Only Fair

This Fair Isle jumper dress is last year's from New Look and one of my favourite jumper dresses. It's warm, it has a nice fit...and fulfills my love of all things Fair Isle (just wait until you see the tights I was bought yesterday!) Perfect for a quiet Sunday after the night before.

The bracelet is a gift from my Mum and comes from Kleshna where the money goes to a very worthy cause.


I managed to do yet more shopping yesterday, I need shopping rehab...or at least, I'm going to attempt a non-frivolous spend week (meaning food, essentials and Christmas presents only). Oh help.

Happy Halloween...what are you doing? We're taking fun sized chocolate to work and decorating with sprinkles (I might go trick or treating on a few doctors doors...after surgery, of course!)

xxx

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Friday afternoon provided me with an afternoon off work and a chance to do some baking, it was requested that I make some cakes for a social gathering I went to last night, and in the spirit of Halloween I finally got around to baking with pumpkin...finally finding a use for a tin of the stuff I purchased quite a long time ago!

Pumpkin, especially the canned type seems big in the USA but I've found very few recipes calling for it over here.
In the end  I adapted a recipe I found on a food blog, substituting the faff of preparing and pureeing a real, live pumpkin for the same amount of the canned stuff.

The result? An absolute hit! The canned pumpkin is elusive, I found mine in my local Waitrose, and I know some American sweet shops and posh department stores sell it at great expense. It is, after extensive research, a highly versatile ingredient...so if you see any at a reasonable price I'd stock up!


The Recipe, adapted from here

- 200g plain flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 250g caster sugar
- 110ml vegetable oil
- 2 lightly beaten eggs
- 110ml milk
- 150g pumpkin flesh, blended to a puree (I used the same amount from the can)
- I also added a bag of chocolate chips.


1. Flour mixture: In a bowl, sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon and sugar together, and mix well.
2. Pumpkin mixture: In a large bowl, beat the oil, eggs and milk. Stir in the pumpkin puree.
3. Combine the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture. Stir until just blended (and lumpy). Be careful not to over mix as it will result in a tough texture.
4. Place baking cases in muffin tins. Spoon the mixture into the cases (each slightly more than 2/3 filled).
4. Bake for about 20 minutes in preheated oven of 175C (350F). Remove the muffins and cool on a rack for several minutes before serving.

 The recipe stated it yielded 16 muffins, but I ended up with 24 cupcake sized ones, which were plenty big enough.
 They took about 12-15 minutes to cook in my fan oven. A skewer that comes out clean when poked in the middle will tell you that they are done.

I will be making these again!

Anyone else do some Halloween baking? 

Got any amazing pumpkin recipes to share? (USA readers, I'm looking at YOU!)

xxx

Pink Lady

Yesterday was Wear it Pink day, which proved to be the perfect opportunity to finally wear this Dorothy Perkins fit and flare dress which I purchased some time ago and left lurking in my wardrobe.

It was also the perfect excuse to snack on pink smarties...not that one needs an excuse to eat pink food!


Did you wear pink yesterday?

Happy Weekend!

xxx

Fabulous Friday; Pure Collection

I seem to be all about the luxury at the moment, glitter, diamonds and now...cashmere. I recently clapped eyes on what I think is the perfect Cashmere Sweater Dress from Pure Collection and despite being out of my current price range, I want want want it...

The dress, which also comes in grey costs £179 which, this far in to the month is just eye-watering...but then can you really go wrong with such a classic dress? Perfect for layering with woolen tights and chunky boots..or something a bit smarter to keep warm at work. The shape and colours are timeless and...do I need to go on? I've talked myself in to a full scale obsession!

And seeing as I seem to be compiling a massive wish-list here, I'll just tag on a few more things I adore from the Pure Collection website!

 £299

 £129

£129

...and suddenly, my Mum's ideas about matchmaking me with a young, rich and single doctor don't seem so daft!

Happy Friday
xxx

27-10

Winter and it's lighting issues are driving me mad! Not so bad when I don't have to be out of the house before day light breaks and get home before the sun sets...but on work days I just end up with awful photos!

Wearing draped printed dress from La Redoute, Brown tights (not that you can tell) from New Look and Clarks shoes c/o Sarenza.

Two more days to the weekend....bring.it.on. Halloween parties anyone?


xxx

What a Girl Wants; Diamonds

I don't own diamonds, I can't afford diamonds (that's why cubic zirconia exists right?) but that doesn't stop me dreaming.
I've seen online Diamond jewelry store  Anjolee pop up on several of my favourite blogs lately, so when I was invited to take a look too, I couldn't resist!


My first port of call was the Diamond necklaces

This one in particular stood out...I'm not sure why. It vaguely reminds me of Audrey Hepburn and Breakfast at Tiffanys though.

And this one? A Diamond necklace called "life is great" simply spoke to me.

Should I ever revoke my "single for life" status (i.e. find myself a man...just NOT happening) then this ring would do nicely.


All the jewellery is customisable to suit your tastes and budget too, which I think is pretty awesome...

Are diamonds a girls best friend?

xxx

sponsored post.

flower power

Another Matalan dress (purchased some weeks ago and sort of forgotten about) worn with my Yull Chelsea boots that rarely leave my feet these days. Also pictured; early morning dance in the kitchen and the standard dodgy lighting that I work so well!

Not much else to say, really, other than HAPPY MID-WEEK...hang on in there, it's almost over!

xxx

Hello Pretty: Doris Designs

My inbox is a constant source of wishlist increasing e-mails. Last week one popped up from Doris Designs and despite never having owned one in my life, I had a sudden lusting for a petticoat a big, ballerina style petticoat.

Doris Designs launches petticoat skirts for adults and children.
They will get your heartbeat running away and are quite unlike anything you would find on the high street. Based on the 50s style petticoat, but with a twist. Each adult skirt is made of over 36 meters of light chiffon, giving them a beautiful bounce and a soft feel against the skin.

Adults come in 18” and 21” length with an elasticated waistband to suit all sizes as well as all sizes for the young ones. Available in a range of vintage colours through to more bold shades, such as hot pink.

With October being Breast Cancer Awareness month, now is the perfect time to wear it pink!

The adult shorter length petticoats cost £63 and the longer length cost £65. Children's designs start at £35.

Available at dorisdesigns.co.uk

These make me wish I had stuck with the ballet lessons when I was younger (I was blessed with the grace of an Elephant!)

How would you wear a petticoat?

xxx

squirrel

 

I'm a fan of squirrels, I think they are adorable and amusing little creatures, so when I saw a squirrel print jumper in Matalan I became slightly obsessed. I came very close to buying it several times, and kicked myself each time I left it behind...

I wasn't kicking myself last week when I was off sick though, and browsing the Matalan website where I saw the jumper reduced from £20 to £5...

I like to call that "shopping fate"

 

Do you have any happy little stories like that to share? This jumper makes me smile...it fixes my love of knitwear and of fluffy tailed mammals in one fell swoop!

Happy Monday (well, as Happy as a Monday can be) xxx

P.S. Congratulations to Please May I? Winner of my iherb giveaway!

Touch of Sparkle

New Look jumper, Matalan skirt, New Look tights and Betty London boots. Worn for a cold but otherwise perfect example of what an Autumn day should be like. The sequins on the jumper make me smile and the faux fur lining of the boots will be keeping my feet snug all winter.

xxx

(sort of) snacking saturday

Please don't shout at me for a very early Christmas themed post, but I am a planner and someone who likes to get ahead...especially as this is the first year I'll be working the run up to Christmas and my time will have to be managed more carefully!

The wonderful folk over at dotcomgiftshop (who previously sent me some gorgeous vintage biscuit tins) sent me this biscuit tin from their seasonal range and I don't know how best to fill it...

What I want are YOUR best festive baking recipes...cake, cookies...anything really...an old family recipe or something new and unusual. Work will be my valiant taste testers!

To make it more fun, the recipe I pick to fill the tin will win a little prize (I'll pick the winner at the end of November)

Hit me with your best!

Want a tin of your own? It costs a very reasonable £6.95 from here...and you'll probably pick up a few Christmas gifts too. Dotcomgiftshop is my first port of call when I want an unusual gift or something for my own home...I cannot rate this site highly enough!

Happy Saturday
xxx

Total Greek Yoghurt e-book competition

My favourite yoghurt producers (seriously, no matter how many I try I always go back) have today launched a fantastic competition supporting a very worthy cause, I'd love to see some of you food fiends getting involved...please let me know if you do!


TOTAL Greek Yoghurt today announced it is producing a healthy recipe e-book, with all proceeds donated to UK charity Action for Children.

Food enthusiasts are being encouraged to visit TOTAL Greek Yoghurt’s Facebook page to submit their recipes featuring the creamy product. The recipes chosen for inclusion in the e-book will be voted for by TOTAL’S Facebook community. The recipe with the most votes will earn its author an iPhone 4S and iPad 2 complete with smart cover. The runner up will receive an iPad2.

In addition, all participants voted into the recipe e-book will receive a free cool bag and a published name credit in the book.

The new digital cook book will be available to download on Amazon as a Kindle e-book from early 2012. The deadline for recipe submissions is Friday 20th January 2012.

All money raised by the e-book will be donated to the UK charity Action for Children which works tirelessly to support the UK’s most vulnerable and neglected young people. One of the signs of child neglect is hunger. The effects of hunger can be devastating, from daily pain and poor health to low educational achievement and bullying. Action for Children looks to combat this by early intervention.

The competition officially launches today.

Join in the TOTAL Greek Yoghurt conversation:
TOTAL Greek Yoghurt Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TotalGreekYoghurt
TOTAL Greek Yoghurt Twitter Page: http://twitter.com/TotalGreek
TOTAL Greek Yoghurt You Tube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/TotalGreekYoghurt

cold comfort

Alternative title "the clothing version of pajamas"

Primark jumper dress and Betsey Johnson tights. Worn for my second day off sick. Back to work today, my outfit is un-inspired but warm...that's the best I can hope for when I feel like I'm sleepwalking!

If you cast your eyes to the right, you'll see I've teamed up with Stolen Thunder to offer a 10% discount when you use my affiliate code (meaning I earn commission) just click the banner to shop (and expect a wish list post soon)

On the wish list note, my stomach wants breakfast (and something more exciting than toast!)

Happy Friday folks, hard to believe we're at the end of another week...and what a week it's been..
xxx

20/10

I had anticipated a longer break from blogging, but then I hadn't factored being off work sick for two days, literally (occupational hazard).

I would like to express gratitude from myself and my family for the kind words about Flash. They are deeply appreciated. It's so very odd, not having our little buddy around and it's going to take some getting used to not having him always two steps behind us wanting a cuddle or causing some kind of havoc.

This is a casual outfit from earlier in the week (Tuesday?). The jumper is from TK Maxx, the jeans were pinched off Mum, the scarf was a Sunday purchase from Yumi who are recently back on my radar, and the boots are Irregular Choice via Sarenza.

It's been an odd week, one I think we'd all rather forget. Hopefully I'll be back at work tomorrow and some sense of normality will resume. I do wish someone would tell the patients to stay at home when they have a highly contagious vomiting bug, but you know...win some lose some, I've managed to crack on with some Christmas shopping at least (anyone else started?)

xxx

End of an Era

Today we had to make the tough decision to have Flash put to sleep.

We had known it was coming for some time now, that the time he had left with us was borrowed. But it still hurts. A lot.

I'm going to take a few days away from the blog. It might seem silly to anyone who has never owned a pet but Flash was so much more than "just a cat".

R.I.P. Flash

xxx

All That Glitters

Maybe it's the un-deniable fact that the festive season is fast approaching, or perhaps it's my inner five year old escaping, but lately I've been obsessed with all things glittery...

Top, £12.99 Missguided

Shoes, £50 Asos

Nail Polish, £16 House of Fraser

Boots (of dreams), fartooexpensive Stanwells

Brooch, £33 Urban Outfitters


What are you obsessed with right now?

Glitter...yay or nay? I simply must own some sparkly shoes!

xxx

An Apple a Day

My favourite Monsoon Fusion dress, worn to death since being purchased last summer. Picked by Alex as the perfect outfit to show support for my work place's patient participation group at a local health awareness day.

Sadly, I think the time has come to wave goodbye to short sleeves, this outfit required extensive cardigan layering for most of the day.


xxx