Abu Dhabi Eats - Teatro Restaurant

Last weekend, The Husband and I were invited to dine at Teatro Restaurant in Abu Dhabi's Park Rotana Hotel. Having never even heard of the venue, let alone sampled the food, it was fair to say that we were both intrigued. 

September Favourites

I put myself on a spending ban in September. Largely due to the fact that I really don't need anything at all and I'm shopping through sheer frivolity rather than necessity. As a result, the majority of my beauty favourites won't come as a surprise to you as they've mostly been featured throughout my latest posts. 
Here's what beauty and non beauty items I've been loving in September:

How I Grew My Pinterest Following

I'm not usually one for 'How-To' posts but recently I've had a lot of success with my Pinterest account and I feel like, for me, it's the platform that has been easiest to grow. I'm currently at around 19,000 followers, gaining around 3-4 thousand new followers a month, which I feel like is pretty good going. I'm also starting to notice a big increase in the amount of blog traffic I'm receiving from posts I've shared in my Pinterest boards. 
So how did I make it happen?

Shit My Husband Says #11

Guess what time it is again folks...

New Look Wish List

With the amount of effort I've been putting in to preparing my shopping list for my visit to the UK, anyone would think I was gearing up for the end of the world.
I have lists... and I'm considering a spreadsheet.
Too much?
Anyway, both Scott and I plan on going on a massive shopping spree and treating ourselves to a whole bunch of new clothes. Shopping in Abu Dhabi isn't as inspiring as you might think so a cheeky, tax-free haul is most certainly on the cards. 
Today, I thought I would share with you what's currently on my wish list from New Look - spoiler alert, I seem to be having a, 'cold shoulder' moment. 

The Body Shop Himalayan Charcoal Purifying Glow Mask

My skin has been having a really bad week. Scratch that. A really bad couple of weeks. Apparently you can't just eat like an absolute animal for a month and get away without the tiniest most astronomical smattering of pimples. 
And before anyone says anything along the lines of, 'I don't see any spots!?' I've been troweling on the concealer so hard, Mr Titchmarsh would be proud. 
Just so you know.
Anyway, on a particularly explosive pimple day, I ran out and panic-purchased a bunch of face masks - one of which was the Himalayan Charcoal Purifying Glow Mask from The Body Shop. 

My Stay At The Banyan Tree Al Wadi, Ras Al Khaimah

Recently, Scott and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary. We made it a whole year. Hooray. As a special treat, Scott booked us a surprise trip to the Banyan Tree Al Wadi Hotel Resort and Spa out in Ras Al Khaimah. I'd always fancied staying at a resort out in the desert and with the hotel grounds spanning 100 hectares and being nestled amidst the sprawling Al Wadi Nature Reserve, it really was the perfect escape from the city. 

If I Could Only Pick One

I first saw the, 'If I could only pick one' post on Molly's blog (MollyLouise) and after a few minutes of appreciation at the products she chose, I shuddered at the mere thought of having to chose only one, measly product from each beauty 'section' to live with for the rest of eternity. 
You could say I have commitment issues.
After briefly considering whether or not it was fair on the entirety of my make up stash to start picking faves, I thought, to hell and decided to give it a go. 
Note: I didn't take this lightly and probably gave it more consideration than I did when deciding which university to apply to. #For Reals

Maybelline Lash Sensational Vs Luscious - Comparison Review

It's no secret, I love the Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara. Whenever I'm asked to suggest a reasonably-priced, great all round mascara, this is the one I put forward. And yes, it's so good I bought back ups and the Waterproof version too. #Committed.
When I saw that Maybelline had released a 'Luscious' version of one of their best-selling mascaras, I knew that I needed to try it out to see how it compares to the original. 

Huda Beauty Lip Contour & Liquid Matte Lipstick Review

I was pretty sure I wasn't interested/excited about the Huda Beauty releases until I walked into a crowded Sephora and saw grown women clambering over one another for lipstick. Naturally, I decided I needed to see what the fuss was all about and panic-grabbed these three items:

Marriage - When It's Not A Fairytale

I feel lied to. 
Lied to by glossy magazines that talk about this, 'Newly Wedded Bliss' and smug married folk that post Facebook statuses about how perfect being married is - whilst doing that arm wraparound thing with champagne flutes and sporting horrendously cheesy smiles that make your insides want to die a little bit. 
When I was a child, I desperately wanted a fairytale wedding. I would play dress up with my bespoke, 'bath towel' gown and whisper my vows to Quackers (My first true, soft toy love.) 
Fast forward 20 years and the 'fairytale' wedding has been and gone, and I say fairytale in inverted commas because whilst yes, it was a dream-come-true wedding, it was also stressful as hell and I wanted to punch my new husband in the face when he ditched me at the top table to go and speak to his mates. 

LUSH Haul

I went LUSH shopping again recently and this post is pretty much the result of such activity. I've been trying to hold out on buying any more bath products because;
A) I plan on stocking up whilst I'm home in October, and 
B) I'm hoping that the seasonal products will be out so I can go wild on Halloween and Christmas baths for the remainder of the year.
Anyway, I was almost completely out of LUSH so I decided to place an online order. Here's what I went for:

Life Through A Lens 2016 #8

Well, August was eventful.
We started off on the wrong foot, August and I, and I had to fly back to the UK at the start of the month for a family emergency. I explain more in this post but to spare you the deets, I was home for just over a week and spent the majority of that time in hospital. 
I hopped on a plane back to Abu Dhabi, just in time to meet my Mum, Stepdad and Sister, who had flown over from the UK for a two week visit. 
We basically did all of the touristy things and I consumed my body weight x3 in food and alcohol - Hello clothes that no longer fit! It was great to have them over to stay with us but probably couldn't have come at a worse time with me having to rush home at the start of the month. There was a point where I wasn't sure I'd be able to be in the UAE when my family arrived and it was causing me some serious stress. Thankfully it all turned out well in the end.
I've had a handful of days to catch my breath before my other Sister and her Boyfriend arrive - which will have been yesterday by the time you read this! They are passing through on their trip to Bali so we have brunch lined up and a few other bits and pieces. You can keep up with all the action on my Snapchat - 'life-inexcess'
Finally, looking forward into September - It's Scott and I's first wedding anniversary on the 5th. Yep, we share the date with Tanya Burr & Jim, I know, practically famous! *Aherm* Anyway, I still can't get my head around how quickly this year has flown by. I actually have no idea what we're doing to celebrate yet but I'm hoping it's going to involve a large cocktail. 
Right, enough waffle for now. Here's a bunch of snaps to round off the month. Hope yours has been a great one.