Wait & Braid | Middle French Braid

I've recently discovered a new hairstyle that is amazing for getting your fringe off your face while looking really pretty too! It's called the Middle French Braid - well, that's what I've decided to name it! At the moment I'm loving french braids. I never know if I prefer french or dutch braids better but I  I think french braids look really creative although they are really simple to do. Plus, there are so many hairstyles you can come up with with just a french braid! For instance, you could do this Middle French Braid and tie the rest of your hair up in a messy bun or ponytail to create a different style! Braids make any style look way better, I think so anyway!

If you're not too sure on how to braid, there are loads of tutorials on youtube to look at! I love watching braiding videos :)

 

What do you think of this style? I'd love to know! Have you got any different go-to hairstyles that are simple to do?

Rachel, x

Our Necklace and Choker Collection

Topshop yin yang choker | Black spinel Azendi necklace | Topshop flower choker | ASOS moon and stars necklace | Dimond Swarovski necklace.

I don't know about you but I think accessories complete every outfit. Right now, we're obsessed with necklaces/chokers and the latest one to my collection is the gorgeous dimond Swarovski necklace that I got for my 18th birthday. The diamond just sparkles and sparkles! The oldest necklace I have is the Azendi necklace which is the black spinel gemstone. I've had this necklace for six years and I wear it every single day.

I've recently discovered Topshop accessories and to say that I'm obsessed is an understatement. I love the flower choker as the strap is so chunky and so 90's! I also think Topshop jewerly is long lasting and doesn't rust - definitely worth the money! I'm so obsessed with little moons and stars. I'm even thinking of getting a star or moon tattooed on me. When I first saw this necklace on the ASOS website I just needed to buy it. I love the fact that it looks rusted as it looks vintage and I'm a vintagegal at heart.

The vin vang choker is probably one of my favourites along with the tattoo choker. I had some trouble with the yin yang choker though as it snapped when I first got it! I was so upset but my amazing dad sorted it out for me (thanks dad!) I was suprised that it snapped though as it was from Topshop so I thought it would be better quality. This little yin yang choker goes with every outfit I own and I love wearing it.

Do you love wearing necklaces or do you like wearing chokers?

Love Rachel & Leah, x

February Favourites!

February is nearly over so it's that time again where we do a post dedicated to all the things (mainly makeup) that we've been loving this month! February has been a great month because we celebrated our 18th birthday and you can see the full post here. We also went to our first drum lesson which was great because we're both learing another instrument but it's also helping us overcome our social anxiety. We've also been loving the band Incubus - so amazing. Anyway, on to the February beauty favourites!

I think this is my favourite lipstick ever. I never thought I'd say that I ever had a favourite lipstick but I think MAC's Media is the one. Media is a satin finish and it doesn't in the slightest dry my lips. I also think it stays on for hours which I find with all MAC lipsticks except the lustre ones. Media is the perfect colour for me as it's a gorgeous deep, red wine colour.

We've also been loving Benefit's Fake Up which we got for our birthday. Fake Up is a hydrating crease control concealer for underneath the eyes and I didn't have high expectations as I've never heard of Fake Up before I went on the website. We got it in the lightest shade and it is the perfect colour for us. Fake Up smoothes out thin lines and the finish makes my skin feel so silky!

Next up is the new L'Oreal Paris Infallible matte foundation. We are both massive fans for the orginal Infallible foundation but it done nothing for our oily skin so we obviously had to get our hands on the matte version! We also got this foundation in the lightest colour and it's perfect. The coverage is also amazing but I still need to use concealer if I wanted maximum coverage. This is so easy to apply and it doesn't look cakey at all. My skin doesn't get half as oily as it used too but I still need use some powder through out the day. I love this concealer and I'll definitely get the Infallible matte primer when I run out of Porefessional.

I also treated myself to this Pandora ring with my birthday money. This ring was £80 and I fell in love with it the minute I saw it. It sparkles so much when the light hits it and is the perfect accessorie for every outfit. This ring is my new favourite and I'll know I'll have it forever. 

That was our favourites for this month. As you can see, we've been loving a lot of makeup recently. I literally can't even remember when I last bought a piece of clothing! 

What are your favourites for February?

Love Rachel & Leah, x

Reasons We Love Blogging!

Image from Google.

I saw this post on Jessica's blog from the amazing The Pyreflies and I thought I'd do a post dedicated on my love for blogging too! Me and Leah both created Beyond The Velvet in August last year and to be honest I didn't think we'd keep up with it. I first started blogging in 2013 and I gave up with it pretty fast and I don't know why as I was kind of obsessed with it. Then in the summer of 2014, we were pretty bored and decided to make Beyond The Velvet. At first, we wanted this blog to be a fashion only blog as a beauty blog felt like a lot of work but now we blog about beauty, fashion and we try and add lifestyle posts in too. After six months of blogging, I can finally write down the reasons of why I love blogging so much!

Reasons we love blogging:

It's an excuse to buy more makeup and clothes: Even when I have no money, I always use this one as an excuse.

It's fun!: I always love coming up with new post ideas and taking pictures. It's always great commenting on other peoples blogs too and seeing what other people are up too!

It's a great way to spend our free time.

There are a lot of kind bloggers: When we created this blog we didn't think anyone would read it. Seeing that people are reading and commenting on our posts means the world and everyone is so kind. Thank you so much for supporting our little blog! 

It's great to look back on: It will be great to look back on past posts and see what we were doing when we were 17 years old.

It's a great way to write down our thoughts and feelings.

We want to visit more places: We suffer with social anxiety and blogging is helping is slowly overcome this. Looking at new places that we can visit and blog about is exciting! 

We discover a lot of new brands to try out!

It's made me appreciate the small things in life: I love taking pictures of everything now even when I just go for a walk in the park!

Blogging is helping our confidence.

There are many more reasons on why I love blogging but these are probably the top ten reasons on why we love blogging.

Why do you love blogging?

Love Rachel & Leah, x

Benefit Roller Lash Mascara Review

I never buy many magazines but that was until I heard that the latest edition of Elle magazine included a little sample of the brand new Roller Lash mascara from Benefit! I knew I needed to get the magazine just for the mascara because I'm all for trying out new mascara's that make my lashes look great. Plus, Benefit is a favourite brand of mine and I loved They're Real! from Benefit. Needless to say, my expectations were very high.

First of all, I love the packaging of course! Benefit never get it wrong. I love the look of the pinky Rose Gold lid but the brush is the best thing about this. It's called a ''Hook and Roll'' brush and it apparently grabs each lash and separates, lifts and curls them to perfection! I find that the small brush also makes it really easy to apply mascara to my lower lashes without smudging it all over my under eyes. Benefit also claims that this stays put for up to twelve hours!

My verdict? This mascara is amazing. My eye lashes look super long and curled! The brush makes application really easy and this formula doesn't clump at all! With just one coat of this stuff my lashes look elongated, lenghened and don't feel weighed down with product at all.

Another one of the many reasons why I love this mascara is because it's so easy to remove at the end of the day. My pet hate is eye make up that just won't come off, no matter what! That isn't an issue with Roller Lash though.

One negative one though - It crumbles and flakes a little. Nothing to major but still, it's so annoying!

Would you buy Roller Lash?

Rachel and Leah, x

BLEACH London | Reincarnation Mask

Dull, dry and brittle hair can definitely make a girl feel down about herself. My hair has been in awful condition lately and my hair colour doesn't help at all. The problems with being a blonde is endless! Not to mention my hair has been falling out like crazy :( So I decided to find a new hair mask to treat myself and most importantly, treat my hair!

Bleach London is a brand that didn't impress me first time around. I've tried out one product before from there which was the purple shampoo for blonde hair and although it did lift brassiness, it left my hair super dry! I decided to give them another go though and after reading RAVE reviews on the Reincarnation Mask I knew I had to try this out!

''Resurrect and hydrate thirsty, bleached or coloured hair and improve elasticity with this repairing and moisturising Bleach Reincarnation Mask. Enriched with sunflower seed extract and micro wheat proteins to give great shine, strengthen colour vibrancy and help reduce colour fade.''

Sounds amazing doesn't it? I put it to the test and I am absolutely blown away! I left this mask on for over 20 minutes and I really liked the smell of it and the results are just what I had hoped for! My hair has never felt as soft, silky and it's really shiny aswell! I can't even remember the last time my hair even looked shiny! It feels so healthy and like it's never even had dye on it before - yes, it's that good. My hair doesn't feel greasy at all and doesn't feel weighed down with product either! This is hands down the best mask I have ever used and frankly, a life saver. Not to mention, my hair colour looks so much better.

For £6, the bottle is quite big and is such a bargain! I've used way more expensive masks than this one and not had results anywhere near as good as this.

I urge everyone to buy this mask. It really feels like it's brought my hair back to life! 

 Leah, x

Things That Have Made Me Happy Recently | Getting Our Hair Dyed!

We both got our hair dyed last Monday and I finally feel like my hair is looking lighter after dying it black a few months ago (my biggest mistake ever!!) I'm gradually getting my hair dyed blonde again and I've had a few more highlights put through it. I love that feeling of freshly dyed hair with no roots. I finally feel like me again. Going over to the dark side wasn't me so I really love getting my hair lighter. The condition is awful though. It's so knotty and dry but I think a few deep conditioning hair masks will do the trick :)

Leah's gorgeous hair is looking so stunning. I'm so jealous. It's still got a few brassy/ginger bits in still after a small hair disaster a couple of months ago (we're not lucky with hair dying, haha) but thankfully we are really pleased!

Apart from getting our hair dyed we also spent our 18th birthday money on buying a new guitar and bass so we've been practising a lot :) and we're going to a drum lesson on tomorrow! Oh my God, so scared but hopefully worth it! 

Hope you all have a lovely week! 

Rachel, x

Max Factor Creme Puff Blush in Gorgeous Berries | Swatches & Review

The creme puff blushes are Max Factor's latest offerings and I just needed to get my hands on at least one of the blushes. When I saw 'Gorgeous Berries' I immediatly fell in love. There are six other shades in the range and 'Gorgeous Berries' is the most extreme blush out of the six. It's a beautiful pink but in other lights it looks a berry colour. I just couldn't wait to try it!

I've never tried a creme puff blusher before so I was intrested to see how this worked. I love cream blushes but as you can see this isn't a cream blush. This blush just feels so soft and velvety. I knew I didn't need much as it's so pigmented so a little really does go a long way. You can either wear this as a subtle blush or really extreme. I don't think the picture of the blusher on my face does it any justice as it's such a lovely pop of pink. It's so pigmented and lasts all day. At £8.99, the blushers are quite expensive but I've never tried a blusher like this one before so I will probably be tempted to buy more!

What do you think of Max Factor's Creme Puff Blushes? 

Love Leah, x

Flatform Sandles

I love flatforms. My creepers are my all time fave shoes nowadays! but is there really anything better than flatform sandles? I don't think so! I chose these shoes for my birthday and to say that I love them is an understatement.

I just love how amazing these shoes look with my fashion tights but I also think they will make amazing shoes for all year round. I love the suede finish of the shoes and the ankle strap fastening with the cute buckle. These shoes where in the ASOS sale at only £29! I will checking the ASOS sale more often if I can find more bargains like this!

What do you think of Flatform Sandles? 

Love Rachel.x

Valentine's Day Nails | Our Favourite Red Nail Polishes

Today's post is a quick one on our favourite red nail polishes as it's Valentine's Day on Saturday. Red is my favourite colour to wear on my nails and they're are a lot of red polishes to choose from. As a complete nail polish addict, I've got thousands of polishes but here are my favourites!

Rimmel Salon Pro Nail Polish in Mars - Ever since last year, I've absolutely loved the Salon Pro collection by Rimmel. It's long lasting, easy to apply with the bigger brush and doesn't take too long to dry which is vital for me. I always end up smudging my nails but not with this polish. It's really shiney too so you don't even need topcoat! This red shade is my favourite and has been my go-to red for absolutely ages now! For the perfect red you only need two coats.

L'Oreal Colour Riche Nail Varnish in Femme Fatal - I used to love buying these L'oreal polishes but I haven't bought one for a while now. However, I do love this red in the collection. It doesn't chip and the shine is gorgeous! Almost gel like. The brush isn't as big as the Rimmel one. I really don't like the size of this bottle though! It's so small but it is good quality.

OPI Nail Lacquer - I don't know the name of this shade but it's a really nice red. I do have to say that I don't reach for this one as much as the others. For such an expensive polish it chips quite a lot. I don't think I'd ever pay this much for a nail polish again as the quality is no better than a highstreet polish. Then again, the pricey things in life always make nice treats :)

Max Factor Colour Effects Mini Nail Polish - I think this is called Ruby Tuesday and it's a lovely bright red and lighter than the other shades in this post. I love this red. It looks a little like MAC's lipstick Ruby Woo for the nails! For such a mini bottle it is over-priced at £4.99!

WAH London in Love My Team - I wore this polish on Christmas day and it's so gorgeous! The first thing I noticed was how fast this polish dried! It's a true red in my eyes and I'm really impressed with WAH London on a whole. It's a great nail brand and their nail art kit is absolutely amazing! You can read about WAH's nail art kit here (x)!

I hope you all have a lovely valentines day! I'll be watching horror movies instead :) What is your favourite red polish?

Benefit | Customized Makeup Kit!

I wanted a lot of Benefit makeup for my birthday as it's my current favourite makeup brand. I was so suprised when I found out I could customise my own Benefit makeup kit online for £66! The products I chose were The Porefessional primer, Rockateur blusher, Fake up concealer and a creaseless cream eyeshadow. I also love the super cute Benefit makeup bag that you get free with the kit!

Complexion

The Porefessional primer has been on my wish list for a long time. Many bloggers have raved about this primer and I just couldn't wait to try it out for myself. Porefessional claims to minimize the appearance of  pores and I can definitely notice a difference! This is also amazing for oily skin as it keeps oil at bay for longer than my usual primers. My skin also feels super soft and smooth. Overall, at a pricey £24.50, this a great primer and I can see this staying in my beauty bag for a long time!

Cheeks

Rockateur is a rose gold blusher that is like nothing I've ever owned before. This is probably one of the most expensive blushers I've ever bought at £23.50. I don't really know why it cost that much as it's staying power is no different to Bourjois blushers. I find the brush that comes with the blusher useless but thankfully the blusher blends really well! It isn't as pigmented as other blushes but the colour is stunning with just the right amount of shimmer. I would buy this again but the price does put me off a lot!

Eyes

 I've never heard of Benefit's Fake Up until I saw it on the website. Fake Up is a hydrating crease control concealer for underneath the eyes. I got the lightest shade and it suits my skin perfectly! The concealer claims to hide lines and I did notice a difference! My dark circles also look 1000 times better too. Fake up also blends like a dream. I would definitely buy this again as at £18.50, this is one of the less expensive Benefit products but I also think it's one of their best!

Free Gift

 I was so excited that Benefit also included a free gift in the kit! I decided to choose a cream eyeshadow as I loved the ones in the easiest nudes ever kit and I just had to add another to my collection! This shadow is called Holy Smokes which a smouldering charcoal. I love using this as it blends amazing and is really pigmented. It also doesn't crease and it stays on for hours.

Overall, I love my costomized Benefit kit! All of the products come in a super cute Benefit makeup bag. I love the packaging of the products and they look perfect in my makeup stash! My favourite product is probably the porefessional primer as it definitely met my high expectations! At £66, I hope you all treat yourself to a custimized kit!

What is your favourite Benefit makeup product? 

Love Rachel.x

Things That Have Made Me Happy This Week | Our 18th Birthday!

  
Our presents | Our birthday cake! | Us on our birthday | Mum and Dad suprised us by putting our picture in the local newspaper :) | Birthday ring | The best boots ever | Birthday necklace

Today, we turned 18 years old! I don't know how I feel about this as I still feel about 13 but we've both has a great day :) We both got up really early as we were both so excited. We went downstairs to find the living room decorated with ballons and banners and the cutest birthday cake ever! It has a little rock chick on the top playing guitar! The cake is the first customized cake that I've ever gotten and I almost didn't want to eat it ;)

We've both felt very spoilt today as we got clothes, jewellery books and the dreamiest boots but a birthday wouldn't be complete without makeup! This year we got some Benefit as we're currently obsessed! The Rockateur and Porefessional primer have been on our wish lists for ages and we feel very lucky to have finally gotten them!

Thank you for all the birthday wishes :) 

Lots of love, Rachel and Leah x

Cross with Roses Top | A New Favourite!

What I'm Wearing: CROP TOP, Primark | SHORTS, River Island | FLATFORMS, River Island


Hi everyone. We're both feeling pretty excited now because it's our 18th birthday tomorrow! Yay! I can't believe it though, I don't even feel that old but hopefully 18 will be a better age for us both. This is just a quick outfit post I thought I'd do because I really love this new crop top from Primark! I just wore a black top under it so I could wear it in the Winter. Plus, I don't think I'd ever wear a crop top by itself! I have my belly button pierced but I'm not too keen on showing it off haha :)  Anyway, this crop top was only £4.50! & it's becoming a favourite of mine already! I love the cross with the roses on it. I think it would make a cool tattoo! What do you think? Seeing as I'm 18 tomorrow that means I can start getting tattoos now!

I love wearing this outfit with my black lace shorts from River Island and of course, my flatforms! They are seriously the best shoes ever. 

Have you found any Primark gems recently?

Leah, x

Benefit | Foamingly Clean Facial Wash Review

 Introducing our new favourite skincare brand, Benefit cosmetics! I know many people love Benefit for their amazing makeup, us included, but we decided to try out the skincare for a change. Prior to this, I'd never even thought about using Benefit's skincare line before. It never really occured to me even though I did love the makeup! But now I wish I discovered it sooner! We first used the Benefit refined finish facial polish and we completely fell in love with it. It made my skin just glow and I was really pleased with the results. Needless to say we both wanted to try out more from the line.

So, here is our review on the Foamingly Clean Facial Wash! First off, I love the packaging. It looks really lovely and automatically makes me want to use this stuff.

I really like the smell of this. It's a really clean smell but it doesn't smell like it's got lots of fragrance in it. The consistency is creamy and really foams up and lathers so you don't need much product. After I use this my skin feels smooth and like it's had a real good clean. The difference in my skin is just incredible! I've even found that my skin doesn't break out in little spots anymore and redness is reduced.  This wash is not harsh at all and it doesn't leave my skin feeling tight. I use this wash every single day at night time after I take my make up off my skin just feels so refreshed afterwards. I very much doubt I'll ever find a face wash as good as this one. The price is definately worth it! Okay, it might be £17.50 but you only need the tiniest blob so a little goes a long way! The bottle is quite big too so I reckon I'll have this for quite a long time before I need to re-purchase. I know I'll always be getting this product again and again. It really suits my skin and makes me feel so much better about myself too! Paying that little bit more for skincare really pays off and feels like the ultimate pamper treat.

Try this out, I don't think you'll regret it at all.

Leah, x