Everything I have loved over the last month...in a blog post.

MUSIC:

Favourite album: I've got three, and all of them have been out for a while, but it's nice to discover older music and revisit it!

Parachute, 'The Way It Was': This the second studio album by an American pop/rock band based in Nashville, Tennessee. They're not as well known in the UK so the best place to find their albums is on trusty old amazon.co.uk! 'The Way It Was' sounds a little more grown up than the first album 'Losing Sleep' but it still has the true Parachute vibe - five talented men playing five amazing instruments. The quality of song-writing is also a key feature I look for, and I just love Will Anderson as a wordsmith. My favourite song on the album HAS to be 'White Dress'. Go check it out if you haven't already!

Kyla La Grange, 'Ashes [Deluxe Edition]': I first heard about Kyla in the first issue I bought of Company Magazine last year and instantly fell in love with the song 'Vampire Smile'. It was just the kind of alternative, folky music I was looking for. It's so cleverly written - Kyla says it's written for someone she knew she shouldn't be obsessed with - and I love the vampire-themed metaphor! I was unsure of buying the album when I saw it on the shelf of a music store because I didn't know if I'd like the rest of it. But I knew I wasn't going to find the album physically anywhere else (I had tried looking for it out of curiosity) and one of my friends convinced me to buy it with the phrase, "You'll regret it if you don't." So I did. And I love it. My favourites are 'Vampire Smile', 'I Could Be', 'Been Better' and 'Walk'.

Ben Howard, 'Every Kingdom': I had heard of Ben Howard before and vaguely knew his music (folk, indie), but it wasn't until the night after the BRIT Awards earlier this year that I bought his album and started listening properly. 'Every Kingdom' is quite theraputic for me, personally, when I'm suffering a severe case of nostalgia. I used to travel down to Devon, where Howard grew up and where the album was recorded, quite often when I was young and it's a special place to me. Songs from the album like 'Old Pine', 'Everything' and 'Keep Your Head Up' are definite reminders of Devon and someday I'll go back in a car of my own with this album in my glovebox.

If you love guitars, you'll love this album.

Favourite song: 'The Fear', Ben Howard. This song was on repeat for HOURS last month. I often get quite caught up in fear and this song put things into perspective for me. The message I think of is that we shouldn't let fear get the better of us and we miss out on so much because we're too scared to try.

["I've been worrying that we all live our lives in the confines of fear."]

'Take Off', Conor Maynard. I listen to Conor a little too much and particularly this song. If there's any song that puts me in the most smiley mood ever, IT'S THIS ONE. This song is designed to basically blow the roof of a club. I'm pretty sure it does just that because the bass is just...WOAH. And that beat. And that voice. Someone give me air.
Favourite BRITS performance: Did anyone see Taylor Swift totally KILL 'I Knew You Were Trouble'?! Did anyone see that awesomeness?!


COSMETICS:
'Woodwinked' eyeshadow by MAC. I made the mistake of reading reviews AFTER I bought this product (a lot of people seemed to think this eyeshadow looks to orangey on pale skin tones), but thankfully I really like it. It's a soft, antique brown colour and lately I've been wearing it on the outer corners of my eyes with 'All That Glitters' (also by MAC) all over the lid because it looks great with that!

FILM:

I'm a bit late to jump on the bandwaggon, but I finally sat down to watch Skyfall and loved it. I'm not usually one for James Bond, but I really enjoyed how gripping the scenes were, especially *SPOILER ALERT* the scene with Bond in the tube tunnel with an Underground train on the way! However there was one disappointment...the character I didn't want to die...did.

But on a lighter note, did anyone else find Q attractive?

READING:

Company Magazine. This magazine has to be the prettiest one I've ever laid eyes on. I love the colour schemes (usually cute pastel or really bright), the fashion, the columns by David and Jameela, the music column by Radio1 DJ Gemma Cairney and of course the Beauty Edit. I also love the fresh smell of the pages when you buy a new issue each month. That's totally normal...right?!

GAMES:

The Sims 3. Because who doesn't love creating anyone they want with the careers they want?! I recently just joined The Exchange and can't get enough of downloading clothes that are, in my opinion, by far better than the outfits provided by default in the game. I've also been a massive fan of downloading houses because sometimes I'm simply to lazy to build my own.

SHOPPING:

I enjoy my trips to MAC and don't like leaving if I haven't bought the item I was looking for! I've also really been liking the sudden spring-like clothing hitting the stores. I like winter, but there's only so much dark, cold and jumpers I can take!

What are your February Favourites? Let me know in the comments if you feel like sharing!