Christmas capital

So whilst my friends are at university I have made plans to visit a few of them to subside their home-sickness and for me to get some independence and travelling in. I have already ventured to Birmingham and Cardiff this year, but the highlight so far has been London at Christmas time with one of my best friends. 

After arriving the night before and catching up over a tub of Roses and One Fine Day, we woke to gorgeous Winter weather and quickly got dressed and made a plan for the day. A few years ago we actually visited London with our group of friends for a few days, so I knew the places I wanted to revisit and had my friend on hand to recommend elsewhere she had discovered in her 3 or so month stay.

First we headed to Harrods as I had never visited before and it was spectacular, like something from a movie. I couldn't believe how huge it was, and the Egyptian Escalator was incredible. The fact it was so Christmassy inside was an added bonus. I was determined to buy something from there, and couldn't believe it when we found the food market! 

Though we were totally spoilt for choice, I settled on an Oreo Cupcake and a salted caramel brownie - I think I'll cherish this box forever! We later sat by the Thames with our lunch and munched on these, and they were divine.

Once our lunch stop was over, we walked along the river and past the London Eye towards Big Ben.  

I don't think you can visit London without visiting Big Ben, it just symbolises it completely and always makes me stop and stare.

After a quick hot chocolate break it was then time to walk up to Trafalgar Square, one of my favorite places from our last visit. Though instead of sunglasses I had gloves and wasn't tempted to jump in the fountain to cool off, it was still lovely to just sit and people watch, though the Christmas tree was very disappointing. 

Oxford Street was next on our list as I had only ever visited briefly with my family when we needed a quick pair of shoes from Primark. This time I got to walk and experience quite a large section, and it was entertaining to see each shop trying to out do each other with the Christmas lights and displays. 

From what I saw, I would have to vote Boots as the winner as there was fake snow falling!

To make the most of Oxford Street, I suggested we visit Lush as I knew I had Christmas shopping to do there and it luckily turned out to be on a road just off Oxford Street with lights ten times more impressive then everything we have where I live! 

After leaving Lush with much more than I had planned, we headed back 'home' to get rid of our many bags (I was getting very frantic somebody would crush my cupcake in the busy streets) and then hopped on the tube to Camden Market. I knew I wanted to visit the shop Rokit for a Christmas present, which luckily was still open, but unfortunately the actual market was closing. 

After visiting Rockit and thankfully finding something perfect for a present, we grabbed some dinner, and caught the tube to Leicester Square. This was somewhere my friend recommended as, strangely enough, I had never heard of it before and it's actually where most UK movie premieres take place - the Anchorman 2 premiere was happening that very night!

There was also some kind of Winter Wonderland in the square too, so it was extremely packed that. That being said, I can't believe I didn't know about it before! It will probably look very different in the day time without a premiere or a Winter Wonderland, but it was still fabulous that night none the less. 

Our next stop, Covent Garden, was only a short walk away so after stopping and staring for quite some time we headed there, taking a detour through China Town which made me so hungry.

The lights here, even on some side streets, are seriously the cutest things.. I must have snapped every one I saw, but these were definitely some of my favourites.

Covent Garden is lovely, especially at Christmas time. I love fairy lights and cobbled streets so it was a dream come true! 

There were also giant baubles-

a Christmas tree - 

and a giant reindeer!

After Covent Garden, the next place on our agenda was the Christmas Market which was located near the London Eye. 

As we walked across the river and towards the market, I couldn't help but take a photo of the view from either side - another great thing about London.

The Christmas Market was wonderful, especially at night, and even though I didn't buy anything it was still a lovely, festive, thing to do whilst in London. The actual huts were so well decorated too, like these two.

My favourite though, of course, was this one by the Fairy Light Company.

Once we had walked the length of the market and I had snapped the London Eye up close, we walked back along the river to Big Ben where I took some more photos and had a creepy encounter with a clown who wanted £5 for a photo!

After escaping him we walked up past Trafalgar Square and towards our final destination, and my favourite place, Piccadilly Circus. 

Then it was home to watch a rom-com and get to bed as we had to be up early for my train the next morning. Though it was an exhausting day, it was definitely worth it and I cannot wait to visit again!  

Have any of you ever been to London? Anywhere to recommend?

xx

Cookies and milk

During these cold evenings I love nothing more than treating myself to a nice drink and a snack and lately I can't get enough of a nice glass of cold milk. As everyone knows, milk and cookies is a classic so when I decided to do some baking today using whatever ingredients I had in my cupboards, cookies were the first thing I thought of and luckily I had enough ingredients to scrape some together.

• 200g butter
• 300g caster sugar
• 1 large egg
• 275g self-raising flour
• 75g cocoa powder
• Whatever chocolate you can find. The recipe I followed suggested 3 big bars of milk, white and dark chocolate for triple chocolate cookies but as I didn't have that, I grabbed a bag of chocolate chips and some leftover cooking chocolate. I guess it all depends on how chunky you want your cookies!
• A splash of milk
• 1 tsp of vanilla essence

Preheat your oven to 220°C (for fan 200°C) and line baking trays with baking paper. (Unfortunately I had no baking paper so instead I used tin foil and greased the top with butter.)

Soften the butter in the microwave, before mixing with the caster sugar in a large mixing bowl until creamy. 

 Add the egg and mix some more, and then add the self-raising flour and cocoa powder.

Next add a splash of milk and the vanilla essence and mix all together until combined.

Finally, fold the chocolate into your mixture using a wooden spoon. 

Scoop your cookie mixture onto the lined trays in handful sized balls - it's important not to make them too big or too close together as they will spread in the oven and you'll be left with one giant cookie!

Pop in the oven for 10-12 minutes and then remove and leave to cool. Though they will look like they are too sloppy to come out, after around 20-30 minutes of cooling they will harden up and you will be left with deliciously gooey cookies to enjoy.

 I have been given several compliments on the cookies including 'I would pay good money for these!' so I hope this recipe has been helpful and produced something quick and delicious!

Any other recipes you would recommend?

xx

Cosy cave for Winter

Hello!

So one of my favourite places in the world is my bedroom. I love to change it up all the time, adding or taking away different pieces or completely changing the entire vibe, and naturally I decided to have another change of scenery as winter/Christmas draws near. Feel free to adapt these ideas to your own bedroom!

Fairy lights are always in my bedroom no matter what time of year, but particularly in winter I think they are necessary to make a bedroom 10 times cosier. Because I love fairy lights so much, I tend to buy them whenever I see them so I have several sets to utilise during winter. The above were a gift from a friend, and I have found a similar set here. 

Luckily during this time of year Christmas lights are so easy to get hold of so if you don't have a lot of fairy lights then now is the perfect time of year to be after them. I found this set of 20 from Tesco for only £1.80!

I only have a teeny weeny bedroom, so plug sockets and spaces to drape lights aren't highly accessible. Thus I have discovered that your curtain pole or your  bed frame are not the only places you can drape your lights; use small pieces of blue tack and hang them along the wall, drape them across the shelves or wind them down your bookcase and across your books like this. These are actually outdoor dragonfly lights from B&M. 

I am also a sucker for lights that are also wall pieces, like this one from B&M for £12.99.

Alternatively, if you want another way to get that cosy glow in your bedroom on these cold nights, instead of (or with!) lights, candles are an ideal purchase. 

These three candle holders are from a cute shop in St Ives, Cornwall, that I visit every year. At £3 each I couldn't resist and have them in my bedroom every season. However, to make them that little bit more autumnal I bought these small dark purple candles from Asda, a pack of 3 for £1. 

For some variation in sizing, I also have this larger pastel pink candle in a birdcage that my friend bought and entwined with roses for me. 

Though probably much more suited for spring or summer, I love it too much to put it away, and alongside the other candles and fairy lights it is still lovely and cosy. 

And though it might not be December just yet, I couldn't resist this candle from Primark for £1.50. I thought the snowflake was so cool and it also smells super Christmassy and adds a bit of subtle festivity without raiding the Christmas decs.

Another way to do this is by adding either bedding or, as a cheaper alternative, a Christmas throw from Primark for £5. Not only is it so soft and warm, but it is does the job of being festive and saves buying an entire duvet set. Of course, any throw or blanket at this time of year will also be fab for keeping warm in your bedroom! Add some cushions for extra cosiness. 

 And lastly, no cosy winter bedroom would be complete without a pair of PJ's. Though I've found it to be too warm to wear the usual thick Winter PJ's, I did invest in some Christmas Santa/Snowflake leggings from Primark for £10, that are fleece-lined and perfect for lazying around the house and bedtime. Paired with this long-sleeved black t-shirt (£5) and dark blue slippers (£3), I am super snug without being too hot or too cold. As you can see I have spent quite a bit in Primark recently, but there really is nowhere like it for Christmas at the minute as you get what you want without spending too much for things you may not use for too long.

Any other ideas for how to cosy up a room? Who else is getting excited for Christmas?

xx