Laura Ashley Splurge

I do enjoy a good browse in Laura Ashley every now & again & its one of those places where they always seem to have some sort of offer going on. I popped in recently & they currently have 30% off of bed, bath & gifts. For anyone reading this who is not au fait with this store, its quite similar to Zara Home, Oliver Bonus & Cath Kidston.
I dragged my friend Mark in with me (I need adult supervision when shopping) who promptly fell asleep in the chair, but the sales assistant was very helpful & patient and spent a good 45 minutes with me. She even gave me a further 15% off the total price, from another promotion going on. Anyway, here's what I unexpectedly purchased.....

Patrica Footed Mirror (was £30) £21
I cant remember the last time I had a dressing table mirror. Ive always just coped with a bathroom mirror when doing my make-up but thought this was just so beautiful, especially with the bead finish. It looks nice in my bedroom window, until I get a proper dressing table. Supervised by my 2 cheeky nieces Ruby & Jessie!

Peony Blossom Bed Runner (was £40) £28
This is a stunning silky lilac/pink flowery bed runner. Im still not sure why I bought it, as with the colour & flower print detail it will go with a very limited number of bedsheet colours. But it will add the finishing touches to the bedsheets which I bought.......

Shalford dove grey double duvet (was £60) £42
After a lot of deliberation the sales assistant advised that in order for it to match my runner the bedsheets really needed to be plain. Something too patterned would look too 'busy', so I decided on grey. I use fake tan quite a bit & cant eat/drink *anything* in bed without spiling it, so I didn't really want to go for white. I think cream/grey is a good neutral colour, its nice & silky to the touch & has a stripe detail too. I also bought 2 pillowcases to match (was £18 each) £12.60.

Josette Bath Towel (was £22) £15.40
Finally, its been a while since ive purchased bath towels & couldn't resist the softness of this one. The colour is 'Duck Egg' which is a lovely mint green with a white pattern. I might have to go back for the hand towel! May as well complete the set!

So in total, it should have come to £188.00, however with the 30% off already and the further 15% off, it came to £116.60. Bargain!
There are still lots more things I want to get from there, cushions, throws, more bath towels, candles & pretty much the entire shop, but for now ive got my fix.

I dont know why, but buying bedsheets makes me happy. Really bloody happy. There is nothing nicer than getting into beautiful bedsheets. Well, aside from getting into beautiful bedsheets with a hot man! Sad, I know. Perhaps this is what happens when you hit your thirties. Im still rock & roll through & through though!

Where is your favourite place to buy bedsheets & homeware? Can anyone else share my weirdness for buying bedsheets?!

Xox

July favourites!

Well, hello. I'm back by popular demand! And by popular demand, I mean 3 of my closest friends have asked me to update my blog, so here goes.
Although the title is 'July favourites', here are things I have been loving over the last few months.....

CLARINS
Ive gone Clarins mad! I have no idea why as I've never previously purchased anything from this brand or have read that many reviews (bar the beauty flash balm & lip perfector) on any of these products. I just happened to be browsing one day back in March & the consultant in Boots gave me a sample of the skin illusion foundation which I tried, immediately bought & have re-purchased since. It blends so well, gives a silky smooth finish & good coverage. I use the shade '103 Ivory'.

The beauty flash balm has been raved about for years. I use it as a primer/radiance booster before my foundation. A pea sized amount is patted (not rubbed) into the skin & foundation immediately applied after. It makes the skin feel tight, thus making it appear smoother. I like it.
I then apply the instant smooth line correcting concentrate on top of my foundation on areas I'm aware my skin isn't quite so smooth as it used to be, such as my forehead.

The Colours of Brazil bronzer is light in its formulation & gives a beautiful hint of warmth to my face. The powder is fine, soft & produces a lovely matte result. I particularly like the brazillian bracelet pattern on the inside too.

The lip perfector is very moisturizing & adds just a hint of colour. Its also long lasting & not too 'sticky'. I have the shade 01 which is a really dainty pink. Although the colour comes out quite imperceptible, I think it would look really pretty over the top of a nice pink lipstick. After reading other positive reviews, I am definitely going to try other shades.

I'm really enjoying Clarins right now. I use to perceive them as just a skincare brand, but their makeup really is lovely & the packaging is delightful. They also take special care to ensure that plant extracts appear in all of their products I believe, including makeup. LOVING IT.

Left-right Colours of Brazil Bronzer, Beauty Flash Balm, Skin Illusion Foundation, Instant light natural lip perfector, Instant smooth line correcting concentrate

CREME DE LA MER MOISURIZING CREAM
My best friend gave me this for birthday & it may just be the best/worst thing to have happened to me! The best thing because it really is the best. The texture is thick (ideal for dry skin), the scent is subtle and I love the way it absorbs with the heat of your hands. This enables the cream to go translucent & its then patted gently into the skin. I also find that this is amazing at helping skin heal. I feel really pampered by this. The downside is of course the price tag. The smallest size is 30ml which costs £105! Fortunately with my job I can get it *slightly* cheaper.
After popping into John Lewis & testing other CDLM products, I'm now desperate to buy the lipbalm & the lifting & firming mask. I'm absolutely hooked on this brand & the moisturiser is for sure a staple in my beauty regime from now on. Albeit using it as sparingly as possible!

Available from Selfidges, John Lewis & Creme de La Mer

PENHALIGONS
Ive wanted a posh leather vanity case for at least 3 years, but whenever I went in they either never had any stock in or if they did, they had it in a colour I didn't like. However I got lucky on a recent trip to Bicester where they had the vanity case in black & red. I was naturally drawn to the black, since its my favourite colour. But there was something about the red that screamed 'luxurious'. If it was a cheaper brand I would have gone for the black, but as it is high-end I opted for the red. What I really like about it is the little sectioned compartments inside. Ideal for standing up any small bottles of cleanser, toner etc. If I had to pick a fault, it would be that there is no mirror inside, however there is a little zip section under the lid where you can keep a compact mirror if you wish. But on the whole, this is beaut & I can't wait to take it away with me somewhere. The sales assistant even wrapped it up all pretty for me.

I absolutely adore the scent & packaging of their perfumes too, my favourite being Ellenisia. My sister on the other hand can't stand them & thinks I smell of granny whenever I wear them- or "Eau de OAP' as she refers to it as! I haven't quite repelled any guys whilst wearing it yet!
My perfumes pictured below are Amaranthine and Malabah, £105 per 100ml and £75 per 50ml/£105 per 100ml, respectively.

The vanity case was originally £80, I paid £39 from Penhaligons Bicester

EMMA HARDIE MORINGA CLEANSING BALM
To be honest, the main reason I wanted to try this product was because of the hype. Pretty much every blogger has tried & tested this with positive results, so naturally I wanted to hop on the bandwagon.

With the exception of the Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish, ive only ever used No7 cleanser. This product really is a pleasure to use. The smallest amount lathers up well, feels splendid on the skin, & has a nice almost herbal scent to it. When washed off with warm water using the proffesional cleansing cloth, it leaves the skin feeling smooth and clean. Warning though: the product does has a tendancy to seep through the lid making it oily on the outside & I'd imagine for this reason its not massively ideal for travelling with. But, it can be decantered.
I can see why the actual product is so popular. I use mine in the evening 2-3 times a week.

Available from Debenhams and Space NK for £36.


RIMMEL SUN SHIMMER INSTANT TAN
I bought this as a recommendation from my wonderful friend Gemma, who was wearing it on a night out. Being vampire pale & not one to enjoy sunbathing for hours on end, I do prefer to fake it every now & again. In the past I've used St Tropez & Fake Bake but I have to say, this tan is equally as good & a third of the price. Its easy to apply (I use a tanning mit), doesnt streak & creates a natural bronzed looking colour. Being a wash-off tan you do have to be a little careful of water, but I've found it delivers its promise of lasting 24 hours, even after showering. The smell is also non-offensive.
I think this is perfect as a quick fix. Ive literally applied it 10 minutes before leaving my house putting next to no effort into the application & its still looked ok. What I will say though, a little bit goes a long way!
Its available in 3 shades (Light, Medium and Dark) and I picked mine up from Boots for £6.99, although I see it on offer everywhere!

So there you have it. I hope you're all having a wonderful summer. I cant believe how glorious the weather is here in the UK!
I do intend to blog more regularly from now on. Please feel free to contact me with any ideas or any products you'd like me to review...

xox