Nail colour of the week

It's been a while since I've done this but I went for a mani/pedi today having spent the afternoon in the office. Yes, Saturday afternoon in the office. I figured I deserved it.

On my toes, I went for this YSL beauty (I took it with me, I've yet to enter a salon that has YSL varnishes).

I was going to have the same colour on my fingers but the lady next to me was having Essie's Limo-scene and it was so clean and fresh looking, I changed my mind.

I bounced out in sandals. Yes, sandals! Happy days.

In other news I am obsessing somewhat over the Nars new matte multiples. I need and want. It's a dangerous combination.

Spring hair beauty round-up

I am going to say this very quietly but I think Spring might have finally hit New York. Today I went outside and was too warm. The sun was shining and the gay boys downstairs are having a party on their balcony with no tops on. It's time to shed off the layers and dust down the body ready for summer. It's also time to move away from the dark colours and brighten up. I am well aware that the UK has sprung but here in New York, we've been getting excited about this moment. It's been so cold. I won't go on about it but there are parts of my body I had forgotten about.

To celebrate I thought I'd talk about a few hair products that I've been exploring recently. Firstly, this Thickening shampoo by L'Oreal. Sali Hughes raved about this and then so did a trusted friend. I bought some despite the fact that I don't have fine hair. I find my hair is a little flat in this city so I figured I'd give it a whirl.

There is nothing wrong with it but it makes no discernible difference to my locks. It is a perfectly acceptable shampoo and conditioner however so it's not going in the bin but I won't buy it again.

I bought this, which my sister raved about. Living Proof Style Extender.

This isn't cheap, you smooth it on your wet hair and then style as usual. It repels grease and dirt meaning you can go longer between washes. It does work I must admit but my problem is I live in a polluted city and I go kickboxing. Leaving my hair too long between washes is just icky. It may look ok but I have to live with it! It would be good for holidays perhaps.

Despite knowing all this and the fact that I don't get on with dry shampoos, I still bought yet another one this weekend.

Psssst! Best name ever! It's $6 for a huge can. It doesn't smell disgusting and it does appear to work. I will probably use this more in London than New York but I am giving it a cautious thumbs up.

My conclusion is that I need to be rich enough to afford a blow-dry three times a week. Nothing makes you feel as fabulous as professionally blow dried hair. I reckon I would actually save a fortune as I would stop buying all these products and wouldn't ever need any shampoo! I'd just always get it washed professionally. Oh well, maybe one day.

Origins Smarty Plants

I wasn't sure anything could replace my beloved Vitazing but I bought the Origins CC cream at the weekend after my friend said it was brilliant. I must say she is right, it's fabulous. It's miles better than the Clinique one which I do like but it is a bit drying and you have to work quite hard to make it look good. The Origins one simply glides on, blends easily, smells lovely and lasts all day. I adore Vitazing and will always have it in my make-up bag but this is good for those days where you need a bit more help than Vitazing can provide.

Walking into the Origins shop I was overwhelmed with love for the brand. Their products are so good and smell so delicious. I've not looked at them closely for ages. I very much recommend this.

Clinique Cheek Pop

I had a yearning for a powder blusher after years of using a cream one. I have no idea why. I bought this Cheek Pop from Clinique and I am very happy with it. It's subtle, easy to apply and the packaging is so pretty. In comes in four colours and I got Peach Pop. Recommended.

Joan Collins has a beauty range

There are few people I adore quite as much as Joanie. Ignore her politics for a moment and just focus on this.

Nobody does glamour like Joan.

I'm not sure anyone wears fur hats quite as well as her either. And now, unbelievable news. Wondrous news. She has launched a beauty range.

It's shamelessly gold and epic. It's how to look like Alexis Carrington Colby Dexter all packaged up. And who doesn't want to look like Alexis?

She's always been my style icon. Check out the nail varnish and lipsticks especially.

Yes, they actually say Joan Collins on them. She knows what her minions want. Bow down to Queen Joan. I am going to have to buy a nail varnish, the bottle is a work of art. I've no idea when they go on sale and who is stocking it but all I can say is that it had better be in Sephora.

Chanel No 5

This is a perfume you wait for. I have always liked it but never felt it was right for me however the other day I was in Sephora (naturally) looking for a perfume to spray on after work and before I went for cocktails. The choice is overwhelming and I sniffed quite a few but none were working for me. Time was ticking and I was going to be late so I went for the classic. I am so glad I did because I love it. Classics are classics for a reason and this is simply a beautiful scent.

Today I decided to treat myself since it was Monday and I've just had a pay day and well, damn it, I wanted it. So back to Sephora I went (a hardship I know) and I picked up a little bottle (the exact one above in fact). I am now wafting around in a cloud of Chanel No 5 and feeling super classy. It's hard to feel anything but fabulous when you are wearing Chanel. It's not a perfume for when you are 21, it's one to turn to as you get older and begin to realise that your grandmother was actually a bit of a style icon.

Bite me

Imagine a world in which you can have an exact lipstick made for you that nobody else owns and suits you perfectly. Welcome to Bite, beauty nirvana.

I read about this on various beauty forums and knew I had to go. My friend has just been in town and so we hot footed it there yesterday. It started as a pop up but now happily is permanently on Spring St in Soho. Here's how it works, your consultant sits opposite you and asks what type of colour you are after. I said an every day wearable red. You can have various finishes: matte, satin, glossy and so on. I chose satin. Then she starts mixing various pigments.

It's truly fascinating. She puts a little bit on a brush and you try it on, wandering round the shop to look at it in various lights. Alas, yesterday I faced a cold hard fact. I am not a red lipstick kind of girl. I wish I was and I want to be but anything too bright on me makes me conscious about my teeth - are they too yellow next to the bright red? I manage to smear it on my teeth. Basically I am a disaster area and I look like I am trying to be a grown-up. So we ditched the reds and started again. She couldn't have been more patient or nicer about it. So I asked for a rosy pink and that is what she is actually mixing in the picture above.

The colours look freaky alone but once she mixes them, basically anything is possible. Obviously the colour complements your skin tone as well. My pink was mixed and back in my comfort zone I was happy. We agreed that the colour was right for me and she then mixes up a larger batch.  You can choose a flavour too! I went for mint. My friend didn't want a scent because she is cool and a proper adult. Then it goes in a microwave.

And she pours it into case and it goes on an icy surface for about five minutes.

That's my pink on the left (it looks much brighter than it is). My friend went for a plum colour which looked amazing on her and death on me. She carefully opens the case and you have a perfect lipstick which she puts into a case (you can pick one of four, all shaped differently).

It's utterly fabulous. The lipsticks are $36 plus tax which isn't cheap but they are made especially for you and I absolutely love mine. It's not drying at all and the mint is very subtle. I have spent most of today applying my lipstick and telling anyone who will listen all about Bite.

I think this concept is genius and look forward to the same idea for nail varnish, eyeliners, blusher - oh my god, imagine! If you're in New York, you must visit this place.

Clinique Lash Power Mascara Long-Wearing Formula

My beloved Estee Lauder mascara has been discontinued which makes me angry. Even worse, I left my tube of it in London. So I simply had to go and find a replacement. I picked up this baby in Sephora on Saturday. Two days in and I can report that it's good. It's not as perfect as the Estee Lauder but it doesn't smudge and it gives good lash. It has very low key packaging but that's ok. It's a perfectly serviceable everyday mascara. It's also only $16 which I consider a bit of a bargain.

Other products I am loving at the moment include the Bourjois cream blushers. They are so easy to apply. My divine Vitazing keeps me from looking dead in this ever-lasting winter. Seventeen powder which I dust it very lightly over my eyes so my mascara sticks better. I'd be lost without it, it's a real hero product and it's cheap as chips. Kiehls 24/7 moisturiser is my new favourite, the eucalyptus smell is so heavenly. I bought two bottles at the airport as they don't seem to sell it in the shops. Dries Van Noten perfume is perfect for this cold weather. And to cheer myself up, I bought this in Duane Reade at the weekend:

Carmex lip balm in a leopard skin tube! It makes me very happy. Read about it here, fab marketing.

Sephora Jumbo Liner

I've seriously not bought anything for ages* since my commitment to use what I have. This little purchase happened before Christmas. I won't go on and on about Sephora anymore, I am becoming such a bore on the matter but god, it's amazing.

Anyway, Sephora has its own make-up line and while not cheap, it feels budget compared to Nars. These jumbo eyeliners have a lot of love online so I decided I'd buy one for $14 and I must say, I am loving it. They don't have quite the staying power of Bobbi Brown or Nars but with some good primer on, they get me through a normal working day. There are dozens of colours too. Recommended if you can get to a Sephora of course. Will it ever return to UK shores?

*with the exception of essentials. I may have bought a new mascara today and some eye-make up remover...

Pantene

It's years since I've used Pantene shampoo and conditioner but it's clear I am susceptible to advertising. I have become addicted to Hulu since moving to New York. It's an online TV service and I am ploughing my way through Grey's Anatomy like my life depends on it. Anyway, it has adverts that you can't skip and there is a Pantene one featuring Gisele. I have no time for Gisele and her yoga poses with her baby but one has to admit, she is beautiful. There is no way on earth my hair could ever be like hers but there I was in the shampoo aisle debating over which to buy and somehow my hand reached for this.

I am annoyed with myself for buying into the advert. I don't even kid myself thinking my hair will tumble luxuriously as a result of using this and the conditioner. However, I must say I am enjoying it. My hair does feel smooth and shiny. It smells good. It's cheap. Basically, it's a win.

Have I stuck to my no-buy January? Well, yes and no. OK, no, not exactly. I bought a new hairdryer - the one in my apartment broke and life without a hairdryer is unthinkable. It broke while I was sick so not only was I confined to my bed, I was confined to my bed with frizzy BAD HAIR. Horrors. I also bought an eye pencil from the Sephora range because I read it was a good dupe for the Charlotte Tilbury eye crayons and in my logic, that was actually saving money. More on that in a future post. And I bought a hair product my sister is raving about. Again, more on that soon when I've tested it further.

New year, new shower gels

January is here and I am on a saving money mission. Next week we finally move into our new house and we all know owning property basically means never having any money, ever again. It's one of the reasons I've delayed doing it for so long. So, I looked at my enormous pile of make-up and beauty products and thought, maybe I should just try and use up some of all this before buying more. Radical I know.

However, before I made that decision, I ordered this divine shower gel in the Cult Beauty sale.

This shower gel is what the Metropolitan hotel in Bangkok stocks and I can honestly say it is heaven. It is expensive but for special treats or just when you feel the need to be transported somewhere that reminds you of lemongrass scented towels, then it's worth the money.

I also bought CoverBoy this for his birthday in December.

Molton Brown is a slightly annoying brand. I don't think it's half as good as it seems to think it is and I find many of the scents cloying but this one is so refreshing and perfect for the winter months.

Finally, I also got this in the sale.

I've not tried it yet but how can it fail? Miller Harris and orange scented. Mmmmmm.

I shall let you know how my self imposed embargo goes. I'll still be blogging, rediscovering old favourites and possibly being more creative with my make-up. For someone that owns so much of it, I do tend to go for the same look over and over again.

Happy new year fellow beauty obsessives!