VEGAN CHAI LATTE CUPCAKES

It's that time of year where I want spiced everything - drinks, candles, baths, food - but especially baked goods.

Cakes.

Biscuits.

Cookies.

The lot.

I have to be quite restraint this time of year as I'm not bothered about Hallowe'en or Thanksgiving, but I'm all ready for Christmas and the festive spirit, so buying or making anything too festive has to be done at a slow inclination so not to alarm anyone that it's 9 weeks until the big C. Yep, it'll soon be see ya later 2017, did you even happen?

Back to the baking though, and something I discovered only recently is Chai Latte and boy has my world opened up! Gone are the days of just settling for tea or hot chocolate, there is a warm milky between I've been looking for! (I promise it's not as gross as it sounds)

Now potentially my favourite drink, I've made it into one of my favourite bakes with this Chai Latte infusion - it's moist (soz), spicy, and with the added chai buttercream, a yummy sweet treat that's a great accompaniment to an evening movie.

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:
400g self-raising flour
1 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
250g caster sugar
115ml sunflower oil
400ml dairy-free milk
3 tbsp golden sugar
3 tbsp Chai Latte powder

For the icing:
200g butter
165g sifted icing sugar
10g Chai Latte powder

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180ºc and line your cupcake tray. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, chai latte powder and sugar into a mixing bowl and combine. In a separate jug, whisk together the oil, milk, and syrup, before pouring into the dry mix and whisking until creamy and combined.

2. Spoon equal amounts into the cupcake cases, and cook for 10-15 minutes until risen and golden. Whilst they bake, mix together the icing sugar, butter and chai latte powder and put aside to set so it's easier to pipe!

3. Once the cupcakes are out and cooled, either spoon or take a plastic bag to pipe out a nice icing top, and finish with a dusting of cinnamon or chai.

Easy peasy, nice-y spicy, what better treat to whip up on a Monday ey?

x

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THINGS I LOVE ABOUT AUTUMN

Despite being a cold-blooded lizard, I really love autumn - you still get those warm bright days, with just enough chill to wear a jumper and scarf, and it's also instant cosiness wherever you look thanks to the warmth of the turning leaves and variety of syrups in your hot chocolate.

To make Monday a bit easier, and get fully into the spirit of autumn, here are a few things I love about the season...

Candles
Nothing screams autumn more than lighting at least 10 scented candles around the house and basking in spiced goodness. My personal faves include Yankee Candle Cinnamon Stick, Gingerbread and Pumpkin Pie from Lindsay Lucas Candles, and White Company Winter, which I know is 'winter' but it's definitely an overall festive season smell (that's what I tell myself anyway).

Warm drinks
Obviously hot drinks aren't exclusive to autumn, but I certainly drink a lot more of them once the temperature drops! I'm not into coffee so a lot of the time it's hot chocolate and tea, with my current warming and spicy faves being Pukka Original Chai and Vanilla Chai - both packed with my bae cinnamon and his warm pals ginger and cardamom - and if I'm really fancy then I go full blow chai latte (although I'm still having difficulty trying to nail the tea to milk ratio at home, Pret's coconut chai is incredible). There's also hot chocolate, and speaking of...

Flavoured Syrups
Why have straight up chocolate when you can flavour it?! When it's in season, I ask for a PSHC - that's Pumpkin Spice Hot Chocolate, which is incredible, but all Starbucks baristas malfunction when you ask for it - because again, what is better than warming spices in your drink?! Cinnamon and caramel are also good shouts, but I've been experimenting with a mix of Chai syrup and Pumpkin Caramel syrup, which is sweet enough to give you a filling but very very delicious!

Jumpers
A classic fave, there's nothing a jumper can't solve! Jeans, skirts, trousers, they're easy to throw on and style, so when the weather dips I know I've got my wardrobe 80% nailed on a daily basis (thanks to my 80% wardrobe of jumpers!)

Blankets, lots of blankets
I never used to 'get' blankets, why did people love them so much? Fast forward a few years and now I can't get enough of them - I've got blankets for decoration, for cosy toes, in colours for all the seasons, and I recently picked up two very seasonal pieces for photos and extra toe layering (because of the cold blood) from Homesense. Now all I need is a movie and a roaring fire and I'm all set!

Thick socks and boots
Maybe it's the classic Brit thing of wanting to jump all into the cold weather fast, but I love nothing more than cosy toes and fluffy socks. If I can crack my thermal socks out and Uggs, then it's going to be one comfy day of walking ;)

Not having to shave my legs all the time
Don't tell me you haven't fist-pumped the air a little when you realise it's that time of year when you don't really have to whip a razor out every other day. It's joyous, and I don't blame you for being so, it's another layer and as if I'm getting my ankles out for anything under 20 degrees ;)

All the red and orange makeup
As well as the warm tones in the trees, I love how we all start to add a bit more red and orange into our beauty routines - a darker burgundy lip, some terracotta eyeshadow, and a dusty rose manicure? Sounds like perfection! My fave shades include NYX Lip Lingerie in Exotic, Smashbox Lipstick in Wrap Party, PUR Liquid Lipstick in Addiction, and for the eyes I'm all about Too Faced Natural Matte Palette.

More roast dinners
Roasts are a Sunday classic, but come autumn they're at least a twice weekly (sometimes thrice) staple. The more potato the better, carb me up to Christmas!

Some products in this post may have been sent for review or gifted, and will be marked with a * or c/o. All opinions are mine are not influenced by brands or companies. Please see my full disclaimer for more.

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BLOGGING AND ETHICS

Well didn't October come around quickly? I feel like the last month, heck the last year, has flown by and I've been so disorganised with blogging recently that I'm slapping my wrists and getting down with some lists to work my way back onto the content train again...

...Starting with these beautiful striped People Tree trousers, which as usual I picked up ages ago and took some time to photograph, but they've quickly become a saving grace when my regular jeans option has been rinsed to death, and also fit a bit better on my butt which is nice - I did have to turn up the legs though which makes me feel like I'm back in 2006 when I had to stitch my school trousers several times for them to stop skimming my new Clarks.

I'm really adamant on buying sustainable clothing, anything that's come from recycled materials or is sourced from fairtrade businesses, just good clothes that do good in the long-term and also look great too. I've picked up a few pieces from People Tree so far this year and I am impressed with the quality and also how stylish the pieces look - which can be hard when looking for sustainable clothing let me tell you.

Sure, they're a pricey investment (I did have a discount code for them, god bless voucher code websites) but they are made within ethical guidelines and give back to the community they came from, which is a win-win all round for everyone!

I have been thinking a lot about this topic recently, mostly because I need new jeans - I know, it's a first world problem, but my mom jeans have got to that stage where no amount of hot washes can save me from a saggy butt - but I already have 5 pairs, 3 which are mom jeans and are going saggy and two which were expensive mid-rises that I hardly wear because they are mid-rise. Logic.

So I feel bad about buying new, better fitting jeans, because I already have jeans that I'm not getting cost per wear out of, and weren't really that ethical a purchase in the first place.

(Can you tell I'm really not doing enough with my time when this is on my daily list of problems?)

What would be more true a statement is that I feel bad that I made an impractical purchase, and am now trying to talk myself out of making a better purchase because of the guilt of already owning what I believe to be 'too many pairs' that I should just deal with a saggy butt.

It's bad ethics all around - even though at the time sustainable clothing wasn't a priority, I didn't really think about what fit me well, the quality, the price, how much wear the items would get, and now because I'm part of both the machines of blogging and consumerism, I feel I'm giving my money away for content and for more materials of clothing than I actually need.

It feels the same when it comes to creating content, that it seems so easy to compromise our own ethics for money to survive, only to talk about something we have no interest in or wouldn't actually buy, or we're offered such a low rate that it's not even enough to cover the cost of time in creating the piece.

It's only the last few days it's niggled at me, because I only accept and work with brands that are cruelty-free, vegan, or sustainable, yet I get offers for sponsored work that I agree to and then find out later the brand has nothing related to my ethics because it wasn't disclosed beforehand. Heck I've even got offers to review a steakhouse, which is really not on brand.

It's easy to want to accept £50 or a free meal because it raises your visibility and shows you doing stuff instead of sitting at your laptop wondering how you can make the same ol'skincare new, but it's also easy to say no to something you know won't benefit you in the long run (a 7oz definitely wouldn't, lord knows what would happen)

So I'm going to go buy my new pairs of jeans (all made from sustainable cotton which is better than it not being sustainable at all) and if they don't fit, then it's okay, because I can make what I have work, because I still enjoy them (even if my butt doesn't) and I still have cool sustainable options to work with (which my butt does like), and that's a more relaxed ethical approach I can get on board with...for now...

 

Photos by the fab Ghenet! x



Some products in this post may have been sent for review or gifted, and will be marked with a * or c/o. All opinions are mine are not influenced by brands or companies. Please see my full disclaimer for more.

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RECENT WORK - BLOGOSPHERE MAGAZINE ISSUE 14

Another quarter of the year has passed which means a new issue of Blogosphere has gone to print, and it's been a pleasure again to work with the fab team at the magazine on several photography features.

Issue 14 is a beast of a magazine, featuring all the winners from the first Blogosphere Blog Awards including Claire and Laura from Twins That Travel, who I got to photograph for their winner's interview - they're both such lovely ladies and it was fun getting them to laugh at tales of their travels for the photo!

Another feature I worked on was Charlotte Jonsie's interview, which is probably one of my favourites as I got to sit in on the full recording and her insight and perspective on life is so incredible; she has an amazing positivity and ethic to her daily life, and she's also one awesome model - I need to practise her methods of studying people who look similar to me and my style and emulate their sass and cool!

Finally wrapping up this issue is my first editing job for the photography section, selecting some of my favourite photographers (all female, all totally kickass) who are killing it at their careers right now - Michaela, Rosie, Sophie, and Ella - and have produced some amazing content over the last few months let alone the last year.

It's always great to work with the Blogosphere team, and with a publication that supports the industry, so if you haven't picked up a copy yet, get down to your local WHSmith or subscribe here - p.s. I'm also part of the Photography panel at the Blogosphere Christmas Festival which is super exciting, so make sure to grab a ticket and come listen to me chat with some other amazing industry photographers.

x

Some products in this post may have been sent for review or gifted, and will be marked with a * or c/o. All opinions are mine are not influenced by brands or companies. Please see my full disclaimer for more.

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CHASING THE SUN - SUNRISE IN ES CANAR, IBIZA

As I mentioned in my last post, we'd decided the night before to get up at the crack of dawn on our last day and chase the sunrise to soak in as many of the hours we had left on the island as possible, and also get some glorious photos that made us look 10x more tanned than real life.

With it being another hot day (even at 7am), and about 30 minutes before the sun rose fully above our part of the island, we quickly got dressed, assembled our kit, and headed down to a cove we'd stumbled upon the day before for a sun bath of warmth and colour to shoot in.

The sea was glistening, the sun was glistening, and our skin most definitely was glistening after all the warmth and humidity. Thankfully though, you couldn't really tell how glossy we were irl and it came off as a nice highlight instead, but really every crevice was sweating and it wasn't cute but that's the sacrifice of a hot summer holiday right? ;) After much deliberation with the white balance (my bad), we finally got our best non-sweaty angles on and cracked on with the posing!

I think the silhouette photos are some of my faves from the trip, it was just so fun to get creative with shadows and the light was absolutely stunning, and as I said it hid all matter of sweat sins and squinting - there was a lot of squinting, because this gal forgot her sunglasses of course! - and also made me feel like we were all supermodels on location, and with our blogger team unit we certainly looked like a pro-team, all hands on to 'get that shot' for the gram.

There's not a lot you can say about 30 minutes of sunshine frolicking, so I wanted to end on a sweet note about these ladies - we probably only spent 60 hours together in total, but I feel we really created a close knit bond and really connected with one another so quickly. Since leaving, we've been messaging daily on WhatsApp, arranging a little reunion, and pointing out all the flamingos we see in daily life to make it feel like we're still abroad.

Jaye, what a fabulous trooper you were driving us around, you really handled a stressful situation well and I loved seeing how confident you became driving in a short period of time. Thanks for keeping me company to and from the airport home (you're a true babe), and thanks for introducing me to chai latte along with Kelly; Kelly, you were such a fabulous roommate - I really felt you balanced my personality and made me a bit more chill (and it's not because of the xanax), and you gave me such a confidence boost I basically need you with me all the time.

Jess you were the backbone of travel knowhow and always felt like the one to chat with when you wanted a moment of calm - you were also the biggest inspo for photo editing apps and generally being on top of your game, I need you to coach me in your technical knowhow and scheduling wizardry! And Leigh you were such a kindred spirit, you really had a beautiful zen vibe and it was great to find a fellow vegan on the trip who was also into spiritual practises (you also had an amazing wardrobe and I totally envy your style).

So with our final activity wrapped, it was time to say goodbye to Ibiza - but don't worry, there's still a few more posts to come...

x

Huge thank you again to Enterprise and Talented Talkers for inviting us on this trip. All opinions and love of sunshine are my own.

Some products in this post may have been sent for review or gifted, and will be marked with a * or c/o. All opinions are mine are not influenced by brands or companies. Please see my full disclaimer for more.

Website | Flickr | Tumblr | Twitter | Bloglovin | Instagram | Pinterest

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