Neal's Yard Remedies Organic Pamper Party

Good afternoon!

Our last post for the 'event weekend' is from Neal's Yard Remedies. We were very excited to be invited to the pamper party happening in Bristol this week, and after a bit of a delay getting completely lost (oops!) we eventually arrived at the apartment where the party had already started.

The lovely Sue was giving a demonstration facial which was really interesting as we could pick up on tips and tricks and see the products in action.

One of the new products on the scene with NYR is the Frankincense Intense Concentrate, which is basically a concentrated version of the Frankincense Intense cream and is a best seller for its effects already. The concentrate is a serum type product which promises to deliver even more of a punch than it's original product. The concentrate will retail at £65 for 30ml compared to the original cream which is £55 for 50ml.

It was lovely to be hands on with the products as they were being used and we had the most moisturised and best smelling hands in the whole of the UK after we'd finished testing everything!

They had the whole range there including cleansers, toners, mists, serums and creams galore. We also tried out some of their other products including roller balls with essential oils and body butters.

We were very lucky to leave with a goodie bag with a full size pot of the Wild Rose Beauty Balm. As you can see from the gift bag and packaging of the balm itself, it's currently celebrating its 10th Anniversary and so has a special design by Alice Shields. I absolutely love that they've done this and the packaging is gorgeous, although it's still NYR with its blue glass pot it has a gorgeous flowery label covered in bright colours.

After playing with all the products i have been making an extensive wishlist for future purchases. Having recently been to an interview where it turns out I'd be involved in animal testing I have been looking at things a little differently. We love products that are 'free from' and NYR definitely have that covered by the endless list of awards and accolades that you can find on their website here, it is seriously impressive.

They also as a rule never test on animals, so not only are they free from all the chemical nasties they also don't partake in unnecessary actions to develop their products which is great. I can definitely see my skincare shifting towards NYR a lot faster than expected!

It surprised me how many products NYR have in their books; not only the skincare and other products of the same kind, but also a make up range, superfood and tea range, and remedies and therapies section too.

We had a lovely evening and would like to thank Sue and Jessica for a fun and informative evening!

We even grabbed a few cans of Pimms to drink on the train back to Cardiff to finish off our night!

What's your favourite products form Neal's Yard Remedies? Have you tried the Wild Rose Beauty Balm?
Have you made the shift to cruelty free products?

L & M xxx

Kamigata Party!

Happy Sunday morning to you all!

Fingers crossed you're feeling pretty fresh this morning and not too hungover....if not, a cup of tea will soon help sort it!

Last week we both went to the Kamigata Aveda salon in St Davids 2 in Cardiff to celebrate their 4th birthday with them. Luckily for us they'd roped in their next door neighbours to help them celebrate and this was none other than Vivienne Westwood so we were treated to a catwalk from them throughout the salon whilst indulging in complimentary treatments.

This is my favourite photo of the evening, all of their clothes in all of their glory!

I NEED that navy dress in my life, what a gorgeous cut! And what gorgeous models too, they had amazing hair which you'd expect in a salon but it really did look so healthy and I wanted to book myself in straight away.

As I've never been to the salon it was lovely to wander round and see all of the treatments they offer. The salon is decorated really well and feels comforting as opposed to clinical which i always prefer.

I had a complimentary eye brow shape and the lady was really nice. I'd attempted to do my own brows a week or so before hand so they needed some attention and she tidied up my mess for me!

The following 2 pictures show my other favourite looks from the night; i do love a good coat and statement bag. I love the black one in particular as black is my friend but the brown coat and bag also look stunning. If only my purse would stretch to VW!

 

The bags and coats on display were generally beautiful, I really loved seeing all the shapes, sizes, colours and patterns of all of them.
I'd love to be able to pull off an outfit like the one below, so pretty and perfect for winter!

I've never seen the infamous Melissa shoes before but they didn't disappoint. There were a variety on show including one with a tartan heart which was so cute for winter!

Amongst other treatments we also had our chakras done which was really interesting and we came away with our very own personalised spray of essential oils to balance our 7 chakras. I love essential oils for their different properties so this was really interesting. Here's Martyne having hers read:

It was a lovely evening and whenever I get paid from my new job I'll be sure to call in and get a treatment done at the salon. They are very professional and I look forward to choosing one from the list!

On a side note....the stylists from Vivienne Westwood were there and wandering around the store at different points. Check out those SHOES!!!

I absolutely love them, what a statement and they look like they're such good quality. I think I'd quite like a pair myself!

Have you tried the services from Kamigata? Are you a Vivienne Westwood fan too?

L & M xxx

Murder Mystery!

Hope you all had a great Christmas and are enjoying the festive period. Unfortunately for me it's my last day off and I'm now back in Cardiff before work starts again tomorrow. It really has been a great Christmas though and I've enjoyed seeing lots of family and friends.

On Friday L and I were invited to a friends house near Brighton for a murder mystery party. Although it was a bit of a trek for both of us we hadn't seen him for a while and both decided we'd head down.

We both had a bit of a nightmare travel down. L had to work in the morning then got stuck in traffic and one of my trains had gotten cancelled so I arrived late. We were both a bit rushed getting ready in the end.

The theme of the night was Vegas. The decorations around the house were amazing and there was even a welcome to Vegas sign. Unfortunately neither of us got many photos but we wanted to share a few with you.

It was definitely one of those things were the more all out you go the better it is. Everyone had put effort into their costumes and some people looked great. As we didn't really know anyone other than the birthday boy it was a bit nervous at first but turned out to be great fun.

L was Security Sam and I was Hot Slot Sal! We both tried our best to get all the bits for our costumes and L even had a security arm badge and ear piece!

Neither of us guessed the murdered but it was so much fun. I'd definitely recommend having one of these types of parties as it was so fun. 


M xxx

OOTN: Christmas Celebration!

Morning!!

Last weekend me and M both went out for food and a few drinks to celebrate Christmas. We don't buy gifts for each other as we'd prefer to spend our money on a new dress and a night out on the cocktails.

This year was no exception and we managed to combine our festivities with the final of the Autumn internationals; Wales v Australia. As your typical welsh girl this was a standard thing for me, but M is only adopted welsh so it was a little harder for her to cheer on the 'wrong' team but she got into it!

We spent the match time in a local Wetherspoons eating your standard beer and a burger deal and joining the local oldies with their pints at the big screen. There were a few characters there and we had a good laugh with them.

After this we went back to mine and gave ourselves an hour to change and touch up our hair and make up which was a little push but we just about managed it!

We decided to both go for LBDs as we both had new ones in our wardrobe that we were desperate to wear!
You can see them both better in the picture below:

I am wearing a black knee length dress from LK Bennett that I picked up from the outlet a little while ago. It was on sale and after trying it on there was no way I could leave it behind. It was an expensive random purchase but something that won't date for a long time and I plan on getting plenty of wear out of it!

M's dress is from River Island and has a gorgeous cut out detail in the centre just under the bra area.

This was such a change for us to go out so covered up, long dresses showing minimal skin was definitely a big change (we're normally more likely to be seen in micro shorts or body con dresses with legs and boobs on show....why not eh?!)

I curled my hair as per usual but left the curls at the ends of the hair instead of all the way through. I wore my favourite Mac lipstick in Russian Red and teamed it with a smokey eye.

M also curled her lilac hair using a hot air brush to get root volume and a large curling wand on the ends. She wore a purple smokey eye her new MUA velvet lips in kooky reviewed on the blog this week.

We both enjoyed multiple cocktails including one called Kentucky Jewel (pictured above) which was amazing, bourbon, triple sec and juice....yum!

I was surprised I didn't feel as rough as I thought I would on the Sunday as we both drank quite a bit....however I did do the cardinal sin of wearing my make up to bed!

Unbelievable!


I never do that, probably done it 4 times in my whole life now so I was quite annoyed and have been applying face masks and spot cream ever since to ensure I don't get a mountainous break out on my face, ugh! 

What have you got planned with your friends this year for Christmas?

Will you be dressing up or keeping it casual?


We just couldn't resist an opportunity to dress ourselves up and do our hair and make up!

I didn't feel very festive when December struck as it felt too far away still...but now I cannot wait for Christmas to get here and am writing this whilst watching Home Alone - the ultimate Christmas kids film!

L and M xxx

Christmas Party Outfit Wishlist

I spent last night browsing some of my favourite online stores for something new to wear on Saturday. This year me and the ladies I work with are all going out for lunch and cocktails. I wasn't going to buy anything new but I've found myself staring into my wardrobe wanting new. I thought I'd share with you some of my favourite picks for the festive season.

Matalan

I definitely have a love hate relationship with Matalan, I either want to buy the whole store or can't find anything. At the moment I'm loving it all, simple classics, cosy jumpers, gorgeous shoes and accessories.

First is the Abbey Clancy Mess Insert Maxi Dress. This comes in at a bargain £20. I love the simplicity of this dress and think with some big chunky bangles it would be perfect for a night out. The Textured Jersey Dress is another bargain at only £18. I do love how reasonable pricing is. I love the black panels to help slim down and give a more hour glass shape and think it's a classy dress for going out with work colleagues. Sky scraper heels and a statement necklace would finish this off. The Cotton Spandex Skort I really want to find a nice skort. I have big hips so struggle to find one that sits right on me. I think this would be great to dress up of down and is in the sale for £10. Lastly is the Ponte Skort, this is another £10 bargain. The blue colour is amazing and is a great alternative to all the blacks around at the moment.

George at Asda

I mainly shop it Asda as it's a two minute walk from my flat and can never resist a cheeky browse of the clothing. I love all the midi dresses and big jumpers currently in store as well as their amazing selection of festive dresses.

Firstly is the Moda Embellished Jacquard Dress. I love the Jacquard print for winter and think the blue tone is a nice alternative to black. Finished off perfectly with a bit of sparkle. I find skater cut dress some of the most flattering on me. This retails for £25. The Embellished Neck Dress retails for a purse friendly £18. I love that the neck detail can be removed so after the Christmas season you have a great plain LBD. I think both these skirts would be great with a chiffon black vest top and statement jewellery to add some sparkle. I love simple pieces that can be dressed up so I can get lots of wear out of them. The Check Kilt retails for £14 and the Jacquard Spot Midi skirt for just £12.

New Look

New look is my fail safe usually for an emergency outfit. I can usually find something I like and it's reasonably priced.

The Kelly Brook Black Embellished Shoulder Long Sleeved Midi Dress immediately caught my eye. I love shoulder detail on dresses. It's just enough sparkle without being over the top and I've lately found myself very drawn to midi dresses. It is a little more pricey though at £39.99. The Navy Structured Mesh Panel Midi Dress retails for a more purse friendly £22.99. I love the panel detail to help emphasise the waist and I'm more of a fan of navy compared to black. Lastly is three tops. I find smart tops are what I'm lacking most of in my wardrobe. I love the simplicity of the Burgundy Chiffon Cami and think it would be great with the black skort. Chiffon vest tops are something I really need and these are only £9.99. With Christmas coming I'm definitely being drawn to sparkle. The Black Embellished Neck Shell Top  is £19.99 and will be perfect for dressing up skirts, jeans or shorts easily. Last but not least is this absolutely gorgeous Embellished Sheer Scallop Hem Top. I think this could be my favourite of all. I love the 20s feel of it and can imagine pairing it with a bright red lip and black liner. I definitely feel like my wardrobe needs this!!

Are you off to any Christmas Parties? What's on your wishlist for the festive season?

Love M

xxx