BEAUTY | Getting my Glow On …

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I firmly believe your skin is a great indicator of your current health and general well-being . I’ve made no secret of the fact I was feeling down as the first years anniversary of my mums death drew closer.

Which took me back to last year. About a month after we lost mum I had a horrendous breakout. Lots of lumpy, tender skin on my jawline accompanied by thousands of white heads. … and I mean thousands. I would get rid of them but they kept reappearing. The little blighters!

I’m not sure if it was coincidence but just like back then I broke out again. My mood and my skin felt sad. It was lack lustre, bumpy with angry spots brewing under its surface; you know I’ve looked better and at my age I was feeling very much “why me? I’m 47 and suffered all my life. Go bloody away” I came to the conclusion that my skin had gone into mourning and it needed some TLC …

As I often review Beauty products it’s not unusual for me to chop and swap my products around. I had not changed anything drastically so couldn’t even blame that

I decided the best thing to do was to pair my routine right back, look into supplements and go back to basics – drinking lots of water, good nights sleep etc.

My skin didn’t clear up over night. I had a few weeks of frustration as my skin seemingly got ALOT worse before it got better BUT I am happy to report that I am currently spot free. My skins looking ‘nice’ and while I’ll never be 100% happy I am pleased with my current routine.

I’ve decided to share the products I’ve been using starting with cleansers:

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BEAUTY | BeGlow TIA

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I am by my own admission a self-confessed beauty junkie. I WANT a piece of all the latest action … be that in the form of a product , supplement or a gadget ! Therefore can you imagine my delight when the guys at BeGlow got in touch to see whether I would like to review their BeGlow TIA

Yesssssss please !

SO WHAT IS IT ?

The BeGlow TIA is an innovative device that delivers 3-in-1 benefits: Cleansing, Anti-Ageing and DualPulse Contouring.

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BEAUTY | Eye of the Day – an introduction

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“Makeup is about balance. When the eye makes a statement, the lips should be quiet” – Francois Nars

I started ‘Eye of the Day ‘ as a bit of fun over on Instagram stories – I guess I was taking the mickey out of myself. Something I’m pretty good at – I am no slick You Tube presenter! I get questioned about my eye makeup more than anything else ; I’m often asked if I’ll do a You Tube video showing how I do certain looks?! Could you imagine – car crash bloody TV. Insta-stories is quick … and fairly easy. The best thing is it only lasts 24 hours too [ unless you highlight it, that is ]

I start by cheerily singing …’Tracey’s eye of the dayyyy!’ then proceed to chat about the days eye makeup in 15 second segments which is short enough for me to not get tongue-tied!

Oh and despite it being Tracey’s eye of the day, it doesn’t actually happen every day. You know sometimes real life gets in the way , or I don’t particularly like what I’ve done with my eyes that day… I’m running late, or I simply can’t be arsed . It’s very much up in the air – a work in progress

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STYLE | Teal Appeal

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“Teal is a deep blue-green colour; a dark cyan 

Teal gets its name from the coloured area around the eyes of the common teal, a member of the duck family.” 

Hey up its me, sat typing and sweltering. I’m at work and I really want to whip my bra, pants and dress off. Not my best idea. But hey … anybody else feeling the same vibe…

Apart from the glorious weather – this week has kicked off to a grand start. I’ve only gone and bloody won a dress over on instagram! I know, I know … go me!

I don’t often do fashion posts ; I’m hardly the most fashionable person on the planet . I personally think people should wear what the bloody hell they want too. It’s clothing not rocket science. It should be fun and it should also be a reflection of you, whether it’s ‘ in fashion‘ or not. #youdoyou

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PLACES | The Mowbray

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Hey how are you all doing?!

This is a fairly quick post I’ve jiggled together on a Tuesday afternoon as I wanted to show you a fabulous new venue that’s recently opened its doors in Sheffield .

Its visually a delightful post.

I was lucky enough to be invited along to #LOVE event which was held at The Mowbray on Sunday.

If you are looking to get married or need a space to host a meeting or an event then this could well be the place you have been looking for.

The Mowbray is based on Mowbray Street, which is in the Neepsend area of Sheffield. It was built in 1889 and over the last 3 years has lovingly been restored. Its owned by the same team that have the Chimney House , which regular readers will know I fell in love with at the Viking Stationary event I attended. [ You can read about that HERE ]

Basically I wanted to move in and the same can be said for The Mowbray.

It has a similar feel to The Chimney House but it is a lot larger catering for 200+ people. It is open plan with high ceilings, ‘that’ stunning feature light, a bar at the far end of the room and a roof terrace. If rustic industrial was a ‘thing’ then this would be it.

Mowbray

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Pilates … is within my reach

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I went on holiday this year to Malaga as you may well know. I spoke about it enough before I went, while I was there … and hey 6 weeks on I’m still chirping on about it!

I have to admit that while I was extremely excited to see the girls and spend a few days away with them, I was dreading the prospect of donning the old bikini.

I know, I know how silly and vain.

I should [ like I was told 101 times] just embrace what I have. Lets face it I am 47 and don’t do any exercise at all . If I’m honest I hate the thought of exercise as much as doing it. I know I’m not fat; I am  in my opinion slightly over-weight which is making me feel uncomfortable. I just didn’t feel ready to bare all, you know, the weight had been steadily creeping up along side the dreaded peri-menopause. I have back fat that I’m sure I didn’t possess at this time last year … and an extra chin. I generally felt a bit bleurgh.

I have nothing against larger people either. You do you. I just feel that I have personally looked and felt in better shape in the past when I was slimmer . Feeling the best version OF YOU , FOR YOU is what it’s all about isn’t it … no matter what your size.

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TASSIMO My Way …

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I am Tracey and by my own admission I am a member of the fully fledged coffee addicts club. I love the [preferably] ‘milky and frothy with a sprinkle of chocolate’ on top variety.

I’ve tried to ween myself off it in the past. You know just the 3 cups a day … rather than my current 6 but figured why if you love something? Life is too short

So you can therefore imagine my delight when TASSIMO got in touch to see whether I’d like to try out their ”My Way’ TAS60xx Machine. Of course I said yes and waited patiently for it to arrive.

Can I just reiterate I don’t just like coffee. I LOVE coffee. I want it first thing in the morning, last thing at night and lots in between . Most importantly I want it to coffee shop standard in my own home. I want to invite my friends around and play ‘hostess with the most-est’ serve them great coffee [and cake]  so they’ll come back and see me again. 

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One year on …

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I wasn’t sure whether to write this post . I fear I’m just going over the same old ground, repeating myself … but then that’s grief for you. You are constantly reliving moments , remembering and dealing with them. How you felt at the time. How you feel now. I guess that’s what it will be like forever … only maybe [ and hopefully] not so raw?

Firstly there is nothing pretty about death. It is what it is …

Death is an all-consuming sadness , it’s dark and it’s morbid. It’s feeling constantly sick and not being able to catch your breath. Death is final.

Our memories however… they don’t have to be. Our memories can be whatever we want them to be – fluffy, bright pink and vibrant just-like the person whose passed .

How’s that saying go…. “there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel”. I figure I’m still in my tunnel , bumbling around in the dark. Somewhere in the middle, scrapping away and searching for answers. I occasionally catch glimpses but mostly I’m still in darkness grabbing the light where I can.

On July 10th it will be a year … 365 days … 52 weeks … since we lost my mum. Vicious, beautiful, full of life. She was 72 and taken far too early .

Cancer is one cruel bastard.

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