Happy New Year!!

Well it is a brand new year!! Happy 2013!!!
I hope everyone had a very merry christmas!!
Sorry I haven't been posting much I have just been so busy with the holidays and what not, but I am back now!!

And I have exciting news, in 3 days I am off to Europe and the UK for three weeks!! Keep your eyes peeled to see updates and pictures from my travels!!

I will leave you with a little new years thought;

Source: quotediary.me via Jennifer on Pinterest

Have you made your new years resolutions yet? 
How long do you think you'll keep them for? 

Until next time :) xx

Christmas Nails!

Christmas Series #4

I've been embracing the Christmas spirit on my nails lately and thought I would share some of the different combinations I've been trying recently.
So far I've kept it pretty simple, just colour and a glitter top coat but I think through the week I will give something a little more detailed a try!!

This first one in Loreal's Lady Luck and Revlon's Sparkle. 

Please ignore the terrible photo and excess polish. I don't know what I was thinking haha!

And this one is China Glaze 866 Four leaf Clover with Revlon's sparkle and NYX 166 Grand Royal. 

My Instagram skills have improved in the last week and I cleaned up the polish before I took the picture!!

Let me know if you have done or seen any great christmas nail tutorials I could try out!! 

Follow me on Instagram: fashionprincess_1545

Until next time :) xx

Christmas Baking | Gingerbread stars!!

CHRISTMAS SERIES # 3

I found the most amazing recipe for gingerbread biscuits and have made them twice in the last two weeks. The whole family love them so I thought I would share these festive delights with you too. 

This recipe is great because the ginger flavour isn't too strong, they are sweet and they take less than an hour in total!! Baking included!! 

You could make your own icing, but I just use the packet Royal Icing that you just add water to because it saves time and tastes the same. 

Ingredients

125g butter, softened
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) golden syrup
1 egg yolk
2 1/2 cups (375g) plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 packet royal icing mix and approx. 70ml water (as called for on the packaging)
1 packet Dessert Delights flavoured sprinkles (or topping of your choice)

Method

Step One: Preheat oven to 180°C. Line 2 oven trays with baking paper.


Step Two: Use an electric mixer to beat the butter, sugar and golden syrup in a bowl until pale and creamy. Add egg yolk and beat until just combined. Sift over the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger, cinnamon and cloves; use a wooden spoon to stir to combine. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead until smooth.


Step Three: Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface to 3mm thick. Use star cutters to make shapes. Place on the prepared trays


Step Four: Bake in preheated oven, swapping trays halfway through cooking, for 10-12 minutes (I found ten minutes was plenty; five on each shelf)  or until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and set aside on the trays to cool.


Step Five: Make Royal Icing as per instructions on packet. Using a piping bag and 1mm nozzle, pipe icing onto biscuits in desired pattern. 

Step Six: Sprinkle with Dessert sprinkles. Allow Icing to dry before storing. 

***Can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. (So make now for Christmas, if you can resist them that long!)

**Recipe adapted from taste.com.au 

*On my nails: Loreal Lady Luck and Revlon sparkle


What's your favourite holiday treat?

Until next time :) xx

What

Ste

Christmas gifts for mum!!

Christmas Series #1

Wondering what to get for the woman who gave you life this Christmas? Here are a few ideas to get you started.

My dad, brother and I are all putting in to get mum an iPad which is a great gift idea if you have a few people to go in together, or if your just ridiculously rich! haha. Tablets are becoming so popular these days so as long as your mum has some technological knowledge it could be a really good idea.

If your looking for something a little cheaper here are some other ideas;




1. If she has a tablet computer or smartphone you could consider buying some Apps for her that you think she'd like and downloading them for her on Christmas morning.

Alternatively you could get an iTunes voucher.







2.  Buy her a subscription to her favourite magazine. If your mum if anything like my mum, she'll love cooking/recipe magazines. Or maybe she is more into celebrity mags or lifestyle publications such as the Australian Women's Weekly. Whatever the topic, it'll be a gift that keeps on giving, and you'll be in the good books all the way until next Christmas. (Always a plus haha.)




3. If you think your mum works too hard perhaps you could treat her to some relaxation products. I try to avoid the stock-standard gift packs as they are almost always over-priced and usually come with at least one item that is fairly useless (a bar of soap anyone?)
I find it to bed a more personal gift if I go to a store such as The Body Shop or Lush and select a few individual products that I think she would benefit from. The usual favourites include hand creams, bath bombs, night creams etc.
Just be careful of anything that claims to be 'anti-ageing' or 'anti-wrinkle' as some people may be offended by this and you don't want to be the one who starts the all-out massive family brawl on Christmas day.

4. On the relaxation theme, you could purchase a voucher for a facial/massage/spa day. If your close with your mum you could book a mother/daughter day to make it even more special.

5. Books are always another favourite and given we are living in the 21st Century, you could consider Ebooks as they tend to be slightly cheaper and are easy to read on the go.



These are just a few suggestions of things that always impress my mum.

What are you getting your mum for Christmas this year?

What's your all-time favourite gift?

Until next time :) xxx

Christmas series!!

55 days until Christmas! 

With less than two months until Christmas is upon us again I thought I would start a Christmas blog series!

At the moment I have planned posts for what to buy the various people in your life, how to decorate your house, and christmas recipes and baking.

Leave a comment on this post if there are any other christmas related posts you would like to see from me =D

I am really excited to begin this series as Christmas is my absolute favourite time of the year by far!!!

Until next time :) xxx