Ideas for handmade Christmas gifts

It's I hope you all have had a very merry Christmas :)! Now Christmas is over, and for those who are thinking about next year's Christmas (363days to go guys!) I'm going to share with you what I did for gifts this year!

I hand made (more like decorated) Snowman mugs and Christmas decorations out of felts and I'm going to show you how I did them because they are super easy to do! 

First of all the mugs. I went and got myself coup of plain mugs from John Lewis. They don't have to be from John knows, as long as they are plain and you can decorate on them any mugs will do. 

Decide what design you want to decorate your mugs with - this will help you decide what colour pens to get :)

Then I bought some porcelain painter pens from hobby craft to decorate my mugs! They sell glass painter pen in the same package so make sure you buy the right one! Alternatively, a lot of people use sharpie pens to decorate so you can use them too :) it is recommended to use oil base sharpie but I couldn't find any! 

I decided to decorate mine with snowman, as it's christmassy enough but you can use it throughout the season with the frozen hype and all ;) 

I gave it little arms for hugs too ;)

As I am a tea lover, so I drew tea bag tag at the back :) also I added my friends name at the bottom to make it more personal. 

Once I have decorated the mug, I left it to dry for four hours before baking it in the oven (160C*) for 30 minutes as instructed. Depending on the colour you use, the instruction may vary. I bought an orange pen to do the nose but this pen didn't need any baking :)  after 30 minutes, leave the mugs in the oven to cool down with oven to prevent suddenly cooling and cracking. 

And there you have it! Personalised snowman mug! I think this is a such cute and creative idea for gifts you can give in any occasion, not just christmas :) 

For the second half of my present, I made felt Christmas decorations to put into the mug. These are very easy to make too and I'll give you step by step guide of how to do the style of stiching I used, called blanket stitch. 

I chose gingerbreadman and reindeer as my two decorations, and I looked for ideal shapes online to use as my templates. 

I bought my felts from hobby craft , 50p each sheet (12x9) 

I managed to make four reindeers from once sheet, and four gingerbreadmen from one sheet too. You need two exact pair to make one whole one, and make sure to decorate the face etc before you sew both of them together. 

Once you have sewed halfway through, Insert ribbon at the top so you can hang them :) carry on sewing but leave a small gap in the end to stuff it with cotton. 

I have used blanket stitch to sew them together, and here is a step by step guide !

Create a starting point. Have both parts together, but only put a needle through the top sheet. 

Once that's through, go through the bottom sheet, making sure it goes through the same point as the top sheet. 

Before you pull the thread tightly, put a needle through in a loop to create a secure starting point. 

Then pull tight! - here you have the starting point. 

Once you have a point, go through both sheets together like so,

And put a thread behind the needle before you pull it tight. 

Carry on using the same technique, and it will start to look like this!

It's important to keep the same distance between each point. 

When I finished, I wrapped it in a cellophane bag with a candycane :) this cellophane bag came with the ribbon as it's supposed to be cake pop bags but it worked out quite nicely :) 

Put this little bag inside the mug and there you have it! I am looking forward to playing with my porcelain pens and be creative! 

Did anyone else give handmade gifts this year? 

THE BIG EASY Lunching

I have heard many good reviews about THE BIG EASY before, and I've been wanting to try ever since I walked past it by chance.

The big easy is an American Bar.B.Q Lobstershack that also has a bar inside! 

There is one in Covent Garden which I went to, and another one in Kings Road.  The place is located in one of the side roads in Covent Garden so you cannot spot it straight away, but once you are on the right road, it is hard to miss with its red 'big' sign!

As soon as I walked in, I was greeted by very friendly staff and cosy interior, both made me feel very welcome :)  I didn't book a table, as it was just two of us and lunch time but I recommend you to book a table if you are going as a group! It started to get very busy within 30 minutes of being there. 

Pretty much everyone there was indulging in their lobster shack ( did some stalking and peeking) so I was determined to get mine! Everything on the menu sounded heavenly that I took me a while to decide! 

I was feeling greedy and wanted some starters as well as the main, and I spotted this Lunch, pre theatre & late night menu for £10 and was surprised by the generous pricing and what was included in, and so I went for it. For £10, You could get a starter and a main or a main and a desert with a free drink of your choice!
I opted for crispy calamari for a starter and lobster roll and fries for main and strawberry daiquiri , because why not?!

Strawberry Daiquiri

Crispy Calamari 

Lobster roll and fries 

They also have an incredible bar with variety of drinks, I would love to come back here for drinks as well!

The impressive bar 

I will definitely be coming back here to taste this again, and to try out the lobster shack, which appeared to be the most popular one! I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a new place to try out or to anyone really!

They are now taking bookings for new years eve as well :) 

http://bigeasy.co.uk/#home

Has anyone been there before? or have any recommendations? 

Hallowe'ening

This year, I decided to go all out celebrating halloween, as this is a last halloween as a student - just scared myslelf there. 

I started with painting my nails in spirit of Halloween. I used Leighton Denny Colour & Go Monochrome to paint my nails black as a base. I then used Barry M's white nail art pen to draw lines and Jack's face from Christmas before nightmare. I used Essie's all in one base as a topcoat. 

I managed to do my left hand on my own but asked my friend Neelam to the other and she's done a great job! 

We were both proud of our end product and I took a photo with Jack's mug at the end! 

This put me in a very Halloweeny mood, so I proceeded with next thing on my Halloween to do list - pumpkin carving! 

I cannot remember the last time I carved a pumpkin, but I remember it not going so well.  I thought it was only fair for me to follow the theme and carve Jack's face on the pumpkin too, but didn't realise how difficult might that be and until I stabbed a knife through the pumpkin. 

I did the lid in a zig zag star shape to make it more prettier which was quite challenging to do for me. 

Then I had to scoop out the inside and it smelled really bad. 

Instead of making pumpkin soup or pie, I threw the inside away in the bin. I just couldn't see myself doing anything with it to be honest with you! 

Then I drew the face on with a biro to guide me when cutting the face out. 

To minimise the mess, I wore a bin bag on my legs to crave to face, shame I didn't take photo of that... 

Here is the end product! Mine is on the right, and Neelam did the one on the left. 

After this was complete, we had one more thing to do. Dress up for Halloween. I dressed up as a zombie house maid with half Mexican Skelton make up (credit to Neelam) 

I burrowed a simple black dress from my friend, and with her permission, I sewed on the apron and the collars , which you can't really see in the photo. I even made the little maid headban as well! I feel that I have put a lot of effort into it and I had a great fun because of that. 

Deciding what to wear and the makeup was definitely my favourite part of the Halloween and I cannot wait for the next year! 

I hope I have given some ideas to people for Halloween :)

What did everyone dress up as? Did you go trick or treating? 

Croatian Holiday

It has been well over a month since I have been back from my trip to Dubrovnik, and I finally have some time to sit down and write this post! or you might say procrastination when I should be thinking about my dissertation topic...  

Anyway. Today, I am going to share with you some beauty products I have purchased in Dubrovnik and the photos from the holiday :)

Dubrovnik is a city of Croatia, which is located at the bottom of the country by the coast.
The currency is Kuna, 1 Kuna is equivalent to 0.10 pounds and 0.13 euro. Most of the shops and restaurants accept major credit cards and debit cards, but there were some shops and tourist attraction (such as boat ride) only accepted cash. Some shops offered discount if you paid in cash as well.   

In the old town of Dubrovnik, there is a pharmacy called Mala Braca Pharmacy , which is one of the oldest in Europe, but the only one still open! (which practically makes it the oldest right?) It was opened in 1317, and is located inside the Franciscan Monastery. All products are made from natural ingredients, following the original 200 year old recipes. I opted for the rose water, rose face cream and citrus hand cream. Despite the recommendation of the lavender water by the pharmacist, I still got the rose water as rose is one my favourite scent. 

* Aqua Rosae  100 mL / 50 Kn (about £5/6)

 

This rose water has a quiet strong sweet scent to it and I love it so much! The smell is so natural and it makes me feel very feminine every time I use this on my face. I have also been applying this at the roots of my hair when dump, and it leaves my hair smelling nice and soft when dried. For this quality, 50 Kn is definitely a bargain and I would love to go back there and by some more to stock! 

*Krema od ruza  cream of roses 63Kn (about £6/7) 

This rose cream has the exactly same scent at the rose water. The cream itself is very rich, and spreads really well so you only need a small amount to apply on your face. When first applied, it is quiet sticky and oily but it gradually blends into your skin and is very hydrating. I tend to apply more on the areas of dry skin. As the scent is quite strong, I use this mostly at night time - it is such a lovely smell to fall asleep with and it aids my sleep when I'm struggling to fall asleep. 

*Krema za ruke  hand cream  63Kn (about £6/7)

This hand cream has a very fresh citrus scent to it and it is very nourishing. The texture is same as the rose cream, but for some reason I found this to be thicker and oilier so it's harder to spread. This was a life saver during my 4 week placement. Being a student nurse, you are constantly washing your hands whether you need it or not (maybe I'm slightly obsessed?!) and that leaves me with a pair of very dry hands. I applied this hand cream before going to bed, and in the morning my hands were very soft and hydrated. I can see myself using this cream more and more as the cold winter approaches! 

Overall, I am very pleased with my purchases from Mala Braca Pharmacy and would recommend it to any one who is visiting Dubrovnik in near future. As they are all reasonably priced, this would be such a cute gifts for your friends too :) 

I had so much fun exploring the old town, and my words won't do this amazing place any justice, so here are so photos!

The view of old town from city walls 

The view of a cove from the city walls 

Fortress Lovrijenac - my cover photo was taken on the walls of Fortress Lovrijenac 

So much history behind this beautiful city 

Pretty harbour 

The view of old town from panorama cafe on top of mount Srd

Old Town at night 

Yellow post box 

Inside Rector's Palace 

Harbour view from the boat 

It is safe to say Dubrovnik has become one of my favourite holiday destination. 

Has anyone been on holiday recently? Where is your favourite holiday destination? 

Fall Nails Colours

When I saw that Essie's new fall nail collection was out I couldn't help but to take a quick trip to the Boots to grab some. They have introduced five shades, which are; dress to kilt, fall in line, take it outside, the perfect cover up, style cartel and partner in crime. I truly love every single shade, but had to control myself not to purchase all of them as my bank account would not agree.

I am so grateful for Boots's 3 for 2 offer on Essie's nail colours, as buying 3 x £7.99 nail polishes is brutal.
After some thinking in front of the Essie stand, I opted for dress to kilt, fall in line and the all in one nail care.   

I have painted my nails with dress to kilt and I am in love with it. It is a very rich and elegant rouge colour, and would go very nicely with any outfit, adding some glamour to it. 

I can rarely paint my nails due to my course, so when I can, I like to put a lot thoughts into it so I get most out of my "painted nails allowed period" while it lasts, and this colour has not failed me, neither has the quality of Essie's polish and its flawless finish.
I am yet to try the fall in line, which is jade green colour, and it looks like it could be perfect in any season.

Has anyone else tried the new fall collection? If not, what is your favourite shade of nail polish by Essie?

Holiday Essentials

With the end of summer approaching around the corner (a rather short summer for me), I am dreading starting the third year of uni, YES, THE FINAL YEAR OF MY COURSE. Despite feeling like a school kid on Sundays, I am going on a short trip to Croatia with my family, Yay!  I am usually a last minute packer and this time was no exception.  Today, I am going to share with you my holiday essentials and an overview of the clothes I'm taking with me.

I usually take unnecessary stuff with me in my handbag and end up not using them at all. This time, I thought I'd keep it nice and simple and only take the absolute essentials.

1. First, the most important of them all: The handbag. It is not very clear in the photo, but I have recently purchased a black nylon backpack from TOPSHOP (£28.00), as I thought It'll go well with the clothes I want to take with me and also I will be doing a lot of walking in Croatia so I thought a backpack would be a better option than a usual handbag. 

2. In TOPSHOP, I have also bought a black felt floppy hat (£28.00) - it was a love at first sight. I don't usually wear hats in my everyday outfits but there was something about this hat that made me want it so much, and I'm looking forward to get some wear out of it.

3. A camera isn't usually my essentials when I go on holiday, as I found the quality of the Iphone camera to be quite good. However, Dubrovnik, the city of Croatia that I'm visiting, is known for its beautiful sceneries and I wanted to go all out and take my Pentax K-r with me to capture them. I have not used it in a while and it's about time I started using this beauty properly!

4. I am sure everyone agrees that handy wipes and/or tissues are undoubtedly the must to take on holidays - or anywhere really. I have a habit of spilling things all over the place (oops) so I would die without some tissues. I find that it can be difficult to find places to wash your hands sometimes, but you still want to keep your hands nice and clean for any food nibbling opportunity arises so handy wipes will be the perfect for the job.

5. Chewing gums. I used to take small packets with me, but I go through so many of them in a short period of time that I got myself a bottle. Only thing is that it makes that rattling noise in my bag which I'm not very fond of.

6. A purse. I tend to have a 'holiday purse', so that I don't have to empty my usual purse out and lose stuff that are already in there. Having said that, my holiday purse always have money and stuff in from the previous holiday, so I still need to empty it and will most likely lose something from there.

7. Lip, skin care. I have been loving La Roche-Posay Nutritic lip balm (£6.00), as it hydrates my skin really well and it's very light and not greasy when applied to my lips. I used to use vaseline a lot, but since staring nursing training, lip balm is a lot easier and more hygienic way of keeping my lips hydrated during placement. I also love Bobbi Brown's lip colour in shade Tull, number 34, (£19.50).

It is a soft pink colour that blends in well with my natural lip colour. I don't tend to wear any makeup when I travel on aeroplanes, but I would wear this lip colour on its own to add some colour to my face. In my previous blog, I talked about having dry/combination skin and my skin definitely gets very dry on aeroplanes. A small Nivea cream is an essential for someone like me, as I can quickly apply it on my face if I need to.

8. Chloe perfume - I simply cannot live without. This scent has been my favourite for a while now, and I buy them at the airport duty frees. I already know what I am going to but when I get to the airport... 

9. Ray-Ban sunglasses - I have sensitive eyes and if I don't wear sunglasses in sunny weather, my eyes can become itchy and uncomfortable for some reason, so it definitely is a must for me! 

10. A good book. I read most books on my iPad now, but I do miss having an actual book in my hand, and the smell of the paper. I have chosen to take "How to fall in Love" by Cecelia Ahern with me this holiday. She is the author of "P.S I Love you", and is one of my favourite author. 


Here is a quick overview of my holiday clothes and yes I am very aware of the monochrome -ness of the collection but I just cannot help it! 

Now all I need to do is to actually pack them... I know I have waffled on a little too much but I hope you agree with some of my essentials, and I would love to know what peoples' holiday essentials are :)