Return of the Mac

 

Outfit:
Red and white striped tee: c/o Florence and Fred (similar)
Light wash skinny jeans: New Look
Beige long trench coat: Zara (similar)
White chucks: Converse c/o Tower London

I went along to the Tower London press breakfast a few weeks ago - fell head over heels for the Melissa x Vivienne Westwood boots below -  to have a sneaky look at all the a/w gems they have coming in to store. They had some amazing boots and some really great brands. I was especially taken with the floral Doc Martens - the pattern is amazing right? Tower London are definitely a shop to look out for if you're looking to treat yourself to some new boots. They have something for everyone! I was very lucky to win these Converse in a competition they were running on the day and they've hardly left my feet! I opted for the classic white as they go with absolutely everything.

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Feeling left behind

When I was 16, I had my entire life mapped out by the time I hit 25. I was going to be a well travelled individual, jump on the property ladder, work as a journalist, have a ring on my left hand and own a wardrobe filled to the brim with designer goodies. Well I hit 25 earlier this year and life hasn't quite gone where I thought it'd go. 

After years of interning I managed to get my dream job and can finally proudly call myself a bone fide journalist - something I thought would never happen. I've also managed to bag that Mulberry after months of hardcore saving. But the others? I'm not even close to ticking them off the list so does this mean i've somehow failed at life?

After having a mini meltdown earlier on in the year when my friends started becoming grown up and investing in property, I had the realisation that success in life isn't straight forward. I was beginning to feel left behind and wondering if my stubbornness not to become a grown up was holding me back. Was it about time I embraced being in my mid twenties and start behaving how society said I should?

Life is not a race so stop comparing yourself to others. You might look on in envy to your friends and wish you were keeping up with the Jones' but I can promise you they're looking at you wishing exactly the same thing. They might have own a house but you get to buy that Chanel lipstick whenever you want as you live at home. They might have a high flying career and earn more than you could ever dream off but you get a jiffy bag full of chocolate sent to you at work. They might be getting married but you can tell your boyfriend to go home so you can binge watch The Tudors. They might only wear designer shoes but you can feel smug as you've managed to find some bargains in TK Maxx.

I may not have a house to call my own, spent a year travelling around the world being 'cultured' or own those coveted Christian Louboutins but to be honest i'm pretty darn happy with the way life is going. Nothing fun is ever straight forward right? And I am still only 25.

Your time will come so stop trying to rush it. Life is too short.

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Recipe: Carrot Cake

The recipe was loosely taken from BBC Good Food.

I can take or leave chocolate, crisps or sweets but cake? Cake I can eat all day, every day. Hence why I try not to bake it so I don't eat it all but last week I decided that I rather missed baking and whipped this up as a birthday treat for my boyfriend's dad. I was so pleased how it turned out!

Ingredients:
300ml of sunflower oil
4 eggs
280g of soft light brown sugar
170g of self-rasing flour
170g of wholemeal flour
4 teaspoons of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of nutmeg
2 teaspoons of bicarbonate soda
280g of coarsely grated carrots
100g of chopped walnuts

For the icing:
Make it easy for yourself and buy the Betty Crocker ready made cream cheese icing. It's like heaven in a tub. You'll need two tubs and some walnuts to decorate.

Method:
Heat the oven to 180 degrees and generously grease three shallow cake tins with butter.

Whisk together the oil and beaten eggs in a bowl and leave to one side. Add the sugar, flours, spices and bicarbonate soda into a large mixing bowl. Make sure you mix together thoroughly with a wooden spoon.

Finally add the remaining grated carrots, walnuts and egg mixture to the dry ingredients and give it a good stir.

Divide the mixture equally between the three cake tins and pop in the oven. Mine cooked with 30 minutes but always keep an eye on it as it depends on your oven. Sometimes it can take up to an hour.

Once the cakes have cooled, slice off the top - quickly scoff them so the evidence disappears - and smear on the icing before placing them on top of each other. Decorate with the walnuts however you wish.

Admire your handy work and tuck in to a big slice in front of the telly.

Like always, please do tweet me if you happen to make this! Happy Baking!

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Giveaway: Foodie Festival

I have three pairs of tickets to give away to three lucky readers thanks to the generosity of the guys at the Foodie Festival - you can choose to attend on 28th, 29th or 30th of November. You'll be able to get into the Christmas spirit early with lots of festive food on offer - there's even a life size gingerbread house serving warm ginger beer and roasted ginger marshmallows. Feed your sweet tooth with delicious eggnog tarts, marzipan bonbons and macaroons at the Pudding Hall or browse the cheese village for treats to take home. 2012 GBBO winner John Whaite will be offering up his tips to make you a Christmas baking goddess. It's all going on at the Truman Brewery, London. I'm personally looking forward to treating myself to a few retro 'pops' at the vintage Soda Bar, a cool 50's themed bar.

All you have to do is complete what it says on the rafflecopter widget and you're in with a chance.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Good luck everyone! I'll announce the winners on Twitter on 1st November so keep an eye out.

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How to style a midi skirt

Even if you've only read my blog for a few weeks, you'll know that I have an obsession with midi lengths and in particular midi skirts. I often get told that people love them but could never pull them off themselves. Rubbish! Midi skirts are so amazing because they suit everyone - you just need to find the right one. I've got a few pearls of wisdom to pass on.

1. Wear heels or pointed flats
Midi skirts have the nasty habit of looking a bit frumpy. Now I'd love to pull off the off duty look with converse and a midi - it's a fine line - but I can't most of the time. Fair play to those who do! But I feel that a little bit of a heel lifts the skirt from frump to chic. In the winter I love to wear mine with chunky heeled boots. If you can't stomach wearing heels all day then a pair of pointed flats will be perfect. They just make it look a little more polished.

2. Find a length that works for you
There are many types of skirts that are classed as midis on sale. For some companies they come just above the knee and for others they fall down to your calf. I remember feeling very exposed when I popped the above midi on - you could see my knees! The shorter ones are perfect for those who might be a bit on the small side - they won't swamp your frame. Whereas the longer lengths are great for tall ladies.

3. Wear a fitted top
I always wear a fitted top and always tuck it in. I've never been one of these cool cats who can wear a jumper over the top. It's just too much material and does me no favours. Show off your waist if it's your smallest part and you'll create that gorgeous 1950 silhouette.

4. Wear a waist length jacket
Again I find a waist length jacket like a leather biker or a denim jacket works best. It stops at your waist and shows off the skirt in it's full entirety. I find it can cut off your body if it's too much longer. In the winter I try to wear a full length coat - maybe with just the bottom of the skirt peeking out if I'm feeling cheeky. But I never wear a coat that stops halfway down the skirt as I find it not to be very flattering.

Do you have any style tips for midis?

Psssst I find ASOS is the best place to pick up some gorgeous midi skirts - here are a few of my favourites. It's not sponsored, they just take too much of my money.

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Review: DF/ Mexico

Last weekend I trekked into Central London and met up with Sarah and the other girls to help celebrate her birthday early. You have to book in advance with that girl!

When Sarah suggested DF/ Mexico which is owned by the same people behind one my favourite restaurants Wahaca, I was looking forward to the outing for days. It's a fast food Mexican with beauties such as tacos, tortas - which I had in the bun above -, burritos and DIY Mexican boards where you can use your imagination. You go up to the counter to place your order and then it arrives at your table in record time. Seriously it felt like we waited seconds for our grub!

Like I said, I opted for a four hour slow cooked chilli beef torta with pickles, chipotle mayo and slaw packed in a brioche bun with a side of red rice. I arrived late thanks to the wonders of TFL so panic ordered in a rush. Overall it wasn't a bad choice. The rice was quite bland and had none of the kick I was expected - Hannah opted for a cup of corn which tasted absolutely amazing. To be honest the rice just reminded me of Nandos. So wonderfully creamy and cheesy. The tender chili beef made up for it in such a moreish sauce. It was wonderfully juicy and the slaw gave it that all important crunch. The popping candy ice cream was a bit of a disappointment as it had none of the 'popping' but the sauce was very tasty!

Next time I'm going to plug for one of the DIY Mexican boards so I can make my own tacos. It looked like such good value for money and it's always more fun to create your own food right? I'm already looking forward to going back! It's a great place to visit if you're around Brick Lane and fancy a quick lunch.

Have you visited DF/ Mexico?

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Orange is the new black

Outfit:
Floral textured orange midi dress: ASOS
Nude pointed bow flats: New Look (similar)
Light wash denim jacket: Primark (similar)
Lace gold statement necklace: Car Boot (similar)

This dress is fast becoming the most worn item in my wardrobe. It's can be worn for every occasion. Need to look a little bit smarter for work to a PR meeting? Check. Going out for Friday drinks after work? Check. Pub trip on Saturday night to your local? Check. Trip to Oktoberfest in London like today? Check. See I told you it was perfect for everything.

As I mentioned I'm off to Oktoberfest at Millwall Park today for a little German inspired jolly. I missed the boat last year so I made sure I organised it in time this year. I've heard lots of good things about it and got my fingers crossed for some table dancing and belly laughs.

Have you ever been to Oktoberfest in London? I'll be very jealous if you've been to Munich!

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Seeing clearly

I've been a glasses wearer since the tender age of 7. By the time I went to secondary school I was wearing them full time. Mostly because I was a lazy bum and didn't take them off between classes and my eyes grew used to them. When I was 14 following lots of tears about boys being horrible, my mum took me to the opticians to get my first pair of contact lenses and i've never looked back.

I'm not a regular contact lens wearer - it usually works out around twice a week, sometimes not even that. I value my lay ins to be wearing them every day as I feel like I need to make much more of an effort with my make up if i'm not wearing my glasses. So it's taken me a while to get this review up.

1-Day Acuvue Tru Eye have more moisture than my old contacts which means I can wear them for longer without my eyes drying out. This used to be such a problem as it worked out I often had my contacts in for 12 hours a day as I get home around 7pm. My eyes would be irritable and I couldn't wait to pop my glasses on. My eyes now feel less itchy and I never feel like I actually have any contacts in. It's a revelation! They also have the highest UV blocking protection available which makes them great for the hot summer months. Your eyes should be one of the most important things you look after! They're so easy to pop in and very rarely make my eyes water.

I was very kindly given a contact lens test at Specs of Kensington in Earls Court to work out what prescription I needed. I felt very well looked after and felt my eyes were in the best possible care. The optician talked me through why it was important to look after my eyes and why Tru Eye would work best for me. She gave me a weeks to trial and then I had to come back for a follow up appointment to see how I was getting on. She asked me to voice any concerns and looked at how well the contacts were sitting in my eyes.  The contacts were a success and I was given a months free. They may be a little more expensive than my regular ones but I've fallen in love with them and have since purchased them twice again. I'm more than willing to shell out the extra dosh. I don't think I'll ever go back to wearing my old ones.

Are you a regular contact lens wearer? What ones do you use?

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Bognor Regis

Last week I spent the weekend at Butlins in Bognor Regis with a group of lovely ladies including the mother bear to dance away to Soul Classics. We were blessed with beautiful weather - who knew September would be having a heatwave when we booked it! It was such a treat to walk around in sleeveless tops.

I hadn't been back to Butlins since the tender age of 13 and boy has it changed. We upgraded and opted to stay in a gold apartment for a bit of luxury. Good shout! To be fair there's not much to do the town of Bognor apart from a stroll along a pebble beach and a few charity shops to mooch around it. But it was really nice to get away for a few days with no wifi and just sit around and eat far to much. It was my first time to the seaside this year - I know! I can't believe it either! It felt so nice to breathe in the salty sea air. There's just something so relaxing about being at the beach - I can stand for hours staring into the distance.

Have you managed a trip to the seaside this year?

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Apart from the frightening, the moaning, the biting, he seemed to be a nice guy

Outfit:
Light wash denim jacket: Primark (similar)
White roll neck jersey sleeveless top: Topshop
Black and white gingham midi cotton skirt: Topshop (similar)
White sliders: Office (similar)
Black gem necklace: Car boot (similar)
Gold vintage style boyfriend watch: Marc By Marc Jacobs

Still wearing bare legs and it's creeping towards the end of September? I don't mind if I do! Although there certainly seemed to be a bit of a chill in the air today so maybe I won't be able to rock the bare legs for much longer. I've got to be honest and admit I'm not ready to embrace the tights just yet.

I wore this outfit to travel down to Butlins last Friday. I'm still recovering from the weekend despite coming back last night. I'm getting too old for all this partying lark it seems. I had such a lovely weekend away and it was really nice to just chill out to some live music and stuff myself with lots of Full English Breakfast's and prosecco. Life is always so much better by the seaside!

What did you get up to over the weekend?

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Neutrals

Clinique Cheek Pop 01 Ginger Pop, Flori Roberts Sheer Peach c/o, Clinique Chubby Stick 09 Heaping Hazelnut, Nails Inc Jermyn Street

Admittedly I'm more of a bright colour girl but every now and then you need a good nude in your life. So for when this moment occasionally occurs I have a few neutral colours I fall back on.

I bought this Clinique blush on a whim after having a bit of a supermarket sweep dash in Sephora when I was in New York. It's not had a whole lot of use but the few times I have worn it, it makes me wonder why I don't reach for it more often. It has great staying power and is still visible after a long day at work. The pigmentation gets ten points and you only need a little to make your cheeks stand out. I also picked up this chubby stick on the same trip and boy do I wish I'd picked up more than one. A word of warning though - make sure your lips are in tip top shape as it's not forgiving on dry lips! This is great when you want to make less of a statement and feels like a balm. Admittedly it doesn't have amazing staying power so it's not one to wear when you're doing lots of drinking and eating.

This Flori Roberts gloss adds some glamour to your make up. It's extremely high shine and packs neutral punch. It would look great layered over a nude lipstick. It's quite sticky so not one to wear on a windy day but name me a gloss that isn't! It comes out a bit more orangey on the lips that it looks in the packaging.

Finally this Nails Inc polish is made for the autumn. It such a classy and elegant colour, It only takes around two coats to make it streak-free and opaque. Nails Inc are one of my favourite brands as they tend to stay chip free for at least a few days. They glide on easily and dry fairly quick.

What's your favourite neutral?

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