Kathryn Bakes: Fizzy Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

It has come to my attention that when I am feeling a little down in the dumps or extremely bored, baking cupcakes is my cure! I didn't have a clue what to bake but needed something to lift this damp and dismal weather so decided to create some Pink Lemonade inspired cupcakes! 

Not quite sure what I have done to my camera settings. Every photo is grainy :( 

The highlight of these is defiantly the Lemon Sherbet Crystals which I bought from one of those oldy worldy sweet shops! The recipe is taken from Juniper Cakery, link of which can be found here. As per I didn't actually use this recipe but based my idea around it. I just wish I could of bought them lovely pink and white straws. So here goes.. my Dairy Free Fizzy Pink Lemonade cupcakes! 

Lemon Cupcakes

• 3 Eggs 
• 180 Caster Sugar
• 180 Self Raising Flour
• 180 Pure Margarine
• Teaspoon ish of Lemon Essence 

1. Pre Heat oven at 180 degrees and line 12 cupcakes 
2. Cream the margarine and sugar
3. Once well mixed add an egg one by one and whisk, add drops of lemon essence
4. Sift in the flour and beat with a wooden until smooth
5. Place in cupcake cases 
6. Cook for 20-25 minutes or until the top is spongy or golden brown & leave to cool

Pink Lemon Buttercream 

• 250g Stork Butter Block
• 250-350g Icing Sugar 
• Few drops of Lemon Essence
• Juice of a fresh Grapefruit 
• Pink Gel Colouring
• Pipping Bags
• Piping nozzle
• Lemon Sherbet Crystals

1. Cut butter into small cubes and whisk until soft, gradually beat in the icing sugar.
2. Add lemon essence and some juice of a grapefruit. Colour with pink food gel!
3. Fill piping bag and pip a rose or swirl. Decorate with lemon sherbet crystals!

Clinique Cheek Pop Blush: Plum Pop

Ohhh look what I may have purchased! Sorry but how can you resist these beautifully designed little blushes. From Clinique, this is the Cheek Pop Blush in Plum Pop. The range comes in 4 shades but this shade immediately took my fancy! 

First off is the packaging. A sophisticated clear solid case that displays a beautiful risen flower inside. Clinique have certainly hit the nail on the head with this. 

I used the Real Techniques Blushing brush to apply mine ( although I think I may use a stippling in future or my fingers). It gave my skin an instant glow with excellent pigment and a smooth finish to the skin. 

It is a hard texture to describe, it's sort of cream but sort of powder. Either way it is a long lasting formula and I can't wait to wear this in the Summer months! 

May Update and June Plans

With May coming near to an end and with little goings on until next week I have put together my monthly instagrams...

1// Trip to Great Yarmouth 2// Lotus Cupcakes 3// Mayfair at University 4// Race for Life Bake Sale 5// Race for Life 6//Arts Festival 7// Beautiful Bikini 8// Brunch 9// Homemade Dairy Free Pancakes

I can not WAIT for June.. here is what I have planned for the next two weeks

1: Finish my degree

2: Fake 21st Birthday

3: Environmental Science Ball

4: University Charity Event!

5: Bar Staff Summer Party

and then..

THAILAND! 

Bring on Summer ( oh and some sunshine please)!!!

Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet lipstick: Hot Pepper

So much for 'no more makeup reviews' Kat Rachel over at Miss Periwinkle  is to blame for this one!

The other night she wore a fab product that was a lipstick but with lipgloss package. As confused as I was I asked her and we had a little gossip about them. The next day I went and bought the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet Lipstick in the shade Hot Pepper. The range is defined as giving a 'bold, matte and long lasting lip colour with 24 hr hold'.

My thoughts? 

What a unique little product! It is soo smooth on the lips, no silly glossy movement or stickiness, it just feels as if there is nothing on your lips but it gives a superb long lasting colour. I have to say I am not very good at applying lip products, I always seem to miss my lip outline or smudge it (think I need to invest in some good lip liners) but with a gloss type application you really can get into the lip edges for some defined detail! 

I chose Hot Pepper as I never ever go for reds ( and I still don't think I will ever again ) as I just don't think they suit my skin tone and also the fact that I am too into my pink shades that make me feel much more girly. That being said I really do like this shade and was glad I stepped out my comfort zone. I'm thinking of purchasing some more from Boots.. maybe the shade Ole Flamingo!

You can get these for £8.99 and they are defiantly worth the money in my opinion :) 

Enjoy the bank holiday! 

Kathryn x

Eating Out with an Allergy...

Now I really do love eating out, I like trying new things and especially eyeing up the decor in restaurants.. this is after the thought of starting my own little tea room ( crazy idea due to lack of graduate jobs). Anyways.. being lactose intolerant is a massive pain! I will see something I like but then notice everything is coated in butter, sprinkled with cheese or made with milk. It is extremely frustrating and awkward to keep asking the waiter to check what the ingredients are with the chef. I know it has to be done but sometimes it still doesn't run smoothly which is what I experienced today. 

This could go both ways however... Either I have figured out I am no longer lactose intolerant (yay!) or I will feel the consequences in a few hours time (fingers cross to the first).

 I went along with the boyfriend to a lovely brunch/dinner restaurant which serve flatbreads with various toppings, luckily the dough no longer contained butter! So I ordered a brunch flatbread.. little did I know that half way through and cutting into the egg that there was in fact cheese on the dish. Maybe I can no longer notice the flavour of cheese or just had trust in the chef that no milk would be found in my meal but until my boyfriend tried some I then realized I had ate a whole lunch that had cheese in it! 

Mine ( can kinda see the cheesyness now :( ) 

And the thing that annoyed me the most... I told them I had an allergy straight away, the menu said no cheese unlike the other options but after reading the menu online, the one I ordered said cheese?! What is up with that. Now I am hoping that all is well but my stomach is feeling dodgy.

Anyways what I am trying to say is that... allergies are extremely annoying for us(and to those going out with us) and we really don't mean to be a pain but I just wish all restaurants could take the time to ensure that they have actually taken into account the dietary requirement. Some places I have been to have been amazing, for example Pizza Express who actually give alternatives and extra toppings, or TGI's who offer more chips (woho!). 

Fingers crossed I am fine :( Other than that it would have been a wonderful meal. Rant over, enjoy your Saturday evening!

Kathryn xx

River Island Summer Nights & Bikini

How beautiful are these!? I walked into River Island to get a bikini (will come to that in a bit) and saw all these beautiful items. Unfortunately all my work money is currently going into my Thailand saving's so maybe when I come back these will all be in sale (wishful thinking Kat). 

Floral print trousers are my fav during summer nights! So pretty and elegant yet warm enough for the chilly nights. Found here for £40!

In addition white jeans/jeggins are so flattering, especially with a tan.. these are the white Molly jeggings which would look lovely with a plain cami and some gorgeous wedges! 

Onto the bikinis... now I had my eye on one for a while but they never had my size. If you have heard of Triangl then you would understand how happy I was when I saw River Island stock a bikini look alike and  with it fitting perfectly! 

I bought the light green textured bustier bikini from River Island (middle one) which comes in at £28 for the set and can be found here! They used to stock it in pink so may have them in store but these two are also some lovely bikinis that are currently in the stores. 

Hope you like and enjoying the sunshine! :) 

Kathryn xx

Race For Life Cupcakes

Okay.. so two weeks from now I would have completed my degree and hopefully of started organizing myself for Thailand.. ekk! I am currently unmotivated to revise for this last exam and have been collecting thoughts on what the hell I am going to be doing once this degree is over (scary times). 

These last few weeks have reminded me that I am going to miss university and the people around me a hell lot more than I once thought. One lovely day was last Saturday where I ran the Race For Life with some of the bar girls. Of course I baked some cupcakes too for the bake sale which went down a treat and we raised over £1000 for the charity in total! 

It seems like only yesterday that I wrote a post on my Race For Life cupcakes in 2013 which I must say were much more adventurous but there is only so much you can do in such a tiny student kitchen and with very little money. 

Hope you like :)

Kathryn xx

Time for Change

When looking back at last year when I started this blog, it was purely for my recipes and little life updates that I can look back on and remember some special moments however it has taken a strange route of beauty related posts, which although I love make up I really don't think writing about it is up my street. 

I find it a struggle which blogging really shouldn't be about and would rather focus on some lifestyle bits and bobs which I enjoy writing and that comes more naturally to me. In addition it saves me worrying about taking a photo of something I have just purchased before I can use it and giving a personal review of the product which many bloggers have probably no doubt already posted about. 

I don't want my blog to be something that stresses me out, plus after looking at some lovely blogs I have accepted that I will never have perfect photos or the perfect skin/makeup therefore am happy to just write life updates and stick to things I love i.e. baking!! 

Time to give my blog a little make over! :) 

xx

MAC: Girl About Town

Oh hey there new lipstick!! 

I used to own a cheap Seventeen lipstick that was this kinda shade but blergh, they just aren't the same quality as Mac. I bought Girl About Town after hearing great things about it and I looveeee it! 100% my favourite Mac purchase.

 Its so pigmented, a beautiful colour that goes with almost everything and the Amplified Creme formula means it's semi-creamy and just doesn't budge. 

B.e.a.utiful :) 

Bourjois Colour Boost: Peach on the Beach

Blergh, I just had two more jabs for Thailand and I am not reacting well to them! My arm is dead, I still have the cold from the first lot and now I just cant be bothered to move or revise, so instead I have decide to give this lovely product a mention.

I have owned the Bourjois Colour Boost, Peach on the Beach shade for some time now but then along came Revlon colourburst's which left me shoving it in my drawers. Anyways I wore this the other day at work and people mentioned the colour and how healthy I looked, whop whop! 

This pinky orange shade is lovely during Spring and as my lips are feeling fragile at the moment due to the cold, lipstick is just looking awful! The Bourjois Colour Boost lip crayons are so lovely on the lips, they melt and leave a smooth glossy finish that lasts a good time. I do not mind reapplying this as it doesn't feeling drying on the lips and actually feels like it is moisturizing them.  

Have a lovely Friday!

Kathryn x

April Favourites

As if it's May already, next month i'll be in Thailand and will have finished my University degree!!

Anyways, here is my favourite products from last month. I didn't spend too much on beauty as I am trying my best to save so here they are :)... 

Nars Sheer Glow: I am so grateful for beauty bloggers reviewing and raving about this product, its absoloutly beautiful. Just wish it wasn't so expensive and that hopefully the pump will come in stock in SpaceNK soon.

Clinique bottom lash mascara: Love love love this! I am useless with mascara and manage to get it everywhere but this works perfectly to grab every little lash.

Mac Brushes: Finnalllyyy I bought myself the MAC 217 & 266 eyebrow brush! I didn't think they would make much of a different buttt ohh they do. They are denser than my original brushes and the 217 has made eyeshadow blending so so easy!

Nars Orgasm lipgloss: I have never really worn lipgloss, it just always reminds me of when I was younger and playing with loads of makeup however having a mini version of this has made me realize I need some more lipgloss in my life ha. 

Carmex: Just because I have been ill and my lips are dying at the moment ha. 

Sally Hansen Kook the Mango vanish: Coral is my fav nail colour (other than pink). Its not a harsh red, nor a bright orange but just a lovely shade that I feel makes you look a little summery and looks perfect with a tan! 

:) P.s still adoring my Naked 3 palette too!! 

Statement Necklace for Spring/Summer

I've never really been into my necklaces but decided that if I bought one that I adored I would hopefully wear it with everything!
I went into Outfit the other day and found this lovely statement necklace, with hints of bright pinks, corals and grays I find it the perfect spring time necklace and have worn it with almost every outfit this week! 

I think I found it in Dorothy Perkins... but I can't find it on the website so maybe it wasn't. 

  

Kathryn x

Kathryn Bakes: Coffee & Lotus Biscuit Spread Cupcakes!

Ahww man, I have the worse cold at the moment so have been stuck in bed for a few days, a travel jab certainly hasn't helped either! 

One thing that will always (maybe not always) will get me up is baking and here I present my Coffee (with a hint of chocolate) and Lotus Biscuit Spread cupcakes! And yes these are dairy free!! :) I used this recipe  as inspiration but  without all the fiddly things such as baking powder/salt/oil/milk etc and used my standard recipe with some cocoa powder to thicken up the mixture when I added around 6 tsp of coffee! Also used Stork Block Butter :) and Pure Margarine! 

My taste buds aren't working at the moment so I have no idea how strong/nice/not nice these cakes are haha. Fingers cross someone will like them :) 

As for the Lotus Spread, everyone must try it. My friend recently bought some back from France until we later realised you can buy it in the super market ha. It tastes exactly like the coffee biscuits and they even do a crunchy version. Try not to get too addicted though as I can imagine it isn't the healthiest of spreads. 

Kathryn x