Snow, Cake & Pugs!

 I had a very lovely, chilled out 1st Mother's Day, last year doesn't really count because Nahla had only been in my tummy about 3-4 weeks!

I woke up to a big smiley face... who was bringing me breakfast in bed (Nahla was still asleep) and a lovely card, from Nahla, who's handwriting is suspiciously like her Father's.

Simon had to work for a couple of hours so the morning was spent in bed, watching Caitlin Moran and Peppa Pig, weird combo or what?!

 We decided that, although it was snowing like mad outside, that we might as well make the most of the day and pop out for a hot drink. We popped into a really lovely Cashmere/Wool/Bits and Bobs shop close to us where they sell loads of really lovely kitcheny bits, from Cath Kidston to Emma Bridgewater.

Nahla was so nosey and kept trying to turn her head all the way around to get a 360 view!

Passers by kept giving her lots of compliments, which was lovely.

This was my OOTD...

Elbow-Patch Knitted Sweater- Primark £16
Leggings-Wallis £10

Scarf- A Gift

Hunter Wellies- £89

Nappy Bag- Cath Kidston- £60

I loved these little mugs and will definitely be getting one next payday! They are SO ADORABLE! I love Pugs and will probably get one when we have our own house and Nahla is quite a bit older.

I just love the little one wearing a top hat and monocle! :')

 Next door to the shop is a really lovely little posh cafe. As soon as we walked in I felt a little nervous, it was full of middle aged and elderly couples, we were the youngest there and this was the first time we had taken Nahla out to eat on our own, I was expecting her to have a complete meltdown and spit fire at the other customers, but she was an absolute delight.

She had her bottle there, looked around and grinned at everyone, she was very interested in my pink cake!

(which, btw, was more icing than actual cake... but that's not a ratio I'm going to complain about!)

 

I had a cup of hot chocolate and the most delicious cupcake, Simon had a very dark coffee and a rock cake... he bit the side of his mouth, which was a bit unfortunate!

 Walking back through the shop I spotted some really lovely things, from gorgeous quilts, to beautiful Orla Kiley pieces and this amazing fish-bowl display with driftwood around it... I also almost screeched when I saw they sold Neom candles, I've blogged about how much I've wanted one for ages and my husband was lovely enough to buy one for me...

 ...it's such a gorgeous smelling candle; Moroccan Blush Rose.

I'm in love with it and will be burning it whilst I'm in the bath Simon's running for me tonight after he's cooked me a lovely meal.

I've really enjoyed my first Mother's Day, although I can't wait until Nahla's old enough to treat me herself!

Love,

Laura xxx

(Lots of love to my Mummy too!)

OOTD

The past week has been a beautiful, sunny, sparkly week (weather-wise) so I thought 'Why not be a proper blogger and pick out a location to shoot some OOTD pictures?' Excellent idea!

I decided that shooting an OOTD post at our local castle would be such a cool idea! Fashion and make-up within the grounds of a half-ruined Scottish castle seemed to be the best plan I'd had since adding cream to my Bread & Butter Pudding recipe!

Then Saturday came along and it went from sunny and cool, to snowy and SUB-ZERO.

So; it was, with a heavy heart, that my friendling (Lara) and I decided that trudging up the steep embankment of a castle in the freezing sleet whilst wearing short dresses probably wasn't the most medically-safe idea. We decided, instead, to do a quick 60's style eye make-up look on Lara, and a really REALLY quick OOTD post with the fun dress I had thrown on.

I adore the quirky-ness of this dress! It was a rather nifty Primark find and is covered in cute little French Bulldogs, a breed of dog I would love to have! Their ears are so adorable!

The little collar reminds me of school-dresses but teamed with a statement ring and some very high, thin-heeled platforms makes it look a little more grown up.

I intend to wear this dress throughout the Summer, I need to tone my arms to pull the look off a bit better, but all in due course.

It takes 9 months to put on the baby-weight so it'll take 9 months to get rid of it... or so the saying goes.

 I have never laughed so much whilst doing Lara's makeup!

She has the prettiest, most gorgeous features and I am insanely jealous of her cheekbones and her jawline... but her skin seemed to change all of my highlight and contour concealers into different colours! My pearly white highlighter went bright pink when it came into contact with her skin, much hilarity ensued!

I used the Urban Decay Naked Palette 2 to achieve this light smokey look. 

Lara chose the shades:

Verve, Suspect and Busted.

The winged eyeliner was provided by M.A.C and a lovely soft 60's look was born!

(Idiots.)

Despite our plans crumbling around us, the day was fun. We got some pretty photos (see above, especially) and who doesn't enjoy a day of trying out new make-up looks?

OOTD posts might have to be left until the Summer, I'm still warming up after this one!

Love,

Laura xxx

(Special thanks to Lara, who was 'scared of your blog people seeing my face'. I think we all agree that it is LOVELY.)

OOTD

I was a bit apprehensive about doing this Wintery OOTD post seeing as I had a baby 11 weeks ago and my body-shape has changed dramatically, but then I love this ensemble too much not to blog about it!

I was pregnant from mid-February last year up until the end of November so last year was full of leggings and long tops as well as maxi-dresses, there were so many items of clothing that got put away and forgotten about... Until now!

 I treated myself to these heels about a month ago when I saw them on missguided.co.uk and absolutely love them. I'm pretty apprehensive about wearing them on a night out as I'm not entirely sure if bouncers will be super-happy about me sporting what could be considered a weapon on my feet. The spikes are super-sharp! They're surprisingly comfy as well as being sturdy and well-made!

I'm so pleased that I remembered I had this faux-fur gilet. It's really cozy and warm and super-soft! It goes really well with long sleeved tops, in any colour. 

I bought these jeans just after I found out I was pregnant, thinking that I would stay a size 10 for at least another couple of months!... wrong! I started to show when I was about 8 weeks pregnant, so these never got worn. 

I wore these to a friend's house the other day and it was nice to feel like I was wearing something new!

I love this little Owl ring from Topshop, I don't tend to wear a lot of jewellery but statement rings happen to be my favourite!

On my nails I'm wearing Essie's 'We Can Do It!' which is the lightest pink I've ever seen! Haha!

Even though Winter is drab and boring, your clothes don't have to be. Now that I seem to be slimming down after the birth of my Daughter I'm looking forward to experimenting with layers and my developing style as a new young Mum!

Love,

Laura xxx