I bought a few beauty products last week in the hope of sprucing up my make up collection, ready for Spring!! There was also a great online sale on Superdrug's website - so you know, good timing really!

I wasn't much of a lipstick wearer until about two months ago when I won a mac lipstick in a giveaway which you can read about here! It was in the shade 'Blankety' which is a gorgeous subtle nude - perfect for a new lipstick wearer.

I decided to tip-toe out of my comfort zone and buy some 'a little bit more but not that much in your face' shades from l'oreal's colour riche range. I got three for an amazing £6 in the online sale -a bargain that I couldn't miss, especially as they're normally £6.99 each!

Wooo my first ever swatches!

Greige Amoureux and Fuschia Declaration have a bit of shimmer in them whereas Erotique is matte. All three are quite moisturising which is perfect for me as my lips are always so dry!

I'd been using Rimmel's Wake Me Up foundation up until last week but decided to call it a day as it was just making me look oily and the fact I'd picked up the wrong shade didn't help either...so I went back to my old favourite: Revlon Colorstay Foundation in 'Sand Beige'. It gives great coverage and stays matte all day. It does a great job at hiding my huge pores too! The only thing I think could be improved would be if it had a little pump as I often end up pouring too much of the foundation out!

Finally, I picked up two Barry M speedy quick dry nail varnishes which I've had my eye on for a while. I chose Pit Stop (left) and Hearbeat (right.)

I love painting my nails but I'm quite impatient and always end up smudging them into a horrible mess. These dry in around 60 seconds so are ideal for letting you carry on with your day :)

As I'm home from Uni at the moment, I decided to give my dressing table a little spring clean too :) What do you think?

10 ways to worry less

I am such a worry pot. Like seriously, anyone who knows me will vouch for this. When I make plans, I like to know absolutely every little detail or I'll worry about it. It's ridiculous and unhealthy. Soooo I've been trying to take little steps to just chill out, relax and realise that things aren't actually so bad!

1. Write it down - One of my fellow worrier friends told me to do this. You know when you're lying in bed, going over and over something in your head. It's silly because there's usually nothing you can do about it at that time so write your worry on a piece of paper and then deal with it in the morning. By writing it down, you feel like you've taken some action.

2. Prioritize - Writing a check-list of whatever you're worrying about can help you work through each issue systematically and individually so it's all a little less overwhelming. Deal with one issue at a time.

3. Switch off - It can be hard to forget the worries of everyday life when you're constantly checking social media on your phone - I'm guilty of this one! I often find that watching a film or reading a book, phone free, helps me to escape a bit and unwind.

4. Talk to non-worry pots - I always feel better after talking to my more laid back friends. They make you realise that you're being a little OTT and you can really learn a lot from them. When I'm worrying over something silly, I try and think what that friend would do in my situation - would they find it a big deal?

5. Put things in perspective - Is this thing you're worrying about going to be an issue by this time next year? Most likely not! I look back a lot and realise how daft I was to worry so much about the silliest of things that no longer even matter!

6. Get moving - Exercise releases endorphins > endorphins make you happy > if you're happy then you're probably not worrying!! 

7. Distract yourself - If there's nothing you can do about your worry then just put your energy into something else - something that you enjoy, whether it's baking, reading, going to the cinema...

8. Get some headspace - During exam time, I found it hard to stop thinking about things, so as well as writing my little to do lists for the next day, I also listened to an App called Headspace, which teaches you the basics of meditation. It really helped to clear my head and the first 10 sessions are free!

9. Cuddle a pet - Studies have shown that animals decrease our stress levels. If you're feeling like things are getting a bit much and your day isn't going well for you, go and cuddle an animal. They will take your mind off things and if you realllly want, you can talk to them without any judgement!

10. Accept it - If you can do something to take control of what you're worrying about then do and if you can't, then just accept that. Is there really any point in letting something eat you up so much when either way you can't change it....plus remember that the vast majority of things we worry about never actually happen!!! :)

I realise it's not always that easy to stop worrying if it's part of your personality but I hope these tips can help a little!!

Have you got any advice about dealing with stress and worries? 

Welcome to Chadwicks

Remember I said in this post that I'd post about the restaurant we went to for Rachel's birthday? Well here it is :) This is my absolute favourite place to eat so I couldn't not share the photos..it really is somewhere special!

Chadwicks Inn is tucked away in the quiet little village that is Maltby...it is also a 5 minute drive from where I live (handy ey!)

The food here never fails to impress me and you can find Chadwicks in the Michelin Guide for places to eat out!

Naturally, the first thing we did was order a bottle of White Zinfandel which went down a treat as Rachel opened her presents. 

Every time I've eaten at Chadwicks, the Chef has had some kind of special complementary appetiser to offer us. In the past we've had freshly baked breads of all different flavours, but this time we got sea salt & balsamic popcorn with some kind of fish thing. I don't actually like fish, but this place is expensive, so I didn't even ask what it was and just gulped it down! It was actually realllllly good! 

For starters, we both got a wild mushroom risotto which was light and delicious. I do love a good risotto but I've never actually tried making it at home!

The main event was chicken wellington for Rachel and pork belly for me. The pork was cooked to perfection - melt in the mouth with a tasty crispy crackling - heaaaveennn!

Now if you're going out for a meal, you have to do it properly. Not ordering dessert would be a sin. I mean, why would you make all that effort to dress up and go out and then turn down the best part?

Yep, dessert happend. Just look at it - is your mouth watering a little? Mine is.

I got this cute looking tarte tatin that was baked fresh to order...worth the extra wait I tell you!!

Rachel got a lemon tart which I tried a bit of and I found it to be quite cheesecakey - which is a good thing in my books!

Where's your favourite place to eat out? I love reading posts like this so pop your link in the comment if you've done one!

A cute idea: afternoon tea at home

Last Sunday, I decided it would be nice to have the girls over for  bit of quality time together. We're all lovers of tea and cake so it only seemed right that we do our own little afternoon tea!

Everyone was told to bring a sandwich, which we cut up and shared between us, and then a bake!

I feel like triangle sandwiches taste better than rectangle ones! So dainty and delicious :)

I made scones using Mary Berry's recipe which you can find here. I was a little hungover so I ended up making these very last minute...which turned out to be a good thing as I took them out them oven just as the girls knocked on the door!! Freshly baked scones are the best!

Jay made some yummy raspberry mousses with coulis which were very light and fruity! They looked great in the little jar pots - She used the pots you get with GU desserts (great excuse to buy some!)

Tiffany made a selection of chocolate, vanilla and marble cupcakes which I actually thought she'd bought as they looked that good!

Helen made some brownies - a true classic! Our chocolate fix was met that day..

There's nothing like fresh flowers to finish off the look of a table :) I bought these for my room to cheer me up this week for only £1.50 in Tesco!

I really wanted to share this all with you as we all had such a lovely afternoon and it's just a bit different isn't it! I think next we'll have to have a "pot luck" night or something...we're all major food lovers!!

If you're into afternoon tea posts then you can read another one here!