Author: Samio

Cranberry And Orange Zest Loaf

Usually my Sunday’s are spent lounging about and indulging in afternoon naps. So basically, Sunday’s are my lazy days. This Sunday however the boyfriend and I decided to get up early and then go for a long walk in the park. It was just what I needed and I came back feeling refreshed. Of course all that walking had built up an appetite and so I decided to bake.

I had some fresh cranberries to use, so it was the perfect ingredient to use in my baking. This is a variation of a cranberry loaf recipe I found. It’s yummy and goes great with a cup of coffee.

Ingredients:

Butter or margarine to grease the bread tin

Grease proof paper.

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups plain flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup milk

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond flavouring

The zest of 1 orange.

Lemon zest (optional)

1 cup of cranberries

A hand full of Brazil nuts

Instructions:

Pre heat oven to 175 degrees C or 350 degrees F.

Line the bottom of the bread tin with grease proof baking paper and fully grease the tin with butter or margarine.

First mix together the eggs and sugar, then combine the rest of the ingredients all together in a mixing bowl.

Once the ingredients have all been folded in and mixed together then pour the mixture into the greased bread tin.

Bake in the oven for 45 to 55 minutes, baking for less time if using a fan oven.

Bake until golden. To check if it is ready, before taking the loaf out of the oven, slowly penetrate with a sharp knife. If the knife comes out clean when removed then the loaf is done, if it comes out with mixture on in then bake for slightly longer.

Once taking the loaf out of the oven, leave to cool before removing from the tin.

After removing the loaf from the tin, peel the grease proof paper from the bottom of the loaf.

Cut into slices and serve.

Make sure the rest of the cake is covered and keep it in the fridge.

Samio x

January 5, 2014
Welcome To My Galaxy

Today I’m finally making use of my galaxy print sweater, which I feel like I’ve had forever but never worn until now. I’ve been filling up on Christmas dinner and lots of alcohol and so this cosy eBay purchase seems like the perfect choice of attire for my Friday evening. As I carry on the festivities tonight, I do so in comfort. It will probably be a late one tonight but as I’m enjoying this evening from the comfort of my own home, I’ll save the dressing up until tomorrow night when I head out for a night on the town.

Samio x

December 27, 2013
Festive Christmas Day Makeup Tutorial

I’ve said it about ten times already but I’m feeling super festive! I always love getting into the Christmas spirit but this year I feel even more Christmassy than ever.

The run up to Christmas Day seems to have gone so fast that I’ve barely had time to do any proper planning. Luckily though, all my presents are purchased, the fridge is full and now I just have two more restless sleeps until I can have my much anticipated Gothic Christmas! Yes that’s right, our family is doing a themed Christmas this year and I can’t wait.

I came up with the idea of a themed Christmas last month when I was in a period of loving black. I just loved the idea of having an Adams Family/The Munsters style family Christmas Dinner. I was surprised to hear my family were well up for the idea and even ended up planned and purchasing outfits before I did! I even spent a large chunk of last night making a luxurious Vampire cape for my boyfriend, which turned out quite fabulous I must say.

With everyone else sorted I’d almost forgot to pick out an outfit for myself. Luckily, with me owning an array of ‘Gothic attire’, I was able to pull something out of my wardrobe last minute. Strangely enough the planning of a Gothic Christmas has made me feel more festive than ever and I am more than giddy for Christmas Day.

Anyway, despite the fact that I’m getting ready to release my inner Goth, as it’s Christmas Eve, Eve, I thought I’d do a Christmas Day makeup blog post. So for those of you who are looking for some festive makeup inspiration and won’t be going for smokey eyes and dark lips like me, then maybe this step by step tutorial can come in handy for you.

The Eyes

Step 1:
Prep the eyelids with your regular foundation and fill in your eyebrows as usual.
With a light shimmer, go over the lid of your eye. Here I’ve used Front Cover’s eye shadow shade, Biscuit.

Step 2:
Using a light shimmery brown eye shadow, shadow in just above the eyelid crease and then blend. I used shade Hazel from Front Cover’s Rainbow Eyes Pallet.

Step 3:
Draw on some winged liner using a black eyeliner pencil.

Step 4:
Using a glitter gel liner, draw a winged line above the black pencil line.
For this I used Collection’s Glam Crystal Dazzling Gel Liner in Funk, which is a gold shade.

Step 5:
Once the gold glitter liner has dried, go over the black pencil eyeliner with a black liquid eyeliner in order to create a more solid line. (Go over the glitter eyeliner again afterwards if needed)
Apply black mascara to the top lashes only.

Step 6:
Using a gold eyeliner pencil, liner the bottom of your eye. I used Model’s Own Golden Girl Glitter Eye Pencil.

Step 7:
Add black mascara to your bottom lashes for the end result.

The Lips

Step 1:
Lightly liner the lips using a brown to light brown to nude lip liner pencil, depending on your skin tone. For this I used a pencil in shade Cinnamon from Boots Natural Collection.

Step 2:
Again, finding a shade to suit your skin tone, fill the lips in with a nude to brown shade of lipstick. I used NYC’s Expert Lip Last in shade, Creamy Caramel 440.

Step 3:
Appling to the centre of the lips, add some gold shimmery lip gloss and carefully pat outwards with your finger to blend. The perfect gloss to use for this effect is Illamasqua’s Intense Lipgloss in shade, Stranger, as used here.

The Finished Look

A great variation to this look is to use a different colour glitter eyeliner. Here I’ve used Collection’s Glam Crystals Dazzling Gel Eyeliner in Pizzazz, which is a super festive green shade.

Samio x

December 23, 2013
Cocktails & Cake

The bliss of days off… On Friday the boyfriend and I had the day off together and so we spent it sipping cocktails and eating cake (perfect if you ask me). We started with lunch and cake at one of my favourite places, Richmond Tea Rooms, before heading to Whim Wham Gin Saloon for some delicious early afternoon cocktails. Carrying our way on into the early evening, we went from bar to bar sampling an array of tasty cocktails until we headed back for a little festive gathering at home.

-Whim Wham Martini & Whamble

What I Wore:
Shirt: H&M
Jacket: Blue Inc
Skirt: Zara
Wedges: Primark

Samio x

December 22, 2013
Girl In The Red Coat

It’s only eight days until Christmas Day and I can certainly say that I am finally feeling ‘Christmassy’. My presents are wrapped (bar a couple that I’m still waiting to arrive) and I’ve even been getting crafty by creating a few hand made cards. With more festive outings and gatherings ahead, I’m looking forward to getting even more into the spirit of things over the weekend.

At the moment I’ve been living in this coat I bought from Asos. Not only is it a bold yet festive red, which I love, but it also keeps me super warm and the faux fur detachable collar is great at keeping me snug, especially on cold winter mornings. Unfortunately I didn’t do a very good job at neatening myself up for these shot and so the coat looks a bit creased and twisted but at least I was warm.

Samio x

December 17, 2013
Photography by Rianna Tamara

During my last trip to London I shot with photographer Rianna Tamara. We shot in a studio, one Friday afternoon. Wearing a few pieces from my own wardrobe, the styling was simple and I wore no makeup as to capture natural shots.

I’m really pleased with how the images turned out, as some simple natural shots like these were just what my portfolio needed.

Rianna Tamara Facebook
Rianna Tamara Website

Samio x

December 16, 2013
December Favourites

I’ve had this nail varnish forever and I never seem to wear it, maybe it’s because when I’m not painting my nails nude I opt for something more bold like bright red. When I came to paint my nails this time however, I was feeling rather festive and so this O.P.I shade, Bastille My Heart, seemed the perfect Christmassy shade. I’ve not stopped using it since so it’s definitely a December favourite.

I’m often asked how I treat my hair differently during winter. If I’m honest, I’ve never really thought about it before and often my hair care routine doesn’t change too dramatically from season to season. This month though, I decided to invest a little more treatment time into my hair routine, doing more braiding treatments before bed and I also bought this great product. I am a avid user of Aussie product, so I decided to give their, 3 Minute Miracle Deep Conditioning, a go. Applied just after washing when the hair is wet, this product gives your hair a deep conditioning in 3 minutes (exactly like it says on the bottle). For me this product works wonders and straight away my hair felt softer and more manageable. I think the results were obvious after drying too, my curls now feel and look healthier.

My third and final December favourite is this turtle neck jumper I bought from H&M. I’ve wanted a jumper like this for a while, so when I finally got my hands on this one I was delighted with my purchase. I bought a size too big because I wanted it to feel oversized and cosy. It looks great thrown on with a pair of jeans and I’ve even found myself even wearing it round the house because it’s just so comfy.

Samio x

December 15, 2013
Jazzing Up The LBD

It seems that the festive season is upon us and so queue the Christmas dos and holiday gatherings. With so many outings to attend and so little time for planning and outfit shopping, I think this month accessories will become my new best friend!

On Tuesday evening I went out for a festive meal and drinks with LBD. I opted for a little black dress (which has been my go to piece as of late). I didn’t have much time to plan an outfit, so it was the easy ‘it will do’ option.

As I feel I have been living in black lately, I decided to dress my outfit up with a bright turquoise necklace. I feel it made all the difference by adding a pop of colour to the look. I finished off my outfit with a pair of 80’s looking sheer black tights and a pair of black Jeffrey Campbell wedges. Not forgetting my Pearls & Lipstick clutch bag, a quirky eye ring and super cute star friendship bracelet off LBD.

What I wore:
Dress – Asos
Tights – Primark
Heels – Jeffrey Campbell
Clutch Bag – Pearls & Lipstick
Ring – eBay
Friendship bracelet – H&M
Necklace – H&M

Samio x

December 12, 2013
Expecting The Unexpected

The end of the year is fast approaching and after a busy few months, I finally made my way back down South to meet with my London agency and to get some long over due test shoots done.

Whilst in London I shot with photographer Rachel Lamb and Make Up Artist Rebecca McMahon. The images were shot on film, which I always find interesting as you are unable to assess your facial expressions and poses by looking at the back of the camera during the shoot. This often means the moments captured are very raw and natural looking. This can be an exciting process, as until the photographs are developed, you have no idea how the images will turn out!

Samio x

December 9, 2013
Halloween Skull Face Paint Makeup Tutorial
This is a follow on from the previous post, on how I did my skull doll Halloween makeup. My boyfriend also opted for skull makeup and I was quite surprised at his results. It’s always slightly awkward when your boyfriend does a better job at makeup than you, don’t you think?

Look below to see step by step of how he achieved this look:

What he used:

For the application:
- A sponge.
- A bust set.
He used the sponge to apply the white face paint to the whole of is face, avoiding the eye area.

Next he used one of the fine brushes to outline and fill in the shape around the eyes, using the black face paint.

This was then done to draw and fill in the nose.

A thin line was drawn across the top lip, spreading out along either side of the face, again using the black face paint.

Along the black line he drew ‘U’ shapes, above and below the line, to create the look of teeth.

Lightly watering down the paint on the brush, he then shaded above and below the ‘U’ shapes, to add more detail.

At either sides of the face he drew a circle outline, to later be filled in.

He next filled in the outlines made on either side of the face, using the black face paint. He then added slight detail above the brown line, again using the black paint slightly watered down.

A crack line was added to a top corner of the face to give the look of a cracked skull.

To finish off the look, he painted his neck and ears with the black face paint.

Happy Halloween!

Samio x
October 31, 2013