MID-MONTH FAVOURITES | TV SHOWS + BOOKS

Hello everyone! I know it doesn't seem all that long ago that i shared a few of my current more lifestyle favourites, in my may beauty + lifestyle favourites post but over the past few weeks/June so far i have been loving so many different more lifestyle things. That being said for today's post i thought i would share a handful of my current favourite binge-worthy tv shows and books...

love island | netflix | itv hub |

First things first, i had to mention the show that pretty much the whole of the UK (me included) are talking/thinking about all of the time. If you aren't familiar with the set up of the show, it is basically singles both men and women, living in a villa and hoping to find love, with a little help with everyone at home deciding who stays and who goes. This reality TV show is so addictive and if you haven't indulged in the show before, i highly recommend catching up from season one/two on Netflix or if you are yet to watch season three you can catch up on the season so far on the ITV hub. 

bulletproof | sky one |

So i actually briefly mentioned this show in my May beauty and lifestyle favourites post, but i didn't go into too much detail. If you are a huge fan of the police drama Lethal Weapon from the US, then you are definitely going to love this as it is basically an English version of the show and as well as having a serious crime story line each week, it also has an hilarious comedy element to it. The show is a mixture of a partner/friendship and conspiracies. Bulletproof is currently on Tuesday's at 9PM on Sky One, but you can binge watch all six episodes so far.

desperate housewives | virgin |
A show that i have started re-watching now it is on Virgin Box sets/on demand is Desperate Housewives, this show used to be one of my all time favourite shows way back when it was first aired. If you never watches it first time around i highly recommend that you do, it is a show that is full of mystery and drama that never gets old no matter how many times you re-watch it.

the ruthless gentleman by Louise Bay | amazon |
So first up on the book favourites is this one by Louise Bay, which happened to be the first book i had ever read by this author and i wasn't sure what to expect. I went in thinking i wasn't going to enjoy this book, as i was still suffering from a slight book hangover after the cliffhanger that the controversial princess and i surprised at how i couldn't put it down. The way this contemporary romance novel was written just flowed so easily and had you captivated with the chemistry between the two characters, i also liked how the way it was written actually made me feel like i was sat on a boat whilst reading it. I will definitely be reading something from her again!

driven by K.Bromberg | amazon |
This book is actually my current read but is one i was literally hooked on from the start, as it started super full-on rather than a build up to the meeting of the two characters. This is also a book from an author that i have never read anything from and i probably wouldn't of ever discovered her books, if it wasn't for this book in-particular being turned into a movie for Passionflix. As i mentioned in my books i want to read post, i am one of those people who likes to read the book before the movie so that is exactly what i am doing. Once i have finished book one i will definitely share more of my thoughts on the story and i am so glad there is 5 books in the driven series.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

xo.

MARCH FAVOURITES | BEAUTY + LIFESTYLE

Hello everyone! Finally, finally, finally we are officially in Spring, which hopefully means we are going to be getting some warmer weather some time soon. Putting that a side i still can't believe that we are about to say goodbye to another month, i'm pretty sure it was new year's five minutes ago. This month as i haven't got all that many beauty and lifestyle favourites to do individual posts, so i thought i would switch things up and combine the two..

mario badescu facial spray

So i have been wanting to try something else out from Mario Badescu, after discovering my love for the drying lotion and i had actually seen a fair few people talking about/using the facial spray, so i decided to give it a go myself. The facial spray comes in three different fragrances, aloe herbs and rose water (which i have), aloe chamomile and lavender and then also aloe cucumber and green tea. This spray leaves your skin feeling refreshed and hydrated without completely wetting your face through, how some facial sprays do. I love how pretty affordable the products are for a more "high-end" brand, as this facial spray for the large 236ml one it is only £11 and the MAC ones cost anything from £12 for the small one and £19 for only 100ml of product.

makeup revolution fast base foundation stick

Next up is the foundation that i have been reaching for pretty much every single day since i first tried it, which i didn't think that would of ever been the case. I have never found that stick foundations work for my normal/slightly dry skin-type but this one works so well and lasts all day long, whilst still looking flawlessly applied. Usually when you are using a stick foundation you have to use a brush to blend it out, which i am not a fan of doing but this foundation blends out flawlessly with a beauty blender. (foundation review post)

morphe bamboo color pencil + anastasia beverly hills gilded lip gloss

Last but not least for the beauty favourites this month, is actually a lip combination that i discovered i love only last week and it is literally just lip liner and gloss - super simple. I finally picked up some of the Morphe Lip Liners from BeautyBay recently and i love them, they are super pigmented, creamy and easy to work with. This shade bamboo is the most beautiful "soft sand" almost light beige nude shade and when applied all over the lips and then topped with a little of golden shimmer gloss from ABH, it looks simply stunning and i am obsessed!

with this man by jodi ellen malpas

I had mentioned in a recent things to binge on in the evenings/weekend post that i had been binge re-reading one of my favourite series of books called This Man, before the release of the all new book and that day came last week. Of course as soon as it was delivered to my door, all my plans for the evening was cancelled to start reading it. Once again Jodi has done an amazing job of captivating you and sucking you back in to all things Jesse and i simply can't put it down, which i am actually amazed i have managed to read properly as from Chapter six on-wards i couldn't stop being tear-y. Talk about a book filled of all the feels and emotions!

the matchmaker's playbook movie

Sticking with the whole romance theme, this time a book turned movie bought to you via Passionflix a service that i have spoken about before. This was also a new release this month and i was super excited to watch it, as i have loved every other movie they have released and i was not disappointed so much so i have seen the movie twice now! I also believe that this movie is going to have a sequel to it, which i can't wait for and i might have to indulge in the book series before this happens (which i have done now with a couple of the movies). 

Catch up on a similar themed post HERE...

xo.

MUSIC, TV + BOOKS AT THE MOMENT | FEBRUARY

Hello everyone! Just a little over a month ago now, i shared my current non-beauty favourites from tv, books, fashion and of course music. In that post i shared a couple of things that i was listening to/watching/reading at that moment in time, as well as some of things i was looking forward to. With that in mind for today's post i thought why not share an updated version of my music, books and tv favourites at the moment...

dvsn - sept 5th (spotify album linked)

So to kick things off with the album that i have been listening to pretty much every single day recently and i am literally obsessed with it, even though it was first released in 2016. I had only ever listened to a couple of songs by dvsn before, including one on Majid Jordan's latest album but i decided to listen to some more from them. Out of the two albums the Sept 5th album is definitely my favourite and i love every single track on it, that being said my ultimate favourites from the album are With Me, Too Deep, Hallucinations and Do It Well.

 fifty shades freed soundtrack (spotify album linked)

I loved so many songs from the Fifty Shades Darker soundtrack and the case has been the same if not more from the final instalment, which i have been to see twice now at the cinema and it was literally everything and more! Just like the previous two soundtracks some tracks were just instrumental rather than lyrical, which i tend to only listen to the lyrical ones. My favourites from this soundtrack are Sacrifice, Heaven, Capital Letters, Heaven, High and of course the official song for the movie For You. 

spotify single playlists linked
god's plan cover - william singe | pray for me - kendrick lamar + the weeknd | god's plan - drake | when we (remix) - tank, ty dolla $ign + trey songz | nuh ready nuh ready - calvin harris + partynextdoor | the weekend (funky wav remix) - sza + calvin harris | my lover - not3s + mabel |

afterburn aftershock movie (amazon video link) (passionflix link)

If you saw my Valentine's post a little over a week ago, sharing eight films to watch this Valentine's day evening then you will already have read me talking about this particular film. Just in case you didn't though, this is a romance book (which i have read) turned into a film by PassionFlix and i ended up loving it equally as much as the book, so much so i have seen it three times ever since first watching it. I also loved the film Hollywood Dirt by the same PassionFlix service, which i also mentioned in my Valentine's Day related post (catch up here).

aurora teagarden tv movies (hallmark movies + mysteries linked)
So the other week i was searching for something to watch and i thought why not give these Aurora Teagarden murder mysteries movies a try, as i had seen Candace Cameron Bure saying she was on set for the latest movie over on her Instagram stories. I didn't expect to become as hooked as i have on them, so much so i have already watched four of them. There is also a bunch of different yet similar murder mysteries on Hallmark, which i might watch after i have watched all of the current ones from the Aurora Teagarden movies.

this man (this man book series) by jodi ellen malpas (amazon linked)

Finally moving onto books and if you read my recent books i want to read in 2018 (part one) post, then you will probably already know how excited i am for the new instalment of the This Man series by one of my favourite authors, which is being released next month. With that in mind i thought why not re-read the current three books just to refresh my memory (that being said once you have read Jesse you will never forget), that guy is intense and i am hoping he hasn't changed in the slightest!

Want something else to read? Catch up on a recent post HERE...

xo.

MUSIC, TV, BOOKS + FASHION AT THE MOMENT | NON-BEAUTY FAVOURITES

Hello everyone! So last month (well last year now) i shared my first non-beauty favourites post in the longest time, which you can catch up on here if you haven't done so already. Seeing as it is a new year there is a lot of new things that i am loving non-beauty related, as well as a lot of things i am looking forward to that i already know will be favourites of mine from, tv to movies, books, music and fashion.

| music favourites | spotify links |
| heartbreak on a full moon - chris brown (album) | the space between - majid jordan (album) | for you (fifty shades freed) - liam payne + rita ora | beach house 3 - ty dolla $ign (album) | finesse (remix) - bruno mars feat. cardi b | william singe covers (playlist) | think about me - dvsn | code blue (fifty shades darker) - the-dream | alone - jesse ware | aura ii ep - elhae |  sex in the city - elliott trent | it's yo birthday - the-dream | h.e.r. volume 2 - h.e.r. (album) | 

| tv favourites | friends (netflix uk) |

This is an obvious favourite ever since January 1st, just like the majority of people in the UK with a Netflix subscription and that is binge watching Friends for the 1083483050th time. The thing that makes it different is you can simply pick and choose now the time and what episode you want to watch. I think Friends will forever be one of those shows you can watch over and over again without getting bored/still always find it hilarious.

| tv favourites | celebrity big brother (channel 5) |
Another TV show i have been watching religiously every night is Big Brother, well Celebrity Big Brother which is something i haven't stuck to watching for some time now and i usually just watch the launch and that is it. That being said i am loving this series, as they have switched things up slightly dedicating it to "the year of the woman" and celebrate the 100 years since women won the right to vote.

| book favourites | darker: fifty shades darker as told by christian |

If you have been reading my posts for a while then you will already know that i have been such a fan of all things Fifty Shades, ever since E L James first released the books and of course now the movies to match. Another thing she has also released is two of the three books, told from Christian's perspective of things and i have finally just got around to starting Darker (which has been so annoying as i have had it sat there ever since it was released at the end of November). Just like i knew i would be i am completely obsessed with it, because Fifty Shades Darker was my favourite book of the three and favourite out of the two movies so far. I am also so excited for the third movie coming out next month and the tickets have been booked for a girls night at the cinema.

| fashion favourites | my january must-buys (post link) |
So at the beginning of the month i shared a post filled with all of my must-buys for the month of January, which included quite a few of the items that i had recently picked up. Three of the items included in that post have become everyday favourites of mine, from the bargain sale DKNY wallet i picked up from House of Fraser to the Chanel Boy bag dupe from Shein and now that has become my everyday purse/bag combination. I have also been obsessing over these bargain detailed block heel ankle boots from Dorothy Perkins, which were a bargain £12 instead of £45, i can't wait to wear these (preferably when it isn't a rainy day).

Catch up on my previous current non-beauty favourites post HERE...

xo.

CURRENT NON-BEAUTY FAVOURITES

Hello everyone! It came to my attention the other day that it has been a hot minute since i last did a non-beauty related favourites post, talking all things non beauty related obviously. Seeing as it is December i am loving a whole bunch of different festive related things like food, music and tv/movies, as well as a few fashion favourites. With that in mind for today's post i thought i would share my current non-beauty favourites.

| fashion favourites | miss selfridge checked scarf (similar linked) |

During "Black Friday" week i picked up this scarf (shown in image) in House of Fraser, i was looking to stock up on a few different scarves for the winter months anyway but when i spotted this particular one, i just couldn't leave it in the shop. I love all the different shades of pinks, with the slight blue and yellow accents as i don't really have anything like this in my wardrobe. It was also such a bargain, as it was £8 down from £16.

| fashion favourites | prettylittlething + boohoo |

For clothing at the moment i have really been loving both pretty little thing and boohoo also, they both have so many great knitwear pieces, coats/jackets and especially this boohoo faux fur gilet. I love faux fur jackets/gilet's, as they can add a little something extra to a plain outfit during the cold months. I also have a similar black faux fur gilet that i have been wearing again, which i picked up last winter from pretty little thing.

| music favourites | mariah carey merry christmas (spotify link) |

So towards the end of November and during the whole of December, the majority of music that i have playing on my Spotify is Christmas music and of course the most played album the same as every year is Mariah Carey's classic Merry Christmas album. I also love all the classics pretty much the same as every year, Spotify have some really great festive playlists under the Seasons Greetings genre.

| movie favourites | christmas movies (netflix link) |

Just like with music, from November right up until January i am constantly watching Christmas movies as they are just the best aren't they? I love how feel good a lot of them are and the Christmas24 channel is constantly playing on the TV, as i love the tv Christmas movies the best and the classics of course. Netflix also have a bunch of new festive films which have been recently added, along side a few other channels. If you want to know a huge list of some of my favourite Christmas movies, then tweet me @iamkatiee_ and i will do a separate post.

| food + drink favourites |

Is it just me of does anyone else use the whole of December as an excuse to nibble on something naughty more than usual? by saying "ok seeing as it is Christmas" ha! With that in mind at the moment food-wise i am living for all of the sweet treat snacks, especially mince pies, terry's chocolate orange (these popping candy ones are amazing) and also white chocolate covered oreo's, which are the best thing in the whole world anyway. Drink-wise which i have mentioned in a different post, i am living for the Starbucks festive drinks made with soy milk.

Catch up on last weeks blog post instalments...

| winter wonderland | christmas homeware picks | quick no makeup, makeup |

xo. 

NON BEAUTY FAVOURITES

Hey guys, i hope you all had a great weekend whatever you got up to! Just recently there has been so many non beauty related things i have been loving and seeing as i haven't updated you all on them in a while, i thought it was about time that i did. A couple of the items do have a festive feel to them but it is that time of year and who doesn't love "christmassy" type things...

1. Christmas Socks.

A winter essential for me is Christmas themed socks, i am obsessed with these from Primark which is part of a 5 pack but this pair is my particular favourite. They are super warm without being too thick and they are so inexpensive which is always a bonus.

2. Hot Chocolate.

Another winter essential is a Hot Chocolate, i just can't seem to get enough. My favourite type of hot chocolate is actually from Starbucks (Soy Hot Chocolate with a shot of Peppermint) but when i am home and i am craving one, i like this particular one "Cadbury Wispa Gold" which you just add hot water to it and it is so amazing!

3. Movies.

If you have been reading my posts for a while you will know by now that i am a huge tv show/movie lover and when it comes to movies i love a good romantic comedy. I wanted to watch this film "The Other Woman" for the longest time since it was out in the cinema but never got round to it. My sister bought it when it was released on dvd and honestly it is the funniest romantic comedy i have seen in so long, all i am saying is two things a) check it out and b) never mess with a woman haha!

4. Notebooks.

I bought these two cute notebooks last week as all of my others were full and i also wanted to get a new one to write down all of my ideas for Blogmas. These particular ones are from Wilkos and was only £1 each, a bargain or what? Also my favourite out of the two is the one with the cute little dog on it, i believe the range is called "Beau Chic" in their stationary section.

5. Christmas Candles.

Last week whilst in Asda i picked up some of the Simply Home range candles from Yankee Candle. I am a hug Yankee Candle fan and noticed this range was slightly less expensive than the classic range and they had so many different scents to choose from. This is the Christmas Treats fragrance and it literally smells like Christmas Cookies/Baking - So good!

What non beauty items are you loving at the moment?

♥

NON BEAUTY FAVOURITES #2

Hey guys, i hope you have all had a good week whatever you have been doing! Firstly i just wanted to give you all a quick update.. I am going to be blogging 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) throughout the month of August, so stay tuned for that as i have a lot of different styles of posts in mind for you all.
So down to business with today's post...
At the beginning of last month i did a blog post on my "non beauty favourites" as i thought it would be something a little different rather than just sharing with you my beauty favourites each month. So here is a few of the things i have been loving this month...

My first and most of all my favourite thing at the moment is my new handbag. I have been wanting this style of bag for so long now and just haven't found one that i really liked until i saw this one. It's called the Kenzie Monochrome Tote Bag by Fiorelli and i got it for such a steal, it was £69 full price but i got it in the sale for half price. (I checked the website for a link but it's no longer available except for on Amazon).

As you might already i am obsessed with Yankee Candle's, i just think they are the best kind (in my opinion) and seeing as it is summer i just had to get my all time favourite scent "summer scoop" it is just the perfect summer time fragrance. I got this large jar with 25% off as fragrance of the month at Clintons. I also picked up a "merry marshmallow" medium jar which was half price at Denby Pottery which i am going to save for the winter time.

Food wise i have been loving these Kelloggs Nutri-Grain Toaster things in the Chocolate flavour, they are so yummy. They are a very similar type of thing as Pop Tarts just with like half the calories and fat content (so you don't feel as guilty). You get them at lots of different supermarkets and places, i got mine from Tesco.

Fashion/Accessories wise this month i have been loving scrunchie's yes that's right SCRUNCHIES! Who would of ever said they would be back in style but they are. I got a bunch of these super cute ones from New Look which were £2.99 for a pack of 2... super cute!

I have been a huge Sims lover ever since it came out way back in the day and have had 1,2 and 3. Just recently i have been watching "Zalfies" Sims series on YouTube and it really made me want to play it again so i had to download it. I think it one of those games where you are never too old to play it.

Music wise this month i have been listening to these two albums non stop. I definitely recommend listening to them if you are very much into R&B type of music.

August Alsina - Testimony https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/testimony-deluxe-version/id843664436

Trey Songz - Trigga https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/trigga/id879528388

What have your non beauty favourites been this month?

NON BEAUTY FAVOURITES

Hey guys, i hope you've all had a great week. So yesterday i was sat thinking what post i could do for you all next which was different. I had noticed that a couple of other bloggers doing "non beauty favourites" posts and thought i would give it a go and share with you a few of my non beauty related favourites that i am loving at the moment...

I had mentioned in a previous blog post about these particular sandals what i had bought from New Look and said that i was tempted to buy them in more colours which i did (white, shown here and also gold). Flat sandals are my favourite thing to wear in summer as they are really comfortable and go with so many different outfits as well as giving a plain outfit a pop of colour.

Check out my blog post related to the New Look Sandals:

http://katiebeautyshake.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/springsummer-accessories-peachy-shades.html

Soy Milk is one of my favourite things to have in either porridge, smoothies, with cereal or even just on its own. I don't have many dairy products in my day to day diet anymore as i was finding it really didn't agree with me so i switched to alternative non dairy products. 

Talking of not having many dairy products anymore i do still have chocolate from time to time ha ha. My favourite type is White Chocolate, especially Milkybar Buttons. When in conversation about favourite types of chocolate a lot of people don't actually like it but i suppose with anything you either like it or you don't.

  

Yankee Candle's are by far the best candles in my opinion and i think i have an un-healthy obsession with buying them, i always have to have a back up candle. I have currently just used up a large jar of the Beach Flowers fragrance and now i am on to my back up one which is a small jar of Clean Cotton. When buying candles the main type of scent i tend to go for is anything clean smelling, there is nothing better!

My Kindle HD Fire is by far is one of the best investments i have ever made. I love reading books but they just take up too much room, so by having one of these it allows me to keep them all in one place. I read so many different genres of books but my favourite has got to be anything with a romantic story line as i am such a sucker for a love story. At the moment i am currently reading In Search of a Love Story by Rachel Schurig, this is the first book in a series of three books and i am really enjoying it. With books i think you know within the first few pages whether its for you or not.

Finally my last favourite at the moment is Sam Smith. I am obsessed with this album "In The Lonely Hour", his voice is just perfection and is so easy listening. I am always listening to so much different music as i am obsessed with music and can't go a day without listening to it.

I hope you have enjoyed reading about some of my favourite non beauty items and i hope you all have a fantastic weekend whatever you have planned!