How To:

 Am I seriously writing this post?

How to cut a fringe?

This is the most straight forward of all of the home-haircare-related projects! Right?

Wrong! At least for me anyway...

No matter how hard I tried I always used to balls up my fringe when I tried to cut it at home, I either cut it too short and with a weird bowl-effect or I cut it lopsided.

After trawling YouTube for ages I found a brilliant method used over and over again, which involves a clever little trick that guarantees a straight, Zooey Deschanel type fringe (I wish) every time.

This is all you need! (and a comb, of course.)

No fancy sheers or razors required, just a super sharp pair of scissors.

1) Brush your fringe forward, plus any other stragglers that you wish to include to bulk out your fringe, if you have thin hair like myself.

2) Once you have your desired amount of 'fringe hair' clamp it together at the point where you want your fringe to end. Always cut your hair dry, if you cut it wet, it'll probably dry about half an inch shorter... and you'll end up looking like the lady from National Accident Helpline.

3) Taking the hair in the opposite hand in which you use to write, twist over and hold it flat against your head.

4) Cut in a straight line, slowly and carefully, just below your fingers. It's always better to leave your fringe slightly longer, so you can correct any mistakes... which are unlikely with this technique!

Look how much I lopped off!

Wash your hair as you usually would and leave to semi-dry in a towel...

To achieve a really thick, glossy fringe, these are the products I will usually reach for!

Umberto Giannini is a firm favourite of mine, I've been using his products for soooo many years and will always ALWAYS put his 'Instant Beauty Leave-In Conditioner' on my hair. It is a lifesaver when it comes to split ends.

Nick Chavez and KMS are two wonderful little volume and thickness boosting products I received in my Birchboxes, I will definitely be buying the full-sized versions of these soon... would you believe that I received KMS's 'Add Volume' in January and there's still loads left? A little goes a long way with luxury products!

After blow drying my hair, here is the finished look!

A dense, glossy fringe that frames the face and hides unruly eyebrows.

This is so easy to do at home, and is a great little trick to add to your at-home beauty regime which saves you lots of pennies!

Let me know if you use this technique, and tell me how you get on!

Love,
Laura xxx

Retro-Baby!

The retro/pin-up style depicts romance and kookiness! 

Big animated eyes defined by dark liner and bold bright lips make a proud statement, whereas soft delicate blush and gentle eye makeup creates a whimsical and romantic illusion.

After researching tonnes of photos of people in 'Pin-Up Era' make-up we decided that the rusty reds and muted nude lipsticks we had set aside were not going to be up to scratch for this blogpost.

So, after a quick mooch around Boots, a few new purchases were made...

Bourjois: Rouge Edition- No10

Rimmel: Apocalips
MUA: Lip Liner- Red Drama

Such vibrant, retina-burning reds!

My lovely friend, Lara, achieved this gorgeous look by wrapping a headband around her head and then tucking her loose curls into it, she pulled out a few tendrils at the front to get this beautiful glamorous style. 

As it will soon be festival season, this hairstyle would look amazing with some flowers woven into it to bring out your inner hippie!

Bright lipsticks are a must when going for a retro look.

I am wearing a brilliant new foundation by MUA, 'Undress Your Skin', a random purchase of mine this morning, it covers and blends so well, I will definitely be buying more!

Lara is wearing Rimmel's Apocalips, the colour was amazing and really clung to her lips, the only (hilarious) downside is the amount of product that ended up on poor Lara's teeth. No matter what we tried there was always a few splodges of the sticky lipgloss-style product on her teeth. Not a great look for clubbing, or for a date! 

False lashes, high arched eyebrows, bright lips and big bouncy hair are the key ingredients for recreating this fun look. The lighter the foundation and powder, the better. Anything to achieve  flawless skin, so the attention is bought to the eyes and the lips, is a must.

This is such an easy look to create and would be great for the Summer!

Love,

Laura xxx

OOTD

The past week has been a beautiful, sunny, sparkly week (weather-wise) so I thought 'Why not be a proper blogger and pick out a location to shoot some OOTD pictures?' Excellent idea!

I decided that shooting an OOTD post at our local castle would be such a cool idea! Fashion and make-up within the grounds of a half-ruined Scottish castle seemed to be the best plan I'd had since adding cream to my Bread & Butter Pudding recipe!

Then Saturday came along and it went from sunny and cool, to snowy and SUB-ZERO.

So; it was, with a heavy heart, that my friendling (Lara) and I decided that trudging up the steep embankment of a castle in the freezing sleet whilst wearing short dresses probably wasn't the most medically-safe idea. We decided, instead, to do a quick 60's style eye make-up look on Lara, and a really REALLY quick OOTD post with the fun dress I had thrown on.

I adore the quirky-ness of this dress! It was a rather nifty Primark find and is covered in cute little French Bulldogs, a breed of dog I would love to have! Their ears are so adorable!

The little collar reminds me of school-dresses but teamed with a statement ring and some very high, thin-heeled platforms makes it look a little more grown up.

I intend to wear this dress throughout the Summer, I need to tone my arms to pull the look off a bit better, but all in due course.

It takes 9 months to put on the baby-weight so it'll take 9 months to get rid of it... or so the saying goes.

 I have never laughed so much whilst doing Lara's makeup!

She has the prettiest, most gorgeous features and I am insanely jealous of her cheekbones and her jawline... but her skin seemed to change all of my highlight and contour concealers into different colours! My pearly white highlighter went bright pink when it came into contact with her skin, much hilarity ensued!

I used the Urban Decay Naked Palette 2 to achieve this light smokey look. 

Lara chose the shades:

Verve, Suspect and Busted.

The winged eyeliner was provided by M.A.C and a lovely soft 60's look was born!

(Idiots.)

Despite our plans crumbling around us, the day was fun. We got some pretty photos (see above, especially) and who doesn't enjoy a day of trying out new make-up looks?

OOTD posts might have to be left until the Summer, I'm still warming up after this one!

Love,

Laura xxx

(Special thanks to Lara, who was 'scared of your blog people seeing my face'. I think we all agree that it is LOVELY.)

Birchbox

Last month was the first month I reviewed Birchbox, it was packed full of amazing high-end beauty product samples (that have lasted well into this month). I raved about it so much and really hoped that the next box would be just as good, so I didn't have to eat my words.

It did not dissapoint!

The products in this month's box are based around London Fashion Week, from catwalk makeup to VIP hair products, this box gives you a little taster of the glamour that is LFW.

As usual, the cardboard box arrives in a larger shockingly pink box that always gives my Postie a much needed wake-up boost! I'm enjoying collecting the little pink drawstring bags that the products come in, they are currently being used as homes for all of my cotton wool pads and buds!

The first product is this fluorescent orange packet containing an invigorating nutrient-packed drink to give you a little wake-up shake when you're flagging from all of the walking around you've been doing at LFW... or, if like me, all of the walking you've been doing round Tesco looking for Orzo rice!

The drink is scrummy, it would be hard for me to only drink a small amount of this! 

I was excited to pull this beauty out of the box, I consider a 50ml sample size rather generous! This shower gel smells divine. Upon unscrewing the bottle my eager nose picked up Guava, Almond undertones and Aloe. I can't wait to use this as a pick-me-up in the morning. 

I was so excited (and surprised) to see an eye-lash curler nestled amongst all the products. I have been putting off buying a curler for years, I didn't see the point in using one, they looked scary and I always thought there was an imminent danger of them snapping your eyelashes off.

How wrong I was.

Suddenly, it looks like I'm wearing false lashes and I can see the full benefits of my mascara!

Anything that helps me achieve a professionally blow-dried look is welcome inside my Birchbox! Last month I was given KMS California's volumising spray and I can't rave about it enough. I've been using it every other day and the sample bottle isn't even half empty!

As a new Mum who definitely does not have the time to blow dry my hair with rollers, I will jump at the chance of using a product that helps me achieve that look.

A nice little extra came in the form of Gerda Spillmann's Bio-Fond Cream Make-Up, and it really does feel like cream!

I imagine that this would give you beautiful coverage, the shade is slightly too dark for my fair skin, so I've taken to using it as a contour.

It glides onto the skin with minimal effort and leaves it with a powder-like finish.

Lastly, Vichy's Thermal Spa Water is a refreshing facial spray. It moisturises and sets your makeup and is one of those must-have items for your bag whilst you're on-the-go.

(There's no picture because I accidentally deleted it and by the time I noticed the natural lighting had gone away, so any subsequent photo would have looked sub-par, so here's a link!)

I am thoroughly enjoying my subscription to Birchbox, the £10 a month subscription fee is more than reasonable, I seem to be getting such amazing products and am genuinely giddy with excitement every time I open a new box!

I cannot wait to see what's inside next month's box!

Love,

Laura xxx

Birchbox Jan 2013

Joliebox is now Birchbox!

This is the first month that I've subscribed to Birchbox (having been disappointed quite a few times but Glossybox) and I could not be more pleased with it!

Birchbox runs a £10 a month subscription service that send samples of high-end beauty for you to try, if a particular product tickles your fancy then the full size version is available to buy in their store...sometimes at discounted prices!

One thing that really impressed me is the fact that the packaging is so pretty! I know boxes aren't that exciting but I'm going to keep both, they're pretty and will make for excellent storage!

The first product I pulled out of the box is this absolutely sumptuous lip balm.

It smells like roses and blackcurrant and leaves your lips really moisturised and soft, without feeling sticky. 

Once this runs out I think I'll be re-stocking!

The next product confused me a bit... is that a lipgloss?

Nope, it's actually a cuticle repair gel.

Once I got past the thought that I was applying sticky lipgloss to my nails it actually felt nice, and smelled rather pleasant. 

Lastly, I recieved the most amazing smelling volume hair treatment by KMS California and a firming and hydrating cream by WEI.

Both products look and smell luxurious and has left me feeling that the £10 a month subscruption fee is defintely worth the money.

If that hasn't convinced you then maybe the knowledge that the more you buy, the more Birchbox points you receive, which, in turn, earns you money off!

Love,

Laura xxx

L'oreal Wild Ombres Review

(Excuse my face! Baby N was kicking the hell out my ribs whilst I was taking photos, so it was hard to look chirpy and delighted!)

I bit the bullet and ombred my hair last night! I'm so glad that I did!
It was a pretty easy process but I'd been putting it off for so long. I asked my hair-savvy followers on Instagram if they'd had any experience with it before and I got some really helpful advice, along with some mixed reviews.
I bought two packs from Boots for £6 each, which is pretty good, considering it's only going on half of my hair!
(Disclaimer!! I'm 9 months pregnant and it has come to light that dying your hair during pregnancy is absolutely fine and poses no health risks to you or your baby. Of course, your skin and allergies change whilst your 'with youngling', you should always do a 48-hour patch test before dying all of your hair, you should ideally be doing that anyway, baby or no baby. Apart from that caution, it's fine, I even asked my midwife when I was a few months along, she replied 'What do you think happens to hairdressers when they have their babies?' Good point!)

I chose shade No1 and No3. I planned to see how blonde the first shade made me, if it wasn't blonde enough then I would add the second shade a few days later, after giving my hair a bit of a break!
I loved the wild-themed packaging, and the models, as usual, are gorgeous. giving women, myself included, the delusional thoughts that the hair dye will also change their face to look like them.

Inside the box was the usual plethora of gloves, creams, dyes and powders to help lighten the hair. It came with a caution that instructed that you shouldn't inhale the powder... which was the first thing I did. It was hard not to when it rose from the packet like smoke. I spluttered a bit, but apart from that assembling the dye was very easy.

This was my hair colour before, please excuse the quality of the lighting, I've mentioned in previous posts how photo-taking in my house during night time is a no-go area. My lights make everything look yellow and orange!

The dye was easy to apply, you're given an application brush which you load with the dye and comb through your hair. I have medium to long hair so started my gradient just under my ears. I noticed my hair started to lighten straight away. I left it in for 45ish minutes, it was very obviously a lighter colour than the rest of my hair towards the end!

My shampoo and conditioner of choice at the moment is TREsemme's Keratin Smooth, which is great if you have hair that gets bullied by you on a daily basis!

Here's the end result! I wish I'd blended it a bit better, there are a couple of places where the line between brunette and blonde pretty much STARES you in the face. If I curled it it would be hidden, but I can't be bothered! I love the subtle colour it's created, I was so worried that it was going to go bright ginger!

I'm impressed with the first half of my ombreing journey! I plan to add the second shade into the ends of my hair in the next couple of days. I think it'll be more blended then and look more professional.
I'm a huge fan of this hairstyle, its a bit different, although everyone's doing it now! It adds texture and colour to an otherwise boring shade of brunette!