Shopping with Garance

I'm ashamed to say that I haven't checked out her site recently - somehow it appears to have come off my favourites list.  Something I will correct immediately.  At any rate, I discovered a new feature - SHOP.  Needless to say that caught my eye right away and I checked it out.  Here are just some of my favourites available.

 

Cool note books

 

A body oil that sounds delicious

Spring garden scent

 

 

Something I think I need to try this weekend.

 

 

Preparing for the upcoming summer

 

TO DO lists - a must for someone like me.

Love this bag from  Yves Saint Laurent - Might be a bit small for me but I carry too much stuff around all week anyway.  Maybe as a weekend bag.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally a Long Weekend

I can't say the weather is especially promising but a three day long weekend is something to look forward to no matter what.  The sun is starting to peak through the clouds so maybe things are finally clearing up.  Frost Warnings are not what you think about at this time of year and last night I had to break down and turn the furnace back on.  Maybe later today I can shut it down again. 

At any rate.   This is the perfume I was looking for if anyone knows where I can find it so that I can smell it.  It's sounds lovely but I find you really need to try something on first before you buy.  Scents can be quite different from one person to the next.

A Wake-up Makeup Call

It's been quite awhile since I bought new makeup.  I'm not wearing much lately because I'm usually in too much of a rush or too tired to care.  However, when I noticed that the cheap makeup I bought (no idea how long ago - I think around 2 years ago), had broken the lid, gone down to the metal and was flaking badly, I decided it was time to try something new and better quality. 

I've been following Elin Kling for a little while now and when she mentions a good product, I make a mental note.  When she mentions it a couple of times I make an even bigger mental note.  Recently on her post Postcards from Sweden she mentioned a few products that I decided would be worth a try. I've been looking tired and drawn lately and since my son also wanted to buy me perfume for mothers day, I thought it would be a good way to accomplish two things at once. 

We paid a visit to Sephora.  I found a small Flawless Face Kit from Laura Mercier (in nude) and decided it had smaller sample sizes of everything I wanted to try and from there we made our way over to the Perfume counter.  The Tom Ford perfume I wanted to try wasn't available in our Sephora and so I tried a few others instead. This was my son's favourite so that is what I went with. 

Some MAC eye shadow and Lustre Drops and I was ready to check out.  My son standing in line behind me was reflected in a mirror - I forgot how tall he was and was reminded when he stood head and shoulders over every man and woman in the line up.  OK - mostly women.  It was at the cash register that it hit both of us just how much makeup and perfume can cost.  Having never experienced this type of thing my son was shocked.  How do women afford it?  Good question.  I feel for his wife someday. 

At any rate, I decided when I got home and removed my pretty items from their packaging that this was a call for practice "product shots" with my new camera and used the setting sun to affect.  Or so I thought.  I think I need some more practice with lighting.

 

This little thing includes your coverage on one side for perfect blending, and the bottom half includes face powder. Pretty ingenious. 

 I havea much bigger appreciation for The Beauty Look Book.  How does she do it?

 

Happy Mother's Day to all the Mother's in the World.  We truly deserve this day.

Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet with Natalie Portman

While I'm trying to sort through my house and put things in order, I've got to admit that I'm desperate for spring.  Anything - even some small sign of hope would be great right about now.  This winter has me feeling like a hermit and I know there are plenty of others who feel the same.  So I'm taking a quick break to indulge myself because a person can only clean out closets for so long. 

This caught my eye and I'm dying to try it - the timing couldn't be more perfect since anything even hinting at spring seems like heaven right now.  The power of scent is a huge part of this and for me this new perfume looks like the a good one to try.  The advertising images of Natalie Portman for the campaign are stunning.  Enjoy a little taste of spring.

 

 

 

 

Miscellaneous Inspiration

With this flu getting me down, I decided it was time for some inspiration.

 

 

Jane Fonda - seriously no matter what you may think of her (and I've read her book which I found a fascinating read - truly inspirational)... this woman looks incredible for her age.  Sure photoshop helps but the core beauty is sill there and that is hard to do - I speak from experience.

  

 

My plans for kitchen upgrades are now off the table - simply can't afford the new counter tops and cupboards I want at this time and I refuse to compromise until I can so I do without.

 

A little outdoor bling

 

I'm so ready for winter to be over with already.

 

 

 

You can just feel the glamour in this room.

 

Perhaps somewhere in Paris.

Inspiration for my perfume - I think it's time for another new scent.  Some of mine have been around too long.

 

Love this idea for organizing my bathroom. So pretty.

Perfume Vanity

I've been on a perfume shopping spree lately looking for my new scent and I've found quite a few.  Now I'm looking for an inspirational way to display them.

Image - Dress, Design & Decor

These are the ones to make the cut so far:

Vera Wang Signature Perfume

L'air du temps, Nina Ricci

Dolce & Gabbana, Light Blue

Estee Lauder - Intuition

Trésor - Midnight Rose for night time

Trésor - In Love for day time

Designer Profile: India Hicks

The first time I can remember ever hearing about India Hicks was when a listing of the bridesmaids for the royal wedding was announced.  When looking at wedding photos of Diana, Charles and the rest of the wedding party, I was struck that she didn't look too comfortable being a bridesmaid and in so much in the spotlight.  (I later read, on her blog, that she wasn't comfortable wearing such a frilly dress).  Her heritage and being Diana's bridesmaid has followed her everywhere, but this is about India.  The term "You've come a long way" truly applies here.

India Hicks and daughter Domino in Hello Magazine

The next time I had any knowledge of India was when she moved to New York for modelling.  I've been a big Ralph Lauren fan for many years and I remember a photo spread where three different designers were decorating her New York apartment (one of them was Ralph Lauren - I tried to find photos but was unable to find anything - too far back I guess).  I loved the Ralph Lauren apartment the best naturally and if I recall correctly so did India.  There's been a long friendship and association between the two of them (he wrote the forward for her book "Island Living"), and over time I simply grew to admire India for her own style and sense of self. 

Rickie and Ralph Lauren with India Hicks - New York Social Diary

As previously mentioned I love her skincare line and I just can't get enough of it.  It's created around the smells of her island home in the Bahamas and what a life it is.

I enjoy reading her blog and finding out what she's up to lately.  She may have royal connections but she's so funny and down to earth.  She has a great sense of humour and you just never know what she's going to do next.

India Hicks abseiling six stories for Viyella and Austin Reed

India has done so much with her life so far while raising four kids of her own, not to mention a menagerie of pets and recently she's added a fifth child who's mother died of cancer. 

Wesley and her sons

Her kids and the life she's created are her greatest accomplishments, but she has done so much more.  She has a number of wonderful villas to rent in her beloved Bahamas;

The Cricket Pavilion

She's a spokesmodel for Viyella;

Viyella images from IndiaHicks.com

She has a terrific online store called the Sugar Mill, which now includes fashions, accessories and of course her wonderful fragrance line;

Here are a few of my favourite items from the Sugar Mill.

These come in gold, silver and bronze -

Santa, I'll take one of each please.

Dakar woven bag

A pretty scarf - One of these also Santa.

  And, she's an amazing jewelry designer.  I've included some of my favourites below.  Enjoy.

Some previous India Hicks references on my blog:

Showcase:  India Hicks, Island Living

Vacation Destination:  Cricket Pavilion on Harbour Island in the Bahamas

Vacation Destination:  India Hicks Guesthouse