The Impractical Jokers: Live Punishment @ Wycombe UK

On Tuesday April 5th, the Impractical Jokers filmed a punishment at Wycombe Wanderers football ground. I was one of the thousands that made a trip up there after seeing their Tweet about the event. 

Review: Bourjois City Radiance Skin Protecting Foundation SPF30

Any product with the words 'radiance' and 'SPF30' immediately get my attention. Pretty pastel pink packaging also helps. The Bourjois City Radiance foundation is a fairly new release and one that I think would be lovely for the Spring into Summer. The colour I chose was the 01 Rose Ivory- a light shade for cool-toned skin. It's a good match for me, but how much coverage and radiance can this so-called foundation really offer?

Review: Lancôme Juicy Shakers (Boom-meringue and Freedom of Peach)

Left: Freedom of Peach; right: Boom-meringue

The latest lip product to excite beauty-lovers are the Lancôme Juicy Shakers. These lip oils come in a range of colours of which I purchased two: Freedom of Peach and Boom-meringue. 

Things That I'm Currently Enjoying (March-April 2016)

Rose gold rings:
I purchased some beautiful, delicate rose gold rings from an Etsy shop called Nikki Stark Jewellery over the last few months. They are handmade, made to order pieces which can be stacked and combined. They go with any outfit because they are minimalist and pared down. I love that you forget you're even wearing them because they are so lightweight despite being real gold.   The rings were bought separately and on both occasions they came within a week and were displayed in a sweet little box with a nice personalised message from Nikki. I'd recommend this designer- you can click the link above to browse her store.

Our adorable kitten, Maisie: aged 8 weeks to 5 months

                               In early December we got a kitten after wanting one for years. Growing up, we always had cats and I've always missed having one around since I moved away in my late teens. We picked up our little black kitten from a lovely lady in Southsea and was told 'she's an adventurer'- little did we know that this was not an exaggeration! In fact, I suspect that she was the most mischievous of the whole litter. Every kitten likes to explore, but ours is particularly curious and fearless. There is no shelf, drawer, cupboard or box she hasn't attempted to enter. For such a tiny cat, she has an amazing pair of lungs on her. On the way home to our house, she meowed LOUDLY non-stop and has since been known to wake us up at 5am crying until we go and give her attention! She is the cutest, funniest little kitten we could have ever hoped for, with heaps of personality. We called her Maisie because it was a cute name for a sweet little girl.

Novel and Unique Christmas Gift Ideas

Co-workers often laugh at how early I get my Christmas shopping done, but a bit of Late October planning and early November purchasing helps me to have a little spending money come December. And yes, I'll also confess that I have a "Christmas spreadsheet"! Ultimately, I love giving presents to people that I care about. Even on a slightly tighter budget this year, it gives me a lot of joy to choose things that might bring some happiness to peoples' days. On a selfish level, I love to shop around for gifts, especially online, because it means I can distract myself from more onerous tasks like housework and lesson planning! 
Here are some novel gift ideas that I have either given in the past, or would purchase for the special people in my life...

Things That I'm Currently Enjoying (November 2015)

Casio Watch: My Casio digital watch in gold with a brown leather strap was a gift from a loved one. I never wore watches before getting this, but as it is dainty and I have scrawny wrists, it is perfect. I used to have one in black and silver as a child, so it has a nostalgic feel for me, but with the colour combo, it has a grown-up edge. It goes with all outfits and as I tend to wear more gold than silver accessories nowadays, it looks classy for a digital watch. I love it! 

Winter Skincare: my picks for 2015

Winter is approaching, the air is turning colder, and the central heating is on for longer periods of time. This can cause our complexions to dry out even more so than usual. The products above are my top picks for keeping my skin calm and happy in these colder months.

Haircare Empties: Summer-Autumn 2015

Over the last few months of my blogging drought, I have become a hoarder of empty products. Before I accumulated even more empty bottles, I thought now was the time to do a haircare review.

New Beautiful Things: Charlotte Tilbury Magic Foundation and Nars Steven Klein Palette

One Shocking Moment cheek palette from the Nars Steven Klein collection

Of all of the Winter/ Christmas palettes or sets, this was the one I decided to treat myself to. Nars' blushes are often said to be the best quality on the market, and I get a lot of use out of the few I already own. This palette (part of the Steven Klein collection), features some of Klein's high-fashion photography. The image on this palette is striking and one of my favourites from the photos used for the collection. At £49, this is relatively good value for money- you get a matte highlight and contour (Paloma- the mid skintone set); the famous Nars Laguna bronzer; and four blushes. The blush shades are all unique from each other. There is a candy pink with sparkle, a deeper light-mid pink, a shimmery peachy shade and a rosy sparkly colour. For me, this is a collector's item and a great chance to try out some new colours. I have also found that the contour, highlight and bronzer create a fabulous warm brown eye look- keep reading to see what I mean.