Loud and Proud

As the sun is coming out to play more often now, I am starting to take care of more than just my fingernails. That's right. The socks are coming off. But, at this time of year, pre-holiday, the feet are pale and some colours will just make them look even more pasty. Steer clear of anything yellow, unless you already have a tan and opt for more orangey, pink and red hues. I even think anything too dark red looks too goth on white pins.

OPI are a no-brainer when it comes to nail colours. With more in-between shades that you can shake a top coat at, you are bound to find one perfect for your skin tone. Plus. following my confession for a secret flower addiction these shades (and their names too!) are after my own heart.

Part of the Nice Stems collection, Play the Peonies is a beautiful, sheer, soft pink. It has a touch of pearl, so can be build up for a retro Barbarella nude. But Come to Poppy is a killer. Bright, right side of coral with a big fat dash of pink. Suits ANY skintone and not too iridescent. I'm wearing them loud and proud.
OPI Nail Polish £10.50 each

Flower Addiction

I think I have become obsessed with flowers. I need a conservatory. A simple jog turns in to a flower expedition, as I have to smell each rose bush. And in supermarkets, I am like a flower fiend too. i am running out of pots and vases.

This is the season for roses and many other early summer blooms. And now that the weather is getting warmer, my previous moisturiser is starting to feel too heavy. So step in Sisley's Ecological Compound, an extremely versatile product - its light texture means you can use it as a moisturiser on its own, or as a serum, plus it helps to protect skin against environmental pollution.

But my favourite part is it's full of botanical goodness (Rosemary, Ginseng and hops) and smells like a bouquet of field flowers. So it goes some way to ease my flower addiction.

Sisley's Ecological Compound, £125 from Harrods or other excellent Department Stores.

Flowery Memories

I am well and truly back home now. And it’s funny how after a couple of days it is almost as if you have never been away. This means that I need my creature comforts more than ever before to ease me back in to the pain of reality.

As I have expressed my love of roses before, I am also eternally in love with the rose’s cousin: the peony. They remind me of my grandparents who used to grow them in their garden. The smell is a gentle childish memory. But making a lovely peony fragrance is not easy. Like lilies of the valley, peonies do not yield an essential oil. L’Occitane has managed to get extract from the root of the peony for their new Pivoine Flora Eau de Parfum and it is the closest you’ll get to the real thing. It’s simply wonderful.

Furthermore, L’Occitane has also create a limited edition makeup range with lipsticks, bronzers and more, all infused with peony. If you are a fan of the smell of lipsticks, this one is the daddy of them all, meddled with a light peony scent. Pucker up girls!

Surrounding myself in flowers can at least help me to remember the fields of flowers in Greece and the two million tulip bulbs I was lucky enough to see bloom in Istanbul.

L’Occitane Pivoine Flora Eau de Parfum, £39
L’Occitane Pivoine Flora Lipstick, £12
L'Occitane Pivoine Flora Face Powder, £20

One Big Fat Flower Bed

While I am feeling completely sorry for myself and worrying that these cuts won't scar my face, London has gone into bloom overdrive. All the flowers are so incredibly pretty, the colours, the shapes, the sizes, crawling up walls, peeking from behind fences and squeezing out of pavement cracks.

Visiting dear friends in Hampstead this weekend and going for a walk around the back lanes, passages and hilly streets, the varieties of flowers we saw was astounding.

Beautiful Ioanna took these photos. Let the colours inspire you.

Avante Garden

If you, like me, have sensitive skin, this is the range for you. So I do have sensitive skin sometimes... ok, all the time, and I wish I could just use any old moisturiser, but I can't.

I recently saw a friend of mine who actually washes her face with a bar of soap. Not fancy soap neither. Just ordinary soap that probably costs less than £1. If I did that, my face would shrivel up like a prune.
So I take care. I have danced around the Darphin range for a while because I love the scents, ingredients, colours of the products. I finally tried Intral and it's the most delicious range. 

The Redness Relief Soothing Serum is a veil of calm for angry skin. Chamomile soothes and beautiful-sounding peony extracts protect. The Soothing Cream is a cacooning shield with Orchid extract and vitamin E to repair any damage.

You will find similarly beautiful ingredients in all of Darphin's products. Plus, they will single-handedly raise your bathroom beauty credentials. Must must must have.
 
Darphin, Intral Redness Relief Soothing Serum, £47.00
Darphin, Intral Soothing Cream, £37.00