time out has timed out...

 
Sooo, the last few months, well, seven to be exact, beauty mole has gone on a ‘break’ of sorts. A maternity break actually as I’ve welcomed my own little baby in to this word and my life has become a whirlwind of sleepless nights and sore-eyed days. But, with this, emotions of elation, happiness and indescribable joy. However, beauty mole is making a comeback now. Mums still want (and need) to feel pretty an time is of the essence. There is now even less time to spend on complicated regimes, so it’s all about multi-tasking products that do what they say on the tin and don’t lay hard to get. Stay tuned for the new favourites…

Sweet Smell of Spring

There is something about the beginning of spring that make me want to update my fragrance collection. All the fresh smells of a new season and blossoming trees get me giddy with excitement about summer.

This year, like any other, I wanted to get a fragrance that was fresh, spring-like but not too-sugary-sweet. Salvatore Ferragamo’s (best shoe designer ever, anyone?) Segnorina fits this description to a tea. It’s rosey and flowery with a touch of creamy sweetness. It reminds me of a delicious lollipop from childhood and airs out in to the scent of a spring flowerbed.

Plus, it helps me with my sweet cravings. Yum. 

Salvatore Ferragamo Segnorina from £39.00

Give a Helping Hand

Who doesn’t want to use a gorgeous product and also give back a little? One of my favourite natural brands, Trilogy, is celebrating the 10-year-anniversary milestone. To celebrate, they have released a ‘Helping Hand Wash’, of which 100% profits will go to Child’s i Foundation to help end baby abandonment in Uganda. As a mother-to-be, it’s extra close to my heart. Unsurprisingly, it's already been flying off the shelves!

Give a helping hand...

Trilogy Helping Handwash, £13.50

Moisture Cacoon

Although I can be quite lazy with body moisturiser, now that I’m pregnant, of course it is more important than ever. My abdomen and belly are also ridiculously itchy and craving moisture to accommodate the expanding belly.

I am packing in a double whammy of moisture: Aromatherapy Associates Renew Rose Massage Oil as soon as I’ve stepped out of the shower followed by Thea Baby Naturals Tummy Butter. The mixture of AA’s rosey scent and Thea’s rich cocoa butter is a heady one.

I think the belly approves. 

AromatherapyAssociates Renew Rose Massage Oil, £36

Thea Baby Naturals Tummy Butter, £22.95

Be My BB-FF

Although the new BB cream phenomenon has been gathering pace over the last couple of years, I haven’t been compelled enough to try…until now.  

Clinique’s new BB cream sounded too compelling to pass up. With a SPF protection of 30 (fantastic) this ‘beauty balm’ does instantly perfect the skin.

The original ‘BB craze’ started in Asia and soon became a cult favourite. Asian women wanted a one-stop-shop-beauty-balm that would moisturise, cover imperfections, and also prime the skin to create a fantastic base for all makeup. And it does all of the above.

Why would you ever wear tinted moisturiser again now that BB is available on your doorstep? For a yummy mummy in the making this is a godsend as well as for anyone who doesn't have time to fuss on makeup. 

Clinique Age Defense BB Cream SPF 30, £25.00

A Little Help...

I have been a fan of Shiffa for a while. Theirs are products whose ingredients literally sound good enough to eat. One of my biggest enemies at the moment is the potential of stretch marks rearing their ugly head, but Shiffa's founder Dr Lamees Hamdan actually developed her own concoction of pregnancy oil during her own pregnancy. It features, amongst others, macadamia, apricot, avocado, evening primrose and Mandarin oils that come together in one sweet, delicious smelling fits-all pregnancy oil. It's reassuringly rich, heady and totally soothing. Finally, waking up to a red and blotchy face is about as far from the pregnancy glow I was expecting. Shiffa's Tamanu moisturising cream is very healing and calming for angry red skin. Calendula will help to protect too. 

Anything to help me get my glow on.

Shiffa Pregnancy Body Oil £52

Shiffa Tamanu Moisturising Cream £74

Obedient Hair

Although I have never been best friends with a conditioner before, the tides might be shifting. Lately, since my pregnancy, my hair has been so poufy and fluffy (they say it gets thicker if you’re having a boy!!) - a bit unruly you might say.

I have been trying Phyto’s Express Conditioner recently and not only does it smell of sweets and cocoa butter, but it also leaves hair silky, but not weighed down. I was super impressed. My hair is usually fine and if I used a heavy conditioner in the past, it ends up looking like I’d dipped my head in oil. Not sleek chic. More freak chic.

Then I also tried Phyto’s Daily Hydrating Botanical Cream Leave In conditioner – something that I would normally not touch with a bargepole. It is brimming with botanical extracts and is brilliant for giving hair a slick of gloss without full-on ‘conditioning’ and is especially great before you blow dry your hair. And my fine hair doesn't look gready either. Soo, flyaways be gone.

Obedient hair is the way forward.

http://www.phyto.com/en/