How to have a spa night for £50 or less

Lately my mind has been - for lack of a better word - busy. I find myself having to work later and later meaning that I don't get much of a social life, let alone any chance to relax. When Ocean Finance offered me a chance to relax in line with their company ethos of making people's lives as easy and as stress-free as possible, it sounded ideal. I contemplated going to a spa but realised that I barely have any time to relax after work as it is - so having a night in would be treat enough. I lit candles in the bathroom to create a relaxing atmosphere, poured out a glass of wine, put on a nourishing face mask and ran a bath, introducing both my new Lush bath bombs into the water gradually. Their pumpkin bath bar left the water all sparkly whereas the Dragon's Egg was more volcanic and erupted mesmerising swirls of orange into my bath.

I used Body Shop's passion fruit shower gel, foaming it into massive suds onto a bath puff that I picked up for just £1 in Primark. It was so nice laying there, taking my time, not worrying about what I had to do next (I'm notoriously bad for never being able to switch off). I finished my glass of wine and lay there until the Dragon's Egg finished spinning around like a spinning top, and all the bubbles had started melting away. Afterwards I moisturised my skin using Body Shop's passion fruit body butter. I luckily managed to get the shower gel and body butter in an in-store offer for only £9.50.

I also swear by Body Shop's Peppermint foot care range which I used lots at uni to help sooth my legs when I'd been on the go all day. Taking a trip down memory lane, I picked up a bottle of their Peppermint Reviving Leg Gel which is quite honestly a miracle in a bottle. One of the things that makes me feel the most relaxed - and this may sound weird - is having clean and moisturised feet. I picked out a pair of festive socks from Primark - because it's never too early to start thinking about Christmas! - with the softest, cosiest fleece lining.

I went downstairs with M. and the rest of the bottle of wine (Malbec, a personal favourite!) and watched a film with pizza and a bar of Galaxy. There is something so soothing about Galaxy chocolate. If you just hold it in your mouth and let it melt, there's nothing quite like it. I'd ordered Jurassic World using Amazon Prime's next day delivery. Not exactly a typical chick flick for a relaxing night in.... but I find watching any sort of film relaxing!

Thank you so much to Ocean Finance for giving me an excuse to treat myself for once! The beauty of having a night in as opposed to a spa day, means that I have plenty of products left to enjoy multiple bath nights with - and lots of burn time left in those candles!

SHOP THE POST

Lush Dragon's Egg bath bomb - £3.50

Lush Sparkly Pumpkin bubble bar (no longer online) - £3.65

Body Shop passion fruit shower gel & body butter (not currently online) - £9.50
Body Shop Reviving Leg Gel - £7

Primark star candle tea lights - £1 each

Primark pineapple & ginger candle - £2

Primark bath puff - £1

Primark face mask - 90p

Primark festive socks - £2.50

Galaxy - £1 from Tesco

Tesco Finest Malbec - £6

Jurassic World - £9.99 from Amazon

Grand total = £50.04

What's your idea of a relaxing night in?

*although Ocean Finance very kindly provided me with budget for my relaxing night in, as ever, all words and opinions are my own!

The perfect night in // Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day. The marmite event of the year. Some people love it, some people hate it. The one thing I really dislike about Valentine's Day is the amount of pressure this day places on you. The pressure to spend, spend, spend or risk looking like a bad boyfriend / girlfriend if you don't. The pressure of having the best possible night (much like New Years Eve). And lastly the pressure of looking your absolute best. Notably for women. There are magazines, newspapers and advertising left, right and centre saying that you should be wearing a body con dress you can't breathe in, you should be risking your neck in skyscraper heels, and you should be wearing swanky underwear. I don't like being told what to do, what to wear and how to act. If you love someone you should show them the same level of love and respect all year long - not just on the 14th because the card companies told you so.

But it doesn't have to be like this. Why not stay at home and recreate a meal out or a night at a hotel? Lounge around in white fluffy bath robes, light some candles, wine and dine one another, and just be yourselves. Lots of the supermarkets have 2-for-1 inspired meal deals making it far better value for money than dining out. Also there are lots of lovely pieces of homeware out there that won't cost an arm and a leg and can be used time and time again for other special occasions. Consider it an investment. And it'll work out tons cheaper than that hotel, trust me.

Here are my Valentine's Day essentials for the perfect night in:

Yankee Candle //  The White Company unisex bath robe //  Hotel Chocolat sparkling pink rosé // framed print

 Swoon sensual massage gift set  // Glass bowls & oak board set // Goblets // Faux flowers in vase // heart jars  

 Embellished bedding // Heart cushion // Hotel Chocolat pink champagne truffles // Topshop lingerie

My ideal night in would include; dim lighting with candles everywhere possible, new / clean bedding, cooking our own three course meal just the two of us, a bottle of wine (in an ideal world, Malbec), nice lingerie, massages, sharing a bath together, bath robes, and afterwards lounge around watching movies in bed. With chocolate of course. 

I'm really into interiors at the moment - particularly glassware it seems. The heart jars would be ideal for homemade desserts like cheesecake or an ice cream sundae with brownie pieces and lots of cream on top. Very Pinterest. The same goes with the glass bowls on that beautiful oak board. And I'm pretty sure those wine glasses aren't called goblets on the Next website... but they looked regal enough to be called goblets. And that bedding though. SWOON.

What have you got planned for Valentine's Day?

Want to read more? Feel free to have a nose through some of my other Valentine's Day posts....

1. The funniest and most inappropriate Valentine's Day cards guaranteed to make you chuckle 
2. How you know if he's a keeper
3. Alternative Valentine's Day gifts which AREN'T red roses
4. Love in pictures