Introducing Beauty Wednesday

I have a confession to make: I am a hardcore beauty junkie. By this I don’t just mean that I enjoy putting on lipstick and getting my hair done, but rather that I will refuse to rest until I have tried approximately 326 products in any given beauty category (mostly so that I can feel smug at being able to decide which is the best). I don’t just use one moisturiser; I currently have 12 on rotation. And there are a total of 32 hair products (!) currently in my bathroom. And that says nothing of the two storage tubs of products that are stashed under my bed waiting to be trialled, the tubes of hand cream and bottles of perfume scattered on tables all over my house, or the 5 lipbalms/sticks/glosses in each of my handbags (in case I decide to change colours by lunchtime… as you do).

I am not saying this is normal (or even commendable) behaviour, but it does make me useful for one thing: dishing out beauty tips. Yes, I am that girl who my friends and colleagues and lovely readers come to when they want to know which face cream will make them look like a radiant 15 year old and which are just a waste of money, what on earth a serum is, how to zap the world’s biggest pimple, or where to go for the best haircut in London. Rather embarrassingly, I usually know the answer. And if I don’t, I make it my mission for the next fortnight to find out and report back.

So from now on, I’ll be doing regular mid-week beauty posts on any and every subject vaguely related to the world of beauty in amongst my usual ramblings about glittery shoes and wardrobe essentials. I’ve got a cluster of posts lined up, but please do reply or email with any special requests/beauty-related questions and I will happily oblige by doing a post on the subject.

Until then my lovelies…

Love, Miss B xx

Recent Treasures

I’m forever going on about the importance of saving up for special pieces that make your heart flutter, rather than accumulating lots of stuff which doesn’t really make you happy. Which is why, despite their rather exorbitant price tag, I finally bought those glittery Miu Miu booties that I had been daydreaming, fantasising and generally obsessing over for months. I knew it was meant to be when, after trying them on for the third (!) time in store, my pulse started racing and I got sweaty palms as though I was on a really good first date. And so I finally went for it, and I haven’t regretted it for a second.

Because I spent the equivalent of my rent money on a pair of shoes, I’ve largely avoided making any other major fashion purchases the past month. But there was room for a few small luxuries which are currently making me smile just as much on a daily basis.

Straight to the top shelf of my beauty cabinet is Chanel’s new ‘Graphite’ polish (a glittery dirty golden metallic which has barely left my fingers since I bought it), while Stella McCartney’s beautiful limited edition perfume (the original Stella fragrance repackaged in three different floral prints from her Spring/Summer ’11 collection) and Lierac’s body oil and illuminating moisturiser (which smell of a beautifully soft cocktail of jasmine, gardenia and camellia) make me feel a million dollars even when I’m wearing nothing but silk pyjamas.

This ridiculous/fabulous printed silk top by Antipodium makes me feel fun and silly (like I should be playing Patsy and Edie’s sidekick in an episode of ‘Absolutely Fabulous’), and this vintage aurora borealis crystal necklace (found on one of my regular vintage jewellery ebay trawls) is currently satiating my magpie tendencies. And finally, a gorgeous new lingerie set from Elle Macpherson – surely the ultimate small luxury (because few things can make you feel deliciously gorgeous while wearing something as simple as jeans and a tee shirt quite like sensationally beautiful underwear).

I’d love to know what new treasures are currently making you smile?

Love, Miss B xx

New York: The Brooklyn Flea Market

Because I have been to New York a few times before (and had a full 10 days on this trip), this time I had the luxury of having enough time to just go slow and absorb the city’s quieter treasures. I absolutely loved exploring Wiliamsburg in Brooklyn (just a couple of subway stops over the bridge from Union Square), where I was staying with Nicolette in her gorgeous apartment. Apart from the obscene amount of incredible food and the really rather excellent vintage shopping to be had there, my favourite thing was pottering around the Brooklyn Flea market one Sunday*.

I’m not sure whether it’s because I’m the child of a rare-antiques-hunting mother, or because of my treasure-hunting/magpie-like tendencies, but I’m pretty much powerless against the lure of a good flea market. And when it’s situated right on the East River so that you can literally look up from your vintage trawling to gaze lovingly at the Manhattan skyline, then it’s pretty hard to beat.

Nicolette and I spent several happy hours rummaging through mountains of vintage jewels (we both have a serious sparkle habit), retro childhood nostalgia, vintage furs, antique treasures collected from far-off lands, and lovingly battered furniture I wish I could have stuffed in my suitcase. And even when it started to rain, I literally had to be pulled away form the stall of antique New York maps and postcards (I love collecting them from every place I visit).

So should you find yourself in New York over a weekend, I insist you pay a visit to the Brooklyn Flea and then linger in Williamsburg for a few hours. A vintage treasure or two from there is the perfect souvenir or this marvellous city.

Love, Miss B xx

* The same space hosts the Smorgasbord on Saturdays, which is essentially stall after stall of foodie heaven.