High Street Stylist

1. Benefit Brow
I actually brought a magazine recently just because this was the free gift and I really wanted to try it out. I am so pleased that I did as I love it. I have never used a type of gel or fixing product for my eyebrows and now I don't think I could go back! This product allows you to brush your brows into your preferred shape and locks them into position and lasts all day or all night. Get yours here

2. Naked Smokey Palette
I usually use my naked 3 palette over any other palette, but recently I have been reaching for my smokey palette more. I decided it was time for a change and have been going for more of a brown and gold eye rather than pinks and coppers. I particularly love shades and . I have been using in my crease and on the center of the eyelid. Along with primer potion the pigmentation and how long it manages to stay on means that Urban Decay palettes are always a favourite. Get yours here

3. Elvive hair oil
As I have been away my hair has really suffered some serious damage from going in and out of the sea, exposure to the sun and chlorine. To prevent my hair getting tangled a keep my hair in a plait at night, but when I take it out and brush it it becomes a giant frizz ball! This Elvive hair oil is a life saver as I only need a tiny bit on my hands and gently run it through my hair and it softens it down right away. It also adds shine so creates the appearance of healthier hair. Get yours here

4. Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Face Sun Lotion
As it's summer it is extremely important that we all use suncream. I usually start with a very high factor of 50 as I easily burn and progressively bring it down. This suncream is specifically for the face and has moisturiser also in the product which helps keep your skin hydrated. I also really love the smell of this which is a bonus. Get yours here

5. Sleek Contour Palette
It is actually only one specific colour from this palette that is my favourite as none of the others unfortunately work for me. (I shall do a separate full review). The contour palette is a cream substance and I have recently found that powder bronzers just are not working for me and this is a great alternative. As its cream it blends in with the foundation really well rather than just clinging onto moisture and going patchy. Mine is in the shade light. Get yours here

6. Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion
For a little while I decided to try a different skin routine that was a little bit cheaper, but I decided it wasn't working as good for me as my old one did. I therefore decided to go back to my Clinique products. I repurchased my moisturiser and already my skin feels so much better and I can't rave enough about how much it hydrates your skin. Get yours here

7. MAC Twig
As I went on holiday I off course had a little look around duty free and decided to get myself a MAC lipstick. My friend has a collection of MAC lipsticks and one of my favourites of hers was Twig so I knew I had to get my own. I cant believe the staying power of this lipstick and the pigmentation is gorgeous! Get yours here

Stay tuned for more posts!
Rachel.

So my boyfriend and I were lucky enough to have two holidays this summer. This second holiday was again in Spain, however this one was to Nerja. This holiday was actually arranged first over a year ago and we have been looking forward to it for ages! The travelling there was not the nicest of journeys due to the 7 hour wait in the Malaga airport before our taxi could pick us up and take us to Nerja. As we got there so early our villa was not available until around 4 so we spent the day at the beach whilst we waited. The villa was so nice as it had a wonderful view and it had its very own pool and a hot tub. although the getting there dragged a bit it was worth it once we got there! Do not think we will be getting cheap flights with awkward times again though haha! We went with Joe's family so there was a nice group of us and we spent the week relaxing by the pool and sunbathing by the sea on the beach whilst drinking cocktails.

Nerja had a lovely variety of shops of both expensive looking boutiques, typical cute touristy shops and liquor stores. The shops were also surrounded with bars, restaurants and ice cream stores. The only downside to Nerja is the hills! And not just little ones big steep ones. Walking down to the beach was easy, but the coming back at the end of the day when we are all worn out from the beach was not fun. All of us would jump into the pool when we got back to cool down, it was really nice and refreshing. However if we had a villa lower down we would miss out on the view. Our villa was surrounded by other wonderful looking apartments and a few mountains in the distance. It was so hot where we are even with a breeze, I can't image how hot it is at the top of those hills.

We did not do very much sightseeing as it was very much a chill out relaxing holiday. We all really enjoyed it as we did swimming, sunbathing, shopping, eating and drinking what more do you need for a perfect holiday!

Whilst we were there I decided to photograph a few of my favourite outfits and do a little holiday style diary for you. Which I will be individual posts to follow.

I had so much hope for this product. I have always had the issue of grease roots, but really dry and damaged ends. I always only shampoo my roots and only condition the ends, as if I were to condition my roots my hair would be greasy again before I even dried it! When I saw that Loreal Paris Elvive had released Extraordinary Clay rebalancing shampoo for oily roots and dry ends, I thought my prayers had be answered.

Unfortunately I could not be more disappointed about these products. I purchased the shampoo and conditioner and also the clay masque. Now this may not be the same for everyone, it just may not work with my hair. Starting with the masque firstly the smell is not too pleasing so I was a bit worried my hair would be left smelling like that. The directions say to apply to roots directly and massage in section by section until you've covered the whole scalp. I certainly would not be able to cover my whole scalp else it would have run out after only just two washes and considering I spent around £6 on this I want more use out of it. It tells you to leave on for 5 minutes and then rinse whilst still massaging the head until the water runs clear. The issue I have here is the water may still run clear even though you still have masque in your hair, which I didn't realise. I continued to shampoo and condition, got out of the shower dried myself and went into my bedroom to discover that a lot of my scalp was still bright blue. I couldn't believe it I had thoroughly rinsed it out, yet so much was still stuck to me so I had to go wash it out all over again. I tried the masque only twice as trying to get it off of your scalp and wash it out was too much effort for my liking, even when using a mirror I would miss bits.

I have tried the shampoo and conditioner with both the pre masque and without and honestly it did not make any difference. I really cant stand this shampoo as it literally does the opposite to what it is intended to do. After washing my hair with this shampoo my hair has sometimes felt more greasy than before I even washed it! Another time it did wash it to be fair but it was only the end of the day before it was greasy again. Now I haven't just used this once and judged it like that I have used the whole bottle up as I kept thinking I shall give it one more chance. The conditioner did not really do anything either, just seems like your standard Elvive conditioner.

I feel like my money was completely wasted on these products and I certainly will not be repurchasing. I am mainly disappointed because I absolutely love the Extraordinary Volume shampoo and conditioner, therefore has high hopes for this.

So we are already near the end of summer, where has the time gone? This year is flying by so quickly. I recently went to Spain with my family and boyfriend after we spontaneously booked a last minute all inclusive holiday. I am so pleased we made this decision as it was so lovely. We went Isla Canela, Huleva, which is a place extremely close to the border of Portugal. We actually had to fly to and from Portugal and get coaches to our hotel in Spain as their airport was closer than a spanish one.

We stayed at Hotel Barcelo and I highly recommend it. This hotel has recently been refurbished and I don't think there's a bad word I could say about it. The rooms are spacious and have a gorgeous open plan design and we had a balcony with a view of the sea and the hotel pool.

As we were all inclusive our meals and drinks were included. The restaurant was a buffet all you can eat style that had a huge amount of choice and was wonderfully presented. I was extremely happy with the bars as there were only certain alcohols that were free for all inclusive and usually this is just house brands, but even Smirnoff and Johnny Walker whiskey were in the free brand list!

It was so nice to have a week away in the sun chilling with my family and boyfriend it is not often we are all together at the same time. The grounds of the hotel were beautiful as there were fountains leading up the pool. We were also located right next to the beach and a variety of beach bars.

Isla Canela is not as popular as places like Majorca, therefore it was not over crowded and was not full of tourists. We did go in mid July so there also weren't many children off of school yet, which contributed to the fact it wasn't as busy as summer holidays can be. We would all definitely re-visit this hotel and already looking into booking it for next year!








 Hope you guys are doing something nice this summer!


Rachel