Select Sale Accesories - Go Look!

Hands up if you've been watching Boardwalk Empire and paying less attention to the storyline and more to the opulent flapper fashions and actor Michael Pitt's dreamy plush lips... I'm in heaven thanks to Sky Atlantic.

I just love the Art Deco era, full stop. It's one of my favourite periods in time characterised by striking, highly stylised architecture and design. I'd have been kicking up my fabulous heels in a Speakeasy for sure. 


It's no surprise then that my magpie-eye seeks out treasures with 1920s styling; graphic symmetry, bold colours and lavish unapologetic glamour. Just look what I found in the Select sale this week for £1!!

With classic Art Deco sunburst shaping, triangular patterning and gorgeous citrine-yellow enamelling I zoned in on this fabulous cocktail ring immediately. I'll be wearing it with glossy black nail varnish and red lips when I next hit a gin joint :)  Are you a fan of Select? x

The Art Of Giving

a quid made priceless

A super-quick post here tonight for anyone with kids and access to a Poundland or similar. I stock up on these absolute bargain £1 canvases when I see them in store, usually four or five at a time, for BB to unleash his creative eye and Tesco paints on. They make awesome gifts (think Father's day) or the perfect alternative to a Thank You card. Surely there aren't many people (except those with black empty hearts) who wouldn't want to receive an adorable piece of hand-crafted artwork? This teapot with two handles - which started out as a hotel in the Caribbean (say wuh????) - has pride of place on my desk and reminds me that my son is a crazy, cool kid and I love him. 

Hannahx

Swatched - Maybelline Color Show Nails Polka Dot

One of the cheapest thrills I get these days is picking up a new nail varnish or a posh coffee. I'm not big into lipstick, eyeshadows or shoes but I do like the fact that you can bring fancy to your fingertips without breaking the bank; I'm building up quite a collection. 

I bought these Maybelline Color Show Nails Polka Dot in a 3 for two deal at Superdrug. They retail at £2.99 each. Left to right we have Shooting Stars, Chalk Dust and Speckled Pink.

Whilst Shooting Stars (the blue shade) registers as looking fabulous on camera this was the hardest of the three to work with. The gel base reminds me of inky food colouring and I found it difficult to get the polish coverage and placement of the polka dots suspended within it even. There was a lot of dabbing going on, it took an age to dry and, when it did, dried fairly lumpy. I'm definitely going to try this over my favourite navy Chanel lacquer to see if it works better as a top coat.

Chalk Dust (black and white dots) was another matter entirely. This applied very easily and I just loved the speckled effect building it up to full-coverage dotty madness. I think it would look fantastic used with a lighter hand over a bright base coat (like a peppermint green) or to give a nude nail more edge.

The Speckled Pink reminded me of painted Easter eggs, again applied well but has a slightly creamier, less transparent base colour so the polka dots appear less prominent. I probably wouldn't wear ten digits worth of this shade because despite my penchant for glitter and girly things I'm no longer a major fan of pink. As an accent nail? Yes, absolutely.

I didn't apply a top coat because I like the matt, slightly gritty effect but if it sets your teeth on edge you could easily seal it in with something clear over the top. All you'll get is more shine and intensity I would think.

Overall, I was seriously impressed by the effects achieved by all three but Chalk Dust wins hands down. I wear my nails bare, neat and tidy for reflexology treatments so really enjoyed seeing them looking dressed-up and less boyish. These are limited edition shades so snap up a bottle soon (£2.99!! what a snip) to avoid disappointment. #NailLove   

Time For Tea

At the weekend BB returned from an afternoon out with gifts of flowers and a Hotel Chocolat bag; nice work for a four-year-old. I hauled him onto my lap for a cuddle (no mean feat these days) and he said 'mummy, I will love you a million kabillion days. Get me the iPad. I want Angry Birds.................. please.' 

As he tapped in my password (MY PASSWORD) I delved into the bag. Pink champagne truffles, what's not to love, and a small slab of Earl Grey and Lemon chocolate. As a dedicated Earl Grey drinker who likes nothing better than dipping chocolate into her brew this looked promising, very promising. I saved it to scoff whilst watching BGT. Oh yes, that's how I roll.

The milk chocolate stripes definitely taste of Earl Grey tea though I would have liked more punch, but then my kidneys are stewed in the stuff. The lemon stripes were delicious with crunchy lemon infused granules pushing the flavour towards super-tangy lemon curd. 

All in all it went down well, as they say. Or at least half of it did being a little sickly for noshing in one sitting. If you like your choccy straight up then you might not enjoy this but, if you fancy a break from the norm, it's definitely worth a diversion. 

Hotel Chocolat Earl Grey & Lemon 35g Slab is £2.25

Long Time No See

It has been ages since I last posted and I could go into the whys and wherefores but I won't. Life has felt truly ugly and my appreciation of pretty things? Umm, minimal. 

Print: Amanda Catherine Designs approx £10 (frame not included)

But I'm back (or at least I think I am) and having refreshed my blog surroundings I'm hoping a change is as good as a rest. I've done a lot of personal cheerleading in recent times, trying to find motivation and meaning but I think this rather fantastic print from Amanda Catherine Designs is me to a tee. The style part may have slipped somewhat but gumption? Hell yes! And talking of infernos, to quote the late great Winston Churchill, "if you're going through hell, keep going." x

The Lonely Ornament Club

Two's company, three's a hip, happening crowd

'Mummy, why did you buy these?' BB's rifling through the trinkets on my dressing room table his voice incredulous and expression disgusted, much like when I tell him there are only raisins left in the snack box. As is often the case, the boy asks good questions. Just way too many of them. 

Miss kitty: check out those lashes and 1930s brows

To be honest I'm not even sure myself why I parted with the princely sum of £1 for this tragic trio; a blind dog, a cat with chipped ears and a melancholy clown with self-esteem issues. I guess I just feel sorry for oddball ornaments. I don't like to see them dusty and alone.

So now, thanks to the MLP vintage ornament outreach programme - of which new members are welcome at any time - these three stand, sit and stoop shoulder to shoulder and I like to think they're, um, happier that way. 

I'm fine. Honestly, I'm fine. x

Picture-perfect Crayons

Crayon art: cool, contemporary and colourful!

Back in the Summer BB and I had a bash at making homemade crayon discs and these were the rather artistic - if I do say so myself - results!  BB helped shell the paper wrappers and break up his old, worn-down crayons and I took charge of the 'grown-up' part of the project when he was safely at nursery; and I could hear myself think.

I followed this tutorial but used the wells of a mini silicone muffin tray as a mould instead of muffin cases. The swirls were a last minute brainwave after the tray had been removed from the oven, created with a wooden skewer.

The end result is a crayon that, to be fair, isn't the easiest to draw with but does tick all the boxes on artsy appeal. These are BB's favourite's from the batch because, he says, 'they look like planets.'  

Crayon craft: to infinity and beyond

* Wax - including wax crayons - reaches a flammable flashpoint at certain temperatures. When melting crayons use a low heat, monitor closely and do not leave unattended. 

P.S: This amazing digital frame is free to download for non-commercial use from Shabby Blogs. I followed Megan's brilliant tutorial on customising a blog header and used the same principles to layer my images within the frame using Fotoflexer. It was easy and it worked!