Top tips for smooth, straight hair

 Girls with frizzy hair will know the struggle. Washing your hair is a three hour event - shampooing, then litres of conditioner, blowdrying and then the tricky task of maintaining the sleek hair that you spent hours perfecting with the straighteners. It's taken me years to find a hair care routine that results in smooth, straight hair that lasts longer than 10 minutes haha :) Here are my tips for maintaining beautiful, frizz free locks.

 Incorporate new products into your routine - There are so many great products on the market targeted at girls who struggle with frizzy hair. My personal favourites are:

Charles Worthington's Straight and Smooth Straightening Creme - This stuff has been my holy grail styling creme for years. I apply it to wet hair and then leave my hair to air dry naturally. When I first used this, I had so many compliments on how soft my hair was and the results of straightening my hair lasted for longer. The only thing that I have to mention is that you get the best results  if you apply heat to your hair.
Garnier Sleek Perfector Oil - I've mentioned this on my blog before. It's a great product for taming unwanted frizz and adding shine.

When applying the product, separate your hair into sections, so that it is evenly distributed.

Avoid bad hair habits -  When washing and drying your hair , there are certain things that you should avoid to ensure that your hair is easier to straighten and isn't just a giant frizz ball.

1. When drying your hair with a towel, squeeze excess water out instead of  "ruffling" it between the towel.
2. Comb your hair out with a wide tooth comb instead of your usual brush. This allows you to detangle your hair without tugging and causing damage.
3. Never go to bed with wet hair. I am guilty of this. When I'm in a rush and have to wash my hair late at night, I really can't be bothered to get out the blowdryer. However, going to bed with wet hair tends to cause me a lot of frizz and makes my hair really knotted.




 Invest in a good pair of straighteners - A good pair of flat irons can make all the difference. GHD's are the best that I have ever tried and although they may be out of some people's price range, they last for ages and give you beautiful, sleek hair.
I own the GHD Eclipse straighteners and I would definitely recommend them. Since I started using these, I have noticed that my hair is softer and smoother, and the results last for longer.

I hope that these tips have helped you in some way :)  I would love it if you had any requests for future posts - I have to admit that I'm running out of ideas haha
Elle xox
 P.s Thanks so much for 200 followers through Bloglovin'. It really means a lot to me :)

Things to keep in your handbag at all times...

My handbags seem to have lots of things in them - a few crumpled up receipts, a broken umbrella, a pen that doesn't and will never work, and if I'm lucky a few stray bobbles. But my bag never seems to contain what I actually need. So I devised a list of items that I always ensure my handbag contains, so that I'm not just carting around a load of junk!

A brush -  My hair gets super knotty throughout the day, and ends up looking dull and lifeless. If I have my brush with me, I can try and reclaim the glossy locks that I had spent ages perfecting in the morning!

Nivea Soft cream - This stuff is great, as it works well on the hands, face and body and sinks in super fast, My hands get really dry, especially if I'm out all day, so some sort of moisturiser is a must-have.

Pocketbac Raspberry Pink Peony - I always need hand santitiser, wherever I go. The Bath and Body works ones smell incredible and the scent remains on my hands all day which means that it doubles up as a perfume.

Baby Lips Lip Balm in Cherry Me -  Another essential - lip balm will never be wasted. I like to bring one with a hint of colour such as one from the Baby Lips range. They moisturise and make my lips super glossy.

Stay Matte Powder and Rimmel Colour Stay concealer - For makeup touch-ups throughout the day, I find that concealer and powder is all that I need - the concealer gets rid of any redness or spots that may have appeared over the course of the day and the powder sets the concealer in place and eliminates shine.

COLAB dry shampoo - It's always good to have some dry shampoo to hand for those days when you didn't have time to wash your hair. My personal favourite is the COLAB dry shampoo.

Mints/gum - A definite must have, especially if you've been eating out and want to freshen your breath. I prefer mints because you don't have to find somewhere to get rid of them once you're finished, but I know that some people really like to pack gum instead.


Thanks for reading!

What are your handbag essentials?

Elle xox

Dove Express Treatment Conditioner Review

I went on a mini shopping spree yesterday, and among the things that I purchased was this hair mask/conditioner from Dove's "Hair Therapy" range. I used it last night night and thought that I'd do a little review for you today.
Before buying this, I had heard good things about Dove's hair care range and had always wanted to give something from the selection of products a try. My hair is pretty damaged and can get quite dry at times, so I always have to have some sort of intensive treatment or hair mask in the house for those moments when my hair needs a moisture boost.
The "Intensive Repair Express Treatment Conditioner" sounded like just what I needed. It promises to "work at a cellular level to help rebind damaged proteins" (which sounds very fancy and scientific!) aswell as being a conditioner that "Visibly repairs and seals cuticles to help protect against split ends and breakage".

This product is supposed to be a mixture of a conditioner and a treatment. To use, you simply apply to your hair and leave for one minute before washing out. For an intensive treatment, this works pretty fast. I've owned hair masks that need 10 minutes to get to work.

The treatment isn't too thick and so is easy to distribute throughout wet hair. I applied the majority of this onto the ends of my hair and then used the excess that remained on my hands for nearer the roots to avoid greasiness.
After one minute, I rinsed off and could instantly feel that my hair had been properly nourished. What's more, the smell of the product on my hair was incredible. I can still smell it today, which I really like.  It's not the sort of smell that you can describe. It's just like the lovely scent that you can smell after coming out of the hairdressers.

After my hair was dry, I could definitely feel a difference. My hair felt soft and nourished and was shiny and healthy looking. For a "drugstore" hair product, I was very impressed by the results. I felt like I had been to an expensive salon and had been treated to an expensive hair mask.

I would give this product a 10/10 and would recommend to anyone who feels like their hair is in need of serious nourishment.
This retails at £3.99 but is on offer at Boots for £2.66 at the moment.

I hope that this review was helpful, if you have any other questions or have tried this product then I'd love to hear from you in the comments.
Elle xox

Pamper evening essentials

There are times when we all feel like heading to a spa, booking a facial and taking some time out from life to give ourselves a really good pamper. I often try and replicate this experience at home with my very own pamper evening/spa night. It's such a lovely way to relax and unwind, and you don't even have to step out of your front door...
Here are the products that I use and the steps that I follow when I feel like I need to de-stress....

 Before I do anything else, I always take my make-up off - and of course I have to use my Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser to give myself an at home facial. Using this honestly makes me feel like I'm in an expensive spa. It smells amazing and the super creamy formula is great for massaging into the skin and making my entire face feel super soft and nourished. If you would like a full review of this product, then I have done one here on this blog.

After my makeup is removed and my face has been cleansed I will often use a face mask to really indulge my skin. I actually only purchased the MUDD mask shown in the picture above today, so I  haven't tried it yet. If any of you have, I'd love to hear your thoughts before I use it!
At this point I usually run a bath and get in to relax whilst the face mask gets to work. After I've removed the mask with a flannel, I like to moisturise with the Garnier Essentials hydrating day cream. This has been a recent discovery for me and it leaves my skin feeling super soft but not greasy. Yay!





























Whilst in the bath there are a couple o products that I like to use if I'm having a pamper evening.
The first is the Garnier "Oil beauty" nourishing scrub. I always like to use a scrub on a pamper evening to ensure that my skin is left feeling smooth and soft. This scrub is also great because it contains "beautifying" oils that nourish the skin.
If I don't have a lush bath product to hand, but still want loads of bubbles, I'll use a bath soak like the "Sleep moments" one from Sainsbury's. Despite being from the local supermarket's own brand, this product smells amazing and the lavender that it contains really helps me to relax and unwind.

If you've read some of my earlier posts then you'll know that I absolutely love my vaseline "spray and go" moisturiser , but when I have a pamper evening I like to use something a little more luxurious.  I often find myself reaching for the body shop body butters, as they are so creamy and ultra moisturing. I slather this all over my legs and upper arms once I'm out of the bath..

 After I've pampered my body, I like to relax with a cup of herbal or fruit tea. One of my recent favourites has been the Heath and Heather wild blackcurrant tea. This is caffeine free so is perfect for the night time - it also tastes amazing which is an obvious bonus!

 And of course, no pamper evening would be complete without a good TV show or movie. Recently I've been loving Desperate housewives and the film "27 dresses". I always gravitate towards chick flicks on pamper evenings. It's just nice to watch something light hearted and fun when you're trying to relax!
I like to finish of the evening with a book - I'm currently reading "To Kill a Mockingbird".


I hope that you enjoyed this post - if you have any questions or opinions on any products mentioned then I'd love to know!

Elle xox

How do you like to pamper yourself?

Foundation, BB or CC?

With all of the different kinds of makeup available today, it can be hard to decide which one is best for you. Should you try BB cream? Or maybe CC cream? But what about foundation? I hope that this post can help you decide which type is best for you...enjoy!

 CC Cream  -  For most brands, CC cream stands for "colour correcting" cream. The product is supposed to "colour correct" dark under-eye circles, red patches (such as spot scars or actual pimples) and even-out your complexion.
The Bourjois "123 Perfect" CC cream is pictured on the left in the above photo and as you may be able to tell, this particular cream is quite runny compared to the foundation in the middle and the BB cream on the right. I wouldn't even call it a cream - it's almost a mix between a cream and a serum...
 I would say that CC creams give medium coverage. I never need concealer when I use one because I really do feel like it covers up or "corrects" my dark under-eye circles. However, if you have bad acne or any really red spots then you may need some sort of concealer to completely cover it.
Most CC creams give a glowing finish and provide your skin with some moisturisation which I like but which wouldn't be good if you like a matte finish or have oily skin.
Most CC creams come with an SPF which is brilliant, especially in summer!

CC CREAMS ARE PERFECT FOR........

• People with dark under-eye circles or redness that isn't properly covered by their usual base.
• Anyone who wants glowing skin and a little moisturisation from their makeup.
• Those who need to stremline their makeup routine with an all in one product that corrects and conceals.
• The summer time!

 BB Cream - Short for "Blemish Balm" or "Beauty Balm", BB creams have been popular in the beauty and blogging world for some time now.
Most BB creams are multitasking products - they usually pack a moisture punch, give subtle coverage, have an SPF and leave you with glowing skin after application.
Unlike CC creams, I've found that BB creams don't give as much coverage and won't get rid of under-eye circles or cover up redness. The coverage is very light and simply evens out the complexion.
The BB creams that I have tried have a really creamy consistency and are very similar to a moisturiser - to be honest, I haven't seen much difference between a BB cream and a tinted moisturiser (if anyone knows the real difference between the two then I'd love to know - just leave a comment down below  :))

BB CREAMS ARE GREAT FOR....

• Younger girls who are just starting out with makeup and want very subtle coverage.
• Lazy days when you don't want a full face of makeup but would like to even out your complexion just in case you need to pop to the shops!
• People with dry skin 
• Sunny days when you want coverage with an SPF (the Dream Fresh BB cream from Maybelline has an amazing SPF of 30!!)

FOUNDATION - Most girls who are have been experimenting with makeup for a while will have tried some sort of foundation. 

The great thing about foundation is the variety of types that are available. There are matte foundations, high coverage foundations, foundations with subtle coverage and foundations that keep skin moisturised all day. Most foundations are designed to be long lasting (but many don't deliver on this promise!) so are good when you have an event to go to. 

I tend to reach for my foundation when I feel like I need more coverage or when I want a longer lasting makeup look. 

I feel like foundation just "masks" rather than "correcting" and this "masked" look isn't to everyone's taste. When I use foundation, I feel the need to use lots of blusher to make my skin look more alive!

Unlike BB or CC cream, my foundation always has to be an exact match for my skin tone. This can be tricky when a brand doesn't always offer a wide range of shades.

FOUNDATION IS BRILLIANT FOR.....

• Events when you want long lasting coverage and a flawless complexion
• People who want to have lots of choice when it comes to picking the right product for them - foundations come in a variety of formulas.

I hope that this post has helped you in some sort of way! 

Ell xox

The Liebster Awards!

Today, I'm doing a different sort of post, because I was nominated by the lovely Ashleigh from
Mashmato for the Liebster awards! I was so pleased to be nominated, as the awards are a great way to discover new bloggers and make new friends in the blogging world :)
The rules of the Liebster Awards are as follows :

1. Once nominated, make a post thanking and linking the person who nominated you.
2. Include the LEIBSTER AWARD sticker in the post too.
3. Nominate 10 other new bloggers that have 200 or less followers who you think are worthy of this award. Let them know they have been nominated by commenting on one of their posts. You can nominate the person who nominated you.
4. Answer the 10 questions asked to you by the person who nominated you and make ten questions of your own for your nominees.
5. Lastly, copy these rules in the post.

I would like to nominate :

Moon and Roses
Pastel Mariosa
Georgia Charlotte
Daisy Queen
Wandering Through Life
Simply Michelle
Vintage Fleur
Karrachter
Joli Ombre
Imogen Grace/Pretty Pastels

All of these lovely ladies have beautiful blogs which are very much worth having a look at!

Here are my answers to the questions :

1. If you could dye your hair any colour for one day, what would you choose?
 I would probably dip dye my hair a bright colour like hot pink or electric blue - I've always wanted to see how it would look but have never got round to actually doing it!

2. Are you a sweet or savory person?
To be honest, it really depends on how I feel - sometimes I have an insane craving for Haribos and at other times I'm desperately wanting a bag of salt and vinegar crisps!

3. What was your dream when you were younger?
As a young child, I had many dreams - I went through many different phases (as any little girl does!). First I wanted to be a dancer, then an author, then an actress.....you get the idea!

4. Has your dream changed/been achieved?
Through my blog I suppose I've achieved my dream of wanting to write. I love creating blog posts and blogging is something that I will definitely continue long into the future.

5. What is the best book you’ve ever read?
I love reading and so have read many books, but there are definitely a few that stand out - I think that Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell and Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver are wonderful books that I would recommend to anyone.

6. On a scale of 1-10, how much do you use social media?
Good Question! I would put myself at a 6 on that scale - I can live without social media but it would be tricky and I would definitely miss it

7. Where do you see your blog in 10 years?
I just hope that I am continuing to blog and that I can write posts that help and inspire people.

8. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I can't really say. I don't want to have too much of a plan for the future - I feel like it's better to follow your dreams and see where life takes you.

9. Are you an optimistic or a pessimistic person? Or a mix of both?
I would say that I'm a mixture of both. I tend to expect the worst but hope for the best!

10. Do you take ages to do your makeup? How long?
Generally, I can do my makeup in under 10 minutes but if something goes wrong - like too much foundation or a mascara mishap, then it can take me much longer!

Here are my questions for the people that I nominated!  :

1.  Why did you want to start a blog?
2. What is your favourite aspect of blogging?
3. Do you prefer shopping for makeup or shopping for clothes?
4. In your opinion, what's the best way to spend a lazy day?
5. Do you have a favourite TV show? If so, what is it?
6. Which youtuber would you most like to meet?
7. Do you have any hopes or plans for the future?
8. Do you have any interesting/hidden talents? If not, is there anything that you wish you could do?
9. Do you give up easily if things don't go your way? Or are you the sort of person that would persevere?
10. Out of all of the items in your makeup bag, which one would you be unable to live without?


And that's it! Thank you again to Ashleigh for the nomination and I hope that the rest of you have enjoyed finding out a little more about me through the questions that she set :)

Elle xox

COLAB dry shampoo review

 The popularity of dry shampoos has increased dramatically over the last few years. I especially love the idea that you can solve the issue of greasy hair in an instant - it's such a convenient way to turn a bad hair day into a somewhat good one.
I have tried a few different brands (including Batiste of course!) but I've never found "The One" - I like Batiste and think that it is a great product to keep in the house but I sometimes find that it leaves this weird residue on my scalp that I really don't like.
When I saw the COLAB dry shampoos in Superdrug and noticed that they promised a "residue-free, lightweight finish" I had to give one a try!

There were a variety of fragrances but I chose the "Tokyo" scent, which is lovely. It's feminine but not too sweet and a quick look at COLAB's website gives a more accurate description of the fragrance! - "Oriental accents of orchid and mandarin with an aromatic base of sandalwood.".

What's more, the scent remains in my hair for quite a long time after use, instead of just disappearing straight after it's been sprayed.

When it comes to volume, this product doesn't actually give that much "oomph". For me, that's not a problem because I'm more interested in the way that a dry shampoo refreshes my hair and gets rid of that horrible greasy look and feel that we all hate so much! However, if you're looking for lots of lift and volume then you might not find it in this product.

However, for me, the COLAB dry shampoos are best at refreshing my hair when it is close to needing a wash. A few spritzes gets rid of excess oil without that sticky residue. Oh, and there's none of that white powder that needs to be rubbed in  extremely carefully to avoid looking like you have danduff on the surface of your hair (which is a massive bonus!).

Overall I would give the COLAB dry shampoos an 8/10 - only taking away two points because of the lack of volume that I think it gives which may be a problem to some people. However, for me this product is perfect and I will definitely be repurchasing when this can (which is actually the small 50ml type) runs out.

COLAB is available from Superdrug for £1.99 for 50ml (currently on offer for £1.79) and £3.49 for 200ml ( currently on offer for £2.32).

Have you used COLAB? What are your thoughts?

Elle xox