29 August 2012

Little Scribbler munches: MACAROONS!

I've never had a macaroon before and, truth be told I thought they'd be something of a let down. Like Krispy Krap doughnuts. Yup, I don't give a shit about the "fancy glaze", I think Krispy Kreme are rubbish. There, I said it. To be fair to them, I'm not a big doughnut fan anyway but, honestly, if I have to have one, I'd rather just get one with custard in the middle from wherever.

But, as the title of this post suggests, something has changed. I have now eaten a macaroon (OK, a few of them). My friend visited The French Fancies in Edinburgh (which she's been raving about - it's a little cafe run by a couple from Lyon and judging by the pics on this blog post by the Edinburgh Cake Ladies, the cakes look incredible!) and bought me a gift of some macaroons and a bag of their Earl Grey tea.


I'm a big fan of a cup of Earl Grey. I just find it so light and pleasing. And, since you ask, yes I am a milk adding philistine. 


According to their online menu, The French Fancies' teas are made by master tea blender Alex Probyn (nope. I haven't heard of him/her either but a quick Google reveals that s/he does indeed seem to be a tea master) and their Earl Grey contains Sri Lankan uva, orange peel, lavender, natural bergamot oil. I love, love, love that you get a mega whiff of lavender when you open the bag. Cause I loves lavender, innit? The result is a really light, fragrant, delicious tea.


And so to the macaroons. To be honest, I didn't really know what was in a macaroon (and have made a point of not looking anyway - sometimes it's nice to just enjoy something for what it is), just that they were little and cute and much lauded. Now, I have nothing to compare these to, but let me tell you that they are an utter delight! I had rhubarb and ginger flavour (pink) and pistachio (green) and both were delish - the pistachio tasted more obviously of it's intended flavour but both were super yummy. So little and light with a delicate crunch to the outer, followed by grainy smooshyness, then yummy cream filling. I love stuff that's crunchy or crispy outside and soft in the middle! It's so darn satisfying. And, based on what my tastebuds and tongue are saying, I'm guessing ground almonds are a big constituent part which is just fine by me as I love anything almondy! Marzipan, frangipane, bakewell. Yum, yum and yum!

So I guess I really should get myself down there and start tasting the rest of the menu! Seems rude not to.

26 August 2012

Little Scribbler did not: buy new shoes, no she did not!

Yes she did. Yes, I did. 

Well, really, what did you expect? Old habits die hard. Plus, picture the scenario: It's an otherwise uneventful weekday evening. I'm doing a bit of blog reading, a bit of casual online browsing, not looking for anything in particular. I decided to look at the Topshop shoe sale cause, by mid-late August, there sometimes are some great sale bargains to be found on t'interwebs as prices have been slashed to the max and retailers consolidate stock back at their warehouses cause they don't want it cluttering the shops anymore. (True insider fact - it's always worth checking back on the sale bit of websites very late into or at the end of sale time cause a lot of places do clear the shops and flog it online). I was casually browsing through, dismissing all the crap sandals that were still overpriced and, regardless of price, ugly, when I stumbled upon shoe gold.


Topshop first had these in, in peach months ago. I eyed them longingly for some time, concluding loosely that I couldn't drop £58 on a pair of shoes I didn't really need and might not get much wear out of. Even if they were oh so relevant and covered in beaded, sequined and jewelled 3d flowers. Sensible girl Llara. When I did go back looking for them again, they'd sold out. Then they brought them out in pale yellow. On account of lack of funds and being sensible again I didn't buy them. However. When I looked this time they only had my size. And they were down to £25. Fate like that doesn't strike often and it would have been out and out rude to ignore it. So I didn't and the shoes were duly snapped up!


Look how pretty they are! And, a fash bonus, the stiletto and metal toe cap trend does not seem to be dying. That said, they do reek of summer! Still, they'll only serve to add a dose of sunshine to autumn and winter. Yup, in these babies, there'll be no S.A.D for me.


Swoon! Anyone else had any end of sales luck?


22 August 2012

Little Scribbler: sells stuff on eBay. Stuff YOU want.

Oh yes you do. The stuff is here <- click it!

Yes, it's clear out time. I decided to have a pretty brutal wardrobe purge this time because I've lost some weight this year (in a nice sustainable way and accompanied by plenty of exercising, which I am quite enjoying) and, as well as getting rid of some stuff that's a bit big, I'm also clearing out a load of stuff that I need to not keep. Y'know, the stuff you wear on 'fat' days when it feels like you're poking out of everything else. Think Homer Simpson's work from home project where he ended up wearing moomoos. Basically, I'm trying to give myself a fighting chance at keeping slimmer and, one way of doing that is by telling myself that there's nothing to wear. I'm curious as to how any of you stay in shape or to hear/read about anyone that's successfully not just lost weight, but actually kept it off too. I love a good success story!

ANYWAY, that's probably a whole other post. Point is that I'm selling clothes on eBay that are too big, as well as other clothing goodies too. There's some awesome stuff in there and it all starts at just 99p. Gawd, how shameless-sales-person am I being!? But seriously - check out some of this awesomeness.

Brillo Urban Outfitters tiger jumper.

Gorgeous dress that I MADE! With my own hands. And a sewing machine, obvs.

Beautiful 50s reproduction dress that I got at a vintage fair. Made by a dead nice lady!

You'll look like a sexy MF in this! It's not so much that this is too big, more that it's gradually becoming more and more apparent that my pear shaped proportions will never fit it properly. Someone's going to look divine in it though!

I love this prim secretarial pussy bow dress. It was too big anyway. I had vague intentions to take it and and never got round to it. Which tells me it should be off to a good home elsewhere.

Oh lord. I love this dress. So much. I almost can't believe I'm selling it. However, I don't have enough of a bust to fill the top of it so it just flops off me. Another one that truly deserves a good home.

Isn't this dress a ray of sunshine!?

Now this dress. This dress I am gutted to be getting rid of but it just doesn't stay up. And I know I'll never get round to having it taken in. There's SO much fabric in it, the bodice is boned and it's really just a dream.
And in a final shameless plug, you can find all these goodies and more here. Listings all end Sunday 26th. Happy shopping! x

20 August 2012

Little Scribbler asks: does my bum look big in this?

Let me start this post by telling you something. Just in case it offends you, y'know. This is *whisper*, a...sponsored post! "Oh Satan's minions, has the Little Scribbler gone and sold her soul to some evil affiliate?!", I hear you cry. Well the short and, somewhat less dramatic answer is, no I haven't. I was approached with a proposal from Very.co.uk on a project they're doing based around the question, "does my bum look big in this?"


Being ample of behind, I had a right good chuckle and thought it sounded right up my back alley. Fnar. Are you still with me? Or have you run for the hills? Allow me to add that I have been offered blogger projects in the past that I've turned down flat as they didn't fit my tone or aesthetic or because they just sounded downright rubbish! But, as I said, I like this one.

I started off taking a peek at going out dresses from Very for inspiration. But then I got to thinking about all things bottom related. You see, while I sometimes allude to my generous posterior and, whilst you can see that I'm a hippy lass, you never actually see my bum on here. No, don't worry, I'm not about to go all porno on you. It's just that, although "does my bum look big in this?" is a hugely stereotypical lady question, it's not one I ever bother asking. Why? Because the answer 100% of the time is: YES. My bum looks big in everything. It's a big curvy bum! And if you don't like it, you can (and probably should) look away. That's right, in honour of the question, I am going to showcase some of my favourite outfits from behind. Feast your eyes on this little lot...


Ah, the classic, bum-skimming full skirt. Friend of many a pear shaped girl. Yup, if I want my waist to feel particularly waspy or just feel like having a non bum flaunting day, I'm a big fan of a full skirt or dress. Engineering and proportion play at it's finest.


Who says you have to wear heels with a short skirt if you've not got the longest or shapeliest legs? Not me! And, if you've been reading a while, you'll probably know that leopard print is my essential neutral of choice, so it's only natural that I plaster it across my arse. And on my socks.


The pencil skirt. It's only recently that I've actually found a pencil skirt that's willing to deal with my proportions and, truth be told, I'm pulling it in a bit at the top here. All I'm saying is gawd bless lycra! And shiny red shoes. It has to be said that, on account of the length they hit at, my pencils really do need a good pair of heels.


The maxi. First up, I need to ponder what the jiggery my hair is doing in this picture! It's gone all funny and poufy! And it looks like I'm wearing some kinda 80s iced blue eyeshadow. I'm not. I do enjoy the maxi. It takes me back to my 90s hippy skirt days. However, I actually find maxi skirts really hard to wear now. So many of them just make me look like a lump. But I like this one. It's nice lightweight jersey and really easy to wear.

I hope you'll agree that I saved the best for last...


Ass in yo' face! I bloody love this dress! It's from ASOS but I spied a nice leopard body con number on Very. Look - the relative size of my hands hopefully gives you an indicator of just how big my butt is! The thing is, as a general rule, I'm pretty happy with my bum and I rejoice in it's giant-ness. At school I got the piss ripped out of me for having a big booty. Now people pay for ass implants (I find that mental too, by the by) and revere J-Lo, Kim Kardashian (for their butts alone I do hope. Mind you, that "Get on the Floor" was pretty dance-tastic. Kim, I have nothing else nice to say about you.) and Beyonce. So, I say, whatever its size, embrace your ass - it's the only one you have and you probably sit on it a lot, so be kind to yo' behind!

Here's a bit of what Very's bum survey revealed:

19 August 2012

Little Scribbler: Miu Miu, new shoe

Should I even bother writing anything in this post? I assume it's quite clear from the title what I've been up to and what I'm about to show you. The below explains why I am scraping the pennies together right now. In fact, I don't have two pennies to scrape so I'm scraping one solitary penny against the floor. Eee-aaah, aaaaiii-eeee (that's the sound of the scrapy penny).

Still, at least my feet look GOOD.

Ah, the Net-a-Porter box...
With Miu Miu inside *gasp*!
What's a shoe box without gold take-away-wallpaper style lining in it? I ask thee. Weirdly, Net-a-Porter send you a free tape measure in a little black bag...
Let's keep up the pretence! *Oh! What could be contained and enveloped within these dusky pink dust bags?*
Feel the quality. A dust bag for EACH shoe.
That's right! There are shoes in there. Uh-huh! Did you guess right? Sequined ones. With a big fat platform and a chunky heel.
I can walk in these, I can run in them, they stay on. They're just a dream!
Thank you and goodnight.

12 August 2012

Little Scribbler: Bags some bargains

The tail end of the sales: often full of shite.

The Primark sale: usually full of shite.

The tail end of the Primark sale: should be full of shite

But, no! Not in Primark Plymouth. Yes, I was in Plymouth this week. Specifically, my buddy and I drove nearly 1200 miles, between Monday and Wednesday, from Edinburgh to Wolverhampton to Plymouth and back to Edinburgh. We were seeing Blur. And visiting Plymouth gin. I'll fill you in on it soon! However, on account of having forgotten how manky and stinky one gets in a mosh pit (I tend to hang out where there's dancing room at gigs these days but Blur demand some serious down the front squishing), we had to stop to get some clean clothes when we arrived in Plymouth. First up I needed a jumper. I got this holey pink number. It was not in the sale but 12 quid seemed fair to me.


And, being a ginormous magpie, I couldn't ignore this giant sparkly necklace (I know - 'needed clean clothes' doesn't exactly call to mind a giant sparkly necklace). I nearly hypnotised a colleague with it today. This could be useful at work actually... "you are feeling very sleepy. You want to give me a pay rise...". For £6, this is high end Primark pricing.

"Hypnotic"
And so to the cheapy bits...

This gorge teal calf length dress was a tenner. It came with a nasty plastic belt which is already in my recently created cash for clothes mountain. The tight-as-you-like underskirt needs chopped out but, aside from that, this dress is great! Look how skirty it is!


Next up, this super pretty, girlie, floral number was down to £8. Again, it has a woefully tight but, this time, mercifully stretchy underskirt (it'd be completely see through otherwise!). That aside, it's a floaty pink confection. Now if summer would come along, it'd be perfect...


And finally - the fiver dress. BARGAIN! It's super light, floaty fabric with a lovely silky feel. Mind you, I'd bet my ass that if you came near me with a match (lit or not), I'd likely go up in a dramatic POUF! The stripes down the sides have a glorious slimming/shaping effect and I love the vibrant purple/blue flowers. I should've flipped it for you too as it has a nice chunky gold exposed zip - you'll need to take my word for that...
 

Look - I loved it so much, I wore it as soon as I could!
dress and necklace: Primark (keep up!), flip flops: Havaianas.
 I gave the amazing necklace a whirl too. It didn't swing me a pay rise...there's always tomorrow ;-)

5 August 2012

Little Scribbler: In neon

As far as actual, official fashion trends go, I can take or leave a lot of them. This season, I will NOT be rocking (or schlepping about in) a peplum. I hate them with a passion. A massive passion. Though I watched Shirley Valentine last night for the first time ever and that lady worked a peplum big time. But it was the 80s.

Next season, I will also not be embracing all things eastern a la Hermes or Proenza Schouler. I won't be wearing right ugly, clumpy shoes like those showcased at Prada and Miu Miu (though please, do go forth and clump if they're your bag!). And, no matter what happens, I shall not be wearing a tunic over trousers or any of those bog awful, rotten giant over sized suits. I don't care who you are, those things look like shite. That said, I'm definitely into all the OTT glitter, sequins etc around for AW12 and, if you gave me a Burberry owl t-shirt, I'd likely want to be your friend. They're so cute!

So cute. Like wot I already said.
But, one thing that's really got me going this summer is NEON! It's one of those trends that was something  I was wearing here and there anyway (Had an awesome pink jewelled Primark necklace for years and my Cambridge satchel was a sale purchase from Urban Outfitters just after Christmas BUT I also have a deep dislike of neon pink vests - they're always worn by those that they do nothing for) that just suddenly felt even more right! I'm a fan of neon because it's bright (duh) and garish and those things work for me. Plus, it's fun to wear bright, fruity, popping shades when it pisses rain with monotonous regularity (see rain splooshes on my bag below!), as seems to be the weather's wont of late. Ah well. I'm off to pack: I'm away to see a lot of Blur in the next coupla days...

jumper: San Francisco Boutique, bag: Cambridge Satchel, skirt: Topshop, shoes: McQ. Doesn't the neon make me look tanned?!
Raindrops keep fallin' on my...bag.
In yo' face with tha leopard print colour! Necklace: ASDA. Fo' real.
These shoes are an actual fucker to walk in - especially with tights on - but, man, I love them!

1 August 2012

Little Scribbler: goes to Camp Bestival!

Yay! Camp Bestival: the child friendly boutique festival with fun stuff for fancy parents too! Seriously, Camp Bestival is the classiest festival I've ever had the pleasure of. And, unlike the Scottish festivals I'm more likely to be at, it wasn't a mud bath either - double Brucie bonus!

Being a pretty child unfriendly person (children, I don't hate you, I just don't want you and don't want to hear you scream), I thought Camp B might be my worst nightmare. But, it's just so enjoyable that you can't help but be charmed by it and, to be honest, all the small folk kind of add to the fun atmosphere (where else would you get a miniature wooden portaloo?). Plus, the kiddie nature of it means that, while people are chilling and having a drink, it's just in a dead nice relaxed way, as opposed to being right radge (Scottish word alert) and lairy.

One of the other things that's ace about it is that there's so much to do: they have a spoken word tent, arts and crafts for lil 'uns, classic album play-backs in the castle (I know!), AMAZING food, pillow fights, jousting, a delightful forest walk (see creepy, yet awesome, pics below) and more! So even if the line-up is rubbish (which it kind of was), it doesn't matter. We spent a couple of hours sitting on the ground in the sun watching whatever came on next at the tiny bandstand in the field. It was just lovely.

So, while I reckon I'm not ready to pack in the lairy mudfests (Rockness was brilliant fun this year), the poshie-fest has totally won me over too. Roll on Bestival...

I loved the Sunday Best record label stall, with props made entirely from cardboard! My buddies tried to get in to play at the cardboard castle but they were too big.
Sadly, we did not flick our own veg. Insert joke here.
Biggest, most spectacular bubbles ever, blown out of what looked like a giant fishing net. Totes fish friendly way of utilising one of those. Plus, delicious food. My scallops don't look much here but they were divine!

Night time forest walk in the Dingly Dell. Yes, the Dingly Dell. I had a great chat in here with a very small child about seeing fairies. Sometimes it's important to uphold the dream.
Spreading the good word of the schuh welly exchange (that's why I was there) and some more spookiness.
Top left - my real hair. Bottom left - I didn't buy those leggings. I should have. I shall look out for them at Bestival. I can't play the piano but they were everywhere.