Lazy Winter Day!

It seems to be getting colder by the hour here in the UK, making it very hard to stay motivated to get off your derrière!

I'm sure most of us have had the opposite of what we wanted this weekend - stress, stress and more stress! Of course this is most definitely the last thing we want a such a wonderful time of year, but hey-ho!

With the blistering winds and my failed attempt at a 4K jog (I won't venture into that today) I've tried to stay as warm as possible, inside the house. Wrapped up in blankets and drinking countless cups of tea with eyes glued to a screen, I decided that I wanted to find my creativity and do something productive!

Baking is something I've always really enjoyed ever since making animal shaped biscuits and thinking I was Mary Berry - I've definitely developed my skills since then! Last year I learnt how to make short-crust pastry which is something tricky to nail if I'm honest because there are so many cautions. With the pastry making skill learnt it was straight forward to make homemade mince pies.

Yesterday I used Delia's recipe for mince pies as she is brilliant and obviously knows what she's talking about, being an incredible chef:P I was quite surprised with the results actually, I managed to roll the pastry very thin which is key as no one wants to eat sick-thick pastry. The idea is for short-crust pastry to be light and crisp which luckily I managed to achieve.

If you've watched The Great British Bake Off, with Mary Berry herself then you'll know the astounding achievement that I am about to share - there were no soggy bottoms!

They may look very messy - mincemeat bulging out of the pastry but I feel that it shows thought and that it's homemade and not bought from a shop.

You should definitely have a go at making these yummy mince pies if you're having a chill-out Christmas Eve. Click here for  Delia's online recipe or, if you have her book 'Delia Smith Complete Cookery Course' (a very large paperback) then the recipe for her short crust pastry is on page 497 and the mince pie recipe itself is on page 502 - is it sad that I knew that off-by-heart? How did that happen?

I hope you all have a smashing Christmas and holiday! Merry Christmas!

Tartan Dress!

Uh oh, another blog post that has something to do with one of my favourite patterns of the season - Tartan!

If you read one of my older blog posts on tartan then you'll know that I was debating on whether to buy a tartan dress because of how striking the pattern is on a small person like me. I was fortunate to receive a New Look gift card and this dress was one of the first things I spotted as I walked into the store and my friend, Carys convinced me to buy it... So I got it and I'm so glad!

I didn't notice that the dress had a short waist, almost empire waist at first but I'm really pleased that it is because I don't actually own anything with this waist band and I've been intrigued to try one out!

I really love the colours of the print as they make accessorizing easier. I like to pair different patterns with each other sometimes even if it's something small like this necklace which has a hint of cheetah print on one of the beads.

This black bowler hat from H&M is so simplistic yet so cool that it adds a little something to the outfit, and paired with my red wellie boots and the dress I think it definitely makes a statement outfit.

This dress was £18 and from New Look of course. I really recommend getting your hands on a tartan dress or skirt for Winter as it will be a staple in your wardrobe!

Au Revoir!

December Day Out!

Happy December everybody! I woke up extremely tired but also extremely excited to open my advent calendar!

I adore this, I mean there's a tree with a hat on it, what more do you want?!

Cheesy selfie:P 

I didn't wear any make up today because I ran out of concealer and I wanted to give my skin some relief as I was having quite a good skin day and I'd been wearing make up all week. I wish I had some concealer to put under my eyes to make me look slightly more awake which is what I'd usually do on an every day basis.

I decided to wear my Christmas pudding hat because it's now December and I thought I'd get in the festive spirit! I also wore my pink 'snood'/infinity scarf from H&M.

I apologize for my braces, fortunately they are coming off in 2 weeks! For my top I wore a plain, sheer, collared shirt from H&M paired with my favourite jumper of the moment from H&M.

I wore my black skinny jeans which are from Primark with my very lovely Chelsea style wellies from River Island. To give the outfit a little feminine touch, I wore my frilly Topshop socks which are very sweet and add a girly element to an outfit.

For jewelry I wore this really pretty key necklace that's really old actually and I have no idea where it came from unfortunately. But I think it's quite simple and just adds a little sparkle to a simple Wintery outfit.

Winter Essentials!

I was thinking of adding Autumn/Fall into the title of this blog post but of course it's now Winter! We should know this as the John Lewis, M&S and Coca Cola Christmas adverts are finally shown on television!

Here are just a few essentials that I think are necessary for this season, especially living in the UK's climate! You can of course adjust these items to your personal style or budget so let's gooo!

The first essential has got to be a warm hat! I chose to show you this hat in particular because it's Christmas related and I'm getting too excited, too early! Any hat is a 'must' for this season. I did a blog post on hats so click here if you'd like to read that!

This hat was only £3.50 from Primark and it's adorable!

As well as hats, or if you aren't a 'hat person' then a wool ear-warmer is essential for keeping our ears warm and adding a little something to a cute, Winter outfit! 

This was of course from H&M and was about £4.50, another bargain from the store:P

There's nothing I love more than having a warm hot water bottle beneath my feet and a beautiful scented candle burning. Hot water bottles are a symbol of those cold Winter days where you just stay inside and snuggle up all day!

The candle I've chosen is my new obsession in terms of scents! Urban Outfitters have such lovely candles for £6 which I think is quite reasonable considering it's an expensive store in general so I'm still loving that!

A lot of boys in my age group seem to be addicted to Topman socks and to be fair they are extremely cool! Never fear, it's not only for the boys! Topshop also sell a wide range of socks for women and they have the deal of 3 for £8 so I picked up these Gingerbread socks along with some black and white frilly ones.

If you're looking for something a bit warmer then sleep socks are great. The ones above the gingerbread ones are from Primark and are so snuggly and are brilliant for, well keeping my feet warm really:P I was surprised with the quality of these as they were only £2.50 and they're so soft and warm!

I've talked about this particular pattern in my Tartan Blog post and I now own this tartan scarf from Urban Outfitters. I received this as a gift for my birthday and it's so soft and has quite a variety of colours so it can go with anything! I really recommend a tartan as it's a style statement and will of course keep you warm on chilly walks to town or the countryside.

The last essential is a blanket. My current blanket is a plain white one from Primark. Oh my word. It's so soft and I love getting home and wrapping it around me to keep me warm. It's definitely easier than dragging your duvet all the way to your living room!

There are of course more essentials I could drag on about but the ones I've talked about in this post I feel are the most important as little extras. Of course clothes and shoes are probably the most essential, but these are just small things that make a difference in an outfit or your body temperature:P

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Sweater Weather!

I love this time of year as I get to snuggle up in cosy jumpers which keep me so warm! I know most of you must feel this way and although it's nice to wear shorts and t-shirts in the summer, it's lovely getting to pop on a soft, warm jumper in the Winter time!

I don't tend to wear baggy things as they don't tend to be flattering on me but I think that baggy jumpers suit every figure and shape as they go with everything and aren't too baggy to make you look frumpy but aren't too tight that you're showing off a bit too much:P

Go buy one of these as you don't really need tons of them unless you'll be wearing them very often. They are an Autumn/Winter essential and look really sweet with black skinny jeans or leggings with a cute pair of boots!

Here are 3 of my favourite types of jumpers/sweaters for this time of year!

This is the most recent jumper I've bought and surprise surprise, it's from H&M :P! I really liked the style of jumper, it's almost a cable knit all over and it's just very sweet. It's a sort of grey-ish white colour and is very cosy and would look lovely with collared shirts to layer with!

This is a different style to the first jumper, it's a cropped sweater which are always brilliant for pairing with high waisted items such as jeans or skirts! This one was from TK Maxx so unfortunately it won't be available to purchase but of course there'll always be stores selling cropped sweaters!

I bought this when I was in Belfast in a store called Exhibit. This is a very light blue, almost a light turquoise and is so soft it should be illegal! I've had this since April and it's still so warm and snuggly!

I tend to wear this on a lazy day around the house whereas I like to wear the other two jumpers out because they aren't as baggy as this one and go with more things, but this jumper is perfect for lounging around on cold winter days! 

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Bits & Bobs for Autumn/Winter!

Over a few shopping trips I've bought new items for the season. I didn't want to put them all into one huge blog post, therefore I'm going to separate them into different posts.

Of course, this is a Bits & Bobs post. A few random things that I've purchased that don't really fit into a category I'd like to discuss separately.

First random purchase is a Raspberry & Papaya candle from Urban Outfiters. If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you'll know I bought this the other day and I love it!

The scent is very sweet and strong but it is such a beautiful scent. It may be unsuitable for this season but it's so lovely I couldn't leave it there! It was £6.00 and there were also plenty of other scents to choose from!

Next random purchase could fall into the accessories category but it's quite a random one! It's and ear warmer/knit-band, whichever you prefer and it's just plain white with a bow detail.

I loved the braided knit-bands but then I came across this knit-band and thought it was very adorable and sweet so I bought this instead! This is from H&M and was £4.50, another bargain from H&M!

The final random purchase is a convenient one as the weather is very chilly in the UK. Cosy, sleep socks!

Very comfy and snuggly, they were very inexpensive from Primark (these were the reason for the impulse buy of the hand gel) only £2.50 for the pack of two,  a red and blue pair,  both with slightly deformed white stars on them! They keep my feet nice and toasty whilst walking around the house!

That's it for this category,  thank you for reading! Be sure to follow me on social media with the links below and I'll post soon!

Tartan: Autumnal Fashion Statement

I have never seen so much tartan in my life! There's always been tartan pajamas around as they are the most common pattern for our cosy pajamas.

Tartan is everywhere at the moment, whether it's something as simple as a scarf or something a little dressier like a skirt or dress. I'm not too keen on wearing a tartan dress, only because I don't want to be drowned by such a strong pattern as I'm a small person. But I do love the idea of a tartan skater skirt paired with a basic tee shirt, so that the pattern isn't so overpowering.

Although I personally wouldn't wear the dress I do still like the pattern on a dress, I think it's very sweet and cute but it also gives and edge to it as it's a very 90's Punk look.

This is the current Tartan Piece I think is a statement accessory in an Autumn/Winter wardrobe as it goes with everything and of course, it's very on trend! The scarf is from Urban Outfiters and is £18, some argue that this is over-priced for a scarf but if you're someone who owns a lot of items from Urban Outfiters, you'll know the quality is very high.

Something that has always been on trend are tartan shirts, or 'flannels'. These are even more the street style of course, therefore I recommend getting your hands on these as they'll keep you warm and snuggly and they're excellent for layering on those cold Winter days. The flannel in the picture above is from Topshop and is £30. Of course you can find these shirts in nearly all shops for a lower or higher price!

Those are the two statement tartan pieces that will complete your wardrobe for the season, even if you aren't a massive tartan lover these two pieces are something simple that you can pair and match almost anything with. They make the strong pattern a little softer when you pair other items with them!

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Skincare Routine!

Being a teenager is always hard on your skin as your hormones are doing a little crazy dance inside you! So we all want confidence in our looks and one of the main steps to get this confidence is by achieving healthy skin.

I know there'll be nights when you can't be bothered to take your make-up off or wash your face if you have a particularly long skincare routine. But it's crucial to at least remove your make-up, a lot of beauty guru's i follow always tell you never to use wipes and I agree as they don't cleanse your face properly. But if you are at a sleepover or you've come home late and don't have the time to cleanse properly then it's better to use a wipe than to not use anything!

Of course, you readers aren't going to be out late or at sleepovers every night, especially the teens reading! Therefore I recommend having an easy but effective skincare routine for everyday.

I'm going to share my skincare routine which I've stuck to for nearly a year and it is working very well. I don't want to change my routine until I can see a change in my skin as I get older just because I don't want my skin to get bad reactions from certain products and the change of products which can often 'shock' your skin as it isn't used to unusual products.

In the morning I like to cleanse my face as my head's been flat on a pillow all night and I want to remove any dust or bacteria off my face. As my cleanser I use Simple Purifying Cleansing Lotion. I love this brand as there's no perfume or alcohol, all natural and does the job for me. I put a small amount on a slightly wet cotton wool pad then gently 'massage' it on my face and it removes any dust and dirt (I just made it sound like a surface cleaner, apologies:P) and just generally wakes me up a bit more, leaving me with a clean face!

I will then gently dab my face dry with a clean towel and then apply a moisturiser. I don't use a face wash in the morning as I think a cleanser is enough for this time of day. Again from Simple, it's a Light Moisturiser. They do sell a Rich Moisturiser but of course as I have younger skin I don't need anything too rich or it's too heavy. This moisturiser is brilliant, it does what it says on the bottle, it honestly lasts for 12 hours and is just all round great! I certainly recommend this as it's inexpensive and lasts a long time.

That's it for the morning, for the night I do the same thing, but there's another step that I use in between. Firstly, I'll use my cleanser as I would in the morning, then I'll hop in the shower and use a face wash. The face wash I use is again, Simple (highly recommendable brand!) Triple Action Face Wash. This doesn't get rid of spots completely, but then again, which cleanser or face wash does? It does get rid of spots but of course not every spot. It's an antibacterial so it stops dirt and of course, bacteria from approaching your face.

This does help prevent spots from coming, if you have a small spot then it will reduce it and of course cleanse your pores so that not as many spots will come again. There are tiny micro-beads  inside which is the Zinc and Chamomile which are very beneficial for the skin. This product is very good, it leaves your skin hydrated and refreshed and it has helped my skin a lot therefore I recommend it to you readers who want something easy, inexpensive and quite light for you teenage/young adult skin!

I'm aware that these aren't specifically for oily skin but I don't have oily skin so I don't use those products, but never fear. Simple do have products for oily skin types and as I recommend the brand you should go and see their products for oily skin types.

I hope this post has helped you determine a healthy, easy skincare routine!

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Yankee Candle!

Rainwashed Berry

My oh my, this is such a beautiful scented candle! This is actually the first Yankee Candle I've tried, I've wanted to try these out for so long!

Yankee Candles are very expensive, therefore I've tried avoiding them. But, today I discovered that you can get smaller candles, almost as if they're testers. Of course these are far less expensive but unfortunately, do not last as long. 

As part of my Pamper Evening, I used the Rainwashed Berry candle (a Friday night treat!) whilst in the bath. The scent is delicious! It's as if someone rounded-up all Autumnal berries and put them together! It smells like Autumn/Fall to me which is exciting. I'm hoping this will last quite long, although it is a small candle. I'll be re-purchasing this candle in it's normal size in the near future as it's such a lovely scent!

Highly recommendable! The color of the candle is even pretty!

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Cute, Comfy, Cosy Pajamas!

There's nothing I love more about Winter than snuggling up in a cosy pair of pajamas! It's that time of year where we swap our short, cheeky pajamas and opt for long, soft ones!

Personally, I love polka dots or tartan patterns for this time of year. Polka-dots are very 1950's, therefore are so sweet and look great on everyone when they're a long sleeve, button-up PJ shirt and long, soft trousers.

These pajamas are slightly more expensive as the percentage of cotton used in them is higher than what you'd get from inexpensive items. These are both very sweet styles, if you want an iconic t-shirt paired with sweet bottoms then the second one is best for you. If you want the "whole hog" then the first one is adorable and looks extremely comfortable! 

I adore this onezie from New Look and I want to get my hands on this! This must be a really snug item to wear in Winter in front of the fire, and talk endlessly about your excitement for Christmas :P This is only £15.99 and of course, if you don't have a New Look nearby, there's always tons of shops selling cute onezies like this!

Tartan is so pretty and is available in so many varieties of colors! You can wear this pattern as a set, a shirt and trousers, or you can just wear a basic t-shirt with the bottoms!

I'd also like to add that the patterned jersey pajamas are very pretty and really comfortable, you can wear them all day for a 'lazy day'! Available in so many different patterns and colors! Very cosy!

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Pamper Evening Essentials!

We all know that Friday night evening after a long week at work or school and you just want to relax whilst eating chocolate or crisps in front of the television!

Instead of taking the unhealthy route, I like to have a pamper evening. A few hours to yourself is all you need if it's been a particularly hard or busy day. You don't have to talk to anyone, all you do is relax.

So to kick of any pamper evening, I'd start to run the bath so that you don't have to wait around, with that chocolate temptation rising higher and higher! I love getting bath bombs to plonk in the bath or sweet bubble bath's but unfortunately I don't have them tonight, so I opted for a shower gel which makes lots and lots of bubbles!

Then I'll wash my face because we don't want our make-up heading south for the winter with all the moisture from the bath:P

I absolutely adore this combination! It's so good for your skin and removes make-up so well. I won't go into this too deep as I'll make a blog post about skincare soon. But I use this combination to wash my face before stepping into the bath using a cotton wool pad for the cleansing lotion and a flannel for the face wash.

I like "dramatic" baths as my brother puts it, so candles are an essential, scented ones are always a treat!

I feel candles set the mood and just add to the relaxation

After the bath is full I'll actually get in, which is pretty straight forward. I like to try different beauty products in pamper evenings, and the two treatments I've been using most and am seriously running out of are slightly more expensive products and are a wonderful gift.

I apologize that you cant even see the text on the bottle on the right as it's actually worn off which is an inconvenience, nevertheless it is Pecksniffs body oil which leaves your skin silky smooth and really moisturizes. I tend to use this after i use the Sanctuary Body Scrub so that i exfoliate my skin before putting the body oil on top. I recommend these two products as they are a lovely treat and the body scrub has actually lasted me ages!

I'll then use a moisturizing shower gel to shave my legs and I use Lemon Burst Wow Refreshing shower gel by Anovia.

I really enjoy this and it's brilliant for shaving and it moisturizes very well (I think you get the idea that I like moisturizing :P). Also it smells like lemons, what more do you want in life?!

After all the jobs are done, I just relax and enjoy!

When I'm done I will then wash my hair in the shower with my Tresemme combo which i reviewed in a previous blog here if you'd like to read. If I'm feeling like i want to treat my hair further, I'll use a masque to repair any dry or damaged hairs on my head so that my hair's ready for the weekend!

I like to use this as my hair's fairly wavy and this is a nice treatment to keep my waves under control! Of course we all have different hair types and we like different brands, so choose the hair masque that you prefer to complete this part of your evening. You're supposed to apply this to towel dried hair and leave for around 10 minutes.

So after this is works it's magic i rinse it out with a wide comb and then leave my hair to dry. Then my face is starting to dry from the moisture of the bath so I want to keep my skin hydrated so I apply a light moisturizer by Simple which is brilliant, again I'll include this in a skincare blog post in the near future.

Then I'll apply a body moisturizer or polish to my legs and arms to keep them nice and soft. To finish off the evening I'll paint my toenails...

In a previous blog post, I talked about the perfect nail colour for autumn and this is one of my deep red wine colors!

I then let my nails dry and watch tv or youtube, feeling all fresh and pampered!

Thank you for reading!

Oh my, Chanel?!

Well, well, well. How could such a classic, simple bag be so complex when it comes to purchasing?! Of course I'm talking about Chanel.

Now, I wish I could send all of you lovely readers one of the bags above, but unfortunately the price tag is enough to put most people into cardiac arrest.

Chanel bags are a classic. Always have and always will be. These Couture pieces would go with any outfit as there's no crazy pattern or bold print on it. We must wonder, if a piece of such high quality, extremely wearable and will last forever, is really worth spending nearly thousands of pounds on.

A lot of people don't understand the time and effort that's put into couture pieces and that they are very hard to copy or create a 'look-a-like' of. In foreign markets like Spanish markets, I've seen "Chanel" bags sold very often, with people telling you that it's "REAL!" Of course, we know it isn't as you would never find a Chanel bag for 20 Euros!

These bags are one of a kind and a pang of jealousy rushes through me if I see someone with such an eye catching piece haha.

Beautiful. Chic. Elegant. Classy.

If you are someone who loves Chanel then don't give up on buying one of these gorgeous works of art as they are amazing and you can't find much, if anything like this! I'm certainly not giving up anytime soon! 

          "A girl should be two things... Classy and fabulous!"        Coco Chanel

Thank you for reading & be sure to comment what you may think about spending so much on an accessory like this!

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A good old trip to the Seaside!

Langland

 How cute! Little beach huts, although not quite as glamorous as Brighton;)

On Saturday, as a family we decided to take a trip to a beach called Langland about 45 minutes away from us. Of course, here in the UK it's not quite the beach weather we'd all love to have.

You must be thinking, 'what's the point going to a beach without the weather?' Well, we didn't exactly go for the sand and sea, but the fact that there was a lovely walk along the clifftops where you could see the sun bounce off the surface of the sea and below your feet you can hear the crashing of small waves against the rocks.

It was a lovely brisk walk as it wasn't too hot or too chilly and the view was lovely, although there were a lot of clouds in the sky, haha.

Winter's nearing, the branches are bald :O

Although there was not much sun, the beach still looked lovely!

I wore my new skirt from H&M which is one of my favourite purchases, paired with a plain royal blue crop top (a bargain from Primark) and I accessorized very minimally with a simple denim jacket and my royal blue Vans for the walking!

Mumbles

On our way back, we had a cheeky stop in Mumbles where we had an even cheekier Joe's Ice Cream! This is amazing. That's all I have to say.

The classic North Pole, yummy!

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