Permanent Make Up - Here To Stay

I am petrified of needles and I never thought I would have the courage to get inked. However, last September I got my eyebrows tattooed. It was a mouth-dropping £300 for full eyebrows but I can honestly say it was money well spent. Prices do vary from £100-£300 whether you are getting part of the brow or all of it. 


I chose to have the individual hair strokes tattooed, rather than one block colour, to have a more natural result. It has made me feel 100 times more confident, and I now wear less make up during the day.


Permanent make up is similar to a regular tattoo, where pigments are deposited into the dermal layer of the skin. As well permanent eyebrows, there is also permanent eye liner and lip enhancement available. 


After a consultation, my treatment consisted of a two sittings, both were about an hour and a half each. Most of that time was spent choosing the right pigments, pencilling on the eyebrows and getting the right shape and look. The actual tattooing only took about 20-30 mins.


To my relief, from a brief look at the needle, it's actually really small and not like the huge needles at hospital, thank God! And the procedure wasn't too painful, it was unpleasant, but not unbearable. I would describe the pain as a severe eyebrow plucking session, and after a while it was more painful when the technician was wiping away the blood and excess ink rather than the actual tattooing!


I got my eyebrows tattooed because I have a long term condition called alopecia, but lots of people opt for permanent make up from years of 'over-plucking', old age or simply for convenience. I have a few hairs left on my eyebrows, which I think helps to create the natural look.


Here are the finished results of my permanent make up...

I am wearing MUA eye dust in green, £1 from Superdrug

Glitter Candy

During my travels I was lucky enough to visit the most amazing city ever, Singapore. My friends and I decided to treat ourselves and we visited a little hair and nail salon. While my friend had her hair done, I got a manicure and my nails painted. I wish the design could have lasted forever as they were gorgeous. I requested a pink and glittery design and the nail technician worked her magic. Using O.P.I nail polish, she started with a baby pink pearlescent polish for the base coat. She then used a brighter pearlescent pink on the tips of my nails and topped off the design with a layer of silver glitter polish....beautiful.

I've reinvented the nail design myself using 17 High Gloss nail polish in 'Poncho Pink' as my base, then I applied GOSH nail glitter in Rose Quartz at the base of my nail. I applied the GOSH glitter by using a little clear nail polish and dipping it into the glitter pot and applying to the nail. Remember to wipe the brush of excess glitter before putting it back into the polish to prevent glitter getting mixed into your clear polish.

In the Nude

For my birthday in October I received a £5 gift voucher for Marks and Spencer from a friend. I didn't think there is much you can get for a fiver at M&S, until I stumbled across their 'Perfection' cosmetic range. I decided to go for a quick dry nail polish in 'Nude' for £5 from their Perfection range. I love the colour and quality of the polish. Four months after purchase, the texture remains smooth and light and it is still easy to apply. I definitely recommend it!

I decided to make my nude nails a little more interesting and added black tips for a striking contrast. I used 17 Fast Finish nail polish in 'Night Shade' at £2.99, unfortunately it is starting to go about gloopy so my tips aren't very good!

All That Glitters

I want everyone to know about GOSH's nail glitters, I am a huge glitter fan and I love anything that sparkles. 

There are ten different shimmering colours available to choose from, I particularly like Silver 01, Rose Quartz 06 and Turquoise 09. All the glitter comes in small 'finger dipping' pots, so you can apply a base coat of nail polish onto your nail then dip your finger into the glitter pot, brush off excess glitter and it's done! However, I have found applying the glitter by this method means the glitter can come off quite quickly and applying a top coat to secure the glitter in place loses the glitter's sparkle.

So I use a different method of application that works for me. After applying a base coat to my nail, I get a nail varnish brush from a basic clear varnish, I get a small amount of clear varnish on the brush then I dip the brush into the glitter pot so there is a mixture of varnish and glitter on the brush, which I then apply to my nail. Finally wipe off the excess glitter from the brush before putting the brush back into the varnish to avoid glitter getting mixed in (this has happened to me, but the excess glitter sinks to the bottom so it hasn't been a problem!). I have found this method has made the glitter more hard-wearing while still having a sparkly finish! 

The nail glitters are fun to use and they give a great look, they are available from Superdrug for £3.99 each.