31 May 2012 13:51
BEAUTY SECRETS OF PAST QUEENS
English Queens
We all know that the first great Queen Elizabeth I used ground lead to produce her white pallor (causing early death to many ladies), but the great beauties of this time also owed the rich red colour of their lips to bugs. Ladies of court were known to squash remains of insects and rub the remains on the mouth for a ruby-red lustre.
Egyptian Queens
The great Queen Cleopatra often bathed in milk. Today you can do the same, but instead of pouring milk into your bath, look for products containing Alpha Hydroxic Acids (AHAs) (naturally found in milk) which keep your skin soft and smooth by gentle exfoliation. Some beautiful citrus fruits contain AHA, such as passion fruit, lemon, grape and grape fruit – all found in our famous Renaissance Mask (winner of Best Anti-Ageing Mask – Sunday Mirror Beauty Awards). We believe you might enjoy this a little more than her face mask - Crocodile dung made into a paste with donkey’s milk (only used when Caesar wasn’t around).
Chinese Empresses
The anti-aging benefits of green tea have been widely advertised whereas white tea might be one of China's best kept beauty secrets. Also known as the Emperor's tea, white tea gets harvested from the silver tip of the tea plant. Most of the plant's antioxidants are hosted in the tip and act as an environmental shield against free radicals. Chinese women dissolve these leaves in water and use it as a facial wash.
Japanese Queens
Early geishas and Kabuki actors used nightingale droppings to remove the thick make-up from their faces. I think you will find our Perfect Cleanser both more effective, a little easier to come by, a little more effective and most certainly more glorious and fragrant to use!
Italian Queens
Ladies of the Renaissance used to apply deadly nightshade to enhance their eyes. The poison dilates the pupils and makes people’s peepers look enormous and glowing. Perhaps a safer option to retain youthful eyes is to use our Eye Wonder, known in the maternity circle as 'Mothers Little Helper' - an extremely light & refreshing anti-ageing eye serum containing the most clinically active ingredients to minimise fine lines and dark circles.
Arabian Queens
Arabian Queens loved sleek and shiny hair, so they used camel urine to dip their raven-black hair in.
Hollywood Queens (You now needn’t go to Hollywood to benefit from this collagen boosting treatment)
"When Angelina Jolie attended the Cannes Film Festival last year, she caused a stir - and not just on the red carpet. Beauty boards buzzed about her radiant skin, speculating on the recent transformation. Was it plastic surgery? A chemical peel? No Skin Needling...." The LA Times.
This miraculous collagen-boosting treatment dramatically reduces wrinkles, acne scaring and pigmentation is now available at our Covent Garden Spa. For more information on painless & quick Micro-Skin Needling, please click here. To Book, please click here.
Last Updated: 31 May 2012 13:56
30 May 2012 19:52
Introducing OSKIA...
Methyl Sulphanyl Methane, or MSM, may now be as ubiquitous a supplement as Cod Liver Oil, but 15 years ago no-one in the UK had heard of it, nor of the positive impact it could have on joint health. Numerous studies later, we now know that MSM’s benefits are myriad – and that this most concentrated and bio-available form of sulphur is also crucial to cell function and collagen production, which allows the skin to remain supple, regenerate itself and stave off premature ageing.
It comes as no surprise then that it’s been labelled the ‘Beauty Mineral’ by those in the know – and Georgie Cleeve (who just happens to be the daughter of the man who first imported MSM to our shores), has made it the core component of her beauty line, OSKIA. Drawing on familial expertise – and her years of experience as a Food Editor at Condé Nast’s House & Garden Magazine – Cleeve set about developing a line that blends both a nutritional and scientific approach to skincare, and also reflects her passion for natural and organic ingredients. The result is not only 98% natural – it is also the fruit of four years’ research with a crack team of scientists, nutritionists and skin experts, to ensure that each and every product is as ‘active’ and efficacious as possible.
This vision – to encompass the all-natural with the cutting-edge – is fittingly translated into a focused, capsule collection of targeted treatments that that work in synergy with one another, and with one’s own skin. Alongside the high-potency MSM supplement in the range, there is also the Oskia Bedtime Beauty Boost, £74 for 50ml, which is a deliciously decadent cream rich in regenerative vitamins A and B3, to the Eye Wonder Nutri-Active Eye Serum, £58 for 15ml, which employs a unique Arnica & Laminaria Complex to target under-eye discolouration.
The line delivers on another front too: the brand’s name is taken from the ancient Greek word for ‘delivering beauty’, and this new line makes good on its eponymous promise – from the pleasing packaging all the way through to the detailed ingredient lists than can be found on the back of each and every pioneering product.
Last Updated: 30 May 2012 19:52
21 May 2012 15:38
It was lovely to meet so many of you at Fenwick Bond Street Beauty Week. Thank you for coming, and a huge thank you to the wonderful Axel.
Last Updated: 21 May 2012 15:47
13 May 2012 21:28
Last Updated: 13 May 2012 21:38
1 May 2012 22:28
NIACIN AND SWEET POTATOES
In connection with our desire to get skin glowing, this delicious recipe is based around the wonderful health and skin benefits of Niacin (Vitamin B3) or Niacinamide as found in our skincare products. A vital skin health nutrient, it is also a key anti-ageing topical ingredient: Niacinamide increases skin hydration by 67%, fibroblast production by 20%, collagen secretion by 54% and most importantly evens out skin tone and reduces hyperpigmentation by reducing the transfer of the melanosomes to the surrounding keratinocytes by up to 68%.
Specially designed for us by the wonderful Thomasina Miers, this delicious SPICY SWEET POTATO AND FETA FRITTATA recipe is a welcomed escape from chilly Spring days.
Thomasina says: “Sweet potatoes are a rich source of niacin but more importantly are incredibly delicious. Serve this frittata with a green salad, full of mint, coriander and basil leaf to complement the chillied sweet potato. I love to eat this at room temperature, but it is hard to have the patience to wait for it to cool down!”
We say: perfect for a wintery supper (or a soggy wet May's) snuggled up in front of a roaring log fire with a good book, cashmeres and a good glass of claret.
Spicy Sweet Potato and Feta Frittata
600g sweet potatoes
3 red onions, peeled
2 cloves garlic
2 dried red chillies
Olive oil
10 free-range eggs
50ml milk
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A small handful of mint leaves, roughly chopped
150g feta cheese
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C
You will need a large paella dish or a shallow circular ovenproof dish about 28cm in diameter.
1. Scrub the sweet potatoes and then cut them up into 2.5cm chunks, skin and all. Peel the red onions and cut them into one-eighths. Mash the garlic cloves in a pestle and mortar with a teaspoon of sea salt, the dried chillies and, when they are smashed into a puree, drizzle in 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Toss the sweet potatoes and onion wedges in the chilli oil and roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes until cooked through and turning golden. When the potato is cooked, turn the oven down to 180°C.
2. Meanwhile break the eggs into a large mixing bowl and whisk with salt, pepper and the milk. Stir in the mint, feta, onions and sweet potatoes when they are cooked together with another tablespoon of olive oil.
3. Heat the paella dish on the stove until very hot. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, allow to come up to heat and then pour in the egg mixture. Cook for 5 minutes on the stove before transferring to the oven. Cook for 15-20 minutes until the eggs look just set and the frittata is more or less firm to the touch.
Last Updated: 1 May 2012 22:28
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