charlotte colwell

treat yourself to a perfectly relaxing neck and shoulder massage with charlotte colwell.  for somebody so petite, she has amazing strength and perfectly unknots those stresses from your body.  her facials leave you glowing and radiant – so if you are looking for the perfect birthday present for somebody, why not give a gift voucher from charlotte.  she has also started a lovely blog, giving you lots of beauty tips.

charlotte uses this amazing range of organice skin care – all natural ingredients and not too expensive, well its not cheap, but comparable to the ren and dr hauschka ranges – eminence skin care. all the products are handmade using a high percentage of fruits and organic products. in particular the almond and mineral treatment cream is just invigorating and after 10 mins you really look glowing!   it really is a big range to choose from, and can be daunting, but charlotte can advise you on what is good for you and supply the product too.

its always reassuring when the person who treats you radiates from within – living proof that it all works!

bettys coffee

i never thought that my daughter would go for that hair bleaching and colouring  – but she loves changing her style, suddenly going bright blue, or pink.  both my daughters have now gone for this bleaching of the ends, dip dyeing as they called it.  i would never recommend doing this at home, unless you have somebody who is knowledgeable about the products – to take away the hair colour from such dark hair can result in hair loss, burning etc…  now that i am reaching that sad old age of grey hair appearing, i too need to do the highlighting, but in a more subtle way.  thank goodness for Eri at salon 496 - she is brilliant at colour and so patient, and compared to other hair salons is reasonably priced.  she and her partner have now opened their own petite salon in dalston, but its such a calming atmosphere to spend a couple of hours.  once you have finished there, pop into  bettys coffee shop just close by and get yourself a toasted panini.

little miracle rosehip serum

my daughter alice bought me this wonderful serum for xmas – it really smells and feels wonderful and is full of natural ingredients – rosehip serum.

i still use the lovely rosehip oil from comfort and joy which is especially blended for hormonal skin. you would think that putting an oil on your skin would block it up, but in fact it seems to do the opposite.

 

aesop

struggling to find presents for men, i stumbled along the aesop shop in soho – their products are all plant based, high quality and specially made to benefit the skin and absolutely smell beautiful.  i bought a foaming shaving balm for my husband with a steel dish for him to whip up the foam with his brush – he is very old fashioned and still likes to wet shave.  hope he likes it!

birthday treat

it was my birthday at the weekend and i spent the whole weekend photographing gorgeous children.  i love it, but it definitely is not only mentally exhausting – getting 3 year olds to perform in front of the camera who have never done it before, but also physically draining.  my poor body was contorted to meet the height of all these gorgeous little girls.  so my birthday treat was a neck and shoulder massage with charlotte colwell.  for somebody so petite, she has amazing strength and perfectly unknots those stresses from your body.  her facials leave you glowing and radiant – so if you are looking for the perfect xmas present for somebody, why not give a treatment or massage from charlotte.  she has also started a lovely blog, giving you lots of beauty tips.

excema and dry skin

if you have suffer from dry skin, especially in the winter months – remember the central heating being on doesnt help, but if you put a glass of water by your radiator this will help put back moisture into the air -  then there are lots of different products out there, other than cortisone cream.  my daughter has always suffered in the creases of the arms, ever since she was little, and i have tried so many different types.  I am quite a natural person, white witch my son calls it, but generally i try to use natural products to cure illnesses first, then if i have to resort to the chemical stuff, fine.  the best of all the products i have tried for dry chapped skin is Napiers, Infant Starflower cream – its soothing, penetrative and doesnt sting.  Calendula cream can sting excema, and therefore make it look redder.  Another good one is Stellaria cream by Neale’s Yard, or Aloe Vera moisturiser from B Natural Skincare, which is equally as good for any part of your body and Goats milk cream from Elegance.  For general everyday use, shower gel, body cream,  aveeno, seems gentle enough and is affordable to just use generously all over the body.  Remember that hair products, shampoo, conditioner, and especially hair dye all contain chemicals and can cause allergic reactions – it was one of the main culprits in my daughter’s case – liz earle products are very good for people with sensitive skin, as is australian organics for the hair.  As with all creams, i tend to think that your skin gets use to all creams and changing is always a good thing, as your skin responds to new things.  Of course, everybody is different and they react to things differently, but natural is worth a try and none of the above are very expensive, so worth a try.

national portrait gallery

if you are around on friday 7 october, then get down to the national portrait gallery for their late shift event – this one is run alongside the exhibition glamour of the gods.  you can get a vintage make over – hair and make up to look like one of the hollywood stars of the 30s and 40s.  you can then get your photograph taken to recreate the hollywood mystique.  its on from 6 to 10pm and its all free! i love all these free events on in london, what a great thing to do on an early friday evening.   if you cant make it  that evening, then you can always pop down to the powder room in columbia road or soho any time and get it  done there.

triyoga chelsea

yoga and pilates still seems popular – i personally try to do at least one pilates class a week, either Yalkuln or Maika’s classes at primrose hill.  now triyoga has expanded to include chelsea, as well as having a studio in soho and covent garden.  means that there is no excuse for finding a good class near to you.

i have also noticed that charlotte colwell has started to offer her wonderful beauty treatments using the organic eminence products in both primrose hill and chelsea triyoga.

vintage make up book out

style me vintage – make up has come out this week – if you have ever wanted to learn how to do your make up like rita hayworth or marilyn monroe, then this is the book for you.  i am not into make up, but photographing the book did show me lots of handy tips on how to use eyeliner, lipstick etc….   written by katie reynolds from the infamous powder room, its steps are easy to follow.  so if its smokey 1920′s eyes that you are after,  then this book simply shows you how to achieve it.

 

40′s vintage glamour

well what a week – sun, cloud, rain, downpours – cant work out what month it it!  have been shooting the next vintage  book in the series, to follow the make up book and its all about  vintage fashion.  its introduced me to a whole new world of glamour and passion for clothes – i was really worried that young people these days were tied to their computers or tv’s but actually there is another world out there…..

naomi thompson, the young but knowledgeable author is part of a group of wonderful vintage girls who not only dress in the style, but write, blog, model and live their life around their passions.  naomi also offers a personal shopping day, where she will take you out to her favourite vintage shops and help find clothes that suit you.   the book is not out til next spring, but i will keep you informed of all the lovely news that i discover.   first off, you must take a look at fleur’s blog – you will find lots of interesting things and links.   personally for me 1940′s is my favourite era – i just love everything about it – half of me wishes that we all had to do our hair daily and dress so perfectly – no more flip flops, trainers……..  i am sure its a habit that we have all grown out of.   i remember my mother having her weekly shampoo and set, wearing stockings and court shoes.   now i only do this for a special occasion, for these vintage girls its no effort and they go about their daily lives looking so perfectly attired.