Happy Valentine’s Day!

Happy Valentine's Day from us at Beautiful You!

It’s here today and gone tomorrow – this one day in the year for all those in love! But we should celebrate the love every day… like it’s going out of fashion!

As I mentioned in my previous blog; the most important thing to me is not only to look great for Valentine’s Day but to feel great, too! There are few ingredients to the ‘look good, feel good’ maxim to make us truly beautiful, without braking the bank:

• Soak in the bath with your favourite products – I always put some candles on in the bathroom, as it creates this beautiful ambience. As you’re already having a ‘me’ time it’s best to use that time wisely and apply a mask on! It won’t hurt ya!

• Moisturise from top to toe! – if you have body oil use it before you use any body butter or lotion. The same rules apply to the face (but with face products! Don’t use the same moisturiser or oil all over your body and face!). For the chocolate lovers I’ve just discovered the Chocomania products from the Body Shop! Worth to visit your nearest shop asap as the new products retail for introductory price at the moment!

• Time for a make-up! – But remember, less is more! There are two schools, if you concentrate on the eyes (by creating a Smoky, Rock Star or Diva look) use nude or more natural colours on the lips, …and vice versa!  My all-time favourite make-up products are from the bareMinerals brand, which I love and they look great on!

• That special LBD (little black dress) – if you never find a day to wear it, today it’s the perfect day! No matter if you’re going out, or staying in! Feeling great is looking great and this will definitely create the ‘wow’ factor! If you’re going out a few accessories would help; like jewellery, pretty clutch bag (which we all have but rarely use!), and a man’s arm to rest on!

• However, if you decide to stay in, good on you! – a nice dinner, a film, a time for just the two of you is as important as going out that day! 

Whether you spend the day with your loved one or on your own, make it a pamper day!

Hope you had a great Valentine’s Day! 

Stay beautiful!

Mags xx

Nothing says ‘I love you’ more than a beautiful shade of pink

Valentine’s nails with Leighton Denny’s nail products

The Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and I feel inundated with all the overpriced offers on gifts, restaurants, spa treatments, you name it. However, the V-day is all about you and your loved one! You don’t need to spend a fortune to make that day special!  The most important thing to me is not only to look great but to feel great that day! 

The simple and easy way to make a difference and to feel great is to accessorise your outfit with a nail colour! As you may already pick up from my previous blogs, I love nails varnishes and I do change the colour depending on my mood and outfit I’m planning to wear! A nice, long-lasting nail varnish is a must in each girl’s wardrobe so for that upcoming special occasion I decided to go for one of my favourite nail brand - Leighton Danny!

A 12ml bottle of each nail colour retails £11 so it’s not a bargain buy; however, the colour, the durability and the lasting shine are worth every penny!!!

Beautiful shade of pink – Bubblegum

The colour I selected for next week’s occasion is Bubblegum. 

It’s a soft, shimmery shade of pink that looks fantastic on the nails. It’s also versatile with the colour density, depending on how many coats of the colour you use – I usually go for two!

Take a look at our first You Tube video below to see the way I apply the products:

The products I used in the video are:

Leighton Denny's colour accessories. From the left: Undercoat (base coat), Crystal Finish (top coat), Slick Tips (nail and cuticle oil). All comes in 12ml bottles and all RRP £11.

Leighton Denny - Miracle Mist, speed-drying spray, RRP £11

What are your plans for the V-day? Are you going to accessorise with nail colour, too? If so, what colour would you go for? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment or on twitter @beautyu.

Happy Valentine’s Day to you all from Stace and me!

Stay beautiful!

Mags xx

My all time top 10 - part 2!!

Hopefully you saw Tuesday nights post, the first part of my beauty top 10. Well tonight I am bringing you my top 5 countdown!! Enjoy!

5. Marc Jacobs Daisy

When I got married in 2010, I was on a quest to find a perfect perfume for a wedding in the Med, and this was a perfect match, Since then I cannot be without this perfume. The smell is really fresh and summery and lasts all day without being overpowering. And as an added bonus, I adore the daisy decoration on the bottle.

A 50ml bottle retails for about £40.

4. Full coverage kabuki brush

I tried to not include the same brand twice in my top ten, but I couldn't, sorry! This kabuki brush from Bare Minerals retails for about £20 and is the only brush I use to apply my mineral make up in the morning. The bristles are so soft it feels good on the skin, it buffs my foundation on leaving a perfect, flawless finish. It also washes so easily and dries quickly, and the size means it can easily come on holiday with me. I literally could not live without this little tool in my make-up bag!

3.  Lancome Bi Facil 

I cannot take my eye make-up off with anything else! This is especially amazing after heavy eye make-up has been applied. The formula works when you shake the bottle to mix the two liquids, and when it is placed on a pad on the eye, it literally melts the make-up away. And there is no make-up left the next day. I have bought this product time and time again and nothing else I have used comes close. This bottle retails for about £20.

2. Decleor Neroli oil

So Decleor makes its second appearance in my top ten! This oil is pretty expensive at about £35 for a small bottle, but you literally only need a few drops a day so it really lasts a long time. I also am not a fan of the look of these new bottles, as the old ones looked more 'apothecary', but it's all about the product. This is an amazing product that really delivers results. I was sceptical when I first used this, about putting oil on my face, but I have bought this oil over and over again. If my skin is looking stressed, or spots are appearing, this is what soothes my skin and solves my skin problems. A worthy contender for the number 2 spot.

And so...Number 1...drum roll please....

The one beauty product that hands down, I could not live without, I have purchased more than once, and I definitely would not want to be stranded on a desert island without is........................................

1. GHD Hair straighteners

Yes, the infamous GHDs are my number 1. I use these every other day, to keep my thick, unruly hair in the straight, sleek manner I have become accustomed to over the last 12 years. I cannot imagine life before GHDs, and when my first pair were 7 years old, I bought a second pair for fear of them breaking, and the day my new pair were delivered, by old pair stopped working - it was fate! I have tried other straighteners, and they don't come close to delivering the finish GHDs do. We all know at £100+ they are not cheap, but they really last a long time, and deliver salon results, they are a great investment!

I hope you enjoyed my top ten beauty products! What did you think of my number 1? I would love to hear what your number 1 beauty product is, let me know by commenting below, or tweeting us @beautyu.

Thanks for reading and stay beautiful.

Stace x