Lately

Last month was a bit of a hectic/stressful month for me. A close family member of mine has been having some health issues, but thankfully they have been dealt with now. It left me with a little cloud of worry which had been following me around for the best part of month. It can be difficult trying to be positive and supportive to those closest to you when inside you are just as fearful as they are! I've had to be the stable, constant rock of reassurance which hasn't always been easy, but thankfully things have worked themselves out. I won't go into detail as it's quite personal. One thing I have definitely learnt from this experience is to never ignore things/symptoms. Even if it may seem trivial, embarrassing or not that big of a deal - it's always best to be safe. Fortunately things were dealt with swiftly otherwise it would have become a much bigger and scarier issue! 

After all of the worrying I really enjoyed some time away last weekend. I travelled back to my old home town, with the boyfriend, on Saturday up until Monday. It was so nice having time together, and being able to catch up with family and friends! On the Sunday we ventured out to an Italian restaurant. The food was delicious! We had bread, dips and olives to start and pizza for our mains. Yum.

I've had most of this week off work which has been lovely. So I've been trying to make the most of the time by getting into my studies and trying to get on top of things. As well as just having a bit of 'me' time. I finally managed to get around to getting my holiday pictures printed out... all 200 of them. There were so many pictures to choose from! I'm looking forward to sorting through them all and putting my favourites into frames. 

I have to say it's nice to be in a new month. Hopefully this one will be better than the last! 

p.s. I had to include this photo of Charlie - he looks so sweet and comfy! Not so sweet yesterday evening though, after he decided to use my cupboard as a toilet (TWICE!)

Remington - Silk Curling Wand

A couple of months ago now I received the Remington Silk Curling Wand as a gift from my brother, the little cutie. Now I must admit it did sit unopened in my cupboard, up until last Monday morning when I decided I'd take it out of the box and give it a go. I don't regularly curl my hair as it can be a bit of a chore due to its length and thickness, it can become quite time consuming. That being said it's probably my favourite way to have my hair. 

When I do go ahead and curl my hair I usually grab my Mark Hill - Pro Magic Wand, which is a thick conical shaped barrel. This particular Remington wand isn't the typical conical shape, but is an elliptical styling wand as it has an almost flatter surface. Initially this left me wondering what difference it may make on my hair. 

                                                                                                                                                                  

































It took about twenty minutes of sectioning and curling my hair to achieve the finished look - which was tight, pretty spiral curls. It was nice, but not the look I was going for. So after brushing through my hair a couple of times and spritzing a bit of hairspray, I was left with more relaxed and looser looking curls. 
    
This wand is easy to use, especially if you've used this kind of product before. The temperature ranges from 110 - 220°C. It doesn't take long at all to reach the highest temperature, about 30-40 seconds. The wand itself is quite lightweight and is priced at £34.99, which I think is pretty affordable. Alongside the wand you also have a handy bag to slip the wand into, a single black heat-protecting glove and a small instruction leaflet. I personally would have preferred the leaflet to perhaps have a bit more guidance on how to create various looks.

When curling my hair I found myself accidentally turning the heat up and down, as the positioning of the buttons are where your hand rests when styling your hair. It was slightly frustrating to begin with, but I've discovered you can easily lock the temperature by holding down one of the buttons, so that's handy. I'll just have to remember that for next time! I was really pleased with the finished look, the curls looked sleek, clean and natural! My hair didn't go dry or fizzy, it just looked and felt so natural. It may have helped that I'd washed my hair that morning and applied a small amount of hairspray after styling. 

{The sunshine was really pouring in, so quite a bright one!}

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       I loved the finished look and was also extremely impressed with how well my hair held the curls. My hair isn't the best for holding curls/waves for long periods of time as it's quite thick and long. I normally resort to applying an excessive amount of hairspray in a bid to keep the shape. Usually by the end of the day or evening my hair looks flatter and some of the curls have dropped out. I was genuinely surprised to wake up on Tuesday morning to see my hair still looking curly. It stayed that way throughout the day! Shockingly, not the messy type of next-day curls that looks a bit out of control and huge. Instead it resembled the finished look from the day before, still natural and pretty. I'm so impressed. This was a bit of a shocker for me as I sprayed a small amount of hairspray so I'm not sure whether it was the wand, the hairspray or my just-washed hair pre-styling?! No idea, but nonetheless I was pleasantly surprised and can confidently say this hasn't happened before. Fingers crossed it wasn't a one off.

I was really pleased with the finished look, the curls looked sleek and clean! My hair didn't go dry or frizzy. It just looked and felt so natural. It may have helped that I'd washed my hair that morning and applied little hairspray but I really loved the finish and just can't get over how well, and for how long my hair managed to keep the shape.

What do you guys think? I'd love to hear what tools you use to curl your hair.

Words To Live By

     

       

(Sources: Pinterest & Tumblr. Original Sources: Unknown)

I really love the Roald Dahl quote. I think sometimes, as hard as it can be, it's important to try and be positive and think good thoughts. I personally really struggle with that from time to time, well let's be honest... who doesn't?! But I do tend to be a bit of a worrier, and at times I let things bother/upset me way more than they should. Life's too short. I suppose it's about recognising what's worth it and what isn't.

I'd love to hear what your favourite quotes are? :)

Essie - Bahama Mama

Whilst browsing the aisles of Boots I caught a glimpse of an Essie duo that really caught my eye! The duo included Essie's Bahama Mama and Chinchilly and is titled 'favourites to fall for' - got that right! Both shades really complement one another and definitely have autumn written all over them. They were also both shades that I'd yet to try.

Bahama Mama is described as a "warm, rich, creamy plum'. It's a pretty accurate description to be honest. After two coats of this you achieve a dark but warm plum shade which I think looks gorgeous on. I will say that after two coats the shade appears slightly darker than how it appears in the bottle, but it's not a drastic difference and not one that I feel disappointed with. 

This isn't the first time that I've rambled on about an Essie polish so I'm not going to go in to detail about my opinion on the brand/quality etc. But overall I found this polish applied like a dream, due to the nice sized brush, and the completed look gave me a glossy, opaque shade that I can see myself re-applying throughout the rest of the year. I tend to get a couple of days wear from Essie before I start noticing chips. But this always depends on whether I've applied a top coat and what I've been doing.

I'm looking forward to trying out Chinchilly next as it's a polish I've heard lots about, and it looks so nice in the bottle! Boy do I love Essie, they have so many beautiful shades. What are your go-to autumn nail polish favourites?

This Week - What I've Been...

Loving...
The way Charlie climbed under the covers and snuggled up in bed with me yesterday morning
Chunky socks. My feet can get so cold, especially now it's starting to get a bit colder!
Hot bubble baths after a long day at work
The cheeky MAC purchases I made online last night 
Making a yummy apple and sultana crumble for the family, went down a treat :)
Silly, but hilarious, vines that populate my facebook newsfeed


Watching...
Breaking Bad - I've just started watching this, I didn't think it would be my type of thing but I'm hooked!
About Time - This was quite a sweet film :) It was also funny and a little bit sad
Family Guy


Listening To...
Sonnetanz (Sun Don't Shine) -Klangkarussel ft. Will Heard
Hopeless Wanderer - Mumford & Sons
Same Love - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, ft Mary Lambert. I have so much love and respect for Macklemore after this! Couldn't agree more with the meaning of this song. "We become so numb to what we're saying" "It's human rights for everybody, there is no difference! Live on and be yourself" Listen/Watch here.


Eating...
Homemade apple and sultana crumble
Vegetable soup
Chilli and rice, with a handful of salted tortilla crisps
Potato and leek soup
Cheese salad rolls
Indian takeaway
Poached eggs on toast

The Body Shop - Honey & Beeswax Hand and Foot Butter

I had a little browse through The Body Shop the other day and picked up a few bits, most of which were products that I haven't tried before. I do love trying new things. I've bought a few bits in the past from the Body Shop but it's not a shop I regularly pop in to. One of the products that I took home with me was the Spa Wisdom Africa - Honey & Beeswax Hand and Foot Butter. The key ingredients in this product include honey, beeswax, shea butter and Ximenia oil. This product really appealed to me in store for the following reasons; the scent, the cute little jar and how soft and moisturising it felt after trying a dab of it on my hands. 

This butter has a really subtle sweet scent to it which I absolutely adore. I'd describe it as a honey-vanilla type scent. Once applied it soaks in to the skin and leaves your skin feeling really soft. It's not too heavy once applied but is a lovely thick and creamy consistency. It absorbs quickly considering the consistency and doesn't leave that greasy residue feeling. I noticed that my hands and feet actually appeared softer too. My feet can get quite dry and I do tend to neglect them a little, although I do like to use Soap and Glory's -Heel Genius every now and then. I can be quite lazy when it comes to moisturising my body and/or feet so I have to enjoy using the product to be able to stick to it. The packaging is really sweet, I love the little jar. My only issue is with clicking the lid shut, at times it can be a bit fidgety. 

This hand and foot butter is priced at £10 but The Body Shop do tend to have 3 for 2 and discount offers on, so it's worth a look if you're interested. 

The Little Things

-Loved ones. Not such a little thing, but of late I've realised how lucky I am to have some pretty amazing people in my life. Things have been a bit tough recently as a family member of mine has been having some health issues. The last couple of weeks have been a bit of a standstill but thankfully everything is sorting itself out. During those couple of weeks it really meant a lot to know that I had the support there. 


-Falling asleep to the sound of rain. I find it quite relaxing and it makes me feel all cosy. Not so nice when your alarm is going off and you've got to get out of bed though!


-Little treats - my favourite has to be the cream jumper that I picked up from Warehouse.


-I randomly surprised my mum with some of her favourite flowers. They've been sat in the living room and they smell lovely. 


-Music sessions. Browsing itunes, downloading songs and updating my iphone playlist... I love it!


-Homemade vegetable soup


-Days off. I often work twelve hour shifts and recently I've been doing lots of overtime, so days off have been extra special and much needed!


-My boyfriend has got a new job! He's been having a few setbacks recently and has been exploring lots of different routes within the area that he'd like to go in to but unfortunately it can be so competitive. The job is within the public services sector, which is an area he's been aiming for so I'm really pleased for him. He's excited and I'm so proud :)


-Being healthier. I've been trying to take the time to workout when I can and I feel so much better for it. It's really rewarding to notice improvements in my strength and endurance.


-I realise this slightly contradicts the above, but strawberries dipped in nutella - SO good