TTYA x Long Tall Sally part amazing.

24th May 2015
If you’ve caught my previous posts about the TTYA x Long Tall Sally collaborations (here and here) you’ll know that I have been seriously impressed. A third collection has just dropped on to the website and the team have really outdone themselves this time! This is the High Summer line and is made up of an eclectic mix of pieces, from festival fashions to super sleek silhouettes. I’ve popped an overview of the collection below so you can see for yourselves how impressive this range is- it’s so refreshing to see a brand develop a range of super on trend and high quality clothing for us tall girls, so often overlooked on the high street.
Stand out pieces for me are the crepe palazzo trousers and the beautiful printed maxi dress. I was lucky enough to be able to pick out a piece from the collection to style up, that post is coming soon so why not take a guess at what I opted for.

Which is your favourite piece from the range?

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Posted in brands I love, wish list

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Matcha May with Teapigs

23rd May 2015
As I’ve got older I’ve moved away from my habit of chain drinking cups of coffee and gravitate towards tea most of the time (although pre-8am during the week I’ll be three coffees in and bouncing off the walls). My favourite tea is good old English Breakfast but I do enjoy herbal teas more exotic blends from time to time, one of my favourites of which is green tea, particularly with Jasmine or Ginger.

Teapigs got in touch back in April to tell me about their “Matcha May”, bascially an excuse to shout about all the wonderful benefits that Matcha green tea boasts. Ever looking to find a new brew and to improve my health and wellbeing I was keen to know more!

Essentially Matcha is a green powdered tea that packs a powerful punch. Chock-full of antioxidants, great for boosting the metabolism and to beat sluggish feelings as well as working wonders for hair, skin and nails this was one product I couldn’t wait to meet.

I’m going to be honest, straight up Matcha isn’t ever going to become my brew of choice, not straight up anyway. A splash of almond milk goes a long way to improve the taste, removing the undertones of plant that put me off slightly. I couldn’t face it straight up as a shot, but whisked in to warm milk or served quite simply with a splash of milk and sugar and this is something you’ll find by my side on a daily basis. I’m not quite sure that drinking it like that preserves all of the health benefits but you can’t win them all! The beauty of Matcha is that it’s incredibly versatile, I added it in to my morning porridge and it would work equally well as a power boost to a smoothie for breakfast on the go. In true Laura style I also managed to make a “superfood” in to something as supremely unhealthy as possible, in the form of cupcakes slathered with vanilla buttercream icing.
These couldn’t be easier to make, just whip up a basic sponge mixture (I used a basic 4oz butter, flour and sugar recipe with 2 eggs) and stir in Matcha powder to taste, I used 1tsp and made 12 cupcakes and the flavours and colour were spot on.

Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes at 160*c then allow to cool before taking the biggest bowl (or in the case of me, pre-made tub, oops!) of vanilla butter cream and slather it on top before chucking on whatever sugary embellishments you can find!

The overall effect was simple but a big hit! The green colour of the cakes envoked intrigue among my colleagues and the Matcha combined with traditional sweet and spongey goodness was the perfect compliment to the mound of icing. I’ve still got about half of my Matcha left and have plans to experiment more in the baking department- let me know if you’d like me to share recipes.

What’s your favourite way to enjoy Matcha? Never tried it before? Stock up here.

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Teapigs kindly sent me this kit to enable this post to happen. Even Mae was impressed.

Posted in baking, food, life, life stuff, review

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Collarless

22nd May 2015
So it might be creeping toward the end of May but it’s hardly tropical out there. Sometimes it’s hard to believe we’re actually out of Winter as the weather teases us with one or two warm days followed by a week worth of chilly winds and rain. Determined to finally ditch the heavy weight coats I’ve been on a mission for something a little lighter that can easily be layered and as ever, New Look came up trumps!

Coat: New Look (coral version) : Dress: New Look (last year) | Boots: Stylist Pick

I found this black collarless coat looking lonely in my local New Look store, along with the coral version I have linked to above. Between us my Mum and I purchased both (who could resist at £12 each?) and I’m pretty confident that they meet all of my requirements. For this outfit I paired the coat with a tile print dress I picked up this time last year, one of those pieces that lies neglected in my wardrobe for long lengths of time until I suddenly become re-obsessed with it. It’d would have been nice to wear something other thank ankle boots and tights with it, but the weather was really not being kind when these photos were taken- you can’t see it but there was a very strong wind that saw me lose my balance more than once!
I’ve still got fingers crossed for some sunshine and decent temperatures tomorrow for Ellie’s wedding, but either way it’s going to be a beautiful day- I must remember waterproof mascara!

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Posted in life, life stuff, outfits

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Tastes of the British Isles with Marks and Spencer

20th May 2015
You can count on Marks and Spencer for some truly tasty food and when I first heard of their Tastes of the British Isles collection a couple of months ago I knew we were in for something special. I’m a true fan of British food, from the fabulous fruits to the earthy flavours there’s something so satisfying and wholesome about it all. Less wholesome were the sweet treats that Marks and Spencer kindly arranged for me to sample- but sweets are yet another thing that Britain does best!
I was super-duper excited when I saw liquorice catherine wheels in my bag of goodies as they always have been and probably always will be a favourite of mine. The manager in my nearest M&S said he preferred these to the original barratt’s ones and I would be tempted to agree- perfection! Also erring on the traditional side the fruity swirl lollipop put a smile on my face- who can resist the bright and beautiful lure of pure sugar?

On the less traditional side there were some new and exciting discoveries to be made. Strawberries and clotted cream fudge took me straight back to childhood holidays in Devon and the Rhubarb & Custard (made with freeze dried rhubarb, wheat crispies and custard flavoured white chocolate) might just be the greatest thing I’ve tasted this year. The Elderflower Raspberries were almost too pretty to eat but the sweet white chocolate and the sharpness of the freeze dried raspberries balanced beautifully with the delicate Elderflower flavour. The British Pudding sweets also deserve a special mention- lemon meringue and cherry bakewell flavoured sweets encase a cracknell centre that bring about all sorts of retro fabulous feelings.

I admit to being skeptical when I heard that Marks and Spencer had launched a rival to my beloved Marmite. Long time readers will know how devoted I am to the brown goo. Thankfully they end up being two entirely different products thanks to M&S’s addition of fruity notes to balance out the savoury overload so I can happily announce I love this product (created in collaboration with London Based Greenwich Meantime Brewery) without being disloyal to my first love.
Have you tried any of these products, what else do I need from the Tastes of the British Isles range? There’s so much more to it than what I’ve featured and I have no idea where to start…

Also, are you a lover or a hater? I’m not sure we can be friends if you can’t stand Marmite.

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Posted in food, M&S, review

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New Balance

18th May 2015
Same skirt, different day- I knew I’d end up living in this the second it arrived. Apologies for the creased state, anyone who knows me will attest to the fact I am hardly a domestic goddess and it didn’t occur to me that I might want to iron it before wearing again!

Skirt: New Look| Jumper c/o Skip n’ Whistle | Trainers: New Balance

This particular pair of New Balance has been on my wish list for well over a year but I couldn’t justify the expense. When I saw my pal Lois from Bunnipunch selling a pair for a bargain price I just couldn’t stop myself from snapping up despite having just bought my Adidas Gazelles and really, really not needing another pair of shoes. Still, I couldn’t be happier with my purchase as they are every bit as comfortable as I imagined and go with so many things.

This outfit was what I wore to a day time hen-do for one of my favourite people, Ellie. She gets married on the 23rd of this month and I just can’t wait to see her walk down the aisle. Fingers crossed that the sun shines on Saturday!

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Posted in life, life stuff, outfits, shoes

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