When I bought a dining table a few months ago the store in which I bought it from had eye-catching placemats on the display model. At that point I was focused on furnishing my new place rather than on the small things.

Months later I looked them up, they were $20. While this wasn’t expensive relative to other offerings I didn’t feel that it was worth the effort to go and get them (the store is out of my way). Instead I visited my local discount store. As you might expect their offerings weren’t as appealing, however I spotted rolls of non-stick grip liner nearby and got an idea.

The liner’s surface looked very similar to the placemats I had originally been interested in and I liked the colour as well. I bought a couple of rolls (total cost $4), figuring I would get three 50cm ones out of each roll. As it turned out 50cm was a little big so I had plenty of leftovers. I put these to good use to make coasters.

I couldn’t be happier with the result. What do you think?

Almost three years ago Telstra gave me a HTC Desire to review using social media (see the first of three posts I wrote about it here: http://chelseacreates.tumblr.com/post/612818612/desire-1-0). It has proved to be quite a phone, surviving the heat of Australia, the cold of London, trips all over Europe and four different sim cards. It has lasted longer than the typical two-year phone contract length, but is now showing signs of its age.

The HTC Desire was my first smart phone having owned a couple of reliable Nokia ‘bricks’ beforehand. There are things about the phone that annoyed me (the small amount of internal storage to fit all those apps that won’t let you move them to the SD card for one), I had to get the speaker repaired pretty early on and the few buttons that aren’t on the touch screen haven’t been that responsive for a while, but apart from that the phone has been ideal for my needs. I haven’t even been bothered by the short battery life problem that afflicts most smart phones as I bought a spare battery which I was able to swap over when needed.

The beauty of being selected as a Telstra social reviewer was that Telstra picked the phone for me. Now it’s my turn to pick a smart phone and I’m not sure what to choose. The Samsung Galaxy and Apple iPhone are popular choices but I’m not sure that I want to spend that much (the latest models cost more than $600 based on outright prices). Eliminating them doesn’t make the decision much easier though with so many options out there. 

Suggestions anyone?

Eternity (c) chelseacreates

A rainy day has inspired me to get crafty again. The photos above are from my latest project, a handbag notepad. It’s more of a mini project given how quick and easy it is to make!

For the cover I used half of an unused greeting card I had (one of the few I keep in reserve that didn’t have ‘Happy Birthday’ or some other message emblazoned across the front). I then cut up a couple of pages off my big notepad to staple inside. It’s in my handbag and I can’t wait to try it out.

A couple more photos of my colourful bottles. Currently stored in a Corona box… not sure if I’ll paint that too…

My attempt at tinting glass bottles. What do you think?

I’m not a madly crafty person but I’ve always had an interest in crafts. Lately I’ve been looking online for inspiration. I’ve been saving links to multiple projects but it is only in the last few days that I’ve got around to having a go at one, tinting glass bottles.

A relatively simple project, I had everything at home except for the Modge Podge glue that many American websites recommended using. Thankfully it is stocked in Australia   in Spotlight stores.

The websites I had looked at had different recommendations in regards to the mix of Modge Podge, water and food colouring. In the end I just decided to experiment. The photos that follow reveal the results of my efforts…

Love Padlocks in Paris

A colourful elephant. One of the 102 elephants on display on the streets of Copenhagen as part of the elephant parade. I’ve got pictures of more here: http://www.girlintrepid.com/2011/06/22/elephants-parading-in-copenhagen/

At the beginning of the year I posted the link to my travel diary. I just wanted to let you all know that I’ve now moved it to it’s own website. Please feel free to take a look at it and comment on the posts you’re interested in!

Sorry that I’ve been quiet on here - posting on the website is taking up a lot of my time.