OOTD: Paris

Back in January I whizzed over to Paris for a short (work) trip. As I was travelling solo I was able to choose my own accommodation and decided to stay at the newly opened Le Pavillon des Lettres, which is an amazing boutique hotel near Madeleine. Each of the 26 rooms corresponds to a different letter of the alphabet, encompassing the spirit of a poet, a writer, an impassioned virtuoso or a genius, with extracts of each chosen artist printed on the walls. My room was X for Xenophon.

Despite the drizzle and cold I took full advantage of the few hours I had spare between meetings to wonder the streets and do a teeny tiny spot of shopping. In the evening I made a quick dash back to the hotel to freshen up for a client event. My experience last year taught me that this was quite a formal affair, less like the cocktail party described on the invitation, and more of a corporate networking evening. Rather than opting for the same grey/ black suit I decided to wear a lace dress accented by a formal, well fitting tuxedo style blazer.

French Connection Angela Lace dress (On Sale £55 here).

Despite my lack of sightseeing time during the day as the event was held in the enchanting Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine museum I was lucky enough to have an amazing view of the Eiffel tower on my stroll back to the hotel.

Bisous xxx

Coombe Abbey

The bf and I had a perfect, romantic weekend in the icy countryside so I thought I would share some photos!

We stayed at the beautiful Coombe Abbey Hotel near Warwick/ Coventry, which was originally a 12th Century Cistercian Abbey.

The freezing temperatures created some beautiful landscapes and as the hotel is set within 500 acres of breathtaking parkland, there was plenty for us to explore!

 The hotel itself was absolutely amazing, with lots of original features and period interiors.

Our room was also full of antique furniture and accessories, which made it even more special. We even had a bathtub on a plinth next to our bed! I don't think I have seen anything similar before... but I shall certainly miss watching tv while in the bath ;).

I hope you all have a lovely Valentine's Day my lovelies! xxx

Snow flurries!

I have just spent the most lovely week in Austria with the bf. We had such a fun time skiing, relaxing and filling up on Gluhwein, strudel and lots of hot chocolate ;).

And it looks like I have brought the snow back with me to England... perhaps I was a bit too speedy in putting my thermals away! xxx

Côte d'Azur

Last week I returned from a fabulous extended weekend in the South of France to celebrate my mama's 50th birthday. Unfortunately I was only able to get 2 days off work (boo), but sticking to mama's very full daily timetable I feel like I made very good use of my, albeit limited, time. Even the shortest trip can reinvigorate you!

We stayed at a beautiful villa between Nice and St Paul de Vence (which you can just see above). This was the view from my balcony - absolutely breathtaking!!

This was one of my favourite views while driving from Nice to the tiny, picturesque village of Eze. Apparently this little peninsula boasts the mot expensive land per sq.m. in the world! I guess it's not hard to see why - plus it's perfectly placed between Nice and Monaco.

 Motel Emilia dress in Pretty Rose Navy (£52)

With the sweltering heat I tried to keep cool in lots of summer dresses. The above was gifted to me by Motel and worked perfectly as it protects shoulders from the sun, while still being floaty, light and feminine.

Ted Baker Maxi Dress (£229)

I had my eye on this Ted Baker maxi for quite some time and finally caved while in T5... hehe ;). I absolutely adore their dresses as they make them long enough for a giant like me!!

No trip to France would be complete without wine tasting!!

At the Chateau de Cremat in Nice we spotted the Chanel 'CC' logo embedded into the architecture and found out that in fact the signature was invented by the original owners of the chateau and Coco Chanel actually first saw it there. The owner gave her the logo and let her trademark it at the opening of the first Chanel store!

 

Unfortunately I documented most of the trip on my mama's brand new camera, but I hope you enjoyed my little selection of snaps :).

We had such a fabulous time in the south of France and absolutely can't wait to go back! xxx

St Paul de Vence

I have escaped London to spend a long weekend on the beautiful French coast. We are currently here..

Regular posting will resume shortly!

Not least because a few hours in the Sun have given me a chance to trial all those beauty treats the English weather doesn't quite permit. Nars Orgasm illuminator and Kerastase L’Huile Céleste how I love thee! xxx

Get set.. GO! M&S Travel Bottle (and more) Set

As I type this I am slowly and meticulously packing for my holiday and panicking about my lack of suitcase space and my increasing weight. That came out wrong... this will not be one of *those* posts and I'm not talking about my beach bod... or lack of washboard stomach. I mean the weight of my luggage! If you have the misfortune of traveling with a super stingy airline that only gives you 15kg allowance you will share my pain. Do they not understand that I have a blog about beauty and a myriad of beach friendly products to review? I'm providing a public service here Mr First Choice ;)!

Luckily, the clever clogs at M&S had envisaged my woes and turned my attention to their Deluxe Travel Bottle Set at a recent event. At only £7.50 this little bag contains a selection of containers perfect for every jet setter.

The set holds:

• 3 x 100ml bottles (shampoo, conditioner, lotion)
• 2 x 18ml jars (moisturiser, serum)
• 2 x pumps,
• 2 x funnels, 
• 2 x spatulas, 
• 1 x mirror, 
• 1 x body puff, 
• clear zip lock bag (perfect for carry on liquids)
• 15 x waterproof sticky labels (to get organised!)

Now that I have shared I shall return to decanting my lotions and potions. Have you got any travel tips to share? xxx

Hold Me

I think you will agree with me when I say the worst part of any trip is the packing, and makeup is no exception. So when I was given the chance to review a new makeup bag that promises to make the whole process a little easier I was very happy to try it out!

The design of the Hold Me case is fantastic as it incorporates features of a toiletries organiser, makeup bag and brush roll all in one. The exterior of the bag is made of a tough, black, suede-like fabric, which looks stylish and classic against the white stitching. I also like the fact that there are no tricky clasps, velcro or flimsy magnetic closures, but a simple self-tie, which means the bag can expand to fit more, or be tied tighter to take up minimal luggage space.

This is the Miss Suki bag, which features a fun, colourful cartoon design. The fabric is easy to clean as it is over-laid with plastic, so high altitude explosions of foundation can be quickly wiped away without fear of damaging the bag ;). I used this bag on my recent ski trip, and it worked perfectly as everything was in one place, on display and easily accessible. It also saves time unpacking once you have reached your destination and doesn't take up counter space. For once the bf had no right to complain about me monopolising the bathroom with all my little 'potions' ;).

So what did I bring with me? Below is my fail safe travel kit:

• NARS Sheer Glow Foundation
•  Bobbi Brown Corrector 
• NARS Laguna Bronzer
• ELF Pink Mineral Blush
• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural
• NARS Madrague Eyeshadow Duo (for brows)
• L'Oreal Carbon Gloss liner
• ELF All Over Colour Stick in Persimmon
• L'ancome Hypnose Mascara
• Clear Mascara 
• MAC Dazzleglass
• YSL Tuxedo Lipstick
• MAC Smokey Eyes palette
• ELF Quad - MAC e/s vapour, wedge, scene and knight devine
• Made from Earth Vanilla Lipbalm
• MAC Cremecup lipstick

Do you have a favourite makeup organiser? What are your essential products and travel tips? xxx

As Promised...

Hope you enjoy my little slideshow!!
xxx

I am Baaaack :)

After an 18 hour boat, bus, plane, taxi ride bonanza I am finally back in the UK, yay!

However, the term jet lag doesn't quite cut it. I can't wait to jump into bed and sleep forever! My flat is a mess right now and I have a million and one things to do after being away for over 6 weeks, (including tearing Maxie away from my friend who has been looking after him and now doesn't want to let him go)!

I promise that when I am in less of a frizzy zombie state I shall post more about my trip. I have missed you all very much!!
love,
Natalya xxx

Sawaditka

My lovelies, I am just posting a quick little update to let you all know that I shall be away for a month as I am flying to Thailand tomorrow in search of adventure. I have been once before in 2005, so when I was given the opportunity to go again I jumped at the chance! Next to London it is my favourite place in the world (not counting the horrible tourist areas) and I am very excited to explore it again.

I am hoping that all this goes to plan as I have been very ill the past week and a half with the dreaded swine, so the past couple of days have been hectic to say the least. However, now the ugly backpacking bag is mostly packed (so little makeup I could cry!!), Maxie has been sent off to his new home (I miss him already), taxi is booked for 6.15am and I am ready to jump into bed for a few hours of much needed sleep.

I shall try to update you from Thailand when I get the chance.

Missing you all
xxx

Kos

Last week I had the most amazing holiday with my lovely bf in Kos, Greece. We stayed at the wonderful blue lagoon all-inclusive resort.

If anyone is looking for a relaxing and romantic holiday destination then I highly recommend it! The prices are pretty reasonable for an all inclusive package, because most of the flights on offer (we booked through first choice) have inconvenient times (our flight back was at 4.30 am).

However, in my opinion it was completely worth it as the hotel was luxurious, the staff were friendly, the food was fantastic and the beach was impeccable. I am sure you can all tell I am very excited and have about a million photos to share with you all :)!!

The view from our balcony of one of the many swimming pools :).

The bridge going over the pool had such lovely views and in the background you can see the dome which featured the nightly entertainment including dancers, singers, fire eaters, stunt men.. and most importantly as many cocktails as you like!!The hotel complex was absolutely huge and we were even driven around in golf buggies, as some areas were a bit of a walk in the heat (45oC!!). This is a photo of our block, which had its own pool and piano bar.
Here we are relaxing after dinner with a couple of blue lagoon cocktails :).
The main pool was amazing, and even staying in the shade I managed to get quite tanned!On our night out in town I chose to wear this tulip dress from Oasis. I love it when you find things in your wardrobe from years ago that you forgot you had... and they still fit :).We found a cocktail bar by the sea and relaxed with a few cocktails before dinner :).
Running around on the beach a la Baywatch :).
I even adopted a little kitteh while I was there :).We also spent a day at Paradise beach :).On our last night we watched the sunset on the beach, which was the perfect way to end our romantic holiday :).Teeheee ;).
Hope you guys enjoyed this post :).
xxx

Big kiss from Greece.

Hello my lovelies, hope you are all well!

I just wanted to write a quick post to say that I have not forgotten about you all and am sending you lots of love from Greece. Sorry I have not been in touch for a while, but the internet here is shockingly slow and I only have 2 euros in change top keep topping up the machine.. I miss my macbook :(.

Luke and I are having a fantastic time in Kos. The hotel is absolutely amazing and has the biggest pool I have ever seen! All the facilities and entertainment are fantastic and we even have a sea view from our balcony :). (Some photos can be seen here if you are interested).

Ater a day at the waterpark yesterday I am burnt, and am not so pleased to report that I have a 'mummy' tan line as I decided to wear an all in one swimming costume to prevent any horrific scenes on the waterslides. Wish me luck in my endeavours to try and even my back out!!

I promise to post lots of pictures when I am back, though be prepared as with the all you can eat ice-cream buffet available all day long they may not be particularly attractive ;). You all know what I am like with ice-cream.. ;)

Love lots,
Natalya
xxx

My romantic long weekend in Lille.

Those of you following me on twitter may know that my lovely bf surprised me with a trip to France for Valentines day. Unfortunately we could not go until last weekend as he studies medicine so does not get very much time off around Easter. As I have not updated my blog for a while I thought I would share with you some pictures from the trip :).
On Friday morning we got up at 5am to catch the Eurostar, yawn! When we left London it was raining, and when we arrived in France it was pouring so we spent most of the day in museums and art galleries, as well as drinking plenty 'chocolat chaud' to keep us going. We also found a street full of dinosaur babies.. grrr.Thankfully our hotel was right in the main plaza (about 20m away from Sephora hehe) so after a lovely seafood dinner we decided to get an early night.

This is a picture of the makeup I wore on the second day and our room in the background. It had really old french furniture, which I love!

On Saturday we had an early breakfast at the hotel and went to explore. We visited the old citadel and the zoo. I love animals so it was a lot of fun!
(This photo reminds me of comparethemeerkat.com. If you live in the UK you will know what I mean hehe).

We then went to a fare, where my bf showed off his shooting skills and won me a giraffe, which is my favourite animal.
We then took a bus tour through town.We finished off our day with dinner in the student quarter and cocktails in a trendy bar.He loves taking awful action shots, I do not remember what was going on here, but this is a perfect example.. eek!!

The next day we visited a market and relaxed in the sun with a couple of tasty ice creams :). Surprisingly we were upgraded to first class on the way back so had plenty of champagne and wine to make the homeward journey more pleasant :). I hope you all had a lovely Easter break!!