on Wednesday 30 May 2012
To mark the end of my GCSE Astronomy exam, this week I have gone for everything inspired by this little corner of the universe we know as the Milky Way. These bold daring prints go perfectly with denim shorts and bright white t-shirts, perfect for making a statement this summer. 
Cosmic Galaxy


How would you style these galaxy prints?
  1. Blue Zip Hoody £26 | TOPSHOP
  2. Models Own Beetlejuice Nail Polish £5 | BOOTS
  3. Mystic Horse Crop Top £15 | TOPSHOP
  4. Space Print Leggings £22 | TOPSHOP
  5. Galaxy Peace Print £12.99 | AX PARIS
  6. Cut Out Galactic Knuckle Ring £3.15 | FOREVER 21

on Saturday 26 May 2012
This week I took a trip down to the Body Shop, king of the body butter, to pick up a few goodies. Anyone who knows me well understands my unfailing adoration for the Body Shop, so when I saw a shop assistant handing out £3 vouchers outside my local branch my eyes lit up with glee. Leading me to purchasing a couple items I've been meaning to tick of my wish list.
L-R: Cocoa Butter Body Butter,  Pink Grapefruit Lip Butter, Moringa Body Butter


Mini-Review

Moringa Body Butter | £5 HERE
Love the scent of this butter, it last for hours and is a great moisturising. It is a lighter formula so it's perfect for the summer months.

Cocoa Butter Body Butter | £5 HERE
Suffering from dry, ashy skin (clearly speaking from experience), then look no further. Its a heavy formula and extremely moisturising, however the scent takes some getting used to if your used to other brands of Cocoa Butter. This is the best body butter I have used thus far and the fact that its made from natural ingredients just makes it that much better.

Pink Grapefruit Lip Butter | £4 HERE
Winter came and took my soft supple lips with it, so in a desperate attempt to return them to their former glory I purchased this bad boy. It smells heavenly, its so hard to resist the temptation to eat it. So far so good but we'll see how it works out in the long run.



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on Thursday 24 May 2012
CHUBBY TOE ALERT!!! 

I finally decided to try out ombre nails after seeing so much of them online and they turned out great. Whenever I try out a new nail polish look I always try it out on my toe nails first, just in case I mess it up, which explains the beauties your about to view :D.
I used a tutorial by the BEAUTY DEPARTMENT with a couple twists.

How you do dat?

  1. Paint your nails white to create a base for your nail polish
  2. Apply tape round the edges, then apply vaseline to the parts you didn't get to allow extra nail polish to be removed easily
  3. Using a cut up make up or kitchen sponge apply the colours you want to blend in vertical stripes
  4. Apply the polish to your nail using the sponge to the nail until blended smoothly
  5. Apply top coat to smooth the nail out
  6. Remove tape and clean up excess nail polish with a Q-Tip and nail polish remover


Sally Hansen - White Tip, 2True - Shade 2, Collection 2000 - Tutti Fruity, H&M  Nail Polish - Plum

What are some of your favorite nail polish trends?

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sundancehudson.blogspot.com
on Wednesday 23 May 2012
I'm starting a weekly fashion post called Wednesday wishes, summing up my favourite styles, trends and colours for the week. 

This week I'm going for lilac dreams. Pastel colours are a hot new summer trend that compliments most people. I know some of you out their are screaming 'yikes', have no fear I promise you this isn't going to be a repeat of the white jean fad.  Lilac is a very soft complementing colour that can suit all age ranges and when added to any outfit it can give a fun youthful touch. 

LILAC DREAMS


  1. Essie Lilacisim SUPERDRUG | £7.99
  2. Moto Stripe High Waist Hotpants TOPSHOP | £32
  3. Zip Hoody in Lavender TOPSHOP | £26
  4. Underground Wulfrun Lilac Contrast Sole Creepers | ASOS £89
  5. Speckle Tee Mini Dress TOPSHOP | £25
  6. Lilac Supersoft 7/8 Jeans NEW LOOK | £19.99
What are your favourite summer trends?
on Monday 21 May 2012

Smoky Canvas is a creamy greige colour (grey/beige) that reminds me far to much of cement. I think this colour is perfect for all seasons as its not very bright and will match the majority of outfits. It gives a very cool, sophisticated and effortless look when put on, perfect for formal events. 


For a revlon formula its surprisingly quick drying meaning you have to be quite fast with the application, otherwise you end up smudging what was a perfect smooth coat with the brush :( You only need two coats for a completely opaque finish, once applied it dries to a high shine and a very creamy glossy finish.

Accent Nail


Like most nail fanatics out there, for me life feels slightly empty with out a little bit of nail art to brighten up my day. However if your lazy like me doing all ten nails can be far to much to ask from a couch potato, thats why accent nails are 'da bomb.com'. They jazz up a basic nail job and will leave people in awe of your nails all week long :DI chose to do a leopard print accent nail, so cute! I will be doing a fun tutorial for the leopard print look soon.

L-R: Revlon - Black Star + Smoky Canvas, Sally Hansen - Insta-Dri Top Coat,  Maybelline - Mod Mauve, 17 - Sweet Kisses 
Tell  me what your favorite accent nail looks are?


on Friday 18 May 2012
I decided to swatch my recent Collection 2000 purchases from my poundland haul and came up with a rather interesting summer simple makeup look in the process.


Collection 2000 Glam Metallics Coloured Liquid Eyeliner in Ripped + Groupie 


First up, glitter eyeliner. Initially when I saw this product I shied away from the intense brightness of the bottle in fear that I would look like a clown when wearing it. However something within in me said Y.O.L.O, leading to me owning two of these florescent wonders today.

The brushes are a fabulously thin, allowing you to control the thickness of the liner precisely. The formula is quick drying, liquidy and does not budge when it on, seriously I couldn't scrub the swatch of my arm for a day! They eyeliner dries matt but still has a silky shimmer to it, so its not so in your face but does have a glamourous appeal.
Swatch: Top - Groupie, Bottom - Ripped

These sparkly gems can be worn as a regular liner but they also make a great eyeshadow base. Groupie is a beautiful holographic shimmery turquoise-green that looks amazing in the sunlight. My favorite however is Ripped as it is the most wearable for my skin-tone and lifts the eye for an effortless youthful look.

Collection 2000 Colour Intense Trio in Night  Jewels


I'm still stuck on ideas on how to use this palette as they are all very bright colours. The trio blends out really easily allowing for a smooth finish and flawless look. There is very little fall out, perfect for any clumsy people out there who like me have a tendency to get make up in their eyes resulting in an all too familiar blood shot eye look for the evening... sigh.

The shades are fairly pigmented and take a while to build up to full coverage. Personally I think this is perfect as it means I can create subtle but colourful looks for the daytime. They are shimmery and have a smooth, rich silky look to them when applied to them, unlike some that can appear 'ashy' on my skin-tone.


 Colour Blocking Eyeliner Look 

Waterline: MUA Eyeliner in Royal Blue

Colour Blocking was a hot trend during Summer 2011, but why limit to just clothing? The contrast of two bright colours is perfect for summer drawing attention to your eyes and keeping make up fun and experimental!

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sundancehudson.blogspot.com

on Monday 14 May 2012
I suppose the question on all of your minds is simply, How do I grow my natural afro hair long? By natural I mean the hair thats already on your head wether relaxed or natural, long or short, broken or recently cut by a scissor happy hair dresser (can a get a amen?). Well one things for certain heat damaged, thinning hair is never going to be in fashion so better get these locks growing healthily. In order to help you on your journey to long flowing hair, I have compiled 10 Steps on How to Grow Your Hair. Pay attention Young Rapunzles!


Step One: What’s wrong with my hair?

First things first, to grow your hair long we need to identify; what is wrong with it? When hair appears to 'stop growing' its not because your hair follicles had a temper tantrum and decided enough is enough. It's caused by breakage of the ends of the hair meaning your hair appears to not be growing. Hair is growing all the time, the key is to preserve the ends so we can see the growth. Any number of factors can cause breakage, the most common being excessive heat use, lack of moisture, rough handling and hairstyles with too much tension

Step Two: Water is your friend.

Moisture was a foreign concept to me at the beginning of my hair journey and my hair suffered because of it. Using a water-based moisturiser on your hair doesn’t only make it look better but makes it stronger. Unlike straighter hair, tightly curled hair prevents the distribution of natural oils along the hair shaft causing our hair to become dry. The use of a moisturisers or leave-in conditioners rehydrates the hair. To prevent our hair from drying out during the day it’s important to seal in the moisture with an oil or natural butter adding shine to the hair. Cliche Alert: moisture is the key… and sealing is the lock.

Step Three: Satin scarf where for art thou?

Though you consider sleep a peaceful relaxing time it may be causing your hair some major stress. The friction caused by rubbing your hair on a rough cotton pillow case is wearing out your hair and causing split ends in addition to sucking moisture out of your natural hair. Wearing a satin scarf or bonnet or sleeping on a satin pillow case can prevent the friction and moisture loss.

Step Four: Heat Alert!

As tempting as using straightners/flat irons and curling wands can be their very nature is damaging to the structure of our hair. Chemistry Lesson. Hair is made up of protein (keratin), excessive heat means that proteins denature – breaking bonds, changing and weakening their structure. The use of minimum heat (eg. Lower temperatures, less frequent use of heat) can preserve our hair and cause less damage. Straighter looks can always be achieved by using large rollers whilst curly looks can be attained through smaller rollers.

Step Five: Deep Condition

A regular deep conditioning-treatment is simple, but powerful. The treatment replenishes lost moisture helping to soften hair and make it easier to manage. It also prevents breakage helping hair to grower that extra bit longer.

Step Six: Take Care

PSA: If you have been combing you hair dry please stop, I repeat do not comb your hair dry. Natural afro hair is in it most fragile state whilst dry, improper handling could lead to snapping, breaking and tearing of our delicate hair strands as well as causing stress to the scalp. It’s best to comb your hair with deep conditioner in it or when saturated with moisturiser. Using wider tooth combs will stop you ripping through snags (small tangles) in your hair helping to avoid breakage. Lastly, as much as we like slicked back edges to make are pony tail look extra smooth the use of hard brushes and gel containing alchaol means are poor baby hairs are hanging on for dear life! Softer bristle brushes and moisturising gels can keep are edges looking thick and healthy.

Step Seven: Stop with the grease already!

Greasing scalps with a petroleum based product is an age old practice within the black afro haired community. Contrary to popular belief, slathering thick grease on your scalp will not make it grow ‘faster’. Petroleum actually clogs pores on the scalp prevent hair follicles growing hair healthily, additionally getting products high in petroleum on the actual shaft of your hair can lock out any moisture from getting in. An alternative to heavy greases can be natural oils such as olive oil and coconut oil, which nourish your scalp.

Step Eight: Trim... Snip Snip

It’s hard to take scissors to hair when you’ve worked so hard to grow it but trimming is a necessary step to take on the road to long healthy hair. Cutting away split ends makes the ends appear thicker and also gest rid of damaged hair. This prevents breakage and makes your curls look fuller and bouncier. You only need to trim about 2 times a year.

Step Nine: Get out your magnifying glass it’s time to read the ingredients list.

Whilst searching through hair products it attractive to pick up every jar or bottle that promises to grow your hair “10-inches in 5 hours”. When picking products as tedious as it is to read the ingredients list, they have a huge part to play in the condition of our hair. A general rule of thumb with ingredients list is that they higher up the ingredient the larger the percentage. However if the product you are using appears to be using works, it works!

The Good: Natural Oils, Plant Extracts, Water, Sodium Laureth Sulphate, Cetyl or Cetearyl Alcohol
The Bad: Petroleum, Mineral Oil, Alcohol, Silcone

Step 10: It's okay to be relaxed! (pun intended)

Sifting through the internet can sometimes make it seem as though everyone with a relaxer in their head is dammed to hell. Having healthy hair is still possible with a relaxer so long as the following steps above are followed. Relaxing to often can cause damage to the scalp and also apply relaxer to already relaxed hair (re-relaxing) can chemically break down the hair causing it to become weak and break. 


I really hope this guide helped all you young Rupunzels (teenagers) out their struggling with their hair. The real key to long hair is consistency; jaw-dropping results only come with hard work. 

P.S. I will be continuing this guide with more posts going in detail about aspects of hair care in general, no matter your hair type.

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www.sundancehudson.blogspot.com
on Monday 7 May 2012
Makeup Haul Time! Makeup items on the cheap are not easy to find so I made it my personal goal to hunt for as many bargains as possible, that wouldn't hurt my measly 16 year old wallet. Over the week I managed picked up a couple items to build up my newbie make up collection, including a few gems from Poundland!



Superdrug


Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Anti-Chip Top Coat - £4.99

Boots

Sweet Kisses + Pink Lemonade

17 Fast Finish Nail Polish in - £2.99 (on offer for 2 for £4)

Poundland

Bargain City better known as Poundland had loads of amazing branded products if you look hard enough.

Collection 2000 Hot Look Nail Polish in Tutti Frutti - £1
Collection 2000 Glam Metallics Coloured Liquid Eyeliner in Ripped + Groupie - £1
Collection 2000 Colour Intense Trio in Night  Jewels - £1
NYC City Duet Eyeshadow in SoHo Spice -£1

I will be doing swatches for all these fantastic finds very soon, keeps your eyes pealed.
TREND ALERT: Pinks are definitely hot for the summer!

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