I really enjoy Jill Mansell books and this one was on my book shelf from last summer that I didn’t get round to reading. The story is light and fun and the characters are likeable but it wasn’t my favourite?? (If I had to choose my favourite would be Falling for You which if you get the chance to read it!!) But something was missing from this book and after a 2 ½ hour train journey to York I was beginning to lose patience with it. It won’t discourage me from reading Jill Mansell books in the future but I don’t think I’ll read it a second time round.

And finally to the book I am reading at the minute – Mr Maybe by Jane Green

I chose this book as I had read Jemima J by J Green a while ago and loved it! Mr Maybe so far is funny and really well written, my only problem is I don’t particularly like the main character Libby, which when you are reading about this person’s life it is a little bit of a problem but I have a sneaky feeling she may turn out to realise that she is in the wrong and who knows I may change my mind about her, I’ll keep you posted! x

I love to go to town with her shopping because even now she know exactly what to wear and can pick out an outfit that I wouldn’t dream of putting together and somehow look amazing in them? I always though daughters were supposed to be the advisers when it came to fashion but for me there is no one I trust more when it comes to fashion than my mum.

I have inevitably inherited her hair and as my dad has straight hair I ended up somewhere in the middle with thick waves. After years of ghd straightening it I’m starting to go back to the natural way of hair spray and mouse. I love to watch Pretty Woman and see Julia Roberts with her long wavy hair and I somehow feel at home.

So naturally I have tried a few different products along the way and found these to be the best at separating the waves from the frizz:

VO5 Give Me Texture Tousled Style Spray = £3.36 from Boots

VO5 Mega Hold Gel Spray = £2.85 from Boots

I wouldn’t waste your money on expensive products like Frizz Ease as most of the time I felt it made my hair go a little greasy and lifeless.

Here are some celebs who have embraced their waves:

Kate Hudson, Jessie J and Jennifer Aniston have all opted for the natural look here.

1. to read 25 books in 12 months (all mostly chick lit)
2. to keep up with a night time beauty regime I had been trying for the past few weeks – cleanse, tone, and moisturise - trust me it seems easy but when its 11pm and all’s you want to do is sleep beauty takes a turn to lazy town!
3. to get my own cup of tea and biscuit and not to ask others (mainly my boyfriend) to get them for me, along with anything else I want that I don’t really want to move to get!

As I hovered I checked over my mental list and stuck with those 3, I mean how hard could that be?

So we are now 2 months into the New Year and I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s pretty hard! 2 books down and I’ve realised I’m a much slower reader than thought as I should be 4 books down by now. My beauty regime is more of a dictatorship and well as for number 3 well I did try!?

The good news is my New Years resolutions have introduced me to some really great products.

The first being Bio Oil:

I read about this on a website after googling good moisturisers and as this had some great feedback I went with it. A word of warning is that like all great things it’s comes at a cost to your bank account! Bio Oil offers three sizes, small, medium and large and ranges in price from £8.99 – £19.99 but it is worth it. Less is more with this product and 2 months in I’ve only used a ¼ of the large bottle so it’s not as costly as I expected. My skin is soft and I found putting a small amount on my face evened out my skin tone.

My second find was Clarins Eye contour Gel:

I’ve tried everything to reduce dark circles under my eyes and with this being my number one reason for very rarely going make up free for fear of scaring small children, I was slightly sceptical that Clarins could do the trick but I was pleasantly surprised.  Not only was the gel cooling and non-sticky it worked! I used it after my skin regime before bed and woke up feeling much fresher and looking less tired. The down side as always is cost at £26.50 it does seem pricy but I always buy it from Boots to boost up my Advantage Card points.

I’d never heard of Xen Tan before and with out a trip to Infinity Beauty salon I still would be none the wiser. I got talking to one of the beauticians while she done my pedicure and she raved about a new tan that rivalled St Tropez. After I’d composed myself from the initial shock I laughed at the idea that there was anything to rival St Tropez, but she was sure of it and even challenged me to try it. This was a few months ago and each time I’ve done my tan the thought to try Xen Tan had crossed my mind but then immediately followed by that dread of try out a new tan. The flashbacks of me standing half naked in a freezing cold shower cubical while a Lara Croft lookalike sprayed me from head to toe, all the time insisting I didn’t inhale (which I would fail miserably at and end up with a lung full of tan and  brown nostrils!) NO I couldn’t do it I’d just do my own St Tropez that night and be done with it, but as I was thinking this my hand had reached for my phone and dialled Infinity Beauty for a 3pm appointment. So as I walked to the salon I was nervous, excited and a little intrigued to see if Xen Tan actually worked.

As soon as I arrived my mind was put at easy by the lovely figure flattering lighting in the tanning room (not the harsh florescent type lights but the soft warm…..okay dull lighting!) So as the beautician asked me to step onto some sticky feet pads to stop my soles turning the colour of mahogany I instantly had a good feeling about Xen-Tan. Within 10 minutes I had two coats of an olive completion which for typically pale English girl is an achievement in itself! The treatment cost £20 which is a bargan considering the salon was warm and welcoming and the beautician even cleaned my nails and hands to stop the dreaded tan stains.

I was even more surprised that I looked normal and didn’t smell of bourbon biscuits! As I walked the 10 minutes back to the flat I didn’t get one side glance at passers by and didn’t feel the colour of a traffic cone. The tan was slightly sticky but apart from that I didn’t feel uncomfortable at all.

Here are some celebrities who share the love of Xen Tan:

One tip is to have dark sheets as the tan did rub onto the bed cover but was easily washed out. I was glad that I went to sleep looking nice and tanned as appose to looking like I had spent a few days in the wilderness at and SAS training camp with mud smeared face and patchy arms.

Xen Tan washed off lovely and left an event cover all over with out looking dark and obvious. As much as admitting it pains me it has topped St Tropez and my favourite tan proven by the fact that I’m booked in again tomorrow to have a top up! So happy tanning and let me know if you have had similar results with Xen Tan x

This months edition is spreading Christmas cheer with a bumper pack of freebies which include a cute new lip gloss, the new addition Cadbury Fabulous Fingers to enjoy while you read, a Body Shop discount card which contains a discount from £3 up to £100 for something lovely for Christmas, a his and hers Christmas gift idea glossy and a book of discounts which include some top beauty brands. All in all a fab edition for any Cosmo follower.

Freebies picture courtesy of Maxine Meighan's fab beauty blog "Beauty to the Max"

So it wasn’t the morning of the wedding it was 2 days before and I was getting my hair highlighted when I notice a girl in the corner set up to do nails. My first though was a nice Shellac nail colour that would last for the wedding and hopefully the following week when I had another wedding to go to. So as I sat down to get them done I managed to some how agree to getting gel nails, anyone who knows me will vouch for how easily taken in I am and will agree to anything when I hear a sales pitch (hence my trip to Halifax bank to pay off my over drafted ended 20 minutes later with my overdraft still unpaid and a new credit card in hand) I don’t know how it happens I just can’t seem to say no!

So as the beautician applied the acrylic and then the gel top coat (which was pink and sparkly! This being the reason why I was easily swayed when two of my favorite things were combined into one!)

As you can see they were lovely!

I began to convince myself that I am 23 years of age, living away from home and have a professional job so surely I can manage with acrylic nails!! How hard can it be?......the answer VERY!! Not only was I walking around like Edward Scissor hands I couldn’t even zip up my coat or count out the change for a very disgruntled bus driver!

Fast-forward 24 hours and I was sitting in a nail salon in the city center with my hands in a bowl of acetone and thinking how I am the only person who would willingly pay to have gel nails applied only to then have to pay 24 hours later to have them soaked off again. Needless to say I learnt my lesson when it comes to false nails, just stick to good old OPI!

Here are some celebrities who can pull off the trend:

Jessie J perfects techno nails while Beyonce combins the multi coloured and gel nail look! With Rhianna's sporting some fab nail art.

If you are able to manage with acrylics then defiantly try the gel nails they are fabulous and for someone who can cope will make your nails look amazing. Just make sure you can cope before getting them stuck on because trust me an acetone soak is not for a faint hearted! x

Time for drastic action in the form of project christmas! Realistically money is always tight over the festive season but I don’t want to compromise of having a good time either, hence my brain wave of an idea with the help of my best friend, the buy one, make one rule. I’ve always loved being creative but never seem to put it to good use. This thought gave me the idea to make some of my Christmas presents this year, and if I bought a small present with in a certain price bracket I could then also make and accompanying gift for that person.

So with my note pad in hand I’ve been scouring the internet in search of inspiration and found some great ways to save over the holiday with out too much penny pinching:

1. Boots 3 for 2 -  This is a tried and tested money saver. I love this scheme and it also means you end up being able to treat yourself to the spare present! One tip I would give you is to bunch your presented into sets of 3 so the lower priced presents pay for separate to the more expensive christmas presents. I made this mistake and only made a small saving on 3 items for £3.50 each!! If you work it properly and have bought 3 things for £30 each you will get all three for £60! So my warning is to do small batches of similar prices to maximise your savings! And we must forget the tons of advantage card points you will earn to spend on something lovely for you. Here is more information on the advantage card in case you are new to the world of point collection http://www.boots.com/en/Advantage-Card/

2. Costco it! If you are lucky to be able to own a Costco card or you know someone who does then clear an afternoon out of your calendar and get down to your nearest warehouse in the run up to Christmas. There are so many saving to be had as you can buy in bulk and although you may not feel the need to have 10 turkeys you may change that thought when you know that you can get 10 bottles of wine in a box!! The prices may seem steep when you are wandering the aisles with your huge trolley but if you take the time to work it all out then you will see that bulk buying is the way to do Christmas! For more information on joining for a Costco membership click on the link to their website.

3. Do it yourself! If you decide that you want to give making some christmas presents a go then the best place to go to is Hobbycraft! If you don’t live nearby then they also offer online shopping. You’ll find everything from fabrics to photo frames, and they also have an ideas library if you’re struggling for inspiration. Something may seem expensive but you’ll find you can get lots of christmas presents out of the kits and it will also mean you’ve taken time to make something by adding a special touch to a Christmas gift for your nearest and dearest! If you find craft difficult then YouTube has some fab craft videos just type in your idea and you’ll find step by step tutorials galore!

Christmas is always the best time to get creative and hopefully this post will help you to make the most of what you can afford to spend this Christmas while you have some fun with it at the same time!

I’ll keep you updated with some of my home made presents and feel free to share some of yours! Good luck and happy crafting! : ) x

Everywhere I look I see these new creations. My evenings are made up of reality/fictional TV shows, The Only Way Is Essex, Made in Chelsea, the Hills, the list is endless and each time I sit down to watch an episode with my cup of tea in one had and remote control in the other I am amazed at how often I see this new trend of Shamballa bracelets, for example and to name a few:

Amy Childs with the classic white and black Shamballa bracelets

Ollie Locke and Chloe Green sporting his and hers matching green jeweled Shamballa versions

The minute I realised this craze had gone global was when I saw Jay Zs Rolling Stones cover with low and behold a Shamballa bracelet on his wrist. All be it a very manly version he gave the bracelet credibility and started the though in my head that I needed on in my life!

Okay so it’s slightly sad that I have fallen for the new craze but they are so shiny!! I fear I was a magpie in a former life as anything I come into contact with that has the slightest shine will eventually end up in my mitts, an OPI nail varnish, a new Chanel shimmering eye shadow and yes now a Shamballa bracelet. The decision now is which colour to get, and to find a decent replica, I may want to follow the trend but I certainly don’t have the bank balance to fund my expensive splurges so for now its good old eBay and an eager 2 day wait for my new sparkly possession to arrive!

So you can imagine when I saw the new nail trend I acknowledged it with approval then quickly did nothing to recreate it on myself. It wasn't until I was painstakingly trying to decide which nail color to wear when my boyfriend asked why I just didn't wear them all. It was like a child being told to just eat all the pick an mix, why not, knock yourself out......so I did and played it safe with just pink and blue. The next night I progressed onto purple, orange and pink and I fear it wont stop there! by the end of the week I will have a different color for each nail.

Some of my favorites that I've seen so far are:

Obviously the lovely Lauren Conrad with the two tone look!

The fab Caggie Dunlop from Made in Chelsea with pastel color

Pixie Lott with these lovely bright pinkies!

So needless to say I think multi coloured nails will be around for a while to come. My advice is have some fun and this way you get to be indecisive and spoilt all at once! : ) x

One of the other big changes has been my hair. I am no longer a brunet with long hair, I went back to blonde with a graduated bob, which happened when I went to the hairdressers to get a brown tint and took the plunge! 2 hours later I walked out with golden highlights and half of the hair I went in with. Its taken some getting used to but I’m enjoying blonde again.

I also got my helix pierced! (the posh name for the middle of your ear)  Not for the faint hearted I’ll tell you! I think I may have been on a rebellious phase these past few months and my new found independence told me it was a really good idea and so far I’ve not regretted it, I am slightly worried though as I already have my belly button pierce and a tattoo on my lower back so I think that maybe enough rebellion for now! My 80 year old self doesn't want to explain my 20 year old tattooed sleeves and nose piercings!

So its nice to have normality back and to be settled in to my new adventure where blogging can commence again! x