I was recently invited to experience a Zone Facelift treatment with Steve Hunt Reflexology in Northampton. Being a beauty blogger, I am obviously very interested in new treatments, but also being from Northampton I was very excited to see something so different arrive in my home town.

Summer may have come to an end, but that does not mean I will be packing my dresses away. I like to wear them all year through, and bring a little sunshine into every day. I love the large variety of styles dresses offer us, I love the fact that they can be dressed up or down to suit any occasion and I love the fact that dresses are a way to not only express how you feel but also help to set you into the mood/character you are trying to convey.

I wrote a blog last year while pregnant about how Vivien Of Holloway has influenced the woman I am today, How they had helped me grow from an awkward teenager to a happy confident woman, and how after my pregnancies I was devastated that I had lost that confidence. So here I am, a year after having my second son and finally enjoying dresses again. Though I could not be happier being a Mummy again, it is a little saddening that I don't fit into any of my old Vivien dresses now, so when a lovely blogger friend of mine She Might Be Loved was running a competition to win a Halterneck Swing Dress, I thought, I might as well give it a try!

If you have read my blog before you may know that I have suffered from anxiety, I haven't gone into detail and I know some people don't understand how serious this mental illness can be. I don't want to run through the whole long story, but I feel I should explain that after my miscarriage, mine meant I didn't leave the house for a year and I often suffered from anxiety attacks. I am getting out a lot now and like to think I am coping well with being busy again, but sometimes I still feel a bit like a child playing grown up and I am very weary of falling back into the state that I was. This is where Lush comes in, not only does smells and Lush products relax me, but when I am feeling partically on edge, a trip to Poole always grounds me.

I have struggled with my breasts for years, I have related them to feeling ugly and I have carried them with guilt for not being able to feed my children. It has only been in the recent months that I have learnt to love them, this has been made so much easier to do with companies like Curvy Kate, not only do they celebrate the larger figure but they also provide lingerie that offers great support and is actually beautiful too.

If you have read my blog before, you may have noticed I work with a store called Bohemian Finds every so often. For those who haven't, Bohemian Finds is a Northampton based shop specialising in vintage inspired clothing. They stock much loved pinup brands such as Voodoo Vixen, Hell Bunny, Banned Apparel, Collectif and more. I also love the fact there is a large array of sizes from 6 to 26. Me and Gretchen share a big love of vintage fashion and we both believe difference is something to be celebrated. So we wanted to collaborate on a Live Window Display to not only showcase the new summer collection, but to also let others know how beautiful they are too.

I am whole heartedly in love with Gorilla Perfumes fragrances, and a good facial scrub is also a must have in my cosmetic collection. So as you can imagine, when I heard there would be three products released by Lush as part of their Fathers Day Range sharing the Smugglers Soul scent, I was ecstatic.  Then I found out one would be a facial scrub, and this left me floating on cloud 9. Ever since, I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of this smoky, Sandalwood treat, and now it is in my possession I can confirm it has not left me disappointed.

What can bring a smile to your face more than a pretty dress and meeting lovely people. I was recently reminded of this while talking to a lady called Marie, who shares my love of dresses and who owns her own shop selling them. We talked about how dresses make us feel, how they can have big affect on our lives and of course we discussed some of our favourite brands. This led to her very kindly sending me a beautiful dress to review, and I can not wait to tell you about it.

I am a terrible dress addict, it is a very rare occasion you will see me not wearing one. I feel my best in a beautiful dress and I love that there are so many styles that I can wear them all year around. When it comes to finding the perfect dress for your beach getaway however, things can be a little tricky, You want something that is pretty, but also something that will still be comfortable to wear in the heat and of course won't get messy easily as you lay around the sand and take part in any water activities.

Social media has been buzzing with the news that this year Lush will be releasing a Fathers Day range. I am doing my best to keep calm and wait for the release, but it is getting very difficult, not to give in and search out information of the products or even from buying them from other Lushies that have already gotten them abroad. While Lush is a unisex cosmetics company, it got me thinking how nice it is to bring out items that celebrate the special men in our lives. So while we wait for the release I thought I would take a look at the limited edition Lush Men gift set that has just come to stores.

I have always wanted a red polka dot dress, but for some reason I have never owned one before. When I spotted this Dolly and Dotty Tiffany dress pop up on my screen, and on a nice little sale, I knew I had to make it mine. I have had a few Dolly and Dotty dresses, that had always been great quality so I didn't need much more convincing to buy that dress.

So my first experience of Sculptresse (Panaches curvy sister) has been pretty magical, I am feeling amazing in my new sets, and for the first in a long time, I am starting to enjoy lingerie again. I never imaged that at my size I would ever find a set that would be so pretty, and I never imagined that being proven wrong would make me feel so good.

At heart I am a bit of a ruralist, when it comes to relaxing, the idea of living in a little cottage by the sea, or laying by a little stream in the woods really appeals to me. Unfortunately moments like that don't really seem to happen nowadays, so my usual solace can be found in a book. Something that can really make me feel connected to the english countryside, to the calming greenery or the wild moors, (something such as Jane Eyre or Withering Heights). Books are perfect for escaping and for seeking adventure, but what if I could also find something that made me feel this way in my other comfort, fragrances? Well thanks to Gorilla Perfumes, it looks like now I can.

I have had a few people message to ask me how I use Lush Knot-Wraps in my hair. So I have put together a little video to show a simple style. Thank you for watching and please subscribe to my youtube. Also feel free to send me comments and pictures of how you have styled yours!

Reusable Bubble Bars are like magical wands to me, I really am in awe of them. Not only do they look pretty, come in wonderfully creative designs but they can also be dried out and used again. Reusable Bubble Bars are like a celebration, and Lush knows it. They are not a permanent feature, apart from in Lush Oxford Street (which is a whole store of celebrations really) but Lush knows to bring them out when something special is happening, and we need to add a little extra luxury to our tubs.

I am afraid I am not the most up to date lady around, I couldn't tell you any celebrity gossip, I couldn't tell you who's in the charts (Is that still a thing?) and I couldn't tell you the latest fashion trends. I can, however, tell you about beautiful dresses, and I could talk to you about them until the cows come home. Finding the right dress can make you feel beautiful and confident.  I have so many people message me, telling me how they would love to wear 'That' dress but can't, but believe me, you can.

For some reason Bras are like a right of passage in a womans life. Getting your first one felt like you had finally grown up, and finding the right set makes you feel like you can take on the world. There used to be a time, however, when lingerie shopping depressed me. I hated being marched around stores, poked and prodded, and hearing the umms and arrs by shop ladies who didn't have much stock in my size. Lingerie shopping was just something that had to be done, not something that would be enjoyed, but oh how things have changed.

Since Christmas I have been caught up in a big flurry of Lush gift set excitement. I have always found them to be beautiful, but apart from buying a few as gifts, I usually leave them and purchase the products individually. Now I know the joy of receiving these however, I can not stop myself falling in love with them. Each new seasonal gift set that has been released has been stunning, and I am becoming a bit of a collector.

If you have read my blog before, you can probably tell that I love baths. So it makes sense that I put a lot of thought into the decor of the room that provides me with sanctuary. I also find the sea very relaxing, and this is why while thinking of redecorating, a sea theme seemed like the perfect choice.

When it came to booking my first holiday since having my second son, my first thought was not of a relaxing holiday, but of what this would mean for my wardrobe. We decided on a trip to Benidorm in Spain. Although the weather was not blisteringly hot, I knew it would be time to bring out the swimwear and take a splash. After having a baby it's really hard to find clothes that feel right for your new mummy body, but having to find a swimming costume that would show off every little curve, can be a little daunting.

Tomorrow I am going on holiday to Spain, and as much as I am looking forward to it, I was a little sad to think I would miss out on all the Lush wonders that will be released for Easter. Of course I can see them when I get back, but how disappointing would it be to miss out on all that pre release excitement. So luckily, with good timing, I was invited to a sneak peek on Wednesday, at the Lush Milton Keynes store, and I just couldn't miss out on such a fabulous meet up with them again.

When I got married my confidence was not in the best place, I had been through a traumatic birth, I had gone from a size 14 to 18 and I struggled to control my anxiety enough to even leave the house. So much had changed over the years of getting engaged and having a child and I felt lost and unimportant. So when it came to shopping for my wedding dress, I felt scared of drawing attention to myself and ridiculous at the notion that I could be beautiful.

Leaving no time for the excitement to die down from the Valentines release, Lush has now launched their Mothers Day Range for 2016. Seeing previews of cute, sunny products always catches my attention and I could not wait see and smell these items in person. What better way to show your Mother figure how much they are loved, then gifting them an item that says, let yourself be looked after too.

With my blog reaching its first year, I am feeling rather nostalgic. As I have mentioned before, my blog was set up to keep me positive during a possibly difficult time, and now I can't help but smile as I think back on all the lovely things I have done this year, and all the amazing people I have met. In the spirit of this, to celebrate my first ever Bloggerversary, I took a day out, to do lots of nice things. So why not take a look at what I got up to and don't forget to enter my Give-A-Way at the end. But first (in a sing song voice) Here are a few of my favourite things!

I have been obsessed with make up since I was a child. I remember watching my mother getting ready, putting on hers and looking a vision of beauty I could only hope I would grow up to be. Lipstick has always been my favourite, and when I got the next best thing a child could have, my very own lip balm, I felt I was on my way to growing into the beautiful, confident woman I so wanted to be. So when I was sent the Lypsyl Trio, all these heart warming memories came floating back to me and I felt the excitement of what it was like to take them first steps into the beauty world.