The Perfect Pamper

I think every girl who loves beauty loves to have a good pamper session from time to time, I certainly do! My favourite time to pamper is if I have a spare day and am going out in the evening as I love taking hours to get ready and incorporating a bubble bath into my pre-night out process. So, here are the products I used to create the perfect pamper session before the biggest night out of the year, New Years Eve!

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Origins Out of Trouble 10 Minute Mask

While I'm running my bath, I like to apply a luxury face mask. I got this Origins one for Christmas and have already really noticed it benefiting my skin (full review coming pronto!)

Lemon Verbena Luxury Bath Salts

I then added these luxury bath salts to my bath before getting in. The salts themselves are great for the body and the skin and the smell is luxurious and pampering yet also invigorating and energizing as they are very citrusy. 

Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Shine Treatment

As soon as I get in the bath, I wash my hair then apply this Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Shine Treatment. This mask smells incredible and leaves my hair feeling like its spun from silk. I leave it on the whole duration of my bath, as opposed to just 3 minutes, and I find this extra time makes my hair extra extra extra shiny. 

Jodi Picoult- Leaving Time

As a Literature student, I am always reading. A warm relaxing bath is one of my favourite places to settle into a good book. I got this Jodi Picoult novel for Christmas and was unable to put it down over the next week- I'd definitely recommend this book if you like mystery crime books.

Lush Massage Bar

After I've read a couple of chapters, I'll apply this Lush Massage Bar to my legs before shaving them. Shaving with this massage bar as a base leaves you with the softest legs imaginable. It also smells like an absolute dream!

The Body Shop Chocolate Body Scrub and Body Butter

I'll then scrub away the dead skin from my elbows/knees and any other places where fake tan may settle as I always use instant tan for a night out and I don't want it applying in streaks! This Body Shop body scrub smells so good I want to eat it and if you layer the matching body butter on once you get out of the bath- you'll smell incredible for the next 24 hours!

Lush Ro's Argan Body Conditioner

Lastly, before leaving the bath, I'll apply this Lush Body Conditioner over my whole body to leave me with beautiful smooth, sweet-smelling skin for the whole evening. As with all Lush products- the smell of this is indescribably good!

After leaving the bath, I'll turn the shower on and quickly rinse my face mask off and my hair mask out to make sure that all the bath products that I've used don't end up on my face and in my hair. 

And that is where my relaxing pamper night quickly switches to manic getting ready as I realise I've wasted all my getting ready time relaxing in the bath- it feels worth it at the time though!

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I'd love to hear what your favourite pamper products are! 

Shakira x

Christmas Gift Guide: The Stocking Filler Edition

Although everyone loves a big extravagant present, the stocking fillers should definitely not be overlooked. I love getting people a few little presents as I often think these can be more specifically catered to the person than a big set with various things inside. These gifts would also all be great as Secret Santa gifts or smaller gifts if you have a lot of people to buy for and want something lovely without the huge price tag! 

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ASOS ~ Retox Pamper Pack ~ £7.50

Firstly, this Retox Pamper Pack from ASOS... This is the perfect gift for any girl who loves a good pampering session, it'd be especially great for them to use on boxing day or new years day when hungover! It includes a hair mask, a foot cream, a face mask and eye pads so it really covers all areas and is a great value, unique gift for a brilliant price!

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ASOS ~ Beauty On Cloud Nine Embroidered Eye Mask ~ £8.50

A cute eye mask for this nights when you're finding it difficult to sleep could be the perfect stocking filler for a lot of people. For girly girls, this pink polka dot one from Cloud Nine is lovely, the bow detail makes it super pretty and their products are always really well-made which is a bonus for only £8.50. 

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Body Shop ~ Vanilla Brulee Bath Sprinkles ~ £7

These bath salts from the Body Shop are a brilliant product for anyone who loves baths and taking some me-time which is extra nice over the festive period. The smell of these bath salts is absolutely incredible- I urge everyone to go smell it next time you're near a Body Shop store, you will not be disappointed!

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Nuxe Reve De Miel Lip Balm ~ £9.50

Nuxe Reve De Miel lip balm has been a much-talked about cult beauty product for a long time. All girls (and even some boys) who are into beauty and skincare would really appreciate this product and the quality has been backed-up by numerous reviews. I'd love to receive this, this year!

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Lush Bath Melt ~ The Melting Snowman ~ £2.25

No Christmas stocking is complete without a Lush product! This Melting Snowman is the perfect cute Christmas themed gift and I think all women would appreciate this one as it's so cute and so lovely and kind to even the most sensitive skin. Another one that's perfect for the post-Christmas pamper!

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Yankee Candle Small Jar ~ Salted Caramel ~ £7.99

Yankee Candle is my ultimate favourite candle brand, mostly because they have such a wide range of scents that there's something for everyone, for every season and for every occasion! The small jars come in at around £7.99 depending on where you purchase them from which I think is really reasonable for the quality of the product and they also would look super cute in your stocking. This Salted Caramel scent is particularly divine! 

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L'occitane ~ Cherry Blossom Petal-Soft Hand Cream ~ £14

This L'occitane hand cream is the most expensive product in this guide and at £14 it might be too high for some peoples 'stocking filler' budget. I included it anyway as hand creams are such a great gift to receive in the winter months when the weather wreaks havoc on your skin and this would still be perfect for a Secret Santa or for a family member or friend as their main present and it's too pretty and lovely not to mention!

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Hotel Chocolat ~ 12 Portly Penguins ~ £7

All genders and all ages, I'm pretty sure that 99% of the population get excited by the gift of chocolate! What could be better than luxury chocolate in your stocking in the shape of PENGUINS!? So cute and so yummy, I love these kind of gifts to bulk up a stocking. 

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Topshop ~ Mini Lip Bullet Pyramid ~ £5

These Christmas decoration type stocking fillers are adorable and mini products in general are great Christmas gifts as it gives the receiver the chance to try out something new. These Topshop lip bullets are high quality, long-lasting and super pigmented so most beauty addicts would appreciate one of these. They come in a few colours as well so you'll hopefully be able to find one to suit any skin tone and style.

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Topshop ~ Faux Fur Earmuffs ~ £12

Last, but certainly not least, it's these gorgeous fluffy Topshop ear muffs. Ear muffs are a great novelty way of keeping yourself warm and cosy this time of year whilst still looking fashionable and festive. The peachy coloured faux fur of these ones is particularly nice and they feel SO soft in real life. I'm in love!

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So there you have my pick of 10 of the best Christmas stocking fillers/smaller presents for this year. I seriously love all of these products and would love to receive any of them, as I'm sure plenty of others would too!

What is your dream stocking filler this year?

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Shakira x

The Review: Diptyque ~ Feuille Lavande

Today I thought I'd do something a little different and talk about a candle that I've fallen in love with. I've been a candle obsessive pretty much forever but since coming to University I've come to really appreciate how lovely and homely a candle can make a dingy student room feel. Now that I'm in my final year, I actually have a very lovely flat but I think however cute your home is, nothing can make it feel even more homely than a luxury candle burning in the background. 

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Diptyque are known for being one of the best luxury candle brands on the market at the moment so I was super excited to try out one of their products. I chose the smallest size as they are quite expensive and I'd never had one before so it was a bit of a risk. The scent I chose is called 'Feuille Lavande' and it is BEAUTIFUL! This size RRPs for £20 on Space NK which is rather pricey for the small size but the quality of the product is unbelievable.

It's essentially lavender scented and the aroma from this tiny candle fills my whole flat within 5 minutes of lighting it. It burns perfectly level and has lasted a surprising amount of time for its size. It gives the whole room the most beautiful relaxing ambience and would be great for anyone who likes herbal remedies to help them sleep better. Although it's quite pricey to buy for yourself it's great as an indulgent treat and would also make a lovely luxury gift for women of any age, and some men I'm sure!

Overall, I would definitely recommend this scent and I would repurchase, although not often as it is a rather luxurious product to buy yourself! I can't wait to try more scents from Diptyque now! 

What are your favourite luxury candle brands? 

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Shakira x

5 Festive Nail Polishes...

In this post, I'm going to be talking about my 5 favourite nail polishes that are all perfect for the festive season! Please excuse the slight mess of some of these nail polish bottles, I had a   pink nail polish explosion in my nail drawer and some of them just cannot be cleaned!
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First up is Dark Knight by Topshop Nails. It's a dark blue with a mixture of lighter blue, silver, and darker blue sparkles! It applies really opaque in two coats which I think is great for a glitter polish and the quality and lasting time are also pretty impressive. I love the sparkly midnight blue for winter as it reminds me of the dark starry nights!

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Next up is one of my favourites of all time- Pink Silver Glitter by Barry M. As the name would suggest, it's a pink polish with bits of pink and silver glitter running through it. The quality is nice and it's fairly opaque and buildable, although it chips fairly quickly as most Barry M nail paints do. 

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Burgundy Kiss by Maybelline Colour Show is definitely the most chic option of the bunch. It's a really dark red that looks almost black in some lights. It's very vampy and sultry but still very wintery and festive as it has a lovely hint of red. This one lasts brilliantly on the nails and is opaque in just one coat so is definitely a great one to choose. 

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Back to the glittery options next with Red Glitter by Barry M. This is probably the most typically festive of all my picks as nothing could be more Christmassy than red glitter! It applies and lasts exactly the same as the pink Barry M nail paint and is definitely worth buying for a super seasonal nail to get you into the festive spirit!

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Lastly, it's the only high-end option in this list. Trafalgar Red from By Terry Nail Laque is the most beautiful true red I have ever come across. It's super festive as red always is on the nails and also a very chic and classic tone. It's opaque in one coat and it last so long on the nails before chipping and is a dream to apply, definitely worth spending the extra money for a little indulgence!

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I'm currently wearing the By Terry Nail Laque on most of my nails with one accent nail on each hand which has the Barry M Red Glitter on it. Such a cute festive combination which I'm loving wearing this month!

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What are your favourite nail picks for this time of year? I'd love to try out something new!

Shakira x