Recipe: Jam and Coconut Loaf

Last weekend I was abandoned for the last day of the football season and bored in the house. I haven't baked in months and stared at my Kitchenmaid looking all sorry for itself. I wanted something quick and simple to bake. After scouring my many cookbooks, I came across Nadia Sawalha's Fabulous Family Food and saw this simple recipe. It came out brilliantly!

Ingredients:

For the cake:

175g self raising flour, sifted

175g baking spread

175g caster sugar

3 free-range eggs, whisked

50g desiccated coconut

1 tbsp lemon flavouring

1 tbsp vanilla flavouring

1 tsp baking powder

For the topping:

4-6 tbsp strawberry jam

2 tbsp desiccated coconut

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees/gas mark 4.

2. Line a 900g loaf tin with baking parchment and grease with some butter.

3. Put all the cake ingredients in a mixing bowl, whisk until you have a smooth mixture. Pour it into the loaf tin.

4. Bake for 45-50 minutes. I popped some tin foil on it after 10 minutes to stop it from burning. The woes of having a fan oven!

5. Leave to stand in the tin to cool for ten minutes. Pop on a wire rack to let it fully cool down.

6. Once cooled, spread the strawberry jam on the top and sprinkle with the coconut.

Let me know on twitter if you manage to make it - I'd love to see a picture!

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OOTD: Yellow sun dress

Outfit:
Yellow cotton sundress: c/o M&S
White chunky heeled sandals: c/o M&S

I was asked by M&S to style an outfit suitable for a special summer event. They have a cracking Ultimate Dress Guide - there's something to flatter every shape! They have such an amazing selection of dresses. I chose to dress for a garden party - we all have a lot of these coming up over the next few months. BBQ season is certainly a perk of the summer! Smart Casual. The oxymoron that strikes fear into anyone - what the hell does it mean anyway?! I think I've found the perfect combination if you need to look like you've effortlessly made an effort.

The gorgeous lime green dress immediately called my name as soon as I spotted it on the page. The netting underneath gives it a little oomph and keeps it from looking too casual. The cotton material will help keep the dress feeling light. A 50s style silhouette is always a winner in my book whatever the occasion! A slick of red lipstick instantly makes your outfit a game changer.

I chose the white chunky heels because I thought they were perfect for standing on your feet all day. There's nothing worse than frantically looking around trying to nab an elusive chair because your feet are in agony. The heel is just the right height to stand and chat to guests - they help to pack a statement and make your dress look a little bit more fancier. The gemstones help make them exciting and keep to the dreaded smart causal dress code like a pro.

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OOTD: Floral Midi Dress

Outfit:

Floral scuba material midi dress: ASOS (Similar)
Black and gold clutch: Zara (Similar)
Black faux snakeskin court shoes: Next (Similar)
Red lipstick: c/o Elizabeth Arden Red Door Red
Red nails: c/o Bourjous 5 Are You Reddy

I had this dress in my saved items on ASOS for weeks upon weeks. The £60 price tag was just a little too much for me to ever justify when things like a house and a holiday come into the equation. During my daily browse on ASOS I always kept my fingers crossed it would be reduced. One day they answered my prayers and it swiftly become mine at a bargain price of £36. That should be a lesson to always keep things in your saved basket and check online daily. Eventually you'll be able to splash out!

Shamefully after owning it for a month I only just got around to wearing it last weekend. I've been stuck in a bit of a stye rut recently. The weather has completely thrown me and I've not really been sure what to wear. Not to mention I've been overindulging a lot recently and been feeling a lot more heavier. I've been living in jeans and feel like I've lost my midi skirt mojo. These last two outfits have reminded me exactly why I love the midi length/ retro look so much and I've felt much more like myself. It's true that you feel a lot more ready to take on the world if you're wearing something you love!

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OOTD: Pink Midi Skirt

Outfit:

Pink textured midi skirt: H&M (Similar)
Black roll neck vest: ASOS (Similar)
Black faux snakeskin court shoes: Next (Similar)
Black faux fur clutch bag: Topshop (Similar)

This is my fall safe skirt. It's what I pick when I'm panicking ten minutes before I'm due to head out about nothing in my wardrobe looking decent. When that double helping at dinner immediately feels like a huge mistake. I know I can pop it on and immediately feel all right again. The gorgeous colour and length makes an all-important statement. In my opinion it only needs a few simple accessories to make it work - I like it let the colour take centre stage. I always pair it with black and oversized clutch, then I can head out the door with 5 minutes to spare.

Do you have an item of clothing that's your go to when you're having a mare?

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A few favourites #3

I thought I hadn't done of these for a while and I'm loving or rather getting obsessed with a lot of things. Things I think you should know about. So here we go!

1. Peaky Blinders Boxset
It may have taken me a long time to finally get around to watching this series but now I've fallen completely head over heels. I'm a massive fan of Cillian Murphy anyway and he is absolutely superb in this. He's just so good at being chilling and has such great screen presence. He really doesn't have to say much, his facial expressions tell everything. Helen McCoroy is fantastic as Aunt Polly too. I love a fierce woman. Gangster themed TV shows/films are my favourite genre - I blame watching Goodfellas as a teenager for making me wish I was part of the mafia. 2016 is so far away for season three so I might just have to watch them all over again.

2. Sleek True Colour Lipstick Candy Cane 773 c/o
I always think if you're going to plaster on some lipstick, it's the brighter the better. Sleek always have such a great selection of bright hippies. This one has got the tendency to be drying so I need to make sure I'm on my lip balm game. But it's such a gorgeous colour and so perfectly summery, I'm willing to let that go. Just one slick and you're ready to hit the ground running.

3. Ravel blocked heeled sandals
These were one of those totally necessary but unnecessary purchases. I really don't need any more shoes but they're my favourite thing to buy. During a dangerous browse of TK Maxx, I came across these and immediately needed them for my holiday. I'm a sucker for a bit of leopard print, a block heel and a sandal so when I noticed they were £30 and real leather, I decided to go without eating that week. Thanks to the chunky heel they're actually fairly comfortable. The straps could have the potential to give blisters but the leather will soon give and then they will be PERFECT!

4. Pineapple trinket tray
Everyone and their mother is going crazy for pineapple themed products at the minute. I picked this cute trinket from Paperchase while I was buying a birthday card. I like the rule of one present for you and one present for me. That's how it works right? It was only £6.50 and I thought it'd look right at home on my dressing table. I use it to pop my everyday jewellery in before I go to bed.

5. Paperchase Listbook organiser
I love writing lists, in fact I write things I've already done on a list just so I can feel accomplished. I can't be the only one? This year was going to be the year that I took my blog a lot more seriously and although I've been really happy with the content and the way it's growing, I've not been putting in as much effort as I should have. Real life has got in the way of things. But I've still got seven months of the year left to make a massive push so in a bid to get organised, I treated myself to this organiser to pop in my bag. I'm going to use it to write down post ideas, schedule posts and remind myself of product reviews. Nothing like some new stationary to give you some motivation!

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Review: Mad Hatters Afternoon Tea at The Sanderson Hotel

I love cake. I love bread. So it's no wonder that I'm such a massive afternoon tea fan. Last weekend I popped along to the fancy Sanderson Hotel for a spot of Mad Hatters Afternoon tea. It was incredible! If you're an Alice In Wonderland fan - who isn't? - then you'll be in heaven. It was full of little quirky touches that made you oooo and ahhh all afternoon.

Opting for a strawberries and cream fruit tea, we eagerly awaited our afternoon tea to be brought out. The first thing we tackled were the sandwiches. The smoked salmon and cream cheese sandwiched between a lime bread was by far my favourite. Other sandwiches included egg mayo in a curry bread,  cream cheese and cucumber in a parmesan bread and ham and mustard in a tomato bread. The different flavoured bread really helped to give the sarnies something a little special. They complimented the fillings perfectly.

The cakes are always the talking point at any afternoon tea. On the top layer we got to munch on yummy strawberries and cream marshmallow mushrooms and carrot shaped meringues. The second layer featured a melting mango cheesecake, light Victoria sponge cake and a matcha green tea mousse in a chocolate cup. Finally we were given a sweet scone alongside a mustard savoury scone with a pot of garlic butter and lashings of clotted cream with juicy strawberry jam. Make sure you double check the scones as I ended up with clotted cream on my mustard scone! If you've still got room, there a jelly cart with strawberry, apple and peach jelly to tuck into. We were stuffed but took one for the team!

It's not cheap starting at £38 per person for the basic package. But it's honestly well worth the money and I wouldn't think twice about going again. The sandwiches, scones, tea and jelly bar are refillable. As soon as the staff notice you're running low, they quickly offer to refill. We even asked if we were allowed to take a few things home and they soon obliged. The service really can't be faulted.

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The Kingsman Tweet-a-long party

I don't know about you but I love an action packed film especially one that features the dapper Colin Firth. I managed to catch The Kingsman at the cinema when I was very excited when they invited me to join in a special blogger party tweet-a-long. How could I say no to a few hours gazing at Taron Egerton eh? Let's all take a moment to appreciate the above picture... 

Come join me on Sunday 24th May at @kingsmanuk at 6pm sharp for the digital HD premiere. Make sure you use the hashtag #KingsmanDigitalHD.  They'll be lots of giveaways on the night so keep your eyes peeled. I shall see you there! 

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New Look A/W 15 Preview

New Look never fails to impress me so I was excited to be invited to their a/w 15 preview. One thing that always stands out for me season after season are their accessories. I can never have enough of their shoes. They're always so well priced, something a little different and some of the most comfortable shoes I own. Next season will not disappoint! The stand out shoes for me were the silver studded, lace up heeled sandals. I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for those in the shop. The jewellery was also full of gems. The above feather necklace would look incredible with a plain black midi dress.

The 70s trend proved it's here to stay. Maybe it's about time I embraced it! The new collection was full of suede, denim, shearling, lurex, floppy hats and florals. The shearling beige jacket caught my eye immediately. It looks so luxe and I think you'd never guess it was from the High street! I've also got my beady eye on that fluffy cream fur coat on the mannequin. I can image it with a denim midi skirt with a roll neck jumper for when the weather starts to cool down.

The below suede skirt looked and felt incredible. I loved the exposed zip and of course the length always wins me round. I'm getting a bit worried midi skirts might be on their way out as they seem to get less each season. Just means I'll have to start buying extra right? I'm so impressed each season with the high street as they continue to up their game. You seem to get so much now for your money.

Does anything stand out for you?

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