What I got For Christmas 2015

After a pretty scary start to the festive season, my Christmas turned out really well. My family loved the gifts I'd bought them for each of them, I ate an ungodly amount of food and I got to spend my favourite time of year with the people I love. I was also extra lucky with the gifts I received this year. Most of them are pictured below - what isn't pictured is the stocking full of chocolates and sweets I'm making my way through as I type this post. I've almost polished off a box of toffee poppets and I'm making my way through a Thorntons' chocolate reindeer. Yep, I'm switching between the two whilst watching movies!

I've divided my gifts up into beauty, stationary, Disney, homeware and entertainment..

Just look at all those Benefits mini's! My parent's bout me a gift set and my BFF filled a Benefit stocking for me. I got my second ever Ciate advent calendar and once again wasn't disappointed. How awesome is the mermaid cosmetic pouch? I'm obsessed!

I'm a bit of a stationery addict so I always welcome new notebooks and such. I'm off to New York next year (61 days) so the travel journal, colouring book and map were all given with my trip in mind. As an organising freak I'll put the magnetic list notepad and weekly organiser to use along with the new additions to my planner stickers collection. Let's just take a moment to appreciate the pencils. You can't quite make it out but they say 'Living for naps and Netflix'. Yes yes yes!

My mum admitted that most of my Disney gifts she first saw on the Disney Find instagram account. I'm most excited about the collection of 90's snow globes that my mum tracked down. I shared a photo of my Cinderella watch on Christmas day and everybody seems to love it just as much as I do. You can check out the close up pic here.

Homeware bits excite me just as much as anything. On the bottom left is a face towel in the same design as my weekly organiser and bottom right is the cutest tea towel I have ever, ever seen!Candles and lights are just what I need in my room right now and everybody needs a calendar, right? I received the Everton FC calendar with the players in some cheeky poses all in the good name of charity. It's a win win as far as I'm concerned.

Finally, I received John Bishop DVD and the Grinch after losing my copy when moving house this year. I've wanted the Mad Men box set for month now and when I saw t on a super cheap deal on black Friday I did the right thing and emailed the link to Father Christmas. I'm saving it for the New Year - I think it'll brighten up those boring January nights after work. Oh and what's that? Yep, just a signed Pretty Little Liars' script. I'm hoping to put this on my wall but I want to display it on a cute clipboard. I have no idea where I'd buy one so the hunt is on! My main gift was this Crosley Cruiser. It's the exact one I've wanted for a while now and in the exact colour I would have chose too. Oh Father Christmas you know me so well..

I'd love to see what you got for Christmas, did we get any of teh same gifts?

ox Lucy 

Sticker Haul - Blogmas Day 10

I'm taking a break from the festive posts today to bring you a little sticker haul. I've been ordering stickers non-stop to use in my planner in attempt to make it look pretty and practical all at the same time. I ordered quite a few from here on eBay. They were super cheap and great quality. These particular ones are all cute little doodles, I especially like the long strip stickers at the bottom of each set. They work great for marking off weekends or to use in place of washi tape. The obvious downside is you only get one of each sticker so I try to use them wisely. I'll definitely be ordering some more though.

Plan With Jade is my new favourite Etsy sticker shop I featured some of her Christmas stickers in my planner post here and bought the above New Year's set at the same time using a Black Friday code. I can't wait to decorate for New Year's now, these designs will look perfect with my silver glitter washi tape. I do wish there was a 2016 sticker included but I'm already on the hunt to find one that'll match.

Finally I chose some practical stickers, also from Plan With Jade. The first is the Little Things set that will help me plan TV and meals each night. Although TV I can always be caught up with later, I've found myself consistently missing favourite shows so this should get me back on track. The cleaning stickers are probably the most 'adult' sticker's I'll ever own. I hate wasting precious weekends doing lots of chores so starting in the new year I'm going to spread them out between evenings during the week. That way I won't feel overwhelmed and will stay on top of things. 

Are you planner obsessed like me? Which are your favourite stickers?

ox Lucy

I'm taking part in Blogmas! 

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Drugstore make up haul

I don't buy make up too regularly, I'm more of a splurge every few months kinda girl rather than buying new products as and when they're released. My 'to-buy' list was getting pretty long so last weekend I took full advantage of triple points and topped up my stash.

Brow's That brow kit from Seventeen comes with a brown powder, setting wax, highlighter, pencil and a brush. The brush excluded, this kit has every thing to ensure your brow game is on point including a mirror and tips card showing exactly how it should all be used. On weekdays I do my make up on the morning commute so with that in mind I couldn't not buy this!

Bourjois Mega Liner is a felt tip eyeliner with flat tip rather than a pointy one. When it comes to winged liner I need all the help I can get so I'm hoping this is fool proof!

Seventeen Falsifeye Mascara I needed a mascara but only opted for this one because there was a 2 for £10 (or something along those lines) deal on Seventeen products. I need lengthening which it claims to do so I was sold.

Tanya Burr Lipgloss Smile, Dream, Sparkle I actually found this in the sale basket in Superdrug for 50p! Can you believe that? My local Superdrug is pretty small so I think they were getting rid of old stock to make way for her new products launched recently. It's the first TB I've owned and the smell is just divine; it's sweet like strawberries.

Boujois Rouge Edition 04 This reminds me a lot of my beloved Rimmel Kate Moss 03 lipstick. It's that nude Kylie Jenner colour and I thought it would pair really well with the lip gloss for a night time look.

Boujois La Laque in Beach Violet I hadn't even seen this range until a couple of weeks ago and it was the shape of the bottle that initially caught my eye. I was completely taken in my this colour for A/W it's a perfect deep shade for the season and perfect to off set my monochrome outfits. This month I'm doing a 30 polishes in 30 days series and I debuted this colour on the 5th. You can see that post and the rest here.

Finally, I needed some skincare bits.  Well I actually only needed some day moisturiser to replace my Clinique Dramatically Different that's recently run out. 

Nivea Daily Essentials Oil Free Moisturising Day Cream I've used this a few times in the past week and whilst it does the job and sinks into the skin perfectly before make up application, I'm not convinced it'll see me through the colder months. 

Nivea Daily Essentials Tinted Moisturising Cream is the first tinted moisturiser I've bought. I thought it'd come in handy when I just want a small amount of coverage for running errands and such or when I just want to give my skin a break (also for lazy days obviously). It was only available in one shade which put me off slightly.

Have you tried any of these products?

ox Lucy

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Nail Polish: New Additions

My nail polish collection is ever expending and my latest additions are five drugstore polishes, three of which I picked up at a reduced price in Asda. I probably have more Barry M polishes than any other brand but recently I've been drawn to Rimmel.

Funtime Fuchsia and Loafer Love For You are two of Rimmel's 60 second drying polishes and for once they actually do dry very quickly. More than that, one coat is enough for a solid colour so they're absolutely perfect if you're in a rush.

I'm not sure how I feel about Atlantis. I think it looks gorgeous in the bottle but I'm not sure how I'd wear it. The pieces of glitter paint very sporadically and the mix of colours leaves me wondering what polish to pair with it. Maybe I'm just lacking inspiration and need to think outside the box so if you've used it before let me know how you wear it.

Socialite is one of my new favourites. Just look at it! It screams girly and I can imagine wearing it with a gorgeous gel effect topcoat on top. I think it needed about three coats to become opaque but it's worth the effort, trust me.

Disco ball was one of the reduced polishes I picked up and although I love the addition of small silver stars I'd never considered buying it until now. The stars are a nightmare to pick up on the brush so a little patience is required but I think this will look beautiful on a night out or maybe as part of a New Year's Eve mani (yes I do think ahead haha).

Which is your favourite? Have you picked up any new polishes recently?

ox Lucy

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What I got for Christmas 2014

I've spent most of today reading endless blog posts of what other people received for Christmas and found them strangely addictive. Naturally I decided to write my own.

I don't ask for specific things at Christmas apart from the odd dvd so Christmas morning always brings lots of unexpected surprises.

As you can see I received quite a few cosmetic/beauty related items. I'm always grateful for this type of gift because I love trying new products. I'm most excited to try out the gel nail kit and of course the various nail polishes that will fit nicely into my (already too big) collection. 

I received some gorgeous homeware bits and bobs this year. The large hedgehog is actually a doorstop and I'd already gifted one along with a hedgehog notebook to one of my best friends. I loved them so much (and if I'm honest struggled to part with the ones I'd bought as gifts) that my parents and brother bought me my own. As you can see, dalmatians are also a big love of mine so ANYTHING dalmatian related always makes me smile. One thing I did request for Christmas was some more candles as my supply was running low and was more than happy to unwrap a total of ten!

Fooood glorious fooood! Most of the this photo is self explanatory but I need to point your eyes toward the large white bottle on the far left. It contains white chocolate vodka flavoured with a hint of mint! I've never heard of it before and quite honestly don't know what to expect but I'm looking forward to trying it. Also.. yay for the Frozen Cupcake kit I got from my secret Santa at work and for Frozen Kinder Eggs! There's a teeny tiny figure in each one.

I asked for the Inbetweeners 2nd movie and 22 Jump Street from my parents but the rest of these gifts were a complete surprise and I couldn't be happier with them. I was planning to buy the sing-a-long Frozen edition myself if I didn't receive it but lucky for me I did! My best friends bought me unbelievable gifts this year; a weekend in London along with tickets to the Harry Potter studios and a TOWIE tour of Essex. I also received a book by one of my favourite poets Carol Ann Duffy that was illustrated by my favourite artist, Rob Ryan. In my mind, nothing could be more perfect.

As you can see I was very lucky this year and am so grateful for all of my gifts. My favourite part of Christmas this year, as with every other year was the church services on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. My nieces and nephews were in the church nativity play making it all the more special and a beautiful reminder of what christmas is really about.

If you have a post or even a youtube video of what you received be sure to let me know.

Lucy ox

Bary M Haul

 

At Superdug this weekend there's a buy one get one free offer on all Barry M nail polishes priced £2.99 so I ceased the opportunity to pick up a four new colours.

Two seasonal polishes, I bought Red Wine with Halloween in mind. The formula is very thin and the blood red colour will be perfect for blood splattered halloween nails. I've already used it in a Pretty Little Liars inspired design for their upcoming Halloween special (photos coming soon).

 

Berry Cosmo is the perfect autumn shade unlike others in my collection. On application it's a slightly deeper purple, almost vampy, ideal for a gothic A/W  edge.

 

 

Diamond glitter is a repurachse of my all time favourite glitter polish. I'll continue to buy this until somebody trumps it but I can't see that happening any time soon. The various sizes of glitter make it easy to build up to opacity but one coat is enough for a gillter top coat or gradient effect.

 

With the festive season not too far away I opted for another glitter and Masquerade jumped out at me. Sinful Colors do a similar glitter but more purple based and although I have that Masquerade's predominantly blue glitter will easily pair with many of my polishes and outfits.

 

The offer is on Superdrug's website untill tonight (I assume midnight) so if you didn't get chance to go in store this weekend be sure to order online. This is the best offer Barry M have had for a while but it does make me wonder whether their £2.99 polishes are coming to an end; hopefully not.

 

ox Lucy

Poundland Nail Polish Haul

I regularly frequent the beauty section of Poundland for Nail Polish bargains and although they don't restock very often when they do I make it my mission to bag the best ones.

I was so happy to find an autumnal green, it's one of my favourite colours and probably my most owned shade of polish. Only two coats were needed for an opaque finish but I've heard Forever Strong chips easily so a top coat is essential.

RRP: £4.49

The perfect pinks for autumn/winter with a frosty blue that reminds me of Elsa's dress in Frozen. I don't love the sugar coat finish but it's a nice novelty.

RRP: £6.99 each

I'm fairly new to the Sinful Colours brand but my friend swears by it so I thought I'd give these two a try. Considering their RRP is only £1.99 I didn't have high expectations but with a perfect application after one coat and minimal chipping I'm keeping my eyes peeled for more. I'm not sure where else you can buy these in the UK so if you please leave a comment.

What bargains have you picked up lately? I'd love to know.

ox Lucy

Poundland Beauty Finds

I always love seeing what bargains people have found in their local Poundland so I thought I'd share mine. I love nothing more than rummaging through the packets of beauty products to see if I can find a hidden gem. 

The Mountain Dew lipbalm is a gift for a friend of mine who first introduced me to the drink. Obviously I haven't tried but I have very high hopes

This is the second shade of Rimmel's Wake Me Up blush I've bought from Poundland. Peach Glow is a gorgeous shade for summer but, as with all Rimmel products I've tried there's a considerable amount of shimmer running through it. I'll still use it though and the creamy formula is perfect for holidays.

My go-to nails for any event or special occasion are french polish with a glitter tip so I immediately snapped up Rimmel French Manicure Pro when I saw it. The colour is a little paler than my usual FP after two coats I do like the finish. It doesn't chip easily and can last up to a week before it needs touching up or reapplying.

Where do you go to find beauty bargains? Have you found anything awesome in your local pound shops lately?

ox Lucy