how to be a single valentine

On Valentines Day I am always single.. And I actually love it that way. I devote the day of love to loving myself and allowing myself to be alone and pampered. This year is slightly different I am spending it with my best friend, white wine - and Juliette will be there too..

But if you are alone and the only valentine through your letterbox was from your grandad (or in my case friends mum!) then I have the perfect pamper plan for you.

After a long day in your red lippie, GOSH Cosmetics Velvet Touch Yours Forever (found here) (slightly ironic I know) it's time to wind down...

Start by running yourself a hot hot bubble bath using the stunning fragrances of this Laura Ashley Bath Soak (found here)

Once the bath is to your bubbly requirements, light a few Yankee Candles to add to the atmosphere of what will be your haven today (found here), I recommend this valentines special set with sweet strawberry, grapefruit and hibiscus scents and a gorgeous glass holder.

Now pour yourself a well deserved glass of wine and slink into the bath, lights down and relaxed.

Once you have started to soak as you should, this Argan Oil Hair Mask & Conditioning Treatment (found here) is perfect for treating your hair as you have treated the rest of you, while this softens each strand of your hair apply this lovely Aroma Actives Mask (found here) to make your skin glow just for you.

Now when you have pruned as much as you can handle use this Soap & Glory Righteous Body Butter (found here) to keep yourself velvetty and spritz yourself with I Love... Strawberries and Cream (found here) to cool down and keep sweet.

Now for my favourite part... your nails. Pop on your dressing gown and grab your favourite polish colours, perfect for valentines day I used Avon Real Red, Avon Viva Pink, Avon Pink Creme, GOSH Special Edition Holographic Hero and GOSH Frosted Soft Blue. Pick a design, mine from this year is below, and polish away...

Now kick back order your chinese takeway and stick your fave scary film on!

Happy single valentines day xxx

moving out empties

Sooo I may have mentioned in my previous post that I was in the process of moving from London back home to Manchester to finish my degree. I finally made the move this weekend and given that ALL my stuff is packed in the next room here in Manchester I can't get to the rest of 500 products of summer before I go to Thailand on Monday. SO to make up for my 1.lack of posts and 2. my ditching 500 POS .. as I packed everything in my room I found a pile of empty beauty products...

HAIR

TRESemme Salon Silk Shampoo... I have talked about how much I love this shampoo before so I don't need to reiterate that it is a favourite of mine! Then there is the kms Hair Play Texture Spray, again I have spoken about before a while ago .. it is a really light texture spray that gives you a bit of oomph if you have flat hair. It smells lovely too, which is actually always something I pick up on in any beauty products.

BODY

To start, I need to say, the other day my friend said to me that I have an obsession for sprays.. and I am slowly realising it might be true! One spray I love is lynx, I actually have a men's lynx in my vast collection that I loooove. But this Lynx is actually the Attract body spray for her that I nicked off my mum! It's really nice and there is that classic lynx back fragrance to it, can't say it works attracting men as the adverts say but it is nice! Another spray I've emptied is Ghost Sweetheart that I got for Christmas, one of mine and my mums favourite affordable perfumes.. it's sweet and slightly musky too. It stays on all day and I always get compliments on it.. my mums dressing gown actually reeks of it! Then there is the wonderful and sadly empty bottle of St Tropez tanning mousse, again I have reviewed this product before.. my favourite tan of all time. I am actually getting the tanning oil that stays longer for my trip to Thailand.  Last but not least, the Revive Morning Bath & Shower Oil by Aromatherapy Associates, this little bottle of miracle oil is the only thing that made my 6:30 morning showers possible, a few drops rubbed on my belly get into the steam of the shower and make me feel so much more human! I love it.

HANDS

My hands always need to be looked atfer, as a nail art amateur I am always polishing and removing polish and so I need to always be moisturising. So it's only natural I have two empty hand creams and an empty polish remover. The Soap & Glory Hand Food is absolutely gorgeous, marshmallow fragranced light and silky hand cream that sinks in fairly quickly and doesn't leave a sticky layer which I hate! Another lovely hand cream is Nivea Express Hydration Hand Lotion which is made to sink in super fast and it does.. it disappears and hydrates your hands in seconds.. I love Nivea moisturisers they smell fresh and don't irritate sensitive skin. The Sally Hansen Acetone Free Polish Remover is a really nice and soft remover, I prefer acetone free because removers with acetone tend to hurt the cuts I get on my fingers and dry skin around my nails.

FACE

I try not to put a lot of things on my face or change my routine but my constant experimenting and curiosity means I do switch foundations and concealers and cleansers so here a few old products I've loved and used up. I've always struggled with foundations .. finding they weren't light enough or they were too thick, I think a foundation should look natural. I found this light liquid foundation last year, it's MUA Undress Your Skin in Porcelain it's really light and perfect for winter, it doesn't cover up my freckles and doesn't feel caked on. Then there is the Nip + Fab CC Eye Fix which is a colour correcting eye concealer, it's the perfect shade of orange (opposite to purple) that covers my under eye bags when I'm tired and worn out. I love the Porefessional primer by Benefit, my pores just disappear! when I am switching between make ups and cleansers my skin can break out, or just from a rush of hormones!!, I find my Witch blemish stick a complete must as a bedside essential, I sit and rub it on while I watch telly and by morning my spots have gone down by a mile.

So that's all my empties from moving out of my London house :( .. I will be posting again this week before Thailand with what me and Shauna are packing and then I will be away for a month!!

give your roots a boost

as a sworn hair volume lover I naturally have had my fair share of volumising products from Elnett hairspray to the essential hair comb over to my Schwarzkopf OSIS hair powder. I am an experimenter by nature, I am not always loyal to beauty products and thats why I rinse through so many and ended up writing a blog about my product experiences! Currently, and not in the least bit surprisingly I own 5 root lifting and texturising products.. so I am here today to review them for you and let you know if they are good as they say they are...

Color Wow Raise the Root, £16.50

Spray this on your hair before you blow dry - concentrating on roots. The results are what you expect, volume but not too much oomph. This product isn't too sticky, is easy and light to use, and smells like the hairdressers (which I love). I really have nothing bad to say about this product, good results, lovely product. This is the more expensive option, but given how long it lasts and that you only need a few spritzes to get great results I would say it is worth the investment.

Blow Pro Blow Up Root Lift Concentrate, £9.99

This product is used in the same way as the Color Wow product - spray directly on roots and blow dry upwards.  The advantage with this one is that it has a special pointed nozzle to make it easier to concentrate on spraying your roots. The texture of it is quite sticky compared to the lighter Color Wow one, however it gives more lift. - again this product smells great so when I blow dry my hair it smells & looks just like the hairdresser did it!

VO5 Give Me Texture Instant Oomph Texture, £4.19

I've reviewed this product in my April Favourites, so it is obviously up there with the best of the best. the cream of the crop. I love this product, because it gives you an instant lift with dry hair - so there is no need for the effort and sweat of blow dry. I reallllyyy recommend it for girls with thin/flat hair. No backcombing necessary just powder beneath your top layer - scrunch and bumpf - and done. It's also in a handy tiny bottle so you can take it in your handbag on a night out too!

Blow Pro Textstyle Dry Texture Spray, £10.99

This spray has a dry powdery texture so it acts like the VO5 dusting powder and can be used in the same way, but you can also lightly mist it over your hair if it is feeling flat and silky to give it some juice and life! It's not as compact and full on as the VO5 so if you only need a light lift I'd go for this product instead of the more intense VO5 powder.

KMS California Hair Play Texture Spray, £11.99

This texture spray isn't really for just concentrating on lifting your roots, it is for those of use with naturally thick hair who just want to be able to style and lift our hair out of its 'just blown dry flat and too silky' coma. Honestly, it is perfect for that and I will definitely be buying this product again.

What are your favourite root lifting and texturising products?

oiling up for summer

do not be fooled by my witty title - I am not here to talk about sun oil's, or applying vegetable oil on the beach, no no, I am white as the snow and unfortunately I am destined to stay that way. So these oils are the ones you may enjoy, like I do, and feel necessary in the run up to summer. Getting you all prepped and ready to show your hair, skin and nails :)

as you can see my new found brand is Aromatherapy Associates. Lush made to measure oils for every occasion seem to be my new love. It started in all honesty with the De-Stress Body Wash (not featured in this post as it is one of Aromatherapy's non-oily products!) that grew on me quicker than I expected, and their miracle in a bottle - Intensive Skin Treatment Oil. This oil is made to rejuvenate and repair the skin, perfect for scars/mishaps in the skin that you are unhappy with. I apply a few drops to my stretch-marks and operation scars and on my tattoo post-shower twice a week and I've seen results already. Needless to say I am in love, it also smells absolutely divine and is all natural and non-chemically aromatherapeutic goodness. And guess what is in it? - the one and only vitamin E, who'da thought?! (me hehe)

My next find in the Aromatherapy Associates collection of oils is the bath & shower oils. Pick which you think you need and soak yourself in a pool of wonderful aroma's and perfect harmony - or something like that. I have a few sample pots I got free when I treated my mother to their De-Stress Mind Bath & Shower Oil (which is her new found love) and I've also got the Essential Bath & Shower Oil set of mini bottles that I'm actually yet to crack open! - This is purely because I am so in love with the De-Stress Wash and am scared to layer my aroma's in case I overwhelm myself. I never would have thought I would like scents like these, I am a strawberry fluffy fruity pinky wonderful creamy kinda girl. Always going for your coconuts, vanilla's and berry bursts. But I may be becoming a woman and venturing into brave aromatherapy scents with these new shower oils. (I only use the shower so I rub on my arms and chest and tummy so the steam smells lovely and my skin feels just as). I have used the Support Lavender & Peppermint and Support Breathe oils so far, Breathe being my favourite - it is so decongesting and fresh! I am venturing into the Revive Morning tomorrow, hoping it will stop me feeling like death on my journey to work and think after my busy week at work I'll be needing the De-Stress Mind OR Deep Relax. I'm so excited! (And will be reviewing each one in a Bath & Shower Oil post once I've used them all).

The last Aromatherapy Associates product on my slippery list of oils is the Nourishing Face Oil. Not something I would usually go for to be honest, and the smell isn't something I would like but given that I am a new woman and all - I am really liking this product. I have combined skin, I get a really oily nose and this oil seems to help balance that out - nourishing and hydrating my dry skin patches and neutralising my oily patches. I have to say the strong smell of this product does frighten me when putting it on my face but I brave it because it works and it ain't as bad as you think it's gunna be, it's actually quite nice. 

Aromatherapy Associates is a rather expensive brand - but trust me. It is worth it if you want to splash out, whether on yourself or on a friend/family member. they will appreciate it and so will you.

Steering away from aromatherapy and into hairtherapy - Again I wouldn't normally think to get oil for my hair, afraid of how greasy it might get, but this is lovely and if you are worried about greasiness too - don't be! no matter how prone to grease your hair is. This One Gets You Silky Smooth Light Hair Oil, really does get you silky smooth, Just put it on the ends to avoid greasiness and get rid of the horrible dry look of split ends and grown out hair (my problem - I am growing my hair so reluctant to cut it! ipso facto .. dry, split ends!) and voila, shiny luscious smooth hair :) without having to soak it in conditioner or a hair treatment. Easy peasy.

Here we go - nails - Avon Nail Experts Strong Results. I rub this on my nails before my base coat when my nails are feeling particularly battered and bruised from all the polish I use. It's really light and not greasy, but isn't really like a polish at all so I class it as an oil. If you polish your nails as much as me I suggest you use this as well as a strengthening base coat.

I know Aromatherapy Associates took up a lot of room there - but they inspired the post AND deserve the credit as the products are just that good.

Which oils do you use?

PS any spelling mistakes I apologise for - I am tres tres tired. And remember all the names of the products link to where you can get them! - and follow me on twitter and instagram :D @curiousitybty

april favourites

so april is well and truly over - it went so fast - and over the course of the month I gained many new favourite products. Ranging from make-up to exfoliators, I have it all in my little beauty hoarding corner.

But my favourites make it to my dressing table, where I keep the best of the best. And here it is my first monthly favourites post, I'm also going to give away some hints on upcoming posts I have planned for the month of May.

body

I Love... Strawberries & Cream Exfoliating Shower Cream

Smells like a bottle of heaven, I get quite bad spots sometimes on my back and chest and this exfoliator has really worked wonders in making them go down! It is also handy to have a body exfoliator for when you start to get the fake tan out. Keep your legs, arms and torso free from dry skin and dead skin cells so your tan is smooth and perfected - it is very important.

Hugo Boss, Boss Orange Eau de Toilette

My staple perfumes are Prada Candy or Ghost Sweetheart (cheaper option), I've stuck to these scents for a couple of years and on really special posh grown up occasions I use Vivienne Westwood Let it Rock. This perfume however has taken over as my day scent - it is a little different to the super sweet and fruity scents I normally go for at first, but the fragrance develops into a really light and sweet one. It is definitely a  new favourite.

Aromatherapy Associates Intensive Treatment Oil

A bottle of miracle oil that I don't want to ever run out of. I used to use Bio Oil for the stretchmarks and scars I have (from growing quickly on my hips to operation scars) but no difference was ever made and someone told me it is mineral oil, so doesn't actually do anything. This oil however is designed down the the last ingredient to treat scars. My stretchmarks are looking so much better these days and I am hoping will be practically gone by the time I go to Thailand!

hair

VO5 Volume Dusting Powder

I have previously bought the Schwarzkopf OSiS Dust it, Mattifying Powder form my hairdressers and I loved it in my college years where my volume was always ten times the size it probably should have been. These days volume is back and bouncing (I am going to review my favourite root raising products soon so look out for that) and this particular VO5 product has made the favourties list this month. Whenever I raid Juliette's cupboard (see more about her stash here) I hunt for this bottle of wondefullness and this month I invested. It's perfect for flat hair days and handbag size too.

KMS California Hair Play Playable Texture Spray

This product has become something I use every day. I have hair that goes frizzy and wavy with  a touch of static if I don't blow dry it and when I do blow dry it, it becomes flat and 'too straight' within half an hour. This spray ensures that whether I blow dry or not it works with me. I love it - I combine it with a lovely oil I'm going to post up to have a textured and smooth look (I'll show you what I mean later this week).

hands & nails

Nourish Skincare Anti-Ageing Argan & Kale Hand Cream

Never found myself looking for anti-ageing products but recently as I am officially out of my teens and into my adult years I find myself panicking about getting old and wrinkly. Given the benefits of this cream, especially with it's wonderful ingredient of Kale, (which I will expand on soon in an upcoming hand creams post - look out!) it is perfect for my mani regime and preventing me getting super old hands like my dear old mum. The scent also reminds me of climbing trees as a kid and biking around the woods - always helps with the anti-ageing process.

Sally Hensen Gel Cuticle Remover

You may have seen this product in the back of my nail posts or mentioned in them - but it is a new addition to my collection this month. I have a few oils and creams for my cuticles because they are terrible so I am always looking for new and wonderful ways to keep them prim and proper. This product is the best I've tried for removing cuticles during my mani process - it's definitely a keeper and so easy to use if you aren't a regular with cuticle removing.

Rimmel Matte Finish Top Coat

Having used GOSH's and George @ Asda's matte top coats in the past few months I have developed a love for them - it means there is no need for buying all your fave shades in a matte version, you can transform them with a quick coat of this polish. This one is my favourite because it isn't as thick as the others, but I would recommend GOSH's top coat too if you are looking to invest in a decent mattifying polish.

face

Aroma Actives Purifying Clay Mask

A down-priced collection by the wonderful makers of Aromatherapy Associates (a newly loved brand of mine you will see popping up here and there on curiousity), the Aroma Actives collection is full of treats. I particularly love this face mask, I've always been a fan of mud and clay on my face is appeals to my weak spots and works wonders on my skin. I am going to test it against another couple of my favourtie clay and mud masks to see which is truly the best and see what benefits they have, but for now this is the best one I own.

B. Brilliant Rich Colour Lip Gloss in Morello

Having not been brave enough in the past to try purple lipstick (and being ever loyal to my millions of red shades) this lippy has been in my draw for a little while waiting to be cracked open. I braved it the other day and asked the lovely people of my Facebook & Instagram world how it looked. It is now my new favourite shade of lippy. This one is quite a dark plum shade and I am going in the deep end with it (I don't do things by halves). If you aren't brave enough to go dark like me then try a lighter softer shade. If you have red hair, go for it because purple and orange are on opposite sides of the colour spectrum so they match perfectly :) 

there you have it, what are your new favourites this month? 

the key to a fast and furious blow dry

I have a bit of a versus post for you all today - and I am trying to be more (yes this previously said me bore, because I am apparently really bad at spell checking or lazy, either way I blame my mother the English teacher) efficient and constant with my posts too as I know I've been very quiet this week.

These products are used to speed up the process of the blow drying your hair, convenient for those like me who have thick hair and those who wash their hair in the morning before work (it gives you an extra ten minutes in bed!!). I don't know how the technology works in these products but it works well! So here is what I love about them..

Color Wow's Speed Dry

 The Color Wow product isn't as strong in speeding up the blow dry as the Blow Pro lotion however I will explain why this is an advantage in a minute.  What I loved about i t though is that it is in the form of a lovely spray, it's light and refreshing right before a blow dry and I think the spray gives you maximum and easier coverage of your hair. I personally prefer this product out of the two, even though they are both so good at their jobs.

Blow Pro Express Blow Dry

This lotion is really strong, it does the job much quicker than the Color Wow spray - however it was a little too strong for me - it felt like my hair was too dry after I used it and as I have hair that dries out really quickly between cuts it wasn't good. It meant I had to put a lot of oil on afterwards, which I didn't love! But I would advise that those with really thick hair, that have trouble with a blow dry, use this product. It does what it says on the tin so to speak!

So overall, I would say that both these products are great and what makes them differ is if you prefer spray/lotion products or the thickness of your hair. Whatever the whether, try one at least!!

I am doing this post and other hair related posts to create the perfect blow dry kit which will go up in a couple of weeks. :) 

xxx

my percy & reed needs .. amongst other hair essentials

So, I made a courageous decision a couple of weeks ago to invest in receiving a beauty box every month.. After feeling particularly pooped about being so skint I thought 'Why the hell not?' and it worked out to be pretty worth it. I got some really nice bits and pieces that I will blog about once I've had the chance to use and abuse them all. I have to say, I am most excited to try the Beautify Me supplements as my skin has been really bad lately, you can look out for that in a month when my current pack has run out!

One product I used straight away and instantaneously loved was the Percy & Reed Dry Conditioner. My hair as I have said before gets itself into bad condition fairly quickly despite the fact I hardly ever blow dry it or straighten it - so I was pretty eager to see what it was like seeing as the piles of oil I've been putting on my hair is starting to give me an uncomfortable oily feeling on my face. I LOVE IT. It just makes my hair super soft - just like the Keratin did the other day - but with no need to start from the beginning. It's brill if you have - like me- spent the day trekking around Manchester in the wind and rain, hunting something down for your niece after 3 hours on tubes and trains from London, right before you run out of time to get ready for a night out with the girls! (and breathe) - it's a really good quick fix (and I don't particularly like that phrase however this time it's true!)

I have also found out how amazing the one minute transformation is by Color Wow after kindly getting a little sample from a feelunique event for LFW this week. It was pretty magical when I slapped it onto my 'fro to see just how good it was - but don't apply too much! (my major product tip when it comes to hair, avoid over usage or you will end up washing your hair daily and that isn't good for the natural oils that make your hair grow).

These aren't the only amazing instantly transforming - from work to night out - products I use. I obviously am a massive fan of Batiste Dry Shampoo (pairs well with the dry conditioner I think) and am head over heels for the new oriental scent as it is right up my alley (and prepping me for my trip to Thailand/Vietnam).

Then, once all creams and spritz's and sprays have been applied, you can quickly comb through with the amazing Tangle Teezer (which I have always avoided due to the fact I NEVER brush my hair but I am happy to say it is well worth the wait) and voila, instant hair in an instant for a night out, instantly. 

Good luck ladies xxx

smooth talk

So.. this post is a hairy one. Full of hair and hair talk. I have taken to the idea of doing some beauty blogging and decided - given my tendency to hoard and use a ridiculous amount of products - it would be a good idea.

Over the past 3 days my hair has been a massive curly fro - like that of Julia Roberts or at least I like to think so - something like the below to be more exact ;)

Well I say exact.. that's what I like to think ;)

When it came to washing my hair I have to say I was dreading it - so I piled on the conditioner plus this amazing Shea Butter hair mask! I got it in Primark - Les Karites Hair Mask.

I was really impressed with the results after washing my hair I applied the mask for 5-10 minutes (I have no idea how long I waited to be honest) either way, I then washed it out and it was really easy to brush - surprisingly - and blow dry. And boom I have the smoothest hair I've had in a lonnnnnnggg time.

Woohoo! I would definitely recommend it - and I swear it was only a pound.. but given my terrible memory I can't guarantee a thing but it was definitely at the till! One of the temptation last minute buys ;)

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