bits & bobs

Last week Dom & I celebrated our six year anniversary together, I prepared a huge feast of our favourite foods & he greeted me with a beautiful bouquet of flowers when he arrived home from work. We kept the celebrations minimal & simple because sometimes just spending time with one another is all that matters, huge gifts & spending silly amounts of money isn't really something we are into at the moment & actually I'm happier than ever living this way! Thats not to say we don't like to treat each other with gifts & fancy dinner dates in nice restaurants but we don't get to spend a lot of time together at the moment so having time together is much more appreciated. 

I received this huge Sweet Cupcake* scented candle from Jewel Candle & I've been obsessed with lighting it at every available opportunity. Saying that though it's quite a rarity for me to have a chance to have a candle lit at all with being here, there & everywhere at the moment! The candle contains a piece of Jewellery which becomes visible when you've burnt it for long enough, so hopefully I'll be able to see what is hidden in my candle soon. I'll be sure to report back on what I find inside! If you'd like to purchase one of these candles for yourself or as a gift make sure you use my discount code 'loulabeth20' valid on all Jewel Candle orders! There are so many different scents available, I've got my eye on the Watermelon one next! 

On Friday, Tilly & I hopped on a train to Liverpool to meet Dom after work so he didn't have to do the long drive home on his own! He has a long commute each day & I had a full day off so I thought I'd pop along & keep him company for his journey, it might seem silly but it was a nice surprise for Dom & we took the opportunity to go drive around some potential areas that we may move to! I snapped this photo of Tilly barking her head off at the other cars, I think it's hilarious she's such a sassy little thing! Tilly comes everywhere possible with me, I love that she's allowed on trains & will sit on my knee watching the world go by. She gets so excited exploring places she's never been too, her curly tail is constantly wagging & her pug hop is the cutest when she's trying to get somewhere quickly!  L x

Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin' | Facebook | Pinterest

pamper evening

With moving, changing jobs, house hunting & a whole lot more going on I seem to have neglected to dedicate anytime for pampering recently. I've been sporting chipped nail polish for too long & my skin isn't looking it's best. Last night I decided to put my phone down, grab my favourite products & indulge in some beauty treatments whilst reading a magazine & munching on some percy pigs. I began by neatening up my nails - removing old nail polish & filing them into shape followed by a lick of fresh nail polish. I opted for Barry M's Gelly Polish in Dragonfruit, I think this will be the last time I reach for a pastel shade now, with the temperature dropping I'm ready for some Autumnal colours! Whilst I waited for my nails to dry I flicked through Company Magazine, I'm so sad that the October issue will be the last printed version, they're such a blogger supportive magazine & it's a shame they've had to go digital, I am looking forward to seeing what they do with the change though! Once my nails were dry I chucked in a Dragon's Egg bath bomb from Lush into a hot bath & watched it fizz around the tub. I removed my makeup with Liz Earle's Cleanse & Polish & then washed my face with REN's Cleansing Gel to ensure my skin was extra squeaky clean. After a good scrub with Soap & Glory's Scrub of Your Life I hopped out of the bath & slathered myself in Palmer's Cocoa Butter which I know my skin is thankful now as it's all silky soft & smooth feeling! I then got myself a cup of peppermint tea & had an early night, something I've not done in weeks. This morning I woke up feeling refreshed & thankful for a good nights sleep - such a great feeling to start the day with!
I've been feeling run down recently but I always felt guilty for evening taking 10 minutes to paint my nails, it sounds so silly but I felt like I should have been doing something else. It's amazing how taking an hour out of your evening to treat yourself can improve your mood & generally make you feel good about yourself. I'm going to make more of a conscious effort to dedicate an evening for pampering myself, after all I need to give myself a break every now & again!
Whats your pamper evening routine?
L x 
Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin' | Facebook | Pinterest

wednesday wishlist #25

one | two | three | four | five | six | seven

Monochrome outfits have always been a go to style for me simply because I know the colours suit me & it's so easy to accessorise by adding a pop of colour in the form of a scarf/necklace/hair accessory/etc! I saw the pretty lace white tee on the Topshop website & automatically styled it with a pair of black skinnies, chunky black boots & a black hat - either a bobble hat or a floppy hat if I'm feeling more adventurous! I got so excited to see Topshop had added a few cable knit bobble hats, I'm forever wearing a hat in the colder months & could do with a black one to join my collection. A little home item I've had my eye on for a while is the Eiffel Tower Jewellery holder from Gifts & Pieces, blumin' love that shop, I'm only refraining from placing a huge order because I've no space to store anything whilst I live at my parents! After reading Anna's review of the YSL Touche Éclat I haven't been able to stop thinking about it! (yes I am ridiculous & have makeup on my mind 24/7) I think this will have to be a little treat to myself, theres nothing better than buying luxury makeup sometimes! Essie have got to be my all time favourite nail polish, I love the formula so much & find them so easy to apply. Believe it or not I haven't bought a nail polish in about six months, after being overwhelmed by my collection I decided to stop adding them to my stash but after realising I seem to have a huge amount of pastel shades I feel like I need to buy a few Autumn-y colours! Kate Spade has returned to my wishlist this week, this time a purse has caught my eye, it's probably a good job Kate Spade isn't the easiest to find in the UK otherwise I'd have probably snapped up this minty little number, afterall my current purse is looking very sorry for itself after years of use!
L x

Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin' | Facebook | Pinterest

my week in photos #23

Feels like forever since I lived in London & had so many pretty places to explore... (Notting Hill/Portobello Market)

Forgot how tasty Crunchies are!

Cosy pug snuggled up

Really love this Nars lipgloss in the shade 'Tasmania' - perfect pinky nude shade!

Another London photo, Big Ben is so spectacular!

I feel like my life is insanely boring atm, with not much to report on my Instagram has been quite neglected. I've actually had one of those weeks where I've been reminiscing a lot (hence why I have so many old London photos uploaded this week!) & found myself scrolling through tagged photos on Facebook & thinking about how different my life was a few years ago! I've been house sitting for my Nana & Grandad since Wednesday as they've gone away on holiday so I've been taking advantage of having a house to myself (Tilly's here too tho!) & just enjoying the peace. Honestly I've become such a granny in the last year or so, I can't stand noises or being around loads of people so it's nice to have some me time - lots of early nights! I think the whole "liking peaceful situations" has stemmed from the fact Dom & I had our own flat together for over a year & moving back into our family homes has been a bit of a shock to the system... going from the two of us plus Tilly pug to living with 5 other people is a bit of a nightmare! Hopefully it won't be for much longer anyway, getting our own place again is a huge priority of ours & I can't wait to have my own space again! I feel like my blog is suffering a bit at the moment too as I'm struggling to get any photos taken, but things should settle down soon & I've actually set myself the challenge of blogging everyday in September... lets see if I can keep to it! I've gone off on a bit of a ramble here, oops, hope you've all had a lovely week/weekend (:
L x

Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin' | Facebook | Pinterest