A Lush Life

I'm a massive hard core Lush fan and have been for a number of years now. The vibrant colours and strong fragrances are everything I love. I admit it can be a bit pricey for a bar of soap when you can nip down the town and purchase a pack of four aloe vera bars for a pound. So I've discovered the way around this for me is to stock up at birthdays and Christmas's. My recent haul was for my birthday and it's given me the opportunity to try some new products and these are the ones I recommend!

SOAPS are probably my favourite Lush products, you get a substantial block and the beautiful smelling bar lasts for a long while. I tried Rock Star and Miranda which both have fruity fragrances to them. My ultimate favourite is 'Miranda' and I really recommend this one. I've used it regularly and the citrus scent is really refreshing, it's one to wake you up on a groggy Monday morning! Rock Star is a popular soap too, it's sweet, cherry smelling with a floral undertone and is equalling pleasing. It's scent has more of a cute teenage girly vibe but has a soothing cleanliness at the same time and I'd be more likely to use it before going out to a party or going to bed.

Miranda £3.40

Rock Star £3.40

Pop In The Bath £2.95

BUBBLE BARS are ideal for relaxing and lounging around in a warm bath tub. I quite like that they can be used over a period of time, instead of crumbling it all in one bath and be done with it. I decided to go with 'Dorothy' and 'Pop In The Bath'; 'Pop In The Bath' was the sweeter of the two but they both possessed strong relaxing smells and I would recommend either if you want to de-stress and relax.

Dorothy £3.25

BATH BOMBS are a great one off treat, the only down side I find to them is they only last for one bath time. However I usually leave the bath shimmering clean and smelling amazingly good, which is a great benefit, of course! Three fresh smelling favourites I'd recommend are 'Sakura', 'Spacegirl' and 'Twilight'.

Twilight £3.25

Sakura £3.25

Space Girl £2.35

I always find the Lush SHOWER GELS useful, they're such a handy size and all smell beautiful. However, if you're looking for a refreshing snap of citrus similar to the Lush Miranda soap, Happy Hippy is a perfect quick fix. I use it all the time when I'm in a rush and need to have a quick but effective wash! It's definitely my favourite shower gel and I highly recommend!

Happy Hippy £3.50

The SHIMMER BARS are a really good summer product. They're multi-purpose and they've worked really well for me for just a simple massage oil as well as smelling pretty amazing. I've also found they're a really good buy for a natural glowing summer look, so if you're going on holiday, to festivals or genuinely off out, this is ideal for quick beauty trick.

Shimmy Shimmy £4.75

If you're the kind of person to like LIP BALMS and you like chocolate this is one for you! I wasn't sure at first as I didn't know whether the colour would suit my lip tone but there wasn't much of a tint to it like some of the other Lush lip balms. It smells exactly like chocolate orange and worked as a perfect moisturiser banishing all dry skin.

Whipstick £5.75

Finally the SOLID SHAMPOO is my must have! I'm not a fan of hair washing but for some reason I've warmed to the solid bar of shampoos that Lush sell. They're really compact with a long, long lifespan, so well worth the money. It's basically a bar of soap for your hair which leaves your locks shiny, nourished and clean. My favourite being the Jumping Juniper bar, I love it!

Jumping Juniper £5.50

You're able to buy any of the products I found in any Lush shop or online at www.lush.co.uk

Please feel free to leave your comments and ideas, email me or follow me on twitter: @MoliquaMole

Molly xx

Colour, Clothes and Visual Merchandising

Now’s the time when everyone’s biting their nails waiting for the Unis to make their decisions. Thinking about the future is a regular and scary thought, which I experience often! When researching into what I wanted to do for the future I was lucky enough to spend a few hours with Tom, a visual merchandiser of River Island menswear.

There are many careers in fashion, however, if you’re creative but not the keenest of sewers a future career as a visual merchandiser could be for you. In a boiling day in July last summer, Oxford Street River Island, I met Tom on the shop floor; smart but casual clothes. It was hard to spot him amongst customers but he just seemed to fit into the image of someone working in fashion (stereotypical I know!). I soon learnt a visual merchandiser’s role involves the presentation of the clothes and shop, down to the colour of the clothes hangers! The job allows him to travel to find inspiration around the world; nipping off to Tokyo, Europe; spending 2 days in New York sneakily taking photos of other shop’s windows for inspiration. With the perks of a mini-cooper company car, this job does sound amazing! However, it’s not all play and no work, oh no! Tom has to get up in the early hours of the morning to arrange the shop in a new layout, take photos of his ideas, then moving everything back before opening times. If you want to succeed in this job you really have to come up with the goods, presenting original and popular ideas.

Inspiration can be found in anything and this is why so much travel is involved in the job, as Tom said one of his ideas, writing on chalk boards, which were transferred to all stores, was discovered when visiting a market shop. It’s about being random and fun to attract customers, like the giant giraffe gracing the front of the shop. By no means should the business side not be overlooked; it is equally about making money. Everything in the shop has been positioned for a reason, for example sale items at the back and expensive items at the front, so customers have to see the expensive clothes, very clever. The mindset and phycology of the customer dictates everything, and store colour schemes and clothes arrangements are changed every week to remain fresh and memorable. You really have to have a talent to pick trends before they appear, as Tom has to work 6 months in advance!

So if you can relate to having these talents then maybe this this job’s for you!  So how did Tom achieve the role as visual merchandiser? He left school at 16, working on the shop floor of River Island and working his way up the ranks; A risky option that paid off in his favour. However, the profile of this job has been raised and there are now degrees catering fashion buying and visual merchandising. I found it really interesting and this would be perfect for budding fashionistas out there.

Molly x

http://www.riverisland.com/

Moomin Marvellous

Now, I noticed an obsession that I’m slowly developing over Moomins, maybe it’s a retreat back to my childhood but equally it could be the fact they’re amazingly cute! So, I looked online to find any Moomin products that could be added to my Christmas list. And did I!? Little did I know many others have been developing Moomin fever, so much so practically a whole section of the market is dedicated to ‘Moominism’. I’m pretty sure you could find a Moomin toilet seat in some unknown corner of the internet. Candle holders, pyjamas, mugs, calendars, toys, cutlery, cooking mittens; you name it, the Moomins have decorated it. So I decided what better than to do a Moomin haul? Here are some of the best Moomin products I found:

Ready for my top 3?:

1. Moomin Topshop Boypants: These are definitely worth it for £4. The patterns are cute and I admit I’m a sucker for underwear! Even though they won’t really be seen you can still show your appreciation for Moomins through and through with these knickers. They’re usually really comfy and Topshop often run offers when you buy 3 pairs.

2. Moomin Soft Toy: Yes it’s basically a child’s toy! But who couldn’t resist? If you’re not a fan of plush toys (as if you haven’t guessed I am) make this the one toy you do have.

3. Moomin To-do List: I was quite proud when I came across this nifty Moomin product. I will be buying this in the hope that if my lists are on stylish paper I’ll be more concise and looked after them (fingers crossed). This would equally be good for weekly shopping lists; as opposed to a plain bit of paper you can have a Moomin on there as well. What more could you want!

If you’re looking for something as a memento for Christmas this year, as I know some do! This Moomin Christmas mug is adorable. It will set you back £17.40 on Amazon, but the artwork on this mug is really endearing for Christmas, which I love.

I hope I’ve kick-started the start of a beautiful Moomin collection or at least strengthened your love for them! I know they’ll be making an appearance on my Christmas list this year! Please feel free to leave your comments and ideas, email me or follow me on twitter: @MoliquaMole

Molly xx

Topshop: Both Pyjama sets and Knickers.

www.Amazon.co.uk: Plush Toy, Pink Pocket Organiser, Phone Case, Comic Illustrated Book, To-do List, 4-piece Crockery Set, White Glass Bauble and Christmas Mug.

www.moomin.com: Duvet Cover, Candle Holder, Lip Balms, Cooking Apron and Pillow Case.

In Deep Water

So today I did an activity that wouldn't attract many during winter…I went swimming. As a cold bodied person it wasn't something that really appealed to me; leaving the comfort of my bed to traipse into the wind and rain to reach the local leisure center, idyllic I know. Now we all tend to put on pounds and reside to staying inside as much as possible and believe me, I am a main offender of this! However, my opinion on winter swimming has completely changed; it’s amazing and definitely the best time to go! So dig your swim attire out and rush to the pool for a quick dip! I found the prices were much lower than in summer and once indoors you can’t even feel the icy temperatures outside. I’m not an exercise fanatic by any means, oh no! But just swimming around for a bit refreshed and exercised me, in time for my last minute Christmas dash around the shops. Now you may be thinking on a weekend and despite the cold, children would still be flooding into the pool (excuse my pun). But no, I honestly shared the pool with about 10 other people; I feel I've discovered an unknown treasure. So if you’re not so keen on trying the icy swimming of the Russian waters or even the Christmas swim in the Serpentine, this may be more your bag. If you’re lucky to have a steam room like my local swimming pool, take advantage! It might just help your body rejuvenate for Christmas celebrations. There are so many health benefits for weight, heart, breathing, cholesterol and stress (due to all those feel good endorphin's). You may even find you can start using that bikini, trunks, or costume all year round!

Please feel free to leave your comments and ideas, email me or follow me on twitter: @MoliquaMole

Molly xx

Life's a Bleach

Welcome to my first ever post, you’ve found me! This is a bit daunting but I'm actually really excited to be building this blog, so I'll begin!

With the exciting new release of some of Bleach London’s products (now sold at Boots) I thought it’s only natural to dedicate this post to the salon. For those of you unacquainted with the salon this is THE homeland of colourful hair, if My Little Pony got their hair done, you would find a sea of ponies submerging the Bleach salons. Now Bleach really isn’t just a hair salon! Oh no! They create wonders of art in bright and pastel rainbow colours, you can be the girliest girl imaginable or the grungiest rock chick around, and it really is a whole new world for your locks to explore. And who’s to say boys can’t use it either? Now what’s not to love I hear you scream? Well before you go grabbing your purse and running for the salon, check appointment prices. Most treatments will set you back £100 or more, and we all know coloured hair needs maintaining rather regularly to stay in its prime look. So for many of us, including myself, a Bleach treatment really is just a treat. If you really do love your creative hair or know someone that does this would make a fabulous birthday or Christmas present! However, who said hair miracles don’t come in bottles placed on the shelves of Boots? Bleach certainly didn’t as they bring their beautiful hair dye palette to market. I’m sure this will be a super-hot seller and flying off the shelf.  There are 12 different colours at £5 a bottle as well as DIY bleaching, colour care and styling products all £7 and under; It's definitely well worth it! So if you’re feeling brave and daring this Christmas, you could always make that change and enter New Year in colourful style.

 

 

So that’s my first post! Please feel free to leave your comments and ideas, email me, or follow me on twitter: @MoliquaMole

I’ll post as often as I can on everything and anything! Molly xx

http://www.boots.com/en/Bleach/

http://bleachlondon.co.uk/