Afternoon Tea at The Dorchester

Hello everyone, it's been a while! Well about 6 months to be exact! I'll explain later, but today I thought I'd kickstart the blog with a little review, I hope you enjoy ...

So last month it was my 21st Birthday! I know right, I'm officially an adult. Boo. Turning 21 was something I had been equally dreading and looking forward to. On the one side of the coin I had lots of exciting things planned for it, but on the flip-side I thought, oh no I need to get my life in order ASAP.

Anyway, one of the most exciting parts of my itinerary for my 21st was to visit The Dorchester for Afternoon Tea. I've always quite fancied Afternoon Tea but for one reason or another I never got the chance until now. For some reason I have always wanted to go to The Dorchester -  It's known as one of the world's most iconic luxury hotels and a highly favored choice for Celebrities, Royalty & World Leaders. So basically it's pretty posh! (I know it's the preferred hotel choice for the Kardashians & Kanye West when they're in London).

At The Dorchester, Afternoon Tea is held at The Promenade  - the heart of the hotel. Upon arrival at the hotel, we were treated like royalty from start to finish. The service was fantastic! We arrived in the taxi and the front of house opened the car door's and escorted us in to reception. Once greeted in the Promenade we were taken to our tables and given the menu's.

The assortment of Sandwiches were fantastic, I was worrying before hand that because I'm a Vegetarian that there wouldn't be many options for me, but this couldn't be further than the truth. As soon as I explained my dietary requirements they returned with a platter full of Sandwiches with 6-7 filling choices. I can't imagine it being too much of a problem if you were Vegan, although you'd perhaps struggle with Desserts...

There was a whole menu full of different Tea varieties, I went for the Dorchester Classic & my sister opted for the Parisian Tea - which I would definitely recommend! Once we were served our Sandwiches, I just assumed that would be it and they would then bring out Desserts, however every time we cleared our plates the Waiter just kept topping up our plates, which was great until we felt extremely full! This was all included in the price by the way, you don't get charged additional for anything. After we enjoyed our Sandwiches we were then greeted with an amazing selection of Desserts. Unfortunately we couldn't eat them all but the Waiter kindly put these in a take out box for us to enjoy later on. Throughout the whole time we were there, there was live music in the background which was subtle but created a lovely ambiance. I have to say the hotel was architecturally beautiful! They also added a nice touch to the experience when the artist started singing happy birthday and they arrived with a birthday cake for me, which I didn't expect at all! Although it was an expensive outing, I definitely felt I got my money's worth and will for sure be returning for another special occasion!

The New Hair Do: A Complete Re-Style

Good morning guys! So as you're reading this I will be on my flight to Dublin but wanted to make sure I had something for you all to read!

So at the weekend, I did something I've been contemplating for quite a while and if you've seen my Instagram and Twitter feed you will already know, yep I got my hair cut. However I didn't get just a little bit chopped off, I had around 3 inches taken off. To some of you horse mane haired ladies that might be nothing but for it was a huge change. Due to previous hair mishaps and lots of bleaching in the past I think my hair was just ready for a chop. No matter how much I avoided applying heat and product to my hair, the ends were just split and frizzy - not a great look. So when I went to the hair salon at the weekend, I wasn't scared, I just told them to do it!

The final result? I love it! This is the perfect length hair for me, it's perfectly manageable and not so long that I don't know what to do with it. In fact, having it cut this length has inspired me, if anything to actually make an effort with my hair. Before it was just too long and thick, it used to get ridiculously knotty and well I just despised it but was too scared to go for the plunge. I am in love with my new look and feel it compliments my features so much better. So if you're toying with the idea of having a complete re-style, my advice would be - just do it! It's only hair at the end of the day and if you don't like it, it will always grow back!

What's the biggest re-style you've ever had?

NEW: The Benefit Roller Lash Mascara Review

Morning guys so today I thought I would share with you all, a new and pretty revolutionary mascara by Benefit called Roller Lash.

So, the good news is that this product comes out in stores TOMORROW (12th February)! I had seen this product meandering its way around the blogosphere and thought I am seriously going to need to give that a try! Luckily enough, the other day when I went into town I made a little detour to WHS Smith to pick my self up a copy of ELLE Magazine because they're giving a free sample of the Roller Lash with the magazine which I think is a pretty good deal.

The Roller Lash Mascara claims to be a Roller for the lashes. It reckons it can grab, curl, separate and lift your lashes with a formula that holds a curl for 12 hours. Benefit are well known for their gimmicks and product pushing so I was very intrigued to give this mascara a go and see if it lives up to its promises.

So I was kind of amazed when I applied this Mascara, it does  lift and curl your lashes with little effort required and it most definitely 'holds the curl'. As someone who is very fortunately blessed with naturally long lashes, most mascara's do the job for me but this curved want lifted the lashes and really enhanced my eyes. As with many mascara's its a case of 'each to their own' - different products work great on some people but not so great on others. It really depends what your lashes are like and what your Mascara preference is. I'll be straight up and say this Mascara does ever so slightly clump but this can easily be resolved by just working the wand on the lashes. The good news is that this Mascara isn't a pain to remove unlike Benefit's They're Real Mascara. I would actually say the two Mascara's are pretty similar in terms of final result however the applicator is a different shape and the Roller Lash is much more convenient for sweeping off at the end of the day.I'm not sure how much this Mascara will retail at - hopefully it will be cheaper than They're Real as I think that's extremely over priced for what it is - unlikely that it will be much cheaper though. Oh well!

Will you be purchasing the Roller Lash Mascara?

Highstreet vs Luxury: Brow Gels

Hey guys so today I wanted to discuss the Brows!

Back in June (I think it was) last year I discovered the Benefit Gimme Brow, a product that has 1000% sealed the 'holy grail' status, I mean I even buy back ups of this product these days as I literally don't think I could live without it. I use it every single day and even pop it on my brows on no make up days. My brows are so light and fair naturally but have a good shape to them and Gimme Brow just transforms them by tinting them and adding volume whilst keeping them set in place. Admittedly it is pretty expensive - at £17.50 a pop and it only lasts me a month, meaning I have to purchase one every single month. I get the shade Medium/Dark by the way and I reviewed it HERE for you to take a peak at.

Until a couple of months ago I wasn't aware of any other products that were up to the job and finish I was after and then I discovered the Rimmel London - Brow This Way. A cheaper alternative to the Benefit Gimme Brow Gel and at only £3.99 it was impossible for me to give it a miss. Luckily for me I had totted up enough Boots Advantage Points to be able to buy the product that way and I went for the shade 'Mid Brown'.

So there are two significant differences about the appearance of the two products, one of obvious being that the Brow This Way comes in larger packaging than Gimme Brow and the second is that the wand on Brow This Way is also a lot bigger to the Gimme Brow Wand, I would go so far as to say the Wand on the Rimmel product is far too big. I like to size of the Gimme Brow Wand as it allows you to maneuver around the sparse hairs at the end of your brows and shape them with precision. Brow This Way is great for adding colour and volume to the areas of my brows that are more bushy however I am reluctant to use it around the sparser areas as it just smudges onto my skin because of the wand being too big. Another slight note is that I have noticed the Rimmel London product gives your brows more a red/brown tint whereas the Benefit product is more towards the dark brown end of the spectrum. However due to the significant different in price I have now compromised and try to reach for the Rimmel product where possible on the larger areas of my brows and then just using the Benefit product for the sparser area's of my brows as I feel this combination works well together and despite the issues  on the Rimmel product with the packaging and the wand, the formula does actually deliver a pretty similar finish to Gimme Brow - just a slight difference in colour. Due to the price difference between the two products, I am trying to reserve the Benefit product for weekend occasions more and just for filling in the sparse brow area's on week days.

If I could choose just one of the two, it would undoubtedly be the Benefit Gimme Brow purely because it scores a 10 in all area's where as I would rate the Rimmel London product as a 6 out of 10.

Below I have added pictures of the result of the Rimmel London Brow This Way, Benefit Gimme Brow and another with a combination of the two.

I hope this helps you if you're trying to make a decision on which one to go for!

How To: Kylie Jenner Lips

Morning guys! Hope you're all well & had a fantastic weekend!

So it was only a matter of time before I would cave in and go on the hunt for a product that would give me Kyle Jenner-esque lips. I swear for the whole of 2014 everyone was baffled by the transformation of the size of Kylie's lips! Now I reckon she must have had some sort of surgery to make her lips change this much - perhaps some lip fillers? However I also think she has mastered the power of Lip Liner to create the look. Word on the street is she uses and mixture of Soar, Spice & Stripdown MAC Lip Liners and then goes over with the MAC Velvet Teddy Lipstick. It's no secret that Soar has been sold out since forever - we can only pray that it will soon be back in stock! Velvet Teddy has also been sold out since day. Well I say this but over Christmas I was obsessively checking the MAC website daily to see if there had been any movement and well it seems luck was with me one day as Velvet Teddy actually came back in stock so of course I had to go ahead and add it to my basket. Unfortunately it is now out of stock again at the time of writing this post - boo! I also managed to get my hands on the Stripdown Liner!

Once the tiny little MAC package arrived I wasted no time in unwrapping the parcel and testing out the products and you know what - I am in love with this combo! I would never normally have gone for these shades because well I used to think they were a bit of  a dated look and bold lips have always been my thing. However, this combo has got me converted. I just think it creates such a classic look, I thought it would be really unflattering but I couldn't be more wrong. It definitely accentuates the lips and gives them a good shape but you can work the Liner  to make your lips as full as you like. I tend to apply a light dusting of the Stripdown Liner all over my lips and map out my lips following my natural lip line, however I do have to do a bit of improvising when it comes to my cupids bow (it's virtually none existent!). I then put Velvet Teddy over the top for a sleek, classic finish.

Have you tried the 'Kylie Jenner' Lips yet?

Snowwy Days Out

Morning guys! So this time last week the whole of my town and it's surrounding area's were covered in a blanket of Snow - my favourite. Although it seems like a life time ago now, I thought it would be nice to show you what I got up to on these Snowwy Days.

Anybody who knows me will know that I'm basically Buddy The Elf, in the fact that I LOVE the Snow and Christmas and well pretty much anything festive. So when the Snow began to fall the other week you can probably imagine how excited I was. During the time the Snow was with us I think I went out on a walk every day just to make the most of it. There is nothing I love more than getting wrapped up and putting my wellies on.

Kyle & I went on a walk together down the back lanes - not far from my house and I also went with my dad on a few Dog walks so little Biscuit could experience the snow for him self. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...

Motivational Monday - Making The Most Out Of Life

Motivational Monday by whatlaradidnext featuring a typography poster

Morning guys and welcome to Blogmas Day 22! Another spontaneous from yours truly today & by that I mean it's 'one of them' posts where I digress away from my usual works involving beauty etc. I mean, sometimes if you get an idea in your head that you can't seem to shake off, I always think it's best to put your pen to paper/fingertips to keyboard and just let it all out. Today I would like to talk about the L word we're all doing at this very moment, whether we like it or not and that is Living.

As long as we're alive, we're living. Our hearts are beating away and the blood is pumping around our body - keeping us alive. We all have a different definition of living and what it is like to live so here is my definition...

For me, living is all about being the best version of yourself or at least trying to be. We all get a numbered amount of days that we're on this earth and unfortunately we don't have a choice of when it is time to leave and even when that moment will be. I often forget this my self, but as I previously stated - life is for living and making the most of the time we've got. We should live everyday like it's our last, I mean we all hope we'll live to be old and grey but fate doesn't always allow for that. Sometimes, the people you love the most are taken away from you, for no reason other than 'their time is up' so really we should learn to enjoy the time we have to be alive and share it with those we love the most. This may come across as being a little depressive but that isn't intended. I hope from reading this post you will take away the fact or be reminded that you need to make the most of what you have or that if there is something you've always wanted to do - go out and do it, make a plan! Funnily enough, as I type away I am finding my self feeling motivated and reminded of the fact I need to live life more.

In my eyes, I know that what I want out of life is to be happy. Of course, I hope to one day have a family, my dream home and a thriving career, just like everybody does. We all want the same outcome but with a different direction as to how we're going to get there. I want to die old and grey with the nostalgic thoughts of what a wonderful life I've had. I want to be rich, not only financially but rich in knowledge as well. I want to have memories of travelling the world, visiting beautiful cities and sharing amazing moments with loved ones. It's no secret that I want to have a pet dog, of whom I will love and care for. In fact, throughout my lifetime I hope to have several dogs. I want my home to be a safe haven and my little piece of heaven. I will stay loyal to those I love and make kind gestures to those whom I don't necessarily have to. I will work hard because, for the most part, in order to do nice things or have items of luxury, as that is what you need to do. I refuse to leave this world without leaving my stamp on it and encourage those of you reading this to do so also.

That is my definition of living and how I intend to live my life! What is yours?

A Lazy Winter Sunday

Good mornings guys and welcome to Blogmas day 21!

Just a quick one from me today my lovelies, I'm pretty hungover still and plan on just spending my Sunday chilling out watching trash tv and tucking into some Essie Button Protein Power Soup, accompanied with Sourdough Bread of course. I made a huge batch of this stuff and have just been throwing it in the microwave when I fancy a portion. I would definitely recommend it!

 

The Morning After The Night Before Look

Good morning guys and welcome to Blogmas Day 20!

So after yesterday's antics with it being Mad Friday ( the last Friday before Christmas) I suspect a lot of you are reading this post with tired eyes and a banging headache. I feel ya girl! Hangovers are the worst - fact. You feel like death and therefore probably feel like your face does also. I thought I would put together a 'go-to' look for days when you want to look bright eyed and fresh faced even if you don't feel that way. This look has a fairy hefty coverage and the concealer works overtime but it's quick, simple and it does the job.

So you want to start off by taking a full coverage Foundation, I actually went for the Mac Studio Fix which is a Foundation that I don't really use that often but it has great coverage and doesn't look too cakey. I used a mixture of NC15 & NC25 as I had fake tanned so I needed something a bit darker than usual. You can use as little or as much as you like but I reckon a little goes a long way with this Foundation.

I then went in pretty heavy with the Revlon Colorstay Concealer under the eyes to conceal those heavy bags and create the illusion that I had an early night last night (even though I actually rolled in at 3am, oooops). You can also add some concealer to cover blemishes but I think the Foundation does the job in this instance.

Next you need to fill your brows in and I used the Benefit Gimme Brow and Benefit Browzings Wax to create a natural but fairly strong brow. You then need to take a volumizing Mascara - I used the Thick & Fast Soap & Glory Mascara - Mascara is a key part of this look because it will really make your eyes pop and you will begin to feel human again! 

Next up I used the Bourjois Highlighter down the bridge of my nose and above my cheek bone. I then added a bit of the Bronzer in the hollows of my cheeks and on my temples and forehead. 

To finish the look off I just added a bit of Chanel lipgloss. Since this is a day time look you only want something simple on your lips but you could always add some goldtoned eyeshadows if you wanted! 

How do you make yourself look human when you have the worlds worst hangover?

Christmas Jumpers & A Catch Up

Morning guys and welcome to Blogmas Day 19! Can you believe it's less than a week until Christmas? I don't know about you guys but I am so so excited!

This week has been a fun one. Usually I don't get up to that much during the week, apart from going to work I'm generally a bit of a hermit but this week it's all been 'go'.

On Tuesday we had a bit of a family gathering round at my brother's house as it was his birthday. We got the chance to mingle with his partners family and just have some quality family time. I spent half my evening cuddling the puppy and the other half wolfing down mozzarella sticks and all sorts of other buffet goodness. I think my brother really enjoyed his day ( I hope he did).

Wednesday evenings, as you may or may not know, is the evening that I meet up with my dad for a Coffee so it was nice to see him, as always. After that, not long after I got home one of my bestest friends Fern called me up as she had just finished University for the Winter. Next thing I knew we were on our way to Frankies & Bennies out for dinner. It was so much fun, it's always lovely to see Fern, she is one of my oldest friends and is such a laugh. PS. I would 100% recommend anyone who loves Peanut Butter to make their way to F&B's asap, Fern & I both had one each and we were left speechless, it was amaze!

Last night I totted round to my other friends house, Katie. My Sister & I got invited over for Tea which was really nice. We got the opportunity to explore her new house and had the chance to have a real catch up. Me and Christy also made an excuse to wear our new Christmas Jumpers - duh!  Mine is a quote from Elf in case you were wondering! Katie made me an amazing Hot Chocolate in a Kilner jar with a Matchmaker dipped in it and loads of squirty cream on top, mmm! We had such a laugh, my jaw was actually hurting from laughing!

And of course, tonight is Mad Friday (the last Friday before Christmas) which definitely calls for going out into town with my best friend April for drinks and also hopefully bumping into other familiar faces along the way. I can't wait to get into the festive spirit and shout my head off to The Pogues - Fairytale of New York!

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend and  I will check in with you all tomorrow!

A Festive Weekend In Newcastle

Good morning guys and welcome to Blogmas Day 17! Wow I can't believe we're on day 17 already, Blogmas is going so quick. I am enjoying daily blogging so much. I mean, at times I'll admit I've been pushed for time to get my posts live but for the most part its been sooo much fun. I will hopefully try to do Blogtober next year as well as Blogmas! Who knows, we'll have to wait and see.

So this weekend I went up North for a couple of days to visit my sister, which was so lovely because I haven't seen her in ages. I went up on the Friday and we just had a chilled night eating Pizza and a Desserts Delivered (oooops). We spent the whole night laughing, like seriously to the point where I had tears rolling down my eyes. It's always so nice to catch up with Paris as I don't get to see her very often but we did a collaborative blog post a while back which you can read here. We watched  copious amounts of Friday Night Dinner!

On the Saturday afternoon I had to head back home but I stopped off in Eldon Square for a Boost Juice Smoothie for breakfast. I always have Breakie to go-go, it's my favourite and it's very filling. I had a quick wander round the shops. I even noticed Monty the Penguin in John Lewis but thought taking a selfie on my own with a 3 ft Penguin would probably look a little strange.

Once I got home my other Sister Christy picked me up from the station and we headed home for a relaxed evening watching the X Factor Final. We also had a pit stop at Doncaster on the hunt for a Christmas Jumper. I was hoping to get the Elf Jumper that say's 'Son Of A Nutcracker' but couldn't find it anywhere. Not too worry though guys I found a pretty good alternative online which also has a famous quote from Elf on so stay tuned! On the Sunday I spent the morning with my Nanny, we went to walk the dog together and just had a wander about. My Nanny then cooked a heroic Sunday Dinner (as usual!) for us all.

All in all the weekend was filled with unnecessary shopping, lots of food and my eyes clued to the TV screen!

What have you been getting up to throughout December?

Motivational Monday - Why Rejection Is Good

Motivational Monday by whatlaradidnext on Polyvore

Hey my lovelies and welcome to Blogmas Day 15! So today I want to talk about rejection but not in the light you would think. Rejection of course is seen by many as a negative noun, the synonyms looked up on Google by yours truly, also indicate a distinctive correlation of negative connotations, to name a few: cold shoulder, hard time, dismissal, kick in the teeth etc. As the dictionary definition suggests, rejection - as a general rule isn't a good thing but going by some of the books I've read in the past year or so and a few wise words from my former boss - I believe that rejection can be a good thing.

Think of it like this, every person that rejects you is, to say the least is giving you a definitive answer, maybe not the one you had hoped for but hey at least you know what's what now and you can move on with your life. A job application for example, hearing back to say you haven't got the job is better than hearing nothing at all right? Every failure in life is an opportunity to succeed, let me explain... so you work your arse off for something and it doesn't go the way you hoped and well you aren't reaping the rewards, bugger. Essentially what you worked so hard for didn't pay off and now you feel like you're stuck in a rut, correction; you're not. To me, if I fail at something I see it as an opportunity to work harder or to take a different path in life - maybe what I thought I wanted isn't what I really wanted or maybe things didn't pan out the way I hoped because that's not where I'm supposed to be. The numbers and successful entrepreneurs speak for themselves...

• J.K Rowling was rejected by 12 publishers before Harry Potter & The Philosophers Stone was published
• Walt Disney was turned down 302 times before he was granted finance for creating Disneyland
• Vincent Van Gogh only sold 1 painting in his life time which was to a friend. Despite this, he kept on painting and created over 800 pieces of art work and is today estimated to be worth $142.7 million
• Oprah Winfrey was demoted from her job as a news anchor because 'she wasn't fit for television' 
• At 30 years old, Steve Jobs fell into depression after being removed from a company he worked at for 30 years. 

To all of the above you can pretty much say 'Well who's laughing now'. These incredibly successful individuals worked so hard for what they were passionate about, they didn't let rejection/failure phase them and continued to work for what they believed in until someone else believed in them. So, if anyone rejects you in life whether it be in love, work, financially or emotionally, it's okay to have a moment to mope but once that's over with - sweep it under the carpet and work on something better. Every bit of rejection you ever had has led you to moving onto something better, so work hard, stick at it and your moment will eventually happen. 

A quote that has well and truly stuck in my mind since I was a youngster that my dad always used to say to me 'Quitters never win and winners never quit. - Vincent  Lombardi'. 

I also have this poem up on my wall in my room that my dad gave to me when I was younger - The Man Who Thinks He Can:

If you think you are beaten, you are;

If you think you dare not, you don't.

If you'd like to win but think you can't

It's almost a cinch you won't.

If you think you'll lose, you've lost.

For out in the world we find

Success being with a fellow's will;

It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you're outclassed, you are:

You've got to think high to rise.

You've got to be sure of yourself before

You can ever win a prize.

Life battles don't always go

To a stronger or faster man,

But soon or late, the man who wins

Is the one who think's he can. 

Have you ever been rejected but it turned out for the better? If so, comment below!!

Lush & Victoria's Secret Giveaway!

Good morning guys and welcome to a belated Blogmas 14!

I'm so sorry for the slight delay in getting Blogmas Day 14 & 15 across to you all - quite a few things have popped up this weekend that prevented me from getting the posts live. To make it up for you all, I thought I would share with you the amazing Giveaway my mum is running for her  Handbag & Accessories shop  - Fifth Avenue for one lucky person to win in time for Christmas.

The Hamper contains goodies from Victoria's Secret, Lush Cosmetics, Clarins, Moet Champagne and many more treats from Fifth Avenue. The Hamper is worth over £125! It would make the perfect girly treat or a fantastic present for that special someone in your life! It's super easy to enter, all you need to do is click here and 'Like' the page, then share the most recent post (the giveaway one) and comment on the post saying 'please include me'. Only one entry per person. The competition closes at midnight on the 19th December and the winning name will be drawn on 20th December and contacted via Facebook.

Also be sure to follow Fifth Avenue on Twitter & Instagram for more giveaways and exciting announcements in the near future.

The post isn't sponsored, just sharing the love!

A Trip To Lincoln Christmas Market

Hey guys and welcome to Blogmas Day 10!

So at the weekend Kyle & I took a little trip to Lincoln for the much anticipated Christmas Market. I've never actually been to a Christmas Market before, well until now obviously which is kinda crazy for someone like me who is obsessed with Christmas.

We set off around lunch time and honestly the traffic was just horrific! By the time we had finally gotten into the car park I had almost lost the will to live, however I was still determined to get my self to the Christmas Market . So off we went! We troopered our way up the high street. It was SO cold on Saturday, we were both super wrapped up in our big winter coats - Kyle in his beanie hat and me in my over-sized Russian hat, we might have looked like a pair of Muppets but at least we were warm!!

Once we got to the top of the high street (Lincoln is one big hill in case you didn't know) we saw a sign saying 'Terrys Chocolate Orange and Nutella Hot Chocolate this way!' pffft need they say anymore? We marched straight to Eskimoos and grabbed a winter warming Hot Chocolate, mmm I had the Orange one and it tasted amazing. How cute are the Eskimoos take out cups by the way? I didn't want to throw mine away :(.

So after a walk up the worlds steepest hill we finally made it to the Christmas Market. It was absolutely heaving, it seems everyone else had the same idea - to get into the festive spirit! Festive it was indeed. It was very busy, maybe a little too busy for my liking but the Christmas songs were blasting out and everyone was clutching a warm hot drink and wrapped up warm. We meandered our way through the market and checked out all the little quirky stores. There were some lovely unique little pop up shops, it was nice to see something a bit different. Both Kyle and I forget to get some cash out though so we couldn't actually buy anything but it was still lots of fun! All the shops were little shed/log cabin style huts covered in Tinsel and Twinkly lights - it was so cute and I had such a good day. Next year I think I'm heading to the Leeds Christmas Market as I've heard great things about it!

Have you been to a Christmas Market this year?

My Top 5 Favourite Instagram Accounts

Morning guys and welcome to Blogmas Day 9! So today lets talk about Instagram.

I love Instagram. I love the whole concept of it - anything visual, aesthetically pleasing and pretty, I'm there. I am a sucker for scrolling through Instagram, more times a day than I like to admit. I have recently found my self discovering the 'explore' button and in turn finding new accounts to follow. I thought it would be cool to share with you guys some of my favourite Instagrammers, so get the app ready to go a mini following spree once this post is over. The rule of thumb I  generally go for when following someone is do they include -  luxury travel, lifestyle, food, fashion or beauty and if the answer is no to any of the above then I will probably not follow, ooops! So here we go...

1. BeautifulDestinations - If you've caught the travel bug or you lead a 'yacht life' then this account will be heaven on a page for you. This account posts tonnes of beautiful pictures of locations around the world. Every time I look at the pictures on this page I just want to hop on a plane and travel.
2. The Kardashians/Jenners - Okay I'm a cliche but I don't care, the Kardashian and Jenner girls are the queens of Instagram. If you're looking for the perfect selfie these are my go-to girls, they never fail to disappoint as they always look amazing! Not fair.
3. GunnarFitness - Leading on from my previous recommendation, Gunnar Peterson (GunnarFitness) is a personal trainer to loads of celebrities, the Kardashians included. Gunnar posts some seriously inspirational stuff. If you're lacking motivation in the fitness department Gunnar is sure to inspire you.
4. PlantStrongVegan - Okay so technically I'm a Vegetarian not a Vegan. Although a lot of my food choices are Vegan, Dairy Free, Gluten Free etc. If you're a Veggie/Vegan I would definitely urge you to follow this account - it is full of food ideas if you're struggling for inspiration and I just love it. As a result of following this Instagram account I have also discovered many other Vegan style pages that really inspire me, however this account remains a firm favourite!
5. ForeverSoakedInLux - I love luxury brands so for me, this is one of my ultimate favourite Instagram accounts to follow. It features luxury fashion/beauty items etc so think Chanel, Louboutins and Range Rovers. This account is everything luxury condensed into one Instagram account and it shares some really cool aspirational posts. If this is your kinda thing I would definitely click the follow button right now!

I have quite a few more Instagram accounts that I love but this is the exclusives who have made it to the top of my list. If you want to check out my little space on Instagram you can follow me here on - xlaraduncanx

Who is your favourite Instagrammer?