Shopping and warm weather

Hello pop tarts, happy Saturday to one and all! I couldn't believe the amazing weather today, it felt so nice to be outside and not shiver and rush to get in! I had a brilliant day with my bezzie Clare, we got up early and drove to Westfield Stratford City shopping centre. I last went to Westfield at the end of 2011 but honestly, I had forgotten how amazing it is! I could spend 3 days weaving my way in and out of the shops, there are so many high street favourites and one - offs too. I was in the mood to spend and luckily I wasn't disappointed. I bought a fair few items of clothing which I'm sure I will have the opportunity to showcase soon!

So today's post is just a quick OOTD, a super comfy outfit for a day of hardcore shopping!

I wore my new H & M jacket, a blue Reiss vest top, Zara jeans, leopard print H & M pumps, a wooden and mother of pearl necklace and my Mulberry.

Well dolls, that's everything for now, I'm settling down now with a delicious home made pizza, tea and soon, Britain's got Talent! (So excited its back!) : )

My tea! Home made chicken, spinach, pepper, red onion and mozzarella pizza! 

All blissed out

Hello and happy weekend to all my lovely followers, hope you are relaxing and enjoying yourselves. I really cannot believe how quickly time is going at the moment, another weekend and only two weeks until half term! So excited as I have some really fun things planned for half term and am willing the time away now!!

I am super busy at the moment, perhaps that's why it seems as if time is travelling at the speed of light! In these busy times, I am always reminded of the need to take a moment, slow down and relax for a while. I have to admit though, I find this difficult at times. With late nights working and then straight to bed, I often go a whole week straight with little down time, other than to eat and shower! Weekends and half terms are therefore sacred, and I try to pencil in a good few days of just pure relaxation - good food, plenty of magazines and new films/TV to watch.

In keeping with the relaxation theme, I recently decided that a spa day was in order, a whole day of nothing but relaxation, luxury treatments and delicious food. My best friend and I booked our spa day just before Christmas and decided to take it in the February half term. We travelled up the day before and stayed in a hotel so we wouldn't need to rush around on the day of the spa. We chose the gorgeous country spa Clarice House in Bury St Edmunds on the recommendation of my mum who visits the spa herself.

 Happily, the spa day was everything we wanted and more! We enjoyed 5 treatments including a 1 hour facial and massage, full use of the facilities and a three course lunch in their AA Rosette awarded restaurant. I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the fact we were able to wear our robes and slippers all day, even for lunch! Here are a few snaps I took to remember our day (apologies for poor quality, I only had my iPhone available!)

Beautiful country house interiors

The ONLY time you will catch me without make up... and only because it's mandatory!

Hot choc : )

Starters! Clare opted for a goats cheese panna cotta with hot and sour cherry tomatoes, confit  pepper and a parmesan twille.

I chose a tomato and basil soup with rosemary bread.

Clare's main was an individual minced venison ragu, horseradish mash and carrots and parnsips.

I chose a pan fried chicken breast with pancetta, on a bed of risotto with a balsamic vinegar dressing and watercress accompaniment.

Gorgeous dessert: fondant chocolate tart with honeycomb ice cream.

Relaxing in the conservatory in between treatments.

Pretty toes!

A most brilliant day, and boy did it feel good to just relax and have nothing else to think about! With busy lifestyles I think spa days should be mandatory for women, at least once a year! I intend to return... : )

Enjoy the rest of your weekend elves : ) XOXO

And then the snow came

Hello snow angels, how is everyone today?? Well the snow finally fell here, I was sooo excited last night and couldn't stop looking out the window! Today hubby and I wrapped up warm and braved the cold! We walked to the lake near our house and fed the ducks, I was very concerned that they might not be able to get much food in this weather! Bless them xx 

Wrapped up for the snow!

The lake near our house was almost completely frozen over!

Ducks!

I don't know about anyone else but I love walking in the snow... find it very peaceful and restorative. On a different note now, I have a few new H & M purchases to share from my shop yesterday!

H & M dress £24.99. Hubby called this my 'green goddess' dress when he saw it yesterday! I love the classic style which is great for work but also any smart occasion. really. I really like having dresses like this in my wardrobe as they are so versatile. Love the emerald green too!

H & M dress £14.99. Love the ditzy floral print, perfect for Spring/Summer and so easy to wear. I plan to wear this while it's still cold with a cardigan and tights.

H & M navy cardigan £9.99. Just a little basic, I plan to pair this with the dress above.

Well that's about everything for today, I plan to spend the rest of my evening with my new stack of magazines, plenty of tea and some good TV! Bliss : ) XOXO

Outfit of the Day

Hello dolls, hope you are all well and successfully avoiding the snow and cold! We haven't actually had any snow yet but apparently it's imminent, so I'm waiting with bated breath! The cupboards are stocked, the house is warm, come on snow, do your worst!!

I had an amazingly long lay in this morning, followed by a little jaunt around town and a little shopping with hubby. I bought a few bits and pieces in H & M which had sooo much new season stuff in, I was slightly excited to say the least!

Later today, hubby took me to Chiquito, one of our favourite restaurants.Today's post is therefore a little outfit of the day post : )

I wore my Mango black dress with leather detail collar and cuffs, a grey Topshop jumper over the top, black floral print tights from Primark, my new black Faith wedge boots, a Forever 21 horn necklace and my Mulberry bag. I wore my hair in a ballerina style bun which is a bit different for me, but hey, like to mix things up sometimes ; )

That's everything for now dear readers, keep warm and pray for snow! : )

Something Different

Hello  gorgeous followers, hope everyone is well and happy! I hope everyone has had a lovely weekend too : ) Mine was great, I ran revision on Saturday again (my last Saturday revision and stupidly early start until exam season in June!) then went for my monthly wander around Rochester with co-pilot Clare. We love to take in the quaint little antique and home shops before stopping for a gorgeous lunch in our favourite shop/restaurant! I stayed round Clare's Saturday night and then returned home this morning. Waiting for me were some beautiful Christmas presents from hubby's grandma which I loved and put a huge smile on my face : )

 Later today hubby and I decided to lunch out at Chiquito's which has just opened near our house, there will also be a Nando's soon right next door, by the looks of things today it is very nearly finished, woohoo! We devoured three courses which left us stuffed, so much so that I didn't even want any popcorn when we went to the cinema afterwards! We saw Warhorse which was amazing, I shed a fair few tears as did hubby! ; )

As I like to mix it up from time to time, today's post is a foodie one, a dish that I made recently and enjoyed immensely. Hubby and I both love an Indian takeaway, and I also love making healthy curries in the week too. My recipe for healthy chicken korma comes from my favourite Sally Bee cookbook and is a winner in terms of health and taste.

1) Chop up a range of veg, whatever you fancy and enjoy. I chose green beans, courgette and red pepper.

2) Over a medium heat, heat some olive oil and saute the two onions, a couple of chopped chicken breasts, two crushed cloves of garlic and a peeled and chopped medium apple. Allow to cook for 3-4 minutes and then stir in 4 teaspoons of mild curry powder.

3) Add the chopped vegetables to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes until the veg start to soften and the chicken has sealed in the spice.

4) Add 300ml of chicken stock to the pan, sultanas (if enjoyed, I left them out because I do not like them), and 2 tablespoons of tomato puree. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 30 minutes.

5) Just before serving, add some chopped coriander and 4 tablespoons of low-fat creme fraiche or fromage frais to the curry and stir in well. Season with freshly ground black pepper and cook for a further 2 minutes but do not allow to boil.

6) Serve with hot cooked basmati rice, adding one spoon of creme fraiche to each portion as you serve.

Very yummy and healthy too! Well that's about all from me today, I am looking forward to a slightly more laid back week, final GCSE until June is tomorrow morning so things will calm down a tad (for a while anyway!) XOXO

Busy December days : )

Hey glitter belles, how is everyone on this chilly Sunday?? I have had the most chilled day ever which I was in dire need of! I have had the busiest week (hence the lack of posts!) so I really needed a relaxing day today!

My week was as busy as ever at work, and my weekend has been nuts too. Thursday night I went to a lovely little salon in Hamstreet for a spray tan and Jessica mani and pedi which was great. Friday night was hubby's work Christmas party which takes place at a Marriott Hotel every year. We had a great night although I did end up a tad tipsy due to the free bar that his company insist on providing for us... still we had great fun and danced the night away, which is the most important thing at a Christmas party! Saturday was my annual school trip to Ypres in Belgium, we spent the day visiting cemetries, war memorials and the afternoon at the Christmas market and chocolate shops of Ypres. A fantastic day all round, the pupils were exceptionally well behaved and made me very proud : ) So that leaves today, I was completely shattered after my busy week so I slept late, then chilled on the sofa with snacks and films! Just fabulous : )

Beautiful Cathedral, twinkly lights and back of the Christmas Market in Ypres, Belgium : )


As promised a couple of blog posts ago, I have recently bought some new goodies that I want to share with you all!

Gorgeous Christmassy Shopping bags!

Silk Ecote dress from Urban Outfitters £25 (was £58). After my successful sale rummage in UO the other day, I decided to have another look when I was at Bluewater the other day. I found this gorgeous silk dress in my size and snapped it up quick! I really like the colours and print, plus the classic style will work for many seasons to come.  Unfortunately, although the dress was available online, it sold out very quickly... you can however buy the same style in a rather nice black and wildflower print and a not-so-nice (in my opinion!) orangey shade with a kinda triangley print... (both these styles still have all sizes available)

Kimchi and Blue Startlet skirt Urban Outfitters £20 (was £40). I liked the cute print on this skirt, and thought it would work well for both work and weekend, with thick tights, boots and a classic piece of knitwear.

Blackberry bath bomb £2.75 Lush. Just because it smelt gorgeous and I do love a bit of Lush pampering!

Cashmilon ruffle scarf from Marks and Spencer £15. This scarf is so warm and cosy and looks great on.

Naughty little treat from Waitrose...

I couldn't resist buying some toffee and banana cupcakes, as well as some festive  Raymond Briggs 'The Snowman' cupcakes! I love the Patisserie at Waitrose, whenever I am shopping I struggle to walk past without giving in... 

Well that's about it lovely followers, I hope everyone is feeling Christmassy now and getting in the Christmas mood! I have pretty much finished my Christmas shopping now, I wrapped all my presents last weekend and I plan to put the tree up next Sunday! Sooo excited for the rest of December, I have so much fun stuff coming up, feeling very lucky and happy right now : ) XOXO

Lush haul

Hello Cinnamon swirls, and happy Sunday to all! I have had a lovely day with hubby, we went shopping for some family Christmas presents and managed to get pretty much everything! I am going to get everything wrapped up now so I can feel super smug and organised! We ate at Cafe Rouge after our successful shopping trip, which was yum as always : )

Today's blog post is about a two of my favourite things: nice relaxing baths and Lush! I don't know about anyone else, but I always prefer to have a bath than a shower, I just love lighting candles, using gorgeous smelling products, and having a lovely long soak! I find baths so relaxing, which is very much needed in my life when I am sooo busy!! Bath time is most relaxing and complete for me when I have some Lush products to use, I really find Lush products hard to beat. I recently added the Lush gingerbread house bubble bar to my Christmas list, but couldn't resist buying it when I was in Lush the other day! I also purchased the Magic Wand bubble bar and a couple of bath bombs, which I haven't tried yet.

Magic Wand Bubble Bar £4.95. I love the lollipop style, the gorgeous neon pink ribbon and jingle bell!

Simply swish the wand under the tap for roughly a minute... mounds of frothy bubbles will pile up instantly!

As you can see, the bath water has turned a gorgeous girly pink colour and there are lots of lovely bubbles!

After one use, the bubble bar looks pretty much the same, I reckon this will  provide me with a fair few more baths making it excellent value for money. I stored the stick upright after use to dry off, ready for its next use.

Gorgeous little gingerbread house bubble bar. I love the cute roof with sprinkles : )

I broke off about a third of the gingerbread house and crumbled it under the tap. The water turned a festive pumpkin orange shade and smelt divine! Again plenty of gorgeous bubbles!

I have been so impressed with both of these products. The snow fairy magic wand is the epitome of femininity, it smells just like candy canes and candyfloss. The gingerbread house smells like sweet gingerbread and cninamon, and is a perfect Christmassy scent. Both produce long lasting bubbles, and the scent lingers on the skin long after the bath is over! I found that they both made my skin really soft as well, which is an added bonus.

Has anyone else tried these products?? I can't wait to try the rest of my Lush haul, and I will definitely be stocking up on more gingerbread houses and magic wands to last me long into the new year!

More soon lovely readers XOXO

October round up

Hello twinkly icicles, how are you all? I am enjoying my first day of half term, it's always so lovely to hit the snooze button and wake up refreshed and relaxed at 10 0' clock! I took Woody to the vet today for his myximatosis jab and a general check up, he was so scared bless him, he shook the whole time and kept trying to jump into my arms. I think it really is true that animals just know when they are at the vets. I felt so bad afterwards I dropped him home and then went to Pets at Home and spent a small fortune on treats for him, as well as some Christmas presents for his stocking!!

I thought it would be fun to do a round up blog post today, as I haven't done one for a while now, here goes...

My favourite TV show of the moment: This is a tough one as there is so much on I am enjoying at the moment! I would have to say 'Educating Essex' though. If you haven't seen any of this documentary you can catch up on 4OD, I really do think its worth a watch if you are interested about life in a typical Comprehensive secondary school in the UK. Some people have slated the attitude of some of the staff but I think they are great, they relate to the pupils well and reflect modern day teenagers, their likes and dislikes. I think the school and staff are providing a bloody good example for the pupils in the school (which is Ofsted rated Outstanding).

Best buy: Easy, my Mulberry! The pleasure/buzz hasn't worn off from this, especially when you go out and about and actually hear women whispering 'OMG look at her Mulberry!' Hahaha love it, see, instantly recognisable!! Rather randomly I would also say that another of my best buys recently has been my Glade Christmas scented candles... they are making me feel even more Christmassy and Festive!

Most looking forward to: Halloween! I love anything that fills the shop with seasonal products! I have already purchased a large tub of sweets for trick or treaters, last year we had some adorable local children knocking with their parents, dressed up to the nines in their Halloween finery. I also went to a halloween party last year dressed like this:

I went dressed as a sailor, however most people were in 'typical' halloween outfits such as witches, dracula, zombies etc... I think I misunderstood the brief! Haha loved the outfit though and looking at this picture makes me want to dye my hair red again!!

Listening to: Rihanna, Kanye West (not much new there!) and Beyonce's new stuff.

Best film: The best film I have seen recently is 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy'. I loved the dark, gritty tale and cold war setting, I want to read the book now.

Best book: I am currently reading and enjoying 'Difficult daughters' by Manju Kapur which is set during the Partition. It explores the topics of education, love and parental relationships, I particularly like the way the book is written and the fast pace throughout.

On my wishlist: Hehe see previous posts on my Christmas wishlists! There are lots of things I want at the moment, however, one thing does spring to mind. I really want to try the new Vivo make up that is sold exclusively in Tesco as I have heard so many good things about it from other bloggers. I have visited the 2 Tesco stores where I live and neither have had it : ( The search continues!

I want this!!

October/November brings: Halloween and Fireworks excitement, lots of cosy nights in with hubby and Woody, more Christmas organisation and planning, and a trip to the Country Living Christmas show in Islington with my best friend and our mums! So excited for that!

The Country Living Christmas Fair in Islington, London.

Aim for the week: Relax, relax and relax some more! I am also going to shop a bit, watch some films and practice making some Christmas biscuits! In case I didn't say it before, I LOVE half term!! : )

Well that's just about everything, more soon strawberry bon bons xoxo

Easy like Sunday morning

Hello cupcakes, hope this is finding you well on this glorious Monday. I am overly happy again today because of the changing season and the beautiful changes going on outside, I love driving to and from work at the moment, noticing the leaves gradually change colour and drop. I really am an Autumn person! While driving to work this morning, I heard on Classic FM that on this day, 192 years ago, John Keats wrote 'To Autumn'. Whilst studying Keats in year 13, 'To Autumn' was always one of my favourite poems, so I enjoyed this little piece of information : )


Today's post is a bit of a picture catch up of my weekend, and Sunday in particular. Sunday was a lovely day, hubby and I had a nice lie in which was much welcome after the strenuous events of the day before (see this blog post). We then had a little trip into town so hubby could get his hair cut (seriously overgrown, much like a scruffy, unprofessional student... he absolutely hates his hair long like that but claims to never find time to get to the hairdresser... men eh?!) I took the opportunity to buy a couple of birthday presents, as well as the majority of my Christmas cards (did I ever mention that I am organised??!). I also had a look around H & M and fell in love with about 10 new season items... will definitely be back soon to try on and purchase! In the afternoon, we went to the cinema to see 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy' which was an excellent film as the reviews had suggested. All in all a very pleasing day : )

Our Nutcracker tickets turned up! Eeeeee : )

What I wore: Dark denim ripped jeans River Island, leopard print pumps H & M, tiered top Primark, chunky knit cardigan (I have been waiting for the weather to wear my new super cosy cardi!) Primark. I also wore my heart necklace that hubby bought me from Agatha in Paris, and a pair of pearl stud earrings.

A couple of goodies I picked up in Superdrug. I have heard some excellent things about the new MUA range through other bloggers and in magazines so thought I would try a nail polish. I also bought a lovely natural peachy coloured blusher from one of my favourite brands, Sleek. This shade is called 'suede' and is from their new limited collection.

Awww mama's little boy : )

I know this may not be to everyone's taste, and I don't particularly love spiders but I was just so impressed by the work that had gone into this guys web! We have loads of spiders like this in the garden at the moment which is fine by me, yes I have to dodge them when I hang out the washing but better outside than in I figure!

Well that's everything for today, hubby and I have a fully loaded biscuit tin and are settling in for Corrie and Doc Martin! xoxo

Dreaming of Berlin

Happy Friday everyone, it feels like I have done a full week at work when in fact I have only been back two days and haven't actually taught a lesson yet... still after all the rest I had over summer I guess i'm bound to feel tired!

My last few days have mostly consisted of research for our trip to Berlin. I am still unbelievably excited and now wishing the time away until December! I have started researching places to visit and things to do, logging the details in a folder on my desktop created especially for the trip. I know I definitely want to go to the Reichstag buildings, the Berlin wall, the Bundestag, Checkpoint Charlie, the Brandenburger Tor and the Schloss Charlottenburg. Naturally I will spend a good portion of time on The Kurfürstendamm, one of the main shopping streets in Berlin which, luckily is only 400m from our hotel (wonder how that happened...!)

I took on the job of researching hotels, mainly because I enjoying researching and weighing up all the options before booking. Hubby was happy to take on this job as it is my birthday present after all, however, I have a certain 'vision' of the type of hotel I like to stay in, long gone are the days when we were students and had to find the cheapest 3 star accommodation around! So I volunteered, knowing I could devote more time and energy to the task, and, get us as near the Kurfürstendamm as possible!

Cool Bedroom at Hotel Sir F.K. Savigny Berlin

The hotel I chose is called the Hotel Sir F.K Savigny in the Charlottenburg district (another fact that made me very happy!) The hotel is 4 star and is billed as a cool, boutique style hotel with Nespresso machines in every room, iPod docks and free soft drinks in the mini-bar. According to Trip-advisor, the hotel is ranked number 37 out of 655 in Berlin so should be pretty good! : )

I am really enjoying researching and planning, being organised makes me happy (my OCD ways are a constant source of happiness to me, although perhaps not others around me!) I love the fact we are going just before Christmas too, the Christmas markets should be really good, and it will be a great way to get into  the Christmas spirit!

Swarovski Christmas Tree Berlin 2006

So I am officially in Christmas countdown mode! Which is cool, as my older students always insist on doing a Christmas countdown each week from the first week back in September anyway! Hope you are all excited for the weekend, I am, no 6.30 rise tomorrow! 

: ) xoxo