Merry Christmas Everyone

Just a quick note everyone to say I won't be blogging until the new year now as spending our first Christmas with our baby girl but would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Hope you all get spoilt!!

Here is a pic of my friend Jade (left) and me (right) on our works Christmas party!!

 

Have a great time everyone! Hope Santa is good to you all!!

 

 

 

Clothes Show Live 2013.

So last week was the annual Clothes Show Live in Birmingham at the NEC. This year was it's 25th anniversary. I've ventured to the Clothes Show Live for the past 10 years and every year I have absolutely loved it. It normally runs for 5 days and has hundreds of stalls to browse. Included in the ticket price you get to watch the fashion show in the renowned Fashion Theatre. This year it was sponsored by the new Alcatel One Touch.

I was lucky enough, along with my friends to get complimentary tickets due to me knowing someone involved in the Clothes Show Live.

 

 

 This person happens to be one of my best friends Scott Innes. You may know him from being in the band Times Red on 2012 X Factor. Scott had a performing slot on The BINTM Stage, The Style Stage and also the Alcatel One Touch Fashion Theatre where he performed two tracks, the fan favourite 'Next To Me' and the touching Water Into Wine. If you would like to find out more about Scott Innes you can do so by the following.

Twitter : @ScottInnesMusic

YouTube : http://www.youtube.com/user/ritchies123?feature=watch

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This year it seemed that the main trends at The Clothes Show Live were either Tartan or Sparkly dresses. Both, for me personally, are welcome trends. I did, however find that when it came to the stalls that the Beauty section was amazing this year in comparison. However I did find a couple of stalls were very popular and had a lot of people talking. The one that caught my eye the most was the following........

Inkdoll Apparel

The creator behind Inkdoll is Sally Axl. You may recognise the name as she was one of the stars on this years Big Brother on Channel 5. She's a hard working mum who is outspoken and honest with an amazing work ethic and style to match and quite frankly, I admire her a hell of a lot. The clothes we're incredibly on trend and the stall at The Clothes Show Live always looked busy with the girls being friendly and approachable to every customer. All the prices were affordable too!

My fave item of clothing was this Exclusive Pastel Neon Vest which retails at £24.99.

You can visit the InkDoll website here http://inkdollapparel.bigcartel.com/products

 

In regards to Beauty this year the Models Own stand was without a doubt the best for both range a value for money.

 

For £10 you could choose any 3 polishes from their range and you got a number of free gifts included too which included this Limited Edition Nail Polish which was only available at The Clothes Show Live!

 

 

If you are running out of gift ideas for people or just want to treat yourself, Models Own are doing a great offer on their polishes at the moment which you can see below. Just type in the code on checkout to claim this brilliant offer!

 

 

The Fashion show in the Alcatel One Touch Fashion theatre was incredible again this year. It was based around a garden party theme and was jam packed full of over 200 costume changes! Without a doubt though, my favourite outfit of the whole show was this one, i'm just disappointed I didn't find out who the designer was!

 

 

We saw a lot of celebrities whilst we were at the Clothes Show Live from Towie, Made In Chelsea, Geordie Shore and we also saw Union J who were brilliant! The highlight celeb spot for me though was meeting the amazing Henry Holland who was absolutely lovely and even posed for a picture!!

 

Did you go to the Clothes Show Live? If so what did you like/dislike about this years event?!

 

 

 



 

GHD Final Fix Hairspray & GHD Heat Protection Spray

 

I've been a huge fan of GHD and their products for a number of years now and recently have started using their Final Fix hairspray and their Heat Protection spray, and I have to say, I've been very impressed with them both.

 

The Final fix hairspray I've been using comes in a 400ml bottle and is fast becoming my favourite hairspray. I like big volume hair, especially on a night out, and I find that this hairspray holds my hair in position perfectly. On the bottle it's described as having a firm but soft touch hold to keep your finished style in place, suitable for all hair types and humidity resistant. You might say it does exactly what it says on the tin! As I have naturally wavy hair in the heat a tiny bit of humidity and I look like Monica from Friends in the Bahamas episode! So I'm thankful for the humidity resistance this brings!

 

To use it directs to gently mist 30cm away from your hair for a lasting hold.

 

 

 

 

 

In regards to straightening hair it's so important for your hair to use a heat protection spray. As I've been using GHD hair straighteners for a number of years now I use the heat protection spray as I see it as compatible with my choice of straightener! It definitely leaves my hair looking and feeling a lot smoother. The Heat Protection Spray itself comes in a 120ml bottle and it's advised on the GHD website to apply the heat protection spray first before layering your hair with other products. This advice, however, is not written on the bottle. It's also advised to spritz from root to tip (at around 6-8 sprays for mid - long hair) and comb through to ensure that the product is distributed evenly throughout the hair before using a styler or hair dryer.

 

 

I'd definitely recommend these GHD products and will also be doing another GHD related blog post soon on the amazing GHD Eclipse styler!!

 

 

The GHD Final Fix Hairspray retails at £9.95 and can be found on the GHD website here

 

The GHD Heat Protection Spray retails at £9.95 and can be found on the GHD website here



If you use, or have tried any of GHD'S products let me know what you think !



Kate Spade Nail Polishes for Nails INC

As a sucker for a beauty and fashion bargain I was absolutely delighted when I spotted these nail polishes as a freebie with this months Glamour Magazine.

They come in 4 shades, Soho Silver, Big Apple Red, New York Noir and Uptown Glamour. I have become slightly obsessed with the Big Apple Red and New York Noir Shades!! When on my nails I have only needed 2 coats and I have found the polish to be reliable and not chip. I found the drying time to be rather quick for these polishes too!

The Polishes retail at £11 each normally. Glamour magazine is on sale for £2 so to get one of these polishes really is a value for money! They are full size 10ml bottles and the whole set would normally be worth a massive £44 so to get all 4 for £8 is great!

Have you got any of these polishes? Which ones are your favourites?

Accessorize - Head Over Heels Intense Colour Lipstick

 

 

Accessorize Head Over Heels Intense Colour Lipstick

I've been after a red lipstick now for a while and with the run up to Christmas I've been on a bit of a budget so I thought that I would have a browse of the Accessorize website. Having been a huge fan of the Accessorize make up range for a while now I knew they would have something and they didn't let me down. After a few minutes browsing their amazing make up range I stumbled upon this little beauty of a lipstick. It was just what I wanted and even better it was on sale at £1.50. Normally the lipstick retails at £5.00 and you will find in the concession stand in your local Superdrug that it will cost £5.00 there but even still, I would still pay £5.00 for this lipstick as the quality is so good.

The packaging of the lipstick, as you can see below, is different to the one shown above. The one I've been sent feels of quite a cardboard texture but looks great. I've done a swatch on my hand so you can see what the make up looks like on the skin. I've also posted a picture of myself wearing it.. This lipstick I feel would go great with nearly any outfit and will also look amazing on a night out.

The lipstick itself lasts for a long time and during a busy day I only had to top my lipstick up once which I thought was great. You don't need to pile it on. It's a very nice feel on your lips and doesn't go too thick which is nice.

If you haven't checked out the Accessorize make up range before you can do here Accessorize Make Up

The link to the lipstick you will find under the picture above. Please let me know if you use Accessorize make up and what your favourite products are. I would definitely recommend their nail polishes!

Boots Number 17 Bronzing Brick

When it comes to make up I'm usually faithful to MAC. I've been using MAC's Soft and Gentle Mineralize powder for a number of years now and recently hit pan (EVERY GIRLS NIGHTMARE) ! As I didn't have a lot of money at the time I thought that I would branch out and try something different so I decided to hit Boots and have a look. I came across this......

The 17 Instant Glow Shimmer Brick. To look at, it didn't look much so I decided to use the tester and I was so impressed. Having spent around £21 each time for my MAC Mineralise powder at £4.99 this can fund my habit on a budget!!

The Brick itself has 4 shades on it from very light pale colours to more of a bronzer. I was very impressed at the pigments within the brick and it also stayed on for a lot longer than I thought it would.

Below is a few swatches I did so you can see the colours.

Overall, I would totally recommend this product as it stays on the skin really well and for £4.99 is an absolute bargain and has made me think twice about spending £21 on MAC when I can get near enough the same result from this bronzing brick! If you are thinking about trying this product out you can purchase it from the Boots website here 17 Shimmer Brick

My Christmas List

I'm not really one for wanting things at Christmas, I'm more of a giver really. However, this Christmas I have my eye on a few things. Nothing major, Just a few little items that would make me a happy girl!

The first one is the Pandora White Quartzite Stacking Ring which retails at £60.00. I'm more into accessories and costume jewellery so I was really please when something a bit more personal caught my eye. I just think it's a really pretty ring and will go pretty much with most dressy / girly outfits that I have. The direct link for this ring you can find here Pandora Ring

Next up is the Black Nike Blazers. I have some baby blue ones with my daughters name on the back arriving soon which I designed on the Nike ID website for the purpose of when me and my family go to Florida in 2014. I've decided that I want a second pair in a darker colour so I don't have to ruin my others going round the theme parks so I decided on a standard black pair which look just as nice. These retail around £65-£75 depending on which shop you go to. A link for this particular pair can be found here Nike Blazers

I haven't worn a watch in years and recently I've been seeing these little retro Casio numbers floating about and I absolutely LOVE them!! There are quite a number of colours available but I am loving the gold ones and retailing at £35 I think they're a bit of a bargain!! Get yours here.... Casio Watch

Last, but not least, is the MAC Studio Fix Fluid Foundation. I've seen a few people blog about this product and I've also seen people in my area who I know wearing it and it literally can change your face and make you look flawless and as I am now getting older I NEED this product in my life! It retails on the MAC website at £21.50 which I think is a very good price!! You can purchase this product here MAC Studio Fix Fluid Foundation

So there you have it!! My Christmas list..... SANTA, If you're reading this I've been a good girl this year!!

Lush Cola Flavour Santa Lip Scrub

I haven't blogged in what seems like forever, I've been so busy going back to work from my maternity leave and getting back into a normal life routine after having my baby girl.

The other day I was in Lush shopping for my friend who is poorly and was introduced to the Santa's lip scrub by the kind lady in Lush. It's an edible product which has caster sugar amongst it's ingredients and once on the lips taste of cola cubes. I liked it that much I brought it. At £5.50 I thought it was a little pricey but I liked the taste and it was a different product to try.

I wish I hadn't. I'm quite lucky in the respect I never get dry lips. EVER. So the day after I used this product my bottom lip started burning. It's ended up with me looking like I've burn blisters on my bottom lip. The only thing that has helped me in anyway is Blistex. It's helped with the soreness, dryness and swelling of my bottom lip!!

I would of posted a picture of my lip but it's all blistered and weeping and looks absolutely DISGUSTING!!

So even if you like the product beware of what can happen! I'm bitterly disappointed!!

iKrush £1 Dress Collection

Sorry everyone! I haven't blogged for a couple of weeks now due to the duties of Motherhood I've been so busy!!

Now, as every girl I know loves a bargain I have to tell you about the £1 dress collection from iKrush!!

I read the daily papers religiously and recently there have been a couple of articles inspired about cut price clothing.

Last year OMGFASHION launched a £0.99p party dress online and it was a huge PR success with 300 dresses sold in 15 minutes and 100,000 new visitors to the website the weekend the dress went on sale. This is the dress that they sold. As you can see it looks way more expensive than £0.99p

In addition to this iKrush have decided to introduce to their online store a £1 dress collection. Thus far, all the dresses have sold out but I have been told they shall be getting more in stock in the foreseeable future. I shall post some of the collection below for you to see.

I know people will be thinking for £1 what will the quality be like? The Daily Mail newspaper got some people in their office to test out the dresses who all agreed that the dresses were worth more that £1 and were around the quality of a dress you would get from Primark so it all sounds pretty promising. I can't name any normal teenager or adult that doesn't have a browse in Primark.

The dresses iKrush have I their collection range from party dresses, halter dresses, midi dresses and girly tea dresses. Here is a sample of a few of the collection below.

Here is the link to the website www.iKrush.com . Let me know what you think!!

 

Sally's Glitz & Glam Hairpieces and Hair Extensions

As every girl knows, we are NEVER satisfied with how we look and we always strive for better, especially when it comes to hair. Over the years I could name you countless girls who rely on hair extensions. For some it's worked out, others have ended up a bit bald. Myself? I used to glue extensions in for years and I never had a problem. I used the liquid gold glue and it reminded me of that kind of glue you get in a magazine where its holding in a free gift. 99% of people I know used the black glue, if you're a hair extension addict like most of us then you'll know exactly the glue I'm on about. It's ruined so many people's hair that I know and I always swore I'd never use it and luckily I never did.

I noticed that about a year ago everyone I know, myself included was getting fed up of gluing in extensions so everyone started resorting to clip in's. A lot less hassle in my opinion. The girls on Geordie Shore have in the past year or so saved our scalps from being ruined by promoting hair pieces. These hair pieces are absolutely fantastic. They need NO styling and best of all they just clip in like a slide would into your hair! No more faffing and messing around. Just clip it in and go.

Now I know what you're thinking the Geordie Shore girls are celebrities so the hairpieces are going to be out of price range for even the highest end of spenders for our age range. But you would be wrong. These hairpieces, as well as looking amazing, are affordable!! My twin sister Claire and best friend Lisa wear theirs religiously and wouldn't be without them. I shall post a picture and the product description below of which ones they wear.

I can hear you all asking the question, where are they from?? The hair pieces are from a company called Sally's Glitz & Glam. They are a family based company which specialise in Wigs, Hair pieces and hair extensions. They have a wide range of celebrity clients which includes TOWIE, Geordie Shore, Coronation Street and Dancing On Ice to name a few. There are 3 shops all based in the Yorkshire area. One based in Barnsley, One in Sheffield in the Crystal Peaks shopping centre and one in Chesterfield. You can pop into one of their stores where their team will help colour match your hair and help you if you would like to add volume to your hair etc.

Charlotte from Geordie Shore has taken her double volume hairpiece into the Celebrity Big Brother house with her and has worn it quite a lot since she has been in. Vicky from Geordie Shore has also teamed up with Sally's Glitz and Glam to create her own range so keep an eye out for that.

The below picture is Vicky from Geordie Shore wearing one of the hairpieces. As you can see it looks amazingly well styled. Another good thing about these hairpieces is that you don't have to use your GHDS on them and once washed they fall back into the style you bought it in. The hair feels natural and looks great.

This is my sister Claire and my friend Lisa wearing their double volume hairpieces which cost £34.99. Claire's is an Ombre piece.

You can follow Sally's Glitz & Glam on Facebook here Sally's Glitz & Glam Facebook and also on Twitter if you follow @wwwglitzglam

To buy or just browse please visit their amazing website at http://sallysglitzglam.co.uk/ There is free shipping on ALL UK orders and if you order by 1pm you will have next day delivery!

everything5pounds.com

So, I've not blogged in a while as I have been majorly busy with various things as well as not feeling too well! Anyways, I feel way better now so will be back blogging more regularly.

My friend who is a student introduced me to this website called everything5pounds.com which is a fashion website where everything is £5.

I thought I would check it out and I didn't really have any high hopes but I was pleasantly surprised. Not everyone can support a serious fashion habit/addiction, me included, but this website has given even the brokest of fashionistas a little bit of hope.

I'm not going to sit here and say I like everything on the website as some of the items are not my style but there is the odd little gem in there!

Here are a few of my favourite items from the website.

As you can probably tell I'm really into the midi dress trend at the minute! But for £5 who can complain? I think they look really good teamed with a beanie and some converse!

Here is the link to the website everything5pounds.com

Let me know if you find anything you like?!

Jessica Simpson Shoe Collection.

I like to browse Instagram for fashion ideas and whilst browsing shoes one day I came across a pair and fell in love. After a bit of research I found that the shoe designer was Jessica Simpson. Having been a fan of her music for many years and loving the show Newlyweds, which she did with her ex husband Nick Lachey, I was desperate to see more of the designs. I wasn't disappointed.

As the range hadn't been that well promoted over here in the UK I did a bit of research online and found that House of Fraser and Debenhams both stock the Jessica Simpson range. Prices are between £60-£85 and at the minute there seems to be a lot of the stock on sale. The shoes appear to be of a high quality and look durable too.

The above 4 pairs are on my wish list for Christmas so I'm hoping the boyfriend pulls through and buys me a pair.

You can browse the selection at both these websites House Of Fraser and Debenhams

Let me know what you think and which ones are your favourite!

Bank Holiday madness!

So I haven't blogged over the weekend as I've been busy with my 6 month old baby, Lucie. We started to wean her. I've also been out seeing out the bank holiday in style with my friends.

My outfit here is £13 from Primark which I think is a bargain. However, the material has started to bobble after I've worn it once. So as much as I love the dress I don't feel like it's going to last me very long!

The Radio One interview I did with Olly Murs and Greg James was also aired and I was quite disappointed. They cut out all the funny bits we spoke about and made it sound like quite a serious chat!! The joys of editing!!

At the moment i'm currently in the process of planning other blog posts. If anyone has any ideas of what they want me to blog about then please let me know!!

Hope you all had a good bank holiday! Let me know what you got up to!

Pac Sun.

Like a lot of people I LOVE the Kardashians and have followed their lives on numerous TV shows. Recently Kendall and Kylie Jenner have come more into the limelight and because of their success have launched their own clothing range called PACSUN.

As I'm slightly older than them both I was a bit unsure as to whether I would like their collection or if I would feel it was simply too young for me to wear. I checked out their website and was pleasantly surprised at the range and better still the clothes are at affordable prices and they ship world wide!!

Pacsun have a wide range of clothing and sizes available and have the most up to date trends on the website. There is also a menswear range and different collections to take a look at.

I tend to regularly browse the internet and gossip columns and I saw Kylie Jenner in this outfit which is SO me, as I love the cute girly look, so I just had to know where she got it from.

 So I checked the Pac Sun website and it was on there!! The Crop top is currently out of stock but the dress was in stock at £37.48 which I don't think is too bad!!

At the minute I keep seeing bloggers and my friends on both Facebook and Twitter keep asking where is good to shop online for dresses etc and I would without a doubt recommend Pacsun.

Check out the Pacsun range at Pacsun

Have you shopped at Pacsun? What did you think?

On Radio One today for 'Ladytime' with Greg James and Olly Murs.

So last night I was sat browsing my twitter timeline, as you do, and Greg James tweeted out if anyone has a problem they would like to speak to Olly Murs about on tomorrows Radio One show email greg.james@bbc.co.uk . Now anyone who knows me knows that I absolutely LOVE Olly Murs and I'm fortunate to be one of the only people he follows on Twitter so I thought let's email. I certainly didn't think I'd be hearing anything back.

About 5 minutes later, whilst chilling on the sofa with my boyfriend Chris, I had a phone call which said BLOCKED, normally I don't answer these calls, but for some reason I answered it and a lady said ' Hi Helen, it's Pippa from Radio One' I was like 'oh hiya' she then proceeded me to ask what my problem was to which because I was so shocked to be called I said the SHITTEST question ever. She said that I would get a call in the morning at around 10am.

After sitting on what had just happened I was like I can't ask that question it's rubbish. So I emailed Greg again asking if I could change my question. Next minute Pippa rings me back and proceeds again to ask me my problem. This time I thought I'd ask a banter type question which hopefully will make Greg and Olly feel uncomfortable answering so I said ' my problem is that I've got one boob bigger than the other and I'd like to know if that would bother men such as themselves' I then asked if I could actually say the word boob on radio and Pippa said she would ask her editor. I could hear in the background they was both laughing their heads off at my question and the editor was like yes she can. Pippa then came back on the phone and told me that I have to ask my question to both Greg and Olly and expect a call at 10am in the morning and to make sure I have plenty of battery and signal. Before ending the call Pippa told me that it's ok to have one boob bigger than the other hahaha. I was laughing my head off. Just to clarify, my boobs are absolutely fierce and I love them!! I just wanted to say something different and funny which I knew I'd get a bit of banter from!!

So this morning, as promised, I was phoned at 10am by Pippa to be told that I'm going to be called back later as Greg isn't in yet but am I still ok to ask my question? I was like yeah that's fine and Pippa was like it's a very common problem you're not alone! (hahaha) I was seriously trying not to laugh.

After waiting what seemed like ages (it wasn't just felt like an age) I finally got the call......

A lady called Jade rang me and said I was going to be on line 1 but I had to hold for round about 8 minutes! Around 12 minutes in Jade came back on the phone and said I'm so sorry Helen, Greg and Olly won't shut up!

Then my turn came..... We have Helen on line 1! We say hello, how are you etc. and then Greg asks me to ask Olly my question. Cue me.

'I have massive boobs and one is a bit bigger than the other, does this pose an issue for gentlemen like yourselves' Olly quipped in with 'I don't care I love boobs' Greg was asking about the size of my boobs if one hangs lower than the other etc. The Olly said between me you and Greg I have one bollock that hangs lower than the other. I was quick to reply that that was in no way an issue at all! Greg then went onto say that is sounds like I have fabulous boobs and that himself and Olly are intrigued! I told Greg I have his email and that Olly follows me on twitter so I can slip them a little something haha. Both we're like whayyyyyy!! haha. It was complete lad banter from start to finish which is just what I wanted and Greg and Olly we're absolutely lovely and didn't disappoint! All in all I got about 10 minutes on the phone with them.

It was a pre record so for the sake of the show i'm guessing that some of the conversation will be edited out but it was just a great opportunity to do!

Greg James Tweeted me after the interview letting me know when it will be on air.

So it's going to be on air on Tuesday 27th August from 5pm. So tune in!! I shall be adding an audio to this blog when it has aired so you can all listen to it!

The Radio One website is here. Radio One

Let me know what you think.

Review : Bufferzone Nails.

As a new blogger I was asked by Leanne of Bufferzone Nails to review some press on nails for my blog. I'll be honest, I've not really taken care of my nails over the years and although I'm ashamed to admit it I have been one for the occasional nail biting. Gross I know.

I chose the nails i wanted to try and when they arrived i couldn't wait to try them and they didn't disappoint. The design I chose are available for £5.99. The nails can be fitted with either the self adhesive nail tabs or actual nail glue. I was sent the tabs and they were really easy to fit onto my nails. I then stuck the nails over the top. I have been wearing the nails for 2 days now and they have been really durable and look great too.

I chose the matte black nails with the black tips as I've really been wanting to buy a black matte nail polish but haven't got round to it yet. I have weird looking hands and I've always thought they look a bit manly but these nails have made my hands feel girly.

Bufferzone Nails have a wide range of colours and popular designs available including the stiletto shaped nail which is rather popular with celebrities at the moment. Jessie J has sported the stiletto nail for a few months now.

I will definitely be buying some more nails from Bufferzone Nails as they are a great price for a brilliant product. Very much getting value for money.

To get yourself some nails or to just have a browse please go to Bufferzone Nails you can also follow on twitter at @BufferZoneNails