IGN Summer of Gaming 2022 – Games I’m Excited For

I can’t believe we don’t have E3 this year but instead we have IGN Summer of Gaming, which has been just as good in all honesty! Since me and Dane have been together we’ve always tried to catch E3 every year to check out the newest games coming out on consoles and PC and the more years we’ve been together, the more invested we have been with E3. This year with it being taken over by IGN and the Summer of Gaming, everyday since Wednesday 1st June has been jam packed with game news, which has been amazing!

Last year I shared with you all games I was excited for after E3 2021 (which you can read here), so I thought I’d do it all over again this year… Because why not! I hope some of the games I share with you today are ones you’ve not yet heard about and end up liking the sound of getting yourselves.

At the time of writing this post, there hasn’t been a Nintendo Direct, which is making me sad. I think there’s been rumours of one coming later this month, but we shall see! I’m going to be mainly talking about and sharing games from Wholesome Direct, as well as Xbox & Bethesda, as they were two of my favourites this year.

So, sit back grab a hot drink and enjoy this weeks blog post! 😀

When Wholesome Games host their direct, it fast becomes one of my favourite time of year as majority of the games that are announced find their way onto my Steam and Nintendo Switch wish lists very quickly. I love wholesome games where you can sit down and play a relaxing game after a stressful day. I’ve discovered some amazing games the past two years since they started up and I really love them for that. I’ll try not to go into too much detail about all the games below as there’s quite a few to talk about… Twelve in total! 😛

Little Bear Chef – Release date TBH, on Steam and possibility on games consoles.

A game where you play as a tiny bear chef in a regular sized kitchen. Little Bear Chef is a cosy 3D cooking platformer where you play as a tiny bear chef in a regular sized kitchen. It’s all about coming up with creative and funny solutions to cook the recipe at hand.

Little Bear Chef looks adorable and one that I reckon would be so much fun to play! I love cooking and the little honey bottle inspired bear looks adorable to boot! I was hopeful this might be a multiplayer game, but the creators have stated there’s no plan for this in the future. There isn’t a lot I can really say about this right now as there’s no release date and no website either, just a Twitter page. Keep eyes peeled for this one, I reckon it’ll do really well!

LumberJack – Out now on Steam, Nintendo Switch and Xbox.

Jack is a humble Lumbearjack with a simple dream: to return to nature what is hers with the help of his trusty axe and his animal friends. Through real-time physics puzzles, fight destruction with destruction to thwart the sinister plans of up-and-coming industrial giant Evil Works.

I saw the trailer for this and thought it looks really interesting with the smash up style, but not going to lie, I didn’t quite realise it was a puzzles based game, which let me add I’m not the best at sometimes. This game is out now, so if I ever fancy giving something new a go and it’s on sale, I’ll definitely think about picking this up!

Usagi Shima – 2023 on iOS, Android and Steam.

You’ve been tasked as caretaker of an abandoned island — as you decorate and rebuild it over time, curious (but adorable!) visitors start to appear… Buy toys and and build structures on an abandoned island to entice curious bun tourists to pay you a visit! Discover, take photos, and even befriend a variety of bunnies that visit based on how you’ve decorated and arranged the island.

This game is RIGHT UP MY STREET and looks adorable! I got a quick glimpse of this on the preview at the start of the Wholesome Direct and was curious what it could be! This would be great as a mobile game as I can play it on the go and during lunch breaks at work. I honestly cannot wait for this game, it reminds me a little of Animal Crossing. 😀

Puffpalls: Island Skies – 2024 on PC, mobile, MAC and Nintendo Switch.

PuffPals: Island Skies is a game about eliciting the nostalgic memories of growing up as a kid; exploring the world and discovering everything for the very first time! From traversing new biomes, meeting new friends, and customizing your very own home, there is no shortage of things to do on these magical floating islands! The cozy, warm, yet adventurous and curious nature of being a kid is something we want our players to embrace when embarking on their journey in PuffPals: Island Skies!

I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned it on my blog yet, but I actually backed this game on Kickstarter about a month ago now and I’m so excited for it! It was awesome to see it advertised on the Wholesome Direct, but not going to lie, I don’t think they needed to advertise it anymore. The adverts were EVERYWHERE recently with the Kickstarter being live. This being said, I am excited for it. It’s pretty much like Animal Crossing but a little bit different and with Fluffnest‘s original characters. I highly recommend checking it out if you love Animal Crossing.

Fall of Porcupine – Release date TBH on Steam.

FALL OF PORCUPINE is a unique story adventure. The collision of work and daily life – an exciting reflection of an unhealthy healthcare-system.

I wasn’t 100% sure about this game at first but since the Wholesome Direct, I’ve watched the trailer quite a few times and really do like the sound of it. Plus the art style of it looks really cute! I’m definitely going to pick this one up at some point.

Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly – 2023 on Steam and games consoles.

Dust off your coffee machine and prepare your warmest smile to meet your customers again in the second episode of the much loved coffee brewing and heart-to-heart talking simulator; Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly.

I remember buying Coffee Talk not long after I picked up my Nintendo Switch Lite back in 2019 and I really did enjoy the game, but I forgot to download it onto my Switch, so I’m only just continuing the story since the Wholesome Direct last week! I really love playing Coffee Talk, it’s a relaxing game of talking to your customers in the coffee shop and making them drinks. Nothing much to it other than that! The fact they are bringing a second game out, I must get it! Especially with the slight mystery behind the new characters revealed in the trailer too. 😀

Pekoe – 2023 on Steam. 

Blend tea and friendship in the flavourful world of Pekoe, a cosy cat-filled tea-making simulator about taking the time for self-care and connecting with what makes you happy. Build relationships, upgrade your teahouse, and discover new recipes as you work towards creating a place you can call home.

Pekoe was announced last year at the Wholesome Direct for 2021, which I mentioned at the end of last years blog post all about E3. I’m so excited to see this coming back for the Wholesome Direct this year and especially as it’s now come with more game footage too! Pekoe is such a cute little game about running a cat teahouse, whilst building a home for yourself and making friends. Perfect game for relaxing to.

Snacko – Out 2022 on both Steam, Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 and 5.

Former big city kitties Momo and Mikan are starting a new life on a seemingly deserted island. Unravel its mysteries while you rebuild a community, farm, fish, and explore the island and beyond! Lift a curse and revitalized a ruined island in Snacko, where former big city kitties Momo and Mikan are starting a new life! Grow crops, raise fluffy cows, go fishing, exploring, customize and decorate as you please, and much, much more in this farming cat-venture.

This is actually a game I backed on Kickstarter a while ago now and whenever I hear news about it in anyway shape and form, I get so excited about it! I’m also part of the Discord so I’m constantly hearing updates form the developers. Snacko reminds me of Animal Crossing but with cats! I’m definitely swaying towards getting my copy on the Nintendo Switch, I love playing PC games, sure, but I love how easy it is to move around to play you Switch. I’m literally counting down the days now for Snacko to announce when this will release!

Super Mini Mart – Release date TBH on Steam.

Super Mini Mart is a cosy take on the management genre with a charming 3D aesthetic and an endearing cast of characters. Stock, supervise, and manage store activities in a laid-back environment, befriending locals and turning those one-off bargain hunters into life-long loyal customers!

I love games like this one so when I saw the trailer for it at the end of the Wholesome Direct, I knew I’d want to get it! I used to work in retail and I’d never go back to it, but alas I’m happy to play a game all about looking after a shop. Ironic, huh? 😛 I hope this comes out on Nintendo Switch too, as I’d really love to give it a go on there rather than Steam.

Love, Ghostie – Release date TBH on Steam.

Be a wholesome ghost matchmaker and grow relationships between the mansion’s residents! Gift items to brighten their lives, set them up on dates, and watch their love bloom! What romances will you create?

This game is adorable and one I may not pick up straight away, but maybe when it’s on offer or I fancy something new to play? I love kawaii ghosts and that’s exactly what these ghosts are! You need to match match people up in a house and become a ghost cupid!

Bloom – Out now on Playdate.

Bloom is a real-time narrative-driven social sim about starting up a flower shop made exclusively for Playdate. Tend to Midori’s garden while texting friends and family as she starts a new chapter of her life. The game takes place over many real-life days.

This isn’t the first time I’ve seen the trailer for Bloom and it semi breaks my heart. I really love the look of this game, but unfortunately it’s currently only available to buy and play on Playdate, a new handheld console. Set in Japan you play as a young woman who has moved to create her own flower shop. It just looks like such a cute game, I’d honestly look at buying a Playdate to play this!

Now that I’ve mentioned the games I liked from the Wholesome Direct, I’m going to talk about Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase. This was one Dane watched before me but we spoke about it as I watched it. It was a good showcase to say the least, much better than PlayStation/Sony, let me put it that way… I’ll be talking about five games in total!

Redfall – 2023 on PC and Xbox.

The quaint island town of Redfall, Massachusetts, is under siege by a legion of vampires who have blocked out the sun and cut the island off from the outside world. Trapped with a handful of survivors against diabolical enemies threatening to bleed the town dry, choose your hero from a diverse roster, grouping up with others to create the perfect team of vampire slayers.

This was the first game to be shown during the showcase and I really liked the look of it from the get go. It reminds me of a mixture of Borderlands and Left 4 Dead, which are both two of my favourite games to play with Dane and friends! Not only is this a co-op game, but it’s also open world, both sound like so much fun! This isn’t due to come out until 2023, but as it’ll be on Xbox Game Pass, both me and Dane will get this for “free” from day one to play together!

ARK 2 – 2023 on PC and Xbox.

Starring Vin Diesel (Fast Franchise) as Santiago and Auli’i Cravalho (Moana) as his daughter Meeka. Survive the past. Tame the future. Awakened on a primal world filled with dinosaurs & humans struggling for dominance, you must team-up with legendary heroes to confront dark forces. Saddle up, & join the definitive next-gen survival experience with ARK 2!

During Covid, me Dane and some friends decided to start playing ARK and we played it for months! It was so much fun to jump on and play altogether each evening and it’s something I do miss. We’re all excited for ARK 2 to come out and as it’s on Xbox Games Pass, I’m pretty sure we’ll all download it to play all over again, but this time it looks like we’ll have a story to play with it too!

As Dusk Falls – July 19th 2022 on PC and Xbox

As Dusk Falls is an original interactive drama. Join friends or play alone, making choices that impact characters’ lives in this uncompromising story of betrayal, sacrifice, and resilience.

I love these types of games and always give them a go at some point or another! I’d love to play this with Dane as you can play with friends! It reminds me a little bit of a mixture between Life is Strange and one of the Quantic Dream games. It was commented on that it was made like a UK drama? I don’t personally see that, but I may when I play it myself? This will also be on Xbox Games Pass, so I’ll try it out for sure.

Diablo IV – 2023 on Xbox and PlayStation 5.

The endless battle between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells rages on as chaos threatens to consume Sanctuary. With ceaseless demons to slaughter, countless Abilities to master, nightmarish Dungeons, and Legendary loot, this vast, open world brings the promise of adventure and devastation. Survive and conquer darkness – or succumb to the shadows.

As Dane is a huge Diablo fan, I knew he would want this game and that I would be “dragged” in to play it with him, which is fine. I started to watch the cinematic trailer and didn’t realise it was Diablo IV at the time, so when it announced it was, I KNEW I would want to play it! I really love the necromancer class, it looks so badass and awesome! I think me and Dane are playing to try and binge play the other Diablo games before this one comes out.

Persona 3 Portable and Persona 4 Golden – 2023 on PC and Xbox.

When I heard about this I was super excited! As regular readers of my blog will know, I LOVE Persona 5 and I’m currently on and off playing Persona 5 Royal. I do also own Persona 4 Golden, but I’ve gotten stuck and plan to reply at some point on Steam. However, with Persona 4 Golden AND Persona 3 Portable coming to Xbox Games Pass, I’ll be playing them both on Xbox in the future for sure! The latter was only available on PlayStation Vita and I wasn’t able to get a copy, so this makes me so happy! Of course, I would have loved these to come to PlayStation, but meh.

Finally I want to share a couple of other games I’ve heard about! I’ll mention when talking about each of these where they were announced. 🙂

Super Zoo Story – 2023 on Steam.

Build and manage your own personal zoo in the pixel marvel RPG Game, Super Zoo Story. Construct your park, care for your animals, and ensure the happiness of both critters and humans alike. Maybe even find that special someone while building the zoo of your dreams!

Dane actually showed me this game which I really like the look of! It’s apparently heavily inspired by Stardew Valley, which I’m not a massive fan of… Purely because I just don’t get the hype around it, which in turn surprises everyone. This being said I really love the look of Super Zoo Story and I discovered whilst researching for this post that it’s got a Kickstarter coming soon, which I’ll link here. Make sure to go and check it out if you love building/managing games. I really hope this will come out on Switch, but Steam is fine too. 😀

Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet – November 18th on Nintendo Switch.

Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet offer an open-world experience that only the Pokémon series can deliver—one welcoming even to newcomers to the series.​ You can experience a new style of adventure, with a world that you’re free to explore at your leisure and not in an order dictated by the story. You will, of course, journey to hone your skills as a Pokémon Trainer, but many more discoveries and stories await you. Meet a variety of people and Pokémon, and adventure in the world of Pokémon the way you want to.

OBVIOUSLY I have to share Pokemon announcements here! I know I mentioned a while ago on here about how excited I am for the new Pokemon game, Scarlet and Violet and I already have both pre-ordered with Gamersheek for me and Dane. They’ve announced more details about the game, which, if you’re a Pokemon fan you’ll have seen already I’m sure. 😛 I’m really excited for it and contemplating booking the day off work so I can just play it as soon as it arrives! 😛 I need to talk to Dane about whether or not he fancies us booking off the day to binge play this gen like we did with the last gen. At the time of writing this post there are supposedly leaks from the new games… I’m going to have a nose into those later. I’m never fussed about seeing leaks myself, if anything it gets me more hyped for the game. xD

Roots of Pacha – 2022 on Steam.

Roots of Pacha allows you to build, harvest crops, make friends with animals and help grow your village in single-player or co-op mode. This trailer for Roots of Pacha gameplay shows off some new elements you can experience while playing.

Another game similar sounding to Super Zoo Story, we have Roots of Pacha which looks like such a chill and cool game to play! I especially love that this has co-op mode so it means me and Dane can play together if we wanted to! I’m going to look into this sooner rather than later as this looks to be launching sooner rather than later. I didn’t know that this was a Kickstarter game until researching for this post too.

Choo-Choo Charles – 2022 on Steam.

Choo-Choo Charles is a survival horror, open world, shooter game. Navigate an island in an old train, upgrade it over time, and use it to fight an evil sentient train that terrorizes your home. Charles is hungry; don’t be his next meal.

This is actually one of the first games I saw to be announced from the IGN Summer of Gaming and it’s one I’m not 100% sure about. The concept of it sounds fucking hilarious and one I’d love to try, but at the same time it sounds so scary and I don’t know if I’d like it? I think Dane was interested in this game too, so if there’s a chance to play co-op I can see us both playing this at some point for shits and giggles!

So, there we have it guys, all the games (so far anyway…) that I’ve really loved the look of from IGN Summer of Gaming!

What games have taken your fancy so far? Have you discovered any new ones from this blog post today? Make sure to let me know in the comments below! I’m especially excited for a lot of new games to add to my library!

Until next time guys, take care and I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Games I’m Loving This Month

This is a post I’ve been so excited to share with you guys this month. It’s all about games, which you guys know I love. 😛

November is a month where LOADS of games (including updates and DLC too) have been released that I’ve been looking forward to for years/months/weeks, so I thought it would be awesome to share them all with you. Some of these games you may have heard about, whereas some you may not have due to them being indie/by small developers.

I hope you enjoy this weeks post, I know I’ve really enjoyed talking about the games and sharing them all with you. I’ll be sharing them in order of their release!

Unpacking – 2nd November 2021

Available on Steam, Xbox and and Nintendo Switch.

I can’t 100% remember when I heard about Unpacking coming out, but from memory I have a feeling it was during E3 2021 (mid June) through the Wholesome Games stream/community on YouTube.

Unpacking is a relaxing game all about… Well… Unpacking! You’re unpacking someone’s life out of boxes through various stages of their life, from child/teenager, student, adult, etc. You unpack their items and place them around their room/house until everything is away in its rightful place. It’s incredibly relaxing game and I spent most of launch day playing it. It’s not a game you feel you need to rush through and can pick it up and take your time. You don’t ever find out what the person looks like (not 100% anyway), nor their name, anything about their family and more. You get snippets into their life through unpacking their items, which is something I really loved. It was nice to try and put together your assumptions of their life, what has happened and more. I would go more into my thoughts story wise, but it could spoil the game for others.

Alongside the accomplishment of popping away all the belongings, you do also earn stickers for placing items in certain ways and places, which I love! I need to go back to the game again soon to replay through the levels to earn all of the stickers, as well as maybe change things up? Honestly, this game is incredibly therapeutic and I can really see it helping with my anxiety when I just need to zone out for a while.

To The Rescue! – 2nd November 2021

Available on Steam and Nintendo Switch in 2022.

This is a game I discovered one afternoon whilst browsing through Kickstarter back in August/September 2019. I cannot believe over two years have passed and the game is now out, and let me tell you, it was worth the wait for sure! To The Rescue! is a dog shelter simulator game, where you run a dog shelter, helping dogs to get fostered/adopted, all whilst looking after the at the same time. You can hire people to help you, run charity events to get funds for the shelter, as well as encourage people to come and view dogs to adopt. That’s the main part of the game really, getting the dogs happy enough to be adopted and prevent any euthanasia. This game is very realistic about that fact, you can turn off the euthanasia however if you don’t wish to have that theme in your game. I know I have.

I’ve only played the game once so far and that was the date it launched. On day one of the game coming out there were quite a few bugs, so I’ve decided to wait playing anymore since until a lot of the bugs have been fixed, which they sound like they have from release notes. So, I’ll be picking it up again at some point soon.

One thing I want to comment on so far with playing this game is, the story mode is fucking hard! It’s very stressful and takes away the nice, happy vibes that game shows and comes with. Dane is really good at games and even he commented how hard the story mode is. However, the (sandbox) mode is a lot nicer and you feel like you have a lot more control over what you can do with your shelter, and more. I do need to play some more of this game however as this could have changed since the last time I played the game.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons Update – 4th/5th November 2021

After the Animal Crossing Direct aired in October, I was ecstatic. I’d not felt so happy and excited about anything for a while and alongside that, a massive part of the community I love were all excited for the update too! Everyone was in good spirits, sharing what they were excited for the most and even some people restarting their islands! I couldn’t do that, I love my island and villagers too much. :’)

Anyhoo, the update came out a day early by mistake! I’d booked the week off anyway before the direct had even aired, so I was READY for the update! Dane woke me up around 6am on the 4th to say, “Nat… The Animal Crossing update is out a day early…” I shot up, updated the game, grabbed us breakfast and a coffee and we spent most of the morning/early afternoon in bed playing the update. It was amazing to sit with Dane and cuddle as we both discovered the updates in the game. Poor Dane, he went on an island trip with Kapp’n before speaking to Blathers, so missed out on seeing Brewster… 😛

I’ve been playing Animal Crossing almost daily since the update came out and have really been loving all the things you can do now. I especially love going on the island trips, as well as grabbing my daily coffee (or two) in The Roost and getting gifts for doing just that! I recently gifted Cookie a takeaway coffee after unlocking it and she carries it around with her every now and then. It’s so precious!

One thing however that DOES disappoint me with The Roost is how you can’t help Brewster anymore like you could back in New Leaf. It was my favourite part of the day (especially as I WAS a barista at the time) when visiting my town and it’s such a shame that’s now gone. I’d like to hope it’ll come back in the future, but I don’t think it’s going to happen, unfortunately. I know quite a few people who were gutted this previous feature has been removed… Maybe if we all moan about it enough, Nintendo might bring it back 😛 Who knows!

Aside from that, I am loving the update. With Pokemon coming out, I may end up playing Animal Crossing a little less, but not too much. I’m really enjoying playing it and will be sad when the time comes where I won’t be playing it as much again.

Animal Crossing: Happy Home Paradise – 5th November 2021

I’m not going to lie, Happy Home Paradise has been out for two weeks now and admittedly, I’ve only played it twice.. Shameful, I know. As my mental health hasn’t been too great since the release of the Animal Crossing update and DLC, I’ve not really been in the mood to play the DLC after the main game. This being said, when I have played it I’ve enjoyed it so much. It’s relaxing to put together villagers paradise homes, as well as see their cute interactions on the beach before and after you create their perfect paradise homes!

On the day it came out me and Dane sat together playing it and compared the homes we’d put together, which I really loved. It was nice comparing what we’d done, who we had on our beaches and more. At one point Willow (sheep villagers) turned up on Dane’s beach and he kept commenting how cute she is, which warmed my heart. Now I’m on the hunt for her amiibo card. 😛

The DLC has brought a lot more to the game than just the usual island life, which I love. I remember back in 2015 when Happy Home Designer came out. I was so hyped for it, but the game itself was so boring and mundane, that I didn’t play it as much as I’d hoped to. Happy Home Paradise is so much different. You can do different things, change things up, invite villagers, design facilities and more!

I highly recommend the DLC if you love Animal Crossing and can’t get enough, I know I’ve hardly played mine, but with what I have done so far it’s so relaxing to play. Personally I think my reason for not picking it up to play as much is I worry the homes I design look shit, poor and tacky. This is due to social media and nothing personal to anyone. I’m not as creative as others when it comes to Animal Crossing, but that’s okay! As long as I’m happy with what I’ve done, it shouldn’t be a problem.

I wanted to pop that reminder here as I know due to social media lately, a lot of people don’t like their islands and have stopped playing Animal Crossing due to high expectations. You do you!

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl – 19th November 2021

At the time of writing this post, I am yet to play either Diamond or Pearl. It’s ready to go on my Switch, but I wanted to get this post written and scheduled ready for the weekend! 😛

I’m pretty busy this weekend of doing stuff at home, as well as binge playing either of these games, so I’ll hold off sharing my thoughts on Diamond and/or Pearl until the November favourites in a few weeks!

However, I’m still going to talk about these games because why the fuck wouldn’t I? 😛

I am beyond excited to play Diamond and Pearl. I pre-ordered both as I planned to keep Pearl for myself and give Diamond to Dane. However, Dane isn’t fussed about playing it, so I’ll just keep Diamond!

My reason for choosing Pearl is a simple one, it’s what I picked up and played back in 2008. Back in Christmas 2008 my dad asked what I wanted for Christmas. I’d always wanted a Nintendo DS, but never got one. The red DS Lite was out and as they were only £100 at the time, I asked for that. They were out of stock EVERYWHERE! I called all the GAME, Toys R Us and Curry’s stores nearby with no luck, all gone. This was a week before Christmas by the way. In one last effort to try and bag the red DS Lite, I called an independent games store in the hopes they had them, the guy has one left in stock so I asked him to pop it to one side and we’d be down soon. My dad took me to go and get the DS Lite, as well as some games as well, which I bought myself. These included Pokemon Pearl and Animal Crossing: Wild World. Pokemon Pearl was the only one in stock out of the two, but I didn’t mind.

That Christmas I binge played both of those games. It introduced me to Animal Crossing, but also re-introduced me to Pokemon. I completely bypassed gen 3 due to my dislike of the Game Boy Advance and had spent around five years playing Pokemon Silver… Until the cartridge broke. 😛

Pokemon Pearl really did re-ignite my love for the games again and since then I’ve pretty much played most of the new (and remade) gen games… Apart from Black 2 and White 2 as I didn’t see the point and I’m not even going to talk about Sun and Moon. 😛

I did also play Pokemon Platinum too, but I doubt we’ll get that added to the series this time around with the remakes.

I’m really excited to be able to replay through the game(s) that helped fuel my Pokemon addictions more, I’m especially excited to get Leafeon and Glaceon, as well as go mining, it was one of my favourite things about the game and I was gutted they never brought it back.

So, there we have it guys, just some of the games I have been loving and also been VERY excited for throughout November. I can’t quite believe the start of December is just around the corner now. Maybe if you like the sound of some of these games, you can stick them on your Christmas lists in the hope someone might gift you with them. 🙂

What games have you been enjoying recently? Any of the same ones as me? If you’ve picked up Pokemon, which version did you get? Honestly, share away! I love talking about games!

Until next time all, take care and having a great weekend.

May Favourites ‘21

I honestly can’t believe it’s going to be June in just a few days time… It’s really crazy how quickly 2021 is flying by and I don’t know how I feel about it. 😛

The start of June is going to be hella busy with me, with both mine and Dane’s eight year anniversary, as well as our five year anniversary in our home too! Alongside that my best friend is getting married, which is really exciting! I honestly can’t wait for it.

Aside from that I’m not 100% sure what else June is going to bring… Hopefully some better weather to be honest! I’m always a spring and autumn girl for the cooler weather, but it would be nice to have some decent weather so both me and Dane can go into the garden to do it up, have a BBQ and more. Plus, I have some pretty dresses that need to be worn and right now it’s too miserable and cold to do that. 😛

June is also the month that I need to go on a serious spending ban as I’ve spent quite a lot of money lately and yeah… I bought myself some cool accessories for my desk, as well as LOADS of Pokemon Nendoroid figures too! I would share some of these later on in this post but I’m contemplating having a post for it because… Why not! 😀 My new desk accessories are too kawaii not to share on their own.

Hint – they’re Razer x Sanrio themed… 😉

May I finally add how gutted I am that I won’t be seeing My Chemical Romance in June… It’s been postponed until May 2022 now… I’m happy to wait but, I am gutted. 😦

Anyhoo on a lighter note – let’s get on with this months favourites!

Beauty.

• SBC Propolis Shampoo – (link).

This is a shampoo I started using a good couple of weeks ago now and I LOVE it! It’s one my mom gave to me as she bought one too many and as we’re both fans of SBC, she thought I’d love it. Well, she wasn’t wrong. 😛 This shampoo smells like honey, both in the bottle, whilst using and after drying your hair too. It lathers up really nice and a little bit goes a long way, which is always good for my hair considering how much there is of it. It leaves my hair feeling soft to the touch, thick and without any frizz. It’s honestly been a bit of a gamechanger to my hair care and after it’s finished, I think I’ll buy it again! It’s actually a shampoo for scalp care and personally I have found my scalp isn’t as dry as it has been in the past, which is always good!

So… Now it’s time to talk about the miscellaneous favourites of the month! If there isn’t anything I’ve done I’m not going to mention.

Image taken from GIPHY

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite TV Shows – Taskmaster and Line of Duty.

This month instead of a movie AND a TV show, I’ll be talking about two TV shows, as quite frankly me and Dane have been addicted to both of these in May and I know we’ll be obsessed about them in June too! We’ve been binge watching both of these TV shows recently and have fallen in love with them! Not going to lie, Line of Duty hasn’t been continued recently as we’ve been binge watching Taskmaster.

Line of Duty finished it’s sixth series recently and I decided that I wanted to watch the show from the beginning. I know loads of people who watch and love it and as I had nothing to watch I thought, why not? Dane started watching it with me too and we’ve both become hooked on the show. We’re currently on series four and DAMN so much has happened leading up to the episode and series we’re currently on. The show is about AC 12, a group of anti-corruption police with Steve, Kate and their boss Superintendent Hastings being the main characters. We follow them as they investigate “bent coppers” and sit on the edge of our seats as they do so. The show is amazing and I’ve been recommending everyone I know to watch it. As I said, we do need to continue watching it. You can watch for free on BBC iPlayer.

As I mentioned before, we’ve also been binge watching Taskmaster. I remember being told years ago when it first started to watch it and how funny it was. At the time it didn’t appeal to me and I thought it sounded crap, oh how wrong I was. We’re currently on series five of the show and hoping to get through the rest of the series before my free two week All 4+ subscription runs out. 😛 It’s such a good show to put on whilst we’re chilling out together, especially whilst eating dinner, doing work in the office, in the morning before work, etc. I highly recommend Taskmaster if you want something new to watch and want a laugh at the same time. A funny story to share, we went for a food shop over the weekend and we both occasionally commented on items used in challenges and how we would use them and such. Such geeks, right? 😛

Favourite Music – Tremonti – “Take You with Me” and Boston Manor – “Liquid”.

These two songs have popped up on my YouTube Music playlist this month and you know when you hear a song again and you forgot just how much you loved it? Yep, that. 😛 I have quite a few Tremonti and Boston Manor songs on my playlist and I often love hearing them come on and have a good sing, especially if they come on whilst I’m driving. I don’t really know what to say about these, aside from check them out and see what you think! Tremonti are heavy metal and Boston Manor are rock.

Image taken from Nintendo UK

Favourite Game – Miitopia.

Miitopia is a game that came out back in 2017 on the 3DS and it’s one both me and Dane owned and played to death! Now we play our Switch’s, we don’t touch our 2DS handhelds anymore, so when Nintendo announced that Miitopia would be coming out on the Switch I decided to order a copy for both me and Dane so we could play it all over again! The Switch version has some additional features, including better customisation for characters, as well as being able to have a horse in your party, which is pretty cool. I’ve been playing it none stop the past week as it’s such an easy and laid back game to play. To describe the game – a bad guy turns up and starts stealing people’s faces. You need to travel the land, fighting the creatures who have people’s faces. It’s a laid back and fun game and it’s one I thoroughly enjoy. There is a demo of this you can get from the Nintendo eShop but I highly recommend if you’re in the UK and want to purchase a copy, get it from Gamersheek! They have the best prices around. 🙂

Quite a few of my favourite things…

Animal Crossing and friends!

If there is one thing I have loved doing in May, it’s travelling to my friends islands on Animal Crossing to have island tours, meeting their villagers and exchange goodies! I especially love that my friend Sarah (Raiin Monkey) has finally got her own island to decorate and make her own. I went on a long tour recently and we took so many cute pictures, including the one above! This photo with her favourite villager Lily is PERFECT and I just had to show it off to you guys! If you love Animal Crossing content then make sure to go and check out my friend Sarah, she has an Animal Crossing Instagram account – acnh_kireishima.

Cross stitch.

If there is one thing I recently rediscovered it’s cross stitch. My mom got me into it from a young age and on and off over the years it’s a hobby I’ve done. I feel though since COVID I’ve done more cross stitching more than ever, especially the past month. I’d finished my Cookie cross stitch kit last month and had decided to buy some more in April/May, these being Lucky and Bones. Bones is almost finished and as soon as he’s finished, I’ll be working on Lucky. Then when Lucky is finished I’ll be ordering Cherry, Goldie and Shep. These Animal Crossing cross stitch kits are from DIY Crossing, who creates and makes some AMAZING Animal Crossing goods. Make sure to go and check them out if you’re interested. 🙂

Commissions.

If there is one thing I like getting, it’s commissions. Not only do you support a small artist/business owner but you’re getting something unique and hella cute out of it! I commissioned quite a lot of of people in May and I have ZERO REGRETS!

First commission – Claire Likes To Doodle. Claire recently opened up for people to commission her to draw her original character design Bernard to be cosplaying/dressed up as whatever you want! I decided to go for a Bernard dressed as an Eevee and holding a sign advertising my Twitch channel! It’s so cute and adorable. I have it on my Twitch, as well as on the right hand side of my blog, which you may have already seen as you read this post. 😛 I’ve spoken about Claire and her amazing store on my blog in the past which you can read here and here.

Second commission – mellencrossing. I’d noticed Mel’s work around Instagram and fell in love. The style of her work was so cute and the variety was even cuter! Mel does various styles including full body and a plushie villager, full body and two plushie villagers and two full bodies which is what I went for! The turn around was super quick and Mel was really easy to work with. I told her I wanted me and Cookie playing Switch’s together and for Cookie to be wearing the dreamy sweater. I also sent a photo of me wearing my Bee and Puppycat dress. Mel sent me the commission once it was finished and asked if I wanted to make any changes. I altered Cookie’s mouth from the usual smile to a massive smile. I love the commission so much and plan to print it off to pop above my desk. I’m planning on getting another one or two commissions from her in the future, but instead full body of me with two plushies instead. The one thing I want to mention is how fair Mel’s prices are for how amazing her work is. 🙂

Third commission – lunaquete. Finally I’ll be talking about Leony and her ADORABLE Animal Crossing designs. Leony is quite well known in the Animal Crossing community for her Pantone x Animal Crossing artwork and it’s also how I discovered her. I decided to commission her to draw me a Twitter header with my blog name on, as well as some of my favourite villagers including, Lucky, Marshal, Cookie, Eunice and Bones. It’s such a pretty commission and like Mel’s commission, I’m planning on printing this off to pop on the wall above my desk! I highly recommend checking out Leony’s work if you love Animal Crossing. If/when I hit affiliate on Twitch, I’m contemplating commissioning her to draw me some emoticons. 🙂

Cookie amigurumi.

I HAVE BEEN SO EXCITED TO SHARE THIS CUTIE!!! Back at the start of 2021 I discovered cotswoldscrochet through Instagram and when I found out she was going to open her commission slots for amigurumi, I was ON IT as soon as I could! As Cookie is my favourite villager, I decided to get a huge Cookie amigurumi made to display with my Pokemon plushies. Harriet was amazing when it came down to making Cookie, she asked me loads of questions of what I wanted and how I wanted her to be, showed me the colour of the wool before starting her and more. Harriet faced a few issues when it came to creating Cookie’s head as this was her first dog villager and more. I was happy to wait though for Harriet to work on Cookie a little more to get her perfect for me. Harriet was amazing and finally a couple of weeks ago Cookie arrived and she’s now comfortably at home with my Pokemon plushies. 🙂 I’ll be writing a HUGE review about cotswoldscrochet in June, so make sure to keep eyes peeled for that! Harriet’s commissions are closed but you can check out her Etsy store.

Homemade enamel pin hoops.

I need to add here in case anyone asks – NONE OF THE PINS ON MY ENAMEL HOOPS ARE FOR SALE. IF YOU ASK YOUR COMMENT WILL BE DELETED.

I decided in May that I was going to make my own enamel pin hoops. I’d wanted to buy some for a while but to be honest, the prices people charge for them on Etsy are a JOKE. I saw someone asking £10+ for one that was smaller than the ones I made. For two twelve inch hoops and two different types of fabric I spent £16. The amount of fabric I bought could make 8 twelve inch hoops too… Anyhoo! I decided to make my own as it seemed reasonable (price wise) and fun to do. I picked up the pin hoops and fabric from Hobbycraft whilst going bridesmaid shopping with my best friend and her bridesmaids. Making these was pretty simple and it took me max about an hour to do including popping the fabric into the hoops, cutting down to size and using a glue gun to stick the stray fabric to the hoop itself… I hope this makes sense. 😛

I decided to have one enamel pin hoop dedicated to all the Quirkory enamel pins I own currently. As and when I get more they’ll be added to the hoop. I would happily buy another hoop to create a second Quirkory hoop too! If you like the look of Quirkory’s designs, make sure to use my unique discount code on their Etsy store to snag yourself 10% off your order – “TMBQUIRKORY”. Also make sure to check our their currently Kickstarter campaign about Souls Of Nature. I’ve backed for some enamel pins and one of the deskmats.

I also decided to have a pin flag dedicated to all my Pokemon enamel pins. Aside from Quirkory, Pokemon designs take up the majority of my collection, with Animal Crossing and Ghibli hardly having any, which surprised me! I have more Pokemon enamel pins coming in the future after I backed Nyanzilla’s Eeveelution Kickstarter… I’ll be showing those off when they arrive. 😛 If you’re wondering who any of the enamel pins are by on this hoop, please ask.

Razer x Sanrio Characters mouse and keyboard.

Finally I want to show off something that arrived for bank holiday weekend! I recently ordered the Razer x Sanrio Characters mouse and keyboard from YY Kawaii and I HAVE NO REGRETS. As regular readers will know, back in March/April Dane decided to buy me my own desk for both working from home, as well as for my streaming on Twitch, playing games and working on my blog work. I wanted to have my desk be as cute as possible, so I decided to order the Razer x Sanrio goodies. You cannot get any cuter than this! Over the bank holiday

I’ve been using the mouse mostly (using at the moment!) which is perfect! It also came with the mouse mat seen in the photo which is adorable. It makes me so happy to look at. The design on the mouse is so sweet and not too OTT which is always good. I’ve also been using the keyboard on and off but I’ll be honest, it’s so fucking loud. I knew it would be due to the type of switches inside but yeah… I didn’t think it would be THAT loud. I’ve bought some stuff to try and help quieten the noise down a little. Aside from that, the keyboard is just as cute as the mouse and I cannot wait to use it more in the future for writing blog posts and maybe for work too.

What do you guys think of this months favourites? May has honestly flown by and I seriously can’t believe it’s June already. I know the first couple of weeks of June are going to fly by, which saddens me.

I’m just excited for June. I feel like I’m starting to sort of get back to normal. We’ve visited some friends, sat in the house with my parents to have a roast dinner, planning to go the cinema and planning to go for food and drinks. I can’t wait for the world to get more and more back to “normal” as the year goes on.

What were your favourites from May? Make sure to let me know in the comments. 🙂

Until next time all, I hope you enjoy the rest of your bank holiday as well as the gorgeous weather!

Quirkory – Mostari Mystery Pack Review AND An Exciting Announcement!

Guys I’m back to talk to you about Quirkory, what an amazing independent artist/store they are… As well as some exciting news, which I’ll be sharing first because I just can’t contain my excitement!

Image taken from GIPHY

Drumroll please… I have become Quirkory’s brand ambassador!

Not only has this made me really happy (because we all know how much I love Quirkory as a brand, he couple behind it and of course their kawaii designs!) but I feel honoured too. I’m honoured to be able to become an ambassador for a brand I really do love and especially love talking about on my blog, to people on messages/social media and more!

Quirkory were lovely enough to recognised how much I loved them and offered me to become an ambassador towards the end of 2020, with it all starting to become official on my birthday! If you didn’t know, Inari and Mosted are based off of the couple behind Quirkory and are their kawaii mascots for the brand. So, when they suggested me becoming an ambassador a while ago, we also discussed them creating a mascot all of my own to represent me! I gave them an idea and on my birthday they sent over the finished design, which I’m happy to finally show you all!

I went for a raccoon, as they are for sure my spirit animal (as well as one of my favourites alongside foxes, dogs and red pandas), so it seemed right for me. As well as that, I went for a purple bow around their neck, as that’s my favourite colour. I loved the idea of having my mascot with food/drink of some sort, especially considering the name of my blog is to do with coffee! We didn’t go with coffee however and instead opted for a matcha bubble tea, as this is one of my favourite beverages! The end design is so adorable and I couldn’t be happier with it! I’m planning to buy a print of it from Quirkory so I can pop it in a frame and hang it in the house. I’m honestly a mixture of happy and proud to now be more than just a fan/buyer of Quirkory, but now working with them too.

Of course, with being a brand ambassador I do get a special discount code for you guys to use to snag yourself a bargain or two! This code will be “TMBQUIRKORY” and gives you 10% off of Quirkory’s Etsy store. Don’t worry if you need to quickly grab the code in the future and can’t find this post, there’s a few ways this discount code will be accessible.

I’ll be adding the discount code and image, as well as this post under the “Quirkory” section of my blog, as shown in the image above. As well as that, I will of course have the discount code image on the right hand side of my blog, which will be added after this post is live!

Anyhoo, exciting announcement over, it’s time to talk about Quirkory’s Mostari Mystery Pack! This is an item Quirkory revealed and launched towards the end of 2020 and it’s something I KNEW I had to pick up for myself. It’s always nice to pick up a surprise box/bag to see what goodies you get. I know I often talk about Quirkory on my blog and for people who may have never bought anything from Quirkory before and interested, the Mostari pack may be a great way to introduce you to Quirkory!

I’m going to explain what the Mostari pack is all about, as well as prices, what you’ll expect as well as what I received in my pack! I have also done an IGTV video about this over on my Instagram account, which I will post here if you’re interested in watching that alongside reading this post.

The Mostari box comes in three different sizes, bag, mini box and large box.

Bag (£20.25) – You will receive three different pins or two different random pins and one surprise item.

Mini Box (£27.98) – You will receive three different pins or two different random pins and one surprise item. You will also received one art print and either two jumbo vinyl stickers or one stick pack/sheet.

Large Box (£41.59) – You will receive five different pins or four different random pins and one surprise item. You will also received one art print and either two jumbo vinyl stickers or one stick pack/sheet.

I went for the large box, because why not? 😛 It arrived before Christmas and I was SO HAPPY with all of the goodies I received. Quirkory made sure that I didn’t receive any duplicate items and I couldn’t thank them enough for this! To be honest, if I had of received some duplicate enamel pins, I would have gifted them to my friends. 🙂

Image taken from Quirkory’s Etsy store.

First of all the image that Quirkory designed purely for the Mostari pack is absolutely adorable! It’s Inari and Mosted looking inside the Mostari box in front of them, which is full of sparkle! The name Mostari is also a mash up of Inari and Mosted to sound like mystery!

Inside the box it is full of shredded pink and blue tissue paper, as well as the goodies all in their packages and such. I’m going to talk about all the goodies I received, honestly I couldn’t be happier with them! There is also a thank you card in there with some cute animal designs on! I’d like to think these are Quirkory’s pets…

Every box may contain common, discontinued or new/unreleased items. Due to this each box will have a random different rarity grade:

Common- if containing items with a stock of more than 30 pieces.

Rare – if containing items with a low stock.

Vaulted – if containing items no longer on sale or out of stock.

Surprize – if containing a new item not yet listed for sale/not yet shown to the public.

• Sticker Pack – Chillin’ Pals Sticker Set (link)

When I saw this in the box, I was so surprised! I’ve been meaning to buy this sticker pack for the longest time, but just keep leaving it for a rainy day when I fancy a treat. I finally have them and they’re so cute! The stickers themselves are matte and not shin. There are four stickers in the pack, all to do with dogs and cats and are original Quirkory designs and even have their own names.

Luci is a black cat and white cat with a blue beanie on and a book in front of them. The book has sparkles and swirls, which I assume are to show Luci getting into the magic of the book.

Doteki is actually my favourite from the bunch and looks to be a shiba who is chilling on Petflix with some film/TV show snacks and even a hot water bottle! Plus, he’s got cute little feet pads and a little cross to show his bum… So cute!

Snoozin is a ginger and white cat who is asleep under the blue fluffy blanket. They’re dreaming about sleeping in a box in the sunshine. Snoozin also has a cute little red bow around their neck.

Yuki is the final design and is a cute little shiba wrapped up for winter months. I don’t know why but this design reminds me of Japan in winter. Yuki is a brown and white suba, with pink earmuffs on, a massive chunky blue tartan scarf and some cute little pink mittens.

• Art Print – Happy Togedeer Art Print (link)

I’ve seen this print before receiving it in my Mostari pack due to being a Patreon and it was actually a design they released as wallpapers for computers, phones and tablets so it was so cute to receive in my pack! It’s two deer snuggling together, one is white and one is brown, with a little heart above them both. The pale blue background works really well and it says, “Happy Togedeer” at the top. It’s printing on photo paper and feels really lovely. I’m planning to keep either stick this on my plushie cabinet, or keep it somewhere safe for when I eventually get my own desk. 🙂

• Rare – Mew enamel pin from the Mythical Rising Star collection (link)

This Mew enamel pin is from Quirkory’s first Kickstarter which launched back in March 2019. It’s crazy to think that was almost two years ago! I hadn’t discovered Quirkory at this point but if I had I know for a fact I would have backed for this enamel pin design. Mew is one of my favourite Pokemon and they really captured how playful and cute the psychic Pokemon is with this design! Mew is sat against a blue stained glass design, with a purple bow design on its tail and some star designs hanging from its tail too. This is a chain design enamel pin so it does have something dangling off of it. With Mew the design is a pink and purple swirl, which I assume is based off of it being psychic Pokemon. It’s on a rose gold enamel, is a two back pin for the main body of the design and then another back for the pin for the dangle/chain swirl design too. As well as that on the back of the main design of the piece is Quirkory’s logo. There are loads of designs similar to this one including Diancie, Victini, Celebi, Shaymin, Jirachi, Marshadow, Manaphy, Zeraora and Meloetta.

• Rare – Flower Eevee enamel pin from the Cute Eeveelutions collection (link)

This series of flower Eeeveelution is from the Kickstarter that helped me to discover Quirkory after buying some of the Greek Eeveelutions designs through it, as well as after (you can read all about the Greek Eeveelution designs here). The first enamel pin I opened from my Mostari box was this design and it made me smile so much! This cute little Eevee is laid back on a white flower, with it’s fluffy tail dangling below it, I think it’s having a snooze! I love the big green leaves for this flower too, as it compliments the overall colours of Eevee and the flower. This is a gold enamel pin, with two backs and Quirkory etched into the back.

• Rare – Flower Flareon enamel pin from the Cute Eeveelutions collection (link)

Again, we have another Eeveelution design from the Kickstarter I backed back in 2019. As you can see I also received the Flareon design which really did make me smile. Back when I discovered Quirkory they thanked me for all their support by sending me the Flareon Greek God design, so it’s really nice to get Flareon again! The Flareon, like Eevee is lying on it’s back, but Flareon has its paws up to its face, almost like its giggling at something. It is lying on a purple flower, which like the Eevee design compliments the colours of Flareon’s orange and yellow so well! Alongside the Eevee and Flareon designs, you can also pick up the other Eeveelutions too – Leafeon, Vaporeon, Sylveon, Espeon, Jolteon, Umbreon and Glaceon.

• Rare – Yamper Corgi enamel pin (link)

The Yamper design is adorable and one I’ve toyed with buying for a while. I actually think the Quirkory design for Yamper is better than the original by Pokemon… 😛 It’s not an overly complicated design and the Yamper definitely shouts corgi when you look at it. It also has a little blep going on, which makes it even more adorable, alongside with the way it’s sat. This is a gold enamel pin, with two pin backs and Quirkory etched into the back of it.

• Vaulted – Bulbakura Enamel Pin (link)

Alongside the Mew enamel pin, this Bulbasaur enamel pin is also from Quirkory’s first Kickstarter from March 2019. To me this Bulbasaur design is different to anything Quirkory has done since and because of this I’m glad to finally own it! It’s a gold Bulbasaur with a pink cherry blossom on it’s back instead of the bulb we all know and recognise the Pokemon for. Due to the Bulbasaur being gold, of course the enamel is gold too and like pretty much all of the pins I received, it has two backs as well as Quirkory etched into the back of the enamel pin. It’s quite a thick enamel pin to be honest, which is really nice to hold. I can’t wait to display this in the future, the gold makes it lovely and shiny so it’ll definitely be a conversation starter in the future.

• Surprize – Totodile Patch

This was actually such a surprise and was the first thing I opened when in my Mostari box! I’ve never seen Quirkory sell patches before so if this is an upcoming project I’m excited for it! This is a patch with Totodile on and he’s holding a hose pipe which he’s shooting water out of. It took me a while to realise what it was, but coming out of his head is a needle and thread, which looks really cool and unique. I’m not sure what I’m going to put my patch on yet but I’m sure I’ll find something soon. 🙂

I also received some other goodies in my pack, but this was more of a thank you from Quirkory for supporting them, plus as I’m a Patreon, it was also a thank you for that too! As always, Quirkory also sent a really lovely thank you note. I’m not going to share it as it feels more personal, and I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned before on my blog, but all the thank you notes Quirkory have sent me, I’ve kept. 🙂 They also sent me a special discount code for their store as a thanks for being a Patreon.

• Detective Pikachu Sticker (link for sticker pack)

This Detective Pikachu design looks to be from a sticker pack, but I honestly love the design I was sent. Detective Pikachu is holding his little takeaway coffee cup and looks adorable as anything! Why do I feel Quirkory sent me this because it’s to do with coffee? 😛 It’s a matte sticker by the way. I don’t have a clue where I’m going to stick him yet, but I’m sure I’ll find something.

• Whipped Ghost Sticker (link)

This is another design I’ve seen floating around Patreon and one that reminds me of autumn/fall in America. It’s a pumpkin pie with little candy corns on it, as well as a happy dollop of cream! It’s so bloody cute. This is a vinyl sticker. I think Quirkory should definitely do more food themed designs. 😛

• Inari & Mosted Christmas and Autumn Stickers (Sorry no link…)
  

Quirkory sent me some of their mascot stickers and I always smile when they send me some! They’re so cute and I actually have quite a lot of the mascot stickers on my iPad case, including the Christmas Inari and Mosted they sent me from last Christmas (2019). Inari has reindeer antlers on, whilst Mosted wears a Christmas hat. These are small stickers and matte. The other two designs they sent me look like they’re from autumn. Inari is dressed up a cream squirrel and holding onto an acorn whilst Mosted is dressed as a squirrel too but is a dark brown and is holding onto a toadstool/wild mushroom. These two designs are adorable!

Sadly neither of these designs are available to buy on the store, however here are some Inari and Mosted designs you can check out instead – Halloween Stickers and summer stickers.

So that is the Mostari box! I’m so glad I picked one up before Christmas as it was so exciting to open it up! I don’t know if any young Brits from the 90’s remember, but there used to be such a thing as a “surprise” bag you could buy from the shop where it was a sealed bag full of exciting goodies to keep you busy! It would have an activity book, some crayons, as well as a toy and sweeties. My mom would buy me one every now and then and I really did love it. I just googled it ad FOUND IT! It was called Dick Turtle Surprise Bag. This is exactly what the Mostari box reminded me of and it definitely brought back some nostalgic memories, which have been lovely.

I’m going to add all of Quirkory’s social media pages and especially their store below:

Store (Etsy)

Instagram

Patreon

Facebook

Twitter

So, do you think you’ll pick up your own Mostari box? If so, what size would you opt for and what goodies would you hope to get inside your box? Of course if you are interested in getting a box of your own, you can use my discount code to save yourself some monies as well, which is always good! 😀

Let me know what you think in the comments below and make sure to say hello to Quirkory from me if you find yourself making a purchase, posting on their social media and more. 🙂

Until next time guys, I hope you’re all doing well and keeping safe during lockdown with everything going on. Take care all! 🙂

Shop Small – Claire Likes To Doodle*

Can you believe Christmas is now less than a month away? With Christmas comes Christmas present shopping, have you started yours yet? I have and I’m almost finished! I know some people who wait until the last minute to buy their presents and some who buy them throughout the year.

I like to get my shopping done early and always have done so that I have more money for Christmas parties and trips to the German Market throughout December… None of those are happening this year due to COVID… 😛

However this year I have decided to shop small and mostly buy Christmas presents through small and independent artists. Some own their own stores online and host on websites like Etsy. I’ll be writing and sharing more stores with you in the coming weeks.

Today I want to talk about my good friend Claire, who owns Claire Likes To Doodle. I spoke about Claire and her commission work last summer (which you can read here) and we have decided to work together again, but this time to talk about her online store!

Claire opened her store again around July this year and since then she has filled it with loads of amazing goodies – especially her original character Bernard.

Since working together last year Claire wanted to share an update in regards to how her work has changed since then, as well as how Claire Likes To Doodle will be in 2021!

The last time I was featured on Nat’s blog, it was primarily for my chibi work. That was my main focus for commissions and merch too. I’m still a commission artist, I do watercolour pieces and portraits, MTG alters and tokens. My personal work has changed up a fair bit though!

The great (and sometimes frustrating) thing about being an artist is that you’re constantly evolving and changing up your work and style until you settle into what you love creating best. I found that when I was doing Inktober 2019 and I introduced a little monster called a Bernard. Since then I’ve been creating more and more work around Bernards and their world, and people have fell in love with them! I now have an active shop with Bernard goodies, original art and other oddities.

I’ve got big Bernard plans for 2021, watch this space… Once again, thank you Natalee for featuring me and letting me introduce Bernard to your lovely readers!

I really love when independent stores/artists I work with have an input in my posts to tell me all about them and how they got started, their store and plans for the future.

I have been friends with Claire since 2006 and our friendship has grown more and more as the years have gone by. I’m so proud of Claire for how far she has come and I have a feeling 2021 will be her year!

Inside this package there was a lovely note from Claire that really made me smile. As someone who has anxiety and depression this note is very much appreciated. Whenever people write down words like this, whether it be on a letter or a text I keep them and read them back when I feel down. I’ll be doing the same with this note too. 🙂

Claire kindly gifted me all the items in this post (apart from one item which I bought with my own money) for reviewing purposes. Apart from the quote above from Claire, all words are my own and items that are gifted will be marked with an *.

Claire has a variety of goodies on her store to buy from stickers, badges, original work, paintings, stationary and more. I was sent a little bit of everything to show to you today!

First things first – if you are UK based like Claire is – she offers Free UK shipping on certain items. If she does offer this, it will state it on the item in question e.g. stickers and badges. I felt this was an important note to add as I know a lot of people in the UK may be looking for small gift and stocking ideas for Christmas and throughout the year.

The cut off point for ordering in time for Christmas is Monday 14th December 2020. Commissions are now closed until January 2021.

Finally before I start to share the goodies share sent me – Claire Likes To Doodle is having a Black Friday sale! When you use the code “YOULLBEBACK” at checkout you will snag a cheeky 20% discount on everything in her shop. This is valid between Friday 27th November 12am GMT – Sunday 29th November 12am GMT. So, if you like the look of anything here, make sure to go and grab a bargain.

Oh… I also have an exclusive 10% discount code for Claire Likes To Doodle’s store, which will be on the right hand side of my blog moving forward. I have added it here though too for readers who my see some good below and want to make an order. 🙂

Finally… I’ll share with you the amazing goodies that Claire sent me! 😀

• Autumn Bernard – Square Sticker (link)*
• Autumn Bernard – 38mm Square Badge (link)*

A square sticker/badge with a cozy autumnal Bernard, enjoying her favourite pumpkin spice beverage and wrapped up warm. Take a bit of autumn with you wherever you go with this unique sticker.

As regular readers will know, I love enamel pins, badges and stickers! Badges remind me of my emo kid self back in the day, I would stick badges all over my bags and jackets to try and show off who I was as much as possible. This autumn Bernard is so perfect to me purely because I love autumn. It’s my favourite time of the year and Claire has captured that perfectly with her autumn Bernard design. My favourite colour is purple so I love that Bernard is wrapped up in purple accessories and is holding a warm drink. I also love the little pink flushed cheeks, just showing how cold it is where Bernard is. You can show really off your love of autumn all year around with both the badge and the sticker, as well as show off and support Claire’s original character.

• Chill AF Bernard – 32mm Badge (link)*

Need a little calm in your life? I get it. So does Bernard. May this 32mm button badge be a reminder to take a step back every now and again.

This chill AF Bernard is a reminder for everyone right now to take a deep breath and relax whenever you can. With the way the world is at the moment I think everyone could do with this badge as a reminder to step back and take a few minutes for yourself. It can also help with anxiety too to remind people to take care of themselves. I really love this badge and I think I’ll be sticking him on my work laptop bag to remind me to relax for five during the busy work day and grab a drink and maybe a casual chat with colleagues. 🙂 To add as well by the way that both of the badges I received from Claire are amazing quality. They feel really well made and sturdy!

• Flower Crown Bernard – Sticker (link)*

Original design – take this summer-themed Bernard wherever you want to go!

This Bernard reminds me of the summer, drinking with friends in beer gardens, going to festivals and basically summer vibes and activities with friends and loved ones before COVID. This is a sticker that reminds me that we need to be patient, because when COVID is gone – we can all have fun with our loved ones again and make some amazing new memories. The flower crown Bernard is so precious and I love how colourful the crown is! I wish my garden could look more like this. 😛

• Halloween Holographic Stickers (Halloween exclusive piece – not available to buy)*

Sadly these stickers aren’t available anymore, but Claire sent them me so I wanted to show them off to you guys! These were exclusive for Halloween and only stuck around the shop for a short period of time. There were two designs released with a baby Bernard inside of a pumpkin and a Bernard flying on a broom. They’re both so adorable and the fact they’re holographic too makes them feel even more spooky and seasonal for Halloween. The quality of these stickers is thicker than the other two stickers Claire sent me which is really cool! I might not stick these anywhere and actually use them as decorations for the Halloween season and stick them on my kitchen window! 😀 In the future keep your eyes peeled on Claire’s store for more store exclusives!

• Round Cat Painting (Twitch stream piece – not available to buy)

This is a painting I purchased on one of Claire’s streams in the summer during lockdown and sold pieces she painted on stream. Due to to COVID I’ve only recently received it due to not being able to meet up and such. I paid £10 of my own money for this print and have been so excited to add it to my little growing collection by Claire. It’s a little round cat that looks like a Siamese breed. It’s so derpy and cute that I just had to buy it! I’m not a cat person to be perfectly honest with you but the derpy look in this cats eyes just had me! It feels so… Expensive(?) if you will due to the special art paper Claire has used. It was so relaxing watching Claire paint this piece, it’s cool to now have it in person. 🙂

• Artgust – Original A6 Watercolour Paintings – Electric (link)*

Through the month of August 2020, I did a painting every day based on a prompt list put together by myself and my wonderful Discord community. A mix of funny pieces, sad pieces, portraits and Bernards done over 31 days! Each piece is A6 size, painted in watercolour.

The final piece I want to talk about that Claire sent me I was taken back by. I didn’t quite expect her to send me one of her watercolour paintings but I’m not going to complain, especially considering she sent me a Pokemon themed print! Back in August Claire took part in Artgust where you draw/paint something everyday of the month. This was day 28 of August and it’s titled “Pikachu”. As you can see it’s Claire’s original character Bernard who is surrounded by hearts and has a Pikachu on his head. It’s so bloody cute and I love it! This is going to go on my plushie cabinet alongside my other prints. I’ll be keeping it in the cellophane packet it came in to keep it safe. For an A6 print size it packs a punch and not only looks amazing, the quality of the piece itself feels high quality too and expensive.

Claire still has quite a few prints left from the Artgust challenge, as well as one she took part in in October called Annarack October that are all looking for homes! The prints created during October are all Bernard themed too, so if you like the look of Claire’s original character and would like to pick up something with them on, definitely go and check those prints out!

They’re all A6 size and cost £15 each. They’re also unique one of a kind pieces, no reprints here. Once they’re sold, they’re gone. For example if you go onto the website the Electric print is sold out, because of course I own it now.

I’ve had my eye on one for a while now and definitely contemplating buying it soon! It’s the Black design from Artgust. I’ve always loved the look of it and if there’s one style of art Claire does really well it’s the blackout style. She did it for a time on her Instagram page and it’s one I always find myself gravitating towards. Who knows, I may end up buying it after this post is live… 😉

Something else I may pick up soon for when I return to the office for work is the ‘Distanced’ A4 Year Planner 2021. Not only is it handy but also really nice to stick on the sides of my desk for a bit of artwork… Nothing wrong with livening your desk up, eh? 😀

So there you go guys, the first of many independent artists I’ll be talking about during shop small in December! I’m so happy that Claire Likes To Doodle could be the first one I talk about.

Store

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Twitch

What do you guys think of Claire’s designs and store? Will you be adopting a Bernard of your own in the form of a sticker, badge or print? 🙂 Make sure to let me know in the comments below!

Until next time, take care guys and stay safe. 🙂

Quirkory Lunar Plushie Spookies Enamel Pins – Review

I can’t believe Halloween has now come and gone already… Was it really two weeks ago? It feels like a lot longer to be honest with you! I was so hyped up for Halloween this year but when it came down to the actual day it wasn’t as spooky as I’d hoped.

We visited a pumpkin patch and grabbed ourselves a huge pumpkin each to carve. Dane carved Calcifer (Howl’s Moving Castle) and I carved a spooky Pikachu. It was so much fun to do and they looked really cool in our kitchen window… They only lasted a few days though and I was a tad gutted. 😛

Back in August Quirkory released their Halloween collection Lunar Plushie Spookies enamel pins on their Etsy store for pre-order. I was on it as soon as they released and purchased two of the designs as well as some stickers.

I know Halloween has come and gone now, by spooky season is here all year for me, especially after this year and the designs Quirkory brought out aren’t just Halloween exclusives either.

I want to pop this here that this past year I have fallen in love with Quirkory’s designs and I get along really well now with the owners of the brand. We talk often and they’re so lovely to talk to! In September they opened their Patreon and I LOVE being able to see their updates weekly now about upcoming designs and projects, as well as some Patreon exclusive goodies.

For now let’s get down to the review of the spooky pins I picked up! I also want to mention here that due to being a Patreon and as a thank you from Quirkory they sent me some free goodies too. I was over the moon to see some extra goodies in my package. I won’t be marking these down as gifted but I will state which goods I bought and which were gifted.

The Lunar Spookies originally came out last year alongside the Eeveelution Greek Gods Kickstarter campaign and around a year later Quirkory decided to revamp those original characters to bring them into a plushie form! They even brought out a couple new characters too! Personally I much prefer the plushie revamp versions to the originals. Don’t get me wrong, the originals are adorable, but I feel with the plushie versions Quirkory’s unique style and eye for detail has really come through now.

Originally there were only five designs which consisted of Moodey the Spider, Tab the Bat, A-Ghostine the Ghost, Meowny the Cat and Moose the Mouse.

These have all been revamped, alongside with some new characters added to the mix too including – Poomkin (a mini enamel pin), Froogie Boogie and Meowny the Cat (lilac version).

I will pop a link here so you can check out all of the Lunar Plushie Spookies.

To start this post fully I’m going to be talking about the two enamel pins I bought, as well as one that Quirkory kindly gifted to me. 🙂

First of all, all designs are on a gold enamel with two pin backs, which is always good at making sure your pins are extra secure! They also all come with the etching “Lunar Spookies by Quirkory” on the back of them, even the mini pin! I always love when enamel pin artists have their brand names etched on the back of the enamel pins. It’s great when looking/showing pins off to people so you can tell them there and then who designed it. I have so many enamel pins, sometimes I forget who they’re by. 😛

Another thing to mention here is how cute the backing cards are! They so spooky with the full moon in the background. Did you know, on Halloween this year we had a blue moon? I ended up forgetting about it due to eating McDonalds and watching horror movies. 😛

One final thing to add that I love about this collection is the cute little tags that they all have on them to symbolise they’re plushies! This is what I mean when I say how I love Quirkory’s unique eye for detail. They put so much intricate detailing into their designs, whether they be enamel pins, prints or even stickers!

Flapping here and there, faster than wind, he’ll come on Halloween night to… suck… all your lollipops, and candies he can find!!!
Little Tab here has no qualms… He’s too much evil muhahahah.

Tab Enamel Pin (link) (original design)

I love bats and always have when it comes down to Halloween, which was down to a bat blow up decoration my mom bought me as a child. So when I saw the revamp of Tab I fell in love with him. He’s a mixture of light purple  with darker purple wings and patches on his body. Tab has clearly been loved and cuddled very much OR been through some battles as he has two patches, one on his ear and one on his body. I love the detailing of the patches with the little stitch marks and where it’s obvious a different material was used to fix him up. He also has a cute little smile, which makes it look devious due to his fangs. I think deep down he’s a little cutie, especially with his blushing cheeks and stars dotted around his body. I love this design so much! It reminds me of when I was a little kid with that bat toy my mom bought me. If Tab were to be a real plush, he’d definitely become a part of my collection!

Woooohhhhh… woooooohhh… scritch scratch… Strange creaks come from the room next door. Chills down my spine… the air is suddenly turning cold. S…s…some…something touched me?!?! A high-pitched squeal breaks the silence! But it’s not mine…
*DUMP!* Heyyyy is that you, A-ghostin?? What are you doing here in the dark?! And you… turned the air conditioning on?!
You scared me with all this noise and fuss!
You weren’t that cheeky last year! Since when you’ve become famous, met lots of people and went around their homes… you’ve also become all puffed up! And now you even do everything all on your own, tinkering here and there. You used to hide yourself always underneath that lil’ pumpkin… didn’t you?
How much has changed in a year! From a shy and curious lil’ thing to an effusive cuddly “soul” of the party! He now DEMANDS for YOUR cuddles.

A-Ghostin Enamel Pin (link) (original design)

I think A-Ghostin has stolen my heart. I forgot what his original design looked like and honestly it’s so adorable! It’s safe to say that out of all the Lunar Spookies, A-Ghostin is my favourite. I love ghost designs, there’s just something so adorable and mysterious behind them and throughout Halloween this year I have bought SO MANY ghost themed things. Out of them all though, A-Ghostin is up there as the best and my favourite. Like Tab, A-Ghostin’s design received the same attention to it’s design and it works so well! Of course A-Ghostin is white, he’s a ghost but he too has been through some wars of his own and has needed patching up. I love the Halloween themed colours of orange and purple that were used on him. The design of the patches are the same as Tab too, which is good. I especially love the cute little :3 smile that A-Ghostin has. He’s a shy little boy and his smile shows this, alongside his little arms and blushing cheeks. I love this design and if Quirkory don’t bring out a plushie of him… 😛

Ohhhhh but… yeah, it’s just Poomkin!!! He’s still too young to join the team, but he tries whenever he can to take part in their forays against crime! Such a little naughty rascal! After all, his dream is to become a real member of the team one day… and even the leader, no less! 😯 Well, it will certainly not be an easy task… but he’s already trying his very best aaaaand who knows, maybe thanks to his determination he might succeed at some point!

Poomkin Mini Enamel Pin (link)

This is the enamel pin that Quirkory sent me as a thank you for not only being a Patreon, but for also supporting them throughout the past year. So I just want to say a HUGE thank you to them for sending me this little cutie!

Poomkin is new to the Lunar Spookies and he’s so small and precious! I’ve never been a massive pumpkin fan in anyway shape or form, but I really do love this design. For a mini pin he packs a punch and as always there are those unique details from Quirkory in there. I love that his stem is purple, keeping with the Halloween themed colours. His smile is so precious and baby like, but all with the Jack ‘O Lantern theme too!

As I mentioned alongside the enamel pins I also ordered some stickers as well! I decided to order a pack of the Lunar Plushie Spookies vinyl stickers, but Quirkory sent me LOADS for free as well as a thank you. 🙂

Lunar Plushie Spookies Vinyl Sticker Pack (link)

I knew I wanted to get some of the stickers of the characters from the Lunar Plushie Spookies as whilst I loved all of the designs my heart truly fell in love with just the two (three if you count Poomkin after he arrived!). The stickers are so cute and I’m glad to not only have Tab and A-Ghostin, but the whole gang! They’re a great size and the quality feels lovely. Each character also has a colour background around them which I thought was a nice touch. Most of the stickers I own by Quirkory are paper so it makes a nice change to have vinyl. I think I also received a sticker of everyone in one big signed due to pre-ordering my enamel pins. This one is especially cute! 😀

Inari & Mosted Halloween Sticker Pack (link)

This is another extra thing that Quirkory sent me as a thank you! It’s almost like they read my mind as I’ve been meaning to order the Halloween sticker pack ever since I discovered them! Now I don’t really need to and I’m so grateful for that. :’) As always, thank you so much to Quirkory for being an amazing independent store to make my geeky and kawaii purchases from.

I didn’t get a full sticker pack but I got a lot of stickers from the pack and more! I was set a small and large size of both Inari and Mosted dressed up for Halloween! Inari is dressed as a witch and Mosted as a vampire, he even has tiny little fangs. SO CUTE! I also have a large sticker of three pumpkins and some little ones of bats, a sweet/candy and candy corns. 😀 These are so damn cute!

Inari & Mosted Little Summer Sailor Popsicle Stickers (link)

I know these aren’t Halloween related BUT I had had my eye on the Inari & Mosted summer stickers for ages and forgot to order them when I placed my Lunar Plushie Spookies order. I mentioned this in passing to Quirkory and they sent me them anyway. Honesty Quirkory make me feel so loved. 😥

The Inari & Mosted designs are so cute and I really do love them! I love how they’re both dressed as sailors and clutching onto their ice lollies (which is what we call them in the UK). Inari is holding a watermelon ice lollie and Mosted is holding a lemon one. Not going to lie, I think I’m with Mosted with lemon! 😀

Finally one thing I received was a print, which I think may have been an exclusive item for Patreon subscribers. This print is gorgeous in so many ways, for a start it’s super spooky and PERFECT for Halloween! It was a design that Quirkory put on their Patreon for Halloween and it was downloadable to have as a wallpaper on you phone, laptop or tablet device.

The print itself has a matte/velvet sort of feel to it and it feels really plush in a way and expensive… I hope it wasn’t expensive for them to make! I’ve kept this away somewhere safe as I worry if I pop it up somewhere on my plushie cabinet it may get damaged. I’m going to try and find something to put it inside so it doesn’t get damaged when I do put it up. 🙂 As this is an exclusive print I can’t link it back, sadly.

So that is everything I picked up (and some bits I was kindly sent by Quirkory!) from the Lunar Plushie Spookies collection! 😀

As always I am so impressed with everything I ordered as well as how well packaged everything was. I haven’t shown it, but I also received a lovely hand written note from Quirkory that really made me smile. Since buying from them last year I’ve kept all the notes that they’ve sent me, personal or not. 🙂

Store (Etsy)

Instagram

Patreon

Facebook

Twitter

Also if you enjoyed this review, make sure to go and check out my other Quirkory reviews below:

Eeveelution Greek Gods Enamel Pin Review

Animal Crossing Gimme My Joy-Con Review

What do you guys think of the goodies that I picked up? I know Halloween is over now until next year, but would you pick these up? Oh and do you think spooky season isn’t just once a year? 😛 Make sure to let me know in the comments!

Until next time guys I hope you’re staying safe during lockdown two and are having a great weekend. 🙂

September Favourites ’20

Wow, did September fly by or what?! I can’t quite believe it’s October and I’m still saying and writing September down when referring to this month.

As I mentioned this time last month, September is my favourite month of the year, for autumn and it’s always the month I have associated with as a “fresh start”. This is down to starting education in September and preparing myself for that. I was one of those teenagers who started a new year of school with a “new year, new me!” approach… But never really changed much. xD

However, September 2020 for me has been… Shit. Due to lockdown I haven’t been able to do stuff I usually would in the run up to autumn, which sucks, but without saying too much, I’ve been grieving during September and I can only see October being the same. This is also why there wasn’t a blog post last week.

Aside from that September was just bland really. I had to “take a stand” and look after my mental health. I’d found being part of group chats and Discord chats to be too much for me and I’ve ended up muting them for the foreseeable future. That “new year, new me!” stance I’ve always had since the age of 13 appears to have been used this year for sure! xD

This months favourites are strange. I found that a lot of beauty related items I’ve loved have been holy grails for me, especially for my hand, which flared up with my dermatitis. SO, I hope the one product mentioned may help others out there who have dermatitis like myself, or eczema.

Image taken from The Latest Kate

Anyhoo, enough of me waffling and being depressing (ha! xD), on with the monthly favourites for September!

• Happy Place Cosmetics Wild Child Body Scrub.

I got this body scrub towards the end of July/start of August in my Happy Place Cosmetics monthly box. This is my favourite item that was in the box, but I was wary I wasn’t going to like the scent after reading the description on the website. It’s described as being a dupe of Lush’s 29 High Street scent. This is a definite dupe, but back in the day when I was a Lushie, 29 High Street wasn’t a scent I particularly liked. However, it’s really grown on me and actually reminds me of Christmas! It’s a warm foral, but fruity scent! Lush say that 29 High Street is said to be the scent of a Lush shop when you walk in. I think this has changed the past 8 years however…

Honestly though, the Happy Place Cosmetics body scrubs are AMAZING and by far the best I’ve ever used. They’re really scrubby, but they also foam up too depending on how much water you add. I don’t feel like I’ve had a body scrub work as well as these do. I use them once a week and they make my skin lovely and soft. At the time of writing this post (evening of 30/09/2020) there are some body scrubs available on the Happy Place Cosmetics website, so if you’re interested in them, go and check out the website.

• Lyonsleaf Calendula and Marshmallow Balm.

When I say this product has been a lifesaver, I really mean it. I’ve mentioned on and off on my blog how my eczema/dermatitis is really bad on my hand the past year and at one point over the past month it got so bad and uncomfortable. So much so, it was waking me up in the night due to how itchy it was. I decided to research what products I could buy and use on it after washing my hands and in between the ointment my doctor had prescribed me. Lyonsleaf came up and after doing a lot of reading and watching of reviews on YouTube, I decided to order myself a little tub. It’s honestly amazing stuff! It’s greasy in consistency but a little goes a long way. It doesn’t have a scent or taste when applied to the skin, but in the jar it does remind me of a Sunday dinner/gravy sort of smell, which is so odd! I really do recommend this though if you have really dry skin and need something to soothe it, especially if it’s just patches like what I have.

• Doll 10 Doll Skin Perfecting Treatment Powder.

This is something my mom bought me as a gift quite a while ago. I’ve only really started to use it during lockdown whenever I’m popping out for the day, or fancy wearing doing myself up as if I’m going out for the day. Lately I’ve been venturing out a little more, whether it’s going for a shop, getting my nails done or running errands out and about. This is a light translucent powder which goes on pretty straight forward. It’s been my go to really to remove any excess oil on my t-zone. I couldn’t say if it actually keeps the oil at bay all day but it works for me enough at the moment during “lockdown” and whilst I’m working from home. I’m never usually a fan of loose powders as I find they often don’t get picked by the brush (if that makes sense?) which can wind me up a little as I feel like I’m constantly trying to get an even coverage on my face. This being said, this powder is pretty good for that!

• Nivea Blueberry Blush Lip Butter.

I mentioned this a couple of months on my monthly favourites and I’m mentioning it again! This lip butter by Nivea is so lovely to use and as sad as it sounds, it’s a treat for me to use throughout the week during work. It’s buttery, creamy and a little goes a long way. It feels really nice and moisturising on the lips and it smells absolutely gorgeous! I love blueberries and especially love blueberry scented things so this is right up my street. I usually go to Vaseline when it comes to lip balms, but I’m really loving the Nivea lip butter lately, so this is definitely a product I’ll repurchase in the future. I highly recommend it is you want a good lip butter/cream. It’s not greasy or sticky, yet it lasts ages on the lips!

• Bath Bake Love White Cocoa Fluffy Whip Soap.

The final product I want to talk about for the beauty side of my monthly favourites is Bath Bake Love, an independent beauty brand I have fallen in love with during lockdown. I’d like to write a blog post about them in the future, but I don’t know when it’ll be. Anyway, this is the first and only fluffy whip soap I’ve tried by them and it smells of white chocolate/white hot chocolate. It’s divine and it isn’t just me who loves it too, my boyfriend has really taken to this and has been using is everyday to wash with in the mornings. It’s a thick creamy soap, it looks more like a buttercream than soap and it smells like it too. A little goes a long way and when used in a sponge or a shower puff it really foams up and leaves you with loads of lovely smelling lather/bubbles. This can also be used in the bath, which my boyfriend has done. Bath Bake Love has definitely become a must have for our shower and I cannot wait to try and own more of their products in the future. They currently have their Halloween range on their website, so make sure to go and check them out. 🙂

So now my beauty favourites are done, time to talk about the miscellaneous favourites of the month!

Gif taken from GIPHY

Favourite TV Show – The Boys.

First of all, sorry for the C word being used on the gif… Butcher is one of my favourite characters for the way he is, so I had to include that gif. 😛 We are already six episodes into season 2 of The Boys and so far I’m really enjoying it! There’s been loads happen since season 1 finished last year, which is always good. One of the episodes so far felt really slow and I know I wasn’t the only person saying this. Monday morning meetings are spent with my team discussion the episode of The Boys from the weekend and what we thought of it. We’ve all had the same feelings about it and so far we are all loving it! I really do look forward to spending Friday night or Saturday morning watching the latest episode with Dane. The Boys reminds me of Preacher, which ended last year, just after The Boys began. They’re both based off of comics of the same dark comedy, so they’re good in my books! I definitely recommend checking out The Boys and Preacher if you have Amazon Prime, as that’s where they’re hosted.

Favourite Movie – I’m Thinking of Ending Things.

Although we watched this film at the end of start of September it’s the only film I’ve really watched lately that I could think of adding to my monthly favourites this month. This is one that Dane had watched the trailer for, heard about online and really wanted to watch. We popped it on and I swear throughout we were constantly questioning what the fuck was going on. It’s a psychological drama about a young woman who is contemplating ending the six week relationship with her boyfriend as they drive to his parents house so she can meet them for the first time. It spirals from there, but I don’t really want to say much in case it reveals any spoilers but it’s based off of a novel and is directed by Charlie Kaufman the guy behind Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. If you have Netflix or are able to watch it another way I highly recommend it. 🙂

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite Book – Oops…

Oops indeed. I didn’t read anything this month. I really need to just have an evening off of my phone, Nintendo Switch and laptop and just read! Sometimes though I just don’t feel like I have time. I’m always trying to make way for everything and reading takes a back burner. Earlier today I ordered Aggretsuko Vol. 1 comic book! I love Aggretsuko so I’m rather excited for that to arrive tomorrow or Friday to read over the weekend… If I’m able to! Honestly though, I have so many manga volumes and comics to read. I really need to get on it!

Favourite Music – PVRIS – Use Me.

PVRIS new album Use Me came out at the end of August and it’s one I’ve been listening to on and off throughout September, but I definitely need to listen to it a lot more. I wanted to share one of the songs from the album that I’ve already fallen in love with, starting with “Loveless”. This song is clearly about a breakup but it’s got such a lovely acoustic melody behind it, as well as powerful lyrics that a lot of people who have or are going through a breakup can relate to. I just love it so much and after I heard it for the first time, I replayed it a few times and got the lyrics up to read as it played and sing along to. Who else does this? 😛

Overall I really love Use Me but I think it’s one that will have to grow on me. I love PVRIS’s previous two albums so much, but that isn’t it. I think due to the fact 5/11 songs on the album have come out gradually the past year as singles and EP’s, nearly half of the albums isn’t a “surprise”, if that makes sense? Even so, I still love it! PVRIS has fast become one of my favourite bands the past year and a half and that’s not going to change.

Favourite Game – Not Tonight: Take Back Control Edition (Nintendo Switch).

I only bought this game about a week ago but it’s already earnt it’s place on my monthly favourites for September due to how much I’ve played it already! The week I bought this was when I received some bad news and I looked on the eShop for something simple to play, but not for a lot of money. I picked Not Tonight up for a BARGAIN price of £1.94! I think it was 90% off so the game was roughly £19? Crazy how cheap this was, but totally worth it! It’s set after Brexit and you’re playing a bouncer with European in their blood. You live in a dump, work for shit money and have loads of bills and taxes to pay. You have to check the ID of people coming in pubs, clubs, festivals, events and even on the border of the UK. I love it, it’s such a “relaxing” game to play which has a dark sense of humour about it. Some people I’ve spoken to about the game said it sounds depressing. It’s really not. If it’s still on offer on the eShop I highly recommend it, I’m sure you won’t miss £1.94 eh?

So, there we have it, my favourites from September. I’ve had to write this post the day before it’s due to be out and I honestly can’t believe tomorrow is going to October. This year has flew, even with the circumstances of COVID. I wish September hadn’t gone by so quickly and I wish myself and my family hadn’t received the news we did… I’m kind of glad for a new month due to that, but at the same time, I don’t know what October will bring. Fingers crossed something good, eh?

What have you been loving throughout September? Are you excited for autumn, the nights starting to draw in and Halloween? I’m excited for Halloween! I’m going to try and use October as the month to watch Halloween movies I’ve always meant to. 🙂

Speaking of, what’s your favourite Halloween movie? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time, stay safe and take care all. 🙂

September Wish List ’20

We’ve been into September almost a week now and I am feeling autumnal and excited for Halloween, Bonfire Night and especially everything else this season brings.

September so far hasn’t been too bad and I’m really loving how each day you can see summer begin to fade and autumn start to show it’s true colours… Aka orange, brown and yellow. 😛

In regards to my September wish list, I toyed with having this up either this weekend or next. I felt it would be too long for a post if I didn’t have it up until next weekend, so here we are… Two posts in one week! 😀 Don’t think it’s going to become a habit though… It’s not. 😛

I don’t really have much to talk about sadly as it feels like it hasn’t been too long yet between my two monthly posts… I’m just super excited for autumn and Halloween at the moment, so please excuse how spooky this months favourites are. 😛 I even made the background orange for autumn… 😛 I hope it isn’t too bright for you guys. xD

• LittlestSpookShop Halloween Hijinkery Print (link)

Recently I discovered Littlest Spook Shop through YouTuber SimplySpooky and I have fallen in love with their ghost designs. I honestly want them all, but sadly I don’t have a clue where I would keep them in my house. I also have to add the fact Dane isn’t a massive fan of them… Purely because they’re ghost and gothic/Halloween looking. There is one design I may pick up in the future to keep by my side of the bed which is the Always Cosy Club design. It’s definitely me and it’s a print Dane likes too. However, the print I like the most from their Etsy store at the moment is the Halloween Hijinkery print. It shouts Halloween and the little ghosts are absolutely adorable! I think if I was to pick up this print I’d want to stick it up on my plushie cabinet. 🙂

• BeaconCandlesUK Pokémon Lavender Town inspired Scented Candle (link)

Everyone knows I’m a massive fan of candles and Pokemon, so when I heard of a UK seller merging the two together, I had to check it out. Lavender Town is one of my favourite places in the original Gen 1 Pokemon games and I think it’s obvious why. The scent of this candle is kind of obvious with lavender, vanilla and cedarwood. It sounds so lovely, especially for cold evenings. Cubone is also one of my favourite Pokemon, so for there to be a Cubone skull and crossbones on the top of this candle, is morbid but cool at the same time. This isn’t something I’ll pick up anytime soon as I have LOADS of amazing wax tarts from CushtyCo to burn, as well as some leftover Yankee Candle jars. This is definitely the kind of thing I will ask for when Christmas and my birthday is around.

• UNIQLO Lady and The Tramp T-Shirt (link)

Regular readers (and friends) of my blog will know I’m a MASSIVE Lady and the Tramp fan and have been since I was old enough to watch Disney and understand it. I knew UNIQLO were releasing a Disney collection soon, so I’ve been keeping my eyes peeled for the collection to launch. I don’t 100% know when this came out, but I rather like it. It’s simple, not in your face with the design and it’s pink… A colour I don’t own much of in my wardrobe. I love the design across the chest as the black and white design fits perfect against the pink. It’s the classic scenes from Lady and the Tramp when the two are having the spaghetti meatballs. I’ve never bought a UNIQLO item before and have always wanted to. Maybe this will be the first of many pieces? I’d rock this tucked into a skirt or mom jeans. 🙂

• Quirkory Lunar Plushie Spookies Enamel Pins – Tab and A-ghostin (link)

Heads up, this is a pre-order item at the moment and I made sure to pre-order my goodies as soon as this went live on Quirkory’s Etsy store! As regular readers will know, I LOVE Quirkory and they’re by far my favourite independent store out there (make sure to check out my two posts about their enamel pins here – Eeveelutions and Animal Crossing) and I’ll always support them the best I can. So, when they redesigned their Lunar Spookies enamel pins in a cuter plushie form, I knew I had to pick up a couple. I went for Tab the bat and A-ghostin the ghost. They’re so plushie, kawaii and right up my street! I honestly cannot wait for these to arrive for Halloween and autumn. I already know I’m going to display all my Halloween pins throughout October.

• Black Milk Clothing Ghosties Longline Evil Tee Dress (link)

I have been a fan of Black Milk Clothing since 2014 and I’ve never looked back. I recently made a MASSIVE order from their Pokemon collaboration in July and I have zero regrets… Hint hint I’ll be talking about the pieces I bought this month. 😛 However, Black Milk have now announced and shown sneak peaks of their Halloween collection and I’ve seen one piece that I really do want in my collection. The Ghosties dress is ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE! The little ghosties all over it are so cute but I feel like this dress isn’t too in your face in regards to the spooky, Halloween design. I really don’t need to be buying Black Milk pieces again so close to the Pokemon ones, but come Monday night when this goes up in the store… I may just get it. 😛

So there we have it guys, this months wish list! I’m actually trying to watch my spending again, as I have some stuff to do on the house, as well as Christmas being here before we know it!

I don’t know why I’m soooo excited for Halloween this year, but I’ve been itching to go to Homesense and/or TK Maxx to look at all the Halloween goodies and how me and Dane can decorate the house this year. I actually think it’s due to being in the house so much that is giving me that “decorating” itch. 😛

What items do you guys have on your wish lists? Do you like what I added to mine? Make sure to let me know in the comments below.

Until next time, take care, stay safe and I hope you all have a great weekend!

August Favourites ’20

It is finally my favourite month of the year and I can already feel autumn slowly making its way to us… I AM SO EXCITED!

August was such a strange month for me, but not in a bad way. I decided to go on a spending ban, venture out a little more since lock down in March and wait patiently for exciting purchases. August went by in the blink of an eye for sure and I’m glad we are finally into September now.

September is the month where I like to venture out into the countryside with Dane for walks, lunch in cafes and more. However, that will be very different this year and instead of going into cafes for lunch, we’ll pack a picnic and eat as and when. We did it yesterday for bank holiday Monday and it was amazing. We’ve already researched where we can venture to in the future and explore. I’m already really excited for our autumn adventures. Would you guys like to see where we venture to? Would you want to see here, or over on Instagram? Make sure to let me know in the comments.

Image taken from The Latest Kate Twitter

For now though, it’s monthly favourites time!

• Childs Farm Hand Wash Grapefruit & Organic Tea Tree Oil.

I’ve mentioned this brand on my blog time and time again and it’s all because they deserve it. Their baby body lotion really helps my eczema on my hands so I thought I would give their hand wash a go as well, to see if that could help my hands even more. I definitely feel like I’ve noticed my skin not flaring up as much and cracking! This hand wash has such a light, uplifting scent to it, which I really love. It lathers up easily and doesn’t leave my hands feeling dry and sore afterwards. I’ve since bought another three of these, with the bottle used for the above image being my second bottle. The only issue I have with Child’s Farm is that it isn’t cheap, so I have to stockpile it up when it’s on offer to feel like I’m getting my “moneys worth”.

• Collection Velvet Kiss Lip in shade Cream Cotton.

This is a lip product I have had in my makeup bag for years, at least 8 years now. This is a new tube however, don’t panic! It’s just one of those that I think I’ll always repurchase until it’s discontinued and I can’t buy anymore. I ventured out a few times throughout August and wanted to wear a pretty colour, but didn’t fancy wearing a lip tint, or a lipstick, so I went for this. It’s a pretty candy pink colour which is really comfortable to wear and lasts for ages! It’s definitely been one I’ve reached for loads in August and I can see me reaching for it throughout September too.

• Sanctuary Spa Cloudberry & Lychee Blossom Body Mist.

This was an item I received in a gift set for Christmas last year and I’m surprised I still have any of this body mist left! When we had the hotter weather in August I was using this daily to try and refresh my skin a little, as I was very sweaty and wanted to make sure I was fresh throughout the working day… Even if I was just at home. Alongside that, I’ve used it on my skin before getting dressed and popping out for the day, as well as spritzing all over to add some more scent. It’s definitely a body mist I enjoy using and I’ll be a little sad when it’s finished, as this isn’t something you can find very easily. The scent lasts on the skin for ages and if you CAN find this, definitely pick one up!

• Burt’s Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream.

I have mentioned this cuticle cream time and time again on my blog this year and I’m here mentioning it again, because like Child’s Farm, it’s an amazing brand. Not only have I been using this loads on my cuticles but the reason I’m mentioning this product again this month is due to my eczema. My hand has been so dry and sore due to some potential dermatitis issues I have on my hand, which the cuticle cream has been helping with on and off throughout August. As the cuticle cream is so thick and buttery, a little goes a long way. I apply some to the sore part of my hand after washing my hands and it really does help to soften and help. I’m getting close to the end of the tin and I’ll be glad to get a new one… I swear though, when I bought this tin originally it was between £7-£9, but not this costs less than £5!

• Happy Place Cosmetics Buffday Cake Bath & Shower Whip.

This is one of the first Happy Place Cosmetics items I picked up and this is actually one I bought through someone on Depop. It was brand new and not used at all, which is awesome. I’ve been using this loads in August to as bubble bath, to wash with in the shower and as a shaving foam/cream too! It smells just like Lush’s Rock Star scent and is so damn yummy smelling. It smells of creamy vanilla and reminds me of back in the day when I first discovered Lush. I personally prefer to use Buffday Cake as a shave foam/cream and bubble bath, rather than to wash with. The bath and shower whips from Happy Place Cosmetics are AMAZING for shaving with and they’re by far some of my favourite products to use when in the bath and shower now. If you love Rock Star soap from Lush and want something multi purpose with the same scent, definitely check out Happy Place Cosmetics. Check them out anyway as they’re an amazing indie shower and bath brand!

So now my beauty favourites are done, time to talk about the miscellaneous favourites of the month!

Favourite TV Show – Pose.

I’ve had Pose saved on my Netflix watch list for ages now and finally decided to watch it. I fell in LOVE and was fast trying to find the second season on the internet, only to discover it was on BBC iPlayer the whole time. So, I binged both seasons and loved them both the same. Pose is set in New York in the late 80’s, early 90’s and is about African-American and Latino LGBTQ Houses that compete in competitions in an underground club. Alongside this you watch as characters grow in things they hope to do in the future and see how the aids virus affects various characters too. It’s a powerful TV show and one I cannot recommend highly enough for people to watch!

Favourite Movie – Angela’s Ashes.

I didn’t watch many films throughout August and to be honest, I feel like I hardly watch any newer ones lately… Maybe it’s due to binge watching TV shows? For years I’ve always been interested in watching Angela’s Ashes but never got around to watching it, until a few weeks ago. The film is based off of a memoir, which is set during the 1930’s and 1940’s and is about an Irish family who moved to America for a better life, only to be forced to move back to Ireland due to money issues. It tells the story of Frank McCourt and his family. It’s definitely worth a watch if you’ve never seen and fancy something different.

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite Book – Erm…

I’ve fallen off of the book reading bandwagon again… Oh dear… I’ve just felt like I’ve been so busy this month and every time I’ve wanted to continue reading my manga series, I’ve just… Not. I am going to try to read more, but at the same time I feel like if I work through all the remaining/current volumes I have for series, I’ll NEED to buy more and I’m trying to not buy manga for a while. Urgh, vicious cycle is vicious. 😛

Favourite Music – Ellie Goulding – “Lights” and I Prevail “Every Time You Leave”.

I feel like recently I discovered some golden oldies that I adore, as well as some newer songs. “Lights” by Ellie Goulding is one of my favourite songs and I cannot for the life of me tell you why… I just adore the lyrics, the tune itself and I especially love the bass line on the song. Fun fact, this is the first song I learnt on my bass and it was semi self taught too! I’ve listened to it almost daily since mid August and I have zero regrets.

I’ve also added I Prevail on here as whilst I discovered them last year and bought their album Trauma, I’ve not listened to it as much as I wish I could say… However, I recently rediscovered it and forgot how much I love “Every Time You Leave”, so much so after listening to it a few times during and after work, I had a dream about me and Dane singing it to one another!

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite Game – Aggretsuko: The Short Timer Strikes Back.

Yes this has returned to my favourites for another month and it’s because it’s an amazing bloody game and I have quickly fallen in love with it! I feel bad that lately I’ve played this more than Animal Crossing: New Horizons but… I kinda have because it’s just easy to pick up and play, I suppose? You basically have to match up certain icons to remove blocks, etc etc. I’m currently borderline level 200 and I’ve loving it! This has become an app I play throughout the day as my hearts come back and I just love it. I also love how the more you play, you begin to unlock the original Aggretsuko mini episodes, which I love watching.

So there you have it guys, my monthly favourites for August!

I feel like August flew by, but in all honesty I also felt like I hardly posted in August and same for July too… I know I said at the start of 2020 though that I wouldn’t be writing on my blog as much as I once did, as my blog was becoming less fun and it’s so true.

I’m so much happier just writing once a week and I feel like I look forward to writing and getting that post out, you know? I’m also wary that I only get 3-4 posts out a month, when last year I was doing that in a week! It’s just strange, but I am so much happier.

Are you guys happier seeing one post a week? Make sure to let me know in the comments.

Of course, also let me know what your favourites are from August, as well as what you think of mine, add comments!

Until next time all, take care, stay safe and see you soon!

Kawaii Face Mask Wish List

Guys we are less than two weeks away from September. Can you believe it? It has also nearly been a month since the UK were told to wear face masks in shops. That month has flew by and it only feels like yesterday I was panicking about buying some more face masks.

Well, that mini panic is what inspired today’s post, which is all about face masks and which ones I have on my wish list (as well as one I bought). I know a lot of people went into panic over getting face masks before the 24th July, which thankfully wasn’t me. I was just panicking about which one to buy! I didn’t buy any funky ones, just a couple of black ones for both me and Dane. However, I would still love some funky and fun face masks, hence the wish list. These are also all going to be reusable!

I really hope this list helps people who may want to get some fun masks to wear during (and after) these times we are facing at the moment. Whether you believe in it or not, wear a face mask if you can and keep yourself and others safe.

• Firebox Smoko Pearl Boba Tea Reusable Face Mask (link)

This is the first cute face mask I found and typical it was after I bought my face masks in July, boooo! This one is sold by Firebox but is by American brand Smoko (who also made my Elodie ramen bowl – which you can read about here) who I love! They have three different designs on the website – Little Bao Dumpling, Tayto Potato and the one I’m mentioning here, Pearl Boba Tea. The little bubble teas are adorable and some have cute smiling faces on them too. They sound and look really good quality and I would love to pick one of these up in the future, especially as I love (and miss) bubble tea. 😛

• Society 6 Igor Canova Shadow Sneak Face Mask (link)

This is a face mask designer my good blogger friend Sarah (Raiin Monkey) has bought herself and told me about. There are so many face masks to choose from, all with adorable Pokemon themed designs, 21 to be exact! Out of all of them, the ghost Pokemon design jumped out at me and I really would love to pick it up in the future. The design itself has various ghost Pokemon – including Gengar, Misdreavus, Shuppet, Litwick and Phantump. Alongside the Pokemon there are some ghost type moves dotted around, which make for a good print overall!

• PaperandPotionsArt Soot Sprite Face Mask (link)

It wouldn’t be a wish list on my post if it didn’t contain something Studio Ghibli related! I discovered PaperandPotionsArt years ago at Comic Con and straightaway followed them on Instagram. When I saw they’d created this Soot Sprite mask I knew I had to add it to this list. It’s nothing too elaborate and is a rather “simple” design, which I like! It works with it being white too, due to the Soot Sprite’s being black. I have some black face masks similar to this style and to be honest, they’re not the best due to how thick they are and with how warm you can get whilst wearing one of these, this may get a bit stuffy.

• Sunflower310 Japanese Shiba Face Mask (link)

My Instagram friend Emily (Meimi132) shared some face masks stores and designs with me and this is one of them. It’s a gorgeous Japanese inspired design that has various Shiba in different poses, Mount Fuji, sakura, geta footwear and dango. The design just screams Japan to me and reminds me of my trip there, as well as my love for the country. This is a face mask I would really love to pick up in the future, especially for any future trips to Japan.

• ClumsyCritters Animal Crossing Celeste Face Mask (link)

This is another face mask that Emily shared with me and it is so adorable! Celeste is so precious and I’ve always adored her since Wild World but I feel in New Horizons she’s so precious and adorable. Walking around, give you recipes and more to do with the stars. It makes me smile. Aside from the design, one of the things I like about this face mask is how the ear sections have adjustable beads on them, which I think is such a good idea.

• LenacchiStore Pikachu in Space Reusable Face Mask (link)

Finally we have another Pokemon themed face mask that I would really like to pick up  in the future! It’s a gorgeous space themed mask, but with Pokemon! Pikachu and Pichu are in space alongside various Pokemon including Mew, Jirachi, Clefairy, Clefable and various more! Both the Pikachu and Pichu are dressed in little astronaut outfits, which look so adorable! It’s just gorgeous, I love it so much.

I thought I would mention below the face mask that Dane bought for both of us as it’s amazing and deserves a recommendation!

• AALTRADE Resuseable Face Mask (link)

I didn’t want to add it onto the wish list but these masks come in various different colours, but we picked up the black one above. We got 2 each to ensure we had enough and we certainly do. You can pop filters inside, but when we’ve gone to do that it’s really awkward, so sadly we haven’t bothered. We both wear glasses and personally I haven’t had any issues with fogging, but I think Dane has from memory. If you don’t want to go for a kawaii design, you can always go for one of these plain black ones. 🙂

So there we have it! My kawaii face mask wish list! I know this weeks blog post isn’t anything special, but I thought it was both cute and important considering the planets current situation with COVID.

What do you guys think of the face masks I mentioned? Any you like, or already own? Do you have any face masks you recommend? Make sure to let me know in the comments down below!

Until next time, take care all and keep safe. 🙂