My New A/W Hair!

          

     


I've had ombre hair for a while now and I really fancied a change for A/W. However, having hair as dark as mine, it's really difficult to change without involving bleach which obviously isn't that great for your hair. I'd also been getting really frustrated by my side fringe as it kept falling infront of my face and pretty much refused to do anything which made me begin to toy with the idea of getting a full fringe. I'd never had one before but thought it looked effortlessly gorgeous on celebs like Lily Allen. However, I was still a little worried that it wouldn't suit my face shape or it would make me look younger than I actually am. 

BUT, as you can see, I bit the bullet and told my hairdresser to 'just go for it'. I got her to cut it off away from a mirror and to only let me look once she'd finished trimming and faffing. I think I literally would have burst out crying if I'd witnessed her grabbing a chunk of my hair and cutting it off haha! 

Whilst getting rid of my ombre, I also didn't want just a plain brunette colour. I had a chat with my hairdresser about having some sort of Autumn inspired undertone in my hair. I decided that I wanted 'copper' which is noticable when light is shining on my hair. It's subtle enough to be appropriate for work but still something a bit different and matches the current climate.

Although it will take a lot more up-keep, I'm really happy with the finished result and think that a full fringe can really flatter your face and also look cute with a wintery beanie hat. I can also be a bit lazier with my eyebrows too!

Christmas Gift Ideas | Your Dad

Aftershave

A classic gift for all Dad's out there. My Dad can pretty much always expect to receive some sort of aftershave for Christmas. Perfume shops usually offer deals round about this time of year so it's a great idea if you're stuck to what to buy for him. Just make sure he likes the smell!

Signed Picture

A couple of Christmas's ago, I bought my Dad a signed photo of Sir Alex Ferguson (obviously he is an avid Man United football fan) from the store at the stadium. It was absolutely huge and he was made up with it. It now hangs on the wall above our dining table where we say our prayers and thank Sir Alex... no I'm joking. 

Gift Experience

These are such a unique gift idea and I can pretty much guarantee that you will be able to find something that any Dad will enjoy. They can range from driving a sports car on a race track to a flying lesson! Fab idea but a bit expensive if you're on a budget. 

BBQ

If your Dad is like mine then you will ALWAYS find him stood at a BBQ during the Summer months. My Dad takes great pride in cooking his burgers/sausages/kebabs etc so I thought a brand new BBQ for next Summer would be such a great idea. Places like B&Q and Homebase usually have massive sales on at this time of year, especially on their websites. My Mum & I managed to find one that was £150 cheaper than it’s original price. We’re definitely going to struggle to hide it somewhere though!

Winter Jumpers

Now that my Dad is getting older, he’s starting to feel the cold a lot easier (hope he doesn’t read this), so a few snuggly jumpers are a lovely stocking filler. I usually pick a few up from Matalan or Sainsbury’s as there is always a great range and for a great price.

Limited Edition Beer

This is something that I didn’t think of myself but that my Dad actually asked for. A limited edition/vintage bottle a beer is such a unique gift, especially if your Dad enjoys a drink or two. You can order them online but I actually picked mine up from Sainsbury’s as they were selling them for a limited time.

Watch

A watch is a classic gift idea for any Dad. My Dad wears a watch for work and every year he either loses it or damages it, so I can always guarantee that I new ‘work watch’ will be on his Christmas list each year. It’s such a lovely gift for your Dad to receive knowing that you’ve picked it out for him.

Executive Box

If your Dad is a sporting fan then booking an Executive Box to watch his favourite team would go down a treat. If you don’t know what one is then it’s a private room looking out onto the stadium where they can enjoy a meal and drinks before watching the game. Most stadiums offer a fixed package for groups so try to organise it with a couple of his pals who can go along with him on the day.

Mobile Phone

Recently my Dad has become quite the Facebooker and stills finds it astounding when finding some of his old school friends on there. I thought that a new smart phone would be such a great idea for him so that he can scroll through Facebook to his heart’s content. Warning: if your Dad is like mine, you will probably have to block out a good 3 hours on Christmas Day to teach him how to use it!

Socks!

Just like buying ‘bath stuff’ for your Mum goes without saying, it’s not Christmas without buying socks for your Dad! It’s become a tradition in our family that my Mum buys him the boring everyday socks and I get to pick him a couple of daft pairs usually Homer Simpson/Peter Griffin themed.  

Christmas Gift Ideas | Your Mum

If you were like me growing up as a child, then you will understand that Mum’s do EVERYTHING when it comes to your Christmas presents. The hours she must have spent trawling through Toys’R’Us and searching on Argos - all for Father Christmas to get all the credit. Now that I’m a bit older and am earning more money, I feel like the past few Christmas’s, it’s been really nice to spoil my Mum and surprise her with some really lovely gifts. I’m quite organised this year and have pretty much sorted what I’m going to buy her apart from the obvious “bath stuff” that goes without saying. So, here's a few ideas that I’ve either bought my mum in the past or that I bought her for this Christmas – some expensive, some a little cheaper. So, Mum, if you’re reading this – please don’t carry on!

Amazon Kindle

 If your mum is like mine and loves to read then this is a great gift idea! I was a little nervous at first as I knew how much to she loved to actually hold a book whilst reading (sounds a bit weird) so I was worried that she wouldn’t like the idea of holding a device. But now she’s never without it! If she’s in bed, she’s reading on her Kindle, if she’s by the pool on holiday, she’s reading on her Kindle, if she’s in the bath, she’s reading on the Kindle (don’t worry, we got insurance haha). So I would definitely consider this idea if your mum loves a good read!

Jewel Candle

 I thought this was such a unique and lovely gift idea! The idea is that you burn the candle and inside is either a pair of earrings or a ring (your choice) of the value of £25-£250! I thought this would be a lovely idea for Aunties and Grandma’s too. http://jewelcandle.co.uk/

Weekend Superbreak

Warning - this does take a lot of planning! This year, I’ve organised a trip to London for myself and my Mum to see The Lion King in the theatre. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the show and have been dying to see it for a while, as has my Mum. So, I spent days looking at reviews and working out the best deal for two nights in a hotel with theatre and train tickets. I ended up booking it through Superbreak.com as they had some fab offers on. However, this is quiet an expensive gift so I’d recommend going halves with someone else if possible.

Slanket

This is more of a jokey idea but thought it would be great for my Mum. My Mum and I ALWAYS end up fighting over the blanket on the sofa when watching the telly so I thought what better idea than to buy my Mum her own?! The blanket even came with arm holes AND a pocket (which she usually uses to hide the remote inside). I found mine at my local market but you can pretty much find them anywhere.

Tablet

This was actually one of my (very few) Dad’s ideas which I was actually quite impressed with. My Mum had a little iPod Touch at the time and was forever complaining of sore eyes from trying to see the screen. So we thought that a tablet would a great idea for her to be able to see the screen properly and also carry it about with her when she needed it. She is now never without it, along with her Kindle (Mrs Gadget).

Costume Jewellery 

What Mum doesn't like jewellery?! My Mum is a massive sucker for costume jewellery so a few pieces from our local Christmas market was a lovely present for her to receive.

Hairdresser’s voucher 

My Mum usually gets her hair done at a little back street salon that doesn't charge much. But I always notice that she's never fully happy with what she gets. So, I thought it would be a great idea to buy her a High-End Hairdresser's gift voucher. There are a lot offers on at this time of year and I managed to get one for £200 worth of hair cutting/treatment for £40! She gets four free appointments where she can have a cut, colour and a head massage. I was very tempted to buy it for myself to be honest!

Spa Break

My mum works really hard and I thought that a spa break would be a lovely treat for her to wind down and relax. Again, I noticed an offer at one of my local hotels for 12 days of free use of the spa, a £20 gift voucher for treatments and they always threw a cute little boxed candle. Lovely idea for you & your mum to spend some quality girly time! 

Theatre Tickets

My Mum & I LOVE to go and watch a good show so I figured a surprise trip to the theatre would be a lovely idea. I booked for us to go and see War Horse at our local theatre on the day after her birthday. Will definitely earn me some top brownie points!

Makeover with vouchers 

My Mum has only recently got into wearing make-up (with the help & encouragement of yours truly).  She only ever used to wear the odd bit of blusher and lipstick here and there but now she's constantly asking for me to do her make-up for when she's going out. I thought that a make-up lesson at one the beauty counters at my local Debenhams would be lovely for her and I even threw in some vouchers for her to treat herself to anything she liked!

There's just a few ideas of variously priced gifts that I think any Mum would love to recieve. I do however, think that Mum’s appreciate any gift she gets just so long as she knows that it's you that's put the effort in to think of something that she'd really love. 

Have a lovely Christmas time!

Where Have I Been?!

Hello my lovlies,

Just a little post to explain why I have completely disappeared from the face of the blogging world this past month or so! October/November time at work has been pretty hectic and has involved a lot of late nights and hell a lot of early mornings, thus, resulting in me wanting to starfish my bed at every opportunity I got. To add to the bleak set of excuses, I’ve also been quite skint if I’m honest! Buying Christmas presents for every cousin’s cat’s aunty in the family really has had a terrible effect on my Boots/Primark/Topshop/Asos/Missguided/And-the-rest shopping fund. Plus, I’ve not felt majorly inspired by any new products or lines and didn’t just want to write a post for writing a post’s sake.

I am here, however, to announce that I have returned to the lovely world of blogging and to confirm that, no I am not dead, for any of you that might be worried. I have also been thinking of a few Christmassy themed posts that should be up soon! Apologies again for my disappearance!