My hair has been pretty woeful of late. Dealing with the harsh water of London and the sizzling heat of my styling irons every single day, it finally started to give up. It was dry as a haystack, frizzy and lifeless, and breaking off at the ends from the stress of it all.

I tried product after product, until one day, I knew I had to cut it off. There was no hope for it.

The next day, with hair inches shorter than before, I vowed to take better care of my locks, and to avoid straightening and curling first and foremost. According to my hairdresser, my hair’s biggest issue was dryness, and it needed to be dealt with if I wanted a better future for my strands.

I started trying new products, taking care of my hair with limited heat styling. But nothing could quench my hair’s thirst – no matter how many moisturising qualities  it promised on the bottle. Sure, I never went over £20 for a product – remember, we’re working with a Thinpurse here girls – but I knew I didn’t need to – I was sure there’d be something cheap and cheerful that did the job.

And…I found it.

You might have spotted the box before on the bottom shelf of your local Boots store. But it probably didn’t grab your attention among the hundreds of other beautifully designed and colourful bottles. But it’s the thing that works for me; and I’m about to buy it up in bucket loads!

I credit Vitapointe Leave In Conditioner with bringing my hair back to life!

It’s a dowdy looking product, that was originally made for salons, for hairdressers to apply before processing, but it’s  a wonder for adding moisture back to already dried out hair.

It’s a very thick product – not the kind of thing I’d usually run through my dry hair (even though that’s what they suggest). It’s heavy, and can give you a slightly greasy look if you use too much. Just a drop is fine!

After washing, I dry my hair a little, then massage the product through the areas that need it most (usually just the tips).

It works beautifully if you blow dry it out from there; it feels like the heat helps it to penetrate the hair shaft further, giving you an amazing result.

I swear by Vitapointe – it’s now one of the most important items in my hair and beauty repertoire. My hair is softer, shinier and healthier looking whenever I use it.

At £1.99 – there’s nothing to lose!

On the hunt for a gentler, more natural product to cleanse my face with everyday, I came across the REN Mayblossom Cleansing Gel, £16.50 at LookFantastic.com (150ml).

I had never used a REN product before, but I’d definitely seen their name before, and I knew them immediately to be a natural, kind-to-your-skin kind of brand.

With a mix of dry and oily areas, I decided to try out this option for combination skin, to bring some balance back to my life!

It claims to gently dissolve excess oil, and remove impurities, reduce pore size, and prevent spots. But the real draw for me was the sulfate-free formula, filled with lovely ingredients, such as willow bark and Australian blue cypress oil.

It smells amazing; fresh and flowery, and a little gel goes a long way. You feel like you need a lot as it doesn’t really foam, but it’s not necessary to give yourself more than one pump from the easy dispenser.

Having come from harsher products, I’m used to a more ‘cleaner’ feeling after I cleanse. This is very gentle, but it’s so gentle you might feel like you have to clease twice, or follow up with a scrub. I’m not sure it’s needed – just a mindset to get out of!

I’m not sure I would buy this cleanser again, probably just because I’m too tempted to try out the rest of their range!

I definitely like the look of deeper cleansing products, such as the Jojoba Microbead Purifying Facial Scrub, £17.50, and the Pore Minimising Detox Mask, £17.50.

To help create a base I would recommend this cute little set called Realness of concealness. Priced at  £23.50  it includes ‘ooh la lift’ an instant under-eye brightening boost, ‘lemon aid’ which is a colour correcting eyelid primer and ‘boi-ing 02’ which is  a high strength concealer which can be applied under the eyes to disguise dark circles.  It also has high beam which I swear by because it can easily be applied to the cheekbones and eye area with the fine nail varnish style brush, and a lip plump primer that helps you to achieve a look of fuller lips with a touch of gloss.

Now it’s time to start applying some colour, I like this Silky Powder vanilla cream colour eyeshadow which is now £8.25 reduced from £12.50 which will give you a fantastic shimmer on the eyelids.

Use a pair of eyelash curlers to help emphasise and define the lashes.  Then apply two coats of Bad Gal Mascara sweeping from the lid towards the tips of the lashes and direct the brush upwards so you set the curl of the lashes. Apply another coat just to the lower lashes but only in the corner of your eye so the effect is still fairly understated.

Now it’s time to concentrate on the cheeks and I find that that gal brightening face primer adds a lovely natural glow to the cheekbones without being overpowering and it can be applied for wearing in the evening for a more striking look.

To help polish off the look, treat your body to a fabulously luxurious body balm called body so fine. It comes with a puff which helps you smooth it onto your skin. The balm has a silky sheen which is great for showing off those shoulders and legs without having to use a product which is glittery, and is perfumed with a classic scent of white blossoms which will make you feel gorgeous.  It is simply perfect for the nude look because ‘it’s all you’ll want to wear!’

Everyone wants to be Cheryl Cole right now. Be honest. She’s absolutely gorgeous, and most of us can only dream what it would be like to have that amazing body, darling dimples, and that perfect hair. Well…supposedly, we can get in on that last one.

Cheryl has lent her luscious locks to the new L’Oreal Elvive Full Restore 5 range, which claims to put an end to weak, limp and lifeless, dull and ‘straw-like’ hair.

Cheryl (and the script writers) says her hair feels ‘stronger and full-of-life with a healthy shine’, so I thought I’d give the latest from L’Oreal a go.

London’s harsh water has really got my hair down; so can it get it’s mojo back with a little help from Mrs Cole?

I tried the Elvive Full Restore 5 Masque; enriched with Pro-Keratin and active Ceramide serum – it’s a nice big pot that will last a while, and it smells lovely. It doesn’t specify if you should condition your hair before the masque, but I just used it after shampooing.

The de-tangling effect was immediate, and it washed out silky smooth.

I followed the masque with the Conditioning Replenish Spray, which is basically a leave-in-conditioner, which again, smells great and doesn’t weigh down the hair.

I left my hair to dry naturally to get a real idea of the effect of the products. The result was soft, smooth, and my hair seemed really moisturised, and felt healthier.

I tried out the spray the next day, on dry hair, after I’d heat-styled loose curls. At first, it seemed like it added extra moisture, and my hair felt really soft. After a few hours though, the spray had pretty much destroyed my curls; so I won’t be doing that again!

Overall, I like the products, and I’m going to continue using them. While the products may be riding on the Cheryl wave, they’re not relying on any gimmicks – they’re actually quite good!

The shampoo and conditioner are available online at Boots.com right now at 2 for £3.

It’s one of my (many) fashion and beauty obsessions, and one of my favourite ways to introduce colour into my cosmetic palette.

And so, Barry M nail polishes were inevitably going to catch my eye. This brand consistently produces some of the most current, trendy hues on the market, and they’re usually less than £3 for a bottle. On the surface, it’s a great little bargain, but how does Barry M perform?

Well, it looks great. The bottle design has a cool vintage feel about it, and the brush allows for fairly easy application.

The consistency is thick and offers good coverage immediately, smoothly. It dries pretty quickly, which is impressive considering.

So, once it was on, how long did it last?

I used two coats of polish, and it was still going strong four days later. An unfortunate chip meant I had to re-apply, and on closer inspection, the polish was starting to show some signs of wear, with stress lines from typing at my computer!

I think you could easily get away with a Barry M colour for a full working week; it’s actually really quite sturdy and resistant to chips.

Barry M Nail Polish was actually voted Best Inexpensive Nail Polish Range this year in the InStyle Best Beauty Buy Awards – so it’s not just me who thinks they’re good!

If you decide to dip in to Barry M Nail Polish, there’s a deal on at Superdrug now, so you can pick up two bottles for £5.

The range of ‘eye cakes’ have to be seen to be believed; usually around £12 each, they’re now £5, in a massive array of colours.

We’re talking peach, purple, teal, olive and jade, as well as speciality ‘cakes’ to enhance different eye colours.

The Tan Popper Face kit is also a cool product; although best for use on darker skin tones, or at least, in summer!

Every item in the kit works wonders for tan skin, from cheek shades, eye pencils and eye shades. It’s usually £24, now it’s just £10.

And if you’re rocking the pale and romantic look; the Sunny Pop Up Glow will give you a fresh, bright look all over; your cheeks, eyes and lips.

And interestingly; it’s infused with watermelon to cool and refresh puffy skin. Normally you’d pay £12; now, just £5.

Oliver Bonas has a great little range of beautiful Korres products, including their gorgeous lip butter, toning body mists, and body butters.

Vanilla plum, jasmine, guava, fig; good luck choosing!

Oliver Bonas also has a range of men’s products; like the intriguing Absinthe Men’s Shave Cream, and the Korres Men’s Kit – a fabulous little collection of Korres products, perfect for Christmas.

This code is only valid until November 9th, so don’t be late!

And suddenly, they’ve had a breakthrough, and come out with 10 minute hair colour.

All the different brands are having a go; so either there is some super secret spying going on in the labs, or they were all just waiting for the others to drop the bombshell and do it first. After all, we should be angry. How many hours have you wasted avoiding windows and waiting for your colour to develop?

I tried out L’Oreal’s Excell 10 offering in Chocolate Brown, just one of the 13 shades available. Apparently, this product is the result of ‘many years of research’, and is, in turn, the ‘new generation’ in hair colouring.

I shall attempt to contain my excitement.

L’Oreal Excell 10 is permanent colourant, and puports to leave your hair feeling stronger than before. The pack includes the ‘Easy Colour Comb’ which is supposedly simpler than the usual slim-tip bottle applicators you’ve used before. This is fine for the roots, but the lengths are always going to be tricky, especially if you’re looking to get the colourant on your hair, as opposed to your shoulders. Maybe I was doing it wrong?

So, once I was happy with my coverage, I sat, and I waited. But of course, this wasn’t like the other times. This was a short ten-minute wait. Except, when it came time to rinse, my hair didn’t look coloured at all. Defying the rules, I left it on for a couple more minutes; but I figured, in the pursuit of a truthful outcome, ten minutes was all it was going to get to prove itself.

I rinsed, and dried, and my hair was darker. Chocolate brown even. Great. Case closed then?

Well, no. Two washes down the track, and I was losing colour; fast. A week later, and I was back to my pre-dye colour.

My chocolate brown was just a distant memory, and my hair felt just the same as before too.

Has L’Oreal changed the face of home hair colouring in just ten minutes? Nope.

Back to the drawing pad?

If you want to try out ten minute hair colour, you can pick up a pack of L’Oreal Excell 10 from Boots.com, now just £4.99 here, or go for Nice n Easy’s attempt, Perfect 10, for £6.99.

In New York last week, I was feeling very much in the autumn mood, with chilly winds and grey skies, so I decided it was time to lose the cute pink shades of summer well and truly behind, and dip my nails in something a little more sultry.

Revlon has always been a favourite nail polish brand of mine; I love their rich shades and the stay-on-for-longer quality. So you can imagine my excitement when I first laid eyes on the fabulous new hue: Plum Seduction. A sweet pinky-purple, Plum Seduction is the perfect segue into the colder months; not too dark, not too bright!

After a couple of coats, it appears almost magenta, but with a beautiful bitter undertone that means it’s a statement colour and a wearable everyday shade.

Revlon’s Plum Seduction is on sale now at Superdrug, with a tidy £2.00 off it’s original price, now just £4.16 for a bottle.

Get autumn’s must-have nail colour here.