Those of you who know me, know of my intense love for all things beauty. I’ve been meaning to start the Beauty section on my blog for ages… so here goes! I received an invite to the blogger preview for Fenwick Beauty Week which runs from Saturday 7th May – Sunday 15th May, this was pretty exciting to me. Fenwick Beauty Hall is my temple. Over the years I’ve spent countless hours perusing the beauty counters, swatching shades of lipstick on my hand (usually red), having a spritz of new fragrances and spending a small fortune on pretty things. I loved it before the refurbishment and now… well you’ve seen it, it’s wonderful. A twitter friend (and fellow beauty junkie) recently visited Newcastle and congratulated me (as a resident of the city) on how good the Beauty Hall is, special shout-outs from her for the Tom Ford and Charlotte Tilbury counters!

I was excited/nervous about turning up on my own, but luckily did know a few people going and I was looking forward to meeting some bloggers I’d not met before so was mainly excited. We gathered in Mason + Rye, upon arrival we were greeted with prosecco and tables full of pretty strawberry tarts and shimmery macarons. Of course we all took pics before anyone got stuck in with the little sweet treats, good bloggers! Fenwick Beauty Buyer, Grace Ruthven, gave us a little introductory talk to outline what would happen during the evening’s event and also  about Beauty Week (more about this further down ).

Once Grace had finished her introductory talk, we were free to pick two complimentary beauty treatments from two different beauty houses. The idea was that each of the houses would showcase their new products and the experts would be on hand to give you hints and tips. I picked a manicure at Nails Inc (I’m never without polish on my nails!) and a make-up demo at Bobbi Brown. We’d been given a list of which beauty houses and treatments would be available on the night, so it was just a case of picking up an appointment card for the two you most fancied! There were limited appointments and the cards were on a first come first served basis. To be honest, I would have been super happy with ANY of the available treatments, they all sounded so good!

My nail appointment was at 6 and make-up demo was at 7, so off I went to the nail bar!

Lovely Natasha at Nails Inc told me I could pick between a full manicure or a gel manicure. I went for the gel, as I love the thick glossy finish and the fact it lasts 2-3 weeks. Anyone who knows me will testify that I can’t be without painted nails, and chipping is a big no-no, so gel was the perfect choice. Natasha really sorted out my cuticles and shaped my nails perfectly and we had a chat about the latest collection of shades “Coconut Brights”, which have added coconut water for hydration. I didn’t pick one of these 4 new shades and after some gentle persuasion from Natasha, Nadia and fellow blogger Laura, I went with Queens Gardens instead of a pinky nude shade (I didn’t get the name of it). I made the right choice, I love Queens Gardens shade loads, it’s the perfect pop of colour for Summer! It’s on my list to buy next week.  As part of the manicure, Natasha applied the Superfood Repair Oil which felt really nourishing. It contains sweet almond, argan and rose hip oils. This is also going on my list.

We had a great time at the nail bar, chatting and laughing… it got personal pretty quickly, but that’s as much as I’ll divulge 😉 Thank you Natasha for this gorgeous manicure!

My nails were done by 7pm, which meant it was time for my appointment at Bobbi Brown. When I got there I saw I was sharing the session with Suzy from Suzy Hearts Beauty. I’ve followed Suzy on Instagram and Twitter for a while so it was lovely to put a face to the name! At the Bobbi Brown counter, artist Kate was showing us how to create the perfect Summer look using the new ‘Beach Nudes’ collection, inspired by the perfect sun-kissed glow. I was instantly drawn to the eye palettes. In the collection there are three eye palettes to choose from, 3 new summer lip shades and also bronzing powders. Find out more about the collection by clicking here. 

Suzy was the model for the demo, so Kate was applying makeup and explaining what she was doing as she went along, she was also telling us about when she’d met Bobbi Brown (and my personal beauty guru, Sali Hughes). The soft bronze look Kate created on Suzy was gorgeous. I wish I’d taken more photos of the products but I was listening and watching intently! I’d forgotten all about the gel eye liner that Bobbi Brown have, I used to wear this years ago but moved away from it and starting using a liquid liner for quickness.

Once Suzy’s look was complete, Kate offered to do my eyes using the limited edition Sunkissed Gold Eye Palette. The 4 shades in the palette are lovely, there’s one light, matte shade to be used all over the lid, two medium shimmer-sparkly shades and one dark matte liner shade. Kate applied all of these to me, using the dark shade to line my lids. Thank you Kate!

I applied the Rich Lip Colour in shade Desert Rose to finish off the look – love this lipstick shade… did you guess it’s also going on my list?

In terms of the eye palette, I love the shimmer and light gold colour swept along my lids.  (I took the photos below at about 9pm, my base had been applied at 7.30am that morning and I touched up my blusher before heading to the event!)

Fenwick really know how to host an event, we were really spoilt! At the end of the event, after having such a lovely time at the counters, we were handed not one but TWO goody bags.

I can’t wait to get stuck into these! The Chanel Rouge Coco Stylo is gorgeous and really easy to wear, I had a quick try of it obv. These beautiful little lip treats have the intensity of a lipstick, the shine of a lipgloss and the comfort of a balm. I got shade 202 – Conte, which is a lovely soft pink. I’ll be sure to share a pic on my Instagram soon!

I realise this post is pretty long so let’s get to the important part… how YOU can take part in Fenwick Beauty Week, starting this Saturday (the 7th) and running until Sunday 15th May!

Masterclasses
There will be masterclasses taking place throughout Beauty Week. For a list of of the demos taking place along with times and dates, click here: Fenwick Beauty Week Masterclasses. If you’re interested in taking any of the masterclasses, you can book by popping to the counter in person, by emailing newcastle.beauty@fenwick.co.uk or by calling the Beauty Hall Manager on 0191 232 5100.

Fenwick Beauty Bag
When you spend £75 or more in the Beauty Hall during Beauty Week, you will receive this lovely gift! The beauty bag is exclusive to Fenwick. For a list of the beauty products in the bag, click here. Image provided by Fenwick. 

Thanks again to Fenwick for their generosity and for hosting. I’m excited for the start of Beauty Week, I’ve started writing a list of things I want to get … what is on your list?

Hope you’ve enjoyed this post!