five beauty favourites from March

Thursday 31 March 2016


 1. This month I've been loving Nivea 3 in 1 Micellar Water. It's the perfect skincare product if you're a bit lazy with your regime (like me!) as it gently removes eye make up, cleanses your skin as well as moisturising it. I had awful skin when I bought this and noticed a big improvement after a few days and now, a week on, I haven't got any spots and my skin no longer feels dry. I put the link for boots in my post but I actually got it for half price in tesco so it might be worth checking if they still have the offer on.

2. I got this Rhubarb and Rose Molton Brown hand cream as a present and I love its unusual but gorgeous scent. My hands have been really dry lately so this product has been an absolute must! Bonus points for the pretty pink packaging :) I've also got the shower gel in this scent!

 3. This body lotion by Garnier  is so easy to use when you jump out of the shower with its pump, soaks into your skin quickly an smells divine. Again, another one for us lazy girls as it requires minimal effort to apply, just have it handy in the bathroom :)

 4. I found this Creighton's Shower Gel in a garden centre and was drawn to it because of its similarity to the treacle moon products which I'm a big fan of. It smells amazing and reminds me of a perfume that I can't for the life of me remember the name of! I love trying new brands.

5. This is a case of keeping the best till last because this foundation has been a game changer for me. It lasts all day, gives good coverage but feels weightless on your skin. You only need a pea sized amount to do all of your face and it is a little pricey but I'm prepared to pay it for something that delivers and that I get use of nearly every day!! Estee Lauder Double Wear  Light  is going to be hard to beat. I get it in intensity 2.

p.s. I now have a facebook page which you can find here


The Affordable mini break: Amsterdam

Sunday 27 March 2016

I had exams last month and in one of my revision sulks, decided enough was enough and that  I needed something to look forward to. Basically I felt like this.  After a few hours of searching the internet for deals, I came across a mini cruise deal with P&O ferries; a two for one mini cruise to Amsterdam! They have lots of different offers throughout the year so it's always worth checking and they also do a trip to Bruges which I went on when I was younger...here's their site.

So for £95 each, we got return transport, a premier cabin (actually worked out cheaper!!), our evening meals and breakfast each way AND coach transport from Rotterdam port to Amsterdam. Such a bargain! 


We arrived in Hull in the evening and boarded the ferry. The sky was beautiful with shades of pink, orange and blue. The bar had some great offers on so we chilled in the bar for a bit, knocking back the wine and beers before heading for food. The food was a standard buffet, definitely not gourment but a good selection of standard food that hit the spot. If you're into your fine dining (or can afford it) then they do have a brasserie selling lobster etc..etc...not for students :(


The ferry had a cinema, casino, piano bar and lounge with a band as well as a few shops to keep us entertained. We bought two huge bars of milka (the ones you usually only find in airports), scoffed them and collapsed into bed. 



The beds were really comfortable but it was a shame the window couldn't be opened for a bit of fresh air as the cabins are only small and get stuffy really easily. 

We arrived in Rotterdam around 8am and got the coach to Amsterdam as soon as we stepped off the ferry. It's funny how you notice things abroad like the lack of signs on the coach to say where they went and nothing even resembling a queue! We somehow did make the right coach and were soon on our way to Amsterdam!! yay!!!



Holland really does have a lot of windmills and also...bikes!! My goodness, crossing the roads was like risking your life, with mopeds, trams, cyclists and cars all to look out for. It wasn't like in England where if the lights go red the cars stop..it was a case of they might stop!

I should probably mention that with these cruises, you're only there for the day and sleep there and back on the ferry...but I counted the ferry as part of the holiday too because it doesn't feel like you're travelling at all!! So with that in mind, we couldn't do everything we wanted so picked to go on a canal cruise and also to the Ice Bar.



The canal cruise was a good way of seeing as much of the city as possible in the little time we had and also to learn a bit about somewhere I only really knew as being famous for prostitutes and drugs. We went with a company called Lovers, which were okay but you listened to a recorded audiotape rather than having a live guide cracking jokes...still was pretty decent for 13 euros each and it lasted a good hour. 


The Ice Bar was 18 euros and included a cocktail and two drinks in ice glasses. The cocktails were gorgeous and it wouldn't be any type of holiday without them now would it! The Ice Bar was -10 degrees so we didn't spend that long in there but it was definitely an experience to be soooo collldddd! I just wished it was a little bigger. If you've been to an Ice Bar before then I'd say don't bother as I imagine there's bigger and better ones in London etc but if not then it was good value for money.





Now the red light district... we did end up walking down it but it was 2 in the afternoon so we missed any of the seedy stuff. It was weird seeing the girls in the window wearing next to nothing or strange cat outfits, swinging their tails. Be prepared for your boyfriend to walk into things because his attention is not on looking at where he's going *ahem ahem*. 



I fell in love with the pretty canals, bridges and the bicycles. It was like being in the film ' the fault in their stars' when they visit :) If I went back, I'd like to visit more of the museums but with it being just a day visit, it was lovely walking round and admiring the unusual buildings and trying to speedwalk past the random sex shops that seemed to pop up all over haha.


If you're looking for an affordable trip away where you get to visit somewhere new then I really do recommend trying these mini cruises, especially if you can catch the 2 for 1 deal! 

And if you can recommend things to do in Amsterdam, please let me know in the comments below :)

p.s. my facebook page can be found here


Wake Me Up Face Mask recipe

Sunday 13 March 2016

My mum's friend has the most amazing skin. She's in her 50s but looks like she's in the lower end of her 30s, so any skin advice she can give me, I know I can trust. This lady knows what she's doing. And here is one of her secrets - coffee!!

We all know that a cup of coffee is great for kick starting the day, but did you know it can also have great rejuvenating effects on your skin? I didn't until a couple weeks ago.



Coffee has stimulating effects that improve the blood flow to your skin, making it look brighter and well, awake! It also acts to tighten the skin and contains antioxidants that can delay premature ageing and reduces redness.  I know, I'm always skeptical of claims like this but when I use this mask I do feel it is doing something  good for my skin. 

*WARNING - your face will smell like Costa after using this*

So basically all you need is:

4 teaspoons of natural yoghurt
2 teaspoons of ground coffee 
2 teaspoons of honey

Mix them together and you're good to go.

It really is that easy! Smother it all over your face and leave on for as long as you want, preferably whilst having a nice soak in the bath :)

I was told to use this mask once a month, so have a try and let me know what you think!

p.s. I now have a facebook page which you can find here







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