Marzia Bisognin's Blog, page 12

THE MIST.

March 11th, 2017

Not the Stephen King’s movie. 

[image error]

Weather this month has been extremely unpredictable: the sun comes out to fade away, letting the rain fall, to then come back and shine.

Today, we woke up to this beautiful mist, and if course I wanted to capture it.

[image error]

It makes everything seem so icy, and the beach huts are the only colourful thing.

[image error]

The ocean blends into the sky.

[image error]

A contrast of light and dark.

[image error]

Adorable little Edgar and his toy.

[image error]

Me and Maya posing for an album cover?

These are all the pictures I have (that I didn’t previously post on Instagram). Short post, but I had to share these with you cause I think it looks very cool. Also makes me want to watch Silent Hill again.

What are you up to this weekend?

Marzia.

REARRANGING.

March 5th, 2017

I can’t stop moving things around.

[image error]

Not long ago I shared photos of my home office, but lately I have been rearranging some furniture as well as assembling some new stuff…

this is the outcome!

[image error]

One of my mail goals was to be able to clear our some desk space so that I could actually use it for what it’s meant; I was able to do it, and by placing the storage unit right next to it was a convenient option: I can now keep the sewing machine on top of it, and quickly move it without too much trouble as soon as I need it.

In the drawers I keep filming equipment, crafting items and fabrics, so that I can have everything accessible depending on what I’m up to.

I really wish to change my chair for something more comfortable, but for now I simply decided to reupholster it myself – if you can call it that – by pushing out the cushion and covering it with some fabric I had. It’s not ideal, but better than the floral pattern from before.

[image error]

A few people don’t really understand why I would need a room just to myself in the place I live in, and probably I could do without it, but it’s so much easier to have all the projects you work on in just one space, all together.

Lately I have been focusing on the Spring & Summer clothing line, and have been making some great progress: when I was in Italy I was able to meet with the owner of a textile industry and browsed through his fabrics in the showroom. I selected two in particular for this line, and got some inspiration for the winter line as well!

The samples you see above give you a feel of where I’m going with this next collection, although we have a lot more fabrics and some are only there for inspiration. My team and I are pushing harder as we want really unique stuff, and because of that this line will need a bit longer to be done, but it will be worth it!

[image error]

Nearby my desk I propped this bed springs which works as a mood and memo board, where I pin all kinds of stuff (you may have noticed it in my latest travel video).

[image error]

I featured this new clothing rack on my Instagram cause I was extremely excited when it came. I have been wanting to be able to include all the clothing pieces I’ve ever made from my passed lines, and this is just big enough (and looks so pretty).

[image error]

I realised I use white and pastels a lot, but my next line is called “Limone”, so expect acid yellow, black, white and green to be the main colours.

[image error]

And finally, the biggest addition to the room, and the main reason why I moved everything around: this massive unit is actually made of two sideboards, which took me forever to assemble.

I’m honestly in love with how it looks, cause I wanted a more gender neutral piece with an industrial vibe, but everything available was always too dark to fit with my colour palette.

This also fits right in between the two windows, and gives me a ton of space where to keep all my stuff – some exposed, and some neatly tucked away.

[image error]

I had these 3 posters by James Brown for a while and never knew where to place them in the room, but on top of this furniture they look just right.

So, what do you think?

MINI COCONUT & LEMON CAKES.

February 27th, 2017

Another treat.

[image error]

Last night I was craving something sweet. As I mentioned in the past, I have to avoid all sugars, with the exceptions of raw honey and coconut sugar.

So I came up with this recipe, which to me, was a huge success. Maybe it’s cause I was desperate to eat something sweet again, but I really do think they turned out great! They have the consistency of a carrot cake, and the lemon and coconut combo is surprisingly really good! 

[image error]

I also can’t have soy milk or regular milk, so I opted for almond milk.

For butter, I went with a vegan spread and to give some extra flavour, added in some coconut & almond butter.

If you don’t have these, you can still use your choice of milk and butter, but of course the taste will vary a bit.

You will need the lemon juice for the cake, as well as some zest for both topping and mixture.

[image error]

Take the two butters and melt them a bit. Add the coconut sugar and mix together.

[image error]

Now take all the other ingredients and add them in the same bowl: the two eggs, some lemon juice and zest, milk and sift the coconut flour + baking powder.

Mix well until you have a slightly thick paste.

[image error]

Pour into your tins. I have these 3 mini cakes, which correspond to 6 regular muffin tins.

Put in the oven for 20 minutes, at 180*C.

[image error]

On top, I went for some more zest and a lemon slice for decoration; I made one with some icing sugar on top for Felix. They may not look the prettiest, but they are very tasty, and most importantly, they won’t make me feel sick!

(on another note, it turns out I can now have eggs, which is why I included them in this recipe).

[image error]

Enjoy.

Marzia.

DAD’S BIRTHDAY.

February 23rd, 2017

You guessed it. I went back to Italy.

[image error]

Excuse the quality of these photos. I was not planning on doing a blog post, but I realised it had been a little while since I showed up.

So here is an update!

[image error]

I stayed at my parents house for about 4 days. Mainly I went back for my dad’s birthday, on the 21st, but also because, on the same day, I had x-rays to do.

I tested for something, which turns out I don’t have, so it’s great news! Still not sure what causes my stomach problems, but I have been doing lots lately to figure it out and I think I’m on the right path.

[image error]

I also took the chance, whilst being there, to go through some old photos, and get a few for a video I have been planning. It’s not technically about old pictures, but they will accompany the video. You will see!

REMEMBER THE HUT?

February 15th, 2017

We went back.

[image error]

Felix and I booked a night in this place, since we liked it so much the first time we came.

[image error]

We went there yesterday afternoon, to celebrate Valentine’s Day.

We arrived at 4pm.

[image error]

Of course we brought Maya and Edgar along. They love to run around so much.

[image error]

It is so calming to be surrounded by nature.

[image error]

Here is the little Hut, in case you didn’t see my post from July. Isn’t it so cute?!

We weren’t able to enjoy the outdoor as much as the last time we came, simply because July is much warmer and this time it got dark fast, and it was also very muddy.

[image error]

But we got to stay in a beautiful place, playing board games all evening.

[image error]

Johnny, the owner, made sure we had a nice little fire keeping us warm. It was really cozy!

[image error]

Here is Edgar, by the way. I get asked a lot why I don’t feature him often, but taking photos of him is so difficult. Check out my latest Instagram story to see how hyper he is!

SALTED CARAMEL CUPCAKES.

February 13th, 2017

Something sweet, just in time for Valentine’s Day.

[image error]

This morning I’ve done further testing regarding my stomach, and unfortunately I must remove not just milk, but even soy milk, as well as all refined sugars from my diet (and some of my favourite fruit >.

Luckily, yesterday I made this recipe, and I ate 5 cupcakes out of 12, so it was my final feast. It was worth it! hehe

These turned out really tasty, although I was just putting together ingredients I had in the house. To really explain how great they were, let me say that Felix did not stop at 1, and if you consider he usually only ever bites into something sweet, to then put it down, this was a huge success. 

[image error]

Here, as usual, are all the ingredients. There are for the “base” only, not including icing or filling.

[image error]

The first thing I did was to mix all the dry ingredients. I may have dropped a bit more than 1tbs of cocoa powder, but it’s really up to you how much you want them to taste like chocolate (you don’t even have to put this ingredient at all).

[image error]

Then mix the liquids on a separate bowl.

[image error]

And now combine them, for a smooth paste.

[image error]

Line your tray with cupcake sheets and fill them a little bit more than half-way.

This paste will make exactly 12 regular size cupcakes.

Leave them into the oven for 18 minutes at 170*C.

[image error]

I had this in the kitchen counter, which I’ve decided to use up.

Once the cupcakes were done, I carefully filled them from the side.

[image error]

Because I decided to use the filling, I thought that doing regular icing would be too much, so instead I sprinkled icing sugar and added anything I felt like on top.

The most important thing is that, at this point, you also sprinkle a bit of salt, as it will really bring out the flavour.

[image error]

And voilá. Ready to eat! 

Wasn’t that easy?

A TON OF MAKEUP.

February 10th, 2017

Thank you so much to all the brands that spoil me. 

[image error]

I’ve been sent lots of stuff lately, and I’m super grateful for it, but because it is way more than I can use, I’m going through what I’ve received, and at the end, there is a 2-winner giveaway!

In case you are confused by why I get so much free stuff, is because on top of being a youtuber and blogger, I need to test various products to include in my subscription boxes… so possibly some of the things you see here, will end up in my Spring one.

(sorry about this terrible photo, didn’t realise it was this blurry).

[image error]

The first package I grabbed is by Fresh, a brand I recently came around and I have to say… I fell in love with it. The attention to detail, packaging, and feel of the overall brand is great.

[image error]

Every product seems so luxurious, and works so well.

I already have the Rose moisturising cream, but yesterday I applied this lip balm and it is the best thing I’ve ever put on my lips. Seriously.

At night, I tried the clay mask because my skin seemed like it was about to break out, and by the time I removed it, it was so much clearer! Extremely impressed.

[image error]

Next I’ve opened the box by Pür, which included 2 brushes and 10 shades of foundation (which I won’t need, so you will get them on the giveaway).

I gave a go to the foundation, and I’ve applied it with the bigger brush: I’m a porcelain shade (for reference) and the consistency is much thicker than what I’m used to, but blends very naturally. The coverage is incredible, but the foundation itself really doesn’t seem cakey at all, and stays put really well throughout the day. Plus, it sets fairly quickly to a matte finish. I really like it!

[image error]

Next up: Blinc. I’ve included their products a few times before, so I already knew I was going to like this stuff.

They sent me eyeliners, an eyeshadow palette with mostly neutral colours (you can never go wrong with that), small makeup brushes, and two mascaras. I tried one of them yesterday and it made my eyelashes look so feathery, and then when I washed it off, it was the strangest thing: it came off rubbery, as if it just peeled off (no pain at all, and left no black residue on my eyes). What is this magic!

[image error]

Here we have a lot of products from Jouer, I can’t believe how much they sent me!

[image error]

These are just a few that I’ve opened: the thing I love about the packaging is how they can attach together so that you can make your own kit. Very cool!

And look at those lip-products, all shades that I will definitely wear a lot.

[image error]

Alright, so here we have Too Faced, the brand with the cutest packagings ever!

When I opened this, the scent was incredible (if you didn’t know, their makeup actually smells and tastes like the names they pick – so the peach ones, taste like peaches, and the chocolate ones, like cocoa powder).

I was never send anything from them before, so I was very pleased with the selection they gifted me.

[image error]

Onto Hourglass, here is what they sent me. The cover of the packaging is very clean and simple, feels more mature, but the product design is great and the actual pay off is brought to another level. I applied that highlighting blush and it was so intense with just a stroke – insane! I must say, I love everything. That chunky lip pencil is calling my name.

[image error]

All those sparkles! Stila sent me some great stuff: although I love the lip shades, the eyeshadow palette, and those highlighters, my attention was instantly grabbed by those little sparkly tubes.

I applied one of the shades yesterday, and a different one today. OH MY! Honestly, please grab one for yourself while you can cause they are everything.

[image error]

Final thing to open up is this super cool box. Are you ready for this?!

[image error]

BAM!

Look. at. that.

It was so kind of Make Up For Ever to send me this incredible set of lipsticks. I know it’s so many I could give some away, but it would break my hear to tear apart this beauty so I’m going to keep everything as it is.

[image error]

Here are a few shades I decided to swatch so you can see the pigmentation, with just one stroke.

I don’t know if you remember, but for years I talked about this one specific nude lipstick which was the only one I wore for the longest time: the lipsticks from this brand are definitely some of the best out there.

———————————-EDIT————————————

The giveaway is now closed, thank you so much to everyone for joining!

As usual, the comments have been selected at random (there were 11 pages of comment, so I selected two numbers with a random generator; from those two pages, there were 50 comments each which I again inserted in a random generator so that a comment could be picked).

Here are the two lucky winners:

[image error] [image error]

If you are one of these people, congrats! Please check your comment as I’ve replied to it with instructions.

LOVELY LUSH.

February 7th, 2017

Let’s open up this lovely box!

[image error]

Valentine’s Day is around the corner, so maybe this could be the perfect gift? Not necessarily for your partner, but even just to yourself.

Lush recently sent this to me and Felix, so let’s find out what’s inside!

[image error]

First of all: cute. I love when brands take the time to personalise what they send out.

[image error]

In the box there are 7 products, which I’m going to go through:

[image error]

If I think about Lush, the thing I get most excited about are the bath bombs.

The white one, with tiny little red hearts (made with cocoa butter), is called “Lover Lamp”; the pink one – “Rose Bombshell” – is supposed to contain yellow rose petals; and the heart shaped one, called “Cupid” looks adorable. I cannot wait to drop them into the water!

[image error]

Then there is a shower gel, which to me kind of smells like chocolate and oranges, but I’m probably completely wrong.

I like these 100g bottles cause I like to change my bath products quite often, so instead of having big ones lasting ages, I can play around with different scents.

[image error]

Then there are two soapy products: the actual soap is called “Love you, Love you lots”, and it smells like roses, whilst the other oval one, is a massage bar – “Love Spell”.

I’ve never used a massage bar before, but I’m very much looking forward to… sounds relaxing.

[image error]

And finally, there is a bubble bar, shaped like an emoji, filled with geranium and lemon.

Bubble bars are great if you are into bubble baths (which I totally am) and you can either just break a piece off, or used the whole thing if you like to be covered in bubbles.

So this is all there was in this specific box, but I saw that there are a bunch more new stuff right now on the website, as well as gift sets.

By the way…

I LOVE LUSH. So if anyone from there is reading this, thank you so much for the gift!

 

Any marzipans out there that like to celebrate Valentine’s Day? I know it’s common for people to usually diss this day, totally fine, but sometimes it is nice to give some extra care and attention to someone special!

THE FORGOTTEN DRAWER.

January 30th, 2017

Proof that I should have less stuff.

[image error]

When I moved into this flat, in the summer of 2015, I placed this writing desk into the living room, although I used to keep it in the bedroom of the old flat.

That means that, of course, I kept lots of stuff in it, but having it in a different room, I completely forgot about the things I stored here.

Here is what I found.

[image error]

Before I properly get into it, let me say that I spared you from seeing lots of coins, bobby pins, markers, old brushes and stuff like that… I focused on the good stuff.

[image error]

The first thing I’ve noticed, in one of the tiny drawers of the writing desk, were these photos. Two of me and my brother together, and two of just me.

Fun fact: I was a massive tomboy growing up, to the point that in elementary school I didn’t want to go to class because kids made fun of my interest in bugs and “toys for boys” rather than dolls and cutesy stuff.

I remember one day I was in English class, I was around 10 years old, maybe, and the teacher asked us to write a letter to Santa. I asked for an RV plane, and after we were all done writing she picked a few to read. She called me out saying: “Marzia, you know this is supposed to be what you want for Christmas, right?”

I was so confused, and asked if I had done something wrong. She made a remark on my taste of toys and asked why I was so “boy-ish” in front of everyone. I run out of the room and hid in the bathroom, crying, till a friend came to say that it was cool of me to pick something like that. I went home and asked my mom to never go back to school again.

Obviously, I got over it and kept going to school, but I wish I could tell my younger self that still – to this day – I love RC stuff, and it’s totally cool, and there is nothing to be ashamed of for liking things that aren’t considered “girly”.

[image error]

Moving on, the next stuff I found, which surprised me a bit, was a bunch of brochures from my trip to New Orleans (from yeeeeears ago), a ticket from Japan, and a bag of sugar (I used to collect sugar, back in the day

OUT IN THE COLD.

January 28th, 2017

At the beach.

[image error]

Just a few photos.

[image error]

Felix and I spent the day out, walking around the Lanes. We left at 11am, when the sun was out.

As we were wandering around, it started pouring down.

[image error]

It got really cloudy, so we reached the pier to grab some warm doughnuts. So good.

[image error]

We were out walking for a few hours, which I’ve spent collecting lots of clips I need for a future video. I didn’t want to snap photos simply because it would spoil the content of the video, but hey, at least I got some photos of me and Felix by the beach.

[image error]

And since now we are inside, warm and cosy, and Felix fell asleep, I wanted to write a little post and wish you all a wonderful weekend!