Guest Post

I am guest posting on Jenna's blog today, so hop on over to A Home Away From Home to see what I have to say about Amazing Mozambique! Whilst you're there, check out some of Jenna's awesome travel moments!

See you there!

xxx

Wedding Pumps

Today I found my wedding shoes! Basic white pumps with a little sparkle that cost me a whole R95 from Chanson; and the most fabulous part of them all...the second I put my feet into them I knew I would be able to dance the night away! Wedding shoes, check!

Recently I was lucky enough to taste these DIVINE cupcakes. Available in all sorts of flavors and toppings and with or without fillings, for a mere R10 - R12 each! Perfect for gifts and parties, these are definitely something I would recommend. The fillings were heavenly and had to be eaten with a spoon! Flavors I sampled were caramel, chocolate mousse, passion fruit and blueberry. My favorite had to have been the caramel. It was simply a beautiful moment for my tastebuds! Rita runs her business from her home based in Ruimsig, Johannesburg but is hoping to move to Clearwater Mall next year. She is one talented lady!

Social/Collective Buying Websites

I'm sure you have all come across some form of social/collective buying website in the last year or two. I am addicted to getting these daily emails in my inbox and scavenging for cash saving deals on eating out, gifts, weekends away, beauty treatments, books etc...

Some things I have bought

Plenty of meals out - all delicious

Wall climbing experience - still to be used

Salsa lessons - in the process of completing 5 lessons and having a ball

Hair cut - very happy

Christmas Lights - still being delivered

All the wine for our wedding - delivered, delicious and saved a ton of money!

This weekend away to Bushman's Hide  where we got engaged :)

So here you go, I have trawled the net, and have compiled this list of all the social buying sites that I can find (in SA) at the moment. I've sifted through them and chucked those that are no longer trading or look a tad shady. I'm sure there are some I have missed but have a look and see what gems you'll find!

The ones I mostly use and have purchased from

Wicount

Groupon

City Slicker

Collective Cow

Others that I have discovered and will be checking out

Ubuntudeal
Daddy's Deals

24 Hours Only

Onedayonly

VuvuPlaza

SA Coupons

CityMob

YouDeal

Whatadeal

Savemedeals

dealclick

citymob

wekidunot

VoucherTrader

Aggregators 

(Collects all deals in one place, meaning you only get one email)

Alldeals

Deal Africa

DealZone

DealScout

So far I haven't met anyone who has had a bad experience with the websites that I use, or has been dissatisfied with their purchase; however there is always a risk and I have found it helpful to check the seller out first to ensure they are legit and to see whether their deal is in fact a good deal, and not their regular prices. 

Advantages of these sites are: they save you time and money by sending emails straight to your inbox and you can shop from your PC. 

Disadvantages are: they can tempt you to buy things that you wouldn't usually buy and forget to use the vouchers before they expire. 

ALWAYS read the fine print on every deal before you buy and put a reminder somewhere so that you will remember to use your voucher before it expires.

Let me know if you have had any bad experiences and also if you know of any other great websites like these.

Happy shopping!

Time-saver: Summer Couscous Salad

This was delish!

So, last night I decided to get creative and make something new and healthy for dinner. I ended up throwing together this Summer Couscous Salad (BBC GoodFood's Simple Summer Food).

Not only was it healthy, vegetarian and delish, it was all done in under 30 minutes. A fab time-saver!

Here's the recipe (serves 4)

250g/9oz couscous

250ml/9fl oz boiling water or vegetable stock

400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1-2 tbsp vegetable or olive oil

300g/10oz courgettes/baby marrows, sliced at a slant

300g/10oz small vine-ripened tomatoes, halved

250g pkt halloumi, medium slices

For the dressing

125ml/4fl oz olive oil

3 tbsp lime/lemon juice

2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

2tbsp chopped fresh mint

1/2 tsp sugar

What to do

1 Tip couscous into a bowl, add the boiling water/stock and stir, cover the bowl and allow to sit for 5 min. Mix all of the dressing ingredients together. Fluff up the couscous with a fork, stir in the chickpeas and half the dressing. Pile onto a large serving dish. 

2 Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan, fry courgette slices over high heat for 2-3 min until dark golden. Drain on kitchen paper. Fry tomatoes on high heat for another couple of min. Add to couscous. 

3 Fry halloumi for 2-3 min until crisp and sizzled brown. Pile on top of the couscous and pour over the remaining dressing.

Enjoy!

PS Great for work lunch - tastes even better the next day :)