A UK Lifestyle, Fashion & Beauty blog bringing you the latest reviews, news and views on everything from make-up to the latest restaurant openings in London.
As Christmas edges ever closer it is time to make sure the house smells of the season. Christmas brings back so many memories and Christmassy smells make all the memories come flooding back. I am a bit of an obsessive when it comes to candles and diffusers anyway so thought I would dedicate a whole post to the ones that will be making my house smell beautiful this Christmas and make it super cozy as that what candles seem to do.
Yankee Candles are great, they look lovely in their little jar and last forever. They have an wide range of Christmas scents include fresh pine , feeling cozy by the fire, yes that can be a smell and a great one at that, and finally my fave is berries. These retail around £8.99.
For a slow burning candle go for Annick Goutal, the limited edition Noel scent is lush.
For a slow release of scent throughout the day, a reed diffuser is a great alternative and for Christmas, Charles Farris has a limited edition one called 'Pinetum' mixing sweet pine needles, eucalyptus, birch leaves with a rich base of amber and sandalwood. Christmas seeps through this little one.
Rathbornes is officially the oldest candle brand in the world meaning a wealth of experience and this Cedar, Cloves & Ambergris candle proves it. The scent is spicy and intense fragrance mixing warm rosewood, orange zest and black amber for a luxurious scent.
This year mini versions of huge
bulky handbags are totally in and I have finally got myself one, 3.1 Phillip Lim Mini Pashli Satchel. It’s so tiny I am in LOVE, perfect for the party
season and black goes with everything so I am pretty sorted. Sure set me the
task of living using my mini handbag all weekend and to share the essentials I carry,
it’s a hard choice I need products that Icannot live without and that 100% does include a deodorant
so the Sure Compressed Deodorant is great.
The
first thing I started with was to clear out my larger handbag which I always
love doing as I find lots of interesting things I have picked up during the
week and a few pound coins which is always a great bonus. So including the Sure
Compressed Deodorant which is 125ml and lasts as long as the larger cans of
250ml which is great because it fits perfectly and great when traveling around
London when you need a little spritz. I have also included my Kate Spade wallet if I wanted to scale down even more I could just take out my debit and credit card
which has my oyster on it and then my driving license. Although I am 27 I have
been questioned about getting my weekly lottery ticket so the ID is a must. I
also threw in a few pound coins from in my larger handbag. My mobile phone is a
definite as there is no way I was leaving this behind something might happen on
Instagram!! and with v-logging my Olympus Pen is also an essential
now.
I usually don’t top up my makeup during the day so all I need is
some concealer, this one is a newbie from Bare Minerals SPF 20 CorrectingConcealer in light 2 it’s a creamy texture with pinky tones and it goes so well
with my skin tone.Although I do not top up my makeup, lipstick is a part of me and
I must wear it at all times J and at
the moment my favourite colour is plum like this Clarins matte number in RougeEclat in Tawny Rose. You can build up the lip colour for a deeper shade which
is perfect as you go into night mode.
After using my mini handbag for a whole weekend, it felt really
refreshing to scale back, you don’t need non essentials!
So this is the first in a spanking new series, although it will
not occur on a Monday but a Friday as a great way to end the week. I will be
taking you through my favourite items from the week from homewares through to
beauty. SO let’s get to it, this week my faves consist of an array of beauty
items and also getting a little bit out of my comfort zone with blue hair and
boobs on display BUT I love it.
1. Lipsy Love Michelle
You might have seen my post about the Lipsy
Love Michelle launch and I absolutely love this LBD from the collection,
its perfect for the party season. It adds a little bit of sparkle and showcases
a little bit of boob whist keeping everything synced in with an elasticated
waist, a bit like spandex but looks fabulous. I genuinely felt like Michelle in
this dress, glamorous head to toe.
2. ANNA Cosmetic
Keeping in with the glamour theme, I have
been trying Anna Cosmetic Caviar face masks they come in a little gold box
which sits in the fridge, which is fine as my makeup boxes are bursting.
Putting caviar on your face makes it feel expensive and you know it’s working some
type of magic. Now admittedly it doesn't look like caviar when you smudge it
on, I did try to do a glamorous pose but failed miserably.
3. Charli XCX for Impulse
A few weeks ago I headed to the launch of
Charli XCX for Impulse it made me reminisce about my youth and the fact that I
used to bloody LOVE Impluse. Charli sung a few of her hits with Boom Clap as
one of my faves. Charli has launched two scents, 'Vanilla Kisses' it doesn't
take a genius to figure out what this smells like and 'Rock & Love', an
oriental scent featuring a mix of fresh and fruity fragrance notes. These
retail at £1.99.
4. L.A.B Make Me Blush Brush
This is my favourite brush for bronzer at the moment with the
winter creeping in I am focusing more on blusher with a light sweep of bronzer
and these brushes are perfect.
This Enamoured Hi-Shine Lip Lacquer in HeyYou is beaute, the pigmentation is unreal and perfect for the festive season. I
actually think this will look great with my Lipsy LBD. It plumps up the lips
and has a gloss that looks like a mirror.
5. Pixie Lott Paint
If you have been watching my SnapChat,
Time2Gossip FYI, then you would of seen my hair going blue for Halloween. I
thought that this launch from Pixie Lott was great, bit odd as she never died
her hair before but hey ho neither have I and I was intrigued by the fact it
washes out so quickly. Although it did not go as bright as Pixie’s hair on the
bottle and looked slightly green it was great I felt like Kylie Jenner and I cannot
wait to try some of the other products in the range. Please note thought, that
the dye is still in my hair slightly, it does take a while to wash out and I
used two boxes for my hair.
6. Sensationail
These gel polishes have literally changed
the way I do my nails; it’s hard to go back to painting my nails without a UV
light. It does take a little longer but my nails look so shinny when applied
and it lasts for at least a week - literally in LOVE and this nude shade is
perfect for going with all outfit choices. For the full Gel Nail starter kit, click here.
7. Toffee Apple Tea
You can tell this post should have not
only been up on a Friday but before the 31st October as well - I am sorry! But
this tea is incredible it’s so flavoursome, as you can see I love Whittard I
have covered their products quite a few times and this Toffee Apple favloured
tea is tasty even if it’s not on Halloween.
It is cold and wet but this just means I need to expand my shoe collection and browse millions of websites to ensure I have got the perfect pair of shoes, trainers and boots for every occasion. On this topic, have you checked out Lyst? It has hundreds of brands and is a really easy way to create lists of your favourite products, so I made a long list of the next shoes I want to buy J. Looking at my current autumn staples I wanted my collection to be warm yet stylish for every occasion and I think I am getting there.
Sporty
These were actually on my original shoe list on Lyst a pair of Nike Air Max 1 Ultra Moire in black. These new babies are very light which is great for running around. The all black look makes them pretty stylish and love that they can casual up any outfit without making your feet hurt.
OTK
Ted & Muffy, the boutique boot label (formally Duo Boots) has landed and my Lucina over the knee boots are 'da bomb' to quote many students. I have gone for black suede but they also have a lovely deep red shade. With an array of calf sizes you are sure to have a boot that fit like a glove. You defiantly need to wear these with a mini dress or skirt but they look pretty hot – I need to get out of my comfort zone and wear them all the time not just in my house.
70s Style
River Island came to the rescue during LFW with these bad boys and they are great for A/W. They are a mixture of brown and orange suede, with a good sized chunky heel, they make the perfect boot for trekking around London with 70s style. Although the website says knee high they are quite a bit below the knee and I am short.
Traditional
These riding boots are more causal and flat, they feel more durable which is required with this awful weather from M and M direct. Again they say knee high but on me they are quite a bit under my knee - maybe I have really long legs…that must be it! Anyway these are great for an everyday bootie in this crappy weather.
Next I need to start thinking about party heels for the festive season don't you think?!?
