Thursday, February 6, 2014

Granny Chic - Dottie Angel & Ted and Agnes

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Synopsis

More than just a how-to guide, granny chic offers inspiration to keen crafters hoping to breathe new life into vintage fabrics and second-hand objects. From handmade notebooks to lace lampshades and pinnies made from tea towels, each of the craft recipes brings the granny chic look to life whilst allowing you to give them your own personal twist. This selection of 20 projects includes spruced-up coat hangers, a dingle dangle door screen, a patched and pieced lampshade and a crocheted tea cosy. In addition to the projects, granny chic offers advice on the granny chic lifestyle, from befriending your local fabric shop to creating a handmade home.






I picked this up on a whim at my local library on a hot day and it really gave me the up and go I needed to start on a few projects. Not only did it inspire me with its delicious photography and easy to achieve projects. There were a lot of projects in it that I can do over and over again, using things that I already own. I do love a good craft book that is packed full of tips, tricks, advice and little snippets of inspiration and the lovely ladies here have created a fantastic book here.

Granny Chic is a lifestyle I resonate with whole heartedly. I am a resourceful woman. I love creating art from second hand bits and pieces and I am obsessed with floral's and bright colours. Vintage trinkets and cute pieces that make my heart sing. I now live with rose coloured glasses on me at all times when on the hunt online or offline or even when just going through my little bits and pieces and the photographs of fabric storage and suitcases gave me a fantastic idea of how to use an old suitcase as a home for all my fabrics and laces.

This is a definite for your collection if you love Granny Chic and photography are a collector of everything and anything and love to try different and easy projects. The only downside for me was the crocheting projects which hold little interest in me. I would recommend this as a pick me up full of vibrancy, cuteness and joy as well as a great tool for finding ways to connect with your creative old soul, and possibly even your partner or kids in doing some of the projects. It is certainly a keeper for me and I will be picking up my own copy.

♥♥♥♥ ½

Two Spiritual Reviews - Return Again & The Courage to be Free

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TWO NON-FICTION REVIEWS






Synopsis

We were not born with the persistent negative, self-doubting, self-limiting thoughts and feelings most of us carry around. Those limitations are not part of our "original equipment." In the words of bestselling author and beloved teacher Guy Finley, "When you realize no one else on this earth can be like you... that no other soul may know the beauty, sorrow, light and darkness you alone are given to see, then you will no longer want to be like anyone else on this earth. You will, at last, be the fearless individual your heart of hearts has called you to be.


I picked this up at my local library after a quick flick through. At this moment in my life I am seeking to find myself on an endless life long journey and I am always interested in other people's perspectives on how to live a rich and free like while maintaining our authentic self. Guy presents a myriad of blunt suggestions, refreshing story telling and to the point key steps in which you can implement in your own life to activity be your powerful self.

Much with any book pertaining to spiritual enlightenment and self help I took what resonate with me and discarded the parts that say uncomfortable with me to reconsider and look at, at another time. I believe this is a book that you would need to read a few times to really ingrain his teachings into your mind in a manner that made them automatic. It takes practice and consistent learning to break through the resistance of freedom and I do think guy did a good job at giving those tools, however there were some parts that felt a little to forced for me and other parts where I felt that he was discarding natural human reaction.

Overall it is a book that I would probably buy if I could find it really cheap, but I wouldn't pay full price for it. However I would recommend it for a good read if you are interested in a different perspective of being and expressing your fearless self. It is a quick, thought challenging read.

♥♥♥1/2




Synopsis:

Discover your true purpose in this life, by exploring your past life in this do-it-yourself guide to past life regression.


Lately I have been awakened to the truth of past lives. I find the phenomenal experiences of other people both who have expressed their identity of deceased celebrities and well known world figures to be utterly provoking, stimulating and spiritually intriguing. From as young as Ten that I can recount I have always been drawn to Anne Frank and the time of the holocaust. I have read anything I can get my hands on about the time period and always when I am done with the curiosity of reading I feel a sense of deep sadness. I have flashbacks already, and I know within my heart that while I might not have been Anne Frank I was in that war. I know I am not the only one, and so when I started this journey into learning about Past Lives, not only did it bring amazing people with experience and knowledge into my life, but it is beginning to bring me great documented accounts and teachings that I can gain so much from.

When at my local library I said – I wish I could find a book on Past Lives, literally the next book I pulled out was Return Again – How to do your own Past Life Regression by Georgia Cannon.

This informative and positive guide read more to be like an introduction to Past Lives more than a regression workbook. I would recommend it for those readers who are new to the concept of Past Lives and Interlives as well as those who would like to learn about Soul agreements, Karma, the different kinds of soul mates and the planes of existence. I would also suggest that if you are triggered by the topic of death and reincarnation that you have a support system put in place before you try any of the exercises later on in the book.

I found it to be extensive enough to keep me interested. As someone with a little background and experience in practising the regression, I always love learning different techniques, exercises and reading about other peoples experience in a field that is deeply fascinating. Georgia did a fantastic job at drawing me into her teachings and I could not put this book down. I had to keep reading, learning, relating and appreciating the wealth of knowledge from the experience of reading this book. It has given me a lot to consider and a great tool for taking my own journey into past life regression.

If you are interested in the field or wanting to learn a little more about life, death and spirituality as well as Karma and soul mates I would recommend picking this book up. I am certainly going to be adding it to my own collection and doing the self recorded hypnosis in the near future.

♥♥♥♥ ½


Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Year Book Buying Ban - January Update

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Progress – Pushing past the habit

This month has been crazy hard. I have not brought any books. I have not even requested any from Net-Galley. I haven't bargained someone into buying me books, and no one has gifted me with any. I haven't even looked online for books. I did catch myself once or twice almost in automatic response to a link here, a special there, or just to find out what I could learn about a new release.

It has been 31 days. Yes I am going insane with wanting to buy all the books, but I am also learning a lot during this process. The most important is that I have plenty on hand to read. I have been going to the library, borrowing books from friends, looking through my shelves and finishing of books I started and never finished from last year. I have plenty to keep me excited.

Why Blair – Why are you doing this to yourself?

I decided this Year long book buying ban challenge a few months before the New Year of 2014. I have long since been inspired by Susan Hill who took up her own challenge to only read the books that she owned and revisit her favourites as well as read ones she had been wanting to for a long time. I found I was lacking the motivation in this area of my reading life. With the pressure of wanting to read not only all the new books that were coming out, but my old ones, and library ones. Not to mention finish some series, start new ones and find some series and authors to delight in for the long haul, I found myself avoiding re-reads. Avoiding the finishing of series because of the long commitment they take to read through and being a series jumper and not a marathoner I wanted to take it upon myself to challenge myself to try.

I wanted to make a change, and in doing so make a difference somehow. Not only in my bank balance [ because sure, so far that has failed since I have so many different hobbies], but also in someone else's life by directing my passion for reading, my need to change a habit and a love for helping people into a series of events that will raise money for different charities. What better way to have an even stronger direction, a sense of purpose and a reason to get others involved in reading what they own and possibly trying something new themselves.

These events are in the process of planning. I hope by mid-year to be able to say I am 6 months free from my addictive book buying habit and begin to host the events. I would love to see my collection of unread books slimming down, to donate any books to my book sale that I didn't enjoy to someone who might and remember what it was like to have very little, but love a lot.

I am looking forward to documenting this journey as well. With the books I have read, articles I find, photo's of the books I am reading. Anything bookish related that is not a haul – think reviews, discussions [if I see fit] quotes...anything and everything to document the experience and maybe even offer hope to someone out there like me who owns enough books to last two life times, but wants to really get a crack on in getting that pile down and having those adventures.

Epic Fail

There is always the possibility of an epic fail where I cave in.
But I am a dreamer as well as a part time realist.
I believe in manifestation and working hard on the goals I set for myself.
One day at a time, one week at a time, one month at a time
I can do this.