Bourjois Rouge Edition Liquid Lipsticks

The perfect matte lip. It’s what pretty much every girl has been on the hunt to find ever since Kylie Jenner popped up on the beauty scene. To me the perfect matte lip is highly pigmented, doesn't dry out your lips and has the ultimate staying power.

If you are looking for all of the above you need to try the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet lipstick. So first of all these lipsticks come in so many different colours to suit every skin tone there's the pillar box Reds, sultry nudes and perky peaches ;) But most  importantly every colour is so highly pigmented I couldn't even believe it was a drug store lippy as the quality of colour is definitely that of a high end brand.  

My favourite colours of the range are Nude-ist, So Hap Pink, Pink pong and Grand cru. I have to say these shades really suit my skin tone as I am rather pale but there is so much choice with the colours there is something for every girl on there.

Now for some swatches!

Nude-ist is that Kylie Jenner dusty pink/brown colour that has been so popular I would say it would definitely be a dupe for Mac soar. This is my go to everyday colour as it's very much my natural  lip colour but better.

So Hap Pink is a  girly nude pink. I know I am going to get so much wear out of this now spring has finally sprung.

Pink pong is a cerise pink and gives a real statement look. I like to wear this with a flawless face and just liquid liner on my eyes  to really make the lipstick standout even more.

Grand cru  is a deep pillar box red with blue undertones. This gives a very classic vintage inspired lip and would be great with a smokey eye for a night out.

The texture of these are very lightweight and that means they don't  dry out your lips like most most matte lipsticks do. They are so comfortable to wear I don't even realise I have mine on and this is mainly because they do not smudge at all so you don't have to be careful when eating and drinking. They really do have the best staying power of any liquid lipstick I've tried but this does mean a lot of scrubbing at the end of the day!

Now to apply the lipstick it has wand and this makes it a lot easier to get the perfect pout. I like to apply a little bit of lip balm first when I'm using the nudes ones but I wouldn't recommend this when using any of the vibrant colours as it will make them more difficult to get any precision. The lipstick goes on wet but within 30 seconds it sets and turns matte and then there is no going back that sucker is on there for the long run.

Rather than using the applicator you can dab the product on your lips for a lighter wash of colour if you are looking for a more natural look, however, I haven't tried this as I am an all or nothing kinda girl. But it is definitely a build able lipstick so you can create a really intense statement pout with the more layers you apply and it will still feel really natural on your lips.

I love this product and I have been using it for the past 18 months and will continue to do so as I think for £8.99 you really cannot go wrong. They are stocked in most boots stores and they also stock them in the lacquer glossy version as well as the more natural wash of colour version (but you know how I feel about that). Now I'm off to post a pouty pic on Instagram.

Showcase Cinema Gallery Experiece

This week me and my fiancé  have the week off work which is lovely because it means we can have a few days out together. Today we went to the showcase cinemas to see batman vs superman and used the gallery service which showcase offer so I thought I would show you what you get when you buy a gallery ticket.

Showcase Nottingham is our regular cinema and we have been going for there for the whole 8 years we've been together so we know what to expect but when I've mentioned to friends or colleagues about the gallery service most people aren't even aware that it exists.

Late last year Showcase Nottingham had a big refurbishment and upgraded to a cinema de lux. This means that the experience is now even more luxurious than previously. The whole cinema is now decked out with electric recliner seats with the gallery sectioned roped off at the top of the cinema which makes you feel like a proper VIP and adds that special aspect to any cinema date.

I would recommend booking your tickets online through www.showcasecinemas.co.uk as the gallery seats do  tend to get booked up pretty quickly especially for newly released films and you can select where you sit too which is a bonus. The tickets are £17.15 each for standard gallery, however, if it's a 3D film they are £21.65 as they are held in the xplus screen which has full surround sound.

So when you arrive at the cinemas if you booked online you can go straight to the self service checkout there is no queuing you just put the card in you paid with online  and your tickets just pop out and you can be on your way. Once you have your tickets the special experience starts here so you can head into the VIP lounge which has a bar so you can enjoy an alcoholic beverage with your film, wine and a good movie what can be better than that eh?!

Once you are in the VIP lounge and you have ordered the drinks you are given not one but two massive snack trays! I must admit I am a sucker for snacks at the cinema and the fact they are included in the price of the ticket to me is amazing but that might be just be because I love my food so much. Included in each of the snack trays is luxury caramel popcorn, hand cooked salted crisps, nachos with cheese and salsa and a selection of celebration chocolates. So there is plenty to keep you going even way past the trailers!

You are then shown to your seat by the attendant at which point you are offered a blanket which is a nice touch during the colder months. Now for the seats you get a perfect little sofa for two which includes two fully reclining seats just by the touch of a button. Which as you can imagine is quite fun to mess around with while you are waiting for the film to come on. You also have a table each which spins towards you for easy reach of the snacks 😉 Then you are all set you literally lie back, snuggle up and enjoy the film. Tomorrows day trip is to Meadowhall shopping centre so keep your eyes peeled for a haul coming this week.


P.S. Batman VS Superman was quite disappointing but it was worth a watch 🙊

MyProtein Impact Whey Review

As promised here is my review on the impact whey protein from www.myprotein.com. So I have always had a bit of a love hate relationship with protein powders. I love the benefits they offer and the results I get along side my gym routine, however, I've really struggled with the taste of the majority of them and they all made me feel mega nauseous. I had tried maxi muscle and protein world slender blend in vanilla (which is absolutely disgusting) both of them I just couldn't stand more than a couple of days due to the nausea.


About  a month ago I really upped my game in the gym with a new routine lifting heavier than I ever had and being really consistent with my sessions 5 times a week. I knew it was time to try protein powders again as I wanted to be able to work even harder and recover faster and I could feel that my baby muscles needed the help!

I did my research online and checked out several reviews and decided to give my protein a try. I liked that they were so cost effective so if I didn't like it I wouldn't have lost out on a load of cash. For 1kg of protein it cost me £11.87 including delivery although they did have 25% off on the day I ordered but even full price they are so cheap that they are accessible to any gym goer. Also I ordered this on a Friday standard delivery and it arrived on the Monday so you don't have to wait long for it to arrive either.

 I ordered the 1kg chocolate peanut butter impact whey protein and let me tell you it is amazing! As soon as I ripped the pouch open it smelt so good I just hoped the taste lived up to it too and boy it did. It tastes exactly like a milkshake it's really creamy but not too sweet and sickly like others I've tried before.  I actually look forward to drinking it post gym now rather than gagging my way through it. They come in so many different flavours from plain vanilla to Apple crumble and custard there literally is every flavour you could possibly think of but I'm a sucker for reeses so chocolate peanut butter was the one for me.

I tend use this just once a day straight after my gym session I use 1 scoop with around 200mls of water. It has helped with my recovery and I feel I can go harder with my workouts and I am really starting to see a change in my shape and more  definition which I can only assume is down to this protein and squatting until I want to try cry haha

There is 20 grams of protein per serving with only 1g of carbs and 1g of sugar which is important as sometimes protein can be loaded with carbs and refined sugar which we all know is no good for your body.

You can use their powders in so many different ways from  adding it to a fruit smoothie or a scoop in your morning porridge there is so many different recipes on ‘The Zone’ section of their website.

As a protein hater I can safely say my protein has converted me and has helped with my fitness journey so I won't be going anywhere else anytime soon as this is a first for me. Now I want to try all of their yummy protein treats. They have 25% off all items at the moment using the code EASTER so I know I'll be putting my order in!

What I Eat in a Day

Over the past 8 months I have been trying to make small, gradual changes to my diet and I finally feel in a place where I know what works for my body. Everyone is different so what works for me may not for someone else and I am by no means a nutritionist but I have never felt more energised from my current diet and exercise routine. However, it will always be a work in progress as I am always striving for the best I can possibly be.

So today I would like to show you a typical day of what I would eat and drink and hopefully it will be helpful for anyone starting out. As I said previously I made these changes gradually so if you currently feel like you want to make a change but you are daunted by the prospect of changing just start by changing one small thing at a time. For example I cook a spaghetti bolognese once a week and I started by swapping the pasta for either Courgetti or I would fill up Portobello mushrooms with the bolognese and once you get used to something different it will become a normal habit to you.

So every morning once I have woken up and gotten myself dolled up for the day I will have a big glass of water and I head off to work. Once I arrive at the office I will get myself a cup of tea which is either a builders brew or a green tea depending on my mood and I have my breakfast which consists of a protein yoghurt with strawberries or grapes.

 

These yoghurts are a perfect breakfast for me as they are minimal effort in the morning so I can just grab and go. They come in three different flavours strawberry, raspberry and blueberry. The best part about them is they are so filling as they have 20g of protein in per pot and they are really thick and creamy. It would also be a great breakfast for any one following a macro nutrient plan as they have such high protein content. For a long time I used these instead of whey protein so you could even have one for post workout recovery.

Around 11am I will have a snack to keep me going until lunch and this will usually consist of 2 hard boiled eggs. Again they have plenty of protein so they keep you feeling full and I tend to use a small drizzle of balsamic glaze which is so yummy with eggs, vegetables, salads and pretty much any food I can gets hands on. 

 

Lunch is always chicken and vegetables. I will also add brown rice in if I am doing cardio that day. The chicken is usually prepared using the maggies so juicy cooking bags. They have so many different flavours, my favourite is the bbq chicken. It really does make the chicken so juicy! So I will cook up a bag for lunches for me and my fiancé  every couple of days. I don't do a whole weeks prep on a Sunday as I don't like the idea of eating 4/5 day old chicken towards the end of the week. For the vegetables I tend to stick to greens so broccoli, peas, green beans ECT. I also really like tescos summer medley which is carrots, baby corn and sugar snaps so I will switch up the veg depending on what I fancy. Today was the summer medley and broccoli and bbq chicken. After this I will have a
banana to kill those after lunch sugar cravings.

I tend to go the gym Monday- Friday so post gym I will have a protein shake which I get from    www.myprotein.com and I have the chocolate peanut butter whey protein which is so tasty but I will do a separate review for this shortly so watch this space if you want to hear more about myprotein.com

Finally for my dinner which is my favourite meal of the day. I cannot grasp how anyone can skip dinner because I love it so much. I tend to cook the same meals weekly for me and my other half but I just cut the carbs out for me. So tonight we had reggae reggae chicken with portobello mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, sweetcorn and peas. I have found cutting carbs from my evening meal reduces my bloating massively and I feel so much better for it.

After dinner if I am feeling peckish or want a sweet treat I may have some low calorie chocolate like a good old school curly wurly or alternatively it will be Apple with peanut butter it all depends on what kind of day it  been at work haha!

So overall I try to stick to a low carb high protein diet Monday-Friday which is in line with my gym days and then over the weekend I can relax a little with the odd papa johns pizza and just pray it goes straight to my booty, check out my Instagram to see how we do cheat night ;)  (www.instragram.co.uk/HayleyO_Dwyer) We all have days where we can't be bothered but once you get into a routine it really does just become a way of life.

Silver Hair FAQs

Welcome to my very first blog post, this something I've been wanting do for such a long time and I’ve finally decided to bite the bullet and give it a go. So here it goes…

On the 39 bus, in the Tesco express, the work canteen or on the gram it seems everywhere I go everyone has one question to ask me, how do you get your hair that grey/silver colour? Well to all the ladies wanting to be a silver fox you are about to find out how to get it and more importantly how to maintain it.

So first things first, to be able to achieve this steel grey colour you need to already have a very light base so I'll insert a picture below of the colour I started out at but as a guide it needs to be similar colour to the inside of a banana! 

If you are already this colour, great, if not you will need to take a trip to the hairdressers to get your hair bleached (bleaching your own hair never ends well unless you want to resemble a canary).

I have used various different silver toners from drugstores such as  directions and  bleach London  but I’ll be honest nothing has achieved what I wanted the way going to a salon has so my first piece of advice would be to find a good quality hair salon to tone your hair for you. There’s no reason you can't do it yourself with the products mentioned above but in my experience you will never achieve an even steely grey.

 Basically, you get what you pay for and if there is one thing you are going to invest in let it be your hair as you have to wear it everyday!

If you are in the Nottingham area my hair salon is called Hairven (www.hair-ven.co.uk) and I have a lovely hairdresser called Vanessa she is literally the best colourist I've ever had in all the 10 years I've been colouring my hair.

So once I'd had my hair freshly coloured I entered the world of silver shampoo’s to maintain the silver as toners only tend to last maybe 5 washes so using a silver shampoo will allow you to get longer out of your colour. I initially tried touch of silver and used that for a while but it didn't really have the depth I was looking for so I stumbled across the best silver shampoo known to any granny haired young woman, Fudge’s violet toning shampoo!

     

Now this is my holy grail product, it leaves your such a perfect silver, it is so nourishing and gives your hair a lovely shine which can be difficult for us lighter haired folk.

I use this every time I wash my hair and leave it on for around 10 minutes you can leave it anything from 5-10 minutes it just depends whether you are just looking for a clean blonde or a definite silver/grey. I've found that this is more blue toned which is why it looks more silver where as some shampoos leave your hair more lilac than a true silver.

Using this shampoo means I  only have my hair coloured every 10-12 weeks and that's how powerful of a toner it is, so it is well worth its £9.90 price tag. I purchase mine from Amazon. The shampoo itself is a 300ml bottle and that easily lasts me 3 months.


My final tip for keeping those titanium tresses would be trying to go longer in between washes. This has done wonders for keeping my colour and the condition of my hair is now great that I wash it less as your hair absorbs more of your natural oils.