I want... to never have to shave again..

Occasionally I wonder how we came to be such lovers of the hair free body look, not in a particularly bad way, it's just that I'm curious about it. Who was it who first had the idea to shave their legs? What would we look like today if the fashion had been to have the most hairy legs?! Personally I do like feeling silky smooth and although I know that shaving isn't really that hard (well maybe a bit on the bikini line) I begrudge having to do it so often to fight the stubble and maintain the look I want; and so I find myself looking for more permanent solutions. I tried laser on my bikini line about 8 years ago and it was great if you had multiple sessions, but to expensive to keep up! And about three years ago I tried IPL (intense pulsed light) when I found it on a groupon voucher and although at first it seemed to work, all the hair seemed to grow back completely. With this knowledge in mind I am dubious about my latest try for silky smooth skin. The Rio intense pulse light home system.

So this is an at home intense pulsed light machine; and it's not cheap exactly but as this paticular one is quite an old model it's about half the price of the latest ones out there. It works by sending a pulse of light down the hair shaft to the follicle, where, it kills it (sound extreme!) 

So the instructions suggest one session every two weeks - and I have just done my first one! I must admit it isn't completely pain free but it is definitely bearable. I did my underarms; legs and bikini line and it took nearly 2 hours! A long time but if it works it'll be worth it. My skins a tad pink right now so I'm just going to get some aloe vera gel on it and we'll see how this goes over the next couple of weeks!

xxx

Sorry ASOS!

I made a fairly large ASOS order in the January sales.. It came in four different sections but unfortunately less than half of my haul got a permanent home in my wardrobe as I sent most of it back! I really do have the mentality when online shopping that the more I order the better, then, when it all comes I create a kind of shop in my own home and pick which ones I actually like.. fun for me but not so great for ASOS sales I guess! So here is what I bought:

ASOS Trousers with Elastic Ankle Detail - Wine red

Returned
I was looking foreward to these but the material was so static I just couldnt bear it!


ASOS Ankle Grazer Skinny Trousers - Coral 

Returned
Too small *over indulgant christmas*

ASOS High Shine Disco Pants - Black

Returned
The material is quite thick yet all my lumps and bumps showed through?!! I wasn't quite prepared for that..

ASOS Skater Dress in Rib with V-Front - Cream

Keeper
Yes my first keeper... can't wait to wear this in the office, just need to wait until spring...

Influence Checked Midi Dress With 3/4 Sleeves

Keeper
I love this! Its not executed the best and looks a little more scruffy than in the picture but this is great to wear to the pub with jeans and boots


Traffic People Palm Guitar Print Tea Dress - Black 

Returned
This is such a fun dress but I'm quite small and I felt like this swamped me a little

Club L Lace Skater Dress with Belt - Berry

Keeper
Theres nothing special about this, but there was nothing wrong with it either so I kept it!

ASOS Forever T-Shirt - Light blue

Keeper
I love this, it's just a baggy T-Shirt but it is so flattering - great for a casual day look and I'm lucky enough to be able to wear casual clothes to the office


Vila Striped T-Shirt With Pocket - Pink/white

Returned
See through - way too see through

ASOS Cropped Cami Top with V Neck - Mint

Returned
This was such an optomistic purchase considering I dislike showing my arms and stomach! 



ASOS CAPITAL CITY Knee High Boots - Black

Returned
I accidently bought 2 pairs in the same size; a size too small...



ASOS CLOUD Calf High Boots - Cognac

Returned
These were so tight but made my feet look huge... bad combo


Truffle Chunky Lace Up Ankle Boots - Chestnut

Keeper
Really comfy, I have even walked the dog up a hill in these


Yumi Bag With Heart Tag - Nude

Returned
Teeny tiny, I couldnt even fit my purse in!


ASOS Bow Satchel Bag - Coral 

Returned
I really liked this but when I tried it on I felt it was too girly for me; I wish I'd ordered the grey or blue versions


ASOS Scallop Trim Satchel Bag - Black

Returned
A little too small


New Look Vera Double Flap Satchel - Grey

Keeper
The winner of the bags! Its not as sturdy as I'd like but a good looking bag none the less

Festive Ugly Christmas Jumper Patches x10

Keeper
Next year I am creating my own christmas jumper! Always good to be prepared!



So as you can see not a lot survived but all of it brought me a lot of joy! Hooray for sales!

Copper Tresses

I bought this yesterday:

Yes I want orange hair! Or copper to be more precise; and how could I not when this is what I'm shown when I type copper hair into google:

Ah Blake Lively how I love your hair (and your husband), unfortunately my hair is dark brown which is not reccomended on the back of the box.. but I'm going to try it anyway, such a rebel! Fingers crossed!

The Skincare Diaries (Entry 2)

It's been 2 weeks (ish) and so I thought I'd give a bit of an update to my skincare trial; in all honesty the first thing I noticed was a breakout in week 1.. now I can't in all fairness blame the products seeing as I treated my skin pretty badly over the festive period, so I did give these another chance and my skin is now as clear as it normally is (which is not completely blemish free!)  First impressions though:

Roc Retin-ox intensive anti-wrinkle night cream:
The roc is a little drying at first, I expected this from a retinol based product which is why I decided to use it with a serum. 

Dr. Organics Snail Gel Facial Serum
The snail gel serum however is very moisturising but with an extremely strong smell! It smells like lemongrass and it's not nessecarily bad but I do worry people can smell it on me. I've noticed that my skin is nicely soft and moisturised so long as I use the serum with the cream but not much else has happened so far. I am hoping that the serum isn't reducing the effect of the retinol; the main thing I want is to firm up the skin in my forehead and reduce the fine lines around my eyes and nose, but maybe I'm asking too much! 

The Skincare Diaries

New year, new me, and all the other cliches that come with the impending arrival of January 1st.... Where better to start than my skin

Skincare has become a bit of an issue for me.. It used to be a joy! Where I used to see gleaming bottles of hope and happiness I now see shelves upon shelves of decisions and confusion. It might be an age thing but I just feel like there is so much out there now I don't know where to turn; and I've used so many different things I can't remember what's reliable. So, seeing as I was trained to be a scientist at university I thought that's how I should approach skincare this year (I have to use those skill somewhere right?) so I have decided to conduct my own skin experiment and report the results here.

So far my trial is focused on two products:

1. Roc Retin-ox intensive anti-wrinkle night cream - I asked for a retinol based product for Christmas after hearing it is the one kind of cream that gives real results and that can supposedly reverse the ageing process (we shall see..) I think this particular one is from ebay as that tends to be where my mother purchases everything and the bottles says sample on the back!

2. Dr. Organics Snail Gel Facial Serum - I bought this after realising everyone else had bought it and thinking I'd better try it!

In order for this to work I need a before... I have scrutinised my skin to see my problem areas and I will be looking for real results! (Picture to come) 

If you have tried either of these product please do give me you thoughts and feedback I would really love to hear it! 

Xxx

My day in Hollyoaks!

I can't believe its took me sooo long to put up this post! I went to be in the audience for the Hollyoaks music show back in May (the studio is only about half an hour away from me) and I totally forgot to do a post for it until now - actually I was only reminded because I watched Britains next top model and they were looking round the Hollyoaks set!

Here is the McQueens house, I love the McQueens they're such a great TV family! It's so funny though because theres actually nothing behind that wall!

Here I am outside Il Nosh... we got to dance on the tables inside after this was taken!

and here I am at the pub...

 and outside the SU Bar...

and by the 'canal', wich is actually just like a little pond in real life! They do some very clever camera trickery at the Hollyoaks studios!

All in all it was a pretty fun day - but we did have to wait around A LOT in between filming! I do not envy TV people.. well actually thats not true, if I was getting paid for it I'd  probably love waiting around alot! 

Aaaaand a few weeks later I got to see myself on TV!!!! For like a second, but still it was a big moment for me and probably one that wont happen again!

Boots!!!

I want these Boots soo much it hurts a little bit!

Ahh look at them aren't they gorgeous!? These are the Helsan boots by Malene Birger and they retail for about £333.  I love the ankle strap and the platform, and the cosy sock detail and the grip at the bottom means they'd a good buy for winter! Also they have a side zip so you don't have to mess about tying up those laces! However at the moment £333 is just a little out of my price range, thinking about it the most I've ever spent on shoes so far is £70! On my list of things to do is to one day own a pair of designer shoes, but alas that day is today! (or even in the foreseeable future!)

Sooo I did a little research to see if I could find similar boots which were a little less pricey and I've decided to share what I found with you!

There are quite a lot of nice boots like this around at the moment...

This pair from Next (£70) are a pretty good dupe - and also have a zip fasten to save fiddliness!

Also from Next are these cute little skater boots (£60) although they lack the time saving zip!

Next up are these Bullboxer boots available from Barratts (£55)

 These comfy looking boots are from River Island and come in at £74.99 (no zip by the looks I'm afraid though!)

Although they don't have the lace detail I was looking for, this pair also from River Island, really caught my eye! (£74.99)

And if you liked the RI boots but are looking for something cheaper, this pair from New Look are a bargain at only £29.99

Again they don't have the lace detail I was looking for, but I really like this pair, also from New Look  (£34.99)

However I think my favourite lookey likey has to be this pair from Dune - which also just so happen to be the most expensive of the bunch at £125, typical! I just love a chunky platform sole though, and these definitely deliver on that! And they have a zip yay!

Thats enough drooling over boots, time to get some sleep!

XXX