Primark v Cath Kidston

Think of floral prints and the name that immediately springs to mind is Cath Kidston - the brand is THE label everyone seeks out when they're looking for beautiful, fresh, girly patterns and it's a name that's become absolutely synonymous with the word 'floral'. But if you're a budget the only drawback is they can sometimes be a little out of the price range of the Average Joe (or Joanna!) - so that's where highstreet giant Primark steps in. Their range of bedding, towels etc is a much cheaper version and is great for those looking for a Kidston look on a much smaller budget.

So here we have a comparison of the two brands so you can see for yourself what's on offer!

BEDDING:

Cath Kidston - between £50 and £85

Primark - £11 (and really good quality for the price!)

CANDLES:

Cath Kidston - £11.99

Primark - a complete bargain at £2!

TOWELS:

Cath Kidston - face cloth £4.50 / hand towel £16 / bath sheet £42

Primark - hand towels £3 / bath towels £9

Let us know in the comments which ones you prefer! Or if you've spotted a cheaper version of a product somewhere be sure to comment as we always love a bargain!

H & E x

Friday finds: vintage and homeware treasures

Today we're mixing it up a little and instead of our regular Fashion Friday feature, we thought we would bring you some of our favourite treasures from our homes. As you'll see from the pictures, many of Emma's favourite things are antiques she's collected with the help of her dad over the years and some of the snaps are of pieces from her dad's home that they've found together. Whereas Harriet's are all a little more recent with some modern bits as well as vintage. Enjoy!

EMMA:

How amazing is this 1930s Beatrix Potter teaset? everytime i visit my daddys i always have a peek at my favourite things......i love this!!!

These suitcases make you want to pack up your belongings and travel around the world on an adventure!

The perfume bottle on the top right is from the 1930s too!this blue enamel ladies cigarette case is from the 30s love the elegance of it...

                                           these are some of my favourite vintage bags ive collected over the years from varoius antique fairs ive attend....this 50s wooden rocking horse is a beaut,which i brought for my beautiful grandson....

HARRIET:

The beautiful tape player on the top right was given to me by my nan and I absolute love the cushion on the bottom left which was made using vintage fabric by our lovely friend Emily.

I love the tin on the top left which stores all my earrings beautifully for me. I love owls and the cushion in the top right was a recent find from Primark.

H & E x

Transforming Thursday: creating sparkly jars

Today we thought we'd show you how we made some really cute glittery jars - they're so easy to do and can really be done by anyone who's got ten minutes to spare. They can be used for so many things - make up brushes, for decoration with a flower or two in them, stationery, art supplies, eyeliners, spare pennies, anything you like really! Because they're so simple, if you've got children why not get them involved in making them? Be warned though, they're incredibly messy so make sure you've got something down to protect your carpet or table!

You will need:
- The jars (you can either use empty ones you have anyway or buy them from somewhere like Wilkinson)
- Glitter (ours was from Wilkinson and the glitter paint was from the 99p store)
- Paintbrush
- PVA glue

Step one: apply the glue to the surface of the jar

Step two: sprinkle your chosen glitter over it, ensuring you have something underneath to catch the excess

Step three: you can either stick with one colour or layer up the colours to create a patterned effect

Step four: Harriet used her glitter paint on the lid of one of her jars to create a sparkly effect and some Barry M glitter hearts on the other lid

Step five: wait to dry!

Don't they look cool?

H & E x

Trash to Treasure Thursday: vintage bottle decorations

How fantastic do these old bottles look with simple yet beautiful flowers in them? They were all found by Emma's dad on his land and all that was needed was a quick clean to get them looking good enough to display anywhere.

Our ideas for using vintage bottles:

- As shown in the picture, why not put a flower in them and display them either individually or in a group on your windowsill, on a mantlepiece or even as the centrepiece at your dining table. Once the wild flowers start growing in the spring this is an even cheaper idea!

- Why not fill them up with shells/beads/pot pourri or anything else decorative and display them like that?

- If you thoroughly clean them, there's no reason why they can't be used to put drink in! How amazed will your friends be if you offer them a drink out of these when they come round?

- Let's be honest they're so lovely you can just use them as a decoration on their own.

It's simple ideas like this that can make your home truly unique and really reflect your style!

H & E x

Welcome to Our Beautiful Life...

Hello and welcome to our very first blog! We are so excited to be sharing with you a whole host of really exciting projects we'll be working on in the coming days, weeks and hopefully months and years. But first allow us to introduce ourselves...

Emma is the proud owner of the cutest little vintage shop! Selling beautiful clothes, homeware and accessories to the coolest customers in the land. She tweets over at @UnicornVintage - be sure to follow if you want a sneaky peek at the latest goodies on offer at the shop. She's there most afternoons and all day at the weekend, it's definitely worth a look for all fans of vintage!

Harriet is a journalist spending most of her days chasing stories wearing clothes from Emma's shop! Having had blogs for about the last five years, she's now concentrating all her efforts on to Our Beautiful Life!

Going by the logic that two heads are better than one we're putting together our talent for craft (Emma), love of writing (Harriet) and passion for fashion (both) to tell you all about Our Beautiful Life.

H & E x