All the Small things

I have been MIA for a while just due to being busy, getting out of the habit, loosing a camera and just being a bit slack. Consequently it took me a while to work out how to get back into the habit of posting and I decided that it was probably best to start with a few of my favourite recent discoveries from my hiatus.

I have recently added to my breton top collection this top from People Tree. For those that don't know it is an ethical fashion company producing sustainable and fair trade clothing that remains fashionable. The Libby Breton top comes in three colours brown, red and blue stripe and is made from a substantial cotton which falls beautifully. The dropped shoulder sleeve and pocket keep it interesting and the loose fit makes it perfect to wear with skinny jeans.

Talking of which I have currently discovered ASOS Ridley high waisted skinny jeans which are stretchy slimming and offer a little knee cleavage for those who are little fed up of completely bundling up in the cold. Traditionally I am a low waisted skinny jean girl but the high waist on these jeans is surprisingly flattering and make my legs look like they go on forever particularly when teamed with ankle boots. The added bonus of the high waist is that in the stormy winds I have managed to escape the uncomfortable back breeze when your top rides up.

This winter everyone and their mother seemed to end up buying the camel check scarf by Zara and whilst I was sorely tempted I ended up selecting this alternative. It is pretty much a blanket in size and comfort and I lusted after it for ages before I succumbed to its charms.  So soft you feel like you are having a hug and at £19.99 it looks much more expensive than its price tag.

With all this covering up my poor skin is feeling a little abused so I have indulged in some treats to give a helping hand. Clinique sparkling body scrub is not cheap at £18.50 but it's minty zingy fragrance and gritty texture works miracles in sloughing off dead rough skin. I try and mix it up by using scrubbing mitts to exfoliate when I have a quick shower and using the scrub for a deep weekly slough off.

When my skin needs particular attention, I slather on Clinique deep comfort body lotion which soaks in perfectly and is partially fragrance free so it does not detract from my perfume. Rich and creamy it is similar to Keihl's  cult creme de crops but at £27 for 400ml it is a cheaper. (Smaller tube shown)

However for those days where you are on the run Vaseline's new Spray and go lotion has revolutionised my morning routine as it does exactly what it says on the can. A quick spray and wipe and you are ready to throw on tights and other layers before heading out to the wilds. The only issue I have with it is the scent which doesn't harmonise well with the perfumes I wear but would probably go better with more citrusy scents.

Just after christmas I went to the Bobbi Brown store in Shepherds Bush Westfield for a makeover. I have always rated the gel eyeliners and I was talked into trying the Ivy shimmer which has the effect of making my eyes appear greener and making me look a bit more awake. I also bought the Shimmer Brick in Rose which whilst it looks scary in the pot but creates a dewy sheen of healthiness to my pale skin especially when swept over a pale pink blusher.

I went to Thailand in November and made the mistake of having my hair dyed just before I went, Consequently my hair came back significantly lighter than when I went away and in the English November light a little brassy. I started using Bleach London's Silver range consisting of a blue toned shampoo and conditioner every 2/3 hair washes to reduce some of the yellow tones. Whilst my hair is not "blond" my highlights need a little help and these products vanish any hint of a yellow tone.

Wasabi finally arrived in Leeds and I am so happy. One of the things I miss about my home town of London is the variety of food available and whilst Leeds has a thriving community of independent eateries I do miss chains such as apostrophe and Eat who do not seem to venture further north than the M25.

Keep an eye on Leeds Pop up who organise and promote pop up events going on not just in Leeds but also the North generally. You can find them on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

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A little bit about dating

I am catastrophically bad at dating. You literally have to use the word date when asking me out for me to realise that I am being asked out in the date otherwise I just assume that I am meeting up as friends. Fortunately I have (very patient) friends who will point these things out to me as they laugh at my stupidity.

The thing about dating is that often your friends will tell you what they think you want to hear and sometimes they give you little gems of advice that really should be shared with the world. Well this is a post all about those little pieces of invaluable advice.

1. Never arrange a first date for a Friday or Saturday Night
From the mouth of L this actually makes quite a lot of sense when you break it down. You never know how a first date will go, whilst it might be filled with non stop conversation and laughter you could equally find yourself opposite someone who is so painfully shy they can not talk. Do you really want to waste a weekend night on someone you may not want to invest in?
Taking that one step further arranging a date on a day you typically spend with friends means that you are not investing in those friendships that will be there even if you date does not turn into something more.
Lastly the benefit of a weekday date is that if something does not click or you know it is a none starter you can always the excuse that you need to get up early to extradite yourself.

2. If you would text a friend text the person you are dating
I can not count the number of hours that my friends have spent debating whether they should text the object of their affections or not. Will it be seen as too needy or too much- what is the correct etiquette?
Dating is ultimately auditioning for a best friend that you want to kiss and potentially see naked. It should not really be seen as more complicated than that, so if you are questioning whether or not you should text a potential other half apply the test of if it was a friend would I text?
Ok so if you are a planner and the other person likes to make plans off the cuff you will need to amend your expectations but can you honestly say that all of your friends have the same approach to communication that you do? Which brings me to the next point...

3. You cannot hold someone you are dating to a higher standard than you would your friends they are not superman/woman or a living embodiment of God
People mess up; you do, your friends do, your family does, your boss does, your teachers did, the sales girl who accidentally put your new toothbrush through the check out twice does. It happens.
Do you cut of every friend that messes up? I hope not because the world will quickly become a rather lonely place if you do. No instead you work out if it's a deal breaker (ie did they hit you or emotionally abuse you?) and then you either get over it or your friendship is affected. Just because you are dating someone romantically does not mean that they are automatically elevated above human status, there is no such thing as the perfect person.

4. Not every relationship works out
And thank goodness otherwise I might have ended up marrying several men who were wrong for me and I was wrong for them. Just as not everyone you meet will become your friend so to not everyone you date will be the person you end up with. adjust because it does not work out with one person it does not mean you will always be alone.
It also does not mean that you failed as a human being if the relationship does not work out and to be honest if you know the relationship is not right and will not work out you are better off ending if sooner rather than hanging for dear life.

5. There is no such thing as closure
How many times have you been sat with a friend who is questioning what went wrong in a relationship and they lament the lack of closure. You know that big mammoth discussion with other person in which they exactly the right thing to help you move on. Well it doesn't exist, why because no one will be able to say anything exactly the why you do or the way you rehearsed the conversation in your head.
Everyone has different ways of communicating and what would seem a perfectly bland word to one  person may be a trigger to another. We are not actors in life so there is no one feeding us perfectly phrased epic sentences filled with beautiful sentiments and therefore you are unlikely to receive the response you desire.
Plus sometimes it's impossible to communicate why you reached a decision that you did and being asked to verbalise something you can not explain to yourself if impossible.

6. If if does go wrong, kill with kindness
We have all been there you are out with a friend and they see their ex, you know the one who cheated on them with their cousin, and your friend ends up sashaying over to the ex with a bitchy attitude. What then follows involves a glass of wine being slammed, a series of lines rehearsed from mean girls, a table of dumb founded men, a raised voice that escalates into a full on scream and tears as an encore.
Yes he did wrong but in this scenario he looks like the socially embarrassed party as people around you gawp and stare, and your friend looks like a mess.
Instead adopt the approach that just because they were, in this example, a lying cheating scumbag, that does not need to affect your friends behaviour because they have actually done nothing wrong.
Killing with kindness is really about behaving beyond reproach, that does not mean that you should be a door mat or not speak out if something is wrong, but it does mean that you should move on and not hold on to hurt. After all you be much more likely to regret letting someone go who was always kind and reasonable towards you than the person who took every opportunity to shout at you.

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Kannelbulle (Swedish cinnamon rolls)

Far too many years ago for my liking I spent a year studying at Uppsalla Universitet in Sweden, and on cold winter nights (especially if there is snow) I find myself reminiscing about my time there.

One of my favourite memories of my time in Uppsalla was meeting up with my friends for Fika, which occurs about 3pm and involves drinking coffee and pastries. For me nothing symbolises Fika more than having a girlie gossip over a dark thick syrupy coffee and Warm Kannelbulle.

Kannelbulle translates as cinnamon bun and is a deliously warming treat originating from Sweden. Many countries have their own version and they are similar but there is something seductive about the simplicity of these cardamom and cinnamon swirls that the like of sticky Belgium buns fail to live up to.

Traditional Kannelbulle are topped with pearl sugar unfortunately the supermarkets near me don't stock that type of sugar so these are undressed Kannelbulle. I also ran out of cinamon so they look lighter than the recipe. 

Ingredients
Dough
14g dried yeast
1 cup milk
75g butter (I used margarine)
1 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2-3 cups plain flour

Filling
50g butter (again I used margarine)
1/4 cup icing sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1. Warm the milk and whisk in the yeast until dissolved and according to the packet instructions. 

2. Mix the dry ingredients together for the dough adding the butter and crumbling the ingredients together with your fingers. 

3. Make a well in the flour mix and pour the milk mixing into a dough and knead slightly. 

4. Place the dough in a bowl and cover with a tea towel and leave in a warm place for 45-50 minutes. 

5. In a separate bowl mix the filling ingredients together to form a smooth paste. I usually try and make double the filling to create a truly moist extra cinnamony bun. 

6. Once the dough has risen, flour a work surface and empty the dough into it and knead. Depending upon how big you want the buns to be either divide the dough into two or keep as one and roll out thinly into a rectangle. 

7. Once rolled out take a pallet knife and smear the butter mix over the dough leaving no gaps. 

8. Roll the dough tightly from one long side of the rectangle to the other. 

9. Cut the dough into sections at approximately 2cm to 3cm depending upon how big you want them to be. 

10. Place each swirl in a bun case and glaze with a beaten egg. 

11. Place in a preheated oven (220-210 degrees) for 30-40 minutes untill golden. 

12. If you have pearl sugar scatter over the buns and eat. 

N.b these can be froozen and enjoyed on a later date. 

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