MY NEW JOURNEY OF PARENTHOOD.

I absolutely love being a mum- it's the best gift that God could ever give me, and then some. I'm not going to lie, it has been mega stressful and tiring, but it's worth waking up to this beautiful face every day. I do have my days where I'm mega anxious about if I'm doing anything right, but I'm also still learning too :).

The first night from hospital was pretty surreal, it felt weird that just 24 hours before, I was a mum to be, being wheeled into hospital whilst in labour and then to be carrying my baby girl out of hospital into the car seat in the cab, and it was the best feeling ever. I was also very drained from all that blood loss and 2nd degree tear (ouch!) and the fact that it all was such a quick labour made me feel a bit dazed too.

These past few weeks have been very, very emotional. I am JUST surviving on 4 hours broken sleep, and I have been on and off that couch in efforts for my other half to try and get some sleep, and I'm a bit anxious of moments where my little Amara doesn't stop crying, or doesnt settle, even when being fed or changed, but I'm slowly getting used to it and trying not to get worked up- it's awesome what going for a walk with your little one does for you!

I'm just hoping that she starts getting used to the times when she SHOULD be sleeping and give her mummy and daddy a break :)

Ify Katherine xo

SKINT AND FABULOUS: BUDGET PIZZA BAGELS

These pizza bagels are quick and easy to have for lunch and is an awesome way to use up leftover food. I had lots of salad leftover, and I despise salad dressing, so I chucked on some lovely sweet chilli sauce, which is a bit quirky but I don't care ;)

Here is what you will need:

1 bagel, cut in half (£0.26)
50g Cheddar Cheese (approximately £0.35)
2 tbsp Tomato Puree (£0.10)
1 handful of mixed salad (£0.25)

Total: £0.96

Method

1. preheat oven at 180 degrees celsius
2. put some tomato puree on both bagels
3. top with cheese
4. put in the oven for 5-10 minutes, or until cheese has melted and bagel has toasted.

These pizza bagels would be awesome to have with any additional toppings also.

Ify Katherine xo

SKINT & FABULOUS: BUDGET CHICKEN BAKE

I personally love anything with a bit of cheese and tomato, and more often than so now that I'm pregnant, I don't want to spend too much time cooking as I get so tired easily these days, so here it is! It's cheap, easy and super quick, and most importantly, you don't have to compromise on taste or quality, which is what so many people that start out on the budget lifestyle tend to not realise- if you are clever and a little bit organised, you can still have the same things.

Although it's cheaper to serve with penne/fusilli pasta, you can also make it a bit more filling with some baby potatoes.

Here is what you will need:

250g Mini Chicken Fillets (£2.50)
500g Carton of Passata (£0.55)
Handful of Grated Mature Cheddar Cheese (£0.75)
Handful of Grated Mozzarella Cheese (£0.30)
1 tbsp of vegetable oil (£0.01)

Total: £4.10 (£1.03 per serving)

Method:
1. Pre-heat the oven at 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Chop up the chicken fillets in half to make portion size stretch further.
3. Add chicken to the pan which should be heated up, and if you wish, add any spices/herbs at this stage to give more of a taste whilst cooking.
4. Once chicken has cooked, add a carton of Passata, and a pinch of cheddar cheese to give it a bit of thickness.
5. When heated through, add to a baking tray/casserole dish and add the mozzarella and cheddar cheese and put it in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese has properly melted and has turned golden brown.

ENJOY! ;)

Ify Katherine xo

IFY KATHERINE APPAREL NEWBIES!

So, I have been playing catch up on making lots of new things since starting becoming self-employed whilst on Maternity Leave, and a lot of these pieces have been embellished or appliqued, and they are awesome to rock your basic outfit with.

Snap these up at Etsy!

Ify Katherine xo

SELLING ON EBAY!

I'm currently selling on eBay at the moment, and would love it if  you could help me clear my space by snapping up my clothes! There are a variety of things for sale, in sizes 8-14, so hopefully there would be something that you would like! xo

SKINT AND FABULOUS 4: WHAT BEING SKINT HAS ACTUALLY TAUGHT ME!

Being broke and even sometimes being in debt is the biggest wake up call ever, especially when you get that sinking feeling when your bank account goes into overdraft, and nothing you do seems to be working. It's a very disheartening situation, but trust me, you CAN get your way out of it if you just take some forward steps and start thinking positively.

My first encounter with debt was when I was 20 years old and about to start my second year of Uni. I was approached by a rep from Clothes Show Live to sell at a stall in the Christmas event, and to my delight, I said yes! But then what they didn't tell me was all the costs and things that would later come into it (£5,000 just to have a frigging stall for 3 days! I would have better luck in selling for Camden Lock Market every day for a year!) and I obviously couldn't afford to fund myself whilst being away from home and only just started my business the year before, as well as the fact that I had no money apart from my student loan, so I told them that I no longer commit to this, so they said I had to pay 1/2 the amount of money to break the contract, and so I did, but I was £2,500 in debt, I barely had enough student loan to pay my rent and I was only really left with £200 a term to live on, and it was very uncomfortable living on that, my budget on food was £7.50 a week- how I actually survived on that was beyond belief.

It was saddening that I spent my 21st birthday in so much debt that I could even barely afford my birthday meal, as well as travelling from Farnham to South London for it.

So after that, I said to myself that I had to get myself out of this pit that I was in, even if it takes years and years.

The steps I took towards clearing this debt involved:

• joining a job agency (ones that involve catering work are often easiest to get work for). I joined 2 agencies to make sure I had some kind of consistent work.
• starting my own side business- maybe you want to sell things on eBay, have a cake sale or like me, you would like to upcycle clothing and re-sell them?
• setting and sticking to a budget, but allowing a little bit extra room for emergencies, so you are not overspending massively.
• batch buying/cooking- I would buy a months worth of food and cook it and then freeze them all.
• asked my landlord to pay the rent quarterly rather than monthly to avoid being unable to pay it later on.

It DOES take some committing, especially when you are a student, but when you are someone that studied a creative course that always requires money, you HAVE to grow up and do things you don't want to do.

Luckily, my Uni had surprised me and gave me a £700 bursary, and then shortly after, Student Finance gave me an extra £1,000 to live on for the rest of the year, which paid off all my debt so as you can imagine, it is the biggest relief when you stop seeing that dreadful minus sign when you check your balance!

Currently, I'm not exactly rich right now as I'm saving any extra money towards my baby girl's arrival and for mine and my other half's new home, but I'm happy that I'm taking positive steps towards a more comfortable life whilst on Maternity Leave, which would prove a new challenge, but everyone that knows me knows I like a bit of a challenge, and although I may cry and panic at times, I always come out doing the victory dance ;)

Ify Katherine xo

P.S- if you are struggling with debt, and I mean really struggling- there are other websites that can also help you, like Citizen's Advice Bureau and Money Advice Service . I hope this helps!

INSTAGRAM ROUND UP

So, as you can see I've been  making the most of mine and Mike's free time before bubba arrives, with the odd lazy Saturday breakfast bagels, Moroccan dinners, days out to cool places like Hyper Japan. I'm also trying to clearout as much as possible and buy lots of cute girly things before I move out of my gorsh-forsaken bedsit into a proper place where I can have my own privacy without conflict with other tenants as well as having lots more space!

I'm now on Maternity Leave too, and I was soooo happy to leave my job and have a well-deserved break... all work and no play makes Ify a dull girlie- I haven't had a proper break in over 2 years and it was good timing for me to leave and just work on bettering myself emotionally and focus on what's actually important in life, which will hopefully mean a nice holiday away.

NEW ADDITIONS TO THE WARDROBE

BLACK STRIPED TASSLE NECK LONG SLEEVE TOP

BROWN PATTERNED STUDDED SLEEVELESS CARDIGAN

LEOPARD PRINT UPCYCLED SLEEVELESS DRESS

PINK ORANGE LOVE HEART APPLIQUE T SHIRT

PINK EMBELLISHED DENIM UPCYCLED HOODIE

Eek! It's my first week of my maternity leave, and I've tried to be as productive as possible. I love these new pieces, as they are simple but they impact on your basic daily outfit at the same time, which is statement making. I hope you have a browse and snap up something you like!

Ify Katherine xo

THROWBACK THURSDAY

I look back at these photos of when I first started my business in 2009 with such happiness and pride! I honestly wish I had more time/energy to be experimenting more and really whipping out my designs like I used to! I also love how much the business has diversed too :).

It is officially 5 years since I started this business too, I just realised! It has been a challenging time as I have been dealing with a lot of things, whether it is with University, failed relationships, keeping my anxiety issues in check, getting a job, moving places like 3 times in one year, the list goes on, but honestly, my business is still a work in progress, and I think I would like to take the "tweak and grow" approach so that I am not too overwhelmed, and quite frankly it's the only way to stay on top of things!

Lots of love,

Ify Katherine xo

SKINT AND FABULOUS: BULK BUYING

Hey guys,

This week I will be talking about bulk buying, as opposed to spontaneous buying of things you really didn't want/need.

I personally am still learning this skill, but it has worked in my favour so far. There are so many things that I would like/need in my life in the moment, but to make sure it's something I would really want in a couple of weeks, then it really is best to make a list of these things and then buying these things later. This way you save so much money, and you have a bunch of lovely things that you saved towards, as well as saving time and effort.

This way of managing money works in all aspects, whether it's groceries, presents, or clothes shopping. However, before buying in bulk, you should make sure it is something that you want/need/like and not something you are buying just because it is on sale or there's a certain offer out there, it's only going to cause you more regrets.

Another way to approach this method is to gradually buy things from the list every week, because you would never know if it happens to be cheaper that time, and it gives you time to see if you can find that thing you want at a better price!

If you are able to, pay with cash, and not by card, so that you are literally only spending the limit with cash, and you are not tempted to overspend.

Sometimes, even shopping online is way more savvy and you save a lot more. For example, I saw a t shirt in a high street shop that was a tad bit too pricey, but a quick look around Amazon or eBay and there it was for a 1/3 less! Sometimes it's even worth seeing if you can get that similar style in a charity shop/bargain store for even less too.

It does take a bit of work, but it does mean a lot of financial freedom later on! It also makes you question your priorities of whether you actually need the things you claim to want so that you feel less guilty about wasting your money!

Good luck, lovelies!

Ify Katherine xo

SKINT AND FABULOUS NO.2: ORGANISING YOUR INCOME

Hey guys,

Today I'm going to talk about budgeting, but in a more organised way, and this way really does make sense!

It's so easy to write down a budget and day you are going to spend this much this month and hope it lasts, but sometimes with bills that cost more than expected or all the little emergencies, your money really does disappear quicker than you actually think.

The way I am going to talk about organising your money is to put your money into 3 bank accounts- it's really not a crazy idea, I promise you! I personally have 3 separate bank accounts, which is 1 for my main income which I then send part of my money to a bills account and another part towards savings. This way, I know that my money is sorted and I can enjoy whatever is left in my main account.


                                                 (source)

If this isn't possible, then you can also do this with jars or plastic containers, but then also ensure are a little bit organised as to know when bills are due, so that you put the money back into your account. You could even do add an extra container if you want to include paying credit cards or overdrafts!

This is also a really good way to ensure you get out of debt quicker too if you have any as you would for sure be saving money.

I hope this helps! :)

Ify Katherine xo

CURRENTLY...

I have some news! :). A lot of you that are on my personal facebook or follow me on instagram will know this already but for those who don't, I'm expecting a new beautiful addition to my little family!

Apologies to everyone that has put up with my slightly late postages on etsy, and pretty much lack of updates on every online social platform, but I have been very, very tired! I'm now anaemic so I'm slowly getting my energy back but taking care not to overwork myself.




I am now 20 weeks pregnant and I'm slowly getting things together now, before bubba gets here, so that I'm not so overwhelmed with things to buy/get and hopefully my first year with the baby won't be so expensive! :).

I'm very excited and very happy! Thank you so much to everyone that has been very supportive so far.

If anyone has any tips, feel free to comment or send me an e-mail! :)

Lots of love

Ify Katherine xo

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NEW BLOG SERIES: SKINT & FABULOUS NO.1

Hey guys, I'm introducing a new blog series here- on being skint & fabulous- just because you have no money doesn't mean you cant have a life or have to just completely be a homebody! With the right tips you can still have the things you would like, without burning a hole in your wallet ;-).

I personally love living frugally- it makes my life so much easier and so far it has meant that have a very good credit rating too! I handmake/recycle/mend a lot of my clothes, my whole online business is built this way  and I live by budgeting and shopping lists and it has meant that I save a huge chunk of my weekly income, so that I can save for other things like holidays, renting deposits and for other special occasions!


I never used to be like this, obviously- when I was younger, I used to just splurge money on things I didn't really need, but instead on what I thought looked nice or tasted good. But I then learnt how to budget when I moved away from home for a year because my parent's weren't going to support me financially anymore.

And when I started my first full-time job as a waitress the spending habits did get worse- I spent half of my first weeks wage on a pair of Doc Martens, because even though I did want them for about a year beforehand, I wanted to show people that I can afford nice things. Luckily I wear them very often, otherwise it would be a very costly mistake. However it did get worse- bi-weekly shopping trips in Hammersmith on my break, or in Westfield whenever I finished work early, because I thought- I deserved it- I worked for it, so I earned every nice thing I had in my wardrobe.

Then I decided I wanted to move out of my parent's house again, but with no intention of moving back in, mostly because I wanted to support myself fully and live a fully independent life, and a year and a half later, I'm still living that life and it has quite literally been the biggest wake up call ever... I lived in an overpriced tiny council flat with like 6 other people where there was no privacy, constant noise, and no relaxation. Since living away from home, I've had to re-learn how to budget, save up for rent deposits for when my tenancy was finishing, and have small treats rather than splurges!

Now though, I live a fairly comfortable life. I live in a cool-enough bedsit, I have nice things that I have worked towards, I finally am planning holidays, and I'm working towards better things.

This week, I am going to talk about budgeting. If you want the nice things you want, or if you are in debt, or even if you just want your wages to actually last, rather than living from paycheck to paycheck, then you have to plan!

Here are a few things to consider when budgeting-

• Make a list of all the essential things that you will need to pay for, in terms of bills, rent and groceries, and a tiny bit for going out (because we all need a life!) and if it helps- withdraw the money left over and only touch that cash for emergencies, and save for other things!
• Buy in bulk to cut costs- in terms of herbs and spices, loo roll, washing up liquid, etc.
• Plan your meals in advance so that it's easier to just buy the food you need to avoid waste. There's a good website to help with this too: http://england.lovefoodhatewaste.com/

Here's an example of how I budget:

I make about £250 a week (not including the extra money I make from my tips that I've gotten via card payments, which frankly only really pays the tax before it touches my wages)

£120- rent

£20- groceries

£10- meter key

£4- launderettes

£15- travel

£17- bills

= £186 on necessities, £64 leftover!

I don't always spend money when I go out because it's usually to go to other people's houses, or I spend very little- but I normally spend no more than £20 a week or sometimes even fortnightly.

You may read this and think- how the heck do you live in London and live so cheaply? and I won't lie I have had a lot of trial and error, so it's only really been the last few months that I have worked this out to my benefit, and I will expand on that in future blogs- you would be surprised at how much you can save if you are realistic and plan smartly.

Good Luck!

Ify Katherine xo

CURRENTLY

Rocking my new hair colour. I was really getting irritated by the fact that my once red hair was turning into a red/brown patchy mess, so I spent a lot of the time with hiding my hair under headscarves and wigs, which I like anyway, but I would also like to have the choice of letting my own hair hang out sometimes. ;)





Back from Amsterdam! I had such a great time over there with my boyfriend. Everyone is really friendly and there are some awesome sights, although when we went it was super cold, so I wasn't pleased that I travelled with just a hoodie for outerwear!



Slowly, but surely working my way through my pile of clothing to upcycle. I've had a lot of chronic fatigue lately, so I haven't had any energy to do anything besides go to my day job, and that's only because I hate requesting days off if it's not something that I can help. I have made some use of my diary again so I'm trying really hard to stay organised, so I only hope this carries on. :)

READING: I'm reading up on radical self-love, by an awesome lifestyle blogger called Gala Darling. I don't like that I always doubt myself a lot, as I think it always affects decision making for every aspect of my life, and stopping me from being the best person I can be to myself and everyone else.

WONDERING: When I am actually going to handle my money better like I used to!? Since January I haven't been that good at handling money, but lately it has come to my attention that I need to start working on budgeting again. I used to be saving as much as I was spending every week despite me living away from home, and lately I have been extremely laid back with my spending, which is leaving me pretty broke after 3 days. Thank God I actually get paid every week otherwise I'd be suffering so much right now... whoops!

FEELING THANKFUL: That I'm spending the easter weekend with my family. I always am happy to be with them and it's a nice escape from the bedsit- haha! Oh and that my wages came in early- that was amazing timing :).

EATING: Way too much junk food- lately I've been having pizza, bacon sandwiches and cheesy chips. I need to introduce some greens in my life!

WATCHING: A lot of catching up on my iPad- like Gogglebox, One born every minute, and all the soaps! I have no time for TV other than Jeremy Kyle in the mornings before getting ready for work and watching other programmes on my days off- but not watching TV that often isn't a bad thing, is it?

WORKING ON: Getting into the habit of making clothes more often. I miss creating clothes and sewing until my heart is content.

LOVING: Life!

ATTEMPTING: To (properly) clear out my wardrobe and have more basic pieces that I can mix and match. The problem with me is that I have a lot of statement t shirts and skirts, and not enough basic coloured things. It's gonna be a work in progress, as I have a lot of stuff in my bedsit AND my parent's house, so yeah it's gonna have to be something I do gradually.

WANTING: To get back into drawing again. I haven't drawn at all since I left Uni and I would love to get back into drawing and painting like I used to. I think I'll just pick up a paintbrush/pen/pencil and just doodle away randomly soon enough!

Have a good evening guys

Ify Katherine xo

STYLE IT UP: HANDMADE BY IFY CARDIE

It's been a good couple of years since I've done an outfit post, but I'm excited to do it again! I wore a thin, orange cardigan, with my Primark skirt and boyfriend t shirt, and teamed it with my African headscarf, Charity Shop necklace and Doc Martens. It's so nice and comfy to wear, and you can dress it up or down, and it's light enough to wear during the summer months, but comfy enough to wear during the winter months too! 

I think the cardigan makes the outfit that much more better and makes it more unique. 

Have a look here! 

Ify Katherine xo

NEW IN THE SHOP!

I've been sewing up lots of treats, since my shopping spree in the charity shops the other day- I bought soooo much stuff, and I can't wait to show you the rest of what I've been making recently. Summer's nearly here so these things are lovely pieces to rock your basic outfit! More pieces will be added to the shop at some point next week.

Lots of love!

Shop here

Ify Katherine

MY MICRODERMALS

So, I've had quite a few questions about my piercings since I got these done in November, so I'd thought I'd make a little summary on here, for those who are considering getting one done or are just curious.

I decided to get mine done on a whim one day, as I had seen a few people have surface piercings, and initially wanted to get that done, so that if I didn't like it, I could just take it out myself and that would be the end of it. So I dragged a friend and headed down there to get it done. The piercer told me it was better to get a microdermal so that it would be a much lesser chance of rejection- so I jumped at the chance.

It did kinda hurt for like 10 seconds, but not much more than a normal piercing. I was just so numb and tired for the rest of the day- I made the mistake of going to work right after I had this done so it's not advisable to do anything like that afterwards. 

I wore plasters on it when I went to sleep as apparently it keeps the piercings in place and I only took them off after showering to clean it with the solution they gave me. Afterwards I changed to hot water compresses for 2 months. I am allergic to certain plasters so I didn't wear it to bed for that long of a period because of the reaction, so I had to wear surgical tape for a while.

These piercings take a lot of maintenance as you have to not be so fussy over it but then you have to take care as to what you wear as well to avoid snagging it. Also these are more of a permanent thing, as it is pierced in an anchor sort of way so it's not possible to take it out yourself, which is why I say make sure you are aware of all these things before getting it done.

I've had these for 4 months now and they have healed pretty nicely. I'm contemplating changing the balls of the piercing but we shall see how that goes!

Ify Katherine xo

NEW TO THE SHOP!

I have gotten back into making button jewellery from scrap fabrics again! I still have so much fabric to get rid of, especially some of my textiles samples that I no longer like as a whole- so there will be a lot added to the shop gradually, as well as yarn wrapped jewellery.

More pieces will be added at some point next week, so keep a look out! :)

Ify Katherine xo