Bye bye 2013, Hello 2014

I read the other day, every blogger should write a new year post. 
It's been a long time since my last post but my god how my life has changed since then. 
I've:-

• Moved across the country
• Moved out of my parents house for the first time
• Been promoted to a graduate stylist
• Ran my first 5k

The thing is now I've done all these things I'm slightly worried 2014 just won't live up to the last year. In my head I'm trying to come up with new challenges and targets for myself so that when the clock strikes 12 and rolls in 2015 I won't look back and think, oh I've done nothing to push myself this year. 

Back to the main subject of the blog tho, hair and beauty! 

New Years resolutions can be seen in 2 ways, a kick start to a new life or something that we can do for a few days or weeks and then we can go back to normal.

This year I'm determined to stick to some beauty resolutions which I hope won't just help my outer appearance but will help me to feel better inside too. So here they are my 2014 beauty resolutions.

1. Remove makeup before going to bed, I know it's the cliché resolution but sleeping in something that is going to clog up your pores when your skin should be regenerating itself seems silly. 
2. Drink more water, again cliché, but I really don't drink enough, I can go till 4 in the afternoon and realise I haven't drank a drop of liquid all day. I've read all the symptoms of chronic dehydration and I think drinking just a few more glasses a day would change my overall health. 
3. Use heat protector on my hair every time I blow dry or straighten it. This has become much easier after I started using Kerastase Ciment Thermique. Just put a small amount in towel dried hair after shampooing and containing and it protectors your hair from heat styling until your hair is next shampooed. Perfect if your the kind of person that forgets to use products every time you style your hair. 
4. Healthy eating/ exercise again cliché but in thus case I don't mean dieting, I mean putting the things my body needs in. Fresh fruit and vegetables mainly and starting more regular exercise. This should hopefully help boost the look of my skin hair and nails. 

And my not so beauty related resolutions

1. Run a 5k in less than 30 minutes, run a 10k and run a half marathon (I know I'm crazy)
2. Get more of a social life, moving to a completely new area last year has meant finding new friends, which to be honest I'm not the best at but this year I'm going to come out of my comfort zone and make an effort to do new things to meet new people. 
3.  Push myself at work, my first Christmas as an actual working hairdresser not just an assistant, proved to be either sink or swim and I believe I swam. It has given my the confidence to push myself a bit more, learn new things and become better at every aspect of hairdressing. 

If any of you out there have any resolutions beauty or non beauty related I would love to hear them, maybe we can help each other succeed this year. 

Until next time

Happy New Year

Charlie x

The Fear!

I can't believe that it's been over 6 weeks since I wrote my last post, I can only apologise for my absence but the same week I wrote that last post everything in my life began to change.

As I had written previously I had been to Venice and had written the post in London, the week before this I had applied for a job, just the one since my mum had seen it and thought it would be good for me. I applied thinking nothing would come of it. When I got back from Venice I checked my email and to my surprise I had an interview. 2 days later I went to my interview, which must have gone well since I was invited for 2 trial days 2 weeks later. After these 2 days amazingly I got the job and a promotion from my previous role.

But it wasn't as simple as starting a new job, which in its self can be pretty life changing, but for this job I had to move over 200 miles away from my family home. I have never lived away from home, not even when I went to uni.

2 weeks after my move, here I am living in the picturesque Surrey, having to get use to a new job, living away from family and friends, sharing a house with my god mother and trying to meet new people.

It's all very strange, I think most things seem to be working out so far, but meeting new people is always difficult when your new to an area, but I'm determined to make things work for me.

Sorry if the blog has been a bit life based but its kind of the focus of everything for me at the moment, I should be returning to the usual content soon.

If anyone has any suggestions on how to meet new people when moving to a new town please don't hesitate to get in touch I would love to here from you.

Until next time

Charlie x

Green Green Tea!

How fast is this year going, February already! I'm writing this from the big city of London, I was slightly disappointed that I have missed London fashion week by 24 hours but its still nice to be here after spending a few days in venice with the boyfriend.

Todays post is a little different as its not a hair post or particularly a beauty post but i thought i should share with you something that a have found out by accident over the last few weeks. This won't apply to all of you out there, but everyone with Psoriasis this could seriously help.

I will just give you a bit of the back ground story, last September I was bitten by a dog, don't worry it wasn't very serious but I was put on antibiotics. After this I came down with a really bad sore throat infection. I think a combination of these things lead to what is known as guttate psoriasis. It comes up as little round red patches of dry skin and unfortunately for me I had it on my face. I went to the walk in centre who just said moisturise. Then after months of this not working I went to the doctors again the same advice moisturise and don't use perfumed soaps.

Then about 2 weeks ago me and my mum started a diet, nothing silly but just eating healthily and trying to get a bit more active. She bought some green tea for its anti oxidant properties and to my surprise I actually liked it. Then after just a few days strangely my face began to be clearer, the red patches and dryness basically disappeared.

Now I didn't think this was possible, I had also started using a new combination of moisturisers but after a bit of online research I found that others have found the same result from drinking green tea.

I'm not a doctor or a dietician so my advice has no medical backing but if you have psoriasis you might as well give it a go for what the price of a box of green tea bags cost, it could be the thing that changes your skin completely.

Until next time

Charlie x

Happy New Year!

I dont know about everyone else but I find new year a very reflective time, looking over the last year and either being happy with what has happened or looking back with regret.

I did so many things last year that at the begining of 2012 I didnt think I could do. Mainly going to Italy to work for 2 weeks. For some people this doesn't seem like much but to me, someone who hated doing things alone this was a massive challenge. It was one of the best experiences of my life and I made some great friends and gained the cofidence to realise I can do anything and go anywhere I want.

This is me on the far left with the people I worked with at Claudio Erre in Como, Italy.

 

Some of the people I went to Italy with.

The last night dancing on the tables.

 

 

It seems so long ago now, but I am determined to make 2013 even better, do things I haven't done before, go places I haven't been and meet new people.

 

As for new years resolutions I have been given one by my boyfriend, this July I have to cycle from Manchester to Blackpool a 60 mile ride. I currently do no exercise so this is going to be a massive challenge. But the best part of this is if I complete it then he is going to pay for my ticket to a festival. This is why im going to do it because I havent been to a festival and I have been saying for years I want to go so a chance for a free ticket is a big insentive.

 

I have other big plans for this year when my college course finishes, I will let you know all about them as they happen.

 

Im also determined to start blogging more regularly this year too, so fingers crossed that works out for me and I have the time to do that.

 

I hope your 2012 was a good one? but remember this is the perfect time to start again and to change the things that you want to, you just have to beleive that you can do it.

 

 

Until next time

 

Charlie x





Vintage Vixen!

At college we sometimes take part in different events to promote the services we offer at the college salon. Today we took part in a college event which I really looked forward to doing, a mend don't spend fair, where the fashion and textile students and different stalls sell vintage and upcycled products. Not only was there that but there was a tea party and my class were offering the vintage hair styles to match.

I think I possibly was one of the only excited people in my class, and got called a geek when I said I might go a bit earlier than my shift to go and have a look around. But this is what I sometimes do on a weekend anyway, look around vintage and craft fairs finding bargains and one off treasures so to me it was just another chance to shop and in college time which was a definite perk. 

I love vintage hair too, I don't really do much on myself to be honest I feel a bit like I am dressing up when I have tried it before, even tho I think I kinda suit the look. What do you think? That's me in the middle.

This was such an easy look to create,

1. Firstly I curled my hair with my ghd's to create a tight curl. leaving out a triangular section where my fringe (bangs) are.

2.  I took this front section and curled it backwards.

3. I gently brushed out the curls to bring them together to create a vintage glamour wave.
4. The front section was lightly back combed to give lift and to shape the quiff look.

Here are some more pictures from today.

This is the Auntysocial stall, their mission is to create a vibrant, active and diverse community in the Fylde Coast area through positive, sustainable arts and cultural activities, tea and cake. At the mend don't spend event they were selling some of the things they had created.

You might be seeing more of this room in pictures soon, for my level 3 course we have to complete a show. I have put myself forward to be one of the coordinators which means I have to help organize everything including venue, fundraising, music and marketing. We were struggling to find a room which would be suitable and that was in the price bracket we were after, but after spending the day here I think we all decided it would be perfect.

Until next time

Charlie x

Mirror Ball

Today is my first full day off in nearly 3 weeks and I am making the most of it by still being in bed with a sleepy Edgar next to me.

This is my beautiful baby, Ed

Thought I would just do a quick update of things that have been happening in my life recently, I have not done this before so I hope you like it.

It was my work Christmas night out on Saturday, this is a picture of me (middle) and the other juniors gem (left) and Luke (right).

My friend Tasha got a new job so naturally we had to go out and celebrate, Muzzi and Fiona shown in the picture came out too. Fiona has a blog too where she writes about her life (Just Fi) she thinks and looks at things in completely different way to anyone I know, she has a very positive view of life so go give it a read.

This is me and Tasha, I think she is possibly on the phone to my drunk boyfriend while this photo is being taken. 

My best friend's sister got married a couple of weeks ago, they looked so happy.

We had a Parkinsons event at college, we went to a hotel in Blackpool and styled peoples hair that either suffer from Parkinsons or their carers. It felt good to give something back.

So that is my last couple of weeks in pictures, I hope that my life isn't too boring for you. My plan for later today is to go find some interesting hair products to review. I suppose now I had actually get up and get ready to go out.

Until next time

Charlie x

Wishlist #1

Hi everyone, so its not too long till Christmas, just over 4 weeks! and I thought I would do a little wish list post to show you some of the cute things out there I have my eye on that I thought some of you may also like to put onto your wish lists to Santa too.

 

1. Teddy Robe (Topshop)

How cute is this with its little ears, it looks perfect for snuggling up on the sofa watching Home Alone, Love actually or Elf. Oh how I love Christmas films.

 

2. Ipad case (rabbitdream, etsy)

This one all depends on if my parents are really really kind this Christmas and get me an Ipad. This case is from etsy so is homemade, I like the simple and classic design.

 

 3. Delaware Fur Lined Boots (Topshop)

Ive been looking for the perfect pair of knee high boots for so long. I have one pair of suede boots from next that I have worn winter after winter but they are looking very worse for wear and the hole in the sole doesn't help to keep my feet warm. These could be a nice new replacement. Plus they are fur lined for that extra warmth for the freezing northern winter.

 4. Moroccan Oil Moisture Repair Shampoo & Conditioner (Amazon)

After using Moroccan Oil for over a year now I am keen to try the shampoo and conditioner out. They are sulphate and paraben free which are the new buzz words in the industry at the moment, and hopefully these can tame my frizzy locks.

5. Emily Reindeer Soft Touch Jumper

So I am totally Jumping on the Christmas Jumper band wagon. I think the cheesier the better, plus you don't want to spend too much on one because come the 26th December your not likely to wear it for another year. This one looks nice since its soft touch and slightly over sized for that cosy winter feel, but I think instead of ordering online I might just nip to good old Primark for a cheap and cheerful alternative.

This post is quickly going on my Facebook for family and friends to see, to give them a couple of hints. I really should be up and ready to carry on with my Christmas shopping today but after my works Christmas night out last night I'm still in bed and I cant see that changing for at least an hour. 

In the last week I've had confirmation for the theme of the level 3 hair show at college its...(drum roll please)... Past, Present and Future! from that I have chosen the future. The hair show is taking place at the end of January, in about 8 weeks, my mission before Christmas is to create a mood board for my look. You would think that wouldn't be too difficult but finding images which show your own personal view of the future is actually quite difficult. I think Pinterest could  become my new best friend.

I hope this has given some of you a little inspiration and that your day is more productive than mine. 

Until next time

Charlie x

One day baby, we'll be old!

Well I did it a whole 30 days without any heated stylers on my hair. I am actually really proud of myself I honestly didn't think I would do it. I cant say that its been easy but over the 30 days it got easier. I would say the health of my hair has improved quite a bit, it doesn't feel as damaged and it doesn't snap as much as it did before. Since starting using straighteners again I have been so much more cautious of them, the first time someone curled my hair at college last week I sat there cringing, I could feel the damage happening as I was sat there. I am now a heat protection nut and I am not using them anywhere near as much as I was before.  

I had one day (one night really) that tested me to my limit but I stayed strong and found a way around this. What don't you need straighteners or curling wands for? Hair ups thats what. Wearing my hair up became my saving grace. Here is the way I styled my hair for a works night out. 

Sorry about the picture quality, I was home alone and these were the best I could get of the back, I was as always running late.

I actually got a few compliments on my hair that night, which just proves I don't actually need my straighteners to get my hair looking good.

I got this look by:
1. Splitting my hair in two down the back,
2. Then starting at the front German braided (a french plait but taking sections under instead of over) to the nape of my neck, plaiting to the end and securing with a small hair band.
3. I repeated on the other side
4. Crossed the plaits over at the back tucked the ends away under the opposite sides plait and secured with bobby pins.
5. I pulled the plaits a bit too so it was more relaxed and slightly messy.
6. I sprayed all over with hairspray.
( I suggest doing this look on hair washed the day before to give it a bit more grip)

After my 30 days I thought me and my hair deserved a treat so I had my hair coloured and I had a trim. My ombre look has now gone and I have gone slightly darker with blonder sections through the front and scattered throughout to create a more natural look.

Very serious face!!

On a separate note its nearly Halloween, I wasn't really in to Halloween until I spent it in St Louis, Missouri in America 2 years ago, now I love it. Unfortunately this year I haven't had a chance to dress up or go to a party. Last year at college we had a competition to create Halloween hair.

What do you think? This was my entry, I was very proud of this, it was one of the first hair ups where we were aloud to do whatever we wanted.

Once Halloween is over its time for the countdown to Christmas.
Its only 56 DAYS!!! 
I am already excited, I'm thinking, wishlists, Christmas hair tutorials and present ideas what do you think? If there are any hair tutorials you would like to see on the run up to Christmas leave me a comment and I will try my best to show you.

Until next time

Charlie x

One Way or Another!

Hi, everyone. Today at college I had an epiphany. So I was having a conversation with my friend while she was trimming my nasty split ends, I said just in passing, that I should have a heat styling detox. When I thought about this I decided it could actually be a good idea, my hair is so damaged from over bleaching and using heated stylers nearly every day. So from today I am going on a 30 day straightening detox. Thats right, I am not going to use my straighteners for 30 days, I can’t quite work out whether this is a good idea or if I am completely mad.

Over the next 30 days I am going to have to blow dry my hair on a low heat setting, and find ways to prolong this blow dry so I don’t have to use any heated stylers, by heated stylers I mean straighteners or curling tongs.

I’m not quite sure how I am going survive these 30 days, I use my straighteners probably every day. I think to get through this up do’s are going to be my saviour. Top knots, plaits, buns and rolls all will need no heated styling and should hopefully look good. Here are just some of the looks which I hope to recreate over the next 30 days.



So tomorrow is day 1, wish me luck. I will keep you updated on my progress.  

 

Until next time

Charlie x

Kiss of Life!!

Hi everyone, I’m sorry it has been a while. It has been a busy couple of weeks. I went to Barcelona for a long weekend, then spent the next weekend working then going camping on a very wet Saturday night for a friend’s 21^st birthday and have spent the last week working and getting ready for college.

Yes! I am back at college tomorrow! I am so glad to be going back it has been about two and a half months since I left and I am defiantly missing it. I went in this morning to arrange my finances and uniform and hadn’t realised how much I had missed it until then.

This year is all about combining the basic skills I learnt last year and using them in a creative way. I’m really excited to be able to use my creativity this year and cannot wait to get back to cutting and colouring client’s hair.

The reason I am telling you all this is because I know since I started this blog I haven’t really kept my promises on what I am going to post about. I don’t really know why this is, but with working and going out taking up most of my time I think I have neglected my poor little blog. So I am hoping that with going back to college my focus and enthusiasm will come back and with spending more time on here it will flourish.

A little bit of fear is also a reason why there hasn’t been any tutorials, the thought just scares me. I am not great at speaking in front of people so the thought of doing a video tutorial to everyone out there is a scary prospect, so I have been trying to think of ways to show you how I do things without a video post. I have been researching and I like the way Lauren Conrad does her tutorials on her blog, she uses step by step photos with explanations on how to do each step. What does everyone think about this idea?

I hope to blog more often from now on, I have been told blogging is very addictive so once I am hooked I am not gonna shut up.

Until next time

Charlie x

Punk Princess!

Each weekend my town welcomes the usual stag and hen parties, but for one weekend in August each year a very different crowd descends on our small town. Rebellion is the yearly punk festival. I love this weekend not because I like punk music but because I love walking around looking at the amazing hairstyles and fashions.


Bright colours, Mohawks, spikes and shaved heads are the types of things which I see. Some of these styles are what are being seen on catwalks and street style recently, mainly the colours.

 Just some of the hairstyles from the festival 2009

I wouldn’t even know where to start on some of these hairstyles they defy gravity. The colour trend has defiantly come back round with thanks to bleach salon London. I love the dip dyed and ombre looks so much so I have dabbled in both this year, having peach put in my hair at Christmas, and recently going darker and keeping my lighter ends.

 Sorry about the maracas its the best picture I have to show off the peach

I achieved the peach by bleaching a diagonal section on each side until it was quite light without causing too much damage. Then after many different attempts to create peach using permanent colours we gave up and used semi permanent Crazy colours in orange and pinkissimo. We mixed these two together to create the right colour I also added a little bit of a white conditioner just to create a more pastel colour. I sectioned my hair so only the bleached section was touched by the colour, I left it on until the desired colour was achieved.


Unfortunately because it was a pastel colour it didn’t last very long and I had to keep topping it up. I have recently thought about putting the peach into the lighter ends of my ombre hair but I might change the colour lilac maybe? If you have any suggestions on a colour just leave a comment I may try it out.


Until next time


Charlie x

New Camera!

It is always perfect timing when electrical things break, for an example an iron just before an important interview or your camera just before your birthday night out. The second is what happened to me a couple of weeks ago, at that point I didn’t know I was going to start a blog and thought that my friends would just take the pictures of my birthday (luckily I have photo obsessed friends) so I didn’t bother getting a new one.

Then I started this and found that by the second post a camera is an essential item for a blogger so it became a must buy. So today I dragged my mum to Tesco to buy a camera with the little amount of money I had left over from my birthday. Its currently charging so I can’t tell you what it is like or show you any photos, but I just wanted to let you know that from tomorrow I can show you more of my own work and pictures of street style hair from around my local area, plus my own hair and what I do with it on a day to day basis.

I just want to say thank you to all the people that have read so far and for the lovely comments, it is strange to think that people on the other side of the world are reading the things that I write. If you like what you have been reading then please be sure to follow me and I promise that I will show you more about the subject that I love.

Until next time

Charlie x

Let's start at the very begining, a very good place to start

Sadly my camera has broken so I am having to wait for pictures from my friend for my goddess hair, but as soon as she uploads them to Facebook I will show them to you and explain how we did it.

I thought I would take this opportunity to tell you some of the very basics and some of the first things I learnt at college this year. Shampooing and conditioning your hair is the very basics of looking after your hair. I really hope this doesn’t come across as condescending I just want people to have healthy good looking hair.

Shampooing

I am not the kind of person that believes that to get the best quality you have to spend the most, it is all about finding what works for you. I personally try new products out all the time but I mainly use Dove intensive repair shampoo, it is just a cheaper shampoo that you can buy in the local supermarket.

Dove Intensive Repair Shampoo

The only thing I would try and stay away from the shampoos and conditioners that coat your hair with a plastic film. When working in the salon you can usually feel these on the hair and when shampooing the water is repelled from the hair, this can mean your hair can look greasy quickly. Also try to find a shampoo that is for your hair type e. g. Curly, dry, damaged or coloured.

So applying shampoo, you don’t actually need very much shampoo, I usually use about a 10p size blob. The thing to remember is that shampoo is to clean your scalp not your hair particularly, rub the shampoo well into the scalp don’t always expect it to lather really well if you haven’t shampooed your hair in a couple of days. Rinse this off as you usually would then repeat the process, I know many people don’t shampoo twice but there is a reason for this but I am not going to bore you with the scientific stuff. Once you have repeated and rinsed this off your ready to condition.

Conditioning

If shampoo is for your scalp conditioner is for your hair, it moisturises your hair and closes your cuticle of your hair to create smooth soft healthy hair. Again I have been using Dove intensive repair conditioner, but you can use which ever you like and that is designed for your hair type. Conditioner is firstly applied to the mid lengths and ends and massaged in, then with what is left on your hands you can massage your scalp, if you tend to get greasy roots easily skip this step and just apply to the mid lengths and ends. How long you want to leave this on the hair is personal preference, with normal conditioner I usually leave it on for a minute or so. Rinse conditioner off really well, once it feels like all the conditioner has come out turn the water to cool and give it one last rinse with cool water, this again closes the cuticle to create smooth hair.

Masks

Once or twice a week I use a hair mask, since having my hair bleached and bleached again the ends have become very damaged. I recommend using a mask just to keep your hair in tip top condition. After shampooing apply the mask to your hair either just the mid lengths and ends or all over depending on where you need it.

My new favourite hair mask is one that I got on a deal in the supermarket a few weeks ago, it is frizz-ease miraculous recovery intensive masque. It really helps with the damage makes my hair really shiny and soft and doesn’t leave it greasy.

Frizz-Ease Miraculous Recovery Intensive Masque

Once applied wrap your hair in a towel and leave on for however long you feel it needs, I usually apply it watch a TV programme and rinse it off after an hour or so. Again rinse this well and use a cool rinse after.

And thats the basics of shampooing and conditioning hair.  

I hope I haven’t gone on for too long and that this has given you a little information on how to shampoo and condition your hair and a slight product review thrown in for good measure.

Until next time

Charlie x

Greek Goddess

This coming Saturday I have been invited to a friend’s hen party, were starting with a cocktail making class and then dancing the night away around the many local clubs. Since the bride is getting married in Greece she has decided on a Greek goddess theme, I know in some places dressing up as a Greek goddess for a night out would be slightly weird but where I live that kind of thing happens every weekend.

I love fancy dress, but since I have become a hairdresser I feel I have to make more of an effort with my hair on nights out. I thought that this theme would be amazing inspiration for a hair up and one of the stylists that I work with at the salon got as excited as me and said he would do my hair for me (definite perk of working in a salon).

Here are just some of the pictures I am using for my inspiration.

My own work from a prom fair competition

You can’t beat a bit of gossip girl for inspiration

I like the curls and gold headband on this one

I am going to take little bits of inspiration from each of these to create my perfect Greek goddess hair. Pictures of the night will definitley be taken and uploaded for you to see and I will hopefully give you a tutorial on how to create the look.

On another note if anyone has any products which they might like me to review just leave a comment and if the products aren’t too expensive, I’m on a student income, I will test them out and let you know what I think.

Picture credits: the first is my own, the second and third were from pinterest

Until next time

Charlie x

The first of many blog posts

Hello to everyone out there, this is my new blog "All Things Hair and Beautiful".

Starting this blog is just the next step for my exciting new life which only started last September. Im currently training to be a hairdresser and I thought that all this new information which im learning could be quite interesting to the non hairdressers and possibly the hairdressers out there. So this blog is going to give you the insider information which im learning. Like most people my passion isnt just for one thing, I love fashion, makeup, cooking and anything beautiful so I will scatter I bit of these throughout too.

Getting to this point has been a bit of a roller coaster but I definitely think im on the up. Im 23 which is seems to be quite late to start training to be a hairdresser but before this change of career I completed my Degree in Business Management. Then last August after leaving a job I hated I decided to do something that had always been at the back of my mind. I started college in September a week after first having the idea, and a year later its the best decision I have ever made. My life has changed so much within this year and I have learnt so much about hairdressing and about myself.

In my following blog posts I am hoping to show you product reviews, hair tutorials, inspirational photos, anything beautiful that catches my eye and if there is anything you would like me to review or show you how to do then just let me know in the comments.

Until next time

Charlie x