Wonderful Things: Afternoon Tea, Busted Concert and more!

I was treated to an afternoon tea for two gift experience for Christmas which was super lovely and as I am a big foodie and a big tea and coffee drinker I was super excited to get it booked up. I went with a friend and we had the most amazing afternoon tea; with soup, hot crumpets, finger sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and jam and of-course lots of teeny tiny delicious sweet treats and hot beverages. Anyone that knows me well knows that anything ditsy and floral print is right up my street and the decor inside was just beautiful. It was such a lovely day, I would definitely recommend Jelly Pickle Jam if you are local to Evesham or are visiting.

I really like Yankee as a brand, but I just buy their sampler votive candles these days as it gives you a chance to see if you like the scent for just £2, rather than investing in a jar costing around £18. If I'm honest I've found that some Yankee scents aren't very strong and have been a bit of a let down, but not this one! Macaron Treats smells gorgeous and brightens my mood when its burning; it reminds me of times from when I was young - its just a lovely, sweet scent.

I love having false nails on my nails, it is probably one of favourite 'pamper me' type things to do. I've never been very good at growing my own nails, and after using false nails so much in the past, my nails are really weak and tend to break. I have given false nails a rest for a while so I can look after my own nails a little bit better. I was challenged recently to try the Renunail 3 Step Kit* out to see if my nails would strengthen in four Weeks. Included is their original Nail Strengthener, Nourishing Oil and their Nail Strengthener in pink. I've been using this kit for probably over five Weeks now, and I've noticed such a difference. You simply apply the Nail Strengthener every day for one Week, remove on the seventh day and then continue this pattern for the next three Weeks. Alhough my nails haven't grown all that much, they haven't broke and they do feel stronger and look in much better condition than before. I will be purchasing these products once they've run out as they have worked really well for me, so these have definitely been wonderful products for me this Month.

I am big Busted fan (13 year old Zoe was completely obsessed with them back in the day) and having seen them for the first time in over ten years last year on their comeback tour, of-course I had to buy tickets to the latest tour too. They were brilliant as always; we were standing this time and I always think its a much better atmosphere compared to seating. I think Busted will always have a big piece of my heart, regardless of what anyone else thinks, their music really makes me happy and reminds me of being young. I didn't take any photos while I was there, I try to enjoy the moment when I go to concerts (plus being a tiny 5'1 I can't really take any decent photos as I cant see the stage too much!) so here's a selfie of me wearing last Years tour t-shirt.

Secret Santa 2015

I really wanted to get this post live during December, but I took an impromptu Week (or two) off from blogging. I took part in a blogger secret santa a few years ago and decided I wanted to do it again this Year, so I signed up to Carissa's Blogger Secret Santa and I was ready to go. I loved choosing and buying gifts and being a 'secret santa' for someone else, hope she loved her gifts just as much as I enjoyed picking them! 

As you can see I received some lovely gifts from my secret santa; including A Makeup Revolution gift set, a pamper kit including some lovely face, hair, feet and eye masks, some festive Yankee Candle votives and the obligatory chocolate coins. I am so grateful for these gifts, everyone knows I love a good candle and a pamper. 

Did you take part in any secret santa gift giving this Christmas? What did you buy, and what did you receive?

Yankee Candle Scented Glass Tumbler in Fluffy Towels

I am a huge fan of candles, and if you have read my blog for a while, you will know I am a big fan of Yankee candles. I have found that I prefer the smaller candles they stock, like the tumblers or small jars. Today I am featuring one of their glass tumblers in the scent 'fluffy towels'. 

If you are a fan of subtle, but beautiful scents, then Fluffy Towels is for you. It smells like fresh linen, and it really is a lovely scent. I have burnt this in my bedroom and it really does make the room feel peaceful and tranquil. I imagine it would be a great candle for pretty much every room in the house, as it is really relaxing and a very versatile scent which would be great for the kitchen, lounge, or bathroom, too. I love the fact that the candle doesn't smell synthetic or fake, the scent smells lovely. The scent is strong enough to notice the smell, but isn't too over powering - a perfect - medium. Once entering the room the candle is burning in, it smells so fresh and clean. I really love the scent of this candle - it is definitely a new favourite of mine.

Yankee's Fluffy Towels burns almost perfectly, which is what I find with a lot of Yankee Candles Scented Glass Tumblers. The candle burns very equal, and there isn't a lot of waste once it has burned through. I really do think the Yankee Tumblers are good value for money, as this costs only £8.99 from The Scented Candle Shop and burns for upto 45 hours.

If you are a candle lover like me, I would recommend having a browse on the Scented Candle Shop website. They have a huge range of candles and accessories and they stock a lot of my favourite candle brands, too!

*This post contains PR samples/items which were sent to me for consideration to review. All opinions are 100 %  honest and my own. You can view my full disclaimer policy on the contact tab above*

Review: Yankee Candle Simply Home in Vanilla Frosting

                         Yankee Candle Simply Home in Vanilla Frosting  
          

I have tried a few of Yankee Candles 'Simply Home' range and I am quite impressed. Being a big lover of candles, I often get drawn into shops just to swoon over pretty scented candles. I decided to try the 'Vanilla Frosting' large jar candle, as it was on special offer in my local Asda Supermarket.
Vanilla Frosting smells very sweet but not too overpowering. I personally don't think the Simply Home Range of candles are as strongly scented as the normal Yankee Candles /(I think that is the point really) which I really like. I love sweet scents but they can sometimes become unbearable if it such a strong scent in a small space. I burn the majority of my candles in my bedroom so I find the Simply Home candles perfect.
The scent smells like butter-cream and sugar, it is super sweet. The candle burns quite equally which is something I like in a candle, as I hate waste.
Are you crazy over burning candles?

Review: Yankee Candle in Warm Spice

                                             Yankee Candle Warm Spice

It is no word of a lie when I say I really love candles. I know every blogger and their mum seem to yarp on about the candle God of all Gods Yankee, but they really are worth all of the glory as they are the best candles I have used. That aside, I thought I would write up a few reviews on some of my favourite scents, as I haven't really done this much on my blog before.

Warm Spice is a scent which is pretty self - explantory... think creamy, home baking, cinnamon, nuts and brown sugar. The scent is very crisp and sweet, without it being overally sweet or sickly. The scent does not smell synthetic or fake, it smells like real home baking at Christmas time. The long - lasting smell is quite strong but not overwhelming.

This burns really nicely and evenly, which is good value for money in my opinion. I find when buying cheaper candles they don't burn as equal as Yankee Candles do.

The scent fills an entire room, and the burn time is really good for about 25+ hours I would say on average. I really like the tumblers, but I have no preferance between Yankees tumblers or jars.

Are you a fan of Candles?

What is your favourite?

Review: Yankee Candle Simply Home Merry Berry

Yankee Candle

Simply Home

Merry Berry

I am doing a little different post to normal today. I have a huge love for burning candles, and I have noticed a lot of you alll do too. I know a lot of people love to burn the original Yankee Candles, but I use purchase  candles from their Simply Home range a lot and I really like their burning time and scents, so thought I would share with you some of my thoughts.

Perfect for the Festive Season upon us, I bring you 'Merry Berry'. As its title suggests, it smells strongly of fruity berries.The scent is very strong, it fills a room with quite strong berry and wintery scent. It is a lovely, fresh, festive scent for this time of year.  It burns realy well, with a good 40+ hours burn time. The scent lasts well in a room. When they are burning for a long time the jar does get dirty, but that is the same with most candles anyway.

These retail at £9 and are readily available in store at ASDA.

Have you tried any Simply Home candles by Yankee?