Busy busy busy! Beauty training update.

I thought it might be nice to add a little update on how my training with Beauty Skills is going.  The last time I posted about it everything was new and exciting and honestly I was a bit worried that somewhere down the line the novelty would wear off or my laziness would takw over and I'd realise. .... actually, this is more work than I'm willing to put in!

I'm happy to report that that absolutely hasn't happened! I'm still absolutely loving it! I'm learning so much and having a lot of fun doing it.

I won't lie, it's a lot of work, and there are aspects of it that I struggle with. Particularly the anatomy and physiology side of things. The human body is an amazing,  if bloody complicated,  piece of machinery! That said, it's still very interesting!  Sitting at home with my head in a book or scribbling out notes is not a chore!

The practical side is so much fun! And seeing the progress im making, and all the other girls, is just so satisfying and motivating. The first  week I was sticking my gloves to myself with wax and now I can competently wax all standard areas! The waxing is actually one of my favourite things to do now, and I thought I'd hate it!

Our first set of exams are in October, and we're making flying progress! I'm honestly not too worried.... yet!

I've been enjoying it so much that I've even set myself up a little practical room at home and have been recruiting guinea pigs to practice on. I've been picking bits up here and there when I can afford it, and was generously given a lend of a wax pot to practice with.

Not only that, but on the more sentimental side of things,  I think taking up this course has done great things for my confidence. Like today I stripped off in front of a girl I have to see almost every day for the next 10 months, have her examine me in all my glory and it didn't phase me at all!

It's been an absolutely fantastic experience so far, and a great opportunity!  I really am enjoying myself and am already planning courses to after to further my qualifications! I couldn't recommend the course enough to anyone with an interest in beauty. The tutors are brilliant and you'll learn more than you ever thought you needed to know!

SBBC Day 16- My beauty wishlist

I am many weird and sometimes wonderful things, but one thing I am more than anything else, is extremely. EXTREMELY wanty. I want everything and I want it yesterday. If I don't want it right now I will probably want it tomorrow. But I am also perpetually broke, so until I can source myself a wealthy husband who likes to spoil me, the vast majority of what I crave will remain on my wishlist. Le sigh  :(

First up, one of these bad boys please. I'll no doubt pick myself up a cheaper version along the way, but still, gimmeeee!

I'll also have this please. Actually, i'll just have ALL the Sleek pallets thanks!

If you're feeling EXTRA generous, I would love, love, LOOOOOOVE a full set of Great Lenghts hair extensions. Who wouldn't, right? If I ever win the lotto, that will be the first thing I treat myself to. I mean, look!! It's so unfair :(

And I also want an Iphone. I have to stop before I cry...

SBBC Day 11- My biggest beauty fails

I think we all wrack up some beauty fails throughout the years,  particularly when you're younger and braver and nothing is off limits. I spent most of my 13th year wandering around the place looking like aunt Sally, until my dad finally snapped and refused to drop me anywhere until I sorted my blusher out.

Then there was the time I got handsy with a blue and silver glitter pot and applied it, with no great skill or precision, to essentially my entire face. I looked like a picture a child painted, but at the time I was only gorgeous.

Speaking of glitter, do you remember body glitter? Do you remember rooms full of preteen girls shimmering like human disco balls?

The one fail that stands triumphant among them all (triumphant in that it was the absolute worst) was when I was 17, had just broken up with someone, and thought I had nothing better to do than chop off my lovely long blonde hair and dye it black. In my post relationship haze, I thought I looked really edgy and cool, in reality I looked like a corpse in a school uniform. Im just far too pale for dark hair. Not even pale, ghostly. Then began the 2 year battle to get my hair back a lighter colour without it all falling out. Never, ever again.

SBBC Day 10- My pet peeves

Ohhhhhh, where to begin! Im normally quite a tolerant person, we all make mistakes, but when it comes to make up there are certain things I just can't abide. When I occasionally fall guilty of them myself it's all I can do not to run home and weep into my make up remover. So let's have a look at a few things that make my toes curl with embarrassment

Eyebrows so large they should have their own postcode- some people can pull off the bushy brow, try picture Cara Delavigine without her signature brows, it's hilarious! Most people, however, cannot. Pick your brow shape to suit your face, not to follow a trend!

Drawn on brows- Drawing eyebrows on babies and pets- HILARIOUS. Drawing eyebrows on yourself as part of your super serious make up routine makes baby Jesus cry. On behalf of all people everywhere, please stop that. 

Spider lashes- there's a fine line between adding that extra layer of mascara that makes your lashes look full and fanned out, and the layer that makes you look like you have 3 lashes.

The ring of shame- we've all been guilty of it at one stage. Thankfully most of us grow out of it when our mother/sister/stranger on the street slaps us and teaches us how to blend. Alas Horatio,  not everyone pays attention.

Marshmallow head- also known as the reverse ring of shame. It can actually be tricky to bronze your face up right if you're not used to wearing tan, so im slightly more lenient on this faux pax. But seriously!.... draft in some help if needs be. Looking like you went on holiday but left your head at home has never worked. For anyone. Ever.

The attack of the mascara wand- eyeshadow-perfect, eyeliner- beautiful, foundation- stellar job you did there! Would be a shame if something came along and ruined it all, like, I dunno..... a mascara wand RIGHT ON YOUR EYEBALL!!!!! Give me strength.

Rain sabotage- nothing worse than having an uncharacteristically good hair day, and just while your getting used to basking in your good hair glow BOOM!! Rain. Rain everywhere. And of course you don't have an umbrella because that would just be too sensible

Pink tooth- Lippy is lovely on your lips, not so lovely on your pearly whits. And how would you even know if not for the kindness of strangers? Oh the hugemanity :(

Leaky eye syndrome- You know those beautiful summer days where the sun is shining, the birds are chirping and the pollen is sky high? They suck!! Many days I have left the house with fabulous eye make up, and returned looking like an escaped panda. Nothing is truly waterproof. Long live autumn!

Slattery's Communications Blogger event

This evening I popped along to an event being held in Slattery's Communications to mingle with some fellow Bloggers and learn a bit about blogging from those in the know, and to learn more about the brands Slattery's represent.

They put on a fabulous spread when we arrived, with plenty of snacks and drinks to fill our tummies. There was a very informative and entertaining talk about how to make the most of your blog.

There was a fantastic array of goodies from He-shi, John Frieda and Sudocrem given to everyone to try and review. I got the He-Shi gradual tan and mitt, which I can't wait to try, as well as a Skinician restoring night cream.

My John Frieda goodie bag may be the saviour of my poor ravaged hair. In my extremely generous bag I got full size bottles of Frizz Ease 3 day straight, hair serum, smooth start conditioner, full repair conditioner and full repair deep conditioning mask, all of which will be very gratefully used!

I'll do my best to get a full review of as many of the products as I can as I use them!

Rimmel Apocalips in Apocalyptic

Since dying my hair pink, I've been craving a really bright, vibrant pink lipstick to wear on a night out. I wanted something that I could put on once, and only have to top it up once or twice throughout the night. I plumped for Rimmel Apocalips in Apocalyptic as it was by far the most concentrated shade in the range (there are 8 shades to choose from) and I have to say I am so, so pleased with it.

Apcalyptic

The colour is EXTREMELY pigmented so a little goes a very long way. The formula is smooth and quite thick so you get a very clean, even spread of colour without the lacquer ever going sticky! It's extremely easy to wear! There's a lovely gloss to the lacquer initially, which lasts quite a while, but even when the gloss fades you're still left with a vivid pop of colour for hours! There is nothing discreet about the colour, it's bold, bright and in your face so is best worn with quite neutral eye make up.

I'll most definitely be treating myself to one or two more of these, at 7.95 they are worth every penny!

My lovely little mini haul- Wednesday 29th May

I stumbled into a bit of spare cash this week (thanks Tax back!) so I've been splurging left right and center. Today I well and truly treated myself, and damn near emptied my purse. I had gone into Superdrug because they were supposed to be getting an MUA delivery in and I had my eye on a primer and pallet, but they hadn't gotten around to putting the delivery out yet so I was FORCED to browse everything else in the shop..... poor me..... So, this is what I got....

Mini haul booty

Collection 2000 Primed and Ready smoothing primer- €7.75
Collection 2000 Shimmer Shades in Blushalicious- €5.35
NYC Smooth Skin pressed powder -€2.55
Barry M Brow Pen Liquid eyebrow pen- €6.45
*Hairspray Nail polish shade 662- €2.99

Superdrug have a 3 for 2 offer across all their cosmetics at the moment, so my blusher was free!! Also, the nail polish wasn't bought in Superdrug, but I am very impressed with it so it has to get a mention!

Primer- I love the feel of this on my skin, it makes it feel incredibly soft. It's late and I haven't had a chance to use this as a base yet, but it definitely does make my skin look a little less flawed, even without my regular foundation. I'll use it properly tomorrow and give a more precise review then!

Barry M Liquid eyebrow marker pen- Every now and then I spot something on a make up display that makes me absolutely loose my shit and go all fan girl in public. This was one of those things. I just think it's so clever! As a lot of people know, I'm an absolute demon for anything eyebrow, I'm obsessed! I was cheeky and had a go of the sample in Superdrug and I have to say...... Love it!! It's dark brown (that was the only shade Superdrug had, so im not even sure if it comes in any lighter shades) so suits me perfectly. It's quite similar to a felt tip eyeliner. I have found that certain eyebrow pencils/powders would rub off my glasses and leave marks above my brows. This hasn't budged, and I've been wearing sunglasses all day. This is definitely the gem in my splurges crown.

Hairspray nail polish- I love pastel polishes, they make me feel so summery and girly, but they can be an absolute nightmare at times. They can be so watery and sheer, and take 3-4 coats to get a good colour, so you have to dedicate quite a while to get your nails right. This is, without a doubt, the most opaque pastel polish I have ever used! In 1 coat it was perfectly lilac, the second coat wasn't strictly necessary. I've only really been typing (and sinking a sneaky drink) since i put in on so it's lasting time has yet to be determined, but i am definitely intrigued to try some of their other pastel polishes now!

Please ignore the dire state of my cuticles!

I've yet to use the other 2 products, but they'll get a thorough investigating tomorrow!

I'm trying something kinda new with my hair tomorrow, changing the colour and the style slightly, would anyone be interested in reading an account of it all?

The Irish Beauty Show- RDS Dublin

I popped out the Beauty Show today on a free ticket that was gifted to me by a very lovely friend. I have to say, it wasn't really what I expected! In some area's it excelled, in others it kinda fell flat. Granted, I went on the second day, and didn't get there till about half 3, so a lot of stalls weren't long about winding down.

There was more fake tan there than you could shake a stick at. Every kind, spray tans for salon and home use, mousse, creams, you name it, it had a stand. The sheer amount was actually a little overwhelming, if you didn't go in with a clear idea of what you wanted it could have been quite difficult to chose. On the plus side they were all really reasonably priced. Cocoa Brown had a great offer of 4 cans for €20, which is great value. I settled on a bottle of Bbold in light/medium. I was very cheeky and asked for the sample bottle since they were packing up. Got it for €5, as opposed to €10, and the bottle was almost full. The girls at the Bbold stand also really knew their stuff, and were really, really nice and approachable. I applied the tan tonight and am so far really impressed. Like Cocoa Brown, there is no smell at all, and it's developing into a nice natural glow! Here's a link to their Facebook page, I would highly recommend giving them a visit!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/BBoldtan/174403839327677

If you're a nail polish fan, you would have been in heaven. There was mountains of nail polish, loads of stands doing Shellac, nail art, gel nails, or selling products for salon and home. The OPI stand was particularly impressive, like a rainbow! And they were only €6 a bottle, €3.50 for some of the older sets.

I was slightly disappointed in the selection of hair care/ hair dressing/ extensions on display. I was very excited about seeing the Great Lengths stand, but when I finally found them, there was nothing happening at their stand! No one even approached me to give me any information. The same thing happened at the House Of Colour stand. There was only 1 guy there, myself and my friend were looking at one of the TWO products on display, we weren't approached, even though we were the only ones there. There was a pretty limited selection of hair care, but what was there was pretty good value.

There was bundles of make up, from very well known brands, to brands I had never even heard of. Some of it was fantastic, and there was great offers to be had, but some were blatantly samples that people were trying to fob off. I bought a lovely little semi permanent eyebrow kit from Cresty Cosmetics. I got the eyebrow powder, brush, 3 stencils for €20. The girl I was dealing with also threw in 3 free mascara's and 2 lip tattoo's! Can't complain about that! Dermalogica's stand was absolutely fantastic. They were offering free face mapping, and gave you free samples of everything that your skin needed. The staff at the stands were also incredibly friendly and helpful! There was about a 5 minute wait, but it was well worth it when you were handed your envelope full of samples at the end.

Overall, it was a really enjoyable day out. I would have loved to have gone with a couple of hundred euro in my back pocket, as there was so much on offer on the spot, like teeth whitening for just €69! There was lot's to see, a lot of demonstrations, but not a lot of samples to be brutally honest. It would have been nice to try a lot of the products before parting with your hard earned cash. I would recommend going, even if just to pick up some tips and tricks from experienced practioners. I'll definitely head along to the next one, but I'll be saving up this time!

NYC Blue rose (405) lipstick

I've been going through another phase of wearing big, bold coloured lipstick. Im a demon for pinks, the brighter the better. This NYC one is one of my current favourites.

It's a real rich, deep, vibrant shade of pink with a subtle blue tint. It's quite stunning. I tend to find that because i have quite big lips any bright colours can look a bit over the top, but not this one. It's magic! And an absolute steal at just €2.49! The colour lasts hours and stays nice and moisturised. A lovely little find.