Drink It Up

I'll readily admit I am a sun whore. I don't smoke and I religiously apply sunscreen but oh do I love to sit under the big yellow ball in the sky getting my dose of vitamin D. Since returning from my holiday my face has been quite dry and a little flakey (blurgh!) so I thought I'd treat it to some intensive moisturising with Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Mask.

Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Mask

You apply the herbal scented mask thickly then let your skin soak it up for 10 minutes. The cream doesn't harden but it's quite disturbing to see how thirsty my skin was as the product all but disappeared on certain areas of my face. The instructions say to wipe away what's left behind with a tissue and massage the final remnants into the face, but it felt too greasy so I gave mine a quick wipe with a damp muslin cloth. 

The ingredients are 99% natural with moisture trapping clary sage as the hero ingredient. It also contains mafura and tucuma butter along with coconut oil to soften and hydrate. 

My skin looked instantly fresher and plumper, the dryness improved after just one use and it's definitely softer to the touch. At £19.99 this is a well priced, does what is says on the tin product that I will be integrating into my weekly beauty routine.

Weekend Scenes

This weekend flew by and was filled with work, life laundry, a little retail therapy, some training action and seeing work friends. 

On Friday night I had the privilege of attending the Asian Awards at Grosvenor House with my friend Gok Wan. It was a fantastic night made even better by Gok winning the gong for Outstanding Achievement in TV. Idris Elba was in attendance (argh!!!), the food was divine and the dresses were so sparkly that I felt utterly underdressed in my bargain buy from H&M.

Yummy pudding at the Asian Awards

Idris Elba presenting an award (sorry for the blurry picture)

Dress £39.99 H&M Bag Anya Hindmarch Shoes Miu Miu

On Saturday a quick rummage in TK Maxx unearthed these beauties by Seven for All Mankind. I'll wear them with a grey tee, a denim shirt or clash their subtle print with a stripe. The kids clothes section was especially good with lots of little Stella McCartney and Paul & Joe. It almost made me want a child.

Jeans £29 from TK Maxx

My new crinkle cutter knife arrived and I have been happily chopping all manner of fruit and veg (FYI it doesn't work on bread!) We are hoping to make pretty crinkle cut veggie crisps with it soon.

Crinkle cutter knife from Amazon

The Capital Tri that I am taking part in with Simply Swim is rapidly approaching so I spent quite a few hours going nowhere on my Bianchi to help prepare my thighs.

And I packed my bags...again. This time I'm heading to France for an exciting job. 

I Love Flamingos

Flamingos make me happy. Their odd beaks, long necks, penchant for balancing on one spindly leg and mostly because what they eat makes them that glorious shade of pink. They also have a delightful kitsch quality that make them a uplifting addition to my home. In my last flat I adorned an entire bathroom wall with Cole & Son's flamingo wallpaper. When we moved I was very sad to leave it behind.

Cole & Son Flamingo Wallpaper

In my new flat my collection of mingos (as I affectionately refer to them) is growing. A faux stuffed one from Rockett St George lives in my loo.

Flamingo from Rockett St George

These lights from amazon adorn my bar cart and are the height of kitsch but I LOVE them!

Flamingo Lights

And this chic flamingo print is actually an old Celine advert that I cut out and framed.

Framed Flamingos

I draw the line at wearing anything with a flamingo print but would be quite partial to any of the following things for my home.

Flamingorama print by Aida from Nelly Duff

Flamingo tea towel (I have an obsession with tea towels) from Rockett St George

Royal Flamingo notepad from Liberty

Flamingos for the garden (if only my boyfriend would let me these would be mine!) from Amazon

Loving the grey and pink combo on this gorgeous cushion from Notonthehighstreet.com

Images: Nelly Duff, Rockett St George, Alexa Pulitzer, Amazon, Notonthehighstreet.com

Holiday Scrapbook

Our holiday to the Maldives was incredible. The sun shone, we relaxed, played with the little sharkies and didn't wear shoes from the moment we arrived until we boarded the speedboat to leave. Here are some pictures from our week in paradise...

Sunshine, sand and palm trees = Bliss!

We loved being shoeless for the entire week

Little sharkies in the shallows. Surprisingly cute, not scary!

Manta-ray at feeding time

Parrots make a welcome change from London pigeons

Obligatory shadow shot

Scanning the ocean for turtles and sharkies

Evening outfits sans shoes

The sunrise on our last morning

It was a truly fantastic holiday. Goodbye Maldives, we'll see you soon...

Bikini Body

Two weeks prior to going on holiday I thought I should start prepping my skin to make it holiday ready. In particular my thighs. I exercise frequently, my diet is fairly good despite many bars of Green & Black and even though I'm a tad cynical about the claims slimming creams make, I wanted rid of my cellulite. So after a little research I started slathering on Bliss' Fat Girl Sleep. I applied the lilac goop nightly, rubbing it into my lumps and bumps for a minimum of 30 seconds as directed. The morning after the first application and the smoothness of my skin was akin to a week of vigorous body brushing. It's most active ingredients are red algae and lotus flower extract said to improve circulation and help breakdown excess fat cells. What makes the night time formula different to the award winning daytime formula, Fat Girl Slim, is the addition of lavender extract, included to help induce peaceful slumber. After the initial joy of soft skin, sadly I didn't notice my thighs toning up and the dimples of cellulite still plague my rump. Perhaps I should have started using it earlier or doing as bliss advise and pairing it with Fat Girl Slim. But all is not lost, my skin feels velvety soft and that's no bad thing when you're planning to bare your body on a beach.

Bliss Fat Girl Sleep £32.70

How I Pack

I don't go on many holidays but I do get to travel quite a bit for work. In April alone I will be visiting France and Australia. To make my life easier I follow my tried and trusted method for packing. 

It all starts with a list. I divide a page in half writing AM and PM as the top headers then put a list of the days I'm away at the side. I list the clothes and shoes I'm going to take. This helps you to see where you can double up on shoes and pieces of clothing, ensuring you don't take too much. I write what I'm going to wear when I'm travelling (to and from), then an extras list which includes things like sunhat, underwear, gym kits, evening bag and so on.

I get everything together and lay it out in piles such as shoes, daytime and evening. I also skim through my wardrobe to see if there's something I've forgotten about which I really should pack. I rummage through my jewellery draw and match up a few pieces that will work with my outfits. Shoes get put in fabric bags and I group things like underwear, jewellery and gym kits and put them in individual fabric bags (I use duster bags I've received with my handbags over the years). 

Next up, I write a hand luggage list which includes items such as a book, playing cards, travel documents, money, headphones, iPad, beauty bits for the plane, large scarf. As we are taking a long flight on this trip I've packed a change of clothes for the plane. Again I lay all of this out ready to be packed. Next up is my list of beauty products. I am a beauty junkie and can get quite carried away taking various lotions and potions. After I've pulled out everything I need I put anything that could possibly leak into plastic bags (I've found oils and serums, no matter how tightly you screw the lid always leak). I group together things like make up, hair products, sun creams and put them in individual cases so they are easier to unpack when I arrive.

Then I'm ready to pack. Suitcase first, clothes are laid flat, I tesselate the things in bags, then beauty products. Finally I pack my hand luggage and triple check I have the vital documents and passport. Bon voyage!

Weekend Scenes

This weekend has felt rushed and a bit crazy. Mainly because we are off on a well deserved holiday to the Maldives and I always find myself with a longer than usual to-do list before I go away. By the time this blog is posted we should have arrived in paradise. I can't wait!

Saturday morning was spent working unfortunately. It's a symptom of being self-employed and taking time off.

But spring has sprung on our little terrace and the happy primroses are out in full bloom.

The weather was strange on Saturday which made for dramatic cloud scenes. This was taken just before the hail stones started pouring down. 

Sunday morning was spent packing. I'm not sure if taking only 4 pairs of shoes is a wise move but I'm hoping I'll be bare foot on the white sand for most of the trip. I'll be posting a 'how I pack' post later in the week.

We have a thing for Eames chairs and ordered ourselves this rocking chair  in navy back in January from SCP. It arrived this weekend and is currently living in my office. I couldn't be happier with it.