World Book Day 2019

Good day all, I apologise for my recent absence, I have had time off work so was enjoying some me time. So today it is world book day, the day we celebrate books of all shapes and sizes and all the beloved characters that we love. I am an avid reader, I love curling up on my sofa with a good book in the evenings. I just love being transported to different worlds and feeling like I am part of the adventure that I am reading about. As I work in a school, we dress up as book characters for the day. Last year I went as Luna Lovegood from of course Harry Potter, this year I dressed up as Alice in Wonderland.

So in celebration of this day I thought I would post a list of my all time favourite children’s books that I have read time and time again. I wonder how many of them you have read and whether you enjoy them as much as I do. They aren’t in order because I don’t think I could put any of these as my least or most favourite because I love them all.

Harry Potter (All of them) by J.K. Rowling

Out of all the books listed, I’ve probably read this series the most. I remember the first time I read the first book (Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone) and I was instantly gripped. Reading through each page I was transported to Hogwarts and I was helping Harry, Ron and Hermione as they tackled every day life in the wizarding world. I began reading the books before the films even came out, so for me, even though I love the films, the books are way better than the films. And for anyone who loves the books as much as I do, will probably agree with me.

The Magic Faraway Tree Trilogy by Enid Blyton

The adventures of Jo, Bess and Fanny and the folk of the faraway tree were probably the most read book my parents read to me at bedtime. I loved hearing about what new land was at the top of the tree or what crazy thing the saucepan man was going to do next. It’s one of the books that if I ever have children of my own, will be read to them at bedtime, just like I did. In fact, I read the books for my sisters when they were little, I used to do voices for every character and rather than settling my sisters down to sleep I would wind them up as they would laugh at me as I pretended to be the saucepan man stumbling around the bedroom.

The Spiderwick Chronicles by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black

I love the film and it’s only recently I actually bought and read the books. I wish I read them sooner. The books are very close to the film but obviously it provided more detail, so it brought a new love of the story to me. If you love fantasy books this is definitely one for you to try if you haven’t already.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Crazy, fun and trippy are three words I would use to describe this book. Growing up I had a picture book of this story and I remember I always flicked past the page with the duchess and the ugly crying baby because the duchesses face scared me. I am currently reading a twisted version of this tale, but when I was younger I did find this book to be scary, even though it was meant for children. The idea of a mad, crazed queen out to chop people’s heads off terrified me.

The Wishing Chair by Enid Blyton

I’m quite surprised that not many people have heard or read these books. As they are written by Enid Blyton and about magic, they are very similar the faraway tree books. I loved the idea of this magic chair that sprouted wings that could take you anywhere. Actually there was a house in my grandparent’s house I would pretend was the wishing chair. I would sit in it and my grandpa would pick up the chair from behind and ‘fly’ me around the house.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Quite a new set of books but I loved reading these. I am not usually a fan of dystopian novels but I was gripped by these. I read these after I watched the first film as I loved it so, and true to form after I read the books, I preferred the books over the films. These books are actually ones my husband has also read. He is not a big reader at all, but he picked up the first book to read when we were on holidays one year and he read them all.

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Again this was one I read after I watched and enjoyed the film. This was the first book I read that I actually cried at. Such a beautifully tragic story, with each turn of a page I was invested in each character and rooting for Louisa and Will to end up together. Even though I knew what would happen I still teared up. I have yet to read the other two books in the series, but it is definitely one I have on my ‘To read’ list.

So there you go, these are some of my favourite books. If I listed every one of them this post would be so long, but when I am asked what my favourite books are, these are the ones I think of the most. I hope you liked my list and if you have any recommendations from my book choices here then let me know, I am always up to read new books, in fact my husband said I should have a library with how many books I have at home.

Until next time.

Bethan x

Happy Valentines Day! – How I cook my Valentine’s dinner

Good day everyone, and Happy Valentines Day!!

If you have a special someone in your life, I hope you got something nice today. My husband and I usually only exchange cards for Valentines, as it’s the Anniversary of our first date on the 23rd of this month, so we save our present exchanges for then. But something that I always do for Valentines is I will do a nice dinner for the both of us.

Today I am cooking Steak with garlic butter sauce with paprika wedges. My husband has always said that I cook THE BEST steak, so I thought that’s what I would share with you today, so maybe you can treat yourself or your special someone to a lovely steak dinner tonight.

How I cook the perfect medium steak.

Preparing the meat

I usually take the meat out an hour before I plan on cooking it, I find the steak cooks better when it’s at room temperature. First thing I do after removing the steak from it’s packaging, is pat it down with kitchen paper so the meat is dry, if the meat is wet then it doesn’t brown as well. After the steak is nice and dry, I rub into the meat cracked black pepper, a bit of sea salt and a little bit of olive oil and I rub it all over the meat. Then cover the steaks and set aside until you are ready to cook them.

Cooking the steaks

Start by heating up a pan on the hob with a few sprays of oil (I use frylight, but any spray oil will do). I don’t recommend putting oil in the pan as the steaks are already rubbed in olive oil, I just use the spray oil so the pan don’t burn. I use a grill pan, but if you don’t have one, a heavy based frying pan will do, but a grill pan gets the best results. Heat it until it’s hot and only then put on your steaks, don’t put them on when the pan is heating up. They should sizzle as soon as they touch the pan. I fry them for 2 minutes on each side. Then I take them off the heat and take them out of the pan, setting them aside for another two minutes as steak continues to cook for a few minutes after you take them off the hob. Some people make the mistake of cooking them until it’s a perfect medium, but when they serve it, it ends up being well done. I set them aside on a few pieces of kitchen paper, as juices will come out of the steak. This stops you getting blood or juices sloshing around on your plate once you serve it.

After it has settled then it’s time to plate up. Serve with whatever side dish you like and a dipping sauce of your choice (peppercorn sauce, red wine jus or a garlic butter sauce I recommend)

And there you go, my tips for a perfect medium steak. If you like well done or rare just reduce the cooking times accordingly.

So this evening, treat your other half, or treat yourself to a lovely dinner, have a glass or two of wine and put on a cheesy romcom. That’s what I will be doing.

Bethan x

How I calm my anxiety attacks.

https://headfulloftoys.home.blog/2019/02/03/how-i-calm-my-anxiety-attacks/

How I calm my anxiety attacks.

Hi all,

Like I said in my last blog, this post will be about the things that I do to calm myself down when I am having a panic/anxiety attack. So if you reading this suffer with them, maybe something I do can be something that may help you.

Knowing what your triggers are.

One of the main things to understand, is finding out what your triggers are to set off an attack. It took me a while to pin point these but it is achievable. I kept a diary, and whenever I would have an attack, I noted everything that happened before the attack started. It wasn’t long until I started to notice a pattern. The time of day, what I was doing, what I was thinking about etc. After noticing the patterns, if possible I could avoid certain situations which would normally cause an attack, and I could prevent myself from a large panic attack.

Reducing my caffeine intake.

I think one of the best things I did to reduce my attacks was cutting out caffeine. I would have at least five coffees a day and I knew that caffeine can cause palpitations which then would often lead me to an anxiety attack. I then switched my regular coffees to decaf, so I would still have a coffee, but I didn’t have the caffeine. I must admit it was hard to wean out the caffeine. It is a drug and if you do have a lot of caffeine, coming off it is like coming off any drug. It gave me headaches and withdrawal symptoms, but I carried on and came through the other side. My attacks instantly reduced, it went from 2-3 a day to one a month!! So if you haven’t tried giving up caffeine yet, give it a try, it’s helped me loads.

Mindfulness

I love mindfulness, it’s a sort of meditation, it makes you sit there doing nothing, just leaving you to your thoughts and allows you to focus on yourself. There are so many free apps out there which guides through mindfulness, personally I use two separate apps. I use ‘Headspace’ and ‘Youper’. Headspace is a complete mindfulness app, you get the introduction for free which are ten sessions. The full app gives you access to a range of meditations not just for anxiety but also to help you study or help you in a grieving process, plus loads more. But the full app is not free, it’s a subscription service which you can pay for monthly or yearly and you can cancel anytime. ‘Youper’ is an AI interface which is set out like someone is texting you, it makes you think about how you feeling and what is causing your feelings and it has a few guided mindfulness programs included. It is a free app to use and quite new, I’ve only been using it for a week but I’m finding it good so far.

Rescue Remedy

Before I went on prescribed medication, I relied on herbal remedies, in particular something called ‘Rescue Remedy’. You can find it in most pharmacies or in stores specifically providing herbal remedies, I used to get mine in ‘Holland and Barrett’. You can getnit in a spray, which you would spray directly into your mouth, or you can get it in pastilles, kind of like gummy sweets. I would keep these in my bag and take it to help me calm down if I felt an attack coming on. They are quite mild though, so if you get quite strong panic attacks, these may not help you but it is worth a try.

Hobbies (Colouring)

Finding something to distract you from an impending attack is probably the best thing I can recommend. For me I colour. I have loads of those adult colouring books, I even keep on in my work bag as a just in case. If I keep myself busy, in particular I keep my hands busy, I can usually stop an attack coming before it starts. If you are able to feel an attack coming on, stop what you’re doing, get out your colouring and just take 5 minutes to concentrate on that only, nothing else. When I do this I tend to calm down and the anxiety attack never comes to anything. But you don’t have to colour to calm down if you don’t find that relaxing. Find a hobby, find something you can do with your hands that you enjoy. Sometimes I’ll do a jigsaw puzzle and recently I’ve bought some of those diamante painting things where it’s like a colour by numbers but with gems. But whatever it is, it must be something you can’t think too much with, the idea is to relax yourself, not wind yourself up more.

Wreck This Journal

This book has been out for a few years and recently it got an update. The ‘Wreck This…’ is a series of books by Keri Smith and it’s purpose is to destroy the book. Each page has an instruction to do with the sole purpose of destroying the page. I love these books, I own the whole collection, they are great to keep in your bag for out and about and it let’s you vent out your frustrations in a creative way.

Talk to someone

Lastly talking to someone. For me this is the best form of therapy. My husband is able to calm me down in minutes as he knows what to talk about if I’m having an attack. If he isn’t home I’ll call my mam. I’ll ring up and say im having an attack talk ti me, then my mam will acknowledge the situation and talk about anything to get my mind off it. If you got 2-3 people around you who know you well, they will help you. The worst thing is feeling like you have no one to turn to, because in those situations when you are having a particularly bad panic attack, it’s easy to feel you’re all alone and it makes you feel worse. You do have people who care about you, pick up the phone and call them, it’s amazing what a conversation with a person you care about does for you.

So that’s what I do to help myself calm down. I hope that something here can help someone.

See you in the next one.

Bethan x

Living with anxiety and depression.

Hi all,

As I said in my previous blog, I wanted to do a few posts which are of a bit more of a serious nature, so I thought I would start a post about my anxiety and depression, and the strategies I use that help me. I thought that if any of you reading this suffer with it, then maybe something that I do to manage my panic attacks in particular, may be something that help you if you try it.

If you ever meet me, I’m quite a bubbly person, in fact many people who know me can’t believe that I do suffer with anxiety and depression. I know with me and possibly other people who do suffer with it, It’s not something I deal with every single day. I do have good days where I’m “normal”, but then there are days where it can get too much for me and I just don’t want to do or go anywhere. I know I have triggers and I must admit it’s only recently I have started to know what my triggers are, it’s hard to know what’s making you anxious and depressed, but I have found that knowing my main triggers, I am able to manage my attacks because I know what I should avoid to calm down.

My anxiety and depression started a few years ago, I can’t put it down to a specific date or how old I was, it was just something that gradually progressed to what it is now. For as long as I can remember I had panic attacks, earliest memory of having one was when I was a kid, I must have been around 7 or 8, and I was staying over my grandparents. I have always had a fear of dying, even to this day, and that one night I just kept thinking of the fact I will die one day and then I began to have a meltdown. I must admit, even to this day, I still get panic attacks when I think about death. Around 4 years ago though, was when it got worse, it was when I lost my nan suddenly. The shock of losing such an important person in my life sent me into a spiral. I felt numb and trying to get back into normal life after was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to deal with. It was after her death I experienced one of the worst anxiety attacks I have ever had. I was in work and suddenly the room started spinning, my breathing got shallow and I collapsed to the floor. I was on my own and I started shouting for help because I honestly thought I was dying. I ended up crawling to the reception and frightened the poor receptionist to death. My husband ended up coming to get me because I was a mess.

Since then I got regular anxiety attacks, sometimes the smallest of things will set me off. One of my biggest triggers is going out, especially if it’s to a place I have never been before. That is quite a difficult one to manage, because you have to go out and socialise, it’s part of human nature. It’s just sometimes the idea of going out makes me want to put on my pyjamas, lock my front door and cuddle with a blanket. I know my friends get frustrated with me because I don’t want to come out much anymore. I always have the intention to go out, but then anxiety kicks in and I end up cancelling, I feel like I’m losing my friends because of this, which I can’t help and it makes me feel worse. I don’t go shopping on my own often, if I do it’s only for a few small bits. Although sometimes I must admit, sometimes I don’t even know what the trigger is that has set me off. My panic attacks got worse another year on which was triggered when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Facing a serious illness brought back the feelings of vulnerability which started my attacks in the first place. The next few months were a blur or surgeries and treatment so panic attacks were a frequent occurrence because I was scared I was going to die! I was one of the fortunate ones though and I am now two years cancer free, but that doesn’t mean the anxiety had stopped.

After suffering numerous attacks, one of which I went to hospital for because I thought I was having a heart attack, I finally went to the doctors for help. They diagnosed me with anxiety and they introduced me to mindfulness (I will go into more detail about mindfulness in my next blog, when I discuss my coping strategies). But a few months later, even though my anxiety attacks reduced in occurrence, I started to develop new symptoms, which were a bit more concerning. The mood swings I had were extreme, I would be laughing one minute, then crying and then flying into a fit of rage for no reason at all. My moods were so bad that it started to affect my marriage. My husband didn’t like being near me in fear of me snapping his head off or accusing him of something he has never done. Then one day I sat in the bath and I felt so low that I contemplated cutting myself. It was at this point I knew that something was not right. I went back to my GP who diagnosed me with depression. They said the tablets I am taking to prevent my cancer returning were causing me to be depressed, but because I have to stay on these pills the only thing they could do was prescribe me with anti-depressants and refer me to a psychologist. So I am now on a course of Citalopram, and even though I don’t like being reliant on pills, they are helping. I have never had another bad thought about harming, and even though I still get a few mood swings when auntie flow comes a knocking, they are no where as near as bad as before. So my relationship with my husband is a lot better now thankfully.

There’s a few things I’ve changed or added to my lifestyle to help my attacks, and in the next blog that I am going to be posting this weekend, I will be going into more detail about the things that I have found that help me when I have a panic/anxiety attack.

Until then, if anything I have discussed in this blog have affected you in any way then talk to someone, seek help from friends, family or a health professional, you can even email me if you need someone to talk to. Talking to someone is the best form of therapy.

Bethan x

What I plan to do with my blog

Hi all,

Sorry for the long wait between the last post to this one, but I have been a little stuck on what kind of topics to discuss, and to be honest I’ve been suffering a bit with the January blues. I did plan on doing a few more reviews, as I’ve had the January Glossybox delivered, also a set of lip kits. But as I have posted a lot of reviews recently, I wanted to have a break from those and discuss something else. Truthfully, the posts that I get the most views on are posts like this, where I’m just typing up what’s going on with me. I like posts like this because it’s like I am talking to a friend over a cuppa.

I have been thinking about posting a few threads which are a bit more personal and difficult topics to discuss sometimes. I want to do a post about anxiety and depression and the things that I do that manage it. I would also like to do a post about the IVF journey I am waiting for and my fertility issues. And I would also like to do a post about my cancer journey and what my life is like now after it.

So as you can see, not easy topics to discuss, but I thought having a platform like this, I could possibly help someone else maybe going through what I have, or even communicate with some of you, if you just want someone to talk to that understands. I may do the anxiety and depression post first though, as I am finally starting to manage my attacks much better than I used to. I use a variety of tools and techniques, that some of you if you do suffer with it, may want to try for yourself and see if it helps.

So a short post today, but I wanted to just say that I am still here and intend on doing more posts. I just want to make sure I like to content I am posting, and not just posting things for the sake of it.

Speak to you all soon.

Bethan x

Review – Revolution’s 12 Days of Christmas Make Up

Hi all, as I wrote in a previous blog, I have a couple of make up reviews to do as I treated myself to some bargains in the Boxing day sales. One thing I treated myself too was the ’12 Days of Christmas’ make up bundle, by the brand Revolution.

My sister received the bundle as a Christmas gift and I thought it was an awesome. There was a great selection of items in the box, with everything you needed to create a full face look (minus the foundation). The box is supposed to be a 12 day advent calendar, but I opened it all at once.

In the first box was a set of travel make up brushes for the face and eyes. These are the perfect size to fit in my travel make up bag and the brush hairs are nice and soft. With any new brushes I do a little durability test and slightly tug on them, just to make sure they don’t fall out, which luckily they did not.

The second box I opened contained a lip gloss trio. They were neutral shades which are perfect for a subtle pop of colour on the lips for people who may not like to go bold with their lip shades. I can imagine some people would love this product, but unfortunately these are not for me. I like to have a bold colour on my lips so these for me were too subtle and I am not a fan of glosses anyway as I find them too sticky.

The third box contained an illuminating fixing spray. I was happy that this product was in the box as fixing sprays are a staple in my handbag. If you do not use a fixing spray in your make up routine I recommend that you give it a try. Not only do they hold your make up in place for longer, but if you feel your make up is looking dull as you go about your day, you can give yourself a little spritz and it makes your make up look fresher. I like this illuminating one because it seems to not only make my make up look a bit fresher, but also it gives you a nice glow without looking oily.

The next box had a mattifying primer. Again, another product that is a staple in my make up bag. A good primer is essential for a smooth base to put your foundation on. I love this primer as it makes the skin perfectly matte, which is great as I have an oily t-zone, so my foundation glides on wonderfully and I have no oily shine.

The fifth box I opened had a cooling fixing spray. Another fixing spray so I was happy with that. This one is a cooling spray, so I can imagine on those warm days where your make up starts to sweat off your face, a spritz of this not only will fix the make up, but also cool you down. As it is so cold at the moment I have not used this product, but when it starts to get warmer I can imagine this will be in my handbag everyday to fix my sweaty face lol.

The sixth box contained an illuminating eye primer. I have only started to use eye primers as I thought I didn’t need them, but I must admit they do make a big difference when it comes to how pigmented eye shadows are when you apply them to your lid. I have used this product twice but I am not a big fan of this primer in particular. I found that this primer left my eyelid quite tacky, even when I left it to see if it dried down at all. It was good as a base colour for applying shadows but I don’t think I would buy this product individually.

Then the palettes came to play. The seventh box I opened had the metallic crush pigment palette. The colours are gorgeous and really pigmented. They go on so well with a damp make up brush or your finger. There is no mattes in this palette, all are shimmers. With all the palettes I’ve included a picture of the palette and swatches of them. All swatches are one swipe in the pan so I think you can agree that the colours are very pigmented in this palette.

This palette is called the ultimate neutrals pigment palette and it was in the next box I opened. I love the colours in this one. They are warm, neutral shades with a mix of matte and shimmers so you can create a full eye look using this palette.

The next palette I opened contained the velvet mattes pigment palette. All of these shades are matte with no shimmers and there is a great variety of colours in this one. You have neutrals and bold so you can create a few looks with this one palette. I mix these shades with ones in the shimmer palette to create full looks as I like a shimmer on my lid.

Next was a blush and highlight palette. There is a nice mixture of blush shades depending on what tone suits your skin and the highlighters have different undertone shades. My personal favourite highlighter is the lighter one in the top right corner. It gives a nice glow without being too white on the skin.

The next box had an ultra contour palette. I have not used the palette yet, but I have used the white in the top right corner as a highlighter and it is a lovely shade.

Then finally the last box I opened contained a brow palette. Again like the contour palette I haven’t tried this one yet as I usually use a pomade. I have some time this weekend so will probably experiment with this brow palette because only recently I have started including brow sculpting in my make up routine and I haven’t got it down quite yet.

So there you go, that is the 12 days of Christmas from Revolution. I love this product and use most of these items daily. RRP is £60 but I had this in the boxing day sale where I had it for £30. I think full price is maybe a bit high in price, but you do get some good quality items so I do recommend this product if you ever come across it. Last time I checked it is now sold out as obviously Christmas is over. Revolution however do release a new days of Christmas palette every year so I can imagine a similar product will be available again if you do like the look of this make up box.

I also bought another Revolution item in the sales which will be reviewed on a separate blog which will be coming soon.

Until the next blog.

Bethan x

Quick update – Welsh History at St Fagans and Escape Rooms.

Good evening and a happy new year to you all.

Apologies for not writing over the last few days, I was enjoying the last few days, before heading back to work, with my family. Had a few days out, spent some quality time with my gorgeous niece and met up with some friends. I have a few make up reviews coming up this week as I bought myself some Revolution goodies, so keep your eyes peeled for them. I’ve also been reading quite a bit over the Christmas holidays, so I’m wondering whether to post a few book reviews, but I have not decided on that one yet. I have a few recipes that I will probably post over the next few weeks too so quite a variety of things coming your way. I don’t know what direction to take the blog in yet, so I am doing a bit of a variety to see what performs well and what doesn’t and take it from there. Funnily enough, my most popular post of 2018 was ‘My trip to A&E”, but I hope that there won’t be another blog titled that haha.

I thought today I would just do a round up of the last few days and share with you what I’ve been doing. Last week, my husband Neil and I took our soon to be sister in law and our beautiful niece out for the day. We took them to St Fagans in Cardiff. St Fagans is a museum of Welsh life which almost, if not all, Welsh people have visited at some point in their life as it’s a favourite place for all Welsh schools to visit on a trip. As I work in a school I go there quite regular, but I always enjoy my visits there. It’s not your typical museum, it’s outside for a start and you walk around the large site which has buildings dotted around, all different in style, function and age. Each building represents an aspect of the history of Wales and how the people at the time lived. You can go inside an old stone house, built how it would have been years ago and everything in that building would be what would have been in there at the time. In older buildings there is no electricity, the only light you have is the glow of the log fire burning in the corner.

You can also visit a traditional old sweet shop and tea room so you can enjoy some treats while you are there. My favourite thing to do in St Fagans is visit the old bakery. Most days at certain times, the staff bake fresh bread and cakes which are available to purchase. Hands down they make THE BEST bread. I always buy a loaf if there is any there. Last time I visited with my class, half of them bought a loaf of bread and sat there outside the bakery just eating it hot and fresh out of the bag. Unfortunately as it is not peak season the bakery was shut on my visit this time, so no fresh bread this time.

One of my favourite places to go and see is the houses at rhyd-y-car terrace. There is a ‘street’ of houses and each ‘house’ is decorated for a different era. From the early 1800’s all the way to 1985. It’s just interesting to see how the decor changes between each one.

If you are ever in South Wales I do recommend a visit here. It’s free to look around and a good day out for all the family.

I also did something a little different and tried out one of those escape rooms with some of my friends. I’ve always wanted to try it so as soon as my one friend said she fancied doing one for her birthday I was well up for it. We did a room called ‘The Wizards room’ with some Harry Potter elements, which as a huge Harry Potter nerd I was very excited about. We escaped with loads of time to spare. I really enjoyed it, I felt like Nancy Drew, definitely something to try if you’ve never done it before. We’re already planning another one.

So I think I’m going to leave it there for today. I hopefully will have the first make up review finished ready for posting tomorrow.

Until then, bye!

Bethan x

Happy New Year

It’s the last day of 2018, wow this year has gone quick. The year has been filled with highs and lows and 2019 is going to be the start of a big year for me and my family.

I’ve officially got my 2 years all clear from my breast cancer team so that means I can finally begin to go down the IVF route. I have over indulged over the festive season so my first resolution has to be a common one, to lose weight. But this is one that I have to do. If I don’t lose enough weight for a healthy BMI I can’t have IVF so this is really important for me to achieve. Being a mum is more important than all the chocolate and wine in the world.

I hope it won’t be long and I’ll be back on my feet properly so I can start exercising. I can’t do much at the moment as my knee is still strapped up. I’m due to start physiotherapy next week for my knee so at least I can get some exercise in that I can do that won’t hurt me. My husband also has to lose weight for the IVF so we are planning to do some things together to lose weight, don’t know about him but for me working out with someone else is better than exercising on my own.

So I got a pretty stressful year ahead of me, one I hope will be worth it when I can finally get the words I’ve waitied years to hear, you’re pregnant. If any of you, my lovely readers have had IVF and you have some hints or information that you think would help me, then you can leave me a message or you can email me on my blog address headfulloftoysblog@gmail.com

Until then I want to wish each and every one of you, from my family to yours, a very happy new year. I hope the new year brings you Joy, happiness, prosperity and love. Thank you for following/reading my blogs and I hope you continue to join me on my next adventure.

Happy New Year!

Bethan x

Glossybox advent calendar 2018 – Full Review of the Calendar and Items Within

This year, I treated myself to a special advent calendar. I used to have a regular chocolate advent calendar every year, but the last few years my husband would buy me different types of ones. I’ve had cosmetic ones, bath bomb and soap ones, I’ve also had candle ones. All advent calendars cost less than £20 but I went a bit extravagant for mine this year. I have been a subscriber to the monthly beauty box, Glossybox, for a number of years now and I love them. So as you can imagine, when I heard that Glossybox was releasing an advent calendar I told myself that I wanted it.

I was shocked when the price was released, £100! But if you were a subscriber it was £75. I was disappointed because I knew I could not afford that. Now if you yourself are a subscriber, you know that by completing questionnaires each month, you build up credit on the website, which you can use on glossybox or on the look fantastic website. As I have saved up all my credits I was happy to learn you could put your credits towards the cost of the calendar. So after I had my subscriber bonus added and included my accumulated credits, I only paid £40 for the advent calendar. Which as you can see was a bargain. Still more than what I would have paid for normally, but as a loyal glossybox fan, I knew the contents of the calendar would be awesome.

DAYS 1-5

Nars velvet lip gloss in the shade ‘Burning Love’ – A lovely cool red colour, perfect for the festive season. It was easy to apply and had a good colour payoff. The only thing I disliked about the product is that it is a little sticky, but I fixed that with a little translucent powder dusted on top to matte it down.
Nip + Fab ‘Dragon’s Blood’ pumping serum – very lightweight and great for dehydrated skin. Nice floral scent but not too overpowering. With continues use the product is supposed to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Yankee Candle in the scent ‘Berry Trifle’ – I love Yankee candles so was over the moon to receive this in the calendar. From what I gather there were three scents available in the calendars but I was pleased to get the Berry Trifle one. It’s a very fruity scent with a hint of sweetness for the trifle. Smelt beautiful when lit, as you can probably see from the pic I’ve burnt it out already lol.
Philip Kingsley body building conditioner – I have only used this once but first impressions were good. I have damaged ends and it smoothed them out great.
MDMflow Greater Than mascara – I was happy to receive this however I was a little disappointed. It’s a lovely deep black in colour but it wasn’t very volumnising. It just seemed to coat the lashes, nothing else. I will use of as I have it, but it won’t be a mascara I would purchase myself.

DAYS 6-10

3ina lip primer – I have never used a lip primer before and after using this product I love it. You don’t need much, just a drop or two on the lips and when rubbed in it makes the lips lovely and smooth and matte. Perfect base for longwear lippie.
Patisserie De Bain Strawberry Cupcake bath and shower cream – Such a sweet and fruity scent, a lovely edition to my baths.
Real Techniques Expert Foundation Brush – I must admit I don’t own any real techniques brushes but after using the foundation brush I want more. The bristles are so soft, no fallout and the handle has a nice feel to hold. I use this brush for my powder though as I always apply my liquid foundation with a beauty sponge.
Charles Worthington volume and bounce body booster mousse – I have not tried this product yet but I have used the brand before.
BareMinerals skinlongevity vital power infusion – This product is great. It left my skin with a lovely healthy glow. It’s supposed to help reduce fine lines and wrong too, but as I don’t have any wrinkles yet I don’t know whether it does.

DAYS 11-15

Bellapierre kiss proof lip finish – This product is to use on top of your lippies, matte ones in particular, to give them a glossy finish. Personally I didn’t like this product as it just made my lips quite sticky. I would prefer to leave my lips matte.
MUA cosmic vixen eyeshadow palette – I own a few MUA eyeshadow palettes so was pleased with this one. It has a mix of matte and shimmer shades in pinks, purples and neutrals. It’s not as pigmented as other palettes, but it has beautiful shades that you can create a few looks with.
Karmameju charcoal Konjac sponge – I was a bit perplexed with this item at first but after using it I think it’s great. It’s a sponge infused with bamboo charcoal so all you do is soak the sponge in warm water and wash your face in circular motions. It left my skin soft and I’ve used it nearly everyday since opening it.
Elgin Refibra haircare restoring – I have not used this product yet but I’ve used this brand before so I already love this brand and product. It makes my hair so soft and manageable so I do recommend this product.
INC.redible jelly shot lip quenched – I’ve seen these before but never bought myself one so was happy when I opened this. It’s clear with a cute little flower in the centre of the jelly. It’s very hydrating for the lips which is great as my lips get very dry in the winter.

DAYS 16-20

Pop Beauty metallic copper pure pigment – This was great for a pop of colour and shimmer on the eyes. Best applied with a finger or a damp eyeshadow brush.
Luxie Beauty tapered highlighter brush – My new favourite highlighter brush. Perfect to apply on the cheekbones with your favourite highlighter for a festive glow.
Lollipops face liquid highlighter – A lovely bronze gold colour. I found it too dark for my skin to use as a highlighter but I used it on my eyes and it looked great.
Crabtree and Evelyn rosewater and pink peppercorn hand cream – My hands get very dry this time of year so this product is a new staple in my handbag. It has a lovely soft floral scent and leaves my hands soft and hydrated.
Steve Laurent lip gloss in the shade ‘Eggplant’ – I absolutely adore this item. Even though it’s a gloss it isn’t sticky at all. The shade is perfect for the winter, like a deep cranberry red.

DAYS 21-25

Pixi Beauty beach rose baked blush – On first glance I thought this product looked too dark for a blush and looked more like a bronzer. But after using it it has a lovely dark pink tone, perfect for a pop of colour on the cheeks.
Zelens transformer mask – I have yet to use this item but I have seen reviews praising this product as a refreshing, lightweight cream mask perfect for skin hydration.
Eyeko far restock in the shade ‘Satin’ – A nice, shimmery brown in colour it looks great in the crease of the eye to create depth to your eye look.
Mitchell and Peach flora No.1 radiance face oil – The last face oil I used was quite greasy so was a bit dubious to use this product. After using it however it is not greasy at all. It left my skin looking hydrated and healthy and it felt nice and soft to the touch.
Huda Beauty ‘Winter Solstice’ highlighter palette – By far the most amazing thing in the entire advent calendar. This is my first Huda palette and one which I was going to purchase myself. The shade ‘Frosted Kiss’ is more like a cream highlighter and the other three shades are powder. ‘Arctic Glow ‘ is my favourite, it has a beautiful lilac undertone and mixing it with ‘Northern Lights’ creates a beautiful gold and lilac highlight. The palette alone retails at $45 (around £36), so as I paid £40 for the whole advent calendar this product made my whole purchase well worth the money.

Overall I was over the moon with the products I received in the calendar.I would definitely recommend the product to anyone who loves beauty products. Hopefully glossybox will again release an advent calendar for 2019, I will definitely be buying it for myself.

TOP TOP – If you like the sound of this item and thinking of getting the new one for next year. Subscribe to glossybox, save the credits and you can get money off it. If you would like to subscribe you can use my code below and get 10% off your first box!

https://www.glossybox.co.uk/referrals.list?applyCode=BETHAN-RR

I hope you enjoyed this review. I know it’s a bit long but I needed to review each item to tell you how amazing this advent calendar was! I have a few beauty reviews in the pipeline as I’ve ordered some new products to try. So I’ll see you in the next blog.

Bethan x