Journeys Are My Diary

Life, Adventures, Entertainment and more - A little bit of everything blog!

Closet Geek Update

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Obviously as you probably know, I now own a small business called Closet Geek, where I make handmade jewellery, pencil cases, hair bows and clothes. I also take custom orders – which recently has led to a prom dress and a Cinderella cosplay. Because of this it means I struggle to find time to blog sometimes, but I thought I would write a quick post about what’s going on over at the store!

businesscard

First thing to note is that my website itself (www.ClosetGeek.co.uk) isn’t having that many orders! I guess if I’d thought about it more in advance, I probably would have known this – but basically it feels like I opened up a little shop on a tiny off-the-beaten-track lane and the only customers I get are few and far between. However on a positive note, my Etsy store (which basically duplicates most of my store listings), has been really busy and it’s been so much fun sewing and making bows for orders. This last week I’ve had two “Little Miss Disgust” dresses to make (one even with a neck scarf), three hair bows and four necklaces. I even have an adult Little Miss Disgust dress on order.

I’ve pretty much completed the Back to the Future Prom Dress, which will hopefully be mailed off towards the end of this week. I’ve also properly started on the Cinderella dress (after a nightmare with fabrics). I’m hoping to make a batch of Villains hair bows, which will be a sort of “Halloween” launch, but permanently in the store once they’re launched. I’d also love to do a Superhero batch but I have no set period of time for that. Probably not quite in time for Halloween unfortunately, but in the not too distant future, I’d love to do a Disney Villains inspired batch of girls dresses too – which my girls are keen to model!

On top of all that, I’ve actually started working on ideas for Christmas. I’d love to make some geeky stockings and I’m currently in the process of working with some fellow bloggers on getting some designs made and reviewed. On the topic of reviews, I was also featured on Fashion Quirks YouTube channel this week. Carley, the girl who vlogs, featured my Golden Snitch necklace, a Cinderella carriage necklace (end of line), an Alice in Wonderland bow and also a Minnie and Mickey pencil case. The video is here if anyone would like a watch!

As well as all that, I have an order for several bows and scrunchies that I’m currently working on, I recently made a Harley Quinn dress for Lily which I hope to put in the store soon and also I have a Snow White rags, Woody, Minnie Mouse and Briar Rose dress to add to the store too. It’s all busy busy busy but I absolutely love it. I only wish I had clones of myself so I could make clothes, watch TV AND blog, all at the same time.

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Week 13 – Monday Round-up

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As you might imagine, I have a lot to do tonight so I’m going to keep this brief. I’ve barely managed to post over the last few days and I know that I really can’t waste too much time doing it now. Tomorrow is our last full day at home and we leave for London on Wednesday. On Thursday we fly to Florida and I seriously can’t believe it’s come around so fast. Anyway, less about this current week and more about last week. Here is my regular Monday round up.

On Monday I took the kids to school as usual and then came home to blog and watch some TV. I spent some time with Chris at home before heading out to meet Nat. We did a little shopping, grabbed some lunch and then went to see Insurgent. After the movie I went to get the girls from Mum’s and then headed home. I spent the evening sewing Lily’s Queen of Hearts dress and watching TV. Megan was also planning to teach a class that week so we also made Easter cards and planned that out for her.

On Tuesday I took the girls to school as normal and then headed back home and went to Boyes for material and Tesco for food. I made Lily’s Cinderella skirt and Megan’s Alice dress so it was quite an accomplished day. When Chris got home from work we had takeaway for dinner and when Chris went upstairs to play on his computer, I re-watched Maze Runner and did some more sewing. After that I spent the rest of evening organising blog posts for holiday and watching TV with Chris. Chris also booked his driving practical test that night. On Wednesday it was Megan’s Easter service so I dropped them off at school but then walked with Megan’s class to church and stayed for the service. Afterwards I walked back to school with her and then came home and chilled for a while. Cinderella tickets finally became available for the weekend so I booked those too. I headed out for the girls as normal and picked them up and then when we got home I worked on Lily’s Harry Potter class that she was going to teach that week. Lily had a bath and Megan had a shower and when Chris came home he brought with him some Emoticon masks which caused several minutes of amusement.

On Thursday I headed to Boyes again, this time to get a few new patterns amoungst other things. I spent some of the day watching TV at home but then headed out to Mum’s and spent an hour with her before going out to school. It was Lily’s Easter service in the afternoon and then I picked the kids up a little early and brought them home. We had McDonalds for dinner, watched Hercules and then read a Disney story as we’d forgotten to do our task the day before. I started working on some of the new patterns, getting material cut for the next day. Chris and I watched the movie Red. On Friday I was up far too early and to make matters worse I didn’t feel well either. I took the girls to school and all my plans for sewing went out the window as I just sat and did nothing on the sofa all day. However after picking the girls up from school I managed to muster up the energy to get some sewing done and managed to finish Megan’s mermaid Ariel dress. She wore it to complete her dress up Disney task but Lily wasn’t feeling well so just ended up in PJs and an early night. I honestly don’t really remember what I did that night but I think I just sewed and watched TV as that seems to be majority of my evenings this week!

On Saturday Lily still wasn’t well but we had Cinderella tickets booked and so we risked it. Unfortunately we had to call off going to their dad’s as she wasn’t up to that but she did manage the movie and I think enjoy it. Afterwards we went to my mum’s as I had my dress to start working on but it didn’t feel like we got very far, even if it was 5pm by the time we left. I took Megan to get KFC and Lily and I had Pizza Hut but Lily didn’t eat much which meant I had far too much pizza! We came home and got watching Ant and Dec on TV and when Nat arrived for the evening she ended up watching it with us too. Eventually the girls went to bed and we spent the rest of the night chatting and catching up. When Chris got home he stayed with us briefly but then headed upstairs and I think it was almost 12 (as usual) before Nat ended up going home.

Finally on Sunday, Lily woke up feeling even worse and in the end she was sick. We sat together and watched TV on the sofa, their dad agreeing to come over and just get Megan. However by the time their dad arrived it was almost mid-day and Lily perked up a little. She ended up going with them after all and so I was left in floods of tears, missing them and worrying about Lily being ill (sappy I know!). Chris and I had some lunch and then he agreed to come into town with me as I needed a few bits (I think he knew I needed my mind off the kids) so we had a nice wander around Boyes, Next, Wilkos and then Tesco before coming back. I spent the afternoon sewing and he went up on his computer but when he came back down we spent the evening watching TV and catching up. We watched the last episode in the season of Musketeers and then all 4 of The Following so far. It was 12 when we headed to bed but since we had no reason to be up the next morning it wasn’t too bad!

It’s been a crazy old week and I imagine the next few days will be the same. Hopefully I’ll still find time to blog and I have a few scheduled posts for Thursday and Friday at least so fingers crossed they’ll be something to read!

Happy 2 Years Blogging!

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Sadly I’m not feeling very well today so I don’t have the energy to make much of a blog post. I had big plans for a Wish List but unfortunately its going to have to wait (along with my review of Into the Woods, Allegiant and my latest “My Little Box”). However my desktop calendar flashed up that today is my 2 Year Blogiversary and so I didn’t want to let the day go past unmentioned!

From what I’ve seen recently, a lot of people started their blogs in January. I guess that’s perhaps a “new year” thing, or a boredom after Christmas has passed maybe? Anyway, Journeys are my Diary wasn’t technically my first blog, but its the first blog I’ve considered myself a blogger with. While it started off similar to some of my other blogs, or even my livejournal account, its definitely turned into something more. While I definitely haven’t had as much time to work on it in the past, I’m really hoping that this year I’ll be able to focus on it more (not so far though sadly!).

So really I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who followers me here. Thank you to the people I now consider friends because of my blog too. I’m not always sure what it is that makes people read along or follow my waffle, but I guess there’s something interesting about people just being themselves. Whatever the reason, I’m glad you do and I hope to continue to entertain you over the next year. Fingers crossed, when I’ve found my footing (recovering from quitting my job and adjusting my tax credits) I’ll be hosting a giveaway to mark the event. However until then, you’ll just have to keep reading my waffle to make sure you don’t miss it ;)

Bel xoxo

Disney Fashion Blog Competition… coming soon!

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For a long time now I’ve been wanting to host a competition for all my lovely followers. I’ve been writing my blog for about a year and a half now, I have over 400 posts and currently my followers are 727 – such an accomplishment from the 53 I began the year with. I feel very proud of my little blog and I thoroughly enjoy writing it, each and every day.

Those of you who have followed my blog for a while, will know that I am a HUGE Disney fan and so it seemed only fitting to make my blog competition Disney related. Next year I am going on the trip of a lifetime to Disney World in Florida, and seriously I couldn’t be more excited. As a celebration of all things Disney and to reward my amazing followers, I’m going to be launching a competition to win some amazing vouchers.

1st Prize will be £30 of Disney Store vouchers. They are valid until October 2015. Runner up prizes will also be offered and these will be a varying amount of Love 2 Shop vouchers – valid till October 2016.

While I’m not going to tell you just yet, what the competition will be, I will give you a hint. With my love of Disney, comes a more current interest in Disney Fashion. For me, this interest has been to do with making more every day clothes, so that my children and my friend’s daughter have something more practical than fancy dress to wear around the parks. However it also translates into what every day clothes you can wear, that represent certain characters. Anyway, the competition theme will be all about Disney Fashion and if you’re looking for a hint as to the type of thing you’ll need to do, check out this Guest Post by Sarah Elizabeth, outlining some of her Disney Fashion ideas.

The competition will arrive on my blog in 8 days time (which will be 160 days till I go to Florida) and will last for at least a month, if not a little more. Full details will be found here, on Journeys are my Diary, along with instructions on how to enter, what you need to do and what you could win. Keep following me to make sure you don’t miss out ;)

Liebster Award, Take Two! (or maybe three…)

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So as I mentioned the other day, I was nominated for my third Liebster Award (though I did my last two as a joint post which you can read here). Thank you to the wonderful Taby at The Closet Intellectual for my nomination, here are the answers to the questions she gave me:

1. What is your favorite sort of book to curl up to & what beverage goes with it?

The first part of this question is so much harder to answer than the second half. In all honesty I don’t find anywhere near as much time to pick up a book as I’d like to, or as I should, but when I do I like a picture of romance (chick lit for an easy read), or suspense/sci-fi for a more gripping read. Beverage of choice is tea every time. I can drink cup after cup after cup.

2. If Hollywood called and told you they were making a movie about your life, what would the name of the movie be & who would play you?

Firstly, this would never ever happen lol. There is nothing interesting about my life (as yet) that someone would want to make a movie out of it. As such I guess it would be called “Much Ado About Nothing” …oh wait, maybe that’s already copyrighted! Hehe. As for who would play me, I’d have to say J-Lo. Its a very complicated story to explain why so you’re just gonna have to take my word for it! (that and I have a big ass).

3. If you were mad at a loved one, what sort of flowers would be their ticket out of the doghouse?

If? What is this if you speak about? My loved one is always in the doghouse! j/k, he’s actually pretty good at staying on my right side. However if anyone is every buying me flowers its roses all the way. Cliché? Maybe, but they are my favourite. That said, I prefer them closed bud rather than open, any day.

4. What is your favorite piece of clothing (provide a picture of it if you can) & why do you love it so?
This is a very boring answer I’m afraid, the truth being – my jeans. I have about 5-6 pairs and I live in them constantly. Of course I have a few loved pieces of clothing too, but my jeans are definitely my favourite. After them I suppose I would have to add my collection of Tee Fury and Qwertee t-shirts. I have an addiction.

I have one draw for these t-shirts and another for plain or “not so cool” t-shirts

5. If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Wow, this is a really tricky one for me, as someone who doesn’t even really buy DVDs, owing to the fact I rarely bother to put them on – just catch things again accidentally when they’re on TV. Sadly it would probably be a Disney DVD, maybe Hercules, or a princess one of some sort.

So there you have it, my five answers, to the five questions asked by Taby!
And here are my questions to my nominees.

1. Do you have a Special Talent or Skill? If so then what is it, and if not then what one talent or skill do you wish you had and why?
2. Where is the furthest place from home that you have traveled to and why did you go there?
3. If you had to give one book recommendation to a random group of 100 people, hoping for the majority to like it, what book would you choose?
4. Have you ever wished you were named something else and if so, then what?
5. When was the last time you cried and what was it over?

Now my nominations – and according to my last time doing this Liebster Award, I believe there was a rule that said only blogs with under 200 followers!

Vintage Fee – http://vntgfee.blogspot.co.uk/
Cat’s Chronology – http://catschronology.blogspot.co.uk/
Indigo Buttons – http://indigobuttons.blogspot.co.uk/
Puddle of Grace – http://www.puddleofgrace.com/

and although I’m not nominating them for the Liebster Award (they either have lots of followers, or have recently already been nominated and have done the obligatory post) I also advise you to check out:

Cocktails in Teacups – http://www.cocktailsinteacups.com/
Just Pirouette and Carry On – http://justpirouetteandcarryon.blogspot.co.uk/
The Sparkly Panda – http://thesparklypanda.blogspot.co.uk/

Nominees, the rules are simple. Make a similar post to this, answering the five questions I gave you. Make up some of your own questions and nominate some blogs you love for others to check out. Remember to leave a comment on your nominees blogs, so they know to check out your post and pass it on!

Thanks for checking in! I’ll post again soon xx

Liebster Blog Award – No. 1 and No. 2

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In the last 24 hours, I have been nominated for the Liebster Blog Award twice! This is both amazing and awesome, as I’ve only been blogging for about a week. As there is quite a lot involved, I’m going to put both nominations in the same post, though I have two lots of 11 questions to answer. I will only be posting one lot of 9 nominations for other blogs, as I barely even follow any at this time to recommend. Scrap this, just made some recommendations, not nominations, see below.

Firstly a massive thank you to Amy over at Cocktails in Teacups, who nominated me for my first award last night. Amy is someone I technically met via the internet, approx 8 years ago, but is now one of my real life best friends. Her blog is awesome so you should check it out. Secondly thanks goes to Rhiannon over at The Sparkly Panda, who was the third person I chose to follow, after starting my blog last week!

These are the rules for the Liebster Blog Award (as per Amy and Rhiannon’s nomination post)

– List 11 random facts about yourself
– Answer the 11 questions which are given to you by your nominator
– Ask 11 new questions for all the bloggers that you nominate to with the award
– Nominate 9 bloggers with less than 200 followers to win the award
– Go to each of the blogger’s pages to let them know about their nomination

11 Random Facts
1.  I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I have one tattoo only and its of the Deathly Hallows. I ran (and still run) a Harry Potter RPG called Deckleswood for over 10 years. I prefer the books to the movies, but have all of both. I visited the Harry Potter Studios in Watford for my birthday last year, I have a ticket to Leaky Con this year, and I would love to visit Florida so I could go to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

2. I am a single mum of two beautiful little girls. I have been married (and divorced/separated) twice but currently live with my boyfriend after being single for two and a half years. I genuinely didn’t expect to ever be in a relationship again after my last marriage ended.

3. I know a ridiculous amount of Chris’. My younger brother is called Chris, as is my Uncle. My ex was a Chris, my current partner is a Chris and one of my closest friends is called Chris. I even know several Christine’s which makes a few more Chris’. One of my best friends’ ex was a Chris, my eldest daughter’s best friend has a dad called Chris… and so on and so on.

4. I love, love, LOVE Disney! I have over a shelf and a half of Disney DVDs, my Chamilia bracelet is full of only Disney charms and I collect the Disney Traditions Ornaments. I think Hercules is completely underated just because it isn’t technically a Princess movie.

5. I have a huge crush on Wil Wheaton. It only began in the last year after starting to watch The Guild. After that I discovered Tabletop and since then he has become my Number One crush. During a Games Night this weekend, I insisted on taking pictures of us play, just so I can post to As Seen On Tabletop. I would absolutely love this plush.

6. I have an addiction to buying unique t-shirts, especially those found on Qwertee and Tee Fury. I have two whole drawers of t-shirts in my dresser, one of which is completely dedicated to the t-shirts I have bought from these sites. It’s full.

7. I am ashamed to admit that I love playing facebook’s Farmville 2. Though I have also played facebook games like Sims, Sim City, Chefville, Cityville and several others, Farmville 2 is the only one I’ve stuck with. I try to go on first thing in the morning, midday and again before bed. It verges on unhealthy…

8. My dad died at almost exactly the same time as I fell pregnant with my first daughter. I’m not completely sure I believe in that whole “as one dies, another is born” type of thing, but its sort of comforting to know I might have lost my dad, but I gained one of the most precious things in my life. While its been almost 9 years since my dad died, I sometimes still get a little teary when I think about him, especially connected to my two girls. I know he would have made an awesome grandad and I just wish my daughters had had the chance to see what a funny/amazing/[enter other great words here] guy he was.

9. I absolutely hate shopping, specifically clothes shopping and especially shoe shopping. I don’t really know why, though these days some of it is probably to do with my size and weight. However I’ve never especially enjoyed it, even when I was younger and thinner. I prefer to shop and browse when I don’t need anything, rather than when I have to find something inparticular.

10. I know more Moshi Monster and Moshling names, than I do countries (thats only a guesstimate but I’m pretty sure its true). My two daughters are MAD about Moshi Monsters and have been for almost a year now. We have well over 100 moshlings and god only knows how many other toys, books, magazines and so on. Sadly I can name pretty much each and every one.

11. I can only count up to 10! Haha, not really but my brain is mush, realised I’d taken 2 hours to make this post and only done up to 10 facts! I can’t possibly think of an 11th fact right now, so just go with ‘I fail at counting to 11’.

11 Questions from Amy

1. What new years resolutions did you make? (if any, if not, why?)
To lose weight. I started last year but let it slide towards Christmas. I want to get back on track. It wasn’t really a new years resolution so much as a personal goal.

2. If you won the lottery what would be the first thing you’d buy?
Because I hardly ever have a huge amount of money in my bank account, and lottery winnings take a while to come through, I guess I would buy something within my bank balance budget to begin with. I always joked that it would be the £100 gift box from Lush.

3. If someone asked for a book recommendation, what would you give them?
Hunger Games. This is by far the best read I had in 2012. That said I would also add Harry Potter to the list, all seven books. A few obscure finds would also include: Afterwards – Rosamund Lupton & Before I Go To Sleep – S. J. Watson.

4. What is the one place you really HAVE to visit before you die?
Paris. It sounds like a fairly simple want but despite planing a trip there at least 3 times, I’ve never managed an actual holiday there. I have been to Disneyland Paris (and will be going again in February) but I would love a romantic weekend away (no kids) in Paris itself.

5. If you had one piece of advice for your 16 year old self, what would it be?
Take life less seriously and enjoy it more. Things only get harder.

6. What TV show that no longer airs do you miss most?
Tru Calling. To be honest I miss pretty much every good show that got cancelled midway, but Tru Calling was so good and didn’t even make it past 3 episodes into the second series. Such a shame.

7. What one hobby do you wish you’d pursued?
Acting. I know I still could technically, but its much harder with children. I feel sure both my daughters have the ability to be amazing actresses and I’m not sure if I’d be pleased for them or incredibly jealous!

8. If you could time travel to what age, what one would you go to and why?
Something in the future I think, something unknown and not discovered yet. It would be much more exciting than traveling back I think. Failing that I’d like to find myself a Doctor Who and see it all.

9. What is the thing you most find attractive about the opposite sex? (or same, I’m pro equal rights)
Sense of humour. While looks grab your attention sometimes, its not the be all and end all. Someone who can make you laugh and genuinely happy is the biggest attraction for me.

10. Who/what is your blogger inspiration?
At the moment, me. I’m still just finding my feet and figuring out what I want to blog about. That said the blog I’ve been reading the longest is that of Amy.

11. And finally… coffee or tea?
Tea, definitely tea. In the last 3 days we’ve managed to make it through SO many teabags, and only 2 out of 4 people in this house were drinking it (the other two on coffee). Unlike some people I don’t have tea at sometimes and coffee at others, I nearly ALWAYS have tea. That said, if I go to “meet someone for coffee”, I do purchase coffee. One of my favourite things about Christmas is also when the Starbucks red cups arrive and then I can’t live without Gingerbread Latte.

11 Questions from Rhiannon

1. If you are stuck on a desert island what 3 things would you want with you?
A part of me wants to say my children, but at the same time I’d hate for them to be stuck on a desert island (and I think we might possibly kill each other if we spent too much time alone, just the three of us). Therefore I’ll go with my Kindle (fully stocked with heaps to read), a nice comfy pillow and… wait for the soppy part, my partner.

2. Do you have a hidden talent?
I can open beer bottles with my teeth, if that’s a hidden talent?

3. Dress/Skirt or trousers to wear for the rest of your life?
Trousers, 100% – specifically jeans. I live day in, day out, in jeans and a t-shirt.

4. What’s your favourite flavour of cupcake?
Really boring and really simple, just something chocolate (but not white chocolate). I’m not a massive fan of cupcakes mind you.

5. What are you biggest blog inspirations?
I suppose to build up some followers who are genuinely interested in what I have to say. Right now I’m just enjoying it for my own sake and hoping that it will kick me into writing other (maybe more useful) things.

6. 10 years from now, where do you want to be?
I would love to be a famous author. Not famous for the fame exactly, just famous in the sense of known, appreciated and anticipated. I’d like to be able to write for a living.

7. What is the one food you could live on forever?
Pizza. Definitely Pizza. In fact, for two years of my life, myself, my brother and our mutual friend, pretty much did. We were broke post of the time and they both worked at Frankie and Benny’s.

8. What is your favourite day of the year?
Probably Christmas. Not for my own gifts, but for my kids. I love how excited they get, how pleased they are. I love the family feeling that Christmas Day gives, how everyone tries to get along, not argue, make the day special etc. While its expensive and a huge build up for just one day, I always think its so worth it, just for the happiness that can come from the kids.

9. Morning or night person?
Night. I’m a terrible morning person. While I can get straight up and out of bed (you get used to it with children) I’d much rather lay in bed, never get out until I wanted to. At night I always just feel like there aren’t enough hours or free time without children, before being practical and getting some sleep.

10. How do you spend your free time?
Recently my life has been going through a lot of changes, so its hard to say overall. I guess right now I spend it catching up on a bit of TV (love Sky +), playing Farmville 2 and writing my blog.

11. Why did you start blogging?
Its something I’ve tried a couple of times before but never really stuck to. I’ve always had a lot of other stuff going on that required a lot of writing and I think my creativeness got all used up. Now I’m looking for an outlet for my writing and blogging seems to be it.

My Blog Nominations

This is supposed to be a nomination of 9 people, however I only currently follow 8 blogs (I only started a week ago). Of those 8 blogs, only 4 qualify for this award (under 200 followers) and 2 of those are the people who nominated me. Of the remaining two people who qualify, one is Kate at Just Pirouette and Carry On, but she has been nominated by both the people I was and I’ve found two more than enough to handle, without giving her a third. Finally that leaves Lindsey at The Mouse Linguist – a friend I knew outside the blogging world, just uprooted her life and living in Korea. I have no idea if she’s really looking for followers or not but you should check out her blog and see what you think.

As such I’m not going to nominate anyone at this time. However having looked through both The Sparkly Panda‘s nominations and Cocktails in Teacup‘s nominations, here are a few more blogs I have added today.

What Laura Did
Indigo Buttons
Future Freaks Me
XOXO Sam
Cat’s Chronology