October Favourites

Greetings one and all!

Welcome to my first ever monthly favourites post! I'm quite excited that I managed to get myself organised to be able to do this on time!

I'm going to try my best to make this a regular feature on my blog as I know, personally, I enjoy seeing what people have been loving. Let's be honest, we're all a bit nosey, otherwise why would we read blogs or watch the gurus on Youtube? So feel free to have a nosey at what I have been loving during the month of October!

Lets start with music.

Now, I know people are like marmite with Ms Cyrus at the moment; they seem to either love her and her attention-grabbing antics, or they hate her. I personally never liked Miley when she was supposed to be this goody-goody Disney Princess. It never seemed real to me. Whenever her name was mentioned or she released a new song, for years I would roll my eyes and switch off. 

The second she cut and dyed her hair and started hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons, screaming "THIS IS ME!!", I sat up and paid attention. It took a good few years for the blatantly fake façade to be dropped but I believe it well and truly has now and I have nothing but respect for this girl who just does, says and sings what she feels. She may not be Disney-worthy anymore and perhaps not the best role model for teenage girls, but it's so rare these days for people in the media spotlight to show their true colours regardless of what others may think of them and I believe that is exactly what Miley is doing.

Really didn't mean to turn this into a Miley Cyrus essay (whoops) so I'll just finish off saying I was really excited about the release of Bangerz since hearing We Can't Stop. And it doesn't disappoint. Full of real, raw, crazy and sometimes heartbreaking young adult emotion, Bangerz is quite probably the unofficial soundtrack for a lot of people. I know I can personally relate to a lot of her tracks. They are all catchy in one way or another and there literally hasn't been a day since I got the album that I haven't listened to it (it's usually playing on repeat on my iPad all day). Needlessly crass and rude in places but why the hell not? Bangerz is quite probably the realest collection of music I have heard in a very long time. Not for everyone, but I love it.

I've been listening to Sia, an Australian singer/songwriter, for quite a while now. I first heard her song Breathe Me on the closing credits of an episode of Luther (love me some Idris Elba) and was absolutely mesmerised by it; so much so that I went and got two of her albums, Colour The Small One and We Are Born, straight away. She has such an unusual and captivating voice and her songs are varied and interesting. I absolutely love her! Her albums have become my official laptop soundtrack, so if I'm on here for any length of time, they will inevitably be playing in the background. Breathe Me is playing at this current moment. It's such a delicate song; everything from the piano to Sia's quiet, emotional voice never fails to touch my heart. Definitely my favourite of all her tracks. I've made it my mission to get the rest of her albums.

Chances are you've heard a track with Sia on. She has collaborated with some of the biggest in the industry but generally doesn't take the limelight much. She deserves so much more recognition. Such a talented and beautiful artist.

Right, onto television. Well, a television show. It took four weeks of Peaky Blinders being on the air until I decided to watch an episode and see what the fuss was about. And oh my goodness, I'm so glad I did. Four episodes in four hours later and I was staring at my clock intently, begging time to move faster so Thursday could come around and I could find out what happened next.

Cillian Murphy is one of those actors that I always saw around and thought he was good, but I could never remember his name. I always referred to him as "oh the Pumpkin Man" for his role as Scarecrow (go figure) in the most recent Batman films. I can guarantee after this show, his name will be etched on my brain. He is breathtakingly good/terrifying as Tommy Shelby, leader of the Peaky Blinders. I was in awe of the entire cast but none more so than him. An electric show and I am so excited that it has been renewed for a second season. Can't wait!

Onto the first of my physical favourites for this month, I picked up this extremely inexpensive 360 degree revolving case for my iPad from eBay and I absolutely love it. I have quite a collection of iPad cases (much to my mother's chagrin) but I knew when I saw this that I needed it. It has pretty much been invaluable in loads of situations. It doesn't matter whether I'm on my bed, on my sofa, in a coffee shop, lying down, sitting up, showing someone something; it is so perfect for every situation. Not to mention the pink polka dots are adorable! Anyone who has a tablet, I would highly recommend picking up one of these cases. You can get them for other makes and models and I'm pretty sure they're all under a tenner! Go go go!

I've just realised, this is the month of eBay bargains. I fell in love with Molton Brown's Pink Toronja toner after trying a sample a few months back, however going into House of Fraser, I was extremely upset to find out that a full sized bottle is a mere £25!!! Sulking, I took to eBay to look for cheaper toner and found this Be Fine Food Skin Care Firming Toner instead, bidding starting at only 99p! After a bit of online research, I discovered that the bottle retails for approximately $25 in the USA and that I was, most definitely, getting a bargain and quite a great one if the reviews were to be believed. 

So I bid, got it (hooray!) and oh my goodness... This stuff is magic. I swear I am almost addicted to it. The ginger and willow bark give it such a revitalising scent and my skin feels incredible after using it; so clean and fresh. It really is amazing. I've had it for a while now, using about four sprays onto a cotton pad mornings and evenings, and it's barely gone down! I really want it to last forever. I find myself looking forward to my bedtime and morning routines just so I can use it. An amazing product and it works as well! My skin has never been so clear and the pores which used to be really visible on my nose and T-zone are practically nothing. I could literally rave about this stuff all day. I just... Ahh, I love it.

So I'm not always best at sticking to my own plans. I went into Clintons to get an autumn/winter scent for my room. I did get a sampler candle in Merry Marshmallow (which is darling, I love it) but then got distracted by this beauty.

I cannot explain to you how obsessed I am with this candle. It literally smells like strawberry ice cream/milkshake which is my absolute fave. I can almost taste it when it's burning, so so so amazing! Even without it being lit, I could sit and smell it all day (which is what I did originally when I first got it). Not to mention it was 25% off in the shop, it was destined to come home with me. My mum isn't a massive fan of the smell, which can be awkward as we've got a small house so she complains if she comes home to an ice cream parlour, but I burn it at every opportunity. I think I'm actually going to cry when it's all gone. I could smell this every day for the rest of forever and be happy.

Ebay bargain again! This little beauty, usually retailing for about a tenner, I managed to snag for £5 including P&P. I've been painting my nails very amateurishly for years now and didn't really bother with a base coat. Bad idea. You can only guess what my nails look like. So deciding that I should probably look after my poor nails, I had a quick browse on eBay and managed to get this. I've used it before painting my nails three times now and I've noticed a difference already. My colour holds for a lot longer now and my nails definitely don't look as pained as they once did. Not to mention they're a lot stronger now as well! Very impressed with this bargain buy!

Cheating a little on this one as it isn't technically an October favourite. I've had this scent for quite a while, as you can probably gather from how much is gone, and am as in love with it now as I was when I first caught a whiff of it in Victoria's Secret. I guess it put me under its love spell (see what I did there?). I can't begin to describe what makes it so desirable. Cherry blossom and peach on their own are nice enough scents but together they just create this incredible concoction. I'm convinced it is actually magic. I've been using this every day for long enough to call it my signature scent. In love with Love Spell.

The last of my October favourites is another eBay purchase. I'm a fan of wit and attitude as much as the next person so when I saw this for under a tenner, it just had to be bought. It gives me a strange little power trip when I wear it because I'm the only one who knows whether I am actually having a bad hair day or if it's just a cheeky red herring. I'm sure no one else cares really but it amuses me to no end. I've had plenty of compliments and giggles directed towards it which is great, but it is also a very warm item with plenty of wiggle room in it. Trust me, it's been not so elegantly pulled down over my ears on a few occasions when the wind has picked up and it hasn't disappointed.

It also makes me feel very cool and punk rock so I can't complain about that, can I?

So that's it for my first monthly favourites post. It's quite long really so if you're still here, thanks for sticking it out!

Until next time dolls! Stay sweet!