Nails of the week: blue and silver leopard print

blue and silver leopard print manicure - somanylovelythings

You know when I obsess about a nail design I just can’t stop. I am actually surprised it took me this long to be at the leopard spots again…

This time, I went for a blue base with the beautiful L’Oréal’s colour riche in Rebel Blue.

Then I used Barry M Foil Effects in silver to add the spots and the super handy Barry M’s Nail art pen to add the black outlines and small spots, using the same tools as  previously on this colourful leopard print manicure.

blue and silver leopard print manicure - somanylovelythings

I am very pleased with the result; this design is very straight forward and has a great effect!

Rating:

4_star

Review: LashPerfect Lash Bar Hi Brow treatment

It is no secret that I love a well groomed pair of eyebrows and cannot live without plucking and filling mine. After trying the LashPerfect Hi Brow filling powder and wax pencil and attending their eyebrow event where they launched their brow extensions Brow Perfect, I was delighted to actually try their full eyebrow treatment called Hi Brow.

Their salon, just by Carnaby Street in London, is lovely. I went in 24 hours before my appointment for a patch test (this is very important, as they won’t tint your brows without it!). They were also very lovely changing the date of my treatment when I forgot to pop in for a patch test. Do-oooh!!!

lashperfect hibrow treatment

Before

lashperfect hibrow treatment

After

Upon arrival, the lovely Liga asked me to fill out a form (I had filled one for the patch test already) and took me down to the treatment area. Then she cleansed my eyebrows, gave me a mirror and asked me what I didn’t like about my eyebrows.

I do like them, so I mentioned I would like to keep them quite thick as they are, get more definition, a general tidy and a bit more of an arch.

First, she measured my brow in three points: inner corner, highest point and end, marking the spots. She asked what shade I’d be more comfortable with for the tint – I said not too dark! She applied the wax pencil around my brows and then the tint, removing the excess with a cotton bud and already defining the shape.

lashperfect hibrow treatment

The tint is ON

After a few minutes, she cleaned the dye and started the shaping process, first by waxing. They use an amazing wax which is has a low melting point so it is not too hot – it is in fact very pleasantly lukewarm, and feels very soft and gentle on the skin. Just what you need for your face! She removed hair from the top, bottom and middle of brows!

lashperfect hibrow treatment

Shaping already started on left brow!

She also used tweezers to fine tune the shape and threading to remove the fluff towards the hair line – a multi-technique operation going on!

She then gave me back the mirror and wow – they looked amazing. But she wasn’t done. Oooh no! There was filling to be done. She filled with the lovely Hi Brow powder (reviewed here), teaching me how to do it best. That is no harsh lines at the top, starting from the middle bottom, make a defined line and blend upwards so you can still see skin and it is not too dark! Now I know! Then she applied the highlighter on the brow bone.

lashperfect hibrow treatment

After shaping

Finally – and I found this a lovely touch – she concealed the redness (although I didn’t even go too red, slightly pink, more like!) so I could return to the office, as I had the treatment, which lasts about 30 minutes inclusive of consultation, on my lunch break!

I had never had my eyebrows tinted before and I really liked the effect. It lasts for about a month, Liga told me. Overall, the service was very friendly, extremely professional and I felt very confident in totally trusting my brows (such an important feature of my face!) to them.

More than a week on, the tint has faded a bit, but the shape is still looking fantastic and the eyebrows are still looking very sharp!

lashperfect hibrow treatment

And voilá – beautifully tinted, shaped and filled eyebrows!

You can book the Hi Brow treatment, a great lunchtime treat, by calling the LashBar (35 Marshall Street, London W1F 7EX – behind Carnaby Street) on 020 7434 4554. It costs £35.

They offer a great range of lashes and brows treatments. All info, including prices, can be found on the LashBar website and you can also follow them on Twitter @LashBar@LashPerfect@Hi_Brow and@BrowPerfect_ for news and promotions.

This post contains PR samples. This review, however, is based on my own true experience with the products and reflects my honest opinion on them.

Product review: L’Oréal Ever Riche Oil Precieux

20131121-160742.jpg

I started using hair oils a little while ago and the Ever Riche Oil Precieux hit the spot!it

To start, it smell amazing. Really amazing. The very light oriental jasmine, gardenia and ylang-ylang aroma really sticks to the hair.

L’Oréal’s fine oil mist for dry hair is part of the Ever Riche line and is sulphate free.

It doesn’t weigh the hair down (even for fine hair like mine) and I felt an improvement on the condition- it did feel more nourished and shiny.

Personally, I prefer using it on wet hair, after washing, but it can be used on dry hair. I also think the spray nozzle could produce a finer mist- that would make this product just perfect.

The L’Oréal Ever Riche Oil Precieux RRP is £11.99

This post contains PR samples. This review, however, is based on my own true experience with the products and reflects my honest opinion on them.

Nails of the week: purple and blue

This week I went back to a design I really loved: the vintage inspired heart tip. But with with the twist of less vintage-y colours.

purple and blue nails -somanylovelythings

I selected the stunning OPI Purple-iscious, which is a special edition polish to celebrate the 20th birthday of QVC – purple is the brand colour!

OPI Purple-iscious for QVC 20th birthday

OPI Purple-iscious for QVC 20th birthday

This is a metallic purple, shimmery with extremely fine glitter. It has a very subtle orangey-reddish pearlescence; it doesn’t colour-shift but gives this polish an amazing dimension. However, in essence, Purple-iscious is a fabulous (and delicious) purple. Application was great, as with any OPI polish and durability was also ace. Happy birthday QVC and thank you for bringing this gem of a polish out!

The blue at the tip is L’Oréal’s colour riche in Rebel Blue, an amazing royal blue with a fantastic sheen to it.

I followed the same process as on the nude and red manicure I did before and achieved the same results.

purple and blue nails - somanylovelythings

I really like it, although I don’t think it beats the nude and red one… As for the purple, I will definitely use it alone! It is gorgeous!

You can get the amazing Purple-iscious celebrating QVC’s 20th birthday at the QVC website; it comes in a special kit with the amazing Nail Envy base coat and it costs  £20.16 plus P&P.

Rating:

4_star

This post contains PR samples. This review, however, is based on my own true experience with the products and reflects my honest opinion on them.

Snow PR Spring/Summer 14 preview

Snow PR is just around the corner from my work and I was really glad I made it to their Spring/Summer 15 preview.

On the ground floor, they had all the premium and slightly above high street designers ranges. Beautiful prints, bold colours dominated the rails. I was particularly drawn to the stunning leathers from Muubaa – their pewter-ish holographic top, skirt and dress are to die for. Amazing pieces.

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Jewellery designer Joanna Hynes displayed a capsule clothing collection, with her signature perspex pieces. A crop top with dangly blue and black perspex shapes really caught my attention and I think is quite wearable!

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Ilse Jacobsen displayed beautiful prints – particularly like the printed suit and a colourful rose print pair of trousers, as well as a super delicate white daisy embroided peplum top.  Really wearable and elegant pieces for the coming season.

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Also fond of Baum und Pferdgarten’s loud graphic prints in blue. Leopard print, which is a perennial favourite of mine feature in usual colours, but also in royal blue with sequins. Nice.

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Downstairs, they had their high street range, and the pieces on display were from the Autum/Winter 13-14 collection, so ready to wear NOW!

Quiz Clothing is very affordable and has great pieces. Their going out and party dresses are very good value for money. They also had lovely winter jumpers and separates – love the “studded” bodycon skirt and oversized cream crop top with a necklace. They also have accessories and shoes, so great for that party look on a budget. I would happily wear quite a few of their items, so it was a great discovery for me.

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Another brand I came across and really liked was Madam Rage, they have lovely dresses! I totally fell in love with an embellished jacquard dress in blue, which is part of their Frankie Essex collaboration line, and will soon be available. Cannot wait! They are also very affordable.

snow pr preview - somanylovelythings

My favourite dress from Madam Rage!

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Also, I had to include these gorgeous Modalu handbags – look at the ombre on that. And I hear they are bringing great colours for the next season, here is a teaser!

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These events get me all excited for the next season, and for a minute, I forget I have to brave the cold… brrrrr

What do you think of the pieces?

My halloween look: Disney’s Maleficent

Maleficent Halloween look - somanylovelythings

It is no secret I absolutely LOVE dressing up. Halloween is just another opportunity for me to get drawing, cutting, sewing and hot gun gluing.

Maleficent is my favourite Disney character. It has always been, since my mum bought me the Sleeping Beauty book from the book circle people (it was so long ago, they used to come to your door, hahahahaha) and then later on, the VHS, which I watched repeatedly, as any good child obsessed with their favourite story. However, even though I love Aurora, Maleficent was for me, the highlight of the story and even though she deserved to die (as these stories go), I just loved watching her turn into a huge, scary dragon.

Maleficent Halloween look - somanylovelythings

So this year, I decided to turn into the Mistress of All Evil. I interpreted her three times when younger at school, and although I perfected the evil cackle after the “prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and die” line, my costume making and makeup resources and abilities weren’t even close to what they are today.

With high expectations, I started to gather the bits: a cheap vampire cloak, twisted devil horns, an amazing raven (or crow, not quite sure!) and purple satin from eBay. I painted the horns black (with acrylic paint from Tiger, they originally had some red in them) and using a hot glue gun, attached them to a wide alice band. I wrapped a satin ribbon around the joints and headband to give it a better finish.

Maleficent Halloween look - somanylovelythings

For the sceptre, I bought a cheap devils trident and a tacky oversized Christmas bauble, which was red. I removed the colour with nail polish remover to rveal the silver and glued (hot glue) to the trident stick. I then hot glued my raven on to it.

I then cut the sizes of the cloak, added a lining layer of purple to the back and added the shredded purple details to the from opening. Underneath, I wore a New Look black velvelt bodycon, tights and black court shoes.

Maleficent Halloween look - somanylovelythings

For the make up, I created my usual base with Hourglass Veil primer, MAC Fortified skin enhancer in adjust, foundation, concealer and powder. I then started the eyes. I used Urban Decay purple Vice and MAC Bitter for the eyes, as well as Eyeko Skinny liner and Black Magic mascara and a set of exaggerated, cheap false lashes.

I painted my raised eyebrows and my widow’s peak with MAC gel liner in Blacktrack. I then applied eyeshadow Bitter all over my face, to exhaustion, until I became green-ish and contoured the cheeks quite blatantly with MAC’s Carbon eyeshadow and my usual contouring shade from Inglot (a muted almost grey brown).

I finished off with MAC’s Russian Red and a huge black ring.

And as a bonus, here is a pic of my better half Frankenstein monster, which I put together pretty quickly! Make up took five minutes with green face paint, MAC gel liner in Blacktrack and Carbon eyeshadow. Bolts were made of grey foam, painted unevenly with Barry M Foil effect polish and glued on with Duo lash glue.

frankenstein halloween look - somanylovelythings

I think I looked quite scary. I was very pleased with my Maleficent – I was so worried I wouldn’t make her justice, but in the end, I think I pulled it off!

What did you dress up as for Halloween this year?

LashPerfect press evening and launch of Brow Perfect

lashperfect lashbar

Brows and champagne said the invitation. Although I must confess this line alone is enough to get me almost anywhere, it wasn’t the only reason I was very excited to attend a press evening at LashBar, the LashPerfect flagship store and salon in central London. I knew there was much more to know about them, as I was first introduced to the brand at Olympia Beauty and have fallen in love with their Hi Brow eyebrow powder (reviewed here).

Lash bar

Image courtesy of LashBar

The lash and eyebrow haven salon is absolutely lovely with the treatment areas downstairs. Apart from catering for clients, the space also serves as training centre – LashPerfect professional eyelash extensions are available in 6000 salons nationwide and also present in more than 20 countries – very impressive and a great indicator of the quality of their products and services.

At LashBar, they offer a huge variety of eye treatments – of course, professional lash extensions, false lashes application, anti-ageing treatments, perms and tints.

However, the night was all about brows. Demonstrations of their Hi Brow by La La Professional Treatment – Eyebrows by Design (£35.00), which include a combination of techniques to tidy, shape and tint and left the ladies with a natural lift and better definition, as well as filling and shaping. All services in the full eyebrow treatment are also available separately (waxing, threading, tinting, tidying).

And if all this wasn’t enough, we were treated to the unveiling of a brand new service: their Brow Perfect – super natural eyebrow extensions. Perfect for filling in gaps, the extension last up to 7 days and are made of synthetic hair. Having said that, they just look extremely natural!

lashperfect lashbar

Left brows with no extensions – note the difference, especially in the middle!!!

As well as the professional range, LashPerfct also has a line of consumer products which include my fave Hi Brow, wax pencil, strip lashes, eye make-up remover , growth and conditioning lash and brow serum, 24 hour liner, amongst many others. They can be bought in the shop or online, as well as in salons around the country.

And yeah, the champagne part was also true – accompanied by amazing canapes!

The LashBar is located at 35 Marshall Street, London W1F 7EX (just behind Carnaby Street). All info on treatments and prices can be found on the LashBar website and you can book an appointment by calling 020 7434 4554. Also follow them on Twitter @LashBar, @LashPerfect, @Hi_Brow and @BrowPerfect_ for news and promotions! More info on LashPerfect can be found on their website. No excuses for unruly brows of lashes now, ladies!

Nails of the week: Gold, green and blue colour shifting

multi chrome nails - somanylovelythings

This week I rekindled my relationship with colour shifting polishes. Once a favourite of mine, they gave way to some dabbling with nail art.

When I found the beautiful Specialittá Hits Marimoon Cool sitting at the bottom of my polish box, I knew this was the time.

And this beauty delivered an amazing colour, shifting from an old gold into a deep dark green and then a teal-ish blue, with impeccable metallic finish.

multi chrome nails - somanylovelythings

Application was great; I used two coats. This polish is really pigmented and for a metallic like this, sets with very little brush strokes. Durability was fantastic; I actually wore this for two whole weeks and chips just appeared around day 10 (and still only where I bit the skin on the side of the nail!).

This certainly brought back my love for colour-shifting polishes!

multi chrome nails - somanylovelythings

Rating:

4_star

Product review: Pro Hygiene Collection from Pro Make-Up Shop

pro makeup shop hygiene collection

Now, before I start, I must confess I had been thinking about getting a product like this for a while now and my wishes came true when I spotted the Pro Make-Up Shop at Olympia Beauty! How lucky!

They were displaying their Pro Hygiene Collection, which is formed of a Antibacterial Make-Up Spray (sanitizes makeup and helps reduce the growth of bacteria that can lead to infection.  Suitable for pressed and loose powders, creams, gels, pigments, lipsticks, pencils and tools), the Make-Up Brush Cleaner (removes product residue, oil and pigments and helps reduce bacteria build up while remaining safe for use on natural and synthetic brushes) and the Hand Sanitizing Gel.

pro makeup shop hygiene collection

All  kill 99.99% of bacteria and both the Make-up and the Brush Sprays also kill candida albicans, all within 60 seconds!

I don’t think I need to say how important it is to keep your make-up tools and kit clean, either at home but especially if you are a professional, applying make-up on other people. This range is just great for domestic or professional to keep yourself and your clients safe!

The packaging is simple and easy to manipulate. Nozzles are sturdy, product is dispensing even and efficient; for the sprays, a fine mist, for the pump, a reasonable amount of product.

pro makeup shop hygiene collection

For me, the star in this trio has the Make-Up Brush Cleaner. Really, this is what I had been looking for and my mind is much more at rest now that I use it daily. It takes one or two sprays on the brush applied from about 10cm, a little brush on a dry piece o paper and in 60 seconds the brush is dry, ready to re-use or put away.  It smells a bit lemongrass-y and doesn’t leave any residue or smell after a minute.

The Antibacterial Make-up Spray is also great; spray at about 15cm from the item and it dries in 60 seconds and doesn’t spoil the make-up on which it has been applied. There is also no residue, marks, smells left behind.

Finally, the Hand Sanitizer. It feels great on the hands, it is not drying and doesn’t leave a sticky feeling.

The Pro Make-Up Shop will also bring these products in a mini size, I was told, making it easier for professionals to carry in their kits!

You can get the Pro Hygiene Collection in  bundle offer, with the three products for £25.93 or each individually, from £6.50 to £15.00 for 240ml at the Pro Make-Up Shop website.

They also supply a variety of disposable makeup applicators, tools and accessories, hygiene essentials, bottles, jars, cosmetics tools and student kits on their website and have a very handy Safe Beauty Guide which can be downloaded by professional and beauty enthusiasts – well worth a look.

This post contains PR samples. This review, however, is based on my own true experience with the products and reflects my honest opinion on them.

Nails of the week: Red and nude

nude and red manicure - somanylovelythings

Yes, you are right. I cannot stay away from the red and nude combo for too long. I just love it on my nails. I wanted to do a half moon plus French tip for quite sometime and I finally got round to it.

I used L’Oréal Color Riche in Macaron Noisette (the most beautiful nude ever to grace my talons) as a base – two coats are sufficient. When dry, I used a hole re-enforcer as a guide for the half moon and French manicure guides for the tips, splashing them red with the beautiful Brilliant Red  from Lola. This red is fantastic. It is sheer but almost cream and the coverage is excellent – so pigmented. The colour is great – a deep, vivid blood red. I love it and will certainly be using is on its own.

nude and red manicure - somanylovelythings

This was the first time I used  nail polish from Lola and was really impressed. Application was smooth, the polish quality is very good, which translated into great durability of seven days with no chips – all bearing in mind it was tip only!

I am pleased with this mani; maybe I should have had the French tips slightly thinner (which I always do and think maybe I should have had it slightly thicker… oh well). Overall, I think it lacked a bit of oomph. Should’ve used the Lola red alone!

nude and red manicure - somanylovelythings

As for the Lola Make-up by Perse polish, I loved it – and you can find their range at M&S, in-store or on the website!

Rating:

3_star(for the mani)

5_star(for the Lola polish)