So last week I was lucky enough to win a twitter competition with feelunique.com and win a signed copy of beauty and fashion blogger/vlogger, Fleur de Force’s new book – The Glam Guide. I was beyond thrilled as I never win anything and I’ve been dying to read it since its release. In case you don’t already know, Fleur is one of the UK’s most successful beauty vloggers. Since she made her first video in 2009 her YouTube channel has gained a global audience of over a 1.8 million, with her videos attracting 3-5 million views per month. Fleur’s blog also attracts an average of 100’000 visitors per month. Fleur has also collaborated with the My Little Box beauty subscription service and won numerous awards, including Cosmopolitans ‘Best Vlogger’ Award in 2013 and 2014.
Her debut book (released February 12th) is a collection of tips and advice on a wide range of subjects including; makeup, fashion, hair, travel, dating, blogging, health and fitness, body image and relationships. Fleur writes – “more than just a beauty manual, The Glam Guide is also about embracing a chic and fulfilling lifestyle”.
The Glam Guide is beautifully illustrated, down to the delicate watercolour blotches on the front cover to the sketches, doodles and photography within. I love the opening message of self-acceptance and confidence being the key to beauty, this book will be read by a lot of young girls and Fleur makes it clear that beauty is individual. She also starts to break down the idea that there are strict ‘beauty rules’ and templates to follow, this is an advice book not a rule book.
Tips and advice in the beauty chapter include using a colour wheel to select complementary shades, how to chose the right foundation, a guide to the perfect smokey eye look, DIY face masks and ‘The Ingredient Blacklist’ that details harmful chemicals to avoid, which I found really useful. The book goes on to give hairstyle tutorials, fashion advice and dating etiquette. I like how Fleur also shares her experience with bullying in the Body Image chapter and gives practical steps to build self-confidence.
The Glam Guide gives practical advice about fashion, beauty and lifestyle without being patronising or creating unrealistic expectations in young women. I feel on the whole the book is aimed at a younger audience than I anticipated but still contains a lot of great advice. I wish I had a guide like this when I was younger and I think this will be perfect to hand over to my teenage daughter one day – it has such a positive and inspirational message!
The Glam Guide (paperback) currently retails for £7.49 on Amazon.co.uk.
Have you read The Glam Guide yet? I’d love to know your thoughts! Please leave a comment below and don’t forget to follow The Beautiful Bluebird on Bloglovin to keep up-to-date with upcoming posts.
