My Pinterest Guide To Food Shopping

When it comes to food shopping its all a bit confusing figuring what things you actually need rather than want, then you find yourself with a basket of chocolate and snacks that go way over the budget. This has taken me a long time to get the hang of but I have finally found the ultimate guide to food shopping and eliminates all the things you don't need and sticks to the budget- all with the help of Pinterest.

So first I like to start out with a list of the basics, the stuff you always buy that won't change. Here's an example of what I add to my 'basics list'. 

The Basics

• Milk
• Butter

• Eggs

• Bread

• Fruit

• Pasta

• Rice

• Tea

• Coffee

I find it quicker and easier to do an online food shop so I will go through this list in my kitchen to see what I have in and add thing to the items I am out of to my basket. If you prefer to go into the store to do your shop then I recommend to keep this basic list on your phone then copy and paste this list to an new list with only the items you need to buy. 

Now comes the fun bit... Yes I think meal planning is fun.

Before my food shop I will find recipes that I want to make for the week ahead on Pinterest or online then add them to my Pinterest board. I have two broads that I use for this... my 'Meals' board and a board I make up each week for the meals I will be making.

The 'Meals' board is a collection of recipes I have pinned to make in the future, like an online collection of recipes. Then each week I will make a board of meals for the week and pin recipes from my 'Meals' board onto my weekly board. I will mainly pin dinner meals instead of lunch and breakfast since those meals are normally a 'make up on the go' type of thing with the ingredients I have in the kitchen.




Now that I have made my weekly recipes board, I start going through the recipes and add ingredients into my online basket. I normally do this pacing around the kitchen like a mad women searching through my cupboards to make sure I don't add something I already have.

Voila, that is my 'Pinterest Guide to Food Shopping'. This save so much money when cooking things from recipes and saves me craving for takeaway- but don't get me wrong, I still LOVE a good takeaway. This allows me to get more creative in the kitchen and play around with new recipes!

Let me know if you give this a try and how you guys like it ♥     

Blush: Powder, Loose, Cream or Liquid?

Nowadays you can find blush in pretty much any form, from liquid to mineral powder, the beauty brands have got you covered. This post is going to go through the main types of blush, where and how to wear them, with some recommendations thrown into the mix. 

bareMinerals Blush in Promise

Loose Powder Blush

This is the riskiest one of them all, but the finish is beautiful. Any skin type would suit this blush, as this product tends to be very finely milled and avoids the cakey look. So you won't find this clinging onto dry skin patches. I would recommend using a sparse brush for this type of blush product, you want to make sure that minimal product is picked up on the brush when you are applying. Remember you can always add product but it gets a little tricky taking it away! My favourite brush to use for this is the Real Techniques Blush Brush, the tapered end is great for applying product to the apples of the cheeks and the sparse bristles only pick up the amount needed. 

Topshop Cream Blush in Head Over Heels

Cream Blush

The perfect one for that natural wash of colour. If you have dry or mature skin this is the blush to go for, its moisturising and will give that youthful glow. I find the best brush to use is a stippling brush, my favourite being the Real Techniques Stippling Brush. After I apply the product with the brush I use my fingers to blend it into the skin a bit more and you end up with a muted wash of colour and a lovely dewy glow.  

Benefit's benetint lip and cheek stain

Liquid Blush

The product I go for when I want that 'pinched cheeks' kind of look. If you have oily skin, liquid blush would be perfect for you as a stain will stay on you cheeks all day and not budge. This one is safest applied with your fingers, but you have to act quick with blending. Just put a drop or two on your fingers, apply on the apples of the cheeks and blend. If you need to eliminate that clownesque look then grab your foundation brush and lightly go over the blush to soften the colour.

MAC Powder Blush in Melba

Powder Blush

Last but definitely not least is the trusty powder blush. Powder blush is good for any skin type dry, oily or combination. This one gives a simple but sophisticated look with a matte finish on the skin. These blushes tend to be quite pigmented depending on what brand you go for so I use a sparse tapered brush for this product, typically the Real Techniques Blush Brush (you can never go wrong with Real Techniques Brushes).  

Essie 'Lady Like'

I refer to this shade as the perfect fall purple, with spring and summer being lilac and winter as burgundy. If you like neutrals you will also probably be as in love with this shade as I am. And the name? Well the name really does match the shade. It oozes sophisticated lady in a bottle, but with a slight colour twist compared to the usual sheer pinks and nudes. The formula flaunts the usual Essie way- a non gloopy one, full of colour, with a thin brush for great application.

If you do fancy stepping up your 'Lady Like' side a notch this fall, you can pick up this beauty here in Boots for £7.99.

Three Books You Should Read

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?: (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling

If you like the Mindy Project then you will like this, if you have never watched or heard of the Mindy Project but like an autobiography, with a bit of humour and wit thrown in- you will also like this. Mindy Kailing shares her experiences and life lessons but with a personal twist, showing that life is not what you see in the movies it's full of humour, less than ideal situations and a little embarrassing.

Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Women Tells You What She's Learned by Lena Dunham

Also an autobiography with both wit and honesty, you learn exactly how Lena Dunham got to where she is now. I am a big fan of her show Girls because of its truthful experiences never shown through rose coloured glasses. This is very much reflected in this book which is why I love it so much. If you are a girl in your twenties this is perfect for some life advice and reassurance that even if everything does not go to plan, doesn't mean you will fail.

The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks
I have always been a lover of Nicholas Sparks, he writes the perfect love story that will definitely need a box of tissues along with it. This book is perfect read when you just want to relax (preferably with a glass of wine). This book writes the dramas of falling in love from a story of a past love and a current one. I won't give anything away, but when the two stories meet the twist will leave your heart melting.

Five Apps You Should Have For Blogging

Notes...
This app is great to jot down any ideas you have throughout the day. As I mentioned in my previous post 'Tips for Blogging in Full Time Education/Work' I might get ideas when I'm walking around in the day, from seeing outfit ideas or a nail polish colour someone is wearing.

Bloglovin'...
I use this app for a lot of things, to get ideas for blog posts from other bloggers, interact with bloggers and save tips to improve my blogging or a product I might want to try out. The app gives you notifications when someone you are following publishes a new post, so at a lunch break or throughout the day, this is great to give you something to read and interact with the bloggers by commenting. In this app you can also create Collections these are groups of saved blog posts from the bloggers, for example, I have a group called 'Blogging Tips' which consist of blog posts that have tips on how to improve my blog or blogging process.

Canva...
If you are creating an image for your blog post but feel like it's a bit sparse and needs a little something extra this app is the one. Canva has creative fonts and shapes to add to your images so it looks like graphic designer might have gotten their hands on it. I used this app for 'The Vitamin C Booster Smoothie' post, this made the perfect image to advertise my blog post on Pinterest and other social media.

Pinterest...

This is my place of inspiration if I am stuck in a blogging 'rut'. With all of the beautiful fashion, DIY, food and beauty photography you are bound to get an idea of what to write about. This is an app that I tend to scroll through in my spare time or when I'm commuting. Pinterest is also a place to promote your blog, I recommend adding the Pinterest botton to your blog pictures (go here for how to add this) so either your readers can pin your images or you can to advertise your posts to other 'pinners'.

Instagram...

This is another place of inspiration and a great way to promote your blog. Set up an account for your blog to show up and coming blog posts and interact with other bloggers. If you have written a blog post on the perfect slutty brownie recipe- show other bloggers and food lovers #foodporn. 

The Secret To Healthy Nails

This is an image of my nails completely natural, with no polish on!

My nails used to be in horrible condition- flaky, always broke and were never the same length. I have used a lot of products to try and find something that can help with them- O.P.I Nail envy, Dr. LeWinn's Nail Strengthener and home remedies such as olive oil with lemon. None of these really worked any wonders and the nail strengtheners were around £20 a bottle which just burnt a hole in my purse repurchasing them. 

That's until I found Rimmel Nail Rescue- it is bad but sometimes I do judge a book by it's cover or rather a nail polish my it's brand. This is not to say I don't love Rimmel products but I didn't think they would be any better than O.P.I so I never bothered trying them. Big mistake.

One of my friends introduced me to this and said she uses it as a base coat under her nail polish as well as on it's own. I noticed after a couple uses how much better my nails were looking, after purchasing a bottle and few more times of using it my nails weren't flaky anymore and thicker which meant less breakage. 

I 100% recommend this, at only £4.49 from Boots you can't really go wrong!

Get Rimmel Nail Rescue here at Boots!

Tips for Blogging in Full Time Education/Work

Schedule which days you will be posting...

This is simply to make a schedule, you can then plan when to write your blog posts around your week and other deadlines you will have. I have a schedule of posting 2 times a week, on Monday's and Thursday's. In my opinion this amount is manageable with other full time commitments. 

However saying that, some weeks differ- you can have a quiet week and you could manage to post 4-5 times a week, but then you could have a very busy week with only enough time to post 1-2 times a week. I tend to stick to the schedule and save blog posts for those busier weeks. Then, if you feel like you can handle more posts each week, increase it by another day and so on. 

Take as many photos as possible in your free time...

Taking pictures for you blog can be tricky sometimes, if you are just starting out blogging then you may not have the equipment such as light boxes, forcing you to rely on natural light. 

If you are working or studying full time, then chances are you will be doing that in the prime time to take pictures. Therefore, the weekend is the best time to utilise the natural light and take as many pictures as possible to plan for the week of posts ahead. 

Write lots of blog posts ready to publish...

As I mentioned before, some weeks will be busier than others and these very busy weeks can be stressful when you still need to write those blog posts. To put a stop to those rushed, stress filled posts  I write a collection of filler posts you could say. These tend to be posts like 'Links I've Been Loving' and 'Wishlists', I write these posts my spare time and only use them for those jam-packed weeks.

In addition to this, I will also write as many blog posts as possible in the weeks I'm not very busy so there is no worry about not having anything to publish.

Use a notes app on your phone to record new blog post ideas...

Sometimes bloggers can go through a bit of a bloggers block. To get as many ideas flowing as possible as soon as I think of one I write it down, otherwise I will probably forget it by the time I get home. I use the Notes app on my iPhone for this which works great because my phone is on me most of the time and I can quickly jot ideas down. An idea can come suddenly from anything from tasting something delicious to inspire a recipe to seeing how someone wore their kimono. 

Have posts ready for social media e.g. Instagram, twitter...

This is to keep up with social media, the more you are posting, the more people discover you and your blog. If you are a regular poster this will also help to maintain and raise your followers. However, in full time study or work there are some days where work is the only thing you have done and there is literally nothing exciting to report from your day. Try to refrain from not posting at all. Anything I see that I think would look great on my Instagram feed, I take a picture of it- but I limit my posts so I am not posting 5 times a day on the weekend and none at all in the weekdays. I try and stick to one a day or every other day- this all depends on the amount of images you tend to take per week.

I hope some of these tips help and I would love to hear any tips you have in the comments!