Holiday Gift Ideas!

Tis the season for gift giving!! for some of you that's exciting and for the rest of you, including me it's stressful. It's now crunch time to find that perfect gift for someone special and if you're anything like me, I keep putting it off and have a really hard time picking thing out especially if some one is hard to shop for or just has everything. So to not only help myself but hopefully a few of my readers I thought, "Hey! Why not write about my gift ideas!" So here I am, and here you are. I hope I can either give you gift ideas or at least inspire an idea to help you get that perfect gift just in time for the holidays. So lets get started


First things first, Lets talk gift cards. Do I like gift cards? Yes. Do I like to give them as gifts? No. Not unless I know the person really wants it or would really appreciate it. I use gift cards as a last resort and for the impossible to shop for friends but the right card given to the right person can be a great thing. They can get what they want from a store they love and everyone's happy. Sephora, Bath & Body Works, Clothing stores and department stores are all excellent examples of the cards you can purchase. Check them out!

Books! So many appreciate books it's not even funny. So what's better than buying someone a copy of your favourite book or even a trilogy that everyone is talking about. Do they have a favourite author or genre? Start looking at the books they already have and do some research. Are they a Harry Potter fan and don't have the books? Well what do you know, A gift idea! 

You can't talk about books without thinking of your favourites that turned into movies.

Just like books, the list of great movies can and will go on forever. Maybe the person your shopping for has a book that was turned into the movie but they don't have the movie yet. Is there a movie they wanted to watch but never got around to it? Or a series they absolutely LOVE!?  Maybe there is a film you just know they are going to love. Purchase it and you can watch it together! 

Scents! Who doesn't love a good smell, especially one they can wear! Pick up their favourite perfume, candle, hand cream or body care collection. I find these gifts instantly put a smile on anyone's face, especially if it's their favourite. During the holidays a lot of scent collections can be purchased so finding them will be easier than finding a parking spot at the mall! These sets can get quite luxurious too so you can either spend a lot of money or hardly any at all. It all depends on the scent. 

Clothing! I don't know about you guys but mittens, slippers and sweaters are such a favourite of mine to receive. The gift of warmth just seems so generous and nice and obviously cozy. Who doesn't like to be cozy!? My boyfriend purchased a pair of mittens for me and I LOVE them. Going outside and being warm is the greatest feeling and every time I see my mittens I'm reminded of him which means my mittens are two gifts in one! Thanks Babe! I still love them! <3

These are the mittens he got for me. SO WARM!

Now lets get crazy and get someone something they actually need. Ask them what they really need and if you can get it for them, do it. A lot of families don't have a lot of money during the holidays. Purchasing something they need can really take the stress of budgeting off their mind and we all know what it's like to worry about money and having enough to provide. This gift could be something small like a hat, boots, food, or it can be a bigger gift like paying a bill or fixing something thats been broken. The possibilities are endless when it comes to this since everyone's situation is different.

So since it's the season for giving, I encourage you all to give back to your community! Help make some Christmas hampers for families in need, Shovel some snow for your neighbours, bake some cookies for your co-workers. Do what you can to make the holidays a little brighter for someone and trust me, Your holiday will become brighter too.

Whatever holiday you celebrate at this time, I hope its beautiful. I hope your surrounded by people that love you and appreciate you and I hope you are able to sit down and smile while counting all your blessings this year has given you. 

Happy Holidays everyone! I look forward to 2016 with you all with me <3 

                        

                                             Xxoo - Katie

August Favourites!

All Right Readers! It's time for my first ever Favourites blog! What better time to make a favourites blog then, in the first month of your blog, right?

So I'm going to break this down into two categories. We'll start with Beauty favourites and then finish with non beauty favourites 
So, here we go!!

Beauty Favourites!

So, this product Iv'e actually had for a while now but this month I've used it pretty much everyday that I've worn make-up and its the naturally gorgeous 524 palette from Hard Candy. I've used very shade in this palette, although some the shadows are not very pigmented, they all have a great shimmer! I love to apply the lighter shadows all over my lid for when I just want a little colour or shimmer. I use the darker colours over top of a smoky eye, to add shimmer and to make my smoky eye "pop" I also use them to smoke out my lower lash line!

The next product I want to talk about is mascara! I'm currently loving Voluminous Power Collagen mascara my L'oreal. I use blackest black, number 681. This is by far one of the best drug store mascara brands I've ever used. This mascara coats my lashes completely, makes them look fuller and longer. Coming from a girl that coats on her mascara, You don't need to with this! 2 coats max is all you need. I am sooooo in love this with mascara. I could write a whole blog post on it! please stop over to your local drug store and give this mascara a try! I know you'll love it!

Next up Snooki Couture by Nicole Polizzi

OH MY GOSH!

This perfume is life! As you can see my bottle is a little worn out, and that's because I carry it with me where ever I go! When I first got this perfume I didn't expect to like it this much, since I had never smelt it before, The second I seen the adorable and trendy packaging and after  I sprayed it, I was HOOKED! This perfume smells like sandalwood, oranges, fun and summer! I can't completely explain it but it's phenomenal. I always get complements when I wear this perfume. Not only does this smell amazing but the scent lasts all day long! I never need to reapply this perfume. It always smells like I just applied it. On top of it always smelling freshly applied, it never smells like alcohol! I can't stand that with fragrances and I find that this one doesn't at all. I Like to call that a Beauty Bonus!   Here's a link to buy her perfume! Snooki Couture By Nicole Polizzi

Summer is coming to an end. which I'm excited about. Fall is my favourite season! But my heart does have a special place for summer. So when summer starts to come to an end, I like to apply my Jergens natural glow self tanner. I use shade fair to medium. I really like this formula. It applies nice, evenly and doesn't leave me all streaky or sticky. It also smells nice which is a nice change from the other self tanning lotions I've used. This self tanner help keep my fading summer tan, look a little more fresh, and obviously make it look like it hasn't faded at all. I use about two of these all summer so if you try this out, and like it, I recommend purchasing two like I do.

Nivea is one of my favourite lip product to use and Iv'e been using the Raspberry Rose lip butter all month long. It's so moisturising, adds a bit of colour and it smells like arm raspberries. #Delicious I'm actually wearing this lip butter as I type this blog post! If you're like me and are not a big fan of lip gloss, but want a little something more on your lips,  I would recommend this. I picked mine up at Wal-Mart for just a few dollars, So go check out your local drug stores and beauty isles for this lip product must!

Non Beauty Favourites! 

The new TMNT movie!! I went to the theatre with my boyfriend to see this a few weeks ago! although the story line of how the turtles came to be was super awful, It was still a phenomenal movie and I will be purchasing it when it comes to DVD. I watched this movie in 3D, which I actually didn't like because I hate wearing the glasses. But besides those who things, It was great, funny and suspenseful! Give this movie a watch and let me know what you thought of it

Going with the TMNT theme, recently my boyfriend went on a business trip and when he came back he bought me a TMNT tumbler. This is probably one of the cutest things ever and I use it quite a bit. It's actually right beside me filled with water! What I like most about this tumbler is the fact that it's small enough to carry around but big enough to hold enough water that will last me for a while and it doesn't leak!!!! Finally a travel container that doesn't leak! This may be in my August favourites but I'm pretty sure I'll be using it all year round!

My next non beauty favourite is a book by John Green. The Fault in Our Stars.

Iv'e read this book a total of six times and each time I cry and cry and cry and I can't stop! This book is brilliant and although I have yet to see the movie, I know it will be just as beautiful as the book. I've also read Looking for Alaska which is another novel by John Green. That book was also wonderfully written but I have to say TFIOS is my Favourite! Give this book a read. and be sure to have a box of Kleenex near by! 

So this song is about two years old but I've recently remembered how much I loved it then and now I love it even more. Christina Aguilera - Your Body Her looks, sound, and the video are incredible, colourful and eye catching! I love this Song!

Another song that I've really been enjoying is one that Iv'e recently found on 8tracks and that's  The Icarus Account - Favourite Girl. This song is so adorable. I love all the words and the music. This song is also a few years old but it's still great!  definitely give this song a go and let me know what you think

So that's it for my August Favourites! I hope you enjoyed reading about what Iv'e been loving this month, Comment below and let me know what you've been loving for this month, or if there's anything you think I should be trying out or listening to!

                                                                                   Xxoo - Katie