What I Love About Winter

Since you can now class evening as 4:30pm, it's bitterly cold in the mornings right through to the afternoon and everyone seems to be stocking up on coats, woollen hats and gloves it's safe to say we are in the throes of winter. While here in South Wales we don't tend to get snowfall until late January or early February, December is the time winter really kicks in for me and I'm so appreciative of the cold weather for a number of reasons. Since I've been feeling a little down recently I thought I'd write a list of why I love this season to remind myself on the bad days that there are always little joys to be appreciated.

♥ Cosy nights in - I'm a huge fan of nights in regardless but in the winter it seems particularly appealing. I love to turn on the heating, get the fire going, light a few candles and just spend time in a clean home appreciating what I have around me. It's even better when you pop outside for a cigarette to be enveloped by the warmth.

♥ Warm drinks - In summer I'm a cold drinks person although I'll usually go for a coffee all year round but this year I've really been appreciating the hot drinks. From lattes to green or chai tea, there's something very comforting about feeling the warmth inside the mug radiating through cold fingertips.

♥ Less rain - I know, I know, we get a lot of rain but I find the cold, frosty days so much nicer than rainy days. I'd happily walk in crisp weather all day but as soon as the rain comes my mood goes south. This time of the year is perfect as there's more dry and cold days than wet and windy.

♥ Snuggly socks - I'm not a fan of socks as I find them slippery on the hard wood floors in my house and quite restricting so I'm usually barefoot. However sometimes it's nice to come out of a bath, turn the heating off and pop on some soft to the touch socks.

♥ Thick, nourishing moisturisers - Most of the time I find thick moisturisers to be too heavy even on my dehydrated skin but with the combination of cold conditions and central heating it's the perfect time to indulge in a whipped cream consistency face cream to really penetrate the skin and help it to feel a little more pampered.

♥ Full coverage foundation - My trusty Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation is in my Top 3 all time foundations but during most months it's too heavy and ends up cake and awful from sliding down my face as I get too flustered even in chilly weather. In winter it's perfect as I rarely get too flushed, it stays put and keeps my skin looking flawless all day.

♥ Everything looks prettier - A big one for me. Frost, snow, twinkling lights, people huddled together and bundled up, children in ear flap hats and flip over mittens - to me, it's picturesque and much more aesthetically pleasing than people in pastel linen shorts and ill-fitting flip flops.

♥ The clothes - I'm into layering. I like skirts with tights, tight jeans and boots, jackets, cardigans, oversized jumpers, scarves, hats and big coats. I like jewel tones and earth tones, grey with pretty much everything and a red lip in the day time. Autumn and winter styles suit my body shape so much better than thin sun dresses so I'm always glad to dig out the stacked heel Chelsea boots and, dare I say it, wellies (for dog walking only, you understand).

♥ Dog walking is much more enjoyable - Spending two hours on a cold day working up your body temperature with a labrador in a field speckled with frost is beautiful.

♥ Twinkling lights - Is it just me or do twinkling fairy lights just seem that little more beautiful in winter?

What do you love about winter?