2019 Non Beauty Favourites

Happy Friday! This week I've been sharing with you my make up and skincare favourites from 2019 and today I'm back to share with you all of my non beauty favourites from the last twelve months. I've got a mix of everything from films to albums to style and adventures. There are no books as I'm going to talk about those in a seperate post but there are still loads of favourites to come. Shall we get into it?

Albums: 2019 was an amazing year for new albums and new music. There were five albums that I absolutely adored during the last year. I can't acutally put my finger on which of these are my absolute favourite and if you've listened to them then you'll know why. Thank U, Next from Ariana Grande started the year off strongly and whilst it took a few listens to really love the album as a whole, it became a staple of many playlists of mine this year. The same could be said for both Lover by Taylor Swift and Romance by Camilla Cabello. Each one took a couple of listens to really enjoy them as a whole but now they are staples in my daily listening. Ocean by Lady Antebellum is the heartbreak album of the year. There are so many emotional, powerful numbers that on bad days can make me sob like a baby. Be Patient With My Love and Ocean are two stand out numbers from the album and I'm dying them to announce their tour dates so I can try and get the chance to hear them both live. And then Luke Evans released his much anticipated album and I am in love. I already knew he could sing but damn that man can sing. His renditions of If I Could Turn Back Time and At Last are phenomenal and I can't wait to hear them live when me and mum see him in London in April.

Films: There have been so many good films released throughout the last year and it was hard to narrow it down to my absolute favourites. Yet one film made it onto the list before it was even released and that is Rocketman. I'm a huge fan of both Elton John and Taron Egerton so Egerton playing Elton in this biopic was the perfect pairing. Egerton's voice on the soundtrack was outstanding and his performance as Elton was phenomenal. I personally think it should be one that's considered for an Oscar Nomination. One film that broke my heart into a million pieces was Avengers: Endgame. I still can't find the right words to describe how this made me feel apart from heartbroken. It was an amazing to tie up the first three phases of the MCU and whilst I'm looking forward to what Marvel are going to do next, I'm also apprehensive because so many of my beloved characters are no longer going to be there. A film that I didn't realise I needed to see until the trailer was released was Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil. I adored the first film and didn't understand where they could take a sequel but Disney absolutely smashed it out the park. Angeline Jolie and Elle Fanning were phenomenal in their reprisals of Maleficent and Aurora but it was the addition of Michelle Pfieffer as the villianous queen that really gave this film it's oomph. And you know it's good when mum gives it a five star rating when she can barely stay awake during films. The last film I loved in 2019 was a bit of a latecomer and is considered terrible by many. And that film in 6 Underground. Directed by Micheal Bay and starring an all star cast including Ryan Reynolds, Dave Franco and Ben Hardy, this no barrs hold, explosive, action packed film has that slightly trashy feeling that many an action film has but is also packed full of humour, witty one liners and beautifully choreographed actions sequences that the ex film studies nerd in me loves. If you haven't checked it out on Netflix, I highly recommend watching it.

TV Shows: 2019 wasn't the biggest year for TV for me, most of my favourites are recurrences from previous years and are shows that I've watched for years. Chicago Fire was a show that I had fallen out of love with until 2019 where I binged watched all the seasons I'd missed and I'm now all caught up, waiting for it to return from it's Winter break. Yet during the year I finally caved and got Netflix (I know I'm late) but it introduced it to two amazing shows that I thoroughly adored. The Witcher is a late entry onto this list but definitely worth it. Henry Cavil is absolutely amazing as Geralt Of Rivia, the fight choreography in the first episode had me hooked enough to binge half the season just as I wrapped Christmas presents. And the second show I binged in a day and can't wait for the second season to drop on January 17th is Sex Education. I'd heard everyone raving about it but hadn't gotten around to watching it myself. It's absolutely hilarious and I spent half my time crying with laughter. It's definitely the modern day equivalent to Skins and if the second season is as good as the first, I can see it featuring again in my 2020 Yearly Favourites.

 Adventures: I have been on so many different adventures throughout 2019. The scariest yet the one I'm most proud of is the promotion I took at work. I didn't intend on taking a promotion last year but the opportunity arose and after a lot of debate, I decided to go for it and it was the best decision I made last year. I'm so proud of how far I've come and how hard I worked to prove I was good enough, something I'm definitely going to carry on in 2020. Apart from that me and Jasmin went on many an adventure, inluding seeing Aladdin in the West End, Shawn Mendes at the O2, Nightmare Before Christmas Live at Wembley and getting tattoos for her birthday. Yet the one night of the year that stood out to me was the night we went to see Carrie Underwood at the Wembley Arena. I'd been waiting ten years to see her live and getting to see her Cry Pretty Tour in person was phenomenal. I cried like a baby, literally for a good half the show. It was magical to see my idol live for the first time and couldn't get over how flawless her voice was live.

Mid Year Non Beauty Favourites

                           

It's that time of the year where I round up my five favourite beauty and non beauty favourites of the year so far. Today I'm starting with my non beauty favourites, including movie, music and tv show.

My favourite movie of the year so far has to be Avengers Infinity War. I've seen quite a few good films this year but Infinity War beats them all. I don't know where to start or what to say that I didn't say in my May Favourites. Packed full of characters Marvel has spent ten years developing and introducing, this movie rips the hearts out of every Marvel fan, especially in the first five minutes. There were parts I laughed, held my best friends hand in suspense, nearly cried, covered my face when I couldn't laugh and slapped my poor best friends leg in shock when something badass or very shocking happen. Trust me that last one happened a lot. Avengers 4 is over a year away and if the reports are anything to go by then it's going to be even worse for Marvel fans that Infinity War was.

There's been a few albums I've adored so far this year but the one I've constantly had on repeat comes from the ridiculously talented Camila Cabello. Her self titled debut album caught my attention just after it was released and ever since I've not been able to stop listening to it. Havana of course is a firm favourite but Consequences, Something's Gotta Give and Into It are my all time favourites that get cranked up whenever they come on. I love every song on this album and that's a rarity for me. Only two other albums have managed to do that for me, Carrie Underwood's Storyteller album and Kelly Clarkson's Meaning Of Life album.

For TV so far this year it's been a toss up between the Strike Back reboot and Silent Witness but I think Silent Witness just pips Strike Back to the post. Series 21 carried on several storylines from the previous series and made for an emotion packed series with plenty of twists and turns as well as plot lines that got people talking and tackled very relevant issues in everyday life. I absolutely adore Silent Witness, it's my go to when I'm feeling a bit down in the dumps as it takes my mind off of everything and makes me focus on working out who the killer is. However Strike Back does get a honourable mention as the end of the series was astounding and I can't wait to see where they take the new series which they're currently filming.

When I'm not writing for here, at work, out with friends or in the kitchen baking, I like to watch YouTube. A lot of YouTube. I have a ton of favourites but someone who I absolutely love watching is Kalyn Nicholson. She's such an upbeat lifestyle/fashion/beauty YouTuber who inspires, relaxes and empowers in every single one of her videos. I always feel more zen and relaxed after watching on of her videos. Her outlook on life is just so positive and even though she acknowledges the bad, she always manages to maintain a positive outlook on life. If you haven't watched her videos before I recommend you do. Not only will you find your inner peace watching her but afterwards your inner girl boss will appear and shit will get done.

And my last favourite so far this year is again something I mentioned in last months favourites but I'm totally addicted so it had to be mentioned here. Around April time I started to try dairy free alternatives with my milk and coffee. A lot of it came from coffees made with normal milk giving me headaches and occasionally when I'd treat myself to a milkshake, the formula would leave me feeling sick and would lay quite heavily in my stomach. I tried Soya and Oat milk products but they didn't seem to agree with me. That is until I tried this. The Califia XX Espresso Cold Brew With Almond Milk is the answer to all my prayers. It's dairy free so it doesn't sit heavily in my stomach, the coffee doesn't give me a headache and compared to other non dairy options doesn't make me ill a few hours after drinking it. Sure it costs a bit more but it's worth it if I can indulge in my caffeine fix without having to worry about getting a crippling headache a few hours later.

Monthly Favourites: January

Welcome to my first monthly favourites of 2018. January has been a bit of a month. There has been some ups and some downs but that's all behind me now and I'm looking back on the month with fond memories as I've both discovered a host of new products and fallen in love with some old almost forgotten products.

My first favourite of the month is one I had a good feeling about since I saw it promoted on Instagram. Maybelline's latest mascara release Total Temptation has blown me away. I never thought that Maybelline could beat the success of their Lash Sensational mascara but they have. The Total Temptation Mascara is amazing. It's soft bristle brush coats every lash and pushes them up to create a volumised, defined look that stays in place all day and doesn't droop or clump as the day goes on. I've literally worn this mascara everyday since I brought it and I can't see myself reaching for another mascara anytime soon. And the amount of compliments I've recieved since I started wearing this mascara has been amazing. My lashes have never looked this good and it's all down to this mascara. If you haven't tried it, I highly suggest you do.

My next favourite is another new release from Maybelline.Well in fact it's part of the shade extention Maybelline did on their SuperStay Matte Inks. This month they have released a dozen new neutral/nude shades of their SuperStay Matte Inks. And the shade Ruler has ruled my world. It's a stunning deep pink that isn't too raspberry toned or bubblgum pink either. It's perfect for my fair skintone and I think it'll look stunning on a host of skintones. What I've enjoyed the most about this product is that it lasts for hours on the lips and doesn't budge even if you eat or drink but it doesn't become uncomfortable. Whilst it dries down to a matte finish like the name suggess, there is still a slight tackiness to it that makes wearing for long hours bearable. And out of my entire lip collection, this has been the only shade I've wanted to/have been wearing this month. The only downside is that it's a bugger to remove at the end of the day.

And to coincide with my love of the Matte Ink, I've been loving the Kiko Intensly Lavish Lip Liner in 01. Sadly this shade is no longer available but it's the perfect pink to match Ruler. It's creamy, highly pigmented and just glides along the lip liner, something that is surprising considering it's a wooden pencil. I'm not going to talk about this a lot as you won't be able to get your hands on it but it's been the perfect companion to the Matte Ink. Now though, I'm going to have to find a similar shade to replace this when it's gone.

Onto skincare and I have a couple of new releases that I've been thoroughly enjoying this month. The first comes from Nip and Fab. Their Glycolic Extreme 6% Fix has been my go to toner this month. It's the highest % of Glycolic Acid I've ever applied to my skin and I was worried that it would irritate and strip my skin but it actually has worked wonders on my skin. It's done a wonderful job of retexturising and revitalising my skin without being too harsh. It leaves a tingle behind after every use and leaves my skin feeling soft, supple and smooth to the touch. It's also allowed my skincare and make up to apply evenly and easily over the top. It's pricier than other tones I've used but it's well worth every penny.

The next new release I've been loving this month comes in the form of the Loreal Smooth Sugars Scrubs. They are three new face scrubs packed with brown and white sugar granules as well as key ingredients such as Cocoa Butter, Grapeseed Oil and Kiwi Seeds. Each one is designed to target a particular skin issue and they work wonders. My favourite of the three is the Clear Scrub, infused with Kiwi Seeds to clear out impurities and purify skin. I've used it the most out of the three and I've loved how it leaves my skin feeling clear and smooth to the touch.

A product that's been sat in my collection for a while but I've never thoroughly enjoyed until recently is the Superdrug Simply Pure Hydrating Night Serum. I loved the original Hydrating Serum and didn't think that the Night Serum would be much different or provide different results but it really does. It's thicker in formula which is expected from a Night Serum/Night and whilst you think it's going to just sit on the skin and leave you looking a greasy mess, it actually sinks into skin quite quickly but the results last longer on the skin than expected. Most creams that sink in quickly make skin feel dry and papery after a short while but this leaves my skin feeling hydrated and soft all the way up to applying my Garnier Miracle Sleeping Cream right before I get into bed.

It's January and TV wise that only means one thing to me. It's time for Silent Witness to make it's return. Silent Witness is one of my all time favourite shows and it saddens me that it's only on for a small period of time every year. This year the episodes have been amazing, carrying on a storyline that started at the end of Series 20. There have been some moments that have really had me rooting for my favourite characters and I can't wait for the final two story arcs that are coming up. I'd like to say I've watched more TV this month but between this and Criminal Minds, I've not watched much else.

This month has been surprisingly good for music. The first album I've fallen in love with this month was an unexpected favourite. Camila the self titled debut album by Camila Cabello wasn't something that initally caught my eye when it was released. Sure her loved her singles Crying In The Club and Havana but I wasn't sure I'd love her entire album. Oh how wrong I was. There has been very few times this month that I've listened to something that isn't her album. It's something I really didn't expect and I didn't expect to love it as much as I do. Real Friends, All These Years, Never Be The Same and Consequences are some of my favourites. The whole album has a vibe that'll get you pumped up and certain songs dancing but it's also got that vibe that makes it easy listening, something that could accompany even the most mudane of tasks and make them bearable. I can't get enough of this album and can see myself listening to this a ton in February as well.

And my last favourite of the month is something I've been waiting the best part of a year for. Johnny Strong is one of my all time favourite musicians. He has an amazing talent and creates some of the best music I've ever heard. He announced last year that he would be releasing a new album called Whitelight but kept fans waiting and waiting until last Wednesday when he finally released it. And I know this may be a bit of a cheat favourite but it's amazing. Eleven well crafted songs with amazing lyrics and beats, Whitelight is even better than his previous album War Horse, and trust me that's saying a lot. Tightrope, Time To Roll and Whitelight are my three favourites of the moment but I'm sure that's going to change as I listen to it more. My favourite thing about this album though is that it's slightly different to the others he's released and it's a nice change but there is still that brand of Johnny Strong running through it that makes it uniquely him.