BEAUTY: JEROME RUSSELL BBLONDE, SUMMER BLONDES ★

Jerome Russell Bblonde: Maximum Ombre Kit No.2 ★

As a natural Blonde, I've always been lucky enough to experience my hair lift a few shades during the sunny Summer months. As I spend my Summers Stateside, I'm very cautious of messing with the colour of it for the few months leading up to my departure of England (I've been toying with the idea of getting highlights to give my hair a boost for ages now). My hair is super precious to me and that's probably the reason I rarely use home dye kits. However, I recently discovered the Blonding brand Bblonde by Jerome Russell. The brand produce home dye kits that allow you to give your hair a range of blonde finishes that all leave your hair looking naturally blonde(r). Bblonde sent me over their Maximum Ombre Kit No.2 ★ (which you can purchase here) to sample, and I'm glad to say it's left me full of excitement for the Blonde shades of Summer. I chose to use a model for you all to see how this kit by Jerome Russell looks as it allowed me to see the effects it had on the colour, style and condition of the hair from a far. Although, I'll definitely be using Bblonde kits on MY hair in the future!

The first thing that made this product a yes from me was the professional salon style  application brush that is provided along with the mixing tray, protective plastic gloves, power and cream dye (with instructions of how to mix them together to create your dye mixture), blending lotion and conditioning shampoo. This makes it much easy to apply the dye evenly to your hair, something that can often be tricky with home dye kits - especially when applying the dye to your own hair. Although the smell of this dye is extremely strong, it doesn't leave the hair smelling strongly of peroxide once the dye has been rinsed off. The blending lotion provided in this kit also ensures you're left with an even Ombre effect - with none of that block line style we all dread! Tip: Be sure to complete a hair strand test before applying the dye to the whole head of hair. This allows you to discover your own personal developing time for the dye (my model had a developing time of approx. 10 minutes and has naturally medium blonde hair).

Maximum Ombre Kit No.2 on Naturally medium Blonde hair

I love the natural blonde shade this product left the hair and was impressed with how little it dried out the hair too. Finding home dye kits that leave your hair natural blonde shades, without the fear of having yellow hair after application, has always been so tricky for me as a natural blonde - hoorah for Bblonde! Ten days on and my model hasn't noticed any fading in the colour and still finds her hair super soft - something that is a huge issue with many home dye kits out there!

Have you tried Jerome Russell's Bblonde range yet? Which are your favourite products for Summer Blondes? Let me know in the comments. Enjoy your Summer shades, 

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BEAUTY: GARNIER, SPLIT END RESTORER SERUM

Garnier Ultimate Blends: The Strength Restorer Serum

As the Sun comes out and the weather get's warmer, us natural blondes start to notice our hair get even lighter. Great right? Natural highlights without the hair dye? Correct. However, if, like me, you 'suffer' from naturally curly hair too, these effects of the Sunnier months comes with split ends and dried out hair - not so great. My daily haircare routine will always include a split end serum to solve this problem so I couldn't wait to try out this new one by Garnier (find out where to purchase this product here).

 Of course, I first noticed The Strength Restorer Serum because of it's honey bee related ingredient (propolis - a compound bees make which they use to glue materials of their hives together, showing just how much it can benefit the strength of your hair) - we all know I love products containing honey because of it's wonderful healing properties. This serum aims to provide your hair with defensive properties to help protect it against further 'attack' from split ends and the Sun. So much protection would surely mean a thick and glue-like product right? Nope! The lightweight ingredients of The Strength Restorer Serum means your hair is protected against damage without weighing it down - woohoo!

I choose to use this serum after towel drying my hair, before blowdrying. I use one pump of the serum, applying to the ends of my hair and then through the lengths of my hair - I would recommend avoiding the roots of your hair with this product, especially if you find your hair can often naturally gather oils throughout the day leaving your hair greasy. I find this application method protects your hair from brushing damage too - something naturally curly and knotty hair is prone to! Although I choose to apply The Strength Restorer Serum this way, you can also use at anytime on dry hair to smooth the look of split ends throughout the day - great for the warmer Spring/Summer months when those frizzy split ends make a more frequent appearance.

Tip: Only apply to the ends and lengths of your hair to avoid greasy roots

Do you suffer from split ends and sun damage to your hair in the Spring/Summer? What do you normally do to repair and protect your hair? Let me know in the comments! Enjoy your damage free hair, 

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BEAUTY: LUSH, HAUL #1

Left to right: Tea Tree Toner Water, Breath Of Fresh Air Toner Water, Mask Of Magnaminty and American Cream Condition

I recently realised I needed to restock my go-to toner from LUSH and of course, as soon as I popped in to my local LUSH store, it happened - a LUSH haul. I feel many of you will agree that it is almost impossible to venture in to any LUSH store without picking up several things, rather than just the one essential you went in to stock up on. 

Tea Tree Toner Water and Breath Of Fresh Air Toner Water

I picked up these two toners, both in the smaller size bottles as I sometimes like to carry a toner in my bag on warmer days. I like to include two toners that have different ingredients in my skin care routine as it allows me to adapt my routine according to the change in my skin (blemish prone). The Tea Tree Toner Water by LUSH is fantastic for breakouts/oily skin. Tea Tree has many anti-bacterial benefits, great for keeping the bacteria that causes breakouts away from your skin. On top of this, Tea Tree Water by LUSH contains Juniperberry - an additional ingredient that holds antiseptic qualities, helping to keep your skin clear and clean all day. So, it's getting rid of all the nasties we don't want on our faces but what is it giving us? LUSH have cleverly balanced this toner water with Grapefruit - super high in the vitamins your face needs! If my face is relatively breakout free I choose to use Breath of Fresh Air Toner Water, an option with less of the astringent ingredients and more of the refreshing ingredients. Breath of Fresh Air by LUSH contains many ingredients to soothe your skin and reduce redness, great for those warmer months, including Aloe Vera and Rose absolute. On top of these, it also includes Seaweed absolute - great for calming the skin, leaving you refreshed and cleansed all day! I choose to apply both these toner waters by spraying them 4/5 times onto cotton wool and wiping over my face, but you can also close your eyes and spritz directly on to your face (an option that's great to have throughout the day in Spring/Summer).

American Cream Hair Conditioner

Swatch: American Cream Hair Conditioner - only a tiny amount is needed to save your hair

As I'm a complete addict of LUSH Shampoo Bars (you can find my current favourites here), I thought I'd pick up one of their conditioners too. I went for American Cream Hair Conditioner as I've previously used solid conditioners by LUSH and found them too heavy for my hair. The joy of this thick conditioner is the minimal amount you need to apply (I only apply to the ends and through the length of my hair, this avoids greasy roots during the day).  Not only does this product's scent of strawberries and cream smell incredible, LUSH use fresh strawberries full of vitamin C to keep your hair healthy. To ensure your hair stays moisturised and protected from damage, American Cream includes Honey in it's extensive list of natural ingredients. Honey helps the hair, and skin, to heal whilst locking in moisture (you can find the benefits of honey for your skin here). I love the smell and benefits of this conditioner but am still needing to use a hair serum to give my hair a boost of shine once it's dry!

Mask of Magnaminty Face and Body Mask

Swatch: A thick consistency and a scrummy scent

I'm awfully slow to jump on this bandwagon, I know. But, I thought I should give it a try - some say it works wonders but others say it's overrated! I have often been undecided on how I feel about scented face masks (it's on your face for 10/15 minutes, a strong scent can be highly irritating for that long)! However, Mask of Magnaminty by LUSH has found the perfect balance with it's light and uplifting peppermint ingredient. I choose to apply this mask on just my face but it also doubles up as a body mask, a nice option to have available if you're having a head to toe pamper. A key ingredient in this mask is Marigold Oil. Known for it's benefits of protecting and soothing the skin, Marigold Oil will leave your skin feeling clear of impurities and moisturised when you remove the mask. I choose to remove Mask of Magnaminty using a damp sponge to ensure I remove it all. 13 ingredients in a product leading to the perfect balance for your skin? Woohoo. As well as this, it's thick consistency means application is easy and even all over!

I'm glad I couldn't resist the temptation of these products! Pop in to you local LUSH store if you like the sound of any of them too, their staff are always happy to demonstrate how to use them in store for you. Have you tried any of these LUSH products? Or do you have a different favourite? Enjoy discovering your favourite, 

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BEAUTY: LUSH, TOP THREE SHAMPOO BARS

Green Shampoo Bar: Karma Komba, Blue Shampoo Bar: Seanik, Orange Shampoo Bar: Brazilliant

Shampoo bars by LUSH Cosmetics - something we all need to invest in! I have now been using these small bars of shampoo goodness for almost 3 months and I never again want to have to use liquid shampoo from a giant bottle. All 5 bars I have tried and tested (Karma Komba, Seanik, Brazilliant, Jason and the Argan Oil and Montalbano) have left my hair feeling squeaky clean, quite literally - that super fresh, super clean just-washed-my-hair-in-natural-springs feeling you get from only natural products just like these.

Karma Komba: The 'I would be happy to constantly smell my hair today' bar. This bar is the most scented of the bars I have tried and tested, so far. The blend of lemongrass, orange, lavandin, pine and patchouli create a lovely up-lifting spring/summer scent for your wonderful locks. If you're looking for perfect shine and scent from your daily shampoo - this one is for you!

Seanik: The 'I've spent all day on the beach and yes, my hair still looks this good' bar. It's blend of seaweed, sea-salt and lemon make it the perfect bar to pop in your bag during the summer months to rescue that dried out hair! The fresh scent of lemon works great with the fantastic combination of ingredients to give your hair shine and volume. Hair that's lacking life from the battering of sun, sand, sunscreen and sea-water? This bar will save the day for you!

Brazilliant: The 'Go on, ask me how my hair looks this healthy 6 weeks after a cut' bar. The blend of oranges, andiroba oil, ylang ylang oil and a bunch of other fantastic nutrients will give your hair that rescue it's crying out for when it really needs a trim. I found this bar works best for the curl in my hair, I saw a definite reduction of frizz - a miracle? Maybe. If you've been 'gifted' with curly locks and are fed up of anti frizz products weighing your hair down - purchasing this bar will feel like a weight off your shoulders (literally)!

Tip: Lather the bar in your hand before applying to you hair.

All these bars lather up much better than liquid shampoo - meaning they last a lot longer and spread much further in your hair, perfect if you're a longer lock lady! I often lather the bar up in my hand before briefly rubbing the bar directly on to my hair (you don't even have to put it directly on to your hair, I just prefer doing this to ensure a thorough cleanse).

So, not only do these beautiful bars have no negatives (in my opinion), they are so much smaller and a lot less hassle than huge shampoo bottles. Even better, with summer coming up, they are the perfect size for taking on holiday and they'll leave you enough weight in your suitcase to pack another pair of shoes AND another summer dress - hoorah! LUSH have even provided us a perfectly sized travel tin which you can purchase here.

Head down to your nearest LUSH (or find them online at www.lush.co.uk) and pick yourself a bar to try. Let me know which are your favourites in the comments - enjoy, 

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