It’s finally arrived… July & August aka Holiday season, those two months where everyone aims to look their best whether they have opted for a weekend city break, a stay-cation on the UK coastline or one of our many quaint countryside villages or an all out beach holiday. Either way this is the time where we all want to look and feel our best so I am going to share with you my personal holiday prep routine.

“Work it out”

Ideally I start my holiday workout regime 3 months before I go so I can truely be in the best shape. They say it takes 6 weeks for you to notice a difference. 10 weeks for your nearest and dearest to pay attention and up to 3 months for everyone else (aka Instafamily) to notice and applaud your progress.👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

I recently brought a flat and that basically took over my life since the end of March!  So therefore this summer I didn’t haven’t usual  12 weeks to prep I only had a measly 4 weeks. This called for hired in help in the form of K-Wellness . www.K-Wellness.co.uk.

If you can’t commit to a long term fitness plan that keeps you all year round bikini ready a Personal Trainer 3 times per week can really help give you a confidence boast and improve your  body shape and tone last minute.

“I got ma hair did”

I recently caught wind of a young colourist with bags of talent and when I heard her client list included Queen Rania of Jordan along with a list of other celebs with totally awesome hair I new I needed to see her. Based within Daniel Galvin salon in the famous Selfridges department store.

My stylist was Shannon Lewis (@shannonLewis_x_) and at just 22 she is a senior colourist and the go too girl for colour to make you go Ahhhhh!

Shannon gave me a very detailed consultation, she asked to see pictures of what I wanted, she asked me about my hair history and literally went through my hair layer by layer to assess the condition and to spot any potential problems with achieving what I wanted. The aim was to go from my staple blonde shade that I have had over the past 3/4 years to a fresh fun a flirty peachy shade just in time for my holiday.

Shannon gave me a walk through of every step she would be doing. She did say that her main goal was ensure that we  were both happy with the colour but more importantly that my hair wasn’t damaged. With that in mind she advised  me it was best to lighten my hair gradually over 3 appointments so the peach would be more intense every time I had an appointment. I loved the fact she manages expectations so well and put the strength of my hair first ! After nearly ending up bald once after a dodgy colourist bleached it to death this was super important to me.

Once the colour was perfect I was then handed over to a handsome Italian called Simone who refined my hair cut, by trimming away some of the length using the latest texturing techniques. His aim was to make styling my hair at home more manageable and to add some more movement to my hair.

Overall I had a great experience at the Daniel Galvin salon and the Hemsley and Hemsley collaboration meant I could order healthy smoothies and lunch direct to my chair. Would totally recommend both highly.

Prices for colour start at £95.00

Prices for cutting start at £95.00

Blow dry starts at £56.00

To Book: selfridges@danielgalvin.com

“Meet the braidy bunch”

After my cut and colour were taken care of it was time to head downstairs within Selfridges department store to get my hair Dutch braided. I always  opt for this braided hair style pre travel as it means the first few days of my trip my hair is styled to perfection and hassle free. It also protects the hair from too much sun exposure. What I would say is don’t forget to dab sun cream in the parting lines or you risk a horrible burnt and peely scalp after day one in the sun.

I am always so impressed with the girls at The Braid Bar as they really are highly skilled. They can braid super tight and neat and if I wanted too I could for sure keep them in for up to a week. They have also recently introduced  cool add on’s such as coloured extension, hair jewelry & a special summer festival menu. I opted for the gold braid rings.

Top Tip: Invest in a silk head scarf of cap to sleep in, it will prevent messy braids and the hair pulling loose. 

Prices at The Braid Bar start at £20.00

To Book: @The_Braid_Bar / 02073182408

“Scrub a dub dub”

Body scrubs are my favourite treatment in the world. They literally work wonders! They smooth your skin, improve the appearance of cellulite, even out the skin tone, prep your skin for waxing and fake tanning, detox and flush out toxins and also prevent your tan from peeling off post holiday. I have two scrubs that I would recommend:

Thai Scrub (Available at Salon Services) £7.00

Soap & Glory (Available at Boots) £10.00

I personally got my boyfriend to do it for me as he has large hands and great pressure in his application which to be honest beats most salons where I have had this treatment and they have been a little to gentle for my liking. With this treatment it’s about getting rid the dead skin cells so a flouncy salon version isn’t necessarily the best route to go down. Plus I’m sure your fella wouldn’t complain, mine certainly doesn’t 😄.

“Wax it off”

Now believe me I understand that the struggle is real when it comes to not shaving in preparation for a wax… BUT! It makes it all worth it when your not having to shave off your tan every other day on holiday or wasting ten minutes in the shower trying not to break your neck shaving in a small shower cubicle.

I would recommend at least 6-8 weeks growth before a pre holiday waxing appointment. The reason being; your hair grows in 3 cycles and if you wax after only 4 weeks it’s likely your only getting rid of hair cycle 1 & 2. Therefore cycle 3 is just about to poke through the skin meaning don’t be surprised when 4/5 days into your holiday you have hair regrowth already. Wait 6-8 weeks and you will be hair free for a minimum of 3 weeks!

I tend to wax myself these days as I am a fully qualified beauty expert with years of experience. It involves getting yourself into some funny yoga style positions and I wouldn’t recommend trying it yourself as you can hurt yourself so head to a professional waxing shop.

“Gel gloss is all the goss”

Rarely am I without a gel gloss manicure and pedicure. They are an absolutely genius invention. Dry instantly, 100’s of colours to choose from and they last 3 weeks on the fingers and a whole 6 weeks on the toes.

I usually aim to have nails done 1-2 days before I travel as I like them fresh as a daisy and remember…. your nails grow 2 x quicker in the sun so don’t be afraid to go slightly shorter as 2-3 days into your trip they should be perfect.

Another foot treatment to consider is the callus peel, it great for feet that have gotten a little sore or if you suffer from cracked heels. The treatment is applied via a saturated patch which is applied to the heels after 15 minutes the dead skin melts away and your feet are buffed to soft baby skin again. Ahhhh perfection 👣

My favourite shades this summer are:

Gelux: White

China Glaze: Flip Flop Fantasy

Gelish: Give me a break dance

Gel manicures expect to pay: £30.00 upwards.

Gel pedicures expect to pay £35.00 upwards.

I would recommend visiting somewhere like Wah nails, Margaret Dabbs or Nails Inc for nail care.

“Brows on Fleek”

Or so they say Lol …

I recently visited the Sian Dellar clinic to have micro blading semi permanent make up. I loved the idea of having brows that were going to stay put in the pool and also not sweat off in the high humidity.

For something a little less extreme  I would definitely encourage the HD Brows treatment. HD Brows is a seven step eyebrow shaping treatment that focuses on shape and design. It involves a combination of techniques, including tinting, waxing and threading, using specialist HD Brow products. Again you would need to grow your brows for 6-8 weeks to get the most out of the initial first treatment but after that it’s your monthly maintenance appointments. They will definitely last longer than your standard shape and tint.

Head to Nilam Patel for the best HD brows on the block. For the Micro blading semi permanent make up I can’t recommend Sian Dellar enough.

HD Brows start at £25.00

To Book: www.beautyinhighdefinition.com/salon-finder

Semi Permanent Make up starts at £550.00

To Book: www.SianDellar.com

“Ladies who lash”

There is two equally fantastic options when it comes to lashes. The first is the LVL lash lift. It’s simply put a modern version of an eye lash perm. It lifts your lashes from the root upwards making more of the lash length visible. It’s moderately priced and lasts a good 6 weeks before your natural lashes all drop out and the newly grown lashes need a prop up again. I often opt for this treatment for a city break or family holiday. The second option is semi permanent lashes or individual lash extensions as they are sometimes referred too. These are applied lash to lash with glue and provide a wonderfully glamorous false lash look. I had these for both my trip to Dubai and Las Vegas and loved them both times. Maintenance is every 3 weeks when you should go for infills to fill the gaps, alternatively you can wait for them to drop out naturally. What ever you do, don’t pick them off as they will take your own lashes with them. For Mykonos I am opting for the semi permanent silk lashes.

So that’s it for my pre holiday beauty diary, tips and recommendations. I’m off to Mykonos today check out my Instagram page @Shanie_Ryan for lots of beachy snaps!

Shanie ❤️