Hey Babe, Your Hair's Alright.....

My hair had been transformed this summer following my decision to go for full on blue hair just before my holiday to Ibiza. Check out all of my summer hair styles before and after the Mermaid blue locks arrived. I do like my hair really blue but I actually prefer it when the colour fades to more of a turquoise blue, it's the hair colour that just keeps on giving and blue never seems to fade! It's a win win colour and lasts so much longer than other bright semi colours. I use Crazy Color products. 

It's not all about the colour though, this summer I have been experimenting with Rockabilly quiffs, waves,twists, victory rolls, 1950s cute pony tails, braids, buns and recently, now my hair is longer, have been wearing my hair down a lot more, centre parted with kirby grips. I have, of course been very grunge and 1990s influenced lately but the 1970s are coming back for me in a big way. Which probably makes sense since during the 1990s the 1970s were a big influence. These things have a habit of  repeat themselves in the fashion cycle. I can almost smell the late 1990s minimalism trend on the horizon! 

Thanks for joining me today and get hair inspired!

ND xx

Hey Babe, Your Hair's Alright.....

I can confidently say that I never run out of things to do with my hair. I have a massive collection of hairstyles on my Pinterest Hair Inspirations board so if I ever run out of ideas I check out my latest pins and have a go at the style! The best advice I could give anybody about trying out new hairstyles and updos is......just do it! Nobody knows (or cares for that matter) whether you have done it correctly or neatly, the fact is you've had a go. I can honestly say you will get more compliments for your new look than any cruel remarks, just act confidently and people will just be very complementary, I promise! I think the same thing about fashion styling but that's a whole different story, it's all about the hair today!

Two months ago, I had no idea how to do a french braid / plait, so I am really happy to be able to show you the braids I have managed to create on my own!! I am just loving braids and plaits at the moment for two reasons, one my sista fashionista Selena from Foxtrot Hair fame (check out the Dilly Debutante photo shoot collaboration here for those who missed it) is fantastic at braids and I was lucky enough to have her create some amazing braided styles in my hair which I loved, I am not able to braid around the back of my head yet, plus, I just like other people doing my hair for me! The other inspiration comes from Game of Thrones' Khaleesi's amazing platinum braided styles plus braids and plaits have been all over the catwalks too. I Love Braids!!

The Braids really have pushed aside my rockabilly victory rolls from the past year or so but that doesn't mean I will stop victory rolling my hair up, it just adds to the variety of styles in my hairdo collection, which I love! I have also become more inspired by the 1960s bouffant lately, I have been backcombing my hair for years but having longer hair I am now able to create longer looks with curls and bunches, the possibilities are endless!!

So check out the selection of hair styles and updos from May this year, I have so many different photographs that it looks like a hair post could become a monthly thing. I must apologise that the quality of a couple of the images isn't that great but alot of these pics were taken on the go, at least I had time to do my hair!! Expect flowers, finger waves, Victory rolls, pink hair, blue hair, curls, braids, backcombed bunches, buns, mermaids, quiffs and twists! Phew! All hairstyles by No Debutante. Hair colour by Vikki Mac. Which is your favourite?

See what I can do in a month? Get inspired and start styling up your hair today, practise makes perfect.....but not too perfect please, we are not looking for perfection!

Good Luck and thanks for following fashionistas. Join me very soon for more fashion fun!

ND xx

Dilly Debutante - Foxtrot Hair Fashion shoot

Finally, I have got round to posting about the Dilly Debutante photo shoot collaboration for Foxtrot Hair. Obviously, I am the Debutante in this collaboration but who is Dilly Foxtrot? Selena aka Dilly Foxtrot is a brilliantly creative and fabulous fashionista friend of mine and is also the lady behind Dilly Foxtrot Investigates (a beautiful childrenswear blog) and now the creative brains behind Foxtrot Hair a freelance hair service that offers Vintage and Contemporary Updos and hair styling  for special occasions, proms or even just for popping out to the shops, there is always time for glamour daaaarling!

I was really excited when Selena asked me to collaborate with her in a photo shoot for her Facebook page and to help with the promotion of Foxtrot Hair. How could I refuse a day of getting my hair done, dressing up and parading about (in the wind and rain might I add, it's blood cold up North!) with two of my best mates (the other being Selena's sister Dianne who took the Modern Vintage shoot photographs) I loved it! 

The results of my first (and coldest) shoot 'Modern Vintage' were brilliant. I was dressed up in a nautical Vivien of Holloway halter neck dress, Meadham Kirchhoff frilly ankle socks and red wedge sandals with my hair twisted up in a french pleat and a brilliant victory roll on top, finished off with a dramatic net fascinator over my face. The location was set behind an industrial estate, next to a canal with amazing derelict and half demolished red brick towers and industrial chimneys, it pretty much looked like a British World War Two bombsite and my Modern Vintage outfit fitted in perfectly. 

We joked about my character being a (albeit rather glamorous) war widow and in the last photograph I had climbed up onto the rubble to try and get a creative, blitz style photograph but then got stuck (I was wearing a very tight pencil dress and wedges for goodness sake) and Dianne got a shot of me trying to get down. It actually looks more like I was inspecting the ruins of my home and crying about the loss of my husband 'Oh gawd, my Charlie'.....My hair still looked fabulous despite the wind and rain and I wish I lived around the corner from Selena (like I used to, over ten years ago) so she could style up my hair whenever I was off out, well, every day....If anything I would become annoying....

In the second shoot 'Festival Chic' Selena styled my hair up into lots of random plaits, we discussed how we liked the randomness of it and how we both loved hair that doesn't look too done and perfect, it's too sterile and bland, texture and creativity is much better than perfection in a hair style! 

Selena is really great at plaiting and braiding hair too, she is so quick at it, I, sadly, am not.....Don't get me wrong, I have perfected the victory roll but plaits and braids are too fiddly for my fingers, I trained to be a hairdresser for a time and I was no good at cutting either, I am much better at bigger updos and colouring! It would be great if I was still in Leicester with Selena then we could collaborate all the time! Check out the fantastic plaits and braids on my newly coloured (by the lovely Vikki Mac - my usual hair stylist) pink and blue mane the colours and textures look amazing with the Foxtrot Hair plaits and braids!! The photographs for this shoot, were taken by photographer Helen McCann-O'Leary and are fantastic and in perfect  

contrast with the Modern Vintage and Undone Glamour shoots.

The other models who joined me on the day were the very young and beautiful Celine and Lois who had not done anything like this before. These girls had the longest legs ever and were happily walking about in short skirts, massive heels and no tights in the wintery weather! Perfect models with beautiful hairstyles! They were great in the Foxtrot Hair 'Undone Glamour' shoot and ruled the Boho, Festival Chic look. I caught a quick Instagram pic of them both on a runaway bicycle, which is hilarious but a brilliant natural shot with loads of energy. So funny! Well done ladies!

 In conclusion, Selena at Foxtrot Hair is a very creative lady so whether you are looking for a bang on trend look or a vintage inspired updo this freelance hair stylist can create it for you. 

Foxtrot Hair is based in Leicester, UK. Please contact Selena on her Facebook page here for more info.

I am lastly excited to announce that Selena chose one of my Modern Vintage shots for her business card and Facebook page, which I am very humbled by, it's a great honour and I am so happy the collaboration went so well! Here's to more Dilly Debutante collaborations. Now check out these amazing images!!!

All Hair & Styling - Foxtrot Hair

Photograpy - Dianne McDermott-Crampton for Modern Vintage & Undone Glamour &  Helen McCann-O'Leary for Festival Chic

Model & Styling - Emma Gorton-Ellicott for Modern Vintage & Festival Chic

Models - Celine Watts & Lois McDermott-Harris for Festival Chic & Undone Glamour  

Instagram images (last four images) from No Debutante and Loulouparis95

Photo collages by Foxtrot Hair

No Debutante's hair colour by Vikki Mac at Me Time

Thank you so much for reading and big whoop to my Pinterest boards as I now have over 1000 followers! I'm right happy!!

ND xx

Modern Vintage

I have had a great weekend with my lovely friend and fellow blogger Dilly Foxtrot aka Selena, who is in the process of setting up a new business as a hair stylist and asked me along (with my pink and blue hair) to model in a couple of fashion shoots for her website and for promotional shots. I, of course, did not refuse and you will get to see the results in the very near future. It was all very exciting and I love having people put my hair up in lots of different styles especially now it is long, so watch this space!!

One of the looks from the shoot was vintage inspired (and if you take a look at my instagram profile you may get to see a sneak peek at the outfit) so let's have a look at today's vintage inspired personal style pics. I am wearing denim dungarees and jeans from Freddies of Pinewood and both looks are rockabilly / modern vintage inspired. I am wearing the jeans and dungarees long in these pics but I am looking forward to rolling them up a bit more for the summer months with large turn ups, which look great worn with socks and creepers or wedges. I wish summer would hurry up, it's bloody freezing here in the UK at the moment. 

Can I tempt you to step away from the skinnies and persuade you to get a pair of 1940s/50s inspired jeans??

Thanks for following and I hope to be back tomorrow with some more fashion fun! 

ND xx