blogmas #7: The Christmas Tag

I wanted today's blogmas post to be super festive, and what better way to do that than to do the Christmas Tag! I've seen a few version of this floating around but I chose to do this one from Makeup Savvy (link here). At the bottom I've included the questions so you can easily copy & paste them onto your own blog if you want to do the tag!

1. What is your favourite Christmas Movie/s?
Elf! It's funny every time and I just can't get enough of it; I watch it at least 5 times every Christmas. For a Christmas lover I actually haven't seen that many festive films so this years I'm hoping to make up for it and watch loads.

2. Do you open your presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
In my family we spread them throughout Christmas Day. When my parents wake up we open our main presents, and then we have a couple every few hours throughout the day. My parents also like to save one presents each for me and my brother for Boxing Day so that Christmas can go on a bit longer ahaah.

3. Do you have a favourite Christmas memory?
I don't remember a specific Christmas, but when I was younger I used to love going into my parents room early on Christmas morning and watching all the limited edition Christmas cartoons that used to be on TV. Then we would all go down together, check that Father Christmas had eaten his mince pie, and that Rudolph had eaten his carrot, and then excitedly open our presents!

4. Favourite festive food?
I'm not really a massive fan of most Christmas foods; I don't hate them, but I certainly don't love them. However, Terry's Chocolate Oranges are a huge favourite of mine. Although they're not strictly a festive food, I go a bit crazy with them over the festive period, and I especially love the variety boxes with the different types of segment!

5. Favourite Christmas gift?
It sounds very cliche, but when I look back at previous Christmas' I find it very hard to remember what I actually received as gifts. I don't know that it's my favourite gift, but I do recall once getting a Disney CD and spending the entire day playing it on repeat and absolutely loving life, so at the time that present was a firm favourite of mine.

6. Favourite Christmas scent?
This seems to change every year for me as I'm constantly trying new scents and loving them more than my previous favourite, but at the moment it's anything cranberry scented. I'm currently loving the Cranberry Ice Yankee Candle and The Body Shop's Frosted Cranberry Shower Gel. We also have a really nice smelling diffuser in our bathroom, I don't know what the scent is, but it basically just smells of Christmas haha.

7. Do you have any Christmas Eve traditions?
We used to go to church in the evening but we've stopped that now. For the last few years, one of my friends has come round and we've done lots of Christmassy baking which always leaves the house smelling amazing! We basically spend the day being super festive and getting hyped for Christmas the next day.

8. What tops your tree?
We have a very traditional looking angel that I'm not overly keen on but my parents like it so there's not a lot I can do about it! Our entire tree is actually pretty crazy, which no matching baubles, and all sorts of random decorations. I prefer a nice traditional tree, with a nice colour scheme and evenly spaced decorations, and of course plenty of glitter and sparkle.

9. As a kid what was the one (crazy, wild, extravagant) gift you always asked for but never received?
A puppy! Every year since I was about 5 it's been at the very top of my wishlist, and it still is now! I just love dogs and want one so badly but my parents don't want a pet running around the house. As soon as I move out, I'm sure there will be a new fluffy addition to the family.

10. What's the best part about Christmas for you?
Definitely the build up to Christmas. I love everything about it, including the lovely decorations, late night shopping, the growing excitement, choosing presents for my friends and family, seeing people I haven't seen for ages and festive baking! I just love it all and am 100% one of those people that looks forward to Christmas all year round.

Hope you've enjoyed this tag! If you also do the tag make sure to let me know as I'd love to read your answers!

emma x

1. What is your favourite Christmas Movie/s?
2. Do you open your presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
3. Do you have a favourite Christmas memory?
4. Favourite festive food?
5. Favourite Christmas gift?
6. Favourite Christmas scent?
7. Do you have any Christmas Eve traditions?
8. What tops your tree?
9. As a kid what was the one (crazy, wild, extravagant) gift you always asked for but never received?
10. What's the best part about Christmas for you?

blogmas #4: A Gift Guide for Guys

Buying gifts for the men in your life, be they boyfriends, dads, friends or brothers, is always a struggle. To help with this issue I've compiled a few ideas for what I'll be buying them this Christmas.

1) Jack Wills Duo (£12 - Boots) - This set includes a body wash and a deodorant, and is great for teenage boys that you don't know what to buy. It is a fairly universal gift so is suitable for people you don't know so well.

2) 'Evil Plans and Stuff' Notebook (£6 - Amazon) - This is the perfect gift for an older men as it is funny but also useful. Any funny notebook is a winner, but this is the best one I could find online. I would suggest looking in the department stores if you're looking for any smaller joke presents.

3) Topman Body Spray Trio (£10 - Boots) - A good value set here as you get three well sized ddeodorants. This is great for younger teenagers who are just getting into using products like this, and the brand makes is more attractive to boys just getting into Topman.

4) Whisky Selection Pack (£12 - Boots) - The perfect present for a dad or grandad here, and a great way for them to try out some new brands of alcohol. This is a very sophisticated gift that is reasonably priced too.

5) Remote Control Range Rover (£30 - Debenhams) - What guy doesn't love a nice new toy to play with at Christmas? No matter what their age, the males in your life will still love to receive a remote control car. It doesn't have to be this one, but the fact that it's a Range Rover makes it even better in my opinion.

6) No7 Hydrating Shave Kit (£18 - Boots) - Another good one for teenage boys here as many of them are just starting to shave regularly. This set includes everything they need to ease into this process and the high end packaging will make them feel very grown up too!

7) Blue Woolen Scarf - I love a scarf on a guy, and if you to do, this is the perfect gift for a partner. This particular one is very pricey at £42 but there are much more affordable versions available on the highstreet. I really like giving people clothing as I find that it's much more personal than other presents.

I hope this post helped if you were stuck for ideas, and I'll see you again tomorrow for blogmas #5.

emma x

blogmas #2: A Gift Set Guide

This posts was so fun to make and I gained so much inspiration for items that I can add to my own Christmas list, and ones that I can buy for my friends and family. All of these are beauty based but there is a range of prices ranges and types of product. 

1) Nars Lip Pencil Set (£32 - Space NK) - This is clearly quite an expensive set, however it does offer great value for money. You get a wide range of shades, and although the pencils aren't full size, they are only a tiny bit smaller. Considering you couldn't even get two full size pencils for this price, it is a truly amazing offer, and the pencils are amazing quality so you know that they're worth spending your money on.

2) Aromatherapy Bath Oil Mini Collection (£35 - Space NK) - A very sophisticated option here, perfect for slightly older women that still love to indulge in a lovely relaxing bath. You don't get loads of product for your money here, but you do get to try 10 different oils, and the beautiful packaging proves to the receiver that it is a high end present.

3) Benefit Sweet Tintations (£20) - If I didn't already have so many lip products, I would definitely be purchasing this. For your money you get 2 full size lip products, and 2 medium sized tints, which is incredible value. The lip balms usually cost £14.50 each so you can easily see why this set has already been such a great seller this year. The lip and cheek tints are plenty big enough; I actually think that the full size ones are too big, and I know friends who have had them dry up before they finished them because they contain so much product.

4) Smashbox Primer Set (£13) - A slightly cheaper option here, but a great one for someone who wants to try out some higher end primers. Smashbox are well known for their amazing primers so this set is sure to be a hit with whoever you give it to, and the price means that someone who doesn't normally have the opportunity to buy try more expensive products can afford to give them a go.

5) Essie Nail Varnish Duo Kit (£12.99 - Boots) - This set is great for any nail lover as you get two full size Essie polishes. Although there is only one colour option available, the set includes Tart Deco which is one of Essie's most popular shades, so is sure to be a hit with whoever you gift this to. Of course, if you buy it for 3 people, you can take advantage of the Boots 3 for 2 offer, and it becomes even better value.

6) No7 Complete Cleansing Kit and Brush (£25 - Boots) - I am pretty sure that I'm going to end up buying this for myself at some point because I just can't get over the price point. The vast majority of cleansing brushes cost in excess of £100, but for just £25 you get a brush and two full size No7 products. This is a great choice for someone who wants to try a cleansing brush, but doesn't want to pay too much without knowing if it will benefit them significantly.

7) Benefit Beauty Bonbons Set (£40 - Boots) - A very expensive set here, but one that I think is totally worth it for someone special. You get a full size Hoola Bronzer and High Beam, which alone covers the cost of the set. Then you also get a mini They're Real Mascara and Porefessional Primer, another 2 of their best selling products, as well as a mini Hoola Lipgloss, all packaged beautifully in a little house.

8) No7 Skincare Collection (£16) - This is a really well priced set and the products are suitable for any skin type, making it very universal. You get 4 medium sized products, a muslin cloth and a headband. This is an ideal present for someone that you don't know what to buy because everyone takes care of their skin, whether they wear makeup or not.

Have you found any amazing sets this year? Let me know in the comments.

emma x

blogmas #1: An Introduction

I wanted to do something special on my blog this Christmas as it is my favourite time of year and I am super excited! I don't have too much going on college or work wise over the month of December, so I decided I should have time to blog EVERY day up until Christmas! This will be a big step up for me from my twice a week posts, and because I want the posts to be more up to date, I won't be able to write them weeks in advance, so it's going to be a manic blogging month for me but I'm so excited!

Many of the posts won't be as long as my current ones, but I'm going to try and make them more lifestyle related and personal based so that you can get to know me better. As many of the posts as possible will be Christmas related to share the festive spirit on my blog.

I'm going to try and do my Tuesday and Friday posts as well so that there is still some beauty posts going up, but I'm not sure how long that will last hahah. 

I think that's all there is to know, let me know in the comments if you're doing blogmas/vlogmas!

emma x

My Christmas Beauty Wishlist

So November arrived and with it came the excitement of Christmas! I for one am already super excited for all the beautiful decorations, cosy nights in and Christmas movies, not to mention all the new beauty releases! Today I'm going to be sharing some of the beauty items on my wishlist this year. For some of you it may seem ridiculously early to be doing this, but on the other hand I know that some of you will be starting your Christmas shopping already and therefore are in need of some inspiration.

1) Zoeva Makeup Brushes - I found it very hard to pick which ones I wanted the most, but I decided upon ones that I didn't have anything similar to at the moment. I chose the Brow Line Brush (322), Luxe Soft Crease Brush (221) and Concealer Buffer Brush (142). These are all quite high up on my list as I am in urgent need of makeup brushes; I currently only have one for foundation, one for powders, and one eyeshadow brush.

2) Rimmel Brow This Way Powder - I really want a brow powder as I think they are the best way to achieve really defined brows. I currently use a matte shade from the Naked 2 palette, but it isn't very convenient to take the whole palette away with me just for the brow colour. I thought it would be best to try a brow powder from the drugstore before splurging on a more expensive one, and this is the one that caught my eye due to its compact packaing.

3) Tresemme 32mm Curling Wand - Since my hair has started to get longer, my current wand, which has a much thinner barrel, isn't really suitable as I need a wider one. I don't curl my hair all that often so didn't want a curler that was too expensive so I picked out this one which can be found for £15-20. This will be great for creating big bouncy curls will hopefully help to add volume to my hair too.

4) Soap and Glory The Righteous Butter - As I have mentioned many times before, this is my all time favourite body butter! My current tub is running out so I put it on my Christmas list as I don't tend to buy bath products for myself. 

5) Ciate Nail Polish in Snow Globe - I saw a mini bottle of this as part of a set in TK Maxx and fell in love. It's a beautiful 'holographic flitter' top coat and looks stunning over pale coloured polishes for a wintery look. 

6) Bobbi Brown Makeup Manual - I have wanted this for so long but can never bring myself to actually buy it, so hopefully someone else will be kind enough to buy it for me. For some reason I have never been able to justify it when there is so much advice available for free on the internet, but I think this will be great for reading on winter days, when I don't want to be using technology all day. This has so many great reviews so I can't wait to see what all the hype is about.

7) Next Just Pink Perfume - This was my first ever perfume back when I was about 10 and it still remains my perfume of choice even now. It is the perfect mix of fruity and floral and basically just smells amazing! I'm very proud of myself that my favourite perfume is actually really cheap (£14), rather than a super expensive designer brand haha. My bottle has tragically just run out but I'm hoping I can survive until Christmas without it, although I do have a travel sized bottle stashed away for emergencies.

8) Zoe Sugg Girl Online - Not strictly a beauty item, but let's be honest, it's what Zoella's known for isn't it! I'm sure this will be on many people's wishlists this Christmas, if they haven't already bought it, and I am no different! I absolutely adore Zoe and have watched every single one of her videos so I can't wait to read this. 

9) The Body Shop Instablur Primer - My Benefit Porefessional Primer sample has finally run out after lasting a good 3 months, so before purchasing the full size bottle I wanted to try out a cheaper alternative. This one is quite reasonably priced, especially with The Body Shop's regular 40% off codes, and has some real rave reviews so I thought it would be a good one to try.

And there we have it. Let me know in the comments what's on your wishlist and if you'd like to see another, non-beauty, related wishlist.

emma x