New Glasses From Firmoo

They get Og's stamp of approval!

I received my brand new glasses from Firmoo a couple of days ago. Their email a few weeks ago, offering me a free pair of glasses if I wrote an unbiased review, couldn't have come at a better time. I am a bit shortsighted, and while I can generally manage without glasses (I'm used to everything far away looking blurry: sometimes I think it makes life more interesting!), I do need them for certain things like driving, going to the cinema, and reading signs. My most recent pair had become almost redundant as they were so loose that whenever I leant over slightly they would fall off!

Firmoo have recently launched a worldwide first pair free program, so you can get your first pair free too! You just have to pay for the shipping costs. Just go to http://www.firmoo.com/free-glasses.html to find out more. They'd make a great Christmas gift for anyone who loves glasses, prescription or otherwise. If you've got any questions about the site you can just go to http://www.firmoo.com/help.shtml.

I was really excited to choose my free pair. There are so many to choose from on the website, and at extremely reasonable prices: I saw lots of cute pairs which were less than $20, some as cheap as $8 which I would definitely wear. I splashed out on these $24.95 ones http://www.firmoo.com/eyeglasses-p-1240.html.

 

I was a little worried about getting the right size, but I followed the guide on the website and measured the space between my eyes and they fit me perfectly. I've worn them to work already, and they were so comfortable I forgot they were there. Apart from when I was unloading glasses from the dishwasher and they got all fogged up of course! It was strange being able to see all of the customers so clearly too. Firmoo also enclosed a lovely sturdy case and a pretty pink cloth (I must try not to lose it this time!) with my glasses and a spare set of screws and a teeny screwdriver type implement! I was very impressed, and Id definitely get my glasses from Firmoo again because they are such a reasonable price for such a great product.
 

And they work with my earmuffs...

 

Asleep

Sleep used to come naturally to me.

I did have trouble going to sleep when it was windy, when if felt as though the trees near our house must certainly be blown down, and I would lie in bed terrified and hold my breath during the biggest gusts, expecting disaster at any moment.

Usually though, I slept long and deep.

And oh, how fondly I remember the times that I was young enough to be carried into the house when I had fallen asleep in the car, Dad scooping me up and bringing me inside, almost but not quite waking up in the cold night air.

And that feeling of getting into bed after a hot bath the night after the sheets had all been changed, all smooth and crumb free and warm.

Nowadays my sleep pattern is more disturbed. I have vivid dreams that are often frightening but when I wake up with a jolt, scared, there is the comforting weight of my boyfriend sleeping beside me. I envy him his ability to drift off at a moment’s notice.

When I do sleep alone, I push the nightlight into the plug beside my bed. I might be a grown up now, but I’m still afraid of the dark.

When sleep eludes me even though I’m tired, I get frustrated. I start counting the hours until I need to get up. My mind whirls. I jot down words on the pad beside my bed, must get this, must do that, in the hopes that I can clear up the tangled mess of thoughts inside my head. I toss and I turn and I think that I will never get to sleep.

And then suddenly it’s the next day, and I’m awake, and I have slept, somehow, eventually.

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my favourite USA bloggers who visit The Heart Beats Faster. Hope you all have a wonderful day.

I'm looking forward to my Thanksgiving inspired Pumpkin and Pecan cupcake from Cuckoo's Bakery tomorrow!

 

 

 

The Last Of The Light

We just managed to catch the last of the light today to take these. It was so nice not to be freezing without my jacket for once! It was my day off, so we ran some errands around town after we took these (finally registering for the doctor. We were each handed little plastic tubes to, ahem, fill and bring back in for our registration appointment: yay!). After dinner my friend Rebecca came over and we made rice crispy buns and watched 2 Broke Girls and Friends reruns and chatted for hours. We may or may not have eaten three rice crispy buns each. They turned out too golden syrup-y, but in our opinion you can never have too much golden syrup... so what if we had to eat them out of their cases with spoons?! We're inventors.

What I'm wearing: jeans from Gap, shoes and top from Topshop, cardigan from Oasis, scarf was my grandmothers.

Walking

Every Saturday night I walk to work, usually alone.

This time of year I’m wrapped up in my coat, scarf and gloves, and most times my friend calls me and I chat to her as I hurry through the leaves and across the bridge and past groups of loud, laughing people, arms and legs bare, already rosy with drink by the time I start work. Grassmarket is full of people milling around outside the warm pubs, shouting at each other playfully and running up the road to get to the next bar, passing the eager rickshaw drivers and club promoters.

Other nights are quieter. On a Sunday night the streets are almost deserted and tending to the bar has more to do with cleaning than with serving drinks. People huddle in booths, deep in conversation. The one ‘o’clock rush consists of twenty people.

No matter how busy the night cleaning still needs to be done. Ears ringing, we sweep, wipe, spray, mop and scrub until the place sparkles.

I walk home with my boyfriend, holding hands in the cold early morning, looking forward to food and tea and my lovely warm bed.

 

Setting Sail

We went to get coffee today as soon as we got up with the tips my boyfriend got last night. I had a Black Forest Hot Chocolate: it's one of the Costa Christmas specials and it's so delicious! It's so dark now when we get up. Sunset was at 4 p.m today, and usually we don't get to sleep until about 7 a.m by the time we've walked home after work (we usually finish at about 5 or half 5 a.m) so if we want 8 hours sleep that means getting up at around 3 p.m. It means that we're missing out pretty much all of the daylight. It's my first experience of this too: it's my first winter working nights, and sunset where I used to live in Ireland is about 40 minutes later anyway. I miss the light!

 

I wore my new Vans today (so comfy!) and one of the pretty neck scarves that belonged to my grandmother. She had a wonderful collection of all different colours and patterns, and this sailing boat print is one of my favourites.  Do you like the last picture?! I look like I'm posing for a school photo!

 

What I'm wearing: jumper from Topshop, shoes from Vans, jeans from Gap, scarf is vintage (from my grandmother)

Grey And Black: A Winter Staple

I love wearing grey and black, especially in the winter. I usually pair it with something bright: it's such an easy base to work from. I've got my grey wool skirt and at least three grey cardigans and tops that I wear on a regular basis. And I wear black almost constantly: I have to wear all black at work too so it's surprising I'm not sick of it!

But as much as I love neutrals, I also love bright colours too. So today, when me and my boyfriend needed new comfy shoes for everyday use, I went for bright red Vans. My last pair of Vans (which were white: not a great choice as they got dirty very easily but I loved them) lasted for ages, and they're a nice, wide fit for my bunion-y feet. I just know the bright red will cheer me up when I'm wearing them on the cold and rainy days which are sure to come over the next few months!

 

Movember is going well in our house...

Currently

I'm exhausted after four long nights at work, one of which involved a not so pleasant run in with the (rather extremely unpredictable) owner.

However, my mood has improved dramatically as I just spent a lovely evening with my friend watching movies and eating homemade (by her) brownies.

Now I've lit a few candles (delicious cinnamon apple tea lights from Ikea) and I'm settling in to read a good book, sip on my Sleepytime tea (why, oh why, are so few of the delicious Celestial Seasonings tea varieties available in the UK? I want Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride and Sugar Plum Spice and Candy Cane Lane!) and repeatedly cover my lips with thick layers of Vaseline: the cold weather and my skin are not getting along very well.

Hope you're all having a lovely week so far. I can't wait to catch up on all of your blogs!

Sunset

It's been so long since I've done an outfit post: I'm sorry! I haven't had any new, exciting clothes and I've been working more over the last few weeks, so I guess that's my excuse!

 

It's getting dark quite early now that the clocks have changed but we decided to take advantage of the sunset this evening and take some photos in the park. I'm wearing the new top that my lovely sister sent me last week, and surprisingly I wasn't too cold. Last night we went to see the fireworks from the top of Calton Hill and it was freezing: you can see me all wrapped up in the last photo!

 

What I'm wearing: top from Desigual, boots from Schuh, cardigan from Topshop

 

 

Autumn Love

The wonderful Jules from The Life Of A Cupcake has featured me today on one of her Autumn Love posts, so check it out if you have a spare minute :) If you haven't already discovered her awesome blog you're missing out!

 

Getting Crafty

It's been ages since I did anything crafty, and when I came across the Fall Garland DIY featured on A Beautiful Mess and on Blythe Ponytail Parades I decided it was time to buy some felt. Once I finished that I felt inspired to do more, so I've been making some tiny creatures to practise my sewing before I try something more complicated. I hadn't realised how much I missed sewing and creating! If any of you have any fun sewing projects that you've done please let me know as I'd love some more inspiration. I really want to make some nice things for our home: I do have my eye on a cute fox pillow, also from A Beautiful Mess, and I know there must be hundreds of other sweet ideas out there. Happy Friday everyone!