Festive Friday 2013 #2 Looking Forward To Christmas Eve

Hey Guys,

I can't believe we're at the end of another week and ti's time for another Festive Friday... This week I was planning on focusing on my Christmas decorations at home, but some of the lights on my tree have broken and my living room is a mess (my fiance just sanded the beam on one side of our living room and stained it so all the furniture is over one side) so I couldn't take good photos. However, I think I have a pretty good alternative!

Today was a pretty good day for us, we actually finished the last bits and pieces of Christmas shopping, and the few things I had been waiting for arrived, AND I bought my Soap and Glory big gift set... A bit sad when you have to buy your own Christmas presents... I can't wait to unwrap that on Christmas day though. I also got something I have had my eye on for ages and ages.

Yankee Candle Christmas Eve has been on my wishlist since it went in the shops this year. I've been buying little samplers recently though and wasn't ready to commit until I realised not many places did samples of it. I really loved the smell and wanted it so much, and today I bought the large jar. I prefer buying the large jars over the small and medium ones because they last for ages and are better value for money!

Christmas Eve is such a perfect smell. I don't like anything too sweet, favouring clean smells like "Fluffy Towels" over anything vanilla-smelling. I do like berry smells though, and this is the perfect blend of berries, with a bit of spice and a little bit of a burning smell that is exactly like a log fire. I know this because I couldn't wait to start burning it and have it lit next to me!

Over all I love this, it's the perfect scent for me right now! It is available at most stockists of Yankee Candle in a variety of sizes as well as in a medium jar gift set with Snow In Love (one of my other faves and one I want for Christmas). It usually retails for £19.99 but I got this 25% off today in Clinton's Cards. It's their scent of the week so I couldn't help myself!

Have a great weekend everyone, I'm off to see Catching Fire on Sunday with a friend, so that will be nice!

See you next week!

What's In My Stash #2

Hello!

Two posts in one week, I'm on a roll! In fact, this week has been an amazing week for me... I feel like I've finally achieved the perfect work/relaxation balance. I'm managing to keep my house pretty much spotless (as spotless as you can get with a nearly 2 year old!) and still finding time to keep up with Celebrity Big Brother and light some scented candles! It probably sounds stupid because this is what normal life is like, but for me I have my boyfriend here to help out half the time, then when he's away I struggle to adjust to being by myself again. But I think I've cracked it! I haven't been to my Mum's this time of my boyfriend being away and I think that's it, I feel settled at last!!! My son is in a great routine, and I'm eating healthy meals, I'm getting somewhere at last...

Anyway, enough of that and onto the nails! I have a What's In My Stash post for you this evening. This polish is one of my faves, it's my go-to nude and I adore it... I even used it in my abstract neon manicure as a base.

Of course I'm talking about My Vampire is Buff by OPI. This is from the Euro Centrale Collection that came out in February and I bought it on the ferry when I came back from Disneyland Paris. I think that was March, but don't hold me to that!

It's a creamy nude, very pale, more like an off white. I love this because it's a yellowy nude rather than a peachy/pink nude which is more flattering on my skintone.

The photos below show three coats without topcoat. I've seen people saying they have trouble with the formula of this but I don't mind it too much. It's thin but three coats is perfectly smooth and it dried really quickly.

Natural light - Sorry my camera refused to focus!

Sunlight

Flash

I love this, I wear it all the time, especially if I take off something and it has stained my nails! It's perfect after I've taken off something red or navy blue! I definitely think it's a must have in a stash!

What do you guys think? Do you own this, or any others from the Euro Centrale Collection?

I can't believe I've posted before 10pm. I really am on a roll at the moment. I've actually got a little crafts project to do that I bought in TKMaxx today. It's a little set that has material, thread and a needle and you make a little patchwork fox teddy, I think Caleb will love it! So I'm going to light a scented candle and start sowing... Might see you all tomorrow...

Inspired By... #1

Hi Guys,

Hope you all had a good week last week and a good weekend! I was so busy last week, out pretty much every day, then my nephew had a little birthday party yesterday because he turns two today. So today I've been trying to catch up with housework! I hate having to tidy up and clean, it's so mundane, but has to be done unfortunately... I just can't wait to get into bed tonight! 

Tonight I have something that will hopefully turn into a regular feature: Inspired By...

Recently I bought a new phone case from TKMaxx and as soon as I bought it I knew I wanted to do some nail art inspired by it. The polishes I used here were Snow Me White by Sinful Colors and Barry M Gold Foil.

I started off with a white base coat and let that dry completely, and then I marked off chevrons with striping tape. Next I applied one coat of gold and then peeled off the striping tape while the nail was still wet.

Here is the result:

Natural light

Slightly different shade of gold but still looks nice...

I had to include this, my brother text me just as I was taking this photo!

You can get Barry M Gold Foil at pretty much every Boots and Superdrug, it's definitely worth having. Sinful Colors is available at selected Boots stores.

If you like the look of this phone case, I've seen it in a couple of TKMaxx stores, it is made by Agent18 and they usually retail at around the $30 mark, but they sell them for £6.99. This is for the iPhone 5.

Right, that's all from me for this evening. I'm going to quickly experiment with a Slimming World cake and then it's time for bed!

See you next time!

Five Favourites: APRIL!

Hey Guys,

I am so delayed with this post, but around the start of this month was a super stressful time for me, and that's when I usually end up writing it...

I'm actually sat at my laptop now while Caleb is sleeping. I find that it's better for me to post during the day, bevause

1. Staying at my Mum's:

My Mum walking her dogs, they are mental, especially the one
on the left! No point her being on the lead, she won't leave my
Mum's side!

I spent the whole month of April staying at my Mum's house. Since I moved back up to Norfolk, I feel like I hardly see her anymore. It was nice to have a few weeks there, Caleb loves being there, and to spend some time together.

2. Hart of Dixie:

This month I decided to watch Hart of Dixie, and I am hooked! I downloaded every episode I could get and watched it all within a week, so I ended up catching up and having to watch one a week the old fashioned way! And then it finished last week, I can't wait for season three! For the record, I'm team Zade!

3. Family Visits:

I made these at Easter for all of my family...  Five giant ones for the adults and about
30 smaller ones for everyone, including the babies, Caleb loved them!

My little brother had his Easter holidays while I was at my Mum's and I hadn't seen him since Christmas, he's up in Manchester studying nursing so I don't see much of him. My older brother also came down for a few days with his fiancee and my nephew, so we were all together! I had to move out of the house and into a hotel because there weren't enough beds, but it was nice to have some space to myself for a couple of days.

4. Derren Brown:

So exciting!

For a long time I've been obsessed with Derren Brown! What he does just amazes me! Anyway, a while ago I bought tickets for my boyfriend and I was disappointed in the seats I could get. I had been stalking the site for months waiting for tickets to go on sale for Norwich, then I gave up. One day I decided to check again and they had gone on sale 10 days before! I got the best seats I could, but I wanted to be nearer the front. Anyway, we're going on June 12th and I'm really excited BUT... In April he released a bunch of new dates in London and I'm going again in July with my brother and...

WE GOT FRONT ROW! My brother loves Derren Brown too so it's going to be amazing. I don't mind going twice, plus it'll be a night out in London!

5. Getting Ready For Summer:

Walking at the beach at Stokes Bay

Towards the end of April the weather started to get a bit better. By better I mean about 20 degrees, but I'll take what I can get! It was nice to at least consider buying some summer clothes! Although I think I'm going to have to get a holiday in soon if I want to see the sun, I can't imagine we'll be getting a good summer in England this year!

This month was a little bit uneventful, but in a good way. Sometimes I have so much going on, travelling and everything, so it's nice to be in one place for a little while with not much happening, I got to have some family time and that was what I needed!

I'll be back on Thursday with a nails or beauty post, I haven't decided yet, I have a bunch of photos on my camera to look at first! So I'll see you then!

My Week In Pictures #3

Hi Guys,

So... This has been a bit of a break. And guess what? I'm in Holland! Recently it seems like I'm not in one place for more than two weeks and that means that blogging has been taking a back seat in favour of being less stressed and more stable! 

I thought that my first post after this break should be a My Week in Pictures post before I do last month's Five Favourites, so you guys know what I've been up to! So here we go! 

My Dad came and stayed for a week at my house with my littlest brother and his mum. It was pretty packed in my house with a hyper 6 and a half year old and a 19 month old competing for attention but it was nice to have everyone staying to keep me company!

We did a few things, like the Sealife Centre and shopping, and the weather was ok-ish, we had a couple of really nice days, and then we all came back over to Holland together.

As you probably know, I only passed my driving test in September, so it was kind of a big deal me driving all the way over here and on the other side of the road! I wasn't nervous though because I rode a moped for four years in Spain on the right, but as soon as I came out of the ferry port I nearly went straight onto the left!

Lovely hot weather, I was loving it!

My boyfriend FINALLY (after well over two years of
nagging) let me get a new Hoover. He had his last one since
before we met and it was heavy and the wheel kept coming
off... So hello Henry!

Being a passenger for the first time in ages! My Dad's car is a
left hand drive from Holland. It was nice to be driven for a change!

The Sealife Centre - I love this place, I need to go
to more aquariums... Bigger and better ones!

I finally made the investment - Estee Lauder Double
Wear in Ecru

Yuck, early morning getting up for Holland. I'm so not an
early morning person, we were meant to be leaving at 6:30 but
of course I was running half an hour late... 

Beautiful Dutch tulips!

This road symbolises Holland to me, I remember it from when I
was 14 visiting my Dad and seeing all the wind turbines on this road
going to a from the airport!

I leave the gloomy English weather to find this on my Dad's terrace
this morning, I hate rain... Typical!

So this is my Week in Pictures and what I've been up to! Tomorrow I should have my Five Favourites up for April, even though it was a bit of a meh month! And then after that I have some nails and makeup posts planned. And I have my camera to take pictures of things I might potentially buy here. I brought some polish with me to swatch if I have time, but if today is anything to go by, Caleb thinks that he should only have a half an hour nap instead of his usual two hours, so I probably won't have time! 

See you tomorrow!

Five Favourites: MARCH!

Hey Guys,

I know, half way through April and I finally get around to my March Favourites! The last couple of weeks I've been stuck in a funk... I've been watching too much TV on my laptop, Nashville first and then Hart of Dixie. And I haven't been well. And Caleb hasn't been well. In fact, this week we were so ill that my Mum had to take a day and a half off work to look after us, and then she caught the bug!

I'm writing this with a major head cold so pardon me if the spelling is wrong or anything, there are only so many lemsips one person can have!

I got myself into the habit of not blogging, and I think it's okay to do that, I never want to blog because I feel like I have to, only because I want to! So I've had a bit of a regroup and I've been doing a little bit of swatching, so I have lots to post about. Hopefully I can get back to regular posting now!

So anyway, onto my Five Favourites for March!

1. Truly Polished Turned one!

This month, on the 10th, my blog had its first birthday. I still plan on having a giveaway for that, but the prizes are at my house and I'm at my Mum's!

I would like to thank everyone who has been reading my blog over the past year and those who are new readers! I appreciate every page view and I never thought that my little page of ramblings about nail polish would have been read tens of thousands of times! So thank you guys for that!

2. My second Mother's Day:

This month it was Mother's Day. My beautiful little boy got me a gorgeous card and some Real Techniques brushes, the Core Collection. While he's still young enough to not make me presents I thought I would just get something I wanted. I can't wait until a couple of years' time when he's old enough to make me thoughtful gifts!

3. Nashville:

Oh my goodness, I can't even explain how much I love this show. I watch it on the American schedule so I'm a few weeks ahead compared to here. I even downloaded the soundtrack for my car. What shocks me is that some of the actors aren't even from America, let alone from Tennessee! 

4. Disneyland:

Even though this trip was a disaster, the look of my little boy's face when he saw Mickey Mouse made it all worthwhile!

5. Micky Flanagan:

This month we went to see Micky Flanagan in Bournemouth and he was so funny! My boyfriend and I are huge fans of his, and my brother came with us to see him. It was a great night.

So that's it, my highlights of the month! Sorry it has taken me so long to get it all written down. It was a great month and so far this month is doing nothing to live up to it, seeing as I've spent most of it being ill! 

Fingers crossed that I can get my act together now, I've got so much cool stuff to show you... The Models Own neons are all swatched and ready, I've got some Maybelline ColorShow polishes, a lipstick review, and of course, the yellow from the Barry M Textured range! All kinds of cool things, so I'm going to make as much time as possible for blogging! 

See you tomorrow!

My Week in Pictures #2

Hi Everyone,

Happy St Patrick's Day!

I know, where have I been, right? Well, that's a bit of a long story, and the main reason behing this "My Week In Pictures" post. As well as the reason behind me posting on a Sunday. Normally the weekends are a time when I spend a bit of down time with the family and don't think about blogging. But right now my son is asleep and my boyfriend is watching football, so here I am!

The reason for my absence is actually a last minute trip away to Paris. We decided to go after I wrote the last blog post and booked immediately. It was a bit of a disaster. Stupid weather, see below for...

My second Mother's Day (third if you count being pregnant) and Caleb got me a
lovely card with one of my fave photos on!

The weather was like this in Kent when we were on our way to Dover.
We got stuck on the motorway, took snowy country roads, then missed our ferry.
It had been cancelled anyway, so they put us on one to Dunkerque rather than Calais.

By the time we got on the ferry, our car was filthy!

And then it all went even more wrong! We were fine from Dunkerque for a little while, then we hit the road out of Calais. Abandoned lorries everywhere. We slept on the motorway that night, we were stuck from past 8pm until nearly half past 4am...

Traffic at a standstill...

Only just moving again, it's 5:20 French time and absolutely freezing.
We've been stuck for 8 hours...

Then we got to our hotel eventually at gone 7 in the morning. There was snow everywhere and we weren't happy with the hotel. The Disney New York Hotel... Do not stay here!!! We slept until about 1pm then went to the Walt Disney Studios Park for a little while, that was nice. Had an okay sleep that night and woke up a bit fresher on Thursday.

Here at last and the snow isn't falling anymore!

Extended 20 year anniversary... I was 2 when this was built in 1992 

Mickey Mouse in the parade

Friday... Time to go already! We left really early, about 10.30am for our 6.30pm ferry in case we got stuck again. We flew through and got there at 2.30pm! We paid for new tickets and left at 3.30pm, we just wanted to get home!

Checking out the duty free! 

My purchases! Nein! Nein! Nein! and Don't Talk Bach to Me were under £6 each!
I also bought My Vampire is Buff from the Euro Centrale collection.

I was so excited to finally see the White Cliffs of Dover!

 All in all, not a great trip, but my son loved it! He was really good in the car given the circumstances and we got lovely photos of him and Mickey Mouse. Our hotel was terrible but Goofy was there the morning we left so Caleb got photos with him too.

We got back Friday night, had the rest of the plastering done in the living room on Saturday, and here we are!

I haven't forgotten that the 10th of this month was the 1st birthday of Truly Polished, and this coming week or the next one I should be announcing my celebrations! Thank you all for sticking by me, even in my absence I have gained new followers here and on Bloglovin and that means so much to me!

Five Favourites: February!

Hi Guys,

Long time no see, right? I have been a terrible blogger. I went on holiday last week though so I think I can be forgiven! We just had a little mini-break in Wales and it was so lovely!

Anyway, less of the rambling from me. I'm going to get back in the swing of blogging next week, I have some swatches done so I can actually do some good posts! 

Here are my Five Favourites from the past month!

1. Valentine's Day:

Obviously with it being February, it was Valentine's Day. We didn't go over the top with our celebrations, we just had a nice meal and watched a film. It was perfect! Valentine's Day will always be special to me because it was our last day as just the two of us. It was the 15th of February 2011 that we found out we were going to be having our son, and our lives changed forever!

2. Spending some quality family time together:

This month I let blogging take a back seat somewhat and I'm glad that I did. I love writing this blog, and I'm so grateful to all of you who read my ramblings, but sometimes it's nice not to be glued to my computer at night!

3. Going away:

We went to Wales this month for four nights. We rented a little cottage in Pembrokeshire and it was just amazing. I haven't enjoyed a holiday that much in a very long time. The cottage was on a farm, so Caleb was able to feed the animals, and one day we went on a one and a half hour walk, it was lovely! We want to go back in the summer, it was perfect!

4. Getting things done:

One of the main reasons for our mini-break rather than a holiday abroad was because we have so much to do at home. We started painting my son's room and that's nearly done. We've bought a load of things for the house, and our chest of drawers is together. Not to mention I unpacked my clothes!!! I'd been living out of boxes and suitcases since the start of December and enough was enough!

5. My car passed its MOT:

I know this is a bit of a stupid one! I got my car in October and I love it so much. Anyway this month, Francoise had her MOT and she passed with flying colours! After taking nearly 4 years to take my driving test, my car is a huge thing to me! I was really worried it wouldn't pass, not that anything has gone wrong with it at all, but I was worried anyway... I couldn't stand it if it hadn't have passed. And it's lucky too, because my boyfriend's car has gone wrong twice in the last couple of weeks!

So that's it for February! It's been a good month! 

I hope you've enjoyed this post, thanks for sticking with me and see you after the weekend!