Beauty product of the week: Sparkling Lemon Verbena hand and nail cream
For months I was using the strawberry version of this hand cream from Marks and Spencer, but my local store stopped selling it and they never had it in stock on the website, so I turned to Soap and Glory. While I do really love all of the hand creams I've tried from Soap and Glory (full comparison post here), it's nice to switch it up every now and then, especially as these are only £1 a tube and can often be found on special offer. I don't find the lemon scent very strong on this but it's still very pleasant and it sinks in extremely fast, as long as you don't use too much. For just £1 it's a really good alternative to S&G.
Candles of the week: Fresh Cut Roses and Creamy Vanilla
As you've probably noticed by now, I'm quite the fan of Village Candle. In my opinion they're some of the best scented candles on the market, they have a huge range and I prefer them to most other brands I've used. Creamy Vanilla is one of my favourite scents of all time, from any brand, it's just so inoffensive, sweet and fresh at the same time. Pair that with Fresh Cut Roses and my bedroom smells like a box of Turkish Delights, which just happens to be one of my favourite sweets. I'm limiting my use of Fresh Cut Roses now, because I got it from a local company who are no longer in business, so if you know of a similar candle please do let me know.
Bought: Too Faced Matte Eye Shadow Collection
I've said it before, but I feel like good quality vegan eyeshadow palettes are some of the toughest things to come across, and Too Faced are one of the few brands with any vegan palettes on offer. I've been wanting to get the Matte Eye Collection for a while, but priced at £29 for just 9 shades I wasn't in any hurry to buy it. For the last few months I've been keeping an eye on eBay for brand new palettes, and thankfully I found this one just after Christmas. I managed to nip in the auction right at the end and got it for just over £12, which is a total steal. It only came a few days ago so I haven't had a chance to really trial it much yet, but I'm sure you'll be hearing more about it at some point.
Snack: Sainsbury's Fruit Jellies
I used to have a terrible sweet tooth, but as I've got older that's changed quite a bit and I now much prefer salty snacks to sweets, but this week I've been having major sugar cravings. The Fruit Jellies from Sainsbury's have satisfied those cravings perfectly. There are 6 flavours in the (rather large) packet, and they all taste just as you'd think they would from the shape and colour, which is rare. My favourites are the red and black, but the pineapple is gorgeous too.
Nail Mail: Thumbs Up nail wraps
After my disappointing experience with some eBay nail wraps a couple of months ago, I've been on the lookout for better quality wraps, and Thumbs Up seem to be just what I was looking for. I had a quick search on Instagram and everyone seemed to be really happy with theirs, and they all looked great, something that I certainly can't say about other brands I've bought in the past. With a 50% sale site wide over the weekend I ordered these 3 sets: Henna, Tribe and Awe. I'm really looking forward to trying them out.
Looking to swap: Lush Snow Fairy
I've only just finished my last bottle of Snow Fairy from the 2013 release, and still have another 3 full bottles here. Unfortunately I was unable to get either Ponche or Rose Jam in the Boxing Day sale, so was hoping that someone would be interested in swapping. If you're interested please either leave a comment or message me. I also have a few bottles of Hot Toddy if Snow Fairy isn't your thing.
Watched: The Interview
I'm sure you'll have heard of the controversy surrounding The Interview, that cinemas were pulling out from showing it because of terror threats. I probably wouldn't have even heard of the film if it wasn't for all of that, and I kind of wish I still hadn't heard of it. It's bad, and I mean BAD. I really like Seth Rogen films on the whole, I almost always laugh and find them an easy watch, but have always been a bit on the fence about James Franco, I'm not any more, my mind has well and truly been made up that he can't act. The entire film was basically Franco hamming it up and over-acting every scene he was in, it's one of the worst films I've seen in a long time. I rarely feel like I wasted my time after seeing a film, even a bad one, but I really wish I could get those 2 hours of my life back. Have you seen it? I'd love to know what you thought.