Rainbow cous-cous

This gorgeous, easy to make, healthy dish is perfect for munching on at a picnic, soaking up the last of the sun and if your family is anything like mine and try to kiss you whenever anyone says cous-cous (kiss-kiss, get it?) it will provide endless entertainment!

You will need:

Just add water plain cous- cous

Cucumber

Tomato

Colourful peppers

Onion

Olive oil

Lemon juice

Top tip: You can use whatever vegetables you find knocking around your fridge, the more the merrier! Whole olives might be nice.

How to make:

1. Pour boiling water over the cous-cous following the instructions on the back of the packet.

2. While the cous-cous is soaking up the water, cut up all the vegatables (minus the lemon)

    into tiny pieces.

 3.Put all the chopped up veg in with the cous-cous and mix with a drizzle of olive oil and lemon.

 Serve with a smile (cheesy I know, but hey!)!

Cropped trousers and how to wear

Hey, so I’ve noticed a lot (I mean a lot) of cropped trousers on the street recently, which is kinda cool, ‘cause they are amazing, real chic when worn the right way. When worn the wrong way…. Well…. Don’t even go there…. But, below I’ve put some ideas and tips ‘n’ tricks on how to

do it right!

The casual "just threw this on and still look amazing"

Try frayed jeans with a wide fold-up paired with a white button down shirt that's half tucked in. For

a more "laid-back" feel throw on a brightly coloured oversize sweater. Have a go at a messy up-do to finish it off, Messy ballerina bun This link goes to my instructions. Not self-promotion or anything, but, it does look pretty awesome so have a go. Tell me how it went if you like, ‘cause I love reading comments :D

One of those office days

Neat pastel colours with perfect creases and a pair of black or nude heels make this style great for work as well as play – well not play as such, ‘cause for 1. You can’t really do the monkey bars in heels and 2. When you fall off you’d uncrease your trousers (and we wouldn’t want that now would we).  An open blazer in a darker colour adds to this appeal.

Classic mademoiselle

A one-size too big white shirt that has neat creases, tucked into a pair of - practically any colour as long as its pale - chino style trousers with a scarf tied at the side around your neck, is just the picture of classic French style. Top it off – French (Dutch, whatever) braid your hair or even better, twist the braids round your head, traditional milkmaid girl.

Sorry about the distinct lack of photos everyone *sheepish grin* will try to get some for next time.

Autumn Days smoothie

Both a warming, by-the-fire drink and a sunny autumn days smoothie!

You will need:
A blender

1 banana

1 large apple

Blackberries 

Apple juice

Ground Cinnamon

How to make:

Cut the apple into small chunks and boil to soften. Put in the blender with the banana,
blackberries, and a small pinch of ground cinnamon depending on how strong you want it.
Cover with a good slosh of apple juice. Stick on the lid (always important!) and give it a 30
second whizz until it is smooth. Lumpy smoothies are disgusting!

Taking summer dresses into autumn

Noooo…. summer's ending!! The days are getting colder again and swimming costumes are going to the back of the drawer once more. But one thing you don’t need to say goodbye to just yet, are your summer dresses and skirts!! Here’s 3 top tips so you can keep wearing them right into the autumn!!

  Layering is essential, throw on a brushed cotton shirt and denim jacket or cardigan over the top. Make sure that the shirt is in a colour that complements your dress.

Example. Pastel blue dress = Darker shades of blue or green shirt

The lifesavers that are tights! Keeping a pair of woollen tights (burgundy and grey are good colours) at hand is always a good idea. Sheer black are useful as well as they tend to go

with everything! If you are going to wear patterned, make sure (obv!!)

that the colours don’t clash!!

Another idea that will instantly autumn-a-nize your dress (skirt) is pairing with boots. Any boots, but in particular knee highs, second skin and DM’s. I find DM’s (or similar) the most versatile, because you can change the laces depending on what colour dress you are wearing! This may sound v obvious, but it actually doesn’t occur to some people!

Messy ballerina bun

You need: Hair pins and a headband no more than 2 inches wide

Brush your hair backwards taking a section from centre front and twisting it backwards pinning at centre back. Repeat this above your ear on both sides. THIS DOES NOT HAVE TO

BE NEAT! Put on a headband. (Just in-case you don't know how to!) Put your head through the hole and pull it down so it hangs around your neck. Put all your hair out over the band. Holding the front of the band pull it up and position about a cm away from your hairline. The twists will be flattened slightly but that doesn't matter. Gather your hair up (twists included) into a messy pony, then holding the end twist up into a bun. Stick pins in at the cardinal points (north, east, south and west), pull a few strands out to frame your face and there we go, a cute, messy ballerina bun!

Ideas

• Try different widths of hairband, no more than 2 inches work best but try thinner.
• Stick a brooch in the bun or a fabric flower ( You can buy these or make them yourself)
• It doesn't have to be a hairband, try tying a strip of fabric round instead,                            maybe tying a bow at the side.

How to wear

This is quite a fancy hairstyle so wear with simple clothes, jeans and a white t-shirt using a

colourful headband or a patterned skirt with a plain black band. For dark hair I suggest a bright or pastel band for light hair dark colours can be striking but bright or subtle works as well.

Primark T-shirt

I recently bought this t-shirt from Primarks Spring, Summer range.

It came in many other colours and patterns but this one is my favourite.

Very cute, very versatile, can be worn with almost anything.

 The clothes I have paired it with are (Probably) not available to buy any more.

Shirts; both H&M

Hoody; Hollister

Skirt; Homemade

This summers hairstyle

May, June time it was the twisted plaits pinned center back creating a boho feel but come July things have changed once again. Drum-roll please and in enters the... ponytail!
Umm... Ok... Your'e thinking, but I'm serious, for this summer only, this lil' girl style has opened
its doors to an older audience bringing a wave of freshness onto the fashion scene.

Vogues July issue held an article declaring that the general problem people have with
ponytails is the height; too high and you become a cheerleader but too low can sometimes
look too serious. - not to say that that's the case with everyone, some people look great with
the cheerleader/serious thing - the result putting people off.

The trick is getting it in the right place for you. not too low, not too high...
you just have to experiment.

Whats really in right now is messing it up, pulling strands out to frame your face.

You can play around with your ponytail once you've sorted the height,
try winding strands round or plaiting part of it.

Ponytails are cool in the celeb world to with big names such as Taylor Swift, Lilly Allen,

Katy Perry, Bella Thorne and Ariana Grande all giving it there own twist.

Easy peasy hairstyles

Hi

I've decided to write about some things you can do with your hair when it needs a wash and you can't be bothered or when its getting in your face and annoying you (that's every other second for me!)

Medium Length hair: It gets really annoying and hot wearing it down sometimes but if you
just keep the front bits tied back then you get all the glory of its longeness (is that a word?!!)
and it doesn't get in the way! Just take a small section from the side of your head near the front,
and tie this with a bunch. Repeat on the other side. Tighten them sort of backwards so they're not sticking straight out the side (that would look really cute on a four year old, but not really on the age I was aiming at!).This style is quite fun so if you were looking for something a bit more sensible (that word is not in my dictionary!) you could try just pulling the entire front section of your hair back
into a bunch at the back of your head or plaiting the side sections back and pinning instead of bunching them! If the hair that's down is still annoying you just bundle it all up into a messy ponytail. Some say its easiest to do this with your head upside down to get it right on the top of your head but I find it easier to be the right way up when I do mine! I guess it depends on your hair.

Long hair: You can do everything I put down for Medium length hair with long hair, in fact
some of the styles work better with long hair like the bunches one.
You can also do braids over the top of your head which looks quite cute!

Bobbed hair: You can't really tie up bobbed hair but you can pin it back in various different ways.
Option 1. Take a piece of hair at the very front of your head in the centre and twist it backwards. Pin.
Option 2. Take a small section from the side of your head and plait it. Pin this back and do the same
on the other side.
Option 3. Do the same as in option 2 but twist instead of plait.
Two plaits also looks very cute in bobbed hair, French, Dutch or normal.

Short hair: I don't know about short hair, but I'm guessing you don't really need to get it out the way because its already out of the way if you get what I mean?!
If its long, short hair (?) you can do any of the options for bobbed hair.

Remember: you don't just have to do the styles in your category you can mix and match and adapt
them all to fit your hair.

Mariano Fortuny and the Delphos dress

Its 1907 and the fashion world is about to change dramatically for the first time in decades.

The 36 year old Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo has rebelled against the strict lines that have dominated the scene for as long as anyone can remember. He has created the Delphos dress.

An older Mariano Fortuny

Fortuny was born to a very artistic family in 1871 Granada, Spain, his father was the painter

Mariano Fortuny y Marsal and his mother was the daughter of another famous painter Raimundo de Madrazo y Garreta. It came clear to see at a young age that Fortuny was a very talented artist showing not only great promise as a painter but an apparent interest in textiles. His father died when he was three and his mother moved the family to Paris. There Fortuny's artistic side was fueled greatly. As a young man Fortuny traveled finding out artists he admired and broadening his skills to include inventing, painting, photography, sculpting, architecture, etching and stage lighting. In 1889 he moved to Venice staying there for the rest of his life.

Mariano Fortuny took inspiration for the Delphos dress from the loose clothing Greek people wore.

The Delphos dress was a shift made from finely hand pleated silk weighed down by glass beads.

It came in many vibrant colours, hand dyed with pigments Fortuny himself had made using ancient methods.

No one has ever been able to recreate pleating as fine as his.

The trend for spring

Gingham

When I say gingham I bet your'e thinking Dorothy, Wizard of Oz, 

but no, its not like that. Gingham is becoming more and more sophisticated, in Oscar de la Renta's SS15 collection gingham skirts and kimono style jackets took center stage, in gorgeous baby pinks and blues, sometimes even appearing in black. Altuzarra's collection was dominated by it, Elle is calling gingham THE print of spring 2015. There is so much more to gingham then the Wizard of Oz!

Oscar de la Renta SS15

Works well in dresses and skirts, combined with other similar fabrics

but lace is an interesting idea too.

Wear with block colours like black or white that complement without

taking away from the checks.

The Shift Dress

The Shift dress was at its most popular in the 1960's and is slowly regaining popularity due to its relaxed style and the fact that it is easy to reproduce in a factory.

Hubert de Givenchy is often credited with inventing the shift dress but there is another story about a woman called Lily Pulitzer. Lily Pulitzer made and sold fruit juices to tourists at Palm beach.

She asked a dressmaker to make her some brightly coloured dresses to cover up the fruit stains, just a simple a-line, sleeveless thing nothing too fancy.

But Lily found that her customers wanted to buy her dresses as much as the juice, so she started making and selling shift dresses as well.

Then Jackie Kennedy wore one and the whole world went crazy for shift dresses!

In 1961 Lily closed her juice bar and started selling dresses full time.

 

Audrey Hepburn wore this style slightly cinched in...

...whilst Twiggy wore it Twiggy style, straight down and short!

Shift Dresses now come in lots of different colours and sizes

so it is not so difficult to find one to meet your needs. 

                           

   

Wear with ballet pumps and a long necklace for a girly style

or combine with boots and plain leggings to toughen up your look.

Alternatively you could go all out with a block neon colour!

- Wear with little or no accessories so as not to detract from the colour -.

Many high-street brands now stock shift dresses, so what are you waiting for,

go out and get yourselves one!

A brief history of Bellville Sassoon

Bellville Sassoon was and still is one of the biggest fashion houses of its era, designing for among others Princess Margaret, Duchess of York, Diana Princess of Wales, Jackie Kennedy, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor. The company only became known by name as Bellville Sassoon in 1958, 5 years after it was founded by Belinda Bellville, when it was joined by David Sassoon.
Bellville Sassoon became famous for its wedding dresses and fashionable evening wear making the company expand to let in a team of designers, including George Sharp, Shena Carslaw, Helen Storey and Romy Gelardin to help David Sassoon with his ideas. In 1987 Lorcan Mullany an Irish designer joined and the company became Bellville Sassoon Lorcan Mullany. Mullany added to the ready-to-wear collections meaning more people could afford to buy their clothes. The company is still run by Lorcan Mullany today and is situated at Culford Gardens, Chelsea.

How to make a PERFECT PENCIL POT

What you need

An empty can

Patterned wrapping paper

Sticky tape

Stickers

How to

1. Peel off any paper from the can, and wash and dry thoroughly.

2. Cut a strip of wrapping paper slightly longer and 2cm wider than the can.

3. Stick one side of the paper to the can, then roll the can up in the paper and secure with sticky tape

4. Cut the excess into strips, then fold and stick them down one by one.
This will hide all the sharp edges.

5. Decorate with stickers, or cut out shapes from the paper and stick them on


















It makes writing so much more fun!

Sergei Polunin dancing to "Take me to church"

Ukrainian ballet dancer, Sergei Polunin dances to "Take me to church" by Hozier. This is amazing, his jumps are incredible, he almost seems to hang in the air! The  floor piece at the beginning is the best bit in my opinion, when he just suddenly leaps up and beats his legs behind him then lands again as if nothing happens - its awesome.

Sergei Poluninn "Take me to church"