Oh So Beautiful Face of the Day

This beauty wanted a look to wear to a wedding ceremony. Her specific requests were that she wanted something that was subtle and would stay on all day. 

She was really happy with the look we came up with and I thought it was quite beautiful too if I may say so myself.

The secret to long lasting makeup is a primer. I used M.A.C's prep and prime on her face and Urban Decay's primer potion to prime her eyelids.

To help lipsticks stay on for as long as possible, apply a lip liner on the lips before the lipstick goes on.

Before

After

8 hours later without a touch up

16 hours later, after a 3 course meal, many many drinks and a crazy dance session. Still no touch up!

Email me for bookings!
xx

Where does it come from? Essaouira

I went on a lovely holiday to Morocco with my sister and a couple of friends in January. From the minute we bought our tickets, I knew the one thing I had to do was see where Argan oil comes from. Argan Oil is only produced in Morocco you see. As it is all the craze in the cosmetic world at the moment, I was tres excited to see how it is made.

We took a two hour drive from Marrakech to the sea side town of Essaouira during which I got to see the beautiful Moroccan country side while my wonderful counterparts slept and snored quite a bit. (Girls, if you have a problem with this statement of fact, show yourselves and leave a comment below LOL)

About 20 minutes from Essaouira, we arrived at one of the biggest Argan Oil producers in the area. A small women's cooperative. 

We were greeted with loud cheerful singing from the Berber women as we entered this little "factory" and then assigned a guide who walked us through the still very traditional production process of Argan Oil production.

Raw argan nut on the left, roasted nut on the right

Baskets of Argan in the background

The nuts are roasted and then cracked open

Cracking the pods open

The roasted nuts are then ground and the oil extracted

 From the top left, plain Argan oil,  top right, Argan oil mixed with honey, bottom left, Argan oil mixed with spices, bottom right, Argan oil blended with almond oil popularly used in cooking in Morocco

We got to taste the just produced Argan oil which was amazing but I was more excited about buying some of the famed "Moroccan Elixir" to try out when I got back home to London. There is a long list of cosmetic benefits the oil is supposed to have. 

• Moisturises the skin 

• Slows the appearance of wrinkles 

• Improves skin elasticity 

• Regenerates and rejuvenates aging skin 

• Restores the life and shine to hair 

• Promotes scalp health to restore hair growth and vitality

• Prevents split ends 

• Relieves skin damaged by sun and smoking 

• Prevents stretch marks 

• Moistens dry itchy scalp 

• Aids dry brittle nails

So far I have only used it in my hair and I have found it excellent for my hair. It was also amazing to see those women make it and I would recommend the stop for anyone who happens to be travelling through Essaouira. If you do make the stop, buy me some Argan oil please!

xx

Vampire Invasion

Hide yo wives, hide yo kids, its a vampire invasion!!

I consider myself quite open minded as relating to things of beauty. There is not a lot  I simply will not try... Hair growth concoctions involving Cayenne pepper, Beer Shampoo, Aspirin facial masks, Mud masks, Raw eggs and Avocados.. none of which went into a salad. Name it, chances are that I've tried it.

Ladies and gentlemen, today I stumbled across something that challenged the beauty adventurer in me to its very core. Something that made me question how far I could go. Something rather weird and quite wonderful. Dear readers, I present to you, The Vampire facial!

The Vampire facial also known as  the Vampire facelift is quite popular in the US and increasingly so on this side of the pond. It is a non invasive cosmetic procedure that involves taking blood from the arm and injecting it into the face.

A person's blood is drawn and the platelets separated from red blood cells. It is then turned into something called Platelet rich plasma (PRP) and then injected back into the face.

The 'vampire facelift', trademarked by cosmetic surgeon, Charles Runel, is said to help reduce wrinkles, and increase facial volume to achieve a youthful appearance. The effects last for 15 months.
This cosmetic procedure  will set you back about £400 in the UK.


What do you guys think? Is this going too far? or is this a small price to pay in this eternal quest for youth?


Here are pictures of reality TV star Kim Kardashian shortly after her Vampire facelift.
xx

images courtesy of bitten and bound

Kiss Kiss

We have done a lot of hair talk in the last couple of weeks so I though I'd do a makeup post today. This is not just any makeup post. This here post will arm you with enough knowledge to achieve beautiful kissable lips *boooom chii ka wa waaa*

Here are my August lippy favourites.



Lip balm - EOS. (Evolution of smooth). These babies are packed with Anti oxidants, Vitamin E, Shea butter and Jojoba Oils. Like that isn't enough, the products are mostly 100% natural and organic (some flavours around 95% natural/ organic).
They leave your lips feeling soft, smooth and moisturised (goodbye chapped lips) . Most importantly though, these lip balms are packaged in this unusual egg shaped gorgeousness that make you just want to keep reaching for them.

They come in a myriad of flavours. And they all smell Ah-Mazing.




 

Lipstick - M.A.C's Ruby Woo
The world famous Ruby Woo is a gorgeous matte Red lip colour with blue undertones. I have but two things to say about this lipstick.

1. It Looks great on every skin tone
2. Go and get yourself one now!
Thanks.
.......and to think I once was too scared to wear lipsticks.. sigh, such time wasted.


Lipgloss - I am generally not a fan of lip glosses but I do realise they are a necessary evil. I am not quite sure this next product even qualifies as a lipgloss but oh well.
I recently tried NYX's soft Matte lip cream and I have to say I was well impressed. The product goes on creamy and smooth and dries to a matte finish. They are highly pigmented with a great colour pay off . They also come in about 13 colours, each named after a city like Stockholm, San Paolo and London.

Toothbrush - No that wasn't a mistake. Your good ol' toothbrush might just be the simple answer to your "soft lips prayer". Tooth brushes are excellent for exfoliating your lips. Simply rub on your lips with your toothbrush after brushing to remove dead skin.

Right. There you have it people, my August lip favourites.
Pucker up.
Xx