Victoria and Albert Museum

A few weeks ago I went to London for the Murad event (post here) and had some time to kill. With little money to my name I did what any other cultural and photo hungry blogger would do.....I hit the museums.

Having gone to the Science and Natural History Museums in the past year my next call was for the Victoria and Albert museum.

I've walked past it a few times wistfully but this time I got straight off the tube, walked through the tunnel and straight into the front door. Woman. On. a. Mission.

The entrance hall was not a disappointment; amazing bulbs hanging from copper wires and an amazing glass octopus/mermaid/creature of the deep type thing! I love arty things like this, they're so eye catching.

There are a MASS of exhibitions throughout the building spread over 5 floors. There are some from Britain, America, China, Japan and everywhere you can think of!
There was some beautiful mosaic pieces from Iran:

There was a stunning hall which suddenly appeared through a tiny doorway and opened out into a cavern like room with amazing portraits and I've no idea what the thing was at the end of the room but it was gorgeous and I was mesmerized by the gold.

I am one of those people that absolutely loves trinket boxes and storage solutions. I am basically obsessed with boxes and drawers, so the following appealed to me immensely!

Imagine hiding away your lipsticks and powders in that bad boy! So many drawers for so many items, I'd have that organised within an inch of it's life if I had the room!

The box below is my absolute ideal box. I'd love to put this on my desk on display but contain items that mean something to me and keep it locked! I love the wood and the metal detail on it.

Having walked into a room that was reconstructed from another property in London, I was blown away by the fireplace. The woodwork was amazing and as the fire place is one of the main focuses of the room this was definitely a show stopper!

There were also some stunning family jewels that I couldn't resist looking at.
There was an intricate ship pendant, a beautiful black/red stone pendant, a stunning book pendant, and a jewelled gold bangle.
I couldn't stop looking at the detail on these and had to fight some people away from them.

This was the most stunning belt I've ever seen. I'm so annoyed as I've forgotten who this belonged to but they wore it to the Queen's wedding all those years ago and the belt and the matching pendant are full of diamonds that are just out of this world.

The only thing I knew was in the museum was a clothing exhibition so I was really excited to get to this part of the museum, which probably accounted for about 5%....if that!

There were dresses from all eras, in all patterns, colours and styles and it was amazing to walk around the displays seeing how fashion and costumes have changed.
The materials were amazing and the stitching and details on the pieces were unbelievable.

I loved seeing the underwear, the petticoat under the dress was also so pretty.

The dress below was one of my favourites, I love black and metalwork on clothing and this dress would be an amazing edition to my wardrobe if I could ever afford it!

Couldn't resist snapping a picture of myself in between the clothing!

I stopped for a quick drink in one of the cafes in the museum and honestly couldn't believe the lighting and decor in the seating area, check out these lights! How amazing are they?!
I'm surprised I didn't dribble my tea everywhere as I spent most of my time staring at the ceiling.

There were some stunning items and I couldn't believe the details; there was this book in the metal work section that was so intricate and detailed I was totally stunned, it's amazing!

I did not see the #no photography' signs outside the jewellery section so apologies to the museum for that....I did snap a picture of this absolutely stunning tiara though. 

I was speechless at how beautiful this was and can only imagine what it would be like to wear one. Maybe I'll have a replica made for my wedding at some point in the future?? Haaa imagine. 

That was my personal highlight of the museum, it was so beautiful!

The lightbulbs at the entrance you could see upstairs on a higher floor through a hole in the ceiling, these were SO TALL! I absolutely loved seeing them all the way to the stop of the building where they were attached and then through to the floor:

This was the perfect trip to fill the spare time I had in between my train and meeting others for the event. It took me around 3/4 hours to wander my way around the whole museum and take a substantial amount of photos.

I really enjoyed doing something completely different to normal and this was COMPLETELY FREE!
I love visiting museums so I will have to do this more often, it's a great way to learn something new, see different things and all without spending any money.

I will have to visit other types of museums in future as I'm always looking for new things to do!

Do you like visiting museums? Do you have any suggestions of museums I should visit?

L xxx

Benefit: Groovy Kind-a Love Make Up Kit

Hello!

I'm sure you've all seen the fantastic Christmas sets from Benefit this year, if not here's a link for you to browse at your leisure!

I have already purchased one of the tins (Love me B.right) which I will be reviewing very soon, but I couldn't resist but snap up this palette as well...

Groovy Kind-a Love is a beautiful palette containing an assortment of products. The back of the box shows the products, colours and names as below:

What excited me most was the dual blusher and the 4 eyeshadow colours, I don't own any eyeshadows from Benefit so I was really looking forward to trying them out.

It also contains the ever amazing Porefessional, Benetint and They're Real which I am a huge fan of.

The tin itself is small and beautifully formed, the pattern and outside images are really pretty and this would be great as a gift.
The inside is also displayed very well and would be a handy weekend kit or gift for someone who has never tried Benefit products before; or even for yourself as a payday treat like mine was. I'm such a bad saver!

Here's a closer look of the palette.

I love the arrangement and that the eyeshadows are in colour order, it would annoy me intensely if they weren't!
I also love that it comes with brushes making it a great kit for on the go or taking away with you.
Plus multi purpose products such as Benetint for lips and cheeks are great value too.

After applying my base as usual I then used the Dandelion and Gimme Fever blushers to give my face some colour and definition:

It's a beautiful colour and the shimmer is just enough to look like my skin has a glow but isn't glittery.
It's a gorgeous colour and I wish you could buy Gimme Fever separately!




I applied the eyeshadows in colour order, with Tickle My Ivory on the inner corner and Gilt-y Pleasure over the rest of the lid:



Shimmer Down was then applied to the crease and Kiss Me I'm Tipsy along the upper lashline:





These are such beautiful colours that can be worn day or night. They're perfect neutral colours for any outfit and occasion and I can see them getting a lot of use from me!

With They're Real applied the look is complete:






I do love how my lashes look with They're Real. They're lengthened, volumised and curled so I really cannot complain! I'd purchase this all the time if I could afford it but for the mean time the miniature versions are keeping me going as I've had a few different sets.



With Benetint applied as well this is a look I can see myself wearing regularly as it's pretty but chic.
I love the eyshadow colours a lot!

Do you like the palette from Benefit? It costs £29.50 and you can get it from Boots and Debenhams.

It's a great present for someone if you're stuck for something to buy and I would have loved to have received it if I hadn't have snapped it up myself already...

I've got my eye on Gimme Some Lovin' with Hoola and They're Real in, and also It's a Love Fest with Porefessional and Sun Beam (both £39.50)

Fingers crossed my mum will listen to my hints! Which would you put on your Christmas list??

L xxx

Current Favourite Five

Hello!

I thought I'd go for a different tactic for today's post. I love lists and am constantly writing them.

Today's post is therefore a reflection of that and so I'd like to share with you my top 5 products that I'm currently loving. We always write about new products to us and don't mention enough the ones that we actually do use, repurchase and love to bits!

So here's my current top 5 favourites:



1: Murad's AHA/BHA Exfoliating cleanser.

This cleanser is something that I've been using for a while now. I regularly use this a couple of times a week as part of my skin regime. I normally cleanse my make up off my face and then use this afterwards as an exfoliator. I try to use this in the shower so that I can massage it in and leave it on my skin so that the acids can work their magic on my dull complexion.

The tiny beads in this help to buff my skin away with no irritation and leaves it feeling super soft.

This tube costs around £34 i think, but has lasted me over a year and I still have around half left, so it's worth every penny.

2: Label M's Protein Spray

We've mentioned this in a number of posts previously and its a god send for my long hair. I don't tend to heat treat it very often (only blasting it with a dryer normally) and only style it every few weeks for an occasion.

But even so as my hair is so long now it's taking a bit more care to keep it in a good condition.

This spray is just such a simple way to add extra nutrients and protection to my hair. It's lightweight, obviously easy to use and can be applied to wet and dry hair. It smells great, not too heavy in fragrance which I prefer and I find it really refreshing to spray on.

This has also lasted me a long time and it still feels heavy, I'd actually be gutted if this ran out any time soon!

This costs £13.25 for a 250ml bottle, but is also available in 50ml and 500ml bottles.

3: Benefit's It's Potent! Eye Cream

This product is a relatively new addition to my stash and I have only been using it a short time.

This means that when concerning long term effects I can't comment too much....

But it feels luxurious on application, has not irritated my sensitive eyes one little bit and they feel so hydrated that I'm annoyed I haven't tried it out before!

This costs £24.50 for 14.2g and from how much I've used so far, it seems it will last me a long time.

4: Aesop Parsley Seed Serum

This serum has been recommended to me many times and after picking it up for some reason it got lost in my stash.

Having rediscovered it after using up all the other serums I own it was such a relief. I started applying it morning and night and my skin drank it straight up! It feels a lot more hydrated than it was feeling when my serums 'ran out' and it hasn't been irritated by it at all, and trust me, I plaster this on.

It sinks in so fast sometimes i apply another layer, probably not ideal as it's a rather expensive product but my skin feels so much better. As the small bottle I have doesn't come with a pipette attachment it's a little wasteful as I have to pour it out, but the larger bottle seems to come with one which is much more economical.

The 100ml bottle comes in at a £45 price tag.....which is a tad on the expensive side.

It would be amazing if this was cheaper as I'd definitely pick it up again. But Aesop needs no help from me for sales as it's extremely popular; the truth is you get what you pay for.

5: Dr Organic's Coconut Hand Cream

Dr Organic is a great brand with a massive range of product in a variety of scents.
I'm a hand cream novice and am constantly having M and my mum going on at me to use them, hands can age you as everyone seems to forget about them and only concentrate on the face.

The coconut hand cream is a great product, it sinks in fast which is a must for me as I really can't deal with waiting for it to sink in. The smell is natural but not overpowering and it leaves my hands feeling smooth.
It's everything that a hand cream novice could ask for!
This comes in at £5.99 for 100ml and is an absolute bargain!

I hope you've enjoyed my top 5, I plan on doing more over the next couple of months to show you what I really am loving.
Next time I will be writing about my make up favourites if you'd like to check back for that!

What are your current favourite products?


L xxx

Lush Snowman Bath Bomb

When I headed to the pre launch of the Lush Christmas range (see here) I couldn't resist picking up this little fella. It was a tough choice between the snowman and the penguin bubble bar.

I love how cute this is with the little red scarf  and orange nose. He's also very reasonably priced at £2.50. The scent was definitely a deciding factor and I was told it's similar to butterball which made me want it even more. It's a soft sweet scent that isn't overpowering but gives of a nice subtle scent of vanilla.

The Snowman is a decent size bath bomb and gives off good fizz. I did wonder what colour the water would be as it is predominately white. A part of me hoped he'd have a surprise centre!

As he whizzed around the bath it left a red trail which settled to soft pink water once it was all gone. The best thing about the snowman is actually also the worst but I'll explain that later.

I loved that once it disolved in the water there were chunks of cocoa butter left over meaning I could rub this into my skin and be left with silky smooth skin. I love the smell of cocoa butter and this was one of the reasons I picked it up.

It's a perfect one for winter months as it leaves skin with that little extra moisture after a nice soak in the bath!

The downside it the cocoa butter leaves a residue around the bath that the red seems to stick too. It looks pretty messy but luckily left no staining in my bath as I washed it all out straight after! 

Not one to stock up on as it is basically the same as butterball but it's a great price and added red colour makes a bath more interesting.

Love M

xxx