BRITISH SUMMER ESSENTIALS WITH FOLLI FOLLIE*

Hi lovelies! Well, do I have a exciting post to share with you guys today? Recently, I was in touch with the lovely people at Folli Follie, who offered to send me some 'Summer Essentials' for the British Summer, I of course said a huge, yes and was thrilled to receive all these gorgeous summer goodies in the post a few days later. I thought that was amazing enough, so you can imagine my shock when this gorgeous Heart To Heart Bag and beautiful sunglasses showed up in the post a couple of days later! I was completely not expecting it and was thrilled to open the huge parcel to find these gorgeous summery goodies inside - needless to say they will be coming on holiday with me!

As you can see, the products I have been sent all fall under the 'British Summer Essentials' category. There's a fake tan, incase we don't get any real sun over here, a facial SPF, because premature ageing is not on my summer wishlist, dry shampoo, because sun + sweat = greasy hair, gross but true, an EOS lip balm, to soothe lips damaged by the sun and finally a giant umbrella, because let's face it, the UK's weather is highly unpredictable. I've actually managed to try all the products and will be reviewing them all individually, but I'll give you my first impressions of them in this post, because I'm nice like that!

As I'm going away at the end of this week, I was trying not to fake tan, as I feel like going away with a fake tan means I come home the same colour, or lighter than the day I went away! However, I used this on Monday and as I'm not going away until Sunday, I figured it would fade just enough to give me a very light hint of colour by the time I go, but not so much that I won't notice my real tan coming along! Well, I'm pleased to report that after applying this and leaving it on overnight, I was left with a gorgeous, deep tan. It did cling to some dry patches, but that was my fault as I didn't exfoliate properly beforehand - oops! The Shiseido facial SPF was a product and brand I'd never tried before so I was excited to give this a go. It's also a tanning cream, so it gives a slight colour to the face, which I love as tans always fade quicker on the face. It feels more like a moisturiser when you put it on and doesn't leave a greasy suncream feeling either, so that's fab!

The Batiste dry shampoo was of course something I'd tried before and absolutely love, but the floral scent was new to me, as I usually go for Tropical or Blush. Well, this one may just be my new fave! It's a light and delicate floral scent. It's super pretty and makes your hair smell really clean, with just the right amount of girliness! The can is also very cute, which helps it take the new favourite crown. I'm saving the rest of this one to take on Holiday with me, but dry shampoo is must for me in the British Summer too, as the random weather can play havoc with my hair, so washing it less is something I try to do to keep the condition as nice as possible. Finally, another old favourite, a trust EOS lip balm. I love these because they're pretty, they're cute and quirky, they smell fab and best of all, they work. Dry lips are something I tend to suffer with all year round and this little cutie keeps that at bay. And of course, I've had to use the big umbrella on a few occasions already, but at least I can look somewhat cute in the rain with this pretty pink brolly!

Fortunately, as I said, I will be jetting off on a sunny holiday (in just four days, eek!) so many of these gorgeous items will be coming along with me. The facial sunscreen is going to be a summer staple here and abroad along with the dry shampoo and lip balm and of course the stunning handbag and sunnies! The quality of the Folli Follie items I was sent is just inredible, the bag feels super sturdy and it came in it's very own dust bag to protect it. The colour of the bag and sunglasses case is fab for a holiday abroad, but will also brighten up the British Summer time - particularly on a rainy day! What I love about the orange colour is that it will easily carry me through to the autumn, (which tends to come quite early here in the UK!) as it's lovely and bright for the summer, but then will go with the darker, autumn shades too.

If you fancy a treat this summer, I'd thoroughly recommend Folli Follie as a brand, the quality and design of the items I was sent is just incredible. The attention to detail on the bag alone completely blew me away. The Heart to Heart bag comes in many colours, but they also have lots of other designs too which you can see here. They also have some gorgeous jewellery, watches and other accessories, so I definitely recommend the site.

Let me know what you think. Is this stunning statement bag something you'd love on your arm this summer?
What are your Summer essentials?