No, Thank YOU

31st June, 2015

Before starting this post, I want to say that I know that I may not have blogged for a while, but this is because I don't have much interesting content to put in certain blogs. I really don't want my blog to be a place filled with flaky stories that are produced all the time. I like to think of my blog as a slice of the internet where half-reasonable posts can be made and people can enjoy reading stories, written by a person who enjoys writing the posts. 

I want to share with you a great company who everyone needs to know about and support. This company is Thankyou. Thankyou is a company that sells products to help others. I first discovered Thankyou at a convention I was at, where the founder of Thankyou was speaking about his company, leadership and why he started his business. It was a few years ago that I went to the convention, so whilst writing this, I am looking on the Interweb to find out information that will be interesting.

When you go onto their website (thankyou.co) you can see their vision. 

Welcome to a consumer movement that empowers you to fund life-changing projects through simple choices in your everyday life.

1.4 billion people in our world live in extreme poverty. Meanwhile Australians spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year on bottled water, food, soap and other consumer goods. What if purchasing these everyday products could provide life-changing solutions to people in need?

This is why we exist

I find that this is a very interesting and important thing to notice. I urge you to (when you have finished reading this) to go straight over to their website and find out all about the company and what they do. In lots of stores you can find the products (such as Coles and Woolworths) although they are a little on the pricey side. This is because each product that you purchase goes to help someone in a developing country. So when you buy a bottle of water, money from that product goes to giving someone clean, healthy water. 

Another thing that I love about the company is their 'tracking' policy. When you buy a product, you are given a tracking number where you can go online, to their website to go and 'track your impact' so you can see exactly where your money is going. 

Thankyou doesn't only sell water, they sell food (muesli, clusters, bars) and hygiene products such as body wash, hand wash, body lotion, hand cream, sanitisers etc.

IKEA Mini Haul & How To Fly With Broken Wings

12th of July, 2015

A few days ago, I went to IKEA. I haven't been to IKEA in ages and though I was still surprised by how much I didn't know about it. I have named this the 'IKEA Mini Haul' post because I want to put out there what I got, although it wasn't much. 

My first item was the puffy things that you hang from your rood. My roof at home is covered in these but I don't even know what they are called! I call them puffy things but if you know the real name let me know. I got these because I really like them and one day I want to have them cover the whole roof of my bedroom. Yyou have probably seen before in all sorts of shops as some sell them and other use them as decorations. I now have approximatley 12-14 of them but I will continue to collect them. The first one is the largest of them all...

This is (in Swedish) called a VISIONÄR. When it is made it measures 50cm wide or 19 3/4". They look super cool on the roof and I would totally recommend them. If you want the product number it is: 502.641.83 This one was $14.95 which I thought was a little pricey although they do look great. 

The next thing I got was some smaller puffs in white. I got two of these and they are also called VISIONÄR. When these are fully made they measure 30cm or 11 3/4". I think that there was one smaller size of these but there were none left. The product number is: 502.641.78 These were $2 each because they were on special, but I think they were meant to be around $5 - $6. 

The puffs came in white, pink, green, grey/brown & maybe purple. When I usually get them, they are from little cheap craft stores as they look (almost) just as good. These particular ones are my favourite, then the set I got from Spotlight ($18 for the 3) a while ago, yet those were also a little pricey. My next faves are the ones form either Cheap As Chips or Neds maybe. They are only around $2 - $3 each. I probably wouldn't replace them all with one same type as I like the contrast as all of them are different shapes, colours and sizes. 

(These are the Spotlight ones)

Whilst at IKEA I got some more, different puffy things. This time they were the ones you use in the shower or the bath. These are the best body puffs I have ever had because they are really soft on your skin. When I get others, they are hard and go stiff really quickly but these ones don't. They are called ÅBYÅN and in one pack you get 3 of them. The product number is: 202.851.39 In the pack you got a light/vintage pink, soft/ vintage blue and a creamy white. Throughout the store there were hundreds of packets of them and in a handful of the bathroom displays. They were $2.95. 

I would also like to add that I have finished one of my books. It was called "How To Fly With Broken Wings" by Jane Elson. It was an incredibly moving book that had an important message and a great story line. I would rate it 9/10 as it took me only a few days to read because it was so good. It does get a little sad at times and becuase it is written the way the childish kids from London using really bad grammar it made me a little annoyed at times. If that didn't make any sense.... What I mean is like this " This time it weren't Finn". That wasn't the best example but I couldn't think of any others. 

The blurb is: 

(Sorry for the bad quality!) 

It is a newly released book so I suggest you read it. If you are into books that have friendship, war stories, kid love, inspirational kind of books, then this might be for you. 

Winter Rejuvenation

9th of July, 2015

Winter is one of those months where the weather can make you look and/ or feel not up to your full potential. Some of the things that I like to do in winter for my body and mind, I would like to share with you. 

Sleep

-Take as much sleep as you need. Sleep is really important all year round regardless of the season. Don't go to bed really late because remember that the morning won't wait for you so if you wake up and you have only had 5 hours of sleep, you will have to last all day on those 5 hours of sleep. Try to go to bed at or before 10p.m because apparently this is when your body needs to go into its sleeping mode. 

-Go to bed wearing what you want to wake up in (even if its 3 a.m). If you go to bed wearing a track suit because you were warm last night, is that really what you want to be waking up in? Go to bed wearing something that suits the temperature, and that you will want to wake up in. This means no skinny jeans!

-No devices. It is really distracting to have tablets, iPads, iPhones, phones, laptops etc. next to your bed because then you stay up really late and wake up to it in the morning. It is best to have some 'no-screen' time for 30 minutes before you go to sleep (have a shower, read a book etc.).

-Reasonable times for going to bed and waking up. Don't go to bed super late and don't wake up super early. Only wake up when you need to. Set one alarm at a reasonable time that will allow you to get dressed, shower, eat breakfast etc. on time. Don't set heaps of mini alarms at silly times, because then you will memorise what times which alarms go off and you will train yourself to ignore them or turn them off whilst you are still asleep. 

-Make sure your bed is the right temperature. Try to go to bed with a hot water bottle and lots of blankets on the cold nights, because if you wake up at 2 a.m without all the warm things, you will freeze! Also, if it is a warm night, don't go to bed with lots of blankets, clothes, hot water bottles because you will get all hot and restless.

Food

-Eat healthy

-Eat things that contain all your vitamins to help you look and feel refreshed without having to live on pills

-Remember to eat healthy things over just things that are warm and sweet as we love to eat/ drink those things in winter. Remember that you might have to work off all that chocolate in the warmer months. 

Outdoors

It is important to incorporate the indoors with the outdoors in winter.  Being indoors increases the chance of you getting sick, others you live with sick & it will make your house dirtier. Try to go on a weekly walk, stay in contact with the Great Outdoors, do some gardening & remember that the fresh air is good. Also make sure you are warm enough when you go outside because if you aren't you may get something horrible like pneumonia.

Body

-Regularly change clothes (day-to-day) as your old clothes get old and smelly without you realising because you spend so much time indoors on the couch or curled up keeping warm. 

-Keep your days interesting so that you do not spend weeks on end channel surfing.

-Regularly clean up, freshen up your house because in winter we leave things around and then they accumulate. There will be lots of blankets, jumpers, hot water bottles etc. so you must regularly clean them away.

-Make sure you change your make up to suit the weather and complement your clothes. Before covering yourself in make up, check the weather. I cannot stress this enough. I have seen so many people this winter that have been caught out in the rain and all there make up has gone for a trip down south. Remember that the bright summery colours most likely will not go with most things you will wear and just accept that it is winter, over doing everything as though it were summer. Fake tan warning: Everyone that sees you wearing your fake tan will know that it is fake because there is no sun out. 

-Keep in mind that winter is not eternal so if you let your winter snacking/ laziness get really bad it will stick around for the spring/summer months.

-Wear reasonable clothes. Don't catch a cold and if you wear revealing clothes on a cold day, the person that you are trying to appeal to will most likely look at you and think you are a bit silly because you surely must be freezing. 

-Prepare for the summery days. Just because it is winter doesn't mean that there is no chance if a warm/ sunny day (so don't throw all your summer clothes out!!).

-Half-daily-refresher. This is a great idea for those days when you are at home or even out on the town to do a little-to-big refresher. When you are out on the town you are most likely to keep going to the bathroom to powder your nose, and such, but when at home you do the make up in the morning and leave it like that. I find that it is really helpful to at around mid-day, go and put my hair up again, brush my teeth again, re-apply make up, change or straighten clothes etc. 

I hope that you guys have enjoyed this little winter special and that it has given you some ideas or inspiration. Let me know in the comments anything that you would like me to try or to write about and if you liked this. If you found this helpful share this post with your friends. If you don't know what to do there is a small series of icons below the story that you can click on and you can: mail it so someone, pin it, tweet it, blog it etc. 

Thank you guys so much for reading

Xx

Winter Holidays

8th of July, 2015

Well it is that time of year when Winter strikes. Every second person you meet has a cold, you are wearing multiple layers yet you still feel cold, and for the lucky ones, you see snow. Winter is not my favourite season yet it is most definitely my most not favourite season. I don't think that that made any sense but hopefully you get what I mean. I love Winter just as much as I love any other season, there I got it out!! :) 

Winter is one of the seasons with many pros and cons. I am sitting in my bed with a million layers on, a hot chocolate and a good book & listening to a little Taylor Swift. Obviously, I have a cold (I guess that that sounds like I just insulted Tay, but I love her so... apologies). I am supposed to be on my holidays doing whatever I want, watching YouTube, seeing friends and enjoying this beautiful season, yet I am holed up at home, making everyone around me sick. 

Despite that I have much to blog about. This post today will be filled with things that melt in your mouth, things that go fizz, holiday ideas, and winter rituals. 

The first thing I wanted to do was my "Things that melt in your mouth" part. 

The first thing that I have really been enjoying is Cadbury chocolate. Of course I have always loved chocolate but recently I have found a new favourite: Black Forest. Black Forest chocolate is now up with my top three favourite sweets along with Cherry Ripe and Turkish Delight. For those of you that don't know what Black Forest chocolate tastes like, it is like this: (add picture of choccie packet). 

My next thing that I am currently loving for those cold days, is another Cadbury product. This time it is 'Drinking Chocolate'. All throughout the year I drink this but, in Winter I drink a lot more and I drink it heated up in the microwave. The Hot Chocolate is delicious and is definitely the best one I have ever had.  

Things that go fizz is what I have planned to do in my holidays. I have decided that I want to attempt to make some bath bombs. I have watched many YouTube videos trying to find out about making them and I have tried to get all the right ingredients and the such like, so thumbs up! (Please look at my 'The Hunt' post for a little info on how you can help me with my bath bombs.)

I know that I am not the only person that has their Winter rituals... right? Some of my rituals are reading heaps and heaps of books. So far I have read one book these holidays bringing me closer and closer to my 'New Financial Year Resolution' (check out my last post if you don't know what I mean). I love on a really cold day to transform a couch, chair or bed into a little Winter haven. My recipe for the perfect Winter haven is:

Lots of wooly, fluffy, warm blankets

A hot water bottle

A good book 

A Hot Chocolate

Some Black Forest chocolate

A fire close by

Lots of pillows

A TV if you get bored

A collection of favourite toys

And my cat

Recently I have been struck down with a cold and have living out of my little Winter haven which is fun, but I wish I could get outside and start doing some other things as well. If you guys have any little hints or tips on how I can get better sooner they would be really helpful, not only for me but for anyone else who is also sick. 

If in this post I have mentioned anything that you are loving, that you will try or some advice let me know in the comment boxes below (if I were a YouTuber I would be pointing at the bottom of the screen, but I'm sure you'll be able to find it). 

The Hunt

The Hunt is a place where I can write down things that I need, things I want and things I cant find that hopefully you guys will help me track down. You guys can also write down things that you can't find and I will try to help you find them and others that look at this will too. 

URGENT: Eye Mask or Sleep Mask

I am one of those people that sleeps with an eye mask (when I say eye mask I mean one that covers your eyes not a face cream one) and I desperately need your help to find another one. I am usually quite fussy on finding the right one but now I am getting kinda desperate. I like good ones that aren't to expensive becuase they all work basically the same and when they break, run out of elastic etc. they should be easily replaced. I originally had heaps but are down to my very last two, one of which has a big tear in the middle and the others elastic is going weak. If you guys find any good ones that are advertised as soft or if you have one yourselves please let me know in the comment box as I am in desperate need of one.

Sphere Bath Bomb Moulds

Whilst attempting to make my bath bombs, I would really love it if I could make some of the more traditionally shaped ones. If you can find any online or in a store, please let me know. Apparently plastic ones are the best so if you could find any that would be great. I am on a budget so the cheaper the better but let me know regardless.