Something Old, Something New

Only one month and fifteen days until our wedding!! 
It's coming around so quickly, and all the bits and pieces are now finally coming together. We've been busy gathering things for the day and making stuff, but I don't want to put all of it up here as otherwise I'll spoil the surprises for those going! I am, however, prepared to just show you all what I've come up with for my bridesmaids to carry all their essentials in on the day.
Charly and Alex are two of my oldest, bestest friends from secondary school, and will be keeping me calm on the day! Alex married last year, and Charly and I were honored to be bridesmaids to her also. We had these clutch bags on the day, which compliment Alex's purple thistles and white roses theme in our flowers:

It's a nice clutch, and a good size. But I own nothing cream and can see very few occasions when I'd use it again. I've been looking for clutch bags for the girls on the day, but wondered whether we might be able to give these a second lease of life by including my peacock feather theme. The girls have white roses in their bouquets also, so it should compliment it perfectly.

First I removed the flowers, which came off without too much effort. There was a lot of glue residue though, so the peacock feather needed to cover some of that up.
Cut your feather with enough of the stalk remaining so that the glue has something to bond to.
AWESOME TIP: To make your feather look extra beautiful and fanned out, simply boil your kettle and hold the eye of the feather over the steam. It will open out and look gorgeous!

Add a dab of all-purpose, extra strong glue to the front of the bag and position the feather to your taste. In this case, I needed it to cover the old glue, which the fan of the feathers does beautifully.

Then get out your BUTTONS!!! (Because this wouldn't be a Button Brown crafty-make without them!!) I've picked out three smallish buttons that compliment the colours in the feather's eye. Dab on your glue and press them slightly so that they bond with the feather and bag.

And that's basically it! It was that simple! Something Old transformed into Something New, which cost me absolutely nothing. Peacock feathers can be quite expensive to buy from shops, but I got these smaller 'craft' bunches from Ebay for a competitive price for 100 of them. Worth checking it out.

I have one more of these to make and then I can put them away into my Wedding Bits Box. I have not one, not two, but THREE fabulous hen parties organised for next month, so I will no doubt be back with more little projects involving feathers before then!

Until then, stay happyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!

BB xx

One Man's Trash...

I am absolutely BUZZZZZZZZING right now!! You will all be familiar with the following scenario: You've filled up your car with all the stuff you are going to take to the dump, maybe you're having a clear-out or just have leftover rubbish that needs to be dumped. You arrive at the dump and rid your car of that all 'junk'... only, as you throw it on to the top of the skip, you notice maybe a piece of furniture or useful item that you simply Can Not Believe someone has thrown away!! But... You can't have it! Because they be the Rules of the Dump. UNTIL TODAY...

Aston Clinton's Household Waste and Recycling Centre have now opened an area where they are selling useable and decent quality items in aid of raising money for South Bucks Hospice, a local charity, in order to rebuild the hospice building. They not only re-sale furniture items like chairs, cabinets, tables and office furniture, but also some toys, photo frames (some with the photos/certificates still in them! Very interesting!) and unbroken crockery. There were an array of bicycles for sale, all in good condition, as well as large containers with shelf upon shelf of tvs, computers, laptops, hoovers, electrical goods (all PAT tested) at seriously low prices.

Not sure who would want the weird squeaky deer toy...??

 I have no idea why EVERY DUMP doesn't do this!! It's absolutely genius! As a country we generate about 177 million tonnes of waste that goes to land refill every single year, which causes environmental damage and is a poor use of resources on our part. There should be much, much more of this kind of thing. Especially as it's SO CHEAP:

Dressing table stool - £3!!

Two large photo frames, to be used as a table plan and information boards at my wedding - £1 EACH!!

I've been searching for a vanity table stall since I got my charity shop vanity table. I have seen things, but for quite a bit of money, and I also wanted something individual to me. I am so pleased with this, and got right on to 'upcycling' it when we got home. This was my first ever attempt at doing this sort of thing, but it's already given me the confidence to go ahead and supe-up my dining room chairs. Have a look... whatcha think?

The finished article! Well proud, innit.

The fabric was actually an old scarf of mine that I don't wear as it's not quite long enough to wrap around my neck. I had to pull out the staples and take off the green carpet on the top of it, and then used a staple gun to put the scarf square on top. There are lots of tutorials on YouTube, I would have logged a better explanation here but I was too excited!

We also bought a dart board which needs some serious TLC - it's filthy!! - but we also only paid a rock bottom £3 for it. Tom plans to put it up in the garage for boys night's... of course.

It's literally just been such a great day, it's made me remember why putting the effort into looking for this stuff is so worth it, as now I have something that is unique to me, and will put me on a creative path to trying even more out. Love it.

What have you done that's creative this week??

BB xx

Dedicated to my Hero of the Hour

For those of you who tuned into Channel 5 this week you will have witnessed the somewhat lively debate about the welfare system in this country called The Big Benefits Row... and a row it was indeed! If you haven't watched it, get it on Catchup and have a look. Whatever you think about people on welfare and using food banks, you can't blame anyone trying to make our lives easier by coming up with some money-saving, healthy ideas to keep us going through these hard times.
Enter Jack Monroe (www.agirlcalledjack.com) who was there to fight the corner of those who find themselves really needing those services. Now she has a successful blog, recipe book and column writing about how to get the most out of your food, and is now appearing - well deservedly - in Sainsbury's adverts, with delicious recipes on a budget. Makes a change from seeing Jamie's smug face on there! Jack was on the Big Benefits Row with an aim to making people aware that those using the food banks don't want to be using them, but needs must. When you have young children to feed and have to survive yourself on so little, why wouldn't you use them? Edwina Currie, however, sees it differently, and admitted live on tv that she felt no shame that this country has been reduced to being so reliant on such resources. Instead of letting Jack explain how they work, she attacked her newly earned success and her family - with hilarious results - and made herself look like an utter fool. It just proves how out of touch she and her party really are with The Real World.

Jack, complete with tattoos!

Since this programme, I have talked about Jack to pretty much anyone who will listen to me! I just think she's wonderful - Jack, You Are Wonderful!! - and so I decided to make one of her recipes this weekend to share with you all as a toast to her campaign and what she stands for.

Funnily enough, it's getting to the end of the month and money is quite tight this weekend. Jack's carrot, kidney bean and cumin burgers require ingredients that tend to hang around in your veg draw or in your dry store cupboards, and to my utter delight I had them all!
Follow the recipe in the link above, and this is what you get:

The photo's don't do them justice, but they are so delicious! I sadly didn't have salad left to have with them, but in a wrap with a little spread of mayonnaise they made a great option for a light Sunday afternoon snack.

The recipe states to use 1 carrot, but I had 2 hanging around so I used them both up, making 6 burgers from the mix. I plan on freezing these 4 for another time. They're reeeeally yummy, give them a try!

I hope this post doesn't come across too gushing! But whilst in the middle of a social work course, where all my original beliefs and morals are being systematically turned on their heads, this woman and her cause just make so much sense to me. She is one of many people out there who understand and recognise what it's like to work your damn butt off for what feels like so little back sometimes. I also completely believe that if poverty-stricken families were given vital education around how to cook and eat nutritiously and on a budget, we wouldn't be in as big a mess as we are. Bear in mind that a majority of Jack's recipes were created out of what she got given in those food bank parcels, and having worked with food bank recipients quite recently, I know that the parcels are put together to give as nutritionally balanced a meal as possible. They include the important food groups, but it's about knowing how to use them.

Spread the word, spread the love... and Fight The Power.

BB xx

My Vintage Dream Come True!

So we're finally in our house!! It's been a mad few days, but we've got everything here now and have started to make it feel more like our home. There's a lot of decorating to be done and things to be put up on the walls, not to mention still quite a lot of deep cleaning, but it's getting there.
In the middle of all this madness, I had to take half an hour to go and make a little corner of it all mine to escape to later on. Last weekend we went around Hemel town centre for the last time and stopped by in the British Heart Foundation furniture shop. It's full of beautiful vintage (old!) furniture, but it's all really cheap and so unique. No flat pack, lifeless furniture here!! About a month previous to this, one of my best friends went into the same shop and came out with a gorgeous dressing table, complete with long mirror and little details on the draws and fittings. I FOUND MY OWN!

 Ok, ok, ok... It's not glorious looking on it's own without nice things around it. Plus it was pretty dusty. However, it was all original - the mirror and even the drawer lining which is pink floral paper in near perfect condition. So it came to our new home and is now in my bedroom, and with all my ablutions and potions on it, it looks like this...

At some point over the weekend I will be buying fairy lights to put around the mirror. I love that I have finally found a good use for my dyed doilies too (I have bought more recently... I think I may be obsessed...) Other than that, it's perfect!! I sat at it this morning and pampered myself - nothing fancy, but I felt really luxurious whilst I did my normal beauty routine!
The best part of this little slice of girly pleasure?? That old, original piece of furniture cost just £20. YUP. The same price we paid for our Chinese takeaway on our first night! BOOM!

BB xx

Moving On Up...

It's my last night in my little annexe tonight. I'm utterly surrounded by boxes, bags, furniture not in it's right place... it's stressing me out! We're currently sat in the only space place in our living room and trying to pretend that it still feels nice to sit in here: all our pictures are down, my wallhangings, little decorations I have had up since the day I moved in. All packed away. It's REALLY weird.
Tomorrow we're moving into our first ever house with a mortgage attached and all the other house trimmings. I am so excited - internally - and know I will not get a wink of sleep tonight. Once I'm in and all our stuff is unpacked I will feel even better. But I owe a lot to the last 3 years and a month I have had here. A lot has happened...

I moved in November 2010 just after graduating from RNCM. I didn't want to be a burden at home to Mum and Dad and needed my own space. When I moved in the flat was in need of TLC, and over time I gave it the most colourful makeover it could have needed!

I met the love of my life, my future husband, my best friend, my soulmate...

...And got engaged last Christmas!

I have had started and left several wonderful jobs and met some amazing, funny, inspirational and beautiful people, colleagues and friends alike, some of which I am still in touch with.

We have also lost little friends a long the way. Some were better gone and out of our lives (and good bloody riddance). Others it was sad to see them go... (RIP Beau the hamster)

Meanwhile my parents have had a stressful couple of years, in and then out of a pub, and risked everything including our family home. I'll be happy to have them over now for family meals and gatherings at our home.

It's the first big step in our lives together. In the new year I will leaving yet another wonderful job to go and be a student again (AAAAAAAAAAAAAARGGGGGGGGGGH!) and then later in the year become Mrs B, which I will never get tired of saying. I'm going to find my way around a new town that I will hopefully be able to call home. I never liked living in Manchester (no offence) and never felt it was home. I hope LB will feel like home for me and my family as it comes along.
So much has happened since I've been in this flat. I have had the best landlords ever who really do feel like family to me now, and I will miss them both and their little furry friend very, very much. I am so grateful to you both - you know who you are. xxxx

So soon I will be able to post blogs from my new home, and who knows what adventures it will bring??

Bye for now, I need to go pack, and then collapse into bed one more time.

BBxxx

BACON CAKE - The only cake for the man in your life

Happy Birthday, Tom!! 

29 today, and still goooooooooooooooorgeous! We've had a lovely day off together and just enjoying the winter sunshine and being happy. A birthday wouldn't be a birthday without cake though, but somehow this year a Victoria sponge just wasn't going to cut it.

A while ago, Tom came in and showed me this monstrosity on his iPad: 

It's known on the net as a Bacon Explosion: You weave bacon rashers together and then wrap it around about half a tonne of sausage meat which contains MORE bacon, BBQ the whole thing, then slice and die of a sudden yet, I suppose, a happy heartattack. I sadly have neither the funds for half an abattoir of meat or a working BBQ, so I found the next best thing.

Bacon and Beef Loaf (recipe is HERE, and trust me it looks better than the picture on the website... you'll see.) Really simple to make and minimal fuss with the ingredients too.
I added about 60g grated cheddar cheese to the meat and stuffing mixture, but daren't add anymore afterwards! You can if you want to shorten your life significantly.
So ours looked like this, complete with festive birthday candles:

It was so greasy and hot, the candles barely stayed upright in the meaty bacon casing... Disgusting.

I'm happy to say, I think by making this I may have just won the 'Best Girlfriend Ever' competition, judging by the look on his face!!

So make your carnivorous, bacon-lovin' man happy today, ladies... earn endless brownie point; see a change in their willingness to help with stuff around the house (and if you don't, remind them of this!!) and try not to get carried away eating it... I dread to think of the calories. Tom managed just over half of this loaf. WHAT A GUY.

Love, BB xxxx

All That Glitters

Look at the picture below...

Looks tempting, doesn't it? All that delicious, colourful, brightly patterned paper concealing all the things you have been dreaming about all year long. If you live with a frugal person, they will no doubt be carefully undoing the sellotape on each gift, folding the paper and later ironing it for use next year... And I don't blame them!! How expensive is this stuff?!? I agree - it's beautiful and looks 100% Christmassy, but when you start to spend more on the stuff that ultimately gets thrown in the bin than the things wrapped up inside, then you need to seriously look at your financial priorities!! It's crazy!
I am nearly done with my Christmas shopping, and intend to wrap each gift up lovingly enough that it looks like a lot of thought has gone into it, but I won't cringe when all that expensive paper gets tossed into the bin.
I had a sneaky look around the charity shops today. It's been a while. And I found some proper goodies!!

In Hobbycraft, these stamps are sold individually for around £2 per stamp, but there came in a pack and were sold to me for a bargain 75p!! I was also pleasantly surprised to be invited to leave my details for Cancer Research shop so they can contact me if similar items even get donated. I also stated I look out for fabrics, rags and craft materials too. This is genius! It'll encourage regular custom, have stock earmarked to be sold before it gets to the shop floor, and invites people to commit to buying things they request to be called about.
Oxfam had some bargains too: this pair of mugs are perfect for my granddad, who does in fact look like an old wise owl...

And Poundland gave me these bits: the brown paper is perfect present gift wrap, and this whole roll will go beyond Christmas this year. The little photoframe is a silly gift for someone! And the incense because we get through tonnes of it here at home...

Don't trust me that brown paper can be exciting?? Look at this:

Now I will feel happy when I give these to my family, and guilt-free when they throw the paper in the bin... Job done! Try it yourself; brown paper against pretty ribbon scraps, tinsel or bows also looks really effective. You can even glue things on to it like sequins, stickers, cheap tree decorations or glitter.

BB xx