My Summertime Snapshots

The weather picked up again so I have been outside playing!  Sorry for the lack of posts but have to grab that Irish summer while I have the chance...at least when the sun shines and I can travel over the country I don't mind my lack of holidays!

I had a beautiful weekend along the Antrim coast with a friend, have taken a few roadtrips with my boyfriend over the last 2 weeks and have been generally relaxing.

About an hour after sunset in Cushendall

Nailpolish is Models Own Blue Boo - loving the colour for summer but hating the gloopy texture and the fact it needs 3 coats.

Ok, so it wasn't quite California, but I tried to 'rehydrate naturally' at the beach with Vita Coco coconut water.  I picked it up in a healthfood store unaware that it is apparently the new celebrtiy fad diet drink of the minute (see Rihanna's man down music video!)  I wish I liked it more, but it's quite bitter and a bit thick.  I mixed it with pineapple juice and I diluted it with water, made it much more paletable and hopefully I still got the benefits!

Finally, I was in Mayo for a short trip and wish I could go back and enjoy all this beautiful sunshine there so much.  Staggeringly beautiful countryside everywhere you look!  We took a little jaunt over to Achill where this picture is taken, but stayed near Blacksod where my family is from, about as west of Ireland as you can get and beautiful dramatic landscapes.

Straightforward wee outfit - midi skirt was bought in the Urban Outfitter's sale, hopefully think of some interesting ways to wear it!

Watermelon and green tea with lemon felt like the breakfast of kings!  I have eaten such beautiful foods this week: coconut icecream from Morellis, chili made in good company, my mum's caesar salad...I could go on.

"I'm an orange moon"

Good weather and good food means I don't feel the lack of a holiday abroad right now.

So from sunsets to moonrises, I hope everyone is having a happy and healthy summertime at home or abroad.  I have lots of beauty buys I want to blog about next week, I think I'll be having to tighten the purse strings for the next few weeks :)

xox

Red Velvet Cakes & Roses

My sister graduated with her doctorate last weekend and I decided to bake a celebratory red velvet cake, red being the colour of PhD robes!

I have to admit that while I have somewhat mastered baking in the miniature form (cupcakes, brownies, cookies) I have never found cakes easy so perhaps a 3 tier red velvet cake for a party of 15 was a bit of an adventurous reintroduction to baking but I never do things by halves..
I used the Hummingbird Bakery recipe, had a few fraught moments in the kitchen and have learnt that:

1.) Asda red food colouring makes the cake taste slightly odd...Dr. Oetker is much better.

2.) You can't cook the batter in batches, the batter should be baked immediatley and not left for 30 mins to do the final tier like I did.  Because of the baking soda and vinegar in the recipe, if it left too long the final cake tastes a little...off!

3.) Cream cheese frosting, by the bucket load, will hide a multitude and the benefit of having a cake 3 tiers or more mean people automatically think it's fancy.

Ta-da!  Messy and yummy!

I was actually pretty happy with the end result.  It looked grand and I have to say that thus far I am finding the Hummingbird recipe book pretty faultless.  Their cake, cupcake and tart recipes haven't failed me, the reluctant baker, yet.  I'd never actually eaten a 3 tier cake, or seen one oustide of America, so it was a fun addition to the party.  The next day we took cake leftovers to picnic in the park.

Rose Week is this week in Belfast's Lady Dixon Park but it was nice to get down before the crowds and see the fragrant roses in bloom while soaking up some sunshine.  I posted pictures of me with the roses in Lady Dixon on my blog last year and it was one of the first pictures I posted of myself and the first hint of an outfit post.  It was only when I came home I realised I had worn a polka dot skirt last year and this time around I am in a polka dot dress...some things never go out of favour or fashion with me!
 This dress is so comfortable..I got it online from the Spanish brand 'Kling'.  I just loved that the style was named "70s wedding guest".  I'm wearing a vintage white patent belt and sunglasses with it and I threw on my nude heels that I had worn at the party for the photo :)

A rose necklace for the occasion and Illamasqua's pinky coral nailpolish in Lament

Picnic blankets and aeroplane trails across a hazy sky make me long for endless summers.

I love a bit of a lensflare sometimes...very retro!

And finally, the City of Belfast red rose!  Hope you liked the pictures and my shaky attempt at a photoshop collage.  Enjoy the sunshine :)

xox

Azulejo Inspired Dressing, perhaps!

With all this lying around being sick and worrying that I will never ever be employed ever again, I decided to brighten up my mood and this grey day with pictures from a sunnier one!

I took these a few weeks ago at my boyfriend's place of work :)  Such a lovely day, not sure it has been as hot since so I am glad I took the opportunity to wear a summer dress while I could!
I visited with my Mum and Great Aunt to see him and we had such fun.  Here are the summer shoesies and satchel in action!

I love this Emily and Fin dress, it fits perfectly and is so comfy.  Perfect length, not too short and it's lined so feels nice and bouncy!  I love this brand, I think this is my third dress by them.  I bought this one on Ebay for £5.50, brand new with tags on so I am delighted with my bargain.
I am also selling one on ebay I bought and never wore because I ended up buying this one! Here is the link to the dress I am selling if anyone is interested:  http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Emily-Fin-Dorothy-Dress-BN-Vintage-inspired-teadress-/140569491005?pt=UK_Women_s_Dresses&hash=item20ba98363d

Silent movie house - reconstructed brick by brick from Co. Armagh!

Cooling off in the shade!

I adore the combination of crisp white and blue. It feels so fresh and summery and reminds me of holidays.  I would love to go to Santorini where the buildings are whitewashed and  haveblue rooves.  It also reminds me of the Moor inspired 'Azulejo' tiles in Portugal and Spain I loved when I visited there as a child.  Google Azulejo if you haven't seen them, like delph china or willow patterned plates in the colour combo but just so gorgeous.

Have a good weekend everyone!  I am going to try and sort out the mess that my room is post workmen and post pictures on Monday xox

p.s have you heard of Boudoir Privé?  I am intrigued and hopeful, who is going to get the boxes!  Nothing like a bit of mystery and bloggers dying for beauty products to get us excited
http://signup.boudoirprive.co.uk/yqf59  Sign up there and tell me what happens!