Thick/Curly Hair care & Routine

For years and years I have struggled with my hair as it is very thick and weighty to style and care for. I have always dyed my hair and at one point in my life straightened it whilst it was wet (I can hear hairdressers all over the world screaming in anger). Now I'm at a point in my life where I am looking after my hair properly, it's at a good length and I love styling it. A lot of the time I'm also asked if I'm wearing extensions or just in general how I style it.

To begin with, I always wash my hair with some sort of L'Oreal shampoo and conditioner combination as I always dye my hair with a L'Oreal kit and find that it always works well with my hair and leaves it in the best possible condition. When my hair is wet and fresh from the shower I spray my heat protectant from the roots down and same with the L'Oreal Elvive Damage Care spray which I find helps with my hair as it gets incredibly dry. The last step in my pre-styling routine is to add the Umberto Giannini Frizz Off Blow Dry Cream and this helps with keeping the frizz away from my hair and to make it manageable.

I then obviously blow dry my hair and straighten it to just get rid of my natural curls as the final look of my hair styled with curlers looks a lot nicer when its straight to begin with...

Once my hair is straight, I section it ready for curling...

I then take a section of hair about 15cms wide ready for curling...

I then take my curlers and wrap the hair round away from my face for about 10 seconds, the key to the loose curls is to have big pieces and apply heat for a short amount of time to get to loose look. I also NEVER curl from the roots, I start curling from about half way down to again give the curls a loose look...

I continue this process until the bottom section is complete, alternating from curling in towards my face and away from my face to give the curls a bit of definition...

The whole process of curling my hair will literally take me about 20 minutes, even though my hair is thick and there's a lot of it, it's a quick process.

I then go round and spray my hair with a hair spray and a climate control spray from Lee Stafford which I find just helps to keep away any little fly away hairs and keeps my hair looking tamed...

The final step is to then run the VO5 nourish my shine serum to keep my hair looking shiny.

The products I use on a daily basis after I style my hair to keep it looking nourished and healthy.

I hope you enjoyed this post and maybe even found a new product that you could use if you have hair the same as mine! As always, leave me comments on any other posts you'd like to see and follow me on Instagram & Twitter - @ellie_christmas

                                                               Ellie xxx

Winchester Vintage Market

Winchester is renowned for being an old city with fascinating architecture, old buildings, wonderful independent shops and well-known retailers. The market is held up and down the streets of the city on the first Sunday of every month and there is an array of antiques on sale, from stuffed animals, to furniture to 20th century gardening tools. There is also a few vintage clothes stalls but beware they are VERY pricey (as all vintage clothes normally are!) It's so great to walk around the market looking at all the stalls and being inspired for interior decor and to find old little nic nacs that were around in my childhood and to take a trip down memory lane. Whilst at one of the stalls one of the women told me about a huge vintage outlet in Winchester called Molly's Den with over 250 tradesmen and women and it's open 7 days a week so if you live in the South East, it's definitely worth a visit! 

The Dolce Vita

Charlotte Tilbury is known for making some of the most beautiful make up products and one of my latest purchases definitely lives up to that name. I brought the palette The Dolce Vita which consists of gorgeous gold and brown tones which I find works best with my green eyes. The staying power of these shadows is PHENOMENAL, I can put these on early in the morning and by the end of the day I will still have a perfect smokey eye which hasn't budged all day. The pigmentation of not only this palette but nearly all of the palettes have tried is absolutely amazing and you only need to use a tiny bit of product. What would say is that if you are looking for a palette that is going to last a long time and really look flawless on the eye and bring out your eye colour, a Charlotte Tilbury palette is for you!

As always, let me know what you think via my twitter or instagram @ellie_christmas
                                                                           Ellie xoxox

The best ever handbag

A couple of months ago I went a little bit cray cray in the Zara Sale and fell in love with a little grey leather handbag. I knew that when I saw it I just had to buy it and I would be in love.  The handbag is a grey leather bag with a white leather pouch on the front, it wasn't until I got home that I realised that the the front pouch actually had a removable clutch bag which just made me fall in love with the bag even more. I've been using this bag for a while now and I can honestly say I've never loved a bag so much, its practical and it looks pretty! I can honestly say, Zara, you did good with this bag.

As always, let me know what you think and what you'd like to see next via my twitter and instagram @ellie_christmas
                                                                             Ellie xoxo

Did you know you've got a hole in your jeans?

This has to be one of my favourite outfits I've put together recently, it kinda makes me feel street and a bit more update to date with recent trends. I am absolutely in LOVE with my new ASOS skinny jeans because A) They are incredibly soft and fit like glove and B) they have a rip on the knee and I've been looking for the perfect pair of distressed jeans. I paired it with my one my favourite Zara sale purchases which is a chiffon crop top covered in Pineapples and I just feel summery and bright and colourful in it. My other favourite Zara sale purchase are the sunglasses which cost me just £9.99 (bargain of the year! Although people calling me Elton John in them) and lastly my ever so trusty, ever so lovely Nike x Liberty trainers which I don't think I'll ever fall out of love with! 

As always, let me know what you think and what you'd like to see me post next via Twitter & Instagram @ellie_christmas 

                                                             Ellie xoxox 

Summer BBQ Look

When it's sunny in England, everybody knows you have to make the most of the sunny weather. One tradition my family has is a big family party at my aunties farm every year and I thought I'd share my make up look and outfit with you guys. I've gone a bit OTT with my shopping recently and I'm wanting to wear everything I own at the minute, I brought a long top/dress from Urban Outfitters which I paired with some light jeans for the base of my outfit. For ages I've had my eyes on the Monki maxi cardigan and I've never had the money when I wanted it and I've never been sure on it but I saw a long cardigan/kimono in Urban Outfitters and I fell in love, I wore this just for the chilly evening to keep me warm. I've also naughtily splashed out on a Charlotte Tilbury pallet and a beautiful natural nude lipstick. I brought the pallet The Rock Chick which is a grey smokey pallet, the shadows are really pigmented but the colours come out so beautifully and blend so easily on the eye. I then went with a nude lip because obviously if you have big grey/black smokey eyes, a nude, subtle lip will compliment it really well, the lipstick I went with was Bitch Perfect, again, by Charlotte Tilbury and I just feel the whole make up look worked well with the outfit and looked lovely for a casual summer BBQ.

As always, follow me on Instagram & Twitter - ellie_christmas and let me know what you think and what you'd like to see next!
                                                                     Ellie xoxo

Baby Sized Space NK Haul

As mentioned in my previous post, I went on a little shopping tripping last weekend and visited what can only be described as heaven on earth for all make up lovers, yes, I'm talking about Space NK. For ages I've also had my eyes on the Nars Orgasm blush and when I saw the Nars stand in Space NK I just knew I wasn't going to be coming out of there empty handed. I of course brought the beautiful blusher in the most perfect summery shade and also was persuaded to buy myself the dreamy match lip gloss in Super Orgasm which works perfectly with a light shimmery summer make up look.

As always, let me know what you think and whether you'd plunge into the Nars Orgasm?! Tweet me or follow me on Instagram - @ellie_christmas!
                                                                      Ellie XO

The Weekend Edit

Some of my earliest childhood memories are in Guildford, visiting my great grandparents and spending time with family. For those of you who don't know where Guildford is, it's an English city just outside of London or as my grandpa calls it "The Mini London" and rightly so. Shopping wise Guildford has everything from Primark to Urban Outfitters to Anthropologie to Space NK and Jo Malone. Obviously I took advantage of all of these shops being in one area and brought myself lots of treats (which will we be up in more posts soon!). Guildford also has lots of different restaurants from TGI Fridays to Wagamama's to Bills which just so happens to be my favourite place to eat. I spent the day shopping with my parents and exploring the beautiful city and taking in the traditional English architecture. I then spent the afternoon at an area called Frensham Ponds which is a lake with a little beachy area just relaxing and soaking up the sunshine after a hard days shopping. 

I hope you all enjoyed this post, something a little different so that you all can go out and hopefully explore the beautiful English "Mini London" and enjoy the shops, restaurants and architecture. 

Let me know what you guys think of this post and don't forget to follow me on Twitter & Instagram @ellie_christmas and tell me what you'd like to see next.

                                                                        Ellie xo 

Boyish OOTD

So I think of myself as a girly Tomboy, I'm not someone who will wear dresses all day every day, I'll always choose jeans over anything else. This outfit of the day consisted of my favourite jeans from New Look with a baggy Celine t-shirt which, yes, I'll admit, it's fake from a market stall in Camden but who cares?! I then also dug out a pair of floral print vans from my wardrobe which I totally forgot I had from last summer and wore them to add a bit of a pop of colour to my outfit. 

I hope you enjoyed this outfit, it's something a bit different to what I normally post, as always, let me know what you think via my Twitter and Instagram @ellie_christmas

Ellie

xx

Floral outfit of the night

So I seem to have neglected my blog a little bit recently?! I thought I'd ease myself back into blogging with a quick, easy outfit of the night post, I worse this for a meal out with my family and I thought it was just the right amount of casual/smart wear for an evening. I wore some simple black skinny jeans from Asos, with a floral shirt also from Asos. My shoes were some black flatforms that I got from Next last summer and I love wearing them because they're just the right height for me as I'm ever so tall and the add just a little bit of elegance to my outfit. I am also IN LOVE with my new clutch bag from Zara which came from a handbag I brought in a sale. For my make up I went with a pink subtle eye using my naked pallet and winged liner and a new Dior Lip Gloss in the shade Mirage which is a beautiful natural nude colour. To finish off my look I went for simple white nails using the Essie nail varnish in Blanc.

Let me know if you've enjoyed this post or what you'd like to see next by following me on twitter or instagram - ellie_christmas :) 
                                                                Ellie
                                                                xxx

Skin and Hair Care Favourites

Hi Guys,
Since my "what's in my make up bag" post was so popular I thought I would do another beauty related post. This time round I thought I would do some skin and hair care favourites.

The first set of products are hair care and one shower gel. The shower gel is a cream wash from Sephora, Paris and although there's nothing on the packaging to say it's nourishing or anything like that, I love how it leaves my skin feeling and also the strawberry scent. The next product is a Loreal heat protector and I just find this really helps to keep the style in my hair and protect it from the heat. The next two products are Aussie heat damaged hair repair (one is a serum, one is a spray) and I like to run this through the ends of my hair when it's wet to add some moisture to my damaged ends and repair my hair. The next product is a Loreal Serum, which again I run through the ends of my hair to just help repair my very damaged hair and it also helps to leave my hair extra smooth and silky. I also really love using the Loreal conditioner that comes with the preference hair dye box sets as it leaves my hair in the best condition possible. The last product for my hair care favourites is one I honestly couldn't live without and it's the Batiste dry shampoo, whenever my hair is looking a bit dull and lifeless, I spray some to the roots of my hair and run my fingers through my hair and it's instantly revived and alive again.

These products are my Go-To skin care products that I couldn't live without on a day to day basis. The first two products are face washes, the first one being the Origins checks and balances scrub which just cleans my skin beautifully and leaves it SO soft and nourished. The next scrub is a Neutrogena spot control one which again I like to use to just help keep away any unwanted blemishes. The Origins spot gel is my next favourite and I just love to use this on a blemish twice a day and it helps to reduce the appearance of a spot. The moisturiser is also Origins and I love that a little goes a long way to help keep my skin feeling refreshed, soft, radiant and glowing and I use this all the time. The Origins Toner is also my most favourite Toner I have ever used, along with all the other products I use I feel that this just really helps to keep my skin, well, toned, clean looking and soft!

I hope you enjoyed this post and maybe have gotten some ideas for hair or skin care or just like me, are a bit nosey and love knowing what other people use! Don't forget to leave me a comment if you liked it and tell me what you want to see next or follow me on Instagram and Twitter @ellie_christmas to give me your thoughts.

                                                                             Ellie xxx

What's in my make up bag?

Hey guys,
I thought for this weeks post I'd do something a bit different and beauty related and show you what is in my make up bag and what products I have been loving recently.

Yep, I put alllllllllllll that on my face every day!

To start off with, I like to prime my face with the Benefit porefessional, I just love the look it gives my skin and the finish you get with it. I then take my Dior Skin Sculpt concealer in the shade 001 and blend that in with the Real Techniques Buffing brush. I then like to cover my under eyes with the Rimmel Wake Me Up concealer in the lightest shade (its rubbed off otherwise I'd tell you the colour!) and I tend to blend that in with the Real Techniques deluxe crease brush. For foundation I use the Dior Skin Sculpt foundation in the shade 010  and the Soap & Glory Show Good Face Foundation and Primer in the shade The Fairest Of Them All and blend that all over my face with the Real Techniques Buffing Brush. I then like to go over with my concealer in the areas that I need it and then powder everything in to place with my Rimmel powder in the shade 006 Warm Beige with the Real Techniques Powder Brush. I have recently been IN LOVE with the Dior Skin Nude Tan bronzer in the lightest shade (001) and using that to contour my face with the Real Techniques Retractable Kabuki Brush and then finish off my whole lengthy face process with my travel size Benefit Coralista blusher again with a Real Techniques brush, this time it's the blush brush.

Moving onto eyes I have really been loving giving myself a bold brow and a subtle smokey eye look. For my brows I use the colour Bark from my sleek pallet with the Real Techniques Brow Brush and then set it with the Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara in Dark Brown. For my eyes I am loving my naked pallet, I take Sin all over my lid with the Real Techniques Base Shadow Brush and then like to take my MAC 217 brush and mix a little bit of Naked and Buck together to run through my crease. I love brightening up the inner corner of my eye with Virgin and the Real Techniques Accent Brush. My go to and favourite liquid eye liner for a cat eye is the Loreal Super Liner then finish off with my No 7 eye lash curlers and add the Soap & Glory Thick & Fast Collagen-Coat Mascara. I have also been trying out the Dior Addict It-Lash mascara and oh my lord it's AMAZING! I'd recommend it to everyone, it gives you fuller, thicker, longer eyelashes and I am for sure buying the full size when it comes out.

When it comes to lips, I prime them with Carmex then add the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet lip matte finish in 04 Peach Club just for a pop of colour to my lips and it's a perfect Spring/Summer colour and it's super long lasting which is good in my books!

I hope you've enjoyed this post, it's something a bit different and I enjoyed writing it and I hope you've liked finding out what I put on my face on a regular day to day basis, if that's even a thing?!... Anyway - if you've liked this post feel free to leave me a comment or tweet me or follow me on Instagram - @ellie_christmas or just let me know what you want to see next!

                                                                     Ellie xx

OOTD - 01/06/2014

Hey guys, sorry I haven't posted much recently but I've had a super busy week with it being month end but I've relaxed this weekend and I thought I'd show you just one of my plain simple outifts I threw together and I also wanted to show off my super cute new Marc Jacobs phone case! I love going for a simple look recently and just wearing comfy things (what is happening to me?!) I'm also really loving wearing oversized t-shirts as I look the loose baggy look and it's also so comfy! I know it's not the most summery of outfits but I liked it and I was comfy in it! I really love my new converse as well I think they just look so classic with any outfit and I'm LOVING wearing them at the moment! Sunglasses - River Island, Shirt - Topshop, Jeans New Look (from ASOS though).

I'm also feeling like I have a bit of a writers block recently and I have no idea what to do for my next post and even if anyone enjoys reading these kind of posts?! Let me know in the comments what you'd like to see and I'll try my best to do it! Also I'd love it if you could follow me on twitter and instagram (@ellie_christmas) with any comments about my post and I'm also doing the #100happydays tag on instagram!

                                                                        Ellie xx

Nike x Liberty London

I'm so excited to be writing this post (how sad am I?!) I have been in love with the Nike x Liberty collection ever since it was released and I thought I'd treat myself as "well done on surviving your first year of university" present. My trainers are the Internationalist and they are without a doubt the best looking pair of trainers I own and they are the comfiest shoes I own! They're so easy to style as well, as I'm someone who normally tends to wear block/plain colours and keep my outfits looking minimalistic, I find these trainers just really add something to my outfit and they look so pretty sat in my wardrobe, win win situation right?! The first day that I styled them I wore them with black jeans, a black boyfriend t-shirt from ASOS, a vintage denim shirt and a little handbag from H&M! I've also paired them with some slouchy bottoms from ASOS and a checked shirt and I love the look of the outfit, I feel as if I've found myself a new style all from a pair of trainers, how revolutionary?! Anyway, I'll link the trainers (even though they're out of stock) from the Liberty website where you can browse the whole collection! http://www.liberty.co.uk/fcp/product/Liberty//Blue-Liberty-Print-Internationalist-Trainers-/104104

Ellie xx

OOTN - 16/05/2014

Hey guys!
I thought I'd share with you one of my favourite outfits that I've put together recently. Last night was girls night with a few of my gal pals and I just love this outfit, I think it's really nice for summer time. I'm not normally one for colour, anyone who knows me will know I spend my life in black clothing so I pushed myself to add colour to my wardrobe this summer. The shirt is from ASOS and it's a recent purchase and I am IN LOVE, the print is so pretty and the colours complement any outfit you put together, the jeans are an old pair that I found buried away in the back of my wardrobe from New Look and then some plain white converse to keep with the light colour scheme I seemed to have going on last night! 

Asos Haul - Monki

Hey guys!
I've finally finished my first year of University for summer and I'm dedicating this summer to blogging a lot more! I've recently just got myself a new job too so I thought that would be the perfect excuse to buy myself lots of new office wear and experiment with outfit choices I never really have done before!

I was trolling Asos just as any other fashion lover does on a regular basis and I found myself shopping on the Monki section of the website, I've never really given Monki a chance but I found myself wanting absolutely everything but I stopped myself from buying everything and brought myself just a few things.

 This jumper was the first thing that caught my eye, I love the print and it's not too heavy fabric wise. I thought this would be a perfect addition to my wardrobe for when it's a cold summer evening and I just want something to throw on.

 This jumper is a little bit out of my comfort zone as I'm normally anti animal print when it comes to clothes but I just love this. It's a subtle zebra print and the fabric is really thin so it'll still be okay to wear in the summer and won't feel too hot.

This purchase was my most favourite, I don't think you can ever go wrong with a chiffon shirt and this is just perfect for summer, the print is absolutely gorgeous and the fabric is so thin and light and just perfect for summer! I think this would also work really well dressed up with a pencil skirt or dressed down with a pair of skinny jeans!

So that's it for my Asos/Monki haul, it might not be interesting to some people but I thought I'd share it with you all and kick start my summer of blogging with something small to ease myself back into writing mode! Let me know if you want to see more posts like this or what posts you'd like to see in general and don't forget to follow me on twitter and instagram for other updates and photos and all that shiz - @ellie_christmas
                                                                  Ellie xx

Quick Update!

Hey Guys! 
Sorry I haven't posted anything in AGES  but I've been super busy with university work and haven't had the time to post anything! I recently left my intern position at College Fashionista (which all of my posts were about) so now I'm a little bit stuck on what to post! I'm going to force myself to do at least one post a week when I've finished university for the summer so I'd love to know what everyone would love to see! 

xo 

Street Style - Bethany Shelmerdine

After spending a week at home I was so excited to get back to university to see that the sun had made an appearance AND to see the outfits on campus this week. Fashionista’s all over campus are definitely starting to make the transition from the cold and gloomy winter trends to the spring trends. This week’s fashionista was most definitely sporting one of the brightest coats I’ve seen this week.

Name: Bethany Shelmerdine

Major: Business

Year: Freshman

CollegeFashionista: What are you wearing, and where is it from?

Bethany Shelmerdine: Today I am wearing: ripped jeans which are from Asos as well as my mustard colored blazer coat. I’m wearing a polo neck from H&M which I really love with this outfit because although it’s spring it’s still a tad chilly and the polo neck helps to keep me warm! I’ve gone for accessories from Asos (shoes) and TK Maxx (hand bag).

CF: What inspires your style?

BS: Oh this is a tricky one! I have loads of inspirations when it comes to my style but I’d say Kim Kardashian has had a huge influence on my outfit choices recently. I really love her look at the moment with the oversized coats mixed with elegance really looks classy but chic. The big coat look definitely is what I was going for today.

CF: What are your favourite items in your wardrobe?

BS: My favourite item in my wardrobe is these jeans that I’m wearing today. They look like a pair of jeans that you’d see Kim Kardashian or Kanye West in and I think they’re really on trend for Spring/Summer. I also love that these jeans can be dressed up for a night out or dressed down just for a lazy day at home.

CF: What’s next on your shopping list?

BS: Well, I’d like to have another oversized coat in my wardrobe; I love the look it gives to an outfit. I really love that Kenzo is becoming a popular brand again and that even high street stores are making dupes for their iconic tiger jumpers. I’m considering treating myself to a Kenzo jumper at some point so that is definitely going on my shopping list.

How To: This fashionista is definitely rocking the bold colours with her outfit and accessories. To achieve this style, a boldly coloured coat is essential for this look along with some ripped skinny jeans. Accessorize this outfit with some slip on sneakers, and a brightly coloured handbag.