Weekend wind-up: Yummy breakfasts, favourite nail polishes and an updated makeup routine

This week has been pretty miserable here in London. I had to go on the train to work instead of cycling because it has been raining all the time. Good news though, it is starting to warm up a bit and there are very small signs that Spring is on its way.

You may have seen from my January healthy lifestyle post that I have been trying to eat breakfast. I've always struggled to eat before 11/12 o clock so I've been having a few yummy meals to try and get myself to eat breakfast. One of my favourites so far is homemade guacamole on toast. I mash up 1 avocado, chop two tomatoes and add the juice of 1/2 a lemon, season with salt and pepper and there you go! This breakfast works out at around 450 calories and keeps me feeling full until lunchtime. I've also been loving spinach and cheese omelettes which are around 300 calories.

I feel I have settled into a routine with my no fuss minimal makeup routine. I wrote a blogpost here with all the products I am currently loving on a daily basis.

I also wrote a blogpost about my top 3 most worn nail polishes. These are all shellac polishes which I do myself at home and last two weeks without chipping. I wrote all about how you can achieve these at home without paying the nail salon price tags. These polishes are cheaper than OPI, Zoya, Smith and Cult and Nails Inc, definitely worth checking out if you hate painting your nails every few days.

I haven't really ventured out much this week as the weather has been so rubbish, I'm really looking forward to my Spain holiday- 2 weeks and counting!

What have you been up to this week? I would love to know

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

My top three most worn nail polishes with DIY shellac at home

Today I would like to share my three most worn nail polishes. Now you might be saying hang on a minute these are shellac polishes, I can't afford to go and get my nails done all the time. Here is where I tell you- you can!

I love having painted nails but I hate having to repaint them every few days because of chips. These beauties last for two weeks and do not chip. I remove them after two weeks as they grow out with my nail or occasionally one nail polish might peel off completely.

Cost comparison of nail polishes:

OPI £11.50 RRP

Butter London £12- 15 RRP

Zoya £9.95 RRP

Essie £10.95 RRP

Smith and cult £19 RRP

CND Shellac £11-16 (Depending on colour)

Now I know there are plenty of drugstore polishes cheaper than this but if you compare the CND to the prices above, I honestly think it is worth it as they last so much longer and look much better. They have a beautiful shine and I constantly get complimented on my nails.

I did a shellac at home post where I listed all the kit you need to start you off- a perfect birthday gift and once you have the lamp (£18.99), prep wipe and remover (£12) and base and top coats (£22.95) you are good to go!

You can read that blogpost all about how to DIY shellac at home here. I also recommend where to buy your shellac polishes from as I have quite a collection now and the seller has been great on amazon. There are also lots of swatches of different polishes if you want to see what they look like.

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

My current everyday minimal make up routine

Today I would like to share my everyday make up look that I wear if I'm only going to work/ out in the day time. I know I can rely on these products to last and give me a fresh put together look.

For my base I start by applying the Embryolisse moisturiser to my skin to give it a much needed boost after I get out the shower, I then follow this with the Too faced hangover primer on my nose, cheeks and chin where I find that my foundation starts to wear off first. I'm currently using the Rimmel lasting finish 25 hour foundation in the colour Ivory which I have had for ages but have recently rediscovered. I have to say that I still love it and it gives a medium coverage that makes my skin look fresh and evens out my complexion. After my foundation I powder my t zone if my skin is feeling a little shiny with the Charlotte Tilbury airbrush flawless finish powder in the colour fair. If I have any blemishes I tend to use the Mac studio fix concealer which is unbeaten at covering spots/ redness. I also use the Maybelline eraser eye in a triangle shape under my eye to brighten any dark circles.

Next up are some much needed cheek bones! I use the Kevyn Aucoin sculpting powder to lightly contour my cheek bones and use this down the sides of my nose and on the top of my forehead. I then  take the Charlotte Tilbury dreamy glow highlighter on a fan brush and brush this onto the tops of my cheeks.

Now onto brows, I am still using my firm favourites here. The soap and glory archery pencil in blonde bombshell to fill in any sparse areas, I then set this with the Benefit gimme brow in medium/deep. To finish off this minimal look I curl my lashes with the Shu uemura eyelash curlers and apply the Too Faced better than sex mascara. If I want my makeup to really last, I give my face a spritz of the Mac prep and prime fix spray to really lock in moisture and keep my makeup looking fresher for longer.

What is in your current every day makeup routine?

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

Weekend wind-up: Dinner at Kettners, favourite skincare and my current wishlist

It's that time again where I round up my week and let you know what I have been up to.

It has been quite a quiet week, I am very much looking forward to the middle of February as I will be jetting off to Spain with my family for a week of relaxation and fingers cross- a bit of sunshine! I'm sure there will probably be a Sephora haul coming your way too so watch out for that. 

Yesterday I went to restaurant called Kettners in Soho, London which was recommended by a friend as it is about to close ('in its present form'- not entirely sure what that means!?) so we went for dinner. The food was pricey but delicious. I had a creamy mushroom dish on brioche followed by lobster Mac and cheese and guess what- I had pudding too with a vanilla chocolate bomb with chocolate mousse inside with passion fruit curd- delicious! 

This week there have been two blogposts if you missed them, I did a favourite skincare post where I shared my current skincare routine and all of my favourite products, you can have a read here if you missed it. I am also currently in love with Oliver Bonas and all the new lovely things on their site for this spring. I put together my absolute favourites in a post here if you would like to read it. I'm sure I will be making a cheeky purchase very shortly

I hope you have had a lovely week

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

Current favourite shop: Oliver Bonas wish list

Alice Jumper £39.50

Stone grey military tunic £49.50

Marble jewellery box £19

Connected blocks collar necklace £24

Peggy scarf £24

Marble tray £24

I can guarantee I will always pick something up in Oliver Bonas everytime I catch a train at Kings cross station! I absolutely love it. Their scarfs and little trinkets are beautiful, perfect for birthday presents and to treat yourself. I really like some of the new pieces on their website for the spring season, particularly their jewellery. There is also a wider range of homeware and furniture on the site too. There are so many statement necklaces I am in love with, particularly those with shapes, rose gold and marble- a bloggers dream! There is currently a sale on too if you want to grab a bargain.

Which is your favourite?

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

My current skincare favourites

It's 2016 and time for an updated skincare routine. Here are all the items I use on a regular basis:

Every day

In the evening, I start by removing the majority of my makeup using cotton pads and the Sephora micellar water. I picked this up last time I went to Spain and I really enjoy using it. It removes even the most stubborn eye makeup. Once I have removed most of my makeup I use the Oskia renaissance cleansing gel or the Espa Cleansing milk. I've enjoyed using the Oskia cleanser for a while now, it has a gel like texture that turns to an oil when you massage it into the face, I then remove this with a warm muslin cloth. 

I had a facial recently at an Espa spa and I ended up going away with two products. The hydrating cleansing milk and the refining skin polish. I tend to use the cleansing milk on no makeup/minimal makeup days when I want to switch from the Oskia gel, this has a milky texture, much lighter than the Oskia cleanser. I use the skin polish twice a week. This is an exfoliating cream that has a sandy texture and this is brilliant for rejuvenating my skin and getting rid of the dry, dead skin cells without irritating my skin. Each morning I use the Embryolisse lait cream concentrate before I apply my makeup to give me a final boost of moisture.

Once/ twice a week

Once a week I use the Aveda hydrating mask after I have exfoliated my skin to give a boost of moisture back to my dry skin. I also love Eumocream each night before I go to bed in the winter as it really quenches my dry skin and I wake up feeling refreshed and hydrated. I did a full blog post about this beauty here. Sometime I use the Ole Henrikksen pure truth activating oil if I feel like I need a boost of moisture to the skin which is really lovely. I think I prefer this to the Kiels midnight recovery concentrate AND Estee Lauder advanced night repair.

For those pamper days

When I feel like pampering myself, I use the Charlotte Tilbury Goddess skin clay mask, when I use this it gives me such soft baby skin. I tend to use this whilst I go it the bath. I really like this mask because it doesn't dry which keeps your skin hydrated.

What do you currently love using? I would love to hear from you

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

Weekend wind-up: New jeans, trying to grow my brows and a fitness update

This week has been quite a quiet one really, I've really been trying to keep to my healthy regime and I do feel really good for it. If you haven't read about the changes I've made recently, you can read that blog post here. This week I cycled 54 miles to work (3 days) and did an exercise DVD (30 day shred) on 1 other day. I've also been trying to drink more water and have had a juice each morning for breakfast (I'm really proud of myself because I haven't eaten breakfast since my mum made me before I went to school!) I can thoroughly recommend the nutribullet so far. I have yet to use my spiralizer but I have bought some courgettes to give it a try so I will keep you updated as the weeks go on.

This week I purchased the Shavata brow strengthener after seeing Sam Chapman from Pixiwoo recommend it on instagram. I'm sure I am not the only one who over plucked my eyebrows as a teenager and now find it so hard to grow them back. I'm sure if this product works I will be raving about it on my blog- fingers crossed!

Finally I bought some new jeans. I have found it really difficult recently to find the right pair. I have always worn Miss Selfridge jeans for years but recently I've found that since cycling my body shape has changed and they are too baggy around the waist. The next size down is tighter but still not right so I've been looking for some new jeans and I found these 'Casey' relaxed skinny fit jeans from dorothy perkins. They were only £20.80 in the sale which is still going on (bargain!) I got the ones on the left in the picture but I may have to invest in some more. What's even better is I'm finally back into size 10! If you struggle finding jeans that fit around the waist I would recommend giving these a try, they also come in different lengths too.

I hope you had a lovely weekend

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

Current wish list

1) Davina Smart carbs £8

2) Davina 5 week fit £11.70

3) Nike free free fly knit running shoe (customised) £135

4) Varley mesh leggings £75

5) Charlotte Tilbury's magic night cream £100

6) Kate Somerville goat milk cream $65

Recently, I've found myself dreaming over various items that are catching my eye online. I think you can tell it's January with the amount of fitness things on this list. I would really like to try Davina's new fitness DVD and recipe book. I find Davina a real inspiration fitness wise. She has never done a DVD, got fat and then done another. She really believes in what she is doing. If any of you have tried either of these things, I would love to hear your thoughts. 

I also love these leggings from Varley on ASOS. They are very expensive for leggings but the marble print with mesh inserts is gorgeous. I may be purchasing these soon! I would also love some new workout trainers. All of my trainers are quite bulky to do inside fitness classes. I really like these Nike free fly knit running shoes as they are lightweight and almost feel like socks. What's better is you can customise them in any colour you like.

Lastly are two skincare items that I would really like to try. Charlotte Tilbury has brought out a night cream to go alongside her magic cream which I really like. The price tag of £100 is currently putting me right off though! Have you tried it? Or the Kate Somerville goat milk moisturiser? These are currently top of my beauty wish list.

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

January healthy lifestyle update

Now I'm sure you have probably read a few healthy lifestyle/ new years resolution posts already this January but I thought I would share the changes I have decided to make to my lifestyle to try and shed a few extra pounds and generally feel better about myself.

Here are my 2016 goals:

1) Drink more water

I am terrible at drinking the recommended 2 litres a day, I even started a blog post to try and make me stick to it but I failed miserably. This year I really want to try and stick to this. I have bought myself a Brita fill and go water bottle which is a 0.6L water bottle that filters your water on the go. I will keep you updated with my progress in a few weeks time!

2) Increase exercise to 5 x a week

I currently cycle to work 3 days a week (54miles in total). I have really enjoyed doing this and want to continue. I've noticed a really difference in my lower body and feel much more toned but it hasn't really done much for my stomach/ arms so 2 days a week I've decided to do a fitness DVD to concentrate on my upper body and general fitness. I dug out Gillian's 30 day shred and if I stick to it I have my eyes on the new Davina workout dvd and smart carbs recipe book. Have any of you tried them? What do you think?

3) Increase the amount of vegetables I eat

There has been a lot of hype over spiralizers in the blogging world so I've decided to purchase one. I bought this one from amazon for £11. I'm looking forward to trying out some new recipes which I will share if they are super tasty!

4) Eat breakfast

Now I've always hated breakfast and for 27 years I've never really eaten it. I find it so hard to eat early in the mornings and don't really get hungry until lunchtime. The one draw back with this is I definitely eat a lot more in the evenings which isn't good for your digestion whilst your sleeping so linking in with trying to eat more vegetables I decided to get a nutribullet blender. I'm going to try and drink a green juice each morning. I'm hoping that because it is in liquid form it won't feel like breakfast! I recently watch the first part of a documentary with Cherry Healey on the What to buy and eat which was really interesting- testing out blenders, fitness apps and monitors and one of the studies done on the programme looked at whether you should eat before or after exercise. They found that women burn 20% fat if they eat BEFORE and men 20% if they eat AFTER. I definitely recommend watching it. It should be on player until February 2016.

I will keep you updated on my progress!

Have you changed anything up in your routine this January?

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

New fragrances that I am in love with

For Christmas, I was lucky enough to get two new perfumes under the Christmas tree. These have become my firm favourites over the last few weeks and I can recommend them both!

First up we have Valentino Donna Eau de perfum. This ranges between £49-97 depending on size. Escentual currently have 20% off everything with the code escentual20 until 19th January. This is sweeter than I usually go for but I really love it! I find it quite difficult to describe scents but according to the notes it contains bergamot, Bulgarian rose, iris, patchouli, leather and vanilla. If I was to compare this to other scents I own- it smells similar to the la prairie midnight rain (this also contains vanilla and patchouli). It lasts really well and comes in a lovely bottle! You may even find a deal with a Christmas gift set in the sale if you are lucky!

Next is a fragrance that I have wanted for ages. Every time I go past a Jo Mallone counter I always spray this. It's the scent wood sage and sea salt. Now the price of this is steep ranging from £42 (30ml) to £85 (100ml) but it is beautiful. This contains sage, sea salt and ambrette seeds and reminds me of being at the sea. It is fresh whilst still having a woody scent. Next time you are by a counter- why not go any try it out!

Did you get any new fragrances for Christmas?

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx

Weekend wind up: 8 year anniversary, 2015 favourites, Kate Somerville and beating off the January blues!

It's that time again where I round up the week by letting you know what I have been up to. This week I had to go back to work (boooo!) It's been lovely to have a couple of weeks off over the Christmas period so it was a bit of a shock having to get up early again! 

Monday was my 8 year anniversary with my boyfriend, we've been together since university and decided to celebrate with a lovely walk around Epping forest and a Chinese takeaway. Very nice indeed- obviously we filled our pockets with quality street as we walked around which made the walk even better!

The 2015 favourites posts on my blog have now come to an end- if you missed any of them you can click the links below:

Part one was: my favourite foundations and concealers

Part 2 was: blushers, bronzers and highlighters 

Part 3: All about the eyes 

Part 4: Mascara and brows

Part 5: Lips

I've also been trying to beat the January blues. It's always difficult after Christmas as you often try to tighten your purse strings and the weather is miserable and dark. I find the best way to combat this is to do exercise! I've cycled 36 miles this week to work and hope (weather permitting) to up that to 54 miles next week. It really helps me to de stress and to feel good about myself after eating too much over Christmas. It also saves me £5.20 each day! I also booked a holiday and a spa before Christmas spending came to an end. During February I'm going to Spain with my family for a week which is so great to look forward to. I also bought a spa voucher with my sister which we are going to book to pamper ourselves soon!

I've also been looking at Kate Somerville as a brand. It's been cropping up on a few blogs recently and I would really like to give some of the products a try. Do you have any recommendations?

Thanks for reading

Katherine

xxx 

My 2015 beauty favourites part 5: Lips

It has come to that time in the year where I round up all of my favourite beauty products from the year and try to narrow in down to my absolute favourites. 

Part one was my favourite foundations and concealers

Part 2 was: blushers, bronzers and highlighters 

Part 3: All about the eyes 

Part 4: Mascara and brows

And today is the final post on all things lips!

For the final favourites post I have chosen 3 lipsticks, 1 lip pencil and 2 lip liners. I can't say I am a fan of glosses so I decided to leave these out completely. As you can see MAC, Nars and Charlotte Tilbury are my firm favourites as far as brands go.

My two lip liner favourites are MAC Soar- this was a recommendation from Lily Pebbles which pairs beautifully with the MAC lipstick Mehr. I also love Mac's Patong beach lip liner which I first got in the Steven Klein collection. This is a lovely pinky neutral shade that again can be used to line the lips or use all over.

Left to right: Mac Soar lip liner, Mac Patong beach lip liner, Nars matte lip pencil in cruella, Charlotte Tilbury lipstick in Miss Kensington, Mac Soar, Mac Plumful

Next we get onto lipsticks. There are four firm favourites here:
Nars velvet matte lip pencil in Cruella
Charlotte Tilbury matte revolution lipstick in Miss Kensington
Mac Mehr
Mac Plumful

As you can see, I love a pinky plum tone lipstick, I can't say I am too adventurous but my favourite red has to be Nars Cruella. As it is matte it can be slightly drying but I know I can guarantee on it lasting really well!

What are your top favourites?

Thanks for reading
Katherine
xxx

My 2015 beauty favourites part 4: Mascara and brows

It has come to that time in the year where I round up all of my favourite beauty products from the year and try to narrow in down to my absolute favourites. 

Part one was: my favourite foundations and concealers

Part 2 was: blushers, bronzers and highlighters 

Part 3: All about the eyes 

And today is part 4: Mascara and brows

Here is what is coming up next:

Thursday 6th: Lips

Now, I think this category has to be the easiest of them all. I don't think I have changed my brows at all this year! The two products I have been loving are the Benefit gimme brow and the soap and glory archery pencil. This little duo is perfect. I use the pencil to fill in any sparse areas and then use the gimmie brow to set and add a little colour.

For Mascara, there has been a new discovery this year from Too Faced and that is their 'Better than sex mascara'. I did a full review with before and after photos here which also shows my brows too! I thoroughly recommend all of these three products- it is going to take a lot to persuade me to change up this routine.

Have you got any recommendations I should try?
Thanks for reading
Katherine
xxx

Weekend wind-up: Christmas, cooking my first Christmas dinner and a new handbag!

Well, it feels like Christmas has finally ended (booooo!) The tree is down and I'm back into work mode. I had such a lovely time with all my family and feel thoroughly spoilt! As I write this I am currently making my way through the vast tubs of chocolate that I got. I have to say that I'm really excited that Wispa are now in the Cadbury Heroes tubs! 

This year I played host for the first time. For Christma,s my boyfriend's family came to stay and I cooked Christmas dinner! I have to say it was a lot less stressful than I thought it would be. Dinner was so tasty and went very smoothly except for forgetting to cook the stuffing! (We all have to forget something, right?) I went to my family for a few days before Christmas and we opened our presents from each other- you can see my 'What I got for Christmas' post here. Then on the 23rd I made my way back to London to start my hostess with the mostess routine! Christmas basically consisted of being in pyjamas most of the time, eating way too much and watching a lot of Christmas movies! I did hit the shops on boxing day (Big mistake) but it was far too busy for me. At least I saved some pennies.

I am now getting back into work mode and look forward to a new year!

I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and new year

Katherine

xxx

What I got for Christmas

Firstly, I would like to say I hope you had a fantastic Christmas and New Year's Eve. I have been so lucky this year and was thoroughly spoilt! I love reading these posts so I thought I would share what I got for Christmas.

Photo from Oliverbonas.com

From my family I got lots of lovely things, I couldn't decide on one particular thing that I wanted so I ask them to surprise me with lots of little things. I got a really lovely scarf from Oliver Bonas and a candle and hand cream from the Indian Pomelo range. I got lots of chocolate which I am currently munching my way through and 2 lovely reed diffusers from the White company in 'Winter' and 'Verveine'. There is currently 20% fragrance so I would go and check out the sale here.

Photo from Argos.com

From my lovely boyfriend I got the Philips Sonicare diamond clean toothbrush. Now, I was a bit sceptical at first because I already have an electric toothbrush but this has blown me away. It is incredible! I feel like I have had my teeth cleaned at the dentists every time I brush my teeth. What's really cool is it charges in the glass and comes with a case that can be charged up as well! If you like your gadgets, I would definitely recommend this one- it is currently half price here. He also got me the Jo Mallone perfume in Wood sage and sea salt which I have wanted for so long and some new Bose in ear headphones- thoroughly spoit!

From my boyfriend's family I got a mug crumble recipe book. Crumbles are my favourite pudding so I am really excited to try these out- what's even better is they go in the microwave! I'll make sure I show these on my blog with the recipe if there are super tasty!

I also got a lovely necklace from H Samuels from his sisters. It is so beautiful and delicate with little diamonds in the centre.

Finally was a new Radley handbag which I was shocked by. I've never had an expensive handbag that comes in it's own special pouch before. I am so lucky. I got the Radley Barbican bag. It is so beautiful and comes with small straps or a shoulder strap. It is the perfect size and comes with two zips. I can't wait to wear it!

What did you get for Christmas?

Thanks for reading

xxx