Friday, October 30, 2015

Autumn / Winter at Lush - Haul


Dear Readers,

Sorry that it has been a while since my last post. Today I'm going to share with you some of the Lush products that I have picked up, as well as my top choices for the Autumn and Winter season.

If you haven't already guessed it, autumn and winter are my favourite times of year. They invite you to cosy nights in with family and friends, spiced hot drinks that fill your home with wintry warmth. What's more, it gives you the perfect excuse to unwind from those blistery days by taking a relaxing bath. For me, nothing quite beats the Lush experience when it comes to setting myself up for the best pampering evening. 

It doesn't just begin at my bath tub though. The whole process of finding the right bath product for the evening is just as big  an event.  So for me, it has to be done properly - from the bath bomb I choose, to the candle I light.


My Current Picks:

Above: Yog Nog - a creamy smelling cinder toffee flavour with hints of spicy clove and floral ylang ylang (a scent which is known to eliminate stress and anxiety). This bath bomb smells beautiful. I love how it is also available as a soap (see images further down) and the festive indentation makes it even more festive.
I just couldn't resist temptation and so I had to pick up a Sparkly Pumpkin which are infamous to Lush's Halloween collection. I am quite looking forward to taking a bath and immersing myself in golden glitter *squeals with excitement*.

I also picked up another classic by Lush and that is their sizzling Cinders. A sweet fruit punch that crackles due to the fiery red popping candy.





My Wishlist:

This best-selling fragrance combines earthy black pepper and patchouli and is bright green too - perfect for a spooky Halloween bath.


This soap is right at the top of my (early I know) Christmas wishlist. Soft notes of marzipan make this the perfect soothing soap for your bathroom. This product is the perfect stocking filler.
Say hello to yet another gold and glittering bubble bar, 'Sunnyside' - sweet wild orange and tangerine scents mean that this bar is refreshing and revitalising, the perfect uplifting smell for an autumnal bath.
'Brightside' is similar to 'Sunnyside' in that it always looks on the citrus side of life - warm tangerine, mandarin and bergamot. (Can you tell I like the colour orange?).

Going against the grain I found 'Intergalactic' - a multi-coloured galaxy for your bath.
'Holly Golightly' is everything that encompasses Christmas and is almost too cute to use.

Every time I hear or see 'Five Gold Rings' I just want to burst out into song - so let's just appreciate how aesthetically pleasing this product is.


For the more subtle Christmas lovers - 'Reindeer Rock' will sooth away at your skin.


'Peeping Santa' is cute and fun for those long soaks in the tub.
No Christmas wish list could be complete without a heavy dose of 'Snow Fairy', the most infamous Christmas product of them all. If you love sweet cotton candy scents then this will whisk you away and take you to paradise.

Sugar & Spice & all things Nice - I like to think of this 'The Magic of Christmas' as something that would accompany a hot mulled wine so well.


Yog Nog Soap - Another perfect festive stocking filler.



I hope this post has given you an insight into what Lush has to offer this Autumn/Winter. Although, there are still many products I haven't included from the Halloween and Christmas collections so do check them out today!



Stay Sweet,


Alice xx


 With thanks to Lush Kingston for allowing me to try these products and for giving me the opportunity to feature their products in this blog post. 

Thanks also to Olivia Whittle for the photography used throughout this post.  

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Friday, October 16, 2015

'My Identity Was Burnt Away' - An Audience with Katie Piper

Dear Readers,

As I sat myself down yesterday among an array of excited expectant faces I begun to really comprehend how many people wanted to hear what Katie Piper had to say on the events that followed her brutal acid attack in 2008. 


As I awaited the imminent Piper, I questioned myself as to what tone her speech may have. Would it be entirely negative in focusing on the low acts of two evil men, or would there be a positive message to come from her talk. 

Immediately, I was welcomed with the warmth of a beautiful, slender Katie Piper, who radiated an encouraging sense of hope and achievement. From the offset Piper reinforced us all of the "power of positive thinking" and that we are given these tough battles in order to grow by "turning a negative into a positive". 

With such a physical daily reminder of her scars, she later talked of how the acid attack "burnt away" at her identity and that the perpetrator (whom she'd only seen for 5 seconds) on her 'quick trip out' had changed her life forever, and in such a permanent way.

When asked who inspired her most, Piper promptly stated that her Mum was and still is a "borderline robot" who supported her through "over 350 surgeries" and counting. I understood why her mother was her source of inspiration as throughout most of her speech, she spoke of how hard her mother worked to keep her family unit together and in a positive frame of mind, even through her own personal battle with cancer last year.

Throughout Katie's speech she used images of her original state and the extent of her recovery all the way up until her life now. Each image graphically depicted an unrecognizable person to begin with; something I couldn't quite deal with, as these pictures exposed the sickening extent those men went to try an ruin Katie's life. At no point though, did she ever speak of her hatred for the men involved, even though she later revealed to us that "they denied the attacks ever happened". At this point Katie made light of it and said that "surely my face was evidence enough". 

The speech itself was full of ups and downs, yet Katie always remained composed and upbeat about the journey she had been through. It made me reflect on situations I hadn't handled well, and I began to realise the message of her speech in its entirety; that there will always be someone worse off than you are. So we should accept what tests God has given us to face and take them on as a "challenge". 

Katie also stated that "we are all living someone's dream". That really hit home for me because there I was, sat in a lecture theatre at my dream university, attending and taking blog notes at a talk with such a determined young woman who had survived such extreme physical and mental trauma.

I want to finish with the idea that maybe we are living the dream of another, and perhaps that could be in the basic of senses. For me, I felt that her message related to the dream of my younger self, who could only hope for the opportunity to go to university to study as a Journalist. 

So I pose this question to you today; who's dream are you living, and how will you appreciate it and make it worth your while?


Stay Sweet,

Alice xx
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Saturday, October 10, 2015

New Autumn Picks

Dear Readers,

Here are two new picks which have now made their way into my makeup bag. In regards to the Estée Lauder Double Wear foundation, I chose to finally purchase this foundation after trialing a sample for a month and I noticed such a difference to the overall appearance of my skin. As I suffer from combination-oily skin, I have always struggled to find a foundation which creates the same pigmentation on my entire face. This foundation does this effortlessly with the most minimal application - another feature I loved, as I would typically have to smother my face in product in order to get a suitable enough coverage. Head to your local Estée Lauder counter and ask to trial the product, because you won't regret it!


From Left to Right: Estée Lauder Double Wear in the shade 1N1 Ivory Nude, Dior Diorskin Nude Tan Tie Dye Edition in the shade 001 Pink Sunrise






Stay Sweet,

Alice xx 
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Friday, October 09, 2015

September Favourites...

Dear Readers,

I thought it would be appropriate to share with you my favourite September products for this transitional month...and well it's better late than never.


Beauty Favourites:
  • My Choppy Fringe - This is such a change from my typical side or middle parting. Although, when I'm not feeling it that day, I can throw it over to the side when I don't want it over my eyes. This super versatile style is only possible because the fringe is a very thin layer of hair. This allows me to work with different looks each day and doesn't show as a drastic cut when I push it to the sides. If you're not feeling as brave to chop away at your locks, then I would definitely recommend this as a good starting point to see if it works for you 

  • My Collection 2000 Gorgeous Glow in shade 2 - Bronzing Block. This product is great as a cheap way to follow the strobing trend which is blowing up as a major A/W15 makeup trend
  •  Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure nail varnish in Greige 372 - This natural muted grey gives the perfect effortlessness to the nails. What's even more amazing, is that it NEVER smudges when I paint them due to its quick drying formula which also doesn't require more than one application

  •  Benefit Roller Lash Mascara - I have not found a mascara better than this one. If you want to know more click the link here to read up on my review of this product


  • Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Moisturiser - this citrus infused moisturiser is refreshing on the skin and leaves my skin feeling oil free and ready for the day


Fashion Favourites:

  • Primark Chelsea Boots - not only are they incredibly easy to wear, they are comfy to wear and go with 90% of my outfits. It's a win win really!
 















 

  • My Amelia Jane London Pom Pom Hat - This hat has kept me warm and cosy and on some occasions distracted people from my seriously embarrassing bad hair days





Non-Beauty Favourites:
  • Desperate Housewives Box-set - After being given this box-set as an 'off to uni' present I couldn't wait to start binging on this classic. It reminds me of when I used to watch it with my Mum on a school night. All the characters in this show are incredibly well played and I particularly love Eva Longoria's self-centered character Gabrielle
 

  •  Lidl - now that I'm at uni, a student's got to do what a student's got to do, and with that being said I couldn't give more praise to the humble Lidl. Crazy savings in price which don't result in reduced quality has made me want to shout from the metaphorical rooftops of this blog post and declare to you that "I, Alice Bradley have changed my ways, and have become a true Lidler" (regardless of the fact that my main ambition is to save that extra bit of cash for my other frivolous shopaholic-like tendancies)

So that is all for my September favourites. I really hoped you enjoyed reading what my top picks were - I'd love to hear what your favourites were for the month of September, so don't hesitate to comment down below.


Stay Sweet,

Alice xx
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Monday, October 05, 2015

An Open Book : Evening Stroll

Dear Readers,

I thought it would be appropriate to post some pictures from my evening stroll last night with friends, along the River Thames. So here you are, an insight into my Kingston life.












Stay Sweet,

Alice xx

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Saturday, October 03, 2015

An Open Book : Why I'm Studying Journalism


Dear Readers,

After being set the brief to write about why I chose Journalism and what inspires me most about the written word, I was motivated to write this post for you today. 

In an age where Churnalism is the new Journalism, we can only hope that over time, the power of writing news is not damaged by the impacts of social media. With that being said, it is also a very exciting time for Journalism as we are moving into an age where we demand for more information and therefore have sought to taking matters into our own hands to publish independent news to the masses with only a mobile phone to hand. 
Even from the age of 5 I had my pen poised and was rocking a turtleneck sweater

For me, choosing this career path came from my love of reading Fashion magazines and writing as a hobby. For years I dreamed of being a Fashion Designer, but due to my inability to actually draw, I found that I struggled with the concept of being a designer. With that career path out of the window, I later discovered when I was studying for my GCSE's that I could do Journalism at university and pursue my love for putting pen to paper.

'I believed in Journalism more than any other career path I had been interested in'

 

It wasn't until I visited The Daily Telegraph in my first year of A Levels that I had the opportunity to be blown away by the power of journalism and the way in which journalists work together to formulate the final paper. Without the journalists uniting unfolding facts, there would be no such thing as news and for that matter no physical print of news. When I sat down to apply for the course I knew it was what I wanted to do - I believed in Journalism more than any other career path I had been interested in, and so my decision to choose Kingston University's Journalism degree was born.

Kingston seemed to be the only high contender for me as the course, location and family history meant that it was the perfect place for my evolution into the Journalism arena.


'For me there is nothing more exciting than a developing news story'  

Being a stones throw away from central London will enable me to connect with breaking news in a whole new way. I am able to experience the chaos as it happens, and for me there is nothing more exciting than a developing news story.

Here are some videos that come from the Kingston University website which I hope will give you a flavour of the course and also what it is like to live and work in this bustling Borough of London.

If you have any further questions or queries, then do not hesitate to contact me in the comments below or through my social media links in the side bar.

Stay Sweet,

Alice x
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