Sunday 24 July 2016

Big Blue Door







Well this certainly was the biggest, bluest door I've seen in my 20 years of life so far.  I've been back home in Chichester this weekend seeing my family/using their laptops while mine is broken, and I always forget how beautiful a city it is.  Especially in the sunshine, the cathedral and surrounding gardens are so picturesque, and there's so many photogenic corners to be found, a bit like this one.  It's always nice to pop back to sleepy little Chichester every now and again to escape what is becoming an increasingly manic Brighton every time the sun makes an appearance.  





Top - New Look / Trousers - Urban Outfitters / Sandals - H&M (last season - alternative here)
Bag - Nine West (TK Maxx) / Sunglasses - Calvin Klein (TK Maxx)


I got this top when I spontaneously popped into New Look late June time, and even though I wouldn't usually spend £20 on a top, I absolutely loved this, the colour is great and I'm such a fan of the off the shoulder style.  It has since gone into the sale half price; at first I was annoyed, but then I tell myself if I loved it enough to pay full price in the first place, it shouldn't matter to me it was only a tenner the week after... 


You may remember these wide leg trousers from this post or this post.  It's safe to say, despite the warmer weather, I'm still getting plenty of wear out of them.  I'm finding them much easier to style now with sandals and a crop, and the loose fit makes them breezy enough for summer days.  I picked up the sandals from an H&M sale in Spain last year for €5, and they've proved to be one of those perfect sale finds that has become a staple piece.  They go with anything and everything, and are so comfy.  The only downside to these would be that they make little fart sound effects sometimes when I walk in them - but as long as you don't mind that, they're gold.  



The bag is an old one I picked up in TK Maxx quite a few years ago, now.  Having two homes is a great excuse for not throwing stuff out - I convince myself I have double the storage to fill, and whenever I come home, I always end up digging stuff out of my wardrobe from years ago.  

That's it from me, for now.  Have a lovely week Sunday everyone, you'll hear from me again soon!

Ruby x






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Tuesday 19 July 2016

Sunburnt Flower Child



Why hello, and hope you're not too hot.  It's been 32 degrees in the south of England today which just feels like complete and utter madness - maybe I won't need to worry about going on a sunny getaway this summer?!  That would be a good thing too, since my laptop has decided, finally, to pack up (completely and utterly... I can't even turn it on).  I'm currently unsure whether or not my hard drive is still salvageable, and being the 90s girl that I am I was most certainly not computer savvy enough to back anything up.  And I mean anything.  

It wouldn't be so bad, apart from the fact I really do rely on my laptop for the internship I'm doing at the moment.  As in, of the 8 hours between 9-5pm, around 95% of that time is spent on my laptop - no biggie.  Oh, and it's around £850 for a new one.

Okay, whinge is over.  I had the nicest weekend, anyway (before my laptop broke).  It was such beautiful weather, and Josh came to Brighton for the weekend, so on Saturday we ventured out to town bright and early and made our way to the beach... cue a rather random selection of photos.  




Being ever so slightly reckless, I wore no suncream - which was a mistake.  Lying on the beach for 2 hours without suncream at the best of times always ends in disaster, especially when it's the first sun my white, white shoulders have seen all year.  


Dress - H&M Coachella range / Denim shirt - car boot sale / Sandals - H&M
Bag - Urban Outfitters / Sunglasses - French Connection



On the plus side, the only reason I didn't get totally singed was thanks to this big denim shirt.  Denim is always pretty much my favourite thing, and I especially love big shirts in summer as a cover up from the sun/modesty protector.  I'm pretty sure I picked this one up from a car boot sale, but other good places to look out for them are charity shops, jumble sales or vintage stores.  

As for the dress, it's an H&M oldie from last year, and I absolutely love it.  The colours and print are great, and the cut is also really good - super comfy and nice and breezy (lol, can you tell from my face) for super hot days.  



Don't forget your suncream, kids (see below for moody, burnt me).  

Ruby x






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Tuesday 12 July 2016

Recipe: Yummy Yummy Quinoa


I feel that I couldn't really call this anything except a 'yummy yummy' quinoa recipe because to be honest, it's one of those 'recipes' where you can put pretty much whatever ingredients you want in it and it will generally turn out.. well, yummy yummy.  I think once you've mastered a basic one-pot quinoa dish, you can master them all and there's so many different flavour combos I love - although the one below is definitely my fave at the moment. 


I discovered quinoa a while back, coincidentally shortly after I discovered that my body can't really cope with me eating delicious white wheaty things like bread and pasta more than about once a fortnight without me turning into a human floatation device (sorry if TMI).  The good thing about quinoa is that it's a grain so it's wheat and gluten free, super easy to digest and is also high in fibre and protein.  Beautiful. 

 Ingredients (a rough guide for 4 portions)

160g quinoa 
2-3tbsp olive oil
1 chicken or veg stock cube
A few florets of broccoli
1 courgette
1 leek
1 red onion
1 clove of garlic
5 mushrooms
2-3 chicken breasts

Seasoning: your choice - I like paprika and dried coriander for the 
chicken and lemon juice for the rest of it.
 
Rocket salad, fresh tomatoes and Greek feta to serve.

1) Immediately after taking this photo I realised there was probably no way of making raw chicken ever look particularly attractive.  So here are, in all their unaesthetic glory, my 3 small chicken breasts.  Season with salt, pepper, paprika and dried coriander and bake at 200 for around 30 minutes or until cooked and tender (you know the deal). 


2) While you're chicken's doing it's thing, you can crack on with the rest of the prep.  Chop your veggies finely and cook them in a large frying pan with the oil.  Start with the broccoli, garlic and onion, frying gently until beginning to soften, then add in the leek, courgette and mushrooms.  This should all take around 8-10 minutes in total.






3) Boil around 800ml of water in a large saucepan and add in your stock cube (this is what makes the quinoa all flavoursome and yummy yummy).  Pour in the quinoa and cook for 15-18 minutes, or until all the water has just been absorbed, stirring occasionally.


4) Once your quinoa is almost done, you can prepare your chicken (which should be looking a lot more appetising by now).  I like to shred the chicken using two forks, but everyone probably has a different method - go with what you like.  Also if you don't eat meat, tuna or salmon is great with quinoa.



5) Hopefully by this time your quinoa should be done and looking nice and fluffy.  The next bit is pretty simple really: chuck everything into the pot with the quinoa and stir, adding lemon juice. 



6) Serve up with a crumbling of feta over the top, fresh rocket salad and big red tomatoes!  This is so delicious cold as well - the perfect summer salad.





If anyone makes this recipe or has some ingredient combo suggestions, leave me a comment below and let me know your thoughts...  Thanks for reading as always, and happy quinoa-ing!

Ruby x







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Tuesday 5 July 2016

Mozzino



So on Friday last week I went with a couple of friends to check out a new coffee place near where we all live (you guessed it - photo credits to Chiara!).  Brighton is always coming up with new offerings in the coffee shop department, and I'm a bit of a sucker for a quirky cafe - so can you see why I live here? Mozzino on Lewes Road certainly did not disappoint... it was a warmish day but there was a bit of a breeze, but the garden is sheltered by some raffia-esque fencing and roof so you feel a bit like you're in a kind of warm little beach hut. 



As you do, we sat at a big wooden table covered in fruit plants and with the body of a little car attached to the front of it.  The whole place is decked out in wood - there's an uber organic feel that reminded me of the Eden Project.  


Jumper - ASOS / Jeans - Urban Outfitters Renewal / Shoes - New Look 
Top - H&M / Bag - Urban Outfitters  



I wore this pair of little red shoes which I've just been loving recently.  I've really got into lace ups since the weather started getting warmer and although this pair are (to state the obvious) bright red, they actually go with so many different things.  



I would also like to apologise for the fact my posts have been a little sparse recently - I've been a busy lady, what with starting a full time internship and whizzing over and back between home home in Chichester and Brighton home on the weekends for all sorts of goings on (something which has actually been taking considerably longer than it should thanks to all the Southern Rail fiasco)... stick with me guys!  

And there's not too much more I can say about Mozzino - other than that the coffee is wonderful!

Ruby x


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Friday 1 July 2016

Lips of the Month: Jolis Matins



First of all - wow!  I can't believe it's been over a year since I started this blog.  Thanks to everyone who's stuck with me so far, and for new readers, welcome to my funny little corner of the internet.  

I thought I'd kick things off this month with my favourite lip shade of the moment.  Disclaimer: it was a bit of a splurge.  


This lovely little shade is called 'Jolis Matins' (shade 106M) and is one from Lancôme's Rouge In Love range. These are certainly a little steep at £22 a pop...


...however, if you fancy treating yourself, they really are great.  These give a glossy, lustrous colour that isn't too full bodied but not too sheer either.  The formula is surprisingly moisturising as well as long-lasting and the packaging is princess-worthy. 



I've really been getting into this shade as a really wearable, day-to-day colour.  It's so easy and quick to apply because it's not too highly pigmented, and is the perfect addition to a minimal makeup look - I like to wear it with just a wave of mascara and a bit of foundation. 



Do you have any favourite high-end lipsticks?

Ruby x








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