I did it!

I did it!! 

It's the end of July already, and I have stuck with my challenge to write a post every day, apart from that one time I had to do two one day because I didn't get one done the day before. I'm pretty proud of myself for sticking to it because I am definitely a quitter. It's not been an easy month and I know some of the posts might not have been the best but I have stuck with it and made it to the end. 

I genuinely didn't expect it to be as difficult to write a post everyday. I had planned to write a load in advance, but it just didn't happen, so for the most part I was writing that days post on the day. There was some days I was finishing a post about 5 minutes before I had to leave for work. I was convinced I wasn't going to get some of them done until I came home again and as I wasn't getting home until about 10.30pm that wouldn't have been great.

I'm just so happy that I managed to stick with this. I do love writing this blog and hopefully you have enjoyed reading it this past month. I have certainly had a consistent amount of views and although I haven't done it for the views it's still nice to see them improving.

So...what's next? Honestly I'm not sure. I'm going to take a little break from blogging for a week or so, so that my brain has time to relax and come up with some new ideas. I'm going to try and blog at least once a week for now, but hopefully will build that up. I've already decided I want to blog every day in December up to Christmas, Blogmas I guess.

I hope you enjoyed reading the posts this month as much as I enjoyed writing them :)

Julz xx

July Favourites

Can you believe it's the end of the month already? Time for my favourites :)

First up is Soap and Glory Kick Ass concealer I really like this and have been using it everyday since I did a review on it. I'm not going to go into detail about it again you can read the review here.

Next up is another new purchase this month the Maybelline Lash Sensational mascara. I had heard a lot of good things about this mascara and I have to say it lives up to them. It's not too clumpy, gives nice volume and length and is just a nice product to wear. 

I have rediscovered an old favourite this month. The Soap and Glory Sugar Crush range. I absolutely love this range. The scent is so fresh and the products leave my skin feeling so soft and nice.  As you can see the scrub is well used, my husband loves it too.

This is my purse, the Modalu Pippa purse in Shark. I am in love with this purse. I have had it for a couple of months now and it's the only one I have used since I got it. Normally I switch my purses up on probably a weekly basis, but since getting this one I haven't felt the need to. Best of all it was a bargain in their sale I think it was around the £25 mark!

Finally is my Tassimo! I love this thing. Again this was a bargain too, I think it was £50. The pods can be a bit expensive though so I have to limit myself to the amount I use. I usually treat myself to 2  a day at most. I have tried a few different ones now but I think my favourite so far is just the Costa Latte. I'm pretty sure they do an Oreo one. I need to try that! 

Have you discovered any new favourites this month?

Julz xx

25 Things That Make Me Happy

I was browsing through some blogs yesterday and came across the 50 Things That Make Me Happy Tag on a blog called Thirteen Thoughts , so I thought it would be a nice idea to do the tag. I have narrowed it down to only 25 because I'm a little tight on time.

1. My cats.

2. My Family.

3. A nice cup of coffee from the machine in the morning.

4. The sound of the rain.

5. Music

6. Blogging :)

7. Sunny mornings.

8. The festive season.

9. Lazy days with the duvet on the sofa and a Disney film or two.

10. Fresh bedding.

11. Baking/ the smell of something baking.

12. A nice homemade meal.

13. New Shoes.

14. Days out to historical sites.

15. Exploring new places.

16. Shopping!

17. Buying really good presents for people, and seeing their faces when they open them.

18. Cuddles.

19. All things Disney.

20. Reading.

21. My safe place - my bed.

22. The drive home from work.

23. A nice clean and tidy house.

24. Taking a good photo.

25. Oh yeh just realised forgot to put my Husband on this list.

What makes you happy ?

Julz xx

Cat Accessories Wishlist

If you are a regular reader of this blog you will know I am a crazy cat lady, so I thought it was only fitting that included in my wish list series there was a Cat Accessories Wish List. 

1. Cat Bed - notonthehighstreet.com

2. Personalised Bowl - notonthehighstreet.com

3. Harness -petsathome.com, I've also seen one instore thats like a little boys hoodie but couldn't find it on the website.

4.Tartan Collar - etsy.com

5.Purple Tartan Collar - etsy.com

6.Cat Treats Tin -notonthehighstreet.com

There's not too much on this list because my cats are pretty spoilt as it is, however I have also just come across this.

                                                                                                                     

How cool is that. You can find it here. I just had to add that in! I think my cats would love it. Maybe one day I will save enough pennies to get them one.

Julz xx

Addicted

I have a confession to make...I'm addicted...to the internet. I know what you are thinking, isn't everyone? Now don't get me wrong I think the internet is an amazing thing, I literally google anything I don't know the answer to, but I honestly believe it is having a negative effect on my life.

I can spend so many hours a day just browsing the internet. My biggest weakness has to be YouTube. Every single night when I go to bed I watch all my favourite YouTubers new videos. Now as a person that has suffered with depression I really think watching the amazing things some YouTubers get to do is not helping me with that at all. On the one hand I'm like I could do this, I could go and do these things but on the other I'm like my life sucks! 

I am seriously starting to live my life through these people instead of going out on my own adventures and experiencing the world for myself. It's ridiculous. I want to be out there making things happen not watching everyone else get to have the fun. I mean I know these guys work hard for the lifestyle they are leading, but at least they enjoy what they are doing. 

So I am setting myself a little challenge. At least one night a week the internet will be banned in my house. Both my husband and myself are bad for sitting on our phones browsing Facebook and Twitter etc, and we barely talk to each other some nights. So for the sake of our relationship and my sanity, one night a week when we are both home there will be no internet at all. 

I wonder how he will take this news hehe. I actually don't think it will matter to him all that much, I'm definitely more addicted than him. 

Who knows maybe I will get out and about a bit more and have more to write about?

What do you think of this idea, could you manage without the internet?

Julz xx

Scottish BBQ Weather!

As it was quite nice weather this morning my mum and dad decided it would be a good night to  have a bbq. Bad idea! In Scotland never decide to have a bbq until just before dinner time. I swear if you're in Scotland and say bbq aloud it will rain!

Now most people would think oh well, maybe be a little annoyed and decide not to bother. Not my family...nope... you just build this...

It did the job, kept us covered until the rain really started. Then there was puddles all over it which led to ....

Note all the extra poles!

But still we didn't give up, we planned to have a bbq and so we were going to have one. It was actually a lot of fun. Wait till someone is near the edge and not paying attention and empty the water on them! 

The food turned out pretty well too. I don't like steak at all but look how yummy it looks!!

We even toasted marshmallows afterwards. I'm not gonna lie I ate so many I felt sick, but I don't regret it one bit. 

 Must be a Scottish thing, too stubborn to give up because of the rain. If we gave up because of rain we would never do anything outdoors! 

I hope this has given you something to have a little chuckle at :)

Julz xx

Review: Soap and Glory Kick Ass Concealer

I actually forgot I had picked up the Soap and Glory Kick Ass Concealer the other day when I was out shopping! I just discovered it in my handbag this morning oops! Was a bit of a blessing to be honest though because I was struggling on what to blog about today.

So I decided I would use it whilst doing my make up and write a little review for you.

(naughty blogger, forgot to take a photo before I used it!)

First up the packaging, I like it a lot. It's a nice handy size to pop in your bag . Most importantly it has stars on it! 

This concealer has 3 steps

1. The pinky coloured side is for brightening under the eyes.

2. The more yellow toned side is for the rest of your face.

3.Is the concealer sealing powder.

Ok here's my naked face again! Still pretty bad with spots and redness just now, and some nice bags under my eyes, so lets see how this concealer does.

It's definitely brightened up under my eyes and got rid of those bags. This is something I find hard to cover so I'm impressed with that.

It's done really well with my redness and spots as well, although I am now looking a bit yellow in the forehead. Probably not blended in enough oops. Let's see how it looks with foundation on.

Pretty good. I tend to stay away from these creamy concealers because I find they can be quite cakey. I have to say though this one isn't too bad. It's definitely done a good job of brightening up the eye area, and although you can still see some spots/redness that's probably more down to me than the product. Plus it had a lot of work to do on my face.

Overall I would recommend this concealer. It really works well I think I just need a bit more practice with it to get the best results.

Have you tried this concealer? Do you have any recommendations for anything similar I might like to try?

Julz xx 

The Scottish Tag

During one of my many late night adventures in Youtube land I came across this tag made by BeautyCreep, a scottish vlogger, and decided I had to do it!

1. Whereabouts in Scotland are you from? 

    I'm from the Scottish Borders.

2. Where's your favourite place you've been to in Scotland?

Probably Edinburgh I just love it, especially at Christmas time, and it's only about an hours drive away :)

3. Where would you like to visit in Scotland?

I would like to visit a bit more of the Highlands and Islands. I've been up to Inverness area and it is just so beautiful up that way.

4. What is your favourite Scottish film?

Turns out I'm not very good with Scottish films. I mean I love the typical Braveheart, although I do wish it was someone who was actually Scottish playing William Wallace.

5. Do you match up to any Scottish stereotypes?

Probably. I am having to google Scottish stereotypes. I don't have red hair. I am a little bad tempered(stubborn). I do like a drink but no more than anyone else I don't think., and I hate whisky!

6. What is your favourite Scottish food?

Talk about stereotypes.....Haggis of course!

7. Do you follow any Scottish traditions?

Not really, I don't think.

8. What is your favourite Scottish word?

My most used is probably aye(yes) or ken(know) but I don't really have a favourite. There are some funny Scottish words though, seriously google it.

9. What is your favourite Scottish song?

Has to be Caledonia, I walked down the aisle on my wedding day to it being played on the bagpipes.

10. Can you recommend any Scottish you tubers?

I haven't come across too many yet but I regularly watch BeautyCreep and BZVlogs.

I really am a proud Scot!

Julz xx

Kitchen Wish List

I have recently (like for the past year) been redecorating my kitchen, and have spent a lot of time looking at new accessories I would like. You will notice a purple theme, one of the walls is a dark purple.

1. Boysenberry KitchenAid

2.Morphy Richards Purple Kettle

3.Morphy Richards Purple Toaster

4. Joseph Joseph Intelligent Waste Totem Bin 60L

5. Kilner Drinks Dispenser

6. Cole and Mason 16 Jar Spice Carousel

Well I better go and buy a lottery ticket then :)

Julz xx

Every Day Make Up

It's been a while since I did an every day make up post and the products I use have changed a bit since the last one, so I thought I would do an updated post on the quick and simple look I do most days.

This is me naked faced! A scary sight I know. My skin is particularly bad at the moment. I really need to come up with a skincare routine.

I start by using Benefit's The Professional. Then I use Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer on my most troublesome and red areas, which at the moment is most of my face.

Next up I pop some foundation on. Which one I use depends on how my skin is behaving. At the moment I am quite oily and quite spotty so I need a lot of coverage . On these days I go for Rimmel Stay Matte foundation. This is one I would highly recommend if you suffer with oily skin. It is quite a heavy foundation but I love it.

I like to keep my eyes quite simple. I have quite thick eyebrows so I don't do too much to them just fill in a little using the B.Defined Eyebrow Kit.

On my eyelids I use Maybelline Colour Tattoo in On and On Bronze. Then I curl my eyelashes and pop on the Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara.

Finally I pop some eyeliner on my waterline. Usually I use the Rimmel Scandaleyes however it has gone walkies so I am using the Lollipops Long Lasting Eye Pencil.

Then to finish off I pop on a little bit of Blush from my Nars Guy Bourdin palette, and a little highlighter on cheek bones and brow bone.

I pop on a bit of lippy, on this occasion Patisserie by MAC, and that's me done!

Julz xx

Crazy Cat Lady - Part Two- Nugget

 

This is the poser of the family Nugget.

He loves cuddles with his sister.

Sleeping in funny positions.

Watching Youtube .

 

And when no-one is around to see....cuddles with me! 

Again, same as yesterday, apologies for the quality of some of these photos. A lot of them were taken on my phone. 

I hope you enjoyed this post.

Julz xx

Crazy Cat Lady - Part One - Jess

Today I have been going through some of my hundreds of photos of my cats and decided I need to share some with you. I was going to do one post but realised I have too many photos so will do one on Jess today and one on Nugget tomorrow.

Jess is my little lady. She is so proper and light on her feet. I swear she is a posh cat!

She is such a pretty cat but will rarely pose for a photo. 

She's my best friend. We cuddle ... when it suits Jess.

We hold hands/paws.

She helps me make the bed.

And looks after her brother.

She can be a little moody at times.

She has many beds but likes to sleep on the floor against a wall.

She likes to sneak up on me.

And I just love her!!! (haha photo bombed by Nugget)

I hope you enjoyed this post. I know the quality isn't great on some of these photos as some were taken on my phone but I still love them.

I am and always will be a crazy cat lady :) 

Don't forget to come back tomorrow to see the post about Nugget .

Julz xx