cheap and reduced christmas gifts #1 - (29/11/12).

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Children: Collection of 4 'Cat in the Hat' books by Dr Seuss - LESS THAN ONE DAY LEFT! (buyapowa)
Reduced from £15.96 to £10

For her: Miss Dior Cherie Blooming Bouquet Eau De Toilette - LESS THAN ONE DAY LEFT! (buyapowa)
Reduced from £73 to £55

Teenage girls: ASOS Spike Bracelet in rose gold (asos)
Reduced from £8 to £6

Under £10: ASOS Leather iPhone case (asos)
Reduced from £10 to £7.50

Teenage boys: American Apparel Men's Polo Shirt in Orange (asos)
Reduced from £22 to £13

Under £15: Kardashian Leopard Print Scarf (dorothy perkins)
Reduced from £12 to £10.80

For him: ASOS Multi Dial Men's Watch (asos)
Reduced from £20 to £15

Kayla x

braces advice and tips.

I've had braces for about 7 or 8 months and I have definitely learnt a lot. So this is a post to help you if you have braces or are going to get them or if you would just like to learn a little more!

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I'd like to start of by saying that braces actually don't hurt, well not for me anyways. When I first got them, they ached because it felt weird that there were pieces of metal stuck to my teeth. I get it tightened every 6 to 8 weeks and again, they ache for a couple of days but don't really hurt.

~ brush daily - brushing at least twice a day is super important, especially if you have braces. I use the Boots Orthodontic Toothpaste but I don't really know if it's working but hey! I also think that electric toothbrushes work better than normal ones when you have braces. I'm not sure the specific model of my toothbrush but I know its from Oral B, helpful, I know. ;)

~ mouthwash - use a mouthwash daily too, especially at night to keep bacteria at bay. I use it at morning and night just because I like a super fresh mouth. I use the Boots Orthodontic Mouthwash but the Corsodyl mouthwash is great if you have ulcers and cuts due to your braces.

~ interdental brushes - interdental brushes from TePe are great to use to brush behind the wires as sometimes its a bit harder with all the wires in the way. They come in different colours according to their size and I would say the green one is the perfect size.

~ orthodontic wax - wax is great to use in your mouth, especially if you have recently got braces and they're aching/cutting your mouth.

The Boots Orthodontic range is absolutely amazing if you have braces. I hope you liked this and found it useful! If you would like me to do another post giving more advice on braces, just comment below.

Kayla x

november favourites.

I know a lot of people, but it's really quite amazing how fast the year has gone. It feels like last week when my dad was doing Movember and here I am again, for an early edition of my november favourites!

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~ Some Nights by Fun. (album) - this is such an amazing album, it is a real shame that some of it is autotuned because they're so talented.

~ Body Shop Tea Tree Blemish Gel (I did a short review here) - I put this on any spots and leave it on overnight and voila! Spots and blemishes are instantly minimised.

~ How I Met Your Mother - this is an insanely hilarious tv show, if you haven't watched it yet, you need to. I've managed to watch 3 seasons this month (I have a lot of spare time) and I have loved every minute of it. 5 more seasons to go!

~ Body Shop Tea Tree Facial Wash (I did a review here) - I use this face wash every morning and it has definitely reduced the appearance of spots and my break outs.

I hope you liked this super short favourites, my ones always seem so short!

Kayla x

my bucket list.

Hey, so I thought I would take a bit of a break from beauty/fashion related posts and just be a little laidback, so here is my bucket list! For those of you who don't know what a bucket list is, it is basically a list of things you want to do before you die. This won't be my complete bucket list as it would be super long but maybe in a few months later I'll add and update to it.

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1. Visit Australia and Greece - I've actually wanted to go to Australia ever since I was young. I was supposed to move there when I was around 10 years old as my dad got offered a job there but me and my brother were so scared to leave our life behind so we begged our dad not to. That is probably one of the few things I actually secretly regret because I always wonder what my life would be like. Plus, I just want to go to Greece because it has so much history and it's such a beautiful place.

2. Go on a gondola (canal boat) in Venice - I know a tad of Italian (learnt it at school for 2 years before I dropped it for GCSE) and I've always thought Italy is an amazing place. Everytime I see people going on gondolas on canals in Italy, I always think it's so romantic, not to mention serene.

3. Write a book - maybe this is will be one of the few things I won't achieve but I'm determined. Maybe if I wrote a book, it wouldn't get published but I wouldn't mind just writing a book for just me to read.

4. See the Northern Lights - for years I've been obsessed with the Northern Lights (ever since I read the book when I was 8-ish) and I always have wanted to see it with my very own eyes, not just in pictures.

5. Visit all 7 continents - you can probably tell already that a lot of my things on this list is to do with travelling. I would love to visit at least one place in each continent but to visit Antarctica the Arctic would be pretty difficult but it would be incredible to tell people that I've been there.

6. Visit Igloo Village - Igloo Village is literally rows of heated igloos in Finland.

7. Watch the sunset at Stonehenge - this isn't that hard for me since I live in England anyways but to be honest, I've visited more attractions abroad than in my own country. To see the rays of sunlight peak through the holes between the stones would be an awe-inspiring experience.

I know that only a few of these will become reality and some will stay a mere dream. I hope you liked this and I will definitely add to this in time. What's on your bucket list?

Kayla x

ootd // "i fell in love the way you fall asleep; slowly, then all at once".

blouse: zara (old)

skirt: primark £10

tights: primark £2

Hey guys, it's been a while since I've actually posted an ootd picture so I thought, why not? Today, I'm off to a birthday dinner so I decided I should dress up a bit but stay pretty casual. By the way, sorry for the terrible picture quality, my phone has an extremely bad camera!

I hope you like it!

Kayla x

top 3 blemish busters.

For most of us, perfect skin is something we weren't born with. There are very few people I know, my dad being one of them, that are blessed with clear skin. My dad claims all you ever need is good health and a bit of soap and water to wash your face but I disagree, strongly! In this post, I'll be telling you some of my favourite products to get rid of those nasty spots.

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Your health plays a big part in your skin so you've got to be healthy. I wrote a whole post on the '10 Commandments for being healthy' and you can read it here.

1. Body Shop Tea Tree Mask - (I did a post on it here) This mask is great for blemish prone skin and works wonders on your skin, especially good for oily skin. It's really cooling and after washing it off, you're left with super soft skin.

2. Body Shop Tea Tree Blemish Gel - This gel is great to put on blemishes at night and when you wake up, you can see a big difference in the redness. Although it is a very small amount, it really works and you only need the tiniest dab.

3. Toothpaste - Toothpaste isn't the most glamorous thing to put on your skin, however if you have a spot, dab a little toothpaste on it, it may sting a little, and wash if off in 10-15 minutes. As the toothpaste dries up, it will dehydrate your spot and hopefully, reduce the size of it!

Kayla x

autumn to winter transition pieces.

I was looking at my old posts for some ideas and I saw one called 'summer to autumn transition pieces' and I thought, hey why not do one for autumn to winter, so here it is!

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Winter and autumn are pretty similar but in winter, you need a lot thicker knits, well here in the uk anyways!

~ snood/scarf and gloves

~ a good warm coat

~ knitted tights/knee high socks

~ oversized cardigan

~ snug hoodie (not very fashionable, I know!)
~ thick fluffy socks, perfect for boots
~ boots
~ woolly hat

Kayla x

the body shop tea tree face wash review.

Tea Tree Facial Wash (£7)

This facial wash is by far, the best one I have ever used. It has a gel consistency, which is actually better for people with oily skin. However, I do have combination skin, but this wash is great for getting rid of the excess oil on my T-zone. I do feel that it does make the skin around my nose a bit dry. 

For £7, this is totally worth it as you only need about two small squirts to use for your whole face but I finds because its a gel, it doesn't really lather or foam up every well.

I use this every morning and I've found that my skin is a lot more matte and clearer, as the tea tree helps fight those blemishes.

I hope you found this useful and I recommend you get this as right now, in the Body Shop, all skincare and makeup is 3 for 2.

Kayla x

my top 3 face masks.

Face masks are great pampering treatments for your skin once and week and here are my top 3!

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1. Body Shop Tea Tree Face Mask (£10 from the body shop) - This is definitely quite a pricey mask as it costs £10 but it is definitely worth it, trust me. This cooling face mask, with tea tree oil, is aimed to get rid of blemishes and it feels amazing on the skin. You leave this on for 10-15 minutes, I usually wait 15 minutes, and when you wash it off, you're left with soft skin. This mask doesn't dry or tighten your skin, but it does leave it feeling slightly tight but as soon as you wash it off, that feeling disappears immediately. It's an absolute dream to wash off as it feels really creamy. The only thing I dislike about this mask, as well as the entire tea tree range, is the smell. It does smell terrible, in my opinion, but after you wash it off, you can't even smell it anymore.

2. Garnier Pure 3-in-1 Wash, Scrub and Mask (£5.99 from boots) - This mask is a great alternative to the body shop one, especially if you don't want to splash out £10. This £5.99 mask is an absolute bargain as it is an multipurpose product, however I have only used it as a mask. You only have to leave this on for 3 minutes but it does make your skin feel tight. As soon as you wash it off, you're left with gorgeous skin and the microbeads in it exfoliates your skin at the same time. The only thing I dislike about this product is the microbeads as it can be hell to wash them all off, but it's totally worth it.

3. Ayuuri Ayurvedi Purifying Sandalwood Face Mask (£5.95 from ayuuri.co.uk) - The best thing about this mask is that most of the ingredients are natural, so you know that you're not pilling on loads of chemicals on your face. I don't know a lot about this brand but this mask really smoothens your skin. Like the body shop mask, you leave this on for 10-15 minutes and wash it off. Again, the only thing I dislike is the smell, I guess I have a sensitive nose!

I hope you found this useful!

Kayla x

what i'm loving this week #3

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Music: Jack Johnson - Never Know

Book: Papertowns by John Green

Film: Skyfall

Skincare: Simple Hydrating Light Moisturiser

Hair: Charles Worthington Frizz Free Serum

Fashion: Black Skinny Trousers from Pull & Bear

Blog: etcllymlrs

Youtuber: FashionRocksMySocks

Kayla x

naked renew strengthening shampoo review.

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£3.98 (250ml) from nakedbodycare.co.uk

Firstly, the Naked body and haircare ranges are pretty unknown on the internet. I have never heard anyone talk about it except missbudgetbeauty, even then I've only heard her mention it once but I could be mistaken. Naked is an awesome range that I discovered quite recently. The first product I used from them was an Anti-Dandruff shampoo, which is great, but this Strengthening shampoo is even better!

The best thing about this brand is that it is au naturale and has no sulphates, no animal testing and 97% natural ingredients. This shampoo is actually aimed at weak, brittle and mature hair but I have none of those things but it still makes my hair feel gorgeous.

After washing your hair, it makes it feel super soft and hydrated. It also cleanses your hair well as sometimes you can rub your hair in the shower and it will make a small squeak! The only bad thing I could ever say about this is the smell. I'm not a fan of the sweet, almost sugary smell but hey, I could put up with it. 

Kayla x