TMI Part Deux

Welcome back to oversharing central! Today's extra special bonus post is the second part of my own version of the TMI Tag doing the rounds on YouTube...

26. The reason I started blogging
The original question is why you joined YouTube but since I don't have a channel (yet) I changed it. I got addicted to reading blogs as I was a bit sick of the impersonalness (is that even a word?) of magazines and blogs are so much more real. I started writing one because I wanted to join in the fun!

27. Fears?
I don't really have any. I own two pet snakes so I'm definitely not scared of them. I don't mind heights, water, the dark, wasps, bees or spiders (although I could live without the eight legged monsters which inhabit out garden - they're huge!). I have a bit of an aversion to Audi drivers when I'm out on my bike.

28. Last thing that made you cry?
An animal rescue programme

29. Last time you said you loved someone?
Earlier today, to my husband

30. Meaning behind your blog name?
Another adapted question. Handlebars because I'm a biker and hairspray because a) I'm a girl and b) this is primarily a beauty blog and it sort of fits.

31. Last book you read?
Blood Stone by Nate Kenyon (random Kindle purchase)

32. The book you're currently reading?
Sacrifice by Paul Finch (another random Kindle purchase)

33. Last show you watched
Castle re-runs on Netflix

34. Last person you talked to
Our husky Keeta - I told her off for trying to steal my bag of Sensations

35. The relationship between you and the person you last texted
My husband, asking if he was having a good day out with his mates

36. Favourite food?
Satay tofu and crispy seaweed

37. Place you want to visit?
Money no object, Route 66 on a Harley Davidson or Australia

38. Last place you were?
I popped into Southampton this morning

39. Do you have a crush?
No, I'm old and married.

40. Last time you kissed someone?
My husband earlier today

41. Last time you were insulted?
At work last week - I have better hearing than some of my colleagues think I do

42. Favourite flavour of sweet?
Rhubarb and custard

43. What instruments do you play?
The oboe since I was 8 and the flute since I was 14. I can tinkle on the piano and I've got my eye on a tenor saxophone...

44. Favourite piece of jewellery?
My engagement ring - a marquise cut diamond set in white gold with yellow gold shoulders. It's a very unusual cut and my absolute favourite. My husband chose it all by himself without even knowing that so it was just meant to be!

45. Last sport you played?
I went running a few months ago. That's the closest I get!

46. Last song you sang?
Tonight the World Dies by Avenged Sevenfold, loudly (and badly) in the car

47. Favourite chat up line?
Ugh, I hate them!!!

48. Have you ever used it? 
No. I'm actually incredibly bad at picking up on when they're being used on me as well. #oblivious

49. Last time you hung out with someone?
I'm hanging out on the couch with the dog and my husband - does that count?

50. Who should answer these questions next?
Anyone!

Phew, all that sharing is tiring work. I'm sure I deserve some chocolate now...

The TMI Tag

I've seen the TMI Tag doing the rounds on the channels of some of my favourite YouTubers and I must admit its kinda nice to get an insight into some of the people behind those fabulous channels. Anyway, I figured if I enjoyed finding about my favourite bloggers and vloggers then it's only fair if I share too. So here it is, my very own TMI Tag! I've split it across 2 posts so you're not reading for hours - the second part will be in a special bonus post tomorrow. Let the sharing commence...

1. What are you wearing?
Right now as I type, my scruffy sitting-around-the house Lee jeans, a random khaki top from Tesco and a fluffy black cardigan. I have my cute little leopard print ballerina slippers on too.

2. Ever been in love?
Yep, twice. Once with my first serious boyfriend and then with my husband.

3. Ever had a terrible breakup?
Thankfully only one.

4. How tall are you?
5 foot 7 inches (but most people think I'm taller because I usually wear heels)

5. How much do you weigh?
I actually don't know as I refuse to have scales in the house but somewhere around the 9 1/2 stone mark. Not a supermodel but no need for WeightWatchers!

6. Any tattoos?
Four - a Chinese dragon on my left bicep, a tribal butterfly between my shoulder blades, a Chinese symbol on my right hip and an ambigram that says "work hard" forwards and "carpe diem" backwards on my lower back.

7. Any piercings?
Several! Four in each ear lobe, a helix and conch in my left ear cartilage, nose, tongue, both nipples and belly button top and bottom.

8. OTP?
Richard Castle and Kate Beckett (I'm watching Castle re-runs on Netflix)

9. Favourite Show?
Don't have one but I like a lot of American dramas - True Blood, Arrow, etc

10. Favourite Bands?
I listen to all sorts from Mozart to Manson! Currently I'm mostly listening to Rammstein and Avenged Sevenfold.

11. Something you miss?
North East England. It's where I'm from and where my family are.

12. Favourite song?
It's a toss up between Metallica's Unforgiven II (which I walked down the aisle to) and Nothing Else Matters from the S&M album with the San Francisco Symphony orchestra (our first dance).

13. How old are you?
30 (ancient)

14. Zodiac sign?
Virgo, maker of extensive lists!

15. Quality you look for in a partner?
Wicked sense of humour

16. Favourite Quote?
"A lack of planning on your part does not consitiute a crisis on my part" (when I'm at work)

17. Favourite actor?
Christian Bale

18. Favourite colour?
Purple and turquoise

19. Loud music or soft?
LOUD! You really can't play metal softly, it just doesn't work.

20. Where do you go when you're sad?
Bed, specifically the very middle of the duvet where I can hide from the world

21. How long does it take you to shower?
About half an hour. Is that a long time?

22. How long does it take you to get ready on a morning?
For work, about 40 minutes. Slightly longer at weekends because I can take my time (and I can never decide what to wear).

23. Ever been in a physical fight?
Yes, but only because I used to do karate. I've never been in a cat fight or anything.

24. Turn on?
Muscular arms (my husband's could rival Vin Diesel's. Yummy!)

25. Turn Off?
The usual - bad breath, bad manners

Stay tuned for more over sharing tomorrow!

Feet Treat

I post weekly about what pretty colours I'm wearing on my finger tips but what about my long suffering toes? Yep, that's them in the picture in all their weirdly long and bony glory!

Feet are pretty important things - imagine trying to walk without them! - but when it's cold we tend to encase them in socks and boots and forget about them. Why not set yours free and treat them to a bit of TLC this evening? Here are a few ideas to say thank you to your feet for taking you around all those sales recently.

Night Time Nourishment - get your hands on some seriously rich lotion or a luxe body oil and apply liberally to your feet before bedtime. Pop on a pair of socks to protect your bedding and intensify the effect and let all that moisturising goodness soak in over night. In the morning you'll wake to smooth, supple and wonderfully soft skin and conditioned, nourished toenails. Soap & Glory's Heel Genius is perfect for a night time treat. Similarly, pop a light layer of lotion on before you put your socks on of a morning to keep your feet feeling loved throughout the day.

Tired Toes - you've been on your feet all day and now they are aching. What do you do? Get yourself a bowl of warm water, add a generous helping of The Body Shop's Peppermint Reviving Foot Soak, immerse your tired feet and relax. The peppermint in this soak will not only refresh but will also help get rid of yucky smells. Follow up with an intensive lotion such as Peppermint Intensive Foot Rescue. There is also a matching Reviving Leg Gel for shopped-out pins.

Pretty Polish - toenails deserve colour too, even if they are hidden away in cosy boots at this time of year. Carefully cut and file your toenails (straight across rather than in a curve) and add a base coat, colour and top coat. It's actually much easier to try out nail art on your toes so why not make your big toenails into accents with polka dots, flowers or other pretty designs?

Rough 'n' Ready - if you have rough skin on your feet now is the time to start dealing with it before the warmer weather is with us. Get yourself a foot file or pumice stone, both widely and cheaply available, or one of those clever gadgets that looks like a mini sander and gently exfoliate and buff away those rough patches. I would suggest doing this before a bath or shower to avoid damaging water plumped skin and applying an intensive lotion afterwards.

How do you pamper your feet? Are you lucky enough to have someone who'll rub them for you? That has to be the ultimate treat!

Counter Encounters

I am not the most confident of people, especially around folks I don't know, and I hate being pestered when I'm shopping so visiting makeup counters can be a bit of an ordeal for me. It first started when I was a teenager and visited one particular counter, birthday money in hand, to invest in some quality skincare. Unfortunately the consultant lady left me in no doubt as to what she thought of a 15yr old darkening her counter and I left empty handed and thoroughly disillusioned. I've actually avoided that particular brand ever since, although I'm sure she was an exception rather than the rule. 

Fast forward half a lifetime and I've had many much more pleasurable experiences (including in the John Lewis Southampton beauty hall, pictured) but I've encountered a few more less than friendly people too. So here are my top tips for dealing with the makeup dragons of this world!

The Pushy Penelope - this sales assistant really, really wants you to buy stuff, preferably as much as possible and irrespective of whether you want it or if it suits you. She will usually pounce on you within seconds of your arrival at her counter and won't leave you alone. Her tactics can be quite overt ("you should have this...and this...and this") or more sneaky (while ringing up your desired purchase she casually says "oh you'll want this as well" and reaches for the extra product). The best way to deal with Penelope is to be firm and stick to your guns - if all you want is that single pan eyeshadow then say so. If she gets too pushy just walk away - chances are there's another counter for that brand somewhere close by.

 The Ignores You Ingrid - Ingrid is the opposite of Penelope and refuses to acknowledge your existence no matter what. You could be dancing naked around her counter and she would still look right through you! The best tactics to break Ingrid's icy facade are to either loudly say how much you would like to purchase a product but unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a sales assistant around (this works particularly well when her manager is around) or to approach another sales assistant, and explain that you would like some information on a product and you assume she must be the expert as her colleague has nothing to say. Never underestimate the embarrassment factor!

The Rude Rachel - you're happily swatching away and all of a sudden a presence behind you asks if you actually intend to buy anything today. Enter Rachel! She's impatient and rude and makes it clear she would prefer you not clutter up her counter actually looking at the products. Remember here that you're the customer and you have the choice over whether you spend your hard earned cash with her or not. Politely inform her that yes you would like to make a purchase but not before you've had chance to choose what you want and either ask for her advice (if you want it) or ask her to give you a few minutes. Knowing that she probably is going to get a sale will generally make her back off but if not then tell her you were going to but don't appreciate being rushed and will check out a different brand instead.

The Snobby Sarah - she makes it quite evident that her brand's products are far too expensive, posh or exclusive for the likes of you, a mere mortal, to be thinking of buying. My 15yr old encounter was most definitely with a Sarah and I encountered several in my student days when I wasn't dressed up smart for client meetings or court (I'm not a raving criminal - I did law). Her catty comments make you feel about 3" tall and 6yrs old. The key to avoiding a Sarah is all in the approach. If you act like you're sufficiently rich and important (aren't we all, even if just to our mums?) to belong at her counter she will generally assume you do. I'm not suggesting you put on fake airs and graces or come off just as high and mighty, but a little confidence goes a long way and if you are a young person avoid going in a big group as this will unfortunately make you a prime target.

Now I'm not for a second suggesting that all beauty counter sales assistants fall into one of these categories. The vast majority are really lovely, polite, helpful and friendly and make your beauty shopping even more fun. Where you are served by one of these lovely ladies be sure to thank her!

Have you encountered one of these makeup dragons or are you lucky enough to only meet Lovely Laura's?

What's on my nails #6

This week I've been a little bit addicted to nail art videos, especially those by Colette from My Simple Little Pleasures - she does the most amazing water marbles! I love nail art but I've never really done much myself until now. Never one to shy from a challenge I thought I'd jump straight in with my very own water marble attempt and I think it turned out ok, but let me tell you it is way more difficult than it looks! What you're seeing is the result of a good hour spent making a proper mess with water and wet nail polish.

Water marbling takes a bit longer than a standard manicure and is a bit messy but worth it for the unique looking end result. If you're thinking of attempting this its definitely worth learning how to tape your nails off beforehand otherwise the clean up would be epic! I won't go into the details of how to do the marble as there are plenty of tutorials around and I really do recommend Colette's.

The block colour on my nails is Essie Where's My Chauffeur, a lovely greeny turquoise block of colour with not a hint of shimmer. Essie really do do good solid colours in the most beautiful shades. To do the marble I used the Essie polish combined with a bright purple and a lilac shade from the L'Oréal Color Riche Nails range. You need to use quite liquid polishes to get them to spread in the water and these fitted the bill perfectly. There's a bit more of the lilac in the mix than I'd planned but otherwise I think these colours go well together.

Have you tried nail art like this? Any tips you want to share?

My Skincare Routine - Eyes & Masks

In this final installment of my current skincare routine I'll be giving you a peek at the eye creams I currently like and my all time favourite face masks.

Eyes first, and I always apply my eye cream immediately after toner so it has a chance to sink in before other products get in the way as they can effectively seal the delicate skin making the eye cream less effective. Oil fans take note!

I have to say I've yet to be really impressed with an eye cream. Perhaps I'm expecting too much? However, I'm currently tapping on Soap & Glory Make Yourself Youthful Rejuvenating Eye Cream which contains all sorts of clever sounding ingredients to hydrate, smooth, firm and de-puff as well as Lightscramble Luminosperes (!) to illuminate and brighten. The hydrating and illuminating effects are the reason I bought this (that and the shiny shiny pot - yes, I am a magpie) and it does both reasonably well, sitting nicely under foundation and concealer, although I can't say it's done a lot for those expression lines.

For days when I want a lighter formula, or when the S&G cream isn't enough on its own, I also use The Body Shop Vitamin E Eye Cream. This is a light, very easily absorbed cream which is lovely for de-puffing and refreshing, especially when popped in the fridge for half an hour before applying. Again it's not "OMG this is amazing" but I like it because it's so simple. Also because it's light I can carefully tap a tiny amount under my eyes during the day and it won't particularly disturb my makeup.

Now, onto masks and by now you should be able to guess which brand I'm about to sing the praises of. Yep, it's REN to the rescue again! I make absolutely no apologies for being so obsessed with REN at the moment as their products have worked wonders on my skin in the last 3 months - better results than I've seen with any other brand.

My absolute all time no.1 favourite is the marmalade scented Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask which contains a cocktail of  natural fruit acids and extracts to seriously exfoliate and smooth the skin. This it does extremely well. REN recommend you leave this on for just 10mins but I've had it on for up to almost 2hrs and the results were just amazing, although I wouldn't recommend this if you have sensitive or irritated skin. It leaves my skin soft, considerably clearer and brighter looking and with greatly improved texture. The only down side is that the dog rather likes the smell too and tries to lick it off my face. Yuk!

The other mask with a weekly slot in my routine at the moment is REN's Clarimatte Invisible Pores Detox, a clay based dries-on-your-face offering which drags icky gunk out of my pores kicking and screaming (not literally because that would just be weird). I actually hate the feeling of clay drying on my face but I can overlook that in light of how clean this leaves my skin feeling. It is a bit of a pain to wash off though, requiring buckets of warm water and a good dose of toner afterwards.

An honorary mention should also go to REN's ClearCalm 3 Clarity Restoring Mask which I'm not using at the moment because my skin is behaving but which is a complete saviour when it flares up. This is a non-drying clay mask which does the usual pore clean but also has a calming effect on angry spots and antibacterial qualities to stop them spreading. Perfect for badly behaving skin!

So that's the end of my skincare tour. Have you used any of the products I've talked about? Do you have any recommendations for super duper eye creams with that elusive wow factor?

January Favourites

My very first favourites post! I love reading these on other blogs so I had to include one on my own. These are 5 things I've really been loving in January (hint: the weather is not one of them).

A couple of weeks a ago I posted about the best concealer I've ever tried so naturally 17 Phwoarr Paint had to feature as one of my favourites, not just of January but frankly of all time! A great creamy formula which blends beautifully to give perfect coverage which lasts for hours. What's not to love? Read my original post here.

I was in the market for a new foundation so when one of my favourite bloggers mentioned a dupe for Georgio Armani Luminous Silk foundation, which I've been dying to try, I sat up and took notes. It turns out that L'Oréal True Match foundation was exactly what I was looking for and while I can't comment on its similarity to GALS I can confirm its a fab formula. It blends well giving enough coverage to hide most blemishes and even out skin tone, has a very natural semi matt finish and lasts for ages even on my oily patches - far better than anything else I've tried before. The shade range is also impressive and I had no problem getting a shade light enough for my milky visage.

Sticking with makeup, I said at the start of the year I wanted to wear more lipstick so I thought I'd start off gently with some sheer formulas in "my lips but better" shades. A quick swatching session in Boots and I fell in love with the Revlon ColourShine Lip Butters, so much so I now own four of them! The formula is very hydrating (essential on my dry lips) and the colour payoff actually isn't bad although my lips are quite pigmented so I get more of a wash of colour. Wear time isn't amazing but nor does it slide off at the mere suggestion of a glass of water. I have Pink Truffle, Berry Smoothie, Macaroon and, because I wanted to take the plunge into reds, Candy Apple. I love them all and am happy to report that lipstick, sheer at least, is becoming a regular feature on my face.

You may have noticed that I took the plunge and had my very long hair cut short at the beginning of the month (see a before and after here). Besides giving me a lovely new 'do my hairdresser gave me the lowdown on the benefits of hair oils, which I admit I'd avoided for fear of ending up with greasy locks. She managed to convince me so I turned to my favourite drugstore hair brand Tresemmé and invested in their Oil Elixir Colour for coloured hair which contains macadamia and grapeseed oils and a UV filter.
I'm rarely disappointed by Tresemmé's offerings and this is no exception. It smells amazing and sinks into my hair without any trace of greasiness or residue, leaving it smooth, shiny and incredibly soft and silky. It has instantly become a must-use after every hair wash!

I've been rounding up my skincare this month and mentioned in my Tone & Treat post I wanted to to try the Caudalie Vinosource SOS Thirst Quenching Serum to improve my dehydrated skin. Well I managed to get my hands on a bottle and I am sold! Usually it takes a little while for me to see he benefits from a serum but this one had an immediate effect leaving my skin calmed and much more hydrated. Expression lines, which I think are a combination of dehydration  and first signs of ageing, were plumped out and my makeup wore better than it has before, lasting pretty much an entire busy day in the office. Plus it smells wonderful and feels so light, almost like water. I now use this pretty much every morning.

So those have been my favourite things in January. What have you been loving this month?