style | white jeans

slightly cropped top | new look

kimono | primark

jeans | topshop 'joni'

boots | new look

rings | primark and family heirlooms

nails | l'oreal colour riche 'pistachio drage'

lips | rimmel moisture renew 'in love with ginger' (review)

This year I decided to invest in some white jeans just because they are an update in my wardrobe which makes literally everything look summery. For example, stick white jeans with a jumper and it instantly screams spring and summer instead of winter. I can imagine that these jeans will not be leaving my body expect the occasional wash! These are the Topshop 'Joni' jeans and are made of really stretchy material so they are so comfy and lightweight that they actually feel like jeggings instead. I'll be honest, I've seen so many reviews of the Joni jeans either loving or hating them, but they are my favourite ever pair of jeans! The only thing with the white jeans are that they are pretty sheer so you need to invest in some anti-VPL/nude knickers!

Today I've paired them with my coral slightly cropped tee from New Look and a Primark kimono that ties everything together. I know that the boots aren't exactly summer attire, but I'm still on the lookout for some little sandals and have seen some at New Look that I might have to go and buy!

What do you think of this outfit?

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style | topshop wishlist

It's come to that time again when I've been finding myself wishing i was a millionaire and could afford everything on this wishlist. Although if I WAS a millionaire, would i even be shopping at Topshop or would this be an 'Alexander McQueen wishlist' instead?

Well anyway let's not beat round the bush and get into the depressingly fun topic of lusting after clothes we all wish we could afford..

C O A T - £75

D R E S S - £55

First off we have this lovely boyfriend coat in a pale blue/mint colour. How pretty is this coat?! I've been lusting after a pastel coloured coat for months now but shelling out £75 on one when I have dozens of other coats is really holding me back. If only it was from Primark and cost £20 instead!

I also found this gingham dress while looking through the party dresses and cannot help but love it. I'm in love with a-line skirts and dresses at the moment and I love the cutout detailing, neckline and mixed patterns. I think it almost looks like a 21st Century Dorothy and now that I've said it I'm thinking of buying this dress just for the AWESOME fancy dress idea!

J U M P E R - £36

S K I R T - £100

Next up I found these two pieces that would actually make a lovely '60s-esque outfit. First off is this lovely mint green textured jumper, with 3/4 length sleeves. I'm currently loving jumpers and tops with these mid-length sleeves because it's the perfect length for the in-between weather we've got at the minute in England! So pretty but I'm not convinced it's worth the £36 price tag.

Another thing that isn't going to be hanging in my wardrobe anytime soon is this STUNNING a-line skirt. It's from the Boutique brand so has an astronomical price tag, but look at how preeedy it is! This is genuinely what I consider the perfect skirt just because of the shape and pattern but alas this love is unrequited as I'd never spend £100 on a skirt!

H E E L S - £40 (down from £65)

E A R R I N G S - £12.50

Finally, in the accessories corner i found these studded nude heels which are actually in the sale with £25 off. They don't seem to look the nicest shade of nude in this picture but on the model they look much nicer! I've always loved studded heels and think these have just the right amount to look understated and pretty.

And then i found these little earrings which have mint and pale pink details within the diamonds (fake!). This drop-down style of earring is what I personally love just because I think they look really elegant and the colours on this pair is are so on trend.

So there we go, another wishlist that makes me wish for a bigger bank account as well!

Do you like any of my choices? Have you been lusting after it all as well?

Let me know what you think!

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beauty | soap and glory 'archery' for brows

Brows is the one part of my make up routine that has never changed - until now. I've always used an angled brush and powder just because I loved how soft the look was it created, but on a recent trip to Boots flipped this amazing product into my life.

Soap and Glory have been a brand I've been a little bit in love with - I've reviewed their Supercat eyeliner in the past and still use it everyday - so when I saw this brow product I didn't even think about it before throwing it into my basket.

The Archery brow tint and precision shaping pencil is double-ended with a waxy brown pencil on one side and a fine-nibbed brow tint on the other. I generally go through with the pencil side first to add colour and shape to my brows before going around the edges with the brow tint to create realistic hairs around the edges and front of my brow.

As you can see from the swatches, neither of the sides of the pen are highly pigmented - but they offer just the right amount and you can't go overboard with this product at all. The product comes in two shades - 'Love is Blonde' and 'Brownie Points' - mine is the latter. My favourite side is definitely the brow tint - it creates brow flicks which are so realistic that they look like real hairs.

This product really does blow my mind - and it has really good lasting time as well. I'n not surprised by how impressed I am just because all of the Soap and Glory products are so good. 

What do you think?

The Soap and Glory Archery brow pencil comes in two shades and can be bought from Boots here for £10.00.

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style | whole new look

top || New Look (in the sale!)

disco pants || New Look

coat - || New Look (in the sale!)

scarf || ASOS (personalised)

boots || New Look

lion necklace || New Look

heart necklace || gift

'take me down' anchor necklace || Me and Zena

nails || see this post 

I'm sure regular readers of Laura Loves That took one look at these pictures and went 'a whole new look? nothing's changed!'. Well actually the title of this post refers to the possibly sad fact that literally my entire outfit is from New Look.

I said in a recent post that New Look is currently killing it for me, and is full of so many pieces that I would happily wear. It's a brand that I once thought of as mumsy and really safe, but the past couple of seasons have really shown New Look amping up the fashion stakes and coming out with some affordable yet stylish pieces.

Take this top for example: I actually got it in the sale New Look is currently having (check it out - it's such an amazing sale!) for just £8. It's from the tall section and falls at a really lovely place on my own body. It's also made of that weird waffle material, which I think makes it look so expensive and like you've made a little more effort. Details like the gold zip to the back and the different hem make me really love this. 

I wore it with my favourite pants of the moment - the disco ones I got a couple of months ago. I really love these but sadly there's a little bit of stretching appearing in the butt area and I have a feeling they will be going wither saggy or see through pretty soon! I do wear them to death though, so I can't really complain. 

The scarf from ASOS was actually a snood when I bought it a couple of years ago. You can tell from these pictures just how huge it is and I never actually wore it as a snood as it was literally like a neck brace and I could barely see my feet when I wore it. I asked my gran if she could turn it into a scarf all voila, these are the results. I love it!

What do you think? 

Do you think New Look has got a lot more fashionable recently?

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life | food diary

Since New Year, my diet has changed pretty drastically. I'm not sure why - it might have been because I went away with my boyfriend's family and we ate so much good food that I wanted to carry it on at home.

Since then I've been really getting into cooking and trying out new food, and taking a lot of instagram pictures of it! I've had so many comments on facebook and instagram (and off the people who eat my food) that it looks and tastes really good so I thought I'd share some of my favourite meals with you all.

I'm definitely having a lot more fruit and veg but if you go look over at my instagram (laurapratt_) you'll know I still eat a lot of naughty things too, so I'm not suddenly eating in a bid to lose weight or anything - I've just started to really love fruit and veg again!

BREAKFAST

Breakfast is the only meal that I'm extremely 'samey' with. I've been eating the same thing for at least a year now and cannot even think of changing it over. I have either one of two meals depending if I am up early for uni or work, or if I'm having a lazy morning.

Lazy mornings consist of two slices of wholemeal bread (I've always hated white bread!) and one boiled egg. This is definitely one of my favourite things to eat and I sometimes have it for lunch rather than breakfast. I also have a glass of milk with it so I get enough calcium. 

On days when I'm up early I have a lovely bowl of natural yoghurt, fruit and granola with cinnamon and honey. I actually got this idea from Sammi of Beautycrush, and it really is a delicious and filling breakfast!

LUNCH

I always find lunch the most difficult meal to cook just because I always get bored easily of salad or eating the same thing every day. I make sure I mix it up so I don't get as bored of it. 

Sometimes I need lunch quickly and so I grab these Ryvita flatbread/crisp hybrids and top them with either Philadelphia or, like above, homemade bruschetta. I always try and make an interesting salad on the side - this one is Greek inspired.

I'm also a sucker for re-heating my dinner from the previous night - in this instance it was a veggie chilli. I'm in love with this chilli - it's a Jamie Oliver recipe and is so filling and good that I sometimes make a huge batch to freeze in case I ever run out of lunch ideas. It's just a dollop of creme fraiche on top in this picture.

More recently I've been making wraps - I stir fry some Mexican-flavoured chicken with vegetables (here: onions, peppers and green beans) with some chilli and garlic before wrapping it in a warm wholemeal wrap. It tastes lovely with a drizzle of Nando's medium sauce in it as well.

Finally, we have my most recent concoction in terms of this salad - a warm bacon and avocado with some spinach and parmesan. I ate this with some lovely cheesy potatoes and this is definitely the meal I get the most compliments on. I'll be writing a full post on this meal and how to make it soon hopefully! 

DINNER

I get most of my ideas for dinnertime meals from my Jamie Oliver cookbooks. He's definitely my favourite chef as his meals are so cheap and simple to make and follow, and they always taste amazing.

Firstly we have a chicken and chorizo paella. I've never really been fond of the rice in paella as it always seems to be really stodgy but this one is lovely and light! Along with all the vegetables and a drizzle of lemon, I can never get enough of this dish.

I also recently made posh fish and chips - sea bass coated in my own breadcrumbs on a bed of sweet potato with peas on the side. So delicious and a much healthier version of fish and chips. I did slightly burn the potatoes but at least I know for next time!

Finally, this is a butternut squash and vegetable stew with rice - it wasn't the best thing I have ever cooked but this was so healthy and I've learnt how to sort it out and what to add for next time. It isn't my favourite dish but was lovely all the same.

A tip I have if you're struggling for ideas on what to cook for dinner, check out what you eat at restaurants. I have come away from meals with so many ideas and can usually remake them to some degree in my own kitchen. In the past I've made the delicious Marco Polo pasta from Bella Italia and the Chicken and Chorizo skewers from Chiquitos. Whenever I go out I always check all the ingredients and guess how they were cooked so I can copy!

SNACKING

Snacking is definitely where my diet has changed the most - I used to eat packets of crisps or biscuits etc. pretty much every day, whereas now I prefer to chop some fruit up instead. 

It sounds so crazy but I prefer eating fruit when it's all cut up, like above. I don't really care too much for eating apples normally but when it is all sliced up I think it's much nicer. Any fruit makes the grade usually - as you can see from the second picture! Mango, strawberry, grapes, apple, kiwi and banana are my current favourites. Having yoghurt to dip in is also really lovely.

Finally, my holy grail of crisps are these ones by Walkers. They are seriously so tasty and much better than normal crisps for me personally.

And there we go; sorry for the picture-heavy post but i take a lot of pictures of my food!

Would you like to try any of these recipes?

If you want any specific ones let me know and I can write up a post!

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