christmas in a shoe box

Hi guys!

Yesterday it was time for a yearly ritual. I'm officially a Catholic and although I'm not religios at all, I participate in a project from the Diakonie (a non-profit welfare organization of the church) every year. It's called "Weihnachten im Schuhkarton" (christmas in a shoe box). It's the most wonderful idea to do something for children who live in misery and poverty.


For my German-speaking readers:

Diese Aktion gibt es in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz! Es geht darum Kindern in Armut (hauptsächlich in Georgien, Polen, Bulgarien, Slowakei etc.) ein schönes Weihnachtsfest zu bereiten indem man einen Schuhkarton voll mit schönen Kleinigkeiten packt. Falls ihr helfen möchtet findet ihr HIER alle wichtigen Infos.
Nach Weihnachten gibt es dann auf der Diakonie-Website immer Fotos, Videos und Dankesbriefe von den Kids, sich das anzuschauen ist meist schöner als jedes Geschenk.
Bis 15. November könnt ihr noch Schuhkartons in den landesweiten Abgabestellen abgeben.



So switching back to English now, here's how it works:




First you have to wrap a shoe box with gift wrap paper...



...to make it look like a real gift.





Then you fill it with everything a children's heart desires (before you need to decide if the box is for a boy or a girl and for which age group).




Finished. My box contains toys, candy, socks and sanitary products for a girl between 5-9 years.


When I brought my box to the collecting point (a Christian bookshop) the owners were so amazed that young women like me pack these boxes as well. (Well, they're devout Christians, so I guess they don't see pierced people walk in their shop very often. ^^)
I left a little donation of 6 Euro in their collecting box because that's what they recommend to cover the transport expenses.

Then after Christmas there will be videos on the Diakonie website, showing where the shoe boxes were given to the poor children. Some of them still live in ruins without electricity, running water or a way to heat their rooms - which is so unbelievable. So you can imagine how happy the children are to receive gifts for Christmas :)


Oh last but not least here are the last two outfit photos. It's what I wore yesterday when I brought away my shoe box. I'll definitely pack another one next week (deadline is the 15th of November).




jacket + shirt + pants + scarf + hat: h&m, belt: new yorker, shoes: akira, bag: primark





What about you guys? Do you participate in welfare projects for Christmas or maybe even during the whole year?


Have a great weekend!




now playing: katie melua - 9 million bicycles

pretty things - another fall wishlist

Hi guys!


I clicked through many Dawanda shops the last days and I was totally amazed by what some of the sellers create. You can see that they create their items with love and that they have drawn their inspiration from fall in all its beauty.
So I put together another wishlist with things that I'd love to have for fall. Well, I don't think my budget will allow any of these items, but I can still dream right? ;)


rocking bed "private cloud" by private cloud
I want to curl up under a cozy blanket with a hot tea and a good book in this!




flea market quilt in gorgeous colours by sternwerfer
The colours - I adore the colours!




cushion "Rascal the Racoon" by margamarina
Cuuute! And would look so good with the colourful quilt above!




Plateau allongé en mosaïque by au bonheur des mains
A cup of warming cocoa couldn't be served on a prettier tray, could it?




"bird flying in forest" bag by little odd forest
Definitely brightens up rainy days!




leaves cushions by Katrins Geschenkstübchen
In my opinion you can't have enough cushions on your bed and sofa for fall.




hot water bottle "vintage rose" by rosalia
Look at this little beauty, perfect for cold feet.




"deuce" necklace by BeauMonde
A beautiful eyecatcher for fall outfits, oh I want!



What are your fall finds? :)

Happy Thursday!




now playing: muse - starlight

running errands in the rain

Hi guys!

God, it was the nastiest fall weather today! Cold wind and heavy rain all day and I hadn't expected it and was so smart to put on a dress in the morning aaah.

I had to skip uni today because of a doctors-marathon - literally. I've been having these allergy symptoms for weeks now (irritated eyes, blocked nose, shortness of breath) but pollen time is over, so I was wondering what else it could be? Well, the allergist found out that I reacted pretty intense on the test for house dust mites and as they're primarily located in the bed, they are the reason why I get these allergy attacks almost every evening! Ugh! I don't even want to think about these disgusting tiny little critters and that they are in my bed :-/
Anyway, now my health insurance provides me with special allergy-tested bed linen that can be put under the normal sheets to keep the critters inside so that they won't come out and bother me.
Afterwards I had to head to two other doctors to take care of some paperwork (how I love German bureaucracy...).



dress: joe brown's via ebay, coat + circle scarf + belt: h&m, cardi + tights: gina tricot, boots: bullboxer, necklace: accessorize






And then the weather... I love this dress so much but it really wasn't the right choice for wind and rain. Some weeks ago I styled this dress for a cloudy late summer's day and today I wanted to try out if it's fit for fall too. Well, it is but rather for warmer fall days I guess. However my new favourite tights were perfect: I wore them with two pairs of skin coloured ones underneith and my legs felt warm. Great! :)



ring: six






I also took some photos with my mobile when I was out and about, so here they are:



a whole bike covered with fake fur! (advertising gag of a fabric shop)



this is what Düsseldorf city looks like in fall



I found this lovely skater dress at Gina Tricot, now I'll have to consider if it's worth 30€ or if I should wait for their sale.



Aw I'm so obsessed with dresses lately. Before I had this skirt phase but now I want to own many many dresses, so I'm trying to restock my closet with them :) The good thing about buying dresses in a transition season is that you look for pieces that are at best suitable for warm and cold weather. So do you remember the H&M floral dress I had a crush on the other day? I finally bought it. Furthermore I got two hats and some lovely pyjama pants because the weather made me feel like I had to stock up on cozy things.



everything H&M (okay I know the shoes aren't cozy but they were in the sale for 3€, so whatever ^^)



gorgeous florals! (pyjama pants left, dress right, both H&M)



I got three of these adorable panties for 10€ at Hunkemöller (their underwear is so super-comfy, so I wear it to sleep)



Sale bargain! This Pocahontas-style necklace was 3€ (it's from Six).





AND last but not least I felt like stocking up on handbags for fall. I redeemed this beauty as a chic reward from Chictopia and I had these two in the mail today (both purchased via Ebay for 1€ + shipping each):


black vintage fake leather teacher's bag


brown/green/darkblue vintage purse



Ah sorry, lots and lots of shopping today. I hope you liked the post though.

Do you feel/have you felt like stocking up on any special items for fall lately? Does the weather make you buy things? :)

Have a great Wednesday!




now playing: the wombats - tokyo

office days are boring

Hi guys!

Hm I always resolve to try posting everyday here but then the days get long and exhausting at uni and work and in the evening I just want to have supper and watch TV or read instead of spending the rest of the day in front of the laptop. That's why my last post was 3 days ago,... dang it didn't feel like I haven't blogged for 3 days.



cardi: zara, shirt: pull&bear, skirt (2nd hand via ebay) + belt: h&m, leggings: ergee, boots: vintage via ebay, necklace: bijou brigitte, ring: six



Anyway, in the photos you can see yesterday's outfit. It's not very creative because I wore something similar the other day, but I just love my new zipper skirt and want to wear it as long as the weather allows me to. Furthermore these black boots are perfect for fall (leather on the outside, fake fur on the inside) so they're my first choice for these crisp October mornings we have here now.



As I spent my whole day at the office there's nothing left to say now, office days are so boring... I'll think of something more interesting for tomorrow :)


Have a great Tuesday!


Don't forget to join my 100 readers giveaway! ;)




now playing: enter shikari - no sleep tonight

snacky snacks

Hi guys!

It's so amazing how many new followers I got with the giveaway, that's awesome! Hello new readers, thanks for your interest! I hope you'll stay after the giveaway ends ;)


Well, today I have a little collection of food photos for you.
First you have to know that I'm not a good cook at all and that - unfortunately - I don't even like cooking, it's just no fun to me. So you could rather call me a snacker who eats lots of small portions during the day instead of 3 main meals.
Hence I like it when my mini meals are ready in no time ;) Furthermore I promised myself to pay attention to eating a bit more healthy stuff because I don't want to gain even more weight than I already have now.
So, if you're a snack-lover too and if you're always looking for more snack inspiration (I do!), maybe you'll like this:


salad toasties



Uncomplicated healthy little snack for in-between.

You need:

mini toasty-breads
salad of your choice
feta or mozarella cheese


You simply have to put the salad and cheese into the toasties and put everything into the pre-heated oven for a few minutes.
The rest of the salad can be used as "side dish" ;)



"Strammer Max" (bread with ham and scrambled eggs)



A hearty little snack that doesn't take more than 10 minutes.

In the Rhineland where I live here in Germany we call this "Strammer Max", I have no idea about the real name of it ;)

You need:

eggs
milk
ham and cheese
bread or toast
salt and pepper


Crack the eggs (as many as you like) into a bowl and whisk them with some milk until it has a creamy texture. Season to taste with the salt and pepper.
Put it into a pan and fry it.
(I guess you all know how to make scrambled eggs anyway ^^)

Put the cheese and ham on two slices of bread or toast and spread the scrambled eggs all-over.
Add ketchup if you like (that's what I always do).




banana cornflakes



Easy-peasy and done in two minutes.

Ehm well, yes,... cornflakes, milk, banana slices, that's it ;)
And of course you can use all kinds of other fuits too.




rice stew with vegetables



Another super-easy meal for lazy people.


You need:

boil-in-the-bag rice
deep-frozen vegetables "asia style"
soy sauce


Cook the rice. Put the vegetables into a pan and fry them until they're defrosted. Season to taste with soy sauce (and/or other spices if you like).



open focaccia



Almost the same as the salad toasties above.

You need:

focaccia to crisp up
(available in the supermarket here)
cold cuts

Put the cold cuts into the focaccia and crisp it up in the oven. That's it, haha.




As you could see I'm not a cook at all, so all you awesome talented housewives please don't laugh at me ;) I hope you liked my attempts on mini meals though.

Do you guys have some snack recipes for me? I'm always open to new ideas :)


Have a great weekend!




now playing: johnossi - execution song

pastels and polkadots

Hi guys!

I haven't shown you this jacket before, somehow there wasn't a chance to take a photo of it yet. So today I thought it's about time. I bought it at H&M online a few months ago, they had it in the shops as well and I had a crush on it :) But somehow I knew they would move it to the sale section at the end of summer and voilà I got it in their summer sale for 30% off.
It really actually is a summer jacket but with a cozy cardi or sweater underneith it works as a transition jacket too. Plus the lovely lavender shade rather spreads spring feelings than autumn vibes, so it maybe even makes you feel warmer?! No unfortunately it doesn't, I'm just kidding ;)



jacket + scarf + jeans: h&m, shoes: head, beanie: accessorize






What do you think about pastel colours for fall? I don't think it really fits but I like it anyway. I even happened to choose a matching nail polish two days ago eventhough I didn't know what I'd wear today :)



flower brooch (on the beanie): claire's, ring: six, nail polish: P2 "rich 'n royal" (some kinda taupe)





Hey you know what? Halloween is drawing nearer and I actually didn't plan something special. As you might know the Halloween celebrations here in Germany are not cherished as much as in the USA and so all of my friends feel to grown-up to dress up and party (dorks...). Anyway, Patrick will be at work on Halloween, so I thought I'd spend my evening on the sofa with lots of horror movies.
BUT now it looks as if I'll get my dressing up and celebrating Halloween after all! If everything goes well I'll spend Halloween dressed up as a zombie nurse at the Warner Brothers Movie World (a theme park)! How cool is that?! :)

By the way there is a Halloween costume contest on Photobucket at the moment and I tell you they have absolutely awesome photos!
I died laughing when I saw these:



(via germanpacer)



(via averyreppel)



(via cmrojas_2006)

There are many more awesome costumes, you should really go take a look, it's great fun :)



Have a nice Thursday!




now playing: the kooks - shine on

CLOSED hooray for 100 readers giveaway!

Hi guys!

Here is the promised giveaway to celebrate my awesome readers! I even got one more follower since Sunday (a friend of mine). Hallo Regina! :)

So again: thank you all so much for your interest and support and kind words! Okay a blog mostly depends on the blogger him/herself, BUT the readers play an important role as well! Thank you for spreading the love and for keeping me blogging! That's exactly the motivation I need to keep myself going too :)



So, I have a lovely little goodie bag for one lucky winner.
It consists of:


my favourite red nail polish + favourite kajal:
Manhattan Lotus Effect No. 45Q and
Manhattan Khol Kajal Eyeliner 1010N



an H&M black lace cosmetic bag



an H&M black rose keychain lipgloss and
and a wonderfully kitschy H&M key charm



a sheet of Accessorize matryoshka stickers



a pair of Accessorize leo angora socks against cold feet


This giveaway is open to international readers, the winner will be drawn on Monday the 1st of November 2010 via random.org!




Rules to enter:

1. Follow my blog with Google or Bloglovin (leave 1 comment)

2. Follow me on Formspring. (leave 1 extra comment)

3. Add me as a favourite on Chictopia. (leave 2 extra comments)

4. Post my giveaway button to your blog's sidebar or write about the giveaway on your blog. (leave 2 extra comments)


Leave me a way to contact you in case you'll be the lucky winner.


In total you can leave up to 6 comments which will increase your chances to win. Good luck! :)


Happy Tuesday!