#Blogmas Day 14: Perfect party nails

Party time is upon us and its time to get your glad rags on. Panicking to find that perfect dress that will hug you in all the right places, show off your best assets and give you the confidence of Beyonce on stage while performing 'Who run the world!'.... Girls! Because yes we do! This is the time of year where we show what we've got, our energy and personality shines through (once we've had a tipple of course) and there a feeling that nothing is going to stop us!

Avalanche Nails £8.99 - Boots

Make the most of the rest of the year we have, do it your way but do it in style. Whether your having hot chocolate on the sofa and watching films or your up until 4am with your squad, dancing the night away. Whatever it is, make it the best day, week or and end of year you can remember... its never too late to make memories!

La Croux Nails £12.99 - Elegant Touch

This christmas edition of nails by Elegant Touch in collaoration with House of Holland are the perfect way to make a statement this Christmas and New year. Wear them how you like. Avalanche are perfect for the day time, having drinks with friends or to even make you feel better about yourself. La Croux add some glamour whatever you are doing and I can tell you now, I will be donning these on Christmas day as I lounge around, eating everything in sight. I will look a mess but my nails will be on fleek!

If you have any dress, makeup or style plans this Christmas. Comment below, I would love to know!
Enjoy bringing out every side of your personality this Winter!
Love Khrissie x

#Blogmas 7: Stocking fillers under £10

Its blogmas day 13! I can't believe how quickly this month has already gone. I have been trying so hard to get a post up everyday but seeing as I decided I would do this on the 1st December, I never got a change to pre-plan posts and photographs. My days have been really long with work so by the time I get home and eat I need to go to bed. I have made it my mission this weekend to take as many pictures as I can so I can post for the rest of Christmas for you.

For day 13 I thought it would be good to show you a few gifting gems which I have found especially for you. Its coming to the start of the Christmas rush for presents and when your in a panic I find it hard to search for gifts that are affordable. So I have put together a little selection of some presents, that would be great for all sorts of people.

Enjoy! I hope it gives you some inspiration....

1/ Personalised Pencils from - Not on the High Street
As mundane as that may seem when you say you have got some pencils, it really isn't. If you know someone who loves stationery, then there is nothing better. They are also personalised so that adds a special touch and it stops the problem of other people stealing your things, especially if you have a spelling like mine.

2/ Arthur egg cup and spoon - Not on the High Street
This is a cute little gift for your friends or family who really enjoy breakfast time. Why not make it that little bit more interesting by presenting it in something fun? This would also be a great little gift for a kid who is into kings and princesses.

3/ The Night Before Christmas' gift set - Lush
There a lot of people in this world that love nothing more than a bit of me time and a bath. This christmas gift set would be perfect for that friend or family. This little box comes with the snow angel bath melt and intergalactic bath bomb. Both which are amazing on their own as gifts but much better wrapped up beautifully together.


4/ 'Love you to the Moon and back' keyring - Not on the High Street
I love this little keyring as this saying is something I say to all my family. I love how no matter where in the world you are, we all share the same moon. So when you feel like your far away from someone you miss, just look at the moon because you know they will be looking at it too. It sounds so cheesy but it really does help in those times where you feel the most lonely. The base keyring is £10 but you can add letter pebbles to it for £3 each if you wanted to personalise it.

5/ Puffin Classic books  - Anthropologie
This is perfect for your book worm in the family. Theres nothing better than a classic story to read while your relaxing the winter. With the book covers so beautifully illustrated, they would look wonderful on a book shelf and totally Pinterest worthy.

6/ Russian Doll measuring cups - Amazon
These measuring cups are adorable! I really need some myself. They stack into each other to make it space saving and super cute on your worktop at the same time. These would be perfect for the baker e the family. They are always useful to have around, even for meal recipes and theres nothing more enjoyable to have pretty tools to do it with.

7/ Beatrix Teacup & Saucer - Oliver Bonas
Last up is this gorgeous tea cup and saucer. I mean just look at it! They have different styles on the site as well as a full 4 piece set and a teapot cup if you wanted something which was more of the whole package instead. I really want these, well I want everything I have shown you today but this is just gorgeous! There are a lot of avid tea drinkers out there, and there is nothing better than drinking tea in style. I feel this pays homage to Britain and the British ways in which we do things, which I think is great. Ughh I love it!

So that is all I have to show you today, but check out the rest of the sites that these are linked too as there are lots of other amazing gifts available!

See you tomorrow...hopefully!
Love Khrissie x

Duvet day with Tanya Burr

Today I wanted to share with you a recent make up release I have been lusting over, the new and improved Tanya Burr cosmetics line. Now I have been following Tanyas footsteps for years now so I am and always will be a proud 'fan' of hers and seeing as she is my age I always feel I can relate to her.

I am a packaging designer by day so these things dont go unnoticed fby me and it is usually a reason I will pick something up. I love the fact she has considered her target market but given it a grown up edge for those like me who are on 'team overs' (luckily without Simon Cowell I might add) with the metallic accents and simple typography. I thought I would pick up a couple of pieces to try and to see how they faired on a day to day basis as I know she is a perfectionist so I trusted that these would be nothing but spectacular. 

 Hollywood eye palette 

Some of the main products that intrigued me the most in this collection was the new additions to her line, the eye palettes. Now I'm getting to the point in my life where I want to try and nail an everyday smoky eye look that will take less than five minutes while I ponder over twitter in the morning. I thought this gorgeous golden toned palette 'Hollywood' over all the rest would give me the best chance at achieving my goal and so it quickly went into my basket. 

The eyes shadows are velvety to the touch and have a beautiful colour pay off. They all work together like bees on a summers morning, seamlessly blending into each other like melted chocolate. A must have for the bronzed goddess look which will last you throughout summer and autumn, just as the leaves are turning golden and the morning sky is shining behind the trees. 

The base colours work best applied with your fingers and softly worked into the skin with a clean fluffy brush. Creating a smoky eye is effortless and with little practice that perfection I want to achieve in the mornings will be a distant thought. Some colours are quite sheer on first application but are perfect to build up to the desired consistency, especially if you are practising eye looks.

Gold coin has to be my favourite colour (top right) from the palette, as it looks so elegant when worn alone with a nice layer of mascara and an inner corner highlight. I can see this being a keeper in my everyday palette collection as the versatility of it is just perfect for me. 

The next purchase I made was of a nail polish. Now I am a hoarder of sorts when it comes to nail colour. They are so cheap and easy to store that I just cant help my hands gravitating towards them every time I step into a drugstore. Now, if you see me on a daily basis at the moment you will notice I look the same most days. Not because I decide to wear the same clothes every time I step into my wardrobe, but I have a new undying love for the colour grey. 

Duvet Day £4.99

I know its possible I look like a rain cloud floating through London on my way to work every week but I just can not help myself. Black just isn't me anymore, and it took me a while to realise that it accentuated my RBF (resting bitch face) more than I would have liked. So when I saw this on the shelves with its shimmering gold lid, muted tone and perfect name 'Duvet Day' I just couldn't say no. I would have been like visiting Battersea cats and dogs home without bringing back a new best friend. Sorry Christian, I have a new love now.

Do have a peak next time your in Superdrug, you might be surprised. Congratulations to Tanya too for all the hard work and dedication into making something you truly have a passion about. This is one for the women out there.

I hope you have enjoyed reading my post this week. Do keep me up to date on any new purchases you have made recently and do let me know I'm not the only one in the grey gang this year. 

See you next time

Khrissie x

Blogmas Gift Idea: Personalised Cake

Hello there guys!

Today I am sharing with you something else Christmas related as I can not get enough! The other week I received this adorable little cake from 'Baker Days'. This is a company that specialises in making cakes which are customised depending on the occasion. They are changing the way the world sends greetings to their loved ones by giving you the opportunity to send and personalised cake in the design and flavour that you chose.

There are lots of different categories of cake designs you can choose from but I decided to go for the Christmas cakes as theres nothing better than celebrating Christmas, than with food! First off you choose your design so I went with this adorable mint green one with 'Merry Christmas' written on it. The great thing about this is the fact you can personalise it with any name of your choice. I was a little cheeky and added my name as I never managed to find things with my name on and it really excited me.

You then decide on the type of cake you want from vanilla, fruit cake or even chocolate. There are also gluten and dairy free options with the added bonus of getting half and half if you can't decide on the flavour. I of course went for chocolate as I'm really craving that sweet goodness right now.
The last thing to do is choose your size from single cupcakes to large cakes that have a hefty 55 servings. I received the letterbox cake that comes in a cute little tin with a price tag of £14.99. Now this may seem like a lot of money but personalised and custom made gifts are always more as they are all made on a one off basis. The fact you get to choose your design and flavour, receive it in the sweetest tin that you can actually keep as well as a little party pack based on the theme of your cake, you can't go wrong and the best part of it all is, its delicious!

I was worried it was going to be quite dry and flavourless as all the efforts had been put into the design of the cake but once I cut into it I was surprised to see a deliciously moist cake inside. This didn't hang around long with my four housemates sniffing around but I didn't mind as Christmas is for sharing. Seeing as the cake is quite small I was worried about the amount of portions I would get out of it. It states it can serve between 3-4 portions but I cut them smaller as the cake is quite sweet with the icing and I managed to happily get double the amount of portions.

I think this is a wonderful idea for a gift. Especially if its for a family or you know someone who might be on their own this Christmas. Giving feels good and makes the person your giving it too feel loved too so for Christmas or an up and coming birthday, give something different this year and surprise them with a cake of their own. Baker Days actually have banners and balloons on their website too so you know you are catered for.

Because we love to give Baker Days are actually holding a competition where you can win your own letterbox cake. All you have to do is hashtag #bakerdays telling them your best Christmas gift idea and they will announce a winner of the cake shortly.

Right, I need to go order more cake as I'm craving it now after seeing these pictures again.
Have a lovely evening!

Love Khrissie x

Blogmas Stocking Filler: Mello Mallo #Khristmas

Happy Sunday! The time has come where preparations for Christmas get underway and what a better place to start than stocking fillers? These are the gifts you can buy friends or family to open which are little presents to open before the main present. Now this year I am having a big family christmas and there are a lot of people to buy for but although money can be tight, you can still give gifts which are meaningful and cost a fraction of the price.

Here are some marshmallows* and a couple of hot chocolate sticks* from a new start up company called Mello Mallo who hand make these tasty mellos in a small town called Bedfordshire. This started with a 'desire to spread happiness through the love of taste-tingling treats', and I can tell you they definitely do that! Here are some of the flavours that Laura (the chief Mallo maker) sells on her website here.

Now when I received these in the post I was so excited! Especially as there was raspberry and white chocolate, orange chocolate and a white chocolate stick! My favourite! You can enjoy these on their own as a cheeky snack or add them to a hot chocolate using the sticks. What a perfect idea!

All you do is fill up a cup of milk of your choice, pop it in the microwave for a few minutes or heat it up on the stove until hot. Add in your stick and swirl it around until all the chocolate has melted off the stick! How delicious does this look?

Once melted you can enjoy it on its own or pop in some marshmallows for some extra flavour. I melted the white hot chocolate stick and paired it with the white chocolate and raspberry mallows. It was so delicious and something I would love to enjoy on the morning of christmas when everyone is waking up and getting excited about the day.

Here you have it! A perfect treat for any of the family to enjoy! They are home made with simple ingredients, gluten free and best of all, they are so moreish! So 'take a moment to Mello out, you deserve it!'

You can buy different sets on the Mallo store with lots of other flavours available including some new festive flavours! You can purchase these little bags of mallos (4 per pack) for only £2 each or 3 packs for £5! The stirrers are only £1.50. A wonderful affordable treat that will surprise anyone when opening their stocking on Christmas morning! I know I want to get some for sure. You can check out the store here. Thank you Laura for sending me some to try, I can tell they are going to go down great with all my friends and family!

Here is my first Christmas post! I'm so excited!
If you would like to see more posts where I share affordable stocking and gift ideas as well as DIY decorations then leave me a comment below and I will get straight onto it.

I will be using the #khristmas, as I feel I have a fortunate name that I just have to use it so I will be creating a chat throughout December where we can talk everything Christmas..woo! Keep an eye out on my twitter.

Love
Khrissie x