Monday 3 September 2012

Autumn Recipe: Hot Mulled Apple Juice

You rarely see me blog more than once a day, but this is a completely worthy & delicious post. I promise! I have one of my favorite autumn drinks. The perfect thing to come home to after a long day in college, work, or school. This hot mulled apple juice drink is divine & yummy!

Ingredients (serves 6)

1.5L (2 1/2 pints) apple juice
4 table spoons maple syrup
2 cinnamon sticks
6 whole cloves
6 whole allspice berries
peel of 1 orange, cut into strips
peel of 1 lemon, cut into strips

Preparation 

5 mins prep, 10 mins cook

  1. Pour le apple juice & maple syrup into a large stainless steel saucepan.
  2. Put the cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice berries, orange peel, & lemon peel into a muslin spice bag. Tie the bag with kitchen string & pop into the saucepan with the juice.
  3. Place the saucepan over a medium heat for 5-10 minutes or until the juice is hot, hot but not boiling. 
  4. Take the pan off the heat & get rid of the spice bag. Pour the fancy cider into mugs, add a new cinnamon stick if you want!
And there you have the most delicious juice recipe ever! Hope you enjoy!


XOX

Jeyne

Art Deco

Here is my long overdue postie on my little Art Deco haul from Germany! Side note, I really should know by now not to make promises about having a post up on a certain date or time because in all honesty, I suck at keeping those kind of promises. Now, continuing with this review!

Like I said in my previous post, I got a couple of things from the Art Deco line when I was at my Dad's. One thing I will say about buying make-up, perfume, & other beauty things in Munich, is it is so cheap compared to here, Ireland. For example, True Match foundation costs just under €15.00 in Ireland but when I was in Germany I spotted it for €9.00 & that's just the tip of the iceberg. Crazy! I know! Of course, the higher end brands such as Benefit are still quiet expensive but not as dear as they are in Ireland. 


What I picked up: 

  1. Art Deco Long-lasting Foundation oil-free SPF20
  2. Art Deco Camouflage Stick 
  3. Art Deco Dita Von Teese Compact Powder

Long-lasting Foundation:
I picked this foundation up in shade 04. I've only used it a couple of times but every single time I am beyond happy with how amazing this foundation is. It gives even coverage & the foundation doesn't look like it was caked on, if you get me! It gives a matte finish which I love in a foundation & it stays on all day too! No touch ups or any of that. The other thing I love about this foundation is it feels light, your skin is able to breath & you almost forget you've put on any foundation. Which is just magical!  Plus, the SPF 20 means you don't have to mess around with putting on sunscreen under all your make-up which is always a big plus!  

Camouflage Stick:
I bought this concealer stick in 1. Normally, when I want to buy a non-chemist concealer, you know to treat myself to something fancy, I tend to buy the Urban Decay concealer pencil. Since I've started using the camouflage stick, I feel like that time has passed. I love how creamy this stick is for starts & secondly, I just adore how this effortlessly covers up those icky patchy spots. 

Compact Powder:
Shade 1. I'll admit, the reason I was drawn to this brand was the big Dita Von Teese sign over the Art Deco counter/area in the shop. That aside, I love this powder. It's just the perfect finish to my make-up routine. The powder itself comes in a cute case (can not think of the right word at the moment for the life of me) & the mirror has "beauty is art"  inscribed on it in cute, girly typography. I know that's just the packaging but I'm a sucker for packaging. The powder it's self doesn't feel like, I don't know powder? It feels soft on the skin & it stays put. Of course, you have to top it up as the day goes on but that's normal with any powder. I could harp on about why I love this powder but I don't want to bore you!

Overall, I was and still am beyond impressed with the items I picked up. I will most definitely be re-purchasing these products when I hit pan or run out. The quality alone is enough for me plus the overall result. Normally, I'd say oh I'll try that product & be unimpressed with it or stay true to my old faithful brands such as Urban Decay but seriously, that ship has sailed. I have been converted to this brand for the foreseeable future!

XOX

Jeyne