Palmers cocoa butter formula gentle exfoliating scrub: review

I love the Palmer's cocoa body butter range, especially the one with the hint of tan in it! But I never knew that they did a facial scrub! I randomly stumbled across this when I was in Superdrug looking for everything but facial scrub! 

Feeling overwhelmed??? Gain control with these easy, doable 6 steps

We’re coming to that time of year when things start to get a little stressful. I know it is the season for  crackling bonfires, Christmas parties and mulled wine (my favourite!) but it is also common for it to be one of the most stressful, and stats back this up. Christmas is said to be the 6^th most stressful life event, with divorce, moving house and changing jobs in the running, but probably made worse by the fact it is an annual occurrence (unlike the others).

As we approach the end of the year, it becomes ridiculously busy both at work and at home.

picture from http://masteringtoday.me

It means ensuring the activities on our business plans are complete and we’re already thinking of next year’s projects, plus trying to organise the perfect Christmas for the family (catering for fussy eaters and impressing your mother-in-law) which is no mean feat.

Oh She Glows tex-mex casserole (one pot wonder)

For my birthday, my lovely aunties got me the blogger 'Oh She Glows' cookbook (aka blogger Angela Liddon). It is a vegan cookbook, focusing on real, wholefood ingredients. Sounds right up my street. 

tex mex casserole heaven!

My latest attempt at the recipe is her “crowd pleasing tex-mex casserole” which I must admit I have slightly amended and also de-veganed! Sorry. I added left over chicken and added a little helping of grated cheese on top! But it tastes just as great meat-free!

9 amazing uses of coconut oil you didn't know of!

It was not so long ago that the health world was warning people against oil and condemning saturated fats. However, in recent years coconut oil has been in the spotlight for all the right reasons, being branded as a “good” fat. All kinds of recipes have exploded onto the scene, from cakes to curries, including the oil as an ingredient.

picture from http://coconutbenefits.ca/

Nivea BB cream: review

I have never been a fan of foundations, I find them far too heavy and thick and I only end up with "cakey-face" where I haven't blended them properly. So when BB creams burst on to the market a few years ago (thank you Korean beauty world) I was hooked. And have been ever since.

my new fav beauty buy

A simple, delicious kale 'pate'

When kale hit the health world a few years ago, I feel in love with this green stuff. Ok, so it is a bit smelly (sorry to the peeps in my office) but it is tasty and nutritious, 

olive oil adds flavour and good fats 

I've fried it, baked it into "crisps", added it to stews and made salads from it. But then I started to run out of ideas. That is until I made it into a spread! A tasty, fragrant and versatile spread. 

creamy and tasty 

Here is how to make this kale spread...

Detox for your hair in four easy steps - guest blogger Samples Queen

Guest blogger, Eli from Samples Queen

I’m crap at styling my hair but great at finding hair products that will do half the job for me. Dry, frizzy and bristle hair is normally what I had to work with but not anymore since I discovered few hair care products that completely changed my hair game.

Laura Mercier under eye concealer: review

I first discovered Laura Mercier beauty products and how much I loved them in the run up to my wedding a couple of years ago. I was on the look out for a tinted moisturiser that would give me a gorgeous glow on the big day and I stumbled on their illuminating shimmer tinted moisturiser (see the blog review here). 

coverage in a pot! 

Another one of their products I have to have is their "secret concealer" for the under eye area, for me it is shade 03, but they do 12 shades, so there is a shade for everyone.

"No clog allowed" super self-heating deep pore detox mask

I have used a lot of face masks in my time and this has to be one of the best I have used! It is in the mid range of pricing (about £11.50) and well worth it. 

On a damp face, rub in the facemask and you can feel it heating up - it feels lovely and it might be psychological but this makes it feel like it's really working! 

Spiced and sweet pumpkin bread (with cream cheese vanilla frosting)

Not only was this recipe delicious, it was also pretty easy to make and isn’t actually as calorific as it sounds!

This is a great recipe as we approach the autumn months and need a little comfort food but one that isn’t going to completely ruin the diet. I have gone for a little indulgence here and added a rich cream cheese frosting but you could skip this and stick with the bread as the star of the show – I reckon toasting a slice, pared with a slither of butter or dollop of honey, would make for a great breakfast.