The Bloggers' Style School
Recently I hosted Meadowhall’s first Bloggers’ Style School, whereby six fashion and beauty Bloggers from the region were taken on a tour around beauty brands available in Boots, Debenhams and House of Fraser.
New Finds at Boots
The day began with breakfast and a caffeine hit at Starbucks before our first beauty stop at Boots. No.7 Regional Trainer, Caroline Adams talked us through the new Boots No.7 spring/summer collection. It was fantastic to see such innovative, ground-breaking and current products on offer; my faves had to be Nanoblur - for airbrushed skin in a tube, and the stick on nail colour - I love the idea of avoiding nail varnish chips and cutting out nail painting time - that's what you call fast beauty!
Make-up Theatre at Illamasqua, Debenhams
Next, we headed on down to Debenhams and met the wonderful make-up artist Glen Carling at Illamasqua who demonstrated eye make-up application on Blogger Rose. I fell in love instantly with the array of eye shadow colours, theatrical false lashes and bold nail shades. Before visiting the brand, I thought Illamasqua might be too youthful for me, with their bold and ‘out there’ promotional material, but I was pleasantly surprised at the selection and versatility on offer. I already have my eye on their modern take on the French manicure; they paint the nail a shade such as black and the tip a contrasting shade such as red or purple. Make-up should be fun so try experimenting and visit the counter if you prefer the professional touch or need a little inspiration.
Classic Monroe at Bellapierre, House of Fraser
Our final stop was at House of Fraser where we met make-up artist Joanne Gore. A fan of Marilyn Monroe, her own look was very glam and she showed us all how to create a similar look using Bellapierre Mineral Makeup. 1950’s style eye flicks and red pouts were the order of the day. We were all impressed with how lightweight the mineral foundation felt on our skin and how clear it made our skin look. To REALLY put the products to the test, we wore our lipstick to lunch at handmade burger Co. to road test how long lasting it actually was!
Blogger Challenge
Using all the tips learned during the day, the Bloggers were challenged to recreate the Bellapierre Marilyn look in ten minutes. All six looks were uploaded to Twitter and Facebook and open to the public vote…I’m pleased to announce Meadowhall's Top Style Blogger for spring summer 2012 was Charlotte Asquith - truly well deserved.
About the Bloggers
Rose of Mixed Gems, Charlotte of Charlotte's Collection, Katie of Pouting in Heels, Nicky at Nicky Valantine, Claire of Jazz Pad and Hayley of Plaid and Lace. They’re all women from the region and all in full time work or education. Some are busy mums, others expectant mums-to-be but still manage to maintain amazing blogs.