7 alternatives to chocolate advent calendars

We're mere days away from December. Then the count down begins. Oh my.

Have you got to that age where although chocolate is still awesome, you feel like chocolate advent calendars are a little done? There was a time where eating chocolate first thing in the morning was exciting. It felt naughty. Now it seems to have lost its novelty. Each year more and more brands are jumping on the advent calendar band wagon. Admittedly mostly beauty brands / products. But as you will see below, there are some lovely other little surprises to be found behind each door:

Body Shop advent calendar: I've seen this featured on some blogs lately and the selection looks amazing. I haven't managed to locate any online or in my local store though. Not sure if it sold out, or if it was just a blogger promo / sample type dealio.

Yankee Candle advent calendar: Fill your house with the smell of Christmas on the days leading up to the holiday - to me, this feels like the most festive of all the advent calendars I've seen. But then I have major candle bias. Love 'em.

Benefit advent calendar: A great way of trying out new beauty products

Boots advent calendar: A more affordable version of the Selfridges one (below)

Whisky advent calendar: If you like whisky and you've got more money to spare, this would be a very merry count down!

Ciaté nail polish advent calendar: A nail polish a day. Genius.

Selfridges beauty advent calendar: Always sells out in record time. But with daily delights from Lancome, Yves Saint Laurent, etc, this is hardly surprising. Each year I um and ah over the price - trust me, it's a LOT. I decide to give it a try and what... it's sold out? Well I guess that answers that then.

What would your ideal advent calendar contain?

Party on with ASOS

Awards night with work is just two weeks away and I literally have nothing to wear. With ASOS currently offering 30% off all party wear, it was meant to be:

TFNC maxi dress -  £45  £36   //    TFNC prom dress - £35  £26   //   AX Paris prom dress - £40  £20   //  Same as before

I love the elegance of the maxi dress - although the shorter length dresses are more playful and very me - and how gorgeous are those embellished dresses? It was too difficult to decide so being the crazy person that I am, I ordered them all. Shop now, decide later. Fingers crossed, one of these will be The Dress!

Christmas wish list - in association with The Watch Hut

ASOS cable knitted knee highs  //  L'Occitane hand cream  //  Whittard's white hot chocolate  //   River Island fur collar

Yankee candles  //   M&S slippers //   Urban Outfitters "L" mug //  Michael Kors watch via Watch Hut  // ASOS party dress 

The Watch Hut have joined forces with e-tail PR and are inviting bloggers to create a Christmas wish list for a chance to win £100-300 worth of vouchers from ASOS [competition now closed]. All you need to do is pick out a watch from their website and feature it in your wish list. I have been longing for a Michael Kors watch for ages now so knew I wanted to center my wish list around this. I used to wear a Baby-G watch when I was younger but it broke and I haven't owned a new watch since :'( I love rose gold jewellery so I was instantly drawn to the rose gold watches Michael Kors has to offer. And what better way to count down the hours until Christmas day than with a Michael Kors watch from The Watch Hut? ;) The rest of my wish list is based around the things I love most about Christmas. Festive scented candles, chunky knits, hot chocolate, moisturising beauty products, the perfect Christmas party dress, and cosy faux fur collars to instantly update last season's coat.

What's on your wish list this year?

Charlotte Olympia Once Upon a Time Collection

Charlotte Olympia. A brand that has undisputedly taken the fashion world by storm. Famed for its idiosyncratic footwear collection favoured amongst the A list, for most of us it was the iconic kitty flats that first caught our attention. Ever since, numerous high street stores and online retailers have been inspired to produce their own Charlotte Olympia kitty flat dupes bringing a more purse friendly alternative to the masses. Charlotte Olympia are certainly no one trick pony. Oh hell no. Their Once Upon a Time Fall campaign is stunning - so much so, I couldn't resist sharing with you. Inspired by fairy-tales and legends, the campaign itself is edgy and very fashion forward:

Forever inspired by Alice in Wonderland, fairy-tales, and anything vaguely whimsical, this campaign really spoke to me. Whilst I still can't afford anything from the collection - what is my life - a girl can still dream:

How cute is the gingerbread house box bag? It opens and everything! The story book clutch I officially need in my my life. I never imagined I'd turn away from the kitty flats or be so quick to forget, but now it's all about that clutch.

What are your favourites from the collection?

Image credit: Charlotte Olympia website

Fall in love with fall

Autumn is officially here. Whilst I don't exactly relish the thought of it getting colder (I really can't handle the cold), there are so many amazing things to look forward to:

Hot drinks aplenty

Especially vats of hot chocolate topped with cream

Toasty nights in with films, fairy lights and candles

Chunky knitwear

Nature at its most beautiful

Going for walks with leaves crunching under-foot

Layering

Roaring log fires 

Chunky knit socks and knee highs

Images source: WeHeartIt

What are your favourite things about autumn?

Barcelona in association with Holiday Gems

I have had the pleasure of visiting Barcelona before, but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I'd like the city that much. Or that I'd have a burning desire to return. I would head back with my favourite travel buddy (now my partner in crime!) as there were so many things we didn't get to see / do first time around. We would spend our 4 days and 3 nights as follows:

Day 1

Visit a playa. We only saw one at night so it'd be nice to see it in daylight, dip our toes in the water, and relax a little after travelling. Whilst in the area I'd definitely want to re-visit Barcelona's chocolate museum and sample some more of their deliciously thick hot chocolate:

We'd wander around a little - because that's when you find the best places - and maybe head back to the playa for the sunset. As it was a pretty amazing sunset:

When I'm travelling I always like to play it safe with food on the first night. We had amazing burgers at Pura Brasa so this would be my restaurant of choice:

Nearby there is an amazing fountain show at night which would be rude to miss:

Day 2

We would be up at the crack of dawn for our Gaudi day. We'd start by visiting the Sagrada Familia - before the queues get too long - and then afterwards head to Parc Guell. These were by far two of my favourite places and you cannot visit Barcelona and not see them

In the evening we would end up around the port which had the best paella and sangria we'd ever tasted. You paid a little more for food here, but it was worth every euro. A lovely atmosphere and attentive restaurant staff who always made sure your wine glass was never empty:

Day 3

Como Caixa is Barcelona's gem. Entry was really cheap and you could go in and out as many times as you pleased. It was a lot quieter than the main tourist attractions so it was a breath of fresh air. 

This time round I'd love to try a special dining experience at one of Barcelona's top restaurants - this one has some amazing reviews - and go in search of some sugary goodness. Like Escriba to see their amazing cake art, Papabubble for extraordinary candy, or bubo for dessert one day.

Day 4

For the final day I wouldn't want to do anything too strenuous before the flight home. I would visit St Josep la boqueria market for lunch - fabulous hot food plus cups of fruits for only a euro - and to pick up last minute souvenirs:

And a wander around Las Ramblas of course.

So there you have it. How I'd spend my time in Barcelona and why I'd love to go back. If you'd like to read up on any of my past Barcelona posts, or get some Barcelona travel inspiration, you can find them here:  1  /  2  /  3  /  4  /  5  /  6

This post forms my entry for a Holiday Gems competition [competition now closed] where one lucky blogger will win a trip to Barcelona

#BarcelonaGems

River Island sale now on!

The River Island sale started today and once again, I have failed to add any colour to my - very monochrome - wardrobe:

French print sweatshirt - £17 - anything with French on it and I'm SOLD

Lace maxi dress - £20 - toughen up with a leather jacket and biker boots

Mesh ballerina top - £10 - pair with a skater skirt for a ballerina / ladylike glam inspired look

Embellished cream top - £12 - perfect for those with magpie tendencies

Houndstooth belted skirt - £10 - this screams autumn / winter

Textured sweatshirt - £12 - will look amazing with statement jewellery layered on top

It's official. I need to go to some form of black & white clothing rehab.