Hello Kitty afternoon tea at Cutter and Squidge

Soho based cake shop, Cutter and Squidge have teamed up with Hello Kitty to bring the cutest collab ever, Hello Kitty afternoon tea!

Cutter and Squidge were founded by two sisters in North West London, they say their passion "is to invent new products or recreate time honoured classics and experiment with flavours so that we can offer our take on old favourites alongside cutting edge taste sensations."

I went there with with my sisters last weekend. After having booked a table there 2 months in advance (yes, it was two whole months) we were a little disappointed when we arrived and our table wasn't ready for another half an hour. Nonetheless, we were given pink lemonade to sip on whilst we waited. We then headed to the 'Secret Garden' where the afternoon tea was held.

When we were finally seated we ordered our teas and soon after, a huge selection of sandwiches, cakes, scones and sweet treats arrived. They also offer vegetarian alternatives. Everything was refillable, so if you wanted more salmon sandwiches you were free to order as you wish for the same price. This sounds amazing but with a steep price of £40pp it was no surprise. (£20 for children under 8 years old)

You were given a 1 and half hour table time until you had to leave. It was enough time to scoff all our food down and take some pictures.

Overall, we had a lovely time, the food was good and the staff were friendly.

In the shop, there are Hello Kitty merchandise and confectionery to purchase.

The Hello Kitty afternoon tea is available at Cutter and Squidge from now until the 31st August. It is best to book a table well in advanced and you can do so here.

What are you waiting for?! Get booking now!

The Good Ship Benefit

Last Thursday, me and a couple of blogger friends headed to the Good Ship Benefit on Embankment for my friend Georgie's birthday celebrations!

With blogger babes Sarah, Fii and Georgie

The Good Ship Benefit is a collaboration between Benefit Cosmetics and City Cruises Partners and is a temporary pop - up open between 9th April until 31st August 2016. The ship is open to the public and has a San francisco themed design. There are 5 rooms in total on the ship, The Brow Lounge, two upper decks, a bar and a restaurant. It is open from 11am – 11pm, Sunday – Thursday and 11am – 12am on Friday and Saturday. 

There were a large selection of cocktails and wines plus pub style food like burgers and salads. Although the prices were more on the dearer side, the views and location made up for it!

The staff were incredible! So friendly and informative, giving us a tour of the ship and making jokes along the way! It definitely made the experience that bit more special.

Have you been on the Good Ship Benefit or will you be making a visit?

TrekAmerica take 2!

So at the beginning of June I embarked on another TrekAmerica adventure!

This time taking on the deep south; New Orleans, Nashville, Memphis, Natchez, Birmingham, The Great Smoky Mountains and Gatlinburg.

If you are not familiar with TrekAmerica, they are a small group tour company specialising in American road trips. Most groups have around 13 people on the tour ageing from 18 - 35.

There are camping trips and BLT ones too (budget lodging). Trips run from as little as 3 days to a whopping 80 days on the road!

My tour started and ended in New Orleans, I stayed 2 nights before just so I could have a little wander in the city before my tour actually started. I stayed in the Garden District and visited the famous Magazine Street. I also met up with some people from my group beforehand to have dinner with which was really nice. The tour started and we headed to Birmingham where we visited the Civil Rights museum.

I loved visiting Nashville; where the CMA (Country Music Awards) festival was on during our stay. The city was so vibrant and there was something going on in every corner you turned. The Great Smoky Mountains were beautiful, we hiked up to Clingman's Dome which gave us a perfect view of the Mountains from a height. Memphis was also pretty memorable, we went to Graceland's and saw the home of rock'n'roll legend, Elvis Presley. It was so interesting and I learned so much about his life that I never knew in the past.

Here are a couple of pictures during my time in the deep south.

I can't wait to book my next adventure!

With my trek friends; Beth and Jo-anna

Beale Street, Memphis

Gracelands, Memphis

Jackson Square, New Orleans

Gatlinburg

The Great Smoky Mountains

Nashville

5 tips to saving money on holiday!

We've all been there, always looking for ways to save money while on your holibobs!

Here are 5 tips to get more for your money!

1.) Bring a re-usable water bottle with you 

In that way you don't have to pay for bottled water every time you go out. Having a re-usable water bottle with you means you can save a few pennies everyday and it all adds up! Most hotels/shopping centres offer a water refilling station, so keep an eye out for them!

2.) Look for hotels that provide free breakfast/have breakfast included in the price

That's one meal that you don't have to pay for, fuels you up for the day ahead!

3.) Plan ahead

Do your research well in advanced. Look at cheaper alternatives, plan your days and nights out. Look for deals.

4.) Take leaflets at hotels for discounts

All hotels have some sort of leaflet stands which showcases the nearby attractions. Pick them up and have a look, lots of them usually have discount codes/vouchers on days out and can save you money!

5.) Look out for shuttles, buses, different methods of travel

Taxi's can be expensive, and looking into alternatives is always a must. Some hotels have shuttles that go to and from the nearest airport and this is always relatively cheaper than calling a taxi. Alternatively, live like a local and not a tourist, catch buses or trams. Save money and ride the city the scenic way!

Has anyone else got anymore tips on saving money on holiday?!

Vans x Nintendo collab range

Hands up who loves Vans and Nintendo?! MEEEEEEEEE.

I'm so excited about this collab range and I have already placed a cheeky order online (oops!)

The range consists of your favourite Nintendo characters; Princess Peach, Super Mario, Donkey Kong and Yoshi mixing with the typical skater Vans look the brand is famous for.

There are backpacks plastered with Princess Peaches' signature pink puffy dress on, t-shirts and tank tops with a cool 'Game Over' logo, and shoes with uncountable Yoshi heads on! What more could you want?!!!

The range is out instores and online now from here!

Will you be picking something up from this range?

 

In Our Bones and Stories For Monday album reviews

In Our Bones by Against The Current

A 3 piece pop rock band from New York, I absolutely love this band and was lucky to see them live at London's KoKo a few months back. Three tracks from this album: Forget Me Now, Running With The Wild Things and Runaway were already released pre-album so we were treated to a preview of what the album would be like. This long awaited album was released on Friday and I am already so obsessed with it. As their first official album, it is to an incredible standard; reaching the top ten album's chart in many countries including the US and UK. Catchy lyrics, mellow sounds and rocking beats, this album has a mixture of all. My favourite songs are 'In Our Bones', 'Forget Me Now', 'Roses' and 'One More Weekend' (yes it was hard to choose just one!). 

Stories For Monday by The Summer Set

I saw these guys live a few weeks back and their stage presence and energy is infectious. A five piece, pop rock band from Arizona, now on their 4th album, you can tell how mature these guys have become through their music. They still have that cheesy feel good factor which I love and makes them unique from other bands out there. This isn't necessarily a bad thing; it delves more into the pop side of music that makes this band so enjoyable to listen to. My favourite song from this album is 'All My Friends' by a far mile, I love the catchy tune throughout and the fun, memorable lyrics you can belt out to in the shower.

What albums are you loving at the moment? :)

My Top 3 Cake Shops in London!

I am a massive cake, doughnut, brownie and all things sweet lover, it's time I did a post of my top 3 cake shops in London!

The first is Crumbs and Doilies in Kingly Court, London.

Founded by Jemma Wilson; she opened a Kickstarter campaign for people to fund the shop in hopes to gain £6,000 it needed to take off. It exceeded expectations and raised over £11,000! It later opened in November 2014. The shop sells over 75 different flavour cupcakes but change their menu daily. The menu can be found on their twitter page in the morning every day. They also sell brownies and soft drinks too.

I personally love the cupcakes here, they come in mini sizes if you're not feeling too overindulgent!  

Crumbs and Doilies is at 1 Kingly Court, (cobbled passageway between Kingly Court & Beak Street)
Carnaby, London, W1B 5PW. It is open 7 days a week.

Another cake shop I love is The Hummingbird Bakery based in various locations.

Hummingbird Bakery is pretty popular amongst tourists and they specialise in bespoke cakes and themed seasonal ones too. It has a large variety of different flavours; their most popular ones being their rainbow cake and red velvet cakes. They have opened up 3 bakeries in Dubai too and hopefully with plans to go even further in the world! Although their cakes don't come cheap, I feel like you can taste the quality behind each slice that makes up for it.

Hummingbird Bakery can be found in Soho, Richmond, South Kensington, Islington, Spitalfields and Notting Hill. You can find out exact location on their website here.

Lastly, but not least is Primrose Bakery based in various locations.

This company has more of a vintage/unique feel to it. The bakeries have neon signs and 80's style chairs to go with it. They have the usual flavoured cupcakes you would assume all bakeries have, but they also have a cocktail cupcake menu. Gin and tonic, mojito, or a peach bellini cupcake anyone?! They also serve breakfast too as they open from 8:30am (apart from Sunday's and the Covent garden store which opens at 10am). Such a cute place to grab a cake and sit down for a catch up with a friend on a Sunday afternoon.

Primrose Bakery can be found in Primrose Hill, Kensington and Covent Garden. You can find out exact locations on their website here.

What other cake shops can you recommend in London? :)