The Inspiration Post #2

It's time for my 2nd inspiration post of the year!  I started off thinking of a few things that were inspiring me this month, and the first couple of the month happened to be women I look up to.  As the month went on I realised I have been loving more amazing women so this has become The Inspiration Post #2: The Women Issue.

Photo from US Magazine

Beyonce

So, what can I say about Queen B?  She is a powerhouse and a very inspirational woman.
Most recently she has been inspiring me with her energetic songs and powerful performances, just making me think WOW - if she can do it so can I!  She loves to break the rules, works so hard and does it all with so much confidence.  And not gonna lie, I still love watching her autobiographical TV movie, Life Is But A Dream.

As Beyonce once said, 'The most alluring thing a women can have is confidence.'

Victoria Beckham
What I love about Victoria Beckham is that she has such a strong work ethic which has got her to where she is today.  She is experiencing amazing success with her fashion company Victoria Beckham and it is one of the most talked about shows at New York Fashion Week.
This didn't all happen overnight for Victoria and she really worked so hard to make the company a success, initially introducing wardrobe staples such as a basic dress and making them effortlessly stand out.
And of course, she is a Spice Girl!!  Every girls dream.

'I want my kids to have a good work ethic.  I believe you can achieve anything if you work hard enough to get it.' Victoria Beckham

Photo from Elle UK

Emma Watson

Ok, this is one amazing woman.  I've loved her while watching my beloved Harry Potter movies, loved that she decided to go to University after her movie success and then of course, becoming a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador.  Her speech as part of the HeForShe campaign was incredible and I love that it got so much attention, really bringing the issue of gender inequality to the forefront.
If you haven't watched her speech yet, search YouTube for 'Emma Watson HeForShe Speech' and it will be a very interesting and thought provoking 10 minutes of your day.

'If not me, who? If not now, when?' Emma Watson

Photo from Emerson-Renaldi.com

Diane von Furstenberg

What a woman.
Introducing her infamous and forever-in-style wrap dress in the 1970's, creating a perfect balance of flattering and enhancing women's curves and being suitable for every occasion makes DVF's iconic dress such a classic.  Even when marrying into the House of Furstenberg (yes, she was a princess!), she knew she still wanted her own career and to be her own person.  She is such a strong, empowering woman and encourages this in other women through her support and commitment to philanthropic causes.

One of my all time favourite inspirational quotes comes from Diane, 'The success of every single woman is an inspiration for another'.  

These are just a few of the women currently inspiring me, there are of course so many amazing women to look up to - past and present.
I hope this post has inspired you to follow your dreams and go kick butt!  

Alpha-H: The Fruit Acid Exfoliator

Something I came across about a year ago was information on fruit acid exfoliators and how they are amazing for your skin.  Of course, being a bit of a skincare and beauty junkie I was looking forward to trying out something a bit different to help look after my skin.

After a bit of research I came across Alpha-H, an Australian brand producing skincare for males and females of any age.  They offer a lot of products with the key ingredient of Glycolic Acid - now I know what some of you might be thinking, we're told acidic products, foods and drinks are pretty bad for us - but don't be put off by this brand or the products, I believe they really do work and make a difference.  The gentle fruit acid in these products helps to lift away dead skin cells, keep your face feeling moisturised and really brightens up the skin.

To try out a few of their products I purchased the Alpha-H Exfoliation Experts Kit, which comes with a 30ml Liquid Gold Smoothing & Perfecting Mask, a 30ml Micro Cleanse and a 12g Gentle Daily Exfoliant.

They offer lots of different kits with similar sized products, so I would definitely recommend purchasing one if you're looking to try out their products!
I chose the Exfoliation Experts Kit because whenever my skin is in need of a pick-me-up, a good exfoliator tends to do the trick washing away my dry skin and any other impurities.

Liquid Gold Smoothing & Perfecting Mask
A weekly, lavender scented face mask which helps to brighten and clean your skin.  It has a tingling sensation and shouldn't be kept on for more than 10 minutes - it truly is a great product.  I see a great improvement in my skin when I use this mask and it helps to bring the natural moisture back into my skin.

Micro Cleanse
This one is a twice weekly glycolic exfoliator with micro beads to really give your skin a gentle, yet deep cleanse.  I dampen my face with warm water on a small sponge, then apply the cleanser in circular motions.  I then use a warm, damp cloth to remove the product afterwards - leaving my skin feeling super smooth!

Gentle Daily Exfoliant
This is quite a unique product which comes in powder form with papaya and pineapple.  Once my skin is clean with my standard daily cleanser, I'll add a small amount to my hand and add a few drops of water to create a paste, I then massage all over my face in circular motions and rinse well with warm water.  It works as a great product to wake up my skin and keep it feeling refreshed.

Have you tried any of the Alpha-H products and have a favourite?
I'd love to hear about other exfoliators you swear by!

My Everyday Drugstore Foundation

Towards the end of last year I was on the hunt for the perfect drugstore foundation for everyday use.
I had been using my MAC Studio Fix Fluid in NW15 for everyday use as I'm so in love with it, however I was looking for a more affordable solution for everyday wear.

I paid a visit to Boots and spent a good amount of time in there (as you do!) looking at all the foundation options.  I ended up purchasing two Bourjois foundations as they were on a 2 for £15 or something like that (can't remember the amount of money sorry!), but individually it's usually £10.99.  I purchased the Bourjois Happy Light foundation in No 51 Rose Vanilla and also the Bourjois 123 Perfect foundation in No 51 Light Vanilla.

I have tried them both out and I'm just about finished the Happy Light foundation, however I must say my favourite of the two is the 123 Perfect foundation.

It claims to give a 'Flawless complexion, even to perfection' and I'd totally agree!  It has medium coverage, I usually have to put a bit of concealer on those pesky spots and under my eyes, but I really do believe it gives me a flawless finish which isn't too matte or too dewy - just a nice happy medium.
The great thing about this is it doesn't budge all day, my shade is pretty light and I love to pop on a flush of blusher and it gives a really fresh looking complexion.  On top of all that it has a handy pump - what's not to love?

What's your go-to everyday foundation?

My Favourite Ways to Relax

Nowadays we are always so busy, struggling to find time to catch up with family and setting a date with friends 2-3 months in advance even seems impossible at times!  There are also times when we can feel stressed, anxious and overwhelmed, all of which have affected me at some point in my life too.

When I'm feeling the pressure of deadlines or overworking myself, one thing I believe is extremely important is taking the time to chill out and do some of the little things you love - and that is what this week's post is all about.  

I love spending a night (usually a Sunday) pampering myself, it makes me feel so much better!

I tend to start off by making a cup of peppermint tea - I love it! It makes me feel so happy, it's like a hug in a mug. ♥︎
I then pop on a coconut oil hair mask for a few hours and start painting my nails.  I find this to be very therapeutic because I'm so focused on not putting nail polish all over my fingers!  I also love experimenting with colours and designs, my sister got me a nail art book a year or so ago and I always go back to it for some inspiration.

Once I've painted my nails and finished my tea, I like to do some yoga or stretches as I find gentle exercise to be really relaxing and soothing.
I'll then start running a bath with a Lush bath product as it feels like a real treat.  While my bath is running I'll pop on a face mask and I've recently been loving the Origins Drink Up Intensive Face Mask and it feels great on my skin when I leave it on overnight (it smells amazing too!).
While in the bath I'll either listen to music, watch a tv series (recently loving Revenge or Pretty Little Liars in my downtime) or read a book or magazine.  I'm in the middle of reading Gone Girl and I'm hooked!  I'll also make sure I really scrub off my hair mask and use a lovely conditioner to make my hair feel super soft.  

Later in the evening I'll treat myself by using my Jo Malone Body Creme in Pomegranate Noir and start reading another few chapters of my book or read through some posts on Bloglovin'.  

These are just a few of the little things that really brighten up my week and make me feel great!

What do you do to relax?  I'd love to hear about the little things that make you happy. ♥︎

The Inspiration Post #1

As I mentioned in my New Year's Resolutions for Blogging in 2015 post, I was looking forward to starting a content series on my blog - and welcome to the first in the series!

I decided to make my content series a monthly post all about what has inspired me for the month, from beauty and fashion to homeware and food (and I'm pretty sure there will be a lot of random mentions in between!).  

Photo from Pinterest

Moroccan Mirror Love
I am obsessed with everything Moroccan-styled for my home, the geometric shapes you can get for wallpapers, cushions and curtains in rich, bold colours are just amazing.  At the moment I am in love with this gorgeous quatrefoil mirror, makes me swoon!  If anyone knows where I can get this in silver/gold and in the UK, please let me know!

Photo from Pinterest

White Tulips

How gorgeous are white tulips!  I spotted them in a store earlier this month, put them in a big vase in my kitchen and fell in love.  The bright white and healthy green colours really brighten up my home and get me excited for Spring - I just want to have vases and jars of them all over the house!

Valentino: Photo from Vogue.co.uk

Elie Saab: Photo from Style.com

Couture Dresses
Haute Couture Paris Fashion Week Spring 2015 has been stealing up all my free time and attention this past week - staring at gorgeous dresses, what's not to love?!  This dress from Valentino is just beautiful! The gorgeous light layers of fabric and shimmer of rainbow colours across the dress makes it look oh so dreamy.  Elie Saab is another favourite of mine, sticking with solid colours a lot of the time yet working with different fabrics and embellishments makes me fall in love with their collections season after season...*looks through all the beautiful photos again*...

Photo from Pinterest

Travel

I don't know if it's the slightly yucky weather recently or some sort of January blues, but my mind has been filled with ideas of travelling and visiting a few places I have never experienced before - after all life is all about the experiences and memories you make.  I'm so excited as I have booked up to visit a few states in America later in the year! I can feel my browsing history becoming clogged up with searching all things America over the next few months.

What has inspired you this month?  I'd love to hear about it!

Have an amazing weekend everyone ♥︎

Coconut Oil: My Beauty Saviour

One of my beauty staples all year round is coconut oil.

Not only does it help to promote a healthier you from the inside - keeping your heart healthy, aiding digestion, strengthening your immune system and helping to treat infections - but it also does great things on the outside too.

Below I've outlined my favourite beauty uses of coconut oil that I thought might be useful to you too - it really is a girl's best friend!

1 / Healthy, Shiny Hair

I love to use coconut oil as a deep conditioning treatment for my hair.
It's great for damaged or dry hair and being 100% natural means there is no alcohol or other chemicals in the mix.

How To:

I section off my hair and melt some of the coconut oil, then I apply it focusing on the driest areas of my hair (mainly the ends!).  I use it sparingly at the roots of my hair and on my scalp, as for me it can weigh my hair down.
Once it is all coated in oil I tie or clip it up and put a shower cap over it to help it really sink into the hair.  You can then leave the treatment on for as long as you like!  I either keep it on for 2-3 hours on a Sunday evening and then wash out or keep it in overnight (remember to put a towel down on your pillow) then wash out the next morning.
Make sure you really shampoo your hair well when washing out to make sure your hair isn't greasy or heavy.  I try to do this at least once a month and I really notice a different in my hair when I keep it up!

2 / Skin Saviour

Similar to dry hair, it really helps to counteract dry skin.  Mainly because of the protein, vitamin E and good fatty acids within coconut oil.

I use this on my face by rubbing a small amount into my hands, and it helps to soothe my skin and help inject some moisture - it also helps to balance out my dry skin and oily T zone.
I do this once a week and it's a great way of applying a gentle treatment to your face.

This is also great for removing any stubborn make up and can also be used on dry skin anywhere on your body. I don't think it works great on the rest of my body personally and I stick to my standard Soap & Glory moisturiser, but I do love the effects on my face.

3 / Shaving

Oh no! Have an emergency leg shaving situation and you're all out of shaving gel? No problem, coconut oil comes to the rescue!

It's great at keeping your legs moisturised while helping with the shaving process, just apply some to your legs (dry or wet) and remember to remove used oil from your razor between strokes.


Do you have any other beauty uses for coconut oil I could try out?
Let me know if you have tried any of these before!

Have a great weekend everyone ♥︎

Lip Loves

Happy Saturday!

I have loved using gorgeous lipsticks, lip balms and lip bullets recently (just to name a few!) and I thought I'd cover off one of my favourites - the Revlon ColorBurst Balm Stain, which is also named Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain on a couple of my products.

They are great products and do exactly as they say - work as both a lip balm and lip stain.
The lip balm is what really sells this for me, it doesn't dry out my lips and keeps them feeling soft for a good few hours.
The lip stain also lasts a long time - these tend to be my go-to lip products for long nights out or dinners, knowing the colour won't budge and would only need a quick application afterwards to balm those lips back up!

They also have the most amazing scent of fresh peppermint and the balm stains are retractable, meaning no mess when you need more product. At around £7.99 I think these products are great!

From top to bottom: 020 Lovesick, 010 Darling, 001 Honey

The colour selection is impressive, I've gradually purchased these colours over the past few months and enjoy the range I have at the moment.
Lovesick is my ultimate night out lip product and always make sure it's in my bag for any top ups throughout the night (which is why all detail on the stick has rubbed off!).
Darling is a nice change for me, being the only purple based lip product I have, but I like it for some day trips due to it being long lasting and a nice pop of colour.
My most recent addition is Honey, which is brown based however when applied to the lips just peaches up your lip colour slightly - really loving this as a daytime look!

Have you tried the Revlon ColorBurst Balm Stain range - any favourite colours?
Let me know if you have come across any other great balm stains I can try!