LIFESTYLE: Limited Edition Chocolate Treats

LIFESTYLE: Limited Edition Chocolate Treats

Wednesday, 23 March 2016

Hotel Chocolat Easter Egg
Guys, I have a whole post to bring you up to date with how I feel about Easter eggs coming next week (yep, I thought it needed a whole post) but in the meantime, I thought it was only right for me to show you my recent gift from the guys at Hotel Chocolate. It's a little bit posher than the ones I'm used to - I rarely get posh Easter eggs because I just get through too many to spend alot on each one so this was a real treat! They've sent me one of their caramel scrambled eggs. It's a hollow caramel chocolate egg decorated with chocolate drizzles in a posh box with matching drizzled  pralines, cute. This was definitely the one for me since my new found love for anything they do caramel flavored.

The description says perfect for sharing but we all know that's not going to happen.

Dirty Martini Choctails

Everyone knows I'm a big of a fan of Dirty Martinis Chocolate Martini so I was very excited to hear that they have two other chocolate cocktails on offer over Easter! I took Georgia along with me to sample as I know she has a totally different taste to me, lets be honest, she is much more grown up that I am.

Georgia went for the White Rabbit and I had the Maltease. First thing first, they both looked pretty good - as I said, Georgia went for the grown up sounding one spiced rum, dark chocolate bitters and it looked it when it arrived! It came in such a classy little glass! It was fruity thanks to the Solerno Blood Orange and had a bit of a Terrys chocolate orange vibe going on. It was also quite thick and super smooth from to the egg mixed into it. 

Mine looked good for another reason, I felt like I'd just ordered dessert and any cocktail with Nutella and whipped cream in the description has gotta be a winner right? Right! It looks like a little kids cocktail which is me all over and it tasted really good - once I licked all the cream off with my finger (classy I know) and finally got to try it. It was rich and creamy and delicious with just a little kick. 

Available from 14th – 28th March

Easter Cupcake at Hummingbird Bakery

For me, Hummingbird Bakery do the best cupcakes. The sponge across all flavours is delicious, light and fluffy, they always look incredible and they are so generous with the frosting, I just cant enjoy a cupcake the same when I am trying to ration the frosting on each bite haha.

Every cake I've ever had from them has been delicious so I can safely say these limited edition Easter designs would make the perfect Easter treat and a pretty special alternative to another Easter Egg! For £20.25 you get a box of 6, hand decorated cupcakes or you can buy them for £3.55 each. Obvs, I picked up six including two red velvet, two chocolate and two vanilla made in a selection of designs. I'll have to admit, the vanilla ones with the sparkly chocolate toppings look delicious but red velvet are my all times fave so I'll be saving one of those for myself!

Available from 18th to 28th March.

Krispy Kreme Cookie Dough and Brownie Batter Doughnuts

So a box of the new flavours arrived for me at work on Thrusday and they certainly didnt last long - there were already two missing by the time I got from the post room back to my desk haha. I was most excited by the cookie dough one so I grabbed one of those before the swarm erupted! Luckily, one of the girls only wanted half so I shared a brownie batter one with her too! Obvs had to try both.

The toppings on both were lovely, covered in a thin layer of milk or white chocolate and sprinkled with either crunchy cookie pieces and chocolate chips or chocolate brownie chunks. Surprisingly enough, I have never had a filled doughnut before, I'm a ring kinda girl so this was my first! I was very impressed with the taste of the cookie dough one, the filling was unmistakably cookie dough and it was delicious! I'll be honest though, I was expecting there to be alot more filling in both. I kinda just assumed that I picked the wrong half of the chocolate one and that my friend, Aarti, got a half a doughnut with a whole load of filling but I had the same issue when I bit into my other one. 

The flavour of the cookie dough filling did save it for me though and I would happily buy another one just for the taste, it really is delicious!

Available February 22nd - April 17th

P.S Head over to my twitter - I'm giving away 12 Krispy Kreme doughnuts!

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Things | March 21st

Things | March 21st

Monday, 21 March 2016

Coconut Oil

So I was a little bit skeptical about this because I literally had no idea what to do with it and every single write up said something different! But never fear, twitter to the rescue - I tweeted and luckily for me I got four of the same replies so I went with that! Melt it into a liquid oil and apply to dry hair, leave for 30 minutes, then wash out. Easy!

I was a little bit stressed and edgy because I have silly thoughts like what if my hair doesn't like it so I washed it out after 15 minutes but even after that I felt a great improvement in my hair, it was much softer than before! So that's me set up for next time, I'll try it for the whole half hour, maybe longer and I'll let you know how it goes, I'm pretty impressed so far.

Diet Coke Freebies

Maybe you've noticed by now that I'm not really big into make up, I don't wear lipstick, I don't wear face foundation, I can live without mascara but one thing I cant go without is my eyeliner! I'm currently using the Barry M blink eyeliner pen but I got a little bit nostalgic when this package from Diet coke turned up at my door. 

That L'Oreal skinny liner was the my first ever piece of make up that was all my own, something that I went out and actually bought for myself so I was very pleased to see it again! I'm not sure why I stopped using it in the first place, I think it was because the Barry M one was just that much cheaper but with this great deal they have on at the moment, maybe its time to stock up again since theyre now the same price!

From 2nd to 29th March, you can pick up a 500ml bottle of Diet Coke and a L’Oréal Super Liner Blackbuster or L’Oréal Super Liner Perfect Slim eyeliner for only £5 at Boots. That’s a 40% saving (RRP £8.36).

Wagamama Ramen
We love Wagas! Andrew has a ramen every single time we go, but I mix it up and order something different most times although I usually stick between cha han, teriyaki donburi and the famous chicken katsu curry. As you can see, I like my rice, I think thats probably why I havent picked a ramen dish for years now!

During March though, Wagas are celebrating their ramen and thought it was about time that I tried one! They have been perfecting the dish for over 20 years now and invited me along to have one so obviously, I took my ramen expert with me! His favourite is the wagamama ramen so that's what I ordered. Along came a huge bowl of steamy broth packed full with chicken, pork, prawns and mussels, I could see why it's his favourite - there is so much in the bowl! As well as all that meat they also throw in noodles, half a tea-stained egg, menma and spring onions. I was stuffed!

 Andrew decided to be a bit adventerous this time and went for the new short rib version which features a huge chunk of meat! Look how pleased he is with himself! haha 

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FASHION: New Look Denim Dress

FASHION: New Look Denim Dress

Wednesday, 16 March 2016

When New Look asked me to pick out some denim to style obviously, my initial thought was jeans - what else is there?! But I have SO many pair of jeans that I decided to do a little research before I just picked out another pair and found that there actually is more than jeans - there was tops, dresses, jackets and skirts - so much choice! So I went for something different.

I picked this out, not only because I like the skater shape of the dress but because I loved how it was styled on the site. I have never worn anything like that before, I thought it looked reaalllyy cute! 

My plan was to wear it with a grey short sleeve crop top underneath and white converse, exactly like the styling on the site but when it all arrived and I put it together, I just didn't like it the same. I wanted to stick with the same casual look and the layering vibe so I went through my crop top shelf until I found something that worked. I pulled out my white crop and switched the converse up for my favourite vans circa 2009 LOL. Yes I did buy myself a new pair recently and I have been wearing them most days actually. 

I have never layered in my life so this is a first and I actually really like it! I will definitely be wearing it like this more through the summer but maybe switching it up for something a little thicker until then!

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LIFESTYLE: A Stay at The Montcalm, Marble Arch

LIFESTYLE: A Stay at The Montcalm, Marble Arch

Monday, 14 March 2016

Ok so I've finally got a little post together on our recent hotel visit. I love when Andrew decides it's time for another hotel break, we spend the whole night on the phone going through hotel websites picking out our favourite room and deal and it's so much fun (we actually did the same this last night, you'll have to wait to see where we booked next). This time we came across the Montcalm Marble Arch hotel which looked lovely and also had a great deal on for valentines. Along with the room, we got a massage each, a bottle of champagne, a bunch of flowers, chocolate truffles and strawberries plus a champagne breakfast in the morning which was really great for the price! We were also lucky enough to receive and incredible room upgrade when we arrived!

We decided to start making the most of the whole day, not just starting at check in so we were up bright and early for breakfast at Carluccios. We found one quite near to the hotel, in St Christophers Place which was the most magical little side road hidden in between two shops on Oxford Street. I had to literally walk Andrew over to the alley before he noticed where I meant. We also had the best breakfast, I would definitely recommend Carluccios as everything was delicious.

I took my new case on its debut outing for this trip and it didn't disappoint! After years and years of using my old family cases I had had enough of walking around with grubby black cases - think broken wheels and handles falling off - So I got a brand new one from Antler!

It's my first with those clever wheels and I don't think I'll ever go back, life is just so much easier now that the case actually moves where I want it to! Mine is bright red, which was perfect for our Valentines day weekend but of course it came in a range of colours. Its hard and sturdy and the inside even has zip up compartments and a strap. I am just not used to this kind of luxury when it comes to cases. As you can tell, I'm pretty pleased with it.

After brunch, we were off to the hotel! The reception was so big and modern, plus it was warm which was lovely to come in to from the cold outside

The receptionist was very excited to tell us that we had been upgraded to one of her favourite rooms in the hotel so we couldn't wait to go up and see it! 

We went up into a lovely big room, it opened out with a huge four poster double bed in the middle and a big bathroom with a bath - heaven! I was pretty pleased with that, but there was more! The lady opened an adjoining door which took us into the room next door giving us another toilet and shower and a whole living room area with a sofa, TV and dining table, it really was such a treat!

We didnt have much time to settle in as we were straight off the to spa for the afternoon but made the most of our room on return - we got comfy and ordered room service for lunch! 

 I spent the afternoon in my new lounge wear from NEXT - Super soft tracksuit bottoms and a baggy V neck tee with the cutest fluffy flip flop slippers!

Of course later in the afternoon it was time to take advantage of the lovely big bath! We filled it right to the top and dropping in a bath bomb. As I said here, I also brought along my favourite shower gel plus my Toni & guy hair mask, I probably should have added that to my essentials post because my hair just cant do without it any more! The hotel had the cutest little Hermes toiletries as well!

and that took us through to the evening! It was a Saturday so all the good TV was on, we ordered a chinese, popped open the champagne and settled down for a relaxed night in our lovely room finished off with tea and biscuits! Andrew likes a good old English tea but had my chocolate digestives with an Ahmad green tea. Mcvities sent over a box of them the day before the celebrate the launch of their Ikitten app - go download it, its as cute as it sounds! 

We had a lovely sleep in that huge white bed, it was one of the best hotel nights sleep we've had actually and I wasn't too upset to get out of it either, not when it was to open the door to breakfast and two more glasses of champagne! 

I couldnt decide what I wanted so the obvious answer was to just order both right? Andrew got a fry up and I went for a plate of fruit and pancakes! Totally different for me, I usually go straight in for the eggs florentine but I just had an urge for pancakes and it paid off, they were so delicious, I loved their crunchy edges and soft, fluffy center!

We had sorted out a late check out so after breakfast, it was back to bed! P.S how cute are my F&F pyjamas?!

We had a lovely weekend and would recommend if you are looking for super value for money! We were pretty impressed with the price when it just meant a normal room but are so grateful to The Montcalm for our upgrade! 

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BEAUTY: POREfessional Wipeout Masks By Benefit

BEAUTY: POREfessional Wipeout Masks By Benefit

Friday, 11 March 2016

I'm not huge on make up but I always love a new Benefit release, the products and always new and innovative and the packaging is just something else! Benefit packaging is always so pretty and these wipeout masks, new addition to their POREfessional range, for spring 2016 are no exception. I love the POREfessional green and how each mask looks like a top secret file but I especially love the fun element of having to press the button and soak the mask yourself - you have to push pretty hard but it is so satisfying when it finally pops.

Once that was done, we gave the a little squish around to make sure the mask was fully soaked (Andrew did one with me haha not a bad way to spend a Saturday morning) and then I went ahead and peeled open the pack. As the instruction said, we put on the mask, smooth side down and then sat back and relaxed for 10 minutes. I had heard from alot of people that they really stung your skin and eyes especially so I was a little bit weary and made Andrew put it on first but we were pleasantly surprised when all we felt was a slight tingle, although there was a pretty strong medical smell to them, but that was nothing really. 

With stats like 94% said it cleans out pores and 89% said skin looks smooth printed on the pack, they had a lot to live up to! It also said they also contain mushroom extract which is known to clarify pores so I was hoping for a good result on that too. So what did we think? To be honest, we didn't see much happening in the way of cleaning out the pores and removing dirt and blackheads which was a shame but they were absolutely great for getting shine under control control, I could see a difference on both Andrew and myself as soon as we took them off. I also liked that you could use the rougher side of the mask afterwards to exfoliate the skin and wipe everything off. Maybe a little pricey at £24.50 for a pack of eight and being recommended that you use twice a week but I would definitely keep them on hand to pop out every once in a while when I am feeling particularly oily!

P.S Did you find my hidden photo of Andrew? haha
 
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