Amazing Advertisers | April

Hi all! I hope you're all well and having a nice week so far. I won't bore you with the details but its not been a great for me - I've been in hospital and generally feel very under the weather. With this being said, blogging is having to take a little back seat at the moment until I'm feeling myself again. For now though, make sure you head over to my monthly advertisers wonderful blogs and give them a follow ...

Carly from Carly's Beauty World

Hi! I’m Carly from carlysbeautyworld.com. For many years I was a beautician and salon owner and now I love to share my knowledge on my blog. If you like reading product reviews and are interested in hair, skincare, makeup, nails, eye treatments, body care and much more, Carly’s Beauty World might be of interest to you. I love chatting to people on my various social media sites so please come and say hello.

Love from,

Carly x

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Youtube | Google+ | Pinterest | Instagram

Carrie from Forever Scarlet

I love fashion and beauty, in fact they are two of my biggest passions. I love everything about these two industries; the confidence they give to young women and the creativity and excitement that they evoke.

Forever scarlet is an outlet for me to post the outfits that I love, the beauty products that I use daily, my general musings on life and the odd crafty DIY project. Please pop over and take a look! You can follow me on Twitter @carriemae_h or on bloglovin here.

Judith from The Wee Blondie

Hello! I’m Judith, a 21-year-old Communications Student who runs www.theweeblondie.com. My blog is a little mix of beauty, fashion and lifestyle. I write about whatever I have fallen head over heels in love with and want to share with everyone. I am massive selfie fan and twitteraddict so come say hello! I love finding new blogs to follow as well so send me over your links too!

Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin | Blog

Hope from Beauty & Bliss

Hey! My name is Hope and I’m a 20 year old US blogger over at Beauty & Bliss! I blog about everything from beauty to lifestyle, and even have some DIY things thrown in. I’ve only been blogging for around 7 months, so I’m still pretty new to everything. However, I’m already in love with everything to do with the blogging and beauty communities! I would love it if you stopped by my blog, gave it a follow, and joined me on my journey! I’m super excited to see whats in store for my blog in the future!

Twitter | Blog | Instagram | Bloglovin

Emma from Emma Louise Dreams

Hi I am Emma from 'Emma Louise Dreams'. I am probably the girliest girl you will ever meet. For my fourth birthday I asked my Grandma for one of those cards you put in the wall, that gives you money. Well, not much has changed since then. 

I am a self confessed shopaholic with a passion for all things beauty and fashion. 'EmmaLouise Dreams' is a blog all about myself and the things I buy, and I buy far too much.I have lots of exciting posts lined up over at 'Emma Louise Dreams' next month so would love if you popped over and said Hi.

Blog | Email

Twitter: emmalouise1402 

Instagram: miniemx 

Bethany from What She Did

My name is Bethany and I am a 23 Year old blogger based in Cheshire. Whilst my main passion lies in fashion (who doesn't love a good handbag) I also love beauty and lifestyle too, because of this my posts tend to be quite eclectic giving you an insight into my views on fashion, my fave beauty buys and my fave hotspots!

Kerri from Notebook of Beauty

Hey everyone!! I'm Kerri and I'm from Notebook of Beauty, I cover all things beauty and love to review my favourite products (and not so),  I love passing on my tips and secrets and would love you all to come join me and add your own thoughts to the notebook. I hope to see you all soon. You can also find me on Twitter @KerriAnneWinch, Instagram kerri_anne24 and bloglovin. 

Amy from A Journal of Everything

My name is Amy Christina - I am a 19 year old from just outside of London and currently studying a Magazine Publishing degree and The University of the Arts of London. This is my little slice of the internet where you will mostly find little ramblings of my life and beauty/fashion talk, oh and cute pictures of my little black cat, Pretzel. My love for blogging has definitely developed over the past year and it has led me to find such a great community to be a part of.

Saba from Beauty on 7th

Hello everyone! I’m Saba, a 21-year-old beauty addict and student at the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan. I am a complete beauty junkie, always ready to get the latest products and test them out. I take caffeine in the bloodstream, and feel at home in coffee shops.

When I’m not running around the city, I’m playing with makeup, watching everything available on Netflix, reading business books, making playlists, and spending time with my lovely friends and family.

Twitter | BlogLovin | Instagram

Beauty Science Magic

Beauty Science Magic! looks at beauty products under the scientific microscope and decodes all the scientific jargon for you, written by a Neuroscientist with a passion for Beauty and Nutrition! The aim is to provide vital information to nourish and nurture from the inside out as perfect nutrition is tantamount to gorgeous hair, skin and nails! Featuring easy and vitamin rich vegan recipes, Beauty Science Magic! Is undoubtedly the go-to blog for decoding beauty facts and feeling and looking your optimum. 

Natalie from Girl Uninterpreted

Hello, my name is Natalie! I’m a 23 year old hair and beauty junkie and a passionate blogger over at www.girluninterpreted.co.uk. GirlUninterpreted is a place for me to write product reviews and comparisons on new beauty products, as well as some old favourites, with the occasional lifestyle post and haul thrown in the mix. Make sure you keep up to date with all my posts via Twitter and Instagram so you don’t miss out on any of the good stuff and be sure to follow me so we can have a chat!

Lots of love,

TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | INSTAGRAM

Charles Worthington Texturising Spray

Recently, texturizing hair sprays have taken the beauty world by storm. It all started with the ever so expensive Oribe dry texturizing spray that was raved about by top beauty bloggers such as Vivianna Does Makeup, Lily Pebbles and Zoella. It can be found in the likes of Space NK for a whopping £39 and I’m not going to lie, after all the hype surrounding it, I was almost tempted to splurge. However, after a bit of umming and ahhing, I decided £39 is a little excessive for something that lots of people would consider a glorified hairspray.

With this being said, you can imagine my joy when Charles Worthington released a more purse friendly version of the ever so popular hair texturiser - their 'Volume & Bounce texturising spray'. The reason I was so curious to try a texturising spray in the first place is because I love a bit of volume in my hair – it helps it look more styled and I often like to go for that messy bed head look which textursing sprays can help to achieve in a more natural way than hairspray or volumising powders. Do those powders  leave anyone else's hair feeling like you’ve not washed it for a good few weeks? Never a good thing!

Now I wasn’t expecting to be totally blown away by a hair product because other than Moroccan Oil, I’ve never found any that I always go back to and consider ‘must haves’. However, this one may well be an exception. Since buying it a few weeks back – I’ve used it almost every single day! It’s the perfect product for every kind of hair day - if my hair is having one of those 'just been washed and has no volume' moments or whether I’ve just rolled out of bed and need a quick hair fix – this product is my hairs best friend. All I do I spritz it onto the mid lengths to ends, scrunch it up with my fingers and leave it to do its thing. It adds instant texture and volume and allows me to dash out of the house with hair that feels somewhat styled – despite making very little effort.

In terms of how it feels in the hair – it adds texture as the name would suggest but doesn’t make it feel weighed down or stiff like a hairspray would. I can definitely tell there’s product in my hair when I’ve used it but again, it just feels like it has more texture – not greasy or heavy. It doesn't add any colour either like a dry shampoo - its completely transparent and can't be detected in the hair. Its worth noting that my hair does need washing more frequently when I’ve been using it as it can start to make my hair feel dry. However, this isn't a big deal for me as I tend to wash my hair every other day anyway. I also need to mention how amazing this product smells – I could continue using it for that reason alone. Its like perfume for my hair!

Overall I’d say this is a great product and one worth trying if you want to add an extra something something to your barnet. It’s a good one for lazy girls, people who lack volume or people who like that messy texturised look. So that's the majority of us then? Its definitely going to be a staple for me in the Summer when I get even lazier with my hair routine – who can be bothered styling their hair when its hot? No – just me?

Do you like adding texture to your hair? What's your favourite texturising product? You can find this Charles Worthing one here for a very reasonable £6.99.

Lots of love,

TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | INSTAGRAM

Benefit Big Easy | Multi Balancing Skin Perfector

When Benefit's latest launch Big Easy* landed at my doorstep (in a rather amazing circus themed packages - how cute is that lion?), I was so excited to give it a try. I love the concept behind it and its unlike anything else I've ever tried before. Benefit are often coming up with new and exciting products such as their innovative 'Gimmee Brow' and selection of multi-use tints. I do love a beauty brand that thinks outside of the box!

So, you're probably wondering what makes Big Easy so different from all the other base products on the market and the reason its so unique is due to its magical complexion perfection cream to powder finish. It isn't a foundation and it isn't a BB cream, its what Benefit class as a 'multi balancing skin perfector'. I must admitt I was a bit concerned when I heard it had a powder finish as I'm definitely more in favour of a glowy radiant base. However, since trying this product, I realised that although it does turn into a powder, its exceptionally lightweight and natural. The coverage is light to medium so it still allows your natural radiance to shine through but is manages it enough so you're face isn't going to look like a disco ball by lunchtime. This is perfect for someone like me with combination skin as I really suffer with shine throughout the day on my t-zone.

Another few things I love about this product is how it evens out my skintone, conceals redness and covers blemishes, contains an SPF 35 (great for Summer) and self adjusts to any skintone to ensure it looks completely seamless and natural on the skin. I know, pretty impressive right? I think its going to be a makeup bag staple for me on holiday and in Summer as the powder finish will control excess shine that creeps up on me in the warmer weather and the SPF 35 will ensure my skin is protected from those pesky UV rays!

Now as I mentioned, I have combination skin so this product works well for me but I'm not sure if it would work quite as well on dry skin types due to the powder element. Although it is very natural looking and doesn't at all feel cakey or too dry (infact, its very comfortable on the skin),  if you're a dry skinned gal, it might be worth popping to your local Benefit counter and giving it a whirl before taking the plunge! I wouldn't want to recommend a product that could potentially make you have a cake face. I mean I'm sure it wouldn't but you know, I'm just putting that out there. Hehe!

Benefit Big Easy is available in stores and online now and it available in six different shades. I've been wearing 'Light/Medium' and 'Medium' at the minute and due to the self adjusting formula, they both match my skintone perfectly. I might even ramp it up a notch and wear 'Beige' when I have a tan. Priced at £27.50, it isn't the cheapest product but it is one I'd recommend trying and hey, at least if you're wearing this you can skip the powder so its essentially two products for the price of one! Yay!

Do you like the sound of Big Easy? You can find it here (free gift with purchase).

Lots of love,

TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | INSTAGRAM

April Love Me Beauty Box (& 10% discount code!)

Love Me Beauty box* | £10.00 plus p&p | 10% off with the code 'CG10' | Link

So I'm sure you're used to reading my monthly Love Me Beauty posts by now but just incase your new to my blog or haven't heard about this beauty box before, Love Me Beauty is a monthly subscription box with a difference. Unlike your standard beauty boxes that are a surprise every month (ususally full of products you didn't really want), Love Me Beauty allows their subscribers to choose from an option of three menus each month to ensure you're getting products you know you'll like and use. However, if you prefer the element of surprise, there's also a 'surprise' option you can choose instead. As if that wasn't great enough, they also offer subscribers the chance to skip a month (with no cost) if there isn't anything in that months box that takes your fancy. So basically what I'm trying to say is don't let the fact its a subscription box put you off as they're very flexible and you can cancel at any time!

This month I went for menu three and I was really excited about this one as there isn't one product that I wouldn't use. Keep reading to find out what I received ...

Models Own Nail Polish in Fuzzy Peach | Full Size | RRP £5.00

I was really happy to see a Models Own nail polish in this months box as they're one of my favourite nail polish brands and this shade, 'Fuzzy Peach', a muted coral, is perfect for S/S. As with all Models Own polishes, only two coats are required for full opacity. I can see this being my go-to Summer nail colour!

Redken Colour Extend Conditioner| 25ml Sample

Having tried a few Redken products in the past and loving them, I was excited to see a sample of their colour extend conditioner in this months box. Its a fairly small sample (25ml) but it should last me two washes and its a great little size for travelling. I intend to take it with me on my trip home this weekend so I haven't tried it yet but I'm looking forward to. Its designed to help keep colour treated hair vibrant and fresh so its right up my bleached blonde headed street! A full size bottle of this costs a pretty reasonable £9.99 so if I do like it, I might be tempted to buy the full size!

Betty Hula Secret Wonder Oil Roller Ball | Full Size | RRP £6.25

I've never heard of the brand Betty Hula before so I wasn't sure what to make of this product when I saw it in the box. However, after giving it a little go, I can confirm its absolutely lovely. Its a multi-purpose oil in a handy roller ball applicator that can be used on any areas of skin that need a boost of moisture. It smells very citrusy too which I absolutely love!

Neal & Wolf Ritual Daily Cleansing Shampoo | Full Size | RRP £11.50

I've tried this shampoo in the past and I really like it so I was happy to see this in this months box. It smells absolutely incredible and is very gentle on the hair. It removes any build up of product and leaves my hair feeling silky and soft. Neal & Wolfe say "an infusion of silk and milk proteins combine to boost vital moisture and reduce flyaway hair" and that "Liquid shea extract delivers brilliant shine" and I couldn't agree more!

Hello Fresh £25 Gift Card

Love Me Beauty boxes usually contain five products so when I saw each menu only contained four this month, I was a little bit confused. However, when I received my box and saw this voucher, I realised that this is the fifth item and its a bloomin good one too! As you probably know by now, I love cooking and would consider myself a bit of a 'foodie' so this gift card couldn't be more perfect for me. Hello Fresh is a unique service that delivers fresh ingredients to your door, along with recipe cards so you can follow them step by step and make a whole host of delicious meals. A box for 3 nights worth of meals for 2 people (the one I'm going to order) costs £42 with free delivery so I only have to pay £17 with this voucher which is total bargain when you think about it. Three nights worth of delicious new meals to try - I can't wait!

Weleda Stretch Mark Massage Oil

Love Me Beauty popped a couple of sachets of this massage oil in as an extra this month and although I don't have stretch marks, this will be nice to use to give my body a boost of moisture. I wasn't overly excited by this item but its a nice little extra regardless.

As you can see - Love Me Beauty have really delivered once again and I couldn't be happier with the contents of this months box. I'm particularly excited by the Hello Fresh voucher - me and my boyfriend have already been stalking their website and the food on offer sounds delicious so we're looking forward to dining like kings next week! For only £9.00 with my 10% discount code 'CG10' (pop it in at the checkout to receive the discount), this really is too much of a bargain to be missed! All Love Me Beauty boxes have a value of £35.00 or more so you can be rest assured that you're getting fantastic value for your money!

Which is your favourite product in this months box? Have you subscribed yet?

Lots of Love,

TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | INSTAGRAM

New In | Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet Lipsticks

Bourjois have done it again - they've launched another product that is bloomin amazing! Seriously, can this brand do no wrong? They're definitely the best of the best when it comes to highstreet makeup brands and its not hard to see why judging by their latest launch, Rouge Edition Velvet lipsticks*. Since this selection of bold and bright lip products arrived with me, I've not had them off my lips. Seriously, I've worn one of these every single day - that's how much I love them.

Firstly, can we just appreciate how amazing these shades are? There's a selection of 8 shades available in the new collection ranging from nude to bold and bright and I was sent four of the brighter shades and as a girl who loves a bright lip, they're right up my street. I received Hot Pepper which is a vibrant orange toned red, Frambourjoise which is a deep rose pink, Peach Club which as the name suggests is a lovely peach and Pink Pong which is my personal favourite - a bright Fucshia. 

As well as the fabulous shades and names, these lipsticks are amazingly pigmented, last all day and don't dry out my lips. Now some of you might be wondering why they're called lipsticks when they're applied like a lipgloss or stain with a doe foot applicator. Well, I was confused by this too but since using them, I can see why they're nothing like a gloss or a stain. They're infact a liquid lipstick, very much like Rimmel's Apocalips - but better. The reason they're better is due to their lovely velvet formula and finish. They glide onto my lips as smooth as butter and can be built up as much as I like depending on the look I'm going for. I find I need two coats for them to look completely opaque but I'm fine with that as once they're on, they don't budge. The finished result is bold lips with a matte finish that still feels comfortable to wear. I'm not usually a fan of any matte lip products but these ones are definitely an exception.

You may also be wondering why they look quite glossy in the above photos and that's because I took the photo just after swatching them. They do infact dry matte on the lips after a minute of two but again, they're definitely not too matte to the point they look dry or powdery.  They actually feel pretty moisturising which is unusual for a matte product!

Overall, I don't have a bad word to say about this new launch from Bourjois. I've already worn them more times than I can count and I'll continue to until every last drop of them has gone. Pink Pong has been my go to 'night out' lip product recently (I'm wearing it in my blog profile picture) and I've had endless compliments about the shade - its a real show stopper! Priced at £8.99 and available on the highstreet, these are a must-have!

Do you like the look of Bourjois new lip product? Which is your favourite shade?

Lots of Love,

TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | INSTAGRAM

Healthy Eating | My Top 10 Tips

All images taken from my instagram | Follow me @kayleighjcouture

If you follow me on instagram, you've probably noticed I'm a bit of a foodie. I love nothing more than whipping up a fresh homemade meal (and photographing the evidence for Instagram of course) and trying new recipes and combinations. I've always had an interest in food from a very young age - I think I get it from my nanna as she's very much the 'foodie' as well and she's always making me lovely homemade meals. I guess her interest in food has rubbed off on me!

Anyway, I decided it would be worth sharing a few of my healthy eating tips with you guys. The things I try to do *most* of the time (yes, I do still stuff my face from time to time) and the things I've found that work for me in terms of maintaining my weight and keeping me feeling healthy! I'm by no means a nutritionist or a food expert so please don't take what I'm saying as bible - these are just a few things that work for me. I always get asked questions about the various foods I'm posting on Instagram and how I stay in shape so I thought it'd be worth sticking all of my knowledge into this one post for you to take or leave! I hope you enjoy!

1. Small changes make the biggest difference.
Okay so this might be an obvious one but when I decided I wanted to start eating healthily, the first thing I did was make very small changes that didn't really impact my life very much but made a big difference to how I feel and the amount of calories I was consuming. Firstly, I decided to cut out soft drinks. At one point I was drinking cans of Sprite almost every day which I knew needed to stop as soft drinks are full of empty calories, sugar and nastiness. I decided to go completely cold turkey on them and drink water instead. It really wasn't as difficult as I imagined and now I would never dream of buying a can of fizzy pop (well - unless I'm hungover and then its a different story!). I also stopped having sugar in my tea and this one was harder but after gradually reducing the amount I was having (I went from two sugars to one to half and then none), I found I didn't feel like I needed it anymore. If I drink tea with sugar in these days, it makes me feel sick. Seriously, give it a try - your tastebuds will soon become used to the taste of tea with no sugar and you'll wonder why you ever added those unnecessary calories to an otherwise low calorie beverage! Finally, I made the change from white bread to wholemeal. Bread gets a really bad rep as the devil when you're dieting but it really isn't that bad - especially if its wholemeal or granary. It has more nutrients and will keep you fuller for longer which prevents unnecessary snacking later on in the day. I never eat white bread anymore unless I'm eating out at restuarants and I have to say, I don't miss it one bit.

2. Say goodbye to processed food.
So this is another obvious one but again, its so important! When I think back to my uni days and the fact I'd eat frozen food or microwave meals virtually every day, I feel a bit sick. Firstly, they have absolutely no goodness in them and they're packed with preservatives and chemicals that our bodies just don't need. They're also laden with fat and calories - ew! I now try to make most of the foods I eat homemade and fresh. I think most people think that making fresh food is a hassle but it really isn't. For example - homemade stirfrys, pastas and casseroles take a matter of minutes. Chop some veg, bang it in a pan or the oven and you're good to go. Spend the 8 minutes it would take for your microwave meal to warm up chopping some fresh meat and veg instead - it will make the biggest difference to how you feel and your waistline!

Source: Link

3. Eat more regularly
You're probably thinking "if I want to maintain or lose weight, why the hell would I eat more often" and I used to have the exact same thought process. I used to think that because I skipped breakfast and didn't have any snacks, I'd lose weight or at least not put any on. WRONG! The only thing that made me do was totally indulge when I did eat and eat huge portions becuase I'd deprived my body for hours between meals. Eating regularly is probably my top tip when it comes to healthy eating. As long as the snacks you're eating are healthy (more about those in a minute), they'll go a long way to keeping you in shape and your metabolism ticking over. I now make sure I eat my three meals a day (never skip breakfast!) and two or three snacks throughout the day too. This ensures my metabolism is constantly ticking over and my body doesn't go into starvation mode. If you don't eat for hours and hours between meals, your body will then store any food it does get as fat instead of burning it off. Trust me on this one - eat more healthily and regularly and you'll see a massive difference!

4. Drink more water and limit your alcohol intake!
So this is another pretty obvious one but its again so important. I don't think people realise how many carlories are actually in alcohol and if you're drinking wine or beer infront of the TV every evening on top of all the food you've eaten throughout the day, its going to impact your health and your weight. What I try and do is just drink alcohol once a week, usually on a weekend when I'm seeing friends or want to chill after a busy week at work. I also try and drink small glasses of white wine topped with diet lemonade as that means a bottle can last me a lot longer. Another alcoholic drink that's pretty low in calories is vodka lime and soda water - its a good one to go for if you're watching your weight. Anything fizzy or laden with sugar like alcho pops, beer and cider is best avoided. Not only that, alcohol isn't good for our bodies and can impact our health when consumed in large quantities so cutting down can only be a good thing! The same applies to water - drinking more of it can only be a good thing. I never used to drink much water but I now try and drink it all day with my meals and between meals too. Not only is it great for us in terms of hydration, it can also kick start the metabolism, make us feel fuller for longer and give us healthy hair, skin and nails. Its such a simple thing but staying hydrated is a must when leading a healthy lifestyle!

5. Size really does matter.
I think the biggest mistake a lot of people make when they're trying to lose a few pounds is definitely portion size. If you're eating really healthy foods but you've got them piled up sky high on your plate, you're still consuming a lot of calories. I'm by no means saying deprive yourselves but just be aware of how much you're eating. For instance, if you're eating a salad with avocado - have half an avocado instead of a whole one (they're healthy but are still high in calories) or if you're eating a healthy vegetable pasta dish, don't overdo the pasta and have more of the veg instead. Its the same with treats - just keep portion size in mind. For instance, one of two biscuits doesn't contain that many calories but if you're going through a packet a day, you're consuming too many. Its all just common sense stuff really!

Source:Link

6. Cut down on sauces and spreads.
A big culprit in weight gain and something people forget to cut out when they're trying to be healthy is sauces and spreads. I'm talking about things like butter, mayonnaise, tomato ketchup, cooking oils and high calories jars of sauces. There's well over 100 calories in a tablespoon of olive oil and although olive oil is a healthy fat, you're consuming that number of calories before any actual food has been added into your day. If you're cooking three meals a day with oil or adding a few tablespoons of it to your salad or roasted vegetablets, you're adding unnecessary extra calories. I try to stick to one teaspoon of oil when I'm cooking a stirfry or roasting vegetables (which is normally more than enough) and I tend to eat avocado in my sandwhiches and wraps instead of adding loads of mayo or salad cream. Ready made salad dressings tend to have a tonne of calories in them too so keep an eye out for that and try making your own instead. The same applies to ready made sauces you can buy in the supermarket - especially the creamy ones. Try and stick to tomato based sauces if you're going to buy them ready made but even better would be to make your own. You can use some tomato passtata, garlic, chilli and herbs to make your own tasty tomato sauce or creme fraiche to make a low calorie creamy sauce! I find they usually taste even better than the ready made ones and there's no added sugar in them either! Win win!

7. Snack wisely.
As I briefly mentioned in point 3 - make sure the snacks you're eating are healthy. No more crisps, chocolate bars or even cereal bars (full of sugar!). Try eating fruit, nuts and seeds, hummus with vegetable sticks, rice cakes with avocado or greek yoghurt with a small amount of granola and berries. These kind of snacks will fuel your body and keep your metabolism ticking instead of giving you a quick sugar rush that will then leave you craving even more bad foods. On a day to day basis I tend to have two pieces of fruit, a handful of nuts and some yoghurt between meals. I obviously mix it up in terms of which fruits I eat and so on but after a while, it just becomes a way of life.

Source:Link

8. Preperation is key.
This is one I need to improve myself but I'll often go through fazes of being extrememly organised and prepping my food in advance for the week ahead. It does take time and can be a bit of a faff but once its done, you don't have to think about it for the rest of the week and you won't be tempted to pop out for a chicken mayo baguette at lunch time as you have a healthy homemade lunch ready and waiting for you. Some of my favourite things to prep in advance would be soups, pastas and cous cous or chickpea salads. They're all really easy to make and you can then bang them in some tupperware boxes and pop them in the fridge or freezer ready to go. I really love using the Sistema tupperware boxes which can be found here!

9. Make use of your phone.
If you own a smart phone (wow, how strange does that sound) whether its an iphone or an android - make use of it! There's so many apps out there that can help you with your health and fitness goals and most of them are free. My favourite to track what I'm eating is definitely My Fitness Pal - its a food diary where you input everything you've consumed and see how many calories you've been eating. To be honest, I don't do it every day as I don't want to be someone obsessed with calories (not healthy!) but if I'm not sure if something is high or low in calories, I'll have a quick search on My Fitness Pal to work out whether its something I want to eat. There's also tonnes of free recipe apps on there too if you're stuggling for ideas. Download a few freebies and get your creative juices flowing.

Source:Link

10. Allow yourself treats - just not too many!
This is another extremely important thing to remember when you're trying to eat healthily or watch what you're eating. I think its very easy to get sucked into the whole 'you must not eat this or that' or 'you must cut out this food type' nonsense and to be honest, this kind of advice has the complete opposite effect. Nothing winds me up more than people saying 'cut out carbs' or 'you must only eat salad'. Firstly, your body needs bits of all the food types to be healthy and by not allowing yourself something, you will only crave it more. I tried cutting out carbs once and by the end of the day, I was chomping down on a baguette. However, had I stuck with the 'everything in moderation' approach, I wouldn't of craved the bread in the first place. It was only because I told myself I wasn't allowed it that I wanted it even more. Temptation is a bitch! Plus, its okay to eat something naughty every once in a while. If we didn't allow ourselves treats, we'd probably go crazy and feel miserable. So if you want a saturday night takeway or a bottle of wine with friends, go for it! As long as its not happening on a daily basis, the odd treat really won't harm. 

To finish, I thought I'd add a few things I tend to eat, incase you want to try them for yourself.

Breakfast

Boiled eggs with granary toast and a light spread of butter

Porridge with a squeeze of honey

Greek yoghurt with a sprinkle of granola/almonds and berries

Fruit salad - any kind you fancy - my favourite is melon and berries!

One piece of granary toast and fruit

A 'healthy' cooked breakfast - grilled meat (bacon, sausage) with a poached egg, grilled tomatoes and beans

Lunch
Wholemeal chicken and salad wrap with avocado

Homemade soup (my favourite is leek and potato or butternut squash) with a slice of granary/wholemeal bread or ryvita's

Cous Cous with roasted vegetables

Salad - any kind you like with lots of veg, as long as there's no high calorie dressings

Beans with granary bread or wholemeal bagel

Chickpeas with roasted vegetables and lemon and garlic dressing

Dinner

Vegetable pasta made with homemade tomato sauce (passata, garlic, chilli, lemon juice and herbs)
Turkey breasts with homemade marinade (ginger, lemon juice, garlic and chicken stock) with sweet potato mash and veg

Stir fry (chicken or prawn) with lots of veg and a small portion of rice

Grilled chicken with sweet potato wedges/cous cous and salad or veg

Chicken fajitas with homemade guacamole

Homemade shepherds/cottage pie with sweet potato topping

Casseroles with any kind of lean meat and lots of veg

Those are just a few things off the top of my head that I enjoy eating on a regular basis - of course there's lots more great recipes out there but those are some easy basics! I'd also really recommend the Hairy Bikers cook books - they have some fantastic healthy recipes and they're all very easy to make.

Anyway, I realise this is the longest post in the history of my blog but I really hope its helped and you've gained something from it! These are all things I've found have really helped me to maintain a healthy weight and most of them are just lifestyle changes - no strict diets or cutting out food groups. Fad diets really don't work - if you want to become healthier, you need to change your lifestyle as a whole. Cutting out carbs can only last so long!

If you'd like to see some recipes on my blog, please let me know. I've had people ask me to post some in the past but I wasn't sure if they'd be very fitting. However, if its something I know you'd like to see, I'd be more than happy to post some! 

Let me know your top healthy eating tips in the comments below! I'm always looking for new ones to try :)

Lots of Love,

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Foxy Locks Hair Extensions | The Superior Set

Foxy Locks Superior Hair Extensions* | £129.99 | Link

Since starting my blog back in 2011, one of my post popular posts would definitely be this review of Foxy Locks hair extensions. Its one of the most frequent searches that leads people to my blog and I also get emails by the bucket load from girls asking for my opinion on these ever so popular extensions. Foxy Locks is the creation of blogger and youtuber Imogen (find her channel here) who creates amazing hair tutorials using these extensions. I remember stumbling across Imogen's Youtube videos years ago and watching those, along with reading nothing but rave reviews was what made me purchase my first set of Foxy Locks. I was just so impressed with how thick and full they were in her videos and her tutorials were so helpful - she shares everything there is to know about wearing, washing and styling her extensions. Back then I ordered the 'Regular' set which is the most basic set Imogen offers. However, even though its the set with the least amount of hair, they were still super thick and luxurious - all for a very reasonable price too (£58.00 I believe).

Recently Foxy Locks have launched their brand new packaging and their new Superior set of extensions which includes 215g of hair (wow!) and is their thickest and most luxurious set to date. When Imogen contacted me asking if I'd like to try them, I'm not going to lie, I jumped at the chance. I had a bit of a fan girl moment because I've been watching her YT for years and have a bit of girl crush on her (hehe!) so I was amazed she even knew about my blog. I also loved my extensions so much the last time around that I knew I'd love this new thicker set even more. I'm sure you all know how much I love having big hair by now - its a slight obsession!

When my extensions arrived in the post - I was very impressed with the new packaging. As you can see from my photos, its very sleek and the hair is tucked away nicely inside some netting. There's also a test piece of hair for you to try before you open the main section of the packet - that way you can make sure the shade is a match to your own hair and if it isn't, you can exchange them for a different shade. Buying extensions online can always be pretty daunting if you don't know which shade you need so this keeps things really convenient and easy!

Okay so I'm not going to ramble on about the quality of these extensions too much because if you read my previous in-depth review on them here, you'll know I can't speak highly enough of it. They're made from the best of the best human remy hair and are super sleek, thick and shiny. As I previously mentioned, the new Superior set has 215g of hair which is an absolutely insane amount - that's about 65g more hair than I had when I had professional micro ring extensions! Basically, if you want massive thick hair, you won't get much thicker than this.

The reason the hair is so thick but still easy to wear is down to the clever wefts. You get 8 pieces of hair in the set which is a pretty standard amount for most full head sets of hair extensions but the difference with this Superior set is that each of the pieces has three wefts sewn together to make it thicker. So essentially you're getting 24 wefts of hair which is pretty incredible. Now if I were to try and clip 24 pieces of hair onto my head, its safe to say I'd struggle. However, because the wefts have been combined to make thicker pieces - I can easily add all of the hair to my head without it feeling weighed down. I was actually very surprised by how leightweight the wefts are and that's a definite bonus of these extensions - it almost feels like you aren't wearing any. Its also great that you get so much hair as you can really mix it up in terms of the look you're going for. For example, on a day to day basis I might only wear a few of the pieces to add a bit of volume but when I'm going on a glam night out, I'll add more to achieve that really big Cherly Cole style hair.

I'd also like to point out that the quality of the clips is great too - they're very sturdy and once they're in, they don't move! There's nothing worse than wearing extensions that keep popping out every five minutes. In terms of colour and length, the shade I went for was Sandy Blonde (a lovely light blonde with a more natural shade running through it) which is a great match for my hair and the length of the extensions is 20" which again is perfect for my hair. The only down side to these extensions is that they do only come in the 20" length which isn't ideal for everyone but you can always cut them so that shouldn't be too much of an issue! I'd also say the ends are quite blunt looking so that's something to bare in mind - they may need a little trim to blend them into your own hair. As you can see from the photo above, when straight, they do need a bit of tidying up at the bottoms. However, as I mainly wear them curled, this hasn't been much of an issue for me. Just a couple of things I wanted to point out as although I adore these hair extensions, I want to be totally honest about the slight niggles I have.

Finally, the price. The new Superior set definitely isn't cheap at £129.99 but I'd definitely say they're worth it if you love big volumous hair. However, if its just a little bit of volume you're after, the 125g set for £58 or the volumizer piece for £45.99 would probably be more than enough.

Overall I bloomin love these hair extensions and definitely think they're some of the best out there in terms of thickness, quality and value for money. If you want to add volume to your hair without paying salon prices - look no further than Foxy Locks!

Have you tried Foxy Locks extensions? Would you like to try them?

Lots of Love,

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