The art of bathing

I take my baths very seriously. I usually have a bath everyday. I know that sounds indulgent but you know, some people drink wine, I take baths.

So having a daily bath habit means I have done research into lots of bubble bath products. Because a naked bath is a wasted opportunity. There is nothing nicer than sinking into a deep hot bubble bath after a day's work or a day's hard cosmetic shopping. I am sure you all agree. If you don't, you are mad or insane or both.

Now I am not a big fan of bath oils for a few reasons. They often mean you have to clean the bath afterwards which is a big no no. All that oily debris - yuk. And I know they are called bath oils but I do find them a bit oily. Having said that, I make an exception for Rose bath oil. The Ren one is fantastic and the Jo Malone one is also very nice. For a truly divine bath experience, mix one of these rose bath oils with an Absolute Delight bath ballistic from Lush. You can't get them from Lush shops anymore but you can buy them online.

I like bubbles - not so many that you can't see the water but a good amount. So, what do I recommend? Well, I have to start with Lush. Here is a company that understands bathing. Their bubble bath slices are really gorgeous - you crumble a bit in (not the whole bar unless you have Victoria Beckham's budget) and you get bubbles galore. And their products do smell very natural - nothing artificial and nasty. I am a fan of French Kiss and Amandopondo. As so often with Lush, their best products are a thing of the past. Marzibain is gorgeously almondy.

Lush also do ballistics. These don't give you bubbles but it's quite exciting to watch them fizz. My biggest beef with Lush is their propensity to add load of jetsam and flotsam to their products and nowhere is this worse than in their ballistics. So unless you enjoy fishing out petals, bits of bark, star anise and sodding glitter from your tub, stick to the pure ballistics. The all time classic was Absolute Delight but Avobath is perfectly acceptable. Although it says it has glitter in it, it's so subtle, I don't notice it.

Of course buying ballistics and bubble bath slices gets expensive and these are not for your everyday bath. Unless you are rich. I often squirt in a bit of shower gel from Lush. It gives you a nice bubbly bath without breaking the bank. In the Summer, there is nothing better than a bit of Freeze shower gel in a cool bath.

Enough about Lush. Other people make bubble bath too. I am currently enjoying Moringa bubble bath from The Body Shop. It's a pleasantly Spring-like floral. It's not going to win any awards but it's enjoyable enough. I am otherwise underwhelmed by The Body Shop's bubble baths - all too fruity for my taste. I don't wish to smell of a fruit bowl.

A company I do like is Bath & Body Works. Naturally you cannot buy this in the UK but if you are going to the US, drop in. The Sea Cotton range is totally yummy in a clean, fresh scented linen way.

Kiehls

Apologies for my tardiness in posting. I said I would talk about other beauty products I bought in Hong Kong so here we go.

Kiehls is a brand I try to really love but I only seem to quite like it. I love the shops, the layout, the naturalness of the products, the packaging. But I am generally underwhelmed by the products given the price. However, there are exceptions.

I'd love to tell you that I fly first class regularly. The truth is I've never even flown business class, let alone first class. It's a bit of a sore point so we won't linger. Anyway, a dear friend's significant other works for BA and therefore she has had the pleasure of first class and she gave me the bag they give you. Yes, she's a great friend.

It's full of Kiehls products. Full size lip balm (also very good incidentally) and the face moisturiser. A whole bottle of it! Mind you, given the cost of first class, it's the least they can give you. It's lovely. It sinks in but isn't at all greasy and you can really feel it plumping up your skin.

So at Hong Kong airport, I had some dollars burning a hole and it wasn't worth changing them back so I decided to buy a bottle of this. And I am pleased I did as it is perfect as the weather gets a bit warmer.

Combatting airplane skin

Let me give you some advice. Never ever sit through a long flight and not bother moisturising your skin regularly. The air is drier than a desert (as beauty editors always make a point of telling us). If you don't follow my advice, your skin will flake once you hit the ground and if you are going to sunbathe, the results won't be pretty. Also, never fly without lip balm - I did that once accidentally and my lips were disgusting at the end of the flight. I use my trusty 8 hour cream.

It won't surprise you to know I have researched and tested various moisturisers while flying. You know, long flights are boring, it gives me something to do. It's the ideal time to use up those little samples of really intense moisturisers you get from beauty counters that you would never use on the ground. Plus, you can't take on board anything too big cos of the stupid rule about 100ml of liquid. Madness. I always use that as an excuse to buy some moisturiser at duty-free but that might be just me.

This time, I decided to try Simple Serum wipes. I can't find a picture but they are quite small and come in packs of 25. About £4. And I can report that they are fantastic. I would never bother using these back down on earth but up in the air, they feel amazing and so quick.

Next time you fly, give them a go as I was really impressed.

A small update

Heathrow airport does indeed stock Missoni perfume but they hide it on a shelf near the bottom while promoting middle of the road boring stuff by Sarah Jessica Parker and that Marc Jacobs Daisy. Anyway, having hunted it down, I felt obliged to purchase it. Also, buying 100ml was so much better value than 50ml so 100ml it was. I am very happy with it and was the best smelling person on the plane!

On my travels I looked at a few other things. I checked out the Sisley handcream as they had it at Hong Kong airport with a big tube to sample. I sampled about £2's worth. Yes, it's a great handcream but am still reeling at the price tag. I checked out the Dior mascara but didn't like the applicator. I looked at the Bobbi Brown foundation stick but it didn't look amazing enough to have.

I think we can all agree I was quite restrained all things considered. I did get a few other things at Hong Kong airport but that's for another post.