9 Things I'll Be Doing More Of in 2017 - My New Years Beauty Resolutions

Jumper - online here and cheaper version online here. 

With January coming to a close (something I'm happy about because hello Spring, I'm ready for your warmth) I thought it would be nice to end with a little look at some beauty resolutions this year. I've been away for most of January so my New Years resolutions have completely slid (New York was basically me living on fries) so today, I want to revisit and refresh my resolutions because hey, it doesn't need to be the 1st of Jan to make resolutions and set goals. Let's do this.

Are Potatoes Healthy? My Favourite Easy Potato Dish - Potatoes More Than A Bit On The Side

In my family we have always eaten a balanced diet, you will hear me mention balance a lot and that's because I've been brought up to believe eating anything you like in moderation is okay and sticking to the 80/20 rule. Doing this keeps you satisfied and prevents feeling deprived which is key to sticking to balanced eating. With clean eating being very much in vogue currently some people could be forgiven for thinking that some of the more traditional foods no longer have a place in our diets. In our family, rather than omit traditional food in favour of more fashionable food, we still enjoy traditional staples while incorporating new foods in to our everyday life as they become popular - in other words we get the best of both worlds. New foods bring variety and adventure while the more traditional foods make us feel comfortable and satisfied. I'm hoping most of you have read my blog post about the dangers of clean eating and believe me when I say: carbs are not the enemy and in fact, they give us nutrients and lots of energy.

How To Work Anywhere Effectively - Leman Locke Apartments Review

I've become pretty good at working remotely. Luckily, my job allows me to work anywhere in the world so I wouldn't really say I have an office, or somewhere I work the most. People keep asking where I'm based and I guess it varies from day to day. Boyfriends bed? Yup, perfect desk. Starbucks? Yup. Airport? Yes. Train table? Daily. I often find myself making use of the office space at my gym, David Lloyd too. It's safe to say, working remotely is my thing. Today I wanted to give some top tips on working anywhere, effectively inspired by a recent stay at Leman Locke Apartments where I was probably my most productive yet! If you read my blog post about how to juggle everything  you'll know that I seem to take a little too much on, which is why I now try to focus on using my time as effectively as possible. Hopefully this will help you with that too!

The Shock Mascara For False Lash Effect YSL Review - Yves Saint Laurent Shock Mascara

When I heard YSL were launching a new eye product I simply had to get my hands on it. When I found out it was a mascara, I was even more excited. I’m all about those flawless make up staples, that means, a great mascara, a trusty foundation and an even better concealer. Once you’ve got the basics right, you’re pretty much sorted. One of my desert island essentials is a trusty mascara and I'm always on the hunt for new ones. If you read my recent blog post about the top mascaras and eye products for long lashes, you'll know I'm obsessed with getting the longest lashes possible. Today I’m really excited to be doing a review of a product barely spoken about until now, The Shock Mascara for false lash effect by YSL. I hope you love these images as much as I do. Wait until you see the before and after!

The Thoughts Of A 20-Something-Year Old 23 - Things I've Learnt By 23

Hello hello! In December (gosh that feels like years ago) I turned 23. It feels really weird to be 23, I kind of wanted to stay 21 forever, but as my Grandad always says, ageing is a good thing, it means you're healthy as you're growing old! I wanted to get this live on my actual birthday but just didn't have the time so today I wanted to do a nice little personal post about 23 things I've learnt to mark my 23rd birthday, albeit very late. I hope anyone can relate to these though.

The Ultimate Guide To Visiting New York City - What To Do And See In New York City

Boots / Coat / Dress / Scarf - Ad affiliate links 

Today is the day where I finally put my huge New York city guide live. It seems everyone is planning on visiting New York this year (or at some point) so it's best I get this up now, get it screenshotted, bookmarked and send it to your friends because I'm hoping this is going to be the only New York city guide you need for your trip. I just stepped foot off a plane from a trip from New York (I was lucky enough to visit with Simon Malls, the most incredible malls you've ever seen, I had no idea they had them all over the US either) so it seems fitting to publish this today. I have visited New York four times now, so I feel like now is a good time to write an updated guide, with everything you need to see, do and eat when visiting New York. I lived in Montreal for a year which is only an hours flight from New York so it really does feel like a second home to me. It doesn't matter if you're visiting New York for 2 days or 20, you can definitely fit a lot of stuff into your time in New York and hopefully, this comprehensive guide of the best things to see and do when you're in NYC will help you out. Every time I visit a new place I make sure I have as many recommendations as possible, so here they all are, tried and tested in one easy place to make sure you have the best time in New York. I'm so excited. Here's everything you need to know for your trip to New York (including where to get the BEST PIZZA in New York and where to get the best brunch in New York ha). Let's do this.

Read my 2020 guide to visiting New York!

The Most Instagrammable Cities To Travel To And Visit

Recently, I read a blog post by CEWE Photoworld about the top 10 most instagrammed places and it inspired my own blog post about the top Instagrammable travel destinations from the places I’ve travelled to so far. I’ve already done one blog post about my favourite worldwide destinations (so far) so wanted to do an updated one but this time, focusing on the top Instagrammable places! In todays day, many of us like to Instagram things (which is totally fine, this blog post is just a bit of fun, obviously life isn't just about Instagramming and it's always better to see it with your own eyes). I feel fortunate that I’ve visited a lot of insta-worthy places, which you’ll find below and this year? I hope to visit even more, such as Yelloh-Village and the Basque County, Fiji, Australia, Singapore. You name it, I want to tick them all off this year. Let’s see where made the cut so far...Here goes, in no particular order, here are some of my favourite most instagrammable cities to visit! 

Top Tips To Feeling Zen, Relaxed And De-Stressed In 2017

If you read my blog post about the highs and lows of 2016, you'll know that this year I plan on taking a little more 'me' time, that means focusing on my wellbeing and you should do that too! We talk about health and fitness but often we forget to discuss wellbeing, one of my main reasons for going to the gym. I love how clear it makes my head feel, it relaxes me and de-stresses me. When I lived in Canada, I did a mixture of hot yoga,barre and pilates 5 times a week, and I've never felt stronger or more content, relaxed and free. Yoga and pilates, just like the gym, make me feel instantly revitalised, strong and give me a clear head. One of my resolutions this year is to do more yoga and it inspired this post. I want to give you some of my top tips to zen this New Year.

Top London Restaurants For The New Year; Where To Eat In London

Dress online here.

Hello hello! After the positive comments on my recent best hotels in London post, I thought it was about time I did an updated post all about some of my favourite London restaurants. One of my favourite things about London? The food! There are so many incredible places to eat and drink. I could write forever but today, I'm starting with a few of my favourites if you like this post, maybe I'll have to do a further, more comprehensive list so please do let me know.

How To Get The Longest Lashes; The Best Mascaras For Long, Thick Lashes & How To Grow Long Eye Lashes

Locke Hotels, Leman Locke / Jumper 

For as long as I can remember, long lashes have been my favourite thing. Ever since I was a little girl first trying out make up, I'd always be on the look out for the best eye lash curlers, the best mascaras (trust me, I've tried them all) and figuring out how to get the longest, flutteriest lashes. I blame my Mum, she always says how mascara is her holy grail item and can't be without it. She brought me up well, with a passion and love for mascara and eye products. Today I wanted to share all those years of trying mascaras and give you my top tips on how to get the longest lashes, including my absolute top mascaras. I also wanted to write up a beauty post, I feel like I've got a little behind on my beauty in the last two weeks so see this as an apology from me! Let's do this!

The Arch Hotel London Review & Getting My Teeth Professionally Whitened With Dr Richard Marques

Give me a hotel with a TV in the bathtub and I'll never leave. It's no secret that I'm a fan of luxury hotels, so when I stayed at The Arch recently I pretty much wondered if they'd allow me to become a permanent resident. I'm a sucker for a place that makes me feel like a real life princess. Tucked away in a beautiful London townhouse, this quaint little hotel definitely gets thumbs up from me. Matt and I love staying in hotels anywhere in the world, but staycations in London always make us feel especially relaxed, rejuvenated and happy.  Yep, you guessed it, today's post is another date weekend in London with us. You may remember me mentioning my love for The Arch in my recent blog post about the top places to stay in London. I invite you to come feel all princess like with me. 

Veganuary - Let's Discuss. Plus, What Foods Can Vegans Eat? List Of Vegan Foods

If you've read any of my health and fitness posts you'll know that for me, balance is key. I believe in eating better (not less) and moving more, something you can read more about here. I'm all about the 80/20 rule, that is, eating well 80% of the time and then not so well the other 20%, that way, I don't binge and I don't deprive myself. It really is that simple. I believe you can still have abs and eat pizza too (don't tell me you can't because trust me, you definitely can). Life is not about deprivation or feeling guilty because you enjoyed some good food. I know it's not the easiest thing to do, but, eating better and moving more is a nice, simple concept to grasp when it comes to keeping fit and healthy and yep, it works for me. I've been reading a lot of books recently about health and fitness to get me in the zone for the new year. Most of them talk about healthy substitutes and I guess, that's what I've been doing for the last few years. I have fizzy drinks on special occasions, don't have half as much cheese as I used to and substitute added sugar in cakes for natural alternatives such as honey. Today, inspired by Veganuary, I wanted to show you some of my favourite vegan desserts but mainly, discuss Veganuary. I'm not vegan, but I am going to *try* for research purposes to choose more vegan options this month and also, use it as a way to choose more healthy and natural substitutes. I'm also going to help you by showing you a list of vegan foods so you can try too if you want to.

Homeware Haul, Interior Inspiration, Gym Kit & More! Best Finds From TKMaxx

Earlier this week, I headed into somewhere I haven't been for quite some time. I honestly can't believe what I discovered and the value for money. As Matt and I prepare ourselves for a big house move later this year (so happy I can say that now, hello 2017!) I feel like looking for gorgeous homeware is going to become my new hobby. Let's see what happened and what goodies I picked up and where from last week... You can also see some of my new years resolutions weaved into this post too!

Top Trends of 2016 - My Favourite Outfits Of 2016

After my top trends of 2015 post went down so well, I thought I'd do a post today recapping some of my favourite looks of 2016. Recycling and bringing looks back out is my favourite thing, so I know I'll still be wearing these this year too, oh hello 2017, you crept up on us. These have been chosen by my most liked/clicked on/viewed posts from my fashion section and I'm excited to share them. I hope you like these outfits as much as I do. Most of them are still available, or in the sale, so do not fear, you can still grab them now!

An Honest Look At 2016; Mistakes, Triumphs, Achievements, Lessons Learnt

I was debating whether or not to do a '2016 round up post'. Usually, I'd have had one written by the end of December but in December, life threw many curveballs at us and my priorities changed. I went from feeling on top of things to only wanting to focus on my family and their health and wellbeing. If you read my blog post about the truth behind social media, you'll know that we've been dealing with a few not so nice things recently, behind the glamour of social media and it kind of knocked me off track and put my life into perspective. One thing 2016 really taught me is the importance of family and wellbeing. It's crazy, my job is social media and I'll do everything I can to defend these wonderful platforms we have, but, I do agree, it's so important to remain real, which is why if something is going on, even if I can't go into detail about what it is, I'll let you know that behind the filtered cocktail, posed bikini photo, there is a real heart, person and emotions in there. I think it is so important to put perspective on life. Now I'm finally getting myself together after some much needed rest, I've decided to write this blog post as more of a reflective post. I wanted to do this from an honest reflective point of view and talk to you about some of my highlights of 2016, my mistakes of 2016 and the things I've learnt, as well as some things I'll take with me this year. It's interesting, you see a lot of people on social media bashing people for making goals and celebrating the new year. I have an issue with that. If someone wants to use the new year as a way to set goals and better themselves, then why not let the new year be a fresh page for them? Yes, of course January 1st, 2017 is just another day in the calendar, but, if it gives people a reason to make positive changes and set achievable goals, then I'm certainly not going to turn my nose up at that. Let's chat, grab a coffee, it's a rambly one but I hope you'll love it.