BAKING WITH POPPY: Snickerdoodles (A.K.A. Cinnamon Baked Doughnuts)

First off, sorry we have been rather blog-neglectful this week! Carefully both got really busy at the same time and became useless at blogging. We are back now though! Posts today and tomorrow and back to normal from Tuesday, we promise. Super excited for some Christmas posts coming up, there will definitely be some Christmas recipes but for now we have these, which are delicious at any time of the year but actually not un-festive because they are spiced and best with a hot drink => winter.

Snickerdoodles are (apparently) an American thing, but they are basically just oven doughnuts, kind of a cross between a scone and biscuit in texture I think? Scone and biscuit in the English sense, not American (anyone else getting confused?). They're sort of a cakey biscuit. Anyway they are super lovely and super easy and everyone should make them. This recipe is adapted from Nigella Lawson's Snickerdoodle recipe in the incredible book How To Be A Domestic Goddess, which is the book that made me start baking. So blame Nigella if you get fat from these, not me, it's her fault.

REVIEWSDAY: Umberto Giannini Indulgent Beauty Moisture Mask

Here’s a not-so-secret secret: I bloody love a hair mask.

Last week, Pops and I went along to the Bloggers Love Hub in London, which was mad and lovely, and while we were there we got to talk to some wonderful people from Umberto Giannini. After some gentle bullying about the fact that I don’t get my hair cut anywhere near as often as I should, I was actually told that my hair wasn’t as dry as it could be (yay!) and that I should try out their Indulgent Beauty Moisture Mask.

Well, it would be rude not to.

HOT FOR TEACHER: Taylor Swift's Blank Space Video

When she first started out, Taylor Swift’s music was very hit or miss for me – it all got a bit twee for a bit there – but her recent releases have been in my head pretty much constantly for the last few months. Blank Space is a great song, with a great video, very Gatsby, and as soon as I saw those intense closeups of Taylor acting like a crazy person I knew I wanted to recreate the look.

The look of the makeup, not the crazy person. That comes naturally.

FUN FACT: For ages, I misheard a lyric of this song as ‘Got lovely Starbucks lovers; they’ll tell you I’m insane.’

THANK GOD IT'S FAVOURITES: DHC Deep Cleansing Oil

Yes I know, yet another skincare favourite, but I just don't seem as loyal to makeup as I am to skin products! I think it's partly because with make-up, it's not so much about the experience and more just the end results, whereas with skincare how it feels is also so important. This stuff feels incredible.

DANCE WITH NOLL: DIY Rhinestoning

Recently, we did our very first tag post, and it had a question on sport, which enabled me to start waffling on about how much I love dancing. Before that, I had somehow managed not to mention it on this blog, even though I can hardly shut up about it in real life (just ask poor Poppy).

I do ballroom and Latin dance, or Dancesport as it’s known competitively, and every so often I’ll be doing posts on bits and bobs related to that. The best thing about dance, though, and particularly dance as it’s going to feature on this blog, is that all the useful stuff I’ve picked up about it is also easily adaptable into everyday situations, even if you’re a non-dancer.

Bearing that in mind, this post is all about adding rhinestones to dancewear – although, of course, you could and should add rhinestones to whatever the hell you want. It’s a bit of a fiddly process but I’ve done it a few times now and hopefully the tricks I’ve picked up will prove useful, whether you’re stoning a Latin shirt for dance or adding the words ‘KISS ME, IT’S CHANNING TATUM’S BIRTHDAY’ to a jumper (both valid pursuits; I swear).

REVIEWSDAY: Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara

I can't decide whether my horrific brow situation makes me more or less qualified to review brow products. On the one hand, why would you take my advice when my eyebrows look so scruffy/wonky/pathetic? On the other hand, any brow product I use really has a tough job on its hands, so any I recommend must be pretty damn amazing. Sadly this is not quite that, but at the same time it's not awful, and I hope it will help me a little bit on my way to Emma Watson eyebrows (the dream). Take that Cara.

WHAT'S IN MY BAG: Poppy

So today I thought I would do a What's in my Bag post! This is mostly because I got a new bag that I love love love and I wanted to show it off. Because the contents of my bag do not always stay the same, I think I may end up doing a few different versions, for different occasions and/or bag sizes - this one is my everyday, work bag. I will do a quick(ish) run through of non-beauty stuff, and then beauty after that, which means I can put off admitting quite how many lip products I keep on me "just in case" until the end.

THANK GOD IT'S FAVOURITES: Pixi Glow Tonic

Toners can be a bit of a controversial topic in the beauty world. Some people swear by them, and some people think they’re nonsense. I’m somewhere in the middle - I don’t swear by toners, and some of them definitely are nonsense, but I do swear by this one: Pixi Glow Tonic.

HOT FOR TEACHER: Shimmery Smoky Eye

Now that you (maybe) have all recovered from the Halloween onslaught of tutorials, I thought I might try another one, because now we can all start thinking about Christmas. Yes I said it, sorry not sorry.

I also got my first proper brush set the other day, having previously used an interesting assortment acquired at random from various people, but which did not actually include any eye brushes. I chose the new Real Techniques Nic's Picks, partly because it is a third off at Superdrug atm, but also because it includes the two main things I wanted, a general fluffy eyeshadow brush and an angled crease brush, as well as three whole other brushes!

REVIEWSDAY: Makeup Revolution Girls On Film Palette

Makeup Revolution are having a bit of a moment. I’ve used a few of their products and so far been pretty impressed, but in the run-up to Halloween I was seeing a lot of hype about the Give Them Nightmares palette and so wandered off to have a look. That one, while super gorgeous, is made up mainly of blues and purples, which aren’t colours I’d normally go for, so I fulfilled my ever-constant desire for nude eyeshadows and went for Girls On Film instead. It's named after a Duran Duran song!

It’s an 18-shade palette for the frankly startling price of £6, with 12 shimmer shades and 6 matte. It’s part of their five-palette Salvation range (which includes Give Them Nightmares), which all claim to be highly pigmented. For me, this was true for some shades more than others.

LISTEN WITH MOTHER: Autumn Chill Playlist

Autumn is my favourite season. I know I can’t shut up about that, but there’s something about big jumpers and chunky boots and lattes that gives me the warm fuzzies, and warm fuzzies need an appropriate soundtrack. It’s our first music post!

My music taste is a bit disjointed. It can’t especially decide where it wants to be, so there are a few genres in this playlist, but it’s made up of the kind of songs that slow your heartbeat a little bit – whether because they’re smooth and acoustic or with a bit more of a beat. Wrap up warm, grab some headphones and take a deep breath. 

THANK GOD IT'S FAVOURITES: Kerastase Resistance Bain de Force Shampoo

As a heads up, this stuff is pricey. I never thought I would find myself recommending such an expensive shampoo, mostly because I never thought I would find myself buying such an expensive shampoo, but it really is good. To make it a bit better, I am recommending mostly just the shampoo, not the conditioner as well, and also I am recommending this as something to have to use sometimes, but not necessarily every single time you wash your hair. I hope that makes you all not run away immediately.

EVERYDAY FACE: Noll

Now that I am finally calming down after the excitement of Halloween, I thought I’d show you what my makeup looks like on a day-to-day basis, when I’m not being a tiger or Cleopatra or a dolly. This is what I slap on (I mean, apply very carefully with excellent precision) before work or during the day at the weekend, so the look features a lot of easy application and products that last, because I’m super lazy and can’t be bothered with fiddly techniques or touch-ups.

I’ve got this routine down to 15 minutes (I give myself 20 if I’ve managed to get out of bed on time, so, precisely never), which I’m pretty pleased with, and although there are small changes I make if I get bored or depending on what I’m doing or wearing, it basically remains the same every day. I am incredibly adventurous and fascinating.

REVIEWSDAY: Benefit (mini) They're Real! Push-up Liner

I am so excited to finally have this! I have wanted to try it for ages but I am so super picky with eyeliner I thought I would wait for it to come free with ELLE UK before committing to paying £18.50 for it, and to be honest I am glad I waited...

#FIRSTTIME: First Time Tag

We got tagged to do the #First Time tag by the lovely Homelife with Heather so here goes! It is appropriately also our first tag post.

BAKING WITH POPPY: Nutella Banana Bread

First ever recipe post! I think a baking post is pretty suitable for a Sunday, especially a cold, rainy November one. I always knew I wanted to do some baking on the blog, and I always knew this would be my first recipe. This cake is just the best. It is easy peasy and so damn good. I made these two loaves for the office charity cake sale on Friday and they sold out super quickly, which was lovely :)

THANK GOD IT'S FAVOURITES: Lush Bubble Bars

Bubble baths are really important.

On a day-to-day basis, showers are a million times faster and more convenient in terms of actually getting clean, but bubble baths are important for the soul. Because my skin is really sensitive, I have to be a bit careful of the products I use, especially in a bath where you’re sitting in them for a long time, but something I can rely on not to irritate and that I reach for again and again is Lush Bubble Bars.