"It’s been a long time since I came around It’s been along time but I’m back in town"

Thought these Lady Gaga lyrics were very apt! sorry i've been gone so long, been so busy working that i've barely been on the computer at all! One thing i have done though is made a Christmas cake! now normally i don't really like Christmas but this year i'm super excited for it as it means i get to see all my friends from uni as they'll all be home. To get into the festive spirit i decided to make a Christmas cake, i used the same recipe last year and my grandparents loved it, so i thought i'd do it again. I know that making a cake now is a bit in advance but it tastes so much better if you make it just over a month in advance as the flavours developed! You can adapt the recipe for what you like/don't like but try and keep it as close to the recipe as possible for the best results!

Ingredients for 20 cm round or 18cm square cake:

150g self-raising flour

150g plain flour

225g butter

225g dark soft brown sugar

4eggs

1 orange, grated rind and juice

50g flaked almonds

50g glace cherries 

550g dried mixed fruit

1 eating apple grated

1tsp mixed spice

1tsp cinnamon

2tbsp apple juice

1. firstly double line your cake tin with baking parchment.

2. then put the sugar and butter in a bowl and cream together until lightened in colour and creamy in texture

 3. add the eggs to the mixture along with half the flour. beat well.

4. place the cherries, spices and dried fruit in the remaining flour and stir through until all the fruit is coated and add the fruit to the rest of the mixture. this will stop the fruit from sinking to the bottom during cooking so the fruit will be even through the cake.

5. then add the almonds, grated apple and orange zest and mix together.

6. finally add the apple and orange juice and mix well.

7. spoon into the cake tin and smooth over.

8. bake in a cool oven, 120 degrees C, gas mark 1 for 2 hours then reduce the temperature to 100 degrees C gas mark 1/2 for a further hour (such a long time cooking, i read about a million magazines whilst it was cooking)

8. turn off the oven and leave the cake to cool. place in an airtight container.

i'll be decorating mine at the start of December and will show you what i do! enjoy, hope some of you decide to make one!

xxxcxxx

"Yellow diamonds in the light"

Gosh almost a week since i lasted posted! Been a bit to busy to post, went up to Birmingham on Friday to see a friend at Uni! I had a really great time, Birmingham is an amazing city, i really liked it there. Went shopping in the Bull ring and spent a fair few hours in Forever 21 alone where i bought this bad boy:

It was great seeing a new city, and will try and visit all my friends at some point and will be checking out all the shopping facilities and let you know which ones are best! Sorry for such a short post but i'm horrendously ill right now and in no mood to do anything other than watch daytime TV.

xxxcxxx 

HAIR DYE FAIL!

so i thought it would be nice that for my trip to Birmingham at the weekend i would dye my hair for a nice change, i wanted to acheive a kinda of golden honey brown colour. However, i now have a lovely shade of ginger hair, i don't actually mind it that much but i definitely want to get rid of it. I won't be doing OOTD for a while now as i'm just far to embarrassed!!! serves me right for being a cheapskate and doing it at home!!! wahh xxxcxxx

gimmegimmegimme

OOTD

This is what i wore when i went shopping, it was super cold even though it was bright blue skies with sunshine. I always find shopping outfits difficult as obviously you are going to be getting changed a lot. My nono's when it comes to shopping outfits is no super tight jeans-getting them over my feet is a nightmare (lolz), not too many layers- an effort to take off everything every two seconds, no lace up boots or shoes with fiddly straps- takes far to long to take off and put on. However, it seems that i decided to ignore all of these rules in this outfit and ended up in a hot mess when trying to try stuff on.

 Jumper:Topshop, Trousers:H&M, Boots:Priceless, Bag:ASOS, Necklace:House of Harlow, Scarf: Carboot

Now in my last post i showed you what i tried on, but i didn't infact buy anything that i showed you  So heres just a quick snap of what i did buy!

YEP there's a onsiet!!

xxxcxxx

"Wiggle wiggle wiggle wiggle wiggle YEAH"

Long time no post! 

I have no excuse for not posting, i haven't been at work due to a back injury so was lying in bed all week in my pjs. So i had very little to post about really, but now that has all changed and i have quite a few posts lined up!

First of all i went shopping yesterday, i went by myself which might come across as quite sad. But i don't know if anyone else is like me but its quite nice go solo-shopping once in a while. Normally my friends will convince me to buy things i don't need so its nice when i'm on my own i can revert back to my frugal ways. This post is just going to be some snaps from the fitting rooms as i was trying things on, spot the theme running through! (click the name of the item for links to it on the website)

RIVER ISLAND

 Grey Tee-£7 / Grey wool mix maxi skirt-£25

 Scallop edge metallic top-£30 / Maxi skirt-as before

Black metallic shift dress-£35

I loved everything i tried on here, the maxi skirt was the softest comfiest thing ever. The infamous scallop metallic top seen on the likes of Dionne Bromfield and Jesy from the xfactor girl group Rhythmix is just lovely, it really could be dressed up or down and perfect for the festive season! The dress is very short, and from someone who loves shortshorts thats saying something. The blurry picture i took doesn't do it justice though so click on the link to see it better, its a great LBD as its a basic cut but with an interesting material.

ZARA

 Metallic Dress-£39.99

Pink glitter tee-£17.99

 I love Zara like adore everything in the shop. How everything looks so well made and expensive but its all reasonably priced. I tried on a lot of stuff in there but didn't want this post to be too image heavy. The dress may not be everyones cup of tea but i personally think its AH-MAY-ZING. It looks super luxe and reminds me of something that Tina Turner would wear. It is pretty cheap i think for the quality and if New Years Eve was just round the corner i'd be snapping this dress up- alas i have no occasion to wear this to so back it went! The tee is super cute and a nice subtle way to introduce a bit of sparkle into an outfit. So definitely check out Zara, again especially for stuff to wear for the upcoming festive/party season. 

H&M

Pink Lace dress-£29.99 (i think)

H&M was pretty disappointing for me, they had a sale on (as did most of the stores) but with H&M there sale section was awful, there was no organisation, there were clothes just strewn everywhere. It just seemed really unappealing and more effort then it was worth. I also find that (i have no retail knowledge so this could be common) but that a lot of the items on the website in the sale are in fact not in my local store on sale. I only tried on two items in there and the shirt washed me out you only get to see this dress-ha. This dress is amazing though, it comes in this pink colour or cream. It has a really flowery lace design but the shape of it is really flattering, the cape sleeves are great especially for broader girls out there and the fitted body and the flared out skirt is the perfect waist creator! Can't find a link to it unfortunately!

TOPSHOP

 Sequin Tee-?? / Maroon maxi skirt- £20 (in sale)

 Peter pan collar jumper-£20 (IN SALE-only in pink on the website) / Skirt- as before

Tiger print dress- £29

Topshop sale is always going to be a winner, their sale prices always seem to be reasonable and items that are still current to the season seem to be discounted. I did try on a few sale items but thought i'd show you more of the full price stuff as it will be more accessible to everyone due to not every Topshop store stocking the same sale items. The maroon maxi skirt doesn't seem to be on the website and the sequin sleeve tee doesn't either and i can't remember how much it was (bad blogger behaviour). The dress in the last picture is lovely, really nice and fitted. However, after reading a post by Emma here i may buy the Primark/Ebay version to save money! it'll be perfect for my visit to Birmingham to see a friend at uni!

So i don't know if you noticed the theme throughout what i tried on but i am loving metallics/sparkle/sequins etc at the moment and will be hopefully be filling my wardrobe with magpie worthy items over the next few months.

SORRY- for such a long post, hope you guys found it helpful and interesting! OOTD/wish list etc to follow soon!

xxxcxxx

OUTFIT WANT

OUTFIT WANT by kudosblog featuring black clutches

H M a line dress
£13 - hm.com

Above knee boots
newlook.com

Anya Hindmarch black clutch
$413 - my-wardrobe.com

Michael Kors rose gold jewelry
£199 - houseoffraser.co.uk

H M short necklace
£7.99 - hm.com

"Johnny, La gente esta muy loca!"

Hi y'alllllll! 

So, on Monday i went shopping, mainly for makeup bits really but i bought this jumper in Primark, it was only £8. Primark has got quite a lot of nice jumpers in there at the moment for pretty cheap. However, normally i only buy jumpers in charity shops as i find the quality to be so much better than whats in shops (they don't make them like they used to lolz). These leggings are also from Primark and i think i'll probably live in them in the winter, they are quite itchy (they're woollen) so i just chuck a pair of normal leggings underneath. I don't mind though, keeps me warmer. Glad the weather has gone back to typical October weather, i want to wear all my jumpers! 

 Jumper: Primark, Leggings: Primark, Shoes: New Look, Bag: Vintage

The ombre in my hair looks really obvious here, i want to get rid of it now but i cant decide what colour to dye my hair instead. I can't decide whether to go back to all brown, or go lighter like a honey blonde-y brown shade. I also don't know whether to do it myself of professionally! Hmm decisions. 

xxxcxxx

MISSING IN ACTION

Been so busy recently that haven't been able to keep up with posting as much as i would like. All i am wearing at the moment is work uniform and pajamas, will be ordering a few bits and pieces from Asos and h&m over the next few days so will be showing you them soon! loving the Asos up to 50% off sale they've got going on here.

In other news, whilst watching Made in Chelsea the other night decided to make myself some pudding and used this microwaveable cake recipe, however whilst watching the chloe/ollie/gabriella love triangle thang i accidentally forgot about the cake and it turned out disgusting. it was so over cooked to the point where it had a rubber-like texture (didn't think that was possible) But i will not let this be a blow to my baking credentials and will make another one soon and will post pictures! 

(source)

hope everyone is having a great week 

xxxcxxx

STYLE CRUSH

So i'm sure like me everyone is already obsessed with this years xfactor. I just think the whole show is very entertaining, i would love to go watch the live shows later this year. Along with the xfactor obsession i also have an xtra factor obsession no only for the absolutely gorgeous Ollie Murs (my future husband lolz) but also for Caroline Flack. Caroline has been around for a while now presenting bits and bobs but i never really noticed her. She's been in the press a few times over the years as well after being romantically linked to Prince Harry (JEALOUS!)but both parties said they were just good friends. After watching her on xtra factor though she is my new style and hair crush. 

(source)

(source)

(source)

(source)

Her style seems to be pretty simple and classic which suits her well. I'm going to get my hair cut soon (first visit to the hairdressers in 3 years) and i may take a photo of Caroline with me as a kind of inspiration but i'm not sure the shorter length and middle parting will suit me! we will have to wait and see!! Off to watch the repeat of xfactor now. Adios!

xxxcxxx

"Cos when I look in a mirror…I don’t even recognize myself"

Sorry for the lack of proper posting recently, still been super busy but i'm sure that will all die down soon! Weather has been lovely down south this past couple of days which meant i could attempt to wear bare legs even though its almost the end of September!

 Top: Charity shop, Shorts: Old Matalan shorts cut & bleached, Bag: Primark, Necklace: House of Harlow

This t-shirt is so cool, i love it. It cost me a barginous £1 from again my favourite chazza shop. They have a £1 rail in there and its the first place i visit when i go in there. I wish i could wear it as a dress but its just that little bit too short so threw these shorts underneath to hide my dignity. Most of my friends have gone off to uni now, only 3 left! One of my friends dropped out though so i won't be completely lonely! 

I'm going to attempt some nail art this week so will post the results and a tutorial if it goes well. Today i'm just planning on lazing around the house watching cookery programmes even though the sun is shining!

Have a lovely weekend.

xxxcxxx

WISH LIST 3

WISH LIST 3 by kudosblog featuring high waisted dresses

Alice Olivia high waisted dress
£445 - oxygenboutique.com

Prabal Gurung keyhole top
$1,750 - net-a-porter.com

Barbour olive green jacket
€275 - my-wardrobe.com

Miss selfridge
£39 - missselfridge.com

Bootie boots
$75 - topshop.com

ASOS oversized clutch handbag
$101 - asos.com

"Count on me through life's changes"

I am terrible with keeping up to date with OOTD! this is what i wore on Thursday to a picnic with friends, we ate so much food, these shorts weren't the best of ideas due to how little room i have when a food baby forms! Talking of these shorts, i bought them in my favourite charity shop in my town for £2.50. They were originally a pair or ankle swinging flared black jeans, but after a quick chop and a roll up they were the perfect pair of shorts and something i had been looking for for a while!

Top: H&M, Shorts: Charity shop (DIY), Scarf: Car boot sale, Belt: Charity shop, Shoes: Priceless 

Surprised at how much of this outfit is 'vintage', just goes to show how tight i am when it comes to spending money on clothes! i think this whole outfit including shoes comes to under £20, that amount of money would probably only get you a vest top in Topshop nowadays. I did some baking yesterday using a recipe i found on StumbleUpon. The recipe is for cheesecake brownies which i though sounded lovely and unhealthy so just had to make them! the original recipe is here if you want it.

 I didn't have a square baking dish so i just used a cake tin instead, they seemed to work just as well although next time ill cook mine for a bit longer then the recipe said as mine were a little too under cooked in the middle. Still yummy though! i'm on a bit of a baking spree at the moment so be prepared for some more food related snaps soon.

xxx c xxx