Currently Coveting #16: The Nars NARSissist Eye Palette

Posted in Beauty, Currently Coveting by A Spoonful of Style

In the last month or so I’ve gone from being a girl who doesn’t spend a great deal of time on eye makeup – save for a quick flick of eyeliner and lashings of mascara- to being somewhat obsessed with eye shadows. I think it must be all those great beauty blogs out there, inspiring me (a couple of my faves are Joanna Loves, Chic Avenue Daily and Mirifique Beauty) to think that I too could, with a bit practice, become a dab hand at applying my own eye makeup. It started with the Nars At First Sight Palette which I bought just before Christmas – managing to nab the very last one in Space NK’s online store. I then received the much-hyped Naked palette by Urban Decay for Christmas – I know that Naked 3 was just released last month but I still think the original palette has the edge when it comes to creating neutral day-time looks. The latest palette to catch my eye (pardon the pun!) is the soon-to-be-launched NARSissist palette by Nars. Rumour has it that the palette, which forms part of a range to celebrate the brand’s 15th anniversary, will be released in the UK on January 20. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it will be stocked by the Nars counters in Space NK so I get a chance to use the vouchers my parents gave me for Christmas. Then I’ll just have to read some more blog posts to figure out how to create the perfect smoky eye…

31Dec2013

Aww, Santa you shouldn’t have…

Posted in Beauty, Fashion by A Spoonful of Style

{The gifts bearing my name this year included a pair of classic short Ugg boots, the Urban Decay Naked eyeshadow palette, a Diptyque Baies scented candle, a scarf from American Vintage, Jamie Oliver’s latest cook book and a pair of slippers from The White Company.}

As we tumble headfirst into 2014, Christmas Day is already starting to feel like a distant memory. Our Christmas tree and decorations are still up but by this weekend they will be packed away again for another year. While the festive season is all about being together, enjoying each others company (well mostly anyway – Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without the little arguments that seem to rear their head after the turkey has been polished off), it is always nice to find a few presents under the tree. Judging by Santa’s generosity, I must have been a very good girl this year…

Now we’re off to battle the crowds and indulge in a bit of Sales shopping as well as exchanging a couple of gifts. With less than 12 hours remaining of 2013 I wish you all a very happy New Year! X

5Dec2013

Behind the Scenes at Liberty of London

Posted in Beauty, Fashion by A Spoonful of Style

I finally watched the TV programme about Liberty of London last night. It aired on Monday here in the UK but these days I hardly watch any TV in ‘real time’! I found it fascinating (and moving in parts, the scenes with the 70-year-old Shukla who has worked at Liberty for 40 years almost brought a tear to my eye) especially as I interviewed the MD, Ed Burstell, last year about his vision for Liberty and the need for retail theatre on the high street.

Liberty has always been one of my favourite London stores. Founded in 1875, the magnificent Tudor building itself is such a treat to wander around, even it there weren’t delectable products on every shelf and rail. Easier to navigate than the vast retail emporiums that are Selfridges and Harrods, it may lack the uber-cool of Harvey Nichols but the atmosphere seems somehow warmer and more inviting. Its carefully edited beauty, lingerie and footwear (the Manolo Blahnik collaboration was pure genius) departments are arguably the best you’ll find anywhere in London and I love that Liberty has held onto its history as a leading textile design house and has not been swayed to ditch the more traditional elements of the store, such as its haberdashery department.

The highlight of the first installment of the three-part series for me was without a doubt Grayson Perry proclaiming that Liberty is the store “for people who find John Lewis too beige”.

7Nov2013

The Beauty Edit: (Re) Verso the Years

Posted in Beauty by A Spoonful of Style

I still remember the first time I went up to a beauty counter in search of an anti-aging cream. I was 23 years old and luckily the lady at the Clarins counter took a no nonsense approach and steered me away from the wrinkle-busting potions, instead persuading me to buy a pot of their Gentle Day Cream which I carried on using for many years.
I am extra grateful that she didn’t indulge my worries about my non-existent wrinkles after reading an article in The Sunday Times In Style magazine which warns against starting to use harsh anti-aging products too early, saying that they can irritate the skin and even cause it to age prematurely (take heed all you 20 somethings out there!)

Fast forward a few years and while I’m quite happy to grow old (er) gracefully without Botox, fillers or more invasive treaments, my skin is in need of a helping hand to stave off the signs of aging. The irony is that I probably spent both more money and time on my skincare regime when I was in my 20s than I do these days. Instead of the Clarins or Lancome products that I used to favour, I have been buying my face creams on the high street, or worse, relying on samples from magazines, which are not necessarily adapted for my skin type (Big slap on the wrist for me!).

In the summer holidays I read about a new Swedish skincare brand called Verso which uses a formula called Retinol 8 to stimulate the skin’s own production of collagen and hyaluronic acid in order to reduce the signs of aging (read more about the science behind the products here). It’s not the cheapest option around but this month I decided to bite the bullet and invest in the serum and day cream (the range also includes a cleanser, eye cream and night cream). As the products only arrived yesterday I haven’t yet been able to gauge if they live up to their promises but watch this space for a more comprehensive review…

{Verso skincare is available from Selfridges in the UK. For a full list of international stockists click here.}

30Oct2013

The Beauty Edit: A Touch of Pink

Posted in Beauty by A Spoonful of Style

If you’re pale skinned like me, then a good blusher is essential to avoid looking washed out in the winter months. So let me introduce a new beauty favourite of mine: Le blush créme de Chanel in shade 64 Inspiration.

The creamy texture glides on beautifully and it’s the perfect shade of cold pink to add that ‘I just went for a walk in the park’ glow to your face. It works equally well for day and night and I can see myself using up this compact well before winter is over.

What’s your staple beauty product? Does it change with the seasons?

29Oct2013

Blonde Ambition

Posted in Beauty by A Spoonful of Style

{Two of my favourite hair products for keeping those highlights gleaming: Paul Mitchell 'Blonde'

{Two of my favourite hair products for keeping those highlights gleaming: Paul Mitchell Forever Blonde Dramatic Repair and L’Oreal Professionnel Gloss Protect System in Silver.}

Apart from a rather unfortunate encounter with a bottle of red hair dye in my late teens (my hair was a gorgeous vibrant red for two washes and then a horrible light orange hue for months), I have always been blonde. These days my natural colour is definitely at the mousy end of the spectrum, thus requiring a helping hand from either the sun (unfortunately rarely seen on these shores) or a tinfoil wielding hairdresser to restore it to the shade of blonde I was blessed with as a child.

At the moment my tresses are in dire need of some TLC. I’m almost ashamed to admit it, but I haven’t visited a hairdresser since the end of July (before we went on our summer holiday..) and three months between haircuts is far too long. Part of the reason why I haven’t made that call and booked an appointment is that I just find it such a bore. I’m fine for the first hour or so, having a cup of coffee and reading magazines, but I resent having to give up the two or three hours it takes to have a full head of highlights, cut and blow dry.

But today when an email offering 50% off all colour treatments landed in my inbox, I finally took the plunge and booked an appointment for Friday. I had been toying with the idea of going slightly darker but I think I’m going to stick with my regular colour. Length-wise I’m afraid there’s nothing much to get excited about either as I like my hair to be at least shoulder length so I can tie it up and wear it wavy or straight.

I am tempted by this picture of the always perfectly coiffed Jennifer Aniston, It would mean chopping a few inches off but I suspect my hairdresser will recommend that anyway to get rid of three months of split ends…

Here are some other inspirational pictures from my Pinterest board Hairstyles:

11Sep2013

Currently Coveting #9: My Scent for Fall

Posted in Beauty, Currently Coveting by A Spoonful of Style

Some of you may remember my enthusing posts about Marc Jacobs’ new fragrance Honey (here and here). I have worn MJ’s scents (Daisy for daytime and Lola for nighttime) for the last two or three years and felt it was time for a change. Well, dear reader, there is no doubt that Honey is a gorgeous perfume but despite circling around it for weeks and having a cheeky spray every time I ventured into a department store, I never actually bought a bottle.

To me, it is very much a Spring/Summer scent and had it been launched in April or May there is no doubt that I would have snapped it up. But by the time it was released last month, mentally I had already moved on to Fall and wanted a slightly heavier, more sultry fragrance. After much deliberation and sniffing my way around pretty much the entire beauty department I found The One. Flowerbomb by Viktor & Rolf has been around for a while but for some reason it hadn’t registered on my radar – until now.

With notes of jasmine, orchid, rose, freesia and patchouli it is the perfect scent for Fall and, even better, manages to bridge that tricky divide between day and night by being neither too light nor too overbearing. In the words of Viktor & Rolf themselves: Flowerbomb provides an opportunity to “escape reality and heal the world… It’s about transforming negative into positive”. Sounds like a good motto for Fall/Winter 2013 to me!

with notes of Jasmine, Orchid, Rose, Freesia and Patchouli (but I like to describe it as the most beautiful, feminine smell ever). – See more at: http://www.beautezine.com/db-flowerbomb/#sthash.yQGn7ueN.dpufW

30Aug2013

The Beauty Edit: Hard as Nails

Posted in Beauty by A Spoonful of Style

This picture is the first glimpse of the upcoming Essie Winter 2013 Shearling Darling nail polish collection which is due to hit stores in October. The six new nail colours range from rich, dark burgundy and light pastel shades of lilac and frosty blue to a darker grey-blue and pearly rosy brown. The lighter shades are a surprising addition to a winter collection and, while I think they would look pretty with a tan, I prefer a dark polish in the colder months. My personal favourite is probably the namesake of the range, Shearling Darling, closely followed by Sable Collar and Parka Perfect. Which is yours?

3Aug2013

Just like Honey

Posted in Beauty, Family Life by A Spoonful of Style

Celebrating the arrival of the weekend with a glass of wine and a bowl of black cherries last night

The last weekend before we go on holiday and it’s been busy, busy so far. I haven’t even started doing any packing, just loads of washing and organising all the travel documents and maps that we need for the journey. If anyone has any tips on how to pack for a family of five going on a two week holiday (with quite a lot of travelling around by car) to a country where sunny weather cannot be guaranteed, they would be much appreciated!

Luckily, we have borrowed a large roof box from my parents as I need to leave room in the car for all the things I want to buy and transport back home. There are some really lovely quirky interior and fashion shops both in Denmark and southern Sweden that are on my list of places to visit, in between the beach (weather permitting), Legoland and other children’s attractions. Many of them don’t ship outside Scandinavia and some of the items I have my eye on (like a bookshelf – I only mentioned that to the husband last night but he seems to think we can fit it in, even if one of the children has to travel in the roof box on the way back (only joking!!) are too big to send by post.

But for now we’re enjoying another sunny weekend and having spent much of the week at home overseeing the enforced bathroom renovations, I felt the need to escape for a couple of hours this morning. A brisk walk along the river followed by a latte in Costa Coffee and a leisurely stroll around the shops did the trick. I even managed to have my first sniff of Marc Jacob’s new perfume, Honey and, as I had expected, it smelled divine. Quite unlike me, I didn’t buy it right then and there as hopefully they will sell it in the duty free shop on the ferry.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

20Jul2013

Keep Cool and Look Chic: Top Knot Tutorial

Posted in Beauty by A Spoonful of Style

If you have long hair like me, you’re probably pulling it up into a ponytail or top knot to keep it off your neck and stay cool in this hot weather. Summer is the perfect time to rock a sexy casual updo but if you’re struggling to create a look that’s chic rather than just-came-out-of-the-gym messy, the lovely people over at Refinery 29 have put together a step-by-step tutorial to take your top knot to new heights.

Click here to see the slideshows