Home Sweet Home

The past two weeks have been extremely hectic for me. What with finishing the semester at university, studying for exams and then working crazy hours at work, I haven't had an awful lot of time for myself. I'd been counting down the days until Christmas Eve, but not for the same reason as most people! It was simply because I couldn't wait to finish work and spend a few well needed days at home with my family. The last time I was home for longer than one night was back in September, so I've defintely missed all of my old home comforts.

One of my favourite things about Christmas and this time of year is having all of my family together. It's not very often that I get to see my extended family as they all live in England, so Christmas means we all get to see each other and spend some quality time together. My Grandad had also come to stay with us for a few days, so it was lovely to spend some time with him as I really don't get to see him as often as I'd like too.

One of the things I miss the most about living at home has to be my mum's cooking. I definitely think I took it for granted before, my own cooking just doesn't even compare to hers! Being home for Christmas meant one thing - the Christmas dinner! And my mum certainly went to town, making wayyy to much food and having enough left over to feed another small family. I've eaten more food over the last few days than I even want to comprehend, but I suppose it's only Christmas once a year. The thought of going back to Stirling and having to cook for myself again is actually making me quite sad!

My Mum is definitely my best friend, so I was looking forward to spending some quality time together. The last few weeks have left me feeling pretty stressed out, so phone calls from my Mum have been one of the only things that have kept me feeling relatively sane. My head has been a little bit all over the place too recently, so it's been nice to offload and hear her advice about things. It's taken me over nineteen years, but now I understand what people mean when they say Mum's know best!

My family really do mean the world to me, and it's at times like these that I feel really lucky to have them. One of the things that I've learnt over the past couple of years is to fully appreciate the moment and everyone around you, as you never know when things might change. This Christmas has been one of my favourites, simply because of how relaxed and chilled it's been, and I now feel ready to face everything that I have coming up over the next few weeks.

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Exploring Edinburgh at Christmas

 I've lived in Scotland for almost ten years now, and every year I get just as excited to visit Edinburgh's Christmas market. Walking out of the train station and being greeted by the warm glow of the glittering lights and attractions always fills me with so much joy. 

Last week, my friend Emily and I decided to head into Edinburgh for a fun day out to celebrate the end of our exams. After a few too many celebratory cocktails the night before, we were both feeling a little bit fragile, so we spent the day just walking around and taking in all of the Christmas festivities. I genuinely had the nicest time! Later that evening, I also met up with my mum for dinner and another wander around the market. 

One of my favourite things about the Christmas market is all of the different food and gift stalls. There are so many different stalls selling a variety of European foods and cuisines that make it so hard to choose what you want to eat, and the gifts always looks so unique and pretty. Pretty much every year I go for a pretzel, and this year was no different. My mum and I both decided to get one, and we also had a hot mug (or two) of mulled wine at the Bothy bar. The bar was really well decorated and cosy inside, and if you head up to the very top of the bar, you can get a really great view across the gardens and the Christmas market.

Of course, no trip to Edinburgh at Christmas time would be complete without a trip to The Dome to look at their classic Christmas decorations. The Dome is always decorated so beautifully at this time of year, and like many other people, I couldn't resist taking a photo. 

I had such a lovely day wandering around and exploring the Christmas market. It was so chilled out and relaxed and exactly what I needed to celebrate the end of a semester of stress and exams. Every year I get excited to visit the market and take in all of the festivities, and this year definitely didn't disappoint.

The Christmas Tag

It's taken a while, but I think I'm finally starting to get into the Christmas spirit! I've put up my Christmas tree, hung up my fairy lights and started wrapping all of my presents. As my exams are almost over, it means I can finally get excited and start celebrating the festive season. I'm really excited to visit the Christmas market this year, and I also can't wait to give everyone the presents that I've bought for them. My friends and family have defintely helped me through a lot this year, so I'm hoping they all love their presents! As my blog is yet to feature any sort of festive post, I thought The Christmas Tag would be the perfect place to start!

1. What is your favourite Christmas Movie/s?

One of my favourite things to do in December is get all snuggled up on the sofa with plenty of blankets and snacks, and spend the day watching Christmas films. I think my ultimate favourite Christmas film has to be Love Actually. There's just something so charming about following all the different characters and their lives. Hugh Grant as Prime Minister is defintely my favourite storyline, his dance scene never fails to make me laugh. I would say that I watch this film at least four or five times over the Christmas period. Some of my other favourites are The Holiday, Home Alone, and of course, Elf.

2. Do you open your presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?

I've always opened my presents on Christmas morning. Opening them on Christmas Eve would just feel weird to me. It's a tradition in my house to open our stocking presents in bed once everyone is awake, and then go downstairs as a family and open all of our presents together.

3. Do you have a favourite Christmas memory?

I don't think I have one specific favourite memory, but I used to love waking up on Christmas morning and rushing into my parent's room ready to open my stocking. I also used to love going downstairs and seeing all the mess that "Santa" had made in the kitchen. My parents would always make it look like Santa had left footprints and crumbs in the kitchen, and I used to get so excited thinking about Santa eating cookies in my kitchen.

4. Favourite festive food?

My favourite festive food, of course, has to be the Christmas dinner. I have so many fond memories of my Grandma's amazing Christmas dinners with copious amounts of trimmings. My Mum now makes an amazing Christmas dinner too. But I couldn't survive the festive period with chocolate. Terry's chocolate orange is definitely one of my favourites, but I also love the golden Lindt reindeers.

5. Favourite Christmas gift?

I had to think really hard about this one as presents were all so exciting when I was little, no matter how big or small they were. But the present I seem to remember the most was a pink Barbie trampoline. It was quite a small one, (although it seemed huge to me) so I could use it in the living room, but I absolutely loved it. I actually remember running downstairs and getting so excited when I saw the giant box.

6. Favourite Christmas scent?

Christmas is definitely my favourite time of year when it comes to scents. I love the smell of cinnamon at Christmas time, and another of my favourites is gingerbread. My mum is obsessed with candles, so there's always some sort of festive smell filling our house. But I absolutely love the smell of real Christmas trees. We've had a real Christmas tree for the past few years now. I just love the way that it makes our living room smell so festive.

7. Do you have any Christmas Eve traditions?

I don't really have any traditions anymore as I usually have to work Christmas Eve. The perks of retail! But my Mum usually buys my little brother and I a new pair of pyjamas each to wear on Christmas eve, and we usually just watch a Christmas film if there's one on TV. I feel like the excitement of Christmas definitely isn't the same now that I'm older, so it's nice that my brother is still young enough to believe in Santa.

8. What tops your tree?

We usually just have a simple glittery star topping our tree. My family Christmas tree is probably the most colourful thing you'll ever see. We've never been one for a themed tree. However, since having my own Christmas tree, I like to give it a colour theme as I think it looks really festive. 

9. As a kid what was the one (crazy, wild, extravagant) gift you always asked for but never received?

I'm honestly not sure about this one. My parents always used to try their best to get me what I'd put on my Christmas list, but I don't think I ever asked for anything too extravagant. I used to really want a cat but my mum would never let me have one, so that's probably the only thing.

10. What's the best part about Christmas for you?

The best part of Christmas for me is probably the lead up to Christmas. I love Christmas day and spending it with my family, but there's so much build up for it and it's over so quickly. The festive period is defintely my favourite as I love watching Christmas films, decorating the tree, buying presents, baking festive treats and going to Christmas markets. It's just such a happy time of year.

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What are some of your favourite Christmas traditions? I love hearing about the different ways everyone celebrates Christmas!

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Pick 'n' Melt Christmas Gift Set

On a cold winter's evening, there is nothing I love more than putting on my cosiest pyjamas, getting all snuggled up on the sofa with a blanket, and burning a candle or two to make my flat smell all Christmassy. So I'm sure you can imagine how excited I was when Pick 'n' Melt very generously asked me if I would like to try out their new Christmas gift set. Of course I said yes, and a few days later the very exciting package arrived on my doorstep.

Pick 'n' Melt sell a whole variety of luxury scented candles and wax melts, which would make perfect gifts for this time of year. After having a quick nosey at their twitter, I really liked how fun all of Pick 'n' Melt's packaging looked. Everything looks like it should be in a sweet shop, and they have over 250 scents in total to choose from. I wouldn't even know what to try first! But I also really liked that they use soy wax as it's a lot more eco-friendly and is also non-toxic.

Their Christmas gift set includes a white porcelain wax warmer and comes with sixteen various Christmassy scented soy wax melts. The wax melts come in little bags and contain 6 different coloured squares of wax, looking an awful lot like colourful sweets. I really liked the style of the wax warmer as it is a really good size, but because it is also so simple, you wouldn't have to worry about it clashing with anyones decor. Some of the scents included in the set are 'Christmas Spice', 'Mistletoe and Wine' and 'Frankincense and Myrrh'.

It took me quite a while to decide which one to burn first, but I finally settled for the one called 'Cocoa and Log Fire'. I loved burning this one as it wasn't overly Christmassy, but it filled my room with a really warm and cosy scent. I could smell it before I'd even taken it out of the packet. As the wax melts are made up of different coloured squares, they look really beautiful as they start to melt as they all start to swirl and merge into one.

The scent completely filled my room, and I was really impressed at how strongly scented the tiny wax melts actually were. I was also pleased at how long the scent lasted. Even after blowing out the candle underneath, the scent continued to fill the room and lingered for a fairly long time afterwards.

Their Christmas gift set retails for only £12, which I think is amazing value considering you get the wax warmer itself, as well as 16 different scented wax melts. It would definitely be the perfect present for anyone you know that loves to burn and buy candles. Of course, you can also buy the wax melts separately and try out any of their 250 different scents. Pick 'n' Melt also offer a monthly subscription, so if you really felt like going a bit crazy, you can get up to thirty wax melts a month delivered right to your front door.

You can find out more information about their gift sets and subscription services here.

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Disclaimer: these products were kindly sent to me for review, however, all opinions are honest and completely my own.

6 Things I Love About Winter

To be completely honest, winter definitely isn't my favourite season. It's a little bit too cold for my liking, and even more so now that my current flat doesn't have any central heating.. However, there are a few seasonal things that I look forward too every year. 

Dark evenings

I love it when the nights start to get dark a lot earlier. It might sound a bit strange, but I just find it really comforting. I like coming in after work or university and putting on lamps and candles. Even more so in December when I can turn on the Christmas tree and watch all the twinkly lights. 

Cosy nights at home

One of my favourite things to do at this time of year is curl up on the sofa next to the fireplace, cuddle up with a fluffy blanket and watch a good film. Even more so when the nights are spent with family or friends.

Seasonal drinks at Costa/Starbucks

As much as I hate to admit it, I really do spend far too much money on coffee. It's just so easy to run to Costa on my way to a lecture, or to pick up a coffee on my lunch break at work. My typical 'go-to' drink is a skinny vanilla latte, but the seasonal options available at this time of year give me the perfect excuse to "treat myself" and not feel too guilty about it. My personal favourites this year are the gingerbread lattes from Starbucks, and the melting marshmallow hot chocolates from Costa.

Dark Lipstick

I'm definitely not the best when it comes to doing my make up, but one thing that I've always loved about this time of year is being able to wear a dark red or purple lipstick. So far this year, I've been really loving the famous 'Leo' lip kit from Kylie Cosmetics.

Crisp winter walks

I'm really not an outdoorsy type of person, but I do enjoy going for walks when it's cold and I can get all wrapped up. I also love how pretty everything looks when the trees are bare and the snow covers the ground.

Christmas

Of course I had to mention Christmas. I actually prefer the build up to Christmas more than actual day itself, as it all seems to be over so quickly. But I love visiting Christmas markets and drinking mulled wine. I love shopping for our Christmas tree and decorating it with my little brother. I love spending Christmas Eve night curled up on the sofa, when I FINALLY get home from work, and watching Home Alone with my family. There's just something so magical about this time of year.

What are some of your favourite things about the winter months?

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