Jessica GELeration at the Rainbow Rooms

Before I jetted off to Morocco, I was in desperate need of a good manicure and pedicure, specifically gel.  I knew I could rely on gel nails for my holiday as the finish is so groomed and the results last for up to 2 weeks.

I rather jammily ended up being sent to the Rainbow Rooms for their Jessica GELeration mani/pedi.  I was looked after by Alison who kept me amused for the 2 hours as well as convincing me to have a wax at the end of the treatments but that's another story!!

Confident Coral

Jessica GELeration is applied exactly like Shellac as all gel nails are, it's just the branding and colour range that differs.  I went with 'Confident Coral' on my hands and a dark wine shade on my toes, I'm afraid I can't remember the name.

I apologise profusely for this picture!!

Confident Coral is an utterly gorgeous, vibrant shade and was just perfect for a week in the sun.  As much as I can't really tell any real difference between GELeration and Shellac, I did feel the quality of GELeration was slightly better and it seems to have lasted slightly longer but this could be down to a number of factors including not having to do any washing up or cleaning for a week while on vacation!

Prices start at £42 for Jessica GELeration at the Rainbow Rooms.  Expensive but very pretty.

Do you have a preference in Gel nails?

x

Marrakech Outfit of the Night

Here is an outfit of the night I took while on holiday.  I managed to recycle this outfit and wore it twice, once in Marrakech then in Essaouira (something usually unheard of for me).

I wanted to make sure my shoulders were covered up and that I didn't expose too much skin.  I rarely take heels on holiday but I threw a pair of wedges in last minute and I'm glad I did as this jumpsuit had super long legs.

Despite having invested in a super new camera, these photos still aren't very good - I can only blame my photographer ;)

Jumpsuit: Primark (last minute holiday buy but it is a LOVE purchase)

Belt: attached to jumpsuit

Wedges (Unseen): Topshop

Clutch: Warehouse

Ring: Primark (yup another cheapo) 

Watch: Swatch

I love the wine shade of the jumpsuit, it looks so much richer than the actual price tag which is always a bonus when it comes to stores like Primark.  I also really like the 70's feel to this outfit which went with a new style of wearing my hair.

I have been wearing my hair in a middle parting a lot recently since my fringe is growing out.  It's a painful process and I am not convince a middle parting suits me but it helped to wear it like this on holiday as I managed to forget all my kirby grips and couldn't find any in Morocco to buy!

Tonight I finally managed to complete the upload of over 1000 photos I snapped in Marrakech and Essaouira so will try and share a few with you in some separate posts.

x

Social Media Week - Glasgow

This week Social Media Week hits Glasgow with lots of fantastic events and seminars offering advice, assistance and insight into the world of social media whether from a business, voluntary or personal perspective.

You can find out more about the events taking place in Glasgow here.

I would especially love to go to the Fashion Blogging 101 event tomorrow evening but alas it is fully booked - being away on holiday during registration certainly has it's downside.

However, what will be keeping me awake tonight is the fact I am actually speaking at one of the events taking place tomorrow morning.

'Blog Off!'  takes place tomorrow morning at Mansion House, Glasgow and is a session about starting your own blog or perhaps improving your existing blog.  It will take you through the essentials you need to know to start up, how to drive traffic, create your own custom header or how to deal with brands and PR's.

It should be a pretty interesting topic to discuss with likeminded people and I just hope my 15 minute stint on the floor goes to plan.  I am not sure how much I can say about my blog for 15 minutes but I guess I wouldn't be saying if it wasn't for all you little gems who still come back to read it time and time again and for that I am truly grateful!

x

I rocked the Kasbah!

Well, Hello There! 

Long time no see.  I just arrived home from Morocco last night and already I am back to my busy as ever schedule.  Before I left for my holiday, life took it's busiest turn yet and as much as it's exciting, it does get exhausting, so my break was very much needed.  

My trip took in Marrakech and Essaouira in Morocco (thanks to @clairenelson for the Essaouira recommendation!).  Both locations were amazing but I think my heart lies in the magic and madness of Marrakech.  I have lots to fill you in on it and maybe some tips for anyone thinking of visiting but in the meantime here is a sneak peak of the my album wonderful sights of Morocco! :) 

Enjoy

x

The iPhone Diaries ...

It has been a struggle to dedicate time to blogging this week, I have been too busy setting up my business website, facebook, twitter, arranging and buying more goodies for  my kit and taking on board all the advice from Sam and Nic after completing the Pixiwoo intensive training.

I am dying to tell you all about it and about my transition to working as a make up artist as it's been on the cards for a long time and something I have actively pursued over the last 10 years but simply hadn't had any formal training or the guts to actually pursue it as a career.

Anyway instead of yabbering on, here's a peek at what I have been getting up to recently through the eyes of my i-phone ...

A bit of chunky bling from Primarni ... I quite liked that it was tacky with a mix of feminine and masculine shapes and material.  Sometimes you have to place tongue firmly in cheek when it comes to accessories.

Airport shopping, on my way home from Norwich I had a bit of a boring wait at Stansted Airport (that was until Danny Dyer ended up on my flight! Schwing!) .  I amused myself at MAC, Mulberry and my favourite but overpriced All Saints.  I was lucky, it was sale time, I picked up a maxi kaftan for my upcoming trip to Morocco :) 

I tried these wedges on in All Saints.  Loved them but didn't purchase.  Regret.

Yoo Moo! Something else Stansted had me hooked on.  I had never had this brand of frozen yoghurt where you fill your cup add some toppings, weigh then pay ... bit like pic'n'mix.  It was delicious and I've been craving it ever since I got home.  Is Yoo Moo available in Glasgow?  If you know, inform me! 

A somewhat shameful purchase.  A 'fake' bag!!!  I feel dirty to even admit it.  But you know, the Celine Boston Tote is somewhere in the region of £2k and it would take me until 2020 to a) save up for it b) justify that gut wrenching cost on a bag.  So, with the help of eBay I picked myself up a real leather version for £50.  Feel free to judge.

Aaah Chanel D'Illusion Ombres.  Everyone is raving about them, me included.  The latest souffle like eye cream/shadow/mousse from Chanel come in an array of metallic shades and are part of their permanent line.  I used some on the Pixiwoo course last week and loved them so picked up Epatant this week.  I did a bit of midnight make up experimenting and I can safely say it is beautiful worn alone (bottom pic) but also does a wicked job of creating a dark, dramatic smokey eye when layered and blended with a darker shade (top pic).  In this case I used MAC blackground.  Think I may go for this smokey look tonight.

In other news, this time next week, I will be flying to Morocco so I need to get myself organised and packed.  I am planning on taking minimal make up but not sure I can kid myself on by trying to downsize on the wardrobe.   I also got my first DSLR this week - the Canon EOS 600D.  I am still learning how to use it but hopefully you will see much better quality images here from now on.

Hope you are all having a fun weekend!!

x

Zen Lifestyle

A couple of weeks ago I was invited along to gorgeous Zen Lifestyle at Teviot Place in the Edinburgh.  Zen Lifestyle have a few salons around the city and have a wonderful reputation and numerous awards under their belt.

I went along to find out why ...

I was booked in for hot stone massage and shellac manicure, something I had been dying to try out.  My therapist for the day was the gorgeous Katie (who has the most perfect skin ever!).

I have visited a lot of spa's recently and have tried various treatments but the hot stone massage is the one I keep coming back to.  Let me tell you, the hot stone massage I received at Zen is one of the best I have experienced - it was absolute bliss!

This may all be thanks to Katie who used just the right amount of pressure and worked gently on my problem areas.  What impressed me most was the after advice given.  Usually I have my hour massage, I may get advised of some problem areas from the therapist but there is never really a solution.  However, Katie made sure to let me know of certain exercises I could do to help ease pain and discomfort in my back as well as some yoga techniques to ease tight/stress areas.  And the techniques she advised, really do help!

After my massage, I went upstairs to have my nails shellac'd and have a good gossip with Katie.  A joy to chat too and she also did a fantastic job on my nails.  Queue  blurry photo ...

I also had to quiz Katie about her flawless skin.  It seems she is one of the lucky ones who nature has been ever so kind to but she does owe some of it to the advice and products of Dr Murad, which is stocked at Zen Lifestyle.

Thanks to Zen Lifestyle and Katie for such a lovely, self indulgent day :)

x

This Week ...

My niece, Pearl, started school ...

Some Colour Extreme coloured hair sprays arrived in the post ... wow!  Can't wait to get experimenting with these.

I visited downtown Philadelphia.  Glasgow's George Square has been completely madeover and styled as per the streets of Philadelphia ;) all for the sake of some guys new movie World War Z.  Think the guys name is Brad Pitt ... Whatevs ... !!

My Lauren's Way tan arrived and I tried it for the first time on Friday night.  It's now Sunday and as of this morning it was barely noticeable on my skin.  I had such high hopes for this tan since hearing so many rave reviews.  I am going to give it one more try (tonight) before I make my final judgement ... hopefully this application fares better.

This morning I made the lengthy trip to Norwich.  It consists of a flight and 2 trains which doesn't sound like much but from getting up to getting to my hotel room it was a total of 9 hours ... exhausted.com!  I am here to attend the Pixiwoo 5 day intensive make up course.  It's something I haven't mentioned much of on my blog as I have debated for the last couple of years whether I should go down this route but I finally worked up the courage to grab the bull by the horns and now I am here.  Norwich is a gorgeous little place so I am looking forward to exploring a bit more but for now, I am stuck in my hotel room, chilling out and watching a very snowy TV with only 2 channels. Ace.

I am pretty sure I am in for a hectic week of learning and meeting new friends but if I get a chance I will pop on and keep you posted on how I am getting on.  Can't wait! 

x