Lifestyle – Page 6

CHRISTMAS HOMEWARE HAUL

Published on November 29, 2017November 29, 2017 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Hey beautiful souls,

I have been so excited to share this blog post with you! I am obsessed with homeware and just love decorating the house, so of course I get very excited about Christmas and can’t wait to make the house all festive. I do have a rule though that Christmas decorations can’t go up until December, however as I am now currently in northern Ireland, I did make an exception to this rule and started a little early.

The milk bottle ghosts and pumpkins have been taken down and the Christmas candles and decorations are slowly being put up. Here are some of the Christmasy bit’s and bobs my housemate Jessica and I picked up on our trip to Newcastle the other week:

Star tealight holder £5 Wilkos – Red Display plate £1 Wilkos – Bath bomb £1 Wilkos – Candles £3 Primark – Room spray £3 Primark

Tealight holders £1.50 each Tiger – Cookie tin £3 Tiger – Napkins £1 Tiger

These are only the first few Christmasy decorations we bought and I can’t wait to buy some more bits and bobs, put the tree up and finish decorating the house! Have any of you started decorating yet??

Love Carina xo

DURHAM LUMIERE

Published on November 22, 2017 by simplycarinaxo6 Comments

Good evening beautiful souls,

On Thursday the Durham Lumiere began. It is the UK’s biggest light festival and works with different artists to bring various light displays to the centre of Durham. The Lumiere is a four day event drawing in people from all over England to come and see the light festival. This is the Lumiere’s 4th year and it’s the first time I have been!! I was only at uni in Sunderland, so just up the road really, so I don’t know why I never bothered to come home to Durham to see the previous Lumieres I realise now I totally missed out!

So I was very excited to finally go and see all the light installations! I went with my housemate Jessica and we walked around for a good 2hs; I absolutely loved it! We only saw about half of the Lumiere and I’m gutted I didn’t go back another day to see the rest, but Sunday after work I was just far too tired to go out into the cold again.

Anyway, here are the things we went to see:

Did anyone else go and see the Lumiere? What were your thought’s on it?

Love Carina xo

MY WINTER READING LIST

Published on November 12, 2017November 12, 2017 by simplycarinaxo4 Comments

Good evening guys,

I absolutely love reading but recently I’ve been so caught up in binge watching Netflix shows that I haven’t picked a book up in ages. Abandoning my books has left me feeling guilty; it’s high time I finally get reading again. My fingers have been itching to pick up a book and so I thought I’d share my winter reading list with you. I have at least 40 books on my ‘to read’ bookshelf but here are the books I am currently in the mood to work my way through.

TINTENHERZ – CORNELIA FUNKE

The Inkheart trilogy, written (originally in German) by Cornelia Funke, is a series I have actually already read when I was about 12 years old. One of the reasons I am picking this trilogy up again now is that I haven’t read a German book in ages and I really need to keep my German reading up. I am noticing that it is getting more and more difficult for me to read with ease in German; it’s not that I don’t understand it anymore, but it definitely takes a lot more concentration for me to take everything in and not drift, so I figured a young adult’s trilogy would be a good start to get me back into German books. Moreover, I remember wolfing these books down the first time round and I have been eager for quite a while now to delve back into the beautiful world of this trilogy.

WOLFSANGEL – M.D. LACHLAN

I picked this book up the last time I was in Barter Books in Alnwick. It intrigued me with its blurb about wolves and Vikings. As of yet, I haven’t read a book set in the Viking era, but I love series like Vikings set in this ancient era and so I’m excited to give this a go.

THE LITTLE BOOK OF HYGGE – MEIK WIKING

MAKING FRIENDS WITH ANXIETY – SARAH RAYNER

Of course there had to be a book or two of non-fiction. I am trying to incorporate more non-fiction into my everyday reading and for my winter reading list I of course had to choose The Little Book Of Hygge to give me all those warm cosy zen feels and then I also decided on Making Friends With Anxiety a book I picked up quite a while ago in the hope that it would give me some insight and maybe suggest some new coping mechanisms for anxiety, which I suffer from on a daily basis.

THE REVENANT – MICHAEL PUNKE

I believe this book was a Christmas present about two years ago and I still haven’t got around to reading it! I picked this myself with a book voucher as I wanted to see what all the hype from the movie was about. I always want to read the books before I watch the movie or series adaptations, so I still haven’t seen the movie wither yet; before I get more books for Christmas that get put aside for two years aha, I thought it was high time I ticked this one of my list.

THE HANDMAID’S TALE – MARGARET ATWOOD

This has been on my ‘to read’ list for quite a while and with the quite recent hype of the televised show based on this book I decided I couldn’t put this one off much longer as I really want to watch the show, but as I just mentioned I refuse to watch it until I have read the book, so it’s time to get reading.

Have any of you already read any of these books? If so what did you think of them? I’d love to hear your thoughts and tell me what’s on your reading list too!

Love Carina xo

ORANGE PUMPKIN CRISPY CAKES

Published on October 29, 2017March 3, 2025 by simplycarinaxo1 Comment

Good evening guys,

On Friday I hosted a Halloween games night and made these cute pumpkin crispy cakes. I thought you’d like this easy recipe, so here you go.

You will need:

Silicone moulds (these pumpkin ones were from Lidl)
195g mars bars
90g butter
3 cups of rice crispies
Orange extract
200g milk, dark or white chocolate

Melt chocolate in the microwave and pour a little into each silicon mould. Pop into the fridge to cool. Now chop up butter and mars bars and melt on a low heat until smooth. Add a couple drops of orange extract. Once smooth take off heat and stir in rice crispies. Take moulds out of fridge and fill with rice crispy mixture. Leave to cool down before putting moulds back into fridge to set. You’ll be able to enjoy them after an hour or two.

Love Carina xo

BEST HALLOWEEN MOVIES

Published on October 28, 2017 by simplycarinaxo6 Comments

Good evening guys,

It’s time for my next blogtober Halloween post! I’ve seen so many people in this past week share their choice of favourite Halloween movies. I’ve enjoyed reading these posts and reminiscing over some of my childhood favourites like The Little Vampire, as well as realising how many movies I haven’t actually seen yet. Thinking of all these great Halloween movies really put me in the mood to snuggle up and have a movie binge night. So I thought I’d share a list of my favourite Halloween movies and add a list of the one’s I have yet to watch too because these are the ones I’ll be working my way through tonight once I’ve crawled under my blanket with a bowl of pumpkin soup in living room by pumpkin light.

Some Favourites

Casper The Friendly Ghost
The Little Vampire
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Sweeny Todd
The Addams Family

To Watch

The Nightmare Before Christmas
Corpse Bride
A Nightmare On Elm Street
Beetlejuice
The Craft
Hocus Pocus

That’s all from me today; do let me know what your all-time favorite Halloween movie is!!!

Love Carina xo

HALLOWEEN MAKEUP TUTORIAL

Published on October 26, 2017October 26, 2017 by simplycarinaxo11 Comments

Good evening guys,

Halloween is one of my favourite times of year in part because I love dressing up and having some fun with face paint! So with only 5 days till the 31st here’s an easy skull inspired makeup look – hope you enjoy!

You will need:

White face paint – black face paint – a little dish of water – black liquid eye liner – black pencil eye liner – dark grey/black eye shadow – white eyeliner – black mascara – makeup brush – beauty blender/sponge

Fresh faced – make sure you have washed you face and moisturised it before you begin.

Start by wetting your makeup brush to dilute the white face paint and apply all over your face and down your neck. Use the beauty blender/sponge to pat out any brush strokes and blend the paint into you neck.

Next use the black face paint and apply similarly to your normal contour lines (as well as encircling your eyes in black) before blending in with your sponge. Tip – do one contour line at a time and blend in with sponge; if you paint on all the lines first they will dry very quickly and prove difficult to blend!

Once the basic contouring is done, keep layering on the colour till you have the depth you want before setting in with dark grey/black eye-shadow. Next grab your black liquid liner and paint on the nose bone or rather lack of and go on to blend your eyes into their dark surrounding with your pencil liner. Use it to fill in your eyelids and darken your waterline. Now it’s time to use your black mascara to define and darken your eyelashes.

And last but not least take your liquid liner again and draw on the stitched up mouth – start with the horizontal line before adding the smaller vertical lines. Remember to take the horizontal line all the way from right to left and over your lips not just from the corner of your lips outwards.

And there you have the final look! Nice and easy and quick!

Hope you enjoyed this post!

Love Carina xo

MINI GETAWAY – DESTINATION ALNMOUTH

Published on October 8, 2017September 2, 2024 by simplycarinaxo4 Comments

Good evening beautiful souls,

At the beginning of the week I was away in Alnmouth, a beautiful village on the seafront. It is my dads 50th this November and he’s celebrating early with his brothers, sister, their spouses and his mum who have all flown over from Germany so they can enjoy a weeks holiday together in Alnmouth. I could sadly only visit for three days as I had to work, but I did enjoy three days with my extended family. I took the train up on Monday and on Wednesday we all drove down back to Durham together so the family could see our hometown. Although short it was so lovely in Alnmouth; I am already missing it. Anyway the coastal scenery is just so beautiful there I just had to share some photographs with you.

On Monday we went to Bamburgh a short drive up the coast from Alnmouth, for a lovely walk at the beach, although it was so windy the sand whipped around our legs in a bit of a sandstorm.

The next morning the sun was rising over the beach and I enjoyed my breakfast with a view. The living room window had a lovely window seat looking out onto Alnmouth beach and it was the most peaceful breakfast I have had in a long time – breakfast goals on point!

After breakfast I went for a walk at the beach with my dad which was lovely as the sun continued to shine. The weather was just fab!

Later on in the day we went to the Alnwick Gardens where we had booked to eat lunch in the tree house in which is just so cute and quaint. The food was amazing and we all enjoyed ourselves. I sipped on my favourite Rose Lemonade, had a terrine for starters and pork belly with broccoli and apple mash for mains which was just scrumptious!

After our meal in the tree house I walked to Barter Books in Alnwick. It is one of the cutest bookshops I have ever been to. A large building filled with secondhand books, antiques and first editions. One can really spend half a day here browsing through all the books. If you are ever in Northumberland I totally recommend you take the time to visit this quaint bookshop. There is a little cafe for refreshments and chairs to sit and read in oh and there are some CD’s and DVD’s too, but only a small section. As far as I am aware you can also exchange books, as in if they don’t already have certain books you can trade them.

On Tuesday evening we continued family time and had a lovely night reflecting on the past by looking at old photos which was cute.

Well that sums up my mini getaway in Alnmouth; thanks for reading! Also I’d love to know if you have ever been in Bamburgh, Alnmouth or Alnwick, so please do let me know!

Love Carina xo

AUTUMN WISHLIST!

Published on September 21, 2017 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Good morning guys,

Recently I have been in a real shopping mood because there are so many cosy autumnal things that I currently want. It’s a dangerous time seeing all these things I want to buy and it’s difficult trying to restrain myself from spending too much money aha.

I like all seasons and can never decide which is my favourite time of year; however when it comes to fashion, Autumn has definitely got to be my favourite! I am a sucker for deep dark colours so when the mustard’s and wine reds come out and it’s time to snuggle up in big knits, I get really excited, I mean what’s not to love?!

Another thing I have become obsessed with in the last 3 years is homeware. I feel like I should have studied interior design so I could homeware shop all day long for other people, because I just don’t have the space or money to constantly rejig my bedroom theme or buy more homeware decorative pieces or add to my kitchen… aha.

Well, here are some of the things on my current wishlist, I might treat myself to some, like a new candle, others, like the yellow velvet shoes, I really want but would barely get any wear out of, I will only gaze at from a distance but not buy. Sometimes I wish I had an office job so I could wear nice clothes, get my nails done and wear heels aha, but when you work in a cafe/as an artist your clothes will always get dirty with coffee or paint, your nails would be ruined in no time and you’re on your feet most of the day so heels are not comfortable at all. Anyway, here’s my current autumn wishlist:

Yellow Velvet Block Heels, Wanderlust Canvas, Chevron Knit Throw, Cream Colour Block Ladder Lace Up Jumper

These New Look Mustard Velvet heels are the bomb! I am in love! However I know I would only ever wear them once or twice as I am not good with high heels; but that doesn’t stop me from admiring them from a distance!

This canvas from Wilko’s is just super cute and would fit well into the accessories scheme in my bedroom I think. I dream of travelling one day, this wish is so rooted into me that I feel it would only be appropriate to have the Wanderlust definition on my wall with this pretty floral nature pattern around it.

Throws, throws and more throws, I mean you can never have enough right?! This throw from Next just looks super cosy and snuggly and I need it aha. It’s getting solder now and my duvet just isn’t quite warm enough anymore so I want a new throw to match my new bedroom colour scheme to keep me that bit warmer at night.

What can I say about this River Island jumper?! It’s just so funky! I love the colour mix and pattern with the laced through effect on the side and sleeve. This would also look well cute with the velvet boots and a pair of black skinny jeans.

black-suedette-embroidered-block-heel-boots

Black Suedette Embroidered Block Heel, Yankee Candle Cosy By The Fire, Urban Decay Naked Heat Palette, Black Sheer Floral Duster Coat, Black Fringe Sleeve Sweater, Vegan Polley Shoes

Again another pair of beautiful New Look Boots and again a pair I will probably admire from a distance as I sadly just wouldn’t get much wear out of them, but oh the embroidery is just stunning. I love floral patterns and this is a really nice design in beautiful colours.

I know it’s not Christmas yet but Yankee candles just smell amazing I think it’s never to early to accost your nose with wintery smells. They just ooze out cosy evenings and I love nothing more than to enjoy an evening in candle light whether it be with my favourite book or watching a movie with my housemates.

OMG can someone please just buy me this pallet already!?! Ever since Urban Decay’s Naked Heat pallet came out I have been drooling over these beautiful rustic colours and itching to try them. However I try to be sensible and I’m not sure I can justify splashing out on this at the moment whilst I have plenty of eyeshadows for the time being; but wee’ll see, maybe I’ll cave aha!

This River Island duster coat just aught my eye because of the beautiful rusty hues. This is probably to cold to wear without a coat in autumn, but would be perfect for a night out with a LBD for example.

Ah Dr.Martens how long I have eyed your shoes up! These pretty Polley shoes are from their Vegan range as I would not buy real leather shoes anymore. I am in love but at £115 I’m going to have to save up for quite a while!

I do love black as it just goes well with anything and this tassel jumper is just fab. The tassels just add that something extra and make it fun. You could pair this with a skirt, on top of a dress or with jeans, it’s a great versatile jumper.

the-little-book-of-hygge-penguin-hot-chocolate-lisa-hjalt-02

Grey Check Trousers, The Little Book Of Hygge, Palm Leaf Duvet Set, Light Wash Ripped Mom Jeans

Trouser time! I have always been a leggings girl, but recently I have been loving my black cropped jeans and really want to add to my trouser collection. I love these checked high waisted trousers from River Island. They are smart but can be worn casual with just a black t-shirt and so they’d be perfect for me to wear to work still as well.

The Little Book off Hygge – it’s been on my wishlist for a while. Learning how to live well, finding a peaceful state of mind, seems like an important thing fro everyone to do! I think this is one of my wishlist items I will treat myself too!

Bedding – I love new bedding and I have resisted so long to buy new ones, but this one from Asda I just love. All my bedding is white or light colour based with greens and greys, but I love that blue is the background colour here. It gives a nice rich feel and with it getting colder I think I want a deeper darker coloured bedding, so I think I will invest in one.

And last but not least these cute River Island Mom Jeans. I struggle to find jeans that fit; as I have big thighs for them to fit there they will then usually be to loose around the waist. But I as I mentioned I have been loving a pair of black cropped skinny’s which I found in a charity shop actually, and they made me want to start wearing jeans more often which is great for this time of year anyway. I think I will definitely have to go jeans shopping soon!

So that is it for my current wishlist, do let me know what you think guys and I’d love to hear what’s on your current wishlist too!

Love Carina xo

7 TIPS ON HOW TO SURVIVE A CRAZY BUSY MONTH!

Published on September 2, 2017August 31, 2017 by simplycarinaxo1 Comment

Good morning beautiful souls,

This month has been crazy busy for me! It began with me having to work 19 days in a row without a single day off! (Ok quick disclaimer, I technically had 3 days off in between however they were for my best friends wedding so although I wasn’t working, they were not exactly days off in the sense that I could physically and mentally recuperate). As soon as I had a day off I was off to Manchester to visit a friend for two days and when I got back I had one more day of work followed by one day to clean the house before my friend and her fiance came to visit me for a week. As soon as they left I was back at work again! I have never felt so stressed and busy in my life! Now I am currently away at the Lindisfarne festival, finally enjoying a well earned getaway!

Being prepared is very important for such a busy month and taking care of you body and mental health is a necessity. So I want to share with you some tips that helped me get through this month and that can hopefully help you in busy stressful times too to keep you energised and calm.

Tip no.1 – PLAN YOUR MEALS

After a long day at work I usually never know what to cook when I get home and I stumbled about the kitchen nibbling on stuff before I eventually decide what to cook! So having it all laid out before you means no wasting time being indecisive!

Tip no.2 – MEAL PREP

A very easy and important one! When working long days (which working at my dads coffee shop is as I have to leave the house at 7am ish and don’t get home till 6pm ish) I often can’t be bothered to cook in the evening. Thus the temptation for quick unhealthy carb filled meals or a takeaways is soo much more tempting (especially as I have just discovered the Lebaneat 3 mins away from me which makes Borak Sabanekh, a deep-fried Lebanese pastry filled with onion and spinach, that is absolutely delicious!). Also as my friend Nadia and her fiance came to stay with me, it was good to have some meals cooked in advance so I didn’t have to waste time when they were here, stressing about cooking; I can just defrost and warm up a soup or a curry in no time at all, quick and easy!

Tip no.3 – GET A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP

This is an important one for me! I’m terrible for not getting enough sleep. It is something I really need to make a conscious effort with. I try to go to bed between 10pm-11pm and I feel so much better when I do manage this and get 8-9hs sleep. My usual is more like 6-7hs and I don’t do well with little sleep!

Tip no.4 – CREATE A PRODUCTIVE MORNING ROUTINE

The other week I woke up at like 4.55 am!!! I think my housemate going to the toilet woke me up or maybe it was the sunrise as it was so bright already, who knows! Anyway as I couldn’t get to sleep again I browsed my Instagram and grumbled over the idea of whether I should rest some more or be good and just get up and start my day. About an hour later I decided to start my day on a positive high by being productive. I made myself a cleansing green tea and started planning some blog posts. About 40 mins later I made a smoothie and then headed to the gym followed by a swim before starting work at 10 am. Go me! The sun was out that morning and I was on such a high from having started my day productively! It really helps me feel good if I give myself some time in the morning to get things done before work!

Tip no.5 – DRINK PLENTY OF WATER

Again, another thing I have always been terrible at! I never drink enough water; so of course I had to put this on my tip list. Staying hydrated is very important and can help the body feel less sluggish a symptom I feel I live with 24/7. So my aim was to drink 2 liters of water a day and that could be made up from water, tea or squash. When I am home I find it a great help to have my large 900ml mason jar next to me and then I will automatically just keep sipping from it! Although I usually didn’t manage 2l a day, I definitely increased my water intake and am continuing to make a conscious effort to drink more.

Tip no.6 – SCHEDULE IN SOME ME TIME

Let’s say 2-3 times a week; set aside some time for yourself to relax. Candles, incense, a movie, a hot chocolate, a bath, some pamper time with a face mask and calming music, whatever feels right for you, just make sure to give yourself some time to relax and put your feet up!

Tip no.7 – EXERCISE

I really struggled with this over the past few weeks as I was just so exhausted from working long days. The only exercise I managed to fit in was Yoga on a Wednesday evening. However I do know that getting some exercise done makes me feel instantly better as I’m doing good to my body and feel like I am being productive. So I will try and schedule in a little bit more exercise again now, at least 2-4 times a week hopefully, even if it’s just a 30min swim before work!

It just makes me feel so much better about myself if I’ve started the day with some exercise 🙂

Well these are my top tips on how to survive a busy month! I hope you find these tips helpful and I’d be interested in hearing about your best coping mechanisms for busy stressful times!

Love Carina xo

AUGUST FAVOURITES

Published on August 30, 2017August 30, 2017 by simplycarinaxo1 Comment

Hey friends,

I love reading monthly favourites posts but have only ever written one so far, so I thought it was high time for another. August has been crazy busy for me, so here’s what I’ve enjoyed this month in between all the craziness!

Tea!

I have been loving the Pukka Cleanse tea this August. It is light in flavour and comforting. Nettle, fennel and peppermint are all great herbs to help settle the stomach, so this tea is great for your stomach when stressed. It is very calming in general, I like to drink it in the evenings when I settle down to read before bed.

My Glasses

Yes, ok, I’ll put it out there straight away – I don’t need glasses, these are fake – please don’t judge me haha! I just like the look of these pale pink geeky glasses. They are a fashion accessory to me and I kinda love them. I had wanted a pair for a while but couldn’t find ones that suited me. I kept browsing Primark’s collection whenever I was there and eventually I found these. They were about £2.50 so a bargain really, I don’t ever spend much on glasses for fear of breaking or loosing them haha.

Music

These four albums have been my most listened to this month.

Step Up is the perfect soundtrack for a productive morning as it makes you want to dance about the house.

Tropical Gypsy by Molotov Jukebox is a good choice for happy vibes. Upbeat somewhat crazy songs that will put a smile on your face and brighten your day. I saw them live at the Lindesfarne festival last year and they were great!

A Creature I Don’t Know by Laura Marling is a more peaceful CD and makes for perfect reading or game playing background music. I also love to listen to Laura Marling when having a relaxed breakfast.

Southpaw – another great soundtrack; this one is great for the gym or exercising because it has dome great paced beats.

My Best Friend’s Wedding

This is more of an event rather than a thing of course, but I couldn’t not mention it, because it has been a favourite this month. It was a beautiful day seeing my best friend get married and I was honoured to be a bridesmaid on her special day!

Game Time

Towards the end of August I had my friend Nadia and her fiance Roland visit me and it was lovely as I hadn’t seen her in four years!!! We spent so much of our time together playing games and it was great fun! I love board games! They are such a great way to spend time together with friends having fun. We played many rounds of Yatzi but I also rediscovered a favourite game of mine which is called Die Siedler Von Catan. If you like games and haven’t heard of this one I recommend you go buy it right now haha (you can buy it in English too, don’t worry). It’s about acquiring building materials and then gaining points by building streets and cities… I love it!

My New Piercing

I used to have the side of my lip pierced but took it out about a year ago because I wanted a change. Looking back on pictures I always missed it though so I decided to get my lip re-pierced, but this time in the middle where I had originally wanted it pierced. At first I wasn’t too keen as it pierced a little too close to my lip for my liking, however I have gotten used to it now and I love it! So glad I got it re-pierced!

Sainsbury Mugs

I bought these mugs in Sainsburys about 2 years ago and they are currently my absolute faves again! I originally resisted buying them but I couldn’t stop thinking about them so I just had to go back and buy them haha! I’m so glad I did! They are a good size easy to hold and nice to drink out of, wether coffee or tea, I have been using them every day this past month!

Vegan Pesto Pitta Pizzas

So quick and easy to make; using a pitta bread as the pizzas base, spread a little vegan pesto on and top with whatever you choose! My favourite toppings with pesto are definitely just some fresh tomatoes and vegan feta style cheese with a bit of seasoning – yummy! Pop in the oven for 10 minutes and you’re good to go – enjoy!

Watermelon

I have been absolutely obsessed with watermelon this month! When you get a good one they are so refreshing and tasty! Definitely my healthy go to snack this August!

I hope you have enjoyed my August favourites post. I think I will try and make monthly favourites a regular post on my blog because I have loved writing this post and sharing my favourites with you!

Love Carina xo