Beauty | Halloween Master Class with Peaches and Cream

I'm back... again!

So the thing is I was quite poorly/recovering from surgery throughout most of October, and therefore, I decided to mostly concentrate on my 30 Days of Halloween hoohar to make that amazeballs, instead of keeping up with my blog and doing the halloween things, which would have made them both a bit half arsed...

But yes, i'm back! And i've got a whole month of shenanigans to catch up on, starting with my visit to Peaches and Cream in Liverpool on the 14th October!

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This place was my fortress of happiness. It was pink, there's glitter everywhere. I have honestly never been to a place which made me so happy just by how pink it looked! If I could have moved in, I would have.

The reason I was here was for a Halloween Make Up masterclass, and for those of you that know Peaches, you know it's about to get epic!

It was Kate who took the class that day, and immediately upon walking through the door you were greeted with the biggest smile (and the best accent). She explained to us how the outfit she'd created was made from rolls of bondage tape (not just a pretty face!), and how today we'd be learning how to create the look of Maleficent. 

She took us through the look step by step, mentioning how you should start on the eyes so that any excess product that fell onto the face can be wiped off without ruining your base make up... which seems obvious, but this never actually occurred to me until she mentioned it...

She was more than happy to stop and answer any questions we had, and she even made time to show us a few little techniques for creating a 'spider web' look using eyeliner!

To say that I travelled all the way from Leeds to Liverpool to attend this workshop, it was definitely worth it!

The techniques I learnt at the workshop have already been put into practise, and i've got to say, my halloween clients this year were 10 times better than last year thanks to Peaches and Cream!

2015 | September Favourites!

September's nearly over, which means? It's almost my birthday month! (and also, there's another favourites post coming for you!).

Beauty

My first beauty favourite is one from Benefit, and it's their 'Gimmie Brow' gel!

This is in the lighter shade of the two available, and what it does is add fibres to your eyebrow to give them the Cara Delasagne effect... Okay it's not actually described as that, but it makes them fuller and thicker, and just all out brow-tastic.

I've never quite worked out how to properly give my eyebrows that bit of oomph. Other people's are easy, but it's always worse when it's your own! This stuff is so easy to use, and you can see the tutorial on the Benefit website here.

It's more at the high end scale price wise, coming in at £18.50, but it's the perfect thing to treat your brows to!

Next up, we have a late addition to my favourites. I only bought this yesterday, (and immediately bought another on online after trying it), but it's amazing! It goes on so smoothly, and from past lip gloss experience I expected to need a few applications before the colour I wanted showed through, but one was all I needed! The colours are so bold and pigmented, and the wearability is amazing! I put this on, and 10 minutes later  I consumed a pizza... and the colour was still there! Barely any loss at all! It's not sticky, it just feels smooth, and gives your lips the perfect colour, and with the uniquely shaped want, if you're only using it on yourself, you don't  even need to worry about getting it right to the line of your lips, it does it all by itself!

This colour is called Aphrodite, and it priced at £5.99... I've got 'Lunch Date' on it's way to me in the post!

Skincare

I don't know what has happened, but recently my face has been a nightmare! Usually my normal Liz Earle products have done the trick to keep acne at bay, but this time, it hasn't even touched it! My face has been a plethora of acne, blackheads, and red patches, so it was time to take some drastic action.

I've been to my doctors before, but whatever they gave me just hasn't worked for longer than two weeks...

I decided to splurge and pick up some products from Perricone MD. I won't talk too much about them, because there's another blog post coming with a full review, but one week in and i'm very impressed, so keep your eye's peeled! 

They do come in at the higher end of the price tag, and yes my purse did suffer! But when it comes to my face, I will spend as much as it takes to give me that extra confidence boost when needed!

Experiences

September has been a month of spontaneity and awesome opportunities! As I mentioned in a previous blog post, I had the chance to be on set as a make up artist with SKEW magazine, and this weekend, I was asked to take part in a Hair Show with Toni And Guy! 

8 Models, in 3 hours... it was knackering, but so worth it!

Also this month, I decided to get some more tattoos! (Which you may have seen already on my Instagram).

I chose to get this one because the last time I had a tattoo, Donna my tattooist, insisted that I get something with some colour! So obviously, I went all out! Donna loved the artist that was the original inspiration for this image, so she loved doing it. Could this be the start of a full sleeve?

And for those of you that know me, know that I am completely and utterly obsessed with Harry Potter. So much so that I thought what better way to always have it in my life than to have him tattooed on my arm? (Judge me all you want, I don't even care!).

So that's it for another month! And just a word of warning, as next month is my birthday month, it's going to be jam packed full of favourites!

Happy reading!

On Set; With SKEW Magazine!

Photographer: Jason Rose

Make Up Artist: Emily Stansfield

Hair: Robert Jefferies

Stylist: Tracey Laycock

Models: Jakub Nowacki/James Palmer

www.skewmagazine.com

Last Sunday I had the incredible opportunity to work on set on my very first professional photoshoot! To say I was excited would have been the understatement of the century.

The opportunity arose when I saw on Facebook that the owner of SKEW (Johnny Clarke) was looking for a make-up artist who could do black eyes, bruises, and generally making someone look battered. Obviously, that's my forte right?

I've never been on set before. In fact, i'd never done any form of photoshoot before that hadn't been on myself, resulting in taking selfies in front of a mirror, so the nerves did kick in pretty much as soon as I left my car to meet the team in Leeds.

Bright pink make up box in hand (because why not bright pink?), Em Scissorhands was ready to take on the world!

This was my first model, (say hi to James), who sat in the chair with minimal facial hair, and a face that it almost felt a shame to trash. So when I was asked to make his facial hair, match his scalp hair, I was a bit stumped. Having never given someone facial hair before, I was a bit out of my depth. So what did I do? Wing it.

Stippling sponge, a mix of brown and black face paint with some eye shadow thrown in, sorted!

The second model was much more straight forward (this is Jakub). A pale face, pink lips, and a defined brow. 

With a few cuts and bruises thrown in for good measure!

I had the best time on this shoot. When it comes to working long hours, you just don't care when it's doing something you love!

I had such a great team to work with, which definitely helps to settle the nerves.

Days like these definitely help you to know that you've made the right career choice, and that you just need to keep pushing until you get where you want to be.

To check out the full editorial, head over to skewmagazine.com , and don't forget to check out my Facebook and Instagram to have a look at some behind the scenes pictures!

Lifestyle | Adventures Down South!

So this week I finally got to get away from it all and go on a little holiday down south to Guildford! (That's in Surrey for those of you that don't know, (don't worry, i didn't either at first)).

My sister was at university down there, so we decided that before she came back home, i'd pop down for a few days to do some exploring!

First, lets talk about the commute... People in London Victoria bus station are mean!

I don't know if it's because I'm used to friendly Northerners who say hello to everyone they meet, irrelevant of whether they know them or not, but I was definitely not feeling that vibe there! Not to mention the lady in her mobility scooter who decided to stop, complain about something, then proceeded to reverse into the reams of people behind her trying to get to their connecting coaches... According to my sister, I managed to witness every type of person you could meet in London in the space of 10 minutes.

But once i'd met my sister at the other end, everything seemed much brighter!

Every one seems to walk everywhere in Guildford, which for those of you that know me, understand that this is foreign to me! So what they do, so that you can cut through the train station instead of having to lug yourself all the way around town, is they give you this thing called a bridge pass. What is basically is, is a little slip of cardboardy-plastic that means you can walk through the station (or over the bridge), and get out the other side, without buying a ticket! Nifty eh?

So the first night was pretty relaxed. Hannah and I went out for dinner at TGI Friday's and had a catch up on each other's lives, then we came back to her room and watched some movies. Now as she was a student, (I say was because technically when I went down she was, but now she's home she's actually finished her degree), I got to stay in student halls and see a little bit what life would be like if i'd have gone to university. To summarise, the take-aways get dropped off at the other end of campus, the kitchen is literally so far away, and I can't seem to understand why anyone would want to transport their food 5 miles between cooking and eating (clearly i'm exaggerating), and if you have a ground floor room, it is absolutely essential that you make sure the curtains are drawn when you are coming out of the shower!

On day 2, Hannah decided to take me around the shops in Guildford, which are pretty similar to the ones in Leeds, but it was in Guildford where I was on holiday, so it was better. I bought a couple of make-up bits i'd been dying to try, and we treated ourselves to some new clothes from Urban Outfitters! I classed mine as a necessity as that morning I realised the only 'outerwear' type thing i'd brought down with me, excluding my coat, was a Harry Potter Gryffindor hoody which i'd travelled down in! Therefore, I definitely had to buy a new cardigan!

Later that day, once we'd got back to her room, caught up on Coronation Street, and rebooted ourselves, we went out for dinner with one of Hannah's uni friends, and my best friend Emily, who also went to university in Surrey! The Nando's down there had just had a re-vamp, and the open day was that day, so we went there to have yet another catch up, and some food! 

Next up, it was time for pudding. We were all really full after the Nando's, but before I went down, Hannah had told me about a place called Creams, which was literally a dessert restaurant. Everything on the menu was some form of pudding. Literally  everything! 

One portion of one of their puddings was the equivalent to a main course, but as I was on holiday, and at times I can turn my stomach into a bottomless pit, I just about managed to force down a slice (slab) of cheesecake and a scoop of ice cream. (The waffle was my sisters, but I could have definitely eaten that too).

Day 3! My absolute favourite day of the whole time I spent there! Hannah and I went to the Harry Potter Studio tour!

It was truly one of the best days ever! A little bit of me thought that it may ruin the magic, knowing everything behind the scenes, but it didn't, if anything it made it more magical!

I won't bombard you with pictures, because I don't want to spoil it if any of you are going, but it's brilliant! 

Conveniently, at the end of the tour, you're led right into the gift shop, so it'd be rude not to spend any money, right?

After getting home from what can only be described as the day where it was officially confirmed that I am not a muggle, it was quite late, so we ordered a chinese. For those of you keeping count, that's 3 meals out and a take away in as many days... Do not tell my bootcamp instructor!

The next day was all about the travel back up north. So armed with snacks, my headphones, and a phone charger, we got on a coach at 10.50 to start our 7 hour journey back home! After about 30minutes into the journey, I fell asleep anyway...

So if any of you want a more detailed blog about the tour, do let me know, I just didn't want to let out too many spoilers!

2015 | August Favourites!

Another month down, already! August has been so busy, but i've still managed to pull together all my favourite things from this month!

So, some of you may know this, but earlier this month we had a bath reinstalled at the house! We've been living with one of those massive walk in showers, and some days, it just didn't suffice with the relaxing factor! So obviously, when the bath was put back in, I had to get myself some bath bombs from Lush!

My favourite is definitely Frozen! (The blue one) It fizzes like a mad woman and has glitter in it. Play the frozen soundtrack in the background and you're basically Queen Elsa!

The larger pink one is a bubble bar. A little less fancy than the bath bombs, but they provide so many bubbles, it's brilliant!

Now, I've been on some adventures down south earlier this week, so I thought i'd treat myself to a few beauty bits i've wanted for ages but held back on buying.

There will be further reviews on these products, but for a first impression, they're pretty great!

The Collection eyebrow palette comes in Brown and Blonde, as I have fair hair, I chose the blonde. Inside each, there are 3 different shades, an angled brush and a 'clear brow mascara'. I usually go for the middle shade for day-to-day make up, and set it with the mascara, and it really does last all day!

I also purchased Benefits They're Real Mascara in Brown. I love the original, and I've been wanting to try a brown mascara for ages too. Brown mascaras really work to bring out your eyes, especially if your eyes are green, hazel, or brown (obvs). While i've been wearing this, I haven't needed to wear any eye liner, as it really opens up my eyes, where as a black mascara can make my eyes look quite small! It cost £19.50, but I definitely think it's worth the price tag!

Earlier this month, I received an email from Topshop saying they had added more items to the sale. I didn't want to buy anything in particular, but I thought, as I'd just been paid I might have a quick look.

I found these! They were £45 originally, but in the sale I think they were £15?! I'm a sucker for a bargain! They're a perfect fit, so if you buy them, you should go for your normal size. I wore them out the other night, and I had them on from 6pm - 2am, and my feet didn't begin to ache once! I could walk normally, no one had to wait for me to catch up because I was going too slow, and to say they're caged, my feet never got cold!

You go Topshop!

Now, the most exciting part of this month (which will be talked about on the blog in due course), was my visit to the Harry Potter Studio tour with my sister. I won't spoil it, (although, in my next post there will be plenty of pictures!), but I picked up this Pygmypuff keyring to go on my car keys, and I just love it! A fluffy pink key ring to go with my pink car!

So there's not many, but they are my favourite things from this month! Let me know in the comments anything you've been loving that you would recommend!

Lifestyle | Let's talk about First Dates

 First dates ay,, we've all been there!

After being single for a while, I thought maybe I should put myself out there for a bit...see what happens...

Now I met my ex through my brother, because they were friends and they worked together (yeah it was a bit awkward), so i've never really been in the dating world. Most of the time, I think it's safe to assume that that was a good thing.

But where do you start? I'm always busy at work, and my social life isn't exactly buzzing, so obviously the right thing to do was to go for a dating website, more specifically, Tinder. Yeah I know, don't judge me!

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So Tinder. You swipe left or right whether you like someone or not, and no-one knows which way you've swiped on them unless you've both swiped right, meaning you like the look of each other, and this then allows you to talk to each other. Sounds simple, yes?

Well it is. Maybe too simple. 

You get chatting with someone, everything seems to go well then, boom! Dick pic, in your face... Or the guys whose first message is 'Sex or pics'. A personal favourite, 'Do you like dragons?' ... 'Because i'm gonna be dragon my ball across your face later'...

So those guys are pretty much a right off straight away. 

Then there's the ones that you get talking to, who seem alright, who suddenly decide that they want you to be the new mother to their two children, and want you to get married and be a stay at home mum, baking apple pies and changing shitty diapers. Yeah, bye!

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Then we move over to the select few you dare to give your number to. The one's who seem normal, who you have a normal chatty conversation with, who will randomly send you a dick pic when you're innocently sat in the lounge eating your spaghetti bolognese, watching tv with your mum. 'So do you like animals?' 'Yeah I really like cats....' Hmm he must have sent me a picture of his pets... Nope! It's a dick pic!

Or, there's the guys who you have nice chatty conversations with who just stop replying, or you leave the staff room to do a root colour, forgetting that you haven't replied to a message until weeks later when you see that there message is still chilling there, without a reply, but by this time it'd just be awkward if you responded... yes it does actually happen.. Sorry Thomas!

But then there's a handful and by handful I mean a maximum of like, 2-3, who you actually think you might be interested in, and with the back up of a friend sat a few tables away, you agree to meet for lunch/ a drink.

Let me introduce you to a few of my first dates; NB Not all of these have come from Tinder, that was just the start point for this blog!

Mr 'I'm Better Than You Because I Have A Degree'

So it seemed to be going well, but then he asked me about my job, so I obviously replied saying that I was a hair and make up artist...

'So you don't have a degree?'

No

'Did you not get into uni?'

I never applied...

'I think you should do a degree, there's plenty of at home courses you can do, but there not as good as going to a real university, but at least it's something and you're not just stuck being a hairdresser'.

He walked home. Alone.

Mr 'So You're Coming Back to Mine right?'

I never actually went on this date. Because in the whole run up to it, this guy was suggesting that we 'skip the dessert and have pudding back at his'. 

How about no.

Mr ' I've seen your face on Tinder so i'm going to assume that I can sit down next to you'

So I was waiting to have a meeting with someone about joining the Fellowship of British Hairdressing. And some guy, who I didn't even recognise, decided to announce to the whole of Starbucks that he'd recognised me from Tinder, and decided to have a seat... 

The most awkward part? When the guy I was meeting turned up from the Fellowship, he stayed there... Sat chilling there like a third wheel on something that could have potentially been a turning point in my career... Bit invasive to be honest!

Mr 'I'm so casual and laid back, and i'm going to talk all night about my kid and my ex girlfriend who's a psycho bitch'

The dinner was fine. The atmosphere was okay. The fact that he talked about his son didn't even bother me, who doesn't like it when someone is open and honest? But going on, and on, and on, and on, about his ex girlfriend (who he was SO over by the way...), just wasn't cutting it. So I mentioned that maybe we should change the subject, to which he agreed. Which lasted for about 10 minutes...

Don't get me wrong, some first dates go well (obviously, or everyone would be single). In my experience, ONE of my first dates have gone well, but then I caught a bug the day before the second date, and well... that's a story for another time.

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Lifestyle | British Military Fitness

This post is coming to you today because i'm pretty sure that i'll wake up tomorrow morning and not be able to move. I well and truly had my arse handed to me today in the shape of a British Military Fitness class.

Now, i'm not the most fit person in the world. I'm the one weezing at the back ready to crack out my inhaler, so the thought of going to one of these classes terrified me a little bit. Going alone made it even worse! (My friend Pete was supposed to come with, but i'm not one to hold a grudge).

So the class was taken by Luke and Ritchie, and they split you up into colour groups, based on your level of fitness. There's blue, red and green, ranging from less fit to most fit, respectively. There was nothing lower than blue... I checked...

The warm up lasts for 10 minutes, and in these 10 minutes, you will definitely go from thinking 'oh I can do this, this is fine!' to, 'If I run fast enough do you think I can leg it back to my car before they notice?' NB no, I couldn't, because they keep your car keys safe in their massive rucksack in the back of their van.

Then you split off into your ability groups. Being a blue, you do get it easier than the other colours, but there were points during this workout when I thought I was going to vom out of my nose, where I contemplated lying down on the ground to wait for the world to swallow me, some bits i'm not quite sure I remember because you concentrate so much on not falling over, everything else just happens around you. But at no point, did I want to quit. You are surrounded by people there to spur you on, instructors who will shout at you, but in a nice encouraging way so that you don't want to curl in a ball and cry, and that just makes you feel like you could go on forever... I mean i'm pretty sure my legs would give way at some point give that it was a struggle to drive home, but you get the point right?

The best bit? The end. Not because it's over, but because after all that exercise, it's actually okay for you to lie down on the floor (aim to avoid dog poo, but to be honest at that point you're kind of past caring). You spend a good 5 minutes lolled on the floor, doing stretches, but mostly just lying there, and the sense of relief you feel at the end because you've actually done it, you made it to the end with out dying, or crying, makes you feel so good about yourself!

Whatever your fitness level, you can do it. They don't shout (much), they don't make you feel like rubbish if there's something you can't do, and it's just good fun!

*Snaps for Emily for not crying*

MakePals by EmScissorhands

I'm back again! For the second time in 2 days!

The reason for this post is to bring you an idea that's been floating around in my head for a while now, and it's time to share it with the world!

 It's called 'MakePals'. It's a play on words you see, it's a Make-Up Pen Pal.

The general gist is that you are paired up with a MakePal based on some different factors, whether it be your location, your skin type, your age, and every 3 months, March, June, September and December, with the budget of £20, you send each other  a package of beauty products you've been loving!

If you're paired with someone with a similar skin type, you can share products you think help your skin, or if you're paired with someone from a different country you can share products from brands that you might not get in their country.

So, if this sounds like something you're interested in, or you just want more details, send me an email emilystansfieldmua@gmail.com and i'll send you the questions you need to answer to get you paired up with someone as soon as i can!

Lifestyle | Saturday Nights and the Single Woman

Welcome to another post for my Independent Ladies series!

I'm not sure if I mentioned that it was going to be a series, but it is.... Well it is now anyway...

Now before people get high and mighty on me, like you did with my 10 Things I've Learnt While Being Single post, this is not me a) Having a dig at relationships or b) Man-bashing because I hate all men everywhere. This is simply a post to uplift other women, support women, and put my womanly stamp on the world by telling you what I, a single woman, do with my life, okay?

So, it's Saturday night, you're not working this weekend, so you want something to do right? I work every other weekend, and i'm always picking up extra shifts, so when I actually get a saturday night off, I basically have no idea what to do with myself. I don't have a partner, so I can just arrive home and be all 'so what are we doing tonight?', because i'm not going to get a straight answer from my cats. (No I am not a crazy cat lady, I just like cats...). But do you know what, this literally means that the world is my oyster. Obviously it'd be impractical to jump on a plane and jet off to god knows where, because I start work at 7am on a Monday, but you get the idea, right?

Even when you decide you want to do something, you don't know what that something is. Do I want to do something alone? Do I want to ring round all my friends and see if they're doing things I can mooch in on? Do I already have plans? (Probably not), or should I make plans for future Saturdays I have off?? So here's a few ideas, that will fit into all the above categories. Brace yourself, it's gonna be wild.

Going out

Whether it's with your mum, your sister, your friend, what a better excuse for a catch up than going to see a movie? Or a pub dinner? Or even to the cinema? It doesn't need to be a wild do just because it's a Saturday night!

Going out out

Everyone knows the difference between going out, and going out-out right?

I'm always a fan of a night out. Especially now that the people I work with make the effort to invite me out (one guy even organised a whole night out for me when I first started so that I could get to know all my other work mates).

The best bit though? For me anyway... the getting ready. I love getting all glammed up, choosing my outfit, my accessories, my make-up. Then when you look at yourself when it's all come together and you have one of those 'Dayymmmm guurrrllll' moments? Yeah, they're my moments.

When you actually go out, you just have fun! I'm all about the fun. Life's too short to not make it fun. So if you want to wear heels that are sky high, that you know full well you'll take off 5 minutes into the first bar because you feet are killing, so what? Just do it!

The key is to make sure you're with a group of people you trust, and that you'll all look after each other, and the night will be what you make it!

How about just staying in?

No i'm not a prude. I'm not boring, or lazy. Sometimes, after a long week at work, I just want to put my pyjamas on, watch a DVD and order a greasy take-away. So many times people have thought i'm rubbish because they'll invite me out and i'll turn down the offer because I just want a night in. Am I bothered? Maybe a bit at first, but 4 wontons down and I don't even think about it anymore.

Why not get the girls (or boys) together and have a night in together?

Whatever it is, it's your Saturday night, so do whatever the hell you want with it? Go wild, stay in, invite the neighbours tortoise over for a movie night. Just make sure you're weekend is well spent, and you're looking fresh as a daisy for work on Monday morning!

Lifestyle | Dealing with the Thoughts of Small Minded People

Two essential songs that you need to be listening to while reading this post...

1) Shake it Off - Taylor Swift

2) Who's Laughing Now - Jessie J

Not only do these two ladies epitomise the definition of 'Girl Power', but they are also the perfect songs to syke you up to deal with other people's negative thoughts.

Now, today's post was going to be a summer look-book, but firstly, the weather hasn't exactly allowed me to wear the outfits i'd chosen, and secondly, I feel like I need to make this point before I go any further with my blogging/vlogging. 

Those of you that know me are aware of the reason why I left the salon I worked at to be a support worker. To summarise for those of you that don't, I came home feeling miserable every day because the environment I worked in was so negative and awful that it drained the life out of you. Me and my collegues, (some of which still work there), were treated like rubbish for a less than minimum wage. I had to get out.

So you could say I was used to dealing with negativity. But entering the world of blogging was a whole new story.

You get bombarded with negative comments from people that don't even know you, and those that do 'know' you (i use that term loosely), think it's okay to judge you, and degrade you in front of others.

Let's give you a few examples.

On one of my blog posts where I posted a picture of my body, I received a whole host of negative comments. I'm too skinny, i'm promoting anorexia (what even...), and that I was ugly... even though they haven't seen my face...

Another example. My ex manager thought that it was okay to tell one of my best friends that still works in the salon, that I was unqualified, I couldn't do what I was claiming to do on my Facebook page etc, and that I wont get anywhere in my career now i've left that salon. That tiny salon that no one knows the name of...

Now I wont lie. It upset me. Because it's a natural reaction to someone being nasty to get upset. But what I have learnt, is that the opinions of those people don't matter.

I've been reading Carrie Hope Fletcher's book, an coincientally, i'm on the section about bullying. And what she says is exactly right. It's not you that's the problem, it's them! The people that know you are clearly jealous of what you're acheiving, or they wouldn't be wasting their time trying to convince other's that their small minded opinion is right. And the people that don't know you obviously have nothing better to do than sit behind the protection of their computer and send nasty comments, so just leave them to it!

I don't write this blog or make my videos expecting everyone to like them. I don't need hundereds and hundereds of views and subscribers to make me happy. I write it because it makes me happy. An if my writing can help or inspire just one person, then i'll be pretty chuffed with what i've done.

I've got so many things in the making to look forward to, and so much stuff to share with you all, I simply don't have time for people's negativity, and neither should any one else! The block button is there for a reason and it'll definitely come in handy!

The people that try and drag you down are the people that are already below you. Just bear that in mind.

Those that mind, don't matter. And those that matter, don't mind ~ Dr Zeuss

2015 | July Favourites

It's that time again! Another month down, another set of favourites to share with you all! I've got to say, these are my most favourite posts because I get to share all of the things i've been loving with you all!

First up, my nail saviour! It's Sensationail! 

Since leaving the salon I worked at, where I had my nails done by the fabulous nail technician every 3 weeks, my nails just seemed so boring! Going back to using nail polish after having gels for 2 years just wasn't working for me! so i treated myself to the Raspberry Wine starter kit... then 2 more colours... and another 3 colours when the 3 for £30 offer came along! My favourite set are definately the french ones. It's such a simple and elegant look for your nails, and so so easy to do!

Next up we have something I mentioned in my blog yesterday. Zoella's Candy Cream.

I wont go on and on about it, as you can read all about it in my other blog, but it  leaves my skin feeling so soft, and it makes you smell delish!

Let's move on to some fashion favourites.

I bought this cute little handbag from Topshop about a week ago. It looks small, which is what put me off buying it for so long, but once payday came around I decided to treat myself, and it's actually quite big inside! It can fit everything in, my purse, diary, notebook, lunch, there's just so much space that I didn't realise it had! It's called a Soft Duffle Bag and it was £38 from Topshop. It's still available online and in store, and if the other bags i have from Topshop are anything to go by, it will definitely be in it for the long haul!

Let's move on to the things described as the miracle for hair, PopBands!

Now, they do leave a slight kink in my hair, but it soon drops out, much faster than your average hair tie. They don't feel like they're pulling my hair, and they don't make my hair feel heavy (you know what I mean, right?) They're just so girly and pretty, the perfect addition to jazz up your ponytail!

Also this month, after wanting to buy myself it for ages, i got the Pandora October Birthstone ring.

The pink opal is said to bring the wearer true love and harmony, and i've always had a belief in the power of stones and things, so lets see how it goes!

Also this month, as childish as it may seem, i've become quite attached to my Piglet Tsum Tsum which i mentioned in my 'Get to Know Me' post.

He sits on my desk and acts like my little mascot for when I'm blogging! Not to mention he comes in very handy when my iPad gets finger smudges on it! The Tsum Tsum has definitely made Piglet much cuter and adorable, who'd have thought it was possible?

And last but not least, we have a song.  My favourite song this month that I could listen to over and over, and not get bored. My gym instructor has it on during spin class, it's on in my car, it plays on StrayFM all the time, and i just love it! 

Shut Up and Dance - Walk the Moon

Now I know what you're thinking. 'That's everyone's favourite just because it's most popular'... well that's the whole point, there's a reason why it's their most popular!

So that's that for this month!  I'll see you again next month for my next lot of favourites! As if it's going to be August next month!

Beauty | Zoella Beauty - New Collection!

She's done it again! Another fabulous set of beauty products to make you feel and smell delicious! I wont jabber on like I normally do at the start of a post, so i'll just jump straight in!

Now I didn't buy everything from the collection, but i'll tell you about what I did buy...

Fresh Fizz, the bath bomb you can use 4 times! With the signature tutti frutti scent that Zoe has across her collection, all you have to do is sniff this and you already start to feel cleaner! It's a very gentle product that cleans your skin without irritating even my sensitive skin! This relaxing bath fizzer is ther perfect addition to your bath at the end of a hard day! (Note: Using this with Soak Opera from her first collection is the best thing I ever did!)

Best.Sugar scrub. EVER! All the scrubs i've used in the past have just been too... scrubby I guess? Like they felt as though they were scratching of about 7 layers of skin. Not relaxing at all! This however, is so gentle on my skin, you can feel it working, but not in a painful way! In more of a 'gently-buffing-dead-skin' kind of way. My body has never been so soft! I use this everywhere except my face, (even my feet!) and every time I get out of the bath I feel like a brand new person, with baby soft skin!

I use this every single day! I use it after my bath to compliment the sugar scrub, and the tiny bursting beads inside this lotion really work to soften this skin. Even using this alone leaves your skin beautifully soft, and it smells so good. I can't remember how many people have asked me what perfume I'm wearing, and I tell them 'well actually, it's my body lotion'. I can get quite dry skin on my arms and legs, and this works wonderfully helping them to stay soft and not flakey.

This is my favourite item in the new collection. The cosmetic/coin purse. Now, I don't use it as either. I call this my 'essentials purse'. It's the perfect size to go into every one of my bags, and inside I have everything I consider as an essential to take out with me.

~ Carmex

~ Painkillers

~ Plasters

~ Hair pins/ties

~ Sanitary towels

~ A pen

~ Handcream

Yep, all of that fits inside this! So when i'm on my way out of the house and I check my bag, I make sure i've got my purse, phone, car keys, and my essentials purse, and i'm good to go! Instead of having all of these things rattling around in my bag, and having to hunt for them when I need them they're all in one place, and it's bright pink, so you can't miss it!

I love all these items that i've been testing out this month, and I can't wait to see what's in her next collection! 

Have you tried any of Zoe's new bits? What are your favourites?

Skinny Shaming | Can You Not?

So this is a bit off topic for me, but it's something that's been annnoying me. Like, really annoying me.

Let's talk about 'skinny shaming'.

I'm a size 6-8, my boobs are a D-cup, and I have to buy jeans one size bigger to fit my bum in, thus giving me an hour-glass figure. The figure all women dream of right? The type of woman guys MUST be with? So why are people constantly telling me that i'm too skinny, that i need more meat on my bones, that I'm so skinny i'm going to make myself poorly?

Can you just not?

This picture of me was posted on my instagram, and the world went mad. I've never had to delete so many nasty comments in my life. And i don't even have that many followers...

'You're too skinny' 'You look ill' 'You'll probably die if you don't eat something'

All this was, was a progress picture from the work i'd been doing at the gym...

I've never exceeded a size 10, that's just the way my motabolism works. I can burn off food quickly. Society makes out that I starve myself, and that any girl who is skinny clearly has an eating disorder.

This weekend alone, i've had fish and chips, a Domino's meal deal, and enough chinese food for around 3 people... but yeah, clearly i'm starving myself...

At least once a week when I go to the gym, someone points out (usually one of those outrageously muscley men, who spends more time taking mirror selfies than lifting weights) that a 'tiny little woman like me shouldn't be lifting, you should go eat some more'. Go put a few more Kilograms on your bar and shut your dam mouth!

Those types of people don't know why I go to the gym, because they don't know me. I go to tone up, and to improve my cardio, because that helps my Fibromyalgia. Not because I think i'm fat and I need to lose weight...

There was an article in the papers the other day, which was 'shaming' skinny women for 'getting too fat'. What this included, was a picture of Lea Michele bent over, thus creating 'fat rolls'. Newsflash, this is what happens to skin when it's moved. Irrelevent of your size, when you bend over, your skin moves. It has less of a surface area to cover and therefore 'folds'. But obviously that means that Lea is too fat and needs to lose weight, right?

Let's flip this around, shall we? 

There's a new thing going on isn't there. This whole 'plus sized models' thing. Everyone's right happy for these girls because they've finally got this big break, and they're standing up for their rights, and showing women everywhere that they can do what they want no matter what, and you don't have to be skinny to be a model!

That's all well and good but is anyone pointing out that these women have sky high BMIs, probably a whole host of medical issues because of their weight, nevermind the fact that they're actually classed as clinically obese by medical professionals, and yet these women are seen to be more of a role model for young women.

Telling people they are not good people because their body is 'too small' is not okay. These oversized women are told they they're brave, and yet, if someone is seen as too skinny, they're victimised by the media, and told that what they're doing is wrong, and they need to reevaluate their lives.

How about no.

Skinny shaming is not okay. I'm proud of my body, and I worked hard for it. And I refuse to be told otherwise by the media and anonymous people from the internet.

Beauty | Rock Out with your Roots Out!

That's how the saying goes... right?

So it turns out, i'm actually allergic to the hair colour i've been using to colour my hair. Even though it's what i've been using while I was working in a salon, and it's the same brand I use on my clients, the last few times I used it, my head felt like a firey ball of death... Who'd have thought?

Action needed to be taken, As at this point my hair was pretty light, and my roots stuck out like a sore thumb. So I did what you absoloutely should not do, by any means, because it's a stupid idea... I coloured my hair one last time. 

I used my shae chart, because believe it or not I am actually a professional, and I chose a colour that was one shade lighter than my natural colour. I painted this all over my roots, and about 1/3 of the way down my hair. I then left his for 25 minutes. The normal amount of time you leave this colour on is 40minutes, so for the remaining 15, I used my comb to brush the colour that had already been on my roots down the rest of my hair shaft, to create a subtle ombre effect.

It actually looked pretty good!

So then we had the issue of my roots growing out. I needed to find some styles where it didn't look really obvious that i'd missed my appointment at the salon...

Here's a few i'm going to share with you guys. (The picture quality isn't great, but you get the general idea).

1) The mini beehive.

I'm a massive fan of the beehive, and this mini version is my go-to look ever since I had my hair cut short (such regrets!)

2) Half up half down top-knot type thing.

I have no idea what the proper term is, but you get the drift right? Take the top section of your hair, tie it in a messy bun, leave the rest down. It sounds simple but it actually takes me ages to get the bun just right! I just don't get how a messy bun can be called simple when it takes about 5000 goes every morning to make it look right...

 3) Curls curls curls!!

The simple curl itself can help the root colour blend into the rest of the hair, you can also tie some bits back to keep it away from your face. When it involves curls you just can't go wrong!

The key to roots, is blending, and keeping the hair back from your face. Natural colours are so on trend right now, that's why there's been a sudden increase in the amount of people having balyage and root stretches, these are just more high-end (and expensive) ways of allowing the roots to grow without people noticing!

Embrace it! O'natural is making a comeback!

Beauty | Make-Up, Specs, and all that comes with it!

Here I am sat in be at precisely 10pm, with a full face of make up, writing this post for you, because that's what it's like having 2 jobs. I'm a support worker by day, (and sometimes by night), and a blogger/make-up artist/hairdresser by night, and on my days off.... and sometimes when there's a lul at work and I can quickly write down a draft for a blog or snapshot a picture from Pinterest of a look I want to re-create...

That aside! As a member of the visually impaired party, I thought I'd share with you my top tips on how I wear my make up, to complement my glasses. 

Do you ever find yourself looking in the mirror in that moment between finishing your make up and putting your glasses on, thinking 'do you know what? I actually look alright today. I've got that doe-eyed look down, and my eyeliner flicks are on point!' ...Yeah me neither.... Kidding! So you're sat, really pleased with your face, then the glasses go back on, and your eyes look tiny, dark circles like you haven't slept in weeks, you question whether or not you've actually remembered to put mascara on, and that smokey eye look you went for makes it look like you've been bashed in the face with the wrong end of your Naked 3 pallette. (This is obviously a joke, there is no bad end of the Naked 3 pallette, every last bit of it is glorious!).

Well my friends, call me your Fairy God Mother (or just Em is fine...), because I am about to tell you about how you can fix all of these problems.

Step 1) Make sure you have a strong base.

Any dark circles, fine lines, or wrinkles you have around your eyes are about to be maximised by your face furnature. Make sure you're using a primer specifically designed for eyes, and those dark circles need to be neutralised with a yellow/orange based concealer. The darker the circles, the oranger the shade.

NB: Do not, absolutely never, BY NO MEANS use a red lipstick to conceal your dark circles. It doesn't blend. It suffocated your skin as it's designed for lips, not the thinner, sensitive skin around your eyes. Your foundation will not cover it all day/night. The make-up you put on over the top will definitely come of, and you will look like an idiot. An idiot!

Step 2) Use a bold eye line.

Keep it close to the waterline of the eye, but gradually getting thicker towards the outer corner of the eye. And if you're feeling daring, flick that liner! 

Step 3) Big Bold Brows.

A well defined brow is absolutely essential when it comes to wearing glasses. The bolder the brow, the more attention that will be drawn away from your frames, that way, it'll be your brows that frame your face, and not your glasses.

Step 4) Stick to neutral colours for your eye shadow.

Remember when your granny used to have massive specs, and all you could think about was how disasterous her blue eyeshadow looked? Yeah. That. Don't be that person! Stick to the neutrals. If you want to go smokey, use browns/pinks instead of blacks and greys. These colours will make your eyes look even smaller, and a bit like you've let your 7 year old sister play with your face. 

Step 5) Lashes - Go big or go home!

Even though glasses magnify things for you, one think they are great at, is making it look like the 3 coats of mascara you've just put on, may as well have been water. Out of all of these steps, this one is the most important for me. You must invest in a volumising mascara! Having longer/bigger lashes opens up your eyes. Add that to the magnifying you're already getting from your gigs and you actually will have that doe eyed look down to a T!

You could even push the boat out and go for some falsies if it's a special occasion. Word of warning though, if you go too long with the false lashes, you will end up pushing your frames further down your nise with them!

So that's it, my top 5 tips on how to wear eye make up when you wear glasses. Embrace the frames!

These are just the few I follow, but if you have any more, feel free to add a comment, or tweet me on @em_scissorhands !

Beauty | KarlaBrushes - Review

It's blog day! Today i'm going to talk to you about something i've been loving using for nights out, or just generally when I've been wearing my lipstick, and it's my Karla Brushes!

These were featured in my June favourites blog, ( http://emscissorhands.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/2015-june-favourites.html )

 and I just think they're great!

Lip lining is one of my pet peeves when it comes to make up, you have to do it or your lipstick will run, but I can never find the right shade, or it'll go wonky, and don't even get me talking about trying to overline with a lip pencil, because if it's not as sharp as a needle, it doesn't go right!

Rant over... so with these magic brushes, you can completely eliminate the need for a lip liner! Woop woop!

Each of these brushes have a purpose, which is outlined in the little card that comes with the brush. 

The ones I use mainly are the KL2 and KL3, as when I fill in my lips I use my actual lipstick, but when I use them on clients, (don't worry I have a different set for them!) I always use the filling brush, and I just can't put into words how good they are! They don't absorb any of the product, so what goes onto your brush gets transferred onto your lips, which also makes them so easy to clean because there's barely anything to clean off!

And because you create a lip line with the actual lipstick colour, the colour is always a 100% match! It's the small things!

Have you used Karla Brushes? Let me know what you think in the comments!