New Years Eve Wish List

I don't personally have somewhere to be this New Years Eve, but if you are one of these people that have friends or a life (damn you), then this is the post for you! Apparently I love searching the internet for things that I love staring at but cannot afford, so I've put together another of my wish lists for you! This is my wish list for new years outfits and dresses and I hope that my weird style inspires you!

Boohoo - £12

Boohoo - £15

H&M - £29.99

New Look - £16

New Look - £18

Forever21 - £18.17

Forever21 - £63

Chi Chi London - £69.99

Chi Chi London - £37.99

ASOS - £59.99

ASOS - £40

Topshop - £55

Topshop - £220

I had too much fun putting this post together! I have absolutely fallen in love with Chi Chi London, they do beautiful (albeit slightly pricy) dresses, and I cant wait to have an event fancy enough and a bank balance high enough to buy something from them!

See you tomorrow!

30 Questions You've Never Been Asked Tag

Yes, it's the end of the year and I am being unoriginal enough to do a tag. I was looking for some New Years themed tags, but I didn't really like any of them, and I found this one that I did like!

1. What's your favourite candle scent?
Don't have one, I'm not really allowed candles as much as I would like some!

2. What female celebrity do you wish was your sister?
I don't know... I love Jennifer Lawrence, so maybe her! She's just such a fab actress and always seems so cool.

3. What male celebrity do you wish was your brother?
Ant and Dec! Can I have twin brothers?

4. How old do you think you'll be when you get married?
Well in my grand plan, I would like to be 25 because 25 is my favourite number, however that seems scarily young!

5. Do you know a hoarder?
Myself, I cannot throw anything away and I collect everything!

6. Can you do the splits?
NO! I wish!

7. How old were you when you learnt to ride a bike?
I never really learnt, I just kind of got on it one day and could do it. I didn't really ride a bike much through childhood.

8. How many oceans have you swam in?
Quite a few... most memorably the English Channel on New Years Day!

9. How many countries have you been to?
Probably around 8? I don't know exactly.

10. Is anyone in your family in the army?
Nope.

11. What would you name your daughter if you had one?
I like the name May, because I'm twee and weird like that.

12. What would you name your son if you had one?
I like the name Adam, from the bible.

13. What's the worst grade you've ever got on a test?
A D I think... We never used to get actual grades, they're a very recent thing.

14. What was your favourite TV show when you were younger?
When I was really young I loved Charlie and Lola and then I loved The Sarah Jane Adventures.

15. What did you dress up as for Halloween when you were 8?
I don't really do Halloween, so nothing!

16. Have you ever read any of the Harry Potter, Hunger Games or Twilight series?
Yes, I've read all of all three and I love them all!

17. Would you rather have a American or British accent?
British because I'm from good old Blighty!

18. Did your mother go to uni?
Yes.

19. Are your grandparents still married?
Yes, they celebrated their 60th anniversary recently - got a card from the queen and everything!

20. Have you ever taken karate lessons?
No, I think that I would be truly terrible at karate!

21. Do you know who Kermit the frog is?
Of course. I used to have Kermit the frog pyjamas.

22. What's the first amusement park you've been to?
I went to Lego Land when I was realllly little, but the first one that I remember going to was Chessington.

23. What language, besides your native language would you like to be fluent in?
I don't know... maybe Spanish because it is spoken in so many countries or maybe something like Chinese or Japanese.

24. Do you spell the colour as grey or gray?
Depends - I'm not great at spelling!

25. Is your father bald?
Yes, partially.

26. Do you know triplets?
I used to know someone in my primary school who had three younger sisters who were triplets, but that is a bit of a tenuous link, so I'll go with no.

27. Do you prefer Titanic or The Notebook?
Titanic hands down. I love that movie for some reason, and I find The Notebook a little dull.

28. Have you ever had Indian food?
Probably.

29. What's the name of your favourite restaurant?
Prezzo.

30. What would your parents have called you if you were a boy?
Benedict I think - I'm very glad I was a girl!

What I Hate About Boxing Day

Hi everyone! I hope that you all had an amazing Christmas, as I did, but that you didn't go to bed feeling quite as unwell as I did - definitely ate too much! Oh well, it's Christmas! Today is my last day of indulgence and then tomorrow I'm going to be up early working away as harsh reality hits me once more.

However today is boxing day, and for the most part, I have really enjoyed myself. My sister and I have sat on the sofa all day watching terrible movies, eating left-over food from yesterday and it has been wonderful! However, there is one thing that I hate about boxing day and (as you may have guessed) that is what I will be talking about now.

It's not the fact that Christmas is over, because although that does make me very sad, I try not to get too down because I have many very exciting things to look forward to (exams whoop.). It's not the taking down of the decorations, because we don't do that until January and it isn't this odd little period between Christmas and New Years Eve.

No, the thing that I hate about boxing day is eBay. That may actually be a bit harsh and specific, but eBay is always the first one that pops into my head when I think about this. What eBay and so many other companies do on boxing day is email you, telling you all about their sales.

Now, don't get me wrong, I love a good sale, I really do, and I am hoping to be doing a nice big haul from a sale at some point. What I hate about these emails are when they talk about not being satisfied with what you get under the tree. That is why eBay is one of the main perpetrators for this in my mind, because in the past I have received emails from them, before noon on Christmas Day, telling me that I can sell the gifts I have just received, if I don't like them.

There's something about these emails and boxing day... I'm being really melodramatic, but I just think that they bring out the worst in us. Christmas is all about giving and family and love and happiness, and it appears that boxing day is simple all about greed and ungratefulness and indulgence.

It's like we're saying that everything we've gotten, all the fun and frolics we've shared the day before just don't matter anymore, and we morph into the creatures, ready to sell every gift that wasn't good enough and sharpening our elbows, ready for the sales.

I know that I am exaggerating just a tad, but this is genuinely how it seems to be, and the direction that we are going in. So I guess that my message to you on this boxing day is to write your thank you notes with genuine thanks, because even if you didn't want an encyclopaedia for Christmas, that's still something that someone has thought about for you, and spent money on for you and wants you to have and enjoy.

See you tomorrow!

Blogmas Day 24: Christmas Traditions

Hi everyone! I am really looking forward to writing this post today, I can tell that I am really going to waffle on because these are some of the things that I love to talk about. Firstly however, I wanted to say that although I promised I would be writing everyday in December, there will be no post tomorrow because it's Christmas Day! I don't want to be stressing about writing, or constantly checking my phone or anything, and to be honest, I don't want people to be sitting on their computers reading my blog - I want them to be having fun and enjoying themselves with their friends and family! I will be continuing with my daily posts after Christmas though, so you don't need to get too depressed!


Today I am going to be talking to you about my Christmas traditions that myself and my family do every year. I'm one of those insanely irritating people who hate change and love to cling onto absolutely everything that we do every year without allowing anything to be different.

Starting off with our tree. Every single year (without fail) we get our Christmas tree in the second weekend of December. It's always a real one and we always decorate it with the same decorations. In our family, each member chooses a new decoration for the tree or the house every year, and this means that we have such an amazing diverse collection of decorations, some of which are so old and full of memories, its so special. In more recent years, we have gained an extension to our house, and have started to get two trees, the second which we get when my sister comes home from uni, normally a week or so later.

The most special decoration in our house is our tree topper. I'm not sure whether I'll really be able to explain this properly, but my father has a little teddy bear called Theodore who he has had for years. And I mean years. The first year that my parents spent Christmas together, they didn't have a lot of money and couldn't afford a lot of decorations, so my mum quickly stitched Theodore a little angels outfit, put some tinsel on his head, and he went on top of the tree. This has happened every year since.Theodore has become the most prized of all decorations and the most anticipated. You cannot imagine the arguments that my sister and I used to get into over who got to dress him each year!

Then, Christmas Eve also has a very strict set of traditions, which are actually being broken this year! Normally we always go to the afternoon service in our church. This is the crib service and is always really nice because its the one that all of the families in the area come to, and they get some of the kids up and dress them up to tell the nativity story. We then go from this service to a local pub which actually holds a very special place in our heart around Christmas time since it's where we stayed when we had a fire. We have a nice drink there, and then head home and start watching National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, the best Christmas movie of all time. We then go to another (different) pub, which serves some amazing food and have dinner and then come home and collapse before my sister and I put out our stockings and the carrots and mince pies for Father Christmas (yes we still do that!). These traditions are being broken this year because my sisters birthday is on the 23rd December and because it was quite a special birthday we went up to London and stayed overnight and only got back a few hours ago.

Christmas Day, here we go. The first thing that always happens every year is me waking up ridiculously early and being to excited to go back to sleep. I normally text all of my friends in the hope of (unsuccessfully) rousing them, before making my parents a cup of tea and waking them up. I would then normally open the things that Father Christmas has put in my stocking (because I'm always a good girl) and then have breakfast. It's about this point that my sister emerges and opens her stocking. We then open everything that's under the tree from friends and family, which takes us most of the morning. My family are quite unusual because we normally have Christmas dinner in the evening and we also have duck instead of turkey because my dad prefers it. We don't have any set traditions for the afternoon, we've done a variety of things in the past. We sometimes go on walks, or organize special Christmas quizzes, or just collapse in front of the TV. In the evening we watch all the Christmas specials that are on TV and then curl up in bed!

This year is a little different in terms of what we're doing because for the first year ever my grandparents and my aunt and uncle are coming to have Christmas with my family and I am so excited! My mum has put me in charge of table decorations which is clearly a very big responsibility while my sister is in charge of entertainment.

I cannot wait for tomorrow and all it will bring. I hope that wherever you are, whatever you're doing, you're having a fantastic time with your family and friends.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Blogmas Day 23: Hot Water Bottle Covers

I have quite a few relatives coming round to spend Christmas day with my family this year which is really exciting because we've never done that before. Normally, I make everyone in my family presents, and this year is no exception.

This year I have been working on hot water bottle covers for all of my relatives.

They are super easy to make and I think that they are a really nice gift for someone. I love keeping warm, so I would personally love to receive one of these for Christmas. I went to a local fabric shop and bought a couple of metres of white fleece (I had worked out before how much I would need based on how many I planned to make).

I chose to go for white fleece because I wanted some really nice colourful embroidery and didn't want to be restricted by the background colour. White is also really fluffy, and if we're thinking technically, a very good emitter so should keep you extra cosy!

I used a pattern that I drafted myself by measuring a standard hot water bottle and look at other covers. The design that I went for has Velcro up one side which is where you take the hot water bottle in and out. This isn't the typical position for hot water bottle cover fastenings, but I was thinking more for ease of sewing.

As I mentioned, I chose to use Velcro because the sticky stuff is very easy to apply, easy to cut to the right size, and very strong to use. One of my friends and I also have a bit of an inside joke about sticky-back Velcro, so it always makes me smile.

The main part of the hot water bottle cover however is where I have embroidered it. I think it's really nice to have a personalised gift and is just that little bit different. It also solves the problem of what to get those people who are oh-so difficult to buy for!

I want to make it clear that embroidery really isn't my strong point, and that it is really hard to draw your design onto the fleece because pencil just doesn't show up at all, so I was going freehand for most of it. I chose to add a little picture in the corner to distract from the fact that the names are slightly off-centre!

It's probably a little worrying that Christmas is in 3 days (WOO) and I have only made two out of eight! Oh well, I should better get stitching!

See you tomorrow!

Blogmas Day 22: HAPPY SECOND ANNIVERSARY

TOOT TOOT! (That's me blowing one of those party horns)
POP POP! (That's me popping some party poppers)
WOOP WOOP! (That's me getting very excited)

Oh the onomatopoeia is off the charts!

However, I am allowed to be very excited today because it marks the second anniversary of my first ever post!

In those two years we have shared 178 posts, 6,345 views and readers from the UK, the US, Russia, France, Germany, Portugal, Ukraine, India, Poland, Ireland and loads more!

We have officially reached our garnet anniversary and I am so super happy about it! I have enjoyed every single moment, every single post and every single view and have never come even close to quitting or stopping (despite going through some down times!).

My aim has always been to make people happy with what I write and to make myself happy for that matter, and I hope that at some point in my two years here, I have put a smile on your face at least once.

It's actually quite surprising to me how little has changed in that time. I stared this blog under my duvet in bed on a cold December night. I am writing this now under my duvet in bed on a cold December night, but with slightly more knowledge in my head and no bourbon biscuit in my hand (throw back to my very first post!).

It does also help that today is a Thursday, because it makes having a Throw-Back-Thursday so much easier!

I thought that to celebrate our second anniversary, I would share with you some of my personal favourite posts that I've ever written. I think that it's quite easy to tell which posts I prefer writing, because I tend to be a lot more formal if I don't like the topic so much or if I don't have so much to say.

Two of my favourite posts ever are the Magic Items That Don't Make Sense duo, something that I would definitely like to write more of in the new year. I really enjoy thinking things through very deeply and pulling them apart, trying to understand how they work when they just don't.

I quite like telling stories of my life or of things that I have done, with my recent Most Embarrassing Memory post being one that I really enjoyed writing because it's a lot like telling a story, as though it's fiction which I have always preferred to non-fiction. I also really loved writing about Guidepost because that is such a special and happy time for me, and I think you can really tell that when you read it.

I love any post where I'm ranting or getting very angry about an issue that really isn't that important, so I love writing all the posts that go into the Ranty Fridays category, something else that I would like to pick up again in the new year. Believe me, I could write hundreds of them - there just seems to be no shortage of things that irritate me!

I've got to say though, my favourite type of post to write are the ones where it is just a random spiel. Where I just sit down and start writing and only put the title on when I've finished, and read it through and wonder how the hell it could have come out of my head. If you look at every post that I have categorized as 'Random Writing' (by far the biggest category), there's no link there, nothing to bind them together or connect them apart from the fact that they are all on this blog together. How my brain could've put things together that are just so far apart... I'll never know!

However, my very favourite post that I have ever written ever ever ever is my second post on this blog, and is Google Gurgle or Gargle. I know that this is actually quite a lot of peoples favourite including my dad, who never reads anything on this blog apart from that single post. It's my fourth most read post ever, and I just love it. It's just so random and weird and just sort of symbolises me. If I'm honest, I don't really know why I like it, but it will always be my starting point and where I came from and who I am.

Thank you all ever so much for your readingness, your support and your tolerance of me! I have loved writing for you and cannot wait to start my third year on this blog!

See you tomorrow!

Blogmas Day 21: A Christmas Sewing Project

I know, I know, late up again. I really am falling into some appalling habits aren't I? It's just that the posts that I originally planned to write on these days have really un-enthusiasticated me and now I'm having to think of new ones, which is really quite difficult!

However, I am here now and ready and raring to talk to you about my latest sewing project. I say latest, but in the interest of full honesty and full disclosure, it has taken me two years!

In my defence, it was started as a Christmas holiday project so that it would be ready for the summer, but then it turned into an Easter holiday project and then a summer holiday project and then a Christmas holiday project again and then an Easter holiday project again and then a summer holiday project again before finally being completed in the Christmas holidays! So, technically still a Christmas project.

This is the first dress that I have ever made from a shop-bought pattern. Normally when I sew, I like to throw things together and see how they turn out, cutting and stitching wherever I deem necessary. Shop-bought patterns are pretty much the complete opposite of this. They tell you exactly what to cut out and how to cut it out and what order to sew it in and how to put it together. It's all very regimented and structured and exact. However, they must clearly know their stuff, because it's turned out pretty well!

I don't think that I'm very good at following instructions normally, I like to embellish too much. However, my mum was helping me (that does not mean doing it for me, it means translating the instructions from sewing language to English - who even knows what 'baste' means anyway?), and that meant that I stuck to them a lot closer than I probably would have on my own.

I think that for a first time project, this was just about right. It wasn't overly challenging so that I ended my day wanting to stick pins in my eyes, but it did have several new techniques in it that I had to learn how to do (including a hemming stitch, gathering, and inserting a zip!)

I only finished it about an hour ago because I was hemming it by hand which can (and did) take absolutely ages. It didn't matter however, because I had good old Bridget Jones to help me through (I'm a tad obsessed at the current moment!)

I am actually really surprised that this dress still fits me because obviously, I started it two years ago, and a lot of things can change in two years. It fits me nicely and I cant wait to wear it in the summer, because as much as I try to say that it's a Christmas project, it really isn't designed for the snow and rain.

You may be wondering about the pockets, I'm not sure about them. I chose to put them on for the experience, and they don't look as bad as I feared but not as good as I hoped. Although, I think that it does link the pink ruffles together!

My favourite part of this dress is probably actually the hem, which is really boring and sad. I have only very recently learnt how to do the hemming stitch, but I really like it because it makes everything look nice and neat, and it can barely be seen on the outside of the dress!

My least favourite part of it is probably the zip. I am very inexperienced with zips, and I think that this is only the fourth one I've ever sewn (and the only one I've ever sewn on a real garment and not a tester). It's ok, it's just that the ruffles don't line up at the top, and also that it isn't a concealed or invisible zip - though I don't have a clue how to even start learning them!


So that's my very Christmassy sewing project that has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas!


See you tomorrow!

Blogmas Day 20: Homemade Memory Lane

So here it is, the first day that I haven't been able to keep up with blogmas! WOOH it's finally here! We all knew that it would happen at some point, so its nice to have the suspense over!

Today I thought that it would be nice to have a little trip down memory lane, and have a look at all the decorations I have made over the years for our various trees and house. My parents have kept pretty much everything I've ever made which is quite useful for this post!

This one is from my hama bead obsession which lasted many years. There were many more that have broken or have been lost over the years, so this is the only one less, but I like it!
















This one was a reception craft, quite a classic made from a shuttlecock. I think that most people make one of these at some point, because they're quite simple and effective.

I made quite a few of these one year to give away as gifts, but obviously kept a few for ourselves! I'm not sure what's better, the sparkly string or the wooden beads!










Ah, the classic glitter-covered-pinecone. We have so many of these on our tree from both my sister and me because its something we did practically every year in school!
















Another school craft classic: the wooden peg shepherd. Everyone has made one of these in there lives, you're lying if you say you haven't!

These two stones were painted by my sister and I when we were both very young. I won't tell you who did each one, but I still always give things smiley faces!









Ode to the fluffy pom poms! I gave everyone these for Christmas one year - oh my lucky relatives!


















The most recent addition to this collection of homemade decorations is my knitted nativity scene. Possibly one of the biggest projects that I have taken on as a gift for my mum, it is still a working progress as you can see by the king with no arms or face!

So there you have it, everything that I've ever made to decorate our home at Christmas time. You could tell from an early age that I was destined for artistic greatness.

See you tomorrow! (on time hopefully!)

Blogmas Day 19: My Wish List

We can all harp on as much as we want about how we just love gift giving and giving beats receiving, but we all know that deep down, we love a good present.

Don't get me wrong, I do love buying presents for people, especially when I know that they will love it. But there's something just that teeny bit more special about opening a gift that someone has chosen for you, knowing that you will love it.

However, my parents seem to be lacking inspiration as to what to get me this year. So, I have put together a little wish list of the things I am wishing for this year! Some of them may surprise you...

1. A Chicken Probe

This is an odd one, possibly the most obscure gift I've ever asked for. There is a story behind it, but I won't bore you with it because the point of it is that I really want to learn how to cook but I'm slightly terrified of uncooked chicken and salmonella. So, my mum said that for Christmas I can have a chicken probe, which I think is like a food thermometer that tells you whether a food it hot enough that it's safe to eat or not.





2. The Strictly Annual
I am absolutely obsessed with Strictly Come Dancing as everyone should know by now! The final was yesterday and I was very happy with who won (though, they weren't actually who I voted for), but I wont release any spoilers because I'm just such a good person! I've never heard of the Strictly Annual before, but it has everything I love in it - Strictly Come Dancing and an annual!







3. Printer Ink Cartridges

This one is so super boring, but since I've had my own printer and had to buy my own ink (which is incredibly expensive), I've become very stingy with printing. So, as I have a lot of photos to print for art, this was definitely something that I added to my list.

4. Anything by Makeup Revolution

Makeup Revolution is my very favourite brand and I want every single pallet they've ever made - not even to use, just to stare at because they're so pretty!

5. An Ideal Home Magazine Subscription

Ideal Home is my very favourite interior design magazine and I try and get it every month. I just find it very relaxing and I always feel very sophisticated when reading it!


So there we have it - my wish list for this year! I know it's not very long, but everything here I have truly wanted for such a long time! What's at the top of your list?


See you tomorrow!

Blogmas Day 18: Decorations Wish List

I love buying Christmas decorations and decorating my room and house every year, it is definitely one of my favourite things to do. However, if you want to go all out as I do, it can be a little difficult when your funds are fairly limited. I decided to put together this little wish list to show you all of the decorations that I would buy if I could.

First up are these gorgeous lights that I found on Very. I think that these are so beautiful and have a lovely shape to them (my mum loves decorations that have domes, she thinks they're very elegant). I love the fact that they're yellow - they look like lemons to me! Also, because the them of my room is yellow and white,  I think that they would look great year round! The only downside is that they are quite a short string and so wouldn't go very far.

Next is this fab little Christmas pudding cushion, also from Very. I would love to have this sitting on my bed around the festive season, I think that it is just really fun and cosy. Although, if you didn't want to buy it, I don't think it would be that difficult to replicate yourself at home - all you would need is some felt in different colours and a needle and thread, I might just give it a go!

I've decided to add this next decoration onto my wish list because it just reminds me so much of the decorations that my grandparents used to have up every single year. I don't think that the foil is so suitable for a bedroom, but I think that it would look great in a dining room, hanging over a turkey. This particular garland is form Wilko, but I'm sure they're available from many different places.

The next decoration is one that I think is just so traditional and cute. I've always wanted one of these moving scenes that you pass down to your children and grandchildren and it could potentially become some form of family heirloom. Whenever we used to go to garden centres and shops at Christmas, I would always stand in front of the moving scenes watching them closely, completely fascinated. I really like this one from Wilko because you could potentially paint it with your kids and make a fun activity out of it.

The next decoration is this beautiful little tree capsule (I think that's what it's called!) from The Range. It's a bit like a snow globe, but quite a big one and I just thought that it was really timeless. It combines pretty much everything you want in a Christmas decoration: a woodland scene, a reindeer, a snow globe, a tea light and glitter! I think that it would look really nice on a mantle piece.

I'm really into this wood effect style of decorations this year clearly, because I just adore this little tea light train. It's also from The Range, and although its quite small and requires batteries, I think that it would be so nice for kids because it doesn't have a burning flame and is fun and friendly and Christmassy.

Next is this little Christmas tree decoration. You all know that I have very strong opinions on Christmas trees and how they should look (messy, fun, full of memories) and I think that this decoration is a really nice one that could help with that. It's from Matalan and it's just very me because it's do to with sewing and it's pretty and it's got glitter. I also really like how it has a nice ribbon to hang it with, rather then a yucky piece of string.

And lastly, from Tesco is this tree topper. We always have the same thing on top of our main tree, but I think that if we didn't, this would be so nice. It's really quirky and different whilst still keeping that traditional sense of having a star on top of your tree with the Christmassy colours. I just think that it's really unique and modern and I would love to have this on top of the tree that I have in my bedroom!




Those are just a few of the things that I wish I could have to decorate my room and my house with, I just love to get into the Christmas spirit!

See you tomorrow!

Blogmas Day 17: Favourite Christmas Movies

Everyone loves a good old Christmas movie don't they? Who doesn't enjoy snuggling up on the sofa with some popcorn and a tub of Quality Street in front of their very favourite yule-tide themed movie to fill them with Christmas cheer? Literally no one.

I thought that today I would share with you my personal top three festive movies. Each of these gets pulled out every year and have been thoroughly loved and enjoyed by my family. I just cannot wait to watch them again this year!


In spot number 3, is the 2003 classic, Love Actually. This film is perfect for anyone and everyone who loves a rom com with a Christmas theme. Filled with loads of huge names including Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman and Rowan Atkinson, this is one of those films where there are loads of different storylines going on simultaneously that all link together in ways that you only notice the fourth, fifth and sixth time you watch it. This one isn't so good for the whole family as it is a 15, with scenes inappropriate for younger viewers! It is also a British movie, which is great for all of us patriarchs out there! I would really really recommend this one - I can guarantee you won't be disappointed!

In spot number 2, (I know you can feel the tension mounting now), is the absolute Christmas staple: Elf. I don't think there's a single person on earth who doesn't love this film, it's possibly the best thing to happen in life ever. For those of you who don't know (and why the hell not?) this film is about a human who is raised by elves in the North Pole and then goes to find his birth father in New York, who happens to be on the naughty list. I've just realised that this one is also from 2003, they had it right that year! I don't think that the trailer does it justice at all, but oh well, you've all seen it anyway!

And here it is... the biggie! My very favourite Christmas movie of all time is National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation! It kills me that this movie isn't better known because it's just so frickin' good! My family and I watch it every single year on Christmas Eve after we've been to church and to the same restaurant! It's absolutely hilarious, and has us in stitches the whole way through. I think that I partly love it because of all the memories around it and it's what we do every single year, and what I hope I do every year for the rest of my life! It's about a guy called Clarke who just wants the perfect family Christmas and is determined to go to any number of lengths to get it. I want everyone to watch and love this movie, so I now order you to go and get it from Tesco or off amazon or wherever that means you'll have it in time for Christmas!

So there are my top 3 Christmas movies, all of which will be brought out in the very near future and I can't wait!

See you tomorrow!

Blogmas Day 16: Festive Makeup Looks

I absolutely love festive makeup looks. I think it's just fab how for the entire month on December red lipstick is just everywhere and it's a felony not to wear something sparkly on your face. I decided that it might be quite fun for me to put together some of my favourite products to create special festive 'looks' that you can try or take inspiration from. This is the first time that I have done something like this, so please let me know whether you may want to see more! And please remember that I'm not an expert and don't really have a clue what I'm on about!

Look 1 - Copper and Pink

I think that this is probably a look that you could wear year round but is particularly nice at Christmas time due to the sparkly copper eyes.

I would recommend using this beauty of a pallet by Makeup Revolution. It is called Run Boy Run, and I think that it is absolutely perfect in autumn, but also at Christmas. It has a great range of pink and copper shades so you could really mix and match and go as out-there as you felt comfortable with. This is definitely one of my favourite pallets at the moment, I just keep reaching for it again and again.

Alternatively, MUA do great single eyeshadow pots, I have one here in the colour Copper and one in the colour Bronze. They are really creamy, really pigmented, last a really long time and are only £1 each!

I chose to use the Maybelline Push Up Drama here because it's not such a lengthening mascara, more of a volumising one which I think works better here to really focus the attention on the beautiful coppery eyes.

This has definitely become one of my favourite pencil liners since I received it in my Glossybox a few months ago. It is really pigmented and very soft to apply, it doesn't pull at your eye at all and has a very smooth application. I think that a nice thick pencil line would look really good on the lash line and waterline to make your eyes look big and smoky.

I then chose to use this Collection bronzer. This is quite a dark one that I tend to only use in summer when I am a bit more bronzed, but I think that it would look really nice here because it has quite sparkly undertones which I think would pick out the copper elements of the face really nicely.

And then of course, my favourite part of the look is the lips. As this is a copper and pink look, I went for this very bright creamy pink colour by Makeup Revolution. This is apart of their salvation velvet lip lacquer range and is in the colour Keep Flying For You. I really like these, they're matte and dry quickly and have a really nice finish. I think that this colour goes really nicely with the copper eyes.

Look 2 - Nude Highlight

In this look, I am combining two of my very favourite things, nude eyes and lips and highlight! The idea of this look is to have all of the focus on your gorgeous highlighted cheeks with beautiful eyes and lips to compliment them.

I chose another Makeup Revolution pallet for this look. This chocolate pallet is probably another one of my all time favourites because the number of nude combinations is just endless. I especially love the extra large highlight sections, which is pretty key for this look!








For the lashes, I am using the Maybelline Lash Sensational mascara. This mascara is just brilliant at absolutely everything, I cannot give it enough praise. I think that it is important to have such a fabulous mascara when everything else is very neutral, just so your eyes are a little defined.

For my lips, I am choosing to use my very favourite nude lip, the Maybelline colour drama pencil in Nude Perfection. My pencil actually looks quite battered now, and is worryingly small, but that just shows how much it has been loved! It feels so nice on the lips and is so super long lasting and I always get loads of compliments whenever I wear it!

Now for the main part: the highlight. For the highlight of my cheekbones, I am choosing to use this beautiful little pallet from my most recent Glossybox because it's just so pretty. The colours are quite pigmented, and I think that they're quite a subtle highlight that you could use instead of blush or bronze. I just love them!

Then, for the smaller areas of my face (and maybe for my cheekbones too!), I am using this Barry M cream highlight. I love this, it literally makes me glow! However, I have quite oily skin and this doesn't really help that, and it does tend to cake a bit after it's been on the face for a while which is why I am only using it on small areas of my face. However, it is so pretty, really easy to blend and super pigmented!





Look 3 - Red Lip and Smoky Eye Classic

Whenever someone says to me Festive Makeup Look, (because that happens a lot), the first thing that pops into my head is always a red lip and smoky eye duo. It's just what you always expect to see at parties and on New Years, and it is just so classically Christmas. So, because it is so cliche and overdone, I thought that I would do it too!

For my eyeshadow, I don't actually own any true smoky eye pallets, but I think that this Gosh Copenhagen pallet does the job pretty well. It's got a really great range of dark smoky colours with some really nice highlights too. They are really pigmented, and blend super well. The packaging is also really nice - reminds me of MAC - with a really big nice mirror.




I then chose to use the Maybelline master ink matte liner to line my eyes with, because lets face it, you can't have a dramatic smoky eye look without liquid eyeliner can you? I've used this one for ages, it stays really well and is pretty easy to apply, and I would definitely recommend.

I would then recommend using a very volumising mascara, I'm using my sample of Better Than Sex by Too Faced which I received from my Glossybox. It's quite gloopy, but for this kind of dramatic eye look, I really don't think it matters too much.

For this look I really want to attention to be on the eyes and the lips, so I have chosen a fairly nude blusher by MUA in the colour Cupcake. This is really good for simple everyday looks, and I really like MUA blushes. They are really pigmented, really blendable, really long lasting and only £1 each! I would suggest you try them if you haven't already!




Then, the fun bit! The lips! I guess any red lipstick would work, I know that Rimmel Kate Mosses 107 is very popular, but my personal choice is this Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet one. I don't actually know what colour it is, but I think it's Ne Rouge 1. This lipstick always makes me smile because it is the one that I bought when I went to Amsterdam two months ago, which was so much fun, and I put it all over my face to dress up like a dragon! Tip, don't put liquid lipstick on your face, it will NEVER come off!