We have been lucky enough to enjoy Afternoon Tea at Claridge's before, but not for Festive afternoon tea. So, When it came to deciding on which festive Afternoon Tea to do next as is our annual tradition, we decided on the world famous and oh so gorgeous Claridge's.

There is nothing like seeing London's best hotels decked out in all of their Christmas finest twinkly splendour and Claridges (with its inverted Christmas tree) really brings it to the party. 

Designed by Karl Lagerfeld, this is certainly the showstopper you'd expect from the creative genius himself. In fact, people flocked from far and wide just to see this incredible creation which was hand crafted in Germany.

We were shown to our table in the beautiful Foyer and Reading room, right under a second inverted candlelit tree in place of Claridge’s famous central chandelier. It was hard not to be distracted by how twinkly everything was. 

We ordered a suitably festive cocktail while we made our selections from the beautiful menu... there are over 24 teas to choose from.  Then we chatted away while the treats rolled in. 

Plates of festive themed finger sandwiches arrived. So delicious it would be easy not to leave room for the other elements of Afternoon Tea. This is why the art of a good Afternoon Tea is to pace yourself, don't rush and savour the moments 

Claridge's serve a Christmas pudding course with their festive Afternoon Tea, and in the past iv never really been a fan of this festive dish. However, one taste and I was completely converted. It was exquisite, and I absolutely ate the whole thing  

Next, we were served warm scones with Marco Polo gelée and Cornish clotted cream (the hubb's favourite) along with mini patisserie (my favourite).

We drank delicious tea from signature Claridge's china, and ate cakes too beautiful to be eaten... however we did indeed eat them. 

Have you tried any of the festive afternoon teas in London? Id love to hear about them...

​Belle 
Xx

For more festive afternoon teas see here 

On our last day in New York, we decided to have fun with all the balloons I ordered for my sisters Birthday. I mean they were totally crying out for a photo opp... am I right? Mix in the fact that the hotel was super cute too and it was too good an opportunity to miss. Plus I thought it would be nice to get some cute snaps of my sister to frame for her to remember such a fun trip  

It was actually so much fun playing with all these balloons, and we made some hilarious boomerangs 

After our little photo shoot, we headed to Augustine for breakfast. Its a super cute and parisienne inspired restaurant which serves an fabulous Sunday Brunch. I'm a really big fan of both Pastis and Balthazar (you have to try their french onion soup) and Augustine is the new kid on the block by the same owner. 

The decor is just gorgeous, and actually quite authentic looking! If you didn't know any better you would really believe your in Parieee....

We decided to go big before we went home (get it) and ordered the biggest breakfasts, which we shared between the three of us. Travelling with friend is so perfect for trying thing's you wouldn't normally order and discovering new foods. 
We ordered ricotta pancakes, eggs in a hole and fried eggs over medium along with bloody Mary's and bottomless coffee. Absolutely delicious

I had one final surprise up my sleeve to end the Birthday celebrations. We headed to Brooklyn bridge so that my sister could let the balloons go (I made sure they were Eco friendly) and make a 40th birthday wish. 

Now this was in theory much easier than in practice as the bridge was absolutely packed. Thankfully most people love a balloon bouquet and some even tried to capture their own photos. 

We decided to check out a small bit of Brooklyn before heading to the airport to return home. It was delightful to see the locals taking the Halloween festivities so seriously. It made me wish we celebrated Halloween more in the UK

I found the perfect doorstep to pose on before we headed back over the bridge... isn't it too cute?

I hope you enjoyed reading about what was such a special trip for my Sister and I!? Isn’t it wonderful to celebrate the special moments :-)

Belle
​Xx

 For some great road trip info check out: "New York to Miami Road Trip".

If you have recently become engaged, congratulations. You might already be jumping for joy at the thought of planning your wedding, but before you do this, there is the exciting  engagement party to plan. There are a whole range of things that you need to consider ahead of your party,  ranging from the guest list, the date, and who's (if not yourself) hosting it. But, there are other things that you also need to have the best engagement party possible, and we are going to discuss these below.
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A Venue

The first thing you should do after you have made a guest list is to decide on a venue. The venue that you choose is where you and all your guests are going to have an amazing night of fun, so you need to make sure that it is big enough for everyone, and this is why you should make your guest list first.

Its a good idea to choose a venue where there is enough to room to sit down and perhaps share a meal with your nearest and dearest , but also space for everyone to get up and dance. Having some people sitting while everyone else is busting a move is not going to be a cohesive vibe for your celebrations. It need to fit all of your criteria, so make sure you go and view the venue before you make a final decision.It will also help you to form the creative direction you want your party to go down
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Photographer

​You are going to want to remember these moments, so this is why I recommend that  you think about hiring a photographer. Your friend with their iPhone isn’t quite going to capture the entire vibe of your party. So, look into hiring an engagement photographer to attend your party and capture the precious moments for you. 

This is going to be invaluable to you because you aren’t going to be able to see everything that is going on. By hiring a photographer, they are going to be able to make you feel like you didn’t miss a thing when you look at your photos and you will have the photos to trigger the  memories to treasure forever

​An Awesome Playlist

Its a great idea to have an awesome soundtrack ready to go for your party. There needs to be a variety of music styles on here so that there is something for everyone. You want music that people can dance to, slow dance, organized dance (cha cha slide if your so inclined) so that everyone can join in at some point.

Without a cool playlist, your guests could be left be sitting on the sidelines with no music to carry the party.

A Menu

It really helps to have a menu available so your guests can see what the options are. There should be a vegetarian/vegan option, as well as a meat option so that everybody can have something.

Its a great idea to  sample the meal before the date of the party to make sure that it is what you wanted, and this is the best way to avoid disappointment when it comes to what is served. Perhaps take some close friends or family who's opinion you value for a second opinion. 

We hope that after reading this post, it helps some of the essential things that are going to help you create a fun and well planned engagement party. Wishing you the very best for the many years of marriage that lie ahead of you.

Belle 
​Xx

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