Beauty - Tips From The Pros, John Christopher

I've had the pleasure of knowing make up artist John Christopher since I first started out as a freelance stylist. It always cheers me up when I find out I'm working with John as he's incredibly fun to be around, has great taste in music (which is very important on a photo shoot!) and is brilliant at his job. So I just had to get his expert opinion on all things beauty for the blog. Over to you John!

I became a makeup artist by accident if truth be told. I studied design and dropped out after finding it wasn't for me. I had my eureka moment at a fancy dress party and decided there and then I was going to be a makeup artist. Since that moment I've been lucky enough to work for titles such as Harpers Bazaar, Vogue and ID, and celebrities including Adele, Eva Herzigova, Yasmin Le Bon and Jamie Dornan to name a few.

Estee Lauder Perfectionist Youth Infusing Make Up £38 BUY HERE

 At the moment I'm in love with Estée Lauder's Perfectionist Youth Infusing Make Up. I love the texture of this foundation as it's not greasy and leaves the skin with a satin sheen. Plus it comes in a great variety of colours.

Garnier Skin Neutrals BB Skin Perfector Eye Roll On £9.99 BUY HERE

This concealor is cheap and cheerful.... but it WORKS! Garnier Roll On. It's a great all round product. A must buy!!

Chanel Joues Contraste Powder Blush £31 BUY HERE

Chanel's Joues Contraste Powder Blush is a wonderful blush that leaves skin with a healthy glow. It also works well as an eyeshadow.

Jurlique Herbal Recovery Anti-Oxidant Face Oil £38 BUY HERE

My favourite product for the face is Jurlique Herbal Recovery Antioxidant Face Oil.

This oil is magic; it works on all skin types and leaves skin glowing... and has saved me on many jobs with tired overworked models!

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour £18 BUY HERE

Chanel Le Vernis nail polishes are just the best for colour... Hands down, no pun intended!

Bumble and Bumble Pret A Powder £21.50 BUY HERE

When it comes to hair I'm loving Bumble and Bumble Pret a Powder. It's a mix of dry shampoo and texturiser so if you want that Kate Moss just-got-out-of-bed hair this is the product you need.

Jurlique Rose Body Oil £38 BUY HERE

What can I say about Jurlique Rose Body Oil? It smells divine and leaves skin soft with a beautiful sheen. It's especially amazing after a long haul flight. 

Melvita Shea Butter £17 BUY HERE

A brilliant treatment for lips is Melvita's Shea Butter. Great for any dry skin problems as well.

Bourjois Volumizer Mascara £10.99 BUY HERE

Bourjois Volumizer Mascara is one of the best I've used. It can be built up to give you a really heavy false lash look and has a double brush making it easy to apply to the bottom lashes.

Jai Spa Terry Bath Mitt £6 BUY HERE

The one product I recommend everyone own are a pair of exfoliating gloves. They're a cheap basic and a great starting pointing for healthy skin. 

Thank you JC!

To view John Christopher's work and make a booking please visit: www.carolhayesmanagement.co.uk/artist/john-christopher/mens

Fashion - Wardrobe Essential: The Blue Shirt

Just like a LBD, black tailored trousers, perfectly fitting jeans and a breton stripe, a classic blue button down cotton shirt should be part of every woman's capsule wardrobe.  They work brilliantly for the office tucked into tailored trousers or for evening worn with leather pants, a crystal earring and some strappy high heels. You can even pair the shirt with jeans, black, blue or white, styled with a rolled sleeve and trainers for the weekend. It's such a versatile and hard working wardrobe item. 

While I own a classic style from J Crew that I wear frequently, I recently found this blue shirt with a design twist from Zara. I love the cropped side waist detail coupled with the long front and back that at first glance could be mistaken for a shirt dress. Plus it's an incredible price point.

Shirt £22.99 Zara BUY HERE

Here are a few other blue shirts with a twist that I'm coveting.

Balenciaga from Matches Fashion £605 BUY HERE

Boden £79 BUY HERE

COS £55 BUY HERE

Images: Pinterest, COS, Boden, Matches Fashion

Lifestyle - The Best Baby Websites

Maternity leave and breastfeeding allows me a lot of time to scour the internet (one handed!), especially during those long middle-of-the-night feeds. Rather than lusting over shoes and bags on Net-A-Porter I now find myself looking at baby related sites, everything from advice on my newborn (I find myself manically googling some really weird things now!), to baby interior design and of course, fashion for little people. Here's a round up of my favourite websites.

www.babycentre.com

I signed up to this site when I first found out I was pregnant and looked forward to receiving the weekly newsletter telling me how my pregnancy was progressing. Now that my little lady is here I constantly refer back to the website whenever I'm looking for answers to the hundreds of new parent questions I have on a daily basis. It's a must have for pregnant women and new mums.

www.upfrontmama.com

I found this super honest blog by mum Nicola incredibly helpful when pregnant, especially when it came to the essentials I needed and I ended up buying quite a few things on Nicola's recommendation. Nicola's 'What To Pack In The Hospital Bag' was particularly helpful, although in the end I never got to pack one due to my little one being premature! Now that I'm a mummy I appreciate Nicola's humorous and honest posts on parenting.

www.lullabuy.co.uk

A shopping site with so many gorgeous things for a nursery, toys that parents like as much as the kids and stylish essentials like bedding and teethers. My little lady has added the Baby Bites Shark Sleeping Bag to her Christmas list!

www.cissywears.com

A beautifully curated collection of cool items feature on this website. I especially like the large selection of Sonny Angels and Lucky Boy Sunday toys.  

www.littlespree.com

This blog, created by one of my favourite stylists Sarah Clark, features the most stylish items for little people and provides me with so much inspiration when it comes to dressing my little lady. Plus there are posts twice a week dedicated to mama's featuring equally desirable items.

www.molly-meg.com

Featuring a wide range of items for your little person (and you!) and brands I love such as Noe & Zoe, Oeuf NYC and Lapin & Me, this website could bankrupt me! I've already ordered some wall prints for the nursery.

www.nubie.co.uk

If I had a money tree I would kit the nursery in gorgeous furniture from this website. The cribs are especially beautiful.

www.organiczoo.co.uk

I would happily wear any of the grey marl sweatshirts (especially the 'milk' one) from Organic Zoo. Too many of the clothes on the high street are gender specific and it pains me to think of dressing my baby in head to toe pink, so these gender neutral clothes are a welcome addition to my baby's wardrobe.

www.thismodernlife.co.uk

Lovely interior items, cute but cool toys, this website has too many items I want. I particularly like  the inspiration section of this website which feature get the look interiors.

www.scandimini.co.uk

Another website featuring the coolest collection of kids clothes. I could literally spend a mortgage payments worth of money on the stunning selection, especially from brands Bang Bang Copenhagen, Bobo Chooses and Mini Rodini.

Fashion - Transitional Dressing

One day it's hot and I'm putting on my sandals, then it's raining and I'm wearing my waterproof parka, then it's chilly and I'm putting the heating on. What should you wear when the weather can't make its mind up? In my humble opinion transitional dressing (meaning between seasons) is best tackled with classic items with a twist. Here I've worn a wardrobe staple the breton top, with a wide leg cropped jean as opposed to a predictable skinny jean and a leopard print statement flat shoe for a print clash.

Top £35 from Topshop Boutique BUY HERE, Jeans from ASOS, Shoes from Jimmy Choo

Here are some other items that work brilliantly for this awkward weather.

Stripe top £45 from Finery London BUY HERE

Cropped jeans £45 from & Other Stories BUY HERE

Shoes £40 from ASOS BUY HERE

Images: ASOS, Finery London, & Other Stories

Lifestyle - Postcard From Tenby

This weekend my little family of three travelled to Wales so my boyfriend could compete in the Ironman race (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run).  The race is based in the beautiful little town of Tenby which transforms into 'Ironman Town' for the weekend. Never will you see so many fit and healthy people clad in neoprene and lycra wandering around pushing bikes that cost more than some cars. But aside from the race Tenby is a special place filled with friendly people, Laduree coloured houses, miles of golden beaches, delicious ice cream and cute cobbled streets. Here's a photo diary of our weekend.

Oh the fun you can have with a baby! Here she is with her Dad pretending to ride his bike

The reason for the weekend...Ironman Wales

Beautiful blue skies

Miles of stunning sandy beaches

Pastel coloured houses

Old fashioned sweet shops

Spot the house featured on Grand Designs

Scarily large seagulls 

My baby Daddy with his pride and joy

Well it would be rude not to!

Me and my little lady

Tenby has some great antique stores, The Shed is especially good

Race day and he's making his way to the swim

2000+ competitors tackle the choppy sea

Oh the glamour of being a supporter! Baby on the front, boyfriend's supplies on my back, hood on my head.

Here he comes and the end is in sight!

The morning after. Well done Daddy!

Thank you for a great weekend Tenby, we'll be back next year!