One Year Blog Anniversary!

Hello lovelies!

Yesterday was the anniversary of Pretty Little Flirt. A year ago, I decided to create a page on the internet where I could share my thoughts and opinions for the world to see. I never imagined it building up how it has so far..

Thinking back to the person I was a couple of years ago, shy - not confident AT ALL, never really sticking to anything properly before, to be able to say I have blogged for a year is an achievement for me. I'm not going to say I didn't doubt myself countless times, or say I want to quit or don't want to do it anymore, because I did, a lot. But I always reminded myself that I do enjoy it and so I continue.. I always found taking a little break when I doubted myself really helped me realise I do enjoy it and miss it and then gives my the motivation to get back on it again

There have been so many highlights during my year of writing on the internet, here is just a few of them,

• I have reached over 10,000 page views
• Over 1k bloglovin' followers
• Have been nominated for multiple awards (Liebster 1 & 2.0, Infinity Dreams, Versatile Blogger, Real Neat) - thank you to everyone who nominated me x
• I guest posted on 'Steph's World' over Christmas (here)
• Created my blog's Instagram account! @prettylittleflirt
• I have worked with multiple brands including Beauty Essentials, Pick 'n' Melt and a few more that will be posted here very soon!

Some of my favourite posts so far have to be 'Pretty Little Thing Wish List', 'The Boyfriend Tag', I really enjoyed reviewing a lot of products such as 'Avon Mascara' 'Body Shop Serum and Moisturiser' 'Shadow Switch' etc

what was your fav?

So yeah, I did have some low moments of self doubt but I've also had some amazing moments. Either way, I am so happy that I pressed that publish button and leaped into something that I really had no knowledge about. I have grown as a person, online and off and I didn't even realise it

I want to say thank you to each and every person who has read any of my posts, it truly means a lot that someone takes time out of their day to read what I post and even comment. I love talking to loads of people on Twitter, you really do get to meet some lovely people and find friends for life x

Shani xox

The Real Neat Blog Award

Hey guys! 

So I was nominated by one of my best friends Tania from TaniaaWrites for the real neat blog award. 

Heres the rules:

• Thank and link the blogger who nominated you (they deserve recognition, very important!)
• Answer the 7 questions they asked you
• Nominate other bloggers and let them know!
• Ask your nominees 7 questions

Tania's questions to me:

1. What do you love about blogging? Being a part of such a lovely and supportive community. As well as being able to freely express my opinions on the internet, its therapeutic at times actually

2. What's on your bucket list? Definitely want to travel more I have a post on this here

3. What are your goals for 2017? I have a few goals for my blog such as getting a domain and being more socially active (post on this here), in general life I want to get fitter, exercise more, eat healthier build my immune system. I need to work on my temper, not blowing up if I'm annoyed or overthinking things

4. What's the best part of blogging? Definitely being able to talk to lots of different people from different backgrounds, it's such a lovely way to make new pals. I've also loved meeting other bloggers at meet ups and talking in group chats!

5. What motivates you? Planning out what to do in order to reach a goal I have is definitely a way for me to get things done. Also thinking of my future and family, need to keep going and never give up or you'll never achieve what you want

6. How do you like to relax after a busy day? Well I mean I would say a hot relaxing bubble bath with a good ol' lush bath bomb, however, I only have an en-suite shower at university haha! So I'll have to say a hot shower with a face mask and lil pamper session with some snacks and a Netflix binge

7. Any tips or advice for new bloggers? Definitely only write about what you enjoy, don't feel forced to write about topics or things you don't want to. Follow other bloggers who interest you and join twitter chats it's such a lovely community to be involved with!

Thanks again for nominating me Tania! xxx

I tag the following lovelies to do this post on their blog:

Tania at Life Happens
Charlotte at Charlie's Wonderland
Emma at Just Emmaculate
Brianna at Bri536
Katie at Katie Yvonne
Holly at Da Silvax

My questions to you lovely ladies are:

1. What is one item you cannot live without? (a makeup product or accessory?)
2. Where do you see your blog in a years time?
3. How did you find joining the blogging community?
4. What are you looking forward to the most this year?
5. Where do you wish you were right now? If you could fly anywhere..
6. What is your favourite Netflix series right now?
7. Do you think you could survive a zombie apocalypse? 

I absolutely love tag posts so this was a lot of fun! 

Shani xox

Blogging Goals | 2017

Hellooo loveliesss!!

Firstly I'd like to say Happy New Year to everyone, I hope that January so far is treating you all well! I have had a fair bit of time off posting to relax a little bit after Christmas but I am back with some goals for my blog this year.. I have seen a few other bloggers do this post earlier in the month, and I know I should have done it earlier too but it's still January so lets pretend it counts haha

I've decided I need to be a lot more organised when writing up posts, I need to have no distractions meaning not having the TV on, and not sitting in bed where I can get comfortable and fall asleep or become lazy.. so, I will be sitting up the table with my notebook where I will be listing post ideas and structuring while writing!

Here are my 2017 blog goals:

1. Regular Posting - Last year, I went through stages where I would post regularly and then another stage where I wouldn't post for weeks.. whether that is lack of motivation or being busy or ill I'm not too sure, however I want to improve on that. I'm going to be realistic and say I want to be posting once a week, at least. I'd love to be able to say I will post more than that, but if on the odd occasion I wan't to post more than that, then of course I will

2. Photography - I really want to improve on my photography, I have been super comfortable with just using my iPhone, to be fair it isn't bad quality at all, it does the job. But I would just like to be able to say I used my proper camera to do it. If I just don't end up liking it and prefer my phone then I will continue to do that but I just want to try..

3. Bloglovin' - So currently, I have just under 950 bloglovin' followers. I wan't to make a goal to reach 1.5k followers, which is a little steep and ambitious. But thinking about it, I only opened an account in September, 5 months ago. So I think within a year I should be able to reach it! I have added a bloglovin' widget in the side bar so follow if you haven't already, I always follow back!!

4. Instagram - I definitely want to open an Instagram account soon, specifically for my blog, it would be a nice way to share my posts and follow other bloggers without it being my personal account, if you have an account comment with your username and I will follow!

5. Comment on and find new blogs - I am going to make an aim to find, read and comment on at least 3 blogs/posts per day. I really do not do this enough as I should! This will really help branch out for new inspiration and finding new bloggers!

6. More social media active - I feel like I am quite active on twitter already, however a lot of the time I forget about twitter chats, and following new people. I want to keep track on as many twitter chats as I can to be able to take part much more, and therefore following lots of other bloggers and making new friends

7. Domain - I have been thinking about this for a while and I would love my own domain, I think it will make my blog look so much more professional. I have already added and removed certain little details on my page to look a bit more professional but the final step would be to have my own domain!

Do you have any goals for the year?

Shani xox

Avon Supershock Mascara: Review

Hello my lovelies,

As you may or may not know, I am a mahoosive fan of mascaras. Mascara is the main part of my make up routine, it wouldn't be complete without it! 

So for a while, my go to mascaras were the Benefit 'Better Than Sex' and 'Roller Lash', up until very recently when I was given the Avon Supershock Mascara to try as a gift (Thank you!!xo)

During my younger teenage years I lived for Avon mascaras, but since getting jobs I've branched out to higher brands to try out. However, since getting this beauty into my hands again, I haven't looked back. My higher branded mascaras are stored well away and haven't been touched! I have fallen in love with Avon mascaras all over again. 

So the wand is very thick, this is amazing to me as you do not need to add much more product after first application, one coat is pretty much enough and it covers your lashes really well! Sometimes I do use an old dry mascara wand to even out my lashes a little in case too much product has been applied as it is so big, but it works so well! It extends my lashes enormously! I have previously been asked if I have used false lashes (never btw.. I need to try some!!), but my long lashes it all down to this beauty! I believe Avon have this product out all the time, and keep renewing them and re bringing them out so you will always be able to get another one - thank goodness! I do also curl my lashes before applying which leaves them looking longer and last all day too. Did I forget to mention it is also SUPER cheap???!

Here is my before and after photos (first attempt at this so don't judge my skills guys haha!- also, yes I know, I need to do my eyebrows hahaha) I hope you enjoyed this post, I definitely want to write more of these! Let me know what your fav mascara is in the comments!

Shani xox

Lush Lip Scrub: Review

Helloooooo
So over a month ago I had a little Lush shopping spree you may have seen my previous haul, if not then here is the link.. I also purchased this Lip Scrub but decided that I wanted to use it and test it before reviewing it for you guys. 
I did originally plan to write this up weeks ago, it has been sitting in my drafts for a while now but many weeks later I finally feel much better and back to myself (I also noticed that the last few posts have all been tags... oops) so here is my review!!

I tend to get quite dry cracked lips not only during winter and cold months but pretty much all year round. I bought the Clarins Lip Comfort Oil (I wrote about this in a blog post here) and yes this did do me wonders, but I found I was going through it so fast that when I saw the Lip Scrub at the Lush counter, I wondered if it would help my oil and other lip balms and lipsticks last a lot longer and not become dry or have my skin peeling off..

There were loads of different flavours available but as I was at the till, I didn't want to hold up the queue so I kind of picked up a random one and didn't really give it a look until I got home. So I picked up the bubblegum flavour - which I was very pleased with, as it smells amazingggggg! These products are made with sugar so when you scrub this onto your lips it will scrub all of the cracked dead skin away leaving you with soft smooth lips for the day. The scrub comes in a bright pink shade, which I was worried at first that it would stain my lips and leave behind a tint (which could be pretty cool for some people) but personally I didn't want that and was very pleased when it didn't leave a colour behind on my lips, allowing me to put my lip balm or lipsticks over the top with ease.

The scrub is so easy to use; you simply just scrub it into your lips as you would with a body exfoliator, use circular motions and rub your lip together, you can then lick this off (it is edible and it tastes quite nice!) you can also just wash it off if you don't want to lick it, I find that this leaves your lips feeling quite sticky and I always find pieces of sugar laying around so I prefer to lick it off haha. I also find that using this scrub leaves my lips feeling a little more plump than before - I love the word plump.. PLUMP (: 

I would genuinely recommend this product to anybody who suffers with dry and cracked lips, it has been a huge help in my life and I find myself using it all the time! Don't be put off by the scent or the colour, it just smells like sweet bubblegum candyfloss and the taste isn't that strong, just a little sweet. And the colour doesn't leave anything behind on your lips! TRY IT

The packaging is travel friendly, really small like a little lip balm pot. It also does include a lot of product inside, you don't need to use much at all! Although I find that it is quite difficult to get the product out, I use my finger to try to scrape it out and bits of sugar end up falling over the side sometimes, but I don't mind, I love it too much.

That's all from me, my very first review- let me know what you thought! Also if you have tried this before or any of the other lip scrubs let me know what you think of them!

Shani x