January To Do List

1. Start a new hobby! Even though I consider my blog a hobby and I also love to read I want to at least try something new as well or get back to doing something I haven't done in a long time like drawing.

2. Read at least two books! I got back to reading about 6 months ago but still haven't read as much as I'd like. This year I'd like to read at least 30 books and I'm already about halfway through my first book of the year which is What Light by Jay Asher. You can follow my reading journey on Goodreads!

December To Do List

1. Pick up a few festive/Winter reads. Let It Snow is definitely on my list, as well as My True Love Gave To Me which has twelve different holiday stories. If you have any recommendations, please let me know in the comments! Literally anything happy with snow goes!

2. Drink all the hot chocolate! I can't remember the last time I've had hot chocolate but the festive season is the perfect time to drink some. Maybe I'll even pick up a Christmas mug to make the experience extra festive!

A Wintery Photo Shoot with Duchess (my dog)

One thing you might not know about me is that I love nature photography. I also love taking photos of my dogs, especially Duchess since Lila usually can't be bothered to look at the camera even if I ask her to... I think she might be camera shy.

Duchess on the other hand is very interested in my camera. Sometimes a bit too interested. I imagine that she's thinking something along the lines of "Ooo, what's that? Can I sniff it? Lick it? Maybe even taste it?!". When we're outside, it's a lot easier to take photos of her because she concentrates on playing rather than me.

The other day when it was really snowy and pretty outside with the sun shining I took some photos and thought I'd share them with you today!

PHOTO DIARY: Fashion Show

Like I mentioned in my Beauty Event of the Year photo diary I had the chance to attend a fashion show and wanted to a separate post about it, so if you've been waiting for it, here it is! This was the second fashion show I have attended at the same event in a different year and they had definitely upped their game.

This year the show was designed by Teri Niitti - as always - and the theme was forces of nature.

I didn't get a seat that close to the stage, as I was running a bit late, but as I did take the photos with a 50mm lens you can see the outfits pretty well!

Without further ado let's look at some outfits!

Kookenkä

BLOGMAS DAY 20 | NOTW: Golden Confetti

Hi all, how are you? Sorry for not posting for last two days even though I'm supposed to be doing Blogmas... I've had the worst cold and decided to take a few days off! But now let's get on with the post, shall we?

BLOGMAS DAY 17 | Festive Playlist

If you haven't already noticed, Christmas - and December in general - is my favourite time of the year. Especially for music. You can be doing absolutely anything and listen to Christmas songs at the same time brings a nice feeling to it. Even cleaning while listening to Christmas songs is fun! I've put together a Spotify playlist of all of my favourite festive songs that I love to listen at this time of the year! Enjoy and tell me a few of your favourites in the comments :)

BLOGMAS DAY 15 | Christmas & Winter Pinspiration

I love Winter time. Absolutely everything looks gorgeous then and people seem to be really happy - especially around the holidays! I thought I'd share my Christmas & Winter Pinterest board for you below in order to lift your Christmas Spirit!

BLOGMAS DAY 11 | Unboxing: December Livbox

It's been such a long time since I wrote an unboxing post so I thought it was about time. Especially as this box seems to have many amazing products (just look at that chocolate bar!!!!). If you'd like to read any of my other unboxing posts then just click right here.

BLOGMAS DAY 10 | Winterlicious Tag

Today I have a very festive tag for you! I did the Christmas Tag last year so if you'd like to read that then click right here. However, this time I'm doing the Winterlicious Tag (as you can see from the title) for a change.

BLOGMAS DAY 2 | Gift Guide: Bloggers

Welcome to Blogmas day 2!

For today I've created a gift guide for bloggers. If you're not a blogger yourself, it's sometimes hard to know what kind of equipments we need. In this post I've collected ten things from various price categories to give you a little guidance on what to buy for the blogger in your life. Or if you're a blogger yourself and this collage has bits you'd like to get for Christmas, you can just send this to anyone as a wishlist ;).

BLOGMAS DAY 1 | Getting Rid of Dry Hands

Happy 1st of December everyone! Or as we say in Finland, Happy Christmas Month (Hyvää joulukuuta) ;).

This year I'm attempting to publish a post every day until Christmas aka do Blogmas. I'm making no promises but I have so many posts I want to write before the 25th so may the odds be ever in my favour... :D

Eucerin Soothing Skin Balm

This year my skin has been driving me crazy so much more than before. Due to a medication I had to take my skin took a 180° and went from oily combination skin to mostly dry.

When I had finally found good products for my skin, Summer ended and the Autumn weather made my skin even drier.

January and February Favourites

The first few months of 2015 have gone so fast for me and it seems like I've had so much to do but still done nothing. That's also partly a reason why I haven't blogged as much as I would've liked and I apologise for that.
Also I didn't really feel like doing a January Favourites post as I didn't discover anything new or change my routines that much in January or February actually. I do have some favourites from the first two months of 2015 so I'm going to tell you a bit about them now before I blabber too much, haha.

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water (link) - I've been using this for about two months now and I can totally see what all the hype is about. This cleansing water removers all my makeup and leaves my skin feeling fresh after using it. Also I've used this two times a day and it still has more than half of it left! I'd definitely recommend this over any makeup remover I've tried.

La Roche-Posay Thermal Spring Water - Due to it still being very dark outside I've become extremely tired as soon as the sun has set - which has been at 4 or 5pm. This thermal water has helped a lot to keep me awake and going. It has also helped to keep my skin more hydrated during the day and it's great that you can just spray it on top of your makeup.

Clinique High Impact Mascara - I've talked about this mascara in some of my favourites post before and now I've been loving it yet again. It gives so much volume and length to my lashes. If you put it too much though, it can look clumpy so I always make sure to use an eyelash brush afterwards.

Maybelline Master Shape Brow Pencil in 02 Soft Brown (link) - In the past few months I've been a bit lazy with my brows and I've really just filled them in. This Maybelline brow pencil is a very good choice when you want to do your brows quickly and leave them looking natural. If I've had more time and patience to do my brows I've still been loving one of my December Favourite which is the Makeup Revolution Ultra Brow Arch & Shape (review here).

Lumene Powder Foundation in 01 Cream Beige - Another old favourite which I've rediscovered at the beginning of the year. My skin has been in a pretty good condition so I've mostly used light coverage foundations. However, if I've wanted a bit more coverage I've turned to this Lumene powder. It gives you a really nice matte finish with a bit of glow.

What are some of your current favourites?

- Anu♡

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Unboxing | Livbox January Edition

I don't know why my unboxing posts are always so late... Really need to improve on that!

First impressions:

• Lumene Ultra Sensitive Moisturising & Calming Mask (17,90€/75ml) - This mask is super moisturising and literally leaves your skin feeling like a baby's bum. It also smells like blueberries!
• Philosophy The Microdelivery Peel Kit (76€/60+60ml) - I haven't tried this yet because it's so expensive so I want to save it for a super pamper evening. It sounds great though as it's a two-step exfoliator and it's supposed to be gentle but very effective.
• Cutrin Chooz Multivolumizer (15,90€/150ml) - This is such a good product. I put it in my hair after I've taken a shower and blow dry it or let it dry while I sleep and it gives my hair such a nice natural volume without anything else! 
• La Roche-Posay Lipikar Baume AP+ (9€/200ml) - This lotion is so good for winter time. You can use it all over your body too! If your skin is feeling itchy because it's so dry this lotion calms down the irritation and it strengthens your skin.
• Rimmel BB Cream 9-in-1 in Light (11,90€/30ml) - Every time there's a product like this that claims to have all the good things I usually never believe it bit this BB cream really primes, conceals, moisturises, brightens etc. It feels light on the skin and it's creamier than other BB creams I've used which I think makes it smoother to apply.

Overall review:

January Livbox's theme was "Winter's Top Products" and I think the products went great with the theme as most of them are meant to moisturise.

What's your ideal non-beauty box?

- Anu♡

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What I Got for Christmas 2014

I'm back, with an extremely late post I'm afraid. I was meant to post this a long time ago but due to my writer's block and an event in my life I haven't been able to.
Anyway, I like reading these kinds of posts so I though why not write one myself? It's also one of my favourite YouTube videos to watch as I'm very nosey and love hauls etc ;).

Round Up: Best of The Body Shop Advent Calendar

Even though I already did 6 posts about TBS Advent Calendar and told you about the products I just had to write about those ones that I think stood out among all the others.

Moringa Shower Gel (8,50€/£4/$8 for 250ml/8.4oz) - When I first received this, I fell in love with the smell. It smells like flowers but not too much and the scent isn't too strong either. Probably my favourite product to use in the shower right now, haha.

Moringa Body Milk (16,50€/£8/$12 for 250ml/8.4oz) - Before this I had never tried body milks or even really thought about them. But now it's one of the most moisturising and used products I own. Very little goes such a long way, only one drop and your hands are well moisturised.

Glazed Apple Shimmer Lotion (16,50€/£8/$12 for 250ml/8.4oz) - Even though I don't use this shimmer lotion that much, it's still one of my favourite products that came out of the advent calendar. I used it around the holidays at parties and it left a nice subtle shimmer on my skin and literally made my skin glow. Again, it smells amazing too!

Shea Body Butter (18,90€/£13/$20 for 200ml/6.75oz) - If you're a fan of The Body Shop's Coconut body butter, I can tell you, you will love this! The consistency is exactly the same as in every other TBS body butter - thick and creamy - but I find this a tad more moisturising. 

Vitamin E Night Cream (25,20€/£12/$20 50ml/1.7oz) - If my skin feels very dry because of the cold weather or in general I put this night cream on before bed and when I wake up, voila, my skin is super moisturised and soft! 

Almond Hand & Nail Cream (9,50€/£5/$10 for 30ml) - The first product I got from the calendar and I'm still absolutely loving it! It has so many great ingredients for your skin and even though it's very moisturising it doesn't leave your hands feeling sticky. It feels light when applied and it absorbs super quickly.

What's your favourite product from The Body Shop?

- Anu♡

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My Christmas in Photos

Even though Christmas is already almost three weeks away (can you believe it?) I thought I'd still share some christmassy photos with you.

Our yard was literally covered in snow and more was coming!

Had a bit of an accident when applying makeup... Maybe not that much powder?!

Playtime with the puppies :)

My sisters made these for our Christmas dinner, so pretty!

Best cake I've ever tasted! 

Opening the presents

Sleepy puppies<3 

Here's also some of my favourite Christmas decorations from my room!

Link your favourite Christmas post in the comments ;)

- Anu♡

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December Favourites

The lighting has been ridiculously bad and because I still have to use my phone when taking pictures it's even more important than usually. Finally, here are my December favourites:

Beauty
Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in 52 Vanilla - Ever since I bought this foundation it's the only one I've been using. It's also the perfect colour for me which I was very scared about since I had to order this online. The coverage is light to medium but buildable.

Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch in 01 Ivory - I bought this concealer last Summer but didn't like it at first that much. I was tidying my drawer one day and decided to try this under my eyes and it worked perfectly! Since then it's been a life saver if my dark circles have been extremely bad. It's very creamy and blends easily.

Makeup Revolution Ultra Brow Arch & Shape in Dark - This brow product has been my favourite since November actually but back then I hadn't used it for that long so it only made it to my favourites in December. If you've tried the Soap & Glory Brow Tint & Precision pen then you now what this product is about. In my opinion it's exactly the same but cheaper version. If you want to know more about this product then stay tuned for a review in the near future :).

Depend Nail Polish in 045 - In my opinion gold and glitter go perfectly with anything festive so this nail polish was my huge favourite for the whole month of December.


Other
Deliciously Ella - My sister Anetta has a very healthy lifestyle and she informed me about paleo and Ella's blog. I haven't changed my diet but I've really enjoyed trying out different recipes by Ella (especially the smoothies) and so far I've loved them all.

Teen Wolf - When season 4 ended I started to watch Teen Wolf from the start and if I wanted to watch something it would always be this show.

Where Do Broken Hearts Go - One Direction - If I had to choose one song that I've played on repeat then this would definitely be at the top of the list! If I felt like listening to some music this would be the first song I'd play.

What were your December favourites?

- Anu♡

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New Year's Eve Nail Inspiration

Ever since I got myself some nail art tools - brushes and dotting tools - I've really been enjoying trying out different kinds of styles and patterns on my nails.
Nail art is still a very new thing to me so most of the time I've no idea where I should even start. That's exactly how I felt again when I tried to decide how I should do my nails for New Year's Eve. I then searched some inspiration from other blogs and thought it might be helpful for some of you too!
Here are some of my favourite manis:

Original post at agirlcalledeleanor.blogspot.co.uk

Original post at heydarlingpolish.blogspot.fi

Original post at SoNailicious.com

Original post at pshiiit.com

Original post at nail-stuff.tumblr.com

Original post at willpaintnailsforfood.com

How will you paint your nails for NYE?

- Anu♡

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Unboxing | Livbox December Edition

Hi everyone, I'm back! I hope you all had a great Christmas and you got to spend a lovely time with your family!
Again, I'm very late with this post as I really wanted to try and post lots of christmassy things before Christmas (and I feel like I pretty much failed at that... hopefully I'll do better next year!).

First impressions:

• Calvin Klein Reveal Perfume (48€/30ml) - If you've read some of my posts where perfume is mentioned, you know that I don't really use it. I still like to get small perfume samples and just sniff them whenever I feel like it and this CK Reveal perfume is definitely one of those that I'm going to keep in my drawer just for that. It smells so good! It's not too sweet and it smells very luxurious. I'd say it's a mix of floral and woody scents.
• Rimmel ScandalEyes Retro Glam Mascara (11,50€) - I actually already have this mascara in my collection. I used it a couple times but then decided to use another one instead. I don't remember why I stopped using it but now that I have two of them I definitely have to try it again and if I don't like it, decide what I shall do with the new one.
• Vichy Aqualia Thermal Rich 15ml sample (25,90€/50ml) - I feel like I have so many face cream samples to try out but I also run out of it pretty quickly so I guess it's a good thing I've a couple backups. I love the packaging of this (even though it's a sample) and the smells is also pretty nice.
• LV Rich Foot Cream (5,50€/75ml) - I feel like I always forget to take care of my feet even though I think it's very important. They are the reason you can go to different places, right? Anyway, this foot cream was a great reminder and I used it just a couple days ago. I used it before I went to bed and in the morning I noticed how much more softer my feet were! It smells like those basic creams you can get from the drugstore which I personally like because then you know it doesn't have any unnecessary ingredients. It doesn't leave your feet feeling sticky and you can also use it on your hands if they're extremely dry. 
• Paese Eyeliner (4,95€) - Paese is a brand I've never heard about before. The eyeliner is black with silver glitter on it which I think is perfect for a New Year's party or any party really! 

+

• Calvin Klein Euphoria Gold (36€/30ml) - I gave this to my sister's boyfriend as it's a cologne sample. I don't have a lot to say about this other than it smells good but it's also pretty strong scent and it gave me a bit of a headache. 
• Duc d'O Flaked Milk Chocolate Truffles - Oh. My. God. These taste SO amazing. They were a Christmas gift from the Livbox team and I can't thank them enough! They're actual 60% Belgian milk chocolate and I can tell you, when I ate them, I was literally in a chocolate heaven.

Overall review: 
The theme of this Livbox was "The Perfect Gift" and I think the products were perfect for it. You'll be able to pamper yourself with creams and chocolate, look gorgeous, smell good and give something to a man in your life (or someone else's, haha). Now I really can't wait to see what Livbox has to offer in January!

What do you think of December's Livbox?

- Anu♡

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