New Year, New To Do List

So last year Neil and I both wrote a list of things 'to do' in 2013, mine were -

 

Visit The Harry Potter Tour

Go to Paris

Attend a bloggers meet up

Read 10 books

Pay Neil back the money he lent me

Get another puppy

Learn To Crochet

I managed to achieve most of them, Paris was amazing, I read my way through plenty of books when on holiday in Cuba for my big brothers wedding (most of them were written by Kathy Reichs or Charlaine Harris) the bloggers meet up was FABB ;) I just about got to grips with crochet but would like to do a refresher course, and finally I paid Neil back (then borrowed more and subsequently paid that back too.)

I didn't however make it to the Harry Potter Tour, I blame a lack of time management for that, and I didn't get a play mate for Dodge (I made up for this by getting myself a pet hamster named Wolowitz or Norris by my Mum.)

Now it's NYE I should probably work out a new list for 2014 hmmmmm....

Have a great evening and see you all in the New Year!!!

Michelle x 

Photo Sourced from here

Soft Kitty Please

I have no idea how I managed to make it through the freezing Christmas Markets on hardly any sleep, working throughout the night on orders, then eating an appalling diet without getting so much as a sniffle, yet give me a relaxed and restful few days and I develop one of the worst colds of my life.

Whatever the backwards reasoning is behind it I have found myself looking and feeling a complete state so thought I would share a few of my favourite products to help deal with it all.

Whenever I get a cold I can guarantee that all the nose blowing will result in a glowing nose and cupids bow that finally becomes so dry it scabs over - this can take weeks to recover and I am left with a moustache scab once the cold has subsided.  To combat this I have taken to smothering my nose is good old Nivea, then at night I go for a stronger option of Kiehls Midnight Recovery Concentrate.  For the lips I am using a combination of Kiehls Lip Balm and coldsore cream to keep the cracks and dryness at bay.

To ease congestion, headaches and other yukiness associated with having a cold I, like everyone else sip regular Lemsips but sweeten them up with a spoon of sugar and a shot of rum.  I have no idea if it helps but my 93 year old Grandad does it so can't hurt eh?!

Finally if all else fails, get in bed, find someone to rub Vaporub onto you and get them to sing Soft Kitty.

 

Michelle x

Manchester Christmas Markets

Anyone who follows me via Instagram or Facebook will be aware that I dipped my toe into the scary world of the Christmas Markets this year.  Having never taken part in such a well established market before I was skeptical as to whether i would be able to undertake the extra work, cover costs, survive it, etc but fortunately I made it through in one piece and managed to have a fab time.  Despite struggling with my endemetriosis in the run up, I managed to make enough stock to fill the mammoth stall and set about working through my 6 days of 6am starts and 8pm finishes in the bitter cold.

I definitely learnt a lot for next year, and am excited to come back bigger and better! The only downside apart from the obvious cold was that I became sick of all the food, which means no more giant bratwurst for me!

Michelle x

Deck The Halls

I know the blog has been dominated by Neil recently, this is because I've been run off my feet doing the Christmas Markets, getting all orders done, helping out with poorly family members and finally being poorly myself. But now I have finally caught up with everything (except Uni work but that's another story) so I should have time to catch up with some posts. 

 However since today is Christmas and I want to focus my attention to a glass of Baileys I will save all my catch ups for another time, enjoy the rest of your day.

 Keep your eye out for a Sale on Cherry Rainbow tomorrow, and there is already a 25% discount at Jelly Button Jewellery using the code CHRISTMAS. 

 Michelle x

ATW Clothing Co. Christmas Competition!

Well it's time for a fun festive competition!  The lovely folks over at ATW Clothing Co. have once again offered an amazing prize for you to win this Christmas... well actually there are THREE prizes up for grabs!!!

ATW Clothing Co. are a fab brand that mix sporty and urban trends to create relevant urban pieces.  We'll be offering a few different items to keep you looking cool but feeling warm this winter.

One lucky person will win our top prize on offer, which is a great Classic logo sweater (in the size of your choosing) and black Bobble Beanie!

But hold on a second, we have TWO runner-up prizes up for grabs too!  That's right, two lucky runner-ups  will win one of ATW's new AWTCO EST heritage beanies - a definite must have this Christmas!

So that means there are THREE chances to be a winner in this amazing Christmas competition.  Simple enter below using the Rafflecopter app for your chance to win!

Merry Christmas!

Neil & Michelle x

p.s.  Be sure to check out ATW Clothing Co. on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram too.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Little boots

Well as I mentioned the other day, my favourite shopping/fashion app of late has to be ShopStyle, which you can read about here.  Anyway, last month I thought I'd have a look for some boots.  I'd been after some brown ones for while, as an alternative to the black ones I already owned.

As I scrolled along the ShopStyle app I came across a pair of Firetrap Veloce boots!  I liked the mix of materials and the weathered texture of the leather, which I feel gives them a more rugged and expensive look.  Best of all the boots were on sale for £14.00, down from £95.00 - a massive 85% OFF!!!

I clicked on the link which took me straight to the USC website where they were being sold.  I kept my fingers cross but assumed the worst: they wouldn't have any left in my size.  But to my surprise, the curse of having tiny feet finally came up trumps as the only sizes left were 6 or 11 - HURRAY!!!

My dad says you can tell the quality of a pair of shoes by the soles, and I think after traipsing around town several times in them already they're sure holding up rather well.  I have to say they're really comfortable and have become an immediate wardrobe staple, especially it becomes ever colder outside!

Oh and I did I mention I saw a sister pair called Firetrap Verb boots that were also on sale?  Yep these bargain boots, although slightly more expensive at £21.00, were also available in a size 6 and marked down from £95.00 too!  I have to admit I'm a sucker for a bit of brogue detailing.

I was left in a bit of a dilemma trying to choose which to buy, but my sister gave me some sage advice "Why are you even trying to pick one, just buy both!".  Occasionally that girl comes out with pure gold.

So as you'll have already guess, and will see below, I opted to buy both pairs of boots.  In total it cost me £39.99 with postage which is what I'd normally shell out on a single pair.  If you consider that at full price the boots would have cost me £194.99, I managed to save myself a massive £155.55 - go me!

Right folks that's about it for today, but hopefully it demonstrates what a fab app ShopStyle is.  And remember this isn't a sponsored post, it's just something I thought I'd share because I've found it to be really useful - I love my little boots!

If you too have managed to snag any bargains or know of any good shopping/fashion apps be sure to let me know - you can never have too many shoes, right?

Take care,

Neil x

A nod to nautical

The nautical trend is one that always recurs within fashion.  Classic cuts and colours create a timeless trend that suits most people.  In light of this we've picked a couple new items that are nautical inspired and are now on sale at Cherry Rainbow.

We've also been tinkering on Pinterest and created a few new theme boards such a Movember one, a nautical one and there's a Christmas one too!

Here's a closer look at the nautical board.  We've tried to mix fashion, homeware a anything else we thought was fun!

 

So be sure to check out the Cherry Rainbow website for a selection of new jewellery - not just nautical - and also Pinterest where you're find fun theme boards to inspire you!

Oh and if you have any ideas or suggestions for thematic Pinterest boards we'd love to here them!

Fair winds and flowing seas,

Neil x