SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIEND... LUIGI

 

Yes, this week we have welcomed Luigi into the Starbuck family with wide, loving arms.

Nelly the Volkswagon Beetle was about ready to pop her cloggs, so this surprise couldn't have come at a better time. I'd been, admittedly quite loudly so that someone would take note, complaining about how much Nelly was costing me (a hell of a lot), and had decided that in the new year, I would begin to save up for a smaller car. My mum had then told me that she had planned on getting me a newer car for my 21st birthday in Feb, so we started looking for smaller cars that I'd like. That's when I decided that I'd love a white Fiat 500. I thought, "oh, they will get me one in Feb, can't wait!" and then I put it out of my mind.

The next morning, I'd gone to work with a friend due to her starting at the same time as me, and the Beetle was playing up a little. Minding my own business at work, my sister had lied, saying that mum & dad were doing housework etc. 

We were on the way home from work and I got a feeling that something was a little strange when every single one of my family members text me, asking when I was home.. What were they waiting for? 

Secretly, I was hoping that I'd have something yummy waiting for me.. Dominos? Curry?

I never expected little Lou to be sat there, donning a big pink bow on the bonnett.

How lucky am I?! 

Do you love it?

xox

GET THE LOOK: AUTUMN FASHION

Don't you just love Autumn?!

Dark nights are coming, the anticipation of Christmas, early nights drinking hot chocolate with a blanket and the fire on. Goose Fair, Halloween and Bonfire night! 

This is my favourite time of year, yet I always regret not enjoying it, so this year, I want to take my wellies and my warm winter coat and go for cute walks in the crunchy leaves, sipping a Pumpkin Spiced Latte. Oh, how I love Autumn!

I think when it comes to this time of year, you have to disregard all of your little summer dresses, your sandals and your light jackets and bring out your knitted jumpers, thick socks and boots. Not to mention your big winter coat, scarf and gloves as the next couple of months roll in.

This last week, I've adopted quite an autumnal look myself, laying back on mascara, using deeper lip colours and more bronzer, and throwing my hair up in a lazy ponytail because contending with the wind and the rain is not something I've felt up to. I must say, it's very low-key and takes minutes to get ready- perfect for giving you an extra 10 minutes in bed.

*excuse my dirty mirror*

I've been wearing these jumpers quite a bit this month.. I picked them up from Tesco in a sale about two years back for £4 each, reduced from £45 each! I wasn't sure if I would use them, but they have become staples in my winter wardrobe this year. Also, for those of you that know me, I never wear jeans, but I wanted to try and integrate them into my looks this month, and I've worn them all week, actually! I partially think this is also because I have a new job (for Boots' contact center) where there is no uniform, so I am enjoying my last few days of being casual before I have to dress ultra-smart every day.

I'm also loving this leather jacket that I got for £32 from Tesco. It gives outfits an edge, makes me look a little tougher than I dress- seeing as I always look so girly. It's also perfect for being an extra layer in this ever-changing weather.

I've been wearing my snood constantly this week too- I believe it was from Primark last winter, but it's soooo cosy! I'd love a few more in different colours. 

This past month, I've had many a compliments about my hair too- with everyone saying that it's the perfect colour for this season.. I used Superdrugs' Permanent Colour Vibrance in Plum Passion and here are the results. I love it! 

It's a very rich plum, and hasn't faded at all since I dyed it, which is amazing for the price you pay! Anyone would think that I had gotten it professionally done! *also, I'm loving this fur headpiece. I had to chuck the one that I had last year as I literally wore it to death, but I found this little gem in Primark for £4!*

How are you finding the Autumn weather? 

xxxx

REVIEW: HE-SHI DARK FOAMING MOUSSE

I've been after this tan for so long that I actually forgot that I wanted it.. It was one of those where I'd have the money to get it, and then forget, yet as soon as I was a little tight on money, I would lust over it and have to tell myself that it wasn't a necessity. :( 

He-Shi is a unisex brand of fake tan created in Ireland, promising a non-streaking, beautiful bronze colour that moisturises as it tans you. 

Sounds perfect, right?

He-Shi retails at different prices dependent on where you buy it, but it never strays far from being around the £25 mark. For me, being more of a budget beauty buyer rather than splurging out on upper-end products, this seems a little steep for a home tanner.. My all-time favourite tanner is Xen Tan dark lotion, which is also around the same price as this- but I only tend to use it on special occasions or when my budget tan aren't doing anything for me and I need a deeper, more natural tan. 

As you can see, the packaging is very plain. I like plain packaging-- I think a product that has over the top packaging has an ulterior motive: To make people believe that their product IS as good as their packaging, when actually it's a standard product in a very well packaged container. I like the colours used here, with the dark brown base imitating the base colour that you should achieve after you've applied this. 

This is one pump of He-shi tan- you get a fair amount out of one pump.. I only use four for each arm. The consistency is quite runny, so you do have to work quite quickly.. Sometimes it's easier to put it straight on to your mitt and apply it that way.. I suppose it's up to you! It rubs in well, leaving a little colour behind so that you can see where you've applied it. This makes it very easy, and the process goes through very quickly. I find that with every other fake tan, I have to spend a lot of time with moisturiser working in the tan, especially on my inner arm and wrists but with this, I used to moisturiser and came out with no streaks! Result! 

Okay, so the bit we all want to know.. What is the colour like? 

WELL, in all honesty, from the reviews, I expected to wake up and look like I've just spent a month in the Bahamas.. I can assure you that I didn't exactly look like that.. If I'm quite honest, I felt a little orange! Yes, it's a nice colour in the respect of it being even and flawless.. But colour-wise, I am not impressed. Thinking that I'd done it wrong, I put another coat over the top and left it for a few hours. I unchanged from my long-sleeved 'fake tan outfit' to find a deeper colour *still with an orange tinge* but it was more of the colour that I had expected.

I wore a watch that day, and after taking it off that night, discovered that it had taken all of my tan off of my wrists.. nightmare! So I then had patchy wrists that looked awful, but after a quick scrub in the shower and another application of the tan, it was fine. Another thing that I wasn't happy about was how sticky the product is.. It take hours of it to stop being tacky which my boyfriend hates, especially as I generally apply before bedtime. Also, I lay on my boyfriend's chest as I sleep, and he has woken up with fake tan patches on his chest three times now.. I've never known another tan to do this.

How do I rate this product? 

I do like the ease of this, and the lack of streaks and patches that it supplies, but for the price and how hyped up it is, I would expect more. 

6/10

Would I buy this again? 

MAYBE.. It might be one of those products where the more that you use it, the more you learn to like it and the best ways to use it.. Right at this second, I'm in no rush to buy another one. 

I don't think this has beat my trusty Xen Tan just yet, so the search continues for the perfect fake tan..

What fake tans can you recommend?

xxxx

HOW TO DO: INTERVIEWS

 

I thought I'd do a little bit of a different post with you today, my lovelies. 

As this week comes in, I've got a couple of job interviews to attend, so I figured that it would be quite a nice post to incorporate and a way to show you how I intend on styling myself and leave you with a few tips on looks that you could go for. 

For those of you that don't really know me personally, I work for the University of Nottingham at a Starbucks franchise (haha yes, that is my last name and no, I am not an undercover boss). I absolutely love the job and I couldn't wish for better colleagues, but I do think that it's time for a bigger challenge, preferably somewhere that is going to lead me out of catering and hospitality and have ways of progressing.. I've been applying for no end of jobs, and I finally had a couple of call-backs last week, and I have arranged two interviews and a trial day for the coming week, the trial day being tomorrow, eek! 

I'm really lucky as I have such a way with words, and my upbeat personality usually gives me the upper hand, but I know a lot of you will struggle with interviews, so I just thought that I'd give you a couple of my best tips, including how to present yourself, how to sell yourself, and how to have them right where you want them! (hopefully!)

THE LOOK: 

Come on, we'd be lying if we said that looks aren't important in an interview.. The right look can practically win over the interviewers in the first look they take of you, so this is quite an important step for me. I'm a strong believer that if you look the part, you will feel the part, which is going to make all the difference in your interview. Imagine if you were looking for someone to join your team and they turned up in joggers and unbrushed hair.. you wouldn't be impressed, right? 

1. HAIR: With your hair, you want to keep it low-key. Not too done, but polished enough to look smart. I like to have my hair away from my face when I'm in an interview- but I guess it's down to your personal preference.  Here are a few hair do's that will make you look hot-to-trot for that interview: 

 

*photos courtesy of pinterest* 

2. MAKEUP: Your makeup needs to show professionalism- think pretty, polished, sensible but with a little edge.. Do not go over the top.. This can scare off the interviewer.  Here are a few ideas that will work: 

I love this look-- you want to accentuate cheekbones, show off your pretty eyes and your perky lips, but only go a little wild with ONE of these. I love a bold lip with barely-there make up! 

3. CLOTHING: Okay, so you've got your hair and makeup to look professional, but now for your outfit. What you wear will probably stick with them after your interview, so dress to impress but definitely don't go too crazy. Again, you want to look smart and professional. 

Here are a few classic outfits just to give you a little idea: 

 I like to keep to two simple colours when I'm dressing smart as I find it doesn't look fussy or too much. I love teal at the minute, and think it looks striking when paired with simple black items. You can't go wrong with a pencil skirt and blazer, and you can put them with no end of tops, shoes and accessories to create the perfect look for your mood. 

Two-piece sets look absolutely beautiful, and I think that this one is just the right amount of stylish yet smart.

*tip*- don't wear heels if you can't actually walk in them.. There's nothing worse than seeing a girl walk as though they've, to put it politely, pooped their pants.. There are so many cute flats out there, so if you're not confident in heels, you want to opt for those instead-- I must admit that I will only wear small heels in fear of looking out of place when walking in them... Coward! 

P.S. this was my look for my first interview of the week: 

I didn't really get any pictures because I was in such a rush- but here is my hair & makeup.. I went for a more bold eye- using nudes and browns to create a smokey eye, with nude lips & bronzed cheeks. I put my hair up in to my biggest sized donut, and finished the look with a bow at the back.. Pretty simple. 

A few extra tips: 

-Be yourself, but the better version: You don't want to pretend to be someone you're not, because it was just end in you forgetting yourself half the way through and them sussing you out. However, if you know that you're not good with, say, organisation skills, a cheeky fib isn't going to hurt. 

-Be friendly: I'm lucky as I am very naturally friendly, but trust me, a little bit of smiling and laughing goes a long way. 

-Be polite.

-Don't underestimate yourself; you still want to big yourself up. Tell them all about your best aspects that are relevant to the job. 

-Read up on the job that you've applied for and the company that you'll hopefully be working for. There's nothing worse that being asked a question about the position and not knowing what they're talking about! 

So how are you at interviews? I hope that this helped! xxxx

REVIEW: GARNIER OLIA HAIR COLOUR REVIEW

Hello lovelies! 

Today, I wanted to review the fairly new 'Olia' hair colourant by Garnier. I got shade 4.6 in Deep Red because I was after that Amy Childs, Cheryl Cole-red look. After reading about this new box dye in different magazines and on their website and seeing their TV adverts, I was really intrigued by it's break-through concept of hair dye and couldn't wait to get my hands on a box. 

Garnier say that this new hair dye revolutionized the way that dyes are harmful to hair by being the first oil-powered home hair colour. It has no ammonia and claims to improve the visible appearance of hair and make it silky smooth. Sounds amazing, yes? 

I kind of wish that I hadn't just jumped into buying the dye & had a little look around on blogs for reviews, because I do feel a little ripped off with this dye. At £6.99 for one box, this is one of the pricier box dyes on the market, and I've always had such good results, so I was expecting a little more of this.. 

ANYWAY- Here is my review, and it is 100% honest. 

This is the only picture that I got of the box because I didn't originally plan on doing a review.

I like the packaging actually- I think that it's chic, it tells you all you need to know, and it promotes the product very well. I like the fact that the back of the box has a pop-out circle, so that you can lay down the box and use the hole as a bottle holder so that you don't make a mess of your surfaces. Inside the box, you get the applicator bottle, the colourant, the mixer, instructions and gloves. I must say that the gloves are really good quality compared to most box dye ones, so that's a plus! 

Okay, so on to the product itself: 

Once mixed, the colour looks a little frightening.. It's very dark and I did have a little bit of a panic, but soldiered on never the less. The dye smells very pleasant actually, and I put that down to the lack of ammonia-- I didn't have the urge to rip my nose off like I do with every other home dye kit. 

There was definitely enough product in one box-- I have mid-length hair and I had just under half of a bottle left, so I dyed my extensions too. I thought that this was really good, because I've been having to buy two boxes the last couple of times that I've dyed my hair. 

One of the things that I wasn't happy with was the applicator bottle itself-- It's shaped as sort of a tear-drop, maybe to replicate the drops of oil that it contains, which at first I thought was really clever and different, but when it becomes wet with the dye, its very hard to grip and I dropped it more times than you can imagine. I wasn't all that impressed with it. 

Was I impressed with the results? 

yes, I was... At first. 

BEFORE:

Ignore my completely gormless faces-- I was just showing how puffy my hair was after trying out a new dry shampoo haha. These were the last pictures I could find of my 'old' hair, because, like I said, I didn't intend on doing the review. As you can see, it's a medium brown, very dull and in dire need of a little sprucing up. 

RIGHT AFTER: 

                                                                       With flash

TWO WEEKS LATER:

Yes, the results were lovely when I had very first washed out the dye.. but it wasn't until later on in the day that my sister pointed out that it was all patchy. I looked for myself, and was astonished to find that huge patches of my hair were still brown. Luckily it blended in okay, and it was the under layers that were patchy, so it wasn't completely noticeable.  It's two weeks later now, and as you can see from the picture, the dye has come out a lot, leaving me with a dull, rusty colour, which isn't so bad, but my hair feels and looks very dry, so I've actually bought a different dye to try out. (I will probably blog about this one when I've done it.) Also, the dye is still running out of my hair when it's wet, so that is two weeks on. I read a few reviews online about this this morning, and I have found that quite a few say about how the dye has left their hair patchy too, so I don't think it was just a personal thing. So beware of this! That is my main dislike about this product. 

You do get a good sized conditioner with this, which I still have half left, and it's not bad stuff. 

Has anyone else tried this colour? 

Jessie xxx

HOW TO DO: LEOPARD PRINT NAILS

Hello! 

So today, I thought that, seeing as its the weekend (yay!), I would go a little wild & paint my nails in a leopard print manner and so I thought I'd treat you all to a little tutorial just to give you an idea of how I achieve my look. 

So for this look, you will need: 

L-R:

- A piece of cardboard. I took mine off a tablet box. 

- A wooden cuticle stick

- A base/top coat- I am using Collection 2000 2 in 1 top coat. 

- A colour for your leopard blobs- I am using Barry M Gelly in Lychee. 

- A colour for outlining the blobs- I am using Collection 2000 Lasting Colour in liquorice. 

- A colour for your base- I am using Sally Hansen Salon Manicure in Dorien Grey. 

*you can swap the colours that I am using for any other colours that go well together, so go crazy & mix it up a little* 

Step one:

Take your base colour and paint your nails. Reapply as many coats as necessary until your nails are opaque. *you want to let the polish dry in between coats for a more professional, smooth-looking mani. 

Step two: 

Lift the brush out of the polish without wiping any excess off, and let it drip onto your cardboard into a ball. 

Step three: 

Dip your wooden stick into the excess nail polish on the cardboard and make spontaneous, uneven blobs on your nails. This technique is very good for people who don't have such a steady hand! You may need to put more polish onto the cardboard as it dries up rather quickly, making it hard to work with. *using the flat ends of the wooden stick makes this fairly easier* 

Step four: 

Repeat step two but use the polish that you intend outlining your blobs with. This was the black polish for me. And then use the opposite end of the stick (so that you don't mix up your polishes), use the pointed side of the end to randomly line the blobs. Again, you don't have to concentrate all that much, as the more spontaneous you do it, the better it seems to look! 

Step five: 

Wait for half an hour so that all the polish is nice & dry, and then apply a top coat so that your nails last as long as possible & have a beautiful shine to them. You may want to apply another coat whenever you find the time, but make sure that your last layer is completely dry, otherwise you'll end up ruining all that you've just done! 

I hope you found this helpful or interesting... There are many different ways to adapt this style to something you may prefer if this isn't your cuppa tea, and there are also better tools than a cuticle stick, but I wanted to show how easy it is to use things that you generally have lying around! :) 

Here are a couple of extra ideas: 

I've used this many times now, where I've just wanted to spruce up an old mani, and I think it's perfect just if you need a little something to stop the pain of a boring mono-coloured paint job! 

If you're feeling a little lazy, why not just skip the different coloured blobs and just outline imaginary ones for an update on the classic print. 

----x----

HAIR EXTENSIONS: HOW TO APPLY

So for my first proper post on here, I thought I would do a topic that I have been wanting to do for a very long while.. Yes, as the title suggests, it's about hair extensions. 

Now, I know that many people still imagine hair extensions to be something that only Katie Price should wear, but they have definitely come a long way since POD began confiscating them from fake divas on Snog, Marry, Avoid.. There are so, so many different kinds of extensions and for those of you that have never delved into the world of false hair, you're probably sat thinking; 'how on earth can there be different kinds of hair?' or 'How do you even wear them?'. This is where I wanted to help. 
I remember the first set of hair extensions that I ever bought. They were a boxed set of Babyliss clip-in 18" hair extensions and I had bought them for my 18th birthday. I'm pretty sure that they claimed to be human hair, but I really don't think they were. I remember them being okay for a day, and then trying to curl them and they just burnt and went completely unwearable.. Not cool. 

awful picture, but here are the terrible extensions that I thought looked so good at the time. 

And here is a picture of me wearing my current extensions just yesterday..

http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?sbk=1&nav=SEARCH&itemId=380454198235

yep, they look 1000 times better, don't they?

The one thing that really irritates me about people wearing extensions is when they don't even try to conceal them.. For example: 

I found this on Google images, but this is exactly what I was talking about.

So here's how I got my result and how I avoided the whole random length situation-thingy. 

Putting extensions for shoulder-length or longer hair:

1. For best results, you want freshly washed hair, preferably blow-dried. I then spray a little dry shampoo on the roots, because I find that volumised hair is the easiest to work with. 

2. Section off the entire head of hair with a clip leaving the very bottom layer. (You will have a very unattractive rats tail at this point.) Straighten this bit, and then use a comb to gently tease (back-comb) the roots. This will make them stay in easier and for much longer with less chance of slipping. Take a one-clipped piece and clip in over the top of teased hair. 

3. Repeat this going all the way up your head until you get the the ears. I would suggest doing them as thin as you can do, depending on how many different clips you have.. I like to use the two-clipped bits up until the ears. 

4. When you reach the ears,section the hair and straighten them in the same way, but incorporate the longer pieces of hair extensions, putting them around the sides of the head too. You want to do this until it gets a couple of inches away from your parting. 

5. Tease your top layer so that there is a little volume so that it definitely conceals all of the clips and style as you wish. If you are having it curly, don't forget to curl the ends of your natural hair that you can see. 

*top tip- curl hair the same way as the nearest extension curl so that it blends in seamlessly.*

Putting in extensions for shorter hair: 

1. Section hair so that the bottom half is left down-- usually about an inch lower than your ears. 

2. You want to french plait across the head, and then carry on the plait throughout the rest of the hair, and then grip it towards the head. Depending on how thick the hair is, you may want to do smaller braids.

3. Take your extensions and put them in where you would usually section your hair-- so every inch or so apart. 

4. Carry on from step 4 in the above section. 

I seriously hope that this has helped some of you.

Just for reference, here is the link to the extensions that I am currently using, but there are so many good ones out there. I would definitely recommend saving a little extra money and getting some around £40-£50, purely because you do get what you've paid for.. Definitely get 100% human hair! 

xxx

NEW BLOG, NEW START

Hello readers, new or old. Welcome to my little piece of the internet! I don't know if you were regular readers of my old blog (www.jessicastarbuck.yolasite.com), or whether you just happened to stumble upon here by chance, but I just wanted to give you a little introduction.. 

I am Jessica Starbuck, a humble piece of pie from Nottingham. I started up my blog around 5 years ago, expressing many thoughts and feelings over the years. Originally I used it as a way to express any feelings that I wasn't really willing to share with family and friends, but over time, and with me growing up, it seems to have transformed into a beauty/fashion-based blog. Beauty is something that I am very passionate about, so writing all that I know about makeup, hair and body products puts me in my element.. 

I hope that you will enjoy this blog as much as I hope that you enjoyed my old one, but please be patient with me, and send me some tips if you think that I need them (which I most likely do!) as I am very new to this site. 

-Jessie xxx