My Christmas Present Haul 2015

I have seen so many Christmas Present Haul Posts that I thought I would do my first one, and as decadently put as my fellow Blogger Christie, it is a shame that I need to clarify that this is not me in any way bragging. If you feel that it is then please don't wind yourself up by reading on; I am fully aware that there are many people in the world with nothing, however I do not feel that should stop someone from sharing what they received from their loved ones.

This year has got to be my best bar far, even though I have had some bad times they have lead me to a great place in myself and to someone very special to me, even though we have only been dating a few weeks it just feels so right. I have been very spoilt this year and am ever so grateful for all my gifts, and am so thankful that everyone know me so well. I won't write about everything that I received, however you can see for yourself what the missing items are. 

Ugg Simmons Waterproof Boots

With the winter months upon us I thought it was about time I invested in some new waterproof walking boots which were still stylish and warm!

Glossybox December 2015

This Month was the Rose Gold Edit, in collaboration with Really Ree (a UK Blogger), and I have to say I was not disappointed, we even got a free 6th item.  Oh and the total value of this months box is £84.50 and it was all full size.

The box was a gorgeous limited edition Rose Gold, with a christmassy feel to it. 

The items we received were, Etre Belle Golden Skin Caviar Eye Roll On (RRP £30.66), So Susan Statement Skin Highlighter Pencil (RRP £15), Collection Long Lasting Nail Effects (RRP £2.99), Talika Photo Hydra Day Moisturiser (£24.85), Essence Liquid Lipstick in Show Off (RRP £2.50) and  our free item Starskin Bio-Cellulose Second Skin Mask (RRP £8.50). 

Etre Belle Golden Skin Caviar Eye Roll On (RRP £30.66), I have never really thought these things work and therefore was naturally skeptical of this item. When I first gave this a try in the early hours of the morning, I was pleasantly surprised with the cool feeling of the roll on, I followed the instructions and patted under my eyes after application. After a few days I did start to  notice a difference and was defiantly not so puffy, which is something you need with all the christmas parties and late nights at this time of year. I have never heard of this brand before, however am delighted about it now.

So Susan Statement Skin Highlighter Pencil (RRP £15), again this is not something I have really tried before. I do like contouring but have only ever used bronzer and no highlighter. So when I received this I was glad that I would have a chance to try it out, this is really easy to apply and blend. The only downside is that it didn't really seem to stay put and made my chin look like it was melting.. So with the next few applications I tried to minimise the amount I put on and it seemed to help. I won't be re-purchasing this item, but thats not to say that it isn't a good product and the packaging was really cute.  

  Collection Long Lasting Nail Effects (RRP £2.99), I am very familiar with this brand, as I am sure most of you are and have bought these nail polishes many times. I do like my nail polishes and this is a pretty good brand, especially for it's staying power. You cannot complain, even though this may not last for a full week, it is pretty good especially when you consider the price. The colour is really gorgeous too and is really christmassy. 

Talika Photo Hydra Day Moisturiser (£24.85), I have never heard of this brand and am so happy that I have now found this moisturiser. I have oily skin and can find it very hard to get a moisturiser that agrees with me. This is a gel type moisturiser and feels so soft on my skin, it soaks in very quickly and works very well as a primer too. I will defiantly be purchasing this again. 

Essence Liquid Lipstick in Show Off (RRP £2.50), as I am sure you're aware i am not a fan of cheap lipsticks and this is the only item I am disappointed in. I have to admit I haven't really tried this yet, but given the type of product this is and the current weather, there hasn't really been a chance. I know for a fact that my hair will get stuck in it, this product is really tacky. The packaging is cute, however does look a little cheap. I am also not a great fan of glosses, so never held out any hope for this. 

Starskin Bio-Cellulose Second Skin Mask (RRP £8.50) our free item, I have never heard of this brand before and am so thankful I have! This was just amazing! It looked a little creepy when you take it out of the pack and peel away the porous sheets protecting the mask, it was exactly like a second skin and when you put it on your face it slides in place very easily. It felt very cooling and afterwards my skin looked lovely and even better the morning after. I will certainly be purchasing another one soon. 

Always be kind, you never know what personal battle people are fighting.

Woodwick Candle Fireside

I have always loved candles, however have never really treated myself to a decent one. 

So when my housemate brought home a medium Woodwick candle in Fireside, I instantly fell in love and had to get one for myself. 

Make Place Tote Bag Class

It is my Nan's Birthday this Month so I thought it would be nice for us to go to a Tote Bag Making class together. 

DIY Watercolour Cup

The Around this time of year, near Christmas I get quite crafty and try to find ideas on what I can make people for Christmas presents. I stumbled upon the water colour cup when I was searching Sharpie cups. These struck me as they are very different and quite pretty. Perfect present for women and girls. 

Things you need to know before starting, you will need a plastic bowl deep enough for your cup to fully immerse in, you need to note that this bowl may become covered in nail polish so be sure you don't mind about the damage. 

You also need nail polish, now this took me a few try's to figure out which nail polishes I could use. You do not want to use quick drying for this task as time is precious. 

You also need a cup, this can be plain or coloured whatever you choose. 

So once I had found my perfect nail polishes I filled the bowl with cold water.

DIY Personalised Cup

These are great for fairly cheap Christmas/ Birthday gifts with a personal touch. 

These DIY personalised cups are fairly easy to do, there are lots of tutorials/ reviews of Sharpie cups however I used the Marabu Porcelaine Pens, to get a definite finish. I just don't see how the Sharpie pens last very long once the cups etc. have been washed a few times.. I got mine from Ebay for a few quid, however they are available at craft stores. 

So to begin with you want to have a clean cup, any colour or finish, gloss works best. I just look for a design or come up with a cool idea in my head and draw it on the cup in pencil as shown below. 

Once you're happy, go over the design with the Porcelaine pen . I let it dry for 24 hours or more, then follow the instructions on the pen; cook in the oven at 170°C for 30 minutes and let cool in the oven.

Wipe the cup clean and voilà you have a dishwasher safe personalised cup. 

Here are a few I have done before.

For the watercolour cup see my DIY Watercolour Cup Blog. 

Please note that these pens aren't limited to just cups..... 

Always be kind, you never know what personal battle people are fighting.

DIY Christmas Ornaments/ Gift Tags

With Christmas almost at our doorstep, I had thought I would do a blog on how to make these gorgeous Gift Tags/ Ornaments. 

These can make any gift look extra special with a lovely personalised touch, at minimal costs!!!

So what so you need:

• 1.5 Cups Water
• 2 Cups Baking Soda
• 1 Cup Cornflour
• Baking Paper
• Cookie Cutters 
• Stamps & Ink
• Lace Material (if you want to)

Directions:

1. In a saucepan combine all ingredients. Stir over Medium to High heat. You will need to constantly stir, until you get the mixture to be the consistency of mashed potatoes, like my image below.
2. Remove from heat and let cool.
3. Once the mixture is cool to touch, remove from the pan and place on the counter (I used the grease proof baking paper as a mat) ensuring you have enough cornflour n the counter to stop the mixture from sticking. I did my mixture in parts so I didn't roll out too much at once. 
4. Form the dough into a nice ball, cover with a damp cloth, and allow the dough to cool to about room temperature.
5. Now you can pre-heat the oven to 80°C.

6.  Here's the fun Part, you can now roll out the dough and can get creative with bits of lace    

     material and create textured pieces. You can also just keep it simple, it's up to you!

7.  Cut out your shapes and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper.  

8.  Here is where you should stamp your shames, if you so wish. If you want to use these as gift 

     tags you will need to press holes into the shapes, I just used a piece of bamboo stick.Once 

     you're happy place in the oven and check every 20-30mins, these shouldn't take longer than an 

     hour and should be hard, let them cool and dry for another day then you can use them how you 

     wish.

I hope you enjoy these as much as I did, let me know how you get on :).

UPDATE: I had put the remainder of the dough in a ziplock bag in the fridge and have gone back to it a few weeks later to do some more tags and it was perfectly fine and usable! So if you have left over dough just put it in a zip lock bag and store in the fridge. 

Always be kind, you never know what personal battle people are fighting.

Liver & Sausage Birthday Cake

I am a bit of a nutter and like to celebrate Harley’s Birthday just like a normal human being. I always buy her new toys and make her a Birthday Cake.

This year I made Liver & Sausage Cake topped with Wainwrights wet food.

I don’t go by measurements for this as I prefer to go by eye.

So all you need is Liver I think I got 400g and some pure sausage meat about 250g, flour and an egg or yogurt.

First of all you will want to puree the liver with a food processor, then mix in the sausage meat and again puree the mix.

Next step is to mix in some flour and the egg or yogurt until you get a cake like mixture.

Her face is a picture whilst i was mixing it all together. 

Now its simple put the mixture into a cake tin or whatever you want to use and bake for min. 30mins on 180 °C.

Once it’s cooked let it cool and add the topping.

Always be kind, you never know what personal battle people are fighting.

Gluten Free White Chocolate Cheesecake

Just because it's Gluten Free doesn't mean it has to taste Gluten Free.

I will apologise now, because I do not have exact amounts and tend to go by eye and taste, so will do my very best.

What do you need:

1. 300g Soft Cheese
2. 400g White Chocolate (check it's safe, I use Tesco's own brand or Milkybar)
3. 100-200g Gluten Free Milk Chocolate Digestive Biscuits
4. Unsalted butter
5. Food bag, i.e. ziplock or similar.

What to do:

Firstly you will want to crush the biscuits into tiny crumbs, I have found the easiest and least messy way is to empty however many cookies you need (try 100g first) into a ziplock bag and close, then you can bash it with a wooden rolling pin until it has turned to dust. 

Now  you will want to melt some butter in a saucepan, heres some guessing work, and add the crumbs and mix together till you have a nice consistency for the base. Once you're happy empty the contents into a baking dish or silicone muffin cases, and put in the fridge to set. the base should be about 1.5cm deep at least.

Once the base has hardened (shouldn't take longer than an hour) you can make the topping.

Next step is to prepare the soft cheese in a mixing bowl, by mixing it till its soft. Melt the chocolate in a separate bowl, however you wish, and mix in with the cheese.

Finally add the chocolate cheese mix to the top of your base and allow to set over night in the fridge.  

There you have it yummy Gluten Free Cheesecakes,

Always be kind, you never know what personal battle people are fighting.

My 26th Birthday

Had an awesome day at the coast with my Family, shame my Step-Dad couldn't be there.

Harley seemed to enjoy herself, and brought lots of joy to many people with her reindeer.

Also got to see my Godson, such a brilliant day and amazing prezzies.

Always be kind, you never know what personal battle people are fighting.