I am very lucky to say that in my time - my time? Oh hey, I'm Elle and I'm 80 years old... - I have been to quite a lot of blogging events now. I love them. You get to meet incredible brands (and if you're like me, become a total fangirl #Cool). Discover new launches and more often than not, take some of them away with you (i.e prepare for me to totally lose my sh*t over receiving some beauty products for free). And the best part? Meeting other completely like minded bloggers/PR's, chatting for hours about all things beauty and blogging, and in my case... coming away with some great friends in the process.
If Carlsberg did soppy blogger of the year awards...
Moving on though - because I am aware that I made a resolution for 2015 to not bore you to death (and have significantly failed in every single blog post thus far) - to the event in question today. I was very excited to be invited along by Origins to check out their revamped counter in John Lewis on Oxford Street, have a tour of their incredible new stand, try out some new products, shortly followed by cocktails and canapes in the beautiful Edition hotel.
Now, I love a good ramble, but I also love my readers* - *or should I say, reader. Mum, that'll be you! - so I think we should quickly get the boring bits out the way; have a little look at my boring/dull/lifeless/"ain't nobody got time for any other colour in their wardrobe but black" outfit and makeup look.. and then we can get on to the exciting part of having a nosey around the Origins counter.
Sound like a plan to you? Great, let's do it.
Jacket - H&M (old but very similar
here) / Faux leather trousers - River Island / Shirt - H&M (old, similar
and cheaper here) / Incredible Aquazzura Dupes -
New Look
Despite popular opinion, I am not being sponsored to dress like I'm going to a funeral (which is a shame because if I was, I could've gone crazy and bought the whole Origins counter) I just found myself with no time - story of my life - and had to get ready quick, so black, simple and well cut pieces were the way forward. On to the good bit, Origins' incredible new counter at John Lewis.
One thing to note about Origins, is that they have a hell of a lot of products. Now, for skincare addicts like me, this is amazing news (give me all the products, please and thank you), but for skincare newbies, this could potentially be quite overwhelming. Which is why the whole concept of the new counter is amazing, as it is designed to enhance ease of navigation, it makes it so easy to find the right product for you. So if you want to take your time exploring the new "wall" of products - not only do you gain such an interesting insight into where their unique ingredients are sourced, but also the journey from plant to formula and the rigorous testing that goes into making such incredible products - you also get to sample these along the way too.
If you are someone that needs a little helping hand however in finding the right product for you, Origins' guides are also on hand to give you a personal consultation. You little charmers Origins, you...
On to two aspects which are quite easily my favourite part of the Origins counter. The freebies (#TightArseSays) No, in all honesty, whilst I am easily keeping Primark going by my purchases alone, skincare is the one area that I don't scrimp on. But it's tough to splash out on products when you have no idea if they're actually going to work for you. Enter my second home, my bae, my life-saver Origins' Sample bar...
... first of all, can we just take a moment to appreciate the Pinterest-worthy jar packaging? I think all of us lucky ladies invited to the event had a little moment for those. Secondly, despite my terriblly unfunny jokes, I do think this a life saver as it allows you to try the product over the space of 5days before buying, and potentially saving yourself a lot of money. You go Glen Coco Origins!
Next up, the mini facial. Did you know that you can get a free mini facial where you can relax, try new products and get a personalised skincare consultation? - Well, they do now dumbass... - You do now. So if you're around Oxford Street with some spare time, I highly recommend heading in for a little pamper. *legs it off to Oxford Street for all the samples and facials*
Oh, and did I mention that they also gift wrap for free too? #FanGirlOfTheYearAlert
I'm sure I've probably missed out some vital information here, but I'm so aware of the fact that I've rambled into 2017 anyway, so I'm going to leave that there. Basically, if you're in the area, the Origins counter in John Lewis on Oxford Street really is gorgeous. Innovative, informative, engaging and just an amazing shopping experience. With freebies to boot. [insert hand clapping emoji here]
After a full tour of the counter, the lovely Origins/John Lewis ladies took us to The Edition hotel for Cocktails, punches (as in the drink, no fisticuffs over face masks or anything.) lots of catching up and gossipping, incredible canapes and olives. Oh, and chips. Literally, the best chips I have ever eaten in my life.
*Runs off to plan funeral as I practically died and went to heaven*
*Voms at the amount of cheese in former phrase*
Basically, we were treated so amazingly well and I had the best time talking to the loveliest bloggers and PR's ladies. And as if that wasn't enough, let's just take a look at my goodie bag. [insert all the heart eye'd emoji's in the world here]
Pretty incredible right? I cannot wait to do a full review of each product. Stand by for more Origins fan-girl action in the coming weeks.
Right, I have now sufficiently bombarded/overloaded/photobombed you with all the photo's/information/fangirling in the world so I will take this as my cue to wrap up. I would just like to say a huge thank you to Origins and John Lewis for inviting me to such an incredible event. I have never been to an event as intimate - there were just 5 bloggers - as informative and as lovely as this, so I am a very, very grateful lady.
Also a quick shout out to said other bloggers -
Josie,
Hayley,
Josie and
Ally - who all have the most dreamy blogs. I had the loveliest time talking all things blogging,
stalkers and cheese with them, so go and check them out and give them some love.
So, will you be checking out Origins new counter in John Lewis next time you're in town? Have you checked out the counter already? And what are your go-to Origins products? I would love to hear your thoughts. :)
Thank you so much for - having the patience of a saint - and reading. I hope you enjoyed this post!
xx
Labels: Bloggers, Events, New look, OOTD, Origins, River Island, Skincare
