The Sunday Edit #7 | HOLIDAY 2015

The Friday before last, you may or may not know that I went on a short holiday to South Devon. I used to do Sunday Edits on my blog quite regularly but I haven't in a while because my life was filled up with college, college work and working in the evenings too. Seeing as I had a break from everything, I thought i'd share with you what I got up to whilst on my travels.

On the 14th August, my parents, siblings and myself traveled down to Exeter as that was where we were staying the first night, in a hotel just outside of town. Once we arrived we checked into the hotel and much to my delight I had a double bed to myself which I very much enjoyed, i'd love a double at home but I simply don't have the space for it unfortunately! We threw our bags down and headed out for brunch, we went straight to the vintage cafe we went to before but unfortunately it was closed for refurbishment so we settled for the next one along down the road. 

We did a little bit of exploring in the town centre and I was very good and didn't spend too much- I did however pop into Lush to buy the Mask of Magnaminty and a gift for my sister. We also saw the Cathedral which was lovely then made our way to the local pub, I had hunters chicken which was amazing!

Saturday was my younger brothers birthday, happy birthday to him! We had breakfast at the hotel which was a choice of cereals, fruit and a cooked breakfast which was lovely and then we made our way down to Dawlish where we were staying for the rest of our holiday. Again we explored the town a little, ate ice cream on the beach front- I had cookies and cream which was so delicious! I also bought some duck food, I felt like a child again feeding the ducks and I was also chased by some pigeons for some food. After a short while, we made our way to the holiday park to settle in and explored the beach and shops down the road. I was quite pleased with the pictures I took and my brother had a lovely day- more celebrations to come!

On Sunday we decided to pop down to Torquay sea front as we were planning on getting a boat from there, unfortunately it wasn't running that day. Instead we played some pitch and putt then started a long walk to a nearby village called Cockington which was absolutely beautiful. It had the most gorgeous tea rooms where a man played the piano whilst people ate, it also had a series of independent craft shops which all had some beautiful pieces which I didn't get any pictures of unfortunately. We did so much walking this day so we were pretty much done for the day and spent the evening relaxing.

After the boat trip fail on Sunday, we decided to go on Monday instead. The trip was to Exmouth another nearby seaside town, there were some stunning views from the boat which I've included here. Once we arrived, we walked along the beach then made our way to the fun park which is obviously aimed at the kids but we couldn't help it, ok!? My brother and I could not resist the swan pedal boats on the lake, we had so much fun and if I do say so myself I was a pretty good driver- it was also a good but tiring leg workout too! We also played some mini golf which I must admit i'm not great at, but it was fun nonetheless- haha! The weather was lovely the first half of the holiday so we were pretty hot and tired by this time so stopped for a drink and we also had the most amazing chips I've had from a takeaway in a while! We walked through the park into town and saw some squirrels which came so close, we had a browse around some of the little shops then walked back to catch the boat. We even saw a seal sunbathing on a sand bank on route back, which was cool!

On Tuesday we had a lie in as my other two sisters spontaneously decided to come down and see us. We drove to Teignmouth and spent ages looking for a parking space, it was really busy! Once we finally found one, again we explored the town centre. Do you see a running theme here? All are so different and have a lot of independent stores that you won't find anywhere else so it didn't get boring. Next we made our way down to the pier and I had my palm read(by a machine in the arcade, which I know will be complete waffle but why not!?). We spent a while looking for somewhere to each lunch and settled on a lovely pub which I've forgotten the name of but I had scampi which was a perfect seaside lunch! However, the deserts weren't the best so we made our way back down to the pier for a good ol' 99. Seeing as the weather was still lovely, we took an evening walk down the beach and enjoyed some freshly cooked hot donuts- mmm!

Wednesday was when the weather took a turn for the worse and was unfortunately grey, miserable and rainy. However, we didn't want to stay in all day so I did a quick google search and the House of Marbles was highly suggested for rainy days- it was basically a pottery, marble and toy museum. I know, it doesn't sound the most thrilling but it had good reviews so we thought we'd give it a go. Half an hour later, we were out- it was super busy and quite frankly we personally found it boring.  Instead we went to the nearest retail park and did some shopping, I bought some American candy- a Tootsie Roll and Cookie Dough Bites which I was super excited to try but I didn't particularly like either. I nearly cried in Pets at Home because I can't have a rabbit and I had a Lemon Ice Tea from Costa which was lovely. I also saw a few wild rabbits at our holiday park, which made up for earlier!

Thursday was another rainy day but we decided we would face the rain and get out in it so we drove down to Ottery, St Mary which apparently is the only place in England to spot wild beavers. The wildlife park we visited was lovely, we saw otters being fed and enjoying their enrichment, watched a birds of pray display where I may or may not have got hit by the wings of a Harris Hawk- scary but I wasn't the only one and nobody was injured. We also walked through the enclosure of red squirrels which was cool as I don't think I've seen a red squirrel before. They were so cute and got so close!

We stopped by the cafe where I enjoyed a nice cold lemonade before heading back to town to enjoy fish and chips by the beach, time in the amusements where I won a Harry Styles keying, haha!

Our final day in Dawlish was Friday. We woke up super early to pop down to the bakery and gift shop in the town centre to buy gifts for our family. It was rainy and we were certainly very tired after a busy week so our moods weren't the greatest. We decided to make our way home earlier than expected as we were supposed to be staying til Saturday. I picked up a piece of chocolate cake in the bakery to cheer me up and enjoy at home, I will start to eat healthier now that i'm back but holidays are for treating yourself right?

Overall, it was a lovely week and everyone certainly enjoyed themselves. It's nice to get away and have a break from the norm, relax and spend lots of quality time with your family. I believe I said this last year, as much as I love this part of England i'm hoping to save up and go abroad with my friends next year. Watch this space!

What have you been up to this week or in fact, throughout the Summer?

Let me know in the comments below!

♥   ♥   ♥

Travel Essentials | Beauty, Fashion and More!

I haven't been abroad in years, the last time I went I was around 6 or 7 so that's over 10 years ago which makes me a little sad. Unfortunately i'm not going abroad this year as much as I would've hoped, I'm hoping to go next year with my friends. However, on Friday i'm lucky enough to be travelling down to South West England and in particular South Devon for the week- which is just a tad exciting as it's always nice to get out of your hometown and explore somewhere else.

As i'm not going abroad this isn't going to be an 'in-flight travel essentials' which seem to be pretty popular, but I just thought i'd share my essentials as a whole for a short break within the UK. Also, just a side note, i'm not going to mention the obvious like a toothbrush so just so you know, I will be packing that but the more obvious ones won't be mentioned.

The Basics

Money- Of course you're going to need money when you get there but you could also on route. There always seems to be somebody who cannot wait to go to the toilet and insists you stop at the services, so that of course means getting out and popping to the shop to pick up a snack for your journey! There is also a possibility of a toll bridge, I know you have to pay to get into Wales so perhaps keep that in mind also!

Tissues- These are always handy, I always carry tissue around whether that's in my bag or jacket pocket. You've spilt something? Here's a tissue. Hayfever? Here's a tissue. And of course, public toilets- better to be safe than sorry!

Painkillers- We all hope not to get sick when travelling, or at anytime for that matter. So again, better to be safe than sorry always carry some form of medicine with you- painkillers are compact and are a huge relief when you've got a headache that wont shift or worse, period pains.

Beauty

SPF- Yes, even in the UK. You should wear some form of SPF all year round whether that's in your makeup or apply it separately. As it's going to be warmer during the summer months, it's likely you'll have your arms or even your legs out and when the sun decides to make an appearance you don't want to be caught short, burn and cause damage your skin.

Mini Deodorant-  I always carry some form of deodorant/body spray/perfume around with me as you never know when you're going to break a sweat and I can't think of anything worse than smelling of B.O. (there probably are worse things but still).

Minis- I love the aisle of Boots where all the dinky sized products are, they're so cute but obviously are designed for travelling. I usually go and buy the basic essentials in mini sizes such as shampoo and conditioner, body wash, deodorant and toothpaste but to save money I also like to decant products into the small travel size refillable bottles/pots, especially my skincare and some makeup bits.

Clothing

T-Shirt Dress- I love T-Shirt dresses as they're super comfortable and casual worn with leggings and Converse or skater shoes but they can also be dressed up a little with tights and flats or if you fancy, heels.

Sunglasses- Again, yes even in the UK. Not only do they protect your eyes from the rays but are also great for putting on when you've got little or no makeup on and look half asleep, woo!

Scarf- Perfect for the evenings when it gets a little chilly, there's nothing worse than being cold and having to suffer while shivering. They also make a good blanket too, which could be ideal on a plane or just to get comfy in the car while travelling. I love a good blanket scarf!

Rain Jacket- You'll probably need this in the UK when the weather is having mood swings, raining one minute, sunny the next. This can be kept in your bag as they're so light but I know you can also get macs in a bag which are super compact so there's no excuse to moan when it rains and you don't have a jacket.

Entertainment

Tablet- I tend to download games on to here for when I don't have WiFi but when I do, I shall be catching up on my bloglovin feed and Instagram. This can also be used like a Kindle, though I don't read a lot but if you do this could be your best friend while travelling.

Chargers- There's nothing worse than forgetting the chargers for your devices. I forgot my phone charger once but thankfully I could use my brothers as it was the same as mine. Pop your wires in a little pouch so they don't get too tangled in your bag and hopefully having a cute pouch while help you not to forget them!

Earphones- Definitely need these to listen to your own music rather than music your Dad has chosen. My family have completely different music tastes so it'd be a little painful to forget them while travelling!

A magazine- Or multiple! I rarely read magazines unless it's the Boots one. FYI they're free with your advantage card or £1, if you didn't know! Long journeys in the car are a perfect excuse for me to pick up a few magazines, these can also be reading material when you're just hanging out at your accommodation or better still, at the poolside! 

And that's a run through of my travel essentials! As I said i'm going away on Friday but I've scheduled posts for next week so I shall update you on Instagram when they're live, so make sure you're following me: @xtracesofmythoughts to keep up to date.

You can also follow me on bloglovin to be notified when I post, you can click the button to the right of my blog which will take you straight to it!

What are your travel essentials?

♥   ♥   ♥

Where I've Been | South Devon

Hello! 
You may have worked out from my previous posts that I've been away and my last 2 posts were scheduled. Here i'm going to tell you a little of what I got up to, i'll try to be short and sweet but we know I like to babble. Last Saturday I set off to where I thought we were staying in Plymouth, but actually we stayed near in Dawlish which was absolutely lovely and I'm so glad we did.

The first day was spent in Dawlish itself where we had breakfast, then visited the small independent shops and walked the beach, it was lovely and so was the weather- I was in my element! Sun, shopping and being near the beach.

Comfy travel outfit, with the pebbles beneath my feet.

Selfie with my mother who indeed doesn't look too impressed and sporting my double or rather triple chin.

Cute little boats.

The sea, glistening.

On the Sunday we decided to visit the town called Torquay, it was gorgeous but looked like such an expensive place to stay or live! We spent the day shopping, of course I spotted the Primark! I picked up a couple of items that I'll show in a future haul i'm sure. Next we set off to play pitch and putt, and i'll hold my hand up and admit it, I am definitely not a budding golfer.

Clearly displaying I know not a thing about golf.

Monday was more of a animal packed day, it would be an understatement to say I was excited as we were to be visiting Plymouth, the place where i'm thinking about going to Uni. We went to the National Aquarium, apparently the best within the UK, so that's a reason to get pretty excited right? Then followed by walking around the harbor side town and treating ourselves to the ice cream van, a typical British thing right?

A pretty fancy backdrop for a photo right?

Of course, I had to take a photo of the Nemo's!

A rather 'hipster' looking ice lolly.

We next traveled to Dartmoor Zoo which we in fact have visited before, the Zoo was fantastic the first time we went as we hadn't seen the animals before but this time was rather short as we had seen it all before, I did however manage to see the bear this time which was hiding last time!

Next was another day of my family being typical tourist's in Exeter. I fell in love with Exeter town, it had such amazing independent sellers as well as larger more national stores. Again I found the Primark, and other stores that I already have in my town but I couldn't resist not having a browse! We were getting a little peckish and found the coolest, oh gosh I do not sound cool saying that. But we found a Cafe that appealed to me a lot, vintage! I believe it was called 'The Real McCoy' but I can't be for sure, it was a cafe combined vintage store. I found the sofa and the fashion book to accompany my milkshake!

Ideal short break, music, chocolate milkshake(probably the best I've had) and a fashion book that I may have to purchase myself!

Wednesday was purely for my mothers love, donkeys! We traveled a little further than we usually would to see a load of Donkeys, I have to admit I didn't mind at all! They were so lovely, I even came away with my own(not a real one, I wish!) but a teddy and an adopted one! My father gifted my mum with a donkey, how sweet! It was a Poitou Donkey, with large ears a shaggy coat who likes to be cuddled called Aramis, adorable. 

Again we visited the beach, this was in Sidmouth and I found my favourite coloured beach huts!

I didn't take any photos on Thursday which i'm kind of gutted about as I loved this town so much too! Teignmouth! Teignmouth has amazing independent shops with such gorgeous furniture, every time I've been I've had to come away not purchasing any as it wouldn't fit in the car, weeping! Although I did get my palm read on an arcade machine which shoots cards out at random but I as always, I couldn't resist. 

The last day was Friday as we traveled back on the Saturday, I have holiday blues even though I wasn't abroad but just love Dawlish so much! Spontaneously we went for a little drive, we found a nature reserve which I was not too impressed by, although we walked for about 10 minutes with me complaining as we were surrounded by fields and cows, I regret it. We came out to such a lovely canal and little pub, we had a drink and noticed there was a boat we could catch to another town, on we hopped and spent about an hour or 2 in Topsham, although there was very little there it was a beautiful area to spend the last day!

Orangina in the sun! 

How very nautical for a boat ride.

The Exe Estuary boat trip to Topsham.

So there's the quickest round up possible for me to let you know where I've been and what I got up to, I loved Dawlish as always and definitely wouldn't hesitate to visit again although I do hope my next get away will be abroad! 
Look out for my next posts that'll be back to school related, or rather back to college related as i'm going into my final year at college!

See you next time,

Amy X

What's In My Makeup Bag? | Travel Edition

Hello!
As you can tell from the title of this post, today i'll be giving you an insight to my makeup bag and in particular what i'll be taking away with me, or rather what I've taken away with me- depending on when this goes up! I'll let you know now, I don't have the most luxurious high end makeup although I would love some- it's just not within budget at the moment and I feel the drugstore offers great quality products at more affordable prices so here we go..

Again, I don't have the nicest of makeup bags that are on offer to me, but this is handy as it fits everything in nicely without the need to leave the bag half unzipped! This is just a pink mesh bag that came with a gift from The Body Shop- handy!

First up is foundations, notice the plural? I was using the L'Oreal True Match foundation for a while on it's own, although it's great on it's own I wasn't too keen on the finish for summer as I prefer a dewier finish. I had the Rimmel 25 hour foundation lying around as I wasn't using it as I picked up the darker shade on accident.Now I know it looks really dark in comparison but just a little mixed in with the L'Oreal foundation creates the perfect finish and colour for my skin in the summer, so that's why I'll be taking a 2nd!

Next of course I couldn't go without concealer so in there I've thrown in my trusty Collection Lasting Perfection 16 hour concealer, perfect for the job and it's small, so perfect for travelling!

To then add some colour to my face I have a blush, this isn't a Barry M blush I just had to re-pot as it had shattered everywhere from the previous pan. If you can't tell already I love this blush which is why it had to be re-potted, it's a little hassle to use but I just tap a little into the lid and swirl my brush and it's fine! This is just a natural pink colour to give a flush on the cheeks with a little shimmer in. Usually I wouldn't be keen on shimmer but it's ever so slight and gives a glow to the cheeks also! No need to pack a highlight, great!

Moving on to eyes, mascara! I couldn't leave the house without a quick flick of mascara as quite frankly I look dead! Mascara just opens my eyes and makes me look more awake, so I've packed 2- again none in particular just ones I had lying in my stash to use up! I don't really notice the difference in mascaras as they all seem to have the same effect on my eyelashes, so I've packed both Rimmel mascaras, the Scandal Eyes for my top lashes and the Extra WOW lash for the bottom!

I could go without eye shadow each day but I love creating subtle looks to make my face look more made up and like I've made an effort! So in I've put the MUA Heaven and Earth palette which are a range of natural slightly shimmery shades to create subtle or more dramatic looks as each of the shades are so versatile! Also I forgot to mention, there are 12 different eye shadows in this tiny compact palette so again, perfect for travelling!

For my brows I sweep through the Maybelline Brow Drama brow mascara in Medium Brown- this matches my brow colour perfectly and makes them look fuller and more put together!

Last but not least, moving on to lips! I love applying lipstick last as I feel it just pulls the look together, providing you choose the correct shade not to clash with your blush or even eye makeup! Of course, i'm not the expert but I've included a range of 4 shades that are practically fool proof for the looks I tend to create on a daily basis. From left to right, MUA in shade 14 Bare, Natural Collection in Rose Bud, No7 in Vanity(bare in mind this is old, passed onto me by my Auntie who's quite the makeup hoarder) and lastly another MUA lipstick in the shade Nectar.

Bare- the perfect nude colour liptick- I think this could work for a range of skin tones too!
Rose Bud- a lovely pink colour that almost matches my actual lip colour so it's great for natural days!
Vanity- don't be fooled by the bullet like I was, this comes out as a natural brighter pink on my lips, I love it for a pop of colour!
Nectar- this is a lovely bright coral colour which looks amazing and so summery on a brighter day!

Last in the terms of actual makeup products is again another lip product, or eye for that matter! The Beverly Hills lip and eye primer, again passed down from my wonderful Auntie to make my lipstick and eye makeup last a lot longer on those warmer days!

Of course i'm taking makeup brushes to apply the makeup, these all fit in so nicely without squeezing them in and ever so slightly bending the bristles like I have done in the past! I'll list these like the lipsticks and explain what I use them for..
Eyelash Curlers
Real Techniques Buffing brush- buffing in foundation and concealer.
Real Techniques Pointed Foundation brush- applying foundation and concealer.
Real Techniques Contour brush- to apply blush.
Lydia eye shadow applicator- to apply the base shadow.
ELF Blending brush- to blend all eye makeup.
Real Techniques Detail brush- to apply a darker shade to the crease and outer corner.
Lydia Brow brush/comb- to brush through my brows and comb through my lashes.

And that's all for my travel makeup bag! For me this is just the right amount, admittedly I don't need to take 2 foundations, 2 mascaras and 4 lipsticks but if you've got the room- why not!? Let me know what's in your travel makeup bag or what would be if you were travelling this summer!

Until next time,

Amy X