Progress

Hello,

It's been a long time but basically I have been working a lot and I have been very dissatisfied with my blog layout.  After being ignored by every blog layout designer I contacted (I don't know either) I've decided to attempt doing it on my own.  Come March I will hopefully be taking a web design evening course so shall perhaps be pro at this sort of thing come the summer.  But the layout process at the moment will probably take a while. I've decided to do it in parts, since I've found in the past when I try and do it all at the one time I get agitated and make a mess of it.

I look forward to writing lots of new posts once I am happy with my layout.

Much love,

Victoria
@glampire_x

The Lady Boys of Bangkok - Glamorous Amorous Tour - Edinburgh Fringe

Attempting to start this post without opening with a line like 'rock out with your cock not out' has been hard. It's difficult beating around the bush and not going balls deep to the glaring question everyone want's to know.

So, what the hell, let's start with talk of men dressed as women.

Putting the show to one side for a moment (which is wonderful by the way and I'll get to it later obviously), a lot of people are interested in The Lady Boys of Bangkok out of sheer intrigue. The show centres around men dressed up as women, and in turn gives women a bit of a showing up by looking better than a lot of naturally born females do - myself included. I knew I should have worn more glitter.

Susan and I pre-show

But where's is the...y'know...

Carefully tucked away it would seem, these ladyboy's have no more bulge than the everyday woman. However, you do get to see the Ladyboy's in their natural boy form during the show also, which boggles the brain a little. It may also makes you want to weep as they manage to look stunning as both sexes, whilst most of struggle to get it together as one. 

According to my friend with whom I attended the show there is a Youtube video which will show you how the tucking away process is done. I haven't watched it, but if it intrigues you that much...

She has better legs than me, and can dance without falling in her heels.

Now that we have got to grips with that, on with the show.  The show itself is spectacular: there's singing, dancing, and a whole lot of sequins. The LadyBoys of Bangkok show makes the perfect cabaret show. The first half of the show includes chart hits such as Gangnam Style and Girls Aloud, but the second half of the shows covers all the disco classics such as 'I Will Survive', musically the show caters for everyone. It is a fun evening out, to indulge in your cheesy side.

The show was held in the purpose built Sabai Pavillion with Thai kitchen - which in itself is stunning and brings an oriental feel to the show with the elaborate décor and the smell of Thai food . It was nice to watch a show at a table with a nice glass of wine rather than in a traditional row balancing your handbag and drinks on your lap.

What surprised me the most about the show, other than how painfully beautiful the cast are, is how funny it was. For some reason I didn't expect the show to be that funny - it's hilarious.  The audience 'participation' gave a lot of belly laughs.

As if the show wasn't perfect enough The LadyBoy's added a personal touch by ending with Runrig, which is the unofficial Scottish National Anthem. The show had no downs, just lots of wonderful highs. A perfect show.

The Ladyboy's are still on tour: Tour Dates.
And many thanks to Terri Lowe.

Elemis Skin Lab

It is all good and well having a sales assistant tell you what your skin needs, or what could possible help your skin with whatever problems it might be facing.  I personally feel a cup of tea can solve any problem faced, but if my acne ridden skin could speak for itself it would tell you otherwise, whilst sobbing to itself and then laughing at the use of the word 'faced'. 

The beauty world these days is saturated with skincare brands and each one will have their own unique selling point, promising to solve your skincare issues, however even if the sales assistant is wonderful and the brand is known world over, I often find it hard to part with my cash based just on sales chat alone. 

This is where Elemis has a lead on the skincare market: the Elemis skin lab can pinpoint exactly which products will benefit your skin through scanning it to see where your skin needs a little TLC. The wonderful Michelle at Elemis (John Lewis, Glasgow) done my skin-lab for me to see which Elemis products could help my skin. 

I have been on and off medication since I was nine for acne, and I am at the moment on antibiotics and have been for the last six months. My next step medication wise is Roaccutane - which I refuse to go on due to the horrendous side-effects. I am therefore on a skin-care mission, to solve this problem without medication.

"Defined by nature. Led By Science".

"Elemis invests in cutting-edge technology to find breakthrough development techniques, which can be used to draw the most active ingredients from natural resources. It is this relationship between nature and science that allows Elemis to create multi-active, efficacy trialled formulations to ensure maximum therapeutic activity in every product. Elemis’ determination to find the ‘next generation’ in medicinal skin science ensures that the brand continues to meet the ever-changing needs of the client".

The skin lab will show you whether your skin is dehydrated, sun-damaged, wrinkly, spotty - and so on. We might think we know our own skin, but half the time it is based on guess work and what sales assistants have told you - well that is what my skin knowledge is based on. The skin lab shows you exactly where your skin problems lie.

Spots: can be referring to acne, any marking/scaring on the skin surface, blackheads, whiteheads, and/or damage caused by pollution in the air.
Wrinkles: shows how dratted your skin is.
Texture: Blue = dehydration & Yellow = Oil production.
Pores: Clustered together can mean dryness.
Brown Spots: UVB damage which is reversible. Freckles/moles are in fact pigmentation if you don't have them age 0-13.
Red Areas:  Sensitivity.

As you can see my skin is really quite dehydrated and sensitive. But I have near to none sun damage. 

However the magic part of the skin lab experience is when the lab prints you off a list of products that have been proven to help your skin type.  Elemis treats each customer as an individual, as we all have different skin care needs.

The lab prints out a lot of products but the lovely Michelle went through the list and pinpointed the ones that would help me the most/products within my price range. One of the products I was recommended is SOS Emergency  Cream.

£51 - Available at all Elemis Counters.

This ultra-rich moisturising cream is an intense soothing and hydrating boost for parched, weathered or sunburnt skin. The Elemis S.O.S Emergency Cream contains a time-honoured synergy of Myrrh (soldiers of ancient Greece used to rub this into their wounds to promote rapid healing) including:

• Meadowsweet
• Willow
• Patchouli
• Eucalyptus
• Lavender

It is a beautiful thick cream which leaves the skin feeling nourished and calm, I love using this cream after a day under the air-conditioning at work or after wearing a lot of make-up.   If your skin is prone to feeling a little tender then this is a great product for you.

If you are interested in getting a skin lab done - Scottish bloggers can pop along to see either Michelle or Jo at John Lewis (Glasgow).  Who will take excellent care of you, and let you smell all the lovely products - I do this most days.  The apricot toner is lush. 

Other UK bloggers - online directory: http://www.elemis.com/Locations/DepartmentStores.aspx

Much Love,

Nails Inc - 7 Polishes for £17

One of the best things about Twitter is finding out beauty news that you previously would not have found out, such as free samples and sales.  Last week alone I found out via Twitter that The Body Shop had 40% off and Illamasque were having a 50% off sale to celebrate reaching a milestone on Twitter.

I find it is usually through fellow tweeters that you find out this exciting info rather than through the companies themselves.  My Nails Inc bargain is an example of this.

A twitter friend of mine posted about getting seven Nails Inc polishes for £17 a couple of months back which was met by response of 'Where?'.  Sadly I was too late, as the deal was only on for a day or two, but I subscribed to the website so that I would be notified when the deal was next on.

The deal at hand is 7 'random' polishes from Nails Inc for £17, considering one polish alone is £12 this is a great deal. I also really like the fact that you don't get to pick the polishes. I have found myself more than once spending forever in the nail polish aisle 'umming' and 'ahhing' over different colours, and in the end I leave with nothing.  I can usually never make my mind up, of course I already own an excess amount of polishes therefore not helping the selection process.

Nails Inc took this tough decision away from me, it's also exciting not knowing which colours you are going to get through the door. Obviously you do run the risk of receiving polishes that you do not like, but thankfully I was lucky with my selection.

1. Chester Street.
2.Great Tichfield Street.
3.Royal Opera Arcade - Nail Jewellery.
4. Franklins Row.
5.Richmond Terrace.
6.Gatwick - Matte Finish.
7.Roland Gardens.

I love that there was a matte finish polish and one of the glitter polishes in my order.  I have been wanting to try the Nails Inc glitter polishes for a while. As usual all the polishes are up to the Nails Inc standard and have great staying power.  If you fancy getting your hands on this deal next time around sign up for the Nails Inc newsletter.

Lauren's Way Fake Tan at the SHABA Bloggers Event

I am beyond being late to the party with this one, so late that the cleaners have been and gone.  In fact, another party is already pouring the cocktails and tottering in their stilettos. That is how late I am, justifiably late due to working full-time but none-the-less late. 

A couple of weeks ago I went along to the Scottish Hair and Beauty Awards Blogger's event at the beautiful Private Members Club Number 29. The event was tan by INAA (I Need An Appointment) -

"The UK's first online hair and beauty booking portal dedicated to making the booking of salon appointments simple and fast - 24/7.

For Consumers we offer a free to use, appointment booking service providing access to an ever increasing range of Salons in your local area that accept online bookings. The portal will show you the full range of special promotions available at those Salons, as well as details about the Salon and what services and products they offer".

Lauren formerly star of the TV show The Only Way is Essex also made an appearance to promote her new beauty range, mainly focusing around her fake-tan line.  Not going to lie I was excited to see her in person, and adored the play-suit she was wearing. She looked gorgeous. 

However, although fashionably late the post is still relevant -this week it is sunny in Scotland (which for any foreign readers is as rare as the UK doing well in the Eurovision). Ouch! Painfully true though.  Us Scots don't see much of the sun, but we do love a tan. Well, some of us do. We would love for it to a natural tan but that is never going to happen on this side of the Atlantic.  So we get our tan from a bottle. 

Again I'll say some of us do, I don't.  I'm the super pale goth girl. The token goth in a circle of friends some might say. I've also been referred to as Morticia on occasion. My vampire complexion and pasty legs are a fright for most people.  In your typical night club in Scotland I stick out like a sore thumb, like the living dead amongst bronze goddesses. 

Even next to naturally pale people (like Susan on the right) I am pale by comparison. When I was younger I did experiment with fake-tan, but after getting a spray tan for my 5th year prom I never used fake-tan again. It was horrible: I was orange, my dress was green, and my face was not impressed. I don't even have any photo's on facebook it was that bad. I've just had a  look for evidence since I thought I could give you all a laugh.  It would appear it is too tragic though. 

However when I was asked at the Scottish Hair and Beauty Awards Blogger Event if I would like to try some of Lauren's way fake-tan I was like 'Ok then, convince me'. I felt my pale arm would work as a good canvas to show if the product really is any good.  

I opted to try the Instant Wash Off Glow, and I was actually really impressed.  I expected to hate it, but the tan actually looked quite natural.  Well, natural when you didn't look at the corpse like arm next to it. But the best part is that it doesn't smell like fake tan, not one hint of digestive biscuit. 

For an instant fix of beautiful tan - Essex style - try our Instant Wash Off Glow. 

This is a hydrating tinted lotion that provides a natural looking tan on the go, perfect for last minute parties! As a no fuss, no commitment product our Instant Wash Off Glow is so easy to remove - simply wash off with soap and water.

If I were to get back into the habit of wearing fake tan on a regular basic I would definitely use Lauren's Way tanning products. 

I had a fantastic evening at the bloggers event and was happy to network with lots of bloggers who I have previously spoken to online but never met in person.  I am really looking forward to the next bloggers event.  Good luck to all the salons competing in the awards ceremony.

Blind Testing - a proposal.

One topic that I find particularly interesting in the beauty blogging world is the hype that surrounds particular brands, it would seem that some brands can do no wrong and suit every skin type there is. I am not bringing  any brand in particular into question, but I am questioning the beauty blogging 'band wagon'. 

Yes, there are brands that churn out fabulous and then more fabulous products, and, maybe I sound, and I am slightly bitter that I can't afford to try all these 'wonderful' products, but at the same time my cynical nature finds it hard to belief that said products work great for everyone.  

I feel there is also a lot of pressure these days to get on the beauty band wagon, and to glide, seemingly effortlessly, towards the high-end of the market. I am here to say that not everything that glitters is gold. Different products work for different people, and different skin types.  Not everyone likes the same finish, or wants to achieve the same result - therefore we do not all need to be on the same path. 

This is why I would like to propose a little bit of fun in the form of blind testing.  I don't know if this will work or if anyone will be interested but I thought I would give it a shout anyway's. 

A blind or blinded experiment is a scientific experiment where some of the people involved are prevented from knowing certain information that might lead to conscious or subconscious bias on their part, thus invalidating the results.

Whether we do it knowingly or not we do form opinions on beauty products, based upon the brand, before we have even tried them, maybe not every time but we are guilty sometimes.

For instance, I am (apparently) not a fan of Collection 2000 and would form the opinion that 'it will dry out my skin'.  I haven't used Collection 2000 make-up since I was 13, and on that one occasion it did dry my skin out - it was loose powder, the chances of that outcome were obviously high.   

How will this experiment work?

• I will create a list of all blogger's who are interested in participating the blind test challenge, and then pair each blogger up with another blogger.
• We would then send each other unbranded samples - only providing  information on what the product is and any health & safety information. 
• Then when the blogger has reviewed the products, the products will be revealed - and conclusions can be made.

This will either be a complete fail, or it could be something pretty interesting.  If you are interested in taking part e-mail me over at: victoria.mcewan@hotmail.co.uk or alternatively you can chat to me on twitter @glampire_x  

To keep things simple (since this is the first time) UK beauty blogger's only. Thanks.

Doing your bit for the ECO system, with Lush.

In a similar way to MAC Lush operate a system where if you bring back empty containers you can get a free product.  If you are a regular shopper it is something you should take advantage of, and at the same time you are helping the ECO system. I'm not the most green of people (I could do a whole lot more) but this lets me feel like I am contributing a little.  We could all always do a little bit more for the ECO system though.  Any super green bloggers out there? 

Considering I have been shopping at Lush since I was at high school it is astounding that I have never returned '5 clean tubs' in order to get a free fresh face mask.  I am going to blame the travelling to and fro from Stirling for the past four years, but I actually don't know why I have never done this.

Even if you are not a regular shopper at Lush, in order to collect five, the little tubs are great for decanting other products into and are a nice way to let a friend have a sample. I have also used them in the past for washing my make-up brushes. There are loads of different uses for them.

I think I am going to get a little tub of my old favourite face mask Catastrophe Cosmetic.  This one is great if you are prone to sore break outs, it soothe the skin and makes the problem a little less problematic.

Does anyone else know of other beauty houses that do their part for the ECO System?