September Diary

Shirt- River Island
Jeans- Topshop
Shoes- H&M
Scarf- Vintage YSL

Hey there,

I've finally decided what I'm going to use this blog for, better late then never I know. As everything's got a bit full on recently as you'll soon see, I've decided to use it as an online diary, so here goes my September round-up.

I moved back up to Birmingham, ready for Welcome Week and the start of Uni, slightly earlier then most students as I was part of the Student Unions Welcome team!

Before I left home I made some bunting from the fabrics collected from my internship with Louise O'Mahony. Instead of stitching the bunting onto the ribbon I chose to pin them on with little christmas pegs and I love the effect. It looks perfect on my new desk.

I also moved all my treasures I collected from Turkey into my new room. It's such a novelty for me to have such a large room compared to what I'm used to at home and I've recently discovered how much I love homewards. Somehow managed to convince myself its not splurging, if it's essential for my room, hehe. 

Shirt- Primark
Necklace- H&M
Coat- Mango
Boots- H&M
Jeans- River Island
Bag- TK Maxx
Scarf- Vintage YSL

  Whilst in Birmingham, I've been hot on the job hunt with mixed results but I guess thats to be expected from the current climate. However it does mean I've had to carefully consider my wardrobe choices, including the end of my nose piercing. This OOTD was snapped by my friend Mollie, for her blog, before one of my interviews.

Being back in Birmingham also gives me the chance to catch up with friends I haven't seen for months. The other day we checked out a new healthy vegetarian cafe tucked away in Digbeth. For a very reasonable price we shared some sundried tomatoes and I had a delicious Millet salad. Although I'm not vegetarian, I do really appreciate it especially since being at Uni. I shall defiantly be visiting the Warehouse Cafe again.

And finally, Tomorrow's my Birthday!! Hip, hip, horaaay. Tonight I baked a batch of (almost) guilt-free brownies, containing agave nectar and bananas instead of butter and sugar. I haven't tried them yet but my housemates have had a few tasters and I think it's safe to say they went down well. Also think I finally got a very exciting job today and some new university projects on the go but thats all I'm going to say for now... watch this space! 

Love 

Sophie Agnes

xxx

Heavenly Sweet Treats #4

Strawberry & Lime Ice Lollies

These ice lollies are perfect for this rare heatwave, the lime gives them such a refreshing flavour. They also have the added bonus of being Sugar-free! Mum's been growing strawberries for a few years now and we've never had such a good crop as this year. She's been desperately trying to find recipes to use them up so I thought I'd try mixing them with some lime, after all they go so well together in Strawberry Mojitos!

Ingredients
Simply..
1 Lime
Water
Handful of chopped strawberries
Dash of Sugar free lime cordial

Combine all the ingredients in a jug and pour into the ice lolly moulds then freeze for over two hours until fully frozen. Once they're ready sit back and enjoy in the sunshine, while it lasts! Leave a comment to let me know what you think of this recipe or if there are any other combinations I should try.

Love Sophie Agnes xxx

Holiday Blues

Hey there,

Sorry about the embarrassing length of time since I last posted however I've been relaxing hard in the sunshine. I've been away in Salou for a week followed by a week in Olu Deniz in Turkey, both were so much fun. This post is going to be a round up of the past few weeks I've been absent, including the Dolphin show, described by one of my friends as 'life-changing' and the bargains I managed to barter in the Turkish bazaar.

The view from our balcony in Salou, we were all pleasantly surprised at how nice and modern our two bedroom apartment was.

By far the best meal we had out there! Homemade Tapas of Garlic prawns, Camembert on toast, Asparagus wrapped in Parma ham, mixed salad and salmon and cream cheese bites. It really was as good as it looks!

We loved the Dolphin show at Aquapolis waterpark so much, we went to both performances.

 Discovered on a trip to the market that toe rings make very good midi rings and then also had to purchase another ring in my favourite colour.

Our Hotel in Turkey was situated in the middle of a valley which meant there was no breeze from the 40 degree heat. Not that I'm complaining as the pool served nicely to cool us off. 

And for when we got tired of lying by the pool, there was also access to a private beach club on the blue lagoon, with stunning views!

One night we visited a traditional Turkish Bazaar, Turkish delight factory and Gold centre. I was surprised to find myself getting excited and bartering over these cushion covers, but what can I say, they gave me inspiration for how I want to decorate my new room in September.

 After breaking my sunglasses two hours before leaving for the airport, I treated myself to this cute green pair in Gatwicks Accessorize. Then fell in love with this style of Ray bans in one of the many 'genuine fakes' shops they have in Turkey and on the last day of our stay I managed to barter the owner down to the equivalent of £3!!

Another genuine fake I also gave into, was this watch. What can I say, I just loved the colour.

As you may know, cooking is one of my favourite pastimes so I could resist buying some spices out in Turkey and even brought some back for my Mum too. 

Here's a few more rings I added to my extensive collection!

Now its back to reality after enjoying myself for over a fortnight and spend more time on this blog and pray my tan doesn't fade too much. I'm also on the lookout for a few more turkish/middle eastern inspired pieces to complete my room, which I'll keep you posted on. That's all for now.

Love Sophie Agnes xxx

Heavenly Sweet Treats #3

Frozen Banana Loaf

This is a recipe I found on Oh, Ladycakes blog, then adapted according to what I had in the larder. As you may have guessed I'm a lover of all things banana flavoured and containing bananas! A while ago I watched a programme about raw foodies on 4od, and while I thought they were slightly extreme when it came to some of their food habits, some of the ideas made me think more about the benefits of raw recipes. 

This loaf is gluten-free, sugar-free and doesn't involve any cooking or much washing up!

Ingredients

100g Almonds

100g Walnuts

75g Oats

2 Medium Banana's (the riper the better)

1tsp Cinnamon

50g Dried fruit (I used Dates, Prunes and Sultanas)

2 tsp Honey

Method

1. Place all the dry ingredients in a blender and blend until they form a flour like texture.

2. Then add the other ingredients and blend until the mixture becomes like a thick dough.

3. Place the mixture in a tray lined with cling film and press down with a knife or back of a spoon.

4. Place in the freezer for 1-2 Hours then remove and serve.

I added honey to the original recipe for extra sweetness. If you want a different texture to this loaf then why not try adding some chopped nuts or currants to the mixture once it's removed from the blender. Feel free to leave comments to let me know what you think or if there are any other raw recipes you think I should try!

Love Sophie Agnes xxx

Oh My Honey Internship Weeks 2 & 3

Hey there,

Here's a few snaps of recent progress. The last few weeks in Louise's studio have been really exciting with the Brighton Fashion week collection coming together.  I don't think I've ever seen a room filled with so much sparkle. I think my favourite pieces are the bodice covered in rhinestones, which will resemble a human disco ball, as well as the green figure hugging skirt that reminds me so much of the Little Mermaid. Working of this collection has really rubbed off on me, so much so I was looking up rhinestone guns the other night! The catwalk is literally going to be lit up by Louise's collection and I can't wait to see it all come together at the show tonight. 

This cosmic inspired collection captures the 1950's feminine feel that runs through Louise's defusion range 'Oh My Honey', with the nipped in waists and impressive sized skirts they would flatter any figure. I really admire Louise's dedication to this collection, each piece contains some form of intricate hand sewing and beading. The hours of love and labour gone into this collection means it's sure to wow at tonights Showreel Catwalk Show for Brighton Fashion week. 

Good Luck Louise!!

Love Sophie Agnes xxx

Wild Flowers

Hey,

This post is a little later than I had hoped as I was having a few problems with my Mac, but it seems to be all sorted now hopefully. When I'm not at uni I live in the Sussex countryside, which has literally exploded with colour recently! As the sun was out, I took the opportunity to practise my photography skills and get some hint of a pre holiday tan. I love the vibrance of the buttercups and bluebells, they just compliment each other so well. 

                           
 Love Sophie Agnes xxx

Green Smoothies

Hey there,

Since I've got home from Uni, I have got into drinking more and more Green smoothies, which taste delicious despite the sometimes off putting colour! They're so easy to make and quick to drink, so perfect as a healthy snack when I'm short on time or trying to multitask. Here's a few of my favourite recipes so far that I wanted to share with you...

Mango Green Smoothie

Ingredients-

1. Banana

1 cup of Green Tea

15g of Oatbran

20g of Frozen Mango (or fresh mango)

10g Frozen Spinach (Fresh spinach is preferable)

Simply throw all the ingredients in the blender and blend. The longer you blend it for the smoother it will be. It may seem odd to put oat bran in the smoothies but it's a good source of energy and will keep you fuller for longer, if you blend the ingredients for long enough you won't even notice it. 

Blueberry Green Smoothie

Ingredients

1 Banana

1 tsp Honey (Optional)

10g of Almonds

5g of Fresh or frozen Spinach

Handful of Blueberries

1/2 cup of water 

 For this smoothie you may want to blend the almonds a bit first or roughly chop them. Then add the rest of the ingredients and blend. Serve in a cold glass with some fresh spinach leaves to garnish. 

This is easily my favourite of the green smoothies as it was so yummy! You may find you don't need to add extra honey as it should be sweet enough without it. Also I used water as the base for this one and if you want a thicker consitency then just add less liquid, same applies to the other smoothies.

Raspberry Green Smoothie

Ingredients

1/2 Banana

10g Oats

1 cup of Green Tea

5g Frozen Spinach (or fresh)

Handful of Raspberries

Once again pop all the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth. Then serve in a cold glass with a few berries to garnish.

As you can see they're so simple to make. You can also substitute the green tea for water or vice versa, also you could use Greek Yogurt or fresh fruit juice as the liquid base. I reccomend using bananas as they give the thick, creamy consistency. The spinach can also be substituted for other greens such as kale. Please note, all the above recipes serve 1 and the quantities are just a rough guide.

Enjoy your green smoothies and feel free to comment with any recipe suggestions I might like to try!

Love Sophie Agnes xxx

Oh My Honey Internship

Tucked away in the Sussex countryside, the impressive old house is the perfect location for Louise O’Mahony’s studio. Its stuffed full of 1950’s style dresses as well as bridal dresses from her ‘Oh My Honey’ line. Everywhere you look there are satins, tulles and kitsch prints in among the quaint one-of-a-kind pieces such as the retro baby pink chest of drawers. Oh My Honey provides mail order and custom made pieces for any occasion, whereas the Louise O’Mahony line creates more avante garde pieces with a theatrical twist.

Louise is creating a stunning collection for Brighton Fashion Week in June and I started interning in her studio this week, working on the collection and the Oh My Honey range.  It’s a novelty to be back working on the design realization process after spending the last term of Uni mainly working on my laptop.

It’s also interesting to pick Louise’s brain about how she got to where she is today and the day to day running of her business. As well as picking up little handy tips that come from experience. Its also refreshing to see Louise still uses and makes all her own paper patterns.

After the two days I worked this week, I can’t wait to go back next week. Although I’m fairly sure I spent the majority of yesterday just trying to thread the miniscule beading needles!! As well as lots of beading, I also worked on some pattern cutting, fusing and hand sewing.

Here’s a sneak peak at some of the pieces I’ve been working on this week. I can’t wait to see the final outcomes and its so exciting to watch them coming together in Louise’s studio. I’ll keep posting about my progress and watch this space for the full collection in a few weeks.  For more info about Louise and Brighton Fashion Week, check out my Links page.

As I write this I’m on my way back to Birmingham to collect all my stuff from halls, however I have no idea where it’ll fit back at home. Oh well, I’m allowed to have loads of stuff, I’m a fashion student right?

Love Sophie Agnes
xxx