Summer Shopper

I set myself a challenge a few weeks ago to find a summer handbag to brighten up my otherwise neutral collection and found one I'm more than happy to carry on my shoulder!
This beauty from shoe retailer Aldo ticks numerous trend boxes, including coralicious colour blocking, metallic detail and geometric shapes. And best of all - it's 100% vegan.

I couldn't help but stop when I spotted this bag in the shop window. The bright pop of colour is perfect for summer, but not overpoweringly so. The blend of coral and neutral nude and brown, finished with gold detailing, allows you to have fun with colour whilst remaining sophisticated and chic.
The shopper is also a great size. And to get technical, I'm really impressed with the length of the handles. They are long enough that you can wear the bag on your shoulder, but not too long that you can also carry the bag hanging from your elbow or down by your side.
I cannot understand how women get by with small handbags though. I absolutely have to have everything on me at all times, to account for any eventuality - umbrella and sunglasses, three different lip balms and glosses, nail varnishes in case of a chip, to name a few... This bag is by no means small, but it could be a little bigger. The rectangular shape means that it's rather thin and everything must fit snugly together. Perhaps the one change I would make would be to make it a little wider.

The pocket situation is just as you'd expect from a good bag. There is a zip pocket for your valuables and then two open side pockets which I love to store my phone and keys in for easy access. The phone-sized pocket is too small for modern phones though, especially if you carry yours in a case. There is also a hidden pocket under the coral front which is quite cool. I personally don't use it though as I fear I'm going to crease the front every time I lift it and anything other than a credit card would surely strain the pocket too?

After falling in love with the appearance of this bag, discovering that it was 100% synthetic polyurethane with a cotton and polyester lining was the icing on the cake (as however beautiful a bag is, I refuse to buy anything made of leather or any other skin). I'm also not sure that anybody would even notice that it wasn't leather. I've gotten compliments from this bag from fashion-worshippers who would turn their noses up at me if they knew the extent of my distaste for leathers and beauty heroes tested on animals.

I can't say I've ever really shopped at Aldo before and was prepared to walk straight passed had I not seen this babe in the window. Having ventured inside though, I will definitely be back sometime soon!
It was £50 which I think is reasonable given the quality and lastability. I think it will transcend trends and is an absolute bargain considering the most lusted-after bags will set you back a few grand.

Maybe carrying this bright bag through the clouds and mist will encourage summer to actually turn up....

Lush Haul!!

Yay - it's that time again! I haven't gotten myself down to Lush in a looong long time so, on the day after pay day, I made a special little trip and filled my basket with lots of Lush goodies to last me another few months!

First of all some oldies, but goodies, which I've already reviewed on here before...

Lush BIG Shampoo

This is a big BIG favourite mine. Made of coarse sea salt and organic lemon and lime, this shampoo will give you the gorgeous, voluminous and healthy hair that you get after spending a week by the sea and sun. The texture is magical too as the rocks of salt are great for exfoliation and promote a happy, healthy scalp. It lathers well and adds shine and softness. So simple, yet so special! Try it if you don't believe me!

£11.25 for 330g

Lush Ocean Salt

Salt is really one of the earth's most amazing ingredients and makes up this other salty superhero! Ocean salt is a facial scrub with fresh grapefruit, avocado and coconut. The perfect balance of ingredients means it doesn't dry your skin out as you'd expect sea salt to do, but leaves you feeling soft, buffed and alive! It is a little harsh, but that's just how I like it - really working away at those dead skin cells. It contains lanolin so it's not vegan, but is of course not tested on animals and is vegetarian society approved. Remember though, make sure you mix and stir it up so it doesn't look like the beautiful blue pictured. It comes with most of the salt grouped at the top so make sure you spread it throughout the pot.
I'm still only buying the mini pot though as I assure you it lasts forever!

£6.95 for 100g
Read my full review here

Lush Volcano

I can tell this is popular as I always seem to nab the last pot! I use this every week and slather it over my feet, pop on some spa socks and let it do its thing while I soak the rest of my body in the tub! A kaolin clay mask with papaya, tomatoes and potatoes, Volcano blasts away dry skin and leaves tootsies cool and fresh. Before washing it off, dunk quickly into the water to loosen the mask and then rub the remains into your tricky spots before rinsing away.

£5.75 for 125g

And now for some new appearances...

Lush Curly Wurly

This looks like an unappetising rice pudding, but is a lovely moisturising and conditioning shampoo. This will be my third pot as its coconut, shea butter and vanilla goodness keeps me coming back for more. The pot is full of dessicated coconut and aims to leave curls defined and bouncy. My hair has a natural wave so I can't quite speak for those longing to soften their coils and curls, but I promise that it really does give a light and silky finish.
A word of warning, it's a very, very thick shampoo. You have to dig your fingers into the pot to get a generous scoop and although it may feel like you will never be able to distribute it evenly throughout your style, keep at it as with some elbow grease it lathers into a creamy dream! Now, it is also difficult to wash out. The mini flakes of coconut will sit in your hair even after rinsing. For the first few washes, I was frustratedly trying to locate and remove them all, but I've now learnt that if you just move on to conditioning, by the time you've finished, towel dried and brushed your hair, they will have magically disappeared! And it's certainly worth it for a rich and conditioning experience.

£9.75 for 220g
Fresh eggs make the list of ingredients, meaning this shampoo isn't vegan, but you can rest assured that they're free range.

Lush Sunnyside

How can you resist a trip to Lush without pocketing one of their scrummy bath bombs or melts? It's been particularly grey and miserable recently, so I treated myself to this gorgeous, glittering bubble bar. Break this up under the hot tap while running a bath and enjoy the influx of big, beautiful bubbles. Underneath the surface you'll find you're bathing in liquid gold too like a true goddess or foxy Cleopatra. The glitter will also coat your clean skin so you can enjoy being a shining Goldfinger Bond Girl under your pyjamas or clothes! A sure fire way to give you a smile and ultimate pampering session, Sunnyside is also made with Tangerine, Sweet Wild Orange and Lemon Oil so you can soak amongst citrus sweet essential oils!

£3.65 each

Lush Angels on Bare Skin

Now this is the most exciting product in my haul for me and one I can't wait to try. I haven't tried it yet as am just making the most of the dregs from my last cleanser, but this cleanser is allegedly as gentle and beautiful as being kissed by angels. Made of ground almonds, real lavender flowers, rose and chamomile, Angels on Bare Skin evens out skin tone, reduces redness and improves the health and appearance of the skin, leaving it glowing - sounds perfect to me!
It looks and feels a little rough and grainy, but when mixing your desired amount with water the ground almonds become almond milk in your hands which tone and brighten. It also absorbs grease and softens and moisturises. The simple need to add the water yourself, means that the product can be made with 100% natural ingredients and no preservatives. But my favourite part is the real lavender flowers. I regularly champion lavender as it's proven to calm and relax - so why not add that feeling to your morning cleanse!
I will keep you posted on how I get on!

£6.25 for 100g

As promised, to update on some of the other products I was trying from my last Lush Haul (here)...

Lush No Drought has grown on me a little. It still gets absolutely everywhere and I have to brush down my whole bathroom and outfit after use, but it really does absorb grease if you want to go an extra day without washing your hair. It is also easier to direct right to the problem area compared to the short sharp burst from the more popular cans ending up anywhere and leaving you looking a little skunky.

Lush Fair Trade Foot Lotion is one I won't be purchasing though. I only tried a sample, but it was so runny and gooey it would just get all over my bedding or slippers and wasn't a nice feeling. I much prefer the Body Shop Peppermint Foot Lotion. A lot creamier and indulgent, rather than toe-curlingly slippy!

Let me know what your favourite Lush products are as I'm always excited to try new recommendations!

Olive You, but Not My Conditioner

Olives are not something that I would usually associate with beauty, but having spent numerous years complaining about my dry, straw-like hair, I was pleasantly surprised to recieve Palmer's Olive Oil Formula Conditioner for my birthday as the bottle promises soft, silky hair.

I want to come straight out and say it though: I am not a fan of this product - strange, I know, seeing as I usually have heaps of praise for the products I review! Unusual as this may sound, the reason that I don't like it is because, after use, my hair is super sleek. So sleek, in fact, that it quickly becomes lank and greasy. I used to be able to enjoy stretching my time between hair washes for three and even four days with a spritz of dry shampoo. But now, even by the start of day two, I start to feel oily and dirty. I can't deny that this product does exactly what it says on the bottle - it leaves the hair soft, moisturised, frizz-free, shiny and smooth. So if that is what you are after, I can and would recommend it. But as an everyday conditioner, it is not right for me.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a powerful natural ingredient which has been used since ancient times to give hair strength and shine. I often read that straight olive oil directly on the hair is a good hair mask every few weeks - I tried this once though and it felt absolutely disgusting and took a million washes to get out - never again! This rich conditioner combines olive oil with soybean oil and hair keratin amino acids which work together to protect the hair from environmental factors and hot styling tools. The olive oil is also certified organic and Palmer's do not test on animals.

It is nicely dense and silky in consistency, but it doesn't really smell of anything in particular other than a generic soap scent. Something I can praise it for though is the amount of washes per bottle. This 250 ml bottle has been on my shower shelf for as long as I can remember and I still haven't finished it. I even want to finish it as I have some other tempting conditioners lined up that I'm looking forward to enjoying. You only need a small pearl and it will smooth all the hair (and mine is pretty long). Leave it on for a minute or two while you scrub and get squeaky clean before rinsing clean away.

If you have frizzy hair or unmanageable curls - I imagine this will be a life saver at times. For me though it is a little too oil-based and leaves me feeling greasy so I will just be sticking to the classic Palmer's cocoa butter formulas for now.