Since I haven't filmed any favourites videos in quite a while, I thought I would put together a winter one and talk about all beauty products and random things I've been loving during the past few months. You know the drill. Now watch the video! :D

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It is no secret that I am obsessed with London. It is my favourite place on Earth and I always get that warm feeling in my heart as soon as I step on the London soil. Or should I say concrete? Anyway, I'm determined to call this city home one day, and am already trying to save up as much money as I can so that I'll be able to afford at least a few months' rent before I take the plunge and try to find a job there. Hopefully somewhen in the next two years. But until then, all I have are my yearly visits, which fill me up with joy every single time and make the wait a little more bearable. 

Last year/this year, my sister and I visited London during the New Year's holidays and in a little bit over a week, I'm visiting London again for my birthday. I can't wait! I'm not going to lie, I definitely prefer London during the warmer months, because the green parks make it look ten times nicer, and I love the whole picnic and lying on the grass culture, but that doesn't mean that there aren't tons of things you can still do despite the cold and sometimes gray weather. Here are some of the activities I personally enjoy doing in London during this time of the year:

1) Winter Wonderland: Winter Wonderland is something that you can't miss during the Christmas time. It's magical! For those of you that haven't heard about it yet, it's basically some sort of an amusement park with attractions, Christmas markets and food stands. My sister and I visited it last year and we had a blast! We did some shopping (remember my panda hat?), went on a few rides, and treated ourselves to some waffles and hot chocolate. It was the perfect evening! Well, if you disregard my pre-roller coaster freak outs. Let's just say that I'm not an adrenaline junkie. Unlike my sister. 

2) Museums: I can't say I'm much of a museum-goer, because I usually find them boring, but London museums are really good. And free. And warm, haha. They're the perfect place to learn something new, escape from the rain, and get yourself warmed up for your next outdoor adventure. My personal favourite would be the The National History Museum. Even if you're not planning to spend a lot of time in there, I think it's worth a visit just for the architecture. I don't know if this is just me, but I find the building stunning! Oh, and the British Museum is great too in case you're interested in history. The only museum I don't think I'll be visiting again any time soon is the Tate Modern. I just don't get it. To me, blank walls splattered with black paint are not a masterpiece. :D

3) Ice-skating: This is something that I actually haven't done yet in London, but I desperately want to go do it one day. I just don't know when. Last year, my sister and I ran out of time (too much shopping), and this year, my knee is injured, so I'll have to kiss ice-skating goodbye yet again. Oh, well. One day, I'll definitely go do it. The ice-skating rinks are set up all around London, so you can't miss them. They look really pretty and festive with all those Christmas lights around them!

4) Musicals: There is no better place to go see a musical than London. Ok, maybe New York, but in Europe, London definitely wins. Especially in winter, when days are short, I think an evening show is more than welcome entertainment. The only musical I've seen so far is The Lion King. I went to see it three times already and I'm still not tired of it. I always get goose bumps when I listen to the music and I may also shed a few tears every single time. Shhh, don't tell anyone! This year, though, I'm going to break The Lion King spell, because we're going to see Mamma Mia. I'm sure I'll love it as well. And the next one on my list? Les Miserables. 

5) Shopping: Last, but definitely not least, is shopping. I'm sure every single person on this planet knows about the famous Oxford Street, but in winter, I actually prefer shopping in one of their shopping centres. You still get tons of different stores in one place, and the best thing about it is that you don't have to take your coat on and off all the freakin' time. Last year, my sister and I were shopping a lot at Westfield London. It was way less crowdy than Oxford Street and there are also a lot of great restaurans around in case your stomach begins to growl. I just wish they had Primark there! I saw that they have one at Westfield Stratford City, though, so I might go to that one this year. Does anyone know if there are any other great shopping centres in London?

Phew, finally made it to the end of the post. But wait a minute, I still have one more tip to share with you! It's regarding the London accomodation. During the winter, I think it's essential to stay at a hotel that's as close to the tube as possible. Trust me, in case of a snow storm or any other type of unpleasant wintery weather, you'll be thankful that you don't have to walk for ages to come (back) to your hotel room with feet full of blisters and hands full of shopping bags or enormous suitcases, which are by the way essential if you're visiting London after the Christmas time. Because, you know... SALES! ;)

It is usually very rare for me to keep wearing the same nail polish colour(s) over and over again, but this winter I've been sticking to a few of my faves that I'm going to share with you in the video below. I hope you'll enjoy watching it, and don't forget to let me know what your favorite winter nail polishes are!

PRODUCTS MENTIONED IN THE VIDEO

Essie Bahama Mama

Butter London Rosie Lee

Kiko 347

Essence Steel-ing the Scene Topper (Metal Glam LE)

Essie Chinchilly

Essie Blanc

It's slowly but surely getting freezing cold where I live, so I've started changing up my skincare routine, adding warmer pieces to my closet, and cozyfying my room. Winter is not my favourite time of the year, because I'm not fond of cold weather and lack of daylight, but there are a few things that help me go through the season. I thought I would share these items with you today, so if you want to know what my winter essentials are, keep on reading. :)

1) My hands are the first to show consequences of cold winter weather. They get really dry, so I always carry a tube of hand cream in my bag. There are a few good ones on the market, but my absolute favourite is Soap & Glory's Hand Food. It does the job, smells super girly, and doesn't leave that annoying thick feeling on your hands after you use it, because it sinks in instantly. Unfortuantelly we can't get it in my country, so whenever I go to London, I always buy enough tubes to last me for at least a year.

2) I discovered the beauty and practicality of circle scarves two years ago and ever since then, we have been best friends. Last year I was wearing a black one (probably too much, since it almost fell apart at the end of the season), and this year I'm smitten with the burgundy scarf that is really similar to this one from Peter Hahn. As soon as the temperatures dropped below 15°C, it became one with my neck every time I leave my house. I can do without gloves  and hats unless it's really freezing, but I can't live without my scarf.

3) My hands are not the only ones suffering during the winter. My face is too. Well, to be totally honest, I have trouble with dry skin all year round, but especially during the cold time of the year. I'm constantly trying out new face creams for dry skin and so far, this La Roche Posay one has performed the best. I just ran out of it, so I need to go get a new one. Unless you have any other suggestions for me?

4) Another fashion winter essential for me are UGG-style boots. Some people love em', some people hate em'. I belong to the first category. I'm not gonna lie, I hated the look of these when they first became popular, but I think that was because I mostly saw them in photos of celebrities, who wore them during warmer months combined with jeans shorts. I still don't understand that phenomenon. Having said that, my opinion changed as soon as I tried them on myself when I was visiting Australia, which is where these shoes originate from. Let me just say that those people who are judgmental towards these shoes, definitely haven't had them on their feet yet. I feel like I'm walking on clouds when I wear them! Not to mention they are SUPER warm. They saved my toes from freezing countless of times. I have them in that exact dark brown colour, which I think is the prettiest. The shoes you can see above are actually from the company called Emu. Unlike UGG boots most people know and wear, these are actually made in Australia, have proper insoles and are apparently even waterproof. I now know which ones to get when mine fall apart. I'm predicting they will only last me one more season. Well, at least I can say I got a lot of wear out of them!

5) And we're back to dry skin problems. Of course, chapped lips also make regular appearances throughout winter. I'm good with any lip balm during most part of the year, but once my lips get chapped, there are only a few lip balms I can count on out there. One of them is this honey lip balm from Avon. Unfortunatelly, I used it up recently and since it's nowhere to be found anymore, I'll have to find a new dry lips saviour. Which one is your fave?

6) Now, my sister already scolded me for putting a candle on my 'essentials' list - apparently, I could only include food , warmth and love -  but you know what, I can't imagine any winter without candles. Who doesn't want her room to smell good and cozy, right? I feel like they make my winter depression a little bit more bearable, and you know what? Even my dad grew fond of them, haha. This is what happenes when you live with three females... :D

So, these are my main winter essentials. I would love to know what yours are, so make sure you tell me about them in the comments below. 

Hey everyone! How has your week been so far? Mine was pretty awful, but I'll tell you more about the terrible situation I'm in on Sunday (if you follow me on twitter, you might already know what's going on). Today I just wanted to tell you that I wrote a guest post on Shang's blog. I pretty much chose my top 10 nail polishes for fall/winter - which was really hard to do - and told a few things about each one. You can check out the post here. Below you have a little preview. :)