Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Here’s to the end of an amazing 2017, and I can’t wait for what 2018 might bring. This year was definitely one of the best, and will be hard to beat – the 2018 bar has been raised! I always love setting myself new goals for the year ahead, but it can be so easy to be planning how much you are going to do in the next year, that we often forget all of the amazing things achieved in the last 365 days.

This time last year I had no idea of all the amazing things that 2017 would bring, and I wanted to put together a little gallery of my highlights of the year. These things are here to remind me of everything I can achieve when I put my mind to it, and to show you that you can do whatever you put your mind to, no matter how big or small.

Brand Ambassador

In 2017 I became an ambassador for two brands that I adore:

Ideal Fit UK – an amazing brand that I attended an event for earlier in the year, loved everything about them, and was then asked to become an ambassador after continuing to use their products. They create a range of amazing fitness products including BCAAs, pre-workout and protein powders, specially designed for women who love to workout (I also got my own discount code! LAURAKATE10).

Nutri-Bombz – a healthy subscription service that delivers the most delicious treats through your letterbox, that are all natural, come in an epic selection of flavours, and are one of my favourite snacks going. I already loved these guys and subscribed to their boxes, so I was super excited to become an ambassador too (follow the link for discount codes if you want to try these!)

Fashion & Style

I adore fashion and am always window shopping online, picking out new pieces from my favourite brands, so it was amazing to add so much more fashion and style posts to my blog this year. As well as putting together my own outfit posts, I had the chance to work with some amazing brands including Pretty Little Thing, Lasula, Hunkemoller, JustFab, UK Swimwear, and a range of other smaller fashion companies. This was without a doubt one of my favourite categories for laurakatelucas.com, and I am already excited to include more of it next year.

Food & Drink

In 2017 I worked with an incredible range of restaurants, bars and food and drink brands, and tried out lots of new things to add to my foodie repertoire. Just a few of my highlights have been building a great relationship with Hard Rock Cafe, and getting to try out their regular special food and drink menus, working with EatMCR and tasting dishes at some of my favourite restaurants like Albert’s Schloss and El Capo, experiencing a full tasting menu with matched wine at Iberica, cooked by their Michelin Starred chef, attending new restaurant and bar openings including 1761 & Lily’s Bar, The Patron, Oké Poké, and West Corner NQ, making cocktails with Liars Club and Wild Turkey Bourbon at The Whiskey Jar, and getting to try out lots of new healthy snacks and foods which fitted my new found love for the gym perfectly.

Beauty

I got to work with some more great beauty brands this year, including everything from charcoal teeth whitening, personalised razors, hairdressers that come to you – wherever you are, jelly sachets to improve your skin, lash extensions, and lots of lashes, nails and makeup. Originally beauty was more of a secondary category on the blog, but as I have learnt more and tried out more products and routines that I love to share with my readers, it has definitely become one of my loves, and something I feel goes hand in hand with the other topics I enjoy exploring and writing about.

Travel

Travel was pretty new to the blog in 2017, but something I had so much fun including and exploring. I was lucky enough to visit Soave in Italy with Soave wine, which was such an honour and an amazing trip. We also managed to get away on a few smaller trips of our own, which were lovely little breaks from our busy lives, but I of course managed to get some gorgeous content whilst relaxing! I loved having my first infinity pool experience right here in my home city of Manchester, in the award winning King Street Townhouse Hotel – our own little bit of luxury relaxation in the middle of a bustling city. I definitely have more travel plans for 2018, and plan on this becoming a regular category on laurakatelucas.com!

Looking back on my favourite moments of the year, I would have never imagined all of the things I have achieved, the adventures and experiences I have had, the honour to work with some huge brands, and the fun I’ve had along the way; meeting new people, gaining new skills, pushing myself to new levels, and constantly learning and sharing with my readers. I am so grateful for everything that 2017 brought, and already excited to take the blog to the next level in 2018, including a whole new category which you may have guessed by now – Weddings!!

Here’s to new beginnings and a whole new year of adventure.

LL x