As it is the weekend, none of my sisters are home, my mum is out, so I’ve decided to clean my room…piles of clothes on my clothing rail, another pile on my chair, and makeup everywhere! I am ashamed to have such a messy room, but after some digging around I found my ancient Gameboy Classic stored away in my Valentino shoe box (as you do)! I can’t believe I still have this and was a big part of my life! I can’t believe I had invested so much on AA batteries back then and not just x2 batteries, but x4 at a time and they aren’t cheap! I wonder if these Gameboy Classics are still floating around in this planet (just checked, on eBay for £10 haha). I remember my first game cartridge was Tetris, what an all time classic, followed by a string of Pokemon games. As an 80’s kid, I grew up watching Sailormoon and Pokemon, the best part of my childhood! Till this day, I am still looking for my perfect Pikachu cushy soft toy! I feel like an absolute geek right now, check out this crazy magnifying glass…it’s almost the same size as the Gameboy itself. Oh British Gas, you did good to bring back nostalgia and absolutely love your infographic on history of home taking you back to the caveman days to the modern family of 2014! My last memory of my Gameboy Classic was accidentally spilling nail polish across the buttons and hiding the Gameboy under the duvet when my mum checked up on me to go to sleep! The good ol’ days which I will cherish in my mind forever. I hope you have enjoyed my nostalgic post.

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

It’s finally here, I was in Paris 2 weeks ago for the weekend with Alice! It was so last minute but I am glad I made the trip there. We got off at Madeleine metro to visit this lovely L’église de la Madeleine, a Roman Catholic church which occupied a commanding position in the 8th arrondissement (glorified Napoleon army). This building reminded me of the UCL main building in London back home. Nevertheless, it’s Paris and it’s a stunning building. It was such a sunny day that day, pretty lucky in fact since London has been drizzling all week so this is the perfect escape for us to enjoy Summer once more. I was wearing a pair of blue skinnies from Zara with a non-branded deep v backless top which was a hand me down from my sister! I have never actually worn this before but has been in my possession for 8 years, finally had a chance to wear it! My shoes are pretty classic too, they are from Aldo and I have had these for almost 5 years now and luckily did not have to re-heel eve since! Touched up the outfit with my Alexander McQueen white skull scarf and my favourite Miu Miu bauletto bow bag. Would like to thank the amazing Form 42 for these lovely pics, we have had some funny ones along the way but I am sure I can save these for much later and compile images from behind the scenes. I hope you have enjoyed my post from Paris, more to come from the weekend trip. Stay tuned on this tag: RVLtraveldiary

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Not too long ago, I did a beauty exchange with a work colleague, we both have a passion for all things skincare and makeup! I was so excited when she handed over a bag full of Body Shop goodies! So I got the Body Shop cherry blossom shower gel, fragrance mist, satsuma body polish ( an exfoliator) and something else…which I will post separately :) I remember going home and tried out the satsuma body polish, conveniently I ran out of body exfoliator gel so this is the perfect replacement. First thought? How delicious does this smell!! It’s like a burst of satsumas coated in sugar! My skin felt so smooth, soft and hydrated afterwards! Shame to say, after using this twice…I am half way through the tube! the bodyshop satsuma body polish retails at £5, total bargain and what a great gift.

Lastly, the Japanese cherry blossom shower gel and fragrance mist – I absolutely adore cherry blossoms, reminds me when I was holidaying in Japan during Christmas! The scent is subtle and gentle on my skin, I’m a big fan of floral scents; I use Victor and Rolf’s Flowerbomb perfume for the last 6 years and this is a great addition to my floral scent collection. I then layer this with the cherry blossom fragrance mist for longer lasting scent. Not only do I enjoy using these, they look fab against the rest of my beauty collection stored in my bookshelf. Again, the duo can be fab gifts at £6.50 (shower gel) and £7.50 (fragrance mist). I hope you have enjoyed my Body Shop review today.

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

My babies! This pair of Christian Louboutin no prive peep toe slingback patent heels (what a mouthful name) was my first ever pair of Louboutins! I remember wanting to own one and after doing a clear up in my room, I just fell in love with these all over again. I have worn these about 3 or four times now (bought these 4 years ago) and look how good they still look? Actually, I really do look after them like a Queen; I clean them with makeup wipes and had the soles protected matching the red soles! They are very comfortable, however..I have wide feet which means they don’t fit well on this pair of slender shoes :( which is why I’m considering of selling them! They just look very nice in my room but I will never wear them, unless I just sit around and not move. So before I sell them, I thought I give my babies a lifestyle photoshoot, a one to remember hahaha!

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

I have been so excited to receive this lovely YSL Couture palette parisienne colour, of all the palettes available this is by far my favourite and most suitable shade for me. The colours are subtle, shimmery and neutral so it is perfect from day to night wear. When I first saw the colour palette, I thought it would be a strong shade, but surprisingly when blended in; the shadow colour smoothens for a subtle look. I first applied the taupe colour as a base across the eyelid before applying the plum shade on the outside corners of my eyes. Then simply blend and brushed over the highlighter below my brow line to finish the look. I love my eyes to look bigger so I have applied a thick gel liner, and thickened my eye lashes with Lancome Hypnose. What do you think? I love it, to my surprise the colour palette isn’t as rich as it looks. I had a quick tutorial from YSL’s beauty youtube channel which offers great tips on creating the look. The palette retails at £39.90 from John Lewis and for what you get, you can definitely achieve at least 3 looks. What do you think of this colour palette?

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Photos by Isabella from Rockin’ That Gem

This is by far my favourite lip colour review! Lancome is one of my favourite brands and have been looking for that perfect, bright, matte, red lip stick and I have found it! It is the L’Absolu Velours de Grenade; 6 times more pigment than a traditional lip gloss. The colour is intense so definitely great for evening wear and off course in photos! I have used their lipsticks before and have always stuck with their natural shades before I plunged for their daring bright colours. The biggest tip is to apply a lip liner because the gloss will bleed along the cracks and trust me, it did not look good at all! The lip gloss is compact and very easy to apply, all you need is 1 application as appose to your standard lipsticks that require a few round trips. The wand has an oval tip which helps you draw in the angles for the perfect lip shape.

For my complete look, I am wearing the YSL Couture colour palette in Parisienne, Lancome Alber Albaz Mascara, Jane Iredale Powder Foundation, Rimmel Bronzer, BodyShop Brush on Radiance.

If you have enjoyed my post, hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Another beauty swap between my work colleague and I and this Body Shop Brush on Radiance has been my biggest surprise as to how much I love this. I am a very simple girl when it comes to cosmetics; I moisturize and then apply my usual powder foundation and mascara for my day/work look. I have never ever considered and or thought a face shimmer would make such a difference. This pot has sweat magical beads of iridescent colour that gives skin a luminescent glow. It is dermatalogically tested, pink toned and gives you the shimmering finish (as apposed to just the matt look from your powder foundation). I am super happy with this and is now part of my every day makeup routine. Now I have got my sister into it and she is looking to invest in a shimmer pot too. I know brands like Guerlain does this, but at £14 from The Body Shop, it’s well worth it.

I hope you have enjoyed my review, feel free to message me if you have any questions on this product or similar products you wish to recommend.

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Honestly, I have never heard or noticed the La Roche Posay brand before; but I am sure in due time I would eventually come across it and thankfully I have. Products made in France or Switzerland are big hits for me as I know they are always so kind and hydrating to my skin. I am always up for trying new brands, new products and general products I have not tried before and I am definitely excited to try these for sure. Firstly, the La Roche Posay Effaclar Mat is a Sebo regulating moisturizer. But first of all what is sebum? It is the oily secretion which then gives you that oily shine mainly on your T Zone like me; middle forehead and around my nose. So what this Effaclar Mat claims to do is limit the appearance of pores and shine by reducing excess sebum. I have been using this for less than a week now and have seen some progress as my pores are quite a big along my T Zone. The Effaclar Mat is a hint of stickiness to give you that moisturizing feeling and all you need is a small blob on each cheek; then moisturize it across the face. Then I apply the La Roche Posay Hydreane BB Creme which is a smooth, soft, fluid creme which helps moisturize, unify the skin with thermal water. I remember using the Rimmel BB cream back in the days and the cream completely dried out which made my skin looking flaky, so ever since I have been very sceptical. To my surprise, this BB Creme in light beige melts into my skin; leaving it feel hydrated, supple and help smoothen my complexion. It is not a cakey BB creme and can be applied just like a normal cream to hydrate the face with that extra youthful glow to the skin. Below you can see the before (left side of the face) and after I have applied to BB Creme (right hand side). Not much difference; however you can see that pores are smaller on your right side with a smoother, cleaner complexion. With the little difference it makes means that the BB Creme is matching to my skin type as close as possible; so luckily we are the perfect match.

I hope this review has been useful to you as it has been useful for me and also discovering new products and brands. You can follow them on updates via their Facebook page and Instagram.

Otherwise hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Ever wondered why my blog name is called Red Velvet London? At the time, I was called So Tres Chic on wordpress and decided to revamp the name for my .com site. I was so obsessed with it I decided to call my blog Red Velvet London. Today, I decided to bake some red velvet cupcakes with my sister Helen, who is an amazing baker and blogger of Ms QnT. Any time I need to bake, I am at her place and spend a good hour or so baking and eating. I have been following Mary Berry’s red velvet cupcake recipe from Baking Mad online with our own twist on the icing (chantilly cream) which is a lot lighter and fluffier.

I had so much fun baking red velvet cupcakes with my sister and we did such a great job! It tasted so amazing and don’t think I could have done it without her. I definitely think it is important to invest in quality ingredients and we followed the recipe using:

Nielson – Massey Vanilla Extract, Unsalted Butter, Billington’s unrefined dark muscovado sugar, x4 medium sized eggs, buttermilk, Allinson plain white flour, white wine vinegar, red jelly food colouring, whipped cream (chantilly cream). Baking Mad online recipes are very simple to follow and in such a quick time, I can’t wait to share my cupcakes with my sisters at home!

If you were to try any recipes from Baking Mad what would it be? Hope you have enjoyed my baking post today and hope you can follow me on my journey via Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Vichy is my favourite brand when it comes to skin hydration. I first discovered Vichy from my sister Style Slicker 5 years ago when the bottle was white (picture above) and you may be wondering why I still have the old version? That was the first bottle I bought from Vichy and when it started to run out I got too attached and couldn’t throw it away (no I did not carry on using it 4 years later). But now, I am so glad to finally get hold of the current Vichy Thermal Aqualia serum. My skin does get dehydrated often, perhaps I don’t drink enough water through out the day which then means my skin gets flaky and very unattractive! If you have sensitive skin then this works like magic! It is an intensive hydration serum that works the second you apply on to your skin. Honestly, you need maximum 2 drops, if not 1 drop is enough to cover your whole face which also means…longer lasting bottle! It is concentrated with Thermal Spa Water and enriched with hyaluronic acid. Aqualia Thermal Serum soothes and helps protect the skin from daily aggressions. Skin is left intensely hydrated. It is also lightweight and soft, the formula penetrates the skin’s surface instantly to bring it intense hydration. At the end of the day, my skin is still soft, supple and smooth. I know I may have patches of dry skin but the serum helps to hide this as my skin is constantly hydrated by the serum so for the optimal effect, I apply the serum both morning and night. Anyone who wants to maintain that supple, smooth, younger looking skin I really do recommend Vichy serum as part of your daily skincare routine. May xx

I am trying to recall how many times I have been to Paris but every time I have been, they all differ in terms of experience. We tried to squeeze as many locations as possible as we only had a weekend to enjoy Paris to the max. It was a gruelling day ahead of us as we have been on the go since 7am! Final destination of the day was the Notre Dame; we have all seen the Disney film The Hunchback of Notre Dame and every time I hear and see it, I think of the film. To no surprise, it was busy as ever, with queues a mile long to get inside for a glimpse inside. Luckily, the mile long queue was moving rather fast, so whilst waiting in line, I was baking under the heat, wearing nothing but a skirt and super thick, warm jumper! I had no idea Paris would be this warm in August as it was forecasted to rain and cloudy. I am not going to complain, it just caught me surprise how lovely the weather was.

To end the evening, we strolled to the infamous Love Locket Bridge, the bridge of love for not only couples; but love from friends and family. The countless times I have been here, I don’t think I have ever left behind a locket on the bridge..hopefully one day I will! As I was getting my pictures taken with the love lockets, a large chunk of locks fell off and my jaw just dropped thinking I have crushed many couple’s blessings and wishes!! I tried to cover it up by forcing it back in the crowd of locks and swiftly walked away…people should really check that the lockets are….locked! The bridge itself was romantic, but the view from the bridge was just as stunning! More to come from my Parisian Weekend trip on RVLtraveldiary :D

Outfit: Topshop Raccoon slouchy, pink jumper | River Island faux leather skater skirt | Carvela embellished bow peep toe flats | Burberry gold check bracelet | Miu Miu taupe Bauletto crossbody bag | Topshop ring with Lara Bohinc influenced design | Chanel black drop earrings

Beauty: Clinique Sallow Superprimer | Shu Uemura Lightbulb compact powder | Mac Gel Liner | Maybelline dark nude lipgloss | Jose Eber curling tongs.

Photography by Alice from Form 42

Hope you have enjoyed my post and do follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Yes, this happened last week! If you have been following my blog, I have had red hair a year ago and since then, it has washed out looking brown with over-growing roots. I was thinking on going brown at first, but after seeing my sister’s hair (Style Slicker)…I changed my mind and stuck with red. I have been using L’Oreal’s Casting Creme Gloss in Black Cherry colour the past few years and I absolutely love it. What do you think? Unfortunately, it isn’t as vibrant as I hoped it would be, but that’s probably my mistake as I should have washed my hair first and waited the next day to dye my hair. Although, I am happy with the black cherry glow under the light but hopefully after a few washes, it will only get brighter.

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

Happy Sunday everyone, ahh the day of rest. I was so happy to receive this CC cream from La Roche Posay earlier this week since trying couple of their products last month.

‘The CC cream is a cover and corrector for sensitive skin prone to all types of redness, whether occasional or persistent, dispersed or localised. A universal tone that blends naturally into fair to medium skin and conceals to correct the appearance of shades of redness,glides quickly over skin and streak-free.’ As for my personal experience, it is exactly what they promise it say it will do. The consistency of the cream is thick, creamy and smooth which offers you the matt, flawless photoshop look, hiding my blemishes and minimize the visibility of dents/scars/lines on my face. OK, I know you must think what am I thinking…what dents/scars? They are very minimal, but for me it has made a big difference to my complexion. As for redness, my skin is rather sensitive and can have the odd red patches now and then, so this CC cream is absolutely perfect. I have not used a cream foundation for many years now as they tend to dry up on my face which can look pretty horrendous; but this CC cream is so hydrating I don’t need to worry about my skin looking powdered, tired and dried up. Here are a couple of photos showing the right side of my face with the CC cream and left side with no foundation on. I hope it is a little clear in the photos that my complexion on the right is a lot smoother! Guess what, 4 hours in and my face still feels hydrated without needing to top up. 10/10.

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

I am no stranger when it comes to my excitement for Vichy. If I could replace all my skincare and cosmetics for Vichy I would. This portable tube is from Vichy- a hydrating day cream that’s easy to carry around in a small bag with a pointy nozzle for no messy business. It can pretty annoying to dip your finger in a tub and get cream stuck between your finger nails. Luckily for Vichy Aqualia Thermal Hydration Cream, they consider this factor for the easy-on-the-goers and travellers. I still apply the Vichy Serum for extra hydration, but as a light cream, I get just as much hydration out of this light cream. My skin feels supple and soft to the touch, which means a much smoother complexion without relying on makeup to cover it up.

Vichy is classified as a premium skincare and cosmetic brand owned under the L’Oreal umbrella group. The brand off course came from the town of Vichy in France, using thermal spa water from their hot springs to develop their products. I have always been curious what Vichy means apart from knowing the fact that it is French. Not only is Vichy a town in France, but also means health is beautiful..and I totally agree.

I have recently posted a review on the Aqualia Thermal Serum, to have a read it is here

Hope you have enjoyed my post. For updates, you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

I am a lazy when it comes to moisturizing! It feels more like a chore and very time consuming. Ever since Vaseline Spray on Moisturizer hit the shelves, I knew this was going to solve my problem and it sure did. I’ve grown up using Vaseline pots  for my lips as a kid, and since the beauty market got so saturated; I have distanced myself from Vaseline to try all the different brands out there. I am so glad to come back to Vaseline and come out with the moisturizing spray! I must say that it isn’t as hydrating as I would have liked it, but that is what you would expect from a spray can that is so easy to apply. Autumn is here and Winter is certainly around the corner and the cold can be quite harsh to our skin without realising. We want that beautiful skin when we come out of hibernation and be skin ready for Spring! Yes, I am two seasons ahead of myself as I am not a fan of the cold! Enjoy your Friday!

May xx

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Halloween is only 3 weeks away and despite being a Londoner, we don’t celebrate it as hard as the Americans! No plans just yet for upcoming Halloween; no outfit, no theme, but I knew I wanted to have different coloured eyes and Halloween is the one day I could wear them. I was contemplating whether to get crazy design contacts or go easy first with a natural looking coloured lense. So I have picked a pair of blue, green and another funky design (to be up on the blog real soon). I was deciding whether to go for blue or green for today’s post and decided to go for the lustrious green coloured lense from Foureyez. I don’t wear glasses so I have never worn contacts before, let alone poke my eye! I found it tricky for the first 10 minutes, the contacts just won’t stick when I realised you had to really poke your eye! I got there eventually and absolutely love the colour! I matched the makeup with jewel green shadow and extended the eyeliner to make my eyes appear bigger and wider. So what do you think? I am not into the horror look for halloween so I thought I channel the Anime meet Bella Swan sweet-goth look with pearcing green eyes and moody red lips.

For today’s posts, I am offering a blue of blue lenses for 1 lucky reader ^^ UK residents only I’m afraid. For your chance to win and wear them in time for Halloween, all you need to do is Follow my blog, Like this post and comment what Halloween look you will go for with blue contacts? Good Luck :D May xx

Received these wonderful hair beauties to maintain the mane! In all honestly, I have never heard of Original Mineral brand before and the fact that it is an Aussie product is a massive thumbs up for me. I love discovering new brands and learn what’s unique about them- especially when it comes to maintaining my long, healthy-ish hair. The shampoo was very hydrating which was exactly what I needed! I can go on and on about the ingredients involved and what it contains that’s good for you etc etc…but it doesn’t really mean much to me but the end result! Which is how it feels, looks and smells! Yes, I am happy to say it ticked all 3 important boxes. The biggest difference I have seen for my hair is this Frizzy Logic serum which is basically Argan Oil. My hair felt ridiculously sleek, smooth and swooshes when I walk! When I run my fingers through my hair, it feels so soft I can’t stop doing it so all I can say is that I am delighted to try these. They are currently available in Selfridges selling travel size bottles as well as full sized ones. Hope you have enjoyed (hopefully) a light read and hear what other brands you may want to recommend?

May xx

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It was a sad day today, my sister Rockin’ That Gem has left the UK for a new life in Perth, Australia. She has been clearing out her (massive) room for a week now and I have received some great hand me downs! Being 1 of 4 sisters has its perks, and receiving stuff they don’t want means hidden gems between the rubbish and clutter. I have been extremely low in makeup brush supplies and who knew she had a handful of barely used brushes? I am so glad I didn’t fork out money to buy brushes. Received a box full of new nail polishes (gel ones) from Barry and a wide range of fashion jewellery. I am such a lucky girl but now…my room is completely cluttered now with unsifted goodies. I can’t wait to try all the beauty hand me downs and share with you all as to what I received! Enjoy your Sunday, staying in means #makeupfreesundays

Thanks Isabella for all the goodies!

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx

My 3rd sister @RockinThatGem left for Perth over the weekend! Sad times but great for her; a new life and a new chapter. I was quite jealous, I wanted these for myself. This was Burberry heaven and we know how expensive they are overseas so we got her 2 lip glosses in different pink shades, rosey brick red lipstick, granite mascara and taupe eye shadow palette. Interestingly she doesn’t use a mascara so hopefully she will start using it and curl up those horse like eyelashes. Yes, Chinese girls have horse like eyelashes and the only way to curl them naturally is if you constantly apply mascara for the rest of your life! …as well as using eyelash curler too.

Before she left, we met up for afternoon tea at Blakes hotel and it was amaaazing! I want to go back there again. Their sandwiches were delicious but their desserts were disappointing, other than that the atmosphere was relaxing, quiet, secluded- a great space to socialise. We will miss you Isabella, we hope to see you soon!

May x

I received a box load of nail polishes from my sister and thought I’d help her out and flog them. Once listed on eBay, I thought to myself….do I really want to sell them? I sure did like the pink marshmallow confetti so I decided to take the listing down and thank goodness i did because I love this pot! The texture is interesting and so easy to apply. It is a bundle of confetti fun on my nails and surprisingly, doesn’t look like it will chip at all! I love playing around with product photography which I was only going to feature on Instagram. But since upgrading my camera to a Canon 5d Mark ii…I couldn’t wait to produce a whole post on my blog with the Sunday theme being pink. What do you think of Barry M confetti marshmallow nail polish?

Hope you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. May xx