Catch Ups, Apologies and a Week of Instagram #10

You can follow me on instagram HERE

Starting from top left:

1. A photograph of me in the blue lagoon in Iceland

2. A beautiful scenic shot of the sea in Reykjavik 

3. Breakfast heart shaped waffles

4. The incredible northern lights

5. Another scenic shot of me in Iceland

6. Absolutely loving life in the blue lagoon

7. A natural shot of me in a bar in Iceland

8. Reykjavik hand holding love

9. The flowers I bought for my mum for looking after me while I have been ill

WOW! What a week! I literally do not have the words to explain how incredible this week has been. I finally recovered from my horrible illness, just in time to jet off to Iceland with my boyfriend for four days (which also explains the lack of blogging, which I am once again extremely sorry about!). It was a bit of a spur of the moment decision that we chose Iceland when booking a holiday, but we both decided that we wanted to visit somewhere neither of us had been before, and after doing a bit of googling we both agreed that Iceland looked incredibly beautiful and it would be an amazing once in a life time experience to visit for ourselves!

We were extremely lucky when we were there, not only was our hotel in a fantastic location right opposite the cathedral in the centre of the main street in Reykjavik, but we were also lucky enough to view the northern lights- an experience I certainly will not be forgetting any time soon! We also visited the blue lagoon, which is a 40 degree natural hot spring surrounded by mountains and lava fields, and it is just the most amazing luxurious experience to bathe in the hot water with a natural mud mask on while it snows all around you!

On our last day, we went on a whale watching trip which was fantastic, we saw two humpback whales, two miki whales along with lots of dolphins and porpoise. It was just another incredible experience to top off an absolutely amazing holiday! Unfortunately it's now back to reality and the massive pile of coursework and revision that I left behind in England needs to be addressed!

What've you been up to this week? Let me know in the comments below, I love hearing from you and will always try to reply to you all! I'd also LOVE it if you would do me a massive favour and follow THIS LINK and nominate http://amyelizabethfashion.blogspot.co.uk in the Best Personal Style Blogger (Newcomer) category. Thank you in advance my lovelies!

Spring Petals

Lipsy VIP petal dress; £120

True to my word, I am trying to post at much as I can, however I am still incerdibly ill so please excuse the very poor quality photo, and my illness will also explain why I have only uploaded a picture of me wearing the dress from the back (but what a lovely back indeed!!)

As many of you know, I have been trawling the high-street and searching high and low for a dress to wear for my cousins wedding on Easter Sunday for God knows how long. I have bought dresses, sent them back, been shopping to no avail and spend my life glued to my laptop in the hope that something online catches my eye. With less than two weeks to go, I was starting to approach panic mode, considering I am away for a chunk of that time, and am currently horrendously ill, I was starting to think of ways to wear dresses I already own without anyone noticing that I didn't manage to buy a new one. 

But then I found this. And now I am so unbelievably glad that I waited, as I knew the dress I wanted was out there somewhere! This gorgeous pink/nude bandeau dress has a pleated embellished bust, delicate layered petal skirt trims and an exposed back zip fastening. The petal detailing is so delicate and gorgeous, and I love strapless dresses (which can be a nightmare, I will admit... but once you find a perfect strapless bra I think they can be flawless!) The dress was priced at £120, which was higher than I was originally hoping to pay, however the dress is so beautiful and I will be wearing it from 10am until well gone midnight so I'm seeing it as a well earned treat (plus my mum did happen to offer to pay for it, which made the whole transaction process a lot less painful)

I plan to wear my dress with my nude Carvella's, and a white or cream wrap... but I am now having the dilemma that I can't fin done anywhere, so if you know any good places to get one from please do comment below and let me know!

Thankyou once again for all your lovely comments recently, they have cheered me up significantly as I lie on the sofa feeling sorry for myself! Also if you have a spare moment I would love it so much if you could follow THIS LINK and nominate http://amyelizabethfashion.blogspot.co.uk in the Best Personal Style Blogger (Newcomer) category. Thank you in advance my lovelies!

A Week of Instragram #9

You can follow me on instagram HERE

Starting from top left:

1. The countdown to the 4 amazing holidays I have booked!

2. Me and my lovely flatmate Emma on her 21st birthday night out

3. A lovely quotation

4. My girlies

5. Another gorgeous natural picture of me and Emma

6. The view from my flat at night in the fog

I feel like I am constantly apologising to you guys recently, but here comes another one... I am once again so sorry for not keeping up my promise to try and blog every day this week... it has been a poor effort on my behalf, however I do have (a bit of an) excuse, as I have been taking antibiotics that my body just do not agree with at all! So I have been so incredibly ill for most of the week! However, before I started taking them I had a lovely lovely lovely chilled night out in the Northern Quarter for my beautiful flatmate Emma's 21st birthday! It was such a lovely evening, it's nice when most of us manage to get together because everyone seems so busy it's so hard to get everyone in the same place at the same time!

The first picture excites me soooo much!! I fly off to Iceland with my boyfriend on Friday (so once again I will be a bit lacking on the blog posts when I'm away), but I am so excited as neither of us have ever been before, and it will be lovely to get away for a few days and enjoy some new culture and scenery! Yesterday, we also booked our flights to Dubai for September, to go and stay with Emma and her lovely family... so there's lots to look forward to and only the small matter of three horrendous university exams and two more pieces of coursework to hand in before I can fully relax and enjoy it!

What've you been up to this week? Let me know in the comments below, I love hearing from you and will always try to reply to you all! I'd also LOVE it if you would do me a massive favour and follow THIS LINK and nominate http://amyelizabethfashion.blogspot.co.uk in the Best Personal Style Blogger (Newcomer) category. Thank you in advance my lovelies!

Soap and Glory- Butter Yourself

After buying some "Soap and Glory" Hand cream for the first time about a month ago, I completely fell in love with the product. The smell was absolutely divine, and the texture and consistency of the product was so thick and creamy, leaving me feeling extremely intrigued about the quality of other products in the Soap and Glory range. I made a mental note to myself to pick up some more products the next time I was out and about... but due to me being the ditzy preoccupied person that I am, I naturally completely forgot and pushed this thought to the back of my mind. However, I was cutting through the train station in Manchester as a shortcut, when I walked past boots and instantly remembered my vow to purchase, test and review some more Soap and Glory products! So a purchase was made, and I treated myself to this gorgeous "Butter Yourself" body butter.

Before I continue, let's all take a moment to appreciate how absolutely stunning the packaging is! I love the packaging of all Soap and Glory products... I'm just completely drawn in by the gorgeous vintage-retro style! As soon as I got home, I couldn't wait to try this body butter, and once I applied it I literally sat smelling the excess cream on my hands because it was just too good to wipe off! The butter is a fruity body moisturiser containing orange waterjuice and shea butter, scented with their gorgeous "Fruitigo" fragrance, which is a really lovely light summery smell.

Unlike some other body butters, this product isn't overly thick or "gloopy", but instead feels smooth and soaks in quickly and evenly leaving your skin feeling instantly moisturised. I have been using this product after I get out of the bath or shower, however, I wouldn't recommend using the product every single day, as this can make your skin a little bit more greasy than usual.

Priced at £10.50 for a 300ml pot, it isn't the cheapest product on the market, but I guess you are partly paying for the brand name, (tbh I think I'd pay that much just to have all their lovely packaging on display!)

Before I go, please please please nominate my blog for the Best Personal Style Blog Newcomer award from Company Magazine, by following THIS LINK and nominating http://amyelizabethfashion.blogspot.co.uk in the Best Personal Style Blogger (Newcomer) category. I promise I will be eternally grateful and if I got shortlisted it really would mean the world to me!

As usual, please leave your lovely comments below as I love hearing from you all! I'd also love it if you'd follow me on bloglovin and check out my twitter and instagram.

Champneys Glitter Nails

Hello lovlies! Before I start my review of this lovely glittery "Champneys" nail polish that I was given as part of a set for my birthday, I would like to ask you all a huge favour! I would love it if you could follow THIS LINK and nominate my blog for the best personal style blog newcomer! I have only been blogging for two months and have gained such a large following, I am so grateful to every single person who reads and follows my blog and it would mean so much to me if you would nominate me! Thankyou so much in advance!

I told you a while ago that I would review all my lovely birthday presents, but I never got round to using this gift until recently. Personally, I don't paint my nails too often as I find it to be a hassle and I always end up chipping them after about an hour anyway... plus I'm so impatient that I always end up smudging them before they're dry! However, since I received this lovely gift I decided to give them a try, and I was beyond pleasantly surprised... firstly the brush was such a perfect shape, it spread to fit the shape of my nail perfectly so it was really easy to paint the nails neatly and quickly. The varnish itself dried so quickly too, so I managed to apply a base coat, two glitter coats and a top coat to both of my hands extremely quickly!

The nail varnish lasted a good two days before it began to chip, which for me is incredible, and it was super easy to touch up! I feel that I've actually become a slight nail varnish convert and I am excited to try out the other four varnishes within the set!

Priced at £12.00 for the set of 6, it works out at only £2 a varnish which is a complete bargain in my eyes! So if you're looking to try a new nail varnish brand I would definitely reccomend this one! Leave your comments below and let me know what you think of this colour, and if you've nominated me!

Creme Sheen in a Heartbeat

I am literally having the biggest obsession with lip sticks and lip glosses at the moment! I actually can not stop buying them, which is silly because you can only ever wear one shade at once, so eventually I will end up collecting so many that I don't have enough hours in the day to wear them all! However, I haven't treated myself to any lovely M.A.C. makeup in a long time, so I decided to use a bit of my birthday money and buy myself a little treat (plus it's a pre-exam present to myself... I may be stressed and snowed under with work, but at least my lips will look nice!)

I decided to buy both a lipstick and a lipgloss in complimentary shades, with the plan to either wear the lipstick alone, or layer the lipgloss on top for a more dewey, glossy finish. I absolutely love M.A.C. lipsticks, I think they're great products, however I have to say I am not overly impressed with the texture of the lipgloss. It is incredibly sticky both when applied and after it has dried, so I don't think I would wear the lipgloss alone... however, when layered over the lipstick, the lipstick seems to absorb some of this moisture and the product feels much smoother on my lips!

The lipstick is in the "Cream Sheen" variety in the shade "In a Heartbeat" which is a lovely coraly-pink colour perfect for summer! If you apply one layer it leaves a very subtle colour, or you can easily build up the layers to create a bolder lip look which I am a huge fan of! The lipgloss shade is "pure flattery" and although I am slightly let down by the texture of the product, the colour is simply beautiful and compliments the lipstick so well!

The lipstick was £15 and the lipgloss only slightly cheaper at £14, so both are fairly expensive products, but they are M.A.C. so this is to be expected! I will always fork out £15 for a M.A.C. lipstick because they literally feel like applying velvet to your lips, however I feel that £14 is quite expensive for the lipgloss. 

Leave your comments below and let me know what you think of these products! I'd also love it if you'd follow me on bloglovin' (I plan to do another giveaway at 1000 followers!) and don't forget to check out my twitter and instagram

A Week of Instragram #8

You can follow me on instagram HERE

Starting from top left:

1. A natural photograph my boyfriend took of me in Tatton Park

2. Me and my new best friend, a ladybird

3. A beautiful picture of my boyfriend's brother and sister

4. A picture of some of the many cakes I've been baking this week!

5. Making duck faces with Pringles 

6. A shot of Loughborough town in the sun

I feel I must apologise once more for my complete lack of dedication to blogging last week! It's another super busy week this week, but I will try my best to get some more beauty and fashion related posts done for you! On Friday I finish university for Easter, so even though I have lots of revision to get done, I will also have plenty more time to get some lovely posts written for you all! 

This week has been a great week, last weekend I went to stay with my boyfriend in Loughborough, and luckily the weather was gorgeous on the Sunday, so we went for a walk around the town and discovered so many lovely little shops and cafes that I definitely can't wait to visit next time I am down. As you all know from my previous post, this week I've been baking galore! I find it really therapeutic, and love baking whenever I'm home as I can't do it in my university kitchen. These particular cupcakes were for someone's 70th birthday, and it's so lovely to have an occasion to bake for!

The top three pictures are all natural shots, which I always think are the best! I love the picture I took of my boyfriend's older sister and younger brother on Saturday night! Yesterday, I went to Tatton Park with his family and it was such a lovely sunny day! It was so nice to forget about coursework and exams for a few hours and enjoy some time in the sun.

Leave me comments below letting me know what you've been getting up to this week! I'd also love it if you'd follow me on bloglovin and check out my twitter and instagram!

Cupcake Heaven

 

Recently, I've posted a number of pictures of cakes/ cookies that I have baked within my "week of instagram" posts, and quite a few of you have left comments asking if I'd ever do a baking/ decorating tutorial... so since I did so much baking this morning, and I have been the worlds worst blogger this week (I'm so sorry, I will make it up to you next week I promise!!), I have decided to share with you some of my really simple tips. Ask anyone who knows me, and they will tell you I am the least domesticated person you will ever come across, so if I can manage these, you definitely can too!

For the cupcakes themselves, I just baked plain vanilla, following a simple recipe of; 110g butter, 110g sugar, 110g flour and two eggs (makes a batch of 10-12 depending on size!)

Start by creaming the butter and sugar together until soft, and slowly add the eggs a little bit at a time, and stir with a wooden spoon until they are fully mixed in. Next fold in the flour a bit at a time until the mixture is smooth and has a dropping consistency. I know a lot of people prefer to use electric wisks, but I really do think you get the best results by mixing by hand, (plus if you're going to let a machine do everything you may as well just buy cupcakes and not bother making them in the first place!)

For Christmas, my mum got me this amazing plastic piping syringe which came with 20 different nozzles and piping heads, which makes decorating so much easier! Obviously, not all of you will have one of these to hand, but it's just as effective to make a piping bag yourself by rolling up a cone of grease proof paper, snipping off the end and piping through! I made simple butter cream icing by mixing 150g butter with 250g of icing sugar, before piping onto each cupcake. I then used a silver glitter spray to add a bit of sparkle before decorating with some sugar stars!

If you're not feeling this ambitious though, you could always decorate with "water icing" instead, which is much easier to do (especially if children are involved). To decorate cakes like the picture shown above (middle), then simply mix icing sugar with a small amount of water until you get the consistency you desire (be warned, a very small bit of water goes a very long way!), then simply spread over your cooled cupcakes and add some lovely sprinkles for decoration!

Let me know in the comments below what you think of these cupcakes... I will try my best to do a post every single day next week so feel free to request anything you want to see! As usual, I'd love it if you'd follow me on bloglovin' and don't forget to check out my twitter and instagram!