Weekend Scenes

This weekend was all about one thing; the London Marathon. I ran this gloriously challenging event twice, before my knee cap cracked and put an end to marathon running for good. Thankfully the boyfriend picked up the baton and Sunday was his second London marathon, fifteenth overall (I'm so jealous of his healthy knee caps!) He did a PB of 3 hours 14 minutes and I couldn't have felt prouder of his achievement. 

Maybe it was the sunshine, maybe it was the prospect of seeing Olympian Mo Farah pounding the pavements, but the atmosphere was incredibly special along the route. On days like these I feel so proud to call London my home. Here are some scenes from the memorable day.

Heading to the start line in Greenwich, most of it uphill, just what you need before running a 26.2 miles!

London looking fabulous

The boyfriend pre-race giving a nervous thumbs up

The sweaty boyfriend at the finish line, wahoo!

Horse Guard's Parade in all it's glory at the finish

The medal

Well done to everyone who ran the race and to all the organisers and spectators who make the London Marathon one of the best in the world! We can't wait for next year.

In My Bag

Despite a hectic work trip to France where I consumed oodles of bread and cheese and got to hang out with cute poodles, I still managed to squeeze in a little London shopping. Here's what made it into my bag this week.

Having long hair I find it necessary to always have a hair band on my wrist, usually in an ugly shade of brown. Quite frankly it's not a good look. These perfect hair bands from COS do the trick and look chic enough for the wrist. They come in a range of colours, I was going to get yellow but played it safe with grey. 

Hair Bands £4 COS

I love & Other Stories but sometimes find the fit of their clothes a little challenging. However I struck it lucky with this versatile two tone denim pencil skirt. It sits just below the knee (so hides my knee operation scar perfectly!) and has pockets. It'll work perfectly with my Birkenstocks for summer, but equally well with ankle boots and tights come winter.

Skirt £29 & Other Stories

I first saw these bargain trousers on brilliant blog Little Spree. Being a huge fan of stripes, yet not owning any of the trouser variety, I thought I would try them out. They are super comfortable, light enough for summer days and the thick grosgrain waist tie adds a chic element. I'll wear mine now with a grey sweater and my black Miu Miu trainers, but come summer I'll pair with a grey vest and tan sandals.

Stripe Trousers £25.99 Zara

I thought I'd save the best to last. Stella McCartney had a sample sale on Wednesday and Thursday. I could only make it on Thursday and when I rocked up early I was pleasantly surprised to discover no queues. I should have known it was too good to be true. Inside there were only 4 rails of clothes and a few tables of shoes. I was so disappointed as last time I'd scored winter coats, jeans and dresses. However tucked away under some boots were these gorgeous delights. In my size! At a fraction of the price! And they are flat and comfortable! I snapped them up, happy in the knowledge that it's always worth going to a sample sale.

Sandals Stella McCartney

Drink It Up

I'll readily admit I am a sun whore. I don't smoke and I religiously apply sunscreen but oh do I love to sit under the big yellow ball in the sky getting my dose of vitamin D. Since returning from my holiday my face has been quite dry and a little flakey (blurgh!) so I thought I'd treat it to some intensive moisturising with Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Mask.

Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Mask

You apply the herbal scented mask thickly then let your skin soak it up for 10 minutes. The cream doesn't harden but it's quite disturbing to see how thirsty my skin was as the product all but disappeared on certain areas of my face. The instructions say to wipe away what's left behind with a tissue and massage the final remnants into the face, but it felt too greasy so I gave mine a quick wipe with a damp muslin cloth. 

The ingredients are 99% natural with moisture trapping clary sage as the hero ingredient. It also contains mafura and tucuma butter along with coconut oil to soften and hydrate. 

My skin looked instantly fresher and plumper, the dryness improved after just one use and it's definitely softer to the touch. At £19.99 this is a well priced, does what is says on the tin product that I will be integrating into my weekly beauty routine.

Weekend Scenes

This weekend flew by and was filled with work, life laundry, a little retail therapy, some training action and seeing work friends. 

On Friday night I had the privilege of attending the Asian Awards at Grosvenor House with my friend Gok Wan. It was a fantastic night made even better by Gok winning the gong for Outstanding Achievement in TV. Idris Elba was in attendance (argh!!!), the food was divine and the dresses were so sparkly that I felt utterly underdressed in my bargain buy from H&M.

Yummy pudding at the Asian Awards

Idris Elba presenting an award (sorry for the blurry picture)

Dress £39.99 H&M Bag Anya Hindmarch Shoes Miu Miu

On Saturday a quick rummage in TK Maxx unearthed these beauties by Seven for All Mankind. I'll wear them with a grey tee, a denim shirt or clash their subtle print with a stripe. The kids clothes section was especially good with lots of little Stella McCartney and Paul & Joe. It almost made me want a child.

Jeans £29 from TK Maxx

My new crinkle cutter knife arrived and I have been happily chopping all manner of fruit and veg (FYI it doesn't work on bread!) We are hoping to make pretty crinkle cut veggie crisps with it soon.

Crinkle cutter knife from Amazon

The Capital Tri that I am taking part in with Simply Swim is rapidly approaching so I spent quite a few hours going nowhere on my Bianchi to help prepare my thighs.

And I packed my bags...again. This time I'm heading to France for an exciting job. 

I Love Flamingos

Flamingos make me happy. Their odd beaks, long necks, penchant for balancing on one spindly leg and mostly because what they eat makes them that glorious shade of pink. They also have a delightful kitsch quality that make them a uplifting addition to my home. In my last flat I adorned an entire bathroom wall with Cole & Son's flamingo wallpaper. When we moved I was very sad to leave it behind.

Cole & Son Flamingo Wallpaper

In my new flat my collection of mingos (as I affectionately refer to them) is growing. A faux stuffed one from Rockett St George lives in my loo.

Flamingo from Rockett St George

These lights from amazon adorn my bar cart and are the height of kitsch but I LOVE them!

Flamingo Lights

And this chic flamingo print is actually an old Celine advert that I cut out and framed.

Framed Flamingos

I draw the line at wearing anything with a flamingo print but would be quite partial to any of the following things for my home.

Flamingorama print by Aida from Nelly Duff

Flamingo tea towel (I have an obsession with tea towels) from Rockett St George

Royal Flamingo notepad from Liberty

Flamingos for the garden (if only my boyfriend would let me these would be mine!) from Amazon

Loving the grey and pink combo on this gorgeous cushion from Notonthehighstreet.com

Images: Nelly Duff, Rockett St George, Alexa Pulitzer, Amazon, Notonthehighstreet.com

Holiday Scrapbook

Our holiday to the Maldives was incredible. The sun shone, we relaxed, played with the little sharkies and didn't wear shoes from the moment we arrived until we boarded the speedboat to leave. Here are some pictures from our week in paradise...

Sunshine, sand and palm trees = Bliss!

We loved being shoeless for the entire week

Little sharkies in the shallows. Surprisingly cute, not scary!

Manta-ray at feeding time

Parrots make a welcome change from London pigeons

Obligatory shadow shot

Scanning the ocean for turtles and sharkies

Evening outfits sans shoes

The sunrise on our last morning

It was a truly fantastic holiday. Goodbye Maldives, we'll see you soon...

Bikini Body

Two weeks prior to going on holiday I thought I should start prepping my skin to make it holiday ready. In particular my thighs. I exercise frequently, my diet is fairly good despite many bars of Green & Black and even though I'm a tad cynical about the claims slimming creams make, I wanted rid of my cellulite. So after a little research I started slathering on Bliss' Fat Girl Sleep. I applied the lilac goop nightly, rubbing it into my lumps and bumps for a minimum of 30 seconds as directed. The morning after the first application and the smoothness of my skin was akin to a week of vigorous body brushing. It's most active ingredients are red algae and lotus flower extract said to improve circulation and help breakdown excess fat cells. What makes the night time formula different to the award winning daytime formula, Fat Girl Slim, is the addition of lavender extract, included to help induce peaceful slumber. After the initial joy of soft skin, sadly I didn't notice my thighs toning up and the dimples of cellulite still plague my rump. Perhaps I should have started using it earlier or doing as bliss advise and pairing it with Fat Girl Slim. But all is not lost, my skin feels velvety soft and that's no bad thing when you're planning to bare your body on a beach.

Bliss Fat Girl Sleep £32.70