Sunday 14 September 2014

Favourite Five: Home Comforts

After my week away with the girls, despite having such an amazing time, I really am looking forward to getting back to normal. As much as we all love being on holiday and the things that come with it (the things from last weeks Favourite Five) I know we all love getting back home again too, although I don't love going back to work! Here are my favourite five home comforts:

#1 Home Cooked Meals
I love all my mum's dinners, but my favourite dinner ever is Macaroni Cheese, and my mum makes the best macaroni cheese you'll ever taste. I hope she's made me some for tonight... Or a curry, or a roast, or even anything with some kind of health in it would be amazing!

{This was one of mum's dinners she made for us girls and brought up to our uni house!}

#2 Cuddles with Sonny
When I left my poor baby was wearing a cone! I hope it's off now, poor little thing! Can't wait for a cuddle with him, he's always been my favourite thing about going home!

{Look at his gorgeous little face!}

#3 My Bed
This probably should've been number 1, my bed is so comfy! Can't wait to get back in it, it might be lethal though because I don't know if I'll be able to get back out!


{Fairy lights make everything better}

#4 My Mum
Maybe she does my head in sometimes because she's so OTT and over protective, but I love her and miss her a lot when she's not around! And maybe my dad too... and my brother...

{Family Selfie!}

#5 Comfy PJ's & A Day Infront of the TV
I think this one might be needed the most! But one of my favourite things is sitting in my PJ's all day, with fluffy socks, hot chocolate, snacks and watching the TV. This week may mean this next one is longer than a day...



So these are my favourite things about coming home and they slightly help with the holiday blues!
But we all know when we're going away that we have to come back eventually and go back to normality, and now is unfortunately the time!

What are everyone else's home comforts?

Monday 8 September 2014

Manicure Monday

This 'Manicure Monday' idea was supposed to be a weekly thing, but I have been so so busy recently working 2 full time jobs in the change over period that I haven't even had time to paint!
But finally, I've worked my notice for one of them and I have more time on my hands! Let's hope I can now keep up the posts!


These blue and yellow floral nails were very quick to do. They were inspired by this playsuit from Missguided, which I wore for my birthday a few months ago and a wedding I went to recently which was why I painted these flowers to match! It's not exactly the same pattern because I didn't have time to do that much detail, but it's fairly close!

I used the Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine colours I bought the other day when I had a Mini Boots Haul, the blue background is 'Blue Grape', which looks really nice on it's own anyway.


{And here's my panorama from the big day!}



Hope you all like my nails!


Sunday 7 September 2014

Favourite Five: Things About Holidays

This is my first scheduled post ever, as this morning at 6:15am I was jet setting off to Zante with my best friends; Jourdan, Hollie and Charlotte! How exciting!
So that's the reason I've chosen to make my Favourite Five this week about going on holiday!

I love to relax when I go away, even though we're going to Zante which is often thought of as a place where all young teenagers go to get drunk and have fun - it is in a way I'm not denying that - but Zante is absolutely beautiful and I visited there last year with my family and it was fantastic. So, here are my favourite five's about holiday's and thing I want to do when I go away:


#1. Cocktails Galore
Well, maybe just alcohol in general. And it's acceptable to drink it at any time of the day! Even for breakfast!
Now, I'm not one to get completely pissed but I do love to have a drink here and there - especially a cocktail. or a pimms!
And for some reason it all just tastes so much better when you're on holiday!



#2. Food, Glorious Food!
I love food on holiday - eating whatever I want whenever I want. One of my favourite things is going out for breakfast on holiday. And anyway, That's why kimonos were created... to cover up the bulge when you're bloated from eating too much! All that hard work and dieting goes right down the pan on the first day!
(It's not a surprise that my first two points are food and drink really, is it!)




#3. Bringing out the Dance Moves
Personally, I am a terrible dancer. I'm that girl you see out that everyone takes the piss out of. BUT when I'm on holiday it doesn't matter - I can pull out all these terrible moves and I'm never gonna see any of these people ever again! May as well have a laugh while I can... 




#4. Waterparks!
We don't have this luxury in England - It's never warm enough! But they're so much fun! I'm so excited to visit Zante Water Village.




#5. Sunbathing... Relaxing...
Basically doing nothing at all. That's what holidays are all about. Taking in the rays, and just chilling. That's another thing we don't get to do here in England! Listening to music, reading a book, having a snooze - which ever really!




I really want to add more - but I can't! This is only Favourite Five! But there's too many things I love about holidays! (Sight seeing, Lie ins, Dips in the pool, Making friends with stray cats - I feel sorry for all of them.)

Hope everyone has a great week - I know I will!
What are you favourite things about holidays? 
I feel like I've missed some!

Wednesday 3 September 2014

Save my Skin...

{2 posts in one day, wow! I'm going overboard!}

If you read my post earlier, 'Spot-Free Holiday Skin {Mini Boots Haul}', you would know that my skin has suddenly broken out and caused a big panic for me - I want beautiful skin in holiday photos!

Well, my mum's a bit of a healthy-eating-fanatic and she absolutely loves Jason Vale AKA The Juice Master and she's given me a couple of juices and smoothies to try over the next few days before I go away as the big amount of goodness should help clear my skin (and give me a health kick before my boozy week!) and surprisingly - they taste pretty good, even to me and I'm super fussy. Here are today's juices...



Summer Breeze


2 Apples
½ Cucumber
½ Lime
Handful of Spinach

This is a juice that requires a juicer to make. Just put it all through and drink it up!
It was actually really tasty and really refreshing - I can see why it's called a 'Summer Breeze'!



Freezer Pleaser


2 Apples
Handful of Mixed Berries
1 Banana
3 Spoons Low Fat Yogurt

I love the berry and banana smoothies, they always taste yummy.
I see berry smoothies on these sites all the time - they must be the most popular!
I juiced the apples for this myself, but you could always use store-bought apple juice...
Just put everything in the blender together and whizz it up!
Make sure you blend it together for long enough, mine was a little bit lumpy still!

Oh! and another important point; Make sure you drink lots of water too!

I love how easy smoothies and juices are, I just really hope they help my skin!
Have any of you done the Juicing Detoxes before?
I think I may do one once I'm home from holiday...
My mum loves them and always looses the lb.'s but I know that might just be her!


Spot-Free Holiday Skin {Mini Boots Haul}


There is nothing worse than going on holiday and having the worst spotty and scarred skin, especially for holiday photos! I've only got 4 days until I go and last night I had a sudden break out so I've ran to boots and go my popular go-to's! Please help me!

Clearsil is always my favourite, I literally love all of their products.
I do think they're expensive but I also think they're worth it.

I got the Rapid Action Treatment Cream (£4.04) and the Rapid Action Treatment Pads (£4.79). Both we're on a slight offer but nothing major in Boots, I much prefer it when they're on 3 for 2!
Both are advertised to start working within 4 hours, and from previous experience they really do. They take away pain from painful spots very quickly too!

Normally I would get the Clearasil Rapid Action Scrub too, but today I decided to go for the Garnier Pure Active Exfo Brusher Wash (£5.33), which was also on offer. I used this a few years back and really liked it, I'm not sure why I haven't used it again since! It makes your skin feel extremely clean and refreshed.

I brought 3 face masks, I used one before I even took the photo! 
I went with the Montagne Jeunesse brand, which I always get when I'm in need of a face mask. 

I tried Glacial Clay Mask this morning which I have never tried before and I absolutely LOVED it! I would definitely recommend it, it left my skin feeling fresh and it was relaxing to have on too.
The other two masks pictured are Creamy Coconut & Shea Butter and Super Fruit Mud with Goji Berry and Pomegranate. I'll let you know how I get on with them!

I also treated myself to some new Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine nail varnishes while I was in there, Coconut, Blue Grape and Dark Green - keep your eyes peeled for this week's Monday Manicure!

Hope you're all having a fabulous skin week,
If not - go get your hands on these products!

Any other skin tips to share?




Tuesday 2 September 2014

Oh, Baby!


The time has come where I'm at an age where my friend's are starting to pop out a little'ns.
And although I can't quite understand the whole 'baby shower' concept, I found the Nappy Cake craze on Pinterest and instantly wanted to make one, so I made this for my friend Philippa at her baby shower who is soon to give birth to her baby boy.

I found some how-to instructions but to be honest they weren't a massive help. I didn't know what to get, or most importantly how many nappies to buy! So here's my own little 'how to make a nappy cake', because it's so hard to resist loving them and wanting to make one!

This is my final photo of the finished nappy cake!
(It's not great quality and I'm disappointed about that)


So, to start the process!
I brought myself 96 nappies. I brought new born nappies as I know how many nappies new mum's will get through and they'll be a help from as soon as the baby is born. And this meant I'd have a huge cake too... 96 is a lot. Apparently. But actually I could have done with more, you'll see why soon. 


I brought Mamia New-Born Nappies from Aldi, which were £1.49 for a pack of 24. Now for any of you that may be Aldi snobs, Mamia nappies are extremely good quality and great value especially in comparison to other popular brands such as Pampers which are £3.99 for 23.
Mamia have also received awards and recognition for their nappies, so don't feel bad for giving these as part of the nappy cakes. It means you're saving money for the cute things, like baby grows!



Next I opened the packs of nappies and started to roll them. I wrapped them inwards so that the cute rabbit picture on the front was hidden and the 'cake' was all white. I used plain white string to hold each of the nappies in place. 
As a bit of fun for the new mum, I added a celebration inside each of the nappies - whenever she changes a smelly nappy, she gets a treat! I think she'll deserve it!

{Here are the 96 nappies all piled up, it still doesn't look like that many!} 
This took me a good 2 hours, so make sure you give yourself plenty of time.

I brought various things to put into/onto the nappy cake such as baby grows, shoes, skin products and food. I went to Asda for these, they have the cutest clothes, couldn't control myself from 'aaaahhhhh'ing in there!

[Baby Grows: Panda Romper & Hat Set, £5.


[George Bodysuits: Short Sleeve & Sleeveless]

[Johnsons Baby Products: Baby Oil, Baby Shampoo, Baby Bath, Cotton Buds.
Heinz Baby Food: Egg Custard with Rice.]


I then started to tie up and form the layers of the Nappy Cake.

[Layer 1: 7 Nappies. Layer 2: 18 Nappies. Layer 3: 29 Nappies & 6 Baby Grows]

I kept the first 2 layers simple, and then added the baby grows to the third to create a pattern around the outside. This was quite hard to do and occasionally I needed help to hold the knot while I doubled it.

For the fourth layer I had so many nappies left but not enough to create a whole nappy base, so I used a bit of initiative. 


I used the cotton buds and one of the baby grows to create the 7 nappy middle. I put the panda hat over the top to hold it together and then used the rest of the nappies to fill in the base layer. I was then 5 nappies short so used the other monkey baby grow for the front and the 4 pots of Heinz Baby Food for the last 4 spaces! I was so lucky how that worked out! But that's why I believe you may need more that 96 nappies if you want 4 tiers - unless you want it exactly like mine!

Then for the final touches! 
I put the layers on top of each other, added blue 'New Baby' ribbon, and set things out to make it symmetrical. I used the Mummy's Little Monkey Bib which came with the Baby Grow on the top of the cake and then placed the cutest monkey on top.


Jelly Cat is my favourite brand of soft toy. I have my own collection of the Cats from Jelly Cat, my mum has brought me them every year for christmas since I was 7, so it's always my go-to brand. And they don't just sell cats and monkeys - they have almost anything!
This is the Medium Slackajack Monkey, he costs £22 but he's definitely worth it!
(He looks very different to the website)
I think he's the perfect topper for my Nappy Cake!



And there you have it;
My Very Own Nappy Cake!
Hope this is slightly helpful with what to get and how many nappies to buy etc!

& I hope you like it!











Monday 1 September 2014

September Wishlist


1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9

1-3. Hair Scrunchies.
When they first came back in fashion months ago I really slated them. But, being one that has to have her hair up for work, I can't complain when they make my awful up-do look just a little bit cuter can I! I already have so many, but I just want more!
You can get them from everywhere but New Look have the best selection in my opinion... and new velvet ones!

4. Matte Nails, £6.
I always look at these but never buy them in Topshop. I think it's time I invested, and I love this colour; 'Unfold'. Other favourite colours of mine are La Cucaracha, Lightening Dust and Photofinish.

5. Gilet, £65.
I absolutely fell in love with this gilet in Topshop the other day. It's so soft, so thick and warm and I absolutely love the colour, it's a little different from all the others. They also have it in Black, Red and Pink

6. Ripped Jeans, £25.
Ripped Jeans are back! I thought it was a bit strange at first, the last time I had ripped jeans I was about 10, but they were huge and flared and DIY with a cheese grater. I'm in love with these new skinny high waisted ones that are everywhere. Topshop have the best range, but I found these at Bank as I would love a black pair.

7. Gold and Pink Flower Necklace, £7.99.
Big chunky necklaces are my fave and this one's also girly. New Look has a big range of necklaces, and no does Topshop. I like this neutral colour one because it can go with anything.

8. Canon 5D Mark III
I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS ONE. SO SO SO EXCITED I CAN'T EVEN EXPLAIN! It should have been number 1, not number 8! It's the most beautiful camera I've ever had the privilege to use. I've wanted this camera since last year, and now I'm living at home and don't have to pay for rent, my student loan is going on this. Can't wait to be excited about photography again. There are also a few lenses and a flash I may be looking at getting, and a new camera strap. This one is cute and floral from Etsy.

9. Handbag, £20.
I am desperate for a new bag, my bag at the moment is about 5 inches wide, and doesn't fit anything more than my keys and phone and a card in it! This one from River Island is lovely, but there are many more I have my eye on. It might take me a while to decide!


So, I think that maybe I want too much... especially as all of my money is going to be going on that camera! (No regrets!)
Maybe I'll be able to get myself a few of these treats anyway..

What's on your September Wishlists'?







 
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