Mission Skinny Bitch

I haven't posted on here in forever and I've been looking to get back into my blog for a while but had no inspiration for anything to write about.
But, thanks to an unfortunate knock I took during England's opening World Cup group game against England, I haven't been able to visit the gym in the run up to my summer trip to Barcelona.
Whilst I would normally lose some weight and tone up before my break via healthy eating and numerous gruelling gym sessions a week, thanks to that pesky injury (a soft tissue injury and various torn ligaments, to be precise), doctors have me on a strict gym ban till my ankle is healed.

Whilst I would never promote fad diets, nor have I ever been on one, I realised drastic action had to be taken and a friend had previously undertaken the Marine Diet and found great results with it, losing up to half a stone a week. That sold it enough for me despite the horrendous meal plan it sets out!

I'll be posting various updates over the next two weeks, beginning Thursday, letting you know how it's getting on. I just hope I can muster some humour for the final posts rather than the irrational mood swings being hungry tends to gift me!

I just have to keep thinking of the bikinis packed in my suitcase to power me through :(

You can see the week plan below and mock/cheer on my ridiculous effort for a last minute bikini body!

Day 1

Breakfast: 3 eggs

Lunch: 3 eggs

Dinner: 3 eggs

Day 2

Breakfast: 1 egg or grapefruit

Lunch: Fresh fruit salad

Dinner: Steak, tomatoes, celery & cottage cheese

Day 3

Breakfast: 1 egg or grapefruit

Lunch: Fish, tomatoes, spinach & salad (I hate fish so I'll replacing any fish elements with chicken!)

Dinner: Lean lamb chops, tomatoes & salad

Day 4

Breakfast: 1 egg or grapefruit

Lunch: Green salad & tomatoes

Dinner: Eggs & dry toast

Day 5

Breakfast: 1 egg or grapefruit

Lunch: Fish, tomatoes & salad (chicken!)

Dinner: Lean ham salad, tomatoes & spinach

Day 6

Breakfast: 1 egg or grapefruit

Lunch: 3 eggs & dry toast

Dinner: Steak, celery, tomatoes & cottage cheese

Day 7

Breakfast: 1 egg or grapefruit

Lunch: Fresh fruit salad

Dinner: Lean lamb chops, salad & tomatoes

Black coffee, water or pure lemon juice can be taken with each meal. 

Eat exactly what is stated where amount are stated. Where they are not stated, eat as much as you want.

Do not eat between meals. 

No dressings or sauces, only vinegar is allowed. (Though I think vinegar is vile, so that'll be no extra flavour for me!)

Do not use this diet more than four times a year. 

There should be a loss of up to 1 stone, variations of the die will have a major effect on the amount of weight you lose.

Weigh yourself at the beginning and at the very end of the diet.

I'm Jumping On The Disco Pant Bandwagon..

Every girl seems to own a pair, whether they're the real McCoy or a clever high street dupe, I'm talking about the disco pant. 

If you fancy a booty like Sandy from Grease or you're a fan of all things high shine, these leggings are for you. American Apparel offer the original, and arguably the best, disco pant on the high street but they're pricey at £74 so many have turned to cheaper alternatives with mixed reviews.

Disco Pants, American Apparel, £74

Now, I've tried many a pair of these leggings and none of them have come close to the originals. I would have already splashed a whole wad of my hard earned cash in American Apparel if only I fit them properly, I'm currently in between a small and a medium so I've vowed not to buy any until I can fit into a small! 

I thought I'd have to live without a pair until I slimmed down then I happened to stumble over a pair of Primark dupes. Now, I know what you're thinking, Primark's bargain pair at £16 could never live up to the much hyped pair from American Apparel. I thought this too but I took a pair into the changing room anyway, not holding out much hope only to be drop mouth shocked.

Disco Pants, Primark, £16

I've compared these to American Apparel's version and there are only 3 minor differences: the button is slightly different, the material is a little thinner and there is no reinforcing material in bum but for £58 less, you really can't grumble!

These leggings really are figure flattering and will put a smile on any girls face, they slim your legs, hide your tum and give girls with even the flattest bums (this is me!) a shapely bum to be proud of.

Now whether you cover up with a peplum or flaunt your figure with a crop top, I can only say that the disco pant will now be a permanent fixture in my wardrobe. 

So girls, hot foot it down to your local Primark to find the best disco pant dupes the high street has to offer!

Graduation Day

So, last week the big day finally arrived, Graduation day! After spending weeks agonising over a dress to wear (it took no fewer than 3 lengthy and tedious shopping trips!), I finally found the perfect frock. It was way over my original budget but thanks to my Mamma & Papa giving me a bit of help, I practically skipped out of the shop after my purchase.

I was looking for something a tad more sophisticated than my usual night out attire which meant that the length had to be considerably longer.. Basically, my top priority was that it had to be knee-length, I'm supposed to be a sophisticated graduate after all! I finally settled on a digital print, Ted Baker number which looks so unusual thanks to the close-up image of sequins and diamonds. 

Dress, £159, Ted Baker

Thankfully Graduation went without a hitch. I managed to avoid all the people I didn't fancy bumping into again and, probably most importantly, I didn't trip on the stage or fall down the stairs after my name had been called, hurrah!

I suppose I should show you how I styled my dress up to cope with the freezing northern winter we're currently experiencing..

I was brave and slapped on the fake tan meaning I could go bare on the day, though I cast many an envious glance at the girls who'd decided on thick black tights to keep their pins warm! I paired my dress with a vintage belt to nip in the waist, a peachy pink blazer from Primark for a bit of extra warmth and nude heels to tie all the colours together (and make my legs look longer!)

Now, whilst my University robes made me feel like something out of Harry Potter for the day, the hat was a completely different matter.. I'm not a hat person at the best of times, I just don't think I have the face for them. So, as you can imagine, I wasn't particularly pleased at wearing a heavy, bulky hat with a tassle dangling directly in front of my eye line for the day. As soon as the the ceremony was over and photos were taken, it came straight off, needless to say!

For some reason, every parent wanted their son/daughter to have a photo with Sheffield's golden postbox (thanks, Jess Ennis!) creating a queue of twenty somethings shivering and grumbling at the need of a photo with a postbox..

Now, unfortunately for the Graduation night out with my fellow students, my bloggers mind went straight out the window in terms of my outfit. I forgot to photograph and there are no images from the evening that capture it! But thanks to the Topshop website, I can at least show you the mannequin images.. I can't link you to it as it's now sold out country wide (apparently!) but there are plenty floating about on eBay for a much higher price than the RRP of £48.

Playsuits and lace are two of my favourite things anyway but to combine this with the backless feature almost had me squealing with excitement in the changing room. It's not for the fearful though, along with the backless element it's also pretty short, so one for those confident about their pins!

Well, I hope you enjoyed a little snapshot of my Graduation Day and the outfits I managed to pull out of the bag for it! 

Back To School Fashion

It would seem that shirts, pleats and pinafores are well and truly back in vogue, just a couple of months after the nation's children have headed back to school in scarily similar ensembles to what's now hot on the high street. 

I'd taken a fancy to this playsuit when it was £42 full price in Topshop and I couldn't bare to part with my cash. Though, in hindsight, I'm glad I didn't as only a week or so later, it was part of their mid-season sale! 

And it seems I'm not the only one who loved this flower printed playsuit, Little Mix's Perrie Edwards was photographed wearing it to London's Rose Club to celebrate the band's single going to #1.

Like Perrie, I styled my pinafore with a collared top underneath. I chose a navy blue, lace Primark number which matched the waistband and buttons perfectly. I matched the beige collar with a pair of sky high heels from Miss Selfridge.

Playsuit, Topshop £20

Collared Top, Primark £8
Heels, Miss Selfridge, £38 (Old Season)

Whilst I've dressed this playsuit up, I like the fact that it's so versatile and can also be dressed down for daytime wear. Wear with a shirt and cute pumps for a relaxed work look or shopping trip outfit!
Now, if only my school uniform had been as cute and fashionable as this!

Merry Ciate-mas!

Please, let's not get off on the wrong foot.. I'm not one of those people that starts getting excited about Christmas in October. Give me until at least the end of November before I start hyping about the festive season.

But one thing I am currently very excited about is Ciate's take on the traditional advent calender. Whilst most people usually settle for tiny squares of, usually tasteless, chocolate behind their advent windows this year will see many girls opening up a new nail varnish each morning!

Mini Mani Month Advent Calender
Selfridges, £38

Ciate has created the, "Mini Mani Month Advent Calender" which contains 24 mini varnishes: 17 best-selling colours, 4 caviar blends and 3 new glitter colours that are exclusive to the advent calender, not to be found anywhere else! 

At £38 it is more expensive than your average advent calender but in my opinion, and that of many other bloggers it would appear, it's totally worth it.

You can find the Ciate advent calender at Selfridges, both instore and online.
Will you be treating yourself to a mini mani calender this festive season?

Arm Candy

I was having a bad day last week and what does every blogger turn to when things aren't going right? Correct, retail therapy. So I bought this little beauty from Zara...

Handbag, £39.99, Zara

I've had my eye on this bag for aaaages, so it wasn't exactly a spur of the moment choice but I'm so glad I finally caved and purchased it! I'm a big fan of anything in tan, I think it's such a good colour for the A/W season as it can be matched with just about anything. Plus, I'm not a massive fan of black handbags, I feel some can look a bit harsh.

Unfortunately I haven't had much chance to show it off as the weather recently has been awful. Rather than a zip that stretches the the whole length of the bag, it has a flap that zips over the middle. Because of the rain I haven't taken it out much as I didn't want the contents of my handbag getting soaked, hence the generic website images!

I did manage to catch a fair weather day at the end of the week for a lunch date with my friend, so I jumped at the chance of taking my new bag out to play! And, as expected, my friend noticed, and loved, my new bag instantly!

So, I think it's safe to say that I think my bad day retail therapy fix was totally worth it? Either way, I love my new bag and expect to be showcasing it a lot more throughout the winter months (weather permitting!)

Scottish Antics

For anyone that doesn't know, I have a whole load of family that resides in Glasgow, therefore I'm often hopping up past the border for an impromptu visit. Sheffield can get tedious so it's nice to know I've got a little bolthole to run away to when things up North get to be too much!

So, I recently spent the week staying on the outskirts of Glasgow with my family and indulged in a few days off fabulous food and deathly vodka.

My cousin picks the best places for scran in the city and once again, she didn't let me down. We went to a cute little Thai place on Bath Street called St Jude's that offered delicious food and some of the most attentive service I've ever received.
I had chicken tempura with chili jam for starters, thai green chicken curry with jasmine rice for main and then somehow managed to squeeze in a mango and passion fruit cheesecake for dessert.. Fatty, I know.
And you know when you order water in a restaurant, you're lucky if you even get ice? This place went the extra mile with a half a fruit bowl in my glass! And it was constantly refilled which was a lovely touch. And we each got a fortune cookie with a bill, I love the little messages that come inside them!

Being in Scotland, a night out was definitely on the cards.. When in Rome and all that! We started off in a very student-esque bar called Driftwood, the drinks were cheap and the music was good, what more could you ask for? We then made our way up to one of Glasgow's most popular clubs, Garage, where there really was a room for every kind of music taste!

And the bar offered a speciality that would leave many English folk baffled.. A, "Bucky Bomb." Bucky (or Buckfast, to give it the proper title) is a tonic wine that is ridiculously popular in Scotland. Whilst it's not to my taste, I personally think it's vile, I can only imagine the taste is somewhat improved when it's sunk with Red Bull? I didn't try one so I can't really report back, but I wasn't willing to risk it coming straight back up and into a toilet bowl..

The day after provided a hangover of delightful standards which meant only one thing, I needed bad food.. And fast. And when in Glasgow, only something deep fried can cure a sore head and flipping stomach. My deep fried treat of choice? Why the pizza, of course. It may sound awful, I thought this to begin with, it's surprisingly moreish and the sheer amount of battered margherita goodness quickly sends any hangover packing.

Obviously I managed to fit in a teeny shopping trip in whilst in Glasgow.. Though on this occasion, I was on the mission for a friend's birthday present. But I did manage to find these Topshop dupes in Primark for the bargain price of £10! I already have them in nude so I was over the moon to finally find the elusive black ones too.

Hope you've had a lovely weekend and enjoy reading about my Glaswegian outings! xxx