Under Where? Nail Polish by Essie review

I am currently in love by the flirtatious new collection by Essie.  I've always been a long standing supporter of their solid monochromatic colours, but this Autumn, they've outdone themselves with a super fun collection full of lilacs, aqua azures, corals and adorable newbie greens.

Whilst in the Essie store and looking at the hundreds of shades I knew it would have to be from this collection as various bloggers had made me quite jealous.  I went for the lilac polish in a naughtily named 'under where?' as its not a colour I've tried before (available here).

Colour? 10/10 Drop dead gorgeous as purples go.  The lilac has a slightly gray tone to it giving your mani that high fashion edge.  It can be dressed up or down, for fun frivolous colourful outfits or as a sleek formal manicure.  This shade has absolutely wowed me and dare I say it, might be the favorite or my polish collections.

Application? 9/10 If you've ever tried Essie you'll know they've got a great shaped polish brush which is wide and narrow.  This gives  a smoother application than those normal brushes as it glides easily onto the nails leaving little to know streakiness.

Wow Factor? The Essie colour 'under where?' is glorious, but the wow factor for me is the consistency of this polish.  A number of times while applying it I was a little heavy handed and thought I would have to apply another coat to smooth out those areas, but literally as I was contemplating how to fix it, the polish somewhat magically evened out as it set, creating a perfectly smooth base.  I kid you not ladies.  This is some kind of miracle polish!

See 'Under Where?' and the rest of the dazzling Essie collection on their site  (Available here)

Review on Rapid White home teeth whietning

I'm not going to lie, I'm a fan of that Hollywood smile, and over the last few months or so, I've noticed my teeth looking not as white as they used to be when I was younger.

So I couldn't help but treat myself to an 'at home' whitening kit by Rapid White.  I had never used an at home kit, so I thought for £15.00 ( on offer at Boots), I would take the risk.

I couldn't bring myself to do before and after pictures because that is just too minging.  None of you poor souls deserve to see that.  But I will give you a review.

The negatives - it is really tricky to make the whitening tray as it starts off boiling and is hard to mould because it sets in a matter of minutes.  I had uneven trays, one with a hole in, and each tray with a longer left side than right side.  It says you can re-mould it, so I tried and just made everything worse.

The positives - this is probably the most important thing - my teeth GOT WHITER in just 2 weeks.  At the end of the day that's the most important thing right, that a home whitening kit gets your teeth whiter.  They're a good 3 or 4 shades whiter and with relatively little effort.  Once the hassle of forming the trays is done, you just need to put a cream in the tray and cover your teeth in the applicator fluid then pop the trays in your mouth 10 minutes.

So conclusion - whitening effect - 9/10, application 5/10
Would I purchase again? UNDOUBTEDLY YES!!!!!

Have you guys tried Rapid white or any other home whitening?  I am so impressed that with no pain and with little expense I got my teeth so much whiter in such a short space of time.  Perfect if you have a special event coming up!

AVENUE 32 Dream Holiday Challenge!

Hey Ladies!

I've been invited to share my ideal holiday with my readers for a chance to win a pair of sunglasses from Avenue 32!

So I'd thought I'd let you guys onto a little secret that my dream holiday would be to spend a long weekend on the beautiful Greek island of Santorini!  It's famous for its deep blue sea and beautiful white dome buildings.  I can imagine myself there eating delicious food and going for lazy walks around the island looking at the spectacular views!

Cream St Barts Swimming Costume, Silky pruple sky scarf,  Oliver People's Cat eyes sunglasses

My dream day would probably start something like this:

Lazing by the crisp blue sea in the morning with a good book! I'd love to wear a stylish white all in one swimming costume, some tortoise shell sunnies and a silk scarf to keep my hair back!

NoNoo Skirt, Gatsby Python loafers,  Nonoo Blouse with beaded collar

After a morning by the pool I'd love to indulge in a delicious dish of calamari, one of my favorite types of seafood, and of course a Greek salad!  Ice cream would definitely be for dessert!  I love the crisp whites and dark blues of Santorini so I'd probably choose an outfit reflecting that, like this gorgeous white skirt and blue skirt combination with some python loafers!

Mondrian Lace mini dress, Jerome Rousseu black clutch, Bionda Castana Elisabetta Heels, 

And for the evening - a romantic walk along the winding roads of Santorini looking out at the sunset.  I love these shoes as despite having a feel they've got a solid and comfy structure perfect for those dreamy strolls!

And that's it!  My perfect dream holiday and how I'd spend it in Santorini complete with outfits I'd love to wear from the Avenue 32 collection!  Where's your dream holiday??

Illamasqua nail polish in Hemlock

Morning Ladies, 

So here's a review on my first ever Illamasqua nail polish Hemlock (link here) in a 'pale opal green irridescant'! Available for £14.50 at www.illamasqua.com

Colour 7/10

I chose the shade Hemlock as I was really drawn by it's almost indescribable colour! They describe it as pale opal green iridescent, however for me I'd say it's more of a sheer/ semi sheer polish in a mother of pearl shade - there's almost a pink beige base with flashes of yellow / pink / green tones which shine through in different lights.  It is a nice colour, but perhaps not my favorite, I'd have preferred it to have been just with green or pink tones as together I'm not sure they go perfectly.

Application 10/10- 

A dream.  This polish beats a lot of other high end polishes for its beautiful consistency and ease to apply.  There are no brush strokes and I love how it hasn't got that gloopy texture. It also dries quickly between strokes.  I hope the others in the range are just as good!

Staying power 10/10

I had absolutely no chips for 5 days, and got away with the polish for 9 with just minor chips at the end.  And that's after cleaning the over without gloves as well.  Amazing!!!!

Over all, Hemlock is  a beautiful nail polish in a fairly neutral shade that will go with most outfits because of its various tones and it's semi-sheer quality.  It also has great staying power without chipping for at least 5 days.  The only thing is, there are too many colours running through this polish for me, but that's just a matter of personal taste.  But, in terms of application and staying power, as far as polishes go, I would definitely recommend it above most others. 

Have you guys tried any of the Illamasqua nail polishes, what do you think of them??

London in the Sun - Caramel leather jacket & Kiko kiss balm

Hey Dolls, 

I don't know about you but I've been loving the beautiful weather we've been having this summer here in London.  So today I've dressed ready to spend the day down at Hyde Park (hence the flipflops!).

I've got on here one of my favorite lambskin leather jackets from Muubaa as its perfect for this summer weather with its copped length and delicious light caramel colour.  Perfect for taking of the edge off those summer breezes. I've matched the look with natural makeup but with a touch of my new Kiko kiss balm, see down below for more details!

I'm Wearing:

Muubaa Leather jacker SS12: similar here

H&M Long Top SS13: Available here

Jeans - Italian boutique: Similar here

Moschino Leather Bag SS13: Available here

GAP leather flipflops SS13: Available here

Check out my Kiki makeup down below!

Makeup: Today I tried out a brand new lip balm called kiss balm by Kiko in 04 Cherry.  I bought it because of its beautiful smell that is good enough to eat (it's also a bargain at £5.90).  Even though it looks bright pink, it just adds a subtle pink gloss to the lips that I just love.  It also leaves them feeling amazingly nourished too. Available here.

And that's it, my beauties.  I hope you've enjoyed!

Let me know what you think!
xxxx

Street Style Fashion

Hey there, 

Todays post is a post on street style fashion.  Those of you who follow me know that most of my outfits are all about casual fashion because, well, street style is much more comfortable than OTT.  This street style look goes with most situations throughout the day, from shopping to lounging at home to out with friends! (Which is exactly how most my Saturdays end up!)

What I'm Wearing

I'm wearing that white silk blouse I showed you in another post but this time as a whole outfit:

Zara white silk blouse SS13 - available here

Jeans from Italian boutique - similar here from topshop

Topshop suede ankle boots - similar here

Moschino SS13 leather bag - available here

Makeup

Benefit POREfessional, YSL la teint touche eclat, MAC prep + prime transparent loose powder , MAC Truth + Light magically cool loose powder , Benefit sugarbomb gloss, Benefit They're Real mascara Benefit Badgal Waterproof eyeliner

Street Style fashion

What do you think? Would you wear something like this?

Kisses xxx

BEAUTY HAUL - ysl city drive, chanel creme blush, hotel chocolat....

Hi Ladies,

Yesterday evening was spent doing a spot of shopping with my friend JoJo and eating a fabulous Mexican buritto on South Bank at a restaurant called Wahacas, do you know it??

I also had a bit of a beauty haul, so here's a few snaps from my phone of what I got! (excuse the bad quality and the fact I can't rotate them!)

First up: YSL City drive Arty Palette AW13 (link here)

This is my pride and joy of the beauty buys - I'm super excited to show you Autumn's YSL palette called City Drive.  Stunning gold and fuchsia packaging and  comes with 4 amazing colours- neon green, electric blue, chrome plated steel and asphalt black.  Can't wait to try these shades which are all just perfect for creating a street look for here in London!

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Next up Le Blush Creme de Chanel - 61 Destiny (link here)

Sorry I forgot to take a photo of the open packet, but this is a really unusual blush shade in what I'm tempted to call tan/beige. Great for creating that perfect bronzed cheek bone and creating a great shape and adding colour without any rosey hues.

Revive - Cocoa Juvenate Hand cream by Hotel Choclat (link)

This is a bit of a novelty item as I didn't know that Hotel Chocolat (my FAVORITE chocolate company) made beauty products, so I couldn't resist this hand cream.  

I was a bit dissappointed it didn't smell at all of chocolate (though maybe that would have been gross anyway) but it does feel very luxurious and is made of cocoa butter, shea butter and mango seed oil.  It really does leave your hands feeling super nourished without any sticky residue.

On the whole a beautiful product, but a little too large to keep in your hand bag but PERFECT for on your desk at work.

i
A trio of nail varnishes - I'll do a much more detailed set of Mani blogs on these but couldn't resist the following by Illasmasqua, Essie and Rimmel as they were all the exact shades that I've been searching for for a while for entering into this Autumn.

The view of sunset from where I spent my evening on South Bank!  It was such a beautiful beautiful evening, I'm so going to miss these when we're back in Winter :(

I hope you like my haul, even though I'm feeling a bit guilty about it! xxxxxx

August Empties - Hair Care

MORNING!

I was washing my hair last night and as I was drying it and styling it, I realised just how many products I use, and worse than that, how many empties I had!!

You can see that most of the products are for dry, damaged and broken hair, or for protecting hair from further damage.  I will always keep to these sorts of products as it is so dry, keeping its colour / volumizing / anti dandruff products never get a look in!

Below I'll give a quick review on the ones to repurchase, and the ones to stay away from!

Products and review:

Shampoo - TRESemme Salon Silk Shampoo (link) - 

Repurchase?  Probably

Ok, so there are a tonne of way better shampoos out there than this one, (even worse because I've heard it is full of silicone) but, it contains 900ml and it costs just £2.00 when in promotion.  I have a hell of a lot of hair, and always shampoo twice, so there's no way I could consider a small expensive shampoo otherwise half my salary would go on it.  You get a lot of product for your buck, and genuinely, I quite like it, it smoothes my hair very well and does give that 'salon silk feel'.  I also use the conditioner, but its not empty yet so not in the post.

Lee Stafford Conditioner for breaking hair (link)

Repurchase? No

Its not that I didnt like this product, but for the expensive price of it, and small bottle, I felt like it wasn't worth the money.  It has a strange smell, which be fine if it really did repair my breaking hair, but it just did the same job as any average conditioner would do. I wasn't really impressed but hey ho.

Body Shop Rainforest Moisture Hair Butter (link)

Repurchase? DEFINITELY

I got the baby size to try it out and I was impressed.  It's not only free from all sorts of badies, but genuinely it also REPAIRED my hair.  2 weeks ago it was much dryer since coming back from my holidays, I bought this slathered it all over my hair and it already feels much more nourished, richer and moisturized.  It works particularly well when you've already washed your hair, rub it through the ends and sleep on it, and it will leave it smooth and healthy without the greasy feel. So happy with this product.

Aussie Take the heat leave in conditioner

Repurchase - yes

I will repurchase this product, as I use it when I know I'll straighten my hair as it provides strong heat protection.  It also smells delicious.  But, for a regular leave in conditioner I prefer the bodyshop one.  However, for all you girls who use heat protection, this works very nicely and smells great - most  of them on the market smell terrible.  

Lee Stafford Argan Oil (link)

Repurchase - maybe

Here's the deal.  I like this Lee Stafford Argan Oil, and it does the job and it is affordable and I am very pleased with it. BUT, everyone's heard of the famous REAL Argan Oil formula which is always cited as being the best.  So now its finished, I want to purchase that one.  That's not to say there's anything wrong with this one (it can also be purchased with Boots club card point which is always a bonus) but I want to try the real Mc Coy.

L'oreal Elnett Extra Strong Hair Spray (link)

Repurchase -YES

I have been buying these for years (in various strengths) but its always the hair spray I come back to.  I recently bought Aussie hair spray, which did smell nicer but has that trademark sticky feel which all hair sprays except Elnett has.  Elnett always gives great hold with no greasy stickiness and the next day you can't see its reamins/

Have you tried any of these hair care products??? What are your views?

xx

Get the wow factor with YSL Golden Fuscia Lipgloss

Hello my beauties, 

Ever wanted to have that WOW factor with your makeup???

There's no better way to perk up your makeup than with a completely over the top coloured lipgloss.  And what better than a lipgloss with REAL gold in it my friends!

My all time favorite, and probably the only lipgloss I repurchase, is YSL's Golden Fuscia lipgloss 04.  It's a florescent pink and is bound to get you noticed.  And as I mentioned before, this range of lipglosses all contain 0.2% of 24 carat gold.  Only gold could give your lips such an unbeatable wow factor!

Yeah, I know, mine looks battered and bruised, but that's because its always loose in my handbag, ready for any occasion when I want to go for that golden wow factor.

When it's brand new, the YSL packaging on their shimmering gloss is to die for. Sleek perspex rectangular bottle with a gold lid.  I love the brush applicator form this YSL range - beating all the other brands out there. It glides onto your lips with precision, which I feel you can't get with those squeezy plastic tube glosses out there....Lancome juicy tubes spring to mind.

So, to summarize, if you want a stunning gloss, you can't go wrong with YSLs golden shimmer lipgloss, complete with real gold. Their selection of colours is to die for, so go and have a look (see here) and find one that will make you feel completely gorgeous!

Autumn Look: Zara quilted Jacket & Moschino Bag

Hello!

Today has been really Autumnal here in London.  It's only mid August and it's already freezing.  Long gone are the shorts and skirts, so its back to jeans and jackets.

I've dragged out of the closet my Zara quilted jacket that I bought last Christmas.  It's a really dark green with brown detailing which I think is perfect for these Autumnal days.  It keeps the chill off but still wraps you up warm when it gets colder at night.  This seasons Zara quilted jacket (available here)  is beautiful too, but this season is in navy blue and black.

I've matched it with my new Moschino bag (available here) which seems to spruce up any outfit.  Even if my hair is completely wild.

Hope you like it!

What are your Autumn staples???

xx

What's in the Bag!

Hey Dolls!

I've recently treated myself to a new Moschino bag (available here) on a recent holiday to Italy as I went to where they actually make the bags.  I went on a bit of a spree so you'll see them featured a lot in upcoming posts! But I'm wearing it proudly, as I was looking for the perfect bag which no-one else has which can be for both work and play and I've found it!  Here's a peek of whats inside!

I'm not somebody to absolutely clog up my bag as otherwise I can never find anything so I keep everything to an absolute minimum.  

We have the following:

Moschino Brown leather bag SS 13

I'm crazy for this bag.  It goes with everything and is perfect for both work and play! It's from the 'ss13' collection and already in the sale, so if you like it you can grab yourselves a bargain here. It's soft brown leather with a beautiful golden clasp that has a little key hidden in that brown tag on the handle.

Moschino Wallet SS13

I was on a spending spree when in Italy and fell in love with this nude leather Moschino wallet with iconic metal caligrapghy.  Unfortunately its sold out but Miu Miu do silimar ones which are also very lovely

Chanel Sunnies - 

I can't find them on the website, but this are the classic chanel style in tortoise shell.  Perfect for all occasions, though mine are a bit ruined by the sea! (Don't judge me!!)

Vaseiline

Bag essential - you never know when you are a friend as an emergency medical need for dry chapped lips!

Longchamp makeup bag
This is a very reduced version of my makeup bag, with just essentials that I use to top up my makeup or put it on when I've not had time in the morning

Oyster Card
I can't go anywhere without it!  I want a nice holder for it but I've  yet to find the perfect one

iphone 4
Battered and bruised but this beauty has served me well

Well! That ended up to be a bit of a comprehensive list, but I hope you like what's in my bag! I'd love to know what's in your bag??!

Let me know!
Kisses!!

Business Fashion

Morning Ladies!

I know a lot of you ladies like me have to hit up the office most days and its hard to dress formally and fashionably too! But here's my go to on how to look fashionable chic at work!

I'll usually put on something like the following:

Outfit:

Topshop Gray Blazer with 3/4 rouched sleeves similar here

Topshop short sleeve lace crop top available here

Benetton high waisted gray pencil skirt

Toms flats 

Accessories:
Moschino SS13 leather bag available here

Makeup - Benefit the POREfessional primer, YSL la teint touche eclait foundation b50, Bobbi Brown bronzer in golden light, Benefit blush in Dallas, Dior Show mascara in BlackOut, Lord and Berry smudgeable eyeliner in smoke, Stila Lip Glaze in raspberry

And thats it, hope you like it!!

Kisses from London!! x