TRAVEL LESSONS FOR THE BEST ADVENTURES!

Do you have a dream? I used to dream all the time as a little girl, my imagination was off the scale and nothing ever seemed too far fetched from reality for me! As I grew into a young adult, I experienced all the emotions from happy love to tearful heartbreak and my big dreams diminished into life goals instead. Teenage years consisted of trying to complete the next stage of my life and so I never was that person who looked ahead in their life, waiting for that day to come when your dream was a reality.

2011

It wasn't until I had my heart broken for the first time when I needed to start focusing on my future and what I wanted for myself. My first dream was to be a designer, making it in London and living a life full of creativity and inspiration. I'm happy to say with a LOT of hard work and determination I made it through college and university into a company that ticks all those boxes and boy does it feel good. It's funny though, reaching and grabbing hold of what you thought was your life's dream sometimes makes you realise it's not, it actually just turned out to be a career goal of mine. 

During the years of reaching my "dream" me and my boyfriend (now fiancé...WIN!!) went to Paris when I was 21 years old. It was our first trip together and what better than spending your birthday weekend with the love of your life in one of the most romantic cities in the world?? wrong! 

It was actually really stressful and tiring and we ended up spending most of our time oversleeping at the hotel as it had the comfiest bed I have ever slept in, still to this day! Don't get me wrong, it could have been everything I wish for but I didn't plan anything, I was moody for it and I felt we never got out of it what we were hoping. What it did do was unleash that dream of travel from inside me...that feeling of pure freedom where I was in a place where no one knew who I was or what I was about and I could just be me. Thing is, what I also learnt is that if I was truely going to create the dream I wanted then I needed to plan, gain knowledge and do all the leg work before hand so I could just go and soak it all in. 

So here are my top 3 tips that I now swear by every time I travel: 

1) Print out a map of the area you are going

Using letters or numbers, mark out places you want to visit on the map. I would recommend you categorise them by food, cool places, buildings, art, culture etc so you know exactly what they are (great time to whip out all that stationary you are holding). Mark them down and only write in vital information like times they are open, kind of food etc then on your travels you can wake up knowing there is plenty to do but without the fixated plans. This is the perfect way to travel organised but spontaneous at the same time! I have found that if everything is too planned it can be really stressful. You end up trying to hard to be here there and everywhere at certain dates and times which stops you from enjoying what is around you and at the very worst, from making your own discoveries. 

2) Use a BnB (now Air BnB)

This is the best way to experience life like a local. You will be in an area where they hangout and eat (always the best restaurants) plus staying in a house/apartment that oozes culture. When in Paris for the second time we were lucky to find a little apartment set into a French courtyard with French windows and beautul art on the walls. Also the host will give you all the local knowledge which is sometimes better than your own research! And you never know, you may make a friend or two.

3) Stray away from the tourist areas

I know it good to see all the main sites of a place but for me that's what I am least interested in as I have already seen it a hundred times over online, in magazines and through art. This is also a good tip for places to stay, plus it's cheaper too! Go for a walk or get on a train outside of the city centre and see what is around. Of course do a little research too but this is when you will really start having little adventures of your own. Speak to a blogger that lives in the area or find places for yourself, any way you like just do it! Trust me, these will be the memories you remember. 

2014 

The 'Love Lock' bridge has now been pulled down!

So thank you to my 21 year old moody unappreciative self and partner for taking me on this trip, because if I never had that first experience then I would have never enjoyed the amazing trips I did afterwards. I did actually end up going back a couple of years ago with my mum and with those tips we ended up having the most fun filled adventure ever and discovered some great local eats! I fell in love with the city after that and I can't wait to back again sometime.

For now though I need to start fulfilling that travel dream of mine by visiting as many new places as I can in my lifetime! I haven't been to many yet but I'm going to start with Europe as there is a lot of amazing places that I am yet to discover! Id advice giving GoEuro a look when booking your trip as they are great at finding the best prices and ways to travel, plus you can add in if you have a travel card and there is also an option to select Air BnB in the area your looking, which makes the hassle of booking a trip much easier!

Let me know if you have any travel tips that I can add onto my list as I'm sure there are lots I haven't discovered yet. Live the adventure! 

Khrissie x

Gin Festival London

Gin Festival London is a once per year event. Filled to the brim with hundreds brands that bring in the crowds like a magpie to shiny things. This is a gin festival so if this drink isn't your cup of tea, then your probably not going to like it, but if your open to trying something new, I would definitely give this a go. I am a newbie to the gin crowd, so for me this was a perfect way to get stuck in.

When you first get to the festival you are given a booklet, a little bag which I found really useful to carry my glass in (if it wasn't in my hand which was 90% of the time), a pen and a sheet too add your details too if you wanted to purchase a bottle of your favourite after but not want to carry it home. We then headed to the tills where we each brought a card for £20 which gave us enough tokens for four drinks each. Off to the bar we went...

We were guided to a large room where four bars awaited us, each labelled from A-D. We found that each one had a rough theme to us based on the flavour notes given to us in the book, but it could have just been a coincidence. I personally found bar B was full of the strongest percentage ones and C full of spiced gins.  Deciding it would be a good strategy to try a drink from each bar we looked through our books to find one that took our fancy. The key flavours I was looking for were fruit and citrus as I find this helps to freshen the drink making it easier to consume. I already knew spiced gins weren't my thing so I stayed clear of those from the offset.

My first taste was from a brand called Brockmans, it was deliciously fruity with notes of blackberries, perfect with your standard tonic water. This was actually my favourite from the whole day and I will be purchasing a full bottle of it in the future. Now with each gin it tells you which tonic compliments it the best but after trying a few variations I noticed that the lemon and elderflower tonics overpower the gin flavour. If you were there to try the real flavours of the gin I would keep to standard tonic for this purpose. I personally LOVE elderflower in my gin so I was all over that and the lemon tonic made one of mine taste just like lemonade which was delicious and very easy to consume.

The are also food stands, (I tried an a-maz-ing nacho veggie burger with halloumi in - ugh dreamy) Live bands were playing in the bar, there was an outside area filled with deck chairs to sit with your favourites and enjoy the day. During the day I ended up consuming about six drinks and got quite merry from it. It was nice to forget the world and laugh at stupid things such as when I was explaining how people sniff their gins first for flavour and somehow managed to get a straw wedged up my nose.

It was a really lovely start to my bank holiday weekend and would highly recommend giving it a go next year. Are there any festivals you've been loving this year? Please let me know as I want to make a conscious effort to go to more in 2017.

Ladies Day Outfit 2016

Sometimes you just want to throw on some jeans and a t-shirt and be done with the day (me everyday) but there are others where you want to make a real effort and feel like a grown woman. I find it difficult to reach maximum confidence with an outfit but I do have a few tips.

- Be comfortable in someway. This could be through the material of your outfit or the shoes you wear. If you choose something you are constantly adjusting then there is no winning.

- Choose colours you love and compliment your complexion. It difficult to get out of wearing monochrome as it goes with everything, right? but colour can really do wonders for you if worn in the right way. So use the races as an opportunity to show your personality and Sasha Fierce confidence.

This is my ultra feminine outfit which incorporates the S/S trends of this year but still keeping it sophisticated for the day. I have brought in a lot of tones of colour to avoid black and so with neutral makeup I think this could look fab!

Pinks and florals are one of my favourite looks for S/S as they can really bring some sunshine and happiness to an outfit, which in turn makes me feel confident on the inside.

Dress: ASOS / Bag: Accessorise / Shoes: ASOS

What will you be wearing on your trip to the races this year?

Love Khrissie x

Blogmas #1: Christmas has arrived!

 I was thinking about stopping my blog for a bit and starting fresh in the new year. I've been ill with kidney stones and not feeling myself. It is the first of December as it is unlike me to not be in the spirit already, all day being a right moner until on my way home as I was passing through Waterloo station in London. They has a brass band that was playing Christmas songs, and that was it! I officially started to get excited and decided to try and blog everyday this month.

Its going to be posts of 24 things I am loving each day in the lead up until Christmas. I'm going to wing it and post on the day every day so I am really living in the moment...so here it goes!

Day 1 and it is time to put up the tree and some little decorations! Now this is something I will always do, even if I am doing it on my own because I really just enjoy it! The designer eye in me is never 100% satisfied with the outcome but I never will be.

One thing me and Nick have decided to do each year is buy a new tree decoration which symbolises us and this year, its a gooden.....

I mean how amazing is this! A pizza! Who ever thought of this is a genious and I love him/her a lot! Its from Paperchase by the way and you cant get it online so pop to your nearest store quick, its a keeper! Me and Nick do order quite a few dominos through the month, mainly Nick I would admit as I do prefer a stone baked pizza but our love for it is the same, non the less. So this is the year that we bonded over pizza! Sounds made but food is the key to a mans heart.

This was our decoration from last year. Love birds moving into their new home together! Plus it went with our white, silver and mint green theme of the year. This years has broken that but it will be nice over the years to collect decorations that mean something to us!

These are a few other bits I have around the living room. The snow globe is from when my friends went to New York and I have kept it ever since as I dream of going there, especially at Christmas.

Those crackled glasses are for candles. The burner is from Yankee Candles and the smaller one from ASDA, both using Christmas scent. The smaller glass has my candle in from my advent calendar today. Yankee 'Icicles' and it smells divine! Fresh but warming at the same time, that feeling you get when you catch the cold breeze of winter as your sitting indoors with a hot chocolate and a blanket. You can actually buy the Yankee Candle advent here for 50% off.

The last is a mint green and gold stag I got from Paperchase and I just love it! I love a woodland themed christmas and the white tree behind it really finishes it off nicely.

I hope you have had a wonderful first day of Christmas, enjoy your sleep and I'll see you tomorrow for more Christmas fun!!

Love Khrissie xxx

A glorious adventure...

I can tell you I am an avid traveller but in real life I'm not. I only dream of the places I want to see and visit, when I haven't actually been to many countries in my life time, as I had once wished.

It has now coming up to year since I took my trip of a lifetime around Thailand, Laos and Cambodia and its all I can think of. I have a huge desire to travel again, as I just loved the way it made me feel.

I felt free and the happiest I have ever been. I could have easily spent a few months travelling around with groups of like minded people like that and had the time of my life but the reality of paying rent, bills and having a job to pay them with slowly became apparent and so the trip I had always dreamed of had to come to an end. 

My mission in life still is to travel as much as I can. I am the worst at saving but I need to find a way to be savvier with money so I can fulfil my dreams! The one thing that keeps me going and that I can being home with me, is the food. The citrus aromas, the fresh spices and depth of flavour.

 I was lucky to experience a cooking lesson out there where I even surprised myself with my culinary skills. Given that the teacher we had was amazing and knew everything you would ever want to know when making a Thai meal. Now knowing what real Thai food tastes like I went in search of some options that I could find in the supermarket, that took me back to sitting in the Thai countryside and boating down the Mekong river with nothing but nature to look at.

 Soup is the one thing I got for this winter, especially for lunch and it is quick, easy and full of flavour that you need, plus it does a good job at warming you up on those chilly days. GLORIOUS Soup have an amazing range of soups, their main ones bringing you the exotic flavours of your favourite places. This is when I love in indulge in their Fragrant Thai Carrot soup on those times when I am dreaming of my own adventure. Infused with ginger, lemongrass and lime to give you that authentic taste, with an aroma to match.

Thailand has also has an array of amazing street food that you must try if you ever go, its a brilliant way to suck up the culture and experience what they have to offer first had. This is where the GLORIOUS Sunny Thai Chicken soup comes in with its hot and sour flavours, you cant help but be transported back to the beautiful sunshine.

Why don't you have an adventure with food too and enjoy the many wonderful flavours Glorious have to offer. Whether your keen on going to Mexico or staying close to home in the countryside of England, make sure you make every adventure a great one and experience everything that is on offer as memories last a lifetime so its worth taking the time to make them.

I hope you enjoyed my throw back post to Thailand. I'm off to plan how to save for my own adventures. Enjoy your week!

Khrissie x 

Fashion favourite - Jewellery Box

 I would like introduce you to a new jewellery brand I have recently discovered. The brand is called Jewellery Box (if you cant already tell by the many logos), a company that specialises in all things jewellery, ranging from earrings to necklace, pendants and even toe rings. They cast a lot of their pieces in sterling sliver but also have ranges that are slightly pricier, in 9ct yellow and rose gold.

I first came across them at the Bloggers Festival. Their stand was brimming with gorgeous pieces and I wanted everything. I was lucky to get gifted some pieces in my amazing goody bag from the Bloggers Festival and others were brought at their pop up store in Brixton. You should definitely go and visit the Brixton pop up site if you get a chance. Its the perfect chance for a catch up with friends, with boutique shops, delicious food and even an array of cheeky beverages, if you fancy.

  Leaf ring £7.40 / Pink opal gemstone earrings £7.40

These were the two pieces I brought at Brixton Pop. It was really difficult to make a decision on what I wanted as I loved so much of it. I chose these for the time being but I will be back another day for sure as I have my eye on a dinosaur necklace and some beautiful bee earrings. These pink opal earrings are so gorgeous when they catch the sunlight and perfectly subtle to wear everyday.

This leaf is a perfect addition if you love to layer up your jewellery as it would go perfect with some simple midi rings to give some oomph to your outfit.

  Infinity necklace £8 / Heart stud earrings £4

This set is the one I received in my goody bag. How pretty are they? Perfect everyday pieces that will compliment any outfit. I especially love the infinity necklace as I believe everything happens for a reason and this feels like a testimony to that. Love and memories are so important in life as they are what last a lifetime. A little bit deep for a light hearted post but its so true!

 Unicorn pendant on chain £6

Last up is this super cute unicorn necklace. I love unicorns, dinosaurs and sloths although these things always become a massive trend. I have always loved anything unicorn, so this is going to stay in my collection long after the trend has gone.

I just love all the pieces I have collected recently. I can fast see it becoming one of my go to shops for delicate jewellery. Jewellery box would make the perfect gift for a birthday or Christmas present and because the pieces are so affordable you aren't going to break the bank either. Go check them out because I can assure you that your going to find something that you, your sister and even your friends are going to love. 

More soon...

Love Khrissie x

Summer Favourite - No7 BB Cream

I'm going through one of those stages at the moment where I hate the feel of makeup on my face. As soon as I have foundation on my skin I want to take it off and I think this is because I have started going to the gym in the mornings without makeup on and it feels invigorating to not have to worry about what you look like in front of strangers.

On my weekly hunt in Boots for makeup, which is one of my favourite things to do. I tweeted and asked if anyone had an foundation recommendations for oily/sensitive skin. Someone mentioned about the No7 foundation as they loved the coverage. I went to check out the stall, not because of the coverage but because I had completely forgot about the brand. I completely love their advertising but in terms of in store stand out, I never gravitate towards it.

As I was having a little browse, this little number caught my eye. Now I have never been a fan of BB creams in the past as they are always way too orange for my fairly pale skin tone, plus the consistencies of them can be a bit off putting. I gave the little tester a go and the colour didn't seem too bad and the consistency was velvety smooth.

 No7 BB Cream in Fair / Chloé L'Eau de Chloé perfume / New look necklace / Frassy earrings 

Since that day I have been in love. Now for a pale girl, the colour can seem quite dark but I have actually been mixing this with 'Wake me up' concealer for a radiant glow and it has made the perfect tone for me. The coverage is enough to even out my skin tone but not too much so I feel I have a lot on my skin. It has UV protection, which is always a plus side for me and it hasn't given me any breakouts yet which is a no1 win in my books.

I have just been blending this onto my skin with my fingers, adding a touch of concealer on my breakouts with a dash of highlighting blush and a lashing of mascara, oh and lets not forget the brows. Hello no makeup, makeup look in just a few easy steps! The BB cream blends really nicely and doesn't have too much of a fragrance. I would say it smells like moisturiser which is quite a nice smell to me. There are also two other types of this BB cream for normal and dry skin, so there is something to suit everyone.

What makeup have you been loving lately? I would love to hear any recommendations, especially with new launches.

Have a wonderful week!
Love Khrissie x

LoveBox Festival 2015

Jessie Ware was incredible! If you ever get a chance to see her, do it! She seems like the nicest and most down to earth artist I've seen in a while, plus her songs are beautiful!

Heres my outfit that I wore to the festival. Top and shorts are from ASOS. Necklace from Oasis. Shoes from H&M. Choker and lace throw on from New Look. Sunglasses from Topshop.

Your probably thinking these chips look gross but let me tell you. Chips with gravy and cheese are just amazing! On those days where you go wild and forget about healthy food, this is what you need!

So I can bee a right nutter sometimes and this blog is one about me, imperfections and all so this just gives you a little glimpse into what I'm like on a daily basis. Life's too short to be normal - right? 

Lovebox 2015 was such a great day out. Music was good and it was great to spend some quality time with my man. Although we live together we don't actually spend much time together with our busy work lives. Today was a day for us to enjoy life without the annoying distractions ad create some memories. 

Make most of the days you have and live it to the full. Always do what makes you happy!

That can be a walk on the beach, getting an ice cream or sob in front of Netflix for half a day feeling sorry for yourself. You might not be an outdoors kind of person and prefer spending time in your happy place. I'm trying to make a conscious effort to be more social as I can be a bit of a hermit crab at the best of times. Its helping my confidence a lot and I always feel better once I'm in the situation than I do thinking about it. Don't ever feel like you need to live your life in a certain way, just make sure your happy doing whatever you want. Life really is too short. 

Try and enjoy your week the best you can. 

Ciao!

Love Khrissie