One gift that I love receiving is a fragrance. I am secretly becoming a perfume hoarder - finding new scents that I like, being drawn to the beautiful bottles they're held in and hunting for a new cult favourite. A brand that I've been fond of for a long time are Library of Fragrance - as the name suggests, the company sell an array of beautiful to crazy scents held together in a cute 30ml bottle. With a scent to please all, Library of Fragrance have really pulled it out of the bag by creating over 100 sprays to ensure their products are versatile and fit for all.  

PACKAGING AND PRICE

Packaging-wise, the bottles are very sleek. Although I knew they were 30ml, I didn't expect them to be as small as they are. This is definitely not a bad thing - your little 'pick-me-up' spray can be thrown in your bag or kept in your bag, allowing you to smell amazing all day long. The rectangular-shaped bottles are classic and fresh, along with a basic sticker and a coloured banner complementing the scent held behind the bottle. This simple, minimalistic style of packaging is right up my street and all three fit nicely on my little perfume shelf. Talking price, each scent retails for £15 so relatively in the middle of fragrance bracket. Personally, I think the money is worth it if you really like the scent; if you happen to dislike any purchased scent, the Library of Fragrance kindly offer a 30 Day money back guarantee. Something I definitely haven't seen within the fragrance brand category!

MY THOUGHTS

The three scents that I chose were: Gingerbread, Fireplace and Pumpkin Pie. As you can tell, I went for a theme and opted for scents complementary to this time of year. I love how the brand sell so many scents so that there are a range for each season - gingerbread would be ideal as a Christmas stocking filler. My favourite of the three has to be gingerbread, followed closely by pumpkin pie. Spice and vanilla are my thing so mixed together in the gingerbread bottle was 'me' all over! I can just see myself spraying myself, my room and my house throughout the whole of December.I'm obsessed with it! As for Pumpkin Pie, the general aroma is bitter and fruity; this is something I also love but gingerbread lasts longer on my skin and in the air. Finally, I wasn't too keen on fireplace. I don't really know what I was expecting to be honest - it literally smells like burning coal. This didn't really work for me but the scent was formulated down to a T - just not my cup of tea...For only £15, I was super happy with how long the fragrances lasted on my skin. I didn't need to top up throughout the day so the formula is perfected to the quality of many of my high end perfumes. Overall, I would recommend these products highly for those who love to try out qwerky products from innovative brands, anyone looking for a cool Christmas presents for their friends/family or for those who just want to test them for themselves.

What is your favourite fragrance? What scents do you love?

Lots of love

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This post is in collaboration with Library of Fragrance; however all opinions are honest and my own.

Eden's Semilla are a skincare brand that sell an incredible range of serums, essential and 100% natural oils. The company were originally formed in the USA and began from their demand for the ingredient rose hip. Fortunately, the oil that was kindly sent by the team at Eden's Semilla not only contains organic Rosehip, but Jojoba oil as well. These two ingredients are said to naturally improve, revitalize and soothe the skin, alongside the 100% naturally sourced vitamin E.

THE PRODUCT

Eden's Semilla Vitamin E oil retails for £18.85 - you can save £6.00 if you purchase through Amazon as they are currently selling it for £12.95!! Personally, I think the price is incredible considering you are provided with a 120ml bottle containing the perfect concoction of ingredients to aid skin repair. Also, the oil can be furthered used on the hair and nails so is super versatile. You are only advised to apply 2-3 drops on application so the product will last for a very long time - definitely worth the money in my opinion. 

MY THOUGHTS

So far, I have only used the product in my hair and on my fair - I am still yet to try it on my nails and hopefully receive fantastic results. When applying to the face, 2 drops is more than enough as the liquid formula covers all areas. One thing that really stuck with me is that the oil didn't have a greasy effect once layered on my skin. Usually, when I've used oils before, a really nasty greasy appearance is left and it leaves me feeling horrible. However, I was super surprised to see that the formulation absorbed into my skin after a couple of minutes. After using the oil for two weeks, I have honestly seen a difference in the lower area of my face - the area that gets easily attacked by my dryness. The dry patches are gone, or very minimal, and the rest of my face looks glowing and healthier. I love how the oil has made me feel in my skin and I strangely feel more comfortable to wear no makeup in public! 

When discussing the oil results on my hair, I can't give a very reliable opinion as I've only used it 3 times so far. I found I had to apply 3-4 drops on my fingers to ensure my hair is covered - having long and fairly thick hair requires a lot more that expected. The oils leave a greasy touch to the ends of my hair and feel super nourishing. One night I decided to leave this in my hair after showering and slept with it in overnight (and then washed it out in the morning!). I've done this before with other oils so decided to do it with Eden's Semilla Vitamin E oil to see if I could compare. From this experience, I would say that my hair felt lighter and had a little more life than usual. I reckon with a few more uses, my hair will feel hydrated, less dry and hopefully better than ever before.

"Topical vitamin E contains excellent healing properties for damaged or tired looking skin. A rich blend of organic Jojoba and Rosehip delivers a natural carrier oil that is easily absorbed, fast acting and full of natural goodness. Hydrates and nourishes all in one"

Do you use oil in your skincare regime? If so, which one?!

Lots of love

Taste Test

As a beauty lover, packages like this excite me. When Nur Besten offered to work with me, I was so excited because I've seen a tonne of blogging gals get their hands on these beautiful brushes. After being super jealous of their Instagram pics, I knew I had to grab these as soon as I got the offer. Brushes are the 'foundation' (accidental pun...) of the beauty world - without brushes, my makeup would look hideous...let's be honest! Since using brushes, I could never imagine applying base or eye makeup without one. Something that always strikes me when testing brushes is how easy it is to tell whether the quality is good or bad. With brushes, I always know whether they are going to make my makeup incredible or simply worse than before. Let's see how I get on with these beautiful little gems...

8 Pcs Set - Bamboo Wooden Handle Brushes (£12.70)

Aesthetics-wise, I am more than happy. How cute do these look tucked up in my spotted glitter glass?! I love how the light-cream wood complements the golden hardware and how the brush hairs ombre darker at the ends. Personally, I think these look a lot more expensive than they are. I mean, how often do you see a quality, good-looking brush set for under £20? Their are 8 brushes in the set - 4 face and 4 eye brushes. Each are very different and versatile, in the best possible way. I can honestly say that I've used every single one of these and none have let me done. Obviously I love some more than others but the quality is just incredible. All of the hairs are tightly-packed, making the bristles super dense and a dream to apply any formula. My favourite brushes have to be the thick eye brush for perfect lid application and the flat contour brush for precise contouring. 

Price-wise, you are essentially paying £1.50 for each brush. That to me is an astounding bargain and I would definitely recommend grabbing a bundle for you, or even as a Christmas present, before the price rises! You can instantly tell from the feel of the brushes on you fingers, and face, that these are made with care and a lot of time. The brush hairs don't flake off the handle - always a good thing. I absolutely hate when cheap brushes start to malt all over my makeup desk and clothes!! Additionally, the quality of the brushes are mainly appreciated, for me, after makeup application. Literally, my contour and eye makeup seem to have improved, simply by changing the brushes I used. I've never really invested in a really expensive brush set and this proves that you don't need to! You get everything you need for just £12 - prettiness and quality.

If you wish to purchase some brushes or any of the other makeup products, tools or accessories Nur Besten have to offer then feel free to use my 10% discount code - CPD10. Let me know in the comments if you love the brushes just as much as I do!

Lots of love

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This post is in collaboration with Nur Besten; however all opinions are honest and my own.

DAY 4 

This morning consisted of frantic packing and checking out of the hotel - we wanted to get the most out of our last day so we tried to be as quick as possible. Thankfully, the lovely staff at the Atlantic Hotel allowed us to keep our bags safe and locked in their store room so we could enjoy our last day without having to lug our suitcases along with us. Again, we had breakfast at Midore, as it was close, convenient, relatively cheap and yummy! We decided to make a little list the night before to make sure we had done everything we wanted to do whilst in Paris. Our first stop was the Champs Des Elysees because we hadn't finished buying presents for our family, or even ourselves, so we wanted to get that out of the way. If you want to see what I bought whilst in Paris, make sure to check out the links at the end of this post so you can click on my Paris haul video. 

Afterwards, we hopped on the metro and headed for the Eiffel Tower. The sky was super misty and made the whole atmosphere very autumnal. It was also really strange because it was midday and there were barely any people around the Eiffel Tower. This was so lovely as we got to chill, enjoy the view and for my sake, was able to get a lovely full body photo of us and the Eiffel Tower (thank you kind French man!) After taking in the fresh air and having a lovely walk, it was time for another metro journey that brought us right outside the Hard Rock Cafe. As we didn't go at a peak time, we were able to be seated within 25 minutes!! In this time, we explored the little shop and decided to buy a couple of souvenirs. Our meal was lovely; I had breaded chicken with hot sauce and Aidan had a burger and chips. I'd never eaten at a Hard Rock Cafe before and was very impressed...

Our final destination was Notre Dame to pick up trinkets from the stalls along the riverside. There were so many beautifully crafted gifts and it was so hard to pick only a few things to take home and remember the trip. I absolutely loved seeing the incredible paintings some people had made and wished I could have brought some home to show my family. We then bought a lock and key (it actually had 3 keys on...) and stopped at one of the love lock bridges. This was one of the things I've had on my bucketlist for ages and was so happy to be finally doing it. I wrote our initials and the date onto our lock in marker pen, Aidan found the perfect spot to attach it to and we took tonnes of pictures. Before heading back to the hotel to collect our bags, we threw two of our keys into the River Seine and brought one key back with us as memorabilia. It makes me so happy to know that a little part of us, together, is in Paris and will be forever! 

The metro journey seemed to take ages on the way to the hotel, collecting our bags and travelling back to the Gare Du Nord to catch the Eurostar. My feet were hurting like crazy by this point and all I wanted to do was sit down. However, customs seemed to go pretty quickly and before we knew it, we were sitting on the Eurostar with a packet of maltesers and a tube of pringles. Obviously, we slept most of the way back because we were completely exhausted from waking up and getting back late every night. I am honestly so thankful to Aidan for getting me one of the most thoughtful, and heartfelt birthday presents in the whole world. I feel so blessed to have such a loyal and caring boyfriend (soz for soppiness)

I hope you enjoyed my Paris posts/vlogs. I will stop annoying you with it all now...BYE!

Lots of love

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Travel Diary : Paris Day 1 

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DAY 3 

Our earliest start was Disney day - waking up at 6:30 to get ready, wrap up warm (I say, as I wear a jumper and scarf) and hop on a metro, then the double decker train to the Disney station. Travelling didn't take long, considering I'm so impatient and my excitement was ridiculous at this point. When we arrived, we thought it would be tactical to begin in the Walt Disney Studios park, rather than Magic Kingdom, simply because it is generally the less popular one of the two. This actually worked in our favour, meaning Aidan and I went straight on the Tower Of Terror before the rides were even meant to commence. Then literally straight after we rode Rockin Rollercoaster, which meant we'd already done our favourite 'thriller' rides in the park within a time span of 30 minutes. Afterwards, we wanted to check out the new rides in the Studios park but unfortunately, the queues were 80 minutes plus so we decided to leave them and come back to them later on in the day. By this time, we were starving so sat down in one of the Hollywood diners to have an unhealthy, ridiculously pricey meal. 

Our next port of call was the main Disney park - Magic Kingdom. I was BUZZING to go here because the atmosphere is my favourite - everyone is happy, there are lots of excitable kids running everywhere, the music is feel good AND even better, the whole place was decorated Halloween themed. This excited me way more than it should have; I love autumn and Halloween so was obsessed with the very OTT, very Disney decorations. Their were pumpkins in every nook and cranny, ghosts hanging off buildings and autumnal flowers planted everywhere - they even changed the main street lamps to green and orange lanterns! Being so overwhelmed and happy, I spent about 20 minutes capturing the atmosphere on my camera in both picture and video form. I'm sure you will have seen haha...

Sticking to the Halloween theme, our first ride in Magic Kingdom was the Phantom Manor. A little ghost ride that turned out not to be as scary as I was expecting. Following this, we went on a ride spree to make sure we got all our favourite rides in - the Pirates of the Caribbean boat ride, Space Mountain and It's a Small World. Unfortunately, Thunder Mountain Railroad was under construction which was gutting but all the other rides didn't let me down. My favourite Magic Kingdom ride was definitely Space Mountain; it is significantly different from Orlando and I hate to say it, but it was probably better. AMAZING! After polishing off the rides in Magic Kingdom, we watched the Harvest parade which was so cute and popped on a couple of last minute rides before quickly heading back to the Studios. Here we queued up for Crush's Coaster and Ratatouille - both were amazing and great additions to the park, I must say. By this time, it was starting to get dark and it started to rain so we thought it be best to have a bite to eat so we were ready for the firework spectacular. The food was again lovely, but expensive, and quickly followed (bad idea but so worth it) by one last ride of Space Mountain. Our night ended with a BANG (haha, so not funny) with the incredible firework, laser and fountain display. I've never seen them do a display before where they projected the characters onto the castle. I would 100% watch it every night if I could. This was such a successful, fun day and left me in the best mood before falling straight to sleep when we got back to the hotel at 12:15am.

Lots of love

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MORE PARIS RELATED POSTS

Travel Diary : Paris Day 1 

Travel Diary : Paris Day 2

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