I’m back from “South-of-France Round One”: and what a brilliant trip. Chanel hot air balloons, dashing men opening doors for me and a gorgeous new No5 fragrance to tell you about, once I get a moment to write things up. I now have just twenty-four hours at home before I need to jet off back to Cannes for the film festival, so I’m frantically trying to sort out a few administrative issues whilst simultaneously scheduling blog posts and searching online for tit tape. (I’m wearing the plungiest dress on the red carpet at Cannes; I have no idea how on earth I’m going to control my breasts. They’ll be having a party every time I move!)

I was slightly afraid of my bathroom at the Colombe d’Or. (A great – and very quirky – hotel I stayed in at Saint-Paul de Vence, which was near-ish to Chanel’s rose fields, where our press trip was taking place.) Firstly, the bathroom was yellow – all yellow – and it reminded me of the sort of bathroom that might appear in a horror movie. (You know; chosen by the location people especially for the yellow tiles and strange lighting, and because the blood of the -usually blonde – victim would look so vivid splattered up the walls.) Secondly, the shower head above the tub was stuck to the wall at a height of around three feet, which was too low for me to climb under, even on my knees. I realise that you’re meant to hold the shower head higher, but there was no little metal thing (hose holster? head clamp?) for me to slot it into. So hair-washing was out. Why didn’t you wash your hair over the bath-tub, using the shower head? I hear you ask. And to that, I say: see point one. The psycho fear. Leaning prone over a yellow bathtub in what is a very convenient position for an easy decapitation, with water pouring over your eyes rendering you temporarily blind, whilst your back is left completely exposed and the noise of the shower spray drowns out the creaking of your hotel door being stealthily opened: the conditions could not be more perfect for an errant serial killer with a penchant for cinematic, visually striking locations.

Anyway, I have my own dry shampoo so that makes things a lot easier on the hair-managing front. I used a load of Colab Monaco – it felt right what with Monaco the place being so geographically close to me at the time. (Lies: Monaco is actually my default choice because it smells so amazing – think “cologne” notes with added summer sultriness. The geographical thing was just an added perk.) Now I don’t often use my dry shampoo as a hair-washing alternative – for me the beauty of a dry shampoo is that it adds texture and gives a boost to roots whilst taking the edge off any greasiness – but in this case it was something of a beauty life-saver. Or perhaps even an actual life-saver – who knows?! Anything could have happened had I washed my hair with that shower attachment!

There’s some very exciting Colab news coming up next week – those of you who like to stay fit or spend lots of time outdoors will think it’s just the bee’s knees. Those who don’t like to stay fit and rarely spend time out of doors will also love it – it’s a dry shampoo with some brilliant extras. Watch this space. For stockists of the original Sheer & Invisible formula and Extreme Volume, check the list here.

My other beauty saviour on this trip? A tiny little sample pot of Omorovicza’s Thermal Cleansing Balm. I had completely forgotten what a gorgeous little cleanser this was – and thank goodness I had enough left for two evenings, because otherwise I would have been cleansing my face with a mixture of eye makeup remover and free hotel body wash! I have no idea what happened to the other two cleansers I was sure I’d packed (I like a good array of cleansing options when I’m travelling, especially when there’s room in the suitcase – see below) but you can only imagine my dismay when I emptied my toiletries bag to find them missing. The Omorovicza one hadn’t been knowingly added in, it was inside a little pocket! The Thermal Cleansing Balm is so rich and oily – it cuts through makeup beautifully and has the most amazing orange blossom scent. It’s pricey at £48 but there are usually offers running on their website and an intro offer for new customers. I’m sure I did a full review on this but can’t find it, so maybe I’ll have to rectify that! In the meantime, you can find more details online here.

When I say there was room in my suitcase, I mean ROOM! My new Antler Juno (68cm) feels big enough to park a car in after my usual luggage arrangements. Why have I been squishing my belongings into a tiny carry-on, forgoing emergency underwear, spare cardigans and even a single change of shoes? Gone are the days of frugal packing, I can tell you. It’s eight outfit options a day from now on – the world of holiday dressing is my oyster.

And on that note, I must go and fill my case with an outrageously excessive number of things – time is ticking and a girl can never have too many pairs of pyjamas for a one night stay…