FAKE BAKE talks Lada Gaga, sharp dressing and the power of tan….

Lady Gaga is everywhere at the moment. Come on, you must have seen A Star Is Born by now. Yes, we went to spy on Bradley Cooper, but her performance in it is awe inspiring. An Oscar has to be on its way, surely? We remember first seeing the First Lady of Music on MTV’s The Hills, back in the days when she was doing showcase gigs in clubs. She had something so different and special about her even then, and now we know more than ever just why she’s not just a super talent, but literally the voice of her generation. Who would have thought when she was getting styled by Lauren Conrad and Whitney Port that she would go on to become such a megastar?

Over the last decade, Lada Gaga hasn’t just developed a signature style, she has literally wowed us with her artistry. We also love the fact that she’s grown with us when it comes to tanning styles. When she launched Poker Face, she created a look that is still copied…..

Lady Gaga has never been an identikit pop star. She’s always struck out on her own, and maintained control over her unique image. We love the fact that she sometimes matches a really powerful look, and a golden glow with more girly elements….

Gaga has always been at the forefront of couture and has worked with all of the best fashion houses. From Dior to Chanel, she’s certainly one for trying the most out-there looks, but sometimes we love it when she takes the more simple approach. We adore the campaign she did for Versace, and, of course, the resemblance to a certain Donatella jumped straight off the page, statement tan to match!

OK, so we still talk about that meat-inspired dress, but we think our fave Lady looks amazing when she channels Old Hollywood for the red carpet. Here she is doing a modern Marilyn, complete with retro waves, the perfect white dress and that gorgeous skin finish….

In A Star Is Born, Gaga’s style is stripped right back. We never thought we’d ever see her in jeans, or looking a little less directional, but she really suits the darker hair and subtle tan…

Last week, at Elle USA’s Women In Hollywood Awards, she strode the red carpet in oversized Marc Jacobs and literally stole the fashion crown of the event, which was packed full of L.A.’s most powerful ladies. She also spoke from the heart, which is always what she does in her music, and we love that we can relate to her personal story. And the look? Well, maybe we won’t go quite so oversized but we’ve already been stalking the new 80’s themed tailoring in Zara. This suit hits the Gaga spot.

As for the styling and tan, she certainly still has a bit of an Italian edge to us - a gal called Stefani Germanotta is always going to go for the glow! We love the simple hair, statement tan and power shoulder. Just add a contoured cheek and a plump lip and you are good to go. We’d recreate this first of all with our Fake Bake The Face, our premium Anti-Ageing Self Tan Lotion, which has our own patented, proven skincare benefits and is great to use at this time of year, when your summer sun kissed glow has taken its annual vacation!

For that contoured look, we love our Fake Bake Beauty Bronzer and matching Kabuki Brush, to dust over everywhere the sun might go, without the damage. It has a super-fine formula that makes it really buildable, without a hint of orange or glitter.

Lastly, the lips! Forget needles, just go for our Fake Bake Lip Inflate, our own Collagen Plumping Lipgloss. Packed with peptides to plump, glycerin to hydrate our own polymer to create that glassy finish, load it over your fave matte lip to get that Gaga pout.

Talking of powerful women, we’ve been collaborating with so many lately, but we thought we’d call out a few, just for being great to work with and being super-inspirational to us.

We are loving Hannah Elizabeth’s strong but sassy look. Hannah was the original Love Island girl, and her infectious humour, strength and girl’s girl personality means Team Fake Bake have taken her to their hearts.

Ashley Louise James looks amazing in her own version of the power shoulder, which she works with colour blocking and attitude. Model, DJ, body realness spokesperson and TV star, she is all about speaking her truth whilst rocking her Fake Bake professional spray tan, natch!

Our fave Stephanie Pratt always looks spot on and while we are talking about The Hills (the Gaga episode is Season 5, people!) we are glad she’s going to be back with Audrina and the gang for 2019. Since the original, the girls have all become successful and look more incredible than ever.

And finally, Aisleyne, who’s sporting her own shoulder with the power shoulder. We’ve been working with the Big Brother star for many seasons, and since the show she has gone on to be an author, property developer and entrepreneur in her own right. Are we proud of her? Hell, yeah!

It’s that time of year when we all start to feel a little meh. It’s been a long time since summer, a while until Christmas, we all feel like hibernating and our beauty routines can get a bit lost. But pick a date with your besties, go and watch two people fall in love, all over again, and forget about going in jeans. Give it your best style effort, and if your power shoulders block the view of everyone behind you, tell them to get with the Gaga programme. Plus, you can sneak in a bit of extra popcorn in those trouser pockets. Not that you got that tip from us.

Get your tan on, your girls out, and remember, when it comes to this look, the only orange allowable is on your lips. As you were.

All products available at www.fakebake.co.uk

Suit is available in store and online www.zara.com

Follow Hannah on Insta @hannahelizinssta

Follow Ashley on Insta @ashleylouisejames

Follow Stephanie on Insta @officialstephpratt

Follow Aisleyne on Insta @aisleyne1

All previous seasons of MTV’s The Hills are now available on iTunes. The new season launches Spring 2019.

FAKE BAKE talks Moschino collabs and the perfectly bold tan…

Sometimes you gotta go bold. When we heard that Moschino were collaborating with H&M our style hearts skipped a beat. We have been there before and we know the deal. Queues and crashing websites? It’s not putting Team Fake Bake off and we know it won’t keep you away, either. Past glories from Balmain, Versace and Stella McCartney are still valued parts of our wardrobes. Now it’s time to go into battle once more.

If you love Fake Bake then you will adore Moschino. That’s a given. It’s a label that has an unusual heritage. Franco Moschino, who once worked as an illustrator for the late Gianni Versace, struck out on his own and created something so different that as a brand it has survived every style weather. And yet when Franco unveiled his first designs the bright Italian fashion crowd were slow on the uptake. It was Britain that took Franco to its heart, and a love affair started that still continues.

What was it about Moschino that gave us that love at first sight vibe? It was fashion that didn’t take itself too seriously. Franco certainly took some design pointers from Gianni in terms of colour, but he added humour and warmth, and a sense that he would never take the fashion elite too seriously. He was way ahead of his time culturally. He championed diversity and inclusivity, and the Moschino ad campaigns reflected that. Some of them look so fresh, they were way ahead of their time.

Franco also realised in the 1990’s that a lot of his fans were young and not quite up to top designer prices, and so he created the ultimate diffusion range: Cheap and Chic. He went to town with this one and the t-shirts, jeans and accessories were recognisable and covetable.

Sadly, Franco Moschino passed away in 1994 and since then the label has never left us, but it was the arrival of style bad boy, Jeremy Scott, in 2013, which really amped up its appeal. He took all of Franco’s colour, vibrancy, cheekiness and pop culture joy and made Moschino shine again. His Barbie-inspired collection in 2015 still stands as a brilliant piece of fashion theatre.

This Autumn/Winter he has taken suiting and Jackie O references and made them youthful and exciting - Kaia Gerber wears it beautifully. It’s kind of 60’s air stewardess chic at the same time, but with a millennial twist.

Amongst the fashion game changers, Moschino is still a huge favourite. Italian maverick Anna Dello Russo, who sits on every FROW, is always ready to take on the most out-there looks and she does so with wit, wisdom and a knockout tan.

In real life, as in our lives, we don’t tend to cut about in head-to-toe designer every day but we do love a brilliant accessory and Moschino is better at these than anyone else. It’s all about brights, chains, tongue-in-cheek references and a V sign at established couture houses.

Now we are getting ready to enjoy the best of both worlds, as Scott has worked with the team at H&M to create the ultimate capsule collaboration. Now we get to try the outfits that match our accessories and we cannot wait. There are casual emblazoned sweater dresses with signature Peace-sign earrings for day, and pure glamour pieces for evening. Jeremy Scott is a close friend of Gigi Hadid. She’s worn Moschino on the red carpet many times and is often the lead model at his runway shows. She is the perfect fit to front the campaign.

The look is pure baroque and roll, people. From metallic caps to statements boots, and chain prints over gold, it’s time to step forward into your style spotlight.

And your tan? Well, you need to go bold on that front. It’s no time to mess about with a subtle approach. It’s Moschino, which means you are meant to be seen. We would definitely go with our Fake Bake Flawless Darker Self Tan Liquid because it is going to give you that ultimate seamless tan, that is so easy to apply with the Flawless technology that created a revolutionary formula that has won us so many awards, and they keep coming. Before you throw on those boots we’d add a touch of our Fake Bake Bronzer Instant Tan to add depth to your look. It gives skin a beautiful finish and a ready for the night ahead glow.

We know that sometimes real life gets in the way. You might need a sweater dress, or flats, a great coat or brilliant jeans. We all need key accessories that work with everything and that we trust every time we put them together. But every girl deserves a bit of fun in her life and this kind of full on glam is going to be right there at your fingertips, if you are ready to do the online dance, or sharpen your elbows, if you are heading in store to get your hands on your fave pieces.

Team Fake Bake are currently checking their bank balances and exfoliating because you can’t go into battle unprepared. Do Italians Do It Better? Maybe they do, but Franco Moschino loved our British sense of fearless style and for that we owe him a huge debt of gratitude. For which we are about to repay him in full……

All products featured are available at www.fakebake.co.uk

The MOSCHINO (tv) Collection will be available at selected stores and online from November 8th

FAKE BAKE on Killing Eve Style - it’s all about Villanelle va-va-voom….

Once in a while a female lead walks on to our screens and steals our style hearts, but it doesn’t happen very often. You don’t get many Carrie Bradshaws in one lifetime. When we heard about Killing Eve, and that it was being produced by Fleabag’s awesome Phoebe Waller-Bridge we couldn’t wait to watch it. Once it was released we did what every other binge watcher does - we settled in for the night, stopped for a sleep, and then stayed in our PJ’s the next day until we’d finished. Then we sat silently in awe. Did all of that really just happen?

If you haven’t seen it yet, watch it. Yes, we loved The Bodyguard but it still had that old fashioned boy-tries-to-save-girl storyline. Not so, Killing Eve. In this instance, Eve, played by Grey’s Anatomy star Sandra Oh, is a British intelligence officer trying to track down a havoc-wreaking Russian hit woman, whom she knows as Villanelle. The hit woman is played by the extraordinary Jodie Comer, and she is our tip for Hollywood’s Next Big Thing. We are not alone there.

There are some great male characters, but what we love about the show is that the big hitting players are all intelligent, feisty and brilliantly funny women. Eve is not so hot in the style stakes to start off with, though. She’s too busy throwing on an old beanie and an anorak as she goes off in search of the mysterious Russian. Villanelle, though, is a style lesson all on her own. As we learn more about her life, we do know that she has had very little love in it. Her job kind of underlines that theme. But she does adore fashion, and her powerful outfits are a huge part of what makes her character shine.

So what is it about Villanelle? First up, she lives in Paris, which helps. Secondly, she seems to have an outfit to suit every occasion, even if those occasions are often every unfortunate for the other people involved. From Italy to Berlin, she roams around Europe on her missions taking no prisoners, staking out her targets and doing so with such elegance it’s a bit hard to marry what she does with how she looks. It’s part of the show’s strength, and this unexpectedly beautiful, almost girlish young woman is capable of doing a job normally given to big, burly blokes. They just couldn't carry off Miu Miu in quite the same way.

Our fave looks? We adore the Dries Van Noten suit from the nightclub scene in Berlin. Add some plaits and a killer stare.

The blue Burberry dress worn on a mysterious assignment in Italy is to-die-for. Literally.

We love Villanelle’s elegant Chloe silk shirt matched with tougher denim shorts, a bike, legs for days and a drainpipe shimmy.

But it’s THAT pink dress by Molly Goddard that has got us all talking. It’s the kind of dress the males in your life will probably hate. We’ve had comments about toilet roll holders when we have expressed our love for it. Maybe it’s just the type of outfit we want to dress up in, and the Balenciaga boots which give the look a street edge. Perhaps we all have a little of Villanelle about us in that we don’t like to be told what to do, we like to outfox others, although we are quite happy to say we differ when it comes to her career choice. We’re quite happy with just a spray gun, thanks.

As Team Fake Bake we are obviously in love with Villanelle’s golden glow. There is no way this girl is going on an assignment with pasty pins. And even though she’s Russian and speaks many languages, IRL we love her more for the fact that we know that actress Jodie Comer, who plays her, is actually from Liverpool. We consider this fabulous city to be Team Fake Bake’s second home. When we launched in the UK this was the town that embraced us with toned, bronzed arms. It made sense to us. If you want feisty, fearless and fun, then this is the place to find your player.

We know that you will want to adapt your Killing Eve look and that you’ll want to glam it up a little so for Fake Bake’s take on Villanelle’s style we thought we’d give you our options…..

This hot pink dress by Liverpool-based designer, Kirsty Doyle, is the perfect way to steal Villanelle’s style with an evening twist. You gotta add a golden shoulder to get away with it.

Not got a Balenciaga budget? Then these boots from Zara will add that strength to sharpen up your stance.

For that gorgeous skin finish, then clearly you need a little bit of Fake Bake assistance, as assassin style doesn’t give you time to sit around trying to catch rays, and they kind of ruin your legendary hit woman beauty anyway. When you’ve got to be ready in a hurry try our Fake Bake 5 Minute Mousse Self Tan. Exfoliate, apply, get dressed and go. It really is that simple. Your tan will develop while you get to work.

Finally, add a top knot and if you really want to add a tiny hint of mystery, stick in a vintage hairpin. If you’ve seen the show, you’ll get the reference. We are going to miss our girls but, without giving away the ending, we do hope there is a second season as we want more from Eve and Villanelle, and extra styles to embrace. For the record, we are punching the air that producers are not just casting more female driven roles and programmes, but are also women themselves. If you give us the shows, we will watch them. In the meantime, we are taking extra inspo from our amazing friend Dani Dyer, who certainly has it spot on with this Fake Bake custom tan from our Global Creative Consultant, James Harknett. And gorgeous Tara Maynard has that tough-tulle-girl thing going on, Balenciaga-style, tan courtesy of our Fake Bake Double Espresso.

Villanelle, if you are out there, feel free to send us a suitcase full of your designer dream buys but maybe don’t drop by for dinner any time soon……

You have given Killer Legs a whole new meaning. For that, we want to say thank you. From a respectful distance, natch.

All products available from www.fakebake.co.uk

Stills images courtesy of BBC America

Pink Dress available now from www.kirsty-doyle.com

Boots available now from www.zara.com

Follow Tara’s style on Insta @taramays25

The complete season of Killing Eve is now available on BBC iPlayer

FAKE BAKE talks tanning trends at Milan, Paris and our Kaia obsession…..

We know it’s not really winter yet, but any fashion addict worth their rock salt is already looking to next season to find a bit of inspiration. So we might not be able to wear some of the looks just yet, but when it comes to hair and beauty trends, we are all over them. And, obviously being Team Fake Bake, we are always talking tanning. Gone are the days when one tan attempted to fit all. Now we have a whole wardrobe of tanning looks to suit our moods. But after looking at what has been going on in Milan and Paris, we have good news: the tan is your best accessory for 2019. And it has to be fake because you want gorgeous skin. Obvs.

As Michael Kors announced that they are buying out Versace, with the legendary Donatella staying on as Creative Director, we know that that legendary Versace golden glow will thrive, as Michael Kors as a brand is all about the jet-setting kinda feel. And match your tan to your sports-luxe to make it very Bella, Bella…..

Talking of the brunette Hadid sister, we are all about a tanned shoulder and a jumpsuit after seeing what the legendary Jeremy Scott has been doing at Moschino. This may be a next season hack but we think this look is about as party season as it gets.

Talking of party season, we think matching your current mood with your mate’s is the fashion way forward. Highlighted shoulders. Check. Head-to-toe red. Check. Smooth skin and golden pins. Check. Walking out of the club with your drink still in your hand? OK, maybe only Rihanna and supermodels can get away with that one!

Style spotting at Milan and Paris we noticed some distinct trends. Hair was fresh and tousled. Clothes chic and slouchy with a nod to casual, but lots of luxurious fabrics. The accessories, though, are all about classics. From a relaunched Dior saddlebag to a chic patent Louboutin pump, street stars were all about mixing something traditional with huge statement earrings and don’t-pap-me-pouts. It’s all about looking effortless in a way that we know takes a whole lot of effort to put together. That’s part of the fun, right?

We are absolutely loving the tight ponytails and plaits we saw on the catwalk. You better make sure your skin is glowing and your eyebrows are sleek to carry this look off. And someone who wears it so well is Kaia Gerber. The face of every major label at all four Fashion Capitals, she certainly took her mum’s Take Your Daughter To Work Day seriously as a kid. While we used to get dragged to our mum’s offices, she did a Versace shoot instead.

Can it be easy being Cindy C’s daughter? Legendary supermodel, part of the original crew that graced the cover of Vogue in 1990 that made models superstars, Cindy has had a stellar career that is still going strong nearly thirty years later. But here’s the thing. Kaia Gerber is just out of high school but she’s making fashion her own space. As Paris Fashion Week draws to a close she’s on the cover of French Vogue bringing youth and colour to style’s most illustrious city.

We adore this sporty look at Off White. Team that famous swoosh with door knocker earrings, a glossy pout and sculpted cheeks.

At Maxmara, Kaia brought her genetic elegance to a grown up label. It’s all about that extended plait and highlighted cheek.

At Fendi, it’s topknot time, a baby fringe and a perfectly structured coat.

So, you are asking, this is all well and good if you are Kaia Gerber in real life, but what if you are one if us? The non-supermodel brigade who still want to look amazing. We checked out our gorgeous friend, Amber, media star and Clyde 1 Official regular, who showed us how to do Kaia’s look with the help of our pro tanning products, Gold and Double Dark, and our wonder contouring stick, She’s Shady. You can try the look at home with our She’s Shady Kit. You simply apply the She’s Shady stick to areas you want to highlight, and use our Airbrush so that you get a really sculpted effect. (Just in case you are a novice the kit comes with full instructions to get your look spot on!)

We suppose it’s back to reality for a while, which means box sets, big socks and working out how many paydays we can squeeze in before Christmas. We are dreaming of finding Saint Laurent boots under the tree, but until then, we’ll be channelling Kaia with our perfect ponies and packing pamper nights in with the company of this girl.

Killing Eve. If you haven’t binge watched it yet, are you even on Team Fake Bake?

Our She’s Shady Kit is on offer at www.fakebake.co.uk while stocks last

Follow Amber Zoe on Insta @imamaberzoe

Original supermodel cover courtesy of British Vogue

Other Kaia image courtesy of Vogue Paris

Killing Eve, starring Jodie Comer, is available on BBC iPlayer