Author Archives: marc

Pretty Things to Sleep In: La Maison de Senteurs

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la maison de senteurs

I made a rather lovely new discovery whilst browsing the Marks and Spencer Nightwear rails; they are now stocking a beautiful range of lightweight, cotton pyjamas and night-dresses under the brand name “La Maison de Senteurs“. Having very recently moved into a barn (temporarily, whilst my own house is knocked about and added to), the rustic, Country Living style of this range appeals to me no end. It’s all muted tones, crisp white cotton and broderie anglaise trim – as far as you could possibly get from my usual style, but pregnancy does seem to have done odd things to me and I’m finding myself drawn – inexplicably – to things that are pretty and borderline-virginal.

la maison de senteurs

Anyway, I treated myself to this little number: the Pure Cotton Floral Embroidered Chemise, largely because it looked OK over my bump but also because it made me feel like the kind of girl who might spend all day reading in the bedroom window of her parents’ farmhouse in rural South of France, waiting for some strapping young lad to come back from a day in the fields and ravish her. (Where the hell did that come from?!) Alternatively, back in the real world, it’s the kind of nightdress that makes you feel nicely summery and optimistic – it’s like the sleepwear equivalent of freshly-laundered cotton sheets. Just add a little jar of lavender sprigs to sit on your bedside table and the idyll is complete…

You can find the whole Maison de Senteurs range online here – I’m going back later to pick up a little matching dressing gown!

la maison de senteurs

Also gorgeous – but I have to admit I’m a bit cross about the fact these went into the sale days after I bought them full price – are the Rosie for Autograph bits and pieces. I bought the Floral Cuffed Hem pyjama bottoms (£14 in the sale here), which are unbelievably comfy – and I like the way that the ankle cuffs stop them from ruching up my legs at night – and the Cocoon Wrap with Cashmere, here, which was £35 when I bought it but is now £17. Bloody, bloody hell. I do like a bit of dedicated “night” knitwear- slouchy jumpers and wraps that are just for lounging in and throwing on over your pyjamas. I only started getting into the whole loungewear-layering thing after I discovered Hush, the bible for comfortable-yet-chic dressing. I haven’t yet done a proper springtime blast on the Hush website – stay tuned for my seasonal splurge!

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Palette make up for Ever

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arty_blossom_palette_closed_45905 The Arty Blossom Palette is offering 8 fresh and trendy eye shadows in a variety of soft, iridescent and satiny textures suited to the Spring Season. This limited edition has a new formula of luminous eye shadows that ensures buildable coverage and perfect blendability for a sophisticated bright make up result. The palette comes in a wide range of trendy soft shades: 6 limited editions made of Gold Plum, Gold Beige, Fresh Peach, Fresh Pink, Fresh Pink, Pearly White and 2 existing shades Metallic Copper and Pearly Turquoise. A collector palette that evokes romanticism & femininity with an artsy twist to create a luminous and translucent beauty look for eyes, lips and face. The palette includes 2 exclusive mini eye brushes with “new cutting edge synthetic fibers arty_blossom_palette_45905 How to apply For a Smoky Look: 1 – Apply Gold Plum to the entire eyelid using brush 226P. Apply the same shade to the lower lash line. 2 – Using brush 214P, apply Metallic Copper to the eyelid crease and blend in with Gold Plum . Apply the same shade to the lower lash line and blend in with Gold Plum. For a natural look: 1 – Apply Fresh Pink to the entire eyelid using brush 226P. 2 – Using brush 214P, apply Fresh Peach to the eyelid crease and blend in with Fresh Pink. 3 – Apply Aqua Eyes 11L pencil to the upper lash line. For a Fan Shape Look: 1 – Using brush 226P, apply Pearly White to the inner corner of the upper eyelid. 2 – Apply Pearly Turquoise Blue to the center of the upper eyelid, as an intermediary shade. 3 – Apply Gold Green to the outer corner of the upper eyelid and blend in with previously applied Pearly Turquoise Blue. For a Sophisticated Look: 1 – Apply Gold Plum to the entire eyelid using brush 226P. 2 – Using brush 214P, apply Gold Beige to the eyelid crease and blend in with Gold Plum. 3 – Using Aqua Eyes 11L pencil, draw a clear line along the upper lashes, extending it to give the eyes an almond shape. For a Two Colors Look: 1 – Using brush 226P, apply Gold Beige from the inner corner of the eye to the center of the upper eyelid. 2 – Apply Metallic Copper from the outer corner of the eye to the center of the upper eyelid and blend in with Gold Beige

Luxury Candle Sets: Not For Sharing

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bella freud candle set christmas

Some great candle sets for you here; but don’t think you can start divvying them up into little individual stocking fillers. Oh no. These were not made for sharing: they are little boxes of pure, selfish candle indulgence, each fragrance carefully chosen so that you have a kind of “scent experience” going on*.

jo malone travel candle collection

Take, for example, the Jo Malone Scented Travel Candle Collection, £64 here. There’s a classic Blackberry & Bay candle and then two scents that are more festive – Roasted Chestnut and Pine & Eucalyptus. Pine could be burnt now, to get into the Christmas spirit, then warm Roasted Chestnut to take you through the New Year and finally, once the tree has been packed away and you’re sat feeling glum in a sea of debris, Blackberry & Bay to lift the spirits.

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Weekly Window Shop: The Beach Queen

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queen of the beach window shopping

This week’s window shop was going to be all about how to recreate the beach experience at your own home, but these summery morsels are too good not to show off. Maybe I’ll do the beach-in-your-garden theme next week – I just need to source some nice, golden sand that doesn’t smell of cat piss or contain bits of building rubble and I’ll be sorted. (Mr AMR would have a total fit if I poured sand all over the lawn – HA! He mows it every week, makes those alternating stripes and everything…)

Let’s get started, then, with the bits and pieces that will make you Queen of the Beach this summer.

lisa fernandez bikini

Behold: the ultimate bikini, from the Queen of Bikinis Lisa Marie Fernandez. So expensive that you will never want to dip a toe anywhere near chlorine or seawater, but hey – proper beach people just pose on their loungers. Don’t they? (I don’t often go in the sea or the pool unless I’m so hot that my toe hairs are catching on fire. I just don’t like lying there all soggy afterwards and I hate having to reapply my sun lotion when there’s sand about.) You can find this Holy Grail of Bond Girl bikinis at Net-a-Porter here – the price-tag will make your eyes water…

miu miu acetate sunglasses

…but nobody will notice if you have your amazing Miu Miu shades on! (See what I did there?) These cat-eye beauties are completely OTT – just add silken headscarf and bright coral lipstick. £135 at The Outnet.

Clarins Radiance Plus-Golden-Glow Booster

To get the bod to a good level of beach-bronzeness without even stepping foot in the sun: the Radiance Plus Golden Glow Booster for Body from Clarins. A few drops of this, nightly, mixed into your preferred body lotion, cream, oil or serum and you’ll build up a beautiful tan. It’s very gradual, but you can speed things up by adding more drops. Find it here online –  £22.85.

roberts radio

Picture the scene: you’re in your retro bikini, wide-brimmed sunhat on, sunglasses looking sharp, body all bronzage and shimmering, reclined on your wooden sunlounger on one of those beaches where they have proper toilets and people that come and bring you drinks and cold flannels… What are we missing? Sounds. Music. I mean, you could just plug some headphones into your iPhone like everyone else, but who wants to fade into the crowd? I’ll be honest, this Roberts Radio was a more of a “recreate the beach at home” sort of item, but boy does it look pretty. It’s £169.95 at John Lewis here.

slydes white cocacabana

“Slides” (those rubbery shoes with a thick band across the toes) have fast overtaken the flip-flop as my casual summer shoe of choice. No longer do I have to endure the initial pain of breaking in when I dig out my Havaianas, when I spend about three days feeling as though someone has driven a large chisel into the gap between my big toe and – er – next biggest toe. I just slip on my slides and go! In all honesty, I do find them a lot less delicate than flip-flops and it’s unlikely I’d ever wear them with a pretty dress, but for now, I am enjoying my non-splayed feet. You can find these palm print slides (made by the appropriately-named brand Slydes) at ASOS here – they’re a mere £18.

Browse more Weekly Window Shops…

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The Sunday Tittle Tattle: Crying, Buying, Reading, Sleeping

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watch monty the penguin

1) Crying: oh God, the John Lewis Christmas advert. It gets me every single year. This one didn’t catch me out until quite near the end, but I still had to go for a little “quiet moment” afterwards and re-do my eye makeup. A lot of people online have voiced their disappointment with this year’s effort; I’m personally satisfied with pretty much anything that gets me in the festive spirit! Carols are my favourite Christmas thing, but it’s a bit too early for them yet, isn’t it? You can watch the new John Lewis ad below:

2) Buying: Harvey Nichols have a 25% discount running this weekend on AW14 Fashion and Accessories, both instore and online. If you had some luxury items in mind for Christmas presents then it might pay to be organised and get things done early! The code is HNFRIEND25 and you can use it here.

3) Reading: I loved this piece that Tom Cox wrote for The Guardian. It’s about his Dad, logs and cats. It made me laugh so much that I went straight onto Amazon and bought Tom’s new book, The Good, The Bad and The Furry. I hadn’t ever heard of Tom before, but I had been following @MYSADCAT on Twitter and now I realise that Tom is the man behind the cat. I love it when important facts such as these become clear to me…

mr bear sleeping

4) Sleeping: the pets, as usual! Here’s Mr Bear, who found my handbag and decided it made quite a satisfactory pillow. And Dexter, having a rare and illegal snuggle on my bed. Don’t tell Mr AMR…

IMG_2529

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