Cocktail Masterclass || Bloggers Exclusive

Hellooo lovelies,

 On Wednesday night I was very lucky to attend a bloggers exclusive cocktail masterclass. Of course as soon as cocktails were mentioned I was up for it and it also gave me a chance to meet up with some of my beautiful blogging buddies that live near me! We were lucky enough to learn how to make cocktails and get to try as many as we wanted for free....sound ideal to anyone else!?

 The event was hosted by the lovely Andy Pearson who is the cocktail king and funny heart radio presenter Paul Harper who sadly had brought his car so could not enjoy the cocktails that were on hand. The PR and marketing girls were equally lovely and looked absolutely stunning despite the fact that they were rushed off their feet... very jealous girls! Andy told us a bit about the most expensive cocktails in the world and there's one in Dubai that costs £100,000 but.... it comes with the keys to a Ferrai but the most expensive one Andy has watched being being is in Dublin for £750, that's one pricey drink.

Me and Sultana

Me and Emily

 For my first drink I opted for the 'Zoom' which is layered to look like a rocket ice lolly which not going to lie was the main reason I ordered it first. It was really nice and tasted like melons but not overly fruity as you could definitely still taste the alcohol in it. This cocktail actually takes the longest time to make, so long that the staff have rejigged the way they make it 4 times in the manual in order to try and get it made faster. This has something to do with the ingredients being added in a certain order to ensure that the layers are formed correctly and don't just merge together to form a yellow colour.

 The filling station also brought out some of their menu for us to try which has been partially revamped and also a few new foods thrown in. As a very fussy eater most of it would not be good for me but everyone else seemed to love it, Emily especially loved their Pepperoni slices from their BBQ board. I tried the salted pretzels which are new if I remember correctly and they were very tasty, I'd never even tried a pretzel before much to many peoples surprise and I love the way they come out in a silver bucket with newspaper in it.

  I found it amazing watching cocktail expert Andy and Ivan who works at the filling station make the cocktails and the energy that goes into shaking the cocktails up looks exhausting!! It really was fascinating learning how some of my favourite drinks are made and picking up some handy tips so I can try (massive emphasis on the word try!!) and recreate them at home. The biggest tip I picked up was to not add ice until last with most of the cocktails in order not to dilute them and that the main thing to aim for in making a cocktail is to not let one flavour over power the others and create a balance of flavour.

 The second cocktail I had was a Red Berry cheesecake cocktail which is one of their after dinner cocktails because it's so heavy but oh my it is amazing!!! Guys, you have got to give this a try. I am not a massive alcohol lover...I love to drink it but I don't particularly love that 'alcohol taste' so I much prefer my sweeter more sugary cocktails. This is one of those and it actually tastes exactly like cheesecake, don't be fooled though cause this one packs some punch because it has a lot of alcohol in it. This is the one I really would love to be able to make at home and anyone at the event would back me up in saying how much I loved this because everyone was joking about how much I evidently loved it due to my glass being emptied very quickly!

Red Berry Cheesecake in the making!

 Andy also informed us of how they use fresh ingredients in their cocktails so instead of buying ready made lime juice they will actually squeeze the juice out their limes themselves etc. They also don't skimp when it comes to buying ingredients, the Coconut cream they buy is one of the most expensive out their but the taste is totally worth it for making the perfect pina colada..everybody's guilty pleasure drink!

 I also discovered that I actually really like Mohjito's which I had always believed I didn't like because of trying ready made bottled one's from Tescos. Nothing compares to the real thing! According to expert Andy the key to making a mohjito is not to crush your mint leaves so you aren't left with pieces of mint in your teeth which definitely is not the one.

 Near the end of the night some of the girls actually got up and got to create their own cocktail which we named The Edinburgh Handbag after Emily's bag. In this drink as far as I can remember was peach vodka, cointreau and something raspberry..maybe raspberry puree. It actually turned out amazingly and tasted exactly like Dollymix sweeties.. filling station I definitely think the Edinburgh handbag should be added to your official menu!

Red Berry Cheesecake and The Edinburgh Handbag

Don't worry if you like the sound of the Edinburgh Handbag and want to try it because the Filling Station actually want people to go in and tell them the kind of flavours they like and it gives the bar staff the flexibility to use their skills. So if you fancy some new exotic cocktails or traditional classics that actually taste as good as they should then definitely head over to the filling station and relax with some cocktails.

More Selfie fun!

More selfie fun

Have you been to the filling station before? What's your favourite cocktails?

Lots of Love,

A x x x

Previous Posts

Dollymix || MAC Mondays

Fitness, Frozen, Food & Fashion || May Non-beauty Faves

May Beauty Favourites

Dollymix || MAC Mondays

Hellloo lovelies,

 For this weeks MAC Monday I thought I'd switch it up a bit and review one of their blushers. This was the first MAC blusher I ever bought and the reason I was initally drawn to it is of course because of it's gorgeous bright pink colour. I'm not the most massive fan of MAC blushers generally purely because I think there are equally good ones if not better available for similar prices and cheaper. However, I do really like the colour of Dollymix for giving the cheeks a pretty flush of colour with a hint of shimmer through it which personally I love in a blusher. I find if blushes have shimmer in then they make you look more glowy and awake...is glowy even a word? I think I've made a new word up there but you know what I mean guys.

  Dollymix is a sheertone shimmer blush however one thing I would say about it is you have to be extremely light handed because it can go on far too bright very easily and blusher is not a product that's easy to remove once its on. When you get the right amount on your brush though this colour looks gorgeous. I love how cute and girly the name 'Dollymix' is aswell and it was definitely an influential factor in me buying it!

Have you tried MAC Dollymix? What MAC blushers would you recommend?

Lots of Love,

A x x x

Fitness, Frozen, Food and Fashion || May Non-Beauty Favourites

 Hellooo lovelies,

  This month I've had quite a number of favourites that haven't been beauty related and personally one of my favourite posts to read are non-beauty favourites ones. So I thought I would let you into everything I've been loving this month that isn't beauty related. I've split it into categories to make it easier to just read the ones that you're interested in.

Fitness
 At the start of the month I was super into health and fitness which I am planning to get back into but I've been injured for the last week which has been so frustrating. None the less while I have been able to use them my 'Slender Blend' weight loss protein was a big favourite because it enabled me to incorporate protein into my diet. I have a little more information about this in my health and fitness haul if you're interested. Along with my Slender Blend another favourite has been Almond Milk (never thought I'd hear myself say that!!) and the reason this is in my favourites is because I take it with my shakes. I do not like normal milk at all but almond milk is delicious with cereal, in shakes or with anything you need to add milk too so although I wouldn't drink a glass of it on it's own I have loved adding it to things. I really like the hazelnut version of it too, it just makes my shakes taste like blended Kinder Bueno (how I would imagine that to taste anyway...).

 My second fitness related favourite has been my Nike free runs because they're super comfy to run in and they even just look nice to chuck on with leggings if you're just going a walk or running a few errands. A not so favourite however is that I fell running wearing them and scuffed the toe of one of them so they don't look AS pretty anymore which I'm sooo gutted about. None the less they are an amazing shoe and I'm really glad I invested in a good pair of running shoes because I'm sure they'll last me a long long time as once your shoe size is settled it doesn't usually change.

Film
 Yes, I am still OBSESSED with Frozen, I think my whole entire house know the soundtrack off by heart even though none of them except me have watched it. I have been obsessed with this ever since it came out on DVD, yes I was one of those people who bought it the week it came out and the obsession has not worn off yet. It's no secret that I love Disney but I thought I would throw this in here anyway, I love Olaf, he's hilarious and I think the storyline is fab. If you haven't seen Frozen but love Disney movies like Tangled then you will laaav this one! My favourite songs from the film are First Time In Forever and of course Do You Want To Build A Snowman.

Food
 I have a serious addiction to Irn Bru, I don't even know how to describe what it tastes like but it's delicious. I don't think they have this anywhere outside of the UK that I have seen but it's a bright orange fruity, fizzy juice that originates from Scotland, yummy. I don't think you'll come across any shop that sells food and drink in Scotland that does not have Irn Bru for sale! If you can get this in other places other than the UK then let me know in the comments.

Fashion
I have been loving my Boohoo boyfriend coat in rose with everything lately, after hunting so hard to get this coat I'm so glad I love it as much as I do. Although the weather is warmer I have been wearing this as much as I can and it's great for everything, it goes with really formal outfits nicely but it's also ideal for chucking on when it's a chilly night to walk the dog. They do them in so many different colours too- I have my eye on a gorgeous baby blue one but I definitely do not need anymore coats...willpower!

 Another fashion related thing I have been loving is statement necklaces, they're on trend and they instantly pull an outfit together and make you look like you've made more effort when you haven't. My two favourites this month have been my blue Accessorize one which I love with white outfits and blue outfits and my Primark pastel one which goes with almost every outfit. I definitely will be buying more statement necklaces soon!

Hair
 Throwback to the 90's but I am a 90's kid after all and I've been loving going back in time with my jelly shoes and scrunchies! This month I have been massively into scrunchies, I think they make a ponytail look much more interesting and when I've been going on runs and having to tie my hair up these have been perfect. My favourite is of course the hot pink one and I also really like the royal blue one. I've also been loving wearing them round a bun too, the floral one is especially nice for that. I actually got mine from ebay for around £2 each but I think quite a few high street shops are selling them now too.

TV Programmes
  This month I've loved Coronation Street which I always love but its been extra dramatic lately. I love the whole Tina storyline and how Rob has now managed to frame his sister for murder in an attempt to protect her, it's so clever. I always love the humour in Corrie too, never fails to make me laugh.

 Probably my most favourite tv programme of the month though has been Happy Valley which is a six part crime drama. If you liked Broadchurch last year then you will LOVE this programme, I don't want to say too much about it incase you want to watch it but basically it starts off with a police woman who's daughter was raped, got pregnant, had the son then killed herself. The rapist never got put in prison for his crime but got imprisoned for drug offences but now he's released and she wants to make sure he's convicted for what he did to her daughter. There's a much bigger storyline running through it which was fascinating to watch unfold but I'll keep that a secret so you can find out for yourself...get over to BBC iplayer and catch up quick.

Apps
 I always love finding new apps to use so I thought this would be a good category to throw in here. My two favourite apps this month I've actually had for a while but had stopped playing them and I've massively got back into them. The first is Hayday which is kind of like what farmville was like on facebook years ago and if you don't remember that then its a farm where you get to plant crops then buy machines to turn them into products. There's also animals to look after to produce milk, bacon and wool etc, a mine to get jewels from, a fishing area and they also now have a seperate town where you can sell your products in various buildings. The only thing about this game that annoys me is the length of time it takes to level up..I have been level 48 for a very long time. If you do play hayday then add me through the game centre, my name is 'drunkoffeachother'.

The second app I have been loving is called 'Tiny Tower' which is another time consuming one but it's great to do when you're waiting for appointments or on your break at work as it only takes a few minutes. It's more of a low maintenance game than say Sims etc because you don't have to sit on it to play it, it can do most of the things in the background. The aim of the game is to build a tower as high as you can with both shops and flats for the shop workers to stay in and some of the floors are stables, nightclub, diner, shoe shop, court, pizzeria, pub etc. You can also match the people to their 'dream job' and find a job that matches their personality best. It's just a great little time waster really!

Music
 This month the music I have been loving is by a girl called Katie Sky. I hadn't heard of her before but I stumbled across her music on youtube and it's absolutely amazing, all I have done since discovering her is listen to her music. Her lyrics are very meaningful and she has a stunning tone to her voice, it's beyond me how every radio station everywhere is not playing her music yet because she's my all time favourite artist at the moment! My favourites are 'Monsters', 'Sweet Sweet Melody' and 'Only You'. Have a listen to her on spotify or youtube and let me know if you love her as much as me.

I hope you enjoyed a little insight into the lifestyle things that I have loved during the month of May! What things have you been loving!?

Previous Posts

May Beauty Favourites

Silver Wedding Anniversary | ootn

Revlon, Rimmel & L'Oreal || Haul

Lots of Love,

A x x x 

May Beauty Favourites

Hellooo lovelies,

 The time has come once again for a round up of the make-up items that I have been loving over the past month! It's been a right old funny month this month with really warm weather one day but then really rainy weather but the best part of this month for me has undoubtedly been the fact that the days are getting much longer. Especially on the really warm days where you can relax in the evenings outdoors till 11pm before it properly gets dark!

 My lipstick favourite of this month has been MAC 'Morange', a shade I was initially unsure if it would suit me. However, I have grown to love orange lips more and more and have been loving having this eye catching colour on my lips in May. I have done a more in depth review of this in my recent MAC Monday post here.

 My favourite nail polish this month has been one of Barry M's new gelly shade colours 'Rose-Hip'. It's a pretty pale pink that goes with pretty much everything and I've had a busy month during May and I've often needed my nails to go with multiple outfits so this has been the perfect colour. It's also very complimentary with a tan I must say!

 I've mentioned before my love of the Nars copacabana illuminator mixed with foundation in my review of it. However, I've especially loved it this month mixed in with my Nars Sheer Glow foundation, they're absolutely perfect together for creating a natural dewy look!

 Probably my biggest favourite this month has been the Tea Tree Blemish Fade Night Lotion which I will do a full review on soon because I love it that much! It's completely and yes that is completely rid my skin of any blemish marks or redness left behind from angry spots. I was amazed when I tried La Roche Posay because the results with that were impressive but I was still left with a few blemish marks but this has completely rid my skin of all of them. PLUS it is only £9 so it's about £6 cheaper than La Roche Posay! I'm not entirely sure if my results are so outstanding by using this at night as instructed and my La Roche Posay in the morning but I for sure know that this product has wowed me!

 This month I've also been loving my EOS lipbalms because as you probably already know I can't sleep at night if I haven't put lip balm on! So I have one beside my bed, one at my boyfriends, one in my handbag and one in my jacket pocket- obsessive I know but I hate having dry lips. I especially love EOS ones because they effectively do the job, they taste good, they smell good and they have such a satisfying feel to apply because of their spherical shape.

 By Terry's ombre blackstar in Misty Rock was obviously going to be in my favourites wasn't it? It's such a stunning colour and although it is pricey, it's equally stunning and I have worn it so much throughout May. I love the packaging it's so classy and sleek and the product itself is flawless. I've done a full review of this previously on my blog too.

 With the sunnier days, I've wanted my make-up to be brighter and sunnier too and I've been loving my Naked Original palette for it's rich browns and golden colours. I absolutely love Half Baked (as I'm sure you can tell from the picture) and Buck for in the crease and can be used to fill in brows too. Another favourite shade this month has been Sidecar for a more natural look!

 Along with the more Summery weather and the pretty flowers appearing everywhere I've wanted a more floral based perfume. The one I've went for most is Marc Jacobs Lola which is a beautiful scent that incorporates florals without smelling 'granny' like or too overpowering which I find a lot of floral scents can be. The best thing about Marc Jacobs perfumes is obviously the stunning bottles which make any dressing table look a million times prettier. It's definitely one of those bottles that even when the perfume has run out it will remain on my dressing table until I buy a new one! The only problem with the bottle is it's not exactly travel or handbag friendly due to the massive flower lid and the big bottle BUT it is so incredibly long lasting that I don't need to reach for it during the day anyway. It's definitely my signature scent because when friends and family say someone smells like me this is the scent they are usually referring to!

 My final favourite this month has got to be the Crabtree & Evelyn hand cream that I received in my goody bag from the Crabtree & Evelyn event. It is the most incredibly moisturising hand cream that I have ever come across and as I was told at the event this is due to the hand cream containing Macadamia Oil. The best thing about them is that they're not at all greasy so they're ideal for using in the middle of the day where you don't have time to faff around waiting on your hands to dry. If you suffer with dry skin on your hands it would be incredible for a quick fix. I'm not entirely sure what pomegranates smell like and if this smells like them but it has a unique smell that I actually quite like - although I'm sure I could pick out a scent from the range that more suits my personal preference! You can get little hand bag sized ones from Crabtree & Evelyn for £5 or buy a full sized 100ml one for £15.

What were your favourite beauty products this May?

Lots of Love,

A x x x

Previous Posts:-

Silver Wedding Anniversary || OOTN

Revlon, Rimmel & L'Oreal Haul

Brave Red || MAC Monday's

Silver Wedding Anniversary || OOTN

Hellooo my lovelies,

 At the weekend I went to my boyfriend Gary's aunties silver wedding anniversary party and I thought I would do an outfit of the night post on what I wore for you guys. I always intend to do these but I'm usually in far too much of a rush to have time for photo's before I go! However, I gave Gary strict instructions to be ready early for a mini photoshoot before we went!

 I wore my new shoes which I hauled a few days ago here and a mint green dress with a pastel beaded band across it. I absolutely love this dress and it cost around £70-£80 so I'm glad I wore it again! I actually bought it from Asos last year but it's made by.... but I don't know if it's still available..sorry! I went for mint green toe nails to match the dress and coral nails to match the shoes. I actually have a coat and bag that match these shoes exactly but it was crazy warm here on Saturday so there was no way I could have worn any coat let alone a big wool one. Then the bag was too big for this kind of occasion so I went for a little cream clutch bag which obviously goes with pretty much everything!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend! What did you get up too?

Lots of Love,

A x x x

Previous Posts:-

Revlon, Rimmel & L'Oreal Haul

Brave Red || MAC Mondays

"Give a Girl The Right Shoes and She Can Conquer The World"

Crabtree & Evelyn Event

Revlon, Rimmel & L'oreal || Haul

Hellooo my lovelies,

 As you will have seen from my post on Saturday I recently went to the Crabtree & Evelyn event and as I got there early I popped in for an essential...yes essential trip to Boots to pick up a few bits and bobs.

 The first thing I got was my favourite ever cotton pads. I literally hate using any other cotton pad to remove my nail varnish and makeup because nothing is as strong and good as these ones and they're really cheap too. What's good about these is they have two different textured surfaces and they just hold the product really well and seem a lot stronger than other ones I have tried. I use the big oval pads to remove my make-up as can do it with one pad instead of two little ones and I use the little ones to remove nail varnish.

 I also picked up one of these Revlon parfumerie nail polishes and I'm really pleased with myself because I wanted 3 of them so for me to walk away with just one was quite the achievement! The one that appealed to me most was obviously a shade of pink and it's called 'Ginger Melon' which is an amazing name and the bottles are adorable. I'm so intrigued to try this as apparently your nails smell nice after you've painted them with so we shall see. I had the urge to buy the whole range just so I can line them up and have them look nice on my dressing table...anyone else??

 I also picked up this foundation to try as I've heard really good things about it and that it's meant to be a dupe for Georgio Armani Luminous Silk foundation so we shall see if it lives up to that one. I got it in W4 Golden Natural for when tanned and also N2 Vanilla for those days when I decide to be natural.

 I didn't really know what to get as there was 3 for 2 across L'oreal products so I was going to go for another pink lipstick but it was like 100 others that I already had sitting at home. In the end I went for their Nude Magique Blur cream to see if it's any good at blurring out my pores.

 The last thing I picked up I have wanted for absolutely ages!!! It's the Rimmel ScandalEyes nude eyeliner which my Boots which believe it or not is massive and usually has absolutely everything in it but for some reason this has not been in stock for months (and yes I even checked the drawers!!). I'm so happy I finally have this as it'll be more natural than a white eyeliner but still give the appearance of bigger eyes.

What L'oreal products do you love?

Lots of Love,

A x x x

Previous Posts:-

Brave Red || MAC Mondays

"Give a Girl The Right Shoes and She Can Conquer The World"

Crabtree & Evelyn Event

Brave Red || MAC Monday's

Hellooo lovelies,

 It's another lipstick for today's MAC Monday (I will switch it up soon I promise) since I have a fair few of them and they are my all time favourite MAC product. It is of course a cremesheen formula because I much prefer creamier lips than matte lipsticks.

This product is one of MAC's lesser talked about lipsticks and I think it's because Russian Red, Ruby Woo and Lady Danger are the red lipsticks that instantly pop into your head when you think of red lipsticks from MAC. The reason I went for Brave Red over all other red lipsticks is it is your classic bright red and it wasn't at all drying which I found Russian Red to be because it is a matte formula. I had the same issue with Ruby Woo aswell so the best option for me was to pick a red shade from the cremesheen range. So if you suffer from dry lips or even just prefer cremesheen formulas like me then I'd totally recommend looking at this lipstick for a creamier red.

 I don't actually wear this much purely because when I'm going for an out there lip I always reach for more pink shades because that's my favourite colour (incase you've magically managed to miss that). However, after taking the swatch pictures for this post I'm going to make a conscious effort to try and wear it more as it is a pretty colour!

 It's really long lasting as it is but if I want it to last extremely long I use MAC's cherry lip liner underneath first. I would recommend using a lip liner underneath a red lipstick anyway just to prevent any bleeding cause lets be honest ladies that's never a good look is it!

Have you tried Brave Red?

Lots of Love,

A x x x

Previous Posts:-

Crabtree & Evelyn Event

Victoria's Secret Body Sprays Anywhere In The UK || Haul & Discovery

"Give a Girl The Right Shoes and She Can Conquer The World"

"Give a Girl The Right Shoes and She Can Conquer The World" || Haul

Hey my lovelies,

I have a haul for you beauties today and it's just a small haul because I feel these shoes deserve a post of their own. In true Abby style I walked into the shop intending to get one pair of shoes (which I had already put aside to try and avoid this situation occurring) yet ended up leaving the store with two pairs...oopsy!

Ignore badly painted toe nails..I did them in a rush for this picture!

How gorgeous are these babies!? I fell in love and could not leave them behind, I love the colour, I love the style and I bet they will be super comfy too because they're really high but they also have a really high wedge. So that's definitely something my feet will thank me for! The colour of these also matched my Boohoo coat and my Accessorize bag perfectly so they were too good to leave behind!

 
 The second pair of shoes I picked up are ones I actually already have but I've totally trashed them. I've worn them to death and they have pieces of glass in them from clubs and they're just not pretty anymore and I have worn the heel down beyond repair. Therefore the only logical thing to do was to buy another pair right?! ... Definitely my kind of solution! I have the exact same pair in red too and I love them but they definitely are not as wearable as the black pair.

 

What are your favourite shoes?!

Lots of Love,

A x x x