TRAVEL - Dubai.

My second trip of this year was to Dubai. A huge contrast to my previous trip which was absolutely freezing. Dubai has always been a place on my list to visit. We didn't go to do the typical Dubai, beach clubs & brunches, we went to see the city. Different to our usual sight seeing trips, Dubai doesn't have a lot of history because as a country it's still quite young, but it has a lot to see with lots of amazing skyscrapers and huge malls. I'm here to tell you what we did, where we stayed and where we ate if you are thinking of going to this gorgeous city.

We flew with Emirates and I was actually looking forward to the flight because I had heard lots of good things. Everyone had told me that you're holiday starts when you get on the plane. I was looking forward to spending the flight watching films and all you can drink Diet Coke. The flight was 6h 30mins going and 7h 30mins coming home.

We stayed at the Atana Hotel, I saw pictures of the hotel when we booked the trip months ago but I has forgotten it's name and what it looked like. I was pleasantly surprised when we got to the hotel. We were staying for 6 nights, the hotel only cost us £250 each including breakfast, so I wasn't expecting anything fancy but like I said I was pleasantly surprised. The room was clean, spacious with a huge bed and from our hotel window you could see the Burj Al Arab. The staff there were so friendly and helpful. Luckily there was a taxi stop (if that's what you call it where all the taxis line up) just at the corner of the road so taxis were super easy to get because you will need to get taxis everywhere. I was told that everything was quite spread out but I wasn't expecting that we would have to get a taxi everywhere. 

Let's get into what we did. 
The first place we visited and a place that was top on my list was the Miracle Garden. Now if you haven't seen this place on instagram I suggest you go and look at it. It's stunning. The garden is over 72,000 square meters which makes it the worlds largest natural flower garden, featuring over 150 million flowers! The garden is only open from mid November to mid May, so if you're going to Dubai within those months I would highly recommend paying the Miracle Garden a visit. An aeroplane, huge Disney characters, love heart and butterfly archways completely covered in flowers. This was probably my favourite place we visited on the trip! So pretty!
From the miracle garden we got a taxi to Dubai Mall & Burj Khalifa. 
If you didn't know, the Burj Khalifa is the worlds tallest building, the top floor is 1,918 ft and the tip is 2,722 ft! We were going to pre book our tickets to go up to the Burj Khalifa, but we did end up deciding that we would wait until we get there so we could do it whenever we felt like it. There are three different ticket options which have different prices if your going up during peak time or not. Theres Level 125 & 124 (this is what we chose), Levels 148, 125 & 124, then the lounge which is levels 154, 153 & 152. As I mentioned we did the Levels 125 & 124 because we weren't to fussed about going right to the very top (plus going to the lounge would cost over 600 AED). We had a bit of a fuss trying to get our tickets, we went to the ticket desk to purchase our tickets and they only had the tickets that cost 525 AED (which is the second option I mentioned above), but we looked on the Burj Khalifa website and it said they had availability for the first ticket option, so we went back and she told us that she didn't have any tickets for that one, go to the aquarium they may have some. So we had to go all the way to the aquarium where they finally had some tickets (the story is actually a lot more long winded than that but keeping it to the point). If you go and they tell you they don't have the tickets for floors 124 & 125 go to the aquarium and see if they have any because we only paid around 250 AED for them, you still get the same views just not as high. I would have loved to have gone as high as we could go but its a lot of money just to go up a building, and an extra 200 EAD to go up 10 more floors!

Dubai Mall has over 1,200 shops and in 2011 it was the most visited building in the world. The entrance to the Burj Khalifa is through the mall, there's a Fashion Avenue for all of you designer lovers and there's lots of places to eat. Outside is the Dubai Fountains, we ended up watching these 4 times in one night! The show happens twice an hour, and I really recommend watching this. There are lots of restaurants in the mall the have outdoor seating where you can view the fountains, we watched them in a restaurant and then later we went down to the front and watched them there. You can also watch the fountains from a boat that goes around the pool while the fountain show is going on. 
The day after we set out to see the Burj Al Arab, we got a taxi and then walked to Jumeirah Public Beach. Most of the beach fronts are private areas that you would need to go to a beach club or a hotel to get onto. The Burj Al Arab is the 5th tallest hotel in the world. Construction started in 1994 and it opened in December 1999. I would have loved to have gotten a closer view of the Burj Al Arab by going into the Madinat Jumeirah, which is actually a resort with several hotels and lots of restaurants. It was a place on my list to go and see and take a little boat ride around the resort, but we didn't get a chance to do this. You could also get a better view from Shimmers beach club. From the public beach we got a taxi to the Marina. The marina was one of my favourite areas. We were there around lunch time so it was nice and chilled. It was quite quiet when we were there, I can imagine at night its quite lively as there are a lot of bars and restaurants. 
The next day we had an early start as we had booked a day trip to Abu Dhabi, if your in Dubai I would definitely recommend going to Abu Dhabi for the day. We had pre booked our trip before we went but you can do it why your there also. We booked through the website

getyourguide, We had an amazing guide, she was very informative and friendly. The main reason we wanted to go to Abu Dhabi was to see the Grand Mosque, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. This is one of the most stunning places I have seen. Women are required to wear an abaya, which our tour guide provided for us, and men need to wear long pants and a long sleeve top. The building was completed in 2007. Inside the mosque there is the worlds largest carpet (60,570 sq.ft.). The mosque wasn't the only thing we saw in Abu Dhabi, we went to a museum (Emirates Heritage Village) which showed the history of Abu Dhabi, a view point to see the Presidential Palace and the observation deck on the 74th level of Etihad Towers. 
The following day we had booked to go to Aquaventure Waterpark Atlantis. This was our first 'look' at the palm. You obviously can't see the Palm properly unless your looking down from above (we would have loved to do a helicopter but it was fully booked). We spent the day in the waterpark and before we left we had a walk on the beach which looked back to the mainland Dubai with its stunning skyscrapers. I would have loved to have done a boat ride to see Atlantis properly. 
Our last day we did the desert safari, which included a camel ride, quad bikes and sand duning. Now, if your get even I tiny bit car sick I do NOT recommend this! It was a cool experience but the sand duning is ok for 10 mins but being thrown around up down and sideways will catch up on you (I was the only person in our car who wasn't sick, which I was so surprised at this because I do get a little travel sick, but I think that may have been down to the fact that I was sat in the front). There are still things that I would have liked to have seen and done but nothing that will keep me up at night. 

Moving on to where we ate...

We had a total of 6 nights in Dubai, the first evening when we landed we didn't go out for food as it was late by the time we got to our hotel. The first place we ate was the famous Cheesecake Factory. This was 100% on the list of places to eat! The menu is huge and the portions are HUGE! If you can finish one of their pasta dishes hats off to you because they are double the size of a normal dish! We could have probably shared, but we didn't know how big they were going to be! Even though we didn't finish our meals we had to get a cheesecake! It would be rude not too! We ate at the The Cheesecake Factory in the Mall of the Emirates, which inside has a ski slope which the Cheesecake Factory windows look out to! 
The next evening we ate at TGI's. We wanted to eat somewhere with a fountain view so we could see the fountain show and my friend told me that TGI's outdoor area looked out. I am a huge fan of TGI's and pretty much everywhere we go in the world we usually make a stop off there. A head up if your like me and obsessed with TGI's Jack Daniels Sauce/Chicken they don't have it there because there's no alcohol on the menu, which I didn't know until we got there, so I had a pasta but that was really nice! 
Next up was another place I had on my list before we went was Barasti. Barasti is actually a beach club/bar so you can go in the day, chill on the beach, drink, swim in the pool. But I always intended on going there for our evening meal. Id heard about it from people I know and then on instagram, seeing the pictures of the marina buildings lit up in the background. We actually went here to eat twice. The first time we went was on a Tuesday evening, it was so chilled and had a relaxed vibe which is what made me want to go back. The second time we ate there was our last night which was a Thursday and it was a lot busier! Most of the tables outside were taken, the music was louder, more people were downstairs and in the pool/pool area, but the food was just as nice. I had actually looked at the menu online before we went. The staff were also so lovely, I think everyone we came across was really friendly.
The last place that was on my list of places to eat was a place called Switch. I was looking on the instagram Dubai story and I saw a video of a dessert with chocolate being poured over it and I decided we were going there! It was such a find in my opinion, if you didn't already know about this place you wouldn't be able to find it. It's in Dubai Mall and it's in the middle of the Timberland shop and the Birkenstock shop, so it's not with all the other food places. We were the only tourists in the restaurant! I think the place is best know for its desserts, but the food was also really yummy! If your looking for places to eat I would really recommend visiting here. We had lunches at normal fast food restaurants, KFC, Burger King and in the Marina we had lunch at Nando's! 
That is all for what I did, saw & ate in Dubai! I hope you have found this post helpful if you are going to Dubai and were thinking of places to go and places to eat! I'm someone who likes knowing what I'm doing and of possible places to eat before I go somewhere, it makes it less stressful! 
To see more pictures follow my instagram @ellietaylorrxx and I also have a full instagram story highlight of the trip!
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FASHION - Buying My Second Chanel Bag & Why I Sold my First.

A Chanel bag was always my dream bag, since I was 11 years old. I had dreamt about owning a Chanel Classic Flap bag, gold hardware, Caviar leather. If you haven't seen my pervious blog post (click here), I actually purchased my dream Chanel bag in Paris in 2016.

I had turned 21 in January (I celebrated for 6 months, I'm one of those people) and I knew we were going to Paris, and we were going to Paris for me to buy my first Chanel bag (and see Paris obv) that I had wanted for 10 years. I did buy my dream bag. Caviar Leather, Gold Hardware, Maxi Classic Flap. I know a Maxi isn't the most popular classic flap choice, but before I went to Paris I had been to the Chanel boutique in Manchester and looked at the different leathers, they showed me the Jumbo (one of the most popular sizes) I tried the bag on and honestly I wasn't blown away, which is very disappointing when your about to spend thousands on a handbag. I had seen a few people with a maxi and when I saw it it made my heart skip. When I got to the very busy boutique in Paris I tried on a Jumbo & a Maxi and again it was the Maxi that stole my heart, so that's the bag I bought. I was obsessed with that bag and it was such an amazing experience buying my first Chanel bag in Paris (a very fast one, Chanel on Avenue Montaigne was VERY busy). But after I had only used the bag a handful of times I realised it was too big for my new style, I was once into big handbags and now I had veered off to smaller handbags. 
I don't regret buying that bag, because like I said that was my dream bag and it made my heart flutter which is exactly what you want when your spending that much on a bag. So I made the decision to sell it (an experience which I found very long and difficult). I now know the size of bag I love and use, I never actually needed a big bag, I don't carry that much! I sold my first Chanel bag knowing that with the money I wanted to repurchase another Chanel bag in a size I knew I would get use out of. These bags are crazy amounts of money. I know people don't like to talk about prices but I will. My maxi classic flap was £4100 in 2016 and it currently retails for £5200 (2019). I put my Chanel bag up for sale before the most recent price increase and I wanted to sell it for the price of the medium classic flap which at the time was £3990. Then the price increase happened and the medium was then priced at £4300. I ended up selling my maxi for £3800, which meant putting £500 towards getting my new one. With the prices of these bags, I think if I were ever to purchase another Chanel bag I would probably turn to the pre loved market, because like I said it's crazy money, but for my first I did want to buy it brand new. 
I have now purchased my second Chanel bag, which I decided on the Medium Classic Flap bag still with gold hardware, but I decided to change leather and go for lambskin. I did lots of research and I also compared the two leathers in store and the minuet I saw the two leathers side by side I loved the look of the lambskin (in the medium, I do prefer the Maxi & Jumbo in Caviar). I do look after all of my bags, but I am still nervous about lambskin being so soft and delicate, but so many people say its not as delicate as it seems.    

I had never really considered the Medium classic flap bag ever, it was either the Jumbo or the Maxi. Im not someone who thinks you can only use a small bag for the evening, I've taken my medium Givenchy Antigona out in the evening plenty of times. I just didn't want one that was too big, because I realised that the bag I was reaching for the most out of my collection was my Celine Nano Luggage and I had been loving it for the day time and evenings! Then I saw some of my favourite fashion bloggers/instagrammers Chanel bags and they were all the medium classic flap and I thought it was the perfect size. I am really in love with my new bag! The leather is so soft and it just instantly makes any outfit look chic. On my Maxi I did absolutely love the caviar leather, and I did love the look of the whole bag, it was absolutely gorgeous. I was actually shocked at myself when I decided I wanted Lambskin because I never thought I would want a Lambskin bag.  
The Maxi is 23cm in height, 10cm depth and 33cm in width. The Medium is 16cm in height, 7cm depth and 26 in width. Then there is the Jumbo (Large) which is 19.5cm in height, 10cm depth and 30cm in width. There is also a Small which I tried on, which is 14.5cm in height, 6cm depth and 23cm in width. 
My Maxi was my 4th designer handbag, behind my medium Givenchy Antigona, my Louis Vuitton Neverfull MM then I purchased the Givenchy Clutch as I didn't have an evening bag. As you can see with the bags I had bought before my Chanel bag, I was very into larger bags. Out of those above I only use my LV Neverfull, its my everyday bag which I use for work. I don't use my Antigona anymore, again because its now too big for what I look for in a bag, even though I absolutely love that bag and I would love it in the size down. What I'm getting at is that peoples style changes and its ok to buy something and the realise its not what you actually want now. 
If your considering purchasing a Chanel bag I would say make sure you try them on before you make the decision. They are a lot of money and you want to get it right first time because you don't want to loose out on money like I did. 
Is a Chanel bag on your luxury Wishlist? If so, what size, leather and colour? Leave a comment! 
I can't wait to start using my new bag! 
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BEAUTY - OUAI Haircare Collection/Reviews.

I mentioned in my 2018 beauty favourites that I never used to be into haircare, I could dry my hair, straighten it and use a curling wand that was it. I didn't care about using any products because I have really oily hair so was too scared to put anything on it other than hairspray. It was only the back end of 2018 I actually got into hair products, and it was the brand OUAI that got my attention. With it's instagram worthy packaging, sleek, simple & stylish. Not to mention it's Jen Atkin's, hair stylist to the stars, haircare line. My OUAI collection is made up of 18 products, 3 repurchases and 5 of which are full size. All the others are minis from their sets which I have collected to try out more of the products.
The first product which got my attention is the 'Texturizing Hair Spray'. One of my 5 full size items (which my lovely friend bought me as my leaving present, probably to shut me up talking about it!) and I have already gone through one mini and I have another mini now on the go. I'd heard about Ouai but I had never tried it, I was in work, I had my hair wavy (for a change) and my hair needed some oomph. I headed over to the Ouai wall and it was love at first use. I knew I needed it, so I decided to buy the 'On My Ouai' set which came with a mini of the Texturizing Hair Spray (individually minis are £10). I am SO happy I decided to get this set (if its still available i'll link it below), it was £35 for 4 minis in a cute little bag which now houses all of my Ouai minis. This set led me to probably my favourite Ouai product... The 'Smooth Spray' or its new name 'Leave In Conditioner'. I have used this product every time I have dried my hair since I bought it, leading to repurchasing another mini size and I also the full size. I really did notice a difference in my hair from using this product. I used it as directed on the back, spray on your wet hair before brushing and then brush through. My hair is SO knotty, so brushing my hair when its just been taken out of the towel was a painful process, not any more thanks to this product. Plus my hair feels AMAZING when I use this, so soft and silky! (Another thing I LOVE about the brand, it has directions on the back of each product so you know how to use it if you not a hair wizz like myself). Another product in the set was the 'Dry Shampoo' now this is ok, I bought the set mainly because I was going on holiday and I wanted a mini of the texturizing hairspray and I thought a travel size dry shampoo would be perfect because I wasn't going to be washing my hair on my 3 day city break. Like I said its just ok, but great now because if I need a dry shampoo to take on any of my city breaks I now have one. An item I'm yet to use that came in the set (2 out of 18 products I've not tried yet) is the 'Treatment Masque'. I'm not a hair mask person, Im actually just really impatient and can't be bothered putting it on and waiting but I will get round to using them soon.

Id caught the Ouai bug and I wanted to try more of their products, the next set I got was the 'Morning After Kit' which included the famous 'Dry Shampoo Foam' I really wanted this product to work for me, so I tried it on a day I knew I'd be washing my hair incase it didn't work for me and thank god I did, it made my hair sooo greasy. I tried it again to give it the benefit of the doubt and the same happened, which made me question if the foam was just a bad batch. Now I will say it gave me loads of volume, so if I was ever doing a pony and I wanted a ton of volume I'd then use this. I was sad though because I do like a dry shampoo for a lazy hair day. The next product in the set which i'd seen all over social media was the 'Rose Hair and Body Oil' Im not the biggest fan of a hair oil, i'd use one every now and again when my ends were feeling super dry, but it isn't a product I would reach for every time. It smells lovely and I like that you can use it on your body too. I only use one to two pumps because I am very scared of oils because my roots are naturally very oily. I now own the full size because it was a free full size gift with purchase and I do use it (a very small amount) on my hair when its wet and when its dry if I'm having my hair sleek and straight. The last product in the set was the 'Finishing Crème' it's describes as a lotion for your hair, That smooths dry hair ends and gives your hair a lived in look. Which I am here for the texturizing products. When I received this there was probably only around 3cm of product in my tube which I was a little annoyed about because when I use this product I actually really like it but I probably don't use enough because it will run out. Honestly I do think I got an all round bad batch of the Morning After Kit because every product in it didn't wow me, my Rose Hair and Body Oil wasn't rose coloured and it was leaking all over the place, my Dry Shampoo Foam just was sticky and my Finishing Crème has hardly any product in it... hm.

The next items I purchased were the 'Three Ouai Kit'. This set is £25 and includes 3 minis and 6 'wave clips' which I just use to get my hair off my face or for separating my hair when drying/styling it, and the 'Anti - Frizz Hair Sheets'. The first mini in the Three Ouai Kit is the 'Dry Texture Foam' like I said I'm here for anything that gives my hair texture. I was very hesitant to use this as I had not the best time with the last foam, but this product gave me piecey texture and made my hair look like the good kinda bed head. It said that it would feel like there was no product in my hair and it's weightless and that's correct, I do really like this product. Next in the set is was the 'Volume Spray'. This product is raved about and the full size sold out everywhere! Its a product that you spray onto your roots before drying, so naturally me and my oily roots were very nervous but I thought lets give it a go, I have really flat, heavy, thick hair which really lacks volume. I used it as directed and dried my hair and I wasn't blown away, I didn't notice anything until I had finished doing my hair and I was brushing through it and my hair bounced! It worked, AND my roots didn't feel or look greasy! I was still a little bit undecided on the product so I used it a few times and I can say it definitely gives my hair volume. This product runs out quite fast, and I did manage to get my hands of a mini version of it without having to buy a set (if I had to get a set to get this product I would have..). My third repurchase from Ouai and I will be purchasing the full size when it comes back (Ouai say is being made better).  The last product in the set is the award winning 'Wave Spray'. I tried it and im not going to lie, im not a fan. I think this product is more for a person who lets their hair air dry and I can't do that. I put it in my hair and scrunched as directed (which worked, it gave natural waves) but once i'd dried my hair it felt sticky, heavy and full of product. I did see someone on instagram using this once they had curled their hair with a wand which I tried and again not blown away. I will try this product again before I make a final decision but I do feel like it's not one for me. The next item I bought in the Ouai Haul that day was the 'Anti-Frizz Hair Sheets'. The idea of these made me so excited! At the top of my head (I think the proper wording is the crown of my head) I have lots of little sticky up broken strands of hair which drive me crazy! These come in a little box and are individually in little sachets, so you can chuck them into your bag and use on the go. It says a few swipes and hair is left shiny, smooth and free from flyaways. Everyone's dream. I used one for the first time the other day. When I opened the packet and unfolded the sheet I had a little moment of panic when I felt how oily the sheet was, I thought it was going to make my hair slimy and greasy straight away. I again did as the directions said on the back, it got most of my fly a way and broken sticky up ends down but I didn't think anything special. It was only a few hours later when I looked at my hair and I really noticed that there were only a few stray hairs and my hair didn't look or feel greasy, it actually looked fresh (it was only day old hair but my hair is ready for washing within 24 hours, very annoying...) I will probably have to use them a few more times to really know how I feel but so far so good.
Another on of my full size products is the 'Volumizing Hair Spray', like is said anything that gives texture and volume. I've not used this a lot but when I have used it I've noticed it does what it says on the can, its also light weight and none sticky which is a bonus and gives instant volume.
The last product in my Ouai collection (certainly won't be my last) is the NEW 'Hair & Body Shine Mist'. This product has diamond powder in it, and the can is Rose Gold which is the main reason I bought it other than the fact its Ouai. Ive tried it on both hair and body, and it never looks like the girls on the Ouai instagram, which it never will because its a £25 spray and I use it very sparsely! I'm not a fan of the smell but I will use it a few more times and maybe use more. Also a point that's good to know I saw on Ouai's instagram that the product shows up best in the sun. I don't live in a very sunny country so maybe when the sun comes out I will see how the product actually works!

Thats all for my collection/reviews, I hope you found it helpful if you were thinking about trying the brand out. There are so many products im yet to try from Ouai and im always waiting for them to bring out new products and not to mention new minis because everyone loves a mini beauty product!

Products on my OUAIdar are; 
(everything I've not already tried..) 
- Scalp & Body Scrub. 
- Memory Mist.

SHOP.
Shop all Ouai products on Ouai's website, Selfridges, Cult Beauty, Space NK, Look Fantastic, Feel Unique, ASOS, Debenhams, John Lewis.  
On My Ouai Kit - http://www.selfridges.com/GB/en/cat/ouai-on-my-ouai-kit_334-3003948-819/?cm_mmc=PPC-_-DSA-_-all-_-&&cm_mmc=PPC-_-DSA-_-all-_-NA&gclid=Cj0KCQiAnY_jBRDdARIsAIEqpJ2TyCbTgi5rV_fRKi_2y12kppOds2tdT_kgvfpLSg-JJXAD8I-MBZ4aAsBgEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
Three Ouai Kit - https://theouai.co.uk/products/three-ouai-kit
All The Ouai Up Kit - https://theouai.co.uk/products/all-the-ouai-up-kit
Texturizing Hair Spray - https://theouai.co.uk/products/texturizing-hair-spray
Volumizing Hair Spray - https://theouai.co.uk/products/volumizing-hair-spray
Rose Hair and Body Oil - https://theouai.co.uk/products/rose-hair-body-oil
Anti Frizz Hair Sheets - https://theouai.co.uk/products/anti-frizz-hair-sheets
Finishing Crème - https://theouai.co.uk/products/finishing-creme
NEW Hair & Body Shine Mist - https://theouai.co.uk/products/hair-and-body-shine-mist
No links are affiliate. 

TRAVEL - Helsinki & Tallinn.

Last month I had my first trip of 2019! Helsinki, Finland & Tallinn, Estonia.
-3 Degrees Celsius, lots of snow and lots of ice. Packing was nice and easy, plenty of layers, thick snuggly jumpers and thin jumpers for layering under them. Jeans (I should have put my leggings under them as my legs were the coldest part), fluffy socks, hat, scarf, gloves and a nice thick coat. Not to mention I had to take my mums walking boots because I needed the grip. 

We flew with Finnair, their planes are so clean and I didn't feel cramped like I usually do on flights. From the airport we got the Finnair bus which takes you into the centre of Helsinki, it was €12.50 for a return ticket which is valid for a month, so its much cheaper than getting a taxi too and from the airport, the journey takes around 30 minuets. We were only in Helsinki for one night, we landed at around 3.50pm, it was starting to get dark so we couldn't see much. By the time we got to our hotel it was pitch black. We stayed at Hellsten Hotel Apartments, it was around a 5-10 minuet walk into the main area (probably would have been quicker if we weren't carefully walking through snow and ice). On our first night we didn't do much, we had to walk past a few of the sights on my list to get into the centre. We had a walk around looking for some place to eat and we settled on a Mexican restaurant called Pancho Villa which was in the Kluuvi shopping centre. The food was SO good. If you are going to Helsinki I would highly recommend it. After we ate we had a walk around, the shopping in Helsinki was very good (there was a maxmara outlet and I had to restrain myself from buying a teddy coat that was 400 reduced from 1000!). The next day we set out on our sight seeing, Helsinki is quite small so its not hard to do. Our ferry to Tallinn was at 4.30 so we had to make sure we saw everything before going back to where we stayed to get our stuff and get a taxi to the port. 

Just a few minuets walk from our hotel was Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral. Built in 1868. This is the largest Orthodox Church in western Europe and is considered to be one of the best examples of Russian influence on Finnish culture. Inside was very beautiful also, its a rich red brick on the outside with green and gold on the roof. Inside is stunning with the high ceiling in the main dome, with gold everywhere from the walls to the ceiling. Another few minuets walk up the road is Senate Square & Helsinki Cathedral. This is one of the oldest part of Helsinki, in the same area is the government palace and the main building of Helsinki university, these are some of the city's most important historical and cultural landmarks. The Cathedral is set upon lots and lots of steps so the cathedral is actually quite high and can be seen from most areas, we didn't get to go inside as it was closed.  Nearer to the train station is Ateneum, the most famous art museum in Finland and the centre of Finnish art. It has everything from 19th century pieces to the current period.
They were the three main things we saw, other places on my list was the market square which is popular and other than that we just wondered the streets. We found a lovely park, it was covered in thick snow and people were sledging down the hills.  We walked around just enjoying the sunshine and the beautiful buildings and churches that were all around until we had to get to the port to get our ferry over to Tallinn. If you have more than a day in Helsinki there are more places to see/visit. I get all of my information and sights that i'd like to see off an app called Visit A City, one of my best app finds! Not everywhere is on it but most places are, Tallinn isn't on the app so google was my sight planner.

We were in Tallinn for two nights. There is a lot more to see in Tallinn, again its very small and its all around the same area. The ferry to Tallinn was two hours, which flew by because we had Wi-Fi, shops, restaurant's & comfy seats (to nap). We arrived in Tallinn and from the ferry terminal our hotel was a 10 minuet walk. we stayed in the Tallink Express Hotel. The rooms were really spacious and clean with a comfy bed, not to mention nice and warm which was very much appreciated when the temperature outside is -3, breakfast was also included in the price. Again we got there when it was dark so we headed into the main square in hunt for food. It was a quick 5-10 minuet walk from the main area, Raekoja Plats. This is where the town hall is and is the centre of old town Tallinn. We spent a while looking for somewhere to eat as usually we judge the place off how many people are in because we never research places to eat. Obviously January in a very cold, very small place isn't going to be packed full of people. After we walked passed the fifth restaurant with only one couple in we settled for a place called Caffé Centrale (kesklinna kohvik) we ate there twice, our first evening and the next day for lunch. It was only when I got back and was trying to find out the restaurants name that I saw the reviews, they were not good. BUT we had really good meals both times and the service was fine. We walked in through the amazing old stone walls of the old town (the first picture in the one above) and not far in was St. Olafs Church. It is believed to have been built in the 12th century and was extensively rebuilt in the 14th century. We couldn't go inside the church because it was Sunday and every church in Tallinn had a service on so we didn't get to see inside of the church, its also really hard to view from the streets as its so high and the area around it is quite built up. In summer the tower's observation deck is open where you can go up the tower (232 steps) and look over the city. There's lots of amazing view points you can go to in the winter months to get beautiful views of the city, the first one we found was the Danish Kings Garden, its not the best one though because around the corner is the Kohtuotsa viewing platform and Patkuli viewing platform. They both have stunning views over the city, just type it into google maps and it will guide you too them (a little tip, I always write a list of all the sights in the place I'm going and once I'm there I will find out how far away each is from the hotel and make note of it so we know the order of the sights and don't waste time walking forwards and backwards from place to place. Like I mentioned before Tallinn is really small so it wouldn't matter too much if you were just seeing the sights as they came). Another gorgeous building is the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, a 19th century orthodox cathedral in a typical Russian Revival style. It's a gorgeous building, the cathedral is on Toompea hill which leads me to Toompea Castle, an ancient stronghold site in use since at least the 9th century, today houses the Parliament of Estonia, the Parliament building is a pretty pink building facing Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. When we was there everything was covered in snow, it made everything look like it was from a fairy tale. We didn't actually know it was the Parliament building until later on. Another church we didn't get to go inside was St. Nicholas' Church and Museum, it's a former medieval church which was built in the 13th century and it was partially destroyed in Soviet bombing in WW2. Another church established in the 13th century and the oldest church in Tallinn and mainland Estonia is St Mary's Cathedral, again we didn't get to go inside, it was the only building in Toompea which survived a fire in the 17th century. Honestly the whole of Tallinn is so beautiful and is a sight to see, there was one more place that was on my list but it was a little drive away and we didn't get time to do it, I think if we had day light on our side it would have been fine but it started to get dark around 3-330. We had to leave our hotel at 6am to get the 7am ferry back to Helsinki to get our flight home to Manchester. If you had more time you could even get the ferry over to Russia from Tallinn/Helsinki as its not too far then fly home from there. I would love to see Moscow and St Petersburg. My next destination is quite the contrast to the small cities I recently visited and also the weather, my next travel with me will be about my trip to Dubai which I visit at the end of March, so excited!  
If your looking for some travel inspiration I have a two other 'Travel with Me's on Iceland & Italy. I have a few more on Marrakech & Lisbon but never got around to doing them as I thought it would be too late. I did a poll on instagram and the majority vote was to still post them so they may pop up along the way for people who are thinking of visiting those places.
I love travel and I love writing these blog posts! For more travel pictures follow my Instagram @ellietaylorrxx. 
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FASHION - How I Save for Luxury Items.

A few people have asked me to write a post about how I afford to buy designer items. Every designer item (minus one which was a gift) I have purchased myself, and as much as I wish money grew on trees, it doesn't so I work hard for everything I buy and spend months saving.

Tip 1. Get a separate account/bank card.
I have my normal debit card, the one my wages get put into then I also have another card which I label as my 'spendy account'. I personally wanted a separate bank card so I opened another account specifically for saving (then spending). I can see both accounts on my online banking so its easy to transfer money over, but I don't use that card unless I'm buying an item I've saved for.

Tip 2.  Put money aside every month.
It doesn't matter how much or little you put aside, as long and your saving something. Whenever I get paid I will go onto my online banking app and transfer money to the 'spendy account'. I usually only put £100 each month away, I could put a lot more away a month but I don't wanna stop myself being able to do/buy other bits that I want. You could always start off the month with an amount and once the next pay day is approaching you can always put some more aside. Which leads perfectly to the next tip..

Tip 3.  Know what your saving for.
It's ALOT easier saving when you know what your saving for. When there's nothing in particular I'm saving for I will still put money away each month but I'm not as dedicated as I would be if I knew the goal amount I need to buy something. This will stop you buying unnecessarily and you will also put more money away each month if you can afford to. We all know on average how much a month we spend on the necessities, if you know you can put and extra £100 do it! It takes you that one step closer to getting your desired item.  

Tip 4.  Try not to waste money.
Now, we all will see what wasting money is differently. Some people think that buying designer/luxury items is a waste of money. For me, when people talk to me about wanting to start buying luxury most of the time the first thing they will say is.. I should probably stop going out. I personally don't go out much (as in nights out), for me this is a huge saving that I don't know I'm even doing. I'm not saying that I put the money I would save going on a night out into my other account because I don't, but if I did go on nights out I definitely wouldn't own any of the items I do. Now obviously don't let saving stop you from living your life or buying something you like, I'm not saying that. If I wanna go out for a meal or have a little high street shopping spree I certainly will, but when I'm in crazy saving mode, I might think about the items I'm buying more. I used to like something and just buy it, now I will walk around the store with it get to the till and turn around and think to myself, no I don't need that item.

Tip 5.  Any cash I get I save.
Christmas money, Birthday money, any money, if I get cash I don't spend it (well I try not to). When I used to be a freelance makeup artist (I still am, I just don't work in makeup anymore so I don't do as much) this was a lot easier for me. Every month my nanny gives me £10 and I will put it aside, then sometimes she gives me the odd £5 note and again that gets saved.. which leads on to the next thing that I do..

Tip 6. Save your small change.
I'm a pennies make pounds kinda gal, yes I will pick change up if its on the floor.. a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do. If I have any small change (1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p) I save it, then take it to my bank and they put it in my account. Don't take it to a supermarket machine, it takes 10% off you, which adds up if you have a large pot. by the time it gets full you would have around £80-£100 in it. I have a separate pot for silver & the odd pound coin and £2 coin, then one for copper. Just think to yourself that those 20ps and 10ps you have in your purse would look 100x better as your desired luxury item compared to that pack of m&m's from the vending machine which you will eat in 2 seconds. Now banks (well I'm guessing most banks) have machines that you chuck all your change into, it counts it, gives you a receipt which you take to the counter and they put that amount in your account, no bagging up needed. Its saving without actually saving, because you will only waste your small change. I'm quite lucky because I have two people in my family who also save their small change and give it too me every few months.

Tip 7. Write a money diary.

This is wont be for everyone. I did it for two months last year then got lazy but I've done it this month. Write the amount you've been paid down, how much money you had left over from your last wage then add it together. Write that amount at the top of the page then I wrote down all of my bills, then added them all together took that money from the total then that gave me the money I have left. I then made little boxes labelled Petrol, Food Shop and Other and when I buy something from whichever category I will write it down and get my new total. This will give you an actual view of your money and that way you will know how much you can afford to save for the month.

Tip 8. IOM (I owe me).

Always pay yourself back. I've done it before when I've not had anything I'm saving for, I'm just putting money away every month and some months can be tighter than others. So you take a little bit of money out of your saving account or you take money out of your cash pot. Always put it back, either straight away or make a note of it and put it back the next month. My nail shop is cash only and if I'm being lazy and I know I have cash in the house I will use that and (most of the time) instantly transfer the amount I've taken in cash out of my regular account to my saving account, because the cash would end up in that account.

Tip 9. Do your research.

Before I buy any item I will watch every YouTube video and read every blog post, if there's not much on the item I will get on Pinterest & Google and look how the item is styled. I will also always see the item in person. I will go to a store and look at it, touch it and try it on, these are expensive items, your going to be spending a lot of money, you need to know 100%. I know that not everyone will live near a store, if that's the case make a day of it or a trip of it. I went to Paris to buy my Chanel bag (I will leave the blog post down below) but before I spent all that money on a bag I went to my closest store to see the item. Its also a good incentive for you to save quicker if you know there's a certain date you need to save up by. Do not impulse buy.  Especially if its your first purchase. Don't settle for something, you WILL reach your goal, it doesn't have to be achieved in 3 months take your time and do your research whilst your saving.

Even once I've bought my item of choice straight after I will start saving again. You don't need to go straight onto the next item, but I will still put money away because there will be a time where something else will pop up on your wish list and that way you wont be starting from £0. I also want to have the option that if I see something I like I can buy it. But if I was you I would always have a goal in mind because you won't waste the money on just anything (coming from personal experience of 'well I had the money so I bought it). This doesn't just have to be for shoes and handbags, if you have a goal amount keep yourself focused on it and you will reach it and you can reward yourself with whatever your heart desires.

Just a heads up, we all have an expectation about how buying designer items will be and I'm going to be brutally honest.. I personally have only had a few good experience's when buying items in store. Sometimes I really have to tell myself to enjoy the whole experience, because I do so much research & saving I know exactly what I want. Most of the time they will offer you a drink, accept the drink, look at the other colour options, try the item on (maybe even look out for the next item you can begin saving for..). Buying handbags is still super exciting for me, I work months and months to be able to afford them, so when I do have my eyes on something and I'm ready to make the purchase I will make a day out of it. 

Also just a side note I do not have a credit card. There's no point getting into debt for a designer bag. Just be patient and save. The more you save the quicker you will reach your goal amount and all will be worth it.

Paris & Chanel bag blog post - http://ellietaylorx.blogspot.com/2016/06/my-first-chanel-bag-paris-trip.html (I'm selling this bag, if you are interested email me on makeupbyelliex@gmail.com or direct message me on my Instagram @ellietaylorrxx) 

BEAUTY - 2018 Beauty Favourites.

Its 2019 and that means its time to do a rundown on all the beauty products I was loving throughout 2018. 
First off I'm going to start with hair products, I've never really been one to do much with my hair but I had my hair done back in October (Balayage) and I really wanted to start doing more with my hair. I'd just got a new job and I wanted to do more than just chucking it up into a ponytail when my hair had gotten too greasy to wear down.
Hair favourites...

Ouai Haircare Texturizing Hair Spray.
The start of my Ouai Haircare obsession. I had my hair wavy in work and I needed something to give it some oomph, so I wondered over to the hair section, randomly picked that product up and boom. Obsessed. It gives the most amazing texture to your hair, I cant really explain it but it made me feel fabulous. Thus the obsession started...

Ouai Haircare Leave in Conditioner/Smooth Spray.
I got the 'On My Ouai' Kit which included a mini Texturizing Hair Spray, mini Dry Shampoo, mini Smooth Spray and three sachets of the Treatment mask (not to mention it all came in a cute little clear bag). My hair is naturally very knotty & thick so brushing my hair wet can be a painful process (not a 2018 discovery but my favourite hairbrush is the WETBRUSH, amazing!) it says spray on before you brush your hair (I did everything as instructed on the back of the products) then I would leave it for a couple of minuets then brush my hair with zero pain or knots, not to mention once my hair has been dried my hair feels i n c r e d i b l e. So silky & smooth.

Dyson Supersonic Hairdryer.
Now, this was a very last minuet favourite as I got this as a complete surprise Christmas present, but I cant not mention this. its crazy money I know but its worth it in my eyes. I have very poofy hair so once I'd dried my hair I would always have to straighten it. This hairdryer smooth's your hair why drying it, my hair feels in amazing condition its less frizzy and I just love it.

That's it for hair products for now but I do intend on doing a review on all the Ouai products I have, also if you have any hair must haves/fave's let me know! On to makeup...

Huda Beauty Faux Filter Foundation.
I think I actually found this at the back end of 2017 but I cant remember if I've mention it. this is the ONE. The coverage is so full (which I personally love) and its so long lasting. I have such oily skin and this foundation is just perfect, plus you don't need a lot to do your full face and because its so full it takes like one minuet with my beauty blender to do my whole face!

MAC Dark Golden Mineralize Skinfinish.
This was a firm favourite of every Mac girl & boy I worked with. The perfect bronzer shade, not to red or orange, like it says in the name, golden. There's no shimmer in this, though when you first look at it you will see something but it gives off the most gorgeous natural matte finish (almost satin, another favourite bronzer of mine is the Hourglass Ambient Bronzer in Luminous Bronze Light, its not as satin finish as that, its more matte, similar vibe).

MAC Hushed Tone Extra Dimension Blush.
Yes, your reading that right. If you know me my favourite blush by mac was Margin, which I still love but Hushed Tone stole my top spot. Very similar blushes just slightly darker than Margin. some days I would look at my face and think something is missing, and when I put this on my cheeks for the first time, I never looked back. Extra Dimension Blushes from mac are stunning, they give the most amazing glow.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Amrezy Highlighter.
ABH has always been amazing at creating highlighters (does anyone remember So Hollywood? dreamy). So when this came out I knew I had to have it! It's such a beautiful gold shade which works on so many skin tones. I'm fair and it doesn't give that gold/brown stripe on my cheekbone when I'm not facing any light.

MAC Brushstroke Liner.
2018 I went back to being a winged liner gal, after not wearing a wing for 2 years, I fell back in love with the shape and how it made my eyes look. i love the tip on this pen its very thin and super black.

ABH Caramel Eyeshadow.
My favourite eyeshadow brand. My go to used to be Burnt Orange, now its Caramel. There's not a huge difference between them other than Caramel is a little bit more neutral and a tiny bit darker. I created a huge hole in it in 2018. I'd also like to try Birkin eyeshadow from the brand next.

Tom Ford Naked Bronze Cream & Powder Eye Colour.
I had this for a really long time before I started loving it. Id bought it back in 2017 and tried it and not liked it and left it alone for a long time, when I finally picked it up again and it became probably one of my most used items along with ABH Caramel, that's just how I would use it, Caramel in the crease, the cream then powder duo, done.

Lilly Lashes ASH_KHOLM.
I said goodbye to my Lilly Lashes in the style Ella (not a forever goodbye I still wear them they just aren't my number one lashes any more). They are so soft and pretty and fluffy, I just love them and I've had several new pairs throughout the year. Lilly Lashes are my FAVOURITE lashes EVER. My favourite lash glue is from Eldora.

Clarins Hydra-Essential Lip Balm.
My love, My life saver, My most used lip product of 2018! Some days I would put lip liner on then this over, its glossy so it was perfect! glossy & moisturized lips! This comes with me on every holiday I go on. I discovered this the back end of 2017 but only actually purchased it in the airport going on my first little holiday to Iceland in 2018. I'm intending on getting another tube the next time I'm at the airport.

I think that's all I have. I'm very much a creature of habit so when I find a product I love I stick to it. So most of what I use has actually been the same for a long time, I just switch out a product here and there. If you have any ideas on blog posts for me please do let me know. I'm always asking over on my Instagram @ellietaylorrxx. So if you have any ideas please let me know through there or leave a comment!
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BEAUTY - Morphe X Jaclyn Hill.

When I saw that Jaclyn was launching a brush set with Morphe I was glad I had saved some of my wage to get them! The beautiful white and silver brushes and the silver glitter brush case, dreamy! I was refreshing the website and the minuet they launched I headed

straight for The Master Collection, the 24 piece brush set with the gorgeous brush case. There were some brushes in the set I knew I wasn't going to use, nevertheless the price for 24 brushes and a case was amazing and a chance to try some brushes I might never pick up.  The Master Collection is £160 (£144 with any of the 10% off discount codes beauty influencers have. I used Jaclyn's code JACATTACK) it's a £264 value, that's a £104 saving! And it works out around £6.60 a brush! If you didn't want the Master Collection there are two other sets available. The Eye Master Collection (£42) - 8 eye brushes and bag, and The Face Master Collection (£55)- 5 face brushes and bag. The Master Collection includes both of the Eye & Face Master sets and an additional 11 brushes. All the brushes are also sold separately on the Morphe website. I knew I would probably order a few on the single brushes but wanted to wait to have a play with the set so I could find out which brushes I loved and needed doubles of (I say need but it's more a want, plus I like to have several of the same brush). 

What's included in The Master Collection? 
(If it's in the Eye Master Collection I will mark with an E and for the Face Master Collection an F).
JH01- Power Brush (synthetic) 
JH02- Bronzer Brush (natural) F
JH03- Ride-or-Die Foundation Brush (synthetic) F
JH04- Blush Brush (synthetic) F
JH05- Perfect Contour Brush (natural)
JH06- My Everything Brush (natural)
JH07- Under-Eye Power Brush (synthetic) F
JH08- Anything Creamy Brush (synthetic)
JH09- Glow Baby Glow Brush (natural) F
JH10- Snatch Your Edges Brush (synthetic)
JH30- Beast Mode Blender Brush (natural) E
JH31- Fluffy Blender Brush (natural) 
JH32- Transition Blender Brush (natural) E
JH33- Universal Blender Brush (natural) E
JH34- Carve Your Crease Brush (natural)
JH35- Upper Crease Brush (natural)
JH36- Eye Buffer Brush (natural)
JH37- Buffer Blender Brush (natural)
JH38- Perfect Pencil Brush (natural)
JH39- Inner Corner Highlight Brush (synthetic) E
JH40- Precise Blender Brush (natural) E
JH41- All Over Lid Brush (blend of natural & synthetic) E
JH42- Brow Bone Highlight Brush (natural) E
JH43- Eyeliner Smudge Brush (synthetic) E
Master Case.

I now really appreciate natural hair brushes since Mac changed all there brushes to synthetic. With certain brushes synthetic is fine but with blending brushes it makes them so much harder to blend with/work with. I will only ever use natural hair blending brushes, gives a flawless blend. 

The set includes quite a few blending brushes which I love because I use so many. I do think there are a few brushes missing. There's no angled brush in the set or eyeliner brush, which i'm not fussed about but it would have been nice to have. Even though I said it includes a lot of blending brushes I wish there were a few smaller blender brushes in the set as they are mainly longer/crease brushes, that is me being picky though. There are only two brushes I haven't used (JH01 & JH10) which I expected not to use a lot of the face brushes, but I've had a play with them and the brush i'm most shocked about loving is the JH02 Bronzer Brush. I don't usually use a brush that big for my bronzer but I absolutely love it! 
I'd had my set for only a few days and I knew I was going to order a few doubles. I started just by ordering 3 but there are more brushes I'd like extras of. The 3 brushes I doubled up on we're the JH39- Inner Corner Highlight brush, I would usually use a different shaped brush for my inner corner but when I tried this I love how precise it was. The JH42- Brow Bone Highlight brush, I have so many brushes just like this and I use them for all different things so i can never have too many. Lastly the JH43- Eyeliner Smudge brush, I'd never had a brush like this before. I'd seen lots of people using brushes this shape it was just a brush I wasn't fussed about but when I use it I knew I needed an extra for another use, I love it. 

Along side ordering the three extra brushes I thought I'd give the Jaclyn Hill palette a try also by Morphe. I'd heard so many things about this palette and I was late to the party 100%. I really love the palette, it was the only eyeshadow palette I used on my holiday and I've used it everyday I've done my makeup since purchasing it. It's £37 for 35 eyeshadows! (£33.30 if you use a discount code). The eyeshadow pans are around the same size as a mac palette eyeshadow refill, and they are probably more pigmented and easier to blend! The mattes are amazingly pigmented and beautiful to blend the shimmers are stunning without wetting your brush with Fix +. I would recommend it to everyone, makeup artist or for personal use, it's made me want to try more of the Morphe palettes and I'd also love to try Jaclyn's Vault collection also! 

Overall i'm so impressed with everything, the quality of the brushes, how they look, the palette and how pigmented it is. I'm defiantly going to be purchasing some more of the single brushes to add to my collection! And Morphe have a UK site now with free delivery when you spend over £20! 
I hope you have found this post useful if you were thinking of getting any of the brushes. I would recommend giving the brushes a quick clean before using them to ‘puff’ them out a little and get them to their true shape! If there's anything else you would like me to review please leave a comment on this blog post or comment under the picture of this post on my Instagram (@ellietaylorrxx) and I can hopefully get around to doing that! 
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