BBC Good Food Show Glasgow | Granite City Girl Reader Discount

Hello everyone, as you can undoubtedly tell it is not Wednesday or Friday (at least I hope not!) but today I am coming at you with a special little post that includes a reader discount for tickets to the BBC Good Food Show which is coming to Glasgow's SECC in November (6th - 8th)

Now you guys know how much I love food, well you know maybe you don't but guys, I love food! So when the BBC Good Food Show got in touch to collab and give me an offer to share with you lovely lot how could I resist?

The BBC Good Food Show Scotland is a showcase of culinary talents from across the UK and spotlights exceptional chefs, bakers and candlestick makers (no not really, sorry!) There are a whole host of events taking part throughout the weekend from interviews, demonstrations, book signings and if you've got time a spot of shopping! This year sees the likes of our baking faves Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry in attendance as well as Scots favourite Tom Kitchin. For the full line up of celebrity chefs, events and general happenings of the weekend be sure to head on over to the BBC Good Food Show Scotland website

Granite City Girl Reader Discount

So on to the juicy, steaky goodness part of this post, all you lovely lot have to do to is use the code MVS2 to get 20% off tickets booked from their online web store. The promo code expires on the 1st of October so if you'd like to get your hands on these foodie goodies be there or be square (oh yeah, that's right!)

I hope to make it down myself for the weekend with a couple of my friends so I'd love to know if you are heading down too, who knows we could meet, drink and get fat together! Do let me know if you have decided that yes I am a human person, I like food and I'm doin' this thing in the comments below, share your foodie inspos with me on Twitter or if you'd just like to keep an eye on this space for more discounts (wink wink) you can follow Granite City Girl on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, feeding my inner foodie.

H.Elizabeth x

Beauty How To | How to clean your make up brushes thoroughly

As much as I would love to sit here and tell you that I am a creature of habit that simply isn't true, unless you count a monthly (weekly) make up purchase as a habit, albeit a bad habit but a habit all the same. So when it came to writing this post I thought you know what let's just get all of our cards out on the table and show the world how poor a beauty blogger I really can be, so here goes. I, Hannah Adams, am guilty of leaving my make up brushes to stew in their own mess for 2 (okay 3!) week periods without a ritualistic cleaning... there I said it, and yes I do feel better for it. But you know what doesn't feel better? My face!

So in order to pull me from my make up brush cleaning slump I thought what better way to give myself a swift kick up the backside than to write about it so I feel obligated to clean them weekly! Today therefore I would like to share my very thorough brush cleaning routine and share a pledge with you today that I, Hannah Adams, henceforth here and forever promise to clean all of my make up brushes at least once a week from here on out. And so without further ado, here are my tips, tricks and general routine for cleaning my make up brushes:

What you will need:

A small tea plate

Washing up liquid
Olive Oil

Alcohol Make up brush cleaning solution (For this I use one from MAC)
A clean dishtowel

Method:

1. Squirt some washing up liquid on to your tea plate and add an equal amount of olive oil to the centre.
2. Take your make up brush and swirl it around really getting in there and watch all of the liquid seep into your brush.
3. Rinse your brush under a running tap, squeezing out any excess soap and olive oil. Usually I rotate the brush on the palm of my hand under the water then squeeze it out gently.
4. 'Shampoo' your brushes with the alcohol solution, for this I use the MAC make up brush cleaner.
5. Use your dishtowel to dry off your brush, it will still be a little damp so wrap the head of your brush in the dishtowel and leave over night.
6. Repeat steps 1 through 5 for all of your make up brushes and you're good to go!

I am aware the way I am washing my brushes is perhaps not the right way, best way or even the second best way but it has served me well throughout the last couple of years and my brushes always come out conditioned and squeaky clean! But of course as you know I am always open to your comments, feedback and general musings so if this post has helped you or you think I need help be sure to leave your thoughts below, come share them with me on Twitter or if you want to see more of my now clean and blemish free face and brushes be sure to follow Granite City Girl on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, squeaky clean with my weekly routine!

H.Elizabeth x

Pure Gym | What to expect from your first spin class

 
Your arse will take a pounding and you may cry a little (a lot)

So now that you know I'm not going to sugar coat this 'what to expect from your fitness' post I can move forward. Very recently I started attending the spin classes at my local Pure Gym where I have been a member of for almost 2 years now and it has honestly taken me THAT long to build up the courage to attend one of these classes. When I first started going to the gym on a regular basis I would work out for a solid 30 minutes on the treadmills in front of a congregation of avid spinners, every night they'd come saddle up, sweat, screech and of course spin out their frustrations (which I imagined at the time they must have many) as the incredibly enthusiastic instructor would scream over whichever bass pumping track was playing that evening. The prospect of every joining this class terrified me, yet here I am, one of them, part of the screeching, sweat drippy spinners! And with that in mind I would just like to share the story of my first ever spin class, the good, the bad and the downright ugly!

When I first decided to go to spin it was after quite a long break from exercising, that was my first mistake. I had got it into my head that if I push myself really hard for say a week or wishful thinking, a few days, then perhaps I'll just fall back into it really quickly, unfortunately that was not the case. Surprisingly enough I set up my bike quite well and I didn't need any help, though my RPM monitor wasn't working but I just assumed this was quite a common occurrence, just for your information it isn't, and this was my second mistake!

One of the great things about the spin classes is that the instructor does it along with you so you know what you're doing at every step and stage instead of floundering a bit unsure, plus, and as said as it sounds, it feels like you're all in it together and there's a sense of,'ahhh we can do this!!!' My first clue to the difficulty of the class itself was when asked if anyone was new, I raised my hand and there were gasps, oh dear....The class started with a warm up which was more taxing than I thought and made me seriously rethink my fitness levels, just a word of advice, a towel is a necessity. The class I attend takes you through a serious of different speeds and resistance settings, usually going for a hill climb then sprints and we even work in some push ups and squats in there (on the bike might I add)

When it came to the sprints, this is where my RPM would have come in handy as I was pushing myself far harder than I really needed to through some bits and was totally burned out by the time it came to doing the sprints, ordinarily you aim to stay at about 100 RPM throughout the class and dip lower for areas of higher resistance and of course ones of lower resistance you can speed way up, to date I think the highest I have ever seen my RPM go was about 170 / 175. I have to be honest and say when I was doing the class I decided there and then that this was not for me, I would never get on a bike again, not just a spin bike, I mean ANY bike. My mind went through every emotion possible from oh my god I feel so emotional I may cry to, I'm going to throw up then die and circling eventually back to AAHHHH BEAST MODE. And as unpleasant as that all undoubtedly sounds the feeling you have afterwards can only be described as euphoria and I've really never felt anything like it or had such a satisfying work out.

Since doing spin twice a week my fitness levels have increased dramatically, I've noticed more of a difference in my energy levels and I just generally feel better. Though after the class walking home as such a sweaty mess has been quite an experience, you can guarantee that I almost always bump into someone I haven't seen for years and they automatically think I'm a hobo, just a sweaty, ginger hobo and you know what I don't blame them! If you implement one thing into your fitness routine make it spin, you'll want to hurt your instructor, crawl into your bed and sleep for the longest time but you will feel so glad you went.

I hope this has given you guys a bit more of an idea of what a spin class entails, specifically the spin classes at Pure Gym, though every instructor is different I'm sure the feelings are mutual! Do let me know in the comments below if you go to a spin class and what you thought or come drop me a line on Twitter if you have any fabby fitness tips to share with me. Or of course if you'd just like to see more of my sweaty, hobo face be sure to follow Granite City Girl on Bloglovin.

Until next time, spinning mad.

H.Elizabeth x 

Nip + Fab | Bee Sting Fix Eye Cream Review

When I first heard the news that you are never considered to be too young to be wearing eye cream I panicked, 'oh my goodness my poor peepers they're doomed,' thoughts of intense eye bags by thirty, creases my make up would fall into and be lost forever filled my brain and images of dark circles plagued my dreams. Okay so perhaps I'm being a little dramatic and exaggerating a little, but I'm not exaggerating when I say I began to experiment with eye creams immediately! I have been through a few in the last year or so and even went as far as to repurchase Lush's Enchanting Eye Cream which, at first, worked a treat for me, it brightened up my under eye baggage and made me feel a little less self conscious (about something I hadn't really been self conscious about until last year!) but as of late those creases have really been getting to me, and my make up and sadly it was time to move on.

On my travels I came across a great deal of new, innovative and exciting skin care 'revelations' that would reverse the signs of aging, typically those all cost a bomb and involved either taking your own blood and smearing it on your face or letting a snail do the dirty under your eye balls, none of which tends to appeal to my price range or stomach for that matter, but thankfully the high street held the answer!

If I'm totally honest I bought this Nip & Fab Bee Sting Eye Cream on a whim along with their face mask of the same range (which I have yet to try and test, so stay tuned for the verdict) it was on offer in my local Boots, and as I'm sure we have discussed before, I'm a sucker for a bargain! The Bee Sting Eye cream at a glance promises to plump, firm and fight against the visible signs of fatigue. The cream required a test patch, much like hair dyes do, this was a little daunting to me so if you are going to give this cream a go make sure you don't try it on a whim right before a big event (I've been there before and it ain't pretty!) So after acing the patch test I was all good to go.

My main concern, as I know it is with many girls, are under eye creases catching all of your foundation / concealer / red lippy (if that takes your fancy) and further defining the shadows of your under eye baggage, and honestly short of botox and a facelift I felt skeptical that any product, particularly on the high street would be able to help me. Boy am I glad I was wrong! The cream is quite a thick consistency and takes a bit more dabbing than any other eye cream I have used in the past to sink in, but the creamy and thickness give it more of a luxe feel which is always nice.

It took me a couple of days use in the evenings after my shower and before moisturising to notice a difference but when I did... it was magical. My under eye bags seemed to be lighter in colour, now I'm not simply saying this is solely down to the eye cream as I have been sleeping a lot better recently and as you know I have been getting a bit of sun, but they seem less puffy and dare I say 'wrinkly' than before. When I was using the cream, because it is a 'bee sting forumla' I had half expected a tingling or stingy sensation when it was applied but thankfully it is so gentle there was none of that nonsense.

After using this cream and reaping the benefits so far I'm really excited to try out the face mask, apparently you can use this as a one off treat as you would a regular face mask or you can leave it on all night to give a proper soak in, though I would worry I'd wake with a Hannah face shape on my pillow so I may give that a miss. As you guys know from my previous Nip and Fab glycolic cleanser review way back when I'm quite a fan of their products and they just continue to surprise and amaze me and I would definitely recommend this to any of you out there who have suffered similar issues with under eye baggage like me, but I MUST stress the importance of a patch test, your eyes are one of the most sensitive areas of your body and you could cause permanent damage if you're not careful!

Okay so disclaimer and warnings aside, I hope you have enjoyed reading this review, drop me a comment below with any Nip and Fab products you have tried and loved or even tried and loathed, otherwise you can catch me on the flipside... otherwise known as Twitter and the latest Granite City Girl posts on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, I'm buzzing about my eye baggage!

H.Elizabeth x

Autumn in Aberdeen | Granite City Girls Wardrobe Staples

As you guys could probably tell by now I have pretty simple tastes when it comes to fashion, I rarely experiment with prints, bold colours or new and 'innovative' styles, which usually come in the form of sausage casing like crop tops with some terrifying looking embellishment. No I'm afraid these things are simply not for me, and you can trust me when I say I have tried, my goodness have I tried! It used to be very much that I was pretty embarrassed by my chronically monotone wardrobe thinking there must be something wrong with me before I favour black leather and a vest in summer over a floral print cropped piece of nonsense frankly! And so with that in mind I fully embraced my monotonous state and decided instead to experiment with accessories, b/w prints and fabrics with a few lovely combos as a result which I thought I would share with you today!

Simple staples of leather and leopard
If you perhaps couldn't tell from my instagram posts as late, I have been a bit obsessed with leather midi skirts, and really leather in general. Currently I own three leather midi's, my favourite at the moment is my Topshop one (as it was the first size 10 thing I was able to fit back in to!)  which has a stable leather at the front and a denim panel on the backside. I love how versatile this skirt is, you can dress it up for a night out with a crop top (which I don't do, but you could) wear it for work with a shirt or dress it down and pair it with a slouchy T shirt. In this particular pic I have paired it with my French Connection vest which is my fave at the moment, for a day at work, as you can see keeping to my monochrome theme nicely! 

Slouchy shorts and stripes
Stripes are something I ordinarily shy away from and spaghetti straps are the clothing form of demons as I hate bra straps being on display, but thankfully as I have gotten over my fear of stripes (only ever vertical though!) and got my boobs under control I was able to throw this combo together! Though looking back I do realise I look a bit like a referee. The shorts are from French Connection and they're the comfiest shorts ever, though they crease super easily! I'm looking forward again to wearing these with woolies, boots and my cosy coats!

Seventies Suede
Suede is something I have always been terrified of, but when I saw this skirt I must say it was love at first sight! When I bought this the 1970's were very 'in' as they probably aren't now, but just you wait ladies and gents they will come around again! I love pairing this with a plan black top and a statement belt namely the leopard print one in the picture. I'm looking forward to the proper Autumnal months where I can pair this with some wooly tights and ankle boots to really complete the look.

Happily leather after

Leather look leggings, oh my goodness leather look leggings, however did I live and dress before these leather look leggings!? I wear these bad boys at least twice in a week and they're so versatile and are able to jazz up any old t shirt, vest or drapey top I fancy. I love wearing them with my drapey River Island tops in particular like the one in the picture, which I usually wear a lace vest underneath. This has by far been my favourite outfit recently and I can't see that changing as the colder months storm on in as the leggings have a super warm lining and as for my 'drapey' tops I have so many sleeved ones, sleeveless ones, lacey ones there's no shortage on choice!

Fashion at times isn't my forte, and summer, as you've probably guessed really isn't my time to shine style wise, but I really hope you've enjoyed seeing some of my Autumnal wardrobe staples for the coming months and perhaps this has given you a  little bit of inspiration to dig out your own staples. If you have any thoughts or want to share some of your Autumn staples be sure to leave them in the comments below, come share them with me on Twitter, or if you'd like to see more of my efforts, endeavours and engaging content (ha!) be sure to follow Granite City Girl on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, I'm making fashion my forte!

H.Elizabeth x

Vroom Vroom | We bought a car!

Checking in with you on this very special day to update you on yet another little Granite City life moment or perhaps more appropriately another little life milestone, which as you can undoubtedly tell from the title of this post involves the purchase of our very first motor vehicle!

For us this has been quite a long time coming, we have been relying on our parents to cart us out and about for our weekly shop and just day trips in general and as we are currently in the works of moving home, we really just thought it was time to make a commitment and take a plunge as it were and buy our very own form of vehicular transportation in the form of our wee Ford Fiesta.

As many of you may already know I do not hold a drivers license but we are currently working on that, I have taken driving lessons a couple of years ago but due to university and work commitments I just couldn't find the time to squeeze in lessons and of course the financial strain back then with my part time job was a bit too much so unfortunately I had to stop. But I'm really looking forward to getting back behind the wheel in the next few months and as from now I'll be focusing most of my spare time and energy on swotting up for my theory test (which I had also past and has now expired - drats!)

All I want to say to end this very brief post is that we want to thank my Dad for carting us about for these last few years and your advice, without which we'd still be scratching our heads looking at Gumtree and of course  Neil from Arnold Clark in Aberdeen for his incredible patience and helping us in getting the best deal possible in our search.

Until next time folks, I'm being driven round the bend.

H.Elizabeth x

Granite City Girls Ink | 'My Way' Tattoo

In my opinion body art is the highest form of self expression. In life there are so few things you get to say are forever, that you get to take with you when all is said and done and in many ways tattoos are life's most poetic form of personal expression and dare I say it art in general. So really it's no surprise that with almost every milestone, memory or little life moment I generally want to keep for the rest of my life my first instinct is to etch it permanently on my body, which is what brings me nicely to the subject of this post, my most recent tattoo in memory of my granda who passed away earlier this year. At first glance the tattoo just makes you think I'm quite a brash person, stomping through life getting my own way, and while yes there may be a little truth to that (ahem) it also means so much more.

When I think of my granda I think of a trailblazer of a man who did things the way he wanted to do them, in his time and though he was quite a quiet man he spoke his mind when it counted and didn't shy away from potentially awkward moments, conversations or dull down his opinions and that's a quality I really admire and hope I portray throughout my own life a because there really isn't anything more important than being yourself and doing things your way no matter what other people think of you.

So really in addition to the kick ass Frank Sinatra song which reminds me of him this new tattoo which reads 'My Way' is really an etched and permanent memory and piece of advice from my granda that I will now physically and mentally carry with me for the rest of my life, and despite the upturned noses I can see behind some of those screens out there and shouts of 'but why don't you just remember him in your memories and photographs,' let me just say that I'm doing it my way!

If you have any questions about tattoos, the pain, process or where I go in Aberdeen to have mine let me know in the comments below, come Tweet your questions on Twitter or if you'd like to keep up with Granite City Girl and any upcoming inklings come find me on Bloglovin.

Until next time folks, I'm going to continue doing it 'my way'

H.Elizabeth