My Sister's First Makeup

Recently my baby sister told me that she wanted to begin to wear makeup and I was only too keen to take her to get the goods. We were on the hunt for a few basics to start off her collection. Before we set off on our little adventure, I asked her what she wished to gain from makeup and we came to the conclusion that she wanted a young and natural finish; a no makeup, makeup look so to speak.

We made a list and off we went.

Once we were in Boots, we headed straight to No7. I often find that with my tone it can be tricky to find a base in the drugstore as many brands do not have a vast colour range to suit my Asian skin. Although that being said, No7 has never seemed to fail me. I was particularly pleased with their colour match service the shade was neither too light nor too dark for my sister’s skin tone, but a perfect match that blended in seamlessly.

Once we returned home we put out the bits and browsed through our purchases.

Base: No7 Essentially Natural Foundation in Deeply honey

Concealer: MAC Select Moisturecover in NW30

Powder: No7 Perfect Light Pressed Powder in Dark

Blush: No7 Mineral Perfection Loose Powder Blusher in Soft Damson

Mascara: L’Oreal Paris Telescopic Extra-Black

Lip butter: Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Pink Truffle

Brushes: Real Techniques Expert Face Brush and Blush Brush

Let's Make a Statement

£2.50

£4.00

£4.00

I have had a love-love relationship with Primark from a young age. It was the only place I would go to spend my pocket money. Since then, Primark have upped their prices, but I’m not one to shy away from picking up a thing or two.

When I visit their stores I always head straight to jewellery section in hopes that I might snap up a few gems, and Primark seem to be supplying them. During the colder months I spend the majority of my time lounging about in woolly jumpers and in order to accessorize these jumpers I pair them with statement necklaces. And this year I've found and fallen for the above.

1. The first is a long line arrow piece which can be mixed and matched to accompany any outfit. It’s effortless and beams ‘I didn't try too hard’.
2. The second is a cream necklace which I have been wearing to accompany my white, cream or beige knits. This has helped to add a little sophistication to my plain jumpers.
3. The third is the chunkiest of the mix. I will be wearing this in the evenings to add an element of glamour to my outfits. Just in time for those Christmas parties!

Happy Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas

Yesterday Diwali or the ‘Festival of Lights’ was celebrated by many Hindus and Sikhs across the globe. As a Sikh I knew the reason behind the Hindu celebrations, the triumph of good over evil. It is the celebration of Ram returning home with Sita after defeating the demon Ravan, who had kept Sita as a hostage. But, what is the reason behind the Sikh celebrations?

How it began...

The Mughal Emperor, Jahangir, had imprisoned Guru Hargobind Ji on political grounds. Jahangir believed that Guru Ji, due to his increasing popularity, was becoming a threat to his empire. However, the initial threat came once Jahangir realised that by imprisoning Guru Hargobind Ji, he himself had turned many against his thrown.

In order to rectify his mistakes, Jahangir agreed to release Guru Hargobind Ji from Gwalior. But Guru Ji refused to accept the grounds of his release until 52 innocent Hindu kings were granted their freedom alongside him. On hearing this Jahangir set his own conditions. Only those kings would be released who could hold onto the tails of Guru Ji’s cloak.

As a result of Jahangir's conditions Guru Hargobind Ji soon had a cloak made with 52 tails, one for each king. The day of Guru Ji’s release is known as Bandi Chorrh Divas and it was on the day of Diwali that Guru Ji had finally returned to Amritsar.

In the Georgian calendar Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas are commonly celebrated on the same day.

How do we celebrate Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas?

Family and friends often gather in order to celebrate Guru Hargobind Ji’s freedom. We visit the local gurdwara in order to gain Waheguru Ji’s blessing for the year ahead. In the evening we light divas and share with one another Indian snacks and sweets, this is followed up by a firework display to end the evening’s festivities.

Glossary

Amritsar	“Pool of nectar” Is the spiritual centre of Sikhism located in the North Indian state of Punjab.
Bandi Chhor Divas	“Prisoners’ Release Day” Is the day when Guru Hargobind Ji and 52 kings were released from Gwalior prison.
Diva	Lamp
Diwali	Is an abbreviation of "Deepavali" meaning "row of lamps".
Gurdwara	A Sikh place of worship.
Guru Hargobind Ji	The sixth of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism.
Gwalior	City in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
Jahangir	The fourth Mughal Emperor who ruled from 1605-1627
Mughal Emperor	Is the term used to refer to those who ruled the Mughal Empire in South Asia.
Ram	The seventh avatar of the God Vishnu in Hinduism.
Ravan	A devout follower of the god Shiva. Ravan is believed to have had ten heads
Sita	Is the consort of Ram and an avatar of the goddess Lakshmi.
Waheguru Ji	Is the term used by Sikhs to refer to God.

An Edge To The Others #5

Blog Post and Video of the Week: When I first laid eyes on Lisa Eldridge’s blog post I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was dedicated to 100 Years of Bollywood Beauties. This post was soon followed up by a makeup tutorial that was inspired by Aishwarya Rai’s makeup in the movie Devdas (2002). Devdas is by far my favourite Bollywood movie and I cannot wait to recreate Lisa's look. If you have not seen Devdas or Lisa's tutorial I strongly suggest that you do.

Aishwarya Rai: Dola Re Dola, in Devdas

Image via http://aishwaryarai-photo.blogspot.com/