Hair Care *Updated*

Over the last year or so, I’ve tried really hard to try and get my hair looking healthy again. And I am finally happy with how it looks. I did a post like this last year and a couple of things have changed since then so I thought I would do an updated hair care post.

Like I said in my first hair care post, I admit I had it highlighted a few times and I even dyed it myself at home quite a lot. Last year I put a blonde colouring on it because I wanted it lighter and I even dyed it pink as well. None of the colours that I used damaged my hair in any way, the way in which I went about it and treated after probably wasn’t as good as it could have been.

So, first things first, shampoo and conditioner. I remember watching a YouTube video last year on hair care (I can’t remember what the video was called or who posted it otherwise I’d leave a link) but I remember them mentioning that hairdressers wash your hair twice with shampoo and once with conditioner. They wash it twice with shampoo because the first wash loosens up the dirt, oil, and any products that you’ve put on your hair. The second wash with shampoo actually removes them. Some people may need to do a third wash depending on the amount of product that you have on your hair.

Shampoo and conditioner should be picked in order to give your hair the best benefit. Use products that suit your kind of hair, don’t pick any random shampoo and conditioner. I personally use Tresemme and they have a good range of different shampoos and conditioners to suit different hair types.

Recently I bought this from my hairdressers and it’s the Revlon Professional Uniq One All-in-one Hair Treatment and I’ve got mine in Coconut, and they also do the Classic and the Lotus one. I’ve used it a few times and I’ve noticed such a difference in my hair already. It covers so many different areas when protecting and enhancing your hair and it’s an all round good product to use in my opinion. I'll leave the website HERE and you can see for yourself all of the amazing pros it has. I can’t actually find where it says you can buy these products on the website but if you are interested, maybe just check with your hairdresser and see if they do it. I bought mine for just under £15 so I presume it will be somewhere in that region for you.

Like I said in my last hair care post, I try not to use too much heat on my hair. I leave it to dry on its own 99% of the time and if I do have to use the hairdryer, I will wait an hour if I can before using hair straighteners or curlers. I tend to curl my hair but if I’m not going anywhere, I won’t do anything with it just so I can let it breathe and hang naturally.

I have noticed a big difference in my hair since I’ve started taking more care of it. I’ve noticed so much more volume and it looks a lot more healthy than it did a year and half ago and it’s a lot easier to manage now.

If you have any hair tips, feel free to leave a comment, and I hope you enjoyed it!

:) xx

Tips for Concerts

Currently sat outside listening to Catfish and the Bottlemen, reminiscing about when I saw them 3 weeks ago when they supported the Stereophonics in Wrexham. I do love a good concert, and it’s safe to say I’ve been to my fair share of them. I’ve learnt many things during them so I thought it would probably be useful to share some useful tips and advice.

Throwback to 1D!

SENSIBLE SHOES.

Heels aren’t the best shoes to wear to a concert. And I’ve learnt that the hard way. Concerts last a good 3-4 hours, so if you’re walking around, standing and obviously dancing for that much time, you just want to be comfortable. Just wear a comfortable pair of Converse, Vans, sandals, etc. Also, wear something that doesn’t give you blisters.

Wear something you’re going to be comfortable in

It’s nice to dress up sometimes but at concerts, do you really want to be worrying about your dress riding up or your shirt untucking itself from your trousers. You’re there to have a good time, you don’t want to be worrying about little things, just enjoy yourself.

Plan everything well in advance

Concert days are exciting and you don’t want to be worrying about travel. Plan your journey, make sure your lift is reliable, if not look online for trains or buses. The earliest I think any concert, for me personally, has finished is 10pm and at that time, I really don’t want to be unsure of how I’m getting home. Make sure you know when trains or buses are leaving or where you’re meant to be meeting your lift. Concerts are busy, make your experience easier by planning.

Don’t go alone

The thought of going to a concert alone scares the life out of me. It’s a busy place and it’s always better to have someone with you, just in case. And plus, you've to got to dance with someone haven't you?! 

Make sure your phone is fully charged before you go

Obviously you’re going to want to take photos and videos, so do I. But make sure you leave enough battery for your journey home. Sometimes trains are delayed or you get a bit lost. You need to be in a position where you can use your phone without worrying about the battery dying.

Eat and drink plenty

Concerts are sweaty. And it gets very very hot. Every venue sells food and drink, make sure you buy something. There’s no use in getting dehydrated or feeling faint.

Also your throat hurts A LOT afterwards, you'll need something to help with that!

Be careful of other people

I went to an outdoor concert not long ago and I was standing. Some people just forgot about personal space. I’m a really shy person and when people are in my space I just get a bit uncomfortable. Obviously everyone’s there to have a good time, I’m not telling you not to enjoy yourself, just be aware of people around you.

Take a banner

People love really funny banners, and if you can get close enough, you’ll get spotted by the artist and it’ll be the best day of your life. Add a couple of lights, make it fancy. 

Know the words

Concerts are so enjoyable and knowing the words makes the experience 10 times better. You can belt out every single lyric and have the most amazing time.

Put your phone down

Yes, you want to take tons of pictures and videos so you can re-live it further down the line, I do it as well. But put your phone down, even if it’s for one song. Experience it fully. Soak up all of the atmosphere and just focus on seeing your favourite artist live.

Don’t be embarrassed

Stand up, dance and sing at the top of your lungs. Honestly no one cares, you’re never to see those people again so just have the time of your life and like they say, dance like nobody’s watching.

HAVE FUN

The most important part. You’ve paid a lot of money for that, have the time of your life. Concerts are amazing, so fully enjoy the experience of seeing your favourite artists live.

I feel like this has been a really negative post, it wasn’t meant to, I just think these are really important things to remember when you go to a concert. Let me know if you have any advice about going to concerts, they're quite tricky to get right I think, but they can be one of the most amazing experiences ever. 

P.S - I’m very much enjoying this weather and I’d be very happy if it decided to stay like this until after my birthday. 30˚C on my 18^th? FAB. *hint hint*

The Perfect Base

Of course it’s raining again. Some people would call it winter but no, this is just your average July in Britain. To cheer myself up from this weather, I’m going to talk about make up because who doesn’t love a good make up chat. More specifically, I’m going to talk about how I achieve a perfect base for my foundation. I don’t do this everyday, I’m more likely to do it when I’m going out somewhere or sometimes if I just fancy it.

  Let’s face it, it’s something we all want to know and I thought I’d share my tips and tricks on how I achieve it and hopefully, it might help you! Anyway, ENJOY!!

First things first, ALWAYS wash your face before hand. Get rid of absolutely everything on your skin so you have a nice, clean base to start with.

After washing my face like usual, I like to use an exfoliator, it gets rid of all of the dry skin cells on the surface of your skin, creating a much smoother appearance and feel. I love my skin after I’ve done this, it looks incredibly glowy and healthy. One reason I don’t do this everyday is because it is very easy to over-exfoliate, leaving a lot of damage to your skin. If you are doing this everyday, just be careful.

Then, I will use my moisturiser. Personally, moisturisers are essential, morning and night, if you want to maintain healthy looking skin. There are tons and tons of moisturisers which do various different things, it’s all about finding the right one for you.

I then like to leave my moisturiser settle for a good 10-15 minutes. This way, the moisturiser has time to settle onto the skin without any heavy products interfering.

After 10-15 minutes, for me, the moisturiser is a slightly tacky on my skin. At this point, the moisturiser has had plenty of time to settle, however it hasn’t been completely absorbed, you can still see the glow from the moisturiser this way which is something that I like personally. Plus, my make up sits a lot better on my skin when the moisturiser hasn’t completely absorbed.

Then, I go straight into foundation and carry on normally with my make up.

The products I use are: 

Simple Kind-To-Skin Refreshing Facial Wash

No7 Total Renewal Micro-Dermabrasion Exfoliator 

Simple Kind-To-Skin Moisturiser

All of which you can find at Boots. 

 I’m not an expert, this isn’t going to work for everyone, it works for me and you might want to try some of these and maybe adapt them to suit you. I hope you found this useful, let me know anything that works for you or any tips and tricks you have! 

:) xx

My Favourite Summery Beauty Products

Hiii, I'm officially back this time and I am beyond excited to post this, I have waited so so SO long. 

I decided, as it is July and supposedly Summer, to share my favourite summery products with you. This is the time of year where the majority of people jet off on holiday, and whether you go abroad or decide to stay in good 'ol blighty, this may help you out with what to take in your make up bag. ENJOY! 

I've only started using this product for the last month or so and I absolutely love it. It is the Soap and Glory One Heck of a Blot Instant Power Primer which is priced at £10. I ordered this accidentally when I did a huge make up shop online and when I received it, I was on two minds whether to send it back or not but I just fancied giving it a go one morning and I am so glad I did. 

I am highly prone to oily skin and trying to control that throughout the day is a nightmare. Personally, powder alone does not help drastically with my oily skin, even if I touch up throughout the day. This, however, solves everything. It's a really lightweight gel that sits perfectly on top or under make up. Wearing it under gives a flawless base as it helps to smooth out your skin. Wearing over increases the protection against oily skin. It's so easy to just to touch up throughout the day in order to keep your make up in place as well, which personally, I find my make up staying on a lot longer. It's an incredible dual purpose product which comes at a reasonable price. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who hates oily skin. 

My current everyday foundation and one that I am so happy to be able to use throughout summer if I need to is the Revlon ColourStay Foundation which is £6.99. For everyday I am a lighter shade but for summer I use this foundation in 180 Sand Beige for Combination/Oily Skin. This isn't too much darker but it just gives a really nice tanned/bronzey look. It is medium coverage but is definitely buildable. It's super lightweight and I find it's impossible to make it look cakey and thick so it's definitely something I'd recommend if you're looking for a summer foundation or one for all year round. 

I also recommend these two. These are the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer which is £4.19 and also the No7 Match Made Concealer which is £7.50. If i put foundation on, I'll use the Collection one for conceal any blemishes and use the shade 'Fair' to brighten my under eye areas. This concealer is such high coverage and for someone who has quite dark circles, like me, this product is amazing for concealing them and helping to brighten instead. 

The No7 concealer is what I use as a replacement for foundation. Especially when I'm on holiday, I don't want a lot of make up so I find that a bit of this concealer over any blemishes just gives me that little bit of coverage which I don't need to top up during the day. I find it's a lot easier to manage, we know how hot it gets, we all sweat so I just feel more comfortable wearing something lightweight without having to worry about it coming off. 

My eyebrows look absolutely terrible when I don't do them, they have absolutely no shape and they just look hideous. I normally use a powder which is quite dark and personally, I didn't want them to be like that everyday especially if I'm not wearing a full face of make up. I find that the Soap and Glory Archery 2-in-1 Brow Filling Pencil and Brush (£8.00) does a perfect job in the summer. For everyday wear in the summer this is perfect, it's super light and it's easy to use. I don't want a lot of fuss when I'm on holiday and I know this is going to help make my eyebrows so much neater without standing out too much. 

Personally, I like wearing mascara even when I'm not wearing a lot of make up. During summer, it's hot, it's sweaty, you might go swimming etc, wear waterproof mascara. I've only just learnt that I need to do this, I don't know why I haven't realised before but better late than never I guess. This one from Max Factor (It's the False Lash Effect Mascara at £10.99) is just one that I really like. This mascara adds volume and gives subtle yet long, glamorous lashes. 

We all like a bit of contouring, highlighting and bronzing and one product that is perfect for all 3 is the Flawless Chisel Cheeks Contour Kit from Barry M which is £6.49. I love this trio so much, I use it every single day. The highlighting shade is more brightening than highlighting I'd say but for me I prefer that. It gives a really subtle brighten, which works exceptionally under the eyes. 

The bronzing powder, which is just as good, gives a really subtle bronzey glow to your skin and also adds a warm colour. 

The contour colour, is my absolute favourite as far as contoring goes wether it's in the summer or not. It's a cool toned contour powder which when it's applied gives a subtle contour. 

I really hoped you enjoyed this, I absolutely loved writing it. It's so good to be back blogging again! Let me know what you think, I'd really really appreciate it! Also feel free to follow me on Bloglovin'/Twitter/Instagram/Google +, all of my social media handles are in the tab at the top if you don't already follow me!

:) xx

I'M BACK!!

Hello, it's been a while but I'M BACK! Well, kind of. I will be on Friday, this is just a little post to say what I've been doing, when I'm posting and little information like that.

Firstly, I've already said this but it's been a while. Too long. I didn't really realise how long it had been until my friend had said 'I've been waiting 7 months for another post!' And it was only then that I realised how long it had been. 

You'd think after 7 months I'd have something significant to tell you as a reason as to why I haven't posted but no. I've been doing a lot of work for school and I've finally finished sixth form! I'm happy and so glad but I'm actually quite gutted at the same time. It was a lot of hard work and towards the end, it just really seemed to drag and it did get me down quite a lot. There was always something that needed to be handed in every day and I just seemed to be swamped with work. But I got through it, I'm done now. Exams went pretty well, which is such a relief, after all of that hard work, I feel like it paid off. But I guess we'll find out in August! 

Like I said, I am quite gutted about leaving, I had such a good time in sixth form, it's a completely different atmosphere to high school. Everyone seems that little bit older as well and you do lose a few friends, well not necessarily lose but you're just not as close anymore,  because of different reasons but I came out of sixth form with a small, solid group of close friends and personally, I couldn't be happier with that. I am going to miss everyone, but luckily enough, the majority of my friends are staying close to home like I am so they won't be too far away :) 

I didn't really intend for this to be so long but oh well. Like I said, I haven't been doing a lot. Basically I just needed to focus on school as that had to be my main priority but I've got 2 months now before I start college so I'm hoping to do a lot of posts, and hopefully just have an amazing summer before people go off to uni. 

Also, I was a bit inconsistent with my posting last year so I've set myself the target of posting every Friday. I'm not quite down to an exact time but I mean some time during Friday is all I can give you right now. 

I'm extremely excited to get back into posting, I have missed it very much, so I look forward to Friday and having that first post up. I hope you enjoy it too! 

I have changed my blog layout and style etc, let me know what you think, I'm so so happy with it, I hope you like it! 

:) xx