CHANEL FRAGRANCE BAR

I was in Bristol recently at a dear friend’s wedding and the next day my very generous husband and I went to see the movie ‘Coco before Chanel’ (that man loves me, non?). You all know I have a soft spot for all things Chanel and I can't wait to see their new fragrance bar in Selfridges, which has just been unveiled. You’ll want to pull up a seat to this new olfactory bar, as it has an ingenious way of introducing you to the House’s 48 fragrances using a patented ceramic blotter system. The little magic rods let’s you enjoy and savour all the fragrances like smelling a fine wine and won’t leave you with a headache.

Specially trained experts will also help you navigate all the different fragrance families and classics to help you choose your signature Chanel fragrance. You can also get your mitts on the elusive Les Exclusifs Fragrance Collection, which boasts 12 specially crafted fragrances, which is great for those of you who like to keep people guessing what you are wearing. Tres Chic.

NARS NIRVANA

This is my perfect shade Benares!

Thank you Francois NARS!!!!

NARS NIRVANA

Beauty dreams can come true. I have found foundation Nirvana in Nars new Sheer Glow foundation. I’m all about dewy, glowing skin and finding a perfect colour match is a nightmare for me and for anyone with ethnic skin tones. Most companies offer token dark shades, which only Beyonce and Alek Wek could wear, which leave everyone in between uncatered for. In the past I have had foundations which range from that scary monotone, heavy natural mask like Fashion Fair look circa 1995 to ashy looking foundations and ones that make me look angry and a bit fierce (not in a good way). Since I was 14 I haven’t found a foundation I have been head of heels in love with until this one!

Clever NARS have widened their range to 20 shades, (mine is Benares) which will be available from the 1st September, with real undertones women with darker skin tones have. Instead of angry red undertones and too honeyed golden tones NARS have got the balance and range of undertones right from browns, yellow, blue/ reds and espresso for a range of dark skin tones.

As well as giving skin a soft satin sheen, the foundation also has hydrating benefits and promises to leave skin looking radiant after 4 weeks of repeated use. Lovely.

UP YOURS AND LIPSTICK OFF!

I just found out from a friend who has moved to China that my little old beauty blog is banned, blocked and can’t be accessed. After my initial shock wore off I was left feeling deliciously subversive and dangerous. My husband also said he thought I was ‘bad ass’.

As the streets of Iran burn and people march for the right to be heard waves of pride and gratitude race through me, as quite frankly we are all so lucky to express ourselves in anyway we see fit.

Blocking a beauty site may seem trivial on the surface but I don’t know of any period of history or culture where beauty has not been a dominant form of self -expression. Native Americans getting ready to open up a can of whoop ass, first ritualistically applied war paint. Punks and new romantics trapped in an oppressive Thatcherite Britain, screamed at their society using their make up and music. The 60s and 70s saw the Black power movement where hair straightening chemical relaxers were thrown out in favour of the afro, a strong political statement demanding civil rights and was a sign of the embrace and acceptance of the beauty of black ethnicity.

A lipstick bullet isn’t called a lipstick bullet for nothing. So every time you slick on your lip gloss, or a man applies guy liner, or you sport a smoky eye, you are saying Up yours and Lipstick off to the suffocation of self-expression, which is the most beautiful thing of all.

BEAUTY CRUSH PART DEUX

Many of you guys have been saying how much you too love my beauty crush First Lady of Cameroon Chantal Biya. She blows away all the boring Credit Crunch blues and I often sit and wonder that her hair along, soaks up the GDP of a small nation all by itself. Here she is in all her Maria Antoinette splendour meeting the Pope in a very subtle tribute to the church. Chantal Biya- don't you dare go changing we love you!

DERMALOGICA SWAP SHOP

I am a huge Dermalogica fan. When I see I am coming to the end of a product, I get flustered, my heart starts pounding and panic sets in- all signs of a true addict. I love their Active Moist moisturiser as it’s not full of fragrance and dyes and always leaves my combination skin feeling soft, glowing and spot free. I also love their Special Cleansing Gel, as it’s soap free and doesn’t strip the skin and chills me out with calming lavender and balm mint extract. The Antioxidant Hydramist is also fabulous. It’s not a toner but is a hydrating spray, which is spritzed onto the skin after cleansing. Pea extract helps firm the skin and a cocktail of anti oxidant and skin brightening white tea and liquorice leaves skin looking healthy and fresh. Every bathroom cupboard needs to have a Multivitamin Power Recovery Masque, which is packed full of anti oxidant vitamin A,C,E as well as soothing oat kernel. This mask comes in handy when I get a little over enthusiastic with a muslin cloth and strip off a layer of skin- not a good look.

As well as being one of my favourite skincare brands and sorting out my skin, Dermalogica are now sorting out my wardrobe. At the Dermalogica store in Kensington, 8 Lancer Square, they will be holding Summer clothes Swap parties on the 25th June, 9th July and 2nd July- call 0800 345 7546 to book. The swap parties are in association with Queen Elizabeth’s Foundation’s Swapping for Good Campaign. All you have to do is bring along 4 or more high quality clothes (leave the Primani at home) leave behind one piece and swap the rest for a credit crunch fashion blow out.

GLAMOUR AWARDS

On Tuesday I was lucky enough to be invited to the Glamour awards by Aussie hair care. Along with a few other fun journalists we were all treated like VIPS. We were whisked to the Mayfair hotel penthouse to a style suite beforehand, where friend of Aussie Liz Taw waved her magic beauty wand.

The party was jam packed with wall to wall celebrities such as Katy Perry, Adele, Estelle, Kylie, Alan Carr, Jack Black, Chuck Bass off Gossip Girl, Jo Wood, Mark Ronson, Dizzie Rascal and Ferne Cotton to name a few. The whole night felt as if I had been poured into the pages of US Weekly magazine.

Highlights from the star studded night included Jack Black and James Corden singing and rapping Kanye West’s ‘Gold Digger’, James Corden and Estelle singing ‘American Boy’ and a host of other mind boggling and fabulous things.

The sun was shining that day but when night fell, the stars were all out in full force!!!!!