Saturday 7 May 2011

Getting Back In The Swing

As mentioned in my last post, the camera's back, if not quite up to previous standards of photography...

It's been so warm lately, my outfits are swinging from spring to summer and back again on the occassional day of rain. Summery thingshave been sorely lacking in my Cambridge wardrobe since the whole "grown-up life" began, so starting to collect some flimsy things to wear in the warmer weather, so my few bits from my "previous" (i.e. unencumbered by work dress codes) life aren't worn out!


PLEASE excuse the moody expression... I'd just got the camera working, and tried so many times to get it to capture my new *bright* dress, but it was refusing to play ball. Trust the only remotely decent photo to be of me looking Massively Grumpy!!! Also, sorry for lack of anything other than dress.  (I'll probably try some different belt options with this soon.) Haven't quite worked out where to pose yet! The dress is actually a size 20 tunic top with ties that you can use to pull in the "dress" massively at the back... I got it, as usual, from a charity shop. We have a massive East Anglia Childrens' Hospice shop next to our local coop. Yay Saturday charity-plus-grocery shopping!!! =D

And here we have a slightly different outfit... My work outfit from the other day! After days of blindingly-hot sunniness, we woke up to gray, and threatening rain this morning. So I paired a knit tank with a long skirt. Under my lovely warm coat and black cashmere cardie it was warm enough (if slightly nippy) to walk to work in, and cool enough to keep me from sweating buckets / keeling over / getting a migraine in our boiling-whatever-the-weather office!


I wasn't expecting this outfit to garner much attention, but it got several favourable comments today! Odd what people love! I wasn't sure if the length of the skirt plus the high neck was a bit matronly, but I think the bare legs and the high high black suede-and-snake pumps lifted it out of the no-go area into rather a nice outfit! (If I do say so myself.) The components are a John Smedley black knit tank, M&S via Oxfam charity shop floral skirt and Jaeger enamel buckle criss-cross leather belt, plus old Kate Kuba shoes (not pictured).

Apologies for the bare feet. My left foot looks a bit mottled, and my right foot has disappeared completely into the duvet / mattress quicksand! Trust me, I was wearing hot shoes, but I kicked them off as my right foot got a bit chewed up on the 50 minute (there and back) walk, so I was eager to get them off once I was in the house, and didn't want to wear them to jump on our clean duvet! I think for the moment this will be my pose of choice, so shoes might not feature very often... Oops.

How's everyone else doing with the can't-make-its-mind-up weather?

Xxxc

Thursday 5 May 2011

Nomnomnom

After my picture-free carrot cake post the other week, I thought I'd go one better with the lemon-y cake-of-awesomeness Boy and I cooked up for his parental visit the other week.

Okay, so I've finally got my camera up and running... So these pictures aren't exactly of the standard those of you who've been reading for a while came to expect when T-B was around, but they're from the heart!!! ;-D

This is me, post-cake baking, quite proud of the cake, but not wanting to show Quite how proud...


I'm wearing my absolutely AWESOME "Domestic Goddess" Grumpy Cat apron I bought in York at The Cat Gallery - they don't have it online, but I've found it here. (Scroll down a bit.) Not sure why I was wearing my denim shirt with my black and cream print romper. So Not A Match... But I suspect I grabbed the shirt in an "I'M FECKING FREEZING" moment, with little bother made to style!

And here are "My Boys". The most important one is holding the cake. ;-D But given I live with my Boyfriend *and* my Best Mate, they're both quite important! (In case you hadn't worked it out, the former is in the foreground, the latter reaching for something on top of the fridge in the background.)


Got to love Boy's Major Unimpressed Face...

I'm probably going to get in Major trouble for putting this photo up! (Particularly since his hair is slightly floofy. He doesn't think it's a good look. Oops!)

And, a Big Slice of the cake in question... Who'd'a thunk it was mostly courgette!!! =D It was pretty darn awesome too, if I do say so myself!


The recipe is mostly courgette, rice flour, ground almonds and a lot of lemon zest. The jam is strawberry, and the icing is pretty much just soy-margerine, icing sugar and lemon juice. Note the layer of icing in the middle... Boy is a HUGE fan of the trad. Victoria Sponge. This recipe is again from Red Velvet and Chocolate Heartache, my absolutely favourite recipe book of all time! =D

What have you guys been baking lately?

I've had a break since these, but am quite tempted to do some Brownies this weekend... Nomnomnom!

Xxxc