Let's Bake | Lemon Drizzle Cake

 

What you need:

2 Lemons 

3 Eggs

A tea spoon of Baking Powder

8oz of icing sugar
8oz of caster sugar

8oz of butter

8oz of self raising flour 

 

A couple of weeks ago you might have seen a tasty looking lemon drizzle cake pop up on my Instagram- you can follow me at @terriswan if you don't already. My sister and I set about making the cake to find our scales where a bit rubbish -must invest in better scales- so we had to adapt the amount into onuses, thank you Google!

Here's what we did:

Start by preheating your oven to 180 degrees then grate the zest of two lemons and add it to a bowl with the flour, caster sugar, butter, egg and baking powder. 

We then mixed the ingredients together and placed the mix into a loaf/cake tin, make sure to pre-grease the tin before putting in the ingredients. 

Leave in the oven to cook this will take around 40 minutes, however tempting don't open the oven door! If your unsure if the cake is cooked or not you can put a knife through the middle of it comes out clear then it ready and I it comes out with cake mix on it then it needs longer in the oven. 

While the cake is cooking you can get your icing ready to do this all you need to do it mix the icing sugar and the juice of two lemons together. 

Once the cake is ready take a knife and poke little holes into the cake then pour your icing over the cake. You can do this when it's still warm or once it's cooked, I done it while it was still warm so the icing would infuse the inside of the cake. I then let the cake cool and put a little lemon zest on the top then it was ready to eat. It really is that easy and it tastes delicious, the perfect spring cake!

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Blanx White Shock Teeth Whitening

 

 

 

A few weeks ago I picked up the BlanX White Shock Teeth Whitening Treatment £15.99 from Boots. I've been wanting to whitening my teeth for a while now but wasn't sure about at home kits but this one seemed simple no fiddly strips or making your own mouth mould so I decided to give it ago. The kit includes a whitening toothpaste and a LED bite and the instructions are simple, brush your teeth 3 times a day using the whitening toothpaste and use the LED bite after brushing for one minute and once a week for 10 minutes. BlanX White Shock Teeth Whitening Treatment claims to get your teeth up to 4 shades whiter in 2 weeks.

I found the kit really easy to use and the routine was nice and simple, the toothpaste was a little bit waterier than your average toothpaste and I found it had a slight taste of the dentist. The LED bite fits nicely into your mouth and when you press the button it lights up blue, the bite also switches itself off after 5 minutes which is a tad annoying when your doing your weekly 10 minutes. I noticed a difference in my teeth a couple of days in nothing wow but they looked slightly whiter and I was impressed with how fast it worked. My toothpaste lasted just over the two week mark so I kept it up until it ran out by the end my teeth definitely looked a couple of shades whiter. This was my first time trying to whiten my teeth and the results were good I found the kit really simple and easy to use and my teeth did look whiter, I'm not sure how long the results will last though.

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Twin Atlantic | The SSE Hydro | 09/05/15

Photo Credit

 

Photo Credit

Photo Credit

Last weekend was undoubtedly Twin Atlantics biggest gig to date which saw them play The SSE Hydro in Glasgow. As the lights came down Bohemian Rhapsody played out and the crowd sung back word for word. When Twin took to the stage the crowd erupted, the boys were home and Glasgow was so, so happy to have them!

They started their set with Make A Beast Of Myself as Sam belted out 'it's great to be home' and the entire set was packed full of hits old and new. You could tell the band were incredibly happy and the crowd was witnessing a very special thing a group of hometown lads living their dream playing Scotland's biggest venue. The energy didn't dip once during the entire set even on the slower ballad songs the hydro was lit up with phone lights and the crowd still singing along. During I Am An Animal Sam McTrusty got the entire standing crown to sit down - a hydro first I believe - and jump back up which was fun and I imagine looked amazing from the stage and seating area. Crash Land is always a highlight at any Twin Atlantic gig and this time was no exception as the entire crowd sang back and along to it, in an especially gorgeous moment. 

'And that's why you're the fucking greatest city in the world' declared McTrusty, while he couldn't get over the fact he could ask if the people in the seats were ok. With the encore came a balloon drop and an ecstatic crowd, no one wanted it to end. It was a great night that I'm sure the band will never forget and they've set themselves up nicely for T in the Park, see you there!

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Anastasia Brow Dip Pomade

A few weeks ago I got sucked in to a promotion on BeautyBay and ended up buying myself the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Dip Pomade £15 and the Anastasia Beverly Hills Duo Brow Brush #12 £14. I got 15% off which was what persuaded me to buy these as lets face it they aren't exactly cheap but the discount managed to soften the blow a bit, admittedly they were still on the expensive side. This product has got a lot of hype over the past year between the Dip Brow and the Brow Whiz Anastasia Beverly Hills is leading the way in brow products. I was really impressed with the colour range available there are 11 shades to choose from whereas most drugstore brands only offer around two and I find the brunette ones can be rather red toned.

I went for the shade dark brown and it's a cool toned dark brown that looks great on my eyebrows, you only need a little bit to do your brows I recommend having a cotton pad on hand to remove the excess before you apply it. You can use this to create both strong and natural brows and the Duo Brow Brush is perfect for applying it, it makes sculpting and defining your eyebrows easy once you get the hang of it. The Dip Brow Pomade is waterproof which I can completely agree with I poked and prodded and tried my hardest to smudge it once I'd applied it and it stayed put so you can itch those eyebrows without creating a mess!

I'm really impressed with the ABH Dip Brow I can completely see why it's got all the hype and it's pushed all my other brow kits aside. This is now pride of place in my make up bag and the brow product that I reach for on a daily basis, it's not cheap but if you struggle to find the right brow shade on the high street it's worth investing in because it looks like it will last a long time.

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Evening Skincare Routine

 

 

 

The other day I posted my morning skincare routine and today I'm sharing my evening one with you. I take my evening skincare a bit more serious that my morning one mostly because I'm not rushed. I start with The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil  £10 I used 2 pumps and work it all over my face on top of my makeup until my make up dissolves away then I use a cloth to remove the oil and make up. Next I like to give my face a scrub and I like to use Soap and Glory Scrub Your Nose In It £9 to give my skin a bit of a scrub and exfoliation, it leaves my skin feeling fresh and clean without being too rough and leaving my face really red also it helps refine pores. I do both these steps either in the sink or in the shower if I'm being lazy which is more often that not.

Then after my shower I put some Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water £4.99 on to cotton pads and apply it over my face and eyes so that my face is super clean and to make sure that I haven't missed any grime or makeup before using Lush Tea Tree Water Toner £7.95, I'll spritz a couple of sprays over my face and neck then use cotton pads to remove it. The toner feels so refreshing and the bottle is so big that it lasts for ages. After I've done all that I let my skin breath for a minute or so before applying a night cream. My everyday night cream is cheap and cheerful is the Nivea Daily Essentials Regenerating Night Cream £4.19 I slather it over my face and neck it's a rich thick moisturiser that leaves my skin so soft and moisturised by the morning, then apply some Nuxe Reve De Miel Lip Balm £9.50 on my lips and I'm ready for bed this lip balm is one of my all time favourites it leaves my lips feeling moisturised and hydrated for hours. 

Every now and again I'll mix up my skincare routine by throwing in an oil or a serum or using a different moisturiser depending on how my skin is but overall this is my normal everyday evening skincare routine.

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Another Mini Beauty Haul



Damn those 3 for 2 offers! It's so hard to resist especially when you work and town and pass the shops twice a day. A few weeks ago I post a mini beauty haul and you can read that here, today I've got another mini beauty haul for you. I like to take advantage of makeup 3 for 2 and use it as the perfect excuse to try new products keep on reading if you'd like to hear what I've picked up lately.

 

First I'll start with the cheapest product a £1 lipstick that I got from Superdrug. My local Superdrug have just started to stock Makeup Revolution and I'd been wanting to try this range for a while as I heard great things about it. When I went it lots of the product space said coming soon so I picked up a lipstick and went for a colour that I don't have anything like already. I bought the shade Depraved part of the Makeup Revolution Scandalous range which is purple in the packaging but more of a lilac purple when swatches, I love the colour its a little different from most of the purple drugstore lipsticks out there.
 



 

Now onto Boots 3 for 2. I bought myself two new foundations both I'd been wanting to try for a while now firstly I got the Bourjois 123 Perfect Foundation £10.99 because I love the CC cream version of this product and wanted to see how the foundation fairs. I also bought the MaxFactor Skin Luminizer £11.99 another foundations I'd wanted to try for a while and never got round to, I'm hoping it will give a nice dewy luminous finish perfect for spring and summer. With my Body Shop Honey Bronzer practically gone (I've hit Pan and have the smallest outline left!) I decided to try a new bronzer and I've heard so many rave rivers about the Soap & Glory Solar Powder £11 that I decided to give it a try for myself, it looks so pretty I hope it's as good as everyone said.

 

On my next trip to Boots -the next day no joke- I bought myself the Rimmel Lasting Perfecting Primer £6.99 as I needed a new primer, I went for this one as it's not a mattifying one like lots of others and I've seen some good reviews on it. Then I got myself a gorgeous cream blusher from Revlon Photoready Cream Blush range £7.99 I wasn't looking for a blusher but when I walked past the Revlon stand this caught my eye and I couldn't resist it. I bought the shade 100 'pinched' which looks like a gorgeous peachy shade. Lastly I got myself the L'oreal Super Liner Perfect Slim Liquid Eyeliner £6.99 I used this last year and somehow never repurchased it when it eventually ran out, the fine nib makes it easy to get right to the last line to give a fine line and flick. 

If you'd like to see posts on anything above let me know in the comments below. Once I've tried them out I'll let you know my thoughts on them. Remember to follow me on Bloglovin' to never miss a post.

 

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Morning Skincare Routine

When it comes to my morning skincare routine I don't really have an in depth routine that I religiously follow mainly because I'm often tired or rushed in the morning and don't fancy going through a long winded routine. Every morning I wash my face with water and use a cloth to remove anything left of my skin from my evening skincare, the cloth also gives a gental exfolation then I splash my face with cold water and that helps wake me up. Then if my lips are feeling a little dry or worse for wear I'll use my Lush Lip Scrub £5.50 to buff away the dead skin and leave them feeling soft.

Then it's time to moisturise I start with the Super Facialist By Una Brennan Vitamin C+ Brightening Glow Boost Serum £15.99 to give my skin a radiance boost and its got a nice orange smell. I let that sink it and dry which doesn't take long I usually eat my breakfast and its done then I'll apply my day cream. Lately I've been using Simple Kind To Skin Protecting Light Moisturiser £6.99 because it's not too heavy, hydrates my skin without it feeling greasy or oily and it also contains SPF 15. My evening skincare routine will be up on my blog on Friday if you want to check back and see it.

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