Wednesday, April 30, 2014

My favourite cooking Instagram accounts.

Today is all about food and who I like to admire over on my Instagram account. I hope that you gain some inspiration from these and make sure to cook something tasty that is bouncing with flavours. 


Jeanie cooks colourful and delicious looking foods that is easy for anyone. They are full of nutrients and simply want to inspire you to get a little more creative with you vegetables. Most of the recipes are vegetarian, however the majority you can adapt for you own requirements and taste. 



Dana and John work together to create a simple, but scrumptious and mouth watering blog. There creation is fantastic with only using minimal ingredients, one bowl or 30 minutes or less to prepare. Fast, fresh, simple, affordable and nutritious. I am currently in love with this blog and cannot wait until I cook up some of their lovely dishes and develop my own cooking skills. 


A Bakery & Cafe that create and feature some of the best French pastries that are made with the finest of ingredients. The patisseries are made with such kindness and pride that the end result is simply divine and always has the finest touch of detail. 


Marina is a mommy, wife, food blogger and author of The Yummy Mummy Cookbook that offers a healthy way of living. All of her recipes are filled with fresh ingredients and packed with healthy nutrients. All of her recipes are simply mouthwatering and as per any recipe easily adaptable. Marina is amazing at cooking and wants to inspire you all to increase the amount of positive foods into you lifestyle. 


I recommend that you head on over to all of these cooking Instagram accounts and blogs to show some love, because I am sure you won't be disappointed. All of the blogs cover different tastes and the best part about the cooking world is that you do not have to follow the recipe. 

Molly x

Monday, April 28, 2014

Motivational Monday #7

As per usual a very happy Monday and I cannot believe that April is nearly over. It has honestly gone by in a flash. 


You have to realise in life that the conditions you work whether it is with regards to home, employment, social or even the actual weather, they are not all perfect. The world is not a perfect place and sadly is not filled with perfect people, even if you think so. You may look at this one person to be absolutely flawless and see their lifestyle, hair, skin, intelligence and style to be absolutely perfect and that they don't have a worry in the world, however that is not true. I know that we all admire many people and sometimes can't admit of being jealous about them, and are always comparing ourselves to them and how we are not good at what they do or who they are as a person, which makes us feel down. You will never truly know a person, because they only show and say what they want you to know and see, so on the inside it might not be all sunshine and happy days - that is a fact with most people. Everyone has the  smallest or silliest of imperfections that make them incomplete as a person like; having bitten nails, smelly feet, split ends, OCD or could simply be a health issue, but seriously the list goes on. 

So what I am trying to say to you all is don't wait for a perfect person or condition, because honestly you will be wasting valuable time. You have to adjust to the circumstances and make the most of it and realise that not everything you do, every decision made or person you meet is perfect. Adapt to it and make it count! 

Molly x 

Saturday, April 26, 2014

Accessory Wish List.

Good morning to you all… 
Accessories are a key element to an outfit and with the aid of the my good old friend Google, I am going to share a few of my favourites that sit within a similar colour palette. So as you can probably tell from the collection below, the colour theme is grey, yellow and black. (neutral colours with a pop of colour!) I am honestly in love with all of these colours at the moment and think that they compliment each other nicely. 

Now I am definitely a handbag junkie and love collecting different styles and colours, but these days I try to be a little bit more careful when buying handbags. I don't like buying them for the sake of having a new one in my collection from you typical fashion store, I love to look more carefully in purchasing 'better quality' and unique styles. The mini Zara office bag is perfect for your main handbag essentials, which is similar to the neutral coloured bag in the bottom right hand corner. Sometimes a big bag and weigh you down when you are constantly walking around, so it is nice to switch it up. I definitely prefer medium to smaller sized bags, but would rather have a large bag for long distance travelling, road trips or for studying. 

I am off on a little Melbourne adventure at the end of the year as a celebration of finishing 13-years of schooling with my older sister and friend. It is really not that far from where I live a good 2 hours maximum on a plane, but I am a lover of the airport atmosphere and the feeling of travelling to a new destination. I also love people watching to see what they are wearing and thinking of where they are going. (Not in a creepy way, might I add!) So, I thought I would try to find myself a nice travel wallet that I can not only use for my tickets, but as an everyday wallet. I plan on travelling a lot more with the next few years and finding one would be perfect. I have found this stunning print from Kate Hill and of course it is yellow and grey! You know that by luck you will buy one and within the next couple weeks you will see one that you love even more, but you really you won't be holding onto the same one for years - right? 

Floppy hats are so sophisticated and I love hats that have a wide brim and well I won't go listing off the features, because the two hats below are exact hat that I love.

Polka Dots is my favourite print as I am sure many of you would already know by now, and this gorgeous backpack is an essential in anyones collection for day trips, university or just a simple accessory. 



Oversize Wallet
Metal Bar Neutral Bag 
- This shop (Metal Bar Neutral Bag) has a stunning collection of handbags and jewellery that I recommend you all check it out. 
Black Floppy Hat

I hope you have enjoyed this post and I think that I will be making some of these purchases in the near future! 
Molly x


Friday, April 25, 2014

Sticky Toffee & Walnut Cupcake.

Good morning and a happy Friday to you all! 
Cupcakes always have a place in my heart and someday opening my very own cupcake bakery or just a bakery on its own (but selling cupcakes) will be a dream come true! I love experimenting with flavours, so I chose the classic sticky toffee pudding added some walnuts and created this scrumptious tasting cupcake... 


Recipe: 
Ingredients: 
70ml water 
290g pitted dates, roughly chopped
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 
130g unsalted butter, softened 
240g brown sugar 
290g self-raising flour
1 1/2 tsp. bicarbonate of soda
3 large eggs 
145g walnuts, chopped 

200g cream cheese 
200g unsalted butter, softened 
500g icing sugar, sifted 
120g Dulce de leche or soft caramel 
(or make you own by boiling a can of sweetened 
condensed milk submerged in water for 3 hours) 
Handful of walnuts for decoration 

Method: 
To make the cupcakes 
1. Preheat the oven to 175- degrees Celsius/ gas mark 4. Prepare muffins trays by inserting cupcake liners. 
2. Place the chopped dates into a mixing bowl and over the boiling water and leave to soak for around 20 minutes. 
3. Place the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream together until light and fluffy. 
4. Sift in the flour and bicarbonate of soda into a separate bowl and set aside. 
5. Whisk the eggs into the butter mixture one at a time until well incorporated. If the batter begins to separate or curdle, stop adding the eggs and add 2-3 tablespoons of flour. 
6. Once the dates are soaked, drain and gently break them up into smaller pieces. Then add the vanilla extract to the dates. 
7. Once all the eggs have been added, fold in the remaining flour using a spatula followed by the soaked dates and chopped walnuts. 
8. Fill your cupcake liners using an ice-cream scoop or a tablespoon measure until they are two-thirds full. 
9. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and when a toothpick is inserted it comes out clean. 

For the frosting
1. Place the cream cheese in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth and creamy. 
2. Place the butter and icing sugar in a separate bowl and cream together until very pale and fluffy. 
3. Add the cream cheese, a little at a time to the butter mixture and mix together on a medium-high speed until the frosting is combined. 
4. Add the dulce de leche or homemade caramel and chill until set. 
5. Then pipe onto your baked cupcakes and top with a walnut or a another decoration your heart desires. 



Enjoy! 
Molly x 

Thursday, April 24, 2014

A day in the city.

I am sadly coming to the end of my holiday break within the next few days and so I thought I would take a trip into the city for a wander of the shops and a bite to eat. 


I picked up a Chicken & Veg Bowl from Salsa's Fresh Mex Grill for lunch, which is an incredible place for Mexican food. The bowl was filled with lime rice, coriander, broccoli, zucchini, cheese and fresh salsa. mmm - yummy! 


I also visited our only Zara store in Burnside whilst I was out that way and was blown away with the store. I have loved Zara since I got my hands on my Zara City Bag and went shopping in it for the first time late last year. The prices were quite reasonable, but sadly I did not purchase anything. I will know for the future to head down there when the sales are on, but I am sure that it will become very hectic. 


One of our department stores has an amazing cookery section, which I was admiring all of the Jamie Oliver bits and pieces. Some day I will own his pots and pans or I hopefully plan on having some from the Tefal range. They are highly recommended and well if Jamie is using them they must be good. (He is my cooking idol, just to let you know!) 



I continued to browse the cooking department and was blown away with all of the appliances that someday I hope to own in my apartment and all of the crockery, glassware and serving platters that are so simple but classy. 


A browse in the bookshop was a necessity and these are a couple of the books that I currently have my eye on. 

So I had a quite a relaxing day in the city with my mum and younger brother and only bought a few bits and bobs. I plan on doing a haul within the next couple of weeks of the items that I have picked up over my holiday break. So Prepare yourselves it is quite a large one! In future when I go visiting places, I am more than happy to show you around with me, so let me know if that is something you would be interested in? 

Have a wonderful day and stay positive because it is nearly the weekend! 
Molly x 

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Al Fresco Entertaining.

Seeing as it is springtime in a lot of places around the world and will shortly be summer, I thought it would be a nice idea to show you some home wares that you can put in your outdoor entertaining area in the warmer months. In Australia our summer usually last the same length as other countries winter, which if you think about it is a super long time with the amount of snow days there are. So as we can still occasionally convene outside and admire the country, I thought it would be suitable to show you some possible ideas for your own homes.

Anyway, all of these products follow a similar colour tone of neutral, natural and organic, which does not over power your dining areas and easily allows you to add in a pop colour for whatever suits your taste and with the colour that is currently on trend. 



I am slightly obsessed with all of the items and cannot wait for the day when I purchase my own home and can most definitely use a taco stand for all of my crazy Mexican evenings. Is anyone else a lover of the Mexican cuisine like me? I thought this was an incredible design and am actually considering purchasing one now! A lot of items now a days you can recreate yourself, which is amazing because you save money and personalise it to your own style. Anything that is "DIY" is a nice addition to your home, because it sends an 'at home' and 'creativity' vibe. 

It is also nice to just add little trinkets, trays, pots and glasses outside to fill with nibbles, decorations or to simply have as a decorative piece. 

So I hope you have enjoyed this style of post and I have planned some additional lifestyle themed posts for the future that are going to give you an insight into a number of different rooms and possible ways to decorate them. Let me tell you now, I am quite excited for this one because I just love decorating, experimenting with shades and finding new home stores (This will also be another post).

Molly x

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water.

I am one of the very few ladies out there who has not tried the Bioderma Micellar Water, which is why I have chosen the equivalent product to try first. Let me start off by saying that this cleansing water by Garnier is a miracle on the skin and works wonders removing makeup and dirt from your pores. 


The bottle contains 400ml of liquid, claims to get 200 uses out of the one standard bottle and easily removes all makeup. There is no scent and the consistency is like pure fresh water. The bottle itself is clean and simple with a pop of colour for the lid and bold writing that presents a concise description of the product entails and what results you should gain. 


After using the product on my face it will normally feel quite clean and smooth, however I will tend to wash it further with a face wash to remove any dirt or dead skin. It is an affordable price and is accessible in an assortments of stores and online boutiques.(see list below) I will generally use 2 cotton pads to remove my makeup, the best that I can! Usually it is one for my eyes or one per eye depend on how much eye makeup I am wearing and a separate one for my face. 


Face wipes are perfect for quickly removing makeup or any mistakes/ marks that have been left on your skin whilst applying makeup (mascara smudges, bold bronzers, etc.) however I have not found the perfect wipe that simply removes all of your makeup and leaves you face feeling clean and fresh. That is why I am in love with this product. To me face wipes leave your face feeling unclean and your pores still full of makeup. If you think about it, cleansing waters are kind of like a face wipe, however you wet a cotton pad to the consistency that you desire and remove your makeup. I do believe that I will get 200 uses with this product and will definitely be repurchasing it in the future. It is a quick solution to removing makeup and leaves your face feeling free and clean. 


There are only a couple of negatives with this product and they are the size and bulkiness of the bottle, which does not make it easy to travel with. Lastly, do not use a lot of solution around the eye area otherwise it will leave your eyes feeling damp and slightly sore, because there has been so much of the solution used, but it does not make your eyes sting or itch. 

I hope you have enjoyed this review and I will speak to you in my next post! 
Molly x

Monday, April 21, 2014

Dessert Inspiration.

Good morning! 
Today I thought of doing something a little different than my usual motivational words. Monday will always be a place of motivation and inspiration so we can kick start the week on a positive note and with a boost of energy. Lately I have discovered the wonders of mini desserts and how fascinating the concept is. I had a vague idea before, but after browsing some images they are simply perfection. The small desserts presentation are so clean, neat, mouth-watering and of course just so elegant. To be honest I cannot find the word to describe them, but I think the pictures say it all. If you think about it any dessert that is out there today you can change the flavours, but more importantly the size. 


After a large meal sometimes you force yourself to eat the sweet because it is there and you don't want to seem rude, however if I was a host and put on this large and decorative spread of food, (which the idea of hosting dinner parties seems so lovely and exciting) the last thing I would want is a large dessert, so I think that I am more than likely to create these mini dessert canapés from now on. (If that is what you want to call them.) They are perfect, because some people might have a sweet tooth but do no have room to fit in a whole dessert, so this way you are simply tasting something sweet to solve that sweet craving, but only in one or two mouthfuls. The bonus is that you can try multiple if you feel like it, where as if there are a handful of normal sized desserts, people tend to choose one and not get a taste of the rest. 

(Images can be found on my Pinterest Board, where it can take you to the original source!)  

The possibilities are endless as per usual and I cannot wait to experiment with these later down the road. Cooking and especially baking is something that I have always been passionate about and cannot wait to see where it takes me in the future. I think that having your own catering business would be a dream come true on the side of an events management business. I love simplicity with colour and decoration, which can be pulled through into both of these careers. 

Anyway have a wonderful Easter Monday and I hope you all aren't feeling to sick after consuming to much chocolate yesterday, but that is the beauty of it isn't it? One day where you cannot get told off for the amount of chocolate you eat for breakfast! 
Molly xo 

Sunday, April 20, 2014

An Update.

Good morning to you all and a very happy Easter! I hope you have all been having an enjoyable relaxing weekend so far and have been consuming as much chocolate as possible. 

Every now and then it is always nice to sit in front of the computer screen and see where my hands and mind take me with my writing, which is why this post today is going to be a little update and ramble. 

As you all know I am in my senior year of high school and I can guarantee it will soon be gone by in a flash and I will be moving on into the University world, which truthfully I am quite excited and nervous for! Finding the balance with school work and outside of school commitments can be extremely tricky at times and as a result my blog tends to get put onto the back burner. After getting used to the school term, I have realised how quickly it has gone and how fast you can change something. So, I have put together a blogging schedule that will hopefully help my blog posts be more consistent in the future. I have chosen select days to talk about and share with you different topics (these are listed below) that I am personally interested in and hopefully you are to. I have also suggested some ideas that I am considering to post about within that specific topic, however if you have anymore thoughts please let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear. 



 Monday: Motivational Monday (words, inspirational pictures, a collage of any type of photos) 
Tuesday: Beauty 
Wednesday: Links I am loving (Instagram accounts, online stores, wish lists.) 
Thursday: Lifestyle (home, events, DIY.) 
Friday: Food Friday 
Saturday: Style Saturday 
Sunday: Relaxing Sunday (updates, tags, my Instagram in a month, places I have been.) 

This is also a way for you to see the types of posts that I will be writing about on particular days, so you can come back to my blog on the days that you would prefer to read. I am going to try my best to always have a blog post up, however we all know that life situations and other commitments can get in the way of our hobbies and passions, and we sadly have to press pause on them for a while. This is no excuse I know, but I am going to use my Friday nights and Saturday mornings to work through blog posts for the following weeks, because this should then allow me to study throughout the week and still have time on the weekend to study and do other arrangements. 

I have to say that I am a queen of procrastinating! I will do whatever it takes to not to the task(s) that I am suppose to be doing. I know that it is shocking to have this when you are young, but I have defiantly made a change over the past couple of years, but I now need to seriously put my head down and work through it. I have so many dreams and goals that I want to achieve throughout my life and in order to get to where I want to be, I have to put my mind, effort, time and passion into it. Even if what I want to do doesn't work out, it could potentially lead onto something more magical that still makes all of the handwork worth it. 

I hope you all have a fabulous long weekend and I will speak to you all very soon in my next blog post! 
Molly xo 

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Styling a Black Pinafore Playsuit.


The black pinafore playsuit is such an old-fashioned piece of clothing that is now hitting the high streets and becoming more stylish. It is one of my current fashion loves and there are endless ways of styling them, so I thought I would show you how I like to style mine. Just a heads up… the pinafore in the collage is different to the one that I have linked down below (the one that I just adore), because the photograph from the website had a model wearing a striped tee underneath as well with a cluttered backdrop and once I had put all of the items together I thought that it clashed a little and there was just to many black and white stripes. So I just included a basic image of pinafore, so you could understand the style, however I much rather prefer the one from the clothing website Dissh.

Dissh is a unique online boutique that offers a wide range clothing and accessory pieces from a number of brands that are simply gorgeous. I have only recently come across this website, but I am sure that I will be revisiting shortly.

The pinafore is a simple design that can be dressed in so many ways and I have been loving the trend of  wearing tights underneath shorts, playsuits or skorts and now a pinafore.



Striped top // Black Floppy Hat// Pinafore Playsuit// Red Lipstick// Ankle Boots// Gold Necklace// Tights// Watch//

I hope you have enjoyed seeing how I style certain clothing items and I have more planned for the future of photographs that I have seen, but have turned into my very own creation.

Molly xo 

Friday, April 18, 2014

Chicken Cacciatore.

Chicken is one of my favourite meats and I will always tend to lean more towards a dish than includes it rather than red meat. It contains less fat than red meat and is just simply delicious. I love a good hearty meal that includes meat, vegetables and a sauce, which is why I created Chicken Cacciatore. This dish can simply please anyone as you can add, remove and serve with any ingredients that your heart desires. Firstly, Chicken Cacciatore is a traditional Italian dish that is made from chicken, mushrooms and spices and was typically made with a slow cooker that formed a stew style meal. Now a days the kitchen in your oyster and you can chop and change anything that you please.




CHICKEN CACCIATORE 
Ingredients: 
1TBSP Olive Oil 
4 skinless chicken breasts (can be left whole or evenly cubed) 
1 onion 
250g (9oz) white mushrooms, sliced 
2x400g cans chopped tomatoes 
1tsp dried oregano 
150ml (1/4 pint) chicken stock or water 
a large handful of rocket 
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
salt and freshly ground black pepper 
Seasonal vegetables or crusty bread to serve 

Methods: 
1. Heat half the oil in a large deep frying pan. Fry the chicken over a high heat for about 6 minutes on each side, turning once. If your chicken is, place it into a frying pan heated with oil and cook throughly. Remove the chicken and place it on a plate that is lined with a piece of paper towel to drain the excess oil. 

2. If necessary wipe or pour out the remaining chicken fat and pieces with a paper towel. Heat the remaining oil in the same pan to fry the onion and mushrooms for around 8 minutes on medium heat until they begin to soften. Once soft, stir in the tomatoes, oregano and chicken stock or water, then return the cooked chicken to the pan. 

3. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer for around 15 minutes, making sure to turn the whole chicken breast half way through or stir the cubed chicken in the sauce to throughly coat each piece. Allow the whole chicken breast to cook further in this process whilst the sauce thickens. The cubed chicken is a faster method of not having to wait for a whole breast to cook and it is easier to know how long it takes to cook, because the pieces are smaller, which is beneficial for people who are not confident with cooking. 

4. Once the chicken is nicely cooked and the sauce has thickened, season well, stir in a generous handful of rocket and feel free to stir in a 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese for extra taste. 

5. Serve with steamed vegetables or/and crusty bread with butter and top with extra parmesan cheese. 



I love cooking within my own home, because you can experiment with endless amounts of ingredients, there is no one telling you what to do and you can create so many dishes that yourself and the people around you love. There are no boundaries with cooking, the possibilities are endless and I must say it is a fascinating industry.


I throughly enjoyed making this dish and hope that you all look into making it as well. If you decide to change up the recipe by adding in different ingredients then please send me a picture on my Instagram account @violetanddaisy with #violetanddaisycooking labelling it, so I will be able to see all of your fabulous creations.


Have a wonderful Good Friday and let scrumptious foods fill your belly. (or chocolate will be fine!) 
Molly xo 

Thursday, April 17, 2014

A spontaneous haul.


Good morning to you all on this beautiful sunny day! I apologise if it is currently raining where you are in the world, but I do wish it were cold and wintery here, as I do love myself a good winters day! Any who, I popped out to the shops this past weekend to buy a few essential bits and bobs and of course ended up purchasing some extra items as well. I am girl and I like to shop, what can I say. I thought it would be nice to show you’re the fashion and accessory bits that I picked up, because they are much nicer to see than the other boring bits.





So the first store that I wandered into was Cotton On, which is fantastic for basics, however they always have other lovely pieces that are still quite basic but just add a little sparkle to them. (Not legitimate sparkle/ glitter, just a bit more decoration.) I bought a beautiful beige blazer with a striped cuff liner that I have had my eye on for quite a while and managed to pick it up for $20.00, Bargain! Also from the same store I got my hands on a khaki green military style vest that is absolutely perfect. I have loved the army trend for some time now and was so happy to see it on sale for $20.00 also.



 The next store that I popped into was Colette, which offers an extensive range of jewellery and accessories. Of course there was a huge sticker in the window that said 50% off all Jewellery, and so I couldn’t go by without having a browse. The store is sucks you in because it is reasonably priced, it was a steal to purchase all of these goods for such a small price.





 At the moment I am in love with gold jewellery (hence the amount that I bought) over silver as it just speaks class, elegance and simplicity. I know I always use this expression but it simply just jazzes up an outfit to create a wow factor! If someone is selling anything gold then I am automatically in the store.


Statement necklaces have to be my most favourite part about styling outfits, because the majority that I wear will include a necklace of some kind. I am always on the look out for unique styles that spruce up an item of clothing. So if anyone knows of any online boutiques or stores that have beautiful jewellery and accessories then please feel free to comment down below. As always I love to hear your recommendations.



Whilst I was I was there, I picked up a pair of gorgeous sparkly earring and two pairs of rings; plain gold bands and decorative midi rings, which are so petite and beautiful. 

 Both of the stores are available for you to browse and shop online, so I will leave the links down below for you to click on over to the page.


So I believe that is it for now and as I am on holidays for 2 weeks from school, I am bound to be going shopping and different places, so stay tuned for those posts within the next few of weeks!
Molly xo