May the fashion be with you

Star Wars is pretty big news right now with the new film Episode VII set to be released in 2015, and fashion houses like Rodarte using motifs right from the films in their latest collections. As it's Star Wars Day I've put together a few ways you can celebrate in style. May the fourth be with you!

Star Wars by x-hannahmarie featuring a red dress

Childhood tunes

I remember a long time ago someone asking me why I like the music I like. It's quite a strange question to ask and when first asked you're not really sure how to reply but actually for me it's pretty simple and it comes down purely to my parents. Music is a very strong childhood memory for me. Whether it's dancing to Texas with my mum and my little brother, or my dad blasting out Pink Floyd throughout the house so loud you could probably hear it a street away. Obviously at that age if you'd have asked me my favourite band I was hardly likely to turn around and reply with Black Sabbath (it was the nineties and I'm a girl, hello Spice Girls). When you really start thinking about the music you heard throughout your childhood you remember a lot of interesting things. For example, I've known who Kate Bush is for as long as I can remember. I don't recall ever sitting down and listening to Kate Bush myself, or finding out who she is and what she does for my own personal gain. That is purely down to my mum playing her music around the house and singing along, and I would ask as any inquisitive child would, who it was. Then there are specific songs that I remember, Van Morrison's Brown Eyed Girl, Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song (my brother and I would love to do Robert Plant's "AAAAAAAAAAH AH"), Lighthouse Family's Lifted, and a huge amount of U2. My mum had the Best of 1980-1990 album by U2 and I can specifically remember without looking it up that the cover was a weird mustard colour with a sepia picture of a young boy wearing a riding helmet. Though I may be leaning more towards my dad's music taste nowadays (we once travelled to Reading to see a Led Zeppelin tribute band and most recently he joined me on the Sunday of Download Festival 2012 to see Black Sabbath), I still enjoy a dance around to George Baker's Little Green Bag with my mum, or a no holds barred mini concert with the whole family to Journey's Don't Stop Believin'.

New makeup hero

Allow me to introduce Illamasqua Hydra Veil.

I'd seen and heard about this product for a while now but whilst shopping to replace my favourite Illamasqua powder, I took the dive and bought this as well. Hydra Veil is a primer that has a jelly-like consistancy, making it feel a bit strange when you first apply it using the miniature spoon provided.

The jelly formula melts slightly as it comes in contact with your skin then glides over your face when you apply it. Immediately I noticed that my skin felt hydrated, which differs from the feeling I get using my usual Illamasqua Matte primer which seems to strip away all oils from my face. I do have quite oily skin so I figured from this it might not work with me. I applied my makeup as usual and went about my day. Not once did I have to re-powder my face, my makeup never looked caked, or faded. I took this photo after about 6 hours in my makeup on a warm day.

It's not the clearest photo I know, but basically my makeup looked exactly the same as when I first applied it in the morning. So Illamasqua has done it for me again, this is my new miracle product, and although it's a little pricey (£30 for the pot) you get a huge amount for your money and you only need to use a small amount with each application. I would definitely recommend this for anyone struggling to find a primer that works for them.

Quick shoot

This is an impromptu photoshoot I did because the weather had blessed us with some great natural lighting. I haven't edited these shots at all because I really like naturally backlit photos so much, it gives a beautiful almost matte effect to the images. I think if you're not focusing on anything in particular in a photo, then backlighting in a great way to do it.

Model: Joshua Dunne

Style crush

I'm having a moment of major love for Kelly Osbourne right now. She's the poster girl for transformations, turning herself from the bratty punky teenager on The Osbournes to this purple-haired style queen. Her personal style is very similar to mine, kind of girly gothic, and I love pretty much everything she wears so obviously I need her wardrobe immediately. It's not just about the fashion though, her hair and makeup is always on point, she's not afraid to experiment a little and being the daughter of the Prince of Darkness she can basically get away with anything.

(Images via STYLEBISTRO)

This week's music

This playlist is all about memories. Certain bands and songs can take you back to an exact moment in your life and I always find that pretty amazing. Growing up these were my 'favourite bands' throughout various times. I don't really have a favourite band anymore, I don't think it's really possible for me because I would change my mind too much. With these bands I could literally tell you the order and how old I was and what I was doing and why they were my favourite band at that point because all it takes is one listen now and I remember everything. I think I did pretty well with my growing up bands because I don't regret anything of them and still listen to their music to this day, just maybe not with quite the amount of overwhelming enthusiasm as when I was 14.

Spring/Summer 2014 Beauty

Differing from my summary posts of the Autumn/Winter 2014-15 collections, my beauty post will focus on Spring/Summer 2014. These are the looks that are relevant and on trend right now.

Natural wonders
Seen at Giles, Emilio Pucci, Christopher Kane, Giambattista Valli, Alexander Wang.

The natural look is seen every season but it really stood out as a trend this season. At Giles (top), Lucia Pieroni's inspiration was nineties supermodels, glowing skin, mascara free eyes, and rosebud lips. Bare lashes were seen again at Emilio Pucci (middle), with makeup artist Lisa Butler describing the inspiration behind the look as "a strong girl who is naturally beautiful and doesn't need makeup". The makeup itself looked slightly heavier than some of the other natural looks, this is due to the use of a foundation shade slightly darker than the model's skin tone to give the skin a healthy glow. The makeup at Alexander Wang (bottom) was very raw and minimalistic. Diane Kendal simply moisturised the face then used concealer where absolutely necessary, and hair stylist Guido Palau created messy undone matte hair.

Blue is the warmest colour
Seen at Marc by Marc Jacobs, Miu Miu, Anna Sui, David Koma, Prada.

Blue eyeshadow has been brought out of the eighties and into the 21st century, updated with different colours and techniques. The most striking blue of this season was seen at Marc by Marc Jacobs (top), makeup artist Dick Page used a block of highly-pigmented vibrant blue across the lids, keeping the rest of the face fairly minimal. At Miu Miu (middle), the colours were more subtle palette of pastels blues, accentuated with lilac and lemon hues. Pat McGrath really experimented at Prada (bottom) by applying the eye makeup with a spray-gun style tool. The look looked slightly messy which perfectly complimented the offbeat collection.

All lined up
Seen at Just Cavalli, Erdem, Missoni, Rodarte, Stella McCartney.

An easy trend to replicate is the slightly rough around the edges eyeliner trend. Terry Barber created an edgy, messy look full of attitude for Just Cavalli (top), he described the Just Cavalli girl as "an effortless 'urban' who likes her makeup in a lived in way... she finds perfection trashy". This look can be easily recreated with a kohl liner applied in an almond shape around the eye, slightly smudged, and then left to further smudge and fade as the day goes on. The eyeliner was slightly more polished at Missoni (middle) with Lucia Pieroni creating a graphic lined eye applied right into the inner corners of the eye. At Stella McCartney (bottom) eyeliner was applied all around the eye and flicked out at the corners for a rebellious heavy look contrasting with natural skin.

Straight Edge
Seen at Elie Saab, Chloé, Helmut Lang, Proenza Schouler, Ralf Lauren.

Preppy and street, or sleek and sophisticated, poker-straight hair is the hair style of the season. At Elie Saab (top) Eugene Souleiman created the sleek hair swept back by a golden hairband, he described the look as "expensive but not vulgar". The neat, smooth hair created by Paul Hanlon at Helmet Lang (middle) was tucked behind the models eyes and secured in a low ponytail, this polished hairstyle was perfectly offset by the slouchy clothes of the collection. Paul Hanlon was inspired by Californian skaters for the simple straight hair at Proenza Schouler (bottom), the hairstyle was edged-up a little more with a slightly off-centre parting and a slightly less polished look than seen in other shows.