Bikini season 2014 by Dunnes Stores

It has finally arrived! Many dread it, some live for it. Yes, bikini season is finally upon us! Lots of you will have spent the last few months working up a sweat in the gym striving for that perfect summer body. You've exfoliated, waxed and tanned every inch of your body so naturally you'll want an amazing swimsuit to show all of your efforts off! Call me biased but I think that Dunnes Stores latest offering is absolutely stunning. I also think it's high time that we started to support our own Irish companies and to be honest with you the SS14 swimwear collection at Dunnes could seriously give the other highstreet stores a run for their money. The collection offers something for everyone! Whether you are after a suit for your aqua aerobics class, perhaps something with a little control to help hold  everything in place or maybe you're looking for a blinged out bikini for a Marbella pool party? Well, Dunnes have got you covered! This year more than ever I feel that their collection would really appeal to the 18-30 demographic as well as catering for the mature customer. Lots of bright colours, crystal embellishment and fabulous prints. 

I also love the fact that Dunnes produce many of their more glamorous bikinis in cup sizes not just the plain styles, ensuring you get the perfect fit. The much buzzed about collection was featured in the Sunday Independant in March of this year which showcased the ad campaign for the line.

The campaign shoot took place in an elephant sanctuary in South Africa and was styled by top Irish stylist Courtney Smith. The collection is available to purchase in store and online now at www.dunnesstores.com x

(Beau Heaux Blog do not own the rights to any of these images. All images direct from www.dunnesstores.com)

Style Statement: Timberland Boots

If I have learned anything about fashion over my 23 years it is to trust your instinct. If someone who really hasn't a notion questions what you're wearing or sniggers, ignore them! While working in a high street shoe store a few years ago I decided it would be a good idea to invest in a pair of Timberland boots. 

They were trendy at the time but they were also one of the most expensive pairs of shoes we sold, therefore taking full advantage of my employee discount! I did get my wear out of them until it became time to retire them to the back of the wardrobe as the trend died off. 

I rediscovered them during the winter while tidying my wardrobe and after seeing Khloe Kardashian rocking her Timbs on KUWTK I was fully sure I was ready to embrace my inner ratchet once again! 

I think I wore them with straight leg denims to my boyfriend's house one evening and provided him with hours of entertainment! I believe he even snapchatted pictures of my feet to his friends list because he thought I looked like a "wan"! Cruel I know! After that episode I wasn't feeling as good about my choice of footwear. The Timbs were once again retired to the back of the closet. 

It wasn't until I visited London on a shopping trip a couple months later til I realised how cool I actually was! Lol! They were the footwear to be seen in. Every second girl aged 16-30 was rocking fresh Timbs with denims or jeggings and a statement handbag (Michael Kors, LV and Prada were all spotted!) Proof that Timberlands were no longer the choice shoe for chavs. 

Through all my style stalking on this trip I have been convinced that Timberlands are seriously stylish. More recently I've seen lots of celebs wearing this shoe trend and you only have to switch on MTV to see them being styled in all the latest music videos. 

Urban chic is definitely filtering into the highstreet season after season and this is one way to wear the trend. The key however, is to let your shoes do the talking. Keep the rest of your outfit simple by working with denims, a cami or plain vest top particularly longer length versions, boyfriend shirts or a slouchy tee. Accessorize with a pair of gold hoops if you dare! A sleek ponytail (think Khloe K not Croydon facelift!) or some loose waves and simple nude makeup looks fab with the urban chic look. 

Now more importantly, what not to do! There is a fine line between urban chic and ghetto hoochie. Keep the rest of your palette simple, choose a couple colours and commit to those! If you want to brighten the look wear a white denim jean. Anything too girly or garish completely takes from the look, it is meant to be a little edgy even masculine. Over accessorising is a big no no here that means no bling! A simple chain or watch and a pair of earrings will suffice. Avoid over tanning, false lashes, big curly hair and bright makeup or else you'll look like Christina Aguileara in her Dirrrty days!

 So you see ladies Timberlands are no longer restricted to rappers and lumberjacks! Once styled appropriately they can look very chic and fashion forward. And remember trust you're instincts, you are cool!

(BeauHeaux Blog do not own the rights to any of these photos. We just repost pics from Instagram and Tumblr that we feel portray the style we are trying to show. We are not trying to infringe on any copyright!)

Sneaky shopping trip to River Island!

Headed to Dublin yesterday to go to a concert with the bf! Of course I had to make sure we arrived a few hours early for a trip to Nandos (still don't have one in Limerick boooo!) and more importantly to indulge in some much needed retail therapy! I hadn't really planned on picking up anything really I just wanted to have a browse around before payday! We disembarked our bus (I know tres chic!) on Westmoreland street and headed up Grafton street for a gander. The first shop we headed into was the old reliable River Island! To be honest I haven't bought much in their recently partly because I have been doing most of my shopping online. It was definitely worth the visit however. I feel that the Grafton street branch is one of the best stocked and merchandised out of any I've been to, larger stores in London included! They really adopt the "see now, buy now" principle and you can easily pull outfits together. Their range of accessories is also fantastic, particularly handbags! I'm loving slouchy boyfriend tees lately and I found this fab one with rose gold print.

It's slouchy and easy to wear without looking like you nicked it from your man! The rose gold adds that touch of glam! I also picked up these sandals for €35, some of you may think that's a little steep but I see them as a shoe more so than a sandal. I feel that they are more city wear, personally I won't be wearing them to the beach!

They're also super lightweight and comfy and my feet survived the entire concert in them. I also picked up some hoop earrings in keeping with my white and gold theme! These finger tip rings had to be purchased too at only €4 for the pair, super cute and this season it is definitely all about the detail!

 Planning on heading back up next week after payday to get another couple bits I've had my eye on so stay tuned!x

And the new face of Chanel No 5 is...

Gisele Bundchen has once again topped Forbes list of the highest paid supermodels but that is not the Brazilian beauty's only cause for celebration. Gisele has just been revealed as the latest face of the iconic No 5 fragrance. The bombshell is following in the footsteps of Nicole Kidman, Vanessa Paradis and Marilyn Monroe in representing one of the world's best selling fragrances. The ad campaign is due to be shot by none other than Baz Luhrman who directed films such as The Great Gatsby and Moulin Rouge and we can expect to see the television advert coming up to Christmas 2014. Gisele previously lent her face to Chanel Beauty so it's a natural progression for her to assume this new role. This lady's naturally striking looks and serious bankability make her a perfect fit for Chanel.

Product Review: Fuschia Gel Liner

This Irish born brand has some real little beauty gems hidden in its product list and this is definitely one of them! Even though I am immersed daily in the beauty industry I am still always a bit weary of gel liners – they are amazing if you get a good one and use it correctly but absolutely catastrophic if its tough to work with and you're not too sure what you are doing.

The Fuschia Gel Liner (blackout) is definitely one of my ‘Hero Products’.  The jet black liner has the prefect consistency for you to play with to create a thin sleek line or release your inner Amy Winehouse with batwing finishes. I do recommended that you use a good quality liner brush with this little gem to get the best results. You need very little on your brush to begin with and because it is a quick setting liner you can go over and gradually build up on previous lines without smudging or damaging any of your hard work.

This is my go to liner and can easily transform a day look to night with very little effort, this is important for me as I often arrive at work for 7:30am, spend the day under air conditioning and heat and then head to an event the same evening. Another great advantage of this little pot of liner is that it doesn’t ‘melt’ on your face throughout the day as many high street liners do, it is therefore a little bit more stubborn to remove. I find soaking 2 cotton pads in eye makeup remover and placing them on my eyes for 30 seconds before a few swift wipes over the lids and around the eyes will take it all off.

This product retails at about €19. The Spa @The Pillo Hotel in Galway stock it and are happy to post out to all customers, you can also check out a full list of stockists on The Fuschia website.

 

Mrs West??!

Rumours are swirling that Kimye officially wed yesterday in a private ceremony in LA but conflicting reports state this isn't the truth. All we know is that Kim will become Mrs West in a matter of days as she will have to have all paper work completed before their Parisian celebration. With the main event due to take place May 24th the countdown is well and truly on! All eyes will be on Paris for what promises to be one of the most spectacular weddings of the year if bit the decade and it has been confirmed that Vogue has the official rights to photograph the occasion. Of course they do!

Product Review: Bronze Leaf Spray Tan

It is no secret that here at Beau Heaux we are serious tan lovers – you name it we will have tried it. From Cocoa Brown to Vita Liberata to Wow Brown to St.Tropez, we have done the rounds.

Recently I have started to suffer from dry skin, I exfoliate, moisturise and body brush but no matter what once I put on tan every little inch of dry skin is going to be eventuated. I believe I have finally found the most hydrating tan currently on the market - it gets better – it is organic and smells fab too! I have to admit when Karen from Bronze Leaf first presented this tan to me I really wasn’t 100% mad about it, it is aimed at 4&5 star hotel and day spas, comes in a brown packaging and all in all doesn’t look that WOW – never judge a book by its cover I hear you say? Indeed.

I had a full body spray tan of 12% (I like to be quiet ‘bronze’) and immediately afterwards I was surprised at how quick it dried on the skin and how fresh it smelt. I showered after 3 hours and again the next morning and I can honestly say I did not have a single tan mark on my bed sheets or clothes, this is by far the most up to date and ideal tan for the Irish girl. The tan looked very natural with plenty of colour, no tacky lines or artificial colour on my skin and it faded very well with the help of some moisturising. I did a full body scrub 5 days after I had been sprayed to remove all stubborn areas around dry skin like heels elbows etc and my skin was left in great condition.

This tan comes in 3 different shades- your tanning expert can best recommend the tan to suit your skin tone and desired finishing look. You can use it as an instant tan if you are in a hurry or have an event that evening or leave on overnight. It also comes in a handy self-application bottle also with a tan glove with a velvet effect making it super easy to apply but also the specially designed mitt doesn’t hold tan so you use less product.

This tan is gradually spreading across Ireland, retailing at about €30/€35 for a full body pray tan. For more info and stockists click on the link below, if you would like us to do a full review on the self-tan version of Bronze Leaf please just leave a comment below 

http://www.bronze-leaf.com/

https://www.facebook.com/BronzeLeafTan?fref=ts