Snow Day!

So Ollie and I had planned to go to Norwich to see Blood Red Shoes, but as you may have noticed it's snowed! This of course means that trains are delayed and there wouldn't be a guarantee that I'd be back for my sisters birthday. So instead we decided to head out into the snow and make the most of it!

 

This is my favourite picture of us two from today :)

How have you been enjoying the snow?
Have any of your plans failed due to the snow?

Nicola Mai..x

Kukee Jewellery: Take Two

So I have posted before about how much I love the jewellery from Kukee, this is the second time I have ordered from them and once again I couldn't be more pleased. The service is super quick, I ordered on the Friday and got my items by the Tuesday, as sometimes I can be left for a few weeks for such a big order to be delivered. Plus p&p is only £2.75, which for the time of delivery is absolutely amazing.
The packaging is super cute, everything labelled with stickers and put inside candy coloured tissue paper. I also got a couple of free gifts with my order, which is a lovely touch.
You can find the website here: http://www.kukee.co.uk

Top to bottom, left to right; Scary Bones Bracelet- £3, Skull Bead Bracelet- £2.50, Large Cross Earrings- £1.75, Huge Cross Earrings- £3, Sideways Multi Cross Bracelet- £2.50, Huge Cross Necklace- £3, Gun 'n' Rose Necklace- £1, Ying Yang Necklace- £2.50, Femme Fatale Necklace- £1.


The jewellery as you can see from my picture is super cheap for the quality you get, I will always return to Kukee thanks to the service and continuing high quality products, I strongly recommend that you head over to the website and made your order now!

My week :)

Well I'm feeling a little under the weather today so I'm just going to do a quick update on what I've been up to this week.

Top to Bottom, Left to Right: My scarf and pocketwatch necklace, I curled my hair, Ollie and I having a duvet day, I'm a tiger when i'm drunk apparently, Jenny and I reather toddled and pulling faces, NME Tour tickets have arrived!, Bradley and I having dinner, Costa pink lemonade mm!, all wrapped up in my scarf for these freezing cold days!

Lush Lush Lush Lush Lush :)

So this is long overdue as I planned to do this post a few days ago and just got side-tracked, sorry! As you can tell from the title this is about all things Lush, one of my favourite stores, its my go to place when I want to have a luxury bath. These are things that I was given for Christmas, or that I bagged in the sales :)

 

Popcorn Lip Scrub-  In the Winter I suffer terribly from chapped and sore lips, well that's all changed! This scrub prevents my lips getting a build up of dead skin/chapped skin (pleasant I know) before it becomes a real problem. Its made from tiny crystals and the smell is so gorgeous, exactly what you can imagine it to smell like if not better!  

9/10

Think Pink Bath Bomb- The name indicates the colour your bath will go when you use this, pink lovers will adore this product! You will be surrounded by a bright bubble pink bath which for me makes me feel cheerful :) This isn't my favourite bathbomb from Lush, but it is again amazing. 
7/10

The Comforter Bubble Bar- I will try to contain my excitement when it comes to this product but this bubble bar has to be my ultimate favourite from everything in the Lush franchise. It smells like blackcurrant and gives the bath a slight pink tinge, also the amount of bubbles you can make with the bubble bars is beyond what I first thought. They can be great value for money as you don't use the whole thing at once, well you can if you wish, but I tend to get three or four baths out of one bar. Totally amazing, I always re-buy and I can't fault it.
 10/10

Amandopondo Bubble Bar- Well this smells exactly like Turkish Delight, the rose flavoured ones. The smell is powerful and full without becoming overpowering. One I would recommend if you tend to lean for flowery smells. This bubble bar leaves the water with a cloudy colour and leaves skin feeling soft.
 8/10

Enchanter Bath Bomb-This bath bomb was brought out around October time, I happened to try it on a whim as I tend to lean more towards the pink/flowery/fruity products but I thought I would give it a chance. I am so glad I did! You would think for the colour of the bath bomb that it would leave your bath yellow and orange, which it does, but it also throws in some florescent pink for good measure. It's really fresh and uplifting great for those baths in the morning, when you really don't want to be awake just yet. I got very excited when I first used this and have since bought perhaps too many of them ;) as originally they were going to be limited edition, but have decided to keep them on! 
9/10

Rose Jam Bubble Bar- Another bubble bar, which is similar to the Amandopondo with its rose smell but doesn't have the sweet Turkish Delight edge. I actually really like this product and it's fast becoming one of my favourites, mainly for how sweet and lovely it smells. As you can see in the picture it comes in two pieces which are together, so I tend to split it down the middle and get two baths out of it.
7/10

Twilight Bath Bomb- As you may have read in other posts I have go through phases of having dire sleep, this bath bomb really helps me when I am going through a stressful or sleepless time. The lavender smell isn't too strong and for someone who doesn't normally like the smell of lavender it's a complete winner for me! It leaves swirls of pink/purple and blue in the bath and just completely relaxes the mind and body. I will definitely be stocking up on these when I get back to uni and deadlines loom!
8/10

 

Cream Candy Bubble Bar-Exactly what the name would suggest the smell of this product is like being inside a sweet shop, the aroma of tubs of sweets floats around the bathroom and takes you back to the old school sweet shops. I would strongly recommend this for anyone who enjoys Snow Fairy in the Winter months, as you can buy this all year round and it's just as sweet and uplifting just without the pear scent. I love this product and this again is one that I will always go back to repurchase.

8/10

Snow Fairy!!- Well this doesn't really need much of an introduction as most people who shop at Lush will know about the famous Snow Fairy. This product doesn't tend to get many bad reviews and once you smell it and use it for yourself you will see why. As I mentioned above it has a smell of pear, pear drops to be exact and mixed with cotton candy it's an intense sweet smell that fills the whole of the bathroom. As you can see from the picture there are tiny specs of blue purple glitter which in my experience don't come out onto the skin. I tend to use this as a body wash as the smell is really long lasting so I can keep the smell with me during the day. The only problem I have with this is the fact that you can only buy this on the run up to Christmas and I am greedy and want it available all year round, but I suppose that is part of the Snow Fairy magic!
10/10

I would also like to add a little mention to the people who work at the Lush store in my hometown of Peterborough, I have been shopping at Lush since I was a teenager and have always had any help that I have needed. They also make everyone who walks into their store completely welcome as they are always upbeat and willing to give you any guidance. So thank you staff at Peterborough Queensgate Lush Store :)


So what are your favourite bath time treats?
What do you normally treat yourself to at Lush?
Is there anything you think I have missed out that I should try?

Nicola Mai..x

So I dyed my hair :)

 When I first dyed my hair from black to gingery brown, as seen in my blog post here, it was a light auburn colour. It then got darker over time, so I wanted to regain the colour it had turned initially.

 This was my previous colour, a dark mucky type brown.

Hair dye on, eek! It doesn't matter if I've dyed my hair the same colour every other month for 4 years I still get nervous when the dye is on.

 

Finished colour; I'm absolutely ecstatic about it :)

I used Nice n Easy in Light Auburn, which I for on 2 for £10 from Wilkinsons.

I'm very happy with this product, the coverage is amazing. It also has built in highlights and tones which gives a more natural colour. 

Nicola Mai..x

Plans Plans Plans!

Everybody likes to have things to look forward to right?! With starting uni again at the end of the month and knowing I'll have to crack down to work I'll at least have a few snippets of fun in between essay writing and never ending reading. Besides everyday life is much more bearable when your counting down to something fun. I also happen to have a lot of personal dates in the calender from January through to March, things which should be celebrated. So now it's just a case of getting organised and getting everything paid for then sitting back and enjoying myself!

January 
21st- Blood Red Shoes,Norwich.

I have been a fan of Blood Red Shoes for a long while now, when I saw they were touring I was pretty pleased as I haven't yet got a chance to see them. As trains don't run late enough for us to get back home Ollie and I will be staying the night and will most likely head to one of Norwich's finest cocktail bars.I should probably note that this is my anniversary present for the following month :)

Birthdays-  My sisters (22nd), Ollie's sister (26th)
Events- Going back to uni.

February
12th- NME Tour 2013, Nottingham

I will try to contain my excitement while writing this as I am buzzing for one artist in particular, in fact he is the main reason Ollie and I wanted to go in the first place; Mr Miles Kane! Other artists playing are Django Django, Palma Violet and Peace, although I haven't seen these three before I am excited to see them after I had a listen on YouTube and as they are playing as part of the NME Tour I'm expecting them to be decent live.

Django Django

 Miles Kane

Palma Violet

 Peace

As this event is so close to Valentines, we are going to use it as our celebrations, stay over night at the Hilton, go out to dinner, get drunk, whatever really.

14th- Valentines Day
As we have our anniversary so close and already have plans for Valentines we've planned to stay in, either i'll cook or we'll be lazy and order take-out.

16th- Ollie and I's year anniversary
So far I think the plan is to go out to dinner, although we haven't decided on a resturant yet. My guess will be either Chiquitos or Prezzo as we love both of these, then maybe head into town for a few drinks.

26th- Yellowcard, London
Now this is Ollie's anniversary present, not that I am complaining because I adore Yellowcard. They are playing at KoKo, a venue I have never been too so i'm looking forward to see what it's like. We're not staying overnight as trains from London are pretty good.

March
9th- As it's Ollie's 21st the day after and I don't want to intrude on anything his family may have planned, I am planning a special day for him the day before. Taking him to London to do all the touristy bits and bobs that we've been planning to do together since we met. So we're heading onto the London Eye, into the Aquraium and into Madame Tussauds, getting some dinner, going to all the sights... Well you get the drift.

10th- Ollie's Birthday & Mothers Day- This day will be full of Ollie's family plans and making sure his day is extra special. I will also make sure to make my Mum's day a little special too ;)

Birthdays-Ollie's stepdad (5th- so Ollie informs me), Ollie's Mum (8th), Ollie (10th).
Events- Essays due! :( EASTER! & Easter holidays!


So those are my first three months of 2013 so far, the things I am most looking forward too anyway. I will also review the gigs, resturants and be taking many pictures along the way so I'm sure it'll get updated onto my blog :)

Is there anything you're looking forward too in particular this year?
Are you going to any of these events?
Nicola Mai..x

Firecracker...?!

I found this beauty in my make-up box while I was having a clear out, and I love it! It's the Rimmel, Lasting Finish Lipstick in Firecracker and it retails for around £4.99. Although when I was searching for a link to the product it was kind of hard to find, as I have had this for a good few years now, so I'm unsure whether this has been discontinued or not. For a fiver I don't think there is much of a problem with this lipstick, it's creamy and pigmented and suits my complexion perfectly. I think it's ideal for wearing everyday as the colour isn't too over powering. The only niggle I have is the name, for a name like Firecracker I would have expected a more reddish tone throughout rather than the coral colour but nonetheless the colour is still FAB!

As you can see here, the colour isn't too overbearing for everyday use.

Do you have any fab lipsticks to share? Any colours you think may suit my complexion? Share below!


Nicola Mai..x

Maybe she's born with it... Maybe it's Maybeline!

Yes I did just sing the title in my head like the advert ;)

Any who, today I am going to discuss the mascaras I use on a daily basis.

The purple one is Maybelline Falsies Flared Mascara which retails in Boots for £7.99 and the second one is

Maybelline Colossal Mascara - Volum' Express which again retails in Boots at £7.19. I feel like both are reasonably priced, not too steep for how they work, I have use the Colossal mascara since it first came out and tend to use the Falsies just as an extra layer if I'm on a night out or something.

 

 The wand on the left is for the Falsies and the one on the right is the Colossal, I tend to steer towards large brushes, I despise the thin plasticity feeling brushes you can get with some mascara. As you can see the Falsies wand is curved slightly, but I don't see that this makes much of a difference to my eyelashes. The Colossal wand is huge, very plump and long, which is fine for me as I have been bless with long eyelashes, but those with shorter natural may struggle using this without a little bit of practise.

As you can probably tell the eye on the left is after coverage and the one on your right is before, I should also add that this is without using an eyelash curler as I stupidly broke mine whilst trying to open a bottle of J20 (don't ask!).  I use one coat of the Colossal to begin, then go over it with Falsies, finishing with a final smooth over of Colossal. I find that the Colossal is best for thickening and separating my lashes, while the Falsies lengthens them. I don't tend to be left with clumps or flaking, although I have seen online that some users have suffered flaking with the Falsies mascara though perhaps this is because I am not using it by itself.

I use these two mascaras as a set everyday and I find them to be incredibly long lasting, they can go from day to night, uni to the pub and even lasts through an afternoon nap! In fact when I'm taking it off with a baby wipe it takes a few goes before I have it all off.

I would give the Falsies a 8/10 as I only use it for lengthening and it does that job nicely and the Colossal is a 9/10 as I just can't rave about it enough!

So, is there any mascaras you could tell me about that can do both of the things I want in one? Any recommendations of mascaras you love?

Nicola Mai..x

Wahhh

Well I feel really ill, I'm still struggling to sleep through the night. I literally feel like a new-born child, I just want to sleep! So frustrating. So yes I am a tad zombified, but I do have a massive bath stuff haul blogpost planned for some time over the weekend when hopefully my brain stops being like mush. Expect Lush (lots of Lush), Soap and Glory, Philosophy and some of my favourite bath products :D & I have a blogpost planned on my everyday mascara/review.

On a lighter note, I have just applied for a part-time job.. Exciting stuff!


Nicola Mai..x