Step back in time | outfit of the day

I've spoke in two of my recent outfit posts (here and here) what I feel most comfortable in, typically for my it's jeans and trainers, something I've never grown out of. However there is a big part of me which will always love the "dress up" size of fashion. In fact if you asked my friends I've never really been one for having a specific look.

I've talked a long time ago about it been weird how I feel most comfortable in some of the boldest outfits and when I first started going out many moons ago now, I've always had some rather "out there" outfits. I guess it's kind of empowering been able to create different persona's through what we wear, it's kind of crazy to be honest. I've been looking at this look for ages and really can't put my finger on what era of fashion it reminds me of  but either way it's one of my new favourite looks. 

As it will come as no surprise to anyone the outfit was created shoes first, then finding a dress to match. I've been wanting thigh high boots for ages and recent fashion trends has meant I can now get away with wearing a pair without feeling like Julia Roberts in Pretty woman. Although since thigh high boots aren't practical for much (although surprisingly comfortable) I picked these up in Primark for £20.00. 

In my head I knew the exact style of dress I wanted the pair with the shoes, I found this dress near perfect in Miss Selfridge during the mad Friday sale. The dress was originally a mid length dress, but as I loved the high neck and long sleeves so much I decided to get it anyways and have the length altered. 

 Photo credits - Jess Nelson

Dress - MissSelfridge (additional alterations)

Boots - Primark (current season)

Thoughts on the look?

Sammie

November Degustabox | Winter Box

Well this week has been a long week. I booked the week of work for a chance to relax and get all my Christmas shopping done and instead I've been busier than ever. Last Friday - Monday I spent a relaxing long weekend in a rather nice cottage in North Yorkshire. Although with 7 other girls was anything but a quiet weekend. Wednesday I was in Manchester for the day as I went to watch Ben Howard at the 02 Academy, I would defiantly recommend going to see him live if your a fan. Then Thursday until today I've been away in York. So returning home to another arrival of a Degustabox was a lovely treat. That and of course sleeping in my own bed. 

The Degustabox is always something I look forward to receiving, a box full of homely goodies and a chance to try new foods. My friends have pointed out to me over the past week that I am rather a fuss pot when it comes out eating out and if I'm honest I love home cooking. I've been looking at houses a lot recently and creating Pinterest boards of my dream home and I defiantly visualise a future in a country kitchen cooking up dinner parties for friends and baking at the weekends. Although that will defiantly be a few years away at the moment. This months box as always was a mix of products of snacks, drinks and items for delicious home cooking. 

Kettle chips
Everyone loves Kettle chips. There crunchy, tasty and up there in the world of crisps. I'd never heard of the flavour salsa & mesquite. They taste a little like you would expect salsa to taste like and the only way I can describe these is a cross between tomato ketchup crisps and smokey bacon. 

Cool Dawn Recovery drink
A detox drink to prevent hangovers. I best get stocking up before Christmas. This did have an odd flavour though a kind of citrus taste with an after taste of liquorish. It was a lot more pleasant than it sounds and hey if it helps me keep on partying over the festive period, I'm a fan.

Lindor melting moments
What is there to say here. Lindt. Chocolate. Melting centre. Heaven. 

Kent's Kitchen flavour shots
Flavour shots have been a around a while now. Although I've not seen BBQ flavour ones yet. I've used these before and find them an easy way to add flavour to a lot of dishes. I've not used the BBQ flavour yet but thinking of cooking up something easy like chicken fajitas with these. 

Branstons caramelised onion chutney
Onion chutneys always seems to come in handy at Christmas time. Prefect to go with cheeses and all kinds of party foods. I've already bought in some ingredients and think I'm going to make some mini goats cheese tart type things using this. 

PIP Organic cloudy apple juice
PIP Organic is a family run business based in London producing organic juices. No added sugars or preserves just pure juice. The cloudy apple was refreshing and tasty. I did think the bottles look a little small but there actually a nice size to go with breakfast on the go. 

Montano cider
I've not yet  tasted this. Shocking right. I'm not actually a cider fan unless there the fruit ones so I'll pass this on to my dad. It's said to be a medium dry crisp cider so I suspect he will actually really enjoy this.

Holy Cow cooking sauce
Holy Cow is a brand making authentic Indian sauces. I'm sure if your like me, opening a jar of sauce and adding this to meat qualifies you as a chef. I do like cooking but lets be honest after a long day we all want an easy option. I'm hoping the taste will actually be authentic, often too many cooking sauces taste a little too sweet and processed so I'm hoping by using these I can promote myself to Head Chef. 


Sample present (Drink me chai tea)
Chai tea on a cold day is always a favourite. I'm not just awaiting the snow to fully feel all cosy. 

Have you tried Degustabox?

Sammie

October box | September Box | August Box 

Receive a discount on your Degustabox order with the code 76N79

The Christmas Jumper alternative

When I told you my last outfit post look was the most "me" I looked at the post and thought the whole outfit really sums up entirely what I feel most comfortable in wearing from my wardrobe. What I'm going to refere to as comfort clothes.I do kind of think this t-shirt is a typical "me" throw on item, and the fact it's Christmas related is an extra bonus. 

A few weeks ago, I was sat blissfully blogging away paying no attention to anything around me, lost in my own little cyber world, when a noise caught my attention. A sound of twinkling bells coming from the TV, I looked up as I felt a grin forming across my face before I had even had a chance to look at the television, yep there it was the coca-cola truck gliding through my living room. I don't care if the John Lewis advert may cause more of a hype, if Sainsburry's have made us all cry this year, for me the one advert which will always be a sign of Christmas more than anything else is the coca-cola holidays are coming advert. 

So naturally you can imagine my excitement when I found this t-shirt in Primark of all place for the utter bargain of £6.00. I did question back in November when I purchased it if it was a little early for Christmas clothing to be hitting the shops but quite frankly I wasn't prepared for this to sell out. 

Photo credits: Jess Nelson

Holidays are coming t-shirt - Primark £6.00 (in store)
Also if your wondering, I have on skinny jeans and trainers with this.

Like this look: Pin this image on Pinterest

Sammie

Ambition Inspired #OOTD | giveaway

A casual outfit look for you all today. I think this is one of those outfits which truly shows the kinds of things I actually wear most days...well when I'm not at work anyways. Stretchy disco pants, which I don't care what anyone says in my head they go with everything I own. As you can tell by the now stretchy knees, they get a lot of wear. Maybe I should invest in a new pair aye. Teamed with a jersey t-shirt, trainers and backpack. Now a days I find myself reaching for backpacks more than I ever will a handbag. I've always been more the tom-boy kind of dressers and in school when everyone had there handbags which would just about fit a planner and a pen in (if you remember this bonus points) I choose a backpack from Freespirit (again bonus points if you remember that shop too). Now the history quiz is out the way let's chat about clothes some more..why not eh. 

The top is a new purchase from Honour Over Glory. This is a brand that seems to take me way back and I've been a huge fan of the brand for years. Despite been a smaller brand they have always been a popular choice for me. I remember seeing them years ago with little stalls set up at festivals and everyone going mad for them. I still have my over the knee American style football sock from them and still love them to this day. It's a clothing brand I will always feel comfortable in and a brand that actually takes me slightly back to my "youth". 

I know we hear elders discussing comfort over style a hell of a lot and I must admit this is always something I've taken on board. My fashion sense is such a mix match between outfits in which I feel my wardrobe is a dressing up box, dresses and heels for nights out kind of thing and then the other side of me is always trainers, skinny jeans and tshirts. Which I always feel most comfortable in. These trainers have been one of my favorite shoe purchases this year and one of the most worn. Clearly because there practical. Although I'm not sure how this post is comparing against my recent purchase of thigh high boots. 

As said backpacks defiantly seem the way forward. My new Beck & Hersey backpack from flash-price is defiantly a new favorite. It came in perfect handy for my recent weekend away in the country and will no doubt become my new work bag. I'm defiantly keeping a close eye on the bargains to come on flash-price who have just launched yesterday, plus the first 1000 people who sign up their newsletter will receive a free HACK tshirt worth £29.99 with no purchase necessary. Plus for the first 500 who purchased a pair of Urban Logik boots will recicve a free backpack, like mine! Bargain aye.  

All Photo Credits: Jess Nelson 

Top - Honour over Glory

Disco pants - New Look

Trainers - Nike Vortex, Schuh 

Backpack - Beck & Hersey via Flash-Price*

Now since I'm bragging about backpacks quite a lot, it would be rude not to let you lucky bunch in on the fun. Therefore I'm hosting a little giveaway with Flash-Price and giving away a Beck & Hersey backpack to one lucky winner. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Casino night at White Cloth Gallery #bgomeetup | OOTD

It's always great whenever I get the chance to attend events with my blogging friends, catch up with old faces and have a mingle with new ones too. Last weekend I attended one of the funnest events yet, a casino themed night for BGO hosted at White Cloth Gallery in Leeds by the lovely guys at Joe Blogs (blogger network). 

Now before I get onto the fun stuff, I'll just share a cheeky outfit of the day, simply because I love these checked trousers. You say Rupert the Bear I say cool as hell. 

Trousers: Primark

Shoes: Primark

Jacket: Topshop

Jersey long sleeve top: Topshop

I was running late to the event...as I always am, following my hair appointment. 4 hours for my hair doing!! I know, right. Such a pain, but I've had my roots faded out, my hair for now can't taken any more bleach at the moment so for now I've considered some low lights to blend out the roots. Anyways you probably want to know about the event, not my hair, so here goes. 

I was greeted by the Lovely Haydn upon arrival and handed some paper money to play with and some chips as drinks tokens for the night. After ordering a diet coke large white wine, I checked out the tables and cashed in my money for chips. 

Ever since I was a little girl I've always been kind of lucky. Although I've never won the lottery, I was always kind of jammy at picking out the winning tickets at things like tombolas, fair ground games and lets not forget the gold fish I won when I was two years old on hook and duck, which to my parents despair of cleaning the tank lived till I was 21. 

This has to some extent always stuck with me, I remember my first visit to a casino when I was 18 and I bet £5 on number 11 for my birthday. Nothing else just that one chip. I actually won, then as I didn't move my chip of the number back as I didn't realize no one else can touch my chips I actually won twice in a row. For a first visit I was pretty darn impressed, took my winnings and had a rather enjoyable night out after. 

Throughout the night we was taught how to play poker, black jack and roulette by the professional team at BGO. I didn't realize there was competitions running throughout the night and the bloggers who made the most were to win prizes. That said I did well with my first 3 hands in a row at black jack scoring 21 and I was pretty lucky at roulette too. 

As the night came to an end it was time for the prize giving. Since I didn't know this was happening I bet all my chips on black on roulette and lost. I actually think I would of had a good chance of winning if not. Once the prizes were handed out the last remaining prize everyone was given the chance to win by a simple good old fashioned cheering contest. Cheer the loudest for the person you want to win. To my utter shock I actually received a rather loud cheer and won! I was shocked! It really made me see just how many people I had got to know through blogging, despite it sounding weird to outsiders who see these people as "internet friends" It really made me so happy to see all my friends coming together through this bizarre online world. 

Sammie

Ox Pasture Hall Courtyard Restaurant

Finding hotels with good in house restaurants is not something I've really come across before. Typically it's all a bit too commercial for me and feels like a utter waste of money to eat in the hotel it's self when chances are there's somewhere better you can explore in the surrounding areas. 

However after my recent stay at Ox Pasture Hall (my review here)  located a few minuets drive from the centre of Scarborough, my views have changed a lot. As expected for a secluded boutique hotel you are limited to food choices and the best option for convenience is to eat in the hotel it's self. However despite this, the food is actually out of this world and has even been llisted as a recommended restaurant in the Michelin guide on numerous occasions. 

After a glass of prosecco in the hotel bar area and a chance to ponder the menu we was shown to our table and the wine was poured. I always seem to get excited whenever I get a floor standing wine bucket holder, just feel a little fancy and it's the little touches which make the most difference. If I'm honest at this point the restaurant already had top marks from me as they had my favourite wine on the menu. It's Torres Vina Esmeralda, a fruity Spanish white wine which seems impossible to find except for online! There's something about buying a case of wine on online which seems to cross a boundary for me, unless I move out, host a dinner party and become middle aged, I think I'll leave the online wine clubs alone for a good few years. 

We were given an appetiser of red pepper and tomato soup and offered a choice of breads. I choose a slice of the cheese and chive bread which had a lovely subtle taste. 

For the starter I had the ham hock terrine which was served with breaded quails egg, pea puree and the classic Yorkshire accompaniment of piccalilli. Jess opted for the duck, which I believe was a duck pate, open duck springroll and a cherry sorbet. 

The main courses were just as exceptional and the starters and I opted for the beef and Jess the pork. The beef was served two ways one a slowed cooked brisket of beef on a bed of mashed potatoes and the second was a fillet of beef cooked to my choice, which I opted for rare which was served with mushroom duxelle. The pork was also served two ways with an accompaniment of red cabbage and black pudding. 

Everyone who knows me knows I'm not a desert person at all...in fact I may tell you this in every post. For me it's all about the cheese at the end of a meal and although Jess didn't take much convincing to partake in the ordering of a cheese board we did also check out a desert. 

The desert was a Caribbean theme of mango rice pudding, coconut panna cotta and a cheeky pina colada. As it wasn't too sugar heavy I actually enjoyed this. I did feel it would of make more sense for a mango panna cotta and a coconut rice pudding but after tasting it did seem to work well. 

I'm not fully sure of the cheese selection but there was a good balance of a hard goats cheese, a blue cheese and a wensleydale. 

Overall the food was truley amazing and so much attention to detail has clearly been put into the menu. The service was flawless (never used that word yet to describe resturant service) and I would love to find an opportunity to visit here again. 

Sammie

Afternoon tea | Ox Pasture Hall | North Yorkshire

Back when I posted about Ox Pasture Hall, I explained I was holding a few posts back as they deserved extra special attention. One of these was their afternoon tea. 

Warm scones, delicate finger sandwiches and a selection of cakes, what's not to love about afternoon tea? Plus with the addition of an open fire, what could be more perfect for a cold November afternoon.

I feel like I post about afternoon tea a lot, you must think this is all I do with my weekends. It's not, but i couldn't think of a better way to spend them. Although until a few months back when I visited went bridge house, I'd never had afternoon tea. Ohh how do things change quickly. These days I feel I've got pretty good knowledge at spotting where the good afternoon tea's are and Ox Pasture Hall proved a brilliant choice. 

The sandwiches were a good selection, Yorkshire ham, smoked salmon and cream cheese and cucumber. A nice balanced mix and they all tasted great. My favourites as you may have guessed was the smoked salmon. 

The scones were warm with a large pot of clotted cream (why is there's usually never enough of this) and choices of jams. I always go for the raspberry. As a kid I was always taught jam first them cream, but I've adopted cream first than jam now a days. 

The cakes were exceptional and there was a really nice mixed selection. A raspberry tartlet with meringue top, lemon cheese cake, short bread biscuit and a classic sponge cake with delicious vanilla butter cream filling. The short bread was crumbly, the cake moist and the the cheesecake..well it was cheesecake and lovely, like cheesecake should be. My favourite was the mini tartlet which was quite tart due to the fresh raspberry's but a very nice addition to the heavier cakes.  

The service here was brilliant and the staff are extremely welcoming. As soon as we arrived we was given a choice of coffee, tea or speciality tea's. We could choose where to have our afternoon tea, in the main dining room (the courtyard restaurant), by the roaring fire in the lounge area or on warmer days there's the option to dine outside. I would love to return here in the summer when I can sit outside as the place really is truly beautiful. 

Sammie

Cranberry & white chocolate truffles recipe

Recently I've become rather fond of baking a lot more than ever, maybe it's the cold winter nights and cooking up delicious treats seems more the fitting way to spent the evenings. This week I decided I would have a go at making truffles. I've never made them before but it seemed an easy choice and perfect for the festive season which is slowly creeping up on us all. These white chocolate and cranberry truffles would make the perfect home made gift too for friends and family on that big day. Although I may need to perfect making them a smaller truffle size. Wouldn't want my mum thinking I've handed her a bag of scotch eggs on the big day. 

These are super easy and quick to make, unlike attempting to make fudge your also not at any risk of burning any pans. Plus there is very little washing up to do here. If you've read any of my baking posts, you will know I like my recipes quick and simple.   

You will need:

200ml cream, 450g of white chocolate (I'm using giant milky bar buttons), 200g dried cranberries, a handful of amaretti biscuit and a teaspoon of coco powder. 

How to make:

Pour the cream into a large bowl and microwave for 60 seconds to heat the cream. 

Add the chocolate buttons and stir into the cream, microwave for 30 seconds intervals and keep stiring until the mix is smooth and glossy. White chocolate burns very quickly so make sure you keep an eye on this. This should only take another minuet. 

Add the dried cranberries and stir into the mix. 

Pour the mix onto a baking tray and leave to set in the fridge for an hour. For plain truffles you can leave in the same bowl to set, however I wanted to keep the cranberrys even and not all sink to the bottom of the bowl. Using a flat baking tray also helps the mix set quicker. 

Grind the amaretti biscuits in a blender with a spoon ful of coco-powder. This is to coat the truffles. 

Once the truffle mix has set, spoon out the mixture with a tea spoon and quickly shape them into little balls. Don't try and get them perfect the quicker you do this the less the mix will melt. 

Coat them with the ground amaretti powder. 

share with family & friends and enjoy. 

Sammie

The Opening of Cabana Leeds | Trinity Centre Leeds

As I strolled through the Leeds Trinity shopping centre on my lunch a few weeks ago, I notice a boarded up shop location with the brightest funkiest advert for "Cabana". Been the nosey one I am and never wanting to miss out on anything new, I quickly searched Twitter and noticed there was a new Brazilian restaurant coming to Leeds. Cabana. Tonight Cabana (located opposite Trinity Kitchen) finally opened it's doors and I was invited along to sample their delicious Brazilian menu and slip on one or two five cocktails. 

Leeds in quick becoming a haven for new restaurants and many of my new favourites have sprung up this year (see what they are here and here). I've always loved the vibrancy of Leeds and their willingness to embrace anything new. So I'm guessing it was a clear choice to open the first venue for Cabana outside of London (no idea if that's true, but it's clearly a brilliant guess). It seems we have all the burger joints we now need for the next decade, so it was time to bring in something a little different. 

When Trinity Leeds first opened I must admit although I loved the massive Primark, the gigantic Topshop and the addition of a Victoria Secrets, the restaurant department was a little disappointing. In fact other than the new concept of the Trinity Kitchen, most of the dining venues what originally opened first was what Leeds already had, Carluccios, Giraffe, Yo! Sushi, etc, etc. Tick! Although there has been more brilliant venues since, what it needed was something fresh, vibrant, edgy and even fun to create a real buzz going. Tonight I think I have found just that. In Leeds's newest Brazilian Restaurant, Cabana. 

Cabana, (I'm starting to say cabana too much now, to the point it doesn't sound like a real word) is attempting to recreating the warm, uplifting spirit of Brazil in their vibrant up-cycled themed venue. Serving up their take on a true Brazilian Barbecue and fruity cocktail it was really hard not to find anything to dislike about the place. Unless of course your not willing to embrace the awesome atmosphere? 

The food and drink samples kept on coming all evening long and I defiantly sampled everything there was to offer here. It ended up that I needed a good lay down when I got home before I wrote this. Well a rest and a catch up on The Apprentice. 

The food was incredible and everything I tried (almost everything on the menu) was cooked to perfection, thick cuts of steak served pink and bloody in the middle. Which I'm calling the correct way to cook steak. Chicken juicy and tender with the most amazing flavours and lamb which melts in the mouth. Plus more home comfort's such as pulled pork sliders, chicken coxinhas (croquettes of shredded chicken and spices) and sweet potato fries. The menus seemed to have a nice balance for a Brazilian restaurant of not been too "only meat" heavy and offering a few more alternative dishes than I expected. 

Drinks wise, there was a good range of cocktails on offer, mostly sticking to the classics such as Caipirinha's and the more rum and tequila based cocktails (not a problem with me!). There is also some great twists on the classics on the menu, my recommendation has to be the passion fruit and kiwi caipirinha. 

One thing I did spot was the soft drinks menu also looked just as great, no more boring coca cola if your driving, you can still join your friends with something a little more exotic just less rum. If cocktails aren't your thang (not even a spelling error there, I'm just so relaxed with the vibe going on, or maybe it's the cocktails talking and I should change it) there's also Portuguese and Brazilian lagers on offer too. 

At the end of the night I was gifted with some Cabana Bucks, so I can return...not that I need any prompting and introduce the venue to some friends. I actually can't wait to bring my friends along here and show this place of. I can defiantly see this making a huge impact and been in the prime location of the Trinity Centre, Cabana should feel pretty welcome in it's new home too. 

Is this a place you would like to try? 

What do you make of the newest place in town? 

Sammie

Cabana

Trinity Leeds