Beauty

Pre-order my new book: Face Values



DROP EVERYTHING, it’s a major news day today!

I’m finally able to talk about my second book, Face Values: The New Beauty Rituals and Skincare Secrets, which will be appearing in warehouses any day now and in shops on September 16th.

Face Values: The New Beauty Rituals and Skincare Secrets is not your average beauty how-to book. It’s beauty through a lifestyle lens, a show-and-tell of identity stories, beauty philosophies, wellbeing rituals and relatable skincare revelations from a truly wonderful global line-up of contributors. (more…)



Confirmed: The Glossier London store IS returning to Covent Garden – permanently



…But not in the same place.

News just in! The Glossier London store is returning to Covent Garden. The most successful of the global Glossier pop-ups, the permanent London store will be opening in a new spot – just a few yards from its previous location in Floral Street.

Scheduled for a December opening, the new Glossier Covent Garden store will be located at the much-more-visible 43 King Street – aka the oldest building in Covent Garden (below). It’s right next door to the Apple store and alongside the Covent Garden piazza, thus much better for footfall. [UPDATE: It will open on Thursday 9th December at 10am.]

Glossier London King Street

Covent Garden has long been considered London’s ‘beauty quarter’, with Chanel, Dior and Charlotte Tilbury boutiques all contributing to the buzz of this retail destination. As I mentioned last week, the big tourist cities are slowly opening up post-Covid, so we should expect to see plenty more exciting retail activity in the world’s city centres.

(This post has been updated.)

WORDS: Disneyrollergirl / Navaz Batliwalla
IMAGES: Glossier; exterior of 43 King Street/Emily Weiss
NOTE: Most images are digitally enhanced. Some posts use affiliate links and PR samples. Please read my privacy and cookies policy here

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Suddenly I want to smell like a coconut again



 Maya Njie Tropica fragrance

Well this is awkward. After a lifetime a year in relative isolation during which my longest journey away from home has been the decidedly unexotic Hastings pier, I find myself craving tropical coconut-laced smells.

That’s maybe not so surprising though. As with the power of touch and what’s known as ‘skin hunger’, the pandemic has not only literally stolen the sense of smell from some unlucky individuals, it has also heightened the link between scent and nostalgia.

“Fragrance can control your mood,” says perfumer and founder of her eponymous brand, Maya Njie. “If you’re feeling low and you need a boost, put fragrance on and it will elevate you.” (more…)



Stroll on – could city revamps be the passport to retail rebound?



It’s re-entry time! While the world’s flagship shopping cities have seen their fair share of retail casualties, they’re starting to pick themselves back up again. From London to Paris to New York and even Zürich, it’s clear the battle for tourist dollars is stronger than ever.

“La Samaritaine is like a really pleasant stroll. And when you’re strolling, there are surprises, you discover things, you feel good,” says Eleonore de Boysson, region president of Europe and Middle East at LVMH’s DFS Group. In case you blinked and missed it, La Samaritaine is LVMH’s recently reopened Paris department store, after some 16 years of renovation. Located on Rue de Rivoli and restored to its Nouveau and Deco splendour, the multi-building emporium also encompasses a Cheval Blanc boutique hotel and twelve restaurants. (more…)