LDN 2012: DAY 2

First of all I'd like to apologise for the delay in this post...time goes so quickly, and my life just seems to be a whirlwind of babysitting, sixth form, work, and sleep! Feel free to tell me I'm slacking at this blogging marlark!!
Day 2 was exciting!...
I got up, had minimal to eat for breakfast and got dressed...a little more 'posh' and 'dressier' than usual. Why? I was going to The Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Why? To go to Heston Blumenthals restaurant...one of my favourite chefs restaurant!!! I was bursting with excitement for the day ahead!!

We arrived a little early,and decided to have a browse in Harvey Nichols on Brompton Road...

We had reserved a table (details at the end of this post), and we were immediatley seated..next to Downton Abbeys Hugh Bonneville!!

We were given a set menu to chose from, we decided to have 'Meat Fruit' to start. This is a very smooth, light duck pate, coated in orange jelly, served with toasted bread.

I had steak and was disappointed to find I was served frozen chips! It was still lovely though, and the mushroom compliemented it well. 

The potato that my mam was served was sooo smooth- absolutley no lumps at all, it was buttery and creamy- amazing!!

The chicken was cooked to to perfection- the cabbage went well with the dish, it wasn't too wet either. The sauce was a bit thin, but otherwise it was a perfect dish!

Lastly came the highlight of the meal- DESERT!!

This was mine- because it had chocolate in it! It was called 'Chocolate Bar' and consisted of a biscuit base, with a dark chocolate mouse, but inside, there was orange coulis, topped with melted shiny sleek dark chocolate and edible gold leaf! There was chocolate 'crunchies' and ginger sorbet

My mam chose deconstructed strawberry tart. A shortbread base, with sweet juicy rasberries and strawberries, with cream, blueberry, white chocolate and strawberry crunchies, strawberry flavoured sugar and rasberry sorbet with shortbread crunchies. It was incredible!!

 And my favourite part- receiving a chocolate mousse and shortbread 'Happy Birthday' dish with a signed menu from the chef!! I was on top of the world!!

Tomorrows post- I visit Gordon Ramseys at Claridges!!

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Twitter: @sophie_proud

LDN 2012: Day 1

This summer has been incredible for, not just the UK, but for the heart of the country- London. With the excitment that built up surrounding the Olympics (subtle nod to Tom Daley- marry me?), and the sheer amount of sight seeing, shops and scrummy restaurants with the most gorgeous food you'll ever taste- London has it all. So, when my mam decided that we'd take a holiday in London, instead of abroad, although I was slightly against it at first, I couldn't wait to get stuck in!
We arrived at our hotel, The Hilton Kesington (note: it should be called the Hilton Shepards Bush, it wasn't in Kensington!!) at around 10:30, and decided to have a little wander around Covent Garden...

 These street entertainers were fab!

After we'd had a little wander, we decided to find somewhere nice to eat- and we did just that!

Le Pain Quotidien is a fairly large, warm, homely cafe snuck in the sqaure. You can spend hours sitting people watching, or have a brief sit down whilst gulping coffee.

We decided to have a light lunch, and after thinking for soo long I settled on Salmon and Dill sandwich, my mam had Ham and Cheese quiche! They were beautifully presented, on a white shiny slab, with delicate garnishings.

Salmon and Dill sandwich

 Ham and Cheese quiche

 

It wasn't too expensive either, around £30 for the two of us, which is average for London...

 

Next stop was Leicester Square!!  It was great fun...

This patisserie was IN-CRED-IBLE.

After wandering around Leicester Square, somewhat aimslessly (but taking it all in!), we found ourselves on the infamous Regent Street! I was in my element when I found Hamelys!

 We spent a fortune on my nephew and my cousin for Santas arrival.

 I came across JC...and a very lovely topless six packed man came and handed me...20% off!! I dragged my mam in and I emerged with a lush phone cover thats studded and pink- two of my favourite things.
Where to go for tea?? Well, since Notting Hill carnival was on, we wanted to escape that and decided to go to Chelsea. Kings Road was like another world that I fell in love with. We dicovered a cosy looking warm, homely cafe that was quiet, named Caffe Concerto, perfectly placed looking over the unique boutiques and high end fashion stores that identifies Kings Road, whilst watching the numerous Feraris, Bentlys, Porches to name but a few speed along, and I noticed these jars of Tomato ketchup and Mayo immediatley! How cuuuute?!

I loved the vintage decor that it had, the expensive looking chandelliers catching the light delicatley, and the old fashioned chairs were comfy after a day of walking!

My mam decided to have Penne Salmon with a generous amount of pamersan!

I had burger loaded with bacon and cheese with a large portion of crunchy-exterior-but-still-fluffy chips!

 

 Finished off with a strawberry cake/cheesecake/mousse/pastry based pudding! Delicious!

Day 2 will be up shortly!

SOPHx

 

There's more to life than hair but it's a good place to start!

*This is a scheduled post I am currently on holiday in London until the 1st September which I will do a series of posts about when I come home!

This post is also from a few weeks back, I've since updated it and decided to post it!


Im writing this as I'm stuck in traffic in Newcastle. Id planned on going in a few more shops than I did, but with Northumberland street resembling a river and the rain lashing down so soooo hard, I decided to give up...on to today's post!
Today's post is about shampoo and conditioner! My hair, since around 2008 has been dry, and I mean dry. Split ends the lot! I've put this down to a few things:
1. I get my hair highlighted, about 3 times a year. Seriously, my hair does not grow at all , which I suppose is good for my non existent roots and for my mams credit card! I'm now considering not getting them redone as I haven't seen my natural hair colour since 2008. I know it'll have darkened considerably, when I was little it was bleach blonde, when I came back from holiday aged 5, my hair was white, it was that light. I'm unsure whether I'll like it or not but my hair needs a break!
2. I used to use straighters every single day. I stopped using them about 2 years ago and it's made no difference, but I think if I did go back to them it would make my hair worse!
So... I was constantly on the search for a good shampoo&conditioner that would sort my problem out...and I think I have solved it!
Aussie hair products were a brand that I wasn't previously familiar with, until I started reading other blogs. I knew Elle Macpherson uses them and that was about it. I saw them on offer, (they're always on offer, honest!) in Tesco, 2 for £6.99 so I got the Take The Heat shampoo and the 3 minute miracle reconstructer.
I love the packaging, it's so simple but effective!
The text is- for a way of describing it- cheesy. Very cheesy, and I admit- I laughed!
Onto the products themselves! They both smell delicious, making my hair smell lovely. The shampoo lathers so easily, I use a 10p sized blob and it's probably too much! My hair is just past my shoulders. The conditioner on the other hand, doesn't lather easily. At. All.I use gallons of it (well 1/8th of a bottle) and its only 250ml! However it leaves my hair so so soft and the split ends aren't as visible! I've been using these products for around 8 weeks and I shall continue using them! I can't rave about them enough!

Love Sophie

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All that glitters

This is my first outfit of the day post, I hope you like it!
I'm blogging from my phone so I'm not quite sure how this is going to look but we'll see!
My top is from Next, £28 however I had a gift voucher so I only paid £8! Bargain! Sequinned collars are a trend this season, actually detailed collars are a trend! I've seen so many different styles of collars, from leather collars (in New Looks current collection) and coloured neon tips (as seen in ASOS)
My jean were £10 from TU at Sainsburys. If I'm honest I don't really know what their collection is like, my mam got my sister them before knowing she was pregnant so she gave them to me. They're excellent value for money and they fit very well!
My gold hoops are from Claire's, I think I paid £4.99 for them but they were quite cheap. I'd looked in Primark beforehand and hadn't seen any that I liked, they were all too thick then I saw these! I've worn them loads as they go with pretty much anything!
So there's my first outfit post, I hope it turns out okay!
SOPH x

Too many bottles of this wine we can't pronounce

I recently posted about my love of nail varnishes, and on Thursday I decided to test out a new look and it worked well so I thought I'd do a post on it!
The nail varnishes I used are probably my 2 favourites-No7 'Cheeky Chops' (£2 with voucher) and Kardashian Kolor 'Rainbow in the Skylie' (£9).
I could write paragraphs about my love for the Kardashian/Jenner clan, but I'll refrain from doing so! I chose this as it looked sooo densely 'glittered' and I have to say it met my expectations. It honestly is like an explosion of glitter, it's made up of a clear base with various colours of glitters, made up of different sizes. I would say that the dominating colour is silver, however there are hints of green, vibrant pink, gold, orange and blue mixed in too. The price was way out of the range that I'd normally pay. I did get caught up in the hype of "it's the Kardashians and it's OPI", and purchased it anyway! The bottle is massive, and I love the unique shape of it. I would say that it is definitely worth that £9 I paid, as with most glitter nail varnishes, it is very hard wearing and takes FOREVER to disappear! Vigorous scrubbing is needed!
It compliments the Cheeky Chops shade nicely, and I will definitely be repeating this look!
What do you think of it?
Sophx

Life is too short. Eat dessert first!

*This post doesn't fit in with my usual themes that I blog about,however baking is one of the things I love, so O decided to post about it anyway!*

Chocolate and cake is probably my two favourite desserts, and this recipe combines them both together- resulting in Triple Chocolate Brownies!
This is a very simple recipe to follow, and it is fairly mess free too!
So you need the following ingredients:
100g dark chocolate (I use 85% cocoa)
85g of margarine/butter (preferably at room temperature)
50g white chocolate
50g milk chocolate (my favourite is Cadburys!)
2 eggs
130g of caster sugar
100g SR Flour
A dessert spoon of baking powder

1. Heat the oven to gas mark 4. Cut some baking paper so that it fits your oven proof dish
2. Melt the dark chocolate and margarine in a bowl (This can be down in a microwave or over the hob-be careful not to burn the chocolate!
3. Cut the white and milk chocolate into pieces-you can also add some extra dark if you wish!
4. Whisk the eggs and sugar for approx 5 mins using an electric whisk until thick and very frothy.
5. Pour the melted chocolate and butter mixture over the top and mix in very gently using a metal spoon.
6. Sift in the flour and the baking powder over the top and carefully fold in.
7. Pour the mixture into the lined tin. Sprinkle the white and milk (and dark!) chocolate pieces over the top.
8. Bake the cake for about 20-25 minutes until the top is crusty and the centre wobbles slightly.
Then cut and enjoy!
You can also freeze these for around 3 weeks, which I've done a few times and it doesn't affect the quality of the. at all.

Money is the anthem of success

Anyone who knows me knows I love love love nail varnishes, they're probably one of my favourite products. I own far too many, I'm running out of storage space. My obsession started when I was quite young, about 5/6 years old, as my older sister used to do mine when she did here, and I was hooked! When she moved out she left a lot to me, and I've started my own collection, which is rapidly expanding!
My favourite nail brand is No7, without a doubt. Yes, don't get me wrong I've got a fair few Barry M's in the collection too (you can't resist!), however the Barry M nail varnishes that i have owned/own tend to go very thick and gloopy. I have often wondered if its the temperature of my room, but my other nail varnishes haven't done this. Sorry Barry M, it had to be said! This makes No7 a winner every time.
No7 nail varnishes on a whole are wry pigmented, the collection is full of vibrant colours, in addition to the basics (French manicure, clear,strengthener etc). The consistency is quite thick, meaning only 2 coats is needed, and that applies to the whole collection. They have a great lasting strength too, I've had one colour on for 5 days now, with 2 coats and a top coat, without any touch ups!
I have to admit, I never took any notice of No7 before Boots introduced the '£5 off No7' vouchers, as their nail varnishes are out of my budget at £7 each, whereas they're only £2 with the voucher which is an absolute bargain!
As you can tell by the photo, I'm slowly but surely building up a collection, my favourite is definitely my most recent purchase: 'Cheeky Chops'. It's a coral pink, quite bright with an orange tinge to it. Its went with every outfit I've had on for the last 5 days, it's very versatile.
So there you have it!
What is your favourite nail varnish brand? Do you like No7?
Soph
PS: I apologise for the photo quality, the lighting wasn't doing me any justice :( x