DIY Card "Book"

I'm the kind of person who doesn't like to throw away all the cards I get, whether it's from a birthday or a holiday or whatever. Especially when they have a joke or a meaningful message inside. But it gets kind of difficult to keep them organized [ more so if you like to keep them by date / year like me]. I've come up with a way to keep them nice and organized without them sliding all over the place when you pick them up. It's called a card "book".

What you need is:

• birthday / Christmas / all the cards you wish to keep
• hole punch
• book rings [ I purchased mine from Walmart for $2 ]

The big black square thing is a hole punch in case you were wondering - it's an oldie.

There's not much to explain but, all you need to do is punch one or two holes in your cards, you can keep the envelopes in the book as well or reuse them if nothing is written on them. 

I punched two holes in my regular sized cards and one hole in the smaller cards.

I'm just starting off with a few cards, but with the pack of book rings there are small, medium and large rings so I can always expand my book as I add more cards.

Keep the memories alive.

xoxo - Gouu

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xoxo - Gouu

How To Deal With A Cold Without Taking Medication

Colds can be the worst, especially when you go to bed feeling perfectly fine and wake up feeling like crap. After dealing with my cold I've decided to let you guys know what things I've done that have made the cold a bit less miserable.

Try To Eat Healthier
When you're sick, your body could use the extra vitamins and power. I'll be honest the food I ate was everything BUT healthy, which definitely didn't make me feel any better.

Blow Your Nose
Pretty obvious - I know, but most people tend to try to sniffle all their problems away. Which is not the way to go. Get all the icky stuff out, it'll help your nose feel a bit more clear. [one year I kept sniffling and wound up with a sinus infection - not saying this will happen to you, but it does happen].
NOTE: depending on how often you need to blow your nose, it might be an idea to moisturise your nose to keep it from getting irritated and painfully dry.

Get Plenty Of Rest
Sleeping peacefully can be difficult when you're sick, but it's important to let your body heal, naps during the day can help you feel a bit less groggy. Not to mention time that you spend sleeping is time you don't have to spend awake and aware of how terrible you feel.

Get Fresh Air
Fresh air never hurts! It'll help clear your nose and you'll feel at least a bit [if not a lot] better. Open your window, or if you're feeling adventurous go out for a short walk.

Drink Liquids
Water and juices are best. I was constantly guzzling water to keep my throat from feeling like I was swallowing sand. If you have a sore throat try gurgling with warm salt water [morning and evening], it won't feel better immediately but my sore throat was gone the next day!

Avoid Electronics
Which means after you read this go to bed! It'll be a nice rest for your eyes. I know for me I would get a headache whenever I was looking at a screen. So if you're like that, it's best to take a little break. Your eyes will thank you for it!

Stay Clean
Wash your hands or use sanitizer more often [you'll probably need lotion too], especially after blowing your nose. Not only will it help you, but it'll help those around you from catching what you have.

Everyone is different, so unfortunately there is no guarantee these will work for you but it's worth a shot!

I hope you feel better. <3

xoxo - Gouu

DISCLAIMER: I am not, nor do I plan to be, a doctor. If you have any concerns please consult your doctor.

Last Minute Valentine's Day Gift Ideas!

Whether you're fresh out of ideas, or you just completely ran out of time to get something - I HAVE GOT YOU COVERED. Both of these ideas are cheap, easy and quick to make.

NOTE IN A BOTTLE

This gift is super cute, super cheap and super easy to make. Two of the best qualities when finding a gift for someone! I got pretty much all of my supplies from Dollarama. All you need is:

• a box for your gift
• a mini bottle with a cork
• a piece of paper [about the same height as your bottle]
• a pen
• tape
• labels
• yarn / string / ribbon
• valentine's day coloured candy
• something to write on your note
• tissue paper / a napkin [not pictured]

You want to start by just writing whatever it is you want on your note. I wrote "You will forever be my always." but you can always write a memory, how you met, your song, absolutely ANYTHING. The possibilities are endless.

Roll up your paper [I found it was easier to do it by holding the ends between my index finger and my thumb and wrapping it around with my other hand] and secure it with tape or a small heart sticker if you have one before placing it in the bottle.

Next, I tied a bow with pink yarn and white ribbon around the front of my box, because it was pretty plain.

I put a napkin in my box because I was going to be placing loose smarties in the bottom, just because you never know who's touched the inside of the box [I can be a bit paranoid sometimes], plus it makes it look prettier.

I filled the bottom of my container with loose smarties from 2 of the mini boxes and a handful of the cherry cordial Hershey's kisses, then I placed my note in a bottle on top.

CANVAS ART

What I love about this gift is that it has that quirky home made look. This is perfect for kids to give or to make with their parents. Not only is this gift super quick and easy to make as well but again, I got everything I needed [aside from the paint pen, but that's easily replaceable] from the DOLLAR STORE! What you need is:

• a canvas
• craft paint - I used pink and red
• paint pen [or a thin paint brush]
• a paper plate [tbh I just squeezed the paint into my palm and it worked just as well]

Starting with your canvas on a flat surface you want to dip your hand or squeeze paint into the palm of your hand and spread it around until both of your hands are covered. I used the pink paint for this, it will become the hand print heart in the middle of your canvas. With your canvas lengthwise, you want to touch your index fingers together and your thumbs together so they make a heart shape, and then just press your hand down onto the canvas.

[I know there is a little smudge on two of my fingers - my cat was looking for attention while I was working on it].

You'll want to turn your canvas around, because otherwise the heart will be upside down. With your paint pen [or thin paint brush] you can write pretty much whatever you'd like in the centre of your hand print heart. I simply wrote "i love you" in cursive. The only trouble with this is whatever you decide to write has to be fairly short because the heart doesn't have much space inside, but you could always write above and below as well! Writing lightly in pencil first works as a good guide to see what works without fully committing right off the bat.

To fill in the extra little empty spaces, you can make small finger print hearts with your fingers! Personally, I found the thumb prints were pretty large so I used my pinky for the majority of mine. You'll want to turn your canvas upside down before you begin otherwise all of your finger print hearts will be upside down! You can make these hearts by putting two fingerprints together diagonally connected at the base. The hearts can be a little tricky - mine definitely are NOT perfect, but that's what makes it unique.

xoxo - Gouu

Valentine's Day Date Ideas!

Sometimes the funnest and most romantic things can be the cheapest. I've got a few tips and ideas so you can still have a great time and not break the bank!

SKIP THE RESTAURANT

Pick a recipe that you've both never tried before, go shopping and cook up a storm together! Even if neither of you are good cooks it'll still be a fun way to do something new.

If you'd like to add a little challenge to it, you both make the dish on your own [in the same kitchen of course, so you're still spending time together] and when you're done cooking your meals do a taste test and see who's better.

GO OUTSIDE

Go for an evening stroll, skating, or sledding. In Ottawa we have the Canal and Winterlude [a festival celebrating winter, with ice sculptures] around Valentine's Day.

If it's not bad weather out, build a snow fort and fill a thermos with hot chocolate [or your warm beverage of choice]. The two of you can cuddle in the snow with your warm beverage and watch the stars at night.

PLAY GAMES

Break out the classics! Play all your favourite board and card games from when you were kids. It'll bring back so many memories, and you'll bond and get to know each other better by sharing stories from your childhood.

DO SOMETHING NEW

Try something the two of you have never done before, haven't done for a while or haven't done together, and experience it together! Who knows, it could become your 'thing'. You could even challenge each other, loser buys the snacks. Here's a few ideas:

• Bowling
• Rock climbing
• Go to a zoo
• Open your phone book, close your eyes and choose a place. Wherever your finger lands - that's what you do!

Whatever you choose to do, I'm sure it will amazing simply because, you will be together.

xoxo - Gouu 

Valentine's Day Essentials!

I actually have to work on valentine's day, but if I had the day off I probably would have had / done all of these things. You could even do this before your date or invite a bunch of your girlfriends over to join you!

DIY SPA "KIT"

I stuck everything in a cute little white basket [from Dollar Tree] just so I have everything all in one easy accessible spot and I don't need to rush around looking for something, I can actually just relax and enjoy.

My go-to spa things include;

• a candle to set the mood - mine is Peach Bellini from Bath And Body Works, and let me just say, if you have not smelled this candle before, YOU NEED TO DO IT NOW [please]. Because seriously, it's the bomb diggity. 
• bubble bath / bath bombs / bath fizzers, etc. - and a bath.
• nail polish - to do my nails all nice and pretty [if you haven't checked out my V-Day nail tutorial click here! ]
• masks - face / hair / feet masks, the works.
• a rubber ducky - just because.
• body lotion / body cream - to keep you nice and moisturised. 

SNACKS

Food is always a must. I've actually done a post on Valentine's day treats and they are SO gooood, so to check that out click here!

You can't go wrong with tea either, I'm currently obsessed with Celestial Seasonings Fruit Sampler.

MOVIES

A combination of funny and sad movies is the perfect mix so you can still enjoy the sadder films without getting too deep down in the dumps. 

[in case it's too hard to read some of the movies I enjoy for Valentine's Day are; Titanic, The Fault In Our Stars, When In Rome, A Cinderella Story, Gnomeo And Juliet, Bride Wars and The Game Plan]

BOOKS / MAGAZINES

After watching movies, I like to read for a bit before bed to calm myself down after staring at a screen for hours. I'm in the middle of reading the Gone series by Michael Grant, it's a six book series, not necessarily Valentine's Day material but still SUPER good!

Magazines I tend to lean toward are Seventeen, Teen Vogue and Cosmopolitan.

I hope you all have a safe and wonderful Valentine's Day!

xoxo - Gouu

Valentine's Day Nails!

These nails are absolutely adorable, and surprisingly simple to do even though they can look like they took FOREVER to do [literally only took me about 10 minutes- give or take a few for the drying time].

All you will need is the nail polishes of your choice in valentines day colours [eg. red, pink, white]. I used:

• NYC, Prospect Park Bloom
• Sally Hansen, Cherry Red
• KIT, First Kiss
• NYC, Matte Me Crazy Mattifying Top Coat

STEP ONE:

Apply NYC Prospect Park Bloom all over your nail as normal to create an even base colour. Wait for the polish to dry completely before moving on to step two.

STEP TWO:

Be sure that when you take the brush out of the jar you remove at least half of the nail polish [remove more for the smaller nails], otherwise your hearts will turn into giant blobs. And that's not very festive. To create the hearts you want to paint an 'L' shape, since the brushes widen while you paint it'll turn your 'L' into a heart! One coat for the hearts is generally good enough.

Instead of doing all red hearts I did a single pink heart on my ring finger, but you could always stick to one colour or even do alternating.

STEP THREE:

Finish off with a top coat and you're done! I've recently discovered the mattifying top coat and I'm obsessed. It's a nice change from the glossy top coats. 

The pink doesn't look very noticeable here, but trust me, it is!

xoxo - Gouu 

Valentine's Day Treats!

Treats are an absolute MUST on Valentine's Day. Especially themed, cute and tasty treats. I've two ideas that I'm going to share with you guys - a drink and a snack. Both are SOO sweet and tasty, I couldn't get enough.

CINNAMON HEART MILKSHAKE

What you will need:

• vanilla ice cream
• yogurt
• strawberry [or raspberry] jam
• ground cinnamon
• cinnamon hearts
• whipped cream
• blender
• mug / cup of your choice
• a spoon

*Optional:

• milk
• food colouring
• ice
• sprinkles

Measurements vary depending on taste and preference, but I will give my measurements as a guide for you to follow, but you can obviously change it to however much you like.

STEP ONE

Add 6 scoops of vanilla ice cream, 4 scoops of yogurt, 2 scoops of jam, and one tablespoon of cinnamon [I ended up adding more than that]. Blend it all up.

After I blended it I didn't want it as thick so I added a splash of milk and 2 ice cubes, as well as 4 drops of red food colouring - the cinnamon makes the milkshake turn a bit of a brown colour. These are optional though.

STEP TWO

Pour your delicious drink into your mug and top it all off with whipped cream, red sprinkles and a couple cinnamon hearts.

CUPID CRUNCH

This snack is so amazing. It combines sweet, salty, buttery and chocolaty into one delicious treat.

What you will need:

• Popcorn
• Honey Nut Chex
• Pretzels
• Smarties [I got the valentines day coloured ones]
• a bowl

I only prepared enough for a single bowl [because it was 9:30pm and I didn't want to eat it all before bed], so I would just double or triple my measurements depending on how much you want.

This is super easy to make, all you need to do is take 2 handfuls of popcorn, chex and pretzels and 2 of the mini boxes of smarties. Mix it all up and TA-DA, you're done [the smarties fall to the bottom when you mix it, so be sure to move some back up if you want it to have colour on top]

xoxo - Gouu