london lifestyle Archives - Page 4 of 4

saharasplash8 September, 2016

SAHARASPLASH visits Bea’s Cakes London

It is a truth universally acknowledged that an English lady cannot resist a good old-fashioned afternoon tea. So here is where Bea’s London comes in! This month I had the pleasure to venture across to the London borough of Marylebone to one of the splendid little cafes in the Bea’s chain. SAHARASPLASH visits Bea’s Cakes London!

An afternoon tea is such a great idea at this time of the year. It’s something fun to do in the city if you are hungry but you find yourself not wanting to indulge in a hot meal. Bea’s London provides an amazing atmosphere for a lovely afternoon spent with your best friend or your partner as you natter and nom away. I started things off with an apple and cinnamon tea.

Layer One- The Savoury Sarnies

Okay so they were more of a roll, but these four flavours were delicious! Naturally I ordered the gluten free option, and I had avocado with dukkha spiced yoghurt and pistachio – parma ham, mascarpone cream with honey and fig relish – goats cheese curd with beetroot and toasted walnuts and then smoked salmon with cream fraiche. The beetroot and goats cheese was to die for! Such creativity and not a cucumber in sight!

Layer Two- Scrumptious Scones

It was so wonderful to see a full-sized scone on my second layer. So many times I am left dissapointed by the size of gluten free cakes and pastries, but not at Bea’s! The gluten free scone came with the best serving of clotted cream and a choice of raspberry or strawberry jam. It was delightful.

Layer Three- Cakes, sweets, and more!

I really was not prepared for the amount of goodness on the third layer. This included a gluten free cupcake, the best chocolate brownie ever, a macaron, a homemade marshmallow cube, a meringue and some loaf cake. Needless to say I tried everything but did not finish everything. It was so nice to have a wide selection to browse through and taste. It’s the perfect thing for those indecisive eaters when it comes to choosing your dessert!

I want to thank Bea’s London for the very sophisticated experience, it was such a great way to start September and I hope that you will all go find a Bea’s London close to you if you live in London, or plan an afternoon tea with them on your next visit!

Outfit details: I wore a metallic crop, pleated skirt and zebra print jacket all from Motel Rocks.

Saharasplash x

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saharasplash31 August, 2016

Foodie Heaven from BoroughBox

I had the pleasure of meeting the BoroughBox team at the Big Blogger Expo last month. They had such a fab display that I was immediately drawn to them being such a foodie- it all looked so incredible! I got talking to the team who told me all about how it is their passion to connect foodies with the best producers (over 250 of them). So if you’re anything like me, I know you will enjoy the Foodie Heaven from BoroughBox too…

They have a wonderful subscription service called the Discovery Club and you can also purchase individual items and gifts via the BoroughBox Marketplace here. But before you go and explore, I want to show you what you can expect from your BoroughBox delivery:

It comes in a well-designed box with a rustic feel, and inside you have all your goodies nestled in a straw bed- it’s definitely got a hamper theme but in a modern way.

My box was tailor-made to my gluten free diet, and I had a great time experimenting with some of the ingredients. BoroughBox have such a wide variety of products which cater for any allergy or diet:

Lamb stew using the Basil infused Olive Oil

This made the perfect start to my dish as I splashed the oil in with some green peppers and onions

Mint choc chip sundae using the Pink Himalayan Salt and melted Mint Raw Chocolate Bar

This was so yummy! I can’t resist sweet ice cream sprinkled with a little salt

Baked chia seed loaf using Rana’s Artisan Bread Mix

This crusted loaf went perfectly with some mature cheddar, alternatively dip into camembert!

My BoroughBox also contained a few more things which I cannot wait to try out and use to create something very soon!

I love to help celebrate the independent food and drink businesses that BoroughBox offers, see what new things you can discover to create your own piece of Foodie Heaven from BoroughBox!

Saharasplash x

I received this product for free for my honest opinion and review

saharasplash15 August, 2016

Top 5 Bridal Fragrances

I cannot begin to fathom how it’s now into double digits until my wedding day. It has been a very short engagement, announcing to everyone only at the start of June but time seems to be creeping closer and closer now to the big day. Now that time really is of the essence, I’m going to be ringing those wedding bells and kicking things off with a post all about my top 5 bridal fragrances brought to you from The Perfume Shop. The Perfume Shop is the best place to go when looking for something special. They have branches all around the UK and you know you will be spolit for choice when shopping in their stores or online. I’ve hand picked 5 delicious scents that you simply must go and sample.

1: Black Opium Nuit Blanche by Yves Saint Laurent

I absolutely loved Black Opium when it first came out, and now there is Nuit Blanche- its smokey vanilla twin. Choose this EDP by YSL if you want to smell as good as your wedding cake!

2: Dolce Rosa Excelsa by Dolce and Gabbana

Dolce is perfect for those wanting a really lovely floral scent on their wedding day. It’s a classic choice for a classic bride and you’ll be coming up roses with this perfume.

3: Narciso by Narciso Rodriguez

Take Narciso as my wild card in my top 5 bridal fragrances. This gem is quite exotic and so may be perfect for those getting married abroad. Think sensual jasmine by a moonlit lake, bottle it and this is Narciso!

4: Viva la Juicy by Juicy Couture

Juicy Couture have had some fabulous scents over the years but this one is just divine. This classy and playful fragrance will definitely leave its mark as you move close to your newly beloved for that first dance.

5: Flowerbomb by Viktor and Rolf

Flowerbomb by Viktor and Rolf is a brand new discovery of mine and I am in LOVE! It is so light and floaty that you will just wear it all day long without having to feel overpowering or concious that you’re going to cause a sneezing chain in your front row of guests! It is floral but also musky- maybe for those indecisive brides?!

So now you’ve seen my top 5 bridal fragrances! Which one would you pick? Have you tried any of these or do you have any other reccommendations for us brides to be? I’ll be keeping my choice a secret until the big day, mostly because I haven’t made up my mind yet on which one I’m going for!

Saharasplash x

Stick around for one last read, I guarantee you’ll learn some new things about me in my previous post!

PR Samples

saharasplash5 August, 2016

Keeping it Sassy with Spectrum Collections

I had the pleasure of attending a very exclusive event last month, and I had been wanting to check these guys out for a while after the social craze going on with their collections. Spectrum Brushes hosted a fantastic launch party for their brand new range- The Bomb Shell by Chloe Lloyd and it was amazing! I had met a new blogger friend (as I always do) earlier on that day, and so we went together to the venue in Soho. Her blog is HelloMissJordan and you must check out her blog after you’ve finished this post! Here’s how we were keeping it sassy with Spectrum Collections…

The vibe of the whole event was mermaid, so bloggers were arriving with the most fabulous hair colours and dressed to impress. Jordan and I went for purple and pink!

So now I’m going to show you some of the wonderful brushes on display from the new Bomb Shell collection, and in case you don’t know much about Spectrum Collections all their brushes are cruelty free and vegan friendly!

How beautiful are these brushes? The have pink handles with rose gold detail. This setup gave me some serious inspo as to how I’m going to be displaying my brushes from now on! Any recommendations for rose gold cups like this leave me a comment below! And now onto the piece de resistance, the one you’ve all been waiting for:

eee! This Bomb Shell drops in September 2016!

Now it wouldn’t be a complete blog post without sharing with you the amazing display of food from the Spectrum launch. I would describe it as a feast fit for a unicorn and a mermaid tea party- just look at all of it!

Everything sparkled and looked so gorgeous! Of course no donuts or cupcakes for the coeliac, but I certainly enjoyed the clam macarons and the pearly merringues! So there’s one more thing I’d like to show you, and this is the pure definition of keeping it sassy with spectrum collections. We met a very talented artist who goes by the name of DOM & INK. He was fabulous and turned both Jordan and I into mermaids!