Happy May Day Bank Holiday! Come along with me for a fun little weekend in my life vlog as I make the most of this glorious springtime sunshine with family and friends.
I show you some new updates from our house and garden, before taking my Mini for a roof-down spin and visiting our local pub garden blossoming at this time of year.
We then had a social Saturday with an afternoon drinks do at a friend’s, followed by our first BBQ of the year at home which we invited my parents to join us for… get ready for some tipsy salad making by my mum!
I’m a Summer girl through and through, so nothing makes me happier than gloriously sunny Springtime days knowing Summer is just around the corner.
With little signs of Spring throughout April, here in the UK we’ve been anticipating the warmer weather for a long time now. Finally our wishes came true earlier this week and over the weekend, as we’ve been showered with stunning sunshine and temperatures we usually only get in the height of Summer.
Our local pub The Mutton opened their garden on Friday and treated us regulars to a spread of their new garden bites menu, the most delightful way to welcome in the weekend!
I was so excited to be getting the garden furniture out at home too and enjoying al fresco drinks soaking up the sun over the weekend.
Soon we’ll be going on countryside bike rides again, firing up the BBQ and celebrating the summer with friends and family; bring on those euphoric summertime vibes ❤
Happy Sunday! As quickly as the weekend rolls around, it’s coming to an end before you know it. Saturday evening is date night for us, so we enjoyed a weekend wine down at the local wine bar followed by an Indian for dinner.
At 7pm we headed for sundown drinks at Auriol Wines, a local wine shop in our village which recently expanded into a wine bar; I’m thrilled to finally have a sophisticated wine bar just on our doorstep.
It might be April, but there is still very much a chill in the air so I wrapped up warm for al fresco pre-dinner drinks.
I wore my oversized grey trench coat from Nakd with a pair of dark wash Hollister jeans, a black off the shoulder blouse from Pretty Little Thing, Maroon square toe ASOS boot heels, a Stradivarius check print baker boy hat and my signature print Coach Mira handbag.
With the light spring evening and pretty sunset, we decided to sit out in the cosy huts and stayed warm with the heated fur blankets.
I enjoyed a delicious glass of Sicilian white wine, whilst my boyfriend sampled three different reds with the flight taster.
We walked over the road for our 8pm reservations at the Monsoon Indian restaurant in Hartley Wintney where it was buzzing on a Saturday night. After some popadoms to start as we browsed the menu, I had a vegetable bhuna curry with green salad, whilst my boyfriend had his usual chicken korma with peshwari naan and coconut rice to share.
Sometimes the simplest of date nights are the most wholesome and fun and every once in a while nothing beats indulging in a classic curry at the local Indian. Cheers to the weekend wine down ❤
Summer holidays are the perfect time to have fun with fashion and get creative with pieces you might not get much chance to wear back home. I’m a sucker for boho beachwear and cute bikinis so naturally these become my everyday essentials on holiday, as well as summer hats and always a pair of statement sunnies to complete the look. From a casual coffee date look to the more glam beach club fit, I want to feel my very best everyday on holiday and it’s a chance to switch things up with different accessories like shell earrings and stacked beaded bracelets. Every night is date night when you’re on vacation too, so there’s always an excuse to get dolled up and show off that glowing holiday tan.
As we can finally get excited for the summer season ahead, I hope this lookbook I filmed in Bali gives you some inspiration for your next holiday. Continue reading to get the details of each look, and don’t forget to watch the full edit on my YouTube channel here – https://youtu.be/QMJs0h4XnYY?si=2YI06phcVMj6CIIV
Sunsets in Bali are always a spectacle; rain or shine, the sky always manages to put on a show. Canggu is known for its world famous beach bars & clubs, so here are my top five spots to chase sunset on the west coast of Bali.
The epitome of Bali beach aesthetic, it doesn’t get better than sundowners at La Brisa. With its maze of bamboo tree houses and pools amongst the jungle of green luscious palms, it feels like you’re on a remote tropical island paradise.
From day to night, you can take a dip in the pools and sip cocktails as the sunsets over Echo Beach.
Even at dusk and into the evening, the warm glow of fairy lights and orange hue lanterns set the jungle aglow.
There is a minimum spend for a table if you want food and a good view for sundown, but you can spend hours there to make the most of it.
We spent two evenings here during our stay, the second of which was our final night when there was a magnificent thunderstorm. Not the final golden hour we had envisioned, but certainly an exciting way to bring our time in Bali to a close.
Just down the beach from our hotel, we headed here for our first evening sundowners and it didn’t disappoint. Life was pretty peachy as I sipped my Paloma cocktail watching the perfect sunset of orange and pink hues.
Again, this is a beach club where you can spend the whole day into the evening on a sunbed or table with a view for a minimum spend, which is easily made back on delicious food and wonderful cocktails.
We only visited The Lawn once for cocktails, but they often have events and special guest DJs which would be the ultimate vibe to accompany a killer sunset.
Claiming itself as the ‘World’s best beach club’, this is one for the party goers in search for that dancing til dawn destination.
It was a little overcast when we visited Finns, however we still enjoyed cocktails at dusk on their 2 for 1 offer and soaked up the party vibes from the comfort of our own table with no minimum spend. There are also a number of different cuisine food outlets situated around the venue to suit everyone’s tastes.
Whilst I know sunset framing their iconic Finns sign lit up with lanterns over the pools is picture a perfect moment, the interiors inside with this gorgeous cluster of bamboo shades made for fabulous Friday night vibes shared with other winers and diners.
On our visit down to the South coast of Bali in Uluwatu, I had seen incredible photos of this place on Instagram and had to experience it for myself.
Unfortunately there wasn’t much of a sunset and also an event featuring Jamie Jones on the evening we went meaning a hefty entry cost, but it was still an awesome place to see in person.
I would be super keen to go back here when the sun is promising to put on a show, so I highly recommend this spot for sundowners if you are staying in Uluwatu.
My fifth favourite spot for golden hour is of course, Echo Beach itself. There are lots of bars along the front offering drinks and a seat right on the sand to sit back and enjoy the view of surfers catching waves at sunset.
With each minute that passes as the sun dips on the horizon of Echo Beach, the colours grow even richer and deeper until the moonlight finally takes place of the sun.
I’ve mentioned Old Man’s as a fun club which I visited during my last stay in Bali after Bintangs on the beach at sunset, but these days me and my boyfriend prefer a nice dinner and sophisticated cocktails at Billy Ho or Mason.
So that’s my roundup of the best places to enjoy a cocktail or local Bintang whilst watching a beautiful Bali sundown.
Bali sunsets have my heart and chasing them is my favourite time of the day when in Bali ❤
Friday is here and after being back at work this week following a dreamy holiday in Bali, I’m very glad to be welcoming in the weekend. We landed back in London on Saturday evening and whilst our jet lag wasn’t bad out in Bali, coming back has been a challenge and the extreme fatigue set in. Thankfully after a few days back in routine, we’re feeling a lot more alive and I can’t wait to share all of the Bali content from our awesome trip back to my favourite island.
From chasing sunsets whilst beach bar hopping and sampling the best of Bali’s foodie scene, to exploring the rainforest and rice terraces in Ubud and surfing on Echo Beach, we certainly made the most of our 10 days in Bali.
Over the next month or so, I have an exciting schedule of posts about our trip including where we stayed, what we got up to, my favourite places for sundowners, the creme de la creme of restaurants in Canggu, how much things cost and my top tips for visiting Bali.
So stay tuned as I soothe my Bali blues by reliving our holiday with lots of exciting Bali content to come! ❤
Happy Sunday! This week I’m sharing some outfit inspo for what feels like a never ending, rainy winter we find ourselves in here in England.
For my daytime look when working from home on Friday, I kept it very comfy and casual with a pair of grey flare leggings which I picked up in Primark this week and I’m loving, so now I’m keen to get a good quality pair from Alo or Tala. I then wore this camel knit jumper with cute backless detail and my Ugg platform slippers to complete the cosy fit.
To meet friends for drinks at the pub that evening, I changed into my Neuw black denim jeans tucked into these killer snake skin long boots, which I toned down with a simple knitted nude boxy fit cardigan with gold buttons. An oversized long grey trench coat from Na-kd kept me warm and dry from the rain.
I have to admit these boots are not my usual style, but they were on sale in Primark and I can see them being a fun piece for transitioning into spring paired with dresses, skirts and shorts. The key is to keep the rest of the outfit fairly simple and let the boots do the talking. They’re giving Paris Texas vibes but at a fraction of the price, I’m obsessed ❤
Celebrating Valentines isn’t something we’ve always got involved with, however with it falling on hump-day this year, it felt like the perfect excuse for a midweek date night at home.
My boyfriend surprised me with this gorgeous bunch of red roses and the cutest card with a pop-out teddy bear.
Inspired by some stunning hairstyles I’d found on Pinterest, I decided to try putting my hair into a French Roll and it turned out so well. It was giving chic and sophisticated vibes for our date night, I’m obsessed.
I set the romantic mood in our dining room with candles and music whilst I set the table ready for dinner. It’s the little touches that make dinner for two at home special, like using our nicest gold cutlery with lovely napkins and putting condiments into aesthetic serving dishes.
It was midweek Mexican night, so we made our favourite burrito bowls with a side of chilli cheese nachos and all the dips of course. A bottle of red wine, candles lit and dinner served, we felt like we were in our own restaurant.
Mexican feast devoured, we moved to the lounge to watch ‘How to loose a guy in 10 days’, a romantic comedy classic perfect for V-day night.
I love a cosy date night at home and this was the perfect way to spend our Valentines evening together; simple and fuss-free, yet super cute and romantic ❤
When it comes to a cocktail, you can never go wrong with a classic Margarita. It’s definitely an acquired taste which I’ve grown to love as my palette has matured with age. Needless to say, but Margs are not for the faint hearted!
As I finished up work on Friday I had a Margarita on my mind, so me and my boyfriend decided to hit the local cocktail bar and welcome in the weekend with a few cheeky cocktails.
I prefer my Marg on the sweeter side with a strong kick of spice and this one didn’t disappoint, it was so delicious and satisfied my craving.
For our spontaneous date night I wore my Stradivarius dark wash flared jeans, a Cotton On tie front brown top, my cropped grey blazer and a pair of ASOS lace up maroon heels to complete the glam look.
Friday nights are my favourite so I was one happy girly with a Marg in hand and the whole weekend ahead of us.
Salty, sweet and always spicy; cheers to the weekend ❤
Friday 26th January 2024, my 29th Birthday and entering the final year of my twenties!
Waking up on Friday morning, it was a gloriously sunny day with clear blue skies and a crisp winters chill in the air as I took my morning walk.
I was working from home for the day, so I decided to move to the sofa for the afternoon and put ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ on as I enjoyed my coffee and answered emails.
Once 5pm rolled around and work was wrapped up for the week, I got myself glammed up and ready for an evening of celebrations.
My Birthday fit was a pair of flared tailored black trousers from Zara, a dusty pink bandeau also from Zara, my silk Le Scarf neckerchief, a cropped nude cardigan with gold buttons, my ASOS lace up maroon heels, plenty of gold jewellery to accessorise, a vintage Jaegar green oversized blazer to keep me warm and my Sandro velvet green handbag to complete the look.
At 6pm I went to our local pub for a drink with my Dad, where they gave me a glass of bubbles on the house and even brought out a Happy Birthday brownie.
We then had 8:30pm reservations at The Ivy Asia in Guildford, so my boyfriend kindly drove me and my parents there after we finished catching up with friends at the pub.
I always love visiting The Ivy Asia with its opulent interiors and buzzing atmosphere, especially on a Friday night.
We started with duck pancakes for the table before ordering a number of their smaller sharer plates.
We had all sorts of dishes from spicy tuna sushi rolls and king prawn skewers, to Korean fried chicken bites and claypot chickpea pepper curry. Every mouthful was so delicously flavoursome and my parents even said it was the best Asian meal they’d ever had!
Saturday morning we got out early to go to Bicester Village designer outlet in Oxford.
The shopping day cute and cosy look was a pair of Stradivarius blue flared jeans, an off shoulder brown jumper, my platform Ugg boots, an earthy tone wool scarf which I got for my Birthday, my Coach signature print cross body bag, a faux fur black Ugg coat and my favourite khaki baker boy hat from Mango.
Being a weekend, the shops were quite busy and unlike my previous visit to Bicester, there wasn’t much that was particularly jumping out at me.
We couldn’t leave empty handed though and I needed a Birthday gift from my boyfriend, so I was thrilled to find a the perfect gold ring from Monica Vinader to add to my jewellery collection.
Later that evening we were invited over to my parents house with my brother, his wife and my adorable niece Layla who I had lots of cuddles with, I just love being an Auntie!
My mum cooked her famous Spaghetti Bolognese and I did what I do best making a big salad of rocket, cherry tomatoes, avocado, parmesan shavings and balsamic vinegar. Good company, home cooked food and divine red wine, this made me a very happy girly.
Before I knew it, Sunday was here and I spent the afternoon with more family including my other darling niece and my wonderful Grandma. This card from my sister was brilliant, it’ll be a right laugh trying those poses next time I’m having a cocktail.
So that concludes my 29th Birthday celebrations and I couldn’t be more grateful of where I am at this time in my life. I want to embrace this final year of my twenties and look forward to another 12 months of growth, learning and achievements; cheers to chapter 29 ❤
