Cosy Cardigan| OOTD

This is my outfit from last Friday night. Not a wild night like Katy Perry's Friday nights, but more just dinner and drinks at a lovely pub in the outskirts of Newcastle. Very casual and cosy (it was -2C outside!)

I basically dressed down a dress I would wear to party in, by teaming it with chunky knit tights, and chunky knit cardigan, pulled in at the waist with a skinny belt.

*Dress- Dorothy Perkins*

*Cardigan-Primark*

*Tights- Topshop*

*Shoes- Primark*

I hoped you all made the most of your cosy knits over the past few weeks while its been freezing!

Fitness Fridays| Little changes equal big changes

Image taken from We Heart It

So a few of the past Fitness Friday articles may have been a little daunting or a too big of a challenge for some of my lovely readers and followers. Therefore today I am offering some advice on the little changes that everyone can make that will make a big change to your life and health, so here we go;

1. Eat before you exercise- research shows that your body burns the same amount of fat whether you eat before exercise or not. However exercising on an empty stomach means you exhaust your supply of glycogen (this is glucose you store for energy). If you do this you will end up burning more your muscle instead of building it... not good girls!
2. Combine your strength exercises- do not just lift your arms weights while standing still. If you are doing arms lifts with your free weights, combine these movements with squats, as the more muscles you use at the same time the more calories you will burn. Don't over do it though! 
3. Beware of mini-sized snacks- you may think eating snack size treats is being good, however studies have shown that it is easy to overeat these. This is because it makes it harder to stick to one portion, your silly little mind believes that because the calorie count is so low on these snacks, you convince yourself that its OK to have seconds. Its OK if you have the iron will and will power, but just be careful girls! 
4. Reduce your rest time- The fewer rests you do mean you do the same amount of work, but in less time, therefore reducing your workout time, or meaning you can do twice as much work in the same amount of time. In a study, it was found that people who waited 35 seconds between exercise sets lost 27% more body fat than those who rested for three minutes.
5. Eat protein at every meal- Please please so this girls! This will dramatically change your diet for the better, so if you make one change do this! You will fell fuller for longer, which prevents you from snacking. The best sources are eggs, lean meat and fish, and nuts.  

Metallic Nails| NOTD

Another look at what my nails are dressed up like today. I think they look quite futuristic! I hope you like them.

Valentines Day

I hope you all had a lovely day, whatever you were doing. I am one of my only friends that is in a relationship, so the majority of people I know were on nights out. I stayed in with my boyfriend, and treated him to a three course dinner cooked from scratch from me. It took me all day seems I am an awful cook, but I thought it was more special that taking him out. 

I think I did alright. What did you do for your special someone? Or did you treat yourself?

Grammy Awards vs Bafta Awards- US vs UK- The Good, Bad and Awful

Two award shows in one night, weren't we spoilt! Two great shows, and two great red carpet fashion parades. I am going to share with you my good, bad and ugly for each of the awards. Personally after looking through hundreds of pictures of both award shows I think the fashion in both has been outstanding. The dresses at the Baftas were beautiful, I actually struggled to find dresses I didn't like. 

The Good- Bafta Awards

Penelope Cruz Looked stunning in this simple dress. 

Michelle Williams really stood out for me, the dress is  simple but the monochrome colours give  it an edge. I love the Book clutch bag also.

Melissa George- This Victoria Beckham dress is right on trend at the moment, a lot of sparkly dresses have been worn on the Red Carpet this season. I love the pop of colour with her lipstick, a really sexy look.

The Good- Grammy Awards

Adele had to be mentioned. This girl is all over the headlines today. She looks amazing in this dress, her recent weight-loss and her change hair style have transformed her into a classic sex siren. She looks Sexy, classy and beautiful

Finally Kelly Osbourne is not on the worst dressed list. She has finally chosen a dress that is fun, young and flirty, much more age appropriate. 

Carrie Underwood is a show topper in this gorgeous backless gown. Again a sparkly number. The monochrome, because of the black clutch really make this outfit stand out. 

The Bad- Bafta Awards

I don't like the length of Hayley Atwell's dress, its not three quarter length and nor is it full length, its in-between. 

I don't know what to say about this apart from its a bit of a mess. Octavia Spencer even looks miserable about wearing it.

Christina Ricci looks like she is wearing a tinfoil dress, it looks cheap to me.

The Bad- Grammy Awards

Oh dear! Yes Fergie you have a lovely figure, but we don't need to see it right now, not appropriate at all.

Aww poor Jessie, she made a real effort to dress up and then she looks like she is wrapped in tinfoil also. This dress does not flatter her, she looks way bigger than what she is. 

Sasha Gradiva- What is this! just why? Why the gun? Otherwise it would be a pretty dress.

The Awful- Bafta Awards

I can see what Edith Boweman was trying to do, the vintage dress, paired with the gloves (similar to Sarah Jessica Parker) However I don't think she's pulled it off, and looks quite frumpy.

The Awful- Grammy Awards

Nicki Minaj- Oh Dear! She is like Lady Gaga, as in they are both not able to just wear a dress, they have to wear a costume and make a statement. In my opinion, yes they attract column inches, but please keep costumes for the stage, not formal events.

Who was your best dressed of the night? Anyone a step above anyone else? Who was your least favourite?

Glamorous Eyes| FOTD

Argh...Eyelash problems 

Another look that I call glamorous casual, as when the eye is closed, the makeup looks quite dramatic, but when the eye is open and paired with a simple face overall, the look is casual. I wore this to dinner and drinks one night. 

To get this look I used

Face-

Foudation- Rimmel Stay Matte

Bronzer- Rimmel Sun Shimmer

Blusher- Rimmel Blush, Shade- Pink Rose

Eyes-

Eye shadows- Urban Decay Naked Pallete- Darkhorse, Smog, Sidecar and Virgin for highlighting.

Mascara- Rimmel Scandeleyes

Fake Eyelashes- Eyelure

Fitness Friday| Looking hot while becoming hot!

This week, I'm being less lecturer like, and I am going to ask you all to look hot while you work out... a bit more fun, as we all love shopping!

It will be much easier for you to be motivated to work out if you have cute new workout clothes to wear, so chuck out those tatty leggings and over-sized T-shirts and get yourself something hot. 

Depending on which exercises you do, you will need different clothes for the activity.

Running

Properly designed footwear is essential.
Nike Air Max Excellerate Plus
 Ladies  Running Shoe-  £75
Sports Direct

Jacket- £65
Sweaty Betty

Yoga

Yoga Pants £60
Sweaty Betty

Yoga Top £38
Sweaty Betty

Dance/Aerobics

A sports bra, is essential for
every workout you do!
Look after your boobs!
£22
Sports direct

Capri Pant £17.95
Nike.com

I hope you all invest in some sexy workout clothes!