101 Things in 1001 Days #26

Win Something - Competition, the lottery, an award etc

Lets be realistic here, I was never going to win the lottery was I - mainly because I usually forget to buy a ticket each week - what was I thinking when I wrote these? But I did, however, win a competition - Yay to myself! I literally never win anything. And the best part is I was chosen to win, not picked at random, which makes it even more exciting!

The story begins wayyy back at the beginning of May when I was browsing Instagram & BeakUpCrafts posted about the Sykes Cottages Simple Crafts Competition, which she was helping to judge. I immediately headed over to her blog to see what it was all about as there was talk of winning a £100 Craft Bundle! To enter, all you had to do was share a photo of a craft you had done on the Sykes Cottages Competition Page. I chose to share the photo of my Bedside Cabinets I made last summer as I was really pleased with how they turned out & it was my first furniture upcycling project too. I didn't for one minute think I would be chosen as one of the winners so when I recieved an email to say I had won, I was so surprised. I couldn't wait for my Craft Bundle to arrive in the post. So I am sure you are all eager to see what was included in my Craft Bundle. Here we go...

Kirsty Allsop Goodies! 

Fabric Covered Notebook Kit

Rose Bath Bomb Kit 

Button Kit

Cosmetic Bag Kit

Themed Card Pack

Hobbycraft Goodies!

Decoupage Starter Kit

Patchwork Cushion Cover 

A Year in Crafts Book

 

I am still surprised that I was one of the lucky 6 to be chosen to win & am so grateful to have received such a lovely prize, so thank you to Sykes Cottages & all of the judges involved! I haven't had much time to properly sit down & look at everything but the minute I am back from Glastonbury Festival I will definitely be getting everything out to play with - which will obviously lead to a review on each one too! I am most intrigued by the Button Kit. Do you have any of these kits? If you have, please let me know. Would be great to see what you made too! And if you won the competition too, let me know :)

♥  

ZoFlo

Thursday Thoughts #28

Happy Thursday!

This week I am at Glastonbury Festival - Yaaaaaaaaaaaay! So it is only right to have an appropriate thought for today...

Photo Source

I love everything about Glastonbury Festival. It is literally my favourite time of the year. Perhaps I even like it more than Christmas! It is so close to where I live, so if you don't go it is absolute torture. When the diversion signs go up about a week or so before the Festival opens, I always get really excited. It's all everyone talks about here in Somerset! Camping for 5 days, wearing flowers in my hair everyday & listening to all of my favourite bands whilst drinking copious amounts of cider...I can't even think of anything I would rather do. Even if it is raining. I will (obviously) be uploading a post when I return about my experience, as it is too good to not share with you all - I hope you don't mind!

Enjoy the rest of your week! I am here until Monday so I know I will definitely enjoy mine *reaches for another can of cider*

♥  

ZoFlo

How To // Decoupage Candle Holder

So I had a free morning yesterday, but didn't feel like taking on anything too big (I have another foot stall & 2 chairs that need upholstering but I really wasn't in the mood yesterday) so thought it would be the perfect time to do a bit of decoupage. Its easy, not too messy & actually quite theraputic. I chose to make my own Candle Holder & thought I would share it with you all as I was really pleased with it. You will need:

• Old Jar (I soaked mine in hot water to get the label off)
• Decoupage Glue
• Brush
• Decoupage Paper - in a pattern/colour of your choice
• Candle
• Ribbon/Bow to decorate (optional)

Make sure you have removed the label from the jar & it is completely dry before you begin.

1.  Tear up your decoupage paper into small pieces, depending on the effect you want to create. I was happy with doing it completely random so just did small, stamp sized squares. But you could do long strips the length of the jar to keep the pattern on the jar similar to the pattern on the paper.
2. Put a thin layer of glue onto the jar covering only the area you want to cover. Dab the piece of paper you want to put onto the jar with the brush & stick to the gluey area. Cover with a thin layer of glue.
3. Continue with this, doing small sections at a time, until you have covered the whole of the jar. 
4. Leave to dry for 1-2 hours. Tie the ribbon/bow to the top of the jar, for extra decoration.
5. Pop the candle inside & you're done!

Tip: You don't have to stick to one piece of decoupage paper. Mix it up! Use lots of different colours/patterns to create bold designs!

 This is definitely one of the most simple How To post so I do apologise but I thought it was such a cute idea & some people haven't done decoupage before. I certainly hadn't until I went to the Creative Crafts Show, where I got all of the bits needed to give it a go for myself. It is a lovely little hobby especially if you don't have much time on your hands or even if you have little ones as they can join in too! Also, you can literally decoupage anything....

♥  

ZoFlo

100 Happy Days // Update #2

We have reached day 32 of my 100 Happy Days - it's going so fast - & I have had some really great times. I've met up with an old friend, spent time with my Niece & Nephew, enjoyed the sunshine with friends, lost at Badminton against Nick twice & won a competition (more on that soon)...So it has been a fun/busy few weeks!

 

I have lots of plans over the next few weeks (including Glastonbury Festival - Wooo), so the next update will have some slighlty more interesting photos.

Are you doing 100 Happy Days too?

♥  

ZoFlo

You can see update #1 of my 100 Happy Days here

Thursday Thoughts #27

Happy Thursday!

This weeks Thursday Thoughts is an obvious one, but one we should never forget...

Photo Source

When things all start to get a bit much, put the kettle on!

♥  

ZoFlo

Sunday Baking // 101 Things in 1001 Days #97

Learn to bake Lemon & Poppyseed Muffins

These are my absolute favourites & I have never made them before (I'm not sure why)! I really wanted to make ones with Lemon Curd in the middle - like the ones in Costa - so I used a Lemon Curd Muffin Recipe but made a few adaptations. I was actually really pleased with how they turned out & will definitely be making them again. This is how I made these little lemony treats...

• 200g Self-Raising Flour
• 100g Caster Sugar
• 1 Large Egg
• 75ml Olive Oil/Vegetable Oil
• 150ml Milk
• 1 Lemon
• Poppy Seeds
• 12 Tsp Lemon Curd

1. Heat the oven to 190°C and line a muffin tin with 12 paper cases
2. Sieve the Flour into a bowl & mix in the Sugar
3. In a separate bowl, thoroughly mix the Egg, Olive Oil & Milk together.
4. Slowly add this mixture to the Flour & Sugar, stirring well to ensure the wet & dry mixtured as thoroughly mixed together.
5. Add in the zest & juice of one lemon & the Poppy Seeds (you can you as many as you like, but you really don't need too many at all).
6. Half fill the paper cases with the mixture & then add 1tsp of lemon curd to the middle of each muffin. Use the remaining mixture to fill up the paper cases.
7. Carefully place into the preheated oven, being sure that you don't slam the oven door. Bake for 15-20 minutes until rises & firm (I couldn't really get mine to go golden brown like usual cakes, but I can assure you they are definitely cooked enough)

Let me know if you give this recipe a go, I would love to see how yours turn out. They are so yummy & easy to make too. I can't believe I haven't attempted these ones sooner! And it's another thing ticked off my 101 Things...

♥  

ZoFlo

101 Things in 1001 Days #62

Go to the Cinema

As we have an extensive DVD collection, Netflix, Sky Movies & at one point even LoveFilm, there really isn't any need for us to go to the Cinema very often. Especially as the Cinema seems to cost a small fortune these days. And don't even get me started on the cost of Pic N Mix! Well anyway, as I got my car insurance through Compare The Market, I qualified for Meerkat Movies - aka buy one get one free on Tuesdays & Wednesdays (I would highly recommend using this if you qualify for it). So myself & Nick decided to have a little "Date Night" last week & go for dinner followed by the Cinema. We both have really different taste in movies - Nicks favourite films tend to be anythnig that involves Aliens or Arnold Schwarzenegger. With my favourite films being Never Been Kissed & He's Just Not That Into You, understandable we find it difficult to agree on a movie. However....when we saw the trailer for San Andreas we both immediately wanted to see it. Disaster Movies are the only things we both enjoy (we did watch Bridesmaids the other day though & Nick loved it).

Image taken from Google Images

 I think some films are well worth watching in the cinema & this was definitely one of them. Based around an Earthquake in California, a rescue chopper pilot (Dwayne Johnson) is on a mission to save his daughter who is caught up in the disaster. Although in some places it's a little far fetched it is still a fantastic film, with a great storyline. There are lots of nail biting scenes that had me on the edge of my seat at times & even a small appearance from Kylie Minogue. It is definitely one I would recommend if you are thinking about going to see it. And I would definitely watch it again if it were to come on Netflix/Sky Movies. Have you seen any good movies at the cinema recently? Anything you would recommend?

♥  

ZoFlo