Crushing on QVC

There are few things in life I like more than hanging out on the sofa, semi-comatose for the entire weekend, especially if I happen to have spent Saturday night dressed as Disco Superman and been drinking red kryptonite punch until four am (don't ask).

Happily, this weekend presented me with a multitude of options i.e. when My Fair Wedding with David Tutera wasn't on, I could indulge in my other hangover favourite, QVC. Seriously, you can learn a lot! The main thing I learned this weekend was a) that red kryptonite punch is very dangerous b) that David Tutera is a GOD and c) that I want a Clarisonic cleansing system.


QVC showcased the Clarisonic Mia this weekend, a compact version of the hero product (and a favourite of my traveller friends). I know $120 seems like a lot but really, I hear nothing but amazing things about Clarisonic. Everyone I know who uses it has beautiful clear skin and they tell me you get used to dropping it into your routine super quickly.
Possibly a thirtieth birthday present to myself?

Elemis Modern Skin Facial

Inspired by the suck up/my new best friend who just told me I look twenty-six on Facebook, I wanted to tell you all about this awesome facial I got the last time I was in London.

I've told you a million times how much I love Elemis, right? Seriously,I know it's not cheap but my skin loves their products so much, I can't even begin to tell you, and I have such a crush on their salon in London, if I could propose to a place, then I would. I'd always be faithful and I'd love it so much... OK, I've crossed a line. But you get the picture. Anyway, my skincare routine has been incredibly heavy on Elemis products for the last couple of years and I have nothing but good things to say. I'm obsessed with the Ginseng toner, I'm using the new Pro-Intense Eye and Lip Contour Cream every night and since I visited the lovely and amazing Tibor at the London spa in July, I've also been adding Visible Brilliance Serum every day and it's really perking up my skin. Oh, and when I ran out of Pro-Collagen Marine Cream last week, I actually let out a little sob. My flatmate will vouch for this, she thought I'd just heard that my cat had died. My cat hasn't died, she's fine.


Sorry, I was telling you about the new Modern Facial, wasn't I? Basically, it's just bloody great. The idea behind the treatment is to help skin overcome all the stresses and damage brought about by modern life - we're exposed to so many toxins and general bad things, that our skin needs rebalancing, remineralising and generally looking after. The Modern Facial does just this. For one blissful hour, your facialist will identify your mail skin issues then treat with a appropriate masks, light facial massage and fabulous cleansing that leaves your skin soft and squeaky clean - except not squeaky. Just really clean. Purified, let's go with purified.

I felt so incredibly relaxed when I left the spa that a) I did not put on ANY foundation and b) I left a bottle of champagne and my J Brand denim jacket in the cloak room. I was that blissed out.
That and I'm an idiot.

Oh Elemis, how I love thee...

I Heart Marc Jacobs

Now it won't come as a surprise to anyone who has read one of my books or, I don't know, glanced at this blog for more than three seconds, to find out that I am a huge Marc Jacobs fan.

It all started winter 2007. I was in New York for the weekend under the guise of visiting friends and buying a cheapo iPod for the former Mr BeautyLover's thirtieth birthday (we talked yesterday, he sends you all his love, FYI) when lo and behold, I just so happened to be popping by Bloomingdales when my life changed forever.

There, in the Marc by Marc Jacobs display case was a silver leather bowling bag, its beauty only enhanced by star pattern quilting. It was then that I realised I'd never truly been in love* before. There was a tense moment when my credit card didn't want to go through but it didn't matter. It was love at first sight. Nothing was going to keep us apart.

Ever since that day, I've never looked back, although if my bank manager asks, that was my first and last MJ bag purchase. An altogether more affordable way to fall in love with my favourite designer, is to indulge in his fragrance line. Which I do. Regularly. It takes a hell of a perfume to tear me away from Coco Mademoiselle but Lola seduced me last autumn and as summer starts to fade away, I've been spritzing it more and more often of late. I gave Mummy BeautyLover Daisy, my GBF James and my brother both wear Marc Jacobs for Men and I recently gave my BF, Erin the Pomegranate splash for her birthday. My name is Lindsey and I am a Marc Jacobs-a-holic. Worse. I'm a Marc Jacobs enabler.


And MJ is determined to make it easier for me. This autumn, Daisy is getting a limited edition makeover and becomes an eau de parfum, Daisy Pop Art. Look at the cool bottle! LOOK AT THE COOL BOTTLE! At the same time, my fave Marc scent, Lola, celebrates her first anniversary by reinventing herself as Lola Velvet. Another fab, longer lasting eau de parfum in a gorgeous violet frosted glass bottle. Divoon.


I was super, super lucky and was sent samples from Attention USA but you'll be able to find these gorgeous additions to the Marc Jacobs fragrance collection at Bloomingdales and other speciality perfume retailers e.g. we're not just hoarding them all in Noo Yoik, although if you needed a reason to come over, this is a pretty good one, non? If you don't fancy popping over, you can connect with both scents on Facebook. I'm going to do it. I want to read their status updates.

*to clarify, first time I fell in love never been in love with a bag. We'll get to my crushing inability to form healthy romantic attachments another time. Or not. Bags are better than boys anyway.

Laura Mercier: What is Flawless?

Lots of beauty brands are looking at new ways to win fans at the moment, the key seems to be offering more than just a great product but also a way to feel good about yourself as a person*. I loved Bobbi Brown's Pretty Powerful campaign earlier this year and Laura Mercier's 'What is Flawless?' looks just as great.

The idea behind the campaign is that we all submit our ideas what we consider to be a personal definition of flawless, and for each answer submitted to Laura Mercier website, the company will make a donation to the Gulf Relief Foundation. So not only do you get to challenge the conventional ideals of beauty, you help clean up the wetland preservation in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana (that's a good thing).

There's no wrong or right answer, so please take a minute to click on the site and suggest something. For me, flawless would be a good night's sleep, I've had insomnia for days now. A quick canvas of my coworkers suggests a sunny Sunday afternoon, the perfect red lipstick and (hmm) kittens. See? It really can be anything...

*I'm more interested in looking pretty but hey, I'm shallow. Good on these beauty peeps for trying to make me a better individual.

BeautyMecca on Facebook

So one of you love people suggested creating a BeautyMecca page on Facebook and you know what, that was a REALLY good idea. As much as I love writing about products and all that gubbins, I never really get to hear about the stuff that you love so as of right now, you can click here and go to the new BeautyMecca page on Facebook.

There's sod all there right now so pleeeeeeeeease take a minute to tell me about your favourite products. I really want to know what other people are using and loving.

OK, back to the grind...

Exclusive QVC launch! DECLÉOR HYDRA-RADIANCE SMOOTHING CLEANSING MOUSSE

The lovely Keren has been out and about, slaving away as our roving reporter in London town. She is SUCH a giver, isn't she?

When Fiona Brackenbury (Head of Training at Decleor and QVC presenter) was asked by QVC to create an exclusive product with the DECLÉOR laboratories team she made it her two year mission to create a miracle cleanser.
Why a cleanser? Because, apparently this is where most women make beauty crimes. We all spend fortunes on moisturiser but when it comes to cleanser we’re using either the wrong product or using them incorrectly. Some need to be used with a toner to be effective, some are too harsh - containing too much alcohol that can be damaging to the skin. I use whichever face wash is on offer in Boots that week! They tend to be either of the anti-shine variety or black-head removing... So exfoliating. You should have seen the look of horror on Fiona’s face, this is a major crime, I am causing my skin to produce more oil and then more prone to black-heads. Yes, I am a novice. And yes, at 33 some lessons need to be learned.

Fiona wanted a product that would gently remove daily grime and make-up but also contain skin-caring ingredients and be quick and easy too.

So what makes it so special...

HYDRA-RADIANCE SMOOTHING CLEANSING MOUSSE provides three key actions in one to leave the skin rejuvenated and deeply cleansed:

Deep cleansing

When it comes into contact with water the rich, concentrated cream quickly lathers to a gorgeous mousse-like texture, creating tiny bubbles to swiftly deep cleanse and soften the skin leaving it clean and velvety soft. The inclusion of two cotton cloths with each pump dispenser also provides a further delicate exfoliating action and helps to ensure skin is left free of residue post-cleanse.

Skin Polishing and Perfecting

Grapefruit, Papaya extract and Japanese White Mulberry exfoliate and gently slough away dull dead skin cells to leave the skin crystal clear with visible clarity and luminosity after just one use.

Moisturising and Plumping

With nourishing Neroli essential oil – also known for it’s decongesting and calming properties – and Hyaluronic acid, a potent protein that occurs naturally in the skin and can hold up to 1000 times it’s own weight in moisture, immediate results on the skin are outstanding. The skin has renewed plumpness due to the injection and retention of moisture, which gives it an extreme feeling of firmness, while wrinkles appear reduced and skin feels intensely soft and balanced too.

Right, I am going to use this twice daily for the next few weeks to see what results I get. So I won’t be using a toner whilst I’m testing it and I am quite addicted to the fresh, squeaky clean feeling of toner. And it has very gentle exfoliating properties so I can give my skin a rest from my criminal face washes and try to just to do a ‘proper’ exfoliation once a week.

Why am I keen to try this out, and so determined to follow Fiona’s advice? Well, it’s difficult not to believe in Fiona because her skin is perfectly smooth and glowing... Either she practices what she preaches or she's made a pact with the devil.

I’ll let you know how it works for me...

DECLÉOR’s EXCLUSIVE LAUNCH of the NEW HYDRA-RADIANCE SMOOTHING CLEANSING MOUSSE is on QVC tonight at midnight and is already available on the website. It goes worldwide from May 2011.


Given that the standard joke between me and my friends is that Keren has a Dorian Gray-esque pact with the devil herself, I am intrigued to see what the results of this cleaner will be. If it makes her even prettier, a) Decleor will have won a lifelong fan and b) I will not be able to spend any time with her ever again.

Over and over and over and over

Inspired by one of my awesome Twitter buddies, I just got to thinking about the items in my make-up bag that I've bought more than once. Without wanting to sound fickle, wasteful or hateful, it's SO rare that I buy anything more than once, often because I'm distracted by something new and pretty before it's all done or I trade it in for something more effective or I lose it. Me + make up = kitten with a ping pong ball.

Anyway, the following have all stood to a repeat purchase which pretty much makes them INCREDS as far as I am concerned. I'll have a nosy around the bathroom tomorrow and let you know I've been investing in there.

OK, so obvious things out of the way first, Touch Eclat. You have it, right? You must have it. And then you must learn to apply it correctly, which I totally wasn't doing until a make up artist taught me better. Dot it under your eyes, smudge the dots together and then LEAVE IT TO REST FOR A MINUTE. Seriously, just leaving it to settle for a second before you pat it into your skin with your ring finger will make all the different. If you swipe it on and then rub, rub, rub at it, you just lift the product off and it's pointless. Try it, you might like it.

There has been a Benefit It Stick in my bag for years now. Not the same one, ew, but I find it a really convenient product. Love the pencil stylee delivery and it's the perfect shade for my fair skin. And the pencil is shiny. Nice.

Dior Lip Glow is a relatively new addition to my bag but in the last four months, I've bought two of these and I know for a fact I'll buy more. Sadly, they do get used up pretty quickly but I love the texture of the balm and it just seems to set off every look. I've gone through two tubes of Smashbox O-Plump gloss for the same reason. These colour adjusting lip products really work on me. I think it's because ultimately, they all turn a sort of blue-ish bright pink and that's a great shade for my pale skin/dark hair combo. And I'm a complete sucker for anything even faintly gadgety. Yes, yes I did own many yellow lipsticks that turned purple as a small child.

Clarins Everlasting Foundation is actually freaking me out it's so good. Seriously, foundation is my biggest problem product since I'm so bloody pale and my skin type changes daily but this is great. The 103 Ivory shade is perfect on me and the finish stays velvetty and matte all day with just a tiny touch up needed at night. I like to apply with a sponge but you can get just as good a job done with your fingers. I'm on my second bottle and I already bought my third in preparation for it running out. This is a new record, taking over from Bobbi Brown's oil free foundation in Porcelain. Good work, Clarins!

Happily, my favourite pressed powder is L'Oreal True Match. It's cheap as chips, super fine and again, they make a perfect shade for me. I've gone through dozens (mostly because I lose them on nights out ALL THE TIME).

Umm, that's all I can think of so far. Well, that and my perfume which I've probably mentioned before but I'm SO keeping that to myself because I need all the secret weapons in my man capturing arsenal I can get and apparently, it's one of the more powerful ones.
My appalling, appalling sense of humour and refusal to be impressed by anything - not so much. To illustrate, please behold this exchange from a recent date:

Date: Do you like puppies?
Me: Not especially. They're always getting in your face.
Date: Rainbows? Kittens? Flowers? Sunsets?
Me: Are you getting at something?
Date: No one is as cynical as you. It's not possible.
Me: Hmm.
Date: You know a cynic is just a wounded romantic?
Me: HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAAAAAHAHHAA, yeah.
Date: OK, maybe you're just fucked up.
Me: Sigh...
(intro to 'Another One Bites the Dust' plays in my head)

Off topic, but still, thought I'd share.

Clarins Rouge Prodige

Hey hey USA!

Clarins have a fabu new long-lasting lipstick out this summer and to celebrate, they're giving away 5000 samples from their Facebook page. Click here to register and get your hands on it.

I'm definitely going to be trying more lipstick this autumn/winter, all part of my 'I'm turning 30 and therefore MUST do something grown up because all I eat is Lucky Charms and I'm constantly drunk*' plan.

*Hey mum, I'm not really drunk all the time. Just sometimes. And occasionally, I'm tipsy. Or hungover. So it's really only half the time at most. Love you!

What I'm Wearing Now

For the want of ploughing through press releases and samples and everything else that I should be doing, I figured I'd just whack out a post about the products I'm using right now because quite frankly, it's been aaaaaaaaages.

This is a pic from a couple of Saturday nights ago and for some reason, despite being applied inside ten minutes flat, my make up looked exactly right i.e. I was wearing a shit ton of slap but it really didn't look like I was.


So, starting with a base of Beauty Flash Balm (I'd been traveling and looked a wee bit sallow) and Origins GinZing eye cream, I started with my beloved Clarins Everlasting Foundation in Ivory, Touche Eclat in 1 under the eyes and BeneFit It Stick wherever it was needed. On top of that went a light brushing of Nars Orgasm all over my cheeks to perk up my complexion (normal people might use bronzer, I'm not normal. I'm paler than death) followed by a pop of MAC's (discontinued, sob) Hello Kitty blue-pink blush on the apples of the cheeks. To blend it altogether, I used MAC Strobe Cream on my cheekbones and set my T-zone with L'Oreal True Match pressed powder which I LOVE.

On to the eyes, I lined with Urban Decay 24/7 pencils in Bourbon and Underground then defined the inside lids with Bad Gal Waterproof. Blend the whole lot down with MAC Retrospeck and then tease out the smokiness with Club. Love MAC eyeshadows. LOVE. Several thousand coats of L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes mascara and a slick of Dior Lip Glow and I was good to go.

Sadly, I don't know what Emma was rocking but I'd go out on a limb and say those well-lined eyes are courtesy of MAC.

Seriously, ten minutes.
I'm too well practiced, aren't I?