I arrived home from an incredible trip to New York and Dubai to a sexy red Revlon package on my desk. It had been taunting my [fun fearless] female colleagues whilst I was away and I think they were more excited to see me open it than for my return. I don’t blame them. Courtesy of Cosmopolitan magazine and Revlon, I was spoilt rotten with a heap of nail enamels, 60 Seconds Quick Dry Spray, Calcium Gel Nail Hardener, Cuticle Massage Moisture Cream and Revlon De-Aging Hand Cream with SPF 10, in aid of the April Polished spread in Cosmopolitan, 14 pages of all things nails. Lucky, lucky girl!

This couldn’t have arrived at a better time, my hands and nails took a pounding overseas and are in dire need of some love.

Thank you Cosmo and Revlon, you’ve played out of your heels!

brandslut xoxo

I’m starting to get Brandbag submissions from readers which is exciting and precisely the point I wanted to reach. Inspired by the contents of the Brandbags of others, brandslut readers are now wanting to share theirs with the world. Up first: Annika from Cape Town. Annika is a production coordinator by day, yogi and Bikram yoga instructor by night. She’s a lover of red wine and the smell of the ocean and recently started a blog which you can read here: http://anysroad.blogspot.com

Here’s a glimpse into Annika’s life through her Brandbag:

• Canvas Bag from a little shop on Kloof Street (last name’s initial)
  
• GAP wallet from New York
• 2^nd pair of favourite Prada Sunglasses
• Original Prada sunglasses case
• Nokia loan phone courtesy from Vodacom
• Piazza Sempione cuff
  
• Rosebud Strawberry lip balm
• Benefit lip tint
• Car keys for baby Ferrari
• Sunglass Hut case
  
• Dior Homme memory stick
• Stuff a girl needs
• M.A.C. compact powder
• Fuji FinePix camera, not shown for obvious reasons, but represented by USB cable
  
• Keys on Marc Jacobs keychain/ coin purse

brandslut xoxo

This edition of Brandbag features the gorgeous Being Brazen. She’s a lover of lists, fashion, design, quotes and more lists – my personal favourite being ’10 Things I Learnt This Weekend’. Here’s a look at what’s in her handbag…

I fell in love with some things whilst living in London…

1. Cath Kidston
2. Truffle oil
   
3. The Battersea Power Station
4. Train journeys, especially those to the Royal Tunbridge Wells
   
5. Uggs
6. The Kings Road (that one’s for you, Gold)
7. Starbucks‘ skinny chai lattes with a shot of espresso for the kick
8. The theatre (namely Wicked & Avenue Q)
9. Houndstooth
10. Mulberry Handbags

Last, but certainly not least, is Mulberry. I’d never heard of the handbag brand prior to moving to London and it didn’t take long for the Mulberry bug to bite. I fell in love with the Bayswater in Oak and I know this is a love affair that will last a lifetime. Simple, classical, functional, quality. You can keep your tassells and pad-locks and embellishment. I’m a simple girl, a Mulberry girl. I recently stumbled upon the Mulberry Blog which is one of the best I’ve seen from a brand perspective. Reading the blog allows me insight into the world of Mulberry and what goes on behind the scenes from bag design and office quirks to store roll-out. As a reader I feel privy to top-secret information, information only available to those within the Mulberry circle of trust. This is how a brand blog should make a reader and brand ambassador feel.

With every brand and its dog jumping on the blog brand-wagon, many could take a leaf. Make it personal, share a few secrets, let us into your office space and keep it quirky. Enough with the boring, serious, me-too brand blogs. Create an online cult and allow your reader to be a part of it.

brandslut xoxo

This week’s edition of Brandbag is brought to you by the lovely Thaya Bedford of online shop and blog, Beatnik Bazaar. If you’re not scared of handmade goods, vintage bicycles, markets and Simonstown then Beatnik is your b*tch. Here’s a sneak peek into Thaya’s leather Tod’s Brandbag…

Thaya's Tod and its Treasures

What’s down Thaya’s rabbit hole?

• Alice in Wonderland (essential reading)
• Coins & cash
• A leather-bound notebook from Beatnik Bazaar
• A Standard Bank debit card
• Ipod Shuffle
• Sewing kit with safety pins for shoots (a gift from Lauren)
• Mac lippy and Body Shop liquid eye-liner
• 2 Skermunkil brooches, also from Beatnik Bazaar (always jazzes up an outfit)
• A spanner for removing the front wheel of the bicycle
• BlackBerry
• A vintage pot to carry little things in
• Keys
• Heart sunglasses
• A blusher brush from Body Shop
• A Samsung Pro815 camera
• A hair clip

I love the Orlando Pirates bank card.

brandslut xoxo

Leave the Grease to John and Olivia

As a prosumer, I’m always on the lookout for great products. Enter Batiste Dry Shampoo. I discovered this product whilst living in London and you can find it locally at Clicks for around R55. This is the vibe: 

“Batiste Dry Shampoo banishes oily roots, giving dull, lifeless hair the makeover it needs without any water. A burst of Batiste not only refreshes hair, but leaves it full of body and texture too. So whatever last minute plans come up, you can grab life by the hair”

I love it because using Batiste allows me to extend the period between washes, resulting in healthier stronger hair that’s dried and straightened less often. I’m yet to find the range for brunettes in SA, but the regular products work fine on all hair colours. There’s also a sweet dinky version that fits snugly in the handbag.

Use it, don’t use it.

brandslut xoxo

1. Nokia cell-phone
2. Apple iPod Nano
3. Miu Miu grey crocodile purse
4. Mason Peason hairbrush
5. Oral-B dental floss
6. Spearmint Smints
7. Wet Wipes
8. E45 hand cream
9. Tweezerman tweezers
10. Avène thermal spring water
11. Narciso Rodriguez For Her perfume
12. Dianne Brill compact mirror
13. Lucas Paw Paw Ointment
14. Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream
15. Laura Mercier Old-Free Tinted Moisturiser
16. Laura Mercier Secret Camoflage Concealer
17. Laura Mercier Pressed Mineral Powder
18. By Terry Light Expert
19. Bobbi Brown Everyday Mascara
20. Bobbi Brown lip palette
21. Lanolips Lip Ointment x 2
22. Jemma Kidd Define Stay Put eyeliner
23. MAC eyeliner
24. Redken powder brush
25. MAC 217 brush

 Yours in fascination of what women keep in their Brandbags,

brandslut xoxo

2011 sees the introduction of a new bit of brandsluttery to my blog: Brandbag. Each week I’ll list the brands that comprise the handbags of the special/strong/funny/influential/intelligent women in my life. Some will be friends, others family, a few famous. Brandbag aims paint a picture, through brands, of the women attached to the handbags they use to organise/accessorise their lives.

I’ll end 2010 by featuring mine, the Mulberry Bayswater in oak, and her previously undisclosed treasures. I wrote this post on a  recent flight from Johannesburg to Cape Town and the contents are therefore slightly more robust than normal. Please enjoy the hand-written post on an air-sick bag.

My Brandbag

1. iPod Mini (the original, in pink)
2. BlackBerry Bold
3. Cath Kidston BlackBerry case
4. Moleskine Diary 2010
   
5. Miu Miu sunglasses
6. Converse sunglasses
7. Versace reading glasses
8. Labello Active Care for men (huh?)
9. Sandisk memory stick adapter
10. Cath Kidston purse with the following cards: Clicks, Boost, Kauai, ABSA, Barclays, Garden Rewards, Woolworths gift card, Vitality/Pick n Pay, Gautrain, license
    
11. Dentyne Sugar-free (strawberry)
12. Fizz Pop (grape)
13. Allergex
14. Moisture-Eyes
15. Europcar complimentary mints
16. Staedtler Fineliner (black)
17. Cath Kidston make-up bag
    
18. Revlon Fire & Ice red lipstick
19. MAC plush glass, blusher, base, concealer, blotting powder, eye-shadow pallette, brushes
20. Rapid Lash
21. Benefit Erase Paste
22. Rimmel mascara
23. Marc Jacobs Daisy sample
24. J’adore perfume
    
25. L’Occitane hand cream
26. Viral Choice
27. Lomography Diana F+ flash filters
28. What is the What by Dave Eggars
29. A jewellery bag with an Ida Elsje ring and other unbranded items
30. Jeep car-keys
31. Essie nailpolish (Turquoise & Caicos)
    

Cripes. I had no idea one small handbag could contain such an array of brandsluttery. If you enjoyed this, you’ll also enjoy the work of French artist Nathalie Lecroc who paints women’s handbags and their contents in an effort to discover the personalities behind them. We both have Cath Kidston purses. Obviously.

brandslut xoxo