Bourton-on-the-water

I had a day off work today so I took my mum to bourton-on-the-water, in the Cotswolds. Mum had visited the miniature village that the area is best known for when she was a child, so it was nice to explore and we also saw a new attraction, bird land.

We started at the miniature village which is set in the garden of an old pub. The former landlord commissioned the buildings in the 1930s and it was built to a 1/9 th scale. The attention to detail is incredible, particularly the stained glassed in the large model church. There was a smaller church with windows and you could see the congregation inside singing hymns and there was even a hidden music box playing hymns as if the little models were actually singing!

We then went to a little cafe overlooking the stream and had a cream tea, before heading over to bird land, which we had stumbled upon by chance while we were looking for the nature village. 

The first birds we saw were my favourite - penguins!

It was a lovely walk through the gardens and we saw lots of beautiful birds on the way round, including these pretty flamingoes. 

We could have spent a couple of hours walking round and watching the talks, especially as the sun started to appear but unfortunately our parking ticket ran out so we had to make a move.

August Bank Holiday Weekend in London

Last weekend we went to London for the bank holiday weekend. We stayed at the holiday inn in Kensington which I quite like as it is close to all of the museums and some good shopping spots.

We travelled up to London on Sunday and went shopping in the afternoon, ending up in Harrods. I love going in Harrods, especially at Christmas when it is all festive, but this time I was really keen to visit the Godiva chocolate cafe. There were lots of sweet treats on the menu, crepes, cakes and shakes included, but as we were going out for dinner I opted just for a classic hot chocolate. It was so good!

We also found Christmas World in Harrods! I'm not sure if this is up all year round or if it had just opened but it looked so pretty!

Later that evening we went to St Catherine's dock for dinner. There is a nice ambience with lots of restaurants all around the dock  and the lights add a sweet glow to the night sky.

After dinner we went for a walk along the Thames and then drove back across London to our hotel.

On Sunday morning we went for a lovely breakfast at a cafe around the corner from our hotel. It had good reviews on trip advisor and the hotel breakfast was expensive so went to find it. We had vegetarian breakfasts with fresh orange juice for £6 which we thought was great value for money and all hot drinks came with a free croissant so we were so full by the time we finished!

After breakfast we went to the Victoria and Albert museum which was just one stop away on the tube. We had a look round the exhibitions and then sat out in the garden with fresh lemonade, enjoying the sunshine. It's such a lovey spot to sit down and relax for a little while.

We ended up doing a little window shopping in the afternoon before returning home.

Sanctuary brightening facial radiance exfoliator review

One of my New Years resolutions was to indulge more in me-time, just doing the little things that I just don't seem to have the time to do anymore like doing a manicure with my favourite nail polish or baking a tray of cookies.

I was in boots this weekend and spotted the mini sanctuary radiance exfoliators were reduced to 20p as the packaging has been updated each AND they were on three for two! Although I have no shortage of beauty products I don't have much in the way of facial products and given the bargain price I didn't feel the need to justify buying three new exfoliators (and let's not forget they are miniature after all!)

So after a long lie in this morning, I indulged my resolution with an at home facial using my new exfoliator. This is what I could expect according to the sanctuary website:

ultra-fine apricot granules and grape seed exfoliate and refine, while a trio of pumpkin, pineapple and papaya extracts work naturally to help increase cell renewal. Skin is left feeling smooth and glowing with radiance.

I really liked this exfoliator, it was fairly thick and had a decent amount of granules without being too harsh on my skin. It left my face feeling deep cleansed, fresh and smooth and it has a lovely light scent. I have sensitive skin on my face and I can't use a lot of facial products but this was perfect for my skin. 

According to the website it can be used 2-3 times a week but I think I will stick to using it once a week as part of my Sunday facial routine. I would definitely recommend this product and you can try the miniature size which is sold in Boots to see if it suits you before paying out for the full size version.

Book Review: Miracle on Regent Street by Ali Harris

I have just finished reading 'Miracle on Regent Street,' which is about a shy and unassuming stock room assistant named Evie, who works in Hardy's, an old fashioned and behind-the-times department store. I had been wanting to buy this book for a while but put it off whilst I had several other books on my shelf waiting to be read, but when I saw it on the shelf at Poundland of all places I couldn't say no.

Just a few weeks before Christmas stockroom assistant Evie finds out that unless the store makes a miraculous improvement in it's sales, then it is set to close. So supported by her colleagues she sets out on a secret mission to transform Hardy's, but is it enough to save the store?

I enjoyed the story, it had a feel good vibe and an underlying moral that you should follow your heart and your dreams whilst being set in the festive backdrop of London's Regent Street in the run up to Christmas. This is the sort of book you want to read wrapped up in a blanket with a mug of hot chocolate and the whole afternoon ahead of you. 

Boots 70% sale haul

Last Wednesday marked the annual boots 70% sale. I was determined not to buy too much this year as I'm on a mission to use up my stash of toiletries and I think I succeeded. Unfortunately the atmosphere was not very nice this year, a lot of pushing and shoving so we didn't hang about and were done in twenty minutes. Here's what I got:

Sanctuary hat box - £13.50 from £45

Sanctuary little bag of joy - £3.00 from £10

Glass vase - £3.60 from £12

Glass candle - £2.40 from £8

Champneys bear - £4.50 from £15

No7 glamour cracker - £2.40 from £8

Sanctuary facial box - £6 from £20

Mary Berry cake forks - £4.20 from £14

Cadbury snow bites £0.30 from £1 (these didn't last long enough to feature in the photo!)

Mulberry sale treats

I had been waiting for the mulberry Boxing Day sale since I saw a preview of all the lovely goodies on offer on their American site, where the sale starts a couple of weeks before Christmas.

In my haste to get up and go out to the Next and Boots sale, I completely forgot that the Mulberry sale started early on Boxing Day and by the time I got home mid-morning, the three items I wanted I had sold out online.

However, the Mulberry customer service have a great stock tracker system and if you ring them up and tell them the item you are looking for, they can check the stores to see which ones still have the item in stock. The customer service assistant was very helpful and quickly tracked down the items I wanted - a purse, cardholder and keyring in the Manchester and Glasgow stores. 

I telephoned the Manchester store first and unfortunately they had sold out of purse I was after earlier that morning but the key ring was still in stock, so I purchased that and the cardholder from the Glasgow store over the phone. 

The parcels arrived four days later and upon opening them I was presented with a gorgeous grey mulberry bag sealed shut with a beautiful big blue bow, it looked luxurious! 

This is an 8 slot card wallet and it is super soft. It was half price reduced to £62 from £124 and I was really pleased with this as I have been looking for a card wallet for ages to house all of my loyalty cards!

I had my eye on this cute little keyring for quite a while. It came in it's own little dustbag pouch which is handy too. It was reduced from £70 to £49 and it was an indulgent purchase, but I am hoping to get a new car this year so I will be saving this to go on my keys.

I am pleased with my little haul but I think I'm addicted now, I keep checking the website and umming and ahhing over the make up bags and all the pretty things in the rose petal pink colour, but so far I have resisted further temptation! 

 

Hawaii

It is so cold and rainy here I can't help but daydream about holidays in warmer climates.

On the top of my wish list is Hawaii. The beaches look gorgeous and there is plenty to explore, volcanoes, snorkelling, dinner on the beach, infinity pools, gorgeous weather - what more could you want!

I picked up a brochure from the travel agent at the weekend but predictably a holiday in Hawaii isn't inexpensive so I am going to see if they can put a package together for me to see what the total cost would be. I know Virgin and BA have sales on at the moment so if you're also craving some summer sun check out their websites for their sale rates!

Ciate 'blizzard' nail polish

Last Christmas I received the Ciate miniature bauble set which had six shiny Ciate minis perfect for the festive season. Anyone who knows me will know how much I love all things sparkly and glitter nail polish is no exception. 

This is 'blizzard' in the miniature 5ml size:

I love this polish as it is true to the colour in the bottle, dries super quickly and only needs two coats for consistent opaque coverage. The glitter catches the light so it has a nice sparkle, making it perfect for a night out. 

I can't wait to try the other shades but they're all a lot brighter so I will wait until spring is here to test them out, hopefully it won't be too long away!

New Year 2016

I can't believed another new year is here, the past twelve months just vanished in the blink of an eye. 

We went for a New Year's Day walk this morning at a wood close by and the cafe was open so before we set off we bought a couple of hot drinks to keep us warm. The temperature has plummeted all of the sudden, I can't say I care much for this cold and wet weather but I would quite like a proper snow day!

I've also made some New Years resolutions which I might post tomorrow, a mix of goals for the year such as establishing a career I really love and little things like not leaving the house on an empty stomach, hopefully that will help me save a little money and lose the weight I've gained over the holidays!

Happy New Year!