New House Things!

I am very excited! I've just had to buy a few things for my new room for my new house that I'm moving into this weekend! I can't wait to take some pictures of it and show you. Although I'm only there for 6 months, so I won't be making any dramatic or permanent changes, it will be nice to add a few of my own things to it! Below are some of the items I've bought over the last few days, and at the bottom are some (realistic!) purchases I hope to make as well, once I get there.

I just love buying new things for my room/house! Don't you? Mostly - I'm obsessed with duvet covers and bedding!

I went to Tesco to get some plates/crockery, and found this gorgeous, but still simple design (below). While I was there though, I came across this pretty bedding! I love pale coloured bedding, but wasn't sure if I should go for all white, so this pastel stripe is a great compromise! The underside of it is white, and the top has the pretty stripes you can see above! I love it!

These are the mugs and plates I chose - how cute are they? I had crockery from Tesco for my student house, but neither me or my housemates took very good care of them, so three years on I needed them replaced, and chose this adorable pattern instead! Needless to say these will be very well looked after!

I saw this in Dunelm Mill for under £5, and I know I have to get it! It's so cute and goes perfectly with my bedding. I love having lots of smaller pillows, although in my room at home they don't really match my bed, so this time I will make sure they do! Keeping in with the theme is this laundry bag below from Cath Kidston. I wanted a little bag to hang on the back of the door/wardrobe, rather than a larger container. I don't have that much room, and mine in uni took up way more room than it needed to! This floral one is £10, which isn't cheap for a cloth bag I know, but I am a sucker for Cath Kidston. I'll see how it goes..! 

The only other thing I think I'll want at the moment is a plain rug. I did see one on my Tesco shopping spree like this one below, for £14. It would be nice just to have something by my bed to cover the carpet and to match my bedding!

My Month: August

Apologies for the August review delay. Rather an uneventful month though in comparison to the last! I have spent so much time working and driving, I haven't really been able to do much else!

I spent a really nice long weekend in Kent, full of sun, BBQs and good company! Then it was back home to work though! I'm really glad I've done a lot of work through the Summer though as it gives me something to fall back on for my move up North (very shortly!). It was nice to have not much else to do as well, as life is about to take a pretty hectic turn!

This is the theme tune to my month though, I just discovered this song and I adore it.

Yummy food

Now that my mum is back home and not working anymore, she's been very busy in the kitchen! We started watching Lorraine Pascale's cooking programme on BBC1 and absolutely loved the idea of everything she cooked, so my mum went out and bought the book! I really recommend it, we've only had it for about a week and already cooked three delicious meals from it. Plus it was about £8 in Tesco - bargain!

I love fish, and the two we've tried from that section have been fabulous! First, a salmon saltimbocca with gremolata potatoes. It's salmon pan fried in pancetta, with a side of crushed new potatoes which have been mixed with lemon, parsley, pine nuts and olive oil. I think it's traditionally made with meat instead of fish, but her new take on it is delicious!

The second one (that we're making tonight), is a prawn and chorizo linguine. Made with chilli and red wine, I just know it's going to have an amazing flavour. It looks delicious, and to be fair - all the dishes I've tried so far really do come out to look just as she says! I'll be sure to let you know how this one went down! The third dish was Tarragon pork steaks, which I can't find a picture of, and I completely forgot to take my own of any of the cooking we've done so far! I am less keen on meat, but these were gorgeous, and had a sauce of mushroom, shallots, cream and mustard. The book is a must buy, the food is top class, and genuinely quite straight forward to make! 

I can't wait to try the next thing! If anyone gives these recipes a go, be sure to let me know what you think! You can also find recipes from Lorraine Pascale's most recent TV episodes online here.

Blog Button!

I made a Blog Button! It's just a simple first attempt but I actually really love it! I hope you do too!
If you want to use it that would be amazing - please let me know if you want me to use yours!

<a href="http://www.beautyandbriefcase.blogspot.com"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz66qrxOyxFBkJNXgRFQtOPZnsvPsvf8_ej8lfzsdOLhxZjp5VlpH6PM2Ny7n7-x6_YH-Fjs235Y3Vgbi948i6Oiga0tsdfLcjE1Xk6j1A_BvaHjGPSWBezN3RjuGdLBojncYV5CZVGf7Q/s1600/logo.png"/></a>

My 'Late Summer BBQ' Essentials

This bank holiday weekend I've been in Kent and one of the days we had our BBQ which we do every year on this weekend. Although it's Kent, the weather wasn't as glorious as is usually promised, so it was a case of dressing far less summery than usual! I put together an outfit that was something very similar to this, I thought I'd share it with you because it was a great late summer/early autumn combo for style and comfort!



1. I love this print for jumpers. This is Tommy Hilfiger, as is mine but it's mostly grey with a bit of blue and yellow. I got mine for about $35 (£23) in an outlet when I was in the US. I think they are a bit more expensive buying straight from the UK. I love them though, they are quite fine, and so suitable for this time of year.

2. My Jack Wills jeans were about £60 when I bought them a year ago. I love them, they are so worth the price. I don't usually spend a lot of money on jeans but you can just see with these that they are well cut and fit perfectly.

3. I love a casual brown cross body bag with a sweater and jeans combo like this. It makes it look quite sophisticated. This Mulberry one might be reaching a bit far, but it's beautiful, and exactly the type of thing I mean!

4. I'm not big on jewellery at all but I do like a very simple pendant, especially with a V neckline. The one I usually wear is a simple silver star from Accessorize.

5. Brown loafers. I think mine might be in need of replacing, but I still love them. Must have shoe in my opinion, especially when you don't like heels so much but also don't want to be stuck in Converse (like me!).

Henry Holland

I know we're still in August, but I've just come across Henry Holland, who has a gorgeous range of jumpers in Debenhams that I really want to get my hands on for the Autumn! Moving to the cold North kind of gives me the excuse to get them all don't you think? I've never heard of this designer before, and I have a lot of faith in Debenhams - I love Red Herring, Jasper Conran and Julien MacDonald so I think Henry Holland will be a safe bet too.

1. Green Geeky Cat jumper - £36

2. Knitted sheep jumper - £38

3. Skiing penguin jumper - £36

4. Horse jumper - £38

Find them all here! They also have some fabulous satchels (I love satchels.. watch this space for a post!). I love the green cat one, what's your favourite?

All quiet on the Western Front

Apologies for being so quiet recently. I've been working a lot more in the last few days (and I haven't even started my new full time job yet!) This bank holiday weekend will be a lovely break though. I'll be heading down to Kent for a few days to catch up with my mum's partner's family. Also it gives me the excuse to take and share some lovely seaside photos of what will hopefully be a sunny long weekend!

The weather here has been SO awful, it's depressing looking at the temperatures down in the South East, but I'll be there soon to share it! I did manage to grab some free time after work today to catch up with a school friend. We went to a new coffee shop in our town, it's a proper little tea room although I didn't have cream tea this time! Look how adorable my meal was though!

Everything there is so beautiful, even down to the plates, they were so pretty. I meant to find out where they were from but I completely forgot. I adore the little heart shaped Le Creuset bowl with chutney in it. I just love the brand and I never thought to use them for this purpose before!
They had a champagne cream tea for only £8.50 which I am definitely going to be tempted by next time! What a fantastic local find!

'Meeting your manager' Essentials

In an earlier post I mentioned my trip up North to meet my manager and get a feel for my new office and city. I wanted to get a smart/casual medium, because I had loads of city exploring and house hunting to do afterwards, and I think I got it just right. It turns out you can actually be pretty casual in my new office which is a bit of shame in a way, as I was hoping I needed a super smart look, but this way it works out less expensive at least!

1. Navy tapered cut off trousers. Mine were from Topshop, these are Mango - £30
2. I tucked my cream horse patterned blouse into the trousers. I really like this one too; SugarHill Boutique Merry Go Tie Blouse - £50
3. I'm useless in heels so these are great for me. Mine were a fabulous leather New Look Bargain! They are popular now everywhere though. Franco Sarto Clinic Leather Loafers - £55
4. I don't need to say any more about my go to bag! Longchamp Le Pilage - £60
5. Standard for me, pearl earrings. These are by Givenchy for £14 apparently. Can't quite believe it!

Housing Success!

My trip up North over the weekend was a huge success - meaning that I met my lovely new house mates and found a house for the next six months! Hold tight for loads more house themed 'wishlist' posts!

I'm really close to the city centre, and just a 15 minute walk to work so the location couldn't be better! We're also near the university so that makes me think it will be quite a busy and safe area. We have the top 2 floors of a 3 story house, and although we haven't picked rooms I quite fancy myself in the top floor room which is the smallest but I love the cosiness of it! I can't wait to make it my own and post some pictures!

I'm so excited to start my new job, I met my manager and got a much better idea of what was expected. It seems as though I'm going to be crazy busy! I think I've found a nice gym and health club nearby though which will be a nice relaxing break from a busy working life!

All in all I'm so happy with how it's all gone, I can't wait to get started and tell you guys even more about my new life up North!!

My Emma Bridgewater Wishlist

So although I haven't even found the house for moving away next month, I'm going to continue to pretend that it is the gorgeous city apartment I have in my head. I love Emma Bridgewater almost as much as Cath Kidson, except for the fact that it's way more expensive. Anyway I couldn't help but collect a few things on here and hope that one day they will fit in my lovely new house.. wherever and whenever that may be!

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6.

1. Pink Hearts Double Duvet Set - £90

2. Pink Hearts Bathrobe - £75

3. Polka Dot Teapot - £49.50

4. Polka Dot Casserole Dish - £64.95

5. Black Toast Pasta Bowl - £19.95

6. Small Wine Glass - £24.95

Music Mashup

I love this video, it's so clever. I was just looking through my old posts on Tumblr and came across it. So catchy and upbeat! Give it a listen :)

Graduation Update

My mum came back home for good, and brought with her the lovely camera with all my graduation pictures on it! I just wanted to share a few as it was such a fantastic day, and although for some reason I was super nervous, I had so much fun and enjoyed so much!

Sit, watch, wait.

I know I've been in work all week, but that really doesn't excuse me being this lazy throughout the weekend. I've had the Olympics on constantly, and today seems to be going really well - just like yesterday! I know that everyone has seen the pictures a million times so I apologise, but they just make me so happy!!

Ben Ainslie - best Olympic sailor in history

Into the final!

Jess Ennis - the face of the Olympics!

World record holding cyclists

I underestimated our rowing...

... it would appear!

I'll try not to post too much more British pride I promise. I got totally carried away and bought myself the Team GB polo shirt last night amongst all the excitement! Is't it pretty? After I saw Kate wearing it I wanted it even more! At this moment in time the tennis has got me completely on edge, Murray has just won the first set and I can't wait to see how the rest of it pans out. I hope everyone else is getting sufficiently excited about the Olympic spirit - feeling so British and proud right now!  

Olympic Mania!

I feel obliged to have a mandatory Olympic post, since they are on right now in my country. I am not a sports fan, except for rugby which is adored here in Wales, but I am loving the Olympics right now, and the fact that our little country is currently 4th in the rankings! I am very impressed. I'm still excited over Murray's tennis win yesterday, amongst other things - can't wait to see what happens in the Heptathlon events! Fingers crossed.

I also love it because it brings out such a nice atmosphere of coming together as a country, which we've been doing a lot of this year with the Queen's Jubilee. Having the Olympics here too makes it feel like such a great place to be, and makes me feel... wait for it... proud to be British!
I also love how relaxed and down to earth everyone becomes because of it. And I do mean everyone..!

I love the fact that they are so involved. The Princes had an interview last night on the Olympic programme which I missed, I'm about to catch up with it right now, and afterwards I want to see how Jess Ennis does in her heptathlon!

Bare Minerals Blemish Remedy Review

This is just a quick post, but I wanted everyone to know just how amazing this product is. I bought it on my shopping spree last month because I needed something that actually works, and I already use a lot of Bare Minerals products. If you haven't tried them at all, I really recommend them; everything in the products is completely natural, and they do great things for your skin.

This product is quite expensive for a blemish solution at £15, but it's worth every penny. It comes in a powder form with a little brush and I'm confident it will last ages. I've been using it daily and it looks untouched! My skin is great as a result, it's better than any other I've tried, and I especially love not having to put creams or gels on spots to try and get rid of them, that never seems like the right thing to do!

I love Bare Minerals in general. I've been using them for more than a year now, although I was hesitant at first because it's all in powder form and my skin is very dry. It really doesn't matter though, because my it suits every skin type, as it's not 'powder' in the traditional sense, but a mineral mixture which does wonders! Having said that I don't use make up for a heavy coverage, so I've never experimented with it if you want to achieve that look. Nevertheless I love it and would recommend it to anyone!

My month: July

In Summary... 

America!

Celebrations!

Work...
No pictures needed! I have only just started working with children for a School holiday programme run by my local council and they are already driving me up the wall! No doubt I'll rant more about this later! The organisation there is also pretty poor, so a lot of us have been sent home for a half day a few times this week because they are over staffed. Working more on reception now though, which should be better. The merriment of the months celebrations is long over.


Fun things...
Driving lessons · Mum's return from Scotland · Insuring my Dad's red MR2 to learn on · Graduation Parties · The Olympics · Making new work friends · My blog gaining many new readers!