John Frieda Luxurious Volume Event

Last week I headed along to the relaunch of John Fried's Luxurious Volume range at the Morrison Hotel. I'm a big fan of the brand, there's always a few of their products included in my everyday haircare routine. I like how the products are very affordable and won't break the bank, plus I've always been super impressed with what I've tried from them. Full Repair and Luxurious Volume are my two favourite ranges from John Frieda. My hair is quite damaged from years of using my old trusted GHD way too much and its really flat so I find products from both these ranges really help alot. 

The full Luxurious Volume range has been repackaged, I'm loving the new green look it's electric! These new and improved products contain volume boosting technology that gives the hair body without weighing it down, what more could a girl ask for? I'm really looking forward to using the new product in the range, the Fine to Full Blow-Out Spray. My hair definitely needs all the help it can get so I'm looking forward to giving this a whirl. If you haven't tried their Volume Refresh Dry Shampoo already, it's worth investing in a can in my book. I've never been the biggest fan of dry shampoo, every brand I tried before had irritated my scalp badly that was until I discovered this gem. It doesn't have a heavy scent like Batiste and it doesn't leave my hair looking ashy.

Jake Davis, John Frieda's Senior Stylist was there on the evening to talk us through the new range as well as doing a demonstration. I found it really helpful, we saw how to create natural volume in the hair and how to get the most out of the products. I certainly took a lot from this event and I'm really looking forward to putting these products to the test. With my flat hair, they definitely have their work cut out.

Have you tried any John Frieda products? Will you be checking out the new and improved Luxurious Volume range?

Laura<3

Flora Mini Marathon Update #2

With the Mini Marathon just a week away, I thought it was about time to do my second update. Not going to lie I'm a bit nervous, training fell by the wayside with college exams so I've been trying to get back into the swing of things. I recently received my charity pack from St Luke's Hospital, a charity that is really close to my hear. I'm hoping to raise a good bit of money for them in the lead up to the big day as every donation really does help. I'll be collecting my race number over the weekend at the Womans World Show. The largest female exhibition event runs from Friday 31st May - Sunday 2nd June. I'm looking forward to heading along as I've been before with my Mum when she was collecting her number when she was competing and I remember having such a good time. There's something for everyone from live catwalk shows to beauty & hair, I love nothing more than browsing through all the different stands. I heard Vita Liberata have a stand this year, being a tan I've seen so many reviews of lately I'm definitely going to be checking them out. If you'd like to come along over the weekend yourself, you can avail of free tickets from their website which you'll be available to find here. The tickets are €12 at the door on the day so it's definitely worth getting your hands on them now so you don't miss out on a great day-out. If you do end up going definitely let me know I'd love to meet some of you guys.

Lastly I'm trying to get my attire right for day as we all know there's nothing worse than running in something your not comfortable in. I want to get it right, I'm thinking leggings or possibly shorts. Would love to hear your suggestions! I already have my top sorted, my St Luke's Hospital Official 2013 Marathon top. I wasn't too sure on which size to get but this one fits perfectly.

In the coming week I'm going to do a post featuring my essentials for the Marathon. This will consist of products which I think are worthwhile getting your hands on, if you too are competing in the Marathon. The post will be up in the next day or two so stay tuned for that.

Are you competing in the Flora Women's Mini Marathon this year? Is anyone heading to the Womans World Show in the RDS over the weekend?

Laura<3

An Evening with Dan Brown

Tonight I headed along to the first official event that coincided with the launch of the 2013 Dublin Writers Festival, An Evening with Dan Brown. It took place in the National Concert Hall in Dublin which is such a lovely venue. I actually hadn't been there since I was about 12 years old so it was nice to go back. It really hasn't changed one bit. I'm a big fan of Dan Brown's books so when I heard he was going to be in Dublin to talk about his new book Inferno I immediately picked up two tickets for my Dad and myself. I bought the tickets back in March for his birthday as I knew it would be something he'd really look forward to and enjoy. With studying and the exam rush, the time flew by so quickly and I was surprised when my Mum reminded me over the weekend that we were in fact going today. Of course these events are really strict and there was no photography of any kind allowed. I did manage to take a few snaps before the talk actually started so I hope that's enough for you guys.

Like myself my Dad is a huge bookworm so when the latest Dan Brown was released last week I bought it for him on Saturday. He's a super quick reader so I wasn't surprised when he told me today he had finished it. According to my Dad this in his opinion is one of Dan Brown's best books (after Angels & Demons) so far, he's a big book critic so he doesn't give comments like this out lightly. If this is the case , I can't wait to start reading a.s.a.p. I feel like I haven't read a book in ages with studying,exams and work it was very hard to find some spare time. I can't wait to sit down with a good book and a nice hot chocolate soon.

Now for the event itself, I personally didn't know what to expect from it. I know sometimes from my experience when you go to these sort of things they can come across as kind of boring. This is far from the case when it came to listening to Dan Brown talk tonight. He started off by telling the audience a bit about his background (his Mum is an avid church goer whilst his Dad was a Mathematician) and how he wrote his first book when he was five. He then went on to talk a bit about his books before he was asked some questions that people submitted before the talk began. Two exciting bits of information that came out is they may make a The Lost Symbol into a move and who knows they may bring Robert Langdon to Dublin. I also found it very interesting to hear how he researches locations and coming up with themes/ideas for his books. All in all Dan Brown came across as such a honest, down to earth man, clearly the fame hasn't gone to his head one little bit. As he said during the talk, writers aren't like movie stars or musicians who crave the limelight, they prefer to remain in the background.

There has been some negative feedback in the papers regarding Dan Brown's appearance at the 2013 Dublin Writers Festival. Many literary critics don't rate Dan Brown's books which is outrageous in my opinion as I think they're amazing. One paper went as far as saying that only 600 out of the 1,200 seats where sold for the event tonight. Believe me I was there and there definitely seemed to be way more people then that. It just shows it's absolutely impossible to please everyone, plus papers will put anything in their pages to fill up space.

Have you read any of Dan Brown's book? Will you be picking up Inferno?

Laura<3

My Belated April Favourites

I know I'm a bit late on the April Favourites band wagon this month, I've been such a busy bee getting ready for my exams. I started them on Monday and I finish them today!! WOO!! I really can't wait to get them out of the way as I'll have the whole Summer to look forward to. I'm hoping the weather is nice here in Ireland as it has been so changeable in the last few weeks. At this stage as long as we get a couple of days of glorious sun I'll be happy. I'm taking part in the Mini Marathon in two weeks time too so I'm hoping it brightens up a bit for that. My training has taken the back seat since I started my exams this week so I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things next week. The reason I decided to do this post even though it is a tad bit late is that I have a few favourites to show you guys from last month which I think definitely deserve a mention so lets get started!

First up I have a Barry M nail polish, I haven't tried too much from this brand  myself but I always hear bloggers rave about their polishes. This is the shade Blueberry from the fairly new Gelly Hi-Shine range. This is a gorgeous wearable blue shade perfect for the Summer. Every time I rock this on my nails, I've gotten so many comments so it's definitely a winner for me. I can see myself wearing it lots over the coming months, only two coats leaves a gorgeous glossy finish. I certainly have my eye on a couple of more shades from this range so who knows you may be seeing a Boots haul very soon. My next favourite is a body lotion from Dove. Surprisingly I didn't have too much time for the brand in the past as I wasn't too keen on their recognisable scent. When I was invited to a Dove event not too long ago, I wasn't too sure how I'd get on with their products after years of not being the biggest fan. Low and behold I found their Almond Cream and Hibiscus body lotion and I've fallen in love. It smells just like holidays which for me is the perfect scent for over the Summer. This light lotion leaves my skin lovely and soft whilst also smelling absolutely amazing. I'll definitely be stocking up on some more of these soon as I seen them on Boots last week on special offer. I can't give the exact price off the top of my head but from what I can remember event at its regular price its very affordable, it definitely won't break the bank. During the January Sales this year I was lucky enough to get the Marc Jacobs Daisy Gift set for a bargain. It has definitely become my go to scent over the last month or so. I have to admit I didn't use it too much when I originally bought it but the scent has definitely grown on me. It's a really beautiful everyday floral scent that I've been wearing non stop. One big thing for me is the beautiful packaging, isn't it gorgeous? Dior's Lip Glow Balm is a lip product that I've been reaching for over others lately. It's a colour revival balm which basically means it enhances the natural colour of your lips. I wouldn't go wild and say this is a must have lip product as it is very expensive but I do love the hint of colour it gives to my lips and I find it quite moisturising too. One of the key reasons why I like this so much though is because it's easy to work with, I don't even need a mirror. It's lasted me a while too as I bought it when I was in Manchester last year. I remember when I bought this with my Mum she thought I was crazy for spending so much on a lip balm. The balm itself also has a gorgeous scent too which is a plus. Lastly I have this little gem from MAC. I've had this eyeshadow for a while and I love it. I use it lots so I'm really surprised I haven't talked about it more on here. This limited edition eyeshadow was from the brands Electric Cool collection. I picked up two shades from the selection on offer and the one picture above is definitely my favourite. Pure Flash is a beautiful pale champagne colour that I tend to use all over the lid with a darker shadow in the crease. The formula is very lightweight but don't let that fool you, this shadow is so pigmented so a little goes a long way. I've already hit pan on it and I won't be a happy bunny when I use it all up as I really love this shadow. I'm hoping MAC repromotes it sometime in the future.

There you have it my short and sweet April favourties. Sorry it's a bit late but you know what they say better late than never. I just want to wish everyone doing exams at the moment the best of luck! I finish mine tomorrow and I've been really pleased with them so far. Thanks for all the lovely supportive tweets on Twitter they mean a lot. I'll have lots of free time on my hands now that I'm finished with college so I'm going to get back into blogging regularly again. I've really missed writing up posts on my blog over the last couple of weeks so I have lots of ideas in mind.

What are your current beauty favourites? I'd love to hear them.

Laura<3

A Family Day Out at Dublin Zoo

On Saturday I headed to the Zoo with my Mum, Dad and nephew. I haven't been in years, I'm pretty sure the last time I went was about four years ago. I love the Zoo and I used to go so much as a child. The whole place changes everytime I go, there always finding new ways to make it better. When I was younger I always got super excited seeing the elephants, my Mum told me I went as far as collecting tiny figurines.  The weather couldn't of been better on the day, dare I say I even got a bit of colour. Ryan really enjoyed his day, h's obsessed with animals, for the whole car ride there he kept saying which ones he really wanted to see. I had such an amazing time, I'm definitely not going to leave it so long before I go again. I thought I'd share some pictures with you that I took on the day. I think they look amazing if I do say so myself. My next post will be up in a couple of days and it will be my April Favourites, sorry it's a bit late coming!

Would you like to see more posts like this in the future showing what I get up to in Dublin?

Laura<3