Blogtober... Are You Taking Part?

I've been invited to join in with Blogtober by the lovely Tink Jayne. Be sure to check out her blog if you haven't already! Its 'a more the merrier' kind of thing so if you fancy taking part let me know and be sure to link it back to Tink Jayne for getting everyone involved. Guess I should explain what it is before you can decide on whether you want to take part or not....

So this is a different take on the original Blogtober which involves blogging for everyday of October. This challenge is different because instead you have to take a picture everyday and post it on your Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr with the hashtag #Blogtober. Then at the end of the month put all the pictures into one blog post so everyone can share their month in pics.

I did something similar in the summer (30 Day Snap Challenge which you can see here) but this is slightly different and I think more interactive with using all the different social media platforms to make it more fun. It can be hard sometimes finding something different you want to take a picture of everyday and keeping it interesting but having a bit of a challenge adds to the fun. Plus its a great way for those of us that don't have the time to blog everyday to still take part on Blogtober.

If you do want to take part be sure to follow other 'Blogtober' bloggers on Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr so we can all see each others pics and remember to use #Blogtober. You can follow my Instagram and Twitter accounts by using the social media buttons. I don't have Tumblr so will just be posting to Intagram and Twitter so you don't have to have all three to take part, you can post to one or all them, its completely up to you.


Hope you can take part.... let me know if you do!

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The Easy Apple Crumble

This recipe is so simple and quick. Plus you only need a few ingredients. Apart from the caramel, this recipe is pretty good for you as there isn't any extra sugar added. If you have a sweet tooth like me you can just add a little custard or ice cream.

What you'll need;

5 Apples (I used ordinary green ones but its your choice) - peeled, cored and cut up

6 tbsp Carnation caramel

100g Porridge oats

100g Plain flour

100g Butter (diced)

- Heat the oven to 200"C. 

- Put the apples into a saucepan with a splash of water, cover and cook over a high heat for 4-5 mins, stirring occationally. (Be careful to not cook for too long as they'll go too soft like mine did and it will look more like a sauce!! Still perfectly fine to eat just not quite how it should be)

- Stir in 3 tbsp of the caramel and tip into an oven proof dish.

- Put small spoonfuls of the caramel over the apples until only a spoonful of caramel is left (we'll come back to that last spoonful later).

- Now mix the flour and the porridge oats together, rub in the butter with your fingers until it becomes a crumbly mixture. Stir in the remaining caramel and then cover the apples with the mixture.

- Bake in the oven for 18-20mins until golden and crisp on top. 

There you have it... that easy!

Crumble is a perfect autumn dessert and you can so easily adapt this recipe to use different fruit and experiment a bit. 

Let me know if you tried this one and what you thought.

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I've Been Nominated....



Well actually I've been nominated a couple of times before when I was very new to blogging and didn't really get involved so this time I'm taking part thanks to the lovely Nahid over at The Things I Love Blog. Be sure to go check out her blog and say hi as its lovely and one of favourites to read at the moment.

The 'award' is passed on to other bloggers with less than 200 followers so it gives new bloggers a great way of getting to know each other abit better and also its fun.

The rules;

1. Mention the blogger who nominated you

2. Answer the 10 questions

3. Think of 10 new questions to ask the bloggers you nominate.

4. Nominate 10 other blogger who have less than 200 followers and let them know.

The answers to my questions are....

1.What was your worst fashion mistake?

I think the worst fashion item I can think of are those skirt over trousers. I don't know why they were even in shops for sale - they were awful! To be fair I was quite young when they were around but still I look back and just think why?!?

2. If time travel were possible, what period would you travel to?

This is a hard one because it would be so cool to experience a bit of a lot of different time periods but I think the one I'd be most interested to visit would be the 20's in America. I guess seeing The Great Gatsby this year has revived the interest and style of that period in time, I'd love to see it and experience it. 

3. What six famous people would you invite to your dinner party?

There would be so many different celebrities that it would be amazing to meet but I think i'd try and get a good mixture to keep things interesting.
- I'd pick Beyonce & Jay-Z because not only do I really like their music I can imagine they'd be really cool to hang out with, they're an amazing couple that always look like they have a great time together and are really solid which is amazing for a couple that have been in the spot light for so many years.
- I'd also choose Vince Vaughn because I love him, Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller and Will Ferrell and the movies they appear in together but out of all of them I can imagine Vince to be exactly like the characters he plays (esp as he always seems to play the same kind of character).
- I'd also invite Ryan Gosling, I'd love to know what he's like in real life. Plus he's pretty cute so that doesn't hurt ;-)
- Cara Delevingne because I think she'd be really fun. She's the kind of girl who you'd love to be friends with. She doesn't seem to take herself too serious which i love about her.
- It's really tough to pick my final spot as a lot of people that spring to mind are famous guys that I fancy but to keep things a bit more even i'll pick another girl. Maybe Miley Cyrus, she seems to be constantly in the news these days, it be interesting to see if she really is a little 'out of control' at the moment or if she's just getting the attention for the publicity. 

4. Name one song you could listen to on repeat for the rest of the year

One of my favourites from this year is Blurred Lines. I still haven't got sick of it. I know its caused quite some controversy but I think there are a lot of songs out there with questionable lyrics that people have never said anything about so I don't see why this song in particular has caused so much offence. 

5. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

Well that depends on how much time I give myself, I’m terrible for hitting snooze, in fact I don’t even hit snooze anymore I set about 4 different alarm times because I know I won’t want to get up for at least the first 2. My boyfriend hates it, he can’t understand why I can’t just set one alarm and get up. Anyways that said I can get ready relatively quickly (I’ve had years of practice). If I HAD to I could do it in half an hour (shower, changed, hair & make up) but usually I have about an hour to get ready in the morning.

6. Do you blog full time? If not, what do you do?

No, unfortunately not. I work full time in an administration role for a crisis media company in London. I really like my job and the people I work with though so I can’t complain.

7. Would you rather have hiccups for the rest of your life, or feel like you need to sneeze and not be able to for the rest of you life?

I think I’d pick feeling like I need to sneeze and not being able to but I’m not really sure why. I think the hiccups would be a lot more annoying especially to other people.

8. What beauty product do you hoard the most?

I’d say lipsticks/glosses. I have a lot and I always want to buy more. I’ve been good recently as I’ve tried to buy make up products I feel like I need or that I haven’t tried before. Saying that I really want to buy a new Mac lipstick and I’m dying to try the new Urban Decay ones as I’ve seen a few shades I’d love to try and I already love Urban Decay make up so I’m pretty sure as soon as I try one I’ll want more! Maybe something to add to the ‘ol Christmas list ;-)

9. Name your favourite dessert

As someone who loves sweet things and pretty much all desserts this one is a really hard one for me. A dessert I know that I’d never be disappointed with is cheesecake. It can be new York, baked, not baked, chocolate, lemon, strawberry. Any cheesecake and I know I’ll enjoy it. I made a Nutella one once! It was amazing! I haven’t made it since because it scares me that I can sit and eat a whole cheesecake to myself…. I can’t afford a whole new wardrobe so can’t be putting on lots of weight! Haha. Maybe I’ll share the recipe on my blog soon as a little treat to myself.

10. What type of posts do you LOVE writing the most?

This is a tricky one because it can depend on my mood. I like being excited to share stuff with my readers and as a lifestyle blog I guess it’s the posts where I write about things I’ve done or places I’ve visited. I love taking photos and sharing them, even though I’m still getting to grips with my camera and learning as I go – in some ways it makes it more fun and rewarding when looking back at older posts.

The 10 bloggers I'm going to choose are some of my newer followers as it's a chance to get to know them a bit better.

1 - Georgia Pastel Coloured Rainbow
2 - Gemma My Beauty Addicted World

3 - Shaz A Pinch of Shaz

4 - Kathleen Squidgy Moments

5 - Kenzie Lemonaid Lies

6 - Erica Erica Wears

7 - Heather Pumpkins and Puddings

8 - Maxine The life of a contradictory twenty-something

9 - Nikki Basically My Soul

10 - Rachael The Tipsy Blonde Blog

The questions you lovely bloggers have to answer (if you choose to take part that is) are;

1. If you could only get one present for Christmas what would it be?

2. What would be your dream job?

3. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?

4. What is the one make up product you couldn't live without?

5. Which season is your favourite and why?

6. If you could only choose one famous person to always dress like who would it be?

7. Why did you start blogging?

8. If you could give your younger self advice what would it be?

9. What is your favourite TV show?

10. Whats your favourite quote?

Be sure to leave a comment if you do decide to take part... I look forward to seeing your answers.

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Carnaby Street GQ Style Night

I love Carnaby Street, it's great for shopping and has some amazing little bars and restaurants. What's not to like?! They also have some great event evening where you can get 20% off most shops and restaurants... even better!

On Thursday evening (5-9pm) Carnaby Street hosted GQ Style night. As well as getting 20% discount at over 100 shops, bars and restaurants there was also the chance of winning one of 200 goodie bags which were given out to some of the best dressed on the night. Also GQ's Associate Editor, Robert Johnston was holding trend talks throughout the evening.

Lots of the shops get into the spirit of things and offer free drinks and have DJs playing. Its a great atmosphere and well worth coming along to one of these nights if you live in London. I signed up to email newsletters from www.carnaby.co.uk so that I always know about these events. You also need to sign up for and print a free ticket which you can do on their website.

Benefit's new store opened the same day so got to have a little look around. It has a blow bar and champagne bar... you could literally spend hours in there! they even had the pink carpet out...

    

 

Love my new River Island ankle boots so much!!

After looking round the shops and picking up a drink or two on the way we decided to have dinner at The Diner (who were also offering 20% off). They do amazing milkshakes (I had the hazelnut which tasted of Nutella) and Cardene had a 'hard shake' which meant it contained alcohol - hardcore! 

I had the California Burger which was a beef burger topped with Monterey Jack cheese and guocamole. It tasted amazing and was so filling what with the milkshake as well there was definitely no room for dessert. 

It was a great evening (even though I didn't find anything to buy) and was topped off with a great meal at The Diner. 

Have you ever been to one of Carnaby Street's event evenings?

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I ❤ Story By Kranz & Ziegler

I LOVE this brand of jewellery. I was introduced to it by my mum. It pains me to say it but it was one of those occasions that she was ahead and discovered it way before me (she also did the same with NSpa products!) anyways, she bought me a bracelet and a charm for my birthday back in 2011 and my love for Story began. It’s beautiful but with an edge and that’s right up my street! I really like Thomas Sabo for the same reason but whereas Thomas Sabo’s charm bracelets are a bit more classic Story has mixed it up a bit. I love how you can get different types of charms... spacers, dangly ones, buttons. It makes for a much more interesting and unique charm bracelet. All the charms/spacers can also be used to make necklaces and you can mix and match as much as you like. The charms (currently over 80 designs) come in three different colours, sterling silver, sterling silver with 14k gold plating and sterling silver with rhodium plating, so lots of choices!

Unfortunately I only have a few charms so far but hoping to buy a few more soon. As you can see I love the star charms and going to try to collect them all (I’ve quite a few to go). I’ve stuck to the silver and silver with rhodium plating as I wear more silver jewellery but they do also look great when all mixed together. I love how creative you can be.

The stylish Cara Delevingne and Millie Mackintosh have both been spotted wearing Story bracelets.

They've recently launched rings that you can wear individually or stack.... I have yet to get my hands on some of these but they have already crept onto my wish list as they are so lovely.

This post wasn't sponsored, I just like to blog about things I love :-)

Do you have any Story jewellery?

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Benefit Face Date #CompanyBeautyWeek

Last week I was lucky enough to attend a Benefit event at their Covent Garden store as part of Company Magazine’s Beauty Week. On arrival there was a glass of bubbles and a little spread of tasty nibbles (the macaroons were very yum indeed)!

    

We all had the chance to have one of the lovely Benefit make up assistants do our makeup which was a great chance for me to try some of the Benefit products I had already had my eye on. We could also receive a complimentary brow shape at their Brow Bar. I had never had my eyebrows done at a Benefit Brow Bar before but I was really impressed. I would definitely get them done there more often, at £11.50 it’s really worth it, I was so pleased with the shape.

There was also a little demonstration from Benefit’s head makeup artist Lisa Potter-Dixon showing us the new Autumn/Winter makeup trend of glossy eyes! It looked amazing but I’m not sure how great it would be on me what with my oily lids, it’d be sliding all over my face after 10 minutes. Unfortunately a look I’ll have to leave to others. It’s basically where you apply a clear gloss on top of your eye shadow, I'm sure it'll look amazing for the party season this winter. 

Another lovely perk of the evening (we really were getting spoilt) was receiving 20% off all purchases so of course I couldn’t resist a few little beauty buys. I picked up Stay Flawless 15 Hour Primer which was one of the items I had previously wanted to try. Although I couldn’t really judge the results having only applied it an hour or so earlier to purchasing I liked the feel of it under my makeup and have read many good reviews. Secondly I picked up They’re Real mascara, this was a repurchase as I already have a miniature of this and love it, I was already planning on buying this and the fact its currently on offer where for the price of a normal size tube you also get a miniature which is worth £9.50 AND I was receiving 20% off, how could I not buy it that evening! Lastly I picked up their concealer, Boi-ing, I have wanted a good concealer for a while now and having seen how well it covered my blemishes I was sold. I would have loved to have picked up even more but I was trying to be a little sensible although I’m really wanting to get their new blush Rockateur and regret not picking that up at the time.

Lastly but by no means least, to top the evening off, as we were leaving we all received a bag of goodies from Company Magazine. It was full of some lovely things including a full size Batiste dry shampoo, lip balm, a tanning mitt, Halo eye make up remover pads (ideal for my overnight bag), a cool Benefit passport holder and more.

I had such a lovely evening. The girls (and guy) at Benefit couldn’t have been more welcoming and helpful and the girls from Company Magazine were also amazing. 

Did any of you make it to one of the events being held during Company Beauty Week?

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Monthly Motto - September

In life you always have a choice, not always with things that happen out of your control but you still have a choice with how you react to it. Sometimes bad things happen and you can either take out your frustrations on other people around you or you can make the choice to deal with it in another way. 

This is what this month’s motto is about, not so much the actions you can choose to do or not do (spend too much money, eat too much chocolate, not go to the gym enough) these are more obvious things that you will or won’t regret and then make the decision to either do something about it or not. Whereas sometimes when something happens beyond our control it’s easy to blame the way we act on someone or something else but at the end of the day we have a choice! So instead of being bitter, angry or sad try (and I know it can be hard sometimes) on being happy and remembering the good, looking for the silver lining and try and keep a positive outlook.... Sometimes being happy is a choice.

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August Beauty Buys

So here's what I bought last month and what I think of each purchase so far...

Real Technique brushes

I know these are loved in the blogging world and I don't really need to say too much. I love them and can completely see why they are raved about so much. They are great value (I snapped these up in the Boots 'buy one get one half price' offer so even better) and worth every penny. The brushes are super soft and I honesty think my make up looks better when using these to apply it. I bought the stippling brush, expert face brush, blush brush and the setting brush (which I'm using for highlighting). After getting on so great with these brushes I've added some of the Real Techniques eye make up brushes to my list of things to get. Definitely worth the hype in my opinion.

Urban Decay Naked Flushed palette

I didn't plan on buying this product, in fact before I saw it I hadn't heard of it but I was browsing the Urban Decay make up section and came across it. The palette contains bronzer, highlighter and blush. I hadn't really tried blush before and was looking to try it as I have read a lot of posts from other people that have previously stuck to bronzer but then tried blush and loved it. I also wanted a palette that was easy for contouring and highlighting so this was perfect. If I'm honest I was really indecisive before going to the till as I was thinking about getting the Sleek palette which I've heard good things about and is much cheaper however I had a voucher to use and so thought why not treat myself. So glad I did as I love it. I love the packaging (as with most Urban Decay products) and I love the quality of the product. A firm favourite in my make up bag this month.

Rimmel Salon Pro with Lycra nail varnishes

I love Rimmel nail varnishes but hadn't tried any from this range until I bought these. I picked 'Jazz Funk' which is a pink, 'Disco Fever' a purple and 'Punk Rock' which is a grey colour. I do love my bright nail colours but with autumn approaching I thought I'd try something a bit different so opted for a darker purple and a grey along with a 'safe' pink colour. Usually £4.49 each but I picked these up on a 3 for 2 offer so even better value. As they contain Lycra the Salon Pro range are supposed to be long lasting with gel like finish. I love the colours in this range so will hopefully pick a few more up soon.

Soap & Glory 'It's About Prime' eyeshadow underbase

I've been looking at getting an eyeshadow primer for a while now as my eyeshadow just doesn't last and what is still on my lids is just creased. Although this does do a pretty good job I just can't help but feel that there is something a little bit better out there. I've heard good things about Benefit's Stay Don't Stray and Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion but these are quite a bit more expensive and wasn't sure how good they'd be to take the gamble. Do let me know your recommendations. I will keep using this but I think I'll look to replace it with something else in my search for perfect eye makeup that lasts all day.

Soap & Glory 'Marvelips' Double ended colour and plump lip crayon

I didn't need this really as I have lots of lip colours in my make up collection but as the 3 for 2 offer was on (the other S&G product was a present for someone so not included in this post) I couldn't resist giving this a try. I do like the colour its very pigmented and really lasts, the downside is that there isn't any other colours to choose from at the moment. I think the highlighting end of the crayon does really plump up the lips, when applied to the centre top and bottom as instructed but I'm not sure if that lasted. I would definitely buy a few more of these if they brought out more colours because even as just a lip crayon with out the plumping effect they are worth it.

Palmer's Natural Bronzer

I'm not one for using tanning products that much. It was one of those things, like false eyelashes, that I didn't try enough when I was younger so that by now I would have perfected the look. So, I feel at 26 its a bit too old to be walking around with badly applied tan but these gradual tanning moisturisers are something I can work with. I've tried a few in the past and they've been ok, no complaints. However, this one does seem a lot more natural looking and I've had people make comment on how I've caught a nice tan from the sun. Of course I went along with it, little did they know I spent the weekend inside hungover and the 'natural tan' was in fact from this bottle. Result! 

Have you tried any of these products yet and do you like or dislike them?

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