Round-up of Holiday Printables

Floral Holiday Gift tags from Pioneer woman

Ornament Gift Tags from Martha Stewart

Fab Gift Tags From Wedding Chicks

Vintage Glam Theme Holiday Party Printables from the Hostess with the Mostess

Printable Holiday To-Do List from Sweet Muffin Suite

Holiday Envelope Liner from Sweet Muffin Suite

Happy holidays everyone!

DIY Christmas Gifts

As November comes to an end, the holidays start approaching. This year I am on a budget of $350, so I'm opting to make some of my christmas gifts. Here some good ideas for DIY Christmas gifts, I hope this gives you some inspiration/ideas! Each of these ideas can be customized to your desire. 

1. Envelope Laptop Case

Directions here.

2. Decorative Aluminum Lanterns

Directions over at Family Circle.

3. Sugar Bowl Candles

Directions at Real Simple.

4. Lemon Body Scrub

See directions from Paula Deen.

5. Fabric Wallet 

Check out Color me Domestic for directions, and its also an awesome blog.

6. Electronics Charging Station

From Better Homes and Gardens.

7. Slippers

Tutorial at We Can Re-Do It.

8. Gingerbread Cookies in a Jar

By Lauren Conrad.

9. DIY Bath Bombs

From Idle Wife.

10. Cupcake Candy Jar

From Club Chica Circle.

Printable: Holiday Gift Tags

The holiday season is upon us, so I made up these gift tags to use for all of my gifts! Click here to download the PDF. 

Sarah

Dishwasher label

Today I made a dishwasher label. You print it out and then put it on your dishwasher, labelling it dirty or clean. Click here to download them!

Thank you card

Here is a thank you card that I quickly made up to give to a friend. Click here to download this card!

Summer 2013 Road Trip across the Maritimes

Yesterday I just got home from such an amazing trip. We visited Quebec City, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. Our main destination was Prince Edward Island, for which I had a friends wedding to attend. Since we were driving out there for the wedding, my mom decided we should make a road trip out of it. We had tons of fun and saw some amazing things!

The red line is a rough route of our trip. The driving seemed to take forever!

The first stop that we made was in Quebec City at the KOA in Saint Nicolas. This place was awesome because they had this thing called a jumping pillow. It was basically a huge trampoline thing that you jumped on and it gives you SO much air.

Then we travelled to New Brunswick. We stayed at a camp site called the Ponderosa Pines and had a really nice secluded campsite that was in such a nice area. It was also very close to the main attraction we wanted to see there, the Hopewell Rocks (also known as the Flowerpot Rocks). These were SO gorgeous and I would definitely recommend them to anyone. We then went into town and got some lunch.

Hopewell Rocks 

Hopewell Rocks

Our next destination was Prince Edward Island. The first night that we were there we stayed in the Charlottetown KOA campsite. This was a nice campsite as well, and the main reason why I enjoyed it was because it also had a jumping pillow. The next day we did a bus tour around PEI where we saw Anne of Green Gables house, Cavendish Beach, the Preserve society, and Charlottetown. 

My mom in front of the Green Gables house

Cavendish Beach

Cavendish Beach

The Preserve Society of PEI

A fishing village in PEI

Charlottetown was such a surprise, I wasn't expecting such a unique and special city. The restaurants were exceptional and there were so many options to choose from. All of the buildings are so old and had so much character. While we were walking around in downtown Charlottetown we randomly saw Michael Smith from the show Chef at Home on the Food Network! It was the weirdest thing! He was just casually walking around with his family (I assume). He is so tall in real life! It was such a cool experience, I will never forget it.

Then we had dinner at the Water Prince Corner Shop, our tour guide recommend it for having the best fish and chips in the city. It was a very small restaurant that I would consider kind of a dive type place. My mom and I split an order of halibut, which was very delicious! We were sitting eating, and all of the sudden I realize that the band Metric is sitting a few feet away from us at another table. It was so weird! Then we discovered that they were supposed to be playing that night in Charlottetown. They seemed super nice and down to earth. 

That night we stayed in a motel called the Fair isle Motel. It was a decent hotel, but the main reason why we stayed there because it was close to where the wedding was being held. We stayed there two nights.

Fair Isle Motel

The wedding was so amazing, it was so beautiful i don't even know that to say about it. It was held at a hotel called Dalvay by the Sea, which was so gorgeous. The pictures make the weather look worse than it actually was. It was a bit cloudy out, but it was still nice enough to just wear a dress and be fine.

The Dalvay by the Sea

The cutest wedding favours ever, bride & groom themed candy apples!

A PEI classic, Raspberry Cordial

The delicious cake

After the wedding, we headed over to Nova Scotia. The main thing that we wanted to see in Nova Scotia was Peggy's Cove. Unfortunately for us, the weather was pretty crappy that day. It was cloudy and misty all day. But that still didn't take away from the beauty of the place.

The lighthouse at Peggy's Cove

Peggy's Cove

Peggy's Cove

The last stop that we made was in the same KOA campsite in Quebec City that we stayed in the first night. We got there relatively early so we decided to take a little trip into Quebec City and do some window shopping. It was slightly confusing to get to the city, but once we did, it was gorgeous. It is such an old city with so much history, it really is beautiful. There were so many nice restaurants, we had a hard time deciding. We had a lovely dinner and definitely want to go back to explore the whole city!

Overall, the trip was so much fun. I think that because we camped along the way, we got to experience a lot of different things that you wouldn't necessarily experience if you stayed in a hotel. We met lots of lovely people and had so many amazing experiences.

Fathers day gift ideas

1. Big Mowth Prints Badass Dad Print

2. Dr K Soap Company Mens Shaving Set

3. Otter Box iPad Defender Series Case

4. Hermetus Bottle Opener & Resealer

5. Mast Brothers Craft Chocolate Bars Assortment

6. Man Cans Bacon Scented Man Candle

7. Uncommon Goods Driftwood iPhone Charging Dock

8. Uncommon Goods Beer Making Kit

My favourite YouTube channels

As most people nowadays, YouTube is one of my most used websites. I could spend hours just browsing through different videos. I follow a wide variety of people on YouTube, some do beauty, some do baking/cooking, DIY and crafts, and much more.

Rachel Whitehurst

YouTube channel
Instagram
Her blog

One of the main reasons that I love Rachel is because she is so real and has the best sense of humour. I always look forward to watching her videos. She used to do more makeup videos, but lately she has been doing 'word vomits', cooking videos, monthly hits and shits, and hauls. Her cooking videos are totally awesome, shes made lemon macaroons, mocha macaroons, chipotle black bean burgers, and much more. All of the makeup she buys is stuff that I am interested in and most importantly can afford. I can always count on Rachel for a 100% honest review on a product, even if the company sponsored her. She is just an awesome chick and you should definitely check out her videos! Her blog is also amazing!

Gregory Gorgeous

YouTube channel
Instagram
Okay, so first off, who doesn't love GG? I LOVE the fact that he is from Toronto! Gregory Gorgeous is probably one of the sassiest & most glamorous beauty gurus that have ever existed. He does monthly favourites, comedy videos, makeup tutorials, fashion videos, and so much more. He also is the star of the YouTube show The Avenue.

Not only is he drop dead gorgeous, but he is also hilarious. Some of his videos are so hilarious. Like this one.


AsapSCIENCE
YouTube channel

Did you ever wonder, what actually came first, the chicken or the egg? Maybe its just me, but I have a lot of random questions that I think about sometimes. And this channel has some amazing educational videos that answer some of these random questions. For example, some of their videos are: childbirth vs. getting kicked in the balls, the difference between butter and margarine, the science of love, and the science of morning wood.

Kin Community
YouTube channel



Kin Community is a multi-channel women's community that has videos about food, fitness, style, and DIY. I love the recipes and the DIY's that are on this channel!!! Recently they did a video on Avocado Bruschetta (YUM!). Some of the other recipes are for eggnog cupcakes, BBQ recipes, breakfast/brunch recipes, and much more. This channel seriously covers all of my main interests.

U Look Haute: Lauren Conrad's Crafty Creations

YouTube channel

Laguna Beach star Lauren Conrad demonstrates how to create useful fashion, home, and lifestyle goods from scratch. I have actually made so many of these projects! She has videos on how to make floral arrangements, fabric stool, stencilled letter pillow, cake stands, and much more.

Nutella Cupcakes

Author: original recipe from cannella-vita.blogspot.com

Recipe type: Dessert

Cuisine: cupcakes

Prep time:  30 mins

Cook time:  20 mins

Total time:  50 mins

Serves: 16

 

Decadent Chocolate Nutella Cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcake Ingredients:

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package chocolate cake mix
• 1 (3.4 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon coffee granules dissolved in ½ cup warm water or 1 esspresso shot dissolved in warm water (amounting to ½ cup of liquid)

Nutella Buttercream Frosting

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup vegetable shortening
• 1 13-ounce jar of Nutella
• pinch of fine grain sea salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1.5 pounds confectioners’ sugar
• 6-8 tablespoons milk

Additional Ingredients:

• 24 Ferrero Rocher candies
• melted chocolate for drizzling

Instructions

Cupcake Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 muffin wells with paper liners.
2. Beat together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla and instant coffee mixture until well combined.
3. Distribute the batter between 24 muffin wells. (I like to use an ice cream scoop)
4. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until the tops of the cakes spring back when lightly touched.
5. Allow cupcakes to cool inside muffin tins for about 10 minutes.
6. Remove cupcakes from muffin tins and allow to fully cool on a wire rack. Once cupcakes are cool, prepare your frosting.

Nutella Buttercream Frosting

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and shortening until well combined, thick and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
2. Slowly add in confectioner’s sugar, and continue mixing until well blended.
3. Add salt, vanilla, and 3 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk. Blend on low speed until moistened.
4. Add an additional 3-5 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk until you reach the desired consistency.
5. Beat at high speed until frosting is smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
6. Set aside ¼ of the mixture to use as the vanilla buttercream.
7. Add the Nutella to the remaining mixture and beat for another 3 minutes.

Cupcake Assembly:

1. Bake chocolate cupcakes and allow them to cool completely.
2. Pipe Nutella into the center of each cupcake, you can also, hollow out the center with apple corer if you don’t have the appropriate piping tip.
3. Prepare the Nutella Buttercream, reserving ¼ of the vanilla buttercream before adding the Nutella.
4. Prepare a piping bag with a round tip, and fill with Nutella buttercream.
5. Prepare a piping bag with a star tip, and fill with vanilla buttercream.
6. Pipe a swirl of Nutella buttercream on each cupcake, and drizzle with melted chocolate.
7. Top with a swirl of vanilla buttercream and a Ferrero Rocher.

I got this recipe from www.thepreppedchef.com

Printable Mothers Day Card

Hi there,

I quickly made up this cute mothers day card, because in case you didn't know, tomorrow is mothers day!

Click here to download

Weekly To-Do list freebie

Here is a weekly to-do list that you can download and use to help organize your time! 

It comes in two colours, aqua and yellow. Hope you enjoy! :)

Click here to download the aqua file.

Click here to download the yellow file.

How To Survive Exams

I am currently in the midst of finals. Final exams are so stressful, there is so much pressure to do well. The fact that I have ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) doesn't make studying for my exams any easier! Here are some tips that I have compiled that help me get organized to study.

Before starting this list, it is pertinent to have a study safe place to work. There needs to be adequate light, comfortable seating, minimal distractions, etc. For me, silence is one of the main factors. If there is ANY noise, I can't focus. Because of this, I often use ear plugs, or put in headphones without music playing.

1. Free yourself from distractions.
Everybody has different things that distract them, but there are some basic ones that affect pretty much everyone. I notice that most people I work with get extremely distracted by their cell phones. So:

• Turn off your cell phone
• Go into a study safe area (best place is usually the library) - make sure the room is clean, doesn't have distractions in it, and put a note on the door saying "Do Not Disturb - Studying"
• Create an 'Ignore' list

A great app to help you eliminate distractions is 'SelfControl'. It is a free Mac application that lets you block your own access to distracting website (such as FaceBook), your mail server, or anything else on the internet. You set a period of time to block the specified sites for, add sites to your blacklist, and click "Start." Until the timer goes off, you won't be able to access those websites, even if you re-start your computer.

2. Try out "Timeboxing"
Timeboxing is a method that allocates certain amounts of time for you to do a certain task. Make a list of tasks that need to be completed. Allocate periods of time for each task, it is important to make sure these times are reasonable and realistic. For example, if you need to start writing an essay, maybe the first task on your list would be to brainstorm for 30 mins. Start the timer and commence with the task.

It is ideal to reward yourself with a reward after completing a task. This could be anything from a quick snack break to checking your emails. After your quick reward, move onto the next task.

Concentrate for Mac is a great timeboxing app.

3. Use to-do lists
This one is probably my favourite. I wouldn't be able to get things done without lists. You can either create digital lists or write them our yourself, whatever works for you. Personally, I like writing them out and then crossing them off when I complete them. This gives me a sense of accomplishment.

• White board
• Post it notes
• Digital to-do lists

A popular digital to-do list generator is Wunderlist. Wunderlist is an app that can be downloaded on your Mac, iPad, iPhone, etc. One thing that is great about this app is that you can use it on your Mac and your iPad, and any changes you make to one list will be refreshed when you open the app.

4. Use the S.M.A.R.T. method
When creating your lists, use the S.M.A.R.T. method to make sure you are creating clear and defined lists.

5. Don't be afraid to ask for help.

If you are feeling overwhelmed with the amount of things you have to do, don't worry. Accomplish each task one at a time. If possible, try to eliminate some of the tasks on your list, for example, if one of your tasks is to edit your essay, you could ask a trusted friend in the same class to edit it for you. You will have to edit it after even if someone else looks at it for you, but they may catch a lot of mistakes and save you time. 

Good luck studying!