Monday 4 November 2013

What have I been up to?

Ok so I have not blogged in months and to be honest this is because of a number of things one being I just didn't feel confident in what I was doing anymore. I felt like I didn't belong in the blogger world I was struggling to find my way around blogger and how to maintain a blog, writing posts and content so I decided to leave it to the professionals! I also decided to to do a course in makeup artistry. I have always had a huge passion and love for makeup since I was a young teen but never pursued to educate myself. I undertook a 3 month diploma course in makeup artistry and LOVED IT! Now with my new found confidence in myself again and my diploma in makeup artistry I feel I have the basics to blog again!

I don't  intend for this blog to be all about makeup and beauty but as its a huge passion of mine it will defiantly be featured ALOT! I am going to continue blogging about what comes to my mind and what  I am loving at the moment.

Love L. xx


Thursday 11 April 2013

What's in my bag!

I thought I would pop in today to share with you what I carry on a daily basis. I have a 4 year old and an 18 month old so I'm a Mommy on the go! I use a medium sized cross body bag for me and a small back pack that I carry my sons essentials in. Occasionally say the weekend when I feel like being fancy I will combine the two into a nice tote.

 My bag is from River Island it was a gift from my brother and his girlfriend at christmas.
It is the perfect size for running about with my kids. A cross body bag is an essential with kiddos!

Inside I keep the essentials. I use to carry a ton of stuff with me but over the years I've narrowed it down.
Much better on my back! 

Aldo studded purse, love this its the perfect size and is nice and neat.
H&m small cosmetic bag (contents to follow!!)
Tangle Tamer hairbrush by Denman. I love this brush I got this for my daughter who has long hair that is a
nightmare to brush. Highly recommend!
Missoni for Specsaver glasses, this is the case I keep handy!
Claires Accessories contact lense case
Htc phone ( not an iphone use, shocking I know!!)
Sure deoderant, loving these new condensed bottles.


On to my small cosmetics case. I have to have a bag within a bag, it keeps things
so organised and easy to find in my bag with can sometimes resemble a black hole!

I keep "lady products" hey keeping it real!!
Vaseline the aloe vera kind
Revlon lip butters in Creme brule and strawberry shortcake.
Mac Viva Glam iv 
Revlon Colourstay powder
Boots eye drops for dry eyes
Nail file
Bobbins and clip for me
Pink bow clip for Boo!


Wednesday 10 April 2013

Recent Empties

I'm a bad blogger! I cant believe how long it has been since Ive blooged. I back now and ready to get my mojo back. I have a few blog posts lined up and cant wait to get back into the swing of things.

On to the empties!



Olay essentials double action nourishing & protecting day cream, normal/dry

When I went to the store to buy this I actually went of another olay cream I used before however it was out of stock and this one was on sale so I decided to give this one a try. This cream is pink in colour which doesn't appeal to me and smells quiet florally which I don't normally go for. My skin is very dry at the moment so this wasn't as moisturising as I would have liked my skin soaked it up as soon as i put it on however it did moisturise and was nice under foundation. I would repurchase this again if my skin becomes less dry during the summer.  This docent contain an spf so I would apply one first.

Olay essentials smoothing face scrub normal/dry

This scrub is creamy which soothes dry skin and contains micro beads to gently exfoliate. It is suitable for every day use I used this in the morning and my skin felt clean and it left a smooth canvas to apply makeup. I wouldn't use this at night as I like a deeper clean after the days build up of dirt and make-up. This a good product for the price point and I would repurchase but would try a few different products before I came back to it.



Bastite dry shampoo in tropical

This is actually the first time Ive tried out Bastite dry shampoo which is odd considering its kinda the original dry shampoo. The smell of this stuff is sooo good it reminds me of holidays and summer which is always a plus. Buuut this does not give my hair the same fresh feeling that other dry shampoos at the same price point do.I wont be repurchasing.

V05 heat protect serum 

Loving this stuff ! This is a serum you apply to wet hair before drying it leaves my hair super soft and super shiny. I don't like this on dry hair if you add too much it leaves hair greasy looking and lank, not a good look!
I also use this on my daughters hair and its great. Definitely will be buying this again!

Schwarzkopf got 2 b powederful volumizing styling powder

This defiantly gives my flat hair some lift its great at night but I don't like it during the day as my hair feels like a helmet with it in!! Its great if you curl you hair and add this at the roots for some lift. I will buy this again for sure!



Roberto Cavalli perfume 

My Mam gave this to me as a present for Christmas and I absolutely love it! This is the quickest I have ever used up a bottle of perfume I usually get at least a year out of perfume as I generally have a few on the go but this was my go to every single day. It is a sexy scent that can be worn day or night. It feels grown up to me. I find it hard to explain the smell of perfume but If I could explain this I would say its not like Marc Jacobs Daisy (do not like these sort of scents). Its kinda musky, vanillay kinda smell ha! Perfect love it!



Dr organic vitamin e skin lotion

I purchase this from Holland and Barrett when they where having their 1 cent sale. This stuff is great it gets rid of any dry patches and is great to apply after exfoliation and before fake tan. My sister hates the smell of this its grown on me and makes me feel really clean and fresh when I apply it. It has a very "organic" smell if you know what I mean!!

Jergans Natural ultra hydrating intensive hand cream for extra dry hands

Ok if you haven't picked up on it yet I'm DRY!! This winter has been harsh on my skin. I used to have oily skin on my face and normal skin on my body until now. Its more than likely due to having kids and ageing poo, that gathered with zero moisture in the air at the moment I resemble the Sahara, hot but dry ( I kid couldn't resist!) Anyhoo love this cream instantly soothes dry skin, absorbs well and leaves my hands soft and comfortable.

Really hope you enjoyed this post. Thanks for reading!!

Wednesday 28 November 2012

Learning to Crochet

I am loving crochet at the moment. I started about two months ago so I am total beginner. I learned how to knit basic stitches as a child and have made a scarf before but never really put myself into it. However I have always wanted to learn how to crochet and after swooning over pinterest and other bloggers fab work I decided to take the plunge.

To start I picked up The Art of Crochet at my local magazine store.
It came with a ball of yarn and a size 4 crochet hook, I was away!


I looked up you tube videos to learn the basics and also purchased Sue whitings Learn to Crochet book.Link

From here I practiced until I was comfortable with the basic stitches and until I got my tension right.
I made some basic flowers and some headbands for my niece.





It was time to take on a project! I started with this hat for my daughter the pattern is from The Art of Crochet. I love how it turned out, the seam is not perfect but ok for my first time!




Next I tried a snood again not perfect but I'm happy with it and it is made from the nicest yarn. So warm and snugly love it!




I have some other works in progress, a snood for Ava and Me and a blanket for Ethan. I'm also working on some Christmas gifts but that's top secret!!


Snood


Blanket for Ethan.


Snood for Ava.

These pics are obviously from Instagram! I'm still trying to figure out how to add a link. My Instagram user name is lolajh come say hi!

Love L x
With Christmas almost upon us (seriously where does the time go??) I figured it was time to go through the kids toys and pair down. I spent my entire saturday going through all of the toys in my house. I got rid of all the broken toys, donated all of the outgrown toys and organised all of the remaining I even have empty toy boxes! Score. Here are the after shots of the kiddos rooms. I never took befores it would have been way to scary! Nightmare before Christmas anyone??
Feel free to leave a comment I would love to hear your feed back!




Baby boys room 



Crib 



Baby Girls Room


Ahh I can now breathe  . . . . . and move on to the rest of the clutter around the house!!

Love L. x

Monday 13 August 2012

Whats for dinner ??? - Pasta in a creamy garlic sauce



This recipe is really easy and quick to prepare with just a few ingredients.
It can be put together in no time so I like to make this when I've had a busy day like today!
I don't have specific measurements for this recipe as I came up with it myself I generally adjust to the number of people I'm serving.

Ingredients:

  • Pasta ( for as many people you are cooking for)
  • Chicken breast fillets -I used two today
  • broccoli approx 1 cup
  • half a courgette sliced
  • 1 x white onion finely diced
  • 2 x cloves of garlic finely chopped or minced
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 5 - 6 mushrooms 
  • 3 - 4 tbsp creme fraiche
  • Salt and pepper ( today I didn't use salt and pepper as I was making this baby friendly )

Method:



  • Bring water with some olive oil and salt ( if using ) to the boil and add pasta
  • also put the chicken breast in a pot of water and bring to he boil reduce heat and simmer
  • Saute the onion for 2 mins and add garlic saute for 3-5 mins until onion becomes translucent.
  • add the courgette and the mushrooms and saute for 3 - 5 mins
  • chopped the chicken and add to the pan
  • add the broccoli to the pasta water and simmer for 5 mins
  • add the creme fraiche and simmer for 3 mins
  • drain the pasta and broccoli and add to the pan, mix until the pasta is coated.

Serve with some fresh cracked pepper, some grated parmesan and salad. 
For my 9 month old I chop this up very finely and I tell you he devours it!


Enjoy!! :)

p.s my camera battery died when I was cooking so had to use
my phone so sorry for the bad quality pics!

Sunday 12 August 2012

Back to school fashion - for Boo!

Where did the summer go??? I can not believe back to school is just around the corner summer went wayyyy to fast for my liking!! Ava is in need of some new back to playschool clothes so while I was in the shopping centre last week I popped into h&m to oogle the new autumn collection for the kiddos.
I loove this shop for kids clothes it is very reasonably priced for the quality and they have such cute stuff. I don't like to spend a lot of money on clothes for school as they tend to get messed up really quickly however I do like cute stuff so h&m = happy mammy!!! Here are a few things I picked up.


This cute dress was €12.95. I am a sucker for anything red, white, navy and striped!! Link


My terrible "photography" skills do not do this cute little skirt any justice. It was €6.95.
This is not on the Irish website but they do have it in navy and red, I had a tough time making a decision on the colour!! Link ooh really want the navy one now :)


Stripped top to match above skirt. I think this was €5.95. I like to have fun playful clothes for back to school and so does Ava. I could not find this top on the website I think it may be last season.


My sister bought this adorable outfit for Ava also from h&m. I love this outfit it is soo cute not really a school outfit but I just had to include it aswell.
The cardigan was €6.95 and is a gorgeous lime green colour again my skills don't show it off so well.
The jeans were €12.95 and are so soft they have lime green flowers also so they tie in so nicely with the cardi. This outfit is the perfect transitional outfit for the coming months. Thanks Elaine!!


My mum also bought this fab quilted coat for Ava ( lucky little girl ). I get teased for all the red I put this child in!! It is from Dunnes Stores and was €14.00. It is not super heavy but will be cute paired with tights and boots for when the weather is not super cold. Thank you mammy!!

Another thing I like to do for school wardrobe is buy basic denim shorts and a skirt, I then buy multipacks of long sleeved tees and colourful tights and mix and match. Pair with boots and coordinating hair accessories and we have cute back to school looks without spending a fortune.

On another note we took the kids to Tayto park at the weekend Ava's friend came along also, we had a great time the weather was soo nice. The girls got their faces painted too cute!


Yep not a princess or fairy . .  . a tiger! Love her


This little guy slept most of the day. I have a lil guy clothing post for the future :)