My May – September 2017 favourites

In my last favourites post I said I would return to monthly round-ups didn't I? Well, I absolutely failed at that one... It's not that there weren't any things to enjoy, but with work and life still being crazy busy I haven't had as much time on the weekends for blogging and taking photos as I would've liked so this is one series that has suffered as a result. I will try to do better the rest of the year (try being the operative word here), but for now here are some things I've thoroughly enjoyed recently, from an autumnal hand soap and a cosy scented candle to charcoal toothpaste tabs and my old Nintendo DS, which I've rediscovered.

My January - April 2017 Favourites

Even though April is already nearly over, this will be my very first favourites post of 2017, oops. In all fairness though this has been an absolute whirlwind of a year so far. I don't tend to stand still too long by negatives on here when I can but after lots of stresses around family, health and work it's only now I feel I am resurfacing and getting back on track – with my blog and life in general. Because this is 4 months worth of favourites there are a bunch of them in all sort of different categories; from a TV-show addiction (hello Riverdale) to Instagram, and from making smoothies to newly discovered fashion brands. So without further ado, here are my favourites so far of the year (in no particular order, because choosing is hard).

My Year in Review – The Best of 2016

2016 has been a sad and scary year for the world. With so much happening affecting everyone in just a single year, the ups and downs of my own life of course pale in comparison impacting few people but myself. And yet, I didn't want to let 2016 be defined solely by the political and social unrest that is rippling across the planet. In small but to me impactful ways there have been plenty of personal highlights and changes too that I'd like to stand still by.

My Month in Favourites – December 2016

December is the month of favourites with my yearly round-ups of books and theatre having already gone up on the blog this week, and my 2016 in review to follow next week. That doesn't mean that I'll skip my monthly round-up though as there has been lots I've enjoyed this month and I want to share with you guys, including Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, RENT the Musical, Hygge, Vlogmas, The Netherlands, and Boxing Day sales!

My 16 Favourite Reads in 2016

What an amazing bookish year 2016 has been. I read a total of 103 books and managed to hit my Goodreads challenge once again (though, in fairness, it was lowered considerably from my usual target as this year has been far busier for me working wise and blogging wise and so I knew that elusive 125 books was out of reach early on. This is the year I discovered my love for beautiful non-fiction books, redisovered my love for young adult fiction, and I started collecting beautiful hardback to prettify my shelves. My favourite books of the year are mostly YA and non-fiction titles, though there is general fiction in there too, as well as a children's series I reread and fell head over heels in love with again. So without further ado, here are my 16 favourite reads in 2016!

My Top 10 Favourite Theatre Shows From 2016

With the year drawing to a close it's time to look back on all my theatrical outings of 2016 and which were the very best of the best. I've had the pleasure to see a fair share of mostly great productions and so narrowing it down to just 10 favourites wasn't an easy job, but I got there in the end. The final list is a decent mix of West End and fringe shows, with even a UK tour thrown in. The majority are musicals because I do tend to see more of those, but there are a few plays in my favourites too. So without further ado, here are my top 10 favourite theatre shows from 2016!

My Month in Favourites – November 2016

After the awesomeness that was October, filled with autumn fun and Canada, I though most of November would be me longing to go back on holiday or looking forward to my visit to the Netherlands for the holidays. While there was certainly some of that, November has been an unexpectedly brilliant in its own right. This month's favourites are pretty heavy on the TV, film and Harry Potter related fun with a special event at The Harry Potter Studios, the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them premiere, Moana, Gilmore Girls, and Planet Earth 2.

My Month in Favourites – October 2016

October was when two of my favourite things in life collided: autumn and Canada. Autumn is my favourite time of year; I absolutely love the colours, smells and cosiness of the season, and this year has thus far been particularly great with barely any rain in the UK. *knocks on wood* And then there was my long-anticipated holiday to Canada which was everything I wanted it to be and then some. I'm doing a weekly travel blog on my adventures so won't go into too much detail here, but of course couldn't let it off my favourites. As for tangible things I enjoyed this month, they include stunning non-fiction books, beautifully smelling products from Bath & Body works, fluffy fox socks, the best hand cream for dry autumn hands from Cath Kidston, and comfy flannel shirts I picked up in Bluenotes.

My Month in Favourites – September 2016

I am going to Canada tomorrow! I bet you can guess what will dominate my favourites in October. But let's not get ahead of ourselves and look back at September today instead. This month for me has been all about getting in the cosy autumn mood with new jumpers, slippers and a comforting scented candle. I also enjoyed some new and old TV-shows, including, of course, The Great British Bake Off, and fell head over heels in love with the Disney X Cath Kidston collection.

My Month in Favourites – August 2016

This past month has been crazy busy with work. In addition to making overtime at my day job as my holiday to Canada is coming closer and I need to get ahead of my work load for that period now, I've started freelancing for one of the big UK book publishers. It's super exciting stuff, but combined with my normal job and my blogging it does mean that I'm doing almost two full-time jobs. Busy, busy, busy. But let's get onto my favourites for August! In addition to my Canada trip only being a month away today (eek!), things that kept me sane these past weeks include: Dance Academy, Harry Potter, Pokémon GO, and a day trip to stunning Arundel Castle.

My Month in Favourites – July 2016

Another month has come and gone and we're now in August, wow. Where does the time go? On the upside, it's only two more months until my trip back to Canada, which in anticipation alone has been the highlight of my year so far. As for what made me happy in July? This month's favourites covers an eclectic mix ranging from a rewatch of a show that ran for eight seasons to a Harry Potter exhibition, and from a very healthy super food salad I've fallen in love with right through to some slightly less healthy but equally scrumptious (and gorgeous) treats of the sweet variety. And there is a sneaky bookish mention in there too with a thank you to a very generous publisher ♥

My Month in Favourites – June 2016

June was a crazy busy month. I was in the Netherlands for part of it yet I still managed to pick up a new TV-show and watch the entirety of it (hi Brooklyn Nine-Nine obsessions, hi), I started rereading A Series of Unfortunate of Events in anticipation of the Netflix adaptation, I went to events such as West End Live, the London Musical Theatre Orchestra launch gala, and The Bloggers Summer Hangout, and I still managed to do lots of shopping (new favourites include stationery brand Kiki-K and two new handbags I bought) and finish all my end of quarter reports at work. It was a full-on but productive month.

My Month in Favourites – May 2016

I'm currently in the Netherlands enjoying some of my favourites things in life; my family, all of the cheese, Dutch shops and oranjekoek (an orange cookie-cake hybrid my mum saved for me from King's Day) and I can pretty much write a whole favourites post just about my time here. But since it's only been 2.5 days out of the whole month I won't, and instead my favourites consist of some clothes, a book (surprise, surprise), a great restaurant I ate at in the past month, and hand soaps I'm absolutely addicted to.

My Month in Favourites – April 2016

April was a crazy whirlwind of a month, mostly consumed by work. Though I did also rub elbows with Sir Ian McKellen at the theatre, made a big dent in my to-be-read pile, and started to properly plan my two-week holiday in Canada in October (I can't wait!). But what were April's favourites, I hear you ask. They are mostly of the theatrical and literary variety this time around, with a visit to Sunset Boulevard and a shout-out for publishing Twitter account Bad Tote Bag, but there are also a few other highlights, including Instagram, Captain America: Civil War and Just Bee Drinks.

My Month in Favourites – March 2016

The highlight of March was, without a doubt, booking flights to Canada for October! It's been 10 years since I lived there and I am already getting excited thinking about all the people I'll see again, places I'll revisit and things I'll eat and buy. Oh Canada, I've missed you! On the bookish side this month I had the opportunity to go to the Scholastic Bloggers Book Feast (one of my favourite blogger events to date), a YA evening at Waterstones, and Transworld's latest women's fiction evening. I also checked out some fab new exhibits in London and even went down to York for the long weekend (more about that soon).

With spring lingering in the air, I am making April the month I will venture more outside again (I want to give my bike a good dust off and explore some walking trails in my new area as well). But for now, have a round-up of some of my favourite non-bookish things from March, including a new restaurant discovery, an Etsy shop I've fallen in love with, some inspirational links and, quite possibly, the best hot chocolate ever.
 

My Month in Favourites – February 2016

My blog often is consumed by book and theatre reviews and events coverage yet there is a lot more I enjoy, so I decided to start a new feature in which I will talk about some other things I loved in the past month. This can be anything, from great videos and inspirational articles to my favourite foods and handy links. In February 2016 I rekindled my love for YA fiction, went on a clothes shopping spree and discovered quirky new brands, ogled stunning children's classics in hardback, played around in the kitchen trying new dishes, and became addicted to Booktube and the Amazon wish list browser button.