12 D.I.Y Mothers Day Presents

Photo Credit: Top Left: Skip To My Lou Top Centre: Lauren Dixon Paver Top Right: The Gurney Sack
Bottom Right: Design Moms Bottom Centre : Live Simply Bottom Right:About a Mom

Mothers day in the U.K is this Sunday 11th March. A handmade gift makes a thoughtful and personalised present. I've put together 12 D.I.Y gift ideas. If you are broke (take a look at the free printable coupons) or want to give something different (check out the hidden jewellery candle) keep reading.

Photo Credit: Top Left: Top Right: A Beautiful Mess  Bottom Left: The Gurney Sack Bottom Right: La Crema

If your mum is a tea drinker (and frankly who doesn't love a cuppa?) I'm sure she'd appreciate a tea hamper. You can make the tea yourself using the recipes by Vassseur Beauty for a spiced chai and a lavender and Camomile tea. Alternatively you can buy ready made loose tea or tea bags. You can fill the hamper with a D.I.Y sharpie pen mug (tutorial here) a teapot, sugar, some D.I.Y tea coasters (tutorial here) and flowers.

If your mum has a sweet tooth then these cute jars full of cookie butter might be right up her street. Pop over to A Beautiful Mess here for the recipe. You can buy chalk labels from Amazon, make your own ones here or use normal sticker labels.

If your mum is more of a wine lover then an etched wine glass makes a personalised present (you can add her name or initial) to go with a nice bottle of wine. You can find the tutorial by La Crema here. Printable mothers day labels can be slapped onto the bottle for nice finishing touch. You can find some free printable labels here and here or make your own using Canva. You can also make a stunning bottle stopper using an old door knob (tutorial here) or trophy type bottle stoppers (here.)  If you're buying a bottle of rose then this cute diy sequin wine bottle bag from Cookies and Calligraphy will add some bling.

A 'Spa in a Jar' has all you need for a bit of D.I.Y pampering. You need a mason jar or one with a wide opening then fill it with items such as a face mask, travel size hand/ body/foot cream, bath bomb or salts, nail polish, eye mask, mini nail file and clippers or scissors. If  you have space then a candle or some wrapped chocolates would be nice to thrown in as well.

Top Left : Polka Dot Chair Top Right: Live Simply Bottom Left: Lauren Dixon Paver Bottom Left Right: Ali Express 

The pocket cushion seen above was created by Melissa from Polka Dot Chair as 'on the go reading cushions' for her nephews with a torch in the pocket.However I think that it would make a lovely gift for a mum, made up in her favourite colour or suitable fabric with some chocolates and her favourite book or the latest one by her favourite author in the pocket. If you're feeling generous you could pop in an e-reader. Photo cushions also make a lovely gift, just follow this Youtube tutorial by Simply Cher Cher. You will need some iron on paper and a home printer. First you print a photo from your home printer onto the iron on paper. Then you iron it onto the fabric- Ta Da! If you're after an instagram style grid/ photos printed on the cushions then watch this Instagram Pillow tutorial by Crafty Amy.

If you can't afford Jo Malone candles you can actually make your own candles and go one better by by making a candle with hidden jewellery inside! You can buy jewellery candles but you can also make them at home at a fraction of the cost and it's actually surprisingly easy! Just follow this Youtube tutorial by Lauren Dixon Paver  or this tutorial by Shellie Wilson which shows how to make a soy candle from scratch as well as using candles bought from a shop. Poundland has some really pretty decorative glass candle holders and mason glasses at the moment.

You can also make your own solid perfume using essential oils. The small tin ensures that it will be easier to travel in a handbag and also easy to rub on to your wrists during the day. Made with beeswax, a carrier oil and essential oils this tutorial by Live Simply will guide you.

Photo Credit: Top Left: About a Mom Top Right: Design Moms Bottom Left: Skip To My Lou Bottom Right: Just Putzing

Herbs are really useful in cooking and are always better fresh. A herb garden makes a practical present as well as being easy and cheap. You can up-cycle some tin cans with paint in your mum's favourite colours and add labels. Then you can buy some herbs from the supermarket or garden centre, About A Mom has a D.I.Y herb garden tutorial here.   Another present for a mum who likes cooking is making up some infused olive oils. Just hop over to Just Putzing where Tina has a tutorial for you. A D.I.Y etched chopping board makes a useful and practical gift, just follow this tutorial by Gabbie at Design Moms.

Finally while Mothers Day Coupons may not look expensive or glamorous they will probably be the most appreciated by making your mum's life easier. Here is a  list of free printable mothers day coupons here.

16 Valentine's Day Breakfast/ Brunch Ideas

For four of the recipes below you will need a heart shaped cookie cutter (metal is best.) There's a wide selection at the Cake Craft Shop (they even have lip shaped cookie cutters too.) Amazon  has a 12cm heart cookie cutter or you can find some on ebay here.

1. English Cooked Breakfast

If you want to fry heart shaped eggs or insert them into your toast you will need an adjustable metal heart cookie cutters or normal cookie cutters. Homey Oh My shows you how to fry heart shaped eggs.If bacon is the way to your partner's heart then try the heart shaped bacon from The Paper Mama.

Top left: Homey Oh My Top Right: Sainsburys  Bottom Left : Sainsburys Bottom Right: The Paper MamaA

2. Healthy-ish 

Bring out the strawberries! You can add chopped strawberries into your usual oatmeal see here or go all out and carve these strawberry roses which look stunning! Just click on the tutorial by Holly from Spend with Pennies or this step by step picture. Another simple way of cutting hearts from strawberries can be found here (courtesy of Homey Oh My.)  The ice cube strawberries and chocolate from Haley at the Cheap Recipe Blog look impressive and are super easy to do! I'm not sure about keeping the stalk though, it doesn't look as pretty but it does give you something to hold while eating them. If you or your partner hate strawberries but like fruit, then use a metal cookie cutter to cut hearts out of melon slices and fill with berries or other fruit to up your game with minimal effort!

Photo Credit Top Left Spend with Pennies Top Right :Ethan Calabrese Bottom Left: Soulouposeto Bottom Right Cheap Recipe Blog

3. Traditional Sweet Breakfast Classics With A Twist 

If you have a waffle iron hiding in a cupboard that's been sitting there since the novelty wore off then get it out to make some red velvet waffles! Sharon from What the Fork shows you how here. While traditional French toast is just eggs and bread, this banana and chocolate French toast takes it to another level! The recipe is from My Recipes here.  Tonya from The Gunny sack will show you how to make buttermilk pancakes, just stack 'em high and layer them with Nutella and raspberry juice on top. You can also step up your pancake game with these pretty lace pattern hearts, they're just waiting to be Instagram-ed and they look so fun to make! You can see a step by step tutorial for this at A Designer Life.

Photo Credit: Top Left: What The Fork Top Right The Gunny Sack Bottom left A Designer Life Bottom Right My Recipes

                                                                    4. Valentine Treats

Cupcakes are fairly practical to eat in bed and these Martha Stewart chocolate cupcakes  look yummy and you can pipe whatever message you like on them. Truffles are simple to make and these 'red velvet', amaretto, gluten-free ones are perfect for Valentines day (They're a no bake as well.) Pop over to Lazy Cat Kitchen and Ania will show you how to make them. The mini chocolate cheesecakes are also a no bake recipe which you can find at Delish with Rachel Connors. Then just sit back and enjoy the day together drinking these strawberry mimosas by Baking Beauty which you can find here !

Photo Credit Top Left Baking Beauty Top Right Lazy Cat Kitchen Bottom Left:Rachel Conners Bottom Right Martha Stewart

44 D.I.Y Christmas Present ideas When You're on a Budget

Updated May 2020

Edible Gifts 

Edible gifts are generally well received and pretty cheap and easy to make. Chocolate truffles go down a treat. There's a recipe for it here on BBC Food and you can put them in Christmas themed tins. This year I'm going to try making Chocolate Bark using these recipes from Lindsey Love at Gardenista. Wrap them up in cellophane and ribbon. Gingerbread men and shapes are also very popular at this time of year and this Jamie Oliver recipe should go down well. I saw these swan biscuits on Pixabay and they look so beautiful. You can get a small swan cookie cutter here and use this recipe from  Linzer Cookies from A Fox In the Kitchen. 

PhotoTop Left: Lindsey Love 

DIY Jewellery 

Chokers and tassel earrings are still trending and luckily they're easy to make. The wrap around suede choker tutorial can be found on Sarah Najafi's blog.  The peach and gold tassel earrings are from Honestly WTF and look very elegant. I think this lanyard bracelet from  Love Maegan looks unisex and would make a good gift for a man as well. Did you know you can make a ring from a spoon? This printable step by step from Kirsten Danielle  will show you how.

Winter Accessories

PHOTO CREDIT Top Left Kirsten Danielle Top Right Sarah Najafi  Bottom Left Honestly WTF Bottom Right Love Maegan

These dragon finger less gloves are perfect for Game Of Throne fans. You can find the crochet pattern at Heart Hook Home here. If you're a knitter then this knitted beanie might be an ideal gift for someone. The pattern can be found at Knitted Patterns. There's an easy D.I.Y faux fur scarf tutorial over at Love Maegan. However don't worry if you can't sew, crochet or knit this infinity scarf  from P.S. Heart is really easy and doesn't even require a needle! 

PHOTO CREDIT Top Left Heart Hook Home Top Right; P.S. Heart Bottom Left; Love Maegan Bottom Right Knitted patterns 

 Bags and Cases

I think this denim makeup bag can also double up as man's wash bag, see how to make it at A Pair and a Spare. This d.i.y tablet case is very smart, practical and unisex and it can be made from leather or vinyl.  The tutorial is here at Brit + Co. For the sewing phobic there's a no sew blue clutch wallet from Hot D.I.Y Tutorial and a no sew black large clutch bag from Brit + Co.

PHOTO CREDIT Top Left : A Pair and a Spare Top Right: Brit + Co Top Right  Bottom Left Hot D.I.Y Tutorial
Bottom Right: Brit + Co

Hair Accessories

These faux pearl hair pins are really simple to make but add glamour to any up do. You can find the tutorial at Yes Missy. Love Maegan has quite a few d.i.y. hair accessory tutorials but I love these gold and black hair combs the best. You can find the tutorial here. I saw this beautiful ribbon on pintrest and realised it would be a easy d.i.y, just sew or glue beads, sequins and rhinestones on to a ribbon. It can be worn as a choker as well as a head band. Another quick and easy d.i.y are these rhinestone hair clips the tutorial can be found on the Consumer Crafts Blog.  

 

PHOTO CREDIT Top Left: Yes Missy Top Right: Love Maegan Bottom Left Pintrest Bottom Right: Consumer Crafts Blog

Photo Gifts

Photos are probably the most treasured possessions and are cited as the one thing you'd rescue in a fire. Going digital means that you can do more with your photos and create lots of  thoughtful gifts. You can turn your Instagram photos into fridge magnets (tutorial by Photojojo here) coasters (see The Frugal Girls here) and even on marshmallows courtesy of Boomf. You can individually frame an Instagram image or gather all your family photos and create a collage. Photos can be turned into candle luminaries (by Our Best Bites) and personalised calendars where you can choose photos for each month or for specific days like nan's birthday. You can check for cheap photo printing deals on Money Saving Expert here.   If there's film footage of family birthdays and holidays you can download them on to DVDs to give as gifts to grandparents.

PHOTO CREDITS Row 1: Top left Our Best Bites  Top Right Photojojo Row 2: Left The Frugal Girls Row 4: Bottom Right Boomf

Body and Bath products

These fun Starbucks style body scrubs and body butters were created by Elle Sees. Choose from Peppermint Mocha Sugar Scrub, Peppermint Body Butter, Peppermint Solid Lotion, Caramel Brulee Latte Sugar Scrub and Body Butter, Snickerdoodle Hot Cocoa Body Sugar Scrub and Body Butter. You can find all these tutorials here.  This cute snowman bath bomb is just like Lush (but cheaper) and can be found under Last Minute Christmas D.I.Y.s over at Elle Sees. The Christmas inspired Peppermint Candy Cane Body Scrub is ideal for winter and the ingredients are very cheap as well (except the  essential oil.) Find the tutorial at The Idea Room. Baths are a way to relax after a hard day and gifting an Oatmeal and Lavender Bath Soak salts will make it even more luxurious. Oatmeal will make skin soft and lavender is known for its calming qualities but the best thing is these are cheap ingredients and very easy to put together just follow the tutorial from Carolyn's Homework.

PHOTO CREDIT Top Left: Elle Sees & Top Left: Elle Sees Bottom Left Carolyn Homework Bottom Right The Idea Room

Candles

Candles are popular gifts especially in winter when you just want to stay indoors and be all cozy or as the Danish say- hygge.  This very simple bark candle tutorial can be found at Just a Smidgen and you can make it for very little money. Teacup candles are easy to do and can be fairly cheap. You can pick up a nice cup and saucer from a charity shop or elsewhere and follow the tutorial by Yes Missy. If you really want to impress then try marbling plain white candles they look amazing! You can find out how to do on Ela's Box Youtube video here.   These sea shell candles can be made from scratch and even if you don't live near a beach you can pick them up from Baker Ross. Just follow the tutorial from She Knows. 

PHOTO CREDIT: Top Left Just a Smidgen Top Right Ela's Box Bottom Left  Yes Missy Bottom Right She Knows

D.I.Y Marker Mugs and Etched Glasses

There are a lot of sharpie mug tutorials on the net but the best ones show you how to make your design waterproof. For this you need buy oil based sharpie pens as seen in Four Thirty Four's Sharpie Pen Tutorial. Alternatively try using Deco Art glass paint pens like those used in My Crafty Spot to ensure that the design stays on permanently. You can also buy porcelain paint pens which will make your design dishwasher proof. Sharpies can also be used on glass like these wine glasses in gold and silver from A Belle Vie which look absolutely stunning! 

Another option is to etch a design onto glassware. Love Maegan made these cute heart glasses while Be Spangled Jewelry used the technique to personalise these mason jars with an initial.

PHOTO CREDIT Top Right; Love Magean Top Right Bottom Left: Bottom Right:

Wall Art

Wall art is something that can be very quick and inexpensive to make and yet seem very thoughtful at the same time.You can create word cloud art using lyrics from someone's favourite song, poem or quote or even words describing the qualities your special someone has using  free websites in minutes. Then all your need to do is print them out and frame them. You can find nice but cheap frames from Poundland, Wilkinson's, Ikea and Matalan. I used word it out for my word cloud below  (using lyrics from Santana's 'love of my life'). Worldle is very popular as well. You can also create pictures and quotes on free websites like Canva and Be Funky and print them off and frame. Another option is to search 'free printable quotes' into Google, print and frame them. The free printable quote below 'Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselevs' can be found on the blog Collected and is in a free printable round up on  It's Always Autumn. You can also channel your inner artist by creating scrabble tile art with photos alongside or arrange letters like a crossword or as an acrostic.  For inspiration take a look at this hobbycraft post  or hit up Pintrest. 

Top Left HobbyCraft Top Right  lipstick drawer Bottom Left lipstick Drawer Bottom Right Collection

16 Ways To Save Money When Christmas Shopping

Updated May 2020

1. Make a List and Check it Twice
No, I'm not quoting Taylor Swift lyrics. Making a list of who you need to buy for, how much money you have and how much you can spend on each person will make your life easier. Just like a supermarket shopping list it can make shopping trips shorter, saving you time as well as money as long as you stick to the list.

2. Secret Santa or Family Gift These both involve buying one gift. 

For Secret Santa, you are randomly assigned a person in the family to buy a present for. You can do this by pulling names from a hat. Once you know who you're buying a present for you have to keep it a secret until you open them on Christmas Day. If you're doing this with friends or colleagues then unwrap them on the day when you all meet up. You can have an agreed budget before you start.

Buying a family gift involves buying one present for the whole family to share. This could be a restaurant gift card, a cinema voucher, a Netflix superscription or a book of photos. It could be a board game or Nintendo Wii game that everyone can play.

3. If you have a large family or lots of people to buy presents for, then try using a 3-tiered gift-giving system. Tier 1 is family which means gift exchanges with each individual person in your immediate family, and set a budget for each person. Tier 2 is friends. You can do a single-family gift like movie tickets with free babysitting or a fun new game for them to play together. Tier 3 is neighbors and co-workers. Gifts like homemade chocolate goodies in handmade package go down a treat. Once you establish the budgets for each tier and the people in them, create a cash envelope for that tier.  Once the cash in the envelope is gone, it’s gone!

4. BLACK FRIDAY IS TODAY!
Adoped from the U.S. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are days when all the shops have huge discounts in the last weekend of November to coincide with the Thanksgiving holiday. But before you leave the house or log on, research what you want to buy. Compare the prices between the different stores before you buy to check whether a bargain is really a bargain. Money Saving Expert's Mega Shop Bot will help you scan hundreds of shops to find you the best price.

5. Shopping tips. 
Set time limits on shopping. Go in, find presents and exit quickly. Also try shopping late in the evening (7-9pm) to beat the crowds.

6. Buy the Expensive Presents First 
Then you know how much money you have to spend on the other gifts and don't run out of money or end up paying more than your agreed limit.

7. Pay with cash
You will be more aware of what you're spending.

8. Don't Touch Display Items
This is because handling an object creates possessive feelings according to researchers at UCLA and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. They found that holding an ordinary item like a coffee mug increased people's desire to buy it — and made them willing to pay 10% more for it. So "Look, but don't touch" to avoid spontaneous splurges.

9. Stop the Momentum 
The 'Momentum effect' is where we can get caught in a whirl of impulse buys. Buying one thing rushes into another and another even if they aren't on your Christmas list. To avoid this take a breather after every purchase. It's also an excuse to try out the seasonal drinks from Starbucks and Costa Coffee! This momentum effect also occurs online too so break up your shopping online as well.

10. When you shop online leave the items in the virtual basket and don't check them out. This can prompt retailers to send you discount code to get you to spend money at their store. I know Amazon lets you know if their prices go down (but also tells you when they go up which isn't so helpful.) Live chatting with customer service agents can work to your advantage if you let them know that a price  is out of your budget they may be able to come back with a discounted deal.

11. Gifts With Purchase
The guilt free way to indulge yourself and buy a Christmas present at the same time! Buying a gift with purchase is a win win all round! You often have to spend a set amount to receive the gift but it's never extortionate.

12.  Use reward points 
There's never a better time to cash in those Boots and Nectar card points to spend on Christmas presents.

13. Free Amazon gift cards
You can earn free Amazon gift vouchers for Christmas. These involve completing surveys, playing games, searching the internet and taking photos of your receipts. See Martin Lewis's Money Saving Expert for more details here and Save the Student here.

14. Ebay 
You can find lots good deals on ebay. The ebay app makes it easier to bid on the go. If you search 'Ending Soonest' on the listings, then choose ones with fewer bidders you can pick up a real bargain. However don't forget to factor in the shipping times especially if you're buying anything from China, U.S. or Australia. 

15. D.I.Y Presents
I will be writing a longer post on this but D.I.Y presents are thoughtful, handmade presents such as having someones favourite Instagram photo framed or giving someone babysitting coupons offering to babysit in the new year.

16. Pouch 
Pouch is an app that you add to your browser that lets you know about voucher codes and deals as you shop. It works with Google Chrome, Apple Safari and Mozilla Firefox. It was featured on Dragon's Den in the U.K..

The Best Places To Buy Beauty Products Online

When I started to make this list I noticed a lot of websites were having a sale and so I decided to include this information and their sale codes. I'm not affiliated with any of these brands or websites and I don't earn anything if you click on any links. I just thought it would be a helpful list to put together. The link to each website is in the website name. Unless stated otherwise they all ship internationally. Just call me a beauty spender enabler!

BEST VALUE & THE ONLINE SHOPS I USE THE MOST  

Fragrance Direct
Sells much more than just perfumes, they also sell skincare and makeup as well. This was my go-to shop for nail polish as you could always find a bargain! It has smartened up recently as it now sells MAC and Nars alongside Technic, Rimmel and W7. They currently have an 80% off sale. If it's your first order you can get 5% off. Spend £20 for free UK Delivery with Code FREEDEL20. Accepts Paypal.

ASOS
As well as getting a new outfit you can also buy makeup, hair and skincare at ASOS. If you use ASOS a lot then it may be worth signing up for premier delivery where you pay £9.95 for a year's unlimited next day delivery. Online are exclusive Benefit Cosmetics gift sets. To check out the ASOS Sale click here. The Anna Sui multi glitter would be perfect for festivals don't you think?! Student discount available.

Feelunique
I have a lot of love for Feel Unique! They seem to have the lowest prices. Feel Unique also offer a 'try me sample' if you buy a bottle of perfume. This means you can trial the scent first without having to open the bottle. If you don't like it you can return the full sized bottle for a refund. They also have a 'Pick and Mix' sample selection. You can chose 5 samples for free each month and just pay £3.95 P&P. They will then give you a voucher code for £3.95 to spend on their website so it's kinda like a free beauty box. If you spend £30 or more you can also chose 2 free samples with your order. Feel Unique's loyalty scheme called 'My Feelunique Platinum.' This includes 10% off your favourite products for LIFE! You also get 20% off on your birthday. They will also reward you with money off vouchers too. Feel unique Offers 10% off student discount with Unidays.  Accepts Paypal.

BEAUTY BAY has free worldwide shipping (brands include ThisWorks, Dr Lipp, Dr Brandt, Dr Sebagh, Jurlique, Yes to Carrots, Mario Badescu, Ahava, Aromatherapy Associates, St Tropez and more.)

Look Fantastic also offer free worldwide shipping. Brands include Caudalie, dermologica, Elemis, Molton Brown, Decleor, Jurlique, Balance me, Korres among other brands.

OFTEN OVERLOOKED 

HQ Hair
HQ hair also sells makeup and I feel that they don't get as much love as other websites. They tend to get overlooked by beauty lovers which is a real shame as they do have some really great offers. I guess the upside is that you can always get your hands on a product as they don't sell out as quickly as ASOS and other online shops. Offers student discount with Unidays (15% off) Accepts Paypal.

QVC
QVC does have a bit of a cheesy, old fashioned and uncool reputation. However there are six good reasons to shop with them. Tarte Cosmetics are exclusive to QVC UK, short of buying a plane ticket or using ebay you can't get Tarte anywhere else! You can also pay in installments. They have a 30 Day Money back guarantee 'for every item, every time' I'm assuming this covers cosmetics (in the UK cosmetics are generally non-returnable.) They beat Marks and Spencer and Virgin to the 5th most trusted brand for their 24/7 customer care. You can also read product reviews posted by other customers. Finally there's a video showing you how to use the products. If you want a laugh then watch the infamous Apprentice scene where Simon has to sell on QVC! They also stock  Mally, Laura Geller, Gatineau, Erborian and Philip Kingsley. Click here for their sale. Ships to Europe & UK

Beauty Chamber 
Sells Morphe brushes, LA Girl, The Balm, Hylamide, The Ordinary. I've spotted the Real Techniques Bold Metal Collection is down to £28 (normally £48) here go, go, go!

Selfridges 
The new in section is worth checking out especially because Selfridges seem to be ahead of the pack when it comes to releasing new beauty products. They also sell one off beauty boxes and special offers on the Exculsive page so keep your eyes peeled.  They sell some Korean brands too such as Toly Moly, Too Cool For School, Missha, Dr Jart+, Skin79 and Oh K. They also sell mini products as well good if you're going on holiday. 

LOYALTY CARDS & SCHEMES

Debenhams
With Debenhams's Beauty Card for every £1 you spend you earn 3 points. Save up to 500 points and you have £5 to spend. You can spend it on fragrance, beauty (including electrical) and beauty services, like having your eyebrows threaded. The beauty card also gets you free standard delivery and a free Benefit brow wax on your birthday! Debenhams have recently added US Brands Kat Von D and Make Up For Ever and I can't wait to try some of their products! Free standard delivery on orders over £40.

Space NK
Space NK sells luxury skincare and makeup including By Terry, Sisley, Becca, Eve Lom, Jurlique, Kevyn Aucoin, Hourglass and Emma Hardie. Using their 'N.dulge' card for every £1 you spend you get 1 point. Reach 100 points you you will get £5 reward to spend. You will also receive a special birthday gift, advance access to sales and try new products to preview.  Free Standard delivery on orders over £40. I think shipping is UK only. There is also a USA site.

Boots
Using Boots's Advantage Card you get 4 points for every £1 you spend. 1 point = 1p.  There is also a free magazine, offers and exclusive events and double points events. You're not limited to buying just beauty products. Boots sells Liz Earle, NYX, Soap and Glory, Natural Collection, 17 and Boots No. 7. Spend £45 for free Delivery.

Escentual
Although I have used Escentual before I didn't realise they have a loyalty points scheme. You get ' 2 pretty pennies' for every £1 you spend. You can then use these points to buy something from the site. Compared to Boots and Debenhams the points per pound is quite low but the upside is that you don't have to save points up to reach a certain threshold level in order to actually use the points. The 'free from' category on the sidebar makes it easy to buy skincare if you have an allergy or are avoiding ingredients like alcohol, without having to look up each product individually. Ships Worldwide at a reasonable price (£4.95- £7.95) Free UK Delivery over £30. Accepts Paypal.

ASIAN BEAUTY

YesStyle

YesSyle are authorised resellers of all the beauty brands they carry. Unlike ebay there are no fakes. They specialise in Korean beauty brands (K-Beauty) and sell Tony Moly, Dr Jart+, Missha, It's Skin, Holika Holika and many others. They also sell Japanese Beauty products (J-Beauty) selling brands such as Corsx, Shiseido, Shu Uemura and DHC. They charge before the order is shipped, but if it’s cancelled or if there is something wrong, they’ll credit you. They offer free UK shipping if you spend over £60. They often have flash sales and generally have Lunar Year (late January or Early February)  and spring sales.Admittedly I have only used Yesstyle once to buy Chateau Labiotte lipsticks but the shipping was fine everything was intact and I don't remember having to wait very long and I even got a free cream sachet. They have a loyalty system called 'Elite Club.' There are 3 levels Bronze, Silver and Gold which offer extra discounts and coupons. Every US$ 1 purchase = 1 Stylebuck. You can get more stylebucks for writing reviews and downloading the app.

Buttermilk
Buttermilk is based in the UK and sells Korean and Japanese skincare. Brands include Missha, Wish Formula, Tony Moly, Etude house and Klaires.  At the moment they have lots of masks on sale here as well as Missha's magic cushion foundation. 10% off with Code NEW CUSTOMER. Free Delivery over £50 and some samples.

 ORGANIC BEAUTY/ INDEPENDENT BEAUTY

Naturisimo
This is the like the greener version of ASOS with "clean beauty" organic skincare and makeup sold alongside clothes, bags, jewellery and stationary. The emphasis is on health and wellness as they also sell food, supplements and massage oils etc.  Brands include This Works, Jurlique, EOS, Burts Bees.  Free Delivery worldwide.

Live in The Night 

This website sells makeup brands and skincare brands such as PureAnada, Tin Feather, Fat and The Moon. They also sell skincare by Annmarie Gianni.

Love Lula 
Love Lula sells organic makeup, skincare and fragrance including  Zoya, Ecotools, Antipodes, Triology. If you're vegan Love Lula has your back with a good section of vegan products too. The site has won up to 12 awards.  They offer free worldwide delivery on orders over £15 otherwise shipping is £2.95. Their shipping within the UK is really fast I got my order within 24 hours but the website states 1-3 working days. They also have a loyalty reward scheme. For every £1 spent you will earn 1 point. Each point is worth 10p. If you spent £50 you would earn £5 in points. Love Lula has their own organic beauty box subscription service which you can read more here. If you spend over £10 you can choose five or more samples with your order. Samples are priced from 50p - £5.

How to Pack your luggage & Tips To Save Money on Flights

Hurray, it's summer time! The British summer weather has been pretty good so far. If you are jetting off to another part of the globe or having a staycation I hope the following tips will be useful to you!

1. Roll up your clothes instead of folding them. This will keep them crease free as well as saving space in your suitcase.

2. Place bulky or heavy items on the bottom and sides of the he suitcase. This will stop them falling down and wrinkling clothing when you pick the suitcase up. 

3. Use packing cubes to organise your luggage. These are fabric boxes that you can use to compartmentalise your luggage and allow you to fit more into your suitcase. Each one can act as a 'drawer' so you can keep underwear in one, shoes in another and a different bag for electrical items. You can separate clean and dirty clothes and wet from dry clothes. Organising your luggage this way makes it much easier to lay your hands on whatever you need without hunting through your entire suitcase. You can find a set of 6 for £5.50 at Ikea and some patterned ones on Amazon here (£8.99.) A stylish alternative are these designated labelled bags by Kate Spade. There's a 'To Wash' bag for dirty laundry and a 'To wear' bag which could hold a complete outfit or underwear. The bag labelled  'The perfect pair' holds shoes and the 'Bits and Bobs' bag could hold jewellery. (This tip is courtesy of Ellis Tuesday's Blog post here. )

4. Alternatively you can use zip loc bags or sandwich bags to divide up your luggage, this has the advantage of being transparent so you can see what's inside. You can also flatten or roll them to get rid of excess air so they take up less space. You can group them by underwear- socks in one, pants in another, bag all your electric chargers together or use each one to store a baby's or toddler's outfit. Lakeland have bags that you can roll up here: Lakeland Packmate 4 travel bag set for £9.99 and 24 freezer bags for £4.79. If you don't have any spare bags you can use a hotel shower cap over the heels/soles of shoes so that the rest of your luggage stays clean. With high heels make sure you turn the heels inwards so that they don't get caught on your clothes.

5. Pack your clothes inside out to avoid sunscreen stains.

6. Pack socks, perfume and sunscreen inside shoes to save space.

7. To prevent any messy leaks, bag each cosmetic bottle separately or place a square of cling film over the bottle opening but underneath the cap and tighten.

8. If you go away a lot it may be worth having a ready packed wash bag full of toiletries on standby so you can just grab it and chuck into your suitcase. Superdrug, Boots, Marks and Spencer and Space UK have a miniature toiletries section or you can fill it with samples from magazines and beauty subscription boxes.

9. If you're taking a plane then buying a transparent makeup bag and wash bag that meets security guidelines will make your life easier. BAA standards stipulate transparent bags must be resealable and can measure up to 20cm x 20cm max. This basic bag from Superdrug is cheap at £2.99 and fits the bill, alternatively this Miamica 'Cleared for Take-off Bag has 15 containers with labelled stickers that fit into a  7 x 8 x 1.5cm bag £6.39 from Amazon. If you're after something fun rather than purely utilitarian then this 'I don't sweat I sparkle' cosmetics bag (15 x 20 x 7cm) is £4 from Amazon and this medium polka dot Miss Etoile 'You are Magic' bag (measures 15.5 x 12.5 x 8cm)  is £16.95 from Trouva. If you love all things cute and kitsch then take a look at the Paperchase Kawaii Rainbow cosmetic bag or the Pineapple print bag  £14 each (both measure 14.5 x 10.5 x 12cm.)

10. Put anything breakable such as perfume bottles, souvenirs etc. inside a sock to protect them.

11. To stop necklace chains becoming tangled get a drinking straw and thread one end of the chain through the straw and then fasten the necklace. 

12.  Make sure your bag stands out to make it quicker and easier to spot it on the luggage carousel. Customise it by tying a coloured ribbon, scarf, key ring or bright duct tape to the handles or zip ends You can also use duct tape to decorate your case with your initials, name or a create a nice pattern. You can buy bright luggage straps, add travel stickers or patches to sew or pin on to soft luggage. Another option would be buying a distinctive luggage tag in neon or in an animal shape. Or you can go wild with fabric paint or spray paint stencil designs onto hard shell luggage.

13. Alternatively invest in some pretty luggage. Make sure it's colourful or distinctively patterned. Look for one with four wheels if possible as they are much easier to move and travel with. TK Maxx and Debenhams have affordable brightly coloured and patterned luggage. Or you can treat yourself to branded luggage from Amara here. I love the Ted Baker ones. You can also choose a photo to personalise your case with the Personalised luggage website here.

14. Invest in lightweight luggage to get the most from baggage weight restrictions. 
Don't forget that the actual suitcase weight will contribute to how much you can take with you weight wise. Check the restrictions for each airline here. Tesco, Bags Etc, TK Maxx and Matalan sell IT Luggage Worlds's Lightest Suitcases which are made with a fibre glass frame. They are available in small (37L capacity), medium (63L) and large (92L) with two and four wheels, ranging from £30-45.  Antler also stock some lightweight suitcase ranges.



 HERE ARE SOME TIPS TO SAVE MONEY ON FLIGHTS...................

• For cheaper plane tickets look for travel locations that have the most number of flights leaving your local airport. If there are lots of flights going to the same place, airlines compete to give you cheaper plane tickets.
• It's cheaper to book plane tickets at midnight on Tuesday or all day Thursday and avoid Sundays. 
• Clear your computer/tablet of cookies and use different browsers i.e. do your research on Google but buy tickets using a different browser such as Internet Explorer. This is because airlines and booking engines are using cookies on their web pages. These track your browser history so that they know what you're interested in and when you go back to them their prices they show will be potentially higher on the routes that you have searched often. 
• It's cheaper to travel during the week on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, particularly to if you're travelling to the US. 
• Beat the January blues by booking a holiday- the cheapest time of year to travel is after January 7th. Spring is also a good time to fly out, specially flying in May from the UK to Thailand. October is another good month to book.
• Sometimes breaking up your journey into single flights are cheaper see STA Travel for more information.
• Don't forget to factor in extra costs on a cheap flight such as higher baggage fees, having to book a hotel in order to catch an early flight, petrol and parking fees at airports or a longer and more expensive cab fare if the airport is further away. If you are breaking up your flight and getting connections you need to factor in meals which may be expensive at the airport or inconvenient to find a place selling food on the go rather than just eating on the plane.
• If you are choosing between two fares that are similarly priced consider which ones has better entertainment choices, which one has more leg room, better food. Check before you go on  Hipmunk which will give you an idea of what to expect and identify any potential snags.