Disaronno Versace - a perfect chrismas tipple!

If your a Disaronno drinker or know someone who is, and you love fashion, AND love supporting charities, then you need to put this on your Christmas drink list!!

I was lucky enough to try out the Disaronno Versace Sour cocktail, and i can tell you now, its really good.


Versace designed this limited edition bottle which is available now and is £15 for the 500ml bottle. The bottle supports the Fashion 4 Development project which is a global campaign to tackle the issues in the developing world. 

'Fashion 4 Development' is supported by The United Nations, and part of the proceeds of the sale of DISARONNO will go towards this charity. 

Its a win, win sitatuation, you can enjoy your christmas drink and know some money is going to a good cause. Thats what christmas is all about isnt it? - Giving back to a good cause.

A gift you you..

Here's how you make the VERSACE Disaronno sour cocktail-


25ml DISARONNO
15ml Vermouth Bianco
15ml lime juice
Shake and pour over crushed ice
Top with a dash of Prosecco
Drizzle with Blue Curacao



*written for review purposes, but no payment or product received.

Scrapbook Update & a Moan about Hobbycraft

I think i have decided that i want to try and scrapbook more regularly, im not sure i can manage every week although im going to try my hardest. I have my Simple Stories Sn@p binder which i think will be a good first timer album. I will be using some of their normal pocket pages along with some Insta pockets. I decided to try and go from December to December as i have a lot happening this December... who knows i might only fit December in one book... (How many times can you say December in one sentence... )

 It was this video on youtube that inspired me to do this style of scrapbooking... i just loooove it.



Leading on from this i decided i NEEDED to go to Hobby craft to get some supplies, thus enters my disappointment.

Lets talk about my  failed attempt at a shopping spree in Hobby craft... whats going on Hobby craft, why is your so called 'Papercraft' section rubbish now?!

I thought i would treat myself to some project life as it is currently 25% off... the selection was bloody awful. I know its on sale, but it wasnt even enough space to have a full selection laid out, it was all over the shop.

I wanted to buy Washi tape, alphabet stickers (Thickers or other American Craft ones) and some project life cards, or smashbook supplies. They had NO washi tape or alphabet stickers in the whole shop. Not going to bother going there again, think ill stick to online shopping in future which is a shame as i love the thrill of going to the store.

Please direct me to any good websites you know for scrap booking supplies or other scrapbooking bloggers or youtubers.

I also came across some free scrapbook classes online on  www.scrapbook.com, i signed up to all the free ones.. so far so good, i have the Teresa Collins Albums made easy class, Learn to scrapbook, Sn@p Simple stories album in a class, and Journalling technices with Ali Edwards. You should sign up whilst their free, they get delivered to your inbox daily so its pretty cool.

So thats my rambly post over with... ill be putting a video on my youtube with my rubbish hobbycraft haul.. so keep an eye out!


 

Doddle for Dogs Review & Giveaway!


If your a regular viewer you will realise that i love my dogs more than life itself.

I was given the opportunity to review a new collar for dogs called 'Doddle' Its called Doddle due to its ease of use, its a doddle to use!

Doddle is a collar with a retractable lead built into it. I bet you wish you had thought of that idea!



Instagram: Ramblingsofgeo

We decided to give it a go on Vinny as hes a bit more laid back than Diesel, we used it on a recent trip to the vets for their yearly jabs, and it made life a lot easier. 



The Doddle did make it a bit easier at the vets as i didn't have to faff about getting the harness off the dog so it wasn't in the way of his neck. It was a lot easier to get him in and out of the car too, he seemed less stressed too. I think the doddle is a good concept if you have well behaved/ trained dogs. Mine are a bit scatty (what jack Russell isn't!?) so i wouldnt be comfortable using this near roads as there is no way of stopping them from lunging into the road.

The pod where the retractable lead is stored is quite large, so i wouldnt let my dog wear it all the time. Its well made though and very strong. There is some loops to attached ID tags, or another lead if you wanted a back up.

I love that this is another product that has been on Dragons den, one of my fav TV programmes. 

How Handsome does my boy look!!
 You can enter to win a Doddle for your dog, just complete the Raffle copter widget below to enter!

Be sure to leave me a comment with what dog you have, and a link to your blog if you have one!

(Competition ends on  26th Nov)


Grandad, this ones for you.

Its my Grandads birthday today,  (and my mums, so happy birthday mum if your reading)

I wanted to write this as my grandparents live in france so i dont get to see them often, and i thought it was a bit more meaningful than another card that will just get put away and forgetten about.


___________________________________________________

My Grandad means more to me than anything in the world, he has taught me so many things in life and made me the person i am today. I am so grateful for what both of my grandparents did for me when i was growing up, and grateful that i could live with them when i wasn't happy at home.  They gave me a sanctuary, somewhere that was home and i felt safe and loved. 


My grandad cooked my crumpets in the morning, and used that as his tactic to wake me up in the mornings. I remember this every morning:

Grandad: George are you up yet, your crumpets are under the grill!
Me: (Still in bed all cozy) Yes Grandad im getting ready

5mins later

Grandad: GEORGIA YOUR CRUMPETS ARE BURNING - (walking towards my room)
Me: (Jumping out of bed to pretend im getting ready) I'M getting ready, hang on a minute!

This usually ended up with me having burnt crumpets, or Grandad pretending he had put them under the grill when he hadnt really and was just trying to get me out of bed. I was one lazy teenager, but teenagers need their sleep right?! 

Grandad drove me to school in the mornings in his skanky work van, Grandad used to be a welder on cars (Chassis and body repair, see Grandad i remember!) So the work van wasn't exactly clean where he had a pretty dirty job working with cars and metal. We used to chat on the way to school and grandad used to enthuse in me that i should work hard at school, get a job and save money. My Grandparents work ethic was amazing, they both worked SO hard to provide for not only themselves, but me as well when they didn't have to. 


I never went without anything. Some might say i was a brat but i can tell you now i have only been grateful for everything they gave me and did for me. I remember wanting this Mega blocks doll house type thing from Woolworth's when i was about 10, i was told no i couldn't have it. Yet i worked my charms and persuaded Grandad that i would clean his work van. As usual he gave in, and took me to woolies to get the toy, i loved that toy and played with it all the time... i never did clean the van.


My Grandads sense of humor is something to be desired. My grandads favorite sweets are American Hard gums (the ones covered in sugar) One Saturday evening when the whole family was over watching Gladiators, Baywatch and blind date.. you know the standard Saturday night in the 90's. My grandad disappeared and brought the hard gums in, my uncle always went for the best flavour... the black ones... little did he know, my grandad had taken all the sugar off and covered it in salt!!! Nigel did get a bit of a surprise! haha :) 


Basically i just want to say - Thank you for being the best grandad any one could ever ask for. You have shown me so much love, kindness and taught me so much. I love that Mike thinks so much of you and loves spending time with you. He cant wait to play golf and go fishing next time he see's you.  

Happy Birthday Grandad, here's to many more!

Now go get yourself a beer for reading all of this.

Love you 

xxxxxxxx


P.S i know this photo will make you laugh so i had to include it.....


(Brian is my grandparents Jack Russell, and he is not violent at all... just loves to smile! haha)



Nails inc: Alexa Leather


Oooooooh check out this lovely nails inc polish.

Its a leather effect, so it has a rough texture where you dont apply a top coat over the top. You want it to look rough, and leather like.





I love the new style bottles that Nails inc have brought out, its so sleek, and a bigger bottle so you get more for your money!

They are £15 a bottle with 14ml of product (Which is 4ml more than you got in the old style) you can get it from the nails inc website. It flew off the shelves when it was first released, so you might have more chance of getting it now.

 *PR Sample

France: Part 3 - Aquarium du PĂ©rigord Noir & Mini Golf!

Mid week we went to Aquarium du PĂ©rigord Noir which was about an hour from my grandparents house, the scenery on the way was nice, lots of fields and country side.

The Aquarium has 1000's of freshwater fish, and to be honest i thought it was pretty awesome. There was Sturgeon, Axolotl's, lots of Pleco's and a HUUUUUGE pool of Koi carp. 


















Beauty Must have: La Roch-Posay Effaclar Anti Blemish System*

If you are looking for a 3 step system to get your skin in really good condition, then look no further. 

The La Roch-Posay anti blemish system has three products, the first step is the Gel Cleanser, the second is the Clarifying toner, and the final, my favorite, is the Effaclar Duo+ Corrective cream.


Im going to mention the dreaded C word... but this would be an awesome set to give to someone for christmas. It is currently £32.50 in boots, and if your not happy with it you can get y0ur money back! 

This set gives you a 6 week supply which i think will give you a good indication as to whether the product is going to work for you. Its suitable for sensitive skin, and specially for people with Acne. Its also Parabin free, which is a bonus!


I love the Effaclar Duo+ cream, i use it every day on my forehead... yes thats right. My forehead. I used to get these horrible little spots along my hair line. Since i started using this product the have completely gone. I went through a few weeks where i stopped using it, and they came straight back. So i've been back to my usual routine and they have gone again! woo.

*I was perked with this product, all comments are honest and opinions my own.

Veggie Quorn Lasagne with and my Dolmio bargain!

Are you ready for a very quick and easy Veggie Dinner!?
 
Well here we go.... I was in the middle of a quick dash into Iceland to get some bread and milk. When i came across an offer where you could get a free Dolmio Lasagne dish if you bought two Dolmio sauces. The sauces were on offer for £1.50 each too which was a bargain!


I picked up two sauces, the tomato lasagne sauce, and the creamy white sauce.  This got me the free dish. I then had to get some lasagne sheets, mushrooms, onion, mozzarella and some Quorn Mince.


All you need to do is..
 
1) Fry the chopped up Onions until slightly browned. Throw in the Mushroom and Mince.
2) Pour in the tomato sauce and let it simmer and heat through.
 
 
3) Next Layer the mince and veg in the dish, start with the Mince, then a layer of Pasta sheet, then a layer of Creamy white sauce.
4) Repeat until the dish is full, then cover with Mozzarella.
 
 
5) Cook for approx 25mins until the cheese is browned, it might be worth covering it with foil to give it a little longer to cook through so that the pasta sheets are cooked. (Ours were a little bit chewy)
 
6) Enjoy!
 
 
I have made a few other dinner with Quorn which you can look at the links below:

Quorn Cottage Pie.
Quorn Curry Bagel
Quorn with Cous Cous



France 2014: Part 2

Im here with another French update. We managed to cram quite a lot in to one week, so i have to split up the posts through fear of boring you death.

On Thursday we went along to Eymet Market, its a morning market, and its my favorite. I love the atmosphere, the smells, the feeling of being lost in translation. I dont speak french, i know my hello's, please, thank you and the odd bit of vocab. But being in a small Bastide where everyone speaks french is brilliant. (There is alot of english down there too though, which ruined the atmosphere a bit)


Looking down a narrow street

Birdies on wires


  The town is a square with a fountain in the middle, and has narrow streets going off every direction, and the market leads off up to Eymet castle.



How beautiful the colours of the bags and baskets are!


We finished the market off with a beer and a sit down. The weather was pretty hot whilst we we're there. About 27+ most days!

Pretty much every afternoon we spent our time here...



We did manage a dog walk before dinner too, which was nice. We took Brian up to the field behind my grandparents house, and thought it would be rude not to snap some photos of the sun flowers, even if they are dieing.






I even finished off the walk with a photo shoot of their cat Manu..


More to come next week!

Christening day!

Last Sunday we were invited to a christening for our friends Daughters, it was a lovely day and really nice to catch up with friends and fa...