Planning a Little Tea Party

Hey guys!

So in celebration of me completing my Early Years Teacher Status I thought what better way to celebrate than to have a Tea Party with my closest friends. I wanted to post some ideas and create a little mood board including some cute ideas for a party, such as colour themes and décor. I love to look at other blogger’s party ideas so if you have any links to cute decorations feel free to comment and share!

I love the whole idea of an outdoor tea party theme, with lots of bunting and lots of flowers to create a bright and pretty area that’s relaxed and laid back. It needs a vintage/floral/bright theme running through it and a lot of summery colours and shades, as well as vintage tea cups and teapots! I’m inviting about ten to fifteen people, so something quirky and also relaxed is what I’m thinking of, it will have some lovely personal touches as well.

Here are some ideas for my party:

 

Now that I’d found a great theme for my party I need to get some invites out, otherwise said friends wouldn’t be coming. I need something fast and preferably something easy, and that’s how I came across paperless post. The idea of online invites is genius to me, a lot of my friends are online as well so it makes sense. I can’t believe the range of invites they have, and I have found myself browsing the website looking through all their beautiful designs. Check them out here!

Here are some examples of some of the wonderful designs:

The website is so cute and a good resource to inspire my party ideas too! It has some more quirky ideas rather than the bog standard ones you normally find, you can personalise your cards or invites and they even have the option of buying them or they have a range of free ones too if you have a budget for your party. I love them!

So if you have a party coming up let me know about it, and share your ideas I would love to see them. And check out https://www.paperlesspost.com/cards/section/invitations for some cute and quirky invites!

I look forward to hearing all about your party 🙂

Love Sophie x

Ways to Manage Stress

Hello everybody!

Firstly I must apologise for my loooong absence. I am so close to the end of my Postgrad and will soon be an Early Years Teacher! Juggling that and a full time job as well as a bloody long commute has absolutely fried me, and any spare time I have is used to sleep. Amongst the chaos and stress of this time in my life I was hugley privileged to watch one of my best friends marry the love of her life. So congrats to you two Beth and Kev, it was a truly amazing day and night 🙂 Here are a few lovely photos:

 

So aside from a few wonderful moments in the last few months I have probably been the most stressed out I have ever been in my life. At times I have felt very overwhelmed and felt like I have been almost at breaking point over the amount of things I am juggling. And then it happened. The panic attack. Now there are people who may read this who have had panic attacks and know what I mean, or they may experience something different, but I’ll explain a little about my experience.

Driving to work I had managed to do the entire hour long journey, and when I was around the corner from work I started to feel dizzy, fuzzy headed. I have been known to faint in the past and it felt a little like that so I tried not to focus on it and sang very loudly to the radio. I managed to pull into the work carpark and run inside the building where I sat in the office. Suddenly my chest felt tight and I could’t get my breath. Panicking, I started to struggle to breathe, and in my head I kept thinking ‘I’m going to die.’ From talking to other people who have suffered from panic attacks, this seems quite common. I ran to get a colleague and shouted for help, all while sobbing uncontrollably. She said afterwards my face went blue, then red, then white as the blood drained from my face. I sat down and started to get my breath back as she talked to me and calmed me down. Then it was over.

I hope I never suffer from a panic attack ever again, but to me it was a much needed reality check that I was putting way too much pressure on myself, and I needed to do something to try and manage the stress I was under.

Rather than talk about my work load, I’ll tell you about some strategies I’ve been working on to help me manage the stressed out, overwhelmed feeling.

1. Get enough sleep.
I try to get between 7-9 hours sleep per night, exhaustion never works for anybody.

2. Exercise.
In my small amounts of spare time I go for walks with my sister in the countryside, as a way to clear my head. I force myself to switch off from work and enjoy the smells, sounds and sights of the beautiful landscape around me.
I also try to do yoga. Don’t take me for a yoga expert, I watch youtube videos, which are amazing. If you’re curious, try Yoga with Adrienne, she is so calming and really knows her stuff.

3. Drink lots of water
Water detoxes the system, and when you’re stressed, you need a clear mind and body, free of toxins. Make sure you have a bottle of water with you at all times, I like to put a bit of squash in mine, then I drink more!

4. Cut down on caffeine
I am a HUGE tea fan as you all know, and so now I switch to decaf tea when I’m at home. In our house the kettle is always boiled or boiling so I was drinking a lot of caffeine which sends the heart crazy and can cause palpitations!

5. Have a healthy diet
Eat lots of greens, and try to cut out high sugary fatty foods, as well as alcohol. I feel so much better when I’ve had lots of fruit and veg.

6. Do what makes you happy
I like to sing, it doesn’t mean I’m good at it, but a 75 mile commute means I have lots of time to belt out my favourite tunes. Just call me Beyonce 🙂

7. Meditate
I downloaded an app called Calm, it’s a meditation app and has lots of natural sounds while a lovely lady helps you to relax and find your centre. Give it a go if you’re into that kind of thing!

If you have any other strategies or ideas to manage stress and keep calm, I would love to hear from you! Just comment below or email me on sophie_deacon@hotmail.co.uk and I will make a compilation post with all of your contributions.

Stay happy,

Love Sophie xxx

What are you happy for?

Hey guys and happy Monday!

I hope you have all had as relaxing an Easter weekend as mine has been; I have barely moved!

So one of my fave bloggers Louise has written a lovely little post as part of her ‘Motivational Monday’ series, which you can find here. Here she lists some of the things that make her happy, so I thought I’d write a little list of my own, and encourage all of you to do the same 🙂

Sometimes it does us good to remind ourselves of the things that make us happy; big or small, and that sometimes, parts of life aren’t bad at all ❤

This Monday I am happy for –

Waking up to sunshine streaming through the window
Green tea
My newfound love for yoga and all the wonderful youtube videos out there
My lovely squishy doggy
Long phone calls with loved ones
Family time
Leggings with cats all over them
Reuniting with my university friends and nothing changes (they’re still crazy and wonderful as ever)
Ideal home magazine
Beautiful notebooks full of ideas and lists
Leave in conditioner
The smell of coconut. YUM.
The blogging community (especially on Twitter the little gems)
The rewarding feeling when you work with children and how magical the journey can be
Chocolate buttons and cup of tea

So let’s all make this Monday a truly happy one, list some of the things that make you happy on this lovely sunny Monday; it will perk you up and make you smile!

Tips for Valentine’s Day <3

Everybody has a different opinion on Valentine’s day. Whether you’re loved up and really want to treat your partner, or loving the single life; it was created to celebrate love.

Either way, if celebrating Valentine’s day it should be completely personal to your relationship. It should be reflective of how well you know your partner, and a way to cherish and celebrate your precious shared moments.

That said, V day is also different for us all depending on what stage of a relationship we are in. For a new couple who have recently said those three magical words, you may feel like making the most of it with a slap up meal followed by an intimate massage and extravagant gifts. For those who have been together for years, you may feel as though a takeaway would be just what you need and simply appreciate the time spent together. Whatever you decide as a couple is perfectly acceptable. Nobody made a specific set of rules to follow for this day (or any day) so enjoy it with your loved one!

Check out this cute card from Etsy

Ideas for Valentine’s Day

Take your date for a walk in the countryside

Go for afternoon tea

Go Iceskating

Book a relaxing spa day and unwind together

Have breakfast in bed

Build a fort and watch films all day

Draw a candle lit bath for your partner (and join them if you’d like)

If you live together write lots of romantic notes and hide them all over the house

Create a photobook filled with memories you’ve made together, and leave space for all the wonderful memories you’re yet to make

Order a takeaway

Make your Valentine’s Day personal and whatever you decide to do, love the one you are with 🙂

The Benefits of Green Tea

Hello everybody!

So recently I’ve started what can only be called a change of lifestyle; I’ve joined Slimming World and I am making a conscious effort to lose weight. I’m on week three so once there is a significant change I’ll blog about it 🙂

One thing I’ve really got into during my ‘lifestyle change’ (I refuse to say diet) is introducing healthy foods and drinks into my daily routine, and so I’ve started drinking more green tea. I have always loved green tea (along with all other types of tea) but ever since reading lots of different things stating the different benefits of green tea I’ve made it part of my life. This post is a celebration of all things green tea.

Quick bit of information for those tea lovers, all tea is produced from the Camellia sinensis plant. The fresh leaves are steamed to produce green tea, whereas other types of tea go through a fermentation stage. Green tea has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries, to treat literally anything, from a headache to a more serious condition. They’ve definitely got the right idea!

Some of the benefits:

It contains B vitamins, potassium, folate (naturally occurring folic acid), magnesium and caffeine.

It has anti-inflammatory qualities, proven to reduce skin damage and improve wrinkles, as well as sun damage.

It lowers the risk of diabetes.

It kills bacteria; improving dental health and the risk of infection.

It burns fat; improving physical performance and boosting weight loss.

The natural caffeine improves brain performance, and is linked to reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.

It combats cardiovascular disease.

It reduces cholesterol.

I’m sure there are many other benefits people who drink green tea have found, and there are many websites with information!

Having made this a part of my daily routine I can say I feel much more alert, my bloating has reduced and I feel happier which I know is part of my routine becoming more active as well, but I know green tea has played a huge part. I also suffer from a bit of anxiety and I feel like that has definitely improved. Whether that be the actual tea or the physical affects is making my mind a lot calmer and positive, either way I’m feeling really happy these days.

I would love to hear if anybody else has felt the benefits of green tea, or if they don’t feel them or disagree, so get in touch with your thoughts 🙂

Speak soon,

Sophie xxx

My 2015

Hello everybody!

Happy New Year and all that jazz!

I hope you all had a fabulous time bringing in the New Year, and I’m sure most people have some goals they have set for themselves! New year, new start.

I am a total believer in a fresh slate, and although some people don’t like to use the new year as an excuse for it, I feel it helps to set a clear start date, and what date is better than the 1st January.

So I came across these questions and while I have my own set of personal resolutions and a 2015 Bucket list which I will be sharing soon, these questions are very helpful in terms of reflection and setting some goals.

So here we go:

What do you want the overarching theme for your 2015 to be?

2015 is the year I complete my Post Graduate degree and (fingers crossed) become an Early years Teacher.

It will also be the year I truly focus on my blog, attend bloggers events and interact with my fellow bloggers!

I am also really hopeful that 2015 will be the year I feel a bit more settled, and spend more time with loved ones.

What do you want to see, discover, explore?

Ooh that’s a tricky one, I want to see all of my friends, travel to their home towns and have them visit me, make memories together and value their company.

I want to discover more about the blogging world.

I want to explore a part of the world I have never been to before. May as well set the target pretty high hey?

Who do you want to spend more time with in 2015?

My lovely family and friends, old friends I have reconnected with, and hopefully some new friends along the way.

What skills do you want to learn, improve or master?

I would really like to learn more about my field (education) and gain more experience through my job.

I would love to improve my blogging skills, particularly my knowledge of beauty and fashion.

Is it too much to ask to master my baking skills?!

Which personal quality do you want to develop or strengthen?

My networking skills. I love to meet new people, but like a lot of people I do get a touch of the old anxiety which prevents me from meeting or sometimes interacting with people. It’s something I really want to challenge head on, so I am really going to work hard at interacting with new people!

What do you want your everyday life to be like?

I feel like I wasted a lot of time last year, so I want my everyday life to be productive. I want to be busy, and full of smiles. Sometimes it is so easy to get stuck in a rut and think you’ve got it really bad, without considering others who may be worse off! I work 40 hours a week, do my Post grad part time, and I want to commit at least one post a week on my blog. In between all this I want to spend as much time with friends as possible. It’s completely do-able with time management and a positive attitude!

Which habits do you want to change, cultivate or get rid of?

I want to cultivate my worried self into an organised girl, who does things because I enjoy them, not because I think it will make people like me or think better of me.

I want to completely get rid of my anxiety, but I don’t think it’s quite as easy as that.

What do you want to achieve career-wise?

I think like most people, I just want to do something I enjoy. Whether that be continue in child care or move on to something new. 2014 taught me that nobody’s path is set, and that life is far too short to stay in something because you’re worried you won’t find anything better!

How do you want to remember the year 2015 when you look back on it 10/20/50 years from now?

I want to look back and see that 2015 was a pivotal year in my life in terms of career path. The year that I set my own challenges and surprised myself. I also want 2015 to be the year I embraced the people/things I love.

What is your number one goal for 2015?

Be a total badass, work hard, and play harder.

I invite all my fellow bloggers to see if they can answer these questions, send me the link to your blog so I can read them, I look forward to seeing your answers!

Love,

Sophie xxx

Teaday Tuesday!

Hello everybody 🙂

As I was in the health shop I came across this little treasure and I’m so glad I decided to try it!

One of my favourite flavours is coconut, so you can imagine my glee when I saw this tea sitting on the shelf much like a queen sitting in her throne.

It’s Green tea with coconut!

As described on the packaging, this tea is an ‘exotic combination of green tea and coconut with delicate lychee’.

When I first brewed the tea, I wasn’t hugely impressed by the scent it gave off, I couldn’t detect the coconut it had promised me. But like all tea, the taste is always so different to the smell.

What I found was this tea was soft, smooth and full of different flavours, all so delicate they weren’t overpowering.

I loved that I could taste coconut ever so gently, and I could taste the lychee which was very subtle. This tea made me feel warm inside and comforted, like I had a big fluffy blanket warming me right to my insides. Normally I stick to green tea in summer but this is definitely an all rounder.

I can even say that this tea has so many health benefits which all tie into green tea.

Just a couple of benefits of green tea:

• metabolism speeds up
• contains antioxidants and so detoxes your body
• soothes acne
• natural caffeine gives you energy

So give it a whirl, it’s worth it! And so cheap at £3!

Let me know if you have ever tried a tea with a coconut flavour, I’m intrigued to see if there are more gooduns!

Love,

Sophie xx

Teaday Tuesday

Hello everybody!

Firstly let me say thank you to the lovely people who read this, I started this blog as a way to write about what I love, particularly to keep me sane through my postgrad. It’s purely based on my own interests so to see people read my posts is really lovely. Enough of the sop now, I promise 🙂

On to the tea!

So this week has really taken a turn for the worse; frosty mornings and short days surrounded by darkness. I have spent a fair few hours in the cold waiting for trains, playing outside with the children at nursery and walking the dogs, and one thing that makes it more bearable is a lovely steaming drink to warm my cockles!

This week I have been loving Tesco Finest’s Vanilla Chai tea.

I first discovered this tea in Australia. I’d popped round to my gorgeous friend Nichole’s little place in Bronte and we were having a girly chill night. She made me a cup of tea (in the microwave, she didn’t have a kettle ha) and instantly I was in love. With the tea.

Today I chose to enjoy this tea as I was snuggled in bed reading The Hunger Games yet again, along with cuddling my lovely dog Molly. Heaven.

This tea is best without milk, and is definitely better from a teapot, as most teas are. It’s a very fragrant tea, and I would say it has a bit of spice to it which is why it’s perfect on a cold Winter’s night. The vanilla flavour is very subtle but takes it to a slightly sweeter taste, to take the edge off the spice.

If they bottle the smell of this drink, or made a candle with the scent I would buy it in a flash; to me it smells like Christmas time: cinnamon, star of anise, a distinct Wintery scent.

I would recommend this tea to those who like a herbal black tea, maybe you like green tea, or even lapsang souchong.

If you have tried this do let me know  what you thought 😀

Love,

Soph xxx

Teaday Tuesday!

Hello everybody!

A lot of people say that Tuesday is the worst day of the week. The novelty of Monday is over and the weekend looks so far away you can’t even imagine. The fun and well deserved rest of the weekend is all but forgotten and so continues the long slog of the rest of the week.

I totally feel that, but as a very positive person, I love a Tuesday, because I get to drink a delicious tea and write about it! I’m  currently curled up on the sofa with my little chum Molly, the fire is roaring and my tea is steaming.

I went for a very traditional Afternoon tea. This particular tea is from Whittard’s of Chelsea. I  must say that they are my favourite brand of tea thus far; I have spent many hours of my time browsing the shelves and trying out all of their teas.  This particular one was bought for me by one of my besties Amy, she knows my love for tea!

I won’t go on about the complex flavours and scents of this tea. I will just say it is quite light, very warming, yet the flavour is quite rich, with a hint of a smokey, slightly honeyed taste. This to me is the epitome of an Afternoon tea.

Enjoyed best with a mince pie ❤

Let me know what you think, have you tried this one? What is your favorite tea brand?

Love,

Sophie xxx

Tea Day Tuesday!

Hello everyone ❤ Hope you’re all having a good week! I can’t believe it’s Tuesday again!

So this tea is one I discovered in Sydney. I had spent a day strolling around Bondi Junction doing some shopping and I managed to get myself lost. After wandering for a while I noticed a shop called ‘T2’, and call me strange but walking into that shop was like walking into my own home. I was surrounded by walls and walls of boxes of tea, all different flavours, smells, colours. It still comes into my mind in the clearest memory, and all feelings associated with it are my happiest ones. I tried so many samples and I spent a LOT of money in there, but this tea is by far my favourite.

It’s called ‘Sleep Tight’ and the ingredients are lemonbalm, jasmine blossoms, lavender and rose petals.

The tea itself is supposed to help promote restful sleep. And boy they got that right. All the elements of this tea are soothing and calming, and while it doesn’t make me fall to sleep any quicker, I find that I wake in the morning after a solid sleep feeling well rested. Sometimes if I’m feeling slightly under the weather I’ll add a drop of honey and it soothes my throat and helps me get that good night’s sleep I desparately need.

The tea is best brewed with water at 100 degrees, and I normally brew for 3-5 minutes. The smell of this tea is mainly lavender, and the sweet flavour is just enough without being sickly sweet. I would recommend this tea to those who like the earthy flowery tones in their tea.

Check out T2’s website and have a gander at all their lovely teas!

Let me know if you have any lovely teas this week and send me the links so I can have a read 😀

Love,

Sophie xxx