WHAT I WORE: To the VIVA FOREVER! Cocktails launch

As you all already probably know by now, on Tuesday 5th February I was invited to the launch of the VIVA FOREVER! cocktails at Harvey Nichols. As my original post on the launch was way too long (you can view it here), I decided to put my outfit and make up in a separate post for you.

For my outfit, I kept it pretty simple. I wore my brown boots from New Look, my disco pants dupe off of eBay and my new blouse from Primark (which cost just £2 in the sale). I then paired this outfit with some rose gold earrings from New Look. Underneath the blouse, I wore a skin coloured vest as the blouse is pretty sheer.

I curled my hair with my new curlers, the BaByliss 2287BU Pro Curl 210 Styling Hair Tongs and although my hair looks pretty decent in these photos, by the end of the event, it had unfortunately completely dropped. You can probably also see that I've ombred my hair so expect a blog post on that soon too! I used my HD Brow Palette* on my eye brows, Laura Mercier's Silk Creme Foundation, Benefit's Boi-ing Concealer and 17's Miracle Matte Pressed Powder on my skin, Nars' Deepthroat and Liz Earle's Natural Glow Bronzer* on my cheeks and on my lips I used Revlon's Lip Butter in Berry Smoothie*. 

As always, apologies for the dodgy eye liner application on one eye and also, sorry for the bottom two photos - I have no idea why they're blurry in the collage as the original photos weren't. On my eyes, I used Urban Decay's YDK all over the lid and Urban Decay's Buck in the crease to add definition. I then used Urban Decay's Half Baked underneath my lower lash line and Urban Decay's Sin underneath my brow bone and on the inner corner of my eyes. The eye liner on my top lid is Collection 2000's Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner and on my water line it's Lancome Le Crayon Khol in Noir. For mascara, I used Lancome's Hypnose Drama.

xxx

*PR Sample

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VIVA FOREVER! cocktails launch at Harvey Nichols and meeting the Spice Girls

On Tuesday 5th of February I was invited by Handpicked Media to attend the launch of the VIVA FOREVER! Spice Girls cocktails at Harvey Nichols. Cocktails, Harvey Nichols, London... It all sounds exciting right? Well what was even more exciting was the fact that four of the five Spice Girls were actually there and I got to meet them!

Since the release of 'Wannabe' in 1996, I've been a huge fan of the Spice Girls. 'Spice' was my first album and I had it on cassette. I used to listen to it constantly on my purple boom box and sing along. I can remember watching their concert at Wembley on pay-per-view TV and getting all excited over the Spice World movie. I had everything Spice Girls at the age of 3, they were my first love and first dabble into pop music. I owe them an awful lot. So meeting them was massive. I'd waited 17 years for this moment.

Walking into the venue was incredible. I'd never been into Harvey Nichols before, never mind the Fifth Floor bar! Spice Girls songs were playing in the background and the chilled out, close knit vibe was relaxing and enjoyable. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed any "professional" cameras so the pictures that you're seeing are off of my phone or off of other bloggers point and shoot cameras.

Beforehand, I met up with Joelle, Kate, Laura, Jessica, Zoe and Liz which was amazing in itself as I'm a huge fan of all of their blogs/YouTube channels. The girls were lovely and made the launch even better than it already was! It was great to be around people who understand blogging, its impact, love the Spice Girls and of course, love beauty and fashion so there were lots of girly talk floating around.

The moment when the Spice Girls walked into the room was breathtaking. They're all so beautiful and warming and they radiate so much energy. It was hard to stay professional, hold back the tears and stop fangirling. After the press photos and mingling with the bloggers, we were invited to meet them in groups of three. It was such a mindblowing moment and one that I will never forget. They were all so lovely, kind, down to earth and grateful. They thanked us for sticking by them and told us that "the Spice Tribe lives on." We got to hug and touch them which was wonderful and a childhood dream. Unfortunately, I look a mess on the photo but I can get over that and the memory will stay with me forever. We also got to meet the writer of VIVA FOREVER! Jennifer Saunders and the cast who were all incredibly lovely.

Now that that's over, onto the reason we were there. Harvey Nichols Fifth Floor Bar have now launched five show-stopping cocktails which are all Champagne based. Dominic Jacobs, Fifth Floor Bar manager, created each drink by highlighting the girls' most famous traits. The cocktails are each tied up with individual bows which represents a part of the girls' personalities. They are priced at £14.50 each and are available until the end of April.
Baby Spice - Peach puree and fresh strawberries, Harvey Nichols Champagne.
Ginger Spice - Domaine de canton ginger liqueur, rose syrup topped with Champagne.
Scary Spice - Fresh chilli, lychee liqueur topped with Champagne.
Sporty Spice - Amaretto, curacao bleu and lemon juice topped with Champagne.
Posh Spice - Apricot brandy, sugar cube soaked in grapefruit bitters, topped with Champagne.

The cocktails will accompany the popular VIVA FOREVER! Afternoon Tea menu which you can view here. I was lucky enough to try out two of the five cocktails (any more and I'd have been on the floor begging the Spice Girls to dance to 'Stop' with me) and they are delicious. I tried the Sporty Spice and the Posh Spice. Both completely different in flavour but super nice. The tea menu is also beautiful but I had to stop myself from eating too many cakes!

The cocktails and afternoon tea are definitely one for any Spice Girls fans or people who just want to hang out with friends, catch up and have good fun. I'd highly recommend checking the menu out and possibly going yourself! Now, I just need to persuade someone to take me to see VIVA FOREVER! the musical...

To book to sample the VIVA FOREVER! Cocktails or Afternoon Tea (priced from £30 per person or £75 per person including a ticket to see the show, available until the end of February), please contact Harvey Nichols Fifth Floor on 020 7235 5250. To book VIVA FOREVER! please visit www.vivaforeverthemusical.com or call 0844 871 3055. Piccadilly Theatre, Denman Street, London, W1.

"Naivety and childhood left behind, deprived of the goodness of mankind, past encounters have made her strong, strong enough to carry on and on. Undress you with her eyes, uncover the truth from the lies. Strip you down, don't need to care, lights are low, exposed and bare. Naked, nothing but a smile upon her face. Naked, she wants to play seek and hide, no-one to hide behind. Naked, this child has fallen from grace. Naked, don't be afraid to stare, she is only naked."

xxx
Over the next two days, I will also be posting a post on my time in London and my outfit and make up at the event so look out for those posts!
Thank you so much to Handpicked Media for inviting me, the other bloggers for being lovely, Harvey Nichols, Jennifer Saunders and the VIVA FOREVER! cast for being wonderful and of course, the Spice Girls for making my childhood dreams a reality.
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Weightwatchers Diet

One of my new years resolutions was to lose weight. Over Christmas I had been looking through old pictures and I realised that since school I've put on a lot of weight and I just wanted to lose it and feel comfortable with my body again. I'm not someone who's 100% clued up on nutrition. In fact, apart from my friend Laura (who has a blog on nutrition which you can find here), I know nothing about what's good for me and what's bad for me. Apart from the obvious like 5 a day etc. So I decided I would do the Weightwatchers diet because quite frankly, it's easy. I literally just buy their products and everything is on there for me with the points system. I now figure out if things are good or bad for me by looking into their points system which couldn't be easier. Also, my grandma has been on Weightwatchers for a few months now and she looks incredible, she's lost a lot of weight and it's been a complete success for her. Also, she helps me out with it a lot and if I have any questions I can count on her to answer them for me.

I've been on the diet for one month now. The first week was a success; I managed to lose 7 pounds and to be honest, I don't know how I did it as it was my birthday week and the first week back at university which meant a lot of alcohol and drinking. But I did. I think the diet is easy to follow and it fills me up a lot. In fact, on some days I've had to eat when I haven't been hungry just to make my points up which is great! My original problem wasn't eating too much... it was simply eating the wrong things so Weightwatchers has helped with that a lot and now, my cupboards, freezer and fridge are all stocked up with Weightwatchers products. The products themselves are delicious. I think their meals are lovely and while the portion sizes are smaller than I'm used to, the flavour makes up for that and they're really delicious products. Another great thing about Weightwatchers is that you don't have to cut out your treats. I still eat cakes and crisps and yoghurt's.  I just eat the Weightwatchers ones and make sure that I don't go over my points allowance. One of their star products for me is their sausages. They taste even better than usual sausages and they're only one point each! I find myself having two sausage sandwiches for a midday snack and it only counts as 4 of my daily points.

I didn't know if this was something that I wanted to write about on my blog but since starting the diet, I've really enjoyed it and it's something that I'd like to keep track of. It's also, I believe, a great way to motivate others who are trying to lose weight and be healthier. So far I've managed to lose 16 pounds. Which is a huge achievement for me and although I can't notice a difference in my body, I feel better, more energetic, less tired and my skin is improving. 

Are you currently on a diet? If so, what diet plan are you following?

xxx
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SAVER SATURDAY: My Stock Stalker

In case you missed my blog post last Saturday, I have started a new blog series which is published every single Saturday and it aims to help you save money while still pampering yourself! You can see my first post here.

This week, I have a website for you! The site allows people to register (for free of course) and from this registration you can select products from over 100 major online retailers (such as ASOS, Benefit, Topshop, New Look and Boots) and when your selected product has dropped in price, you will receive an email which lets informs you about the price drop! It also allows users to specify a price at which they would like to be emailed. For example,
"User selects a dress from ASOS that is currently £80. They add this item to their MyStockStalker account and request to be emailed when the price drops to £60 or less. Some weeks later the price drops from £80 to £50 and the user receives an email from MyStockStalker regarding this price drop."



The great thing about this website is that you'll be able to purchase the item for cheaper before it sells out. The amount of times I've had my eye on an item only to check the site a couple of days later and because of the price drop, it has sold out is unreal. And it's actually pretty devastating. This website is also great because it covers a big range of different websites. From Argos to Accessorize, B&Q to Benefit, there really is something for everyone. You can see the full list of stores/websites here.
As you can see from the screenshot above, I've already started "stalking" items. And I'm incredibly excited to start receiving emails and adding even more items to my stalking list. To start saving money with this great website, click here and register for free today!
xxx
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ROUTINE: Updated Skin Care Routine

Since my last skin care routine post, my skin care routine has been simplified. I've stopped using products aimed at oily and blemished prone skin and moved onto products that are more cream based and anti-ageing. I'm now aiming to fade my scars. When I get the odd spot once a month or so, it doesn't bother me. But my scarring does. I should probably also note that I have combination skin - my chin and cheeks can get really dry but my forehead and nose are prone to oilyness. Also, this is just my basic skin care routine. This doesn't include any exfoliators/face masks but I will be doing a post on those later on in the month.

I change between 4 cleansers depending on what I need them for. At night time I use the No7 Beautiful Skin Melting Gel Cleanser for Normal / Dry Skin - £9.00 as it's just perfect. I've only been using it for a week but I'm already in love. It starts off as a gel cleanser and then once massaged into the skin, it changes to an oil cleanser which dissolves make up perfectly. If you keep massaging it into the skin it then changes into a milk cleanser to nourish the skin and leave it feeling perfectly smooth and soft. This also means that there's no nasty oily residue left over afterwards. Secondly, although I don't use it as often as I used to, I couldn't get rid of the Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser* - £12.75 altogether so it's still in my skin care routine. I use it once a week when I give my skin a facial as it's such a luxurious skin care product that exfoliates, hydrates and cleanses my skin in a way that a lot of other cleansers can't. If I don't have a lot of make up on - say I've just come back from a lecture and I want to take my make up off - then I'll use the Soap & Glory Peaches And Clean Deep Cleansing Milk - £7.00. I use this as a hot cloth cleanser almost. I massage it into my skin and then remove it with a flannel and it leaves my skin make up free and feeling beautiful. The smell of this is also gorgeous and as the name suggests, it's a lovely fruity fragrance. And finally, I use the No7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Water for Normal / Oily Skin - £9.00 when I want a quick boost. For example, in the morning I use this to quickly sweep away any dirt and grime from the skin after my sleep. I don't use this as a cleanser for my make up as it doesn't remove it that well but it's great for refreshing the skin.

My spot treatment of choice is the Tretinoin Cream, USP 0.025%* - price varies which I was given when I attended Freedomhealth Clinic on Harley Street last year. It's a great spot treatment as it gets to work instantly and a spot doesn't tend to last longer than a day on my skin. It also isn't drying and it's unnoticeable on the skin. As I mentioned last week, I've changed my skin care routine so that it's anti-ageing and my moisturisers and serum of choice is the No7 Protect & Perfect Night Cream - £23.00, No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Serum - £23.00 and the No7 Protect & Perfect Day Cream - £22.00. Since using these products I've noticed a reduction in my scarring and I believe that these have been working on my hyper-pigmentation and really helping to soothe them and remove them. The skin on the right hand side of my face in particular has really been reduced and I don't even have to wear concealer over those scars any more which is fantastic. If you've ever seen a picture of my bare skin then you know how bad my scars actually are. So for me to not have to wear concealer on one side of my face (unless I have a breakout) is a big deal. I haven't been using anything else other than these three moisturisers that could possibly have had that affect on my skin. So if you're looking for something to reduce scarring and improve the appearance of your skin then I'd highly, highly recommend these. And finally, last but not least, I use the Liz Earle Daily Eye Repair* - £14.25 every day and night underneath my eyes to give them a boost. I find that this reduces the appearance of eye bags and just makes my eyes look more healthy and awake.

What items are in your skin care routine? Do we have any of the same?

xxx

*PR Sample