Friday 29 March 2013

Happy Easter Weekend!

Follow my Easter inspired Pinterest board here

Tuesday 26 March 2013

Live Healthy: Update #1

How do I always forget to do these posts? *slap self in face*. Here I am for a quick update on my living healthy new years resolution and to let you know how I've been doing.

So firstly, there was a self pity period of about 3 weeks where I had lost all hope and motivation, saying things like; "whats the point" and "who am I fooling, I cant really do this!". I then started follow some health bloggers (mostly international) on Twitter and their daily tweets really helped me see that I'm not alone and I should just suck it up and do this thing. Thank goodness!


Secondly, I joined a gym. You know, those big scary ones where everyone else is about 20x fitter than you are and there are these gigantically intimidating machines that you'll probably never use? Yeah, one of those (I'm not trying to advertise so I wont mention the name). The reason for joining is that I felt the need for a more serious approach to living healthy. I can talk for hours about how I plan on changing my lifestyle, eating habits and exercise habits but at the end of the day I am just telling myself these things so that I sleep better at night.

Signing a 12 month contract is something that will kick me in the arse and will force me to go. Funny thing is, its only been a week and I really love it! Having all the fitness gym energizer bunnies around me motivates me to run that 5 min extra on the treadmill or do just 3 more lifts so that I can prove that I "belong" there with them and hopefully I get accepted into their 'gym pack'. Is my mindset a little too dramatic?

All the equipment I bought in my "home workout" efforts will still be used. I am starting to do stress relieving yoga routines, on my yoga mat, when I get home, as well as doing stretch positions to help my aching muscles to heal a little faster. The 2kg and 5 kg weights will probably used for endless dead-lifts when I'm bored, which apparently really work. I have not seen the benefits as of yet.

I am giving myself some time to get used to a healthy exercise routine and from there I will try a stricter eating plan where I cut out unhealthy fats, sugars and other toxins my body can do without.

Keep your eye on this space as I will be doing a "Healthy Alternatives" post later int the week!

Miss Claira-Bella

Xoxo

Monday 25 March 2013

My life on Instagram

Pictures can be quite a personal thing as it shows a lot about a person and the life they live. Here is a little snippet into my life and the pictures I share with you fantastic people on Instagram!























Follow me on Instagram here or search for MISSCLAIRABELLA!

Xoxo

Hey, anyone seen Betty?

I was browsing at one of my all time favourite stores, Truworths, over the weekend and spotted a new brand that just made me weak at the knees! It's called Hey Betty and pretty much every single item that I saw hanging in their designated area, I wanted to take home!
Unfortunately the brand doesn't seem to exist on the Truworths website so I cannot steal some pics of the leather jacket I fell in love with (and almost bought) but pop down and see if you can spot it yourself. It should be near the OBR items, which is another lust of mine.

I reckon that Truworths needs to sponsor me some outfits now that I'm a bit more comfortable with fashion ;)

Miss Claira-Bella

Xoxo

Wednesday 20 March 2013

Wakaberry - A fun experience!

For a while now, I have been very envious of the bloggers istagrammin' pictures of their delicious-looking Wakaberry Frozen Yougurt and when I spotted a Wakaberry store in The Grove Mall earlier this year, I nearly screeched in excitement. Everything about the store pute me in a happy mood. The product, the look and feel the vibe, I love everything about it! This weekend I finally got to experience the awesome that is Wakaberry, thanks to their voucher in our LadyBlooggers goodie bags, and it was surprisingly not at all what I expected.


So upon arrival I had to fight all the frantically hyper kids that were hogging the store, just to get inside.  Once inside I was very confused as to what I was looking at, self help machines along the wall, something like the self help ticket machines at NuMetro. Do I order my ingredients on a PC and then they make it for me? or do I order via a voice ordering system? (It was super packed so I could really see anything). I decided to follow the empty handed people like a sheep so that I could see how exactly this thing was done (my boyfriend was also with me).

When I saw the "soft serve style" frozen yogurt dispensers, it finally hit me in the face like a wet fish. "Ooooh" I said loudly to my boyfriend and it all just made sense. You pick up a Wakaberry tub and you fill your tub with the flavour/s that you want at each of these self help machines, you add your toppings and the "toppings buffet counter" and you take it to the counter to get weighed. They charge you R11 per 100g so you only pay for what you want which is another thing I love about Wakaberry!


My Boyfriend helped himself to the Vanilla and Condensed milk flavours and packed tons of fruit on top. He was so consumed by the taste, it was like he was in a food trance! I opted for the Mixed Berries and Green apple flavour topped off with jelly beans. The jelly beans wasn't such a good Idea because the frozen and almost broke my teeth when I bit on them *lesson learnt*. We couldn't sit at the Wakaberry tables because it was so busy but we did have fun window shopping while we enjoyed the frozen yogurt.

You dont have to only have two flavours, you can have a bit of every single one and you can add as many toppings as you want. Like I said, you pay for what you take. Our Total came to R66 which is not bad at all seeing as you have such an amazing experience whilst getting to munch on yummy frozen yougurt.

Now that I know that Wakaberry isn't just a store, its an experience, I will definitely be going as my purse allows. I am also thinking of having an awesome candy-land inspired birthday party this year at Wakaberry (even though its mostly only catered for kiddies *forever young*). My friends would love it!

You can follow Wakaberry on Twitter and like their Facebook page. Also, visit their website to find out more about their concept. You can also follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook Page.

Thanks to Wakaberry for my voucher and for offering such an amazing service!

Share your  awesome Wakaberry experiences in the comments below.

Miss Claira-Bella

Xoxo

Tuesday 19 March 2013

Dirty talk is bad for your health!

I have just started a new job where I have my own desk, previously owned by someone else (probably a big guy called 'Frikkie') and riddled with their nasty germs. To think that their mouth was so close to the exact phone I am now using, just sends chills down my spine. Thank the techno gods I was blessed with a pack of Wireless Wipes in my LadyBloggers goodie bag. Now I can peacefully work without thinking about where Frikkies' hands have been.


I really love the concept of having wipes specifically for cell phones, iPad's and other 'wireless' devices. We take them everywhere with us so why should we think that they don't get just as infected with germs as our hands do (before we wash them). 


People have started catching on to the fact that normal wet wipes will not do the job and they are not really compatible for your screens. The highly absorbent alcohol based wipes are safe to use on all mobile screens and does not leave streaks or wet marks on your screen. I also love the fact that as soon as you swipe the wipe across your device, it dries in 2 seconds so there's no waiting for things to dry before using your phone.

I love them so much that I only have one wipe left in my pack after disinfecting my whole desk over the past week and a half. *Sad times*

Is this the first time you're hearing about Wireless Wipes? Visit their website for more information and to read up on some germ facts. And remember, Dirty talk is bad for your health!

Miss Claira-Bella

Xoxo


Monday 18 March 2013

#LadyBloggers JHB Dinner

Two weeks ago, a bunch of eager bloggers got together to chat about bloggy things and mingle with like-minded ladies who are just as passionate about blogging each other. This was the second LadyBlogger event I attended but the first with a formal type setting and agenda. The fabulous Zaahirah from Complete Disbelief pulled it all together perfectly from the venue (Moemas in Parktown North), guest list and topics of discussion, right down to prizes and goodie bags! Also, high five to her awesome boyfriend that played doorman and her helping hand with all the setting up!

We all received badges that related to the age of our blog. I was a Toddler because my lil' ol blog is under 18 months old. I loved this concept because it gave us bloggers a chance to mingle with our ‘own kind’ as well as get tips from the “Teen” and “Adult” bloggers who we should look up to and get advice from. 

While we sipped on our Bos welcome drinks we went around the table and all introduced ourselves. Once the starter platters were served, we got right to sharing our opinions on Advertising, sponsored posts and getting free stuff. At times the opinions got quite heated but it was fantastic!! Hearing the range of opinions from the different bloggers made me realise that I have such an amazing thing in my life. To have a blog where I can share my opinions, get to know amazing people and also get to work with amazing brands. I seriously would never have met so many diverse people on Twitter and get to interact with my incredible readers on a daily basis. 

I also listened to the opinions with big ears as every one’s input was valuable. Meeting Chantelle from Not Another Poppie and Tammy (on Twitter) was also a highlight to my evening. I read Chantelle's blog numerous times a week and to see that she is exactly the same in person that she is on her blog, honest with a “vat nie kak nie” attitude, was really refreshing! Tammy and I got to know each other over Twitter and she is the sweetest chick you will ever meet. In person, when you look at her, you’re just in awe at her personality (Keep an eye out for her blog, launching soon). I also found some familiar faces in the crowd. Wisaal and Tash, from the previous blogger get together were also there. Follow me on Twitter to see who else I got to meet on the night. 


The mains and desert were delicious and I got to try out my very first macron (ever) made by the very talented pastry chef and owner of Moemas!

All LadyBloggers got spoiled with goodie bags which contained tons of vouchers, a pack of wireless wipes, some beauty samples and yummy cocktails from Original Cocktails.

Thanks so much to the very busy and talented Zaahirah. You need an award for pulling off such an amazing event and hopefully I can save up and come with you to the Cape Town even. I’d love to meet more amazing personalities (and Charlene from Geewhiskers).

Follow #Ladybloggers on Twitter and pop over to the website to see when there will be a meet-up in your city!

Miss Claira-Bella

Xoxo

Wednesday 13 March 2013

Fun, Funky, Fimo nail art sticks! PART II

If you have not yet read PART I of my fun funky, fimo nail art sticks posts then clickity clack here.

In this post I am going to show you how I store my fimo canes and which ones I received in my package from the USA.

Here is a quick demo of how small these fimo canes actually are. I really don't have big hands!
They are tiiiiiny!
I store my fimo cane in categories in these small containers that are usually used for beading or other art projects. There are a total of 50 canes but because they are so tiny, I only needed two containers to keep them organised.
Hi-five for organisation!!
And here are my little canes;

 Follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook Page. I have moved over to a new Blog, Howse Life, where I share some Fimo Manicures. 

Which fruit/flower/character is your favourite?

Miss Claira-Bella

Xoxo

Tuesday 12 March 2013

Fun, funky, fimo nail art sticks! PART I

Way before I started blogging, I was so intrigued by nail art, polishes and trends that I spent hours everyday searching for designs and tools to make my own home nail art kit. One of the things I stumbled upon and was most absorbed with was Fimo Canes. Fimo is a type of polymer clay that is used by artists to create all sorts of jewelry  accessories, sculptures and other clay projects. It comes in all sorts of colours and finishes and once it's baked, it hardens and can be sliced, cut and painted depending on how you want to use it. Don’t ask me how they get such detail into such tiny sticks but I am truly amazed. They are very small measuring only about 5cm each and they're smaller than the palm of my hand.
Images from Google
I drove my boyfriend so crazy, continuously talking about them, showing him pictures and generally just going silly, that he ordered them from amazon as a gift! *Best BF in the world* 

Once I received them I was always on my laptop busy YouTubing Fimo cane storage ideas, proper cutting techniques and of course, nail art tutorials. It was only until then that I realized how difficult it was to pull off the fimo cane nail art look, something that I’m still trying to master almost a year later. Luckily the nail art slices still look pretty, even if you don’t have the technique quite right.

Images from Google
I love this unique way that you can get detailed decals on your nails that don’t look hand painted or trashy. These fimo slices are also so versatile. A single slice on your nail looks really sophisticated yet it adds a little bit of playfulness and bunch a few together on one nail and you will catch every ones attention

Check back tomorrow for Part II where I share my fimo cane collection with you! 

Follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook Page to keep up to date with future posts. Also, follow via email in the top right hand side of this page. 

Do you want to your own Fimo Cane Collection?

Miss Claira-Bella

Xoxo

Monday 11 March 2013