LDN

Top- River Island
Scarf- TopShop
Coat- New Look
Bag- H&M
Jeans- Miss Selfridge

London is always a good idea, especially when the sun shines bright and amazing food is involved! The girls and I visited London to go to the Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! exhibition before it closes next sunday, I had been recommended it by many so I couldn't let it go a miss and I wasn't let down. 

If I'm honest I haven't really visited many exhibitions but this one is the best by far. Not only was the clothing and accessories that were showcased amazing, but the journey you're taken on makes you feel like you knew her personally. Quirky boxes (with legs and arms!) showcasing little notes and magazines prints inside, many videos of her, so many mannequins with her clothes on, that all had seen much love and affection from the worn out seams and broken heels on shoes- making you feel like you knew her that little bit more. The exhibition moved through many rooms and floors to finally a video of a catwalk show in 2007, which was in honour of her following her death. I completely recommend you visit if you get the chance.

Once we had made our way round the exhibition our tummies grumbled so we treated ourselves to a meal (and pudding) at Garfunkels, before we walked around the city admiring the sights, and the sun. We then grabbed a coffee and rested our throbbing feet and took home shortly afterwards. 

My next visit will be to see the David Bailey exhibition at the National Gallery. That exhibition is on till June, so that'll happen once this uni work has been handed in!

True Beauty

Today, females in particular, rarely feel proud of their bodies. We always want to manipulate and change our appearance. With the opportunity for 'New Year fresh starts', it's time to kick old habits and feel good in our skin. I interviewed Pamina Brassey, a breast cancer survivor, who loves and cherishes the body she is in.

Beauty. Who gets to decide what is beautiful?

Why do we choose to modify our bodies with make-up, surgery and the ever-changing new diet craze in order to fit into a 'beauty ideal'? Our perspectives are changed and influenced by those around us, who seem to make us forget what we already know- that we are all different and unique.

The media, I think we can all agree, plays a big part in influencing our decisions on what we should all agree on as 'beautiful'. We are bombard with images of airbrushed celebrities and supermodels that give us an unattainable beauty ideal.We all know the photographs aren’t realistic and in their true form, yet we still conform to the beliefs that this is the ideal we should be aspiring to. Beauty shouldn’t be limited to what our culture and society has decided but instead celebrated for its uniqueness and individuality.

Pamina Brassey
©Ragged Crow

Perhaps it is only when you’re faced with a life-changing experience that you truly appreciate your body for what it can be and how it can survive, not just what it looks like.  How often do you look in the mirror wishing you could alter, nip and tuck your body to fit these beauty ideals? And how often do you admire your body and thank it for keeping you alive?

Pamina does. Pamina Brassey is a breast cancer survivor, a beautiful, confident woman who didn’t let her experience get the better of her. ‘The catastrophic blow of a cancer diagnosis is a huge set back, my confidence waned and I felt like a neutered cat, grateful to be alive. It took time to get myself back to where I was before surgery.’

In 2010, 49,564 women heard the phrase, ‘you have breast cancer’. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, but 8 out of 10 women survive and triumph over the illness, Pamina is just one them.

Pamina Brassey
©Ragged Crow

‘The breast is an object of female beauty and male adoration, losing one made me question my sexuality.’ Gender is a social construct, an idea that has been created by society allowing us to understand the idea of men and women by categorising us. Women have a slim hourglass figure, men are physically strong and tough. So does the absence of breasts make a woman no longer a woman? Hell no!

Pamina Brassey explains, ‘Cancer isn’t sexy but survival is.’ A phrase that can be used as an inspiration to many women out there experiencing cancer themselves.

We can’t keep hating ourselves and wishing for better, we're stuck together for life so why not enjoy it and appreciate it. Let’s start to concentrate on the positives and our favourite things about our body, whether that is a physical trait or a personality trait. Pamina believes that ‘beauty is within and a glorious state of mind. It’s something you find within yourself and cherish. It’s the glow of happiness through self fulfillment.’

So who is deciding who is beautiful? I am certainly not prepared to have my mind controlled by someone behind a desk that criticises women on their looks making us believe we don’t fit in. I want to have a say, and hey, I say everyone is beautiful and you should believe in yourself as much as your body and I do. Pamina sometimes has to ‘put on a brave face and get on with it.’ So, despite the lump and bumps and the oddities that you would rather live without, be proud of the skin your in.

Does Pamina’s fight and determination make you feel proud of your body and what it can do? Doesn’t it make you want to ‘stick it to the man’ and be proud of your female beauty no matter what size or shape you are?

So lets show some girl power and choose to love and respect our figures and promise to always stand by our body just like it has always been there for us.

Love is in the air...

It's Valentines Day of course, who could forget? But love is also in the air because I've been busy making little chocolate truffles, and everyones true love is chocolate! I thought I'd be smushy and use heart moulds, but really, it doesn't matter what they look like, I just want to eat them! 

I found these recipes on the How To Do That website and Betty magazine (I by no means thought of them myself) but I thought I'd try them out and see if they turn out at all like the pictures on their websites. 

They are super, super tasty. The strawberry filling is completely worth the effort! Find the recipes below. 

Happy Valentines Day everyone!

Strawberry Truffles

Filling

150g of strawberries, halved

150g white chocolate

Chocolate coating

150g of milk/dark chocolate

20g white chocolate

A few hand fuels of sprinkles (or toppings of your choice)

-Place strawberries in a saucepan, at medium heat, with the lid on, to stew. Stir frequently to stop them sticking.

-Once the strawberries have turned mostly to liquid, take off the heat and add the white chocolate. stir in until mixed together.

-Strain the paste into a bowl, through a metal sieve, to take out any large strawberry lumps and the seeds.

-Place in the fridge over night to cool completely.

-Melt some white chocolate and with the wrong end of a spoon, place some in the bottom of the moulds. (This will create a marble effect once they've set)

-Melt the milk chocolate and pour into the mould to cover fill them up completely.

-Shake the mould to stop any air bubbles and wait a few seconds. Then tip the moulds up-side down to get rid of the excess, scrap over the moulds with the flat of a knife to scrape away the over-flowing chocolate.

-Pipe the strawberry mixer into the moulds, nearly to the top. (If you don't have a piping bag, just use a sandwich bag instead.)

-Spoon the rest of the milk chocolate over the strawberry to finish off the chocolates. Add sprinkle/toppings to the bottom of the chocolates if you wish.

-Place in the fridge until set, pop out of the moulds, eat and enjoy!

Chocolate Truffles

Truffle

300ml of double cream

1 1/2 tbsp. of caster sugar

300g of milk/dark chocolate

1 thumb sized piece of unsalted butter

1 pinch of sea salt

Topping

75g white chocolate

Chocolate sprinkle (or any topping of your choice, nuts, dried fruit etc)

-Heat the cream and the sugar in a pan on a low heat. Make sure the cream doesn't boil, heat until you see small bubbles forming.

-Take off the heat and add the broken up chocolate, butter and salt. Mix until the chocolate has melted, the ganache should be glossy.

-Cover and place in the fridge over night to cool completely.

-Using a tea spoon, scoop a some ganache and form into a ball with the tips of your fingers. (This is super messy! Prepare to get chocolate everywhere!)

-Place them back in the fridge to cool and harden slightly.

-Whilst they are in the fridge, melt the white chocolate ready for dipping.
-Dip each ball of truffle into the white chocolate to cover half, then dip into sprinkles (or topping of your choice) place onto a plate or small cupcake case and pop back in the fridge to harden once again.

- Once the chocolate has set, eat and enjoy!

Good things come to those who wait

Coat- New Look
Shirt, Bag- H&M
Jeans- Miss Selfridge
Boots- River Island
Lipstick- Mac: Rebel

Last week I managed to find this beauty of a shirt in H&M, I've been looking for a new baggy style checked shirt for some time now, I will admit that I have seen many I like but they are all so expensive, naming no names (There all in Urban Outfitters of course!) I just can't afford to be spending £40 a shirt! Thats a months shopping! So when I found this one for £14.99, minus the 20% student discount from Unidays (which ends tomorrow so theres not much time!) it would have been rude for me to run it away.

I really have been trying not to buy unnecessary items (this shirt was of course necessary!) because of living on a student budget n'all that as well as not being able to find my self a job yet means that, until I do, I have to be sensible and cut back. (proving to be more difficult to actually do than it was to write that sentence!) However, there is a light at the end of every tunnel as my birthday is fast approaching. Well, it's still a whole month away but thats close enough. Close enough for me to start writing a birthday wish list. 

I braved the blustery winds and wet weather to go to the high street today for the first time in over a week and everyone seems to have had a re-stock! Every shop had many items that tickled my fancy! Tops, Skirts, Bags, Purses, Coats, you name it I wanted it. My light at the end of tunnel is that I can suggest these items as birthday presents, meaning I don't have to buy them and that I don't have to wait to long either! However I do know deep down I won't actually receive any of these items as the list is rather long (endless) but a girl can dream right?

Seductive strength

This photo shoot may have taken a lot of energy out of me and quite possibly wasn't the smoothest of journeys but the outcome is completely worth it. Hannah Luque you look gorgeous, thank you! The photo shoot was a fashion spread for my magazine photography unit at university.

Forbidden elegance

This photo shoot was inspired by the word ethereal and is a fashion spread for my styling unit at university. The day went as smoothly as I could have hoped and I'm proud of the outcome. Thanks to my beautiful model, Olivia Fynn.