Fashion Voyeur

People will stare, make it worth their while.

Categories: Fashion, Models, Pixie

What I Wore: For Mama T’s 60th Birthday Dinner in Menorca

I’m back with another easy vacation outfit post for y’all!  I love vacation dressing, it’s different than what you might wear in your home country so it gives you a chance to experiment a little, I have two main styles when I’m livin’ it up abroad and those are Boho Festival Unicorn, and US Seventies Rock Chick.  Sure I like to mix it up and throw a little boho 70’s in there, or 90’s raver, but these are the old faithful styles that I come back to over and over again.

Most of what I wear on vacation is pretty easy to recreate on the highstreet, especially if you shop at the end of the Summer, around the beginning of September when you can pick up items in this style pretty cheap.  I like to wear Daisy Dukes in stretch denim when I’m away and my favourites are aptly named Daisy by Topshop, the lycra in the denim means they don’t sag around the butt giving you shape and lift all day long and keeping everything where it should be.  These ones are £36 but be warned, they’re short!  Topshop now do a Kiri short which is cleverly cut to your shape so that it’s higher on the outside thigh, but lower on the butt and very flattering.  Wanna check them out?  You’ll find them here.


I wore this outfit to go out to dinner for Mama Tenenbaum’s 60th birthday in Menorca so looking back at it will always make me smile.  The tee is a tour tee from Beyonce’s Formation world tour in 2016, it’s got a drop sleeve leaving me pretty exposed so underneath I’m wearing a bright orange non-wired bralet from the Victoria’s Secret Pink collection which costs around £14.

The cowboy boots (which I take everywhere I travel) are from Topshop (you can find similar ones here) and this cute little fur bag is a super bargain from Primark that I picked up for just £7, it has a gold chain handle too so looks pretty cute with anything, it’s in store now in two different colour ways.

My boho tasseled jacket is River Island, it rung in at around £90 from what I remember but I’ve since seen non branded ones on eBay form way cheaper, it’s a velvet burnout with yellow and orange tones in it as well as a tone of heavy beads and I bloody love it, I get tonnes of compliments on it every time I wear it.  You’ll find something similar at a vintage fair, or at Rokit vintage in London and if it’s a little battered it looks even better.

The necklace I’m wearing is a local designer to Newcastle called M.I.A which stands for Mirror Image Accessories, you’ll remember I shot a campaign with them recently and their laser cut jewellery is produced in limited numbers so you’re not getting something that everyone else has.  There’s an Etsy shop where they sell their jewellery and pin badges and they’re over on Instagram too.

Obviously I wore my signature star tattoos, I’m not sure Mama T would have recognised me without them, and loose tousled beach hair which had lost the very last remnants of lilac which had faded up to a sandy blonde.  Wearing no makeup on vacation gave my skin a real break and my LVL Lashes by The Wax Bar gave me enough refined polish to not have to wear mascara.

Man it sucks to be back in the UK, gimme this sunset everyday of the week…

Pixie xo

Categories: Beauty, Fashion, Models, North East, Pixie, Uncategorized

M.I.A SS17 Campaign Shoot

I’ve been a fan of North East accessories brand Mirror Image Accessories since I discovered it around two years ago, the distinctive llaser cut, Art Deco shapes had me hooked at first sight.  I’ve bought a few Gatsby style pieces from M.I.A and have been lucky enough to have been gifted some too, all of them are vacation staples for me because of the awesome way they reflect light.

Each style is designed in house by owner and designer Ellie and sold via her Etsy store before being packed up and shipped.   Each style is produced in small numbers meaning that whilst you’re pretty unlikely to bump into someone wearing the same item, but also that if you see something and fall in love with it, you’ll need to act fast.  These pieces are a good shout at a family wedding and an M.I.A accessory is always a conversation starter.

Loving the brand as much as I do, I was ecstatic to be asked to front the M.I.A SS17 accessories campaign.  Ecstatic, and super surprised to find out that Ellie is a fan of Fashion Voyeur, if that isn’t the perfect fit then I don’t know what is.

We set about creating campaign inspiration boards and ideas of how we’d create the perfect look to fit the theme of the latest collection.  With an 80’s glam vibe in mind, Ellie pulled together an awesome all female team to shoot the cocktail inspired collection in a Gatsby-esque waterfront cocktail bar in South Shields.

Styling on the shoot was a real homage to the 80’s with huuuuuuuge hair and super colourful paintbox style makeup, think Elizabeth Shue in Adventures in Babysitting crossed with Young Jenna in 13 Going on 30, and you’re on the right track.  We even worked in some experimental lip stripes to to give the first part of the shoot a modern twist.

With fun pin badges, hibiscus chokers & cute mismatched wooden studs, the SS17 collection is kitsch and adds another dimension to the brand, expanding on M.I.A’s usual 20’s style pieces.  The Flamingo choker is a vacation essential and the smaller pin badges are a dream on oversized denim.  My favourite piece though, is a laser cut deco style necklace that Ellie tells me was born out of an experiment.  Needless to say it came home with me to compliment the other pieces in my M.I.A collection.

The full collection launches in the M.I.A Etsy store very soon but for now you’ll have to make do with my behind the scenes shots from the set.  With a distinct Summer vibe, the SS17 M.I.A collection is full of vacation must-haves, I’ll be wearing the pin badges on a denim pinafore and the mismatched wooden earrings with braids while I’m sunning myself on Sant Tomas beach.

Keep your eyes peeled for the full campaign Voyeurs, it’s due to drop any time!

Pixie xo

Categories: Beauty, Fashion, Models, North East, Pixie, Uncategorized

Mastering The Essentials, A Makeup Masterclass with Amanda Bell

Remember a little while back I told you about an event I went to to celebrate the launch of Amanda Bell Elite Makeup Studio?  Well, it’s been a few weeks since the grand opening of this insta-perfect makeup studio and I was invited back in to take part in The Essentials group masterclass with Amanda Bell herself.  The class promises to deliver the basic essential makeup techniques to get the best out of your complexion, eyes and lips, with a focus on achieving a naturally enhanced look.  Sounds promising.

I was asked to bring along my makeup, brushes and skincare, that’s right voyeurs, you use your own kit for this class so that you can master YOUR essentials, techniques and tricks that will work for you every time you come to apply your makeup.  I arrived with bags and bags of makeup, the associated paraphernalia and a bare face ready to hit the ground running.  You’ll remember from my previous post that the studio itself is on the attic floor of a building located on the super pretty high street in Norton, Teesside and it has some serious insta style credentials, from the silver and white decor to the illuminated mirrors, the scope for pictures to inspire envy in your followers is endless.

Back to class, we’re greeted by Amanda and her trademark laid back style, we’re allocated a dresser each with our own illuminated mirror and small pots of things like q-tips, cotton pads and spoolie brushes, it’s very well thought out, not surprising given Amanda’s 20 years in the industry.

Amanda takes us through some skin prep before we begin, we double cleanse, tone and moisturise before we talk primer.  After looking over our products and talking about the benefits of different types of primer, we get to work creating a flawless base for our makeup to sit on.  Once we’re clean and prepped we begin….

Foundation: we learn about the different types of coverage and what skin types they match with, I’m not a fan of anything heavy and usually stick with a light tinted moisturiser or BB cream.  My current favourite is one by Creme de la Mer and it blends seamlessly with my skin, Amanda tells me it’s a perfect match for my skin and I mentally assign myself one star.  The great thing about this class is that nobody is left behind, I’m pretty confident in applying my makeup but for anyone just starting out or looking to really hone their skills and increase their confidence, it’s a safe environment and you’re hand held through each stage.  At each change of product, Amanda uses one of us as a model and applies the product to half of the face whilst talking through why she adopts a particular technique, before we try it ourselves and the model matches the other side.  Amanda checks over everybody regularly offering tips and advice depending on your choice of product and chirps up with a “gorge” as her seal of approval.

Foundation
Brows
Contouring
Highlight

She talks about concealer and how she prefers to skip foundation over the eyelids and uses concealer instead as the perfect eye base.  Although I buy it, I never use concealer so I’m particularly interested in this part and luckily for me, I’m selected as the model.  Amanda blends an Armani concealer around my nose, under eyes and eyelids and when I look in the mirror it’s completely invisible but one side of my face looks fresher, where the other reflects my true tired state but I manage to match it up pretty well.

When we move on to contouring, she tells us that it’s a trick that can be used to create pretty much any visual effect as long as you go easy.  The rest of the class use a variety of powder contouring palettes whereas I favour the Tom Ford Shade & Illuminate kit and that’s the beauty of this class; there are no products dictated, nobody tries to sell you anything, but if you’re not entirely happy with your own products, then Amanda is happy to make suggestions to help you achieve the best finish.

We’re guided through every aspect of creating the every day face, one step at a time and when we cover eyes everyone had a slightly different preference.  Amanda maintains that the principles are the same; colour should be used sparingly and built up rather than slicked on in one heavy stroke and we’re reminded to always tap excess powder off our brushes before applying anything with colour to avoid a potential strobing disaster.  With the class at two and a half hours long, Amanda factors in time to work with everyone on an individual basis and offers advice on the shades that best suit a certain eye colour, it’s a completely relaxed environment and the class is made up of women of differing ages and backgrounds, there’s no one set person type that the class is aimed at.

The idea of mastering The Essentials is that you take away new techniques to add to your arsenal, new ways of using your products to get the best out of them for your skin type or tone.  It’s as perfect  for teenagers looking to learn how to get to grips with makeup as it is for someone of my age and beyond, there’s something that everyone can take away from this class and use time and time again.  I’ve used the concealer trick since I took the class and I’ve even worn mascara a few times, something I don’t usually do due to my insanely long eyelashes and the mess it creates on my eyelids.

If you feel you’ve got The Essentials down then there’s a full suite of classes available, from beginners to advanced and there are also bespoke packages for those who have a particular look they’d like to recreate.  With the studio also available for private hire, you have the potential to score some serious brownie points in the way of birthday and bachelorette parties, I have two younger sisters who would crawl over each other to host an insta-worthy makeup party here with their squad and they’d be the talk of their class the next day.  It’s well worth checking out Amanda Bell Elite Makeup Studio and Amanda’s credentials are extensive so you know you’re in good hands.

Pixie xo

To book a place on any of the group Masterclasses which start at £75 per person, or to book a party or private session with Amanda Bell, email amanda@amanda-bell.co.uk

 

Categories: Beauty, Fashion, Models, North East, Uncategorized

Amanda Bell Elite Makeup Studio

Applying makeup isn’t just an art, it’s a god damn science.

In fact, no longer reserved just for celebrities, it’s become perfectly normal for regular people like you and I to employ the services of a Makeup Artist or Makeup Studio for a special occasion, in order to get that red carpet look and flawless finish.  But what if, you could have the best of both worlds?  Hear me out Voyeurs, I’m talking Makeup Artist techniques and a flawless, Insta-worthy finish, using your own makeup kit.  Piqued your interest?  Then read on….

Amanda Bell is an Elite Makeup Artist and I guarantee that whilst you might not know her name (yet), you most definitely know her work.  Head Makeup Artist for eight years at The BAFTAs and a regular behind the scenes of some of the biggest London Fashion Week shows, Amanda Bell is responsible for creating some jaw dropping beauty looks.  With Goldie Hawn, Sienna Miller and Emilia Fox amongst her clients and a wealth of expertise in beauty, it was only a matter of time before a Makeup Studio followed.  It’s all good and well having high profile and celebrity clients, but what really fascinates Bell, is the everyday woman; the woman who gets up in the morning and does the school run before nipping to Tesco, the woman who suits up for her role as a company executive, the 16 year old experimenting with makeup and still discovering her look.  Bell thrives on this, on helping women like you and I and that’s the aim of her latest self named business in Teesside.  I went along to the VIP launch of Amanda Bell Elite Makeup Studio to find out what you can expect from this brand new venture.

“Over the past 20 years I’ve worked in very high profile, high octane environments and I’ve loved that, but I’ve realised this is what really makes me tick; makeup for real women who want to look and feel amazing in real life.  Women can get stuck in being the best version of themselves – stuck in the time they felt most beautiful and don’t move on years later – and I can teach them that with makeup they can create the best of themselves at any given age.”  Amanda Bell, Elite Makeup Artist

After thinking long and hard about setting up a dedicated makeup studio, Bell found premises in Constance House, Norton and tells me she “just knew it was right” the first time she viewed the loft space above the Christian Alexander boutique on the picturesque high street.  After some renovation and a little styling, the space has been set up to cater for up to six clients at a time, with six individual makeup stations complete with illuminated mirrors each furnished with cotton pads, q-tips and spoolie brushes.  Utilising as much natural light as possible from the dormer window, the studio is bright and most importantly, very instagrammable.  The decor is simple but effective, from the mirrored dresser in the window topped with candle votives that spell out “Amanda Bell” to the family photographs hung with pride in the waiting area, everything in the studio has been well planned and well thought out.

The similarity with other makeup studios ends there.  Whilst Bell is still perfectly set up to cater for her regular bridal parties, batchelorette parties and even teen birthday parties, the real reason for this particular set up is her Makeup Masterclasses.  Having been trained by some of the best makeup artists in the industry including Gucci Westman, Fred Farrugia and Ross Burton, Bell wants to pass on some of those lessons and inspire women to fall in love with makeup and be confident in using it.

“Women spend so much money on makeup and brushes, they bring them home and then don’t know what to do with them and it can be such a waste of money!  I want to teach women how to use and love their own makeup by giving step by step demonstrations and personal one on one coaching, using their own products as far as possible.”

The idea is that you book your place, rock up with your kit and learn how to make your makeup bag work for you in any given scenario.  Whether it’s getting to grip with the basics, or prepping for a family wedding, each masterclass aims to equip you with the skills and techniques needed to create a signature look that you can then recreate at home again and again.   With a suite of five masterclasses to choose from all lasting 2.5 hours and priced at £75 per person, there’s something for everyone from the makeup-phobic, to the devout makeup lover:

COMPLEXION PERFECTION

Learn how to create the perfect canvas for your makeup with techniques to smooth and enhance your features, perfectly colour match your base, and add radiance to your skin.

THE ESSENTIALS

Master essential, basic makeup techniques to get the best out of your complexion, eyes and lips.  Focusing on creating a beautifully achievable look for every day.

GLAMOUR-EYES

Learn how to create show stopping, mesmerising eyes and the secrets behind perfect liner and lash application.

AGELESS ELEGANCE

Look your best at any age.  Learn how to maximise your makeup potential, identify and accentuate your assets.

RED CARPET

Learn how to look like the star of your own red carpet with techniques to add dimension to your entire makeup look giving you a perfectly polished result.

I’m booked on to The Essentials Masterclass and I’m hoping to pick up some tips on creating the perfect base and killer highlight and I can’t wait to tell you all about what I learned!

Pixie xo

To book a place on any of the above master classes, or a one to one session with Amanda Bell, email amanda@amanda-bell.co.uk sessions are strictly by appointment only.

Categories: Fashion, Models, Uncategorized

London Fashion Week FW17: Hellavagirl Couture

Fresh off the back of her 2016 Britain’s Top Designer win, Helen Woollams has created what’s surely her best visual spectacle yet for Hellavagirl’s FW17 showcase at Fashion Scout.  I headed out to the Freemason’s Hall in a leather A-line skirt (to protect me from the elements) to share this awesome collection with you.  I got to go backstage prior to the show too but that’s a whole other story…..

The Last Dawn on Mars FW17 –A Post apocalyptic inspired couture collection with dark undertones and a regal rock and roll edge, a dys(co)topian future if you will, filled with couture robots to blow your circuits.

The opening look set the tone for the show, a shimmering oversized gown masked the model’s limbs giving the illusion of exaggerated height, topped off with a ginormous flower crown beyond even your wildest dreams, fashioned out of paper by specialist crafters, Tissue Blossoms.

A silver two piece consisting of harem pants and a metallic, frilled top dripping with emerald coloured stones (one of my favourite looks) gave off a space age mermaid vibe as an awesome follow up to the opener.  From the Frow, in the VIP section no less, I had a fantastic view of this exciting showcase, a collection which tests boundaries and challenges proportions.  A glittertastic, brocade wrapped, flower topped collection of couture for confident, powerful women who don’t fall at the feet of men.

Woollams’ collections are always strong, but FW17 is the dark side of the fairytale.  For every wooded tower that hides a princess there’s a gothic witch just wishing she had Hellavagirl on speed dial; it’s exactly that kind of devilishly flirtatious drama.  A hybrid of couture and RTW, this is a collection available to buy and wear but it’s not for the faint of heart.  Filled to he brim with sequins, sparkle, tulle and brocade, it’s dramatic, confident and filled with personality.

Personally, I adored the show, I was keen to see how Woollams would build on her 2016 national recognition and was pleasantly unsurprised.  It’s great to see that she’s stuck to the principles that made her stand out from the crowd in the first place, staying firmly within her talent niche there’s a definite Hellavagirl aesthetic developing.  Creating unapologetic proportions and dramatic shapes that scream “Don’t fuck with me” – a bold trouser with added width at the hip, or a voluminous jacket with looping shoulders, the knack for creating these exaggerated silhouettes has become Woollams’ signature and it’s one I hope she’ll keep as she’s edging the pack.

When I started writing this post I knew it had to be image led as The Last Dawn on Mars is a collection that has to be viewed to be appreciated.  A distinct Bowie influence makes the collection beautifully bittersweet, but I’ll leave you to make your own assessment.  I can’t wait to see what Hellavagirl brings us in September for SS18 and I’ll be waiting with bated breath for another look inside the mind of Helen Woollams.  So for now Voyeurs, enjoy The Last Dawn on Mars…….

Pixie xo