Kara's Blow Dry Bar event

Last night I visited Kara's Blow Dry Bar in Manchester for an opening event. Kara’s offers a selection of blow dries and makeup. Blow dries are priced at £18 (or £24 with extensions) and you can choose from a number of styles including their fabulous curly blow, a straight blow or an up-do. There are also a number of packages to suit how much pampering you want!

Having attended Kara’s before, I was very excited to visit again. They definitely offer the best blow dry I have ever had (and probably the best in Manchester!) and they always last for at least a couple of days.  I find myself washing my hair before the curls or volume have disappeared, definitely the best for value! My hair is incredibly thick and it only takes the blowettes around half an hour to completely wash and finish my hair, which is super quick. I opted for their curly blow called 'Californian Wave' and they somehow managed to transform my hair into this: 

 This is how it looked on day two after sleeping on it:

Upon arriving at the event, I was offered canapés, champagne and a beautiful glittery pink cupcake. There was a DJ playing music that accompanied the event perfectly and provided a great atmosphere amongst the blow dries, makeovers and mingling.

The event was planned by Ledigo PR, who you can find here and on Twitter here, formed by Stephanie who managed to represent Kara’s perfectly with the pamper evening. From looking at pictures of previous events she has created, she manages to capture companies perfectly and provide wonderful and memorable events.

There were MUAs at the event creating beautiful make up looks using Motives cosmetics. I sat in the chair and told the lovely MUA to do whatever she wanted to my face, and this is the result:

The make up lasted all evening without budging and so I would definitely recommend checking out their products, as I definitely will be, here: 

I was given an amazing goody bag featuring TIGI products which I am super excited to test out, and the cutest little jar of sweets provided by Truly Scrumptious.

Kara’s Blow Dry Bar is situated in Manchester City Centre, on John Dalton street – just a couple of minutes walk from Deansgate/town hall. You can visit their website here, Facebook and Twitter. One of my favourite things about Kara's is that you can tweet them to book an appointment, which makes booking so easy and convenient. Will definitely be booking in very soon!

Fragrance Direct: Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue Escape to Panarea & Prada Candy Florale

Hi guys!

A couple of weeks ago, I was sent a couple of fragrances by the lovely people at Fragrance Direct and I’ve soldiered through my final exams spurred on by the thought of reviewing them at the end.

Fragrance Direct is a company that sells branded perfumes, beauty products, cosmetics, hair care and skin care at discounted prices. (You can visit their website here: www.fragrancedirect.co.uk) I’ve shopped with them many times before and the experience is always quick and easy, and I always end up saving myself over at least £50.There’s nothing I love more than finding my beauty favourites for more than half the price they would be on the high street. I’ve used them many times before and I can’t fault them. Delivery times have improved over the last few months and products always arrive in perfect condition.

The order for the perfumes was placed on May 1st and arrived on 6th May, which is speedy in its self, but when you also consider that this was a bank holiday weekend, Fragrance Direct did very well! I can’t fault the packaging of the delivery at all, everything arrived in perfect condition and was protected well and efficiently, and I was able to recycle it all. I’ve trialled both of the fragrances for the past couple of weeks, so I can give more than a ‘first impressions’ view of them. I apply one spray to my wrists and another to my neck. 

The first of the two fragrances is Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue Escape to Panarea* (phew!). 

Escape to Panarea is a Limited Edition for 2014 version of Light Blue. Fragrance Direct describe this perfume as being inspired by the elite island of Panarea, with top notes of pear and bergamot, jasmine and orange at the heart, and a seductive based of ambergris, tonka and white musk.

This scent is incredibly fresh and quite citrusy. When I first spray this it is quite strong, but after an hour or so it fades to a more muted vanilla musk, which I love. It lasts all day without the need to top up with additional sprays. This fragrance would be perfect for long days at work and days out as its lasting power is great!

The packaging of this actual fragrance, to me, is quite boring. The outer box has a lovely scene of an island, but then when you take out the bottle it’s just a glass box with the name written on it. However, I do think this packaging is a million times better than previous editions of Light Blue that had the frosted glass. I think clear glass makes it look more elegant (and less cheap!) than the frosted glass. This is a 50ml bottle.

This fragrance is available here and by buying through Fragrance Direct, you can save yourself around £10! I received the 50ml version with a free gift, which is the cutest blue and white striped cushion with 'Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue' written on it. 

Possibly the best free gift with a perfume I've ever seen. 

The second fragrance is Prada Candy Florale*. 

Fragrance Direct describe this perfume as 'the new floral signature, directly inspired by the flowers used in Prada fashion.' It is inspired by the gorgeous Peony flower, with top notes of sorbet Limoncello, making it fresh. The heart of the fragrance is the gorgeous scent of the peonies, with base notes of musk, benzoin and caramel. 

This fragrance is a lot lighter than the Dolce and Gabbana one. When I saw the name ‘Candy Florale’, I was extremely excited as it sounded like the perfect scent for me, two of my favourite things! It is very floral and sweet smelling, as to be expected from the name, but it is quite a subtle smell. When you first spray it, you can smell it, but it does fade after a couple of hours. I’d recommend this perfume for occasions where you’ll only be out for a few hours; going for a few drinks etc or if you can pop it in your bag to top up on the go.

The packaging for Prada Candy Florale is gorgeous. It’s exactly what a perfume bottle should be; interesting, colourful and representative of the perfume’s campaign. I absolutely love both the outer box and the actual bottle of this perfume as they box look lovely in my bedroom. This is a 50ml bottle.

This fragrance is available here and by buying from Fragrance Direct you can save about a fiver.

Make sure you check out everything else that Fragrance Direct has to offer as there are tonnes of products and you can save yourself a heap of money!

you can visit Fragrance Direct here:
www.fragrancedirect.co.uk

you can buy Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue Escape to Panarea here:
http://www.fragrancedirect.co.uk/d1/dolce-and-gabbana/icat/dolceandgabbana&temp=productlistguidednav&layout=search#esp_cf=pdxtproductname&esp_filter_pdxtproductname=Light%20Blue%20Panarea

and Prada Candy Florale here:  http://www.fragrancedirect.co.uk/p/prada/icat/prada&temp=productlistguidednav&layout=search#esp_cf=pdxtproductname&esp_filter_pdxtproductname=Candy%20Florale

Have you used Fragrance Direct before? Are you a fan of these perfumes? What is your signature scent?

 #SprayItAndSayIt

(disclaimer: although these items were sent to me for review, the opinions expressed are 100% honest and genuine. I would never express opinions that are not my own)