Dove Hair Therapy Dry Shampoo

Hello everyone :)

Hope you're all having an amazing start to 2016! Today I have a little post about a Dove hair product I've recently tried - Dove Hair Therapy Dry Shampoo.

I absolutely love dry shampoo as a product, not as a way to delay washing my hair (although that can be helpful!) but as a way of adding volume to my roots which tend to get very flat after styling. This one from Dove is possibly the most beautifully fragranced dry shampoo I've ever used. It leaves my hair smelling even better than it does when it's freshly washed, and who doesn't want their hair smelling clean and fruity.

The biggest selling point for me however is that it works without leaving any white residue in my hair. I have dark hair and most dry shampoos leave a white/grey residue behind even after brushing which isn't ideal. This one however manages to freshen up my hair and add volume to my roots without leavening any residue at all! Perfect!

Also, I managed to pick mine up from Savers for only £1.99 so it's a bargain too.

Overall, this is one of the best dry shampoos I've ever used. I am, and probably always will be, a massive Batiste fan, and that will probably always be my favourite, but believe it or not the Dove version smells even better! The only difference is that the Batiste dry shampoo has a longer lasting effect, and by the end of the day the plumping effect of the Dove is starting to wear off.

I still absolutely love this product, and all you dry shampoo lovers should adore it as much as I did.

Thank you for reading, and as always all comments are loved and appreciated.

Clinique Liquid Facial Soap Review

Hello :) 

Now I know I said I wanted to branch out and do some more varied posts, but I love that my first beauty review of the year is on a product by my all time favorite brand... Clinique. 

Now I know that this isn't anything new to the market, but a couple of months ago I tried this little beauty and fell in love with it. Now the photo is of a sample sized bottle of the product (selling on depop by the way as it was the full sized bottle that I actually used) but the full sized bottle looks well used and I couldn't for the life of me get an acceptable photo of it! 

For £16.50 you can pick up the 200ml bottle of the product, and I know that might seem a little steep, but its worth it. I have eczema and therefore often struggle to find products that are gentle enough for my sensitive skin, but this mild version (you can also buy this in extra mild) not only cleansed beautifully, but it didn't irritate or dry out my skin either. 

You don't need a massive amount per use so the bottle lasts a long time - 2 months of use 3 times a week and I have around two thirds - and it cleanses the skin so well that it doesn't need to be used every day. On the days in between I just used a standard make up remover followed by moisturiser. 

Overall I would rate this a solid 4/5. Another hit from Clinique! 

Thank you for reading guys :) 

Love to you all x

2016 Goals

Hello everyone!

Ok, so I know I'm a tad late to the party, but I really wanted to share with you my goals for the year to come...

2015 was such a bag of mixed emotions for me. On one hand I got to do so many amazing things. Moved into my first house with the other half, and we also got to go on our first real holiday together. I finally got a new car and met some truly amazing people within the blogging community. I feel like my blog has come along leaps and bounds and starting it is one of the best things I've ever done. However I also got diagnosed with a form of rheumatoid arthritis which has been a bit difficult to come to terms with at just 24 years old, I never managed to clear my debts like I planned, and I seem to have lost touch with loads of people who at one time meant the world to me.

However, 2016 seems like a blank slate right now, and all I want to do is leave all the negativity behind and make these next 12 month as amazing as possible. Here are the things I want to achieve in the year ahead:

1. Expand my blog. I've been thinking about branching out into more fashion and lifestyle posts. I want my little blog to reflect me and my life, not just be about beauty (although it is my favorite thing to write about!). I have so much love for fashion, travel, cooking, art and poetry and I want to start to introduce these into my blog more.

2. Get healthy. This isn't the typical join the gym and lose weight promise that so many of us make in January. My health has been so up and down lately, and I feel that with my arthritis, eczema and asthma, my body has been struggling with all the medication. I want to start yoga and introduce more natural foods into my diet.

3. Travel. I only got my first passport 10 months ago and after visiting the Canary Islands with the other half, I've caught the travel bug. I want to see more places and make memories. Experience different cultures and see as much as possible.

4. Write more. I don't just mean on my blog either. As much as I want to massively increase the amount I post on here, I also want to get back into all the other forms of writing I love, like poetry. I would also like to try my hand at writing a short story or an ebook.

5. Set a date. I would love to be able to set the official date for my wedding! We have been engaged a while now and I'm so excited to get married. Hopefully in the summer of 2017 :)

So this is what I hope to achieve this year. Wish me luck!

What goals have you all set for yourself this year?

Love to you all x

Arthritis and Me

Hello :)

I've been wanting to branch out a bit and do a couple of lifestyle posts on my blog, so I can keep it a bit more varied than just beauty posts. I was trying to think of what to write about, as honestly my life  isn't all that interesting, but one thing I would like to share with you all is my experience of being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis a few months ago.

At only 24, I didn't think it was something I would have to worry about until much later in life. I have had quite a few health problems in the past, and suffer quite badly with eczema, but I have always been reasonably fit. Exercise regularly and all that. But around 8 months ago I started getting pains in my fingers and my ankles.

I didn't think much of it at first, just put it down to wearing heels and writing a lot by hand at work, but when it started getting unbearable, I decided to visit my GP. He ran some blood tests and took a family history, and a few weeks later put me in for a referral to see a rheumatologist.

Getting used to the daily pain was difficult. I take anti-inflamatories and painkillers daily to keep things under control, but flair ups are unavoidable. Wearing heels is completely impossible for me, and there are days where I struggle to do fiddly tasks with my hands such as buttons on a shirt, so I have even had to alter the way I dress to accommodate this illness.

For those that don't know, rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder, where your body's immune system attacks the lining of your joints. I have an appointment in a couple of weeks to look into some kind of steroid treatments which will hopefully help, but to be so young and feel like you have the body of an 80 year old can definitely get you down. I'm lucky in the fact that I can still work full time and have a social life without pain dictating my every decision, however there are days where getting out of bed is a job in itself.

I know there are a lot of people out there that have it much worse than me, but it has been difficult to deal with the changes I have had to make in every day life, as well as dealing with the pain which can get excruciating at times. Fingers crossed some new treatment will help.

I would love to hear any of your experiences with similar illnesses, and methods you use to cope.

Thank you for reading everyone :)

Love to you all x

Decorating Time....

Hello everyone!

One of my favorite things about Christmas is putting up my Christmas tree, and I was extra excited this year as it the first year me and the other half have our own house! We were living in a little studio flat last Christmas so there wasn't much room for decorations, but now I have a whole house to fill its going to look like Santa's grotto by the time I'm finished! All I've done so far is my tree and fireplace in the living room, but I just wanted to share what it looks like. Any excuse for a Christmas post!!

Love to you all x

Christmas Wishlist

Hello :)

I've been meaning to get back into blogging for ages now (yes, I know I keep saying that) and I've been getting so excited reading everyone's Christmas posts that I've decided to get back into things with a good old fashioned Christmas wishlist post!

There are so many amazing products out there that I'm lusting after, so I should have no problem putting this list together. I do just want to point out that I'm not greedy, and Christmas isn't all about the presents for me. But come on, who doesn't love thinking of all the lovely things they'd like to unwrap on Christmas morning.

1. Sleek Solstice Highlighting Kit: I'm sorry, but is this sleek highlighting kit not the most beautiful thing you've ever seen? Plus, at just £10 you don't have to feel guilty asking for it! View this here.

2. Brown Structured Tote Bag - New Look: I have a slight bag addiction at the moment. I don't always like to spend too much on bags because I'm clumsy and heavy handed so tend to mark, scratch or stain them. This beautiful day bag from New Look is perfect with any day outfit, and I do love neutral colours. All for £29.99. View this here.

3. NARS foundation: This is one of my all time favorite foundations. I don't like to splash out on expensive make up all the time, so foundations like this one at £32 is one that I like to keep for a special occasion. Because of that, I can make one bottle last almost a year, and that makes it worth every penny in my book. I believe its nice to have a special occasion foundation for nights out. I'd love another bottle of this for Christmas :) Find it here.

4. Dune Black Suede Ankle Boots from ASOS: Now I know that at £79 these are a tad on the pricey side. However I have always been a lover of heels. The higher the better. But a recent diagnosis of early onset rheumatoid arthritis means my ankles can no longer handle the pressure of heels. I've found it so hard to find a collection of flat shoes that I like, however these would go with so many things, and are the first flat shoes in a long time to get me excited. Find them here.

5. Paisley Print Shirt Dress from Boohoo: I am having a massive love affair with shirt dresses at the moment. My new need for flat shoes has found me teaming shirt dresses with black tights and boots and it is a look that I feel comfortable with. This paisley print dress from Boohoo is a bargain at £20, and manages to bring a splash of colour into a classic style. Love it! Find it here.



So that is my Christmas list for this year. What do you all think?

I'd love to know what you all are wishing for this year :) Feel free to leave your comments and links below!

Love to you all x

A bit of a catch up....

Hello everyone!

First of all, I just want to start by saying sorry for my very lengthy absence. I don't even know what made me stop blogging for such a long time, but it really does feel good to be back at the laptop writing this.

There has been so many amazing products that I've been using over the last few months and over the next couple of weeks I will be writing up review posts on them, so keep an eye on this space for that! Along with that I have a couple of wish list posts that I want to share with you all, and I'm sure we will be seeing more than a couple of Christmas posts popping up throughout the blog world.

Along with some product reviews and fashion and makeup wish list posts, I'm wanting to try and expand my blog by branching into the world of lifestyle posts. I'm loving life right now, and am honestly the happiest I've ever been. I have so many amazing things planned for the future and am excited to share all that with you wonderful readers.

If any of you have any post suggestions for me, all ideas are welcome! I've been out of touch with the blogging world for nearly 6 months so you might have to be a bit patient with me while I re-work out a schedule to fit in with work and personal commitments. How some of you bloggers post several times a week while keeping up with full time work or study is amazing and I'd love it if you could share your tips with me!

That's all for now, but I can't wait to share my posts with you all, and feel free to comment links for me to check out :)

Love to you all x