I must confess to having not done very well with my stretch-mark-oil testing duties, this pregnancy. I’ve been on the body balms instead (a round-up of those is imminent) even though oils are, I would suspect, slightly more effective when it comes to keeping the skin on my body nice and supple. But I make a…
It’s only the beginning of October – the leaves are barely dropping from the trees – and already the beauty advent calendars have begun to creep onto the internet. I sort of feel that you need to be a serious beauty enthusiast to snap up anything Christmas-related this early, but on the other hand, these…
Look, I know a new shirt isn’t big news, but I have to be honest: not a lot has happened this week. That I want to write about, at any rate. The quick dip into my local H&M was a definite highlight (as was the chocolate and salted caramel milkshake from Five Guys I downed whilst perusing…
I’m back on the dry body oils for that sexy, summer sheen sans grease. When it’s hot and sticky, there’s nothing worse than being coated in a thick oil – it makes you feel like you’re basted and ready for the oven! An unctuous, nourishing body oil is great when the weather’s cooler – you really get a…
I have a rather special giveaway for you; as part of their 40th Anniversary celebrations, gorgeous beauty brand L’Occitane have forty prizes to give away to UK readers of A Model Recommends. And that’s not all: the forty winners will be able to pick their own prize! They can choose any one product from L’Occitane, whether that’s a simple bar of soap…
Pamplemousse Rhubarbe sounds much better than “Grapefruit and Rhubarb”, doesn’t it? The French version makes me think of a delicious dessert with clouds of light meringue and some kind of tart, brightly-coloured sauce drizzled over the top. Or an amazingly light and fluffy cake, rather like a lemon drizzle cake, but using Pamplemousse instead, shot through with impossibly…
L’Occitane are running a nice campaign at the moment; visit the My Beauty Story website and answer three quick questions about you and your skin and you’ll be recommended one of four lovely moisturisers to try for free. I’m a total sucker for miniature beauty and the little jars that the free moisturisers come in are…
OK, I’ll admit it’s a bit of a stretch calling bath oils and unguents remedies, but I have to say that these will make you feel a hell of a lot better if you’re under the weather. They’re a bit like posh versions of Vick’s Vaporub – except that you bathe in/with them – and the…
OK look, this is probably the last of these funny little “summer beauty products” posts now; I had fun doing my colour-coded still life pictures but it’s getting beyond a joke! I must stop! Though I have to say I’m particularly proud of this one – I can tell you that bright yellows and blues…
Two fruity little fig numbers for those of you who don’t like their fig scents too “green” and woody. Personally, I’m very fond of a greenish fig – I like the freshness of it and the feeling that you’re wearing something that’s not quite a perfume. It’s more organic than that – the scent of vegetation and…
I’ll be writing up full posts on most of the products shown in the following video; I have loads of before-and-after pics to show you and I don’t want to cram them all onto one page! There are some absolute crackers that I’ve discovered recently – new foundations that have only just launched, complexion enhancers that…
1) If there’s one thing that beauty brand l’Occitane does very well indeed (there are loads of things, but that ruins my sentence) then it’s shea. Shea butter in hand creams, foot creams, face creams – even cleansers and toners and serums. If you need a proper hit of something rich and nourishing on your…
The first proper pregnancy feature! I imagine that there will be lots of cheers, because so many of you have asked for updates and posts, but also a few little groans, because some would prefer all pregnancy stuff to be as far away from here as is humanly possible. I’ll let you into a little…
I felt quite bad about leaving you all in the lurch when it came to ideas for men’s Christmas presents; I said in my previous gift guides that I found shopping for men really dull and frustrating and that I wouldn’t be going there this year. But then I sat and thought about it, and…
l’Occitane have launched their winter fragrance, Arlésienne, and I have to tell you that I know more backstory on this fragrance than on pretty much any other beauty product I’ve ever tried. (Apart from CoLab, of course.) Earlier in the year I visited Arles in the South of France to learn about the mysterious Woman of…
I know that I’ve covered summer scents already, but I was sorting through my Cabinet of many Beauty Secrets and putting fragrances into groups (as you do) and this was the collection I nicknamed “hot and heady”. I also have a group called “naughty rose” (I kid you not) and one called “figgy pudding”. I’ll share those with…
1) Interesting. A fragrance beautifying cream. l’Occitane designed this cream to be used in conjunction with their Collection de Grasse fragrance range (my favourite one is the heady, summery Néroli & Orchidée, see Friday’s post) to intensify the notes and and help them last for longer. Probably not a beauty priority, if we’re honest, but I like the idea! It does…
Oh hello August, you sizzling-hot little git! Where did you spring from? I’m still answering emails with “hope you had a good New Year”! I’m not going on holiday until September (too much to do, too much to do) and so for now, I am making do with scents that remind me of my summer holidays. Orange-blossom,…