Retro Bollywood Birthday Party

Hey guys, Lavz here!

Retro Bollywood, the era of polka dots, bright colours, bell bottoms, winged liners, big lashes, florals and many more.
Although I'm Pakistani, my family has always loved old Bollywood movies and for my sisters 26th birthday, we decided to throw her a party with a Retro Bollywood theme.

The invites had a famous Bollywood dialogue that translates to 'You must be very happy today.' 

This was some of the party decor, we had additional posters and this was all done by DIYEvents in Dubai. The Photo Booth props had famous Bollywood dialogues on them while the cupcakes and water bottles had the same images as the posters and the coasters did in our party favour packs. The part favour pack included a coaster and a voucher for Pink Pepper Photography in Dubai. 

I dressed up as a retro hippie and decided to rock a floral print jumpsuit that I got made my self with block heels, a small flower crown and a whole bunch of rings. 

OOTN Deets

- Jumpsuit  : had done myself

- Flower crown : New Look

- Block Heels : New Look

- Middy rings : Lovisa 

Make up Deets

- L'Oreal Studio Secrets Primer

- Nars Creamy Concealer (Medium Custard)

- BareMinerals Matte Mineral Foundation : (Medium) 

- Urban Decay Naked Basics 2 : (Lid: Stark ; Crease : Cover)

-  Urban Decay Naked Basics 2 : ( brows : Primal + Undone)

- Stila Stay All Day Liquid Liner ( NEW HOLY GRAIL IN LOVE)

- Ardell Natural Lashes

- Tarte Lights Camera Lashes Mascara

- Makeup Revolution Iconic palette : (Golden Hot : Blush + Highlight + Bronzer)

- NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream : (Antwerp)

These are some of the pictures from last night. In the first picture I'm with my three siblings. I'm the youngest of them all :)

In the second picture I'm with Jinan who is the family's friend+like our sister

Lastly, I'm showing off my liner look created by the Stila Liquid Liner ;)

I hope you guys enjoyed today's blog post, I'll check in tomorrow with a collective haul so stay tuned. 

Until next time, Adios!

L A V Z K H A N B E A U T Y

♥

My Secret for Healthy Hair.

Hey guys, Lavz here! Today, I'm going to tell you all about my hair and how I keep it looking great and healthy. I know that sounds vain, but I get compliments and questions about my hair on a daily. My friend Aya is especially obsessed with my hair. So much so, that she thinks she's jinxed my healthy hair. ;) 

Disclaimer: I'm not a hair expert and this is all that works best for me :)

I’m going to write about the basic products I use, such as the shampoo and conditioner, as well as some treatments. I do not like to use too many products on my hair other than the usual leave in conditioners, heat protectants and dry shampoos. 

Let's start with my hair texture, length and cut. 

I have really thick hair and I've got loads of them. If you've read my other blog posts, you'll know that I'm blessed with thick and dark hair. My hair is  naturally straight for the most part but have a slight wave to them. It's not poker straight by any means though. It falls 3-4 inches above the small of my back and is dark chocolate brown in colour. I've never dyed/coloured my hair before I usually get them cut in layers with fringes/bangs.

This was the last hair cut I got and it was back in September. I have gotten my hair trimmed just once since then. I know you're all probably like umm?? Just once? People say that you should trim your hair every 2-3 weeks and I find that for me, that is a waste of time, energy and money because I simply don't need to do that. I get a haircut every 6-8 months and get it trimmed once or twice in the middle. I will be getting my hair cut this week or the next so you can stay tuned for that :D

Before I start showing my products, I just want to say that I don't have the simplest of routines and not the most complicated either. I find that these products work extremely well for me and I've been following this routine for the last year and half. 

(Lee Stafford Blinding Brunette Shampoo, SebaMed 

Anti HairLoss Shampoo, Selsun Blue Dandruff Shampoo)

Lee Stafford is my favourite hair care brand. They make absolutely wonderful hair products and cater to a wide range of hair textures and colours. I usually find them at Boots or Spinneys here in Abu Dhabi. They are a little bit on the pricy side for just hair care but they work amazingly for me and I don't mind splurging on hair care if it's Lee Stafford :D The Blinding Brunette Shampoo (250 ml) is made with a Pro-Brunette system for natural or coloured Brunette hair. It also gently tops up your mahogany and mocha tones, enhancing the espresso, or so it claims. I have really dark hair but I do see a difference in terms of the different tones in my hair when I use this. It has walnut, henna and moringa seed extract and it smells wonderful too. I wash my hair every alternate day and I use this shampoo every time I wash my hair. This retails for AED 47 and lasts me almost a month.

Next up I use the SebaMed Anti HairLoss shampoo(400 ml) that is made for all hair types. It's soap and alkali-free and is a german based medicated brand readily available in all supermarkets here. Everything I've tried from this brand is wonderful and they have a solution for all problematic issues like dandruff, hair loss, acne, dry skin and damaged hair. I use this shampoo twice a week and it has really helped put a stop to my hair fall. I never really had trouble with my hair falling but for the past few months, due to extreme levels of exam stress, my hair has been falling like nobody's business. It has a light gel type consistency, a fresh scent and  does not weigh my hair down at all. This retails for AED 35 and lasts me almost three months. 

Lastly, I use Selsun Blue(118 ml) just once a week and when I do, it's as a deep cleansing shampoo to rid my scalp of any dandruff and follow up with the other two shampoos and this is usually on a weekend when I have the privilege to take my time in the shower. This thing smells AWFUL. Even the word awful is and understatement. It almost smells worse than cat, dog and bird poo+vomit combined. I'm not even exaggerating right now. So then why do you use it you may ask, it's cause I have never used a cleansing shampoo that works as well as this, and for that I can suck it up and take the awful smell of it that lingers if you don't follow up with 100 products. I can't remember how much it costs on the top of my head but it's around the 10-12 Dirham mark and lasts me around 1 and 1/2 months.

(Lee stafford hair treatment for hair that never grows, 

Lee Stafford Conditioner for Poker Straight Hair)

When I said Lee Stafford is my favourite hair care brand, I wasn't joking. I mean, LOOK AT THAT PACKAGING. I'm not a big pink girl in my outfits but I sure do love me some pink elsewhere. The Poker Straight Conditioner(250 ml) has a built in heat protectant and it smells like a straight up hair spa. It's recommended that you use it with the matching shampoo but I like the brunette shampoo better because it defines the different tones in my hair rather than just a plain shampoo. However, the matching shampoo to this conditioner is just as wonderful. I use this every time I shampoo my hair and it retails for AED 47 if I'm not wrong(what a terrible blogger). It lasts me for almost one full month.

I use the hair treatment 3 or sometimes 4 times a week. That only happens if I wash my hair two days in a row because the humid and hot weather of this desert makes you do that. It's a 250 ml tub and it retails for AED 61. I repurchase this as frequently as the shampoo and conditioner. I take two egg sized scoops for my long and thick hair and apply this from root to tip. It does not weigh my hair down in any way, shape or form. Instead, it adds volume and makes my hair more manageable. 

(Dove Oil Replacement)

I can never thank Huda from Huda Beauty for introducing me to this product enough. IT IS A LIFE SAVER. I'm one who whips up a whole bunch of home made masks and apply's hair oil two times a week 30 minutes before I shower. This product takes that to a whole new level. I can get away with not using hair oil for a month if I just use this once a day. It doesn't matter if I applied a hair oil that particular day or not, when I get out of the shower and my hair dries up, I apply two coin sized amounts  of this to my hair from root to tip. It's essentially a leave in conditioner but works a million times better. You can apply this any time, any where and it DOES NOT make your hair look greasy or weigh it down. Unfortunately, from what I've heard, it's only available in the middle east right now. It's a 300 ml tube and it retails for almost 20 Dhs. It's a light gel type consistency and it smells so lovely.

(Pantene oil replacement on the go

and Oil replacement night therapy)

If you can't tell already, I love me some oil replacement. 

I apply three pumps of the Pantene night therapy before I go to sleep. I run it through my hair using my fingers from my ear down and whatever is left on my hands, I just run my fingers through my bangs and brush my hair thoroughly before tying it up in a top knot. It smells so clean and fresh and almost floral. When I open my hair the next morning, they are so silky smooth and shiny but not greasy. It's a 150 ml bottle and again I don't know how much it retails for but it should be around the 15-20 Dirham mark. :(

I only use the oil replacement to go when I poker straight my hair and it doesn't work as well as the rest but I hate using serums and I just apply this to my tips so they don't look too coarse. This is 75 ml bottle  and it retails for AED 19. 

Other products that I use are the Batiste dry shampoo for brunettes, I swear by that dry shampoo and I don't particularly use it to get rid of grease, I use it for added volume and texture when I'm in no mood to tease my hair. I like being able to run my fingers through my hair and teasing my hair obviously stops me from doing that so I use dry shampoo. I get the big ol' can of that and it retails for AED 40 at boots and lasts me ages. 

I also use the Lee Stafford Argan and Moroccan spray when I get out of the shower, it retails for AED 91 being the most expensive hair product that I use and I repurchase that every 1 and 1/2 months. 

I occasionally use the L'Oreal Elnett HairSpray with strong hold.

Now onto some hair styles and pictures. I usually wear my hair straight, I hardly ever curl them.

 

 

This is what my hair usually looks like when I straighten it. I use a Remington S5505

PRO-Ceramic Ultra Hair Straightener and I've used Remington straighteners for as long as I can remember and they never break on me and work well with my thick hair. 

This is my hair in it's complete natural state with no heat used on it whatsoever. This was taken 2-3 months ago so my hair look shorter. I like wearing my hair naturally during summer time cause I like to braid my hair or wear it in a top knot if I'm just going to the mall or the beach. Living in the middle east with it's horrible summer temperatures and high level of humidity, there's really no point in styling your hair because you WILL look like a poof ball if you stay outdoors for too long. haha!

Lastly, here are some hairstyles I like to do if I'm not wearing my hair straight. If I have a formal event coming up, I like to get them curled outwards as shown in the top left picture. This was taken on my sister's wedding and I got a little bit of a tease on the crown of my head that day. 

In the top right picture, I've straightened my hair in wards by each layer. This was also taken during my sister's wedding days and I do that to define each layer in my hair.

In the bottom left picture, I have a halo braid going on which I learnt from Zoe or Zoella. I leave out my bangs and make a halo braid with the rest of my hair. 

In the last picture, I have it curled using the NuMe curling barrel and I've just curled them outwards messily and not as sleekly as the first. 

This is all for my Hair Care Routine. Everyone should look after their hair. You don't necessarily have to use as many or as few products as me(depends on how you see it) but you should do everything that works for you. Have you ever tried on clothes on a bad hair day? Did you think your outfit looks terrible on you? It's most definitely not you or your outfit, hair shape and frame your face and if your hair looks good, you can take over the world. ;) #WiseWordsByLaveezah (jk)

That's all for today, friends.

Until next time, Adios!

L A V Z K H A N B E A U T Y

♥

New Makeup Goodies.

Hey guys, Lavz here! Today I woke up to a package of new makeup goodies I ordered and I instantly wanted to haul it for you guys. I placed my order on Glamazle.com 2 days ago and I received it today morning. Glamazle is an online Beauty and Fashion Shopping store based in Dubai and they ship all over The UAE within 2-3 days. In addition to many of the readily available brands we have here, they stock some of the brands we don't have in stores like Milani, Elf, Color Pop, DOS of colours, Becca, Kevin Aucoin, Sonia Kashuk and a couple more. I'm so impressed with their services and this was the first time I placed an order on their website. They were so kind and lovely when one of their representatives contacted me to confirm the order and I will definitely be a returning customer. So without further ado, here's my Beauty Haul.

DISCLAIMER: 

All products have been purchased with my own money. Glamazle is not sponsoring this post and all of my opinions 100% genuine. 

(MILANI Eye Tech Liquid Liner - Black)

I'm in need of a new liquid liner and I absolutely love my Rimmel liner that I featured in my Everyday Makeup Routine! I will be repurchasing that but I wanted to try a new eyeliner so I picked this one up. This retails for AED 34 ($9.26) It's a 0.44 ml tube and it claims to be smudge proof and easy to use with precise control. It has a felt tip nip applicator.

(Milani Bella Eyes A Gel Powder Eyeshadow - Bella Navy)

Next, I picked up a jewel toned blue eyeshadow in Bella Navy by Milani. From the picture it looks like I've put a huge dent in it but thats just how the product is shaped. This retails for AED 27 ($7.35) and the pan holds 1.4g of product and it has a satin matte finish. Looking at this product online, I thought it was going to be a jewel toned blue and it looked the exact same in person too, but when I swatched it, it was more of an inky blue but still an absolutely beautiful colour with great pigmentation as well. 

(dose of colours-matte lipstick - Berry Me)

This product retails for AED 105 ($28.59) which is a lot for a lip product but I've heard great things about DOS of Colours and wanted to give their Matte Lipsticks a try. I chose this colour because it looked like it would go well with my dress that I'm going to wear on my farewell next month. However, when it arrived, it was more of a red-berry than a purple-berry and I wasn't expecting that because the picture on the website was totally different than what it actually looks like. I'm a little bit disappointed but I'll try my best to make it work. I love the packaging of this product and it comes with 4.5g of product

(Psst..it's alsot vegan)

(Tarte - Lights, Camera, Lashes.)

I think of all the products I've ordered, this is the one I'm most excited for. I've heard so many bloggers and youtubers RAVE about this mascara but Tarte is not available in Abu Dhabi yet so when I saw this on Glamazle, I quickly bought it because products on Glamazle go out of stock in a jiffy. This retails for AED 132 ($35.94) It's SUCH an amazing mascara, from the first stroke, I fell in love. It's a little more wet than it should be which is perfect because in a weeks time it will dry up and get to the ideal consistency. This contains 7ml of product.

Makeup Revolution Iconic Pro Blush, Bronze and Brighten-Golden Hot

I am so pleasantly surprised with this product. As you can tell by the picture, I've already swatched it and I AM IN LOVE. The powders are SO silky smooth and the colours are absolutely perfect. I had never heard of this brand so I just bought it on a limb because it was cheap and I was getting a decent amount of three different type of products. These are baked powders and you get an 11g worth of product in this. The bronzer has a tiny bit of flex in it but none of it transfers to the skin and it has a slight satin finish to it. The highlighter does not have shimmer in it which I love. Instead, the satin finish of the powder helps brighten up your face. The blush is completely matte and I'm so excited to play around with the powders and see how they work. This retails for AED 35 ($9.53)

(top-bottom: Ardell Runway Lash Gisele

Ardell Fashion Lashes#106)

I have three important events coming up. My sisters birthday party, My graduation and Farewell. I've worn fake lashes thrice before in my life, two of which I got done professionally on my sisters wedding. The third time, I got cheapy falsies and put them on myself for the first time for a costume party at my house. I love big, voluminous and over the top lashes so I wanted to give the Ardell lashes a go. I bought two and I'm sure I can reuse these at least 2-3 times from the reviews I've seen and read. These each retail for AED 19 ($5.17)

(sigma beauty - E06 - Winged Liner)

This is simply a small eyeliner brush used to apply gel/cream liners with. It's by Sigma so it's obviously without a doubt one of the best you can get on the market today. This retails for AED 51 ($13.89)

(Top-Bottom: Makeup Geek Gel Liner - Immortal

and Fame)

To go with the eyeliner brush, I picked up two of the Makeup Geek Gel Liners in Immortal and Fame. I was getting ready for a party the other day and I spotted an old gel liner in my drawer and thought I'd give it a try instead of my usual liquid liner. The product had dried up but I was still able to get a liner look out of it and I loved the way it looked. I looked up reviews on these liners and decided to buy these to see how they work out. Immortal is a jet black liner while fame is a gorgeous almost cobalt blue. This matches my graduation dress and I wonder if I can get a liner look out of this on that day. These retails for AED 51 each ($14.98) and you get 3g of product in this.

These are some of the products I picked up, I really hope you enjoyed today's post and let me know if you want to see individual reviews for any of these products.You can find all my social media links on my Home page. If you've purchased any new products recently, leave them in the comments below because I'd love to know.

Until next time, Adios. 

L A V Z K H A N B E A U T Y

♥

My Everyday Makeup Routine

As I was getting ready to get my picture taken for a visa application to somewhere I'm planning on visiting this summer, I thought that I'd give you an insight into my daily makeup routine and drop a little blog post. I find myself getting into a routine of products and once I get bored, I switch it up a bit here and there with another blusher, lipstick or bronzer. Either a new purchase or something rediscovered from my little stash of makeup. Before I start, I just want to say that I'm no professional so there's no rhyme or rhythm to what I do, it's simply all that works best for ME. Without further ado, here are the products that I know and love. 
P.S: I've linked every product under each picture, it's a direct link that will take you to their respective sites where you can purchase them. It will open in a new tab and I'm not affiliated with any of the brands mentioned below.

(Left to right: The Body Shop Tea Tree Pore Minimiser, The Body Shop Tea Tree 

Skin Cleansing Facial Wash, Caudalíe Divine Oil)

To make any makeup look to look good, it's important that your skin is happy and healthy from within, I do not have perfect skin and I suffer from acne as most teenagers do, and if you don't, then you're one lucky person. Not all of us are blessed with perfect skin but this is what I use to get it looking decent. I can't say that I LOVE the pore minimiser and cleanser but I'm almost out of both and I won't be repurchasing them. However, I am OBSESSED with the Divine Oil and use it in place of a moisturiser. Though I have combination skin(a bit oily on the T-Zone and dry every where else), don't let the 'oil' scare you. 

(L'oreal Paris Studio Secrets smoothing resurfacing prime)

Moving on to my HG products…I LOVE THIS THING! It creates a smooth canvas for me to begin with and I will go as far as saying that it blurs a bit of my redness. It sinks into my pores beautifully and it makes my makeup last for much longer than the POREfessional by Benefit does. 

(Left to Right: NYX Stay Matte But Not Flat Powder Foundation, NARS Radiant

Creamy Concealer, MAC Select MoistureCover)

I cannot stand the feel of liquid foundation on my face for the LIFE of me, I instead use powder foundations and concealers to perfect my makeup look. I have always used the Guerlain Powder Foundation and that is my ultimate HG but I recently went to the One Direction concert and took it with me and lost it. I was devastated but soon after realising I've lost it, my exam period started and I haven't gotten around to repurchasing that. It is extremely pricy but I would repurchase that a THOUSAND times over. With that being said, I was still using the NYX powder along with my Guerlain powder. I used it to set my under eye area as I accidentally bought a shade too light. I bought this product hoping that it be a dupe for my Guerlain foundation but it's not nearly as good but it works for the time being. I use my NARS concealer to conceal my dark circles and highlight that area. I have it in the shade Medium Custard and I would not live a day without this concealer, it has completely transformed my makeup routine. I then go on and use my MAC concealer(NC30) to conceal any blemishes. I blend that all with a beauty blender and then set everything with the NYX powder(Medium Beige) using my Real Techniques expert face brush. 

(Urban Decay Naked Basics 2)

I may not be blessed with perfect skin but I am blessed with thick and dark hair, which means I also have thick and dark eyebrows. My friends always tell me that my brows are always on point(when they are threaded and shaped of course). You must be thinking where this is coming from as the picture above is of an eye shadow palette. I mix primal and undone to fill in my brows a little. I have a little sparse area on my left brow from when I was a child and I just fill that in and even out the head of my brow. I really believe that brows shape your face and I cannot stress enough how important they are. If your brows are on point, your face is on point. 

(ELF Contouring Blush and Bronzing Powder, MAC Sheertone Shimmer Blush

Maybelline Expertwear Blush, Benefit Watts Up, Benefit Posie Tint)

Now to the fun things, in the picture above, I've shown three different blush alternatives. These are the blushes I find my self using more often than not. My clearly well loved MAC blush in Breezy, it looks scary but it sheers out to a beautiful 'I've just come back in from playing in the snow' look. Maybelline Blush in Flash Plum which has a similar effect but has a bit of rose gold look to it. Last but not the least is the Benefit's Posie Tint which is described as a poppy-pink tinted lip and cheek stain. I then apply my Watt's Up highlighter to the high points of my face such as my brow bones, cheek bones, bridge of my nose and my cupids bow. It is such a beautiful creamy formula without being too sticky, shimmery or in your face. It's a soft focus highlighter. Lastly I use the ELF contour pallet in Saint Lucia to slightly contour the hollows of my cheeks, nothing too dramatic. Unfortunately for me, the blush does not show up on my skin tone too well so I use it as a layering product on the days where I wear posie tint. It's the exact drugstore dupe for Benefit's Rockateur blush and works nicely once you layer it.

(Benefit They're Real, Rimmel London Glam Eyes proffesional liquid liner) 

I couldn't be more excited to share these products with you guys. I'm sure every one and their mothers know about the Benefit They're Real Mascara but I just feel like all the rave about this product is still not enough. As I said earlier on, I do have thick dark hair so I also have thick and dark eyelashes. If I put 2-3 coats of a separating and lengthening mascara, they almost look like falsies. When you first buy it, it's an extremely wet formula and how I used to apply it was two strokes on one eye, two more on the other and then go back to the first one, build it up to how you want it and do the same on the other eye. after a week and half of that, the product dried up a bit and it got to the perfect consistency where I didn't have to be so careful anymore. I would repurchase this mascara a thousand times over. If I do the effort of this full face of makeup, you will not find me leaving my house without a cat eye winged liner. The way I achieve that is by using the Rimmel Liquid liner. It dries to a matte finish which I love because I cannot STAND the look of my liquid liner reflecting the light. The precise brush tip helps me create the perfect wing and I'm so sad that I'm almost done with it but the good news is that it's available at a very affordable price in your nearest drugstore. ;)

(Left to Right: NYX soft matte lip cream, NYX Matte Lipstick, Revlon 

Colorburst Lip Butter, DIOR Addict Lipcolor)

Lastly, I finish everything off with a lip colour. I don't line my lips, or do any of that jazz on an everyday basis. I just apply everything straight from the bullet, throw it in my handbag and off I go. I've shown you guys 4 different lipsticks that I use the most. I'm surprised at how awfully similar they all look but I swear they're not that similar. haha!

I tend to wear a lot of black, white, navy and grey and these colours seem to go well with my everyday outfits. The NYX lip cream in Antwerp is the perfect colour to brighten up your entire face and make any outfit pop. The NYX Matte Lipstick in Sierra is a really warm almost bricky colour that complements my skin tone really well. If I have a black top on, I'm most likely to be wearing that. Then we have the Revlon Lip Butter in Pink Truffle which is such a beautiful mauve/pink shade. It has no shimmer but has a glossy finish to it. This is more of a staple. No matter what lipstick I'm wearing that specific day, you'll always find this on me. Last but not the least we have a Dior lipstick in Pink Embroidery. This has a teeny tiny bit of flex in it but it's absolutely beautiful and actually shows up the lightest of them all on my lips. I'm not one to splurge on high end lipsticks and I feel the drugstore has SO much to offer in the lip product department. I will buy a high end lipstick here and there but more often than not, you'll find me in a boots snooping through the racks for a new lipstick. I also tend to stick to matte lip colours OR glossy formulas with absolutely no shimmer. The Dior Lipstick is an exception. :P

I hope you enjoyed this in depth update. I'd love to know what you guys use to achieve your everyday makeup look. This full ritual takes me less than 10 minutes to do. I know I take joy in finding out what everyone else uses so I hope you do too. Look out for a review for some of these products as I want to do an individual rave for some of these. 

Until next time, Adios. 

L A V Z K H A N B E A U T Y

♥