leg wise, I passed on jeans because they can be uncomfortable if you get warm. Instead I opted for jeggings, but leggings would be good too. Being comfortable is also important, especially if you’re standing, which leads me nicely onto the footwear. Chances are, if you’re standing/squashed next to people, you'll get stood on at some point. I wore my boots because my feet were cold, but converse are ideal - they have that rubber toe bit to protect the little piggy’s.

Lastly, choice of bag. Now, I'm paranoid that someone will pick pocket me at a gig, so I always go for either a cross body or small shoulder bag, with a zip fastening or the ones that have a large flap over. If you can, take one that's big enough to fit your light layers in.

Voila! You can be weather appropriate, comfortable and not have to hold your jacket the whole time.

Hair

This is mainly depends on your hair type, and how unruly it can get in warm/humid situations. I'll usually just go with down (bottom right picture), because I'm lazy! But if it gets hot, I'll whizz it up into a little top bun (bottom left picture) or ponytail. Bear in mind that people might have drinks, and tend to get excited and jump whilst waving their arms...with their drinks in hand...yeah. So minimal effort on the hair front I would say, just keep it up and out of the way.

Make Up

So, again, totally optional and dependant on your own little routine. I just went with a BB cream, and a neutral shimmery colour across the lid. I also whacked a bit of eyeliner on and smudged it on the lower lash line to so if my make up did run, it looked like it should be that way anyways. Crafty. Nail varnish is not essential, but it looks pretty!

It's all pretty logical stuff, but I hope it's helpful :]

Gem

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Here's some pictures of the Ed Sheeran gig, in case you’re interested...It was amazing!

 

Honey, I'm Hoooome!

 

I'm back from a lovely little break in Portugal :] super relaxing and just all round awesome.

 



Nice touristy photos



 

I went with my boyfriend, and we stayed in Hotel Vila Gale Praia which is beautiful and out of the way, literally 2 minutes from the beach.

 Highly recommend it :]

So, let's recap...

 

 I was attempting my own version of 'Stoptober'. A few hits and misses, going away had a lot to do with it! But not too bad overall.

1. Stop being lazy - SUCCESS I defiantly appeared in the gym more, to the point were old ladies in the changing rooms started talking to me about the weather  - I assume this is because I had become recognised as a gym dweller.

2. Stop snacking - EPIC FAIL Sorry, but if I want a cookie, I'm going to have to have a cookie (or 3) ... I tried swapping to healthier snacks, and I do love almonds (I munch on those more), but you just can't beat a good choc fix. Plus, I feel my gym trips cancel this out...heh.

3. Stop over spending - SUCCESS I hardly bought any holiday clothes, and had a wardrobe sort out when I was packing. Hurray! It's all for the best seeing as we have Christmas coming up :]

2/3 ain't bad if I do say so myself!

 

Gem

 

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