Haven’t been to Johannesburg in a very long time, so I thought I should nip over to visit family and get some much needed beauty essentials, check out what’s new in Zara and H&M, plus a change of scenery was welcome.

Lusaka to Jo’burg is 2 hours by air and flights are an eye watering £281 upwards depending on the day or you could go on a 24 hour bus ride for £42, not sure what the fuel cost would be if you decided to drive yourself but either way as long as you get there. First order of business before starting off, coffee.

Arrived on a hot day and got sun burnt #southernhemisphereproblems. I was just going to one place, Sandton City Mall, where I could get everything on my list no hassle of moving from place to place just shop to shop.

EYES

My eyes have decided to have bags of their own and I really needed to combat that with the collagen eye masks. I usually put them in the freezer for 20 minutes, so I get that cooling effect while combating that walking dead look (RIP Carl). Also restocked on my trusted Rimmel black mascara and was cornered into buying blue liquid liner.

FACE

Garnier skin active charcoal scrub and mask which has salicylic acid in it has really helped clear my skin, had to go to a different location to find this one but it is worth it. I also popped into Kiehls haven’t ever tried their stuff but all the Youtubers are always raving about the brand, so I got a sample face scrub that is sulphate free and will see how I get on with that. For makeup remover I use Garner Micellar Cleansing Water because with this a little goes along way.

FOOD

When it came to food I wasn’t looking for anything fancy just wanted ribs which I always look forward to eating from Spur Steak Ranch, because I find them so tasty and was not disappointed. There were other things that I ate but this is just what I was looking forward to the most, finger licking.

FRAGRANCE

I opted for something elegant and not too overpowering but smells like Chanel chance by fine fragrance. Does what it is supposed to do in the moment, smells great but sadly doesn’t last long.

HAIR

My hair has been through a lot over the last year and is only just steadily growing back now after falling off, but the one constant product that I do not react to has to be the sulphate free shampoo and conditioner by Ogx which has been my favourite for the last couple of years because it smells so divine. I couldn’t find my preference cherry blossom so settled for kukui oil and keratin oil which are equally as nice but just love the cherry. Would have loved to try out the limited-edition ones seen on Instagram but hey ho.

MAKEUP

The Lancome Teint Idole foundation has been a favourite of mine since I got given a sample from John Lewis. Unfortunately there was nothing in my shade and couldn’t order it so opted for the Revlon Colorstay Fond de Teint in Caramel. Also restocked on my Maybelline dream matte mousse foundation for those hot days when you just want something lightweight on which it delivers.

SKIN

Decided to try out the Sanex shower gel for sensitive skin for something different other than E45 just to see how it goes.

I was glad to complete my shopping list and found what I was looking for overall. I found that there were not many bargains or sales on most things, except for the shampoo and conditioner, which came to a pricy beauty essential top up but at least I am sorted for the coming months until next time or maybe will just order from Amazon were possible.

Happy Holidays x