Repurchases Haul

As you know I've been on something of a spending ban setting myself the challenge of using what I have before buying additional items. As this haul represents there are some items that once they'd made their way into the empties pile and without alternatives I was able to make a few purchases.

COLAB Extreme Volume Rio link
Following my trial of one of the smaller travel sizes of COLAB dry shampoo and being impressed I went straight out and brought the full size can. I have picked the Extreme Volume in Rio as I like to use this product to add some texture to my hair rather than using in it's traditional sense.

L'Oreal Elnett Volume Express Hairspray link
Whilst I still have some Bumble & Bumble Hairspray still to use up I'm just not a fan so instead I returned back to the old faithful Elnett. I actually picked this up in preparation for a night out and intending to curl my hair. That didn't happen (blame the getting ready drinks) and instead I'll be throwing this can into my suitcase for my forthcoming holiday. I'd also like to say I wasn't swayed at all by the leopard print trim but I couldn't lie to you.

V05 Plump It Up Amplifying Blow Dry Lotion link
After one two many lacklustre bad hair days I decided to blame the absence of any V05 Blow Dry Lotion. For a few pounds this is a great product to spritz in hair before blow drying and it gives enough oomph without weighing my hair down and making it greasy.

The Breath Co Fresh Breath Toothpaste link
I loved The Breath Co Fresh Breath Toothpaste when I first used it as it's not too 'minty' and was disappointed when it came to an end. Despite wanting to replace with a tube of your regular toothpaste in the cupboard I stayed true to my challenge. Thankfully that tube came to an end and I was able to replace with my preferred, if not slightly more expensive toothpaste.

Garnier Micellar Water for Sensitive Skin link
A quick search of my blog will bring up many posts featuring the Garnier Micellar Water. I much prefer removing my eye make up with a micellar water before going in for the 'proper' cleanse and find that Garnier is the best for me. I decided to go for the sensitive skin when repurchasing to be a little kinder to my skin, especially on those days when I'm being lazy.

La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo link
My holy grail skincare item, the love it or hate Effaclar Duo from La Roche Posay. Even though my skin is behaving very well of late I still like to feature this product in my routine at various points throughout the month. When the tube I'm using starts coming to an end I instantly panic and make sure there is another ready to be used.

Ragdale Hall Restful Pillow Mist link
Another holy grail item I love this cheap and affordable pillow mist. I'm currently debating whether to take on holiday with me as a quick spray on the pillow certainly puts me in a relaxed state and ready for bed.

What have you been buying recently?

Wanderlust Tag

I saw this fun Wanderlust tag over at Mrs M's Meanderings and thought with my holiday to Dubai fast approaching it was timely.

Where was your first plane trip to?
Salou in Spain when I was about 11 I think. As this was our families first holiday abroad (with the extend family of grandparents, aunts and the like) my mum was extremely excited and went somewhat crazy with the packing. Dad was none to pleased when our cases left the plane both emblazoned with 'HEAVY LOAD' stickers across them.

You're leaving tomorrow and money is no object, where are you going?
This is a tricky one. Do I say Houston so I can go and visit my friend Rose who moved out there a month ago? Vegas because I'm starting to get a yearning to return already, and surely if money is no object that means I can fly first class and book a suite at Caesars Palace? I'm off to Dubai in a couple of days which was top of my list and I honestly can't think of anywhere else on my list at the moment. I quite fancy a safari actually so maybe that's where I'd head?

Are you a repeat visitor or do you explore new places?
Whilst I want/would like to always explore new places I do have a tendancy to return to somewhere I've been. This is as much due to circumstances as a single girl without a plus one to make plans with often my holidays are born out of jumping on or following others plans. That said I do love returning to somewhere I've been before and knowing the lay of the land, where to go, what you missed last time. I could happily return to Vegas every year.

Hostel or Hotel
Call me a snob but it'll have to be a hotel. When Ben & I travelled to LA last year en route home from Hawaii we'd booked a 'budget' hotel on the basis we'd gone luxury in Hawaii and were only spending a few nights in LA. Once I saw our hotel and room I had my laptop out and had booked a far better hotel for the remainder of our trip and lasted one night in the budget accomodation. Saying that after a disastrous hotel stay in Brighton Ben and I both commented that the hostels looked better than our hotel.

Where would you travel just to eat the food?
I don't know if I'm enough of a 'foodie' to name somewhere that the cuisine is enough of a draw for me to visit.

Plane essentials and how do you pass the time?
I tend to fly long haul and since entering the 'beauty blogging arena' my skincare regime or mid-flight pamper has become something that is both essential and enjoyable. I remember arriving in Vegas a couple of years ago and my skin looked better than when I left so I always have my lotions and potions to reapply through the flight.

A few magazines are always necessary. Whilst I take a book I often don't have the concentration for them and prefer magazines to flick through. Then of course the movies. Before any flight I'll have been on the airlines website and read through what movies I can expect and plan what I can watch.

Finally socks and a sweatshirt. I'm always cold on flights.

Is there a place you would never go again?
I'm more of a 'never say never' type but I just didn't warm to San Francisco

Top three travel items?
Passport. If you heard about my trauma last year when I lost my passport days before my flight it's obviously an essential.
My cabin suitcase. I find it so much easier to wheel a case and fill it with magazines and/or duty free purchases rather than an overloaded hand bag.
And as mentioned above, my beauty products, especially hand cream.
You can read what I put in my hand luggage last year here.

Preferred method of travel; planes, trains or auto mobiles?
Planes of course - that means I'm going somewhere far away!

April 2015 BEAUTY FAVOURITES

This months favourites are a mix of things that certainly show I'm getting into the Spring spirit as well as one or two more hardy products that have helped me out of a spot or two. Let's dive straight in. 

MicroCell Nail Repair* link

MicroCell is a new to me brand that has recently hit the UK after making waves in Germany where it is one of their top sellers. As typical with products of this type a diligent daily application is required for things to take effect so laziness had prevented me from entering into a test period to put together a full review for the blog. I remember asking the rep at the time whether you could apply MicroCell and put a colour on top and she said yes, but you would need to remove every night and reapply as directed. Hmmmm well that wasn't going to happen.

Then my base coat ran out and I reached for the bottle thinking maybe I would be encouraged to test throughly. In short this did not happy but I was pretty impressed days later when with the aid of my eyeCandy top coat my nails were looking better than ever. I won't delve much further as I am hoping whilst on holiday next week and doing some chopping and changing of nail colours and of course the more relaxed regime of sitting on my backside by the pool will give my nails a chance to improve further and give a better basis for a full review. That said, despite not following the instructions 'to the letter' there has been a marked improvement in the strength (and therefore length!) of my nails

 

Chanel Nail Colour, Rose Insolent link

My dad went to the US a year or so ago and whilst he wouldn't be visiting a Sephora anytime soon I couldn't miss the opportunity to pick me up one or two items. Instead I decided to give him a Chanel shopping list which he would be able to hand over at the Duty Free counter. On that list was Rose Insolent and this is possibly one of my most favourite Chanel nail colours. If you read my post about how disappointing Chanel nail colours are for wear and tear thankfully due to my trusty eyeCandy top coat I have breathed new life into them.

Rose Insolent is the perfect transisitional pink for Spring. Not too pastel, not too neon just right. It makes a change from my standard reds and its been a colour I reached for more frequently throughout May.

The Body Shop Soothing Gel* link

When I originally posted about the Aloe skincare range from The Body Shop the soothing gel was the product I'd had the opportunity to use least. Some months on it's become the product I reach for most and wonder how I lived without.

Overzealous with my epilator, reach for the soothing gel. Redness from threading, reach for the soothing gel. It's defintely an essential but never more so than a couple of weeks ago when I was roasting a chicken and managed to pour chicken fat onto my arm. Despite wearing a sweatshirt, which was removed swifly far still managed to make it's way through to my arm.

After water was thrown over me I reached straight away for the soothing gel and continued to apply over the days that followed. This product was a lifesaver. Yes there is a mark from the burn but applying the soothing gel meant I didn't experience any blistering to the burn and weeks later the mark is fading nicely and I hope scarring will be kept to a minimum.

This is a product everyone should have at home.
 

NYX Butter Lipstick, Coral Red* link

I wear a lot of red lipsticks to work so when someone comments on one I'm wearing I know it must be good. Coral Red from the NYX Butter line is the perfect shade for Spring. I still like and wear my true reds when the occasion is right but this is one that I can wear by day, feel like myself but also like I'm embracing the new season. As for the lipstick itself, pigmentation and wear are spot on and it's become a regular in my make up rotation.
 

Roger & Gallet Hand Cream, Fleur de Figuer* link

I posted about the Roger & Gallet Hand Creams last week but Fleur de Figuer is the stand out favourite. The scent is delicious and the hand cream itself a good one. I only wish there were a larger size as I can see myself going through these small (but practical) tubes very quickly.

What have you been loving this month?

Dinner at Tredwells

Tredwell's link

This is a very overdue post from December but as I'm recommending Tredwell's to anyone that will listen I thought it was high time I gave it a mention on Florence and Mary. 

Marcus Wareing's informal dining spot in the West End was recommended to me by the lovely Angie Silverspoon when I was looking for recommendations for dinner before the theatre. My friend and work colleague Caroline and I were being treated to dinner by our boss for Christmas and this seemed the perfect choice. Whenever we're dining out together I have to be sure that we cater for Caroline as a vegetarian with as much choice as I would have - and often more as she'll eat fish whereas I will not. 

We of course dived straight into the cocktail menus and then our starters; pumpkin soup for me and courgette fritters for Caroline. A big thumbs up to the menu was that the portions were small but enough to satisfy appetite enough but desire the next course. You'll also see if you take a look at Tredwell's current menu that neither of these dishes feature as they mix things up frequently according to the seasons which is perfect if you want enjoy your experience and want to return and explore more of the menu

For main I picked lamp chops, Caroline the haddock and we shared sides of broccoli and sweet potato fries, again small portions but just enough to this time to leave for dessert. We both decided on the chocolate mousse and cornflake pudding which was amazing. The warm mousse melted in the mouth and the crisp cornflakes had enough crunch to make it interesting. It might look much in the bowl but it was so much more to taste

I also mentioned that we were going to the theatre so it's worth me telling you that we say The Lion King - and we sorely disappointed. Maybe childishly I expected a variation of Disney's cartoon which of course it was not but not even the songs lived up to their happy reputation, there was just no punch. Visually it was amazing with how they created the animals on stage but otherwise I found myself bored.

On the other Tredwells is a must if you want somewhere informal but a step up from your usual chain venue. It's worth the extra expense.

I'd love to know if you saw the show what you thought, or indeed if you've been to Tredwells.

Chanel Les Beiges | My Holy Grail Product

Chanel LES BEIGES Healthy Glow Sheer Powder link

There was a lot of hype around the release of Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powder and I tentatively jumped on the bandwagon, panicked and jumped right back off it. I kicked myself when I'd finally decided to make the leap and it had sold out everywhere.

Finally in September 2013 I managed to get my hands on Shade No 30 and instantly fell in love.

First we have the gorgeous compact. Somewhat larger than those I've had before and of course the main difference being it's cream and black packaging rather than the traditional black and white we're used to seeing.



At the time of purchasing I wasn't really much of a powder nor heavy foundation wearer which was part of why I dithered so much. Would it be too light to wear alone? And do I need a setting powder as pricey as this? The answer to both is yes.

As a base powder I certainly find it too light but it does give the skin something of a glow for those no make up days. On days when I'm not interested in layering on make up yet want to look a little healthy as the name would suggest I can reach for this compact but it's a setting powder where it really comes into it's own.

Whatever foundation I am wearing this is the powder I solely use to set things in place and add a little something extra to my look. So finely milled is this powder that it doesn't leave the skin caked in powder. Off out after work and my make up needs to be refreshed, Chanel Les Beiges to the rescue.

I can leave my make up bag behind without any concern, small clutch bag with limited space ok then but it will be filled with a lipstick and this compact. It's the product I can no longer be without.

As well as it's holy grail status for it's functionality I could also name this post 'the product that never ends'. Many may bulk at paying £39 for a powder but I should let you know that despite it's daily use I did not hit pan on this powder until July 2014. In Spetember that same year, with the powder still going strong but 'pan growing larger' I decided to pick up a new one in Duty Free thinking I would save myself a few pennies on this must have product.

Well it's May 2015 and the powder is still going! So much so that I've now passed onto my mum to try after she treated herself to Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Fluid (which I too am a fan of and you can read about here).

I'm rather tempted now to treat myself to a darker shade and try it as a bronzer as I'm such a fan of this product and know how long it'll last. And you know the brushes inside compacts that are often cast aside, well Chanel even got theirs right. I tend to use the enclosed brush more often than any other and it's the perfect shape for setting concealer under the eyes.

So it's pretty much a big thumbs up for Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Powder - even if the name is unnecessarily long. Have you tried this 'wonder powder' from Chanel or would you like to?