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Cinder Toffee Recipe
Now that we’re in the middle of this Coronavirus outbreak, all confined to our homes to prevent the spread of this horrid virus. More and more people are getting into and rediscovering baking-which is great! Baking is one of my favourite things to do and always has been. I decided to do a live bake-along on my Instagram account last Thursday and got a great response! I made two of my quickest easiest treats and I’ve been inundated with requests to post them on the blog. Apologies for only doing it now, I’ve been cursed with morning sickness that lasts all day and had a bad day yesterday. So here…
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Newbridge Silverware MOSI: Princess Diana Wedding Gown & Afternoon Tea Review
It’s been twenty years since Princess Diana passed away in Paris, most of us can remember where we were the day the news broke, a wet miserable day worsened by the sad news that such a living angel had been killed. To mark the anniversary, Newbridge Silverware have brought in one of the final cotton mockup’s of Diana’s wedding dress, designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel in 1981. The iconic dress original was made from ivory silk taffeta and antique lace and is currently in the possession of Princes William & Harry. Included in the collection is the famous ‘Revenge Dress’ worn by Diana the day that Charles admitted his…
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Killruddery House: Inside The Orangerie
I had to do something to come down from the party excitement, so whilst Norma from The House That Will was staying with me for the Birthday celebrations, I shared a favourite secret location of mine with her, Killruddery House. We woke up the day after the party with very sore heads, the sun belting in the window, Norma is like me, and old soul that appreciates beautiful things and Great Irish Houses and gardens. Norma had only heard me mention Killruddery but had never been there, often traveling to Wicklow with her Husband to places like Mount Usher. The Hell and Back event was happening on the estate so…
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40th Birthday Party: Tapas and Heatwaves
I am so sorry it’s been a couple of weeks since my last post, ever feel like everything is happening so fast around you that you can’t catch a second to catch your breath? If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know I also work full time as we edge ever so closer to completing our house deposit save. I took a week off work to celebrate my husbands 40th birthday, we had a bit of a joint party because our birthdays are two days apart- we’re basically the same person, both Gemini and being married almost 7 years, we’ve never had one argument, not one! Anyway, as his wifey, I…
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To The Hosts: Let Tesco Help You Make The Perfect Christmas
It’s definitely starting to feel like.. C H R I S T M A S! The festive feeling kicked off for me earlier last month when I was invited to the Tesco Christmas Press Launch in 25 Fitzwilliam Place, hosted by the beautiful former Pussycat Doll, Kimberly Wyatt. Kimberly began the day with a cooking demo of her favourite holiday treats and the evening continued at the Fitzwilliam Place venue afterwards. When I say Tesco went all out, I mean they went ALL out! The door was dressed with a beautiful wreath, garlands and glistening lanterns and as you arrived the host and hostess welcomed you in, took your…
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The Calor Mini BBQ Review: Best invention for foodies, EVER!
My hubby and I share the same birthday week (this week) and we’ve bought ourselves a gift…We love to BBQ and we love entertaining and we’ve been suffering with a sorry excuse for a BBQ for the past two years. So we bought a Calor Mini-BBQ, I wasn’t ready for how awesome this product is. Before, we had a crappy little cheap tripod barbecue that burns charcoal, the grill spaces are too wide and your hot dogs fall down between, into the fire. Also, the charcoal cools down very quickly.. this infuriates me.. there’s nothing worse than waiting around, fumbling about the BBQ for the initial fire to die down,…
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A Minute With……Moss Cottage
Hands up if you’re lusted over table settings on Pinterest? Hands up if you’ve seen eclectic decor on Instagram and wished you could get your hands on it? Can I tell you a secret? You can! In Dublin! Right opposite the church in Dundrum village, a quaint little row of red brick cottages, and in there, you’ll find Jen and her treasure trove of fabulous stock, from chalk paint to party accessories, golden tassel garlands to Kate Spade notebooks and pens, hen party and accessories, there is SO much! Well… I’ve done a little interview with Jen, to see what inspires her to create such an exciting shopping experience.. Jen,…
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Recipe: Ryan’s Chocolate Chili -The Ultimate Comfort Food
I love when my husband makes his chocolate chili, it’s the first thing he ever cooked for me, back when we were dating, poor guy, my first dish for him was a vegetarian Lasagne.. Ever since, it’s been one of my favourite dishes, so comforting and can be as indulgent as you want. He makes his chili every year for the O’Neill New Years party as part of a Nacho platter and if it’s not made, there’s war.. Then there was the time in Disneyland, Paris, when I had a baked potato filled with chili, sour cream and cheese, from a cart in the park and honestly? It was the…
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Edible Gifts: Seasonal Shortbread
I don’t know if I’m getting carried away with the Christmas baking..it’s just slightly past mid November and already I’ve made mince pies, I’ve always been a devil for premature Christmas though! I remember torturing my Mother one day after school, pleading and whining to get our Christmas tree in the last week of November, I was about fifteen. Mum calmly tried to explain that the tree would have wilted by the time Christmas came, but I kept on at her…. she caved…..and I learned a valuable lesson when the bough’s were sadly touching the floor and it had curled up….I felt like I had ruined Christmas and ever since,…
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Haunted House Halloween Party
Halloween is my absolute favourite time of year, well all of Autumn is, really! The colours in the trees are stunning at this time of year, rusts, russet’s, browns and greens, there’s a lovely smell in the air and you get to take out your favourite cozy outfits, snug cashmere’s and scarves and just be generally cozy! Halloween in 1980’s Dublin was really tame, not half as fun as the Americanised Halloween we have today, and I’m so grateful to the Americans for that. Costumes are better, people go all out with decorations like this ‘Hallowindow’ that one of my friends is working on doing at his house(video may not…
A lifestyle blog by Sarah Cooke-O'Neill
