Frump to Fab 2016 - Lets make it AWESOME!!!

lessonlearned

Good morning lovely ladies.....

Brrrr. No snow here but cold, wet and miserable. I'm going to stay warm and cosy and get down to some serious fabbing......time for a bit of pampering.

Floss. .....well done on the new job - a real career change. How exciting.

Ellsbel. Good luck with the interview but as you say no biggie if you don't get it... I'm sure you will find new hobbies or activities to stimulate you.

I was offered a job this week - back on site selling houses. I mulled it over but thought better of it. Building sites are cold and miserable places in the depths of winter so I'll pass. :rotfl: I've got plenty of things to do to keep me amused.

Top of my agenda is ME.....:rotfl: getting fit, losing weight, personal development. My leg is now much better and my shoulder is steadily improving. The exercising is starting to pay off now.

Floss. I might be picking your brains re baking.

DS2 has decided to join me on my quest for healthy eating and has decided to reduce wheat and sugars. So I need to get a grip with Paleo style baking so we can still have baked goods and a few deserts.

I have ordered some non wheat flours, coconut, peanut and almond, also cacao nibs. I can spend the cold miserable days practising with Paleo style cooking and being a domestic goddess.......nice and warm in the kitchen:D

Sugarbaby. Sorry to hear you are still struggling. Perhaps you need a further course of antibiotics ......don't worry about the weight gain. I'm sure it will drop off once you are back in action.

The EA rang me today about the nice little house I liked. I think they are really pushing for a sale so I made a cheeky offer. If they accept then I'll be happy to proceed but I really can't afford to go much higher.

Its in the lap of the gods .....:rotfl: I'm not going to worry.

Other than that no real news. Just watching the US election results.......

Floss

Thanks for all the good wishes. For those who wish to avoid wheat, try the Asda Free From flours (SR and plain) - I've had good results from these, much better than Doves Farm, which I find gives a dry gritty cake.

maman

Good to catch up with everyone's news.


So sorry to hear you're still not 100% sugarbaby but I'm sure you'll go back to the GP if it doesn't clear up soon. Does it work like a tooth abscess in that you have to get rid of the infection before they remove it?


Good luck with your job interview ellsbel. I'm in a similar position to you and LL in that I don't need a job but find it very difficult to not keep busy. And I don't even have a dog to walk!:rotfl:I belong to various committees and do a bit of voluntary work but have scaled that down as it was unnecessarily stressful (I mean not necessary for me to put myself in a stressful situation).


I was thinking this morning that all the drawers and cupboards I gave the MK treatment last winter are as tidy now as they were when I did them, so it does work! I now need to tackle the dreaded photographs! All I did at the time was collect them together in one place. I have also inherited the family photos from my parents and grandparents and feel obliged to present them in such a way that my DD will have it as a historical account. Because I'm the eldest in my family I realise that it's probably only me that will remember the names and occasions in some of the photos. So that's one task to be tackled. I need inspiration on how to go about it.


DH has (at last!) started decorating our bedroom. There's a lot of preparation to do taking down fitted units from one wall and making it good then proper decorating can start. I'm going to have it in all neutral cream/off white shades and then I can choose any accent colours afterwards for cushions and throws.


On the fabbing front I'm looking after my nails much better than before. It's probably because without the coloured shellac I can see them. I've got nail oil next to my sofa and have been applying it regularly.


I've got a chiropody appointment this afternoon. I'm delighted with how good my feet have looked and felt since I've been going regularly (approx. every 2 months). I'll have a little browse in the city centre while I'm there and buy some wallpaper for one wall in the bedroom to give some texture.
http://www.lauraashley.com/uk/wallpaper/annecy-linen-damask-wallpaper/invt/3320199
It's quite a traditional pattern but we have an old house so it suits.


It's bright and sunny here and promised to rise to 10 degrees!!:eek:

maddiemay

Floss wrote: »

Thanks for all the good wishes. For those who wish to avoid wheat, try the Asda Free From flours (SR and plain) - I've had good results from these, much better than Doves Farm, which I find gives a dry gritty cake.

Oh, thank goodness that it is not just me, I cannot get on with Doves Farm flour for the same reasons, even though a huge number of GF recipes use it:eek: I have not got an Asda any nearer than 26 miles away, but might brave it when we are next in the area (hate large supermarkets after years of only having a quite small T*sco or a C*-op:(

I find one of the very best sources of GF recipes is The Gluten Free Alchemist, blog and FB. She has perfected her own flour blends and gives all the details (a bit complicated and can be expensive (although H&B now sell a huge variety of the "flours"), but the results are so good. A batch of the mix for cheese scones is awaiting my attention:D I think pretty much all the recipes are freezable too (helps not to over indulge:o)

lessonlearned

Lovely wallpaper. A classic that will not be overpowering and which will match any colour schemes, what accent colours do you fancy.

I noticed there's a lot of yellow around this year. I was thinking I might buy some yellow bits, maybe a couple of cushions and a new sofa throw and jazz up the lounge.

I bought some new posters and prints - mainly impressionists - Chagall, Miro, Matisse, Van Gogh and Monet. Very bright and colourful and each has a splash of yellow so I'm half way there.

I just need to get some frames and DS2 can hang then on his weekend off. A couple of new houseplants and that's it - job done.

Like you MAman I like neutral backgrounds then it's easy to ring the changes without spending a fortune.

Thanks for the flour tips.

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies,

Maman no, it does not work like an abscess. I am on my 2nd week long course of antibiotics. There was not much weeping last night from the cyst, but then I went and hoovered and mopped my bathroom and kitchen floors. When I was finished I felt a little tired but otherwise fine, but then the cyst started to weep again.

I am taking it really easy now but it is disconcerting that such a small effort at doing some housework has made me realise that I still have a way to go to be back where I started from before this cyst appeared on my back.

My grandson came to visit me on Tuesday evening and it was so good to see him and find out what was going on in his life. I also told him to help himself to anything he wanted from all of my supplies and he did. It is better to give him practical help rather than throwing money at him, because he is a typical teenager who smokes and drinks alcohol and I would rather not give him money to use for these purposes. I just gave him £10 so he could top up his Oyster card. He also asked if he could come and stay with us for Christmas and New Year and I was quick to say that we would love to have him. :j My son and daughter are really excited that he will be joining our family celebrations.

I got a call from my oldest son yesterday evening and we spoke for more than 2 hours. He has got a new chef job which fits in better with his work/life balance. He is a also a delivery driver for a Pizza chain and he is also a volunteer for the Red Cross as ultimately he would like to train to be a paramedic.

[Deleted User]

Can I join??:D

A bit late to the party I know but better late than never!:rotfl:

A bit about me... late 40s, a bit flabby and look like a bag lady most of the time :eek:

I want to sort myself out so that I'm fab at 50 rather than fubar at 50!;)

Will spend some time reading the posts

chanie

sugar I hope you get better soon

maman like you, I prefer neutral colours for my rooms. We are decorating our bedroom too. We've chosen a light grey paint for the walls and will be painting this weekend, as I want the bedroom done before our new bed arrives, next week.

squirrel welcome. I recommend little and often in terms of fabbing.

maman

Yes, welcome squirrel , just join in the chat any time you can. Do you have any specific goals in mind? Clothes?Hair? Hobbies?

My feet are lovely, neat and soft after the treatment. I had a bit of a look around the shops but didn't really fancy anything. M&S have a lovely pink velvet unstructured jacket but I have a black velvet jacket and a soft pink cord one so don't really need another.

I did buy a new office chair in John Lewis as ours is getting a bit rickety. It's a cream /fawn leather and will be delivered next week.

I like a soft grey chanie , we have it in the dining room. As our bedroom is north facing I'm going for cream/off white. I looked at headboards in John Lewis but the prices were ridiculous so I'll be off to Dunelm.

Angry_Bear

Hello again fab ladies .
My year has been topsy-turvy to say the least and I haven't posted in quite some time, but I have been lurking.
I've been doing not too bad with fabbing (er *shuffles feet*), but Christmas season is on us and somehow I still have no better fashion sense .

I was contemplating accesories to go with my party dress and am completely out of my depth. I immediately thought of you lot and the stylish descriptiions you post (from outfits to wallpaper :rotfl:), so if it's not too cheeky of me to ask for an opinion or 10 ....

I have this dress, and I'd like to dress it up a bit for Christmas.
The options I'm considering are:

• gold shoes, nude tights - so something closed toe. Maybe like these. Possibly gold nail varnish.
• black opaque tights - therefore black closed toe shoes - maybe like these. Nail varnish in gold or coral.
• brave my goose pimply, pasty legs bare (maybe a little fake tan) and go for something like these or these. Which leaves me a real nail varnish dilemma. Also, I'm not sure I can brave the cold enough for this look.

Also, at 35 - am I too old for the look I'm considering :eek:
Advice gratefully appreciated