Welcome To Miami

The who's who of stars living in Miami is seemingly endless - Shakira, Madonna, Jennifer Lopez, Whitney Houston,  Lenny Cravitz...  You get the picture.

So a night in Miami is bound to be packed with celebrities, right?

Hence why there was no way I could miss Smirnoff's Exchange event, where they promised to bring the Miami way of nightlife right here to London while our friends across the pond were treated to a quintessential British party. Though I was disappointed that they didn't manage to bring the Floridian celeb massive to the Big Smoke, the night was a major success.

Walking to the Troxy nightclub as part of my trusty foursome (Ibiza crew), we were greeted by Miami police officers, accent and all, guiding us to our venue for the evening. Once we stepped in and picked up the obligatory VIP wristbands, Miami was at our feet and our fingertips. Bottomless Smirnoff Mule cocktails, mini burger canapes and palm trees galore. From our seats high in the wings, we grinded to Tinie Tempah, raved to Zane Lowe and bopped to Example. But once the final Miami-inspired act of the night took to the DJ booth, Jaguar Skills, we just had to join the masses to party until the lights came on at the end of the night.

So, OK, we had to walk the icy cold journey back to the tube station after the doors closed behind us. And there was no local beach to head to watch the sunrise. But for just a few hours we could pretend we were on the Atlantic coast rather than south-east London. And for that I can't thank Smirnoff enough. I raise my Miami Mule to you guys.

It's High Time To Shine

With naturally fine hair but a lot, and I mean a lot, of it, winter is not kind to my tresses. Summer's tousled beachhead look comes sickeningly easily to me loose waves but once the cold weather set in and I'm forced to tame the beast on a daily basis, frizz and split ends wreak havoc.

So how do I bag myself the mane of Eva Longoria Parker or Lauren Conrad? Hair that looks healthy, feels healthy and you can do anything with?

That's exactly the reason I headed to the Charles Worthington salon on Percy Street. Could their mineral hair masque salon treatment help in my quest for sleek and smooth hair? Or would it just be another false promise?

Combining the heat of ceramic irons and a hot towel treatment, the spa-inspired treatment aims to give the hair an intense injection of much-needed moisture, particularly at this time of year.  The inevitable change in temperature that comes with winter - blustery chills outdoors and stuffy central heating outdoors - leaves the hair stripped of its natural oils, head stylist tells me. Enter the CW mineral hair masque, whose primary ingredient argan oil is revered as a tonic for dry, damaged tresses.

Blink and you could easily miss the Charles Worthington salon in London's West End, but once I stepped in, I was treated like a queen. We're talking celebrity status.

First, I was offered a variety of celeb mags (they know their audience), a drink of my choice and skewers laden with fresh fruit. My hair hadn't even been touched and already I was won over. Then I was introduced to Mathew, who started to talk me through the treatment. My hair was washed and towel-dried, after which the mineral masque was combed through my hair, a section at a time. A top tip from Mathew? Only apply conditioning products to the midsection and tips of your hair, as the roots generally hold on to the scalp's natural oils and adding extra product can leave you with lank, greasy locks. My hair was then sectioned again and ceramic irons were pulled over the strands, as if he was straightening them. The thought of heat on my wet, product-laden hair scared me but Mathew explained the irons were only set to 80degrees, which is just enough to seal the moisture in without damaging the hair. Then I was led to the washing area again, where the masque was rinsed out, a serum applied, and my hair bundled up into a warm towel. After about 10 minutes, the serum was washed out and I sat down for my usual blow dry.

I couldn't see an immediate difference to my hair though the hairbrush did seem to glide through it more easily when Mathew was styling it afterwards. The real test was when I washed my hair the following day, and as I rinsed my normal conditioner I was struck by the smoothness of my hair. There was a slight gloss to the strands which lasted a day or two, plus I could swish my mane back and forth proud in the knowledge that I'd definitely done my hair a favour in the long term.