The Beauty Run : Self-Care

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February is here, and most of us have already fallen short in sticking to our New Years resolutions we made at the beginning of this year. We’re so used to setting unrealistic and overambitious goals and failing to achieve them after a couple of weeks, which we all have experienced. So, to break this unappealing tradition, we’ve put together a few small beauty resolutions that won’t stretch you to the extreme and at the same time, enhance your beauty routine.

SPF... DAILY

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Ok. 2019 is the year to focus on the whole body. The sun is out all year round and having regular contact with the sun, could over time, damage your skin and may trigger you to age quicker. You won’t always feel the heat, but if your skin isn’t protected, you will see the damage in the long term. So slap some protection on! We're currently loving Palmers Even Tone SPF 30. Rich in natural moisturisers such as Cocoa Butter, Shea Butter and Coconut Oil, this SPF won't leave your skin dry or ashy.

Eye cream... EVERY NIGHT

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Now, we can't stress just how important it is to incorporate a good eye cream into your skincare routine. With the skin around your eyes ageing faster than the rest of your face, its important that area gets the moisture and care it needs. A good eye cream will reduce puffiness, dark circles and fine lines. Kiehl's Avocado Creamy Eye Cream, leaves your under eye area moist and firm.

Clean your makeup brushes... WEEKLY

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We can all admit that we are all guilty of makeup brushes which are overdue for a clean. I know, it’s a tedious task but remember, old brushes carry oils accumulated from constant use and dust from our surroundings which can trigger breakouts. Cleaning your brushes once a week will help prevent this. If you're ever in a rush, the StylPro Orginal Makeup Brush Cleaner and Dryer is perfect as it cleans and dries your makeup brushes in 30 seconds.

Manicures... Every 2 WEEKS

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There’s nothing worse than looking all polished head to toe, and then when you reach out to shake someone’s hand or pay for shopping, you see your nails looking not so presentable. Trust me, I’ve done it myself. Avoid those oops moments by maintaining those claws, once every two weeks should do the job.

Words By: Gayle Cortez

Beauty - Thursday, February 07, 2019

The beauty resolutions we're ACTUALLY sticking to this year

... February is here, and most of us have already fallen short in sticking to our New Years resolutions we made at the beginning of this...

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When we got invited down to try out the Elemis Superfood facial at the Spa Experience Bethnal Green, we just couldn't say no. As busy working girls, self-care and pamper time is always essential and you should try and treat yourself from time to time. Whether that's a massage, a facial, a pedicure or anything that makes you feel at peace - time for you really is key.

Located on the lower ground level of Bethnal Green's York Hall Leisure Centre, and only a short 3 minute walk away from Bethnal Green Underground station - the tranquil spa really is one of London's hidden gems.

Spa Experience - Bethnal Green

On arrival, I signed in and was offered ice cold water infused with grapefruit - perfect for a hot day in June. I was then asked to fill out a form about my health, along with my current skin care regime. After filling in the short form, I was then handed a tote bag which included a towel, a flannel, a bath robe, a locker and also a pair of flip flops.

After getting changed, I was led to a dim room in which I received a quick skin consultation - I was asked about my skin, what products I use etc. before receiving my treatment, expanding on the notes I filled in on the form. Using the Elemis Superfood range, these products take on a holistic approach to wellness, incorporating the potency of natural ingredients that are lauded for their superfood stature. With ingredients including grains, greens, fruits, seeds and oils such as ginger, kale, broccoli, avocado, matcha and flax seeds, this is a plate of nutrition for your skin.

Spa Experience - Bethnal Green

Giving my skin a nutritional boost, after my treatment, my skin looked more radiant, hydrated and plumper. My therapist really took her time with my skin, and I would definitely recommend this treatment and facility to everyone, especially if you're trying to enjoy luxury for less.

Other treatments here include: a range of Hammam Rituals, La Sultane De Saba Shea Butter Back Massage, Hot Stone Therapy, Wax treatments, Eyelash & Brow Tinting and more.

If you're on a budget, but want to enjoy a luxury experience then the Spa Experience is for you. At the moment, there is a 3 for 2 offer on all facials. A series of two facials must be purchased at the same time to qualify for one free facial. Facials can then be scheduled at a later date, subject to availability and booking, and are valid for 12 months. Most facials start from as little as £30 up to the £70 mark.

Spa Experience - Bethnal Green

Other packages include The Total Spa Experience, which incorporates a full body exfoliation, followed by a warm cocoon envelopment and a soothing face and scalp massage. The treatment then ends with hot stones. This treatment is priced at £48 - £60.

The rest of the spa boasts a range of different facilities, including a quiet relaxation area, a sauna, a plunge pool, Monsoon showers (several jets which release scented water), an ice fountain, hot rooms (Turkish Baths) and a relaxing heated seating area.

Spa Experience - Bethnal Green

The treatments and the facilities at The Spa Experience really encompass luxury for less, and with a full life to live but also pennies to save - this really is the spot for embracing boujee on a budget.

Spa London

York Hall Leisure Centre

Bethnal Green
https://www.spaexperience.org.uk

Words By: Malika Isles

Beauty - Monday, July 30, 2018

REVIEW: The SPA Experience Bethnal Green, London

... When we got invited down to try out the Elemis Superfood facial at the Spa Experience Bethnal Green , we just couldn't say no....

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Now, it's been a while since I last wrote a lifestyle post – but I feel so strongly about self-development and having a life that's beautiful from the inside out, so much that I wan't to bring this kind of content to the forefront on The Beauty Run.

How can you have a beautiful life, without a beautiful mind? It's all well and good featuring posts on how to ace your skin care regime, or featuring collections by high-end designers which a lot of us label as #goals, but how can you really and truly acquire these things and live the beautiful life you so long for if your mind isn't a ground of abundant happiness and positivity? To some this may sound airy fairy, but I wholeheartedly believe a beautiful mind breeds a beautiful life.

So, to kick off this series – I wanted to write a post on the importance of your mind, and 3 ways your mind shapes your reality.

Thoughts
So, as I'm sure we're all aware – our brain is the most complex organ in the human body. It's made up of more than 100 billion nerves that communicate in trillions of connections called 'synapsis'. Powerful huh? What you think is the starting point of a self-perpetuating cycle, and as James Allen states in one of my favourite books ever (As A Man Thinketh), "A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts." which is nothing but truth. Thinking you're not good enough, or that you can't have the life you want builds up emotions like self-doubt and fear, which leads me to my next point...

Feelings
What you think breeds particular feelings and emotions, which propels your thoughts one step closer to your reality. For example, say you have just received a rejection email after an intense 3 stage interview for your dream job. If you start thinking thoughts like "I'm clearly not good enough", feelings of self-doubt, embarrassment and failure will begin to crop up. However, if you think positively about the situation with thoughts such as "I did my best", "There's something better in store for me" or even "I learned so much in this interview process, now I'm better equipped for the next one" - the nature of these thoughts will breed feelings of acceptance and confidence. And what happens when you feel confident?

Behaviour
When you feel more confident, you act more confidently. You carry yourself in a confident manner, and you feel like you can take on the world because of your feelings of confidence. This in turn leads to more opportunities, better relationships and quality of life and hence a better reality. The more you think in positive ways, the more happy your life becomes. It's so simple, but so effective and is well and truly the first step towards creating a life you adore. As James Allen states: “The outer conditions of a person's life will always be found to be harmoniously related to his inner state...Men do not attract that which they want, but that which they are.”

Don't ever underestimate the power of your mind.

Words By: Malika Isles

Lifestyle - Wednesday, May 09, 2018

3 Ways Your Mind Shapes Your Reality

... Now, it's been a while since I last wrote a lifestyle post – but I feel so strongly about self-development and having a life t...

Fear... that crippling voice telling you that you can’t do something, that gut feeling urging you to run for the mountains. We’ve all been there. Whilst reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic, which I’d honestly recommend to anyone who wants to live out their full potential in life – one thing stood out to me the most, which is that fear will always be there.

Source: Unsplash

Using a prominent metaphor of driving a car whilst chasing our dreams, Elizabeth Gilbert highlighted that fear will always be in the car with you. Fear is an instinctual response we have as humans which we have to protect us from danger, so it’s about accepting it and realising that it will always be present regardless. However, as Gilbert states, it’s about forcing fear to take the backseat whilst you allow creativity to be the front passenger whilst you drive the car. As fear usually takes over when it comes to us wanting to pursue our goals and dreams, I felt like it was a good idea to write up a post on how to tackle fear like a BOSS

Recognise

A big part of owning fear is recognising and understanding what fear looks like to you. More often than not, fear is disguised as excuses. For that fashion line you want to start, fear might look like the following: “I’ll start it next year when I’m in a better financial position” or even “I don’t have the time to do this today, I’ll start tomorrow”. However, sometimes you’ll have to dig a little deeper to find out the particular fears that are causing these excuses. Fear of failure is usually quite common when it comes to pursuing our dreams, however these deep rooted fears may look different from person to person. Recognising what fear looks like for you is the first step towards owning and tackling it.

Source: Pinterest

Define What Success Looks Like (For You)

I’m pretty sure that the majority of you have a vision of what you want your life to look like 10 years from now. Really taking time out to identify the things you want and defining what success looks like to you will help when the excuses (fear in disguise) start to kick in. When you know there is something you truly want, and excuses start popping up left right and centre – you’ll know it’s fear talking. Having a clear idea of what success looks like to you will keep you focused, on track and better able to tackle your fear.

Create Small Goals And Targets

Sometimes when we think about the end goal which more often than not is overwhelmingly huge, fear fosters up the most. Fear may kick in and tell you that your goal is unrealistic or not achievable. This is why it’s important to create little steps which lead you to your desired destination. If you’re doing a little something each day which leads you to your final goal, you’ll be better able to manage fear.

Source: Unsplash

Cancel The Naysayers

More often than not, people around you feed into your fears. When those around you tell you that something is unrealistic, or not possible they’re judging you off of their own deep rooted fears. When you feel fearful yourself, having added noise which reinforces these thoughts and feelings isn’t helpful. Once you realise that a lot of advice others give when it comes to chasing your goals is actually based off fear, you’ll realise how some people around are holding you back. You’ve got to cancel out the noise and remind yourself that this is what YOU want and you’re going to go for it anyway. It’s about having the unwavering belief that what you want will be yours regardless.

Feel the Fear and do it anyway

At the end of the day you just have to ignore your doubts and go for it anyway, as it will always be a part of your journey. It’s about not letting your excuses dictate your actions. Your excuses want to keep you in your comfort zone, but in order to move forward you’ve got to ignore them. Like Gilbert said, fear will always be there as it’s a human instinct to keep us safe – however you’ve got to OWN fear and not let it stop you from progressing.

Words By: Malika Isles

Lifestyle - Wednesday, May 24, 2017

How To Tackle Fear Like A BOSS

Fear... that crippling voice telling you that you can’t do something, that gut feeling urging you to run for the mountains. We’ve all been...

Lifestyle - Monday, February 13, 2017

4 Ways To Practise Self-Love

... Self-love is a term that gets tossed around left right and centre these days, and I must admit it is quite an ambiguous term. Loving...

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Reflecting on the year that's just passed us, and the year ahead we've been thinking of ways in which we can make 2017 ours. Instead of just focusing on new years resolutions, we wanted to put together a practical guide that you can apply to your life in 2017. Check out these tips from our Founder & Editor Malika:

Vision Boards

Last year I was introduced to the concept of vision boards, which I never knew much about beforehand. I threw together a makeshift one halfway through the year in 2016, but it wasn't as thought out like it should have been. The concept of a vision board is to pick out images or things that symbolise the things you want in life. Its a tool used to help clarify, concentrate and maintain focus on specific life goals.

This all ties into the idea of making your thoughts and aspirations become a reality. In life, we're constantly exposed to different distractions which doesn't help us on our journey to acquiring the things we want to achieve. A vision board helps us clarify and reinforce our aspirations on a daily basis. Along with images, you can also write affirmations and/or specific goals. Try and keep your board more visually led though, as images help you picture your goals as if they're real.

Writing Extracts

Another method I've recently started is writing short extracts of scenarios which embody my goals. So for example, say you want to become your own boss... writing extracts which describe your own office and what your normal day in the future will look like really helps place your mind there and helps you feel as though its already a reality. This may sound a little crazy, but it really helps with the whole process of visualising the things you want to happen. Allow yourself to get creative with this, no matter how crazy it is... write it down. Call me a dreamer, but it helps me stay motivated.

Source: Who What Wear

Speaking Things Into Existence
Now, you probably hear a lot of people say "speak your goals and dreams into existence", but trust me it only works if you believe it in your gut. Knowing, truly believing that something will be yours and affirming it everyday is a recipe for success and trust me, all your desires will begin to come your way. Of course though, you do need to work your ass off alongside speaking your goals and dreams into existence.

Last year, I was working in a job that I wasn't really enjoying... it just wasn't right for me on so many levels and was an absolute mission to commute to. I began saying that there will be a new amazing job opportunity out there for me, and lo and behold a few weeks later I got an email on LinkedIn from an employer who said they wanted to speak to me about a position. Yes, this position was better suited to me, it was closer to home and way more money. I ended up getting the job, which is a prime example of how belief and speaking things into existence works.

Source: Tumblr

Meditation
So, this is pretty new to me so I can't say I'm an expert meditator. But this year, I'm really going to try and meditate for at least 10 mins a day. As I do a lot, from work to events etc - I sometimes find that my head is always racing with thoughts and thinking "where do I need to be next" or "what do I need to do next?". Taking time out before bed to just reflect, clear my thoughts, breathe and listen to some soothing music definitely helps and I'm really going to try and factor this in to my day throughout the year.

Journaling
Writing down your wins and losses at the end of the day, definitely helps clear your mind before you go to sleep. I find that reflecting on the day helps you move forward into the next day with a fresh mind. Writing the failures of the day down and how they'll be overcome, helps empower you and even if they can't be changed or rectified - allows you to accept things as they are which is important for reducing stress. Journaling about personal struggles, to business struggles and even moments that made me proud is really like a form of therapy. After journaling you almost feel like a weight has been lifted.

2017 means its time to work your butts off! These tools suggested aid your journey, but they don't make your journey. Work hard, go the extra mile and always stay hungry. I hope you've found these tips useful!

Lifestyle - Sunday, January 08, 2017

How To Make 2017 Yours

... Reflecting on the year that's just passed us, and the year ahead we've been thinking of ways in which we can make 2017 ours....

We all have those moments where we may be feeling a little less confident than usual. When you're feeling low, unmotivated and a little out of touch with where you're at in life there is always a way to recover and it all starts with your mind. As an early twenty something, I admit I have those moments too, but I've learned how to deal with them, pick myself up and snap back.

Image courtesy of Vogue.

How you feel about yourself determines everything that happens in your life, so if your energy screams "I'm unconfident and unsure", your circumstances will follow suit. As a firm believer of thoughts becoming things, I've put together a guide on how to pick yourself up when you're feeling less confident than usual:

1). Words of affirmation

Writing down strong affirmations that reinforce your positive qualities is always helpful. Telling yourself you are great, beautiful and worthy allows you to take control over the situation and helps remind yourself of the amazing person you are. Even when you're feeling your normal self, you should always affirm positive beliefs about yourself. Positive affirmations should always be part of your internal dialogue as what you think about yourself follows suit in your life.

2). Don't compare

With social media platforms like Instagram and Snapchat in your face, it sometimes becomes difficult not to compare yourself with others. Never do this. I've said this before, and I'll say it again - what we see online is not real as the majority of people only document their highlights. Although that person may seem to have a perfect life, you honestly don't know what goes on behind closed doors or the private battles they face. So always try to refrain from comparing yourself to others because as they say "comparison is the thief of joy" which is so true.

This also ties into the notion of comparing your journey to someone else's. Everyone moves at different paces and everyone's journey is unique, which is what makes us all so special. When you revert your focus on to yourself and all the things you want to achieve, magic things start to take place... trust me. What you put into yourself will manifest in tenfold, so please keep your mind on YOU, and feed yourself your own positive energy.

3). Look at your peers as encouragement

Nobody is your competition. Just because someone seems to be ahead of you or doing something you'd like to be doing does not make them your competition. As women, I find that many of us like to compete with each other as opposed to encourage. Look to your peers as encouragement and inspiration, and you will feel yourself become more confident. Like I said before, it's all in your mind and how you perceive things.

4). Embrace the unknown

Some may think that being confident means being in control of your life. But not everything in your life can be controlled, and sometimes you may end up losing things your heart was set on such as a job or an opportunity. Real confidence is finding comfort in the unknown and embracing what ever life throws at you.

Confidence comes from knowing in your gut that everything happens for a reason and it will all be ok in the end. Don't ever let the prospect of the unknown scare you. It's time to get comfortable with the unknown, let the prospect of endless possibilities excite you. Fear? What's that?

5). Gratitude

When you're feeling less confident, it always helps to take a step back and give thanks for everything in your life. I like to reflect on my journey which reminds myself of just how much I've achieved so far big or small. Showing gratitude for everything in your life helps puts it all into perspective, and reminds you that everything is fine. This helps you appreciate your life and allows you to accept things as they are, which in turn boosts your self-esteem.

Now ladies... it's time to get your confidence up and snap back like the boss you are. I hope this helps!

By Malika I

Lifestyle - Saturday, October 29, 2016