Tuesday 6 May 2014

Daisy chain belt DIY tutorial





With all the 90's fever going around, I've been on the hunt for one of these Versace Medusa chain waist belts ever since i watched an old school TLC video and spotted one of the dancers rocking it. After some serious googling i found that unsurprisingly its waaaaaay out f my usual £2 belt budget sooooo....here i am making one. 
This technique can be used with ANY chain or necklace as long as your second chain is long enough to fasten it. YOU WILL NEED:


Two necklaces: the first will be the frontal decorative chain so make sure you choose something with an interesting design and a pendant that isn't too long. The second chain is just for attaching it around you so this can be any plain old chain that you don't use any more. Mine is a plastic gold chain that i brought from the bargain bin in a junk shop on Albert road in Portsmouth for 20p. Again this chain will be at the back so it doesn't have to be your best piece of jewellery.


Firstly, using the clasp from the first necklace i link the two necklaces.


Then using the clasp from the second necklace i attach it around me making it as tight/loose as i would like for it to fit



Any extra chain that is too long can be cut short or removed with pliers.


And voila!

Like i said you can use any two necklaces to make this belt and really get inventive. Try mixing silver and gold chains or using necklaces with interesting beads or pendants, really make it your own!


To see this full look and where i brought these items from click here





Daisy chaining on the common - check out the DIY tutorial for belt















Blazer - Fonthill road £5
Crop top - Internacionale sale £3
Gingham high waisted pedal pushers - Primark £5
Platform trainers - Ebay £25
Shades - Primark £3
Holographic silver chain handbag - New Look sale £10
Daisy chain waist belt - Crafted by yours truly (to see the tutorial on how to make this belt click here)





Monday 5 May 2014

Plaid please.










Plaid/checkered dress: Fuse sale at Debenhams £10
Blazer: Preloved £6
Knee high socks.
Chunky heel Chelsea Boot: Primark £13
Holographic silver chain handbag: New Look sale £10






Monday 28 April 2014

Skorts and all!



The big trend this summer is skorts, which i for one am definatlety cool with. It sorts out the whole awkward leg crossing ordeal at a picnic while also classing  up the faithful staple "booty shorts". This summer sports luxe is having it's time in the sun, teamed with an undercurrent of residue 90's fever from last season.  On my weekly monthly primark frolick i found this adorable tennis skort that suprisingly looks and feels way more expensive than it is don't you just love when that happens? 










My new hair is giving me a perma-swinging -60's vibe which im kind of feeling  at the moment. I dont know why i never believed other people when they say that short hair is so much easier because it really is!





Blazer: Fonthill Road £5
Handbag: Topshop
Skort: Primark £10
Shade: Camden market 2 for £7 haggle special
Chiffon Top: Primark sale £5
Pop Socks: Cast offs from my little brothers rugby days ha!
Platform trainers: eBay £25

Friday 4 April 2014

Spring's in bloom and i'm getting freaky with it.


Bralet - Topshop sale £5
Drape knit cardigan - New Look sale £7
Thigh split maxi skirt - handmade by yours truly
Platform trainers -EBay £25











Aaaaah! Summers coming.


Tuesday 25 March 2014

Highlighting & Contouring for Black Girls. - With affordable products!

In the complete opposite spirit to the #nomakeupselfies (not intentionally) I decided to make one of these highlighting & contouring tutorials that I've seen so much of on the beauty blogosphere lately. It's so hard to find make up tips for darker girls (especially cheap ones!) so I thought I'd do my bit and be a part of the movement to change that.

I am by no stretch of the imagination a make up artist or beauty blogger but i taught myself this technique after searching for DAYS online for a decent tutorial for darker skin. Don't get me wrong there are some really great tutorials out there for black girls - some of those beauty bloggers are doing things with make up that i didn't even know was possible! - but a lot of them are american which means i either can't buy the products that they use or i have to pay a premium for shipment. The other issue i have is a lot of these beauty bloggers are using high end products like Mac or Urban Decay that are waaaaaaay out of my measly make-up budget, so really this post is just a tutorial showing you how to contour and highlight with things that you probably already have in your make up bag.



So for this particular look I used 4 main products to form my base (for those of you who don't know a base is the bottom layer of your make up or your "foundation" layer). Both your highlighter and contour can be either cream or powder it doesn't actually make a difference as long as you use it in the right places and also that you use the right shade. However if you are using powder remember to use a good fix spray or primer or you can apply a thin layer of  Vaseline on the area before applying the powder to stop it from straying. And if you're using creams make sure to have a decent setting powder for the same reasons and also to avoid shine. I have:

1. Paris Berlin Concealer Pallette (for highlights, can be substituted with a light face powder or lighter foundation try to use something with good cover up qualities)
2. Ben Nye "Banana" translucent setting Powder ( can be substituted with talcum powder)
3. Maybeline Dream Matte Mouse foundation 
4. A sample pot of Ben Nye "Ebony" Face Powder (for contours, can be substituted with any dark powder/eye shadow/ dark lipstick/ dark foundation)

The main trick to high lighting/contouring is understanding your bone structure and your best features because these are there things that you will want to highlight/make stand out.

STEP 1. In this step i used a light brown shade of concealer around the under-eye and cheeks area (for this step you can also use bronze powder or even a cheap tube of fake tan) This will bring out my cheek bones.

STEP 2. For this step i used a peach shade of concealer to go under my eyes, shape my eyebrows and also i began to outline my top lip. (for this area you can also use any type of pressed powder or eye shadow or even foundation as long as the colour is extremely fair compared to your true skin tone - anything with a slight sparkle too will help those highlighted areas pop under your foundation - For lip and eyebrow outline you can use any cheap gold lip/eye/brow pencil. Remember if you're using powders use a primer or apply a thin layer of Vaseline to the area to stop the powder from straying!) I also gently blended the concealer around my brow bone to accentuate my eyes.

STEP 3. Using the same peach shade and a foundation sponge, i highlighted a small patch of my forehead and lightly on my chin. Then using an old blending brush to create a technique i like to call the "skinny nose job" - i learnt this trick when i noticed all the housewives of Atlanta look like they've had nose jobs! after doing a bit of research i realised that they've all just been using this technique for years! Of course some of them have just had nose jobs!- I drew a narrow line from my forehead don to the tip of my nose ending in a diamond shape on the tip of my nose. You can make the line as narrow or as wide as you want - The narrower the line, the skinnier your nose will look, the thicker the line the more natural your nose will look - I tried to keep my line as narrow as the bridge part of my nose for a more natural effect.

STEP 4. I used the foundation sponge and the same light shade of concealer to highlight my bottom jaw bone, leaving the hollows of my cheeks dark. This will make your cheek bones appear higher.

STEP 5. Before using my contour powder use a thin layer of Vaseline on the areas where i will be wanting to create shadow these areas are:  the hollows of my cheeks, my temples and around my hairline and finally the sides of my nose and nostrils. I used an eye shadow brush and a blusher brush to apply the dark powder liberally to these areas.

STEP 5.5. I used the concealer to determine the shape i want my lips to be (you can change this to any shape) and i also high lighted the dimple above my cupids bow. Before the next step i applied a generous amount of Banana powder underneath my eyes and used it to buff all the other highlighted areas with a fluffy blusher brush (if you are using talcum powder you can use a generous amount under the eyes but be careful on other areas not to cake it on too much and to blend or buff it in with a fluffy blusher brush to avoid white powdery patches beneath foundation) The banana powder leaves a slight shimmer on top of the highlighted areas which will make them stand out under my foundation.

STEP 6. Using a big fluffy blusher brush (yes another one! luckily you can buy a pack of 4 in poundland) i used my dream matte mousse foundation to blend it all together. A blusher brush will allow you to blend and buff it all together more evenly and more naturally even if you are using liquid foundation.

STEP 7. I added a bit more dark powder around the areas that i felt needed more shadow like my cheekbones and the side of my nose ( you can use your judgement here to decide where you would need to apply more shading) I also fill in my eyebrows with a dark brow pencil.

STEP 8. I applied the rest of my make up as i usually would - A thin line of liquid liner, a couple of coats of mascara and i use a lip brush to carefully fill in my lipstick to make sure i stay in the lines that i drew with the concealer.

AND THAT'S IT!

Easy peasy, hope my tips help you to create your own look for less!

Thursday 20 March 2014

I do love to be beside the seaside

Living by the sea can definitely be a bit long sometimes but as soon as the sun comes out it suddenly becomes clear to you that all of those horrible storms and the unbearable wind was all worth it for a ray or two of pure sunshine on the shore. It's actually a little sad how excited i am to finally be wearing mini skirts/dresses again! (No tights, coz i'm a boss). I know that florals in the spring can be a little predictable but the erdem SS14 collection has been the source of my inspiration lately and for me floral will never die.








Photography by Jack W. Mulholland.


Floral Dress: Fonthill road £5
Chunky Knit Cardigan: Topman clearance sale £7
Denim Jacket:  Mothers castoffs
Platform Trainers: Ebay £25