Author: Laura Davies

Lipstick Love

Written by Laura Davieson

I read somewhere that in times of crisis, when people are watching their spending a bit more such as now, then sales of items such as lipstick rise. People can’t justify spending their hard-earned cash on big ticket items but can justify spending a little on a small item that will bring them instant uplift and joy, and lipstick does just that.

For a long time I felt self-conscious when wearing a strong lip, but inspired by many of my girlfriends who pulled it off with ease, and working on so many lipstick stories while I was a journalist I felt I had the know-how to prep the lips and give my face the right base make-up to wear a strong lip, I just needed to add a touch of confidence.

It took a while to find my go-to, after testing many and I realised my colourings suited more of a reddy/orange than a red with blue tones and I also preferred matte formulas. After reading about Laura Bailey’s description of ‘Tell Laura’ by Charlotte Tilbury in an issue of Grazia magazine I felt like this could be my shade too, not least because I’m also a Laura! I asked for it for my birthday and have been wearing it ever since.

I love how a strong lip can divert from tired eyes, uplift an otherwise monochrome outfit or add that extra colour pop. The trick is to prep the lips by brushing a toothbrush over them first to remove dead skin then add a balm. Apply the first coat and blot on a tissue, then a second and repeat before a third and final layer and blot. I find this process helps the colour to stay put all day.

I’m also a big fan of this dark coral pink shade called Apple Bottom from Beauty Pie and decided to dip into a more nude tone for an everyday lipstick to help me feel a bit more pulled together during lockdown. I went for Futurelipstick in Semisweet (also from Beauty Pie) after I saw @sarahtankelellis recommend it on Instagram – it’s lovely and moisturising even though it’s matte too.

So these three shades are on rotation in my make-up bag, what are your go-to lipstick colours?

Friday 5

Written by Laura Davieson

Hello! Hope you’ve all had a great week. As i’ve been listening to the same podcasts as usual (just updated episodes) and haven’t had much time this week to watch anything new I thought I’d list the five recipes that we’ve been cooking during Lockdown instead…because my days definitely seem to be centred on mealtimes right now or baking activities with the boys. I hope these give you some inspiration too.

Banana Bread: A Corona cliche but I was a big fan of Banana bread before lockdown and even more afterwards. The perfect afternoon snack for the boys and for me. I usually make this recipe from Cookie & Kate but due to not having some of the ingredients I tried out this one from BBC Food today and it was delicious.

Soup: We’ve been having a vegetable box delivered weekly and to make sure that we don’t waste anything I usually cook a soup with what’s left at the end. I’ve found vegetable soup was a hit with everyone in my family as was the roasted tomato soup. I forgot to take any pics of these so here’s what I threw into a large saucepan with some chicken stock and then blended for both:

Tomato soup:

Roasted tomatoes (I put them on a baking tray in the oven with salt and olive oil for 15 minutes before adding to the saucepan) One carrot, one onion, a can of tinned tomatoes, chicken stock pot, oregano, boiling water.

Vegetable soup:

Half a cauliflour, one onion, four potatoes, one parsnip, one carrot and Herbs de Provence, Chicken stock pot, boiling water.

French Toast: Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day so to try and spice the weekends up a bit we’ve been making a bit more effort with weekend brekkies. This French Toast is a winner with fresh berries and maple syrup – who needs to go to their favourite spot for brunch post lockdown now? (I do!)

Chocolate Chip Cookies: I love a chocolate chip cookie. When I was at uni in Brighton my friend Lizzie and I would make a beeline for Ben’s Cookies and check when they were coming out of the oven. I’ve tried many recipes, and this one from @Theannaedit is amazing and for a tripe chocolate hazelnut hit I love these from Building Feasts. Putting the dough balls into the freezer is great for having freshly baked cookies as and when you need to pull an afternoon treat out the bag.

Scones: I’ve always thought in my head that scones were hard to make so put off baking them but with the bank holiday VE day celebrations and the street party (socially distanced) afternoon tea I thought I’d give them a shot. This recipe was so simple and easy to make that I’ve made them twice since as they’re a great snack option.

Garden update

Written by Laura Davieson

This is probably the first year since we moved into our house four years ago that I’ve seen a glimmer of the wild flower garden I hoped to create. When we relocated from London the garden was surrounded by conifers, which although were great for adding privacy to the garden, completely left it in shadow and left no room for any flowers.

After a bit of research we decided that the conifers had to go. It was an expensive and labour intensive job that left most of the flower beds with remnants of roots and our garden budget for the forseeable depleted.

Over the next year or so we started making a few trips to garden centres – being a florist I had an idea of the flowers I wanted to grow around the edge of the grass, in particular peonies, dahlias, poppies and roses. We invested in the plants on my wishlist – a David Austin rose, a magnolia, and forget-me-nots too and since then some have established and others we’ve lost (I’m looking at you Camelia) I also bought a wild flower seed box and scattered it on the right side of the garden hoping this would help my vision.

3 years on and the particular bed where I put the wild flower seeds has an abundance of foxgloves from cerise pink to coral and cream, poppies, forget me nots and I’ve planted Cosmos from seed and Zinnias too. There’s loads of foxgloves scattered around the garden so I think i’ll keep them condensed in one bed and remove the others and they’re poisonous, so as much as I love them, they’re not ideal with little boys playing in the garden.

I’m hoping to continue growing some flowers from seed over the next few years and maybe start a proper vegetable trough too. It’s hard as we want to eventually do some work to the back of the house and re-do the patio area so we’re not sure how damaged the garden will be afterwards, on the one hand you want it to look amazing to enjoy now, but on the other you don’t want to invest too much time and money if it is going to really suffer during the future works and we’ll end up having to effectively start from scratch again.

Right now is a great time as everything is budding and ready to burst into bloom. I’m hoping for an abundance of colour over the next few weeks. Here’s a few pics of flowers that are already showing off.

Friday 5…

Written by Laura Davieson

Late again! You’d think that with lockdown i’d have time to get organised on this but once again this week looking after two little boys, time has run away with me. Here’s what else has been keeping me occupied this week…

Podcast: Table Manners with Jessie Ware: I really love this podcast with singer Jessie and her mum Lenny. Usually they invite a guest over and cook them a meal while having a conversation where you get to learn so much about their guest and their eating habits. With lockdown they’ve created ‘special circumstances’ episodes where they chat to their guest via zoom. John Legend and Florence Pugh were favourite episodes this week. I love the rapport that Jessie and her mum have with each other too. Worth a subscribe.

Image via Stylist

Listening: Love & Hate by Michael Kiwanuka: Ever since I watched the first season of Big Little Lies I have loved Michael Kiwanuka. His song Cold Little Heart features on the opening titles and it got me straight away, his voice is incredible. I regularly put this album on Alexa while i’m cooking.

Reading: New Wild Garden by Ian Hodgson: This is a beautiful book that I bought when we moved to our house 4 years ago with the vision of creating a wild flower garden. It’s taken a few years to get to that point after removing all the conifers wiped out our gardening budget, but we’re getting there. Since Lockdown I have been using it as guide for the seeds I have been sowing with the boys. So clearly presented, practical and informative yet a feast for the eyes too.

Watching: This is Us on Netflix: This is one of the best things i’ve watched on TV (alongside Normal People!) its so cleverly filmed, the story about a couple who were expecting triplets, but end up with a family they weren’t expecting after losing one of the babies at birth and then adopting another baby who was left outside the hospital. It follows each characters life and is filmed with both older and younger characters as the family age or look back which helps to really get into the story. I recommend.

Image via NBC

Zoom! Okay not exactly something i’ve been reading, watching or listening to this week but Zoom has become a big part of our lives since lockdown…I don’t think i’ve done so many quiz’s since it started! So whether we’re taking part and usually losing a quiz, or catching up with friends in other countries or chatting to our family, we’re regularly using Zoom to remotely stay in touch so I thought it deserved a little mention.

New Exercise routines

Written by Laura Davieson

Since Lockdown happened I have been trying to make a conscious effort to exercise in the mornings before Jimmy starts working, partly to carve out some time for myself and have half an hours peace before a day with the boys, and partly to try and make changes to my body that I really want to change – after two big babies my tummy isn’t as flat as it used to be!

Before christmas I really got into Reformer Pilates classes and found these really helped my back, but without the ability to go to the studio I have got a bit more creative and self disciplined! After a few weeks attempting P.E with Joe, I started doing online Yoga classes with Annie Clarke which I do alongside some barre classes that I’ve found on YouTube and going for a run once a week.

I felt that if I really wanted to see change to my body I had to REALLY exercise and work up a sweat so I have come up with a weekly routine that I feel gets my blood pumping, makes me feel stronger and will hopefully have positive effects on my body.

I signed up to Kayla Itsines after over indulging on honeymoon five years ago and her Bikini Body Guide workouts are popular all over the world. I had great then so I have added this workout to my regime too. Here’s what my week looks like:

Monday: 28 minutes Kayla Itsines workout on the kitchen floor!

Tuesday: Barre class on YouTube – i’m really liking those from @psycleLondon.

Wednesday: Kayla Itsines workout, 28 minutes

Thursday: Yoga class with Annie Clarke of Mind Body Bowl via YouTube.

Friday: Kayla Itsines all over body workout.

Saturday: Go for a run in the morning before breakfast. Its lovely taking note of the birds singing and the blue skies and going beyond our road and the woods for once!

Sunday: Rest!

So now i’ve written it here I can’t back out of it can i?! I’m hoping that by the time we get out of lockdown it will have become a lifestyle change and something I can keep up beyond this strange time in our lives. If I can into my perfect pair of jeans and feel more confident about my new post baby body too, bonus! Fingers crossed!

Creating birthday traditions…

Written by Laura Davieson

When Charlie turned one back in 2017 I decided that I wanted to do a few special things to decorate the house to help celebrate, and I’ve since done the same things, albeit with an update, for every birthday since. So as Jack turned one last week, it was only right that these new traditions come out on his birthday too. I hope to continue these until they’re too embarassed by the fuss their mum makes of them on their birthday! (but it probably won’t sop me doing it, ha!)

A birthday banner: I had a birthday banner saying ‘Happy Birthday Charlie’ made by Other Letters, a lovely local company, for Charlie’s first birthday and I hang it every year, it even came to Menorca for last years celebrations! So for Jack I opted for a charcoal grey version, a great little personalised piece that shouts celebration yet still looks good in the house.

A year in photos: I go through my phone and select about 50 photos of the birthday boy from the year that I have printed to look like polaroids through the app La La Lab. I then have lengths of string that I’ve previously threaded with mini wooden pegs (the ones from Charlie’s first birthday are still going strong!) and then hang the photos on these and put them up in the dining room and on the fireplace, usually above where the presents are laid out for the morning.

A home baked cake: As much as I love the professional cakes I see on Instagram on Pinterest I think there’s something lovely about having a homemade birthday cake, especially while the boys are young. Charlie used to be allergic to eggs and dairy (we have taken a long time but have finally completed the egg and dairy ladder successfully) so this was the first birthday cake I could actually make with butter and eggs. Sure, it’s not quite so insta-perfect, but it tasted delicious.

A birthday letter: Every year I have hand written a letter to Charlie on his birthday, and I have done the same now for Jack. I intend to continue these every year to then hand them a big pile of letters on their 18 birthdays. I think it will be a nice thing for them to sit down and read all about their year from their mum’s perspective and give them an insight into all the fun we have had together. I also pop a few of the polaroid photos into the envelope. I get quite emotional when I write these but hope they are something sentimental they will cherish forever.

Friday 5

Written by Laura Davieson

Sorry this is a couple of days late, it’s been a big week in our house as Jack turned one on wednesday! I’m going to do a blog post later this week on the birthday traditions I have started to implement for the boys, but for now here’s what i’ve been listening to and watching this week:

Watching: Normal People on iPlayer: I hadn’t read the book by Sally Rooney but had seen so many people recommend this series on Instagram that I thought i’d give it a go. Well by the end of episode one I was totally hooked and carried on watching another four that evening (I went to bed at 1am and Jack decided to wake up at 1.15am, big mistake on my part) anyway I spent the rest of the weekend thinking about it and watching the remaining 7 episodes (There are 12 halh hour episodes). It was amazing, perfectly capturing how your first love never leaves you, beautifully shot and the lead characters Marianne and Connell were portrayed beautifully by Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal. I’m since obsessed with the story, Marianne’s wardrobe and the soundtrack. Perfect in every way.

Podcast: Second Life with Gucci Westman: I’ve been listening to this podcast for a while by Hillary Kerr, co-founder of Who, What, Wear, a website I’ve been reading since I was a fashion intern in my early twenties. Kerr interviews people that have been successful in their careers but then moved on to do something different later in life. As someone who is in a bit of an in-between stage of my career since having children, I’m finding it really useful listening to other women’s journeys. I particularly like this episode as I used to see Gucci work her make-up magic backstage when I did coverage at London Fashion Week.

Watching: Becoming with Michelle Obama on Netflix: I was a big fan of Michelle Obama’s memoir so was excited to see that Netflix were releasing a documentary style film about it. It follows Obama as she does book tours and stage shows where she’s interviewed about the book to stadium style crowds. It was fascinating to get more of an insight into the life of one of the most famous women in the world, whose husband we all wish was still in the White House.

Listening: Connell’s Playlist: I told you I was obsessed with the music from Normal Lives, and when I saw that BBC Sounds had released a ‘Marianne’s Playlist’ and a ‘Connell’s Playlist’ I was straight onto Spotify to download them. There’s some beautiful classics in there like ‘So Long, Marianne’ by Leonard Cohen and more folky tunes like ‘Fireworks’ by First Aid Kit. It’s certainly making doing household chores a bit easier.

Reading: BBC Good Food Magazine: I’ve had a subscription to Good Food for a few years now, but am finding while we’re all staying at home I’ve got even more into cooking and baking, probably because I have a bit more time. This months issue is packed with tips for recipes using store cupboard ingredients while everyone is trying to avoid going to the shops. I attempted a Sourdough starter from this issue but it did not succeed, so that’s something I’m determined to master by the end of lockdown.

Normal People…I’m hooked

Written by Laura Davieson

This weekend I binged watched ‘Normal People,’ the TV adaptation of Sally Rooney’s acclaimed novel and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since. I loved everything about it, from the romance between Marianne and Connell (Played by Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal) to the beautiful soundtrack, but also for Marianne’s wardrobe – effortlessly cool yet put together. Something I feel i’m constantly striving for with my wardrobe.

My favourite looks included the mom jeans, converse, oversized knit and messy bun in the scenes set back home in Sligo to the beautifully chic black sundress she wears on their Italian summer holiday and the leather mini skirt and burgundy blouse she wears for the New Years Eve party in the last episode (it helps that the characters finally openly show their affection towards each other in public in this episode too, something i’d been hoping for throughout.)

Costume designer Lorna Marie Mugan really captured Marianne’s character maturing through her wardrobe, and her confidence that comes when she finally finds her true friends at college, even though her character still battles her own anxieties throughout. Below are some images from looks I loved in the series.

I don’t think I have felt so emotionally invested in a series for a long time, I fell in love with Connell and Marianne instantly and was rooting for them to be together throughout. The pain and angst of first true love was brilliantly captured by the leads and I felt like I was living through it with them. So brilliant was the whole production and so true to the book, I just wish there could be a second season!

Friday 5

Written by Laura Davieson

Heres the things i’ve been reading and listening to this week:

Book: An American Marriage: I got a kindle for Christmas and this is my debut book on it (I don’t get that much time to read, but i’m working on it!) It’s taken me a few chapters to get into this book, which offers a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three characters who are at once bound together and separated by forces beyond their control.

Netflix: Unorthodox: This mini series is loosely based on the life of Deborah Feldman and follows the journey of Esty as she navigates life after escaping from her Hasidic Jewish community in Williamsburg, New York and her arranged marriage. It’s fascinating that people live in such strict circumstances nowadays and I got really invested in this one.

Music: George Ezra: Every afternoon around 4.45pm we ask Alexa to play some music and have a big dance in the kitchen to let go of any stresses that lockdown life has bought that day. Charlie’s favourite singer at the moment is George Ezra so we’ve been hearing ‘Me & You’ and ‘Shotgun’ on repeat!

Netflix: Three Identical Strangers: I’m really into documentary style films on Netflix, the catalyst was ‘The Dawn Wall.’ I’d seen this one recommended and it didn’t disappoint. It tells the unbelievable story of three identical triplets who were separated at birth and placed into different families for adoption, one in a low income family, the other a middle class and a wealthier family as part of an experiment. What’s amazing is that by chance two of them attended the same university (in two different years) and friends linked them, when their story was seen in the paper they found their brother too and how their lives changed afterwards and the effects of their upbringing is really interesting.

Image from CNN

Podcast: Imprint with Natalie Walton: I came across stylist Natalie through following Courtney Adamo on Instagram and this new podcast sees Natalie interview Courtney about her families decision to leave their fast paced life in London for a slower life in Byron Bay, Australia. This is an idealistic dream of mine at the moment so I was so interested to hear Courtney’s views on the subject.

Seeds success (I hope!)

Written by Laura Davieson

I may work with freshly cut flowers as a florist but that doesn’t mean I have a clue when it comes to growing my own blooms from seed. What started as an idea to keep the boys entertained during lockdown has actually turned into my own little personal project and i’m eagerly awaiting the fruits of my labour.

Charlie and I planted some Cosmos seeds back in March before lockdown alongside some cress (I thought the quick results would grab his interest) and when the Cosmos seeds germinated and we could see little green shoots appearing we got very excited and decided to start some Zinnia seeds off too. Having nurtured them for a few weeks, making sure they had the right light and enough water I decided it was time to plant them out in the garden.

I know advice says to slowly introduce the outside elements to the seedlings over the course of two weeks, but I gave them two days (see it as a crash course!) as I felt they had grown so big the minimal soil I planted them with (something I will change next time) wasn’t enough to nourish them.

So at the weekend I took some time to decide where in the garden I wanted each variety of flower to grow and went about transferring the seedlings to the ground. I definitely think they’re happier in more soil so i’m keeping my fingers crossed they continue to thrive (I’m hoping the epic rain forecast this week will help rather than hinder them) and in a few weeks i’ll see the first buds appearing.

I think i’ve definitely caught the bug for growing my own flowers in the garden, not only is it really cost effective, it’s super satisfying too. Next on my list are sweetpeas and Nigella, hopefully my beginners luck will continue.

Here are the seedlings in situ. Zinnias in the first picture and Cosmos in the second. I’ll keep you updated on the progress.

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