October Favourites

Hitting you with a October Favourites right before the end of the month because why not!

Happy 'officially Autumn' now the clocks have gone back, and FYI it is only 8 Friday's until Christmas! Oh yes, that's exciting.

Music

Can't Pretend - Tom Odell - I'm a little bit late to this party but loving this song a hella lot.

Can't Feel My Face - The Weekend - A good dancing around the kitchen song this one!

Heart's On Fire - Passenger - I normally avoid the slow, acoustic songs (they make me too melancholic) but in my quest to find wedding music I have been listening to a few lovely ones including this one.

Books

The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood is a dystopian novel (my favourite!) and pretty addictive to read. Parts of it stop and make you think about what decisions you would make if needed and also the practicality of their future. I do wish that they had gone into the events that took them to that place and I wasn't a huge fan of the ending but having said that this is a solid novel that you should definitely give a read.

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson I read in about two days because I couldn't put it down. I've been reading quite a few thrillers which have been surprising me recently and it's quite pleasant. I do love to be surprised when reading. This is another book which makes you think about how far you would go, if at all. The story is multi-layered and very well written and I love the view points from the different characters who you should hate but can't quite bring yourself too. MUST READ.

 

Fashion

My student discount ran out last week which was very sad indeed and it wouldn't be a last hurrah unless I used it to buy something. Namely this coat from Dorothy Perkins which I freaking LOVE. It has this gorgeous brushed fabric texture which makes is super soft. So many people have said how lovely it looks and well you know you can never have enough coats right?

Blonde Waterfall Coat - Dorothy Perkins - £49.00 (although 10% off at the moment!)

I am also wrapping up warm in this incredible snood from H&M. For a start it is in a very dark grey and well I just love all things grey, but secondly it is huge and snuggly. The link is below but I would recommend going in store to buy as I have never had a good H&M online buying experience.

Knitted Scarf - H&M - £12.99

C x

Glastonbury O.O.T.F

I am back again this year for my O.O.T.F (Outfit of the Festival). This happens to be one of my most popular posts and also one of my favourites to do as I LOVE shopping and I love sharing my finds with you guys even more!

After a year away from Glastonbury I cannot help but get overly excited about the festival that means so much to me and with only a couple of weeks to go I need to think about packing my bag soon (and then repacking with less items in it!).

SO without further ado here are the outfit choices for Glasto 2015!

Wednesday

As always Wednesday is travel day and I don't know about you but I only ever want to be comfortable when I'm travelling. For this purpose I picked up some on trend print trousers, which I will wear with a black t-shirt. I know from experience that any top you wear normally becomes a little bit sweaty after carrying a heavy backpack so I want something to hide that!

Trousers and T-Shirt

Thursday

The 'getting to explore and drink' day. Every one is starting to gear up for the weekend and people are still arriving and settling in. I'm going for a dress (because I'm hoping for sun!) to lounge around in and hopefully start topping up my tan in!

Floral Dress

Friday

There is going to be a whole lot of jumping around when I see the Foo Fighters on Friday night which only means a dress might not be ideal so I'm braving it once again, the only time I wear them, shorts. These ones are gorgeously crocheted and I will be wearing them with a baggy white T during the day to keep it slightly more casual before changing into something a little more glam for the evening.

White Top and Shorts and Black Top

Saturday

Second day of music and I am planning on going full glam with this gorgeous little dress. I have suddenly remembered that I am a BIG fan of off the shoulder, reminiscent of my younger days when I used to wear little gypsy tops. I'll be spending the day watching George Ezra, Years & Years, Pharrell and Kanye so will be in the party spirit!

Bardot Dress

Sunday

I'm not normally a denim girl but I saw a dress when I was in Primark that I loved! Unfortunately it is not this dress as I cannot find it online but it is similar to the one below with a crotchet neckline and will scale up the festival chic when paired with a white crocheted jacket. What better thing to wear but 70's denim when singing to Lionel Richie on a Sunday afternoon.

 Dress and Jacket

Accessories 

Sunglasses / Hairbands  / Daisy Topknot band

I am trying terribly hard not to over pack this year so will be sticking to what you see here, plus leggings and a big jumper for the evening. As usual I am overcome with excitement and counting down the days! Hurrah!

C x

May Favourites

It has been a very long time since I did a favourites post. There just hasn't been enough for it to be substantial but now I have been saving a few things up so we have a bumper month!

Books

I started to read Wild by Cheryl Strayed long after the film had been out (I have in fact just bought it to watch after loving this book!) so it wasn't a choice based on a need to read it before seeing the film. It kept cropping up on my Amazon list so I thought I would give it a go and I am so glad I did. This has to be one of my favourite books of the year so far, I love the travel aspect of it and the way it is written. I devoured this one and I think it should go straight to the top of your read pile.

The next favourite up is a little bit of a guilty pleasure as most YA books are! The Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth was my constant companion for a few weeks as I worked my way through the three books at a substantial rate whilst still trying to slow down so they didn't end. In the same instance with Wild I just missed the boat on the second film and now have to wait for it to appear on DVD which is annoying as I just want to see what they have done with the adaptation. I really enjoyed these as I love a good dystopian novel and the twist in Book Three completely threw me which is rare as most story lines are pretty obvious now. Worth a read.

Music

Some summer tracks are starting to creep into my 800 song strong Spotify playlist which is a good thing as it seems like summer jut cant make it's mind up and arrive, so I like to pretend it's here!

Holding On ~ Disclosure ft Gregory Porter

Regret ~ Everything Everything

It Is You ~ Natalie Prass

Rumors ~ Pep & Rash

Raindrops ~ SNBRN ft Kerli

Home

I picked up a couple of really cute home bits this month from Wilko (apparently my favourite place on earth!) and as always the supermarkets have got some gorgeous home bits in.

I have been eyeing up this dish for so long I thought it might have been discontinued but luckily for me it was still there when I last went into Sainsburys so I grabbed it before it was gone! It reminds me of Portugal so much, another reason I love it! I am also eyeing up a jug in the same print....

Fish Platter - Sainsburys - £10

And because all I need in my life is another chopping board I picked this one up....

Chopping Board - Wilkinsons - £4

I couldn't resist this little egg house. I literally put my basket down with it in to walk out of the shop but I just couldn't do it. I have a problem....

Egg House - Wilkinsons - £5 

We have a George Living right by us which is a tad dangerous. I popped in the other day for a quick browse and found this little guy and at only £3 I couldn't really say no to him!

Milk Bottle - George Home - £3

Fashion

Something fantastic and terrible happened last week. I went to go and put one of my favourite skirts on to find that it doesn't fit anymore! Apparently losing weight means you drop a dress size, who knew! I then proceeded to lie on the floor in a pile of other clothes that do not fit and have a melt down because I have nothing to wear. Of course the only sensible thing to do was to buy some more clothes.....

I am loving this off the shoulder dress with its Moroccan style print and the fact that it is a size down and still a bit roomy helps too!

Tile Print Bardot Dress - George at Asda - £22

I have bought a few other bits but I want to share those with you in a different post so keep an eye out for my Glastonbury 'O.O.T.F' (Outfit Of The Festival) post which will be coming soon, just in case you are also going and need some inspiration!

Life

As you will have seen from a couple of my other posts things have been coming up roses at the moment and I could not be happier! Everything is going swimmingly and with Glastonbury only 23 days away it is only getting better!

C x

March Favourites

Can you believe that it is the end of March already? The spring sunshine is trying desperately to make an appearance and now that the clocks have gone back it feels that we are well on our way. Here's a list of my favourites this month!

Music

A couple of songs for you this month - I've realised that Youtube videos are not working from mobile versions of this blog so instead click the artist to link through to the video.  I have just discovered Honne after being told by a friend I should take a listen and Years & Years are just filling my ears with happy sounds.

Honne - Warm on a Cold Night

Years & Years - Real (Original Mix)

Fashion

Can you believe that I haven't really been shopping at all! As I've been losing weight recently I realised that there really wasn't too much point in buying new clothes when the goal is to drop a dress size or two. I did however pick up this maxi dress in the hope that Summer is just round the corner! I love a good maxi dress and I like that this one has a little sleeve even more.

Dorothy Perkins - £16

Home

It is my birthday in a week and my wonderful parents allowed me to open a present early when I popped down to visit them last weekend. They had got me this perfect Stand Mixer which goes beautifully in the kitchen and with its 'Walls Ice-cream' theme is so very retro.

Another early birthday present! This beautiful GIANT mixing bowl. It is just the kind of thing that I love and looks brilliant on display although I am definitely running out of counter space....

Food

Bit of a random one but I just have to put it in here! Leigh bought me a Caramel collection Easter egg this year because, you know, Cara-mel..... Anyway in this Easter egg there happened to contain the single most delicious chocolate bar I have ever tasted. Why on earth have I never tried this before?! Its all over for me. I don't like chocolate but I think I finally get why everyone else likes it if they feel the way about normal chocolate as I do about this:

 Life

This month I have been doing what I should always have been whilst living in London. Being a little bit cultural!

I went to see Die Zauberflote at the Royal Opera House, and attended a showing of Swan Lake the following week via the Live Cinema Screenings that the Royal Opera House organise. It was actually a refreshing way to view the Ballet, for one who cannot afford the stall seats this was such a good way to really see the show. This weekend I went to see 'My Night with Reg' which was fantastic and I laughed the whole way through. I also took my seat in a Choir performance of Handel's Messiah that my friend lent her voice too. It is things like this that I will look back on and think 'At least I made the most of living in this city!'

 Die Zauberflote

Swan Lake

 My Night with Reg

Choir performance

Yet again quite a small favourites post this month but I suppose it makes a difference as I didn't post one for January or February!

C x

December Favourites

December Favourites Time!  I do enjoy doing these posts!

Home

Starting with home this month as I've got a couple of cute bits to share with you

What better way to bake melty cheese than in a melty cheese baker?! This one is from Sainsburys, they are doing a lovely range at the moment.

There is a story behind this little house. I bought it as a present from me, to me. You light the incense inside and it comes out of the roof like a little Christmas house. How adorable I thought! £25 might be a bit pricey but it's cute - that was until it turned up. I thought it was going to be the size of let's say - a small loaf of bread. It's not. It's about the size of a bread roll..... I was going to send it back but then I never got round to it so one day I decided just to light the incense and be done with it. It's on my favourites because it really is quite sweet and I like it even if it was a waste of money.

Not on the Highstreet - Log cabin - £25 (currently £17 in the sale)

With the idea that I am going to be good and leave all of the bad eating habits behind me in the New Year I have purchased a Blend Active from Breville. I've been using it to make breakfast smoothies in the morning and it is so handy as you blend it all in the container you drink from meaning less fuss and less washing up! There are lots of there on the market but I really would recommend this one! It's the family pack so you get 4 beakers with it.

 Blend Active - £29.99

Books

I got a few good recipe books for Christmas but the one I have turned quite a bit too is Sainsbury's Classic Recipes. They just have some quite tasty simple recipes in there with easy to follow methods. Plus the food photography makes your mouth water!

The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert (of Eat.Pray.Love fame) is a MUST READ. It is just one of those stories that you can't put down but which you don't want to end. Following the life of Alma you just become so attached to her and the life that she leads. I love being surprised by books and I was unable to guess where the story would lead me. I would highly recommend this novel - but be warned it's not a quick read, unless like me you devour books!

Music

Apart from the constant soundtrack of Christmas songs for the past month I have also been loving:

Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson ft Bruno Mars

Dangerous by David Guetta ft Sam Martin

Fashion

In my extensive 'I can never find anything to wear' wardrobe the one thing I do not own are jeans. I just find them uncomfortable and so I threw all mine out a long time ago. But I have discovered something which  has changed my life. I know they have been round for a long time but I tried them on once and turned my nose up. What are these life changing trousers? Only bloody jeggings. It's like I can be comfortable whilst still keeping my legs warmer than leggings, although nothing beats a double legging (Does anyone else do this?) I now have them in the colours Merlot, Grey, Green and Indigo and I couldn't be happier! I've been getting mine from that delightful shop that steals all my money - Dorothy Perkins - I find the regular leg fits quite well for someone with short little legs like myself.

DP - Jeggings - £20

I feel like this is quite a lengthy post so I'm going to leave it there but do let me know what your favourite things of the month are in the comments!

Only 1 day until the New Year!

C x

October Favourites

Oh my goodness where has this year gone! We have quite a short favourites this month as not too many things grabbed my attention but there are some things I really want to talk about.

Music

Mentioned before but not with as much enthusiasm. FJK, All FJK songs that can be found. Spotify FJK and prepare to be very happy.

Another song on repeat on the walk to work has to be 'Take me to Church' by Hoizer.

Books

So you know how recently I have been really unimpressed with the books I have been reading? All of that has changed because I finally found a trilogy that I devoured in 3 days. I literally read a book a day and I couldn't put them down. I read these books in favour of TV, in favour of going out, in favour of sleeping. These books which kept me up at night are the Mazerunner series by James Dashner, at a cinema near you. I'd seen the poster for the film and thought it looked just up my street what with it being dystopian and all. The books are slightly on the young adult side but it doesn't diminish their appeal. The whole concept is original and a real page turner. People have likened it to the Hunger Games but I don't think that is fair on the story as they are entirely different concepts. There is a fourth book, the prequel, but as it has different characters I haven't read this yet as I needed a break and didn't feel I would emphasis with the new characters having submerged myself in the trilogies character. I still haven't seen the film but I'm dying to! Read these books.

Fashion

LOVE LOVE LOVE my floppy hat. I've wanted one for a while and finally got round to buying one. It's a black felt hat and I just feel that little bit cooler in it. Mine was from Dorothy Perkins (£14) but they appear to have sold out. I know Topshop, ASOS, H&M all do these hats if you are in the market for one!

I talked about the a red version in my September Favourites and now I have bought a blush and black one too (as seen above). I am quite big chested and as such it means I can never wear shirts without them gaping or having to go several sizes up. These tops have the shirt feel without the buttons and are perfect for a smarter look.

Blush and Black Pleat Roll Shirt - currently £15.00

Make-up

Now you know me, I'm not really one for make-up. Excessive make-up for me involves some eye shadow and maybe some foundation but I have found a new Bourjois lip gloss that I just adore and have been wearing non-stop. I call it a lip gloss, but it's a matte texture so after the initial application it becomes more like a lipstick. This is perfect for me as Leigh doesn't like sticky lip gloss kisses. It also stays on for quite a while, another bonus as I am really bad at remembering to reapply throughout the day. I'm wearing Velvet (No 7)(£8.99 in Boots) but they have other gorgeous colours too!

And that is it for the favourites. I'm trying not to buy anything home based as it's so close to Christmas and I can put it on my Christmas List! What have you loved this month? Anything you would recommend? Leave a comment in the box!

C x

September Favourites

I can't believe we are on September Favourites! With only a few months (88 days) to go before Christmas we are getting very close to the end of the year which really does mean that the years fly by quicker the older you are!

Now on with the proceedings!

Music

Learning to Fly - FKJ

I feel like I might be a little bit late to join the party with James Blake's 'Retrograde' but it was played on a new show Leigh and I are watching called The Leftovers and I love it! The song. Not so sure about the programme yet....

Don't even get me started on alt-j's 'Every other freckle', I have listened to this song on repeat and I adore the lyrics! I also love that their are two different versions of the video which are really quite clever - make sure you watch both types. The link to the male version is below:

Books

The Secret Place by Tana French has FINALLY broken my bad reading spell and made me want to keep reading the book in every hour that I had which I haven't found in a novel in a while. As a murder mystery I expect there to be some twists and turns and I wasn't disappointed by this. I would definitely recommend giving this a read.

Fashion

I LOVE that it is coming into winter and I can start to wear all the rich reds and greens again. Here are a couple of pieces I have picked up this month:

Dorothy Perkins have a 30% off sale at the moment on all stock and Free Express Delivery on a basket over £30 so I took advantage of this! Sale ends at midnight!

Wine contract top - £22.50 (in the sale) 

Check Pencil Skirt - £19.80 (in sale)

Home

I picked up this adorable little chap earlier in the month and I just couldn't leave him in the shop. Perfect for every door stopping need!

Pheasant Door Stop - £8

Leigh has been asking me to get some kilner drinking jars for a while now and who am I to refuse a reason to go shopping?! I like the Cheers on these as it's a little different from plain jars.

Folk Jar Glass - £2

Food/Drink

Chai Tea Latte has become my new favourite hot drink. I'm not really a hot drink fan but this is just bloody lovely and autumnal.

What do you get when you cross a doughnut and a muffin?

Duffins. Yes that's right. Duffins.They are just a little bit tasty if not very good for you!

Pesto Houmous is also a new discovery for me and I'm glad that I have found it because I could just eat tubs and tubs of it,

Quite a few favourites for the month! I love sitting down and writing about everything I've loved for the month, I hope you've like reading it :)

C x

August Favourites

August Favourites time! A few bits and pieces this month. Enjoy :)

Music 

I have a new favourite album! A little band called Postmodern Jukebox and if you haven't already listened to them I thoroughly recommend that you do! My favourites are their cover of Drunk in Love by Beyonce and Fancy by Iggy Azalea.

Let me tell you a story - I found this song called One Day (Vandagg) by Bakermat and I listened to it on repeat because it's just a really good song. Nice little sample in there. And then I found out that my best friend, Callum Gordon over at Burning Reel Productions had a hand in the video and suddenly it became even better, if that was possible.

Books

I have been reading lots as always but nothing has really grabbed me this month. I've been working my way through the Cazalet series by Elizabeth Jane Howard and although they are quite good (I do love a good WWII Fiction) I'm actually more excited to buy and watch the TV series. Hopefully I will find something truly original by next month.

Home

Let's talk about my favourite home purchase for this month. Sgt Pepper. Just look at his little face. He is so freaking happy to grind the pepper. I found this chap on Amazon here.

 

If you are an avid Pourable Sunshine reader you will have read my IKEA Haul post and know that I got lots of delicious items but I do love the grey plates very much indeed. Although this is the only one that made it home. Don't try and take crockery on the tube. It will break. You will cry. You will have to take it back to IKEA.

 

Food

Some yummy new finds this month. 

Philadelphia do a Salmon and Dill tub! Who knew?! It tastes like smoked salmon and cream cheese sandwiches. I also like to use it in Prawn Risotto as it adds another flavour and level of tastiness.  

I think I may have found a new favourite ice-cream kids! My mouth is watering. It literally just filled with salvia at the memory of sitting down to eat this delicious tub of happiness. It is SO good.

Fashion

I'm off to a wedding this weekend and isn't just the prettiest dress. I waited patiently for this dress to hit the sales and when it finally did I snapped it up. Or so I thought. They actually still have loads of sizes in stock a few weeks in. It's very floaty on and perhaps not so great with the changing weather but I'm trying to hold on to summer for as long as possible.

 

Dress - £28 in the sale

This New Look purse is just beautiful. It's quite large but I quite like oversized bags and purses so it's good for me. Again this is more of a spring/summer purse but we can all retain some hope that the sun might just come back again.

Purse - £12.99

Ok, let's face it. The sun isnt coming back. Must mean it's time to wrap up warm in a scarf then! I purchased this little beauty in H&M after my best friend turned up at mine rocking one. She went for the colourful one but they only had black, white and grey when I went in store. It is massive - I call it my throw or rug because there's so much wool and it's very toasty but it's barely left my side since I bought it.

Scarf - 12.99

Hope you have had a lovely August whatever you have been up to and I hope these favourites give you something to listen to/buy/eat.

C xxx