Phew… July flew by in a blur, not least, I’m sure , because we spent 2 weeks of it lounging on a tropical beach in Bali. It was certainly a month filled with some fabulous memories… Jesse mastering the art of walking and Mr. LA slipping that precious ring on my finger to name but a few. That’s not to say I’m not looking forward to August though, it’s my birthday in a little over 2 weeks and we’ve got a short break in Cornwall coming up too.

This list could probably be more accurately titled ‘What I Bought In Duty Free’ as the majority of the items featured are the result of a very pleasurable hour or so spent browsing the shops in Heathrow’s Terminal 3. Everything I picked up before the flight was put to very good use while we were away and some of the items have become firmly rooted in my arsenal of essential products.

Anyway, on to the list of loveliness….

• Engagement cards – The sight of them makes me smile every time I walk into our front room.

• Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge in Cabo Coral and Shimmerbrick in Beach – These represent 2 of the 4 cheek products I picked up in Duty Free and they are, quite simply, amazing! I adore the flexibility of the shimmerbrick compacts, I used this on eyes, cheeks and numerous other exposed areas of sunkissed flesh (collar bone, shins, shoulders…) while I was away. It gives your skin the most amazing sheen, I love it. On my pale skin I do need to buff this in quite well and make sure I’ve blended it properly but that doesn’t detract from the general wonderfulness of this product. The swatch above is quite heavy and is made up of all the colours swirled together. A summer essential, don’t you agree? I’ve been wearing Cabo Coral non-stop, it was certainly my most used blusher while we were away. It looks amazing with my Estee Lauder Bronzer over the top (or NARS Orgasm or MAC Moonriver or the aformentioned shimmerbrick) and it has excellent staying power too. Again I’ve swatched this quite heavily above, obviously one would blend this product out a lot more on the cheeks.
• Hours spent in the park with the children – There is no better way to spend your days than laughing and playing with your little ones at the playground. Now that Jesse is toddling around he seems to enjoy it even more.
• MAC Jazzed (LE) and Chatterbox lipsticks – Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! I was always going to love Jazzed. It’s like Ever Hip but better. How it is that I’d never noticed this stunning pink lippy before is beyond me though! That day in the airport it seemed to be screaming my name! This colour compliments my skin tone perfectly and I love that it can look subtle or striking depending on your application. A special mention should go to my new Chanel lip pencil in no. 25 Pink Sugar too as it works perfectly with Chatterbox (and Chanel Genial which was my original motivation for picking it up). These pencils are fabulous, incredibly long lasting and they come complete with a lip brush at the opposite end and a stylish sharpener emblazoned with the Chanel logo. (Take note, the pencil has swatched a little darker here than it is in real life).
• MAC #168 brush – My accumulation of decent make-up brushes is gradual and a tad slow but this latest addition is so magnificent I’ve found myself wondering how I ever applied blusher without it. I manage perfect application every time and it gives me a really polished, contoured look with very little effort.
• Lush Lip Tint in It Started With A Kiss – I’m sure I’m not the only Lush devotee who’s noticed that ever since their sister company B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful folded at the beginning of the year, Lush has gradually been introducing more colour in to their existing range. I suppose this product is their answer to Benefit’s Benetint and I have to admit I’m smitten. It has a yummy cinnamon scent and tingles ever so slightly on the lips. It’s definitely not moisturising though and you need to make sure your lips in fairly good nick before application too. The finish is almost matte but it looks divine with a little gloss over the top and I just adore the colour! it’s perfect for those days that I’m craving rouge lips but I’m just too pushed for time to wheel out my lip pencil, lip brush and beloved Russian Red from MAC. I know this is going to get a lot of love from me this autumn/winter but right now I’m wearing it under coral lipsticks to amp up the colour a little.

Loveaudrey xxx