NTA 2015

Well guys and girls, who watched the National Television Awards last night?
I love watching it every year and I vote so I like to see who gets what. Plus (like most of the females who would have been watching) I like to see who wore what!

My absolute favorite look on this years NTA red carpet was Jacqueline Jossa (Lauren Branning, Eastenders). Her dress was STUNNING! Really suited her and just looked amazing with her baby bump.

The worst outfit choices in my opinion was Sam Faiers (TOWIE) and Chloe Sims (TOWIE). Sam's dress I just think is horrible! Don't like the open front or the crossover straps. Big no no for me. As for Chloe Sims..... Black PVC.... Time and a place! To me it looks like something from fifty shades of grey! 

I also kept an eye out for a hairstyle that was worth mentioning. This year I thought a lot of celebrities wore their hair down but I was looking for a really nice put-up/up-style. One that really stood out for me was Maddy Hill (Nancy Carter, Eastenders). Rather than seeing her in the usual tomboyish bun she wears in Eastenders, last night she had her hair in an elegant lady like up-style. She was almost unrecognizable! Definitely a hairstyle winner for me. 

For anyone who missed the awards last night I will include the list of awards and winners below. 

 NTA AWARD                                WINNER                                  MY VOTE

Entertainment Show                      I'm a Celebrity                         I'm a Celebrity

Drama Performance                      Sheridan Smith                     Dame Maggie Smith

Skills Challenge Show              Great British Bake Off                Come Dine With Me

Entertainment Presenter                    Ant & Dec                             Ant & Dec

Newcomer                                        Maddy Hill                         Cameron Moore  

Daytime                                          This Morning                          The Chase

Comedy                                       Mrs Browns Boys             The Big Bang Theory

Serial Drama Performance              Danny Dyer                         Nikki Sanderson

TV Judge                                       David Walliams                      Simon Cowell

Multichannel                                  Celebrity Juice                        Celebrity Juice

Chat Show Host                                 Alan Carr                               Alan Carr 

Factual                                            Gogglebox                      For The Love Of Dogs

Drama                                           Downtown Abbey                          Cilla 

Serial Drama                                    Eastenders                             Eastenders

Talent Show                                       XFactor                          Britains Got Talent

Also a Special Recognition Award was given to David Tennant. 

xx

Hair Advice: Fine Hair

Since I made a blog post on dry/damaged hair I decided to try to give some advice to anyone who has thin or fine hair.

I personally have thick hair myself  so I haven't tested any of these products on myself, but I do have a few family members who struggle with trying to make their hair look and feel fuller. Using my hairdressing knowledge I was able to advise them on what products to use and give them tips on a few do's and don't's. So this blog post is based on my knowledge and their findings. 

First off you can use a volumizing shampoo. If your hair is soft do not use conditioner as this will just make your hair look flat. However, if you have damaged or split ends then use a small amount of conditioner only on the ends of the hair. Whatever you do do not put any conditioner on to your roots. At all. No. Don't do it. 

Towel dry or blast dry the hair to get rid of the excess water. Now while the hair is damp what you need is a volumizing mousse. Apply this evenly throughout the hair and make sure you get enough through the roots of the hair. Some product ranges have a volumizing blow dry spray if you can get yourself one of these then spray this evenly on each section of the hair while you are blow drying. 

To do a volumizing blow dry you need to take your hair in sections. Apply your volumizing spray if you managed to get one. Use a round brush, make sure to get it right in at your roots and use a slight upward motion when blow drying. In a rush? A quick blow drying tip is to blast dry your hair upside down. Volumizing hairspray and very very slight backcombing will finish the look off.

My sister struggles with having very fine hair and she has tried a few different ranges and so far her favorite has been John Frieda: Luxurious Volume. 

This range can be bought on the high street so it is easy to get your hands on. It has everything you will need from the shampoo at the beginning right through till the hairspray at the end. Below I will include the links to some of the products available from John Frieda at Boots. 

John Frieda Luxurious Volume Touchably Full Colour-Treated Hair Shampoo

http://www.boots.com/en/John-Frieda-Luxurious-Volume-Touchably-Full-for-Colour-Treated-Hair-Shampoo-250ml_1423049/

John Frieda Luxurious Volume Thickening Mousse 

http://www.boots.com/en/John-Frieda-Luxurious-Volume-Thickening-Mousse-200ml_9588/

John Frieda Luxurious Volume Fine-to-Full Blow Out Styling Spray

http://www.boots.com/en/John-Frieda-Luxurious-Volume-Fine-to-Full-Blow-Out-Styling-Spray-100ml_1307215/

John Frieda Luxurious Volume Thickening Hairspray 

http://www.boots.com/en/John-Frieda-Luxurious-Volume-Thickening-Hairspray-250ml_9668/

xx

SOA

So I have been getting caught up on Sons Of Anarchy. For those who have seen it you will know how amazing it is! It is definitely a must watch!
I have been absolutely hooked from the beginning. It has twists, it has turns, lies, secrets, violence, scandal, beautiful Harleys and a whole lot of eye candy!
The cast is brilliant. We have Charlie Hunnam (Green Street), Ron Perlman (Hellboy), Mark Boone Junior (2 Fast 2 Furious), Kim Coates (Black Hawk Down), Tommy Flanagan (Braveheart) and Ryan Hurst (Saving Private Ryan). And that's just a few of the big characters in the show.

Even if you are not a big lover of motorcycles/motorcycle clubs the story lines are brilliant. Also being from Northern Ireland myself I did get very giddy and excited when I was watching Season 3 and they take a trip to Belfast! There is just something about seeing places in this country on shows like SOA that turn me into a big child. Seeing them drive down the coastal roads and I am sitting watching like "I know where that is!"..... Loser, I know haha.

If you have Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. then you should really give SOA a watch.

xx

Hair Advice: Dry/Damaged Hair

So as a hairdresser I thought my first real blog post should be about hair.

The most common problem people have with their hair is that is dry and/or damaged due to colouring or excessive straightening. Also no one gets their hair cut as regularly as they should. It is recommended that you should get your hair cut every six weeks this is the only way to get rid of split ends. The longer you leave it the more they split. The more they split the shorter you will have to get your hair cut.

To take control of dry/damaged/frizzy hair the one product I recommend is Argan Oil.

After washing your hair give it a really good towel dry and/or a quick blast dry with the hair dryer leaving the hair damp. Comb the hair through from tip to roots making sure its free from tats. For thick hair that is very tatty I suggest using a 'Tangle Teaser'. Then apply the Argan oil through the mid-lengths and ends of the hair. If your hair gets greasy easily avoid putting it onto the roots of your hair. Then dry the hair off as normal.

Also use a heat protective spray for further protection. Spray this after the Argan oil before blow drying the hair. Then spray it through each section before straightening or heat styling. 

Argan Secret is the one I have used on my own hair as I use it in the salon and get it from the wholesaler. It can be expensive but if you are spreading it evenly through your hair then you wont need to use much so it does last for a few months. There is cheaper options available on the high street. 

Here is some links for my recommendations from Sally Salon Services.

Argan Secret Hair Oil

http://www.sallyexpress.com/argan-secret-styling-range-3-for-2--hair-elixir-oil-from-marrakesh/

Indola 4+4 Heat Protect Spray 
http://www.sallyexpress.com/indola-44-heat-protect-spray/

Tangle Teaser
http://www.sallyexpress.com/tangle-teezer-detangling-brushes-pbrushes08_pink/

xx

Who? What? When? Where? Why?

Ok so in school we had to use the 5 W's when writing a story. So I am going to use them to tell you my story.

Who am I? Well I am a 21 year old female with a lot of opinions and different interests.
What am I? Thoughtful, creative, unique and a qualified hairdresser.
When? I wanted to do a blog a few years ago but I never really had the time nor did I have anything worth writing about (although some might think I still dont.)
Where? Northern Ireland
Why? Ok, so like I said I wanted to do this years ago and now I feel its a better time now since I am older and wiser. The aim of my blog is to express all my opinions and share my thoughts and feelings on a range of different things from shoes, accessories and hairstyles right the way through to TV shows and films.

Enjoy folks :)