Bomb Cosmetics - Santa Baby Gift Pack

www.bombcosmetics.co.uk

I had never heard of Bomb Cosmetics until I opened this little gift set on Christmas Day. After reading the label I discovered they are handmade and contain natural ingredients which is probably making them one of Lush's biggest competitors. However, I love love love Lush bath bombs and it will take a pretty impressive product to beat them.

When I opened the box I was immediately hit by a super strong scent which makes you know you are on to a winner. 

This gift set contains :

• Christmas Wonderland Soap
• Gingerbread Trees Blaster
• Glitterballs Creamer (the tiny one)
• Too Cool for Yule Cocoa Swirl (cupcake) 
• It's Xmas Blaster

What we know to be a bath bomb is called a Blaster. They are slightly smaller than the ones from Lush but still a good size. They also come cellophane wrapped which stops powdery bits getting everywhere.

The Creamers are much smaller. These are supposed to melt in to the water rather than fizz and contain shea butter and cocoa butter to nourish and moisturise the skin. I can't wait to give it a try.

The cupcake swirl is called a Mallow. This has the same effect as the creamer. You pop it in the bath, let it dissolve for a short while and then take it out. It says that you can use it up to 4 times and it will release moisturising butter each time.

Lastly the soap is said to contain glycerine to lock moisture in to the skin and it has a neutral ph. It looks to me about the size you would get from a Lush gift set which is good.

I had a look on the website to find a price for you, even though it was a present and this set comes up at £12.99 with 5 items. This is definitely a great price when you compare it to what you get in Lush gift sets of the same price. 

I am now going to run a bath and use a blaster so I can give a proper review. 

I went for the gingerbread blaster. As soon as i dropped it in to the bath lots of coloured stars scattered in to the water. The blaster seemed to sink right to the bottom and gently fizzed away. I was left with a bath full of red glitter and stars. I don't think it is as heavily scented as a Lush bomb after it has been put in the water. You can feel how much oils are in the blaster on your skin straight away and my skin still feels oily and very moisturised now. The worst part, I AM COVERED IN RED GLITTER! Not sure how I feel about that. I think these are a good product and have a much more reasonable price tag than Lush which I have always found a bit expensive per bath. 

Have you tried anything from Bomb Cosmetics?

Charley Rose x

Pastel Hair - Dying and Maintenance

Pastel Hair is something girls everywhere and striving for. Here are my top tips for achieving the perfect shade and maintaining those beautiful pastel locks. 

1. You need to have the right base colour. Pastel tones will only show on very light, silvery/white blonde hair. If you have dark hair it is going to take a lot of bleaching over a period of time to achieve this and I do not recommend it. It is very damaging!

If your hair is blonde I recommend using a Silver or White Toner from Directions first just to try and even out the tones in the hair so that you can get a nice even pastel colour. It is not necessary but it seems to make a nice 'canvas' for the hair colour.

2. Decide what colour you want to dye your hair. At the moment I have a lilac shade with a hint of pink. If you want Lilac but a dark purple shade. If you want pink buy the deepest cerise you can find, etc etc. 

3. The dyes I use are La Riche Directions because they have a great range of colours and you can buy them for £3.00 - £4.00.

4. Buy a big bottle of cheap white conditioner from Boots or Superdrug. It needs to be white so that you can see the true colour of the dye you are mixing.

5. Get a tint bowl or an old bowl you are not bothered about and squeeze in enough conditioner to cover your whole head. 

6. Take your chosen Directions shade and add the smallest amount to the conditioner. Mix it in well and see what colour it turns out. A little goes a long way.

7. Keep adding colour until you get the shade you want. I recommend you make the mix slightly brighter than what you want so that when you wash it out it is the perfect shade. 

8. Cover your dry hair in the mixture and leave for up to an hour. Remember it is only conditioner you are putting on your hair so there is no damage. Leave it as long as you can to achieve the best colour.

9. Jump in the shower and wash it off. You should be left with the colour you wanted! (fingers crossed)

10. As you have only used a small amount of colour it will wash out within a few washes. So if it isn't the colour you were hoping for don't panic. It will vanish in a couple of washes. 

Maintenance

As I said, the colour doesn't last for too long.  One way I have found to prolong the colour is to take your normal conditioner (hopefully it is white) and empty it in to a big bowl. Make a dye mixture again to the same colour and then transfer it back to the bottle. This way, every time you wash your hair and condition you are adding a slightly bit more pigment in to the hair which should mean you don't have to re-dye it as often.

You can buy pastel shades from Directions which means you don't have to mix colours yourself. However, One pot isn't enough for me to cover all my hair and the colour only fades as quickly as the mix I make. You can save a lot of money by mixing your own colours.

I hope this helps some of you who want to achieve the pastel look. I am not a hairdresser and this is just what I do to my hair. Please take care if you use bleach as it is very very damaging and can take years for your hair to return to its former condition. I KNOW :( 

Charley Rose x

Happy New Year - 2015

We all say it, 'I can't believe how fast this year has gone'. I remember celebrating the Millennium and that was a scary 15 years ago now. Life does pass by so quickly and that is why we need to make the most of every day we have. 

2014 was a good year for me. I am in a job that I love, doing what I love and it doesn't even feel like work. I am lucky enough to have turned my hobby in to a career and not many people can say that. 

This year I am going to continue to enjoy my job and the amazing people I have around me. I am also going to focus a lot more on this blog. I started it about a year ago now but found myself struggling to get moving. I didn't post very much even though I had loads of ideas written in my notes. It was more finding the time to post that was the problem. I still found time to read many blogs and watch lots of youtube videos but pushed my own to the side. 

I also want to make things happen this year rather than sitting back and watching things happen to other people. If you don't go out to get what you want it won't come to you, will it? 

"2015 is my year"

What is that supposed to mean? 'You only get out what you put in' is a quote my old dance teacher used to say and it is true. You have to make a conscious effort to get out and reach for your goals. Good things don't come to those who wait, they come to those who work hard for what they want and make it happen. Stop living in the shadow of yourself and set out to do things you have always wanted. If it fails at least you tried. If you don't try you can't succeed, and if you do succeed, it was worth the try.

Happy New Year to you all. Lets all try be more positive for a successful 2015. 

Charley Rose x