♥Day: If I was Your Boyfriend, Etc, Etc

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Oh holy niiiiiight, is this not over yet?

In my personal experience, a special nightie on the special night is always a gift For Him. LIDL are doing a line in Satin Negligees for €5.99. At that price, you can have a bodice-ripping good time. Just me?

Another option is the use of Friday’s Veuve Monsigny Premier Cru Champagne from Aldi, which is not gender specific. As far as I know? Dudes like the bubbles, too, right?

If your fella likes to look after his skin, Clarin’s are doing an excellent promotion, because you get a gift, too. If you buy a Beauty Flash Balm Gift Set (€35.58) you get a free Clarins Men’s gift for him (this offer is available at all good chemists.) Or! Buy two products from the Clarins Men’s skincare range, maybe the Super Moisture Gel and/or the Super Moisture Balm and get a bonus gift for yourself (this offer happens in all good departments stores.)

There’s a whole bunch of good stuff on hand in Debenham’s: Marc Jacobs, who is a personal fave of mine, has a new cologne by called Bang Bang (€52.14), which is mostly sandalwood-y and musky, and there’s a John Rocha Manicure Set (€31). All the necessary tools are contained in a brown leather kit; you may like for yourself, at the end of the day.

I don’t know… Dudes I knew were always happy enough to get a CD, or I would ask them what thing they wanted. Such things were rarely red, or heart-y. Or I’d swing by Ann Summers and get something dirty, but silly.

They all liked getting cards, though? Real ones, not the ones from the internet. I think dudes are pretty easy as far as this goes. I don’t know, I think I am being sexist in every single way possible: that gals are the only ones who care, and the guys just play along, thereby stomping all over the lads with the loving natures and making the ladies all gimme, gimme… And I think this is where the whole ♥Day thing gets such a bad rap, this manufacturing of ‘Romance’ and it has to be such a big deal, and everybody is grumpy.

Eh, who knows your fella better than you do? Not me, for sure… but the Marc Jacobs stuff is really delish.

What Have We Here, Jo Malone?

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Having only just rapturised about the Jo Malone Red Rose Home Candles, I have been presented with this:

Hmm, interesting! The elegant box, a signature of the brand, has had its colours swapped: black box instead of cream, with cream accents and cream-coloured ribbon… Is this a new thing?

Yup, sure is. The Jo Malone Home Collection launches in April of this year, and I should probably be waiting to write about it, but I simply can’t contain myself.

I love home stuff, and when I’m in the US, I could watch HGTV for hours and hours and hours {and do.} I already love JM candles, as I’ve said, so the addition of anything to this line is going to make me want to curl up on the sofa and breath in the scent-y goodness.

Okay, I’m looking at the list of new elements in the range, and may wait to revisit closer to the time, but look at these!

These are the Limited Edition Scent Surround™ Sachets (€25/£20), three to a gorgeously designed box, and are infused with the world famous Lime Basil & Mandarin scent. I used to do a line in lavender sachets, which was a bit matronly, but I don’t know, I read it in a book or something, and there weren’t any real alternatives. Now, though! I can lash one of these in the knickers drawer and just exult in my LB&M scented pants.

The Scent Surround™ line also includes Limited Edition Drawer Liners, Room Sprays, and the thing I am most dying to test, the Diffuser. It’s one of those things, with the sticks? Only in LB&M, Red Roses and Pomegranate Noir.

Since I’m moving house, I’ll be saving all this up for when I get settled in. I think they will go some way to helping me nest in even faster than usual.

 

♥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!

Yes, You Do Need to Use a Foundation Brush

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Yesterday, at a launch for Benefit’s new Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Foundation {more about this anon}, their Head Make Up and Trend Artist, the vivacious Lisa Potter-Dixon, demonstrated the need for the foundation brush.

I have only once or twice bothered with such, and I’m all like, what, are my fingers broken? All assembled were given a compelling demonstration as to why a brush is a good idea.

Fingers are dodgy, covered in germs, and also: absorbent. Using a mirror, Lisa swept some on its surface with her fingers, and hmmm, streaky.

Cosmetics sponges are not much better, as we were shown. Most of the foundation was sucked up by the sponge, and in fact, seemed to be taking it off the mirror as soon as it was spread on it. Okaaay…

The brush, however, created an opaque and, well, flawless finish. As Lisa smoothed the make up on the mirror, there was collective ‘Ahhh!’ and several other expostulations. For a roomful of well-educated, seen-it-all beauty journos, that’s saying something. But then, a direct, no-fuss, straightforward Demo of Truth is always gonna work.

So there she is, the latest addition to my grooming routine. I sigh. Why? Another thing to forget to clean? Another thing to fret about packing? Sure, we’ll see how we got on, but I suppose once I get used to it, I won’t even know the difference…

€27.50/£19.50/$24

♥Day: A Rose By Any Other Name…

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… is a bit of a cliché, but clichés are clichés for a reason. Not only because they are fail-safe, go-to solutions! Okay, maybe only because of that.

In the course of surfing about, I’ve discovered that the auld dozen long-stemmed red rose gambit has been getting trashed from here to New Zealand. Me, I like all sorts of flowers, and can see the point of the giver maybe getting a little more creative. And rosy scents, well.. they can have a bit of an old biddie vibe.

As you can imagine, the 14th of February releases an avalanche of rose-related objects, and I’ve culled a bunch {LOL} that I think can cover the rosy bases without making it tragically unoriginal.

This is great — it’s a lip balm by ANDREA GARLAND. The Valentine’s Day Silkie Brooch with Rose Essential Oil (£26; purchase on http://www.andreagarland.co.uk) keeps your lip care handy, pinned right there to your jacket or your jumper, and it is infused with our friend the rose, as well as benzion, grapefruit and lavender. Refills are a fiver, which is a snip. If you’ve suddenly decided you’re going to start kitting yourself out exclusively in vintage clothing, this is the perfect accessory to such a look.

Rose Otto is is an essential oil, and it is highly prized because it takes about 60,000 roses to produce one ounce of oil. Seriously! And, like, one drop of the stuff is equal to two and half dozen. Sheesh! I found that the REN Morrocan Rose Otto Ultra-Moisture Body Oil (€40/£34/$65) was really effective on damp, just-out-of-the-shower skin. By contrast, the offering from AROMATHERAPY ASSOCIATES Renew Rose Massage Body Oil (€43.50/£36/$61) is aces on a dry bod. I’ve experienced many of the oils in AA line, and they are excellent.

Top off your rosy outlook with PERCY & REED Splendidly Silky Shampoo and Conditioner (€17.60/20.10/£14/16). I promise I won’t link to that post again {hint: search for My Name is Susan… on this site, if you don’t know what I’m talking about} but to recap: I am addicted to haircare products and naturally would not pass up the chance to try a new one. This has rose in it, along with apple, citrus, amber, ivy… the list actually does go on. I found the shampoo to be a bit drying, and so needed extra conditioner to mitigate that, but the result is indeed splendidly silky, and shiny. And manageable, which I never really thought of what that meant — given my devotion to this line of stuff, that seems ridic. I felt this made the mane manageable because I haven’t bothered flat ironing it, and it looks pretty boss. Plus! Second day hair was remarkably fresh and fabulous.

Last but not least, let’s shed some sweet-smelling light on the subject of roses with a Red Roses Home Candle from JO MALONE (€50/£38/$65). The scent is comprised of not one but seven different long-stemmed beauties, along with some other scents (violet leaves, spearmint, lemon) thrown in. With a burn time of 45 hours, wowee, you can get a lot of mileage out this one: Jo Malone candles fill the home with fragrance, and the gorgeous smell lingers long after you’ve put out the flame. And here’s hoping your partner d’amour does the same…

Looking for a good deal? cloud10beauty.com are offering a free REN Body Wash or Body Cream when you buy any 2 REN products. so load up on the Rose Otto!

Haiku Review: L’Oréal Superliner Perfect Slim

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Oh, The Smokey Eye:
The unicorn of beauty.
How do I catch it?!?!

Yeah, ’cause that whole ‘virgin-sitting-under-a-tree-in-the forest’ ship has sailed.

L’Oréal Paris are, in my humble opinion, one of the best over-the-counter cosmetic lines going. Yesterday, I received the following:
>False Lash Telescopic Mascara (€16.99/£10.49)
>SuperLiner Gel Intenza Eyeliner (€14.99/£8.99)
>SuperLiner Perfect Slim (€10.49/£6.49)

Now, for me, TSE is all about the liner. I know the eyeshadow enters into it, duh, but if you don’t have the lining of the lid down pat, you can use all the black shadow in the world and it won’t make a blind bit of difference.

Now, also for me, liner is like… it’s like an algebra test. I’ve studied, I really have, but wow, the mark I get is just never as good as I thought it would be. I don’t blame the maths — at least, not in this analogy. I know it’s all down to me.

I am giving the Gel Intenza Eyeliner the hairy eye ball because the brush part, I can’t even, it scares me. I expect this is also down to failure to have the proper tools, and really ought to invest in a proper, stand up make up mirror, one that has a magnifying side. I know: I don’t have one! I wonder if I should even be allowed to write about make up!

Until that happy day {which may be tomorrow, I am so mortified right now} I am going to keep attempting TSE with liners. And I must say, that the SuperLiner Perfect Slim is pretty darn effective. The tip is an extended, tapered brush, and applies in a consistent line, of whatever thickness you desire. Since I’ve still got the stabilisers/training wheels on, I did a thinnish line. Because of the precision of the tip, I managed to do it right!

With the addition of the False Lash Telescopic Mascara, I really had a good thing going on. This mascara says it will create a false eyelash effect, and it does. Unlike many chemists/drugstore brands, this was ready to rock on first application. I don’t know, I’ve used other brands which often require warming up or something? Like, you have to have the wand hit the oxygen several times before it seems to work properly {Only me? Sheesh.}

I wanted to try this immediately, and did so, even though it was Tuesday, and I was going horseriding that night. Tuesday is not a Make Up Day generally, because I don’t want to sweat and smear and all that nasty stuff, and have to take the bus home looking like a panda. Can I say? Only the slightest, tiniest bit of the liner got smudgy, on the outside of my eyes. So, seriously, if this can withstand an hour of pretty intense physical exertion — including the jumping of fences! — then you can take this craic clubbing, and beyond…

♥Day: Smelling Good is Its Own Reward

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Yeah, well, you know what? Every day really is Valentine’s Day, for me at least, because I love fragrance and I love smelling good.

I keep meaning to investigate the psychology of scent, to see what the opinions are. Does one spritz habitually out of low self esteem {ooh, I am so stinky I must mask it} or out high self esteem {I am a beautiful flower, come and admire me}? I don’t ‘do’ signature scents, I mean, Jo Malone’s Pomegranate Noir is something that people recognise as ‘me’, but I think I use scent more as an indicator of how I feel on the day. There are days when I’m feeling zesty and youthful, and days when I’m feeling deep and mysterious. Sweet and sexy day? Karma by Lush. Sentimental? Coco by Chanel.

Right, so: I’ve gotten my hands on a couple things that are in the deep, mysterious, and sexy category. Those who favour the zesty and clean and sexy stuff I’ll refer to this post.

Perhaps it’s simply because I am easily led — perhaps I am a package designer/marketeer’s dream girl — but could there be anything sexier than Emporio Armani Black Carat for Her (€61.50) and for Him (€53.50)? I ask you. And this may go back to the ‘easily led’ part, but they smell sexy too. Especially the one for Him. I just had this flash, this mental image, of me running around town spritzing dudes, just so I can smell how yum this must be on a guy. I wonder if that behaviour is actionable…

Just for the ladies, Thierry Mugler’s Alien (€30) is terribly appealing, and manages to combine some dark and sexy bits with a floral finish. I always associate flowers with light scents, but I don’t think that’s always the rule. Must also chase up that perfumery lesson… Anyway, love the bottle! It does look like a wee alien! Adorbs!

Actually, perhaps once I take that lesson, I can maybe get a gig writing the copy for fragrances? It looks like fun! It seems to me to be the same as writing about wine — about which I also know nothing, except that some is white and some is red and some is somewhere in the middle. I was googling, based on personal experience, a lovely — I mean, manly — fragrance for a dude, and remembered how much I liked Eau des Baux by L’Occitane (€44). I love the copy on the site generally, but this description really rang my bell:

In Provence, the knights from the village of Les Baux chose the cypress tree as a symbol of their strength and honor, and a bright star in the sky as their guiding force. In honor of their courage, L’OCCITANE has created a sensual and mysterious blend of cypress and incense named Eau de Baux.

Fantastic! And the fragrance is, too: earthy and musky and masculine. It is a bit risky, purchasing fragrance for another, and especialy if yer man doesn’t normally wear eau de toilette… but maybe you can get wee samples or something? Or employ my strategy as outlined above… or maybe not.

♥Day: If I Was Your Mum, I Would Be Delighted to Receive This Prezzie

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This is fannnn-cy, and like a little spa in a box. It’s a bit pricey, so maybe get a sibling in on it? A brother would be perfect, thereby sparing them the panic and fear of having to nip into a chemist’s at the eleventh hour.

Yon Ka are a French company whose products are made from ingredients of natural origin — and they are happy enough to advertise the exact percentage on their packaging. In this case, the Masque No 1 has 90%, and the Phyto Bain comes in at 85%.

Both are extremely gentle, and the bath oil is especially super fantastic — one capful is enough to make the whole bath smell gorgeous. And if you — I mean, your mum — gives herself the masque, which is a light gel-based affair, and then gets into the tub? Bliss.

Hmmm… I think your mum will be delighted to receive this prezzie, because she will have, in fact, received it, and you didn’t keep it for yourself, greedy guts.

The set is €69.50, which is a savings of €15.50 were you to buy them individually. Grab that sib, pony up, and be the world’s best children ever.

(Also: Mother’s Day, but that’s a post for another month…)

Treat Yourself: Carter Beauty’s Hydrating & Boosting Facial

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Two things occurred to me as a result of the Dermalogica Hydrating & Boosting Facial in Carter Beauty, Blackrock I got last week:  one was a momentary flitter of a thought near the beginning of the treatment, and the other came about two hours later. The fact that anything could occur to me at all, either during and after such a relaxing experience is something of a miracle, but here we go.

First thought: there is no way I could be good at being a beauty therapist, as I was struck by the complete silence of my extremely able consultant, Katie. I talk to myself all the time — and I may have just made an exclamatory sound right this second, as in ‘Ha! That’s right!’  in response to my own thought. I mutter to myself all the time. And I’ve stopped caring that is sad and weird to occasionally mumble-sing when I’ve got my earbuds in. So there I’d be, trying to give you a nice spa experience, and I’d be going, *uh*, ‘Where did I put that effing cleanser — oh, yeah.’ And then I’d probably hum along with the music, even if it was pan pipes, and talk about a disaster. I would be fired probably before I even finished the facial.

Happily, I didn’t think of much after I acknowledged this personal discovery, and let my mind clear entirely {I’ve finally copped on to the common sense of asking for a list of products after the treatment, so I’m not trying to memorise as we go along.} I can tell you that my love for Dermalogica is never so strong as when it is being applied by a professional, and when the products used come from all across their range. No less than ten potions/lotions were swept, massaged, and let sink into my skin over the course of an hour {It felt like an hour? But one of those really short hours that should last longer?} Of particular note was Katie’s prowess with pressure points: much attention was paid to those that circle the eye, and wowee, it felt amazing.

Afterwards, I walked around a bit, showing off my shiny, hydrated and boosted skin; however, I had plans for the evening, and I wasn’t too keen on going out completely bare-faced. This leads to my second thought, which may in fact actually be a realisation. When you get your skin all hydrated and boosted, it creates the perfect canvas for your make up. I know: duh. It never struck me before, I suppose because I don’t generally do anything after a treatment except hope I can get home without curling up for a nap on the bus stop. Anyway, radiance doesn’t even begin to cover it, so if you have an event or something and want to look even more smashing than usual, I’d give this a go ahead of the big day.

Plus, you get a wee giftie of the Dermalogica Dry Skin Kit containing Dermalogica Essential Cleansing Solution, Multi Active Toner, Intensive Moisture Balance, Gentle Cream Exfoliant and Intensive Eye Repair Cream — a €30 value for nothin’. Since it’s been so cold and raw lately, this is a really good antidote, and thanks to the kit, you can keep up appearances on your own.

Carter Beauty Dermalogica Hydrating Facial is €65. Carter Beauty is based at 40 Main Street, Blackrock, Co. Dublin. wwwcarterbeauty.ie Tel: 01-2103624.

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.