Recipe: Party Cupcakes

Everyone enjoys a good cupcake from time to time, especially when they look cute and sparkly! The sponge is made from vanilla cake mix filled with white chocolate chips & extra sprinkles. Fancy making these delicious and eye catching cupcakes? Then follow the recipe below.

Cupcakes

125g caster sugar
125g self raising flour
2 large free range eggs
125g unsalted butter
¼ teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
1 ½ tablespoons of milk
¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract
100g white chocolate chips 

Icing
335g icing sugar
150g unsalted butter
1- 2 tablespoons of whole milk
¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract
Food colouring of choice
Sprinkles

Method
Preheat oven to 180

1. Cream butter and sugar together
2. Add one egg at a time and beat
3. Slowly add flour and stir
4. Add in bicarbonate of soda, vanilla extract and chocolate chips. Stir well
5. Place into pretty cupcake cases
6. Bake for 15 minutes, but keep an eye on them as they might need longer
7. Allow to cool
8. Add all icing ingredients into a large bowl and mix well
9. Pipe on using a piping bag or a freezer bag with a corner chopped off
10. Add sprinkles, glitter and all the pretty things!
11. EAT

If you recreate this recipe, tag me on social media @effstarbeauty

Friendship With Bloggers

I don't usually talk about my favourite blogs but I decided that spreading some love and joy was needed. So here it goes...my favourite blogs to read!

See The Stars

Sarah is a very close friend of mine, we've known each other for roughly a year and I feel we've got a really special friendship. Her blog is incredible, such high quality and contains a variety of well written and photographed topics

Hanner King

This beautiful blonde is another great friend of mine, with an insatiable blog to go with her perfect personality. Hannah is also in the organising team for Bloggers Unite Events, bringing us even closer together in the blogging world. I love Hannah's blog, everything is so well thought out and presented wonderfully.

Sian Marie Beauty

Wow. Where to start with this one? Sian is officially my longest online friend I've ever had. We've probably followed each other for at least 5/6 years now and from that a flawless friendship has blossomed. SM-Beauty is a personality packed blog, filled to the brim with well executed posts and top photography.

Rose Charli

Charli, Charli, Charli. My dear friend Charli. Not quite sure where I'd be without her insanely good advice, hilarious comments and look on life. Running her own beauty blog, full of tips and product reviews. A great read, make sure you give this blog a read!

Dino's Beauty Diary

Emma is another organiser of the Bloggers Unite team, which I feel having this in common has really pulled us together as friends. Her strong sense of blog direction shows her followers where she is and what she wants to achieve. Another fab blog with perfect content!

Sweet Potato Cake: Recipe

Yes. Another cake recipe. This time a little unconventional, using an ingredient usually not associated with cake... Sweet Potato. You heard right, sweet potato.

I've been off work sick for a few weeks now, so boredom often appears and it means I want to bake. Anyone else get that? No. Just me? Okay...I'm cool with that!

Sweet Potato cake is a dense sponge, with a sweet yet rich flavour. I added an easy zesty lemon icing to the top and middle to cut through the richness and compliment the yummy taste of the sponge.

Ingredients

Cake
1 cup of butter
2 cups of caster sugar
2 cups of cooked & mashed sweet potato
4 eggs
3 cups of self raising flour
1 teaspoon of cinnamon

Icing
2 cups of icing sugar
10 teaspoons of lemon juice
you can change this up as you wish, this is just a guide

Method

1. Cream butter and caster sugar
2. Combine sweet potato with the mixture
3. Add cinnamon
4. Slowly add 1 egg at a time
5. Add a cup of flour at a time, and thoroughly mix
6. Split in between 2 lined tins
7. Cook for 45 minutes, but keep on checking as it depends on your oven. You'll know it's cooked when you put a clean knife in the centre and it comes out clean
8. Once cooled apply as much icing to the middle & top as you wish
9. Allow to set and then enjoy!

If you do recreate this cake tag me on social media :)

Free Polaroids

Honest. I have a code that gives you 17 high quality polaroids for free. All you do is pay £1.69 postage and bob's your uncle, fanny's your aunt.

These are a great addition to any bedroom, office or living space. I also love that it's such a bargain way to add to scrap books such as Project Life.

How To:
Download the free app Polagram from the Appstore
Sign Up for free prints using code PG4YKZ59
Choose your prints

Voila!!

Will you be taking advantage of this free Polaroid offer?

Lets Eat Cake: Recipe

Sometimes in life we all need a slice (or two) of decadence, just to even out the hard workouts and veggie juices we consume. Here is where this cake comes into the equation.

With it's solid milk chocolate top, rich coffee sponge and sharp cream cheese filling; this is exactly the way to settle any cravings you get on a cheat day; Or in my case...everyday!

Ingredients:

For The Cake

225g Butter
225g Caster Sugar
225g Self Raising Flour
4 free-range eggs
50ml of Strong Espresso

For The Topping

200g of your fave Milk Chocolate melted
(I used Dairy Milk)

For The Filling

200g Cream Cheese
50g Melted Milk Chocolate

1. Pre-heat oven to 180c
2. In a bowl cream the butter & sugar together until pale & fluffy
3. Add the eggs one at a time, beating them in completely
4. Add the espresso mixture and mix thoroughly
5. Sift in the flour & gently fold until all mixed
6. Split the mixture between two lined cake tins
7. Depending on your oven this takes between 20-35 minutes to cook. KEEP AN EYE ON IT
8. Leave to cool on wire rack
9. Mix the cream cheese & melted chocolate and generously apply to the cooled cakes
10. Pour the melted chocolate on top
11. Leave until set

Please tag me on social media if you make this recipe!!

Eat It. Wear It. Swear By It*

The past year has been well and truly smothered in Coconut Oil, with its health benefits and ability to transform not only our food but our bodies too.

My favourite Coconut Oil is the latest offering from Vita Coco*, & here are my favourite ways to use it.

1. Eat it.

There are so many ways you can consume this delicious oil via the mouth, my favourite is to cook with it. But I do also add it to my morning smoothies and to salad dressings.

2. Rub it on me mush

Slathering this all over my face after a tough weekend on the gin helps to bring out a gorgeous glow & put back in the essentials that a hangover has stripped my skin of. I always wash the oil off after 10 minutes as Coconut Oil is a Comodegen, which leaves your pores at a high risk of clogging. Now this doesn't happen to everyone but it's worth taking it off.

3. Removing Panda Eyes

We've all been there. That black ring around your eyes from excessive eyeliner use or mascara mishaps. If you're like me, scrubbing & rubbing at my eyes is not an option. Erm...wrinkles! The simple way to remove this panda-esque residue is to simply gently pop some coconut oil over the areas and wipe away with a cotton pad.

4. Nourishing Lips

Coconut oil is extremely hydrating. When my lips are looking chapped and sore, I mix this with sugar for a gentle scrub. The sugar removes any dead skin, and the coconut oil nourishes & helps to bind it all together.

You can purchase Vita Coco Coconut Oil from most UK Supermarkets.

Have you tried Coconut Oil?
*sample

LDN Through My iPhone

Stay Safe In The Sun*

Skin safety is something I am big on, very big on in fact. You won't catch me sun bathing, or sitting in the sunshine without a hat & massive sunnies on; it's just not my style! If I want to be a beautiful bronzed babe I will fake it...yes guys I'm a faker and proud!!

Smart Sun UK have come up with an epic little concept of how to, well stay safe in the sun! These little wristbands - which are waterproof, discrete and reliable; cost £4.99 for a pack of 5 and are suitable for the whole family to use! The bands are tailored to hair colour, and skin tone too so that each person will get an individual and accurate experience.

The way they work is extremely simple, they change colour! Below I've added a photo which explains what each colour means :)

The 3 bands I was sent have been sent off with my parents on their jollies in the UK, and they were surprised as to how well they worked even in the British climate!

STAY SAFE IN THE SUN
Buy Me // Smart Sun

Will you be taking Smart Sun Bands on holiday with you?
*sent for awareness 

Hosting An Event

Hosting an event is...HARD!

Don't ever let anybody tell you it isn't. However, the hard work pays off and man it's exciting to do. I've recently hosted my first event alongside Hannah and Emma in Sheffield for 30 bloggers, and we had 3 brands attend. Sounds simple right?

WRONG!

There are so many things that you have to consider, the biggest task is finding a venue, second is getting brands on board and last is actually sorting out the guest list; it's not a piece of cake getting Bloggers to attend.

We started in January, giving us just under 6 months to plan and make the event happen. This event happened on June 13th 2015 at Eaten Eat Cafe, Sheffield and we had a mix of talks, tables and ice breakers to fill our event.

Then there's the goody bags...which can seriously make or break an event. You have to think hard about who you want in your bag, you also have to persevere with brands and make sure you have a top notch selling email that will lure them into getting involved. If you have contacts then use them! Make sure you know as much detail about your event i.e who's attending before you start emailing because brands will want to know!


My top 6 tips for running a successful event are:

1. Give yourselves enough time to plan (minimum 4-5 months)

2.  Know what you want to achieve and stick to it

3. Don't do it alone! I'm so glad there was three of us running this event

4. Invite a mix of people, not just people you know!

5. Be really super duper organised

6. Set a budget for venue, refreshments etc

I hope my post on this event I held with Hannah and Emma was helpful, inspiring or that you just enjoyed reading it!

Have you held an event before?

Key Zine and Balance Book

Hannah Pixie Snowdon and Anastasia Pepsi Tasou are at the moment social media queens of spreading happiness, love and general good vibes. Recently, they have teamed up to firstly produce the Key Zine; a book looking into happiness and collective advice/quotes from famous singers, models, business owners and tattoo artists etc.

Key Zine is a 30 page well finished, glossy book with classic black wired binding. Perfect to take a long with you and also sits nicely on your desk. I love how small these books are, but don't be fooled by size as they really pack a powerful punch. The positive and inspiring vibes that make up this book gets even the smallest of hairs on my body stood up to attention and my heart feeling fuller than full with every turn of the page.

Even though the Key Zine has aspects of love in it, Balance Book is solely based on love and theories around it.  It again contains advice & quotes from influential people including Oliver Sykes, Elena Wood and Prahlada. The main theme running throughout Balance is how to love yourself, and the importance of self love and worth. For me this is something I struggle with on a daily basis and I'd be lying if I said that collectively these books hadn't turned my frown upside down. I am truly starting to look at the world in a new light, and I am on my personal journey of becoming what I class as a "beautiful person".

The two books are Limited Edition and  retailed at £15, making them an easy and fast purchase for most. I love the postit note and washy tape aspects of the book as it really shows the personal effort and time that has gone into the books. All profitable proceeds have been donated to the mental health charity Mind, which is something that is very close to my heart; making this a super easy purchase for myself.

If you want to see more of what Hannah & Ana are about, follow them on Instagram
@hannahpixiesnowdon and @anastasia.tasou

Have you read either book?

NUEVUE*

Nuevue is a new view (see what I did there ;)?) of phone cases. For most, a phone is either in a bag, pocket or hand which can be the most germ ridden places ever. As someone whom likes to look after their skin, I am conscious of the cleanliness of my phone as the last thing I want pressed against my face is a block of germy glass & metal.

EW!

That's where Nuevue come in. The inside of the case is antibacterial, so it takes away and kills all the nasties that linger on your phone. It also comes with cleaning wipes which you use before putting your phone into the case for the cleanest of results.

Nuevue provide a high standard of faux leather case in many colours including the lilac that I have, orange and blue. There is also the option of having a leather case which comes in three different colours, black, tan and pink. But this case doesn't just stop there, it's also shock proof and static proof.

I love the stitching details on the case and the metallic logos, as it doesn't make the case look overly branded regardless of all the branding...if that makes any sense!!

Have you tried a Nuevue Case?

Buy Me // Nuevue Cases

Metallic Tattoos*

Occasionally I just can't help but cover myself in art, wither that is adding to my forever growing tattoo collection or doodling on my skin using a henna pen I just can't help myself!

Recently I have discovered my new and long love of temporary tattoos, but mainly the beautiful metallic offerings that I found on the Born Pretty Store website.

For a mere £1 you can completely and temporarily changed up your look! These are a great addition to your body for a holiday or festival, so go crazy!

The fab people at Born Pretty Store have created the code FCGG10 for you to enjoy a wonderful 10% off your purchases!

Buy Me //  Hamsa Tattoos 

Online Etiquette

If you're not a fan of honesty then stop reading now.....

Okay, so ya'll whom ain't scared of an honest honey there's something playing on my mind which I feel strongly enough about to share with you. Online etiquette 

*queue mean girls quote here*

This post isn't a lecture or a moan, it's simply sharing my feelings from one sister to another. Take what I say with a pinch of salt. 

So far this year I don't think I have taken part in one single Twitter Blogger Chat, mainly because it seems to of gone from a wonderful little hour of gorgeous girls & guys having a natter to bloggers having what can quite simply be put as a "bitch". Now, this is something I am totally NOT cool with *queue second mean girls quote*. 

When I first started out as a blogger I loved everything about it, especially the community, however this is the only thing about blogging I now strongly dislike. A blog is a personal space to share thoughts, feelings and emotions with fellow lovers of the chosen topic; so why is it becoming a place where everyone thinks that they can slate one another?

As a blogger I know how exciting and fun it can be to work with a company, especially in the first few months of blogging. People seem to be forgetting that companies will trawl through our social media platforms to get to know us, see our following and generally to know what we're about. The last thing you want is for a company to not want to work with you because of your online etiquette. Take this tip from me and really stop, think and analyse what you're writing online. I have unfollowed a lot of people due to their "bitchyness" and online presence no matter how much I like their blog.  

I have been blocked on Twitter recently, simply for having a chat about a topic that another blogger had been having a heated discussion with said blogger.  Call me old fashioned, but isn't that what I would class as rude...and almost pathetic? Guys I'm 24 this year and I have seen better behavior from my less than 5 year old family members. Cmon, manners are free!!!

I am here to blog and enjoy what I love with like minded people. Please respect that :)

What are your thoughts on Online Etiquette?

Versatile Blogger Award

Hi

The Versatile Blogger Award isn't something I'd heard of before, until the wonderful Esther at Est.Since 94 tagged & voted for me.

How It Works

1. Thank the person who gave you this award, and leave a link to their blog.

2. Tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.

3. Select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly.

4. Nominate those 15 bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award.

7 Facts About Me

1. I love cartoons - especially Pokemon, My Little Pony and Adventure Time

2. I absolutely adore drag queens, and the drag culture

3. Number 13 is my lucky number

4. I hate holidays

5. Green and Purple are my favourite colours

6. I always forget how many, and what tattoos I have 

7. Everything Japanese is awesome

I nominate the following to do the same:

1. Sian

2. Hannah

3. Charli

4. Sarah

5. Anoushka

6. Rebecca

7. Emma

8. Lauren

9. Emmy

10. Jasmine 

I could only pick 10 out of the 15, because I couldn't pick anymore!

Enjoy x

Zing Personalised Phone Case

Ever since getting my gorgeous iPhone 6 late last year, I've been pretty disheartened with my choice of phone case. I've been rocking the boring, basic, black leather flip case since the phone arrived on my doorstep.

Zing, a phone case company have an incredible service in creating personalised phone cases at a very high standard. It's a very simple process, you pick and upload a photo onto the website and they do all the rest!

I chose to go for a photo I'd taken, something personal but not a usual choice for most. I didn't want to go for a family photo, or one with friends; something blog appropriate instead. This phone case* is personal to me and I love the brands concept.

The quality of the case is 10/10, with a smooth, crisp finish and perfect printing. Personally, I would've preferred a black case as it would go better with the space grey shade of my phone however I am still ever so happy with the finished product. 

Have you tried Zing Cases before?

Buy Me // Personalised Phone Cases
*gifted