PRODUCT WATCH : MILK : Italy

Trends in milk:

1 – Functional milk – milk with clear health benefits seem to be popular in Italy.

Beauty : Innovations

As a beauty writer I get to see and hear about a lot of new products…daily.  Whilst my passion never wains for the new, it can sometimes seem that there are a lot of products doing similar things.  So I particularly love it when new innovations or novel concepts turn up on my desk – I admire the industry for their creativity and solution-solving designs, and importantly for adding fun, simplicity or even a challenge to our usual routines!

 

Here are some products which have caught my eye recently : 

 

1. Too Faced Mood Swing, £12

What’s special? Intuitive lipgloss.  Happy, angry, emotional or excited..your lips tell it all with a gloss that changes colour according to your mood…start the day with calm pink lips and leave the office in a deep fuchsia funk!! 

Available at larger Boots stores

 

2. Cargo Plantlove, £11.74

What’s special? First ever 100% compostable lipstick tube (it’s made entirely from corn).  The lipstick formula inside is also environmentally friendly as it contains no mineral oils or petroleum.  It’s so pretty too!!

Available from selected Sainsbury’s stores

 

3. Piz Buin, Self Tanning Lotion + Colour Dial, £17.99

What’s special? Customized colour.  A nifty twisty bottle lets you choose how low you want to glow – some days you may want a subtle radiance and others a nut-coloured Amazonian hue. This is especially perfect for fair skin types who find many self-tanners uncomplimentary for their skin tone.  

0845 601 5789

 

4. Lancaster Morning and Evening Bronze Toner – Face, £16

What’s special? A toner with self-tan! Tone your face with this product after cleansing and build up a lovely glow – it sounds so easy. 

0800 376 0688

 

5. Rodial Skinny Beach range – Skinny Beach SPF15, £39 Skinny Beach Sticks, £49

What’s special? Rodial always bring out the coolest products – and the Skinny Beach range is a perfect example.  The SPF15 cream has everything you could possibly want from a suncream – lifting, toning, cellulite reducing…the list goes on.  Peptides also boost your natural tanning ability meaning a deeper, faster and longer-lasting tan.  To further the quest to a hot body the Skinny Beach Sticks are also a must.  These sachets of powder – when diluted with water- will infiltrate your system with good-for-you nutrients, melanin boosting ingredients and green tea to encourage fat melting. Yes please to all!

rodial.co.uk

 

 

6. Wilkinson Sword Quattro for Women Bikini, £8.99

What’s special? All the close shave of the Quattro razor with the added benefit of a trimmer to create a well styled, fuzz free area down there! It’s really well priced too, and if you’re thinking of giving up waxes to save money, this is certainly a good replacement.

wilkinsonsword.co.uk

 

7. Bionova, from £29

What’s special? A completely unique approach to skincare.  Bionova are all about ‘hyper real’ ingredients – that is, substances which occur naturally in the human body such as vitamins, lipids and peptides.  According to the company, these ingredients are easily assimilated by the body and will trigger damaged cells to self-heal and become healthy -  which means goodbye to wrinkles and other skin concerns such as dry skin and rosacea. Interestingly, natural ingredients such as fruit, botanicals and herbal extracts are not considered skin-friendly since they do not exist in the body and may actually cause damage in the long term. 

Available from Peter Jones and www.bionovalab.uk.com

 

PRODUCT WATCH : YOGHURTS : Slovenia

Trends in yoghurt :

1. Probiotics – live bacteria is big in this market – much more so than in the UK (I’ve been told that Slovenia is the wellness centre of Europe which may explain!)

Other products of interest :

2 – EGO Slim and Vital – a low fat drinking yoghurt which contains essential amino acid L-Carnitine and Coenzymes Q1o for energy…this is what the EGO website says about  the product benefits:

• Greater fat burning and its more efficient conversion into energy,
• Faster regeneration after physical workout
• An appropriate supply of essential nutrients to the heart, brain, immune cells and many other vital body parts.

The product is aimed at dieters, athletes, pregnant women and anyone who wants to maintain a healthy body weight along with physical activity and vitality.  I tried the plain version – interestingly it was completely unsweetened, which is unusual for an on-the-go drink.  Other flavours include strawberry, peach and tropical fruit.

3 – EGO Vec Kot (More Than) Yoghurts – probiotic yoghurts in flavours which include flowers, herbs and plants eg strawberry and rose, apple and basil, lime and aloe vera (I’m not sure if these ingredients are for health / beauty benefits or just for flavouring)

PRODUCT WATCH : SHOWER GELS : Slovenia

Trends in the Shower aisle :

1 – Pretty Pretty :  flowers, pinks, ultra feminine ingredients ie waterlily, rose, passionflower etc

2 – Luxe femme – diamonds, pearls etc

Other interesting examples :

3 – Adidas Gym Vibes – funky packaging – this is a nice sporty pack which I would definitely take to the gym

4 – Subrina Chocolate Dream – doesn’t sound wildly refreshing – the angle here is pampering and maybe sensual

INSIGHT : 4 Random questions for my 26 year old intern

My name is Gail, I’m 26 and I live in West London. This week I am doing work experience for Jess at FashionBarn, and she has asked me to write a bit about my life.  She gave me a list of random lifestyle questions to choose from, and here are the four which I chose to answer.

What do I do in my spare time?

I work fulltime in a fairly stressful media environment so my spare time is very precious to me.  In my spare time in the evenings through the week, I like to come home to the house I share with my boyfriend and I like to cook a nice healthy dinner.  I find cooking extremely relaxing and rewarding and I like to treat my boyfriend to having dinner ready every evening when he comes home.  He works very hard also and he is a very grateful recipient!  This sounds old fashioned of me, but it’s not that I see it as ‘my role’ at all, it’s just that I love everything to do with cooking; the food shopping (I love supermarkets and food markets!), the recipe research and preparation and the cooking and sharing of the meal itself.

Through the week I also enjoy meeting my friends in town to go and see new bands (I have a lot of friends who do A&R for record labels which is fab!), or I will meet one of my girlfriends for a alcohol-free dinner in Itsu or somewhere similar to catch up after work.  I rarely drink through the week unless it’s a special occasion.

At the weekend I like having groups of friends around for lunch or dinner which I will cook and really enjoy preparing and researching interesting menus to try out on them.  On a Saturday my boyfriend and I have a routine where one of us will go to Starbucks to grab some coffees to bring back to the other in bed in the morning to kick start the day.  If we don’t have friends over to our house for dinner we will tend to meet friends in a restaurant and eat out in a group.  I used to go to lots more bars and nightclubs when I was younger but now I much prefer going out for a nice long dinner with friends and having a few cocktails somewhere locally after.  Alternatively we’ll go to our local cinema.

I really like escaping London and going for walks outdoors so on a Sunday I enjoy finding new countryside areas to explore (sometimes just nice London parks or if the weather is good we head as far out to countryside as we can commute to from London!)  We have a car so we plan a route to drive to places like Oxford or Kent and stop for lunch somewhere pretty on the way.  It’s nice to get out the city and breathe in fresh air and have some peace and quiet just the two of us.

I also like shopping and can spend a lot of time on weekends or days off on main shopping streets like Oxford Street browsing my favourite stores.  It’s also fun to go to large malls like the newly opened Westfield where you can lunch, see a film and shop all under one roof. I also enjoy visiting some of London’s oldest and finest luxury department stores like Harrods or Selfridges.  I find I go there more for the experiential enjoyment or browsing the food halls and enjoying the dramatic, lavish window displays and make-up counters – to browse and people watch rather than to buy.   My boyfriend is also quite up for shopping and interested in fashion which is great as we can browse around together and help pick out things for one-another.

I read a lot also, novels and fashion magazines like Vogue, Elle and Grazia.

Who do I admire and not admire?

I don’t feel that I have that many ‘hero’ icons anymore that I look up to like I did when I was younger with movie stars, etc.  I admire people’s style – ie Kate Moss as she is my style icon, but I do not necessarily admire the way she conducts her lifestyle (her childcare/love-life, etc).  I think I probably admire successful young fashion designers like Marc Jacobs and Stella McCartney for what they have achieved for themselves and for the beautiful products and brands that they create.

I do think however, that there is a difference between admiration and respect.  I admire stylish models and designers around the world and could list endless glamorous men and women whose style I wish I could emulate but I don’t necessarily respect them and I feel that’s much more important.

I respect musicians like Annie Lennox and Bob Geldof who are genuine, not manufactured artists, who have risen to fame through true hard work and real musical talent and now give back financially and personally, protesting and heightening public awareness around the world for hugely important causes and issues that a lot of us choose to ignore.  They can handle their fame in the public eye without disrespecting themselves or their family’s reputations. I think they are the kind of role models young people should look up to.

What brands do you like and desire?

A lot of the brands I like and desire are fashion brands.  I love Stella McCartney, Chloe, Marc Jacobs, Matthew Williamson, Miu Miu and Burberry.

I think these brands have incredibly beautiful products as well as gorgeous branding and advertising.  I also think the designers behind them have great reputations and all seem to be very intriguing and interesting people.

I like other design brands as well like Emeco (chairs by Philippe Starck) and Simple Human kitchen/household-wares.

If I gave you £100 to deck out your fridge, what would you fill it with?

Firstly I would head straight to Whole Foods on High Street Kensington (with a big grin on my face)!

I would buy some beautiful fresh fish and shellfish, mussels and langoustines and nice fish like monkfish or bream perhaps so I could make a yummy seafood feast.. these are pretty expensive products and not what I would normally afford myself to buy!

I would buy some of the nicest cheeses I could find, some strong Roquefort, Manchego, Camembert, Brie and Apple Smoked cheddars to create a cheeseboard to quaff with good red wine.

I would buy some lovely Italian Prosseco and some delicious cuts of meat cold cuts to create a Spanish charcuterie board from… some Parma ham, chorizo slices, morcilla and Serrano ham slithers which I would accompany with spicy chutneys and relishes … mmmmm!!!

I don’t have a particularly sweet tooth but if I had some money left over I would buy a big punnet of fresh organic strawberries and raspberries and some Cornish clotted cream… heaven!

This wouldn’t all be for one meal of course, but what a decadent fridge-full of food.

Oh, and I think I may also need to add one or two bottles of Pepto-Bismol too, for our tummies following our consumption of all of the above!

BEAUTY : Happy Campers

BEAUTY : Pretty Pretty

Bye Bye winter here comes Spring! Celebrate sunny days and blossom in the trees with these pretty new products.

 

 

1. DKNY Fresh Blossom Shower Gel, £19.57 A body wash with a luscious scent of fruit and flowers – sure to put a spring in your step.

Stockists : 0870 0342566

 

2. Bobbi Brown Platinum Pink Shimmer Brick, £29.36 This newest version of the always lust-have Shimmer Bricks comes in pinks and highlighting shimmers – to add light and prettiness to your skin.

www.bobbibrown.co.uk

 

3. Elizabeth Arden Pretty Body Powder with Puff, £20 The ultimate in girly girliness – a pink powder puff and all over body powder infused with the heavenly new Pretty scent.

www.debenhams.com

 

4. Revlon Matte Lipstick in Pink Pout, £7.29 Matt lip colour which leaves a smooth and velvety finish. This pale pink colour is perfect for now. 

Stockists : 0800 0852716 

 

5. The Body Shop Vitamin E Facial Oil, £15 Give your skin an extra boost with this pre-moisturiser treatment.  The quickly absorbed oil nourishes, protects and adds a healthy suppleness to dry skin.

www.thebodyshop.co.uk

 

SOME OTHER PRODUCTS TO KNOW ABOUT…..

Star Product Alert * Eucerin Dry Skin Intensive Foot Cream, £10.65

For instantly improved dry or cracked heels please try this product.  After many years of trying and being disappointed with overly confident foot products, this deeply penetrating cream really makes a difference.  And what’s great is that you see results after only one application.

www.eucerin.co.uk

 

Credit Crunch Champ * Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid foundation, £7.99

A great make up choice, credit crunch or not. The texture is super light and easy to apply – the effect is smooth and natural.  There’s also a good colour range to choose from. 

Available nationwide

VISUAL MERCHANDISING – Knicker Bunting

I saw this bunting made out of knickers at an exhibition last December – and thought it was such a cute idea.  An adaptation of this concept would work really well for a brand like Jack Wills, and possibly Victoria’s Secret Pink if they were working with an English theme.

ps apologies for the poor-quality mobile phone photo! 

Bunting made out of knickers

PACKAGING : Luna Washing Powder

This washing powder was spotted in a Slovenian supermarket.  The design is so pretty and unlike anything on the UK market.

 

INSIGHT : Jeans for the over 55s – One woman’s opinion

The quote below was originally going to be posted on the dailymail.co.uk website in response to the feature : 

How to be a jean-ius: We challenge three women to find the perfect pair of jeans on the High Street

….but I persuaded the writer (female, 60+, young at heart, interested in fashion) to let me use it on my blog instead!

“I feel sure that women of a certain age or shape are desperate to find jeans that suit them. Many of us after 55 have a few bulges and none of us want that fat hanging over the drop waist of our jeans. Worse is when we bend down, the back goes even lower exposing parts we hope won’t  be seen! I recently spent a desperate day trying on jeans in half a dozen Brand shops.  I am a 12 – 14 depending on the make, and again what has happened to sizing?  Some of the jeans were so tight on the leg that I couldn’t get them past my knees but the upper part would have easily fit. The only ones I finally found were at M&S.  ‘Per Una’ – good fabric and they just sit on the waist with a choice of shapes, they were by far the best for me. The slight element of stretch fabric within is ideal. The £12 pairs at M&S seem a good shape too and if one doesn’t have a midriff to show off it surely it doesn’t matter about the ‘Sits on the Waist’. Mine will be certainly be covered! I wonder how many of you have encountered the same problem.”