Christmas + January Lush Haul

Over the Christmas period and at the beginning of January I collected a mass of Lush products. My basket went from being almost empty, save a few bath melts, to over flowing. As a self confessed Lush addict, I obviously had to have a tonne of Lush products on my Christmas List this year and true to form, my lovely family gave in to my addiction and spoilt me rotten with all the beautiful lush products. 

Frustratingly for you, most of these products I'm about to show you are now discontinued as they are seasonal items, but, this may be of use if you're a planner like me and like to be well prepared ahead of time for the seasonal releases... yes that's right, it's January and I'm already talking about Christmas 2017. 

Sleepy Body Lotion 215g - £13.95 full price (paid £6.98 50% off)

I'm not usually someone that is enthusiastic about the body lotion range in Lush. I'm pretty loyal to bath products and face & hair products and don't really tend to delve any deeper than that. However, when my local Lush posted up on instagram last week that they still had 50% off christmas stock in and I saw this little beauty in the photo, I knew I had to get my hands on it. 

Sleepy is the Body Lotion format of the oh so loved Twilight Scent family. Twilight, if you don't already know, is a musky Lavender scent that is just heavenly and incredibly soothing. Making it the perfect choice this aptly named Body Lotion. The Lavender is soft and subtle and there are notes of oat and vanilla that soften it, the body lotion is made with Cocoa Butter and melts into your skin providing perfectly scented hydration for hours. 

I really love using this before I go to bed or if I'm feeling a little bit stressed. The soothing lavender does wonders at calming you down and taking some of that tension out of your day. I think it's a shame that this is only a Christmas release as I would happily use it and repurchase it all year round. 

I for one am certainly keeping my fingers crossed that this makes a glorious come back Christmas 2017. 

Star Dust Bath Ballistic - £3.95 
I actually had 2 of these beautiful little stars but I couldn't help myself but use one of them before I got round to taking the photos. These silvery white stars fizz away in the bath to reveal a multitude of tiny multi-coloured confetti stars that float around in the water until they dissolve away. This bath bomb doesn't leave your water any cute colours but it does soften the water up a treat and smells like vanilla and cocoa with just a dash of something citrusy and sweet.

Do be warned though that this little star leaves traces of very finely milled silver glitter in the bottom of your bath, so be sure to clean the tub thoroughly after having your bath unless you wish to irritate anyone else that is planning on having a bath after you!

Butterbear Bath Ballistic - £1.95 

These little bears are quite common staples with a Christmas Lush haul, their bargain price makes them a popular stocking filler and the soft subtle vanilla smell and cute little faces are ideal for even the most conservative bath fan. 

Whilst these are not my favourite bath bombs, I do appreciate the soft vanilla scent and the moisturising cocoa butter that are heavenly when buddied up with a bubble bar for some colour and fun. 

These also share the same scent as the year-round Butterball Bath Ballistic, so if you know you like that then you are on for a winner. 

Golden Wonder Bath Ballistic - £4.25 

One of the more expensive Bath Bombs in the Christmas range, but a firm favourite with many Lush fans. This little present is just that, whilst covered in golden lustre on the outside, once you plop this into the bath a flurry of turquoise, blue and purple spills into the water, creating a twinkling turquoise bath and is almost dare I say it, galaxy like? 

The scent is zesty with sweet orange oil being a dominant scent, if you like the "celebrate" range or the "bubbly" shower gel then this is your bath bomb. 

Again this product has very finely milled golden lustre that will sit and dry on the bottom of your tub if you do not clean it immediately after your bath. However, it does not stay on your skin, so theres no worries of walking around looking like Edward Cullen. 

Father Christmas Bath Ballistic - £3.75 full price (paid £1.87 50% off)

Another product from the Lush sale, I've never had a Father Christmas Bath Bomb before and as this was half price it seemed like the perfect time to test it out. I've never been massively bothered by this product as it shares it's scent with Snow Fairy. Which, as you may or may not know... I hate. Yes, I hate Snow Fairy, it's too sickly and too sweet and just ... yuck. BUT I wanted to give this a chance as I've not owned any Snow Fairy for a good 5-6 years now and it could win me over one day. 

So scent wise, it's snow fairy, it's sweet, candyfloss like and just oh so sickly. However, as it's in a bath bomb format it's nice and easy to break up and use in Lush cocktails to add some candy-like sweetness, which is exactly what I intend to do!

Shoot for the Stars Bath Ballistic - £4.25 (paid £2.12 50% off) 

Of all the Christmas releases, this has got to be one of my favourites. The striking vivid blue with the contrasting gold stars is such a beautiful combination to look at and the smell definitely matches. The bright blue mellows out into a forest green when in the bath with golden orbs of oil that float on the surface. 

The scent is sweet and toffee like and is a member of the "Honey I Washed The Kids" family, meaning you can expect sweet honey & toffee, whilst not having that sickly cloying scent that some sweet, honeyed products can produce. 

Lord of Misrule - £3.95 

YES YES YES. This bath bomb is ABSOLUTELY amazing. I am totally obsessed with it. After trying it for the first time in 2016, I have already managed to purchase 4 and use 2. The remaining 2 are photographed above for you. This mysterious and beautifully scented bath bomb is deceptive as you expect a lime green bath, yet, once you place this ball of joy into the water you are greeted by a flurry of rich red foam and crackling popping candy. 

This is a total joy for the senses as it turns your bath a wonderfully luxurious Burgundy shade, the popping candy crackles and pops for a good 10 minutes after hitting the water and the warm scent drifts to your nose almost immediately. 

The smell is totally unique, think cracked black pepper, vanilla and tonka with a dash of sandalwood and you are getting close to the joy that is the Lord of Misrule. A highly raved about bath bomb I know, but honestly if you have the chance this Halloween to go in store and give it a sniff, I highly recommend you do so. It is divine. 

Northern Lights - £3.95 (paid £1.98 50% off) 

Northern Lights is a product I've been in two minds about, part of me is intrigued and I love a good purple bath, whilst the other half of me is questioning why Lush included a strong Jasmine scented product in their Christmas range... why give it that smell?? Personally I feel that the Jasmine scents are more suited to the Mothers Day & Easter ranges but that's just me. 

When I found this in the 50% off sale it was one that I really felt I should just try! I do really enjoy Jasmine scented baths (Flowering Tea from the 2016 Mothers Day range was a personal favourite!) so there isn't necessarily any reason for me to not enjoy this bath.

The main selling point for this bath bomb is that when you put it in the bath it is meant to mimic the famous Northern Lights or otherwise known as the Aurora Borealis. As it sinks into the water it creates a rich foam of Purple, Orange and Blue in an attempt to emulate the night sky. It's quite beautiful to watch so I do recommend you hunt out a youtube demo to see for yourself if you're not quite convinced. 

Mine however, seems to be a little faulty, as I have 2 orange faces and no blue.., how this affects the bath water & scent I will have to find out but I am a little disappointed as blue & purple baths are my favourite.  

Satsuma Bath Ballistic - £3.75 

This was an Oxford Street Exclusive this year and I believe the only OSE bath bomb released for Christmas! Satsuma, as the name suggests, is a fruity orange number that brightens up your bath just as much as a Satsuma brightens up your fruit ball in Winter. 

The warm fruity scent is a perfect seasonal choice and was a really welcome change from the bizarrely floral offerings this year from Lush. I feel that this would work PERFECTLY in a cocktail with Cinders, the warm satsuma mixed with the spicy cinnamon of Cinders would have been a dream come true in a bath... but Lush discontinued Cinders in 2016 so that is a dream that sadly won't come to fruition for a lot of us. 

As you can expect, this bath bomb leaves your water a rich warm orange to perfectly match the scent, it really is a you see what you get kind of product and I absolutely loved it. 

How To Be Well Read ... A 2017 Goal

One of the first things I mentioned on my New Years Goals list was to stop buying so many books... so you may be surprised to find me only 25 days into the month, discussing what books I'm planning on buying.

Well, part of my plan for 2017 is to stop frivolously buying books. Which means, stop buying YA fantasy books when I already have a tonne to read. But, I am a self confessed book buying addict which means that going cold turkey is not going to happen. Especially now that I've bagged myself a job that is a mere stone's throw away from Waterstones. Instead, I am allowing myself a mere 12-15 books to buy this year. Yes. 12-15 for the entire year! 

Considering I could easily buy 10+ per shopping trip, this is a huge change to the usual for me and I for one am excited for it. The main thing for me however, is to change the type of books I'm reading. Christmas 2015 I was kindly brought "How to be Well Read" by John Sutherland, which is a list of 500 critically acclaimed (or controversial) books that you should aim to tick off if you want to become "Well Read" now whilst I find the idea of being Well Read or not rather pointless (why force yourself to read literature that you don't enjoy purely to say you've done so?) this book does highlight some key books that are not only acclaimed but important reads. This is something that I really wanted to include in my 2017 reading lists. 

Many of the books that I have shortlisted for this year are feminist or sociological critiques on society and I would really love to develop my understanding on these subject matters over the course of the year to not only make me a more well rounded reader, but also a well rounded human being. 

My 2017 list is as follows:

Lucius Apuleius - The Golden Ass (AD 160) 

Margaret Atwood - The Handmaid's Tale (1985)

Orson Scott Card - Enders Game (1985)

Angela Carter - Nights of the Circus (1984)

George Eliot - Middlemarch (1872)

Neil Gaiman - American Gods (2001)

Kazuo Ishiguro - The Remains of the Day (1989)

Haruki Murakami - IQ84 (2009-10)

George Orwell - 1984 (1942)

Sylvia Plath - The Bell Jar (1963)

Thomas Pynchan - Bleeding Edge (2013)

Jean Rhys - Wide Sargasso Sea (1966)

I'm really excited to get reading these 12. I'm aiming to read one a month and buy one a month... although I may have accidentally gone out and brought both The Handmaid's Tale and Nights of the Circus... yeah. In my defense I had a £10 off stamp card + about £10 on my points app so it had to happen really didn't it? 

The extra 3 books I'm accounting for are my most anticipated releases of 2017. Both the TOG and ACOTAR (Feyre's Arc) series by Sarah J Maas are coming to an end this year and there will be a new ADSOM book out by V.E Schwab. These books are must buys for me so they are OBVIOUSLY going to be brought. 

I would really love to know if you would be interested in reading full reviews for each of these books? I really enjoy analysing books and since leaving Uni I've not had much cause to, so if that would interest you then please let me know in the comments!

REVIEW: Mario Badescu Facial Spray

It has been a long long time since I have felt the enthusiasm to write a skincare review post... in fact, the last post I wrote in this area was actually all the way back in October with this review of the nSpa Skin Glow Mud Mask.

You can see why I removed the "beauty" part of my name now right?

Therefore, for me to actually be excited enough to share a skincare review with you, its got to be a pretty big deal, and this my friends... is a big deal.

I received the Mario Badescu Facial Spray for Christmas and was immediately in love with the simplistic and clean packaging. Something about it screams classy to me and it really feels like a luxurious product.

The facial spray and toners in general,  are a bit of a controversial skincare topic, with many skincare guru's like Sali Hughes and Caroline Hirons telling us that, whilst they are a nice luxurious step to take in your skincare regime, essentially these bottles of scented water are just that... scented water.

But nevertheless, I really enjoy using toners, toning waters, toning spray, facial sprays, etc. You name it, I've probably got it sitting in my overflowing skincare drawers. My face just doesn't feel right if I don't use a toner of some sort after cleansing my skin and I have a variety of them for different skincare needs. Just recently this beauty from Mario Badescu has been fulfilling all of my toning requirements.

So, the main selling point of this little pink bottle of joy, is that it includes the most soothing ingredients known to man. Aloe and Rosewater. I am obsessed with Rosewater at the moment, the smell the effect everything. Heck heat it up and let me bathe in it, I love the stuff.
Aloe I am indifferent to, you won't find me drinking the stuff and I certainly am not going to be praising the miracle effects of it and trying to sell you into a pyramid scheme any time soon (you know the ones!). HOWEVER, I do appreciate the soothing and beneficial effects of the little plant and as someone with Acne prone, sensitive and combination skin... skincare is a minefield at times... I really appreciate seeing the Aloe in products and knowing that its going to soothe at least one of my skincare nightmares.

The bottle blurbs the spray as a "rejuvenating facial spray, you wont want to be without" and claims that it can be used to set makeup, soothe your skin in dehydrating conditions or give your skin a quick boost. For me, this has been perfect on these cold mornings for adding some much needed hydration to my skin, without triggering my acne or making my face a grease ball. I have sprayed this over make-up and I can't necessarily say that it keeps my makeup in place any longer than usual but it doesn't ruin my foundation on contact so that is a plus!

I've actually found that this spray has been helping to calm down some of the redness with my current breakout (all on my cheeks and chin... thanks Christmas Cheese board!). But even if I didn't notice any changes, to be honest I would still recommend this product. The smell alone is enough to warrant purchasing it and the refreshing, soothing nature of the spray is what is going to keep you wanting to repurchase again and again.

I will definitely be making this little beauty a staple in my skincare drawer for many years to come.

What do you think about toning/ facial sprays? Waste of money or luxurious extra?  

2017 Wishlist

2017 has already started with a bang, as I'm pleased to announce... I'VE GOT A JOB! 

Oh yes! That's right, no more posts moaning about my lack of employment and how bored I am. 

I'm now proud to say that at the end of January I will be the new Marketing Officer with my local Theatre! I'm absolutely over the moon to have been offered the job, it's really cliche but it's genuinely my dream job. I get to be surrounded by creative lovely people everyday working on things that I'm genuinely really excited about! Needless to say, I am probably the happiest I've been for months!

So all this excitement about new year and new job, has left me with a pretty hefty Wishlist for 2017! 

• A driving licence! - Now that I've got a job, I'm really keen to get my driving license so that I don't have to suffer the torments of public transport for too long! 
• Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Foundation - I ran out of this foundation ages ago and I have been pining for it for ages, but with a £30+ price tag it's not budget friendly when you are living from a rapidly diminishing savings pot!
• MacBook Pro case  - I recently bought a MacBook Pro, secondhand from my best friend who was buying one of the brand new super fancy ones. I am totally in love with it and I don't think I will ever be able to go back to using a Windows Laptop ever again if I'm being honest! She gave me a load of cases for it, but I would really like a nice sleek Marble effect one... I'm painfully basic like that, I don't even care.
• A holiday abroad! - Dan and I haven't been on holiday since 2015 and we are really longing for a nice hot beach holiday somewhere with plenty of fresh fruit & veg and beautiful scenic walks. 2016 was a bit of a bitch of a year if I'm being honest (I think it was for a lot of us!) so we would love to have a week somewhere sunny to just relax and enjoy ourselves.  
• To rescue a couple of Cats - Dan and I are planning on moving out this year and the most important thing on our list is to adopt a couple of Cats from my local Cat rescue. The woman that runs it does such an amazing job (both my Cats at home are from her and they are beautiful) so we would really love to rescue a couple more fluff balls and give them their forever homes. 
• To visit the theatre more often -  This should be pretty easy now that I'm working at one, but I absolutely love going to the theatre. I have a particular interest (read: obsession) with Shakespeare and I've only had the opportunity to see a handful of the plays, I aim to change that this year! 
• Cacti/ Succulent - This was on my A/W wishlist but I've still not managed to find one that I love enough to buy. I really love having plants on my desk so I'm hopeful that I will be able to find the perfect Succulent in the next few months to brighten up my desk at home (and maybe work if it's allowed!) 

So that's it really! I couldn't think of anything else to wish for from 2017. I've covered some other points in my New Years Goals post incase you are interested to read more about what I hope to come out of 2017! 

What's on your wishlist this year? 

New Year Goals

Happy New Year!

I took a little break in December, as you may have noticed from the telltale lack of content recently. I managed to get the flu and then was so busy with general life things that I didn't have the time or motivation to get back to writing. So I gave myself a little life-break, I didn't apply for jobs, I took a backseat on social media and just allowed myself to enjoy the holidays and spending all that extra time with family and friends. 

Not only was it refreshing to take a step back from the all-consuming bloggersphere, but it actually really helped me to focus in on what I want from 2017. I got to spend the entire Christmas period with Dan and in that time we have really planned our year and have some solid ideas in place for what we want from life this year. 

The new year is always a time when we reflect on our lives and the year that just passed and try to make commitments to do the next year differently or better. I don't really like the term "resolutions" purely because I don't want to have to resolve myself to do something, It's already starting off the year with a list of things I don't really want to do. Instead, I like to call them goals. It's a subtle difference in the language but it always makes me feel better. A goal I can work towards, a resolution I'm stuck with. 

So of course, I want to make a physical list of my New Year goals for not only my own benefit and holding myself accountable but also because it may inspire you to set a couple of goals yourself! 

• Stop buying so many books. I have an obscene amount of books that I've still not read and I was getting into the habit of buying books purely for the sake of buying books, This year I need to make better financial decisions and that includes not making silly purchases. I've written a refined list of 15 books to buy in the year of 2017. If it's not on the list, I'm not going to buy it. 
• Start my career. This probably doesn't even need to be here it's so painfully obvious, but 2017 is the year when I finally find my career path. I know I want to work in social media, marketing or publishing but I'm really looking for a position that gives me the opportunity to gain valuable experience so I can grow a career for myself. I've applied for some really exciting positions already in the past week so I'm feeling very hopeful. 
• Move out. Once I've managed to gain employment I will be able to save and move out of my family home. I love my parents and they are incredibly supportive and patient, but I am dying to have some freedom back since leaving University. Dan and I already have a pretty solid plan in place but it's pretty hush-hush for now so you will have to watch this space! 
• Lose my Uni weight. Like a lot of people, I gained a fair amount of weight at Uni and I have been struggling to lose it ever since. This year I'm really focusing on my diet and exercise and making sure that I eat predominately vegan in the weekdays with the occasional eggs & fish on the weekend. However, this is more than just a diet to lose weight, I have transitioned from a full-on Carnivore to a Pescetarian in 2016 and it took me the best part of 4-5 months to get to a happy and HEALTHY place with my diet. 
• Spend more time on self-care. Something I really improved in 2016, was the amount of time I spent looking after my mental health. I've learnt to balance my work/personal life and when to turn off my phone and enjoy the real world. It's something I really want to carry forward into 2017. 
• Create content that I want to create. I adore this little blog, 2017 will mark 4 years of Bambi's Blogs and I feel like it has changed so much since the early days when I set it up to talk about makeup and skincare in-between leaving college and starting university. Nowadays I'm less focused on beauty and makeup but more interested in books, lifestyle and cooking. I still do the occasional review posts and Lush is always going to be a regular feature, but as I'm entering my 23rd year, I really want my space on the net to reflect what I'm interested in right now and that is predominately lifestyle topics.

That's it! That's my goal list laid out in front of you for the world to see. I also hope to rescue a dog and a couple of cats but it's obviously subject to moving out and tenancy agreements so I'm keeping that one to myself for the most part until things become a little clearer in a couple of months time. However, do not fear, once those plans are made, this blog will become an animal showcase - I'm not even kidding.  

I hope you continue with me on this journey this year and I'm really excited to create some interesting and fun content in 2017!