On December

Definitely not my footprints, but those of a giant!

I am writing this snuggled up, after finishing the first season of The Crown (so good), seated at just the right angle to be able to watch the snow. I absolutely love snow; it is my all time favourite form of weather. As soon as I realised it was snowing, I wrapped up and went straight out into it. I love the crunch it makes and the glisten when it lays untouched. 

Here are some things I have been loving lately. 

Reading - I have always read a lot and since commuting I get through about a book a week. I have recently just finished His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman. I never read the second two books when I was younger but I got completely lost in them last month. I also highly recommend The Penguin Lessons by Tom Michell; it was such a lighthearted, easy read, perfect for an afternoon. 

KeepCup - I ordered one of these a little while ago after Boyf found it and thought it would be something really useful. This is such a great company; essentially they are trying to revolutionise the way we currently go to coffee shops by promoting using a reusable cup instead of the paper ones (which are horrendous for the environment). I got a Long Play which keeps cold drinks cold and hot drinks hot - and you can design your own!

Nigella Lawson - Have you been watching At My Table? I have re-discovered my love of Nigella. I recently met her at Stylist Live after watching her speak, where she was actually quite inspirational. In her new book, she writes about how complicated life can be and how it is so nice to just gather around a table and eat food which isn't complicated. She deifnitely advocates a very nice way of living!

Fortnum & Masons - I love Fortnum's. I subscribed to their emails a little while ago and everything they do is crafted so wonderfully. They make such simple things seem so luxurious; I have been over the last couple of days really enjoying their Christmas Spiced Tea. Definitely a little Christmas luxury in it's beautiful tin! 

Christmas at Southbank - We went here last week to explore the Christmas market, expecting it to be fairly standard. However, it was so much better than expected! It has the usual little stalls of crafted goods, food and mulled beverages, but it also goes all the way through into an Alpine-esque Ski Lodge with fire pits. A really lovely smaller alternative to Winter Wonderland. 

Christmas is only 15 days away (!) as is 2018 drawing ever closer. I am about to write my Christmas cards (which I am making myself this year for a lucky few!) with some classic Christmas music in the background. I hope you are all enjoying the snow (if you are experiencing it!) 

Here's to the last few weeks of weeks 2017!

xoxo

On November

Hi Guys.

How are you all?

It's been some time (again).

I am quite a fan of numerous aspects of November. I love Autumn (which I did way before it became 'a thing'). I love getting cosy. Thanksgiving is also possibly my second favourite holiday of the year (despite being British). It's such a lovely holiday; it's like Christmas with the food, merryment and decorations but without the stress and commitment of gifts. It's just about being thankful and grateful. Of all my time spent in America, that time of year was definitely one of my favourite parts. 

With that in mind, here are some updates and things I am currently really thankful. 

Big News. I moved out! Hopefully there will be some more on this to come (the stress, the ups and downs, the packing, oh my word the packing). It's exciting and scary and fun. I am full on adulting now. 

Following from that, I am falling back in love with make up again. Now, I didn't exactly fall out of love, but what with making my morning routine as slick and quick as possible, I used about three products and that was it. But now I have more time (shorter commute for the win!) I am rediscovering everything I used to love about taking that bit more time with make up. (I even ordered the Morphe palette on my lunch break..I regret nothing, it's incredible).

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. If you take any notice of any books I ever mention or that anyone recommends, read this. It is incredible. I have never, ever, been so utterly absorbed and invested in a book. I genuinely felt as though I knew the characters and they were a part of my life. Honestly, one of the best books I have ever read. 

Our building has a gym so I am finally getting back into exercising. My confidence in regards to fitness and body image has definitely become something that I have become more aware of since not doing any exercise at all so I am so happy that I can now get this back on track. I am also currently very motivated; I need to do something to counteract all the new Christmas beverages! 

Glossier. They finally ship to the UK! I know that this is not news at all, but I have ordered some of their products and thus far, am very impressed! Watch this space for more details. (Also, the packaging is worth placing an order alone). 

I also want to say thank you to everyone who has followed this blog over the years, and to the newcomers. It's been a bit of a slow journey here recently, but I am working on it. This year has been difficult in more ways than one and The Kazlight Anthem has fallen by the wayside. But I have plans on numerous levels, so please bear with me. 

Thank you all and here's to November! 

xoxo

On Taste of London 2017

Have you ever been to Taste of London Festival? It is so good! It is rated as being one of the best Food Festivals in London and definitely deserves that title (I haven't been to any others but I ended up going to this one two days running and was not at all disappointed so I feel I am safe in giving my opinion here). 

As with all festivals, you buy a ticket and then have free reign throughout the event. It is basically stalls and stalls and stalls of food and drink. Held in Regent's Park it is of course in a great location and easy to get to.

There are samples galore. You can go most of the day without actually spending that much and still feeling full. Nearly every stall has samples of some kind or are giving away something free. All in the name of promotion and deliciousness! 

Then there are the plates you can buy. They are around £4-12 for a dish and are so good. Each of the restaurants there does some of their signature dishes (on small scale and takeaway plates so you can gorge on everything) and some fancier ones especially for the Festival. There are differrent dishes across the days. These are so good. We tried one of our favourite restaurants, Balls and Company as they had Squid Ink dishes which we hadn't tried. I could not recommend enough! There are restaurants such as Temper that become so much more accessible to try. The cocktails are incredible as well. You could get ones in a whole pineapple! 

There is a whole range of food and bevbevs and something to please everyone.

The Festival is over for this year, but definitely go next year! We ended up going both Saturday and Sunday (long story) and loved both days!

It's definitely a lot of fun in a group. I would say that it is not reeeeally the best place for children; the majority of the beverages there are alcholic. 

Speaking of; did I mention the masterclasses? We did a Gin one with Sipsmith (free!) and it was incredible! You can learn so much.

And there are all the food masterclasses and shows and all the fancy stuff. We did a 'Become your own Barista' class with illy; I was abismal. You can see my latte up above; but it tasted good! There are also a load of start ups meaning that you get to try brand new products. 

It's a really great day out and I will be reminding you all to go next year if you are a foodie (or drinkie...)

Would you go?

xoxo