Today I thought I'd share how I made my brush holder. Believe it or not, this started life as an old Nutella jar and some nail polish!


(Apologies for the horrific state of the brushes. I use these every day and today is wash day!)

First, you take any old glass jar. I used a Nutella one as this was just what we had hanging around and it was a nice shape and size.


Then you select your nail polish colour. I had a few glitter polishes that I would just never use so I chose these.

Then you need to layer them one by one on the inside of the jar. You need thin layers and each layer does need to dry before you put the next one on. It took me quite a few layers (three bottles of polish went into this!) but I think it looks amazing! I saved a old jar and used nail polish I never would have :)

I've just finished reading Chris Hadfield's An Astronauts Guide to Life on Earth and its one of the first books in a long time thats genuinely made me think.

Its full of brilliant advice on how to succeed and really shows the importance of teamwork and how far a supportive environment with colleagues really can take you. Sure, in our daily lives, a colleague's actions couldn't cause or save us from death, but it really was a great insight into how fostering an environment of support amongst peers can take you all further than if you had all pitted yourself against the other from the off.

Its also full of gems like "aim to be a zero".  I love this idea and Chris explains it brilliantly. The idea is everyone is ranked as +1 (contributes positively to the team), a 0 (doesn't add but equally doesn't take away from the team) or -1 (a nightmare and makes everyones life harder). He says that people come in pitching straight for +1 but end up being -1 as they usually don't have the knowledge and experience and bumble in thinking they know more than everyone and in doing so usually make it all harder for everyone else, especially if silly mistakes are made. In a new situation, aim to be a 0, accept you don't know it all and are there to learn and in doing so, you won't make it harder for everyone else and will actually take it all on. Eventually, when you do have that knowledge and experience you will be a +1. I think this is great advice and I'll definitely try this!

Mondays are often dreaded as the worst day of the week. Everyone is back at work and it often feels like the day has literally nothing good about it to look forward to. Why?

Monday is just another day.

Yes the weekend has gone, but its the start of another week thats full of possibilities. This week, make a conscious effort to make Monday something to look forward to. Promise yourself you will do something to make it worthwhile getting out of bed for. Whether thats treating yourself to a proper coffee rather than having instant, getting out for a walk at lunch or the fact you will sit down and read that book or magazine you've been saving.

Whatever it is, just do it and Enjoy Monday!

I managed to try the new Bare Minerals BarePro foundation this week and I'm very impressed. Its a good colour match for my ghostly pale skin and offers build able coverage. I also bought the new brush to go along with it, it's so soft! You apply this by putting a tiny amount on the brush, tapping off the excess and then buffing in as you do with the loose foundations.

I'm also so impressed with the concealer. It really does cover my dark circles and brightens my eyes and its a pretty good dupe for my previous non-cruelty free Bobbi Brown corrector that I thought I would never replace!

As I bought it at an event Selfridges were running, I also got a goodie bag with the serum and a mini lip balm in which I'm excited to use.

I love the danish concept of Hygge. It doesn't translate into english well but Visit Denmark translates it as:-

"In essence, hygge means creating a nice, warm atmosphere and enjoying the good things in life with good people around you."

To me its about those little things we often forget or never allow ourselves to do that actually make you feel all cosy, warm and fuzzy inside.

Like curling up under a blanket with a brew and a book when its raining, lighting a scented candle just because and having good food and spending time with good friends.

This year, my new years resolution was to Hygge and I can safely say I've definitely managed to keep it up and I'm now looking forward to Autumn again so I can Hygge properly!

One thing I love is that she repeatedly advocates Progress, not perfection. I love how making one healthy choice is enough and I dont have to beat myself up for not following every single rule to the letter all of the time, things like that always set me up to fail!