THE Best 10 Online Shopping Destinations for Luxury Beauty

Tags

Aesop, Aoro.ro, Aromatherapy Associates, Bobbi Brown, Burberry, chanel, Chantecaille, Charlotte Tilbury, Creme de La Mer, Cult Beauty, dior, Diptyque, Emma Hardie, Eve Lom, feelunique, Fillerina, Glam Glow, guerlain, Harrods, Jo Malone, Kiehl's, La Prairie, Lancer, Laura Mercier, May Lindstorm, MV Organic Skincare, NARS, net-a-porter, Omorovicza, online luxury shopping destinations, Oribe, Rahua, REN, RMK, Sarah Chapman, Selfridges, Shiseido, Sisley, SK II, SpaceNK, Sunday Riley, SUQQU, Tata Harper, Tatcha, Therapy, Tom Ford, Urban Decay, Verso, Zelens

Since many of you, my lovely readers, always ask me where do I shop for my makeup and my skincare, here you have it – a full post dedicated to my favourite online places to shop for luxury beauty!

  

SELFRIDGES

BRANDS AVAILABLE:

– Tom Ford, Charlotte Tilbury, Dior, Chanel, Guerlain, NARS, Laura Mercier, Bobbi Brown, RMK, Urban Decay, Omorovicza, Zelens, Eve Lom, Kiehl’s, Diptyque, Jo Malone

SHIPPING:

– to over 60 countries around the world, including North America, Australia, the Middle East and China.

– “For all orders outside of the European Union, we’ll even remove UK VAT and include any relevant import charges before you pay so there are no surprises when your order arrives.” ( Selfridges )

INTERESTING FACT:

– currently Selfridges is running a SALE on selected items all-over their website, so you might want to take advantage of that!

 

HARRODS

BRANDS AVAILABLE: Tom Ford, Chanel, Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, SK II, Creme de La Mer, Shiseido, Sisley, SUQQU, Lancer, La Prairie… See more brands here.

SHIPPING*:

Delivery Service	Availability	Area	Charges	Delivered
Europe Zone A	24/7	– Belgium – Denmark – France – Germany – Guernsey – Ireland – Italy – Jersey – Luxembourg – Netherlands – Spain – Sweden	£20.00	5 – 6 working days
Europe Zone B	24/7	– Andorra – Croatia – Iceland – Monaco – San Marino – Gibraltar – Greece – Latvia – Lithuania – Poland – Portugal – Slovakia – Balearic Islands: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza, Formentera (country is Spain) – Austria – Bulgaria – Cyprus – Czech Republic – Estonia – Finland – Hungary – Liechtenstein – Malta – Norway – Romania – Slovenia – Switzerland – Canary Islands: Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma	£20.00	6 – 10 working days
North America and Far East	24/7	– USA – Canada – Hong Kong – Malaysia – Japan – Singapore – Thailand – Macau – South Korea – Philippines	£25.00	6 – 10 working days
Rest of the World	24/7	– Australia – Bahrain – India – Israel – New Zealand – Qatar – Saudi Arabia – UAE – Jordan – Kuwait – Lebanon – Oman	£25.00	10 – 12 working day

*Please note that Harrods currently ONLY delivers to the countries listed above.

 

NET-A-PORTER.com

BRANDS AVAILABLE: besides fashion http://www.net-a-porter.com has also a beauty section where I like to get items from brands like Hourglass, Charlotte Tilbury, Burberry, RMS, Byredo, By Terry, Eve Lom… just to name a few!

SHIPPING:

– get more info on International delivery, Times and Fees here.

– excellent Customer Service and free Tracking Order option!

 

SPACENK.com

BRANDS AVAILABLE: Hourglass, By Terry, Chantecaille, Sarah Chapman, Aesop, Oribe, Rahua, REN, Sunday Riley, Tatcha, Verso

SHIPPING:

EUROPEAN DELIVERY

1. Option 1: STANDARD DELIVERY
   You’ll receive your order within 10 working days European standard delivery service is available for all European addresses to the countries listed below.
   £5.00 including VAT.
2. Option 2: FREE EUROPEAN DELIVERY ON ORDERS £100 AND OVER
   If your order totals £100 or more, you’ll automatically qualify for FREE European delivery Free European delivery of orders will be within 10 working days as per usual European delivery.

Destinations: UK, Austria, Armenia, Andorra, Albania, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guernsey, Hungry, Iceland, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Jersey, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine.

REST OF THE WORLD DELIVERY

1. Option 1: STANDARD DELIVERY You’ll receive your order within 21 working days Rest Of The World delivery service is available for all addresses to the countries listed below.
   £5.00 including VAT.
2. Option 2: FREE REST OF WORLD DELIVERY ON ORDERS £150 AND OVER
   If your order totals £150 or more, you’ll automatically qualify for FREE Rest of World delivery. Free Rest of World delivery of orders will be within 21 working days as per usual Rest of World delivery terms

 

FEELUNIQUE.com

BRANDS AVAILABLE:

– all the brands you can imagine for makeup and skincare, from luxury to affordable

– last month they added a new brand to their never ending selection, a personal favourite of mine – BURBERRY

SHIPPING:

FREE WORLDWIDE DELIVERY ON ALL ORDERS OVER £10 

 

BURBERRY

One of the best Customer Services I have ever encountered online, it made me prefer order my favourite makeup items from their online shop rather than anywhere else!

SHIPPING:

– you can find more information on shipping destinations, costs and delivery for your country by clicking here

– they also give you the possibility of tracking your order

 

CHARLOTTE TILBURY

One of my favourite makeup brands as well, www.charlottetilbuty.com not only has an amazing selection of their amazing makeup and skincare, but also an excellent Customer Service but exclusive offers too!

SHIPPING:

– they currently ship to addresses within the UK and EUROPE:

Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Channel Islands, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic Of Ireland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom.

To order from the USA, click here to visit the US site.

 

CULT BEAUTY.com

– by far my favourite destination for luxury skincare shopping

BRANDS AVAILABLE: Oskia, Omorovicza, Sunday Riley, Tata Harper, Zelens, MV Organic Skincare, Therapy, Aromatherapy Associates, Aesop, Emma Hardie, Glam Glow, Fillerina, May Lindstorm…

SHIPPING:

– destinations:

Mainland UK

United Kingdom

Non-Mainland UK

Jersey  /  Guernsey  /  Isle of Man

North America

United States  /  Canada

Western Europe

Andorra  /  Austria  /  Belgium  /  Cyprus  /  Czech Republic  /  Denmark  /  Finland  /  France  /  Germany  /  Greece  /  Iceland  /  Ireland  /  Isle of Man  /  Italy  /  Luxembourg  /  Malta  /  Monaco  /  Netherlands  /  Norway  /  Poland  /  Portugal  /  Spain  /  Sweden  /  Switzerland

Middle East

Bahrain  /  Israel  /  Jordan  /  Kuwait  /  Oman  /  Qatar  /  Saudi Arabia  /  United Arab Emirates

Asia & Australasia

Australia  /  Brunei  /  China  /  Hong Kong  /  Japan  /  South Korea  /  Malaysia / New Zealand  /  Singapore  /  Taiwan  /  Thailand

Rest of the World

Aland Islands  /  Anguilla  /  Bahamas  /  Barbados  /  Brazil  /  Cape Verde  /  Cayman Islands  /  Croatia  /  Estonia  /  Gibraltar  /  Hungary  /  India  /  Latvia  /  Lithuania  /  Maldives  /  Reunion  /  Romania  /  Russia  /  Slovakia  /  Slovenia  /  South Africa  /  Turkey  /  Ukraine  /  Vatican City  /  Venezuela

– Standard Delivery is FREE worldwide on all orders over £50 except for mainland China.

 

OMOROVICZA

– this is Omorovicza’s official website, where they always host amazing offers and deals and periodically, some amazing sales! The current amazing offers are a beautiful LE Queen of Hungary Face Mist in a beautiful summery bottle, with the possibility of doubling your Pengo and some amazing sets at such convenient prices!

SHIPPING:

	Price	Free over	Business Days
UK	€7	€150	2-5
EU Standard	€20	€150	7
EU Expedited	€30	n/a	Up to 5

– due to customs restrictions, they are not able to ship to China and Russia.

– import taxes and duties will be the responsibility of the customer should goods be ordered from our website for delivery outside of Europe.

 

AORO.ro

BRANDS AVAILABLE: Chanel, Dior, Guerlain, Giorgio & Gabbana and many more

SHIPPING: for my Romanian girls ONLY!

Here you have my main online shopping destinations! I hope you feel inspired and get some new shopping ideas from them!

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

Seasonal Favourites – Winter 2014-2015

Tags

Burberry, candle, Charlotte Tilbury, dior, Elemis, Escentric Molecules, eyeshadows, favourites, Laura Mercier, Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist, Penhaligon's Malabah, red lipstick, Smiling Shoes, stiletto shoes, tea, Tom Ford

Since I can finally say that I can see major signs of Spring after such a long Winter, I thought I’d do a Favourites post!

Now, I’m not the one to do these kind of posts on a regular basis, mainly because once I discover a product that I really love and I know it works for me, I totally stick to it for the longest time. So a monthly makeup favourites, or skincare favourites would be kind of repetitive and unnecessary. Plus to form a decent opinion on a new product, especially with skincare, it might take a lot more than one month.

But this past couple of months I’ve tested a good few new products that instantly stole my heart and made it to my Favourites…

Here you have my absolute Seasonal Favourites for the Winter of 2014-2015:

– festive red listick was THE thing for me this winter. I particularly loved these Tom Ford shades – Crimson Noir ( permanent ) and Alejandro, from the Lips&Boys Collection. I also loved the iconic Dior Rouge 999, the orange-reds Estée Lauder Pure Colour Envy in shade Impassioned and Wild Ginger also from the Tom Ford permanent line and the Burberry Lip Cover in #18 Ruby. Later on I’ve discovered the new, reformulated Chanel Rouge Coco in Arthur, which made me dig out it’s matte correspondent, the Tom Ford ( again! ) Flame.

– Tom Ford Lips&Boys Alejandro – Burberry Ruby – Chanel Arthur– Tom Ford Crimson Noir– Dior Rouge 999

– for skincare, I don’t change it too much, I’m only adjusting it to the needs of my sensitive skin. But the products I loved the most were the Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm Anti-Ageing, the Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator, the First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser which I like to use combined with the Diptyque Radiance Boosting Powder for a deeper cleanse, my holy grail mask – the Oskia Rainessance Nutri-Active Brightening & Resurfacing Mask and the new addition, the Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel Mask and of course, my beloved Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist. Mostly cleansing products now that I take a closer look! No wonder though! because I firmly believe that a clean skin is a good, healthy skin. And a flawless “canvas” also means an easier makeup application, with less products! I also have to mention my hands and lips saviours this Winter: the By Terry Baume de Rose and the Laura Mercier delicious gourmet hand creams.

– my favourite Winter home scent for the past two years has been this Byredo Bibliothèque Fragranced Candle. I can’t even tell you how much I love this candle and how many I have burnt down. This year I went for something different, something more smokey and warm, with comforting notes of patchouli, birch tar and guaiac wood – the Burberry Smokey Embers Fragranced Candle. It’s the perfect candle to “recreate the mood of an English fireside afternoon”, as they say on their website. Definitely give this one a sniff if you’re in a Burberry store.

– for fashion items I absolutely lived in my Smiling Shoes heels! You might think that I went bananas, especially if you know what winters are like in Continental Excessive Climates, but stay assured I still had boots on for walking outside, in the snow. But for work and going out, and winter parties these shoes never left my feet!

– for random favourites, I really got into tea which I think it warmed my body as well as my soul. I particularly loved the combination of strong, aromatic tea ( mostly from the Teapigs company ) and coconut milk.

Also my love for clementines went to another level of obsession, and I always found myself munching on them and these Milka cookies…

And I totally hated 50 Shades of Grey – simply because I can’t get excited about someone else’s sexual fantasies… No offense!

I hope you enjoyed my favourite things for the Winter months and please be kind and share yours!

Also, should I make this Seasonal Favourites a regular entry on my blog? What do you think?

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

LAURA MERCIER’s hand saviours: Crème brûlée and Fresh Fig

Tags

Crème brûlée, Fresh Fig, hand cream, Laura Mercier, Laura Mercier Hand Crèmes, saviour, skincare, winter

I have to admit that I’m not the biggest hand cream lover!

Therefore if I can avoid applying it regularly I’m the happiest!… Which never happens during the cold winter months when, even I have to recognise that a good hand cream really does wonders!

I’m not a big fan of hand creams mainly because I hate that sticky, sweaty and cold sensation they often leave on the skin after the application ( anyone with me?! nope!? just me?!?? ). And on my perpetual cold hands that’s the least I want to feel at -15º Celsius!

Which brings me to the fact that I am very, very picky when it comes to choosing a “good” hand cream for myself! It has to absorb fast and never leave a greasy or, knock on wood!, a sticky film on my hands! The scent doesn’t have to be offensive! The smaller the packaging the better; a big packaging always discourages me from using it!

In the colder months I feel drawn towards gourmand scents: vanilla, crème brûlée, honey, coconut and pistache while during the warmer seasons I prefer lighter, barely there floral scents.

The ones that fall in all the categories above are the Laura Mercier Hand Crèmes and the fact that I repurchased them for the second winter in a row, that makes them a extraordinary… at least in my books!

My first choice is Crème brûlée – a warm and decadent combination of gourmand ingredients with a list which includes delicious notes of warm caramel, spun sugar, and French vanilla bean. Simply delicious and mouth-watering and the most gourmand scent on a skin care! If you ever had the chance to set foot in a French pâtisserie, that’s the right aura and the aroma of this hand cream.

My next option is Fresh Fig. Different from the crème brûlée vanillary scent, Fresh Fig is still a sweet, fresh and almost intoxicating gourmand scent. The main ingredients include the indulgent essence of the most fresh Celeste figs, to which there were added fruit bouquets of apricot nectar and ylang ylang. This particular scent has a smooth and sweet creamy base which blends in with green, earthy elements creating an unique and sensuous, very appealing scent. This is the one that sits on my desk at work, that I received so many compliments wearing it!

Inspired by her French heritage, Laura Mercier decided to create these decadent, delicious and at the same time sophisticated hand care formulas which are unbelievably hydrating and penetrate deep into the layers of your skin to comfort and soothe your hands, the result being a thoroughly moisturized and velvety soft skin and an amazing general mood.

Now that I shared mine, what are your hand saviours during winter?

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie