Turning Rebellious for Winter

I am very much a girly girl and love a pretty pastel or bright neon colour in a nail polish (or anything else for that matter) ... I probably have every shade of pink there is!

I have also never been one of those girls who needs to match all their jewellery, shoes and nails to their outfits when they go out. I enjoy being a little more experimental and am quite partial to a clashing colour or a contrasting piece.

So as Autumn/Winter approaches I always tend to fight against the natural progression into darker tones, holding onto summer memories for as long as possible I think.

However, this week whilst removing my current polish with my Nail Inc. Express Nail Polish Remover (which is awesome by the way- and note the bottle is pink too- lush!) I decided to be adventurous.

Welcome Rebel by Leighton Denny. A beautifully rich and dramatic deep purple, with lovely shine and a slight shimmer on closer inspection. I shall definitely be wearing this with my party outfits for the christmas period and I think it would look just as great in the day paired with some cosy neutral toned winter jumpers as a contrast.

Who knows I may even go crazy and actually match a look for once and wear my Rebel lipstick by MAC too....not exactly the same shades I know but boy I love that lipstick and it's matching names at least :)

Un-planned matching with my Lola Rose scarf!

Philip Kingsley - Magic for Blondes

When I was born I had brown, straight hair. When I turned two years old I had blonde curls.

During 1989-1991 I actually forecast the current trend of ombre hair don't you know! Quite the fashionista bambina! With my blonde roots which grew through I was a trend setter...And by the way I am aware that it is normally darker roots but it totally still counts :)

Ever since I turned blonde, year by year I sadly faded like many of us Brits, into a mousey, dirtier colour. Why I couldn't have been blessed with beautifully bright Scandinavian blonde genes I don't know. Not that I'm jealous or anything, honest *sobs *

So since I turned sixteen I have been a highlight addict.

I have dabbled between various shades of blonde over time – the more golden/natural ones were most likely to have been forced upon me to help strengthen my poor bleached hair.

But I can't deny my true love for a white blonde, or as close to as I can get with my length hair. The icy tones really do it for me!

However, as you can imagine this shade doesn't stay as bright or clean for the entire 3 months that I try to leave it until I hit the salon again (emphasise on try- I almost never last that long).

It needs looking after, not only to hold the colour but also to keep it in the best condition possible, especially as I want to keep my hair long.

To do this I religiously use Philip Kingsley's Pure Silver shampoo and conditioner.

It's a well known fact that a purple product can help to keep those pesky brassy tones at bay but this is so far my favourite one.

The violet hues and optical brighteners in the formula really work to leave my hair looking pretty darn shiny-something which is hard to achieve on us bleach lovers!

I find it to be a great moisturising combination too, a huge plus for me as my porous locks are always extremely thirsty.

Lastly they both have a lovely fresh, lavender smell which isn't too overpowering.

My mum also swears by the Pure Silver range. We have both tried and tested many others but always come back and it definitely works for me. I highly recommend!

My Perfect Autumn Blush

I am a massive product junkie, a salesman's dream if you like. When I walk into a make-up shop I lose all self control to the point where I temporarily forget that I have rent to pay every month and splurge a large amount of my pay cheque on every beautiful new package I see. The worrying thing is I don't even regret it...even though I know I should!

I have in fact recently started to buy my staple products online so that the urge to grab, play and subsequently purchase isn't there (I do miss it though!)

At my mum's house this weekend however, I was doing my usual morning routine and for once stood back to really appreciate her bathroom.

A room lifted from the set of one of Harry Potter's wizardry classes laid before me, lotions and potions of every colour and size imaginable. My obsession explained...like mother like daughter!

Just a selection of my mum's bathroom products

And it was actually my mum who bought and introduced me to one of my current favourites, Laura Geller Baked Flambe Blush in Pink Velvet Pop.

This is a blush which is long lasting and due to the two colours swirled together, when applied it gives a stunning subtle highlight as well as the pretty pink flush. It smooths on the skin beautifully leaving it feeling super soft and I have even had a few compliments when wearing this. 

The great thing about a product which has been baked is that it generally contains more pigment so the colour as you see it is very true to life and blends well. It is also less likely to break or crumble in the case....bonus!

I think it's perfect for these autumn days when your skin can become a little drier, just to give you a slight summer glow and brighten your look (albeit pretend..don't worry I won't tell!)

I like to apply mine with my Hourglass brush 

A little about me

So now that I have welcomed you to my blog, I thought it best to introduce myself...

My name is Jessica and I am currently 24 years old.

I live in London, which I think is a pretty cool place to live and I am a hair and make-up artist.

If my job doesn't already give it away I adore all things beauty and fashion!

I live with one friend who I have known since I was 11 but do also quite frequently jump on a train for the 50 minute journey back to my mum's house to see her and my 3 little dogs.

They are beyond beautiful....and don't worry there will definitely be a post about them. I have enough photographs of them to fill the National Portrait Gallery!

My hope for this blog is to document my life and start recording special moments and memories and to force myself to take more pictures which I really don't do enough.

Along side this however, I would like to use this platform to share my passion for beauty and the industry.

Therefore this is my beauty, fashion and lifestyle blog.

Jessica x

P.S I just looked at the date on my phone and tomorrow it is my half birthday ( it totally does exist I won't hear otherwise!) so I am now almost 24 and a half :)

P.P.S I am getting so old...how fast has this year gone!

Live for Today

Hello online world...

For a long time now I have been wanting to start a blog but 'life' has always got in the way.

I am however finally fed up of listening to my own excuse of 'I'll start it tomorrow!'. 

If this had been the case then today has been a hell of a long one....but here I am.

Besides I do have a tattoo that reads 'Live for Today' in Italian....so I'm officially taking my own advice :) 

Welcome to my blog

Jessica x