Bed Head Products - First Impressions♥*

Bed Head, a hair company I hear about and see all the time. With their bright packaged products, they're sure to catch your eye. I hadn't tried their products until recently, when Bed Head were generous enough to send me out some products. Got to say, I was super excited when I received them and couldn't wait to try them out. I decided to put all the products into one post and do a first impression on each product.

The product with the most unique packaging goes to this, the Bed Head Blow Out Golden Illuminating Shine Cream*. When I opened up the package, this product stood out to me, mainly because it was so bright and is unusually shaped. I apply two pumps to my hair when it's towel dried, and it makes it feel smooth. It has hints of glitter throughout it, which makes your hair look shiny when you blow dry it. Also, it smells delicious - all Bed Head products smell fruity, without being overpowering! So far, so good!

This one wins the award for the best name - Bed Head Superstar Queen for a Day Thickening Spray*. I already have thick hair, so I was unsure how this would work with my hair. I was impressed with this - it adds some volume to your hair. I spray it when wearing my hair in a ponytail so it looks big and voluminous. Of course, that's just my preference, but you can also apply it to damp hair and blow dry for volume. I really like this product, although, if you have fine hair, I think this would be ideal for you!

Hairspray, cannot go wrong with it! This is the Bed Head Hard Head Hairspray* (great alliteration there Bed Head!) I'm not usually too fussy with hairspray, as long as it's not sticky and keeps your hair in place, then I'm happy. This keeps your hair in place, smells fabulous, is not sticky AND brushes out easily. Does it tick all your boxes? It certainly is worth investing into if you're in need of a decent hairspray!

I'm up for trying out lots of different shampoos. When I got the Bed Head Urban Antidotes Re-Energize Shampoo*, I was looking forward to trying it out to see what it was like. It's described to be "perfect for normal hair that needs a daily pick-me-up". I have oily/combination hair, so was interested to see how it worked with my hair. It left it feeling quite nourished and soft, not to mention shiny! It lathers up great, which is a plus for me because I look for that in shampoos! Sometimes with shampoos, I feel they don't cleanse your hair properly with the first wash, but this did.

To achieve nice hair, you're obviously going to use conditioner. To go with the shampoo, I got the Bed Head Urban Antidotes Re-Energize Conditioner*. I absolutely hate conditioners which are nothing but runny and like water. This is thick and moisturising. It leaves my hair conditioned and healthy looking. Once I've washed my hair, it's really easy for me to comb through my hair, which does often get tangled.

A product which I see a lot of in shops - Bed Head Small Talk*. I had high hopes for this as I have read some reviews on this, plus, my cousin told me it was great, so I was expecting a lot from this little bottle. It's a thickifier, energizer and stylizer. As I said above, I already have thick hair. I put two pumps of it into my hair when dry, and it gives it an extra "oomph" of volume. If you have short hair and/or want volume, this is guaranteed to give you it.

Lastly is the Bed Head Dumb Blonde Smoothing Stuff*. I firstly want to mention the smell. Oh, my goodness! It smells so good you could eat it, no joke! Now onto what this product actually does. It adds moisture into hair, the ends of my hair are a little bit dry so I pop some onto the ends just to make them smooth again. By just looking at the name, it basically just smooths hair where needed. It's dumb blonde as it is originally created for dyed hair.

Have you tried Bed Head? Is there any product here you want to try?

*PR Samples

Flawless Face Make-up Routine♥

Sometimes, I don't bother much with my face make-up and just use powder and/or concealer and move on. But the days where I feel like spending more time on my make-up or my skin is needing the extra coverage, this is the make-up routine I go by, which usually gives a good result.

Whether I'm wearing face make-up or not, I always apply moisturiser to keep my skin soft. The one I use is the Boots Essentials Fragrance Free Moisturising Cream. This leaves my skin soft and prepared for any make-up I will apply. 

To help insure your make-up will stay put all day, it's best to use a primer. Recently, I've been using the No.7 Instant Illusions Airbrush Away Primer, and I must admit, I have been loving using this! I only use the tiniest amount on my fingertips then distribute across my face. It actually has helped my foundation stay on, it's like a hero in a tube!

Now for the exciting part! I never used to wear foundation, therefore I haven't experimented too much with different ones. I've been using the Maybelline Dream Flawless Nude Foundation in the shade 10 "Ivory". I thought because it was liquid that it wouldn't be good coverage but oh I was wrong! One layer and it looks perfect! It covers up any redness my skin may have and gives me an even skin tone too. I use the Jessup flat top brush to buff it in and it gives a nice finish. 

For those dark circles I may have or any spots that need covering, I use the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in the shade 15. This stuff is seriously good, if you don't own any, I definitely recommend you try it out - it's creamy yet such high coverage! This concealer is ever so slightly lighter than my skin tone, so it's great for correcting dark circles because it lightens them. Once applied, I pat it out then blend it with the Jessup tapered face brush.

To set everything in place, I use a powder, as not only does it keep your make-up from moving, but it helps minimise any shine on your face. I have two favourites which I switch between. The first one I use is the Maybelline Fit Me Powder in 220 "Natural Beige". As you can see, I've used a lot of this, I absolutely love it! It keeps my make-up in place and gives a nice finish. The second one I use is the Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder in 003 "Peach Glow". This powder definitely lives up to it's name and keeps your face looking matte. As good as it is, if you do use too much, it can make your face look cakey, so a little is all that is required. I use a Jessup powder brush to powder my whole face.

What's your must-have face make-up product you recommend I try?

Smooth, Silky, Shiny Hair♥*

One thing I know for sure is that I like my hair to be smooth, silky and shiny looking. I'm always on the lookout for products, especially shampoo, which claim to make your hair shiny. I've recently been trying out the Lee Stafford "Oily Roots Dry Ends" collection*, and using some tricks, I found my hair has been looking a lot more shiny.

Firstly, you got to wash your hair if you want clean hair, never mind shiny! I've found the Lee Stafford "Oily Roots Dry Ends" shampoo* cleanses my hair really well as it lathers up great, even with only a small amount! It leaves my hair feeling extremely fresh and clean. Oh, and not to mention that it smells wonderful!

To make my hair smooth, I use the Lee Stafford "Oily Roots Dry Ends" conditioner*. I only use this on the ends of my hair, so about half way from the roots of my hair, as I feel the ends need conditioned more than the roots. I apply it and leave it on my hair for about two to three minutes, then rinse it all out.

Before I leave the shower, the trick is to turn the water cold, but not freezing cold that you will scream! Personally, I like it quite cold, and I run the water on my head for about thirty seconds. This "closes the pores". It's got the same job as a moisturiser has for skincare.

I then blow dry it with my hairdryer. I dry about 90% of my hair. I use the warm heat to dry my hair, and before turning the hairdryer off, I give it a blast with the cold heat, as I like to cool my hair and I find this gives a little volume (especially if you blast the cold heat on your hair when your head is upside down!)

It's a good idea not to over-wash your hair, so best not to wash it everyday! On my second-day hair, it's sometimes not looking it's total best. I like to use Lee Stafford "Original Dry Shampoo"*, as it gets rid of any visible oils and gives some volume too. By using this on the roots, it keeps my hair looking as good as ever!

What's your tricks for smooth, silky, shiny hair?

*PR Samples

Favourite Spring Nail Polishes♥ || Collab

I love painting my nails in Spring, all the pastel colours are season appropriate and look so cute! I've chosen my favourite Spring nail polishes and decided to share them with you. This post is a collab with Ivy so make sure you go check out her post and her blog (it's brilliant by the way!)

The Barry M Nail Paint in 308 "Berry Ice Cream is such a perfect Spring colour! Lilac is the ideal nail colour for this time of year, therefore I love this one. With just one coat, it is pretty light, but I usually apply two, sometimes even three coats for the true colour. Barry M nail polishes are really good for the price. I believe there's a "gelly" version of this colour available, so if you prefer the Barry M "Gelly Nails" polish and love this colour, you can purchase that instead!

Pink nails are definitely a must for me! Personally, I love Revlon's Nail Polish in 185 "Sweet Tart". It's such a girly colour, and it's my perfect pink. It's looks so good on square shaped nails, almond shaped nails and most shaped nails. It does look pretty once two coats are applied, and even nicer when a top coat seals it in!

Another Barry M one, and this is the Barry M Nail Paint in 295 "Prure Turquoise". Mine is called "Torquoise" but I think they've renamed it. Usually I wouldn't associate blue to be a Spring colour, I'd say it's more of a Winter colour. However, because this is a light blue, I find it way more appropriate than darker blue! As with the other Barry M nail polish, I apply two or three coats for the true colour.

Surprisingly, George nail polishes are brilliant! Considering they're extremely inexpensive, they've got to be some of the best nail polishes out there, I must admit! I do own quite a few colours, but the one I find most Spring like is the George Quick Dry Nail Varnish in 20 "Lavender Fantasy". Even the name makes it sound Spring like! This does apply a little lighter than the colour in the bottle, but it's gorgeous! For £1.75, I cannot complain!

This last one is completely different to all the other ones I've shown. I can't find it online anywhere, but it's the Astor Fashion Studio Fruity Scent Mikado. Firstly, it's lemon coloured and secondly, it smells like lemons! I think this is definitely a Spring colour!

Make sure you go and check out Ivy's blog!

What's your Spring nail polishes?

Garnier Micellar Water - The Best Make-up Remover Ever?!♥

When this make-up remover was first introduced last year, everyone went crazy for it. I read multiple blog posts on it and it was featured in many YouTube videos. It came to the point that because it was basically everywhere, I just had to get my hands on a bottle for myself!

Many people owned this and were raving about how great this stuff was, saying how easily it removes your makeup, even with the smallest amount of product. But does it really?

The answer is yes. When I finally got a bottle of it, I was looking forward to testing it out. As pictured below, I use large oval cotton pads to remove it, as I find these are probably best because they sweep the make-up off so well.

I was a little unsure about using this to remove mascara or eyeshadow in case it would sting. I was wrong! I doesn't sting one bit and removes the make-up in an instant!

Once I run out, I know I will be restocking on this!

It's available from Asda, Superdrug, Boots and any shop which sells Garnier!

The retail price is £5, but shops often have money off it!

Have you tried this?