I have not done one of these posts in probably a few years but nonetheless, here are my favourites for the month of January (and the tail end of December too). 

1. Mango bag 

This is definitely a dupe for the Alaia 'Le Teckel' bag but I just loved the silhouette of it and I have been looking for a deep chocolate brown bag for the longest time. I love that it has 2 little zips which can be used to get in and out of the bag, the long straps are so beautiful, and the faux croc texture just adds a little interest. 

2. L'occitane hand cream 

At first I could not justify spending over £20 on a handcream but honestly once I tried it I understood why everyone has been using this one in particular for years. I really like the fact that it does not leave your hands feeling oily or greasy but instead it deeply nourishes your hands. 

3. Silkie hair comb  & 4. Lush 'curl power'

I have wanted an acrylic hair comb, in particular in tortoise shell, for the longest time purely for aesthetic reasons, of course. Since getting my hair cut this has been really useful in detangling my hair because of its wide teeth. 

Ever since discovering I have curly hair I have been trying to condition and look after my curls and this has been amazing for it. First of all, it smells amazing to the point where I want to eat. Second of all, it leaves your hair feeling super hydrated. Third of all, I am all for supporting businesses that use natural ingredients in their products. 

5. Huda Beauty lip gloss in 'bombshell' 

I love the way this gloss looks on your lips and the colour is absolutely gorgeous. It pairs really well with nudes, pinks, and browns. Its not sticky at all and lasts really nicely throughout the day. 

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If you love almond croissants then you will love these almond muffins. Think airy, almond, and amazing! This is a super easy recipe which includes combining all the dry ingredients with all the wet ingredients with no need for 1757674+ bowls. 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of plain flour
• 1 cup of greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup of oil 
• 2 tsp of baking powder
• 1/2 cup of sugar 
• 1 egg 
• 1 tsb of almond butter 
• a dash of vanilla essence
• sliced almonds
• icing sugar to dust 

How to: 

• Preheat your oven to 180 degrees. 
• Mix together the oil, greek yogurt, 1 egg, vanilla essence, and your almond butter. 
• Add in your flour, sugar, baking powder and combine thoroughly. 
• Scoop the batter in to a muffin tray and bake for 15 to 20 minutes depending on how golden you want the top.
• Sprinkle the almond slices over the muffins in the tray. 
• Once they are out the oven let them cool before drizzling a simple icing sugar and water mixture or just dust a little icing sugar over the top.

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2024 was the year I rediscovered my love for reading and really indulging to the point of probably binging several books. Here are the books I would whole heartedly recommend to anyone who loves the thriller, suspense, and hope genre. I have grouped them into somewhat similar categories or authors to make it a little easier to follow. 

1) Lisa Jewell

I discovered this author at my local charity bookshop and quickly realised I loved her style of writing and how she truly captivates you to the point where you are forced to read a book in 2 days. I first read 'The Family Remains' not knowing the first book 'The Family Upstairs' existed. Nonetheless, I personally do not think you need to read them in order to understand nor enjoy them properly. I equally enjoyed reading the first book after as I already had an idea as to what was about to transpire but did not know the entire story. After scouring my local charity shop for the rest of her books I came across 'Then She Was Gone' and 'The Night She Disappeared' both of which again I could not put down and would recommend to everyone. Lastly and most definitely my favourite 'None Of This Is True' was one I kept seeing recommended online and upon reading it I quickly understood why. The way this book was written truly does make you question what you are reading constantly. 

2) Freida McFadden 

Now I know this author has been popular for quite sometime especially with 'The Housemaid' and I was a little skeptical before reading some of her books but once again I simply fell in love with her style of writing. I think for me I definitely enjoyed reading 'The Inmate' and 'Never Lie' somewhat more than 'The Housemaid' simply because of the story line as well as the build up of suspense but irrespective I definitely would recommend all of them equally. Once more, I think it spent only a day or two reading them all because that is how engrossed I was in wanting to reach the end of each book. 

3) 'Hopeful' books 

This category of books steers away from thriller and suspense but it definitely has a fews nods to those genres. I have always wanted to read 'The Alchemist' and I did not realise how short of a book it was but this one probably took me the longest to read. I am unsure why it took me a while to get into this book but once I finished it I began to understand and really appreciate the message behind the book. 'The Kite Runner', another book on my always wanted to read list and this one truly broke me a little. I think I can speak for anyone else who has read this but it truly is a story filled with grief and so much hope. Now Clare Mackintosh is one of those authors I see recommended everywhere online and after reading 'After The End' I began to understand why. This one plays to your heartstrings once more but the style of writing is what truly engaged me. 

4) Authors I want to read more from 

If you are anything like me you have an entire note in your phone dedicated to a list of books from specific authors that are currently on your 'to read' list and both Steve Cavanagh and Chris Whittaker are on mine. 'Fifty Fifty' is probably up there with being one of my favourite reads from last year and I truly am looking forward to reading more books by this author. Now 'Tall Oaks' was a book that I did not particialrly reach for straightaway and that was a mistake because I did not anticipate it ending the way it did. 

I definitely want to continue my burning desire for reading more in 2025 because it truly is a great way to discover new genres and worlds. As someone who never really read anything other than non-fiction books I thought I would struggle to get into fiction books but instead I discovered it is one of the few things I enjoy the most especially in a world where everything is so digital. 

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