Looking for fun activities or the best beauty products to try this weekend? Right this way...
Now that Halloween’s over, thoughts of fancy dress, monster makeup and pumpkins have been traded in for ones of fireworks, Christmas and party season. And to help provide some timely inspiration, we’ve devised our hit list of the best beauty treatments to book in for, the best products to buy and the most fun activities to try to help get you in the mood.
From the new blowdry that’s set to blow the competition away to the essential beauty-inspired Christmas countdown; fun, free fitness to a healthy and delicious Saturday night curry recipe, here’s what’s on the Glossy Posse’s Weekend Wishlist this week...
The new anti-blowdry that’s going to be huge...
The huge, over-styled blowdries of the past, look set to be swapped for a more modern interpretation courtesy of the ‘Low Blow’ created by John Frieda. Undone, relaxed and effortlessly cool, this beauty treatment is all about the ‘perfectly imperfect’ - a natural, lived-in look that swaps building height at the roots and bounce at the ends for movement and airy loose layered tips. We’re obsessed.
The Low Blow is available at John Frieda salons from £30.
MORE GLOSS: 10 of the best celebrity long hairstyles that we can’t wait to try
Clarins’ countdown to Christmas...
We’re in the midst of a beauty Advent calendar boom at the moment with our usual go-to Lindt chocolate varieties being given some serious competition by some of beauty’s biggest brands and department stores. If a party season of late nights, early mornings and a round (or three) of mulled wine awaits you, Clarins' Advent calendar could prove to be the perfect Christmas countdown essential for keeping skin looking as good at the end of December as it did at the beginning. Containing 24 of Clarins’ bestselling and iconic products from cleansers to lip balms, eye creams to makeup and much-more, it’s the gift before Christmas that just keeps on giving if you ask us.
The Clarins Advent Calendar is £60 and is available to buy online here .
MORE GLOSS: How to not get run-down in the run up to Christmas
Free (and fun) fitness at Virgin Active...
In our experience when it comes to exercise, find something you love doing and you’re much more likely to stick with it. If you’ve found yourself in a bit of a fitness rut as of late (and who could blame you, the darker evenings and rainier weather are not conducive conditions for swapping your boots for trainers), then pop by Virgin Active this Saturday between 10am - 6pm to try their latest class, Pulse, FOR FREE.
Incorporating a mixture of club anthems, neon glow sticks and disco lights, the 60-minute class provides the perfect prep for your Saturday night out. Fun and fast-paced with a great playlist to get you in the party mood, Virgin Active clubs in London (Walbrook, Barbican, Strand) and Manchester (Salford Quays) will be offering back-to-back sessions taking place every two hours, playing host to up to 800 people to try out Virgin Active’s latest studio innovation.
Party-goers are welcome to enjoy the club facilities for the whole day, before and after their class and are free to make use of the state-of-the-art gym floor equipment and relax in the pool and spa too (club-dependant).
To sign up, simply take a screenshot of the day pass that’s been posted on Twitter ( @VirginActiveUK ) or Facebook ( www.facebook.com/virginactiveuk ) and show a print-out or the image on your mobile phone at the club reception to take part.
MORE GLOSS: Hate exercise? These are the fitness motivation tips you need to read
Firework-inspired beauty...
If you’re unable to get tickets for the fireworks this weekend, not to fret, just let your makeup do the talking instead with a little help from Bobbi Brown’s latest launch.
Her new range of Sequin Eye Shadows inspired by starry skies makes for the perfect match for the weekend's festivities, thanks to their eye-catching high shimmer multi-dimensional finish and intergalactic names (think ‘Comet,’ ‘Constellation,’ ‘Moon Rock’ and ‘Star Beam’). With great colour payoff and the most beautiful of velvety smooth textures, when it comes to makeup to mimic the sparkle-filled skylines of fireworks weekend, these new eyeshadows are pretty hard to beat.
Each Bobbi Brown Sequin Eye Shadow is £25 and is available to buy online here .
A healthy Saturday night curry recipe...
Fancy a Saturday night takeaway without the grease? This weekend, swap your usual for this deliciously healthy lamb, coconut and mango pilau recipe from nutritional therapist, author and co-founder of Food-Grown™ supplement brand Wild Nutrition , Henrietta Norton ...
Lamb, Coconut and Mango Pilau
Prep time 15 minutes
Cooking time 1 hour 40 minutes
Serves 2
Ingredients
200g diced lamb neck fillet, grass-fed is best
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 large white onion, peeled and sliced
1 clove garlic, peeled and sliced
2 inches ginger, peeled and grated
1 large chilli, finely chopped
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
Pinch of saffron
4 cardamom pods, squashed
400mls lamb or chicken stock
200ml carton of coconut milk
200g washed brown rice
To serve
1 large ripe mango, peeled and diced
Juice and zest 1 lime
½ red chilli, chopped
30g chopped coriander
Method
1. Preheat oven to fan 180°C.
2. Place a large casserole pan on the stove and turn the heat up high. Add the oil and when hot, add the lamb. Seal the lamb in the oil until golden on all sides. This will take about 5-6 minutes.
3. Once browned, remove the lamb from the pan and add in the onions. Cook for 4-5 minutes until they start to colour slightly, then add the garlic, ginger and all the spices. Cook for a further few minutes before adding back in the lamb, along with the stock and the coconut milk. Simmer for 1 hour until the meat is tender. This can either be done on top of the stove or in the oven.
4. After the 1 hour is up, you can add your washed rice. Stir it around well in the lamb mix, replace the lid and cook for a further 30 minutes or until the rice is lovely and tender.
4. While your pilau is cooking, you can make your mango salad by mixing the chopped mango with the chilli, coriander, the lime juice and zest.
5. Serve the pilau straight from the pot with the mango salsa on top.
Have a great weekend!
Team GTG x
Follow us @getthegloss and Ayesha @Ayesha_Muttu .
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