Exploring Barcelona.

Last week was a "reading week" for me at University and so instead of doing all the reading I probably should have been doing, I went to Barcelona for a few days with my family instead!

It was an incredible trip and we did so much sightseeing, exploring many of Barcelona's top attractions:

- Flamenco at Palau Musica Catalana

- "Arena" shopping centre at the old bullfighting ring

- La Sagrada Familia

- Casa Mila

- Park Guell

- Picasso Museum

- Boadas Cocktail Bar

- Magic Fountains

- Santa Maria del Mar Cathedral

- Las Ramblas

- Barcelona Cathedral

I thought I would share a few of my photos with you all, showing some of my favourite places that we went to...

La Sagrada Familia was by far my favourite place that we visited in Barcelona. It was the most incredible Cathedral, and 100% the biggest I've ever seen. It was designed by Gaudi over 100 years ago and is still being built today! The main interior of the cathedral was breathtakingly big, with massively high ceilings and beautiful stain glass windows in different colours covering the walls.

We also visited Park Guell and Casa Mila which were both designed by Gaudi and had amazing architecture. The amount of detail and work that went into his designs was just incredible.

"Boadas" is the oldest cocktail bar in Barcelona, and definitely made the most impressive cocktails I've ever seen! They were as good as they looked...!

This was a view from just above where the Magic Fountains were... unfortunately we showed up with hundreds of other people to see them and they weren't actually on that night due to a change in times for the winter!

I had such a fun time in Barcelona with my family and I especially loved seeing all the amazing buildings with the crazy architecture! I hope everyone else who had a half term had a good one! xo

xo

September?

Okay I realise we are now well into September, but how I do not know. I feel like September crept up on all of us and I can't believe it is Autumn again already!

I have actually had 3 months off this summer (thank you university), but I still feel scared at how fast this year is going!

I took a look back at some of my Summer Goals from my blog post and thought it would be fun to share with you all how I got on...

1) Go swimming in the sea as often as possible 

 - I actually managed this one! I swam almost every single day in July as the weather was so amazing!

2) Go surfing so I can get good(ish) again

- Fail. The sea was basically flat all summer unfortunately

3) Get fitter - do more exercise like swimming/running

- Well success on the swimming front... the running thing was never gonna happen haha

4) Do sit ups every morning before breakfast 

- YES - at least for the month of June and then mostly when I remembered!

5) Eat more healthily, i.e. get into eating salads and fruit more

- I've been having a lot of homemade smoothies this summer which I have been enjoying

6) See as many of my friends as possible as much as possible

- I think I've done quite well on this one, I've seen pretty much all of my school friends and have loved catching up with them all and spending lots of time with them.

7) Read more books... I really want to see The Fault in Our Stars but I feel like I cant until I've read the book!

- So I watched the film without reading the book oops! I have read a couple of books though so thats a start.

8) Do a proper clear out of my room and throw away old things (this one will be hard for me as I'm a secret stasher/hoarder haha!)

- As if I was going to do this...

9) Do something really spontaneous

- Not sure I managed this one in the way I was thinking when I wrote it. Although my family went on a spontaneous(ish) trip to Italy (see previous blog post), even that was booked 3 months in advance haha. 

10) Develop my blog and create some good posts I'm proud of

- I have failed so much at my blog this summer but have just been spending lots of time outside and with my friends instead. I think it'll be easier when I'm back at university to get into a routine of writing posts!

11) Build a massive sandcastle

- Did this. It was great.

12) Learn how to cook more dishes and bake lots of cakes - kind of undermines no.5 but thats life!

- Baked many many cakes but not so much of the actual main course dishes... cooking at university could be interesting!

13) Make the longest daisy chain ever

- Nooooo I forgot about this one - off to make one now...

14) Watch as many sunsets as I can

- Most of the sunsets I watched I was doing no.15...

15) Have fish and chips on the beach

- Yay I had fish and chips on the beach several times with various friends and family. It's so lovely to eat on the beach and watch the sunset!

16) Drink 2 litres of water a day

- Whilst I definitely haven't managed drinking 2 litres a day, I have been drinking a lot of water this summer in replacement of other drinks.

17) Dance all night, to the best song ever...

- Does dancing till 2.30am count for this?

18) Sort out my clothes/re-vamp my summer wardrobe

- I haven't sorted them out per se, however I have bought quite a few new clothing items!

19) Spend as much time outside as possible (I really hope it stays this sunny and warm!)

- It's been such an amazing summer weather-wise so this one hasn't been hard at all

20) Make the most of every second!

- I've had such an incredible summer, I've had so much fun and I can't believe how fast 3 months went! 

Although I'm sad summer is over now, I'm so so excited about going back to university and seeing all my friends there again. I also cannot wait to start wearing cosy jumpers and trackies again and snuggle up watching films all day!

Did you all have a good summer? xo

Lake Maggiore - Italy.

Ciao Bella! I have just been on an amazing family holiday to Lake Maggiore in Italy. We stayed in probably the nicest hotel I've ever stayed at - we had rooms with beautiful views across the lake, the food was delicious and everyone was so friendly! There was a lovely swimming pool at the hotel as well, so we had a couple of afternoons/evenings sunbathing and swimming.

We went on several boat trips visiting different small islands on the lake and exploring other nearby towns. 

One of the days was a bit overcast and rainy, so we decided to take a trip up to Switzerland for the day (only a 45 minute drive!) and go to a hot springs pool which also had flumes and diving platforms. It was so much fun - there was even a vertical flume leading into a small loop the loop, which was the scariest, craziest, best thing ever! I don't think the picture below does it justice but it gives you an idea...

Whilst we were in Switzerland we also visited Madonna del Sasso, a church set in the hills above Locarno.

As well as eating waaaaay too much Italian food, we had a lot of evening cocktails at our hotel which were so yummy but very alcoholic! I don't know what it is but I always find that cocktails taste so much nicer when you're on holiday...

Ciao Italia... hopefully I'll be back soon! xo

 p.s. apologies for falling off the blogging wagon... hopefully I'll be posting more regularly and reliably now I'm going back to university and getting into a routine again!

Childminding = Cupcakes.

For the next few weeks I am childminding a lovely 8 year old girl. However she is very energetic so I have to come up with lots of things to "do" in order to keep her entertained!

Something simple and easy to do with children is baking, so we decided to make little cupcakes. Unfortunately we couldn't find a whisk... which meant all the mixing had to be done by hand. Despite an aching arm, they turned out very well and so I thought I'd share some photos and the recipe with you. 

Ingredients

200g Butter

200g Sugar

200g Flour

3 Eggs

Chocolate Chips

(plus Butter, Icing Sugar & Food Colouring for the butter icing)

Recipe

- Preheat oven at 180degrees

- Soften the butter and whisk until light and fluffy with the sugar

- Fold in the flour and the eggs until you have a smooth and creamy mixture

- Add the chocolate chips (this part is optional but we wanted as much chocolate as possible)

- Pour the mixture into cupcake cases... there was the perfect amount for 12 cupcakes

- Place into the oven and bake for 20 minutes

Obviously our cupcakes were decorated by an 8 year old, so purple icing was a must, however if you wish to make more tasteful cupcakes then maybe leave out the food dye and chocolate toppings from the next part of the recipe!

Icing Recipe

- I actually normally just estimate measurements with icing and mix together butter and icing sugar until it looks creamy and smooth and tastes right, so I cant give precise measures for this! I did find that adding a splash of water helped my icing become smoother and stick together

- Add food colouring of any colour (we chose purple) and mix until the icing is fully dyed your chosen colour

- After the cakes have cooled, ice your cakes using a piping bag or spoons... we used spoons as it is a whole lot easier and we wanted to eat them as soon as possible!

- Add your toppings... we stuck Magic Stars and Smarties into the icing before it set

We actually left a couple of cakes without icing and for those we just stuck the chocolate toppings into the cakes themselves!

We didn't wait long before tucking in and they really were extremely good! I would recommend eating them fresh as I find cupcakes often taste best the day you make them. 

I would love to know what your favourite cupcake recipe is and also any ideas of fun things to make or do with an 8 year old girl!

xo

Statement Necklaces.

I never normally like wearing chunky jewellery as I feel like it often drowns me or doesn't suit me, so it took me a while to get on the "statement necklace" bandwagon...

However when my cousin came to stay she persuaded me to buy this necklace and I have fallen in love with it. I think it's the colour that makes me love it so much as it is so pretty! 

In the photos I paired it with the same blue/green/turquoise colour top from Topshop, however it looks amazing with white tops as well for a very summery vibe. I probably wouldn't pair it with certain high neck tops although obviously it depends on colour and style.

I really like how it can immediately brighten and add interest to an outfit and it is a very fun accessory. I'm glad I decided to try something different and I shall definitely be on the look out for another beautiful big piece of jewellery. I find that using the right accessories with an outfit can completely change your look and these big necklaces work really well with an otherwise plain outfit.

The necklace featured in this blog post is from New Look, however I couldn't find it on their website so this link is to the same necklace through ASOS!


What do you all think of statement necklaces? What is your favourite summer fashion trend?

xo

Benefit - World Famous Neutrals | Review.

I've never particularly been one for eyeshadow as I can never get smoky eyes to look quite right and I never really thought eyeshadow added anything to my face. However I recently re-discovered the eyeshadow set by Benefit called "World Famous Neutrals". I'm now slightly obsessed with it!

The thing I especially love about this palette is that it comes with two different bases (the round pots in the photo) and 4 different eyeshadows, meaning you can mix and match to create different looks. There's a little "Tips and Tricks" guide attached to the top of the box which gives you different ideas how to combine the eyeshadows to create different looks - for daytime or nighttime. Of course you can just combine them however you like to create your own effect.

For me this palette is the solution to my eyeshadow woes and I love how it can look very natural or can be slightly more smoky depending on occasion/time of day/mood! Obviously if you want a very dark eye this palette isn't the best for you, but I would really recommend it especially to those who are less inclined to the black eyeshadow but still want to define their eyes and add more interest with eyeshadow.

xo

Summer Goals.

I love making lists, and I thought what better excuse than to make a list of my summer goals! I have technically already had a month of summer, however we shall overlook that and pretend July is the beginning (as it is for most people anyway!)

1) Go swimming in the sea as often as possible 

2) Go surfing so I can get good(ish) again

3) Get fitter - do more exercise like swimming/running

4) Do sit ups every morning before breakfast 

5) Eat more healthily, i.e. get into eating salads and fruit more

6) See as many of my friends as possible as much as possible

7) Read more books... I really want to see The Fault in Our Stars but I feel like I cant until I've read the book!

8) Do a proper clear out of my room and throw away old things (this one will be hard for me as I'm a secret stasher/hoarder haha!)

9) Do something really spontaneous

10) Develop my blog and create some good posts I'm proud of

11) Build a massive sandcastle

12) Learn how to cook more dishes and bake lots of cakes - kind of undermines no.5 but thats life!

13) Make the longest daisy chain ever

14) Watch as many sunsets as I can

15) Have fish and chips on the beach

16) Drink 2 litres of water a day

17) Dance all night, to the best song ever...

18) Sort out my clothes/re-vamp my summer wardrobe

19) Spend as much time outside as possible (I really hope it stays this sunny and warm!)

20) Make the most of every second!

So these are my summer goals... some more likely to be achieved than others but I think its always a start to have good intentions! What are your summer goals? I would love to hear some other ideas!

xo

Beach Hopping and Sea Swimming.

Living on an island is not all bad - we have the most amazing beaches! Lately the weather in Guernsey has been lovely and warm and so we have been going to the beach a lot to make the most of it. Growing up close to so many beaches means it is easy to take for granted the ability to just go and sunbathe on the sand or have a swim in the sea. However after being at university in England for a year I have come to appreciate my beautiful island a whole lot more! 

Today I went down to a little beach called Petit Bot with my parents for a swim in the sea. It was very cold but I'm proud to say I put my head underwater and swam out to a rock and back!

We then went on to another gorgeous beach called L'eree where we sat with our backs against the hot granite wall.

The sunset was absolutely stunning this evening - the colours were amazing and the clouds just added interest to the sky. (Sorry this photo isn't better quality... I took it in the car as we were driving home!)

I am looking forward to spending lots of time on the beach with my friends and family this summer - having BBQs, eating fish and chips, building sandcastles (no you're never too old), going surfing, jumping off rocks/walls/groins into the sea, playing beach games, watching the sun set...

Hopefully we'll have the weather for it! 

xo

French Adventures and Beautiful Beads.

Last week I went on holiday to France with my family. We went to a beautiful island to the west of France called Ile de Re. I really love going to France as it's so close and the food especially is amazing! On our way there we stopped off in La Rochelle for lunch and I couldn't help but take photos of the old buildings which were truly beautiful.

To get to Ile de Re you have to cross a massive bridge from mainland France to the island which was super exciting. Even though there are proper roads in Ile de Re there is a strong emphasis on cycling, with many different cycling tracks taking you all over the island. Now cycling really isn't my favourite thing to do but as it is 'what you do' over there and my family were keen we hired bicycles for the week. It turned out to be so much fun (and also very tiring!) and you could see much more of the island by bicycle than you could by car which was cool. They have lots of amazing salt flats - where unsurprisingly they make salt! 

When we weren't cycling madly around or playing tennis on the courts we found, we went to the beach or relaxed by the pool at our house we were staying in. The pool was amazingly lovely and warm, as was the temperature! One of the days we didn't go out properly as it was 30 degrees! It was almost too hot to sunbathe properly...

On our way home we stopped off in Dinan which is probably one of my favourite places in France. It is a medieval town with lots of amazing old buildings and such a lovely vibe/feel to it. It also has incredible creperies!

In Dinan my mum and I found a bead shop and just HAD to go in and have a look, much to my dads dismay! We spent a very long time looking at all the beautiful and colourful beads and picking our favourites. There were so many colours and styles to choose from! I have never seen so many beads in my life and I loved it.

In the end I went for a simple silver charm with a black thread but I also got a coin charm as I am obsessed with old coins! We also bought lots of beads and different colour threads for various necklaces we want to make for ourselves and other people.

Au revoir France...

xo

I. Love. Wimbledon.

Tennis is something I really love, whether it is playing or watching. So for me I really enjoy watching Wimbledon on the TV, it gets me in the summery mood!

This time last year I went to Wimbledon with one of my best friends as a spontaneous trip from London! We didn't have tickets so got in the queue at around 5pm hoping to get in for the evening as people left. Whilst we were around queue number 13000 we managed to get in and had the best time!

Waiting in the queue was actually so fun as there were SO many people... we were worried we might not get in after all but it started moving quite quickly. We had a picnic tea whilst we waited and were even given a 'Guide to Queueing at Wimbledon' haha!

It was just so fun to walk around the Wimbledon grounds and watch various matches on the less popular courts. The atmosphere was incredible and it was especially fun to watch some tennis on "Murray Mound" or "Henman Hill" on the big screen!

Even though I'm not going again this year, I cannot wait to watch all the matches on TV, and if you are a fan, I would really recommend the Wimbledon app. It can be quite slow but it gives you all the up to date results and even gives you live scores as well as order of play!

xo

p.s. sorry I haven't been posting recently, I have been on holiday with my family in France (blog post to follow!) and so now I'm back hopefully I can start posting again more regularly :-)