Monday 30 April 2012

bits and bobs

Had lots of beauty bits and bobs over the past week to update you on!


So first of all, went to a beauty party on Friday which was lovely, especially as it involved Domino's and champagne! Had a back, neck and shoulder massage, as well as HD brows and semi-permanent eyelash extensions. I've had a brow wax and tint before, but loved the effect of HD brows. Using a combination of techniques including waxing, threading, tinting and plucking, a strong, defined brow making the most of your natural shape is created. Mine actually looked fuller than they did before, so pleased with them.
Also I'm so happy with my eyelash extensions, I had a half-set spread across the eye as I have quite short and relatively sparse eyelashes as I'm half Filipino. I asked for them not much longer than my natural lashes, and the effect is that of a good coat of mascara. They're comfortable to sleep and wash in, and last up to 6 weeks if taken good care of. I just have to think before rubbing my eyes in the morning! Oils can dissolve the glue that attaches the lashes to your natural ones so using a non-oil based mascara and cleanser ensures they last longer. They're attached to your lashes not your skin so they fall out when your natural lashes do. To be honest, I don't think there's a need to wear mascara with these. Really, really impressed and will be keeping these maintained with infills, I love the fact my make-up takes less time to do in the morning and no under-eye mascara smudges by the afternoon!


Treated myself to a new Mac lipstick when I went to Westfield last weekend, I originally want the Dior Rouge shade I was matched to at Vogue Festival but couldn't stretch to the £25 price tag so went for this alternative, Dark Side, £13.50. It's a black cherry colour with raspberry pink undertones as you can see in the below pictures (taken with and without flash). I really like the finish of it - using a lip brush, I'm able to build up the colour for a stain effect, and it's edgy without being too vampy.






Treated myself to this Zara top while at Westfield too, for £39.99. I look a bit funny in these pictures and they don't show it off to it's full potential but it's a lovely thick cream boucle knit(?) material with padded shoulder details and gold clips at the back with a transparent panel. I wore it with indigo skinny jeans, a leather jacket and cream suede brogues today but it'd be great with a black skirt and gold blazer for a smarter look. I'm in love with Zara at the moment, this is the third top I've bought from them in about the past month (as well as the fantasy studded blazer in my Vogue Festival post!). As I'll be graduating from university next year, I'm starting to piece together a working wardrobe instead of falling for trends that I won't be able to wear in a couple of year's time. Working wardrobes don't need to be boring - this top's smart but cheeky with the panel at the back.




Finally, after a long break, I'm trying to get back into nail art. I picked up a few new polishes on Oxford St yesterday to create this chic sparkly design:



The purple looks so different in different lights! It's more a red purple as seen in the first picture rather than the blue purple as seen in the pictures above and below.


Left to right: American Apparel Glitter in Supernova (great dupe for the much-hyped about Opi Rainbow Connection - has loads of glitter particles in it and dries to a smooth, not gritty, finish), Barry M in 342 Nude and 303 Bright Purple. I painted the nude base colour first, followed by the tips then the glitter.

Monday 23 April 2012

sneak peek

 Sneak peek of my fashion film (stills of which were posted a couple of posts ago):

Sunday 22 April 2012

Vogue Festival 2012

 Yesterday morning, Hannah and I attended Vogue's first festival at The Royal Geographic Society in London which was a two-day series of lectures, interviews, panel discussions and Q&As with some of the best creatives in the fashion industry, including designers, stylists and models such as Christopher Bailey, Domenico Dolce & Stefano Gabbana, Stella McCartney, Tom Ford, Lily Cole, Rachel Zoe... the list goes on.

I wore a tartan dress from Apricot, Studded Fantasy Fabric blazer from Zara, Alba boots and doctor's bag from Topshop.


Hannah wore dress and bag from Zara and jacket and boots from New Look.


The hall had three counters where you could be beautified: Josh Wood who offered wash-out dyes and temporary extensions, Armani Eyes provided sultry, smoky eyes and Red My Lips matched the perfect red to your skintone. Hannah was matched to Mac Russian Red (one of my favourites), a rich deep red that pops at the same time, and I was matched to Dior Rouge 862, a gorgeous berry stain.

  

We nibbled on salted popcorn, peanut butter brownies (which were A.M.A.Z.I.N.G) and fresh juices.

 

Alexandra Shulman introducing Diane Von Furstenberg:



Diane Von Furstenberg then gave a lecture as she flicked through an accompanying slide show, entitled 'Turning a Passion for Life into a Penchant for Business'. It was amazing to see and hear her talking about her life, loves and career, and she was so beautiful and funny. What inspired me the most was that she said she decided the woman she wanted to be when she was young; someone who could pay her own bills, was not reliant on a man and was independent, and she had overcome so many obstacles in her career to get where she is today. Truly incredible.


We also saw Vogue features director Jo Ellison interview David Bailey. I find his work so inspirational so was really excited to hear him talk but unfortunately found myself a bit disappointed. He was very funny but wasn't giving me the inside scoop I was expecting or answering Jo's questions directly or concisely. All the same, an experience and interesting to hear some of his stories.

Tim Walker and Kate Phelan talked us through some of their globetrotting fashion shoots which was amazing, I'm such a massive fan of Tim Walker's work and he was so down-to-earth and inspiring. I loved learning about how they put shoots together and the places they discovered that they wove into fashion shoots.

Overall, it was an amazing day which was so worth the ticket price. To be able to learn and be inspired by some of the best people in the industry is an incredible opportunity, and I can't wait until next year's event. The only downside is we didn't have time to do everything! We had to miss fashion question time with British designers including Henry Holland, Christopher Kane and Mary Katrantzou otherwise we would have missed Tim Walker, and we missed the opportunity to have a mock-up Vogue cover portrait. Hopefully next year they'll have a bigger venue as we had to spend a lot of time queuing so we didn't miss anything - luckily Tim Walker did his session twice as there was such a high demand so we were able to make it.

Sunday 15 April 2012

wild thing

These are some stills from my upcoming and first fashion film, exploring the theme of diversity through trends inspired by various animals. I had three key looks: wild, avian and aquatic, which run parallel to S/S12 trends and elements within collections presented by Cavalli (wild), Manish Arora and Louis Vuitton (avian) and Versace, Chanel and Alexander McQueen (aquatic).

Sheer leopard-print playsuit, Topshop £26

Tie-dye textured top, Zara £39.99
Feather headband, Accessorize £20
Feather earrings, H&M £3.99

Cape jacket, Zara £39.99
Sequin vest, Warehouse £38
Shorts, Zara £29.99
Sequin clutch, Zara £29.99

As above

Model - Annabelle Lowes
Hair & Make up - Megan Marks and Alice Townes
Styling & Photography - Lara Spiller
Assistant - Chris Wilson