Tuesday 31 January 2012

Jobs & An Update On Me

Helloo again, so as mentioned in my last post, I've got myself two new jobs in the last month and had exams at college. Boring things first, I had 2 Sociology exams, one AS and one A2 because I'm fast tracking it (not to be recommended) but they went better than I thought, but still not ideal. And anyway, I've not got my heart set on Uni at the moment so it's not the end of the world if I don't get straight A's!



Now that that's out of the way, jobs! The first is with a company called The Best Of Exeter. I say I got the job, there's a bit more to it than that but hey ho. In short, I'll be setting up and updating various social media sites for a number of companies through BOE and PollardsPrint who I used to do it for. Not that exciting but I like it and I've met some lovely people doing it so that's all that matters! So if you know anyone looking to do this, let me know!!



The next one is the most exciting (sorry BOE), I literally cannot wait to start properly! I'm so happy to have got it. I'll be working as a Sales Assistant at Ted Baker YESSSS!! This is amazing for a number of reasons
1) Ted Baker. Just Ted Baker, what's not to love? Have a look HERE and let me know what you think
2) I met the people I'll be working with at my interview and at the training sessions I did last weekend and they couldn't be nicer! It looks like so much fun
3) Discount! I know, not a very good thing to say, but it's amazing! Can't wait to buy my uniform! Anything they pay me will be going straight back to Ted Baker anyway, I'm basically working for free
4) Opportunities within the company, there are so many and it's so exciting, can't think of another word! But yeah, it seems like a great company to work for and I am itching to start on Saturday, if you're in town, come in and say hi :-)



Here's my pick of Ted's new collection, send me links to yours!



DELISH!


Grace
x

January Favourites!

Hola! :-) I'm back... had a busy couple of weeks with exams, college and starting a new job or two which I'll tell you all about! But first things first, the end of January (where did that go?) brings us to my first '... Favourites' post, exciting stuff. For anyone not familiar with the format it's pretty self explanatory, my favourite products of January, stuff I've been using on a regular basis if not everyday. So, let's get started!




There they are in all their glory!
From left to right, a quick run through...
Yankee Candle in Christmas Cupcake, Prada Candy Perfume, St. Moriz Instant Self Tanning Mist, Rose & Co Lip Balm, Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer, Sleek Blush





First! The ultimate Yankee Candle in my opinion. £15.99 with 50% off £7.99 online, at Debenhams and at House of Fraser inc. lots of other places...




From their Christmas Collection 'Christmas Cupcake' I got the small jar version of this for Christmas just to try it out and i'd nearly burnt it all in 2 weeks so I went out and bought the medium jar which was in the salefor £7.99. It smells incredible, it's really sweet and buttery, yet not at all sickly, the medium and large jars have the best scent pay off. The website describes it as "Rich, moist vanilla cupcake covered with sweet buttery holiday icing" I've been burning it non-stop and for £7.99 with 60-95 hours of burn time it's worth it. Definitely recommend it, just have a sniff next time your in one of their stores and you won't be able to resist it!



Next, my new favourite perfume I think. Prada Candy about £35-£40 for 30ml from all your usual perfume stores



Ahhhh where do I start? I am in love. I cannot describe how much I love this perfume! So let's start with how Prada describe it " “Prada Candy is instantly seductive – pure pleasure wrapped in impulsive charm. In an explosion of shocking pink and gold, Prada Candy takes us on a walk on the wild side, showing us a new facet of Prada femininity where more is more and excess is everything.” So, yeah! Again, it's incredibly sweet, if you don't like sweet fragrances you probably won't like this. The top note (what you smell straight away) of white musk, heart(what you smell after a few minutes- an hour) of benzoin and the base note (what it settles down to, and leaves lingering on your skin) of caramel and vanilla make for an incredibly feminine scent there's no doubt about that. If it doesn't sound like your thing, and you didn't like it at first smell, try it again and smell it after a few hours, the staying power is good and you'll probably grow to love it the more you smell it. Perfect for Valentines day coming up too guys!



Next up, St Moriz Instant Self Tanning Mist £2.99/150ml


The budget version of St Tropez! But just as good, if not better for an all year round, even tan. When you can have the same results from something less than a 10th of the price (i think, maths is not my strong point) then why not? It does have that slight fake tan smell, but personally, I've grown to love it! No streaks when you use a mitt and gives you a great, olive toned colour! I bought it in a shop called 'Savers' in Plymouth, classy I know. But Google it, find out where you can get it near you.



Rose & Co Sweet Vanilla Salve Lip Balm £5 Boots


This is more of an all time favourite but it's been a life saver in the cold weather. It's the only lip balm I'm happy using. It contains beeswax, almond oil and honey to moisturise your lips and protect them from harsh weather! It's so much better than things like Vaseline which are known as 'barriers' because they only stop your lips from losing more moisture, they don't put anything back in, so if you've got chapped, dry lips then it'll do you no good. Anyway, this stuff smells amazing and works miracles on my lips, as you can see I'm nearly out but it's lasted me for so long.



Next is something I'm a bit late on the Blogger Bandwagon with, but it's the Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer £4.99 Boots, but I'm pretty sure you can get it cheaper, and with student discount in Superdrug!


This is a great basic concealer, for blemishes and dark circles, it's nice and thick and creamy and gives great coverage. Mine's in the shade Medium 3. I've been using it everyday and it definitely deserves all the praise it's been getting online! Especially at that price, the only downside is the way the labelling fades, a pet hate of mine but it wouldn't stop me re-purchasing it or recommeding it to you guys.



And finally! Last but not least, Sleek Blushes about £4.99 only available in Superdrug in Flamingo and Suede


Flamingo on the left and Suede on the right. Flamingo looks incredibly fluorescent in the picture, it's bright but not that bright!
Again, for under a fiver these are such great quality, I love all of Sleeks products and was pleasantly surprised by these. They last all day and have brilliant pigmentation, the packaging is so 'sleek' (get it) and does not look the price it is! It reminds me slightly of Nars packaging without being so rubberised. Suede is a great bronzey colour and would look lovely with a tan and dark hair, whereas Flamingo is the opposite, a true bright pink which would look great on the apples of your cheeks, especially with blonde hair.




So this brings my January Favourites to an end! I love sharing it with you and hope you like reading it as much, leave comments and let me know if you try anything out. Remember to Follow if you can, thanks again :-)

Grace
x

Monday 2 January 2012

How To Make Your Hair Grow: Olive Oil Hair Treatment

Helloo :-)
A lot of people will know from my constant wingeing that I really need my hair to grow, my extensions are such a hastle and I just dont think short hair suits me so I'm on the hunt for some miracle growing treatment and thought I'd keep you all informed!

The first one (second technically but first I'm blogging about) I'm trying is an Olive Oil treatment, and believe me, it's not the weirdest thing I've put in my hair.

So, what you'll need is...


-Olive oil, any kind
-Frankinscence Essential Oil you can get this in the Body Shop fairly cheaply
-A towel, preferably one that doesn't matter if it gets a bit oily
-Cling film, standard kitchen cling film!
-Your hair brush
-And a tub or jar with a lid

Okay so...

1. You'll need to measure out roughly half a cup (more for longer thicker hair, less for shorter thinner hair) of olive oil into your container and add 5 drops of frankinscence, seems weird but if it's good enough for the baby Jesus it's good enough for me!

2. Shake it all up! Make sure the lid's on tight... this gives the oils a chance to blend.

3. Next you need to dampen your hair with lukewarm water, not hot as this damages the hair further meaning it won't grow as quickly and when it does, it'll look awful, but warm enough!

4. Squeeze out any excess water and begin by pouring a few teaspoons worth of the oil mixture into your palm and warming it up then start by massaging it into your roots with your fingertips, not nails as these are too harsh and can damage your hair at the roots. Massaging your scalp stimulates the blood flow in this area meaning the hair with grow quicker, it doesn't hurt to do it everytime you apply conditioner normally.

5. Once it's all massaged in, using as much as you need, you can concentrate on your ends, mine are incredibly split and dry so i'm the perfect candidate for this! It can be a bit tricky pouring it into your ends so I ended up dipping them into the jar!

6. Next, work it through the midlengths of your hair which need the least attention.

7. After your hair is thoroughly drenched in this little concoction, twist your hair on top of your head and wrap it in cling film. This helps to keep the heat in which causes your hair folicles to open allowing the oils to penetrate it more deeply.

8. Wrap the towel like a turban around the cling film and leave it for as long as you like! At least an hour is best, you can even do it overnight but bear in mind there is a stage that your hair becomes so saturated that it physically can't take in any more product, this is different for everyone but overnight is plenty long enough as an average.

9. Once it's been in your hair for your chosen period of time you'll need to rinse it with warm (not hot!) water first and then with shampoo and condition as normal. Ideally you'll lay off the blow-dryer and straightners as a general rule for healthy hair but if you can't resist then it's got to be done!



Mine's currently on top of my head! I've had it in for about 2 hours so far, you dont have to just sit there remember, I've been revising, tidyed my room and have done this to keep me busy.

I'll let you know if I see a difference, doing this every few weeks. That's probably a lie, I'll do it more often, havent quite got the hang of 'less is more' yet...

Let me know if you've tried anything that works! Even if it doesn't make your hair grow, it'll leave it super soft and healthy looking.

Hope you've enjoyed this :-)

Grace
x