S/S 2016 Trends: The Hottest Hairstyles for This Season

Summer is around the corner and I don't know about you but the warmer months ahead make me want to experiment with a lot of things, hairstyles included. Having long and a lot of hair is tricky and if I leave it down more than often I become a hot, sweaty mess. A simple ponytail does the trick but it also is pretty boring, so in the attempt to wear my hair in different ways this summer I chose 3 of the hottest hairstyles for this season after a good scroll on Instagram for some inspiration. Not only are these incredible simple to create, they are the fresh styles that will get us through every summer occasion and I'm talking that weekend BBQ, musical festivals, al fresco dinner date and even weddings!

PONY-BRAID

S/S 2016 Trends: Stripes T-Shirt Dress & All-White Sneakers

I am back with STRIPES and I know what you're thinking, yes I've been wearing them non-stop ever since spring showed up! I've talked about this trend here, here and here so I won't go much into detail but all I will say is that stripes pretty much go with anything in my wardrobe at the moment; they're easy, versatile and timeless! Stripes look seriously stylish in a casual midi dress and that's the look I chose for today. 

The Best Skin Of Your Life Starts Here: Skincare Advanced Routine

It amazes how much my skin has changed from a year back to today. I remember patting extra layers of moisturisers in the attempt to get rid of my dry patches, completely ignoring my eyes and fine lines and not giving a second thought about SPF. My skin was drier than the Sahara desert, and today despite living in a predominantly cold weather country, my skin is much like a tropical forest, hot, oily, humid, and all sorts of weird. Things have changed quite a lot going from one extreme to the other and as a result my skincare routine had to be entirely redesigned too. I introduced products I had never thought of before and really did my research on putting down a good (and most importantly effective) routine and all the essential steps within it. After much trial and error and endless amounts products that were pretty useless and did nothing for my skin, I am happy to have a routine that fits my skin type, takes cares of all of my worries and best of all, leaves me feeling confident in my own skin.

S/S 2016 Trends: Gingham

Gingham is coming in hot this season, and it has been crowned the cool girl's print. Despite being usually associated with a youthful vibe, this warm-weather style has most certainly grown up for spring. Designers like Victoria Beckham, Wes Gordon and Marni, to name a few, all showcased pieces in this print on the runway in a multitude of fabrics, colours and clothing options, and it is currently proving to be increasingly popular. What is gingham though, I hear you asking me. Gingham is usually a lightweight fabric, checked in white and a bold colour. It is really very similar to plaid, and being a huge fan of plaid myself, I am loving this latest trend. 

5 Tips For Transitioning Your Beauty Routine Into Spring/Summer

I guess you can say the weather has been improving lately but to be honest I can't believe we are only a few days away from official meteorological summer; temperatures need to rise asap! When it comes to fashion we have all bravely put away our winter coats and start bearing the still rather icy breeze with lighter clothes and layers (see 5 Tips For Transitioning Your Wardrobe Into Spring). In terms of beauty, there are a few things we can do differently too in order to adapt our beauty regime to the warmer months ahead. Spring and summer are the perfect time to rock a lighter base, get some use out of that waterproof mascara you've hardly ever touched and really switch things up. Here are a few tips to transition your beauty regime to the sunny-ish seasons.

The Art of Contouring: NYX Highlight & Contour Pro Palette

I've talked about my recent Boots trip where I picked my newest favourite matte lippies and on the same day I noticed the counters were rearranged; I found myself standing in front of a huge NYX counter and needless to say I was like a kid on a playground. Desperately trying to contain myself, I settled on one of their lip creams, a metallic eyeshadow (because those are trendy!) and their gorgeous contour palette. I am far from being an expert when it comes to contouring (despite spending hours on Youtube trying to master the art behind it), but I love how a bit of bronzer and highlighter completely change my look. I have and always had chubby cheeks, so a little more definition is something I go for almost every day. I am always hitting pan on contour kits so a bigger and more professional palette (even though I'm not one myself) was definitely a needed buy.

Wedding Drama: The 5 Stages of Wedding Planning

As some of you may know I'm getting married next year, more specifically in April 2017 giving us just under a year to plan the entire thing. In my head, planning a wedding was always going to be so much fun. I would imagine myself creating endless wedding boards with all the pretty decor I wanted for the big day and that getting every piece and putting them together would be rather simple because I'd be organised and know exactly what to do next. Whilst some of that is true, I've come to realise that despite being really happy about being engaged and marrying the person I love the most, wedding planning was making me pull out all of my hair and stress big time. Before speaking to a few contacts and hiring a few people to help (best decision I've ever made), I had several hilarious breakdowns aka the 5 stages of wedding planning and I thought I'd share them with you guys!

The Answer To My Make-Up Prayers: Maybelline Vivid Matte Liquid Lipsticks

The Kylie lip kits are selling like hot cakes and on three occasions I tried purchasing them only to be told at the checkout that my products were no longer available and had been sold out. Typical. Needless to say, I have now given up because no one should go through that much effort for a beauty product. Instead, I decided to stick to what I know best and avoid purchasing something so hyped (which from the reviews I've read I probably wouldn't have liked that much anyway).

What We Did for Mother's Day (Part 2) : Sunny Sunday in London

I always wondered why the UK celebrated Mother's day on a different date than pretty much the rest of the world. My mum of course, being Italian, does not mind this at all and quite likes being able to celebrate this special day twice a year. This past Sunday was no different and whilst presents are only involved the first time round, we simply had to make most of the beautiful sunny weather we were having in London (and how hot was it!). 

S/S 2016 Trends: '70s Boho-Chic Inspired

The romantic era of the '70s fashion was all about rocking feminine paisleys and ethnic inspired prints, mixing delicate detailing and the bohemian styling for a free spirited look. Back then, fashion was linked to freedom, mixing a crazy amount of colours and miss and matching different styles with each other (which is a perfect tip today to maximise your clothes’ wear). This era marked the presence of a huge number of unlike styles; hippies, punks, bohemian chic, you name it. As freedom was the main concept for fashion, this period is characterised by its open-mindedness and boundless creativity due to the lack of any style rules and ideals. Uniqueness and a distinctive vision of style and inspiration were huge, even if it meant leading to a little craziness when putting outfits together. 

Pretty In Pink: 5 Pink Lipsticks for Spring

Spring sure took its time but it's officially skirt weather in the UK! Speaking of spring, when seasons change I'm all up for a make-up bag update and rotating products that work better for the warmer months ahead. This S/S16 is all about the fresh-faced complexion, natural-looking and radiant make-up look, who doesn't love that? Apart from the obvious liquid highlighter for that spring glow, I wanted a few lip shades that screamed "ready for spring" and I found 5 pink lipsticks that needed to make their way to my make-up bag! Nothing says "spring-ready" more perfectly than a gorgeous pinky shade on the lips; pink is perfectly girly and fun, they brighten up your look as well as your mood so to match the beautiful blossoms out there why not go with a gorgeous pink shade?