Gem and Jo's Tea Time

Well hello there, today we are going to be super sophisticated and show you guys our favourite teas! Yum!
Since about January, both of us have been really into tea, from green teas to black teas. We love all sorts of flavours and brands!
Here are some of our favourites! (these are not in any order).

Gem's Picks    
1. Tetleys Original blend

I love me some black tea and ever since I was a child my mam has always bought Tetleys! I like to make it with boiling water, stir for 1-2 mins, add 2 spoons of sugar (it's where I get my sweetness from) and a good heap of milk! 

I usually buy mine from Tesco and they nearly always have extra free packs!









2. Twinings Mint Green Tea

My recent discovery of green tea slowly turned into an obsession! I absolutely love this tea, the mint makes everything feels so fresh!! And if you have a cold it works really well to open your chest up and makes it easier to breath! Perfect for this coming winter! 

I make mine with boiling water and a dollop of cold water to cool it a little, then I leave the bag in for 2-3 mins, take it out and enjoy! 

I buy mine from Tesco (They even have it on 2 for €3.00!!)








3. Earl Grey Green Tea.

This green tea is just lovely! The slight hint of lemon makes it so refreshing to drink and is made the same way as the mint one above! (A spoon of sugar or honey helps to dull the strong aftertaste!) I buy this brand from Aldi which means its really inexpensive!

4. Twinings Fruit Blend in Strawberry and Raspberry.

This is my ultimate summer tea! It is so refreshing, hot or cold! 

I make my iced strawberry tea using:

• 5 tea bags (made using a mixture of boiled water and cold water)
• a lot puréed strawberrys (no pips)
• caster sugar (sweetened to your preference)!

Leave it in the fridge for a couple of hours, stir and enjoy with one of those fancy little umbrellas!
Perfect for garden parties!
I buy mine from Tesco (These are on 2 for €3.00 too!!)








Jo's Picks 

1. Heath & Heather, Green tea and lemongrass. 

This tea not only tastes great with a light citrus flavour, it also combines the benefits of both green tea and lemongrass.
I brew this tea with boiling water and steep for about 1-2 minutes. I then add a bit of cold water so that I can drink it without scalding the mouth off myself.
Find it here
                                                                                    Buy it here


2. Twinings Cranberry Green tea. 

This tea is great if you want green tea but are in the mood for something a bit sweeter. This is also great if you want to start drinking green tea but are finding plain green tea a bit sharp. It's super yummy!
I brew this tea with boiling water and steep for about 1-2 minutes, and then add a little cold water.
Find it here
Buy it here
                                                                                    I bought mine from Tesco here 





3. Twinings Pineapple & Grapefruit Green Tea

 This tea just tastes like a tropical island. If you like citrus(y) flavours and feeling like you're lying  in the sun listening to the waves as tropical birds fly through the air, then this tea is for you. It does all that and even has the benefits of green tea. Can't get much better than that! And trust me, living in Ireland, you can do with a bit of tropical every now and again.
I brew this tea with freshly boiled water and steep for about 1-2  minutes (while wearing a sun hat and sunglasses!!).I then add a bit of cold water (seeing a trend here?).
Find it here
Buy it here
I bought mine from Tesco here



4. Barry's Tea Gold Blend. 

If you didn't know it already tea is huge in Ireland, especially black teas like this one. This one is without a doubt my favourite black tea.
I brew this with boiling water and steep for about 1-2 minutes giving it a stir. Add a bit of milk and you have a warm hug in a mug. Seriously nothing beats it for comfort. Dip in a chocolate digestive or a Kitkat and it's heavenly!
Find it here
Buy it here
I bought mine from Tesco here

Thanks for reading and we hope you enjoy these teas as much as we do!! If you have a favourite tea let us know in the comments and don't forget to tell us how you like to brew it! That's the fun part!
Until Next Time! 

Gem and Jo's Summer TV Picks

Everybody loves a little television so today we decided to show you guys our favourite TV shows that we're watching at the moment! Take a look:

Gem's Picks

1. Chasing Life (ABC Family)

Photo: ABC Family

This is Gem's favourite new show! Even though the main character, April Carver, has terminal cancer, the show manages to be quite uplifting and focuses on how April can't focus on her illness because of work, family and life in general! There is amazing chemistry between the cast and it seems to be a real hit among the online community. A definite must-watch!
Favourite Character: Beth (April's best friend, also seriously sassy)
Airs: Tuesdays @ 9 pm









2. Finding Carter. (MTV)

Photo: MTV

This is a brand new show, with only 2 episodes aired so far, however from what we've seen it is gonna be a big hit among teen audiences! It focuses on a young girl who finds out her 'mother' had kidnapped her when she was three, she is then thrown back to her family and expected to be happy, not the case! The main character, Carter, is feisty, mischievous and determined to hurt her biological mother for ruining her life! Having only seen a couple of episodes Gem can't really tell how good this show is but she'll be watching the next episode for sure.
Favourite Character: Carter
Airs:  Tuesdays @ 10pm



3. Rookie Blue (Global TV/ABC)

Photo: Global Tv

Gem has watched this show since it started and absolutely loves it! The cast are amazing, the story lines are amazing and this show in general is amazing! It always keeps you on your feet and keeps you guessing! The main character Andy, is forever getting herself in trouble and this latest season (5) is keeping that pattern! The past few episodes have been centered around her attempt to train a rookie officer and the consequences of her actions.
Favourite Character: Gail Peck
Airs: Wednesday @ 10pm




4. Covert Affairs (USA Networks)

Photo: USA Network

Again Gem has watched this one since it began 5 seasons ago! It's all about a spy and her attempts to keep her life in order all while secretly serving her country. Season 4 was all sorts of exciting and season 5 seems to be set up for the same! With even more secrecy and a life threatening health issue, Annie is fighting international crime in some seriously awesome shoes!
Favourite Character: Annie Walker
Airs: Tuesdays @ 10 pm








5. Teen Wolf (MTV)

Photo: MTV

This is another hit tv show from MTV! Scott McCall and his supernatural buddies are setting out yet again to fight the other worldly creatures that always want to destroy Beacon Hills. At this stage practically everyone in the town knows the guys are wolves, however a new student and a hunter less (RIP Allison, *sob*) this season seems to make this season just as dramatic as the last with some scary, mouthless man/thing thrown in for good measure! This is not for the easily scared though, it can get quite gory!
Favourite Character: Malia (She literally has no clue!)
Airs: Mondays @ 10 pm







Jo's Picks

1. Criminal Minds

Photo: CBS

This Show has been one of Jo's favourites for years now. Already finished their 9th season and still going strong, this program follows the BAU team in the FBI and their many cases.Each member of the team brings their own personality to the show and makes the audience not only interested in the cases but in the development of the team itself.  This program is
not for the faint of heart however as each episode, although compelling does contain violence in one manner or another.
Favourite Character: Penelope Garcia
                                                                                       Airs: Wednesday @ 9pm

2. Once Upon A Time

Photo: ABC

Jo has really been loving this show recently. Going into it's fourth season this show tells of fairy tale characters that have been transported into the real world. If you were someone who loved fairy tales as child (like Jo), then you will love this as it gives them a bit of a twist. The show doesn't even leave any fairy tale untouched and has even just cast Georgina Haig to portray Frozen's Elsa in the upcoming season.
Favourite Character: Killian Jones AKA Hook (He just has a swagger about him).
Airs: Sundays @ 8pm







3.  New Girl

Photo: Fox 

This Show has without a doubt been one of Jo's favourites ever since it's first episode. Now getting ready for it's fourth season, this show follows the lives of Jess and her four male roommates. None of the Characters seem to have anything really figured out and that's what makes the show so brilliant. If you need a good laugh this is where you are going to find it. The script is hilarious and each character brings something different to the show.
Favourite Character: Schmit (He has the best one liners)









Thanks for reading!Let us know what shows you are loving in the comments, oh and don't forget to subscribe!  Until next time.

Gem and Jo's Polish Picks.

So we painted our nails again (after the lake water during our camping trip took all the polish off!) and we decided to show you guys what we're wearing. Take a look:

Jo's Pick:

Jo has been loving blue nail polish this summer, and decided to paint her nails with Rimmel London's Salon Pro nail colour with LYCRA, in the shade Nymph. This nail polish is part of the Kate Moss collection and is available in 40 different shades.


                                     

 This nail polish has a great shine, (even without a top coat) with a salon gel finish and the teal colour really pops on the nails. The product itself is super easy to apply and isn't streaky at all. Two coats is all you need for an opaque look, however if you have longer nails that grow past the finger, a third coat may be needed. The formula dries super quick and doesn't chip easily.

This product can be found at most drugstores for around £4.50 or €6.50. Jo purchased her's from boots for €6.49. Check it out here. Buy it here. 

Gem's Pick

                                         

So Gem used Esteé Lauder's Pure Color nail lacquer in Le Smoking (B13). It's a deep red in the bottle, however the first coat on your nails does look kinda fuschia-ish. 

The polish itself is an absolute treat to apply! It's really smooth and silky and doesn't streak, however it does stain the sides of your fingers a little if you apply it in a big mess like Gemma does. Hence the reason her nails look awful in these pictures. Oops. 

This polish is often given in the sets that Esteé Lauder give away with certain purchases and there are a ton of different shades! Gem is trying to collect them all! It can also be bought by itself either in stores or online! 

Take a look Here. 

Gem's ring seen in this picture is from Pandora and can be purchased Here for €49.00 and there is a whole range of matching products available. 

Thanks for reading! Until Next Time! 

Gem and Jo Take on Clouds

For the past few years Gem has been obsessed with anything weather related and this weekend she could not take her eyes off the skies! The clouds were really beautiful and the sunsets blew us away.

Here are some of Gem's favourite pictures she took this weekend!

Here's a glimpse of the camping site we stayed on too!

This one is Gem's favourite! Contrail clouds rule!! 

Bonus Round!!!!!

Here is Gemma's absolute favourite picture. She took it around February this year and it has been her screensaver ever since! 

Altocumulus Standing Lenticularis! 

Thanks for reading and we hope you enjoyed this post! If you have any cloud or weather pictures send them to us on Twitter @gemandjo. We love to hear from you guys!

Until Next Time! 

p.s. Gem would really appreciate it if none of these pictures were taken or copied from this site. Gracias!  

Gem and Jo Take on Camping

So this weekend we went camping! We apologise for the lack of updates but we had zero signal where we were! 3 whole days without internet or phone, it was truly shocking stuff!

We went to a place in Athlone, County Westmeath, called Lough Ree (East) Caravan and Camping Park, where Gem's parents have a caravan and boats to use during the summer. You can check out the park Here. It's a really pretty little place with direct access to the lake, which leads onto the River Shannon and isn't too far from Athlone town. 

Here's views of the lake from the park:

There's a beautiful, unique sunset there every night! It really is a gorgeous lake!

And there's always some ducks hanging around! 

When we arrived we set up our tent, which we bought from Halfords for an absolute steal, it included 2 airbeds and 4 sleeping bags and even torches!! If you're thinking of going camping you should check out their selection of tents and camping equipment Here.

We spent all of Saturday swimming and kayaking, occasionally getting rained on but we didn't care as long as the thunder and lightening stayed away!!
Saturday night we took a trip to the local pub called The Dog and Duck! This place is an absolute gem! It is great craic and serves AMAZING pizza! (Pizza and a pint for €10, you wouldn't get that anywhere else!) Check them out here.
The awesome thing about this pub? It is literally right outside the campsite, no need to pay for a taxi!

Sunday, of course we went swimming again but we also took a trip into Athlone town via the River Shannon!
Here's the course we took:

We followed the red line seen on this map!

And here's Jo driving us to Athlone:

The route from the campsite to the town is beautiful, full of scenery and there are plenty of ports to stop in before you get there if you wanted to and there are almost always people water-skiing so you get to watch that too! 

In Athlone we stopped for some lunch from a local take away called Genoa Cafe, which has been in Athlone since the 1940's!

The food was delicious and there was plenty of it so we decided to share some with a few ducks that were hanging around! We ended up having about fifty seagulls, ducks and swans surrounding the boat! We figure ducks must have some sort of telepathy because they were arriving from all over the place, it was kinda nuts!

This is only some of them, there were so many!!

Before we left the town centre we had a bit of fun, pretending to be part of the Titanic! 

And because it had finally become sunny, we took some pretty pictures of the town!

It was a brilliant weekend full of laughter, rain, swimming and brilliant people! If you're looking for a campsite to pitch a tent or park a caravan in, you should take a look at Lough Ree (East) Caravan Park. The manager's name is John! Pack some wetsuits and you're guaranteed to have a great time!

Or if you prefer to stay in town, the Radisson Blu hotel is right on the River Shannon (Gem stayed there before and says it is gorgeous!) and there are plenty of different river cruises you can take to see the area:

River Run Cruise

Viking Tours Ireland

You can also rent a cruise boat for a weekend and travel the Shannon yourself, there are plenty of companies to choose from: take a look here!

P.s. we're pretty sure we weren't camping, we think we were 'glamping' (glamorous camping'). 

Thanks for reading! Until Next Time!!

Gem and Jo's June Favourites Video.

Hey everyone, here's the youtube video of our June Favourites. There's also some bloopers of us acting the fools for you to enjoy (Jeans were ripped in the making of this video). For more information check out our corresponding blog post! Oh and don't forget to be wonderful and subscribe!

Until Next Time!

Gem and Jo's June Favourites.

So today we decided to show you guys what we have been loving this past month. For more details on these products be sure to check out our youtube video, oh and don't forget to subscribe!

Jo's Favourites:

Clean & Clear Morning Energy Skin Brightening Facial Scrub: 
I have been loving this facial scrub this past month. It is great for my acne prone skin and I've found that my skin has been looking a lot better since I've started using it.
This can be found at most drugstores and supermarkets for about €4.99
Check it out here
Buy if from boots here

  John Frieda Fizz-Ease Spray Gel:
 This product is great for those us who have frizzy hair    and works a treat when styling. Also it acts as heat        protection. Again this product can be found at most       drugstores and supermarkets for around €7.99.
 Buy it from boots here

 Victoria's Secrets Aqua Kiss Fragrance Mist:
I have been wearing this fragrance Mist all month.
It is a soft scent with tones of rain-kissed freesia and and fresh daisy , although it is not overly floral.
This can be found in Victoria's Secret stores, or if you live in Ireland, Dublin airport for around €12.00
Check it out here 











Aussie Miracle Colour Insurance Leave in Conditioner:
If you have colour treated hair you know that it can get quite dry. We found that out this past month when we dyed the ends of our hair. This product is great for adding moisture, detangling and helping colour last longer in your hair.
It can be found at most drugstores and supermarkets for around €6.00
Check it out here
Buy it from boots here










Iseree Refreshing facial wipes for normal to combination skin:
These wipes are full of moisture and make taking off waterproof makeup a breeze.They are also quite thick and for under €2.00 a package, they are an absolute steal. These wipes can be found at Lidl stores.








Rimmel London Scandaleyes retro glam mascara:
This mascara is great for both lengthening and volumizing. It's also super black. I usually wear waterproof mascara because I have quite oily skin and normal mascara tends to smudge, but this didn't at all and it was super easy to get off.
This can be found at most drugstores for about €9.00.
Check it out here
Buy it from Boots here










Gem's Favourites 

Garnier Moisture Match for Combination to Oily Skin: 
This mattifying face cream is absolutely brilliant! It really helps to dull down shine and lasts all day long! It can be worn alone or under your make-up and smells great!
It feels almost like a serum but dries in really well, we definitely recommend this one!
Find it Here

Esteé Lauder's Pure Color Lipstick: 
This product is amazing! Gem has it in about 6 different colours and they are all beautiful and long lasting! This particular colour is Nectarine Shimmer (Number 26) and was part of a set that was on offer this past Christmas! Esteé Lauder are brilliant for their sets and giveaways!
Find it: here

Esteé Lauder's Advanced Night Repair Serum: 
This is the small bottle which was free in a set when you bought two other products, it was totally worth it! This serum works miracles! Applied after you wash and cleanse your face, it instantly brightens and evens your skintone and Gem has even found that it has evened out here acne scars!
Honestly a brilliant product and worth the investment, a large bottle would last you forever!!
Find it: Here

Esteé Lauder's Advanced Time Zone Night:
This is a line reversing and wrinkle creme but Gemma is slightly worried about the future! It's applied after the repair serum and leaves your skin feeling refreshed and toned! This too is a miracle worker!
Find it: here

Boots Essentials Cleansing Wipes: 
These are great little wipes! For such a cheap price, there are a generous amount in the pack and they smell gorgeous! They are quite moist and take off make-up really well! Boots almost always have them on 3 for 2!
There is a whole range of products that go along with these wipes!
Find them: here

So there ya have it, Our June Favourites! Hope you liked it and we hope you try some of these products out for yourself! If you have already tried them, let us know what you think in the comments below! 

Until Next Time!