Urban Decay hits John Lewis

Hey!

Today I want to show off the latest beauty joy to hit little ol' Cardiff - Urban Decay has come to John Lewis! 

I'm a huge UD fan, their Naked palettes are obviously such a staple product and love their brand ethics too.

I had a late afternoon appointment with the counter manager Zandra (who is just the loveliest and coolest person ever!) on a Saturday which I know having worked in retail is no fun for anyone but she made me feel SO welcome and took every inch of care and pride into creating a look for me. 

First up we used a miracle product - the B6 Vitamin Infused Complextion Prep Spray. I actually left buying one of these and use it every day (I'll do a seperate review for it). It is brilliant at instantly reducing redness and literally infuses your skin with vitamins, plus you an use it any time of day - make-up or no make-up!

For my face we used the Naked Skin Liquid Makeup in #3 which I thought would be too dark but on the skin it was a perfect match. Urban Decay are great at providing options for every skin shade. 

For my blush we used Naked Flushed in 'Native' - this is a 3-in-1 kinda blush that gives you subtle colour for a cute contour. 

On my eyes I got to try out the new Smokey palette which I now need to own! Smokey gives you the option to be as subtle and shimmery as you want or as bold as you feel. There are so many lights in there to create such a gentle look which I really loved.

The eyeliner used was the 24/7 Glide On pencil in the colour 'Perversion' (HUGE fan of the Urban Decay names aswell!) and for my lips I got to test out the new matte Revolution lipstick in After Dark.

Here is my final look:

I loved it! I cannot do a smokey eye for the life of me so to be shown how to do it so subtly and to be able to wear a cute lipstick too without over-doing it was a breath of fresh air!

Topping it off with the DREAM product the 'All Nighter' setting spray, my makeup managed to last me through partying with friends until the early hours!

Huge thankyou to Zandra who was fabulous, welcoming and so much fun to spend an hour with!

X

GHD Platinum - Launch and Styling Event.

Hello!

Last week I went to the launch of the new GHD Platinum hair styler to test out the goods and get a tutorial n how to use it and why it beats out the competition.

Curling my hair with straighteners has never ever been my strong point but the lovely ghd team showed us just how to perfect any kind of curl and also hit us up with the most important tip for getting those beach babe waves - brush it out! 

The new ghd Platinum straightener is also brilliant for straightening too, it pushes down each 'folical' (read: split end) to create a totally smooth and flawless look. 

We were let loose on the new Platinums to get styling our own hair to see just how easy they were to use. The best thing about them is that they have Trizone technology, which is 6 separate heat plates which gives a total consistency of heat over the hair. This helps reduce hair breakage by 50% and also increases shine by 20% compared to other tools that heat to 230 degrees. 

The Platinum also has a heat resistant plate (using NASA technology) which means you can touch them from the outside without feeling a thing!

As you can see the results are awesome, the trick to curling hair is to NOT look at yourself in the mirror and just go for it! I actually got my pal above Charli to do mine and I was feeling a little ill and couldn't function.

I loved the beach waves I left with and they didn't even take any length off my hair at all!

Thanks to GHD for putting on a wonderful event,

The Platinum retails at £165 and is definitely a sound investment!

What straighteners do you use?
X

John Lewis Home Inspiration: Fusion

Hello!

I've been a little MIA last week, I hadn't been feeling totally myself and thought I'd rather rest up and take time to myself to feel relaxed rather than focus on anything else! Last night (if you follow my Instagram you will have seen...) I fulfilled a childhood dream and got to see Slipknot and Korn play live. It was so loud, so heavy and SO good! I had a blast but I'm feeling pretty wiped out today so taking it easy so my Monday isn't one big yawn! Anyway, moving on...

I love John Lewis homewares, although pretty pricey they always have some unusual pieces and great, simple designs and I particularly love their 'Fusion' range.

I was given a £50 JL giftcard for Xmas from my Auntie (thankyou!!) which I have yet to spend, I'm on the look out for either the perfect piece to invest the £50 towards of a couple little bits that add upto £50ish.

So here are my top faves from the Fusion range:

Pols Potten Porcelain Plate - £7
These plates come in 4 different colours, I love this blue the most though! I love a good mish-mash of plates.

Oriental Bowls - £25
These set of 4 are so cute, I think they are pretty small but perfect for some soup or a little cereal snack.

Round Hanging Brass Mirror - £45
This would be lush in a living room or office. It looks huge in the inspiration photo too!

Fusion Embroidered Cushion - £40
I hope for the price this cushion is HUUUGE but it's so so pretty! 

Miko Pouffe - £160
I'd love a pouffe, although I think this is a small sized one maybe Prince could make it his own little sofa :p!

Pandora Glass Light Shade - £170
This would be such a beautiful living room piece. It's out of my price range for light shades however it is such a gorgeous design.

Hanging Terrarium Tealight Holder - £16
This is such a cute idea, love myself a Terrarium and this is for tealights - perfect!

What do you think of John Lewis homeware?

Hope you had a great weekend!

X

Christmas 2014 with John Lewis.

I've been sitting on this post for weeks!

I was invited back along in mid-October to come before the John Lewis Cardiff store was even open for trading to be one of the first to check out their Christmas 2014 range.

Armed with a cup of tea I was shown one-on-one by one of the management team around the Christmas department about all the different 'themes' for 2014. There was the popular 'Croft' which is subtle, frosted with hints of green; 'Festive Friends' which is perfect for families with little ones; and my personal fave - 'Copenhagen' which is very Scandi and simple.

Obviously John Lewis have just released their Christmas Advert which is always the biggest talk over on Twitter. As we were walking around looking at the new plush toys that had come in etc me and my tour guide for the morning were placing our bets on the advert star being THIS little sausage dog with a scarf. We were all wrong and it was of course those penguins!

What do you think of JL's Christmas 2014?

Hope you have a good weekend planned, Ross is away allll weekend so I'm spending my weekend laying on the sofa, watching Netflix and eating junk food!

X

Miss Selfridge SS14 John Lewis Event.

This week I was invited to an event at John Lewis showing off some of the new Miss Selfridge collections for SS'14. The event was actually really good and had guest speakers and demos from Japonesque and Liz Earle (who gave us a sneak peak of their 3 new body ranges). 

Me and my fellow Cardiff bloggy pal Charli were both driving so opt'd for a champagne glass of orange juice and went wild on the different flavour macarons on offer.

Neons.

I NEED this fluffy jumpe, I have a tartan style skirt that it would go perfectly with!

This super cute daisy print shirt would look amazing on a night out.

I fell head over heels for this yellow fluffy jumper from the pastels collection.

Japonesque did a smokey eye tutorial.

We were treated to arm massages from the wonderful Liz Earle ladies using their new indulgent bath and body range that comes in 3 different scents: Tiare & Jasmine, Bergemot & Ginger and my personal fave the Vanilla & Saffron.

To see the treats we were so kindly given in an unexpected goody-bag check out my Instagram ;)

As I've been so poorly it was nice to get out of the house!
X

Japonesque - John Lewis Launch and Make-Over.

Hello! I am back from an amazing time in Berlin, I'll do a post on it this week sometime but I actually took more photos on my lomo fisheye camera than my SLR as I love to physically have photos of special times :)

Anyway! A couple weeks ago I was invited to the launch of Japonesque in John Lewis, Cardiff to check out the brands new colour range and have a little make-over fun.

I was greeted with macaroons and Elderflower squash by the lovely Amy, Rana and the MUA Paul where I got to learn alot more about the brand and start my make-over. The brand was started in America however is all inspired by Japanese Kabuki Theatre make-up and it's application. 

The super fun Paul Herrington who was guest MUA for Japonesque.
(Photo c/o of Amy Irving)

The finished look (pout included).
Loved the subtle eye flick done with pencil!

The packaging is one-of-a-kind in the sense that 3 colours are blobbed onto the packaging during the conveyor belt process and then individual artists mix the colours before sealing so each package is unique - mental!

Lucky little me got to take home a 150degree Eye Shadow brush and Finishing Powder. 

I also found my PERFECT foundation. The colour match was incredible I never find anything for my pale ol' skin but the Luminous Foundation in shade 02 was amazing!

Have you heard of Japonesque before?
X

Winter Luxe.

When I think Winter I think massive cosy blankets, snuggly PJ's and keeping warm by the fire. The Winter Luxe Edit by John Lewis features some gorgeous Alice Temperley items for a very cosy but gorgeous Winter time.

I've knocked together my own version of their Winter Luxe edit:

John Lewis Sherpa Dressing Gown
How snuggly does this look? I bet the fluff inside is so soft.

Derhy Knit Poncho
Love me a poncho - indoors and out!

John Lewis Pocahontas Slipper 
I don't think I would EVER take these off!

Warehouse Wide Scarf
This is HUGE  if you look on the model picture she's drowning in it - which is perfect in my opinion :p

DKNY Made for Plaid Pyjamas
On trend for bed time.

Kaliko Mohair Coat
What's Winter without a cosy coat? There are loads more stunning Kaiko coats and dresses on the John Lewis site.

What is 'Winter Luxe' to you?
X

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Nars Make-Over.

Hello!

As part of me being the beauty and lifestyle blogger for St.Davids Cardiff I got to take a trip down to the John LewisBeauty Hall to talk to make-up artist Clayton all about NARS and of course grab a make-over while I was at it! 

We started with skincare - there is a massive world of skincare out there that literally did wonders for me before we had even began. The previous night was a late one for me so I desperately needed something to disguise the bags under my eyes and awaken my skin. We used Multi-Action Hydrating Toner with Optimal Brightening Concentrate to refresh my skin followed by Total Replenishment Eye-Cream to fully wake-up my tired eyes. I felt amazing and like I could re-start my day all over again! 

Next came the make-up. I'm very pale for after using a Pore Refining Primer, to make the foundation stay on longer and make it look alot smoother, I got a chance to use the new Cream Compact foundation in Siberia which comes in its own little compact including a sponge and mirror. The foundation is 12g which is alot more than most cream foundations give out and the best part is - it's refillable which means saving you money in the long-run. 

I couldn't go to NARS without using THE mother of all make-up products, the best selling blush in the world - Orgasm. 

On my eyes we used the gorgeous Goddess and Kuala Lumpur Duo and then my favourite product, that I just couldn't resist leaving without - the Carpates Eye-Liner Stylo. I've never used what is essentially a pen to apply my eye-liner befoe but I can tell you now I am never going back! It's so easy and once it's on and dried - it aint coming off!

The look was finished off with the newest lip colour from the NARS Fall collection - La Paz. A subtle plum colour that didn't clash with my pink hair!

I had so much fun! Nobody has ever really done my make-up before so it felt awesome being a bit pampered and not have to do it myself - can totally get why the rich and famous spalsh out on make-up artists!

This will be my last post this week as I'm off down to Devon for my Mums hen weekend at a fancy spa! Exciting!

Take care,

X