25 random facts about me :)

Hi Ladies,

I thought I would see if I could come up with 25 random facts about myself to share with you all, so here we go! :)

I love to read, when I was little my mum would have to comb my room for torches at bedtime and I would still sneak out onto the landing and read my book where the light was on!

I have never flown anywhere on my own - but I will for the first time, later this year!

I have one younger sister (who is taller than me!)

I love penguins - Penguins are my favourite animal, but I love any sort of sea life - One of my favourite days out is going to the aquarium :)

Reality TV is my guilty pleasure

I have a cat called Bella

I love coffee - We have a coffee machine at home and I am obsessed with coffee. Infact I have just put the coffee machine on right now (but I don't like coffee cake or coffee flavoured sweets yuck!).

My favourite place is New York - I can't wait to go back

My favourite sweets are Rowntree's randoms

I have been a student for 7 years but I'm nearly finished!

I used to want to be a teacher when I was little, I thought marking books would be the most fun thing ever!

I am short sighted and I wear contact lenses (I don't like wearing my glasses!)

When I was younger my favourite bands was steps, my mum took me to see their tour as a surprise and tricked me into thinking I was going to see Tom Jones!

I can't stand the smell of peanut butter - yuck!!

I passed my driving test first time

My favourite job was when I worked in a jewellers, I loved talking to people about their weddings when they came in to buy their wedding rings and bridal jewellery.

I get very competitive when I play board games, me and my sister like to call ourselves ''the dream team'' and always pair up if anyone ever gets a board game out at family do's

I used to collect thimbles when I was younger - I have no idea where they all are now! :(

I love to bake, and I have made pretty much everyone in my family a Birthday cake at some point

My favourite film is Anchorman, I cannot wait for the sequel

My favourite mobile phone ever was my nokia 3200, you could create your own cover designs and just slot them in, did anyone else ever have one of these!?

I am 5 ft 2

I don't like fizzy drinks - I will occasionally drink coca cola but I prefer it once it has been open a while and it isn't so fizzy!

I always need to be persuaded to go on roller coasters but once I am on them I love it!

I am not a morning person....at all!

I have really enjoyed reading these posts, so please met me know if you have done one on your blog so I can have a read :)

Hope you're having a great week,

REVIEW Cetaphil cleanser and moisturiser

Hi Ladies,

I've been meaning to do this review for quite a while now, as I have been using the cetaphil cleanser and moisturiser for 2-3 months and wanted to give you my thoughts, so here we go!

As you may know I have been having problems with my skin for about the past year now. I had never had problem with break outs before and had been really lucky with clear skin all throughout my teens but  for some reason my skin flared up out of no where last year. I've been through a variety of products since then..Liz Earle, Dermalogica, any form of ''spot treating'' brand..you name it! and although my skin is still not back to normal,  I'm relatively happy with where it is at the moment.

I picked up the cetaphil cleanser and moisturiser when I was pretty much at my wits end with my skin, I couldn't afford to keep splashing out on expensive brands hoping that spending more money on skincare might make the difference to my skin and I had decided to strip back my skincare routine to as few products as possible and really take it back to basics.

I originally was only going to go for the cetaphil cleanser, however they were on offer in boots (£3 off at the time!) so I decided to give the moisturiser a try too.

The cleanser is a cream/gel like consistency, and it is non-comedogenic, soap and fragrance free. I use it to cleanse my skin morning and evening using the larger cotton pads from boots although you can rinse it off with water too. Firstly, what I really like about this cleanser is that it leaves my skin feeling clean and soft but not tight like some cleansers, especially those which are directed towards spot prone skin, do. This actually leaves my skin feeling hydrated and smooth. Unlike some products, it has not irritated my sensitive skin at all, and it actually feels really kind and soothing.

The moisturiser is for sensitive or dry skin, something I neglected to read when I first picked this up - oops! Although my skin used to be dry, recently I would describe it as more oily-combination, so I had been sticking to oil free moisturisers. It is also fragrance free and non comedogenic. I am not as keen on the moisturiser as I am on the cleanser but I will definitely continue to use it. It is very thick and a little goes a long way. I was really worried that as it is quite a heavy, rich moisturiser it would clog my pores up and make my skin worse but it doesn't do this at all. It takes quite a while to sink in so I only use it on a night, sort of like a night cream. I particularly like to use it if I have used any face masks or treatments which my have dried my skin out before I go to bed.

But the big question is have they helped make my skin better? Yes and no. Although I havn't seen a dramatic improvement in my skin since starting to use this products, it definitely hasn't got worse which is a huge step in the right direction for me! I am definitely starting to see subtle improvements in my skin over time, although I can't pin it down to these specifically I do feel that they have helped and I am really pleased with them. Of the two, I am not sure if I will be repurchasing the moisturiser again but I will definitely use it all up (this will probably take me a while as after months of use it still feel practically full!). The cleanser is the stand out product for me, and I already have a backup on my bathroom shelf :)

Have you used cetaphil before? I'd love to know what your favourite skincare products are and let me know if you would like to see a skincare routine post :)

Have a fantastic weekend, enjoy the snow!

Last years resolutions revisited (and a few new ones) :)

Hi Ladies,

So this time last year I posted my new years resolutions for 2012. As we have just entered 2013 I thought I would take a look back so see how I did with last years resolutions and make a couple of new ones for this year :)

My resolutions from 2012

1) To wear my glasses more - Did I manage this? hmmmm well I have worn my glasses but not as often as I intended. I wear daily contact lenses which are pretty expensive so wearing my glasses more would help me save some pennies, this is something I think I need to continue to try to do in 2013! 

2) To decorate my new room and keep it tidy! - Yes! I am all moved into my new, fully decorated room now and I love it so much! I have definitely worked hard at keeping it tidy (see you later floordrobe!) and although it does get a bit messy sometimes if I've been busy I never leave it too long before I give it a good spruce up. Pat on the back for me!

3) To blog once a week - I'm not sure I quite managed this, but I did try to update my blog as regularly as possible and this is something I will hopefully continue to do in 2013 :)


4) Start Saving! - Nope, I did not manage this at all! this is something I need rather than want to do in 2013. I have a pretty epic trip coming up this summer and I need to save all the money I can for it so this is something I really need to concentrate on!

(maybe this is something my new Percy money box can help me with!?)

5) Don't Worry Be Happy - I think I did start to worry less towards the end of this year, so lets hope I can carry that on into 2013! 

6) Get Cooking! - Yep I am so pleased I conquered gluten free cooking this year! me and my friend arranged to cook for one another once a week over the past year and this has really helped me try out new recipes and get adventurous with my gluten free cooking. Over the past year I have really enjoyed gluten free baking, I made 3 Birthday cakes, hundreds of cupcakes, and even my first ever Christmas cake! 

So all in all I don't think I did too badly, and thus I am going to make a few new resolutions for 2013 to add on to those I didn't quite manage from last year.

1. Time Manage - 2013 is going to be a really busy year for me, and I really need to get super organised and start using my time as effectively as possible, be it making endless lists or creating some sort of timetable!

2. Sleep - I have a terrible sleep pattern, I stay up far too late then wonder why I'm tired all day?! This year I want to start going to bed earlier and hopefully sleeping better. Tips anyone?!

3. Make time for friends - This year I really want to try and make sure I make the effort to spend time with my friends old and new :)

and that's everything, I hope you had a fantastic New Year, and here's to 2013!