Hot Pak

The other day I popped into Sainsbury’s because I had a Nectar voucher to use, and after trying to find something to spend my voucher on I decided to get one of these Intelex Hot Paks, which you put in the microwave to warm up. I had actually been looking for one of these microwavable heat packs for a while and so I was quite pleased when i managed to find one. I like the idea of these because they are safer than a hot water bottle and generally much more flexible as well.

My hot pak has a lovely red tartan print and is also pretty long as well, the beans inside are also scented with lavender and so when you've heated the product you get a very nice and soothing scent being released. Because this products cools down over time you can also just fall asleep with it, and not have to worry about bursting a hot water bottle.

However, although I do love this heat pack and find it really easy to use (you just pop it into the microwave for 2 minutes) there are some cons. The first issue I had was that mine actually split and some of the contents inside spilled out, now maybe I had a faulty product or maybe the stitching isn't great, I don’t know, but it wasn't a massive deal because it was easily stitched up. Distribution of the filling is also an issue, which sounds odd, but there isn't really enough filling in the product, and so some parts of it can be hotter than other parts. Finally it doesn't really retain heat all that well, which isn't really a problem because it doesn't take long to heat it back up again, but it generally only stays warm for half an hour at best.

Overall I can’t really complain because this product is really soothing and versatile, it smells good and it easy enough to use and ultimately it does do its job. There are a Few issues with it but they aren't huge problems for me, and I am happy that I finally found one of these heat packs.

You can buy these from Sainsbury’s and also on Amazon, amongst other places.

Life at University

So I started University in September, and let me tell you, it was a pretty big leap. Well, a canyon sized leap. Nothing quite prepared me for University, and my teachers at Sixth Form didn't help when they told me that A - Levels would be the hardest thing I'd do, and that University would be much easier. They lied. University is hard. Don’t get me wrong, I expected University to be a challenge but it has been a shock to the system. The first few weeks were great, lectures seemed simple enough, the workload was fine and I felt like the next three years would be a breeze. The next thing I knew I had a million deadlines for assignments all due at once and breakdowns became a regular occurrence. I know I sound overly dramatic, and University isn’t all doom and gloom, but it’s not quite as easy as some people make it out to be, and I’ve only been there for a couple of months. So I’m going to tell you ten things that I have learnt from University so far.

1. You will panic about deadlines that you don’t even have yet. You will tell yourself that you’ll start everything in advance and that you'll be super prepared for every assignment. That's a lie. Okay, so some people are very dedicated and eager, and that's cool, but let's be real, you'll probably procrastinate like you always have done and watch pointless videos on YouTube instead of doing any work.

2. You probably won't understand a lot of your lectures, and neither will the lecturer. There's a good chance they had a late night too, and so they’ll spend the lecture reading the notes word for word from the PowerPoint whilst the girl next you tries to sneakily Snapchat her friends. You’ll probably start to wish that you never got out of bed.

3. You'll realise the importance of naps, or just extra sleep in general. It can be really hard when you have a lecture at 9:15am and you don't want to get out of bed. You can sleep in lectures as long as you don't make it too obvious, or the lecturer may take a selfie with you whilst you're snoring (that has actually happened...)

4. Your idea of a wild Friday night will probably consist of you being in our pyjamas before 9pm, and watching EastEnders with a mug of hot chocolate. There’s no shame in that, a week at university can sometimes feel like a lifetime.

5. You’ll wonder how you used to go to college all day, attend revision sessions afterwards and then still have motivation to go home and do some work and revision. Now you’re exhausted after one lecture.

6. If you study a subject with fieldwork involved you’ll probably start to wish that you picked a subject where you never have to venture outdoors. When you’re stood in the middle of nowhere having sand blasted into your face by the strongest winds you’ve ever felt whilst you try to record data you’ll start to wish you were in a 2 hour lecture.

7. Everybody has something to say about your degree. Yes I study geography. No, we don’t just colour in. Yes I have to go outside and get wet. No I don’t want to be a weather girl.

8. Although you may make an effort in Fresher’s week the likelihood is that when you get a few months into your course you don’t really care what you look like, and really you’re only one step away from turning up in your pyjamas. You don't remember the last time you brushed your hair and your wardrobe begins to consist of clothes that were probably made for warmth, and definitely not for fashion.

9. You’ll spend a ridiculous amount of money on coffee or other hot beverages in a hope that you can make it through your next lecture. Coffee is a way of life, and whether you need it or not you’ll probably find yourself overdosing on caffeine.

10. You'll meet people from all walks of life, and it will be fascinating. You'll meet people older than you, younger than you. People who are married and have children. People from all over the world. So many different people. That's the thig about university, it's so diverse. At sixth form everybody is usually from the same place you are, they're the same age and like the same things, but University is a mixed bag, and I think that’s pretty cool.

Christmas

I have decided that from the 1st until the 12th of December I will be writing a blog post every single day. I originally planned to do 24 posts, but due to University commitments I felt this would be too difficult to keep up with. I will be doing additional posts throughout the rest of December as well :) I hope you enjoy the posts and I hope you have a wonderful December :)

Paris

I was horrified to hear about the loss of life in Paris late on Friday night. This news has understandably shocked the world, because although these attacks were organised, they were also unpredictable. Unfortunately we live in a world where some people only want to hurt others, and it seems impossible to think of a world where events like this don't happen. Terrorism has no religion, terrorism doesn't care who you are or what you do, terrorism is a systematic use of fear among the public and attacks such as these can sadly create a breeding ground for racist and prejudice comments. When attacks such as these occur we are no longer divided, it becomes the World vs Terrorism, and that's important. These people have a warped ideology, these people don't get this ideology from a religious text, but they craft it themselves in some dark part of their soul. We mustn't blame Muslims for these attacks, or use the attacks to justify Islamophobia, because Islam, and other such religions, teach peace and tolerance. This isn't an act of God. This is an act of terror. This is an act that shows the purely despicable things that some humans are capable of. Instead of judging and blaming others we need to stand together. Many people lost their lives in Paris last night, people who expected to go home and spend their evening with family and friends, or watching t.v, who expected to go to work on Monday and to see Christmas. But they didn't, they will never see any of those things because a small group of individuals decided that innocent lives weren't that important. This isn't a time for hate, it's a time for love and compassion and understanding. Let's not remember the names of those who committed these terrible acts, but those who died when they should have lived. My thoughts are with Paris.

Soap & Glory Thick and Fast mascara and Supercat liquid liner

So today I'm reviewing two products from the Soap and Glory make up range, the Thick and Fast mascara and the Supercat liquid eye liner. Now, anybody who knows me knows that I love everything Soap & Glory, their shower products are amazing and I really love their hand creams too, but I haven't really had much experience with their make up range, and so I decided to try out a couple of things.

I love eye make up, I love drawing cat flicks onto my eyes and I think eye liner and mascara can really add a lot to your make up look. So, onto the products. First of all the packaging is so cute, and very typical of S&G packaging, pink and gold and very adorable. The actual products themselves are in very solid and good quality packaging, and appear to be more expensive than they actually where.

The Thick & Fast mascara comes in a gorgeous golden tube which makes it feel quite a luxurious product, and it really does do wonders to your lashes. I have naturally long eyelashes anyway, and so I like my mascara to add volume rather than length, and this product does just that. The Thick & Fast mascara is super black and really adds a lot of volume to your lashes, without being clumpy and sticky. It's easy to apply and doesn't end up smudged all around your eyes. In my opinion it really helps to bring your whole eye look together.

Now on to the Supercat liner, which is also a definite winner. The liner is again very black, and allows you to draw a super cute and feminine flick or a dramatic wing, and so no matter your preferred look this liner is a great option. Admittedly eye liner can be a hard thing to master, but this pen is easy to grip, and easy to wipe away if you happen to go wrong. This isn't the longest lasting liner ever, but if you set your line with black eye shadow or some gel eye liner then it should last all day. Honestly, these two products together are fantastic and show that Soap & Glory are capable of making make up that's just as good as their bath and body products. If you're in the market for an affordable mascara or eye liner, or you fancy trying something new then I'd definitely recommend checking these two out.

The Thick & Fast Mascara retails for £10.50 and the Supercat Liner is £6, and both can be purchased from Boots.

Pink Parcel Subscription Service

Pink Parcel Subscription Box Review - 

Today I’m going to review the Pink Parcel monthly subscription boxes. I’ve always been interested in monthly subscription boxes, and although I do want to try new things I’m sometimes sceptical of spending money on a box of products that I might not like, and so when I stumbled upon Pink Parcel I was quite excited to try out their service. 

Pink parcel offer a unique subscription service, because not only do you get your usual treats and beauty products, but also a personalised selection of products for ‘that time of the month’. You can choose whether you wish to receive tampons or pads, but you can also choose the brand and style. Super helpful.  I decided to give the service a go because I figured that even if I didn’t like the beauty products I’d still have a useful selection of items. My parcel arrived before the expected arrival date, and so I’ll show you what’s inside.

The first thing to note is that the parcel is very discreet, the packaging itself is black and pink and is very sleek, and the box is the perfect size to fit through most letterboxes so that you don’t have to even answer the door to the postman. They’ve really thought this one through!

When you first open up the box you’re greeted with some leaflets detailing the products inside, and then the box has been split into five sections. 1. For Now – This cute little bag is for you to pop into your bag for when you’re on the go, and contains a few extra pads/tampons (depending on your choice). The little bag also includes a few little liners just in case, which is again a very nice touch and shows the thought that has gone into this box. 2. For later – This box contains the bulk of your pads or tampons to last you through your cycle – the best part is that you can choose how long your cycle lasts to make sure that you get enough products to last you. 3. For bedtime – This section is pretty self-explanatory; you get more of your chosen product specifically for use at bedtime. 4. For down there – Every woman knows that you don’t exactly feel super clean on your period, and so the inclusion of the Sass Intimate Purifying Cleanser in the box is a great idea, to make sure that you feel extra comfortable. The product is a very generous size and I’d imagine it would last a very long time. 5. For you – Now for the exciting part! The cute little treats are designed to make you feel better when you’d rather be in bed, and not going about your daily business. 

Here’s a breakdown of what I received:

1. English Tea Shop Organic Cranberry Vanilla Delight – Let me just say that this is THE CUTEST tiny little box of tea ever, because it comes in a teeny tiny box! I haven’t actually had the tea yet but it looks super cute and I can’t wait to try it :)

2. Pink Parcel Brow Kit – This brow kit is really cute too, and although I haven’t tried it yet it looks very promising. The kit contains two shades, one that would be perfect for filling in your brows and a highlighter powder/lighter shade for people with lighter brows. The kit also contains a small angled brush, a spoolie and a good sized mirror. This kit will be perfect for travel or just to pop in your handbag. Another winner for me.

3. Next up is a duo of nail polishes from Little Ondine, I had never actually heard of this brand before, but their products are natural and actually don’t smell like polish at all, in fact they don’t smell of anything. I was sent a pretty green shade and a gold shimmer shade (perfect for the festive season) and after trying the gold shade I can honestly say that these are pretty good, not only do they apply well but you can also peel them off, so there’s no need to use nail polish remover!

4. I was also sent a sample of the Neutrogena nourishing body lotion, I am yet to try this out, but I am going on a trip next month and this will be perfect to pop into my wash bag :)

5. Next up is the Anatomicals headache relief balm, this is a cute little tin of a very menthol/mint scented balm that you can rub on your temples to help relieve your headache. Again, a handy handbag stable and a nice addition to the box.

6. Next (yes, there’s more) I received a benecos apricot and elderflower hand cream, there isn’t much to say about this really, the brand is cruelty free and vegan, and is great to just pop into your handbag.

7. I also received a benecos Natural Kajal eyeliner in my box; this is a super pretty dark grey shade which seems very pigmented. Again the brand is cruelty free and perfect for adding a little something to your make up look.

8. Finally I received a Cocoba mini orange milk chocolate bar. I haven’t tried this chocolate yet but it does look very nice and I can’t wait to give it a go.

So there you have it, I’m really really pleased that I decided to buy this box, and the contents are perfect to make that time of the month just that bit easier. I can’t wait to receive next month’s box. Let me know what you think of these boxes :)

You can get your first box here for £7.95 :)