"LUSH"LIPS

I finally made it to the LUSH store at the V&A Waterfront Cape Town a couple of days ago and as I expected their stocks looked somewhat depleted suggesting, that lots of LUSH products were happily given and received as Christmas gifts...Unfortunately many of the products that I wanted to try were sold out,but that didn't deter me from finding others!

As I am the "The Queen of Exfoliation" I was instantly drawn to a little pot with an interesting label....Mint Julips Lip Scrub a Lip Smacking Cocktail...The words Lip,Scrub and cocktail grabbed my attention!

LUSH Mint Julips Lip Scrub

If you suffer from dry, chapped lips then I always recommend that you exfoliate your lips with your facial exfoliator,as there are no specific products out there for lips. That was until Lush came along!

It's very easy to use just follow the instructions on the jar:

Scrub and buff your lips to softness.Lick of the excess and use your favourite Lush lip balm.

I must tell you that I bought the mint chocolate and it tastes "delish" and contains:

Castor Sugar

Organic Jojoba Oil

Peppermint Oil

Vanilla Extract

I found this product to be fun to use, yet seriously effective in smoothing the lips. 

You can feel the grains of sugar as you massage over the lips and then you lick off in order to remove...if you are on a diet though I suggest that you remove with a tissue...lots of love.

The product retails for R70 and offers excellent value, as a little really does go a long way,so this tiny pot should even last "me" ages..

It's available in the following flavours Bubblegum,Chocolate and even Popcorn, which is a limited edition.This product is a "must" if you suffer from dry, flakey lips! Remember that soft smooth lips are not only better for kissing, but your lipstick will look and stay on so much better!

So the next time you are busy chewing on those flakes of skin on your lips think of this really yummy Mint Julips pot from LUSH....

MY CAPE TOWN ON FOOT

After a Christmas Day full of excess eating and drinking, a nice early walk around Cape Town was on the cards.I really enjoy walking and my trainers go with me on every holiday.

 Over the years I have walked around New York, Paris, London and now Cape Town...yet despite visiting Cape Town many many times, I really have never had the time to do my "own" Cape Town on foot!

Whilst walking around early in the morning has its benefits, of being much cooler and quieter, unfortunately you do see the remnants of the "night before", prior to the street cleaners having worked their "magic".

Here are some photos that I took this morning...of "My Cape Town" on foot.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!

CHRISTMAS NAIL ART

Feeling Christmassy...then why not decorate your nails to carry through the festive theme?
Check out some of these ideas....

PEARLS OF WISDOM

CLARENS A STEP BACK IN TIME

I cannot believe that I have lived in South Africa for over 32 years of my adult life and have never been to this little jewel of the Eastern Free State called Clarens. 
We have over the years gone "whizzing" past the turn off to this village en route to Cape Town, but on this trip we didn't and what a little jewel it is!

The village of Clarens (established in 1912) is situated in the foothills of the Maluti Mountains in close proximity to the Golden Gate National Park and the mountain kingdom of Lesotho. Clarens is an Artists haven with many art galleries scattered around the village square. There is an abundance of quaint shops,boutiques and eating places. There is even a horse and carriage that trots around the village, just to add to your sense of stepping back in time.

The tranquil village ambience combined with scenic views and a mild climate makes for the ideal weekend getaway for city dwellers from Johannesburg and Durban and is a comfortable 3 to 4 hours drive away.We only spent a couple of hours there and had some lunch,but a return visit for a weekend, is definitely on the cards.

For more info on Clarens click here

FRIDAY FINDS

Here are some more of my Friday finds for Christmas and they are all from good old reliable Woolworths...

Poinsettia Plant in a basket R99.99

Freshwater Pearl set R140

Neoprene bottle carrier R120

Sheep Soap on a Rope R39.99

ELC 3 IN 1 Sand Tools R59.95

For more details visit www.woolworths.co.za

MY BIRTHDAY.....

Yesterday was my birthday and as each birthday comes and goes it becomes increasingly more and more difficult to know how to celebrate it, in a different and memorable way.Without sounding ungrateful sometimes the simple things make the day the most memorable...

My day started bright and early with a 5km walk along Umhlanga beachfront, as I knew that there would be lots of chomping ahead,so some exercise was a "non negotiable" for the day. It really must be one of the most beautiful beachfront walks in the world and I get to do it most days! After all the "freak"weather we have been having recently our typical Durban summer hot and humid weather had returned and at 7.30am the sun was starting to burn and the beach was filling up with tourists....Something so simple as a walk,was actually, so satisfying and memorable... also a great way to start my "Birth Day".

Off to see Joyce next, my trusted friend and hairdresser....as always "I" and "My" hair felt renewed and invigorated afterwards, thanks to the chatter and the K mist treatment and the Kerastase Elixir Ultime, both are absolute must haves!

To read the K Mist post click here
To read Kerastase Elixir Ultime post click here

Next stop was the new Vide-e Cafe that has recently opened in the SMG mini car showroom in Umhlanga, to meet my BFF for Hot Choc, unfortunately what should have been a catch up sitting outside on the deck, turned out to be a "screaming" catch up above the noise of the drilling that was going on generally, as the building is still in the "building" phase....so will visit next time when it's all complete! It was my birthday,so we laughed and moved on....again this would provide a different memory of my ??nd birthday!

A long leisurely chat filled lunch was next on my birthday agenda at a lovely classical bakery in Umhlanga called Ferrucci...this deserves a blog write up of its own in the new year. No sooner had we finished lunch and I was getting ready for my birthday dinner out with my hubby!

I haven't really blogged much about my favourite Hotel, but now it's summer you will be hearing lots more about the Oyster Box Hotel in Umhlanga Rocks.... And that's where we were off to for a pre dinner cocktail...a Strawberry Daiquiri! And in my opinion they serve the best SD'S, but more about this in a future blog.....

Our dinner reservation was beckoning us,so off we strolled through a very festive Umhlanga village to "Little Havana" and had, as always a "delish meal" again this will be a future post.
To round off a wonderfully hectic and very social day we returned to the Oyster Box Hotel for a coffee.....where they surprised me with a slice of Birthday cake and a Cosmopolitan cocktail!
So I can truly say that my birthday was a memorable one this year....

GET THAT PARTY SHIMMER ON

Several houses bring out Limited Editions at this time of the year...and a Ltd Edition is not normally part of the basic regular range, but is available for a set period of time.

Because its party season I have been on the look out for Shimmering Fragranced Body products and found these two great ones below:

The first "shimmer" product is from The Body Shop and is a body lotion with a fruity Cranberry scent - Cranberry Joy. I really enjoyed this festive scent and as with any body lotion the fragrance is slowly released as the body warms the lotion.  I found it to be a lightweight moisturiser,which is ideal for those warm summer evenings. The real feature of this product though is the " gold shimmer" and would look great on all colours of skin, but be warned that the shimmer is most definitely not subtle!

The main emphasis with this product is on the "shimmer and fragrance" and not so much on the moisturising aspect.

Also be aware that your hands, after application will have a  gold sparkle that isn't easy to remove, but who cares ?

This product offers good value for money at R99 and you can buy other Cranberry Joy fragranced items e.g.Soap,Body Butter,Bath Crystals and Hand Cream to name but a few!

250ml R99

The next product is from L'Occitane En Provence  and forms part of their Christmas range called "Marvellous Flowers". This Shimmering Oil can be used on the skin and also in the hair, and has a delicate aroma of sparkling red fruits, peony and rose. This oil adds nourishment and shine to the body and hair, plus soft golden highlights. 

This product differs from the previous one, as it provides more moisture to the skin with a subtle shimmer effect. Other products in this range include Hand Cream,Eau de Toilette,Soap 

and even a lipgloss.

A little pricey at R420 for 250 mls, but this product has the added bonus of being able to be used in the hair and remember it offers a fragrance,moisturiser and shimmer "all in one".

250ml R420

For more info visit 

www.thebodyshop.co.za  

or

www.loccitane.com

PEARLS OF WISDOM

SUMMER BEACHWEAR

After literally weeks and weeks of rain, the sun and summer seems to have found its way back to Durban...

Thank Goodness!

Its only when I went to dig out my summer beachwear from the back of the cupboard did I realise that it really is in need of a drastic beach overhaul and update.

So armed with my card, off I went to Woolworths at Gateway Theatre of Shopping to see what grabbed my "fancy". I enjoy all the colours below and the bird sarong is very pretty, as for the rafia hat, I am not generally a hat person but hey "it's summer" and I'm now ready to hit the beaches of

 Durban and Cape Town soon.

 Swimsuit R275

Summer Bird Sarong R120

Straw Shopper R99.95

Rafia Embroidered Hat R130

Embellished Thongs R199

All this merchandise can be ordered online www.woolworths.co.za