30 April 2013

Embracing Life



Wearing: Striped navy dress from JayJays

Being a bit of a nomad I embrace my surroundings wherever it may be and lately me & Mike have been enjoying a lot of time at the beach, feeding horses apples, picking walnuts, bike riding, pushing each other on swings and purely just taking each day as it comes.

Last year was definitely a complete opposite year for us so it’s nice to take time out for the more simpler things in life.

26 April 2013

Loafer Love | Tory Burch SS2013




Did you hear the news? Tory Burch is now shipping to New Zealand girls! I am definitely standing in line for a pair of loafers. Pretty exciting right? I personally like loafers because it’s snazy and comfortable to wear plus it’s still trendy.

24 April 2013

Smoothies & Macarons



My friend Amanda has inspired me with her smoothies and thought I would try them out.If you need some smoothie recipes do visit Here Comes The Sun. She makes the most amazing smoothies.

On another note, this little macaron book also arrived for me in the post from my sister-in-law which I have not been able to put down ever since it has arrived. Definitely a good read!

ps: I can’t wait to share my road trip to Wellington with you all this week!

22 April 2013

How To Make Your Own Jewelry



I wanted to share a quick and easy tutorial on how to make your own necklace for those who have always been interested in making jewelry.





How To Make Your Own Jewelry

WHAT TO GET:
String, jewelry clips, pendants ( all these are availble to order through WholePort

1. Cut the string according to the length you want 
2. Slide on the pendant you want
3. Tie together the strings onto the jewelry clips
4. Your done! 

19 April 2013

Liam Winter 2013 Collection



Being a summer girl I always find winter really hard to deal with especially in New Zealand with the crazy amount of rain we get. 

Thank goodness we have the new Liam winter collection to look forward to. It gives me hope for winter and reminds me to embrace good warm food, knitted blankets and wearing warm clothes.

17 April 2013

Tailor Facial Masque Giveaway



Tailor Masque is giving away 30 masque packs away to 30 lucky readers, it’s open Internationally and you can enter as many times as you like. Good luck!

16 April 2013

Live, Learn and Travel



Traveling through Italy, Rome 2012


Our backpacking trip last year in Europe was the most memorable time of my life with my amazing husband. It’s great looking back at the things we have achieved and realize that anything is possible.

 
These snippets was taken on our first day in Rome, Italy. You can definitely see the excitement on our faces. I can happily go back and do it all over again...(sigh)

Next on my list would be Seattle. I actually had a look into the cost of living there, what the average jobs pays, what the cost of renting would be like and also stumbled upon
 Truck Rental Seattle which would help you out with your the big move.

Are there any readers from Seattle? I would love to hear a little bit more about the city. I feel like the USA is so huge and that it would take forever to explore it all. So I thought I would start researching a little bit more on Seattle since my favourite TV show Greys Anatomy is filmed there.

15 April 2013

Bits Of Happy



A bit of happiness came from a Tailor Skin Care mask in the mailbox for me to pamper myself, finding UNE nail-polish for the first time, picking up some red sadie slippers from Cotton On, getting our own personlised stamp made for our online shop and attempting to start knit a beanie for the first time to enter the into the Element Eden Knit Off Competition.





What bits of happy have you found today?

12 April 2013

UNE Nail polish



I love the new range color range UNE has to offer. Being new to UNE Nail polish I didn’t realize how durable the nail polish was until I used it and found that it lasted till up to two weeks on my nails! Crazy right? Well it’s true, the brush is nice and thick so it covers all the corners of the nail. 

Hope you you all have a happy weekend! Happy nail painting guys!

11 April 2013

Element Eden Knit Off | Knitting My First Scarf



Knitting My First Scarf

Since Element Eden send me the knitting kit I have tried to teach myself how to knit. I decided on an olive green scarf and knitted this scarf in a total of 3 days. I am so proud of myself of finishing it and are looking at my next task which will be knitting a beanie. If your a knitter or what to know how to knit go check out the Knit Off Competition where you can win some pretty cool stuff. This is already my second entry, yahoo!

Click here to learn how to knit..

08 April 2013

Recipe | How To Make French Macarons



How To Make French Macarons (Macaroons)

Ingredients:

2 eggs
1-cup of Icing Sugar
70g Ground Almonds
1/4 cup Caster Suger
Food Colouring



Macaron Recipe Directions



1) Heat up the oven to 165
° (fan bake). Separate your egg whites in a bowl and whisk until stiff. Add 1/4 cup of caster sugar to the mix and continue to beat. Add a teaspoon of food coloring of your choice to the mixture.

2) In a separate bowl measure out a cup of icing sugar and sieve into a large mixing bowl. 

Sieve in a 3/4 cup of ground almonds.

3) Combine the two mixtures together with a spatular and mix well together. Take out a large flat baking pan and place a sheet of baking paper on it. Spoon half a teaspoon of mixture in circles onto your baking tray until baking sheet is covered in macaron mixture. 

4) PS: (here comes the secret) Once you have places all the mixture onto the tray, hold the baking paper firm on either sides and ‘bang’ the tray onto a flat surface. This gives the macarons a ‘foot’ when baked and creates the perfect smooth shape. 

5) Bake the mixture for 10 - 15min. Your macaron should have a hard shell and a soft center. Leave your macarons on a cooling rack to cool down. 


Butter Cream Frosting


2/4 cup softened unsalted butter 1 cup confectionery sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
1/4 cup fruit sweetened jam 
food colouring

Beat softened butter until smooth and fluffy.  Add sugar and beat until combined with butter about 3 minutes.  Add vanilla and milk, beat frosting for about 7 – 8 minutes.  Beat in the jam until well combined.  Using a toothpick, mix in just a small amount of the food coloring. (Continue to add food coloring in small amounts until the right color is achieved.) 

07 April 2013

Kling Spring 2013



When backpacking through France we stopped at Bordeaux in France and found a shop called Kling which I really liked. I have been following their new Lookbooks and have loved each one of them.

I hope you all had a good weekend. Our market got rained out and is postponed to next Saturday. We also attended a wedding which was fab and are heading out for a curry tonight at new friends house tonight. Happy lazy Sunday!

05 April 2013

Latest Interior Designs That Will Inspire You



The good news is that those who are looking for an interior design style to suit their home and personal taste will easily find something to suit. There is a huge selection of styles out there to choose from, with many of the trends for 2013 being accessible to almost any budget.

2013 interior design trends


A number of leading interior designers have predicted some of the trends that are set to become popular throughout the year. One is that classic print fabrics will surge in popularity, replacing the plain fabrics that have been in fashion for the last few years. Designers are also predicting a move away from the minimalist kitchen, which exudes little warmth, in favor of warmer materials that give a more vintage feel. Vintage is also going to be a theme in furniture, with antiques a strong feature in many homes.

Achieving a new look


There are a number of simple ways that can give a room a lift without going to the trouble of stripping everything out. Many people forget about the windows in a room, but it is possible to create a whole new look just by carefully dressing these areas. New curtains or blinds are a great idea, but shutters are quickly becoming a top trend for 2013 and are well worth considering. They are not expensive to purchase and fit and will become a key feature of the room. Shutters are manufactured in a variety of materials, including wood, plastic and metal. Faux shutters are also worth checking out; they are cheaper than their real wood counterparts and look just as good. 

A window dressed with shutters will not need any other type of embellishment. Plantation shutters are particularly popular at the moment and give a very traditional feel to any room. Individuals who want to be able to adjust the amount of light coming into the room should opt for shutters with adjustable slats. Cafe-style shutters cover around half the height of the window, which has the benefit of providing a degree of privacy while still letting in a reasonable amount of light. Alternatively, there are full height shutters, which are designed to cover the entire window.

Measuring for shutters


Anyone thinking about doing the job themselves may be wondering how to measure windows for faux shutters. The first step is to take a look at the window and determine where best to fit the shutters. They can be fitted either inside or outside the window recess. Mark where the shutter is to be located and then determine which type of frame is to be used; the choice is between L frames or Z frames. Measurements should be taken of the width and height of the window; measure in three positions for each and use the smallest one. This rule applies, no matter where the shutter is to be placed. In the case of cafe shutters, only measure up to the required point on the window, but still follow the three measurements guideline.      


04 April 2013

Our First Market!


handmade felt brooches


bow-ties and blue brooches



paper weights & brown recyclable packaging




handmade flower garland with pegs and flowers



animal singlets with blue attachable bow-ties


I am happy to announce that I will be having my own stall at the Craft And Design Market here in Havelock North Hawkes Bay this Saturday (6th of April). I am a newbie at this but I am really excited! Me and my husband, Mike spend sunday crafting up a storm for the stall. If you are in the area, pop in to say hi.

03 April 2013

Grandma’s Best Recipe’s Book



Easter was great, we relaxed, spend quality time together with family and got crafty! Me & Mike also ended up catching up with our ex-neighbours in Qatar and got given this handmade bunting & yellow bird ornament from Angela which I am totally in love with. 

I might have also deliberately forgotten to tell you all that I am a bit of a pathetic cook, so my mum gifted me this great cookbook called 'Grandma's Best Recipe's' which I will put to the test this week. I have always been better at baking than cooking but I thought it’s about time to up-skill myself. 

BUY GRANDMA’S BEST RECIPE’S BOOK