Chapter 29; Twenty Nine & Feeling Fine

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 ❤

Lowde Fest 23; Old School Festival Vibes

When I was younger I found it very cringey and embarrassing that my Dad sings in a band, but now that I’m older, I actually think it’s awesome he is such a rockstar even now in his mid sixties!

This weekend we went to support his band playing at Lowde Fest, an old school local music festival which features mostly cover artists. https://lowdefest.com

My Dad’s band The Rollright Stones played a great set and really got the crowd going. My favourite song they did was The Chain by Fleetwood Mac and they ended on a high with their closing number, Sweet Caroline.

I love festival fashion so couldn’t wait to put together my outfit. I wore a pair of black denim high waisted Topshop shorts with a vintage western style leather belt, a khaki tie front top from Nakd, my new boxy cropped denim Zara jacket with stud detail, my Stradivarius cowboy boots and a pair of fun yellow tint aviator ASOS sunnies.

After the festival we decided to make an evening of it and go out for dinner at our favourite local The Mutton. I had a delicious lychee martini aperitif to start our date night right.

I opted for the whole plaice served with lettuce, crispy capers, crushed potatoes and beurre noisette paired with a crisp glass of New Zealand 2021 Sauvugnon Blanc. The fish was exquisite and fell off the bone beautifully, whilst the crispy capers complimented the flavours perfectly.

My boyfriend had his favourite sirloin steak cooked medium rare served with yee-ha butter, fries, pickled shallots, parmesan rocket salad and a green peppercorn sauce. A glass of Argentinian 2020 Malbec was his wine of choice to accompany his steak.

We also shared a side of the mini caesar salad which was divine. In fact, I’d say the entire meal is up there as one of the most delicious I’ve ever had, and that’s saying something as I’ve eaten at lots of amazing restaurants. The Mutton certainly is a must to visit if you’re ever in the Hampshire area and we’re lucky enough to call this our local! ❤

https://themuttonathazeleyheath.co.uk

Fall Fashion; Baker Boy Moment

I’ve always been a hat girl with a collection to prove it, so each season I tend to find myself purchasing yet another one to add to the wardrobe…

I love fall as an opportunity to play with fashion and layer up again in the cooler weather. It’s also the perfect time to wear a cute hat which for me these days tends to be in the form of a beret, fedora or of course, my favourite baker boy.

So my newest addition to the hat collection is this gorgeous deep khaki green wool cap from Mango, available here – https://shop.mango.com/gb/women/hats-and-gloves/wool-cap-with-visor_37064020.html

I couldn’t wait to wear this out to the pub last Friday. I styled my new baker boy with a pair of black skinny jeans, a check shirt, my classic leather jacker, a cosy scarf and my Grenson boots; effortless, cool-girl, chic vibes.

After the pub I made us a steak dinner for two back at home. We had fillet steaks cooked medium rare, my special crispy new potatoes, sautéed onions, mushrooms, broccolini and asparagus, peppercorn sauce and plenty of salad, because no meal is complete without a heap of greens. A stunning meal too good not to share with you here! Hats off to the chef, moi. 😉