En Francais

Salut! What seems like a life time ago I took a trip to France for the weekend and with the dreamy scenery and glorious weather I couldn't resist taking some outfit snaps.

Bardot tops are my new found favourite thing for the summer wardrobe. They're so easy to wear and effortlessly feminine. They go with so many things too and I love to pair them with jeans for day outings.

There's something about being in France that makes me want to want to don a floppy hat and red lippy. Is it just me? These ASOS shoes were again a brilliant pair for looking chic but being comfy.

Top - Tesco (similar here)
Jeans - Abercrombie & Fitch
Shoes - ASOS
Hat - eBay
Sunglasses - eBay

So this is one of my holiday outfits. I have another one coming soon and a post coming on the chateau we stayed which won't be one to miss!

And finally can I say a big thank you to my hubby for taking these snaps? He's getting a bit more patient with taking them for me and I think he's done a ruddy good job!

Are you loving bardots this season?

Tennis Yellow

Sunglasses - eBay

Jacket - Thrifted

Top - New Look

Jeans - Abercrombie and Fitch

Back pack - New Look

Shoes - ASOS

Watch - Danish Design

When the summer days are gloomy, which they regularly can be in Britain, I like to add a bright bold colour to an outfit, in particular this amazing chartreuse colour. 

This long line jacket was actually brand new with tags but thrifted for a measly £8 from the charity shop! A true charity shop gem and one of the perfect examples of why people should delve into their local charity shops. You never know what you'll find!

I’ve gone off dresses a bit this year and have warmed to jeans again with a blazer or jacket chucked on top for some structure.

These black pointy shoes are also super comfortable and easy to walk in due to their perfect heel height and add another element of interest to my outfit. Well done ASOS for designing such gorgeous shoesies but apologies to my other half for the ever shrinking shoe space in our wardrobe. Ahem…

Still feeling thrifty with my money and with the ongoing saving for a house, these sunglasses came from eBay at the price of just £2.89!! I love the modern cat-eye shape and they’ve finally steered me away from aviators.

What are you wearing for the wet start to the British summer?

Laydey Katabella & Wild Frost Café's #InstaPrettyParty

Just over a week ago I stepped out of my comfort zone and decided to host my own blogging event know as #InstaPrettyParty.

Photo c/o Loved by Laura

I got the inspiration from attending Louise from B.Loved #InstaPrettyParty at The Handmade Fair in 2015 so decided to use her idea but do my own take on it. 

The purpose of the session was to teach fellow bloggers how to take Instagram-worthy shots and swap tips and ideas.

If you follow me on Instagram, you may well know that I have a slight huge obsession with Wild Frost Café in Ramsey and I’m forever posting snaps of the food and flowers, (I’ve even done a post on it too), so for me this was the perfect place to hold an Instagram inspired event. It’s also blooming gorgeous and has so many pretty photogenic areas, it makes for the perfect blogger meeting point!

I ordered some beautiful blooms from Louise for us to photograph – some arranged and some loose for use in flat lays and made up a little tips pack for everyone to give them some pointers on ways to help them (which I had far too much fun making.)

I also ordered this gorgeous Victoria sponge cake for photographing and of course for eating! I can tell you now that it tasted just as good as it looked if not better! 

I had six lovely bloggers come to the event – some I knew and some I hadn’t met before. I must admit I was rather nervous about speaking to a group as public speaking isn’t my strong point but the girls were lovely and the atmosphere was laid back and fun which is what I was aiming for. It was also lovely to meet Georgina, Alice and Amy for the first time and see Pippa, Sophie and Laura again.

Photo c/o Clashing Time

So I guess you’re wondering what sort of tips I shared right? If you’re like me and you don’t have beautiful wood floors throughout your home, my top tip is to get your mitts on some wallpaper samples from a local DIY shop. Not only are the samples free, they’re easy to store and can be rolled away when not in use and they make for a really great background. Everyone particularly likes this mauve/ grey wood effect one which complimented the bouquets perfectly.

I also gave tips on styling and lighting. Natural light works best and less is more when it comes to composition. I brought along some props for everyone to style too. Things like buttons, ribbons and pretty papers are great for adding interest to an image and another tip I suggest is to print pretty quotes you like from places such as Pinterest to use in your images.

The two hour event flew by with flat lays being snapped, cake being eaten and coffees slurped and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves which I’m so pleased about.

I really want to do some more #InstaPrettyParties and further events now and think I have the bug for it! I’ve got lots of ideas whizzing round so keep your eyes peeled for more in the future. Thank you to everybody that attended and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!

I also vlogged the event which you can check out below:

Have you been to an Instagram party?

The Waterfront Restaurant and Grill

My love for food is ever growing.

Discovering new places to feed my inner foodie is always something I enjoy so when The Waterfront Restaurant at Wyboston contacted me to review their new menu*, I jumped at the chance.

I actually used to live close by to Wyboston and never knew this place existed. Tucked behind the spa and the golf course is a restaurant with a beautiful view of the lake. It’s the perfect setting for a tranquil evening or a date night for two.

Chris and I decided to treat it as date night and got into our glad rags and were pleased to see we didn’t look over dressed in the setting. We were seated by the maître d at a table looking out over the lake and could see swans taking off into the sunset which added to the atmosphere of a lovely evening.

We were treated to a three course meal and had been preparing for it all day with our bellies ready for food. For an appetiser we started off with fresh bread with balsamic oil and tapenade. The olive bread and onion bread tasted delicious, even just with a bit of butter.

For starter Chris chose the ham hock and as the cheese fiend I am, I opted for the goats cheese fritters with celeriac salad. As you can see the presentation was gorgeous and they tasted incredible.

There was so much to choose from on the menu but we decided to choose the chef’s specials as they were a bit different to your average dish. I chose the chicken with cannelloni and a side of salad whereas Chris had the lamb and a side of veggies. Again the presentation was beautiful and the portion sizes were just right that we had room for dessert - the most important course of course!

In between all the eating I drank prosecco and Chris drank beer. The ale on tap wasn’t really to Chris’ taste so he soon went onto larger which he thoroughly enjoyed.

 Dessert was just incredible – Chris having the tiramisu and me the sticky toffee pudding. I know sticky toffee pudding is more of a winter dessert but the heart wants what the heart wants and I was by no means disappointed. The sponge was rich but light at the same time and the toffee just oozed gorgeousness, especially with the chill of the vanilla ice cream. I was in heaven and feeling suitably sleepy! We were also presented with a complimentary glass of champagne each which went down perfectly with dessert.

The Waterfront made for the perfect date night setting for Chris and I and we really did feel relaxed, taking in that wonderful view and eating beautiful food.

We will definitely be returning very soon and will most likely book into the spa next door before hand as it really does look incredible on the website!

Have you been to The Waterfront Restaurant?