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2015 - A Round Up

Hello Again,

I wanted to do a post recapping over the past year as it's been a year of mainly ups! (I don't want to really say that encase I jinx it) but it has been a good year! 2015 is the year where all this started! BlogsVlogsEtc was just a thought and I'm so glad I started it as I do really enjoy it and I've met some great people and brands along the way.

Quite a few memorable people have come into my life and a couple have drifted away but a good few have stuck! People are always going to drift in and out of your life but the ones who stick around through the good, they bad and the down right ugly are true friends. I haven't really spoken much about my day job as it's not exciting at all! I work for a company and we deal with material that comes back from Oil Rigs for Repair or Return (see I told you it wasn't very exciting, I wear a high vis and steel toe cap boots every day). But I've met two people through work this year who mean quite a lot to me, one crazy nutter who I wouldn't really change, Emma and one Ginger hilarious dafty called Lauren. They're the ones who I snapchat on a constant basis (Emma and I have a running streak of 87 right now), I can speak to them about anything and everything and if one of us snorts or (let's be honest) farts infant of each other we don't give a damn!

I've also met (not personally but hopefully in 2016) a handful of great people from the Blogging community whom have been so kind and helpful but I'd like to say a massive thank you to Hannah from HannahHearts and Chloe from Lady Writes Blog - they have both been so kind and always share the best posts! I really hope I can meet you both in 2016!

2015 is the year April turned 3 also (where has my little girl gone?!) but she is the one who makes me thankful every single day (even the days where she doesn't sleep or spills juice over 30 times a day) obviously you teach your children a lot but you actually learn a lot from your children!! I hope I make her proud to call me her Mum!

Sam and I are stronger than ever this year and I am so grateful for having him in my life, I honestly think I'd be all over the place without him (picture Bridget Jones lying being eaten by dogs - that would be me). I hope that we can start saving and planning our wedding as that's a really exciting chapter of our lives that I just can't wait to dive into hand in hand.

I am completely grateful for everything that has happened this year. I don't know what 2016 holds but I hope it's a cracker!!

'Till next time ...



My Favourites of 2015!

Hello Again Everyone,

So 2016 is here - does anyone else think 2015 flew by? I have decided to do a whole yearly favourites! So this is going to be a mash up of my favourite Beauty Bits, things we've done that I've loved and so on and so forth, so let's do this!!

Beauty Bits

I'm going to start with my beauty bits as I do love my beauty!! My favourite foundation of 2015 is hands down MAC Face and Body Foundation!! I bloody love this foundation - I had quite dry skin but honestly I think this has changed it to normal with a hint of oil! (I know all the people reading this who have oily skin are probably saying 'why do you want oily skin?!' but if you had really dry skin like I used to - you'd understand).

The other beauty product I'm going to choose is my favourite mascara of the year! This is a no brainer - it's the Maybelline Lash Sensational! I know so many people have been loving this and I'm jumping straight on that bandwagon! I have used this every days for the past few months - The name is exactly what I get, I look like I'm wearing falsies every day! (fist punch to the sky).

Favourite Shop

I'm now going to tell you my favourite shop, now this was a toss up between Boots and Lush but I have fallen back in love with baths and pampering myself (because everyone deserves that) so it's Lush!! I have also fallen back in love with having baths so obviously these two go together like a sausage wrapped in bacon! (mmm pigs in blankets) My Favourite product from Lush has been their Intergalactic Bath Bomb - it does really take you to another galaxy!!

Twitter!

The twitter community is an amazing place! I have found everyone that I have come across and chatted with are so so nice and in this day and age I actually find it so refreshing. Everyone seems to encourage you and support you which I absolutely love. I really do admire Jemma from Dorkface blog for creating the #GirlGang - it's in full support of people empowering each other and just being nice which is great!! Also the #GirlGang chats have been great - if you can, you should join in on one.

Favourite thing's I've Done

This has been so hard trying to choose only a few things, but these are the best things that have happened! So I'm going to say April's 3rd Birthday has been one of the best highlights of 2015. We decided to throw her a Mermaid Pirate Party and I'm so happy because it turned out so well! April and her little friends had an absolute blast as did all the adults I think! I have joked and said she's never having another party again because as always, I really stressed myself out but she will be having more parties!!

What I'm most proud of

My blog! I am actually so proud of myself for deciding to do it and I'm so happy for keeping it going! I'm surprised that I manage to get my posts (the majority of the time) all uploaded in time and I feel like it's really helped my typing and imagination and it's also given me a hobby! I'm so grateful for everyone who has guest posted, so that's Monique from SheWhoLives and Sam my lovely fiance. Also to all the brands who have been so kind and reached out, Boutique of Molly, Prairie Charms and everyone else!!

My Favourite Person

This has to be two as I literally can't choose between them, Sam and April have definitely been my favourite people of the year! I literally wouldn't be able to go about my day without either of them! When I am feeling a bit glum all they have to do is speak away to me (and when it's April doing it, it does tend to be gibberish but I can understand her) we're the three musketeers!! But ... hopefully 2016 can possibly make us the 4 musketeers? (We both would love another baby - fingers and toes crossed!).

As it's dark pretty much all day I thought I'd add a couple of my favourite photos of the year.


The Amazing Trifle that my Grandma made for Christmas - it was beautiful!


One of the only photos of 'The Three Musketeers' taken this year


One of the Favourite baths I had this year


My Best Friend, my other half

What have your favourites of the past year been?!

'Till next time ...






Ho! Ho! Hello Again,
 
I would just like to wish everyone who reads my blog and chats away to me on Twitter a Very Merry Christmas!! I hope Santa spoils you all rotten and I can't wait to see all the blog post's about all the goodies you got!!
 
I will be back after Christmas, I just want to spend some time with all my family and eat my weight in pigs in blankets (oooh pigs in blankets, who ever thought of wrapping a sausage in bacon deserves a round of applause).
 
Merry Christmas Everyone! Take care!
 
'Till Next Time ...

My Review on the Luxury Lush Pud!

Ho! Ho! Hello Again,

Today's post is going to be my review of Lush's Luxury Lush Pud!! I picked this up in my recent Lush Haul and it's the first one I tried out and I was not disappointed! 


This very colourful bath bomb exploded as soon as it as in the water, with each little colourful dot separating off and doing it's own thing! It didn't take too long for this to create swirls and whirls of colour and bubbles! My Bathroom filled with what I can describe as a nice Sudocream Smell (my description is honestly not doing it any justice but I don't know how else to describe it). I did actually think that I wouldn't like the smell of this as one of the fragrances in this pub is lavender and I really cannot stand lavender but honestly, I could hardly smell it! So YAY for discreet Lavender! (weirdo) Once all the fizzing calmed down I was left to soak away in some lovely lilac coloured water! This Pud really did help the stress of Christmas shopping float away!!

 
 

Have you tried out this little Pud or any of Lush's Christmas products?

'Till next time ...


December's Glossy Box - The Rose Gold Edit

Ho! Ho! Hello Again!

I have been subscribing to GlossyBox for 5 months now, but I haven't been as excited to receive one as I was this month when I found out that December's box was a Rose Gold Edit! You know me, I love anything rose gold (give me a rose gold Brussel Sprout and I'd give it a try)

I actually received this about a week ago but I've just had one look and haven't actually tried anything because I've been waiting to take photos so I've had to wait till the weekend (although now writing this I do currently have the StarSkin After Party Mask on - It's great). So now this is done, you can find me using all the goodies in here, do you want to see what was inside? Take a look ...

So as I said about 20 times - December's box is the Rose Gold Edit and it's in collaboration with Really Ree! If you don't know who she is (where have you been?!) you can find her here.

So let's have a look at the box itself first! It's a beautiful Rose Gold Box with white polka dots to look like snow and on the side in beautiful Rose Gold Calligraphy, it says 'let's Celebrate'. I am most certainly keeping this box!





So in this months box we have 6 products! When it's normally just 5 so thanks GlossyBox! The 6th Product was this amazing mask from Starskin. There was 4 different masks available and I got the After Party one. 'Starskin's masks are an absolute saviour during party season because they will hydrate and pep up pre-party skin and rescue tired 'morning after the night before' complexions. Each of the four masks picked are soaked in 30ml of vitamin-packed-serum - the equivalent to a full bottle'. Now I have actually had this one while typing this post and I've just taken it off and it feels like I've got a brand new face. It feel super hydrated and plump!! You can get these for £8.50 here.


Next up is the Statement Skin Highlighter Pencil from So Susan. I've now had a couple of products from So Susan and I've liked them all so I'm looking forward to trying this! It's a full-size product and it's in the shade Star Light and it's a really nice gentle champagne highlighter, it's really creamy and feels so nice on the back of my hand. 'This pencil is the secret to instant light for your skin. Glide and blend across your cheekbones, down the centre of your nose and on your cupids bow for the most beautiful dewy glow'. This is £15.00 and you can get it here.


The next product is from a brand I've never heard of before and it's the rosewood reviving mist from Monu Spa. Really Ree has said, 'It's perfect for dull, stressed or flushed skin thanks to the zesty blend of essential oils including lemon, rosewood and geranium. I love this to set my makeup and you can also use it straight after cleansing and before your serum'. That sounds really good and I'm going to try set my makeup with it and hopefully it works a treat! This is a sample size but you can get the full sized bottle for £11.95 here.


Next up is the Golden Skin Caviar (ooh la la) Eye Roll On from Etre Belle. I have only used one product like this and that was The body Shop's Eyes Cube which I loved so hopefully this is just as good! 'The cooling gel will leave the most tired of peepers looking refreshed and radiant'. I am going to be exceptionally rushed off my feet for the next few weeks so fingers crossed this helps get rid of my bags! This is not a full size product but you can get it in all it's glory for £30.66 (oooocha) here.


Up next is a nail varnish from Collection in the colour 31. Touch of Glamour. This is a really nice colour with gold glitter all through it with bigger specks of purple glitter. This is a quick drying varnish and it's easy build able. 'The pigmented pop of glitter will instantly amp up your look! This is only £2.99 and you can get your hands on this here. This is going to be great for this time of year!


Last up is the bright vibrant Liquid Lipstick in Show Off from Essence. Now this would be the only product from this months box that I'm a little disappointed with and the only reason I feel that way is because of the colour. Looking at this colour frightens me - I love a red lip and if you wear it and rock it then honestly, well done you! I wish I had your confidence - me, I just feel like so self conscious and paranoid that I look stupid! I know I shouldn't feel that way I just do. But back to the product, I did try it on at home and it's got a really nice smooth texture and the vanilla smell is amazing and I love the packaging!! This is only £2.50 and you can get it here.


 So that's December's GlossyBox and I'm so looking forward to trying everything (even the liquid lipstick around my house). Do you subscribe? What is your favourite product?

'Till next time ...


That's a Wrap! - OOTD

Hello Again,

Today's post is the very first Outfit of the Day post - ever! So I don't actually know how to go about this so I'm just going to do it in my style! The reason for this post is actually because the wonderful people over at Boutique of Molly asked me if I was interested in blogging for them. I straight away said yes because it seemed like a great opportunity for me to finally get into the Fashion side of all this. I had a look on their website (which you can too, boutiqueofmolly) but I was a little set back because as you may or may not know I'm a bigger girl. (You know, I've got my lumps and bumps but I'm ok with that). But I did email back and forth with them because I didn't think I'd be able to fit into anything until they told me about their Frieda Wrap! Now I know that these are very fashionable at the moment so a couple of days later it arrived through my door and I absolutely love it!! I did speak with them to see if they were considering the plus size side of things and they said that they're always looking to expand - so if that does happen I'd love to work with them again!!

So here is my Outfit of the Day Featuring the Boutique of Molly's Frieda Wrap!

There's a (creepy) abandoned old farm house quite near where we live so Sam and I decided to go there to get some photos. I do want to say, yes I am no model - I have never said I am or that I want to be - but I had so much fun!

The Frieda Wrap is super super cosy and it comes in one size so I feel like it would fit everyone - I tend to wear size 20 and this wraps around me fine!! I love the colours too and the pattern and you can really dress it up or dress it down, I like that I can wear it with a blouse and a pair of jeans but I think this would also look good with a simple LBD. By they way, Everything else I wore is just general clothes that I got many moons ago - minus my little ankle boots, I got these from ASOS not that long ago but I can't find them anywhere online. I have also found myself wrapped up into this while having movie nights at home.







Take a look over at boutiqueofmolly.com and see if you can see anything that you love! You can also use the Code MOLLY for 20% off!

'Till next time ...


Lady Writes Secret Santa!

Ho Ho Hello Again!

I was scrolling through twitter the other week and I came across a tweet from the lovely Chloe from This Lady Writes and it said that she was organising a Secret Santa! I knew straight away that I wanted to take part so I did!!

I got my email with all the different social media accounts for m person and I went and had a good old stalk and found out many different things about her. I found that she loved flamingos and caffeine free tea so I got her some goodies like that. Since then she has actually done a blog post about what she received so I will leave it here (www.sophieblunt.com) Now I know it was Secret Santa and doing that makes it not secretive at all but she actually wrote in my card her name which is Sophie and surprise - Sophie ended up having me too!! So today's post is going to be all about what My Secret Santa got me!


When I opened up my parcel I found a massive red and white striped gift bag and I was so excited! I opened it up to find everything individually wrapped in Cath Kidston wrapping paper and heaps and heaps of red and green shredded card! The first thing I opened was my card (which the penguins scarf matched the shredded card - The OCD in me was very pleased) and Sophie wrote a really nice message and she wrote that she had chosen little gifts that were perfect for a cosy night in which is perfect for me! I then pulled out this cute bag full of different hot chocolates and mini marshmallows which in this photo there are a few missing because I opened this earlier on in the week but could only take photos this weekend - but I wasn't waiting for a cheeky hot chocolate (or two).

She also included some Festive Room spray which is basically Christmas in a bottle!! I absolutely love this and will be definitely using it up until Christmas and afterwards!

Now I also love to paint my nails and I find that it's a super quick and easy way to pamper yourself and obviously Santa thinks the same seeing as this little Christmas Tree decoration was included in my parcel. It's a lovely glittery pinky-red nail varnish! The perfect colour for all those Christmas Parties!

There is also something else missing from the photo and that's this beauty! What perfect cosy night in is complete without a bath with a Lush Bath Bomb?! Well Sophie chose my new favourite Lush bath bomb in this one which is Shoot for the Stars! I have actually used this already and it was amazing - so amazing that I will be doing a whole blog post on it!


The last thing and actually my Favourite Part is this mug! Can we all just take a second and appreciate how damn cute this little guy is! It's a little Santa mug complete with Hat to keep all those hot chocolates warm! I have used this little guy so many times and have even taken him to work with me!


I have loved taking part in this and would like to say a massive Thank You to Chloe from This Lady Writes! I really do hope that she does it again next year! Also a massive thank you to my Secret Santa for all my thoughtful gifts!! I love every single one!

'Till Next Time ...


Favourite Holiday Memories - in Collaboration with Man Crates

Ho! Ho! Hello Again!!

Today's post is in Collaboration with Man Crates! Now ladies, don't be put off all genders would love these crates - I know I would! They are a company that specialises in gifts for guys which get shipped in a wooden crate that needs opened with a crowbar! How cool does that sound, it makes it fun before it's even opened! Man Crates contacted me asking if I wanted to write up a blog post all about Christmas memories and nostalgia! Now that is right up my street as I am a memory hoarder, every little thing is so sentimental to me!


I was born in 1992 so Christmas for me wasn't Christmas without a few certain things, one of them being Home Alone! Now I know a lot of people love this film but honestly, I had to watch it over and over again! It was just what we did! My favourite Home Alone is Home Alone 2 - Lost in New York, everything from the music, the actors to signing uncle in the shower. When I watch it now it still brings back all those memories of sitting in my old living room, in my cosy pyjamas with my trusty cuddly toy dog Paws (which I have now passed down to April - see told you, everything is so sentimental I never want to get rid of anything).  


My dad and I also always put the tree up together - my older sister wasn't really interested in it which I secretly liked because it was a really nice bonding thing for me and him year after year. We had some decorations that came and went but there were a few that came out year after year and one of those was my Eeyore Snow globe that yes, I do still have! I'm not sure where my dad got it from but growing up My dad, my sister and I each had our favourite Winnie the Pooh character and mine was Eeyore. Now that I'm older and have my own house I have my own tree and decorations to put up but this will now become a tradition for my little family.

Now coming from a divorced family we always spent Christmas day with my Dad and his side of the family and Boxing Day was just like a second Christmas Day and we spent that with my Mum and her side of the family. So every boxing day that I can remember we went down to St. Andrews (which is just near Fife in Scotland) and after all the food was gone and the presents were opened we would always sit down and play games, but especially the game Sorry. I don't really know how to explain it but there's cards in the middle of the board and you have 5 pawns, the first person to get all pawns home wins! Sounds simple doesn't it? Well the cards tell you how many spaces to moves, but there's also cards that say, 'Start, by sending a pawn back'. So you get to start a new pawn and send someone else's pawn back to the beginning, hence the name, Sorry!



Man Crates have a wide range of different crates up for grabs and I especially like the look of their Snack Sensei (a crate full to the brim of different snacks) and their Old School Crate (which is full of all things nostalgia) so if that sounds like someone you'd like or know someone who would love to receive a crate head on over www.mancrates.com and take a look! 




'Till Next Time ...

Kind of Christmas Lush Haul!


Hello Again,

Today's post is a Lush Haul!! (let the angels sing) I loved how the woman appreciated that none of what I was buying was for Christmas presents - why not treat yourself? I can't wait to try all of these out - what one should I use first?! I will put Lush's description of each product in my little info bit just because some of them are pure genius!


First up is something I have heard a lot about and I'm so glad I finally have it - it's Snow Fairy Shower Gel! This honestly smells good enough to eat!! It's just like liquid candy floss, I really do wish I bought a bigger bottle so I will have to go back! 

'Come your eyes, make a wish and swish on shimmer with the sweet scent of candy floss' - well if that doesn't tickle tour pickle then I don't know what will. I can't wait to use this and I think April will be a fan of it too!


Next up is one of their Christmas Bath Bombs and it's So White! This one smells really fresh with a hint of apple! This one is going to be interesting, I can't wait to see this one when it's in the bath.

'Become the fairest of them all when you sink into a bath with this bomb. Bergamot and Rose give it an apple scent as pure as the driven snow'.


The past few times I've popped into the Aberdeen Lush I have looked for this one but it hasn't been there but this time - it was! It's The Experimenter Bath Bomb! I have to say this one of the most appealing bath bombs I've ever seen - my photo doesn't give it justice! I actually can't pin down what this smells like but it's strangely nice! Plus I've heard it makes a literal rainbow in your bath - who doesn't want that? The description wasn't actually printed on the label for this one so I took this off of  the Lush website.

'If you're looking for adventure... you'll find it in The Experimenter, starring vibrant colour, popping candy and Fair Trade vanilla absolute from near the Rwenzori mountains in Uganda. An enigmatic and comforting romance of... deep, complex vetivert notes that enthrall your senses before creamy vanilla and tonka provide a sweet antidote. It's everything you've always wanted to do ... and with a plethora of five bright colours, it's the only one you'll ever want to do it with again.'

Up next is something that was on my Dear Santa Wishlist that I did for Hannah Heartss (you can find that post here) it's the Magic Wand!! This again smells good enough to eat! I love all sweet smelling things and this re-useable bubble bar! How magical does this look? They really have thought out everything with this one from the smell, to the glitter all the way down to the ribbon and bell!

'Wave a magic wander bath time with this candy sweet re-useable bubble bar wand. Swish around your bath for Snow Fairy-scented bubbles then pop it on the side to dry out for next time.'


Next up is some more candy goodness, it's Candy Mountain! I think this is one of their Christmas bubble bars as I haven't seen it in store before and again just like the Magic Wand it's so so so sweet! I love the bubble bars from Lush as you can use them multiple times! Also for someone not being a massive Pink fan - I'm loving this!

'Make bath time an even sweeter treat with this bubble bar. Crumble under running water for mountains of glistening candy-scented bubbles.'


Last up is another Christmas Bath Bomb - it's the Luxury Lush Pud! Look at all those colours!! Now, this may sound weird but I think this smells like Sudocream (you know that cream you put on babies bums - yeah that cream) - not saying that's a bad thing but that's what this reminds me of! I'm excited to launch this one into the bath because I think it's just going to be an explosion of colours!!

'Catch 40 winks of Christmas Eve with Islands of foam and comforting lavender. Simply take this indulgent bomb into the water with you for a long relaxing soak.'


So that's all I got from Lush, not that much right?! Have you been into Lush lately to grab some Christmassy Products? If so, what ones are you loving?

'Till next time ...

My Review of the Make Up Revolution New-trals VS. Neutrals Palette!


Hello Again,

I have been doing quite a bit of Christmas Shopping lately but some how, along the way I managed to buy myself some make up (whoops). I have been eyeing up a lot of Make Up Revolutions newer palettes as I have a couple of them already and love them and when I was in one of my local super drugs as spotted this I just had to buy it! It's the New-Trals vs Neutrals Palette! 

I think this palette is beautiful! The shadows are lovely and are all really pigmented. I have been using this for the past few days now and I really like popping the second darkest berry shade under my water line for that pop of colour! This is also the first palette of theirs that I have bought when I comes with a proper brush, ok it's not a morph brush or anything like that but it's so much better than those annoying sponge tip things. It's great for weekends away and nights out as it saves you taking brushes with you.







 I think this palette is great for this time of year with the berry shades and the glittery shadows - perfect for any Christmas Night Out! What's your favourite Make Up Revolution Palette?

'Till next time ...