A new start.

Ladies,

I'm sad to say my time writing this blog has sadly come to an end.

I'm sure this was all pretty obvious a while back when my posts were reduced to about one per month, and I never really had a chance to write as much as I wanted because I'm just too busy. I still always read everyone's blogs and comment when I can though!

:(

I've loved being a beauty blogger and speaking to so many lovely people through it, but sadly I have a new project that's going to be taking up all my time...

I'm going travelling!!

Yes, somehow I'm going to have to limit my makeup stash to the bare minimum, ditch the heels, and live out of a suitcase for four months without my home comforts I once treasured so much!

Anyway, I have a new blog and twitter to update with my stories when I can: http://little-lost1.blogspot.com/ and www.twitter.com/little_lost1 so, if you're interested in reading about my travels, please do follow and chat to me on there. I've still got 8 weeks to go until I leave, so plenty of time for catching up and chatting before I go!

Keep in touch please...

Nicola xXx

P.S those are not my nails ;)

Spending ban and customising things!

Afternoon ladies, I hope you're all having a great weekend :)

I just wanted to give an update on my spending ban as I've noticed a few things.

Firstly, it is virtually Impossible to not spend anything if you are going shopping with other people, and secondly, I'm crap at sticking to the rules BUT I have only bought 3 things in about a month. Is that good? Probably not. Oh dear....

One was a dress which I really needed for an event at work (which I couldn't go to in the end!) it was only £30 and I love it. I'll put up pictures when I get round to wearing it. The other two things were vintage shorts and a shirt that makes me look like a 'goat herder' apparently. Nice!

I've decided that if I really have the urge to go shopping I'll just have a mooch around vintage or charity shops instead. That way I don't buy loads, and I love vintage one of a kind things so it's all good.

Also, I've been customising a lot since the spending ban which I'm very happy about! I love getting creative when I get the time, designing and making outfits. Here's my most recent creation, I made some patches out of old dresses and used them to jazz up a pair of plain skinny jeans:

They look much better on, promise!

My next project will be replacing the buttons on a plain oversized cardigan with some big vintage pearl buttons I lovingly pinched from Big G's button stash. Love it.

Is anyone else a vintage lover or hardcore customiser or am I just a big cheapskate?

I am FreeFrom!

Hello lassies!

Again, apologies for the lack of posts. I'm just going to stop saying this soon because I'm never going to have the time to write more frequently :(

I know this isn't exactly fashion or beauty related, but you have to mix it up a bit! Plus, you know I love my food!

Basically, I have all these stomach/food problems bla bla you've heard it all before. ANYWAY, the lovely Jayne from my work (and Sainsbury's) has heard me bang on about all of this enough, so she sent me a very generously filled hamper full of Sainsbury's FreeFrom food and recipes for me to get stuck into.

For anybody who's not familiar with the FreeFrom range, it is basically a heap of food especially for people with different food intolerances like wheat, gluten, dairy, etc (what else is there?)

At the moment I'm cutting down on my gluten intake and avoiding any dairy or eggs, so I was particularly excited about the chocolate and cakes in this lovely selection.

I wanted to try a week eating one or two different meals from the range every day but I got a stupid stomach bug half way through the week so I wasn't able to stick to this. However, I still ate quite a lot of them- pre sickness, so here's a little of what I've tried so far...

Chicken Hotpot

(At work!)

Don't judge it on it's looks (although, as a Southerner, I've never had hotpot so I'm not sure what it should look like!) It was very tasty but not quite filling enough for me, I had to have a slice of FreeFrom bread afterwards to fill me up! 3/5

Hot Cross Buns

I loved these buns. I ate all four in two days. FATTYYY. They tasted just like regular hot cross buns, really fruity and full of flavour. I just toasted them and added a bit of dairy free butter and they were delicious. I'll definitely be buying these again! 5/5

Crimbles sage and onion Stuffing Mix

I was really excited to try this as I love my stuffing and I refuse to eat a roast without it! Sadly, I was a bit disappointed when I used it to accompany our roast chicken last Sunday. None of us could eat it! There was far too much sage and the after-taste was so bitter it really took away from the rest of the lovely dinner :( Regrettably, I can only give it a 1/5

Crimbles Bakewell Slices

These cakes were AMAZING. As you can tell by the picture, they didn't hang round for long. Still, longer than the caramel shortcake biscuits which didn't even make a photo!

I've eaten a lot of bakewell cakes before courtesy of Mr Kipling and I would go as far as to say these were probably even better! They are quite big too, so you don't feel like you have to eat two to get your full deserts worth (is it just me that gets this?!) 5/5 definitely getting these again!

I still have lots of food to get through, but these will do for now! Has anybody else tried anything from this range? What did you think of them?

Tag- Beautiful Blogger Award (with links this time!)

The lovely Victoria sent me this award and demanded I pass it on :P So, here are my 7 random things about meeee!



1) I love singing, dancing and generally performing. Back in school I was in a ‘soul band’ (cringe at the name!) We sang some great songs, played a fair few concerts and won battle of the bands twice! Ahh memories :D

2) I don’t eat dairy or eggs. It’s not lactose intolerance it’s just one of the annoying diets I have to stick to for my IBS. My favorite food always used to be cheese! Doom.

3) I’m a massive lightweight when it comes to drinking! 2 glasses of wine and I’m gone! (Cheap date!)

4) I’m terrible at making decisions and when I eventually get round to making one it always seems to be the wrong one! I need a life advisor!

5) One thing I do know and have always known is that I really want to travel the world. There are so many amazing places out there I feel like I need to see every single one of them! I’m a proper hippy at heart, I can’t wait to let go of all my material possessions and do tons of crazy stuff while travelling :D

6) I’m a bit of a germophobe. I’m ill loads but if someone else is ill I can’t stand it I have to run away from them. My immune system is bad enough on it’s own I can’t be dealing with someone coughing all over me! Haha.

7) Although I’m a happy person (contrary to popular belief…) I do cry a lot. I can’t bottle it in! I cried at strictly come dancing last night, that’s how bad it’s gotten!

Well, I hope you enjoyed my random 7 things. What are yours? I tag these beautiful bloggers:

-HiFashion
-Girl with the Golden Touch
-Panda does Makeup
-Dainty Dollymix
-A Pocket full of dreams
-Lipgloss86 aaand
-Lauren Loves


Enjoy! xx

Spending ban and top 5 things

No, your eyes are not deceiving you, this is my second post of the week! I've decided to have a very lazy weekend for once making the most of having some me time :)

I have to tell you guys, I've imposed a spending ban! EEEK!

Sad times :(

It's killing me already but I really have to cut spending for a little while. I'm planning a few exciting things coming up which I will need a fair bit of money for, so in the mean time it's no more buying things I don't need and throwing money away when I have so many things already.

So from now on I'm going to be one of those points collecting, home-made soup making bargain hunters. My mother basically!

Anyway, enough rambling, here's my top five beauty and fashion favourites I've been using the past few weeks...

Garnier tinted eye roll on: The lovely Natalie at Headstream PR sent me this a few weeks back to try out (Thank you!) I was already a fan of the original eye roll on for those horrible 6.30am starts when I literally have to force my eyes to open! The formula for this version is the same in that it really makes my eyes feel fresh and more awake, but it also has a tint which helps conceal dark circles too. It doesn't give the best coverage for really dark circles as it is quite light, but it's really nice for freshening up the eye area :)

MUD lipglaze in 'Bare': A little something I picked up at IMATS and mentioned briefly here. It's the perfect peachy nude to stick on when I'm not feeling a lipstick day. It's also really long lasting and not too sticky, so a great gloss in my eyes.

No7 Colour Calming primer: I GOT A PRIMER! I've never bothered before as I don't like to spend too much time putting on makeup in the mornings, I'd rather be in bed! But this little beaut is great for smoothing out my complexion and providing me with an even colour base to counter out my blotchy red faced break outs. (Especially when drinking!) The colour is a little strong, but mixed in well with a good foundation (Revlon Colourstay mostly) it works wonders and doesn't leave me looking like the grinch. Oh and it doesn't dry out my skin too so I get a good dewy finish.

Neutrogena Rapid Clear face wipes: Ok, not the most exciting of all products, but it is a must have! These wipes come in very hand on nights when I can't face the old cleanse tone and moisturize routine . Most wipes do the job for taking off my makeup in a hurry, but these are also amazing for getting rid of spots and clearing up my skin. I had the hugest spot on my face the day before Amsterdam, then I tried out these babies and BAM, no spot. Hurrah! There is a spot fighting cure for us lazy folk after all!

And last but by no means least:

These beautiful bargains from H&M! They were about £15 if my memory serves me correctly (probably not!). I love the style, love the colour and even love the cute inside detailing. They're comfy too which I suppose is the most important part :P I can't wait until it gets a little warmer so I can wear these without my toes freezing off.

That's all for the moment. Hopefully I will still have lots to write about despite the fact that I can't really buy anything new. Hmmm. Anyway, I'm always welcome to new ideas/questions/tags/suggestions etc so feel free to send them my way.

Have a good weekend :) xx

Face painting!

They're going to kill me for this but it has to be done...

I got a little bored a while ago and started attacking my little brother and friend with some of my old make-up. It's not massively creative, just a bit of fun!

Charlie sporting a lovely (and totally masculine) lightning bolt

Tim looking so creepy with some wonky drawn on eyes

He looks too much like me when I had short hair here!

What do you think?! Does anybody else do this or do you all have much more entertaining lives? :P

New Tumblr

Hey ladies,

I've been so crap AGAIN! I literally have no time in my life right now for regular and in-depth blogging it seems. I have tried but alas, juggling a job with long hours, an on/off long distance relationship and an (occasional) social life is proving virtually impossible right now.

So, in the mean time I have turned once again to the faithful world of microblogging. It is so much quicker and easier. I originally hated Tumblr and called it the lazymans' blogger, but, now I suppose I am the lazyman, I'm finding it pretty useful for quickly popping a few notes down and a nice picture here and there!

I'm keeping it pretty broad so it's not all fashion and beauty I'm afraid, but if you fancy having a look it's here: http://little-lost.tumblr.com/ (A work in progress might I add!)

If you're a fellow Tumblr kid, feel free to follow :)

Britains next fail model

I like to try and make sure I do something different and spontaneous every now and then, so when I saw a photographer friend advertising that he needed a model for a day, I thought, why not!

Carlo and Fabiana are two of the genuinely nicest people I have ever met so it was an absolute pleasure to help them out when a model fell ill the day before Carlo was due to hold his 'Shaping Locations' course.

Anyway, I had a lot of fun, I met some lovely (gorgeous) models and I got to see some great photographers at work. I didn't even moan too much that it was freeeezing outside :P

Here are a few photos from the day *cringe*!!

Somebody order a hooker?!

Check out the crazy eye makeup! I wasn't keen on it to be honest but I posed regardless

Definitely needed a hair stylist!

EEeeek! I am certainly not model material but anyway, it was fun and that's what it's all about :)

New makeup!

This was a good weekend for new purchases! IMATS on Saturday contributed tremendously of course, and I now have lots of new things to amuse myself with until my next 'haul' (still hate that word, sorry!)

First things first, IMATS was SO busy I didn't get to go to any of the seminars, and some counters were so rammed I couldn't even see the products on offer.

The best thing about the event (aside from gawping at the amazing models) was getting to discover new products which I would never know about or get to try out.

The only word to describe this picture is FIERCE!

I was a bit in love with this one!

Babooooon!

There were a few brands that really stood out for me, including Naked cosmetics, Crown Brushes, Eve Pearl makeup and MUD.

Naked cosmetics had the biggest range of pigments I have ever seen! The come in little pots similar to Barry M and they had literally every colour imaginable. I was fascinated at how they could be mixed with water and even lip gloss and still look amazing. I really wanted to get some samples of these to try out, but I wasn't feeling generous enough to fork out the £60 they wanted for a stack of six colours.

Next there were the Crown brushes which I know a lot of bloggers have already been using and loving. I had hoped to get a brush set (with roll) for a very reasonable £20 but the crowds were so big and they wouldn't let me pay on card there which was a pain, but I will probably be buying these online soon :D

Eve Pearl cosmetics were also really impressive, the pallets were great for all complexions and also, how nice is Eve?! Sherin and I were talking to her for ages and watching her work her magic!

Sherin and Eve modelling her award which we kept calling the golden globe- oops!

Now, on to my favourites... Make up designory (MUD). I was drawn to this stall as I am a sucker for eyeshadows and they had a large range on display staring at me! I got to speak to the vice president of the company and he gave me lots of gorgeous products to sample which are so perfect for me. I got a 12 pan pallet of neutral shades which I love as well as a lip glaze and lipstick in a nude/pink colour (another favourite) and some lip liners too. So yes, extremely happy with these. The colours are brilliantly pigmented, they have a very extensive range and all the products were designed by makeup artists, so they really know what we want :)

Lots of lovely stuff to try! Also check those feather lashes I can't wait to crack them out!

Woah I have written way too much already. I have lots more to share with you but I will save it for another, more structured post, sorry!

Has anyone else tried any of these products? Am I just really slow off the mark? Probably... Still, thoughts please!

xXx

IMATS

Tomorrow. 11pm. I’m there. Who else is?

Ermmm, does it matter that I know nothing about makeup I just ‘think it looks nice and that’. Will people suss me out?

Will I get thrown out if I mention that I don’t actually use a primer, and I think more than £15 is a rip off for a foundation?

Probably.

Still, I’m going because I think it could be fun, and I hope to meet lots of nice interesting bloggers new and old Okaaay?

So let me know if you’re going and we can potentially meet up and talk makeup over a cupcake. (There better be cupcakes!)

xXx

Aussie day in Leeds

Evening ladies!

Just a quick one about my night in Leeds yesterday working with the Aussie angels who were hosting their own Australia day party.

Daisy, Kelly and Victoria were the three lovely bloggers who were chosen to host the event, we merely provided them with a budget and helped them organise whatever they wanted to celebrate in style :)

After getting off to a fairly rocky start what with being late getting to the venue, then having issues with ID and unnecessarily strict doormen, the rest of the night went much more smoothly (thank god!)

Tiger Tiger's Groovy Wonderland was kitted out to the max with Aussie flags, a ton on inflatables and of course the all important Australian celebs masks. Ahh Harold you sexy beast.

I had a great time meeting the lovely northern lot again and breaking my back doing limbo! We took loads of pictures on a very snazzy (yes, snazzy) instant camera, but here's a few others I took on my own camera which should sum it all up pretty nicely!

It was a looooong drive from London to Leeds, but with a car full of inflatables and a lot of cheesy music we made it in the end!

La ROO! I grew very attached to this little guy during the night!

Me, Harold, Harold's three chins...

Lovely ladies modelling the Aussie props there!

I've uploaded the rest to the work Flickr site, so it's here if you want to see more :)

xXx

Back in the game!

Hello ladies... Did you miss me? Feel free to lie :-)

I'm sorry for being a stranger, but you should know that during my blogging absence I've still been following all your blogs like the little silent stalker that I am just wishing I could find the time to get back into it again.
So anyway, I know I wont be able to post as much as I did over the summer, but I will give it a good shot because my god we have a lot to catch up on!
I wont ramble on with stories of the past few months, but here are a few pictures that should sum it all up pretty nicely...

I know bonfire night was ages ago but this still makes me chuckle!

The amazing goody bag I got at the Revlon Double Twist launch. It was such a lovely afternoon tea and cakes the Dorchester :) My love for Cherries in the snow has been reignited, and the new colour stay foundations are spot on!

I met some lovely ladies at the Tampax swishing party we hosted at work. Clothes, cupcakes and trannies makes for a brilliant night!

New Years eve at Punk! Was a strange night and most of it a blur, but was fun!

Snowww! It drove me mad when I had to get to work, but was worth it for the late night sledding!

Ahh it's good to be back, I've missed this crazy little community we have here :-) Oh and P.s, yes, I still haven't found a kind person to help me make my blog as buff as I had hoped, so we're stuck this this old-but slightly altered- version for the forseable future!

Peace! xXx

Under Maintenance

Hi everyone! Just a little message to say this site is now under very necessary maintenance I will aim to be back back in the new year with a new look, and a lot of new posts.
Sorry for being so slack. Happy holidays all my lovely followers, and I will be back soon :) xxx

I Don't know if you've heard but...

These straighteners are doing the rounds!

This weekend I finally got round to trying out the Remmington Wet2Straight straighteners I was sent about a week ago. I think Remmington must have cottoned on to my slight obsession with them, after my continuous plugging of the Spin Curls hair dryer (I was never sent them to review or anything, I just got given them as a present and fell in love).

I will admit at first I was a little weary, purely as despite what they say, it has GOT to be bad for your hair just blasting it with 200 degree heat and ironing it until it's dry. Still, anything that gets me more time in bed and makes my hair effortlessly fabulous is great for me once in a while (hence my love for Spin Curls!)

My first attempt was... well... a bit of a disaster. I didn't bother pinning my hair into sections as I was feeling particularly lazy, so I found it really hard to separate my wet hair and the bits I had already straightened. I also noticed that it took quite a while for the hair to dry, so ended up going over some sections so many times it ended up being more time consuming than if I had've just blow dried it first. I do have quite thick hair though, so perhaps the finer hair folk would have better luck.

In the end, after about 30 minutes of faffing about whether my hair was dry enough, I decided that it needed more heat (some bits were still damp!) and had to blow dry it some more (eek!)

I thought I would then try out the dry function, and straightened my hair some more (it really took a bashing this weekend!) and this is where it really excelled itself. The plates smoothed down my frizzy hair and made it so easy to manage. I've had GHD's for 5 years, so it takes a lot to impress me on the straightener front, but these really did. And the best bit is, the next day I went out in the rain, and it didn't frizz up or even curl at the ends. Now either I have completely destroyed my hair, or these straighteners are amazing! I'm hoping for the latter. I also noticed that it didn't get greasy as quick as it usually does, despite using heat protecting spray, and getting rained on! I hope this is a permanent thing, as I hate having to wash my hair every other day.

Sooo, here's a photo of the end result:

What's that you say? I look different? Nooo!

(Cameras broken, so you have to use your imagination...)

I have only had a day or two to play around with these straighteners, but I am keen to try again and see if I have better results with them on the wet function next time. I really like the fact that you can choose what temperature to use depending on your hair, this is something my GHD's can't offer me, and something I take comfort in when I'm feeling particularly guilty for using so much heat on my hair!

My brother (a reformed metrosexual) has been eyeing them up so I think we may be seeing a little post with him as a product tester again, watch this space!

Huge apologies for the noticeable lack of pictures, my camera is in't menders (or in my drawer waiting to be sent off for mending...) but hopefully I will have a new one soooon.

-x-

*Disclaimer* This product was sent to me by a PR company, so all the PR haters, don't read if you don't like. Mediacom sent me these to give a detailed and, most importantly, HONEST review of the product. I do not endorse any products, and I will only ever post my true opinions whether I spent my own hard earned cash, or whether they were sent to me for free, because this blog is for normal folk like you and I and that's what it's aaaalll about. Capiche?! :)

Jibba Jabba

Yessss, sorry about the lack of posts recently! Here are a few excuses for you:

• I have been working very long hours and falling asleep at 10pm
• My dad has been trying to move his new woman in and there is huge family beef
• I can only blog on weekends
• I have been ill
• My boyfriend left me for the rain forest
• I haven't bought anything
• I ran away to join the circus
• My phone broke
• The Blogging community has gone sour
• My dog ate it

Fin? Yeah, I slipped a few fibs in there too, just to keep you guys on your toes...

In other news... What the hell has been going on in our nice little on line girly community? People quitting their accounts, going mental at each other and there just seems to be lots of bad feelings going about! I think we should all remember that us bloggers are here because we enjoy it, and it's our place to be as materialistic as we like without boring our 'offline' friends/colleagues/complete strangers (?!) to tears talking about the latest Mac collection, or line at Topshop.

If you get to the stage where blogging, Youtubing or even Tweeting is just not enjoyable any more, then don't do it, just don't be run off by people being bastards to you. Unfortunately there will always be people out there who get a kick out of hiding behind a computer screen and thinking they can be as nasty as they please for whatever reason. Just rise above it that's what I say!

Honestly, why can't we all just get along and play nice? :) Good I'm glad that's sorted.

Oh wait, can't believe I forgot to mention this, my camera broke!! I am so annoyed. I took it out to take photographic evidence of the crazy fireworks party we had at my house and it just froze. This is the second time my little Samsung has failed me and I am not happy one bit. I'm now saving up for an SLR as I want to take better pictures, mine are frankly poo and I am well aware of this!

I will have to find a quick solution so I can work my way through the list of blog posts without having no pictures at all. And a blog with no pictures is like erm, a face with no nose...

Continuing the theme of lists... here are some blog posts which I will (hopefully) get round to writing for you woo get excited!

• A review of Remmington's Wet2Straight straighteners (once I bother washing my curly mane)
• A run down of my latest (and pretty much only) Mac products. Expect a big rant on the shitty staff in the Covent Garden store
• Some of my current obsessions
• And maybe even a video! Can I point out that I have now recorded 3, each one being worse than the last. I am really not cut out for YT, but a big part of me wants to keep trying- I think I just love to embarrass myself!

Ok that will do, it's nearly X factor time :)

In the mean time, here's a picture of me dressed as Lady Gaga which I never got to wear in the end but rest assured I will be cracking it out again sometime soon. Watch this space.

-x-

Review: Garnier HerbaShine

I finally bit the bullet, stopped being a wimp, and coloured my hair! This was a big thing for me as it took years to grow out some dodgy colours I have used in the past.

One of many being the horrible incident involving a lot of bleach, the ‘cap of doom’ and a house hairdresser- you know the ones who randomly come to your house to cut your mum/nan’s hair because they’re probably not good enough to have their own salons? Well yes, I was a very ugly grey haired 14 year old because of that!

Back to the point…

I saw this product waay back at the Garnier event where I had originally chosen a light brown. Why? Who knows. So I decided that this colour wasn’t for me, and with it being Autumn and all, I opted for a nice bowny red colour- ice mahogany brown to be exact.

I don’t know why they rave about it only taking 10 minutes, if anything I think I would prefer it to take longer so I don’t have to rush like mad to apply it before it starts developing and I end up patchy!

Still, I donned the giant sized gloves provided (why are these always so rubbish?) and started applying the colour. I did get a tad freaked out when I was applying it and it was already looking so dark and red, but I persevered anyway.

After washing it out, staining the entire bathroom (sorry Dad!) and conditioning, I was actually very impressed!

You can't really see the red that much here, but it's better than it was before anyways!

The colour is exactly what I wanted, a rich brown with subtle hints of red. Another thing I have to point out is how soft and shiny my hair is now. I was really worried my hair would feel brittle or damaged but it looks and feels lovely, even if I do say so myself :)

I hope Garnier can make this into a permanent colour so I don’t have to keep dying it now that I have found a shade I really like!

Has anyone else tried these, what are your thoughts?

Near Far

I love stumbling across new (and inexpensive!) products and designers, so when my friend at work recommended this line I got incredibly excited and I am already planning things to order!

NearFar is an ethical clothing line which works with organisations in Sierra Leone, providing the unemployed with work in the tailoring industry, and fashionistas with gorgeous inspired designs.

According to the website: "Ten years of Civil War has left the country with many uneducated and unemployed young people. Many of the tailors have lived as street children, been victims of commercial sex trade or been subjected to domestic abuse. Through building relationships with these tailors, NearFar has been able to help them profit from their skills and rebuild a life of stability for themselves and their families. NearFar’s commitment to this cause is demonstrated by the fact that 10% of all sales is reinvested into the training"

The brand can certainly prove themselves as ethical and unique, but what about the designs?

NearFar claim to provide an 'alternative to the mass-produced and an antidote to the mundane.'

This is certainly clear in their bold West African inspired prints and fine tailoring. Although the selection is small, there is still plenty to choose from including handbags, dresses, shorts and skirts, and most items of clothing come in a variety of different prints.

I am a big fan of bright, funky designs and so far I am finding it hard to decide which I like the most! At the very reasonable price of around £35 for a pair of amazing high wasted print shorts, and £55 for a shift dress, it is easy to get carried away and want a little of everything!

If this all sounds like your cup of tea (fair trade, mind!) then head over to the site at NearFar.co.uk where you will find out a lot more information that is probably much more useful than my waffling :)

Shopaholics (not so) anonymous

I think I may actually be a shopaholic!

Since finding out I have a job about 3 weeks ago I have been shopping a RIDICULOUS amount of times. I think this is due to the fact that a) I was sick of dressing like a student (leggings, massive jumpers etc) and needed more smart clothes b) I will be earning a proper wage and will no longer have to rely on the overdraft or wherever the hell else my money used to come from?!

But still, I have gone a little overboard me thinks, considering I haven't even been paid yet and probably won't be for some time yet.

Off the top of my head I can recall blowing £100 on Asos, £80 in H&M, a fair bit in Topshop and more than I had expected in Dorothy Perkins- I told you their Autumn shoes are just too good! As for makeup I haven't splashed out that much at all. I have ordered some stuff from Mac which should be arriving soon but other than that it has just been a few essentials!

Anyway, is this really bad or am I just being stupid? I've got so many more things I want it's like I've unleashed the shopping beast I had in my first year of uni again oh dear!

On a more positive note, I might do another video of just an update and show you a few of the things. This is only a maybe, I am still camera shy yet! But, yes, opinions on everything please ladies! :)

xxx

Ginger drama and rant!

Hello folks, sorry for the lack of posts recently. I'm afraid it isn't likely to be much better as I start my new job on Monday and I am going to be busy busy busy but I will try and make time to blog whenever I can!

Back to the point...

I wanted to share with you my traumatic experience I received today, while having my hair cut at the Ginger Group hair salon in Enfield. For those who haven't heard of them you can read more info here.

The reason I went is because I have given up trying to grow my hair (of course) and wanted a nice wavy bob after seeing this picture:

*drools*

HOWEVER, I had a bad experience at my local salon (run by middle-aged chavs) after they cut my hair wonky and not short enough. I know, I know, but I was drawn in by the (very) cheap price.

So, of course I needed it done again and chose the Ginger Group as I didn't want to go to Tony and Gay and Adee's salon was booked up. Limited options!

It started off all well and good as a nice not-too-young-not-too-old 'Senior stylist' invited me over for my consultation. I told her all about my wonky barnet which she blatantly thought I did myself, and showed her a few pictures whilst subtly suggesting that if she mucks it up I will be one un happy customer.

THEN I had this chap give me the most vigorous shampoo known to man with scolding hot water. I literally thought he was trying to rip my head off or probe my brain with his bare hands. "Is this Ok for you?"

Well, I have no skin left on my head and you've given me a headache, but please, continue!

The next few minutes were a little better, the hair cut was good, no "Wevvers noice t'day aint it!?" and I felt like she was actually concentrating on what she was doing instead of just hacking away at my precious bob.

It all turned rather sour when she offered me the option of curling my hair (supposedly like in the picture above) instead of having it blow-dried straight.

Marvellous.

Little did I know that what she actually meant was she will spray an entire bottle of product on my hair, scrunch it, then sit me under a heater for 30 minutes whilst she went off on FACEBOOK! So as I sat there cooking under the dryer which was clearly failing at drying my hair, she went off for her break and popped back once or twice to whack another 10 minutes on the clock.

Eventually I got so annoyed with sitting watching my hair drip dry and not curl AT ALL, I decided to confront her and say that it wasn't what I asked for and that I just wanted her to dry it so I could leave.

By this point I had a complete frizzy mess and I was so red from the heat (and anger) I just wanted to run to my car and cry. She then tried to make things better by offering yet more product and scrunching it with her fingers which reeked of cigarettes, then making my hair smell too.

I was so angry and grossed out by my disgusting cigarette smelling hair that I just got up gave her the money and left as soon as I could! I paid more because I asked for a senior stylist, instead of a graduate, but honestly wish I hadn't bothered. When I got home and told my friend who said I definitely should have complained. I really wish I took a picture of the mess she created, but I had to wash my hair straight away to get the smell and product out! If your looking for a rough idea, this demonstrates it quite nicely:

Image lazily stolen from google images...

What do you guys think I should have done? I wasn't in the mood to argue I was so pissed off and wanted to cry!

Thanks for reading my massive rant, I love venting to you guys. xx

F.A.B Top Rated

Yes, its that time again!

Cheesy title AND a list of products/random things I am loving at the moment. Lucky readers :-P

1.) Aussie 'the best smell in the world' miracle shampoo and conditioner. I can't actually get enough of this stuff since receiving my samples at the Aussie event. Originally I could never understand how people could pay about £3/4 for a bottle of shampoo (cheapskate) but now every time I wash my hair it is so worth it! The gorgeous sweet, nutty smell lasts for days, even after blow drying and using products. I have actually caught myself sniffing my own hair at times. Slightly obsessive me thinks?!

2.) Maybeline dream mousse blusher. When I first saw this I thought it was something I wouldn't be using much, as it looked shocking pink in the pot and I had never tried a cream blush before. I live a sheltered makeup life... Anyway, I gave it a go and rubbed a little in onto my satin finished skin et voila! Instead of causing a blotchy, cakey mess, I got a lovely natural and surprisingly subtle blush. I will definitely be repurchasing this once its gone!

3.) Mini dresses and boots. Yes, the celebs were doing it ages ago, but I'm still not bored of it. Effortless sexy glam, a la Alexa Chung.

4.) Dorothy Perkins shoes. How good is their AW collection? I already bought two pairs! *Slapps wrists* And they are offering a generous 15% discount for students on certain collections so I say the more the merrier!

5.) Scholl Crackling Ice foot spray. This stuff is actually insane. I think Scholl may have actually created a weapon with this stuff. Remember popping candy, or space dust? The stuff that looks perfectly harmless until you put it on your tongue and your head feels like its going to explode from all the popping?! Well, this is essentially the same thing but in a mouse and supposedly for your feet. I say supposedly because, unless you suffer from numbness of the foot, or you never react to being tickled, then it is virtually impossible to spray it on your feet without feeling like your getting the tickling attack from hell! It's not just me who bursts into hysterics every time I use it, I have attacked various family members with the stuff and since been accused of 'foot rape'.

However, after you get over the initial 'Oh my god what is happening to me' feeling as the mouse crackles and tingles on your skin', it actually leaves you feeling pretty good and I have since found myself getting a little addicted to the crazy sensation and going back for more!

Alternatively, if you don't want to use it on your feet, as I said, it makes a very good mace for self defence purposes! :P

I think I'll leave it there with all the talk of macing! What are you all rating at the moment? Shaare! :)