Back to Basics

Instagram collage 

A new blog layout...again.

I have reverted back to basics with my blog. Simple and no nonsense.

This blogging caper has reaffirmed what I always knew about myself..I like to keep it simple.

Simple doesn't hurt my head!

Annie xx

Issues

Hello everyone.
Well it's almost lunchtime in my neck of the woods and I've just wasted most of the morning sorting out social media stuff.
My twitter account was hacked and after some consideration I have deactivated that account. Will I return to twitter...frankly I'm not sure.
Then I needed to change passwords etc on other social media accounts and boy it is tedious. This first world social media drama has me thinking seriously just what social media I really need in my life. Over the last several months I have been contemplating which aspects of my on line life need simplifying so my rambling today is just me finally thinking out loud and I suppose this mornings effort has triggered this post. And no! I'm not caving in to the imbeciles out there, on the contrary.
Even though the dilemma I faced this morning is not the end of the world I feel rather cross how certain characters use peoples accounts to be nothing more than vexatious and annoying.

I have decided to keep posing here before I venture on holidays and use the time away to contemplate the direction I need to settle on regards my involvement in social media. One thing I do know is that above all else Instagram is the ants pants and my favourite medium.
I started a FB page to be a sister to this blog and I am feeling my way, I needed to try that medium to decide the direction Red Roses and Crystal would veer.

So on that note.....Have a lovely day friends. A little bit of  retail therapy sounds good to me right now!!

Annie xx

Thank You

Thank you one and all for making my first blog anniversary special.

The lovely comments you posted made my heart sing.

Annie xx

Happy 1st Birthday Red Roses and Crystal Hip Hip Hooray!

Well my dear lovely readers I made it!
Today is exactly one year since my foray into this blogging biz and can I just say..I have learnt stuff I never ever realized I could learn!
Blogging has taught me very valuable skills and brought insight into human nature. The blog love swirling around me is amazing (now if I allowed anon/unmoderated comments it may be different but I don't have the inclination to deal with nasty folk). This is my Happy space.

Blog Love...the friends I've made are exceptional women, both in real life and online and for this I'm truly grateful. Another thing I've learnt is that fellow bloggers/readers 'get it'. They understand the appeal and what keeps us churning out our thoughts in this crazy world of technology. Now I've experienced many thoughts of 'why why why am I writing a blog'? To this day I'm not totally sure and have no idea if this foray is going to be a permanent part of the rest of my life but for now it's a hell of a ride and when I look at my little blog I see something I've created and feel just a tad proud.
On the whole this caper has been a thoroughly enjoyable hoot but I have witnessed the vicious side of blogging when a dear real life blog friend endured cyber bullying over many months. Nasty vile vicious stuff. A valuable life lesson...be mindful of wolves in sheeps clothing.



Now for something especially wonderful, as well as my bloggy birthday this weekend my family celebrated my dear Mum's 84th Birthday. Love my Mum to bits because she is a real trooper and she taught me the meaning of stoicism. My little family spent the morning visiting at her care facility with cake (only one candle, thought 84 might be overdoing it and set off the smoke alarms) and presents.
Family is very precious.

So once again thank you one and all for tuning in to my ramblings.
To my family and blog pals who give me encouragement.. you Rock!
Reaching this milestone has made me Happy.

Hugs
Annie xx

A New Lipstick and Hauling Out the Heavy Arsenal

I promised to tell you about my new lipstick purchase.
After reading a style post from Alexandria Emporium I convinced myself that yes siree I could sure do with a brand new colour. The lovely lady behind Alexandria Emporium is M. I feel comfortable following her suggestions because she obviously enjoys sourcing and conducting reviews on quality products with a good dose of common sense thrown in.

So I hot footed it to the Estee Lauder counter, chatted with the sales assistant and settled on 01 Stay Rose from their Double Wear Stay range. I have used EL products over the years and love them. This lipstick is divine to use, creamy and easy to apply although I personally prefer the use of a lip brush for even coverage and a definite neat line.



Which brings me to the following photo. My new lipstick and I went out to dinner with Mr red roses so I asked him to aim for a from the nose down shot (do tell.. are your partners used to you whipping out the camera at every opportunity?)
Anyway after noticing the wrinkles around my mouth I thought ekk! You see my face underwent brutally intense chemotherapy skin cancer treatments, not to mention having several BCC's surgically removed, and my skins elasticity has suffered. Since the treatments I've used natural organic skincare to heal and nurture but now I'm thinking I will use the heavy arsenal ie. the hydrating and firming serums which are sitting in my vanity waiting, pleading to be used up. Will my favored top gun treatments help restore my beauty youth elasticity. I have no idea, chances are no..but I may as well give it a shot and in the process at least feel a little more proactive in combating this aging business.
My early past life was spent working in the beauty industry and like it or not the art of looking presentable is etched in my DNA. I don't lose sleep over getting older but I'm sure as hell going to go down fighting.

This week, thanks to M I shall be checking out the new range of BB creams coming onto the market.
Dior sounds nice..
xx

A Bon Voyage Soirée

I had the pleasure of hosting a little gathering of blog friends to raise a glass and farewell our friend A-M who is venturing to New York next week to attend a blog conference and take in the sites of this grand city along with a side trip to the Hampton's...swoon.
So...between myself, Faux Fuchsia, The Distressed Mother and A-M of The House that A-M Built (these beautiful ladies are on my blog roll over yonder) we ate for the nation, sipped mellow French bubbles and chatted and laughed until long after the cows came home.

I love to entertain family and friends in my home. Plus it gives me the chance to serve tasty/naughty delectables. A sure fire winner is Baked Brie served with toasted sourdough bread, quince paste, cranberry sauce and flaked almonds. To die for!

I dashed off a few quick photos on my phone during festivities and here they are. Even my precious little pooch likes to participate and glam up.

A truly lovely evening....

Annie xx

A Few New Pretties

Don't you love finding a few little additions for your home?

I do! 

A few blog friends and I recently enjoyed morning tea at Thea and Sami's screen printing studio and these beautiful linen place mats and fish design tea towels came home with me. 

Many thanks for your wonderful hospitality Thea.

Then this morning I popped into the sale at du Monde and found this gorgeous Buddha which will enhance our outdoor entertaining area (when it's finally completed!) plus a lovely floral cushion which jumped into my arms. A home can never have too many cushions.
It was a real pleasure to visit your store again Daryl.

Adding a new pretty into my abode gives me great pleasure and I just know I will be very happy with these latest finds from two very talented Brisbane based designers.

Annie xx

Pink Slippers and Rumination

Rumination

1. To turn a matter over and over in the mind.

2. To chew cud.

How in the devil's name is this word and it's meaning associated with a photo of pretty pink slippers you ask?

My gorgeous new slippers are the perfect foot attire when sitting in my rocking chair to Ruminate. Mr red roses informs me I ruminate a lot. Maybe chewing some cud might be beneficial although I'll keep that up my sleeve for desperate times.

For several weeks (probably more) I have toyed with the direction of this blog and how I need to proceed. Often I have wavered with throwing in the towel like all bloggers who are finding their own unique path and not because I run dry of ideas but dithering over HOW often do I want/need to post. The direction I'm journeying along has become apparent to me and herein lies a dilemma. My creative side is nudging me to be more prolific with posting with emphasis on a photo to convey my thoughts because I'm no wordsmith. Sure I can string a sentence together but if I'm honest I find composing time consuming and laborious and I truly admire bloggers who write so eloquently (and probably don't do a gazillion drafts with endless checks in the process).

Changing to a different format like Tumblr was considered but my kids and a couple of wise fellow blog friends advised I can still mould my blogger blog into what I desire and I ran the risk of losing my connection with my blog readers which didn't appeal.

A part of my blog journey has been to answer all comments because I appreciate and value the effort my readers take to do this. There are literally thousands of blogs circulating so to capture the dear folk who stop by RRC astounds me. The rapport I've built up with many of you since commencing the blog last August has brought me untold joy and I certainly don't wish to lose this camaraderie.

I guess what I'm trying to say is if I step up my input into this blog I may not have time to answer comments as frequently, sometimes not at all? Also I want/need to find time to follow and comment on my favourite blogs which is important to moi. Truly there just isn't enough hours in a day and I suppose we each need to discover what works best for ourselves.

Even as I waffle here about this issue I'm feeling overly dramatic but I would be sad if any reader felt I had lost interest in what they had to say. Far from it, I read every comment twice before publishing and again after publishing. Your words make my day!

Finding the quirky angle or beauty in a photograph brings me a silly amount of joy and I'm revelling in this. Who knew! 

The Instagram app on my iPhone has become addictive due to the fact it is quick, easy, followers can easily leave a comment or push the Like button. Instant gratification which has lead me to question the merits of blogging for me personally. So much so I find I'm taking photos that could be displayed to perhaps better effect on this blog. I'm no photographer as such..heck my hand-me-down SLR is still on auto, I don't use any whizz bang features or tricks and I still haven't learnt how to crop. *Note to self...Read the Manual Annie.

Finding something to snap helps me focus on the beauty in my life and surroundings plus it's also a great stress reliever and stress is front and centre in my life at the moment. My husbands workplace is going through very turbulent times and I have a health condition I need to get my head around. 

I do feel like I'm waffling now so I hope you get what I'm saying. Basically I'm going to attempt to bombard you with more frequent succinct posts which hopefully are entertaining.

Well that's the plan! I live in hope.

Now if all this talk of Instagram wets your appetite please don't ask me how to set it up to link to your blog from your smart phone because I took the lazy easy option and asked my incredibly smart son to install it! However you can visit here where Beth has written a post on how to set up the gadget-thingamy-whatsit.

For those not familiar with the workings of my Instagram sidebar just place the cursor over a photo and a brief description appears then click on the picture for an enlarged vision. Each day I usually place a couple of pictures of whatever takes my fancy. 

Fun fun fun!

Righto then I'm off to boil the jug for a cuppa and contemplate reorganising my wardrobe. A far bit of cajoling is happening to get my daughter on board to do the deed for me!

Take care one and all...

Annie xx

An Award and some Blog Love

To my surprise I was very kindly given a blog award by The Silver Bunny.
After I sent off a reply to Silver Bunny to accept I remembered that last December I was also handed The Liebster Award which set off a Oops! am I being greedy moment, but I quickly decided to accept graciously in the manner with which SB bestowed the award. After reading through the stipulations I realised that perhaps I should have pasted the tag on my blog as an indication of being a previous recipient (which I may add I've tried to add to a gadget thingy with no luck).

So enough of my rambling and I shall plough full stem ahead and share some blog love.

The Silver Bunny is a new kid on the blogging block but already she is gaining a faithful following of readers revelling in her musings about life. I guarantee you will be entertained.

Liebster is a German word meaning "dearest" and the award is given to bloggers with fewer than 200 followers.

The award has a few stipulations:

1.  Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.
2.  Reveal your five blogger picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3.  Copy and paste the award on your blog.
4.  Hope that people you have sent the award to forward it on to their favourite bloggers.

Here are the five blogs which I have chosen to nominate and I trust you will enjoy visiting these charming and entertaining blogs. I certainly do!

A Welsh Girl in Australia

Fifi's Fabulous Things

Red Phoenix Style

McCarthy Designs


The Distressed Mother


Quite co-incidentally these blogs are all winging their way to you from Australia  xx