Festival Chic
With Glastonbury this weekend, the festival season is most definitely upon us. However jealous I was when friends got tickets, now looking at the weather forecast for the weekend, I’m feeling pretty smug I’m not packing up my tent and wellingtons to brave the elements.
Next week we will be seeing snaps of all the celebs looking fabulous, so here is my guide on what to pack in you festival beauty kit to channel Alexa, rather than drowned rat.
How does she manage it?
If you are a regular reader, you will have heard me wax lyrically about batiste dry shampoo. It has to be the number one festival beauty buy. They have recently launched XXL Volume, which works wonders for banishing oily roots when showers are not an option and it will re-vamp rained on hair. (£3.99/200ml)- Another life saver to the festivalite, must be the facial wipe. Your 3-step skin care ritual routine will take up much-needed space in your packing and finding all your products (and a basin!) after dark will be challenging. I recommend Simple Kind To Skin Cleansing Facial Wipes. They will remove waterproof mascara whilst being kind to your skin and purse. (£3 approx/25 wipes)
- If you’ve bought/borrowed wellies for this weekend, the next item is a must. Compeed blister plasters provide a skin like layer which will speed up the healing of your blister and the thick layer will protect from any more rubbing. They have a new ‘Blister Mix’ pack which contains a range of sizes to deal with any problematic footwear situation. (£4.49/pack of 5)
- Clarins Beauty Flash Balm is another of my hero products. Apply a thin layer under your make-up and it helps to banish signs of fatigue and promotes a radiant completion. Everyone will be asking which B&B you stayed in..
- With the vast amounts of Somerset cider and late nights, the odd blemish is bound to appear. A thick and durable concealer, such as Benefit’s boi-ing industrial-strength concealer will help you to look flawless. (£26.50/50ml)
- The final item for my glasto-beauty-kit is Clinique’s Chubby Stick Lip Colour Balm. Your festival look should appear au natural and these super-cute sticks give just enough colour and sheen to enhance what mother-nature gave you, whist soothing dry lips with yummy mango and shea butters. My fav shade is Whoppin’ Watermelon. (£14/2g)
Maybe I am a little jealous after all… have a super time, and fingers crossed for sunshine x
Miracle Manicure
Parisian and NYC ladies are renowned for their groomed finish, this is a look I crave but don’t have the time, or the commitment to emulate. Well coiffed hair and perfectly manicured nails are a must for these women, but how can we get this on a tighter budget and time-frame?
Whenever I have a manicure, I have generally smudged my beautiful polished talons before I get home or I’ve chipped them in the next day or so, so I only tend to bother for a special event.
However, many different nail brands have come up with a hybrid between normal polish and gel nails. These promise to last between 2 and 3 weeks without chipping and are easy to remove.
I’ve gone for CND’s Shellac manicure at my local beautitians. There is a range of 24 shades to choose from, including my fav ‘Tropix’ a lovely coral, perfect for summer.
Shellac shades
The appointment lasted an hour, including shaping my nails and cuticle treatment, but I left with completely dry nails. They do feel a bit ‘thicker’ than a normal polish, but don’t look like fake nails at all.
Removal of the polish can either be done at a salon, or you can buy acetone nail varnish remover from any chemist and soak them off in a few minutes.
If you are going for a manicure, I would definitely recommend Shellac over conventional polishes and it is perfect for holidays, weddings or other special occasions.
CND’s Shellac manicure www.cnd.com cost me £27 from my local salon (House of Beauty Cambridge www.cambridgebeauty.co.uk)
Nails inc’s 3 week manicure costs from £55 www.nailsinc.com
Make-up stay put!
Having coffee with a beautiful-bride-to-be and the conversation took a turn to beauty tips for the big day. Weddings are a long day and it’s not only the blushing brides that want to stay picture-perfect from ‘I do’ until carriges are called.
Luckily one of my favourite brands, bareminerals, have come to the rescue with the perfect product. Mineral Veil is a translusent powder that you buff ontop of your finished makeup. It absorbs oil that your skin produces during the day which causes your makeup to move.
In addition to this it is also meant to minimize the appearance of fine lines and pores, although I can’t really see the difference in my skin!
Although is it quite pricey, £20 for 9g, it lasts ages, I’ve had mine six months and it looks as full as when I first bought it.
MAC & Gareth Pugh Collaboration
Today MAC has announced that they will be teaming up with designer Gareth Pugh to produce range of cosmetics which will launch in November 2011.
Although excitement is high here at blogmebeautiful HQ, it is not a unexpected pairing as MAC have supported Gareth since he first began showing his collections almost seven years ago.
The details on this collaboration are being kept close to their chests, we can expect some special packaging and colours, but we will be sure to know more after the super-stylish cocktail party in NYC to celebrate next month.
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