Invigorating beauty products

The shower gel

Water mint invigorating shower gel, £5, by Champneys (champneys.co.uk). About as fresh and tingly as it gets. Contains essential oils of water mint, peppermint, spearmint and orange, guaranteed to blow all cobwebs away .

The skin oil

Energising oil, £18, by aveda (0870 034 2380). If your morning shower hasn’t woken you up, massaging this jasmine- and sage-infused oil briskly into your skin afterwards can’t fail. Light enough for you to get dressed immediately .

The toner

Eau de beaute, £10, by Caudalie, from spacenk.co.uk. Catwalk make-up artists swear by this to give radiance to even the most jet-lagged model’s skin. Extracts of grape, rosemary, mint and orange blossom result in renewed vigour.

The scent

Eau dynamisante, £33 for 200ml, by Clarins (clarins.co.uk). This fragrance is a brilliant multitasker. Lemon and thyme extracts refresh your senses, while ginseng and aloe tone and calm the skin.

The brush

Body brush, £10, by Origins (origins.co.uk). Brushing this all over the body in brisk strokes towards the heart is as invigorating as diving into an icy lake, but much more pleasant. The massage nodules on the back are great for stubborn cellulite .

The lip balm

Bergamot lip balm, £6, by Pai (paiskincare.com). The main ingredient in this 100 per cent organic balm is freshly pressed Sicilian bergamot, making it as refreshing as your morning cup of Earl Grey tea.

The bubble bath

Energy bubbles, £8.50, by Rituals (rituals.com). This blend of ginseng and peony transforms your tub into a creamy, foamy paradise. Soak away while the ginseng revs up your metabolism and circulation.

Eniko Mihalik excels in eighties glamour

Mocked at school in Hungary for being a skinny geek, Eniko Mihalik has become one of the fashion world’s brightest stars. Here she shines in the season’s new neutrals, with more than a hint of 1980s glamour.

Eniko Mihalik wears trench coat, from £1,047, Maison Martin Margiela (020-7629 2682); shoes, £910, Sergio Rossi (020-7811 5950)

 

Print bikini, £450, Hermès, as before; tan jacket, £425, Moncler (020-7235 0857) . 

Valentine's Day recipe: Oyster and caviar

Open the oysters, placing one in your hand on a folded cloth with the flat of the shell uppermost. Insert an oyster knife or other small knife with a thin, inflexible blade, into the hinge. Keep it level; it should slip in easily until it reaches and breaks the muscle holding the shells together. Be careful and be firm, but not aggressive, or your oyster will be spoilt by shards of shell.

When the muscle breaks twist the knife and discard the flat shell. Inspect the oyster – it should look clear, and have a sweet smell of clean seawater and fresh fish. Cut the ligament that attaches the meat to the shell and flip it over. Serve the oysters in their shells with a half teaspoon of caviar on each.

Wine choice Champagne and caviar is a classic match and bubbles also happen to be fine with oysters. Do look to something that is poised and mineral rather than rich.

Sign up for Style and win a $50 Sephora eGift Certificate

I’m very excited to announce that Become.com is proud to announce its very first contest called ‘Sign Up for Style’, sponsored by Sephora! Sephora is one of the names to know in fashion and beauty, so we’re thrilled to have them kick off of our newest contest with us—and just in time for Valentine’s Day!

I am excited about this contest and hope you are, too! Enter now for a chance to win one of four (4) $50 eGift Certificates redeemable for any and all products at the Sephora.com online store. 4 lucky winners will get to go on a $50 shopping spree this February.

Handmade Valentine cards

Are you looking for flowers, chocolates, candies, gifts, and lovely Valentine cards to present to your loved ones on Valentine’s Day?  The shimmery cardstock is sold by the sheet in the scrapbooking section of most craft stores for less than $1 per sheet.

Shopping for Vintage clothes

 I’ve been asked the question recently about where to buy vintage clothes? I haven’t had the opportunity to do a totally exhaustive investigation, but when I get the chance to spend a week or two doing nothing but visit India’s vintage scene, you’ll be the first to know!

In the meantime I thought I’d let you know about two favorites that I actually have had a chance to visit.

I came across best stores when hunting online for some examples of good quality vintage bags.   I was thrilled last week to receive an email telling me that they have just revamped not only their online store but their real world store too, and now have over 700 sq feet full of vintage dresses, hats, shoes, bags and jewelry! That is a lot of vintage!  Not only do they have so much stock that you’ll need to spend the day there and take a packed lunch, but they even offer in-house alterations and customizations.  So no more buying something that just ends up living in your project pile for a year.

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We look forward to hearing from you.

Shopping Blogs

Everybody knows the Internet Web is a shopper's heaven, abounding with huge goods and great deals and great buys. But the problem is how to fish them out of the vast ocean? Enter shopping bloggers. Whether you're interested in the hottest designer fashions, the latest electronic accessories, Beauty-Cosmetics, online deals, Décor, Home-Garden, Online Shopping Tips, kitchen, Jewelry And Watches, games, pets, Fragrances, Health and Fitness or a comic book version of the ancient Hindu epic Mahabharata, these uber-shoppers troll the Web for the coolest stuff, along with the best deals, bargains and discounts.

Some get their jollies sifting the primo from the prosaic at megastores like Target and Amazon. In addition to products and price reductions, you'll also find a healthy helping of retail trends and industry news as well.

Jessica Alba and Honor shopping in Los Angeles

Gorgeous Jessica Alba and Honor Marie were spotted out shopping in the rain in Los Angeles on Wednesday 20^th January 10. The two lovely ladies ended up popping into the Cabbage Patch Farm Fresh Organic Fare store, loading up on a few needs before continuing about with the day.

How to Choose Smartphones?

Do you remember phones from our childhood? Large clumsy boxes attached to the wall, full of buttons (even dials for some!), with only one function -to place calls from one house to the other.

Today’s smart phones have long surpassed the simple cell phone functionality, to include Web browsers, calendar software and all sorts of complex tools. So how do we choose the right one to suit our individual needs?

First, you need to choose an operating system. Just like personal computers, smart phones use different systems. To summarize the iPhone’s system is probably the most user-friendly interface; the Blackberry’s caters to the use of email, and those Windows mobile syncs particularly well with programs from the Windows Office suite. Each operating system also has their own optional software, just like the famous iPhone, Android apps and recently Google Nexus one.

Next consideration is design: the popularity of keyboard equipped phones is quickly being surpassed by tactile screen phones because of their versatility and ease of use. The keyboard is considered easier to use for people who send a lot of text messages and emails, however.

Women’s skiwear

Are you shopping for Women’s skiwear…then you have to look chic on the slopes. Spend your money on a good jacket and gloves, and look to the high street to provide the extras.