Xmas DIY: Cinnamon Candle Holder

These cinnamon candle holders are super easy and quick to make. You only need a few supplies, and if you already have a hot glue gun then they are very inexpensive too!

You will need;

• hot glue gun & glue
• small glass tumbler or small jar
• cinnamon sticks
• string or ribbon (optional)

You can pick up small glasses from charity shops or if you are going to make a few then you can usually get packs of glasses from a supermarket for next to nothing. I used old whiskey glasses here but small jars would work too, just make sure whatever you use has a smooth surface. I picked up my cinnamon sticks from eBay here, I bought 250g worth which did me two small candle holders. The rest is easy...

1. pop a line of glue on the glass.
2. stick your cinnamon stick on to the glue and hold for a few seconds.
3. continue adding cinnamon sticks all around until all the glass is covered. 
4. wrap string or ribbon around the candle holder once finished.

That is it! Simple, quick and super cheap! I popped a mini Yankee candle in each and gave mine to both our Mums and they loved them :)

DIY Birthday Bunting Cake

It was a special little girls 8th Birthday last month and I had a cake recipe that I wanted to use as I knew she would love it. (It was a white chocolate mousse cake...yum!!!) The cake was covered with white chocolate whipped cream and so I needed to come up with a way to decorate it that would be quick and easy and turn it into a 'Birthday' cake.

Que Pinterest and my love for bunting, some card, string and straws and I came up with this...

DIY Bunting Birthday Cake

First I measured out my triangles for the bunting on some patterned card.

I used a black sharpie and copied the Strawberry Limeade font for the writing. (I have an addiction with writing fonts at the moment) I added some gold glitter to the first letters.

I glued the bunting on to some string.

I popped two straws into the cake and attached the bunting to them with small strips of tape.

Just make sure to place the candles away from the paper bunting and walaa... a lovely homemade cake turned 'Birthday Cake' that is sure to please anyone :)

This is a great idea to turn any cake into a special occasion cake. So simple with great effect, the kind of craft I love! 

Face Oils: Clarins Blue Orchid Face Treatment Oil

As the colder months are drawing in I am really feeling the affects on my skin. I have quite sensitive skin that is prone to spells of dry itchy patches on my forehead and nose. It can easily get dehydrated, and now that the central heating is being cranked up my skin is screaming for some relief!

I was introduced to face oils about 3 years ago when I worked for Clarins. Ever since I have been using their Blue Orchid face oil and I will never be without it in my skincare routine.

Clarins Blue Orchid Face Treatment Oil

Oils are amazing treatments for the skin. They penetrate deep into the layers and help re-balance and restore. Even oily skin types will benefit from using a treatment oil. Many different brands have oils out there catered for all skin types, be it dryness, dehydration, combination, oily and sensitivity. They can be applied on their own in place of a moisturiser, underneath your moisturiser or how I use them is to mix it in with my night cream for a nourishing overnight treatment. I use my face oil at night as I would find it too rich underneath my makeup for during the day and I do most of my treatments at night when my skin is clean and able to repair itself and breathe.

The Blue Orchid oil for dehydrated skin is just beautiful. My skin feels like it has had a 'drink' after I apply it. It relieves that tight feeling and makes my skin glow and leaves it soft, supple and freshened. The Clarins oils have very strong herbal / aromatherapy like scents to them, which I love but be aware of this if you are particular about scents.
I mix 3-4 drops in with my night cream and find I use less of my night cream by doing this. I only use it maybe once a week during summer but in winter I use it every night.

The bottle I have is salon size that they use in the Clarins Spa's I got hold of when I worked for them and is 125ml. It has been nearly 3 years and I've used only half the bottle. It retails in a 30ml bottle and the cheapest I can find it online is for £23.95 from GorgeousShop with free delivery in the UK. I think this is amazing value as one bottle would last me at least a year. Clarins counters do very generous sample sizes for you to try before you buy.

The Clarins face oils are all beautiful. They have 3 different types;
Blue Orchid for dehydration
Santal for dryness and
Lotus for oily/combination skin.

I will definitely be purchasing another bottle when mine runs out. My skin wouldn't last the winter months without this. I am now a dedicated face oil user :)

I would love to hear if anyone has a face oil they love?

A x

Halloween Ideas

For me, Halloween is a great time to let my creative side come alive! I love this time of year and have made it a bit of a tradition now to have a good ol' Halloween gathering at the house with close friends and family. The best part for me is looking for creative ways to decorate the house and fun and unique recipes to serve my guests. I love Pinterest in general and it is fabulous for Halloween ideas. I have a whole board dedicated to seasonal crafts with lots of great Halloween decor inspirations. Here are some pictures of things I made last year with the links of where I sourced them;

1. Graveyard Cake

Recipe from BBC food.

This cake was a real talking point at the party and I was so pleased at how it turned out. It was super easy to make and if you really wanted to save time you could buy a pre made sponge. I bought tea biscuits and covered them with chocolate instead of making my own biscuits and you could use Nutella as the icing to save time! Super yummy!

2. Witches Hats

  Recipe from Lauren Conrad

These witches hats looked brilliant and the kids loved them. You could try different fillings instead of Fluff. Maybe Nutella? (yes, I Love Nutella!)

3. Spooky Signs

Here I made up some spooky names for the different sweets we were serving and filled them in jars I had saved. I used strawberry laces and wine gums for the "Monster guts". This was really fun, I also made "Stinky cheese" and "Sickly sweet toffee" muffins. Have fun with playing with words.

4. Shrunken Heads

Recipe by Martha Stewart

These shrunken heads are made by carving out faces in apples and then baking them. It was really fun and super easy. The effect was really amazing and people could not believe I made them!! I served mine in a bloody red sangria instead of cider. 

5. Haunted House Pumpkin

by Martha Stewart

I held a Pumpkin Carving Competition where everyone had to bring their own carved pumpkin and we would vote on the best one. I told people to be creative as possible and this haunted house pumpkin won! It was really easy to carve and looked really good with the bats and cat sticking out the top.

6. Glitter Pumpkins

by Martha Stewart

I made these Glitter Pumpkins at the beginning of October and used them as decoration under my glass topped coffee table. I got packs of glitter from the pound shop so they were really cheap to make and because they were completely covered in PVA glue they did not spoil all month.

I hope this have given you some inspiration if you are having a Halloween party or you just want to indulge in some spooky crafts or make something to decorate the house with. I am looking forward to our party this year and have a few new ideas I want to try. You can follow me on Pinterest  and look through my seasonal board for more Halloween ideas. Here are some things on my list to try;

Whatever you are doing for Halloween I hope you have a great time!

A x

Pancakes for breakfast!

I love food! I love cooking and finding new recipes that I (and the rest of the house) love. One day I decided I wanted to whip up a batch of American-style oh so perfect and fluffy pancakes and so began scouring the internet for that perfect recipe. I decided to try a recipe by Nigella which went down a hit... perfect, golden brown, fluffy goodness. Ever since I have been asked to make them every weekend and it is just expected that we have them for Sunday breakfast. We love ours with dashings of Nutella, bananas and syrup! But sometimes I just like to slather mine in butter and enjoy :)

AMERICAN STYLE BREAKFAST PANCAKES

Ingredients

• 225g plain flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp white sugar
• pinch salt
• 30g unsalted butter melted
• 2 large eggs
• 300ml milk
• butter for frying (optional) I use a good non-stick pan and use no butter 

I whip up all the ingredients in a bowl using a whisk, then transfer this to a jug. I pour the batter in a good non stick frying pan on medium heat. I do one pancake at a time and make them fairly big. Turn over once they are blistering on top and cook until golden.

TOPPINGS WE LOVE -

Nutella, Syrup, Bananas, Strawberries, Blueberries, lemon & Sugar, Butter!

I hope you enjoy these pancakes as much as we do! 

A x