YSL Beaute AW08 Collection Review

Many fashion houses view the cosmetics & perfume market as an easy way to gain mass market appeal & extend their brand offering without necessarily giving much thought to the actual product. Yves Saint Laurent, however, is one brand whose cosmetics offering proves that investment in R & D can really pay off. Their much-loved Touche Eclat has definitely earned a place in the Beauty Hall of Fame with 1 reportedly being sold every 20 seconds globally & personally, I simply can't live without their Easy Liner so I always look forward to their new season collections with childlike excitement!

For AW08, the collection is spot-on.

For skin, there's Top Secret Flash Radiance (pictured above)- this is the product which originally caught my attention. Presented in YSL's signature easy-to-use packaging, this is a base product which promises to add a natural glow to even the most fatigued winter complexions. To use, it must be applied to cleansed skin, wait 2 minutes for it to dry then moisturise. I found the 2 minutes waiting time somewhat annoying but patience is rewarded as skin is left feeling velvety smooth. The formula contains pink micropigments which reflect the light to really flatter and I'd definitely recommend this as a good boost for skin if you are happy to go without make-up. For those who can't live without their foundation, however, I'd say stick with Clarins Beauty Flash Balm. It doesn't contain the pigments but for ease of application and a sheer base, you can't beat it.

I was more than impressed with the eyeshadow palettes which have been introduced. There are 6 new palettes to choose from, each containing 5 complementary colours. The gold compact packaging is totally fabulous & the pigments are a fantastic mix of everyday taupes to party brights, meaning there's something for everyone. I'm particularly lusting after the purple "Lilac Sky" combo and green "Garden of Eden".

Finally, there are 2 new lipglosses- a shocking pink which, in my opinion, is far too bright although is obviously packed with pigment so a good choice if pink's your thing and a much more wearable wine shade which goes on as a sheer gloss which is incredibly chic.

September Offers & Sample Sales

We'll no doubt be bombarded with glamorous photos from the various Fashion Weeks this month but lacking an A-list budget needn't mean missing out on superstar worthy treats!

Offers:
http://www.beautyexpert.co.uk/ is offering a FREE Aromatherapy Associates tealight trio when you buy any product from the Enrich Bodycare range
http://www.beautique.com/ is offering a FREE Seriously Black Kohl Pencil when you buy any Urban Retreat product
http://www.lookfantastic.com/ is offering a FREE Joico white vanity case when you buy any three Joico products
http://www.nailsbymail.com/ is holding a clearance sale on Essie nail polishes, with prices from £4.25- there are some gorgeous neutral shades so why not check it out?
http://www.champneys.com/ is inviting you to bring a friend for FREE when you book a two night spa break

Sample Sales:
Rupert Sanderson is holding a sample sale with past-season shoes from £50. He's one of the nicest guys in fashion & fans of his designs include Scarlett Johansson & Emily Blunt- as if you need an excuse!
25-27th September. Thursday & Friday 10am-7pm and Saturday 10am-8pm at The Grosvenor Chapel, 24, South Audley Street. London. W1K 2PA.
N Peal cashmere is holding a sample sale with cashmere from £20- just in time to stock up & wrap up warm for Winter!
4th & 5th September, 4-8pm at 37-40, Burlington Arcade, London. W1J 0QD
The London Fashion Weekend sale is one of the best, in my opinion, as there's such a range of brands under one roof. With various sponsored bars & beauty treatments to provide a break from shopping, this is a great way to spend a girly day so grab some friends & head down!
From 24th-28th September at the Natural History Museum, South Kensington- check out http://www.londonfashionweekend.co.uk/ for details.

Tried & Tested... Hand Creams

The market is completely saturated with hand creams, ranging from the cheapest of the cheap to budget busting luxury buys so it can be hugely confusing knowing which one to choose. Hopefully the tried & testeds below will go some way to making the decision a little easier because heaven knows that once you've made that choice, you'll be faced with a dozen others... tall, Americano, skinny, sugar free...

1) Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Intensive Moisturizing Hand Treatment has a light, gel-cream consistency which is easily absorbed, leaving hands feeling smooth but not greasy. As the name suggests, this is scented with the distinctive Eight Hour Cream fragrance which I know is not to everyone's liking. I'd say that this is the best choice for beauty buffs who are likely to already be familiar with the scent and who'll appreciate the sleek packaging which won't embarasss when applying in public- a great one for the office desk drawer!

2) The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector is one of those classic products which made the brand a success. The scent is distinctive and in my opinion, has the most unisex appeal of those tested- luckily, it won't matter if your man pilfers some as this cream lasts FOREVER! Offering excellent value for money at £10 for 100ml, this cream works miracles on even the driest, cracked hands after just one application of the teeniest amount.

3) HEAVEN by Deborah Mitchell Vanilla Pod Hand & Nail Cream is a sweetly scented, rich cream which does leave some greasy residue, meaning that it's a better choice for nighttime. I like the old-fashioned glass pot which this is packaged in as it's quite unusual & looks cute on the dressing table. This is the best eco choice as it's free from nasties such as parabens.

4) Crabtree & Evelyn La Source Hand Therapy is one of my favourites for its fresh scent and effective moisturisation. Teamed with La Source Hand Recovery exfoliator, it makes an indulgent yet quick hand treatment- perfect for at-home pampering! The choice of a 100ml tube or 50ml handbag size mean that you need never be without it!

5) Molton Brown Naran Ji Soothing Hand Lotion SPF 15 is a light, easily absorbed lotion formula with a delicate orange scent. The old adage, "you can tell a person's age by looking at their hands," means that it makes perfect sense to care for your hands as you would your face and that includes using a daily SPF protective moisturiser. For anti-aging prevention, this lotion is great as it has UVA & UVB broad spectrum sun protection meaning that it gains my recommendation if you're choosing to buy just one hand cream- make it this one.

Is it just me?

Is it just me or is anyone else seriously OVER The Body Shop? Hugely successful in the '80s and '90s, I'm sure we can all remember going crazy over at least one of their products- be it collecting the animal shaped soaps, being desperate to receive a Body Shop Gift Basket at Christmas or slathering on their much-loved Body Butters- but in recent years The Body Shop has failed to wow. Yes, I'm sure that everyone still has at least one Body Shop item in their bathroom (please please don't let it be those weird little metal devices marketed as at-home blackhead removers- that's a job which should be strictly reserved for the experts to deal with) and I have been impressed by their continually strong customer service on the few occasions I have wandered in recently but on the whole, I've become increasingly disenchanted with the brand.
In many ways, The Body Shop's success was based on its pioneering attitude to beauty, for example introducing Community Trade long before everyone was talking about the Fair Trade movement and their much-missed Refill/Recycle scheme so I'm disappointed that they seem to have forgotten this and have shown little effort in realising our desires when it comes to beauty today. Everyone's talking about products which are free-from parabens, sodium laureth sulphate and the like so it seems incredible to me that The Body Shop have failed to pick up on this- it would have fit in so perfectly with everything that the brand should be associated with. Wonderful brands such as Yes To Carrots have shown that economic shortcomings needn't mean ecological ones and with the backing of L'Oreal's R & D department I can only hope that this is something which The Body Shop will address sooner rather than later.

Ooh La La!

My passion for all things purple this Autumn Winter was confirmed this week when the adorable Cafe Cuties collection from OPI arrived.

I'd been lusting after Louvre Me, Louvre Me Not (purple with a hint of shimmer) but was thrilled to find this set which contains 4 miniatures for just £1 more than the price I'd pay for 1 full sized bottle (let's be honest, has anyone in the history of beauty ever finished an entire bottle of polish?). It's a great way to sample a couple of additional seasonal colours, although the cute, teeny bottles make application somewhat fiddely- I miss my ProWide! I'm currently rocking Parlez Vous OPI on my toes- it's a fab transeasonal colour which is best described as a muted lilac-grey but my favourite in the set has to be the stunning, Eiffel for This Colour- a gorgeous, rich berry-brown which could almost be described as aubergine in some lights.

In my quest to find the OPI Collection De France shades, stumbling upon this set was a real surprise as the majority of sites only offer the single polishes... check out http://www.beautyexpert.co.uk/ who provide a fantastic, speedy service and see Scrangie's blog for swatches of the colours.

Girl Done Good- Again!

Can Samantha Cameron get any better?! As Creative Director of uber lust-have brand, Smythson, she continues to wow with the "Maze" collection- new for AW08. I was beginning to wonder whether we'd actually see any decent new bags this season to dream about (gasp!) but whilst juggling being a perfectly groomed working mother/ future First Lady (here's hoping, we could do with a style icon in Number 10 after years of having to stare at total frumps!), she found the time to come up with a really unique design which has seriously set my pulse racing! It's so hard to choose a favourite from a 1970s inspired colour palette which seriously rocks but I think my favourite is the gorgeous cassis (pictured above)- one of those colours which is so very "this season" but will come around again & again making this a justifiable investment.

M & S- I'm Impressed!

Marks & Spencer, that perennial of the British High Street & everyone's mum's favourite, has really picked up its game in recent years. Somewhat cleverly, M & S has revamped itself to appeal to new customers by introducing more fashion-led designs, segmenting its departments & responding to the "green" trend (as well as some rather snazzy ad campaigns) without compromising on quality & value for money so not alienating its loyal, existing customers. I'm lusting after this classic black dress with a twist from the Limited collection- it'll be perfect for work & with the addition of some funky accessories, will take me straight from the office to the bar!

Available at http://www.marksandspencer.com/