TREATS

♥Day: Eating and Drinking

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If I liked to bake, these would be the best thing ever:

How cute? Seriously. And how delicious? Honestly, Aldi, could you be any cleverer? And at €4.99 each, could you be any better value?

The Valentine Bakeware could arguably used for many a holiday, but naturally it is perfect for next week’s ‘holiday’. You can whip up a bunch of tiny hearts with the Silicone Heart Muffin Tray, or go for it in a big way with the Silicone Heart Cake Mould. The former is perfect for treating friends and colleagues; the latter, of course, for your more private celebrations.

Too bad I hate to bake! It’s so dusty, what with all that flour getting all over the place! Even cake mixes, like Betty Crocker, give me pain and annoyance. The mixing, the eggs, ugh, hate it. Cakes are not as bad as cookies/biscuits, which are just an endless trial to the patience: so many batches, and then what if you have to frost them?

So, in lieu of baking, I’ll be drinking, ta very much. Also on offer at Aldi are bottles of Veuve Monsigny Premier Cru Champagne, €22.99. I love bubbles as deeply as I loathe baking, so it was no hardship for me to tuck this in the fridge and wait for the chilly time.

It’s delicious! Oh, and the thing where you put a teaspoon in the neck of the bottle, to keep it bubbly? Works every time. Not for, like ever, but who wants to hoard a bottle of champers? Not me!

Here’s as Sexy a Multitasker as I’ve Ever Seen!

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I love candles generally, in everyday life — and I’ve just taken a moment to fire one up — and also consider them to be an absolute ‘must’ for when it comes to sexytimes. As you may know by now, scents are important to me, and if they are to you, as well, here’s a lovely line of lighter-uppers that serve a dual task.

Eve Taylor is an actual person, and she’s been at the forefront of aromatherapy since the late ’60s. Her products are free and clear of all those nasties that we’ve become accustomed to giving the side eye, and neither are they tested on animals. Her candles are made from 100% plant wax and pure natural essential oils, and when they melt, you can use them as a massage material.

I say ‘material’ because it’s not exactly like an oil. I mean, it’s touted as an oil, but it feels less slippery than that. And it’s not like when you get candle wax on your fingers either, you know, the way it hardens up immediately and you have to peel it off? It transfers the scent of the candle, via the wax, to the skin, and the warmth of the material makes for a really, really nice rub down.

The set pictured is the Romance trio; this post can do double duty as well, and I’ll tag it as ♥Day, but boy, am I sick of that already. The Relaxing & Indulgent candle contains orange, geranuim, ylang ylang and lavender; the Sensual & Exotic is loaded up with orange, patchouli, ylang ylang and caffir lime; the last is exactly what it says on the tin, Wild Fig & Grape. I liked this last the least, and the first the most, but there’s something here for all vibes and impulses.

Now, how do you use this without ending up in casualty? Taylor makes larger candles, into which one can dip a teaspoon. These wee ones, not so much. DON’T dip your finger in while the flame is still going. I know, common sense, right? But when you’re getting all heated up, you may forget simple fire safety in the process. You can tilt the glass and let the material run out, minding the flame, so that you don’t have to relight the thing — you can blow it out, have another one set up somewhere else, and maybe get back to relighting the first one.

What all that lacks in spontaneity it makes up for in warm, essential oily goodness. And hey, practice makes perfect!

€28/£18.39/No $ info because the American site is fairly useless.

♥Day: More Lip Service

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Well, this is a likely line up! Naturally, all of the above are perfect for every day use, but there’s lots ‘o’ smooching on ♥Day, so, get in shape, ladiez!

Whilst not the most romantic looking package in the family, I have to say that I am unconditionally in love with DERMALOGICA’s AGE smart renewal lip complex (€30/£22.50/$26). It’s hard to show its special feature in a crappy picture that I would take myself, so I gave up, but the top of the applicator is like a tiny collander: you spin the dial at the base, and the lip complex comes out of little holes. You don’t need much — I got great results with a half a turn — and it feels clean and neat. And so will your lips.

I liked the minty tingle I got from YES TO CARROTS’ C Me Blush Lip Tint in Cotton Candy (€8/£5.99/$10). This is a very light tint, i.e. barely there, but there’s just enough of a bit of glitter to pick up the light. It’s pretty and low key, a perfect combination of treatment and light make up, and purely excellent when you want to be able to reapply without looking in a mirror.

ORIGINS Lip Remedy (€17/£13/12.50) is a great go-to balm if your lips are in rag order. Chapped, cracked and peeling lips will find relief in the menthol/camphor based product, along with a whole bunch of other good things like French Thyme and Oil of Wintergreen. This feels like the perfect ski bum balm? I don’t know, I haven’t skied in years, but if I went, I’d have this in a pocket.

Okay, this is kind of a drag, but I’m going to go ahead anyway: because I saw ‘House of Fraser’ in the press release, and we have an HoF in Dundrum, I was all over this gig, a charity product by our friends from Clinique. This darling little pouch is the centrepiece of the Kiss It Better appeal, in aid of the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity in London. It’s not available in Ireland, which is a bust, but you can purchase it for £25 on the Clinique website. From left, the treats are: Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss in Raspberry; Vitamin C Lip Smoothie Antioxidant Lip Colour in Pink Me Up; Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm in Woppin’ Watermelon; and Long Last Glosswear SPF15 in Mystic. I totally ♥ the little silvery bag…


♥Day Getaway: Brooklodge, Co Wicklow

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Ahhhh, look! How pastoral is that? I would like to live there. Even though this is BrookLodge Hotel and Wells Spa. What am I saying? I want to live there because it is a hotel and spa. I adore a good hotel, and even better, one with a spa, so I’ll finish this post and go pack me bags!

Seriously, even though I’ve never been there, I’ve heard from pals that it is lovely, and if you’ve got a main squeeze, take a miss on the chocolate-buying and flower-giving* and chip in on one of these deals.

> Dinner, Bed & Breakfast for €120pps.
> Dinner, Bed & Breakfast with an intimate Serail Mud Bath for two for €145pps.
> Dinner, Bed & Breakfast and and an hour’s treatment each side by side in the double treatment rooms for €175pps.

The dinners take place in the Strawberry Tree Restaurant, which is Ireland’s only certified organic restaurant. All the spa water comes from the wells in the village of Macreddin, and Brooklodge was named The Georgina Campbell Hotel of the Year in 2010 and AA Hotel of the Year in 2009…

Sorry, got lost on their site, which has little videos, and then a picture of a woman riding a horse came up! and there is an equestrian centre.

Seriously, this is like my spiritual home, or something…

For reservations contact the BrookLodge Hotel at Macreddin Village, Aughrim, Co. Wicklow on 0402 36444 or visit http://www.brooklodge.com.

* Rates apply to Standard Rooms, €15 pps supplement for Superior Rooms, €30 pps supplement for Junior Suites & €50 pps supplement for the Mezzanine Suites.

Okay, So, Here’s the Thing About Valentine’s Day

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Yeah, it’s a totally manufactured ‘holiday’.

Yeah, it’s completely mercenary.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, price gouging, blah, unrealistic expectations, blah blah, heteronormative, blah, blah, blah.

Actually, maybe I should say: okay, so, here’s the thing about Valentine’s Day and me. I totally get all of the above, but I frickin’ love it anyway.

I mean, I am in love with love, and therefore, this day gets a pass from me.

Now, it is annoying when one is single, as I am myself, to feel bombarded by all the literal hearts and flowers rubbish going around. It’s hard to not be sad/mad/just-go-grab-a-lad when the auld <3 day comes around again. I was going to try to sell yees a whole ‘Take Back Heart Day’ thing, Like, Show Your Pals How Much You Love Them, and Hey! Your Family Might Like a Nice Prezzie… it may still work out that way, but yeah, it’s a hard sell. It’s not like, ooh, Everyday Can Be Valentine’s Day, because: no.

Basically, it’s almost impossible to be a beauty blogger and fail to chip in with ideas for the The Big Day.

Well, you know what? For many, it is not A Big Day. Or: it is as Big A Day as you make it. So if you are interested in treats and deals that are available in the run up to the 14th of next month, then you will find such information here.

If you want to buy yourself stuff, and it just so happens to be in the shape of a heart, and may be coloured red, and you happen to like it, then you might come across something cute. There will be posts on grooming, gifting, and eating/drinking, and I have to say, I’ve got some sweet stuff in the bag.

If you hate the whole idea of the whole thing, read along anyway, I’ll try to keep things amusing.