Katie Snooks

It's got to that time of year where I start to feel super summery and always accidentally end up purchasing a whole new summer wardrobe to go along with my excitement. There's something about it getting darker later (getting home from work at 7pm and it still being light outside is insane), paired with the slightly warmer weather & more outside activities that gives me so much joy.

One of my favourite places on the high street for a good quality, affordable wardrobe is New Look. I can always, always without fail find things I like in the store and always end up splurging - from shoes (the best on the highstreet I reckon) to bags and tops, I adore it. They've recently launched their new Tropical Surf range and so here is my inspired outfit!

I wore this look out for a nice walk around the park with my boyf last weekend and it was lovely. The sun was shining and it even ended in a piggy-back ride (which was hilarious).

I chose a bright neon-pink/orange jumper for the look, which I have fallen in love with and can't stop wearing. I'm normally a bit of a goth & wear black all the time and so this was a nice change. I teamed it with some acid wash denim shorts, black sandals, a bright pink/orange satchel sandbag to match the jumper & a bandana (Andrew actually was the one that made me get this but I'm not gonna lie, I've been loving wearing it).

I adore this look and can not wait to attend picnics, BBQs and festivals sporting some of these items!
For all the latest trends and style inspiration visit newlook.com

Do you love New Look too? What's your favourite colour to wear in the summer?

xxx

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by New Look via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of New Look.

Some of you may know that I have a degree in photography - it's one of my main passions and having studied it for three years at university it only deepened my love! I'm super lucky now to have a job that (as well as incorporating my social media skillz) also allows me to be really creative and have some amazing opportunities.

Well, for the past couple of months at work I've been organizing a photoshoot for Marcus Butler's new merch! I was the photographer on the shoot, which happened on Brighton Beach. Modelling the range was obviously Marcus and his gorgeous girlfriend Niomi (who has just started her own channel here) as well as my beautiful blogger pal Olivia (blog here) and my actor friend Karl (who recently finished filming abroad for the new season of Game of Thrones!
See some of my favourite pictures below:

The merch itself is awesome; high quality and quriky designs (my favs are the grey Marky Butt Butt t-shirt and the black beanie) - the hoodie is also ridiculously soft and cosy inside.

You can see more pictures and purchase the products on the store here: www.marcusbutlershop.com

Do let me know what you think of my pictures! I'm super proud of them and if you would like to see more, let me know as I've been doing a couple more shoots recently that I can show you!

Would you like to see more of my photography?

I'm one of those girls who, if they get something in their head about their hair, acts on it immediately. I was quite happy with ridiculously bad roots until one day when I realised it looked rubbish and so quickly booked an appointment at Jones and Payne. My sister had been there before & liked the results, and it is coincidentally practically opposite my offices in Shoreditch - fate!

I wanted to get my roots blended in a little better with highlights, as well as a trim as the ends were looking like they needed some lovin'. Here are some before & after pictures!

It's a subtle, but healthier transformation, I think you'll agree? I had Charlotte Barlow do my colour - she used the balyage technique to softly blend highlights into my roots, followed by a toner on the ends of my hair to soften the platinum tones. I then had Master Stylist Chris Sturdy trip my locks to look healthy but keeping length and making it more easy for me to style. I must say, he was one of the only hairdressers which didn't cut TOO much of my hair off, for once.

The salon itself was lovely - there are cocktails for all (I had perhaps the most delicious strawberry belinni I've ever tasted). It's a quirky little place, with lovely (and attractive!) staff and I would definitely visit again.

Have you ever been to Jones & Paynes? Do you like the (small) change?

xxx

Tartan top - Glamorous, Skirt - Primark, Tights - Primark, Boots - Boohoo, Coat -Choies.

I've become a little obsessed with tartan in the past few months - can't get enough of it. I picked up this top from Glamorous. It's a slight crop top with long sleeves and looks pretty cool paired with skirts/shorts or even disco pants. I teamed it with a simple black skirt from Primark, boots and my new favourite coat from Choies.

After ordering this coat I suffered from a bit of shoppers guilt/remorse, until it actually arrived and I fell in love with it. It's simple and easy to wear but also quite mature as well which I like. The length is also perfect for my petite frame.

This outfit is perfect for those days where it's not quite hot enough to bare all and it's super comfortable also!

P.S I was wearing this when I met Harry Styles so thought I'd pop in a picture... totally not boasting or anything ;)!

Are you a tartan fan?

A couple of years ago I was a complete Bobbi Brown virgin, but they are now popping up in my makeup bag more and more. I'm now a sucker for their base products; foundations and concealers especially, so when I heard about this new Skin Foundation Stick I couldn't resist!

I really adore this product and it has become a staple in my makeup bag, not only for main foundation application but also for touch ups throughout the day. It's easy to use in a stick format, which twists up easily when you need more. I've found in the past with some stick foundations that they really accentuate and cling on to dry skin but with this one it blends perfectly into my skin, leaving any imperfections covered, but my skin also looking natural and not cakey at all (as you can see above).

I'm really impressed by the shade range available - from the palest ivory to darker tones there is a shade for everyone. I find getting a good foundation shade really difficult because I'm super pale, but I'm a 'Porcelain' in this product which is the second from lightest shade.

To apply, I simply draw lots of lines on my face, especially around nose and problem areas, and then buff into the skin with a Real Techniques or Zoeva face brush. I also think these would be perfect for contouring - as they are in stick formula, you can choose one a shade lighter and some shades darker to add some definition to your face shape.

The new Skin Foundation Stick is available for £29 from Bobbi Brown - I highly recommend!

Have you tried any Bobbi Brown Foundations before?

xxx

I wasn't going to do an outfit post for this look but after prancing around my local park, my boyfriend Andrew ended up taking these lovely snaps which were too good not to post!

Kimono (here), White Jumper (here), White Skirt (here), Backpack (here), Wedges (here).

I've never owned a kimono before but this is ridiculously comfortable and also colourful (I've been trying to be less 'monochrome' and more 'colour' recently) and so I couldn't resist. I paired it with a white jumper, white skirt with crochet detailing on the bottom, my new favourite wedges and backpack - all from New Look.

Also - I've never realised how versatile Kimonos are - this looks just as good teamed with black jeans and a plain tee, as well as over dresses. Thanks again to my gorgeous boyf for taking these (you can check him out o'er here).

Do you like kimonos? How do you style yours?

xxx

It's always a big dilemma for me when beauty shopping - to go for a product which is affordable but a little plain, or something expensive and extravagant which makes me feel sophisticated when pulling it out of my makeup bag - it's a bit of a brain vs heart thing.

When Voucher Codes got in touch about their new SOS (Steal or Splurge) Box, which contains 3 lipsticks, concealers and mascaras, all from different price brackets, my inner-product tester-outer became really excited. I've taken the challenge on to see if the extra money is actually worth it, and choose my favourites out of the bunch.

Concealer

Under £5 - Collection Lasting Perfection Ultimate Wear Concealer in Fair

I adore this concealer and it is by far my favourite of the bunch and also the cheapest. It has incredible coverage for even the most stubborn of spots and also matches my pale skin perfectly. Admittedly I have already been through about 10 tubes of this and that just goes to show that I really bloody love it AND it's affordable to keep repurchasing.

Under £10 - No7 Concealer

This was my least favourite of the concealers – despite being a pale shade it’s still quite dark for my skin and also hasn’t got as great a coverage as the other two. It’s a creamy stick in a tube but it takes a while to warm up and I felt it also clung on to any dry patches also.

Under £20 - Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer in Porcelain
This was my second favourite; it's a good concealer which covers imperfections well but it is a little bit too creamy for my liking. It means I definitely need to set it with a powder otherwise I feel quite sticky. I love the packaging though (there’s a tiny mirror in the lid for on the go touch ups).

Mascara

Under £5 – Miss Sporty 24h Pump Up Booster Mascara
I wasn’t incredibly impressed with this mascara. Although it’s affordable and has a nice big brush, it’s not too great at adding product to the lashes. It makes a good ‘base’ mascara (adding one of the below on top) but I wouldn’t wear just this.

Under £10 – Maybelline The Falsies Volum’ Express
This is my winner of the bunch – affordable, easy to find in on the highstreet and a really great mascara at lengthening and adding volume to my short lashes. This is buildable without being clumpy and the curved brush makes application easy.

Under £20 – Clinique High Impact Mascara
I really, really like this mascara. I think Clinique are great at creating good quality mascaras but I preferred Maybelline just because it’s more affordable. This gives me beautiful long lashes but is just quite pricey for a product that needs to be replaced every three months.

Lipstick

Under £5 – Sleek True Colour Lipstick in Russian Roulette
Sleek Makeup is possibly my favourite high street brand for their incredible lipsticks and eyeshadow palettes. I’m already a huge fan of their lippies and so this was a nice bonus to my collection – it applies with the most gorgeous pigment and lasts well.

Under £10 – Lord & Berry Lip Crayon in Fire
This was the first Lord & Berry product I’d ever tried and I was really, pleasantly impressed. This is a gorgeous, high quality product which is immensely pigmented (and also smells delicious)! I think this is my favourite of the bunch - it also smells delicious.

Under £20 – NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Red Square
I’d always wanted to try this product after hearing so many bloggers rave and review it and it lived up to expectations. The colour is the perfect postbox read but it is slightly drying on the lips so lipbalm before hand is a must.

Winners: Collection Lasting Perfecting Concealer, Maybelline The Falsies, Lord & Berry Lip Crayon!

I've loved taking part in this challenge - it's been quite an eye-opener that I didn't choose one high end product as my winner. I think this goes to show that even though packaging may be beautiful, the actual quality of the product itself might not be so up to scratch. This post has also inspired me to get thinking about other products - blusher, foundations, eyeliners and how they compare, so stay tuned for more of these posts!

Do you tend to Save or Splurge? What is your favourite affordable product?

xxx

If I had one wish (apart from the obvious more monz, good health & bigger house plz) then it would be to be able to sing. I've always imagined myself in a girl group (don't laugh) and I think I'd be pretty good in a music video, miming and all the rest.

Anyway, one day last year Andrew and I were trawling through my 'music hard drive' when we stumbled upon a particular song. I was like 'DO YOU REMEMBER THIS'? And he was like 'YES' and we both ended singing Har Mar Superstar's song in perfect harmony. It was then that the Power Lunch Cover idea was born and we have been working on it ever since...

PREMIER:

Andrew is incredible at music; he DJs, makes his own remixes and is the keys/synth player in his band Whisky Jax (they're incredible, check them out here). I too am creative, love filming videos/taking pictures/editing and so this really was a combination of both our talents combined (we hope you'll agree)!

Andrew made the backing track from scratch and we spent an afternoon in my bedroom with his recording gadgets singing the track, which he then produced into our own song. We then set on making the video, which we filmed in my local park. Thankfully we didn't get any odd stares (people must be used to this in Essex) and we had a big giggle lip syncing and trying to act saucy.

To be honest, I didn't really think before hand how it would be perceived on YouTube. I had some negative comments such as "I'm really embarrassed for you""Katie I used to love your channel but this is just weird", which did dishearten me (poor Andrew had to spend an evening convincing me that those comments didn't matter). I think in real life I'm very open, whacky and quirky that my friends and people who knew me found it hilarious whereas viewers just found it a bit odd. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is it was a lot of fun, I'm glad we did it and there are definitely more covers on their way from us - we've just spent today recording our second!

You can watch bloopers & more outtakes on Andrew's channel here.

Do let me know what you think & what songs you would like to see us do!

xxx

I was recently invited to lunch with Estee Lauder to chat about their new Bronze Goddess range over some cocktails and nibbles (I'm sure you can imagine my squeal when the invite landed in my inbox).

Estee Lauder were one of my first'premium' beauty brand splurges - I treated myself to their Crystal Baby lipstick when I was back in 6th form and fell in love with the range (it's still one of my favourite lipsticks to date)!

Their Bronze Goddess fragrance (the staple of the range) is simply summer in a bottle, but I thought I'd give an over-view of what else the range holds too...

The collection is a big'un and consists of a lot of products, all beautiful and perfect for summer in their own right. Firstly, the fragranced products - the Shimmer Oil, Body Splash & Whipped Body Creme all feature the gorgeous summer scent of coconut, vanilla and warm amber; this stuff smells like holidays.

New makeup products consist of a Cheek Glow (a universally flattering sun-kissed shade), Liquid & Powder Bronzer, a Nudes Eyeshadow Palette (consisting of 5 matte nude shades & three shimmers), 2 new Pure Colour LipShine's in Mandarin (a bright orange) and Luscious Plum as well as 6 new Nail Lacquers.

My favourites are the Shimmering Body Oil which adds the most delicate sparkle and sheen to my legs & arms, whilst also making me smell sweet. The palest nail polish (aptly named Bare) has become my go to nude nail shade and the Mandarin LipShine adds a lovely pop of colour to my lips.

The range is all limited edition and available in stores on Estee Lauder counters now, ranging from £14.50 to £50.

What do you most like the look of? Will you be picking any of it up?

xxx

I’m feeling quite mellow this evening. Mellow in the sense of calm but contemplating life and thinking about how I can improve my experiences, and myself as a person. I think this is a normal feeling to have around this time of year; to re-evaluate and think about how you want to change, so I thought I’d write some feelings down.

1) I think it’s really easy to be swept up in the moment of something and it to take over, especially these days with social media everywhere, constantly checking what other people are getting up to and comparing your life, and over-thinking & worrying about everything, but I’ve been trying more and more recently to take a step back and take a look at the bigger picture.

Take time to appreciate the small things; put my phone down and pay attention to what’s really going on around me instead of what someone else ate for breakfast on Instagram. I think doing these small things, like appreciating the sunset/sunrise (which I’ve been doing lots lately) has really made me realise how I am one tiny little speck on this planet; it’s my life and I want to be happy, and for it to be the most fulfilling I can make it.

2) I really want to start recording more memories and writing more things down. I forget so many important, memorable details which saddens me as I want to remember them all (especially when it comes to relationships and falling in love).

3) Be confident of yourself and don’t compare yourself to others. It’s easy to look at an ex of your partner and think ‘oh she has bigger boobs than me’ but you need to have faith in yourself. I struggle with this one particularly and it does get you down and ruin relationships but it’s really important not to let the past effect life now. The past happened and is over and (thank to the lord) it doesn’t make it’s way back into your life. This ties in with trying not to worry about things that haven’t or won’t have happened yet – there’s no point in worrying about something that might not even happen, it’ll just play on your mind, make you sad and not a nice person to be around. Be confident in yourself; think about all your good points, what you have to offer and love yourself.

Now obviously saying these things are so much easier than actually doing them. If my mum was to take over my blog now, she would say about how much I've recently not listened to my own advice - the amount of time I've spent being so upset and down because of the past is just completely ruining now and the future. But, I know these are my faults and I'm working on them!

I hope this post makes sense. It's really quite a ramble but if it makes one person feel just a bit more positive I'll be happy.

Katie xxx

It prom season coming up and I was feeling inspired to create a standout-ish party makeup look! I'm going to say now, this is possibly my favourite tutorial that I've ever done (as well as this one). It's a gold glitter smokey eye, teamed with pale Barbie pink lips which is eye-catching and irresistible!

Although this looks pretty impressive, it's actually really easy and relatively quick to do. Watch the video below to see how I created this look!

I wanted to use mainly affordable products that anyone can find on the high street to create this look, and also ones which are long lasting so you can really go to town and party all night without worrying about it all falling off your face at 1am.

My two favourite products in this tutorial are the Urban Decay Heavy Metal Loose Glitter and Lipcote. The glitter is available in a large variety of colours and is really easy to use with the Bondage Adhesive; simply apply the glue and tap on the glitter, building up layers until you're happy with the look.

I paired the glitter with pale pink lips, Sweetheart Pink from The Body Shop and sealed it in with Lipcote, which helps to prolong the colour and stop it from smudging. The trick is to apply your lippie, blot it on a tissue, repeat and then seal in with Lipcote for super kissable lips. This way your lipstick really gets sealed in!

Products Used:
L'OReal Infallible Foundation in Porcelain:http://bit.ly/1nFIVGL
Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair: http://bit.ly/1hHNHij
Barry M Eyeshadow in Cream:http://bit.ly/1jz8dpR
HD Brows Kit in Vamp:http://bit.ly/1omzPBp
Sleek 50th Birthday Palette:http://bit.ly/1mOI4ql
B Stunning Eye Shimmer in Golden Sand: http://fave.co/RHUVg1
Ubran Decay Bondage Adhesive
Urban Decay Heavy Metal Loose Glitter in Goldmine
(In Debenhams Stores - Alternatively
http://bit.ly/SUb9DL)
Maybelline Gel Liner: http://bit.ly/SUb9DL
Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Pencil in Black:http://fave.co/1iGvYah
Max Factor Clump Defy Mascara (50th birthday edition):http://fave.co/RHYwuo
Eylure Lashes 116:http://bit.ly/1jThkRM
Sleek Contour Kit in Light:http://fave.co/RHYZNe
Look Beauty Blusher in Sculpt:http://fave.co/1iGwDZA
The Body Shop lipstick in 210 Sweetheart Pink: http://bit.ly/1hHPALG
Lipcote:http://fave.co/1iGwYLD
Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in Transparent: http://fave.co/RHZYwX

Do let me know if you try this look or if you would like to see any more tutorials in the future! I really enjoyed creating this so I'd love to do more.

Would you like more tutorials? Have you ever tried Lipcote?

xxxx

I am a massive Real Techniques addict, I admit it! Pretty much all of the makeup brushes I own are from the Real Techniques brand, created by two of my absolute idols - Sam & Nic Chapman (aka Pixiwoo).

They've just launched their first two makeup items - palettes, one of which I wanted to share today!

There are two palettes in the range; Modern Natural and Night Owl which consist of the basic essentials you need to create a look!

I have the Modern Natural palette, which has 4 eyeshadows & a dark brown gel liner, a blusher, cream highlighter & 2 lip glosses which all work to compliment each other beautifully for a neutral golden eye & highlighted base.
I love, love, love the fact that this palette contains a gel eye liner - I've never seen this in a palette before but as I feel naked without liner, this really has everything I need to create my signature smoky eyed look, in one kit.

The girls spent time choosing and creating the exact shades, textures and formulas they wanted for the products and I can agree that the pigmentation and quality of the products are great. It makes the perfect travel companion so I don't have to carry around individual products, allowing me to easily transform a day look into a night look.

All in all, this is a massive thumbs up from me. Their palettes are only available from their website (http://realtechniques.com) for £14.86 (although it's in dollars, they do ship worldwide).

What are your thoughts on the new Real Techniques palettes? Will you be getting one?

xxx

Black Petite Peg Trousers - Asos
T-Shirt - Primark
Black Wedges - Primark

I wore this look to work last week and quite liked it so I dragged Andrew (who met me after work) to a wall of graffiti near my office to take some snaps. It was ridiculously windy and I nearly got run over a handful of times whilst posing in the road but I guess it was worth it for these pics!

It's another monochrome look (shock, shock, horror) with a white textured Primark t-shirt teamed with my favourite baggy cotton trousers from Asos. If I'm feeling lazy or need a cosy day I will wear these bottoms as it feels like I'm wearing pyjamas! I bought the wedges out for this look as well to give a more 'sophisticated' feel to the outfit.

These photos have really made me realise that my roots are horrendous and my hair is quite dull so I should probably book another hair appointment soon. I think I want to go blonder this summer (although not the white blonde I used to be) and add some more golden tones. What do you guys think? Any advice would be great as I'm terrible at making decisions!

I'll be back with another outfit post soon as I really enjoy doing them!

Any hair advice greatly appreciated!

xxx

Firstly, I'm really, really hoping my Dad doesn't read this blog post before Father's Day this year!

A perfect gift for Dad's is of course something to help tame that facial hair. My dad loves being clean shaven (especially for work, although my mum prefers him with neat stubble whenever we're on holiday) so an electric shaver would be the perfect treat. He currently uses a plain hand razor which can sometimes irritate his skin, so I'm planning on getting him the Braun CoolTec CT2s.

I've given one of these to Andrew (my partner) to test out before I get one for dad and here is what he thinks:

"I’m always somewhat apprehensive about any sort of change. Everything from big life changes to minuscule every-day routine alterations, so with that in mind changing my shaver was a big deal. I was already using another old wet/dry shaver and had been for the past two years and not really had any problems with it. The light irritation after shaving and some dryness, I had just attributed to my skin type and never believed a shaver could change this. However from first use of the CoolTech the irritation was less and although I do need other products to remidy problem areas, this shaver has certainly aided in the combat against dry skin, and my inability to face up to change!

As it's great for sensitive skin because of it's electrically cooled strip to help calm the skin, it's something Katie's Dad will love."

I don't know about you, but even though I love him insane amounts, I definitely don't show my dad enough how much he means to me. Which is why I also wanted to tell you about Braun's Father's Day competition!

This Father's Day, Braun have launched a great campaign for you to enter to win a prize that will give your dad to win the dream of their life, whether it be being a pilot and driving a plane for a day, or a family trip to Paris.

To enter all you have to do is submit a video or simply tweet saying why your dad is your hero and what his #FathersDayDream would be. Then Braun and a team of YouTubers will chose one winner to make their dad's dream come true!

You have until 16th June to enter & you have to include the hashtags #Braun & #FathersDayDreams in your tweet/video. Full terms and conditions here - http://braunfathersdaydreams.wordpress.com/

What would your dad's dream be?

xxxx

Sponsored post

After writing up a gift ideas post for Mother's Day I decided to definitely do one to help inspire those of you who find your father difficult to buy stuff for! I've put together a selection of products (with small & medium budgets) to help those who still may not have purchased anything!

Rituals
Rituals is fast becoming one of my favourite go-to bath product brands - not only is their packaging sleek and gorgeous in the bathroom, but their products are great quality and smell bloody fantastic if I do say so myself.
I didn't know this, but they actually also make products specifically for men which I thought would be perfect for Father's Day. First up is the 'Life is a Journey Car Fragrance' (£10). It's little sleek wooden brick slots onto a car's fan system and blows out a scent to make journeys a lot more pleasurable. I chose Eucalytpus for my dad as it's a gorgeous spa scent which will clear his airways (ha)!
Also from Rituals is a perfume. The last scent I gave to my dad was Viktor & Rolf's Spicebomb which he adores and so I chose out No.14 Fresh Cypress & Tangerine (£39) as another gift. It's aromatic which a hint of wood & fruit making a gorgeous signature scent.

Radox For Men
It's not only women that enjoy pampering and bubble baths! Radox have a couple of products perfect for men, such as the Muscle Therapy bubble bath - complete with ginseng & black pepper to help gently warm muscles and sooth any aches and pains. They also have a Stress Relief Bubble Bath (which my Dad could definitely do with for dealing with three women around the house) and a Radox For Men Shower Gel.

Gilette & Braun
I mentioned the new Braun CoolTec CS2 in my previous post but if your dad's a fan of the original shaver then Gilette produce great ones!

The Body Shop & Kiehls Skincare
Ever since I've starting blogging I have slowly convinced the whole Snooks family to have their very own skincare regime and one of the most willing participants is my dad! He has a special interest in eye creams and so I thought it'd be a good idea to broaden his horizons and introduce him to some Body Shop Maca Root and Kiehls skincare. All of the Maca Root range is fab (Andrew and my grandad use it as well) so my dad is sure to be a fan. Kiehls is a bit more pricey but makes a wonderful gift - their packaging looks incredible in my dad's shower room and the products are packed full of ingredients to help soothe and look after male skin.

Alcohol
And what's father's day without a little bit of licquer!

That's it! Sorry for the hefty post - it's a lot more detailed than the Mother's Day one but men are harder to buy for! I hope you have a lovely day on Sunday with your Dad's! Let me know what you end up getting him.

What are you getting your Dad for Father's Day? Would he like any of the above?

xx

I'm a ghostly shade of pale (bullies in school used to call me casper, no joke) so I find it dreadfully hard to find bronzers that don't make me look like I've been tangoed or smeared dirt up my cheeks.

I tend to have a couple of bronzers I use when I want a more defined, summer look and don't really venture out much apart from those, that was until I got Hoola-ed! Hoola is probably one of Benefit's most popular products - a universal shade of bronzer packaged neatly into a box with a little brush. The new boxes contain and mirror as well for on the go touch ups. I've always been a Hoola virgin but since getting it I've been using it almost daily.

Benefit very kindly sent me my very own personalised Hoola Bronzer along with their Ultra Plush Hoola Lipgloss which I've also been loving.

 Pale gals are probably wondering if I have any tips on how to make the bronzer work? I like to use my Real Techniques Blusher Brush to start subtly and build up the colour (it's easier to add than take away, right!) starting on my cheeks and building it up onto my temples. Add product and blend, blend blend.
If you are left with any harsh lines or marks, simply grab your foundation brush and buff some leftover foundation into the skin on the lines to even out the look.

This has become the perfect little addition to my summer makeup bag! It's available from all Benefit counters and online for £23.50. The ligploss is also very pretty adding a natural brownish hint to my lips (I'm wearing it in the photographs above). This retails for £14.50.

Have you tried Hoola? What's your favourite bronzer?

xx

On mine and Andrew’s third ever date we had the most magical weekend which included Lovebox festival, his band playing Camden, a trip up to the Viewpoint of the Shard and a stroll through Soho in the sun with icecream and kisses (I wrote about this weekend briefly here!).

Anyway, we have wanted to go back to the Shard ever since as we both loved it and it obviously holds a place in our heart and so Andrew booked a table for us at the Aqua Shard to celebrate our one year ‘first met’ anniversary.

It was simply one of the most lovely evenings I’ve ever had, I have never felt so spoilt and I honestly felt like the luckiest girl in the world to be dining with the most stunning view over looking London with the man I love.

We chose a bottle of rose to sip throughout the meal (at £42 it wasn’t cheap but helped to make me feel ridiculously posh for the evening). We both had the 'Crispy duck' main course with a side of garlic broccoli (one of my favs). Andrew loved his main, but I wasn’t too impressed (as is usually the case, I’m so hard to please with food in restuarants, I blame my parents and the standards of restuarants they’ve set me). The meal was nice but the duck was slightly chewy. The lump of raddichio cream however was delicious.

For dessert we chose the Fairground Dessert for 2 – which was so much fun. Two sets of toffee apples, marshmallows, candy floss, popcorn and a chocolate milkshake; my inner child came out and I was full of squeals. The chocolate milkshake & toffee apple were delicious but every else just average.

After dinner we watched the sunset whilst finishing our wine which I will never forget; it was stunning and I felt completely content. After wine we decided to try out the cocktails at the bar but we were whisked away by the Head of Restaurant to a smaller, more intimate and quieter bar next to the Chinese restaurant, Hutong.

Here we decided to be adventurous and ordered many cocktails, complete with chilli, lychee, berries and champagne (not all in one!) which were lovely and helped us feel even more tipsy.

All in all it was a beautiful experience, the view is just insane and completely worth it just for that. I would love to go again and visit the chinese restaurant next time for a bit of change. I recommend to anyone who likes food with a view! There are 4 restaurants in total in the Shard - have you been to any of them?

Have you ever been up the Shard? What would be your ideal date?

Xxx

Toni & Guy are a brand that I will time and time again fall back to when purchasing hair care products. They have four different ranges which cater for different types of hair styles - Casual, Glamour, Classic & Creative which I love as it makes creating new styles and experimenting exciting.

They have just teamed up with designer Matthew Williamson who has just created an exclusive beauty wash bag for Toni and Guy's Hair Meets Wardrobe. The bag will be absolutely perfect for travelling (I'll be taking it away with me on my holiday at the end of this month) with a gorgeous vibrant animal print pattern.

I just wanted to run through a few of my recent fav T&G products today!
My favourite products include the Sea Salt Spray which is just incredible for adding a soft, natural beachy feel to locks, as well as the Radiating Tropical Elixr which is a new styling oil which gives a nice high shine to your hair. Also, I know texturising sprays are allllll the rage at the moment, and this Rough Texturiser is also fab for adding some volume and grip for styles!

COMPETITION:

Now for the exciting part! I have 10 of these to giveaway to you guys who read my blog.
The prize will be the Matthew Williamson Wash bag including full size products of Toni & Guy Shampoo, Conditioner, Leave in Conditioner & Sea Salt Spray.

All you have to do to enter is follow T&G on Twitter and fill out the form below. I'll be randomly selecting 10 winners who will then receive the wash bags! Competition ends on Thursday 26th JUne

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Toni & Guy are also giving away the limited edition washbags too on their Twitter page. To enter, all you need to do is tweet them your best street hairstyle shots (either yours or inspiration) including @Hair_Wardrobe and the hashtag #MWSwag. More details here!!

What's your fav Toni & Guy products? Do you want to win the wash bag?

xx

Thanks to T&G for sponsoring this give-away!

When Tarte launched in the UK in March via QVC I couldn't wait to get my hands on some of the products. It's been a range that I've always wanted to try so I'm very happy they're now available for us!

Now, quite a few of the products in the range state that it has 12-hour staying power, which in my opinion is quite a statement. Hardly any products have the ability to stay on my face for that long without needing a top up, so I wanted to put them to the challenge.

I decided to put them to the test when Tarte sent me a '12 Hour Gig Survival Kit, including products from their range, hand sanitizer (so apt), coconut water, dry shampoo and tea. Last week I had a full day at work in the office and then headed straight out to a gig, to see The Pierces, with my family and thought it was the perfect opportunity to test out the products!

What I think:
I'll let the pictures do most of the talking! The products lasted well up until around 6pm, when eyeliner had transferred onto my oily lids and there was pretty much no sign of foundation and blusher. I should point out now that it was ridiculously hot and humid in London that day, and teamed with naturally oily skin and an office with no air conditioning, it's not surprising I was left with not much product left on.

After this point, I'll admit I had a bit of a top up but only in the coverage department before I headed on to the gig. I used a little bit of concealer around my nose and under my eyes where I felt I needed it and simpy wiped away the transferred eyeliner. The rest of the liner however was still as perfect and pigmented as ever and I didn't need to retouch.

Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Full Coverage Foundation: I am very, very in love with this foundation. I don't know how it does it, but it manages to give me an even, flawless, thick base without feeling heavy or cakey on my skin. It has an incredible shade range available (pale enough even for my skin) and it lasts for a good few hours, although not exactly the 12 hours it promises.

Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blusher in Flush: This isn't the type of colour I'd usually go for but it added a pretty hint of pink on my cheeks. As suspected, it didn't last for 12 hours at all (although I've never found a blusher that lasts more than 3 hours on my cheeks).

Waterproof Brow Mousse with brush: Love this stuff! Perfect shade for my dark brows, the brush that came with it is incredible and it made my brows look perfect all day!

Waterproof Liner with Double Ended Brush in the shade Bronze: Despite transferring onto my eyelids after around 5 hours, the flick stayed in place all day (and was still on at 11pm when I got home). The pigment was strong and easy to apply with the double sided brush. Great product - I need a black one now!

Lights, Camera, Lashes 4-in-1 Mascara: Ladies, I think I've found a new favourite mascara with this! I'm going to do a full review on this soon as I absolutely adore it, from the packaging to the brush to the formulation.

Tarte is being sold live on QVC on 19th & 20th June and I've heard from the blogger community that it sells out quickly so keep an eye out!

Have you ever tried Tarte products? What catches your eye?

xxx

I have never ever in my life used straighteners to curl my hair, let alone a hairdryer, so when ghd challenged me to use their new aura hairdryer to style my locks, I was apprehensive to say the least!

I made my way down to their HQ in Soho last week and was taught by a stylist how to use the brand new ghd aura to create a style of my choice. I obviously opted for a voluminous blow dry with a soft curl and I can't express how glam I felt afterwards. My hair hadn't felt that soft in yonks and also Andrew (my boyf who was meeting me afterwards) had never seen my hair so perfect so I felt like an absolute babe.

The next opportunity I had I washed my hair and tried to re-create! See the end result and how to below!

To create this look, follow the steps below:
1) Wash hair & towel dry.
2) Then follow with some heat protector or volumizing spritz. I used the ghd style Heat Protector Spray.
3) Roughly blow dry your hair so its more manageable.
4) Next, attach the nozzle to your hairdryer and take sections of your hair and with a round bristle brush, blow through your hair until you reach the ends, where you slightly twirl and spin the brush to create a curl at the end.
This sounds hard to explain and does take a bit of getting used to (especially as hairdressers make it look so damn easy) but it's very do-able and just takes practise. I found that it's best when I twirl the ends on a high heat, and then switch down to the coldest setting on the hairdryer and give it another blast!
5) Backcomb roots and finish with hairspray - voila!

I say:
I wanted to shout about a few things that I LOVE about the hairdryer. Firstly is that it has 'Cool Wall technology which means it has a ring of cool air around the hot air blowing out, meaning you can literally rest the hairdryer against your scalp and it won't hurt or burn. It also means you can get closer to the roots for more volumized look. It's also lighter and more quiet than any other blow-drier I've used and has a 'Cool shot' button allowing quick blasts of cold air to lock styles into shape.

ghd say:
The new ghd aura™ styling hairdryer has been designed to give you the good hair day that you deserve. It’s the first tool to offer exceptional styling benefits whilst it dries, making it easier than ever to achieve salon results at home. Innovative Laminair™ and Cool-Wall™ technologies developed by a team of ghd scientists will leave you with super-shine and luxurious volume. It’ll revolutionise the way you dry your hair!

The new ghd aura hair dryer is available from today for £145!

Do you use a hairdryer to style your locks?

xxxx

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by ghd via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of ghd.

Outfit of the Day: Tropical Surf!

MY PHOTOGRAPHY: Marcus Butler Merch!

SALON REVIEW: Jones & Paynes.

Outfit of the Day: Tartan & Beige!

BOBBI BROWN: The New Skin Foundation Stick Review!

Outfit of the day: Kimono

Save or Splurge: Mascara, Lipstick & Concealer!

LIFE: My First Music Video!

REVIEW: Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess Range

LIFE: Stuck in a rut?

TUTORIAL: How To Gold Glitter Party/Prom Makeup!

REVIEW: NEW Real Techniques Palette Swatches

Outfit of the day: Shoreditch!

REVIEW: Braun & Father's Day Dreams!

GIFT GUIDE: Father's Day & Dad's Birthdays!

REVIEW: Benefit's Hoola Bronzer Review

Date: Dinner at The Shard

GIVEAWAY: Toni & Guy + Matthew Willamson Gift Bag!

REVIEW: Testing the Tarte 12-Hour Makeup Range!

GHD Aura Challenge!