Beautiful Bespoke by Anna Lou of London

Good afternoon beauties!

Apologies for the little lapse in posting over the last 10 days or so. I have been well and truly tied up in the act of moving house but I'm now happy to report that the ferrets and I are now fully installed in our new home and a much more regular service can now be resumed. I'm planning a little post about the move and perhaps even a new room tour once I've got my storage all figured out so keep an eye out for that!

Today's post is a bit special. I had the pleasure of meeting the lovely ladies from Anna Lou of London recently at the Handpicked Media LFW Suite at One Aldwych, where they were showcasing a huge range of their new styles. In particular, their new bespoke range of personalised pieces. You can now create a completely unique piece of jewellery which has extra special meaning for yourself or for someone you love. 

There were so many styles on display with endless possibilities! They have everything from the iconic Sex and the City 'Carrie' style name necklace to monogrammed items to Zodiac, Arabic and Chinese pieces. They also have a range of engraved bracelets, necklaces and dogtags as well as rings and bridal pieces, all of which are available in Silver, Gold or Rose Gold. 

When given the opportunity to design my very own one of a kind piece emblazoned with whatever I wanted I must admit I got a bit giddy! Really though, I was only going to pick one thing. Regular followers of my blog and Instagam will already know which two little chaps mean more to me than anything else in this world? It's THESE two....

I could have chosen my initials, my blog name or any other wording I could have thought of but, of course, I went with my beloved fur-kids! I chose a cute little dog tag, in rose gold, engraved with the names of Pedro and Jasper either side. I think this piece officially makes me a Crazy Ferret Lady! 

I am in love with this necklace. It's such a simple design and a great conversation starter! It is rose gold-plated sterling silver on a ball chain which can come in any length of your choosing. I love that it's an edgy, military-style design but at the same time elegant and feminine. 

The RRP for this piece is £58 on the Anna Lou of London website (direct link) and you can browse the full collection at

annalouoflondon.com

These items make the perfect gift or keepsake and I'm guessing Anna will be extremely busy in the run up to Christmas this year! A huge thank you to Anna and Kate for showing me the range and for the general chatter and giggles at the event. I adore this piece and will treasure it. 

Do you go potty for personalised jewellery?? What style and engraving would you have?? Will you be putting one of these pieces on your Christmas list this year??

NEW: Bourjois Halloween Nail Effects

Good afternoon beauty lovers!

I make no secret of the fact that I love Halloween. It's my perfect excuse to watch every gory movie I own and eat lots of sweets. It's also a very well known fact that I ADORE Bourjois nail colours and, when I was told that they had come up with three new shades in honour of this ghoulish holiday, I almost burst with joy! They have indeed come up with a haunting gel-effect 1 Seconde polish as well as two devilishly glam topcoats which work over almost any other shade. 

The Shades Are...

Ghost Lovers - A Devilishly Delightful Metallic Silver Topcoat

Dangerous Wish - A Ghoulishly Gorgeous jet black polish with holographic gold/yellow glitters running through it

and

Enchanting Potion - A Spine-tinglingly Sparkly Gold Glitter Topcoat

I was lucky enough to receive Dangerous Wish* at a recent event and gave it it's first test run last week! Sadly I do not have swatches for the two topcoats but they are easily Google-able or you can pop into your nearest stockist. 

If I'm honest, I don't think these photos do this polish any justice at all. The sheer SPARKLE of it really is so pretty and hard to capture on camera. The glitters vary in size and are predominently a slightly yellow/green shade of gold but has a brilliant holographic, multicoloured sparkle to it. 

In  this photo I'm wearing two coats of Dangerous Wish with a layer of Seche Vite topcoat. The polish was much easier to apply than some other glitter shades that I own, the brush is a really great shape and the glitter is very evenly distributed through the black. I didn't have to keep going back and filling in gaps. The other thing I would like to say is that this polish lasts for AGES! I've had it on for an entire week and it honestly hasn't budged or chipped. The 1-Seconde Gel formula really is fantastic and so durable, expecially when teamed with the mighty Seche Vite. This polish is sure to endure through whatever horrors you run into this Halloween. 

As I'm still wearing it I can't really comment as yet on whether it's a nightmare to remove or not but, to be honest, it's kind of a given with glitter polishes isn't it. The upside with this polish is that you get a good long run of it before undertaking such a task. 

These polishes launched this month and are available from all Bourjois stockists as well as online.

RRP £5.99 for 9ml

What murderous shades will you be painting your nails this Halloween?? Do you love Bourjois Polishes?? Will you be picking up these colours??

Sneak Peek: BeneFit 'Bathina' Body Oil Mist

Afternoon my lovelies!

I've got a couple of fabulous new BeneFit releases to show you this week! I popped along to their Christmas Blogger party last week to have a peep at what they've got up their sleeves for this year's Festive season and also to have a nosey around their new Carnaby Street Boutique. Well, what can I say other than OMG? If you are in London or visiting London then you must pay them a visit. It's a haven for products, pampering and treatments (there's even a Champagne bar). Anyhoo I had the opportunity to take home a few of their new releases to have a little play with and share with you lovely people. One of those products is Bathina Body Oil Mist* which launches later this month...

I'm pretty sure this is BeneFit's first foray into bath and body products. Their makeup and facial skincare products have always been immaculately packaged and fantastic quality so I was really looking forward to giving this a try. The packaging on this little beauty really is gorgeous and would look amazing on anybody's bathroom shelf. Not that this affects the performance of the product in any way but it's everything I've come to expect from BeneFit in terms of products that make my vanity look pretty. 

Here's what BeneFit have to say about it...

"It's lust at first touch! Bathina's lightweight body oil gives immediate hydration, a seductive sheen and a touch of tempting fragrance. Mist it on for silky smooth skin that's impossible to resist. Your sexy secret... it doubles as a seductive massage oil."

I've been doing as suggested and misting this on straight after my bath/shower. I love the fragrance. It's really clean and fresh as well as being slightly floral. As my skin never really seems to need dense creams and moisturisers after bathing I really like how lightweight this product is and that it doesn't feel too greasy. It absorbs quickly and doesn't leave too much residue. Those with dryer skin types may find they need a more heavy duty product but it's still worth popping into a counter and giving it a try. It does leave my skin feeling soft, although I'm not completely convinced by the 'sheen' it's supposed to give. Maybe it's just the light in my bathroom though haha. One thing's for sure it makes me smell yummy!  The spray bottle also makes for a quick and easy application with no spillage or waste which I often find to be the case with other oil products. I've ended up looking like something out of 'Magic Mike' before after being over zealous with moisturising body oils. 

Bathina launches on 26th October and will retail for £26.50 for 75ml.

 Perhaps a little steep but it's a big bottle and not a lot of product is needed. I'd say that it's definitely one for your Christmas list (oops, there's that C word again) if you are looking for a lightweight product and a fast and fuss-free application. 

How do you finish off your skin after a bath/shower?? Do you prefer a lightweight product or something more intensive?? Are you excited that BeneFit are branching out into body care??

Nails Inc Limited Edition Autumn/Winter Collection 2013

Second post for this evening! 

I couldn't save it until tomorrow as I've been so excited about these badboys. I've been itching to get my hands on the Nails Inc Autumn/Winter Collection* ever since they first revealed it and now HERE IT IS! Eeeeeep! 

This collection consists of 4 polishes:

Old Bond Street - A brilliant blue/violet shade

Oxford Street - A chocolatey mid-brown (The colour of the Bakerloo line!)

Regent Street - A deep wine red

and

St Martin's Lane - A gorgeous darkened blackberry/grape shade which really reminds me of Ribena (see my recent 'Month in Manicures' post).

I haven't had chance to play properly with all the shades yet. The only one that has made it onto my nails thus far is St Martin's Lane and I loved it so much (and it's lasted so long) that I'm still wearing it and have yet to swap it for one of the other shades. Here's where the trusty nail wheel comes in....

I just love how Nails Inc can produce such vibrant, pigmented shades whilst still keeping them subtle and on-trend for the Autumn/Winter season. These wheel swatches (aside from Old Bond Street which needed a little more building up) were only a single coat and the finish is so glossy. Nails Inc really are my Holy Grail of nail polish brands and I have so much love for them. They can do little wrong in my eyes. 

I'm going to dare to mention the C-word again now..... This set is a perfect treat for any polish lover this Christmas! It's also AMAZING value at £25 (a single Nails Inc polish will usually set you back £12 on it's own and here you're getting 4 - a total saving of £19) so could even be a sneaky present to yourself. 

These shades are Limited Edition and can be found in all Nails Inc stores and department store concessions as well as online at

 nailsinc.com

Do you go potty for Nails Inc?? Are you embracing Autumn/Winter nail colours?? Which shades are your favourite??

Addiction of The Month: M&S Iced Teas

Something a bit different this time!

I've been really trying to branch out in terms of topics lately. This was a big factor which influenced the recent rebranding and renaming of this blog. I really want to feature more food, fashion and lifestyle-related posts in and amongst the usual beauty news and reviews. So I thought I'd start featuring my food addictions every once in a while in a little post so that perhaps you, my readers, can try something new and tasty and perhaps even love it as much as I do. I'm kicking off with these M&S Infused Iced Teas!

I fell head over heels for these since I first tried them a couple of weeks back. They're such a fresh twist on your regular Liptons varieties and taste so crisp. I've been running to M&S in Greenwich on my lunch break for them ever since I started my University course. I suppose it's a funny time of the year to be drinking iced tea now that the weather is turning chillier but I seriously can't get enough!

The teas come in three flavours (or these are the three stocked in this particular store anyway). Raspberry and Rooibos Tea, Moroccan Mint and White Tea and Peach, Camomile and Green Tea. I think the Peach would have to be my ultimate favourite as I'm a die-hard peach iced tea lover and am very particular about it (not just any old brand will do) but the Moroccan Mint flavour is so different from any other iced tea I've ever come across and extremely refreshing. The flavours of all three are out of this world though. They're not exactly saintly, with approx 20g of sugar and 100kcal per 330ml bottle, however it's a price I'm willing to pay for the sheer tastiness. 

You can pick these up in M&S stores for £1.10 per 330ml. They really are something a bit special compared to regular iced tea varieties and feel like a real treat!

Do you love Iced Tea?? Do you rate M&S?? Do you fall prey to little addictions once in a while??