To celebrate the launch of online boutique Powder Rooms, I received a few Ciate goodies from the site's PR company.
Powder Rooms stocks a stunning range of gifts, beauty products, cards and wrapping.
As a thank you (and a Merry Christmas) to all my subscribers, I'm giving you the chance to win 3 stunning Ciate nail paints, worth £9 each - available from Powder Rooms.
Colours are: Gold Digga, Vintage and Stiletto.
Rules of Entry
All you have to do is subscribe to my blog and post a comment below (preferably a festive one - I'm feeling a bit Christmassy!).
If you'd like an extra contest entry, post a line on your own blog about my comp. Thank you.
And that's it! A big thank you for subscribing and Merry Christmas to you all.
I will draw the winner at random on New Year's Day (January 1) at noon.
Hello and welcome to a very festive edition of 'Backstage with....'
My latest band feature sees me chat with French foursome, Plasticines - who've recently appeared on TV's Gossip Girl, as well as receiving a rave review by NME for their debut album.
Well done Plasticines and a big A Lauren to Herself welcome to Marine, Ana, Katty and Louise.
Oooh la la!
Lauren: A big UK hello to Plasticines! What have you to lately and are the four of you set for Christmas?
Ana: We've been doing a lot of promo in France and in the UK lately, now we've got some vacations and we're organising a Christmas meal at Katty's place (cause she's such a good cook!) with lots of french traditional food and we're doing Secret Santa.
Marine: We are writing some new songs as well, time passes so fast and we're gonna be super busy with our French tour in February, so we're trying to work out new stuff while we're not travelling.
Lauren: Are Plasticines a fan of fellow French bands, such as the fantastic Teenagers - and what's the music scene like in your hometown?
Ana: The Teenagers are friends of us and they're awesome!
But except for us and Phoenix, we dont really listen to French music... we're really inspired by the English and American scene. marine.
We love as well Naive New Beaters and Cocovan who are both French - it's kind of the same vibe with The teenagers. but the music scene here is more electro.
Lauren: What's the average day in the life of a Plasticines' member like?
Ana: When we're not doing any promotion or when we're not on tour, we've got a real simple life
We're going to band practice during the day, doing a bit of shopping and usually ended up in a restaurant, in a bar, or going to a gig with our friends and enjoy some nice time.
Marine: We like to come to London as well when we're not busy to enjoy some time with our friends, go to the diner and drink snake bite.
Lauren: What's been Plasticines' most memorable gig/biggest highlight since forming?
Marine: We supported The Slits during our first tour in France, which was pretty amazing for us as they are one of our biggest icons.
Katty ended up singing on stage with Ari Up... so cool.
We also played at Coachella two years ago with Prince and Kraftwerk.
Lauren: Who, out of the four of you, takes the longest to get ready? And what's your preferred on-stage look?
Ana: I think Katty is the longest to get ready!
Not that she has to do a lot of things, but she just likes to take her time to get ready and to chill out before going on stage.
We like to stay simple on stage, I like wearing just a legging and a long vintage tee shirt to be comfortable on stage...and I just put some lipstick on!
Marine: Katty is the longest one...I think my favorite look on stage is an American Apparel t shirt with a mini skirt, some tights and converses.
It's important to feel good to play well and also it's always getting hot really quickly on stage...so the less you wearing the better it is!
Lauren: What's your favourite make-up look to wear on stage?
Ana: I dont wear a lot of make-up on stage, just a lot of lipstick like pink, orange, red or even black!
Marine: I love to get some dark make up with smokey eyeshadow and pink blush.
I don't wear mascara or lipstick, it's not really my cup of tea.
I think everything is in your hair. That's probably why Katty is taking so much time to get ready - she has some responsibilities, you know.
Louise: Sixties eye liner for Katty and smokey eyes for me!
Lauren: Do you feel, as four girls in a band, that sometimes you're not taken as seriously as you ought to be?
Ana: Yes, especially in France actually.
I don't know why, for them it's not normal being in a rock band and being four girls!
But I don't really care about that, I just love playing and to be in a girl band.
Lauren: If Plasticines could share a stage with anyone (dead or alive), who would it be and why?
Ana: It's so hard to pick one! We've got so many idols with whom we'd loved to share a stage like Iggy Pop, David Bowie, Blondie, Dave Grohl, Mick Jagger... so so many.
Marine: The Ramones...but unfortunately it's not gonna happen..maybe in paradise.
Watch Plasticines' 'Bitch' Gossip Girl promo video
"If you like your coffee hot, let me be your coffee pot."
One of my favourite John Cooper Clarke lines - taken from the poem 'I Wanna Be Yours'.
The punk poet, more recently known for his collaborations with Arctic Monkeys and Reverend and the Makers, as well as a cameo in the Joy Division film Control, performed live at Preston's 53 Degrees last February.
....indulging in a spot of festive pampering, thanks to beauty site, Wahanda.
Well, you can't beat a bit of luxury, can you? Especially at this time of year, when we all fall foul to tired, dull, dry skin.
So...as an early Christmas present, I've booked myself in for a mini facial at Huddersfield's Alexandra House.
If you're a beauty fanatic and you like nothing more than a relaxing facial, pedicure or manicure, Wahanda does the hard work for you by bringing together over 10,000 spas, salons, gyms and therapists from across the UK.
Offering exclusive deals like 2 for 1 spa packages and pamper days, Wahanda gives honest reviews of beauty treatments and by purchasing a gift voucher and entering your postcode on the site, you'll have access to hundreds of participating spas offering fantastic exclusive deals.
I'll let you know how I get on at the spa...
In the meantime, don't forget to enter Wahanda's great Christmas competitionhere
Coming soon on A Lauren to Herself.... a giveaway!
My latest 'From the Archives' series sees me dig out an interview I did in November last year.
Wow, how time flies.
When I heard Steve Coogan, star of Alan Partridge, Knowing Me, Knowing You and The Day Today (All British comedies, for my overseas subscribers who might not be in the know) was performing live in Blackpool I jumped at the chance to interview him.
I'm a massive Alan Partridge fan and seeing as it was Steve's first live gig in 10 years, it seemed daft to miss it.
So, like the giddy kipper that I was, I phoned Steve in his hotel room for a quick natter prior to his Blackpool show.
This interview was first published in The Visitor newspaper, Morecambe last year, while a live phone recording of the interview (eeek!) was also published on the newspaper's website.
Apart from pillar box red lips and dark defined brows, I doubt there's a current trend more popular than smokey eyes.
Thankfully Stila has released a new, almost idiot-proof compact which makes creating a smokey eye effortless. The revolutionary 'talking' palette (yep, talking!) guides you step by step through the art of sexy, sultry, smokey eyes at the simple push of a button on the palette's lid (see pic below). It's like having your own make-up artist by your side, at a snip of the price.
I've been getting to grips with the palette, since getting hold of one a few weeks ago - and I love it. I'm hoping to post some swatches soon and an 'EOTD' look.
Here's a review I wrote on the talking palette (which is currently a top seller) for the site Beauty Fragrances.
Anyone else a fan of Stila? What else can you recommend from the range? x
If there's one thing I hate about winter, it's dry, flaky skin.
And after reading a review of Elemis' Visible Brilliance by a fellow beauty writer here I was chuffed when Elemis sent me a sample to try out for myself.
Up until then, I'd been using good old Boots Botanics Pore Moisturiser. It was working ok for me and at less than a quarter of the price of Visible Brilliance, I wasn't complaining.
£4o for Visible Brilliance seemed a bit steep...so I was thrilled to be able to see what all the fuss is about without spending a penny. Well, it is Christmas after all.
Here's what Elemis say: "In order to bring the brightness and luminosity back to the skin, Elemis, the leading British skincare and spa brand has spent the past two years researching and developing innovative skin radiance booster and now present new Visible Brilliance."
So far, so good.
Visible Brilliance is the latest addition to the Elemis skincare category. It's suitable for all skin types and ages and is said to "lift and re-energise dull, fatigued and stressed skin."
So I've been using Visible Brilliance morning and evening on clean, dry skin (under make-up during the day).
It's hardly what you'd call a miracle worker (I didn't wake up looking ten years younger, anyway!), but I did notice my skin felt softer and lots smoother, especially immediately after application.
Once applied on the skin, you'll notice an iridescent gold and silver appearance, resulting in a translucent 'glowy' complexion, so this would make an ideal primer before make-up.
Would I pay for it? Maybe not, but I am really enjoying using it. You can tell it's an expensive moisturiser and my mum's even been nabbing a bit on the sly.
A nourishing luxury treat for dull, winter skin or a great Christmas gift - if you're willing to part with the cash.
Has anyone else had any joy with this? What are your favourite skin care products?
Here's the second of my 'From the Archives' series, where I delve deep into my journalistic archive and pull out a feature, interview or celeb sighting for your pleasure.
Following the recent news that Florence Welch said she'd have been kicked off X Factor if she was a contestant, here's an old review of mine (below) of her performance in Lancaster.
The London-born songstress performed live at Lancaster Library's Get It Loud in Librariesgig last year and I reviewed the show forThe Visitornewspaper (where I work full time) and NME.com.
