how to maintain /get the holiday look

I wanted to share with you a post that I originally wrote as a guest post after I arrived home from my holiday in portugal last year. The website published it along with a link back to my blog as promised (part of the agreement as i'm sure the majority of you are familiar with) and I have since been back due to that 'holiday feeling' i've been getting to remind myself of the tips etc that I wrote about. But on reading through I noticed that they have in fact removed the link back to my blog and so this is why I have republished my article on my blog. I think that's only fair don't you?

Let me know if you think i'm being ridiculous.. But I just wanted to share with you what I felt acceptable for summer wear and all of the rest of it along with some tips I put out there.. Plus it's nice to look back and see how differently I write and feel now. I haven't edited this (other than some formatting) from the word document I sent them so let me know what you think! You can be honest :P Even the picture is an oldie.. you can tell from the huge copyright!

When choosing a holiday destination a lot of us will decide to go somewhere a lot hotter than home, living in England this obviously isn’t that hard! Now I’m sure most of you will agree that when you’re on holiday, surrounded by another culture and in a very different climate your attitude towards a number of things will change. I am going to go through how my style, hair, body and makeup transformed and how I am maintaining these changes even now that I’m home again. You may even gain some tips on how to get the holiday look without going abroad!

style
I was never a wearer of skirts or shorts until going abroad, my legs would only come out on special occasions. But now I have an aversion to trousers! Leggings are ok, I mean it’s been raining a lot in Devon but where possible I am still reaching for my skirts and shorts .

When it comes to maintaining your holiday style I think it’s pretty important to tone it down a bit because on holiday we can tend to go overboard. I saw plenty of obvious tourists wandering around the supermarket shirtless with bare feet! Definitely too much to take home. We wouldn’t walk into the mall in just a bikini back in the UK would we? However, we can do such things as wear bikinis under tops, pull out our skirts and shorts as often as possible and stick with flip flops and sandals. So long as we remember to dress all of this up and bear in mind where we are, it can definitely be done!

hair
When on holiday we seem to let things become more natural, we wear less, eat more fresh foods etc. and the big one for me was natural hair. When leaving your hair to dry naturally in a hotter climate it can be a lot quicker, but trying to pull off the holiday hair when back in home again can prove to be somewhat of a difficulty.

My tip: avoid heat styling

No hairdryer? If you thoroughly towel dry your hair, brush it through and scrunch your fingers through the layers then this will give the air around you more access to the rest of your hair. Although it’s not the quickest way of doing things it really is a lot better than blasting it with a hair dryer. If you’re worried about volume then don’t there are other ways that you can achieve big hair like backcombing or teasing your roots.

No straighteners? Your hair doesn’t need to be perfectly straight all the time. It’s good to have a change and trust me, your hair will thank you for the breather! When abroad hair can often naturally take shape due to the sea air or humid weather but back at home it can need a little taming. When it’s almost dry try spritzing salt water through it whilst teasing your fingers around your locks and scrunching it upwards. If this doesn’t give the desired result then I reach for Fructis bouncing curls mousse. It’s great for adding texture and definition to naturally dried hair. As for those frizzy bits on top try using the tiniest bit of wax or balm, I use John Frieda spun gold or nab a little of the boyfriends when he’s not looking. Just coat the tip of your finger in a relatively thin layer of the product and rub it between your palms then smooth down any little frizzy bits. Not too much otherwise your hair will look greasy!

body
Who would possibly want to rid of the tan you got on holiday?! Nobody of course, but how do we maintain it? Well there is a small selection of things that you can do to keep your tan. The most natural way is by sticking to your holiday style. Let the legs come out and keep with the tank tops etc because freeing your arms and legs are going to give them more air to breathe and a better access to the sun rays, even if you can’t see them!

The other less natural ways of keeping your tan would include visiting a tanning salon. Whether to have a few minutes on the sun beds or a spray tan, a lot of people find this the perfect way to top up their tan. (even after considering the many dangers of sun beds) As you are already tanned you won’t need much of a spray tan or many minutes on the sun bed because you’re just topping it back up again. Salons recommend you use a bed once a fortnight if you don’t want to go any darker. Other than those options if you feel your tan is fading then a darker spray tan or self tanning mousse like St. Moritz can top you up back to your sunned up self.

*I'd like to point out that I am no way recommending the use of sun beds!

makeup
Continuing my bronzed holiday makeup look has been easy. It’s quite a lazy approach which I think is why it works so well as a natural look. I’ve avoided wearing foundation for almost a month now, my skin feels refreshed and my makeup looks more natural. I think it’s a crucial part in getting that natural holiday look. And then by adding a bit of bronzer across your cheeks and up to your temples will an extra bit of colour and add structure to your face and of course more of a bronzed look to your face. I then add a small amount of blush to the top of my cheekbones and stick to neutral eye makeup. Keeping makeup as naturally bronze as possible will definitely help you maintain the overall holiday look.

♥ abby