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Hello, hello! How are you?
I’m feeling so tired today despite an earlyish night last night; I just can’t seem to stay asleep at the moment. My eyes feel like burning balls of fire, and it feels like there are razor blades in my throat when I swallow. But I’m so glad it’s Friday.
This week has absolutely flown by. We had a lovely day on Sunday – my Dad came round as it was Father’s Day and then me and him stayed up really late looking at very old photos together and drinking wine. It was lovely.
So Monday was a bit of a write-off which is why I think it doesn’t feel like it can be Friday yet, but I’m not complaining.
There have been some things that have really stood out to me lately, that I have really been loving or thought were great, so I thought I would share them with you now. There’s a little bit of everything (all rolled into one… – let me know if you get the reference!).
This is such a pretty, fun and brightly-coloured book to encourage positivity and mental wellbeing. A lot of us have struggled with our mental health over the last crazy year that we’ve had, so this self-care journal is a lovely way for us to get a bit creative and focus on the positive parts of our life.
There are positive affirmations to reflect on, helpful activities to get your mind in a better place, space to log your dreams, a ‘not to do’ list, and more, and it’s all done in a lovely, simple way so that it’s enjoyable to use.
It’s just so lovely and happy to look at and flick through, picking out bits to read and uplift you each day, even if you don’t feel like journaling.
It would make a lovely gift for a friend who needs a bit of uplifting, or even yourself when you need a bit of cheering up or some brightness in your day. It’s released on the 8th of July and you can get it on Amazon here: The Positively Awesome Journal.
I’m going to be running a giveaway for one of these journals very soon so look out for that!
This is perfect for right now when we’re still all having to be careful with COVID; with the cloth killing 99.9% of bacteria on the surface. This cloth for your smartphone, laptop, tablet and even your glasses is the world’s first antibacterial cleaning cloth and is especially great for your phone when you are out and about to keep your phone clean and hygienic. A silver ion antibacterial liquid treatment is applied during the weaving process, with the antibacterial properties lasting for up to 15 washes.
The ‘Smart Screen’ cleaning cloth comes in a little pouch so that it’s easy to keep with you, with a little popper to attach it to the bag so it isn’t easily lost – perfect for me who is constantly losing things!
It is a heavier weight than most microfibre glass cleaning cloths which makes it easier to handle. I wouldn’t have considered how that would make a difference, but actually, especially when cleaning my glasses, I do find a normal glasses cloth a bit of a faff to use. The Smart Screen cloth is bigger too so it’s much easier and nicer to use.
You can get the Smart Screen Gold Edition Cloth here: Smart Screen Store
I really love this self-tan from Beauty Pie – it gives the most beautiful tan colour almost immediately, and even though it’s one that takes time to develop and then you wash off, I reckon I could get away with going straight out with it on if I wanted to, which I couldn’t do with any other of this type.
It’s a good price at £10.42 for Beauty Pie members (prices can change slightly) and I’m now about to start my second bottle and I’d stock up with more if I could (I both love and hate the way Beauty Pie works – have you tried it?).
I would say it fades a lot more evenly than others, and I haven’t noticed a smell either (although I may be the only person in the world who actually likes the smell of fake tan). I tend not to use a proper fake tan all over my body very often, but just on my legs so I can hide them easily if it looks crap, but this I will use all over and it just works brilliantly. I apply it with a mitt and it never looks streaky – just gives a lovely golden glow.
You can get it here if you are a Beauty Pie member (I honestly wouldn’t buy any BP products without being a member): Beauty Pie Awesome Bronze Self-Tanning Mousse
Get a month free with Beauty Pie here: Beauty Pie first month free – meaning you just pay for the products you want and not the monthly fee.
Whilst I’m talking about fake tan – this tanning mitt that you can see in the photo above is bloody good too. It’s from Nip & Fab and is so much better than any I have ever used. Being black it doesn’t look disgusting from the first use, it’s double-sided (so I don’t have to wash it every single time), and is a lovely, soft velvet material that is really gentle on your skin but also blends the tan really well. I’ve seen others that are like this since so I think they’re all getting better but this one is great and a bargain at less than a fiver too. I’ve had it for ages and it still looks as good as new. It comes in a zip-lock cover which is handy to have too, especially if you tan whilst you’re away. It’s from Boots here.
This is such a lovely cleansing balm; so nice and thick and takes all my make-up off beautifully (including waterproof mascara). I love that it is in a tube as it is so much more convenient for taking away with me and I don’t have to stick my fingers into a tub.
But I say this with one slight caveat.
It is so, so hard to get out of the tube unless it is boiling here – which is obviously very rare – and only becomes squeezable if it has got warm and melty enough to slide out. I’ve used it recently when it was boiling hot and sunny and it was such a pleasure to use, but otherwise, my hands get tired trying to squeeze enough out!
I’m not sure what the solution is, as the tube is so convenient and hygienic, and if you live in a hot country then it is a perfect cleansing balm, but even though I love the product it is extremely frustrating to use. I wanted to mention it anyway because the product is so lovely and good value.
Find it here: The Inkey List Oat Cleansing Balm
We’ve had two of these for a little while now (yes, two – I’ll explain why in a minute!) and I think they’re brilliant. Every kettle we’ve had seems to not last very long (it could perhaps be due to my daily tea intake) and I was sick of it, and loved the idea of the Breville HotCup so I got one for the kitchen and haven’t looked back since.
The first one we have did, unfortunately, stop working correctly after a few weeks but it was easy enough to exchange and the next one has been great for a while now.
The HotCup only boils the amount of water you need for one drink each time, and it boils much faster than a kettle and even faster if you are boiling it again straight after (say if you’re making two cups of tea). Plus, you can just sit your mug there and wait for the hot water to decant itself into the cup whilst you get on with something else for a minute.
I swear all I want in life is stuff to make my life easier and tools that enable me to do the mundane things more quickly and easily! And this fits the bill for me.
So! I purchased a second one – albeit a cheaper version – to have in my bedroom. I know, I know, that sounds very extravagant and a bit ridiculous, but since my husband is still working from home I have been tending to sit in bed and do my work during the day.
That way we are both out of each other’s way, his meetings don’t distract (and annoy) me, and we both get more done. If I was going downstairs every half an hour (five minutes) to make another cup of tea then we would both get distracted and it would take up too much of my time (and I require constant cups of tea when I’m working).
Lo! The Breville HotCup in my bedroom! It makes it all much less of a faff and it has been totally worth the £40 or so I spent on it and it gets A LOT of use. I love it.
I always think how they would be great for old people who may struggle to lift a kettle of boiling water – this would be so much safer and easier for them.
This is the one we have downstairs: Breville HotCup VKT111
Is there anything that you’ve thought was brilliant this month?
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Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
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