Cupcakes and cute things....

Gosh just look at all the cupcake goodies in Debenhams!! Well you know me and cupcakes...I was in my element. I'm especially loving that huge cookie jar at the back...now which of my baking goodies could I store in that???????

After having a wander in Debenhams I pottered up to pennys, you are always guaranteed a great find there and always at a bargain price! How cute are these tea towels? So adorable :). I'm thinking I should have bought in bulk though!

After those finds I saw this cutsie new crockery
collection in M&S. I just love the way spring is on the way and you can totally see that in the goodies in the shops.... I cant wait !!I'm so done with the miserable winter at this stage and all the dark colours that go with it! :)

Valentines truffles

OK so myself and Janey decided to try and make Valentines/Heart truffles....it was was harder than we expected though! We got a recipe off the net and headed down to Superquinn, Finn in the baby seat and everything ha! We got back and set to work...we did everything the instructions said but we decided we knew better and added more cream than they said! :) We poured the mixture into the mold and put it into the freezer...and ...hours later it still hadn't set! So annoying!! Me not being one to give up easily I decided yesterday to give it another go. I got a different recipe off the net, less cream this time though! The ones pictured on the web page I got the recipe from were so cute with a pink chocolate topping so I set to work again... to make the topping I had to melt white chocolate and add a tiny bit of red food colouring, then pour it into the bottom of the mold. This time they turned out way better, as in they set properly and you could just pop them out of the mold but I don't think they tasted as nice as the previous mixture. Actually all the recipe's say to use dark chocolate but I think milk chocolate with a little bit of dark chocolate is way nicer.Well this is how they turned out in the end. They look so cute I just gotta make another batch for valentines day :). After this batch I then tried out the Avoca recipe but I knew straight away it was a softer mixture so there was no point in putting it in the mold. I toasted some nuts and mixed it in with the chocolate mixture, then took little scoops and rolled them into balls. Some I coated with coca powder and some with nuts. My ever faithful taster Gareth gave them the thumbs up! I'm gonna bring a selection of them into the girls in work tomorrow and maybe brighten their Thursday :)

Loving IKEA...

Well I have always been a fan of IKEA in Spain but since it has come here I've got even more excited about it! We went up to Belfast at the weekend, we needed a bookcase but what do ya know...we bought a lot more than just the bookcase! Its such good value at the moment with the pound I just had to take advantage of the situation(well thats what I was telling Gareth he he). Anyway one of my favorite things I picked up were these cute tea light holders which just look perfect in my Kitchen.....well any excuse to include a little more pink LOL!

Save This Date for Caitriona!

My friend Caitriona is getting married this summer...it's just so exciting! I wish I could do it all over again, what fun :) but with the same husband of course!! Anyway she really wants some nice save the date cards so I said I would play around with a few ideas. This is the first sample I made for her and I'm working on a second one at the moment. If we decide to go ahead with making them I warned her we need to have a big assembly line set up in my house with all the girls, wine and chocolate!! What a combination! I Can't wait!

Yum yum yummie!

I decided to do some baking today for my sister. I love cupcakes as you know so I did two different types - Lemon butterfly cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and Vanilla with chocolate frosting dusted with white chocolate. I had nothing for the body or the antenna of the butterflies so..... I died some sugar red and put it in the centre for the body and then got some spaghetti and died it with blue food colouring for the antennas. The things you come up with when your stuck for resources!! Gareth reckons he needs to be the taster to check they are up to scratch !! Ha :)

It's count down to Valentines Day!

I just love love LOVE this time of year coming up to Valentines Day...all the shops are full of pink, pretty, heart shaped things! I'm in my element just browsing :) Just look how fab the selection of goodies are for Valentines Day in my local TK Max.

I just couldn't resist some of these little bowls and plates...how cute?! They will be perfect for serving some little nibbles.....strawberries and chocolate dip anyone????

Thanks Elaine

I made this card today for my friend Elaine who did a huge favour for me on Friday. She is mad about everything green (or so everybody thinks just because she does Green Schools he he !!) so hense the colours chosen. Im mad about this little Turtle, he is just the cutest. I found a whole series of them so I'm defo gonna use them again :)

N for Nicola

My sister in law Nicola gave us such a fab pressie for Christmas...a weekend away in a hotel in Wexford!She also cooked up a fab belated birthday dinner for me. I wanted to thank her so I made this N for her. Its very girlie but I know she will just love it!

Working on my frames....

I had wanted to do a feature wall in my bathroom for a while now with some really nice scrapping paper framed in some cool frames. I picked up some really nice frames over the last few weeks in the likes of TK max, and Linenberry as I mentioned before. I ordered some great paper from Paperpeddler on ETSY and was just waiting for it to arrive. I had also ordered some die cuts and embellishments from Cornerstop on ETSY that I wanted to add to the scrapping paper. I decided I wanted to go with a pink / lime / brown colour scheme and I wanted to pretty it up with butterfly's and sequences! Here are some of the frames individually photographed....

I love the pink background(obviously!) on this one and I think the lime green looks great against it. The little butterflies wings pick up the lime disc in the left hand corner.

I just adore this frame, its so rustic and chunky. I think this one is particularly pretty with the little butterfly and bow.

This frame was a bit bashed and beaten when I found it but I thought it had great character. I added the ribbon and bow to the scrapping paper and also stuck a few sequences on it. Its turned out exactly as I wanted it to. Now all I have to do is get my hubbie up on a ladder with the drill!! Ill post a pic when they are all up together...not too sure when that will be mind you!!

Will I bake or will I create??!

I was stuck in sick over the weekend and was feeling down in the dumps so decided I would cheer myself up but could'nt decide to bake or create so as you can see from the photo I decided to do both! I was multi tasking to the max with glue, glitter, paper and ribbon on one side of me and a wisk, flour and eggs on the other side! I had a few projects I needed to work on...my frames, a new letter, a thank you card and I also wanted to bake a cake for some friends.

The kitchen was a disaster area but I think from the photo you can tell lots of fun was had! The frames turned out great and the cake was delicious, I was delighted with a job well done! Im not so sure Gareth was when he saw the bomb site! Ha!

Yummie Hot Chocolates !!

Myself and Gareth went for a potter in a newly opened home store the other day. I spotted these cute pink mugs for 2 Euro each and just had to have them! We tested them out by making delicious hot chocolates topped with freshly whipped cream and marsh mallows... a total success...yum yum yummie!!

The Girls Hit the Farm - Oh so glamorous!!

This is myself and my niece Caomhóg visiting Causey Farm at Halloween...it was such a fun day. The Farm was all decorated for Halloween and we got to go to a bonfire, learn how to make spells at Witch School, taste pumpkin pie and learn how to ride a broom stick! We also got to go for a ride in a tractor :) We came home mucky and dirty, had bath time straight away and then snuggled up in front of the fire with loads of goodies... yum!!

Some of our Farm Yard Friends!!

Gareth and Caomhóg visit the Chicken yard!

A card for Teresa

My friend Teresa moved into her new house just before Christmas with her boyfriend Gabriel. What a happy time for them both!! At last I got around to making this card for her tonight...It was WAY overdue!!

A gift for Kate

On Friday the bib and burp cloth gift I bought on Etsy for little Kate arrived.(See post on some of my cards). Its sooo cute I just had to put up a pic.

Congratulations Fiona xxx

My friend Fiona got engaged during the Christmas holidays and I really wanted to make her a gorgeous card. I remember so clearly what its like being newly engaged and its so nice when people make a fuss of you during that special time :) I gave it to her today in school and I think she loved it. I was delighted how it turned out. Congratulations Fiona x

The Linenberry Sale (part two!!)

Well after the success I had the other day in the Linenberry sale I was feeling I had some unfinished buisness to attend to......!! In other words I had to go back lol! The fab distressed candle holder I bought was part of a set of three and I decided I just HAD to have the set! Luckily there were some left and I'm sooo glad cause they look totally gorgeous lit up with tealights and by the fire in my living room. While I was there I spied a beautiful Greengate floor mat but the only colour left was beige :( I asked if by any chance there were any pink ones left...there wasn't.....but then on Friday morning I got a text from Sharon saying she found one! Here it is in all its glory happy in its new home in my kitchen.Here is a close up as its hard to see just how cute it is....oh Im lovin' it :)

Hitting the Linenberry sale

Today I took advantage of a free class I had during the day and headed down to Linenberry in Maynooth for a potter. Their sale was on and I just couldnt resist a few bits....! The gorgeous tins are Greengate and will be perfect for my baking. The fab frames are for a project Im working on for my main bathroom...Im doing a feature wall with old style vintage frames with scrapping paper framed in them. I have been buying a few frames over the last few weeks...now its just up to Gareth to get them up... ha! Ill post a pic when Im finished. The little tea towel is also Green gate, very cute...it will be perfect in my kitchen.

This is a close up of a beautiful candle holder and ribbons I bought too. When you have a tea light lighting it just flickers through the distressed glass.....so nice! The ribbons I just HAD to have seeing that Purple is this seasons colour! Watch out for some crafting featuring them very soon!

Winning the 2008 INTA National Championships

This is a photo of me preforming Yul - Gok tul in the INTA national championships in October. I had registered to compete but then un registered because my nerves were totally getting to me! On the morning of the competition I re registered with a little bit of encouragement from Gareth! It was well worth it as I took home the best bit of bling - the gold medal!

Check out Maynooth Taekwon-Do School's website here.

The winning 5 aside team!!

Not the most glamerous photo but hey! The last week of school before the holidays we had a Female Teachers V's Students 5 aside soccer match in aid of The Laura Lynn Foundation. All spectators had to pay one euro to watch...oh god the shame of it !! For weeks the kids had been harassing us to take part and despite all intentions to get out of it they were actually having none of it!! Myself, Pauline, Alish, Joanne and Grainne endeed up being "The Team"....ha .....we tought we were gonna get whiped but we actually ended up doing the whiping!! We beat the girls 4 - 1 woohoooo !!! Who said us LADY teachers couldn't play soccer ?! Well if the teaching doesn't work out for us at least we have other options.....!

Janeys Jar in its happy new home!!

As you can see Janeys Jar has setteled very well into its new home! Doesn't it look so good in her Kitchen?

A present for Janey

Today I decided to 'make and do' AND bake - two of my favourite things! It being the last day of the holidays before school starts back tomorrow I decided to not spend the day snoozing! I wanted to bring something over to Janey who I am visiting tomorrow to say thanks for all the goodies she brought over on my birthday(See Me and Janey post). I know she loves my rocky road so I wanted to bake her some and at the same time present it really nicely, so it started with this.......a plain and boring jar which I picked up in Home Store and More yeaterday for 3.50 euro. I then decided to get to work with ribbon, glitter, stickers and card. A while later I was full of glue and glitter but the jar looked like this... ......way nicer if I may say so myself....

....Im actually lovin' that lil cupcake...
...one of my birthday cards was really cute so I cut it so I could fit it in the top of the jar . Now the jar was finished I had to get baking!! I made yummy rocky road with crunchie, digestives, walnuts, almonds and mallows. Mmmmm...I had to keep an eye on Gareth while I was taking this photo, I'm surprised his hand isnt in the shot actually Ha Ha!!

The finished product all put together...I nearly want to keep it :). Hope Janey loves it.

Very cool toast!!

So funny...this is my piece of toast from this morning! I swear this was not done intentionally...I cut the bread to fit in the toaster and when I took it out to butter I realised it was a heart shapped piece of toast! Imagine...a Nula piece of toast he he :)

Some of my cards

This is the first card I made when I decided to get back into my 'making and doing'. I went over to Inspiring Ideas in Blanchardstown and spent about two and a half hours browsing and shopping!! It is such a fab shop it has everything you could possibly need for crafting.














This card I made for friends who have had a new baby called Kate. I didnt have a blank K to make a letter so I logged on to ETSY and bought a beautiful personalised bib and burp cloth, both very cute.

A for Annabelle

This again is part of my letter series. I made it for my friend Anne - Marie who recently had a beautiful baby daughter Annabelle. I woke up one morning at 8:30 with lots of ideas for it running around in my head!! I wanted to make a card to go with it so it was kind of a gift set. I loved how they both turned out.

The finished gift set, I nearly wish my name was Annabelle! LOL :)

B for Béibhinn

This is the first letter in the series...its something I have wanted to try for ages. I have seen them done in Avoca mind you they are just covered in fabric. I wanted to see if I could do better and I also thought as a gift they can be created with the person in mind using thir favourite colours, fabrics etc. This was done for my goddaughter Béibhinn, my sister was getting pink overload so I purposely stayed away from those tones. I love yellows and greens so I kind of went wih lemon and lime tones and of course true to form I had a Fairy theme going on!

I absolutley love ribbon so after all the embellishing was done I finished the piece off with this gorgeous lime floral ribbon. I was delighted with how it turned out and Iseult an Béibhinn just loved it too. :)