A Week in Wales

Recently I went on a short week away with my Dad, Step Mum, Brother and his Girlfriend, Step Brother and his girlfriend and James. We went for a week in Wales, Amroth to be precise. I thought I would do a little blog post about all the things we got up to, however if you’re interested I also vlogged the holiday which I will also link below. The weather was amazing and the views were like nothing I have ever experienced in the UK before. Such a lovely place for somewhere that you can get to by car!

Day One
On the first full day in Wales, myself, James, Jack and Chloe got dropped off at a Pebble Beach in Newgale. My step mum then told us she would meet us in the next town, Solva in a couple of hours. We set off on our walk, little did I know it was more of a climb than a walk! Described as leisurely, as a non-walker usually I did find this a struggle at times with how steep some of the terrain was. The walk was approximately 5 and a half miles in total and it took us over 3 hours to complete. There really were some breath-taking views along the route and I got some lovely photos. Highlights of the walk included walking through a field full of cows! Not what we expected!

Day Two
Today we left early in the morning and headed to Tenby to get a boat across to Caldey Island, inhabited by monks. This little island had some shops, lighthouse and a church. There was a post office where you could get Caldey Island stamps, so I decided to send myself a post card as it worked out a similar price to do that than to buy one. I actually wrote it out to my cat in the end, and it arrived the next day! We had a lovely walk around to the lighthouse and saw some ponies on the way. My favourite part was visiting the chocolate factory where chocolate and fudge is made on site. The shop smelled delicious and I came away with a chocolate bar which I ate pretty much the same day. After our visit to the island, we headed back to the car and went to St Davids. This lovely little place had an amazing cathedral and plenty of places for afternoon tea. We had a scone, it wasn’t quite like a scone you would get at home mind you! More like a bread roll.

Day Three
Today we had a more leisurely day and headed to Tenby to do some shopping and explore in more detail. Tenby is a harbour town and seaside resort with the most amazing pastel coloured buildings. There are cobbled streets and many places to eat along the way. Tenby has plenty of gift shops and souvenir shops so I bought a few little bits from here. For dinner we went to The Amroth Arms, a local pub. Despite a mix up with our table due to having dogs with us, the food was pretty good.

Day Four
This day consisted of a visit to Heatherton World of Activities. Here you can buy tokens which then allow you to take part in different activities on site ranging from Go Karts to Archery. We started off with a visit to the Mini Golf. I really enjoyed it and scored 2 hole in ones! We then did some pistol shooting, archery and clay pigeon laser shooting. It was good fun and killed a few hours off. We took a packed lunch and arrived back late afternoon so decided to walk to Colby. This gorgeous area was right around the corner from where we were staying and the weather was so nice. We enjoyed a lovely walk before heading back to our accommodation for dinner.

Day Five
We went back to Tenby today to complete a treasure/adventure trail that my step mum had got for us. My brother and his girlfriend went off Kayaking whilst we did this lovely walk. Despite already going to Tenby, this walk took a couple of hours and we saw some places we hadn’t previously seen. We got lots of nice photos and managed to find out some history of the town. After we had finished our walk we met back up with the others and went to Penbroke Castle for the afternoon. I really enjoyed this castle, apart from the winding stairs up to the top of the tower, I hated coming down them! We went on a guided tour and found out that Henry VII was born here, it was really interesting. They also had the Pembrokeshire Falconry on display too.

Day Six
On our final day we decided to get some castle visits in so set off early to make the most of the day. We started out by visiting Carew Castle and Tidal Mill. The castle was great to look around, my favourite part being the room which was supposedly haunted by an ape! Most of the castle was in ruin but I did really enjoy looking around the different rooms and trying to imagine what they might have looked like hundreds of years ago. Included in the price of our ticket was a visit to the Tidal Mill, the only restored Tidal Mill in Wales and one of only 5 in the UK. There were a few floors to look around here filled with an audio tour and family friendly displays. It was also good that the dogs could come in with us too, although did struggle with the steps!

The next place we visited was Lamphey Bishop's Palace. When we arrived they were setting up for a wedding the next day. Not wanting to intrude, we skipped past the marquees and headed for the ruins and had a look around. The grounds were impressive. This was the treat of choice for medieval bishops seeking solace from everyday life. It was free to look around here so I am pleased we gave it a look on the way to our next location. We then stopped for lunch at Lamphey Hall Hotel which was delicious.

We then decided to check out St Govans Chapel which is on the side of a cliff. We walked down some steep steps to get here and it was really interesting seeing this building in such an odd place!

Finally we went to Manorbier Castle, where again they seemed to be setting up for another wedding. I was interested to find out that the castle has been used as a film location for “The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe” 1989 and “I Capture the Castle” 2001. I was most excited about looking in the crypt, however this was basically being used as storage for a wedding. There were no signs to say we couldn’t go in and personally if people were walking around my venue whilst I was setting up I wouldn’t be too happy! There was a whole fridge of prosecco on show! Anyway, we had another walk around the castle which was nice and I read through the guide book as I went along. Pembrokeshire Falconry were also showcasing some of their birds and for £1 you could hold one, so a couple of our group decided to have a go! That was fun!

We ended our day by heading to Saundersfoot for some Fish and Chips – yum!

All in all, I had an amazing holiday. Be sure to check out my vlogs for more stories and footage of all of the places mentioned above. Have you ever visited any of these places?

Gambettes Box Review and Giveaway*

If you’ve followed me for a while then you’ll know that I love a subscription box whether it be beauty, lifestyle or fashion. I recently discovered a new subscription box called Gambettes Box which is designed in Paris and made in Italy. Each month you receive two pairs of tights! They have only just launched in Italy this month and I have been lucky enough to receive an exclusive preview as well as give you guys a chance to win a box yourself ! Keep reading …

I received two gorgeous pairs of tights, my favourite being this polka dot pair. The quality feels really nice, they are sturdy if that makes sense. When I wear them I don’t feel as though I am going to ladder them by simply pulling them up, they are a good enough quality not to have to worry about this. Inside the box you also get some fashion cards with a couple of ideas on how to style these tights up. I think they really make an outfit interesting!

If you’d like to win your very own Gambettes Box then please enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below! The competition ends  in 10 days on 29th September 2017 and I will announce the winner shortly after. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I received an item free of charge in exchange for review. All opinions are my own and I was not influenced in any way.

My Office Decor & Styling Fairy Lights

When I moved into my house I knew that I wanted to convert the spare room into an office area where I could also do some blogging. The room was painted a mint green colour when we moved in and had a blue carpet. It was used as a reading room I suppose, complete with bookshelf and rocking chair – which was still there when we moved in! When we had the electrics rewired in this room, we added an extra plug as we knew we both wanted to have our computers in here (or laptop in my case). This was really handy as it allowed us to set up our own computer areas at each side of the room. We painted the entire room white which is a great backdrop for my blog photos. There was a cupboard in this room which we wanted to utilise this space for some storage and at first I wasn’t sure what to do with it so it became a bit of a junk storage place.

Before Photo - Courtesy of Rightmove.

James very kindly surprised me on my birthday by sorting this room for me and buying me some great furniture and accessories. Firstly, he took the doors off the cupboard and replaced them with some sheer curtains which he popped onto a copper pipe for me, matching the theme of the room. Inside the cupboard which was bare, he added some shelving which he painted with a copper edge and a book case. Inside I have popped some of my books and some of my blog items. He also added a copper clock to the wall to really tie the colours in together.

My desks are from IKEA. I have one which I put my laptop on for when I am writing blog posts, and the other I use for taking my photos. This has been topped with some Marble fablon which you have probably seen in the background off all of my photos. I have a chair that I got from IKEA as well and on this chair is a gorgeous cushion that James bought me from B&Q.

Under my desks I have some more storage units which I have filled with craft supplies. He also decorated these for me in copper and marble to fit in with the theme of the room. I also have a light curtain which is great for the winter when I want to add some pretty bokeh to the background of any shots I take.

I love having fairy lights in this room as it makes for a really relaxing environment. If you're looking for your own light curtain, then be sure to check out Festive Lights. They have an amazing range of lights in every style imaginable. I am thinking of getting these adorable Unicorn Fairy Lights as I think they will really go with the relaxed decor in this room. They are also perfect for Children's rooms and nurseries so will be a great transitional piece once this room becomes a bedroom one day! 

Imagery provided by Festive Lights

On the floor, we have used the offcuts from the bedroom carpet just so there is something soft to put your feet onto. I also have a sheepskin rug that I pop down now and again, or failing that it hangs off my chair. James also has his side of the room sorted with his desk, massive computer screen, chair, shelving and art supplies.

I have not had the ceiling or coving done in here, but will be something that I do if I ever change this room around as well as replace the floor to a complete one. I love this room now it has been organised properly and it’s a great space for me to work on my blog posts. I would eventually like some curtains or a blind in here but for now, it’s just right. For a room that we haven’t really put a lot of time or money into I think it works well, and can stay this way for the foreseeable future as we have more important rooms to focus on next (the living room!)

Do you have any room before/after’s to share? Can you recommend any other fairy light hacks like these ones that I could add to this room?

Find the post about my bedroom makeover here.

All in Flavour Phone Case Review*

I am always in the market for new cute iPhone cases so when I heard about All in Flavour, I couldn’t wait to review one. I find it hard to buy cute cases for my phone as it is difficult to buy iPhone 7plus cases in a lot of the shops I visit.

My phone case arrived in a box that was small enough to fit through my letterbox which is fantastic as I always seem to miss the postman when I have music on in the house and it is also good for people who are at work during the day and don’t want to miss their parcels.

When I opened the box, the case was inside a small drawstring bag. I also received a post card and a sticker with the All in Flavour logo on it. I thought that was a nice touch and it was good to know my phone case was securely packaged.

This particular case retails at just over £15, which for a good quality case is definitely worth it. The case is transparent and hard plastic so will protect your phone. I chose a design that was covered in cacti, which suits me to a tee.

Overall, I think this is a really nice case and good quality for the price. There were so many designs available you’d be spoiled for choice! There really is a case to suit everyone. Check out the full range at All in Flavour. 

*I received this item free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not influenced in any way.

My Little Box August - Wild Summer Edition

Another month has arrived and another My Little Box has hit my doorstep! It seems to come around so quickly. This month's box has a 1970's vibe to it and I'll be honest, it hasn’t been my favourite box of them all! The box came with a Beach Boys print saying "good vibrations". I'm not really sure where I will put this as it doesn't really match my décor but a nice print in any case.

The first item I received was this Nana Benz Necklace. In the 1970s the nana Benz girls made their fortunes selling wax print designs. Nicknamed for the Mercedes they used to drive around town they were the ultimate vintage girl gang. This months necklace design is paying homage to the badass business women and their blinged out rides. Wear it loud and wear it proud. This necklace has gold hardwear and rope detailing along the front. It easily clips on and off so you don’t have to fiddle around trying to get it on. It is quite a statement piece so I will need to find some appropriate clothing to wear this with. It's not my usual style but will be interesting to try and style this up.

This gold Gem Catcher is very interesting and when I first saw it I wasn't 100% sure what it was! This can be hung on the wall and then you can hang your jewellery from it. It is hung by a piece of string but I can’t see why you couldn't replace the string for a piece of ribbon or something else that matches your décor. I hung a few necklaces on here just to test it and they appear to be safe and secure, I don't think they would fall off but if you have bigger pieces of jewellery then they may not stay on as well so be careful what you choose to put on here.

This isn’t the first time I have received the Ren 3-in-1 cleansing water in my box. I am pleased to see it again as I had used my other bottle. This smells fresh and leaves my skin feeling clean and soft. What I love about it is that it is a cleanser, make up remover and toner in one and doesn’t require rinsing so I can settle down in bed and use this without having to then get up again.

The My Little Beauty item this month was this Blush Me Tender cream blush. The shade is said to be universally flattering and it a peachy pink colour. The Formula is very creamy and this applies very easily and blends like a treat leaving a gorgeous colour on the cheeks. This doesn’t have a cheap scent like many of the blushers I have tried in the past and has good staying power when applied with a primer and setting powder.

Finally we received this Bareminerals skinlongevity vital power infusion. This product is halfway between a serum and an essence and has a lovely light texture to it. It retails at £34 for 30ml and we received a 7.5ml sample. It claims to dismiss signs of aging, brightens the skin and promotes skin vitality. I have been applying this morning and night after cleansing with the Ren Cleanser and it applies really well. It has a lovely scent to it.

Overall, not a bad box but not really themed as such, I am not sure how these items contribute to a Wild Summer but there we go, I look forward to seeing what we get next month!