Does Anyone Else Like Moving?

I'm moving! And so very excited! Ok, I am not moving for several weeks but I am so excited, that I have already started packing and most certainly sorting things out. 

Clearly I cannot pack everything now or I will be living out of Boxes for weeks, but I can start sorting. That is always the part that takes time because if it were easy, we would have parted with our crap long ago. I have decided to set three goals.

So I have to goal to fill two bags with trash. There are a few rules: 

1. My regular day to day trash goes in the regular trash sothat I can see how much I have sorted out and don't end up ''Faking it''. I want to see what I have manged to part with.

2. This cannot be donated because it is so very worn or it is gross.

My next goal is to fill a large Bag with clothing for donation. I am currently halfway there! But I am going to take everything out of my drawers and off my clothing rack to pick carefully what I will keep and what someone else can make more use of than I can. 

Last, but not least. I am a big fan of Paper. I collect paper, and magazines, and cutouts, and postcards. I use them for crafty projects and to decorate my room, so clearly, I cannot simply get rid of all of it but I have put a fair bit of effort into reducing the volume. Most magazines are filled with pages I know I won't use and many of them I have already read all that interested me; so I've gone through many of the magazines and simply torn out the pages I want to keep and then recycled the rest. The magazines that contain recipes, and that I flip through several times I have kept and packed into a box. This bit is less a problem of not wanting to part with something and more a tedious process, but when I brought out my paper recycling, it was all worth it. 

Those are my two cents for today. Until next time! 

Paper Flowers

I moved! I'm very excited about my new room, especially to decorate it perfectly and best yet: all the little DIY projects that add a very personal touch to the room.
I'm not going to pretend that this was my idea. So, here is the link that inspired me first and this is the link that I used to base the shape of my petals on and, just for fun, I looked at this one too and it may have had some influence. This is their lovechild:

I bought a beautifully aged book for something like 25cents at a thrift shop a little while back for DIY projects. I quite like the aesthetic of printed pages; while newsprint would do the trick for aesthetic, it is very fragile and therefore not the best option here.

Make yourself a nice cup of tea or something equally delicious to sip on ant then gather everything you need before you really start. Weather you take an X-Acto knife or a sharp pair of scissors or even any other cutting device is up to you, but you need something to cut out your petals, paper to cut them out of and glue. In addition depending on what you want your finished project to look like you may want some kind of stick or wire as a stem and something to cover where they attach or the entire length of the stem. If you want something robuster to decorate a gift or a hair accessory, you may want to finish it with some spray lacquer and certainly find a way to attach the flower to its final home. The variations and options are endless; let your imagination be too.

I'm not going to go through every step here. If you want me to describe the process I used step by step leave a comment and I will.

The other tip I have is to think about the vase parallel to picking the paper if you want them to decorate a room by standing in a vase. This vase is a handmade by Tilla Rodemann, and it is just one example of a wonderful vase for this kind of display.

Paper Flowers really do have endless options and variations. What do yours look like? 

Until next time! 

Motivation Media

As a PT student I noticed that we often mention the importance of motivating patients to continue to strive for long term goals even if they do not always see the results. Especially with goals like weight reduction. 

Because of my body type I tend to fluctuate around the 71kg mark. (Oh my the internet knows my weight.) So I know it can be tough to get to a target weight or better look and then keep it. But I don't have a trainer or a therapist to keep me motivated. Like most people, I have to motivate myself to stay on track more than anything else. 

But it's far less likely than I just made it sound! Because of this wonderful resource called the Internet and a big big thanks to smartphones, there are so many sources of fitness inspiration. Here are my favorites: 

Pinterest: I've been addicted to Pinterest for DIY projects and recipe ideas for months, but recently I noticed just how many exercises and healthy eating posts and even boards that combine the two. Naturally I started a board full of fit young women who I would like to look a little more like, exercise programs and routines to draw from to target my personal problem areas and healthy tidbits about what to eat and when to eat it when they stumble across my path in the black hole that is Pinterest long past the time I meant to be asleep.

Pinterest is also a great platform for anyone trying to switch up either their workouts or their diet, or even both. Not to mention that there are so many budget friendly tips and workouts you can do at home or at the park without fancy equipment. 

Twitter: I'm not the best at reading or posting on Twitter, but there are so many inspirational people to follow and this is where the modern phone technology really comes into play: it is always a tip of the finger away and can be set up to send you push notifications if you want them. 

Instagram: This is a recent find! And if I am being completely honest, partially the inspiration for this post. But I have also been following some yogis because there is something so harmonious about yoga. Not to mention that it is one of the few forms of exercise that include the whole body and all muscle groups in nearly equal amounts. But the pictures of course bring a whole new light to following inspirational users because yoga also offers so many poses to strive for in the larger goal. 

Fitness apps: The sheer multitude of apps available for the various operating systems on the market is astounding. I have a windows phone and quite like the health and fitness app that came with an update a while back. I did use it to log my food intake for a while, but I find that its focus on calories is a bit one sided. I wish they would also show vitamins and minerals especially over longer periods of time because I try to eat a little different every day, but I clearly have several staple ingredients that I eat most often. This app however has wonderful articles on a wide array of topics. 

Now there are plenty of computer programs with the same functions. The app I mentioned ear

Ire as an example is also available for windows computers, but as a desktop owner and user I find that there are days when I do not turn on my computer at all, making it impractical for any kind of daily logging. This is the other beauty of using a smartphone. I, like so many others, am rarely all too far from my phone so it is a quick action to log what I just ate of what workout I just did if I want to keep a log. And if I want to work out but am not sure where to start or need a little kick I can find my motivation. 

There are also tons of apps that communicate with special watches to track your running rout of the calories you burned beaded on your pulse. This is more for the enthusiasts that are looking to take it a step further, while it does interest me, I've not played with it any more or looked more closely at this option I just wanted to include it as I've stuck with the example of fitness goals. 

I tried my best to keep this concise but still detailed enough. Now I stuck to the idea of fitness and body image type goals, but don't let that hold you back, there are all kinds of other goals that can be inspired by social media and the Internet just as well. What do you strive for? And what keeps you motivated?  

Making it up to my Luscious Locks

or my hair care products and habits.

I expect so much from my hair. I want it to grow and chop it off and want to to grow again and then I color it with harsh chemicals every 6 weeks or so and still want soft voluminous hair with minimal fly away hairs.

Before I go any further, I should remind you that I have very straight, fine, color treated hair and quite a bit of it. That being said, when I pick out products I want them to care for my hair as it is, not strip it or pile on too much additional nonsense and ideally leave it with a little bit of texture and grip.
The paradox of an Ombre, if you are lightening the ends and not darkening the root, is that you are treating your hair with harsh chemicals at the end that is the oldest and farthest away from your bodies natural conditioning systems. While it is a cool option that is relatively easy to cut off without sacrificing all of your hair, it is also likely to damage the ends even more and if they are not dry brittle or damaged already it will make them more prone to becoming that way. I try to make sure that I counteract this with prophylactic care because there is always a point when you cannot save anything and really do need to cut off what is not salvageable. This can be pretty upsetting if you are actually trying to grow out your hair because it is a setback.

So directly after coloring my hair I use and old shampoo and then my favorite deep conditioner. I talked about washing out the hair color and what I do in that very shower in this post. I have been using Dumb Blond be TIGI's Bed Head for years. and while I have strayed, I keep coming back to this product. It is pricey, but I don't use it as a daily conditioner I save it for a protein deep conditioner particularly for directly after coloring my hair.

Sticking with conditioners: I try to deep condition my hair about once a week or once every two weeks depending on how often I heat style and the weather and how my hair is looking and feeling. I do not condition my hair every time I wash it because I find that it makes my hair so soft that it is very hard to work with and style especially if I want to style without applying any heat. Also I'm convinced that my hair does not need that.
What I do really like are oil treatments. My favorite being a little bit of coconut oil or olive oil from the kitchen that I leave on for a few hours, sometimes even overnight. When I want the same effect but don't have the time I will put a shower cap over my head or a winter hat or hit it with a blow drier for a few minuets before shampooing very thoroughly.

I wash my hair about every two to three days. I try to really only wash it when it is oily, but also leave the natural oils on the follicle as long as I can without feeling weird about it. So when I know that I am staying home and working on school stuff all Sunday and the only person seeing me is my dear roommate who has seen everything then I will comb them and try to distribute the oils towards the ends and then simply tie them up where they cannot bother me. Avoiding mirrors helps. Then I will wash them on Monday morning.
On the other hand I will sometimes wash them the second day even if they do not look or feel oily so that I have at least 24 hours before styling them for a special occasion, because I have incredibly smooth straight hair that will sometimes look really oily very quickly but also likes to defy all styling that i want to coax out of it.
I have never had a shampoo that has completely blown me away or inspired me to repurchase it. I am constantly trying something new. I have however tried out quite a few that I really did not like! From time to time I use dandruff shampoo, but most of the time I don't need it so a bottle does last me quite a while since I will alternate it with something else. I almost always have two shampoos in the shower and one of them is something very simple, sulfate free, that smells nice and doesn't leave my hair squeaky clean but pleasantly fresh. I've been liking the ones from Alverde recently, and might even repurchase the version for colored hair after I use up the apple and papaya one I have in the shower right now.
I don't use a lot of hair products, but if I do style my hair a little more extravagantly or more often I have found no clarifying shampoo works as well as baking soda and vinegar. I don't want to talk more detailed about this process, if it interests you let me know and I will write a whole post on the subject.

To style my hair on  a daily basis I use room temperature air and clips or hair ties. Sometimes I will use an end fluid that I still have from just before I cut my pixi cut over a year ago or a tiny bit of the styling creme I used when my hair was really short to give it a little more texture. I find that this is a length that i am often just pulling back of letting fall however it wants because there is not all too much I can do with the time I am willing to spend on my hair.
What I do really like to do however is to give my hair a little bit of wavy curl with a flatiron. And I like the the Elnet 3 day volume spray from L'Oreal because I have the feeling that it really does help me have some degree of wavy-curleyness for at least the following day (weather permitting). I finish that look off by running my fingers through it with a little bit of Matte and Messy structurizing paste from the L'Oreal Studio Line. This is also something I had when I had a pixi and thought I would never use it up as I let my pixi grow out, but it is absolutely amazing for this look.
I can also get a similar messy wave with a sea salt spray, but this tends to be unreliable and quite drying. So that is not an option for daily styling.

Ombre take two

I have posted about dying my hair before, and I posted pictures of the results of my last attempt at an ombre where it was very hard to see any kind of color difference. That first attempt I honestly totally forgot to take pictures and regretted it after, but about 48 hours after that I really didn't mind. Take one was a disaster, the fade was just nonexistent and someone even asked me if I was in the awkward stage of growing out my hair color. I don't think I need to elaborate any further, so here goes:

This is what I was going for the first time around. 

Before. My hair has got a little style from the day before still in it but that has never been a problem. 

Ombre-ing is harder than dying all of your hair or coloring streaks! Keep that in mind before deciding to try this at home. The professionals not only know how to do this better, they also have a better angle and can see what they are doing directly and not via several mirrors.
Now that we have that out of the way, If you are still fixed on doing this at home i know what you mean. I don't want to spend the money either, and it's just hair (that will hopefully soon look super cool). Before you start with any kind of dying there are always a few prep things that you really do have to do and cannot underestimate.

If you want to try this yourself and use this method, please read the entire post before you get anywhere close to starting. You want to have an idea of what you have to do before you start and not be reading the step for the first time just before it is time to start.

1. Pick out your color and buy it. weather you are using bleach for the "traditional" ombre blond look or a color like I am, pick out the one for your hair type and desired end result. If you are saving the money on a stylist pick out all the components or the kit that really is the best for you! Don't skimp on that if you do not have to. I have a set from the drugstore that I have had several times at like far better than a professional combo that I tried and hated, but I wouldn't go for the cheapest bleach from the drugstore.

Once you are back home, Read the instructions thoroughly and follow them! Every coloring kit has different times and recommendations for different results and hair types etc. The developers should know the product better than anyone.

When you are ready to die your hair gather everything you need. Make a checklist if you have to. I cannot tell you how many times I have started mixing my color or even applying it and realized I forgot something. So gather up an old towel, some kitchen paper, hair clips, a bowl and tinting brush, a comb (fine tooth or rat tail comb are best), the entire hair dying kit and foil strips(cut into proper pieces, not just a roll of foil). If they are not included in your kit, you may also want some gloves. (if you are not using gloves for whatever reason think about painting your nails with a clear coat because hair die is particularly hard to get off of nails.) And make sure you are wearing some old clothes, the kind you would paint in. And not just the top and then your favorite pj pants. Hair die has a magical way of defying physics and getting everywhere, especially if you are coloring your own hair.

Also a buddy! this is not a must, I color my hair all by myself but it does make it easier. Also, I used to die my hair at sleepovers because my best friend and I always both really wanted crazy colorful hair so we would plan sleepovers with the intention of coloring each others' hair. But now that I have a little practice I am actually pretty reluctant to let anyone help me because I would rather mess it up myself then get mad at someone else for not doing a good job.

Then figure out how much of your hair you want to ombre. No joke: visualize the result you are aiming for! Picturing how much you want really saturated and how far up the faded/streaked/highlighted part should go will help you go about the actual applying of hair color with more confidence. and then section the hair accordingly

If this is your first time dying your own hair at home double check all of the above because this next bit is where it starts to become time sensitive and it will make the next hour or so of your life that much less stressful.

Sections for efficiency. note that I sectioned off the bang bit because I have kept the big streak and am letting it grow out very slowly.

2. Mix the hair color components as instructed by the manufacturer. Simple enough, really. Just decide now if you will be applying to color from the squirt bottle that comes with the kit, or that you have on hand because you are prepared for anything, or with a brush or even with your comb. I use a squirt bottle and a comb, but I will explain that later

3. This is where the magic happens! The simple formulation would be: Apply the hair color. I'm pretty sure a post about ombring at home that had such a simple formulation would be very disappointing, so I will do my best to describe my method.

Before I start I want to mention two things. First, I don't have all to many pictures and none at this stage because I wanted to work as efficiently as possible so that the sections do not have large spans of time between the application of the color since that can cause for a very uneven color once everything is finished and I did this when my roommate was not home so I couldn't ask her to help me out. Secondly, This is the method I found that worked best for me and I am sure there are plenty of other ones. If you have a different one that works for you of any tips how to do this even better please let me know in the comments. I am by no means an expert or trying to claim that this is the way to die an ombre.

This is where the visualization I was talking about earlier comes in. Starting at the bottom sections of hair I grab relatively flat sections without too much structure. Preferably angular, not at all neat sections so that they then fall over one another adding even more layers to the finish. Then I start at the ends and really saturate them with color by combing through the ends with a fine tooth comb perpendicular to the hair shaft. Then I take the comb and essentially rotate it 90° so that I am combing very fine sections with the comb parallel to the hair shaft which should be relatively flat as even most curls should stick to the foil. I continue to comb thought the fade section with this method to coat some hairs and leave others out. I also try to do the first few just above where the hair is fully saturated and then slowly move up, always combing to the ends. This is how I get a gradual fade and not a harsh line.
I repeat this on sections of hair always moving up a layer and then from the back towards my face in smaller sections than I originally sectioned off. I like a little more color around the front sections because I have kept the big section of red at the very front and because I think I have better control of those sections since I can see what I am doing much better. At the back I have to rely on my gut and the finger feeling, but that does not mean I am any less careful.

4. This takes a little patience but I recommend setting an alarm for the time the manufacturer says the hair color should stay in. If they give a range, then for the smallest amount of time as you have to check how the color is developing. You should check up on your hair and see how the color is developing, but don't fuss with it too much. If you have set an alarm you can even do something completely different for that time.

Color is on the hair and working it's magic. 

5. Once the time is up check that your hair color is really ready. Very thick dark hair often takes longer than thin light hair. Then wash the hair color or bleach out. Some kits will come with shampoo and conditioner in which case you can use those, otherwise use what you have (ideally, something for color treated hair).
What the instructions often do not mention but I have found to work best is to wash your hair with warm water. Rinse very well. Then condition (my hair is so short that I rarely condition my hair, but I always use a deep conditioner after I color my hair) and rinse the conditioner out with cold water. Rinsing with cold water helps to seal the follicle and keep everything inside as well as provide great shine.

6. Style as usual. And don't forget the selfies for social media ;)
This is my hair without any crazy styling. Just some heat protectant spray and a tiny bit of blow drying to dry it completely and give a little extra volume. I'm also not wearing any makeup because I colored my hair at night, like I usually do, and thought it far too silly to apply makeup for these pictures and then take it right off since I was going to bed after.

Et Viola!

Aftercare and general hair routine / care are coming soon.
XX Eva

Trash talk

Hey there. I started collecting the empty packaging of beauty products that I had used up almost a year ago in early July. When I started I thought I might talk about products that I have used up because I adore watching YouTube videos on this topic from other people and I find there is something very satisfying about using a product in its entirety and then either trying something else or repurchasing it because it really was that good. I wrote a post about not buying anything that wasn't strictly necessary until I had used up several of the things I had lying around because it does all pile up.

Recently my roommate and I decided to move out and we are finding new apartments with new roomies. To me moving means getting rid of the things that I don't need. A big bag a trash most certainly qualifies! So I will also spend the next three months leading up to my move not buying new products that I don't really really NEED and trying use up even more of the things that I do have since that means less to take with me. 

The direction I actually wanted to take with this post was that I have mindlessly continued to collect used up products and wasn't sure why I had a special trash for these things. I have now decided not to go through because it is simply a ton. I did pic out a few things that I will be keeping because body butter tubs for example are great for storage and such. but as I was going through my trash for myself I reflected and realized just how much trash I as an individual produce in an attempt to look and feel great in my naked skin! Most of these products are skincare for face and body. I am way to lazy to use makeup most days, so that doesn't get used up nearly as fast. 

And today I sorted all of this Packaging and recycled it. While I am hoping to use up several more products rather than take them with me, this was my first step in the moving process. I think sorting out my closet is the next bit. 

Newest hair

I've been growing my hair out for a while. And my last time working at the hospital I was so glad that I could pin my hair back that I was fully convinced that this is the right thing for me to do!

The big problem with growing out your hair is that you often have a picture that you are striving for, but that doesn't happen over night. So the inbetween is hard because having one picture to strive for is wonderful, but you want to like your hair and the way you look now. The last time I cut my hair I simply cut straight across the back and ended up with a bob that looks like something toddler dols often have. And lots of female toddlers also have this same shirt simple bob. And since looking like a toddler has never been one of my goals I have been looking for inspiration for hairstyles that I like for this length. My favorite being relatively tight and crazy curls. 

I have two problems with curls. Firstly I don't want to heat style my hair on a nearly daily basis because I don't want the damage that comes with that. Secondly I am not a morning person so I will not be getting up earlier to do my hair. Both of these mean I need a different daily do. 

For anyone who has not discovered Pinterest: it is one of the black holes of the Internet. It is a great tool for looking through pictures, gathering inspiration and saving websites. I recommend looking into it for yourself. But it is very easy to get sucked in and lost amongst pictures of young women with great hair. But among these pictures I realized that I like long bobs with blond ombre tips. And it occurred to me that that would not look so great with my big red streak in my bangs. So I decided
to stick with the red and embrace the short hair and just ombre that. This is what happened. 

My latest late night spur of the moment decision captured in a picture that doesn't show it at all. but even the pictures I took in daylight prove that the sun needs to hit my hair in just the right way to show the color. It really is subtle but I love it.

Grießpudding

I've never had southern Grits, but I grew up eating my mom's savory polenta and once in  a while we had what we called Grießpudding or a sweet pudding made of milk and cornmeal or Semolina. I rediscovered both recently when I coincidentally saw a bag a of polenta at the grocery store and wondered why it wasn't a staple on my shopping list. Savory Polenta is delicious as a side or in multiple other forms. But the sweet pudding is amazing! Sadly I feel milk is not to great for my digestive system, and wheat is apparently not so great for the human being since it has been cultured so very much over the years. So here is a vegan and healthier alternative:

500ml of some kind of milk - I used Almond milk from almond butter and water
1/3 of a vanilla bean - split lengthwise with the seeds scraped out
Both of those go into a saucepan and simmer for about 10 minuets so the vanilla flavor can steep into the almond milk. Then whisk in about
3 Tbsp of polenta.
Let that boil and thicken. I ate this warm with a frozen berry mix that melted very quickly and it was  a lovely treat!
This is so easy and delicious!

Merry Christmas!

It's quite late here and I realized at some point this afternoon that I had not posted at all the past two days, but I really have been incredibly busy. I am sorry, and a little disappointed that the finish was like this, but I missed less posts that I thought I would. I hope you have had fun reading and enjoyed this, maybe I will do it better next year. 

I have my brother visiting me so we have be out and about a whole lot and I had plenty to finish up before the Christmas holidays. Not to mention all the people that we see during this time. 

Any way, I wanted to wish all of you a merry Christmas! I hope you have wonderful holidays with your families and loved ones and can enjoy the seasons joys as well as relax a little bit. 

Cinnamon Stars

These have always been my favorite Christmas cookie! They are really not al that hard to make except that the dough is quite sticky and the meringue is annoying if you don't have a proper mixer to beat the egg whites, but the result is a sweet nutty slightly chewy cookie. They are also gluten and lactose free since they do not contain any flour or dairy products. 

So starting out with 

250 grams of ground nuts 

traditionally you would use almonds but this year I mixed in 50 grams of hazelnuts with 200 grams almonds and it was slightly different, but still delicious. Then add 

125 grams of sifted powder sugar 

and a solid teaspoon of cinnamon. 

Is a separate bowl whisk 

one egg white and

A tablespoon of amaretto (almond liquor).

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and if you are using a machine you may have to intervene to scrape down the sticky mass from the sides. This also seems like very little liquid for the amount of dry ingredients but the sugar melts almost instantly and it does all come together. 

Then on a surface dusted with powdered sugar roll out the dough and it out your stars. I only had this shooting start available, but technically the shape doesn't really matter. Set the cookies on a lined baking tray and make the meringue by beating 

One egg white

Gradually adding 1 tbsp powdered sugar 

Continue beating until stiff. Then adding a little bit of this mixture to the top of every cookie. Now they just need to bake! This takes about 10-15 minutes in a 150 degree Celsius oven. The tops should still be white bit just starting to turn golden, mine here were obviously in just a little too long and turned fully golden. 

Let them cool a little before consuming. Enjoy! 

Schools Out!

I am so happy that the stress from school and tests has gone to have a vacation with the unicorns and leprechauns! We actually had a really chill day at school today because everyone was fully aware of the fact that we were already in break mode. On top of that I slept really well last night because I was able to shut everything off and take a hot bath and go straight to be at 10:30.  

After school I went into town to buy a zipper and some thread for my sewing project and then I met up with a friend of mine because she is going home for the holidays soon so it was lovely to see her again and catch up. And walking through to Christmas markets in our town center was also wonderful despite the slight stormy drizzle that was never gone for very long. The hot apple- sea buckthorn juice most certainly made for a truly lovely finish before our bike ride home. 

As much as I love spending time with her for her, there was a certain free and truly deeply relaxed feeling over the two of us because we were clearly going into a very relaxed period of the year. these next two weeks will probably be busy for me, but still fun to no end. and afterwards I will have my next internship; this time for 6 weeks followed by the next vacation week. 

My mental state seems to have spun right around from rather high stress and tight time management to freedom! For whatever reason, I feel the difference far more this year. It's almost like the feeling before summer break ads a kid, except that I have the joy and anticipation of seeing so many relatives soon on top of that free feeling. Life really is good. And today was a wonderful reminder of that. Also I think my methods yesterday have proven that I need to take half an hour before bed just for me more often. Especially when my roommate is not home and I can turn my phone on silent and just enjoy the tranquility of that moment. 

And thank you for reading, especially if you have stuck with me throughout my advent blogging despite two missed posts and everything. 

The Quest for Unique Fashion

So many of us want to be on trend and so called fashionable but still have unique style. This seems a little contradictory since trends are what most people are wearing, but somehow this is the ideal that the fashion industry and fashion and beauty bloggers instill in us. The simplest solution would of course be to sew our own clothes! This is most certainly not what commercial clothing stores are trying to sell us on, but it would make for clothes that are exactly our own style, unique and if you do it right, they always fit. 

I learned how to sew from my mother. It really isn't all too hard, and it seems to be a skill that was very much forgotten but looks to be coming back with the young people. It may be more work than going shopping and require some creative foresight to imagine the finished product you are aiming for. Using patterns available and a simple sewing machine it really isn't all too difficult. 

I thought I might write this little bit as food for thought as I took my last test before Christmas break and am currently working on a top I plan on wearing to some of my Christmas parties this season. Pictures will be up once I finish sewing this piece. It occurred to me that not only is this not that hard, sometimes you can find really cool fabric for great prices, but I don't have the time in one pice to do both the creative bit and actually make the piece I imagine. And it is sad becuase I have a lot of fun sewing and also wearing my own clothes knowing that no one else is wearing the same thing. 

I suppose I have my first new years resolution too. I want to sew more and I have a few ideas that I have seethed or noted in my notebook so that I can look back to those when I need some inspiration. As always, thanks for reading, and I would love to hear your thoughts on the topic. 

Birthday Dinner Outfit

Birthday Dinner Outfit by alovelylittlethought-1 featuring black skinny jeans

I'm off to a Birthday in the family and this is roughly what I am wearing.  I love the simple and timeless elegance of black jeans with a clean cut black top, soft brown eyeshadow and a bold red lip.

Study Break!

Oh my, oh my! It is most certainly Monday. And I have already put off studying with some grocery shopping and a trip into the drugstore for bits and bobs that I needed, although if I am totally honest it could have waited until tomorrow or the day after. But I have a Monster test coming up and because I know exactly how much I have to study and how much of it I really only need to refresh and all of this to Wednesday. I have a terrible case of the Mondays.
Tomorrow won't look much better in terms of things I have to do outside of school stuff. And lets face it once I have survived that and then the second test of the week on Thursday it is all smooth sailing! Christmas breakfast in school on Friday and then I'm off! I have lots of Christmas presents to finish and wrap and then my brother will be joining me in Dresden for the two weeks. There is so much to enjoy and look forward to. Unfortunately, there are a few hurtles that are not too small standing in my way. So it is hard to get into this week and start getting through this week.
This was my study break, so I will now go hit the books. I have definitely vented enough for one day. I hope your day has been better than mine and Thank you for bearing with me and getting this far.

Baked Apples Recipe

Bakes apples are a wonderful winter treat! Absolutely delicious and mindbogglingly simple and also a great way to use apples that have been sitting just a little too long to have a pleasant texture raw. 

I fill mine with a combination of vanilla sugar and coconut oil that have been creamed to an even paste and spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg. Then I add some chopped nuts today a mixture of almonds and walnuts in about equal parts. I eyeball all of this based on what I have in the house and am feeling. Many people like raisins or other dried fruits in the fulling, but I am not a huge fan of raisins and I like the simplicity of apple and nuts without any other sweetness added to the mix. If you like it, you go right ahead and add it in. 

The apples need to be washed and cored, but not peeled, they fall apart if peeled and the filling can easily be scooped out with a spoon if you don't like the peel. The stuffed apples go into the over at about 180°C for half an hour or so. When they fill the apartment with a delicious scent and look slightly golden they are ready. I like mine with some Greek yogurt or quark but ice cream is also quite tasty and they are of course delicious just as they are. 

Thank you for reading. and happy 3rd Advent! 

Chocolate Shells

praline shells are a bit or a tricky situation. I found instructions that said to fill the hot chocolate into the form and flip them to let it run down, but mine seemed to just run down one side and filling them all the way seemed pointless because then the chocolate would have nowhere to go. so i took a tooth pick and meticulously coated the sides of these starts with chocolate from the bit i had put in the bottom.

These stars are actually pretty cool, although I tend to prefer simple shapes without too much fuss. The outer shell is really just the first step but it is so important to get a nice layer that can then be filled. Because the shell needs to be thick enough to be sturdy but thin enough that the filling doesn't go under inside a hard shell that also overpowers the flavors. Also it is always better to have a nice shining chocolate cover and not a coat of cocoa butter that makes the finished color milky and dull. this is pretty easy to do. All you need to in to chop your chocolate and melt about 2/3 in a double boiler and add the last 1/3 once it had been taken off the heat. It will still melt, but it takes advantage of the multiple melting points of cocoa butter that make chocolate to scrumptious.
Once they are filled with whatever you want they are also easy to close. If you put quite a bit of chocolate on one side you can scrape it over with a dough cutter or scraper or anything sturdy with a straight flat edge. This leaves a thin coat on the bottom of the chocolates and close the praline with a nice finish.

I'm working on perfecting a Compari orange fulling that should come soon along with some other fillings I am working on.

Book Covers

It is once again that time of year when I realize just how behind I am on making all of the Christmas gifts I have planned. And for whatever reason this year I am still putting it off because I have some pressing school work that needs to be done first.
This was simply a notebook and not a very pretty one which is why I wanted to spruce it up. I should mention that this is possible with any number of other books especially books you have bound yourself. Notebooks with blank or lined pages are just as good as stories, poems pictures, or whatever else you have up your sleeve. But you will need a book of some kind, glue and some paper also a ruler and a pencil make this easier and something to trace the folds just go ahead and make everything a little neater.

Firstly you will need to measure your book. Including the spine! Then mark the paper from the wrong side with about 1cm margin to fold over the edge. Then for the inner lining you will need to measure the inner side of the book and subtract about 1/2 cm from each side. this peace will be posted over the folded in sides of the outer paper. The margins I used here are just suggestions if you would like a little more or a little less boarder then go ahead and adjust accordingly.

For the glue it doesn't really matter so long as it ti suitable for both components that are being joined and it is spread thinly all over. Then gently align the outer paper and smooth it on pushing to the outside to eliminate any bubbles. The inner side go on the same way. Then let it dry. this here is my finished project:


Make it your own! I love paper, so this is just the thing for me to do and not just for me but also to give others. Now I can collect my thoughts in one very neat and lovely book that is all mine.
I think this is a great idea for gifts because it provides a one of a kind object that is also useful in many ways. Happy crafting!

Veggies in Bread

I have always liked baking my own bread and rolls, but I don't have the time usually. But it is possible and tastes great not to mention that I always know exactly what is going into the food i am eating.
Now we all know that whole grains are better than white flours and organic is better than conventional so organic  whole grain bread has got to be amazing. As it turns out, its not that simple. Firstly, not all grains are created equally and secondly grains that are high in gluten tend to create more sourness in the body when they are being digested. I have been thinking about this a lot lately because I want to eat more alkaline building foods. So the next step was to try making bread that was more alkaline.
I went for a basic recipe with spelt instead of wheat for a start and then added quite a bit of grated zucchini. The result form this experiment was delicious but very dense and moist. Thankfully I didn't make all too much, but it got me wondering a few things:
1. How much grated veggies can I put in my dough before it greatly changes affects the texture?
2. How can I make this taste just a little bit better? Because there are so many other things that should shift the scales towards the more alkaline end that sound delicious.
So I figure that I would not post the recipe because it needs improving, but it seemed worth posting about because it has occupied my thoughts. So please please let me know if you have tried something similar and have any tips. Also what is your take on alkaline diets? I have mixed feelings but I want to try this out and see how my body responds. If you want more posts like this one or about nutrition let me know.
Thanks for reading!

Candied Orange Slices

I missed yesterday! And I feel so badly about it but I just couldn't get it done in time, so I hope this recipe makes up for it. 

1 cup of water and 1/2 cup sugar go into a pan ans come to a boil. Gently stir until the sugar is dissolved at this point in go the orange slices I have mine at about 3/4 or a cm thick and organic. I recommend organic because the peels stay on so it is just a smidge more relevant. Let them simmer until the white bit of the peel turns translucent and the syrup has thickened a little bit. 

Then once they are done they need to drip of, ideally on a rack. Unfortunately I do not have a drying rack but laying them out on some parchment paper overnight will do the trick in a pinch. Then once they have cooled and dried some roll them in sugar and lay them back out to dry fully. 

These are do delicious and the syrup is wonderful too! The orange slices are also wonderful covered in dark chocolate or in any number of other forms. 

An Herb Concoction for the Scalp

with the colder season comes cold and dry air which causes many of us to suffer from dry skin.

I personally also have quite the dandruff problem in the winter. This is the kind of thing that I'm sure some people can ignore or are not too bothered by, but I am very annoyed by the little flakes that perch on my shoulders and sit in my hair for a while. So I whipped a little something up to combat this little thorn in my side causing an itch on my scalp.
This is not a science, it is just a combination of natural remedies that have in fact helped me. I muddled up a couple sprigs of rosemary and thyme in a mortar and pestle then I filled them into this little bottle and filled it almost all the way full with olive oil and added a few drops of tea tree oil.
To use it give the bottle a good shake and then I take about a tablespoon in multiple smaller droplets onto my hands and rub them into my scalp. It helps significantly to take the time to massage your scalp for a few minuets and them allow it to sink in for a little while longer. You can wash it out almost immediately after or put a shower cap over the oily strands and sleep on it. Obviously you will want to wash you hair thoroughly before contact with society, and that may take two shampoos as the oil doesn't just rinse out like conditioner or store bought masks. Also the olive oil is wonderful for your hair, and it just so happens that most of the ingredients are so helpful because the increase circulation, which also helps increase healthy hair growth.
This is the kind of thing you have to believe in and try for yourself, if you have any allergies then leave it, otherwise feel free to give a shot and see if it works for you.