June’s Beauty Wish List

It’s coming up to pay day which is around the time each month where I start making my wish list of beauty goodies! Here’s what’s on my list this month:

Elemis Fresh Skin Clear Overnight Serum

My current Medik8 serum is good but I’m always on the lookout for something new. I like the sound of Elemis’ Fresh Skin Clear Overnight Serum that describes itself as a decongesting serum that improves skin clarity by gently smoothing and exfoliating. It’s £18 on HQHairwhich seems like a good price for a serum. Let me know if you have any serum recommendations!

Are you Feeling Nosy? Find out what’s in my Handbag!

MoneySupermarket are interested to know what people carry around with them on a daily basis and to be in with a chance of winning a lovely Mulberry handbag, purse and phone case, all you need to do is share a blog post about what’s in your handbag as well as the value of what you carry around everyday – I’m sure it does all add up! 

New Snack – Ryvita Thins

I’ve actually been looking for an alternative to crisps and dips (it’s one of my weaknesses) and I think I may have found it! Over the weekend I tried Sweet Chilli Ryvita Thins sent to me by the lovely Laura at the Work Perk.

Dove Spa Treatments and my Thermal Therapy Night Cream

A friend and I recently went to the Dove Spa in Egham for a ‘Two of a Kind’ treatment and enjoyed a back and shoulder massage, a facial, foot massage and head massage! It cost £95 and for the range of treatments, the price was definitely worth it and perfect for a bit of pampering. My favourite part was the back and shoulder massage – but who doesn’t love a good massage?! 

Fun with Fondue

The first and last time I had cheese fondue was when me and my friends were snowboarding in the French Alps. It was food of the Alpine gods! I’ve never had it since, but recently ‘the work perk’ offered to send a couple of packs of Emmi Swiss Cheese Fondue to try, I couldn’t resist! After tasting it again, I don’t think many people would be able to resist! 

Capture the Colour

Just a last minute entry for TravelSupermarket’s capture the colour competition! The idea is for bloggers to share their photos that capture the colours blue, green, yellow, white and red. I had a long look through my photos and I know both my photography skills and camera could be improved, but here are my entries:

Magazine Freebies & Duty Free Buys

There’s something about airports that I love (mainly shopping, restaurants, the pub and the fact that I’m going on holiday!). For my flight to Mauritius I picked up a few ‘freebies’ from magazines including Ciate nail polish, Benefit’s that girl and Body Shop eyeliners:

Hungry for Steak at Hawksmoor

A few weeks ago my boyfriend and I visited Hawksmoor Steakhouse in the Seven Dials. The steak was delicious and the experience was fantastic!

The vibe in the restaurant was cool and relaxed which made us feel comfortable straight away. We started off with a couple of cocktails each. I had a rum number described as “a secret mix of rums and tropical fruit”, which was pretty strong!

After being seated by our friendly waitress, we listened to her recommendations and ended up skipping the starters and ordered a 900g Porterhouse steak from the chef’s daily cuts with triple cooked chips, asparagus, potatoes and peppercorn sauce on the side.

The steak was so good that what I write probably won’t do it justice. Every bit of it was tasty and tender, down to the seared fat… my mouth is watering as I write this blog!

After this point we were stuffed but couldn’t say no to dessert. I ordered a peanut butter shortbread with salted caramel ice cream whilst my boyfriend had a honeycomb cheesecake. We really could have done with just ordering one to share, but we were too greedy and they were good nonetheless.

The whole meal and a bottle of (mid range) wine came to £200, which was quite pricey but worth every penny, I felt that we also ordered more than we needed.

The dress code was quite casual so there was no need to worry about dressing up (just make sure you have a loose number on!).

If you love steak, one word – go!
Have you eaten at Hawksmoor? Let me know what you think!

Treating my Toes to Daisy Gel Polish

I’ve just come back from a fab holiday in Mauritius, it was quite windy but we did end up with some much needed sunshine. The sea was also magnificently crystal clear as well!

So back on topic, before I went on holiday I headed to the nail salon to get my toenails done with Shellac polish as I heard they last around 14 days and are low maintenance as they keep their brightness and do not scratch – which sounds perfect for a holiday.

I noticed they used a ‘Daisy’ gel brand which I assume is a cheaper version of Shellac/Gelish? I chose a hot pink colour as I love bright colours on my toes, especially in the summer.

First they added a base gel on my toes before putting them under the UV lamp. Next they applied a layer of Daisy nail polish and put them under the UV lamp again, after repeating the 2nd step the top coat was applied before placing them under the UV lamp again.

The nail polish definitely made me smile and I couldn’t stop admiring my toes afterwards!

It has been two weeks since I got them done and they haven’t chipped or lost their shininess at all. I’m just wondering how I get it off now…

I decided not to get my fingernails done at the time as I’m not sure how much they damage your nails and if one chipped while I was away it would have driven me mad!

Let me know if you have tried this and if you have any tips or suggestions.

Do you Katsu?

Chicken katsu curry is usually a dish that winks at me at restaurants, but I always go for noodles instead, so I was determined to make this Japanese curry dish at home. Then I came across this cheeky little kit at a supermarket:

The instructions were very easy to follow – beat an egg to cover the chicken, cover with the breadcrumbs and fry. Simples! Here’s how it went:

It costs £3.50 for the kit plus the chicken, so quite reasonable (and cheaper than restaurants!).

Let me know which dishes you cheat at when it comes to cooking!