Get on my belley..my take on a traditional Japanese tummy wrap

I make no apologies for the shoddy Austin Powers influenced title to this post as it made me laugh..

When I got an email about this, I practically leapt at the chance to try it..mainly because I'd been freezing in the winter despite wrapping a million and one layers arond me and also because I'd seen someone in the office wearing it but she was very secretive as to what it was so all Google searches had proved pointless. 

They must have read my mind because I never mentioned my want for one of these to anyone apart from my mate at work..

The size I have is a medium and it fits..nice and snug and it does keep you very warm.

One of the things I've had problems with this winter is cold fingers.  Some of my fingers were cold and the rest were warm..the Genki Haramaki said it would combat this and I have to say that it did.  I found myself not needing to wear my trusty mittens or wear any socks when at home.  Simon usually whinges about how cold my feet are and I didn't notice this until he pointed it out the other day..he hasn't moaned about them once since I've been wearing this so it must really work.

Without reintroducing you to the last meal you ate, I can safely say that the claim listed under "aids digestion" is also true..I usually have one day where I need a tablet to get through but this hasn't happened whilst I've been wearing this..  My boss also thinks that I have been given a super power as he dared me to go out of the office in just my shirt and trousers to pick something up and I did it without feeling cold..

It comes in a variety of colours, mine is blue which isn't really a big problem for me..it does what it's meant to do but I can see why people would want different colours.  It is available in nine different colours (black, blue, green, orange, pink, purple, red, white and yellow).  The suggested way to wear it is to have it under your boobs and onto the hips but I can't wear it like that at work and as my hips don't really get cold, I decided to pull it over the boobs and wear it like a boob tube.  I suppose if your back gets cold and seizes up, it would be better to wear it in the way it is suggested but I don't suffer from that *touches wood* so I adjusted it.

All in all, I have to say that I am really impressed with this..it keeps me nice and warm without making me sweat like a pig.  I find it is better than layering as you don't look like you've put on some extra pounds but you get a lot more warmth than you do with just layering clothes on.  I was a bit funny about washing it as I thought it might get loose and take the warmth away but it didn't..

You can pick up one from the Haramaki website for £19.99.  They come in two different sizes, medium (30-33 inch waist) and large (33-37 inch waist) but as I said, I had the smaller size and it was nice and snug on me so they can take a fair bit of stretching.

MOTD: My haute couture mittens

These are indeed my very own pair of haute couture mittens.

The wool I used to make them for myself was the most expensive (why am I compelled to put an "est" on the end of that word?) wool I ever bought myself and I made them to measure my own hands.   Thus, they fully fulfill the HC criteria.

Check the midget thumb..I always get the piss taken out of me about it

They have a matching scarf which I have forgotten at work..in my desk drawer..you know what office thieves are like!

They're super soft, they feel like satin-y wool and are just as heavy duty as the ones already featured here.  I didn't follow a pattern for these really, I just knitted and measured against my hand and this is what became of them.

Me and my Mittens: A Love Story and an MOTD.

I dislike gloves.

The reasons for this are many..

1. No matter how long I wear them for, my fingers NEVER get warm.  They tend to go from cold to sweaty, I am unaware as to why they do this. 
2. My fingers are lovers, not fighters.  They have an "all for one" mentality and like to be nestled in warmly with each other.  Gloves enforce a life of solitude on them.  They don't like this.  They long to make like Freddie Mercury and break free.
3. If you want to ball your hands up to warm them up quicker, it's impossible.
4. The small finger on any pair of gloves is always too big for me.  The other day my mum found an old pair of gloves belonging to my brother from when he was 10.  He is now 21.  I tried them on and the small finger was yet again, too big.  I am 26.

There are many more reasons but that is more than enough crazy for one day.

What does a person who dislikes gloves do when the weather turns against them?

THEY BUY MITTENS!

My dislike for gloves is as immense as my like of mittens.

Mittens are the shit.

My fingers are all warm and toasty, the tyrannous rule of solitude imposed by gloves is but a memory.  The pinky finger has shook off any feelings of inadequacy.  My Oyster card can stay ensconsed in the mitten, rendered is the need to root through my bag every five minutes to locate the bugger.

However, the single best thing about them is the fact that Simon can get his hands in there for extra warmth if needs be.  He will be damned if he admits this to anyone but his hands have been in my mittens (ooh er) more times than he would like to admit.

This is just one pair of my mittens..

The photographs make them look like someone has puked in my hands.  They look much nicer IRL, I promise! Cost me about a tenner from Topshop and I bought them about three or four years ago when I was helping my best friend get over her bastard of an ex.

This month I have mainly been..

Given a very nice shade of  nail polish from my Grandmother.. (if only the staying power of the polish was as strong as the staying power of the aforementioned Grandmother).

Going food shopping and finding some brilliant bargains (it was originally £8)

Eating far too many of these..and I mean far too many, I ate three in one evening.

Stabbing myself with a quick unpick (cucumpuck to the Indians amongst us) whilst trying to liberate a mascara.  It was a futile mission as the mascara isn't that brilliant but it DOES hug your lashes.

So, I ask you:

I got 99 problems but a stitch ain't one..

I thought I'd do something different and give you a tour around "my" sewing machine.

There isn't a photo of the whole machine because the area is a mess and I haven't gotten around to tidying it up.

I was about 22 when I realised that the machines I grew up with weren't standard household sewing machines, they were industrial machines.   If someone hadn't told me this, I would probably still think that industrial sized machines were household ones.  I now know that the "small machine" we have is the household size one.

When I was younger, I used to love looking at this little window because if it was empty, that mean it was time to top the oil up.  Those of you with eyes will realise that a refueling is needed.

My aunt got her finger stuck under here when I was younger:

This machine is older than I am.

When I was a baby, my whole family lived in the same house and my mum, grandmother and aunts used to sew clothes for the High Street shops and thus had about 5 industrial sized machines between them.  As the girlies got married, they each took one with them..

Not one to be left behind, I was always faffing around and playing with buttons and stuff so my grandmother gave me this box which I cherished.

This was my favourite button as a child and I remember getting a right telling off when I punched my brother because I thought he stole it.  It later turned up under my pillow.

Here's some of the stuff I've made recently:

Is anyone else into sewing? I quite like it because you can knock up stuff that nobody else has and people are always quite impressed when I tell them that I made something myself from scratch (they don't need to know that my mum did the confusing bits!)

God, she's such a bloody show off

Yeah, that's me!

This is my first fashiony post on this blog and I'm at the centre of it. I don't follow fashion so much that I camp outside Topshop the night before Miss Moss/Mr Kane launch their newest range so this blog won't have much by way of fashion exclusives. What it will have is my latest bargains and where you guys can pick them up..

I was recently reading Une Tasse's blog and she mentioned that she found some really good cleansing wipes in Tescos for 27p.  I'm not one to miss out on a bargain so I rushed off today to go and get some for myself. I use the word "rushed" in the loosest sense of the word, I read her post a week or so ago and only ventured out today. I'm quite glad I went because I found more stuff I needed and the prices were reduced...

The beauties above cost me about £7 all in.  The scrub was £3.91, the face wipes were 27p and the King of Shaves gel (for the Mon) was a bargainous £1.77.

I took a mosey on down to Matalan (we were meant to go the Next Outlet but arguments prevailed and it didn't happen) and despite being on a spending ban, I found these gorgeous things:

£10 originally, marked as £5 but came up as £2.50..bargain! 

It looks like a top fit for Quasimodo.  It has a cut out detail on the shoulders and is tight fitting around the leg and wrist area.  Tis the colour of Dairy Milk, matches perfectly with my bedroom. 

The green dress/top was £15 originally and marked down to £3.50.  I liked the belt more but you can't say no to a dress and belt for £3.50.

The purple top is by Papaya and the lovely greeny blue one is by By Beau (Be Beau?)

The gorgeous belt, it's super shiny IRL and has a patent bit too which is lovely.

I also picked up two bras for the grand sum of £3 but the world doesn't need to be exposed to those..there was also a blue zippy top which was only £4.00, I may go buy that tomorrow. 

Have you guys picked up any bargains lately? If so, share the wealth! Also, whilst I'm here, what lip balms are you guys using? I'm using a Boots one but it's drying my lips out like there's no tomorrow (it's the shit one I mentioned before).  Carmex and Neutrogena are my HG's but I'm not seeing them anywhere recently so what do you suggest?

Thanks!