A day living by Rituals

A BOX FULL OF PAMPERED GOODIES

When Rituals approached me with the idea of living their brand for 24 hours, I didn’t have to think too long. The thought of being ‘ritualised’ for a day didn’t seem much of a chore. I first blogged about Rituals as a concept around 18 months ago. Before then, I have to admit it was one of those stores that passed me by in the shopping mall. But digging deeper, I fell in love with their philosophy that small, daily cultural routines can be turned into meaningful rituals through the use of gorgeous smells and sensations. Routines can be quickly turned into something more creative and enjoyable from drinking your tea to driving in your car.
 

Before I do my Bridget Jones thing, can I just say I’m never faithful to a brand as a whole. I don’t go in for signature lines, I like to dip in and out of different brands, so if there was a challenge, this was it. Setting up my working week, I began the Rituals routine Monday morning.

6.30am Wake up to the dulcet tones of the radio gleefully telling me about dull weather and tube delays. Husband brings me breakfast in bed (I know I’m lucky!) and I rally round with a bowl of porridge and head for the shower. Usually I’m in and out in 5 minutes, but this morning I have a lingering affair with Fujiyama Mandarin & Mint foaming shower gel sensation, £7.  As soon as the water hits the gel, it turns into refreshing foam which cocoons the body, turning the whole shower into some soft of aromatic pleasure dome! A Touch of Heaven Body Cream laced with Organic Sweet Orange and Cedar, £15 was next. In the pot it looks a little bit too creamy for the morning, but it’s deceivingly light and easy to apply. It’s a warm fragrance too, just the touch for still dark mornings.

7.15am It’s now time to face perking up a sleepy looking complexion. As mentioned on a previous post, I always sleep on a silk pillow which helps rid pillow creases enormously and takes out any heavy duty rubbing with a cleanser in the hope they will quickly fade! Using the Sensationally Soft Cleanser, £11.50 there’s no rubbing to be had. The gel effortlessly melts into oil on the skin and then switches into a cleansing lotion. My skin felt soothed and well hydrated. A lover of serums, I use Intense Moisture Serum, £25.50 with Hyaluronic Acid which helps retain water to keep skin looking bouncy. Line Defence Eye Cream, £22.50 was next with a helpful anti-ageing complex and finally Essential Anti-Ageing Day Cream, £25.50. It was slightly too fragranced for my liking, but nevertheless left my skin sufficiently hydrated.

LUXURIOUS FEELING ANTI-AGING DAY CREAM

7.45am I leave the house for the crushed commute. I usually walk to the station, but seeing as I’ve been sent a car perfume, £7.50 I thought I would road test it by driving to the station car park. Apart from an out-of-date pine tree hanging on the mirror cab style, I’m not one for car fragrance, but this is a revelation! The Cherry Blossom & Rice Milk Life is a Journey car perfume, £7.50 floods the car with a delicious scent that makes me feel happy. I even let another car whip in and steal my parking space without a hint of road rage!

8am Sandwiched onto the central line, I rummage through my bag for QI Stress Relief Serum whereby I pump out the Chinese Mint serum and apply, as suggested to my temples and the back of my neck. I tempt a few side glances, but the smell is really uplifting which goes someway in ignoring a rucksack jammed into my back. Switching onto the even more crowded Northern Line, I go for the handbag rescue again and pull out my White Patchouli & Cedar Wood Eau de Parfum Travel, £15. Its slide inside the luxury perfume holder, £13 and looks very sleek and metropolitan. A few quick spritzs makes me feel human again.

TRAVEL SIZE FRAGRANCE MAKES A PERFUMED COMMUTE

9am Upon getting into work, I put the kettle on for a brew. But not any old brew, Jasmine Delight – a mash-up of green tea and jasmine, £5. I do like a high quality tea, and usually go for Teapigs, but these pyramid shaped tea bags really cut the mustard and are cheaper! They’re on my shopping list from today. Monday mornings are always busy, what with meetings, emails and phone calls to make, so I set up the mini home fragrance sticks Under a Fig Tree, £11 on my desk. Soon everyone is commenting on the ‘exotic’ smell and the frantic smell of Monday mornings seemingly disappears.

MY NEW BREW

7pm Once  home, I hit the gym – yes, I’m one for punishment, and comfort myself with the thought that tonight I will be having a Wu Wei Organic White Lotus & Green Tea calming cream bath, £11.50 – candyfloss froth and soft skin guaranteed along with an Intensive Moisturising Mask, £13.50 for supple, yoga like skin. After dinner, I light Under a Fig Tree Candle, £16.50 which gives a relaxing sweet and earthy scent to the room.

11pm Upon flopping into bed I moisturise with Deep Recovery Night Cream, £24.50 – FYI my skin felt wonderful supple next morning, and spritzed the Organic White Lotus calming bed and body mist onto myself. Unfortunately it’s no aphrodisiac for my husband who shies away from the smell. But, hey you can’t win them all, and the thought of waking up again and going through the same ritual isn’t a bad thought at all.

 www.rituals.com



A juice that rocks

Juicy Couture’s new fragrance, Couture La La pretty much sums up the founders: a little punk rock, a lot of free spirit, daring and always couture.  Pam Skaist-Levy and Gela Nash-Taylor started a modest clothing company running up colour gorgeous, funky tracksuits with the J zipper over a decade ago. It has since masqueraded into a global empire called Juicy Couture whereby the two fun-loving girlfriends have since grown their brand to include luxury clothing lines. Rock is how they roll – Gela is married to John Taylor from Duran Duran and they are very much part of the too cool for skool LA scene.  

Beyond high-end fashion, bags and sunglasses any brand knows perfume is the finishing accessory, and the latest juice from JC is their Couture La La. It’s a bottle that certainly looks like it’s been created in La La land – one of fantasy and dreams. It has oodles of dressing table appeal with its old fashioned stopper, neon pink cutsey bow and punk rock inspired charms hanging sexily around the neck of the bottle. Green apple, red currant, lily of the valley and liquid musk is all in the mix which sums up the essence of the Juicy girl – multi-layered, confident, fearless but flirty and feminine. Now, who wouldn't like to smell like her?

Couture La La from £35 for 30ml available nationwide.

Emma gets cheeky with Lancome

A post New Year mood won’t stay grey for long when casting a trained beauty eye on Lancome’s extremely pretty in pink SS13 collection. Aptly called In Love – one glance at the tres jolie packaging and you will be, the pop art colours are drawn from street art murals to give a dull pallor a fresh and flirty look.

Emma Watson couldn’t look more adorable or In Love with her flushed cheeks and sweet cupid mouth for this collection. One of her favourite make-up picks is a hint of Baume in Love in Rose Macaron which is a brand new comforting lipstick formula with Shea Butter. Making lips feel extra special, one of my favourites is Sugar Rose (pictured above) which looks very Barbie pink, however, once applied gives the lips a pretty sheen. But the whole look for me is summed up in Emma’s cheeks. When you’re in love it always shows in your cheeks, and in this shot they look gorgeously rosy with a dusting of Pommettes d’amour. Not too delicate and fey, the palette is a mix of fuchsia and orange for a you’ve-been-up-to-something-naughty-but-nice glow! Apply the coral shade to the apple of the cheek followed by the pink shade just above for that on-message ‘doll cheeks’ effect. A sweep of Ombre in Love in Sugar Rose gives softness to the eye along with a graphic line of Kohl In Love in Jade Crush to add intensity. To nail off the look, paint fingertips with the peachy pop hue in Peach Melodie. Simply sweetheart!

Lancome Blush in Love, £34

Lancome Vernis in Love, £12

Lancome Ombre in Love, £19

Lancome Baume in Love, £20

Lancome Kohl in Love, £16

The collection is now available from Lancome counters nationwide

  

A lipstick worth talking about

Mwah! It’s beauty rumoured that women who wear lipstick kiss their partners more often than women who don’t. It's also said they're ready to kick off their heels and enjoy life more than those who prefer to leave their lips slick bare. Doesn’t that say something about the increased confidence women get from wearing lipstick?

Hot on the lip-licious factor is Clarins new Rouge Eclat Satin Finish Age-Defying Lipstick which is launching in January. With lips at their pout best around the age of 16 – after the first flush of youth, lips gradually lose their pillow fullness with age unless you resort to fillers; Clarins have created a long-lasting colour along with an injection of their Nutri-Youth Complex. Protecting lips against dehydration and helping to boosts collagen, the formulation feels super nourishing and cushioning thanks to the inclusion of vitamin E and plant waxes. Remember, a dry lip adds up to a thinner looking lip. Plus, they’re lip-smacking tasty too with a blackberry and liquorice flavour. Beautifully encased in gold, cherry pick from 15 gorgeous shades catalogued under subtle nudes, rich and warm and vibrant brights. An Angelina Jolie mouth is not guaranteed, but surely this has to be a lipstick lust for the start of the new year.

Clarins Rouge Eclat Lipstick, £18.50 available from January.

Pretty naughty, pretty nice!

HOLIDAY HAPPY COLOURS

I know we haven’t celebrated Christmas yet, but after being saturated with copious amounts of glitter, gold and sparkle leading up to the festive week, it was a breath of fresh beauty air when something caught my eye that looked light and sweet, reminding me of warmer and fun times ahead.

Estee Lauder’s Pure Color Pretty Naughty collection, is not hitting the stores until February, but I thought I’d shout about it now to build up a little bit of excitement for what really is a dullsville month. Usually a month of dull skies and no celebration - except if it's your birthday, so a little bit of pretty certainly wouldn't go a miss!

Tom Pecheux, creative make-up director for Lauder has really tapped into the sunny side of his nature for his uplifting trend collection for spring. Yes, these watercolour pastels could be classed as pretty naughty, or in my eyes just plain pretty – without being insipid. Shades take inspiration from an English garden, but far from twee, they're given an urban twist and described as youthful and rebellious. Find your inner rebel by playing up the fanciful soft hues in the eye palette, and then slightly taming with the dark pigments for emphasis. The double ended Kajal EyeLiner in black and sky blue can be used to give a youthful flicker or bold definition at the corner of the eye. Nail the look with Insatiable, the light weight lilac nail polish that’s a tad off-beat. The whole collection may have grown from the creative seeds of an English garden, but to me the colours just sum up the joy of travel – blue skies and happy minds.

Pure Color Five Color Eyeshadow Palette in Pretty Naughty, £35

Pure Color Intense Kajal Eyeliner Duo in black/blue, £18

Pure Color Nail Lacquer in Insatiable, £14.50

www.esteelauder.co.uk

Hollywood's skin secret

I recently read that you should hide away heavy duty wrinkle creams in your bathroom when inviting friends around – along with any other embarrassing lotions and potions. Now, I can understand hemorrhoid cream, but wrinkle cream?  To me this comes under the same category as a Botox user putting their line free complexion down to drinking water and having early nights. If you have good looking skin why not spread the word on what you’re using?

One cream I wouldn’t mind my friends seeing is Erno Laszlo’s new Transphuse Line Refining Cream. One because it costs £235 and therefore they must think I’m doing okay for myself! And two, it looks luxurious on the bathroom shelf. A skincare line with true Hollywood heritage, it was founded by a young and forward thinking dermatologist called Dr Erno Laszlo in the late 1920’s. Seen as a skincare revolutionary, his advice was sought after by Hollywood’s elite including Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.  

Today, Dr Laszlo’s philosophy still holds true with the creation of tailor made products specifically formulated to confront the signs of premature aging. Transphuse boasts ‘fusion technology’ that is said to stimulate new collagen growth and modulates micro-dermal contractions that cause fine lines. A key ingredient is the plant based Gatuline Expression that is said to relax facial muscles. I’ve been using the cream for a little over a week, and although I can’t say lines are melting away – a month is needed for visible results, I do like the feel of it. Light in texture and sinking readily into the skin, it leaves my skin feeling firmer. Only time will tell if it's a keeper in terms of anti-aging benefits, but  it’s a cream I’m going to continue with. I’m having friends around tonight, and I’m going to ignore the bathroom etiquette  rules and leave this tube of gorgeousness on my bathroom shelf!

Erno Laszlo Transphuse skincare line is available from January from The White Hall at Harrods priced from £95.

www.ErnoLaszlo.com

Eyeing up some Egyptian attitude

There’s nothing quite like working a sexy Cleopatra eye whether it be a cinematic Liz Taylor or an Amanda Barrie Carry On effect. The tool of the trade for this mysterious and captivating look is kohl. This form of eyeliner had its breakout moment in Ancient Egypt where it was worn not only to enhance the eyes, but said to protect skin from the searing desert sun. It has also been speculated that kohl was worn to protect the wearer from the evil eye. Today, the only kind of eye Bourjois is interested in creating is one with modern attitude and mystery which comes courtesy of their new and aptly named Queen Attitude Kohl Kajal.

Twisting up like a lipstick bullet - the black satin ribbon at the end of the tube makes for a nice touch, this cone shaped kohl is inky black and incredibly soft thanks to its natural waxes. Although coal intense, it gives a powdery and graphic finish thereby creating a sensual, rather than a hard looking eye.  But if applied with a heavy hand, it can be easily smudged out due to its baby softness. Really, it's goof-proof to master. There’s no need for a pencil sharpener either as the tip will naturally contour to your make-up application without the need to sharpen. Apart from bathing in asses milk, I think this clever kohl captures the spirit of Egyptian beauty beautifully!

Bourjois Queen Attitude Kohl Kajal, £6.99

Available from www.boots.com www.superdrug.com and www.asos.com