Weekend Moments

Hi lovelies!  I hope you're all having a wonderful weekend.  My favourite kinds of weekend involve moments like these ones.  I lay in bed reading The Alchemist, went out for tea and cake (or scones) with my family to celebrate my Gran's 89th birthday and I tried out a new perfume, Elizabeth Arden's Untold Absolu.  More on that soon.  What have you been up to this weekend?

Weekend

Hi everyone!  I'm still on bed rest at the moment.  My outfits have consisted of hospital gowns and pyjamas for weeks now so I'd rather not show you those.  Instead I've been so blessed to be given even more beautiful flowers from my incredible friends.  I hope you noticed the absolutely wonderful  arum lilies straight away.  They had me so excited I thought, yes, I did name my blog well.  They really are my favourite flowers.  Thank you, Natalie, for these gorgeous beauties.  She also spoilt me with these delicious macarons.  My friend Inge and her mom have also spoilt me with more flowers and this Crabtree & Evelyn gift set which is absolutely stunning.  Another wonderful friend, Jenna, had remembered that I mentioned how much I wanted to have a chai latte (my favourite warm drink) and yesterday she appeared on my bed with one!  I was so touched that she remembered such a small detail.  What did I tell you?  My friends are incredible!   I don't know where I'd be without them.

Thank you again for all the well wishes.  I can't believe how I've been flooded with emails, tweets and messages wishing me a great recovery and it's completely moved me.  Thank you again xxx

Weekend Basics

Foschinis hat | Woolworths tee | LEGiT pants | Woolworths heels | Blackcherry bag | Sass Diva necklace | 

Michael Kors watch

I bought this hat a couple weeks ago and I've been dying to wear it but hadn't had the chance until this weekend.  It's still very warm during the days so whatever I wear needs to be light enough for the heat but also warm enough that I only need a light jacket in the evenings.  With the beginning of the change of season on our hands, I thought it would be the perfect time to whip out my hat.  I'm a little bit crazy about it!

This weekend I spent out with my friends.  We've had dinners, drinks, lunches and celebrated a birthday over burgers and milkshakes which was so much fun!  I also went a little blonder this weekend so my hair is now the lightest I've been since high school!  You can't see it in this picture but in my next post you will be able to!  Did you get up to anything exciting this weekend?  I'd love to know!

Sporty Chic

cap old | Victoria's Secret t-shirt | Zara jeans | Woolworths heels | Accessorize earrings | Mr Price bag | Dolce & Gabbana sunnies | Elizabeth Arden lipstick | Michael Kors watch | Lovisa midi rings

Sometimes there's nothing better than pulling on a comfy and casual jeans and tee combo.  I wore this outfit on the weekend for a lazy Sunday sushi date with le bf and I couldn't have been much happier!

Weekend Shenanigans

Hi Everyone!

I thought I'd share a weekend round up with you today.  To start any weekend (or any day actually) on the right note, I need a cup of tea in my hands.  This is a ritual that cannot be broken.  The day cannot start without tea.  A friend bought me a manicure voucher for my birthday and I finally got round to using it bright and early Saturday morning.  Don't you just love a soft pink mani?  Along with my cup of tea I did my make up and got ready for a bloggers' meet-up. 

On Saturday I was lucky enough to attend Mercedes-Benz fashion week with Irina.  The shows were so inspiring and there were a couple things I would have loved to add to my closet.  We were also able to go backstage and see how things were going behind the scenes.  MAC was responsible for the models' make up and it was as though I'd entered a dream world because there were MAC products everywhere and the best of MAC's make up artists everywhere.  I was pretty convinced I'd found my happy place.

This picture was taken at the Bobbi Brown Pretty Powerful initiative last week.  I loved having my make up done for a special cause.  Any purchase of Bobbi Brown Pretty Powerful mascara goes towards funding young girls' educations which is a charity drive that I think is so important and I'm so grateful I could be a part of.

So I think it's safe to say I'm make up crazed but gosh I love it.  What's your favourite brand?

Blyde River Canyon, Mpumalanga Getaway

Hi everyone! 

As I’m sure everyone is well aware and super excited about, we have a lot of public holidays coming up over the next 6 weeks or so and I thought I’d shed some light on where to take a great mini vacation.  I’m always looking to take advantage of these and head off somewhere I’ve never been before so I thought I’d share one of favourites for this kind of holiday.

Mpumalanga?  People ask me all confused.  Yes, Mpumalanga.  It is one of my favourite places on this earth.  More specifically, Blyde River Canyon and the Panorama Route.  In this particular part of the world you can expect forests, waterfalls and views that your eyes might not believe. 

The Panorama Route comprises of various stops including Bourke’s Potholes, Berlin falls, Lisbon falls, God’s Window and the Pinnacle.  On route there are also two sets of caves; the Sudwala caves and Echo caves that are also worth visiting. 

This route requires you drive the distance between each stop which means you’re doing quite a lot of driving around but the route is circular so it does bring you back to your starting point.  If you don’t feel like doing the driving yourself there are travel shuttles that you can organise through your hotel or information centre that will do the driving for you.  We were driving ourselves so we decided to divide the route into two day trips which worked out perfectly.  For this reason, I’d suggest a three or four night stay.

I’d recommend you take a packed lunch as there isn’t very much in the way of restaurants once you’re out there.  We stopped at Spar in the morning and bought fresh rolls and cheeses and popped them in the cooler bag with a few bottles of water.  This is also so lovely to do because it means you end up picnicking surrounded by the most beautiful views.  On your way back to the hotel, Harrie’s Pancakes is not to be missed!  It is right outside Graskop hotel and it has pancakes like you’ve never tasted them before.  My favourite is the milktart filled pancake – nom nom nom. There is also the most incredible Mozambican restaurant just opposite Graskop hotel and if you can I’d definitely recommend having dinner there, it’s delish! 

The first time I ventured out here, I stayed at Graskop Hotel which is a very sweet hotel very close to the start of the Panorama Route.  If you don’t mind staying a little further away, I’ve also stayed Casa do Sol, a four star hotel in Hazyview.  This is a very romantic hotel with lovely spacious rooms (the double villas).  Our room rate included breakfast and dinner which were both delicious.  I also enjoyed staying at this hotel because the drive from Hazyview to Graskop takes you through Sappi’s forests which are beautiful.  The hotel also had a wonderful spa and lovely pool area which are both worth visiting on the days you’ve chosen to relax all day.

If you’re planning on road-tripping out here, have a look for specials for Casa do Sol.  I found ours on mtbeds.co.za which was R5000 for 3 nights including breakfast and an incredible dinner.   Graskop Hotel was about R700 a night including breakfast.  Other costs involve small entrance fees into the viewpoints, majority of which are R10 (the Potholes was about R60, but don't skip it!). 

Don’t forget sunscreen and lots of water and I can guarantee you will have an incredible time and make memories for a lifetime.

Polka Dots

Zara dress | Accessorize earrings | Dolce & Gabbana sunnies | Forever New clutch and bracelet | Michael Kors watch | Europa Art shoes

Hi everyone

This past weekend I had a girlfriend's birthday.  It was the most fun I've had in ages.  We went to watch a show (Time Warp) at the Barnyard theatre in Rivonia followed by a night on the town.  We sand along to all the songs we knew, we danced and we had a gr.eat time celebrating.  I wore this dress which is probably my favourite dress in my cupboard.  I love the high neckline and the fun polka dots.  I really wish I could have this exact dress in a knee length version so that I could wear it for work.  If you've seen anything remotely similar around, please let me know!

If you haven't already entered by Revlon giveaway, be sure to do so here before Wednesday. Don't miss your chance to win!

Denim Jacket {& Lindfield Museum}

Jay Jays denim jacket | Woolworths tee | Mr Price tube skirt | Cotton On flats | Sass Diva accessories | Michael Kors watch | Forever New bag

On Saturday I had the pleasure of visiting the Lindfield museum in Auckland Park with my Gran.  It's the most amazing private Victorian museum in Johannesburg.   Katherine Love, the owner, took us on a tour around this quaint doll-like house.  She has the most incredible amount of knowledge of the time period so she was able to answer any questions we had.  The museum is fascinating!  After the tour, we were given a high tea overlooking her beautiful garden.  She does the tour and high tea for the small fee of R60.  If you are looking for something interesting to do on the weekend, this comes highly recommended.  Grab your mom, sister, gran, neighbour, friends and pop round to the Lindfield museum.

To make a booking, call Katherine Love on 011 7262932.  The address of the museum is 72 Richmond Avenue, Auckland Park.  

Milk Tart Cupcakes

My dad came home with the most delicious milk tart cupcakes from Spar a while ago and everyone in this house keeps talking about how amazing they were.  It was my boyfriend’s birthday last week and he asked if I could make a homemade version of those delights for him.  I couldn’t find any recipes for these sweet treats so I combined two recipes to make my very own one.  Here’s how I did it!

To make the cupcakes: (Makes 12 cupcakes)

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
140g margarine
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
¾ cup milk
1 ¾ cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla essence

1.      Cream margarine and sugar together.

2.      Add eggs and mix well.

3.      Add flour, milk and vanilla essence alternatively.

4.      Add baking powder, mix well and spoon into patty pans.

5.      Bake for ten minutes.

6.      Once baked to cool completely.  After cooling, use a knife to cut a small circle in the top of the cupcakes and hollow it just over half way down.

To make the milk tart filling:

4 ½ cups milk
1 cup sugar
3 beaten eggs
3 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons corn starch
1 tablespoon margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1.      Pour the milk into a medium sized pot and add the sugar.  Bring the mixture to boil over a low heat, stirring frequently.  (This takes quite a while to do but don’t be tempted to turn up the heat too high because you will end up with curdled milk and need to start again.)

2.      Beat together the eggs, flour and corn starch.  Mix well so that there are no lumps in the mixture.

3.      Once the milk has boiled, pour it into the egg mixture while stirring.  Once blended, pour the whole mixture back into the pot.  Place it on the stove at a medium-low heat and stir until the mixture thickens.  Remove the pot from the heat and add the margarine and vanilla.  Stir well until the margarine has completely melted.

4.      Spoon the mixture into the hollowed cupcakes until each has a nice peak.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and leave in the fridge to set, preferably overnight.

Happy Monday 

xxx

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Roberston Wine Valley

On Saturday we headed out to the Robertson Wine Valley Festival at Kievets Kroon.  This beautiful setting had me feeling like I was the closest to Cape Town I could possibly wish for at that particular moment.  We were greeted by the sound of live music as we arrived and gifted a 2009 bottle of Merlot as we received our wine glasses.  There was such a variety of beautiful wines to choose from but the bottle we chose to sip on was a Blush sparkling wine. Delish.  Kievets Kroon is such a beautiful place and I’d definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a weekend away from Jo’burg because it’s not far and the city becomes a distant memory the moment you park your car. 

xxx

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