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Winter/Christmas Candle Haul

Hey,

So... I have a confession... I like have an obsession addiction to scented candles. Particularly Yankee Candles, although I will buy any scented candle that smells nice to be honest. With it coming into the winter months and Christmas time, I decided to get some more Christmassy scented candles to make the room smell more cosy and to get me in the Christmas spirit early. I admit, I did go a little bit crazy but I'm sure that these candles will get burned up in no time the rate I'm going! 

Yankee Candle Medium Jar- Christmas Cookie

This candle is described on the website as "buttery rich, vanilla scented, Holiday sugar cookies" and that is really the only way I can describe it! It isn't my favourite of the ones I bought as I usually don't like vanilla scented things but this smells yummy so it passes the smell test, which is all that matters. The medium jars burn for around 65-90 hours. 

Primark- Festive Fig Three Wick Candle & Cinnamon Clove Scented Candle

(Left: Cinnamon Clove Right: Festive Fig)

My mum picked these up for me in Primark a while ago now, so I can't remember how much they were but I'm sure both of them were under £5. Unfortunately the snowflake design on the top of the smaller one didn't last more than a few uses which was disappointing but to be expected really. The cinnamon clove one smells sweet more than spicy cinnamon, and reminds me of clove sweets and claims to burn for around 20 hours. The Festive Fig scent is more woody and not something I would have usually gone for but I was sold on the fact it has three wicks (shallow I know but shhh) and the scent has grown on me the more I've burned it. It claims to burn for 15hours, which I can't understand as it's the larger of the two but burns for five hours less! Overall I would definitely recommend picking these up, even for the price being so much cheaper than Yankee Candles for example, but just as good. 

Yankee Candle Small Tumblers- Red Apple Wreath, Sugared Apple & Christmas Eve

(Top: Sugared Apple Left: Christmas Eve Right: Red Apple Wreath)

 The small tumblers burn for around 35-45 hours and are a simple cylinder shape compared to the more famous jar candles from Yankee. Sugared Apple was new for this Christmas Season and to me, has quite a subtle apple scent compared to some of the other apple candles available, such as Red Apple Wreath. Red Apple Wreath is one of my favourite candles from Yankee and pretty much smells like red apples to me, mixed with something sweet as well. Christmas Eve is the only candle of the haul that I haven't burned so far because I am saving it for (surprise surprise) Christmas Eve. That's also my birthday so I couldn't resist buying this candle and it smells like fruit and a little bit of spice. 

Glade- Spiced Apple Candle & Limited Edition Spiced Apple and Cinnamon

(Left: Spiced Apple Right: Spiced Apple & Cinnamon)

(Can anyone else sense a theme running through my candle choices!?)

These are another two that my Mum picked up for me because they were on offer in our local shop and well, who can have too many candles that all smell of similar things! Not me! The packaging of these is really Christmassy and festive which is nice but might look a bit strange if I'm still burning them in July, which is possible with how many I have to get through. The scent doesn't seem to be as strong with these which is a shame as I like candles that can fill a whole room with fragrance as they're burning. The Spiced Apple and Cinnamon one is definitely my favourite of the two as it smells really strongly of cinnamon, which I love and it's really Christmassy. These burn for up to 30hours. 

Yankee Candle Large Jar- Black Cherry

 Now... This isn't technically one of my Christmas candles but I bought it at the same time as the other Yankee Candles so it's going in the haul post! The Black Cherry scent is one of my favourite all time flavours/scents from Yankee Candle and when I saw the Large Jar on offer (more on that later) I just had to snap it up, knowing I would get through all 110-150hours of it. This candle smells exactly like the cherry jam part of a Muller Corner yogurt and every time I smell it, I just want to eat it to be honest! It's amazing!! 

Now, I know Yankee Candles can be really expensive in the shops but I have discovered a way to slightly reduce the price. First of all, there are ways to buy the Yankee Scents before you invest in a giant expensive candle you might not like such as the tea lights or (my favourite way) the wax tarts that are put in a special burner above an unscented tea light. The second thing I would reccomend doing is buying the candles online from either Yankee Direct.com or Yankeedoodle.co.uk (which is where I bought these from although I have used both sites). The only downside to this is you can't smell the candles before you buy them but I think it's worth it for the reduced prices these sites offer. For example the RRP of the Large Jar Candle is £20 but I bought the Black Cherry one for only £14.25 which is pretty good. Also I'm sure on both sites if you spend over a certain ammount you qualify for free P&P and also free gifts, which are usually sampler size candles of a selection of scents.

I hope you enjoyed my little haul and thanks for reading, I'm now off to go and sit smelling the cherry candle coz it's just that good!!!

Lauren
xx 

Headache Helpers...

Hey, 

Firstly, i have an apology to make which is related to the subject of this post. I'm sorry I had such a big break between my last post and now but I had a few days where I had really bad headaches and being on the computer always seems to make them worse so i had to have a little while off until I was sure it wouldn't hurt my head or eyes to look at a computer screen. Thankfully today seems to be that day so I'm back! 

I get headaches or migraines quite a lot, usually for about a week at a time then they die down again for a few weeks and I'm fine. The problem is because of my emetophobia I find it impossible to take painkillers in a tablet form and it's very difficult for me to take medicine of any kind. I'm nearly 22 now and from the age of about 14 until earlier this year I didn't take any kind of medication for anything. Finally this year I was able to manage soluble paracetemol but only when it's mixed with water and juice and it takes me ages to sip it slowly. So because of this I had to start finding other ways to help when I was in pain. The following are my top three things that I reach for whenever I feel a headache coming on!

4Head Stick

(picture from the 4Head Website linked above) 

This was the first non-tablet sort of headache relief that I came across and it's simply a little twisty up stick that you rub across your forehead and it somehow stops the headache. I like this 'coz it's easy to carry about with you because it's small and has a lid on it- I always had one in my schoolbag- and it's quick. I think it works by using menthol type ingedients to numb your head although the downside of this is do not under any circumstances get it in your eyes or ears. If you apply it and then touch your head with your hand, it transfers really easily and it's easy to accidentally rub your eye or whatever and it stings! Also do not put water or anything cold near your head when you have this on either, it's not worth the pain! It's about £4 or £5 which sounds kinda expensive compared to how cheaply some tablets are sold for but I think it lasts for much longer than a packet of tablets would so it evens out to about the same really. 

Kool 'n' Soothe For Migraines Cooling Strips

(picture taken from the Kool 'n' Soothe Website linked above)

This is my favourite product for using in the house because, quite frankly, you look ridiculous when you have it on but it works which is all that matters to me! Once when I was wearing one of these my Godson came in and he gasped, asking me what had happened to me because he thought I had a bandage on my head. It's a white, soft sort of material on the outside and then the side that you stick to your head is a blue gel that is freezing cold and they last for about 8 hours before they dry out. They don't stick to hair, clothing or wet skin and they're (as the name might suggest) really soothing and nice to have on. They come in a box of 4 with two each in a paper packet. They have to be used as soon as they're opened or they dry out but if you keep the spare in the packet folded over twice it seems to be alright. I've since seen a few rip offs of this product in cheap chemists or pound shops, which sounds good because these can be quite pricey, but they simply don't match up to the original. I'm sure they can be bought in most chemists and some supermarkets but I can't remember how much exactly they are. However there is more than one in the packet so they usually last for a while, unless you have a really bad headache and use the whole box in a few days, which I have previously! 

Tiger Balm White Ointment

(The White Ointment inside)

(The box and pot)

This is my latest discovery and probably now my favourite of the three. I heard about this through one of my best friends Marion and she told me about it knowing how bad my headaches had been at the time. It's sort of similar to the 4Head Stick except you have to apply the oitment with your fingers which can be a bit messy and you have to remember to wash your hands straight away but I find it works better for me than the stick now. It smells really mentholly again, it sort of reminds me of something you would use when you have a cold like Vicks but I love those sorts of smells. It says you should apply it at half hour to hour intervals until the headache goes but it seems to sort me out after only one application which is amazing. It can also be used in the same sort of way as the original Red Tiger Balm which is for muscular aches and pain I think, sort of like Deep Heat. It's a proper little wonder product for me and although it seems quite a small pot, a little goes a long way with it although I am guilty of piling it on just because I love the smell of it. It tingles and it just feels like it's working which sounds a bit lame but I love that about it. Again its £4.70 from the link above with free P&P but I think it's totally worth this price and lasts for ages anyways. 

I hope that if you suffer from headaches but don't like to take tablets either that this post has helped you find something that might make it better. Has anyone got anymore headache cures like these? Or ways to get around taking traditional painkillers? 

Thanks for reading

Lauren
xx

October '12 Favourites...

Hi,

Ok so it's the start of November (jeez this year has flown by so quickly, hasn't it?) so it's time to look back on my favourite products/things of the month. Firstly, I would just like to say I know some of the photos in this post aren't the best but I only took them quickly on my phone so hopefully they do the job alright! Also, where possible I've included links to each of the products online :)

The Body Shop Born Lippy Stick Lip Balm

(L-R: Toffee, Lychee Shimmer, Plum, Pomegranate)

(L-R: Toffee, Lychee Shimmer, Plum, Pomegranate)

(Top to Bottom: Toffee, Lychee Shimmer, Plum, Pomegranate)

 I'm a sucker for anything lip balm related because I can rarely find any that I really like or (more often than not) I have so many on the go at once that others get forgotten. I'd always liked the potted versions of these lip balms but sometimes they can be a bit messy and it can be off putting to use potted lip balms when you can't be sure your hands are clean, so when I saw these on The Body Shop website I thought I would give them a try. As you can probably gather by the fact I now have four different flavours, I loved them! They are very moisturising and you can feel them on your lips for quite a long time which I like. They have a slight tint to them, except for the Lychee one which is clear with subtle shimmer in it which I would have to say is my favourite because you don't have to worry about the colour smudging! They all have a really nice scent, although to me the toffee one smells more like chocolate and I love the comic book style packaging and the fact they all have their own design but are all similar if that makes any sense! The other two flavours are Pink Berry and Strawberry and they are all £3 which I think is a bargain given how well they work. 

Bourjois Magic Nail Polish Remover

 One of the things I hate about most nail polish removers is the fact they are such a faff to use- you have to get cotton wool and pour it out, you always use too much and they all smell awful. This nail polish remover solves all of those problems. There's a sponge inside and you just stick your finger in and twist it about and the polish is gone pretty quick (although normally not in the 1 second that the bottle claims!) and the red fruit and vanilla smell left on your hands is quite sweet, unless you try and smell the product in the bottle and it smells just the same as any other nail polish remover! The only issues I really have with this product is I'm not entirely sure how you know how much is left and it's not the best at removing glitter nail polishes but then again, most regular nail polish removers have issues with them too. It is quite expensive for a nail polish remover at £4.99 for only 75ml but I'm willing to pay that for the speed and less hassle that this provides when removing nail polish. 

Nails Inc London Pinkie Pink Nail Polish Supporting Breast Cancer Campaign

This is a gorgeous pink glitter polish, with the idea being to paint your pinkie finger nail with this colour to show your support for the Breast Cancer Campaign that ran during the month of October. Nails Inc donated £1 from the sale of every bottle to the campaign and I thought that this was a really great idea for such a good cause. The price is a little steep at £11 a bottle but then most Nails Inc polishes are around this price. Unlike with most glitter polishes, I felt that there was a good ammount of glitter with the application- I didn't feel that the glitter was staying in the bottle rather than making it onto my nails so this makes the price tag a little easier to deal with and I'm pretty sure that most of the Nails Inc glitter polishes are like this. The one problem I did find was that if you apply the nail polish too thickly it can peel off easily but when I reapplied it with thinner coats, it didn't happen again. Also if I remember correctly, there is a 10 or 20% discount code available to first time customers on the Nails Inc website, it should come up automatically the first time you enter the site and then just put in your email address and they send the code to you. 

Here's some more information about the Pinkie Pink Campaign =) 

Broadway Nails Impress Press On Manicure

(D090 Space Cadet)

 I first used these after receiving them in a GlossyBox (I'm not sure which month it was but they were in the design 'Over The Moon' which is sort of maroon with a gold flowery design) and these are now my third box. They're self adhesive nails but they feel more like a very thick plastic than your typical hard but thin plastic fake nails which I much prefer. They come in lots of different colours and designs so there's something to suit everyone and they cost around £7.99-£8.99 I think. They're good for speed of doing your nails, especially if you want a cool design but don't have the time or artistic skills needed to make it look amazing and I like that the packaging is similar to a nail polish bottle so you could store it with your regular polishes and it wouldn't look out of place. The main problems I have is that they claim to last for up to a week but within a few days mine were starting to fall off. I managed to make them stick on for about four days before they gave up and wouldn't stick again but that was with a lot of hand washing and contact with water which would have affected their staying power. Also the sizes of the nails can be a bit difficult to work with- you might find only a couple of nails to fit each finger with lots of spares that are either too big or too small. I ended up butchering one of the larger nails to fit when one of mine fell off and I couldn't find another of the right size. I would definitely use these again but probably more for a party or special occasion, rather than for everyday wear! 

So, those were my favourite products from October... I wonder what I'll be loving this month! What have some of your faves been? =)

Lauren xx

A Quick Introduction...

...that probably won't end up that quick knowing me!

So, I will be the first to admit that I'm useless at these sorts of 'describing yourself' things, so bare with me here! 

Hi, I'm Lauren and I'm nearly 22 (but my brain still feels about 17 to be honest) and I live near Edinburgh in Scotland. One of my favourite things to do is writing, mostly creative, but I thought that starting this blog would be another good way of writing something a bit different to my usual. Basically this blog is going to be a mixture of everything that I love and want to write about, or things that are important to me. It's hard to say what that might- one day I might write about my favourite things of the month and the next it might be about my love of Irish rugby players or music and bands I love. Who knows what's going to end up on here!! Also I would like to warn everyone at this point, I have been known to ramble on quite a bit so if you can handle that brilliant! :) 

The other main thing I will probably blog about quite a bit is suffering from emetophobia and anxiety issues. Emetophobia is basically a phobia about anything to do with being sick, including me, other people, any thing you can think of that comes under that subject really! It's been a major part of my life since I was at Primary School but it has been at its worst for the last four years. It effects all aspects of my life currently, for example I find it difficult to leave the house without feeling anxious and I feel anxious most of the time. I'll go into it more in another post but I felt it was important to mention it here because it is such a major part of my life. 

Ok, I think that's enough for now but I'll leave my links here, feel free to follow me on Twitter and Instagram =D you'll probably notice a pattern in my usernames!

Twitter- https://twitter.com/LaurenM26

Instagram Name- LaurenM262

More Information about Emetophobia- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emetophobia 

                                                              - http://www.emetophobiaresource.org/

Bye for now!

Lauren xx