Holiday Benefits

I don't know what it is about Benefit. Are the girls who work there are trained to tell when I'm vulnerable? do they send out chemical signals that makes me open my wallet? Before going on holiday I went to Boots on High St Kensington to get my top up of HydraQuench Cream by Clarins (which has changed... I don't like change but I'm sure this will be just as good as it always was). I already had everything else I needed for my holiday (it's amazing what you find when you are moving house. In my case 4 boxes of products. Mr J was pleased). The Boots on High Street Ken is a terrifying honey trap for those of us who think that a new item of make-up is a necessity and I couldn't believe it when I resisted the Clarins facial bronzers and the only Origins outlet for miles around. The door was in sight and then... I got sucked into the Benefit counter. I should have kept my head down but I made the mistake of making eye contact and that was that.

I was feeling pretty low. I miss my long blonde locks and hate this mildly washed out ginger state that I'm destined to live in until my natural hair colour wins the fight (please win!). The thought of a little spruce up was too good to miss so I allowed myself to be pressed into a chair and things put on my face. A wiser person would have absorbed that and then made their excuses but not I. Yes I know that when I get home to apply my new purchases they will look nothing like they did in the shop but I find myself getting them anyway. Nor do I think to myself about what the little restraints in the product department could lead to in the fashion department. I decided on two things... if I bought four then I got £10 worth of points on my boots card. This to me seems like a fantastic idea, nevermind that £40 not spent is worth more than points I can only use to buy more products.

So what did I leave with?

• Talk to the Tan - a facial bronzer that can either be mixed with your moisturiser or foundation or you can just use to highlight. I found it most useful post holiday when I always have a big non-freckled patch at the top of my nose from my sunglasses. It also neutralises any under eye concealers that can sometimes make me look a bit odd (once again due to the influx of freckles on my cheeks post holiday). It's £19.50 but you don't need to use very much so hopefully it will last a while. What is great is that you also don't need to be scared of it - I have yet to make myself orange!



• Erase Paste - having been a devotee of Bo-oing for the last 6 or so years I was reluctant to try anything else. I really hate the blue bags under my eyes and Bo-oing is the only thing that comes close to fixing them. It is quite thick however so I let the make over girl try some one me. It's 'brightening camouflage for eyes and face'. Its really creamy and blendable and actually is really good. I'm not sure it gets rid of the blue as good as Bo-oing so I am still using a tiny bit of that underneath and then the Erase Paste which is really smooth and actually does reflect light (something I always thought was rather mythical before). It's pretty steep at £18.50 but again you really don't use very much of this at a time so will hopefully earn its keep! it's also fab for using around your nose to minimise any redness.


• Talent Brush - it's all very well having the Erase Paste but with what should I apply it? I really love Benefit brushes. They are the perfect size and usually do exactly what is required of them. I was advised that the Talent Brush was actually better than the more expensive Concealer Brush (£14.50) and can be used on eyes and lips too. For some reason this is not currently available on the website but I think it was about £12.50 and is great for any application (although i still swear by the Fluff Brush £13.50 for eyeshadow application).


• F.Y...Eye - is a nude primer for the eyes. A devotee of Lemon Aid which is still unbeatable if you have stains or dark patches on your eyelids but this is unlike any primer I've used before. It feels (and looks) completely matte and although still doesn't succeed in the impossible (keeping my eyeshadow on completely) it does a pretty good job at it and is great for a slight neutralisation of colour. Once again a seemingly steep price for such a small pot but only a tiny amount is needed.

I was a bit dubious about the Talk to the Tan at first - I mean how often do you need highlighting tan? but since I've returned from holiday I've been mixing it in with some of my paler foundations and it really works at darkening them up slightly but not losing the nice consistency and finish of the foundation.
To top it all off I was a very lucky girl and as payment for hauling ass to Wiltshire and driving my sister to a wedding she got me Lust Duster a fantastic loose power for eyes and face. This is great and although comes in loads of different colours my favourite is Snow Bunny as this can be used on the cheekbones and brow bones as a highlighter which is a great and simple addition to your make-up if you are going out after work xx

I'm Back!

From a fantastic holiday in the South of France. It was so relaxing and just what I needed after a frantic week moving. We did a lot of eating and drinking (Mr J was allowed to stay for a week before being sent home to make me a nest in his father's basement... which he did superbly). Am now back on the house hunt and Beziers seems like a long time ago but as I was frantically flipping through my diary I came across the card for one of the culinary highlights of the trip, l'Orb Restaurant.

About 20 minutes outside of Beziersthis little gem has just been opened by two English guys who tired of the B&B trade in England and have moved to France and opened a restaurant almost by accident. It was by luck that we went here - it is pretty difficult to find anywhere for supper on a Sunday night in France and Papa B thought that this one would probably be a safe bet but we had already tried one advertised as open on a Sunday but firmly closed when we arrived. As you drive into the square at Cessenon-sur-Orb you are drawn to the little green lights and square tables of L'Orb restaurant. We were starving and would have fallen on a croque monsieur but the food here was exceptional possibly the best of the whole holiday and all from two people who had never run a restaurant before and were still in their first month of opening.

The Verrine of brouse de brebis and pea guacamole was a highlight of the starters - it was like nothing I've had before and was the perfect size - too often you seem to get faced with a starter the size of a main course! I had a beautiful smoked salmon mousse which I'm a pretty harsh judge on as it's one of my favourite things. What was so fantastic about this one was the little flakes of salmon throughout adding a bit of texture. Now I don't eat rabbit so I am not really qualified to comment but dining with two people who are fans and according to whom the rabbit with new potatoes and vegetables was close to perfect - uncomplicated and tasty and again not in a daunting size.

Its sounds a bit pathetic but I can base my love or hate of a restaurant on a very small thing. The cheese board. And this one was exceptional. Small taster portions of brie and three regional cheeses including Cantal my favourite. The menu was so well thought out and prepared. We were happily full, not overloaded and groaning. I can't recommend this restaurant highly enough - I know it seems a bit sad to be raving about a restaurant run by English people when you are in France but this is the perfect combination of French and English food, presented with a flourish and served with a smile xx