Tuesday, December 30, 2014

My 2014 Favourites!


Hi everyone! I hope you all had a sparkly, magical Christmas and are all set for New Years, whatever your plans are! I was really lucky after the year I had to start with to have spent my Christmas with not just my own family but my boyfriend's as well. From Christmas Eve to Boxing Day it was spent with good company, food and drink! A lot of laughs were had and I have been left feeling very lucky and spoilt indeed!

 I'll be celebrating the end of 2014 and anticipating 2015 with two very close friends Kirstie and Ralph who have invited both Sean and I to their home near Birmingham! I am really excited and in between writing today I have been packing! 

Since the year is almost over, I think this post is important! I would like to celebrate and promote my favourite products of 2014. Most of them are products I actually use on a daily basis for numerous reasons.  It has always been important for me to look after my body. As a sufferer of IBS, asthma and sensitive skin I think it's important to manage the products I use on the outside of my body as well as making sure my diet is good and varied too!

So, here they are! I hope you enjoy reading about them and that it entices some of you to try them out!




I found it really difficult to narrow it down to only a few products I favoured during this year. However, let's be honest, they are all used for different reasons so there were bound to be a few!




Going from left to right, starting with the back row, I will list all the items first to make it a bit easier.  For me, not you as I'm sure I will forget at least one!! So, here we go :

Aussie Miracle Recharge Lightweight Conditioning Spray

I use this product on my hair every single day; without fail! After I towel dry my hair and before I brush it through or use the hair dryer I apply a good amount of this to my hair (both to the roots and length). My hair loves it and not only does it leave it soft and manageable, it smells gorgeous!

Yves Rocher Organic Vanilla Lotion

I have only just discovered this lotion after noticing Yves Rocher were having Black Friday on their website! I treated myself and others to various items but this was my favourite. The lotion is thick and creamy but soaks into the skin well without leaving any grease behind. Not to mention the organic Vanilla scent that it leaves on your skin is to die for.....leaves me wanting to chew my arms!!! I use this on my arms legs and on my chest and decolletage area. It's perfect this winter as it combats the dry and cold really well. 



Schwarzkopf Got2b Beach Matt Mermaid Look Salt Spray

I had my hair cut recently and now there's some layers in there I wanted to show them off! This salt spray is fantastic at giving your hair good texture without making it look overworked. I prefer sprays to gels or wax because you can put the amount you actually want on your hair with ease.

Soft&Gentle Wild Rose & Vanilla Deodorant

I love the smell of this deodorant and it does last a really long time as well. I find some deodorising products are really overpriced and do not work as effectively. This one is cheap and cheerful!

Hollister California Seacliff Beach Body Mist

I'm not one for spending £11 on a body mist usually but this was just too good to not treat myself to! I purchased this a while ago and even though I wear this most days I still have loads left. It's a light scent and reminds me of the sea air, sand and holidays!

B. Pure Micellar Water

I was guilty of using make up or baby wipes at the beginning of 2014. I know, gross right?! This has all changed for me and as a result my skin has improved drastically. I am a fan of Micellar waters and have found this one to be my favourite. It is part of the B range in Superdrug. I find this product removes my make up easily and does not clog my pores up.  It also does not leave my skin red or sore as make up wipes did. 

Nivea Oil Free Moisturising Day Cream

I love this moisturiser. Again, my skin being sensitive tends to be a combination of oily and dry. This moisturiser seems to know what my skin needs on my face more than I do! My T-zone feels less dry and my chin is never oily! I love this and recommend it for those of you with combination or oily skin.

Natural Collection Sun Tint Bronzing Powder in Sunshine and Natural Collection Pressed Powder in Warm

I have always been a fan of Natural Collection products. They are very affordable and Boots usually do a 3 for £5 deal. The bronzer is not too heavy on my skin and I have been using the warm pressed powder over my foundation for years! I am a firm believer in the phrase "if it's not broke, don't fix it!" This products works for me, until I find something super amazing, I'll not change it.

Sanctuary Spa Covent Garden Body Lotion and Sanctuary Spa Covent Garden Body Butter

Sanctuary Spa Covent Garden do the most beautiful products. Their lotion and body butters are divine. I'm also a real fan of their scrub and gel washes. They do miniatures in Boots as well as full sized bottles. I find these to be excellent travel companions!

Perfectly Clear Calming Spot Gel

Whoever invented this was an absolute Godsend. Honestly, if you have a little break out it's good to have this littler emergency tube on hand. It dries them out and combats them. I will sometimes use this product just before breakouts as well, if I can feel my skin tighten or become sore.

White Holly Tea Tree and Lavender Moisturiser

This is a fantastic little product my friend's sister made me. You can find her at www.whiteholly.co.uk . It smells of Lemon Sherbert and has specific natural products based on what my skin needs. I put this on my skin twice a day, day and night. I actually purchased 3 bottles at the time and have loads left.

Essence Stay All Day 16 hour foundation in Soft Creme

I often experiment with different liquid foundations but one I found most recently is the Essence range in Wilkinson. It is soft, oil free and covers blemishes well.

Revlon Just Bitten Lip Stain

I have a few of these lip stains now and think I wrote about two of their shades in an earlier post. The pens make it easy to apply and once it rubs off it does leave a 'just bitten' stain. I love them and recommend these by Revlon.

Carmex Cherry Lip Balm

This winter I would not be without my Carmex. The mix of Cherry in this means I get a nourishing product as well as a tasty lip balm! Best of both worlds really!

Lush Charity Pot Hand and Body Lotion

Every girl loves Lush, how can you not? Their recent Charity pot Hand and Body Lotion smells and feels divine, Again, another fantastic product to keep in your bag or travel with!

B. Even Skintone Corrector

Last but not least is this skin tone corrector. I have favourited a few B products this year. I cannot help it, they are all fabulous! I find this ideal for my cheeks as I do suffer from slight redness there. It helps tone it down so that applying make up is a lot easier!

Well, that's it! All my favourites for 2014! I hope you have enjoyed reading them and maybe some of you will be tempted to go try them out yourselves. If you do, let me know how you get on! I hope you all have a fabulous and safe New Year celebration!

Here's to the end of another year but the beginnings of 2015!

Take care over the holiday season!

Love Scribbles

xXx



Friday, December 19, 2014

Happy Birthday Sean : A Centerparcs Wonderland Adventure!





Good evening everyone! My post this evening is dedicated to my boyfriend and soul mate; Sean. It was his birthday on the 12th of December and we spent that week at Centerparcs in Sherwood to celebrate it, winter wonderland style! It was beautifully themed, everywhere you looked the forest was decorated to look like a proper Christmas. Fake snow, Santa's sleigh and even a random Santa Claus to greet all those that were arriving at check in...


...looked a bit dodgy to me!!

When we finally made it to our villa and unloaded the car, I treated Sean to a toast! What other way is there to celebrate our arrival for his birthday treat week!


The whole week was fabulously filled with food, drink, lots of walking and swimming every evening. The subtropical pool is fantastic! There's a large pool which had waves every 30 minutes (everyone ran to the pool when the alarm sounded lol). There was an outside bit and rapids, a cold plunge pool (that I dared Sean to dive into), warm whirpools and lots of water slides. It was a challenge to get increasingly faster down the slide as the week progressed. Well, once I plucked up the courage to go down it!!

Sean seemed to get along quite well with the neighbours and made himself a few friends as the week progressed...




I have to say it was definitely a new experience watching Sean feed a squirrel from his hand. It turns out their favourite nibbles were mince tarts and custard creams!!!!




The reindeers were cute! It was lovely to see them plodding around being lively during the day...




And then all curled up snug at night time...






I think it's fair to say though, the best experience may have been our final meal out! We booked a table early evening Thursday at the American Diner Hucks. The service was fabulous and the food was just perfect! Sean sported his new t-shirt ( a small present from moi ) and was very pleased with himself, especially when the steak arrived...






I was naturally super excited when my nacho cheese wet fries arrived. A massive addiction of mine. Every visit to Meadowhall also includes a visit to the food court to get some of these!!!!




I know it's no longer your birthday and we are now on our countdown to Christmas but....

Happy Birthday Sean, 

I love you

and I hope I made your week special and memorable.

Lots of Love

Scribbles

xXxXx