BLOGMAS 2017 || DAY 16 - THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS SUGAR COOKIES (ZOELLA'S RECIPE)

These might not be the most appetising-looking cookies in the world, but they sure do taste good! I always make some festive treats this time of the year, so I thought it'd be useful if I shared with you my favourite sugar cookie recipe.
This is actually a recipe I got from Zoella's blog and I absolutely love how these came out (taste-wise) as I'm not the best at decorating cakes due to lack of equipment but hopefully I'll be able to share more recipes with you in my new house soon.

You will need these ingredients for the cookie batter:
140g Icing Sugar
250g Butter (cut into chunks)
1 Egg Yolk
1tsp Vanilla Extract
375g Plain Flour

For the icing:
225g Icing Sugar
1 Egg White
Cold Water

The Method:

Preheat the oven to 190oC.

In a mixing bowl, add butter, icing sugar, egg yolk and vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Once you're happy with the consistency of the batter, start adding in the flour bit by bit and mix it in until a dough is formed. Wrap the dough in cling film and set aside in the fridge for around 30 minutes.
Spread some flour onto a worktop/chopping board and roll out the dough with a rolling pin (I don't have a rolling pin so I used a cucumber wrapped in cling film hahaha - desperate times call for desperate measures!). Once you roll out the dough, pick your favourite festive cookie cutters and start carving out some shapes. I actually used a pumpkin cutter as I couldn't find any festive ones, so I tried to turn them into baubles but as you can see in pictures they look like something a 5-year-old would make haha. Now that you have your cookies cut out and ready to bake, place them on a baking tray laid out with baking paper to avoid sticking and pop them in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until golden.
While the cookies are in the oven, you can now make the icing mixture. In a bowl, mix in the icing sugar and the egg white until smooth. If you find the consistency a little bit too thick then you can add a bit of cold water to make it more spreadable. Once you have a perfect consistency, put the icing into a piping bag and decorate your cookies once they're cool. And voilá! 

Obviously, my cookies don't look good at all (it's okay I already laughed at my failure), but they really do taste great and are very easy to make! I feel like this is an easy family task everyone would enjoy - especially when it comes to decorating.

Lots of love,

Maya xo

BLOGMAS 2017 || DAY 15 - GIFTS FOR HIM - AFFORDABLE LUXURIOUS SHIRTS FOR MEN FT. MILL NO. 8

I always struggle to buy gifts for my boyfriend or my dad, because who wants to receive tons of skincare products or alcohol every year for all occasions? Not the men in my family, that's for sure... So when I was contacted by Nehal from Mill No. 8 asking if I wanted to try out their service and receive a free shirt, I jumped to the opportunity as I know my boyfriend loves to wear shirts on special occasions and our 5 year anniversary is just around the corner.

First of all, the website is very easy to navigate so it does save a lot of time when you're looking for something in particular. There is a huge variety of different clothes to choose from - the images included throughout the website are very high fashion and almost persuade you to buy the whole outfit thanks to the photographers and models, of course.

BLOGMAS 2017 || DAY 9 - A CHRISTMAS GUIDE FOR A SPECIAL PERSON IN YOUR LIFE - BEST FACIALS FOR ALL SKIN TYPES FT. DECLÉOR

I recently had my very first facial and back massage done properly and I couldn't stress enough about how amazing it made me feel not only on the outside but on the inside too. I've been feeling very stressed out the past few weeks hence my lack of absence on social media and this blog (I do apologise to those who actually take their time to read my posts).
Because I work in the beauty industry, I had the opportunity to book myself for a facial and massage with Decléor for free which was amazing. At first, I was taken into the beauty room and asked to fill out a form which had a variety of skin problems/allergies etc. to fill out, so I circled my main concerns as prone to breakouts, acne scarring, redness, and oiliness. After I had filled out this form, I was asked to strip down to my knickers and cover myself in a towel and lay on my front. The masseuse then used oils to massage my back and put pressure onto my knots to get them out. You can only imagine how relaxed I had felt at this point, I do wear heels a lot so my back hurts quite a bit, but the way she relieved the pressure in my back has really helped.

Moving onto the facial, I don't exactly know what she did but I know it felt amazing during and after! I really loved the mousse cleanser and the phytopeel exfoliating peel which made my skin feel amazing. She also used this clay face mask on me which I really liked and ended up buying as she advised me to wear it overnight to have very fresh and soft skin in the morning. Overall, this was a fantastic experience and I cannot wait to book in for another treatment soon! I think one a month is vital for good skin health, and it's very affordable as you get your money back in products. I know for a fact that I'll be buying a full-size mousse cleanser and the exfoliating peel next.

Have you tried any Decléor products? Would you treat a loved one to a facial treatment?

Lots of love,

Maya xo

BLOGMAS 2017 || DAY 8 - WHAT I'M READING AT THE MOMENT - THE CHRISTMAS SECRET BY KAREN SWAN

I don't really like to read too much this time of the year as I find myself drowning in university deadlines and revision, however this year I picked up The Christmas Secret for half price at WHSmith's and I'm glad I did.
I find myself enjoying a light-read from time to time and this is a very heart-warming book. Obviously it is very girly, but that's the types of books I like to read when I'm feeling down, so I would highly recommend this one for anyone wanting a little bit of a festive romance.

This book is definitely for girl bosses who enjoy novels about powerful women kicking butts, and falling in love with the right (wrong?) men. I won't say much more as I don't want to give away any spoilers, but this is my current read and I am loving it so far!

What's your favourite festive read?

Lots of love,

Maya xo

BLOGMAS 2017 || DAY 7 - THE SUNSHINE BLOGGER AWARD

I was recently tagged in The Sunshine Blogger Award post by the lovely Chloe from Tints of Autumn. The rules are that you have to answer 11 questions asked by the blogger who nominated you, and then come up with your own 11 questions and nominate 11 bloggers, and so on and so forth.

Here are the questions I was asked to answer:

1. What is your favourite season and why?

I definitely love Autumn the most as it's still quite warm outside but there are no horrible bugs anywhere! I would usually say that Summer is my favourite season but I can't stand insects and other nasty creepy crawlies that come with it!!

2. Who's voice could you not live without?

My mum's ❤️

3. What do you love most about the blogging community?

I love how supportive some bloggers can be. It's so difficult to share your feelings and opinions online, but the blogging community makes me feel like I can open up to my readers and speak about important issues which need addressing.

4. What is your favourite blog post you've ever written and why? (link it!)

Erm, I don't particularly have a favourite post but if I had to pick one it would be my Rome Travel Guide, as it is definitely something I'd love to have read before I visited the capital. It took me a long time to write this guide and I am sort of proud of it, so do give it a read if you're planning on going to Italy, or have already been and want to compare our experiences!

5. What is the weirdest dream you've ever had?

Probably the one where I get chased by some weird monsters hahaha?? I don't know, all my dreams are weird tbh!

6. Where in the world would you most like to travel to?

Definitely anywhere in the USA. I'm hoping to go somewhere exciting next year, so finger's crossed!!

7. What did you last watch on Netflix (or the last thing you watched if you don't have it)

I think it was 5 Children & It? I've never seen it so it had to be done on Sunday afternoon with dinner! The last thing I watched that wasn't on Netflix was Grey's Anatomy on Amazon Prime - I started watching it from the beginning because I love this show.

8. Favourite lipstick shade and brand?

My favourite lipstick has to be Brave by MAC as it was my first luxurious lipstick and the shade really compliments my makeup, no matter what I wear.

9. The life motto you live by is...

Treat others as you'd like to be treated.

10. Who means the most to you?

Hmm. This is a tough question because there's a lot of people in my life who are very dear to me and mean the world so I can't just choose one. It'll have to be my family and boyfriend as they have helped me through difficult times and I couldn't be more grateful.

11. Sum up your life in one word.

Adventure.

Now you've read my answers, here are my questions:

1. What is your biggest achievement so far?

2. What was your favourite subject at school, and why?

3. If you could be an animal for a day, what would you be and why?

4. Have you ever found yourself in a writers' block?

5. How long have you been blogging for?

6. Do you think you could blog as a full-time job?

7. What career did you want to have when you were little?

8. What is your favourite memory from childhood?

9. Do you have a favourite beauty product that you swear by, if so, what is it?

10. Who's your favourite influencer and why?

11. If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?

The bloggers I nominate are:

Hannah from Luxury Blush

Kate from Kate Loves Makeup

Candice from The Blog Social

Kate from It's Kate Rose

Emma from Emma Lisa

Lauren from Lauren Ann Beauty

Isobelle from Isobelle Jane

Chloe from Coco V London

Katie from Life With KTKinnes

Abby from Abby Clare

Justine from Girl Gone Dreamer

Lots of love,

Maya xo