Loads of people have been asking me about the Shrinking Violet body wrap so here's my review...

Due to the stress of having to deal with idiots on a daily basis I developed frown lines and forehead wrinkles from the age of 21. I’d been dying to get Botox but like a lot of people I was priced out, plus I had people saying at 26 I was too young. Well for a start I already had more wrinkles than I was willing to deal with and I didn’t want any more - prevention is better than cure! I first went to Lee in B clinics a couple of years ago from a Groupon deal of all things - the deal was good but when I went I found his prices were lower than others anyway. Lee is a fantastic guy to sit and chat with, he makes you feel so at ease that it’s like going to visit a friend rather than a doctor. He explained that he was one of the first doctors in the country to start doing Botox, so experience wise I trust him implicitly with my visage. The last thing I want is to end up with a wonky face from going to visit some back street beautician who’s syringe happy! I couldn’t be any happier with my treatment, I used to spend hours in the mirror looking at my developing wrinkles, obsessing over them - now they don’t even enter my mind. My facial expressions haven’t been affected, they’re still natural rather than frozen (i.e. I can still snarl me head off). No one would ever know I’d had Botox except for the fact I’m really open about it. If you’re thinking about getting Botox there is no one else I would recommend.

www.twitter.com/btoxclinics 
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Scouse Bird

I’ve been saving up for IPL for ages. I used to epilate my legs (yeh cos I’m THAT hardcore) and thanks to a crap epilator which used to snap the hairs off instead of actually ripping them out I’ve ended up with really bad ingrown hairs on my legs. Some of them are really red and scarred and as a consequence I really hate getting my legs out cos they look proper scabby.
I was in Whitehaus the other week and it’s in the same building as The Laser Clinic & Beauty Boutique which has only just opened. I got talking to Sam who owns it and she said they were doing 40% off laser treatments as an introductory offer. I had enough so I thought sound, let’s go for it.
She explained that what I actually need was laser hair removal, not IPL. IPL is more for treatment of acne and thread veins and ultimately not actually that efficient with hair removal. I asked if it hurt and she explained that they have a new laser which is the first one to offer a pain free experience.
Here I’ll be charting a diary of my progress as it’s a course of 6-8 treatments spaced 6 weeks apart.

Treatment One 08/03/2013 – I went in for my test patch on the Saturday. Apparently it’s best to shave beforehand or the laser will just zap the end of the hair instead of right down to the bulb like we want, so I had to dry shave a patch while I was there. Ouch. The actual laser itself didn’t hurt and I was in and out in 10 mins. I went back on the Monday for my actual treatment once we were sure my skin had no adverse reaction. The treatment lasted about an hour and it involved her spreading a gel (the same one you use when you’re having an ultrasound) and rubbing the laser over that patch in 60 second bursts. It honestly didn’t hurt one bit, if anything the warmth was relaxing. I nearly fell asleep at one point. I decided to get my armpits done as well (no one wants beasty pits) and silly me had forgot and worn a long sleeved dress that had to be completed removed to access the pit-al area. So in the end I had to get nek-ked and lie there covered in towels. Couple this with the fact that once again I’d forgotten to shave my legs (wtf is wrong with me?) so earlier in the day I’d had to shut myself in a toilet cubicle in work and shave my legs. I felt like a mad contortionist and people kept coming in so I was tryin to shave dead quiet. I ended up using half a roll of bog roll and had shaving foam everywhere. Not recommended! I’ll deffo be more prepared next time. Sam said that I’ll get hair regrowth this time but already it may start to be patchy and I’ll see more and more progress with each session. Wish me luck!

Treatment 2 16/04/2013 - I remembered to shave my legs this time yesss. Well let me tell you, i've been very impressed by the results so far from one treatment. My armpit hair has been much, much thinner (apparently the darker the hair, the better the laser works - at this rate I might take the plunge on the bikini line!), and I haven't had to shave my legs nearly as much as quite a few of the coarser hairs have already gone meaning that my legs feel/look smoother for longer. I can't wait to see the results from this treatment. Once again it was nice and relaxing and pain-free apart from one little tiny bit on the back of my leg where i hadn't shaved properly, it stung a little like epilating but it was only for about 10 seconds literally, and it was totally bearable. Onwards and upwards to a new hair-free me!


Treatment three - 23/5/2013

I didn't see much difference with the armpits this time (but there was a huge difference between 1 & 2 so maybe that why) but a big difference in my legs. I think all the dark hairs off my legs are pretty much gone now so just the blondies left. These take the longest as the laser looks for dark hair pigment. I've also only had 1 ingrown hair in the last 6 weeks which is a massive improvement and the main reason i wanted the treatment. I'm hardly having to shave my legs at the moment either so saving a fortune in razors and time! 2 more treatments to go before my hols, it'll be a huge difference I hope! 

Im don't have to shave my legs more than once a week at the moment which is amazing. I've had no new ingrown hairs so hopefully the existing scarred ones can start to heal. I'm trying a new product 5kincerity which is supposed to be great for scars so I'm hoping that'll help them along. There's been a huge difference in my armpits, I went on holiday to Nice and was goin "look! Look there's like 10 hairs left" to me mates. One treatment left before hols. Laser hair removal was a GOOD decision.

Pretty much all hairs are gone now but seem to grow back right before I'm due for the next session. Sam is going to pump up the volume on the laser to kill them bastard hairs once and for all.

Being a lover of spicy food I often get a hankering for a curry. My boyfriend is a right wimp when it comes to the hot stuff so I decided to take my dad (a kindred spirit on the quest for tongue S&M) out for something to eat at the Spice Lounge on The Albert Dock.
We were sat down immediately even though we turned up early for our booking, lucky really as it got packed later on, on both floors – astonishing for a Tuesday night. We got talking to the manager who explained it’s his good reputation for quality food that ensures he’s always busy. He took the time to talk us through the menu, explaining how they use much healthier and better quality ingredients than your average takeaway joint and made recommendations on what he thought we should try.
I went with chicken and my dad went with lamb, obviously we tried each others (as you do) and the lamb was so tasty! I’m not usually a fan of lamb but it was gorgeous and really spicy.
By the end of the meal we were absolutely stuffed and I had to ask for half of my meal to be packaged up to take away. Wasting food? Ain’t nobody got time fo dat!
The manager caught me admiring the huge chandelier on the way out (I’m like a magpie for anything shiny) and he explained they’re planning on building a new cocktail lounge upstairs in May. Cannot wait. Curry and cocktails? Count me in!

When our friends who we’d not seen for ages mentioned they were coming over from France (where they live the lucky things!) for the week we decided to ‘do lunch’.
I’d been dying to try Miller & Carter for ages, it always looks so nice when you walk past. My boyfriend has just had a brace thing fitted and can’t eat much so he was fuming when we decided
When we arrived we were sat in a lovely booth overlooking the dock. I absolutely love looking out at the dock. It’s mad that in living memory it was just a desolate wasteland. What’s been done there is amazing.
The waiter explained that the champagne was on special offer at £25 per bottle and the cocktails were £4.95. Needles to say I’ve just had to sit here and rack my brains for about half an hour just to remember what food I had after we abused the drinks special offers quite a bit! The chocolate orange martini was like a dessert in a glass.
For starters I had something delicious definitely! For the main I had the rib eye steak and peppercorn sauce with their famous lettuce slice. I ate all the steak and had no room left for my lettuce. I had a little taste like, and as lettuce goes I can see why it’s famous but there’s no way a girl can favour a leaf over a prime piece of meat.
We were having so much fun we missed our slot on the duck tour…ooops! More champagne please waiter!

Extensions: Can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em. They can look so fantastically good or bad that choosing the right ones (for your budget) is really important.
I’ve been on the extensions for years, love, love, love them to death. You definitely feel more fabulous with a glossy mane and more tragic with matted rat’s tails. My first extensions were the real deal Russian ones years ago which my hairdresser sourced from the woman who supplied Herbert’s (which I’ve since learnt WAS Dianne Marshall), I’ve had European, Remy and proper crap ones so I’ve been through the extension mill.
The worst ones I ever had were like a self matting weave, I brushed them, remained completely still and within 2 minutes they’d worked their way into one giant knot….how?? Magic stennies. I had them sewn in one day and cut out the next. *shudders*
recently read about Dianne Marshall in a magazine and found out she actually did Kate Winslet’s extensions in Titanic and Gwyneth Paltrow’s in Shakespeare In Love. She’d trained in Beverley Hills and actually almost single-handedly brought boss extensions to the city of Liverpool and even the UK. This woman was the real deal – the Gucci of the extension world and I had to have her hair. Not literally hers like, I wasn’t planning on scalping her in a dark alley or anything.
A friend of mine managed to get me booked in with her; Dianne’s just released a new Remy range (which is still top quality double drawn thickness) which was more within my price range, so I had to give it a go. I’d been saving up for some decent ones for the summer and I wasn’t let down. They are gorgeous – so soft and thick.
Dianne herself is an absolute babe, I love her loads. We had a good old gab and I explained to her that I was paranoid about getting bald patches and sores at the side of my head (had some over-eager weave sewers in the past) and she knew exactly what to do and where to place it and oh my god, it didn’t even hurt. I haven’t even got a headache or anything, the woman is a genius! Dianne, where have you been all my life??