January Pink Parcel 2016

For those of you that haven't read my previous blog posts on Pink Parcel I shall tell you, in short, what it is.

Pink Parcel is a monthly subscription box all about your period. Every month they will send you a box filled with enough tampons or sanitary towels (depending on your preference) to get you through your period as well as a selection of other goodies to make you feel good, all for the bargain price of £12.99.
This month has definitely been one of my favourite boxes so far purely because there were a few products that were exclusive to Pink Parcel, which is always nice!


Be Happy, Be Healthy, Be Lovely notebooks - Three little pocket sized notebooks, designed by Pink Parcel. I mean, you can't really go wrong with notebooks can you? They're always going to come in handy, to make shopping lists with, blogging ideas, doodles, phone numbers, addresses etc!

Twenty First Century Herbs Skin Balm - This product is to help combat dry skin or eczema which, luckily, I don't suffer with this that unfortunately means I can't really rate this product. I didn't really like the smell of it or the consistency I found it was a little bit too runny considering it's a balm but it was a decent sized sample of the product!

Jealous Sweets Fruitilicious - If you like fruity sweets you will love these, as well as giving you a sugar boost they're also packed with vitamin c so you can't go wrong with that! I'm not a massive fan of jelly sweets and I have mentioned this before, I think it would be great if the option was there to pick what sort of confectionery you would like in your box each month!

Kiss Cosmetics Kisstick - Usually I don't do lipsticks I much prefer lipgloss or lip balms HOWEVER this lipstick goes on so smoothly, doesn't dry your lips out and the colour lasts! Amazing!! Really moisturising and great colour pay off!

Fablittlebag - Pink Parcel did it again!! They included tampon disposal bags despite the fact my subscription is for sanitary towels!! 

The London Tea Club Vanilla and Almond - If you have read the other Pink Parcel blog posts you will know I don't do any other tea other than regular.  This month was no different! HOWEVER the way that this was packaged was absolutely adorable!!!!! The loose tea leafs were in a plastic test tube and in a little brown envelop were two empty tea bags, obviously for you to put the loose tea leafs in. I honestly thought that this was such an amazing and unique idea. If you have a friend or family member that loves tea then I would highly recommend getting them something special from The London Tea Club for either birthday or, dare I say it, Christmas!

Bellapierre Shimmer Powder, Snowflake - This is one product that can be used in several different ways. You can use it as a cheek highlight, a brow highlight, an eye shadow and you could even lightly dust it over your shoulders and collar bones for a body shimmer. The product itself is a loose powder so if you are not careful it will go everywhere!! I have been using it as a cheek highlighter and let me tell you it is super pigmented so you need only the smallest amount BUT if you do accidentally get too much product on your cheek (or wherever you put it) don't worry because it blends in really nice!


Pip and Nut Coconut Almond Butter - Definitely more coconut than almond so if you don't like coconut you will hate this. I had mine on toast but I actually think it would have gone better in a banana smoothie! The concept is great though, especially if you're in a rush in the morning, you can just grab one of these little sachets, throw it in your bag and spread in on some toast when you get to work!


Sass Refreshing Wipes - Just before Christmas Pink Parcel teamed up with the brand Sass to add a feminine hygiene product in each box. I'm going to be really blunt. I don't like the products at all! I don't like the smell and I find that the wash is too soapy for downstairs! I would recommend femmefresh for a feminine hygiene product, not sass!


Saving the best until last Vichy Normaderm Beautifying Anti-Blemish Care - Vichy used this months Pink Parcel to launch their new product , this was with Pink Parcel subscribers before it was out on the shelves!!  The sample itself is only tiny, I got three uses out of mine, so that isn't enough to tell you if the product worked or not BUT it smells amazing and because it's a thin moisturiser you don't need a lot to go a long way!! This is definitely something I will be purchasing!


Click on the bold pink writing to be directed to the websites for the relevant products, the only ones that do not have links are the Pink Parcel Notebooks and the Sass wipes because you can't get them online. 


(Apologies that the picture quality isn't great on these pictures, I'm still in the process of getting used to my new camera and finding the best ways and places to take pictures!)
As always find me on social media!

Instagram @annakimberley93

Twitter @annarailton1993

Facebook Essence of Anna

Skin Deep...

Throughout my young(er) (12,13,14...) years I remember that my mum would tell me all the time how important it was to cleanse, tone and moisturise my face morning and evening, and how important it was to take care of my skin. 

For all that time, I shrugged it off. It seemed like a boring and mundane task to do!! Why did I need to do ALL of those things? What does a toner do that is so different to a cleanser? If I run out of cleanser can I not just use toner in it's place? At the age of 13 what is moisturiser even doing, it's not like I have wrinkles!! And, seriously, does chocolate really affect how many spots you get, or is that just something that people tell you to stop you having so much sugar?

Well, all I can say is, my mother was right. 

Since we are still early on in January I thought that this was the best time to make this blog post because, for those of you that make them, now is the time to make and decide on New Years resolutions and if you don't already have one, why not let a good skin care routine be one of them?

For the record this post is not about telling you what products you should use and what you shouldn't use, you need to use what products you can and what products you can afford. There isn't one magical product that works wonders for everybody and if there was it would probably cost a small fortune! Just because I use something and it works for me doesn't mean it's 100% going to work for you. If anything I want this post to encourage you to take the time to get to know your skin, don't get stuck in a rut with products, unless they are delivering perfect results, allow yourself the chance to try things that might do something better for you than what you are using.

Okay let me take you on my skin care routine journey of the last year or so...

I used to only use face wipes, they were quick and easy and required next to no effort. I had found that cucumber based products worked fairly well with my skin, resulting, in what I thought, were minimal breakouts.  I used a Tesco's own branded range, I can't remember the exact name, it was the one up from the value products and they are/were all £1-£1.50 , so they weren't breaking the bank which was perfect for me because at that point I wasn't fussy.  I also used the moisturiser, day and night, and exfoliating scrub.

That's an entire skin care range coming in at about £5. Happy days. Now, there is nothing wrong with a cheap affordable skin care routine, this worked for two years, maybe more, like I said if it works for you and your skin, who care's where it's from or how much it costs?!

I had always been hesitant to try new products, because much like my scalp, it's hit and miss whether my skin will accept a product lovingly or throw its toys out of the pram and breakout. However, last year I got to a point were I was bored of my routine and bored of the products so I decided to change things...

It was around the time when all of the brands were bringing out micellar water, I decided to go with the Garnier one because it comes in a nice big bottle and at the time it was on offer. I loved it. It took make-up off really well (just use a cotton wool pad) it was gentle, didn't have a scent, just amazing! I also got some Garnier Micellar Water Cleansing Wipes, for the evenings and also for mornings if I was in a really big rush and also the Garnier Clean and Soft Moisturiser.

All of these products were amazing, my skin never became irritated or broke out so I carried on using them until Garnier brought out a Matifying Micellar Water.... I have oily/combination skin so when I saw this it was perfection, I also decided to ditch the wipes, the last few packets I'd had the wipes were soapy and I barely used them so I cut that bit out! I also switched my cream to Garnier Moisture and Matte. The two products together constantly prevent my face from looking shiny and getting oily during the day which is what I love about them.

More recent products that I have also added to my skin care routine are:

Garnier Spot Fighting Moisturiser
Garnier Pure Active Charcoal Scrub
(I talked about these products in my November favourites post)

And since Christmas...

The Body Shop Camomile Sumprious Cleansing Butter

How I use all these products...

Morning

I cleanse with the with the micellar water and then follow that with the moisture and matte moisturiser. If I'm having a no make-up day, which are really important to have, for your skins sake, then I will use the spot fighting cream instead, I also use this in place of the moisture and matte one if I am suffering a really bad break out.

Evening

I cleanse with the charcoal scrub, I make sure that I really work this into the skin, scrubbing for a good couple of minutes, just to make sure that all my make-up (if I have any on) comes off and to really get the dirt out. If I have been wearing make-up I will follow that by going over my face again with the micellar water, this is more to get rid of panda eyes than anything else! Then it's on to the spot fighting cream (despite the name, this is just a moisturiser!) If I do have a few spots or red marks (from spots) I go over them with T-Zone Rapid Action Spot Zapping Gel, you only need a small blob of this product because it spreads really well. Even if I don't have spots, I'll make an effort to remember to use this anyway, in my problem areas, which for me is just my T-Zone!

Luxury

It's important to remember to treat your skin every now and again, whether that be with a specific cream, a face mask or taking yourself for a facial! I try and remember to do a pore strip as often as I can, I just use the T-Zone ones but I've used ones from Wilkinson's and the £1 shop and I find they all work the same.

My favourite face mask to use is the 7th Heaven Manuka Honey Peel Off mask. It leaves my skin feeling super soft and smelling gorgeous plus I much prefer peel off masks I find them so much easier to use but if not a peel off one then I really enjoy the heat up ones.

My luxury product is the Body Shop Camomile Cleansing Butter. I got this for Christmas and it's amazing. I use this on a Sunday, it's a really nice, end of the week, treat to my skin! I only use it once a week because it's quite an oily product and so with me having oily skin it just wouldn't be good to use it everyday (in my opinion).

I use this when I'm in the bath but you could use it whenever and wherever you like. I take a lump of the product in my fingers and start massaging it into the skin, with this you can even rub it over your eyes, just be careful to not get any IN your eye, I leave it for a few minutes so that it can break down the make-up and dirt and then wipe it off with a warm face cloth. It works a treat removing make up, I know because I go over again with micellar water and there is never anything on the cotton wool pad, not even eye make up! My skin also feels really soft after using this and the product has a lovely fresh smell too it!

So as you can see what I use and how I use things has changed quite a lot over the last two years but now I'm really happy with everything I use and the results that I get. I've never been one for eye creams or night creams but who knows maybe at some point I will find a use for them. Finding a skin care routine that I'm happy with that makes my skin feel just has happy has been a massive confidence boost so I don't even think twice now about leaving the house without make-up on!

Hopefully you have found this useful!

Find me on social media

Instagram @annakimberley93

Twitter @annarailton1993

AND NOW

Like me on Facebook! Essence of Anna <---- I set up a Facebook page so you're always up to date with when blog posts go up and also other random musings and such like throughout the week.

My Ultimate 2015 Favourites!!

Happy New Year Everybody!! I hope that you all had a good one whether you stayed in, went out or were fast asleep before midnight.

I have decided that rather than do a December favourites blog post I would share with you my ultimate favourites from 2015.

For the past few days I've been looking at all the products I have, trying to decide, if I could just pick one as the best one from last year, which would I pick and I think I have made my choices!

Now it's very likely that more than one, if not all, of these products has already been featured in a monthly favourites blog post but that just goes to show how much I love them!

Beauty 

Garnier pure active charcoal face scrub- I thought long and hard about my ultimate beauty favourite for this year, I've tried a variety of different products but this trumped all for one reason only, when I'm not using it (because I'm lazy) I can tell. My skin is more prone to breakouts when I stop using this but the minute I get back into a regular routine with it it all clears up. It's a completely magical product and one that I will continue using this year, if you suffer from breakouts or have oily to combination skin then I would highly recommend making this a part of your skin routine, morning or night, this year!

You can pick it up at most supermarkets, superdrug and boots and if you scroll down to my November favourites post there is a link for it so you can buy it now!!


Hair 

VO5 Nourish my Shine Shampoo and Conditioner - This was another tough one, it was this or the Colab a model recommends dry shampoo but since I have already mentioned that in a favourites blog post I thought I would give this one a turn. I suffer with a sensitive scalp so it's really hard for me to find hair products that don't irritate it. I think I purchased this after seeing it in a Zoella video, it was that long ago I can't remember which one, and these are great. They don't irritate my scalp, they also really do leave your hair shiny and silky smooth!! Not to mention that the bottles are huge so they last forever, depending on how often you wash your hair.

Again, these can be found in most supermarkets boots and superdrug!  http://www.boots.com/en/VO5-Nourish-My-Shine-Shampoo-400ml_1648669/
(Currently on offer at Boots)


Body

This was a no brainer, the body/bath product I have been loving this year is the Zoella Soak Opera. This product has been my go to one all year! Why?? 1. It smells amazing. 2. You can use it as either a body wash or as a bubble bath which is great, if you use it as a bubble bath I find that the Zoella Fizz Bar goes really well with that and 3. It comes in a massive bottle, so this could easily last you a month, if not two! 

Only available at Superdrug and online at Feel Unique!
http://www.superdrug.com/Toiletries/Washing-%26-Bathing/Indulgent-Bathing/Zoella-Soak-Opera---Bath-Soak-Shower-Cream-490ml/p/303500#.VofNhsaLTnA


Music

Okay, so if you read my November favourites post you probably know what I'm about to say.... One Direction's Made in the A.M album is hands down my favourite album of the year. I haven't stopped listening to it since I got it. Just love it. Even if you don't love them I would recommend going and listening to a few of the songs from the album. My personal favourites (I mentioned a few in my November favourites blog post) are Wolves, Temporary Fix, Olivia Walking in the Wind, History..... All of them!!

Fan girling over.

And if I had to pick just one song from this year it has to be Style by T Swift! I see a theme going with this music ;) (yes it did take me a whole year to work out why it was called Style...... #awkward) every time this song comes on to my phone I never skip it. Love it. There's not much you can say about a song....


TV

So I don't watch a lot of TV or shows, I'm a hard person to please but one that really struck a chord with me this year was Nashville, not to mention the songs from the show are incredible. 
The show is about country singers, there's more too it than that, all the obstacles they overcome and there is a lot because it's a drama, and the way they handle having a career and having a life and a family.  The first 3 seasons are on NowTv and if you are in America you are lucky enough to have the fourth season airing already!! I don't want to say too much about it in case I ruin it for you but you should definitely check it out!


Film

Again another hard one, I saw a lot of good films in 2015, there were a lot that touched me and saw me through hard times, if you read my last blog post you will know that one of them is Cinderella. However, the one that stands out the most is Austenland. This is one of those cheesy chick flicks that doesn't have expensive lavish sets or award winning acting but is just a bit of fun and so funny! It's about a woman called Jane who is obsessed with Jane Austen books, she's been unlucky in love so decides to spend her savings on a trip to Austenland - a place where you truly step in to the world of Jane Austen - Obviously it isn't quite the experience that she was expecting, I will say no more than that! I found the character of Jane to be so relateable and the film is just so funny. If you love a bit of a cheesy chick filck you will love this!! 

Random

Okay, so my really random favourite for 2015 is the Disney Tsum Tsums, if you live in Japan and maybe America you may have had these available for some time but they recently landed in the UK and it's a craze that has literally taken off.... Everywhere! I love that they are small because that means they don't take up too much space, mine a currently on my window ledge! It allows you to indulge in cute cuddly Disney things without having ones that take up bed or wardrobe space! But I warn you, they are addictive, once you buy one you want to buy more....and more... and more!! If you already love tsum tsums then a really great person to follow on Instagram is @tsumtsumtsum this person owns every tsum tsum known to man and also knows when things are coming out in America, UK and Japan, they are the fountain of all tsum tsum knowledge!! Below is a picture of my collection, I will soon be adding the Peter Pan ones too it. If you're interested in seeing my collection grow I always post on instagram when I get new ones, my link will be below! I think my favourite tsum tsum is King Triton, he's adorable!!! (This is an old picture taken before I moved them to my windowsill!) 

Okay so this is another random one but I wanted to add my favourite actress/person from the spotlight from 2015 and the person that left an impression towards the back end of 2015 is Daisy Ridley. For those of you who may have been living under a rock she plays Rey in the new Star Wars film. I just think she's great, she reminds me of Jennifer Lawrence (who is my hero and favourite actress all the time, forever) which is probably why I like her. She seems, from interviews etc, very grounded and normal, which is nice! Also she loves the Great British Bake Off and anyone that loves a bit of Mary and Paul, I love! You can follow her on instagram @daisyridley and she is also on the cover of Glamour magazine (interview inside) if you are interested!!!! I think we will see great things from her this year!

Sorry that this is late going up, I have been at work since New Years Eve and just not had the time, hence why there's no pictures (apart from one old one and two I borrowed from Google)! You'll be happy to know this will be the last wordy blog post for a while. I'm going to plan some more useful blog posts for the up coming weeks, got a few products I want to try, maybe even some baking and cooking blogs!!

Find me on social media!

(A facebook page is coming soon....)

Instagram @annakimberley93

Twitter @annarailton1993 

Goodbye 2015

I can't believe that we are in our last few days of 2015! So crazy. This year seems to have flown by and I know that people say that every year but this one really does seem to to have gone in a flash!

Before I get stuck in to the blog post I just wanted to say that I hope all of you reading this, and all of you that always read this, have had an amazing Christmas! (Only 361 sleeps until the next one!) Not only that but thank you! Thank you for reading my blogs, it honestly means a lot. This was a pipe dream from the start of this year and now it's an actual thing that people actually read and support, that's pretty incredible! This year blogging, next year YouTube????

Of all my 22 years on Earth this year has been the most challenging one that I have experienced. That being said I would like to share with you some things that I have learnt and will be taking into 2016 with me.

So, at the start of this year, I was living with my boyfriend, in Warrington ( I told you this was going to be personal ) then it hit summer time, and, without going in to much detail, our relationship hit a point were it was just not working anymore and he ended it, I had to move back home with my family and really re-asses my life. This is a person I had been with for nearly four years, so all this change was a massive lifestyle adjustment and I won't lie at first, it was hard. For those of you that have been through break ups yourself you will know that they can feel like the end of the world!

But let me tell you, for those of you that might be nursing a broken heart as you head in to the New Year.... Time heals all wounds, you will be happy again and you will stop crying. One day I just woke up, threw all that shit out and realised I'm fucking amazing by myself. I have realised that I can do anything I want with my life, the world is literally my oyster. For the first time, I am content and happy with my job, it's not what I want to do forever but it's better than not having a job at all. I do have a plan for the future and I am fully confident in myself and my abilities that I will get there but for now I just want to enjoy life and experience it, you should too!

If you're in a relationship and on a weekly basis you are telling yourself that you deserve better, then listen to yourself. Have the courage to trust yourself and the confidence to believe that actually, although it might be hard, you got this. You can be single, and you can be bloody good at it. You don't need another person to define you!

When it comes to jobs and life aspirations, go for it. Whatever it is in life that you want, you can have it, go and get it, what is stopping you? Believe in yourself. That might sound like a really cheesy, Disney thing to say but believing in yourself and loving yourself, first and foremost, is the best thing you can do going into the New Year. Also, to any older people reading this, you are never too old to do anything and it is never too late to go after what you want!

2016 is all about having confidence in everything that you do, work, life, friends, family, passions, ambitions, relationships and most importantly you.

You are completely amazing. There is nothing wrong with anything that you are, anything that you want, believe in or like. If we were all the same the world would be such a boring place to live!!

Of course, there will be moments that challenge you, and moments when you still don't think you can do it, I get those sometimes, it's almost like everything rushes at you all at once and life just becomes so overwhelming. 

That being said, I have composed a playlist of all the songs that have driven me, empowered me, picked me up and basically got me through the last five months, some of them might seem a bit of an odd choice, but if I'm not going to be honest then what's the point in doing a blog....?

' This is just the start of your story, if you've got guts, you get glory, anyone can make it even you, now's the time you gotta stand tough, cos if you work hard you can rise up, anyone can make it even you...' - The city's yours (Annie Soundtrack)

Another thing that kept me going was Cinderella (the most recent one) is that really girly? Probably. Not because she gets a happily ever after but because she is so strong. Yes it's fictional and real life isn't really like that but so many lines of that film can applied to real life.

'Just because it's what's done doesn't mean it's what should be done..' 

So what does 2016 hold for me??? Well, I have learnt that making long term plans isn't always a great idea since nothing is ever certain in life, as this year has shown me BUT I would really like to go to either Italy or Ireland (once I've paid off that naughty student overdraft) I want a change in career..... Maybe pluck up the courage to create a youtube channel!! I want to invest more in this blog. Really spend time with family and friends creating amazing memories! I want to take time with photography, it's something I really enjoy and love and thanks to my mum I now have a swanky new camera. I also want to begin saving to go to Harry Potter studios again, since the last time was with my ex..... But mainly I just want to have a wonderful year!

I really hope you've taken something from this blog, I've put a lot of effort into it. IT's something I've been wanting to write for a while and I figured this was the perfect time for it.

I hope that you all have a wonderful New Year whatever you are doing!

Find me on social media!

Instagram @annakimberley93

Twitter @annarailton1993

December Pink Parcel

A couple of weeks ago I received my Pink Parcel through the post and rather than upload a post straight away about everything that was in it and where you can get it all from I wanted to give it some time so that I could use the products and give you an honest opinion on what I thought, so here we are!

If you are wondering what the heck Pink Parcel is then I will be leaving the link to their website at the bottom, alternatively you can scroll down to the blog post titled Pink Parcel it's a Monthly Thing!

Okay I'll start with the things I didn't like or find useful. The Fab little bags were tampon disposable bags...... I have towels in my Pink Parcel bogs so these were of no use but it's the thought that counts!!

The English Tea Shop Ginger Bread Man tea bag. I'm not a herbal tea person. I like your bog standard English Breakfast tea so I always pass on the tea bags to my mum but she hasn't used it yet so I honestly I have no idea if it tastes nice or not.

A few weeks ago Pink Parcel posted on Facebook asking what people wanted to see more or less of in their boxes next year and I did comment that there should be an option to have herbal tea bags or just a normal English Breakfast so we shall see!!

Organic AngeliQ Festive Orange and Organic Cranberry ............. If you like dark chocolate then you will more than likely love this but I'm a milk chocolate kind of girl, I did try a bite though and I just found it so so bitter! Not a lover, again maybe an option to just have milk chocolate in your parcel would be a good idea!

Freeman exfoliating face scrub, I was really let down by this it didn't really scrub or do much of anything, maybe I used it wrong.... I am not a beauty expert, but it did smell really really good!

On to the winners!

Gloco Tabs - Essentially little tablets that top up your sugar levels. I found these useful, especially during my period to give me that little boost of energy to get me through long days!

The little gingerbread man that you see is a lipgloss, incredibly cute and festive, I really loved this, you don't get a lot in it as you can probably imagine but still a great little product that I have been using on a night and it has left my lips feeling beautifully soft in the morning

O.P.I Muppets on Tour nail polish, absolutely brilliant choice for the December box. Perfect for both Christmas and New Year, long lasting, buildable, everything you want from a nail polish this time of year! Below is a picture of how I have used it to create my festive nails (the red colour is Tanya Burr's Mischief Managed nail polish from her original collection)

And the star of the box for me was the bracelet from Lisa Angel. Just perfect. I have had so many compliments on it and I am in love, there isn't much today, it's just a simple friendship style bracelet. There are more options on the website and you can personalize them as well so I will leave the link for the website below!

To go with all of the Pink Parcel also packed in a mystery, surprise, Christmas cracker and inside was a sample of Vichy's new Idealia Skin Sleep cream. I got three uses out of this and I really liked the product. It wasn't thick it went on really easy and it smelt fresh and lovely. I can't say if it made my skin look more fresh because I wasn't using it for long enough and I don't really suffer from dark circles or tired looking skin but I have put it on my list of things to buy for next year!

As always I am extremely happy with the products in my pink parcel, even though there is room for improvement in the tea and chocolate department, and the quality! I would highly recommend subscribing, I think it's such a bargain for only £12.99 a month!

Pink Parcel - https://www.pinkparcel.co.uk/

Vichy - http://www.vichy.co.uk/

Lisa Angel - http://www.lisaangel.co.uk/jewellery/bracelets

Find me on social media!

Instagram - @annakimberley93

Twitter - @annarailton1993

Long time no blog...

Hi Guys!!

So this is just a little update for any of you that read my blog and have been wondering, where is she? Why has she not posted in forever? What about the Christmas book club!

Well it's this crazy little inconvenient things called life. Yeah.. It happens.

For the last couple of months I have been juggling my actual job (four days a week) with volunteering in a school (the other three days of the week) while also making time for friends and family and also some important me time! Oh and let's not forget getting Christmas sorted! So as you can imagine, making time for blogging has been a challenge! But I haven't forgotten, I am still here and I think that starting in the New Year I am going to post every Wednesday, that way I have a set date and I can be more prepared and organised and you guys all know when to come back and check out what's happening!

How are you all anyway? All good and well I hope and ready for this coming week?!

In regards to the book club all I can say is I'm sorry! At the time it seemed like a really good idea!! But as I have already said, life gets busy and I am not the fastest reader in the world! But I will get Dream a Little Christmas Dream finished before the New Year even if it kills me!!!


This blog is just a little bit of something and a whole lots of nothing to let you know that I am alive and well and definitely still blogging!

Oh and before I forget to talk about it, a couple of days ago I bought Luise Omielan's show 'Am I Right Ladies?!' --Seriously one of the best things I have ever bought.  For those of you who may not know, and that might be a lot of you, Luisa is an up and coming comedian, most of you will have probably seen her piece on thigh gaps and in case you haven't I will leave the link below. Everything she says is just so so true and relatable more so probably if you're over 18..... The reason I bring it up is because it was such an empowering thing to watch and if you are someone that is single, maybe newly single (like myself) or struggling to get a career going, or deciding what you want to do with life or maybe you're lacking confidence in certain areas that seriously this is the best present you can give yourself going into the new year ladies!! (gents you'll enjoy it too don't worry!)

Luisa Omielan Thigh Gap -----> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2MskQOinwE

Click this link to buy Am I Right Ladies ----> http://www.iloveluisa.com/#section-shop

Check back tomorrow for a review and breakdown of the products from this months Pink Parcel.

Find me on social media!

Instagram @annakimberley93
Twitter @annarailton1993

Not Quite Five Gold Rings....

Ho Ho Ho!

Christmas is fast approaching everyone and so I would like to share with you my top fives!

This post is also to make up for the fact that I am completely rubbish and have not finished the second book in the christmas book club. I am really sorry about that but I have just not had the time, but I will get it done, I promise!

So let's get stuck in to the lists like we get stuck in to the turkey on christmas day!!

Top Five Christmas Films (1 is the bestest one EVER 5 is like great but not number 1)

1. Santa Claus the Movie - This will forever and always be my favourite Christmas film, he is the best Santa, I know it word for word, I have watched it every single Christmas repeatedly since forever. This will never be knocked off the number one spot, if you haven't seen it then can you please stop reading and go watch it, thank you.

2. Miracle on 34th Street - This film is so magical. Again another one I know all the words too, I blame my grandma. The most magical parts are when he's putting on his suit in Coles, when he speaks sign language to the little girl and the end court scene, that scene, man it gives me chills and feels and more feels which make tears.

(Have come too a sudden realisation that it is very hard to pick only five Christmas films.....)

3. Scrooge (The one with Albert Finney) You can't have Christmas without Scrooge, you just can't. This is a classic, great songs and great portrayal of Scrooge. This is the version of Scrooge that I was brought up on ( and the muppets obviously, light the lamp not the rat) but this means more because it's a family fave!

4. Nativity - Okay so this is relatively new, the main reason I love this film is because of Mr Poppy, he is hilarious, that and the songs are so catchy. It's just a really great feel good, festive, family film! ( Number two is also really really good and I haven't seen number 3 yet!)

5. Home Alone - Do I really need to say why this is in the top five?! 

Also: Polar Express, Beauty and the Beast Enchanted Christmas, Elf, Arthur Christmas and Santa Who are great ones.

If you are wanting a slightly more sophisticated festive spirit then my top picks are, The Holiday, While you were sleeping and Love Actually.

(Are there enough days in the month to get through all of those films on top of everything else?)


Top Five Christmas Songs

1.  Merry Christmas Everyone - Shakin Stevens

2. Mistletoe and Wine - Cliff Richard

3. Driving Home For Christmas - Chris Rea

4. Last Christmas - Wham

5. Fairytale of New York - The Pogues

Generally speaking though, I love all Christmas songs, who doesn't? Especially when Michael Buble is singing them!! *swoon*

Top Five Christmas Foods

I thought about including these in my general Christmas top five list but there were too many because I bloody love food!

1. Pigs in blankets - These are the best part of Christmas dinner. No arguments.

2. Mince Pies - I actually think I have eaten more mince pies than Santa so far.... Om nom nom.

3. Costa White Hot Chocolate - Okay so technically not a food but it only comes out at Christmas and it's in that sort of category..... I don't like normal hot chocolate but white hot chocolate is the greatest. Not with the raspberry sauce on top though, however, ask for it with chocolate sprinkles, you won't regret it!!

4. Mince Pie Cookies - Thank you Tesco...Just.... Thank you! They are what they say they are and they are amazing.

5. Pigs in blankets - They're that good they get to be on the list twice.


General Christmas Top Fives

1. Christmas Decorations - This is anything for the ones that go on the tree to cushions and bedding and candles and singing things, just all of it. I'm one of those people that has everything up in the last couple of days of November because when it gets to December I want to be surrounded by Christmas, I want the fairy lights from the Christmas tree to be the only thing glowing, I just want to enjoy it, from start to finish.

2. Christmas jumpers - Bloody love me a Christmas jumper, I only have five at the minute but the aim is to have one for every day of the month next year! 

3. Writing Christmas cards and wrapping presents - Most people hate this part or find it boring but it always get's me feeling super festive and I always pick paper and cards depending on the person and of course I have to have matching tags and if I can be bothered then we go for a ribbon!

4. Christmas cracker jokes - Yes they are awful and yes I have probably heard them a gazzillion times but I'm still going to laugh!

5. Christmas Day - I love this day but for very different reasons than when I was younger. Now I love seeing my little brother getting all excited because Santa has been and I love seeing people open what I bought them but I think I just love having that family time! Yes we always get family time but Christmas day just feels a little bit more special I think because you get to see all the other family members that you usually don't get a chance to see. In saying this I would just like to say it's also important to remember all the people that are missing out on a family Christmas because they're serving their country or because they work in public services and they're busy saving lives in one way or another - to you people and to your families, you're amazing <3

(I also like to go through the tv guide and pick out everything I'm watching over Christmas and I LOVE carols by candle light at the church on Christmas eve, it's so festive and lovely!)

I hope that this has got you feeling merry and bright, only 15 more sleeps!!!

Find me on Social Media

Instagram @annakimberley93
Twitter @annarailton1993