Princess Baking Wishlist ♡

Hello lovelies!

I've been working extra hard at improving my baking skills of late, as it's something I really enjoy doing and I find it helps me relax a lot more. Baking through Autumn and Winter is my favourite in particular, there's just something about baking on a cold, cosy day, when you can hear raindrops tapping at the windows, as the scent of warming cakes fill the kitchen. 

I have so many things I'd love to have to bake with, my birthday is in October, so I thought this would give me present ideas also. 

1. Kitchen Aid Artisan Food Processor| Pink

2. HHYS Pink Hand Mixer| Baby Pink

3. Premier Housewares 5kg Kitchen Scales| Pink

4. Kitchen Craft Oven Gloves| Heat Resistant

5. Silicone Fondant Mould| Tinkerbell

6. Silicone Non Stick Placement Mat| Fondant Pink

7. Bow Fondant Moulds| Lavender

8. Cupcake Apron| Pure Cotton

9. Three Piece Tool Set| Silicone Pink

I don't know if it's obvious enough, but I love the colour pink...So of course all the baking wishes I have are baby pink.

I'd absolutely love to have a baby pink Kitchen Aid mixer, I think it's every bakers dream choice, they are rather pricey at nearly £500, but I think the price says a lot about the quality of this product. That is a bit out of reach at the moment, so my second choice was the baby pink hand whisk, they both do the exact same job and both very cute! 

Scales are a complete essential for baking and why not have some pretty ones? I found these ones on Amazon and what drew me to them, other than the fact they're baby pink is the vintage feel they have.

My next pick are these baking gloves, I keep using tea towels, which isn't the best idea due to the fact I keep burning the teeny tips of my fingers when I grab my trays out of the oven, these would be perfect for all my cooking.

How could I do any sort of wish-list without incorporating anything Disney related? This little fondant mould in the shape of Tinkerbell screamed adorable to me! I'd love to make Tinkerbell cupcakes and sprinkle pixie dust all over them.

I was watching 'Catherine Bakes' and I saw she used this mat to help create her beautiful little fondant creations. She also had it in pink too and that made up my mind!

Another fondant mould product, but this time it's for bows. I love bows and feel they leave a pretty touch to anything, an outfit...A cupcake, it's even better on a cupcake, because that way it's edible! 

I already own a basic apron, but I think a pretty apron would add to my outfit and make me feel more like Snow White whilst baking.

Last but not least, a little baking utensils set, it has two spatulas and a egg brush, these will all come in handy for so many baking/cooking projects.

I hope you enjoyed this post, I already have a baking post in the works, so keep an eye out for that!

Kellie Jo

xxx

Top 5 Summer Beauty Essentials

Hello lovelies! 

I hope you're all having a wonderful summer, I cannot believe how lucky we've been with the weather, what a heatwave we are still experiencing! I have to admit, myself, I am excited for that Autumnal, crisp air...but I'll leave that for a little while yet as we still have another whole month of summer!!

With the intense heat and humidity (I have the curliest of locks, this heatwave has given me way too many Monica from Friends, on holiday hair moments. If you've seen the episode, you know what I mean!) I have been trying to have a lot more no make up days to help my skin breathe, but I am a beauty lover, so I can't go long without having the desire to pick out all my pretty beauty things and start using them.

I have narrowed down my top 5 beauty essentials for the summer. It was a hard choice, but these are the products keeping my skin glowing, yet not letting my make up go running away and keeping me smelling sweet! 

Mac Fix+  Pinklite - I have always loved Mac Fix+ the original spray, it is one of the best primer sprays to keep your make up fresh and clean looking all day. It's light on your skin and I find it never causes my skin any problems. When I saw Mac was bringing out two new fix+ sprays I couldn't contain my excitement, especially when I saw a pink, sparkly spray. Oh my goodness, I don't think I could find a primer spray anymore princess-like if I tried! When I arrived at the Mac store to pick this up, I didn't realise I was a day early! Luckily there was a very kind sales assistant who said she'd be able to sell it to me, even though it's a day early, which I was ever so grateful for. What I love about this product is the fact it's still the good old original fix+, but once I sprayed it onto my skin, it was glowing like a pink sun and also the perfect amount of glow. I even use it if I'm not going to wear any make up, just to make my skin look healthy and glowy through summer.

YSL Primer: Touche Eclat Blur Primer - Just the packaging of this product gives me complete glam vibes, YSL always do well with aesthetically pleasing products and the fact their products work beautifully make them the double threat. The consistency of this product is like a gel with sparkly, golden flex running through it, which if used together with the Mac fix+ spray I mentioned above creates the ultimate golden glow. This primer leaves a smooth, flawless base and gives easy to apply skin for your foundation or concealer and I think the finish it leaves on the skin is beautiful. 

Chanel: Coco Mademoiselle Parfum - I feel this is now a cult fragrance within the girly beauty blogger community. I never get bored or tired of smelling this scent or any Chanel perfume, their quality is impeccable and undeniable. Last summer a customer came in at work and they smelt so delightful, I had to ask what perfume they were wearing, turns out it was this one and the lady started spraying me with her's, which I was surprised and happy about, Chanel perfume is not the cheapest! I learnt that this scent lasted all day and I knew then I had to purchase it. I've been using it again this year and I'm still in love with this it. Like most people, I'm not the best at describing scents, but the best way I can is that I get hints of floral and rosey, with a deepness of Chanel no5.

Essie nail polish: Bikini with a Martini - I found this shade at The Beauty Outlet @ The Ashford Designer Outlet, it was of course a bargain as I got it at an outlet, the RRP is £7.99 and I purchased it for £3.99. I always buy Essie nail polishes as I find them reliable for any occasion, the shape of the brush is oval and makes it easy to create the best at home manicure look, the chipping on them is minimal and the consistency of the polish is just right, not too thin or thick. This shade is a baby pink with gold shimmer running through it (I'm sure you're getting I love the gold and pink theme), it's subtle, but enough to polish of a summer outfit perfectly.

Chanel: Rouge Coco Gloss Moisturising Glossimer - Shade - Douceur - Every girl needs that perfect lip gloss in their collection, the one you always fall back to in a make up crisis. This is that one! This shade works with all skin tones, it's glossy with a hint of shimmer and pinky tones. Spring, summer, autumn, winter...No matter what make up look for what season, it's beautiful! 

             I hope you all enjoyed this post and it gave you some summer shopping inspiration!

                                                                   Kellie Jo xxx

Neapolitan Cupcakes Recipe ♡

I'm finally back with a new blog post! Lately it just seems a lot of juggling with blogging, full time work and life in general, I've also struggled to have some inspiration for different, original content. 

The inspiration for making more baking blog posts is my blogging friend Sophie at The Frosting Fairy you need to go and take a look at her magical creations.

Through this heatwave we are having here in England, which I might add, none of us are used to this intense, everyday heat. I think ice cream must be the most popular dessert/snack currently, to keep everyone cool, but it's such a yummy treat!

I remember the heatwaves through summer when I was little, neapolitan ice cream was such a ice cream treat, with all three decadent flavours chocolate, vanilla and strawberry!

I wanted to put this ice cream treat into a yummy cupcake form!

For my batter mixture I actually used was Mary Berry's All In One Victoria Sponge recipe, I always find Mary's recipe's are perfection, she can do no wrong. I know you may be thinking it's a big mixture for cupcakes, but to make the two tone with vanilla and chocolate it's always best to have lots of mixture.

The ingredients for the batter - 

•                                                          4 free-range eggs
•                                                        225g/8oz caster sugar
•                                                       225g/8oz self-raising flour
•                                                     2 teaspoons baking powder
•                                                   2 tablespoons of vanilla extract 
•                                             225g/8oz butter at room temperature
•                                                   3 teaspoons of cocoa powder
• 
  

 1- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4 and line your muffin tin with the cases of your choice, for this I chose plain white ones to emphasise the chocolate and vanilla difference.

2- Break the eggs into a large mixing bowl, then add the sugar, flour, baking powder, butter and vanilla extract. Mix together until well combined with an electric hand mixer (you can also use a wooden spoon), but be careful not to over mix.

3- Split half of your mixture into another bowl. 

4- In a teacup place 3 teaspoons of cocoa powder, add a dash of boiling hot water from the kettle and mix that into a runny paste, then place in one bowl of mixture and combine.

5- Bring your lined muffin tin over to your two batter bowls, place half of your chocolate mixture to make a base in each case, then on top of the chocolate base place the same amount of vanilla mixture, to start the neapolitan look.

6- Place your tray of cupcakes into the pre-heated oven for 25-30 minutes, then once they are cooked, leave on a cooling rack, before icing them.


                                     The ingredients for the strawberry buttercream icing -

                                                            600g of Icing sugar
                                                 300g softened unsalted butter
                                             2 teaspoons of Strawberry flavouring
                                               2 teaspoons of pink food colouring

1- Sift the icing sugar into a bowl your butter, then gradually beat together, until it becomes a nice fluffy mixture.

2- Then swirl in your strawberry flavouring and pink food colouring to fully create the strawberry topping for the cupcake.

3- Place your strawberry frosting into a piping bag with a basic tip, (Now before you all judge my piping skills, this was my first attempt at icing with a piping bag and I'm pretty proud of it, but practise makes perfect.) and I just done a one level swirl.

This summer creation went down so well with my family, everyone loved them, they're perfect for bbq's and party's.

                                        Have a great weekend and happy baking!

                                                     
                                                                Kellie Jo xxx

Girly/Glam Wishlist - Collab BayleeAnnHulet

Oh my goodness! I am so excited to be writing this post!! 

This is a collab with the lovely Baylee from BayleeAnnHulet, she's also doing her wishlist, so you should totally go over and check out her blog.

The first thing on my wishlist is this beautiful Tiffany's Pearl Bracelet...*inserts emoji heart eyes*...This is on the high end scale, but this piece of jewellery gives me Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Blair Waldorf vibes. I feel like this bracelet would compliment any outfit and make it that bit more glam and classy. 

You can purchase this on the Tiffany's Website

One of the biggest fashion trends the past year has been a Gucci belt, I've seen so many Instagram models wearing one. The most popular style I've seen is the classic black leather band, with the two gold G's, I've seen ones with pearls over the G's, the band in different colours. I looked through so many different styles and colours, but this belt for me is classic and timeless, not something that will go out of style. It has the classic double gold G's, with a gorgeous cream belt band, also with G's pressed into it. You can shop this at the Gucci website.

I am all about glowing skin and make up, I'm obsessed with cream and powder highlighting products. I'm always looking for new products for a poppin' highlight! One of the most hyped make up products is this Becca Cosmetics highlighter in the shade 'Champagne Pop'! It's suppose to be the most perfect shade of highlight and works for all skin tones, so I'd love to add this to my collection. Cult Beauty stock this.

Ted Baker is literally my style in one brand! Ted's piece's are always so classy, elegant and ladylike, feminine girly pieces are my staples. This skirt is the most perfect skirt in my eyes, made for a princess, it's a pretty shade of baby pink, with ruffled pleats and looks like it's made to fit like a glove. For a skirt, this is on the pricey side, at £149, but I think the beautiful quality is worth it.

I have been wanting a pair of baby pink Calvin's for so long, I keep saying I'll treat myself to a pair when I'm a bit more in shape, so it's good motivation! They seem so comfy, for them lazy/lounging days, but still looking cute! I think they'd look perfect paired with a silk robe. The Calvin Klein website stock so many varieties and colours of this cute set!

I hope this has given you some glam shopping inspiration!

Until next time...

K xxx

Easter/Spring Tea Party

Spring has arrived, dare I say after all the weather we've had with 'The Beast from the East 1&2'...Spring is one of the most prettiest times of year. From the pastel shades at every corner, with Easter bunnies everywhere, to the beautiful bright daffodils and sunshine (wishing we could have more).

The Easter period is always busy for me, juggling work and using the time off I get to spend some quality time with my family and fiance. Having lots of roast dinners and of course, CHOCOLATE! 

I wanted to do a nice little pre-Easter tea party for my Mum, Dad and fiance, and of course, my cute little pooch Bonnie had to have a little fairy bun for a treat! 

I went to Home Bargains and Tesco's to buy some pretty Easter foodie/tea party bits.

The pieces I made included the Candy Floss Easter Nests, as twist on the classic shredded wheat/rice krispie cakes, eggs on a cotton candy nest. The pretty cupcake stand, with flowers and bunnies on was from Home Bargains at only £1.50.

I used some adorable Easter cookie cutters from Tesco's to create some plain Easter biscuits, with a bright, pretty pink icing. I always try to follow cooking queen Mary Berry's recipe's, as they never seem to fail.

I also used the cookie cutters to make festive finger sandwiches, with classic fillings, ham, chicken and tuna mayo.

As an extra cute touch, I got some Tesco's Bunny Bites crisps to fill in bowls!

I decided to dot a few mini Malteaser bunnies around the table and some caramels bites.

In Home Bargains I spotted the beautiful, pastel 'Happy Easter' sign, I couldn't believe this was only £1.50!!! I have seen so many signs like this for more than double the price. 

Maybe this has inspired you to do your own little Easter tea party over the Easter holidays, you don't need lots of money to have fun, just be creative!

What's your favourite piece on the tea table?

I hope you all have a healthy, safe and happy Easter week!

K xxx

Reviewing one of the most underrated Lush products...Lush's Salted Coconut Hand Scrub!

A lot of my most popular posts are to do with Lush, as (for good reason) it's a cult favourite. They're most well known for their bath bombs, bubble bars and face masks, overall, product good for your skin, but this product is such luxury you all need to add this to your pamper routines.

Our hands go through a lot of damage on the day to day basis, they go through wear and tear, with hot and cold temperatures, always being in use. With our hands being one of the first signs of ageing, we need to take care of them.

Through winter my hands have got so dry, I'm always washing my hands, which strips the skin of natural oils and with the temperature having been in the minuses, my hands have been dry, cracked and bleeding, which I have disliked immensely. I knew I needed to do some skincare research for my hands.

Using a scrub was top of the list, I knew I needed to check Lush first, as they are kind to skin, their products always work well for me and once again, they didn't disappoint. The smell of the coconut makes me dream of an exotic island of Summer.

This Salted Coconut scrub feels so luxurious and what makes it feel that way is the ingredients, which include 

> Fine Sea Salt

>Fresh Lemon Infusion 

> Organic Silken Tofu

> Japan Wax

> Sodium Cocoamphoacetate

> Argan Oil

> Cupuacu Butter

> Extra Virgin Coconut Oil

Every ingredient is none harmful and natural, which is even better for sensitive skin.

I like to use this every night, I take a piece from the pot, rub it all over my hands, getting in every crevice of my fingers and palms. 

It's so gentle, yet, is abrasive enough to leave your skin feeling much less dry after rinsing my hands off. The cupuacu butter moisturises your skin, putting the moisture back into your skin after exfoliation is very important to keep the skin protected, all these natural ingredients are a beautiful combination for your skin. Be sure to dry your hands thoroughly 

After this I lather on any hand cream I use at the time, I haven't found mine cult favourite yet. If you have any hand cream recommendations, please let me know!

If you need something to add to your wish list, this needs to be the next thing!

K xxx

10 Old Hollywood Stars Beauty Secrets

I don't know about anyone else, but the old Hollywood stars are one of my biggest interests, the 40's and 50's, the glitz and glamour. Before the days of photoshop, botox and other injectables to enhance ourselves, they had other beauty secrets that are completely different to our generation.
I done some research and gained some of the facts of each celebrity beauty hacks.
Here are my top 10...

1 -Have you ever watched 'Mommie Dearest'? The movie based off of the book written by Joan Crawford's adopted daughter. Through the beginning sequence of the move Joan Crawford was shown to wash her face, and then continued to bring out a huge bowl of ice, she topped up with cold water and covered her face 25 times every morning, she suffered from OCD, so it had to be 25. There are amazing properties to the skin by doing this including tightening of the skin, closing pores, which helps fight acne, this also reduces face swelling and promotes good circulation.

2- Carrying on from fact 1, Marilyn  Monroe used to take ice baths, it was reported she feared her body aging, so she done this regularly, and in true Marilyn style to make that a bit more glamorous she added drops of chanel no 5. I also learnt Marilyn used to suffer with chronic bronchitis , so I don't advise this beauty tip.

3- Audrey Hepburn was well known for her bambi-like, thick, long lashes, her trick behind it was a bit dangerous and yet another beauty trick I wouldn't advise. After Audrey applied each coat of her mascara, she took a pin, yes, a pin and individually separated every lash apart, which meant they were not clumpy and spider-like.

4-Bette Davis suffered with puffy eyes, which I can relate to, you know when mornings when you wake up feeling puffy eyed and sluggish? Her trick to combat that was by applying petroleum jelly (Vaseline) underneath her eyes, then used two slices of cucumber, which stayed in place with the petroleum jelly, which proved to work very well for her, as the cucumber has cooling qualities.

5 - Elizabeth Taylor was another well known lady full of glamour. Her hack was for her facial skin. She loved her heavy make up, but to make her skin have a flawless base to work with, she shaved her face to remove fine baby hairs and the surface layer of skin cells, which gives skin a facial like glow. If you are thinking of trying this method, please know it wasn't done like how men shave their faces. Here's a link of a woman's facial razor you can buy online.

6- Until I found out this secret, I always thought Kim Kardashian was the creator/queen of contour, but I will have you know, it's been happening for many years. The original contour queen was in fact Princess Grace Kelly. She used to contour with blush, she used a lighter shade for under her cheekbones and a darker for her apples, to create the illusion. Who knew contouring with blusher was a thing?!

7- This next beauty secret is the most extreme one on the list. Marlene Dietrich went to the lengths and had her molars removed to accentuate her cheekbones, that is insane vanity right there! She also used surgical tape to give her self a temporary face lift and hid the tape under a wig.

8- Back to a more tamed secret, Greta Garbo's trick to make her eyes look more theatrical. Greta placed a thin layer of petroleum jelly on her eyelids, when she used a dark eyeshadow, it created a bold eye look. The original primer, Vaseline, haha! She also mixed petroleum jelly with her eyeliner, to make it stand out more!

9- Mae West found out about the benefits of coconut oil long before us it seems. She used it on her face and body, everyday through her life. She believed it was the best product to keep youthful.

10- Last but not least, Rita Hayworth's beauty secret! Rita kept her perfect hair line by shaving it, to create a flawless hair and make up look. Kim Kardashian is known for copying this old beauty hack, but with our modern technology, she uses lazer hair removal instead of shaving. 

What beauty secret shocked you the most?

                                                                      K xxx