Me time – why it’s essential

This is a slightly different post for me, but one I felt necessary after a recent experience. As you can see my posting has become less regular and occasionally posted just for the sake of it rather than posting something I have really put time into and I am really proud to have on my blog. My blog initially started as a tool to help me get into uni as I applied for a fashion marketing course, however I grew to enjoy it and it became a hobby, something people would possibly class as me time, and evidently something that last blog post date has proven I haven’t dedicated much time to. At first I feared I would lose readers for this but in all honesty I’m ashamed to say now that I grew past the point of caring that much, due to everything I had going on at university proving to be that draining of my emotions. I thought I would cry a lot more in final year, and although I am a pretty strong person I don’t think that was the case for not shedding many tears because when my weekly routine is to be in uni 8-8 to return home to continue with work, I have become almost robot like and not even had much time for my emotions. Initially I hated to use uni as an excuse for not blogging but it has become too overwhelming now as I am at the 4^th and final year stage in my fashion degree. Often I get people saying ‘why are you so stressed isn’t fashion just cutting and sticking’ – possibly the worst thing to say to a sleep deprived final year. And no it is far from it as I am currently at stage of manufacturing my own garment collection having already submitted a dissertation in January. Thankfully, something that shook me into having some me time was an invitation to the Mineral House Spa in Newcastle, at first I thought about declining the invitation for a treatment as I thought I should really wait until I have graduated all submitted al my work and really earned it. My mum, god love her, told me you need a break, I have already earned that. So I allowed myself an hours trip to the spa even though I was allocated 3. I had taken in my phone for the time and picture taking purposes but the for the first half an hour I found myself spending every few minutes looking at my phone telling myself how long I had left rather than appreciating those minutes. I found it really hard to make myself relax. Somewhere I couldn't take my phone was the pool so I had a quick dip and returned to a lounger with a magazine and finally found myself a bit more at ease. However I did not feel fully relaxed and back down to earth until my treatment, a facial, which I am a newbie to so was just expecting one of the beauticians to apply a face mask or something. But this treatment included aspects of a body massage as well. You know how it is in a spa with the ‘waves crashing’ music and the aroma of gorgeous smells, I nearly fell asleep but I pinched myself not to as this was one hour of totally dedicated me time, I was going to be awake for it! So after my hour was up, I felt back down to earth again, even though I knew I had to go back to uni I felt a slight weight of my shoulders. The walk back which meant me passing a slightly rowdy part of Newcastle didn't even phase me. This just goes to show how effective that little portion of me time and relaxation is. I’m not usually one for a cringe conclusion but it needs to be said, if you are in a similarly stressful position to me, for the sake of your wellbeing – do not be so hard on yourself. Finding the time to have a small dose of me time can work wonders, it set my mind straight again – almost a clean slate from the stress that was originally there, it somewhat motivated me, and I had the best sleep in ages. Don’t get me wrong I’m not all care free and spiritual 24/7 now, I’m still human, and have been stressed again since, but thinking back to this experience and telling myself some more me time is around the corner, has kept me going.

So go on, switch of your laptop, after having booked yourself a spa day that is - try the Mineral Spa at the Crown Plaza in Newcastle if you are in the area, I would highly recommend it. Or even just switch of your phone, light a candle, pick up a book or just sit in a comfy spot for an hour and notice the difference.

Ellie

Competition: Calling, North Easterners & Brides To Be

Whether you qualify for the above or not, the North East wedding show is nearly here. This year I have been invited to attend the January 2016 show. Although I am no bride to be, who doesn't love a good wedding, and as a fashion design student I love looking at those all important dresses. Why I am posting about this do you ask? Well Christmas has arrived a little early for According to Ellie and The North East Wedding Show as we are giving away two tickets to you lovely readers.

Just to give you a little idea of what you can expect from the event; from cake tasting
 (I might just have to pretend I'm getting married for that), flowers, honeymoons, and of course, the dress. After a browse and shop you can be entertained by live music, and the bit I personally would be most excited for, a runway show of wedding wear. So you can try, book, plan and buy all under one roof. That roof being metro radio arena in Newcastle, on the dates the 16th and 17th of January 2016.
So if you're a blogger, planning bride or just interested to browse, comment below, tweet or e-mail me stating why you would like to go and a winner will be selected by Boxing day.
Good luck!

From myself and on behalf of the North East Wedding Show team, Merry Christmas!
x

My Hand Picked Christmas Ideas

With a very intense university experience at present, Christmas still seems very far away. However the Christmas shopping is one of my favourite parts of the period and always gets me feeling festive. So as a very welcome uni break to lift spirits for me, and hopefully some affordable inspiration for you, here are some of the things on my wish list if not for myself, but the other girly ones in my life.

From left to right
Bra £20 Miss guided
Phone case £21 Asos
Aloe Vera Hand & Body Moisturiser £19 Kiehls
Make up bag £8.99 Etsy 
(if anyone knows where I can get these brushes also, please fill me in!)
Gingerbread Man Necklace with Black Diamonds £180 Bees Fine Jewellery
Winter Belted Camel Coat £65 House Of Fraser
Fluffy Jumper Dress £28 Missguided
Festive Cranberry Face Mask £6.75/75g Lush
Cosy Fur Bobble Hat £19.95 The Fur Bobble Shop
Ice Cream Phone Case Was £12 now £8 Asos
Mink & Rose Gold Watch £70 Olivia Burton
Perfect for stockings socks £8.87 Victoria's Secret
Sweet Silver Loveheart Ring £25 Bees Fine Jewellery
Drinking Fudge Mug Set £10 Not On The High Street
Crackling Woodwick Candle Varied price approx £15 Amazon

Merry shopping
Ell     

A Year In Pictures

Hello! If it's still acceptable to say it then, Happy New Year! I hope you all had some lovely time off and didn't have too many work burdens like me to deal with over the festive period, hence my absence in posting, it seems only right to make 'time manage better' my no.1 resolution.
At the start of this year I took some time to reflect on 2014 by putting together a year in pictures, something I recommend everyone should do. I went from initiating with 6 pictures which soon grew to 12, and I could have had so much more! Looking through all my captures of the past year made me realise I'd had a way more productive year than I thought, which put me in a perfect mind set for 2015, something that we could all benefit from don't you think?  If you're thinking 2014 was not your year, well this could also work in your favour being be a useful tool to help bring out all the highlights. On the other hand if you are simply in need of a fresh start, do what I did last January and get a new haircut, take a trip, pick up a hobby. Or, do something I did this January and give your blog a new do, and if you don't have one why not start one?! As you can see it is a fab way to document things like this.

From right to left; My first internship of the year at a fashion suppliers, my new year do when my hair got the chop, a lovely trip to Amsterdam with my boyfriend, moving to London and starting my internship at womenswear designer studios, According to Ellie's first giveaway, learning Italian and discovering new restaurants in London, mine and my boyfriends birthday spent at the Waldorf Hotel, just in time for the races I taught myself how to make fascinators, working at London fashion week with designer Zoe Jordan, fashion illustrations of the collection I helped work on during my internship, my favourite OOTD taken in the beautiful Florence, and a Christmas jumper i made for the designers I interned at that was auctioned of for charity.


What are your 2014 highlights and new years resolutions?
I would love to see your photo montages, post your links below!

Ciao for now!

Ell

   

A spooky treat!

To those of you who follow my blog will know on festive occasions such as Easter and in this case Halloween, I like to get my baking hat on! So just in time for the big day tomorrow you can still have fun making these scarily good treats (I apologies for that awful pun) with the kids, or like me alone with your 20 year old self! So what am I making you ask? Well having browsed the internet to get some inspiration I found a fab recipe which i have adapted to make the below, frozen banana ghosts! I decided to make them on the slightly less scary side as they turned out to be the cutest little bananas ever. So if I tempted you enough to make these yourself heres how...

You will need:

3 chunky bananas (or if you can find them in the supermarket a bunch of mini bananas will work well too)

150 grams of melted white chocolate 

100-200g of dried coconut shavings

And a handful of milk chocolate chips
Lolly sticks or blunt ended skewers

To start making your banana ghosts you will need to melt the white chocolate in a bowl over or pan, or the microwave. TIP: If you are using a microwave heat at a high heat but in short bursts to ensure it hasn't burnt! Once melted put aside to cool whilst you prep the fruit.

Next, peel your bananas and  cut in half so you have 6 portions but if you are using mini bananas leave whole. Gently push a lolly stick or skewer half way up the banana, try not to do what I did and poke a whole through your banana on the first go!

You then need to prep a large baking tray, lay a sheet of grease proof paper on it so your bananas dont stick. Make sure your tray can fit in your freezer.

Return to your melted chocolate and using  a pasty brush begin to coat the flat side with a layer of the white chocolate, do this for all 6 halves. 

Now to start with the coconut coating, this was my favourite part! Sprinkle your coconut onto a plate big enough to dip the banana in. You will fin you might not use all the coconut however I found it easier to coat the bananas with more coconut to play with! Once you have coated the chocolate covered half, just repeat the process again coating the other half in chocolate and covering with the coconut. NOTE: If you have any melted white chocolate remaining, lick off spoon now.
Your bananas are now ready to be tunred into proper ghosts as it is decorating time, use your milk chocolate chips to create whatever faces you like! Once you feel you have finished decorating, line your bananas on the tray and place them in the freezer.

If you are patient enough to wait 4 hours for your banana ghosts this is the recomemnded time to freeze them for, and not that mine would last that long you can freeze them for up to a week. For your bananaas to be as fangtastic as they can possibly be, try leave them in the freezer for the allocated time, wait and enjoy!

 HOW CUTE IS MY MUNCHKIN PUMPKIN (this is just for show by the way!)

I hope you have been inspired to make some treats of your own, I look forward to sharing with you my next festive creation!

Happy Halloween!

Ellie

LFW: Zoe Jordan SS15

Another September passed and another fashion week been and gone, and in my case, also the end of a 5 month internship at womenswear brand Zoe Jordan. My time with the London based brand was a valuable experience, to any fashion students reading I was really interested in hearing about other peoples experiences in the industry before starting mine, so to those interested here's a little inside info on mine! After a bit of a steady start working within the business, branding and admin side, I was soon in my element working closely with the design team getting some real hands on experience including designing, pattern cutting and my biggest achievement during my time there, sewing actual show garments! When looking for placements, although a well known brand would stand out on my cv, from the start I wanted to go to a small studio with the hope I would get given more responsibilities, and I am pleased to say that the further I got into the duration of my internship, the more I was trusted with. This enabled me to gain some great skills for the reminder of my degree! 

As part of my Zoe Jordan experience I had to opportunity to accompany the lovely team to London fashion week to showcase the collection, the atmosphere at Sommerset House was incredible, with fellow bloggers and designers surrounding the area it was a very fashionable affair. But as you can imagine, in the build up to fashion week things are slightly less glamour behind the scenes with last minute changes, alterations, and finishing touches. However the thing I love most about studying fashion is that all the hard graft is worth it in the end to see the finishing result. With some gorgeous prints, tailoring, quality fabrics, and colour palettes, Zoe Jordans spring summer 15 collection 'Tour' is completely wearable and luxurious. Here are a few of my snaps from the designer show room at London fashion week. 

LFW Sommerset house

 LFW Sommerset house

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Zoe Jordan SS15 'Tour'

 Designer showrooms after party

Did any of you get a chance to go to London Fashion week?

What were your favourite collections?

If any prospective fashion interns would like to know more on my internship or advice on how to get one, please don't hesitate to contact me!

E.D

What's in my handbag?

I am a strong believer that a girl could rule the world with the contents of her hand bag, we always seem to be prepared for anything! To say how much I love reading these posts by other blogs, I had not yet done one myself, until now! This trusty M&S holdall has stuck with me through thick and thin for the last few months, I like to invest in a good quality handbag that will last, and this gorgeous genuine leather holdall has been a very worthwile purchase, even more so that I got on sale too! As for the contents you will find...
My Paperchase diary, this is the first year I have bought a proper diary as it was a new years resolution of mine to keep one, and as it takes up a large majority of my handbag, I am motivated to do so! It also looks pretty in my handbag, Paperchase prints never fail to please!
Next, Fifty shades freed, my current read whilst I am waiting for the first Harry Potter book to come back in stock at the library, damn you whoever has it overdue! I always like to have something to read and keep me entertained on my commute to and from work.
 You will also find my very personal set of keys, each key ring a souvenir of some sort, plus one key for my London home and one for my Yorkshire home. On the topic of London, since moving here a tube map has had a permanent place in my handbag which has been a lifesaver on the underground!
With the weather being so nice recently my sunglasses have actually had some time away from sitting at the bottom of my handbag under my brolly, which despite the sunny weather is still an essential as I'm sorry, but I just do not have faith in the British weather! Both of these are Primark bargains from this year.
Accompanied by my forever tangled  headphones is my Iphone 4S, which may I say has the coolest watermelon caseever, as long as it lives, this case will never be removed, except to take this photo, this was another worthwhile Paperchase purchase!
You'll also see my River Island purse, for years I have been buying my purses from RI as they are such a great size and fit in all the stuff that I like to hord, mainly receipts!  They always have such a gorgeous choice of purse styles too.
One of my favourite components of my bag is my little handbag buddy, my best friend bought me this when I was having a down day once and she said to keep it in my handbag and whenever I'm having a down day it will cheer me up. I have since bought one for my mum and I recommend everyone should get one of these for their best friend. Mine is a duck, he's called Mr. Quackalot, and looks pretty happy sitting pride of place in my handbag.
And of course, what bloggers handbag doesn't contain a few beauty bits, for example, my miniature Tresseme brush, handy for any unexpected bad hair days, along with many kirby grips that I did not even know I had in there till I emptied my bag to do this post, ha! My perfume at the moment, Diamonds by Armani is another permy item in my hand bag, a few sprays of this a fresh sweet, yet sexy summery scent! I also make room for my seventeen stay time concealer, a liquid stick concealer that provides great coverage just in case of any emergencies! You will also come across a trusty stick of Nivea pearly shine lip balm, a must have in all my handbags to keep those lips fully moisturised throughout the day. I also have a handy pair of Boots essential wipes, you never when they will come in handy and they are good product to keep your face and hands feeling refreshed. Finally, a pot of The Body Shop moisturiser also has a spot in my holdall, which I double up as a hand cream on a daily basis as it leaves your hands feeling super soft, and we all know how yum a Body Shop product smells!

 I hope you liked taking a look at what's in my handbag, I cant quite believe I manage to fit all that in there, like I said, when it comes to a girls handbag, we are prepared for anything! If you have recently written a 'What's in my bag post?' I would love to see yours, leave your links below!

And don't forget to enter my giveaway below! There are just a few days left so make sure you get your entry in!

Ellie

Bloggers Event: Happy Birthday Nuffnang

Nuffnang is the one of the world leading blog communities for people who share a love for networking and blogging. Although established in 8 different countries, Nuffnang UK celebrated their first birthday this year and I was delighted to be able to attend their first birthday bash! As I have just moved down to the big city on placement, I was very excited to attend my first London based blogging event and meet some new bloggers! Nuffnang welcomes all kinds of bloggers so it was great to meet such a lovely bunch of bloggers all with different blog genres and have a good ol' gossip about topics including food, lifestyle, fashion, travel, weddings, the list was endless! To where I wore River Island, Marks & Spencers, and ASOS, the event itself was based in East London at Netil 360, a rooftop terrace and bar. I had yet to discover this part of London so had no idea what to expect. From below, the Netil 260 building looks just like your ordinary high rise building, nothing exciting, but after climbing/crawling up the many flights of stairs you arrive to the most gorgeous setting with amazing views overlooking the whole of central London. With sights of The London eye, The Gerkin, and The Shard, a perfect hideaway from all the buzz that you'd never guess was awaiting you from downstairs. It helped we were particularly lucky with the weather that day, and I can imagine how lovely it would be to spend a whole summers day or evening up there with a glass of chilled Pimms. On the subject of Pimms, all bloggers were welcomed with a glass on arrival, I was in my element straight away, we were also treated to a complimentary lunch provided by Club Mexicana, a pop up restaurant serving the scrummiest mexcian tacos including a vegan option which I would usually be unlikely to opt for but it was delicious! My visit, although a bit of a whistle stop one as I had to be at another event (which I will be posting about shortly) was more than enjoyable. A pleasant summers afternoon accompanied with great company and great food. Thanks again Nuffnang, see you next time!

If you would like to check out some of the other bloggers I met check out the links below!
Bloomzy
Petite Promise
Tiffany Kml
Daydream In Blue

Are you part of the Nuffnang community elsewhere in the country?
Have you been to any events recently?

Don't forget to enter my giveaway below for the chance to win some hair & beauty goodies!

   

Discovering London: Shoreditch, Spitalfields & Brick Lane

It's a new month, and for me, a new home, job and city as last weekend I ventured 5 hours south from Yorkshire London to start another internship in the fashion capital of the country. Whilst settling in I have done my fair bit of exploring, some of it unintentional due to the amount of times I've already got lost! However, intentionally, last Sunday I decided to go for a wonder through East London to discover the well talked about it, Shoreditch, Spitalfields and Brick Lane.
Door to door through Shoreditch and Brick Lane you will find a mixture of stylish independent shops that I spent my entire afternoon browsing in. Brick Lane and its surroundings has the greatest selection of quirky and cool vintage shops with so many iconic pieces and retro trends that you could easily fill your wardrobe of nostalgic items.
The gem of Shoreditch I would say is Boxpark, a unique pop up mall home to a number of fashion, arts and tech retailers that I felt were not so mainstream so it was refreshing to visit somewhere different. For all us beauty bloggers, you will be happy to know that Beauty Mart, a fab store selling a wide range of cosmetic brands that, has a pop up store there so you can pick up a great product for your next review! The upper level of Boxpark allows you to eat, drink and enjoy live music in the open air dining area which is gorgeous in the sun.
Even though I only spent an afternoon in the area I already feel like I have visited almost every market in London! Both Shoreditch and Spitalfields are renowned for their markets and I was interested to know why. Before long I found myself in a vast indoor space that was Spitalfields Old Market, which was full of individual market stalls with an eclectic variety of amazing hand made crafts, interior design, art, jewelry, and clothing, all perfect for a unique addition to your wardrobe and also a great for meaningful gifts, I left feeling inspired! And as if I wasn't content enough admiring all the crafts I was soon drooling over the array of cakes, chocolates and range of worldwide cuisines and delicacies. I can guarantee your mouth will be watering at the sight of it all!
After what seemed like 30 minutes, was actually 4 hours, and it was time for me to catch my train home, but I can safely say I will be returning and if any of you reading this who live near the area and have not yet been or those of you who are hoping to visit London soon, I really recommend you pay a visit if you have the time. You could most definitely spend most of your day, eating, drinking, browsing, and buying in this incredibly interesting area that I believe is a must do in East London.

Beauty Mart, Boxpark

Beauty Mart, Boxpark

Handcrafted leather watches, Shoreditch market

I thought these ice cream spoon cupcakes were so cute!

Quirky hancrafted jewellry, Shoreditch market,

Spitalfields old market

Look at the size of those meringues!

The prettiest chocolate I've ever seen

...and some more scrummy chocs

This place was queuing out the doors!

Brick Lane street art

Vintage galore, Brick Lane

Hanging decor stall, Brick Lane

Have you ever been to any of these places?
What did you think?

   Ellie

Chocolaty easter Treats!

In true Easter spirit this weekend, I wanted to make some chocolaty Easter treats to share with the family. These crunchy cornflake nests are so easy to make that I thought I would share with you all the steps so that you can make them too, as who can resist a bit of chocolate?! For these yummy little nests you will need:

8 ounces of milk chocolate

3 ounces of cornflakes

2 tablespoons of golden syrup

36 mini eggs (or double that if you're like me and eat them along the way, oops)

12 cupcake cases & cupcake tin

Firstly melt the chocolate and syrup in a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water, making sure the bowl isn't touching the water to prevent the chocolate from burning! Stir the chocolate and syrup gently until smooth, once melted mix in the cornflakes until covered with chocolate. Then portion the cornflakes into 12 cupcake cases and decorate with 3 eggs. To finish, simply leave them to set in the fridge for an hour, wait patiently and enjoy! It's that easy.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend and happy Easter!

Try not to eat them all at once like me!

   Ellie