My craft room: Part Three

Update on the chair: it's finished!
It took a fair amount of elbow grease (and many, many wasted staples) but I got there in the end, thanks to a lot of help from Matt. We had a struggle with the back piece and couldn't get the plastic back off. So we ended up stapling as close as we could to the plastic shell and tucking it all underneath. As a result I was expecting it to end up very messy - but was pleasantly surprised. It won't win any beauty contests or any prizes for perfection, but it's mine and I love it.

Amelia xx

Weekend away to Felixstowe

I had a lovely, lovely weekend. Matt and I went to the beach! The weather was awful, with a biting cold wind (so we didnt actually make it to the beach) but I had a really wonderful time.

We went for brunch on the sea front; I had a bagel with smoked salmon and poached eggs (divine) and a Movenpick vanilla ice cream milkshake (best milkshake of my life). Matt had homemade mushroom soup which was delicious (and I don't normally 'do' mushroom soup).

After braving it back out in the cold we went to a few little boutiques and vintage shops. I picked up a gorgeous little sewing box with some vintage bits in, as well as a couple of cute cookie cutters. I'll do a separate post on those later.

Later on, in the evening, we went out for a meal with some of Matt's family. I really enjoyed the weekend despite the weather and it seems a shame to get back to normality!

Amelia xx

Five is the magic number (or at least it is for Royal Mail...)

My sister sent me a Lego man.

To be precise, it was a little collectible mini-figure in an orange packet and I loved it!

Unfortunately, while it fitted inside the small envelope with her letter, it was more than 5mm thick; so it didn't count as a standard letter, it counted as a 'large letter', which takes a special stamp and costs 11p more. My sister hadn't realised this and had posted it with a normal stamp, so they kept it at the post office - where I picked it up and paid a £1 admin charge (as well as the extra 11p).

I don't really mind, as that's just the way the system works and they have to draw the line somewhere (and my sister wasn't to know so I don't blame her in the slightest... plus it was fun receiving a special package!) - but it got me thinking... Just how much can I send with a standard stamp?

What kind of things can I find that are 5mm (or less) thick?

I think I feel a challenge coming on!

NOTD: Duck egg shell nails

I've seen these speckled nail varnishes floating around on blogs for a while and - if I'm completely honest - have never been that keen on them.
But then when I popped into Boyes a few weeks ago I saw this cheap W7 Salt n Pepper nail polish and thought I might as well give it a try for under £2.
I tried it on my toenails, as a top coat over a pastel blue (I was fully expecting it to look awful so I thought at least it would be hidden inside my shoes!)... But I'm amazed to admit I actually quite like it!
I'm not sure if it will ever be a staple in my nail collection, but it's nice for something different once in a while.
On a side note about W7 too, I was quite impressed by the texture of the polish and it didn't feel too cheap as I was applying it. Will definitely be keeping a closer eye on W7 in the future!

My craft room: Part Two

I've been busy over the last week, sorting out all my paper and ribbon and glue and glitter, trying to organise all my crafty bits and bobs into some sort of logical order. It's a lot more work and effort than I thought!
But in the meantime, I've also been cleaning and reupholstering a second-hand office chair (which my parents have had since before the beginning of time) using some gorgeous spotty fabric that I'd forgotten I had.
I'm halfway through now, with just the back panel left to re-cover. It was hard work (and there may have been a few expletives aimed at the staple gun which only worked approx. 40 per cent of the time) but my lovely boyfriend stepped in and gave me an extra pair of much needed hands. I think it looks good so far and I'm looking forward to seeing it pride of place in the new room!

How d'ya like them apples

My boyfriend bought me this as a random gift and I love it! I was a little confused at first, but it's basically little notelets that look like apple slices, and when you fold it out it looks like an apple!
What can I say, I'm easily amused...

NOTD - Valentines Day nails

I painted my nails red and sparkly on Saturday for a night out with the girls. It was starting to get chipped and I wanted to rejuvenate it for Valentines Day, so here is what I came up with:

I used a heart shaped hole punch and sticky address label to make heart shapes, which I stuck on the nails to protect the red sparkles underneath - then painted my black nail polish over the top (Nails Inc Black Cab).

If you're trying it yourself I'd recommend having the heart overlapping the edge of your nail so you can peel it off easily :)