My 2015 Bucket List.

It is new years eve, a time to rejoice the year just gone and look forward to new things. Tonight we are staying in drinking wine, making pizzas and playing games with good company....which is exactly my kind of New Years Eve! I thought Id kick of 2015 with a sort of to do list, not quite resolutions but things I will hope for and work towards in the year to come.

• Plan More.
This may mean planning my week better so that I can achieve more and be more productive including the dreaded house work and the nursery school run but It also means planning more activities with the children and family trips out. It means keeping a grip on the household budgets and planned savings as well as hopefully planning our wedding. Lots of diaries and notebooks needed this year!

• Finally Start Writing My Book! In the middle of last year I decided I want to write a book and did extensive reading in the genre I wish to write. But now is a time for action, 2015 will be the year I start writing and creating a story of my own.  

• Book My Wedding. This is the big one the one in which you dream about since you were a child. At some point in 2015 I will book a date and a venue to marry the man I have loved for almost 10 years and will finally be on the road to sharing our family name. 

• Carry On Documenting. Whether it be blogging, photographing or scrapbooking I enjoy it so much and you should always do more of what makes you happy. 

A List of Activities For 2015:

• A trip to the zoo.
• A gig.
• A child free romantic weekend away.
• Visit family in Bristol. 
• Date night once a month.
• Eat at a Michelin star restaurant. 
• Visit an aquarium.
• A day trip to the seaside.
• Throw a party. 
• Have a dinner party.
• Go to a museum.  
• Learn something new.
• Gain a hobby. 
• Read 50 books. 
• Eat healthy cut out all the nasties.
• Complete a weekly exercise schedule! 
• Earn some money from home. 

How do you see 2015, what do you hope to achieve? 

As always thank you for reading and have a happy new year!

LouLouLoves.

New In At Next For Boys.

Next is one of my go to shops for the boys clothes, its stylish, good quality, affordable and they are both in the same young boys age category which means they can match!! (Such a mean mummy!) So whilst everybody is browsing the sale rails....don't get me wrong I do too but what I'm usually eager to check out is the new stock thats coming in.

These are my favourite pieces from the new young boys fashion section there are 3 light jackets that I absolutely love and am most likely going to invest in. Firstly the yellow and navy stripped rain jackets are just so adorable I love how they coordinate but don't exactly match, I also love the colour yellow on Eli so this is perfect. You can get matching stripy wellies which would go with both jackets that would be handy if we do get all the snow thats being predicted! I also like this kaki parker jacket for Eli also as he has almost grown out of his age 2-3 jackets and doesn't have anything in the next size up.

These little suede desert boots I am imagine on Wesley, they look nice and comfy and are a great shoe that can be dressed up or down. I think these simple black and which stripped pyjamas are lovely....I have noticed a lot of stripes in the spring collections so seems it must be a bit of a trend.

Lastly everybody knows I have a soft spot for trousers with braces and these two pairs are so so smart perfect for parties and occasions.

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves.

New In At Next.

Im not much of a sales shopper, I don't have time to be first in line when the boxing day sales start and end up missing the best deals anyway. So whilst everyone else is rummaging through the sales I tend to be looking through the newest stock coming in and boy my wish list is growing by the day.

One I couldn't resist but tempt you with is a little compilation of new homeware from Next. First off I have to talk about Next's amazing new wallpaper range including this gorgeous faux log pile print. I am wracking my brain for a way of using this in my house as I am so in love with it, I am tempted to wallpaper my hole chimney breast in it.

This string of retro bulbs is something that I am itching to buy quickly as I am almost certain its going to sell out. £30 for a string of 30 bulbs that can be used indoor or outdoor, these would make such a great feature or perfect to use for garden parties.

Next have started selling products from the brand Bloomingville which are all absolutely stunning, in particular I love this house shaped quote print and geometric copper candle holder. Also following the copper theme which is a major homeware trend right now and one I am obsessed with Next are also selling this pair of copper candle lanterns which I think are absolutely stunning!

Lastly a really simple quote print 'Not all stars belong in the sky' which I think would look beautiful on a picture shelf like the one in my living room.

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves.  

Christmas Instagram Round Up.

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas as we did, I thought I'd share with you a little round up of pictures from our family Christmas.

Rustic table setting | Jo Malone gifts | A sleepy boy | Playing hostess | Cheese board | New clock | smart boy | Time for tea | Under the tree | Present time | Excitement | Matching jumpers. 

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves. 

Christmas The Decorative Details.

I love Christmas so much and when you have children it just becomes extra special. I was dying to get my tree up this year but had to wait till we were back off our trip which was absolutely torture but now its all up I thought I would give you a little tour of our festive touches. 

I thought Id start with the outside of the house and now that we were no longer living in a flat I was dying to get some outside lights and these simple white icicle lights looks really pretty when its dark.

One tradition of ours is getting a wreath for our front door, we have one every year and it doesn't feel Christmassy enough without one. This gorgeous wreath with dried fruit was from Morrisons and I am very impressed with it!  

Inside in the living room we have a real tree which looks beautiful all lit up in front of our full length window. We also get a real tree every year and usually we get one as big as we can fit, this year we even had to up a bit off the base to get it in our Christmas tree stand! We decorate the tree in simple white fairy lights and a colour theme of green red and gold baubles with rustic wooden decorations.

This year we decorated the top of our TV unit with these simple yet very pretty white paper star lantern lights along with a wooden tree and snowman ornament. It fits the style of our living room perfectly yet gives it a really homely festive touch. We also picked up this little reindeer hanging ornament from Center Parcs which now lives in a porch hung from the mirror.

Taking pride of place in our fireplace is our wooden stag head covered in fairy lights which looks so beautiful lit up in the evening. I think I might just keep this up all year round!

The last little touches in our living room include these cute little stuffed snowman and santa which live on the top shelf of our bookcase along with this framed chalkboard that I made a few weeks back.

Our display of pumpkins on our dining room table has finally been replaced by a wintery bouquet of flowers, our advent house and advent candle. Lastly not really festive but another Center Parcs purchase was this Happy Jackson fridge note pad which I found extremely fitting for our chaotic family.

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves.

The Ultimate Christmas Wish List Part 4 - Gadgets.

One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six.

I only had 3 Items in this category that were on my personal wish list (which are the bottom three) so bulked it out with 3 other most sort after Christmas gadgets which anyone would love to receive. I absolutely love Polaroid cameras and had owned one in the past and would love the new style one and also a retro style radio for my kitchen would be fab! Clarasonic style Facial exfoliating brushes are being sold by many brands and I would really like to try this one from Clinique. 

Friends Layla Rose Gold Headphones | Baybliss Secret Curl Hair Tongs | Ipad air | Roberts Revival Radio | Clinique Sonic system Face Brush | Fujifilm Instax mini 8. 

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves. 

The Ultimate Christmas Wish List Part 3 - Home Accessories.

One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten. 

This is probably my favourite category as I am forever browsing the websites of Oliver Bonas, The Range and Next for homeware and nick nacks as well as Paperchase for stationary. I really had to narrow this category down but here are the top 10 I would chose right now!

Busy B Note Pad | Next House Rules Wooden Sign | Weekly Planner Pad | Busy B Family Diary | Jo Malone Candle | KTWO Wedding Planner | Mirror Jewellery box | M&S L Mug | Oliver Bonas Jewellery Stand | Black & Blum Loop Candelabra. 

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves. 

The Ultimate Christmas Wish List Part 2 - To Wear.

One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine. 

The second category in my 'Ultimate Christmas Wish List' is 'To Wear' which seems to completely dominated by shoes and boots which is because that is what I am desperate need of right now, some comfy trainers, everyday boots, walking boots and wellies! Other necessities include night where as it is so so cold right now and a little jewellery obviously in rose gold. 

Nike Air Max Thea | H by Hudson Kiver Boots | Joules Black Evedon Wellies | Topshop Teddy Robe | Olivia Burton Big Dial Chrono Watch | Timberland Waterproof Boots | Kate Spade Lacy Purse | Astrid & Miyu Rose Gold ring | Fat Face Pyjama Bottoms. 

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves. 

My Ultimate Christmas Wish List Part 1 - Beauty

One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten. 

Beauty brands have really gone all out this year but If I had to choose my top 10 I would love to receive for Christmas these would be it! 

Lush 12 days of Christmas | Bobbi Brown Warm Glow Christmas Palette | Jo Malone Cologne Collection | Origins Superstar Mini's | Zoeva Rose Gold brush set | Nars Digital World Lip Pencil Coffret | Laura Mercier Almond and Coconut Body Set | Aromatherapy Associates Star | Marc Jacobs Eau So Fresh Perfume Set | Bobbi Brown Eyeshadow Stick Trio.  

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves. 

A Night To Remember.

One thing I forgot to mention is that I came home from our little festive family break with a bit of news! On the first night we got there in front of the burning log fire with a glass of wine (or two!) Greig proposed. It was so sweet and romantic and completely unexpected I still cant believe he managed to get a ring and smuggle it to Center Parcs without telling anyone or me finding out! We have been together for 9 years and after Christmas the wedding planning starts to hopefully get married at some point within the year of our 10 year anniversary.

The ring itself is so stunning, it was made to order and so classically beautiful I'm so scared I am going to loose it! It has really made our little holiday and this Christmas really special and I have never been so happy. If you have me on Pinterest you will see I have gone a bit wedding pin crazy so I do apologise if you get bored with wedding planning talk as I'm sure there will lots to come.  

Beauty Stocking Fillers.

There is nothing cuter then little beauty stocking fillers and brands have really gone to town this year at making them absolutely adorable! I thought id share with you a few I couldnt resist and ended up buying for gifts although I really want them all for myself! 

Lets start with the cutest one and its an offering from Estee Lauder in the form of the loveliest miniture lipstick which is a perfect size for your purse or handbag.

The lipstick is tiny which makes it so appealing, I put it next to a tea light candle for size reference it really is that diddy! It comes with a lovely little gift box which can be hung from a tree which many brands seem to be doing a version of this year. The colour of this lipstick is so seasonally appropriate the perfect autumn winter berry red perfect for the festive party season. This would make such a cute little gift for a beauty loving friend, secret santa or stocking filler and at only £12 its definitely on my xmas list. Its a great way to sample a high end product and inject a bit of luxury into gift giving without breaking the bank.

Another theme I have noticed this season are beauty crackers and this one is from the brand This Works and is a miniature of their popular deep sleep stress less which is supposed to be a great help for those who struggle to wind down and have difficulty sleeping. This little cracker would look so cute in a stocking and again would make a great universal secret santa present this one is £10.

Beauty bauble again what a magnificent idea! This one from Ciate houses a beautifully sparkly bronze glitter polish perfect for all those Christmas and New Years parties how pretty would this look hanging from your tree! These are available in Boots for £8 although I hear TKMax have a huge amount of Ciate stock at great discounted prices.

Other little beauty stocking fillers I am dying to get my hands on are the Aromatherapy Associates Star which can be found here  The Origins Bauble which is exclusive to Selfridges here and lastly the Jo Malone cracker which I'm pretty sure is sold out every where now but here is what it looks like.

What are your favourite beauty stocking fillers this year? Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves.

  

Going Green.

I finally jumped on the Ikea cacti bandwagon and picked up these cute little mini cacti pots which every blogger seems to have. Now I never saw the fascination in cacti until now and they seem to be pretty trendy at the moment, I just thought they were pretty boring!

What I have finally realised is that they are in excellent way of adding some simple stylish greenery to your home with absolutely minimal upkeep and effort. I am not the best at keeping things alive....other then myself and my children of course! I am rubbish at remembering to water plans so these are pretty ideal for a busy family environment where plants are bound to be neglected.

These 3 little cacti pots are around £4 from ikea and I love the green pots which match my living room perfectly. Currently they are hanging out on my dining room window sill but I am planning to put them on an Ikea Ribba picture ledge behind my sofa once it has been put up. I have also been looking at other ways to introduce a bit of the outdoors inside and here are a few ideas/products I've been loving:

Terrariums from Urban Outfitters and The Urban Botanist. 

Pinterest Inspiration. 

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves.

Festive Red Onion & Cranberry Chutney - A Recipe.

This is such a great little dish to make for the festive period, it makes a lovely gift or an addition to your cheese board and it is so simple to make. Now I like to make this in my slow cooker as I can bung in all the ingredients and not have to worry about it but it can also be done in a saucepan. Here is what you will need. 

• 3 Large red onions.
• A pack of fresh cranberries.
• 2 cups of soft brown sugar.
• 1 cup of balsamic vinegar.
• 1/2 a cup of malt vinegar. 
• A few cloves and a cinnamon stick. 
• Several sterilised jars.  

Its as simple as throwing all the ingredients into the slow cooker and cooking on high for 6 hours. I like to cut up the onions leaving them quite chunky giving the chutney a bit of texture and I also found it best to leave the lid of your slow cooker off for the last 45 minutes just to allow some of the liquid to evaporate and the mixture to thicken. Remove your cinnamon stick before decanting into sterilised jars, your chutney should last up to 3 months in the cupboard but must be refridgerated once opened. 

Decorate your jars with a label and some ribbon if giving as a gift or serve with your favourite cheese and crackers on Christmas evening!  

Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves.

My Greedy Book Wishlist.

 

I thought Id share with you today a new website discovery called Greedy Book. This is a tool that bloggers alike will love or just anyone who loves to do a bit of online window shopping! It is a very simple wish list creating website where you can group links of all the things you are lusting after or perhaps gift ideas for other people! You can share your Greedy Books with other people if you wish so is a great website to create your Christmas and birthday lists in and for blogging its great as I can just screen shot my book and upload the images to my wish list post.

So here are a few things that are on my Christmas list this year:  

You can sign up to Greedy Book here and start wish listing ASAP! Thank you for reading.

LouLouLoves.