Smile Tru aligners by Martina Collins

I'm over three weeks into my Smile Tru invisible braces treatment now and I've intentionally put off writing about the experience so far until I got fully used to the aligners. The first few days after having the aligners fitted were definitely uncomfortable, but in a satisfying way if that makes sense? I knew I could feel them getting to work so I didn't mind. The majority of us have had train tracks at one point, think of the feeling after having the braces tightened- that's it exactly. Except no metal ripping the insides of your mouth and the aligners are extremely discreet, I've repeatedly had to point out that I was wearing them as no one noticed- I've been wearing them every day to shoots and they've been completely unnoticeable in the pictures. 

Now three weeks in and I'm so pleased with them, the discomfort disappeared completely after two days as my mouth adjusted to the shape of the aligners and they're so easy to work with, the recommended time to wear the aligners for is minimum 22hours a day, meaning you really only take them out to eat and clean your teeth. If you're a serial snacker like me, I'd recommend Smile Tru to you ten times over, as you cant be bothered to take the aligners in and out often so for me, snacking a lot stopped from the day I had them fitted, (This is a miracle, I'm usually the Cookie Monster).

After you have your first consultation you'll come back and have the aligners fitted- this was completely pain free and took no more than 10 minutes.
No one really likes the dentist do they? However, a trip to Martina Collins dental feels more like going to the beauticians (I hear her cosmetic work is also amazing) - Martina herself is lovely and is as far away from a scary dentist as can be, but more importantly she's an expert at her job. She was works quickly but still manages to keep a conversation going even when my mouth was filled with pink clay, and all I could master back was a drooling nod, I felt completely at ease in her chair.

The length of the treatment obviously differs from patient to patient, I was pleasantly surprised when I found out my treatment is only going to take 3 & a half months! I'm almost through my first set of aligners now, I have been wearing these for almost a month then on my next appointment I'll change to two week aligners.

Living in London, it was important for me that I had a dentist who was flexible and Martina has been amazing with catering appointments to suit my schedule, for me getting to Belfast every two weeks is difficult so I'm able to pick up a few sets at a time and keep in touch with Martina through email if I need anything, personal touches make the experience easier and more enjoyable. The practice also stays open to 8pm on most weekdays so there's no stress for you 9-5ers.

My next appointment is 2 in days so I'll post a pic to show you the progress and if you have any questions you'd like me to ask about, feel free to message me and I can feed back the info from Martina in my next post. I'll post progress pics at each appointment so you can see the results for yourself. In the meantime you can find out all you need to know about Martina Collins Dental & Skin Clinic and the treatment itself here.

Beauty fads come and go but your teeth are with you forever so I couldn't recommend the treatment more and I'm so excited to see the results!

X

My Tanning Routine

Hi there! Hope you all had a lovely Easter, I find it so hard to get back into work mode after such a long break, but I've definitely had enough chocolate/wine to last me until next year!

If you're following me on snapchat 'joannacoop' you'll have seen I snapped earlier today asking for post suggestions, I got suggestions ranging from a health and wellness post to what I considered as good chat up lines ha, but the majority of you wanted to know about my tanning routine. I'm a self confessed tan addict, where I'm from we get approx one sunny day a year if we're lucky so I have no hope of getting a natural tan.

Here, I'm wearing Cocoa Brown Night and Day Tan Mouse on a shoot.

So, after trying hundreds of different tans over the last few years, I've picked my favourites and would highly recommend you give them a try!

For a gradual moisturising tan, my go to brand is Bondi Sands Everyday Gradual Tanning Milk, not only is it highly moisturising, it also comes with or without SPF15 so if you are lucky enough to live somewhere sunny you're still getting the protection of a sunblock with the added golden glow. Again with having the SPF protection it is the perfect tan to bring on holidays for those who don't tan well naturally. I like quite a deep colour so I apply this daily after the shower, for those who would prefer a lighter glow I would recommend applying it on alternate days.

You can purchase these here.

For a developing tan that lasts I swear by White to Brown Self Tan Lotion, I use the original shade but it also comes in 'Dark'. Now we all know Thursday night is tanning night, so I would apply this on Thursday and wake up in the morning a deep brown colour that will fade beautifully over the weekend. My favourite thing about White to Brown is the colour, it is the perfect shade of brown with no orangey tinge, this means I can also mix it in with my moisturiser and put it on my face for a natural looking glow.

You can purchase this here.

For those of you who prefer an instant tan, you NEED Cocoa Brown Night and Day Tan Mouse. As I said I apply White to Brown on the Thursday and it fades throughout the weekend so I usually need a boost if I'm going out on a Saturday night, this is the best Instant tan I've ever used, the mouse glides on the skin and is so easy to blend. In seconds you're a gorgeous brown colour whether you have tan underneath or not, and if you don't the best thing about this mouse is it also works as a light gradual tanner so when you shower the next day you still have a beautiful golden glow on your skin that can be built up over a few days.

Another Cocoa Brown product I'm obsessed with is the Golden Goddess Dry Shimmer Body Oil, it gives the skin the most beautiful golden glow and is suitable for all skin colours. I apply it up the centre of my legs and on my collar bones, the beauty about this product is that it can also be used as the most stunning highlighter. And if it's good enough for the Kardashians, it's good enough for me!

You can purchase the whole cocoa brown range on www.cocoabrown.ie, but I get mines from Primark/Penneys. I'd also recommend following the creator of the Tan, Marissa Carter on snapchat 'cartermarissa', she regularly posts tan and beauty tips.

P.S - You can also follow me on snapchat, 'joannacoop'

XO

My skin care regime

Hi lovelies, first of all  LOL at my no make-up mug shot, I look so unhappy but I have the chubbiest hamster cheeks when I smile in close up pics. After my last post I asked if there was anything you would like to see me post about and I got a lot of messages asking about my skin care regime, so here it is! If you click on the images I've linked them to where you can buy the products.

I got lucky with my skin type as I'm not proned to break outs and rarely get spots. However, I often wear fake tan on my face so tend to end up with black heads on my chin and nose as a result. I've tried a lot of different products and techniques targeted at blackhead removal, including squeezing my face ALL day long. I'm a severe squeezer, I'm that friend that asks can I squeeze your face when I'm bored. I can't help it, there's something so satisfying about squeezing blackheads haa.

Any ways, after trying a lot of different products I found that exfoliating using Bio Oil mixed with sugar works best, I do this at least once a week and my skin feels like a baby's after. There's various ways you can apply the mixture, if you have sensitive skin maybe start by using your fingers to massage it into your skin so you can control the pressure of the exfoliation and avoid irritating the skin. Personally I find I get the best results when I use my my No.7 cleansing brush, after one use my black heads are gone.

My skin type is quite dry so I moisturise a lot, I'm currently using Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturising lotion during the day, it dries quickly but leaves a nice glow on my face after which I think is why I love it so much, it's also available in an oil free gel form for any of you who suffer from oily skin.

To be honest I've only recently started using a night cream because I seen Boots Botanics All Bright Hydrating Night Cream on offer for only £3.33, I'd heard it was good so I thought I'd give it a go. It's designed for normal to dry skin, it has a nice cooling effect after removing my makeup at night time and again leaves my skin with a lovely glow when I wake in the morning, and for that price what more can you ask for!

Finally, when it comes to removing makeup I'm seriously lazy & fall asleep with it on more often than I should BUT this is why I swear by Garnier Micellar Cleansing water, it's a makeup remover and cleanser in one meaning it literally takes 2 minutes to remove my makeup at night (or in the morning)..

One more little tip, for the past few weeks I've stopped wearing mascara as often and started applying coconut oil to my lashes instead. It has strengthened them so much, when I'm going out I still wear my usual makeup but I just curl my lashes instead of applying mascara. And that's basically it, any more suggestions then please leave a comment below X 

Gold Fever hair extensions before and after

    

A few weeks ago I headed down to Dublin to Zero One salon to have my Gold Fever hair extensions applied in preparation for the Miss Universe Ireland finals, I feel like the luckiest girl in the world as I've wanted these extensions for a while, so when the lovely Zoe from Zero One messaged me to come down and have them applied I was delighted.

After my hair was dyed and blow dried, the application of the hair itself took around 2/2 and a hours. I've tried every type of hair extension under the sun, including a weave, which is agony to have applied and I can honestly say the process is completely pain free. I chose the longest length which is 18 inch and had a full head of bonds applied, I expected to feel like a weight had been put on my head but soon realised the hair is virtually weightless so although I looked like Rapunzel, my head didn't feel any strain. 

One thing I was worried about was, would they damage my own hair? Being blonde I'm nervous that my hair is weak already and didn't want to do any extra damage, I soon found out that the bonds are made from Keratin, a type of protein that exists within the hair, so if anything it will only do my hair good. 

It's been 3 weeks now since the application and I couldn't recommend Gold Fever hair extensions more, it took a while to get used to washing so much hair when I had so little before but that's a small price to pay for luscious locks like these. If you are thinking about having them applied I wouldn't go any further than Zero One hair salon in Greystones, I couldn't have been better looked after by the girls, everything from my colour to the application of the extensions and styling was perfect. 

One last thing, when it comes to styling hair I am no hair dresser, believe me. I can maybe muster a french plait if you get me on a good day, but when it comes to curling/blow drying I just don't have the patience. This all changed when I received my Instyler styling tool from Instyler Ireland, Best.Invention.Ever!! I can only describe it as like a straightner/curling tong hybrid, on one side you have a brush that sorts and separates each individual hair strand and on the other is a rotating wand type masterpiece. You can see the result it gives in my 'After' picture at the top of the post, silky, full, bouncy curls. If you don't have one, get one! I don't know how I managed to style my hair without it, although as I said my tiny 'Before' hair spent most of it's time in a not on top of my head. I'm a new woman now!

Any questions on Gold Fever Hair or the Instyler, just ask.

Jo x