Thursday 29 May 2014

May Favorites

May Favorites
Here are a few things that I have loved in the month of May:

For music this month I have loved Katy Perry newest album Prism, I know this came out a few months back however I only just got around to listening to it and its one of her best albums yet. My favourite song of this album is called This Moment it such an emotional song and for me it is one of the best songs of the album and the song I have listened to the most. The other songs I also love on the album are Roar, Unconditionally and Ghost.
The next item on my list is a shampoo by Dove called Dove daily care 2 in 1 shampoo, this shampoo smells amazing and it makes your hair soft and smooth. I have now re-purchased three times and I think this shampoo is such good value for money and it does wonders for your hair. I am a really big fan of the brand Dove and I really want to try more shampoos in their range.
This month I found myself going back to the fragrance from Taylor Swift the second one in her collection called Enchanted Wonderstruck. I absolutely love this perfume it is so fruity and it is perfect for summer and has become one of my most used perfumes this month. 
For my favourite movie this month has to About time starting Rachel McAdams this is a movie that has been on list to watch for ages and I have finally got around to seeing it. This is such a cute movie and anything that Rachel McAdams stars in always makes the film great. I won't spoil the film for anyone who hasn't seen it but a really sweet love story and worth a watch.  
My last favourite this month has to be the TV programme Neighbours (a little sad) however it has been my favourite soap this month because the story lines have been so good.  This month the programme said good bye to my favourite character Kate Ramsay who is played by Ashleigh Brewer. What I love about this programme is even if you miss out a week or a few days of programmes it's so easy to catch up. 

xxx

Tuesday 27 May 2014

Recipe: Mini Egg Cookies

Since Easter was a few weeks ago I still had some Mini Eggs left to use up so I decide to put them to good use in a cookie recipe.
For full ingredients and instructions please follow this link where I found the recipe here
First I mixed butter and soft brown sugar together until soft and then added golden syrup and mixed again
 Next I broke up some mini eggs using a rolling pin and added them to the mixture with the flour
Mix the mixture until it forms dough and roll into small balls and place apart on the lined baking paper


Cook for around 12-14 minutes until golden brown and you're done




If you don't have any mini eggs you can use Smarties, M&M's or Minstrels
xxx

Saturday 24 May 2014

Pocket Full of Protection: Nivea Sun Pocket Size Review

Finally this month the weather got a little bit warmer in the UK, so warm that I had to buy some sun cream so I wouldn't burn and I came across this in Superdrug by Nivea called Nivea Sun Adult Pocket Size SPF 30. Not only does this fit inside your pocket but fits perfectly inside your handbag for on the go.

What I love about this sun cream is it has a twist top so it is not very likely to leak inside your handbag or pocket and doesn't have the weight of a large bottle of sun cream. What I like most about this sun cream is it is very fast about absorbing and water proof and I would recommend anyone looking for something lightweight to take with them then this would do the trick nicely. 

xxx

Thursday 22 May 2014

Recipe: Coffee Iced Brownies / Cake

If you love coffee then you will love this recipe that I found in a recipe book called 1001 Cupcakes, Cookies and other tempting treats. I found this to be the best baking book that I have come across in a while that has a wide range of recipes that aren't so hard to follow. I am a really big coffee fan so this recipe was perfect for me however I didn't have the right sort of tin to put the mixture in so it turned out more like a cake but still it was really yummy. So this is how I did it: 
Ingredients Needed: 
225g of Butter
225g of Self Raising Flour
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of coco powder
4 eggs lightly beaten
3 tbsp of instant coffee dissolved in 2tbsp of hot water, cooled

1. Grease and the base of a shallow tin (the book said 28 x 18cm) and pre-heat oven at 180C
2. Sift the flour, baking powder and coco into a bowl and add the butter, sugar, eggs and coffee. Beat until smooth
3. Spoon into the tin and smooth on top
4. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until risen and firm
5. Leave for 10 minutes on the side and then turn out onto a cooling rack


How to decorate 
In a small saucepan melt 55g of butter with 3 table spoons of milk, then add in 4 teaspoons of instant coffee granules and stir until they have dissolved. 
Next sift 225g of icing sugar into a bowl then add the coffee mixture into it, and beat to make a smooth icing, 
Spread all over the cake and if you want sprinkle some fudge pieces on top of the icing. Let the icing set and cut into bars or depending on its size you can leave it like a cake.

I decorated it with fudge and chocolate icing
Cake cut into brownie hand size pieces 

 xxx

Monday 19 May 2014

Modalu Dickens Clutch Oxblood Handbag Review

I sort of promised myself no more bags this month however when I went into town I popped into Browns in York and wondered into the handbag department where they were having a 20% handbag event (oh dear) and there on the shelves was a handbag I have been eyeing up for a while. Well to be honest I bidded on it on eBay the week before and got out bidded and I felt it was just meant to be that it was the last one in stock so it was just meant to be.
What drew me most to this bag is the oxblood colour of the bag with the horses head on the flap of the bag. Also the fact that this bag is multi-functional it can be worn as a wristlet, clutch or as a cross body bag with the bag straps being detachable. It has one main compartment with two internal slip pockets and one zipped. I really do like the brand Modalu and this bag came from their winter collection however it can still be found in store or online in some places.


Other features of the Modalu Dickens Clutch

  • Modalu shell jacquard fabric in ivory
  • Decorative horse head hardware on
  • Flap opening with magnetic dot closure
  • Modalu dust bag 61 – 64cm extendable cross-body strap
  • Large enough for a small tablet and your essentials
  • Dimensions: H20 x W24 x D4 cm
  • Material: Leather

xxxx

Saturday 17 May 2014

Recipe: Golden Syrup Flapjacks Made Easy

I have always wanted to try making my own flapjacks instead of always buying them from the shop. So I found a super easy fast recipe online (link) that save time and there is no need to even use a pan and this is how I did it:
In a food processor add 125g of unsalted butter, 125g of brown sugar, 2-3 of table spoon of golden syrup and 250g of porridge oats. Mix until blended however don't over blend because you don't want to break the oats up to much.
All ingredients mixed together
Next spoon in the mixture into a grease tray and place into a pre-heated oven at 180 C for 20 minuets
Leave to cool on this side for a while, then tip out and cut into squares and enjoy, to jazz the recipe up you could add fruit into the mixture.
Flapjack when its just been tip out of the tray
Flapjack Bars

Have a good weekend everyone
xxx

Thursday 15 May 2014

Review: Fairy Dust Lily Flame Candle

If Disney ever designed a candle it would properly look a lot like this one made by the company Lily-Flame called Fairy Dust, even the four wax chunks sticking out the candle makes it look a bit like a castle. I just love how the pink and white together makes it so princess looking.
I recently discovered this brand of candle when I popped into John Lewis the other day and the best bit is that the candles are made in United Kingdom! I think this candle would make a perfect gift for anyone who looking a small affordable candle and comes in beautiful presentation tin.
This candle smell wonderful as the company claims the smell is "So strong you don’t even need to light it; just leave the lid offand as soon as you take the lid of you can smell it, it smells amazing. The smells reminds me of baby power and its kind of a sweet smell but not so over powering, these candles burn for up to 35 hours. I will definitely be looking into other candles in Lily-Flame range.


xxx

Tuesday 13 May 2014

Recipe: Butterfly Cupcakes

I use to love making these cupcakes when I was little with my Grandma and I still do now, so I thought I would share the recipe with you. These are so simple to make and are perfect for any tea party.
Ingredients:
8oz Margarine
8oz Caster Sugar
8oz Self-Raising Flour
4 Eggs

To decorate the cupcakes:
5oz Margarine
10oz Icing Sugar

How to make:
1. Preheat your oven to 180 C (gas mark 4) and line two bun trays with bun cases (makes around 24 buns) 
2. Using an electric hand mixer mix together margarine, caster sugar and flour
3. Spoon the mixture into the bun cases and place into the oven for 20 minutes
4. Remove from the oven and leave to cool
5. Mix the Icing Sugar and Margarine together to form the butter cream
6. With a knife cut a circle from the top of the cupcake and remove and cut in half to make the wings
7. Spoon in a bit of jam and then place on top a spoon full of butter cream inside the cupcake and stick the wings back onto the top at an angle 

To make chocolate butterfly cupcakes add 2 tablespoons of chocolate powder to the mixture at step 2 and for the icing add a bit into the butter cream. 

xxx

Saturday 10 May 2014

Handbag Ramble: Designer Or Inspired Handbags?

Designer Or Inspired Handbags?



Recently, I been thinking about buying a designer handbag however there are doubts in my mind whether or not a designer handbag is really worth the money, when there are so many inspired handbags around for a fraction of the cost. Because I'm the sort of person that changes my handbag on regular basics so will one designer handbag ever be enough? Also the idea that instead of buying just one designer bag you can buy a lot more different inspired handbags for the price of one, however will the designer handbag last longer?

At the moment I think the high street shops do amazing inspired designer handbags such as Mango and Accessorize which do really great affordable inspired handbags for the fraction of the price of a designer handbag.  Hmm but which is better? 

xxx