The Only Way Is Blogging!

Firstly, I'd like to apologise for the big gap in blog posts - I have been SO busy, that I have found it hard finding time to sleep, let alone blog! I am still really busy but going to try my best to blog whenever I get a spare half an hour - so please bare with me!

Yesterday was the first ever The Only Way Is Blogging (or TOWIB) event, organised by London Beauty Queen. It took place at The Pitcher and Piano in Holborn, in a reserved area just for us. I was a little nervous about walking in somewhere knowing no one, but as soon as I got there I felt fine - lots of familiar faces and everyone was really friendly.

I got there just as MUA were about to start their presentation. Make up artist Katie Hughes created 3 different looks on 3 of the bloggers using MUA products.

First was Sabrina from A Little Obsessed who had a classic red lip and toned down eye...

Next, Sophie from Sophie is Made Up had a smoky eyed look...

And Natalie from Blush Blend Beauty was given bright turquoise colour-blocked eyes...

For each of the looks, Katie used the MUA Bright Orange eye liner pencil - but for everything other than an eyeliner. It was used as a lip base, mixed with foundation to create a softer lipstick, and also can be blended out on the cheeks, as Katie herself was wearing that day. For £1, I am definitely going to check this out.

We had a chance to play with some of the new products in the Pro range - I have fallen in love with the eyeshadow trios and want each of them! For £2.50 a pop, you can't really go wrong! We were given some products to take home, so keep your eyes peeled for swatches coming up on the blog soon. One of the things I was given was the Pretty Pastels Eyeshadow Palette, which looks gorgeous.

Next we had a talk from Andrew, the skin care expert at Dove.

He talked us through the science behind hair conditioning and looking after your skin. It was really interesting, and he did really well talking to a room full of women! He broke everything down into easy to understand chunks - and the point I found particularly interesting was, that when a brand claims it is "superior" it actually has to be proven - they can't just say it because they fancy saying it. Dove is a superior brand, fact!

Another interesting point Andrew made was that using a really good moisturiser when you come in from the sun is far better than using aftersun. I am going to give it a go in Ibiza (2 weeks to goooooo!)  using their Indulgent Nourishment body lotion which keeps you moisturised for 24 hours.

We then had a Q&A session with some of the top beauty bloggers - this was my favourite part of the day as we all got a chance to chat amongst each other and get advice from the people that had been there, done that and worn the t-shirt! On the panel was British Beauty Blogger, Really Ree and London Beauty Queen herself. I follow all three ladies blogs so was fab to get to meet the faces behind them and having them being so honest with us.

Ree from Really Ree then stayed behind to give us a demonstration of Lauren's Way tan. She applied the mousse to one arm, and the lotion to the other. As you may have read on my blog, I was thoroughly impressed with the lotion and intrigued to find out what the mousse was like, so am very pleased that I now have some of the mousse to test out! We also had a feel of the new hair extensions which Lauren has released - having massive hair, I don't have the need for these myself, but they felt really nice and looked really glossy. 

Ree gave some of her top tanning tips - the most interesting one, to me, was that tan actually works by reacting with the bacteria on your skin, and in effect goes off on you, which is what the brown is. Putting tan on dirty skin, therefore will help to build a better tan. I normally apply it after showering or bathing, so I am definitely going to change this - thanks Ree!

Shortly after this, I made my way back home in the pouring rain. I had a fabulous day, got to meet some lovely ladies, have a list of new blogs to follow and really can't wait for the next one. Thank you London Beauty Queen for organising such a fantastic day! If you'd to come to the next one, be sure to follow the TOWIB blog for all the info.