Lacock, Wiltshire

Some Of My Favourite Things...

 My Chanel Chance.

  This is one of my favourite smells in the whole world. It's the kind of perfume that when you wear it complete strangers ask what perfume you're wearing. It's quite a young and summery smell but quite sexy too. Perfect for day or night and even the Eau de Toilette scent lasts for ages. I never go anywhere without it- I always have it in my cuuute little atomiser from The Perfume Shop in my handbag.
 You can get the Eau de Toilette for £50 from Boots or the Eau de Parfum for £61. But if you're going on your hols soon then pick it up from Duty Free- très bargainous!
  Also a great scent for the summer is Lacoste Touch of Pink which is a really fresh, girly and carefree perfume, cheaper than Chance at £38 for 50ml of the Eau De Toilette from Boots and right now Boots are giving away a free Lacoste laptop bag with Lacoste fragrance purchases.



My Tigi Bed Head Brunette Goddess Shine Spray.
  WARNING: this product will make you hungry! Apart from the divine smell of caramel and toffee this product makes my hair instantly glossy and healthy looking without the greasiness of some shine sprays. A little of this product goes a long way so use it sparingly.
  If I'm wearing my hair up I'll spritz it on the finished do but if I'm wearing my hair down I use it while blow drying. It ranges from about £6 to about £10 depending on where you buy it so shop around online, and look out for the combi box sets as these are usually pretty good value for money. You can get matching shampoo and conditioner in the Brunette Goddess range which are gawjusss but at the moment I am using;

Tigi Bed Head Urban Antidotes Resurrection shampoo and conditioner which is specifically for beaten up hair that needs a little TLC. There are three different shampoo/ conditioner variants in the Urban Antidote range; Re-energize for damage level 1, Recovery for damage level 2 and Resurrection which is for damage level 3, said to give "miracle-like" results. It hasn't enabled me to walk on water thus far but it does leave my hair shiny, healthy, rejuvenated  and smelling fab.

  If you fancy trying something different for washing your hair make sure you give Lush's Solid Shampoo  (£5 per 55g) a go. They come in handy little round bars so they're great for taking with you on holiday and saving some precious suitcase space. My personal fave is Seanik which is a really fresh smelling, turquoise bar with seaweed in it (like actual pieces of seaweed not invisible extracts) plus load of other yummy, natural ingredients and it gives your hair a real volume boost and is great for shine too. You literally just rub the bar on your wet hair and it lathers up like nobody's business!






 Next is my Urban Decay 'Naked' eye palette, winner of Best Eyeshadow in the Debenhams 2012 Beauty Club Awards. I love, love, love this! Never would I have spent that much on eyeshadow (retailing at about £36 available from Debenhams and other department stores) before but after borrowing my cousin's one day I doubt I'll ever buy another. There are enough shades to keep me satisfied and so far, it's lasted absolutely ages. There is not one single colour of the twelve that I don't use regularly, ranging from subtle neutrals to vibrant metallics, in varying shades of brown, gold, bronze, oyster, champagne down to charcoal and silver. If I had to choose one I think it would be 'Smog,' which contrary to it's name is a beautiful, shimmering burnished bronze....but I don't have to choose just one so I will continue to love them all equally if you please!
 Aside from the scrumptious shades, the cute case complete with mirror, and the fab applicator these eyeshadows have perfect staying power lasting from first thing in the morning until last thing at night (or, if I'm perfectly honest, first thing the next morning. Yes smack my hand for disobeying the eleventh commandment "thou shalt always remove thine make up before bed"). Anyhoo- buy this palette. It will change your life. Okay maybe not but it is a wise investment and worth every single penny!






 My Espa Hydrating Floral Spafresh Spritzer which is an "aromatic toner to hydrate, refresh and rejuvenate." It smells like a cross between a spa and a garden, not overly flowery as the name would suggest but really fresh and healthy smelling if you know what I mean.
  At £18.50 for 100ml I don't use it willy nilly but I do like a spritz of it when I (manage to) take my make-up off or when I'm feeling all flustered and hot and bothered! It's an instant freshen-up and makes my skin feel wonderfully dewey and revitalised.    

  St Tropez Body Polish (around £15 for 240ml) which is THE best exfoliator I've found. It's a gorgeously bright turquoise colour with very fine grains so it's very gentle but amazingly effective. Even though it's more for your body I use it on my face every few days and it works a treat, making my skin as soft as a baby's bum! So even if you don't wear tan you should still get this polish, you don't need to use much and you don't have to scrub with any force at all. 





 The Sanctuary Nourishing Bath Soak (£10.25 for 400ml) is a firm favourite of mine. A rich, luxurious concoction of milk, honey, sweet almond oil and lotus, this comforting soak smells sublime and is generously bubbly.
 It's great for when I'm feeling stressed out and run down and The Sanctuary Enriching Body Wash (£7.75 for 200ml) which compliments it perfectly, leaves my skin gorgeously scented and perfectly moisturised.
 Another bonus is that more often than not, The Sanctuary bath and body products are on a 3 for 2 promotion so you can pick up a third product for free whether direct from their site or from Boots. Bargain!





One of my must- haves for summer is always, always that old classic- The Body Shop Coconut Body Butter. You know it's summer when I whip this baby out! 
 The scruuuummy coconut scent is evocative of holidays, beaches, cocktails, bikinis, sun tan cream, sea, sunshine and all things tropical! Plus it's a pretty darn good twenty four hour moisturiser too!
 On it's own it's £12.50 but at the moment The Body Shop have a 2 for £15 promotion on their body butters so I'm going to pair up my next purchase of it with their new Chocomania butter which I haven't tried yet but it sounds a-may-zing!




So there are just a few of my favourite (beauty based) things. What are yours? x

This Is My Jam #4

Gorgeous song that caught my attention when it was used in the excellent tv series Misfits.

www.thisismyjam.com/violetcandy2012/_1ok05ga

Should owners face harsher penalties for out of control dogs?

  Quite simply, yes. Dogs (like children) are a product of their upbringing and training, they aren't born bad so the fault lies with the owners. And let's stop pussy-footing around the issue: there is a trend among the scummy thugs and jeremy kyle-ites to have status dogs (staffies, rottys, dobermen) so because the vast majority of these breeds are owned by berks and raised to be vicious, snarling, antisocial animals (much like their owners), they are all getting tarred with the same brush. And maybe if these losers thought they might have to spend some of their benefits on fines if their dog misbehaves (instead of Mcat, fags, booze and trainers) then they might think twice about how they raise it, or even owning it in the first place.

 Just look at this article about those morons that set their dog on Emmerdale actress Roxanne Pallett. They have these breeds of dog for the sole reason to intimidate and they 'train' them accordingly. Some people have suggested putting the dogs down as punishment but get a clue people- these bums don't give a flying fudge about their dogs! They are merely an accessory/weapon to them. One of my ex-employees who, to be honest is a skank and a half, had a staffy that got run over, they opted to have it's leg amputated rather than treated as it was "cheaper." Dog homes and rescue centres are overrun with Staffies because these moronic yobs either can't handle them eventually or realise that they actually have to look after them, spend money on them and have a little responsibility.

 How about a stupidly simple system of needing a license to own an animal, surely the cost between this and all these other hare brained schemes is minimal? You must be deemed fit to be a responsible owner and give reasons as to why you want an animal. You should be working or able to prove you can provide for the animal (NOT with benefits), able to provide decent shelter and dedicate time to training and walking a dog. Then give the police the power to stop anyone on the street with a dog and ask them to produce their license, no questions asked. Crack down on people selling puppies in the classifieds so that potential dog owners will have to go to a reputable breeder and produce their license.

  Maybe this system should also be implemented for potential parents so poor, poor children like Baby P aren't born to sick, sadistic, twisted, evil, abusive people that should never never ever be allowed to breed.

50 Shades Of Grey...Tom Hardy for Christian Grey faz favor!!!

  So I finally succumbed and downloaded 50 Shades Of Grey. Initially I picked it up in the supermarket, read the word 'romance' and put it swiftly back down, then browsing the Amazon store last night I read some of the hype and thought I'd give it a go, after all when Twilight came out I was like "Hell NO am I reading that crap" but inevitably I got drawn in and all four are firm favourites which I return to regularly. And essentially they are romance, so that told me!

  I have avoided spoilers so I have no clue if Christian is a vampire/supernatural yet. I'm ten percent in (Kindle) and I have to say I'm finding the similarities with Twilight a bit off putting (Ana/Bella: pale with brown hair, clumsy, scruffy, inexperienced, low self esteem and lack of confidence, penchant for English classics, erratic mother, Dad-with-best-friend-who's-son-likes-her, works-in-shop-where-owner's-son-likes-her, irresistible and mysterious love interest who warns her off but can't stay away)  and I'm hoping it veers off on a different path soon because I am intrigued and I really need to get my teeth into something.

  Anyhoo if it turns out as good as the hype would indicate and they make it in to the obligatory film can the film makers please consult fans (and future fans) about the casting? Not that I found the Twilight casting bad, but there's nothing worse than iffy castings of well known, well loved and well imagined fictional characters!

  There's a lot of love for Cillian Murphy as Christian Grey on t'internet and he is a good choice but I immediately pictured him as.............Tom Hardy, face of an angel, body of sin.

 Or if I don't get my way- how about the film peeps at least giving fans a selection of relatively unknown actors to vote on? Someone brand spanking new to take the hormone-fuelled heat off that poor bugger  Robert Pattinson for a bit eh?

BBC Planet Earth Live

  Gaaagghhhh! I can't watch Planet Earth Live. A meercat has just been bitten by a snake and is all hunched over dying...and they've given him a name....and they just commented on how he's come outside to be with his family.....NOW HE'S DOWN ON THE GROUND! MEERCAT DOWN! NOOOOOOOOOOOO ERNESTO NOOOOOOOOOO!

  My heart just broke.

GLAMOUR Mag's 'May-zing Competition

  Ooops- found this a bit late! Serves me right for not checking my emails.

 Anyhoo Glamour magazine are giving away a different hair or beauty product every day in May (I'm a poet and I didn't know it) to 700 lucky people. That's 20,175 goodies worth a hefty £167, 657!

  If you're feeling lucky go to Glamour's website or click here each day in May, answer the obligatory simple, multiple choice question, enter your details and cross your fingers. Good luck!

 

BBC's Extreme Breastfeeding story- EWWW.

  Hmmm- anyone seen the BBC story about the blatant out-to-shock Times Magazine cover? Put me right off my Special K. I breastfed my son until he was about seven months, I would have carried on for up to a year if his weaning hadn't gone so well but as it was he wasn't really bothered about stopping and was fine with follow on milk and food and, although I did have a pang of sadness about it (mainly because he wasn't a tiny newborn that depended on me and my magical milk anymore), I was fine too. But there is NO WAY IN HELL I would have breastfed him until he's three whether stopping was difficult or not! And I am the kind of mum that finds it really difficult to be away from my baby even for short periods of time, I check on him constantly through the night just to check he's breathing, any little thing I'm straight on Google for, he's been up to A and E numerous times just for me to be told he's teething/ it's just a cough/ no he hasn't got meningitis but even I draw the line at breast feeding him for longer than is necessary or, in my opinion, healthy.

  I just think these mothers that carry on for years must be really clingy and must just want so badly to be needed by their child. This 'attachment parenting' thing- is this supposed to be a good thing? The article says Time defines it as  "extended breast-feeding, co-sleeping and 'baby wearing', in which infants are physically attached to their parents by slings."  Surely that will encourage a clingy, over dependent baby who will have separation issues in the long run? And what are they going to do when their child has to go to nursery or school- pop in to give them their 'bitty'?! Some mum's say it's not a problem as their child only needs it for comfort therefore can go through nursery without but then I think, shouldn't they be discouraging breast feeding as a solution to their child's distress or upset? One day it will have to be replaced by something else so why not sooner rather than later?

  I'm in no way against breast feeding in public- it is the most natural thing in the world and people that find it offensive should get a grip and stop being so prudish and uptight. Bet they don't find bare boobs on the beach offensive! I also think breast is best for a certain amount of time but also the breast nazis that try and  pressurise mums into breast feeding or make them feel guilty for not should face the fact that it doesn't come naturally to everyone and is difficult to begin with. My sister and a friend of mine both had problems with it and couldn't continue as much as they desperately tried. I myself found it seriously difficult and had no amount of health visitors and midwives grabbing my boobs and trying to help. Eventually one excellent midwife taught me an alternative position for my baby and we clicked but it was seriously hard work getting to that point.

  Anyway to summarise: in my opinion- breastfeeding babies = good
                                                                    breastfeeding toddlers = Eww. Just...no!

This Is My Jam #3

This Is My Jam:

http://www.thisismyjam.com/violetcandy2012/_1l0tuon

My Manor's Law

 If you're bored of hearing the riot-sympathising rubbish (note to Plan B- not every working class, hard up, council houser feels the need to attack, vandalise, and steal so WHY try and justify the behaviour of the lazy, work shy, want-everything-handed-to-them-on-a-plate, disfunctional minority of cretins that rioted?! Excuses, excuses!) that generated this spoof or if you just want a laugh then watch this!

Doglost - a website for missing dogs

  If you are a dog lover like me then you must sign up to Doglost the national database for lost and found dogs. I know from experience how horrible it is to lose a dog- luckily I got mine back- twice! Diego's a jack russell chihuahua cross and is a little sod and unfortunately he legged it on two occasions when the postman left the gate open. Both times I spent hours trawling the streets shouting his name, convinced that, un-streetwise as he is, he'd have been run over by one of the boy racers that are always zooming up the hill. Luckily the first time he was found in someone's garden and the second time a quick thinking dog walker put a lead on him and walked around the streets with him until my fella bumped into them!

 So, if you have the misfortune of losing your dog ring the council to get put through to the warden, ring all vets in the area and register them missing on Doglost. They will also email you details of missing/found dogs in your area so you can keep an eye out, therefore tell all your dog-owning friends to join too as the more people that are part of it, the better the chances of reuniting dogs and owners! 

U.F.O

  QUICK PEOPLE LOOK OUTSIDE- there's an unidentified object in the sky. It's really bright and round and it's turned the sky around it blue! Oh, it's gone again.

Perfect Presents

  I've got a family wedding coming up soon so I've been scouring the internet for gift ideas and yet again Getting Personal has come up trumps. I discovered this website last year when looking for personalised presents for my nephew and I've used it a few times since.

  There are some really unique gifts for pretty much every occasion and much of it can be personalised with names or a message. Delivery is prompt- and free if you spend over £30- but even if you're spending less it's only £2.99. They do personalised cards too for £2.99 delivered free so it's a one hit wonder- you just need to worry about the wrapping paper!

  Everyone that I've given a present to from this website has loved it. I especially like the Birthday Book for £16.99,  I've bought four to date as it makes a perfect present for a first birthday. It has pages for each birthday, spaces for comments and photos and a page for parents to write about the previous year. My baby boy will be getting his in July- well, technically I will be so I can fill it in each year then give it to him on his twentieth birthday (double present woohoo!). I just wish they were around when I was a baby because I'd love to have a record of all my birthdays, what I got, who was there, what we did...

  Anyway they've got an Anniversary equivalent of the Birthday Book, so that's one of the presents for definite, just got to choose some more. Decisions, decisions!

  If you're stuck for a pressie check them out. I highly recommend them. Also, bargain-hunter tip: do a Google search for a voucher code before you order as quite often there are promotional discount codes floating about- plus every time I've had a delivery from them there's been a discount code in the box for my next purchase. Happy shopping!

This Is My New Jam #2

  Love these girlies!

http://www.thisismyjam.com/violetcandy2012/_1k9xdat

Bristol, Bargains and Baby-haters

  Well tuesday night I actually got A Full Eight Hours Sleep, hallelujah!! My beauuuutiful baby boy (here on in known as BBB) slept the whole night through, in his cot no less. My beauuuutiful other half had a day off yesterday so we popped to Cabot Circus.

   I picked up a cute little nautical summer dress in Primarni for, wait for it, five english pounds and a kitsch little spearmint palm tree print one for just seven. They're both really flattering as they are nice and fitted around the boobs giving a good shape and accentuating my curves. Other Half got one of those horrible eighties style round neck sweatshirts that are in for some inexplicable reason.

  We popped into Patisserie Vaaaaaaaleeeeerrriiieeee for iced tea and ice cream, service was excellent and my mandarin sorbet was delish. It's also nice when the waitresses fuss over BBB- particularly as there are some places that make parents feel awful for daring to bring their baby out. Case in point was when my friend and her husband were shopping in Cirencester with their new baby boy, they stopped at a bistro for lunch and the manager who showed them to their table commented "I hope you're going to keep him quiet." THE CHEEK!

   Thankfully they stood up and walked out but how many parents out there have had similar experiences? The resentful restaurant staff who grudgingly show you to a table in the deepest, darkest corner  so you don't lower the tone. The huffs and puffs aimed at the pushchair- like they'd rather you popped your baby in your handbag or left them at home. The tuts in the departure lounge as they clock that there's going to be a baby on the plane for the entire two hour flight and then the sheer outrage as you are told to board the plane before them. And there is nothing more heartbreaking than a baby cooing and staring all expectantly at someone in public, obviously wanting some interaction and the person just averts their eyes.

 Luckily this isn't the norm but those nasty minority of baby-haters should sort themselves out.

Should phones be allowed in school?

  As one of the kids at school whose parents weren't loaded I would say no on the basis that the poorer kids whose parents can't afford to buy them a phone (or the right kind of phone) will have another reason to feel rubbish about themselves. In my day (listen to me eh! I'm only bloomin' thirty!) it was clothing that separated the poor from the not so poor - Fred Perry jackets, Buffalos, Baby-G watches... If you weren't wearing the right gear then you were a skank. Mobile phones weren't really an issue as no one had them, I got my first when I was in sixth form and it was a total brick.








 Today's kids have to put up with the clothing thing plus are under pressure to have all the latest gadgets- mobile phones (probably got to be the iphone), tablets (probably must be the ipad), MP3 players (probably got to be the i.....hold on I'm sensing a theme here, just as I suspected Apple is the Devil and responsible for all the world's wrongs). You can bet your bottom dollar the spoilt kids with ieverything make the poor ones feel awful.

  Then there's the fact that mobile phones in school facilitate bullying and abuse. I couldn't imagine all the stress of school, the pressure to fit in, the pressure to look good, the constant battle of trying to keep up with the trends despite not having much money, the old fashioned face to face kind of bullying plus cyber bullying, being humiliated and shamed publicly on facebook, being videoed being bullied, being sent threatening and abusive messages, worrying that you don't have enough people on your 'friend list.' It doesn't bear thinking about and it frightens me that my baby boy will be having to go to school at a time when things will likely be immeasurably worse- because let's face it, things aren't going to get better until the authority (ha!) figures actually get some authority back and man up.

  And really what are they learning when they're sat in class on their phones and the teacher has no power to confiscate the phone and gets abused if they try? I heard a teacher on The Wright Stuff this morning talking about how he got attacked after daring to try and take the phone off a pupil that was videoing him in class!

  Many people are saying that kids need their mobiles on them for safety reasons but if you're using it as some kind of 'panic button' incase something should happen in school then really you should be questioning what is up with that school shouldn't you?! And as for on the way to and from school then surely a mobile phone isn't going to be real help in a situation and the route/method of travel to and from school should be checked out to be safe in the first place. If anything a child carrying a mobile on the way to school is more at risk of mugging for the phone?

  Anyway that's just my opinion, but I know if my son's route to school warrants a mobile phone for his own safety then I'll be looking for an alternative way to get there!

Harry Potter Days

  On miserable days like this it is absolutely compulsory to wear your PJ's and slouch socks, snuggle up with a fluffy blanket, a Harry Potter dvd (or mutiple if you have the time for a mahoosive Potterathon) and chocolate- don't forget the chocolate- preferably Reese's Peanut Butter Cups or Walnut Whips. but hey, I'm not fussy.

Book Recommendations Wanted!

  I badly need a new book to read! I'm reading one (on my beloved Kindle natch) but it's just not doing it for me, and I'm not usually one to give up on a book- usually however bad it is I will plough my way through it, you know- just incase. For example The Survival of Thomas Ford- oh emm gee it was awful, despite rave reviews.  It was hard work getting through it but I did it!  Before my current one I read Me Before You by Jojo Moyes which I absolutely loved. 
  Actually I do quite like cryers: Ian McEwan's Atonement, Kathryn Stockett's The Help, Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Traveller's Wife, David Nicholls' One Day (which made me randomly burst into tears for well over a week after reading it).

  I've got quite a varied taste in books, everything from Neil Gaiman (Neverwhere is my all time favourite book. Ever) to Martina Cole to Tolkien to Terry Pratchett to Frank McCourt to Jodi Piccoult to J.K Rowling to Audrey Niffenegger to Pittacus Lore to Roddy Doyle to Stephenie Meyer to Dan Brown to Jeanette Winterson...the list goes on, although I do steer clear of cheesy supermarket chick-lit.

  So if anyone out there is reading this then any recommendations will be gratefully received!

50's Americana Trend For Summer

  Has anyone else noticed the 50's Americana inspired sub trend infiltrating the shops? It makes me think of cadillacs, huge sunglasses, Grease, a milkshake palette, capri pants and rockabilly tunes. I'm loving all the pretty florals and pastels. It's just a shame we haven't got the weather for them just yet but when it finally heats up I will be embracing this ultra-girly, daisy fresh and quite retro look.

  H&M and Marks & Spencers   have great ranges as does the ever reliable Primark at bargain prices.

 If you find the pastel look a tad wishy washy by itself  then try accessorising with a tan bag, belt and sandals for a more boho take on it or for a bolder look maybe team it with brighter flashes of colour like dayglo pink, fluoro yellow or turquoise.

  There are some fab sugar sweet pastel nail varnishes out to compliment the look. The Boots 17 Candy Collection nail colours are cute as a button and cheap as chips but my fave right now is O.P.I nail colour in Care To Danse?

  One word of advice though girlies, and I speak from (cringey) experience, please do not attempt to wear pastel eye shadow no matter how cute they look in the store- it is very tricky to pull off and rarely looks good...unless your style icon is Magda from Something About Mary :)

I would opt instead for a subtle sun kissed look with golden shades on the eyes, a hint of bronzer on cheeks, a slick of pink or coral lipgloss and you're good to go or if you're more into the retro look a dramatic sweeping flick of liquid eyeliner and a bold red or coral lipstick a la Imelda May or Dita Von Teese would do nicely. Roll on Summer! 

This Is My Jam

http://www.thisismyjam.com/violetcandy2012/_1ijuj72

From the film Drive (and the Netflix ad). Great film. Great song. Perfect for driving at night to...just not getaway driving...!