Ireland - Part 2

Day 3 was spent mostly recovering from the sea sickness of day 2, so apart from a nice dinner and a quick wander around a pretty town called Kinsale, there isn't much to report. Day 4 however was one of my favourites, we went to The Rock of Cashel in County Tipperary which was the half way point on our drive from Cork back up towards Dublin. 

The site has a vast amount of history and is breathtakingly beautiful, far too much to try and explain in this blogpost! If you go to one heritage site while you're in Ireland, make sure it's this one! 

After a bit more driving we reached our next destination, The Royal Marine Hotel in Dun Lougahaire, near Dublin. The building was beautiful, both inside and out and the food was fantastic. The rooms weren't as spacious or luxurious as I was hoping but I guess that's what you get being nearer the city. 

Day 5 was spent wandering around Dublin on a self guided tour, we followed the one in Rick Steve's book and it was fantastic. We also went on a live music pub crawl in the evening which was probably the highlight of the entire trip!

Our final day was spent leisurely wandering around Dalkey, taking in more beautiful views and enjoying some lunch al fresco.

I throughly enjoyed the trip which was full of great food, history, natural beauty and of course good company! I'd definitely recommend a trip to anyone, particularly from London as it's just a short 55 minute flight away! 

Ireland - Part 1

I went on holiday to Ireland a few weeks ago and was blown away by how beautiful everything was so I thought I'd share a few of the pictures (taken by my lovely friend Maggie) here on the blog. We arrived at Dublin airport, rented a car and started driving south. 

When we got to a beautiful little town called Midleton in County Cork we stopped off at the Jameson & Son Whiskey Distillery for a tour and lunch.

We then drove a bit further, to Cork and checked into The Maryborough Hotel, which was absolutely stunning. The grounds were beautiful, the rooms were luxurious and the food was delicious. They have a great spa too, we managed to sneak in a couple of hours of relaxation into our packed schedule! 

We woke bright and early the next day and headed to the seaside town of Baltimore.

Hopped onto a boat, 

 and were blown away by the stunning scenery. 

We also spotted some dolphins and seals!

But unfortunately couldn't fully enjoy the experience as the sea was very choppy that day and we got extremely sea sick! By the time the boat trip finished I was glad to have my legs back on dry land! 

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Travel Body & Haircare

In my last post, I mentioned the skincare bits I'm taking away on holiday with me (you can read that one here) so today I thought I'd talk hair and body care! Keep your eyes peeled tomorrow if you fancy finding out what I'm taking makeup wise!

I'm not taking too much away with me body care wise as I'm only going for a week, I'm sticking to the basics! The Boots Extracts Mango Body Wash and Body Butter in miniature. I love the scent of these and the body butter is so moisturising and sinks into the skin really quickly. The Caudalie Divine Oil is a multitasking product that I love using but try not to use everyday. I'd go through it so quick if I did! I'm reserving it for slathering on limbs for evenings out, it gives skin a lovely, healthy, glow. I'm also taking The Body Shop Mango Lip Butter, not a body care product I know, but I couldn't resist including it with all the other mango stuff!

I seem to find haircare a bit more difficult to narrow down! I'm taking the Kerastase Chroma Riche Shampoo and Masque and the Lee Stafford Argan Oil Nourishing Miracle Oil which I spoke more about here. It's great for taming frizz and making everything a bit more managable! I'm also taking their Flat Iron Protection Mist, incase I decided to get the straighteners out, Living Proof Frizz Styling Cream to use pre blow-dry and Umberto Giannini Glam Hair Backcomb in a Bottle in case I need some extra volume!

What body and haircare items do you take away on holiday with you?

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Travel Skincare

I've always been one to stash away any samples or minis I get my hands on so come holiday packing time I can do some serious downsizing. If I didn't do this I'd probably need a whole suitcase just for my beauty stuff! I also find it's a great way to try out new things and decided wether or not I'd want to buy the full size in the future. 

On the cleansing front I'm taking 3 options, some of the Garnier Miceallar Water decanted into a little Muji Bottle, a travel size Vitamin E Cream Cleanser from The Body Shop, which I've used on and off for years and love, and a sample of Clarins Pure Melt Cleansing Gel, which I'm really looking forward to trying. 

For toner I'm taking 2 options, an exfoliating one and a hydrating one, the former is a sample of Clarins Gentle Exfoliator Brightening Toner and the latter is Anatomicals Spray Misty For Me decanted into a Muji Mini Spray Bottle. 

To moisturise eyes I'm taking a sample of Ren Vita Mineral Active 7 Eye Gel which cools, refreshes and moisturises. For the rest of the face I'm taking the Clarins HydraQuench Cream for night and HydraQuench Lotion SPF15 for day. I've had a full size of the cream before and will definitely buy it again, it's such a nourishing but easily absorbed moisturiser.

I'm taking a few serums and treatments, some of which I'm sure I won't get round to using but it will be nice to have them just incase! Clinique Turnaround Concentrate is an overnight exfoliating serum and The Body Shop Vitamin E Serum in Oil is supposed to plump and hydrate. I'll also be taking the Clarins Pure and Radiant Mask to use incase I have any breakouts or if my skin just looks a bit lacklustre. Late nights and long lie-ins on holiday usually mean my eyes can get a bit puffy so I'll be taking the Wei Correcting Eye Treatment Pads, I've never tried anything like these so I'll be interested to see if they work! 

What skincare products do you take away with you?

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