Beauty: A (much needed) Makeover from Vogue Hair and Beauty, Liverpool*

Beauty: A (much needed) Makeover from Vogue Hair and Beauty, Liverpool*

Saturday, 15 July 2017

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We all love a good pamper session, right? I know I do. The last few months of my life have been hectic, full of sleep deprivation and a lot more stress than is healthy for a girl of my age. I have to admit- I’ve really let myself go. I’ve skipped putting on my makeup on a daily basis to benefit from that extra 20 minutes in bed. I’ve let my brows go, to the point where they’re as far away from en fleek as possible. I have EYE BAGS. At 23!!!!

When one of my favourite PR ladies got in touch with me on behalf of Vogue Hair and Beauty Lounge in Liverpool, I honestly felt like all my prayers had been answered. I was offered the choice of a complimentary curly blow or makeup application. As I had a leaving do for one of my jobs coming up, I thought I’d get my makeup done so I could feel like the belle of the ball for once rather than the ugly duckling that teaching has turned me into.

  

Vogue Hair & Beauty, situated on Old Hall Street right in the heart of Liverpool, is a little gem. Hidden away in a old-fashioned building, the salon itself reeks of style and sophistication and everything you look for when aiming for glamour. When I arrived, I was offered a drink by staff and seated comfortably. Beth, the lady who was doing my makeup application, was a lovely and attentive member of staff and I felt at ease from the word go. The salon was beautifully furnished and decorated, bright and full of light, and really felt welcoming as you entered.

I’ve had makeup applications before where I’ve had to spend a LOT of time post-application dabbing off excess product and toning down what had been done to me. That most definitely wasn’t the case here. The makeup was applied with precision and care, and Beth took the time to ask me about my thoughts before applying. The products that she used were of a high standard and complimented my skin tone perfectly. I opted for a lash-less look as I’m not really all that used to wearing them and I have pretty long lashes anyway. I also opted for nude shades on my eyes- I’d bought a gorgeous skirt from Topshop to wear and the makeup really matched with the look. Beth finished off the look with a gorgeous coating of a matt lip version of the infamous MAC Velvet Teddy lipstick and I was good to go, after taking a few selfies of course!

I would definitely go back to Vogue for a makeup application- and I’m planning on booking in for when we take a trip to the races. I’m quite a safe makeup user- I use the same products, in the same way, every single time I put makeup on, so it was nice to go out of my comfort zone and spice things up a little. I felt confident after application and got SO many compliments on the amazing job that Beth did on my makeup. Thank you so much to the guys at Vogue for the treatment, it really was much appreciated! 

Beauty: A Little Pamper Session At the Woodlands Clinic, Baltic Triangle*

Beauty: A Little Pamper Session At the Woodlands Clinic, Baltic Triangle*

Monday, 6 March 2017

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I think it’s perfectly safe to say that one of my absolute favourite things in the world is a good, old fashioned pamper session. There’s nothing better than going to a salon and getting you hair, nails and makeup done when you’re feeling a little bit down in the dumps. When Stephanie, part of the PR team that represent Woodlands Beauty Clinic got in touch to see if I wanted to try out a few of their treatments, it took approximately five seconds of thought before I’d made my decision. I booked myself in for a Shellac Manicure and Facial for the 1^st March. Woodlands Beauty Clinic has salons in Woolton, where I work and in Aigburth, but they’ve also opened a clinic in the up and coming Baltic Triangle, just outside of the bustling Liverpool city centre, in the last year. I LOVE the Baltic Triangle; there are so many cool bars and restaurants to check out and I think that this salon fits right on in there in terms of its style and reputation. Located on Jamaica Street, the clinic is just a stones throw away from Liverpool One and the Albert Docks. It’s incredibly easy to find and upon arrival I was greeted by the LOVELY Antonia. Antonia made me feel right at home, got me settled and was incredibly eager to answer all of my questions.

I get my nails done fairly frequently and when I do, I always go for Shellac as my treatment of choice. I love the versatility of Shellac – it can last so long and has an amazing look- but it also doesn’t cost the Earth which is perfect for someone like me who’s saving up to buy a house. I can’t justify blowing £40 every few weeks on nails but a £25 Shellac treatment is all the more affordable. I had a little job interview the day after my treatment so I opted to go for a more natural coloured Shellac- the colour I chose is a beautiful peach based pink – in certain lights it looks almost a pale coral coloured and I absolutely love it. Antonia is an expert when it comes to Shellac and it’s obvious that she knows exactly what she’s doing and what she’s talking about. The salon used ACTUAL Shellac polishes, which is evident in the finish and time and care was put into ensuring that absolutely every layer was done immaculately. Of course, she filed down and buffed my nails prior to applying the colour, as well as making sure that my cuticles were pushed back as they should be. After my top coat had been seared, almond oil applied to my cuticles to ensure that they’re rehydrated and a big smile put back on my face after a long, tiring week, Antonia took me upstairs to the little massage treatment room and talked me through some options for my facial.

After I’d stripped down and got myself settled on the massage table, Antonia talked me through the different products that the salon uses and introduced Dermaquest to me, their brand of choice. I have to say that I absolutely LOVE the feel of this product on my skin: since my facial (which was just short of a week ago now) my face has felt fully hydrated and I’ve had quite a few comments about how lively and soft it looks. Antonia referred to the treatment that I had as the Red Carpet Treatment on a number of occasions and I think that it’s fair to say that that’s a pretty good description of how it felt. It made me feel incredibly au naturel and revitalised. Antonia explained every stage in detail, telling me what each product was going to do to my skin and how it would help me out. I was a little apprehensive to try an exfoliating treatment on my face, if I’m honest, as my skin is incredibly sensitive and the smallest amount of alien product causes reactions but luckily, that wasn’t the case at all with the Dermaquest products. I’ll definitely be looking into integrating these into my daily routine where I can. I must admit that my favourite part of the facial was the upper body massage: I have an incredibly knotted back- as I said, I’ve had a stressful few weeks- and Antonia was fantastic in getting rid of the knots and making me feel incredibly relaxed. I finished off by having a large glass of water to make sure my skin was getting everything it needed to stay healthy and bright.

Woodlands Beauty Clinic is absolutely fantastic. I felt incredibly comfortable there, which for me is a tell-tale sign of a good and reputable salon. Everything was explained to me in great detail, I felt completely at ease throughout the entire treatment sessions and I’d definitely go back there in a heartbeat for more treatments when I get the chance! Thank you so much to Stephanie for the invite and then Antonia and Woodlands Clinic for my amazing experience!

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(*This post is a collaboration with Woodlands Beauty Clinic. I received the treatments free of charge but this review is fully reflective of my true thoughts and feelings towards the clinic. I will never be influenced in any way by collaborations.) 

Beauty: MetQuarter Christmas PR Event!

Beauty: MetQuarter Christmas PR Event!

Monday, 14 November 2016

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I’ve had a good few weeks events wise and I’m excited to share my experiences at another little event here! At the end of last month, I was invited to an event at Metquarter in Liverpool. For anyone who isn’t local to the area, Metquarter is a grotto of amazing shops including MAC, Illamasqua and Armani, Links of London and GHD, amongst others. I was blooming over the moon to be invited to their press event and being able to see some of the shops’ new collections earlier than the public! Thanks very much to the lovely Emma, part of the Carousel team for the invite to the event!

I’m going to be honest… I felt a little weird going to a Christmas event in OCTOBER. OCTOBER. I could probably have dealt quite easily with an event in November, as I understand that they have to get the products out early, consumer markets, yada yada. October messed with my sense of festivity a little bit. Granted, this last about five minutes as when I got there I got right into the swing of things, singing along to all the Christmas music and ooh-ing and ahh-ing at the amazing decorations.

I nipped into the store pretty early on in the day and met up with a few fellow bloggers who’d gotten there at the same time. It was nice to have a catch up and see the amazing new products that shops had put out for us to have a look at. I fell 100% in love with the brand new Christmas collection that MAC had put out- I’ll definitely be going back to purchase a few of these, it was SO difficult to pull myself away and resist the temptation of spending my entire wage slip on pretty eye shadow palettes and make up brush kits. I also found myself falling in love with the most BEAUTIFUL shoes I’ve seen in a long time, from L. K. Bennett! Fingers crossed Father Christmas puts them under the tree for me this year!

I wasn’t able to stay as long as I would have liked to as I had to get to work so unfortunately I missed out on getting my makeup done by a MAC artist! We were given lovely little goodie bags with money off vouchers, a little MAC mascara and an Illamasqua lipstick in them! There was also a little macaron from Patisserie Valarie included in there, which was a lovely little touch! Who doesn’t love a macaron, after all?

I can’t wait to go back to the Metquarter and fill up a basket with some of their fabulous goodies for my family and friends this year!

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