Hair care essentials - Hair Oil

It's so important to look after your hair! I've only ever dyed my hair once (and it was a ginger wash in/wash out dye) but I still have to keep my hair from being dry and damaged. Heating, styling and dying all contribute to deteriorating your hair's condition. A vital product in the fight against the frizz is hair oil; I've been using it for a bout 2 years now and I can't believe I never did!

Why use hair oil?

Hair oil replenishes the natural oils in your hair - if you heat your hair a lot or wash it every day it can dry it out and leave you with split ends. It is best used on damp hair after washing but it can also be used sparingly on dry hair to tame flyaways. It is also great at reducing the appearance of hair damage and means you can get away with it not being cut for a bit longer! 

How to use hair oil

It is SO important to not put the oil on your roots or you'll end up with really greasy hair! Concentrate it on the ends and only go halfway up the hair shaft; your roots will pull the oil up the hair anyway. 

Recommended hair oils

Cheapest: Hask Argan Oil  - you can also get this at Primark for £2.50 (I have no idea why it has placenta in the title on Amazon O.o) and I used this on holiday last year as I was washing my hair every day due to chlorine in the pool and it was really good for the price!

Mid-range: L'oreal Extraordinary Oil - this is a bit more expensive (£9.99) but made by the same company that makes the most expensive oil I've tried. Again, a really good hair oil but this one is more refined so soaks into the hair better. 

Expensive: Kerastaste Versatile Beautifying Oil - you can get this at various hairdressers for £25 and is expensive but much better for fine hair as it won't overload it and make it feel too greasy. As I have curly hair which is very dry, I can get away with the cheaper oils. 

I hope I've convinced you of the merits of hair oil and have given you some sort of guide as to which ones to buy if you decide you want to try it!

See you soon and stay insane!

Bloggerella x

Skincare Routine - SS14 Edition

In the Spring/Summer I like to switch up my skincare routine and here's what I've been using and loving. 

As you can see I use a range of high-street and high-end brands

Makeup Removal 

Above are the products that I use to take off my makeup. The first product on the left is the Nivea soothing Cleansing Mousse for dry and sensitive skin - love this stuff; it's cheap and is like a face wipe in a bottle! I do it in the bath/shower just before I wash my face. 

If I don't use the Nivea mousse I use the Clarins duo; this is the cleansing milk and toning lotion for combination or oily skin (I got it as a set in the sale for £20) - they are great together and don't irritate my skin. 

A new edition is the Simple 'Kind To Eyes' eye makeup remover which is AMAZING. I use to use a Boots Botanics one but hated the oily residue it left but this is like water that melts away your mascara and shadow! 

Washing and exfoliating 

My current face wash is the Simple 'Kind To Skin' moisturising facial wash which is an all-round good value face wash - no complaints here. 

If my skin needs exfoliating I use the Clarins 'Gentle Refiner' exfoliating cream which I got in the set with the cleansing milk and toning lotion. I've had really bad skin recently which is bugging me SO MUCH so I've been trying to get rid of the pimples on my forehead and the dry skin that's left - great stuff but very expensive for full-size. 

Moisturising

I love love LOVE this Benefit skincare duo - Triple Performing facial emulsion and the 'It's Potent' eye cream. SO GOOD and worth the hefty price tag because they last ages and they actually work! The eye cream hydrates and reduces dark circles; the moisturiser is thin but so hydrating with SPF 15. A cheaper alternative is the Simple hydrating light moisturiser that still works well but takes longer to sink in and has no SPF protection but great for the money. 

Hope this was helpful and that you got some good advice if you were looking to change a few steps in your skincare routine!

See you soon and stay insane!

Bloggerella x

Spring Make-Up Look

Hey guys, hope everyone is OK :). Recently I've been reaching for the same make-up look nearly every day with different bases and I love it because it's simple, fresh and easy to do in a rush!

I did a review on the Nars Sheer Glow foundation last week and have been using it quite a lot. I recently got the MUA Pro Brow kit (£3.50 from Superdrug) and have also been loving that - it's a great dupe for the Benefit BrowZings kit! I conceal with the Nars concealer and the 17 under eye concealer for bigger spots. Applying the Clinique cream eyeshadow as a base to the eyes and then apply UD 'Naked' to the crease and 'Virgin' as a highlight. 

To add a bit of definition I add the brown eyeliner to the outer corner and the waterline, bending it out as well. The black liner goes in the tight line to add thickness to the lashes. I then powder my face and bronze around my hairline, under the chin and my cheeks, contouring as well. 

The blush is a Collection blush that I got for around £3 and it's faabbuulousss! 

For this look I use 'Virgin' as a brow highlight
and 'Naked' as a crease colour

I love this combo - I use Revlon 'Colour Burst' in Plum as a base
 (lightly dabbed on) and Barry M lipgloss in 2 to create a berry gloss colour

I hope you enjoyed this post - it was difficult to do as a blog post but I still haven't decided if I want to do YouTube videos; it would be great if people could give me their opinions on starting YouTube as I'm still not sure :/

See you soon and stay insane!

Bloggerella x