Thursday, January 30, 2014

Tuxedo Thursday #1

Can I get a high-five for Tuxedo Thursday? I want to do this every week (until I forget)

How smashing does Ryan Gosling look in his tuxedo? Yum.

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Home | Kitchen Tidying

Polka dot crazy? Me? Never...

BEFORE
AFTER
Can you see the theme I'm going for here? Yup, red with white polka dots!
I was so sick of seeing it the way it was before. All the clutter at the back made it so messy, so I needed to fix it up a little. How cute does it look now? I moved the toaster to a separate part of the kitchen.

The tea, sugar and coffee caddies are from a 4-piece set on Littlewoods. It comes with the big caddy at the back, which is a biscuit one. We rarely eat biscuits so we have extra teabags in that. We've turned the caddy around so you can't see the word 'BISCUITS'... crafty or what?

You can find it here - Littlewoods Ireland
or cheaper here - Woolworths UK

I got mine for around half price when they were on sale, but I'd happily have paid full price. The only thing is, DO NOT pick them up when your hands are wet. Common sense would tell you this, but my fiancé (being a man) opened the tea caddy when his hands were wet and dropped the lid. It cracked but I fixed it back together. Oh... and I was eyeing up the bread caddy and dinner set too, but they're not on the website anymore. I'm keeping an eye out to see when they're back again, I need them in my collection!

The set of 6 mugs is from Dunnes Stores.

***

I've stored my recipe book, teas, hot chocolate, cappuccino, extra sugar and straw caddy (from my local discount store... I really couldn't say no!), in this little craft box from Primark. This was in my bedroom, but I think it's really cute in the kitchen. I'll get another one to replace it for the bedroom.

I placed the extra-teabag caddy and mug tree on paper doilies, because I think it gives a cute finishing touch.

This is a butterfly (from a set of 14)  from the wall decals I talked about this post. I have one on top of each caddy to add a cute little touch.

Do you like it?

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Review | Argan Oil Intensive Hydrating Treament

I didn't really have high hopes for this, as it only cost €2.99 from Lidl (cheaper from your local pharmacy I think!). I bought it before I had tried the conditioner. I said I'd give it a go anyway... regret!! It's awful.

Awful awful awful!

Not much is gone from the (plastic) bottle, and that's around 2 weeks of using it every other day. I used it for 2 weeks to give it a chance. So it's long-lasting, but that's the only good thing about it. It made my freshly-washed hair feel extremely greasy, rubbery and weak. The other night, it left my hair looking SO greasy and feeling like crap, that I had to wash it again. I'm just glad I never used it on or near my roots! Some days I used one pump, some days I used two, some days I used three, and some days I used four. No matter how much or how little I used, it still left my hair feeling awful, almost like it was on the verge of breaking. It's going straight in the rubbish bin, or to someone who wants to try it. If you're looking for an oil to 'repair and rejuvenate, leaving hair shiny, smooth and healthy' - stay away from this!!! Worst €2.99 I've ever spent. 


Have you tried this, and do you like it?

Nails | Rimmel 'Ring A Ring O' Roses'

Of course, Prince wanted to get in the picture... little cutie. Ring A Ring O' Roses is probably the prettiest baby pink polish I've ever owned. It's almost opaque with one coat, but I always apply two. Long lasting, beautiful colour with the perfect consistency.

Love.

Monday, January 27, 2014

DIY | Fabric/Washi tape tealights

If you have never used pretty fabric tape before, you're missing out. It comes in more designs than you could  ever imagine, and lots of different widths too. It's so versatile; the possibilities of what you can do with it are endless...

How pretty are these little tealights? They are adding such a cute touch to my living room right now! To give your tealights a beautiful new look, just wrap the tape around the tealight and... that's it! Make sure the tape doesn't go over the top of the tealight tin, you don't want the flame getting to it. I came across this cute little idea on, wait for it... Pinterest (are you surprised? Nope, didn't think so.) You could use Washi tape instead of fabric tape, if you'd prefer. It's entirely up to you!

These are my rolls of fabric tape, which I bought from eBay for a very low price from Hong Kong. I've got more ideas on how I'll use my tape, which will probably appear in a later post.  Just search for 'fabric tape'. I have to say... they remind of that stretchy fabric sticky tape that holds down surgical dressings... haha.

Have you tried fabric tape or Washi tape?

Friday, January 24, 2014

Baking | Lemon Drizzle Cake


I rarely bake, but I decided to give this a go after seeing a video on YouTube. My fiancé helped me and I have to say, it was so lovely baking together. We're definitely going to do it more often! We've already decided on loads of thing we'd like to bake, which I'll hopefully feature on the blog soon. This lemon drizzle cake was so easy to make, and it tasted amazing! My fiancé thought the lemon was a teeny bit too strong, so we're going to make half the amount of drizzle next time. Now, onto the cake...

Ingredients:
1 tsp baking powder
170g self-raising flour
170g caster sugar
170g butter
3 eggs
110g icing sugar
2 lemons


Method:
1. Sieve the flour, caster sugar and baking powder into a mixing bowl, and add the eggs, butter and the zest of two lemons.
2. Whisk it all together (electric whisks are a godsend!)
3. Pour the mixture into a baking tin, and bake for 30-45 minutes at 180°C.

4. When the cake is ready, make the drizzle by mixing together the icing sugar and the juice of both lemons, in a bowl. The drizzle will be a kind of watery texture, but not as thin as water.
5. When your cake is cooked and still hot, poke it in random places with a skewer or knife (preferably a skewer), and pour on the drizzle. Let it soak in for a minute or two while you make yourself a nice cup of tea... easy!

 Happy baking (and eating!)

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Nails | Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure 'Casting Call'

 Sally Hansen - Complete Salon Manicure 'Casting Call'

This is a beautiful soft coral colour, perfect for Spring and Summer. The weather outside right now is horrible, so I used this colour to brighten up my day a little. As a 'complete manicure' polish, it acts as a basecoat and topcoat, as well as colour. However, I still used my usual basecoat, it's just habit for me. I didn't use a topcoat, so I'll see how long it lasts without one. 

The polish brush is the perfect width and the polish applies perfectly. The consistency is great, not too thin or thick. One coat had my nails almost opaque, but I almost always do two coats for that extra coverage.

With flash.

Without flash (around 5pm, so it was starting to get dark)

***
Have you tried this colour?

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Home | Wall Decals

I love home decorating, and adding little touches to make it more 'personal' is even better. I came across some wall decals online and bought one for my living room (pictured above). As soon as it arrived, I popped it up and couldn't have been happier with it. It's beautiful, and pretty easy to put up - the hardest part is trying to get the words exactly straight. It's easier to have someone stand on the opposite side of the room to guide you on straightness. The decals are reusable, and stick to any flat and clean surface. If you mess up putting them up (not straight, like I did a few times!) don't worry. Simply peel it off and place it where you want it. They don't take off paint, and they're quite durable...I was worried they would rip easily, but I was surprised they're so tough. None of mine have ripped, even though I was messing around with the living room decal for about 45 minutes! I have purchased a few more decals since, and I love them. I seem to be building up a little collection, but it's nice...

This is my most recent one, above our bed with some butterflies (which came with the set)

This one is behind the toilet in our downstairs bathroom... how cute?

This little butterfly came in a pack of 14, and they're placed in random spots around the house... on the dishwasher, washing machine, fridge, bathroom mirror, and a few on some caddies on the kitchen.

I bought mine on eBay, cheap and cheerful! Just search 'wall decals' and you'll get a huge selection. I have my eye on a few more, and I can't wait to order them soon. The ones I order come from Hong Kong, with free shipping, but it can take on average 10 days to arrive. I don't mind waiting that long, as some from the UK charge ridiculous prices for both the decal and shipping. Oh, and a little tip... you might want to keep the backing paper that the decals stick to. This is just in case you ever move, the decals will be easily transported and safe.

Do you use wall decals in your home? If not, would you consider using them now after reading my post?

Monday, January 20, 2014

Recycling Candles


When my obsession with Pinterest started, I was looking for ideas on everything. While looking for ideas on how to use up leftover candle wax, I came across this one, which involved melting the leftover candle wax and making it into new candles. I had to give it a go as I had lots of wax left over from candles that didn't burn down properly. Here's how I did it. I transferred leftover Yankee Candle wax into a different jar, and went about melting it...

You'll need:
leftover wax in a glass jar
glass jars for new candles
wicks (long enough to fit the new jars - can be trimmed if needed)


Here's what I did...

 I placed the jar, with leftover wax in, in a pot of hot water from the kettle. I brought the water to the boil and turned the heat down a little bit (from 6 to 4). 
 While the wax was melting, I stood the wicks up in the new jars, ready to pour the wax in. 
 When the wax was melted after around 20 minutes, I poured it into the clean jar. Then, I held the wick up straight for about 30 seconds to give it time to set in place. By the way, my kitchen smells absolutely divine while the wax was melting!
This is both candles when the wax was poured in. Before the wax had a chance to fully set, I started melting more wax. 
When this wax was melted, I poured it on top of the previous wax in the jars. The smaller one became a layered candle, and the bigger one just mixed, which I think is quite cute. I love the colours! I have the big candle burning at the moment, and it smells beautiful... a mix of Yankee Candle 'Cranberry Ice' and 'Snow in Love'. Before lighting, make sure the wick is trimmed if needed, so it's not too long.

I think this is a brilliant idea for using leftover wax, and the only thing I had to buy was new wicks, which I bought from eBay quite cheap. I'll definitely be doing this in future if candle wax doesn't burn down properly. Thanks, Pinterest!

Have you tried this or anything similar?

Review: Argan Oil Conditioner


Argan oil conditioner, with Moroccan Argan oil extract.

I picked up this conditioner a few weeks ago, which appeared in this haul. I'm a little obsessed with Argan oil, so I was looking forward to trying this, but not expecting too much as it only cost €1.50. It promises to rejuvenate and rehydrate hair, leaving it shiny, smooth and healthy. It also claims to be cleansing and nourishing. If it helps, I have normal hair - not dry since I stopped using straighteners months ago!

Honestly, I'm still on the fence with this conditioner. I've used it around 5 times since I purchased it. Sometimes, it makes my hair feel really manageable, but other times, it makes me hair feel heavy with product... almost as if I haven't washed it out properly. You know when you're drying your hair and some of it feels, for want of a better word, 'rubbery'? It's hard to explain, but if you've experienced it, you'll get what I'm saying. It's like I put the product in my hair and only spent ten seconds rinsing it out (even though I tend to spend around 2 minutes washing conditioner out of my hair). It made my hair feel heavy and laden down with product. Not a nice feeling!

On saying that, some of the times I've used it, my hair hasn't felt like that. My hair felt soft, looked shiny and definitely felt a bit more hydrated. I'm not sure why it changes how it makes my hair feel, but it does. I use the same shampoos I normally use, and the same amount of conditioner every time. Maybe I need to only use it once a week (instead of twice) to see if that will help, but I doubt it will. I'll still try it though, I really want to love this conditioner.

If you happen to come across it, pick it up and give it a go. At only €1.50, you're not losing too much. It's worth a shot, you might love it... or have you tried it already?

Monday, January 13, 2014

Pearl Bracelet Watch

How pretty is this baby? As a sucker for anything with pearls on, I literally couldn't resist it when I came across it on eBay. I had to snap it up, especially as it cost less than €3, with free shipping (and who doesn't love free shipping?) If you're in Ireland, you can get it from here. You ladies in the UK can get it for £1.99 from here, and if you're in the US, you can get it from here

It's super pretty, and the white pearls make it look so dainty, delicate and girly. I really love it, as you can see from the amount of pictures I took to show you the watch from every possible angle! The rhinestones make it really sparkly in the sun too, which is cute.

It arrived around 17 days after I had ordered it, which is normal when coming from Hong Kong. It was in a brown envelope, wrapped in bubble wrap, so it was in perfect condition. It comes with a little tab around the twisty thing (what is the actual name for that?). As with most watches, you simply take the little tab off, twist the twisty thing to the right time, and push the twisty thing in to start the time. I didn't do it for the pictures, but I have done it since! The bracelet part is elasticated, which is great as it doesn't limit the watch to certain wrist sizes. 
I usually wear watches on my right wrist, I don't really like having things on my left one... does that make me weird? ;) 

I think it would be beautiful with a little black dress, or just dressed down on lazier days.
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...