Good morning stars!

This morning is very drab and dreary due to the rainy weather that has settled over the United Kingdom today!  So if you have just come home from a fabulous holiday and you are feeling blue, it is high time that I lift your spirits!

If you feel your tan is fading, get yourself onto the Sol De Janeiro website.  Sol De Janeiro is a new brand in tanning and suncare from Brazil.  If the Brazillians don't know about tanning, then nobody ever will.  The girls out there know how to shimmy their behinds in those itsy bitsy bikini's, and always need to look their best.

All their products are inspired by the Brazillian beaches and smell of coconut, starfruit, acai, mango and brazil nut.  This inspires thoughts of lazing on the beach with your sexy brown skin, reading that novel that is so darn romantic.  :-P

Their sunscreens are made with natural essential oils and have fragrances of carambola, açaí, coconut, Brazil nuts and green mango to choose from.  This also means that they are cruelty-free.

You can buy their products at various shops like Selfridges, as well as across the internet (Amazon and Brummells of London).

So if you do feel blue, maybe it is time to give them a try? I definitely going to, these beachy smells are some of my favouite on this planet. 

xoxo,

Angelique

Look Good in a Bikini -- NOW!

You know those girls that walk around on the beach with a sarong tied around their waist? Sure, it's cute, but that's so not what I imagine when I buy a super-hot bikini that I absolutely love. What I want is to show it off, not hide it. But with summer just around the corner (OK fine, it's already here, geez), I don't really have time to go on a strict diet or start a six-month workout. What I need is ... a quick fix. You know, easy tricks to hide those small flaws or de-bloat fast, whatever.

While nobody has a perfect body, there are some easy things you can do to prepare your body and make it look the best it can. I talked to several experts, including a nutritionist, fitness guru, tanning expert and makeup artist -- they gave me tips on everything from eating the right foods to de-bloat, to slimming down and prepping your skin for the beach. They even broke it down into a helpful timeline, so even if you only have a week (or heck, hours) until you have to be in that bikini, you'll be ready.

Just remember: rapid and dramatic weight loss should not be your goal. (Flabby arms and excess skin? Not attractive.) Instead, just focus on toning your body for summer and eating right. You'll see more of what I'm talking about in my post. Bikini-ready body? Here I come.

If you have one month: Start exercising

OK, so you probably can't drop 10 pounds in a month, but you can do certain exercises to slim down and tone your muscles. For fat burning, there is the classical and steady cardio. Try switching off between walking and running in five-minute intervals to raise your heart rate.

Next, try these strength training exercises that will give your muscles tone and definition. Hold 5 or 10 pound weights in your hands, and start with your arms at your sides. Slowly curl your arms upward to your chest, hold for five seconds, and slowly bring them back down. Now lift your arms out to the side, hold for five seconds, and bring them back down. Do this 15 times, and repeat for three sets. And doing it daily for a month? You'll see a difference.

If you have one month: Stick to a healthy diet

A month is plenty of time to make a difference in your diet and your body. Make sure you don't skip meals. This will only slow down your metabolism. Instead, eat a lot of lean (preferably grilled) proteins like salmon, white fish and chicken. Also, don't forget your dark vegetables, like broccoli, spinach, kale and celery.

Bonus tip: Taking fish oil pills and consuming more essential fatty acids (such as flaxseed oil) will strengthen your nails and hair. They also help reduce redness and irritation in the skin and promote a glowing complexion.

If you have one month: Avoid these "bad for you" foods

For the next few weeks (even better if you keep it up afterwards), don't eat anything on this list:
• Anything that comes in a can
• Excess salt
• Red meat
• Fruit juice or soda
• Corn and anything made out of it, like popcorn
• Starchy vegetables like potatoes and yams

You'll see a difference in how you look and feel after just a month of staying away from these foods.

If you have one week: De-bloat your body

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Your skin is the first to show signs of dehydration. Replace sugary juices and carbonated drinks with water and green tea only. Adding lemon to your water will help flush sodium out of your system. Fruits with a high water content (like watermelon, papaya and grapefruit) will also help reduce inflammation.

And after each meal? Drinking ginger or peppermint tea will help with digestion and minimize belly bloating. Also pineapple is the perfect snack because it's a natural digestive enzyme.

If you have one week: Prep your skin

First of all, make sure to avoid toxins such as alcohol, smoke, and stress leading up to your event. These toxins will dry out your skin and cause it to break out.

Every day in the shower, exfoliate your body with a loofa and a gentle body scrub. If you have body or facial acne, follow up with a daily acne treatment to clear it up.

You can also use gradual self-tanner to build up a glow throughout the week (much safer than hitting the tanning bed).

If you only have one week: Contour your body with self-tanner

Using self-tanner helps camouflage or mask any skin flaws or body abnormalities and creates the illusion of a longer, leaner look. Before you tan, moisturize your entire body with lotion and put on gloves. Apply a self-tanner in long strokes, starting from your feet up. Once it has dried, use your finger to "paint in" the following areas:

On your abs: Flex your muscles and paint down the center of your stomach. Start from just below your chest down to your belly button. Repeat down the sides.
On your arms: Hold one arm out and flex your muscles. Paint a line of self-tanner between your bicep and triceps. Repeat on the other arm.
On your legs: Apply an extra coat of self-tanner to the entire insides of your thighs and a bit more to the outer parts, leaving the middle section without as much tanner. Make sure to blend it all well.

If you only have one day: Contour your body with makeup instead

If you're short on time, you can use long-lasting makeup to create the same contouring effects and make your body look leaner. All you need is a body bronzer and a foundation brush. Here's how makeup artist Landy Dean says to contour your body:

On your arms: Hold one arm out and flex your muscles. Paint the gel bronzer between your bicep and triceps and use a foundation brush to blend. Repeat on the other arm.
On your chest: Use the foundation brush to paint the gel bronzer into the shadows around your clavicle bone.
On your legs: Flex your calf muscles and paint the shadows created under your muscles to accentuate them.

If you only have one day: Skip the heavy weight lifting

Skip your workout if you're planning to hit the beach tomorrow. Why? A heavy workout will swell your body temporarily as lactic acid builds up post-workout. Which means you might look bigger than normal. So for the slimmest "you" possible, save those training sessions for later.

If you only have one day: Practice your posture

We've all heard this before, and it's totally true. The way you hold your posture can make you look and feel slimmer. So practice standing up straight and holding your shoulders back -- slouching will create excess weight in your mid-section. That way, you'll be super confident when you slip into your bikini.

Another tip for when you're lying on the beach: dig a small hole beneath your towel for butt and build a small hill for your head. This will help you lay more naturally, so you're more comfortable and look sexier. It sounds weird, I know, but try it and see.


Enjoy the beach! ;-)

10 Tips to Whipping Your Body into Shape for Summer

So the jig's up and most of us have finally realized, and begrudgingly accepted, that we will not be frolicking on the beach in a thong bikini this summer.

Sad? Eh, maybe if you (and your metabolism) are stuck in the '80s. Otherwise, you should know that you don't need a starvation plan -- or a sarong wrapped over your butt -- to feel confident in your body and sexy in a swimsuit this season.

That's right, you heard me. It's time to retire the Montego Bay seahorse sarong. Sorry, but come on -- it's really only hiding your self-esteem. You won't need that cover-up anyway, because with insider secrets from me on how to quickly de-bloat and shed a few pounds, coupled with the best summer skin tips for glowing, bronzed skin, you're going to want to flaunt every inch of your body.

So check out the 11 expert tricks to getting your body and skin ready for a fun-filled summer without any body loathing and who knows, you might end up so confident that you'll start looking for nude beaches … maybe …

Cardio, cardio, cardio

When it comes to slimming down fast, heart-pumping, fast-paced exercises are your best bet. Choose a form of cardio that helps you get your heart rate up -- really up. I recommend bumping up a cardio routine of "running, rowing, swimming, cycling or elliptical training, 45 to 60 minutes, 4 to 5 times per week to expedite weight loss.

If you can't find a full hour a day to work out, don't give up all hope in general. A 10 minute "express workout" that gets your heart pumping a couple of times a day will give you great results, so no more excuses. Try jumping jacks or climbing stairs, or heck, take a sprint around your work building every couple of hours. I also suggest swapping your office chair for a medicine ball, so you sneakily work your core without even thinking about it.

Bust your booty

Want to get that rear in shape? Who doesn't. Here are my secret "butt blasting" workouts  to be done at least once a week (more if you have the time and the energy). Aim for 15 to 20 repetitions of each:

• Squat thrusts with a medicine ball
• Sumo lunge with side kick and frog jump
• Jumping lunges
• Platypus walk with medicine ball

Avoid these foods and drinks

Certain foods are guaranteed to bloat your body so avoid these for a couple weeks leading up to your bathing suit debut. Steer clear of dairy, regular and diet soft drinks, sports drinks, and excessive fruit and instead stick to greens like spinach, broccoli, kale, and asparagus (a natural diuretic), as well as snacks like raw almonds, red peppers, and celery. Oh, and hydrate with water and teas only.

Remember, all calories aren't created equal

One of the biggest mistakes women trying to slim down make is treating every calorie the same. Many women think the calories from say, a granola bar, are going to be processed by the body the same way the calories from a chicken breast are. This is not true. When you are trying to loose weight skip processed carbs and excessive fruit or fat. Stick to nutrient-rich,  quality calories such as chicken, quinoa and vegetables.

Schedule a facial

According to celebrity esthetician and skin care expert Renée Rouleau, women need to get facials at least four times a year -- that's once at the start of each new season in order to remove dry skin, correct discoloration and brown spots, and most importantly, stimulate cell renewal for a fresh face, says Rouleau. So if you haven't had a facial since winter, it's time.

If you can't get to a spa to get one done, make sure you are giving yourself mini at-home facials on a regular basis:
Step 1: Start by washing skin with a mild cleanser.
Step 2: Use a facial exfoliant to remove dead and dry skin cells. Try any good exfoliator like Liz Earle.

Step 3: Immediately follow with a few drops of a skin-repairing serum, then apply a thin coat of a clarifying mask to your entire face and neck. The mask will help the serum penetrate deeper into your skin.

Step 4: Leave on 10 to 15 minutes, and use a warm wash cloth to gently clean off your face. Finish by applying your favorite moisturizer.

Ward off breakouts

If you have oily skin, summer can be the worst time to try to keep breakouts at bay, as sweating aggravates acne and leads to pimples on the body and face. I recommend treating mild to moderate facial acne with retinoids and benzoyl peroxide, which you can get from your doctor or in some drugstore brands. Other ingredients to look for: zinc sulfate, tea tree, caffeine, and niacinamide, which will all work to slow oil production. When it comes to clearing body acne, also look for a wash containing benzoyl peroxide.

Fix dry spots

With your body on full display, you're going to want to have smooth, hydrated skin, which means taking care of any dry, cracked or rough patches with a little TLC. This means paying extra attention to your knees, elbows, heels and hands.

Start this process in the shower by applying a super moisturizing body wash like Dove VisibleCare Creme Body Wash with NutriumMoisture. Lather it over your body with a loofah to gently exfoliate and hydrate skin at the same time. Once you're out of the shower, rub a lotion all over and add a couple of drops of body oil like L'Occitane Almond Supple Skin Oil, which works to repair the hydrolipidic barrier of the skin and really sink into those rough patches (knees, elbows, etc.) So you get glowing -- fast.

Get waxed

Body hair is the last thing you want to worry about this summer and waxing is a great alternative to shaving if you have hair you're uncomfortable with. Waxing is better [than shaving] because it removes hair from the root. When you shave you just cut the hair, so two hours later, you can see the hair there or a blue shadow, which is the hair follicle below the skin. Waxing, on the other hand, not only lasts up to a month, but it's also more permanent -- over time, it thins the hair so less grows back. Bonus: It exfoliates the skin as well, leaving you feeling silky smooth (and leaving you with one less skin care to-do).

If you opt for waxing, do not to use any scrubs for the next 48 hours and do not expose the area to direct sun for at least 24 hours. Also, to treat any resulting redness or swelling, apply a small amount of cortisone cream from the drugstore. If you choose to stick to the good ol' razor, make sure to shave after you take a shower or bath, so your hair is softer and easier to remove. And always lather up with a moisturizing shave cream and use a brand new razor to minimize irritation.

Get glowing

Of course, you know you'll look healthier and thinner with a tan. But you also know that the only safe way to achieve aforementioned tan is with self-tanner. The good news is a realistic faux-glow is super easy to achieve, especially if you follow these tips.

Start by exfoliating to get rid of that top layer of dead skin cells and shave or wax the usual areas. Skip the moisturizer on the day you plan to apply self-tanner, as it can act as barrier between the tanning ingredients and your skin. For the most natural looking tan, you are going to want to choose a product that's only one or two shades darker than your natural skin hue.  

Be sunscreen savvy

All seasons require regular sunscreen application, but summer is that special time when more of the body is exposed to the sun for longer periods of time, which means you need more sunscreen, applied more often and to more body parts.

Here are some sunscreens to try:
For the face -- MDSolarSciences Mineral Screen Tinted Gel SPF 30, is great for the summer months as it's a physical block containing titanium dioxide and zinc. It's also non-comedogenic, so it won't clog pores. Added bonuses: No shiny or gooey residual feel, no added chemical actives, and it adds a subtle hint of color if you want to go sans makeup on the beach.
For the body -- Aveeno HYDROSPORT Sunblock Spray with SPF 50,  is great for when you're on the go. It provides UVA/UVB protection and stays on despite water and sweat. Added bonuses: Lightweight, non-greasy, and no goopy white mess.

I hope you've all enjoyed these tips and get yourself ready for summer time.  I'm so excited ;)