November Primark Haul!

So last Saturday I decided to brave the shops and do a bit of Christmas shopping and decided to pick up a few bits from Primark. Now if your anything like me, I love Primark but I hate how busy it gets so I tend to go early on when it is a bit quieter.



With winter upon us I thought that I would see what winter pieces they were stocking this year and I thought I would share with you what I picked up! I am the type of person who is warm when it's snowing and tend not to wear a coat because I over heat. With that being said I still get chilly so I thought a few of these accessorise would keep me warm!



There is nothing worse than have wet, cold feet and wearing boots in the winter I like to wear fluffy cosy socks so I picked up these packs to help keep my toes warm. These thick navy socks would be perfect for wearing with boots and the snowflake pattern makes them very festive! So fluffy and cozy with a silver thread running through and at £2 for two pairs they were a steal!



Now I'm not one for being too adventurous with fashion so when I saw these I thought they were too cute not to buy and they will be hidden away so I wont look to silly, the gray marl is perfect and the cute little penguin face adds a nice touch! These to were very inexpensive and came in at £2. Great for stocking fillers too!



I was looking around the sock department and noriced these slippers! They are just what I was looking for, I like slippers that have a tough sole so I can take the bins out, hang the washing on the line and not feel the ground.



They had a wide variety of colours and the teal one just stood out for me as they look more expensive. I also picked my mam a pair up for Christmas in a nice berry colour. The inside is so fluffy they will be great to pop on in the morning when the floor is colder. They were £4 so a bargain!



Now all though I do like slippers, I like slipper socks too, they are less restrictive and sometimes more cosy as you can put your feet up, sleep with them on etc. I love the fair isle design on these and the pom pom's just add a bit of character, These were only £4 so I thought why not!



I am renowned for having problems with my ears, especially in the winter months and I tend to get ear ache quite easily, every year yet I have looked at earmuffs in stores and been tempted to buy them but the thought of looking silly has always stopped me!



When I saw these all black earmuffs and only cost £2 I thought even if I keep them in my bag and in the dark nights nobody would see, or even walking Lulu. Now obviously there is nothing wrong with wearing earmuffs, no matter how jolly they are, this is just me being me with my confidence issues!



I always tend to get cold hands, but I hate the feeling of wearing gloves, so I love these fingerless gloves as they are a cable knit so nice and warm but they also have the option of turning them into mittens which will be handy when it does get freezing!  And at £3 I wouldn't be worried about losing one (which I generally do!).



I saw these and couldn't resist! I love novelty gloves and think that these are too cute not to wear and they happened to just jump into my basket! oops! Well at £3 not too much damage was made.



I think they are meant to be pandas and they look so cosy and even have a rhinestone to attach the mitten past to the glove.



I love scarves, I had them in all colours/textures but recently we had a house flood and all mine were damaged so I was in need of a new winter scarf. If you love scarfs head to Primark they have loads, and they are all very pretty.

I came across a lot of Snood's, so thought I would give one a go, they had a large variety and all very inexpensive. I discovered this black cable knit snood and I loved it! the outside is cable knit and the inside is a fluffy cosy material so it will  keep me super cosy.



Now this one was a bit more pricey than the others because of the two textures but still came in at £6 so not bad at all when you compare prices with Topshop etc.



I love tote bags for carrying my extra things to work such as lunch, coffee, cups etc but in the winter the material tends to get a bit battered from the rain and with them being material they tend to soak through. So when I saw this bag I thought it would do the trick!

Its is a faux leather tote bag with gold hardware and a leather tassel. the inside fastens with a popper and it also comes with a tablet pouch which I will propyl use for make up! I thought given the material this would be perfect for what I need and at £10 it wasn't much more expensive than a tote bag would be.



I don't know about you but when I am at the till waiting to pay, I always get drawn into the goodies on display, this time it was this lunch bag that caught my eye. It is the perfect sixe for my lunch and will fit perfectly in the bag I bought. It was only £1 so I picked up two!



So that was my Primark haul and I hope it has inspired you to visit your local store.

Thanks for reading

Tracy xx

 

 

 

 

My Sole Affair Wish List!

Recently I have been in contact with Sole Affair, a online shoe and accessories inspired by the latest catwalk trends. They have been selling the hottest designs since 2003 so they defiantly know there stuff!

Being a larger lady the one thing I am thankful for is I don't have to buy wide shoes so I am lucky in that respect and I am able to shop around. As winter is creeping in and the party season is coming, this is a time of year that I like to get new shoes, boots for the winter and something a bit glitzy for work Christmas parties or if I am feeling brave, nights out.

So I would like to share with you my top ten shoes that are on my wish list for the Winter time in no particular order!

 

1)BRAWL Block Heel Cleated Sole Ankle Worker Boots £19.95

I don't know about you but I love a good pair of lace up biker style boots, I usually go for a flat leather pair but these take on a new twist with the heal and cleated sole, I'm sure these would be great to stop any slippery accidents in the snow and ice!

2) ZIPPY Leather Style Zip Trim Ankle Chelsea Boots £29.95

Now another favourite of mine is a classic pair of Chelsea boots, they go with everything and can be dressed up or down, so when I seen this classic boot with a twist I thought it would be a good alternative and on trend. The boot is your average Chelsea boot but with a zip detail, the gold contrast adds something else is a nice twist. These would be perfect from a busy day shopping then a few drinks as they can be both dressed up or made casual!

3) CHASE Black Knee High Chelsea Boots £32.95

Now all though I don't have wide feet, one thing I do have is wide calf's, so as you can imagine buying knee high boots can sometimes be a nightmare or even very expensive, so a boot like this is ideal, it has a side stretch panel which would allow maybes someone who struggles with a larger calf to be able to buy an affordable pair of boots that offer comfort also.



 

4) CARLY Chunky Demi Wedge Block Heel Platform Sandals £24.95

One trend I have always been curious to try but too afraid is a chunky platform. I have always had issues with walking in heel but somehow I can manage a platform/wedge as the heel itself is not too high compared to the instep. These shoes look amazing and I am sure you would be able to last all night partying in them or even when worn with ankle socks they could be made to look quite casual and cute.

5) ARMARNI Nude Suede Platform Stiletto Shoes £22.95

These have to be the most stunning shoe I have seen in a while! I will admit I might not be able to walk in them but they look so pretty. the gold heel just adds that something special and all though these are very high the platform at the front would make them a little more comfortable, they come in nude, red & black and they would be my shoes I would wear for a meal as I would be sitting for most of the night but my shoes would look stunning!

6) JESSIE Sexy High Heel Platform Peeptoe Diamante Heels Black £34.95

Now I know what your thinking, how on earth do I think I could walk in these, but lets take a moment to admire them, stunning black shoe with a certain designer touch having a red sole. The gems just make this extra special and if I could I'd be rocking these on the dance floor ( even with my confidence theses would have me on the dance floor!) Simply Stunning!



 

7) MATILDA Designer Style Smile Tote Shoulder Bag  £17.95

Now Sole Affair don't just sell shoes they also sell handbags and you may recognise the style of this one, it is very similar and inspired by the Celine smile bags, this would be perfect to use to the office, not to big, not to small and is currently in their sale!

8) WILD Structured Designer Shoulder Bag - Leather Style £21.95

Now firstly I love the colour of this bag and the size would again be great for the office. What I like most about this bag is the little details, the gold hardware reminds me of Mulberry and the zip detail adds more interest. This bag is also in the sale, might have to make a purchase!



What would be on your wish list? And what shoes do you plan on wearing during the winter months?

Thank you to Sole Affair for making me aware of what you have to offer and I really enjoyed looking through your catwalk inspired pieces that you offer. If you want to find out more or shop my wishlist head on over to www.soleaffair.com!

Thanks for reading

Tracy xx

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Slimming World Update & Suprise!

About two weeks ago now, I joined Slimming World and I promised that I would do a weekly update on my progress. Well after not sticking to the plan and knowing I was going to be working on my day off, the excuses came in bag full's for reasons why I hadn’t been able to follow the plan and how hard it was going to be to get to my weekly class.

I am the type of person who often lives in the moment when it comes to diets/healthy eating and often uses the phrase ‘I will start tomorrow’. So with that being said I sat and thought about my goals in life regarding my weight and lifestyle and knowing I had committed to a twelve week plan I knew that I had to really think about what I was doing.

I had a look on the Slimming World website to look for an alternative class that Emily (my consultant) would be holding. I found that there was one on the Tuesday evening, so all day I was thinking should I or shouldn’t I go, maybes I could miss this weeks weigh in, be good and then next week I would be fine. In my head that seemed like the best option, I wouldn’t show a gain in my first week and I wouldn’t have to own responsibility for my actions.

Then I thought, if I was to do that what chance have I actually got of waking up the next day and thinking ‘today is the day!’ very little seeing as a whole week had gone by and I hadn’t started already. So I decided to go to the Tuesday evening class but I made an agreement that I had to go but I wouldn’t stay for ‘Image Therapy’ which is where you talk about your week, ideas for recipes, new products on the market etc.

So I walked in the room nervously, feeling ashamed that I hadn’t followed the plan on my first week, waiting in line to get weighed Emily came over with a huge smile, ‘Well how have you done?’ she said, what do I say I thought, so I just said the truth, that I hadn’t followed the plan but I was determined that Slimming World is the plan for me.

Emily's response? ‘It doesn’t matter what has gone on in the past week, what matters is that you have came today, I am proud of you!’. How could anyone be proud of me? I had failed, then I thought actually failing would have been not going to a class that week and making excuses for reasons that I couldn’t do or follow the plan. So I wouldn’t go as far as saying that I was ‘proud’ of myself but I was pleased with the decision I had made.

Once I left the class that evening, something was different about my attitude towards food, I was determined that I was going to start the plan and not make any excuses, so again this week I was working on my day off so I chose to go to the Tuesday evening class and I was so pleased that I did, I lost 5lbs! Now I know that might not seem like a lot considering my size, but at this point in time any loss is great.

I didn’t want to do a post last week to let you know that I wasn’t following the plan and had a gain as readers who have never tried Sliming World might have been put of thinking about joining etc and I knew that my gain was solely down to myself!

So with a good weight loss this week I am determined to get my half stone award next week, so if you’ve done the maths that will mean I need at least a 2lb loss next week which I think is very achievable hoping things all go well.

So what I thought might be nice, was to allow one of my readers a chance to win a Slimming World magazine and I also bought another copy of this years Christmas recipe book too to go with the magazine, hopefully this will give either an existing Slimming World member a few ideas for the Christmas season or give someone who is thinking about joining a bit of a head start.



Now Slimming World are not sponsoring me or providing the giveaway, I have put this together myself just because I know how hard it can be to embark on a weight loss journey and would like to offer someone who maybes wouldn’t normally purchase these books a chance to try them.

All you have to do to enter is follow me on twitter @littlemisspluss, also follow @slimmingworld and give this post a thumbs up! You have up until November 28th to enter. Good luck!

Thanks for reading

Tracy xx

The Self Love Tag!

Thank you to the lovely Dee from Prompts by Dee (My October blogger of the month!) for nominating me for such a lovely tag!

1. What does self-love mean to you?

It means being able to accept yourself for who you are and learning to be kind to yourself. For me this is something that I am really bad at and I am working on. 'Learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all' now brownie points if you know what song that quote is from! but I think that it is true. People who are the most content with themselves seem to treat themselves the best and do not doubt there beliefs or feelings.

2. What is your favourite way to pamper yourself?

For me it has to be a bath, yes a bath! Now I do bath regularly but a nice bubble bath with a Lush bubble bar and bath bomb is my way of pampering myself. My favourite at the moment is a rose jam bubble bar from lush it smells heavenly!

3. What are your three favourite hobbies/pastimes that make your soul feel on fire?

For me being at the beach, I love being there in the colder months, me, my dog and the waves! There is nothing more soothing than being by the beach, it makes you realise that you are tiny in comparison to the world and that no matter what is going on in your life a visit to the beach on a chilly day will always make the worst situations seem that little bit better!

I love singing, I cant sing for toffee but I find that putting the radio on full blast and as my mam likes to call it have my 'mad half hour' where I can sing as loud as I want, even have a little dance and relieve stress. It works for me and makes me a little happier to have a little bit of 'silly time'.

Blogging! as cringe worthy and predictable as can be but blogging is a new hobby for me and I can honestly say it is the best thing I have ever done. I have met some amazing people, bloggers and readers and all the support has been amazing. Looking at other lovely blogs is so inspiring and it is such a lovely community!

4. What movie always puts you in a good mood when you’re not in the greatest mood?

I love older movies so mine would have to be Dirty Dancing! I also love Calamity Jane and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers!

5. Who do you trust so much that you would easily believe in anything and everything they said?

My mam, I have done all my life and cant see that changing!

6. What quote totally motivates you?

That's a tough one. 'If you can only see the wrong in others, then the others will only see the wrong in you'.

7. When was the last time you took yourself on a date? What did you do?

In all honesty I cant remember!

8. What make-up or beauty products makes you feel like a million bucks?

This is a tough one to narrow it down , I would have to say foundation. Sometimes my skin just looks a bit bleh so having a nice flawless base makes me feel a bit more confident about myself.

9. What is the last thing you did for someone else that made you feel amazing?

Amazing is a strong word, but my mams friend was running late for work and I managed to pick her up and take her in which saved her a 2 hour bus journey, not amazing but it felt good helping someone.

10. Do you feel comfortable with and without make-up on?

I tend to mix it up a bit depending on the amount of time I have to get ready, I prefer wearing make up because I feel more put together but I am not the type of person to not leave the house without makeup. I agree I look better with makeup but I am comfortable enough to go bare faced too.

11. What piece of advice would you give a child about to grow up with the pressures of today’s media and its crushing expectations?

As cheesy as it may sound, don't worry about the little things or trying to be the best at everything, spend quality time with friends and family. When you are young you have a lot of people around you, its not until you get older you realise that having the latest gadgets, beauty products were not important but remember and look back on the fun things you did with the people you care about.

12. What song puts you in a good mood every time?

Lulu my Yorkshire terrier. she is so cute!

13. What is the best advice someone gave you or you realized about life?

Being the person that never makes a fuss or is a people pleaser is not who you are meant to be. We all have opinions and feelings so let them be heard.

14. Who makes you giggle like a giggle monster?

My mam, sometimes I wonder how I have survived with all the crazy things she says!

15. What is something about society that bugs you that you wish didn’t?

People who have no intention of working and expect others to pay there way. I fully understand and sympathies with those on benefits who genuinely cannot work but I don't agree with people who just cant be bothered or don't want a 'normal' job.

16. What is one of your favourite things to do on the weekends?

Going for a drive to the beach and spending time with Lulu.

17. What is something you’re really proud of that you’ve done?

Learning to drive, It took me a lot of theory tests and three practical's but I did it and I have never looked back.

18. What is one of your favourite memories with one of your friends?

I cannot pin point one in particular but me and my friend Jen have had a lot of happy times.

19. What advice would you give someone who needs a boost in confidence?

Find what makes you tick, when we do thins we love we tend to shine!

20. Lastly, how do you plan on investing in self-love?

Trying to be kinder to myself.

I nominate:

Mookie

Jodie

Melissa Victoria

Carolin

Amelia ♥

Paisley-May Says...

Thanks for reading

Tracy xx

 

 

 

My Winter Warmers!

 



If you live in the UK you may have noticed a change in temperature recently, now I am the type of person who is always warm come rain or shine, but there has defiantly been a chill in the air.

Last week you may have seen a post letting you know that I have re-joined slimming world and I have to be honest and say I have had a rocky start, however the last few days have been great and I am 100% on plan and thoroughly enjoying it! (just had a syn free chilli and it was gorgeous!).

When it comes to drinks I only ever drink Pepsi Max and I think I have an addiction! If you follow the Slimming World plan you will know that all of your diet soft drinks are syn free therefore you can have as much as you like.

I would say for the past couple of years at least I can easily drink 2 litres a day of Pepsi Max, now syn free or not I know that that is not good for me.

So with that being said I started to look at the hot drinks on the market that would fit in with my Slimming World plan and thought I would share them with you.



Firstly I actually enjoy green tea, I know many people don't. Its not my favourite drink but I do enjoy it so when I saw TeaPigs Mao Feng Green Tea I thought I would give it a try and it is lovely, I find that having a cup during the day at work helps me keep hydrated and warms me up too! (free)



Everybody has been raving about Chai tea and I had never tried it and could not see what all the fuss was about until I tried Twinnings Chai Tea, Its is a spicy tea that I find very calming and like to have a cup before bed. (free)



Now I was very excited to have finally found these, Gingerbread & Cinder Toffee instant coffee by Beanies, the flavour co. These are so tasty and defiantly fix my sweet craving. I had them in the office today and everyone was wanting to try them. I preferred the Cinder Toffee one until I tried the Gingerbread with a bit more milk and splendour and it was amazing! If your not a fan of sweet hot drinks then I would give this a miss, but for a sweet lover like myself these do the trick.



They are only 2 calories per serving (Free on Slimming World) and come in a wide range of flavours (which I hope to buy in the future). They have a chocolate orange one which I think I might try next. I found these at Sainsbury's and they were £2 each for a 50g jar which is not bad.



I love Costa Gingerbread lattes, but when I seen their syn value I could of had an average potion of chips for the amount of syns in one latte! So first I was thinking about adding nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger to a milky coffee but then discovered these in Asda, Nescafe Gingerbread Latte sachets. They taste lovely, no milk just add hot water and you are good to go. Now these do have a higher syn value(4 1/2) but considering the alternative as a treat it is yummy!



Now last but not least I was looking at the hot chocolates about and noticed these Cadbury Highlights in Fudge and Cadburys Chocolate. Now again these are not something you could drink cup after cup as they have a syn value (2) but to fix a chocolate craving or even as a hot drink to sit by the fire with then this is great! They do other flavours too such as caramel, Bournville chocolate etc.

Now I hope these have inspired you to get out your favourite mug and enjoy a guilt free tasty treat. So far so good I have limited my Pepsi Max intake and replaced it with these hot drinks instead.

What's your favourite hot drink?

Thanks for reading

Tracy xx

Urban Decay Dupes?

Whilst I was out shopping at the weekend I discovered these amazing palettes! Now looking at them they are very close dupes for Urban Decays Naked palettes.

I have never been lucky enough to own the Urban Decay Naked palettes so when I saw these sitting on the shelve I thought I would give them a try.



The Palettes are 'In the Buff' and 'In the Nude' by the brand Warpaint. I must admit this is not a  brand that I have came across before but they are Both are very wearable colours. In the Buff the colours are more brown tones and they are quite matt colours.



There is a gorgeous black and white colour in this palette which would be great as a highlight and smoky crease colour. I cant wait to try these.



Now I love the look of these pinky, rose gold colours in the 'in the Nude' palette however I must admit that they are not colours I would usually go for but I think that they would look amazing when applied with some shades from In the Buff.



I am really looking forward to playing around with these palates especially as we come into the party season.



These palates normally come in at £9.99 but I was able to pick them both up for £5.95 each whicj I thought was to good to pass up.

Now obviously the quality is not going to be as good as the Urban Decay shadows but I am sure when applied over a primer or eye base they will last longer on the lids and I am sure that for the price I can spend a little extra time trying to perfect the look.

Which palette would you chose? Have you tried any Urban Decay Dupes? or the real thing?

Thanks for Reading

Tracy xx

Ciate Mini Mani Month & Giveaway!

For the past couple of years every time December comes around I see all the lovely beauty advent calendars floating around. Now I would love to have every one going but they seem to be quite expensive.



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't get me wrong I understand that beauty advent calendars will always be a lot more expensive than your average chocolate calendar and that is understandable. However December is a time I spend looking and buying gifts for friends and family so I cant  justify or simply just don't have the money to buy my own calendar.



So you can imagine my excitement when I was shopping in TK Maxx and came across Ciate's Mini Mani Month calendar for £19.99 with the RRP of £52! Now don't get too excited it is last years calendar but in all honesty that does not bother me I am just so pleased to have my very own beauty advent calendar.



Now I am sure you are all familiar with the concept of a advent calendar, you open a door for each day in the month of December until you reach Christmas Day. For the Ciate calendar you receive one of there nail polishes each day!

I cant wait to wake up and open each door, hopefully it will add a little bit of excitement to the build up of Christmas. Also If you have read my latest posts you will see I have re-joined slimming world so receiving a nail varnish each day instead of a piece of chocolate will also benefit my waist line too!

Whilst I was out shopping I started to think about how nice it would be to be able to offer my readers a chance to win a calendar also. So if you are ok with receiving last years Ciate Mini Mani Month calendar enter my giveaway for a chance to win!

The Rules

1) Unfortunately this will be a UK Giveaway only, purely for postage reasons.

2) You have to Thumbs up this post

3) Leave a comment letting me know what you are most looking forward to receiving this Christmas.

4) Follow me on Blogloving & Twitter.

That's it!

I will pick a winner at random on 24th November and you will receive your calendar in time for the 1st December!

Good luck everyone!!

Thank you for reading

Tracy xx