Yves Rocher Les Plaisirs Nature

I'll be honest with you: Skincare is not my forte. As much as I love bath products, I lose patience for things like body moisturisers and handcream. So when Yves Rocher offered the opportunity to review some of their Les Plaisirs skincare products, I saw this as the perfect chance to make a change!

Fizzy Bath Cube
Even through the packaging, I could smell the incredible coconut fragrance. Although I don't like the taste of coconut, I bizarrely think the scent is wonderful! This made me really excited about trying the fizzy bath cube. Unfortunately, when it was dropped into my bath, the fragrance released was unrecognisable. It was extremely musky and earthy, not at all like the coconut I'd been excited to experience. Although the water turned really milky, giving quite a luxurious sensation, I couldn't bear the scent at all. It was a real shame!

Organic Oats Silky Cream
Right now, I'm all about the oats! My skin has been playing up lately and I've found oat products are fantastic for soothing the itch. This body cream comes in a plastic pot but it has the appearance of glass and is really practical for reusing once empty. The scent isn't particularly oaty but has more of a floral perfume. I'm not sure exactly what it is as the ingredients don't seem to be listed on the website, which is frustrating. During application, the cream was absorbed quickly and really did leave my skin silky smooth. There's also enough for about three full-body uses (and I've got a lot of body to cover!)

Long-Lasting Moisturising Hand Cream

Hand creams have never really appealed to me. I've always been a bit worried that I'd end up with greasy hands and unable to touch anything for ages. Luckily, this cream is not at all like that! It has a rich, creamy formula that quickly absorbs- no greasy hands!- and keeps my hands silky smooth. The scent is a buttery floral that is reminiscent of spring. Moisturised hands and nicely scented ones too!

Anti-Fatigue Iced Gel
My feet are often problematic, so I'm always on the look out for new foot care products. Lavender is pretty much my favourite fragrance, so this sounded perfect for me! The gel is very gloopy and doesn't absorb particularly well, but it does have a very pleasant cold tingle. It turns out this is a result of the menthol ingredient, which is very overpowering in the scent and leaves no trace of lavender at all. For me it was a nice refreshing product to use on my tired feet but unfortunately Rich (who had been assigned the job of rubbing it in) had quite a painful reaction to it. From now on, I'll be rubbing my own feet! 

I've found a couple of great Yves Rocher products here, especially the hand cream. I think my skincare revolution is under way! 

5 tips for organising PR samples (with free downloads)

It's got to the point where I am fortunate enough to often receive PR samples to review on my blog. Although this is, of course, a wonderful perk of blogging, it also means I need to have some pretty solid organisation in place. Luckily for me, blog organisation is something I really enjoy doing, so I've got a good little system worked out. If only I was as organised in my daily life...

First things first, you need to consider how much you can realistically take on board. At first, it's very exciting to be offered samples and it's very tempting to take whatever is put to you, but think it through. Is this something you would consider buying yourself? Is it relevant to your blog and your readers? Is it something that will be useful to your readers? If not, it's probably best to pass. The last thing you need is clogging up your home with products that you'll only use once.

OOTD // 3rd January 2015

Coat: Dorothy PerkinsBag: PrimarkShoes: Primark

Ooh, it feels funny writing 2015! It's going to take me a little while to get used to. I still keep typing 2012 for the year. It's worse when I'm writing, as my hand automatically starts writing 2006 a lot of the time. I'm telling you, my mind is determined to regress me to a perpetual 18 year old! 
This coat was a wonderful Christmas present from my mum this year. I adore flared coats with fur collars as you may have noticed (here and here are two examples) so what could be better than a pink flared coat with a fur collar? Nothing, I tell you!
Guess who spilled hot chocolate down their pink flared coat with a fur collar on the first time they ever wore it. Of course I did. Why would I not? 

Ultimate Blog Tips- Pinterest Board

Way back in 2012, I joined Pinterest after hearing it was the Next Big Thing for bloggers. I used it for about a week, quickly got bored and completely gave up on it, only returning for Halloween and Christmas inspiration at the end of each year. Then something crazy happened: It sucked me in. 

I'm not entirely sure how it happened but I became obsessed with curating the most perfect Pinterest board of all time which, not to blow my own trumpet or anything, I think I've achieved.

My Blog Tips board is an ever-evolving collection of all the best advice posts I've seen around the web featuring topics as varied as inspiration, organisation, monetisation and a whole load of other -ations. Every single pin has been verified, if you like, by my reading the post and only including it in my board if it is informative, useful and original. Any posts featuring a list of common-sense or often-featured tips have not been included. 

Let me tell you, it has taken hours upon hours to individually read through every post and make sure it was useful enough to be included. You can still find over 150 pins on there (which is an ever-increasing number) so, to make it easier for you, I've created a little best of guide divided into handy little categories. 

About page
How to write a killer about page- Amy Lynn Andrews
How to write your about page- In Spaces Between
How to revamp your about page- The Thinking Closet

Branding
The what and why of branding- Elle & Co
Blogging to brand yourself- Levo League
How to effectively brand your social media- Bloggers' Bazaar

Business
8 signs you're ready to become a professional blogger- Shanice Cameron
10 practical tips for going from freelance to full-time- Elle & Co
Tax prep check list- Creative Savings

Content
Creating quality content- Elle & Co
How to write a great blog post- Bloggers' Bazaar
When creative feels wrong- Kory Woodard

Design
Essential elements of a great blog design- Wonder Forest
How to choose a blog designer- Venus Trapped in Mars
DIY blog design tips- The Flourishing Abode

Inspiration
50 no-fluff blog post ideas- Elle & Co
15 blog post ideas- Postcards from Rachel
300+ writing prompts- The SITs Girls

Media Kits
Creating a media kit for your blog- The Well
Media kit 101- Living in Color Print
How to create a media kit- Six out of Ten

Monetisation
Advertising and affiliate services- Bloggers' Bazaar
10 non-icky ways to make money blogging- By Regina
Monetising a blog from day one- Snail Pace Transformations

Networking
5 tips for networking at events- The Well
7 tips for finding your BBFs- By Regina
How to write the perfect networking email- Levo League

Organisation
Balancing blog life with real life- Life Could be a Dream
Tips for starting a blog calendar- Elizabeth Loves
Choosing a blog posting schedule- Bear & Beagle

Photography
Lighting tips and tricks- Making Nice in the Midwest
Tips for using natural lighting- A Beautiful Mess
My shooting setup- Gimme Some Oven

PR
Create a PR calendar for your blog- Girl with a Banjo
How to work with brands- A Thousand Threads
How to reply to press emails you aren't interested in- The Well

Productivity
How to blog productively- Life Could be a Dream
How to get more done in less time- Money Saving Mom
How to take a blogging break without anyone knowing- Blogging on the Side

Promotion
All about blogger business cards- The Well
7 tips for creating a knock-out elevator pitch- Levo League
7 ways to promote your blog more efficiently- The Flourishing Abode

Social Media
How I use social media for my blog- Design Love Fest
How to use Pinterest to increase your blog traffic- Elle & Co
How to grow your blog with Twitter- Bloggers' Bazaar

Sponsorships
6 steps to start sponsorships on your blog- Postcards from Rachel
How to run kick-butt blog sponsorships- Life Could be a Dream
9 things nobody tells you about taking sponsors- Venus Trapped in Mars

As you can see, the same blogs pop up time and time again, so it's well worth checking those ones out. Don't forget you can see the whole board here to see all 150+ pins and please do send over any links you've found that have particularly helped you.  

If this post has been helpful to you, please share or even pin it to your own blog tips board!

Book Review: The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper

The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper- Maxim Jakubowski and Nathan Braund

I cannot even tell you how long I've had this book sitting on my bookshelves. I think my brother may have bought it for me as a Christmas present when I was with in my first year of uni- 7 years ago. All this time it's shuffled around, from house to house, and sat on the bookshelves unread until finally, this month, its time came! Rich and I had been watching a truly fascinating documentary about a new Jack the Ripper suspect, which inspired me to read up more on the case.

Jack the Ripper was the first serial killer I was ever interested in (There's a conversation starter for your next dinner party. You're welcome!) but I can't even remember when that was. As an 8 year old, I was obsessed with Terry Deary's Vile Victorians in the Horrible Histories series, which mentioned my murderous mate Jack, but I already knew about the Ripper by that point. I was clearly just a very morbid child! As I grew up, I acquired a general understanding of the murders and, in fact, one of the first dates Rich took me on was to the Jack the Ripper exhibition at the Docklands Museum. However, I didn't really have the depth of knowledge that I wanted, so this heffa of a book was just what I needed!

The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper is edited by Maxim Jakubowski and Nathan Braund, who open with a very detailed chronology of the murders. They discuss other victims outside the canonical five- Martha Tabram is generally accepted as an early Ripper victim these days- and create a very clear picture of Whitechapel at the time of the crimes. After this in depth study, which draws on several sources of original information, the majority of the book is taken up with various essays from Ripperologists, novelists and journalists who feel they have uncovered the identitiy of the killer. By including so many contradictory and varied arguments, I felt as though I was left with a very broad, balanced understanding of the case and possible suspects.

One area where I felt the book lacked, however, was the complete omission of any images or reproduction of sources. It would have been a huge benefit to have compared, say, the infamous Dear Boss letters with the will of James Maybrick, who is one, now widely discredited, suspect since so much is made of the inconsistencies in handwriting. This would have provided an extra understanding of the case that is difficult to convey through words alone.

Despite this, I found this book to be a fantastic starting point as I move towards developing my understanding further. If nothing else, the extensive bibliography has given me a great reading list to tackle! 

Buy The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper here

Affiliate links have been used in this post

Nails: January 2015

It's official! I am addicted to nails! After struggling with my nails for years, and finally getting acrylics last month, I've become the sort of girl who is in love with her own nails. This month, I thought I'd go for something more sophisticated. 

I was envisioning a pale peach-pink with a gold accent nail, and spent ages choosing just the right shade of pink. My mum helpfully offered suggestions only to have me turn them down because "I don't want a Barbie pink"... and then I chose the Barbiest pink of them all! I try to be sophisticated but I just can't resist bright, happy colours! It's OPI's Sorry I'm Fizzy Today although I'm afraid I have no idea what the gold glitter is.

I'm much happier with the shape of these too. Now that they're a bit longer, they're more of an almond shape. I absolutely love them but, of course, I'm already thinking about what to have next! 

Sponsor Becky Bedbug in January: 20% off!

I cannot even explain to you how excited I am about the upcoming year. New year, new start and all that. I have so many big ideas and I'm thrilled to be putting them into place straight away: Better photography, better promotion and, most of all, I want to be a better sponsee (Is that a word? It is now!).

From now on, all my sponsors can expect three emails during the course of their sponsorship: One at the beginning, one halfway through and one at the end. These emails are an opportunity to check in with you, see how things are going and whether you want any advice. I really want my sponsorships to be based on mutual dialogue rather than just sticking your button in my sidebar.

Since this is something new that I'm really excited about, I'm offering a 20% discount on every ad spot throughout the month of January. Just purchase your ad spot through Passionfruit and use the code January for your 20% off.

Here's what you get:

• An advert in my sidebar for 30 days
• A shoutout on Twitter
• With some options, you'll also get a mention in a sponsor post.

Let's take a peek at the stats:

• 1700+ on Bloglovin'
• 1300+ on GFC
• 4400+ on Twitter
• 12000+ visitors a month

If advertising's not your thing, there are other ways you can get involved, such as sponsored posts and PR reviews. For all the information, take a look at my sponsorship page here or contact me.