Christmas Holiday Stocking Fillers - For Him, Her, Mum, Dad, Brother, Sister & Grandparents

So it has come that time of year where we all start panicking and have no idea what to buy our loved ones for Christmas. 

I always found this hard and it would have been so much easier if I has some simple ideas! 

All these suggestions are my own opinion of what I think would be a good gift and may not suit everyone. 

So seeing as I have a boyfriend that I need to buy for lets start it off with gifts for 'Him', now this doesn't have to be a boyfriend it could be a friend, however obviously some of the gifts will be tailored for boyfriends/husbands. 

HIM: 

• So I am going to start with the obvious and go with aftershaves. Every girl wants her guy to smell good right? So why not buy him a sent that you both love & overtime he wears it, it will remind him of you. I strongly believe that we match scents to memories, such as that 'holiday smell' perfume or that 'going out smell' etc. So buy your loved one a scent that is going to remind him of you and all the good times you have together! 

Some of my personal favourites for mens aftershaves are: 
- Hugo Boss Bottled Night *
- Armarni Code 
- Paco Rabanne 1 Million*  
- Paco Rabanne Invictus 
- Jean Paul Gaultier *
- Chanel ALLURE HOMME SPORT
* The Asterix ones are what my boyfriend says are his total favourites! 
 alongside these could be soaps/sprays etc

• Another good gift for guys is games, wether that be Xbox, Playstation, Nintendo or Computer. Most guys love games and I know a lot of men up into their 30's that still play them! Make sure you always secretly check their selection first, you don't want to buy them games they already have and if you can, try and find out if there is any games they are planning on buying before you get the chance. You could also do this with CD's and DVD's. My boyfriend suggests Call of Duty and Fifa as his top 2 games. 

• A selection of their favourite drinks - If they love cider/beer, then a few bottles of collection drinks and seasonal bottles. Or perhaps they like a spirit, then buy them their favourite one and possibly a different flavour if they have them, e.g., Jack Daniels Honey or Blueberry Vodka. 

• Then there is lots of little gifts that you could buy, such as socks, ties, mugs, some things for the office, cool gadgets, phone cases, joke books, etc. 

HER: 

Personally I think gifts for girls/women is so simple! Though guys never seem to know what to get. So what if we have it, if we love it then we can't get enough of it! 

• If the person you knows loves wearing makeup, then take a look at some of the things they have, perhaps note down the colour of foundation or powders they use and go and buy some more, or perhaps a different brand. Personally, as a lover of make-up and especially eye make-up, I would suggest the Urban Decay Naked Palettes, if they don't already have them. You could always buy limited edition makeup, Urban decay and MAC do this often. Just take note of what their favourite make-up is and the most favourite colours. 

• Again, same as the men you can't go wrong with a bottle of perfume. These are some really nice brands and the Asterix ones are my personal favourites! 

- Paco Rabanne Lady Million * 

- Lady Gaga Fame 

- 212 VIP 

- Thierry Mugler Alien *

- Roberto Cavalli* 

- Armani Code Ladies 

- Stella McCartney Stella* 

• Pretty trinkets/phone cases, a nice bag or a piece of jewellery
• Slippers, Warm cosy winter bed wear, underwear 
• Facial cleansers, toners, moisturisers, face masks, nail polish 
• Book, possibly by their favourite author or autobiography of their favourite person

MUM: 

So mum's love things were they know you have thought about it, so buying something you know they will like. This is a lot easier than people think. Just check what they already have and buy alternatives. 

• So she loves taking hot relaxing baths? Then possibly a bath bomb set, a pack of candles, a nice body scrub, face mask and a bath soak. 
• Maybe to go with their nice relaxing bath they would like to read a good book or listen to their favourite music? Look into what books they like and their music! 
• Same as all ladies, mums love their slippers, bath robes, cosy winter wear and comfy clothes. Make sure to check their size first! 
• As women get older they worry about their skin, appearance, wrinkles etc. So buying them some nice facial products would be highly appreciated! Just don't buy anything (unless you know they love it) with the phrase 'anti-aging' or 'anti-wrinkle' cream. This may offend them. So try looking for 'rejuvenating', 'refreshing' and 'hydrating' products. 
• A bunch of pretty flowers and a box of chocolates would be appreciated and to go with the flower theme, possibly some 'grow your own' pots. Wether it be herbs, flowers or plants. 

DAD:

I think with dad's you really need to focus on their interests, wether that be a sport or hobby and base their gifts around that. 

• So if they are an avid football fan, maybe some memorabilia, tickets to a match, or club marked items. Such as  a football club mug or slippers etc. 
• If your dad is interested in vehicles then maybe some accessories they can use on/in it. A personalised key chain for that vehicles keys. 
• If your dad is into their food, then what about getting them some food related gifts? Like Super hot chilli sauce, BBQ gift basket or home brewing sets. 
• My dad loves his tools, so why not treat them to a new drill, or a new spanner set or maybe even a new tool box. I'm not great at suggesting what type of tools do what, but you can always ask in a shop. Perhaps there is a particular things they like to do D.I.Y wise and that may require, a specific set of tools. 

For brothers and sisters, I would relate to the Him and Her section, however if they are a lot younger than here are some ideas: 

Brother 

• Games, either electronic or board. 
• Action Figures 
• Toy car sets/collectable toys 
• DIY toys, such as lego and brik-a-brac 
• Play guns ( if permitted by parents) 
• Anything based on their favourite TV character/programme 

Sister

• Dressing up sets 
• Diaries/Journals, either electronic or paper, but key cool feature is a lock
• Any dolls, such as baby dolls or barbie dolls 
• Teddies 
• Art sets 
• Plastic jewellery sets and fake phones 
• Also anything based on their favourite character or programme 

Grandparents

Now these I find easy. Anything that reminds them of what a wonderful grandparent they are! 

• So things that state, Grandma, Gran, Nan, Granddad, Grandpa on them. Wether it be a calendar, mug, teddy etc. 
• A nice new pair of slippers 
• A selection of their favourite chocolates 
• And lots of sentimental gifts which you can find in my second blog post 
• Gifts that remind them of places you have been together or things you used to do as a young child 
• Hot water bottle 
• seeing as older people can be very set in their ways, buying them things they already have but may be running out of is also a good idea. 

Okay, so I know that wasn't a lot of ideas, but I hope it points you in the right direction! If you are online shopping simply putting in Presents for 'whoever', you will be given a huge list of endless possibilities. Don't forget, it is the little things that count and you do not have to be spending lots of money to give someone the perfect give. For more sentimental gifts take a look at my next upcoming blog post to find out more cost effective ways of a personalised, perfect present, for all year round occasions. 

Enjoy the Holidays! 

Lottie 

xoxo 

All images courtesy of Google Image Search 

Love Alpha Fibre Lash Mascara

YouTube Video Review available here 

I have seen so many people raving about these fibre lash mascaras, they looked amazing and I was very impressed with the results they so apparently give! 

I purchased mine online from eBay - Love Alpha Fibre Lash Mascara

It was very affordable costing around £7. This included a hard leopard look case, similar to a glasses case, which included, instructions, a secured translating gel and a secured fibre wand. Both the mascara tubes were in a golden leopard look tube. Overall the package was with the money itself, very durable and looks pretty. 

When opening up the transplanting gel it just looked like a normal mascara, it was a normal mascara wand with black liquid similar to mascara, however I found it more watery than a normal mascara. 

The fibre wand was a really thin mascara wand and was just covered in lots of tiny little black fibres. Exactly what I was expecting. 

The instructions says to firstly apply the transplanting gel to your lashes in the same was as a mascara, then immediately apply the fibres, finished with a top coat of the transplanting gel. 

When applying the transplanting gel it was very watery and seemed to go everywhere all over my lids  and wasn't very thickening, however it did look the same as a mascara, just thinner than a normal mascara. You could get away with only wearing this if you wanted a natural look. Then I applied the fibres, you have to be very careful doing this as fibres did seem to come off the wand a lot and I was very cautious of these going in my eye. After the fibres I applied the finishing top coat of the transplanting gel, I found this just seemed to take off most of the fibres and didn't add any extra length at all! I tried the whole process 3 times to try and build and layer the mascara, however I still had no luck, my lashes just started to clump together and gave no separation, length or thickness! 

With seeing these results, I was convinced that people apply a coat of their normal mascara first and leave that to set before starting the fibre mascara steps. I gave this a go by firstly applying a good coat of my YSL Babydoll mascara  as a base to the transplanting gel. I then followed the required steps to apply the fibre lash mascara. Again I done the fibre lash steps twice and this gave much better results, however not much difference to if I was to layer my normal mascara. 

Overall, I don't think this product worked for me very well, however I am fortunate enough to have quite long natural lashes, so this may make a difference to someone with shorter lashes. Although it doesn't state that this mascara is for certain lash types, I would of thought it gave me a little extra length! 

So this product didn't work for me, however I do think it worked better when I added the mascara base coat. I am not bashing this product in any way at all, I am just giving an honest opinion of how the product worked for me and my lashes, but that is not to say that this product may not work for you! I am going to carry on using it and try to make it work and if I find a way that works for me I shall keep you updated! 

Teeth Whitening Update

So I have been trying the bicarbonate soda and oil pulling and it is safe to say they have not worked! 

There is no point in uploading photos as there has been zero difference in the colour of my teeth. 

After using the B-Soda, my gums would bleed and were very sensitive, although the oil pulling made my teeth feel super smooth and helped the sensitivity in my gums. 

I done the baking soda every other day and the oil pulling everyday for faster results, however I didn't get any. As I am in patient and want to see a difference straight away, I done some research for teeth whitening products and the best reviewed seem to be the, crest teeth whitening strips. 

I had to order some and they should be here tomorrow, so I will be taking lots of progress pictures and keeping you updated with the results. I am quite excited for this one as there was so many positive reviews and lots of amazing result pictures! They are well reasonably priced too at only £15 for 20 strips (10 days worth) online. Apparently this is enough to whitening your teeth and the results last for up to 3 years! 

Lets hope this is worth while and I shall keep you all posted! 

My Second Blog!

For those of you who want to get to know me a bit better then you can always check out my second blog and my second youtube channel! 

My other blog is all about me and my lifestyle and lots of random posts about what I am getting up to! 

My Youtube channel is all Vlogs, I have only just started it so please bare with me as I have a lot more to go with that one. I am currently uploading my second video and I will be filming my 3rd today. 

I hope you enjoy my second blog and don't forget to follow/subscribe for more! 

Thanks Everyone! 

xoxo 

Lottie 

www.edslottie.com 
youtube.com/edslottie 

YSL Winter Colour

I have seen so many winter nail varnishes this year that are all light pale pinks, or cool dark blues. 

If you want your nails to look elegant and still have that winter/christmas look then why not go for a dark cranberry colour! If you aren't loving the blues this year, then I recommend the YSL Polish in number 8. It is such a pretty colour, it is a lovely dark red, its like a cross mix of brown and red, it's a real christmas kind of colour and it looks so elegant. 

Another great thing about the YSL polishes, is that they go on so smoothly, the don't go tacky and they dry within seconds! You don't have to sit around for ages waiting for these polishes to dry! They are perfect! I have been very happy with them and if I could afford to buy all of their colours I so would! If you only have a small collection of polishes, or tend to only buy a few, then the investment in the YSL polish is so worth it, they are currently retailing at £18.50.

USA

UK - On this site it is £18.09 and it seems to be one of the only sites selling this colour in the UK! 

This definitely looks a lot more pink in the photo and on the website, however it actually comes out quite dark and the more coats you add the darker it gets. 

I will also be doing a winter nails post soon, with an easy how-to video and picture post of some pretty winter nail designs :) 

xoxo

Lottie 

Get Ready With Me !

My get ready with me video is now ready to watch on youtube! 

Sorry about the quality not being the best for this one! I saved it under SD settings instead of HD :( 

Get Ready With Lottie Lush

If you enjoy this video don't forget the thumbs up and if you want to see more (my October favourite will be up tomorrow!) .. then please subscribe :) 

xoxo 

Lottie 

Teeth Whitening

I have seen lots of expensive bleaching, teeth whitening products floating around on youtube and I was interested to look them up as I really want to whiten my teeth. 
Looking at the products they have all had really mixed reviews and I don't want to spend my money on products that may not work, or possibly harm my teeth. 

Sooooo, I am going to try some home remidies over the next two weeks and let you know how I get on with them! 

I am going to try, Baking Soda and Lemon and Oil pulling. 

I'm going to start with these as they are most recommended and effective! So they say.. 

I will be taking lots of photos to show the progress of my teeth whitening process and let you guys know how effective these home remidies are! 

My teeth are quite stained at the moment. I have to take a lot of tablets and havent used any teeth whitening products in about a year, if you have been reading my other blog, you will know that my teeth have been the least of my worries! If these do work then you will totally be able to see a real, genuine difference! I will keep you updated and do a final thoughts blog soon! 

Stay posted!! 

xoxo Lottie 

Monthly Favourites - October

Watch This Video!

This is my first ever monthly favourites so I have included quite a few, some are my all time favourites! 

I will start off with my beauty favourites! 

This month I signed up to the monthly BirchBox subscription and I am loving it! This month was linked to a charity 'CoppaFeel' for women's breast cancer and money was raised from the subscriptions. In my BirchBox I received, Balance Me moisturising cream, Pixi Shea Butter Lip Balm, Cool Fix Cooling Gel, KMS Tame Frizz hair product and Benefit Eye cream. All of these products are really good and come to well over the £10 I paid for my subscription. It is perfect for testing and trying new products without investing a lot of money for something you are not sure about. Out of all of these products I would definitely invest in the Pixi Lip Balm and the Benefit Eye Cream. I also really like the KMS hair product, however I am in love with my herbal essence product at the moment. 

Earlier this month I decided to try out the L'Oreal Skin Perfection products. The reason I went for these products is because they are targeted to my age group 20-30 and the description seemed perfect for what I wanted, alongside lots of positive reviews. I brought the Moisturiser, Magic Touch Instant Blur and their Serum. I love these products. They have been so kind to my skin and they soak so well! They don't leave that sticky dew on your face like a lot of products and they are also really reasonably priced! Boots currently have a 3 for 2 offer on at the moment so I would purchase them from there for a good discount! The blur cream is my favourite as it instantly blurs my pores and gives my skin a flawless look, combined with my makeup. I also love their pretty pink packaging! 

I have been trying for ages to find a good skin routine for my hard to manage skin. I have been getting so many blemishes that would stay for weeks, this is probably because I am ill. I tried out the Simple Vital Vitamin face wash and it is amazing! It works so well with my exfoliating sponge and gives me a really fresh clean feel. That combined with the use of my Witch Blemish Gel has really revived my skin! I noticed an instant change in my skin the next morning after leaving the Blemish gel on over night. The gel includes witch hazel extract so is really good for your skin. 

My favourite go-to scent for when I go out is the Roberto Cavalli Perfume. I Love this smell! It is my favourite scent alongside the 1 Million for ladies perfume. I was brought this as a gift and I am definitely going to buy some more when I run out. It has such a unique smell! It is strong, so you don't need a lot, but it lasts so long! I can still smell it on me the next morning! I also get so many compliments about it too! Go test this out! 

For quite a while I have the Urban Decay original palette and I love it! The colours are perfect and super pigmented! It would be rude not to go and buy the other two palettes! I am so glad that I invested in them, because they are amazing and I have used them several times already! The Colour range is perfect. All the colours are quite neutral, with a great range from dark-light. Perfect, Prefect, Prefect! 

So alongside my favourite beauty picks, I thought I would show you some other things I have been loving this month. I will start off with the very random lemon! As I have said, I have been suffering with quite bad skin recently and I read that fresh lemon is water really helps, so I gave it a go and I can confirm it does! I drink a pint of water everyday which has A squeeze and slice of fresh lemon in it. I actually cannot drink water without it now! It a wonder fresh flavour and it is so revitalising! Soo good for detoxing! If you like lemons you should try it - You may not go back! 

I have been very ill recently, I have an illness, so catching the flu or a virus, my body finds it very hard to shift and it can stick for up to 2 months! In this time I have lost a lot of weight and found it hard to eat my meals as normal. So to substitute for all the vitamins I am loosing from my meals, I will drink 1-2 Complan Vitamin Milkshakes everyday. They come in 3 flavours, Strawberry, Chocolate and Banana. I love the Banana! Its also refreshing as well as giving you all that really good stuff your body needs! 

Winter is coming and it is going to get super cold, so what more could a girl need than a hot water bottle! If you don't have one, you need to go and grab one! They are perfect for carrying around, warming you up and they are great for all them aches and pains at that stressful time of the month! 

They stay warm for so long and you can get lots of wonderful covers for them! You can buy them is Superstores, small stores and all Pharmacies! Mine are from Argos and Boots! 

To go along with your cosy evenings, every girl needs some chocolate and at the moment I am obsessed with Maltesers! I have a different chocolate craving every month and at the moment, Maltesers are certainly satisfying that! 

So many people have so many bad things to say, but personally Katie Price is an a amazing woman! I think she is a very clever business woman and is an a amazing Mum! I would strongly advise you read her book and find out her side of the story, before making any judgements on her! This book made me see a totally different side to the Katie Price the press shows. I have always liked Katie, however this book has made me like her a lot more! I cannot wait for her next autobiography. 

So these are my monthly favourites and I hope I have shown you guys some new things to try out! 

If you do purchase any of these products, please let me know as I would love to know how they work for you! 

Look out for my monthly favourites video link coming up soon!

Until next time... 

xoxo Lottie 

My Top Five Makeup Picks!

I am forever trying to find the perfect product for my makeup routine and I can finally say I am fully satisfied! There are many other products that I use in my makeup routine, however these are my current favourite and all of them I will be purchasing again if I need to!

I have has the Naked original palette for quite some time now, I think it has been about 2 years and I love it! I though it made sense, seeing how much I love it, to invest in the other 2 palettes and I am so glad I did! They are amazing and have a great collection of colours! My favourite go-to shadows! 

The Rimmel Foundation that I used to use was the Match Perfection Foundation, although it was a good foundation, I found it didn't give me the right amount of coverage for when my skin was bad. I had to wear a lot more concealer and other products when using this foundation, so the other day I purchased the Rimmel 25 Hour Foundation and I have been very impressed! I love this foundation! It is nice a light with a really good coverage! Perfect for those bad skin days and is easily build-able. 

The second thing from Rimmel is the Kate lipstick range. Lipstick is not something I normally use in my everyday makeup routine, but I have found the perfect Nude shade and this lipstick is amazing! It is nice and creamy and long lasting! I also brought a deeper red colour but I have not tried this yet. I am sure it is just as amazing! 

I have trouble with finding a good coverage, lasting liquid concealer. I think it is safe to say that the Maybelline Dream Lumi Concealer is Perfect! It is the best concealer I have ever, ever used and it is now my go to product! It is the perfect consistency and sits nicely on the skin without running. It also blends perfectly too! I will most definitely be purchasing this product again! 

Last but most certainly not least is Mascara! I have used so many different mascaras and nothing had made me want to use it everyday. The Miss Sporty Pump Up mascara has been the most perfect mascara for me! It lasts so long, It doesn't smudge or rub off, but is easy to remove when washing! The brush is quite thick, but it does not clump or make your eyelashes look spidery. It lengthens and separates the lashes for a really long natural look. I think this will be my mascara for as long as they keep making it! I get so many compliments on my lashes when using this mascara! I LOVE IT! 

If you have not tried any of these products yet I would definitely recommend them. Different products do not work for everybody, but if you cannot find the right product, definitely give these a try! You may be pleasantly surprised! 

xoxo Lottie 

Links to Products: 

Naked Palettes

Kate Lipstick

Rimmel 25 Hour Foundation 

Maybelline Concealer

Miss Sporty Mascara

Winter Lip Balm Top 6 Picks!

So winter is coming and that means dry, chapped and cracked lips!
It's essential to have good lip care for the winter and with so many amazing products out there, I thought I would share with you some of my favourites.

These products are all equally amazing and all have something unique about them!

xoxo Lottie 

Lush Lip Scrub 

Pixi Shea Butter Lip Balm 

EOS Lip Balm 

Carmex Lip Balm 

Vaseline Lip Treatment 

Blistex Medicated Lip Treatments 

Get Ready With Me !

This is a get ready with me video for what I would do on a normal day where I am not going to be doing too much, just going to the shops or seeing a friend. If I know I am not going out that day I don't tend to put on any make up. I will just wash, cleanse, tone and moisturise my face. 

This is not a tutorial on how to do makeup, this is just a post for you guys to see my basic get ready routine. :) 

So after my shower, I will wash my face with my Simple Vital Vitamin Foaming Face Wash, using my boots exfoliating sponge. After patting my face dry, I will use my Boots, Glycerin and Rose Water toner and moisturiser. I will just wet the cotton pad with the toner and smooth this into my skin. 

Once all that is dry I will use two pumps of my L'Oreal Skin Perfection 'Advanced Correcting Serum' on my face and leave a minute or so to dry. 
Once that has dried I will then start with my makeup:

-I Start by applying a thick concealer for any larger blemishes. I think any kind of stick concealer is good for this. I used MUA natural concealer, but I regularly use Collection 2000 concealer as well. Applying this straight to the skin, I will then use my finger to gently smooth and dab this around the skin. 

- After using a thick concealer, I will apply My Foundation, I use a variety for different coverages, but seeing as I am not using many face products, I have gone for one with better coverage. I used the Rimmel 25 hour lasting finish, Foundation in Ivory. I will then use a brush to work this into my face evenly. Covering my neck, to blend the tones of my skin. For this product, I used 1 and a half pumps on my brush. 

- After using a foundation I will then apply my Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Concealer. This is works amazingly under the eyes and has a flawless finish. I will apply directly to the skin and smooth out, then using my finger, I will lightly pat this into my skin. Be careful not to pull too much on the skin, as this could cause pre-mature wrinkles. 

- Using my Collection 2000 Powder in the colour Candlelight I will apply this using a brush to set my foundation and concealer for a long-wear matt look. 

- Finishing off my face I use my Bobbi Brown Blusher in Fawny. I apply this to the cheek bone and blend. If the colour is too strong then I will use the same foundation/pressed powder brush to even that out. 

- I then fill in my eyebrows. I do not have the best eyebrows so I try to stick to my natural shape, otherwise they can look ridiculous. I used the brown/brunette shade of the MUA Brow Pencil. I shape them using the pencil brush and then fill. ( I don't know why, but I've had darker eyebrows than my hair colour all my life! )

- This is not always a part of my routine, however I had just purchased the 'Kate' Lipstick by Kate Moss, Rimmel, in the colour 29, so I applied this to my lips. This is totally optional, however it creates a lovely natural look. I love this lipstick. It's so good and creamy. Before applying, I will use MUA Lip Liner. 

- Finally I will give my eyelashes a light coat with my mascara. I am using the Babydoll Mascara by YSL. This is amazing and creates such a long pretty look! 


Getting Dressed! 

Now the weather is getting colder I love getting into my big thick jumpers and furry boots! If I am staying at home then I live in jumpers and joggers! 
To go out and make your jumper look a bit more glam a nice statement necklace would be pretty, and a pair of matching earrings. As I am staying at home I won't be wearing a necklace but I have worn my pearl look earrings. 


Hair Time! 

Before I dry my hair I like to smooth a few pumps of my Herbal Essence hair protection cream into my wet hair. This helps prevent any damage to my hair when applying heat to it during hair drying or straightening. I have naturally straight hair anyway, so if I am not going out, I won't bother with straightening it. My hair is really thick, so if I don't straighten it before going out, it easily turns into a matted mess! 

You can watch my get ready with me video on YouTube. It will be loaded this evening and a link on my blog will follow! :) 

xoxo Lottie 

Products I used to do my makeup:

Links to the products:

Rimmel 25 Hour Foundation 

L'Oreal Skin Perfection Serum

Bobbi Brown Blush

Kate Lipstick

YSL Babydoll Mascara

Maybelline Concealer

Collection Pressed Powder

MUA Brow Pencil

MUA Lip Liner