December favourites.

Another month down, another post showing you my favourite things. This month I didn't particularly have many makeup items as I'm on a buying ban, but here's some of my favourite things from December.

First of all, let's just accept the fact I have become horribly addicted to Netflix. One show in particular being American Horror Story. 

I have no idea why I like this programme, if anything I didn't really understand what was going on but it certainly had me hooked from the first episode. 

Another thing I'm extremely late on the bandwagon with is Breaking Bad. Again, I owe this to my addiction with netflix!

Now I'm not going to lie, this programme has taken me a while to get into because I just didn't get what everyone was raving about. However, I've been hooked since the second series and it's constantly on my TV, I cannot wait to watch the next episode. Maybe this is telling me I need to get a social life...

In December, I was able to renew my phone contract. I'd had a Samsung Galaxy s3 for around 2 years but it rapidly went downhill when the battery would only last an hour or so before dropping to 20% and the screen would frequently turn purple and green. 

So, off I went to carphone warehouse to get me a new shiney phone! I opted for the Nokia Lumia 930. Now before you all go "why?!" let me tell you something. I hate iPhones, I just cannot get my head around them, Samsung I genuinely didn't want to go with again and anything else was far too expensive. Now this little beauty is £31.50 a month for unlimited texts and calls with 4gb of internet. Now I really cannot complain about that as it's cheaper than what I was paying before and I get heaps more! I'm really happy with this phone and if anything, I enjoy using it. It's really easy to use and I can keep it hooked up with my windows 8 laptop. 

Now my next favourite was actually my main Christmas present from my Boyfriend. 

I've wanted a food mixer for as long as I can remember and he totally surprised me with this one. You can't really tell but on the picture it's a baby pink colour but let me tell you, it's even better in real life. It's very much a bubblegum pink which looks amazing. The top part detaches so you can use it as a hand mixer too which is a bonus as mine broke! I've only used it a couple of times as I've really not had much time to go and buy ingredients to cook with but oh my god I'm totally in love. 

It may have taken me nearly 4 years to invest in my next favourite but I am SO glad I did! 

I finally treat myself to a real pair of Ugg boots. My ex had bought me a fake pair years ago and tried making me believe they were real....they've been faithful to me in respect that they've never had a stain on them, they're still in pretty good shape and to be honest I will continue to wear them when I don't want to get my real Uggs messy on rainy days or if I'm going somewhere I know will be muddy. But my god, you can definitely tell the difference and I'm so glad I waited this long as I really appreciate these ones even though they were purchased with my own money. I've worn them countless amounts of times already and they're yet to misshape, get dirty or even feel gross inside. I loooove them. 

Now I realise December isn't a month really for treating myself so this favourites post isn't the most exciting one I'll ever do. But at the end of this month I'll have more to post as it's been my birthday and also new year.

Until next time! 

♥

Looking back...

Now all the festivities of Christmas are over and I finally have time to sit back and relax, I thought I'd do a summary of 2014. This year certainly has been such a roller coaster ride for me, I'd say this has been on par with the year my Nan died. There have been so many things that have happened for me, this year seems to have gone by in a flash.

January - I celebrated my 21st birthday, I got horrendously drunk and had a very bad hangover the next day. Also, my gorgeous little Jack sadly passed away after having him for about 13 years. RIP buddy <3

February - I received letters for two things that'd change my life. Jury service and an appointment to have my wisdom teeth removed. 

March - Quite possibly the busiest month of my life this year...early in March I had Jury Service for 2 weeks. The week after that, I finally signed the paperwork to move out of our old house to move into our new house. 

April - A week after moving house, I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth removed. I've never been knocked out before nor have I ever had an operation but I certainly would never want to go through having teeth removed again! 

May - My parents celebrated their 30th Wedding Anniversary, we had a lovely family meal with my Aunties and Uncles. I also looked after my sisters cats for 3 weeks whilst she was in Florida, possibly the most gorgeous cats I've ever laid eyes on. This was also the month my Nan told me I could have one of her friends kittens.

June - This is always a busy month for me, I have 2 birthdays and Fathers day all to celebrate in this month. This was also the month I got my gorgeous Bonnie cat! 

July - I celebrated my 2 year anniversary with my Boyfriend this year, we had a lovely day out shopping and we also went to Nandos for dinner. My nephews 2nd birthday was celebrated in July with a lovely party thrown by my sister, unfortunately there were very bad thunder storms so we couldn't enjoy the warm weather but I certainly took my Auntie duties seriously that day when it came to having cake thrown at me! 

August - This was the month everything went downhill for me...I became very ill in August, after having multiple trips to hospital, I had my appendix out and didn't recover very well. I really don't remember much of this month other than I accepted a new job and spent a lot of time in bed. A lot of time. 

September - I started my new job at the beginning of September, for a couple of weeks I was in training which I really enjoyed. My Boyfriend's birthday is also in September, so as a joint present for both of us we went to see Lee Evans at the NIA, possibly one of the best experiences of my life.

October -  I didn't eat take away food for the whole of October. Nothing else really interesting happened in October... there's nothing that stands out to me anyway! Apart from the fact I finally got my name on a Coke bottle thanks to my job!

November - I finally had a week off work to chill out and do absolutely nothing after having such a busy month in October. I literally did nothing but have lie ins, lazy days and kitty snuggles. I finally got referral to hospital for my IBS which hopefully means it'll be under control soon. Oh, and I finally began eating vegetables...

December - Ahh, the lovely month of December. Christmas shopping, endless parties and obviously, Christmas day. I've really enjoyed December this year, for some reason I looked forward to Christmas and I also enjoyed seeing all my family in one place. Also, this was the month I FINALLY purchased genuine Ugg boots and safe to say...I'm in love! 

Writing all of this down makes me realise just how much I've actually done this year and how eventful it's actually been. I'm hoping next year will be a lot less eventful...in some ways. I have a couple of plans for next year, lets hope I actually get them in to action.

Here's to an eventful and memorable 2014, I hope you all stay happy and healthy over the festive period and all enjoy your new year whatever you'll be doing for it! 

♥

Where have I been?

First of all I'm going to apologise for my absence these past couple of weeks, I've had quite a rough time. I thought I'd give you all a bit of an update as to where I've been and what I've been doing. 

Work became extremely busy and after spending all day in front of a computer, the last thing I wanted to do was come home and sit in front of my laptop. This meant my blog has been neglected. 

I've also been backwards and forwards to the doctors again...my IBS has come back with a vengeance and I've been quite poorly from it. I was constantly tired, nauseous and I frequently needed to take extended breaks at work. My appetite the last couple of weeks has grown less and less too. I'm finally being referred back to the hospital to get help controlling it as it's effecting the way I live now, which is the one thing I always said it'd never do. Until you've had IBS or have had symptoms, you will never know what it's like. I've literally wanted to hide away from everyone, I've found it incredibly difficult to get out of bed, go to work and face civilization. 

I hope to get back in to the swing of things soon, we all know the next week will be a busy one so hopefully I'll have lots to blog about, with it being Christmas, new year and then my birthday all within two weeks of each other! 

I know I don't have many followers but the ones who I have, thank you for sticking around even though I'm very much in and out of blogging!




♥

November favourites.

We're in December already?! Where the hell did last month go? We all know what that means, November favourites! 


Lets kick this off with my absolute makeup favourite, rediscovery and...re-staple...? in my makeup collection. Revlon Colorstay foundation in Ivory. 

I've only recently rediscovered my love for this foundation. I previously tried the normal/dry formula for this foundation, however the grease demons on my face are back so I decided to pick up the combination/oily formula this time. Oh my god, this is like a dream on my face. Personally, I love the smell of this foundation as it's not too overpowering and it's not too cakey on my skin. I get very high coverage from this foundation, I don't need to use a concealer. I also really really like the fact that this foundation almost dries powdery. I can easily wear this foundation all day at work and through the evening right up until I go to bed. Now that's about...15 hours wear! In that time, my face has never gotten shiney and it looks exactly like it had done when I applied it. This may retail for around £12.00 in good makeup stockists, but Revlon, you've found yourself firmly back into my makeup drawer.

Second favourite of the month is the Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker lip gloss crayons. 

I'm an absolute sucker for anything from Soap and Glory, I absolutely love their retro inspired packaging. These caught my eye as I've always wanted to try their lip crayon range but never had the guts to at £8.00 a pop. This was retailing at £15.00 when I purchased it from Boots, which personally, I don't think was that bad. I actually used my points on my Advantage card to buy these. The colours on the picture are a little more vivid than the actual product, however the colour payoff on these crayons are so nice. They're subtle on first application but definitely build able. My favourite out of the three is the darkest shade called "Raplumzel", it's a really deep toned colour which suits my skin tone perfectly. These are super moisturising, don't need reapplying that often on my lips and are a nice chunky size. I definitely feel like I've gotten my money's worth with these and I'll certainly be purchasing more in the future. 

What would a monthly favourites from me be without a Lush product?

Now I'm not a huge fan of some of the Lush soaps as I find them quite sickly, but I purchased Rockstar soap with my last Lush purchase and I'm so happy I did. It's a sweet but not overpowering scent, lasts all day on my skin and makes my skin feel super soft. Lush describe this as "nostalgic seaside rock" and they certainly are right. I've been using this every day now for around...a month and I've barely used anything of the smallest block you can purchase. I'd definitely repurchase this again, however I'll more than likely be switching to a different soap so I don't get bored of the scent too easily! I'm pretty sure I paid around £3-4 for the smallest block which is going to last me forever!

I actually work for Vax, however in their recent Factory Sale I fancied myself a steamer.

I actually purchased a Steam Fresh Combi as the fact it's a 2 in 1 steamer really appealed to me. After having Bonnie, I like to keep the carpets fresh to keep away fleas and also so I can clean my kitchen easily. I'm not going to write too much on this as it sounds like I'm promoting products, however if you're looking for a multifunction steamer, I really do recommend this one. I'm so impressed, my bathroom has NEVER been so clean! 

The last favourite I'll write about this month is something I've been battling with for..as long as I can remember. 

Now you're probably thinking...why have you got a picture of vegetables there? Well, to be brutally honest, I haven't eaten vegetables since I was a tiny baby, and that's not even joking. I have always eaten fruit but vegetables just really worry me and I don't know why. I've tried several times to conquer my eating habits but have only just succeeded. It felt like the right time to try again and this time, because I was in the right mindset, I was finally able to get over my fear of eating vegetables and actually introduce them as a staple part of my diet. Now I'm not gunna say I love every single vegetable out there and I'm going to try every single one, but I'm so proud of myself for even putting a beansprout or a carrot or even a parsnip in my mouth. I've actually enjoyed trying new foods and this is why it's in my favourites. 

What have you enjoyed throughout November? What are you looking forward to in December? 

♥

My thoughts on....re-usable menstrual products.

Lets just get it out in the open... we all know what this post will be about. Womens parts, blood, tampons, pads and any other sort of period related issues out there. I'm not ashamed to talk about periods, I'm quite open when I have issues or even when someone asks me a question. I've never really been shy about talking about them from an early age (practically 12 years old), and I remember starting my periods around the age of 12-13. 

I only have a period roughly every other month due to my contraceptive pill, so really, I don't use a lot of menstrual products. I'm not going to lie, I tend to buy the cheapest I can find  for exactly that reason. I have a stash of pads and tampons waiting to be used, okay they didn't break the bank but I just wanted to know what else is available out there. Sometimes I just don't like the feeling of pantyliners or pads in my pants, they just feel uncomfortable. I wont go into much detail but yeh, sometimes I just don't like them. 

Please note, I realise that this post could be seen as controversial but trust me, in no way shape or form am I influencing people's decisions to wear re-usable, disposable or any form of products. This is purely my own opinion and my own exploration into what else is out there.

Now only recently have I come to discover RUMPs or more commonly known as reusable menstrual products. Okay from first impressions, most of you will more than likely be thinking "what, reusable?? that's weird." which was exactly the same as what I was thinking. But, doing more research on these, I'm actually coming round to the idea. 

My exploration into the RUMP world began after I stumbled upon a video on youtube. A young lady, Bree, has made a whole channel (link: Precious Star Pads) dedicated to educating ladies across the world about re-usable products, hosting her own views on cloth pads, menstrual cups etc and has even made her own business from her experiences. I really admire her, at the age of 17/18, she's one of the most inspiring people I've come across and I mean that. She's not  afraid to get into the nitty gritty of periods, in fact I feel like I've learned more from this inspiring young lady about periods than I ever did in school! 

So lets get some facts about why these things are becoming ever more popular.

1. Every woman in her lifetime will have on average 400 menstrual cycles. If you think about it, that'll be around 12,000 disposable products that you'll use in your life time. Each and every one of those has to go to landfill and will take many years to degrade, and surely we all realise the push to recycle and be economical! A reusable pad/menstrual cup should last around 5 to 10 years depending on how they have been cared for. 

2. When a menstrual cup is inserted into your body, you can barely feel it as it moulds to your vaginal muscles. A cloth pad will make you feel like you're wearing slightly thicker underwear. 

3. There's no nasty chemicals that will contaminate your blood...hence the sometimes horrible odour coming from your pad or tampon. Reusable pads are made out of cotton or specifically designed materials that are made to "breathe". 

4. You can make cloth pads/tampons yourself. Yes, you can design your own pads and tampons! You can even tailor them to your own desires if you're not too keen on manufactured pad shapes. 

Of course, there's so many other things I could pick out but I'd be going on forever. The thing that really got me thinking was...how much have I contributed to landfill with my pads and tampons? As I say, I've been having periods now for around 9 years, each time having used both pads and tampons. Not so much nowadays but certainly when I was younger and my periods were trying to regulate themselves, I would go through several packs of pads a week. 

What do these things actually look like? 

Tampon

Pad

Menstrual cup

As you can see, the pads can be made in such attractive fabrics! The menstrual cups intimidate me a little if I'm being honest...I want to have a go but I'm scared I'll do it wrong then never use it again. The tampons are something I'm 99% certain I'd never use as I'm not really keen on tampons anyway, I try and steer clear of them! 

Honestly, my curiosity will get the better of me when it comes to these things. I'm not totally grossed out but at the same time I'm worried about the effort of having to wash through cloth pads. I like the convenience of disposables but at the same time I am really conscious of my carbon footprint, I'm always finding ways to better myself. Maybe this will be my next venture...

I'll leave some links to some useful information if you want to have a further look into RUMPs , I'm pretty certain I'll be trying a cup and a pantyliner pad. If I do, I'll definitely be writing a review as I'm intrigued to see how I feel about these compared to disposable products.

Precious Star Pads, This website gives so much information on reusables and also allows you to purchase from the website.

Etsy. A search for "menstrual" on Etsy brings up so many different products, I've spent hours searching through them!

Feminine Wear. Huge selection of pads, tampons and cups. Again, really good website to have a look through.

What are your thoughts on reusables? 

♥

Lush R&B hair moisturiser

I know I know, I've been meaning to do this post for so long it's unreal! However, finally finding time to sit down and blog, here we go. 

This is yet another product from Lush I'm going to sing praises for...I first discovered this when one of the kind ladies in my local Lush convinced me to try it in my never ending quest to find a product which smooths out my curly, frizzy hair. If you didn't know, I've been slowly transitioning to only using Lush products on my hair (apart from straightening balms) and in all honesty, I can really see a difference in how my hair has been since doing so. Immediately after I'd picked up my first bar of Godiva and Jungle, I merrily went away clutching my bag of goodies, including a small sample pot of R&B.

Little did I know, I was about to find a product that will literally...and I mean, literally save my hair. 

On first impressions, this yellow tub, of what can only be described as slightly melted butter, smells quite strong. It's really hard to describe...however if it's from Lush, I'm gunna like the smell of it. It's light and melts really easily when you rub it into your hands. It doesn't feel gloopy or thick, which is quite nice as by the name it suggests it'd be quite...heavy on my hair.

From dying my hair month after month for the past 4/5 years, my hair was incredibly brittle and when straightened, still looked extremely damaged and frizzy. No amount of conditioner will smooth these ends down oh no...I need something a bit more taming for my hair. Returning home, I grabbed my pot of R&B and rubbed a small amount in my hands, then through the lengths and ends of my hair. What a difference this makes... even on the first application! It smells absolutely gorgeous and makes my hair look so much slicker and smooth without making it look greasy. Instantly being impressed with this product, I couldn't wait to really put it to the test. 

Now it's been around...4/5 months since I purchased my full size pot of R&B and I've used just under half the tub, considering I use this at least twice a day I really don't think that's too shabby! I do not get any build up in my hair, it never looks greasy and it never feels like it has a huge amount of product in it. This literally melts into the hair, leaving it feeling soft, supple and generally looking really nice. Since using this product, my hair seems a lot thicker and a lot healthier. I genuinely have less breakages and hair shedding since I've been using this, I don't know if that's psychological but I genuinely feel like my hair looks a million times better. A lot of people have said "isn't your hair in good condition considering how much you dye it?" well yes, it actually is! I really do notice a difference if I forget to put this in my hair, my hair feels much more...crispy and looks extremely dry if I don't run this amazing stuff through my hair. I've also noticed my hair colour tends to stay in a LOT longer since using this, and it makes it look a lot more vibrant too.

This is definitely going to be one of my re-purchases when I run out. I'm so impressed with this product, I've been recommending it to everyone who I hear say they have brittle or dry hair. I'm down to just above half way through this tub and it has a very generous "best before" date on it, which I definitely think is cost effective as I've been using it every single day since I bought it!  

I purchased this from my local Lush store for around £10 (or thereabouts) for the smallest pot, however I'd recommend trying a sample first if you're not too sure on what to expect. You never know...you might get addicted like I did! 

♥

About me: My piercings

This is quite possibly one of the most frequent things I get asked about...my piercings. So, I thought I'd do a blog post about my current piercings! 

Now, face on, you wouldn't actually guess that I've got 12 piercings. All you're able to see is my nose piercing! Until I wear my hair up, you don't realise I actually have 11 piercings in my ears. 

Here's some pictures of my ears: 

Helix, tragus, 2 x lobe, 6mm lobe.

Industrial, rook, conch, 2 x lobes, 6mm lobe.

Some of you may be thinking...why?

Well, I just really love the look of piercings. I love the comments I get from people when they realise I have them because you can't see them without my hair being tied up. I love the fact that most people would never think I'd be the sort of people to have piercings because I don't fit the typical stereotype of someone who has piercings. I don't believe in all of that, I like them because they add to my personality. I don't get them to fit in, I get them because... I like them.

Regarding my stretched lobes, I appreciate the fact that not everyone likes the look of stretched lobes, I've had some quite negative comments about them. Mainly "what will you do when you're older?"...well, quite frankly, I'm still going to have them. I've had them since I was 17, I'm now 21. I love them as much now as the day I started stretching, I may only go to around 8-10mm but I like the fact the size I'm at now hasn't changed the shape of my lobe. I love having a look at all the different types of jewellery I can get for my lobes, my plug collection at the moment may not be the biggest but I only buy quality items. No acrylic touches these ears...

Another question I get quite a lot is "did it hurt?" Of course it hurt, of course my ear swelled a little and yes there's normally a tiny bit of blood...but you know what, I've had most of these piercings for 5-6 years now, I can't even remember how it felt to get most of them pierced. I'd say I remember my rook being the most painful as my ears are quite small and it's an awkward place but honestly, I wouldn't be put off by other people's horror stories. Yes piercings hurt slightly but if you really want it, then you'll handle it. 

I've had my fair share of piercings that I've taken out too, I wont list them but of course piercings don't last forever. I generally heal very well when it comes to piercings but sometimes, they just aren't suited to your anatomy. I've got a scar on my bellybutton where I tried hanging onto my navel piercing but in all honesty, I really don't mind that it's there because it was the first real piercing that I had, it's a reminder of why I love getting them so much. 

I know this is quite a pointless post, but I love the fact that piercings are now becoming more accepted in general. I'd just like to point out the importance of safe piercing though...I cannot believe some of the botch jobs that are out there. If you really want a piercing, do your research into correct aftercare, decent piercings and studios. Please don't go to your local Claire's Accessories to get your piercings done, go and get them done properly with a needle in a sterile, safe environment.

♥