2017’s Biggest Fitness Trends

- by Caroline Hastings-Brown –

Hey my hearties! Now that 2017 is truly on its way, it’s time to talk exercise goals and fitness fabulousness. Don’t you do that at the beginning of the year? Yes, most people do, but that can be a trap! What with the stress and all of January, I find it better to focus on fitness once the year has been worn in and tried on. Less stressful that way!

I don’t know about you, but as a very busy individual (and let’s face it, who isn’t?) I am all for getting as much as possible accomplished in a day, with the least amount of stress! So, I have found that flexible, effective workouts that don’t require trekking across town and spending extra time commuting work well for me. I also have a short attention span – get me bored, and I’m lost, so I need to shake things up, do different things and adapt my workouts to how I am feeling on a particular day.

And as we all know, exercise is absolutely key to living a healthy, long and happy life. The many benefits, from weight loss, increased muscle mass, endorphins and fresh, glowing skin are well documented. So, here are a few of my tips and tricks to ensure that the workout is worked in to your daily schedule, no excuses! Believe me, I have tried them all!

Up The Intensity To Up Your Results

One of the most effective training methods, whether you love walking, running, cycling, swimming or weight training, is to use HIIT – High-Intensity Interval Training methods. Instead of spending a long time exercising at a moderate pace, with HIIT, you’ll use short bursts of exercise at maximum or near-maximum heart rate. Most of us are short on time these days, so it’s no wonder that High-Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT, is one of the major exercise trends of the coming year. That means you’ll burn more calories in 20 to 30 minutes than you would in a longer session. The best bit – results are so quick – just two months of regular HIIT training and your endurance and fitness are markedly increased!

Bring The Professionals Home

Another favourite training method of mine – bring a professional into your home, for free! Yes, the wealth of fitness videos and professional workout routines available on YouTube, or Netflix, is astounding! In the mood for yoga – find a workout that suits you. Feeling like a bit of booty shaking today – grab a Zumba workout. You see, it’s free, you can do it at home and you can tailor it to your exact needs, every day. You never have to repeat the same workout, if you don’t want to that is!

Reward yourself

And one of the best bits about working out? Congratulating yourself once you are done! A soothing shower or bath after a workout is one of the best treats, and you can make it even better by treating yourself to a delightfully fragrant shower gel such as Clarins Relax Bath and Shower Concentrate.

Clarins Relax Bath & Shower Concentrate

Specifically formulated to calm both body and mind, the fine, creamy foam very gently cleanses the skin and helps relieve stress and fatigue. It also helps relax the body after exercise.

So, get on your bike, take a hike, HIIT the gym or bend, twist and booty shake your way to great health in 2017, and make sure you LOVE what you do!

Create An Irresistible Valentine’s Look and Receive a FREE Gift!

- by Caroline Hastings-Brown -

What better time to give yourself a seductive, gorgeous makeover than the month of love, Valentine’s Day? With COSME-DE.COM, you can do just that with gorgeous featured products and a FREE Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Eau de Parfum 100ml when you spend USD 250 / AUD 330 / HKD 1900 / GBP 200 or above between 16 January and 14 February 2017.

My Fantasy Look

In my ideal world, I would be described as the girl with the glowing skin, glossy hair, mesmerising eyes, luscious lips and toned, taut, glowing skin. Oh, and the waft of a fresh Spring breeze can be felt when I walk by. All this is quite possible, with a little help from my favourite beauty products, designed to make you utterly irresistible!

The Best Friend For Luscious Lips

For the super sexy ‘bitten lips’ effect, your friend is Yves Saint Laurent Volupte Tint-In-Oil Nourishing Lip Oil Colour Enhancer. Containing Apricot Kernel oil, Macadamia Seed oil, Coriander Fruit oil, Jojoba Seed oil and Passion Flower oil, a lustrous shine is created. Lips are nourished and plumped, and the colour is a burst of freshness. Choose your shade from the many available, including ‘I Rose You’, ‘Cherry my Cherie’, ‘Peach me love’ and ‘Pink about me’. What could be more Valentine-perfect?

Yves Saint Laurent Volupte Tint-In-Oil Nourishing Lip Oil Colour Enhancer

The Best Friend For Mesmerising Eyes

Va-va-voom your gorgeous peepers with the divine Lunasol Grace Contrasting Eyes. You cannot go wrong with this compact that guides you step-by-step in creating the ultimate shimmering eye enhancement. Choose from an overall ‘Antique Gold’ or ‘Romantic Pink’ effect, depending on your preference and mood!

Lunasol Grace Contrasting Eyes

The Best Friend For Toned Skin

I definitely need a little help from a friend when it comes to the body sculpting department, which is why I love Clarins Body Shaping Cream for an extra confidence boost. To sculpt tummy, waist and arms, Clarins Body Shaping Cream is powered by 50 years of scientific research. So instead of empty promises, it actually works to target stubborn fat and refine the body. Crush stubborn fats, accelerate fat burn and inhibit fat cell growth in one awesome product. Hello sculpted abs!

Clarins Body Shaping Cream

The Best Friend For Glossy Hair

Whether you have a long, lustrous mane, a sexy bob or a cute pixie cut, healthy, shiny hair is ALWAYS in! Get your shine on with Kérastase Elixir Ultime Oleo-Complexe Versatile Beautifying Oil. Control frizz with 24-hour humidity protection, reduce split ends and prevent breakage. 

Kérastase Elixir Ultime Oleo-Complexe Versatile Beautifying Oil 

The Best Friend For Glowing Skin

And while your glowing skin can be attributed to being a happy, loving soul, you can definitely help it along with Melvita Rose Hip Oil, made from the seeds of the Chilean wild rose, this oil is rich in essential fatty acids and nourishes and regenerates even the most delicate, lifeless skin. It helps to reduce stretch marks and soften the appearance of blemishes while making the complexion more radiant.

Melvita Rose Hip Oil 

Your FREE scent of seduction

And as for that waft of fresh air, spend USD 250 / AUD 330/ HKD 1900 / GBP 200 or above between 16 January and 14 February 2017, and get that gorgeous waft for FREE in the form of an Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Eau De Parfum 100ml. The freshest, most uplifting scent experience that energizes the body and revives the spirit with top notes of Caraway, Fruity Rhubarb, Lemon and Orange Zest, mid notes of Green Tea, Cool Minty Peppermint, Sweet Jasmine, Carnations and Fresh Fennel and a base of sexy Oak moss, Musk and Amber. 

Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Scent Spray

Thanks COSME-DE, it’s an all-time favourite!

The Glitz and Glamour of the Gala – Win Big with COSME-DE.COM

by Caroline Hastings-Brown

Ah, the elegance of dressing up for a gorgeous gala event. The glamour, the red carpet, the opportunity to step into a world of opulence and glamour for the evening. The excitement of an auction, the subtle nods as the bidding heats up. It’s a war – a war fought with style!

Bid On Beauty

And just for a bit of extra fun, extra glamour, extra beauty, and loads of amazing cash and beauty giveaways, we are giving you, our beautiful bidders, an opportunity to use your COSME-DE.COM spend as your bid to win the style and beauty auction. 

All The Brands, All The Products

All you need to do is login to COSME-DE.COM, or if you haven’t yet, get yourself registered, fast! Then shop away for ALL your beauty needs, on the best brands, at the best prices, delivered to your door with a 30-day money back guarantee. You will not believe the choice in hair, make up and beauty products, from the classics to the newest brands, and everything in between.

Win Beauty Cash And Beauty Products

Then, you get to have even more fun! Your accumulated spent between 1 – 30 November can be used to ‘bid’ for awesome prizes! Yes, AWESOME prizes. How does USD1000 and USD600 COSME-DE vouchers sound to you? Well, spend away and the top two November spender will get exactly that!

And we all love big name beauty brands, so how about FREE products from Sisley, SK-II, Clarins, Lancome, Elizabeth Arden, Estee Lauder and Clinique? Spend away, put in your bid and wait stylishly to hear what you have won!

Glowing Skin For Gala Events

Need your skin to glow with more radiance for a special event, or for everyday beauty? You could WIN Sisley’s Ecological Compound Day & Night Cream. A revitalising, moisturising and balancing treatment for all skin types. The stimulating and revitalising action gives dull skin that extra boost for a youthful and rested look. 

Sisley Ecological Compound Day & Night Cream

And while we are on the topic of getting skin gala-glow ready, how about winning one of the most award-winning beauty products around – SK-II Facial Treatment Essence. It is also known as Miracle Water. It gently exfoliates skin, helps to regulate and moderate the skin’s renewal cycle and leaves the skin crystal clear and smooth within 5 days – now there’s a win if ever!

SK-II Facial Treatment Essence

Who could resist a free Clarins Double Serum® [Hydric + Lipidic System] Complete Age Control Concentrate? I don’t know many who could! Upon first application, skin appears more radiant. After just 4 weeks, skin looks firmer and more even and wrinkles and pores are less visible. A double triumph over time! Get your bid in, and it could be yours, free! Courtesy of COSME-DE!

Clarins Double Serum® [Hydric + Lipidic System] Complete Age Control Concentrate

And there are plenty more prizes where those came from. Get online, and get Gala Glamour ready with all the products you need to glow like a red carpet starlet.

Secret Garden Week 3: Luxurious, Fragrant Lavender Has It All!

By now I know you have been doing your detective work around the COSME-DE website, looking for your secret codes that unlock a treasure garden of cash discounts and free gifts! And if you haven’t, do not despair, as Week 3 of our Secret Garden promotion has arrived. We know you love beautiful things, because you are a COSME-DE girl, and we are always the beautiful ones. Which is why we want you to have more of the exquisite products you love, for less!

All you need to do is put your most stylish detective hat on, and search the secret garden on COSME-DE.COM for our secret codes. Once you spot one, you enter it into the search box, and as if by magic, a cash discount on products or free gift is yours! So we have given the transcendent rose and the beautiful tulip each a week to bask in your attention, and now it is the turn of our exquisite new flower, lavender, to have its aromatic week in the sun!

Lavender really has it all – it’s beautiful, bright and extremely fragrant! Lavender has been used for centuries as a calming and soothing balm, one whiff and you feel restored, serene, fresh and calm. So, get your purple glow on and take a look at some of the pick of products that give you the beauty advantage.

What better way to get all the benefits of lavender in Jurlique’s Lavender Hydrating Mist. It’s the perfect pick-me-up if your skin is feeling a bit tight and dry, and if you need that boost to restore your senses and calm your mind. All you need to do is close your eyes and gently give your face a rejuvenating, moisturising, toning spritz.

Jurlique’s Lavender Hydrating Mist

When it comes to aromatics, Clarins just does it so well with their finest quality botanical ingredients. You can give oily and combination skin a fragrant boost with the Lotus Face Treatment Oil. Pure plant extracts of Rosewood, Geranium and Lotus tighten pores and refine skin texture, while Hazelnut Oil softens, soothes and seals in moisture for a perfect facial treat, in only a few drops.

Clarins Lotus Face Treatment Oil

And what self-respecting bathroom does not have at least one beautifully scented lavender soap in it? For a wash that smells so heavenly you will never want to leave the bathroom, try John Masters Lavender, Rose, Geranium and Ylang Ylang soap for an aromatic experience. It is also highly moisturising so will not dry your skin, but leave it soft, luminous and deliciously fragrant. This indulgent treat also makes a great gift – who can resist?

John Masters Lavender, Rose, Geranium and Ylang Ylang soap

And while we are basking in the glow of fragrant aromatics, you can make sure your environment smells as lovely as you do by adding a couple of drops of Aromatherapy Associates Relax Room Fragrance to an aromatherapy burner. Rich scents of geranium, myrrh and West Indian Bay will waft around your home or office, transporting you and all those around you to a happy place.

Aromatherapy Associates Relax Room Fragrance

Fragrance is the most evocative of our senses, we have all experienced that moment when a smell transports you to a place from the past. So, make memories in the present by using the calming, delightful aromas of nature to keep you deliciously happy!

Light, Bright, Porcelain Perfect Skin is Yours

We all have a different look, thank goodness, or the world would be a really boring place! I was posting recently about achieving and maintaining a gorgeous, golden summer tan, which is really beautiful. But on the flip side, there is another look that is equally as beautiful, and that is the radiant, even tone of porcelain perfect skin.

Smooth and Even-Toned

Gentle lightening and brightening of the skin can bring out a youthful radiance, a perfectly even skin tone and even help diminish uneven pigmentation and scars. Now who would say no to that? No one I know! A word of caution though when it comes to lightening, is to make sure you use products that list their ingredients. There have been lightening creams on the market before that contain hydroquinone, which can lighten your skin, yes, but possibly burn a hole in it too, so be careful! There is no need to do anything damaging with so many wonderful products out there, with safe and natural, listed ingredients and at all price ranges!

Some of the best natural brightening ingredients include liquorice root, arbutin, songi mushroom, lemon peel and resveratrol (grape seed extract) – you can look out for these ingredients and others when choosing your brightening products.

Where there is a will, there is a way!

If you want to jumpstart a “brightening skin” campaign, you could treat yourself to a salon microdermabrasion or professional peel. This gently removes the top layer of skin to give you a refreshed, radiant start to healthy skin functioning and boosted collagen turnover. Then, you need to habitually follow up with excellent lightening and brightening products.

As always with our skin, we start with cleansing! I suggest you give the wonderful Clarins White Plus Total Luminescent Pearl-to-Cream Brightening Cleanser a try. The name is long and the effects long-lasting! It is a fine mousse textured cleanser, rich in clarifying plant extracts that promote a luminous transparency to the skin. This is a great product if you have any pigmentation, as it includes Spergularia and Alchemila extracts to even the tone and stop further pigmentation.

Clarins White Plus Total Luminescent Pearl-to-Cream Brightening Cleanser   

Another wonder-brightening product comes from SK-ll, the Whitening Source Clear Lotion, packed out with nourishing hydrators and texturisers. Micro fine visual modifiers bring an instantly uniform tone to your skin and a soft, glowing effect. After your cleanser, you dispense a little into a cotton pad and pat gently over the skin, pressing in with your fingertips to get all that goodness in it.

SK-ll, the Whitening Source Clear Lotion

For the final brightening, whitening, even-toned skin whammy, follow up with a radiance wonder-product – CAUDALIE Vinoperfect Radiance Serum – the no. 1 anti-dark spot product in your arsenal. This milky, moisturising serum creates a radiance in the skin that looks lit from within. It’s suitable for all skin types and contains free radical blasters that are 62 times more effective than vitamin C.

CAUDALIE Vinoperfect Radiance Serum   

So, with a little care and attention, and some perfect brightening skin products, you too can be mistaken for a porcelain doll!

The Perfect Travel Kits for Your Summer Vacation

A summer vacation is the ultimate treat – a reward for all the hard work you have done throughout the year. A chance to retreat, relax, see and experience new places, people, food and fun. A chance to soak up some dazzling sunshine in exotic countries, with beautiful people!

Be Beauty-Wise

When packing, it’s worth planning ahead and being beauty-wise with what you take with. On the one hand, who needs a whole lot of extra baggage? On the other, you do not want to be caught out with an amazing party to go to, without all your favourite products that make you look and feel like the vacation belle of the ball!

I love beauty travel kits – products come in smaller sizes so you can still have all your favourites while you travel, without having to carry a suitcase that is bigger than you are! Travel kits are often beautifully packaged, and bring together everything you need to care for your skin, create flawless makeup looks and keep the pool or beachside body beautiful.

All eyes on you

Amazing eyes are the window to the soul, and the most unforgettable thing about a face! So two of my travel kit favourites are all about caring for and making up the eyes to look simply spectacular, eyes that will be remembered, long after the vacation has ended!

The skin around the eyes is delicate and needs extra special care to look smooth and clear of puffiness and dark circles. The revolutionary SK-ll Magnetic Eye Care Kit promises visibly less fine lines around the eyes within 10 days of use, and in this case, it delivers. The anti-aging kit contains Stempower Eye Cream, a potent formula that firms the skin around the eye, strengthens it and visibly reduces sagging and the appearance of wrinkles. A magnetic wand is included, the first of its kind in the world, that delivers the formula deeply into the skin, with three times the absorption power than if you were to simply use your finger. Boasting some serious science, the wand uses tri-magnetic technology and an innovative bi-polar magnetic micro array, to ensure the skin around your beautiful peepers is fresh, smooth and perfect! 

 SK-ll Magnetic Eye Care Kit

With the skin around the eyes looking youthful and luminous, it’s now time to enhance their natural beauty. You can have those “you have the most beautiful eyes” comments coming at you thick and fast when you follow the instructions on the Benefits “Big Beautiful Eyes” kit. It’s a real miracle worker, with a primer, an Alabaster pink base shadow, a cocoa shimmer contour shadow, and two precision brushes for perfect application. The kit also includes an illustrated, step by step makeup lesson leaflet, to guide you in the application of show-stopping eyes! This kit is the best for defined, contoured, exquisite eyes. 

Benefits “Big Beautiful Eyes” Kit

The body beautiful

On holiday you might be soaking up some sun and exposing more skin than usual, so keeping your skin soft, smooth and supple is vital. The Clarins Body Care Collection has everything you need to exfoliate, moisturise and contour your body with the Tonic Body Treatment Oil. The Collection comes in a beautiful white bag, perfect to pop into your suitcase.

The Clarins Body Care Collection   

So, intrepid and beautiful traveller, make sure you get kitted out with some beauty treats next time you venture out on vacation!

Shout Out to All The Amazing Mothers Around The World!

Let’s take a minute to think about the strongest human bond there is – that between a mother and her child. It is the bond that will see a small woman lifting a car, or running faster than Usain Bolt, if she fears her child is in danger. It is the selfless, special caring and loving that only your Mother will have for you. When all else and everyone else fails, who will still be there for you, encouraging you, helping you, kicking your ass if that is what you need? Yup, it’s Mom!

Honouring your mother on Mother’s Day

So, this Mother’s Day, take some time to show her how much she means to you, to honour her and really make sure she understands just how much you appreciate everything she does for you. You can do this in many ways, by writing her a beautiful letter or card that expresses how you feel, and pampering her. There are many ways to show your Mom how much she means to you, and I have a few ideas too!

A little luxury

I know my Mom loves luxury, and beautiful skin and makeup products, but rarely buys them for herself. So, I use Mother’s Day as my chance to get her a little of the luxury she loves, and would not ordinarily buy for herself. I know she appreciates it, and I love a chance to make sure she is the one who is pampered and spoiled for a change!

I usually start out with some perfume. I love the way my Mom smells, and she is a big fan of trying different perfumes. She’s quite the risk-taker, and doesn’t stick to one perfume, so I would love to get her a sophisticated collection of Marc Jacobs miniatures. The Marc Jacbos Fragrance set  includes Daisy, Dot, Honey, and Daisy Eau So Fresh. Not only is the collection really beautifully packaged, but it gives Mom a range to experiment with, and maybe choose her favourite in time for a full-sized version for Christmas! My favourite of these is Dot, with the interesting and unusual combination of red berry top notes, mid notes of jasmine and base notes of driftwood, divine!

Marc Jacobs Fragrance Set

Get personal

If you want to really make your Mother feel super special, then take time to do something really personal for her. Maybe get your hands on some old photographs and some new ones and put time, energy and effort into making a scrapbook for her, with your photos, quotes, and mementos. Another present that will pull on your Mom’s heartstrings and mean a lot to her would be to make a video, with some still photos, a soundtrack she loves in the background and a recorded message from you. The more personal a gift is, the better, and if your Mom can see that you put time, energy and thought into a gift, she will feel loved and cherished, and that is the whole idea!

Go back in time

I am going to be the first to admit it, I have definitely given my Mother some wrinkles and grey hairs over the years, so she won’t mind at all if I get her Clarins Ultimate Anti-Aging Collection. It includes Double Serum Complete Age Control Concentrate, Extra-Firming Eye Lift Perfecting Serum, Extra-Firming Day Wrinkle Lifting Cream (All Skin Types), Extra-Firming Night Rejuvenating Cream (All Skin Types) and a pretty white cosmetic bag. Now you can’t say that doesn’t pack an anti-aging punch that will keep Mom looking as young as the day she had you! 

Clarins Ultimate Anti-aging Collection

Keep it natural

My Mom loves to keep her skin soft and fragrant, and is a big fan of organic ingredients in anything. She says that our bodies are not meant to have artificial ingredients applied, and she is a wise one! So, I think I will pop some Weleda Wild Rose Body Oil into my bag of Mother’s Day tricks. It can be used as a moisturiser or a massage oil to revitalise the skin, and the senses. 

Weleda Wild Rose Body Oil

Step into her shoes

Helping your mother out is another way to show your appreciation, perhaps my doing all the chores that she usually does, or cooking and serving her a beautiful meal (and cleaning up afterward!) The key is to think about your Mom, what she loves, and what would give her the ultimate warm and fuzzy feeling on Mother’s Day. If you step into your Mom’s shoes in your imagination and go through what her day is like, you will get inspiration as to what will be the ultimate mind-blowing Mother’s Day for her. And then you can justify to your brothers and / or sisters as to why YOU are her favourite child!

So, to all the Moms out there, we salute, love you and appreciate you, on Mother’s Day and every day!