Hello, again!

Hi everyone,

Sorry it's been such a longtime since I last posted anything. The last few months have been a bit crazy but I'm back on top of everything and will be back to blogging regularly.  I'm not going to try and post everyday but a couple of posts a week. And although this is still a beauty blog my main passion is makeup and Skincare I am hoping to branch out a little and try a few different things, so let me know if there is anything you would like to see on the blog.

I always said I wouldn't apologise for not blogging as it's only a hobby and I do it for myself, but I do feel bad for not doing anything for such a long time, and I completely get the whole having a little break and getting stuck in a rut and not posting anything for ages. It does feel really weird to write again after so long!

Anyway I'll stop going on now. I hope everyone is well

Speak to you all soon

Em x

Dying my Hair Purple!

I love trying out new colours when it comes to my hair I've been dying it since I was 16 and love trying new looks. I've always gone darker with my hair I did used to have highlights when I was about 14, but since then I always wanted darker hair. Recently though I decided I wanted to go blonder and I've had quite a light blonde shade for about 4 months and I really like it its something pretty different to what I've been used too. 

I've had a few of the Bleach London hair dyes for a while and I've had a bit of a play with them but my hair hasn't really been light enough for the colour to take, but the other day I decided to take the plunge and try the purple shade, bruised violets and I absolutely love it. I firstly applied it all over wet hair after I had washed it for about 20 minutes, and this created a vivid shade of purple, but where my hair was a bit darker at the back it was a little bit patchy, so I decided to redo it to even it out and make it darker. So I washed my hair and applied it all over and left it for 50 minutes and got an amazing bright purple shade which I loved.

I've washed my hair since and it has faded but I have little bits of blue and more pinky shade mixed in so I'm really happy with the way it has turned out, I'm not sure how it will wash out in the next few washes but I'll keep you posted with how it goes.

My hair is also in really good condition at the moment and these hair dyes are so conditioning, I'm really impressed so far.

#HullFashion Week Finale

On Saturday I went to the #hullfashion week finale, it was a super busy and long day but worth it as was so fun to do something completely different for a change and catch up with friends and making new ones. From 11 till 4 there was a catwalk in the city hall which had plenty of fashion shows and entertainment through the whole day. There were lots of stalls around the the catwalk to look around and a Clothes Swap were you could take your old clothes in and swap them for something new. It was such a lovely sunny day and outside there was a boutique market with so many lovely pieces of clothing and accessories.

While the fashion shows were happening we were all sat at the bloggers hub station, blogging and keeping up to date on twitter and instagram with updates on how the event was going. After a super busy day we were all starving so we went to grab some food at Nando's and a quick bit of shopping before we all went home.

Z is for... Zzz's

So it's the final letter of A-Z challenge, so I thought I'd share with you some of my favourite products to help you catch some zzz's. I really struggle to switch of at night and even when I'm tired as soon as I lay down in bed my brain is wide awake. I'm not going to say any of these products are miracles but they are definitely great for helping you to relax and wind down.

These two little mini's from This Works I found in a little cracker at Christmas, I'm sure they will probably do a set similar next year or you can get them available with the full size set here and you can also find them seperatley. The Deep Sleep pillow spray has an instant calming effect as soon as you smell it. It is very comforting whilst trying to doze off and definitely takes you away to a sleepy place. The Deep Sleep Stress Less also has a similar effect. You simply roll onto temples and take a few breaths and you'll be transported to that far away land.

This Deep Sleep pulse point balm was from Body Shop and works similarly too the This Works rollerball. It definitely has a lavender scent which always reminds me of when my Grandma used to spray lavender onto my pillow when I was little. I like the fact its more of a cream rather than an oil as I find they can sometimes get a little bit messy.

Finally the last one in my little aromatherapy kit, the Tisserand De-Stress, which is not necessarily for night time but it a very comforting rose scent to it. It's a really good one to carry in your bag especially if your going through a stressful time or have exams or something.

Sometimes when I'm stressed or tired I like to have a bath, I'm not much of a bath person I just prefer to have a shower. But when your tired and achey sometimes they seem like the perfect cure. A while a go I know a lot of bloggers where raving about these Therapie Himalayan Detox Salts, so many people where saying that the made them fall straight to sleep and have the best night sleep they've had in ages. I can't say that with me they had that amazing effect but they do make a lovely bath and make you feel very relaxed and sleepy feeling.

And the last one I wanted to share with you for the bath are the Aromatherapy Associates Bath and Shower oils. These have such a strong smell, in a good way. I wouldn't say the all smell particularly nice straight from the bottle but when poured in the bath they fill the whole room, and nearly the whole house with the relaxing spa type scent. The best thing is you only need the tiniest amount. I can normally get three uses out of one of these tiny little bottles. They are quite expensive I chose to buy the set where you can try the different ones, rather than buying a bottle of one scent. That way you can try them all and find your favourites. One of my favourites for trying to get to sleep is the support lavender and peppermint, which smells like lavender and is very calming and relaxing.

Let me know what your favourite products are? I'm all for trying anything to help get a good night sleep!

Y is for... YSL

First of all I just want to say that I don't think this palette is still available, but it was just too pretty not to share. I brought this on my way home from my holidays in October, I just had to pick it up from duty free as it was to lovely just to leave there. Although it's not available they do do other palettes which are just as gorgeous, I'll link one here which is equally lovely. 

YSL are one of my favourite premium beauty brands and I've not been disapointed by anything I've used from them, so I would definitely recommend them and if your going on holiday anytime soon you might be able to pick up a palette like this or similar for a bargain price!

I'm also wearing my Le Teint Touche Eclait foundation in BR 30 and Estee Lauder Sumptuous mascara in the photos above.

X is for... XOXO Gossip Girl Inspired Look

picture found on pinterest

This is my take on a make up look from Gossip Girl. I chose to base the look mostly on Leighton Meesters character Blair Waldorf, but I think I might also do a Serena look later on. This isn't an exact look just my take on it.

Blair's skin also looks luminous and glowing so choose first used an illuminating primer, and then a foundation with a dewy finish. I'll link all the products I use down below. I then filled in my brows a little bit, not as done as normal as Blair's eyebrows are a thinner and softer than mine and used a little bit of a pink blush on my cheeks.

Blair tends to wear quite matte eyeshadow but I personally prefer something with a slight shimmer so I used more shimmery one's, I used a really light shade across the lid and a dark brown shade very lightly through the crease. Blair also tend to wear a little bit of eye liner across her top lash line but it always looks very soft so I chose to use a black eyeshadow with an angled brush so it didn't look harsh.

To finish I used a lipgloss with a little bit of colour in it, you see Blair wearing a lot of pink and red shades, still natural looking, but they are always very glossy looking in finish, she sometimes also wears a nude gloss.

And no Blair Waldorf look is complete with a pretty, preppy alice band!

Products I used:

Bourjois Happy Light Luminous Serum Primer

L'Oreal Nude Magique Eau De Teint in Warm Ivory

Nars Blush in Orgasm

Seventeen Brow's That! Brow Kit

Various Seventeen Eyeshadows (not sure on the colours as they came in a limited edition palette)

Estee Lauder Sumptuous Mascara

Topshop Gloss Ink in Sugar Rush

W is for... W7 Magic Eyes Mascara

I really didn't know what to expect from this mascara. W7 Magic Eyes The Ultimate Mascara* comes in a very green bottle, you certainly won't lose this in your make up bag. I've heard of W7 but hadn't really tried any of their products, I'm pretty impressed with them though and they're amazing for their price which is really good.

The brush is very unusual I've not seen another mascara brush like it. It's a plastic brush which has a spiral of bristles going around it, that's the best way I can explain it. I wasn't sure whether it might be a bit clumpy but it actually applies really nice and you can really layer it to build up length and volume.

It has amazing staying power as well and looks exactly the same at the end of the day as when you first applied it, with no smudging or flaking at all. It does take a bit of getting off though not sure if that a good thing or not, but you definitely need a few cotton pads with eye make up remover on. Apart from that though I don't have anything bad to say about this mascara. It's a very worthwhile purchase!

*this is a PR sample

V is for... Viridian Coconut Oil

Coconut Oil has got to be one of my favourite multi-purpose products, it can be used for pretty much everything. At the end of last month I went to the #hullbloggersmeet and was so happy to find a little pot of Viridian 100% Organic Raw Coconut Oil* in my goody bag. It's so handy for travelling and can be used for so many things, it saves me carry around either the massive jar I brought from Holland & Barratt or a whole load of other products.

I did a post not so long back about using coconut oil as a make up remover and cleanser (here), but I thought I would share with you my top 5 uses for coconut oil.

1. My first one had to be a cleanser, I've really not used anything since discovering this magic oil. It melts away any make up, even heavy mascara and eyeliner without rubbing the skin or stinging your eyes. It is definitely the best eye make up remover I've found. It also leaves the skin feeling clean, soft and comfortable, unlike that dry tight feeling you can get with some cleansers. plus my skin looks so much clearer since I've been using it.
2. It also doubles up as a moisturiser, you can use on your face and body. So if your in a rush or only got the one product handy it can do everything in one. It also gives a nice sheen to the skin and gives your arms and legs that healthy looking glow. I probably wouldn't recommend it as a moisturiser under make up and oil can brake down make up leaving your face patchy, its a definite no no for girls with oily skin but if you have dry skin you might get away with it. Its fantastic as a night cream though.
3. I like to use coconut oil as a hair mask too. Either run a little bit through the ends before washing or for an intense treatment massage into the scalp and through the hair before bed and wash out like normal in the morning, for frizz free shiny hair. If your hair is very dry especially on the ends you can adds some as a serum just start off with a small amount and add to the amount you need so you're not making it greasy.
4. Coconut oil can also make a great cuticle oil, and helps soften any dryness around the nails. I also find it less greasy than other oils and absorbs into the skin quite quickly so you're not leaving greasy finger prints everywhere.
5. And finally for anyone that loves cooking coconut oil makes a great oil for cooking. I like to use it when making curries, by frying onion and garlic in it before adding other vegetables, curry paste and coconut milk. It is also great for making popcorn and roasting your veg. You can also add it too smoothies if you like as its a really good oil to eat as its great for your hair nails and skin as well as your metabolism. And as its antiviral oil it helps get rid of toxins out the liver and it has plenty of other health benefits.

There are so many other uses for coconut oil, so let me know of any others that you like to do and I'll give them a go!

*This is a PR sample.