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Morning Espresso

Posted in At home, Drink, Family, Food, inspiration, Kitchen, lifestyle, Uncategorized by

 

Espresso - limited edition

 

I think it’s the little things, small pleasures that keep you going.

Since we received a Dolce Gusto coffee machine, I have come to appreciate a small hit of caffeine to kick start my day.

We’ve been trying out all sorts from the Dolce Gusto range, both from the online shop as well as the ones you can find in the supermarket.

As I’m not keen on lattes, being a little too milky, I much prefer strong black coffee. The one that I like most is the limited edition Yunnan espresso. This little capsule is only available from  the online shop.

I had never heard or read about coffee grown in China. Like most people I associate tea with China, so it was so lovely to discover a coffee grown in a climate and location of dramatic mountain ranges. Imagine these as the scene to wake up to, where rice is grown on man made terraces on mountains. It must be such an experience. It’s going on my bucket list now as a place to visit.

The coffee itself is distinctive due to its light fruitiness. Even though it’s an intense Esspresso, I think it smells light and refreshing. The texture of the coffee is delicate yet rich and powerful, a combination which reminds me of the Yin and Yang symbol, a balance of light and dark.

In a few days it will be time to celebrate Chinese New Year. I can’t wait… We’ve always celebrated. The last two years, venturing into China Town to see the dragon dancing in the streets in London and eating in one of the nearby restaurants. It’s become a bit of a tradition for our family.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Korres Jasmine Shower gel

Posted in Bathroom, Family, Health & Wellness, inspiration, lifestyle, Scent, Skin Care, Skincare, Uncategorized, Wellbeing by

This is one of my favourites as there’s only one way to describe the scent in this bottle and that is its sublimely indulgent.

The heady scent of Jasmine will hit you the moment this makes contact with water and skin.

The scent is as natural and as authentic as you can get to real Jasmine. I love the idea of enveloping myself in its aroma, drinking in the scent as if I’m sipping my favourite Jasmine Tea from Whittards.

From outside in, the scent of Jasmine can be a natural drug to lift your mood. It stimulates the release of serotonin which boosts energy. Perhaps this is the reason I love it so much.

As it is one of the most expensive essential oils to buy, I have a small bottle which contains a 10% dilution in jojoba oil, which I keep to add a few drops into the night time facial oil I made.

Around 8 million Jasmine blooms are needed to produce a kilo of essential oil, commercially the blooms are hand picked at night when their scent is at their most powerful. I love the idea that the magic of the scent is only released at night. There’s something very Arabian nights about this.  It also means it’s one of the most expensive oils to buy.

It also reminds me of my early childhood home where we had a Jasmine bush climbing outside our front door.

In in early evening as the blooms released their scent, our home was bathed in the delicate scent. I can’t explain how I remember this, I just do and that’s mostly the reason why I am always drawn to anything that’s Jasmine scented.

 

Mellow Yellow Roses

Posted in At home, Family, Health & Wellness, inspiration, lifestyle, Uncategorized by

I have a feeling that the blizzard that has besieged the U.S. is headed for the U.K and we are going to get a lot of snow. Not as bad as New York, but bad enough to want to stay home with a warm cuppa instead of venturing out.

These bright sunny roses were in the supermarket on Sunday and I could not resist. I’ve filled a vase with them, long stems with their dark green leaves and yellow petals, lighting up the room. They’re bringing an instant cheer making the room feel cosy with their warm glow.

Not much else to say except, just enjoy the cheerful brightness that they’re bringing.

 

Lemony Ginger Nuts

Posted in At home, baking, Food, Uncategorized by

 

These lemony ginger nuts are the perfect way to counter gloomy weather. When the weather gets cold, our oven gets busy with lots of baking to fill the air with the delicious scent of home-baked biscuits.

This recipe is adapted from Delia Online and has been a favourite, since my eldest made them for one of her homework assignments for school.

As we had plenty of Golden Syrup, ginger and lemons, I decided that the lemons would bring a lovely citrusy tang to the ginger nuts.

Ingredients:

Zest of one lemon and about a dessert spoon  of lemon juice

110grams of Self Raising Flour

1 slightly rounded teaspoon of ground ginger

1 level teaspoon of biocarb of soda

40g soft brown sugar

50g butter

2 tablespoon of golden syrup

Preheat oven to 190degree c or Gas mark 5

 

To make:

Sieve the flour, biocarbonate, ground ginger into a bowl, add the lemon zest and combine. With your hands, rub the softened butter into the mixture until it resembles rubble.

Add the lemon juice, and the golden syrup, combine this into a dough. (You may need to add a little flour at this stage if the dough feels too wet or sticky. The consistency you are aiming for is something resembling short crust pastry. Form the dough into a ball and divide in half, then half again and cut into four. This should make 16 small pieces of dough.Lemon and ginger nuts - dough

Rub plenty of butter onto a non stick baking tray. Next place the small pieces of dough on to the baking tray and flatten them slightly. Leave plenty of room between each and put into the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes.

When they come out of the oven they will be soft. Leave them to cool a little before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

All that remains is to enjoy with a lovely cup of tea. They took all of half an hour to make and bake. Even better was that the lingering scent of ginger and lemons was in our house for the rest of the afternoon.

 

Sunday Spa Feature – Anti Aging Eye Serum

Posted in beauty, eye care, Skin Care, Skincare, Sunday Spa Feature, Uncategorized, Wellbeing by

It started to snow today, little fluffy flakes which made the air feel very cold. While I love snow, my face, particularly my eyes don’t.

This homemade Anti-aging eye serum is more like a gel than a serum. That’s because it’s full of the goodness of Rosehip oil.

Rosehip Oil is packed full of antioxidants, is super moisturising and is considered a “dry oil” meaning that it’s quickly absorbed by the skin. It heals scars, is great for pigmented skin and is a great all-round moisturiser for your skin.

Combine this with the calming benefits of Chamomile and the delicate scent of Jasmine, with the antioxidants from Green Tea to prevent dark circles, this nightly eye serum has kept my delicate under eye area nourished, and in spite of the cold weather, the area under my eyes feel soft and replenished.

To make this eye gel is very simple.

In a pan, put a jug in simmering hot water.

(makes 30ml)

Add your ingredients:

3 ml of Bees Wax

20ml of Rosehip Oil

7ml of Shea Butter

Wait until melted.

Now add some Green Tea (I’ve used a Green Tea bag and simply sprinkled this into the mixture to infuse the green tea into the oil.

Add one drop of Chamomile and Jasmine to the mixture

Leave to simmer for 5 minutes and then strain the mixture  through a fine sieve into a small container or jar.

Leave to cool.

The beeswax should emulsify and hold the Rosehip and Shea butter together in a gel-like consistency.

I tend to use this at night just before bed so that all the goodness of the rich serum works overnight. Just tap a very small amount onto the skin under your eye, being careful not to get any into your eyes.

Making the sun shine in January

Posted in At home, Health & Wellness, inspiration, lifestyle, Uncategorized, Wellbeing by


I don’t know if anyone else has the same thoughts about January. It’s a very long month, we put away the Christmas decorations finally, so they are now hibernating for another year.

My day literally begins and ends in darkness and in between are the working hours in an office. It can be a whole 5 days in an office that’s connected by an underpass from the Tube station straight into Canary Wharf, before I glimpse any daylight to wake up to at the weekend.

Last Saturday, I was running some errands and spotted these lovely roses. They are nothing extraordinary, just the type you find at the entrance of a supermarket. In this case Marks and Spencer.White long stemmed roses

They stood out, because they were the last bunch in white, flecked with a delicate green to their outer petals. I bought them on impulse, because they made me smile.

This week the roses will make some sunshine for me. I will look at them whilst inhaling and drinking a cup of espresso.

I’ve moved them to the dining table so their presence can keep me company, while the rest of the house sleeps on as I get ready to leave for work.

 

Molton Brown – Japanese Orange Body Wash

Posted in Bathroom, beauty, Health & Wellness, Scent, Skin Care, Skincare, Uncategorized by

 

I’ve been using Molton Brown’s Japenese body wash all this week, as a way to get the zing and wake up to the start of the day.

Getting back into the commute and a full day at work has been hard, especially after the long Festive break.

So this indulgent body wash, which is packed full of the delicious scent of the Japanese Yuzu fruit, is a wonderful way to chase away the darkness outside when I wake-up and reluctantly make my way to the bathroom.

If you are in need of something that will wake you up and lift your senses, this is a great way to begin the day. It contains a blend of Yuzu, Patchouli, caraway and smells wonderful.

The fruit of the Yuzu, a citrus fruit is used in Japanese bath houses as a part of a deep cleansing ritual. I’ve never been to Japan, but one of my earliest memories is visiting a bath house with my mother when I was little in Taiwan. I remember being in a deep hot pool of water bathing with other women along with my mother, a faded memory from childhood.

As this scent is so bright and zesty, I am using it to bring a little sunshine to my mood.

Welcome 2016

Posted in Blogging, Family, Home, inspiration, Uncategorized by

#winterwonderland Hyde Park. #enjoynewyearsday

A photo posted by @birdonthehill on

A very happy new year to everyone.

It has been a lovely long break which has been filled with lots of good food, drinks and a lot of time spent with family.

On Monday, it will feel as if normal life will resume, with getting the kids ready for school, the daily commute and preparations for the working week ahead, there’s  just some time to reflect on 2015 and hope what will come to be in the year ahead.

In 2015, I started this blog, filling it with posts about scent, food, skin care and anything else that came to mind. It gave me a space to be creative, I discovered new ways to explore scent, not just in perfume, food and drink but through the creative outlet of making and creating scented skin care, hair treatments and fragranced room scents. I also blog met a lot of new friends, discovered interesting perspectives from blogs that I’m following, all of which have been immensely enjoyable.

On New Year’s Day, our little family of four went to Hyde Park to visit the Winter Wonderland. We usually do something on New Year’s Day to get some fresh air, last year we went to Battersea park, the year before,the New Year Parade. I think by doing this we’re building a collection of memories that we can look back and remember, when the kids are grown up we can say “Remember that time we…

I don’t know what 2016 will bring and since I’ve never been good at keeping resolutions, it’s better not to make any that I won’t keep. What I will resolve to do is keep going with this blog and hope to make it a creative space filled with more interesting things about everyday life through scent.

There’s  just one last thing I have to say.

May 2016 be filled with happiness and contentment!

Christmas Muffins

Posted in baking, Christmas, Food, Home, inspiration, Kitchen, Uncategorized by

 

Christmas would not be complete without Mince Pies. This year, I had an idea to make these Christmas Muffins. Perfect for Breakfast on Boxing day.

I love their freshly baked scent of Cinnamon filling the house. A lovely way to start the day with a fresh muffin and coffee.

Very easy to make. Just follow the recipe for the fresh Blueberry Muffins and substitute the Blueberries with Mincemeat.

Rather than adding the mincemeat and mixing it into the bake, add little dollops into the muffin tins alternating between the batter and the mincemeat until all the mincemeat has been added into the Muffin mix. Bake as normal.

Merry Christmas!

 

 

Handmade Christmas Gifts – Peppermint and Cedarwood Foot Salve

Posted in beauty, Christmas, Health & Wellness, inspiration, lifestyle, Projects, Uncategorized by

 

Every year, I look for gifts to give friends and family that are unique, thoughtful and show that their tastes or what they like have been considered and reflected in the gift.

On most occasions, their gifts to me have out done me in every respect, so this year to show my appreciation, the gifts I’ve made are uniquely personalised. Even better, I’ve not spent any time walking around shops trying to find something special, because the ingredients are already in the cuboard ready to be made into something special and take very little time or effort to prepare and make.

If you have ever tried the Shea Butter Hand and foot cream from L’Occitane or from Burt’s Bees, these are lovely little gifts to give and receive. The only thing is that there’s a possibility that someone else has had the same idea and purchased the very same. They smell wonderful, with a range of delicate scents and I must admit are lovely gifts to receive.

To make these Foot and hand Salves is very simple, easier than baking a cake in fact. All you need to do is measure out the ingredients, gently melt them in a jug in a pan of simmering water, add the essential oils and once melted, pour into your chosen containers. Personalising the scents makes these gifts unique, especially if you know what scents they enjoy the most.

Ingredients for the footsalve:

1 tablespoons of Argan Oil

2 tablespoons of Coconut Oil

1 tablespoon beeswax

4 tablespoons of unrefined Shea Butter

1/4 tsb of essential oils – a combination of Peppermint and Cedarwood (for the boys) or Peppermint and Lavender (for the girls)

To make the Hand Salve variant, you can change the oil and use Jojoba or Rosehip Oil, whichever you think their hands (or your own) will appreciate the most and add your choice of essential oils to add scent. Beeswax and the Shea Butter will emulsify and give the salve it’s lovely thick creamy texture.

Better still, if you want to make the Handsalve to treat age spots (after all, most beauty mags will tell you it’s your hands that show the first signs of aging) select the essential oils for their skin therapeutic benefits.

That’s it. All there is to it for making scented rich moisturising salves. Perfect as a gift or an indulgent luxurious treat. Hmm I think I’m going to find a bit of me time for a Manicure and try some of the handsalve I made.