Bed Head 'After Party' is great to use after you've dried and straightened your hair, it just keeps it smooth and shiny, especially for me as I bleach my hair so often. It's nice to have something that keeps the condition up and looking healthy. It's around £10 which is cheap considering you only use a pea-sized amount each time, it lasts forever! Available online, or any hair shops.
Of course Batiste dry shampoo is a MUST-HAVE for most girls. I love it because my hair is so light, it helps to keep it the colour white if it ever does start to look that little bit yellow. I get this one, I think it's called 'Blush' as I actually really like the smell. It's around £4 and available from Boots, Tesco's, Superdrug etc.
Bleach Blondes purple shampoo from Lee Stafford. This is my life saver, it's a hair toner which knocks out those brassy tones leaving your hair a much fresher whiter colour. Since bleaching my hair yellow hair is my worst nightmare, I would honestly prefer grey/blue hair to this. So I've been using this Lee Stafford shampoo ever since, and it's honestly amazing. I use it every other wash (as if you use it too much your hair can go a purple/blue colour), it lasts and it works. It also smells lush too which is always a bonus. It's around £6 but totally worth it, and available from Boots.
Another thing I always use for my hair, is leave in conditioner. There's nothing worse then people who bleach their hair and leave it too look so dry and damaged. I use this Aussie Hair Care's 'Miracle Hair Insurance' leave in conditioner, one it smells GORGEOUS and two, it keeps my hair healthy. This is around £5, and available from almost anywhere, Boots, Tesco's, Superdrug etc.
For styling I use hairspray and this VO5 styling wax. I use the wax to give my hair a bit of volume especially on my layers, and really use the hairspray as a finalising product. Both from Boots, the hairspray is around £2 for this huge bottle which is such a bargain, and then the wax is around £3 which too is a good price as it really does last a long time, as I only use a tiny bit a day.
Smell.
I really use one of two perfumes for my smell. My favourite and more glamorous scent is one from Dior and it's called Hypnotic Poison it's around £45 for the 50ml larger bottle. It is very pricey, but I wear this on special occasions, so it's not an every day perfume for me. I wish it could be, but it's just too expensive to keep purchasing. It's a very sweet and feminine smell, which I adore. 'Four contrasting facets intoxicating bitter almond and carvi, opulent
Sambac jasmine, mysterious Jacarandra and sensuous vanilla and musk make
for aOoh it's just so scrummy. The next perfume I wear, is one from the Body Shop called Love Etc.. Eau De Parfum, again another girly scent with a fusion of jasmine, vanilla and sandalwood notes. It's my more cheap and cheerful perfume at £14 for 30ml and £18 for 50ml. I wear this one on a daily basis, mainly because it's there. I need to branch out and find another smell that I can wear every day as I've been using this one for a long time now, any suggestions?...
Skin & Body.
Onto my skin, the first is from the Body Shop and is this Vitamin C Microdermabrasion exfoliator. It has the smallest particles of crushed stones to make it a really effective exfoliator, it removes dead skin, makes your skin feel really smooth and fresh, and improves the overall texture and appearance of your skin. It is very intense so you're really only meant to use this once or twice a week. It's £12 from the Body Shop, but with the various deals and offers they always have you're bound to get it for a bargain price.
For my Cleanser and Toner I always get it from the Body Shop, this time I am using it from the Seaweed collection which is for combination/oily skin, they are both £7 which is not a bad price for something that lasts you around 6 months. I do this everyday usually in the evening after I've taken all my make up off. It removes the make up well and does make your skin feel refreshed, but for some reason I do prefer the Vitamin E cleanser and toner from the Body Shop. I think it makes me skin feel healthier and smoother. But as far as doing the job, I think this Seaweed one works just fine for me.
I'm obsessed with moisturiser and moisturising, so here is a hand and nail Vitamin E moisturiser from the Body Shop. I love the really thick creams as you know they work, in a weird way you can feel it working, for instance the body butters from the Body Shop and the good ol' E45. Anyway, this hand cream is just lovely and does the job, it's £8 which is quite expensive but I think I got it in the 3 for 2 deal that seems to be never ending. It softens hands, conditions nails and softens cuticles.
Standard, face wipes. Everybody needs and uses them. I used to by baby wipes but decided to try out these basic face wipes from Boots that are 3 for £3- bargain. These are the cucumber wipes for all skin types, the smell isn't great, yes, it smells like cucumber, but I feel they help keep my skin moisturised and doesn't dry it out. They are also very good and getting make up off, even my mascara. Boom!
Another product I love, is this shower jelly from Lush. 'The Joy Of Jelly', I actually think they have stopped making this particular one, which is a shame as it smells gorgeous, but they do have other flavours available. Rather than a soap, or gel this is a jelly, literally. It's so fun to use and actually makes your skin feel so smooth and silky. You can break off chunks, use it whole and even freeze it *which I have not tried yet. This product lasts a long time too, I had mine around 7 months ago and it's just wearing down to the last bits now *sob sob. So for something a little bit different in your shower experience, I recommend this. It's around
Make up.
My bronzer is an essential in my make up bad, it's from Rimmel and called 'Natural Bronzer' in shade 'Sun Bronze'. I find it really hard to find a bronzer that isn't shimmering with glitter, and this is one of the matte shades I have found and stuck with. It's around £6 from Boots. Also my Body shop face & body brush which is £16. The brush is amazing, so soft on the skin and applies the powder on evenly.
Next is Yves Saint Laurent perfect touch foundation in shade 5. This liquid foundation has a brush already attached to the end of it and is really easy to use and apply. I have been using the same foundation for so many years now, I'm kind of too scared to test out any others. It's very pricey at £35 from Debenhams but it lasts such a long time. I'm no make up connoisseur but I feel this works for me, the coverage is perfect and lasts the whole day. Since getting back from Thailand I haven't been using this product as my skin is just too dark, I'm also embracing my freckles so have just been using products to cover my blemishes and under eye circles.
Maybelline 'Volum Express Lift' mascara, it's around £6 and seems to be on the rise but it's worth it. This is my favourite mascara ever and really does do the trick, it lengthens and thickens without the clumps that a lot of other mascara's like to do. A lot of people I know tend to use multiple mascaras to get the look they want, but I only use one and this is it. Love love love. Don't know what I'd do without mascara.
