YUMMY LUNCHTIME SPENT AT RIVER COTTAGE!!

Recently my mother and I spent our lunchtime at our local River Cottage Canteen (https://www.rivercottage.net) the baby of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. I'm not sure if anyone remembers 'River Cottage' a television series that featured on Channel 4 in 2004 until 2012. In the programme Hugh focused on setting up River Cottage HQ in Dorset and the importance of locally sourced organic ingredients from meat, fish, veg, dairy and eggs. Since then the business has grown and the kitchen offers canteen locations in: Axminster, Bristol and Winchester. Furthermore, cookery courses, dining events, private dining and venue hire are offered under the "River Cottage" umbrella. On Tuesday we set off to the canteen that's situated in Winchester. At lunchtime they offer a 2 course lunch for £11.95, but us being the greedy guts we are didn't stick to the set lunchtime menu and ordered from the main menu. 

On arrival we ordered some drinks from the lovely bar they have (pictured above). I had a G&T from locally distilled gin. It was delicious. We were then taken to our table where we ordered a meat sharer that included: sourdough bread, pickled apple, chorizo sausages and a lovely array of cured meats. ALL LOCALLY SOURCED with the furthest ingredient coming from Devon (https://pipersfarm.com) 

As you can see, it was super yummy and not too filling so we had room for our main meal. 

The main menu, like any niche restaurant, had only a few hand picked meals due to seasonal pressures. Nevertheless the options to chose from were still incredible. The had a main, lunchtime and a specials menu. On the day I had the venison ragu macaroni.  The main ingredients being venison, macaroni pasta, cauliflower and leeks. My mother had a chicken breast with pesto, rocket and greens. Alongside we shared some chunky chips seasoned with thyme, salt and pepper. Additionally, we had a side of apple, pear and fennel salad. All the food was exquisite. 

Lastly, was desert. My goodness it was amazing. At this point I was truly stuffed but couldn't leave without trying something from their desert menu. My mother and I had the sticky toffee parsnip pudding to share with butterscotch and ice cream. I know what you're thinking, because I was thinking the same thing. However, the parsnips substitute the dates which are in a traditional sticky toffee pudding. If you have a sweet tooth, this is the pudding for you. It was the icing on an incredible meal. 

All together, including drinks this lunch date came too a grand total of £74.99, plus an extra £20 for a cook book that I bought whilst I was there- Love Your Leftovers https://www.rivercottage.net/news/love-your-leftovers-out-now

Would definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone in the south west region who has an interest in locally sourced organic ingredients. 

*not sponsored*

MY SPONTANEOUS CAUDALIE FACIAL!

As many of you are probably aware of, I'm a vet student studying at The Royal Veterinary College in London. Therefore, as part of my degree I have to do 2 weeks of compulsory work on a sheep farm during their lambing season. Needless to say the whole experience completely broke me and I felt compelled to book a spontaneous afternoon at a local spa. I decide to go to The Captains Club Spa ( https://www.captainsclubhotel.com/spa/ ) as I've never tried their facilities before AND because they now use all Caudalie products in their treatments. I love using a spa where I know the brand that they carry. 

In terms of the spa's facilities- they have a few sun beds, a hydrotherapy pool, jacuzzi (which isn't hot enough I must add) and a sauna. Not exactly the size of spa I'm used too but it's sufficient if you have a few treatments booked in. I didn't mind on this occasion.

The treatments I received were:

• the divine body massage (55 mins for £70)- "This treatment incorporates the signature Caudalie massage, featuring the Award-winning Divine Oil. Indulge in the floral, sun-kissed fragrance of Divine oil, while compression techniques gently sooth tension and re-boost your energy. Your skin will be luxuriously softened, moisturised and wrapped in a delicate fragrance blend of roses, grapefruit, pink pepper, vanilla, cedar and white musk."
• Vinosource hydrating & nourishing facial (55 mins for £70)- "A skin-renewing treatment to deeply moisturise the skin. This treatment starts with a gentle cleansing of the skin and exfoliation. A massage with fresh grapes followed by a recovery essential oil massage soothes dryness, the application of an intensely moisturising mask, and our Vinosource products restore moisture levels for a healthy, glowing appearance."

Both the massage and facial were relaxing (to the point where I could feel myself falling asleep" and considering they were "in spa" treatments which I can find to be gimmicky sometimes, specifically facials, I was pleasantly surprised. The Caudalie divine oil rehydrated my flaky skin and the scent wasn't too over bearing. The facial literally saved my skin. The beautician analysed my skin and put me in the dry category, I'm usually an oily-combo girl however the lack of skincare and being out 17 hours a day did take a toll on me so I did agree with her. 

Products used in the facial included: NOT IN ORDER

• micellar cleansing water (£15)
• instant foaming cleanser (£15)
• gentle cleansing milk (£15)
• gentle buffing cream (£20)
• grape water (£11)
• beauty elixir (£12)
• moisturising mask (£22)
• SOS thirst quenching serum (£29)
• moisturising mattifying fluid (£23)
• intense moisture rescue cream (£23)
• hand and nail cream (£12)

The facial left me with that perfect glow, and the next day my breakouts and redness had healed and I was left with an even skin tone. Considering it was my first proper facial I don't think it went too badly! If it were down to my preferences I'd of swapped out the buffing cream and used the glycolic peel instead, but having said that the physical exfoliator was very mild. I see the importance of going to get a facial every 4-5 weeks though and shall continue to get them! 

MINI REVIEW- YOUR GOOD SKIN "BALANCING SKIN CONCENTRATE"

Before I give my two sense about the brand here if some information that I've taken from their website:

"Your Good Skin is a brand new skincare range developed by a team of leading dermatologists to restore your skin’s natural balance. Powered by a unique antioxidant complex of Green Tea and Vitamin C, it gently works to visibly improve the health of your skin in just 28 days of its natural cycle. And by health we mean oiliness, dryness, texture, tone and radiance. Everyday concerns that can affect us all. Your Good Skin then goes on to maintain this healthy appearance for the long term, so your skin keeps up as you move through life.

But what really sets Your Good Skin apart is that it was co-created by a community of thousands of women. Women just like you, who share the same skincare issues and worries. And who want products that really work for them whatever their age, colour or skin type.

Over two years, they openly shared their stories and experiences with us, and each other, of how their skin behaved. Not just on the good days, but on the bad days too. They told us what they liked and what they didn’t and it was this constant conversation that helped shape the Your Good Skin brand so that our team of expert dermatologists could create the perfect range of skincare that answered the needs of real women with real concerns."

Products from the brand are available online @ https://www.yourgoodskin.com/uk or its available exclusively @ Boots (instore and online). I think the brand is in most large boots retailers, down the skincare aisle. If you follow me on instagram (thebeautygodzilla) you will also know that I picked up the Blemish Clearing Anti-Blemish Base Lotion however thats a review for another time. 

I've been using this every night since I bought it back in January.  The advise is to "dispense two pumps into the palm of your hand. Dot across your cheeks, chin & forehead & gently blend together" and to do this morning and evening. However, due to my current routine I just use it nightly. 

This treatment aims to "restores & maintains skin's natural balance. Designed to improve the 5 key signs of healthy looking skin; skin texture, skin tone evenness, radiance, moisture levels & oiliness" . I'm about 2/3 of the way through using this product so feel like i've given it enough time in order to give a thorough review. 

Lets start with the packaging. The product is housed in an air tight plastic pump dispenser with a view finder down the side of the bottle. So you can a) see how much product you have left b) automatically get every last drop of the serum out. Its slightly bulky to travel around with but its an A* from me. 

The juice inside is pretty good too. Ingredients include: Bisabolol, Green tea , Japanese Lily Turf, Lipochroman, Sphinganine, Vitamin C (Ascorbyl glucoside) and Vitamin E all which has helped hydrate, calm and even out my skin tone. My skin was really flaky, rough and inflamed before I used this serum, but now I feel more confident without wearing make up knowing that my pigmentation issues are being addressed. Don't get me wrong- this is not an over night fix. You need to be committed to this product in order to see results, and I'm glad I have. It has helped my skin massively and I feel like this is the healthiest it has been in a long time.   I personally would class this as a "serum" but it's not a fluid watery texture. This serum is a white cream, and typically goes on 2nd to last in my night time routine (just before my thicker occlusive hydrating cream). Everything about this product ticks all the boxes...apart from the inclusion of dimethicone which typically gives this serum a silicone finish. It hasn't caused any of my products to pilli however it's just something people should be aware of when thinking about purchasing this. 

I've really enjoyed using this and for £12 it's a very affordable serum, and is something I would repurchase. However, I feel like the effect of this serum has plateaued. Therefore, once i've finished this bottle I'm going to take a break from this product and try something new. I've got my eye on another serum to tackle my pigmentation but I'm trying to not hoard skincare items. Has anyone else tried this? What did you think? Or will you go and pick this up for yourself?