My Tips For Keeping Cosy This Winter.

I'm currently sat in bed with a stomach ache, longing to feel a little cosier and more comfortable than I do now. And whilst I was dwelling on that thought was round about the time that the idea for this post popped into my head. So I'll cut my rambling introduction short and leave it at: here are my top tips on how to stay nice an cosy this winter!

At home:
1. Hot chocolate/tea/coffee - make whichever of the three you prefer in your favourite mug, get comfy on the sofa and use it as a hand warmer in addition to a satisfying beverage, while watching some quality TV. I would personally recommend The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, MASH or Fraiser. 

2. Hot water bottle - nothing quite tops cuddling up under a blanket or in bed with a nice, warm hot water bottle!

3. Onesie - I think this one is self explanatory. I love lounging around in my black cat kigu!

My all time favourite hot chocolate, my cosy hot water bottle and my cute slipper boots from Sainsbury's.

4. Slipper boots and/or bed socks - All my life I have been a lover of bed socks. They're just so practical in my opinion; and they're really good at keeping my feet -which are almost always cold- nice and toasty. Also, since buying my slipper boots last week I have become a huge fan of the things! They're just perfect. If you don't already own a pair I seriously recommend you invest in some!

5. Soup - Aside from when you're under the weather, winter is the perfect time to stock up on soup. I'm quite boring and tend to stick to chicken soup; although I do occasionally mix it up a bit by swopping to either tomato soup or my nan's home-made chicken noodle soup.
6. Jumpers - I could go on about my love for jumpers all day long! I won't though because I don't want to bore you. But to sum up what could potentially be paragraphs: they're super cosy, super practical and you can never, ever have too many of them!

Out and about:

1. Layers - Last winter I mastered the art of layering. I'd go out with 4-5 layers on and not complain about feeling cold or chilly once. The only thing that I don't like about layering is how many clothes end up going in the wash and how quickly my washing basket fills up. So there's a bit of a downfall to this tip unfortunately.
2. Hats, scarves and gloves - All three are obvious winter must-haves, but I felt they should be included regardless. This winter, when I'm out and about, I will definitely be rocking the burgundy wool look. I have a lovely and thick snood and a cute, little bobble hat, both of which are burgundy and super, super warm. But for a bit of variety I won't be neglecting any of my other woolly hats or my other scarf. I thought I'd leave gloves until last and mention them on there own, as although they're a winter essential I only ever seem to purchase fingerless gloves. Don't get me wrong, they're warm and lovely, but they do leave my finger tips feeling a bit neglected as my current pair don't even have one of those mitten flaps. Companies just seem to make fingerless gloves that I prefer the design or pattern of, as opposed to their normal gloves.

A pair of my cableknit tights, one of my layered outfits from last week -a vest, a t-shirt and a fairly thick jumper- and my Starbucks flask.

3. Thick cable knit tights - I am developing a little love of thick tights, specifically ones with patterns (i.e. my grey cableknit ones pictured above). They're just super handy when you feel like having a 'feminine day' as I call them; as they allow you to stick on your favourite skirt or dress without your legs turning into icicles once you leave the house.
4. Boots and doubled up socks - I have horrible circulation in my feet and I often find that my toes go numb in the winter while waiting on a train station platform. Only last year did I think to combat this by wearing two pairs of socks, and I'm going to keep up this habit for the rest of my days. What I also really like about this is that if I plan to wear leggings and my black boots, I often put my second pair of socks -either black or dark grey- over my leggings so they just poke out of the top of my boots. I think it's a really nice little detail that adds to any winter outfit.
5. Christmas Starbucks - Although I have found out that as of this year they have stopped selling praline mochas -I won't lie, I was a little heartbroken when I found that out- I will continue to sing the praises of Starbucks' Christmas coffee range and all their coffee in general to be honest.

So that's my quick-ish guide to keeping cosy this winter. I hope you enjoyed all my little ramblings! If you feel like I missed something essential off either of my lists, let me know in the comments below! :)

October Favourites.

1. Big and baggy jumpers: In my opinion there is nothing more cosy and perfect for autumn than jumpers. Just the thought of wearing a oversized jumper, with a vest top underneath, leggings and fluffy bed socks while lounging on the sofa watching TV with a mug of a warm drink cupped in my hands -with the sleeves of the jumper pulled over them of course- makes me feel all warm and satisfied. Those are the sort of days I really look forward to.

All I need now is a long weekend, -or the Christmas break, but that's quite a while away yet- some praline syrup to add to my mochas and a stack of DVDs!

2. My university course: I know it's still early days but so far I'm loving my BSc course and loving my uni life in general. The independence is great, the content is great and the majority of the staff are pretty great too. I'm particularly loving my courses 'specialist unit' which is 'Psychology & Criminal Behaviour'. So far it's been fascinating and the added knowledge the lectures bring is equally as interesting, if not more so sometimes.

3. Commuting: For the past month I have mainly been commuting to and from uni on the bus. At first I found the journey long and tiresome, but now I've started to really enjoy it -although it can still make me yawn a few times regardless of the time of day. The funny thing is, now that my month's bus pass has expired and I know what my timetable is like, I will no longer be getting the bus. I'll now be commuting in on the train because it's easier, quicker and the trains come more frequently. It will work out to be a little more expensive than the bus, but it'll be worth tweaking my expenses.

4. Woolly hats: Similarly to jumpers, I think that woolly hats are perfect for this weather and that they help to make an autumn day feel a little bit more perfect and complete. You may find that second part a little strange, but it's true! It's hard to explain, but I just feel that woolly hats and autumn go hand-in-hand, and that when I'm wearing one I just feel really happy and autumnal. Woolly hats just complete the 'out and about' autumn look and they make you feel content as you walk down the street in your own little autumnal world with toasty ears.

5. Dry roasted peanuts: this one is simple enough. They're just such a quick and easy snack, not to mention delicious as well!

6. Gel eyeliner: I've been wanting to try out gel eyeliner for a while now, but never been quite brave enough to invest in some. That has all changed now though! With the Boots giftcard I got for my birthday I bought myself some gel eyeliner, and I've got to say that I'm loving it so far. My first attempt wasn't great -it was okay but nothing special- which I guess is to be expected; and my second attempt went really well. So I think I'll be sticking to gel from now on instead of liquid.

7. The Hard Rock Café: Although I've only been once I just had to include the Hard Rock Café in this month's favourites list. Everything about the place is amazing! There's rock n' roll memorabilia everywhere, the music they play is great, the food is really good and the drinks are to die for -especially their Pickled Tink cocktail. The experience and the meal are both without a doubt worth the wait and worth the crowd.