Dirty Looks DIY Ombre Extensions Review

If you’ve been following my blog for a while now then you’ll know that I’m a lover of hair extensions or hair pieces and so when I was given the chance to try the DIT Ombre Extensions from Dirty Looks, I was super excited! 

I’ve had a fair few experiences with different sorts of extensions that you can read about here, but having the ability to have long, gorgeous, ombre hair whenever I want is amazing! The process in which you get them isn’t too hard either! Below, you will find a picture guide of how to get the ombre extensions and believe me, if I can do it and get it right... anyone can!

 

The quality of the hair is incredible! Super soft and sleek and it comes in 3 shades of blonde and now a Red, so that you dye your natural hair colour to the tops and blend it down...

The clips are super sturdy and don’t budge once they’re in your hair. I love the fact you get a sample piece too so that if it’s not the right colour, you can send them back without having to open the whole package...

I used the Garnier Nutrisse cream in Light Brown but I’d recommend going for a darker colour...

I separated the hair with hair grips to show where I needed to start blending the colour...

And here is the end result!

I have had to clip my hair back on these photos as it’s far too short (after a recent chop) to blend in but see the below photo for a full hair down shot *thanks instagram* 

The DIY Ombre Extensions are super easy to prepare, dye and wear and you get amazing value too as it comes with 10 strips of hair in total, one being a double 4 clipped weft so it’s super thick and natural looking! For £89.99, they’re actually cheaper than some other pre-ombred extension brands and you know that you’re getting the colour that will match your natural hair too! I can’t wait for my hair to grow out of its bob so that I can start wearing these again! 

C-Section; The easy way out?

It’s been nearly 15 months since I gave birth to Millie via Emergency C-Section but feel like there is so much confusion around having a C-Section compared to a natural birth that for people that are thinking about getting pregnant, people that are pregnant or even people that have given birth naturally should really be filled in on. 

  I didn’t even prepare to have a C-Section and as daft as that sounds, my midwife had prepared me for a natural birth as I was low risk and had no signs of complications throughout my pregnancy. I hadn’t read up on C-Sections, had no clue about recovery time or anything so after being in labour for over 19 hours, you can imagine the instant shock and worry that come over me when they told me I was going to have to ‘Go to theatre’. 
It’d been such a long, tiring and painful night and after an epidural, things weren’t progressing and Millie hadn’t dropped enough so she wasn’t going to come out naturally, no matter how hard I pushed. The only thing I wanted at that moment in time was my baby and so if it had to be by section then so be it but I did put up a bit of a fight. I asked if there was anything else they could do - they tried the Ventouse and that didn’t work and they also got me to push a few times, but that also didn’t work. I can just remember crying saying how much I didn’t want a C-Section but it was happening. Within 45 minutes, I was taken to surgery, Millie was born and I was back on ward. 
One of the main problems you face after having a C-Section is the inability to move. You can’t sit up un-aided, your legs are still numb from the spinal block (and/or epidural in my case), you are fitted with a catheter and lets face it, you’ve just spent god knows how long having your stomach ripped open but to not be able to pick your baby up from the cot when they’re crying, or change their first soiled nappy is something that really got to me. 
The midwives at Queens Hospital Burton were so helpful! Adam went home shortly after being bought back onto ward just so we could get some rest and so that he could go shower/sleep too. Those few hours were the most emotional hours of my life. I just lay with Millie on me for the first few, she fed from me twice, slept on me and also had her first bottle on me. The midwife then came to put her down in the cot and check on my wound etc. Now, I’m not sure how it works with a natural birth but you definitely loose all dignity when your catheter is being changed and you’re relying on midwives to change your maternity pad for you because you can’t move! It’s really not the prettiest of sights, as you can imagine. Back to the bad bits, when Millie was in her cot, if she was crying or was sick, I couldn’t pick her up which resulted in me jumping up on the bed to stop her from chocking on her sick (twice) and really hurting myself by doing so. The midwives had to change her nappy until I was able to stand up for longer than a few minutes and they also had to help me feed her a few times too because I couldn’t sit with her on my stomach. 
Then, there’s the whole recovery time... the days/weeks, even months after the section, you struggle to sit up, to walk or move freely, you can’t drive for 6 weeks and bending over is a no-go so unless you’re prepared, have someone to help you get up/drive you, it’s a hard time to go through and the feeling of helplessness can overtake the feeling of happiness and love you had in the first few hours of giving birth.
 Yes, I do wish that I’d have had a natural birth, the feeling of pushing my baby out is all I wanted at that moment, the recovery process of a natural birth is so much shorter and easier than a section and of course, you are able to pick up your baby, tend to their needs easier than you are after a section. I feel that people that think it’s the ‘easy way out’ are clueless and forget that it’s a MAJOR operation in which abdominal muscles are sliced open to obtain another human being that you have just grown inside you. It’s not as simple as slicing your finger and having it stitched back up again - although I do wish it was that simple. 15 months on, my stomach is still tender if Millie jumps on me. I’m still anxious about the scar and the tummy it leaves you with. I still regret not being able to give birth naturally but one thing I do know is that I’m happy that the doctors were quick enough to decide that an emergency C-Section was what I’d need to get my baby out quickly and safely. 
Have you had a C-Section? Do you agree with what I’m saying? Or are you hoping to have a C-Section to get out of the ‘natural’ process?

Anastasia Brow Wiz Review

I remember the first ever time I used an eyebrow pencil... It was the night of my year 11 prom and I’d gone a little OTP whilst plucking and desperately needed something to fill in the mess I’d made so I sent my Mum to the pharmacy to buy an eyebrow pencil - something she didn’t even know existed. It was a Maybelline one, I’m sure? Anyway, since then, I’ve been pretty keen on filling in my brows and even though I’m still trying to find the best option of grooming (yet to try threading and it’s next on my list...) I do know that I love filling in the ends and the fuller bits when I do get a little carried away whilst trimming.  The Anastasia Brow Wiz must be one of the most loved brow pencils in the beauty scene and luckily for me, when Harriet went to America a few months back, she kindly picked one up for me from Sephora and I’ve been absolutely loving it ever since! I got the shade Brunette and it’s the perfect tone for my dark brown hair and can be built up nicely if you require a darker colour. 

It comes in a sleek, black, rectangular box but the pencil itself is such a tiny stick and the nib of the wax is super thin which means you can get a more natural, hair stroke type effect when using it rather than a sharpie type line across your forehead! The spoolie is also super dense yet fluffy and perfectly places those darn strays in your brows! I’ve found the staying power of the Brow Wiz is incredible! I work in a sweaty, steamy coffee shop where most of my makeup melts off after an 8 hour shift but I can wear the Brow Wiz and even with all the splashes of water, milk and god knows what else, there is no smudging, moving or blurring of the brow that’s been drawn on! WINNER! 
One thing that does bother me a little is how fast it goes down. The nib of mine has to be wound up twice for me to fully do both brows and I’m not sure how much I’ve got left. I know manual sharpening eyebrow pencils tend to last a little longer than the wind up ones but I don’t know whether the duration of this will see me through another month or two... With this, the wax is also super brittle and I’ve noticed that it has broken too - one thing you just can’t help sometimes though so don’t let this put you off!
I got mine from Sephora, you can buy the Anastasia Brow Wiz for £15.50 from Cult Beauty and it’s available in 9 colours too! Have you tried this? What is your favourite brow product? 

First Impressions & Swatches: Makeup Revolution London

Makeup Revolution London is a new brand of affordable makeup for us beauty loving junkies. Only launching in March 2014, they have taken the UK by storm with over 300 products released with more on the way, a huge following base on Twitter and Facebook and lots of reviews out there already, they are definitely the one to watch and in my eyes, are taking over Superdrug’s MUA brand in the likes of affordability and quality of products. 
I was very kindly gifted the following items as I’d not yet tried any products from their collection and  in doing so, received one of the new I <3 Makeup Palettes which is a brilliant summery, bright eyeshadow palette and also the cover and conceal palette with a single eyeshadow and lipstick, both in Purple. 

The packaging on all of the products is super sleek and I love the glossiness of the palettes, meaning they are easy to wipe clean and are protected well if you need to take them out/on holiday etc. There is so much choice when it comes to the colour range with brights, neutrals and palettes for everyone - there is bound to be something you’ll love and the price tag is even better! With eyeshadow and lipstick starting from £1.00 and Palettes starting from £2.50, you’d be crazy not to try your odds with the newest makeup out there! I’m loving the lipstick at the moment so will definitely be picking up some more colours when I get chance! Have you tried any products from the Makeup Revolution Collection? What is your favourite so far?

Denman In-Shower Brush

Are you like me and suffer with extremely knotty hair but find that your regular, palm sized detangling brush slips from your hands when you’re in the shower or bath? Yes? Well, here’s the solution...
The Denman Massage Brush* isn’t labelled as your standard ‘detangling’ brush but more of a massage brush to use whilst in the shower. It evenly distributes shampoo and conditioner whilst stimulating the scalp to promote hair growth, but I’ve also found that it helps to detangle without slipping from your hands every 10 seconds! 
If I have worn my hair up then I get real bad knots on the back of my hair and when wet, it can be even more of a nightmare to get out! I’ve figured that if I apply conditioner to the brush rather than on my hair and comb it through, it detangles my hair amazingly and then I rinse off without scrubbing my hair to create more knots. I then use my Scaredoo brush once my hair is towel dry and that gets rid of any extra knots created by the towel. 

"The super soft moulded pins gently massage the scalp to stimulate circulation and healthy hair growth. The result is stronger, silkier and glossier hair from root to tip. The benefits suit men and women and the D6 comes in classy black and sleek silver for the shade shy too. The circular brush fits snugly in the palm after slipping your fingers into the built in back strap and the pins gently work styling and conditioning products evenly through the hair for easy care and styling. The D6 or niftily named ‘Be Bop’ brush has been a Denman design classic for over 60 years." 

If this looks like the tool for your mane, you’ll be thrilled to know it’s only £3.69 and available at most stores but you can get it here. Let me know what you think of it! 

*Kindly gifted by JWPR

Indeed Labs Powder Exfoliator Review

It’s not very often I stumble across a gem when it comes to skincare as I tend to stick to what I know works best for me, but when I received my #BootsCamp box and I tried this Indeed Labs Powdered Facial Exfoliator, I knew I’d found a hidden gem that was going to be a permanent edition to my skincare drawer of goodies!  When I first got this, I was a little unsure as I’d never really seen a ‘powdered exfoliator’ before. Most of the exfoliators I’ve used have been liquid/gel formulas with quite a few crystals in for a rougher, more vigorous exfoliate so with this light, almost talcom powder type consistency, I was unsure it was going to do what it said on the bottle! It advices ‘2 shakes’ of the powder, mixed with a little water to make a foamy effect is enough but the 2 shakes can be a little vague so I tend to use around a 50p sized amount and carefully add the water just so it starts to foam. This amount is plenty for a full face wash. 

When in the foam form, you can see the tiny crystals that will do the job of exfoliating your skin but not leaving it too harsh! I find that cleansing normally beforehand helps to rid the skin of any dirt and then using the exfoliator goes deeper to clean the pores and using this once, sometimes twice a week (Depending on the amount of days I’ve worn makeup) helps to open my pores and clean them, leaving me with fewer breakouts. The best part about this exfoliator is that it doesn’t leave my skin thirsty for hydration, I don’t feel the need to smother my face in moisturiser after using it like some other exfoliants do and I think this is because of the ingredients used that help to nourish and promote collagen in the skin. 
If you’re looking for a new exfoliator or have been eyeing up something new to tryout, then I definitely recommend you try this Indeed Labs Powdered Exfoliator* and at the moment you can get 3 for 2 on Skincare at Boots so why not pick it up along with some of your favourites! At £18.99, it’s quite pricey but compared to higher ended brands, It’s pennies and rainbows!