Sunday 28 February 2016

Barbour Fragrances for Him and Her


For years now I've admired Barbour as a brand for it's gorgeous coats. As a country girl I've always had a love for them and now I've moved into the city that love hasn't disappeared. I'm still yet to own one of their iconic coats but now I can at least say that I own something from them as I spritz on my new Barbour Fragrance. Over the past week Barbour have released not one but two new fragrances into their ever growing brand. The His and Hers Fragrances are exclusive to Selfridges at the moment and are absolutely perfect for a little treat-yourself gift (or to treat someone else, if you're not a  totally selfish-bish like me). The Barbour Fragrance for Her is a lovely blend of rose and jasmine scents and is softened by musk and sweet vanilla which Barbour describes as 'timelessly sophisticated' and who am I to complain with that? This fragrance is beautiful and makes me feel so ready for spring! I have a lot of perfumes and I've only worn this one for the last day but I honestly think it's going to be one of my new faves. It perfectly captures the countryside for me and I really love the scent that Barbour have created.

The Barbour for Him scent is also just as gorgeous and I love it on Jordan. It's a little more spicy with cinnamon hints and sandalwood and it's perfect for the sophisticated gent (or for the aspiring sophisticated gent). Imagine a nice bar for an evening out with your man; he's suited and booted in a crisp white shirt and his best jeans and has this scent surrounding him - it's heart eye emojis all over the place with that vision! I absolutely love both scents and love the direction that Barbour have gone with them. These are both priced at £40 for 50ml and an incredible £50 for 100ml (an absolute bargain) and they're available at Selfridges now.




BekyLou, Beauty, Fashion, Fitness and Lifestyle Blog based in Manchester

*This post may contain PR samples*

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Friday 26 February 2016

What I got up to Valentines Day Weekend

Image Sources here
As Jordan and I are going to Disney World in May we decided to not go all out for Valentines Day. This meant no presents and no extravagant spending, just a day spent together. I honestly really enjoyed it and it was so nice to just have a bit of fun time out together with not having to spend much money. On Saturday we were invited to go along to Cirque in Manchester for their Valentines evening. We really didn't know what to expect and were just excited for trying something different together; It was a really great night and surprisingly we actually loved the change. Cirque Manchester is located just outside of the City Centre, a short Uber trip away in an old fire house and is very well hidden. From the outside you wouldn't even tell that something was going on inside let alone that it housed a burlesque club and bar! Burlesque is something that I think can be a little taboo, its seen as sexy and perverted by many people and I actually don't think a lot of people can appreciate the art of it. We were actually supposed to go with two other friends but after looking into what the night would be I think the thought of Burlesque and the image that first comes to mind at the thought of that put them off. One of my favourite films is Burlesque, starring Cher and Christina Aguilera and throughout the night a fair few of the songs and dances were used as part of the performance. It was a lovely surprise to know most of the songs and it really made me feel at ease and enjoy the performance a lot more than I thought I would. It was a great night out and I really recommend it if you're looking for something new for you and your girlfriends to do on a night out or even for you and your partner to enjoy together. Jordan and I had a lovely time and it wasn't awkward or weird at all to be watching it with him. The venue layout inside also played a big part of the comfort of the evening, it wasn't your stereotypical proscenium staging and in fact was more like sitting in a mini club with sofas all around and a 'dance floor' in the middle where the performances took place. It was a great atmosphere and even though there was the tiny fear of audience interaction (which was only the odd wink or cheeky comment to the males) I thoroughly enjoyed our evening there. 

On Sunday Jordan and I drove to Knowsley and hopped on the Baboon Bus at Knowsley Safari Park; Jordan is a massive animal lover and I knew this would be the perfect day out for us to spend together. With fear of risking my car's beauty we pre-booked onto the Baboon Bus before we arrived and drove around the Safari park in true style (think Mini Bus with ropes attached) and I am so glad that we did! For an extra £5 onto our tickets we could both enjoy seeing all of the animals and it meant I could concentrate on taking photos of our day instead of worrying about driving around the busy trail! I'm not a massive animal fan but even I loved seeing everything so close up and it got me so much more excited for our Safari in Animal Kingdom when we head to Florida. Jordan however was really excited and enjoyed every second of it; having the monkeys jumping all over our bus and swinging on the ropes just outside of the windows was such a cool experience. We even managed to catch the last Sea Lion show of the day and watch as Arthur the Sea Lion performed some pretty cool tricks (who knew Sea Lions could impersonate Sharks!). I'm so glad we went and did something new for our Valentines day!

What did you do for your Valentines weekend? Would you ever go to a Safari or Burlesque show?
Let me know in the comments!




BekyLou, Beauty, Fashion, Fitness and Lifestyle Blog based in Manchester


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Wednesday 24 February 2016

Breakfast with Kurt Geiger | My First #LFW Experience


London Fashion Week has got to be the pinnacle of Fashion Bloggers Dreams. For years I have been dying to get my hands on a coveted invite and pop on down to London to flit among the fashion bloggers and vloggers of the moment and experience the dream that is #LFW. This year I was invited along to the Kurt Geiger London Fashion Week SS16 Press Day for a spot of Breakfast and a mooch around their new collection and my Lord I was excited! Headed up by mega babe Karlie Kloss their new trainer line is definitely a fashionista's approach to the standard comfy flat. I'm all about trainers usually (much to my boyfriends disappointment) so these new beauties are definitely right up my street (and they keep Jordan satisfied as I'm still looking cute AF). I've been a massive KG fan for years now and actually own several pairs of heels from the brands collections; they're the comfiest things ever and when I'm searching for the perfect pair of evening shoes I always gravitate to my local store as you just can't beat them. My feet often last hours in a pair of KG's without even the tiniest of signs of a blister or the pinching of pain!

I was super excited to head into Covent Garden last Friday and attend the event being held at the Kurt Geiger Store on James Street. I was awkwardly the first to arrive and quickly grabbed a glass of OJ to settle my nerves before being introduced to some pretty great KG reps. I had a lovely chat with the PR girls and even got to briefly meet the designer of the Mens range! After chatting upstairs for a while and getting far too excited that I featured in the background of one of FreddyMyLove's snapchats (follow me  beky_morris) I popped down stairs to take a peek at the new collection! Now, If you thought they did heels well, you definitely need to check out the new Kurt Geiger Trainers they are all kinds of dreamy and did I mention that most are flatforms?! For a short girl who needs to walk places often these are literally the best thing! I can't wait to receive the pair of Pink Ladbrook Flatforms I've generously been gifted so that I can start styling them!

I finished off my day by heading to Nandos with a few of the lovely girls who helped out with the event and then I jumped on my train back to Manchester before a weekend at home down south! I had such a great time and can't wait to hopefully get a little more involved with Fashion Week next season! Don't forget to check out the amazing new Kurt Geiger Trainers collection and also stay subscribed to my blog via bloglovin to see how I style my new Ladbrook Flatforms!



BekyLou, Beauty, Fashion, Fitness and Lifestyle Blog based in Manchester




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Sunday 21 February 2016

3 Questions I ask myself when: I'm trying to stay healthy




I seem to go through life in stages of obsession. It's been brought to my attention recently that I'm either going at something 100% or I don't bother at all and after realising that this is probably very true , I've decided to take a look at my life and ask myself some pretty tough questions to try and get some kind of sense of 'normality' back into my routines. One of the main things I struggle with is keeping a healthy lifestyle. I write a lot of posts on how I work out and what I wear whilst I'm working out but I don't think I've ever sat down and properly discussed my thought processes behind what I want to get out of eating healthy and doing exercise. At the end of the day, the end goal is always for me to be happy in my skin and so today's post is all about the '3 questions I ask myself when: I'm trying to stay healthy'.

1 - Why are you really wanting to work out? - this one is usually an easy one for me. I want those 'washboard abs' and the flat stomach that all of the celebrities are flaunting. I want to feel and look slim and most of all I want to be toned and strong.

2 - How are you going to maintain a healthy lifestyle / fitness balance? - This one is usually where I struggle. I mentioned before that I can go through stages of obsession, well, working out can be one of them. When I get into a routine of doing lots of exercise I get bitten by the 'fitness bug' and I can't seem to stop. I put my body through all kinds of exercise hell and exercise multiple times a week until it just can't handle it anymore and then I drop like a tonne of logs and have to stop for a week or two to recuperate. This is the point when I usually then can't be bothered to re-start going to the gym or putting on my exercise DVD and I just give up for a bit. When I finally get the bug again the cycle restarts and a couple of weeks later I find myself in the same state, not bothered and lacking any and all motivation to pick up the weights. To keep myself in a constant 'happy' state of exercising and balancing my healthy lifestyle I need some routine. For me, at the moment I've incorporated a Warrior Fit Camp once a week ( read my post on How To Train Like An Animal here) along with a short running session with my friend Hannah and the possibility to throw in another half hour with my fitness DVD in the week if I feel like it. I think the main aim for keeping my fitness lifestyle in balance is to not put too much pressure on myself to work out every day. For now, two hard-core sessions like these are more than enough and I can slowly start to build it up.

3 - Are you going to ban all unhealthy foods? - Again for me this is another one I've struggled with in the past. I'm not one to go on fad diets or anything like that but I do go through obsessive stages of trying to eat nothing but healthy foods and end up punishing myself if I stray from the 'correct' path. If I cave and have a bar of chocolate I always hate myself for giving in and then I get a little down on myself and can think 'what's the point?'. I then go from one extreme to the other and binge on nothing but Super Noodles and Cadbury's Whole Nut Chocolate for a week or two before coming to my senses again.. I think this time around the answer to a healthy lifestyle is to not beat myself up as much. I'm all about being happy with my lifestyle now and if that means having a bar of chocolate when I feel like it then so be it, after all it's not the end of the world. If I deprive myself of something for long enough there's just going to be a time where I will do nothing but binge on that food and so I think the happy medium is just going with the flow. I'll aim to eat healthy meals and I'll try to not eat too much rubbish all at once but if I want to eat something in particular, I'm not going to stop myself.

I though that these would be the perfect three questions to ask myself to get myself back into the fitness swing of things. One of my main issues is realising where my limits are and also stopping myself from over indulging - will power is always a big one but if you're serious about getting back into fitness and toning up, then ask yourself the questions above and see if it helps you! What main questions do you ask yourself when you're wanting to make a change? Let me know in the comments below, I'd love to see what motivates you!





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Friday 19 February 2016

Busy Getting Stronger with Boohoo Fit

Boohoo fit review
boohoo fit reviewboohoo fit review


Feeling good about myself whilst exercising is pretty high up on my list of things to achieve from a work out. When I'm pumped and ready for a session I always feel great and enjoy the session a lot more than if I'm really not feeling it. One of the things that really gets me in the mood for a session is what I wear. It may sound a little silly but when I feel great walking into a session it normally motivates me to work harder. I think it has something to do with how unforgiving sportswear can be; You definitely cannot hide fat rolls in a Lycra vest top! It makes me want to work harder so that I can look my best! Fashion in sportswear is big at the moment and with lots of different online fashion retailers jumping on the fitness bandwagon, working out has never been more stylish. I've been a massive fan of the Boohoo Fit range for quite some time now ad was so excited when I was very generously sent some for feature on the blog! Their range is so great and the items are just so soft and comfortable! The Elosie Leggings I'm wearing above are actually South Beach for Boohoo Fit and are quiet literally the best pair of workout leggings I own. If it wasn't for my boyfriend's judgement I would probably live in these. I really like that they're drawstring and not elasticated at the waste, I don't think this is something you see that often with exercise items and I find them so much less restrictive and so much nicer to wear. The racer back slouch vest is also something I am loving (no longer available but find similar here). The slogan 'Busy Getting Stronger' is so up my street as I am all about improving my strength and toning vs just losing weight. I think it's a great message and Boohoo have hit the nail on the head with this item! The range is so easily affordable and includes so many great pieces that it would be silly not to go and check it out, in comparison to the likes of Nike, there's no reason to go and spend £80 on a pair of leggings when Boohoo can sort you out from around £8!

Have you tried Boohoo Fit before? What are your main fitness fashion goals?




BekyLou, Beauty, Fashion, Fitness and Lifestyle Blog based in Manchester

*This post may contain PR samples*

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Wednesday 17 February 2016

Sleek Makeup Spring Eye Launches


I have wanted to try out these eye shadow palettes ever since I had a little sneak peek of them at the Christmas Launch for Sleek's 24K Gold  collection back in November. I had a little swatch of them then and instantly fell in love and have been eagerly waiting for them to drop into my post box ever since! Sleek have been a brand that I've been really impressed with for some time now and after playing around with the products that I was so kindly gifted last year I've definitely fallen a little in love with the quality of their eye shadows. These two latest releases come almost as a duo. A palette aptly named 'A New Day' full of gorgeous nude shades perfectly suited to a day at the office and then the second of the two, which I think has to be my favourite of the two. the i-Divine 'All Night Long' evening palette. The colours in it are just absolutely gorgeous and are literally copper and nude shimmery goodness! I think most people reading this blog will know that I am a sucker for a bronze smokey eye and after having a play around with this palette I have to say that it's pretty much the epitome of a bronze smokey eye palette. The shadows are really well pigmented and with a spot of my favourite Clarins Eye Primer their longevity is pretty impressive too.

The swatches above are my three picks from each palette that I love the most, originally I was going to swatch them all but as they're packed of 10 shadows each, I thought this would've been a bit of a swatch heavy post! If you're an eye shadow fan and like palettes like the Urban Decay naked palettes then these bad boys are definitely something you should pick up next. At a fraction of the price, these palettes are perfect for any makeup enthusiast and have a great lasting power. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I am very sorry I ever doubted high street makeup! I think my 'makeup snob' title can forever be abolished!

Have you tried any of the Sleek Palettes before? What did you think of them?




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Sunday 14 February 2016

5 tips for Staying Positive whilst Blogging!



I'd be lying if I said that I never felt bad about my blog. I actually spend a lot of time feeling like my blog / Instagram could be better and it does sometimes get me down. It's hard sometimes being in this blogging industry to not get caught up in the hustle and bustle of marketing and making 'something' of your blog. I work bloody hard for the content that I produce and if I said that all I wanted to do was keep this as a hobby then again I would be lying. I'm not an idiot, of course I would love to make this a career but I also know that it's not going to happen for me over night. I absolutely love my blog and writing my posts and I wouldn't change anything that I've done so far or any of the experiences I've had because of it but sometimes it can be hard to keep motivated. The blogging world is expanding day by day and with so many bloggers feeling like the community is becoming 'saturated' with bloggers I've decided to list my 'Top 5' tips for keeping motivated whilst blogging!

1 - Stop comparing yourself to everyone else. This is one that I really struggle with. I'm a massive supporter of fellow bloggers and their success but at the same time I can't help but look at their successes and compare them to myself.. "I've been blogging longer than them, why aren't X brand contacting me?" "I have more followers than X, how come they're getting that opportunity and I'm not" - They're things that each of us have thought at least once in our blogging journey but it's not always healthy to feel down on yourself like this. You might have opportunities that another blogger hasn't had and they might think these things about you, it's all about loving yourself and what you've got going on. Try and ignore everything else that could get you down. Concentrate on you and your blog.

2 - Keep your content fresh. We all get stuck in a rut sometimes and it can often be good to change things up a bit. Instead of sitting in your room and blogging how about you get up and go down the road to a coffee shop? I know that changing my writing location can sometimes have an effect on my inspiration and it's good to just get out let the new content flow freely. I always know when I'm struggling to write a post that a bit of time away from the page is best for me. Sometimes I just do something else for an hour or two and go back to it with fresh eyes and sometimes I just need to get out and write in a different location.

3 - Take a break; Don't feel like you have to post. It's okay if you can't put a post up on your 'usual' posting day. I know again that this is another of my biggest issues. I always feel like my readers are eagerly expecting a post to be up on X day of the week and I feel like I've let everyone down if I don't manage to post. At the end of the day it's just a blog post and it's not the end of the world. We all have lives outside of blogging and sometimes that can get in the way. Yes I love blogging and yes, I don't want to let anyone down but at the end of the day it's just words on  page and sometimes 'real life' takes priority.

4 - Just remember that even if you're having a down day someone out there does appreciate your hard work. I've seen a lot of this lately, bloggers needing a bit of a 'pick me up'. If you need a little bit of love just pop a tweet out and interact with other bloggers. The blogging community (especially the beauty and fashion ones) can be the nicest thing out there when you're needing a little bit of loving. There's nothing worse than feeling down on yourself and we've all been there and we're definitely there for you when your needing encouragement.

5 - Finally my last tip is just breathe. Blogging is not the be all and end all of the world. Although for a lot of us it's a hobby that we are really passionate about we still need to remember that it's sometimes not worth the stress. It's okay to take a break, it's okay to fall out of love with blogging and it's okay to not feel to 'into it' anymore. The less pressure you put on yourself the happier you'll be and the happier your blog will be. So just sit back and relax and don't take it all too seriously. Once you're happy within yourself you'll find that the creativity will all of a sudden just hit you and you'll have the blogging bug again.

I hope these tips have helped, I know I've definitely struggled over the last couple of months with my blogging mojo and motivation. Let me know in the comments if you've got any tips for staying positive whilst blogging, I'd love to know what you do to keep on top of things.




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Friday 12 February 2016

Valentine's Worthy Lips



When I think of Valentines day I think of the standard bright red lip. It's a makeup look that is pretty timeless and a red lippie is just a staple for anyone's collection. However getting the perfect pout worthy lips can be no easy thing and especially in this cold weather. Chapped lips are one of my major pet peeves and through the winter they're something that I get constantly and struggle to get rid of to be honest. Is it just me or does any old lip balm just not work anymore? Recently I was sent a sample of the new Balance Me Lip Quench Balm which is launching soon and I can tell you now that I have been really impressed. There's little that can soothe my lips but this little products really does give it it's best try! I've been applying this of an evening before bed as part of my daily routine and over the past weeks the skin on my lips has improved ten fold. They're no longer anywhere near as chapped as they were previously and they feel so much more nourished and soft. I'm not usually one for sticky balms, but this one is worth the glossy and slightly tacky texture as it's really seemed to be working. This Balance Me Lip Quench Balm is packed full of Shea, Cocoa and Mango butter to defeat dry skin, plump and soften them and it doesn't have any petroleum jammed into which is something I'm really grateful for as I really cannot stand petroleum based products -Vaseline definitely isn't for me!

Along with this lip balm every evening I achieve my perfect Valentines lips by applying the Clarins Lip Perfecting Base (which is basically a primer for your lips, read my review here). This base smooths over any left-over imperfections to give a flawless base for your favourite red lipstick! I am currently loving the Clarins Joli Rouge Brilliant in Cherry as it's such a great glossy red for a romantic meal out!

You can find Balance Me products at BeautyExpert.com and Clarins products from the Clarins website. What lip saviours have you been using lately? Have you tried any Balance Me Products before?




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Wednesday 10 February 2016

New Skincare Favourites with Witch


Recently I managed to get my hands on a couple of samples of Witch Skincare and after posting a photo on Instagram I was kindly contacted by the PR rep for the company and sent some full sized products to try out. I'd never tried Witch before and honestly I had some reservations about how good they could be after hearing mixed reviews but I've been pleasantly surprised by the results and am now using these products on a daily basis. The first product that I have absolutely been loving is the Gentle Exfoliating Face Wash which I've found is one of my new favourite night time reaches. I've been using this daily to clean off the remains of my makeup and exfoliate my skin before bed. It's the kind of scrub that I really like; It makes me feel like something is happening. I've said this before, but I'm really not much of a fan of face washes that don't feel like they're doing anything for your skin and this one definitely does as it has natural micro-granules that helps deep clean pores and leaves the skin feeling fresh and smooth. It's also packed full of Witch Hazel (as are all of the brands products) and this naturally cleanses, tones and soothes; something that I really like. I love it when you get a slight tingle or stinging sensation from a face wash, it could mean nothing, but to me I feel that little bit cleaner and have been loving the results! The Naturally Clear Hazel Bursting Beads Face Wash is another that I've also enjoyed for more of a nourishing and gentle wash, this product has beads of Witch Hazel that burst when massaged into the skin to give a more focused release of goodness to clear skin.

The product that I've been most impressed with has been the Naturally Clear Overnight Clearing Serum; this is actually the sample that I had shown on my Instagram and been loving in the mini bottle so I was extremely happy when I received the full version. I've been applying this before bed (after my usual cleansing routine) every night since and I feel like I've definitely seen a difference in my skin. I've been a bit hormonal recently (Jordan would probably say a lot) and so I've been seeing far more spots around my chin than normal but I feel like by concentrating this serum around these areas before bed has been calming them down a bit and at a much faster rate than they'd usually be retreating. I've never really had success with products like these before and so I've been very happy with these results.

A couple of the other products that I've been loving lately are the Witch Skincare Cleansing Lotion and the Witch Concealer stick. I've found the cleansing lotion to be amazing at removing those extra stubborn bits of makeup like black eyeliner (why is that stuff so stubborn?!) and it's also been leaving my skin feeling toned and smooth after use. I really love the concealer stick also and it's pretty impressive considering Witch isn't  a makeup brand. The Concealer stick that I tried came in 'natural' which I believe is the first shade that they do, honestly I think it's still a little bit too dark but mixed with my foundation / used when I have a slight fake tan, this is one of the best concealers I've tried in a while from a 'drugstore' brand. It's pretty amazing at concealing (which is good since that's its main job really) and it's so inexpensive that I don't really know why this product isn't more widley coveted within the blogging community. In all honesty I never knew that Witch did a concealer, so I definitely think it's one that they should start marketing a bit more because I'll definitely be picking up more of these when this one runs out!

I'm really really liking Witch skincare at the moment and I'm so happy I've been able to try out a couple of their products as I think their products are really underrated! Have you ever tried Witch Skincare products before?




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Sunday 7 February 2016

How to Train Like an Animal!


For the past couple of week's I've been getting back into my stride a bit with working out and getting 'back into' my fitness. Exercise and I have had a bit of a love-hate relationship ever since I've moved to Manchester and it's not like me at all to be out of exercising for too long. When I live back home in Wiltshire I was exercising 3/4 times a week and I think that was mainly due to the Bootcamp classes that I attended twice a week and the fact that the Health Club that I attended had the most relaxing swimming pool and sauna ever. I've never really gotten on with going to 'the gym' in the traditional sense of getting on the treadmill or exercise bike and going at it for half hour at a time; that bores me senseless and just has no appeal to me. I'm definitely more of a body weight exerciser and in all honesty I like getting down and dirty when I work out. Bootcamp was always so much fun and I think it's that aspect that I miss most about getting fitter. I might look like your typical girly girl, but when it comes to rolling around in the mud and army crawling my way to a stronger / more toned physique there's nothing I love more. In Manchester I've struggled to find anything similar without having to travel to far out of the City centre and I think that's why I haven't exercised as much.. That was until I saw an ad on Facebook for a 'Bear Strength' Warrior Fit class at Proper Gym in Ancoats, Manchester just around the corner from my flat. It sounded just up my street and the instructor (Darren Craven) sounded really enthusiastic about inviting me and another couple of bloggers long to try it out.

Taking the plunge and in an attempt to make a couple more friends up here I messaged Hannah (from Hannah Gets Hench) and asked if she'd like me to pick her up and drive us both to the class. Even though it wasn't far from my house it was still going to be dark as the class finished at 9pm and even though I'd probably be really safe walking home, it's not something that either of us liked the idea of.
We rocked up to our first class and neither of us really knew what to expect. I mean, I've been to bootcamps before but I know that every instructor has a different approach to the way they train. Darren definitely did not disappoint and we spent the entire warm up jumping around the space like animals to get our muscles working. I tell you now, after so many months off training hard it was definitely a shock to the system!

Our Session included:

- Monkey Lunges - Squatting as low as we can and walking slowly in the squat position around the room. This one is a killer!
- Bear Crawl - Exactly as it sounds, down on all fours and crawling like a bear as fast as you can!
- Gorilla Jumps - Again on all fours however this time leading with your hands and then jumping your back legs forward at the same time to meet them. Just like a Gorilla would!
- Sprints - Self explanatory, 5 sprints as fast as we could from one end of the room to the other.

And that was all just the warm up! By this stage myself and Hannah were already suffering a little but we put up a good fight and didn't quit!  The Main section of the session was made up of Interval training, something that I've worked on with my old Personal Trainer for the last year or so, so I was definitely ready for the pain that it brought with it!

30 seconds work / 10 seconds rest - repeat X5
- Downward Dog (yoga pose) into a push up
- Prison Squats (hand behind your head looking straight ahead)
- Mountain Climbers (plank position and one by one bring in your legs so your knees are as far under your chest as you can get them)
- V-sits - Holding the 'V' sit position for the 30 seconds - waaaay worse than the plank!!

We then played a bit of a 'team game' (never a good thing to hear when you're in these kinds of classes) where a deck of cards decided our torture! One by one we picked out a card and depending on what the card was we had to do a different exercise. All in all we ended up doing around 30 Squat Jumps, 30 Burpees, 30 Leg Raises, 40 Explosive Start Jumps and 40 Press Ups! Not really my idea of a 'fun' team game! Here I'd just like to say a massive Thank You to the guy who pulled out the 'Ace' meaning we had to do all exercises at once!

I had such an amazing time at my first class and have actually been back twice already (sorry for the late posting). Warrior camps / Boot camps like this are definitely my favourite as they put you through your paces and make sure you work your little butt off. If you're like me and don't really get on with the gym lifestyle then I really recommend classes like this - they'll definitely change your mind on how boring exercise can be! I'm hoping to do some more fitness posts / healthy eating posts soon so I'd love to know what you would like to see, let me know in the comments!





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Friday 5 February 2016

Sleek Makeup Spring Lip Launches



A couple of weeks ago I was Invited to my second Sleek Makeup Launch party; unfortunately due to many reasons I couldn't attend and so the lovely people at the PR company that manages Sleek Makeup generously popped the latest launched products in the post for me to try out. This post will be focusing on the six new Lip VIP products! Very Important Pout anyone? I definitely know that I think mine's the best around when I'm rocking a bold lip and these lipsticks definitely stand out. They are super pigmented and last so well, however I did find (through an accidental white sleeve incident) that they do need a couple of minutes drying time before they can be messed with. The lipsticks themselves have a semi-matte formulae and have a velvety finish that feel so lovely on the lips. I haven't found them to be too drying and unlike some semi-matte formulations that I've tried before they haven't had too much of a sheen to them; something that you're definitely not looking for in a matte finish. What I really like about these lipsticks are that they're also jam packed with shea butter and vitamin E to keep your lips nourished, I'm the biggest fan of anything nourishing on the lips as I hate having dry lips!

My favourite shades from this range have to be the nude shade 'Private Booth' and surprisingly  I also love the bright orange colour 'Flaunt it' I think it looks so good in the bullet and on the lips (although I am struggling to style it) and I think it's probably the nicest orange colour that I've seen in a while. I love wearing matte lipsticks when I'm wearing bold colours as I think it adds to the 'dramatic effect' that a bright colour gives! I'm a huge fan of Sleek MakeUP and love how inexpensive the products are! One thing that I would say about these lipsticks is that they're not very forgiving when it comes to dry or flaky lips. Their Semi-Matte formula grips to every nook and cranny on your lips and so keeping your lips smooth and moisturised before applying is definitely a must. I currently use the Clarins Instant Light Lip Perfecter which smooths over the imperfections on the surface of the lips and keeps them super hydrated ready for lipstick application and I also scrub them with my favourite Bubblegum lip scrub from Lush before I apply my lipstick every morning! 

This is such a great collection of Lip VIP lipsticks from Sleek and I can't wait to try out some of their next shades / releases. Have you tried any Sleek products before? What did you think of them?





*This post contains PR Samples*



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