I have a well publicised love for Fleur de Force (It’s the only youtuber that my boyfriend knows the name of – other than Zoella but that’s because of the news more than me talking about her), so I had high expectations of this from the moment I pre-ordered The Glam Guide. When I received my copy of Love Tanya, I wasn’t exactly the biggest fan of the book, and never having read these type of beauty and lifestyle books before, I was unsure as to whether they just “weren’t my thing” or Love Tanya just wasn’t for me.
I’ve had this book a good few weeks now, and whilst I wanted to be a bit more “hot off the press”, this book was meatier than I expected and it did take me a good few weeks to read a good chunk of this. It’s not a book that for me suits being read cover to cover – so I’ve been going back and forth between sections.
When this arrived I had no time to read, but I did have a quick flick through and a glance at a few pages, rather than delving into the text and sections, I was struck by the beautiful illustrations that are featured so frequently throughout the book, that despite my no time to read – I actually spent 20 minutes going back and forth through the book looking at them over and over. This may be due to the fact that I’m a web/graphic designer – but actually I think the illustrations are what make this book feel truly special.
On first glance this is very similar to Love Tanya, the style on the inside, the colour palette, the stunning photography, even down to the metallic stars on the spine of the cover make these two very reminiscent of one another. But this book is more what I was expecting Love Tanya to be (check out my Love Tanya review here). This book doesn’t feel too young for me a 25 year old, but equally it doesn’t feel too old either, it’s perfectly positioned itself to appeal and help a broader audience, the sections have much more in terms of content and keeps the sections in each chapter short and sweet, but still with helpful info. Ultimately whilst Tanya is more the trained beauty professional, I felt like I took more away from this book.
Not all of this is for me, but I don’t feel like the book is trying to sell every aspect of itself or claim that you should do all of the things listed. There aren’t many recommendations of particular products which make the book feel more timeless, as trends and personal favourites tend to change, within a year or two I can imagine Tanya’s book being out of date with new products and favourite fashion items likely to change.
The only things that I would change about the book is a few more photographs – and give it a hardback – I’m no hard cover snob, but this doesn’t feel like a book that you carry around in your day to day life like a novel where you’d prefer paperback, it’s a too big for day to day carrying around. This is a book you keep at home on your bookshelf or bedside/dressing table – and for me it would have been nice if that was finished with a hardback, it would have reflected the high quality of the illustrations and design.
I loved the section on cosmetic ingredients and actually what they do (when something says paraben free I think that’s a good thing but don’t know what that means), so keeping as a reference for that is really handy. The hair chapter is particularly good with 5 minute hairstyles which I’ve been wearing a lot (and getting compliments on), with quick step by step description + tips on dying your hair (I’m well versed in this already!)
I really did feel although there wasn’t a lot of personal stories and experience in the book, that I was hearing Fleur’s voice and personality through the book which was great. It made it feela very genuine read, which as a long time follower I appreciated.
.Ultimately, do I think you need both Love Tanya and Fleur De Force’s books? No, I think you should pick if you’re a big fan of either you’re likely to enjoy that more. The books do have differences, Love Tanya does have more of an autobiographical element as personal experiences from Fleur are more fleeting. However, if you’re undecided I think if you’re a bit older you’ll enjoy the slightly more complex writing from Fleur.
Have you picked up the glam guide? I’m debating on picking up Pretty Honest by Sali Hughes, which I’ve heard good reviews about – let me know if you’ve picked it up!
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I think I will have to pick up the Tanya Burr book, she really seems to be so sweet! xx
I’ve never heard of Fleur de Force, but it’s inspiring to me how successful some of these Youtubers are