BENEFIT BOLD IS BEAUTIFUL - RAISING BROWS FOR CHARITY

Benefit Cosmetics have launched the Bold is Beautiful project. I had never been to Benefit before to get my eyebrows done, but when I heard they were offering such a great deal, I had try out the service out for myself. During the month of May, Benefit Cosmetics are donating 100% of Benefit's profits of the Brow Wax to Look Good Feel Better who support women with cancer & Refuge who support women and children against domestic violence! I decided to go for the Arch and Tint priced at £19.50 for both, which a really good deal just on it's own. But I think just a brow wax is £11.50. You can get this done at any of the Benefit brow bars across the country in shops such as Boots, Debenhams and Harvey Nichols. As well as that in May, Benefit are giving away a free full-size Gimme Brow brow-volumizing fiber gel worth £18.50 with each transaction while stocks last. My current Gimme Brow was running very low so this was the ideal opportunity to get myself a back up. It's such great value as really you are only paying £1.00 for the Arch and Tint service. My friend also visited the Brow bar during her Birthday week and also got her wax free too! which is a great deal ontop of the free brow product. I love the results of my brow wax and tint and will definitely be going back again as the experience made me feel so much better about myself. I got my brows tinted a shade darker than my original colour so the shade light/medium Gimme Brow is a perfect match. I really like this product it's so easy to work into the brows and makes them stay in place. It makes my brows look fuller but still keeps them looking natural at the same time. I think it's a really great cause, and I'm sure it has created a lot of awareness as well as money. It would be great if Benefit donated a small amount of the service every month as I'm sure more and more women would like to support other women than just getting their brows done every so often as a treat. If you don't want to book in for a brow wax you can also donate to both charities by texting REFU43 (for Refuge) or BOLD15 (for Look Good Feel Better) followed by the amount you want to donate to 70070. You can also share your photos/experiences on social media with the hashtag #boldisbeautiful. Also, If you pre-book your brow arch for June you will receive a free mirror and deluxe eye cream, which is one of my favourites! As of this moment while I'm writing this post an amazing 23,744 brows have been waxed in the month of May! Us girls really know how to stick together!

Have you visited your Benefit counter for a brow wax?

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BEAUTY BAZAAR, HARVEY NICHOLS - LIVERPOOL

Last week I visited Liverpool for the day, whilst I was there I took a look around Beauty Bazaar. Beauty Bazaar, Harvey Nichols is a new beauty concept store, which opened in 2012. It's the UK's first one-stop destination for all things beauty across three falls in the heart of Liverpool. The store has 22,000 square feet of white, glitzy space dedicated to beauty with an array of treatment rooms on offer including; James Read spray tans, HD brows and STRIP waxing. There is even a champagne bar for post-pampering. The concept is so new to the UK that there isn't any competition, as it's one of a kind. I think it's a great concept, and would love to see stores like this in a few more major cities across the country. I was really impressed with the variety of brands stocked, any beauty lovers could spend hours in there! Have you visited Beauty Bazaar?

ARTIST ANDREW SALGADO COLLABORATION WITH HARVEY NICHOLS

Images: harveynichols, smudgetikka, harveynichols, facebook

Andrew Salgado was commissioned by Harvey Nichols to create 6 large scale paintings to be exhibited in the store-front windows of their Sloane Street location in Knightsbridge. Each window sets the scene of an artist's studio. Giant portraits cover the back wall and artists props such as easels, oil paint tubes and tins of paint help compete the art studio effect, with mannequins showcasing S/S13 fashions. Each window shows a different subject matter, mirroring the diversity of Harvey Nichols customers who step through the doors each day. I love his work and how distinctive his technique is, it would be great to see more store windows mixing different creative ways with fashion. Find out more by watching the video below.

HARVEY NICHOLS BIRMINGHAM - VISUAL MERCHANDISING

I recently took photos of the Knightsbridge store's Visual Merchandising, so I thought I would compare those with the windows of the Birmingham store in The Mailbox. The Birmingham store doesn't have the space that the flagship store has, but the Visual Merchandising is just as effective on a smaller scale. The windows were beauty based promoting Space.NK.apothecary. Placing head mannequins with Percy & Reed Hair products and a Salon window with cosmetics and retro props. The other side showed a 'Harvey's Hot Dogs' van with a sign for New Street. The windows were really bright and fun and I believe they were produced to entice the younger consumer through the doors. At the moment, Harvey Nichols are also giving away a limited edition gift with purchase. Spend £110 on fragrance, skincare, beauty or cosmetics and receive over £130 worth of treats from some of the most prestigious brands on offer in HN. Find out more here. What do you think of the Store windows? 

HARVEY NICHOLS LONDON - VISUAL MERCHANDISING

I took these photos a couple of weeks ago of Harvey Nichols current store windows in Knightsbridge, London. I am currently writing my dissertation around Harvey Nichols, and their Visual Merchandising plays a big part in their marketing strategy. I feel the current visual merchandising is very conceptual and they have seemed to use basic materials to create an effective story. I really like the product placement, using beauty products and stationery next to shoes and bags. Also using materials like cardboard, paint and tissue with the contrast of real branches. The visual merchandising carried on in-store, with pause points and mannequins next to the escalators which maximise visual impact. Every element of the window displays have been carefully considered and the products very intentionally place to create a focal point. Harvey Nichols teams design, build and install their own windows and try to re-use materials to keep to a tight budget, rotating schemes to other branches of the store. What do you think of Harvey Nichols store windows?

SOAP & GLORY - SHOWER TRIP TRAVEL CHRISTMAS GIFT SET

Soap & Glory is one of my favourite brands to be stocked in Boots and Harvey Nichols in the UK. I am a big fan of all the different scents that they offer and I always have one of their famous shower gels or body butters on the go. At Christmas, Soap & Glory offer a great variety of gift sets at a wide range of price points. Including their big star gift set 'The Best of All', which went better than half price last week and sold out online. I have seen that they are still available in some stores if you want to get your hand on one, as they are such great value!

This set is called 'Shower Trip' and contains six flight-sized products in the Original Pink fragrance. Including Clean on me shower gel, The righteous butter body butter, The scrub of your life body scrub, Hand food hand cream, Calm one, calm all body wash, Girligo body moisturising mist and a shower puff. All of the products included are under 100ml or less so they are great for travel and come in a very handy soft wash bag. This gift set is perfect for jet-setters, students or people who have never tried Soap & Glory products before, as they can try them before buying the full-size products. It's such a nice pamper set to keep in your bathroom!

This set is priced at £18.00* and Boots also offer all their Christmas sets on a 3 for 2 deal, so you can really get a lot of value for your money. My mum even went out and bought one for a relative as she was so impressed! If you are looking for any last minute presents and are stuck for ideas, I would give Soap & Glory a try. I can guarantee the receiver would not be disappointed ;) 

Are you hoping for a Soap & Glory gift set this Christmas?

*PR Sample