Non-Beauty Favourites #2

It's that time again! Time to post about my favourite fatty foods and TV programmes! Hah! Here's the non-beauty related things I've been loving lately...

TV

The Great British Bake Off - Ohhhh I'm hooked! I never watched the last series but when I heard the hype I knew I had to get involved this time around! Absolutely love the show and actually look forward to it every week. My faves at the moment are Martha and Richard, but that could all change! I always need snacks when I watch it though, as a hunger-maker!

Food/Snacks

Butterkist Toffee Popcorn - I think my Hubby might just be a little bit sick of me going on about these now. HOW NICE are they though?! I have the excuse I'm pregnant, but it's not a craving I don't think, as I've always loved them haha. They're so moreish it's dangerous haha! 

Drumsticks Squashies - Definitely the best out of the 'Squashies' family! These badboys are unreal and everytime I go into Home Bargains I grab a couple of bags! It's an illness! lol

Techno Techno

Canon eos 600d - Ok, so technically I've only had this 4 days, as I got it for my Birthday on Wednesday, but I'm already obsessed. So much so that I was having mixed up dreams last night about different lenses! Freaky lol. I'm an absolute beginner when it comes to DSLR's, but I'm trying to practice in Manual Mode as much as I can. I went out to the park yesterday with Martin and George to have a little practice...

George found a big stick (probs covered in dog saliva lol). Probably not the best photo, but not bad for a first attempt? Tips and Tricks welcome!

YouTube

Hannah Maggs

I'm subscribed to many YouTube channels, which I love watching when I've got a bit of free time, but there are a few YouTubers who upload regular weekly videos that I actually look forward to. Hannah Maggs is my absolute favourite! Hannah and her Husband Stefan do weekly vlogs every Sunday where they document their life in London with their ADORABLE 6 month old son Grayson. They are the cutest family ever, and I feel I can really relate to Hannah as she became a first time mum at 25 like I did, and she's really honest about the hard times which I find really refreshing. Hannah and Stefan's relationship is hilarious and Stefan works SO hard on editing the vlogs and making them so wonderful to watch. I even have my Mam involved and she texts me saying... "Hannah's new video is up". LOVE LOVE LOVE!

What/who have you been loving recently?

 
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My New Camera

Hey beauties! Hope you're all well! Sooo it was my Birthday on Wednesday 27th (in which I turned 27, bork), and I was lucky enough to receive some wonderful gifts, including the Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette, lots of Lush goodies, Soap & Glory products, Ciaté Nail Polishes, Chocolates, Disney Blu Rays, a canny amount of money and last but certainly not least, a brand new DSLR Camera.

The Canon EOS 600d. Ohhhh yes! Blogging (and life in general) just got a whole lot better! I've had my eye on this beauty for months and months now, as it seems to be the absolute favourite for bloggers and budding photographers! I did a lot of research before finally deciding that this was the best for me, as I'm a complete beginner when it comes to DSLR's, and it was a great deal! My Hubby bought it for me and it's honestly the best birthday present ever! Obviously I didn't want it just for blogging, though. Having a young family with another on the way, I think this will be the perfect tool to capture those younger years, as it does amazing videos as well as excellent quality photos. Now I've just gotta learn how to use it! 

If anyone has any tips/tricks I'd love to hear them. I have the basic 18-55mm lens kit at the moment so I'm gonna stick with that for now until I know what I'm doing and what my lens needs are! I've been practising with it in Manual mode, as I really don't want to get stuck in the 'auto rut'.

Loves xxx

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Lush The Comforter Bubble Bar

The Comforter Bubble Bar. £4.50

Ahhh Lush. How I love you! Not sure if I'm just making this up or not, but I'm pretty sure this is one of Lush's post popular products. I'd heard so many people rave about this bubble bar that I had to run out and treat myself.

Lush say;

"Sometimes you just need to shut yourself off from the outside world under a blanket of fruity foam that will put you back in the right frame of mind to face the world. This bar is supersized, so you’ll only need to crumble half a bar under your tap to make enough bubbles for a long, comforting soak. Cassis absolute gives a distinctive blackcurrant fragrance, while bergamot adds an uplifting note".

At £4.50, you might think it's really steep for 'bubble bath', but it's double the size of Lush's other bubble bars, and even though Lush say to crumble half a bar into the bath, you really don't need to. As you can see from the photo above, I crumbled the tiniest amount from the end of the bar and created all those bubbles. So you can add as much or as little as you like to make it last. I absolutely love this bubble bar - it turns the bath water pink, whilst adding the most amazing Ribena smell and making my skin feel silky soft. YUMMM!

I've just received 5 bath bombs and a bubble bar for my birthday, so expect a large post once I've had chance to get through them all! Let the bathing begin! xx

What are your favourite Lush products? 

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Exciting Announcement & Blog Name Change

Hello lovely readers. Firstly I just want to apologise for not posting anywhere near as much as I've wanted to over the past month or so (like, twice in August). I completely lost my blogging mojo and have been struggling to find a way of getting back into it. I absolutely love my blog and am always thinking of new ideas, but the ideas are all just mush in my mind now and I need to find a way to get it all organised. The main reason for this is that I've been feeling constantly tired and sick, and running around after a toddler when you're feeling this way doesn't leave much energy to do anything else. Which leads me to my exciting announcement. The reason I've been feeling the way I do is...

I'm PREGNANT! The Thompson household will be welcoming another baby to the madness in February next year and we couldn't be happier. I had my scan this morning and all was well with the baby. I'm 13 weeks, which they say is the 'magic stage' where you start to feel better and get that oh so famous pregnancy 'glow'! I'll have to let you know how that goes as at the moment I'm still feeling pretty poop. 

Cheeky little upside down baba! 

With my wonderful news now out in the open, I thought now is a great time to start a fresh. I've been wanting to change my blog name for a while now and thought this might be a great opportunity and will hopefully give me the boost I need to get everything organised and get stuck back into my blog good and proper! I'm thinking of just keeping my blog name simple and using just my name and middle name (Kate Emma), but I haven't fully decided on the URL yet. I'll write another post once I've got it all changed as I'll have to change my Twitter and Instagram names too.

Writing this post has already made me feel more positive about the future of my blog, and I'm looking forward to getting things back on track. Also, it's my birthday on Wednesday and I may just have a cheeky Canon 600d coming my way! If that's not a reason to get back into things then what is?

Hope you are all well and you can stick by me whilst I figure everything out.

Love and Hugs xxx

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Book: Leighton Denny's 'How I Nailed It'

Leighton Denny 'How I Nailed It'* -  £6.70 (ebook)

If I'm honest, I really don't read as much as I should, as I always tend to choose the internet and TV to take up my time until bed time. Naughty I know, but when I find a book I really enjoy reading, I do find it hard to put down. This was one of those books!

If you didn't already know, Leighton Denny MBE is an award winning nail guru, who has worked with some of the world's top stars, including Mariah Carey, Kate Moss, The Spice Girls and Jade Jagger. His autobiography 'How I Nailed It'*, describes his journey through life and how he became so successful. What I love about this book is how incredibly open and honest he is about all parts of his life. He comes across very down to Earth, and describes in detail the struggles he had to overcome to eventually making his dream a success. He had a very tough childhood and learnt a lot from his Dad about working hard for himself. From selling fancy dress costumes, to forklift truck driving, to setting up his own brand, Leighton really knows the meaning of hard work and it's most definitely what's got him where he is today. I found it very refreshing to read that the glamourous lifestyle is not always about parties and good times, but it does in fact have it's low points.

If you're into reading autobiographies, and love anything beauty/nail related, then this book is for you. An added bonus is that this October, Leighton will be working with the charity Breast Cancer Care for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, in which he will be donating 20% of all gross sales from his website leightondenny.com. The book is currently only available electronically but will be available in paperback on 20th August.

What have you been reading lately?


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Guest Post: Betty & Walter: Fabric Collector or Hoarder? Get Rid of Your Leftover Fabric with These 5 Fun Ideas

Are you one of those individuals who keep scraps of fabric with the idea that you may need it again later or create something wonderful out of it in the future? Now is the time to get out those bits and pieces and use them for a fantastic creation. Here’s a list of fun ideas from team at Betty & Walter for re-purposing beautifully printed fabric:

1. Woven Headband

A simple idea to make use of leftover fabric is to create a stylish headband. You can use any fabric for this idea (even old suit ties), and you don’t have to do a bit of sewing. You can follow the “Make a No Sew Fabric Head from Old Clothes” guide for handy tips and pointers.

2. Vintage Swimsuit

This is one of Betty & Walter’s founder and head-designer, Lisa Levis’ very own ideas. Remember the high-waisted bottoms that Marilyn Monroe used to wear on her luxurious beach outings?  You can create your very own gathered bikini top from pattern and a matching pair of high-waisted bottoms. Vintage everything has become ever so popular. Why not do a little pretend this summer and create your own 1960's actress look?

 3. Lampshade Cover

If you’re bored with the textures and colour of a room, you can make simple modifications such as changing your lampshade cover, to create a whole new atmosphere, look and feel in your room. From vintage to fancy, this idea for using leftover fabric doesn't require that much material (about a metre for this shade shape), and it’s very simple to do. Collect a bit more than a metre of paper to trace the pattern, spray-on adhesive, a pair of scissors, and of course your fabric of choice, and follow the steps in the lampshade covering guide. 

4. Reupholstered Chair

Although not everyone’s comfortable with doing their own upholstery, you can always stitch pieces of old fabric together in a quilt-like fashion and take it to a professional upholsterer. Try to create an even spread of different colours if you’re doing a set of chairs or stools so that you can highlight the colours with other pieces of furniture and create a certain look. The chairs below are well matched against the green wall, because there are many greens in the chairs’ patchwork. The same will be possible if the chairs were set against a dark pink wall.

5. Print Bags

Another idea is to create a small sized bag. If you don’t have enough of the same fabric for both sides of the bag, you can make a multi coloured bag too. Which bag do you use most often, iPad case or makeup clutch? Below are some of our favourites.

Betty & Walter was created in 2011 by British textile designer, Lisa Levis (previously Stickley). Inspired by her aunt Betty and uncle Walter, Betty & Walter designs are a reflection of practicality, value and quality, and feature a fresh take on modern print.