February Favourites

1. My Berlin Fashion // 2. Flattery // 3. Thursday's Child // 4. Here Comes The Sun // 5. Delightfully Tacky // 6. Owl Eyes // 7. Feathers & Things // 8. Keiko Lynn // 9. Po Mojej Stronie Lustra // 10. Kertiii // 11. Fancy Treehouse // 12. Jennifhsieh // 13. Scrapbook de la Emma // 14. Wish Wish Wish // 15. Selective Potential

I can't believe it's already the end of February. I also can't believe I haven't done an outfit post since valentines day! I really need to find the motivation to actually go outside and take some pictures at some point, and hopefully soon. Seeing all these pretty outfits has really inspired me so hopefully I'll have one tomorrow if the weather is ok. What have been your favourite outfits this month?

Photo Diary: Week 15

 Pretty fabric samples for a dress I'm planning on making // Topshop nail varnish // Dinner at Nando's // Nando's Menu // Nando's sauce // Chicken Burger, chips and colslaw // Brie, bacon & Cranberry ciabatta // Pancakes on pancake day // Lemon fondant fancy // Giant wotsit I made when I got bored // Accidentally cut my headphones in half // Sneak at my room

So this week has been a pretty unproductive week so sorry for the majority of these photos being of food haha! I obviously didn't do much this week but hopefully next week will be a little more interesting since Shane and I are off to the spa on thursday as that was our valentine's present to each other and wednesday we're going to Ikea. Ahh, I love that place! If you haven't already heard, Shane and I should be moving into our own house in the next couple months (even if it is our extension - but it's the perfect house for us right now) so we're off to stock up on new house stuff on wednesday. Yay!

Review: Topshop Nail Varnish

 I don't really have a big collection of nail varnishes, mainly due to the fact that I'm not allowed to wear it at work, but when I was in Topshop the other week I saw the collection whilst in the queue and just picked one up on a whim. I didn't really have much time to choose, but I got 'Play for Keeps' since I've been loving coral shades lately. 

They retail at £5, and to be honest I think that's an ok price. It apply's really easily and smoothly compared to some of the other nail varnishes that I've used, though I do find that it can be a little streaky and uneven looking at times (though that may just be the colour that I chose). I wore it for a whole week and it lasted the whole time and still looked great at the end of the week which was a suprise for me since my nail varnish usually ends up chipping really bad while in the shower. It's definately the longest lasting nail varnish I've used. They have so many colours to choose from and I'd love to add some more to my little collection. Overall, I think they're really great quality (probably better than the Models Own ones) and I'd definately reccomend them.

Recipe: Scotch Pancakes (The Best Pancakes Ever!)

Since it's pancake day today, I thought I would do the obvious thing and post a pancake recipe. I did one last year too for nutella and pear pancakes, but these are the ones that my mum has been making us since we were little, and nothing can beat these with a good drizzle of golden syrup. 

Ingredients: 

Makes around 12 pancakes

4oz plain flour

2 teaspoons baking powder (i used about 2.5)

pinch of salt

1 oz sugar

1 egg

1/4 pint or 150ml milk

1oz melted margarine/butter (optional)

Method: 

1.     Sieve together the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl, then add in the sugar.

2.     Add in the egg then pour the milk in slowly while whisking. 

3.     Once the batter is made, add in the melted margarine (optional - to keep them moist) and give it a good whisk through to get rid of any bits. (if you want flavoured pancakes like cinnamon or lemon - add the ingredients in now)

4.     Heat a pan on a low-medium heat (I kept it on almost the lowest heat possible since I tend to burn pancakes haha) and pour in a small amount of the mixture. Leave it to cook on one side till little bubbles/holes start appearing then carefully flip it over. Cook for another minute or so till the pancake is nicely browned.

5.     Repeat with the rest of the mixture (I like to cook them one at a time so I don't burn them) then serve with a sauce of your choice.

Photo Diary: Week 14

 1. Valentines Day Balloon // 2. Valentines Roses // 3. Pretty Candles // 4. Pink Dragon Fruit // 5. Favourite Necklace // 6. New MAC Blushers // 7. Lunch with the best friend // 8. Ham, Cheese & Poached egg on toast // 9. Pancakes // 10. Nutella Hot Chocolate // 11. Mr Toff // 12. Old Records //13. Primark mini haul // 14. Forever 21 purchases // 15. Looking for fabric for a dress // 16. Figuring out how to use a sewing machine

So I didn't really do much this week. Me and Shane had a nice valentines day and he cooked me a lovely dinner which was nice for a change. Went out for lunch and shopping with one of my best friends and ended up buying two new blushers from MAC (I'm a blusher addict haha) and a few other bits and bobs - I'm thinking of making a haul video maybe - what do you guys think? I've been collecting The Art of Quilting magazines since they came out last month and I finally plucked up the courage to get the sewing machine out and figure out how to use it - its actually pretty easy, so I can't wait to use it some more when I attempt my first dress! Wish me luck haha! What have you guys been up to this week?

Things That Make Me Smile: Pretty DIY Inspiration

 1. Secret Storage Books // 2. Wall Baskets // 3. Chalkboard Window // 4. Cardigan Cushion Covers // 5. Tripod Lamp // 6. Peg Noticeboard // 7. Front Door Organiser

I've been going crazy on pinterest lately. I just love being able to save inspiration and collect images for future reference and one of my favourite things is home decoration and diy's. Shane and I currently still live at home with my parents at the moment, but we're hoping to move into our own house in the next year or so so I've been collecting a few ideas for when we do. I want our home to be really neutral, but also really homely and creative, so I just love all these ideas. I think I'm definately going to use some of these when we get our own place. Are any of you on pinterest? Let me know :)

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope everyone is having a great day so far. Shane bought me some lovely roses and a trip to the spa (though we're not going for another 2 weeks) and tonight he's cooking us a lovely dinner and we're just going to cuddle up with some movies :) I can't wait! What are you guys doing for valentines day? So I thought I'd kinda dress for the occasion today, but to be honest, I don't really own too many red clothes so this is what I came up with! I think you'll be seeing a lot more of this headband - I just bought it yesterday and am in love with it! It's just so cute! :) 

Top: Topshop // Cardigan: Mango // Shorts: New Look // Necklace & Headband: // Primark // Shoes: Minnetonka

Recipe: White Chocolate Pannacotta with Raspberry Sauce

 I must say, I'm not exactly a dessert person, but if there's pannacotta on the menu, I just have to get it - especially if it's served with a fruit coulis like rasberry or rhubarb. In case you're wondering what a pannacotta is, it's basically just creamy jelly. I love jelly, and I love anything creamy, so this is just the most perfect combination! I thought this would be a great idea for a dessert on Valentines Day, though I was supposed to post this earlier today. Let me know if you try it!

Ingredients: 

500ml Double Cream

150ml Milk

100g White Chocolate

4 Gelatine Sheets

25g Sugar

Raspberries

Method: 

1.     Heat the double cream and milk up in a saucepan till almost simmering. Meanwhile, soak the gelatine sheets in cold water.

2.     Add in the sugar and chocolate and turn off the heat. Stir till all the chocolate is melted. Leave it to cool for a couple minutes.

3.     Add in the gelatine sheets and stir till it's all combined. 

4.     Pour into ramekins (makes about 6) and leave to cool till cold enough to put in the fridge.

5.     Refrigerate for 3-5 hours or until set. 

6.     When the pannacotta is almost set, heat the raspberries in a saucepan and add enough sugar till the mixture is sweet enough. Crush the raspberries (you can strain them if you want, but I like the texture of them crushed), then leave to cool. 

7.     To serve, submerge the bottom half of the ramekins in a little warm water to loosen the pannacotta, then turn out onto a plate. Pour over the cooled raspberry sauce and enjoy!

Photo Diary: Week 13

Free hot chocolate & marshmallows // Valentines window display // Sleepy Mr Toff // Sleepy Coffee // Couldn't decide what to wear // Pretty vintage rugs // You can buy peanut butter cups in uk now! // Making Nutella hot chocolate // Carbonara at Zizzi's // Aubergine Parmesan at Zizzi's // Table at Zizzi's // Zizzi's with Mum // White Stuff window display // Played badminton // Topshop // Topshop lipsticks // New notepad // Deciding where to go on holiday this year.

This week was a pretty good week :) Me and Mum went for lunch and shopping in our local market town which was really nice and saw some really cute window displays. Bought loads of new stuff this week too, though none of it was actually clothes haha! Hope everyone else had a great week and weekend. :)

Carry Me Home

This is probably one of my favourite ever go-to outfits. I just love this skirt, probably because it is so easy to style and this top seems to make quite a few appearances too. We had a fresh dusting of snow last night which I was so happy about, though it was only about 2 inch's so not as bad as the other day but at least we got some more!

Top & Skirt: River Island // Cardigan: Mango // Belt: Primark // Necklace: Topshop // Boots: Dorothy Perkins

First Snowfall

So this past weekend the majority of the UK finally got some snow! I've been waiting for it to snow all winter and I'm so glad we finally got some. It's been super cold the past couple weeks with it barely reaching above 2C so the snow isn't melting too quickly. I don't mind though, I love snow :). I don't like these boots though but they're pretty much the only shoes I own that are capable of going out in snow/rain without getting my feet soaked so they will just have to do for now haha!

Dress & Scarf: H&M // Cardigan: Topshop // Belt: Primark // Boots: Dorothy Perkins

Photo Diary: Week 12

   Smarties // Subway for Lunch // Amazing yogurts // Pork Pie and Branston Pickle // Recipe (febphotoaday - Day 2 (Words) // Making Cookies // Lunch with Mum at Bella Italia // Lush Purchases // Shopping in Lush // Lush Bath Bombs // Toffee's paws (febphotoaday - Day 3 (Hands) // Shane and Toffee snuggling // First Snowfall of winter // More snow! 

I can't believe how long it's been since I've done a photo diary post! I never really have much time to go out and take photos with the DSLR, so when I was clearing out all my unused apps on my phone I found this photo app called My Tubo (practically the same as instagram just on Android) and I've kind of fell in love with it! I definately recommend if you have an android phone to download it if you're looking for something like Instagram - it's the best app I've found so far :)

Review: Bon Voyage, A Travel Journal

When Shane and I went to Florida, I knew I wanted to keep a journal on the holiday since it was a pretty big holiday. When we went for a month long tour around Australia a few years ago, I just kept a diary in a notebook - which I've lost, so I wanted something a little more special. I saw Bee's post on this travel journal and knew it would be perfect for Florida so my parents bought me it for Christmas. It's honestly even better in real life haha! It's got so many different idea's and instructions throughout the journal such as "Describe the person in closest proximity to you right now" and the pages are just so cute with balloons, airplanes and boats that it's just so fun to write in. You also get 4 postcards too which I think is such a great idea. At the back it has a few pages for photo's on really awkward sized squares and a couple pages for names and addresses of friends you meet, but I think they could have done away with that and just put a few extra writing pages in, because I've ran out of pages to write the last day of the holiday haha! Overall, I think it's such a fun, cute journal and would definately recommend it to anyone going on holiday.

Who's That Girl?

Ok so I'll just admit straight up that I pretty much copied Zooey's outfit from an episode of New Girl haha! I just love that show, and the fashion in it and fell in love with this outfit. The other day I got an email for a job interview and I had nothing to wear and whilst trying to find something on pretty much every site, I found this skirt which is similar to the one she wore so I thought, why not? Though I ended up not going to the interview in the end, at least I still have my Zooey outfit haha! :)

Blouse: ASOS // Skirt & Shoes: River Island // Cardigan: ASDA