Fortify Damaged Hair with NEW Aveda Damage Remedy range

Aveda are re-launching their Damage Remedy Range.  This range is infused with quinoa proteins to moisturize and help repair damaged hair.  I was super excited as I got to try it out before hand and oh my gosh do these products do what they say on the tin!

I tried out the New Damage Remedy - Daily Hair Repair and Damage Remedy Intensive restructuring treatment.

After shampooing (with aveda smooth elements shampoo) I ran through my hair about half a palm size of the intensive restructuring treatment which is to be used once weekly.   I left it about five minutes and then combed through with a tangle teaser. I could tell instantly that the quinoa  protein had smoothed and protected my hair as the tangle teaser ran straight through it.  There are is silicone either in these products so it was great knowing my hair was being protected naturally.

I then rinsed it out, dried it with a towel and massaged into the ends the Daily Hair Repair serum.  This is a really light serum that is not greasy at all.  It serves to protect your hair against heat damage as well as help to detangle and smoothen as it too is enriched with quinoa proteins.

  The smell to this range is from organic bergamoc, ylang ylang and madarin.  Its a more delicate fragrance than that of the smooth elements range, and is soothing and relaxing.  The cool and contemporary gray and white packaging adds to the feeling that you are caring for and protecting your hair.

Results: 

The Aveda Damage Remedy Range really delivers results.  With all natural plant extracts your hair becomes more nourished and cared for and contains no nasty chemicals or silicone like lots of other highstreet brands contain.  I can't wait to incorporate the Intensive Restructuring Treatment and Daily Hair Repair  products into my regime as they repair hair as well as prevent it from future damage.  This range is an absolute must for anybody with dry damaged hair.

Product details:

Aveda Intensive restructuring treatment* RRP 23.50 125ml, Aveda Daily Hair Repair* RRP £19.50 100ml

The New Damage Remedy Range is available from Aveda Salons/Spas stores and available from www.aveda.co.uk from October

*Pr samples sent for trial & review

Dim Sum at Yauatcha & outfit of the day!

I'm a total foodie.  Whether it's a home cooked meal or at a restaurant, there's nothing I love more than beautiful food.

I recently went to Aqua-Hutong at the Shard and it got me in the mood for Chinese as we had exceptional dim sum there.  So since then, I decided to visit Yauatcha, a Chinese restaurant in the heart of Soho which serves immaculate presented Dim Sum in a laid back serene atmosphere.

Scallop Dim Sum

Green Tea dessert, peach melba & apricot and pistachio mille feuille

We ordered so so much that I actually forgot to take photos of the main course but I did actually order this scallop dimsum that you can see in the picture aobve which I got form their site! Their crispy duck was served with delicious handmade pancakes and the  Kung Pao chicken was simply delicious. I did remember to take pictures of the fabulous deserts though!  I would definitely recommend this to chinese food lovers!

It's a really laid back restaurant, so I decided to dress smart casually, with a floaty antique pink top & jeans.

Hair & Makeup

I kept my makeup natural, focusing on clear skin with YSL teint touche ecalit foundation and YSL powder in Radiance, with a dash of Benefit They're Real mascara and some cherry kissbalm from Kiko in a balmy fuschia.

My hair I just whipped up into a messy bun to keep to the informal look

Hope you like my outfit for Yauatcha! Have you been? xxxx

 Outfit:
 Urban outfitters floaty pink top
Guess Jeans with hint of glitter
Moschino Leather bag
Ugg suede heels in cream

Batiste Dry Conditioner Review

Morning my lovlies!

I have a real treat in store for you today, as I've discovered no less than a miracle product!  I've always been a Batiste fan as their Dry Shampoo has saved me on a lot of occasions, but now they've brought out a Conditioning Mist.

This product isn't a Dry Shampoo at all, but in fact is a mist that you spray into your hair which is infused with Argan Oil which is to smooth your dry and damaged hair and to help to put moisture back into it. 

The Test:  I thought I would put it to the ultimate test: MY HAIR.  As you lovely readers have seen, my hair is the epitome of dry, damaged and unmanageable. I had washed my hair yesterday and kept it in a messy bun so this morning when I took it out it was an absolute mess. Knotty, dry, curly and just generally terrible.

Before I sprayed, I tried to run my fingers a bit through my hair so the spray would cover more evenly.  It was too knotty so in the end I had to dive right in and just sprayed generous amounts of the Conditioning Mist through my hair.

Results: INSTANTLY smoother hair that was much more manageable and my split ends looked much smoother. I could even run my fingers to run through it.  It seemed as if my hair had honestly just had a conditioning treatment.  I am over the moon with this product - it will be an absolute life saver to all of you with tyrannical locks! If you have perfect silky hair - don't bother.

DO REMEMBER it is not a dry shampoo, so it wont make your greasy hair look fresher, it will just make it smoother and more manageable.  This is why I used it with my industrially sized (and almost empty) Batiste dry shampoo in blush.  This way, I had manageable AND non greasy hair this morning!!!

What do you guys think? Are you tempted to try it out?? xxxxx

Batise Dry Conditioner* RRP 3.99 and Batiste Dry Shampoo in Blush 400ml RRP4.99 available from Boots and Superdrug

Review: Eucerin Hyaluron Filler products

Hey Ladies,

Today I'm going to be reviewing three products from the Eucerin Hyaluron Filler range: The Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Day Cream, The Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Night Cream & The Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Concentrate.

I was really excited about trying out this range as it is famous for plumping up the skin from the inside and smoothing out those fine lines and wrinkles - perfect for me because I've recently been feeling my years...25 is creeping up on me in December :(

The Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Day Cream (link)

Left  - Eucerin Night cream, middle - Eucerin filler concentrate, right, Eucerin day cream

I LOVE this day cream - this just perfect for anybody who suffers from dehydrated skin and sad-looking skin.  I always feel a bit dry straight from the shower and this cream is a delight to put  it is extremely sensitive and gives you all the moisture you need without feeling greasy as well as giving you a luminescent glow.

With regards to its anti ageing effects - I could see that my skin looked re-invigorated and plumped.  Perfect for awaking my giving you that fresh faced look in the morning.  I looked so fresh faced in fact that I didn't seem to need foundation either  today because of this beautiful Eucerin product so I went without


The Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Night Cream (link)

Similar to the Day Cream, this product delivers on the same levels - it tenderly restores dry skin back to its normal balance as well as plumping up the skin.

I would definitely recommend this is combination to the day cream as it gives you a chance to look after your skin at night while your sleeping too.


The Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Concentrate (link)

I have tried a lot of day and night creams in my time, but this was the first time that I had ever tried a daily vial of product!

You get 6 per box, and each product lasts a week applied twice daily.  I really like this idea because it means I can follow the regime which is nice and handy because you can can keep track on your anti ageing treatment for 6 weeks.

This was the real star of the show for me as it instantly brightened my skin.  I really have been impressed by this Eucerin range and would particularly recommend it to people with dry and sensitive skin.  As I don't have any profound wrinkles, I can't really say if the product works for filling them in, but it definitely provides my skin with a boost making it instantly more younger looking :)

Have you ever tried any of the products from the Eucerin range? What did you think of them?

All products available from www.eucerin.com

*PR samples

AVEDA Smooth Infusions Review

Good Morning!

I've had the pleasure of trying out Aveda's Smooth Infusions range (link) which is specifically designed using plant technology to smooth the hair strands.

Review

Results 10/10: I'm just going to dive right in there with the most important part of this review, the results - this Smooth Infusions range REALLY smoothed my hair and made it considerably sleeker. It contains Tamanu oil to restore the moisture balance and organic aloe, maize and guar bean to smooth the follicles. Though as I was washing my hair I could feel the conditioner smoothing the hair strands, it was only have rough blow drying it that I could see a definite improvement in my hairs condition and smoothness.  This meant I could skip heat styling which is normally a must have for me - excellent news as I can try and restore my hairs health a bit!

Packaging 9/10  I love the sleek & minimalist packing of this duo and lives up to the Aveda image of quality.  It has a matt finish and a beautiful duck egg colour which keeps in tone with its focus on plant infusions   

Heat protection 10/10 I don't know why, but this Smooth Infusions range somehow hasn't sung out at the roof tops that the range protections against surface heat damage! A wheat protein creates a protective barrier  - this is hugely important nowdays with all the heat styling that is used on a daily basis.  I love that heat protection is incorporated into the product as it means you feel a little less guilty when you blow dry!

Perfume 7/10 This won't be everyone's cup of tea but it is mine.  You can't help but notice the potent, herbal perfume of Sandalwood that this range has.  For me it is beautiful, yet and reminds me of the plant elements that are working together to protect the hair, whereas for other it may just be a bit too heady.

Summary - This is a beautiful brand with a beautiful product which really works.  I love that my hair is protected from heat styling and at the same time eliminates most of the need for it as it smoothes and calms my dry frizzy hair.  Aveda's Smooth Infusions Range is excellent for anyone with dry / damaged / flyaway hair :)

It retails

Product details - Aveda Smooth Infusions Shampoo* (250ml) RRP £16.50, Aveda Smooth Infusions Conditioner* (250ml) RRP £18.50. Available online from www.aveda.co.uk or  Aveda salons and spas.

*PR samples sent for consideration and review

Outfit of the day - mink & black

Nivea Soft has invited people to share their outfit of the day as they have teamed up with British Fashion Designed Giles Deacon so here we are!

It is London Fashion Week and all, so here is my outfit of the day: I'm wearing one of my all time favorite colours - mink!  I usually favour the muted colour pallet as it always in fashion and never fails to impress.  These is a really simple look that suits most sizes and is great for both daytime and night time

I'm wearing:

 Topshop oversized mink shirt with a leather belt

Urban Outfitters BDG cuffed black leggings (link)

Pretty Ballerina pumps in mink satin with black lace (link)

Mink Coloured Moschino Clutch SS13

Makeup in Todays Outfit of the Day:

Benefit Porefessional, Benefit Playstick, DiorShow Blackout, Chanel Quadruple eyeshadow pallet (discontinued but similar here), Mat Prep+prime finishing powder, maybelline lip liner, Clinique longlast gloss wear in goldspun and Illamasqua nail polish in Hemlock

Hope you guys liked the look! Let me know what you think !!

Lots of Love, Fiocco Bianco
xxxxx

Essie Meets Ciate Caviar Pearls!

I finished the most beautiful shade of Ciate ever - Cookies and Cream (you HAVE to try it) which came as a duo with the caviar pearls.

So after I finished the Cookies and Cream, I wondered if it had a special formula which made it specifically 'stick' to its caviar pearl twin.

As I was fresh out of Ciate, this was agreat time to experiment and sprinkled those little pearls all over some lilac Essie polish in "Under Where?" - a cool gray / lilac shade.

They actually did a fanatastic job of sticking, so I urge all you girls with Caviar Pearls to go out there and explore the different colour combinations you can come up with - see all the colour combos here!

I'm even tempted to try all my nails in different caviar shades....or even different polish AND caviar pearl shades...the possibilities are endless!!

A word to the wise - make sure you press down the pearls into the polish in order to keep that caviar pearl look - otherwise they will brush of easily when you put on you coat!

What do you guys think...tempted to try it???

xxxx fiocco bianco xxxx

My luxury hair care regime - Coppola Keratin Complex Smoothing Therapy

Hey Ladies, 

If you have long hair like I do, I believe it is crucial to look after it as best as you can, not only with heat protection but with the right shampoo and conditioner regime.  Every week I make sure I wash my hair with my favorite high end brand - Coppola Keratin Complex Smoothing Therapy (link here).  During the week I tend to use Tresemme but it doesn't restore my hair's health like Coppola does which infuses Keratin into the hair shaft.

This is an absolute must have for people with dry damaged hair, as normally dry damaged hair is a sign of lost keratin.  These products promote healing and protect from humidity leaving your hair straighter, smoother and easier to blow dry.

I tend to use a small amount of clarifying shampoo, which really makes my hair squeaky clean followed by Keratin care shampoo (I've always been one of those double shampoo kinda girls!)  I then follow with a generous amount of Keratin care conditioner.  It really is a smoothing therapy as my hair feels healthier and softer after a luxurious wash with these products. Lastly, I finish with their 'infusion serum' (link here) which is also keratin infused...I've just finished it buy you can find it here.

I always buy this brand as I feel like it is one of the very few hair care brands that actually restores the health of the hair, not just cleaning it.

Have you guys ever tried any of the Coppola Keratin Complex products?

Let me know! x x xx

Philip B Oud Royal Mega Curl Enhancer

Good Afternoon Lovely Ladies, 

This week I have been going crazy for one hair product in particular - Philip B's Oud Royal Mega Curl Enhancer.

I have naturally wavy hair and this product works beautifully in bringing out the best of your natural bounce and at the same time stopping frizz.  This beautifully scented, thick cream just needs to be run through damp hair and then I lightly scrunched the ends up to enhance my natural wave..

Philip B Oud Royal Mega Curl Enhancer

I know the image quality isn't great - but hopefully you guys can see what an amazing job the Mega Curl Enhancer did on making my hair wavy.

I can imagine if you have naturally curly hair that it work even better as on my wavy hair it did a fantastic job that I'm so pleased with.  A little product goes a long way and I just needed a small blob to achieve the effect in the picture above.

The mega curl enhancer costs £30, which though is a little pricey, but well worth the money as it transforms your hair giving it a beautiful bounce.  I can't wait to explore more of the Philip B range as this product really did make my hair deliciously soft, wavy and with a to die for scent!

Philip B Oud Royal can be purchased (here) for £30 from www.lookfantastic.com

*PR sample

mini haul! MAC kiss me quick & Illamsqua foundation

Mini Haul!

The really hard thing about working in Soho, London is that it is just FULL of amazing makeup stores.  This makes lunch time extremely exciting but also extremely expensive - somehow today ended up with a mini makeup haul!

I treated my self to a lip pencil which I have heard raved about so much in the blogosphere - MAC pro longwear lip pencil in Kiss me Quick (link).  I also thought I would try out Illamasqua's Skin Base foundation (link) which not only is apparently undetectable in HD but also has a great range of shades especially for more European and Asian skintones.

Illamasqua skin base retails at £27.00 and Mac lip pencil at £14.00

I'm really looking forward to using this Mac lip pencil and Illamasqua foundation as I feel like they're the perfect pieces of makeup to add glamour to an occasion.  I've heard the mac pro long wear lip pencil looks great used over the whole look as it stays put all night without budging after a glass of wine.  Its throbbing red colour is simply delicious and really is asking for kiss.

As for the Illamsqua foundation, I'm really looking forward to trying out its high quality finish which I've heard leaves an absolutely perfect finish.  All in all, I am definitely looking forward to painting the town red with these too devilishly gorgeous makeup products!

LBD little black dress for Aqua Hutong

Morning my lovely ladies!!

Last night I went for a beautiful dinner at Aqua Hutong at the Shard on level 33.  It's a beautiful,  Northern Chinese restaurant that I had been dying to try out and I have to say the food was incredible and the service impeccable! (I would definitely recommend the mixed dim sum and the monkfish!)  I can't reccomend them enough - see their site here http://www.aquahutong.co.uk/

So I thought I'd pull out a LBD for the occasion.  This LBD is last seasons from H&M but they've got similar in this year (here).  It has lace sleeves, back and detailing on the front giving a really elegant feel to the dress.

 Makeup:

•  I matched it with some cheeky lilac essie nail polish.
• Face makeup: Benefit POREfessional, YSL teint touche eclat, MAC prep+prime, dark smokie gold/grey eyeshadow from clarins and lashings of benefit BADlash mascara.

So it wasn't too over the top, I matched it with some gold ballerina shoes covered in black lace from Pretty Ballerina.
I hope you guys like my LBD look!

Scandal eyes retro glam SHOCKING RESULTS

 Afternoon!

I have what you guys might call a mascara addiction. Class A.  I currently own : 4 Dior Mascaras, Benefit badGAL, Benefit They're real, Lord and Berry Scuba Extreme, Bobbi Brown Everything, No17, Dolls eyes... and yet I STILL bought another mascara.  Rimmel Scandal Eyes retro glam.  But its cheap and the ads everywhere forced me to buy it...?

See below for the SHOCKING RESULTS in the review !

Review: 1/10   10/10

So, I opened it up and immediately hated the wand.  I started applying it and found the huge bush brush far to awkwardly shaped and massive to be able to apply the mascara properly.  The finished result looked great, but already in my head I was planning a viscous little review about it because I was so annoyed about the imprecise brush (little B*%ch aren't I?).

So, this is the interesting part.  I had applied it at 7am, not looked in the mirror all day and got back at midnight.  The MASCARA HAD NOT RUN / SMUDGED OR MOVED A SAUSAGE. So, that was a whole 15 hours and it still looked PERFECT at the end of the day.  I kid you not.  

I no longer care about its stupid wand, I have never ever had a mascara with great staying power like I have with Scandal eyes!  Not only that, it is ridiculously cheap and available in most drug stores.  

Look how long and black they are! Dead impressed!

I would recommend this to ANYBODY.