Over the past few weeks, I've had bright pink nails, bright yellow nails, coral nails... With so many bright colours lately, I felt like going back to something a little more muted, and settled on Shimmer Sky by DND.
I was about 15 when I first read about permanent straightening treatments in CosmoGirl. With big, fluffy, unmanageable hair, it seemed like my ultimate dream... and one I'd never achieve. As I got older, I looked more into these treatments and discovered keratin treatments, sometimes known as a Brazilian blow dry. They promise to leave hair straighter, shinier and simpler to control. It still felt like a distant dream, until I started making regular hair appointments for blow drys (and started using the phrase 'my hairdresser' when talking about a specific person). I realised it was a self-imposed block stopping me getting my dream treatment. I wasn't the sort of person who got my hair done, so I stuck to that narrative. As soon as I developed a good relationship with a hairdresser, I realised it wasn't actually a big step to book myself in for the keratin. Now, having just had my second treatment and being blown away by the results, it's time to share my experience.
WHAT IS THE KERATIN TREATMENT?
The most important thing to note here is that, contrary to what CosmoGirl told me, keratin isn't actually permanent straightening. It's not going to keep your hair straight no matter what you do to it. It will still go curly after washing, it will just be quicker and easier to straighten after. At least, that's what I was told when I booked my appointment. In reality, it totally did stay straight after an entire day at a waterpark dunking my head under the water and washing it afterwards, and I nearly cried from disbelief. But more on that later.
I've been blogging for a long ol' time now and for the past few years, Too Faced's Better Than Sex mascara has been getting a lot of love. I'd been strictly a Benefit mascara kinda girl for a long time but when my last bottle of They're Real ran out, I decided to see if Better Than Sex was worth the hype. Spoiler alert: It is.
I'd stayed clear of Lush Daddy-O Shampoo since the packaging specifically mentions grey and blonde hair which obviously I do not have. However, I absolutely love the scent of violets so eventually decided to give it a go, figuring that while it's great for blonde hair, it's not like brunettes can't use it.
Last summer, when I went on my solo trip to Austria, I popped into the Vienna Lush and they offered me a sample of any product. Because my feet were a bit sore from all the exploring, I chose to try out a foot cream and went for Softy Foot Lotion based purely on the fact that it's lavender scented. I was pretty impressed so as soon as I finished my pot of Pied de Pepper, I went straight out and bought a full sized bottle.
I was blessed with inheriting my dad's thick, dark hair. Not only on my head but also all over my face. Cheers, Jeremy! Since I was 15, I've spent my days bleaching, waxing and plucking it to try and achieve smooth-faced silkiness, but I've always intended to undergo laser hair removal at some point. In fact, it's one of the 101 in 1001 goals I wrote three years ago. As fate would have it, Skin Image Manchester got in touch to ask if I would like to review one of their laser hair removal treatments. This was my chance and I was going to grab it with both hands! I felt a little apprehensive, but this was something I'd been planning for fourteen years, so I was going to conquer my nerves and go for it.
THE CLINIC
The more perceptive amongst you may have realised that Manchester is nowhere near me. However, my brother lives up that way and it had been a long time since I'd paid him a visit so I figured this was my perfect opportunity to finally make the journey up north. I treated myself to a hotel near Piccadilly Gardens and this turned out to be a good choice since the clinic is only a 10 minute walk away, just off from the Town Hall. Inside, the clinic is bright and airy, with squishy sofas to relax while you wait. The staff are friendly so even though I was a little nervous, I was put immediately at ease.
There was a time when I refused to touch a product before I'd photographed it. Evidently that time has passed. You won't judge me though, will you? I bought Botanics Hydration Boost Micellar Cleanser after having trouble with the product that I thought was the perfect solution- Garnier Oil-Infused Micellar Water. After having problems with dry, flaky skin on my face, the oil-infused cleanser worked beautifully for weeks... and then suddenly things got even worse than before. My face started getting feeling really tight after use and flaking worse than ever. I switched to this and everything has settled down again. What a relief!
Did you know that when you order from the Lush Kitchen, you can request samples? I'm not sure if it works for standard Lush orders or just the Kitchen, but if you pop a nice, polite little note asking for samples, they'll usually do it. Rather than list specific products, I like to ask for things like 'your favourite products' or 'the best summer products'. When I asked for the latter, a little pot of Salted Coconut Hand Scrub was snuggled up inside my package. After trying it, I loved it so much that I bought a full sized pot.
Knowing I had a couple of trips ahead, I was sensible and took a pale pink colour to my nail salon. While I was there, the staff started looking through their new deliveries and found this cute colour that was almost identical to the one I'd brought with me. They wanted to try it out and I liked the idea of being the first person to wear it, so I put my own bottle away and had this instead- Bedtime Aura by IBD.
I have a confession to make. Until now, I'd never tried a subscription box. I know, I know. I'm not worthy of the blogger title. But the good news is that now, thanks to Curated Combination, I can finally say I've experienced the excitement of opening up a beauty subscription box!
After having bright pinks and corals for my last few sets of nails, I felt like going for something a little more understated this time. I had a few different colours in mind and couldn't decide which, so I just stuck my hand in the bag and went for the first one I pulled out- Essie Go Ginza. (Yes, I have a bag of nail varnishes. I need some sort of actual storage system but, for now, a big Boots carrier bag under my dressing table will do).
Go Ginza is the palest lilac shade which is almost white under some lights. I love this because it seems to be a different colour every few minutes- from lilac, to grey, to white- and each one is really pretty. This also makes it really versatile so I don't need to worry about my nails clashing with my outfit. To be honest, this is not something I ever worry about, but it's still nice when they work well together. As with most Essie nail varnishes, Go Ginza is opaque from the first coat, so there are no patchy or streaky bits, and it has a lovely glossy finish.
I'm so glad I pulled Go Ginza out of the bag. The pale, delicate shade is beautiful and I can't stop staring at my nails!
Before we last went to Salzburg, I suddenly realised that I'd run out of primer. Rich was going into town so he offered to stop off and buy a new one. My plan was for him to pick up a replacement Bare Minerals Prime Time, but it's not stocked in my local store so Rich had the challenge of finding a suitable replacement. Bless him, he tried but he was completely overwhelmed and ended up being convinced by the salesman that the primer containing 'actual flakes of gold'- Yves Saint Laurent Touche Éclat Blur Primer- was the best one. As it turns out, he made a pretty good choice!
I often choose my nail colour with the weather in mind, so when it looked like we were going to have a nice, bright spring, I went for this gorgeous coral shade. Then the clouds and rain rolled in... At least it's nice to have colourful nails, even if the weather leaves a lot to be desired!
When the Lush Kitchen opened in 2014, this was one of the first products that caught my eye. Unfortunately I wasn't fast enough to snap one up, and although it's appeared several times since, it has always evaded me. Until now. Finally, finally, I managed to get hold of one!
A few months ago, I managed to score a bottle of Lush 29 High Street Shower Gel in the Kitchen and it was the most exciting thing ever. Without a doubt, it was my favourite ever Lush scent because it is literally the smell of the stores. I know a lot of people moan about it but for me, it's a fragrance that always makes me happy. Then I heard a rumour that you can buy bottles of perfume with the same scent... but they're only available in the original Poole shop. Well, as you may remember, I visited the Poole Lush Spa a little while ago and what do you know? It's true! I snapped up a bottle and I am absolutely in love with it!
Because I'm very organised (hah!), I bought some nail wheels or whatever those things are called to catalogue all my nail varnishes. When I was flicking through trying to choose my next colour, my eyes fell upon Essie Buy Me a Cameo, which was a gorgeous metallic rose gold. Unfortunately, it didn't quite turn out that colour on my actual nails.
There's nothing I love more than a themed Lush collection. The Valentine's range this year was so good that I didn't believe the Mothers' Day one could compete. After all, it was hugely disappointing last year. What do you know, I was wrong! There's a huge number of products- if we include knot wraps and gift sets, there are over 20 products, and most of them have never been seen before. Exciting stuff!
I've wanted a Lush massage for years but somehow it never quite happened. When I eventually booked one in Liverpool during the summer, it was cancelled when staff discovered on the day that they'd double-booked the therapist. It wasn't until the end of February that I finally managed to experience it. Thankfully it was worth the wait!
Since Helen offered me some of her nail varnishes, I've had the perfect excuse to experiment. She's much more adventurous than me so I've ended up with lots of exciting glitters, as well as colours I don't tend to gravitate towards, such as greens and blues. I was fully planning to go well out of my comfort zone with an incredible purple glitter... and then I reverted to the pink. In my defence, I thought pink would be more appropriate for Valentine's Day and I fully intend to go for the glitter next time!
Is there anything more exciting than Lush seasonal collections? Last year I was pretty disappointed with the Valentine's Day range but I'm a lot more impressed this time round. There's more choice, for one thing, and the products look super cute!
