Wednesday 6 June 2012

UPDATE! :)

hello all :)
just a quick update, i'd been neglecting this blogger a bit, having made a personal one - oops! its so addictive though!
anyway.

i post regular offers on my deco facebook page, please add me and look out for these and grab a bargain :) - or just say hi! :)

click here! [facebook.com/decodiamante]

postage is £2.50 inside the UK or £4.00 outside the uk.

prices start from £10 - for diamantes and/or pearls

for bigger pieces aswel (hello kitty, barbie, flowers, hearts, bows etc) - £12-16 - depending on how many of the bigger pieces you're after.

i can get hold of pretty much anything so please do ask!

if you cant see what you'd like in my pictures dont worry, im happy to give absolutely anything a go and try to get hold of anything you'd like so you're happy with the end result.

i can also decodiamante ipods, photo frames, trinket boxes.. anything! please ask!

i absolutely love diamantes and decoden. so it wasnt hard to choose a name for my creations!
i also love speaking to new people and creating gorgeous items so what are you waiting for! :D

take care xxx

Thursday 3 May 2012

4 new custom cases to share!

hellooooooo!
ive had 2 custom orders through facebook which have been done, sent and received.
and i also had 2 custom orders from my mum and sister! my mum! lol.. the one i done for my sister is deffo my fave case ive done so far.

my sisters case:


she is yet to see it but i know she'll love it :) she loves hello kitty and girlyness! - i actually like hers more than mine :/ lol..

my mums case:


she said she wanted something simple and not ott like my sisters lol, she's also yet to see it.

2 orders from facebook:




what do you think? xxx

Sunday 29 April 2012

my top 10 apps/games atm

as i said in my last post, im going to share my top 10 apps/games at the moment.
they're really not in any particular order and i dont know if they're available on all smart phones but they're deffo on most android phones.
here goes!

1. "Battery Widget"


this is what it looks like when you go into it.
i like it cause its (free! and) handy to know the percentage of battery you have left, with my phone (htc wildfire s) it tends to look a lot less than it actually is so now i dont panic wondering if its gonna go flat!
it sits in the top left of your screen in a little box with a number in the middle (the number is the % of battery left)
it recently had an update so when you go into it now, instead of just "ok" at the bottom, there is ok, settings and battery use. - battery use will let you know what has been using up your battery.






2. "Instagram"


i've only had instagram about a week - i fell in love with it straight away! i absolutely love putting different effects on pictures - it often makes them look so much better.
its completely free but you do need to sign up when you get it which is quick and easy to do. it kinda looks a bit facebooky on the home page, blue bar along top and bottom and a newsfeed in the middle full of pictures from people you follow.
along the bottom is home, popular, camera, news and profile.. its not just a camera with a photo editor, its almost like a social network too.
when you've clicked camera, followed the promps of taking a pic and edited and chosen an effect, in the top right the arrows will save it and take you to the next part where you can upload it to twitter, facebook etc. it also saves in your pic gallery on your phone. ive not really been using it socially if im honest, mainly cause i only have 2 friends that also have it! if you enjoy putting effects on your camera you will not be disappointed in this app.


3. "Snake '97"

lets be honest - who DIDNT love snake on the old nokias back in the day?! i for one missed it greatly so imagine my excitement when i found it on the android market! oh sorry "play store" it is now..
it turns your touch screen into an old nokia so you just touch where the numbers are. it takes a bit of getting used to at first but it does get easier, although ill be honest, every now and then i press the wrong one as you havent got buttons to keep your fingers in the right place!
in preferences you can change the speed and have the option of sound and tactile feedback (which can make it a little easier).
when the game is over you are able to share your score with a picture on facebook, twitter, instagram, email, kik etc.





4. "Draw Something"

 well i dunno about you but i dont actually know many people that dont have this app! the fun i've had playing it..!!
if you sign in via facebook you can play against any facebook friends that also play by going to 'create game.' to delete a game swipe your finger across the screen next to their name.
bacially, you have to draw something (you're given a choice of 3 words) and your friend has to guess what it is from your drawing and some jumbled up letters. when pictures are guessed correctly, coined are given. with coins you can get more colours to draw with which is mega handy as you're only given a few to start with. its really addictive and can be such a laugh!
i purchased draw something after using draw something free cause the adverts annoyed me (they're too long) apart from the adverts there not a lot else different to be honest, nothing noticable to me anyway.. was only 63p or something like that.

5. "Kik"
kik messenger is a cross-platform messenger service, connecting all your friends that own smart phones.. for FREEEE!
you can send messages, pictures and smilies and have group chats. if you have an android phone there are extra add ons like "sketchee" where you can draw pics to send each other too.
you can change the colour of your chat box and the thing i like most (other than the fact its free) is that it tells you when your friend has read your message. next to your chat box will be either an S (sent), D (delivered), R (read) or "..." (usually when your signal is bad and its trying to send) and at the top it tells you when they're writing back too.
there are many free messenger apps available but i really like this one, it does everything i want and more and i managed to get everyone i send too many txts too on it too, bonus!



6. "Pink Friday"

the nicki minaj app. say no more. (although i will)
when you go into the app you have the choice of: nictionary, news, music, photos, events and social.
the nictionary is words nicki apparently uses, with an explanation for what they mean. press play and her voice reads it out. some of the words are quite amusing!
for anyone (like me) that really likes nicki minaj, its a great little app. for anyone that doesnt mind her or doesnt like her, its probably not for you.
this is the only app on the list you cannot get for free.. ive never been someone that likes to buy apps - there's usually a similar version with a different name for free!
although i only paid 63p which is nothing really..




7. "Ringdroid"


judging by the name this may only be available on android phones.. but as with a lot of apps, there are many available.
i chose this one because it seemed like the most popular so i assumed it must be good! i havent been disappointed.
this app enables you to cut a clip out of a song from whichever part you want, for however long you want and then set it as your ringtone, message tone or alarm.
its really simple and easy to use too which is always a bonus.. and again, its free.







8. "Where's my Droid"


what a handy app this is! again, im pretty sure this one is only available on android but im sure there are plenty others?
basically, if you've lost your phone, you can text it from another phone using your 'attention word' and it will ring out loud, even if you've left it on silent! wowwweeee!
of course, your attention word or phrase has to be something nobody will ever send to you - and its probably a good idea not to tell them cause if they're anything like my friends they'll text it drunk one very early morning!!
the app can also get the GPS coordinates with a link to google maps if you're not near enough to hear it ring or if you need to track it down. although i havent tested that part, i imagine it could be handy if your phone is stollen?



9. "Flashlight"

another free app, doesnt need much explaining!
press the button for the light to come on, press it again and it will get brighter.. and again for brighter still.. and then again to go off.
it uses the led light from the camera so if you have a camera with a flash then you can get this app, if not, you cant.
i find it most handy walking from the car to the house at night or if i get up in the night, i dont need to put the main light on and wake my other half up (i couldnt go in the dark im a wimp!)
have you noticed i like handy apps!?








10. "Alarm Clock Xtreme Free"


I wouldnt go as far as to say its 'extreme' but i personally get on a lot better with it than the standard htc alarm clock.
with the standard htc one, the snooze and dismiss button are right next to each other. understandably when you're half asleep its not hard to press the wrong one!
after trying a few rubbish ones i come across this and find it much better. the thing i like the most is that you dont have to press snooze.. you can set it to snooze automatically after a certain amount of time so you dont even have to move! or you can lift it and give it a shake to snooze it. or both. (there are other options too and you can change the background colour)
i have mine on the give it a shake option but also have it snooze automatically for those mornings where i just dont want to move yet lol..





so that was my top 10 fave apps at the moment. i really do recommend them all!
what are your favourite apps? xxx

Thursday 26 April 2012

rain rain go away!

there's only one good thing about rain... rainbows!! agreed?!
i took this pic on the way to my parents yesterday evening on instagram.
dont worry i wasnt driving, my other half was! :)




So, i just cant stop listening to Nicki Minaj - Marilyn Monroe.. its such a lovely song. you probably wouldnt guess it was nicki minaj if you didnt know, its so different from her other stuff. with lyrics like "if you cant handle my worst, you aint gettin my best" and "truth is we mess up til we get it right" and "take me or leave me ill never be perfect believe me im worth it" how can you not like it?!

nicki minaj. big love. end of story.




Anyway, as you can see, im not giving up with blogger! 

Oh i've also been making a website so its easier for people to buy my cases. super duper excited!
its not finished just yet but once im finished and happy with it i will deffo link it.
I do wanna make this a bit more fancy with some good ol' HTML at some point but it will be ok as it is for the time being.. Ive been playing about with the website a couple of days now, its nothing fancy, its just a free one for now but if im honest, its pretty alright and im rather impressed with myself!

OOH! who fancies a giggle?!
nicki minaj on the graham norton show, couldnt stop laughing!



I will be doing a list of my top fave apps tomorrow. yeeeeeah! xxx

Tuesday 24 April 2012

mirror case

between doing a couple of custom orders i finished another iphone 4/4s case.
it has a mirror on the front which i think is so handy for anybody like myself who often forgets to take their compact mirror with them and is so ideal for nights out to check eye make up!
anyway, here it is, please tell me what you think :)

Monday 23 April 2012

fave songs atm

I have decided on something im going to do regularly, while i like my hair and make up, i dont like it enough that i'd buy it enough to keep people amused BUT i do love my music. i cant go a day without listening to music i really do love it and im pretty shit hot when it comes to being quizzed on it lol :)
Im very open minded about music, i love all sorts. mostly 80s cheese, chart, r&b and pop..
every now and then ive decided to share with you all my fave songs at that moment in time.. there will prob be more this time as its the first one.
I think if i had to choose my 2 fave songs ever it would have to be B52s - Love Shack and Shakespears Sisters - Stay With Me.

My fave songs at the moment are (in no particular order):
(i wont put the video on as it makes it slow, just link them from youtube)

Azealia Banks - 212 - prob my top fave, proper love it (me and my cousin had a little drink sat night and i couldnt help copy her funny moves when she's following the bloke.. had us in fits!)

Nicki Minaj - Starships - to be fair, i love every single song she does, anyone that knows me knows im a massive minaj fan. shes different, if a little strange.. and i love her different voices and how she mixes it up. and shes so pretty. i urge everybody to get her new album if you like this song cause the 2nd half is all dancey/sing along like this. i bought it when it come out and its still playing in the car and on my speakers when im home. big love.

Sean Paul - She Doesn't Mind - i cant describe why but i just love it! and sean paul is pwoar!

Fun - We Are Young - i dont always like stuff like this but its really catchy and i cant help but like it and sing along.. badly! lol :)

Tulisa - Young - i wasnt sure about this song at first but now ive heard it through some decent speakers i really like it! its a pretty feel good, summer song. i really like tulisa, hope the solo stuff she does is as good as this.

Carly Rae Jepson - Call Me Maybe - a good catchy, sing along pop song. whats not to like!

Conor Maynard - Cant Say No - i really didnt like this at first but it got stuck in my head and i done a complete u-turn and now really like it. i saw him on a music channel singing live and he's actually really good, its always nice when they can actually sing.



What do you think of these songs, good or bad? What are your fave songs right now? xxx

Thursday 19 April 2012

good & bad news..

well ill start with the bad news.. i've been getting a lot of pain in one of my heels and didnt know why, then last night after the gym it was really hurting again so my other half had a look and it was quite swollen :/ i got into the docs today and turns out i have damaged tissue in the heel of my foot and apparently it can take several months to heal (or heel ahahaha..!) so i have to rest up (no complaints here!) and get some supportive shoes.. do they make nice supportive shoes?! i love all my shoes but none of them have the supportive arch on the middle, they're just dead flat! :/ anyway, fingers crossed it starts healing soon cause its a right pain - literally!
my good news is that the lovely Kaylie (pinkporcelain) turned my frown upside down when she awarded me with versatile blogger! :O dead chuffed, big smiles!! totally would never have expected such positive things from everybody here so quickly so thankyou to Kaylie and thankyou to everybody else who has been so lovely, it really is so appreciated! xxx


These are the rules for the versatile blogger award:
1: nominate 15 fellow bloggers who are relatively new to blogging.*
2: let them know that you have nominated them.
3: share 7 random facts about yourself.
4: thank the bloggers that have nominated you.
5: add the versatile blogger award picture to your blog post.

*it says nominate 15 new bloggers but i havent been here long enough/dont even think i follow that many so will just post my favourite 5 so far that i've really enjoyed following :)

7 random facts about me:
1: i often have really strange dreams.. ill have to post about my next one!
2: i would be completely lost without my phone.. geeek!
3: im engaged to a wonderful man, we've been together 4 years this year, he really is one of the rare good ones.. im smitten and he's deffo a keeper :)
4: if i could live anywhere i would live in Wales! i absolutely love it there. the accent, the friendly people, the beautiful scenery.. love it!
5: i eat things in order.. starting with the thing i like least so that the best bit is last and is the taste i have in my mouth after :)
6: i dont smoke (gave up 3 years ago, go me!) and i hate being drunk now (done all that when i was 17-21) but i do enjoy 1 or 2 once in a while with a meal or evening out (bacardi n coke, yum!)
7: my biggest hate is ignorance and close second is noisy eaters.. close your damn mouth! (please)

my top 5 fave bloggers that have kept me coming back (in no particular order):
pinkporcelain
missbudgetbeauty
sprinkleofglitter
iclelivzi
aspirationsofglam

thankyou again Kaylie and everyone else thats given me such a warm welcome :) xxx

Tuesday 17 April 2012

phone cases

me again! :D aha..
the time has come (spare time that is!) for me to actually get my backside into gear and put some pics on here of the cases i've been doing!
i sit here sometimes and think ooh i should put this on my blogger.. and this, and this... and then i just forget. maybe i should write it down cause there is lots i want to put on here but i seem to be getting a bit forgetful in my old age... okay so im not old (24 this year) and i dont even act old but it could have been a good excuse had i of been...! plus had i not have said my age, for all you know i could have been retired and sitting here in my little bungalow with my long flowery skirt, blouse and cream knit jumper with an equally old cat at my feet.... gosh what a "cool" oap id have been, right?! anyway!


these are completed ones i've done so far:









so what do you think?
the more basic ones are the ones i done first to get a feel for it.. i really enjoy doing it, its time consuming but hopefully it will all be worth it once i start selling more.. i had my first proper order today too, chuffed much!
my only trouble is so far that i cant seem to find anywhere cheap to buy all the bits i need! im using ebay at the moment but it can work out quite pricey and obviously i cant charge too much for doing them cause people wont buy them..
i did have a look on etsy but the prices on there are a lot higher which is a shame cause there are some really nice pieces on there.. but there is no point in doing it if im not making any money from it cause thats the whole point of it..
ive searched on google but dont seem to be able to find anything.. there are of course many websites (and ebay) where i could order from japan, china, america etc but they take so long to get here and 1: im terribly impatient and 2: it would mean people would have to wait like a month or more to get their order which is not an option..
if anybody knows any cheaper places to get things pleeeease let me know! i will send a big virtual hug and love you -in a friendly way- forever! (although realistically i probably wouldnt even remember when im 60 odd but i mean well when i say it :]) xxx

general update

im still here! ive had a busy few days :) - me and my fiance went down to london for a few days away, it was lovely to get away from everything for a few days and have some quality time together.
we went down on the thursday and had a chilled afternoon and a lovely meal out in the evening.
friday we went into central london.. we got chinese chicken and noodles in camden (the chinese ones taste way better than the thai ones), shopped on oxford street and done so much walking about, i was limping cause my feet were killing me at the end of the day!
saturday we went to lakeside (am i the only one who thinks its not all that?), ikea (big love!) and the retail park.

ive been having a nosey about on this blogger thing again. i love all the blogs people do on hair & beauty products and clothes and everything inbetween. i'd loove to do the same, some of the things they test and talk about look brilliant and i want like all of it! but i cant afford to buy all these lovely things on a regular basis atm :( maybe one day - hey if my phone cases take off and i sell more maybe i can afford to buy more nice things, then i can share my opinions too! saying that, theres nothing stopping me from sharing my opinions on other stuff for the time being.
ooh you know what i would really love to do, review things! ive seen many blogs now where people are sent freebies from all different companys so they can review it and spread the word.

if anyone is looking for someone to review anything pick me, pick me!!

OR if anyone fancies reviewing one of my phone cases please get in touch :)

i should probably upload some pics on here of the cases i've done so far.. yes i will do that later.

whats everyone else been upto then? xxx

Wednesday 11 April 2012

my phone case

so im going to have to talk to myself for a little while until i get some followers.. these things just take time i guess. i feel like a bit of a wally sharing pictures and talking about them to myself but when i wake up one morning with lots of followers (lol..) nah, it will all be worth it once i get going :)
if anybody is reading this, please follow and communicate with me lol :D ooh i feel like will smith in i am legend.. except im not a man, i dont have a dog and im far from the only one here! so not like it at all then really :/ anyway!!



this is my phone case for my htc wildfire s <3 i LOVE it.
i have done more cases, they can be found on my facebook (decodiamante) - other than mine ive only done iphone cases but i can do cases for most phones :)
i dont follow or copy designs, i literally buy any cute flat back diamantes, gems, cabochons etc that i love the look of and just go for it!
hope you like! x

Monday 9 April 2012

Here goes..!!

so i had a look about this blogger thing.. i think im gonna like it here!
whilst doing this i decided that unless i actually put something on my page i dont stand a chance!
ive made this mainly to show off the phone cases ive started making - in the hope that people will love them as much as i do and buy them ;) but knowing me, ill do reviews on things and keep anyone that follows me updated with stuff too!
at the moment i have decided against putting a picture of myself on here or on my decodiamate facebook (add me!) not because i look like a hideous monster but because i know people can be very judgemental and im not here to be judged on my appearance :) that's not to say ill never do it.. so who knows! - while we're on the subject, im well aware my writing is all in lower case and that ive missed punctuation out - i am actually pretty good at all that but i just prefer it this way.
i'd like to think im pretty friendly.. i can be shy but it usually doesnt last long! :D i can be quite opinionated which i know some people dont like but that is me - im not nasty and i wont deliberately say or do something to hurt people i just have strong views on things - in a non religious way - im not religious..
i started making phone cases look pretty a month or so ago.. i walked out of my job last year due to problems at work making me unhappy there and didnt expect it to be so hard to find another job.. i have a good cv but there is just nothing out there.. anyway after covering many of my own things in diamantes and pretty cabochons (a mixture of boredom from being a bum and just wanting everything to look pretty!!) i come across a phone case like it on google images.. i loved it straight away and really wanted to give it a go myself to make some pennies.... and here i am! :)
so if you're still reading, follow meee! i have a good sense of humour, i can ramble on (not that you'd have noticed if i didnt say...!!!) but i mean well and love making new friends, discovering new things and i can assure you i will post regularly. take care :) x

first post..!

new to this... will take some getting used to!