January Non-Beauty Favourites

These are probably my most favourite type of posts to read because I love finding new foods to try out, new books to read or tv series to watch and I'm quite a nosey person so I find them really interesting.

I don't always have enough non-beauty favourites to do a post every month but I definitely have enough non-beauty favourites from January to do a whole post dedicated to them, yay.

My biggest non-beauty favourite of January has got to be without a doubt Netflix, more specifically Pretty Little Liars. How have I never seen this series before?! I'm currently on Season 4 and I'm so hooked, I would have finished it by now but I have to wait till me and Gary both have free time to watch it because I'm not allowed to watch it without him. How lucky am I that my boyfriend not only watches Pretty Little Liars but actually enjoys watching it?! He actually woke me up the other day to ask if we could watch it hahaha. I love watching it and am dreading when I actually catch up with everyone and have to wait to watch it! I have got every single one of my friends who didn't already watch this hooked on it so definitely a good one to watch. How stunning is Aria by the way?! New girl crush!

 I have been loving my tan Chelsea boots from Clarks, they are my work shoes but I wear them out of work too because I love them so much. I think a lot of you must agree since I did a whole post dedicated to my Winter boots and it is my most popular post by far! I'm going to be really sad when the weather gets warmer and I can't really wear these anymore.

I think I lied before when I said Pretty Little Liars was my biggest favourite, I think that award definitely has to go to my Macbook Pro. I have wanted one of these for years now and my old laptop was slow, buggy and on its last legs so although I was meant to be saving I splashed out and got it. It may seem an extravagant purpose but its made a massive difference in that I can take it to uni, import blog photos easier, have the integration between my iPad and iPhone and the whole laptop is seamlessly designed. If anybody is sat on the fence (like I was) about whether they're worth the money or are you paying for just the brand name - no, no you're not they are really, really worth it! It may not have the highest processors or technical things but nothing that you would notice unless you're a hardcore gamer. I did nearly cry paying that much money for something at once but it was worth it, no regrets!

Pug slippers, these are the comfiest things possibly ever. I have hundreds of these little slipper Primark socks and all are equally as comfy but the newer they are then the comfier they feel and these are so cute! I'm not big on pugs but they're cute anyway.

I've also been loving my Pandora rings, I haven't had them off since I got them because I think they look amazing with everything. I'm trying my very best to take care of them because I'm a nightmare for losing rings and earrings. I think my favourite is the Romance ring because its so small and delicate and looks lovely by itself or layered with the heart ring on top.

This is a bit of a random one but I am a complete lounger, and by that I mean I'm at my happiest sat in front of Netflix in sleepwear. I wear more pyjamas than I do clothes and I have fallen in love with this snuggle jumper from Next, if you follow me on instagram then you've probably seen me wear this a lot! Talking about pyjamas I read on the Daily Mail that on average most people change their pyjamas every week-2 weeks?! Is that right? I can't be the only one who changes mine every night/two days?? It's so snuggly and warm and its really big with pockets and a zip that can cover your mouth so you could zip it all the way up to your nose if you really wanted too. It even has the cutest label on the inside (which completely sums me up) "today I chose to hibernate".

I know this only came out at the end of January but I got it early and had already finished it before the end of the month. I love this book, the layout of it, the information in it and the pictures are all simply stunning. Although Tanya has released she had a ghost writer for this because it is still about her and has lots of helpful tips that are beauty/fashion/skincare related and clearly not just the opinions of a ghost writer I don't mind. Plus I remember Tanya saying in a video a while ago that she was going to have somebody helping her with her book because of course she is not a writer. I would 100% recommend this book if you're interested in Tanya and her life or if you just want some interesting fashion and beauty tips! However, it does seem that every big Youtuber seems to automatically think they're an author these days.. I can't help but feel that both Penguin and Gleam should have spread out the announcements/releases a bit more to stop it being so blatantly obvious. 

I have been loving this Cinnamon jewel candle that my friend Daisy sent me after I won her giveaway. This candle smells incredible and as you can see I've been burning rather a lot of it. I will do a full review post on this soon so you can see what ring I got inside!

Obviously as soon as I got this baby I knew it would be in my favourites, how beautiful is it?? I love having a purse that matches my bag and its handy for keeping all my change organised because I always used to stuff it in my bag loose then lose it because my purse wasn't very pretty but not anymore.

What have your non-beauty favourites been this month?

Lots of Love,

♥

What I Got For Christmas || 2014

 I don't know about you but personally my most favourite posts are what I got for Christmas or what I got for my birthday. I'm naturally a really nosey person so I love seeing what other people get and also it lets you see things that you might want to buy in the sales or with your Christmas money. I asked on twitter whether you'd be interested in seeing this post from me and I got a lot of positive responses so here it is. Of course I am not in any way bragging and am very grateful for all my gifts.

I'll start with my stocking gifts that I get from Santa Claus because obviously they are the most important. I got some underwear from Boux Avenue which came in a pretty box with fake rose petals in it and I also got a bra from Kelly Brooks New Look range which I love, The pants are the softest material I have ever felt and I now really want to buy more from there in their sale. 

Of course I got the standard Terry's chocolate orange to resemble the orange that we used to always get when we were little... we've moved up in the world!

The next thing I got in my stocking was a little Perry the penguin shower loofah thing and as you'll know if you follow me on instagram I have been loving the little Polar bear version of this. I'm super happy to have a second one to add to my little Body Shop family, these are the best things for gentle exfoliation in the shower especially if you wear fake tan and want to exfoliate but not remove it.

Everybody who knows me knows I absolutely love Frozen so I'm really happy to have a calender with lots of Frozen pictures in it.

My mum and dad got me this Pandora heart ring in my stocking which I love and wear every single day.

Another piece of jewellery my parents got me in my stocking this year was these pearl earrings which are from a jewellers in Edinburgh. They're really pretty and as my mum says "every girl needs a pair of pearl earrings".

 As you can probably see there was a slight penguin theme running through my stocking this year. I love animals and penguins are no exception!

This is one of my favourite things that I got in my stocking because my technology levels are super basic so hopefully this will help me get better and be able to improve my blog.

Everybody knows I love Yankee candles so it's no surprise that I got some for Christmas. These two came in a set but I had to rip them open instantly to smell them of course. Neither are scents that I've ever smelt before but they're both really fresh scents. Season of Peace reminds me of something but I can't think what it's like a mixture of fresh snow and peppermint maybe??

Recently I've had a little obsession with jars from Tkmaxx for storing my make-up in and beauty accessories etc. I was really happy to get a little small one that I can use for my cotton buds cause currently they're mixed in with my cotton pads and it's not good for the OCD.

Aussie hair stuff is my fave because it smells incredible so I'm happy to have two big bottles to keep me going. I always find it so strange that brands sell smaller bottles of conditioner than shampoo.. I can't be the only person who's conditioner runs out first every single time!?

Being a blogger I love my notepads for jotting down lists and ideas of things so this is a perfect pressie for me. Its a London themed notebook so that's even better.

My gran got me another Pandora ring and this one is the Princess ring and I love how pretty it is.

I got this gorgeous lantern from my friend Linzi and I've already been burning candles in it which looks super pretty. 

My cousin Emma made me this which I was pleased about because although this sounds really odd I've always wanted an 'A' for my room. I just think it will look really nice sat on my dressing table and would make a nice background for blog photos.

Linzi also got me this strawberry body set from the Body Shop and the strawberry scent is one of my absolute faves from the Body Shop so love, love, love that.

My friend Emma obviously knows me and my candle problem because she bought me a large Yankee candle yay, in the scent Christmas cookie. I'm sure most of you already knows what it smells like but if you don't it's really sweet, smells like a mixture of vanilla and sugar so quite like a cookie mixture. 

 My friend Robyn got me this amazing Soap & Glory set which has lots of my favourite bits and bobs in it. The righteous butter, scrub of your life, hand food and heel genius are a few of my faves. I'm really excited about the cosy socks too because they look really fluffy. 

I got lots of body butters, face masks, perfume, chocolates and winter things like a nice pink snood and some gloves. Another favourite thing is this snuggle fleece from Next it's basically a big fluffy hoody so it's perfect for lounging around in. I also got these Little Blossom post it note and tab set, it's really pretty and has lots of animals on it. I love things like that because it helps me be more interested in being organised and revising.

 My most favourite presents this year were from Gary, probably the most impressive was that he got me the Naked On The Run palette!! I have been after this since I went to the Debenhams event and I must have chuntered on about it enough that he took note and bought me it. I'm a Naked palette fan and I already have all three so obviously this is a must have for my collection. 

He was also very thoughtful and bought me a Michael Kors purse which matches the Michael Kors bag he bought me for my birthday perfectly. I also really like that this one comes with a slot for your phone so if I feel like travelling light or if I'm going out for a night out/nipping to the shops it will double up as a clutch bag.

He also got me the romance ring from Pandora which looks really lovely on it's own but I love wearing it with my little love heart one on the top of it but it looks beautiful on it's own too.

I was also very lucky to receive the Bobbi Brown Make-Up Manual which I have wanted for the longest time and I was so surprised to see that Gary had bought me this because I didn't think he was that knowledgeable about makeup. 

The last few things Gary got me was a giant Thorntons reindeer and some Lindor chocolate truffle things and this book. The story behind this was I seen one similar and was saying I thought it would be fun to do and he went to get it but it was out of stock so he bought the 'more' version of it. Basically it has lots of different things to write about and I love writing so it'll be perfect for inspiring my creativity. 

I also got lots of money and vouchers so no doubt there will be a haul post up soon on the things that I buy with them!

I hope you liked seeing what I got for Christmas! Let me know in the comments what your favourite presents were this year.

Lots of Love,

♥

Gift Guide For Her || Blogmas Day 9

Girls have got to be the easiest people to buy for. No matter what your budget is there are plenty of things out there that girls will love and I've picked a few of different pieces with different prices to share with you today just incase you're stuck.

Origins facemasks are the ultimate luxury skincare item. This is actually the contents of the Mask Marvels gift set which is £50 from Boots online and contains three of Origins famous face masks. The first is the Drink Up Intensive mask which is perfect for dry skin sufferers as it goes on overnight and leaves skin lovely and soft in the morning. The second is the clear improvement mask which has charcoal in it to draw any bad things out of pores and prevent spots, so a fabulous one for anyone with oily or troublesome skin. The last mask is the out of trouble mask which is targeted for problem skin and fixing spots once they've developed. These masks are 75ml which is only slightly smaller than the standard 100ml bottles. If this is too expensive you could always just buy the one you think would suit the girls skin most for £23. I also think a nice thing to do if you had say three best friends to buy for would be to buy the set and give them a mask each which would work out more afforable at £16.60 each! It is the ultimate pamper product and ideal for any girl who likes to take care of herself.

This is definitely one for the lipstick lovers out there, raise your hand ladies, I know you're all out there! There is not a beauty addict out there who would not be over the moon to receive a luxury lipstick this Christmas. To name a few brands Tom Ford, Chanel, Charlotte Tilbury and of course the classic YSL. This is one of the rouge volupte lipsticks in Peach Passion. If you're not sure which shade to go with then always go for a very nude shade like a peachy or pinky shade.

 What girl would not like to receive one of Lushes amazing gift sets? There is so many to chose from of all different sizes with products that have different scents and purposes. There is definitely a Lush gift set for everyone and they always come wrapped beautifully so you don't need to worry about gift wrapping it.

Another luxury gift to give a girl is a bottle of perfume especially if it's a luxurious brand. I absolutely love this one from YSL called 'Manifesto' but try get one you think the girl would like. If you know what other perfumes she wears take note of the names and go to a specialised perfume shop and they will be able to help you find similar scents or perfumes with similar notes that she will like.

Obviously you gotta love a candle, especially Yankee candles. I think this is a good one for the girl who has everything too because even if you manage to buy the same scent of candle she already has, it's gonna burn down eventually and she's going to need a replacement. There are so many scents you can buy too and if you're on more of a budget you could go for a medium version or even a small one as a stocking filler. Both these two above smell absolutely delicious and I highly recommend them but again go with the persons personal taste if you can!

If you feel like a bit of a splurge and the girl you're buying for doesn't have any or one of these then you must, must get her one. Every girl needs a Naked palette or preferably all three in their life because they are the most handy eyeshadows ever. You could easily get by in life with these eyeshadow palettes and no others because they have so many colours, tones, shimmers and mattes. If you were just to pick one out of the three, I would go for the Naked one because I think it's the most likely to suit all with it's rich browns and golds.

 Another good eyeshadow palette to go for is one of the Too Faced ones because they're very luxurious and every beauty lover would thank you for one of these. A playing it safe palette is the natural eyes one because it's very neutral and everyone could find some use for it but Too Faced do plenty of other amazing palettes that are worth checking out.

For make-up lovers again, Real Technique brushes are a good one. This set was on offer in Superdrug for £20 but at full price these cost £30 and they're the duo fibre brushes. It comes with two really nice eyeshadow brushes, an eyeliner brush which is perfect for filling in eyebrows, a powder brush and a cheek brush. I love this set as much as I love all my Real Techniques brushes and think they would make a great gift this Christmas, Apologies for my dirty brushes, I didn't have time to wash them before daylight would fade into darkness so I'm going with the you can see I really do use them and love them look!

The ultimate luxury gift this Christmas would be a Michael Kors watch. I got this last Christmas and I absolutely love it and wear it everyday, with everything, everywhere. Watches are expensive but if you have the money to spend then they do make a really nice present and the person will be reminded of you everyday while they wear it.

A really nice gift to get a girl especially if it's your partner is this Fashion Prescription 'intimate'. They have really nice ones on the website but this is my one and it's the comfiest bra because it doesn't have any underwiring or padding. I also think it looks really nice on and is a bit 'sexier' than other bra's so definitely a surprise to buy your girlfriend/wife etc. It can also double up as a bralette for those who are brave!

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Lastly a really special gift to get a girl in the Winter time is a onesie because what girl doesn't love onesies?! My one is from Peacocks and they have amazing delivery times this one arrived less than 24 hours after I ordered it so it's a good one to get if you're a bit last minute like me. It comes in both brown and cream and they also have loads of different styles so definitely worth having a look at. It's so fluffy, cosy and it has pockets so makes the perfect outfit to lounge around in on boxing day in front of the tv with all the Christmas chocs! Another thing I love about this one aside from the obvious fluffy hood and ears is that it has cuffed arms and legs so it doesn't make you so hot that you need to get changed. It also means that I can drive in it if I'm just nipping to someone's house without having to get changed, bonus!

Lots of Love,

♥

* This post contains items sent for review purposes but as always all views are my own and completely honest.