February Favourites ’22

I know February is a short month anyway, but 2022 is flying past and I don’t know how I feel about that. I’m glad, because I want spring to come for light nights and slightly warmer days/better weather, but at the same time, I don’t want time to go too quickly as before we know it, we’ll be back at Christmas all over again!

I was recently speaking to someone about the idea of going to Japan again in 2023 and was met with, “Wait, you only went last year?” I went to Japan two years ago… Proof that as you get older, the years fly by quicker!

Alongside that, since turning 32 in January, February has been a month of me going, “Jeez I’m really getting old now, aren’t I?” and that’s kind of made me feel weird. It’s crazy how quick time flies after you turn a certain age (want to say 21). I do sometimes wish I’d spent more time enjoying my twenties, but that being said I don’t have any regrets.

ANYWAY today’s post isn’t about that stuff and is of course my monthly favourites! February was a strange one as whilst I definitely have things to share with you all, I don’t feel like I have a lot of general stuff to share?

As always, I hope you enjoy reading about things I loved throughout February.

Favourite Beauty Product – SBC Cotton Sensitive Body Wash.

I’ve been so excited to share this body wash with you all today as since receiving it around the start of February, it’s really improved my skin, which in turn makes me happy! My mom is the person who got me into SBC and their skin care, especially their body washes which seem to live in our bathroom for at least half of the year! This SBC body wash smells just like fresh washing and leaves my skin feeling baby soft, which is something I don’t achieve often! I’m shite for looking after my skin with body lotions and potions, not going to lie! A couple of pumps of this on my new silicone shower sponge and I’m guaranteed to be left a cotton scented lather and soft skin after I get out of the shower. This body wash is dermatologically tested which is great for me and my eczema, which recently flared up on my legs. This body wash did really help with it though, with no discomfort or stinging during use. I highly recommend this if you want something fancy in your shower, but have sensitive skin like me.

Favourite TV Show – The Legend of Vox Machina.

The Legend of Vox Machina is a new animated series on Amazon Prime that Dane has been looking forward to since March 2019 when the Kickstarter launched, which he backed. So, when the show finally launched in February, he was all over it for us to watch, which of course I was down for. Vox Machina is based off of the first Critical Role campaign/series, which if you didn’t know is a Dungeons & Dragons campaign written by Matt Mercer and played by a group of voice actors (Marisha Ray, Sam Reigel, Travis Willingham, Liam O’Brien, Laura Baily, Taliesin Jaffe and Ashley Johnson). It’s really popular and has recently gone into it’s third campaign/series! Dane is all caught up on the campaigns and loves Critical Role, I’m not an avid watcher of their campaigns but if Dane has it on, I will watch it on and off. Although the show is based off of D&D (and the Critical Role campaign) Vox Machina can be enjoyed by anyone, even if you’ve never watched the campaign it’s based off like me, or even if you aren’t a fan of D&D! It’s got some amazing adult comedy, bit of singing, lots of fighting and action and all around amazing show!

Favourite Music – Spiritbox – Eternal Blue.

Spiritbox are a band that Dane introduced me to a while ago now and for some reason I thought I’d mentioned them on my blog previously, which doesn’t seem to be the case! The song that caused me to really get into this band is the one I’ve added above called, “Secret Garden”, which is such a nice, mellow rock song to enjoy. I’ve especially been listening to their first album Eternal Blue when I’ve gone into the office to work, as well as when driving to and from places. Eternal Blue came out towards the end of 2021, so it’s a fairly new album, which I didn’t realise until I was writing this post. The band themselves are described as metal (progressive, alternative, etc) so if you like this genre of rock, make sure to check them out!

Image taken from Nintendo Life/Nintendo.

Favourite Game – Pokemon: Legends Arceus.

How could I not mention Legends Arceus this month? It came out at the end of January and every other weekend me and Dane have stayed in the house the whole time playing it. During the weekends where we’ve played it, we’ve snuggled up on the sofa under blankets and with hot drinks as we play this together! I’m not going to lie, I wasn’t 100% sure about the game when I first started playing it and felt a bit nervous of all sorts of aspects, mainly because it wasn’t the same as I was used to, due to the RPG gameplay. However, the more I’ve played it, the more I’ve started to relax and enjoy it, especially with Dane. I’m yet to finish the games story and in all honesty it’s not one I’ve been hooked on/about. In typical Japanese RPG fashion, the talking goes on and on and whilst I’m happy with it in Persona 5/Persona 5 Royal, it’s something I don’t like for Pokemon. Due to this, I’ve mostly skimmed the story, which in itself is a shame. This being said I really do enjoy and love the game, bugs aside too! I’ve recommend it to so many people, it’s definitely one to play as a Pokemon fan, especially if you love RPG.

Just a few of my favourite things…

Pokemon Center Vulpix Plush.

I was so happy to get my hands on this Pokemon plushie at the end of January. It’s been on my plushie grail list for as long as I can remember and after January payday, I decided to finally order one! This cost me less than £20 with shipping from Japan and I’m so glad I finally decided to get it! It’s from the Chiku Chiku Sewing collection from 2015 and I didn’t realise when buying it that it was new with tags, which is even better. I had some people online query if it was a fake plush, which was a tad annoying, but alas it’s very much real.

Image taken from Black Milk Clothing. Unfortunately I don’t have any decent pictures of me wearing this yet… 😦

Black Milk Clothing Ghost Foxes Bishop Longline Dress.

This is a dress I decided to get to replace the Ghost Foxes Mini Strappy Dress, (which I have since sold) I bought back in July 2021. Although I’d removed the tags and washed it, I’ve never actually worn it and seeing the bishop dress style come out, I knew I had to get it. I LOVE the bishop style and already own three dresses in this cut, this one making it four. I’m planning to wear this dress for both work as well as in general. With it being white, it may be more the latter and especially for days out where I’m not eating or drinking anything that could stain and ruin this dress considering it’s white. I also picked up the longline so that it’s longer on me. The normal bishop cuts are okay on me, but if I can have a dress longer, I’ll always go for it! The length of this is amazing, it felt a little bit too long at first to me as I’m not quite used to it, but it’ll be perfect for work especially! The print is beautiful too with the ghost foxes on it. Foxes are my favourite animal, so I’m always a sucker for pieces with them on.

Cute outfits/clothes.

This is something I’m going to talk about in more detail in a couple of weeks on a post but I swear, getting myself some new staple pieces has been a big thing for me in 2022 so far. I don’t know what it is but I decided this year that I would love to do more with my style and change it up a bit. I’ve spent a lot of the past two years wearing the same baggy joggers, t-shirts and hoodies due to Covid and I want to change that. I want to dress up for the sake of it and feel cute whilst doing so, plus I think it would really do my mental health some good. I feel like a lot of pastel and cute prints have come into my wardrobe and I’m so excited to wear them all for work, as well as in general. If you want to see some of the stuff I picked up during February, make sure to keep eyes peeled for that post in a few weeks! For the time being, I’ve popped some of the items I’ll be talking about soon above, including Tallulah’s Threads, Disturbia and The Sad Ghost Club.

New enamel pins.

I ordered a couple of new enamel pins recently which was nice! I don’t know why but I feel like enamel pin purchasing has definitely slowed down a little, which is always good as quite frankly, I’m running out of space!

The sausage dog pin from MossFrogPress has been on my favourites list on Etsy for as long as I can remember. I made some monies from selling some pins at the end of 2021 so I decided to use the money I made to pick up this pin. As it was coming from America, the shipping was more expensive than the item itself, so this wasn’t a cheap pin in that aspect. Definitely worth it now! It’s such a cute pin I get to look at everyday when I get ready.

I finally decided to back FoxLeap’s enamel pin club on Patreon at the end of January so I could snag the Patreon exclusive Lady puppy pin that Sophie had made. Not only did I get my Lady pin (as this was a freebie), I also got a The Cat Returns pin too (which I chose), some prints and even a freebie Alolan Ninetales pin and mini pin! Sophie is one of the kindest and most generous people I know and definitely an enamel pin artist you should check out. Her Patreon is all about you picking what you would like that month, from a list of choices. No one else (as far as I’m aware…) offers this type of pin club.

Finally this is an enamel pin from Depop that I snagged second hand. This enamel pin is by Sugarbones, a Canadian artist I adore! I love her Studio Ghibli and Animal Crossing designs, but she decided in 2021 that she would move away from fan themed pieces, so whenever I see one I missed out on previously, I’m going to try and snag! Haku is my favourite Studio Ghibli character, so any gorgeous pins I see with him on, I have to buy! 😀

Kawaii AF Kickstarter campaigns!

Finally I’m here to share some adorable Kickstarter campaigns I’ve joined or at least had my eye on joining. They’re all so cute! I told myself in 2022 I wouldn’t back as many Kickstarter campaigns to try and save money, but some are just too adorable not to.

Image taken from Kickstarter.

Toast the Raccoon Cute Plushie Toys + Keychains – link (ends April 8th 2022).

This campaign is adorable and straight away as soon as it launched I backed it! It’s by Yencat and is based off of her popular and original character Toast, who as you can see is a raccoon. I LOVE raccoons, they’re my spirit animal due to their love of food and being chubby, I can relate to both of those. 😛 Yencat decided to create a plushie Toast, as well as an enamel pin and plushie keychain. I’ve backed for all of them and already counting down the days until it arrives! The Kickstarter ends in April, so if you like the look of this campaign, you have plenty of time to check it out and back it yourself.

Image taken from Kickstarter.

Delicows ~ enamel pins & more – link (ends March 19th 2022).

I’m pretty sure I mentioned this briefly on my post about Quirkory and their Patreon pin club (you can read all about it here) but if I didn’t, I’m mentioning it again as earlier this week Quirkory released a new Kickstarter campaign, all about cows! Delicows is a mixture between delicious (food and drinks) and cows. Hence, Delicow! There are loads of different types of designs to choose from and I’ve backed for five of the designs in question, Cowpuccino (ideally one with Shugarlump), Moocha Latte, Cowreo, Peppermint Moocha Latte and maybe Darcowness. It feels like there’s a design for everyone in this collection and considering there are 24 plus designs to unlock there’s plenty of choice for everyone!

Images taken from Kickstarter.

Cute Animal Knitted Sweaters and Enamel Pins – link (ends March 3rd 2022).

This is a Kickstarter campaign by Dogzsquadarts I really like the look of at the moment and one I’m tempted to back before it ends in a couple of days! I am trying to be better with my money in 2022 and so far, it’s been going really well! I’ve already bought a shit ton of clothes and I don’t know if I want to buy anymore due to this fact. This being said, two of the pieces from this campaign are adorable and I do feel like I’d love at least one of them in my wardrobe! There’s the Shiba Inu sweater, as well as the Golden Retriever cardigan that I would love to get, but… I don’t know if I can justify it? I’m going to see how I feel about it, they’d both be adorable to get but unfortunately they aren’t pieces I could wear to work, otherwise that would probably spur me on more.

So there we have it guys, my favourites from February! What did you guys love throughout February? Make sure to let me know in the comments!

Until next time all, take care and have an amazing weekend!

January Favourites ’22

Can you believe it’s almost the end of January already?! 2022 is already flying by and I don’t like it. 😛 I know I always say this every month, but I know I’m not the only one!

January for me was crap to say the least as both me and Dane were really sick for the first week of it with chest infections (thankfully not Covid!) and without going into too much detail, my mental health has been really bad. I’m hoping it’ll improve moving forward…

I think another thing that sucked was due to us being sick on my birthday, I didn’t exactly have the best day. Memorable, yes, but crap. 😛 I know we’ll be making up for that at some point soon, which I’m really excited about. What though, I don’t know.

That being said January wasn’t all bad! Money wise I did pretty good considering how long people wait for payday in office jobs (six whole weeks!). I came into 2022 with the attitude of, “Spend less and sell more!” after doing really well with selling old stuff I no longer want on Vinted. If you’re interested in what I’m selling please ask for my store link, I won’t post it publicly on my blog. I’m finally going to clear out a lot of my old clothes from my old room, which is WELL overdue seeing as I moved out almost six years ago. xD

I’m hoping for February to be a better month, mainly health wise but also money wise too. Me and Dane have set a lot of home improvement goals for 2022 and I hope to get started on a lot of them this month, including a LOT of spring cleaning!

I don’t know why but I’m incredibly excited for spring this year. Maybe because of nicer weather and baby animals? 😛

Are you looking forward to anything in February? Make sure to let me know.

Anyhoo, on with the monthly favourites!!!

Favourite Beauty Product – Happy Place Cosmetics Bougie Body Scrub.

If there is one product I cannot live without in my bath/shower it’s the Happy Place Cosmetics body scrubs. They are the best I have ever used and smell amazing to boot! Black Friday they brought out some amazing deals, including body scrubs being on offer, so I bought a bunch of them to keep me going for a while, including Bougie. Bougie is a dupe of Lush Yog Nog, which is one of my favourite scents, from both brands! The HPC body scrubs foam up when you add a little bit of water, so not only do you feel nice and scrubbed after use, but clean too! I especially love to give my whole body a good scrub once to twice a week, depending. Mostly however I love using my body scrub on my legs before shaving. My legs were getting really dry at one point and even with a good moisture, they just seemed dry and itchy. Since using the scrub on them before shaving that dry and itchy feeling has gone and I’m so relieved. I need to do a review of HPC in the future, as not only do they create amazing things for your bath and shower, but for your home too with the wax tarts!

Favourite Film – Ron’s Gone Wrong.

Unfortunately I don’t have any “massive” films to shout about watching. Me and Dane are too anxious to go to the cinema so we’ve not been able to watch anything new lately. However, over Christmas we did binge watch a lot of films on Disney+ and Ron’s Gone Wrong was one of them. I’d been itching to watch this film for a while as not only had I seen it spoken about online, but I’d watched the trailer with Dane and found it adorable, which is exactly what it was. Ron’s Gone Wrong is about a new robot (B-bot) that children are using to find friends they’ll have in common and more. It’s basically a phone but disguised as a toy robot for kids. Barney is the only kid in school without a B-bot and it shows how much it affects him and even when Barney does get one, there’s something wrong with it. I won’t talk too much about the plot in case of spoilers, but I highly recommend checking it out, it’s got a really good message to it for younger and even older people about how much technology can affect us forget about what’s actually around us. I had a little cry at the end too. :’)

Favourite TV Show/Anime – Attack on Titan Final Season.

I’ve really been itching to talk about this this month and before I do, do not worry! There won’t be any spoilers shared here. A massive one came up on the latest episode (23/01) and DAMN I’m so glad we watched it. I’d have hated to see spoilers the next day. Anyhoo… Attack on Titan means a lot to me for various reasons and due to that I’m really sad to see it coming to an end to be honest. It’s one of the first (if not the first) anime me and Dane really got into together. We discovered Attack on Titan back in June 2014 when we went to Bristol for our first anniversary. Dane had heard loads about it and decided to buy some of the manga volumes in Forbidden Planet, as well as find the first episode online for us to watch. Dane fell in love with it, as did I and before we knew it, he’d bought all the manga there was on offer at the time and we found the first season to watch online too. I still remember getting to the last episode of season one and saying to Dane, “Next episode!” with him replying, “That’s it, we need to wit for the next season now.” This was almost ten years ago… How crazy is that? It’s amazing and sad at the same time that we’re now on the final season! It’s kind of the end of an era for a lot of people, including me and Dane. So far though, the final season is amazing! I’m still leaving each episode screaming at the screen saying, “WHAT? What’s happening?”. xD

Favourite Music – PVRIS Shuffle and Bring Me The Horizon – Kingslayer (feat. BABYMETAL).

I don’t know why (well I do, because I love them) but lately I’ve been listening to PVRIS so much. I think it’s because when I’ve been in the office for work, or been working on my own stuff at home, I’ve found that they’re my go to choice when I just need to concentrate and get on with things. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it before on my blog, but PVRIS are actually doing a tour in the UK in May which I REALLY want to go to, but I don’t know if I can justify it with Covid and such? Purely because I’m seeing My Chemical Romance a week or two after and I’d be gutted if I came out of the PVRIS gig with Covid and couldn’t then see MCR… So yeah. That sucks at the moment! I’m still not writing it out because you never know, but yeah…

I also wanted to share with you a song I discovered around Christmas/New Year that Dane showed me. It’s by Bring Me The Horizon but features BABYMETAL, it’s amazing and I fucking love it! It’s really catchy, can be danced to as well as sang along to as well as it has a mixture of screaming and singing. I’m not a massive Bring Me The Horizon fan (not so much the music…) but I do love BABYMETAL. It’s just a perfect song to me and you should give it a listen.

Image taken from Amazon

Favourite Book – The Sad Ghost Club Volume Two.

Guys I actually did some reading in January! Can you believe it? 😛 I LOVE The Sad Ghost Club and as soon as I heard that the second book was coming out, I knew I had to get it. I pre-ordered as soon as it could be and it arrived on my birthday. As I mentioned at the start of the post, both me and Dane were really sick at the start of January, which sucked. This also meant I didn’t get to do anything for my birthday, apart from cuddle up on the sofa and cuddle with Dane. This being said, I did also read The Sad Ghost Club Volume 2 and I really loved it. I won’t say too much so it doesn’t ruin it for other people, but it really did touch upon people’s anxieties even more, which I loved. I could relate to Socks and it really tore on my heart strings. If you love The Sad Ghost Club on Instagram or any other social media, then you need to pick up the books to read. They’re so wholesome and make me smile when I feel down. I can’t wait for the next instalment!

Image taken from PokeCommunity Daily

Favourite Game – Pokemon Shining Pearl.

I was actually going to mention Pokemon: Legend Arceus today BUT it only came out yesterday so seems a bit premature to mention it so quickly. I’ve found myself picking up Shining Pearl quite a bit over January. Mainly because I REALLY wanted to try and get the main bulk of the story completed before Legend Arceus came out. I did in fact do this, but now I’ve opened the national dex and need to bloody complete that! 😛 This being said, Shining Pearl has been so nice and relaxing to play, especially when I wasn’t feeling very well and had the energy to do something more than binge watch Netflix and TV shows on Channel 4. I forgot how long the gen four games are, but I’m not complaining as it’s much better when you compare to Sword and Shield. I did mention it in November when the gen four remakes came out, BUT I did in fact buy Shining Pearl and Brilliant Diamond, as I expected Dane to play with me. As he isn’t doing such a thing and I’d like to 100% complete Shining Pearl, I will eventually play Brilliant Diamond on his switch so I can swap exclusives and such. Is that sad? Yeah, but whatever. 😛

Another thing I wanted to mention here that’s game related is, I’ve decided to create a games completion thread over on my Twitter, which you can find here! My friend Connor did this in 2021 and he really inspired me to do it myself. At the moment I only really have one game on there, but I’m sure that list will grow! I really want to work my way through some of my games this year. I’m sick of buying new when I have half completed ones gathering dust.

Just a few of my favourite things…

Pingki Buddy plush.

I don’t want to talk tooooo much about this plush as in April I’ll be talking in depth about all of the penguin friends that Pingki has created. However, I couldn’t not talk about my Buddy plush today as it’s so bloody cute! If you haven’t already recognised Buddy, he’s heavily inspired by a certain jock penguin from Animal Crossing… 😛 I pre-ordered this cutie from Pingki back in September 2021 and eagerly waited almost four months for him to arrive! It’s such an adorable plush, a nice size for cuddling and especially perfect for taking lots of photos of, as you can see above. 😛 Just an FYI, Buddy is currently sold out and I’m unsure when he’ll be back up for pre-order since the April pre-orders are all booked up!

In the December pre-orders I also pre-ordered the rest of the penguin gang and I’m already counting down the months until April when they’re due to start being shipped to their new homes! We have Baby, Bestie, Slushie and Brainfreeze. I wasn’t planning on getting them all due to lack of space, but I’ve decided to keep them on the back of our sofa as they’ll look really cute and like they’re watching TV with us… Which any Animal Crossing fan wants, right?

Loungefly Sanrio kawaii wallet.

At the start of January I snagged one of my Loungefly grails and for a fucking bargain too! If you don’t know what I mean when I say a grail, it means an item that you’re after that’s hard to find and rare, expensive or both. I feel like this wallet came out between 2020 and 2021, but don’t quote me on that. I just remember it coming out and really wanting the wallet, as well as the matching backpack too (which is also on my grail list!). I found this wallet on Vinted for a steal and decided to treat myself to it straight away. A couple of days later it arrived and I adore it! It was brand new with tags and under £25. I feel like the person who sold it to me knew the value and didn’t want to be a twat about selling it for a stupidly high price? I do have one flaw with this wallet though and that’s it made me feel a little anxious about keeping my bank card and ID in the usual places, so they’re elsewhere. I thought I’d mention this as I know this wallet style is a popular one that Loungefly make, so if you’re looking to buy this style of wallet from them, please bear this in mind! In the future I’m semi hoping to snag the backpack for a bargain too! 😛

Baking – Salted caramel and salted caramel shortbread.

As me and Dane had some stuff to use up in the house, as well as friends to see I decided to not only make salted caramel, but also to make salted caramel shortbread too! Both were a success and it’s made me realise just how much I do love baking! I mean, I know I love baking but you know what I mean. 😛

I’ve made the caramel shortbread before and don’t recall it being a bit hit with everyone, but this time when I made it, Dane and our friends loved it! It made me so happy to hear everyone’s praise and it’s just made me want to bake more and more! Maybe 2022 will be the year I do lots of baking? Watch this space. I absolutely adore baking, it’s a big passion of mine but at the same time I hate it because then I have to find people to eat it all, or me and Dane scoff all the yummy goods. 😛

I’m going to pop the videos about of the recipes I used as they’re really simple, easy to follow and highly recommended!

Fluffy cardigan.

One of my birthday presents from my mom this year was a fluffy cardigan and I fucking love it. So much so I wore it everyday for a week before washing… Grim yes but true. For Christmas my mom bought me and Dane loads of winter warmers such as a fluffy hot water bottle, teddy bear bedding and a gorgeous cream fluffy throw. Her gifts have really been appreciated to say the least, especially when we were poorly. Due to all these warm goodies and the gas prices going up, I suggested to Dane that we make the most of her gifts and turn the heating off in the day, which he agreed. Since then those winter warmers have been getting some use!

My mom had seen this fluffy cardigan on QVC and decided to order us both one and she gave it to me a couple of weeks ago. It’s so soft and fluffy, baggy, has a MASSIVE hood and is just perfect to throw on when you’re feeling chilly or want something comforting. I’ve practically lived in it! Dane jokily wore it the once whilst I was cooking dinner so I snapped a photo on my phone and sent it to my mom. To my surprise she ordered another one, so me and Dane could have one each! That’s my mom all over, bless her.

I am rather excited for us to get another so I can rotate wear them and always have one to live in when it’s chilly!

Image take from GIPHY

Being sick, boo.

Finally I’m going to talk a bit more about what a shit start to the year I had, and Dane for that matter! Right at the end of 2021 me and Dane started to feel under the weather and we put it down to being a cold, but that soon turned out to be a chest infection, which was evidently worse for me than it was for Dane. I came into 2022 with conjunctivitis in both eyes, a horrible cough and sore throat and no to mention no fucking sleep due to the previous two illnesses. It was vile and no matter what me and Dane did to try and shift it, nothing would. It seemed at one point like it was getting worse! Most of our days in the first week of January were spent on our sofa binge watching anything and everything we could on Netflix and All 4.

Of course I can hear you asking, “It wasn’t Covid then?” Nope, thankfully, but trying to find out if it was or not was a fucking pain in the arse! We’d both booked PCR tests on the Monday to find out if we had it, only for them to arrive on the Thursday. Post was very delayed due to the weird bank holidays we’d had at the start of the year, as well as both the Royal Mail and NHS struggling due to rising Covid rates. We’d tried to book to go to a test centre but had no luck, however, one sleepless night we were awake around 3am and managed to book drive thru tests in on the Wednesday. Thursday morning, we found out we were Covid free, as well as see our PCR tests arrive. They’ve been kept somewhere safe for potential future use.

Alongside all that with us being sick, not only did I not get to do fuck all for my own birthday, but I didn’t get to do anything for mom’s either and it really broke my heart. We didn’t get to do anything last year due to Covid and this year I was sick. My mom’s birthday is the day after mine so we do always try and go for a meal, whether it be her day or mine. We’ll go and do something in February no doubt, but it just felt really shit this year and it’s definitely not put me in the best of moods this month due to that.

During me being sick I lost my voice, which was incredibly uncomfortable and annoying. My voice still breaks every now and then and I’m worried whatever was wrong with me is still present in my system. I’m definitely hopeful that February will not contain any sicknesses of any kind. 😛

So, there we have it guys my January favourites! I really missed not writing this style of post since December when I wrote about my November favourites, but it’s definitely good to be back!

What were some of your favourites from January? Make sure to let me know in the comments.

Until next time guys, take care and have a lovely and safe weekend!

September Favourites ’21

I cannot believe it’s already October! This month has flown by and it’s been a mixture of good and bad for me. I won’t go into the latter but I’ll definitely share some exciting stuff me and Dane got up to during the month!

I’m quite glad for a new month to be honest, purely for the bad that’s happened and I especially cannot wait for Halloween at the end of the month, some time off for me and Dane as well as Bonfire Night too, even though that’s November. 😛

For October I have decided to go on a spending ban too, I need to start saving for Christmas, which will be here before we know it! I’ll talk more about that on next weeks post (wish list).

Without further delay, let’s get on with the monthly favourites!

Favourite Beauty Product – Blistex MedPlus Lip Balm.

I don’t know what happened at the start of September but at one point for about a week my lips were so dry, sore and sensitive! So much so, at one point I was anxious I had eczema/dermatitis on my lips! During mine and Dane’s week off we went shopping and I decided to pick up this Blistex lip balm in the hops it would help my lips, which it did, thank fuck for that! Quite frankly since buying this I’ve been using it on my lips when they feel sore or sensitive and due for a flare up. This was only £2 from Bodycare, but I know it’s around this price elsewhere too from places like Boots and Superdrug.

Image taken from Giphy

Favourite Film – Free Guy.

I literally watched this film the evening before writing this post as it’s on Disney+ (thanks Sacha for telling me! :D) and I was SO EXCITED for watching it! I remember when this film was announced, as well as a trailer, I was so hyped. Ryan Reynolds is my favourite actor, so whenever he’s in a new film I always tend to check it out. Free Guy is about Guy, a NPC (non playable character) in a Grand Theft Auto style game. One day he realises he can do more and is more than just a guy who works in a bank. It’s an amazing film and I highly recommend everyone to watch it, especially if you love Ryan Reynolds like me, as well as games. 😀

Image taken from Amazon.com

Favourite TV Show – Kenny Vs Spenny.

Kenny Vs Spenny is a TV show I kept (and keep) going to and from and I love it so much! It’s one that Dane actually introduced me to around the start of our week off together in September and it’s also one he thought I’d heard of. This is due to the fact it’s similar to Dirty Sanchez and Jackass, which are both right up my street. Kenny Vs Spenny came out in the early 00’s, which you can tell if you watch it. The show is hilarious though and is about Kenny and Spenny, two best friends who set each other challenges. The winner gets the loser to do horrible prank style stuff. Kenny is always cheating and due to that often wins over Spenny, so when Spenny wins it makes me so happy. I’m constantly rooting for Spenny. 😛 I highly recommend you giving this a go, all six seasons are over on Kenny’s YouTube account, which I’ve linked you back to. 🙂

Favourite Music/Album – Lil Nas X – Montero.

Lil Nas X’s new album Montero came out a couple of weeks ago and since then I’ve been listening to it on and off. I love some of the songs from Montero and I think Lil Nas X is such a legend! This isn’t my usual music genre of choice but I do really love this album. It’s got a little bit of everything in there (lyric topics wise) and I’m always there for that! I’d say whether or not you like this genre, definitely give Montero a listen as you might be surprised at just how GOOD this album is! I’m listening to it as I write this post this evening. 😀

Image taken from Giphy

Favourite Game – WarioWare: Get It Together!

Gaming in September for me has really been lacking due to a mixture of being busy and just not being in the mood. However, I have played a bit of the new WarioWare game on Nintendo Switch as Dane pre-ordered us both a copy. It’s been so much fun to play alone as well as together as it’s full of small quick paced party style games, which can be frustrating and funny all at the same time! This is the first time I’ve played a WarioWare game and I’m glad I’ve finally gotten to give it a go. If you fancy getting this game but want to see what you think of it, make sure to go to the Nintendo eShop and download the demo to try before you buy. 🙂

Just a few of my favourite things…

The Steamhouse Bakery.

I have been excited to talk to you guys about The Steamhouse Bakery and why (if you’re in the Midlands) you need to visit in on your next trip! I heard about The Steamhouse Bakery during lockdown last year ad have wanted to go there ever since. So, during mine and Dane’s week off last month we decided to go and we went all out… In a way! 😛 We had yummy coffee, bagels and of course had to get some cakes too!

We bought a bagel of each, but decided to share them so we could see what they were like! I went for The Workman (Smoked Bacon, Scrambled Eggs & Sausage) and Dane went for The Southern Gent (Roast Chicken, Bacon, Mozzarella, BBQ Sauce & Leaves). Both bagels were amazing and as you can see from the photos, you get plenty of food too! We were stuffed and couldn’t eat any dinner due to that fact. 😛 We also ordered some cakes, I had a Nutella and Bueno brownie and Dane had a Twix doughnut.

The Steamhouse Bakery have three stores, based in Leamington Spa, Worcester and Redditch. So if you’re in the Midlands (or live here like I do), there’s a chance on your next trip out to Worcestershire, you might be able to drop into one of the stores to try their amazing baked goods… And coffee. 😛

Holiday to Wales.

A couple of weeks before September, we decided to book a few days in Wales, just to get away and have a break. We haven’t had a holiday (as in get away from home) since Japan in January 2020 so this trip away was a little overdue. We did a tour of the coast of Wales travelling from Pembrokeshire, to Aberystwyth, and finally to Snowdon. During out time there we did lots of walking, visited our friends farm , walked on some beaches and stayed in a luxury cabin with a HUGE bath and double showers. It was a lovely break away and we’re already planning to go to the luxury cabin again in the future!

Black Milk Clothing Ghost Unicorns Sheer Romance Dress.

This photo is actually from the luxury cabin in question, but I wanted to show off my Black Milk Clothing ghost unicorns dress, as I LOVE it! This is the first time I’d worn it, which was just on the way home from Wales. I then wore it again for my dad’s birthday meal out! I LOVE the romance style of BMC’s dresses as it’s so flattering for my figure and I always feel fancy wearing them (I own two including this one). On our way home from Wales we stopped off somewhere for food and the woman who served us commented how lovely my dress was and how it had a pink glow around the restaurant as I walked around. Her comments really made me smile. :’)

Ghost Items!

I have to show off some of the new spoopy items I’ve received from orders and pre-orders, especially these two ghostie cuties! I love kawaii ghosts, I have done since I was a kid, so when Halloween comes around, I always like to snag a few spooky pieces.

The Sad Ghost Club brought out a limited edition plush back in July and I made sure to pre-order my own as soon as I could! My Sad Ghost arrived a week or so ago and it’s so cute and perfect. The Sad Ghost Club is something I really adore and their posts on Instagram really do help me when I’m feeling low. I feel like it’s been around forever and it’s always been something that comes up on my social media now, it’s sort of like a norm for me now. So, to have my own Sad Ghost as part of my plushie collection really does make me happy!

I also managed to snag this large DW Home ghost candle from TK Maxx… Well, technically I sourced it through a group on Facebook and someone was nice enough to pick it up for me and ship it. This candle smells like vanilla cupcake and honestly, the picture doesn’t so it just of just how big this thing is! It weighs a ton but that cuteness really does pack a punch. This ghostie lives on my bedroom window shelf and it makes me smile looking at it each morning and evening. I’m planning to light it soon… But at the same time I want to keep it nice! xD

Autumnal Gel Nails!

Finally I want to share my newest and current gel mani with you all! I know nails might not be some people’s thing and I get that, I do. But my nails mean a lot to me now. I’ve mentioned before on my blog (I’m sure…) how bad my nails condition used to be. I’d cut them down so short they would bleed and they looked tiny and more like children’s nails than a grown adults. Due to how often I cut them down, they didn’t get the chance to grow. This was down to my anxieties and I often cut them down to stop myself from chewing and biting them.

When I started going to my nail tech almost two years ago now, I wondered if getting my nails done with gel would be for me. Who knew it would be, eh? I bloody love my nails now and love seeing them look healthy, long and gorgeous all the time. I don’t have my nails long, because I do still like them neat and short. If I have them long, I end up chewing on them and the gel doesn’t last five minutes.

My friend Bintou (hey girl! :D) recently had her nails painted pretty much the same as mine, which in turn inspired me to go with some gorgeous fall colours for my recent mani! I love them so much and they’re definitely up there as some of my favourite nails! 😀

There we have it guys, my monthly favourites from September!

What were some of your favourite things last month? What are you looking forward to in October? Make sure to let me know in the comments!

Roll on Halloween I say!!!

Until next time all, take care and I hope you have a great start to the month. 🙂

August Favourites ’21

I cannot believe it’s September now, my favourite month of the year. September is a month I’m really excited for, but also very anxious and a little sad about too.

August is a month I couldn’t wait to see the back of as it wasn’t exactly great, especially for my mental health, but at the same time I had a really lovey time running up to the end of it. Me and my best friend went out for one of the days over bank holiday and it was so lovely. I’ll be talking about it more later on in the favourites.

September though… It’s always been my favourite month of the year due to feeling of a fresh start (due to education), as well as my favourite season of autumn starting. However, since last year September also carries some sadness I don’t want to discuss on my blog, as well as some big anxieties in the weeks leading up.

This all being said, me and Dane will be off holiday from work together and we’re planning to just chill out together and have lots of cuddles and chilled days. I honestly cannot wait for some time off of work to just do nothing and relax.

I’m sorry to start off this months favourites with a bit of a miserable topic, but I just wanted to be honest here. I’m incredibly worn out, even after bank holiday. xD

Favourite Beauty Product  – Boots Extracts Marshmallow & Peppermint Body Butter.

Not going to lie, this is actually an old product from many years ago that I only recently opened. I’d bought it as part of a gift set I bought back in 2016 and decided to finally crack open the body butter to use as a hand and foot butter. On my hands this just did not agree with my dermatitis due to the scent and ingredients, however, used as a foot butter it’s been a dream to use. I put a very generous amount on before socks in the morning which results in my feet looking and feeling lovely and smooth by the end of the day. It also has a gorgeous creamy peppermint scent too, which I adore. I’ll be honest, I don’t know if you’re supposed to use products past their sell by date… I think with beauty products it’s from when they’re opened you have the use by date. Of course, if you aren’t sure it might always be best to throw the product away.

Favourite Film – Us.

This is a film I’ve been wanting to watch since it came out in 2019, but we just never managed to. We planned to go to the cinema to watch it but never did and I’m really glad we didn’t. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed the film but without saying too much, I guessed the twist of the film around thirty minutes in, which was a little disappointing. That being said, the overall plot of the film is really good and you’re definitely on the edge of your seat wondering what’s going to happen next.

Favourite TV Show – Centaurworld.

This is a new Netflix series that came out to the UK at the end of July. Dane thought it looked batshit crazy so he decided to pop it on for us to watch. We LOVED it and binge watched it in a few days. We follow Horse as she finds herself transported to Centaurworld during a battle with her owner. Horse discovers a group of centaur friends, who soon help Horse to try and find her way home. There’s singing involved too, as this is a musical show. It reminds me of Adventure Time crossed with Disney films. Give it a watch if you haven’t done so already!

Favourite Music – Unprocessed – “Candyland”

Unprocessed are a progressive metal band that Dane introduced me to recently with “Deadrose”. As I really love this song, Dane played me one of their newer songs to see what I thought of it. “Candyland” has fast turned into one of my favourite songs to listen to lately. Their music style seems to have changed a little when you hear “Deadrose” before or after “Candyland”. I really love them and I’m going to be checking out more of their stuff in September!

Image taken from Waterstones.

Favourite Book – The Sad Ghost Club.

Yes guys, I read a book this month! Don’t act too shocked, please. 😛 I bought The Sad Ghost Club back in January this year and I thought I’d read it, instead I placed it in our office and… Never touched it. As I found out a second book is due to come out in January 2022 (I’ve already pre ordered it too…) I decided it was time to finally dig the book out and give it a read! It’s actually a comic more so than a book, where we follow Sad Ghost and their struggles with their mental health, including social anxiety, worries about education and even going to a party. The comic itself is really sad at times, but at the same time makes you feel less alone. My mental health hasn’t been very good the past couple of months and reading The Sad Ghost Club really did help me feel less lonely.

Image taken from Tenor.

Favourite Game – State of Decay 2.

Recently Dane has really gotten back into State of Decay 2 again and as some of friends have also wanted to play it, I thought I’d jump on and play it too. State of Decay 2 is a zombie game where you need to build up your base, all whilst gathering resources, getting people to come and join your base, as well as killing zombies. It’s a really simple game to play and really nice and chilled to play with friends! I highly recommend it, I really do love it and the zombies don’t come across as too scary either, which is always good! 🙂

Just a few of my favourite things…

Loungefly bags, old and new!

I didn’t quite realise I received two new Loungefly bags in August, as well as decided to finally cut the tags off of one I bought at the start of 2021! The Pikachu wallet chain bag and the Baymax backpack are my new bags, whilst Meeko is one I bought via a Facebook group (and now one of my Instagram friends!) in January.

I was after a new shoulder bag so decided to pick up the Pikachu bag, however the images that Loungefly have out there are so fucking misleading and make the bag look bigger than it actually is. This being said, it’s the perfect bag for quickly going out to run errands as well as nights out. I’ve used it quite a few times throughout August and it’s a really good bag for if you don’t need to carry much, but still do need a bag.

Alongside that I also decided to purchase the Baymax backpack very last minute. The day the Baymax cosplay backpack and wallet went on sale on the Funko Europe website, I just fell in love with it and had to buy it. I didn’t need it, but I have ZERO REGRETS. I used it over the bank holiday and it’s such an adorable bag! I felt so cute using it around town during mine and my best friends mini bar/pub crawl and I honestly cannot wait to start using it more. I regret not getting the matching wallet for it, so I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled on trying to get it at a decent price in the future.

Finally my Meeko backpack. This is a bag I was after for MONTHS before I finally snagged it via a Loungefly Facebook group. I also got the matching purse, but this is something I’m yet to use. Little story behind how I “missed out” on this bag. I was told by a Forbidden Planet store when the bag was due to come out that they would take my details and pop a bag to one side for me. They didn’t want any money for the bag to be put down as a pre order just in case they never got the bag in stock. This being said, they assured me they WERE going to get the bag in stock. Alas they never and they didn’t even bother to reach out to me to let me know. It was kind of obvious I wouldn’t be getting it and I was gutted. This being said, I have it now and I do really love it! I used it for the first time whilst out for my best friends 30th birthday and it is so comfortable and cute! It feels soft and isn’t a sturdy bag due to this, but this being said, I really love this aspect of the backpack.

I’m hoping to write a post all about my Loungefly collection in the future. If this is something you’re interested in, please let me know! I’d also love to do a YouTube video showing off my collection too, but I’m so anxious about doing YouTube… :’)

Some of my favourite gel nails.

As many of my readers will know, I do love getting my nails done and it’s actually been a really positive change in my life in regards to my anxiety. Before I started getting my nails done I would cute them so short they would bleed. They’re not incredibly healthy, grow quickly, don’t break and it’s stopped me from cutting them short, as well as chewing them when nervous.

My reason for especially posting my nails this month as this set has been one of my favourites to date. The colour shares its name with my gran and is such a beautiful colour to boot. I’m actually getting my gels redone tomorrow and I’m a little sad as I honestly love this set. They’ve lasted so well and they just make me happy to look at. I don’t have a bloody clue what new set I’m going to get yet. xD

Dog sitting again.

Me and Dane dog sat Eddie again for a couple of days and we loved it. If you read my favourites from July, you will have seen that me and Dane had Eddie at ours for a week and we loved every moment of it! We didn’t have him for as long but it was nice to have him around for cuddles, fuss, playtime and walks were lovely to do with him too. I wanted to share this adorable photo of him that I took during my lunch break. He was having a lovely snooze and I felt so guilty when I had to return back to my desk and wake him up.

Claire Likes To Doodle‘s Bernard takes over Birmingham Cass Art!

First of all I want to say how fucking proud I am of Claire, she has come so far in such a short period of time with her art and it’s just growing more and more as the years go by. Over the bank holiday (Saturday) Claire posted on her Instagram page how she was doing something exciting in the Cass Art in Birmingham city centre. I kept my eye on her Instagram stories and she revealed she was actually drawing one of her Bernard’s on the window of Cass Art! I watched the process of it throughout the morning and as me and my best friend would be in town that day, we made sure to take a diversion over to Cass Art to go and take a look, as well as take some photos!

I wanted to show this off and share with you guys, as well as say if you’re in Birmingham and see Claire’s Bernard in the window of Cass Art, make sure to take a photo, post on your Instagram stories and tag Claire’s Instagram page (linked above under the photo) as I know for a fact she would love that! 😀

There we have it then guys, those are my favourites from August! August was a very strange month for me and I feel like September is going to be a nice month, but a very anxious one too.

What were your favourites from August? Also, what are you looking forward to about September? Make sure to let me know in the comments below.

Until next time guys, I hope you’ve had a great start to September and here’s to spooky season finally beginning! 😛

Birthday/January Wish List ’21

Happy New Year guys! I hope you all have a great New Years, even if it involved you staying it. Not going to lie, some of my best New Year celebrations have been in my own, or someone else’s home.

At the time of writing this we are three days into 2021 and so far so good. I’m back at work tomorrow (4th January) and I feel rested after doing next to sod all the past eleven days and whilst I’d like some more time off, I do feel like being back at work will start to give me stuff to do again during the day.

As well as heading back to work, my birthday is also looming (6th January) and I’m going to be turning 31… I wasn’t arsed about turning 30 last year, but for some reason adding one more year to that has kind of deflated me a little. 😛

2021 is going to be a year where I start to experiment and “live” a little more. I want to do more with my resin making hobby, including starting to create pieces to sell! I’m also toying with starting to do gaming/chat streams over on Twitch… We shall see as this is a big step.

I’ve not set any resolutions for 2021 but I have said I’d like to read more manga, as well as continue with doing my Beatsaber VR workouts. My mom also bought me a bread maker for Christmas so I’ll be making more bread in 2021 too!

I’m not going to do the whole, “things will be better in 2021!” because I’m happy to take it as it comes. If it’s similar to 2020 with the way COVID has been… Then so be it. As long as I can be safe in my home with Dane and talk to my friends and family via Facetime, Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger, then so be it!

As it is my birthday in a few days I wanted the first post of 2021 to be a wish list post, with goodies I’d like to pick up/receive for my birthday… Mostly goodies I’d buy myself, especially considering two of the items are this list are things I’ve either pre-ordered or ordered. 😛

So, I hope you’re ready to see lots of kawaii goodies! 😀

• Her Universe Kiki’s Delivery Service Jiji Hoodies Cardigan (link)

I verrry much doubt I’ll get this for my birthday or with my own money. I’ve spent so much money before Christmas panic buying from American independent artists and with a 6 week wait until payday, I’m kinda poor this month. 😛 However, I really love this hooded cardigan by Her Universe that I had to mention it this month! I live in cardigans, especially when I’m actually working in the office so I’m always on the hunt for new ones that express who I am, whilst being acceptable to wear. I don’t know if this one would be, but it’s gorgeous. I’d wear it with my tartan trousers, as well as skater skirts and leggings. I’ve never ordered from Hot Topic before, has anyone in the UK before? Please share your experience for the future! However, I may do a big Her Universe order in the future… 😉

• The Sad Ghost Club book by Lize Meddings (link)

I’m a MASSIVE fan of The Sad Ghost Club and view it daily on my Instagram account. The Sad Ghost Club is described as “a club for anyone who’s ever felt sad or lost. It’s the club for those who don’t feel like they’re part of any other club.” and for years it really has helped me when my anxiety and depression are bad and I need to feel less alone. I’ve even sent the page to friends to follow to see if it helps them to feel less alone too. It was announced back in October 2020 and I pre-ordered it as soon as I saw it landed on Amazon. I haven’t read much in 2020 and plan to change that in 2021. I want to spend more time away from technology and with my head in a good manga/novel/comic, including this one. 🙂

• Pokemon Center Fit Plushie – Dragonite (link) Save 10% from YY Kawaii’s website with the code “YYCOFFEE10”

If there is one plushie I wish I could have picked up last year (as if it’s been a year guys…) when I was in Japan, it’s the Dragonite fit plushie from the Pokemon Center. It wasn’t available to buy whilst we were there and I was gutted. Dragonite is one of my favourite Pokemon and I always have one in my party in the games. I currently have a level 100 Dragonite on Pokemon Shield. 😛 Anyway, I finally bit the bullet and reached out to YY Kawaii about ordering on with her. It should arrive in January and I can’t wait to add it to my collection! I’m planning to keep it on the top of my plushie shelf alongside the plushies I bought in Japan.

• Pokemon Mew Funko Pop (link)

I just want to get this out there that the link I’ve attached (Double Boxed Toys) has sold out of this figure…BUT I haven’t found it elsewhere for sale in the UK yet… Anyway, I REALLY need this funko pop in my life! Like Dragonite, Mew is one of my favourite Pokemon and whilst I don’t own or really want any of the Pokemon funko pops, I really want this one. I think it’s a pop I would take out of the box and keep on my plushie shelf alongside all my Japanese goodies. Otherwise, I’d keep it in the box eventually for the day I can have my own desk at home to keep it on. 😛

• Animal Crossing Mega Isabelle Plush/Pillow (link)

This is something I keep wanting to pick up… But I keep thinking about money too. As many of my regular readers and friends know, I LOVE Animal Crossing and have done since I first discovered it in 2008 when I played Wild World. With New Horizons releasing, a lot of Animal Crossing merchandise has come out in the UK which is amazing. One of these items includes this amazing Isabelle plush/pillow that I really need in my life! It’s not a bad price currently on the website/store I’ve linked and I do keep umming and ahhing about picking it up. I’m going to wait and see my birthday pass in a couple of days and then toy with whether to order it. It’s available at loads of places so it’s not like it’s going to sell out and then I’ll never get it. 😛

• Stami Studios Whale Texting Enamel Pins (link)

Finally we have some enamel pins to talk about. To be honest with you all, I think 2021 is the year where I need to have a declutter of my enamel pins, as well as stop buying so many! I’m actually toying with selling some soon. Let me know in the comments if this is something you’d be interested in seeing. I have quite a few Pokemon themed ones I’m contemplating selling. ANYHOO I’ve really fallen in love with Stami Studios designs this year and some that she has released of late have given me some nostalgic feels. Whale texts are something I used to send to my friends all the time back ten plus years ago off my HTC phone. I loved it and I’d love to do it again this year for fun. Due to this, this is why I’m so in love with these designs. You can buy all three designs separately or together. If these are still in stock at the end of January when I get paid, I’m buying these for sure!

So there we have it guys, my monthly wish list for January, as well as my *gulp* 31st birthday.

One of my friends asked me before New Year what I was thinking of doing for my birthday and I had no idea. I knew I wanted to do some baking (currently torn between red velvet cupcakes and a Japanese strawberry shortcake) as my mom’s birthday is the day after mine. So I would be baking for both of our birthday’s really. Alongside that I’m planning to cook some Chinese food for dinner, as well as make some resin goods on Tuesday night that I can continue with on my actual birthday. I’m excited to just have the day with Dane to cook/bake together and do our one hobby together too. 🙂

I’m not gutted about having a lockdown birthday because I don’t know what I would have done out and about anyway! If anything it means when everything has calmed down and we start to go back to “normal” I can do something exciting.

Do you guys have much planned during the third lockdown here in the UK? What items do you have on your wish list for January too? I know we’re all skint at this time of year, so have you bought any sales items? Let me know everything in the comments! I love reading and replying to your comments. 🙂

Image taken from Cakes With Faces Twitter page.

One more thing to say before I finish this post, I’m taking part in Japanuary over on Instagram! It was created by Cakes With Faces and all you had to do is share a post daily on your social media platform (Instagram for me) with images and some text in relation to the day. I’m really enjoying this challenge so far and it’s keeping my Japan trip alive almost a year on. 🙂

Anyhoo that’s all from me today! I hope you’re all safe and well and 2021 has treated you nice so far. 🙂

Until next time, take care all and Happy New Year!