I'm sure you're sick of hearing this, but I honestly cannot believe we're almost in 2019. The past year was a bit of a turning point for me, a lot changed and I learnt a lot of lessons the hard way...but to say it flew by would be an understatement. Nevertheless, I'm always one to mark the new year with a few resolutions (which I actually stuck to last year - can you believe it?!) to help keep me on track, and really it's just a good time for new starts, isn't it? 

I've kept my list of resolutions purposely small this year, as I find that having a never-ending list is slightly daunting, and I'll definitely spend the entire year avoiding it...I am such a procrastinator. So instead, I've picked a few things to stick to, and fingers crossed, I actually will! Please feel free to hold me accountable if you notice that I'm not! 

Every year I say this, and to be fair to myself I do pay off my credit card regularly. However this year the aim is to keep it paid off. I've never been much of a saver, but this is the year I need to start being smart with my money and stop spending every last penny on pointless objects that I definitely don't need! So the aim will be to use my credit card for large purchases (for security reasons) and stop putting everyday expenses on it and forgetting about them - which I am so guilty of! 

Although I lost a lot of weight last year (3 stone and counting!), it was purely through eating and not a result of me 'getting fit' at all. This year I'd like to change this and get back into going to the gym regularly. I'd like to not be out of breath when I have to run for the bus every morning because I undoubtedly spent too many extra minutes in bed...and I'm a much less irritable person when I stick to an exercise regime. I have a few injuries I need to be careful of, so I think I will start with swimming first and build up to getting back into the actual gym. 

Last year I did start cooking at home more, but not nearly enough. We had such a good summer that I did stick to this throughout the warmer months, but at the end of the year it kind of fell apart with all of the Christmas meals, catching up with friends, way too much alcohol. I'd like to get back to cooking at home more...mainly so I make sure I actually do eat my veg, but it's also a great way to save money!

I am SO guilty of buying a new outfit every time I go out...and I don't even mean for a night out, I will go out and buy a new outfit for casual drinks without even a second thought and it really needs to stop. I have so many clothes that I don't wear, so this year I am going to try to shop less and wear what I already own...and when I do shop, it will be for classic items that I can pair which what I already own and won't go out of style instantly. 

xo Becky


Shop the Post:

We're now in the final few weeks of the year and for me, 2018 has flown by, and I'm sure it's been the same for a lot of you reading this. It seems it's true what they say, as we get older, the days get longer but the years fly by - blink and you'll miss it. For the last few years I've been struggling to see each year as a year of accomplishments - when we're younger we can mark each year by things like learning to drive, graduating from University, securing that all important first job...but then what? When all of my 'firsts' had ran out, I was a bit all over the place and as I said, I really struggled to see how great each year was when it came to the end. 

This year I've finally snapped out of it, there haven't been any major life altering events, but 2018 has been one of the happiest years of my life. I really feel that this year I found my place again, learned to roll with the punches {because believe me there have been some mighty ones!} and just relax and enjoy life again without this constant pressure to always be looking to the next big life-changing moment. 

So today I thought I'd commemorate this by putting pen to paper {so to speak} and round up some of my favourite things that happened in 2018, so whenever those feelings of accomplishing so little creep back, which they undoubtedly will {I'm only human after all},  I can look back on this and remind myself of all the perfect moments that happened in 2018. 

Travels

2018 was a year of travel for me, which was kicked off with a little work trip to Madrid. Unfortunately we didn't get to see much of the city as we were working, but it was still great to get out of the country for a night! Shortly after Madrid, I hopped on a ten hour flight to Mexico to spend the week in Riviera Maya and Tulum, which you can read about here. Mexico is still one of my all time favourite holidays to date...we didn't really do much apart from a day out drinking and eating in Tulum, exploring the Mayan Ruins and a day swimming in an underground cave river {such a terrifying but unforgettable experience!} but it was exactly what I needed, exactly when I needed it. I'd highly recommend skipping the summer holiday in favour of a February break - the beach was quiet and the weather was scorching! 

After Mexico, I headed to Edinburgh to stay with some friends for the May bank holiday weekend. A city I had only visited as a child {we went to the zoo and that was about it}. My friends gave me the full tour of Edinburgh, and we went on a trip around the underground city - which was so much fun! I'm sure it won't be the last time I visit, so next time I'll grab some photos and share them with you all. 

Skip forward to July and I was heading to Paris with my best girls for my 25th birthday {which you can read about here and here}. When I look back on 2018, Paris is by far my favourite memory. It was a weekend full of my three favourite things - laughter, food and friends...and sunshine if I'm allowed to add a fourth! 

Finally, in September my friend and I headed to Phuket and the Phi Phi Islands in Thailand. Thailand is the furthest I've ever travelled and it was so worth it. Apart from a few spots of rain, the weather was gorgeous, the people were friendly and the beaches were beautiful. There was plenty to do, and plenty of time to relax by the pool which was just what the Dr ordered after a busy summer at work. You can read all of my Thailand posts here. 

This year I also went about exploring my own city more. London has so much to offer and I definitely don't get to seeing it as often as I should. In 2018 I finally managed to get a table at some restaurants I'd been hoping to visit for forever, saw some new areas, and definitely reignited my love for my own city. Definitely something I want to continue throughout 2019. 

Work

This year was my first full year in my current job, so I felt a little more settled and felt like I had a handle on things enough to really go for it {after a year of finding my feet in 2017}. We hosted events around the country, introduced some of my favourite brands to our stores, and I got to meet some of my favourite bloggers - Lydia, Jodie, Chloe, and Josie, to name a few. There's plenty more to come in 2019, and I'm so excited to see where we can take things. 

Weight Loss

This may be an odd one to celebrate, and I'd like to start by saying that I don't believe that anyone should feel that they need to lose weight - unless they want to for themselves. However over the past few years my unhappiness in work and a few other things outside of work had meant that the pounds had crept on. I'm a big comfort eater and if I'm honest, things had got a little out of control. I was SO unfit it was unbelievable and after a chat with my Dr to ensure I went about it the right way, I set myself a goal of losing 3 stone, fully believing that it wasn't possible for someone like myself. 

However, I stuck to my set out routine, kept a lid on the amount of sugar I was eating and started eating better all around. This not only resulted in me losing the three stone I set out to lose, but I gained my confidence back. I'm much happier, healthier and little things like my skin clearing up, my sleep being a little more consistent {I was very sleep deprived before} and having much more energy has completely changed my life {not to be dramatic, so unlike me...🙄}. I won't lie and present this to you with rose tinted glasses, losing weight is difficult and I wouldn't have been able to do it without the support of my family and friends who kept me on track - at times I really did feel like giving up, but I'm so glad I persevered because the change it's had on everything has been so worth it. 

If you'd like a post on how I did this, before and after photos and maybe some meal guides, I'd be more than happy to share - I just don't want to share it if it's not something anyone would be interested in...I know how sensitive of a topic weight loss is!

This Blog

And finally, this blog! I used to love blogging, but again had kind of lost my place in the blogging world over the past few years. I'm not entirely sure of my place in the blogging world and a lot of the time I feel like a bit of a pretender when working with superstar bloggers, but that's okay - I've learnt not to take it so seriously and just have fun with it - that was the reason I started this blog {and to combat my terrible memory} and I've really fallen back in love with taking photos and posting on here again. I've been blogging for years, but 2018 was the year I secured my first paid campaign with a brand that I absolutely love, started working with some of my favourite brands and really fell back in love with it. 

Phew, that was a long post...so if you've made it this far then give yourself a pat on the back {and a large mug of tea}. Thank you for sticking with me in 2018, and I hope you have the happiest of holidays and new years...I'm signing off for the year now, so I'll see you all in 2019! 

xo Becky

When it comes to Christmas {or any other time of the year really}, cocktails are my thing. I'm not really one to sit down with a beer after a long day, and always one to be a little extra, I never mind spending the time to create a cocktail...or two! I shared these festive cocktails on Instagram the other day and the response was a unexpectedly positive, so I thought I'd pop the recipe up on here too so it's easy to find for anyone looking!

Ingredients:

50ml Chocolate Liqueur {I used this one from my local Sainsbury's}

50ml Bailey's Original Irish Cream 

100ml Whole Milk 

100ml Sainsbury's Taste The Difference Salted Caramel Cream  

A handful of ice

To make this super simple cocktail, just add all of the above ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake well. Fill your favourite glass with plenty of ice and strain the mixture into the glass - and voila! If you're feeling fancy, swirl some salted caramel sauce around the glass before you pour, and add a little Lindt Salted Caramel Chocolate to finish.

This cocktail is perfect for holiday get-togethers or just cosying up by the fire on a cold night 🌨. Enjoy {responsibly} and as always, please do let me know if you enjoyed this post or if you'd like to see more of my cocktail recipes on here {I have a few 'go-to' recipes for different times of the year which I'd be happy to share!}.

xo Becky 

I had no real plans to publish a gift guide this year as there are SO many floating around the internet, but after a few of my friends messaged me asking me either what sort of thing I'd like, or what to get XY&Z..I thought I'd pop my ideas into one blog post. It's a little last minute {I finished my Christmas shopping in November!}, but if you're looking for some last minute gifts, here are a selection of my favourites...

When it comes to gifting beauty items, I like to make sure that I gift a mixture of pretty Christmas sets and also products that I know my friends love. It can be quite hard to get it right unless you really know which types of products and colours work for someone, so I try to go for more luxurious items that I know my friends would feel guilty purchasing for themselves.

For the Home Baker...

Who doesn't love some fancy homeware at Christmas? I love to give {and receive!} candles, lovely coffee table books, and decorative bits that I know will look fabulous in my friends and family's homes.


For Him...

I am admittedly rubbish at shopping for the men in my life...they all tend to go out and buy whatever they want, and never seem to have any idea of what they want for Christmas, so other than going for slippers for the 10th year in a row, here are a few other options.


Little Extras and Stocking Fillers ...

Whenever I have friends over, I love making cocktails...it either stems from my love of making 'potions' in the bath as a child, or the few years we spent with a bar in the house - either way, they're a great party piece, or even a great addition to a night in. I love to get seasonal with my cocktails and tend to go very tropical in the summer, brambles in the autumn and definitely something festive for November and December time.

Today I wanted to share with you one of my favourite festive cocktails for the holidays - a Bailey's White Russian with a candy cane twist. Bailey's is one of my favourite festive {and all time!} drinks, and this festive little number is perfect for holiday get-togethers or even for a little post-Christmas wrapping treat on Christmas Eve! 

What you'll need: 

1 pack of red & white Candy Canes {optional}
White chocolate for the candy cane bark {optional}

50ml Bailey's Original Irish Cream

25ml Vodka {I use Grey Goose for a smoother taste, but you can use your favourite brand!}
25ml Kahlua {or any other coffee liqueur}
15ml Peppermint syrup 

50ml whole milk 

Ice for the shaker 

Method: 

1. Add the ice, Bailey's Original Irish Cream, vodka, milk, peppermint syrup and kailua into a shaker and shake well. 

2. Strain into your candy cane coated glasses and enjoy!

...they really are that easy!



For the candy cane bark {optional}:

As these are festive cocktails, I wanted to be a little extra and add some candy cane bark for decoration! All you need to do for this is spread melted white chocolate onto a lined baking sheet, sprinkle on some of the extra crushed candy cane and leave to set in the fridge. Once it's set, break into pieces and enjoy. Obviously this part is more of a 'nice to have' than a 'need to have', as you do have to pre-melt and set the chocolate, so it takes a little advance planning. 

I hope you enjoyed this super simple recipe {who has time for fancy ingredients during the holidays?!} and please do let me know if you end up trying it for yourself - I can guarantee both you and your friends will love this one! 

xo Becky 

I feel like the festive season is my time, I love how cheery and sparkly everything in, cosy nights in by the fire, and of course all of the festivities surrounding Christmas. So today I thought I'd share with you some of my favourites for this time of year. There's no real theme here, just a few things that I've been loving lately and a few cosy treats for this time of year!


First up in the new White Moss & Snowdrop Cologne from Jo Malone. I smelt this at a preview event with work months ago and it's been on my wishlist ever since. I went back and forth a bit with the decision to pick up this fragrance as they are only selling it in the larger bottle size, and as it's quite a festive scent, I didn't think it would be something I'd get enough use out of to wear all year round. In the end I couldn't resist and picked this up from work one Friday as a little treat to myself, and I'm so glad I did. This smells just like Christmas in a bottle to me, so it is quite a festive scent and perfect for this time of year, and the golden holographic bottle is just stunning! I'm so glad I took the plunge with this scent as it's quickly become a new favourite of mine, and I've never had as many compliments on my perfume as I've had since wearing this!



Another favourite this year is this mug. It sounds silly to include a mug, but this is honestly the perfect tea drinking size {if you like a big mug} and it's festive without being too tacky and over the top like a lot of Christmas homeware can be. This was my only Black Friday purchase that I made for myself, as I used the sales to do most of my Christmas shopping, and I'm so glad I did because it's SO cute! I picked this up from Anthropologie {one of my favourite stores!} with their 20% off Black Friday deal so it came to around £9, but I think it's gone back up to around £12 now! It also comes in two other festive designs that I'm trying to resist adding to my basket..



Of course, it wouldn't be Christmas without a Christmas tree! One of my favourite parts about this time of year is going shopping for new tree decorations. I try to buy a few each year, with the aim of having a really eclectic tree when I'm old, full of memories from each year! This year, I decorated my tree with these beautiful decorations from M&S. I tend to stick to a more traditional style of decoration, as they will never go out of style and it means all of the decorations I collect over the years match each other in some kind of way, and nobody does traditional quite like M&S. I wanted to buy their entire Christmas shop, and I definitely came away with way more wrapping paper, ribbon and cute little table place cards for the big day, than I'd originally intended on buying!


Anyone who knows me {or follows me on Instagram} will know that I'm obsessed with scented candles. I always have one burning when I'm in the house, I think they make the house feel super homely, which is so important to me living in a houseshare in London. I've tried all kinds of scented candles, but the brands I always go back to are Diptyque, Jo Malone or Yankee Candle. This year, I treated myself to Feu de Bois from Diptyque, something I wouldn't normally go for but I'm so glad I did! Feu de Bois is a very smokey and wintery scent, and it kind of reminds me of being sat in a country pub while the fire roars and the snow falls outside...a bit like being at home, sitting with my dogs infront of the fire. It's become a firm favourite, and I love it for this time of year!

As promised, I'm back with another one of my skinny bakes, this time with a festive twist. If you're like me and hate Christmas cake, but love all things festive then this pound cake/loaf cake will be perfect for you! With cranberries, white chocolate and ginger, it's the perfect combination of sweet and spicy, and every slice reminds me of Christmas evenings with all of the lights twinkling and my festive scented candles burning ✨. 

What you'll need:

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 180° and lightly spray a standard loaf tin with low calorie cooking spray (I use the FryLight Butter Spray). 

2. Combine your flour, ginger, salt, baking powder and baking soda in one bowl. 

3. In another bowl, whisk your eggs, butter, granulated sweetener, vanilla extract and greek yogurt until the mixture is smooth. 

4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients, slowly adding the milk to the mixture, and fold until smooth. 

5. Slowly fold in the cranberries and white chocolate until they are evenly spread throughout the mixture. 

6. Add the mixture into your loaf tin and ensure it is even across the top. 

7. Bake for 50 mins and leave to cool - then enjoy! 

I hope you liked this recipe, and hopefully it's given you some inspiration for some festive baking! Please do let me know if you try this out, or if there are any other skinny bakes you'd like me to create. 

xo Becky 

Whilst I love London year-round, around Christmas is when it really comes alive for me. I love all of the store front decorations, the abundance of fairy lights, the festive café decorations and of course, the festive food! So to make the most of it, me and some of the girls headed down to South Kensington for a catch up, ice skating, a hearty meal and of course, drinks!

Following a leisurely start to the day {and nursing a wine hangover from Saturday night}, we headed down to the Natural History Museum for an afternoon of ice skating - one of my favourite yearly traditions! The Natural History Museum is my favourite ice rink in town {closely followed by Somerset House}, the view is SO pretty, with the decadent buildings and of course, the giant tree in the middle of the rink.

I'm not the worlds best ice skater, I can just about manage to stay upright and go around in a circle...but Torvill and Dean, I am not. Still, it was such a fun afternoon and it really got me in the festive mood! However, my friend {who I'd basically dragged onto the ice} could barely stand up and was petrified the entire time 😂, but we had our who 'dance moms' {my two friends who point blank refused to skate} cheering us on so it all turned out okay in the end and neither of us ended up flailing around on the floor for the second year running!


We'd worked up quite an appetite after the skating {this is completely an excuse, we always have an appetite} so we headed over to the Ivy Chelsea Garden - one of my favourite spots in town. This year The Ivy has been completely transformed into a gingerbread house by the team at Early Hours and it really is one of the most stunning Christmas transformations I've seen. The Ivy always do brilliant decorations for special days and events, but this one really is their best yet - it's so creative and different to all of the other floral installations across London. Definitely go take a look, even if you don't manage to go in to eat, it's something to be seen in itself! Just beware that the front of the restaurant is now quite crowded with a lot of people trying to get 'the shot' for Instagram, so be prepared for a little wait.

Cosy autumn nights in are my thing at the moment - I mean, who wants to go out and freeze in the rain, cold and dark?! I think it's fair to say my student clubbing days are well behind me...But it really wouldn't be a cosy night in without snacks. Today I thought I'd share with you a recent favourite creation of mine, perfect for watching Christmas films next to a roaring fire {yes, I've started on the Christmas films already!}. These Mint Chocolate and Peanut Butter S'mores are my take on Tom Cenci's Bonfire Barbecue S'mores, to give it a little twist. I decided to use mint chocolate biscuits to give this indulgent treat a fresher taste, and to offset the richness of the peanut butter and the sweetness of the marshmallows - let me know what you think!

What you'll need:

1 pack of Bahlsen Mint Choco Leibniz
3 tablespoons peanut butter
1 pack of medium - big marshmallows
Wooden or metal skewers

Method:

1. Take two of the Mint Choco Leibniz and lay them chocolate-side up
2. Spread an even layer of peanut butter over the chocolate side of the biscuit and put to one side
3. Place one of your marshmallows on a skewer (If you're using smaller marshmallows you'll want to put a few on each skewer because it will take more to cover the biscuit - I use 3 medium marshmallows per s'more).
4. Hold the marshmallow over an open flame (I just use the hob but if you have a log burner...even better!), turning as you toast to avoid burning.
5. Once the marshmallow is toasted to satisfaction, slide it off the skewer and onto the peanut butter coated biscuit, and sandwich together.
6. Give it a few moments to cool and you're ready to indulge!

...and voila! I hope you liked this recipe and do let me know if you try it out at home! And for all of you who have messaged to ask when the skinny bakes will be making a reappearance...I'm actually working on a Salted Caramel Banana Bread recipe for you so the answer is - soon! I just thought it might be time for something a little more indulgent 😉. 

Before you all assume that this has turned into a food blog {I wish I was that good of a cook!}, I do have some other seasonal posts planned...but for now I'm obsessed with baking and it's definitely shining through on this blog. Today's creation was this batch of skinny oaty peach muffins, which I think would be perfect for a sweet breakfast - I know I'll definitely be grabbing one as I head out of the door this week. 

Once again, they're super easy to make, and as they are 'skinny' muffins it's best to use silicone muffin cases if you have them, as the mixture does tend to stick to the paper. 

Ingredients: 

🍑 1 tin canned peaches {fresh are better but they are sadly out of season right now!} 

🍑 100g plain flour

🍑 100g plain porridge oats 

🍑 100g 0% fat greek yoghurt 

🍑 1 tbsp baking powder

🍑 1tbsp bicarbonate soda 

🍑 1tsp ground nutmeg 

🍑 2 large eggs 

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. 

2. Add your flour, oats, yoghurt, baking powder, bicarbonate soda, ground nutmeg and eggs into a bowl and whisk until combined. 

3. Drain the juice from the peaches and cut into small cubes. 

4. Add in the peaches to the mixture and slowly mix. 

5. Spoon into 12 muffin cases and sprinkle a few plain oats onto the top of the mixture. 

6. Pop in the oven for 30 mins, until golden brown. 

Happy Baking! 

xo Becky 

This year I've been making a conscious effort to eat better in an attempt to lose weight, and with that comes eating much less sugar. Before anyone asks or comments, I chose to lose weight for health {recommended by my doctor} and personal reasons {I just didn't feel like myself anymore}, but I don't think that anyone should try to lose weight unless they want to lose it either for themselves or for health reasons - this post isn't aimed to make you think you need to diet!

However, I have the biggest sweet tooth in the world, and really struggled at the beginning to give up the sweet treats I'd become so accustomed to. To get round the 'eating less sugar but being addicted to the taste' dilemma I took to the kitchen and started trying out some 'skinny bakes' that I'd found online. The recipes I found were hit and miss, with a few working well {low sugar banana bread, I'm looking at you} and a few being complete disasters...but hey, you can't win them all!

As always, I've saved my favourite Thailand post for last...today I wanted to share with you our day spent exploring the Phi Phi Islands. This was the day trip I was most apprehensive about, I'm not the best on boats or around fish {and I'm terrified of the sea!} and this day was a lot of speeding around the islands on a boat and a lot of being in the water with the fish 😬. However, like the trooper that I am, I soldiered on and I'm so glad I did - the Phi Phi islands are like heaven on earth, actual postcard paradise.

If you read my Thailand Photo Diary last week, then you'll know when I was in Thailand at the beginning of the month, we took a day trip to the infamous James Bond Island. As it was such a jam packed day, I wanted to capture it all in a blog post before I forget everything that we did! 

We booked all of our trips before we got to Thailand with Get Your Guide. When we got there a lot of people recommended booking in Thailand itself, however as we only had a week and didn't want to spend it traipsing around looking for the best deal and filling out insurance forms, we decided to book before. This just meant that we had everything planned out and could maximise time spent by the pool, something I'm so glad we did as a week really isn't long enough!

If you follow me on Instagram then you'll know that I recently took a trip to Phuket in Thailand {sorry about all of that holiday spam!}. With the exception of a few day trips, we had a fairly chilled week and spent most of the time relaxing in the resort, so instead of putting together one of my 'Ultimate Guide To' posts {because we really didn't explore enough to warrant that} I thought I'd just share some of my favourite snaps from the week and let you know what we got up to. I'll also do seperate posts on some of our day trips as we managed to cram a lot in and this post would to years long if I tried to cram it all in! 😊

It's true what they say, as you get older the years really do fly by, and I can't help but feel that things have been stuck on fast forward recently. 2018 has been one of the best years yet, and maybe it's the feeling of not wanting to let go which has left me feeling this way, but it's something I definitely want to change. I'm guilty of spending a lot of my life waiting/working for 'what's next?', instead of appreciating what I have now and what I have around me. So with this in mind, I'm going to finish the year making a conscious effort to enjoy each season and make the most out of now. 

I'm quite an organised procrastinator, and if I don't have a list I know I'll just muddle on through until suddenly it's New Year's Eve and I can't think what I've done with the last 4 months other than work or sleep. So instead, I thought I'd share with you my 'Autumn Bucket List'...just some silly little things I'd like to do to make the most out of the season...enjoy! 

1. Go to the pumpkin patch - This is something me and my friends do every year, and it's such a fun day out. I love picking my pumpkins and getting creative designing them and putting them out for the trick or treaters...even if we never get any at our house! 

2. Perfect my Butternut Squash & Saffron Risotto recipe - This year I've made more of an effort to cook more, and try new things. Since having the risotto at Dalloway Terrace, I've been obsessed with making saffron risotto, and think it would make the perfect autumn dish for the cold nights. It's almost perfect, but still needs a few tweaks so I'm hoping to work on that over the next few months. 

3. Take a stroll through Regent's Park when the leaves have fallen - Regent's Park is so pretty when the leaves have fallen, and I rarely get the chance to appreciate it, so this year the plan is to go for a walk around the park when it's at its autumnal peak. 

4. Read 5 books - I'm so guilty of not reading anymore with the excuse of not having the time, but it's something I used to love. Autumn seems like the perfect opportunity to catch up with the latest releases from some of my favourite authors now the nights are drawing in. 

5. Book a Winter City Break - Every year I tend to go on a city break at the end of November or beginning of December and they're always so much fun. This Autumn I want to plan a weekend away in December, somewhere in Europe to enjoy the Christmas Markets - we're thinking Brussels!

6. See the fireworks on November 5th - November 5th was one of my favourite 'holidays' as a child, I was always fascinated by the fireworks and still am - such a big kid at heart! Our local Cricket Club puts on an excellent display so I'm hoping to visit again this year. 

7. Make the perfect apple crumble - When I grew up our garden was filled with apple trees, so we'd have apple crumble or apple pie every Sunday after our Sunday dinner. It's not something I've done in years, so this year I'm bringing it back! 

8.  Get back into blogging (properly) - I've recently started dipping my toe back into the blogging world, but I've been hesitant to get back into it properly. I'm hoping Autumn will provide me with the perfect inspiration and I'll be able to get my mojo back. 

9. Actually do something for Halloween this year - Every year I plan on doing something for halloween and I never get round to it - this year I'd like to plan something, even if it is just a movie night with friends. 

10. Visit the Electric Cinema - I've wanted to go to the Electric Cinema for years and for one reason or another, I've never got round to it. This year I'm hoping to make it the year I finally visit, and a cosy Autumn evening seems like the perfect opportunity. 

What are your plans for Autumn?

xo Becky 

Last Monday, me and a friend decided to make the most of the last bank holiday before Christmas {scary, I know} and head to the cute seaside town of Whitstable for the day. Unfortunately the weather wasn't on our side but it was a lovely day, so I thought I'd share some highlights in case any of you were thinking of getting out of the city for a day. 

We headed to the station bright and early, grabbed a coffee and our tickets {which were around £20 for a return with a rail card} and off we went to the seaside. The journey took about an hour and a quarter, which was perfect as it was enough time to drink our coffee and fill each other in on what's been going on since we last saw each other, and before no time we could see the sea! 

We were quite peckish when we arrived, so we headed to Farm & Harper for brunch. The service wasn't great - I'm not sure if we caught them on an off day as all of the reviews are glowing - but the food more than made up for it, as did the non-London price tag! I had the breakfast tortilla and my friend had the avocado toast {we're basic and we own it}. 

After brunch we took a stroll through the town to get our bearings and quickly found ourselves on the beach. I mentioned earlier that the weather wasn't on our side, and by this point it definitely wasn't - the beach was incredibly grey and windy, but we came to see the seaside, so we sat there for a while taking in the sights surrounded by other determined day-trippers. By the time we couldn't feel our fingers and had developed mild frostbite, we decided to head back into town to take a wander through the shops and find somewhere for lunch. 

We ended up in 'Veggie Revival' for lunch, a quirky cafe selling you guessed it...vegetarian dishes. I had the halloumi fries and the three bean chilli nachos and both were delicious. A heart attack waiting to happen, but nevertheless delicious. 

After eating our body weight in nachos, we headed back out to the other side of town to explore and ended up in the Old Neptune, a traditional pub right on the beach, for a pint of Whitstable Bay {and a well earned hour out of the wind}, before heading back into town for a final ice cream from Sundae Sundae. I went for the strawberry with popping candy {which was delicious!} and my friend went for the mint chocolate chip with smarties, which looked SO pretty and apparently tasted pretty good too.