Latest Oil-Based Dry Skin Saviours

So as you know by now, I'm always looking for products that can help my super dry skin, especially at this time of year when it's not quite Spring yet and the wind threatens to nip the top layer off your face at any random moment.  

I'm mostly relying on a double mix of oils and hardcore body moisturisers but I mix them up a lot so that I don't get too bored with any particular fragrance or finish.

"Latest" here obviously means latest to me, these have all been around for a little while.

Here's what I've been using for the last couple of months:

Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm. 

This is a mini size and I'm already a bit obsessed, with plenty of product left in the pot. This is a cleansing balm similar to the likes of Eve Lom, with Emma Hardie similarly being a firm blogging favourite. It looks like Vaseline in the pot but when you scoop out a small amount and warm it in your fingers, it turns to an oil that you then massage onto your face. 

It effectively melts your make up off. I know. Magic. 

Then I use a muslin cloth that's been soaked in warm water to remove it all and I'm left with very clean, non-tight/dried out skin. Using an oil for your first skincare step means you're not stripping your skin the way you can with some cleansers. Also, it smells absolutely delicious. 

When this is empty I will definitely be buying a full size, available from Marks & Spencers. 

The Oils!

Josh Wood Radiant Shine is a hair treatment oil to be used prior to shampooing. I'm not a big fan of weighing my hair down with oils because my hair is super fine but I only use a little of this on the ends where it's most dry. You can also use it after drying to smooth any wild patches (happens to us all!)

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Oil. I've yet to actually use this fella as it was part of a gift but I'm looking forward to trying it. If 8 Hour Cream is that good for your dry skin patches, what the hell is this gonna do?!

These two from The Body Shop were also minis but I've been loving them for the last couple of months. I'm really onto overnight masks at the minute so it's perfect timing for the Oils Of Life Intensely Revitalising Sleeping Cream, which I apply first, followed by a couple of drops of it's counterpart, the Intensely Revitalising Facial Oil. Together they're both very comforting and if I'm not mistaken, there's a hint of lavender in there to get you off to sleep!

I've been after the Huile Prodigiuse from French skincare brand Nuxe for a while now. This is a dry oil so you get the best of both worlds- it's moisturising but dries quickly once it's on the skin so you're not left all stickily and oily. I mostly use this on my legs where my skin is driest, in alternation with the This Works Oil. 

I love Crabtree & Evelyn and it's fair to say I'm more than a little obsessed with this body butter. The mix of avocado, olive oil and basil makes for the most delicious, summery I-want-to-eat-you-right-now scent of all time. It also helps that it's very soothing on the skin and is the goldilocks of body butters; not too thick, not too thin. Perfect. 

So I used to be the sort of person that suffered from dry, itchy legs. I know what you're thinking, how did this woman remain unmarried for so long?! No body moisturiser worked and I had all but given up on being able to apply tan without extreme patchiness. 

In stepped Sharon from Behind Green Eyes, who sent me a bottle of This Works Skin Deep Dry Leg Oil. This has been a game changer for me. My legs are actually so moisturised now from the last time I used the oil that even directly after a shower they don't feel dry. No mean feat! It's probably not surprising as it does contain 9 different essential oils, but this actually does work!

In combination with this, I've been using the Ultimate Care Body Lotion with Baobab Oil for very dry skin from Burt's Bees. I picked this up in New Orleans last year so every time I smell it I think of that (very good memories!) and it is honestly, just an excellent moisturiser. It's thick enough so it requires a deft hand to work it in but it's worth it.  I've been scraping the last remnants of it out of the bottle but it's pretty much time for me to accept it's gone, so I'll have to hunt down a new one!

Lastly then and not in any way an oil so very much the odd one out, is the Clinique Sweet Pot Lip Scrub & Balm. My amazing friend Eileen bought me one of these to celebrate my graduation last year (I'd been after one for ages) and in the shade I wanted; Candied Cassis. I haven't tried the others but the shade of this comes out a light purpley-pink and is super flattering. 

Before I get to that part though, I use the scrub side first. It's a sugar scrub so if you swallow a bit you're not gonna die and that nicely removes any dead skin cells that are hanging around. With me, they're always hanging around. I could drink two litres of water a day and I'd still have dry lips, so a scrub is a necessity. Handily then, the balm is on the other side so as soon as you've exfoliated, you've got that lovely moisturising, flattering balm. I love it. It comes with me on all holidays, nights away etc. The perfect prep pre-matte lipstick!

And that's the lot!

Have you tried any of these?

What do you use for dry skin?

To the comments!

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Recently Read: December & January.

Oh, I've read some truly excellent books over the last two months. Some have been Christmas themed so I won't go into depth on those reviews cause let's face it, no one wants to read them now but just in case you want ideas for next year (you're fierce organised, if so), they'll be at the end. The rest are book club picks, new releases, books I've had on my TBR (to be read) list for ages and some were audio books that took several months of terror to get through (I'm looking at you, It. You prick). 

Himself by Jess Kidd

Although this is a relatively new release, I managed to get it at the start of January on my Library app, for free! I must do a post about that actually, cause there are some great books to be found on it. Anyway, Himself is set in Co. Mayo in the 1970's. When Mahony, a mysterious young man with, it has to be said, a very sexy swagger, shows up in search of his long lost mother, he causes quite the upset in the small and unsettling village of Mulderrig. Mahony was abandoned by his teenage mother as a baby and after that she was never seen or heard from again. He joins forces with an elderly, flamboyant actress who knew his mother and believes she was murdered and piece by piece they begin to work out what actually happened to her all those years ago.
Along with her assistance, he also has the added help/hindrance of his own ability to both see and communicate with the dead and they have plenty to say for themselves, as Mulderrig starts to give up its secrets. It sounds very dark but it's peppered throughout with humour and real Irish-isms that had me chuckling away to myself. I'd actually describe it as a cross between Agatha Christie and Father Ted, I've honesty never read anything like it and I loved every second of it. It's masterfully written and I was distraught when I realised I was coming to the end. I know for some, the added element of the supernatural might not sit well with them but I felt it was perfectly placed in this novel- it already has such a creepy vibe that it made perfect sense. Definitely one to read and Jess Kidd is an author to watch out for.

One by Sarah Crossan

This is a YA novel but it's one of those ones that's surprisingly well suited for an older audience too. Grace and Tippi (named after Hitchcock heroines- LOVE) are conjoined twins, joined at the waist and somehow defying modern medicine by still being alive at 16 years old. They share everything and never want to be apart but unfortunately their health has other ideas and the pressure to separate begins to loom over them. The book follows their lives up to making the choice of whether or not to separate and for a little while afterwards too. What I loved about it was that the author really showed their individual personalities- I felt like I got to know them both and also it was interesting and rare to read a book with protagonists living with this condition. This is a quick but heartbreaking read. Prepare to weep, uncontrollably. 

Holding by Graham Norton
This was the big book release towards the end of last year. Graham Norton won an award for Holding at the Irish Book Awards (which I was at and got to see him speak- he's even funnier in real life) and so I was really excited to read his first work of fiction. Holding is set in a small, fictional town in West Cork (write about what you know, I guess) where Sergeant PJ Collins is shaken from his comfortably quiet and dull position of village police chief by the discovery of human remains on an old farm. They're suspected to be that of Tommy Burke- a village Lothario that disappeared well over a decade ago, leaving the lives of two local women, Evelyn and Bríd changed forever. Duneen's inhabitants are seemingly hiding plenty of secrets, lies and resentments that will inevitably be revealed in order to find both the victim and the killer. I enjoyed this book. It moves along at a good pace and it's witty, moving and well written. I'm looking forward to reading Graham's next book, whenever that may come along!

Monsters by Emerald Fennell
Emerald Fennell is that lovely red-haired actress from Call The Midwife and lo and behold, she has more than just acting ability, she's also a rather brilliant author. I wasn't sure when I started this if it was a YA novel or not because it's written from the perspective of a very morbid 12 year old girl. Having said that, it's very dark and takes some grim turns that I might not want any teenagers reading about. Anyway, this girl (we never learn her name), is staying with her extremely unpleasant aunt and uncle in their B&B for the Summer. Her parents have recently mysteriously died on a cruise ship and so she's an orphan.So she's stuck in this miserable guest-house by the sea.
She's already bored when a woman's body shows up, naked and bloated in a fisherman's net.
She's a weird kid, to be honest. Obsessed with serial killers, murder in general and she enjoys causing trouble and upset to others. Everyone seems to dislike her so she has no friends, that is until Miles, a similarly odd 12 year old boy comes to stay with his mother. He also has an eerie fascination for death and murder and so the two join together to find the killer. There's a whole host of creepy characters and disturbing events in this book with a slightly shocking ending that Fennell has left wide open for a sequel. This was definitely not what I was expecting when I picked up this book and I half fear that it may stay with me for quite some time to come. I definitely want to read more from Emerald Fennell though, she's another great author to watch out for.

It by Stephen King

I'd been planning on reading this book for years after accidentally seeing and being horrified by some of the film adaptation as a child. I'm also a big King fan so it seemed like a glaring omission in my pile of read books that I had still to tackle It. I say tackle because it's huge. I started listening to it on Audible in October (for Halloween) and finally finished in December. I veered wildly from enjoying it, to being genuinely terrified, to being emotional, to being disgusted and nauseated and then right back to being amused. That's just classic King though and this beast is no exception. And I mean beast in every possible way.
So, in case you don't know, It is set in small town Derry, Maine where a group of school kids must do battle with an omnipresent, ancient evil that takes the guise of your biggest fear; sharks, spiders, insects, an Egyptian Mummy, a werewolf, blood, homophobia, powerful bullies, child abuse and of course, clowns. Oh yes, clowns. Lots to be scared of here and honestly, there are so many moments that completely stopped me in my tracks where I just couldn't keep walking until I got to where the kids get away…if they were going to.
The book is broken into two parts- set in the 60's when they are kids and fight It for the first time and again in the 80's where they must all return to Derry as adults and fight the unspeakable evil again. As always with King, this is an odyssey. There are novels within novels in there- invented and lengthy histories of the town of Derry where It shows up every 27 years to wreak havoc and take as many lives as possible. I'm struggling even to review this properly because it really was such an experience. My one gripe is parts of the ending which left me loudly exclaiming "WTF!"several times. That said, if you're a King fan and a horror fan, you really do need to read this. Otherwise, do not put yourself through all the mini heart attacks!

My Sister's Bones by Nuala Ellwood*

Kate Rafter is a well respected journalist, returned home from a harrowing stint in Syria which has left her exhausted and broken. The book begins with Kate being questioned in a police station in the UK by a psychologist. We don't know why she's there or what she has done but she clearly has more than a stressful job causing her problems- we learn that her mother who has dementia has just died, her father was abusive, her sister is an alcoholic and Kate herself is alone following her relationship breakdown. Her incarceration continues and I'll admit, I loved every time a chapter started with this because it felt like I was picking up clues and was slowly piecing it together. Interspersed with these chapters are flashbacks to her trip home. The second half of the book changes direction somewhat and at first I was disappointed. I was completely sure I had the ending worked out- I remember saying to Himself that I couldn't wait to finish it to be proved correct! Well, it turns out that I was only partly correct but I was also very wrong. If you enjoy a good psychological thriller, this is a good choice.

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed.
I haven't seen the film of this but I wanted something uplifting to listen to for the start of January and I feel like this was a great choice. Cheryl Strayed (not her original name, she changed it cause she thought "Strayed" was more appropriate…hmm), feeling like a shell of herself following the death of her mother from cancer, her own divorce and her brief foray into heroin abuse, decided to hike the Pacific Crest Trail. At the time, and probably still now, this was a Herculean feat for someone unused to hiking and hiking at that level, on your own. A woman hiking the PCT on her own was virtually unheard of and yet, off she went. The book follows her on the trail through all of her trials and tribulations and I found it surprisingly interesting. I was looking forward every day to hearing how she was getting on apart from certain times (her being really mean about her dying mother and feeling sorry for herself) and it was overall, a pretty positive read for what is a particularly grim month. 

Nine Folds Make A Paper Swan by Ruth Gilligan

There's three different stories in contention with each other in this book- a family emigrating from Lithuania to America at the start of the 20th century, a mute Jewish boy locked away in an Irish Catholic institution in 1958 and a young woman in present day London trying to decide whether or not to accept the Jewish faith when her boyfriend proposes. I'll be honest, this one really dragged for me and I only finished it because it was a book club read. Otherwise, I'm not sure I would have continued with it. It was reasonably well written but the three intertwining plots were convoluted and confusing at times and I struggled to stay interested and not completely depressed. 

Christmas Books!

A Nightingale Christmas Carol by Donna Douglas
This is another in the Nightingale Nurses series that I've been reading for the last few years. The books are set in the 1940's and by now we're smack bang in the middle of WW2. There's a whole host of recurring characters, love stories, cool nurses and war heroes. What's not to love! Honestly, for me it's a really enjoyable and somewhat trashy read but that's just what you need sometimes.

Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie

The thought of Agatha Christie, a big country house and Christmas time always seems like the perfect combination but for some reason it never quite works out that way. So in this one Poirot is asked to assist in finding the murderer of an elderly businessman and father at Christmas. His horrible children are all potential suspects and with the return of a long lost son, a Spanish granddaughter and the son of a former enemy, there's red herrings a plenty. This was entertaining enough and has a locked door mystery o there that I would never have figured out for myself. Overall, worth a read.

The Cosy Christmas Teashop by Caroline Roberts

I don't have enough bad things to say about this one. Poor spelling and grammar, constant repetition and an incredibly dull storyline where nothing happened and I had no interest in what happened to any of the characters. There's some pleasant descriptions of baking but that's about it. Save yisserselves.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
I've read A Christmas Carol before, years ago but this was a free audiobook with Audible so I said I'd have a re-read. This is a classic Christmas story and the audio version of it was wonderful. Perfect for popping on while decorating, baking Christmas cookies, or in my case, walking to and from work in the cold. 

And that's the lot for now. I'm finishing off my February reads and already started my March books but what are you reading at the minute? Anything good? Have you read any of this lot?

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*Kindly sent to me for review. As always, all opinions my own. 

Spring Wishlist 2017!

It's that time of the year when the shops start to fill up with things other than wool knits, black tights and bobble hats. This is good news for a couple of reasons. 

For one, it means that I can hopefully put away my Icelandic hyper insulated coat and for two, Spring is springing!!

I, of course have my eye on lots of pretty things but this lot are the main bits and pieces on the revolving carousel that is my mental wish list. 

Links are in pink and don't buy everything before I get the chance to!

I'm a bit Flamingo obsessed and this tee from Oasis has the benefit of being casual (comfy grey marl is the best) but it's also pink and sparkly, so win-win all around. 

The second I saw the limited edition Crayola box from Clinique, I had to have it. Unfortunately for me, a reliable little birdy (thanks Andreea!) has told me that they've been out of stock in Ireland and the UK since the start of February (weeps). I'll be keeping an eye out for a last minute restock but I may just end up buying an individual one, although it obviously won't be the same…

I love this vintage-feel black top, also from Oasis. The bird-embroidered collar is adorable and just the right side of kitsch and will look as well paired with jeans as it would tucked into a skirt.

This spot and floral tea dress from Topshop is very pretty- I'm already picturing it with a (fake) tan and a pair of sandals on my holidays..

*goes into daydream mode*

I'm in the market for a new primer and this one from Too Faced has been on my mind for a while. A product to sort out your hungover face? Ah, yes please!

And lastly, the shoe of dreams from Asos. These are marketed as a bridal shoe but they'd look great with absolutely everything in my opinion (see how I'm already justifying the purchase?) It's a moot point anyway as they are currently sold out in every size but 3. 

Again, I have serious plans to stalk their "back in stock" section. 

Any of these on your Wishlist?

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Beautiful New Books

These were all mostly Christmas gifts but I'm not including that in the title because no one wants to hear the "C" word anymore. Although I've said it already, so...sorry about that.

Anyway, feast your eyes upon these beautiful books:

There's a great mix in there of fiction, cookery books, beauty, autobiographies and overall, lots of stunning books, worthy of coffee-table displays. 

And yes, we are here to judge them all by their covers. 

Observe:

My sister gave me all of these, bar the Sali Hughes, which I had actually bought for her but it turned out one of my other sisters had bought it for her too and so I ended up keeping it for myself. A lengthy way of saying, I bought myself a Christmas present. 

The Tanya Bakes is because she had a flick through it and saw all of the delicious recipes in there and she was not wrong. There is a lemon curd and pistachio cake that is just calling out to be made and then consumed, quickly. 

I haven't had a chance to properly look at The Nature of Beauty but I want to get into using more organic, and less overproduced skincare so this is ideal. 

I loved Sali Hughes's Pretty Honest and I thought the idea for her follow up book, Iconic Beauty; products that have changed the beauty landscape in some way, was very clever. 

Lastly there, I had read an article by Sophie White in an Irish newspaper towards the end of last year about how she started cooking after she took drugs at Electric Picnic and it went very badly wrong, leading to a mental breakdown. I thought it was a fascinating story and I'm intrigued to read more!

Bowie. My fave. Best possible person to seek wisdom from too.

Again, all presents! I did fierce well for myself so I did. 

Easter Widows is a real life account of the women involved in the 1916 rising that were effectively whitewashed from history. It's right up my feminist street and as someone really interested in that period of time, I'm looking forward to reading more. 

I'm currently reading The Essex Serpent for my book club but Himself picked out this particularly fancy edition for me so it's a pleasure to look at it every day. I'll have a review up soon! 

I love Gloria Steinem and feminism aside, she's led a really interesting life that I'm keen to read more about, while Headscarves and Hymens is an in-depth look at how women are treated in the Middle East- another area of interest for me. 

Eileen was one of last years most critically acclaimed psychological thrillers, while The Descent of Man is about gender and how rigid masculine roles can destroy men's lives. 

The Glass Shore is a compilation of short stories, written by women from the North of Ireland.

The Power just sounds brilliant- every teenage girl wakes up one day with an immense physical power to destroy men, and just like that, the world completely changes. Unusual to find a dystopian novel where men, rather than women, are the victims.

Pride and Prejudice is one of my all time favourite books and I adore the Clothbound classics. The cover on this one is as gorgeous as the others in my collection. Love it.

I tend to really enjoy Marian Keyes's work so I'm excited about this one, which is her most recent release and a collection of articles and essays.

The Girls was another one of the bigger releases last year, this one about a teenage girl who finds herself in the thrall of a group of girls who are part of Charles Manson's cult. I somehow still haven't read this but it looks great.

The Underground Railroad is another top rated novel and has featured on Oprah's book club list. It is unsurprisingly, about the horrors that existed for black people pre the civil war era, and also about the building of The Underground Railroad, a method of escape for many. 

I had really wanted to read The Princess Diarist as a lifelong fan of Carrie Fisher's and since she passed away just after Christmas, it's been on top of my list. 

And that's that! Did you get any of these for Christmas?

 If not, what are you currently reading? 

To the comments!

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Visit Amsterdam! Top 10 Things To Do (aside from avoiding being knocked down by a bicycle)

Last Summer we jetted off to Amsterdam for a long weekend. Himself had been before and I hadn't, so as usual, I let him get down to the planning while I searched Pinterest for "Miffy, Amsterdam" (more of that later). 

Amsterdam is a beautiful city. I'd happily go back there again at any time of year but it was in the 20's when we were there and the sun definitely makes it even more aesthetically pleasing. There's also just a really good vibe there, it's one of the few European cities that I'd actually really want to live in long term. You'll find that English is widely spoken, it's very easy to get around thanks to the tram and bus services and it's no more expensive to eat out/drink than Dublin. But back to my top 10. I always think it's easier to do it this way because otherwise I'll just harp on incoherently about how much I love the place.

In no particular order:

1. Gorge Yourself on Art!

Specifically here, I'm referring to the Van Gogh museum and the Rijksmuseum. 

In the Van Gogh museum you'll find the world's largest collection of his masterpieces, which are arrayed chronologically so you can start where he started and work your way through. You'll find there's specific limited edition exhibitions on throughout the year too. From March to June of this year for example, they have "Prints in Paris 1900", which includes Le Chat Noir and posters from the Moulin Rouge, which sounds fab! Book your ticket in advance HERE to save you queueing! 

Miffy Van Gogh, I mean, CAN YOU EVEN?!! 

The Rijksmuseum, meanwhile, has a whole host of artists under it's roof and you could easily spend an entire day here. If you're a fan of Rembrandt and Vermeer but you also like to mix it up with contemporary art, furniture, fashion and sculpture then you, my friend are in the correct place. 

Vermeer and YSL. Just an example of the wide range of art on offer here. 

Outside the Rijksmuseum, you'll also find one of the massive IAmsterdam signs to pose in front of, if you can beat other tourists out of the way first. These are in other places about the city, but a word of warning- everywhere will be jammers!

2. The Anne Frank House

If you've read Anne Frank's diary, then you'll want to visit the secret annex where she lived with her family and a few others during WW2 in order to escape Nazi occupied Holland. Having re-read the book a few times, it felt surreal and frankly, quite emotional to stand where she stood and to see everything just as she described it. I would highly recommend a visit here but would caution you to queue either late in the evening or very early in the morning. While we were there, there was always a massive queue, snaking around the block with people waiting to get in. Obviously only so many people can be accommodated inside at the one time but there seemed to be less people in the evening time and we started queueing around 9pm. They close at 10pm and open in the morning at 9am. You can buy your tickets online HERE but I'm not sure that makes a difference as you have to queue to get in either way. 

3. Shop The Nine Streets

This is a specific area of Amsterdam, featuring, you guessed it, nine streets, or De 9 Straatjes. Here you'll find a massive array of very lovely small shops, stocking everything from jewellery, trinkets, funky socks, vintage clothes, beauty products, cheese, art, gifts and of course, there's lots of cafes, bars and restaurants too. Even if you're just window shopping, strolling through the nine streets is a really pleasant way to while away an afternoon.

My favourite of all the shops. I bought a couple of those cutesy little fruit/moon/star lights in the window and a load of very cute postcards. Sorry to that poor woman, also in the window who is now forever on my blog.

4. Take a Canal Tour.

You can get around the city any which way you want, as I mentioned already, we did use the tram a lot and we walked a huge amount so we had already seen a good bit but it's always nice to see a city from river/canal level. You'll find there's a good few companies to choose from, several of which are down the street from the Anne Frank House.

5. Kookt Festival

This is a massive food and music festival that takes place throughout the Summer in Amsterdam. It moves location so your best bet is to check the different venues and dates on their Facebook page HERE. We went here our first night and we loved it. Such a great atmosphere, delicious food, drinks and brilliant music. 

Ha. Meating Point. Get it? Cause of ALL the BBQ meat. Himself was in heaven. There he is in a hammock. That part above him there is a mini beach. We sat out and had dinner and drinks while the sun went down. Lovely. Then we ate lots of food, including some unreal churros. Nom. 

6. Take a Stroll Through the Vondelpark.

The Vondelpark is the largest park in the city. You can do a bike tour or you can just take your time and walk through, stopping to look at the sculptures throughout or go directly to the open air theatre which shows music and dance performances during the Summer. When we were there, there was a reggae show on so we got some drinks from the bar and chilled out in the sun. Lovely!

Chilled wine in 24 degree heat + David Meowie tee = happy Chloe.

7. De Hallen Market

This is a converted industrial building in what's known as the trendy part of Amsterdam. Inside you'll find a massive indoor food hall, selling everything from sushi to burgers with bars and whole stalls dedicated to cake in between. There's also some stores, stocking; vintage clothes, vinyl records, local art and sculptures and lots of very cool hipster type gifts. We didn't venture into the nine-screen art deco style cinema, purely from a time perspective but that looked cool too. 

8. Get a Beer And Sit Outside a Nice Bar

…and, people watch! Honestly, Amsterdam is just the loveliest place to sit outside and take it all in. If you can, order some Bitterballen too. These are little Dutch meat (usually chopped beef or veal) based snacks that are served with a mustard dip. Quite delicious with an ice cold beverage!

9. Get a Slice Of The Greatest Apple Pie in The Entire World.

I've tried and have loved many's the apple pie. In fact, when I told my sister that this was the best she reminded me of the apple tart from the Bunratty folk park (which is unreal) and I had to tell her that this was better. She's still sceptical but she's wrong!! My friend Colleen advised us to go to Winkel's, where we would probably have to queue for a table but that it'd be worth it. 

She was not wrong! There are raisins in it (the devil's own shrivelled snack) but they are easily picked out and then you're left with a buttery, crumbly pastry, perfectly sweetened apples, a hint of cinnamon and a whack of cream on the side. If I go back to Amsterdam for no other reason, it'll be for Winkel's apple pie alone. Come, drool with me. 

 10. Visit the Miffy Shop (optional)

There's also a Miffy museum, but it's a bit outside of the city and we didn't really have the time. I have a major love for the little Dutch rabbit, Miffy ever since I was a lttle'un. Obviously I'm still slightly obsessed but what better city to be in than the home of the miffster him/herself. 

It was a tough inner battle not to buy the nurse & doctor miffy's but the price tags put me off...

There's plenty of other Miffy merchandise to buy and that's the only attraction there really, except for the lifesize Miffy to pose with…

Tips!:

• So, you may have noticed that the red light district isn't among my top 10 things to do. For me, it's one of those tourist things to do that you wouldn't recommend but that people still do anyway. Like Temple Bar. It's not particularly fun or pleasant but there's no harm in strolling through to see what it's all about. 

It's completely packed with people on both sides of the canal, lots of garish lights, and obviously lots of women in windows. Not high on my list.

• Buy a 4 day travel pass, these should be available in the train station. I can't remember how much this cost but we used this constantly on the trams and the buses, and it worked out to be really good value.

• I recommend stopping at Lot Sixty One for coffee- it is genuinely excellent coffee and people seem to flock to it.

• Food recommendations! Mook pancakes are wonderful and very filling. Start with a savoury and finish with a dessert pancake.

That's bacon, cheese, onion and maple syrup on the left and strawberries, blueberries, chocolate and coconut on the right. 

The waffles from the Metropolitan Deli are also well loved; you can get whatever toppings you want, so we got fruit and ice cream. You can also get poffertjes; little Dutch pancakes. That's them being made on the left. They are a thing of wonder. We got them covered with milk and white chocolate (behind the waffle). 

We also had a really good (non dessert) meal in Mata Hari, a restaurant near to the red light district. Excellent cocktails too (that's a rather lethal Long Island Iced Tea).

And that's that! Get yourself to Amsterdam, you won't regret it! 

Have you been to Amsterdam?

Where's next on your travel wish list? 

Enable me!

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