Madolyn Thinks

Once the festive period is over things can become a little difficult in terms of money. What with the expense of Christmas and New Year, nights out, presents and lots of new festive gear, once January comes around, pay day seems pretty far away and saving money can become quite problematic. I have a few hints and tips however on how to save your money, especially during this time of year.

Nars is one of my favourite make up brands. I have never bought or used anything that I haven't loved and the quality of the products is so amazing. Not only that, the packaging is absolutely spot on, I love the matte, black casing with the iconic white Nars writing, it all looks so beautiful when gathered together. 

I seem to have been getting a little more homely of late. Perhaps it is due to the cold days and dark nights keeping me indoors more than usual, but I seem to have be getting quite house-proud the past few weeks or so. I also seem to have collected a few new additions for my little house and so decided to do a home wear haul of a few bits and bobs I have picked up.

A simple winter make up look, easily achieved with a few basic make up essentials.

I feel as though my nail varnish picks before Christmas and New Year differ greatly to my polish picks once the festive season is over. During December I like to wear a deep burgundy, reds or dark berry colours - see my Festive Nail Varnishes post for more examples. However, once January comes around I like to coat my nails in brighter, pastel shades.

My current top five shades for this time of year are:

No.7 Duck Egg Blue - a beautiful bright pastel that as amazing lasting power.

Barry M Nail Paint in Prickly Pear - a gorgeous lavender shade that is super shiny.

Seventeen Gel Colour - only two coats are needed for a full cover.

Barry M Speedy Quick Dry in Speed Demon - a baby pink that drys so quickly.

Bourjois Paris in Rose Clair - Such a sophisticated shade.

What shades do you like to wear on your nails during the winter?

Madolyn

xxx

Coconut lane are a beautiful, ever-growing online company that offer a range of home styling, accessories and jewellery. I have picked out a few of my favourites from their 'Sassy' range. They are extremely affordable and offer very on trend pieces from iPhone cases to cheeky wall art prints. Each item makes a wonderful gift or a great treat for your self.

I don't tend to use a huge amount of products on my hair, I feel as though it is something that I need to work one as I can be quite lazy with hair-styling. I seem to have adopted the 'lets just let my hair do what it wants and hope for the best' kind of approach. There are a few key essentials however that I can't live without when it comes to my hair.

Last weekend I decided to get super productive and that began with me waking up early and making James and I the most perfect French Toast. I don't think that I have ever had French Toast before, and I certainly hadn't made it before. After a little research on Pinterest the night before however, I felt ready and prepped come Saturday morning to put my new found knowledge to practice and I must say - I was pretty impressed with the result. So impressed in fact, that I thought that I would share my method on here.

I love a pretty perfume bottle and seems as though I have added quite a few to my perfume collection of late. I like to have a selection to pick from as I feel as though my perfume preference can change daily and I like to have ones for everyday use, nights out and special occasions.

 

Jo Malone is a brand that I have been lusting over for what feels like forever. Not only does the packaging look sooo beautiful and perfect, I have also read so many amazing reviews of their products. One of their candles has been pretty high on my wish list of late but I was so surprised and excited when I received the most amazing Christmas cracker from the world's best boyfriend.

 

January can be a funny time of year when deciding what to wear. It seems to have become extremely cold the last two weeks and increasing hard to resist wearing jogging bottoms and thick hoodies to work during the week. I have been trying hard to create more of a staple winter wardrobe and this beautiful blue and white jumper from Joules is my latest addition.

If you are looking for an affordable makeup brand that delivers to your door, has a large range of lip and cheek products suitable for lots of different skin tones, is animal cruelty free and comes in super sleek packaging, then you should probably keep reading this post...

One of my aims in 2015 was to read more. I am a huge book lover yet it felt as though reading had taken a bit of a back seat for a while. Last year I made it more of my routine and I am so much happier when I take the time to settle down with a cup of tea and a good book. This year I intend to carry on with the good work and have some great reads lined up for the next few weeks. 

I struggle at the best of times to motivate myself to excise, never mind when the weather is rubbish and it is freezing cold. The dark mornings and evenings make it seriously difficult to leave the warmth of my bed. It is for these reasons that I decided that my gym gear needed a little winter make over, to make it a little easier to face the winter chill.

For the last few years Soap & Glory have bought out a limited edition box of goodies in the Boots Christmas range that is based around £50 or £60. Each week on the build but to Christmas however, Boots will promote a different Star Gift which will mean that one of the high end beauty bundles will be reduced to half price for one week only. It is almost guarenteed that Soap & Glory's bundle will be reduced and this year they didn't disappoint. This will be my third Soap & Glory box as it has now become a little bit of a tradition to ask for one for Christmas.

Christmas is a funny time of year and it can sometimes feel as though it is a little non-stop. What with meeting friends for festive drinks, Christmas shopping, family meet ups and planning and sorting everything for the big day - it can be a little exhausting. One of the mains things I love to do once Christmas is all over is take some time out for myself and enjoy some quiet and alone time.

I had such a wonderful Christmas this year. James and I decided to spend Christmas day on our own which was really relaxed and filled with food, drink, festive films and lots of lovely presents.