Nearly Thirty…

Me and Chris have been having a big debate for the longest of times…should he upgrade his phone and get looking for some good i-phone deals. Now admittedly, Chris gets his ‘phone through work so I can understand that he doesn’t want to milk the situation and get his dad paying for a dead expensive phone. But every man and his dog now seem to have a smart phone,  I’ve seen 12 year olds with them on the bus ( and don’t get me started about ipads!), meanwhile Chris is excited that he can play poker on his ‘phone. I will admit that I actually find it a bit endearing. While I’m playing Draw Something with friends and colleagues, he’s there playing a hand of poker against a non-existent competitor. Awww.

The only way I could afford my iphone was to buy into a 24 month contract and I’m getting a bit fed up of my 3gs now. I don’t really know why; it makes calls, it texts, I get on the internet, I get spotify but I want the latest model, dammit.  Actually, in truth. I want an ipad. There; I’ve said it. I promised myself I wouldn’t buy into all of the hype and all that rubbish but I want one, I can’t help it. I think it will make my life infinitely better. Draw Something on a big screen for one thing. ….

So, there’s my priorities for the coming months, if I have to wait a year to upgrade my phone, I’m bloody getting an ipad before October!

Now, I’ve been going on about my flat for quite a long time – soz about that. But I’ll going to carry on anyway…

Now, I’m a fan of such sites as Brand Alley and Dalani – you know those sites that have Vivienne Westwood sales that last a day or two? Well, my new fave is Achica Living; it’s mainly homewares and the like – why buy a leopard print dress when you can buy a quirky salt and pepper shaker? – is my new motto.

Achica has some great products at greatly reduced prices but you have to move fast as quantities are varied and the sales only last for a couple of days ( as I learnt to my detriment this weekend, Rob Ryan stuff was on sale and I missed it in my attempts to not be spendthrift  like that would ever happen?!) At the moment, there’s some lovely bedding and Jamie Oliver kitchenware is appearing tomorrow. And you know those colouring pencils we all had when we were younger? Carand’ache?  – well they’re on there too!

The only downside being that you need to sign up with a referral link – I don’t know about you but the ‘members only’ feel of these sites always makes me feel like I am entering an exclusive club, so it’s not such a bad thing. My referral link is here ( Disclaimer: If you sign up using my link, we’ll both get a £10 voucher if you make an order – win-win!)

So, you’ll have seen tonnes of these posts over the past month or so,and for that I apologise but I’m unapologetic about trying some new hair care products as I am continually looking for miracle products for my frizzy mop so when John Frieda offered to send me one of their new full repair range, of course I took them up on the offer!

I was sent the Perfect Ends Sheer Mist; it’s billed as a product to silken and protect hair damaged from high heat. You apply it after washing and before drying and styling. The first time I used the product I followed the instructions and unfortunately, it left my hair a bit lank and flyaway; I must admit my hair is prone to doing this, I have to be really sparing with conditioner and product so it didn’t put me off trying the Sheer Mist again. Next time, I just laid off the conditioner and used it as almost a leave-in conditioner. It left my hair so soft and silky, no more lankness; so yep it does what it says on the tin!

I have to say that I don’t use it every time I wash my hair because I quite like my hair feeling a bit ‘unwashed’ or texturised if you prefer! However, my dalliance with the John Frieda Full Repair range has made me want to invest in a couple of other items soon; it’s lucky that my shampoo and conditioner stocks may need replenishing soon!

Everyone loves a good cuppa, whether it’s a lovely cup of tea or a posh filtered coffee, we all have our favourite mug to cosy up with. Appliances Online want to see your favourite drink, just post a pic and link on your blog to enter the competition, whether it’s a fancy hot chocolate or some healthy peppermint leaves. Show us your mug to win £50! The closing date for this comp is 27th April 2012, so you’ve got 2 weeks to get snapping your mug!
To enter:
1.    Take a photo of your favourite drink
2.    Post on your blog with a link to www. appliancesonline.co.uk
3.    Come back here and share your link!
4.    For a bonus or non blog entry Tweet your photo to “@AppOnline my favourite drink”

Sounds easy enough, right? Well, what are you waiting for? Get entering!!

Ahhh, remember Gladiators and the cries of John Fashnu?……No? Oh well. Just me then. Anyway, onwards.

This is not the most seasonal of entries, but it is growing rather cold in Sheffield at the moment. A while ago, Michael from Whooga Ugg Boots got in touch with me and asked if I’d like to review a pair of Whooga’s uggs; I jumped at the chance. My UGGS gave up the ghost last year and I was desperate for something to replace them but what with moving house and all, money has been tight.

I opted for the Classic Tall in Black, delivery was mega quick but unfortunately Yodel were the couriers and if you’ve seen my twitter, you’ll know how unimpressed I am with Yodel but that’s by the by.

The boots look great and the fur lining is really and truly so so soft but in all honesty, I don’t think I’d have paid £89 for them. The bit your foot goes in is a bit hard and maybe I’ve been spoilt by real UGGs and not Primark tenner versions. There’s something that’s just not ‘there’ with Whooga version. The boots are true to size but are a tad tight on my calves, I maybe should have opted for the Classic Short, damn my vanity!

I have worn the boots quite a lot, mainly for slobby sundays in the flat and I’m going to persist with the them in the hope that the ‘foot bit’ softens up! A big thanks to Michael and all at Whooga for sending me the boots and giving me the opportunity to write this review!

I’m on an interiors kick this week, can you tell? And today, I’m all about the bookcases. Eventually, I want a room filled with books and bookcases, for now, I’ll look at this pictures and sob at the unobtainable:

So, you’ve had a glimpse into my flat. And new flat = new purchases, right?  As if I need an excuse to spend any money! So, now we’ve bought a flat, I want a house and just picture these oak pieces in a nice, cottage-y type house but hey, ho – a cottage will not be mine just yet so I’ll have to make do with city-living for the next couple of years.

So instead of lusting after furniture that I don’t need for a house that does not exist, I took a look at The Furniture Market’s other stuff and they have some great things that would look really good in our flat including Eames chairs and some great quirky accessories, baroque mirror any one?!

I find it really easy to find lots of home accessories that I love but I like a real mix of styles, I love shabby chic, I love opulence but I also love shaker stuff. Maybe I just need a mansion so I can decorate each room to my mood? I also love making the decor and accessories have meaning and feed into our likes and dislikes. You may have noticed some scenes of both Sheffield and Liverpool in the photos of my flat and I’m really keen to keep our identity prevalent in a flat that could so easily become a ( to quote my friend) ‘magnolia box’. We’re both proud of we were come from and even though I’ve settled in Sheffield; Liverpool is my home and I’ll be fiercely loyal to it in the face of all its detractors!

a quick glimpse into our flat:

God, I can’t believe that I am only just telling you about this, that I received back in December. A shoddy blogger or what?

All this was delivered to my front door via a lovely cheery chap courtesy of Fancie.

Luckily for me these got delivered on a day that I was going back to my mum’s house so I looked like the very generous daughter when I returned home! ( kidding, I did of course tell my fam that they were a gift!)

The cakes, as always, were delicious! so a big thanks to Fancie!

So, 2012 eh? World due to end. Possibly. Maybe.  So anyway, this got me thinking, what you all up to in 2012? Exciting plans? Or are you an ‘I’ll decide on the day’ kind of person. I, for one, like having plans.

Chris and I decided on no big holiday this year in an attempt to save but we will be having a few little mini breaks. We’ll be popping down to London for a few short stays, one with a friend who needs a wheel chair to get around but doesn’t have her own so we’ll be looking for wheel chair hire in london which is proving to be a bit of a ‘mare but reckon we’ll get it sorted soon!

We are still moving the stuff into the flat, van after van load – how did we acquire so much stuff? But for Christmas, I got Chris some tickets to see Bruce Springsteen in Hyde Park, we quickly booked the hotel in the New Year as I think London might be gearing up for the Olympics and we wanted to stay quite centrally. So, we’ll be off there on a long weekend in July .

Considering that’s ‘not many plans’, there’s still rather a lot to be getting on with and we’re also thinking of a trip to Madrid to see a couple of our friends who live out there, so quite exciting then really.

What about you lot? Have you got plans for 2012?