LIFE UPDATE | trying to feel Christmassy

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 It's finally December which means that Christmas is only around the corner.  I've already done the majority of my shopping for everyone's presents but will inevitabily buy so much more than planned, which is fine, I like to spoil people especially at this time of year.  We've put the tree up and already started watching Christmas films but for some reason, I'm not feeling 100% in the Christmas spirit - I just don't think it's cold enough yet!  There's no frost, I can go out in only a jumper and scarf and be comfortable.  This morning when I was driving to uni, Merry Christmas Everybody by Slade came on, and I don't know whether it was the fact that it was 7:50 in the morning, but it felt so in your face, it was too Christmassy.  Maybe a bit of Mariah or Buble would have sufficed.

I'm going to London in two weeks to go to a load of art galleries and exhibitions, and mainly try to resist going to do even more Christmas shopping.  I've never been there at this time of the year so I'm really looking forward to experiencing it, I will definitely not be able to resist going to the Hyde Park Winter Wonderland!  I'm also excited to see what the Tate Modern has on for their Christmas market.  Maybe it will just be the one exhibition and a few quick gallery visits..

My sister, Jasmine, turned 14 yesterday so we celebrated that over the weekend and obviously on her actual birthday which was a lot of fun.  Because it's on December 1st so we always put the tree up on the same day too, so that was really exciting & puts you in the Christmas spirit a lot more!  So these past couple of weeks have consisted of shopping, drinking too many Costa Christmas drinks, and eating too many carbs - exactly what this time of year is all about.

Undeniably the best Christmas film

Necessary Costa pit stops while shopping

Most beautiful shop bought cake there is

Carb-alicious TGI Friday's with Monique

Next week I'm going to 2 gigs; Don Broco in Nottingham and Lower Than Atlantis in Birmingham which I am so unbearably excited for!!  Then obviously, I have the trip to London coming up and most exciting of all, breaking up from uni in two weeks for almost a month off - three weeks of no alarms!  I'm thinking of getting a new tattoo in the next couple of weeks too, I haven't had Marie inflict her pain on me a while and I want some new pretties.

Thanks for reading!
XXXX



*All photos are my own unless stated otherwise
*I was not paid or sponsored to write this post

HAUL | Lush, Oxford Street store

While I was in London, I obviously paid a visit to the Oxford Street Lush store!  It's so huge and smells incredbile.  I bought myself a couple of bath products as well as some bits for my sisters and overall spent £53.  For myself I got one bath bomb, one bubble bar, one bubbleroon and three bath oils, all of which are supposed to be really comforting and relaxing - definitely what I need.

 First up is the yoga bomb bath bomb which cost £3.95.  I am so bad at describing smells!.. It smells like I would definitely fall to sleep in the bath after using this.  'If you long for calm and contemplation, drop this layered bomb in the bath.  As the mesmerising colours unfurl, woody olibanum and ho wood create an atmosphere of deep relaxation.'

The bubblebar I got is called milky bath and cost £3.75.  It has lots of cocoa butter and actual skimmed milk in it!  It's supposed to be really comforting and I can tell from the smell that it will be, it smells like I want to eat it basically, and that's comforting.

Next up is the Yuzu & Cocoa bubbleroon which cost £3.65.  I've never had a bubbleroon before and I think they're just like bubble bars?  It contains coconut oil and shea butter so I pressume it's going to leave your skin really soft and smooth.  According to the label it smells like chocolate orange - one of my favourite types of chocolate, and it definitely does so that's a massive bonus for me.  This one is also self-preserving and suibtable for vegans.

I knew that the Oxford Street Lush sold tiny little balls of bath oils for only £2 each so I was really exciting when I saw them all on display.  A lot of them are really glittery and I'm not a fan of the mess so I just thought I would try 3 and pick some more up in a few months when I go back, and hopefully there will be cool Halloween/Bonfire night ones!
The first one, below, is the Floating Island Melt which when I first picked up and had a sniff, thought it smelled like white chocolate that you have at Christmas time.. but according to the label it's lemon and sandalwood?!  I just really love the smell of this one, and it's so slippery, I could barely hold it to take a photo!  So I'm hoping it's going to make my bath water nice and oily and leave my skin feeling amazing.

Shark Infested Custard Melt got my attention purely because of the name - sharks are cool and I love custard.  It's packed with lots of nourishing butters so is great if you want your skin feeling revived and soft.  It smells really vanilla-y and again is really slippery to hold.  The little 'shark fin' sticking out the top is so cute as well - and made from melon paper!

 My last product is the Lime Pastille Bath Melt.  Lime scented bath products are one of my favourites, they're so zesty and fresh and great for showers/baths in the morning or after going to the gym.  This bath oil is definitely one for lime lovers, it's a really strong scent made from lime and lemon oils as well as extra virgin coconut oil.  It is supposed to turn the bath water a 'lustrous green' as well, I think it might be one that you will have to clean up afterwards too because it's quite shimmery but it's worth it for the smell!

I do like the moisturisers and things that Lush sell but I think some are way too pricey and I can get something else that I love like Soap & Glory for so much cheaper.  For anyone who is interested, I also bought the Intergalatic bath bomb, 2 Frozen bath bombs, 2 of the Experimenter bath bombs, the Skydancer bath bomb, the Guardian of the Forest bath bomb, the Big Bang bubble bar and the purple Fun, which I got for my sisters.  Jorja used her Frozen bath bomb and it turned the bath water this amazing blue colour which had glitter in and obviously smelled amazing.
If you're in London or planning on going, and you love Lush or have never been, I would definitely suggest going in!  If you get the tube to Oxford Circus, it's easy to find, just follow the smell.

Thanks for reading!
X



*All photos are my own
*I was not paid or sponsored to write this post

MINI LONDON BREAK | London Dungeons, Lush & more!

DAY ONE
Me, my boyfriend and two younger sisters did so much exploring on the first day.  We went to see Buckingham Palace, the houses of parliment, the London eye and did a bit of Oxford Street shopping!  I've been to London a couple of times in the past few years so I had already done a lot of sight seeing but I still think it's brilliant.  We explored parts of London that I had never really ventured into much like South Bank where there are loads of edgey food outlets, art galleries and just some cool scenic areas.  At the Hayward art gallery, there is an exhibition on at the minute by Carsten Holler which seems like a lot of fun to go and see and I wish I had!  One of my favourite parts of the day was spending an ungodly amount of money in the Oxford Street Lush store - it's absolutely massive and you can smell it as soon as you get out from the underground (there will be a little haul up soon!).  In the evening we went to the London Dungeons and it was so much fun!  I must admit, I got so scared at some points but overall it was a fantastic experience and I would definitely recommend it if you're going to London.  We learned about all sorts of London history, but my favourite story was the Jack the Ripper one.  My sisters, Jorja, 10, and Jasmine, 13, seemed to really enjoy it as well so if you have children and think that it might be too scary then don't be worried!  At the end of the tour, is a free falling drop ride and I think I have been less nervous on rides at Alton Towers!  They make it seem as if you are in the gallows waiting for your imminent death and it honestly felt like it.  You get your photo taken which I had no idea about and had to buy it because it is hilarious.  It was a lot of fun and I would love to go and see it again.  We finished the day with an absolute monster Pizza Express which went down an absolute treat - I had the american hot pizza simply because it's the best one.

DAY TWO
To start our second and final day, we had an all you can eat breakfast at the Premier Inn we stayed in, in St Pancras and oh my god it was so good!  So much bacon!  The hotel was really good as well, I booked in advance so managed to save a bit of money and it wasn't too expensive either - right next to the St Pancras and Euston tube and train stations, it's a really good location.  After checking out, we headed to South Kensington to go to the Natural History Museum.  We didn't stay for too long because we were all complaining that our feet were hurting and wishing we had wore crocs, ha!  But what we did see of it, was really cool and really interactive so it seemed to keep the smaller children busy.   The best part was probably the gift shop which was filled with loads of different science-y bits from mineral gems to flavoured chocolate bars.  I think there were more than one gift shop because the one we went in was called 'the earth gift shop.'  While we were in South Kensington, we were going to look for one of the Hummingbird Bakery outlets but we were too exhausted so that's another regret!  I found them on Instagram and have always desperately wanted some of their red velvet cake.  We took a quick trip back to where all the shops are to go to Hamley's where again, I spent too much money.  I let my sisters have so much money each so they decided to put together what they had left to buy some cool little things to play with at home, one being connetic sand and the other some kind of make your own snow..  They interacted with both in the shop and me and my boyfriend also thought that they were really cool!  After this we were pretty much done for the day, we went to a pub for a long lunch while waiting for the train home where I had a posh fish finger sandwich, then shared a brownie pizza dessert with my boyfriend, Josh, and Jasmine while Jorja had the most amazing smelling warm brownie.

Overall, I spent quite a bit of money so if you're planning on going to London, save up!  The tube cost me £24 a day for an adult ticket (£12) and 2 child tickets (£6 each) and these were for zones 1-6.  I would also put comfort first over fashion because my feet were - and still are - hurting so much.  And most of all, plan where you're going to go and what you want to do, make an itinerary of what tube stations and lines you need to go on to get to these places, and allow yourself time to get lost every now and again.  I think me and Josh are going to go back in a few months to do more galleries and things, and I might take my sisters again to go to Madame Tussaud's - another must see!

Thanks for reading!
X





*All photos are my own
*I was not paid or sponsored to write this post