Plan with Jade sticker review...

I have recently found an interest in decorative planning and have started decorating my own planner/diary. I have done two weeks so far and I am loving it. I did a previous post on these you can check it out here. I searched online for Uk based sticker shops but I couldnt find many with sticker sets I found attractive and exciting. Eventually I stumbled upon Plan with Jade's shop. She has loads of different designs including a Wizard of Oz. I fell in love and had to place an order with her.

The delivery of my stickers was really quick and cheap which is great and means I don't have to wait along time to get planning. I was a little wary to order stickers created for the Erin Condren but I will give anything ago and was sure I could make it work for me.
Here is my planner before any decoration:

First of all I needed to choose my background paper and washi. I had a look through my box and found a a yellow zig zag paper and a lovely sparkly gold washi as well as one with tiny poppies on which I thought was quite apt for a Wizard of Oz theme.

Now I have all of that down and written on the days of the weeks its time to plan out each day.

Here is the finished spread using my Plan with Jade stickers. I have used the larger patterned boxes as backgrounds for important information such as work schedule and appointments.  I love how this has turned out and I think even though I don't have an Erin Condren planner I have made the stickers work for me and achieved a great result. Below are a few close ups of the decorative stickers from the set.

I can't praise these stickers enough the quality is lovely and they are super matt which is useful so I can write over the top of them with out worrying about smudging. I did find that with my type of planner I didn't use the header stickers which came with the set but that is fine as I used most of the others.

I would have been quite happy with the stickers I ordered but to my surprise Jade sent me a few other sheets of stickers which is so kind of her. They are all really cute too and I will definitely be using them in future spreads.

I will be making many more orders from Jade in the future I feel her shop is well stocked with a range of stickers for many different purposes. Thank you very much Jade if you read this and keep up the great work.

What do you think of my Wizard of Oz spread? Would you order from Jade?

Tarra 

xx

Discovering decorative planning…..

I recently found a link to a video on youtube about decorative planning. After exploring more into what it was I became slightly hooked. Most of the videos and images are based on the Life Planner by Erin Condren which is an American company. Unfortunately being in the UK the shipping of one of these planners is crazy high, so I decided to just get a regular 2016 diary and come up with my own style of planning. I have only done two weeks so far and I am really liking how they are turning out.

This is the first week before I decorated it just looks so plain. I had been to Hobby Craft to buy some washi tape and coloured paper so I could decorate the week, this is how it turned out. 

So I went for a pink and blue theme with hints of gold and floral. I like my little icons I have drawn on using black felt marker, especially the camera and washing machine. Also I really like the flags of opposite coloured card I have used to show my work schedule and pay days.

Onto to the next week and I have decided I would like to do a grey and silver theme. I found some really bright animal stickers that I have used to decorate the pages.

I don't like how this spread has turned out as much as the first one because I feel it is too busy and things are just scribbled down. I had received my order of stickers from the Etsy shop sellers Plan with Jade and Plannabledesigns. I really like the little meal plan sticker marking what we had for tea over the weekend, however I feel it just needs fine tuning and a little bit more practice. I am going to do a separate blog post for my Plan with Jade spread as I bought a whole sticker set from her in the theme 'Wizard of Oz'.

What do you think to decorative planning? I really wish I could afford an Erin Condren as there are so many beautiful stickers created just for this planner.

Tarra 

xx

Glossy box review....

So as you will know if you have been with my blog for a while I used to review my Glossy box subscription which I received every month. I loved receiving new products each month but over time the boxes got a little sad. My friend Jenna recently subscribed and sent me a image of the things she received it seems Glossy box may have got their edge back as the product she got were really good and definitely worth the money.

So with a 20% discount code I decided I will give them another go. I have purchased a 3 month subscription and if I really like the boxes I will continue to subscribe. 

When I went to purchase my January box it had sold out so Glossybox have a new box that they can send when the monthly box is sold out. The products in the box are chosen based on my Beauty Profile.

The box I received is the typical Glossybox pink box with black ribbon and pink tissue paper, I think this is nice for me as this is my first box back and it feels like we really are having a do over.

When I opened the tissue paper I can instantly see that there is at least 3 full size products, which makes me very happy to see. I am especially excited about the blending sponge as I have been wanting the Real Techniques one for a while and this one might be just as good.

The first product is a lipstick by the brand Bellapierre in the shade Ruby. It pretty much is what it says on the tin. A lovely ruby red colour. This lip stick is very moisturising and pigmented. I really like it and will check out the other colours I would prefer a more muted shade.








Next up is this hair masque by the brand Maria Nila. It is a mask that is created specifically for coloured hair which is great for me because Im forever dying my hair so any product that is going to help keep my hair nourished and healthy.

The smell of this product is amazing its a mixture or citrus and sweet a little bit like Soap and Glory's Sugar Crush scent. Beautiful. If I'm honest I'm not that keen on the packaging but that can be ignored when the product inside is this good.

I was excited to see a full size Nails inc nail polish in the box I think a lot of these products have a pink theme as this polish is a muted pink. I have had many Nails Inc polishes and they are great 1 coat tends to be enough and they last for ages on the nail. There is such a good range of colours available and the names are always really different. This one is called uptown.

I would be very happy to recieve more Nails inc polishes in future boxes I feel that are alway a good addition to the box.












Two more products left the next one is this Body cream by the brand Royal Apothic. I hadn't ever heard of this brand before but I must say I quite like the product. I wasn't too keen on the smell as it was very floral but in an over facing way. However that said the cream it self was very moisturising and made my skin feel super soft.

The final product is the one I was most excited about. Like I mentioned previously I have wanted the Real Techniques sponge for ages and I am really looking forward to bring this one out. I love how pink this sponge is. (I do think if it had been orange it would have looked like the EDF character.)

Over all I am so happy with this box my faith in Glossy box has been restored lets hope they can keep it up as I have really enjoyed getting my box again!

What is your favourite product I received? 

Tarra 

xx

Disney make up look….

I recently re watched the 2015 Cinderella and fell back in love with it. I love how magical it is and because its live action it feels more like real life. (I'm such a disney loser) Anyway I decided I would try and re create Cinderella's hair and make up in today's post.
Below are some images of Lily James who is the actress who played Cinderella in the film.

 In the film they have kept her make up really simple and natural which I think is going to be quite easy to replicate. Her hair on the other hand is a mixture of plaits and curls and twists I will have to play around to get it right.

So here is the finished hair. I basically took a inch section from either side of my head and braided it, then secured it with an elastic and twisted it up onto of my head. Then with the remaining hair I used my curlers to add wavy curls. Above is a close up of the braid detail which sits on the back of the head.

I think it has turned out quite well. If I was to recreate this look I would have parted my hair down the middle like Lily James's hair.




Next for the make up, I used a foundation which has a dewy finish as Cinderella has really glowy, healthy looking skin. Normally at this point I would use bronzer to contour but Cinderella has no contouring just a dusting of blush on the cheeks.
Onto eyes I used a matte brown shade from my Naked palette all over my lid making sure I used a fluffy brush to shade the shadow out. I then used a darker shade to apply to the crease, before using a light shimmers shade to just add a little bit of highlight.
A couple of layers of mascara later and it on to the lips. I used a pinky gloss all over before adding a darker pink matte lipstick to give me a similar colour to Cinderella.

I have really enjoyed doing this look. It is really simple but I think in the film the simplicity is what makes her look princess-like.

So here is the finished look:

What do you think? Would you wear this hair style?Who is you favourite Disney princess?

                               Tarra xx

More pictures below :)

Matfen Hall

Me and Phil decided after working so much over the Christmas period we needed to have a little get away. We went to Slaley Hall for my birthday in May and loved it so we thought we would try another Hall in the area. We decided upon Matfen Hall!

Even though the day was cold and raining the Hall itself looked amazing. It was so grand and beautiful. I had booked online via the Matfen Hall website I found the website really easy to browse and quickly booked us into a classic double room complete with dinner and breakfast.                                                

                         

On arrival we were given room keys and told where all the facilities were including the spa, dining room and conservatory bar. We headed up to our room and started to unpack. I completely forgot to take a picture of our room but it was very similar to the one pictured opposite. The decor was very simple but was lovely and cosy, which was a nice contrast to the weather outside. The bed was huge it could easily fit 4 people in and it was super comfy. The bathroom was basic but very clean which is all you can expect from a standard bathroom. The only thing I would say could be added to the room was a facility to make tea and coffee, but apart from this the room was amazing.

After we had settled in we both thought it would be nice to take advantage of the spa facilities, so we got into our swimwear and put on the robes provided before heading down to the spa. 

The first thing Phil and I wanted to go in was the jacuzzi, it was awesome we felt so chilled after. Then we swam a few lengths in the pool before heading to the sauna. I had never been in a sauna before and Im not sure how I feel about it, Phil loved it though.

Outside the sauna was an ice shower where you could choose to have a freezing shower! It was supposed to cool your muscles down and relax them.

I couldn't bare to stand under it for the whole shower time but I did give it ago.

We had now worked up an appetite after swimming about so it was time to head back up to the room and shower ready for dinner.

I choose to wear jeans, a loose black shirt and my chelsea style boots, this was because I didn't feel like dressing up but also didn't want to be too casual. I really liked my outfit.

I then straightened my hair (its getting so long now deffo need a trim soon! Kind of want my ombre back too.) and put on my make up. I kept is quite simple on my eyes just using a gold shadow, liner and mascara. I also used a 'your lips but better' coloured lipstick by maybeline and I was all ready for heading down to dinner. 

Because we had booked a room complete with dinner we had a £36 allowance to spend per person for our meal. Drinks were separate but we pretty much just had water as it was provided on the table. (what cheap skates we are haha) The menu had loads of options to choose from including fish dishes, poultry and vegetarian options. But the thing that caught our eyes was the fillet steak. It was £30 each and came with the usual trimmings. I was unsure if I wanted to order it as it was a lot of money for a steak but I can assure you you get what you pay for it was amazing melted in the mouth.

I had also spotted a side order of parsnips in honey and mustard. For those that know me you know how much I love roast parsnips, so of course I ordered those for on the side. They were delicious.

After eating all this food I was stuffed but after a rest I decided why not get a pudding I've paid for it.

I choose the apple tarte tatin, I had never had it before but always thought it looked lovely when watching cooking programmes. Just like with the steak it didn't disappoint it was fruity and sweet and just pure food porn. 

I enjoyed all of my food and would recommend both of my choices to other visitors to Matfen Hall. Phil and I were both so full we felt sick, we waddled back to our room and chilled out watching the tv before falling asleep in our lovely comfy bed for the night.

In the morning we woke up quite early as we had to vacate our room at 11am. We got dressed and headed down for breakfast. There was a continental spread we could help our selves too which included the cutest little pastries I've ever seen. There was also an option to have a cooked breakfast and an endless supply of toast. I had a small plate of bacon, sausage and an egg before sampling the tiny pastries.

Once breakfast was over it was time to pack ready to leave our trip was almost over. It had been short but sweet and just what we needed. All that was left to do was to settle the bill. I would stay at Matfen Hall again as all of the staff were polite and helpful and the standard of the rooms and food were really good for the amount we paid. Thank you Matfen Hall.

Have you ever stayed at this hotel? Would you like more hotel reviews?

Tarra

xx

    Great footwear choice Jess!                                                                            Yummy Parsnips!!

Phil's Scrapbook.

So as I mentioned in a previous post I decided to make Phil a scrapbook for christmas documenting the things we have done together over the past 19 months. I struggled for a while to find a scrapbook which didn't have set places to put the photos, this wasn't good for what I wanted as I didn't want to be stuck to just having 2 pictures to a page, I wanted to be creative with how the pictures were laid out on the pages.

The book I eventually found was from WHSmiths and was £16.99. Its covers are made of brown cardboard with neon green writing and string.
I thought the was nice as its pain but with a hint of colour to make it a little different.

The pages inside are all black paper which is nice as the contrast with the pictures will make the images stand out more.

The book is about 25cm square which I think is a nice size and shape to put 6"x4" photographs in.

On the first page I decided to write a little message so he can remember that its from me :) I also pulled one of the back pages out to create the spare photos pocket. When I had finished all the pages I wanted to do I had lots of spare photos and I didn't want to just throw them away so this was a good way to keep them.

Next I needed to decide which moment and memories I wanted to document in the scrapbook, this was hard as there were so many amazing times to choose from but in the end I decided and began printing out all the relevant pictures. I used one of the machines at Jessops to print out the images it was a lot more expensive than I had first though at 40p per photograph. If I was to do this again I would take advantage of one of the online services such as Snapfish or Photobox who offer 50 free prints when you sign up. The first pages I decided would be images of us together as well as some of Liam and Max.

After the page I decided to do a page based around our first holiday where we went to Rhodes, I have a full post on this trip linked here. I had never been on holiday with a boyfriend before so it was really special to me. As you can see I am just using a gold sharpie to do all the writing an decoration on the page I think it really stands out against the black paper. I have also included some little illustrations of inside jokes and moments we found funny.

The next pages I did were Christmas 2014 and New Year 2015. This was mine and Phil's first christmas and I went back to my dads house so didn't get to spend it with Phil and the kids like I have this year. The only pictures I had from that time are putting the tree up. 

Now onto May the next page is of my trip away Phil bought me for my birthday. We went to Slaley Hall over night it was lovely and super relaxing. The other images are from a trip we took with the kids to Adventure Valley it was really fun. I really like the images of the boys on this page.

Next up is Max's 2nd birthday. When I was little my Mam documented all my birthdays growing up, I thought it would be nice to do the same for Liam and Max as they grow older. We had a lovely day celebrating his birthday and I spent most of the day before making the Pingu birthday cake!

For our friend Janette's birthday we went on a Hippie themed pub crawl. It was so much fun and was a great way to celebrate her birthday. I wanted to put the group photos on the page as well as some of my other favourites from the day. 

The next events I wanted to create pages for were my cousins wedding and Liams's Birthday. My cousins wedding was the first time Phil had met a lot of my family on my dad's side. I love the contrast of black and white and colour on this page. Liam's birthday was a lovely day and I really love the images of Liam with his football Phil had bought him.

Second to last of the pages I had made for Phil is our trip to Rome in October. This was a trip I had bought Phil for his birthday as I knew he had always wanted to go. I have done a full blog post on this trip here. This was also the first time I had stuck some items into the scrapbook including our ticket for Colosseum and St Peters Basilica.

The last page I had created for Phil was the kids putting up the tree this year. It was really nice, we had the fire on and christmas music in the background. Max was a lot more involved this year trying his hardest to put the decorations on the tree.

So there you go! In the scrapbook there are still many pages to fill with memories and I think it will be nice for me and Phil to do together the longer we are a couple. I really enjoyed making this scrapbook and I hope that Phil liked it as much as I like making it. Here is a picture of him opening it:

Let me know what you think of my scrapbook and if you would like to see more creative posts on my blog.

Tarra

xx