The Lo Down - What I Got for my 27th Birthday!

Hey Guys and Dolls,

Last week I celebrated my 27th birthday, it was so nice to spend some quality time with my family and boyfriend during the week. I got some lovely gifts and I was so spoiled. I'm going to show you guys what I got on the day.

From my parents I received a Marc Jacobs perfume set. I'm a huge fan of Marc Jacobs perfumes so I was so happy with this gift, it was so thoughtful of them. The scent they got me is called Decadence and it's the latest fragrance from the brand. It came in a beautiful giftbox with a shower gel that I can't wait to to use. I love this gift and I can see this becoming my signature scent.

From my boyfriend I got a couple of gifts. Firstly he got me Season 2,3 and 4 of Once a Upon a Time. A T.V series that I'm really enjoying at the moment I watch it every night before I go to bed I love it. I can't wait to get stuck into these. I like nothing more than cuddling up in my pyjamas and watching this show. I'm actually going to do a review on Season 1 really soon. He also got me a Harry Potter Hogwarts Crest Light. He knows I'm a big fan of Harry Potter so this was the most perfect gift. I'm trying to find somewhere nice to put it in my room at the minute.

Of my sister, Lisa I received the new Nicholas Sparks book, Two by Two which I can't wait to read as I like this author alot. If you don't recognise the name he is actually the write behind much loved book/film The Notebook. If you haven't read/seen this it's definitely a tear jerker so don't forget the tissues, they're much needed. As she knows I love blogging and jotting down my ideas on the go so she bought me a beautiful notebook from Penneys/Primark. I love it she knows me way too well. Lastly she bought me Catrice's Matt Plush foundation. I'm a big fan of this brands foundations so I can't wait to try this one.

From my brother Gerard I got five scratchcards and I luckily won €25 which was great. I bought a few Loreal products which you can see in the picture above. These are just newly launched and they look great so I will be testing them out very soon.

My Nanna and Grandad gave me a beautiful card with €40 in it which was much needed and I got some lovely stuff in Penneys. They also bought me a beautiful Yankee candle in the scent Cappuchino Truffle. This candle smells amazing. Yankee Candles are definitely my favourite candles ever. I have nowhere to put it at the moment in my room but I'm going to take a trip to IKEA soon to pick up a new desk.

Lastly my Auntie Val got me JK Rowling's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Screenplay. I love Harry Potter so I know I'm definitely going to love this. I haven't seen the movie so I'm looking forward to reading this first.

So that's what I got for my birthday I got some amazing presents so I'm very thankful indeed.

Laura<3

The Lo Down - My Top 5 Taylor Swift songs that weren't released as Singles

Hey Guys and Dolls,

I'm a huge Taylor Swift fan if you don't know already. Before she was even mainstream I was listening to her music on My Space back in the day, so that wasn't today or yesterday as you can probably imagine. I've been to see her twice in concert in Manchester and Dublin. Both concerts were amazing but Manchester was probably my favourite as I met Taylor's Mom and she gave me a guitar pick. I actually don't have it anymore but the whole experience was indeed magical.

Here is my favourite Taylor Swift songs that weren't released as singles. It's in no particular order.

Enchanted

I've always loved this song it's beautiful. Taylor Swift wrote it after meeting Owl City's lead singer as she was so infatuated by him. It's one of those songs I could keep playing over and over again. I'm actually listening to it as I'm writing this post. Wonderstruck a word in the lyrics of the song is actually the name of Taylor Swift's perfume which I love alot. I guess we all have a guy like the one mentioned in this song in our lives that give us butterflies and that we hope we run into again.

Innocent

Okay we all know who this song is about, Mr. K.West we're looking right at you. After the MTV awards debacle it was obvious T. Swift was going reciprocate so what a better way than to do it in a song. This is one of my fave songs on the album Speak Now. It's alot different to any of her other songs and it's all about growing up.

I Know Places

I love, love, love this song. I always play it with the volume turned up in the car with my Dad. I'm sure he knows all the lyrics by now too. This song is off Taylor Swift's latest album 1989. I think it's about when your first in  relationship and everyone wants a piece of it and how you want to get away from all the drama.

I'd Lie

This is an unreleased song by Taylor Swift but definitely worth a listen to. It's one of the first songs she ever wrote but didn't make it on to her first album. It's another one of my favourite songs cause lets be honest there's always a guy that doesn't want a relationship that your crazy about and head over heels for.

Long Live

Another great song, can this woman actually do wrong? For me this is a song about having the time of your life with the people you care about the most. It's a really feel good song and I love it!

What's your favourite Taylor Swift song?

Laura<3

The Lo Down - Nimue Skincare Starter Kit

Hey Guys and Dolls,

I've done a couple of posts recently on Nimue Skincare which shows that I'm a big fan of the brand. If you are new to the brand and haven't tried anything from the brand I feel a good way to start is to try their Starter Kit. They are four options to choose from depending on your skin type.

The kit itself contains six decent sized products from the range including the conditioner I love. I seriously can't be without this stuff I'm glad I have a little mini travel size now too. It also contains their SPF in the set. I like to apply this underneath my makeup to protect my skin from the harmful Sun's rays.

I think this Starter Kit would be great for travelling as all the products are the perfect size for your travel makeup bag. It's also good if you want to try the products before you splash the cash on the full sized products.

For €70, I think this set is great value for money so definitely worth checking out for sure.

Laura<3