by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 20, 2010 | Beauty, Hair, Hair-Tutorials, Tutorial
Following on from the previous hair tutorial requests, I was asked to do a more formal updo that was still nice and Summery ^_^
This style doesn’t look good on me personally because of the gradient in my hair but it looks awesome in dark hair because it’s textured enough to show up without looking over the top.
What you need:
- Brush
- Hair spray
- Hair ties
- Hair spray or frizz serum
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Firstly section your hair in two like this and tie the bottom one into a high pony tail:
Put the top section to the side and clip it for later. Now divide the ponytail into 3 sections as if you were going to plait it. Put two of the sections to the side and then divide the remaining one in half. This style is created by repeatedly tying those two pieces into loose knots then pinning. It gives much more rounded interesting sections than normal plaiting would so it can be good for a change. |
The knots you should be using are pretty much square knots or the kind you would use to tie your shoe, an example can be seen here: http://www.folsoms.net/knots/
Start with one like this:
If you do it evenly it should form a pretty pattern. Depending if you want the look to be messy and casual or sleek and complicated you might want to use frizz reduction serum or something similar before you start knotting. Don’t worry about not being able to get them undone later because the pieces of hair you’re using to tie them are so large they should just spring back apart like a plait.
Then keep tying the pieces over and over until you get something like this:
Now pull the section upwards and curve it toward the base of the ponytail. Pin it in place.
Repeat this process with the next section of hair but curve it a bit towards the right of the ponytail when you pin it:
The third section should be curved downwards and pinned at the bottom of the ponytail. After pinning all 3 parts you shouldn’t be able to see the hair tie in the ponytail anymore, it should just look like a big loopy bun:
Finally it’s time to do the top section. This is really what determines the final look so here are two options!
Brushing it to the side tie it in a loose knot about half way down:
Continue knotting from that point.
You have something like this:
Pull it backwards and pin into the main bun:
Add a little flower and you’re done ^_^
You can see how it looks a bit like a big swirl from the back:
Other side:
Front:
Top:
Another option for the top which makes it look a little more prom-ish is to tease/backcomb it a bit, pin it in place then knot the rest and add it into the main bun:
So yes while it doesn’t suit my hair very well it’s a decent style for those with medium length darker hair and can be dressed up or down accordingly ^_^
by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 19, 2010 | Nails, Review
Time for some serious nail polish swatching! Today is my favorite brand of all time 😀
Brand:
Ulta3
From:
Local chemists, don’t think you can get it online but I could be wrong. Generally sold in large discount bins.
Price:
$2-3
Volume:
13.5ml
Bottle:
Generic round bottle with a white top. Fairly cheap looking but who cares for $2 XD Only real problem I’ve found is that the glue holding the brush to the lid is a bit crap so often the lid comes off minus the brush. Easily fixed by removing any dried polish around the top of the bottle and closing/opening it again.
Brush:
Average size, flexible.
Drying Time:
Roughly the same for all of them. Fairly quick but nothing to write home about.
Colour Name:
Freesia
Description:
Dark pink with silver shimmer.
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Thoughts:
One of my favorites in the Ulta3 range because it’s really lovely with purple nail art. It’s quite a dark pink so it’s definitely not drawing any Barbie comparisons but in the sun it really picks up the silver shimmer and looks quite spectacular.
Good for:
-Office appropriate manicures that still pack a punch
-Matching with purple nail art
Colour Name:
Lagoon
Description:
Acid green with a very slight silver shimmer.
Thoughts:
Whoever came up with the name should have picked something else. The only thing that I think that this colour has to do with a lagoon is disgusting poisonous alge XD That said the colour itself is actually really nice and layers well, perfect for Spring manicures 😀
Good for:
-Spring themed nail art
-Flowers etc
Bad for:
-Konad, too sheer.
Colour Name:
Sizzling Red
Description:
Very fire engine red, can’t see it when it’s on but there is a little violet through it too.
Thoughts:
This one packs a punch 😀 Bright and shiny and very pigmented. You really can get away with one coat as you can see below:
Good for:
-Vampy manicures
-Looks great paired with white tips.
Colour Name:
Seduction
Description:
Bright pink with a slight gold shimmer.
Thoughts:
This is your serious Barbie pink ^_^ There is no way to un-cuten this colour hahaha! I think the photos and the fact that I’ve used 3/4 of the bottle probably speak for themselves.
Good for:
-Sweet styles
-Lolita/Hime Gyaru styles
Bad for:
-Konad, too sheer
Colour Name:
Silver Grey
Description:
Name says it all 😉
Thoughts:
Quite pigmented which makes it fantastic for nail art and making little accents on already done designs. It’s not my favorite silver that Ulta 3 have done (that’s Snazzle) but it’s still a really nice colour in its own right.
Good for:
-Nail art in general or using for small accents.
-Probably good for konad because it’s decently pigmented.
Colour Name:
Little Boy Blue
Description:
Sheer light blue with a lot of silver shimmer.
Thoughts:
This is probably my favorite of all the Ulta 3 colours. It can be used to layer really effectively over other polishes like I did a while ago with that snow manicure or layered by itself for a really deep glitter. By itself it the shimmer becomes so deep it almost looks like glitter. Needs about 3 coats to be opaque
Good for:
-Layering over other polishes
-Making an interesting base coat alone.
Bad for:
-Konad, too sheer.
That’s part one in the ridiculous number of Ulta3 polishes I have! This is going to be a long series because they are so cheap I tend to amass them XD |
by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 18, 2010 | Craft
Recently the lovely BGDinosent me a little present of a craft kit from Daiso 😀
I’ve never done any bead craft things like this so I was a little scared when I saw the instructions were all in Japanese and super complicated looking XD
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Buuut I muddled through with my beginner’s skills (in both beading and language) and eventually got it done 😀 Though I did take a whole bunch of photos along the way to make a tutorial out of it… the instructions seemed so hard to explain I thought it would probably be better to just post a couple of progress shots instead *_* |
I had to make the cup part first and the whole thing was done with 2 threads working at once…
It was all about looping the two threads around each other to form circle after circle.
Then once I got to the top the middle was filled with beads to be the milkshake…
And finished!
I think this is one of the most fiddly crafts I’ve ever done… but the result was so worth it!
I love it and I can’t wait to find a place to hang it 😀 I think I want to try to doing more little things like this too! What’s the most complicated fiddly thing you guys have ever made?
by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 17, 2010 | Nails
Long week so what’s better to look at on a Friday afternoon than a bunch of nail art?
These are a whole lot of sets that I made to stock Visage and Vice, a local goth store here. If you’re interested in buying any of them just email me at violet AT violetlebeaux.com otherwise they will probably be up in the shop sometime in the new year. Discounts if you want them now though 😉
I’ve been working with smaller sets lately which makes things much quicker and more cost effective. Of course I still do the full sets of 20 on request ^_^
You’ll have to excuse the glare, they are all already all packed up in plastic and ready for their new homes so it was a bit hard to get the photos!
Silver glitter stripes:
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Blood drenched tips:
Silver/Red UV light glitter nails (very good for clubbing XD)
Zebra print:
Matt purple with black tips and spotted details:
Red with small black beads and 3d white acrylic lace:
Silver with redback spiders:
Blue and black lace:
These are my favorites, they are super dark blue with bats!
So that’s part of what’s been keeping me busy! Hope it brightened your Friday afternoon! I am looking forward to doing some pinker nails soon XD
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by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 16, 2010 | Beauty, Review
Next on the list of BB Cream review pile is Pure Blossom Shimmering from The Face Shop.
Before I get into the review, a lot of people asked what BB Cream actually was last time. Well basically it’s cream that has been very popular in Asian countries for a while now which is generally worn underneath (or instead of) foundation. It’s supposed to be miracle cream because it evens out skin tone like a foundation but also usually has ingredients that are supposed to make your skin better and actually improve over time. This is of course debatable and results differ for everyone. The other difference to foundation (again this is debatable) is that it’s not sold in shades, the ingredients *aparently* change colour to suit your skin colour creating flawlessness no matter what tone you are.
I find that last bit to be a stretch, and while a lot of the BB Creams that suit me also suit much darker tones on my friends it’s certainly not fool proof or magic, lots of them are still too dark or too grey for me so I always suggest sampling before you buy. Personally after a year of using various creams I haven’t seen any change in my skin tone of texture but some girls swear by it. I like to use it by itself on days that I want something light and casual or under foundation as a way to keep moisturised and create absolutely flawless skin and protect from the sun (most of them have SPF ratings).
So on to the review!
Pure Blossom Shimmering
Available from: The Face Shop (I couldn’t find it on the website though, I bought mine around 8 months ago)
Price: AU$25-ish from what I remember
Supposed Benefits:
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When I bought this is was the cheapest of the ones offered at The Face Shop and the only one light enough for me, I think they rotate their ranges quite often though and stock depends on the shop. I bought it out at Eastlands and haven’t seen it in the city store.
The texture is very light, wet and creamy. It takes a little while to dry and is fine to be applied with fingers or sponges (for better coverage). I found it was a bit wet to apply with a brush but that was just personal preference. It feels more like moisturiser than foundation on.
Plain skin:
As you can see from the photo below it only offers light coverage, not enough to get rid of freckles but enough to make a difference. The slight shimmer gives a really dewy effect rather than just being shiny which I love! Until very recently when I started testing others I’ve been wearing this cream almost every day since I got it and the tube is still about half full, to me that’s pretty good value.
The packaging is ok, better than a bottle because you can be precise about how much to get out but I still prefer pumps. Pretty none the less ^_^
With a layer of the cream applied very hastily with fingers (sponge looks nicer with better coverage):
VERDICT: Decent price, good if you’re looking for light coverage. Shimmer doesn’t look over the top even in the sun. Takes a while to dry which can be annoying but other than that pretty good. Suits light skin tones. DO WANT. |
