January Eats

I'd like to welcome a new regular to the emmabovarybeauty line-up - the monthly eats post! I see 2015 taking a lifestyle lean for my little slice of the internet, and I want to start incorporating all of the things that I love into my writing - when I originally began this blog in 2010 I wanted it to be about 'all of the things in life that make it beautiful' and I feel like I'm getting back on track with that now. A lot has changed for me personally since the blogs birth, and I feel its only right to pop up food posts and home posts as I see fit, since it's what make my life wonderful! Wordy ramble over, now onto some of the food I enjoyed in January!

Birthday ice-cream at Trampoline
Birthday lunch at RMB - calamari w chips and salad
Disappointing soy and ginger chicken
New 'By George' range at Coles

I celebrated my birthday at the beginning of January, and on the day spent a few hours shopping at Doncaster with my sister and my niece. I followed my lunch with a sweet treat from Trampoline Gelato - a scoop of Hazelnut Roche (nutella-like goodness, my fave!) and a scoop of Coconut!

Another beautiful birthday celebration, technically in late December but I threw it in this post anyway. My best friend Candi drove down for the day and took me out for lunch at RMB Westfield Plenty Valley. We both ordered Calamari with chips and salad, with Candi getting hers grilled as she needs GF and dairy-free options. I love that they were happy to accommodate, both versions of the calamari were beautifully cooked and the aioli was spot on for the crunchy flat chips.

I bought a premade stir-fry marinade that was soy and ginger based and cooked it with chicken for this home-cooked dish. It looked and smelt so good as it cooked and I had high hopes, but it was super bland and had almost no flavour whatsoever. Sure did look tasty, though!

Spotted a cute new brand at Coles - By George! George is my Dad's name so I snapped this picture to send him for a laugh!

Green Curry at Bay Thai
Lunch at Hatch
Lindt gift from my sister-in-law
Betty Crocker Vanilla Cake on a coffee break

Some gorgeous friends of ours celebrated their engagement with a party down in Albert Park and beforehand Mister and I shared a Thai Green Curry at the newly opened Bay Thai restaurant. It was super spicy so the beers went down well, and the flavour was seriously delicious.

Another surprise birthday lunch, well done January! My sister-in-law and brother-in-law took me out for a bit to eat, but not before they sung happy birthday to me with a candle stuck into a muffin! Was so nice to chill and check out the new Hatch restaurant in Preston, and the food was pretty tasty, but some of the dishes weren't as good as they could have been. I'll definitely head back here to try more of their menu though.

The next shot is of a nice little Lindt surprise from my other sister-in-law (I landed pretty lucky with my in-laws, didn't I?)

I am quite obsessed with baking at the moment and whipped up a quick and easy Betty Crocker vanilla cake with the intent of filling Mister's work lunches with it. I had a few slices myself and damn that's a good vanilla cake - added bonus is the premade frosting which was delicious. I had a nice little coffee break with Lolita and cake, what more could you want?


Dr Pepper at The Reject Shop
Choc-coated Peanuts
Coffee at Mumma Bovary's
Moccona with a Hint of Caramel <3

Had to snap a picture of this Dr Pepper 12pack at The Reject Shop - it's the obsession I began when we hit up America last year!

I was inspired by Norlin to nab a pack of chocolate covered peanuts to take to the cinema with me - great idea, Norlin!

A nice relaxing coffee break at Mumma Bovary's, but I have to admit that I have stashed a jar of Moccona with a Hint of Caramel in her cupboards as her coffee is always woeful!

Moccona, have I told you lately that I love you? I really do - Hint of Hazelnut is my next purchase alongside you, but right now I'm sitting in front of a hot cup of you with a splash of milk and everything seems right in the world.

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So there you have it - my first monthly eats instalment! I hope you all enjoy the lifestyle related content that I'll be posting, the bulk of my passion lies in the beauty realm but I think writing about a wider range of things every now and again will really warm my soul and make me much happier overall!

-Emma

Jimmy Choo EDP // A Sweet Scent to Enjoy with a Cosmopolitan

Launched in February 2011, the simply named Jimmy Choo fragrance was the very first from the brand.  For me, the Jimmy Choo label is synonymous with Sex and the City, and the thought of sky high heels and cosmopolitans is quite a positive connection to have with a brand. When I first heard that the brand had jumped into the bustling fragrance world, I immediately hunted it down for a sniff. It wasn’t until recently that I had the chance to try it on for an extended period of time, thanks to a sample vial I procured at a Myer counter.

The pink snakeskin design wouldn’t be my first choice of packaging, but I think it ties in nicely with the grenade style bottle said to be inspired by Murano glass. Tamara Mellon was the mind behind the design, and it is said to be a fragrance that is "feminine yet empowering, with a lot of sensuality to it”

This is the description taken from Fragrantica:

“The seductive composition is a modern chypre fruity, with green top notes, tiger orchid, sweet toffee caramel and Indonesian patchouli.”

Being someone who isn’t well versed in fragrance, I smell a lot of sugar in this 'sweet patchouli' scent, and the caramel becomes quite evident on my skin. As with most fragrances this isn’t incredibly long lasting on me, but it does sit longer than others and I’m happy with that. I did really enjoy wearing this, but I’m still unsure as to whether or not a full bottle would be justified. It reminds me quite strongly of my sister in law, who is a big fan of it and wore it on our first holiday together, so perhaps I will leave it to her and enjoy it when I am in her presence.

Jimmy Choo EDP retails between $99-$139 and is available at Myer and David Jones.

 

Do you forgo a new perfume if you know it is someone’s signature scent?

How sweet can you go with your fragrances?

Sun Kit : Body Scrub

As a certified fair bear, fake tanning is the only way I go about getting a little colour come summer time. I'm content with most of my paleness, but my glowing legs need a little bronze- just enough to take the edge off, but still leave me the fairest of them all when I'm out. Those who are fair will know how hard it is to slap bronze on fluorescent glowing skin, and so exfoliation is the most important step in any fake bakin' to avoid the oompa loompa knee factor!

I rely on Kit Cosmetics for a lot of my cosmetic and skin care needs, so when I heard that they were releasing a Sun Kit range I was excited to see how scrubby the exfoliating tan prep would be. It comes in a metallic caramel coloured 250g tub, and RRP is $29.95 AUD.

Despite this being a 'working' scrub as opposed to a scrub just for fun, the scent is addictive and makes the whole pre-tan ritual really enjoyable. Even those who don't fake tan/spray tan would enjoy using this when they're in need of a good all over body exfoliation. Ingredients like shea butter, lilly pilly, kakadu plum and quandong makes this tub smell creamy in a super beachy sort of way, which is perfect for summer weather.

This is choc full of sea salt particles which make for a super rough scrub, which I generally prefer especially if I'm about to fake tan. It does mean you should use a light hand though, as too much pressure when rubbing the scrub in can irritate the skin. Just means you have to work less to see the benefits!

Straight from the tub, a snow white scrub which goes a long way.

This shot shows how dense the particles in this are, which is why it provides such a great all over exfoliation and eliminates patchy self tanning results. I am maid of honor for Chris' brothers wedding next weekend and you can bet that I'll be using this before I head off to get my spray tan!

Sun Kit Pre Tan Body Scrub retails for $29.95AUD and is available at Kit Cosmetics here. The Sun Kit range also features a luminous body bronzer and a self tanning mousse, which you can check out here.

What exfoliator do you use before you fake tan?
What are your thoughts on fake tanning?

(This product was provided by PR for consideration for review, which in no way affects my opinion of the scrub. Honesty, always.)

Lux Caramel Body Wash

Lux often tempt me with their scented body washes, and this one was no different. I found this one to smell better in the bottle than during use, but still pleasant nonetheless. It seems to be confused as to whether it is an 'exfoliating scrub' or an 'exfoliating body wash', I personally see it as the latter. 400ml is said to last 75+ washes, and I would say this is about right as I used it for two-three months all up.

Packaging: Nice sturdy 400ml bottle, mostly clear with a creamy caramel toned lid. To be stored with product lying at bottom (ie 'upside down') which I love, I hate waiting for the stuff to drip down. Images of caramel peices and shea nuts sit at the base of the bottle, accentuated with sparkles. Love the packaging, really classy.

Scent: Super-caramelly at first sniff, but the sweetness is not overwhelming in the shower. This is probably a good thing, but I myself wouldn't have minded if it upped it's sweetness.

Texture: Creamy and moisturising, I would classify this as a moisturising body wash rather than any sort of exfoliator, despite the particles that are suspended in it.

Pros: 100% soap free, lathers amazingly well, leaves skin feeling silky smooth, scent left after shower is light but nice. I always reach for my vanilla-based perfumes after using this as I think they pair together perfectly. Reasonably priced at around $5.49 for 400ml, or $9.39 for 700ml.

Cons: Not as sweet as it could be, not as coarse as a scrub or exfoliant should be.

Pros certainly outweigh the cons for this Lux prod, and I'm sure I will come around to purchasing it again in the future.

emmabovary x x