Life Lately #141

It feels like Christmas was so long ago! Especially as James has his birthday so soon afterwards (1st Jan) & we celebrated the New Year & we're now planning my birthday! It all goes by so quick.

On 23rd December, we had our yearly friends Christmas do at Elisa & Jamie's. This year, instead of everyone bringing a dish individually, they cooked the entire meal themselves! Complete with this amazing cocktail to start. We swapped Secret Santa presents & ate waaay too much food! I always love going to this every year, they really are the greatest group of friends a girl could ask for.

Christmas is always a bit of a whirlwind for us. We travel to family every day, starting with James' mum & partner Barrie for Christmas Eve. We travelled down as soon as I finished work at 6pm for an evening of food, games & presents. They had 2 french families staying for Christmas Day, so we had tons of food & drink! I managed to make my way through a whole bottle of champagne! We left just after midnight & headed back to our flat.

What made this year extra special was we woke up on Christmas Day in our own place. I've absolutely loved decorating & making the space our own this year. We bought a Christmas tree at the beginning of December & it was lovely to add presents underneath throughout the month. We opened our presents to each other early Christmas Day before heading to my Grandparents' for lunch.

We always have a full roast dinner at lunch time on Christmas Day & this year was no exception. My family completely spoiled us this year!

& finally Boxing Day was spent at James' Dad & Maria's house with extended family. We ate way too much again & played lots of games. I'm so rubbish at most games, I usually end up last! Hahaha, but it's fun none the less.

We celebrated James' 24th birthday last weekend, starting with a meal at my parents' on Friday & we went to Globalls in Brighton for the afternoon on Sunday & played 2 rounds of golf. If you've never heard of Globalls, have a look at some of the pictures on their website! It's such a brilliant concept & really inexpensive. I actually won the 1st round & came 2nd overall, so not bad at all!

We then went out for dinner at our local chinese, which put on a special New Years Eve menu. It was brilliant for trying dishes you'd never normally order. Complete with a glass of champagne, it went down a treat! We then headed back to Allan & Maria's for fireworks to see in the New Year.

On New Year's Day / James' actual birthday, we spent the day with family. We visited Allan & Maria for the afternoon, then headed to Valerie's for dinner & games.

James got given a new board game for Christmas called Labyrinth from Alex & Charl & I'm obsessed with it! We played it on James' birthday & every night since! Like I say, I'm not brilliant at games, but this one is so much fun.

& finally, now the week of celebrations has come to an end, last Tuesday, we went to see Pitch Perfect 3 at the cinema & it was hilarious. Quite a far-fetched storyline though.. let me know if you've seen it & thought the same!

How has January been for you so far lovelies? Do you have any resolutions?

Hope you all had a wonderful New Year!

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November & December Favourites

Advent Calendar

If you follow me on Instagram, you're probably sick to death of seeing this advent calendar! If not, then keep an eye out for my blog post coming in January, reviewing all the bits I got! I've absolutely loved opening this every day through-out December & I'm extremely sad it's finished.

Candles

If I had a life time favourites, candles would feature for sure, but this month I've fallen back in love with Yankee Candles. James & I were kindly gifted a pine scented one at the beginning of December from my mum & we've already burnt through it! I'm so sad, but perfect timing to say goodbye to Christmas & start a fresh for the New Year.

Blood Orange Bodyspray
This was one of the items I got in my advent calendar & I've been wearing it most days since opening it. It smells so Christmassy & not surprisingly.. quite orangey! Who wouldn't want to smell like a chocolate orange at Christmas time?!

Clinique Lipstick

I mean, nothing beats a red lip at Christmas time. It just completes every outfit in my eyes & makes you look like you've put in so much more effort than you actually have! This one from Clinique is never far away from my lips, it's such a lovely formula.

Matte Pink Lipstick

I've never bought anything from the brand Stila before, but loved the look of their products, especially the lipsticks. When this one popped out of my advent calendar, I was so excited! I started wearing it the next day & haven't taken it off my lips (apart from when I'm wearing the Clinique red lipstick!) 

Mince Pies & Cheese
I mean, not together obviously, but who doesn't love a mince pie & cheese & crackers at Christmas! I've lost count of what I've consumed this year.. oops!

Music

Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (remix)

Christmas songs!

TV

Vampire Diaries 
James & I have started watching this from the beginning & are loving it. I'd watched up to season 5 a few years ago, but forgotten so much of it! 

Events

Grandad celebrated his 90th birthday in the middle of November! 

James & I celebrated our 5th anniversary with a trip to Kingston-Upon Thames.

As well as meeting up with friends & family in December, the girls & I went to Wakehurst Place for the Glowalk, we had a group meal at Elisa & Jamie's & I organised our work Christmas do at Bills. It has definitely been a month of eating, drinking & social gatherings!

& finally, it was Christmas! From start to finish, Christmas is always so busy. James & I started off with Christmas Eve at Valerie & Barrie's, my Grandparents' on Christmas Day & then Boxing Day at Allan & Maria's. I still haven't managed to sort through all my presents yet as it was so manic, but I wouldn't have it any other way!

How was your Christmas'? Hope you all had a lovely time however you celebrated & I hope you all have a very Happy New Year! : )

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Life Lately #140

Hello lovelies,

Sometimes with these life update posts, it takes me ages to fill them, but this month has been so manic, with events & social gatherings, it was pretty easy to get this one together so soon after my previous one!

Last Friday morning, I visited my friend Lorna at her new place. It was so lovely to have a catch up with her over a cup of tea & a shortbread. I absolutely loved her new place & it's the perfect area for exploring which I know she loves to do. We exchanged Christmas presents, I opened mine early as she explained I'd enjoy it more on the lead up to Christmas. How adorable is it!? James & I have placed it right by the door as you enter our flat so it's the first thing you see : )

I also caught up with Shez on the Friday afternoon. (Friday was so manic as I literally went straight to work after the socials!) We had a tea & swapped pressies. I actually wanted to desperately write this post to tell you what she got me, as she was seriously paranoid I wouldn't like it, but I love it. It's a massive pug canvas, which matches perfectly with our pug cushions at home. I need to find the perfect place for him to live, but at the moment he's residing under the Christmas tree!

As I said, after meeting the girlies, I headed to work for Christmas Jumper Day! I blogged a few weeks back showing you my favourite red jumpers from the high street this year & I purchased the Dachshund one from Tesco! I absolutely love it so much, definitely wearing it for Christmas day!

On Saturday, the girls & I travelled to Wakehurst Place for the Glow-Wild Lantern Walk. We booked our tickets way back in September, as it sold out almost immediately last year. The walk itself was quite muddy, but absolutely beautiful. It took you through the grounds of the house & actually into the house at the end, with lots of little photo opportunities on the way. They had some hot chocolate, waffles & marshmallow stands at the end, which smelt incredible. Definitely recommend going if your local. 

James & I had a day off together last Sunday, so we spent the day wrapping & watched Love Actually in the evening. It's my favourite Christmas film & I couldn't wait to watch it this year, I actually might try & watch it again in the next few days if I have time..

So, I started organising our work Christmas meal back in September & on Wednesday it all came together. This year we decided to go to Bills in our local town, for a 3 course meal. It was so delicious, I couldn't fault it! I'm so lucky to work with such amazing people, I couldn't do the job I do without them.

& finally I spent yesterday with mum, wrapping the last few pressies & trying on Christmas jumpers with the dogs. Just look at Honey! She is going to look extremely festive on Christmas day!

I hope you all have an amazing Christmas & Happy New Year if you celebrate it! : )

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Life Lately #139

Hi lovelies,

Why did someone forget to remind me how busy December is!? Literally, I have no time to breathe at the moment. My diary is fit to burst & with one day off in the lead up to Christmas, it's all a bit manic.

I managed to meet up with my girlies at Nandos the week before last for a catch up over some chicken. I also got to see Boop for a Christmas drink at Costa which was so lovely. We went after work about 6pm & it was so quiet. Perfect time to have a drink & catch up over a hot chocolate. We also went & bought her perfume with the voucher I gifted her for her birthday earlier this year.

I mentioned in my previous post that James & I celebrated our 5 year anniversary a week early, so last Friday, we had a cosy night in with a takeaway. You can read about what we got up to here for our actual anniversary if you like.

Like I mentioned, December has started! This year I was kindly gifted the M&S advent calendar by my mum, which I adore. All the products I've opened so far have been beautiful & I get so excited opening it each night! I'm filming each day over on my Instagram stories, so make sure you're following me over there to see what I get!

On 3rd December, James & I put up our Christmas tree! This is the first one we've ever bought together, so it felt really special putting it up & decorating it. It looks so pretty in our little flat, I can't wait to stuff a million & 1 pressies underneath!

We also put on our Christmas bedding last week. I don't know what it is about Christmas duvets, but they just make everything so much better!

Oh look at Harv. He's been feeling extremely Christmassy this week. I popped round to see mum & wrap a few pressies & write some cards & he was so adorable. He even posed for a picture with his christmas hat on.. keep an eye out for that in the next few weeks! 

& finally, panto has started at work! Friends & family are invited with staff to the dress rehearsal each year, so my parents joined James & I for the annual event. We are currently wearing bright green t-shirts & feeling extremely festive at work! If any of you work in retail / entertainment. I feel your pain. NOT LONG TILL CHRISTMAS THOUGH!

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The Ultimate Red Jumper Wishlist

Twist Crop Jumper / Over-Sized Bright Red Jumper / Lace Detailed Jumper / Cable Knit Cardigan / Sequinned Dachshund Jumper / Dog Jumper / Orange Fluffy Jumper

What is it about the colour red that screams Christmas?!

There's just something super Hygge about wrapping yourself up in an over-sized knitted jumper, with a hot chocolate, while watching a film. Am I right?

I've picked out a few of my favourite from the high street this year. I even included a bright fluffy orange one for a slightly different take on the standard red & there's even one for the furry friend in your life!

Let's start with this dark red number from Boohoo. I'm not usually a fan of cropped jumpers, I mean, who wants a cold belly in Winter?! However, the back of this jumper is what sold it to me. I love the twist detailing, it just gives it something a bit extra.

 The next two are just classics in my eyes. The first one I wanted to include because it comes in so many different colours, so if red isn't your thing, they also do black, grey, blue & even mustard (which I'm quite tempted by) The tie detailing down the side of the darker red one is so pretty, it really adds a bit of special detailing to an otherwise plain jumper.

Let's be honest, you can't go wrong with a cardigan. I don't actually own many, I'm usually more of a jumper girl, but this one was too cute not to include.

So, dog lovers amoung us, how adorable is this!? Esecpailly as it has a Dachshund on the front. Honey would definitely approve of this one. I also had to include this adorable Christmas jumper for your own little fur baby. I love that it has little antlers & a hood!

& finally, a fluffy orange jumper! This just looked so soft & cosy, I'm desperate to add it to my collection despite it being in the teens section!

What colour have you been loving this season? I'd love to know : )

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Our 5 Year Anniversary!

Hello lovelies!

On Friday, James & I celebrated our 5 year anniversary. I mean, how crazy is that!? In a way, it sorta doesn't feel that long as it's like he's been apart of my life forever, but at the same time, it's gone so quickly.. weird huh? 

Due to time off work & booking the hotel that we did, we actually celebrated a week early. James' Dad & Maria kindly bought us a Secret Escapes voucher for Christmas last year, so we used it to book a night's stay at the beautiful Warren House.

We didn't want to travel too far from home, meaning the outskirts of London was a good option for us. Warren House is in Kingston-Upon-Thames, which is about an hours drive away. We decided to make a few stops on the way to our hotel, starting with Chessington Garden Centre. I absolutely love it here. We used to visit quite often when James worked at Chessington World Of Adventures, but we hadn't been since early Spring. It looked so beautiful & festive. Garden centres are one of my favourite places to go to meet a friend for tea or lunch as there's always so much to see & eat! Perfect place to pick up a unique Christmas pressie.

The added bonus of this particular garden centre is it's dog friendly & there's even a assigned place for doggies. It gave me the chance to sneakily take a few photos of cute ones!

After lunch, we then headed to Jurassic Encounter Golf, which was literally down the road from the garden centre. Despite it being freezing, it was really good fun. James actually plays golf properly, but mini golf is about as far as my ability will stretch, so it's fun to play it together, despite it getting seriously competitive!

We could check into our hotel from 3pm, so we'd timed our arrival about 4pm, just when it was starting to get dark. We were greeted with prosecco & were shown to our room, which over-looked the gardens.

After a few glasses & a nap we went down for dinner at 7pm & basically had the dining room to ourselves! We were wined & dined & truly spoilt with a three-course meal. I had salmon pate for starter, James had goats cheese ravioli & we both had a steak for main & white chocolate cheesecake for pudding. To say we were full afterwards was an understatement!

The next morning, we woke to a full English breakfast & an all-you-can-eat continental buffet in one of the many dining rooms. It was soooo delicious. 

We then wanted to explore a bit of the local area before heading home & after some researching online, we headed to Richmond Park. Neither of us really knew what to expect, but when we started to drive through, we couldn't actually believe how close we were to London! We honestly felt as though we were in the middle of the New Forest! There was so many beautiful deer as well, this massive 'army' that we found as well as a smaller heard, with a gorgeous red stag.

We had a walk through the woods & despite it being freezing cold, the sun was shinning & it honestly felt so Christmassy! I'm honestly so sad I'd never been before, but can't wait to go back again already!

Have you ever visited Bushy Park? That one is next on our list!

Hope you're having a wonderful December so far lovelies! The Christmas countdown has officially started! Make sure your following me on all my social media (links below!), as I'm truly in the Christmas spirit this year. Also, I was lucky enough to recieve the M&S Advent calendar from my mum & I'm opening each day of my Instagram stories if you wanted to check that out as well!

I would love to read your Christmassy blog posts, so please leave them in a comment down below.

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Life Lately #138

Hello lovelies!

In the middle of November, 4 of my friends took part in a local theatre production of Two. If you don't know the play, you can read all about it here. It's usually performed by 2 people funnily enough, however, they are a small theatre group of about 10. It was so well done & was lovely to see them on stage.

Last weekend, we finally got to celebrate Charlotte's birthday with her. You might remember a few weeks back I posted about Our Adventure To London, that Char had suprised us all with for our birthdays. We decided to plan a night out for her, starting with a posh dinner at Miller & Carter Steakhouse in Brighton. I'd never been there before, but the food was delicious! We had a starter & a main before heading back to Cathy's for games, presents & birthday cake.

On 17th November, my Grandad turned 90! We had a birthday buffet celebration with all the family on the Sunday afternoon. Elisa made him a cake which was personalised from his time in the Merchant Navy. It was so nice to get everyone together to celebrate.

We met up with James' mum & Barrie last Monday for dinner at Prezzo. It was so nice to see our little town covered in Christmas lights & decarations. We also managed to catch up with Allan & Maria on Sunday for brunch at Bills. Allan had also recently celebrated a birthday & they'd just returned from a snowy trip to Iceland so it was lovely to hear all about it.

& finally last Friday, James & I travelled up to Kingston-On-Thames for an over-night stay at Warren House, to celebrate our 5 year anniversary. (which will actually be this Friday!) We stopped at Chessington Garden Centre for a look at all the Christmas decorations & to have lunch in Sedum Restaurant. I absolutely love it there, we used to go quite often when James used to work at Chessington World Of Adventures. We then played mini golf at the Jurassic Encounter Golf Course, before heading to Warren House. The following day, we headed to Richmond Park, which I was so excited for! We saw lots of deer & had a walk through the woods (where I got to play in the leaves!). It's such a beautiful place. 

How has your November been lovelies?

James & I are decorating our tree this weekend & I couldn't be more excited! I'm also going to be blogging a lot more frequently throughout December, so keep an eye out for some festive posts! : )

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Life Lately #137

Hello lovelies,

It isn't everyday you get to wear sparkly green glitter on your lips is it? Halloween feels like a life time ago now, but almost like it was yesterday at the same time. We all dressed up at work, Elisa & I dressed up as witches & Nicola was a dead bride. I was so in love with my makeup, I'm going to try to recreate the look (maybe slightly more subtle) for my birthday with pink glitter!

I went to visit my grandparent's last week & took Honey for a walk in their garden. You know those places that just bring back all the happy memories of your childhood? Their garden does exactly that. It's so special to me & Honey absolutely loves playing in the fallen leaves, just like I used to do.

Ricka & I met up for some Christmas shopping last weekend & we headed to Guildford. It was so busy in the shops, I never knew people were so organised with their Christmas shopping! We had such a lovely day & catch up.

On Wednesday, I met up with Gemma, Alice, Elisa & Lily at Costa. The plan was to test out the new Christmas drinks, so Gem had the Lindt hot chocolate & Elisa had the black forest hot chocolate. They both smelt incredible.

James has started his new job & he's loving it! One of the perks of the job, is he gets to bring home their dog food. Honey was extremely excited by this as you can see. Every bag / tin I got out the bag she would sniff & try to open & then decide to roll on top of the food! Was so funny to watch.

James has been away this weekend & he sent me flowers at work! I seriously can't believe how lucky I am. Thankyou babe, you made my day!

& finally Boop & Cathy came round for dinner last night & we ordered a Chinese & stuck on Horrible Bosses 2. It was so lovely to catch up with them & show them the Lanzarote vlog that I recently finished! We all seriously had the Summer blues after though.. why has it suddenly got so cold!? It's really starting to feel like Christmas! I picked up our Christmas tree today from Tesco, the decorations are also bought ready for the tree & I've started my shopping. I can't wait to make our little flat all festive.

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? : )

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Life Lately #136

Hello lovelies,

So if you follow me on social media, you would have seen that I got my hair cut towards the beginning of October. I decided to have a longish bob, which is the shortest my hair has been since I was a young teenager! I absolutely love it & styling it is so much fun now it's shorter. I'm quite sad I didn't do it sooner!

On 12th October, Honey turned eight. EIGHT. Oh my god, where do the years go!? I came round to visit her & we had lots of cuddles & played games before curling up on the sofa together. She's such a cutie.

Last Sunday I met up with the girls at Pizza Express for lunch before I started work. It was so lovely to have a catch up with them. I was actually planning on doing some shopping after we'd met up, but we just talked for hours & I had to head straight to work! I also managed to pick up a few bits in a charity shop before meeting them, so keep an eye out for a small haul soon!

James & I both had last Monday morning off, so we decided to check out a local pub that's started doing breakfast. Oh my god. Look at my foooood. I couldn't believe how delicious & well presented it was. Oh & of course, you can't have breakfast without a cup of tea! Next time we go, I'm going to test out the pancakes, because they looked amazing as well!

It was Mum's birthday on Sunday & I spent the afternoon with her, eating lots of food & drinking lots of tea. We also took the doggies on a very Autumnal walk, which they enjoyed!

& finally, I've started to decorate our flat for Autumn / Christmas! I'm determined to get all my shopping done as soon as humanly possible this year. I do always try to get it done & dusted before December starts, however, I want to be finished by latest middle of November. Whether this will happen or not, who knows, but I'm excited to try! Would any of you be interested in me doing a post about decorating your flat on a budget this year? I've managed to do a few Autumn DIY's & managed to pick up some cute little decorations quite cheaply.

Have you started decorating yet?
Did you have any plans for Halloween? : )

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Harry Potter - Warner Brother's Studio Tour

Hello lovelies,

For Christmas, James & I received two tickets to the Harry Potter Studios Tour from my parents & we finally got to go last weekend. You have to book about 4 months in advance for a tour slot, so we decided to go for 12pm on Sunday 23rd July. We luckily don't live that far away from Watford, about an hour & 20 minute drive so we set off in my new car (more about Connie the convertible in my next post!)

You have to arrive ideally about half an hour before your time slot, we accounted for traffic & arrived nearly an hour before, but it meant we were able to get some refreshments & take a few pictures in the lobby. You also have access to the gift shop, so if you do arrive early, there is plenty to look at.

 As you begin the tour, you are taken into The Great Hall. It looked exactly like it did in the movies!

The Great Hall

Professor McGonagall, Dumbledore & Snape  

This was one of my favourite displays we saw.. a table full of chocolate! If only it was real..

We also loved the little rooms they had set up; the Gryffindor Common Room, Dumbledore's Office & the Weasley's Front Room were so beautifully arranged.

Gryffindor Common Room

Dumbledore's Office

Potions Classroom

The Weasley's House

We also got the chance to experience the Forbidden Forest which is a new addition to the studio tour this year. Oh & if your not the biggest fan of spiders.. just be careful.. you never know what might jump out at you..

Buckbeak

Onto one of my favourite parts, the Hogwarts Express! It was so beautiful. You come out of the forbidden forest & turn the corner & magically appear onto Kings Cross station. You can also walk through the train & see the different carriages from each movie. 

Hogwarts Express

The Knight Bus

We then stopped for lunch & tried a butterbeer, the cream on the top was delicious but I wasn't keen on the actual 'beer'. It just tasted like cold, fizzy butter. Extremely weird, but glad we tried it. You have the option to either bring your own food, or buy from the café which actually wasn't too expensive considering where we were.

Another favourite part of the tour for me was Diagon Alley. I loved looking at all the shops, especially Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!

& finally, they saved the best till last.. A huge model of Hogwarts that simply blew us away. The music was playing, the castle was lit up & the whole room felt so magical.. there really isn't anything I can write to describe just how incredible it was.

Hogwarts

Hogwarts

Hogwarts

Hogwarts

Hogwarts

The whole tour took about around three hours. That included our lunch & time in the gift shop at the end, but you never feel rushed & I loved that you could just potter around in your own time. 

Have you ever been to the Harry Potter studios?

I can't recommend it enough, it was honestly so much fun : )

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Life Lately #120

Hello lovelies,

A week before Christmas day, James & I attended our friends Christmas meal at Gail's house. We all bring an element of the Christmas dinner to the evening. This year James & I brought the Yorkshires, along with some wine & a bottle of sherry (which I quickly discovered I'm the only person that's a fan of it! Yay me!) We also did secret Santa (thankyou jack for my lovely candle) & played a few games.

The next day we went to see our panto Aladdin at work & it was genuinely one of the best pantos we've put on. I adored the way the story played out on stage & all the characters were brilliant.

On 19th December, it was our work Christmas meal that I'd been planning since the beginning of the year! We went to the same place as last year, a local pub with live music in the evening. We had a late sit down time of 8.45pm, just so the last people on shift could come too & the food was delicious as always. We had a 5 course meal; starter, pallet cleanser, main, pudding & tea & mince pies to finish.

For Christmas this year, James & I split ourselves across all our families. We started with Christmas Eve at James' mums, where we had a full Christmas dinner in the evening, followed by a few games & we watched Finding Dory while we waited for midnight. It's tradition in their household to open a small present at midnight & then wake up around 9am for the rest of the presents. On Christmas Day, we headed to my grandparents' for lunch. We don't have a massive family, so 8 of us on Christmas Day always feels like a lot of people in one place! It was so nice to celebrate with them all. Finally on Boxing Day, we headed to James' dad's for round 3! Auntie Jules was down as well, so we spent the day playing games & consuming a lot of alcohol!

Scary thought coming up.. Lily turned 1. Yup that's right, 1. How has a year of this little ones life gone by already!? We had a party for her on Saturday in the local barn, filled with lots of balloons, bubbles & cake.

& finally, New Years. James' birthday is in fact New Years Day, so we celebrated with a few fireworks & a games day, followed by curry in the evening.

Oh & yesterday was my final day of holiday before I headed back to work this morning. We decided as it was a beautiful sunny day to go to West Wittering Beach. Before James & I met, it was tradition for my parents, the dogs & I to go to the beach for a walk on New Years Day, but we haven't been able to do that for a few years, so it was lovely to go & visit the beach as it holds so many memories for me. Although it was freezing, it was so lovely to see all the doggies running around in the sea & lots of people wrapped up in their new winter clothes. It has to be one of my favourite places ever.

How has your New Year lovelies?

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December & November Favourites

Printing Photos

Earlier in the year I purchased a voucher on Groupon to get 200 photos printed & sent to me. I've wanted to fill up this photo album for the longest time. I don't know about you, but I am guilty of taking hundreds of photos but never getting them printed. I'm going to try & keep up to date with them all now & do a batch every couple of months. I love looking through albums & bringing back happy memories.

Dachshund Purse
Can you get a more perfect purse? I'm so in love with it. Plus, it has a decent amount of sections for loyalty cards & random receipts which I always seem to have tons of in my bag!

Maybelline Mascara

I think this mascara has featured in my favourites before, but I had to mention it again as I went off it for a while & have just rediscovered it again. I have no idea why I stopped using it. It's seriously the best drug store mascara I've found.

Primark Matte Lipstick

I bought this lipstick back in Spring & put it at the back of my draw to save for the Autumn / Winter months as it's a very dark red shade. I forgot about it till the other week when I re-discovered it in my lipstick draw & got so excited! It's so perfect when you can't be bothered to do a full face of a makeup. A touch of mascara & this on your lips & your good to go! I reviewed this lipstick back in March if you'd like a read.

Ted Baker Nail Polish

Ah doesn't this colour just scream Christmas? I've been obsessed with it this past month (as you'll see in my next nail art post) James kindly got it for me for our anniversary at the beginning of December & it looks so perfect with a glitter top coat.

Ted Baker Body Spray

Ah another amazing present from James! This body spray has to be one of my new favourites. It's very sweet & reminds me of Spring, but I love it for that. Even though I love more sultry perfumes, I always go back to the sweet, spring scents.

Worthers Originals

Right, I blame Elisa for this one.. She brought some Worthers into work last month & offered me one & oh my god. I hadn't had one for years & now I'm obsessed again. What's so amazing about these though is they have gooey middles. I mean, c'mon. They are seriously the best.

Netflix

Ok, so Netflix is my life now. Haha, I'm kidding, but seriously.. how did I ever survive without it!? James & I have a few series we've been hooked on; Stranger Things was the first. It was really scary but addictive & then The Big Bang Theory which James had never seen but I'd dipped in & out of over the years. I'd love to hear what you've discovered on Netflix & what we should watch next?

Music

Busted - Night Driver Album

The Weeknd - I Feel It Coming

Events

At the beginning of November, Gemma & Ollie revealed they were expecting a little girl! I can't actually wait to meet her. We've got lots of excitement ahead with the baby shower in January too & then Gemma is due in March!

Grandad celebrated his 89th birthday last month. I can't believe he is that age, he still seems so young to me!

James & I celebrated our 4 year anniversary on 1st December. It feels like forever, but also no time at all!

This year's panto at work is Aladdin & I can't begin to tell you what a lovely cast we have had. Every year, it feels like a new family join us, but especially this year, as sometimes as staff members you don't feel apart of it, but they've all been so lovely, it'll be sad to say goodbye to them all.

& of course a highlight of these past two months has to be Christmas. What I love most about Christmas is to James & I, it's not just one day. We move from family member to family member, but we celebrate with each & everyone of them & it's like starting Christmas day over & over again. It's the best time of year!

How has your December been lovelies?

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Life Lately #119

Hello lovelies,

In my last post I mentioned that panto prep was well under way. We officially opened last Friday night so we are now a week into the shows. It's absolutely manic at work, especially as Star Wars started Thursday & we also have Moana showing too (which I'm seeing today & am so excited about!) Have you seen either film yet?

My parents went to see the panto last week, so I stayed at home & watched Christmas films with Honey & Harv - they looked so cute by the tree.

Oh & just look at my friend's fur babies! When we got out all the Christmas decorations & put up our tree, we found these two little jackets of Honey's. After a good 10 minutes of trying to cram her fluffy slightly tubby body into them, we decided it would be best if they went to a new home.. : ' D

Last Sunday, it was my "tea lady" Christmas meal. We went to a curry house this year for something a bit different & it was so nice to catch up with all of them. I hardly get to see them over the course of the year as we are all so busy, so it was lovely to spend some time with them & stuff myself with curry before work! We also did a secret santa, thankyou Sarah for my present!

On Monday, Mum & I went to my Grandparents' to decorate their house for them. They are in their late 80's, so not too fussed about Christmas now, but we made the house look extra festive! Just look at Harv, stretched out on the sofa. He really does know how to make himself at home!

On Thursday I met up with my friend Ricka & we went for lunch at a local pub. It was so lovely to have a catch up before Christmas & swap pressies!

& finally yesterday was Christmas Jumper Day at work, so I wore my new addition to my jumper family this year, my grey festive Dachshund jumper! Just look at it! I'm seriously obsessed with it : )

How is your December going lovelies? Have you done all your shopping?

I'm finding it so difficult to juggle work, blogging, socialising & staying healthy at this time of year, it all gets a bit much sometimes, but Christmas Day is a week tomorrow which is so exciting! I can't wait : )

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Christmas Outfit + Accessories For Under £40!

So, you've completed your Christmas shopping, bought enough lights to guide a plane onto a runway, put the tree up & arranged plans with your family for Christmas Day. You've written all your cards & bought enough sherry to last you till next Christmas, but is there something your forgetting..?

Oh yes, that dreaded Christmas work meal that everyone is going too. You need a new outfit, something that will stand out & make your colleagues do a double take when they see you in something other than your work uniform..

One problem, you're completely broke. You spent your last £1 buying two rolls of wrapping paper in Poundland to finish wrapping the annoyingly huge present you got for your dad. But wait.. you can get a new playsuit for a tenner, a pair of shoes & bag for £20 & a few accessories for under £40?! Surely not..

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So, let's start with this playsuit. £10. Yup, that's right, £10. What makes it even better is it's velvet. My absolute favourite thing to wear at this time of year, it just screams Christmas. I am in love with the halter neck style & it isn't too low cut for a meal with work colleagues (& potentially your boss!) you don't want to go to boobie! 

Now if we move on to these boots. Depending on what your doing after the meal, heels might be more appropriate but I love how a pair of boots look with playsuits. Especially ones that are as glittery as these. Plus you can never go wrong with boots for comfort compared to heels. I also wanted to include these tights. Primark tights are simply amazing. They are so cheap & as I always ladder mine, you never want to invest anymore than a few quid on a pair.

As well as being obsessed with velvet at this time of year, I had to include this fluffy clutch bag which has also worked it's way into my favourites. Just look how pretty it is! Alongside this bracelet, it will add a bit of sparkle to the outfit.

Oh & finally this gorgeous nail polish is only £1.50 & will make a beautiful top coat on top of a dark berry polish, or just on it's own to match the boots. I just had to include it!

What do you think about this outfit?

What are you wearing to your Christmas meal this year?

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