Hillary's craft competition, 2015...

Two weeks without a blog post, I clearly don't have as much to talk about...or it could be the fact of I've just been settling in to my new job...yeah, we'll go with the second one.

Hope you're well, whoever may be reading this. :)


On with the post, just over a year ago I entered a competition with Hillarys. If you want to read my last years post and see my entry you can do by clicking here. (I cringe a little when I reread old posts, so I tend not to do it often...it's for the best).

This year they have decided to run the competition again, find out more about it by clicking here. Second time around I'm seriously super excited! I only knew about the competition this year after receiving an email from Chris from Hillarys, I'm pretty sure he sent the email to everyone who got involved last year but hey, I felt special (not even kidding neither). I haven't really done anything crafty in a while so I was very grateful for this competition coming around, I could rekindle my love for crafts and being creative.

The competition was pretty simple, it was open to bloggers to show off their crafty side (the little slip says 'cut, stitch and blog your way' but it's ok, I didn't stitch but I checked that was ok...yes, I really am that much of a worry wort)! 

To enter the competition we had to simply choose one of the four different fabrics Hillarys gave us the choice between, then use our imagination to create whatever we bloomin' well liked...oh and then blog about it, hence why I'm writing this post. Who can grumble at that?

Out of the fabrics available I picked 'Hatti Raspberry' and once it had arrived in the post I was not disappointed at all. What beautiful quality, pattern and colours.

I'm going to start off by showing you my finished item, then we'll go back in time...one step at a time.

Once upon a time, this noticeboard was an old fashioned photo frame...

Sitting in a charity shop waiting for someone to rescue it. 

I'm pretty sure the frame loves its new look, it's left feeling full of life.

This frame was an absolute bargain costing only £3.50.
Especially after finding a frame before hand for sale at £15 in a different charity shop.
Charity shops are meant to be cheaper? Yes? 

After I'd bought the frame I headed off to a local craft shop which is one of my favourite little independent shops. The ladies in there are so lovely, extremely friendly and helpful.

'Hatti Raspberry' fabric in hand I went on a hunt to find the perfect paint colour to match and some ribbon too. Taking the fabric along with me made my decisions so much easier as I could tell what worked well with the fabric and chosen paint colour.

I've recently painted one of my bedroom walls a beautiful duck egg blue and I absolutely love it, it has made my room feel so much more cosier. So I knew I wanted to find a duck egg blue or a neutral colour to blend in with my room.

In the end after a few debating moments in the craft shop I finally went away extremely happy with my choice, my first choice actually. I got myself some lovely ribbon on board too (see what I did there? funny? no? humor me? ok?).

Materials now all bought that I didn't already own, it's time I start to give you a run down on how I created my beautiful noticeboard...

Step one...

First thing I did was take apart the frame, by take apart the frame I don't actually mean the whole frame. I mean take out the glass, picture and backing.

The frame was so old that everything was held in place by what I can only describe as extremely old parcel tape...I'm sure it isn't that, I'm not sure what it is (I have absolutely no idea so I'll not pretend that I do) it could be parcel tape but it was held in place by that and mini staples hammered into the frame sideways.

Screwdriver and pliers at the ready, it's time to separate this frame!

Step two...

Once the photo and frame were seperated and I just had the frame I decided to give it a clean with some fairy washing up liquid and a toothbrush to get inbetween the detailed edge of the frame. 

After I'd given it a good scrub a few times to make sure it was clean I went around with some kitchen roll to soak up any left over water.

Step three...

Time to get painting. I really enjoy painting, it is so therapeutic.

I treated this paint like I do nail varnish, nice thin coats are better than a couple of heavy blobby thick coats. 

After just one coat! It was pretty thick and not at all wishy washy but a few coats never hurt! :)

I ended up painting either three or four coats, basically enough so I was happy with how the frame looked. Thankfully the weather was nice when I chose to paint the frame so I managed to sit outside and get my paint on.


Step four...
I left my painted frame a good couple of days (ok, more like a week) to dry, it didn't take this long at all. It was dry within a couple of hours but it was a good few days before I picked the frame back up to continue with my project (lack of time).

The next thing I did was decide which way I wanted my stripes to go, running upwards, running side to side or running at an angle, I without a doubt preferred the stripes going across at an angle.

I then took the backing of the old photo, laying it flat down onto my fabric I drew around it. I used a Sharpie laundry marker (I'm sure you could use an ordinary Sharpie) and I allowed about a rulers width all the way around the fabric.

Once it was marked out I just took the scissors to it and cut, cut, cut away.

A little tip here, once I'd cut it out I decided to give it a quick iron to remove any creases (I mean what else do you use an iron for?)... If you're making something you might aswell give it your all, right?

Step five...

Now it's time to add a little wadding to the board. 

Again using the backing of the photo, which is now going to become the backing of the noticeboard. 

I laid the wadding out flat on the table and placed the backing from the photo on top.

Taking some scissors I worked my way around the backing to make sure there would be enough wadding to cover the back and still have enough to fold over the back like so...

As you can see from the photo once I'd got enough wadding I placed the backing onto the wadding (face down) and took my staple gun to hold the wadding in place.

Step six...

Now it's time to do the same with the fabric as I'd just done with the wadding.

The backing of the notice board (which was the photo backing) should now look like a blank canvas and it's time to get placing the ribbons. 

At this stage I made sure the notice board would fit ok in the frame (a little too late now though, it did though so no worries...I knew it would because I hadn't added much more depth to it) then I decided about the ribbons...

Step seven...

Ribbons at the ready it's time to have a play around, experiment...see what works best.

I decided I wanted to add a little character to my board so I took some hessian ribbon and plaited it, just like you'd plait hair. 

A little tip for you, use some washi tape or sellotape (washi tape isn't as messy) and stick the top of your three strands together to a surface to make plaiting a whole lot easier...

Step eight...

Ribbons and plaits in place, it's time to make it final. Staple gun at the ready again...

Staple, staple, staple allllll the way around. Making sure all the ribbons and plaits are securely in place.

Step nine...

Everything in place it's finally time to push the completed notice board into it's frame.

Step ten...

Hang proudly on the wall. Luckily for me the backing (which was the photo backing) had a thick cord already fastened into it so that saved a job. 

A noticeboard isn't complete with various different bits and bobs hanging from it.

I'm so pleased and proud of my entry even if I don't end up winning. It will always have its place in the spotlight whenever I have my fairy lights on... ;)

To create this noticeboard I used the following...

- Photo frame, Cancer Research UK (Charity shop)

- Americana Decor Chalk Paint, available from Hobbycraft. I used colour, vintage.

- Paint brush, B&Q. Any small paint brush should do.

-Wadding (a sheet, not little bits that you stuff teddies with), available from a craft store or a store such as Boyes.

- Ribbon, heart ribbon (Bertie's Bows) and hessian string/ribbon (Club Green). I bought both of them from the local independent craft store, shop around for your needs.

- Staple gun and staples, available Wilkinsons. 

HOORAYYYYYYYY, we've made it to the end!!!!

Becoming real life friends, meeting Jamie (,Dave and Pepper)...

Last weekend I got to spend the weekend with one of my best friends Jamie (is it weird to class her as my best friend? Even though I haven't known her long) :/. I don't know exactly when we started talking, or even how we started talking to be fair. I'm guessing it was probably on blog comments, then twitter, twitter then turns to text, text turns to phone calls, phone calls lead to Skype and well Skype leads to meeting up.

We talk literally every day now, some days it will be more than others but without a doubt, we will speak every day. I don't even want to think of life without Jamie in it. Yes she swears, yes shes feisty, yes she doesn't give a crap what people think but she is one of the nicest people I've ever met. We are so similar in some ways but then completely different in others which is great cos we've got a nice mix.

Meeting Jamie for the first time was so exciting but so nerve wracking at the same time. In some ways she was still a stranger because I'd never spent any time with her in real life, what if we didn't get along. What if I liked Jamie but she didn't like me? I had a fair few what ifs floating around my head during the run up to Jamie coming to visit. To the older generation us meeting up was slightly crackers and I'm pretty sure they thought we were crazy. It didn't help matters when my dad was making remarks along the lines of 'Annas got some friends coming to visit for the weekend who shes never met'. That makes it sound like just some randomers I've found online who I've not spoke to or skyped, this isn't an episode of Catfish. I bloomin' love that programme though!

My what ifs were made to look very small after the weekend, infact on our first day together they were made to look tiny. We got along like a house on fire, there was no awkward silences. Even Jamie's boyfriend (Dave) said it's like we've known each other for ages, it's like when you haven't seen someone for a while and things don't change. It's the same like you saw them yesterday or the day before.

Jamie, Dave and Pepper (their dog) easily fitted into our little world, in the countryside compared to their life in London. My parents had already spoke to Jamie and Dave in passing on Skype or Facetime so for them it wasn't strange neither because it was like they already knew them and what they were like.

I've got loads of photos to add on here and share so I'm going to try and give a little run down of how the weekend went. Jamie, Dave and Pepper traveled on Friday night around 8.15 and arrived at around 1am, a lonnng ass journey! I'm so grateful and feel so lucky and loved that they made so much effort to come spend the weekend with me. Thank you both soooo much!

Saturday morning, I felt so anxious. I felt so so so sick, I didn't tell anyone because I knew the ways to control it a little. That feeling eventually simmered down into the back of my mind so I could enjoy the day. Firstly we all jumped into my car and drove to town. I showed them round a little bit, it is a completely different pace of life compared to London so I'm hoping it made a nice change for them. Jamie absolutely loved how many dogs were about (yes, she is a crazy dog lady without a doubt), shrieking everytime we drove past a dog! Dave loved how many independent stores we have too.

Once we'd finished having a wander, we had a little pitt stop to have a drink before we decided what to do next. Go for a picnic or have some lunch in town. Picnic was the winner....WOOHOO! I love a good picnic, picnics for me usually are me sat on the living room floor on a blanket eating a sandwich with crisps and a drink (yes I've just admitted to being a real cool bean).

Jamie and Dave brought their own snazzy picnic basket, I mean check out this beauty...

Oh, and don't forget these two beauties ;)

I took Jamie, Dave and Pepper to a National Trust Park not far from me so we could enjoy peace, quiet and the outdoors...oh and each others company too of course. We sat and ate our picnic near the lake which obviously made for perfect photo opportunities of the wildlife.

All the ducks, geese and swans (babies & parents) were far too cute.

We unfortunately couldn't snap any photos of any squirrels because someone liked to show an interest in them...

'come on, let me at em'...

Pepper was so well behaved all weekend, she was such a pleasure. She even got in on the photo action...

Once we'd finished our picnic we went over to the other side of the lake to see more of what the park has to offer.

The reality behind Jamie and Daves selfies...

After we'd finished in the park all together we made our way out.

The park is such a beautiful place to spend time in. You get very little signal so it is like an escape from everything. 

On our way out we got out of the car to take some more photos and Pepper spent her time like this...

'don't worry mum, I'm watching you'...

Next thing to do? Get some more food in our bellies...Ok, first...more photos! To narrow it down I've just chose my favourite one of about ten.

'life's too short to take boring photos'

Next stop was foooood, we opted for KFC then we headed back home. To make the most of the day and our time together, we went for a walk then just chilled at mine for the rest of the night. We all ended up falling to sleep and I remember waking up to the sound of Pepper about to throw up. No mess, but she was poorly :(.

Sunday came around and Pep seemed better. We got ready and I took them to the next town for us to nip to New Look, Matalan and JD Sports. I'm going to have to share the little funny story behind our trip to Matalan. Jamie wanted a wee, she opened the toiler door, that was unlocked and sat on the loo was a man having a poo...reading the paper! Poor Jamie was so shocked and I bet the poor guy didn't hang around, in fear of bumping into her in the store.

Shopping done, on to dinner (or lunch as Jamie insists on calling it ;) ). We met my parents at the local golf course and had a delicious carvery. Dinner (sorry, Jamie lunch :P ) was delicious. Next stop was to town again and for a walk through the park.

Seriously, how photogenic can one dog be?!

Whilst walking through the park Jamie spotted this tree...I see a tree, what do you see?

Admittedly in the end I did see what she spotted. I can spot it even more looking at this photo too.

After we'd walked through the park we decided to go to the sweetie shop because we are real grown ups... Just when I thought these pair were behaving themselves, this happened...

Next stop, McDonalds for a nice drink. We'd thought about going to a pub but it was abit windy and cold so we opted for McDonalds car park (yeahhhh, we know how to partayyyy)! After that we went for a spin (spin sounds better than drive around). I showed them around a little and Dave was clearly so on edge with my driving and holding on for dear life this happened...

Once Dave had woke up from his snooze, we got home and packed their suitcase ready because they had to go back at some point. Not impressed :( 

Suitcase packed but it wasn't time to go home, nooooo! Looking at the size of Jamie's case she clearly wanted to stay longer. A weekend bag seriously wouldn't of done this girl any good.

Time for another walk...

Walkies done, it was time for lots of photos and chill time.

A little note to you, Jamie...

Thank you so much for coming in to my life. Thank you for being there for me. For making me realize the shit in life, seeing the true colours in characters. Thank you for coming to spend the weekend with me. I will come to visit you too I promise, I just can't say when...I'll work on it though, in the meantime if you every fancy a getaway into the countryside, you know where I am! :) Oh and I'm really missing talking to you through the window in the morning...AND having a conversation that isn't interrupted with poor connection or reconnecting.

p.s. thanks to Dave too for driving all that way here and back. Plus thanks for being a part of our weekend too :)

Well if anyone actually manages to read all of this they deserve a massive pat on the back.

If you've happened to get this far, let me know? Have you ever met anyone who came into your life online?

Oh and a little note to Tom from Skype too, heyyy and thank you for getting in touch too! :) (this is to check if you read this post haha!)

'online friends' become 'real life friends'...the build up!

I'm not one of those people who feels you can't become or build a friendship online. In my opinion, you totally can. Obviously you have to be really careful and if you have a gut feeling something or someone isn't quite right then listen to your gut.

A few years after leaving school was when I became more active in the cyber world. I used to have facebook through school and you know the likes of bebo...oh yes, who remembers bebo? can I have your love for the day? (if you didn't have bebo you clearly won't understand that).

I deactivated my facebook account because it was not worth the hassle that came along with it and I feel so much better for getting rid. Twitter in my opinion is so much better. Facebook is for the people who you know and wish you didn't, Twitter is filled with people who you don't know but wish you did. Anyone else heard that quote?

I originally joined twitter for something to do I guess, to follow the celebs (I was originally one of them annoying tweeters trying to get noticed by one direction...it didn't happen, have no fear I've moved wayyyy on from that stage. You live, you learn). But now for me twitter is so much more than just following the celebs, I use it to connect with other people all over the country. It is great!

I've wrote 3 paragraphs so far and I've not actually mentioned what I'm wanting to actually talk about today. I've never come close to meeting anyone from the internet. It is a pretty scary step to meet someone who you've met online. This weekend I'll be doing just that, I'm a mixture of emotions. I'm extremely excited but I'm scared too. Since Sunday I've been feeling really anxious and now the week of the weekend has arrived I'm guessing those levels might slightly rise even more but distraction is key...hence why I'm blogging about it.

This weekend will see Jamie, her boyfriend Dave and their dog Pep come to stay for a few nights. It is so crazy to think I only started blogging as an escape now I've actually got a very good friendship out of it. I know I shouldn't be scared because yes technically they are 'strangers' because I haven't met them in person but I mean I've skyped them enough to know they aren't crazy loons...well, actually they are crazy loons but in the greatest way possible. I just keep reminding myself that the feelings I'm feeling are completely normal and the best way to do this is, feel the fear and do it anyway!

It is crazy to think in three days, three whole days I will be able to see this lovely little lady in real life. I can feel a photo filled blog post coming up next week, unless Jamie can't stand me and they end up leaving after a few hours...I'm sure she wont...if it is anything like Skype/phone/text we will get on like a house on fire. I actually feel sorry for Dave, he is going to get ganged up on soooo much...pre warning for you there Dave! :) See you guys soon! X

my latest love, Seventeen Gel Colour.

Recently I've not really been feeling the blogging love, I haven't felt the feeling of wanting to blog. I've been kind of busy in 'the real world', you know cos blogging is just an illusion, it's a made up world. I'm totally kidding by the way. Blogging is a part of my life. Admittedly I do slack sometimes but the beauty with blogging is there are no rules, blog when you want, where you want, about what you want.

Ok, now that I've got that little bit out of my head I'll talk about what I came here to talk about and that is SEVENTEEN GEL COLOUR ...oh my, without a doubt my latest love.

Seventeen is a range exclusive to Boots and they currently have an offer on. 2 for £6 on Gel Colour, thanks for a fab offer Seventeen and Boots but I think you've got some explaining to do to my bank balance.

When I first spotted these polishes in Boots thankfully my local store only had a small selection. A small selection means less time spent oohing and awwing over which polish I want to add to my collection. I picked up 4 colours first time around, but now my Seventeen Gel Colour collection has doubled. My local boots now stock the whole collection, so I'm currently trying my best to avoid it (you know after already purchasing 4 more since I couldn't decide on just 2).

I've been wanting to share all the colours on here but reality is right now I can't. I don't want to paint my nails, take a photo straight away then paint another colour. Admittedly I tried that last week but the lighting was all wrong and it just ended terribly so I'm going to paint my nails as usual and just snap photos and throw them all in one post, eventually.

But I couldn't create a post without adding pictures though so the colour Razberrito is going to be the main feature for today. I'm seriously in love with the colour and the polish as a whole. Let me tell you why...

The formula, impressive. The only other gel look shine polish I've tried is Barry Ms and I don't rate them one bit. This formula is just right in my eyes. Each time I've painted my nails I've literally got just the right amount of polish on my brush, making painting my nails fun and enjoyable. If you've used any of Barry M's gelly shine polish you will know exactly what I mean by their formula, their formula is so thick and blobby (farrrrr too thick). If you hate that as much as I do, I think you will be seriously impressed with Seventeens new range too.

The coverage...I advice using either 2 or 3 coats. 2 coats are usually fine but depending if it's a glitter one maybe 3.

The wear, mind blowing? Maybe my mind is easily blown but how can Seventeen create a polish that lasts so long without signs of wear. On the bottle cap it states to have upto 8 days wear. I've tried 3 different polishes and each time I made a note in my diary so I could work out how many days they lasted. On average it was around 4 to 5 days which in my eyes is pretty impressive. But as I'm typing this and looking down at my nails they are only just starting to chip slightly and it has been 1 week. 1 whole week, I'm on to a winner here in my eyes! *pppsssssttt* I didn't even use a top coat to protect them either so it is all the polishes work alone.

The colour match... I don't know how some makes manage this but I've bought polishes before and they come out a wishy washy version of what is in the bottle...meaning they require alot of coats to match, therefore it's time consuming and a little boring. Seventeens Gel Colour on the other hand is on point with the match! What you see in the bottle is exactly how it'll be on your nails.


WOW, did I just write a review? Without actually calling it a 'review' and freaking out a little inside...yes, yes I bloomin well did. Woo hoo, I'm impressed with myself.

Have you tried any of Seventeens Gel Colour polishes? If your answer was no, what are you playing at? Girl, you are seriously missing out.