Nanogen Root Boost Hair Thickening Spray // Review

I was lucky enough to receive the Nanogen Root Boost Hair Thickening Spray* in my Hull Bloggers goody bag. I have thick hair anyway, but due to the length of it, the weight drags it down, leaving it flat against my head. I've tried everything to add volume from hair spray, dry shampoo and those gross powder things that you sprinkle at the roots.

Although these do the job, I hate the feeling of that amount of product in my hair and it leaves my hair feeling matted and greasy.

I have never tried a thickening spray before and this is one that can be used on wet and dry hair. I must say, from first use, I fell in love with this product. You can see that I've used almost three quarters of it already!

When I use it, I spray liberally all over my head, scrunching my hair at the roots as I go. It adds volume almost straight away, however it doesn't change the texture of my hair. I especially like that it can be used on dry hair as my hair can look flat after sleeping on it.

At £9.99 from Boots, I find it quite reasonable, as I assumed it would be more expensive because of the packaging. I'd love to try out more products from this brand as I'm really enjoying using this.

Have you tried anything from this brand before?

2015 Review // 2016 Goals.

2015 has been a hectic year. So much has happened to me this year, and I've achieved so many things in the space of twelve months.

In January I graduated. Okay, so I missed my original graduation date in July 2014 as I had booked a holiday before the dates where announced, so it was just a one day event, but an amazing life achievement! University is very stressful, and I'm glad I managed to get through it.

In March, I started my first Graduate job. I can safely say this is nothing like I had ever experienced before. Going from being a Christmas temp at Next on an 8 hour contract, to a full time position in one of the fastest paced environments  I've ever been is, was a challenge, but I loved it. I worked hard and managed to become a team leader in just over three months.

In July, I got married. It still hasn't sunk in yet, although I have started responded by my new last name, and it's weird being called a 'Mrs.' Planning the wedding was one of the hardest things I've ever done, especially in the last three months or so. But the day was amazing, and I wouldn't change any of it.

A few days after we got married, I spent a week in Paris. I don't think I've ever done so much walking in my life, so it definitely wasn't a relaxing honeymoon.

In November, we finally moved out. We actually found our new home in September, however there was a lot of work to be done. We were lucky because as the place was getting redecorated, we got to choose colours and flooring. We've finally got everything in, organised, with pictures and shelves up to make the house more homely. And I finally have a vanity which stores all of my make up!

So what's ahead for 2016? I never stick to resolutions, but I think having goals is important. Here are mine.

- Get healthy. Anyone who lives at home, knows how hard it is to eat healthily, especially when you're not in charge of buying the food. Now I've moved out, I frequently scan the pages of Pinterest looking for healthy meal ideas. I also want to exercise more and drink more water. The goal isn't too lose weight, but to feel better within myself. But if I lose a few pounds along the way, that's okay too.

-Sort my skin out. Okay, so there's nothing really bad with my skin, but lately it has been looking a little dull, and whether that's from stress and tiredness, I don't know. I used to have a skin routine, but lately I've been letting it slide out of pure laziness. It's time to try out some of the products I've hoarded over the past few months and get my skin looking bright again.

- Find time to blog. I'll be the first to admit that my blog has suffered massively this year, and the frustrating thing is that I really enjoy doing it. I want to try and blog at least once a week.

-Read more. I used to read all the time, but in the past year or so, I've not really had the time. When I first moved out, we didn't have internet for the first few weeks, and I managed to read about four books. Perhaps less time on social media and Netflix, and more time with a good book is what's needed. I received loads of books for Christmas, so I'll maybe do a post on which ones I got.

So they're not overly original or ambitious goals, but ones that are definitely achievable. I hope everyone had an amazing 2015. Have you got any goals for the new year? Let me know.

Lush Haul // Hull Blogger Meet

I know I whine about this all the time, but we don't have a Lush where I live so when I Lush haul, I Lush haul hard! So when I discovered that Lush where attending the Hull Blogger meet, I did a little happy dance and immediately reached for my purse. They didn't bring a large amount of products with them, but it was enough for me to spend over £40. In fact, the Lush girls said I had picked the best selection of products out of everyone who attended the meet.

I ended up buying two bath bombs. I believe these are new to the range, at least in the Hull shop. I think they first appeared in the Lush in Oxford Street. I got Intergalatic, a colourful, minty smelling bomb which has popping candy in it. This was actually demonstrated at the meet and I can't wait to completely fill my bath with glitter.

Next I got the Yoga Bomb which is bright orange and has a woody, musky scent to it which I think will be perfect for Autumn.

I also got two bubble bars. These are similar to bath bombs, however you actually crumble them under running water to create mountains of bubbles. First of all, I got Rose Jam which is a bubbleroon. It can be easily split to last two baths and is bright pink and covered in glitter. It has a very soft scent which I don't usually go for.

Every blogger was gifted 'Granny Takes A Dip*.' I have never tried this before, and I believe it was also a bath bomb, however that got discontinued? It has a citrusy scent and I'm excited to try it out.

I bought 'Tangle' which is a solid hair oil on a stick. When I eventually want to use it, I will add hot water and apply it to the whole of my hair, like a hair mask. If you have shorter hair, you can use it twice, however I believe it will only cover me once. I'm saving this for when I want to full on pamper myself as at over £6, it wasn't cheap.

When that pamper day comes around, I will also use the sample of 'Don't Look At Me *' that we were all gifted. I've only ever used one Lush face mask before and I loved it, so I'm excited to try this.

If we weren't all spoiled enough, Lush also gifted everyone with some 'Fun*' which I have also never tried. It can be used as a soap, shampoo or bubble bath and can be molded so it's perfect for children. I may use this on my niece and see how she gets on with it.

Lastly, I ended up getting two body scrubs. The first one was completely enabled by the other bloggers and is 'Rub Rub Rub' a sea salt body scrub that can be used on body, face and hair. I've already tried this and I think it's a new favourite, even if the salty taste had me swishy my mouth out with mouth wash.

I also got 'Life's A Beach' which I believe is a new product. It comes in a box and looks like washing powder. They tried this on me and the smell lasted until I went to bed, so around ten hours! I will do a more in depth review of this product as I really do like it.

I can't wait to use all of these products. Have you bought anything from Lush recently?

I got married!

I've mentioned it in countless blog posts over the last year or so, but in July I finally walked down the aisle and married my boyfriend of five years.

If you haven't guessed, weddings take a lot of planning and cause a lot of stress and this is the main reason I've abandoned my blog over the past few months. However now it's out the way, I can focus on writing again, so expect lots of blog posts over the next few weeks! 

I'm planning on writing a bit more about the wedding, so expect a bridal makeup tutorial (I did my own makeup), some wedding DIY and just general tips on how to plan a wedding with minimal stress. 

I'll leave you with some photographs of the day and I look forward to sharing all of my grown up womanly knowledge now I am a married lady hehe :) 

Hull Blogger Al Porto Meet

If you follow me on any social media, you would have seen that I was lucky enough to attend the third Hull Blogger Meet Up at the Al Porto restaurant. It was hosted by Alex from Champagne and Lemonade , Jenny from Curious Alice Loves and Kat from The Kats Paws . The meet actually ended up trending on twitter!

I've not been very active on blogger and I'll explain why in another post, however if you follow me on Instagram, you've probably guessed why. To be honest, I was feeling a little demotivated and I just couldn't sit down and type like I use to be able too. However, after this meet, I'm so excited to throw myself back into blogging again.

We had our own room in the restaurant and as soon as I arrived, I was greeted by the hosts and offered a cocktail (which was delicious may I add!) The room was perfect for the meet, with enough seats for everyone but also enough room to move around and chat. Music played in the background which I think adds to any atmosphere and takes away some of the awkwardness of meeting people for the first time. The decor was completely my taste too with Union Jack tables and wine cork shaped stools.

About half an hour into the event, canapes were circulating the room. There was so much food that there was loads left over at the end of the event. There were things to suit all tastes; bruschetta, pizza, meatballs, mango slices, parma ham and more. At the end, they even came round with cheesecake and the best brownie I've ever tried. If that wasn't enough to satisfy all food cravings, there were bags of Jelly Beans on the tables, bowls with boiled sweets, plus crackers and chutney that we were able to try.

Lush, Weleda and Viridian Nutrition attended the event to chat to us all and we were all lucky to receive a goody bag from each brand. I did end up spending a small fortune in Lush too but I'll save that for another post. On top of the goody bags we received from the brands, we also had three HUGE goody bags from the hosts too jam packed with products generously donated by over 100 brands.

At the end of the evening, we had the raffle in which I won three times! Again, I will do a separate blog post showing what I won. We ended up raising over £200 for a charity which specialises in ovarian cancer research.

Once again I would like to thank the hosts for inviting me and I recommend everyone to look at the #HBALPORTO hashtag to see everyone else's posts.

Travel // Shakespeare & Company Bookshop - Paris

I guess you can tell from various Instagram posts of quotations and my degree choice (English Lit) that I absolutely adore books. So for me, a trip to Paris wouldn't be complete without a trip to the famous Shakespeare & Company bookshop. I believe this little shop in the Latin Quarter of Paris is a real hidden gem- on account of many frequent Paris visitors have never heard of the place, yet it always seems to be swarmed with visitors.   

Stocking a variety (and when I say variety, I mean every shelf was crammed full) of both English and French titles; you'd just assume that Shakespeare & Co was just a regular bookshop, albeit with very charming decor. However, like most book lovers, I adore stories and this place has an amazing tale. 

The bookstore was founded by George Whitman, and in the time it has been open (I can't find an exact date, but the shop was renamed in 1964 - the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's birth) over 30,000 writers and artists have stayed over, including some now well-known writers. 

I believe this place is perfect if you're feeling a little home sick in Paris and just want a time out from the typical tourist attractions. It can get a little crowded with the amount of people wanting to browse and the vast amount of books there are, but it's not unbearable, and besides, if you're willing to battle the tourists to get close to the Mona Lisa, you could probably handle a small collection of book enthusiasts getting excited over vintage paperbacks. 

Souvenirs

If you're anything like me and like mementos to remind you of trips, you'll be sure to find something you like. I did browse the books for a little bit, however I wanted something completely exclusive to that bookshop. There were a few books on Paris which would have been a nice souvenir, but I eventually settled on a Shakespeare & Company tote bag, a history booklet on the shop and a few postcards.  

Have you ever been to this place? 

http://shakespeareandcompany.com/

10 Books I Want To Read

I feel like if I shared my complete book wishlist, we'd be here forever. I already have 30 on my Amazon wishlist, and that isn't including any I want to read on my '100 books to read before you die' list I have blue tacked to my wardrobe. So I've narrowed it down to ten and I'm hoping to have read these by the end of the summer. Obviously, I can't go into much details about the books as I haven't read them yet, but you'll see it's a real mixture of genres!

1) Anna Karena - Leo Tolstoy.

I've actually read about three hundred pages of this, but I want to finish it so I can tick it off my list. It's a classic, but hasn't really gripped me yet.

2) What They Don't Teach You At Harvard Business School - Mark H. McCormack

I'm attempting to read a lot more about business since I started my graduate job. Having an English degree won't necessarily help me in this field, however it's given me the skills to research the field.

3) How To Build A Girl - Caitlin Moran

I loved How To Be A Woman so this is next on my reading list by Moran.

4) The Bees - Laline Paul

The woman at Waterstones told me that this book was like A Handmaid's Tale which I absolutely love. So can't wait to read this.

5) All The Bright Things - Jennifer Niven

My favourite genre is probably young adult as that's what I like to write and I'm always drawn to this particular book.

6) Eleanor & Park- Rainbow Rowell

Fangirl by the same author is one of the best books I've read in ages, so I'm desperate to read this one too.

7) Only Ever Yours - Louise O'Neill

Described as Mean Girls meets Handmaids Tale, another book I'm desperate to read.

8) Losing My Virginity - Richard Branson

I'm not a fan of autobiographies, but again, I'm trying to learn more about business and I don't think you can get much more successful than Richard Branson.

9) The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

This is a book I've always wanted to read and I'm hoping too next weekend.

10) Outliers - Malcom Gladwell

The blurb on this book really intrigued me.

So that's my list. Have you read any of the books on this list?