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Wednesday 30 December 2015

Photography - Flowers

Hey guys! I have really been getting into photography lately as I now gave a pretty good camera that was my Dad's. Today I went out in our garden and took some photos of flowers. I have been editing them and having a lot of fun! I am no expert at photography and I realize that I have over-edited some of these photos, I'm new at this! I hope you like the photos I have taken, I honestly give nature most of the credit but all of the following photos are captured (dramatic, I know) and edited by me. (I edited these photos on PicMonkey.)

I really love this picture! I think daisies are one of the flowers we take for granted but when you take a look, daisies are so beautiful.

I love this beautiful flower and the detail in the middle bit (I forgot the name).

I didn't edit this photo at all. I didn't feel the need to, nature is so beautiful alone.

I love this photo and it's my Mum's favourite flower photo I have taken so far.

I love the detail in the centre of this flower, it looks a bit like ink that bled and I love that!

This flower is so beautiful! I love way it's facing in this photo.

This flower is beautiful and it's in one of my Mum's favourite colours!

So that's it! My favourite probably has to be the first photo, of the daisy. I love how something so beautiful is all around us. I hope you liked these photos and this post! What is your favourite photo from today's post? Have a great day and I'll talk soon.

xxx

Catherine

Tuesday 29 December 2015

YouTube Channel

Hey guys, it's Catherine! Today I want to talk about the YouTube channel that I have started! I will be posting my first video on the first on January! I want 2016 to be my year to really focus on blogging and get good at YouTube! I did have another YouTube channel but it was a bit of a mess and I hardly ever posted on it. Plus it had numbers in the title, bad idea Catherine.

I would like to say thanks to a few people who have helped me come to this decision.

First of all, thank you to Izzy K. You have been commenting on my posts and supporting me for a while and I really appreciate it, after I watched your YouTube video about Beau Bloggers, I joined and it was one of the best decisions I made for my blog. The reason that I am thanking your in this post about YouTube, is that you have inspired me to be a YouTuber (not that I can call myself one yet). You post awesome videos (and blog posts) that always make me laugh and I really look up to you. When you reached 1000 subscribers, I was like "I could do that" so I decided I would. You inspire me everyday, thank you. (Izzy K's blog and channel.)

Secondly, I would like to thank Rainbow-Rose Blossom. She is still one of my favourite bloggers and YouTubers and is also and inspiration to me. She went out of her comfort-zone and posted a video and that made me think hard about starting YouTube, thanks so much Rainbow. (Rainbow-Rose Blossom's blog and channel.)

Thanks to Melissa from The Ice Cream Hut. She is one of my best blogging friends and although she doesn't have a channel, we would always fantasize about starting YouTube channels. She has always supported me behind the scenes and she is the only one who I let see my posts before they are published! She is such a sweet person and a great friend. Thanks Melissa. (Melissa's blog.)

And most of all, I want to thank you. You are reading this and supporting me and even maybe subscribing to my YouTube channel (seamless haha). Whether you found my blog yesterday of you have been reading it from the beginning, you boost my confidence by reading my posts so thank you so much, it means more to me than you will ever know.

Sorry if I made anybody uncomfortable by thanking them, I was pretty dramatic. I am really tempted to make my first video live now but I am forcing myself to wait until New Years Day to post it as this would be my ideal day to start YouTube. I hope you guys are having a great day and I will talk soon, byeeeeeeeee!

xxx

Catherine

Saturday 26 December 2015

What I Got For Christmas 2015

Hey guys! Merry Christmas! Today was a great day for me, I got to spend time with my family and give and receive presents. Usually we open our stocking presents straight out of the stocking but this year we went on a treasure hunt for our presents, it was heaps of fun so we decided to make it a tradition. Today I am going to be showing you what I got for Christmas this year! I am not showing off or trying to make you jealous, I just want to show you what I got for Christmas. This is my place to talk about anything I want to and I don't want to have to be constantly filtering through what I write about, wondering if anybody will get offended. I know you won't turn Smiley Central into that kind of place so thanks. (Please note that any money will be New Zealand Dollars.)

Beauty Gifts

From my good friend Lynsey, I got a strawberry soap from The Body Shop, I also got a gold star and gold heart to go on the Christmas tree but I forgot to take a picture. The hairbrush is one of the gifts that my grandparents got me. The bow was on one of my gifts and I will be wearing it around my head like I was today.

Beauty Gifts Part Two

These were the beauty gifts from my stocking. The strawberry shaped container (middle left) is a hand cream and it smells so good! It's also really moisturising. The blue spray smells really nice, I'm really bad at explaining scents so I'm not even going to go there. The little lip balm is called Secret Santa and it has a little picture of a Santa on it. The flavour(?) is not specified but I think it's candy cane. I also got some red spotty nail sticker with one Santa nail sticker on each hand. I got a strawberry, guava and pineapple body wash, I used it last night and it is so nice! In the black jewellery are two pairs of earrings, one pair are dragonflies and the second pair are butterflies. The glass contain with the pink lid is a strawberries and cream spray that I am going to try out today! There are some cool little lip glosses that I will be trying out in the near future.
While we are on the subject of beauty, my sister dyed her hair black on Christmas Eve, her hair is naturally a mid-tone brown so this was a big change! She was worried that is was going to look ugly but it really suits her!

Writing Materials

In my stocking I got a breast cancer foundation notebook which I really like and it it supports a charity that I love. I got a some highlighters that you can see through which are really cool. I also got some pink post it notes in the shape of a love heart.

Candy


I got a giant lollipop that tastes so good, it's going to take me until next Christmas to eat! I also got some Lindt chocolate that the best chocolates ever! They have a crunchy shell on the outside and a creamy soft bit on the inside, yum!


I got an awesome yellow, grey and white chevron duvet cover that I love! I am currently in the process of redecorating my room and I'm having a lot of fun.

Games


For Christmas this year I got some family games. The Minion Game is like Ludo and my family played it and had heaps of fun and laughs. One of my sisters is very competitive so she was interesting to watch. I ended up winning the game. YAY!

T-Shirts


In my stocking I got a cool t-shirt that says keep it real, I really like it and I am going to be wearing it tomorrow. The second t-shirt say a pineapple a day keeps the worries away. I really like this t-shirt and I put it on as soon as I got it.

I also got some money from my Mum and Step-Dad! I will be doing a post of what I got with that money, watch out for it.

So that was what I got for Christmas! Thank you so much to all the people that got me something! And thank you reading this, you make me so happy. You're reading my posts and that makes me really happy, so thank you again, for reading, for commenting, for telling your friends, thank you.

xxx

Catherine

Thursday 24 December 2015

Honey & Cinnamon Face Mask Review

Hey guys! It's Christmas Eve! I am so excited for Christmas!!! I am really happy because I can give people gifts and see their faces light up! In this post I am reviewing a DIY face mask and giving you the recipe to try yourself! Today's post isn't extremely festive, but if you try this face mask you will smell like a festive candle. 

When I first put it on...
It doesn't take long to apply which is a plus. You do look like an ogre that just had a mud bath but it smells amazing. It can get slightly itchy but I think that's what happens with most face masks. I could really feel the mask moisturising my skin while it was on.

When I was taking it off...
I exfoliated my skin in the process of taking the face mask off, I just rubbed my face in circular motions while I rinsed it off. It did take quite a while to get off as the honey is quite sticky but I don't mind that.

Overall results...
I could not believe how soft my skin felt straight after taking this mask off! My skin was even, my pores weren't clogged up and my skin was just better overall! On top of that my face smelt amazing! Despite the face mask being slightly awkward to get off, I will definitely be using this mask again and I highly recommend  it to you! I have heard that some skin types are sensitive to cinnamon so I would apply this to a small patch of skin before using it, if the mask causes irritation, wash it off immediately. Test out nutmeg instead of the cinnamon, if you don't have nutmeg or it also causes irritation, you could just use honey. Honey is very moisturising and it is very beneficial to your skin alone.

Recipe
You will need:
2 - 2 1/2 Teaspoons of Honey
1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon
Method:
Mix together to create a paste and apply to face. Leave on for 15 - 25 minutes then rinse off.

Now you can try this mask out for yourself! I highly recommend it and I can't wait to review some more DIY hair and face masks for you guys! I hope you have the best Christmas ever and share the day with your loved ones. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight! Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

xxx

Catherine

Wednesday 23 December 2015

4 Natural Hair & Face Masks Using Cinnamon

Hey guys! Today I am going to give you the recipes for 5 hair and face treatments using cinnamon, the other ingredients are ones you will probably find at home. Have fun trying these!

Hair Mask
You will need:
- The egg white from 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Method:
Mix to create a paste and apply through the length of the hair, massaging into the scalp. Leave on for 20 - 30 minutes and rinse off.

Face Mask
You will need:
- Half a teaspoon of honey
- Half a teaspoon of cinnamon
Method:
Mix to create a paste and apply to the face, leave on for 15 - 25 minutes and rinse off.

Hair Mask
You will need:
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of honey
Method:
Mix to create a paste and apply to hair. Leave in for 10 - 20 minutes then rinse off.

Burning Face Mask
You will need:
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon of honey
Method:
Apply to the face and leave on for 30 minutes. Rinse off.
Note: If you have sensitive skin I recommend adding more honey, adding water or leaving out the lemon juice altogether.

I hope you found some use for this post! I'm sorry if I have completely overloaded you with hair and face masks! Once you have found your favourite beauty mask, apply once or twice a week for great results! Have a great day and I'll talk soon.

xxx

Catherine

Monday 14 December 2015

New Years Resolution

Hey guys! I know New Years Resolutions generally mean that you are not going to accomplish them or they're just plain impossible - like not eating chocolate for a whole year! But in 2016 I really want to work hard for my one and only New Years Resolution.

Saturday 5 December 2015

Surprise Giveaway!

Hey guys, I know I said that I was doing a Christmas post everyday but I have been extremely busy and I don't have many ideas for Christmas-related posts. I am still going to attempt to post everyday but the posts might not be related to Christmas. I have a surprise for you. (Again, all prices are in New Zealand Dollars.)

First I want to show you what I bought from a shop called Mitre 10 Mega, they were having a big sale and some things were over 80% off! I only got two things because it was mainly just light bulbs and drinking glasses. I got two of the same thing because I knew my friend would love it.


It says:
"Think left and thing right and think low and think high oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try" - Dr Seuss
You can't really see in the photo but it has mark and scratches that make it look cool and vintage. These were usually $40 each but I got them for just $2 a piece! I also found the perfect Christmas present but he was with me so it would be stupid to buy it that day. I'm really pleased with these pieces and I will get to hanging mine on my wall as soon as I can.

Okay, time for the surprise - I will be hosting a giveaway for a ukulele! I still need to do a lot of planning and surveying you guys but I am really excited to be giving back to my amazing readers! You have to understand that YOU WILL BE PAYING FOR THE SHIPPING. The reason for this is because I could end up paying hundreds of dollars in shipping and I am not prepared for that. I will talk to the winner about which country they live in and we will sort that out but for the most part you will be paying for the shipping. Listed below are some colours that the ukuleles come in aside from wood coloured, it would be a great help to me if you commented with the one you personally would prefer, I will also make a poll where you can vote for you favourite ukulele colour.
WHITE
PINK
YELLOW
BLUE
PURPLE
ORANGE
RED
Please comment your favourite colour and I will set up that poll.

I hope you are excited for the giveaway! I will post how to enter when I have more information. The winner will be kept private so that that person doesn't receive any hate, not that you guys would be mean but I don't want to risk it.

Thank you for reading and I will talk soon, byeeeeeeeeeee!

xxx

Catherine

Wednesday 2 December 2015

Christmas In New Zealand Wonderland

Hey guys, I'm really sorry that yesterday's post went up today, I pressed publish, or at least thought I did. Anyway, the post didn't end up being published yesterday but I realized this morning and it did come out today. Okay, time for the new tradition - today's advent calendar chocolate...
A Candy Cane!


Christmas in New Zealand is different from the typical English or American Christmas. In New Zealand, the weather is usually sunny and bright. We have barbecues and the kids play together in a pool. As you may know by now, our Christmas isn't snowy like most Christmas cards and snow globes suggest. New Zealanders really like to point out that it's sunny here. We have pictures of Santa Claus in jandals (flip flops or thongs), a singlet and shorts drinking beer on a sunny day. Sometimes we even go as far to picture him at the beach! I really love New Zealand and I could imagine Christmas without the sun.

Thank you for reading, beautiful people, I am getting excited for Christmas and rubbing tinsel on my face (don't question it). Come back tomorrow for a festive, happy post. Byeeeeeeeeeeee!

xxx

Catherine
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Christmas Photos

Hey guys! Happy December! I thought that we should kick off the month with some festive photos that make us excited for Christmas but first we have to check out my advent calendar and today's chocolate:


I got a Peppa Pig calendar because, well, why not?! It's sort of a tradition my family to get advent calendar that are made for smaller children and I think Peppa Pig is just so adorable! Now for today's chocolate 
A Wreath (I think)


Now are the photos I mentioned earlier:

 



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I'm sorry that I didn't have many photos, Christmas photos get quite repetitive but I might do a part 2 if I find the photos.

Thank you for reading today's post, come back tomorrow for another festive post! I love you all and I will talk to you tomorrow. 

xxx

Catherine