January Favourites

Wow, it feels like I haven't done a favourites post in so long... which is in fact, pretty accurate - my last one was in May last year.  Oops.  So we've plenty to catch up on.

The first honourable mention must be YSL's Mon Paris, which is a classic, romantic, and suitably Parisian smelling fragrance.  Think fruity, floral and sweet but with a deeper chypre base - somewhere between Giorgio Armani's Si and Coco Mademoiselle.  Lovely.

For my birthday in October my housemates (aren't they just the best?!) got me an Instax Mini 8 Camera in Yellow, which I have been loving.  There's nothing quite so satisfying as the clunk when you hit the shutter, the little squeal as your picture emerges, and anxiously watching the image develop over a two minute interval.  You can get them in all sorts of colours and there's plenty of funky cases to boot - like this oh-so-70s divine floral one.

  

I've definitely had to up my haircare game this January.  Whereas I'm usually fairly lazy, having just had another load of bleach inflicted on my ends as well as the colder temperatures, I'm lathering on all the nourishment I can.  I've recently rediscovered Lee Stafford's products, and I have to say, one of the major USPs of his products for me is their amazing smell.  I'm talking sweet, nutty, white-sand tropical island kind of smell.  Just what the doctor ordered in January, no?

I  like to whack a load of this Repair Oil onto my damp ends, and again once my hair has dried, to help seal the ends and give a glossier finish.  Paired with Ojon's Leave-in Glossing Cream, which I again use a generous dollop of on wet, brushed through hair, this combination has just about been saving my hair throughout the month.

And finally, to brighten up my reluctantly wintry looking skin, I've returned to an old favourite by Kiko - their Beam of Light Highlighter in 01 Cream.  Kiko is a brand I so rarely tend to buy from, but I believe I picked this up when I popped into one of their stores in a mall in Spain - as you do.  Anyway, it's just glorious.  Think pearlescent, shimmery, sandy gold colours; again, beaches and tropical islands (anywhere but England!).  This is highly pigmented and gives a gorgeous highlight but can be layered according to desired effect.

I like to dust along cheekbones, brow bones, cupid's bow, you name it.  Just call me shimmerball.

Ruby x

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May Favourites

Good afternoon chickies!  Oh, how I've missed blogging - the past couple of months have been manic for me in terms of uni work.  The beginning of May was a deadline-shaped whirlwind, but the storm has officially raged, and I'm now wedged in the first lazy lull of summer... starting with a few May favourites for you all.

As the weather has been getting a bit warmer my hair has certainly been feeling the pinch.  I'm talking a dead, dry, scarecrow-like pinch.  Having used Argan oil for the past year or so, I thought I would try something new, and I've become a big fan of this Organix Coconut Milk Serum as a way to smooth down my unruly ends and restore a bit of moisture.  If you want your hair to smell like a holiday in Barbados, this is perfect - it's quite a lightweight serum too, so won't leave your hair feeling greasy or sticky.

I've been using Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel for a little while now, too, and although it's quite an investment, I love this scent.  It's a fresh oriental and fruity fragrance that lasts all day.  I have the Eau de Parfum, and found that this smells quite different to the Eau de Toilette, so if anyone is thinking about getting this, make sure you compare the two first and see which you prefer.

 This next one is a little weird, but thought it was worth a mention...

 

This little tool is called a 'Comedone Extractor'.  I won't go into too much detail, for fear of putting you off ever visiting my blog again... but these things are really bloody useful for anyone who suffers from acne or blackhead-prone skin.  I first saw them in Japan and was too intrigued not to try one out.  I got mine off Amazon for a very inexpensive £1.89.  Has anyone else heard of, or used one of these?  I'd love to know what you thought of it!  

 While at home for a week last week I popped into Boots and saw that they now stock NYX cosmetics.  I had to pick up a couple of bits of course, and I'll probably do a full post on what I got, but one of the things I've been loving is this Jumbo Eye Pencil in Lavender - a gorgeous shimmery lilac shade.  It's quite an inexpensive brand, and what especially drew me to this counter was the great range of colours they have, especially in terms of eyeliners, shadows, lipsticks etc.  The other new makeup product I've been loving is the Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Eyeliner.  I've done a full review of this product here, but let me tell you in short - it's amazing.

And finally, I thought I'd round it all off with a book I've recently started, called Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov.  This is by no means a particularly light read (so far, anyway) but is written so beautifully and experimentally.  For lovers of language, this is a treat.  I hope you're all really well and enjoying the sunshine, and to anyone who still has exams and deadlines - good luck, and keep going!  The end is in sight.

Ruby x

 

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A Most Surprising Haircut

Photo sourced from Google.

If someone had told me a few days ago that it was possible to have my hair cut in under an hour for under a tenner I would probably have laughed disbelievingly and told them not to be ridiculous.  But on Friday, my life was changed by the revolution that is Celly's.

Has anyone ever heard of a salon called Celly's? Chances are you probably haven't; I certainly hadn't before, and when my friend Fleur told me about the concept of it, I have to say I was shocked.  I couldn't imagine a hairdressing salon that was basically the female equivalent of the traditional male barbers.  I couldn't imagine walking in off the street, sitting down, and waiting to get my haircut, without any forward planning, without even making an appointment.  The whole idea just seemed insane to me.  

But desperate times called for desperate measures, and with my student loan a distant memory and hair that would give Dumbledore's beard a run for its money, I felt I would be silly not to give Celly's a go.  So on Friday morning I dragged Josh into town with me to keep me company, promising him that this time would be different to the other times I've had my hair done and it would (should) definitely (hopefully) not take more than an hour.  As I walked in I told the receptionist I just wanted a cut, and my name was added to a list and then I was invited to sit down and wait.  I reckon there was probably around 6 other women waiting before me, and about the same amount of hairdressers, so I presumed I would be waiting around an hour.  How wrong I was!  After 25 minutes I was ushered into a chair, sat down and a gown was whisked around me.  I'm not going to lie, the service there really is no frills - no introductions, no how are you, no coffee or juice or milkshakes.  After nervously telling the lady I just wanted a few inches off my hair to make it look half healthy again, she got to work.  She brushed through first (no easy feat at all, but I was impressed by her speed), and by this point, I started to relax a little.  Until, moments later, I realised she was already cutting my hair.  DRY.  I have never, ever, even heard of anyone getting their hair cut dry.  By this point, I was suddenly very nervous again, and I started to sweat a little as the scissors flashed at me in the mirror and lock after lock of hair drifted down onto the cold floor.  Around 20 minutes later, I paid my £9.90 and left.  Not one drop of water had touched my hair.  Not one product.  Not one millilitre of shampoo nor conditioner.  It was unheard of - but, it was brilliant.  I was in and out within three quarters of an hour, with no severe dent in my bank account, no hour and a half of my life wasted sitting in a chair with dead legs making polite conversation, no cloud of strawberry-scented hair products following me round for hours after.  

Celly's definitely won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I have to say for a quick, cheap and cheerful haircut, I really can't fault it.  I'm not entirely sure how I would feel about having my hair coloured or a more complicated cut there, as I don't know if my nerves could take it...but for just a trim, it's certainly worth a try.  Has anyone else visited?

Ruby x

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Review: Batiste's 'Oomph my Locks' XXL Volume Spray and 'Texture Me' Texturising Spray

Every day I ask myself the same questions.  Mainly, what am I going to have for breakfast, what am I most likely to actually get done today and what am I doing with my life in that order... usually followed by 'What in the name of the good Lord can I do with my hair today?'.  And this question, Boots answered for me.

As you may or may not know from my last post (where I found the perfect hair-concealing accessory), I am constantly looking for ways to avoid washing my hair.  I'm caught in the never-ending vicious cycle of not wanting to pay to get my haircut, but also not wanting to wash my hair because it's too long, too thick and too tangly.  Ever since dry shampoo appeared on the scene all those years (showing my age) ago, I have been a changed woman.  Gone are the days of having to labour for hours in the bath combing, conditioning, shampooing, repeating... All I went into Boots for was another bottle of my all-time favourite dry-shampoo brand, Batiste.  So, as you can imagine, my day certainly took a turn for the interesting when I found they have a new styling range.

Much to my excitement, I picked up two new products to try out; the 'Oomph my Locks' XXL Volumising Spray (£2.86) and the 'Texture Me' Texturizing Spray (£2.99).  Even better, they were both a third off... do you see why I couldn't resist?  I noticed too that they've re-vamped the big cans of Tropical dry shampoo with this snazzy flamingo meets Hawaiian flowers design which I love. 

I have to say, I've been leaning far more towards using the volume spray as opposed to the texturising.  The spray is similar in consistency to the classic dry shampoo; I tend to spray it in at the roots and in the front mainly, with a little in the mid lengths, scrunch like crazy and then brush the ends just a little bit so I don't end up looking like a lion.  

This spray, in a nutshell, does exactly what it says on the can.  In terms of its volumizing factor, it can't be faulted - in a similar way to dry shampoo it's formula seems to thicken out the hair with a kind of powder-like texture (hence the scrunching is essential).  It's great for half up half down styles or for big, bouncy night-out-on-the-town looks, however my one qualm would be that unfortunately, as with many a hair product, it does build up quickly and will stay put in your hair until you wash it again.  Which is fine, as long as you don't mind the bizarrely dry, almost crispy texture it gives your hair.  Luckily enough, you can't actually notice this by sight, but when you touch your hair, you'll certainly know you've laden it with potions.  As long as that doesn't put you off though, for XXL volume this really is an inexpensive holy grail product.  

The texturizing spray is, again, of similar formula, yet is better suited to using in the lengths of your hair as it's more hairspray-like and doesn't require quite as much scrunching.  It doesn't offer huge amounts of hold for thick hair like mine, but works well with wavy to curly styles.  I really like using this in the ends of a ponytail or for day-to-day hair down looks.  It offers similar results to many of the salt sprays I've used in the past, but, thankfully, is less sticky.  I also love the fact that it's an aerosol instead of a pump spray, meaning you have far better control over the amount of product that goes into your hair and its distribution.  Ultimately, for £2.99, I can't really complain - it's probably something I wouldn't repurchase but for those of you with finer hair this product could well be your new best friend.  

That's it from me - let me know if you'd maybe like to see a post on creating styles using these products.  Have a good week and muchas gracias for reading! 

Ruby x

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