I know we all have bad days, I’m sure every Princess out there has had a day where she’s thought ‘This is the worst day of my life.’ Sometimes it really is, but often its just the accumulation of lifes little stresses, concerns and misunderstandings that wear away at us until we find it hard to smile. Some days everything just seems to go wrong from the moment we wake up.

I think having a positive outlook on life definitely helps minimise these, but there are also little things we can do to rise above bad days and create some joy. Following your dreams and doing what makes you happy in the long run is important, but its also necessary to enjoy each day as much as we can and some times that means taking control of your time and creating your own little bit of happiness. I hope these suggestions will help in doing so.

Stop and breathe. When we are stressed we tend to let it affect us mentally and physically, which leads in to a vicious cycle, making us feel more overworked. Take a moment to pause, take some deep breaths and let go. Look around you, notice the beautiful things, birds calling, children laughing, a flower growing out of the pavement. Remove yourself from the situation for a moment and just clear your mind.

Smile. Yes its corny, but it works. Some days I like to collect smiles, while I am out and about I smile at strangers and everytime I get a smile back I count! 1 from the bus driver, 1 from the little old lady at the shop, 1 from the security gaurd and so on. Each smile is like a little bit of sunshine and it doesn’t take many to make me feel a whole lot better!

Treat yourself. It doesn’t hurt to give yourself a little treat now and then. Whether its an ice cream in your favourite flavour, a new hair clip or the simple luxury of time to do something like watching a favourite movie or having a nice bubble bath. Sometimes these little pick me ups can be the one nice thing in an unpleasant day, and that makes them valuable. The trick is not to do this everytime something little goes wrong, but reserve it for when you really need it otherwise it loses the novelty.

Spend some time outside, weather permitting of course (although I like walking in the rain aswell.) Being in natural surroundings is both relaxing and grounding. Take a walk, sit in a park and read a book or just relax. My favourite way to unwind is to go to the beach, there’s something about the breaking waves that washes away my cares. If you find this effective you might be interested in the theory of Biophilia.

Go and make someone elses day. Honestly, you’re probably not the only one having a bad day. Have a look around you, at your friends or colleagues or school mates and think of something nice you can do for them. Maybe help them with a task they’re finding difficult, offer to buy them lunch or a coffee or just give them an honest compliment. You’d be amazed how much of a difference a little thoughtfulness on your part can do to bring happiness to others, and like laughter, its contagious.

I wish all of you a beautiful day and hope these ideas might make your grey days a little sunnier

Today I created a new header image for Princess Portal, a crowned swan with a golden chain about her neck. I think Swans are the most beautiful birds in the animal kingdom, and they are the symbol of our state as well. The white Swan has always been special to me and so I thought I might also do a Princess Profile on Odette, the Swan princess.

Odette is the heroine of the Ballet ‘Swan Lake’ the musical score for which was written by Pyotr Tchaikozsky and it is one of the most well known ballets to this day, as well as being my personal favourite. Swan Lake is the story of young Prince Siegfried who must chose a wife from the many ladies presented to him, however he wishes to marry for love and one day follows a beautiful swan who turns in to a maiden at the touch of moonlight. He begins to proclaim his love to her, which would break the transformation spell but is interrupted by Count Rothbart, the sorcerer who enchanted her. Later, at a magnificent ball held in the palace Rothbart presents his own daughter, Odile, charmed so that she looks like Odette but is wearing black rather than white. The Prince mistakes her for the princess and proclaims his love to the Sorcerer’s daughter, thus trapping Odette in her Swan form forever. There are several endings to the story, some end happily with the Count defeated by their love and in others it is the Prince and Odette who tragically end their lives after realising the deceit.

I have been doing some research in to the origins of Swan Lake, and although it is often stated as being based off a Germanic Fairy Tale, no such tale seems to exist. Rather it is more likely that Tchaikovsky drew inspiration from a number of legends that feature Swan transformations, including the Seven Wild Swans and a tale about a man who steals a Swan Maiden’s feather cloak to make her his wife. Regardless of its origins, Swan Lake is an enchanting and moving story of both love and tragedy.

The image of a Swan Maiden or princess is quite mysterious itself. Swans are beautiful and powerful birds and they take mates for life, making them a symbol of love. White is also associated with purity, Odile the black swan being Odette’s polar opposite, although I have always had a sympathy for the Count’s daughter, especially after reading Mercedes Lackey’s “The Black Swan.”

If you ever get the chance to see the ballet performed, it is really breathtaking. I’ve also seen the Imperial Ice stars production which was an amazing feat, a complete ballet on a stage covered in ice!

Reference

I think many Princesses dream of living in, or at least visiting beautiful castles. The very image of these buildings evokes romantic notions of eras past, knights and nobles, banquets and balls, tapestries and tourneys, I think it must have been amazing experience to live in one of these grand estates. Today I present to you some of the most beautiful and famous Castles in Europe, I hope you will enjoy looking at pictures and reading the histories of these magnificent palaces and towers. Some day I would like to visit all of them!

Neuschwanstein Castle
Neuschwanstein was actually built fairly recently, as castles go, with construction beginning in 1869. It was the dream and creation of King Ludwig II of Bavaria (1864 - 1886) who was a fascinating Monarch, eccentric, romantic and reclusive, he built this Fairy-tale castle in the mountains as a private residence where he could live as a real King, even while his real powers were being taken away from him. You can read more about the Swan King here. The castle is an amazing feat of architecture, perched on the edge of a mountain it has some of the most beautiful scenery in Europe.

Château de Chenonceau
Sometimes called the ‘Château de Femmes’, Chenonceau is famous for the many powerful ladies who inhabited it at some time and added their own improvements to the small but charming Château. These included Diane de Poitiers, Catherine de’ Medici, Louise de Lorraine-Vaudémont and Gabrielle d’Estrées. It is unusual in that it is partially constructed to bridge the river Cher, the river itself flowing beneath the castle’s supporting arches. It is also famed for its beautiful gardens.

Mont Saint-Michel
Rising out of a tidal bay on a lone rocky island is the Mont Saint-Michel, like an image from some high fantasy tale it evokes the imagination to images of Knights errant and pious monks on pilgrimage to this isolated place. Mont Saint-Michel was founded on the construction of a Monastery in the 8th century, it has withheld against invasion, been used as a prison and is now a world heritage site.

Leeds Castle
A classic looking castle with an intriguing history it has housed royalty and nobility since 1119. I find it particularly interesting for its links to several important Queens and Princesses. It was at one stage the Royal Palace is King Edward I his queen, Eleanor of Castile. Henry VIII gave the castle to his first wife, Catherine of Aragon and Queen Elizabeth I was imprisoned there before she was crowned. The Castle itself is quite impressive, built on two adjacent islands on the river Len it boasts beautiful gardens, a large maze and even an aviary!

Konopiště
Although not as large and impressive as some of the other castles listed here, Konopiště in the Czech Republic is a personal favourite of mine. It was originally built as a fortress to protect the town of Benesov but has since been reconstructed several times in to the beautiful golden hued castle it is today. It forms part of a very tragic story as the last residence of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria (of descendant of the same family of Marie Antoinette) and his wife the Countess Sophie. It was the assasination of the Austrian heir that became one of the events that led up to World War 1. You can read more about his life here. I was very happy to see this Castle appear in the movie The Illusionist, which I watched recently.

I’ve recieved a few questions about skin care and beauty so I thought it might be nice to do a few lessons on the basics of maintaining one’s complexion. Today’s lesson is about natural beauty treatments.

For centuries Princesses have been trying different substances and methods to give their skin softness, clearness and that inner glow. Some, such as Cleopatra’s goats milk baths, are gentle remedies and others, for example the consumption of arsenic in the courts of Europe, were quite deadly! As modern Princesses we have a wide range of beauty products available to us, and it can be quite confusing as to which to choose and how to apply them.

One of the most important things to remember is that everyone’s skin is different, and there is no miracle cream, treatment or method that will work the same for everyone. What works wonders for one person may have no benefit to another. The best way to reach a beneficial beauty routine is to try different products and remedies until you find the ones that gives the best results for you. Keep in mind that you are unlikely to notice the difference overnight, as a general rule I will try something for three weeks before deciding whether or not it has worked as this gives your skin’s chemistry enough time to adapt.

Personally I am a strong advocate of using the most natural products I can. A lot of beauty products you buy on the shelf these days, especially the cheaper ones, can contain harsh chemicals that will effectively clean your skin but will also age it faster. Chemicals like Sodium Laureth Sulfate, which originally were intended for use as industrial cleaning agents are not something you want to put on your face! Just remember, your skin absorbs any oil based substance you apply to it.

In fact, the very best beauty products and remedies can be found in your kitchen! For cleansers, oatmeal and milk work wonders. Honey is a natural healing balm which can be applied to sores and scabs. Garlic has great antibacterial properties and when rubbed on non-ruptured blemishes can help ease the swelling. Cucumber is cooling and soothing to inflamed or burned skin and tea has long been a popular remedy for reducing swelling due to water retention, such as bags under the eyes. Egg whites can be mixed in to a hair rinse to give you shiny locks and natural unflavoured yoghurt makes a great facial mask. I have tried all of these remedies at some point and found them far more effective than anything purchased from the shops. There is a reason some women pay hundreds of dollars to go to day spas where they use ingredients just like these!

Here is a very simple recipe that I use now and then when I feel my skin needs a bit of extra attention. I have shared this with a few friends and they’ve also agreed their skin feels much softer and clearer afterwards. This Mask combines oatmeal, which is a great cleanser and natural exfoliant, honey which heals and hydrates the skin, egg white as an emollient to soften and tone as well as cucumber which is cooling and soothing to dry or damaged skin.

Honey and Oat Healing Mask

2 tbsp oatmeal or rolled oats
1 tsp honey
1 egg white, seperated
4 slices of cucumber, skins removed

Chop or finely grind the oats until they are as close to a powder as you can make them, if there are a few larger flakes it will not matter. Likewise dice the cucumber slices into small pieces, the closer to a paste or jelly consistency the better. In a bowl beat the egg white until a light foam forms on top, mix in the honey and then add the oats and cucumber. It should be fairly thick, but still runny enough to spread over skin easily, if necessary add more oats.

If you have sensitive skin, please try a bit of this on the back of your wrist first. Leave it there for ten minutes and then wash off, if you notice any redness or itchiness do not proceed with the mask. All of the ingredients in this mask are very safe and should not cause any irritation, but if you have sensitive skin it never hurts to test first.

Apply the mask to clean, slightly damp skin. Spread it across your face in upwards strokes, do not apply it around your eyes. When you face is covered, go and do something relaxing for about ten minutes. The mask should start to dry but not dry completely, if your skin starts to feel tight its time to wash it off. Use luke warm water to rinse off the mask, then tone and moisturise. Its ok to use this mask about once a week or whenever you’re preparing for a big event or recovering from a bad week. If you try it out please tell me about your results!

Part 2 will cover different skin types and the three stages of Cleansing, Toning and moisturising.

I was very busy at the Petit Miel atelier today! After a quick excursion this morning to have my hair trimmed and pick up some fresh fruit from the market I came home and sat down to work.

There are two pairs of my Bon Bon Barettes available now one in Blue Gingham and one in Pink Polkadot. These look really cute with lolita and princess style outfits especially if you put your hair in pig tails or braids. The clips are push-to-open style which I find stays in my hair really well and doesn’t tend to fall out like slides. I hope you will like these new additions!

I’ve also nearly finished a pretty bow headdress which will be appearing in the shop shortly, its a one-off piece so its something a bit special for Petit Miel. I would like to start making more unique items in the future, as it gives me more time to put extra details in and create something that is truly one-of-a-kind

Today I am going to share with you one of my favourite treats, fruit sandwiches! They are very easy to make and are lovely to take to a tea party or picnic. They’re small and bite sized, not too sweet but definitely different to your usual tea sandwiches. For this recipe I used strawberries and kiwi fruit, which is one of my favourite combinations, but really you can use any fruit you like! Bananas, figs, raspberries, rockmelon any fruit that is soft enough will work. You can also add crushed nuts for a different texture, or replace the fruit with rose petals and add a little rose essence to the cream!

Ingredients

12 slices of soft white bread
3 tbsp ricotta
3 tbsp thickened cream
2 kiwi fruit
6 large strawberries

To prepare the fruit, first peel the kiwi fruit of their skin and slice them horizontally to give oval shaped slices. Wash the strawberries and remove the leave, then slice in to thin rounds. Make the cream spread by mixing the ricotta cheese and thickened cream in a bowl, this ratio give quite a runny spread so if you would like it thicker add more ricotta and less cream. It should have a mild cheesecake taste.

Remove the crusts on each slice of bread and spread one side with the cream mixture. For each sandwhich I used about 2 large slices of kiwi fruit and 2 large slices of strawberry but you could probably add more for a fruitier taste. Alternate the slices for a colourful effect. Once you have added the top slice cut down the middle to make two rectangular finger sandwiches. Makes 12 in total. Enjoy with iced tea or lemonade!

Last night was Alyssea’s birthday party! The theme was ‘alphabet’ so we were each given a letter and had to dress up as something starting with it. I thought this would be fairly easy, and then I got the letter ‘E’ ! I couldn’t think of much at all, elephant, elf, egyptian… eventually I settled on ‘Easter Bunny’ partly because it was easy to find the things I needed at this time of year and also because bunnies are just cute

Mirai and I went shopping and bough some faux fur, Mirai’s letter was ‘T’ and she chose ‘Tiger’ so we had matching costumes in a way. Fur is not as hard to sew as I thought, but it sheds! There are little tufts of white fur all over my chambers still. I actually bought the ears and added a little pink bow, then made a collar and cuffs and a little tail to attach to my dress. I also found this cute easter basket to carry my chocolate eggs in, that was the best part of wearing this costume, getting to hand out chocolate to everyone!

The party was fantastic, we met at a park first where Alyssea had hired an inflatable bouncy castle! We all had fun jumping around on it. There were some really great costumes too, some of my favourites were Emily’s ‘Jelly Fish’ and Jovana’s ‘Fail.’ After the sun set we all travelled to Alyssea’s house where her Mother had made us delicious curry for dinner and a yummy carrot cake for her birthday! Some people played music games and I joined in playing Twister, which was harder than I realised! It was a fun night and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Happy Birthday Alyssea!

Dreamhunter is a very unsual and beautiful tale. It takes place in a place called Southland, a fairly undefined sort of world possibly set after the turn of the century somewhere in colonised Australia or New Zealand, although it could just as well be a world of its own. Within Southland there is a strange phenomena, known as The Place, it is an area of land that when some people walk in to, transports them to a strange dull landscape that seems far larger than the actual external area it covers. Within The Place are dreams, and these can be caught by Dreamhunters who fall asleep in the location of a dream and then leave The Place with the dream inside them.

Over the last twenty years since The Place was discovered, a trade in Dreams has sprung up. Healing dreams are performed at hospitals and more entertaining or pleasant dreams in large opera-like Dream Palaces. These beautiful buildings consist of elegant bedrooms where wealthy and fashionable folk may come (dressed in silk pajamas) to enjoy the dreams carried from the Place. It really is a fascinating concept and cleverly realised world.

The story centres around two young cousins, Laura Hame and Rose Tiebold, both from famous Dreamhunting families. They are about to undertake their ‘Try’ in which they will discover if they can enter The Place or not. One will and one won’t, but The Place and the dreams they discover within will change their lives forever. It is a very clever and moving story and so well written as to draw you in with curiousity and enchant you with dreams come to life. Elizabeth Knox has to be one of the most talented new authors I have discovered of late, her work is both beautiful and profound.

I have actually just finished the sequel to this book, Dreamquake, and I feel that I have been in sharing a dream myself!

As promised there are some cute new items over at Petit Miel this time I have four strawberry shortcake phone charms with pearls and bows. There will be some pretty hair accessories coming later this week!

I have also updated the shipping prices on all items, after finding a more helpful postal worker and finding out I can ship items under 2cm width as ‘letters’ for a far more reasonable price! Unfortunately the strawberries don’t fit this category but I reduced the packaging to bring the price down a little. All items are shipped in a sealed, bubble wrap lined parcel envelope.

I would also like to introduce a reward system.Now when purchasing from Petit Miel you can earn ‘Honey Points’ for every dollar you spend at Petit Miel you recieve 1 Honey Point, Honey Points will earn you free gifts with you orders when you reach a certain amount. All points are recorded in a database next to your etsy username and can not be used by any other account. I hope you will enjoy these little rewards as a thank you for supporting my store!