The Life Post | Luxury Mother's Day Gift Guide

So Tomorrow is March, which means one thing in the UK - Mother's Day! Appreciating your Mum is SO important, so it's such a good opportunity to really show them what they mean to you. My Mum is amazing, she was a stay at home Mum and was always there when we got home from school, cooked our dinners, did our washing, etc. She gave up so much for us and if I could - I would spoil her rotten for it. With that in mind, I thought it would be quite a cool idea to do a luxury gift guide for Mother's Day. 

The Video Post | Boots & Lush Haul

I went to a couple of shops and bought some stuff. Yup, stuff. I talk through all my latest purchases in this video, as well as introducing one of the cats to you for about 2 seconds...

The Beauty Post | Revlon ColorStay Make Up

I went looking for Revlon Nearly Naked and came home with ColorStay, a very highly rated foundation. I was super excited to try this and so eager to nab it that I accidently got the normal to dry skin instead of the oily to combination one. Whoops. Well I gave it a go anyway as I had a few little dry spots and my oily skin was actually behaving so I figured it wouldn't be too bad.

The Video Post | February Revisited

I've decided to do a post each month where I look back at reviews I've done in that same month over the past two years...

The Beauty Post | Won Over by Lipgloss

As a loyal reader you will know that I usually stick to my lipsticks, however the past few months I've been moving away from bold lip colours to a sheerer finish. To begin with I started with tints, or sheer thin lipsticks, but lately I've been choosing glosses instead of a stick or tint.

The Video Post: GRWM Filming Face

After filming my PM Skincare routine I realised I really loved my make up for that video so decided to recreate it for you guys.

The Food Post | Mini Coffee Cakes

I can't take credit for this recipe unfortunately, it comes from my boyfriends Mum. Ever since we've been together he's loved her coffee cake and eventually I tried it and loved it as well. It's the perfect balance of coffee - not too much, but just enough to taste it. Eventually it stopped being a huge cake as often and went down into little lunch boxed sizes cuties to take into work. After 3+ months of living together I finally decided to try making them myself...

The Life Post | Last Week: A Girl's Valentine

I want to pop some more life back into my blog, so I'm going to attempt to put some more of what I've been up to in each week up on here. 

Yesterday I went on a girl's valentine date with my bestie Amber (you've probably seen her on here before). We decided to go and see Fifty Shades of Grey, oh yes! But first, brunch.

The Video Post | My PM Skin Routine

Following on from my AM routine I wanted to show you guys my PM routine as well as I use a couple of different products.

The Style Post | Valentine's Look Book

Whether you love it or hate it, Valentines is just around the corner. We usually keep the day itself pretty low key but it is a good excuse to spend some quality time together. Whether you're off out with your lover, or just spending time with your friends I've put together some styles for each type of event...

The Video Post | Top 10 Under 10: Make Up

Today's video I talk about my top 10 make up products, all under £10 and available from either Boots or Superdrug. I love drugstore products and I love that you can get some amazing quality for minimum price. I am absolutely loving making videos at the moment so let me know if you like watching them and any you'd like me to do! Click here to watch this video and don't forget to subscribe!

What are you favourite products for under £10?

The Beauty Post | The Kiss

Last week I popped up a review about my ultimate winter lip saviour, however one of these products has also helped to completely sort my lips out. The other is a hmm product. When I saw Lush had bought out some Valentines bits I was determined to own some, especially the lip scrub. So I popped in and bought some bits - not too many if I'm honest - but I did treat myself to these two little pots of lip goodies.

The Kiss Lip Scrub

I generally love these lip scrubs and have been using them for years. I was a bit disappointed in their Christmas Santa Lips one a couple of years ago, so I was dubious about this - shouldn't have been though! This has hundreds and thousands, and little red heart sequins in it as well. Both totally unncessary but it does add to it's cuteness. This one tastes of love hearts (apt for valentines) and is my favourite flavour of these scrubs so far. In general, it's just amazing at removing dry or dead skin, scabs and smoothing my lips out. I couldn't live without these scrubs and The Kiss is no exception.

The Kiss Lip Gloss

I've never used a Lush lip gloss before, so I was really excited about using this. However, I have come away being a bit disappointed. I find it quite hard to use, literally it feels really solid and I have to press down really hard to get any product on my finger. Then, when it's on my lips there is very little colour pay off and little gloss pay off. It's very nourishing and I think it's definitely more of a balm then a gloss. This is sat on my shelf at the moment without much use at al.

Lush is a brand I absolutely love and I'm really loving their lip scrub, however I probably won't be buying any of their other glosses as I was disappointed in this. You win some, you loose some!

What are you coveting from Lush's Valentines collection?

The Food Post | Honey & Cinnamon Cookies

Since I've moved into my own house I have developed a complete and utter love for baking. It's so relaxing and honestly, it's just good fun. Therefore I thought I'd pop some of my favourite recipes up on here for you guys to recreate. If you do please share them with me on twitter (click here) or instagram (click here). 

Today I want to share with you one of my recent discoveries, honey & cinnamon cookies. The original recipe had ginger instead of cinnamon but I decided to switch it up a bit. These are super easy to make and just a bit different from the usual chocolate chip mix - which means I can insist they are healthy cookies (hmm, maybe not). They should be lovely and crunchy on the outside and spongy on the inside. Perfect.

Ingredients:
100g Caster Sugar
100g Butter

175g Honey

1 Egg

1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

1/2 Tsp Biocarbonate of Soda

250g Plain Flour

1 Tsp Cinnamon

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees, or Gas Mark 4.

2. Over a low heat, melt together the sugar, butter and honey. Once melted and all mixed together leave to cool for about five minutes. I usually transfer it to a mixing bowl so it's not still in a hot pan (it doesn't really matter too much if it's still warm)

3. In a seperate bowl mix the egg, vanilla, biocarbonate of soda and cinnamon.

4. Pour into the hot mix whilst stirring until all joined and mixed together.

5. Slowly add the flour to the mixed and stir until well blended.

6. Drop by spoonful onto baking trays, about 5cm apart. I did tablespoonfuls for large cookies, for smaller ones do teaspoons.

7. Bake for around 12-15 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow to cool.

8. Once cooled, sprinkle some cinnamon over the top.

Top tip: These are so yummy broken up with ice cream and blackberries with a drizzle of extra honey over the top. YUM!

What's your favourite cookie recipes?

The Video Post | My AM Skincare Routine

I'm really getting into my skincare at the moment so I thought filming a little routine would be a great way to show you guys what I'm currently using and loving. As with all skincare posts a little summary of my skin: I have combination to oily skin, sometimes it can get incredibly oil and sometimes I get dry patches - however my main problem is oil and also blemishes. What may work for me may not work for you so please think about taking any recommendations and consider whether you're a skin match before so. Click here to watch the video, I hope you enjoy and don't forget to subscribe!

What products would you recommend for a morning routine?

The Beauty Post | My Winter Lip Saviour

My lips were a frigging mess for most of January, scabby, dry, bitten beyond belief and they just looked awful. I had tried a few different balms and nothing seemed to really work. I had seen the Nuxe Reve De Miel on a few blogs and I was always tempted but put off by the price tag. £9.50 always seems like a lot for a balm but seeing as nothing else worked I decided to finally cave and purchase this little pot.

I don't usually like to to review something so soon after I purchase, but this has completely won me over. In less than a week my lips have done a complete 180. I used this in the morning after a lip scrub, before make up, and just before I go to bed. My lips feel fuller, plumper, softer and smoother and I can finally wear bold coloured lipsticks again without having to worry about the texture coming through.

I use my Body Shop Strawberry Lip Butter during the day if needed, or if I'm wearing my Benefit PosieBalm I top that up, and that seems to work for the interim day - but because of the high price this is staying firmly by my bed side.

What's your winter lip saviour?

The Video Post | January 2015 Favourites

Welcome to February everyone!! I hope you had a fab start to your 2015 and if not - well, it was only the first month! Let's make the next 11 even better :) Today's video is my January favourites - one you'll probably see everyone on YouTube over the next couple of days but I hope you enjoy it! Click here to view and don't forget to give it a thumbs up and subscribe.

What are your January Favourites?

The Life Post | How to Love your Bath

Up until a couple of months ago I was not a bath person in the slightest and I definitely didn't see the fuss around getting all the Lush bath bombs or spending an hour in your own dirt... Hmm. Well, since I moved into my own house and had access to my own bath I've managed to convert myself. At the moment there is nothing nicer to me then spending a good house just chilling in my own bath, cleaning myself. I tend to do a really good bath on a Sunday so I'm all refreshed for my new week and I'm all relaxed, ready for bed. Not a bath person? Not to worry... Here are my top 5 ways to really enjoy your bath...

1. Set Aside the TimeThere is nothing worse when trying to relax when you're on a time limit, therefore set aside about an hour to really help you chill. What I've done is to put an episode of a TV series I'm currently loving on my laptop facing the bath which is usually around 40 minutes anyway so I tend to do my bits at the beginning of the bath, then press play and that gives me a good 40 minutes of just chilling.

2. Light that Candle
I love having a candle lit by my bath as it just makes it feel so much more luxurious and just sets the mood as well. If you have a dimmer light even better, unfortunately I don't so it's still full lite but the candle just adds something a little extra and I think depending on the scent it can really set a nice relaxing atmosphere.

3. Do your Hair Before
I try to wash my hair seperately before I get into the bath - luckily I have a combo shower/bath so I do a quick hair wash and condition and then jump in the bath (no literally obviously...). This way you don't have to worry about dunking your hair under or really trying to make sure you get everything on and off again as it can be a pain, especially if you have long thick hair like me!

4. Bomb it Out
I have fallen completely in love with bath bombs, or bubble bars lately and I find that if you get some great ones they can really soften you skin and make such a difference. My favourite are, of course, from Lush and I get very excited to use these and the natural ingredients really lend a hand with making your bath more relaxing and luxuorious.

5. Refresh Yourself
When I have about 10 minutes left I put a lovely face mask on to help completely refresh my skin and get it ready for the week. Not only that but the bath is where I do my weekly body exfoliate and just all those bits and pieces that you only need to do once a week. I do the majority in the first 10 minutes, but the mask is my final countdown.

How do you ensure you love your bath?

The Health Post | The Hairy Dieters

These are definitely my favourite recipe books to use at the moment as they have some amazing recipes in here, that are all fab for that new year diet. I like with a really fussy boyfriend who hates healthy things so it's so hard for me to find a compromise for both of us, however The Hairy Dieters books are incredible. They basically show you how you can still eat all the great meals you love, but make small changes to help you lose that weight.

My favourite out of the three is probably Eat For Life and I've done more meals out of this than the other two. One of my favourites is the Taglietelli Carbonara, and also their Pan Haggety which the boyfriend loves as well.

If you're on a healthy eating spree and really struggle with your evening meals then I would definitely recommend these books. I think they are amazing and most meals are under 400 caleries - if you follow the recipes exactly. I got all of mine off amazon and you can find them here:

The Hairy Dieters: How to Love Food and Lose Weight  |  The Hairy Dieters: Eat for Life  |  The Hairy Dieters: Good Eating

What's your favourite diet recipe book?