Saturday, March 8, 2014

Dubai Duty Free haul


So regular readers may know that with my day job I have responsibility for all of the clients in Egypt and I travel there every 3 weeks for five days at a time.

I'm a self confessed workaholic-I am either on 100% full speed and can't sit still, needing to keep my mind occupied all the time or I am running at 0% and just want to sleep for days.

My last two trips to Cairo have been particularly manic and this Thursday I was unbelievably tired.  That's the only way I can justify what I did which was lose my wallet on Thursday.

I had finished all my meetings and stopped at a hotel on the way to the airport to grab something to eat.  When I came to pay I was panic striken to discover I couldn't find my wallet which had my corporate credit card, my Emirates ID card and my e-gate card which is a fast track card that Dubai residents use to entry the country quickly at immigration.

I wasn't worried about anything except for my corporate card because I was so worried it would be used fraudulently.  Luckily, I am well known in the hotel I was having supper in because I was halfway through a pizza with no way to pay for it!

I realised I must have left it in another hotel I had been in earlier in the day-it was the only option unless it had fallen out of my bag.  The hotel I was in rang the other hotel and they said nothing had been found.  I was so upset I burst into tears and my poor driver didn't know what to do with himself.

If you have ever been to Cairo you will know that the traffic is unbelievably crazy 24 hours a day.  My driver and I debated going back to the other hotel to look for it and set off, but soon realised I had no chance of getting there and getting to the airport on time to catch my flight back to Dubai.  I couldn't believe I had been so careless.

I then burst into tears again when I realised I couldn't even tip Mohamed my driver-Mohamed has been driving for me for almost 3 years now in Cairo and is worth his weight in gold.  He often works 18 hours a day driving me around Cairo and still comes back smiling the next day.

I have always tipped him generously because wages are low in Cairo and with the downturn in tourism, holiday makers tipping has dropped significantly.  I know my tips make a difference so there I was, a sniffling mess saying 'I'm so sorry' to poor Mohamed.

After dropping me at the airport Mohamed went back to the hotel I thought I had left it in and by some miracle they had found my wallet and the hotel duty manager has given it to Mohamed for him to give it to me when I go back in a couple of weeks.  When he called me and told me he had it the relief was immense.

But there's more.  When I got back to Dubai yesterday I realised I had left my mini iPad charging in my hotel room.  I am more than 100% sure I left it there and I know exactly where it was.  I contacted the hotel and they are adamant it isn't there but I know it was.  It leads me to the very sad conclusion that it has been stolen internally by one of the staff who went into my room after I left.  I have asked the hotel to check again and am waiting to hear back.

Mike would hit the roof if he knew that in one day I lost my wallet and left my iPad in the hotel room so I will be going to replace the iPad tomorrow before he realises how stupid I have been.

However, what you're really here for is to see what I picked up at Dubai airport before I flew out to Cairo so here it is.


I've been reading about the new London Rain collection for a while now so was excited to see them at the airport.  I definitely didn't need any more perfume but I guess hauling isn't about needing-it's about wanting!

Rain and Angelica is quite an aquatic, crisp, fresh fragrance which I really like.  The shop assistant was fab and we had a good discussion about fragrance combining and this fragrance goes well with any of the citrus scents from Jo Malone.  I like it mixed with Earl Gray and Cucumber.

I was drawn to Wisteria and Violet because my niece is called Violet!   This one is more flowery but still quite light.  This one is beautiful when layered with Peony and Blush Suede or Nectarine Blossom and Honey.

To be honest I will be asking my mum if she would like one of them when she comes to Dubai next week because they are massive bottles and I'll never get through them.  But they look very pretty on the dressing table!


Next up, and enabled by the beautiful Sarah at And Beauty Or Something, I picked up this Clarins cleanser which she blogged about here.  Sarah is a fairly new blogger whose blog I started reading after she left a comment on one of my posts and I absolutely adore it.  I love her style of writing and the blog layout is clean and fresh.  She's super lovely too.

Clarins just can't do wrong by me at the moment.  I am loving using their eye make up remover, cleanser and facial oil every day at the moment so I am excited to try this reformulated cream cleanser.


I stocked up on some MAC brushes and these are all repurchases.  I picked up another 208 brush which I use to fill my eyebrows with along with MAC Omega eyeshadow which is the perfect shade for me.  The small, stiff head of the 208 means precise application is easy.

I also picked up two more 168 brushes which are perfect for applying blush.  I already have two of these brushes but I seem to have misplaced one of them.  They have a slightly angled head and work really well with very pigmented blushes as they allow for a light hand.  They also wash up really well with baby shampoo.


Finally I picked up two more of the new YSL Gloss Volupte's.  I love the formula of these gloss, the brush fits nicely to the lips and they're not sticky at all.  They last a long time on the lips and aren't drying.

At the moment I am loving that very high shine, wet look with gloss.  That kind of 'I've been sucking a lollipop' glassy look.

Shade 204 Corail Trapeze is perfect for this look.  I saw these glosses on Memoiselle which is one of my all time favourite blogs, written by the always adorable Meryl and Monica.  They are so friendly and have the most beautiful blog and instagram.

As soon as I saw the shade 206 on their blog I ran out and bought it and reviewed here.  It's a beautiful deep rose pink.

Corail Trapeze is going to get a LOT of love from me this summer as it is a beautiful, coral infused gloss-light and glossy.  As you can see the colour is fairly sheer and my natural lip freckles shown through along my lip line but I adore it!!

#3 Rose Fusion has a similar underlying base colour but is shot with a lot of golden glitter.  It looks gorgeous on but the problem with this shade is it is definitely too glittery for daytime and the glitter really sticks to the lips-it's like it's welded on.

I love the formula though so I want to find another one with the similar glass like shine to it as Corail Trapeze.

I picked up one more Rouge Volupte Shine in the shade 4 Rouge in Danger to add to my collection.
This is a true strawberry red colour with a slight blue undertone (instant teeth whitening).

The 'shine' version of the YSL Rouge Volupte range has a glossy, high shine but less opaque finish to it than the standard Rouge Volupte's but as you can see 'Rouge in Danger' is very pigmented from my swatch below.  I really like the colour but the formula has a tendency to slide so a lip liner is essential.  The packaging....possibly the most beautifully packaged lipsticks on the market.




I've been on a little spending spree over the past week so will soon have another haul post-but I am going to wait until it all arrives before sharing my spree!


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25 comments

  1. Mohamed is indeed a star bless him! I do own Pink in Paris-it's lovely xx

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  2. You're welcome-always love our interactions!! Jo Malone is indeed addictive looking at the amount of bottles on my dresser! xx

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  3. Mohammed sounds like an absolute BABE! Hopefully you get a bit of down time soon! You make me want to go makeup brush shopping.. I've had my eye on the MAC blush brush for far too long! xx

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  4. That's so sweet that you think that when buying perfume! So glad the iPad has been found now xxxxxxx

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  5. Wow that cab driver sounds like a wonderful person! What a crazy time for you!! Anyway, really lovely haul! Those YSL lippies look amazing! :)

    www.lilting-grace.blogspot.com

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  6. Crazy story! But oh my gosh, you can get Jo Malone at Duty Free?! I need to make a trip haha.

    Belle ♥
    Mascara & Maltesers

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  7. Charlotte MacDonald-GauntAugust 30, 2014 at 9:48 PM

    What an amazing haul - so many gorgeous things :o) Xx

    Makeup by Candlelight

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  8. Stacey, glad at least you got your wallet back. I already like your driver Mohammed, sounds like a gem!


    The Rouge volupte shine looks gorgeous :D Have you tried the shade "Pink in Paris"?

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  9. It's funny actually Vanessa because often when I am buying scents I think of you because I remember you telling me that heavy scents give you migraines and I often think 'oh that would definitely give Vanessa a migraine' lol!

    I'm starting to get really angry at the hotel now over my ipad-losing my wallet in the other hotel was stupid and I thought it would be gone forever as I left it in an open and public place. With the ipad, as soon as I realised I had left it it was like 'oh why haven't the hotel rang me to say I left it?'. I've contacted them and can't believe they are saying it's not there. I know I left it in the room, I have told them where as well! I want to speak to the GM tomorrow if he will take my call



    If I have to replace it I have to replace it-I know it's my fault I left it in the room. It's more the trust issue and the security issue of having my email accounts and my personal photos etc on the ipad that is more upsetting :(((

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  10. Aww babe it's so lovely of you to mention our blog here :) I am glad that I found your instagram page and we've been chit chatting for a while ;) So sorry to hear what happened to you but I hope your shopping in Dubai airport has helped you to feel much better.

    I can't wait to sniff those Jo Malone and decide which one to pick.. arggh Jo malone is addictive :D

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  11. Darling I was so sad to read your post, I can imagine how upset you must have been. Mohamed sounds lovely.


    Rain and Angelica sounds wonderful, I can only stand light crisp scents, anything too heavy gives me a migraine (rubbish). If only Luton had decent duty free, I'd be all over it next week. xxx

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  12. Hi Helene, I have managed using iCloud to put a passcode on it (should have had one in the first place) and have changed all my passwords on my email accounts. The find my ipad app isn't working meaning no one has logged onto wifi I guess-it's just knowing where it is now that's frustrating.

    Clarins skincare rocks honestly Helene!
    xxx

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  13. I think I was just tired and forgetful Ash-but it's not like me to be honest. Mohamed is the best!

    I'm going to ring the hotel General Manager tomorrow as they're just completely ignoring me now. It's a very good chain and I know a million percent it was left in the room so it's very frustrating it can't be located :((

    The rest is coming soooooooon xxxx

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  14. I know-of the two things I lost I would have expected to get my ipad back as I know I left it in my room in the hotel. If the wallet was lost forever I wouldn't be surprised-I left it in a cafe where anyone could have taken it-but that's been handed in with everything in it!!

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  15. Hi Jenn! I know there are people going through much worse things so I know in the scheme of things it's no big deal but I was just so upset at the time worrying about someone going to town with my company credit card! Mohamed is an absolute star you're right-I couldn't do without him in Cairo xx

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  16. Aww I'm so sorry to hear about all the problems! Glad you at least found your cards back. I hope Mike doesn't stalk you enough to find out about the iPad. I'd love to sniff the new Jo Malones!

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  17. No, Mike has zero interest in my blog or my twitter or instagram. Probably a good thing. I leave James to do the stalking and I've already told him lol! xxx

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  18. what a story! i'd hate to be in your situation but mohammed was a star!

    and hurray for duty free hauls! those are the best kinds.

    Jenn
    A Beautiful Zen

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  19. Wow that's some crazy stuff that happened!!! Good thing Mohammed found your wallet and is a definite angel! That hotel though... sneaky horrible goings on there... Otherwise, great haul! Can't wait to see the rest, lol!

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  20. OMGosh Stacey! So sorry this happened to you, you must have felt horrible! Huge hug to you! I'm hoping that whoever took your Mini, it breaks on them so they won't enjoy it!


    Great purchases as usual, can't wait to know what you think of this Clarins cleanser, I still haven't goten one, always going for makeup instead! :(

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  21. Oh wow what a haul, I will own a Jo Malone one day! I cant believe someone would steal your ipad that is so unfair, rude and annoying x
    www.beautyqueenuk.co.uk

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  22. Haha you can't beat make up brush shopping! Mohamed is a little star bless him xxx

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  23. Hi Louise! Yes I was SO lucky and so lucky Mohamed went and found it for me xx

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  24. Hi Belle! They do indeed-stock up!! xx

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  25. Thank you Charlotte xxxx

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