Lush Ladies of Leeds

At Lush's Leeds store on Tuesday 24th July between 3.00pm and 5.00pm Rowena Bird, Lush Co Founder and creator of Emotional Brilliance will be in the Lush Leeds store meeting customers and giving them an emotional brilliance reading. You will need to book a time with her and as this is a huge event places are going quickly. Go into the store to find out more and book your consultation. 

EMOTIONAL BRILLIANCE

Introducing a brand new concept matching your psychological needs to what colour cosmetics you should be wearing, at any moment. 

This range – consisting of lip colours, eyeliners and eyeshadows - is less about wearing make-up that’s in-season or someone else’s vision of what’s on-trend, as it won’t fulfil your needs. Emotional Brilliance works as a way to wear something that’s designed for you - you choose colours and then the corresponding words, such as Confident, Take Control or Glamorous, will be significant to you and your needs at that time and you wear them to get that point across.  It’s the power of suggestion – it’s enough that you believe in it, you will then start to behave a certain way.

Lush Co-Founder and Inventor of Emotional Brilliance Rowena Bird comments “I love lipstick, but why wasn’t one great colour ever enough, why was I drawn to a particular one on different days or even sometimes feel the need to change colour part way through a day?  After chatting with like minded lipstick junkies, it struck us that it wasn’t about what clothes we were wearing but more about how we were feeling and so the idea was born”.

Sweat Guard

Ok so it's not the most glamorous product but we all sweat and some more than others. Nothing ruins a look more than putting your arms in the air to find massive sweat patches in your pits. Grey clothes are notoriously bad for it and as most of my tops are grey when I go out I am constantly checking to see if I have the dreaded sweat patches. 

While regular antiperspirants help there are some times when something stronger is needed. Take my latest day out in London. The cold weather meant wrapping up warm but then walking around combined with the hot tubes meant that I was constantly going from hot to cold. Not only that but the stress of meetings and getting to places on time meant that sweating was a real threat. Thankfully though after several long hours there wasn't a hint of wet patch on my top. If I hadn't of used sweat guard I can guarantee that I would have had huge wet patches. Also from my day of traveling around I think this should be made compulsory for anybody travelling on the tube. 

I didn't have time for a shower before going out and my quick change was something akin to superman in a phone box so I was unsure whether the product would last all night. What turned out to be a few drinks turned into somehow finding myself in a very hot and cramped club. Normally this would be a nightmare situation of not being to raise my arms for fear of the change in colour on my top, not on this occasion though. 

You might expect it to smell horribly medicinal but its actually got a very pleasant minty fruity smell. The bad news is that it isn't available in your local Boots, in fact its not available anywhere other than the website and at £19.97 it isn't the cheapest on the market. If you find that regular antiperspirants don't cut it though and from speaking to my friends many of you don't this is really worth the investment. 

Another product on the site is the dress shields, a stick on absorbent pad that you stick to the inside of your clothes that stops any sweat from getting onto your clothes. It's best worn with shirts so perfect for when you have that important job interview and are more likely to be sweating. One less thing to worry about it the stain under your arms. Starting at £3.99 for 10 then provide a reassuring barrier on your clothes so even if you are sweating buckets no one needs to know. 

New 212 Seductive Body Spray by Carolina Herrera

212 Body Spray was born from the perfect chemistry of combining the essence of a young and urban New York, and the elegance from the 212 universe. 212 Body Spray tickles your senses and presents you with innovative design, taking its inspiration from New York street art, always by the hand of the sophistication and style that characterizes the legendary 212 fragrance. 

It’s fresh and intense aroma seduces and spreads energy through its masculine and feminine tones. 212 Body Spray Men accentuates the sensuality of masculine skin and fills it with freshness, thanks to its citric ingredients such as pink grapefruit and fresh mint. For women, 212 Body Spray treats your skin with care and elegance through a mixture of evocative ingredients, such as bergamot, mandarin and grapefruit petals.

212 Body Spray conveys all the youthful attitude and essence of New York, and its energy. As well as the mythical 212 notes, there is a touch of freshness and fun, and that sensation of subtle skin contact which bathes you in elegance.

212 Men Body Spray 250ml : £16.50

212 Body Spray for Her 250ml : £18.50

After Exercise Deep Muscle Rub £6.95

This muscle rub from The Bakewell Soap Company couldn't have arrived at a better time. My husband to be signed up to a 10K run a few weeks ago and rather than do any training he decided to just go for it on the day and hope for the best. Well needless to say he came home after the run in a bad state. His legs, not used to that amount of activity, decided to get their own back on him and start hurting which was a great excuse to use this rub.

It uses uses Arnica and Cajeput to provide effective relief for aches, stiffness and inflammation and Salicylic Acid to relieve muscle aches caused by lactic acid build up; Cineol, which helps to relax muscles and joints, and Sesquiterpenes to reduce joint inflammation and bruising. I also got a friend he ran with to give it a go. They both really liked the application of the rub, it doesn't soak in so doesn't leave your skin sticky but has a light covering effect instead almost like an oil. This meant that it was perfect for massaging the effected area. It heats up slightly to provide relief and both the men found the sensation helped to relax the muscles. They also both commented that the smell was really nice, much better than the strong smells of some other muscle treatments. All in all the feedback was very positive.

I also like the tin, very handy to carry around and you don't have the worry of spilling that you have with products in bottles. For the amount you get and the small amount you actually need per application the price is extremely reasonable. If the urge ever takes me to do any exercise I am going to make sure this is close to hand. 

Micellar Lotion £12.50

French skincare specialist Eau Thermale Avène have developed Micellar Lotion cleanser and makeup remover. Like all Eau Thermale Avène products it contains Avène Thermal Spring Water known for its soothing and anti-irratant properties. It's delicate enough for use on the most sensitive of skins and doesn't leave your skin feeling dried out like some makeup removers can. It is in the luxury price bracket but you do get a lot in the bottle and as you only need a little I think this is going to last me for a long time so worth the money. The ultimate test of course is can it remove all traces of makeup after a big night out? I found it best to squirt a little on a cotton wool pad, leave the pad over your closed eye for a few seconds before wiping everything off. Considering it's so gentle it takes mascara and such off easily so you don't have to keep wiping at your eyes. A product that lives up to its claims of leaving your skin clean, soft and soothed.  

Now for something completely different

The British catwalk scene got a whole new look this week with a beauty & makeup runway show that abandoned bodies for faces to create the world’s first ever ‘facewalk’.

Using the traditional fashion catwalk show set up, QVC created the exclusive ‘facewalk’ runway event to showcase exclusive new beauty looks in celebration of its June Beauty Month.

After London’s first ever ‘men’s fashion week’ this month, the first ever ‘facewalk’ show put faces centre stage by shunning catwalk supermodels like Elle ‘The Body’ Macpherson in favour of up-and-coming ‘new faces’ from the British modelling scene.

Set in complete darkness, the show focused entirely on the 12 models’ faces through carefully placed spotlights with looks ranging from contemporary and classic to extreme.

For the first time on the catwalk scene, the focus switched from fashion to beauty with the models revealing specially designed looks including ‘nu wave’, ‘flower’, ‘geisha’, ‘sky’ and ‘space’. The looks were created using products and brands available through QVC including Jemma Kidd, Bobbi Brown and bareMinerals.

QVC’s invite-only ‘facewalk’ event was revealed to British beauty media at London’s prestigious Hospital Club and was curated by leading makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench. 

Sue Leeson, from QVC commented: “There’s no city on Earth more exciting or inspiring than London this year, so what better place for us to create a world first. We are so used to taking fashion inspiration from the catwalk but this show is all about illustrating the potential of makeup, how it can be applied and adapted as trends evolve. 

“One of the things that’s unique about QVC is the way we demonstrate our cosmetic and skin-care brands on-air with the brand owners themselves giving viewers step by step guides to application and tips on technique.  Viewers are encouraged to adapt their looks and experiment with new products daily - knowing they have 30 days to return any product they try but don’t like.”

Visit qvcuk.com/facewalk to watch the full facewalk show and learn how to create some of the looks yourself.

These are my two favourite

  

Payot

Regular readers will know my love for Payot but for those that don't the brand started in 1920 and was pioneering at it's time. Each product is tailored to meet different needs and solve various problems. I got sent to try a couple of products from their new line My Payot. They say about the range 


"For the first time Payot have used a duo of super fruits, both Goji berries with carotens, trace elements and flavonoids as well as the nourishing and repairing Acai berries to ensure healthy skin that is full of vitality for all. Each formula also contains an extract ofactive bifidus; these micro-organisms, also known as probiotics, form a protective shield for the immune system. Applied on the skin, day after day active bifidus helps reinforce our natural defences against environmental aggressions."


The first product I tried was the My Payot Fluide Daily Radiance Care  £24.50. It's has a mattifying effect whilst still being radiance boosting so I found that when my skin didn't need any coverage I could use it on it's own in morning and my skin looked lovely and glowing. 


I also tried the My Payot Nuit Night Radiance Care £30.50 which was my favourite of the two. They are both great but this one just had the edge. The creamy formula calls for you to massage it into your face gently. It contains hazelnut extract to detoxify the skin so when you wake your skin is renewed. When I wake up in the morning now my skin still feels like it's just been moisturised.