Victorinox Steak Knife Set

They say the best things in life and free...and as far as I am concerned they usually are! I was lucky enough to win a Victorinox Steak Knife set, in their Instagram advent calendar competition, and they arrived in the post today.

 I am certainly not disappointed, the vibrant colours make a fab statement feature in the kitchen. 

As you can see there is no steak present in my kitchen, but they are also fab for cutting veg and other meats. The blades are sharp, and the handle is sleek for easy use. 

Thanks +Victorinox AG :) 

It's the little things this Christmas

For me it really is the little things that all add up to make Christmas day perfect. My Christmas day largely consists of over excitement over a few presents, eating far too much at lunch and then spending the rest of the day trying too eat more.

Here are the little things that really make my Christmas day perfect 

Waking up far to early... Yes at 23 this still happens, the excitement of Christmas day is still far too much...If I am been perfectly honestly I still struggle to get to sleep on Christmas eve. 

What to wear... This is the first year that I have no idea what I will be wearing this Christmas, and I only have sixteen days to decide...This year I have set my heart on a Christmas jumper, having never owned one previously (unbelievable I know). However, each time I find a candidate for the big day my purse strings refuse to loosen. As a result I am still on the search for the perfect Christmas jumper, at the perfect price! 

This Reindeer Fairisle Jumper - £20 (currently with 25%)  is my current fave for Christmas day. 

Cute Christmas decorations...You can't have a perfect Christmas day without a cute little Christmas tree, or in our case a huge six ft fake Christmas tree that sheds a horrific amount of snow! We decorated our tree a couple of days a go, and is already making me feel all festive inside. I love the fact that each decoration brings with it memories, from previous Christmases or days out. 

Chocolate for breakfast...It is a well known fact (at least in my family) that Christmas day is the only day of the year that is acceptable to eat Chocolate for breakfast (I am not saying its the only day that it occurs). At 23, 21 and 19 me and my sisters still insist on a selection box each Christmas, primarily so we can have Chocolate for breakfast...and then proceed to sneakily  eat extra chocolate throughout the morning until lunch time!  

Advent calendar... Yes I am ashamed to say not only do I still get an advent calendar, but this year the dog has also got her very own!! My perfect Christmas day could not be without opening the final door of my advent calendar. Although I am slightly jealous of the size of the treat Tilly gets on Christmas day. I think she will be pretty disappointed on boxing day when there is no more treats! 

Secret Santa presents... Over the last couple of years we have started a family tradition of carrying out Secret Santa each year, rather then buying heaps of unwanted presents for family members we really were not sure what to get. We have a budget of £15, and you would be really surprised at how far £15 can go.  I think I have done rather well this year, and just hope the individual who has me as their Secret Santa agrees! 

Christmas day walk... There is nothing like a Christmas day walk to build up your appetite. And with a giddy Cocker Spaniel in the house the day is likely to involve several walks! 

Pigs in blankets... Making the pigs in blankets is potentially the most prestigious job in our household on Christmas day. No one will admit it, but it is the job that everyone wants (I have already set my sights on the position this year). It's the kind of job where suddenly everyone who has been avoiding the kitchen all morning, for fear of being asked to help, reappears. The simple task of wrapping bacon around sausages, is surprisingly very therapeutic and  equally rewarding, come Christmas day lunch. 

This is the year that my sister Sarah and her boyfriend Adrian had the privilege of making the pigs in blankets. 

Cranberry sauce...Perhaps the most important part of Christmas day lunch. I only discovered cranberry  sauce a couple of Christmases ago, but since then there really has been no turning back. With the quantity needed alongside my turkey and roast potatoes only getting larger each year!  

Christmas crackers...Christmas crackers bring so much fun to the table, with the ridiculous hats and even worse jokes. There is also an unspoken competitive edge to crack pulling, you don't want to be seen as the weak individual that never wins! 

Christmas TV special... Christmas tv is just fab. Upon till a few days before Christmas you can spend hours trying to find something decent to watch on the box, and then come Christmas eve it all starts and your struggling to pick between several programs to watch. I am particularly excited for the Downton Abbey Christmas special. My perfect Christmas day would require a happy ending, but I am not sure I can rely on Downton Abbey to provide that.

More chocolate...Yes more chocolate is required, this really goes without saying. But, in case any of my family happen to read this...Quality Street or After Eights please...preferably both! 

Merry Christmas! This post is my entry into the Tots100/Argos 12 Days of Christmas competition

Bedroom accessories

We have recently moved house, and are in the process of redecorating the entire house. It has been really hard work, but it is really beginning to pay off, with many of the rooms now complete. My bedroom was one of the first rooms to be finished. I am now at the stage where I am looking for accessories to fit in with my new 'grown up' bedroom. Yes, at the age of 23 I  feel I have finally achieved this, with my first ever colour coordinated bedroom, with not a teddy in site... My room is largely purple with a touch of silver here and there. So I have been looking for a silver throw and matching cushions for my bed for a while. Too my delight I found my dream combination on a recent trip to BHS...where I uncovered perhaps the softest, sungliest throw of all time! 

I loved the simplistic packaging, which is as elegant as the products themselves. The throw and cushion came at a bargain price of £5 for the cushion (ordinarily £8 outside of sale) and the throw £16 (with 20% off in the sale usually £20). I would like to emphasis that they are merely faux fur.

Tilly has taken to throw and now rarely leaves my bed...a sure sign of a great throw! 

Holidays are coming

My home town was really getting into the Christmas spirit this evening with a visit from the Coca Cola lorry. After years of seeing the Coca Cola Lorry on the annual festive adverts, it was an outing I really couldn't resist. So I braved the cold, wrapped in my 'snuggliest' winter wears, and lived my childhood dream to see the Coca Cola lorry.

Hat and scarf - Primark 

Gilet - Rampant Sporting 

Hoody - Republic 

Jeans - New Look 

Boots - UGG 

I can't go out on a winters night without my trusty UGGs, potentially the warmest and comfiest footwear I own...or will ever own. Even better they were free, as I won them in a competition last Christmas courtesy of Office.co.uk They are perhaps a little out of my usual budget, retailing at over £200 at the point of receiving my prize. This is the great thing about comping items that are usually unreachable are available to you.

Have an 'APPy Christmas

The +For Every Family  'favourite festive app' competition, led me on a search for just that, my favourite festive app. For me, in my search for my favourtie festive app, there were three main criteria to base the search upon. 1. It must be android compatible 2. It must be FREE 3. It must be fun! After searching through hundreds of apps, and downloading a fair few not so great apps, I discovered 'Christmas Frames'. Christmas Frames allows you to add festive frames to your photos. I was surprised at how easy the app was to use, and even more surprised at the fab results. 
Here is a step by step guide to making your favourite photos super festive: 

I selected to use a photo that I already had saved to my phone. In this case you need to select 'use gallery photos'. This takes you to a page where you can select both the image you wish to use and the frame. (I have rotated this images to enable easy viewing). You can browse and select frames at the left of your screen, purely by scrolling up and down and pressing the desired frame. Your photo can be added using the top right icon.

There are multiple frames to choose from, but please be aware those labelled 'pro' come at an additional cost (I chose to stick with the 'free' frames). 

Once the image and frame have been selected, you can maneuver your image within the frame. I have chosen to use a photo taken last Christmas of my pooch, Tilly in her first snow. I may be a tad biased but I think she looks super cute! At this point you have the option to add text to your image, this can be achieved using the second icon to the right of your screen. You can then type your desired message. 

Once you are happy with your result selected the bottom right 'save ' icon on your screen. 

Once you have saved your image, you are given three options. The first icon allows you to rotate your image. The second icon allows you to share your fabulous newly created festive image with your loved ones, through a range of mediums, from text to Facebook. The third icon allows you to set your image as a wallpaper on your phone. 

Festive Frames is by far my favourite app to date. It is super easy to use, produces professional looking festive images, and most importantly it is free! I feel my family and friends may be bombarded with Festive Frame creations this Christmas...

Hi top loving

I have got to say that I have never been happier then the day it became 'cool' for women to wear trainers. I was one of those girls that lived in trainers as a child, and not the cool type! I have recently rediscovered trainers, in particular those of the hi top variety.
My collection currently consists of two pairs, as unfortunately the purse strings are preventing any further purchases! My first ever pair of high tops were purchased earlier this year. This was largely enabled by the Size? sale. I was drawn to the quirky colours of the Nike Dunk Hi AC Vintage QS, which certainly make a statement with any outfit. They are super comfy, the only thing I would say is they are a tad impractical. The suede upper material makes me a little cautious of wearing them. I find myself thinking though the days events before selecting my Nike's as footwear for the day, any outings that involve mud or potentially wet weather are avoided.

My second pair of hi-tops are equally impractically, but also equally gorgeous! Again I was drawn to my Adidas Basket Profi by the fab colour.

I love adding a splash of colour to any outfit. Today I have chosen to team my Adidas Basket Profi with a few of my wardrobe staples. That are making a regular appearance in this super chilly winter weather. 

Top and Jeans- New Look

Hoody - Superdry 

Gilet - Rampant Sporting 

Scarf - Primark

Trainers - Adidas

For further trainer inspiration take a look at my 'for your feet' board on pinterest - http://www.pinterest.com/emmaf22/for-your-feet/

My first ever blog post

So here goes my first attempt to write a blog post...

I've been thinking of starting a blog for a while now, but I've always had an excuse not to start.
Who would want to read my work? What would I write about? When would I have the time?
After going through all the negatives I am not sure really why I am starting my own blog, but hey I must have got out of the right side of bed this morning because I am feeling pretty positive about the world (and my own blog)!

I aim to use my blog to talk about everything from my battle with Chronic fatigue, to my attempts to be  fashionable, my love of anything chocolate and more importantly to post far too many photos of my pooch Tilly, who I love a little bit too much!!

I will thank any readers in advice for taking the time to read my blog. I have got to say I am pretty excited to start writing again. After three years at uni studying Human Geography and several essays later I thought I would never want to write again, but two years on I feel I am ready!!