Oil cleansing

For as long as I can remember I have had problem skin. Too oily, too dry, large pores, acne.

I have tried everything to clean pores, clear spots, moisturise dry areas, whilst de-oiling the oily parts. So far nothing has worked and I'm still on this lifelong mission to find something amazing.

I found a link on pinterest for oil cleansing. I'd never heard of it before but it made perfect sense and so I pinned it to try later. A friend of mine noticed that I'd pinned it and (jointly with another friend) bought me the bits I needed, for my Birthday. I was thrilled! I've been meaning to buy the stuff in for a while now, but going out to buy things I need seems to be a road block for me to do anything new...but now I have no excuse.

For anyone who isn't familiar with this technique, here is the link to the original blog post that inspired me.

I'm using equal parts Castor Oil and Sweet Almond Oil. You simply mix them together and store them in a container of your choosing. I'm using an old facewash bottle.

The blog post above states you must use cold pressed Castor Oil...check!

Ok, so I guess it's time to embarrass myself and show you my skin sans foundation...these will be known as "before" 

Here goes...

So basically you put a small amount in your hand and massage it into your face for 1 minute. Then you get a wash cloth nice and hot (but not so hot that you scold yourself) and put it over your face for a minute. By the end of the minute your cloth should have cooled. Then simply wipe (not scrub) the oil from your face. 

Ta da, you are done!

Do this at night only and rinse with plain water each morning.

I've had my first wash with my oil mixture and first impressions are that it doesn't feel even remotely as bad as I thought it would. In fact my skin felt lovely afterwards. I'm used to having tight skin after a wash and trying to calm it with moisturiser, I didn't need to do that this time. 

I will report back after a week...watch this space. 

A new beginning: Weighday

I made the decision today to make my journal a little broader than craft alone. 

There are several aspects of my life that I would like to write about, so rather than having several blogs posted here, there and everywhere, I thought..why not just have one blog that covers everything? 

Therefore my first non-craft related post will be about something that I've battled with for my entire adult life...my weight. I've dieted on and off since I was about 15yrs old, even though I didn't really have a big weight problem until I was around 21 years old (2 years after moving in with my husband, funnily enough). 

I have tried many many diets, but the only one that works for me is Slimming World...I have been successful in the past on Slimming World, once losing over 4 stone...then I had 2 children. 

I rejoined at the beginning of this year and I've been yo-yoing since. Today I am back on plan. My Birthday is out of the way (and I only gained 0.5lb over that 2 week period, so I was pretty pleased about that) and I'm going to attempt to go back to basics and have a green week. I've also bought myself a lovely diet plaque (see below) to spur me on. Watch this space to see how that works out for me. 

Sparkly Little Sister Dress

Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is almost ready for Christmas, unfortunately we are not. Illness has totally railroaded me, so I have still got quite a bit to do, but both children are finally well again and I can do some last minute bits, included my WIP for this week, which will form part of my eldest's Christmas outfit.

Pattern: Little Sister Dress

Yarn: James C Brett Twinkle

Despite being acrylic, I love love love this yarn. I think it will look amazing when it's done. The photo doesn't do it justice at all. The colour is darker in real life and MUCH sparklier.

If I don't get chance to blog again before Christmas, I hope everyone has an amazing holiday! xxx

Linked with Tami's Amis

Harrogate Knitting and Stitching Show

Every year I attend the Twisted Thread, Knitting and Stitching Show. I would go as far as to say, it is the highlight of my year. This year it almost didn't happen. A lot has been going on in my life and I've, consequently, been very disorganised. But alas, I managed to wrangle some willing people together and our trip was underway.

It was an early start for a Sunday so at the train station we stopped at Starbucks for a pick-me-up and I got to try out my new coffee cozy. If nothing else, it amused the lady behind the counter. 


The show is basically a huge craft market, selling everything from yarn to sewing machines.

This was pretty amazing. A completely knitted village and unsurprisingly there were a few people gathered around it taking many many pictures.


So much detail


Isn't this just darling?






l very nearly bought this kit. You got everything you needed to make these 3 dinosaurs and my youngest daughter is a dinosaur fanatic, but I resisted. 


After the show we called into Costa to replenish out energy. Coffee so immense that it needs two handles to hold it was in order, right Helen?

and of course the loot because I know you are all dying to know what I bought. 

The blue fleece is earmarked to make my youngest a Rainbow Dash costume. I just hope I get around to making it for her before Christmas.

I'm not sure what to do with this fabric, I just really really liked it. Any suggestions? 

One set of these are going to be going on a hat for me


I had wingpan in mind for this gorgeous yarn from 

and finally these cute little charms and bells will hopefully become part of mini wreaths.

Now if I can just pry myself away from the internet, and by internet I mean Pinterest and Ravelry, then I can get on with making the many many things I have queued and pinned.

Have you got a long list of things to make before Christmas? 

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Despite my lack of posts, I have been click click clicking away on the old needles, I even dusted off my crochet hooks and gave them some love this past week.

First up...I've been dying to make this jumper for ages. Unfortunately I didn't have enough yarn to make the full jumper (and the yarn was discontinued) so I turned it into a tank top. It was really easy and knitted up so much faster that I expected. I'm already planning a second one (with arms this time).

Pattern: Owls by Kate Davies

Eventually they will have buttons for eyes.

The hubby and I drink a lot of Starbucks, so cup cozies were in order and since I'm getting excited about Christmas they had to be holiday themed. I can't wait to take these for a spin. I've been stuck indoors all week with a poorly small person. A Starbucks will be very much enjoyed as soon as I can break free of all the germs! 

And finally a wreath brooch.

I'd forgotten how much I love to crochet. I can see more crocheted items in my immediate future. Expect lots of holiday themed things between now and Christmas too. I'm a child when it comes to this time of year, who can resist the prettiness of the twinkling lights, the glitter, the sparkle and overall eye candy everywhere? Not me! 

Happy Friday everyone and happy shopping to those trying to grab a bargain during Black Friday. 

Linking with Tami's Amis

WIP Wednesday: Multnomah and Owls

I must admit. I'm no writer and I always struggle with what to say on a WIP Wednesday post. I guess that's why I love instagram so much. I get to show off my work without having to write a load of text alongside it. I'm a great believer in pictures being worth a thousand words. So I'll leave you with pictures of my works in progress.

Pattern: Multnomah

Yarns: Both are unknown unfortunately. The natural yarn was in a bargain bucket at Texere Yarns, but I'm pretty sure it's some kind of wool, the rainbow yarn was a gift from a friend in the U.S, again it feels like wool.

Pattern: Owl Jumper

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky

I've been admiring this pattern for some time now and I'm very excited about finally giving it a go. 

Linking with Tami's Amis

FO Friday: Little Sister Dress

Happy Friday fellow bloggers. I'm sorry my posts have been a bit sporadic. I had a minor (or maybe major, as the case may be) medical set back, but I'm slowly getting back to real life. I've mainly been spending time with my family, enjoying the start of a beautiful autumn and thanking my lucky stars that I am still here to enjoy them, so forgive my long breaks, I will get back to normal soon.

On a brighter note, my youngest daughter (who is only 3yrs btw) has been my pillar of strength. She held my hand during a blood test and even gave me stickers for being brave at the hospital...is that just too cute?

Getting back on track... this week I've finished making another Little Sister Dress for a friends little girl. I truly love this pattern and plan on making a 3rd, but this time for my eldest daughter. I'll have to do some scaling up, but it will be worth it. In fact I would love one of these tops myself!

I'll have to try extra hard to post on Wednesday and show you the progress on my new project ;)

Linking this with Tami's Amis' Wip Wednesday.