Tromborg is a Scandinavian brand that landed in the UK last year. It is a brand that takes health and ecology very serious – as well as allergies sufferers and delivers products that are perfume free (except from natural perfumes) and full of natural ingredients and essential oils, suitable for the whole family, even the tiny ones.
The Tromborg Try Me trave kit contains six of their most popular products in a handy 50ml size – great for trying or travelling.
Janet design
Lingerie – all of us girls wear it. And it is (most of the time) a behind-closed-doors thing – and that is the name of Agent Provocateur campaign for SS14. And it is shot by no one less than Miles Aldridge, the master of glam in the common, ordinary place photography.
Who doesn’t like a relaxing, indulgent shower/bath? Well, braces yourselves: Liz Earle is launching their amazing Indulgent Bath and Body range in March 2014 and I was lucky enough to get my hands on the lovely Vanilla and Saffron creamy shower nectar and silky body lotion.
Firstly, the scent: I just love this warm vanilla with saffron fragrance, laced with water lotus, honeydew, gardenia, lily of the valley and white orchid, tonka bean and musk notes. From the three launching, this is my favourite (read more about all the products and fragrances here).
I like the packaging, colours are lovely and bold, and it is functional. The pump dispenses a good amount of product and they are easy to use in the shower.
The creamy shower nectar has a luxuriously thick consistency and is gorgeously pearlescent. It feels really lovely on the skin, leaving it soft and supple, with a hint of the scent when washed away. If it has a small downside is that it doesn’t lather and I am a foam kinda gal… It is also fantastic as a bath cream!
The silky body milk is light in texture, applies and absorbs really well. It leaves the skin moisturised and soft – but best of all, smelling fabulous. And it lasts (the smell and softness too!) This is a great treat not only for your body but for your mind too! I’ve been using it daily since I got it and I just can’t get enough.
As mentioned, the whole line will be out in March 2014. The Vanilla and Saffron creamy shower nectar and silky body lotion will sell for £12.50 and £14.50 respectively.
Keep an eye on the Liz Earle website for more information and out for the whole range, which also has a body butter and scrub (which I cannot wait to put my hand on!).
That time of the year. All hopes of sun rays have long passed and I feel so white I am bordering on see-through – honestly, you can see all my veins and if you squint enough, you might be able to spot the outline of an internal organ. Quite tragic.
No wonder this little Naked Fake It Gotta Glow gift set landed on my lap at the right time – the time of need.
The set has the Glow it up self tan lotion and the Dust Me mineral shimmer powder.
The self tan lotion is enriched with cocoa and shea butter. It looks like a very rich moisturiser, a thick cream, white in colour. It spreads well, and smells lovely on application. I got the light/medium and applied it before bed. I woke up with a lovely glow, I could definitely see the effects of the self tan lotion, but it wasn’t too blatant, just sunkissed. It didn’t stain and – wait for it – there was NO biscuity smell! None at all.
The shimmer makes a lovely loose bronzer, applies and spreads well and is not glittery – the colour is pretty and warm, giving your face that healthy flush – but it is also great for the body!!!
Always worth mentioning that the Naked products are 97% natural – this is true for both tanning lotion and shimmer. Also, the tanning agent on this beauty is 100% natural, so no nasties. Naked is one of the good and super nice companies in the beauty world – natural ingredients, no parabens, SLS or petrochemicals, no animal testing, recycled packaging, ethical sourcing and involvement with humanitarian and environmental charities.
You can get the Naked Fake It Gotta Glow gift set for £14 from the Naked Bodycare website, where you will also find their fantastic range products!
Not many things are more exciting than check out new products. Especially if they come from a brand that has delivered many great ones before. No wonder I was excited to attend the Liz Earle product launch in London.
The main launch was for their brand new Indulgent Bath & Body collection, which promises to help you “immerse yourself in a world of relaxation”. Basically, this range tells you that you should be allowed to bombard your senses with exquisite fragrances and sensations to treat your body and mind on a daily basis. And this should be affordable.
So this is exactly what they delivered: three exotic fragrances developed in partnership with top perfumers, available in March 2014.
In separate thematic rooms, we were expertly guided through the sensorial world of the fantastic blends:
Tiare & Jasmine, a floral blend of the exotic Tahitian tiare flower (which only flowers once a year) and the well known jasmine, neroli, orange blossom, almond milk and sandalwood, developed with master perfumer Oliver Cresp. I found this lovely and sweet, in the right amount.
Bergamot & Ginger, a zingy and fresh mix of citrus-y bergamots and ginger with flowery freesia, lily, jasmine petals and lemon blossom, created with Sabine de Tscharner. This is a refreshing fragrance, almost masculine, but very summery. My personal preference is for sweeter scents, so although it is a very pleasant scent, this one is not really for me.
Vanilla & Saffron, an exquisite blend of Madagascan vanilla with spicy saffron create a fragrance almost as good to eat. It also counts with water lotus, honeydew, gardenia, lily of the valley and white orchid, tonka bean and musk notes. Needless to say, this was my favourite, I feel warmly hugged and wrapped by it. I just love it and could be doused on it 24/7. It was developed with Harry Freemont.
Each fragrance has four products: Creamy Shower Nectar (£12.50) with a lusciously thick and pearly consistency; Melting Sugar Body Scrub (£14.50), which feels divine against the skin and leaves it oh-so-soft; Silky Body Lotion (£14.50), which glides, perfumes and moisturises beautifully and the Indulgent Body Butter (£16.50) which is absorbed quickly by the skin but offers that extra rich moisture touch.
You can see I am sold – they offered an amazing hand massage using the products and I could not stop smelling my hand for the rest of the day. The scents linger in a very discreet and comfortable way and I keep catching a whiff of the deliciousness of Vanilla & Saffron all day long.
In addition to that, they were also showing off their new nail colours for Spring/Summer 14, Moonlight, a pale grey and Awakening, a pretty coral, as well as their beautiful Radiant Glow Bronzer, a quad-shade bronzer which delivers a warm gold colour with discreet shimmer, really giving the skin a gorgeous glow!
A lot to look forward to come March next year!!!
You can also purchase and get more information on the current Liz Earle fabulous skincare and makeup ranges on their website!
Ho ho ho. It is December and I feel I am officially allowed to say the C word without attracting some dirty looks (and the “already?!” expression n their faces). Obviously, I am talking about CHRISTMAS, silly.
Most people know someone who is a beauty fanatic and if you are not one yourself, choosing the right thing can be quite difficult. But fear not, So Many Lovely Things will give you an easy solution that is certain to cause a good impression.
I went through my favourite places for beauty buys and here are my picks:
A good all rounder for a great price. Studio products are great value for money. This Smokey eye kit, for £6, is certain to please. New Years eve eyes, sorted!
I love the Eyeko Skinny liner – it is my favourite and I use everyday. This double pack from QVC is excellent value for £14 and after trying you will certainly need a second (and a third – you won’t live without it, ever!)
Classic skin care brand Nivea pulled together a lovely pampering selection with Honey Face Masks, Body lotion, Pearly Shine Lip, Cleansing Wipes, Moisturising Day Cream, amongst others. For £15, this gift goes a long way. Available at Boots.
Post Chirstmas excesses will show on your face. Pull yourself together with this L’Oréal Port-Party Beauty SOS and be ready for the next one in no time! £10 from Boots.
A pretty bauble from Rodial, with its lovely Glam Balm inside. A tiny bit of luxury to plump those lips for that all important unde the mistletoe action! £14 from Harrods.
I love this book. Rae Morris’ classic Makeup: The Ultimate Guide will help you get the grips with makeup and look even more fabulous! Only £12.50 from Amazon.
The Sanctuary’s Best Sellers Collection is a great body indulgence kit with their classic scent. £15 from Debenhams.
Clinique’s Chubby stick Whole Lotta Candy collection means you will have three beautiful shades to choose from for the New Year’s party! £20 from House of Fraser.
Pretty doll eyes with YSL Baby Doll Mascara Set – to put it on and remove later! Find it at Boots for £24.50.
Must Have minis from Nails Inc – lots of shades to start well the year – fro nudes to neons – this will keep your talons colour going for a while! Great value of £23.52 from QVC!
Festive talons courtesy of Clinique’s Party Tips nail polish set.. Three pretty shades for sensitive skin for £20 from House of Fraser.
Discover Elemis’ great Tri-enzime kit with this 4 piece set, for only £24.12 from QVC.
OPI’s Fit to be Tied #2 has two beautiful nail shades and delivers glitter in the right amount. £18.55 from QVC.
Clinique’s classic 3 step kit is one of my favourites cleanse, tone and moisturise sets. Have a go with this intro collection and see for yourself. £20 from Debenhams.
The Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser is a classic – and is has a special edition for Christmas – £26.25 for 200ml cleaner and 2 muslim cloths!
I couldn’t leave out the Naked 3 palette from Urban Decay, coming out on the 12 December for £37. Hurry!!!
Beautifully packaged MAC’s Stroke of Midnight eye kit in Smoky got me hooked. Smokey eyes paradise with Chillproof, Retrospeck, Gaelic Gold, Well Put Together and Carbon (my fave matte black eyeshadow). At £32, exceptional value for money.
Benefit’s Groovy Kinda Love gift set has their best sellers to keep you pretty – and all for £29.50 from Boots.
Sparkle! The Urban Decay Starlight Glitter set can help with that! £30 from House of Fraser.
Guinot has brought some lovely gift boxes this year, each one looking to fix a “problem” in a girl’s life.
Ready Set Glow will deliver complexion brightening tools; Damsel in De-Stress will pamper and help relief stress; Supercharged Youth Boost delivers a boost for ageing skin. They also have a male grooming gift set called Tied up, with a face wash, after shave and shaving brush! They are priced between £46 and £64 and can be found at your nearest salon using Guinot products or at the Salon Skincare website, amongst others. website
Reveal a younger you with YSL Forever Youth Liberator Serum set, £64 from Boots.
Lancôme’s Visionnaire is of my favourite serums – and this set has lots of amazing goodies to accompany it! It costs £82 from Boots.
This classic selection of half size MAC brushes is amazing – and a fantastic value too at £42.
And finally, a girl can dream…. fro £300 you can get the WHOLE Alber Elbaz collection for Lancôme at Harrods. Sigh…
The House of Rush is a gorgeous flagship Rush hair salon located near Piccadilly circus in London. But this is no ordinary hair salon – it is a locks and beauty haven offering treatments for your mind and body, and of course, great hair services. From the outside, it is unassuming; enter, and you are in for a luxurious treat over two floors.
Through the partnership with the Epson Skin Clinics, they also offer medical treatments including botox, dermal fillers, radio frequency, permanent hair reduction, vein and pigmentation removal, microdermabrasion and peels, amongst others. Varied beauty treatments are available: face and body using Kéraskin, Rodial and Elemis, lashes, massages, waxing, tanning, manicures and pedicures. Hair cuts, colouring, treatments and extensions are also available, as well as male grooming! So much!!!
At the event, we watched a botox demonstration by the capable hands of Dr Gillian Carver, and had all of our questions answered. You’d be surprised how natural looking a botox-treated face can be – no need to be totally overworked and expression-less!
I also had a demonstration of oxygen blast, where 100% oxygen in mist form is applied to your face. It can be done over the make-up without spoiling it, and it is great to help skin retain hydration. I found particularly nice over my eyes, as I suffer from really dry eyes and it helped to alleviate it. It takes 10-15 minutes and costs £20 – a great lunchtime treat!
The manicure queue was long – most ladies left with beautifully painted talons using Essie and OPI polishes! The autumnal berry shades were by far more popular with the ladies, from what I could see.
Everyone was lovely, and I met loads of amazing bloggers including Sophia from Beauty in my mind, Zoe from Face value beauty blog, Rachel from Beauty Queen UK, Olivia from Beauty from the Fjord, Sheen from Golden and Sheen, Lisa from Lisahh-Jayne.com, Becky from Lipgloss and Lashes, Kimberley from Kimberley’s beauty blog, Alice from Tea Party with Alice, Kat from Tales of a Pale Face amongst other lovelies.
It was a fun night and even better, you can get 20% off any beauty services or 50% off microdermabrasion! All you need to do is to quote the code BLOG20 and/or MICRO50 when booking. The discount is valid at House of Rush only, until 31 October 2013. It makes a great autumn treat!!!
Finally, I’d like to thank Rush, Laura from Alison Jameson PR and Becky from Lipgloss and Lashes for the invitation! 🙂
You can check out the House of Rush website for more information on all treatments and to book – remembering there are over 60 Rush salons across London and the South.
You can also follow @RushHairBeauty on Twitter to be in for great information and promotions!
This was my second time at Olympia Beauty. Just the idea of over 520 beauty exhibitors under one roof is enough to make me forget how much I have walking around in crowds!
The show is free for professionals and I registered as press. On the day tickets for the general public can be bought on the day for £15.
This year the show didn’t disappoint. I was particularly impressed with their Press and Social Media Hubs – much bigger and better than last year’s, with more brands showcasing products – OPI, Dermalogica, Elemis, Lash Perfect/Hi Brow, Sienna X amongst others and a spacious area with refreshments (including cute Marc Jacobs Diet Coke bottles!)
The stands were fantastic! This year, a lot of gel manicures again, but also for domestic use and teeth whitening I think were the bigger presence for consumer products. Lashes and brows were also quite predominant!
Exhibitors were great – from huge brands for consumer (OPI, Elemis, Dermalogica, Ardell, Color Club, Essie, Fake Bake, Minx nail foils, NYX and many others!) offering discounted products to salon equipment and therapies machines to the professionals, and lots of and sample therapies going on.
I was very happy to se a bit more make up – Inglot and Illamasqua making an appearance. Although I was disappointed with Illamasqua – they were not selling products!
As usual, they held competitions – Nailympics – the international nail competition, The Art of Make-up and The Art of Body Painting.
The educational part of the show was even bigger too and was divided in “Business of Beauty”, “The Creativity of Nails”, “The Art of Make-up”, Make-up Artist Guest Stage” and “Aesthetic Beauty”, covering an amazing amount of topics around beauty and therapies.
As a blogger, it is great to get direct contact with brands. As a consumer, it is fantastic to pick up lots of great products at a very good price. As a beauty lover, and amazing opportunity to see what is going on in the market. It’s an overall win!
Needless to say, I came home with bunch of products that will soon be gracing the blog – fun times!!!Always a pleasure to go, and I will for sure be there in 2014!
I am pretty sure most of us know the classic St Ives apricot scrubs, after all, it is said to be the number 1 scrub brand in the UK!
Part of the Timeless Skin range, the St Ives Renew and Firm apricot scrub has been in my bathroom for a few weeks now and I am getting at least one, but usually two good scrubs a week with it – especially before my weekly fake tan session.
This scrub contains apricot – which is full of vitamin A type goods and antioxidants and corn kernel meal and walnuts as super 100% natural exfoliators. Also has gentle alphahydroxy, it is non-comedogenic with 100% natural extracts and without parabens, phthalates or animal-derived ingredients.
It has been used as a body scrub and provides soft exfoliation; the granules are firm and well distributed in the cream; you noticed the two textures of exfoliators . It is not super dense with granules and feel very gentle on the skin. when washed away the skin feels soft and quite moisturised.
The smell is very subtle and pleasant; the scrub goes quite a long way too! I am not quite sure about firming, as I am using all over the body and it would probably take some time to see this type of effect, but my skin feels renewed for sure!!!
By browsing their site, I also found out that they have not only scrubs, but a very extensive range with different care for various skin concerns!
Worth checking out the St Ives site for the Renew & Firm apricot scrub, usually priced under £5 and 0ther products.
New Simple products – pretty and good to the skin!
I was delighted do be invited to attend the Simple skincare blogger event which took place at Kettner’s in central London.
Basically, the evening was divided in pretty much what the Simple Sense skincare routine online tool is about; looking after your skin as a whole, including your body, inside and out, through three points: skincare (the right products, routine, application), exercise and nutrition.
Upon arrival we were faced with a tough choice of amazing skin loving mocktails, prepared by Fiona Hunter, the Simple nutritionist. I went for a deliciously tropical mango combination and loved it. Fiona also was at hand to create personalised smoothies (I ended up with a fantastic apple, avocado and melon mix) and give advice on particular nutritional concerns. Invaluable information!
Click on the images to enlarge
I was introduced to the amazing new products from the Simple Kind to Skin+ range. We all know Simple has skin loving ingredients, the products are formulated for sensitive skin and they unbeatable value for money; you can rest assured the new additions don’t deviate from that.
Here’s what Simple has for you:
The creams are all very light on the skin! The radiance cream delivers a very glowy effect, and is great under make up to illuminate the complexion and boy, I love a mist. My favourite, however, has to be a fantastic Protecting moisturiser with SPF 30, and I’ll say it again – with RRP of £6.99. Yes, you read right. Under £7!!! Amazing.
If all that wasn’t enough, Caroline Frazer, a make-up artist and Simple’s skin expert and brand ambassador, was at hand really drilling down on the correct four step skin routine (cleanse, tone/polish, treat and protect!) giving out personalised tips and showcasing the products.
The tough but girly personal trainer Anna Reich, who is Simple’s fitness expert (and also lovely and super funny!) was there to offer great fitness advice, as well as introduce me to face yoga – and even demonstrating some exercises to tackle most common face problem areas, dubbed as the “biceps curls for you face!”.
The principle does make sense – if you look after the muscles on your face, just like your body, they will tone and perk and this will also help delay the dreaded effects of time! I have a cheek video of Anna showing how to do one of the 18 exercises in the face yoga programme.
Top it all off with great canapés (oh-so-tasty pink macaroon with creamy goats cheese – who would’ve said, trust me, it is lush!), lovely people (other bloggers, PR and the Simple guys) and a superb goodie-bag (which will fuel the blog for quite some time!) and you have a not only a fun, fantastic evening but also a very informative one.
Cannot wait to start telling you about the products! Trial has already started!!!
Don’t forget you can create your own tailored routine at the Simple Sense online tool and the new products are hitting the shelves of retailers nationwide in September, when you can get all the info on them on the Simple website.
So Many Lovely Things 