Magazine Review #2 (Recharge)

 

Name of magazine

Recharge (Issue 3)

Who is it aimed at?

I could imagine the magazine appealing to a broad range of people 

but if I had to pin it down, I would say mid-20s to mid-30s.

The slogan

Inspiration to start living more mindfully today.

What the magazine aims to achieve

The magazine is lovely to dip into when you need some self-care time. Topics 

cover mind and body, lifestyle, travel and nature as well as creativity.

Favourite articles

I read this cover to cover and I enjoyed all the articles. There were some highlights though such as ‘Natural beauties’ including some excellent natural make-up reviews, ‘Gratitude and wellbeing’ as well as ‘Living in the moment’ were great mental health articles. ‘Create an eco-friendly wardrobe’ and ‘Ditch the tech’ were inspiring too.

Further notes

This was a beautiful magazine that I couldn’t fault. The first half was my favourite including chapters mind and body then lifestyle. The quality of the paper and illustrations make it feel luxurious. 

Would I buy another copy?

I couldn’t get hold of any other issues online but this issue is available on eBay pretty easily. I thoroughly recommend it if you are looking to treat yourself or a friend.

Any DNF (Did not finish) magazines lately?

Mindful You (Take a mindful moment.) Issue one.

I bought a pack of three magazines but was disappointed by Mindful You. The cover 

is so promising but there were too many medical articles with unattainable beauty shots.

Does Recharge magazine appeal to you?

What kind of topics in magazines do you like? :-) Xx

Sultana Walnut Cookies

After a break, I’ve got the baking bug back! I found this recipe in Mary Berry’s Fast Cakes baking book which I mention from time to time on my blog. What’s great about this book is the instructions are simple, but there’s quite a lot of variety without too many ambitious bakes, therefore being great for beginners. Chapters include every day cakes, chocolate bakes, family fruit cakes, biscuits and cookies, especially for children, and so on. I recommend both the book and this specific recipe included.

This particular bake was a quick, yet fun one to make. It’s a basic cookie recipe, while adding sultanas and walnuts as the name would suggest. The final effect came our quite doughy like scones which isn’t such a bad thing. They lasted a couple of days for desserts at meal times and went down well. You can pick up Fast Cakes online or at The Works.

Describe your perfect biscuit in three words!

Have you been baking recently? :-) Xx

Jigsaw Log #3

Hope my readers are doing okay at the moment. Today I’m back with a jigsaw post! I completed this tropical sea life one a few months back now. I bought it for my Nan for Christmas, so we could do it together and this one came from The Works priced at £4.

It has 300 oversized pieces which could suit a wide range of people. I might consider buying another one from this brand, as there are different images to collect. I’m currently working on a very ambitious 1000 piece jigsaw which I’m doing a bit at a time.

Are you into jigsaws too?

What hobbies are keeping you well at the moment? :-) Xx

Jigsaw Log #2

I started this series last year but it’s been a while since I last updated you with my jigsaw progress. With everyone stuck at home at the moment, I thought it would be a good opportunity to revisit the series. From memory I think my Nan won this Wallace and Gromit jigsaw on a tombola a while back and she gave it to me.

As you can see from the photos, it’s a very long and narrow shape which I split into two to fit on a table. My Mum gave me some help with this one. It’s one of the nicest jigsaws I’ve done because of the quality and it's just the right level of difficulty to make it relaxing. It actually has a double sided picture too!

Let me know if you have been doing any jigsaws!

What kind of picture do you like to gravitate towards? :-) Xx

Bunny Shaped Scones for Easter

Easter seems to have crept up on us rather quickly. I’ve been doing quite a bit of baking recently, but just not feeling like making it into a photo opportunity. I made these scones a good while back, and they are a very simple recipe which I will chat a little further about.

I used a basic scone recipe from my Cakes and Cookies for Beginners baking book. Scone recipes are all fairly similar, and so they are easy to find anywhere online. I put some sultanas into the mixture, you can too. Cherries, cranberries or chocolate chips work nicely also.

To make them look more Easter themed, I dug out my Easter shaped cookie cutters which I think I bought last year in a discount shop. They include bunny, chick, and egg shapes. I’ve seen The Works and eBay stock a lot of inexpensive Easter bits such as this.

There are other ways of adapting, for example you could dip half in chocolate or decorate with icing sugar and sprinkles. My family seemed to enjoy them without any extras, and they are a yummy treat while still being moderately healthy.

Have you been baking at the moment?

Has Easter inspired you to get creative too? :-) Xx

Jigsaw Log #1

Welcome to the first in the series of my jigsaw logs. I’ve been doing jigsaws on and off for a good number of years now, and more frequently just recently. I thought it would be interesting to share my progress sometimes, although it does take me a long time to complete a 500 or 1000 piece jigsaw.

After doing many different kinds of jigsaws, I’ve learned which brands are my favourite. One of my go-to brands is Trefl, as the quality is superb for the price. Trefl jigsaws can be bought at The Works, and in general there selection is really great. Luckily a family friend of ours has a contact who always passes on used jigsaws, so we’ve been delighted with those too.

So as you can see I’ve been working on this Taj Mahal jigsaw, it’s again by Trefl and was bought at The Works for £4.00. The difficultly level was fairly easy, and it was satisfying to get through one so quickly. Because the image was symmetrical, that added a layer of interest and I completed this 500 piece jigsaw over the summer.

I was given this secondhand Halloween inspired jigsaw, which in theory sounds quite fun for autumn but I wasn’t enjoying it as much as others I’ve done. The image was a bit doom and gloom, and didn’t feel in the mood for it. The quality was below average, and the colour palette didn’t inspire. Instead I have a few other jigsaws ready to complete, which hopefully you will see me progress with next time.

What kind of jigsaws appeal to you?

Has this post inspired you to do a jigsaw? :-) Xx