[DIY] Always Looked Like You Were Flying To Me Print.

As much as I appreciate art and independent shops it's so easy now to create your own art especially prints. I am planning on making a few for baby's room when we get round to doing that. However this print is for our dining room. I've had the frames for a while and nothing to fill them and then we were listening to Passenger (who I just love!) and this line in his song was so lovely I decided we needed a print of it. The Mr agreed as he likes the song too! So I found a font I liked, borrowed my mum's printer and there you go! I thought I'd save you the hassle of creating your own and share the pdf with you, I'm a kind one aren't I? 

Find the print here.

Also how cute is this little succulent from Wilko. It was only £2 and too cute to not come home with me!

Goodbye 2014.

It's the day of the year where everybody, those who blog and those who don't, round up there year. It's an odd thing to do but at the end of the year it seems fitting to reflect on the year that has passed. I'm not one of those people who looked forward to the new year with a heart full of hope, not because I'm some cynical person who hates the world (although we all have those days, don't we) but because I believe that everyday should hold that hope for you. A new year will not change you as a person, you won't wake up tomorrow being able to do things that you couldn't do yesterday, Things that take place next year might be different but I've learnt over time that you don't really have control over what happens. What will be, will be. 

This year I've fallen in and out with blogging so many times. There has been times when I've thought that I should just give up but I never will. This blog has seen me through a lot and I love to have that space on the internet where I can be creative and share my views. The fact people read my blog and adore it is the icing on the cake. I think I am just lacking a little motivation and time. That age old excuse "if I just had more time" but it's true. So this year I'm not making resolutions but if I were to make one. It would be to put more effort in to this blog. Love it that little bit more. Plan my time more effectively and start falling in love with blogging again.

2014 you were alright and I'm pretty sure 2015 will be just the same. Here is to hope. Not just for the new year but for everyday.

I just want to say thank you to those who have read, followed and loved this blog. You guys are just the greatest. I hope that your 2015 is everything you want it to be. 

Happy New Year! 

Bury Christmas Market.

Yesterday we set out bright and early to head to the Bury Christmas Market. We visited Bury in the summer on our night away and we were always planning to come back for the Christmas Market. The Mr's Sister and Mum have been many times before and told us how good it was and I love anything "Christmasy" especially if it means I can take some pretty pictures.

It was a nightmare finding somewhere to park to in the end we settled for the park and ride. Once we got into town we stopped for lunch so we were ready to walk around. The whole town and Abbey Gardens was packed full of lovely stalls and there were so many people. It was hard to get around but it all added to the atmosphere. It was really cold and I think my hands have only just recovered. I really need to invest in a nice pair of gloves. All suggestions welcome.

We waited almost an hour and a half for Father Christmas but the look on the kids faces was priceless and they have all promised to be good until Christmas. Oh the wonders of bribery. Bury is such a quaint town and it's quickly becoming one of my favourite places to visit. I just wish it wasn't so far away. 

We ended the day just as it was getting dark which made for some lovely photographs but we were all tired and in need of caffeine. A stop on the way home for a mocha was just what I needed. It was such a lovely day and it's really got me in the Christmas spirit. I hope you like the little video the Mr put together, it's such a nice way to capture our days out!

Next weekend we're going to put up our decorations and I've got a few DIY's to share with you.

Have a lovely Sunday. We are planning a lazy one!

The Great British Butcher Review

All Natural Rubs and Crumbs Set - The Great British Butcher £18.60

I have never seen packaging on a gift that has been as perfect for me as this. Brown kraft paper, beautiful print, cute tins and a even a printed tea towel. What more could I ask? The very lovely Danielle got in touch with me and asked if I would like to review this gift set and as a recent convert to meat I had to say yes. Up until this year I was a vegetarian for 11 years and then for health reasons I decided to gradually go back to eating meat. I love the flavour you can add to it, vegetarian substitutes just didn't have that so we I saw that these were a combination of rubs and crumbs it got me very excited.

As soon as these arrived I decided that I had to use it on some kind of pork, it has become one of my favourites. We popped out to the shops and picked up some pork chops which would go perfectly with the lemon and mustard crumb. It's a flavour combination the Mr loves so I knew it would go down a treat for Sunday dinner. 

We served the pork chops with boulangere potatoes and steamed vegetables. The crumb added such a nice flavour although we could have used more. We didn't want it to be too overpowering and as we had never used a crumb before we didn't want to go over the top. The mustard flavour isn't too, strong sometimes mustard can burn your mouth a little, but this was far more subtle which complimented the zingy lemon beautifully. I can't wait to use the other tins!

If you are struggling to find a gift for a keen foodie, I would recommend this entirely. It's a gift I would have happily received myself and the cute packaging and tea towel just top it off.

I was lucky enough to be given this gift set. This in no way effects my opinion. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Christmas gift ideas: Recipe books review.

Every Christmas for the last few years there has been a recipe book on my Christmas list. I have to admit which will probably horrify most people, but recipe books are my favourite type of book. Anything that has lovely recipes and great food photography and styling wins me over. A couple of weeks ago I went on a little bit of a library binge and picked out a few new recipe books. I thought I'd review each one for you, especially if you are trying to decide which book should be top of your Christmas list.

Scandinavian Baking

Tine Hahnemann [RRP: £25]

This book has lots of recipes. I know a recipe book should have but this is jam packed. It would be the book that keeps on giving and it would take a long time before you were bored of it and made all the recipes. The photography and styling is just beautiful which always wins me over. The book is divided into sections and the Midsumer cake party section is my favourite. It's full of beautiful fruity cakes and I could easily bake all of them. 

Best recipe: Choux pastries with rhubarb cream. 

Downside: Not much maybe the font for the recipes could be a bit bigger. Or maybe I should just put my glasses on.

Scandilicious Baking

Signe Johasen [RRP: £25]

Another scandivian baking book. In my opinion the book above is better but this does other some lovely recipes. Again the photography and styling is just what you'd expect from a Scandivian book. The book is divided into chapters by type and there are some lovely bread recipes.

Best recipe: Breadsticks 3 ways.

Downside: Not every recipe has a photograph. I do find it really difficult to visualise what something should look like without a photograph.

Primrose Bakery Christmas

Martha Swift [RRP:£20]

I love this book. I had others from the library before and its full of great and fun recipes. There has always been loads of recipes that I want to bake. The photographs are kitsch and cute. I really can't fault this book. It's full of recipes you could bake all year round too. This book has a ribbon page marker which also ticks one of my boxes!

Best recipe: Rainbow cake.

Downside: I don't own it yet!

The Great British Bake Off Christmas

Lizzie Kamenetzky with recipes from Bake Off judges and contestants. [RRP:£20]

Ahh the Bake Off book. I love the series so I was very excited for this book. The book has such a cosy feel, the photographs create such a Christmasy feeling. There are more than just baking recipes which is great for the all round cook.

Best recipe: Mary's Yule Log

Downside: To be honest I did find it a little disappointing.  The recipes are not anything exciting and not all of them appealed to me.

I hope that this post has helped a little and the Primrose Bakery Christmas book is my must have! 

What books are on your list this year?

All the opinions in these reviews are my own so just because I don't like it doesn't mean it's a bad book, it's just something that I wouldn't perhaps want to own.