Winter Wear Wishlist

I have a complete soft spot for knitted clothing, mostly jumpers and cardigans. They're just so snugly and comforting in the colder months when all I want to do is sit in front of our (fake) fire, wrapped in a blanket with a hot chocolate. Just the thought is putting me in the winter mind set and I feel like I should be planning out Christmas gifts.

Shops are starting to bring in their Autumn and Winter clothing now which only sets off another wishlist for me. Luckily my birthday is only 3 months away.

1/New Look

2/New Look

3/New Look

4/New Look

5/New Look

6/H&M

I did see loads one or two more that I loved but restricted myself. If only I had this kind of self control in Boots.

What's your favourite thing about Autumn?

xx

Summer Stuff

This post is a collaboration with Rachael from A is For Ayla and Jessica from Jessica's Journal- two lovely girls who I've loved working with. Their blogs are brilliant as well so go check them out! 

Rachael is a real tech whiz when it comes to blogging and I cannot wait to read her future Layout Tips and Tricks posts. I love finding out new ways to improve my blog's appearance!

Jessica - I am so jealous of all that gorgeous make up and beauty products she has shown on her blog! Jessica's Journal is a definite must read for all of you cosmetic addicts out there!

For me, this summer has been a big one in terms of beauty. My collection of cosmetics has grown a lot over the last few months and I have found so many products I have loved. It was difficult to narrow it down to one item per category (I may have cheated on one or two).

Here are my favourite finds and things of summer this year. Hope you enjoy

My skincare product is a bit of a recent buy but it has definitely blown me away! 

L'Oréal Skin Perfection Purifying Micellar Water - £3.33

I have been after a Micellar water for so long, ever since the start of the Bioderma hype. As Bioderma is a French brand it is quite difficult to get a hold of here in the UK, and even when you do find it it's pretty pricey after shipping to England so when I saw L'Oréal had recently bought out a Micellar water, I jumped at the chance! L'Oréal Skin Perfecting Purifying Micellar Water is meant to remove make up and impurities. It may take a few cotton pads but, wow, it really does remove every bit of make up from foundation to lipstick and water proof mascara with out any hassle! And I have also noticed my skin clearing up slightly since I have started using this. I've got a full review coming soon so watch out for that.



Now for my favourite body product of the season.



Boots Essentials Cucumber Moisturising Lotion - £1.50
I could have gone for something more luxurious than a moisturiser but I couldn't leave this little gem out. I mentioned this briefly in a previous post but, again, I won't go into loads of detail as I'm reviewing this soon as well. I cannot express how much I love this product. If you have a problem with dry skin, especially eczema, then I beg you to buy this. £1.50 isn't much for a skin miracle. This has completely gotten rid of my eczema that I have had for as long as I can remember, it's worked better than every prescription cream I've tried and I don't think I will ever be able to go without this it!



L'Oréal Matt and Messy: Salt Spray - £3.75
This year has seen the release of Salt Sprays. Even tough I already had the Toni&Guy one, I bought this. I love using this when my hair is wavy or curly and sometimes when it's in a ponytail to add a bit more life into it. The smell it something I was a bit unsure of at first but now I love it! Added bonus - it hasn't made my hair greasy quicker at all.

Nivea Daily Essentials Express Hydration Primer - £3.33
My favourite face product or 'base make up' has been the Nivea Daily Essentials Express Hydration for Normal and Combination Skin. I use this instead of a moisturiser and it does the job perfectly of not only moisturising but leaves my skin smooth and a perfect base for my make up. The formula is quite thin and almost runny but it has lasted me for quite a while and I will be repurchasing. 


       

No7 Exceptional Definition Nutrient Enriched Mascara
My favourite make up product has been this No7 Mascara. It's a bit old but still good enough for use. I found this at the back of my make up drawer and thought 'why not give it a go?' i holds a curl exceptionally (eh?eh?) well and really volumises my lashes. It also lasted all day with out going all crumbly. Unfortunately I think this has been discontinued as I could not find it on the Boots website.



Topshop Nail Polish in Gone Fishing - £5
This colour is amazing for summer. I wouldn't usually go for a green nail polish but I saw this on the stand and fell in love with it. It's the perfect pastel green, it goes on really well and lasts for ages as well. Another good one is Pool Party by Topshop. It's a gorgeous light blue but I don't own it - I just used it at my friend's but it is at the top of my list for my next Topshop visit.


 


Dress £19.99 New Look
Bag £7.99 New Look

New Look has probably been my favourite shop this summer, it's had some lovely dresses, skirts, tops..everything really. Now, they're are starting to bring some Autumn stuff in but clothing from this outfit should still be in stock. I have loved this dress so, so much - it's a pink lace dress with a flowery kind of pattern on the lace. It has t-shirt sleeves and an underskirt that comes up to the chest. For me, it's the perfect summer dress.

I have had such a brilliant summer this year, here are some of my favourite moments because I just couldn't leave it at just one

-My school prom. Although 2 of my friends decided not to go it was an amazing night and I've kind of considered it one last big night with my friends before we go off to separate schools. Even though I wasn't that keen on my dress compared to other people's and I lost my voice within about an hour I had so much fun and I don't think I will ever forget it.

-My Holiday - I went to Menorca for a week with my Dad, Step-mum, Step-sister and Step-brother. The whole week was brilliant but my favourite moment has to be when all 5 of us sat outside eating dinner. Even though we have mosquitoes constantly flying around us we had some great conversations, laughed A LOT and finished it with playing Heads Up (it's an app and oh my god, it's hilarious!) 

To finish off - something I'm looking forward to. 
I'm looking forward to what will happen for this blog. It may take a while but over the past few months it has been slowly growing and I have spoken to some lovely people because of it. 

I'm also looking forward to Christmas. I love spending time with family and as I have a massive family it's one of my favourite times of the year. Loads of us crammed around a table eating, talking, whatever. I love Christmas, just not the cold.

Sorry if this post was a bit long but it has been fun writing it and working with Rachael and Jessica. 
Be sure to check out their posts!
 Hope you enjoyed reading it.

What have you been loving over the summer? 
xx

The Best Brownies I Have Ever Had

Today's post is another recipe. I have made these brownies a few times and they have turned out great every time! They are honestly the best ones I have ever had.

You will need

-200g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

-175g unsalted butter

-325g caster sugar

-130g plain flour

-3 eggs

-Baking tray lined with grease proof paper
-You can add nuts if you want but I prefer them without

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/gas mark 3

2. Put the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (don’t let the bottom of the bowl touch the water)

3. Remove from the heat. Add the sugar and stir until well incorporated.

4. Add the flour and stir until well incorporated.

5. Finally, stir until in the eggs and mix until thick and smooth.

6. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking tray and bake in a preheated oven for about 30 to 35 minutes, or until the brownies are flaky on top but soft in the centre.



And that's it! Tell me what you think in the comments if you made them. If you don't you'll be missing out
xx

Music to my Ears #3

Over the past month or so I've found a few songs that I've fallen in love with and I'm sure you will too. Some of these have even featured as my 'Song of the Day', when I've been able to update it.

Bastille - Things We Lost in the Fire

These are the things. The things we lost. The things we lost in the fire, fire, fiiiirrreee.
I am a big fan of Bastille, I think I first heard this song on TV. The other week I heard it playing while shopping in River Island and it was so hard not to sing along.

Disclosure - F for You

This isn't my usual type of music but I just find it so damn catchy! I love the video as well, actually seeing them (kind of) play this kind of music 'live' if that makes sense?

Jake Bugg - Broken

Oh..my..goodness. Is this song not perfection? It gave me a slight chill when I first heard it and I can definitely fallen in love with it. Jake Bugg's voice is amazing and relaxes me so much in this song.

Two Door Cinema Club - Handshake

Yep, the video is a but odd. 'Severed head bowling, anyone?'. But, again, such a catchy song that was on repeat a lot. 'She said the devil will want you back'

Mumford and Sons - Babel

I do love a bit of Mumford and Sons. I was exciting to see that they'd released a new song and 'Babel' definitely lived up to the mark. This was a song that kept popping up on the music channels when I was packing up my room. Needless to say it was played a lot on full blast.

And last but not least
The Arctic Monkeys - Do I Wanna Know

This is easily one of my favourite songs of this list. For some reason, this song doesn't come up in the results when I search for it on my phone's YouTube app. So because I don't really go on Youtube on my laptop, I thought the song wasn't on YouTube and had to wait for it to come up on the music channels. I now know every word...
Another amazing song by the Arctic Monkeys is R U Mine. Please listen to it!

What songs have been your favourites recently?
xx

Summer Dessert

A few weeks ago when I was in Menorca, my dad and step-mum ordered a dessert at the restaurant we were eating at - Kiwi, honey and cream. It's as simple as that. They loved it so much they decided to recreate it at home to show us what we missed out on.

You will need

-kiwis - we had 1/2 a kiwi per person 

-*if you don't like kiwis most fruits will work just as well

-double cream - there isn't really a specific amount, just use as much as you'd like

-*of course if you don't have enough time or you really don't want to have to whisk the cream up, use cream from an aerosol can but it isn't as good

-honey

1. Cut up the kiwis into slices. Arrange them in a circle on a plate.

2. Pour the cream into a bowl and whisk to make whipped cream. I recommend using an electrical whisk for this unless you want aching arms

3. Put a dollop of cream in the centre of the 'kiwi circle'

4. Pour a small amount of honey over the top 

5. If you want, you can pour some extra double cream over the top as well

And that's it. Such a simple dessert, delicious and easy. We certainly all loved it.

Would you try this recipe out?

xx