Winter Mini Happies 2012

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

It has been a running theme throughout the lifetime of this blog, but something I like to talk about are my Mini Happies. 

Mini Happies are the little tiny things that make you smile and put a bit of pep in your step, and I like to make a big thing out of them. It is natural that we crave huge, enormous, crazy amazing things in our lives, but I truly believe that it is the little things that make life special and feel it would be a shame not to give them the honour they deserve.

(Taken from my Instagram album on FACEBOOK)

My Winter Mini Happies

* Good TV. I don't know about you but I think TV has picked up a bit recently. I'm not usually a tele watcher (what with my terrible internet addiction), but with programmes like An Idiot Abroad 3, Kirsty's Vintage Home and Supersize Earth, I've been quite enjoying what's on the box.

* Frost Mornings. It really pleases me to go downstairs in the mornings and see the garden and fence and shed and washing line covered in sparkling white frost. It's nature's glitter.

* Veggies. Yep, I did just say vegetables. I made a conscious effort a few weeks ago to eat more of them and now I have found if I don't have some every day that I crave them. Hooray for nutrition!

* London. I have been to London for various things a few times lately and really enjoyed every trip. I'm not sure if it's because I was with good friends or because I was doing exciting things, but either way, it made me really happy. 

* Skype. The online communication software (fancy) is my portal to the world sometimes. It allows me to chat away to friends and family for free and gives my brain a bit of a break from real life. Lovely.

* Decorations. Nothing makes me smile more than seeing people's Christmas lights in their front windows or opening freshly delivered Christmas cards. I'm so looking forward to Christmas (although, still not as hyped up as usual. Very odd!). 

* Good News. A couple of my friends who so desperately needed it have had good news this month. Whether it's improved finances, new arrivals or being in good relationships, I'm happy their world's are oh-so-bright for them. Warm fuzzies all round. 

(Taken from my Instagram album on FACEBOOK)

* Darcy. Saving the best til last, my little lovebug, Baby Glitter. She does far too many cute things to put in a list without making you all sick, but, the baby babble in particular has melted my heart. "Spish spash' for bath and 'Haaaart' for heart (when pointing to body parts) and 'Nortnortey' for naughty, are all words I never tire of hearing in her sweet voice. 

I would love to hear what your Mini Happies are because they spread the joy and make the world a better place. Power to the people and all that jazz haha!

Toodlepip!

xx

This month my Ultimate Advertiser is 21st Serendipity . If you would like to find out more about advertising on this blog, click HERE.

Creative Christmas Wrapping

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

If you follow me on YouTube then this might not be news to you but I know some of you are strictly the reading sort, so I'm sharing here too. Sharing's caring after all!

I recently made a couple of videos about Christmas wrapping - things I used, styles I make, bits and bobs I like etc. I was really pleased at how well they were received and have been having a lorra lorra messages asking where certain things were bought from. 

A great deal of my wrapping products were either pieces I had floating about already or from Marks and Spencer. I must say, I bought from M&S because I was there and I was in a rush. It definitely was not the most purse friendly option!! 

I decided it might be a good idea to source some wrapping essentials and luxuries for you and for most of this, I turned to my old pal, ebay! Ebay is a treasure trove of everything you could ever need to make your gifts beautiful this year.

Christmas Craft Supplies :

A Christmas staple for me is 10 Metres of Brown Parcel Paper for £2.95 and FREE postage. 

10 Metres of Baking Twine for £1.00. This seller also stocks TONNES of colours! Yippee!

Christmas Double Satin Ribbon for 99p to wrap round your paper. 

You could attach some of these little Silver Jingle Bells (£2.30 for 70) to your ribbon to add a bit of festive glamour.

Making pompoms like I did? This seller has balls of every colour (tehe) for only £1.49.

Lace (99p) is perfect for little girls or ladies gifts.

If you want to add something a little cute, why not try this Mini Reindeer Stamp Cutter for £2.25?

And of course, SELLOTAPE and Rainbow Star Confetti!

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I hope this post was helpful to those of you who have asked or for you crafty Sprinklerinos that are going all out this holiday season!

If you are on Pinterest and have a Christmas board like mine, feel free to use the image below to pin. Pinning is winning! Haha! Feel free to leave your Pinterest name in the comments so that we can all follow each other too.

If you would like more of these 'Source my supplies' style posts, let me know!

Toodlepip!

xx

This month my Ultimate Advertiser is 21st Serendipity . If you would like to find out more about advertising on this blog, click HERE.  

Winter Beauty Treats

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

You may have noticed that over the last few weeks there haven't been a great deal of beauty related posts on this blog. The reason for this is fairly simple- I haven't been trying a lot of new products or buying tonnes of new things. I've declined quite a few pr samples on the basis that I have so much makeup that it would be a waste for me to accept more and I have felt that to force myself to write a review would be a little fake.

It's not that I'll never do beauty things again (I've still enjoyed making quite a few beauty related videos on my YouTube Channel) but I've just found that over the last few weeks I have been focusing on a lot more family and lifestyle type of things. I hope you don't mind. This blog is sort of like an extension of my mind and feelings, so if you see a lot of reviews, you know I'm going beauty crazy, and if you see a lot of family posts, you can tell I've been watching too much '19 Kids and Counting' hahaha. 

Saying all that, last week whilst I was running some errands, I popped into Boots and treated myself.

Like a moth to a flame I simply could not let these two beautiful bottles of glittering nail polish stay on the shelf. They had to be mine.

I bought 'Jack Frost' from the Wonderland collection 'Freak Out' from the Mirror Ball collection, both £5 each. I suppose you could say that £10 is quite a splurge for 2 nail polishes but have you seen the sparkle?! Oh my oh my!! I adore the mermaidy blue, purple and green colours in Freak Out and the iridescent blue in Jack Frost was far too wintery and lovely for me to walk away from. They are like liquid magic. Beautiful.

I have worn both of these over a muted grey tone and quite enjoyed the wintery effect. I think I'd like to try them over a black or navy and when that happens, I'll take a sneaky picture and give you a NOTD post- it's been a while since one of those. 

I have also been absolutely loving scented candles this month. I am incredibly fussy when it comes to scent because I am prone to headaches but I have now burnt several Neom candles and have always been so impressed with them. I have particularly loved Invigorate from THIS set. The scent is strong but not overpowering and it leaves a lovely lingering fragrance long after it has been blown out. Also, since they come in such lovely little glass jars, when the candle has burnt down, I save and wash them and use them to hold hair accessories. Upcycling at it's best! 

This year I am struggling to feel as festive as usual so over the next few days you are going to see a lot of CHRISTMASNESS (real word there) from me to evoke my yuletide joy, so prepare yourself for that!

What have you been treating yourself to this winter? Do you have any hollyjolly blog post requests? I'm all ears!

Toodlepip!

xx

This month my Ultimate Advertiser is 21st Serendipity . If you would like to find out more about advertising on this blog, click HERE.    

Feel Good Friday

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

It's Frrriiiddaaayy!! The start of a weekend, the end of early starts (for some!) and one day closer to Christmas! Ooohh yyeaaahhhh!!

In order to help you unwind, clear your head and reflect on the weeks you've had, I picked out a few of my favourite inspirational typography images for you to enjoy. I really enjoyed searching through Pinterest to find these and think I might make a bit of a feature of it. 

I am definitely guilty of this one. All too easily I see what other people have and get grabbygreedyguts for it. This has reminded me to look at what I do have and be jolly well glad for it.

In keeping with the first image, this has become something of a mantra to me ever since I saw it. Clever old Roosevelt.

I liked this. I like the idea of being excessively good and shining. Let's all try it. 

What mantras make you happy? Share them in the comments below.

Toodlepip!

xx

This month my Ultimate Advertiser is 21st Serendipity . If you would like to find out more about advertising on this blog, click HERE.  

Tips for My Teenage Self

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

Luckily, my teenage years are firmly in the past, but every now and then I look back on them and think about things I would have done differently or the mistakes I made or the bad judgement calls I took.

My darling sister is now walking down adolescent alley and I find myself offering advice (wanted or unwanted haha) at every opportunity.

(My lovely little sister)

If I could board a time machine and visit 16 year old Louise, there are a few things I'd tell her.

Advice To My 16 Year Old Self

1. It's OK not to be liked by every single person. Obviously, there were girls in my school that didn't like me. Throughout my entire school life this upset me. I felt like I had failed in some way. It never occured to me that nobody can please everybody and that there will always be someone who doesn't take to you. You're not a bad person, you haven't failed, the people that don't like you aren't bad people. It's just life and it's normal and it's fine. Relax.

2. GHDs will soon be invented so hang on in there. Naturally, my hair is a frizzy triangle mop. We have a love hate relationship. Throughout my teen years I had to tame my locks with a babyliss steam straightener (remember those?!) OR do that oh-so-sexy slicked back to all buggery style. Thankfully, at 17-18, GHD's came in and my hair was saved!!

3. Take the good and ignore the bad. I had a very turbulent relationship with my Father as I grew up and often our house would be a very unpleasant place to live. I would feel angry and upset about this for the majority of the time but I wish I had let a lot of those negative emotions go. I wish I had had the maturity to enjoy my Father's good moods and ignore his bad ones. If I could go back, I would take a 'that's your problem, not mine' stance.

4. Work hard at school. Although my job has little to do with the things I studied, I definitely didn't reach my full potential and it's entirely my own fault. I was far too preoccupied with socialising and messing about to do my homework or take a real interest. I'd say to teen Louise, 'Stop shillyshallying around and focus on your books, if you don't, you'll regret it when you're in your mid twenties and have no idea what the difference between hard and soft water is or struggle to work out with the price of something with 20% off!!".

5. Enjoy being young. I'm not old now but I certainly didn't appreciate my early youth whilst I was in it. I was always in a rush to do the next thing (driving lessons, dancing in bars, going to uni, having a boyfriend, moving out etc) that I don't think I stopped to relish what I was doing enough. If I were able to go back I would just enjoy a time of cinema trips with pals, long lay ins and pocket money!

The more I think about it, the more I would change (those boot cut stretchy black trousers with a pale pink angora jumper for one) but a) you have lives to lead and b) I have a feeling that you're supposed to make those mistakes in your teens to allow you to grow into adulthood. 

I'll check back in ten years and let you know what I would have done better in my twenties!

What advice would you give your teenage self?

Toodlepip!

xx

This month my Ultimate Advertiser is 21st Serendipity . If you would like to find out more about advertising on this blog, click HERE.