My Autumn

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

It's a fact I touch on every year, but I LOVE Autumn. It is by far and above my most favourite time of year and there is nothing about it that I resent.

 (Warning :: Going to brag now- I took this photo myself!)

I feel like when the air crispens and the leaves turn orange, there is a sense of hope and a fresh start at things. I find myself making new routines, adhering to old traditions (pizza on a Saturday night and candles lit in the porch of an evening) and generally feeling like I have a new lease of life.

To me, Autumn starts when school starts and with Matt being a Teacher, our household calender still does follow the acedemic year. I quite like it.

Now that we have a little mini human in our lives, Autumn is all the more special and recently I have been thinking about things I am looking forward to doing as a family and alone and thought it might be fun to share them with you. 

1. Walking Darcy in the big pram. We have a little grey easy-to-fold pushchair for chucking in the car but we also have a lovely big padded, cushy, cosy Silver Cross pram that I adore bundling Baby Glitter into and taking her for walks. I can't wait to pull on my brown boots, throw on a big coat, wrap her up in a woollen bobble hat and take her to the swings. 

2. Wearing Purple. To me, Autumn is the season of purple! Purple nail polish, purple cardigans, purple eyeliner, everything. Bring it on!

3. Sunday Night TV. Is there anything quite like having a delicious hot dinner, lighting the fire, drawing the curtains, snuggling down in jogging bottoms and watching things like Downton Abbey and Upstairs Downstairs? I don't think there is.

4. Craft Fayres. At this time of year there seem to be an abundance of things like Farmers Markets, Antique Shows and Craft Fayres. I really enjoy rummaging through dinky little ornaments or buying unusual cheeses to take home and treasure/devour.

5. The promise of Christmas. Let's face it, I'm already thinking about December the 25th and I'm not even ashamed. It's the 'most wonderful tiiiiimmmme, of the year', so Autumn is like an excited run up to it!

Those were just a few of my favourite things about Autumn but chances are, as I get wrapped up in crispy orange leaf fever, I will share more. Today I asked you on Twitter and Facebook what your favourite things were so there's a blog post to come on that too!

Do you love this time of year as much as I do?

Toodlepip!

xx

Advertiser Fail, Anniversary Win!

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

Uh oh and huzzah!!!

Good news first? OK.

This week is my two year wedding anniversary. Can you believe how fast time flies? I thought we would do something special on the actual day, maybe swap cards and have a nice dinner together, but oohhh nooo, Matt has come up trumps!

I have been told that at 4pm a babysitter is coming over, I am to go upstairs, languish in the bath, paint my nails, fiddle about with my hair, play with makeup, read a magazine and reeelllllaaaaaxxxxx. Then, I'm being taken out for a mystery evening!!! Can I have a 'oooooohhhhhh'?

This leads on to the bad news. Oh dear.

Tonight is ad change over night. With me being romanced (woop woop) it would be a little awkward to take my laptop out with us, so I'm putting the month back one day and the ads will be swapped over tomorrow instead. Nobody will be swizzed, I'll just run them til the 3rd of October instead of the 2nd.

I thought I should let you know in case either you were waiting to see who would appear in the sidebar to add to your reading lists OR you had parted with your hard earned pennies and thought I had run off into the sunset with them.

I like Sprinkle of Glitter to be an honest and transparent place, so instead of just sending a little email to all the Amazing Advertisers of September, it's here for everybody to see and understand.

Now let's get guessing, what do you think Matt has in store for me??

Toodlepip!

xx

Lou's Reviews || Clarins Instant Smooth Crystal Lipbalms

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

I'm a bit late to the party on this one but I couldn't let summer slip through my our fingers without showcasing these b-e-a-utiful lip products over here in Glitter Land.

You may remember them from my June or July Favourites video (I've been loving them a while), but really I wanted them to be on here too because frankly, they just look so dagnam pretty!

These are the Clarins Enchanted Summer Instant Smooth Crystal Lip Balms* and I have loved them!

They are luxurious lip product consisting of an inner core of lipstick, encased in a beautifully fruity scented lipbalm. If you are after something incredibly pigmented, these are probably not for you (with the exception of 'Cystal Violet -second from the left- which I think will look fabulous this Autumn). However, if you are looking for a lipbalm with a bit of pep in it's step and feel happy forking out a somewhat hefty £16.50, then these will be right up your street.

On application they leave a hint of colour and my lips feel nourished for hours. Kissy kissy!

As you can see from the above swatches, these are a wash of colour with low opacity rather than a heavy duty lipstick. 

What I enjoy about these are the colours, scents (I'm usually very fussy but really liked these), the packaging (terribly important to a hard core makeup addict and these are a pleasure to pull out of my handbag) and the fun factor of the actual product.

What I didn't enjoy was the price. To me, £16.50 is a lot of money for a balm, but I can appreciate that Clarins is a luxury brand so would view this as a treat or special gift to myself, as opposed to a 'kit essential'. 

These are sadly limited edition items but are still stocked on the website so now is your chance to treat yourself or someone lovely in your life.

Is this the sort of product that tickles your pickle?

Toodlepip!

xx

This month my Ultimate Advertiser is Lady of Vintage. If you would like to know more about advertising on Sprinkle of Glitter, check out my 'Sponsor' page up at the top!